Lewisburg chronicle. [volume] (Lewisburg, Pa.) 1850-1859, 1850-08-28
A Tale of Horror.

While travelling a couple OF weeks since,
we heard from the lips of friend one OF
the most heart-rending recitals we have
listened to for long time. He was pu.
off from a steamboat al or near Wolf Is
land, about 25 miles below the mouth Of
the Ohio, for the purpose of collecting a
debt from man living about five miles
in the country, on the Missouri aide, We
think. With carpet bag in his hand, he
had followed a narrow path about three
miles, when he came across small cabin.
Yet "cabin' would not describe the place
of habitation, for such it proved to be. Il
was little dilapidated shed, with no boards
on one side and great crevices on the othe'
sides and in the roof. He would have
passed it BY. bu, moans from the inside
told that it was occupied. Wishing to in
quire his road, he stopped, and stood before
the open side Of the shed. and gazed upon
spectacle, which, as he said, was present
before his eyes days a6erward. and baun-
ted his sleep. We describe what he saw,
as he told us, only saying that strange Us
the story may seem, full reliance can be
placed upon his words.
There was not bed or chair in the shed,
but stretched upon the bare ground lay the
body Of a youthful looking woman, who
had evidently just died. Her form was al
mos, perfect skeleton yet the face was
that oil refined. and beautiful woman. On
her breast lay an infant about months old.
with its mouth TO the breast Of its mother,
and dead. And sitting up in the corner Of
the shed, and staring the traveller in the
face with glazed eyes. was what he thought
another corpse. but life was yet in it. Tie
figure was that ofs girl, apparently about
ten years old. She could not rise to her
feet, and yet she was not sick. She was
literally dying Of starvation By the side
of the woman. and clasping her hand, lay
a man covered with blood and apparently
in dying stale. And to this the filth Of
the room and the half naked condition of
the sufferers. and we wonder moi that the
scene long haunted the observer. He went
in. The girl could not speak. bu, the
man cried water" in feeble voice, and
pointed to the girl, as if to attract the
strangers attention to her. The traveller.
Mr.. j., of Cincinnati, fastened away, taxi
ing with him lin pan. and says he never
ran harder in his life than he did abou,
half mile to a small stream he had passed
and returning, found the man alive, who
eagerly drank the water. and pointing to
the girl said in whisper. "she's starving!!"
Mr.. J. gave the girl water, which revived
her, and she tried to walk. but could not.
He learned with difficulty that there was
a house about mile distant, where he has
tened, but found only negro. While
getting some provisions and returning, the
negro said the Cholera had broken out in
that neighborhood, and the family owning
him had left for the time being-that the
Il,,le girl Of the shed had daily appeared
there for provisions until about three days
pas,-hat the man and woman had been
sick for long lime. &c. On their return,
the man was dying-he lived bu, an hour.
The little girl was revived by food she
said she had been sick herself. and could
not walk to the house for food, that her
mother died the day previous. and the baby
about the same time, and that her father
had tried 10 kill himself when they died. !,
was horrid. The child was taken TO the
house, and the rest OF the unfortunate fam
lily buried. Tho child afterwards stated
her name was Mary Williams, and Mr.. J.