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THE
GRANITE MONTHLY
A NEW HAMPSHIRE MAGAZINE
DEVOTED TO
IRstory, §io$jraphy, literature, and J?tatr ^roflrwu.
VOL. XV.
PUBLISHED BY
H. H. METCALF AND A. H. ROBINSON.
CONCORD, N. H. :
1893.
N
v. 15
printed by
New Hampshire Democratic Press Co.,
concord, n. h.
CONTENTS OF VOL. XV.
HIOGUAI'IIICAL SKETCHES.
Al'TIIOR.
Aldrich, Hon. Edgar
Baldwin, Edwin Thomas
Benton, Hon. Jacob
Berry, Nathaniel Springer
Cass, Capt. Jonathan and Family
Colby, Hon. Ira
Conant, Prof. Charles S.
Crane, Rev. Cephas B., D. L>.,
Cranfield, Edward .
Drew, Asa Locke. .
Dudley, Joseph, Second President
Fowler, Laura A. W.
Garner, Rev. W. V.
Harmon, Henry Clay
Johnston, Col. Charles .
Leach, Edward G. .
Locke, Mrs. Belle Marshall .
Long, William H. .
Long, Lucia A. D.
Lovejoy, Capt. Henry .
Mann, Hon. Edward F. .
Moore, J. Bailey
Nevers, Arthur F. .
O'Halloran, Jere
Patton, Abby Hutchinson
Pitman, Hon. George W. M.
Rogers, Nathaniel P. and Family
Scammell, Alexander
Story, David B.
Sturoc, William Cant
. H. H. Metcalf.
. H. G. Blaisdell.
Rev. J. B. Morrison.
Col. J. W. Robinson.
Roland D. Noble.
H. H. Metcalf.
H. G. Blaisdell.
A. H. Robinson.
Alma J. Herbert.
H. G. Blaisdell.
Alma J. Herbert.
Marion Howard.
A. H. Robinson.
Frank H. Marion.
Rev. J. Q. Bittinger.
Frank N. Parsons.
A. H. Robinson.
L. W. Revcroft.
L. W. Reycroft.
J. W. Robinson.
H. H. Metcalf.
George Waldo Browne.
H. G. Blaisdell.
Marion Howard.
P. B. Cogswell.
H. H. Metcalf.
Alma J. Herbert.
Charles R. Morrison.
H. G. Blaisdell.
. H. H. Metcalf.
A. H. Robinson.
Hon.
Swaine, 0. Jennie
Tucker, William Jewett, and the New Dartmouth.
Harry B. Metcalf
Wallace, Ebenezer G H. H. Metcalf
Whipple, Col. Joseph, and his Dartmouth Plantation.
Levi W. Dodge
Wright, Rev. Nathan Reed Rev. A. A. Miner, d. d.,ll. d
MISCELLANY.
A Perilous Ride
A Successful Woman ....
An Historic Hill
An Old Time New Hampshire Cyclone.
Ancient Dwellings and Trees in Concord.
At the Sherborn Reformatory.
Big Trees in New Hampshire.
Captain Eleazer Tyng's Scout Journal.
Leander W. Cogswell.
H. H. Metcalf.
. Clarkson Dearborn.
Howard M. Cooke.
J. W. Robinson.
Grace Blanchard.
. J. D. Lyman.
. William Little.
PAGE.
329
126
105
302
214
201
32
137
111
259
151
56
142
78
85
1
216
17S
180
149
73
312
65
344
17
233
367
15
324
361
248
265
297
20
169
60
153
7
315
251
271
342
183
&e^o
IV CONTENTS.
AUTHOR. PAGE.
Cincinnati of New Hampshire.
John C. French. 123
C. W. Sargent. 279
A. H. Robinson. 144
H. G. Blaisdell. 32,
" Membership of the Society,
Contoocook River Park.
First Baptist Church in Concord. .
Musical Department
65, 98, 126, 160, 195, 225, 259, 290, 324, 388
New Hampshire Antiquarian Society. Mrs. F. H. Bailey. 175
New Hampshire Centennial Home for the Aged. A. H. Robinson. 81
New Hampshire Men in Michigan . . . Emma L. Mills. 381
New Hampshire Necrology. 37, 68, 102, 131, 163, 197, 228, 261, 294,
326, 357, 391
Pioneer Settlers of West Dunstable. . . C. S. Spaulding. 346
Rambles About a Country Town. No. III.
Frederick Myron Colby. 275, 305
Seabrook Sketches. Clarkson Dearborn. 335
" " No. II " " 373
Shakespeare Club, Manchester. . . . Etta F. Shepard. 115
The Governor and Council 41
The Grantees of Claremont. . . C. B. Spofford. 206, 241, 282, 318
The Library Movement in New Hampshire. . . Louise Fitz. 349
The Steam Interlude. . . Frank West Rollins. 187, 219, 255, 286
The Timbers of the Kearsarge. . . . Joseph Barnard. 145
The Warren-Woodstock Road William Little. 49
POETRY.
A Song Crown C. C. Lord. 122
At Webster's Tomb. . . George Bancroft Griffith. 253
Craven at Mobile Bay George E Belknap. 79
Dawn Among The Alps. . . George Bancroft Griffith. 148
Destiny Jere O'Halloran. 349
Forgive Clarence H. Pearson. 334
Friendlikeness. Frank Walcott Hutt. 355
Kenilworth Frederick Myron Colby. 97
King Edgar and Elfrida. . . . Frederick Myron Colby. 194
If I were not I Persis E. Darrow. 215
In Memoriam — Lois Corbin Dunton. . . H. H. Metcalf. 387
Little Imps of Snow C. C. Lord. 55
John Ball Mary H. Wheeler. 46
Our Hills Elisabeth Hunt. 6
Sitting Alone in the Twilight. . Walter Merton Hazeltine. 300
Sunset Meetin'-Bouse C. Jennie Swaine. 270
Sunset on Mt. Washington. . . . George Waldo Browne. 240
The Fugitive Laura Garland Carr. 181
To Leila, on the Anniversary of Her Birth. . W. C. Sturoc. 114
To Mt. Kearsarge Harvey Huntoon. 237
To Silver Brook Frederick Myron Colby. 380
The Harvest Moon. . . . George Bancroft Griffith. 311
The Mayhew Pike. Fred Lewis Pattee. 371
The Old and The New. . . . Clarence H. Pearson. 16
The Old Farm C. Jennie Swaine. 158
The Test C. C. Lord. 212
Thought Etchings. . . . George Bancroft Griffith. 356
Wisdom in Fables. C. C. Lord. 285
_J
The Granite Monthly
VOL. XV. JANUARY, 1893. NO.
EDWARD G. LEACH.
BY FRANK N. PARSONS.
Edward Giles Leach, the second son and only surviving
child of Levi and Susan C. Leach, was born at Meredith,
N. H., January 28, 1849. His parents are now living near
their son at Franklin. His mother, the only daughter of
the late Dr. John Sanborn, for fifty years in the practice of
medicine at Meredith, and a leading physician of Belknap
county, is the sister of Dr. J. H. Sanborn of Franklin, and
the late Dr. Jesse A. Sanborn of Plymouth, two physicians
well known throughout the state. Levi Leach, his father, a
native of Bridgewater, Mass., coming to Meredith in 1845,
occupied himself, until entering the army, as a teacher
of vocal music and farmer. When, in the fall of 1862,
the Twelfth N. H. Regiment was recruited, Company I
w r as enlisted at Meredith in two days' time. Among the
first to enlist were Levi Leach and his son, William S., — the
one beyond, the other below the age of enforced service.
In fact, William was at the time only fifteen years of age.
The younger son, Edward, was as ambitious to engage in
the service of his country as his father and brother, and
though only thirteen years of age, wished to enlist in some
capacity. The wish and commands of his parents, and the
needs of his mother, with the father and elder son away,
compelled him to wait ; but he determined to volunteer at
the first moment his duty to his parents would permit, and
anxiously awaited the return of his father. While his
father was in the service, Edward, with his aged grand-
father, the late Dr. John Sanborn, carried on the farm, the
young boy holding the plough, and swinging the scythe
with the strength and skill of a practiced hand.
Levi Leach, the father, was discharged from the army, in
1864, on account of wounds received at Gettysburg, but
2 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
his only brother, William, had died in the service from
typhoid fever the February after his enlistment. Though
the father had returned, he was enfeebled by wounds and
disease, and the only remaining son was as urgently needed
at home as before. While anxiously awaiting an oppor-
tunity to serve his country, he did not neglect his own edu-
cation, and, in the fall of 1864, attended a private school at
Meredith, but all the time worked before and after school-
hours in a hosiery mill, boarding stockings. Although his
father's health did not improve, the call of his country seemed
to him louder than that of parental duty, and he determined
to enlist, closed his connection with the school, and went
to Laconia to join an artillery company then being organ-
ized at that place. But his mother, who had already given
the life of her eldest son to his country as well as the health
and strength of her husband, suspecting the purpose of her
youngest, had made, through friends, such representations
to the recruiting officers at Laconia that when Edward pre-
sented himself for enlistment he was rejected, though the
true reason for his failure to be enrolled in the army was
unknown to him until years afterwards. Both he and his
brother early gave evidence of a devotion to study, and a
determination to secure an education. Between him and
his elder brother there existed the warmest affection, and
as his brother was dying he called his uncle to him, and
asked that what pay was due him from the government
might be used to help his brother in obtaining an education.
Defeated in his attempt to enter the army, the young boy
returned to his fixed plan of educating himself, and attended
the New Hampshire Conference Seminary, at Tilton, and
Kimball Union Academy, earning the means to pay his
way by working in the hosiery mill at Meredith, and later
by teaching school. He graduated at Meriden in 1867,
and entered Dartmouth College that fall, graduating there-
from in 1871. During the summer vacations in college he
served as clerk of the Crawford House, White Mountains,
and the Memphremagog House, Newport, Vermont. In
this way he earned enough to provide for his education,
graduating substantially free of debt, with all his expenses
met solely by his own exertions. In school and college he
always took good rank, finding time, however, for his full
share of the sports and amusements of school and college
EDWARD G. LEACH. 6
life. Naturally, with the profession of his mother's father
and brothers before him, we should expect him to have
chosen the profession of medicine, but his business intincts
and training demanded a more varied life, and he early
determined to follow the law.
In the fall of 1871 he came to Franklin, and entered the
law office of Barnard & Sanborn as a student, remaining
until his admission to the bar, in 1874. The firm of Barnard
& Sanborn was dissolved in 1873. Mr. Leach continued
his studies with the senior member, Hon. Daniel Barnard,
till admission to the bar. The Quickness with which as a
student he grasped the principles of the law, and the facil-
ity with which as a man of affairs he applied them in prac-
tice, is shown by the fact that, even as a student, he re-
ceived from Mr. Barnard a liberal salary, and immediately
upon his admission to the bar was received by him as part-
ner on most favorable terms. The law partnership of
Barnard & Leach continued till 1879, wnen Mr. Leach went
to Concord, forming a law partnership with Henry W.
Stevens, under the style of Leach & Stevens, which has
continued to the present time, doing a large, varied, and
lucrative business. The business training and habits, the
knowledge of men and affairs gained by Mr. Leach in his
unaided exertions to obtain his college and professional
education, gave him upon his entrance to the practice of his
profession many advantages over a mere student of books,
and while devoting himself most zealously to the claims of
his profession, he has found time to engage in and superin-
tend many varied business interests. Although, since 1879,
his law r office has been at Concord, he has continued to
reside at Franklin, and has been prominent in the affairs
of the town. He served several years as one of the board
of education, was active in forming the Franklin Building
and Loan Association and the Franklin Board of Trade,
and has been president of both since their organization.
Mr. Leach took a very prominent part in the agitation in
the town looking towards the establishment of a system of
water- works, and after several years' discussion, induced
largely by his efforts, the town voted to put them in. He
was appointed one of the board of water commissioners,
and has given to the work much time, labor, and thought.
The past season Mr. Leach organized a syndicate of
4 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
citizens, who purchased all the stock in the Franklin Falls
Company owned outside of town. This company owned
a vacant dam on the Winnipiseogee river, and about eight
acres of land in the centre of the Falls village. The most
of the stock was held in Boston by parties who were not
willing to sell a part of the power, but would sell the whole.
The dam was built some four years ago, but no use had
been made of the power. By the purchase of the property
by Franklin citizens, an opportunity is now offered for
power whenever any one wishes to utilize it. The company
has been to much expense in advertising, and has now
negotiations under way with several parties, which will
bring new industries to the town. Mr. Leach is the clerk
and one of the directors of the company.
In 1878, Mr. Leach, with the late William M. Barnard,
bought out the principal fire insurance business of the town,
and has since carried on the same with William M., until
his death ; afterwards with Hon. Daniel and J. E. Barnard,
Esq., as partners, under the firm name of Leach & Barnard,
until the present year, when he bought the other interest,
and now conducts the entire business himself. When, in
1885, the foreign insurance companies, upon the passage
of the valued policy law, refused to do any insurance busi-
ness in the state, Mr. Leach was most active in devising
means to protect his clients in the insurance business, and
assisted in the organization of several state fire insurance
companies, with which he has ever since been connected.
Of one of them, the Manufacturer's and Merchant's Mutual,
he has been president since its organization, and to a large
extent has shaped its policy and directed its management.
Under his guidance this company has become the largest
mutual fire insurance company in the state, has retained its
business upon the return of the foreign companies, and
has accumulated a surplus of about $35,000, besides re-
turning liberal dividends to its policy-holders. In many
other commercial enterprises, Mr. Leach has been actively
engaged, being clerk and director, or holding other official
positions in various business corporations.
In religious matters Mr. Leach is of liberal views, and
though not a member of any church has been, ever since
its organization, a regular attendant upon the services of
the Unitarian church at Franklin, and one of its most lib-
EDWARD G. LEACH.
eral supporters. For ten years he has been clerk, and one
of the trustees of the society.
He was married, Dec. 24, 1874, to Agnes A. Robinson,
of Mechanic Falls, Me., a sister of a college classmate.
She was a graduate of Bradford Academy, Bradford, Mass.,
class of 1873. They have had two children, Eugene W.,
born August 4, 1877, Robert M., born April 2, 1879, now
attending the public schools of Franklin. His domestic
life is exceedingly pleasant. Mrs. Leach is an accom-
plished and cultivated lady, a devoted wife and mother.
The boys are bright, winning, and capable.
In politics, Mr. Leach is an ardent, active Republican,
ever ready to do his part for the success of the ticket,
whether he is personallv interested or not. He has been a
member of the Republican state committee for the past
twelve years. His name was brought forward by his
friends two years ago, and again this year, for the position
of chairman of the committee. While he was not a candi-
date, did not desire the position, and could not have ac-
cepted it without great sacrifice to his business inter-
ests, and absolutely refused to enter into any contest for
the place, he would not have refused the call of his party
had his services been demanded.
In 1880, Mr. Leach was elected solicitor for Merrimack
county, and re-elected in 1882 by a largely increased plu-
rality, though on both occasions a large part of the Demo-
cratic county ticket was elected.
In the town of Franklin a Democratic majority, varying
from one hundred to two hundred and thirty, has rendered
a position upon the Republican town ticket that of the
leader of a forlorn hope. Mr. Leach has not refused to
serve his party, and to lead them against such odds.
Though several times a candidate, and always running
well ahead of his ticket, the large opposing majority has
been too much for his personal popularity until the brilliant
exploit of the present year. In the last election in Frank-
lin, which resulted in a decrease of over two hundred in
the Democratic majority in the town, the election of three
Republican representatives, and wrested the control of the
check-list from the party which had held it for seventeen
years, Mr. Leach took a most active and efficient part.
While so many of the Republicans of Franklin worked so
6 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
earnestly and enthusiastically to bring about this result that
it would be invidious to ascribe their success to the work
of any particular person, it is safe to say that without Mr.
Leach's efforts and personal popularity the result could not
have been attained.
As a lawyer, Mr. Leach is successful. Cases are not won
at the present day by oratorical appeals to the feelings and
passions of the tribunal, but by careful preparation, close
attention to the facts and the law before, and clearness in
presentation at, the trial. In all this work of the lawyer of
to-day Mr. Leach succeeds from the industry, application,
and natural aptitude he brings to the work. As a speaker,
he is ready, easy, clear, and fluent. The lawyers of to-day
are not orators as those of a generation ago, because to-day
it is work, not oratory, which tells.
Since Mr. Leach's election as representative, his name
has been mentioned in connection with the speakership of
the next house. Should he be chosen to that position, his
legal knowledge and the administrative ability which he
has shown in business affairs will furnish him an admirable
equipment for the duties of the position.
OUR HILLS.
BY ELISABETH HUNT.
Salute, O monarchs hid in cloud,
Of whatsoever zone !
Our firs are not as others are,
Nor common is our stone.
Ineffable as fragrance, as
The bugle of the dawn,
As the happy noiseless weaving
Of the summer on the lawn.
The beauty of the holiness
Our Whittier did wing
Above our own illumed hills,
Transforming everything.
Manchester, Nov. 8, 18D2.
AN HISTORIC HILL.
BY CLARKSON DEARBORN.
Hampton Falls, incorporated as a town in 17 12, was
originally a part of Hampton, the Indian name of which
was Winnicumett, and was first settled in 1633 by emi-
grants from the county of Norfolk, England.
Hampton is now a popular summer resort, and Hampton
Beach is one of the oldest sea-shore watering-places on the
coast, with its river and salt-marshes (the ever-productive
hay fields of the industrious husbandman) made famous by
the pen of Whittier :
" The sunlight glitters keen and bright,
Where miles away,
Lies stretching to my dazzled sight
A 'luminous belt, a misty light,
Beyond the dark pine bluffs and wastes
Of sandy gray."
The " Falls," from which the town derives its name, have
been the site of several mills and various industries. The
first mill was a grist mill, at that time one of the most im-
portant structures in an old New England town, and the
miller was a personage of vital consequence to every fam-
ily far and near. It was first owned by Christopher Hus-
sey, an ancestor of the poet Whittier, and son-in-law of
Rev. Stephen Bacheler, one of the first settlers of old
Hampton. He was probably the first miller. From him
it came into the possession of the noted Gen. Moulton, the
bridegroom of the new wife in Whittier's poem :
" Dark the halls and cold the feast-
Gone the bridesmaids, gone the priest :
All is over, — all is done,
Twain of yesterday are one !
Biooming girl and manhood gray,
Autumn in the arms of May ! "
About the year 1770 Nathaniel Hubbard Dodge pur-
chased the mill, and built above it a saw and woolen mill,
one of the first in the state. At that time Hampton Falls
was the leading manufacturing town in New Hampshire.
These mills have remained in the possession of the Dodge
family down to the present time, and have been known as
"Dodge's Mills."
8 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
In 1847, the woolen mill, then used for the manufacture
of cotton batting, was burned, and a new one was erected
by Geo. H. Dodge, grandson of Nathaniel Hubbard Dodge.
In 1872, a grist mill was built on the site of the old mill by
Geo. D. Dodge, great-grandson of Nathaniel Hubbard
Dodge. The old saw mill has long since passed away,
and its usefulness has been superseded by the portable
steam saw mill of modern times.
Above the mills is the pond, where succeeding genera-
tions have tried their skill in the finny game, and many a
string of fish has been borne home in triumph by the
young disciple of Walton. From the falls the river winds
through the marshes, by the site of the birthplace of the
first president of New Hampshire, to meet the inflowing
tide of the salt sea, and forming a deep pool, a well known
bathing-place for the small boy of the present day.
While other towns have grown and become more promi-
nent in manufacturing industries, Hampton Falls still re-
tains its prestige as one of the leading agricultural towns
of the state, and its inhabitants for their skill and industry
in tilling the soil. The names of Batchelder, Brown,
Dodge, Healey, Janvrin, Sanborn, Wells, and Weare,
are synonyms of thrift and wealth gathered from mother
earth.
From an elevated plain, familiarly known as the " Hill,"
a beautiful and varied prospect meets the eye. On the
north is the town of old Hampton, rich in historic interest;
to the north and east the Isles of Shoals, looming up from
the misty ocean, the beach with its hillocks of white sand,
and the foaming breakers chasing each other to the shore ;
above all, the great head of the Boar, forever drinking of
the salt spray ; inland stretch the meadows, covered with
stacks of hay like grim sentinels over the broad expanse,
and the mouth of Hampton river shining like a sheet of
silver in the setting sun. On the west are the green fields
and fertile farms of Hampton Falls, extending over hill
and dale until they are lost in the distance. On the south,
in a beautiful valley skirting the ocean to the boundary of
the state, lies the town of many brooks, once the home of
Edward Gove, the fearless defender of popular rights in
old colonial times, whose descendants, by a singular coin-
cidence, became Friends and non-resistants, and worshipped
AN HISTORIC HILL.
in the old Quaker meeting-house, not long since removed.
On the hill, near the junction of four roads (on land
donated by the
town of Hamp-
ton Falls), stands
a monument of
fine Italian mar-
ble, erected by
the state of New
Hampshire in
memory of her il-
lustrious son, the
first president of
the state, on which
is inscribed, with
a laurel wreath
and shield in re-
o. v-rr.. '«— - - _w- — lief.the following :
The Wean Monument.
Hon. Mesliech Weare.
Born in Hampton Falls
Jan. 16th, 1713,
Graduated at Harvard 1735,
Speaker of the House of our Representatives 1752,
President of N. H. from 1776 to 1784.
at the same time Councilor for Rockingham.
Chairman of the Committee of Safety,
President of the Council
and
Chief-Justice of the Supreme Court.
In public service 45 years.
Died Jan. 14th, 1786.
Erected A. D. 1853,
by the State of New Hampshire,
to perpetuate the memory of her illustrious son,
whose early efforts, sage counsel, and persevering labors
contributed largely toward establishing his
country's independence, and shaping the future destiny of
his native state.
Meshech Weare was reared on a New England farm.
His gymnasium was the broad fields and wooded hills of
his father's estate, giving to him that physical culture
which served him so well in after years. Educated at one
of the best and oldest colleges in the colonies, his mind
was trained for those perplexing duties which devolved
10 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
upon him for almost half a century. Of his personal ap-
pearance we have no portrait except that obtained from
the recollections of his descendants. He is described as
being six feet one inch in height, dark hair, with dark
hazel eyes, and of commanding presence. But his char-
acter and patriotism are recorded in history, and stamped
on the memory of a grateful people. We get some idea
of his temperament and earnestness in a letter addressed
to the Committee of Safety at Weare, in May, 1777, be-
fore the battle of Bennington, which is as follows :
State of ") To Committee of Safety, May 8th, 1777.
New Hampshire. / To Mai. General Folsom.
