The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1878-04-26
WILD WOMAN,S STORY.

| and lower limbs encased in tattered trou-
sers. This was the occupant of the cell
| Lucy Ann Lobdell, nee Slater, better known
| Whereabouts as ''the female hunter Of Long
| Eddy"
About forty five years ago a family nam
/ ed Lobdell lived in Delaware county, \.
/ Y, at what is now the village of Long Ed
| dy on the Delaware river and Erie railway,
| then sparsely settled. Laundering was the
main business of the settlers of the vicni-
! ty The Lobdells dwelt in cabin in the
woods, where daughter, the suhject.of our
sketch, was born. From the time this
child was old enough to walk she was a
great favorite among the hardy woodchOp-
pers aud raftsmen. They often took her
| off to the logging camp and kept her there
! for days at a time, and she early became
| Injured to the hardships of their life. The
| lumbermen in those days were all good
hunters, and always carried their rifles with
them. Before Lucy Arm was years old
they bad taught her the use of the rifle, and
| she soon became as good a shot as there
was in the settlement. At the age of 12
| she could out-sEoot any of the men, and
| handled the AK with the case of an old
! chopper. Before she had reached the age
of 16 she had killed numerous deer, and an
| absence of two or three days alone III the
| woods was for her not an uncommon thing.
I She once killed a full sized panther, and
session of an ex Sheriff of Wayne county,
! Pennsylvania. Notwithstanding her mas
culne tastes, Lucy Ann'S name, as girl
and woman, was free from reproach, The
| breath of slauder never reached her, and
she could have had her choice of a husband
| from the most exemplary young men i'll the
! vicinity. But she had no inclinations 20
| marry, and she rejected all offers.
A raftsman named Harry Slater came
into the settlement about 1850. He formed
the acquaintance of Lucy Anu, and to the
| surprise of everybody they were married.
! Slater had proposed TO Lucy Ann, aud she
| told him that they would shoot at mark
with rifles, and if he beat her shots she
| would marry him, if not she would remain
| WITH her parents. The trial of skill took
| place and Slater vas victorious.
| Slater proved worthless scape grace.
| and neglected and abused his wife. A
! year after they were married Mrs. Slater
/ gave birth to a daughter. Before the
/ child was two weeks old Slater deserted
both wife and child, leaving them in desti-
/ tute cii cumstances. Slater never returned,
but was occasionally heard of IN New York
city, and on the Hudson river, worthless,
| drunken vagabOud.
The sorrowing wife went back to her
parents, and after two years spent IN eff
/ forts to get along aod maintain herself
! respectfully by doing wonan's work, Eut
|
! parel of her sex, douned mems clothing,
and taking her rifle, went into the woods
| 10 earn living for herself and child.
For eight or ten years she roamed the
| forests of Sullivan and Delaware counties
in New York, aud Wayne aud Pike, in
! Pennsylvania, and spent two years in
/ Meeker county, Minnesota.
! She had cabins in various places and
would visit the old home about once a year,
and only appeared in the settlements and
| villages to sell her game and furs and to
| procure ammuni. ion.
On one of her visits to her child, when it
/ was about four years old, her parents com
/ planned Of having its care on .heir hands
She, therefore, took it away, and placed i.
/ in the Delhi poor house, aud left heI old
/ 5 amping ground for New York and iherce
/ up the Hudson riveT-still in mems apparel
| and, strange to say, passed and repaSSed
! her husband on the Hudson River Railroad
| without being recognized by him, her dis
guise was SO complete.
From Albany she passed west over the
! Central New York, and finally turned u;l in
| Minnesota, and says she taught three sing
! ing schools on the way, to provide means
/ of transportation.
! She had $75 rifle, and spent her first
/ winter (1S5J-6l with another person. both
/ in male attire, on tie old Kaudiyohi town.
site. on the north of the Kaudiyohi lakes.
They two were employed to reside on
| and thus bold possession of the new town
site, 10y the Minneapolis proplietors. Her
companion spent the winter with her, bat
never for a moment suspected that he was
wluieTiug with woman.
Al times when provisions fell short, they
were compelled 30 live on squirrels for
! their meat.
In the summer of 1857 she appeared in
| Manannah, boarding short time in a place,
I daarfa oil. al.
washing dishes, etc, for her board She
was homey at anything, and those with
whom she was acquainted seemed to enjoy
/ her company-her male apparel often re-
| curing her to sleep i'll close proximity with
others of the male gender-but with no
| iudiscretions and with no suspicious that
she was other than what appeared ON the
surface.
She ever seemed we'll pleased with her
disguise, aud the difficulty that would nat
urally interpose in resumng, without loss
| OF character, her natural and appropriate
rainment, probably induced her 10 continue
the deception She claimed to have as
sumed this disguise originally, in order 20
better get away from home without detec-
tion from drunken husband.
She had but little money; was a splendid
| hunter, and was offensive to none, and as
before remarked, was good company, ami
hale fellow well metz with all the young
people IN the neighborhood, committing no
indiscretiOus.
In the summer of 1853, by pure accident,
Satan, with the aid of original sin. - dis
covered and exposed her sex. The blue
code OF Connecticut was CONSULTED and the
law was invoked TO purge the community
! of the scandal
The county attorney, VIM. Richards.
now OF the city Of New York, filed an in
| formation against Mrs. Slater before John
Robson, Esq, J. p, then contesting the
jurisdiction of this county with J. r. At
kinson, Esq, as Judge of the only court
we bad, alleging nai,swhereas one Lob
dell, being woman, falsely personates a
man, to the great scandal of the communi
| ~, and against the peace and dignity of
| the State of Minnesota" and asked that
she be dealt With according to law that 50