[Indexed as: (Digby case), “The Lost Found. Discovery of the Digby Child – At New Orleans – Story of Its Abduction – Two Arrests Made.” (from New-Orleans Picayune), The New York Times (N.Y.), Aug. 15, 1870]

At an early hour on Tuesday morning, Mr. THOMAS DIGBY succeeded in finding his lost child. After weeks of intense anguish, happiness is at last restored to the bereaved family, and the parents clasp their little one in their arms. Its dreary wanderings, the scenes it has passed through, the treatment it has been subjected to, of course cannot now be described, and the public will be content to know that it is found, and the long search and the dreary watchings are over. It disappeared from its home on the morning of the 9th of June. It will be recollected that the child, in company with its little brother and a young lady, Miss RASA GORMAN, were playing on Howard-street, between Lafayette and Polydras, at the time in question. Suddenly the fire bells rung out, and the young lady, who had the child in her arms, handed it to the little boy, saying: “Hold MOLLY, while I see where the fire is.” “Let me take the boy,” said a voice near them, and turning around Miss GORMAN discovered two women, a mulattress, tall and very pretty, and a low-set heavy negress, it was the mulattress that spoke, and extending her arms took the child. She had been seen in the street frequently before, and frequently noticed lavishing caresses on the baby, when from its cunning ways and delicate beauty, usually excites attention, even from strangers. Miss GORMAN went in the direction of the fire, and the two women, one of them carrying the child and accompanied by its little brother, walked around the corner, up Lafayette-street to the corner of dryads. Here the mulatress stopped, and giving the little boy some money, told him to go to the front stand and get some bananas for his sister. The boy went, but when, a moment afterwards, he returned to the place, the baby and the women had disappeared. From that say until this (Tuesday) morning no trace of them could be found. Immense towards were offered for the discovery of the child and the arrest of the abductress. The entire city was stirred with popular excitement, and young and old united in the excitement, and young and old united in the search for the stolen child. Day by day as the hunt proved unavailing the sympathy of the community augmented, and no popular event or public calamity ever engaged more fully the feelings and sympathies of the masses. Conjecture runs riot as to the motive of the abductress and her intentions affecting the little one. Some said she was an enemy of the family, and her purpose was revenge. Others, whose imaginations were excited by voudou superstitions, felt that the child had been stolen for sacrifice in fetish rites. The celebration of this strange mystery on the following 24th of June gave a coloring to the supposition, and an intense fear seized upon the public. But reflection relieved this idea of much of its terror, and the public finally settled down in the conviction that it was taken for some personal motive, whatever that might be. In the meantime, the Police and a number of citizens were incessant in the number of citizens were incessant in the prosecution of the search. Officers were sent off in every possible direction, and placards and publications describing the child, and reciting the circumstances of its abduction, were scattered broadcast through the land. News from Cincinnatti, St. Louis, and other cities, came in, but the information was not reliable. The excitement engendered here was felt with almost the same intensity elsewhere. But of no avail. The child seemed to have as effectually disappeared as if it had sung into the bowels of the earth. Hope of finding it had almost died out. Some believe it dead – all though it finally lost.

The mother held her little one tenderly in her arms, her eyes suffused with tears of joy and her eyes suffused with tears of joy and her whole countenance radiant with an unspeakable happiness. The father was quite beside himself, and could give but little information as to where the child was found. It was uptown somewhere, however, and he could drive to the house. In answer as to how he found the baby, he replied that a gentleman – an elderly man – had called at his house early in the morning, about 6 1/2 o’clock, and informed him that he had a child at his house that he was quite sure was his (DIGBY’S).

In his excitement at finding the child, DIGBY had forgotten to ask the name of the gentleman, and consequently Capt. BADGER decided that the next step was to go to the house and ascertain the particulars from the gentleman and lady, whoever they might be. Accordingly Mr. and Mrs. DIGBY, with the child, Capt. BADGER, Specials MALONE and JOURDAN, Commissioner GEORGE, and several gentleman of the Press, proceeded in carriages to the house, No. 49 Chestnut-street, between St. Andrew and Josephine, which proved to be the residence of Capt. JAMES BROADWELL. The bell was rung, and Mrs. BROADWELL came to the door. Capt. BADGER suggested to her that she might be saved further annoyance by indicating who the parties were from she obtained the child. That it was necessary that the parties should be found out. Mrs. BROADWELL then said the parties lived in Jefferson City, then said the parties lived in Jefferson City (Sixth District;) that they had not stolen the child themselves, but that it had been left at the gate of their residence, and had been taken care of by them until turned over to herself and husband on Monday night; that they had been taken care of by them until turned over to herself and husband on Monday night; that they had first heard of it by receiving a message from the parties to the effect that they had something very particular to tell them. On going to the house they found the child, which the parties were anxious to get rid of, as they were afraid of the responsibility of keeping it any longer; that they hasd taken the little girl with the express stipulation that if she proved not to be DIGBY’S child, they would return it immediately.

She said further that the persons, through colored, were perfectly reliable, and not capable of stealing the child.

Just here Commissioner GEORGE asked if the woman’s name was not ELLEN ANGELO, and whether she did not live at the corner of Camp and Bellecastle streets. Mrs. BROADWELL said, “Yes, that is the woman; but I beg that you will not trouble her, as she knows nothing of the abduction. I have known her to be above anything of the kind.”

After some further unimportant conversation, the party left the house. The next thing was to visit the residence if ALLEN ANGELO, and thither superintendent BADGER and a number of others proceeded.

The house is a somewhat unpretentious cottage, quite embowered in vines and shrubbery, and looks like the residence of some well-to-do retired family. The interior is, however, very handsomely furnished, one room especially having a superb set of rose-wood furniture – the armoir door being one large mirror. The appointments all indicate that the minutes did not want for money.

The women of the house, ELLEN ANGELO, or ELLEN FOLLIN, (she is better known by the latter name,) was quite surprised at the visit, and repeated almost verbatim the words of Mrs. BROADWELL. She denied knowing anything of the child, and insisted that it had been left at her gate on Wednesday last by a woman, who, though closely veiled, she believed to be white.

She had only kept the child so long because she thought the woman would return and claim it, but that she had finally turned it over to Mr. and Mrs. BROADWELL. A white lady who has been boarding in the house for some three weeks, stated, however, that the child was there when she arrived. A very aged negro woman cook thought the child had been there about three weeks, and a young son of Mrs. FOLLIN’S (about fifteen years old, known by the name of GEORGE BLASS,) said the child had been there had been there about a month. These were all examined separately, and their statements were sufficiently contradictory to warrant an arrest of the woman ELLEN FOLLIN and her son GEORGE BLASS as being accessories to the kidnapping of Mr. DIGBY’S child, and having harbored and concealed the same.

They were accordingly arrested, a warrant having seen issued upon an affidavit made by Special Officer MALLONE, and taken to jail to await appearance before Recorder CAMPBELL. The house, it appears, is what is known as a lying-in hospital, and the woman in charge is a very bright-looking light-colored mulatto, and is said to have considerable property. She has a sister in Mobile named LOUISA MURRAY, who keeps a similar house to her own, and comes over to New-Orleans quite often. Suspicion has attached to this woman in Mobile, and superintendent BADGER has taken steps to have her arrested.