By Several Intelligences and circumstances lately received there is Great
Reason to Believe that the Enemies forces Will be Employed this Summer
Against the New England States, and there is the Greatest Probability that Some
of them will shortly be landed in this State — Therefore we are Directed Imme-
diately to Send Orders to the Several Colonels in this State to Give Orders once
more and Take The Strictest Care to see them fulfilled; that all the Men in
their several Regiments be properly Equiped Ready To March at a Minutes
Warning, both Alarm Lists and training Bands, and further Recommended to
all Persons Capable of Bearing Arms Constantly to convey their fire Arms
Ammunition and Accoutrements for War to the Place of Public Worship and
all other places Where Their Business Leads them as much as they Can with
any Degree of Convenience as we know not the Day or Hour when an attack
may be made in our own borders, and as it is of the Greatest Importance
to meet our Enemies before they have time to Get much footing and to
Stop Those Infernal Traitors Among ourselves who may be Disposed to help
Them.
M. WEARE, Chairman.
Of thoughtful mind and stead)- purpose, he combined
those qualities of character so prominent in the life of the
Father of his Country. During the trying times of the
Revolution his advice and counsel were highly valued by
Washington. Descended from a distinguished family, and
aided by his wide experience as speaker of the assembly
in 1752, delegate to the congress of the Six Nations, at
Albany, in 1754, colonel of a New Hampshire regiment
until the breaking out of the Revolution, — at which time,
though comparatively an old 'man, he was called by the
unanimous voice of the people to manage the most impor-
tant affairs of state, — president of the Committee of Safety,
chief-justice of New Hampshire in 1776, and first presi-
dent of the state under the new constitution in 1784, he
guided the ship of state through all the difficult and per-
plexing questions of settlement between New Hampshire
AN HISTORIC HILL. 11
and the neighboring province of Vermont, on terms both
equitable and advantageous to both ; thus, although called
to duty in his old age, he did not disappoint the confidence
reposed in him, and rilled the office of president until im-
paired health rendered it necessary for him to resign. He
was succeeded by John Langdon in 1785.
Perhaps no two men of New Hampshire contributed
more towards the final success of the struggle for liberty
than Meshech Weare and John Langdon. While Stark
was fighting and crippling the hosts of Burgoyne at
Bennington, they, by their wise counsel, patriotic words,
and by contributions from their own private property,
Meshech Weare, the wealth}' yeoman, and John Langdon,
the princely merchant, encouraged the faltering minds of
the people at home, and furnished the sinews of war, by
means of which the independence of the colonies was
finally established.
Near the monument is the old Weare mansion, built in
1735. It is an old-fashioned square house, with two mas-
sive chimneys, and, though somewhat modernized by a
coat of white paint and other changes, still retains its
dignified and antique appearance. In front stand four
giant elms, one of which was transplanted by President
Weare more than one hundred years ago. Here lived and
died the first president of New Hampshire, and was buried
in the old graveyard near his home, where a monument
marks the spot in double honor to his memory.
On the hill where the monument now stands was built,
in 171 1, the first meeting-house in Hampton Falls. Its
first three ministers lie buried side by side in the old
graveyard where rest the bodies of Meshech Weare
and his family. The first pastor was Theophilus Cotton,
ordained January 2, 17 12. On a tablet over his grave
is this inscription :
•' Here lyes ye body of ye
Rev. Mr. Theophilus Cotton, ye first
Minister of ye Church at
Hampton fails :
Who after lie had served God
faithfully in his generation,
Deceased aug. ye 16th, 1726,
in ye 45th year of his age.
" Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord."
12 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
The second pastor was ordained January 4, 1727. His
gravestone bears this inscription :
" Here lies the body of the
Rev'd Mr. Joseph Whipple,
who having wisely and faithfully
discharged the pastoral office
in the Second Church in
Hampton,
Deceased Febr'y 17th 1757,
in the 56th year of his age."
The third pastor was Josiah Bailey, ordained October
19, 1757. His gravestone bears this inscription:
" Here are interred the
remains of the Rev d Mr
Josiah Bailey, Who after
he had wisely discharged
the duties of his office for
the space of five yeares
was received into the joy
of his Lord, Sept 12th 1762
yEtatis 28."
Paine Wingate, from Amesbury, Massachusetts, was
ordained December 14, 1763, and resigned March I2 r
1776, removing to Stratham, where he settled on a farm.
He afterwards became prominent in state affairs, and was
one of the first senators of the United States from New
Hampshire. Hon. Robert C. Winthrop, in 1836, visited
him. He was at that time the last surviving member of
the first senate of the United States, and had dined with
Washington on the day of his first inauguration, when our
constitutional government was organized. Mr. Winthrop,
in speaking of this visit on one occasion, narrates an inter-
esting anecdote. He was at that time secretary of the
committee of arrangements, and chief-marshal for the two-
hundredth anniversary of the founding of Harvard Col-
lege, and had made the journey to Stratham to secure the
autograph of the oldest living alumnus of the college,
Hon. Paine Wingate, of the class of 1759, who was then
in his ninety-ninth year. kt He had asked me," said Mr.
Winthrop, tl to read over to him the names of his col-
leagues in the first senate of the United States. I read
them to him accordingly. Rufus King and Robert Mor-
ris, Richard Henry Lee and Caleb Strong, Oliver Ells-
worth and Ralph Izard, and all the rest, not forgetting
AN HISTORIC HILL.
13
John Langdon, the colleague of Paine Wingate, who was
president pro tcmfore of the first senate until John Adams
was installed vice-president of the United States. There
were but twenty-two senators in all, from only eleven
states. North Carolina and Rhode Island having no sena-
tors as yet. I went through the whole list, and at the end
of each name the old man repeated the name in a clear,
ringing tone, and asked most eagerly, 'Where is he?' On
my saying that he was dead, he exclaimed, fc Is he dead?
And is he dead? And is he dead, too?' It had escaped
his memory that he himself had long been the last survivor
of that first senate of the United States, and I can remem-
ber but few things in my life more impressive than the
hollow and sepulchral tones of Paine Wingate's voice, as
he repeated, * Is he dead? And is he dead? And is he
dead, too?' after
each name of his
old colleagues.
They were as pa-
thetic and as dra-
matic as the ex-
clamations of Phi-
loctetes on being
told successively
of the deaths of
Achilles and Ajax
and Patroclus, in
the great tragedy
of Sophocles."
Dr. Sam'l Lang-
don, a native of
Boston, and form-
er pre s i d e n t of
The weiis Tavern. Harvard Colleire,
was installed over this church in Hampton Falls in 1781,
and spent the remainder of his days there. Thus this spot
is made historic for being the site of the first church, over
which so many eminent divines presided ; and, finally, the
location of a monument to the memory of an illustrious
man and patriot.
The road over the hill, from Newbury port to Portsmouth,
has been the route of many distinguished men. On Dec.
14
THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
13, 1774, Paul Revere took his first public ride. The
Boston Committee of Safety, having just learned of the
British order that no military stores should be exported to
America, sent Paul Revere on a fleet horse to Portsmouth,
to inform the committee thereof the news. Measures were
at once taken, under the direction of Major John Sullivan
and Capt. John Langdon, to secure the stores at Fort Wil-
liam and Mary, at Newcastle, which was successfully
accomplished, and the powder there obtained did good ser-
vice at the battle of Bunker Hill. In 1789, Gen. Wash-
ington passed over this road in his own private carriage,
on his way to Portsmouth, escorted by Gen. Sullivan, gov-
ernor of the state, and four companies of light horse.
President Monroe
also passed over
this road in 1817 ;
and in 1824, on
Wednesday,Sept.
1 , Lafayette made
his flvincr eastern
visit, and returned
o'er the same road
on the same day,
about midnight.
This road has
81 since been called
the "Lafayette
road." On this
road, not far from the monument, is the old "Wells Tav-
ern," built by a Mr. Wells in 1808, which was a noted
hostlery in the days of the old stage-coach. This location
has been occupied by an inn for nearly two hundred years.
Here once stood the " Sanborn Inn," where the state legis-
lature met, in 1737, to settle the boundary between New
Hampshire and Massachusetts. In the hall of the Wells
tavern Daniel Webster once made a legal plea. This
house, now occupied by a Mr. Lovering, has recently
been made more interesting and memorable as the place
where Whittier dined while resting at Elmfield.
South of the wayside inn stands a giant elm, which
was set out, in 1732, by Mrs. Benjamin Sweet, assisted by
her little daughter Sarah. This tree, in May, 1843,
Elmfield.
AN HISTORIC HILL. 15
measured fourteen feet in circumference at a distance of
seven feet from the base ; the latest measurement shows
an increase of four feet. Just below, shaded by this majes-
tic tree and others nearly as large, is an ancient house,
built in 1786, the homestead of the Wells family, and now
known as " Elmfield," overlooking the marshes and valleys
below, owned and occupied by a descendant of Mr. Wells,
Miss S. A. Gove, whose guest the poet Whittier was
amid the scenes of his earlier poems ; and this house be-
comes the scene of the latest memorable event on this
historic ground, and future generations will point to the
spot where the sweet poet of New England died. Here
he wrote the poem to his beloved friend, Oliver Wendell
Holmes, on his eighty-third birthday, and also the little
verse for the Boston Journal, on the 26th of August,
which was destined to be his last, and published in that
paper on the 26th :
-DR. HOLMES.
"Beloved physician of an age of ail,
When grave prescriptions fail.
Thy songs have cheer and healing for us all,
As David's had for Saul."
ALEXANDER SCAMMELL.
BY HON. CHARLES R. MORRISON.
" Scammell ! Scammell !" said Gen. Pierce, with pecul-
iar emphasis, in the first public address which I heard from
him, and that nearly fifty years ago. This name, with
other of New Hampshire's officers who had distinguished
themselves, was often heard till a much later period. At
our return from the funeral of Chief-Justice Bell, who was
an antiquarian, the late Judge Asa Fowler alluded to
Lafayette's visit at Concord, in June, 1825, and to the
sentiment which he himself heard and remembered ever
after, though but a boy at the time.
Lafayette, from first to last, was not with the French
auxiliaries, but with the American army. August 7, 1780,
Washington placed him in command of a special corps of
light infantry. Enoch Poor, whose reputation was well
established, at Lafayette's request was given command of a
brigade in the corps, which place he held until his death,
16 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
in September, 1781, from wounds received in a duel with a
French officer. In announcing his death, Gen. Washing-
ton declared him to be " an officer of distinguished merit,
who, as a citizen and a soldier, had every claim to the
esteem of his country." Some time before the battle of
Yorktown, Scammell, who desired an active command, was
given command of one of the chosen regiments under
Lafayette. He died of wounds received at that battle.
At the banquet given in honor of Lafayette, in front of
the New Hampshire state house, in June, 1825, more than
two hundred Revolutionary officers and soldiers were pres-
ent ; he was called upon by a gray-haired veteran for a
sentiment. Lifting his glass to his lips, and after a few
explanatory words, he gave, — "Light Infantry Poor, and
Yorktown Scammell."
This incident, which was omitted from the interesting
sketch in the Granite Monthly, September number,
1892, of Scammell, I have thought should be remembered.
THE OLD AND THE NEW.
BY CLARENCE H. PEARSON.
The clock strikes twelve ! Comrades, arise,
Fill up each glass and drink with me ;
E'en while I speak the old year dies, —
Here 's to his sacred memory.
He brought us cares, he brought gray hairs,
Smiles, tears, and joy and sorrow ;
But drifting snow shall ebb and flow
Across his grave to-morrow ;
And as we bring our cups in line,
Our teardrops mingle with the wine.
Fill up your glasses once again, —
Here's to the new year ! Oh, may he
Be brightest in the radiant train
Of golden years that are to be !
May Justice reign, and Freedom gain
Some genius-crowned defender ;
May Art advance, and Truth's keen lance
Strike down the vain pretender ;
May Wisdom's sun diffuse its light,
And bigots hide like birds of night !
ABBY HUTCHINSON PATTON.
15V i\ 15. COGSWELL.
On Thanksgiving-day evening, November 24, 1892,
Abbv Hutchinson Patton, the last survivor but one of the
renowned Hutchinson family of singers, died at her home
in New York city, of apoplexy. She was stricken with
the fatal disease on November 13, and only for a brief
day regained her power of speech afterwards. She passed
away as quietly as the twilight of a June day fades into the
shades of night, and lo ! her friends were left alone.
Mrs. Patton had recently returned to her city home from
a prolonged visit among the hills and valleys, mountains
and lakes of the " Old Granite State," which she loved
devotedly. Never did the scenery of our good old state
impress her more than during her last visit to New Hamp-
shire, and to her old home in Milford. It was her good for-
tune to visit Sunapee and Winnipiseogee lakes on beautiful
August days, and they left a sweet benediction with her,
which continued to the end. No artist ever discerned the
beautiful in nature more quickly than did Mrs. Patton, or
was ever more enchanted with it. Henceforth Lake Sun-
apee and Lake Winnipiseogee will possess added interest
to the friends who were her fellow-voyagers on those days.
Abby Hutchinson Patton was born in Milford. August
29, 1829, and was the youngest of the family of sixteen
children of Jesse and Mary Leavitt Hutchinson. She was
a natural singer in a remarkable musical family that ac-
quired a high reputation as singers a half century ago. In
1841, at the age of twelve years, she started out on concert
tours with her brothers Judson, John, and Asa, as the
fourth member of the famous quartette which N. P. Willis
felicitously described as " a nest of brothers with a sister
in it." The)- appeared at anti-slaver)' meetings, temper-
ance and other reform meetings, as well as in concerts,
and added much to the interest of such gatherings by their
stirring humanitarian and patriotic songs. When such
orators as Wendell Phillips and William Lloyd Garrison
were disturbed by mobocratic outbursts, the sweet render-
ing of "Pity, Kind Gentlemen, "or "The Slave's Appeal,"
by Abby Hutchinson, would quiet the stormy feeling.
18 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
The concert tours of the Hutchinson family extended
not only through New England, but to New York and
other states, in the years preceding 1845. In 1844 they
made the tour of the White Mountains, and on that occa-
sion gladdened the heart of Nathaniel Peabody Rogers by
entering his native town of Plymouth singing Felicia
Hemans's " Song of Spring" :
" I come, I come, ye have called me long,
I come o'er the mountains with joy and song."
In 1845 the Hutchinsons visited Great Britain, where
they were well received in society, as well as in the concert-
room. They were entertained by Charles Dickens, Wil-
liam and Mary Howitt, Harriet Martineau, and many other
persons distinguished in literary and reform circles. Abby's
rendering of Tennyson's " May Queen" was received
with great favor wherever they appeared. After returning
home, the family continued their concerts for several years,
and sang their way into the hearts of the people.
In 1849 Abby Hutchinson was married to Mr. Ludlow
Patton, a banker and broker, and member of the New
York Stock Exchange. His father was the late Rev. Dr.
William Patton, one of the founders of Union Theological
Seminary, and the founder of the Evangelical Alliance.
Mr. Patton possessed fine musical tastes, and their union
was a happy one. After their marriage, Mrs. Patton sang
only occasionally with her brothers, but ever responded
to a call for charity. In late years, Mr. and Mrs. Patton
had travelled extensively, and formed a wide acquaintance.
Mrs. Patton took active interest in all movements for the
benefit of mankind, and was a humanitarian by nature and
training. A volume of happy thoughts, in prose and
poetry, recently published for private distribution, under
the title of " A Handful of Pebbles," bears testimony to the
wisdom of her thoughts and to her felicity in expressing
them. Among the numerous songs which she set to mu-
sic two of the best known are, " Kind Words can Never
Die," and " Ring Out, Wild Bells." The latter was sung
at the musical festival at the The Weirs, in 1891, on which
occasion Mrs. Patton was present, and greatly enjoyed its
rendering.
It will be of interest to know that Mrs. Patton and her
only surviving brother, John W. Hutchinson, and her hus-
ABBY HUTCHINSON PATTON. 19
band, sang some of the songs of yore at the dedication of
the statue of John P. Hale in the state house park, on
August 3, 1892, and also sang at the funeral of John G.
Whittier, which was the last public appearance of the
trio.
Funeral services were held in New York city, Saturday,
November 26, 1892, and at the Unitarian church in Mil-
ford on the following Tuesday, November 29. At the
latter service, John W. Hutchinson paid a beautiful tribute
to his sister, and sang the last song thev had sun<r together :
also the songs, "What shall be my Angel Name,'* and
" Kind Words can Never Die," and. with others of the
family, sang the chorus of the selection which he and Mrs.
Patton sang at Whittiers funeral. The services included
the reading of some extracts from " A Handful of Pebbles,"
and the last poem in it, entitled, —
" LOOKING TOWARD SUNSET.
" Oh, when the long day's work is done,
And we clasp hand at set of sun,
Loved friends we meet,
In concourse sweet,
At even.
" So, when for us has passed away
The last bright hour of earthly day,
Then may we meet,
In converse sweet,
In Heaven."
At the conclusion of the services the earthly casket of
Abby Hutchinson Patton was laid to rest in the burial-place
of her fathers, beneath the shade of a favorite tree. To
her numerous friends, the remembrance of her sweet life
is an ever present benediction.
COLONEL JOSEPH WHIPPLE AND HIS DART-
MOUTH PLANTATION.
BY LEVI W. DODGE.
The first settler of what is now the town of Jefferson, in
the White Mountains, was Colonel Joseph Whipple, a man
of large wealth and influence for those days, and living in
some approach to baronial style and sumptuousness. He
owned, it is said, four slaves, and employed many other
men upon his extensive demense, besides house servants,
male and female, and kept for his own use and pleasure
a dozen horses. His house was a large, square structure,
with wing,, .two stories high, strongly built for resistance
from externa] influences, and with high windows heavilv
shuttered and barred. It was much after the manner of
ancient dwellings nearer the seaboard, and built for de-
fence, having loop-holes in the upper story, a provision
against possible attacks from Indians or other foes from
without ; and tradition says that in those upper rooms were
stored much valuable property, family plate, silks and
broadcloths, and wealth of Spanish coin, for the Colonel
was once a merchant upon the high seas, and his trade
with the Indies had brought him great riches. In his
cellar too, like the barons and grandees of other times, he
kept his stores of choice Burgundies, Madeiras, and good
old West India rum.
All along the pathways of the world's history there are
scattered monuments to the memory of its men of mark,
pioneers in its enterprises, foremost in its leading events,
great captains in the onward march of improvement.
Such was Col. Whipple. But what particular incentive
brought him hither so earl}" as i772-'73 it would be a sat-
isfaction to know. A luxurious home by the sea exchanged
for a wild haunt among the mountains : the enjoyments of
the world of life, social and political distinction, and the
amenities of civilization for the deprivations of the wilder-
ness ! Was it an inborn love for adventure to be gratified,
or really the acquisition of more wealth and power in the
development of his mountain-walled domain? Or, was it
the allurements of the grand old mountains themselves,
and he
" A lover true, who knew by heart
Each joy the mountain dales impart."
COL. JOSEPH WHIPPLE. 21
a
*ol. Joseph Whipple was born at Kittery, Maine, Feb.
i.;. 1738. He was a younger brother of Gen. William
Whipple of Revolutionary lame, who was one of New
Hampshire's delegates to the Continental congress, and
w as one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence.
The father of these distinguished sops was William, a na-
live of Ipswich, Mass., where he was born Feb. 28. 1695-6.
The mother was a daughter of Robert Cutts, a wealthy
shipbuilder of Kittery. who at his death left to his daughter
a handsome fortune. The emigrant ancestor of Col.
Joseph was Dea. John Whipple, who was granted land in
Ipswich in 1639, an ^ made a freeman in 1640. He was a
ruling elder there in the first church, a man of influence
and considerable wealth. He died June 30, 1669, leaving
one son, " Cornet John," or Captain John, as he was famil-
iarly known, who was born about 1626. He was a man
of energetic and active nature, and was appointed captain
of a troop to march against the Indians during those troub-
lous times when Philip of Pokanoket was a reigning terror
to the Massachusetts colonists. Wealthy, honored, and
respected, he died August 10, 1683, in the midst of an
active life. In his will, dated August 2 of that year, he
mentions his three sons, John, Matthew, and Joseph. The
latter, "when he comes of age, to have the malting office,
houses and lands. Son John to have the houses, lands,
and appurtenances in the hands of Arthur Abbott. Son
Matthew to have the saw mill, &c."
This sup Matthew (Major, for distinction) succeeded to
the business of his father in practice if not by entailment,
for he owned a malt-house, besides grain and saw mills,
and " carried on much business." He died, aged 80, in
January, 1739. His will, at the probate office in Essex
county, mentions sons Matthew. Appleton, John, Joseph,
and William. The latter, born February 28, 1695-6,
moved to Kittery, Me., and became the father of William,
the signer of the Declaration of Independence, and of
Joseph, the subject of this sketch. The mother of Col.
Joseph Whipple was Man-, eldest daughter of Robert
Cutts of Kittery, whose father was Robert, one of the
three brothers of that name who came to America at a
very early period, and were prominently connected with
the early history of New Hampshire. John settled in
22 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
Portsmouth, and became New Hampshire's first president,
in 1679. Richard settled in Portsmouth, and was a man
of great property there and at the Isles of Shoals, in the
palmy days of those islands. Robert first settled and mar-
ried at St. Christopher's ; afterwards at Barbadoes, where
he married a second wife, Mary Hoel, whom he brought
to New England. He first settled at Portsmouth, and
lived in what was known as the "Great House," at the
foot of Pitt street. He afterwards moved across the river
to Kittery, set up a carpenter's yard, and became an ex-
tensive ship-builder.
The father of these sons was at the time of his death a
member of Cromwell's second parliament, in 1654.
Mrs. Whipple, the wife of William, died in 1783, at 85
years, leaving two sons and two daughters. The sons
were William and Joseph ; a third son, Robert Cutt Whip-
ple, died in 1761.
Just across the river from Portsmouth, in the old grave-
yard at Kittery, where the stately, drooping elms, the
gnarled and knotted oaks, and the sighing aspens are
whispering of the long-gone years, may still be read the
time-worn inscriptions upon the lichened tombstones of the
Cutts and the Whipples, where and when they dropped
into the silent. slumber of the grave.
The house in which Col. Joseph Whipple was born and
where his youth was passed is situated on the east bank
of the Piscataqua, opposite Portsmouth, at the head of a
small cove east from the navy yard, and about a mile
from the mouth of the river. The inlet is still known as
"Whipple's cove." The ancient domicile was originally
built for a garrison-house, or protection against the Indians,
and until far into the present century its antique design
was well preserved, but it has gradually yielded to modern
improvements until, externally, the old block-house built
two centuries and a quarter ago has lost its antiquarian
attractions. The house, as originally built, was about
thirty-four feet square, two stories high, with the upper
one projecting over the lower one foot on every side ;
around this projection, at intervals, were scuttles, or loop-
holes, for the purpose of permitting the occupants, in times
of assault, to pour hot water down upon the assailants, or
for the extinguishment of fires which might be builded
COL. JOSEPH WHIPPLE.
