The States and Union. [volume] (Ashland, Ohio) 1868-1872, 1870-11-16
A Horrible Story.

.--... -tHt - t.-.. |.t 49,
From the little village of Rocka-
way, situated among the hills of New
Jersey, and consisting principally of
the houses of well-to do miners of the
iron mines of the district, comes a
tale Of horror; the equal of which has
seldom been written. A Star report
er, Immediately on hearing of the
case, visited the scene, and found that
atrocities unthought of had indeed
been committed.
George Lego; a miner of some
means, and the owner of a nice house
and some ground OUTSIDE the limits of
the village, is the father of what was
once a fine girl of IA years of age,
but now is but a shattered wreck OF
her former self. In the month of
May last, this girl. whose name was
Charity, and who is described as hav-
ing been short of her age and small in
stature, bnt otherwise of mor than
ordinary intelligence, left a friends
house where she had been visiting,
some three miles from that of her IA
ther, AMI started for a walk across the
mountains to her home. From that
day all traces of her were lost, and
though the neighbors turned out In
force, and the woods for miles round
were searched through, and with dogs
no trace of the missing girl could be
found. 1t was at length supposed
that she bad fallen into some now un-
used mine, and that all hopes of ever
seeing her again were abandoned by
her parents.
On Wednesday of last week, while
Mrs. Lego was engaged in her house
hold duties, a fearful looking object
entered the house, and, approaching
Mrs. Lego, said, "Mother." Mrs.
Lego at first was fearfully frightened
at this strange apparitiop, end it vas
some time before she could believe
that the wretched and fearful looking
creature before her was indeed her
long lost daughter. She was dressed,
or rather addressed, IN afew remnants
of what had been in May last an old
calico dress, no shoes o stockings on
her feet, mol was there covering to
her head save the masses OF dirty and
uncombed hair, which had evidently
not seen comb or water for nearly a
year. The few rags that hung about
her served but to make palmer her
nakedness, while huge sores and. fes-
tering spots were seen on her limbs
and all over her body. Swarms of
arful little pests, the friends of the
unclean, were about the wretched child
while to crown her misery she was dali
I've Expecting to become a mother
After the first passing away Of as
tonishment, Mrs. Leggo's heart warm
ed toward her child, and after q bath
and some medical attendance, she
was placed comfortably in bed. On
food being set before her, she ate
ravenously, not Using knife or fork,
but eating from her hands, and clutch
ing the food as does a monkey. Il
On her fathers arrival home he de-
manded her story, which she refused
to give, but, on a threat of being
turned out of doors, she made known
to him a tale of wrong received at the
hands of a neighbor which drove the
English blood of her father into the
heats of ungoverned rage. Her story
impossible as it may in these
enlightened days, is still strictly true,
as careful investigation has since
proved. On her way through the
woods that afternoon in May Charity
Leggo met a worthless loafer named
Bill Estell, the son of the next door
neighbor to her father, and whose IA
ther is a highly esteemed and worthy
farmer of the vicinity. Estell, after
some little conversation, made certain
proposals, which being1ndignantly re-
jected, he eoolly knocked his victim
down and violated the person of the
child. He then kept her with him
by force in the woods during the night
and the next day, by fair promises
persuaded her to accompany him to,
Newark. Here for a couple of weeks
she resided, occasionally visited by
Estell, who, while at Rockaway in the
intervals, was working with his neigh
bors to, find the lostsgirl Ia the woods
and seemingly reconciled to her fate
The excitement at home having
abated, the pair removed to Rocka-
way, where In the woods and rocks,
100 yards in the rear of Estill's IA
theirs house, and about $50 from her
own fathers, Estell scooped out a
species af cave, wherein he pitched his
victim.
It seems impossible to the jewellers
of o II over-crowded cities to- fancy
that a human being could reside for
eight months in a halfwild state in a
cave SO near residences, but such was
the case /; one blaket, or old bed quilt
rather, formed the child's only couch.
She dare not light a fire, and the on
ly food she got was that brought by
Estell in his nightly .visitsto her cave.
The latter was about six feet in diam
eter and about four in hight. The
Star reporter refused to descend Into
it, as the peculiar sing of insects ola
biting character could be plainly
heardstherein. AS the fall came on
the visits of Esteil became less fire.
quent, and the girl often pinched for
food. In her agony of hunger it
could be seen where the bark of
young saplings had been peeled with
her teeth. At length, as the hour of