Richland beacon. [volume] (Rayville, La.) 1869-1890, 1885-05-30
A Feminine CruSOc.

Seventy miles from the shore IS
San Nicolas Island, the sixth of the
group that cluster around the Bay
Of Santa Barbara, Cal. 1t is celcbra-
, ted for having been the residence for
eighteen years of The lost woman Of
San Nicolas" rs her name is ia
nous and as her story has been told
in romance | will give the bare fact
about her as l found them to he,
without any added ornament, and
leave the fiction TO the pen Of the
novelist
Tie Island Of San Nicolas was once
deuscly populated This is attestcd
by the skulls and bones and other
evidences of human abode that are
found there. Tie Alasna Indians
frequently visited the Island to hunt
for the furs of the sea otter. They
took their women with them on these
hunts, and on returning after the
hunt was over they left them on the
island to their fate. BY orier Of the
Government in 1870 the Indians We're
romoye from the island. just be
fore they were to embark and carry
away human inhahitant, as it was sup
posed. il white Indian women begged
for the privilege of goiHg ashore
for her child, which she In acciden-
tallv left. She was gone Il long time
i'll fruitless search for her offspring.
The wind blew a gale, the water WAS
shallow, there WAS no one who was
seeking the lost one. They set sail.
intending to return for the lost
woman of San Nicolas, but the boat
becoming unseaworthy, she WAS left to
her fate TWAS generally known that
there was n woman abandoned on the
island, but no attempt was made for
her deliverancc. As the world soon
forgets, SO the woman of Son Nicolas
was fosgotton and the year passed
away.
After q lapse of sixteen years, a
man who landed on the island found
that it was inhabited by some one.
The footprints of a human being
sunk deep in the ground were seen.
The hardness of the ground was an
indication that they had been made Il
long time. From their size they evil
IDENTIFY belonged to woman. Cir
cular Enclosures were seen, where
some one had lived. Near the huts
were sticks driven i'll the ground and
dried blubber hanging on them, thus
prepared for food.
In 1852 San Nicolas was visited
again and another hunt was made for
the long-lost woman. The huts were
seen that had been seen before, but
the old blubber had been taken away
and new food of the kind hung in its
place. Wild dogs were found which
ran away at the approach of civilized
man. In basket covered with seal
skins that they found i'll a bush heap
WAS dress made of shag skins, cut
i'll square pieces, q rope made Of Sill
ew and several smaller articles, such
as fish hooks and bono needles. The
discovers of these proofs that there
lived on that island human being
scattered them on the ground, and on
their return they found them gath
cred together and placed them in the
basket again.
The Catolic Fathers of the "Old
Mission" the foremost in every
good word and work, offered re-
ward to any one who would find the
lost woman, and Il third effort was
made III lo5S to discover the prodi-
gal about whom there was such a
mystery and in whom the world
of this coast WAS beginning to
take al interest. Fresh tracks of
the woman were found. They
belonged to very small feet
and were like those that were seen
i'll the first attempt to find the wo-
man. HITS made Of whale ribs
and covered with brush were discoy-
cred.
At length an object was seen in the
distance that appeared to be moving
Going toward it they saw the woman
that for eighteen years had rcigned
Queen Of San Nicolas, her subjects
being the wild animals, her robe
dress of bird skins she had made.
and her throne the hut she hat built.
She was seated III an inclosure, 50
that only her head and shoulders
could be seen. Two or three DOGS
were about her that disappeared at
the command Of their SOVEREIGN.
She was seated on some grass that
covered the ground and serve as
bed. Her dress was neatly l. ale Of