by Carrie Hagen
Letter 16
NEW YORK, August 21.—Mr. Ros: we have heard nothing from yu since we wrote yu about 3 weeks ago. we then told yu if yu had anything to comunicate to us to do it through the New York Herald personals. we have seen nothing but these words (Christian K. Ross, 304 Market street). we know not what to make of that. we have therefor come to the conclusion that yu don’t mean to redeem yu child on the conditions which we proposed. yu must bear in mind we would never agree to any other terms. the fact of yu saying the action must be symultainous is absolutely imposible. we would require at least a few ours to examine the mony and see if it were spurious or all marked up and then but a few ours more would be necessary to place yu child in yu possession for he is not so far off as yu may imagin. the folowing is the way we had intended to return him to yu. we was going to put a labill on his back and take him to a respectable house at night rouse them up. tell them to take this child as directed pay them for their trouble, this arrangement does not me with yu concent so there is no other alternitive left yu. now we demand yu anser yes or now as we are going to urope the 24 Sept and he has got to be disposed of one way or the other by that time. if you say redeem him it has got to be on our terms alone if yu do not answer we shall take it as granted that yu dont mean to pay yu money. we shall act accordingly. address (John New Herald personals.) you are listing to old womans visions and dreams which wil never find yu child. we could have told yu it was useless to go to illinoise to look for charly but yu would not have believed us.
Letter 17
ALBANY, August 26.—Mr. Ros—Your timely answer saved yu child. we had determined if yu did not care to save him we would not swerve one jot or tittle from the fate we had designed for him—not that we delight in blood but it was inevitable with our selves in order to carry out our plan of action yu ask for no more prof that we had him or that we have him—that is right—yu should have prof that we are the identical ones who kidnaped Chaley—we thought that yu were well satisfied that we were the kidnappers—we wil first prove to yu we took Charley— ask Walter if one of the men did not hold him between his legs an partly on his knee with the cloth in front of him while Charley set behind us both entirely out of sight—ask him if he did not want to go up on main road to git fireworks and we told him we would first go to ant Susy’s that she kep a shop we could get them cheaper. ask him if we did not keep givin him pieces of candy as we rode along. ask him if we did not go from your house west to Morton street and then south instead of going towards the depot on Washington lane as it has been stated in the papers these remarks we think are suficient to prove to yu that we are the men who took him if yu have received any other letters headed other than Ros or Mr. Ros they are forgeries, we have sent you 8 or 10 letters in all, if you had accepted the proposition we made yu some four weeks ago yu would now without doubt have yu child safe in yu own house but yu rejected the offer and left us without the means to negotiate with yu. Mr. Ros if yu ever expect to recove yu child yu have got to in a measure rely on our faith. in dealing with us yu must be satisfied that yu child was taken for a ransom. we have set the price and asked the ransom of yu. do yu think if yu paid the ransom once that we would ever ask it the second time. no man would be foolish enough to pay ransom the second time for a thing he had paid for once and did not get. if we wanted more money from yu we would ask it now, instead of asking more we would rather throw off some. but the public have interfered so much in this busines that we are determined every dollar shall be paid or not one cent Yu have asked that the action between us should be symultainous Yu must know from the nature of this business that is impossible—first we would have to give yu Charley when we receive the mony yu git yu child, We might git a bundle of brown paper and a chain around our necks No sir Mr. Ros We must have at least 4 or 5 hours to examine the money to see if yu have delt faithfully with us what we mean is yu must give the mony in good condition unscarified or not at all, then yu have performed yu part in good faith When that is done we have no further use for Charley he has answered the whole end for which we got him and we as vile as we are would be working against our own interests if we did not return him to yu as we promised we only wish it was posible to effect the change symultaniously but as that cant be done yu must accept the best we can offer yu, do yu open this correspondence with the intention to pay yu money on our terms and git yu child or is it the foolish advice of some of yu friends again with the idea of entraping us. do you want to daly along and keep your child month after month living in a place where the strongest could not live over one year. we would not let him unnecessarily sufer but this exteriordary search has made it necessary to keep him where the light of the sun has never shown upon him since the 2d day of July. we have seen Charley about 4 days ago his whole cry is he wants Walter to come see him and he is afraid he wil not go to Atlantic City with his mother. don’t think this is only an appeal to your affection as a farther it is symply the words that he used when we saw him last. Mr. Ros. one word more—do you want to redeem Charley or not on our terms. if yu do yu must make up you mind that the money must be paid in good faith. don’t deceive yu self that if the ransom is not paid that we will set yu child at liberty. we can never do that our whole plan would be frustrated at one blow and our work would come to naught. as yu deal with us so shal we deal with you in return. we saw yu personal in Herald of 26. whatever answer yu have to make to this let it be in Albany Argus no put it in New York herald personals as we wil leave here today and drop this somewhere on OUR WAY to New York. we can see the New York herald any part of the United States.
(Address as be for John.)
P.S.—yu acted wisely in refusing these letters until yu got yu child —if yu had published them, no doubt it would have been the means of sacrificing you child.
