The Manitowoc tribune. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1866-1878, 1875-04-29
LOST FOR A LIFE TIME.
& Chapter in American History that is
Stranger than Fiction.

Some thirty years ago John Quincy
Adams attracted considerable attention
in Congress by q strong speech in favor
of a bill introduced by B. A. Bidlack, CT
Pennsylvania, which provided that one
mile square Of the land then occupied
by the Miami Indians, embracing the
house and improvements of Frances
Slocum, should be granted in fee to hel
and her heirs forever. The bill became
Il law, and she occupied this special
reserve until her death in the spring OF
1877.
The history of this woman was re
narkable. She was the daughter Of a
Quaker who lived in the Wyoming Val
ley during the revolution. Several
months after the massacre OF 1778 she
was caught up by party Of 1naraudin 6
Delaware Indians, who got off before
any attempt could be made to rescue
her. She was five years old at this
time. About month later her father
was shot dead by the Indians while at
work in the field near his house. Know
ing that he was gone to his eternal rest
the widow in time Lecame Teconciled to
her loss, but she could never forget her
child, the last sight of which was when
she was in the arms Of brawny Irdian,
struggling and calling piteously upon
-, -, L I,
The sons of Mrs Slocum became
prosperous business men, and after the
clase of the revolution they used every
effort to recover their lost sister. In
1854, two Of them visited Niagara where
a large number of Indians were gather
ed, made dilgen5 inquiries and offered
liberal rewards for any information of
her. They prosecuted the search for
weeks and returned home with the i'm
preston that she was dead.
The mother, however, could not be
persuaded that such was the case, and
four years later the Slocums spent
several months In the west, offering five
hundred dollars to any one who would
give any authentic information of the
fate Of their sister, but their success was
no better than before. A similar expe-
dltion was undertaken in 1877 by four
of the brothers, with the same result.
As in the Ross case, the search brought
numbers of stolen children to light
but none was the one particularly
wanted.
Mrs Slocum never lost faith in hel
daughters existence. She believed she
was somewhere waiting to be clasped
in her arms, and she continued the
search with scarcely any intermissio1
until 1907, when she died, her children
promising her to use every effort to
learn what had become of the little ont
abducted nearly thirty years before
They faithfully carried out this pledge
and in 1926 made long and expensive
journey to upper Sandusky to see
woman who, there was no reason tx
hope, was the one for whom they were
searching. Disappointed again, they
finally came to the conclusion tina
Frances was dead, and the search wa.
ended.
In the month OF January, 1885, Col
George w. Ewing, a gentleman connect
ed with the public service among th,
Indians, and able to speak several O
their languages, was benighted near 81
Indian town known as the Deaf Man (
Village, on branch of the Wabash
He applied for lod ging, and was hospit
ably received at a respectable dwell ng
He was fatigued and unwell, and afte
eating lay down on some skins in The
corner The household consisted of
venerable woman and number OF
children, all of whom treated her witt
the greatest Difference, and who depart
ed to their rooms.
As Col. Ewing lay upon his pallet he
watched the old lady moving about, and
noticed particularly the color of heI
skin and hair. The result of the scrutiny
convinced him that she was white
woman, and he opened conversation
with her. She admitted that his sus-
picions were correct. She said that she
was stolen by the indians when very
small child, and she had carefully con-
eealed the fact from those of her own
race whom she met for fear that her
relatives would come and take her
away. She was now so old that she felt
she could not live much longer, and if