23
against the house, as was a frequent mode of attack. This
garrison was constructed of hemlock timber, squared and
locked together at the corners in a sort of dove-tailing ; and
when the structure was extended and modernized by Mr.
Jesse Philbrick, about 1840, its blocks and timbers were
as sound and perfect as when rolled and locked together
by the settlers of Kittery cove, in the days of John Cutt,
New Hampshire's first president, and whose brother, Rob-
ert Cutt, was probably the first occupant of the fortress.
He was a wealthy ship-builder and a merchant upon the
high seas at the time his daughter became the wife of Wil-
liam Whipple, St., and the mother of Hon. William and
Joseph Whipple, and at his death left to this daughter a
handsome fortune, of which this estate at Whipple's cove
formed a part.
The father of Joseph Whipple being a seafaring man,
his boys were naturally inclined to similar pursuits, and
so we find them, after a few years of school life in the pub-
lic schools of their native place, devoted to commercial life
upon the sea, chiefly between this country and the West
Indies. After a few successful ventures they, in 1759, re-
linquished their seafaring life, and settled in trade at Ports-
mouth. During the following decade, while William and
Joseph Whipple were prosperous merchants at the com-
mercial and political centre of the province, the country was
fast drifting towards a revolution. The " taxing of the colo-
nies" was stirring the hot provincial blood. The ''Stamp
Act" was exciting general alarm, and other arbitrary meas-
ures of the British government were receiving the attention
of the " Sons of Liberty," and the people, through their
representatives, were petitioning the king and parliament
for a redress of grievances. During these exciting times,
and as a result of their unsettling of the laws of commerce
and chances of trade by reason of the " tea tax," the " mo-
lasses act," the stamp grievance, and the non-importation
agreement, the Whipples closed their mercantile relations at
Portsmouth, William turning his energies exclusively to
public life, and Joseph looking elsewhere for the gratifica-
tions of an active but not over ambitious temperament. A
spirit of speculation in lands had been prevailing for some
years in all ranks of society ; applications were constantly
being made to the governor for grants of wild land, and he
24 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
readily complied with all such requests, for it filled his coffers
with gold. It was during this unappropriated land-grab-
bing movement that the territory included in the present
town of Jefferson was granted to John Goffe, Esq., and his
associates. Some of the latter were members of the gov-
ernor's council and immediate friends, grantees, for con-
venience, we may say, and we find the same names in
many of the township charters of those days, ostensibly as
real petitioners, but in truth to make up the required num-
ber, of about sixty, necessary for a successful consideration
by the authorities at Portsmouth. The date of this Goffe
grant was October, 1763, and it was called "Dartmouth,"
suggested by the governor in memory of his friend and
patron, the Earl of Dartmouth; but not one of those origi-
nal petitioners ever took possession of his nominal share in
that wild lor a incognita. Taxes were assessed, however,
and in a few years the township was in the market for sale,
on account of accumulated tax arrears ; and out of this tax-
gatherer's necessity grew Col. Whipple's opportunity.
Josiah Willard of Winchester, a speculator in lands, had
come into possession of twenty-six of the original rights
of Dartmouth, and these Whipple bought in 1774; and the
same year, through the assistance of John Hunt, Esq., who
was then private secretary to the governor, he secured the
titles of twenty-six others of granted rights. These trans-
actions were followed during the next few years by other
acquisitions through the necessities of tax sales, until, in
1796, the entire township had passed under the ownership
and control of Col. Whipple. He was literally "monarch
of all he surveyed." Here, upon a broad plain in the
heart of the White Mountains, upon the banks of the wild
Sirrcoganok, and mid the awful grandeur of the everlasting
hills, Col. Whipple established his country-seat, planted a
colony, and builcled a manor house, unpretentious, to be
sure, as compared with the titled heritages of the old world,
but in extent of demense, in the wild grandeur of its cliff-
hung mountains, in the broad reaches of its primeval forests,
where the storm-beaten " Agiocochook" rears its craggy
mist-crowned crest above the valleys of the Israel and the
Johns, it was unrivaled among all the baronies of England.
Though bred a merchant, and with some political ambi-
tion, yet he had a taste for agriculture, and in the acquiring
COL. JOSEPH WHIPPLE. 25
and building up of this wild domain he was doubtless per-
suaded by the example and influence of the then provincial
governor, John Wentworth, who, it will be remembered,
began a plantation for himself in the township of Wolfe-
borough, on which he expended large sums and built an
elegant house, where he entertained extravagantly for those
days, and the road from this manor house by the lake to
Portsmouth was the best improved highway in the state ;
and it was the governor's purpose, as shown in his cor-
respondence, still preserved, to extend this " King's high-
way" northward to Quebec. The official letter of the gov-
ernor containing these suggestions is dated April 5, 1768,
and by 1774, largely through the negotiations of the gov-
ernor's private secretary, Col. Whipple had acquired pos-
session of nearly the whole township of Dartmouth, had
located his manse, and from the banks of the wild, silvery
Sirrooganok his followers were pushing back the borders
of the forest, enlarging the meadow boundaries, building
mills, planting a young republic, and making history.
The route of Col. Whipple and his associates was up the
valley of the Saco and through the then recently discovered
rocky pass of the mountains denominated "The Notch";
but at what point he entered the valley from the governor's
plantation on Lake Winnipesaukee, we can only conjec-
ture, but it is more than probable at Conway, as that would
appear the most feasible route, and at that " three-river
point" was already established a young settlement, for the
Osgoods were there in 1764. The date of the commence-
ment of his plantation was not later than 1773, and some
say a year earlier, which would be but a twelvemonth fol-
lowing the discovery of the mountain pass, and the " King's
highway "was then but a line of spotted trees, to become in
after years (1803) tne "Tenth N. H. Turnpike," chartered
and built largely through the influence of Joseph Whipple.
In August, 1 781, Col. Whipple came near falling a vic-
tim to British designs and Indian cunning. The affair is
made the subject of notice in the Adjutant-General's report
for 1868, page 395, as follows : " The 3d of August, 1781, a
party of Indians made an attack upon the inhabitants of
Bethel, Me., and the adjacent towns upon the Androscog-
gin river ; killing three men, and capturing three others,
whom they took to Montreal. About the middle of August,
26 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
they made prisoners of Col. Joseph Whipple, of Jefferson
(a gentleman from Portsmouth and a large landholder),
and a Mr. Gotham, who carried on his farm ; both men,
however, escaped from them. Great alarm existed on the
Northern frontiers on account of these attacks.
'The Committee of Safety ' took immediate measures for
the defence of the inhabitants in that quarter, placing a
force there under the direction of Col. Joseph Whipple and
Col. David Page for the defence of the 'Northern Fron-
tiers,' consisting of forty-nine officers and men. They were
in the service from August 29 to Nov. 6, 1781. . . ."
We here reproduce the story of the capture of Col. Whip-
ple by the Indians, as narrated by Rev. B. G. Willey, in his
sketches of the White Mountains, published in 1855. The
Willey homestead was situated in the valley of the Saco,
about on the boundary line between Conway and Bartlett,
and was on the traversed route of the Colonel as he passed
to and from his home at Portsmouth and his plantation
among the mountains. He was a frequent guest at the
Willeys, who were among the pioneers of the valley in
1777. The narrative, therefore, maybe considered authen-
tic in detail, as related by the Colonel himself, and after-
wards written by an interested listener. The writer hereof
has also heard it substantially as here told from the lips of
those contemporary with Whipple, but whose names now,
like his, are graven on stones.
" Colonel Joseph Whipple, one of the most widely known
men in New Hampshire in his day, was one of the earliest
settlers (of Jefferson). . . . During the war of the Revo-
lution he was captured by the Indians in his own house.
The party acted under the authority of the English, and the
object was to get information in respect to the designs of
the Americans in this region. Suspecting nothing, he
admitted them, as usual, to his house, and was a prisoner
before he imagined their intention. With his usual pres-
ence of mind he made no objection to accompany them,
but said they must wait a short time for him to get ready.
He immediately commenced active preparations, and con-
trived in the bustle to tell his housekeeper, Mrs. Hight, to
take up the attention of the Indians with some articles of
curious mechanism which he had, while he should escape
from the window. So occupied were they in examining
COL. JOSEPH WHIPPLE. 27
the curiosities that they suffered him to go into his bed-
room to change his clothes, as he told them, and through
the window of this he fled. He went directly to a meadow,
where he had men to work, and ordering each man to seize
a stake from the fence and shoulder it as he would a gun,
soon presented himself again to the Indians, who were
already in search of him. Seeing him in the distance at
the head, as they supposed, of a large company of armed
men, they hastily seized what plunder they could lay hands
on, and fled. A Mr. Gotham, residing in the family,
chanced to be coming toward the house at the time the
Indians arrested Col. Whipple, but saw them in time to make
good his escape. They fired upon him as he was cross-
ing the river upon a log, but did not hit him."
B. F. Willey, in speaking of Col. Whipple, in his White
Mountain Sketches, says he was " one of the most widely
known men in New Hampshire in his day ; . . . more
thoroughly versed in the ways of the world than his poorer
neighbors, his influence became almost absolute in this
region. He however never abused this power and position.
The early inhabitants invariably speak of him as a father to
them. He made a ready market for all the region, always
purchasing whatever they had to sell. His annual visits to
Portsmouth were regarded by the inhabitants with almost
as much interest as the yearly arrival of a vessel by the
first inhabitants of Greenland."'
Colonel Whipple took with from Portsmouth his retinue
of servants and workingmen, for his object was the making
of a town. Among those of his attendants was Miss Nancy
Barton, the first white woman ever in that region, and whose
tragic death is commemorated to this day in Nancv's brook
and Nancy's rock, in the valley of the Saco. Deborah
Vicker succeeded the unfortunate Nancy as feminine ad-
visor in the family of Col. Whipple. She afterwards became
the wife of Richard Stalbird of Portsmouth, but through
the influence and the kindness of the Colonel they became
settlers upon the Dartmouth plantation, and Deborah
became a noted nurse and doctress, and was familiarly
known among the country folk in after j'ears as " Granny
Stalbird," a welcome guest at every hearthstone.
Colonel Whipple was a member of the first scientific
exploring party to ascend Mt. Washington, in July, 1784,
28 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
at which time it is supposed the mountain received its
present name. The other members of the party were Rev.
Manassah Cutler of Massachusetts, Rev. Daniel Little of
Maine, and Dr. Belknap and Dr. Fisher of New Hampshire.
The party was entertained by the Colonel at his Dart-
mouth plantation, and it was on this occasion, while a guest
at Col. Whipple's, that Dr. Belknap preached to the
pioneers of Jefferson the first religious discourse ever
preached in the town, the service being held in Col.
Whipple's large barn, July 26, 1784. The impressiveness
of the occasion must have been enhanced by the furious
warring of the elements in the mountains above, for it is
said that a violent thunder-storm was raging the while.
Col. Whipple was a prominent member of the old North
Church of Portsmouth until his death. The old north
meeting-house was famous in the early history of the town,
not only from the number and prominence of its worshippers,
but there was connected therewith many a political reminis-
cence, not the least interesting of which was that of the
Portsmouth Tea Party, in December, 1773, the purpose of
which, like that of the famous Boston Tea Party, was to
resolve and take measures " against the importation of the
East India Company's tea into this port." The old church
was built in 171 2, and the last services previous to demoli-
tion were held in April, 1854. George Washington and
James Monroe had both worshipped within its walls, seated
in the pew of Hon. William Whipple.
Col. Whipple was the first acting collector of customs at
the port of Portsmouth, under the newly organized govern-
ment of the United States. He was appointed by Washing-
ton, August 3, 1789, about three months after the inaugura-
tion of the new order of things by the people. Col. Pierce
Long first received the appointment, but died before enter-
ing upon the duties of the office, April 3, 1789.
There was no custom-house, or government building, in
Portsmouth at that time, and the business connected with
the office of collector was transacted in a small building
adjacent to the Colonel's residence, situated on State street,
and afterwards known as the " Old Pickering mansion."
Mr. Whipple " sat at the seat of custom " during the eight
years of Washington's administration of government, when
he was removed for political reasons, to make room for
COL. JOSEPH WHIPPLE. 2!)
Thomas Martin, another of Portsmouth's successful mer-
chants, and a friend of the new, or Adams, administration.
Martin held the office of collector for the four years of Fed-
eral rule, or until April 3, 1801, just one month after the
inauguration of Thomas Jefferson, when Col. Whipple was
again honored with the appointment, which position he
held until his death, in 1816, at the age of 78. This change
was one of the few made by Jefferson among the govern-
ment offices.
Colonel Whipple was a strong anti-Federalist, and in the
heated controversy which made Adams president his per-
sonal influence and power of political position were thrown
in favor of the Jeffersonian party. This course lost him his
position, and on the 6th of July, 1798, he was removed to
make place for the appointment of his successor, Thomas
Martin. Portsmouth at this time was the social, intellect-
ual, and political centre of the state, and during the excite-
ment of that third presidential campaign party lines were
as strictly drawn as they were in the days of 1776. Col.
W T hipple, impulsive by nature, was an outspoken Republi-
can, and his course during the campaign called for the
question of his removal from office under the changed
administration. The removals and appointments on ac-
count of political differences under the new administration
were made in New Hampshire by the advice of Judge
"Jerry" Smith, at the suggestion of the then secretar}* of
state, Mr. Wolcott. and it is evident from the results that
the demands of the civil service even at that day received
less consideration than the doctrine that " to the victors
belong the spoils," for his advice to the secretary was, that
all officers who did not support the administration should
be removed from office. " It is a solecism in politics," he
writes, " that a government should be administered bv its
enemies. It has always been my opinion that those whom
the sovereign people entrust with the administration of their
political concerns are in duty bound to appoint and continue
in office those men and those only who are firmly attached
to the principles of our government and the administration."
After the removal of Col. Whipple from the office of col-
lector at the instance of Judge Smith, he received a letter
from that individual, written half apologetically, but sharp
and cutting as a two-edged sword. He wrote: "To your
30 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
politeness as a gentleman, integrity, zeal, and intelligence
as an officer, I could most cheerfully bear witness ; but
these are not called in question. You are sensible that the
public opinion of your politics is what I have mentioned.
. . . When our government has been assailed by a profli-
gate foreign faction, to be moderate is to be cold in the
cause, and at once a hypocrite and a traitor. Ten thousand
lies have been daily circulated by lying men and lying
firms against our public organs. Those who knew them
to be so, and yet have been silent, are sharers in the
guilt."
For the years 1776, 1777 and 1778, Col. Whipple was
chosen to represent at " General Court," as a class, all the
towns now included in the county of Coos, and again the
same class in 1782 and 1783. He was notably prominent
in encouraging and fostering any enterprise conducive to
the prosperity of the " Cohos country," as that northern
section was at that time called.
The particular location in Jefferson made memorable by
the labors of Mr. Whipple is what for many years has been
locally known as "Jefferson Meadows," situated on the old
turnpike road from Lancaster, southward over the " Cherry
Mountain" pass, and so onward to the White Mountain
Notch and directly east of tk Bray Hill," in Whitefield,
and not far from the little railway station recently estab-
lished for the accommodation of the "Jefferson Hill" resi-
dents.
The will of Col. Whipple was admitted to probate in
Rockingham county, March 14, 1816, included in which
was a bequest disposing the residue of his estate for the
encouragement of the manufacture of woolen cloths and
window-glass in this state, to be disposed of by trustees in
the form of bounties for the promotion of the above enter-
prises as in their judgment the "events and circumstances
may render advisory." It transpires that among the
Colonel's papers are claims against the government, on
account of the French spoliations, which, according to
recent decisions, can now be made available as a part of
the residue of his estate.
The wife of Joseph Whipple was Hannah Billings of Bos-
ton, to whom he was married October 9, 1762, but we are
not aware that any children ever came of this union, nor
COL. JOSEPH WHIPPLE. 31
do we know where or when Mrs. Whipple died ; but the
parents and grandparents and a younger brother found
burial in the old graveyard at Kittery, where their epitaphs
may still be traced.
In Julv, 1784, while the exploring expedition, of which
Col. Whipple was a member, were upon the summit of Mt.
Washington, himself and the Rev. Mr. Little engraved
upon the uppermost rock the letters " N. H.,"and under a
stone they left a plate of lead, on which their names were
engraven. The letters upon the rock have long since been
erased by the action of the elements, but the leaden tablet
is no doubt still a hidden treasure, as no individual or cabi-
net could long withhold so valuable a memento from a
curiosity-loving public.
The memory and characteristics of Col. Joseph Whipple
are written in the ancient records of the county and the
towns, the foundations of whose growth and later prosperity
he largely helped to establish, and are told among the
unpublished traditions around the firesides of the descend-
ants of "ye old time folk" among the mountains.
These are days of post-remote memorial tributes and his-
toric monuments, and the inquiring traveller may perhaps,
in the years to come, turn aside to read from some public
engravement among Jefferson's rare natural attractions,
where the history of the centuries is writ along her sculp-
tured rocks, a grateful hint of the life and public services
of her founder and pioneer settler, Col. Joseph Whipple.
MUSICAL DEPARTMENT.
CONDUCTED BY H. G. BLAISDELL.
PROF. CHARLES S. CONANT.
Charles S. Conant, teacher of vocal music in the Con-
cord public schools, is one of the best known men in
musical circles in northern New England. He is a native
of the town of Greensboro, Vt, born July 2, i860. His
father, Tolman Conant, was a farmer, a descendant of Roger
Conant, one of the founders of Salem, Mass. His mother's
maiden name was Mary Jane Fisher. She was a native of
the town of Londonderry in this state, of the old Scotch-
Irish descent. Tolman Conant died when his son was
but two years of age, leaving a large family of children,
and he was inured to labor in early life, assisting in the
cultivation of the farm and support of the family. He
remained at home until eighteen years of age, attending
the district school during the winter term. Meanwhile, he
developed a strong taste for music and great power as a
vocalist in one so young, and at sixteen years of age was
a member and leader of a local quartette. At the age of
eighteen he went to St. Johnsbury to attend the academy,
and there he found, incidentally, a better field for the
development and exercise of his vocal powers. He made
the most of his opportunities, securing the best instruction
to be had in town. He sang in various church choirs in
St. Johnsbury, and, at the age of twenty-one, commenced
teaching evening classes in singing, and giving private
instruction to pupils. He also engaged in convention work,
as director and soloist, in northern New Hampshire and
Vermont, and soon became a popular favorite in that sec-
tion.
Prof. Conant came to Concord to accept his present posi-
tion, as instructor in the public schools, in the spring of
1888, having previously been engaged for some time as
tenor in the choir of one of the Boston churches. That
his work in Concord has been eminently satisfactory is
evidenced by the fact that he has been retained in his posi-
tion at an increased salary, and that the advantages in the
line of voice culture which the Concord schools afford
O. xC^tr-t^t <2^t^(\
MUSICAL DEPARTMENT. 33
under his instruction constitute one of their chief attractions
to outside pupils. Meanwhile his time is also largel)- occu-
pied with lessons to private pupils, who come from a wide
territory to secure the benefit of his painstaking and con-
scientious tutelage. He has also been instrumental in
introducing music into the public schools at Laconia, in
which he has been instructor for more than three years,
going there at first to teach a private class.
For some three years past Prof. Conant has been a pupil,
in voice, of George J. Parker, the noted Boston tenor, and
he also received, last year, a diploma from the National
Summer Music School in that city. While he has had strong
inducements presented to locate in other places, he has not
seriously entertained them thus far, and it is to be hoped
that he will permanently continue his residence and labor
in the capital city of New Hampshire. In 1889 and 1890
he was a member of the choir of the South Congregational
church. For the last two years he has filled the position
of 1 st tenor and director of the Crescent Male Quartette,
constituting the choir of the Universalist church, and filling
various engagements in concerts and festival work.
Prof. Conant is a natural musician, from whom music
flows as freely as water from a fountain. His voice is a
fine, sweet tenor, rich and strong, and he easily meets the
demands of the most difficult tenor music. It is, moreover,
under such complete control, and has, as it were, such a
perfect understanding with his cultured ear that he never
fails, by even a shade, to strike the proper note. Thor-
oughly acquainted with the theory of music, with decided
ability as a composer, loving it as his native element, few-
men are better representatives of the kingdom of sweet
sound.
In January, 1884, Prof. Conant was united in marriage
with Miss Martha Burnham of St. Johnsbury, by whom he
has one child, a son.
NEW HAMPSHIRE MUSIC AT THE WORLD'S FAIR.
Mr. Theodore Thomas, director, and Mr. George H.
Wilson, secretary of the Bureau of Music for the World's
Fair at Chicago, seem to have narrowed clown the whole of
New England (in their own minds) to Boston, Springfield.
34 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
Worcester, and Pittsfield, Mass., and Hartford, Middletown,
and Willimantic, Conn. Either the knowledge of the very-
worthy director and secretary is limited, or else they fail to
find room in the little states of New Hampshire, Vermont,
and Rhode Island for the operation of their musical intel-
lects. It is characteristic of most people to believe and con-
tend that nothing good or worthy can be found outside the
large cities, and no better example of this idea and its
application can be cited than the management of the
Musical Herald, which is published in Boston, and of
which this same Mr. Wilson is proprietor and editor-in-
chief. Of nine musical festivals which the writer con-
ducted last season, including the work of the Concord
Choral Society, which gave entire two oratorios and many
lesser works, and of which every programme was sent to
the Herald, not one received any attention whatever, and
the outside musical world do not and never will know what
we poor "countrymen" are doing if the Boston Mtisical
Herald can help it. Yet this same publication begs for
subscribers among us, and would have us believe that only
such apostles as Henry Krehbiel of New York, Philip Hale
of Boston, or Frederick Corder of London, are worthy the
attention of the musical people of the United States.
Again, it seems that only the cities above mentioned belong
to the musical "four hundred," or, as the saying is, we are
"not in the swim."
Now the fact is, New Hampshire in one year has put
herself on record by festivals held by nine different musical
associations, besides many concerts, given under the auspi-
ces of local singing societies or organizations. At these
gatherings the oratorios of" Creation" and "Elijah" have been
well performed, besides the "Crusaders," by Gade, twice,
"Psyche," by same author, "The Daughter of Jairus," by
Stainer, "The Dream," by M. Costa, "The Feast of Adonis,"
by Jensen, "The Evening Hymn," by Reinecke, "The
Wreck of the Hesperus," by Anderton, one evening of
Wagner, including the Prayer and Finale of first act of
Lohengrin, "Hail, Bright Abode," Tannhausser, "Spring
Song," from Flying Dutchman, together with the solo work
in both Lohengrin and Tannhausser. In addition to all
this, select choruses from the "Redemption," and oratorios
and operas have been creditably performed. Yet we fail to
MUSICAL DEPARTMENT. 35
receive recognition from the powers that attempt to dictate
to the people of these United States upon what they shall
feed their musical natures !
