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ransom notes, ladders, and Chisels Charles lindbergh surveyed the rest of the nursery. in addition to the ominous white envelope on the radiator enclosure just below the windowsill, there were smudges of yellow mud or clay on the chest directly beneath the window and on the floor. While these were likely footprints, they were too blurred to mark the clear outline of a foot. lindbergh also noticed that the southeast window was closed, but the shutters were slightly open. showing a presence of mind and composure that was truly remarkable, Colonel lindbergh ordered the entire household not to touch the envelope or anything else in the nursery. many have criticized this action and blatantly stated that no one would ever be able to restrain himself or herself as lindbergh did. however, lindbergh was known to face adversity without panicking. he flew across the atlantic ocean alone in a plane that most would not ever consider boarding, let alone flying. he worked as a barnstormer and had numerous incidents where he bailed out of his plane and parachuted to safety while the plane crashed and burned. if anyone would have been able to remain calm and rational in a crisis, it was Charles lindbergh. meanwhile, anne lindbergh rushed from the nursery back to her bedroom. she threw open a window and leaned out. she thought for a moment that she heard a cry coming from the nearby woods. elsie, who had followed anne into the bedroom , assured her that it was just a cat. olly Whateley was downstairs when Betty Gow came running toward him. she was obviously upset, and olly knew instantly that something was very wrong. Betty told him that the baby was missing and that the Colonel needed his assistance. olly hurried to the nursery, where lindbergh ordered him to call the sheriff in hopewell. Whateley did as he was instructed. hopewell officer Charles Williamson answered the phone and heard olly Whateley say, “Colonel lindbergh’s son has been stolen. Will you please come at once?” Charles lindbergh then contacted his attorney and friend Colonel Breckinridge in new york and the new Jersey state police.| 7 || 2 | | 8 | hauptmann’s ladder around 10:25 p.m., lieutenant dunn answered the phone and heard the caller say, “This is Charles lindbergh. my son has just been kidnapped.” dunn asked when the child was taken, and lindbergh replied, “sometime between seven-thirty and ten o’clock. he is twenty months old and is wearing a one piece sleeping suit.”1 lindbergh then hung up the phone. lieutenants dunn and Bornmann conferred. dunn thought it might have been a prank, but Bornmann expressed concern that it might be genuine and suggested calling the lindberghs to confirm if it was Charles lindbergh who called. dunn telephoned the lindbergh estate and the same voice from the prior call answered the phone, saying, “hello, this is Charles lindbergh.” having confirmed the veracity of the call, dunn identified himself and said that men were on their way.2 While lindbergh was still on the telephone, anne and Betty Gow began to search the entire house with the exception of the nursery.3 The women frantically opened closets and drawers in the hope that the baby might have wandered off somehow. neither woman really expected to find him. searching the house was simply better than doing nothing. after completing his phone calls, lindbergh again ordered that nothing in the nursery be touched. he grabbed his rifle and, accompanied by olly Whately, went outside to search the grounds. underneath the window, they found impressions in the mud and, about seventy feet away from the house, found the item that made those impressions: a two-piece wooden ladder. The men also found the third piece of the ladder about ten feet farther away. Finding nothing else, they returned to the house to wait for the police. The actions taken by Charles lindbergh and olly Whateley outside the house have been reported quite differently in the books published on this case. some accounts state that olly Whateley followed lindbergh outside and used the car lights to help him search the grounds and found nothing. While they were outside, the first of the police arrived.4 other accounts assert that lindbergh went out alone and walked a few hundred feet along the road, found nothing, and returned to the house. The police arrived while lindbergh was inside.5 most likely lindbergh and Whateley searched the grounds, found the ladder and...

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