The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1893-05-04
MENTION was made in last weeks issue

MENTION was mauo ID idSL week . isS u
OF boy who was staying with farue
near Tisch Mills and who SAID he had es
capped from the Indians by whom he to
gether with his sister, had been captur
ed years ago Thomas Schleis of Med
ford who had lost two children about Il
years ago, was informed of this boy'l
representations and came here last week
He went to Tisch Mills and he and the
boy arrived in the city on Friday and put
up at Wenzel Kralrlk's. The boy if only
- years old is unusually we'll developed
and would readily pass for young mar
of Is. He is tall, slender and muscular
He speaks English readily and even has
acquired some slang.
His story is inconsistent in some Things
but ne speaks with apparent frankness
and sincerity. According to his story,
he escaped from the Indians about two
years ago and since that time has travel
ed through various portions Of the state
in search of his parents. To reporter
of The Pilot be related IN substance the
| following narrative:
Il am sure | shall know the old place
| Just as soon as [ see 1t. / can remember
| just how it looked. The lower part of the
house was of logs and the upper part
frame. Z stream ran near the house. We
had several COWS one Of which was white.
My sister and l had a little Ratchet. We
were in the habit Of gong to the corner
OF the building and hacking at the logs.
We had cut into several corners"
Can you remember how you were cap
tured?"
Yes, though some of it was told nae
afterwards. My sister and myself went
after the COWS which were in the woods.
4 short distance from the house, we met
an Indian who gave us small revolver
and some candy. We were never afraid
OF Indians as we saw them often. He
asked us to go with him to his squaw.
We did so and renamed there until dark.
When we started to go home the Indian
told Us to sleep IN the tent. During the
night while asleep myself and sister were
placed in large basket which was put
on pony's back AM kept in place by
second basket on the other side In which
were some Indian children"
What tribe of Indians captured you
and how did you spend your time while
with them?
They were Sioux. I can speak the
Sioux and Chippewa languages. [ learn
ed some English from white man named
Wilson who used to hunt with the In
dians. But [ learned most OF my Eng
lish since I ran away. We hunted and
picked berries. There were few of the
Indians who could shoot as well as L,
and my sister is almost as good shot
as am. IAN hit a penny with rifle
ball at distance Of 100 feet and my SIS
ter will seldom miss 1t. [ rarely. miss
game of any kind. The Indians treated
Us as we'll as they did the other children.
I do not know how cid | am nor what
my second name is. l do not know which
is the older, my sister or l. My name is
Frank Hers is Anne. | left her at Ash
land when we escaped and | have not
seen or heard Of her since"
How did you escape?"
1--WE did not know we were not Indians.
Wilson told us we were white. We soon
came to believe we were and as he told
us we must have been stolen from our
home, we resolved to escape. We slip
ped out from under the tent one night
and went to Wilson's house. He took
us with horse to a railway depot. The
Indians called the place Rulikamp. From
there we went to Ashland. ] left my
sister there and started off. Since then
I have been over a great portion OF the
state-in Oshkosh, Milwaukee and other
places"
"Where are you going now?'
Il have a partner here" indicating the
man who hopes this is his son. "who says
he knows man who lost some children
years ago. am going out with him to
see if that is my home"
The names OF the children who were
| lost are Frank and Annie and the house
! in which they lived was as Flank de-
scribes it, and still his appearance, makes
II difficult to believe that he is only l..
| The girl was seven years old when che
was lost and she certainly should remem-
! Der her second name. How it is possible
! for them to remember the circumstance
| of being stolen and not know they were
not Indians whose mode of life IS so diff
| ferent from what the children were ac-
! customed to VIXEN with their parents, it
| is difficult to understand. Thomas Schiles,
| the man who lost the children is Be-
hemian and lived some time ago in Kos
suth He did not want the boy to know
anything as to his hopes. 50 that he
might fully test the knowledge the boy
claims to have of hls early home. The
| boy did not know the name of his com
| panlon nor where they were going. There
seems to be no family resemblance,
though both are spare. l. is possible
the girl will remember more than the
boy does IF the boys story is true the
Indians tried to have the children forget
all about their early life and forbade
them to call each other by the name oil
Frank and Annie.
| MARRIED.