To be sure, these works have not received the perfect
treatment which the Handel and Haydn Society, with the
help of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, can give them ;
but why should that preclude our efforts from being put on
record with the rest of the world, and receiving the com-
mendation justly due? One serious difficulty which we
have to meet, and for which there is no apparent remedy,
is that of securing an orchestra of sufficient size and ability
within the financial means of our musical societies. Boston
orchestral performers will, as a rule, get six dollars for an
oratorio performance, and ask ten dollars and all expenses
added for such a concert in New Hampshire. These same
men will play a Sunday concert in Boston for three dollars
and fifty cents, under the name of one of the most honored
and respected organizations in New England, and then feel
that their musical dignity is not maintained unless they get
ten or more dollars for a less laborious performance in New
Hampshire. But because such obstacles as these stand in
the way of a perfect performance in our state, is that any
reason why we should be ignored ?
Mrs. Theodore Thomas has condescended to address a
letter to Mrs. Judge Ladd of Lancaster, asking if there are
any organized female choruses in New Hampshire ; also
who and what amateur performers there are (ladies) who
would like to take part in some concerts to be given under
the auspices of the woman's auxiliary. If there are any
such found in our state they must go to Chicago or some
other place designated by the committee, and sing or per-
form before a commission, which has the power to accept or
reject. Certainly a pleasant outlook for those who are
asked to pay all expense for such a journey, to be sent
home in musical disgrace because the Bureau of Music at
the Chicago Exposition has placed its stamp of disapproval
upon them ! This is the place assigned New Hampshire
at the World's Fair, 1893. We think it would have been
an excellent idea to have invited every state in the Union
to have prepared one or more concerts representative of its
abilities and ambitions, letting them stand entirely upon
their own merits, and thereby not offending the dignity or
tastes of any musical aesthetic or Pharisee.
36 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
THE LANCASTER MUSICAL FESTIVAL.
The first annual festival of the Lancaster Musical
Association, which occurred November 28, 29, 30, and
December 1, was a decided success in every particular.
The chorus numbered one hundred and ten voices, was
well balanced and of excellent quality, which must be con-
sidered as remarkable, this being the first gathering of the
singers of Lancaster for years, and it is a fact that no town
in northern New Hampshire can muster so large and effi-
cient a chorus of resident members.
The music, which was very creditably performed, was the
"Wreck of the Hesperus," by Anderton ; "The Evening
Hymn," by Reinecke ; part songs, by Mendelssohn, and
church music. Mrs. Louise Laine Blackmere of Boston
was the soprano soloist, Mr. Thos. H. Norris of Boston,
tenor soloist, and Mr. Smith of Lancaster, baritone soloist.
Martha Dana Shepard was the pianist and accompanist,
and Blaisdell's Orchestral Club of eight pieces was present.
The financial part of the undertaking was balanced on the
right side, despite the fact that the weather was stormy and
uninviting. Great credit is due the local committees for
the success of the festival. H. G. Blaisdell was the con-
ductor.
CHAMBER CONCERT.
The young people of the Universalist Church in Concord
managed a concert of chamber music on the evening of
December 7. Blaisdell's String Quartette, the Crescent
Male Quartette, and Miss Ada M. Aspinwall, pianist, took
part. The audience was not large, but was enthusiastic.
It is to be deplored that among musical people there are
not more who are willing to take hold of the matter and
acquaint the public with the beauties of such music. The
male quartette appeared to great advantage, singing
splendidly, and the solos of Mr. Conant and Mr. Scribner
were worthy of special commendation. In the trio for
piano-forte, violin, and cello, Miss Aspinwall showed pains-
taking work and faithful application as a student. All
did well, and nothing happened to mar the performances
worthy of mention.
NEW HAMPSHIRE NECROLOGY.
GEN. JOSEPH H. POTTER.
Joseph Haydn Potter, a conspicuous figure among the
military men v( the country in two wars, died in Columbus,
Ohio, December i, 1892.
Gen. Potter was born in East Concord, October 12, 182 1,
and graduated at West Point in 1843, standing next below
Gen. Grant in class rank. He served in the Mexican war
and was brevetted 1st lieutenant for gallant and meritorious
conduct in the battle of Monterey. He was on frontier
duty in the army until 1861, and in July of that year was
captured by the Confederates, in Texas. After his release
he was made colonel of the Twelfth N. H. Volunteers, and
served with distinction throughout the war, attaining the
rank of brigadier-general of volunteers and brevet briga-
dier-general in the regular army. He afterwards served as
lieutenant-colonel and colonel in the regular army, and was
made a full brigadier-general by President Cleveland in
1886, when he was placed in command of the Department
of Missouri, going on the retired list by reason of the age
limitation shortly after.
Soon after the close of the late war he married Alice G.
Kilbourne of Columbus, O., by whom he is survived, with
two sons and two daughters.
GEN. JOHN W. STURTEVANT.
John Warner Sturtevant, born in Keene, June 15, 1840,
died in that city December 12, 1892.
He was a son of Luther and Isabella L. Sturtevant, was
educated in the Keene public schools, and at the outbreak
of the rebellion was a clerk in Tilden's bookstore in that
city. In August, 1862, he enlisted in the Fourteenth N. H.
Regiment, and went to the front as a sergeant in Company
G. He performed gallant service, was badly wounded at
the battle of Opequan, and was mustered out in 1865 with
the rank of captain. For two years after the war he was
in business at Beaufort, S. C, but returned to Keene m the
spring of 1867 and purchased an interest in the bookstore
where he was formerly engaged as clerk. He served as
town clerk of Keene from 1869 until its incorporation as a
38 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
city in 1874, was f° r nme y ears a member of the board of
education, and a representative in the legislature in 1876,
1877, and 1885. In 1888 he was appointed a member of
the special commission to ascertain the value of the state's
interest in the Concord and Boston & Maine railroads. He
was also prominent in the National Guard for some time,
and was made lieutenant-colonel of the Second Regiment
in 1879. The same year he was appointed Inspector-Gen-
eral on the staff of Governor Head.
Gen. Sturtevant married Clara, daughter of Charles
Chase of Keene, Jan. 15, 187 1, who survives him, with two
sons, Charles C, and Clifford L.
HON. GEORGE E. TODD.
Hon. George E. Todd, a native of Cambridge, Mass.,
born February 6, 1830, died in Concord on Wednesday,
November 16, 1892.
Mr. Todd entered the service of the Northern railroad
Jan. 1, 1848. In 1866 he was appointed superintendent of
the road, and held the position until 1884, when the North-
ern railroad became part of the Boston & Maine system.
He was then appointed division superintendent, an office
he continued to fill until failing health, in the spring of 1892,
compelled him to abandon active railroad work. He was
for many years a director in the Northern, Concord &
Claremont, and Peterborough & Hillsborough railroads.
He was a Republican in politics, and served as a member
of the legislature in 1872 and 1873, an< ^ represented his
district in the state senate during the sessions of 1874 anc ^
1876. He is survived by a wife and daughter.
HON. DAVID M. COOLEY.
Hon. David M. Cooley died in New York city on Sun-
day, November 13, 1892.
Judge Cooley was born at Sugar Hill, Lisbon, November
7, 1825. He studied law with Hon. H. E. Stoughton, and,
in 1845, was admitted to the bar. He went to Dubuque,
Iowa, where he practiced law successfully for- many years.
In 1863 President Lincoln appointed him commissioner to
South Carolina, acting at the same time as a commissioner
to settle titles in Charleston. In 1865 he was appointed by
President Johnson commissioner of Indian affairs, which
NECROLOGY. 39
office he resigned for the purpose of practicing law in
Washington. In 1873 he served as a commissioner to the
Vienna exposition. He subsequently served as a member
of the Iowa state senate, and of the supreme court.
He was for some years president of Cornell college, of
which institution he was a liberal benefactor. He was also
extensively engaged in banking, and was president of the
First National Bank of Dubuque. He leaves a wife, one
son, Harland, a lawyer in Chicago, and three married
daughters.
DR. EDMUND TUCKER EASTMAN.
Dr. Edmund Tucker Eastman was born in Hampstead.
November 6, 1820, and died in Boston, November 6, 1892.
Dr. Eastman prepared for college at Phillips Academy,
Andover, and graduated at Harvard in the class with Profs.
Francis J. Child, G. M. Lane, Charles Eliot Norton, and
Fitzeward Hall, and Senator Hoar. He received his M. D.
degree in 1850, and M. A. in 1854.
Dr. Eastman was a member of the Boston board of over-
seers of the poor for three years, and of the school com-
mittee eleven years ; he held the offices of dispensary
ph}'sician five years, and warden four years. He was a
Republican in politics, and represented ward 17. Boston, in
the Massachusetts house of representatives, in the legisla-
tures of 1882 and 1883. A widow and son survive him.
PUBLISHERS' NOTICE.
The subscribers, who have published the Granite Monthly
during the past year under an arrangement with John N.
McClintock, proprietor and former publisher, have purchased
the good will, subscription list, and all other interest of said
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previous to the year 1S92, and back volumes and numbers issued
previous to that time, and have also effected an arrangement
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numbers as he may now have on hand.
The magazine has been issued promptly for every month of
the past year, and has in large measure regained the confidence
of its patrons, which had been materially weakened through
irregularity of issue and practical suspension during the year
previous. The many words of commendation received from
prominent citizens interested in the maintenance of a periodical
devoted to state history, biography and other matters of kindred
nature, encourage us to go on with the work, hoping that the
time is not far distant when the patronage accorded will afford
fair compensation for the labor involved, and warrant material
improvement in different directions.
Thanking all present patrons for their aid and support, and
bespeaking a continuance of the same, we do not hesitate to
assure them that they will find the Granite Monthly for the
year to come more interesting and valuable than ever before.
If every present subscriber will call the attention of friends
and acquaintances whose names are not now on the list to the
merits and value of this magazine, much aid will be given the
enterprise, with comparatively little effort. We trust all will
willingly do this, and that each one will make it a point to
secure at least one other subscriber for the ensuing year.
Let it be remembered that the subscription is $1.50 in
advance, and every one promptly remit subscription for Volume
XV. Those desiring can have their numbers of Volume XIV
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ing the same to the publishers.
Those who are still in arrears for subscription for 1892 should
at once forward $3.00 for the last and the coming year.
All persons receiving sample copies of this number are invited
to become subscribers.
METCALF & ROBINSON.
Erratum. The cut on page 13, designated as " The Wells
Tavern," should have been designated " The Weare Mansion."
TRUE L. NORRIS.
DISTRICT NO. 1 .
JOHN C. RAY,
DISTRICT NO. 2.
.^ljm r, «-««.-^.. HERBERT B. MOULTON,
JOHN B. SMITH, d.str.ct no. 5 .
GOVERNOR.
EDWARD O. BLUNT,
DISTRICT NO. 3.
FRANK N. PARSONS,
DISTRICT NO. 4..
GOVERNOR AND COUNCIL
The Granite Monthly
VOL. XV. FEBRUARY, 1893. N0 -
THE GOVERNOR AND COUNCIL.
The executive power in the state of New Hampshire is
combined in a governor and council, the latter being com-
posed of live members, chosen from as many election
districts, constituting an advisory body, and clothed with
equal power with the governor himself in the matter of
appointments and in certain other directions. There are
but two states in the Union aside from New Hampshire
having councils, Maine and Massachusetts, — that of the
former containing seven members and the latter eight, —
but in other states important executive nominations go to
the senate for confirmation, so that the governor's power is
practically no greater in this respect.
As a rule, the members of the council in New Hamp-
shire, like the governors, have been conservative business
men, although not unfrequently a lawyer or " practical
politician," or the two combined, has been called into that
branch of the public service. The six men constituting
the executive department of the government at the present
time, who were inducted into office on the eighth day of
January last, and whose portraits are given in our frontis-
piece, represent as wide a variety of interests and callings
as their number permits, and their collective judgment
may be relied upon to safely guard and promote the wel-
fare of the state.
Hon. John B. Smith, Governor of New Hampshire,
was sketched at length in an article appearing in the
Granite Monthly of May last. The leading facts in
his career may be briefly summarized as follows : He was
born at Saxton's River, Vt., April 12, 1838, being the son
of Ammi and Lydia F. (Butler) Smith. His father was
a woolen manufacturer, who retired from business and
removed to the town of Hillsborough, in this state, when
42 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
John B. was nine years of age. He attended the public
schools and Francestown Academy, where he was nearly
fitted for college; but, at the age of sixteen, he deter-
mined upon a business career. He first obtained employ-
ment in a peg-mill at Henniker, then in Manchester, and
was subsequently engaged as clerk in a store in New Bos-
ton. In 1863 he went into the drug business in Manches-
ter, where he had his home until 18S0, but, in about a
year, sold his business, and started a knit-goods factory
in the town of Washington. Subsequently, he leased and
operated for a time the Sawyer Woolen Mill, at North
Weare. From this experience, having determined upon
his line of business, he erected a mill at Hillsborough
Bridge, in 1866, which was the foundation of the exten-
sive plant of the Contoocook Mills Company, manufac-
turers of knit goods, of which organization he was the
founder, and has been president from the start. In 18S0
Mr. Smith removed his residence to Hillsborough, and has
recently erected there one of the finest dwellings in this
section of New England, where, with his family, he enjoys
the comforts which come from a successful business life,
and the respect of a community in which he has been a
potent factor in every movement for progress and improve-
ment.
In politics Governor Smith has been a Republican from
youth, and has given active support to the cause of that
party whenever opportunity presented. He was a presi-
dential elector in 1884, and a member of the executive
council in 1887-89. He also served as chairman of the
Republican State Committee, during the early part of the
campaign of 1890. In religion he is a Congregationalist,
and an active and liberally-contributing member of the
church of that denomination at Hillsborough Bridge.
Mrs. Smith, an amiable and accomplished lady, was
Emma E., daughter of Stephen Lavender of Boston. Of
two children born to them, one, Archibald Lavender, a
boy of three years, survives.
Hon. True L. Norris of Portsmouth, Councillor for
the First District, is a native of Manchester, born May 4,
1848, a son of the late Col. A. F. L. and Olive (Wallace)
Norris. His father was a lawyer, prominent at the bar in
THE GOVERNOR AND COUNCIL. 43
New Hampshire and Massachusetts, and a brother of the
noted Democratic leader and U. S. Senator, Moses Norris,
Jr. His mother was a sister of the late Capt. Jasper G.
Wallace, many years city marshal of Dover, and a gallant
officer in the Union service in the late war. He was iitted
for Harvard College at sixteen, but, instead of entering,
enlisted in the Fifth Massachusetts regiment and bore a
musket in defence of the Union. Subsequently, he read
law in his father's office in Boston, and was admitted to
the bar at the age of twenty-one years. He practiced for
a time in Boston and later in Concord, but, with a natural
talent for newspaper work, he soon drifted into journalism,
and was for some years the Concord representative of the
New York J icrald, Boston Globe, and Manchester Union.
In 1888, Col. Charles A. Sinclair, having acquired the
proprietorship of the Portsmouth Daily JSvening Times and
States and Union, offered Mr. Norris the managing edi-
torship of these papers, which position he accepted, and
has filled with energy and ability to the present time.
Mr. Norris is a man of keen perceptive powers and
well-balanced judgment ; in politics an earnest and zealous
Democrat, and in religion an Episcopalian. May 20, 1890,
he was united in marriage with Miss Lillian G. Hurst of
Eliot, Me.
Hon. John C. Ray of Manchester, Councillor for Dis-
trict No. 2, a son of Aaron and Nancy (Chase) Ray, was
born in Hopkinton. January 3, 1826. His parents removed
to Dunbarton during his early childhood, where he was
reared to farm life, in which he has always taken a strong
interest. He became prominent in town affairs in early
manhood, and represented Dunbarton in the legislature
in 1852 and 1853, being the youngest member of the
house, with a single exception, the first year of his service,
but taking an active part in legislative work. He subse-
quently served several years as chairman of the board of
selectmen and as superintending school committee.
Jul}' 2, 1874, he was appointed superintendent of the
State Reform School, now known as the Industrial School,
at Manchester, and from that day to this, with rare tact
and skill, combining firmness and kindness in his man-
agement and discipline, he has directed the affairs of that
44 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
important institution, making it one of the best of the kind
in the country. He has become prominent in the social
and public life of Manchester, and represented ward two
of that city in the legislature in 1881. He was also for a
time one of the trustees of the State Normal School, and
has always been interested in the success of the institution.
In politics he is a Republican, and in religion he affiliates
with the Congregationalists, attending the Hanover Street
Church, in Manchester. He still owns a fine and well-
managed stock farm in Dunbarton, is keenly alive to the
welfare of agriculture, and an active Patron of Husbandry.
In Dec, 1856, he married Miss Sarah A. Humphreys
of Chicopee, Mass., by whom he has a son and daughter.
Hon. Edward O. Blunt of Nashua, Councillor for
District No. 3, was born in Nashua, August 4, 1846. His
grandfather, John Blunt, was one of the early merchants
of the town, removing there from Amherst in 1836, and
building a store on Chestnut street, on the site ever since
occupied by the family for general mercantile purposes,
and which was then the last building on the street. His
father, John G. Blunt, went into the business a year later,
continuing forty-nine years, until his death. His mother
was Caroline, daughter of Dea. Thomas Ball of Acvvorth,
a soldier of the Revolution.
Mr. Blunt was educated in the Nashua schools, and has
followed a mercantile life in line with his ancestors. He
has been active in city affairs and in Republican politics
in Nashua ; has served three years in the board of alder-
men, and been twice chairman of the Republican Lity
Committee. He served in the house of representatives
in 1881, and in the senate in 1887. He was appointed a
member of the Nashua police commission, established by
the last legislature, which position he resigned upon his
election as councillor. He is prominent in the Masonic
fraternity, and is also a Knight of Pythias. He is a
director and treasurer of the Masonic Building Association
in Nashua, and a trustee of the City Savings Bank and
the Security Trust Co. He is popular and public-spirited,
and commands in large degree the confidence and regard
of men of all classes. In religion he is a Congregation-
THE GOVERNOR AND COUNCIL. 45
alist, and is a member of the Congregational Club, as
well as of the New Hampshire Club.
December 5, 187 1, he was united in marriage with
Lucette A., daughter of Ivory Harmon, superintendent of
the Nashua Manufacturing Co. They have one child, a
son.
Hon. Frank N. Parsons of Franklin, Councillor for
District No. 4, is a son of Rev. Benjamin F. and Mary
A. (Nesmith) Parsons, born in Dover, September 3, 1854.
He fitted for college at Pinkerton Academy, Deny, gradu-
ated from Dartmouth in the class of 1874, and taught in the
high schools at Franklin and Nashua, one year each, after
graduation. He commenced the study of law with G. C.
Bartlett of Deny, continued with Daniel Barnard and
Pike & Blodgett of Franklin, and was admitted to the bar
in March, 1879, when he immediately formed a partner-
ship with the late Senator Austin F. Pike, which continued
until the death of the latter. Since then he has been
alone in business, and has established a reputation as a
keen, alert, and sagacious practitioner.
Upon the death of the late Hon. William S. Ladd of
Lancaster, Mr. Parsons was appointed by the supreme
court reporter of its decisions, which position he now
holds. He served on the Franklin board of education
from 1880 to 1887, and was a delegate in the Constitutional
Convention of 1889. He is treasurer and clerk of the
Franklin Gas and Electric Light Co., director and clerk
of the Kidder Machine Co. of Franklin, a director of
the Citizens' National Bank of Tilton, and holds similar
positions in other corporations. He is also a trustee of
the Franklin Library Association, a member of the Frank-
lin board of water commissioners, and clerk, treasurer
and manager for the same, — all of which indicates a lite
of untiring activitv. Politically, he has always been a
working Republican.
He married, October 26, 1880, Helen E. F., daughter of
the late Senator Pike.
Hon. Herbert B. Moulton of Lisbon, Councillor for
District No. 5, the old-time Democratic stronghold of the
46 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
state, was born in Lyman, July 5, 1846, his parents
being James M. and Betsey B. (Titus) Moulton. His
father was a farmer, and he was reared to farm life, receiv-
ing such educational advantages as the public schools
afforded. Early in life he commenced operations in buy-
ing and selling cattle, and has successfully followed the
occupation, being well known among the live-stock opera-
tors frequenting the Boston market. He has also operated
extensively in lumber, and is known in his section as a
man of sound, practical judgment, and business sagacity. '|
Politically, he has always been a thorough-going Dem-
ocrat. He served as selectman in Lyman and represented
that town in the legislature in 1876 and 1877, removing to
Lisbon in the fall of the latter year, where he was one of
the Democratic candidates for supervisor in 1878, when,
for the first time in many years, that party secured control
of the town. He served in the legislature as a representa-
tive from Lisbon in 1885. He is a director and member
of the loaning committee of the Lisbon Savings Bank and
Trust Co., and a director of the Parker & Young Co. of
that town. He is liberal in his religious views, and is a
member of Concordia Lodge, I. O. O. F., of Lisbon.
September 11, 187 1, he married Caroline L. Foster of
Littleton.
JOHN HALL.
BY MARY H. WHEELER.
John Hall sat at his cabin door,
At Dover Neck, one day,
And watched a boat, just out from shore,
Go sailing down the bay ;
The wind was east, the tide was high,
And with well-filled sails the boat went by.
As the cloud in air, as the fish-hawk flies,
It onward sped the while,
And John Hall watched it with age-dimmed e}'es
Till it rounded a tree-clad isle ;
It rounded the point and left no trace
On the silver water's shining face.
JOHN HALL. 47
The woods were bright in the autumn glow,
Red, golden, and green, and brown,
And the trees above met the trees below,
Wave-mirrored, with tops adown,
And the haze of an Indian summer day
Like a bridal-veil o'er the landscape lay.
On John Hall's brow the sunlight gleamed,
Like a halo from the skies,
And the spirit of the landscape seemed
Reflected in his eyes ;
His life, like the year, was anear its close,
In the golden time of the soul's repose.
Its course, like the course of the sail-boat, lay
Along the tide of time,
And he thought again of the fearful day
When, leaving his native clime,
He left his home and his kin behind,
A place in an unknown world to find.
He thought of the weary days they sailed
On the stormy ocean's breast,
And the joyful morn when land they hailed,
Away in the far blue west;
And he heard the sound of the breakers' roar,
And his feet stood firm on the strange, dark shore.
