Chambers's Journal of Popular Literature, Science, and Art, No. 699 May 19, 1877

"Chambers's Journal of Popular Literature, Science, and Art, No. 699" by Various is an assorted collection of writings that reflects life in the late 1800s. It includes a wide range of subjects, from explanations about society to comments on books, mirroring the interests and problems of the era. Central to the opening pages is the heartbreaking narrative of Charley Ross, a young boy kidnapped in 1874, with a focus on the determined attempts by his father and law enforcement to find him and bring him back safe. The journal recounts the frightening details of Charley Ross's abduction through trickery as two men lured him and his brother with candy. The story captures the family's rising alarm, especially the father's, while authorities began exhaustive searches, attracting widespread public interest. As the story advances, it vividly describes the family's anguish and their awful awareness that this event might be part of a disturbing rise of child abductions for ransom in the United States, a concept almost unknown then. This unfortunate story establishes a tone of deep human exploration, combining elements of crime with extensive social meanings.