Letter 18
NY. Sept 6 –Mr. Ros we cannot see how yu can resist the proof that we have got him notwithstanding Walter’s contradictory story, yu must admit he was taken by some one yu must admit he was taken for a ransom now if we have not got him who has got him—has any one else asked yu for a ransom we think not. mr. percell that benevlent man who offered to pay the ransom now says yu have never lost yu child—we know percell lies because we have positive that we have him and yu have positive proof that yu lost him. Mr. Ros in order to convince yu that we have him yu require some of his cloths sent yu. it was hinted some six weeks ago in one of the editorials to send yu some of Charly cloths in answer to that we said we would never do anything of the kind because we could give an irrestible proof without it—if we sent you any cloths we have got to expres them which we wil never do we don’t know for certain wether his cloths have been saved up to the time we dont go near him often for we have nothing to do with guarding him though we have seen him three or fourtimes since 2d of July we told you in one of our letters that Charley had never been in any way whatever disguised nor at that time he had not been but since then he has had his hair cut short and girls clothes put on him now wether they have kept his cloths or not we cannot say and we cannot send them if they have them the probibility is they have destroyed them for every possible precautionary measure has been taken since we have seen what great efforts have been made to find his place of concealment we were surprised to think yu would make such efferts to find him when we told yu that to search for him yu was only searching for his life and any approach by a detective to his hiding place would be a certain sign for his destruction yu either don’t believe this or yu don’t regard the life of yu child where he is now confined wil be his tomb unles yu bring him out with the ransom yu detectives can never do it your friends who advise yu that we wil set him free should you not ransom him wil be the worst advise yu ever had. your friends yu say ask for more proof that we ever had him they are as foolish as percell for he says you never lost him. your detectives have never had the slightest clue or trace of him since the our he was taken but in order to convince these sceptical friends that we had him and have him we will now give the detectives a s
mall clue to work upon but it will serve no other end only to convince these sceptical friends or yours that we have him. on the night of 2d July at 11 o’clock we passed through Trenton, N.J. Charley lay in my arms asleep. after we had passed about 2 squares up bridge st Charley’s hat drop off and we did not notice it until he woke up and asked for his hat we would not go back for it. you can get this hat by advertising for it there if it is not worn out. if it should be worn out you can find out who found one that night or the next morning. now ask one of your domestics or Mrs. Ros if charley did not have on the afternoon of the first of July a narrow faded pink ribbin tied around his head to keep the hear out of his eyes. if yu find this a fact which we have no doubt yu wil and as it was never dscribed in the advertisement, we think no human being could mention it but the party who took him. if this does not satsfy yu and yu friends that we have him then yu must go unsatisfied. This clue of the hat will end there when you find it and it wil avail yu nothing more. Let the detectives work it up much as they please, the clue will end there we know or we would not told of it. Mr. Ros we don’t know wether yu ever mean to ransom yu child yu certainly dont act much like it. but we do know yu will never get him without it unless you are fortunate enough to ketch us knapping and take him by stratagem. there is not one chance in 10,000 of ever getting him that way. yu must not delude yuself with the idea that if we go to europe this month that we wil set yu child free or take him with us and then will be the time to find him. that wil never be Mr. Ros we have told yu befor if yu ever expect to get yu child yu wil have to ransom him and to the full amount we named. if you deal fair with us we wil deal fair with yu if yu play any tricks with us we shall do likewise with yu. whatever you do with us we shall do likewise with yu. whatever yu do with us yu must do it in good faith or not at all then yu get yu child safe and sound. we shall not keep up this correspondence much longer, whatever yu mean to do must be soon. we see the New York herald every day whatever yu have to say we wil notice it. we are now in lansingburg above Troy New York we dont know where we shall post this letter yet we leave here to-day.