The years went by, new friends were found,
And the clearings larger grew,
And the thoughts of the old-world life were drowned
In the home ties of the new ;
Til 1 his children, all to manhood grown,
Had one by one from the home nest flown.
And with pious heart he felt God's hand
Had led him all the way,
And marked his course from land to land,
And kept him to that day ;
And murmured softly, in quaint old phrase,
His oft-used form cf prayer and praise.
48 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
The fields of Dover Neck were brown,
And dark was the cloud-wrapped day ;
A long boat moved, with sails adown,
On the waters of Great Bay,
The rowers rowing two by two,
And the wind-chopped waves were darkly blue.
But John Hall watched the boat no more,
For, cold as the winter clay,
On a rude bier before the door
His coffined body lay ;
And the great funeral pall was spread
In awful blackness o'er the dead.
The bearers' steps were sad and slow
Upon the frozen ground ;
The sound of sighs and weeping low
In the gusty wind was drowned,
As, two by two, in solemn gloom,
The long train followed to the tomb.
By Dover Neck the rivers flow
To the ocean deep and wide,
And the salt sea waters come and go
With every changing tide ;
And the land's green robes and the autumn glow
Are yearly changed for a shroud of snow.
And John Hall's clearing on the shore
Still yields its grain and corn,
Although his sons are there no more,
Their home and hearthstone gone ;
And cars and whistling engines go
Across the fields they used to know.
But John Hall's progeny we trace
In many and many a town,
The home, the church, the state they grace,
And sometimes with renown ;
While, as the waters ebb and flow,
The generations come and go.
Pittsfield, N. H.
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THE WARREN-WOODSTOCK ROAD.
BY WILLIAM LITTLE.
This mountain road, recently built, leads from Breezy-
Point, East Warren, across the river Baker, a roaring
stream from Moosilauke's woody ravines, through the
" Reservation/' so called, over the pass between Mounts
Cushman and Waternomee, hangs on the flank of the
latter mountain for a long distance, spans the head waters
of Shirt brook, follows clown Walker brook and crosses
Moosilauke river to North Woodstock near Agassiz basin.
Ever since the towns were first granted, in 1763, the build-
in"- of a road across the mountains to. connect them has
been agitated. About the year 1830, the citizens of both
towns united and agreed to make a blazed path. A day
was appointed for the purpose ; the people of Warren
turned out, spotted the path up to the town line in the
high pass, and then waited for those of Woodstock to put
in an appearance. They shouted, making a noise that
awoke every owl and wild beast of the forest, but not a soul
appeared or responded. Woodstock men had made a mis-
take in the day ; but a week later they spotted their part
of the path, and then in like manner shouted for the War-
ren folks, but with no better success. In addition to mark-
ing the trees, they chopped off the logs, threw out the
windfalls, and cut up the trip-wood or hobble-bushes.
There were several hamlets in the west part of Wood-
stock up among the mountains near Elbow pond. These
were Mount Cilley, Potatoc hill, Scotland and Jackman's
plantation, all containing about thirty families, and the
citizens of these often used the path when they wished to
see friends in Warren, attend the court at Haverhill, or visit
the office of register of deeds. Warren people traversed it
on business, and a great many went to Elbow pond to fish.
Joshua Chapman of Woodstock, a noted land surveyor,
used it many times when he came across to survey the
disputed territory of the two towns, camping nights in the
woods. Reuben Mills, an old man, started late in the fall
to come to Warren. A blinding snow storm overtook him ;
he became exhausted and lay down to rest. Not return-
ing at the appointed time, his friends started in search, and
50 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
found him by the path, dead. The heat of his body was
such that it melted the snow beneath him, and his head was
lying on the dry leaves.
When the rebellion broke out some of the men of the
hamlets enlisted and went to the war, and their families came
to the Pemigewasset valley to live. Then the old folks,
one by one, died ; the young people got lonesome ; there
was a spirit of unrest, and they moved away, one family,
then another, till all were gone. The hamlets were
deserted. Gradually the good houses and barns which
they left fell and decayed, their school-house rotted down,
their orchards were girdled, the trees killed, and hedge-
hogs, foxes, bears, wild deer and other beasts were the
only inhabitants. Even now the tracks of the deer can be
seen on the muddy shores of Elbow pond every day, all
summer long.
For many years the blazed path was but little travelled,
and the growing shrubs almost obliterated it. Then sev-
eral summer hotels and boarding-houses were established
at Woodstock, the Breezy Point House was built at East
Warren, and the citizens of both towns felt that the old
path should be reblazed and extended to North Woodstock.
June 20th and 21st, 1879, Frank C. Clement, Fred T. Pills-
bury, Ira Merrill, with many other citizens* of Warren, cut
out a bridle-path fifteen feet wide over the east branch of
the river Baker, up to the northeast corner of the town, and
then, leaving the old foot-path, kept away north to the
deserted settlement of Kimball and Dearborn, near Moosil-
auke river. The}^ made the work a holiday excursion, a
picnic, and they had an abundance of food and a few deli-
cious drinks. Charles F. Bracy, while exploring, was so
unfortunate as to lose his gold watch, which cost him one
hundred and twenty-five dollars. It is still lying in the forest.
Another party got lost and climbed far away up to the top
of the lonely fir-crowned mountain, Waternomee, that
looks down on Elbow pond. Here he found "Bart" Lob-
by's line of sable and fisher-cat traps, which extends for
three miles on the long crest, and followed it down to the
* Men who cut the bridle-path in 1879: Frank C. Clement, Fred T. Pillsbury,
Ira Merrill, William C. Carpenter, Charles F. Bracy, James F. Merrill, Albert B.
Merrill, Amos L. Merrill, Enoch Merrill, William Moses, James A. Clough, John
Boynton, Benjamin F. Eastman, Oscar French, Abraham Cookson.
THE WARREN-WOODSTOCK ROAD. 51
bridle-path in the pass. Many pedestrians, making tours
of the mountains, passed over this road during the next
few years.
In 1887 tne people of Warren determined to have a bet-
ter road to Woodstock. The subject was much discussed.
Capt. George H. L. Head was the leader in the enterprise.
Daniel Q^ Clement, James M. Bixby, Joseph M. Little,
Henry N. Merrill and others took an active part ; while, in
Woodstock, Nathan H. Weeks, Fred P. Weeks, Mark M.
Hall, Joseph W. Campbell, George F. Russell, S. S. Shar-
ron and others favored the road. Capt. Head drew up
petitions to the legislature for state aid ; they were circu-
lated, signed and presented. Albert B. Woodworth and
Edward B. Woodworth of Concord, proprietors of "The
Moosilauke," at Breezy Point, and Hon. Samuel N. Bell,
owner of the Deer Park Hotel, at North Woodstock, went
belore the legislative committee on roads, bridges and
canals, and advocated an appropriation. The committee
gave an attentive hearing. August 3, 1887, they went to
Moosilauke, lunching at "The Moosilauke," and dining at
the Tip-Top House on the summit of the mountain. It
was a clear day and the view was fine. William Little of
Manchester pointed out the route of the proposed road,
through the pass between Mounts Cushman and Waterno-
mee and down the valley of Moosilauke river to North
Woodstock. George W. Mann of Benton also made a
speech in favor of the road by Tunnel stream. The com-
mittee was much pleased, and on returning to Concord,
recommended an appropriation of $2,500, which the legis-
lature unanimously voted. The money was given with the
proviso " that the towns named and citizens interested
shall raise a sufficient sum in addition thereto to complete
the road without further aid from the state." The legisla-
ture also made a law authorizing the town of Warren, "by
a majority vote of those present and voting at any special
town-meeting, to raise and appropriate any sum of money
they may deem necessary to build or aid in building of a
highway in said town from a point near the Breezy Point
House, so called, to the line of the town of Woodstock."
The town of Warren voted $800, the Breezy Point Hotel
Company gave $700, the town of Woodstock $700, and
Hon. Samuel N. Bell $too, to build the road. Of the state
appropriation Warren got $900; Woodstock, $1,600.
52 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
The selectmen of Warren contracted with Capt. George
H. L. Head and Frank Batchelder to build the new road
necessary in the first section, including the high bridge
over the river Baker, from Breezy Point House, 303 rods,
to the McVitty farm on East Branch, for $1,000; and with
Samuel, George W. and Charles A. Whitcher the second
section, 561 rods, to the town line in the pass, for $1,222.
The selectmen of Woodstock hired Edgar F. Howland of
Warren to build the third section from Warren line along
the slope of Mount Waternomee, 1,180 rods, to the old
Jackman plantation, for $3,000: and John H. Caldon of
Thornton to build the fourth section by the Dearborn-
Kimball place and over Moosilauke river, 328 rods, to
Gordon's saw-mill, for $860. Mr. Howland's section
proved to be 1,325 rods long, and, after building 390 rods,
he sublet his job to George C. Clifford of Warren, who
built 160 rods, and then sublet the balance, 775 rods, to
Samuel Head, now of Hooksett, who finished it. The
third section was the hardest of all to build ; it was in the
heart of the wilderness ; no road to it and no house within
two miles. Mr. Howland first erected a log cabin for him-
self and men, and carried in all his provision, bedding and
other supplies with a sap-yoke. Afterwards he built a log
shanty for his oxen.
Work was begun October 1, 1888. and continued until
the snow flew. It was resumed in Mav, when the snow in
the woods was gone. The road was built ten feet wide,
from inside to inside of the ditches, and the trees and
and shrubs were cut out five feet more on each side. The
culverts were of logs, covered first with poles and then
with earth, and the stringer bridges had log abutments, a
pier in the middle if necessary, and were covered with
plank. The whole length of the road from McVitty 's by
the East Branch to Agassiz basin is six miles and two hun-
dred and ninety-four rods.
Sunday, June 23, 1889, the road was passable lor car-
riages, and that day Mark M. Hall, one of the selectmen of
Woodstock, was the first person to drive over it. Prof.
E. H. Barlow, principal of the Tildcn Ladies' Seminary at
Lebanon, with his family, was the next to use it ; Ernest
B. Little was his driver. The legislative committee on
roads, bridges and canals inspected it June 26, and about
THE WARREN-WOODSTOCK ROAD. 53
the same time Dr. C. P. Bancroft and wife, Albert B. Wood-
worth and wife, with several others from "The Moosilauke,"
went over it to North Woodstock.
The road was very rough and muddy and needed improve-
ments. At the June session of the legislature the state
appropriated $2CO a year for 1889. 1890, to repair that por-
tion in Warren, and $300 a year to repair the portion in
Woodstock. This money was laid out by the chairmen of
the boards of selectmen, James M. Bixby being agent for
Warren and Joseph B. Campbell for Woodstock. The legis-
lature of 1891 appropriated the same amounts for 189 1 and
1892, and Albert B. Wooclworth, for Warren, and Hon.
John J. Bell of Exeter, for Woodstock, made the repairs.
The state has been liberal in appropriations for mount-
ain roads, and can well afford to be. Nothing else con-
duces so much to attract summer visitors and tourists to
our mountains as good highways. The state expends a few
thousand dollars each year on them, and the summer travel
brings and leaves with our hotels, boarding-houses, farmers,
steamboats and railroads at least six millions of dollars
yearly.
The Warren-Woodstock road affords one of the pleas-
antest woodland drives in New Hampshire. For five miles
it runs through an unbroken forest — the primitive woods.
It is a delicious ride any summer day, always shady and
cool ; the deciduous trees sweet smelling, the evergreens
so fragrant. It was in such a wood that Hertha, the god-
dess of the Angles, had her lovely residence ; that Pan
piped and satyrs danced ; that dryads had their ward,
fairies their revels, and Puck his pranks ; — such was the
haunt of witches, sprites, elves, the sporn, the man-in-the-
oak. and the will-'o-the-wisp.
The forest is a mighty temple. What magnificent col-
umns are the giant spruces, near a hundred feet high, sur-
mounted by capitals of wavy splendor; what arches of
blue with heavenward opening windows, sometimes painted
with rainbows and often with the golden glories of sunset;
what magnificent aisles, carpeted with mosses, ferns and
forest flowers ; what splendid altars gemmed with quartz
and crystals of mica and spangled with lichens ; what a
glorious place in which to admire the beauties of nature !
May these woods never be cut down ! The state should
54 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
make a law that, among the mountains, no tree should be
felled for wood or timber less than six inches in diameter,
unless the owner of the land wishes to clear it for tillage or
pasture. Then the mountains would always be clothed
with a vigorous young growth.
These woods are full of flowers in their season. Trail-
ing arbutus with the richest fragrance, anemones nodding
in the open glades, trilliums or wake-robins with dark pur-
ple flowers, yellow dog-tooth violets with adder-tongue
leaves, Jack-in-the-pulpit standing up under the trees, the
hobble-bush with hydrangea-like flowers, wild columbine
with its curiously formed flower swinging in every passing
breeze, and a host of others are found in spring and early
summer. Later come the lilies, red, white and yellow, car-
dinal flowers rearing their flaming spikes along brooksides,
willow-herbs with showy, bright-purple flowers springing
up in great profusion in newly-cleared land,oxalis or wood
sorrel, and last, fringed gentians, golden rod, white and
yellow and blue asters — many varieties in great abundance.
Forest birds are always found here; the blue jay with
its shrill scream, the Canada jay almost equaling the
mocking-bird with its varied notes, the great horned owl
with its blood-curdling hoot at night, the blue snow bird,
the most abundant bird in the world, black-cap titmice
with their sweet chick-a-dee-dee — they will light on your
boots if you will sit still a few moments under a fir copse —
the white-throat finch, one of the sweetest singers, heard
olten in the night by campers lying by their smoldering
fires, the ruffed grouse that drums on some old, prostrate
log, the spruce grouse that drums on its own sides with
rapidly vibrating wings as it leaps into the air twenty feet
or more in spiral flight, are here, some of them the whole
year round. The winter wren comes early in the spring.
It lives bv the streams. What a weird volume of song it
sends forth for a bird with so tiny a body — immense,
mighty, prolonged. If the terrific explosions and awful
thunder of a live volcano should proceed from a Chinese
fire-cracker, the noise would be no more wonderful than
the voice of the winter wren. The hermit thrush sings in
these deep woods all summer, a sweet refrain, and the song
thrush, on the edge of the clearing at eventide, pours iorth
heaven's own matchless melody.
LITLE IMPS OF SNOW. 55
The wild beasts are yet here. Bears frequently kill the
farmers' sheep. A few are trapped each year. Amos L.
Merrill of Warren, proprietor of Merrill's Mountain Home,
caught two the past season. If you wish to see the forest deni-
zens, sit clown very quietly and wait ; the red squirrel delights
to have you watch him — what antics he will perform for
your amusement ; the sable keeps in the tree tops and eats
birds and their eggs ; the hedgehog will come and smell of
you — he would like to cat your boots ; and sometimes you
will see the deer, with mottled fawns, cropping the tender
herbage. How attractive the deer make the woods ! What
a pity that any should be killed ! A law should be enacted
to prevent it. For them it should be a close season the
whole year.
If the Warren-Woodstock road shall be kept in good
repair and improved, in time it will become one of the
most travelled thoroughfares in the mountain region.
LITTLE IMPS OF SNOW.
BY C. C. LORD.
Across the lawn, in wintry light,
Float nimbly in excited flight,
All dressed in robes of spotless white,
The little imps of snow.
Forth from the haunts of regal frost,
For pleasure found or treasure lost,
They roam, on airy billows tossed,
The tiny elfs of snow. '
Lithe emissaries of the cold,
Of mission swift and impulse bold,
Thev mount the hill and sweep the wold,-
The fairy films of snow.
In exaltation of the air,
On buoyant wings, they blithely dare
The rush and rout, despising care,
The goblin specks of snow.
One end of fierce ambition high,
One aim of fane v wild, to try,
56 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
They swerve, revolve, and madly fly,-
The demon mites of snow.
Alas ! alas ! Of rashness led,
They quickly fall and seek the dead ;
And round their low, enshrouded bed,
Flit little ghosts of snow.
LAURA A. W. FOWLER.
BY MARION HOWARD.
It cannot be truthfully said that the Bay State has any
superfluous women, so long as they are able to compete
with men in various walks of life, are self-supporting, and
an honor to the community. We hold New Hampshire
partly responsible for the magnitude of this grand army of
women, in sending to us some of the brightest, brainiest
and busiest women of the " Hub."
Boston is essentially a club city. The very social, musi-
cal, literary and philanthropic atmosphere demands organ-
ized work in many directions, and no woman is better
known in musical and club circles than the subject of this
sketch.
Mrs. Fowler was Laura A. Wentworth, daughter of
Amasa and Susan Wentworth, and was born in Somers-
worth (Great Falls), June n, 1837. Her mother was
Susan Nowell, daughter of Col. Ebenezer Nowell of San-
ford (Mt. Hope), Me. She has a lineage worth chron-
icling. Her earliest American ancestor was Elder William
Wentworth, the emigrant, who came from England in
1636. From him also sprang the branch of the family
which furnished New Hampshire with " Lieut. -Gov. John"
Wentworth, in 17 17 (the governorship proper being vested
at that time in Massachusetts), and, later, Governors Bcn-
ning and John Wentworth, son and grandson respectively
of " Lieut. -Gov. John," as he was called.
Mrs. Fowler is a great-great-granddaughter of Samuel
Wentworth, who, with his three sons, Amaziah, her great-
grandfather, " Col. Jonathan," and Daniel (who enlisted at
the age of nineteen and died in service), served in the Rev-
olutionary war, and was in the battle of Bunker Hill. This
ancestry makes Mrs. Fowler eligible to membership in the
LAURA A. W. FOWLER. 57
order of the " Daughters of the American Revolution."
She was a charter member of the national organization,
and is an active worker in the Warren and Prescott Chap-
ter of Boston.
But to return to the early days of Laura Wentworth's
eventful life. When very young, a mere school girl, she
displayed such unusual musical ability as to warrant her
being sent to a musical institute at Worcester, Mass.,
where she remained three terms. At the age of eleven
she began to play in church and to teach others, besides
attending faithfully to her studies. In the winter of 1856
she left the high school and taught in one of the interme-
diate schools, in addition to which she had a class of
thirty musical pupils in Great Falls and adjoining towns.
This ambitious little woman also, at the time, served as
organist in one church, conducted the musical services at
the Sundav-school in another, and taught an evening sin.rr-
ing-class in her own home. The six churches of the town
were at one time supplied with organists from among her
pupils.
As an acknowledged leader in musical and social circles,
she was able to plan and carry out programmes of rare
merit in her section of the state. She served during these
two years as pianist of the Mozart Quartette (the other
instruments being flute, violin and cello), which gave fre-
quent concerts in Great Falls and the surrounding towns.
From 1848 to 1856 she was pianist for twenty-two differ-
ent evening singing-schools. In the year 1859, she resigned
her position as a school teacher, because denied an advanced
one in the High school, and entered Abbot Academy, at
Andover, Mass. Miss Wentworth made a mental resolve
to win that longed-for position, however, and it was offered
her, unsolicited, three years later. Two years were spent
in the academy, where, during her course, she also taught
music, graduating in the class of '60.
At the opening of the Rebellion, she was induced to
accept an offer to take charge of the musical department
of Lagrange Female College, Lagrange, Tenn., much
against the wishes of her friends. Her year's labor there
gave great satisfaction and her reminiscences of those try-
ing days and her teaching experiences would make an
interesting volume. When the war was in actual progress,
58 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
being a true northerner, she left the enemy's country and
returned to Great Falls to resume teaching, and then in
the high school. After one year, she resigned to accept a
position in Concord, as teacher of mathematics, languages
and music in the high school, of which Henry E. Sawyer,
a former teacher of hers, was principal. After entering
upon the second year she received a flattering offer to take
charge of the musical department in Monticello Seminary,
Illinois, where she remained four years. A call to the
departments of music and painting in Elmira College, New
York, brought her east again. She filled this responsible
position, being at the same time organist and orator of
music in the First (Presbyterian) Church, six years, until
her marriage to William Fowler, in 1871. Mr. Fowler was
a graduate of Yale College and of the Albany Law School,
and was at one time editor of the Tale Literary Maga-
zine and organist of the leading musical society. He was
graduated fourth in a class of one hundred and twenty. He
entered the army as lieutenant of 173d N. Y. regiment,
was with Gen. Banks in his famous expedition, and was
then transferred to the Army of the Potomac. He was
rapidly promoted to the position of assistant adjutant-gen-
eral on the staff of Gen. Charles Griffin of the fifth corps.
Four horses were shot under him during his service, and
he was in every battle of the Virginia campaign but one,
when he was sent to Washington. He was present at the
surrender of Gen. Lee, and brought home with him the
colors of the corps, the first planted atAppomatox. Mrs.
Fowler treasures that flag among her most precious posses-
sions. After the war he served upon the staff of Gen. O.
O. Howard, at Washington. Finally, he returned to New
York and resumed the practice of law, but, suffering from
the hardships of war, after a long and painful illness, he
passed away, November 26th, 1874.
After her husband's death Mrs. Fowler resumed teaching,
being engaged four years at Sayre Female Institute, Lex-
ington, Ky., and four years in Stuart's Female College,
Shelbyville, Ky., when she returned to New England.
During her journeyings she visited every city of importance
west and south. The oratorios, operettas, concerts, the-
atrical and other entertainments given under her direction
durino- all these busy years number many hundreds.
LAURA A. W. FOWLER. 59
Mrs. Fowler is a life member of the Bostonian Society,
her name being the first of her sex to be enrolled, after a
long discussion in regard to admitting ladies. She is on
the board of management of the Boston Children's Friend
Society and resident manager of the Boys' Home of Ded-
ham, where she at present resides; is a member of the
Ladies' Aid Association of the Soldiers' Home, and its
musical conductor, besides having served as visitor, director,
and upon the board of council of this large organization
for several years. She is a member of the "Woman's
Relief Corps, No. 88, Dedham ; of the Dedham Historical
Society and the Society for the Home of Discharged
Female Prisoners, in the same town. She is also deeply
interested in the Beneficent Society of the N. E. Conserva-
tory of Music, and was for several years chairman of its
entertaiment committee. Like Mrs. Micah Dyer, Jr., Mrs.
Fowler is heart and soul interested in all charitable work.
She is found in the ranks of the W. C. T. Union, the E.
and I. Union, and the Woman's Charity Club, and is also
a worker in the Helping Hand Society and Home for
Intemperate Women.
In addition to her rare musical gifts Laura A. W. Fowler
has literary abilities of a high order. Her musical critiques
have been extensively quoted in leading musical journals.
