The Ashland union. [volume] (Ashland, Ashland County, Ohio) 1854-1868, 1856-12-17
.AsHLAND ASHLAND COUNTY, oH1O WEDNESDAY MORN

telling him about you and little Myrtle
You know the men who volunteered
from here never found any traces of The
saFages.. But the lieutenant says that
about that time and place party of the
Indians were known to have made de-
scent upon two emigrant wagons in the
night where they had camped at the
edge of a prairie. The helpless families
-weysnot dreaming of any danger; for the
saslses had not been troublesome for a
loneg tine; and they supposed .heir near
ness 10 a settlement was sufficient secu-
rity. They murdered the tive men,
hitehed the horses to the wagons, and
drove off with the women and children
until they reached the cover of a deep
forest, where they left the wagons, and,
tying the women to the animals, hur-
ried them off to some secret retreat of
theirs far away from here. The child
may have been thrown aside as burden
some, or dropped by the mother in at
tempting to effect her own escape"
"Were the names of those unfortunate
persons known?" asked Mr.. Fielding,
with great interest. e--
1.-The elder of the two men was called
Parker, believe, as ascertained at the
last village they stopped at. The other
was Sherwood, a young man; and his
wife, they said, was young and very
beautiful"
"Great Heavcn!"
Hugh had turned as pale as death,
and sank upon his chair.
ibid you know them?" asked all, in a
startled tone.
'sI am quite sure they are the same,' -
be said, after some time of agitated ST
lence. s'Poor Myrtle. I believe I nam
ed thee Alright! believe gave thee thy
mothers name"
"What does the lieutenant think has
become of the female captires? Has
no attempt been made to rescue them?"
"Many searches have been organized.
An Indian has been arrested who de.
clares that they we're murdered when il
was found impossible to get them safely
away"
"Circumstances seem to corroborate
his account. There is no doubt that
the awful story is true"
- Il o.l
doubly my own," said Hugh, as he took
the child in his arms. He was evident
ly so stricken with deep anguish that
the young ladies dare not offer their SYM
pathy, but retired almost in silence.
How much Mr.. Fielding suffered that
night will be known only to himself ant
Heaven. The next day he went tc
Wakwaka and sought out the officer who
had communicated the story to Mis-.
Greggs. The substance of the story wa.
corroborated by him; but he said he
doubted if the name of tue younger
couple was Sherwood He had beer
told since that it was Smith ID
But there was something in Myrtle!
| eyes which convinced him that she wa
the child of Myrtle whom once he hac
thought to call his own. Her falsehooC
was forgotten now-only her fearful ant
untimely fate was thought of.
To make assurance doubly sure, b.
wrote back to the East to her friends t,
inquire if she and her husband had emf
grated to the West; and learned in
mournful letter from a relative, tha
they had started for that very city O
Wakwaka, and had not been beard from
since. -t
Mr.. Fielding did not tell them tha
he had child supposed to be the daugh
ter of Myrtle. As the father and moth
er of the young wife were neither G
them living, he thought he had as goot
a claim to her as any one now leftS an
he felt that he could not resign her, a
least for the present Besides, he ha
the benefit of a doubt as to whether the
had really anv claims to this mysteriou
Child of the Prairie. ...--