The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-12-25
he NEVER KNEW HIS NAME.
The Strange and Tragic Story OF Hosea
Lambert and Eis Fortune.

Lambert and Els Fortune.
From Tzs Ness York SIN
RAYsoR's CREEK PA, Nov. So.-An old
man, blacksmith, who went by tho Of
Hosea Lambert, died here few DAYS ago.
He came here In 1855, after having iost his
fortune Of 100000 in oil speculations.
Lambert was not his right name. but
neither he nor any one else he ever heard OF
knew what his name was or where he came
from originally. The name he went by and
his fortune were both received as a result Of
an old-time mysterious tragedy Of the Penn
sylvaria back woods
Stottler's was one of the few scattering
settements of the kind that lay along the
line OF the road that passed through the
wilderness of Southern Pennsylvania. be-
tween Philadelphia and the headwaters Of
the Ohio river, west Of Chambersburg, in
1871 There was a tavern there and a
blacksmith shop. The blacksmith was
Hosea Lambert, who had been a noted
Indian fighter. Toward evening one day in
March, 1872, an elderly man. mOuuted on a
white horse and holding a little child on the
saddle In front of him, accompanied BY two
young men, rode up to Stottler's tavern and
took quarters for the night. They were
travelling westward. The men. wore French,
and only the elderly man, who was a dis
/ -NC0-"S POAoOh SRSAS Atau.
The child was apparently about years old,
and seemed TO stand in fenr of the men, al
though the elderly man treated it with great
Kindness. Blacksmith Lambert, after the
stranger had gone to bed, said that the two
young men looked TO him like cuvthroats,
and if he was travelling along that road
with them he would keep them ahead of
him,
After breakfast next morning the
strangers resumed their journey. No one
had learned their names or their destina-
tlon. Two hours after, the white horse the
elderly Frenchman and child had ridden
came galloping back to the tavern. Its
saddle was of, and there were streaks of
blood Oh its side. The blood came from no
wound on the horse. Blacksmith Lambert
declared at once that the horses rider had
been shot in his saddle and murdered by his
two companions. Lambert collected as
many men as he could fiad about the settle
ment, and led them in pursuit
of the murdersrs. Five miles
from the tavern they found
blood at the roadside and signs Of struggle
Some distance of in the woods they discov-
cred the dead body OF the elderly French
man between two old logs He had been
shot twice in the breast, and stabbed several
times with knife. His saddlebags lay near.
They had been ripped open and rifled. Two
men were sent back with the murdered
mans body to the settlement to save it from
the wolves. Lambert and the rest started
in search Of the uurderers. They failed In
getting any trace of them, and toward
night all but Lambert abandoned the chase.
He declared that he would follow until he
found some cfew that would lead to their
hiding place.
Some miles north of the road they had
been following was still more ancient and
less fTequented thoroughfare, the first that
ever crossed the state. lambert turned his
course through the wood toward that road.
his destination was a wayside log cabin
where an old half breed named Hagar lived.
1t was in a wild and insulated spot near the
second road. He reached there some time af-
ter dark. The old womans cabin furnished
shelter at times TO travellers, and Lambert
was admitted. A bright fire was burning
10 the big fireplace, making the small room
very bright. He stood his rife ia the cor
ner, and was advancing to speak to Mother
Hagar, when from another room suddenly
issued binding fash and a loud report. A
bullet grazed Lapbert's temple and buried
itself in the wall behind him.
The ex-Indian fighter drew his tomahawk
and sprang into the room. A man holding
gun confronted him and went down be-
fore the woodnan's blow. Another man
rushed out of the room by back door. A
rife lay on table in the room. Lambert
seized it and ran to the door. The man was
flying toward the woods, his form plainly
outlined in the moonlight. Lambert fred
and the man fell. The man Lambert had
knocked down had regained his feet. but
the blacksmith felled him again and bound
him with ropes Hagar brought him. He
recognized In his prisoner one Of the MUIR
derers of the old Frenchman. Lambert
went out and found that the man he had
shot was dead. He was the other of the
two men who had been OF the Frenchmaa's
party. In possession OF the man Lambert
found $500 in English bank notes. The
child was in Hegar's bed.
Next morning Lambert placed the dead
assassin and the live one on his horse, aud
carving the child in MS arms started for
Stottler's settlement. The child was unable
TO tell its name, and the prisoner refused to
open his lips. Lambert arrived at the
tavern at nightfall. Ten minutes afterward,
after a council of the woodmen present, the
prisoner was taken to a tree in front of the
tavern and hanged The two murdere-s
were buried beneath the tree. Their victim
was buried on Lambert's farm. The child
was taken in charge by the blacksmith.
Not thing could be found that gave the
slightest clue to its identity. The
mystery was never cleared up. Lambert
adopted the child and gave it his own
name. He invested the $500 in trust for
the boy, and when the latter became of age
the old blacksmith gave him $4,000 as the
result Of the investment. The boy learned
the blacksmith's trade. Lambert died when
his adopted son was "a, leaving him an
estate worth $4,000. This the heir
increased to fortune of 100000, which
was the fortune he lost in oil speculation
in the early days of that excite
ment He worked at his old trade of
blacksmithiug in the lumber region until
few days before he died. He never made
any effort to fathom the mystery surround
ing his birth.
he Is A BAsE DECEIVER