She wields a free lance. Her " Reminiscences," for the
New Hampshire Free Press, received flattering comments,
and articles of varied interest from her pen frequently
appear in the ^journal of Education, Traveller, Tran-
script and other well-known publications. She is a mem-
ber of the New England Woman's Press Association and
is Vice-President of the General Federation of Clubs of
America. Her "pet club," as she calls it, is the Abbot
Academy Club, of which she is the honored president.
In person Mrs. Fowler is most attractive, with her abun-
dant gray hair, clear blue eyes, and fine complexion. She
has a personality all her own. Her chief characteristics
are tact, a resolute will, remarkable energy and enthusiam.
She is an indefatigable worker in whatever she under-
takes, and is thoroughly business-like. She inspires life
and energy in all around her, and her busy, useful life
well demonstrates what a woman of pluck and talent com-
bined can accomplish.
A PERILOUS RIDE.
BY LEANDER W. COGSWELL.
Nestled among the hills and valleys of New Hampshire
lies the town of Henniker. Its wooded hills, its fertile
slopes and valleys, through which runs the beautiful Con-
toocook river, the largest tributary stream in the state, and
along whose course is heard the busy hum of machinery,
make the town a beautiful place for situation.
Its people are industrious, frugal, intelligent and enter-
prising. Several church spires point upward to heaven,
snowy white school-houses adorn the town, and the dwellers
therein have a respect and reverence for the things that
make this life the better for living.
All of this have they inherited from the noble men and
women who settled the township a century and one third
ago.
One of the very earliest settlers of the town was Alex-
ander Patterson, born at Bush Mills, in the north of Ire-
land, in 17 14, who settled, with his father, in 1721, in
Londonderry, New Hampshire, the home of that noble
company of Scotch-Irish who settled in the state — true
types of religious, God-fearing men and women.
His wife was Elizabeth Arbuckle, who was born on the
passage to America, and whose parents also made their
home in Londonderry. Arriving at womanhood, she was
described as " pert, little woman, straight as an arrow, of
great activity and of an excellent education for her day."
A large family of children were born to this worthy
couple. Mr. Patterson came into the township of Henniker,
with two of his stalwart sons, driving a cow with them,
and lived in a bough-house until a piece of land was cleared
and a log-cabin was erected, into which provisions were
stored, his family gathered, and preparations made for the
coming winter, which proved to be one of great severity.
For six weeks they saw no person save their own num-
ber, and were greatly delighted, when, one day at the
expiration of that term, Deacon H., their nearest neighbor,
living one mile away, made his appearance upon snow-
shoes, and informed them that he had k ' come to see whether
they were dead or alive."
A PERILOUS RIDE. 61
Afterwards a more comfortable house was erected, and,
besides caring for her large family, Mrs. Patterson taught
one of the first schools in the township, in the kitchen of
her house. In due time Sarah, one of the daughters, who
was described as being " tall, very straight and erect,
quick in her movements and overflowing with ready wit
and humor," became the wife of Major David Campbell,
the eldest son of another early settler in the town, who
brought with him a large family of sturdy sons and daugh-
ters. Major Campbell was a soldier in the Revolutionary
war, the commander of a company, and was one of the
most prominent men of the town. He resided upon the
place settled by his father, and here he and his wife lived
long and useful lives, and in due time were gathered to
their fathers.
Major Campbell was the first one to introduce tea into
the township. On his return from a journey to Boston, he
brought some of it to his home. Neither he nor his wife
knew how to prepare it for use, but finally Mrs. Campbell
put it all into a kettle and boiled it for greens. Upon the
eating of it, however, both declared that " it was not fit
for that, even."
Physicians were few in number in the olden times in
newly-settled townships, and many a good housewife
became quite skillful in caring for those who were ill.
Compounds and extracts from roots and herbs, with which
their homes were stored during the summer and autumn,
raised in the garden and found in the woods about them,
proved very efficacious, and many lives were saved through
a faithful use of the same.
Mrs. Campbell became widely known for her skill and
ability in ministering to the sick, and calls for her aid were
frequent, and were never refused if possible for her to
respond to them. So with her faithful old horse, Marmion,
upon whose back she rode as but few women, or men even,
could ride, she hastened to the relief of those who required
her aid.
The Contoocook river was always called in the grants
and plans of the town "the great river." It takes its rise
in a small sheet of water near the Monadnock mountain,
and receives the water of several small streams before it
flows a great distance, and of many larger ones before it
62 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
passes through Henniker, which it does the entire width of
the town, from the southwest to the easterly side, thence
on and discharges its waters at Penacook, near the island
made famous by Mrs. Dustin's exploits with the Indians,
and
" Of all the streams that seek the sea,
By mountain pass or sunny lea,
Nowhere is one that dares to vie
With clear Contoocook, swift and shy."
This river was crossed in various parts of the township
by fording when the water was low, and by ferry boats
when too high for fording. This was a very inconvenient
way of crossing at times. Some of the people of the town
favored placing a bridge across the river at some con-
venient point. Others opposed it, saying it could not be
done, as it would be swept away at high water. In 1780,
however, the citizens of the town assembled in meeting,
and voted to build a bridge at the most convenient place
for crossing the river, and raised a sum of money to erect
the same.
The place selected was at a point where the river was
fully one hundred and fifty feet in width. Abutments of
stone were built at each edge of the river, and a strong
pier of the same material was placed midway of the river,
and upon these rested long " stringers "of heavy pine, then
so abundant in the forests of the town. These " string-
ers" were hewn to a flat surface upon one side, and upon
these were placed thick, heavy planks, upon which to
cross the river. The bridge was finished with what was
called in the olden time "figures." These were posts,
rounded at the top, resembling an image, set at regular
intervals upon each side, to which the railing of the bridge
was bolted. This was the first and only bridge, at the time
of its completion, upon the river, from its rise to its dis-
charge, and was a great wonder and curiosity ; and people
travelling went out of their way to cross it, that they might
say they had crossed the river upon the " new bridge."
This bridge withstood the ice and high water of the river
several years, when a winter of unusual severity came.
The heavy snows drifted and gathered in almost unparal-
leled depths until the whole surface of the township seemed
covered with a mass of snow without any breakage what-
A PERILOUS RIDE. 63
ever. The winter was a dreary one, but as the days
lengthened and the sun's rays became warmer the snow
began to give way : warm, heavy rains descended, the
south wind blew in gales, and the snow melted rapidly.
Down the hillsides and through the valleys little rivulets
became large streams of water, all making their way
towards and discharging into the river, which soon became
a raging torrent of water, overflowing its banks, carrying
the ice with it, rushing madly on with ceaseless energy.
As yet the bridge had withstood all the assaults of ice and
water, and was deemed secure.
One day. in the midst of the wild storm that was raging
over the township, a very urgent request came to Mrs.
Campbell to attend a lady friend who was very ill, residing
across the river and beyond Craney Hill, the highest point
of land in the township, being one third of a mile in height,
and several miles from her home. No entreaties of her
family could dissuade her from making -the attempt to
reach the sick one. She could not resist the call. Relief
of suffering was a paramount duty with her, and, amidst
the blackening gloom of the day, with direful forebodings
upon every side, she mounted her faithful old Marmion,
wrapped in her warmest clothing, and rode out into the
pelting rain on her errand ot mercy-
She passed down the river bank close by the water, and
one half of a mile from her home crossed the bridge, then
above the water and apparently as strong as ever. She
made her way slowly through the valley, the snow being
soft and spongy, rendering travelling in any manner slow
and unsafe, then slowly climbing the mountain before her,
taxing the strength of her horse to the utmost. Step by
step she ascended higher and higher the mountain envel-
oped in a dense fog, and, although it was but midday,
darkness was about her upon every side.
After a severe ride of what seemed hours to her the top
of the mountain was reached, and carefully she descended
until the home of her friend was reached, greatly to her
relief and that of Marmion, as well as to that of the
invalid one and her anxious family, for whom it was fondly
hoped relief had come. She remained with her patient,
caring for her in the most faithful manner, until midnight,
when, deeming her better and giving all needed instruc-
64 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
tions to the family, she resolved to undertake the task of
reaching her home.
The fearful storm was still raging. The great trees
around the cabin groaned and lashed each other in wild
fury, the little cabin shook with the violence of the storm,
the darkness was dense, but notwithstanding this and the
most urgent entreaties of the family to remain until the
storm abated, Mrs. Campbell, fearing the snow would
become so soft as to prevent her from reaching her home
for some time, determined to make the attempt, and
remounting her faithful old Marmion, who seemed to under-
stand perfectly what would be required of him and who
seemed resolved to act well his part, she bade the inmates
of the cabin good-bye and went forth into the darkness
and the storm.
Slowly and carefully she descended the mountain step
by step, amidst the roaring of the huge trees by which she
was surrounded and the cries of the wild beasts concealed
in their lairs; on and still on she went until the foot of the
mountain was reached, and then, with much difficulty, the
plain was passed over until the overflow of the river was
reached, some distance from where she knew the bridge
must be. Still she hesitated not but urged her horse for-
ward, who kept on but with very cautious step. When
the end of the bridge was reached Marmion suddenly
stopped, and with his keen eye seemed peering into the
darkness before him and was reluctant to proceed.
" Come, Marmion," said Mrs. Campbell, " go on, and
carry me safely home, for it is high time we were there.
Ye 've been a long time on the road, but have brought me
safely so far, and now go on with ye."
The faithful old horse proceeded, placing each foot
firmly as he went. Mrs. Campbell was aware the water
was much higher than when she crossed the bridge hours
before, for her feet were in the water as she sat in her
saddle and its current was swifter, causing the horse at
times to nearly lose his foothold ; but on he went, each
moment seeming a long one to Mrs. Campbell, who won-
dered, why Marmion was so slow in crossing the bridge.
"Be careful," said Mrs. Campbell, as the horse went
nearly upon his knees; "we must be nearly across the
bridge and will soon be home." Suddenly, as before, Mar-
A. F, NEVERS.
MUSICAL DEPARTMENT. 65
mion stopped and seemed to take another survey of what
was before him, then started again, and proceeding a short
distance, gave a sudden bound and planted his feet upon
the ground with the water all about him. But the river
had been crossed, and finding his way up the river bank,
Mrs. Campbell soon reached her home, greatly to the aston-
ishment of her family, who were aroused from their slum-
bers by her arrival, and " How did you cross the river?"
was quickly asked her. " On the bridge, of course,"
replied Mrs. Campbell.
"Why. wife," said her husband the major, "The planks
of the bridge were all washed away shortly after you
crossed it yesterday, and how did you get across?"
" Old Marmion was a good while in crossing the river,
and I noticed he placed his feet very carefully each step he
took," replied Mrs. Campbell ; " but I don't know what he
crossed upon."
As soon as possible an examination was made, and, to
the great amazement of all, it was ascertained that the
faithful horse, Marmion, with Mrs. Campbell upon his
back, had crossed the river upon one of the stringers of
the bridge which had remained in -position* the others
having been zvashed away. And from that time until the
present the story of Mrs. Campbell's perilous ride has
been rehearsed in everv household of the town.
MUSICAL DEPARTMENT.
CONDUCTED BY H. G. BLAISDELL.
ARTHUR F NEVERS.
Mr. Arthur F. Nevers, the subject of our sketch, was
born in Claremont, N. H., March 27, 1861. At an early
age he gave unmistakable evidence of a musical nature,
and manifested a remarkable aptitude for the cornet. At
the age of sixteen he received his first instruction from the
leader of the local band, making rapid progress. Later,
he studied with the late E. M. Bagley, then cornet soloist
with the Germania band and the Symphony orchestra, of
Boston.
In 1SS2 Mr. Nevers came to Concord, taking the posi-
tion of cornet soloist in Blaisdell's orchestra, which position
Gl5 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
he holds at the present time. He is a faithful student, and
from year to year has made remarkable progress, and has
honestly earned the reputation as one of the leading solo-
ists in the country. Among important engagements as
concert soloist, since 1881, may be mentioned one season
at Long Branch, N. J., several seasons at Profile House,
White Mountains, and Hotel Wentworth, Newcastle, N. H.,
and during the summer of 1892 he was with Baldwin's
Cadet Band of Boston, and at Park Theatre. Later, in
October, he was engaged to go with Ellis Brooks' cele-
brated New York band to the Pittsburgh, Pa., exposition.
He has also appeared as first cornet and soloist in all the
principal cities of the New England and Middle states, at
concerts and musical festivals, and has performed the
trumpet obligatos in the Handel oratorios with great suc-
cess, with nearly all the great vocalists .in America.
Five years ago he enlisted in the N. H. N. G., as band-
master of the Third Regiment. This band will be known
hereafter as Nevers' Third Regiment Band. Mr. Nevers
has refused many flattering offers to join other organizations,
preferring to remain with Blaisdell's orchestra and the
Third Regiment. He has been faithful to his art and pro-
fession, never disappointing friends or the public. He is
to be relied upon both as a gentleman and a musician.
He is genial and affable to all, using every effort to please,
and happy when such results are attained. As an instructor
of the cornet and bands he is very successful. His future
prospects are decidedly flattering, and we confidently pre-
dict for him a long and useful career.
CONCERT BY CONCORD CHORAL SOCIETY.
The eighth concert of the Concord Choral Society took
place on Wednesday evening, January 17. The works in
hand were the Stabat Mater by Rossini, the Evening
Hymn by Reinecke, and Eaton Faning's Song of the
Vikings. The soloists were Mrs. Louise Laine-Black-
more, Miss Gertrude Edmands, Mr. T. M. Cushman,
and Mr. D. M. Babcock. Miss Ada M. Aspinwall pre-
sided at the piano, and Blaisdell's orchestra was present.
It was indeed a most satisfactory performance throughout.
The chorus was true to every call of the conductor, and
their intonation, phrasing, and shading were all nearly
MUSICAL DEPARTMENT. 67
perfection. Especially trying is the Evening Hymn of
Reinecke, where the modulations are numerous, and where
anticipations of what is to follow from measure to measure
are, as a rule, misleading. The soloists acquitted them-
selves in a most satisfactory manner, their most trying and
most finished work being the unaccompanied quartette
in the Stabat Mater, " Quando Corpus." The only "out"
about the entertainment was the circumstances under
which it was given. The demands upon the purse and
time of Concord people are enough for a city of seventy-
five thousand inhabitants, and this seemed to be the busiest
week of the year. Yet there is a lamentable fact and
another side to our "tale of woe." Janauschek's tickets
were on sale side by side with those of the Choral Union,
and many people were not too busy or too tired to ignore
the Choral Union and patronize her.
NOTES.
Mr. E. T. Baldwin of Manchester is managing a series
of monthly piano-forte recitals at the chapel of the First
Congregational Church in his city. In his announcement
he takes occasion to tell the truth regarding Manchester —
and we add all the cities in our state — being ignored bv
artists of repute for want of patronage and support. It is
a lamentable fact that our musical students have but little
to encourage them, except as they go to Boston for such
inspiration as will uplift and correct wrong methods of prac-
tice or instruction which arc so prevalent and fatal among
us. Another fact that shows the purely unselfish nature of
Mr. Baldwin is that all receipts in excess of actual expenses
attending these recitals will be paid into the hands of the
treasurer of the New Hampshire Music Teachers' Associ-
ation, which, using his own words, " is the only society
organized for the single purpose of promoting musical art
throughout the state." The first recital was given Thurs-
day evening, December 15, by Fraulein Adele Lewing of
Boston.
The South Congregational Church of Concord once
more enjoys a good choir. It is composed of Mrs. Annie
Deitrich-Brown, soprano, Miss Rose F.Jenkins, contralto,
Mr. C. S. Conant, tenor, and Mr. C. F. Scribner, basso ;
Mrs. J. W. Odlin, organist.
68 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
Concord and Laconia enjoyed a rich musical treat Jan-
uary ii— 12, in the appearance of the Philharmonic Club of
New York, assisted by Miss Marion Weed, mezzo-soprano
soloist. The students of stringed orchestral instruments
had an opportunity to hear perfection in both execution
and ensemble playing, while Miss Weed is never disap-
pointing to lovers of music, whether vocal or instrumental.
Lisbon, N. H., holds its annual festival during the week
of February 20. Artists not yet announced.
NEW HAMPSHIRE NECROLOGY.
GEN. BENJAMIN F. BUTLER.
Benjamin Franklin Butler, one of the most striking fig-
ures in American public life, and easily among the ablest
of New Hampshire's native sons, died suddenly, in Wash-
ington, D. C, Wednesday morning, January 11.
Gen. Butler was a native of the town of Deerfield, born
November 5, 1818. His mother was left a widow in his
childhood, and removed with him to Lowell, Mass., when
he was about two years of age, where she was enabled
more readily to earn a subsistence. He subsequently,
being of a studious disposition, secured admission to Phil-
lips Exeter Academy, where he fitted for college, and grad-
uated at Watervillc, now Colby University, in 1838. He
had been destined by his mother for the Baptist ministry,
but his inclinations took a different turn, and he pursued
the study of law, being admitted to the bar, at Lowell,
in 1840, and soon after commencing practice in that city,
where he ever after held his residence, although, as his
remarkable abilities developed and commanded attention,
lie established offices in Boston, New York, and Washing-
ton, at all of which he spent some portion of the time, as
the interests of his clients demanded. He was active and
conspicuous in political and military circles in early man-
hood, becoming a leader in Democratic politics and a gen-
eral in the state militia. He served in the Massachusetts
legislature in 1853, and was active in forwarding the bill
to reduce the hours of factory labor. He was a member of
the state senate in 1859, anc ^ a delegate to the National
NECROLOGY. G£>
Democratic Convention at Charleston, S. C, in i860, act-
ing with the extreme states rights wing of the party, and
voting fifty-nine times for Jefferson Davis for candidate for
president. But at the very outbreak of the rebellion he
took emphatic ground against it, and was the first general
officer of state militia to tender his services, with those of
of his command, for the defence of the Union. His prompt
action unquestionably saved the capital from falling into
the hands of the Southern army. His subsequent striking
military career, in command at Fortress Monroe, New
Orleans, and at other points, is well known.
In 1866 Gen. Butler was elected to congress by the
Republican voters of the Sixth Massachusetts district, and
served continuously until 1879, except one term, for which
he was defeated by Charles P. Thompson, the Democratic
candidate. He was a leader of the radical Republicans in
congress during the reconstruction period, a champion of
the force bill, and a prime mover in the impeachment of
President Johnson. He was an independent candidate for
governor of Massachusetts in 1878 and 1879, anc ^ m I 88 2 »
received the united Independent and Democratic support
for that office, and was elected. In 1884 he received the
Greenback and Anti-Monoply nomination for president,
and commanded 133,825 votes at the polls.
Latterly, although failing in health and strength, he has
been constantly devoted to the practice of his profession,
his services being in greater demand than those of any other
lawyer in the country.
He married a daughter of Israel Hildreth of Lowell,
who died April 8, 1876. He leaves a son and daughter,
Paul Butler of Lowell, and Blanche, wife of Ex-Senator
Adelbert Ames, formerly of Alabama.
HON. ALONZO NUTE.
Alonzo Nute, born in Milton, upon the old Nute Home-
stead, February 12, 1826, died in Farmington, December
24, 1892.
He learned the shoe business early in life at Natick,
Mass., and commenced manufacturing at Farmington in
1849, continuing through life, except during the time when
he was occupied in public service. He served in the late war
70 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
as quartermaster of the Sixth N. H. Regiment, and was
promoted to the staff of Gen. Rush C. Hawkins. He was a
representative from Farmington in the legislature of 1866
and a senator in 1867 and 1868. In 1876 he was a dele-
gate to the Republican National Convention, and in 1888
was chosen by that party a representative in the fifty-first
congress, defeating Hon. Luther F. McKinney, but, broken
down in health from malarial disease contracted during
the war, he declined a renominalion.
In 1850 he married Mary, daughter of Joseph and Betsey
Pearl, who survives him, with two sons, Eugene P., recently
a member of the state board of bank commissioners, and
Alonzo I., a representative in the present legislature.
RICHARD B. KIMBALL, LL. D.
Richard Burleigh Kimball, an eminent writer and lec-
turer, born in Plainfield, October 11, 1816, died in New
York city, December 28, 1892.
He graduated from Dartmouth in the class of 1834 ; read
law at Waterford, N. Y. ; continued his studies in Paris,
and afterwards located at Troy, N. Y. ; removed to New
York city in 1840, devoting himself almost entirely to liter-
ary work, He was one of the prominent contributors to
the famous Knickerbocker Magazine, in which his first
novel, " St. Leger," appeared. He published numerous
novels, essays and books of travel, and lectured before
various institutes throughout the country. Just before his
death he completed his great work, entitled " Half a Cen-
tury of Recollections." He married Julia C. Tomlinson of
New York, April 17, 1845. Dartmouth College conferred
upon him the degree of LL. D. in 1874.
SUMNER ALBEE.
Sumner Albec, a well-known member of the Massachu-
setts bar, born in Langdon, N. H., March 23, 1825, died at
Cambridge, Mass., January 11, 1893.
He graduated at Middlebury College, Vermont, in 1848,
taught several years in the Brimmer School, Boston, read
law with Morse & Ranney in that city, and was admitted
to the bar in 1854, commencing and continuing practice in
Boston, but establishing his residence in Cambridge, where
NECROLOGY. 71
he served several years as a member of the city govern-
ment and also upon the school board, and was lor thirteen
years one of the overseers of the poor, resigning in 1891.
During the war he was a member of the committee to dis-
tribute state aid to the families of Cambridge soldiers, and
was for twenty-one years a deacon of the Prospect Con-
gregational Church, Cambridge.
He married, in 1825, Lucy A., daughter of Rev. Andrew
Rankin of Chester, Vt., by whom he had three children —
a son and two daughters. The son, Sumner Rankin Albee,
a promising young man, a graduate of Harvard, class of
1889, and an enthusiastic student in the class of 1893,
Harvard Law School, died in September last, at the age of
25 years, and his loss was an inciting cause of the illness
which terminated in his own decease. The daughters sur-
vive, with their widowed mother.
SIDNEY SMITH HARRIS.
Sidney S. Harris, a well-known lawyer of the city of
New York, died there, December n, 1892.
He was born in the town of Plainfield, February 5, 1832,
and graduated from Dartmouth in the class of 1855, an d
from the Albany, N. Y., Law School the following year,
pursuing his study under the instruction of the noted
Ex-Chancellor Walworth. He settled in practice in New
York city in 1858, and April 20, 1864, was united in mar-
riage with Miriam Doughty, daughter of Butler Coles of
Dorsoris, L. I. His wife becamed famed as a novelist,
being the author of " Rutledge," and other stories of inter-
est. She survives him, with two children.
DR. HADLEY B. FOWLER.
Hadley Blake Fowler, M. D., one of the best known
men in the medical profession in the state, died at his
home in Bristol, January 11, 1893.
