The Lancaster gazette. (Lancaster, Ohio) 1846-1852, 1850-09-06
A TALE or HoRRos. :. While travelling

couple OF Weeks since, we heard from
the lips Of friend one Ut the most heart
rending recilals we have listened to for
a long time. He was put offrom steam
boat at or near Wolf Island, about 25
miles below the thoulh Of the Ohio, for
the purpose of collecting a debt from
man living about FIVE miles back in the
country, on the Missouri side, we think.
With a carpet bag in his hand. he had
followed narrow path hlabout three miles.
when he came across small cabin. Yet
"cabin" would not describe the place Of
habitation. for such it proved TO be. 1t
was little dilspidated shed, with no
boards on one side aud great crevices on
the other sides and in The rouf He would
have passed it by, but means from the in
side told that it was occupied. Wishing
to inquire his road, he stopped, and stood
before the open side of the shed, and
gazed upon spectacle, which. as be said,
was present before his eyes days utter
ward, and haunted his sleep. We des-
cribe what he saw, as he told US, only
saying that strange as 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 youthful looking woman,
who had evidently just died. Her form
was almost perfect keleton; yet the face
was that of are fined and beautiful woman.
On her breast lay an infant about six
months old. with its mouth to the breast
Of its mother. and dead. Ard sitting up
in 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. The figure was that of
girl, apparently about ten years old, She
could not rise to her feet, and yet she was
not sick, She was literally dying of star.
vation! BY the side of the woman. and
clasping her hand, lay man covered with
blood and apparently in dying state.
Add to this the Filth ofthe room and the
halfnaked condition of the sufferers, and
we wonder not that the scene long ham.
ted the observer. He went in. The girl
could not speak, but The man cried "wa-
ter" in feeble voice, and pointed to the
girl, as ifto attract the strangers aiten
tion to her. The traveller, Mr.. J :, of Gin
cinnati, hastened awsy,taklng with him a
tin pan, and says he never ran harder in
his life than lie did about half mile to a
small stream he had passed. On his re.
tuin, he found the man still alive. and
gave him water, which he eagerly dratk
He could then speak in whisper. He
pointed to the girl and said.--" she's starv.
ing" Mr. j. gave the girl some water
which appeared to revive her, and she
tried to talk. but could not. With much
difficulty he learned from the man that
there was house about mile distant.
to which he hurried On lis arrival there
he found only negro.
While getting soms provisions, and has.
tening back with the man the latter in
formed him that the cholera had broken
out in that neighbol hood, aud the f,mily
owning himhad left for the time being. He
said the little girl of the she'd had daily
made her appearance there for provisions
until about three days back thatthe mar
and woman had been sick for a long time
&c. On their return, the man was dying
and lived but an hour. The little girl wa.
revived by food, and beSGre they took hel
away could talk. She said she had been
sick herself, and could not walk to the
house for food, and that her mother dice
the day previous, and the baby about tht
same time, and that her father had triel
to kill himself when they died. 1t wa'
horrid. The child was taken to the house
, and the rest of tho unfortunate famil,
1 buried. The child afterwards stated he
name was Mary Williams, and Mr.. j
. thought from what no could gather, tn,
J family had formerly lived in New Alba
D ny, bu, in what New Albany he coult
not ascertain, more than as the child said
> there were great many houses there
u and it was evidently New Albany,N. Y
i The negro said the family had been iher,
g several weeks; and came directly afle
r his master had left. As there was not
s family in the neighborhood, the perso
j. having also gone whom Mr.. J. wished l.
= see, the girl, who was sick and exhaus
: ted was left with the negro. who promis
]. ed faithfully to attend her. Yet ther
wele but little hopes of her recovery.
: has never been our misfortune to hear
l. more horrible tale of reality than this.
l. EoansUiNe (La.) Journal.