The post. [volume] (Middleburg, Snyder County, Pa.) 1864-1883, 1873-09-11
A Strange story.
A Freak Of tie late Storm, in Ohio
It DisentomJs Skole,on-A
Soldier ofhe Reyoiution I'M
prisoned for SO Years.

connected with the terrible hurricane
that passed over the Miami valley on
tue evening Of tho "Glorious Fourth. +
On the we'll known "old Andeson
farm, 'iwhose fertile acres extend
to the banks of the historic Miami
stands, on rather stood. a fino oak
grove.-A fortnight since tho ma
Iestic trees stood erect, and intact.
but now two-thirds of them are lyinU
on the ground, hurled down by the
relontless fury of the last great
storm. --Littlc did the storm demon
.think when no set out upon his mis-.
sion of destruction that he was des.
tined to rob II tree of secret which
it has scrupulously kept for eighty.
two years.
Upon the morning subsequent to
tho storm Saturday Mr.. Roger, in
company with II hired man, proceed
cd TO Inquire into tho extent of the
damage inflicted upon his promises.
and the first objective point was the
ruined grove. Tho centre tree OF
tho plat was n noblo oak, the kim
over its follows, aud II tree which had
stood the raynges of time, seemingly
uuscathel, for several ceuturica
This tree hal boon snapped and
iclled by the storm. Upon eypmiu-
NJ tho inI'cn giant for th, purpose .!
asccriainiug its worth as rail timber.
Mr. Ii. ma lc II startling disc VERY.
Tnis was nothing less than tn, fact
that the tree in falling had disg1r.-
cd skeleton.
Tho bones were disconnected. VEL
low with age, scattered over several
square feet oi pasturagc. The skull
was almost intact ; nll the teeth save
two werc still in their places, and
there was scar on the left parietal
bone which looked Ike tho memcnto
oi some fierce cavalry charge. The
humorous OF the right arm was shit
tered, and save the three defects lust
mentioned, tho sbc 'clon when put
together was without bicmish
Tho tree IN falling, | should have
mentioned, was rent a>uudcr-l task
not difficult of accomplishment when
] refer to tho fact that an cxaminl-
ton tuunl that al some remote date
the very heart Of the oak had bcou
cleft by lightning. From u spot
twenty feet irom the ground upward
to the first great fork distance Of
ten ioet--a hollow extended, and
from this cavity the skeleton had
been hurled.
An old fashioned leather pocket or
ruemorandum book lay in rcmarka-
bl, state 0l prc.crvatcn-which ~
doubt had been dropped into the rent
made by the lightning. oud thus been /
preserved while is master dccayci. /
\ few brass buttons Of Old and uniuue |
patterns were found near the memo
randum, but it is with tho latter We
have to deal. This oil leather purse,
entirely moncylcss, cpntoincd sundry !
papers covered with rude pencil inss, I
quite d.ilicnlJ to trace as they were
written 90 the backs Of army passes
AMI military consignment, which da-
loi ns H. back MS lT76.
Mr.. Rogers conveyed he bones tn
his house, and set about to read the /
memoranlum of tho captive of the .
tree. lie read cnou4h TO learn that
the eyes that once shoue in tho now
orhless sockets often boxed upon
Washington in tho heat OF bltllc I
AMI AMID the SHOWS Of Valley Forge;
aud the skeleton when covered with .
flesh aud muscle had struck many .
,tllwart blows for our country.
Tho mans name a. gathered from
the papers was Roger Vlnicrberg,
native OF Lancaster Pa, ani cap.
tain in the revolutionary army. He
WAS an aid to Washington during the
retreat across the Jerseys, and served
a time in ArnoId's headquarters at
West Point Ia l70l he marched
with st Clair against the Northwest
arn indians, aud in tho famous ou-
break Of that General on tho Wabash,
November 3, of the year Just written
ho was wounded and captured, Bur
while being conveyed to che Indian
town at Upper P,qua he effected his
escape, but found himself hard press
ed by his savage fues.
He saw the hollow 10 the oak, and
despite the mansled arm, aud with
4. afI 81 nh hat hAG l.
The giant then, he gained the haven
aud dropped therein.-Thcn came
fearful discovery. lie had miscalcu-
lated the debth Of the hollow, and
there was no escape. Oh, the stmy
old by the diary of the oaks despair
ng prisoner 4! How. rather than sur
render to the torture of tie stake, he
chose death by starvation-how he
wrote his diary 10 tho uncertain light
and the snow
Hero il one entry in tho diary
Nov l0,-Fise days without food
when / sleep / dream of luscious
fruits and flowing streams. The
stars laugh at my misery.-It is
now. freeze while | starve
God, pity mo p
Never was such a record of suffer
ing traced by hnman hand before.
The entries cover period OF eleven
days. and Ia disjointed sentences is
told the story Of st. Glars defeat.
Mr.. Rogers has written to Lancaster
to ascertain if any decendau's Of the
III tated Cantain live !; il 50, they |