Dr. Fowler was the son of Capt. Blake and Ruth
(Sleeper) Fowler, and was born in Bridgewater, March
20, 1824. He was educated in the Bristol High School,
Hebron Academy, and at Dartmouth Medical College,
graduating from the latter in 1850. He commenced prac-
tice in Alexandria, but established himself in Bristol, in
72 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
1854, where he afterwards remained. He entered the
Union service, as surgeon of the Twelfth Regiment, N. H.
Vols., which he was instrumental in raising, August 12,
1862, and was prominent in hospital service during the
war. His father was a captain in the Twelfth Regiment,
and his son, George H. Fowler, also served in the same
organization.
Dr. Fowler had an extensive practice, especially in
surgery, and was greatly esteemed. In politics he was
a Democrat, and was once the candidate of that party for
railroad commissioner. He was a Mason, an Odd Fel-
low, and an active member of the G. A. R.
DR. ISAAC W. LOUGEE.
Isaac W. Lougee, M. D.,born in Gilmanton, August 1,
1818, died in Rochester, January 4, 1893.
He was educated at Gilmanton Academy and Dartmouth
Medical College, graduating from the latter in 1845. He
commenced practice at New Durham, removing to Alton
in 1847, where he remained twenty-one years, when he
bought out Dr. James Farrington of Rochester and
removed to that town, where he continued until death. He
was a member and had been president of both the Straf-
ford county and New Hampshire Medical Societies, was
postmaster at Alton under the Taylor and Fillmore admin-
istration, represented that town in the legislature in 1886-7,
and Rochester in 1877-8. He purchased the Rochester
Courier in 1885, and conducted it until October, 1891,
when he sold to the present proprietors, Lougee & McDuf-
fee, his eldest son, William W., being the senior member
of the firm. He leaves a widow and two sons, the younger
son, Arthur W., being a member of the present senior class
in Dartmouth College.
\ \
y ^t^2^vn/\
The Granite Monthly
VOL. XV. MARCH, 1893. N0 -
HON. EDWARD F. MANN.
BY H. H. METCALF.
Edward Foster Mann, born in Benton, September 7,
1845, died in Concord, August 19, 1892.
He was the second son of George W. and Susan M.
(Whitcher) Mann. His father, George W. Mann,* an
active and influential citizen, still prominent in public
affairs, was the youngest of eight sons of Samuel Mann,
who removed with his parents, in childhood, from New
Haven, Conn., to the town of Landaff, where he grew up
and reared a family, but removed, in March, 1835, t0 Ben-
ton, purchasing and settling upon the farm where George
W. has ever since resided, and upon which Edward F.
was born and reared. Susan Marston Whitcher was one of
sixteen children — ten sons and six daughters — of the late
William Whitcher of Benton. She was a woman of great
personal beauty, amiability, intelligence*, and energy, which
characteristics were transmitted in no small measure to
* George W. Mann, who has been for nearly half a century a
leading citizen of Benton, and long prominent in public and
political life in Grafton county, was actively engaged in agricul-
ture for many years, and is still greatly interested in that occupa-
tion, although having been more directly engaged as a con-
tractor and builder for the last quarter of a century. He was
collector of taxes in Benton for five years, from 1S44, and select-
man eight years, from 1S46. He also served four years as town-
clerk and ten years as superintending school committee. He
represented Benton in the legislature in 18571 1S60, 1S75, 1S76,
1SS1, and 1^83. taking a prominent part in the deliberations of
the house in the later years. He also served in the Constitu-
tional Convention of 1876, and has long been prominent in con-
vention and committee Avork in the Democratic party, to whose
principles he is devotedly attached. In 1S92 he was appointed
76 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
as zealously regarded. Reared in the faith of the Demo-
cratic party, he was ever an earnest worker in its cause in
every legitimate direction, and he efficiently served his
town and district and the state at large in the legislature,
representing Benton in the house in 1871 and in 1872,
being a member of the committee on Agricultural College
the former and on Reform School the latter year ; and
the Grafton district (No. 2) in the Senate in 1879 anc ^
1881, serving, in 1879, upon the committees on educa-
tion, claims, roads, bridges and canals, and engrossed
bills, and, in 1881, upon those of elections, roads, bridges
and canals, and Reform School, being chairman of the
latter committee. In 1888 he was the candidate of his
party for representative in congress from the second New
Hampshire district, and, although defeated, ran largely
ahead of his ticket.
In the prosperity of the thriving village of Woodsville,
which grew up under his eye, as it were, during the years
of his railroad service, and wherein was his home during
some of the most active of these years, he ever took a
deep interest, and was a mover in all its important local
enterprises. He was a prime mover and director in the
Woodsville Aqueduct and Electric Light Company, and
in the Woodsville Guaranty Savings Bank, and gave his
hearty support to the movement for the transfer of the
county seat from Haverhill Corner to Woodsville. He
was also intimately connected with every active project
for bringing Mount Moosilauke to public attention. He
loved the grand old mountain beneath whose shadow he
was born and near whose sheltering form his ashes now
repose, and nothing gave him greater pleasure than to
have others admire it. He was an active member and
Vice-President of the Provident Mutual Relief Associa-
tion, and at the time of his decease a director of the N. H.
Democratic Press Co. He was a member of Burns Lodge,
F. and A. M., at Littleton, and of Franklin Chapter,
Royal Arch Masons, at Lisbon. In religious conviction
he was broad and liberal — a firm believer in the universal
fatherhood of God and brotherhood of man.
January 13, 1881, Mr. Mann was united in marriage
with Miss Elvah G., daughter of the late Chase Whitcher
of Benton, who survives him, with one child, a daughter,
now thirteen years of age.
HON. EDWARD F. MANN. 77
Frank, sincere and outspoken, earnest, faithful and true
in every relation of life, kind, helpful and considerate,
loyal to every obligation of manhood and of citizenship,
New Hampshire has lost no worthier son in recent years
than Edward F. Mann, and the departure of none has
been more widely or deeply mourned. Among the many
expressions of sympathy which were received by the family
at the time of their bereavement was a letter from Hon.
John G Sinclair, in which he wrote :
" But alas ! the lips of one are closed ; the soul of one has fled.
Never again will those eves flash hack the light with which he
ever met his friends. As son, brother, husband, father, he never
failed in duty ; and, from brakeman to superintendent, he met
every obligation faithfully. In public and political circles he
was ever true, filling every position with credit to himself and
honor to his constituency. Peace to his ashes ! and may we
meet him when we have crossed the river with our hosts of
friends who to-day are with him."
As, on the 21st day of August, 1892 — a beautiful sum-
mer Sunday — the mortal remains of him whose career is
thus faintly outlined were borne to their last resting-place
in the soil of his native town, amid the grand scenery he
loved so well, the following lines were penned by the
writer. No better tribute can we now bestow :
IN MEMORIAM.
There is no death for men
Like him whose mortal frame to kindred earth
We now consign. For base, ignoble souls,
For narrow, selfish minds without a thought
Above their own pet purposes and schemes,
For grov'ling spirits, never rising up
To manhood's measure and its high demands,
Death and oblivion indeed may come;
But for the good and strong, the noble souls,
The kindly, gen'rous hearts, warm, true and brave,
Who stand full-fronted on life's battle-field
And strike for right and duty every day,
No death can come. Eternal life is theirs.
Here, in the memory of their fellow-men,
\\ hate'er beyond the veil their course may be,
They live in honor and enduring power ;
And he, our friend and brother, thus cut down
78 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
In manhood's early prime, shall live for aye —
Live in the deeds he did, the work he planned,
Live in the hearts of those with whom he wrought,
Live in the progress of his native state,
Whose name he honored and whose weal he loved,
As long as honest worth commands its due,
And truth and justice shall be known of men.
So, while the mountains of his native home
Keep watch and ward above his mold'ring dust,
His monument shall rise, and it shall be
More fair and bright than any marble shaft
Which human skill hath fashioned yet to keep
The mem'ry of departed souls still fresh
Within the heart of man ; for it shall rise
From out the fabric of his noble life
And stand in simple beauty evermore.
HENRY CLAY HARMON.
BY FRANK H. MARION.
In the quiet village of Eaton, Carroll county, N. H.,
Henry Clay Harmon, eldest child of Artemas Harmon and
Mittie Sherman March, was born, June 29, 1833.
Possessing many of the sterling qualities for which New
England's sons are noted, and inheriting keen perception
and sound judgment, he was well equipped for the various
duties of life he was called upon to perform, and through
all of its vicissitudes he was ever faithful to his youthful
training, following zealously the precepts of honesty and
integrity.
Having completed his studies, at an early age he enlisted
as an instructor of the young idea. This profession, how-
ever, he soon renounced to engage in surveying, in which
he became an expert, and which occupation he followed
when history records his name among the pioneers of
Kansas.
Having been appointed to a clerkship in the United States
treasury, he went to Washington, in 1861, with his wife,
Martha F. Tovvle. While serving in this capacity he
inaugurated the bureau for the investigation of frauds, of
which division he was appointed chief. His valuable
CRAVEN AT MOBILE BAY. 79
service rendered the government, and the fact that many
thousands of dollars were recovered through his untiring
zeal, have been highly appreciated and duly acknowledged
by his superior officials. When the vacancy occurred, he
was appointed deputy second auditor, at the earnest solicita-
tion of the entire corps of his fellow clerks.
About a year ago Mr. Harmon's health began to fail and
he was confined to his bed for nearly six months. Rally-
ing, however, he resumed his duties for a short time before
succumbing to the fatal disease which relieved him of all
suffering, October 7, 1892, at his home in Mount Pleasant,
D. C.
Mr. Harmon possessed rare virtues for endearing him-
self to his friends : the sterner sex found aid and counsel,
while the gentler ones knew where to look for help in time
of need ; and there was always a spare moment for the
children, who were his heart's delight, as the}- gathered
around his knee to be made happy with song or toy. The
sick were remembered with a few flowers, though a ramble
through the woods might be necessary to obtain them.
Fond of animals, he was never without his horse, dog or
cat, a captured baby rabbit or motherless chickens, all of
which were tenderlv and lovinglv cared for.
Thus was his life spent ! A pure, honest, and upright
life which could boast of kindness to all humanity except
itself; a life, like all others, of weaknesses and virtues, but,
like few others, forgetting the care of itself. No truer
words can be spoken of him than those uttered bv Rev.
Dr. Small, "■ God knew him better than man ;" nor can fitter
words than his own express his willingness to meet his
Creator, "When God weighs the balance, I know there will
be something in my favor."
CRAVEN AT MOBILE BAY.
BY GEORGE E. BELKNAP.
"After you, pilot," he grandly said,
And proudly staved his dauntless tread,
While up the ladder the pilot stept
And safely from the turret leapt.
80 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
Alas ! no " after" was there for him,
Waiting in turret so close and grim ;
Each throb of life with peril fraught
Weightier growing by doubt distraught,
As the eager flood, with a gurgling sound
And rush and roar, fast flowed him round.
Fainter and fainter the morning beams
Shimmered through tower in fitful gleams ;
Darker and darker grew turret and tower,
Surging and plunging with fateful power ;
Faster and faster the torn hulk filled, —
A moment more and all was stilled ;
For oh ! the waters, with pitiless thrall,
Over brave Craven threw their pall,
And, shrouded in iron, he sank to rest
Enshrined in deed forever blest.
On swept the fleet 'mid flame and smoke,
And thunderous roar and cannon stroke,
But the bubbles that rose to the surface brim
Were the last of earth that told of him.
O beauteous bay that saw such bloom
Of valor's flower its deeps illume,
A grace like that by Sidney sealed —
Refulgent ray from Zutphen's field —
Stay not your joys with saddening tear
As flow your tides about his bier,
But leave to the Gulf's aye restless surge
The murmurous chant of ceaseless dirge :
For down the years with freshening glory
Resplendent glows the lustrous story,
And calling to deeds of likest fame,
Immortal crowns grand Craven's name !
Note. — When the monitor Tecumseh was sunk at the battle of Mobile Bay,
her gallant captain, Commander T. A. M. Craven of the navy, one of New
Hampshire's noblest sons, a native of Portsmouth, went down in her. At the
moment of the explosion Craven and the pilot, Mr. John Collins, were in the
iron tower or pilot-house directly over the turret, steering the ship to attack
the Confederate iron-clad Tennessee. Seeing the inevitable fate of the vessel,
Craven and the pilot scrambled down into the turret and met at the foot of the
iron ladder leading to the top of the turret through a narrow scuttle, the only
exit now left for escape from the doomed vessel. At that point Craven drew
back in a characteristic way and said, — "After you, pilot ! " " There was nothing
after me," relates Mr. Collins, who fortunately escaped to tell the tale of hero-
ism. " When I reached the topmost round of the ladder the vessel seemed to
drop from under me."
■■mU "
V~ V "est
x
U
K
2
*5i**5
N. H. CENTENNIAL HOME FOR THE AGED.
BY A. H. ROBINSON.
Among the many benevolent and charitable institutions
in the Granite State, the New Hampshire Centennial
Home for the Aged is deservedly one of the most con-
spicuous. The necessity for an institution of this kind —
one which should furnish a comfortable home for aged
people of good character and limited means, without
immediate friends able or willing to care for them — had
long been realized and considered by charitably disposed
people in Concord, had been discussed to some extent
by the newspapers or through their columns, and public
sentiment aroused in some degree in such behalf, but the
first practical movement in that direction was made, when,
in December, 1875, the Concord Female Charitable Soci-
ety, through its directors, voted to give, as a nucleus for
further donations, the amount which should be realized from
contributions at the time of the next annual address before
that organization, which was given in January following,
when the sum of $110 was realized.
Early in February, 1876, a call was issued for a mass
meeting of the ladies of Concord, signed by two members
of each of the religious societies of the city, and on the
17th day of that month such meeting was held, with a large
attendance, and the subject of founding a home at the
capital for the aged of both sexes was discussed. Mrs.
Nathaniel Bouton was chairman of the meeting, and Mrs.
William H. Bartlett, secretary. A constitution, presented
by Mrs. Nathaniel White, was adopted, and officers for
the ensuing year were elected, the association formed
being designated the " Concord Ladies' Centennial Associ-
ation." The officers chosen were, — Mrs. Nathaniel Bouton,
president, with several vice-presidents ; Mrs. William H.
Bartlett, recording secretary ; Mrs. Charles C. Pearson,
corresponding secretary ; Mrs. William M. Chase, treas-
urer ; with an executive committee of two members from
each religious society in the city, and a finance committee
consisting of Mrs. Nathaniel White, Mrs. Onslow Stearns,
and Mrs. George A. Pillsbury.
82 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
In June of that year an act of incorporation Avas passed
by the legislature, and the association immediately reor-
ganized under that act. with the name of the " New
Hampshire Centennial Home for the Aged," the constitu-
tion being amended, and by-laws and regulations adopted
in conformity therewith. Under the constitution as amended
the officers of the association consist of a president, two
vice-presidents, a recording secretary, a corresponding sec-
retary, a treasurer, an executive committee consisting of
two members from each religious society represented in
the association by ten or more members. — all of which
officers shall constitute the executive board ; also a board
of fifteen trustees and an auditor. These officers, except
the trustees, are chosen annually, by ballot ; the trustees
are chosen three each year for five years, the first board
consisting of three members chosen for one, two, three,
four, and five years respectively.
At the annual meeting in January, 1877, Hon. Jonathan
E. Sargent was chosen president ; Mrs. Nathaniel White
and Mrs. Onslow Stearns, vice-presidents ; Mrs. W. H.
Bartlett, recording secretary ; Mrs. James R. Hill, cor-
responding secretary; J. C. A. Hill, treasurer, arid John
Kimball, auditor. Judge Sargent was continued presi-
dent till his death, in 1889, when Hon. Stiliman Hum-
phrey was chosen as his successor, and still continues in
office. Mrs. Bartlett has continued as recording secretary
and Mr. Hill as treasurer. In the other offices there have
been changes.
The association held frequent meetings and labored
zealously for the accumulation of funds. In January,
1878, the amount in the treasury was reported as
$1,365.51. In the meantime Mrs. Sarah J. Hale of
Philadelphia, a native of New Hampshire, had donated
a portion of her private library as the foundation for a
library for the home. The city was thoroughly canvassed
for subscriptions during the fall of 1878, and, in Novem-
ber, a fair in White's Opera House netted over $1,300. On
the first of January following the amount in the treasury
was reported at $4,681.53. At this time a home was
opened for the reception of inmates, the Dodge house,
so called, on Pleasant street, in Concord, having been
leased for the purpose. The home opened with six
N. II. CENTENNIAL HOME FOR THE AGED. 83
inmates, which number was increased to ten before the
close of the year. Miss Susan C. M. Farnum was the
first matron.
The accumulation of a permanent fund has been
from the start a prominent feature in the policy of the
management, and, on January i, 1881, a donation of
$10,000 from Mrs. Nathaniel White, on behalf of herself
and her late husband, transferred to such fund, made an
aggregate of $18,113.89, which has constantly increased,
until at the present time it exceeds $60,000.
For some time the need of improved accommodations
had been recognized, and, in the year 1891, formal steps
were taken towards supplying the want. The matter of
remodeling the old building, which, with the ground origi-
nally leased, had been purchased by the association, was
considered, and the project decided impracticable. It was,
therefore, decided to erect a new building, and a plan sub-
mitted by Mr. Cutting of Worcester was finally adopted.
A committee was appointed to solicit subscriptions towards
the building fund, which met with excellent success, nearly
$15,000 being ultimately secured. A building committee
was also appointed, and, in July of that year, the work of
construction w r as commenced and carried forward with due
dispatch until completion, in the fall of 1892, the inmates
being transferred from the old building to their rooms in
the new and elegant structure on the 12th day of Novem-
ber, although the formal dedication did not occur until the
12th of January, 1893.
The new building is of brick, of tasteful design, as
shown by the engraving accompanying this sketch, and is
provided with all the modern conveniences. The total cost
of the building was about $25,000, the amount necessary
to meet the expense, aside from the contributions to the
building fund, having been borrowed from the permanent
fund of the institution. The building is delightfullv located,
an ornament to the city, and a credit to the association.
It is sufficiently capacious to meet all requirements for
some time to come, and is so planned that it may be
enlarged without interference with the points of symmetry
and convenience when the means and needs of the associ-
ation demand it.
The membership of the home, at the time of the transfer
84 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
to the new building, was smaller than had been the case for
some time previous, as the removal of a portion of the
old building, when the construction of the new one was
commenced, had so limited the accommodations that,
although three of the inmates died in the meantime, no
others were admitted in their places, but several others
have since been received, and there are now about twenty
aged people enjoying the benefits of the institution. The
total number of inmates received during the occupancy of
the old building was thirty-four, of whom twenty-three
have died. Of the six inmates who entered upon the
opening of the institution, fourteen years ago, but one sur-
vives, Mrs. Harriett F. Smith, formerly of Hanover, now
in her eighty-second year. The present matron is Mrs.
Lavina E. Kelley.
Under the regulations, in order to become inmates of
this home, persons must be at least sixty years of age,
must have been a resident of the state for ten years next
preceding the date of application, of good character, and
of such condition of health as to be able to care for them-
selves, and without sufficient means of support or friends
able and liable to maintain them. Before admission the
payment of the sum of $200 into the treasury of the insti-
tution is also required, or $150 may be paid and the
furniture of a room provided. Each person admitted is
received on probation for six months, and, if dissatisfied,
may leave at or before the expiration of that time, upon
one week's notice. If not remaining, or not permanently
accepted, at the end of six months, the admission fee,
deducting board at the rate of two dollars per week, is
returned. Inmates who have property are required to
secure the same to the institution before permanent admis-
sion, or, in case of their acquiring property after admis-
sion, they are to make it over to the institution if remain-
ing ; but they may be allowed one half the income of
such property for their own private use.
The funds of the institution are acquired through mem-
bership fees, donations, and bequests. Any person may
become a member of the association by paying one dol-
lar annually. Ten dollars constitutes a memorial mem-
ber, twenty-five dollars a life member, and one hundred
dollars a patron member, both life and patron members
COL. CHARLES JOHNSTON. 85
being entitled to vote. There are now about three hun-
dred annual members, sixtv memorial, and sixty life mem-
bers, while six persons have become patron members.
Many handsome donations and bequests have been received,
the largest, aside from the donation of Mrs. White already
mentioned, being from the estate of the late Calvin Howe,
$9,500. received the past year. There is no more worthy
object for the contributions of the charitably disposed, in
the state or natives of the state abroad, than the New
Hampshire Centennial Home for the Aged.
COL. CHARLES JOHNSTON.
BY REV. J. Q^ BITTINGER,
HISTORIAN OF HAVERHILL.
Charles Johnston was undoubtedly the foremost citizen
of Haverhill in point of character, ability, and influence,
and this, too, in view of the fact that he had as associates in
life such marked men as Col. Bedel, Col. Asa Porter,
Andrew S. Crocker, Esq., Col. John Hurd, Gen. Moses
Dow, and Alden Sprague, men who would have made
themselves felt in any community. He was of Scotch
origin, and was born in Hampstead in 1737, the fifth child
of Michael and Mary (Hancock) Johnston. He married
Ruth Marsh of Londonderry, whom, tradition says, was a
person of delicate mould and of womanly diffidence.
They had a family of eight children, two of whom Hied in
early life : (i)Michael was the oldest, and remained on
the homestead. He was a captain of militia, and served
for two years as a private in the Revolution. He also held
civil office in the town. His wife, before her marriage,
was Sarah Atkinson of Boscawen, and of their children,
(i)Sarah married Capt. Stephen Adams; (ii)Charles,
born in 1789, graduated from Dartmouth College in 181 3,
studied theologv with Rev. Grant Powers and Dr. Lvman
Beecher, labored as an evangelist in Connecticut and New
York with Dr. Nettleton, was pastor of a Presbyterian
church, Otisco, N. Y., and was a man of much force and
character; (iii)Hannah, born in 1793, and received her
education at Haverhill Academy. She was married to
8G THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
Rev. Silas McKeen, D. D., in 182 1, and of their four
children, (tf)Philena, the oldest, was carefully trained in
scholastic studies, and also in the fine arts, especially
music, and has been successfully engaged in teach-
ing in the Ohio Female College and in the Western
Female Seminary, Oxford, O. For many years she has
been the accomplished principal of Abbot Academy for
Ladies, Andover, Mass. Her sister, (7;) Catherine, was at
one time a teacher in Mount Holyoke Ladies' Seminary,
Mass., and died in West Virginia. A son, (c)George W.,
was a graduate of Dartmouth College, and died in early
manhood, and is said to have been a young man of much
promise. The youngest daughter, (W)Phebe Fuller, was
associated in teaching with her eldest sister both in Ohio
and at Andover, and died a few years ago in Baltimore.
