The Daily times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1886-1889, 1888-10-29
TIE WHITE MIAMI.
FRANCES SlOCUM. ONCE A CAPTIVE
AMONG THE WABASH INDIANS.
Her Story T. One 81 the Famous Romance
Of the Early PiJnecr DAYS and Pas
Been Made the Basis Of Many Thrilling
Special Correspondence !

perry. Ind. Oct 2l-Onc hundred years
ago there stood upon the plains southwest
Of what is now lafayette, Ind coliec
tion Of something like one hundred well
bulk houses and Irdian huts. known cs
Me nn.ia.uon. 1t was the metropolis Of
the Franco silamis N is oaueerly com
posite I5I,..,ii.-... Ia were young Frenchmen
with the manners Of DOrsay and the
morals Of Don Juan, old French traders
and voyageurs, Indians who had taken On
some varnish Of civilization, and another
class in whom was mingled Indian and
European blood. Eastward the territory
OF the Miami confederacy extended even
to the Big Miami and westward to the
Sangamon, while they ranged from Lake
Michigan 20 the Ohio but IL is probable
that less than half Of the Indians in that
area were pure Miamis. Indeed. at least
six branches Of The aborigines had some
share of this fair heritage, and brlei
sketch Of them will serve both as Illus
tration Of and introduction 20 the sadly
romantic story of Frances Slocum, the
white captive from Pennsylvania
When the French first travcrsed the
Wabash and Mississippi valleyst they founsd
all the Indian nations in o strange transi-
ton sfatc-thc general movement being
from north 20 south. but trayersed by q
smaller movement from east 20 west.
The first Indians they knew in the
Wabash country were the lllce-nce, or
nlin meaning "feal men. self hatter
ing title savage nations often takcl which.
L. e.. s..4..
line plural Illinois. Down upon these
came the Mianis from the far northwest
tradition traces aheir course back TO
northern lOwa-aIN soon they dominated
both sides Of the Wabash their various
bands known as Weans. Twightcrs,
Pankeshans. etc Among them came the
Pottawattomics, a ferCcious race from tie
wooded wilderness north Of Lake Huron,
but leaving only a remnant on the Wabash
they turned 10 the west Meanwhile
the Wau-pa -nuck-oc. or Lcnni Lenapes
whom the first settlers in Penn
sylyania named "Dclavarcs' because
they met them on that stream. were
slowly rctrcating before the over advanc-
ing whites across Pennsylvania and Ohio
they fell back till they occupied central
Indiana, and as late as 1910 Anderson
and Killbuck Delaware chiefs. ruled the
region where Indianapolis now is Then
their westward march was resumed
across Illinois and across Missouri. then
they halted for final home i'm the lovely
Delaware reservation in Kansas. In
1sjj-Gj civilization again crowded on
them and they abandoned their tribal or
ganization, and 10 the number Of 1880
took head rights ia and became citizens
of the Cherokee nation
The Kickapoos halted long and left q
remnant among The Mianis, the main
part continued westward finally dissolved
their organization and were for he most
part absorbed among the wild RIDES OF
The Rocky mountains Pure blooded
kickapoos are still mot in Mexico. still
implacably hostile 60 white Ameri-
cans. The Mngooc. after their OK
pulsion FROM West Virginia and
the adjacent Part Of Ohio, drifted
TO northern Indiana. The Shou
au-nous. or "Exilcs. driven from their
original seat ON Lake Eric b. the Now
York Indians, were allowed hy the Mia
mis- 10 pass through the iattors country
and went 10 Tennessee, thence they wcic
driven again 20 florida. where the Su-
vance river attests their residence and
gradual change Of name Driven again
bv the encroaching whites. they returned
ia three bands 10 the Ohio and Wabash.
and the band known as Shawnecs located
along the Wabash from Shawnee creek 20
the 1ppecanoc and beyond The Miamis
denied them real title 10 the lands but
tolerated them as sQuatters and this band
produced the celebrated TccuIlseh and
kswatana-"The Prophet Another
band Of Shavuccs went 10 Canada; lc-
cumsch melted them TO eight the Ameri-
cans. and. cheering them on at the battle
of the Thames, died as became a warrior
OF course all these tribes occasionally
captured whites. and when not too old the
captiyes generally became thorough ln-
diaus. for the wild life is natural TO man
aud while II takes twenty years 10 civilize
an Indian smart white boy can go wild
i'm six months. So there were few
Anglo-lndians and many lranco-lndiaus
in all the tribes, ald the lrst settlers re-
marked with some surprise that tie white
captiycs avoided them quito Is luch as
the Indians. and some say more. Their
Indian relatives explained that they were
afraid of being taken back 20 the white.
in 1928 the Mianis. having shrunk 10 a
mere band. located On q reservation IN
Miami county, Ind Col. e. G. Ewing, a
trader. net an old woman known as She
pu-ca nah near Peru. and some years after
wrote an account for tie Pennsylvania
papers. of which this is an extract:
There L. now near t.hs place, pmong the
sliami tribe Of Indians 81 aged white woman.
who a few days ago Told ue whist lodged in the
camp with her one J. iSh; tlat she was taken away
from her fathers home. on or near The susque-
hanna river. when Sue young, say from % o
years old. she thinks. 10y the Delaware Indians,
who were then hostile 20 ;Ae whites. Size says
her fathers name was Siocum that he vls O
Quaker. rather small b. stature, ADD wore large,
broad trimmed hat. had sandy hair, light Corr
plexion. aud was much .uac.icl; that be lived
ab0u. half mile fr0m 4. Gown here there ue1 "a
lort, in a wood house two stories li-i'. and Lad a
spring near the house. Sac says three De.lN ares
came 10 the h0use m thc daytime, when al Nerc
absent but herself aad perhaps ESQ other small
children. Ter father AMI u.utlcla we're making
hay The Indians earned Ger OF and sle was
adopted into family of Delavarci. vino raised
her aud treated her Is their own Guild
-
NJ. Isaac J. Slocum. near Nilkesbarrc,
Pa. at once recognized 1t as the case Of
his aunt, who was stolen at the age Of o,