The Portland daily press., 1900-09-12
FLED FROM SHILOH.
Unfortunate Girl Driven From SAN
fOrd's Haven by Bad Treatment.

Greene, September 11.-Lizzie Bell. the
unfortunate Shiloh proselyte, whose case
has excited so much compassion in this
town, came safely back from her wander
ings Monday afternoon.
Miss Bell is daughter of Me thodist
minister at Topeka, Kan, and convert
OF Rev. +. w. Sandford of Shiloh, In
Durham. She ran away from that place
last week and was found wandering on
the road in Gre enc last Thursday by
Fred Pollard and neighbor of this
town. They attempted to speak to her
and she fled across the fields. They gave
chase and capturing her, took her to Mr..
Pollard IS home, where gentle treatmen
restored her - reason and she Explained
that her name was Lizzie Bell and that
her father was pastor of one of the leading
Methodist Episcopal churches in Topeka.
He was at one time a missionary in In
dia.
II came east with Mr.. Sandford's sixty
converts, she said, "He preached at
Topeka and evinced much sincerity and
held out so many Inducements regarding
the spiritual attractions OF his work that
/ felt drawn to him and to Shiloh. Sew
eral others from the city joined him
when he started to return to Maine, and
I came, too. 1 stayed there at Shiloh as
long as could. Then 1 ran away. 1
couldn't endure the things that hap
pened there"
In answer to questions as to what
drove her away from the big temple In
Durham, she stated that she was fright
ened. "Their prayers were awful, Fl" she
said. "They were enough to brighten
anyone. If one dared to have any indi-
vidual opinions against theirs, they
would shout that the devil was In that
one, and all would unite to drive the de-
mon out. was terribly frightened. 1t
was declared that the devil had posses
sion Of me. l ran away. did not know
a soul in the State of Maine except those
at Shiloh. had no money. 1 did not
know where L was going, but 1 could not
bear to stay there. don't know where
have been, for I never saw the State till
1 came to Shiloh
From Shiloh to the place in Greene
where Miss Bell was found is more than
twenty miles. She walked all the way.
Much of the distance she followed the
woods ana kept away from the Travelled
ways as much as possible. She says that
she left Shiloh Tuesday of last week and
spent two nights in the woods. She
called nowhere in that time and talked
with no one. She ate blackberries. She
had no other food. The thickets tore her
dress land scratched her limbs, her shoes
were worn out by her rough journey
through the fields and the pastures. When
night came down and she could walk no
further, she found some tree in a hidden
nook and prayed beneath it for the pro-
lection OF God, and then lay down and
went to sleep.
The young woman appeared very CRATE
full tor the attentions that were paid to
her in the home of Mr.. Pollard, and
seemed to be content with her new lot,
talked intelligently at all times and was
very calm. She showed no intention of
leaving, and especially no intention OF 60
ing back to the temple in Durham.
Monday morning, however, she did not
appear in the living room OF the house at
the hour she usually showed herself, and
one Of the family was sent to call her.
Miss Bell was not in her room. She had
left the money that had been given her.
She did not even wear away the hat
that had been the gift of her new and
kind friends. She wore the battered gar
ments in which she had been clothed
when found. She went away in the old
shoes that had been wrecked by her tray
els over rough ground.
Mr.. Pollard started out and was able to
track her along the sandy road for some
distance She must have left the house
while it was yet dark. AT point few
miles along the road the foot steps were
no longer to be distinguished, and it was
apparent that the girl had taken to the
woods.
The case was reported to the neighbors
and party went out to search. No signs
of the young woman were seen and she
must have kept herself well hidden in
the thickets. But at about five O. clock
in the afternoon she came back to Mr..
Pohard's house.
She appeared rather dazed and uneasy,
but has been quieted somewhat and
viii now, it is said to night, remain with
her new friends until she can be properly
cared for. The selectmen of the town
have also been notified of the IN after and
viii take measures to provide for her II
need arises. She tells Mr. Pollard's fam
lily that during the day Monday she went
into the woods and remained near the
place, going away only a mile or two.
Letters have been sent to her father
in Kansas City and it is thought that he
Will come to Maine for his daughter. The
people of Greene express much sympathy
for the girl and are equally bitcer against
Shiloh and its methods. They viii try
to prevail upon the young woman to re-
main away from the Temple until her |