Letter 19
NEW HAVEN, Sept. 23—Mr. Ros.—we did not see yu last answer til to day. we was in new brunswic british province and cold not see the New York herald we went there to se if the law would permit us to make a symultaneous change with yu but we find no such change can be efected with safety to our selves. you ask to transact the bisiness through an attorney this is to absurd to think of for one minute that man does not exist that we cold trust to receive that money but one of our own party and we are not wiling that one of our party shall become recognizable by any living person. as we now stand we can confront any one with impunity and are determined to keep so. if you be convinced that we have him and want to ransom him why did you not agree to our proposition. we have told yu if the money was lost in transit tu us it would be our los should yu folow our instructions and yu get yu child. Mr. Ros we cannot show the child to yu and we cannot give you any more proof than we have; yu must expect this as the only alternitive left you to ransom him or murder him, for one or the other wil and shal take place before many days. Yu as his father have been mor cruel to him than we have. We told yu that his place of concealment was such that no living being could find it and that it was not a fit place for any one to be in the length of time he has been there. We do not keep him there to punish him; your detectives have made it much worse for him than he would be had they not such a close search for him; he has kept his health wonderful considering his close confinement. We do not see him often or even hear from him. The last time we se him he had been ailing with pain from stoppage of urin he would go 24 and 30 ours without making water and then he would cry with pane when he would urinate, but his custodian got him som medicine which helped him. we tel yu positively Mr. Ros his hiding place must be his tomb unless you bring him out with the ransom for we have a settled plan to act upon and we shal never digress from it and that is death or ransom. Yu will find we speak truth in this for once if yu compel us to put him to death yu shall receive a letter in 24 ours after, wher yu wil find his body. as soon as we cop another kid and it wil be a millionaire this time your child must die. we wil then see if he wil be so heartless as to let his child die. you detectives perhaps tel yu that yu wil pay yu money and get no child then but we dont do bisiness in that way we dont want him much longer neither dead or alive. if yu pay for him yu shall have him safe and sound. if not yu shal have him dead. so you can rest assured yu wil get him soon one way or the other. if die he must yu shal se that he has been dead but a few ours when yu git him then yu can thank yu friends for their kind advise. Ros this is the last advise we wil offer yu if yu reject it yu can make up yu mind that the day of grace is forever lost to save your child. Ros if yu want to save yu child yu must comply with our terms and yu yourself be our Attorney for we wil have no other and we are absolutely determined on that point. when yu see fit to change yu money for yu child in the way we direct yu can answer this through the herald personal New York. we shall keep up this unnessary correspondence no longer your asking for more evidence that we have him looks to us as if it was a scheme of Mr. Haines to entrap us, but mr hains will never have that pleasure Mr Ros you must be convinced by this time that no reward however large can effect or influence our party we told yu this at the first and we tol yu how hopelessly it was for yu to search for him when we had taken such great labor to find a suitable place to conceal him and the imposebility for any one to find him in our possession when we have it fixed so we can lanch him into eternity at an instant’s warning, and yet yu consent that a reward shall be offered to induce some one who has no right to approach his hiding place but perhaps yu look upon this as romance or fiction yet fiction is sometimes more stranger than truth. Ros—yu should be your own councilor in getting yu child and then let the detectives council yu how to get us, take our advice for once and se if we do not give you the best council—that is get yu child at any price on any terms we offer yu regardless of all other advise—we have told yu and now repeat it that this thing is drawing to a final crises. Mr Ros when yu conclude to act as our atty and meet us on our terms then yu can answer this as directed we shal henceforth notice nothing else from yu.
Letter 20
NEW BRUNSWIC. September 30. Mr. Ros: yu have at length agreed to our terms. how much better would it have been for yu had yu complied at first. we told you at first there was no other alternitive left yu but to part with your mony or yu child for one or the other yu must, we told yu before it shal not exceed 10 ours from the time we receive the mony til yu receive yu child and yet it may be a few ours longer. we must have time to examine the money to see that yu have not got it secretly marked up. we tel yu for your own interest not to mark the notes in any way whatever for if you break the terms of agreement with us we shal then break it with yu and yu had much better keep your money for we tel yu positively we would not keep our word. we would not liberate the child. but on the other hand if yu come to us in good faith with the intention of parting with yu money for the sake of getting yu child and saving him from death then we pledge ourselves by all the powers that be sacred in heaven and earth yu shall have yu child saf and sound as soon as we can get him to yu with safety to ourselves we think we told yu once how we would return him tu yu. but this is the way we propose to do. we will take him to some ministers house at night put a label on him stating this is Charley Ros take him immediately to 304 Market st phil or washington lane germantown yu will find a sufficient sum in his pocket to pay yu for yu trouble no reward will be paid. we have sent word to his parents stating where he is. Mr. Ros we do not intend the party where we leave him shall see us at all they will be perfect innocent so you should not give them any trouble. we will send you word immediately stating where he is left. but the probability is he will be brought home long before yu the get letter but this will make it perfectly safe and sure for yu to get him. Mr. Ros it is true yu have got tu rely entirely on our honor for the fulfillmen
t of this part of the contract but you can rely with implicit confidence. bad as we are and capable of the blackest deeds yet we have some honer left. your large rewards have in a measure proved this there are 4 of us to divide the $20,000 among and either one of the 4 could went and got the whole amount to himself if he had been without principal. how easy could any one of the 4 went on the sly and had us all coped and revealed where the child was secreted but yu see we have not done it. we have no fear of one another though it were a million dollars. we have told yu for your own interest not tu mark the money which yu intend tu ransom your child with. keep faith with us and we will keep faith with yu and yu shal have yu child safe and sound in 10 or 12 ours. provide yourself with the amount in United Sates notes from 1 tu 10 in denomination. not national bank notes when yu are all prepared with this and are ready to meet us drop a word in the herald New York yu can take as many of yu friends as yu choose but do it quietly if yu want tu get yu child. Mr. Ros first get yu child then let the detectives assist yu. yu see they have not the power to do anything. time has proved this and if yu rely upon them so it will ever prove. Mr Ros put yu child when yu get him on exhibition and yu wil relize all your money back in 6 months for there is not a mother in phila that will not pay a dollar to see him.