William, This is a free country.... I can make my hero's anyone I ____ well please. In the book's `Tidewater Families' there are pages of families that submitted bills to the federal government for reimbusment for slaves who disappeared during the Rev War. Didn't matter if they died of old age, disease, the war, walked away, ran away and it didn't matter the age of the slave. Guess they could not keep them all shackled all the time. jerree