Hannah Johnston McKeen was a woman of rare Christian
character and graces, whose "price is far above rubies," a
devoted wife and mother, wise in speech and discreet in
action, and a friend of the poor and needy. She was
superintendent of the first Sabbath-school organized in
Haverhill, about 1818. (iv) Michael succeeded his father on
the homestead, and married Anna Atkinson of Boscawen ;
(v)George Whitefield and a sister, (vi)Betsey, married
Atkinsons of the same place; (vii)Hale Atkinson was
educated at Haverhill Academy and at Dartmouth College,
graduating from the latter institution in 1825. After leav-
ing college he taught for a while in an academy at North-
umberland, Pa., and then read law for a time with Joseph
McKeen of New York, and finished with Joseph Bell.
He was admitted to the bar, in 1829, at Haverhill, and
begun the practice of his profession there, but his career
as a lawyer was brief, and he died of consumption in 183 1.
He is said to have been a man of hopeful professional
prospects and of a trained intellect.
Of Michael Johnston's family (son of Michael) the only
one living in Haverhill is Kate McK. Johnston, a cultivated
lady and accomplished singer, as was also her sister Mary,
who died a few years ago. A son, Harry A., recently
deceased, was a man of keen, bright mind, and more than
average intelligence. Edward P. lives in Washington,
D. C, and is a graduate of Dartmouth College. The
Johnston homestead was in the family till within a few
COL. CHARLES JOHNSTON. 87
years, when it passed into the hands of Amos Tarleton,
who now lives on it.
(2)Ruth. one of Col. Johnston's daughters, married Eben-
ezer Gray, and their son, (i)Michael, born in 1789, received
his early education at Haverhill Academy. He then went
to Scotland and graduated at Ruthersham Seminary. After
graduation, he returned for a short period to his native place,
and then went to England, and was settled over a Congre-
gational church in London in 181 3. Of his subsequent
history little is known, except that he is reputed to have
been a very eloquent preacher and a man of large influence.
(3) Abigail married Israel Swan, and (4)Betse3 r married
Lawson Dewey, who became a judge of a county court in
Ohio. The other daughters were (5)Polly and (6)Sarah.
Col. Johnston came to Haverhill in 1769 and settled at
the Corner, and at once took a leading part in all the affairs
of the town. He had a far-seeing mind. When felling the
trees on the park which he gave to the village he would
tell his wife, in apparent jest, that he should have a court-
house, an academy, and a church fronting on the park,
and Haverhill would be a flourishing place, all of which
came to pass in his day. Haverhill was the most noted
place north of Concord.
The good people of North Haverhill may never have
thought much about it, but it was the fine hand of Col.
Johnston that brought the court-house and jail to the Corner
after they had been located at the Plain for nearly a quar-
ter of a century. To this end he, with others of the more
enterprising citizens of the Corner, erected the old academy
building, and offered it free of charge for the use of the
courts. With the growing importance of the South End
and its easier access the courts would hardly be disposed
to decline such an offer, and accordingly they were held in
that building, and in its successor after the first one was
burnt, till the present court-house was erected on Court
street. Meantime a jail was also erected at the Corner.
The excellent water-power of the Oliverian contributed
also largely to the more rapid building up of the South
End, and when the Cohos turnpike was constructed to
Haverhill, and stage lines centered there, the early glory of
the Plain was transferred to the Corner. In all this no
hand was more influentially felt than Col. Johnston's.
88 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
Col. Johnston was the owner of the land on which
Haverhill stands, and the land which constitutes the beauti-
ful park around which the village is built was his gift to
the place. He also gave the land for the old court-house
and that of the academy, evincing not only his generosity
and public spirit, but also his forethought and faith in the
future of the town. His guiding hand and wise counsels
were everywhere seen. United with his confidence that
Haverhill must some day be the center in these northern
limits was the gitt of a genius to do. He was laborious
and persevering in pushing on his plans. It was he who
led in the building of the old court-house and the academy,,
and towards the close ot his life he was a leading spirit and
one of the incorporators ot the old Cohos turnpike. He
was also one of the incorporators of the Social Library of
Haverhill. In the records of the town his name appears
repeatedly on committees for carrying out various enter-
prises. No man was so prominent in town affairs. No
one held more various public positions of honor and
responsibilty. Twenty-four times during his active life he
presided in town-meeting.
His military record is honorable, even conspicuous for
bravery. At the age of twenty-four he was commissioned
for the old French war, and was quartermaster-sergeant in
Col. Gofif's regiment. This was in 1761. Afterwards he
took an active part in the Revolution. He was lieutenant-
colonel of the Twelfth regiment N. H. militia, and was
engaged in the battle of Bennington, in 1777, in which he
gained prominence for distinguished bravery. Col. John-
ston was detailed by Gen. Stark to carry an order from
one division of the American forces to another division.
In order to execute the task he was compelled to pass
through a wood which was made dangerous by the enemy
having his scouts there in ambush. Col. Johnston pressed
forward with only a short staff' which he had cut, when sud-
denly he was commanded to halt by a Hessian officer
with drawn sword. In an instant the sword was struck
from the enemy's hand and in Col. Johnston's possession,
and, pointing it at the Hessian's breast, he commanded
him and his companions to surrender as prisoners of war
on peril of death. The Hessian ordered his men to throw
down their arms, which they did, and he and his scouts
COL. CHARLES JOHNSTON. 89
were led captive into the American lines. The sword was
brought to Haverhill and presented to his son, Capt. Michael
Johnston, with the request that it should descend in the
line of the oldest male heir. It is now in the possession of
Charles San ford Johnston of Ovid, N. Y., great-grandson of
Col. Johnston.
The following is a minute description of the sword by
one of the Johnston descendants, Edward Sanford Burgess
of Washington, D. C. :
"The sword is adorned with a tassel, silvered and gilded, a
brass hilt, a silver-corded handle with brass attachments ; the
blade is double-edged, and on one side bears the words Dei
Gratia Dux Brunsv : et Luneb : (By the grace of God Duke
of Brunswick and Luneburg.) These are engraved lengthwise
of the sword, and surrounded by gilt scroll-work, in which
appear casques, banners, halberd, a drum, trumpet, spear, etc.
A warrior in armor completes the upper part of the figure, rep-
resented from the knees upward, and clad in complete coat of
mail, with plumes in the helmet; below, toward the hilt, is a
crown ; below that, an ornamental letter C, followed by scroll-
work, under which is engraved transversely and next to the hilt
the name Jean Julion. From most of this engraved work the
gilt has worn out.
'•'Nearly all of the preceding figures and ornamentations are
repeated on the other side, with the following differences : The
words, A Brunsvic, are engraved transversely, and the motto,
Numquam Retrorsum, longitudinally. The same scroll-work
is seen along its sides as before, the same warrior above, the
same crown below ; in place of the letter C is a prancing charger,
mane and tail flying, fore-feet rearing.
" The blade of the sword is about three and a half feet long;
it is accompanied by a leathern scabbord, and is provided with a
steel tip."
Had Gen. Stark listened to Col. Johnston, it is claimed
that the battle of Bennington would have been more fruit-
ful in results than it was. In DePuy's "Ethan Allen and
the Green Mountain Heroes" the historian says, — "We
chased them till dark. Col. Johnston of Haverhill wanted
to chase them all night. Had we done so, we might
have mastered them all. for they stopped within three miles
of the battle-field, but Stark, saying he would run no risk
of spoiling a good day's work, ordered a halt, and returned
to quarters."
90 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
After the battle of Bennington Col. Johnston returned to
Haverhill and took no further active part with the armies
in the field, but he was deeply interested in matters at
Cohos, which was a point of great importance during
the Revolutionary struggle, and constantly exposed to
attack from the British forces in Canada. In 1778 we
find him appointed to the command of two companies
of sixty-five men each, to rendezvous at Haverhill for
special service, and in the following year he commanded
two companies of rangers. He was also active in the
organization and direction of scouting parties, and
served on various town committees during these stirring
years in providing for the safety of Cohos against enemies
from within and without, and was untiring and patriotic in
the service of his country.
Col. Johnston's civil service in responsible positions
extended over a number of years. The commission by
which he was appointed judge of probate for Grafton
county bears date November 22, 1781, and from then till
he was disqualified by age, a period of twenty-six
years, he held that office and faithfully discharged its
duties to universal satisfaction. He also was elected to the
office of county treasurer in 1795, and continued to be
chosen for many }^ears without opposition. He was one
of a commission appointed by the governor to administer
the oath of allegiance and of office to civil and military offi-
cers within the county of Grafton. His colleagues on this
commission were such well-known persons as Samuel Liv-
ermore, Samuel Emerson, Moses Dow, Elisha Payne, and
Bezaleel Woodward. In 1784 he was commissioned a
justice of peace for Grafton county " during good behavior,
for the term of five years," and this commission was renewed
from time to time, the last renewal being in 1810, a few
years before his death. At that time the office of justice
of peace was a more important and responsible position
than it is now, since the justices constituted a court called
the Court of Sessions. He was also a councillor in 1779 and
1781.
Concerning Col. Johnston's relations to the politics of
Grafton county in the Revolutionary period, we find an
interesting summary in a biography of Col. John Hurd by
W. F. Whitcher of the Boston Traveller, in the Proceed-
COL. CHARLES JOHNSTON. 91
ings of the Grafton and Coos Bar Association, Vol. I, p.
492. Mr. Whitcher says, — "The refusal of Grafton
county to elect a councillor or member of the general com-
mittee of safety extended over two years, and in 1777 and
1778 the countv was unrepresented in the upper branch of
the state legislature. During these two years the movement for
the union of the towns lying west of the Mason Grant and
east of Connecticut river with Vermont advanced so far
that sixteen of these towns, counting Dresden as a part of
Hanover, were duly represented in the Vermont Assembly.*
But such was the pressure brought to bear upon the politi-
cal leaders in Vermont in opposition to this union that they
[deliberately] gave the delegates from these towns signal
offence by refusing to erect counties east of the river, a
measure which was demanded by the delegates as indispen-
sable to good government. This refusal on the part of the
Vermont assembly led to a dissolution of the union which
these towns had formed with Vermont. The college party
then sought to influence the New Hampshire authorities to
claim jurisdiction in Vermont west of the river, and there
was, in the latter part of 1778, a strong reaction in favor
of the New Hampshire state government. There was need
of a leader to take the place which, had not Hurd been
driven away, would have naturally been taken by him.
Such leader seems to have been found in the person of
Col. Charles Johnston of Haverhill, who, in August, 1775,
had been made lieutenant-colonel in Col. Israel Morey's regi-
* Note. — Haverhill was not represented in the assembly of
the province of New Hampshire. Three Gi-afton county towns,
Plymouth, Orford, and Lyme, sent representatives in May, 1775,
upon the authority of the king's writ. They were rejected by
the house. 7 Province Papers 371, 383, 3S5. Haverhill, how-
ever, sent Capt. Ephraim Wesson as representative in the Fourth
provincial congress (Revolutionary) which assembled at Exeter,
May, 1775. Col. John Hurd subsequently appeared as repre-
sentative for Haverhill in the same body. 7 Province Papers
46S, 665. Col. Hurd and Capt. Wesson subsequentlv took
opposite sides in the Vermont controversy, which for several
years involved all the towns in the vicinity of Haverhill. Capt.
Wesson's brother, Nathan, was a lineal ancestor of Chief-Justice
Melville Weston Fuller. The Fifth provincial congress lissem-
bled December 21, 1 775' an< ^ Col. John Hurd was representa-
92 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
merit. He had adhered to the provincial government of
New Hampshire, and seems to have been in no way
involved in the schemes of the college party. His methods
may possibly have been more conciliatory than those of
Col. Hurd, but he was beyond question in hearty sympathy
with the views of the latter.
"President Meshech Weare, in a letter under date of
August 1 8, 1778, estimated that from one third to one half
the people in the disaffected valley towns had been averse
to the schemes of the college party ; but these people were
almost destitute of leaders of ability after the removal of
Col. Hurd, excepting Col. Johnston and one or two others.
It is not impossible, however, that for the sake of political
effect President Weare exaggerated the strength of the
friends of the provincial government. But advantage was
taken of the discomfiture of the college party, and to the
council of 1779 Col. Johnston was elected for Grafton
county by the votes of such of the towns as had been loyal to
the provincial government and the votes of some of the towns
which had met with such a decided rebuff from Vermont.
From 1779 on Grafton was represented in the council, Col.
Johnston alternating in that office with Frances Worcester
of Plymouth
" During Col. Johnston's second term as councillor, in
1781, another union with Vermont of the towns in New
Hampshire east of the river was consummated, thirty-four
tive for a class constituted of Haverhill, Bath, Lyman, Gunth-
wait (Lisbon), Landaff. and Morristown (Franconia and Lin-
coln). 7 Province Papers 693. Col. Hurd was chosen bv the
house to be councillor for the current year, by vote of January 6,
1776. 8 Province Papers 6. On the 8th of January the house
directed that precepts for. the election of new members be sent
to the towns whose representatives had been advanced to the
council. The towns of the Haverhill class refused to comply,
and gave their reasons, which appear in a paper dated December
13, 1776. 10 Province Papers 240. Haverhill persisted in this
refusal till the political year 17S0-81. History of Haverhill 70,
73, 429. The town was represented in the assembly of Vermont
in 177S by James Bayley. In 17S1 the representatives of
Haverhill in the Vermont assembly were Timorfry Bedel and
Joshua Howard. 10 State Papers 286, 400. At the same time
it was represented in the New Hampshire legislature of 17S0-S1
COL. CHARLES JOHNSTON. 93
towns joining it. Vermont proceeded to exercise its juris-
diction over this disaffected territory, and Col. Israel Morey
of Orford, Elisha Payne of Lebanon, and Bazaleel Wood-
ward of Hanover accepted office under Vermont. Active
measures were now taken by New Hampshire authorities
to maintain the jurisdiction of their state to the river, by
force if need be. Col. Morey was removed from the com-
mand of his regiment, and it was given to Col. Johnston,
in January, 1782. Col. Johnston was also appointed judge of
probate for the county of Grafton in place of Israel Morey,
and the latter was directed to turn the records over to him.
New Hampshire was sustained in its vigorous policy by
the Continental congress, and the good offices of Gen.
Washington prevented the employment of the military.
" In January, 1782. the Vermont assembly again renounced
its claim of jurisdiction east of the river, and the disaffected
towns there, by the inevitable logic of events, came at last
under the jurisdiction of New Hampshire."
In addition to these more prominent public duties he took
an active and foremost part in local matters, holding vari-
ous offices in town and church, and serving on various
committees, and his wise counsels and influential hand can
be traced in all the growth and progress of the community.
An obituary notice of Col. Johnston at the time of his
death presents his position and character as it was in the
by Moses Dow. Under the constitution of 1776, the political
year commenced in December. The constitution of 1783-84
made it begin in June. Thus a part of the terms of officers
elected for the year 1783-84 was cut off". Mr. Dow represented
Haverhill (or the class in which it was placed) from December,
17S0, to December, 1783, three successive terms. He was also
councillor for Grafton county for the fragment of a year from
December, 1783, to June, 1784. In one of these years, when
Haverhill was represented in the legislatures of two states at the
same time, its political condition was unique. 8 Province
Papers and 10 State Papers, passim. A recent work casts much
new light on the political and military complications in which
the Grafton county towns of the Connecticut valley were involved
by the Vermont controversy in the Revolutionary period. [His-
tory of Dartmouth College and Hanover, N. H., by Frederick
Chase, chapters 6 and 7.]
94 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
community : "A rare assemblage of virtues concentrated in
this remarkable character. He was colonel of militia,
judge of probate, county treasurer. But his principal
excellence consisted in professing and exemplifying the
religion of Jesus. He embraced the gospel in early life,
and with singular constancy observed its precepts as his
rule of life to the end. His liberality to the poor, his hos-
pitalit}' to strangers, and his aid to public institutions will
long be remembered among his works of faith and labor
of love. No death in Coos was ever more sincerely
lamented. The public feeling was expressed by a very
numerous and deeply affected audience honoring his funeral
with their presence on an intensely cold day. Military
officers from the adjacent towns on both sides of the river,
in their uniforms, formed a part of the procession. A ser-
mon was preached by the Rev. David Sutherland on the
occasion from the appropriate words of the Psalmist, ' Mark
the perfect man and behold the upright, for the end of that
man is peace.'"
Physically, Col. Johnston was a very powerful man. On
one occasion, finding two men in a quarrel, he separated
them, but in turn for his kindness they both set upon him.
Taking them by the shoulders with one hand each, he held
them apart, and then brought them violently together,
handling them as if they were dolls. He was a man of
great kindness of heart, ever ready to give a helping hand
to the worthy needy, even though it cost him sacrifice
and inconvenience. At one time it is said that he divided
with a very poor man and his distressed family his two
cows. When remonstrated with by Mrs. Johnston, who
said they could not spare the cow, the colonel replied that
they could do with one cow better than the poor man and
his needy family could do without any, and so the cow was
allowed to go. As justice of the peace he had occasion to
exercise his gift of peace-making, and sometimes mounted
his horse and rode miles to see parties who were intent on
litigation, and counseled with them if something could not
be done to prevent strife amongst neighbors. He was a
man of large and quick sympathies and generous impulses,
united with the best of judgment and good sense. Some
of his neighbors, not as bountifully endowed with these
traits as he was, were annoyed by the depredations of
COL. CHARLES JOHNSTON. 95
boys upon their orchards, and these depredations were
made more frequent from the fact that the owners of the
orchards were selfish and stingy, and if a boy was found
looking over the fence at the tempting fruit bej-ond, he
was sure to be ordered off with harsh and angry words.
Col. Johnston was not troubled in this way. When he saw
a group of boys near his orchard he would walk out and
pick up a hat-full of the choicest fruit and carry it to the
fence, and in kind and winning words invite the boys to eat
all they wished. The boys would take the apples with
thankful hearts and go away, and whilst they were eating
the colonel's apples with many an enthusiastic praise of his
kindness and generosity, they were sure to lay plans to raid
the orchard of some snarling and stingv neighbor.
In the later years of his life, when past labor, he was
accustomed to walk out in pleasant seasons to the Johnston
woods for exercise and pastime. A small house by the way-
side had some beds of bright flowers in front of it, and he
would stop to admire these and pass a friendly word with
the good woman of the house. He was social and neigh-
borly, and enjoyed life all the more if he saw others in
prosperity and happiness.
In those days books were scarce, and knowledge derived
from such sources was not very great, but Col. Johnston
was a man of much intelligence for the times. Fie appre-
ciated the value of knowledge, and was foremost in the
organization of the village library. His contact with the
best and most intelligent men of the times was lare^e and
frequent, and his official position gave him many advan-
tages with persons cf culture and experience. He was
also better trained ^nd equipped by education than the
average person of his position in society, and was deemed
qualified to take the charge of Haverhill Academy for a
term during a vacancy in the principalship. His hand-
writing is a marvel of beauty as it stands to-day on the
town and county records, and is almost as perfect as script.
Probably no part of Col. Johnston's character was more
marked than his religious character. He was the first
deacon of the Congregational church at its formation, and
was a most steadfast friend of all that was good and true.
His example was a daily call to duty and righteousness.
No man in the community exerted a greater influence as
96 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
a Christian. Around his Christian character grouped every
other trait, and shone through this as the light shines
through a pure atmosphere. The kingdom of God was
uppermost in his thoughts. From a letter written by his
grandson, Michael Johnston Gray, dated Rotherham,
England, September 12, 181 1, where he was studying
for the ministry, we learn Col. Johnston's deep interest in
the cause of Christian education: " .... I am glad
that the academy of which we had thought is likely to be
established I hope that by this time you will
have procured a charter to secure its safety. I am glad
that the ministers object to its being connected with Dart-
mouth College. I don't think that it would do at all. For
my part, I never entertained the least doubt but that a
sufficiency for its support might be obtained in America,
by subscriptions, donations, etc., etc. Christians in
America have warm hearts as well as Christians in Eng-
land ; and with a little exertion, nay, without almost any
I was going to say, the Academy might be carried on and
prosper. A few pence from each lover of Jesus would, I
doubt not, be amply sufficient "
Col. Johnston's letter, to which this is a reply, is unfor-
tunately not preserved, but from the extract of Mr. Gray's
letter it would seem that there was a project at that time to
connect with Haverhill Academy, or enlarge its scope, a
school for the training of ministers. The endowment of
this school was one of the things to be secured.
Col. Johnston's name has lingered more distinctly in
public memory than that of any other man in the town.
KENILWORTH.
BY FREDERICK MYRON COLBY.
Thy hoary walls still stand, O Kenil worth !
A splendid ruin of that stately eld,
When all the games of chivalry and mirth
Within thy courtyard drear and vast were held.
What scenes of pomp, what pageantries of state
Have passed in old time in these empty halls !
The baronial bearings on thy broken gate,
The feudal sculptures on thy lichened walls,
All speak of another and more distant age
When men lived in a grander, nobler way.
Thy very name calls up from pictured page
A host of noble knights and ladies gay
Who here once played the hearty game of life —
A courtly throng, whose names live yet in story,
Though they themselves have passed from mortal strife,
And ta'en their separate paths to glory.
Old John of Gaunt's grim shadow haunts the place ;
That tower he built which looks so darkly down
O'er foss and moat, whose site you still can trace ;
In yonder chamber bare, in silken gown
That stirs and rustles in the wailing wind,
The ghost of Amy Robsart comes and goes,
Seeking the rest that she can never find ;
And there walks the cause of all her woes,
The courtly Leicester, haughty as a king,
And who deemed himself king in that far day
When good Queen Bess, wearing her lover's ring,
Sat there enthroned as mistress of the play.
No feat of prowess, joust or tilts of knights
Was wanting, nor the rare device of mask,
Or mystic scenery, till seventeen nights
Succeeded seventeen days, and the lordly task
Was o'er. But sprightly mirth and regal state
Abide no more within thy fallen gate ;
No more the minstrel's harp plays at the feast,
Dance, tourney, maskings long ago have ceased;
And where DeMontfort spread his Christmas cheer
The mantling ivy creeps year after year.
MUSICAL DEPARTMENT.
CONDUCTED BY H. G. BLAISDELL.
LITTLETON MUSICAL FESTIVAL.
This is, musically, a marked year for Littleton, where the
local association has just held its twenty-fifth annual festi-
val, January 16-20. Mr. Zerrahn held the tiller, as usual,
if we may borrow a nautical phrase, and the old manage-
ment held the till, or the locker, or the ship's chest, and
it goes without saving that Mrs. Shepard was on deck, as
bos'n's mate, whenever the crew were piped to quarters.
But these excellent artists commanded a better crew than
common, and were allowed to sail a much better course,
with the result that Littleton is justly pleased with itself.
The festival is declared by good judges to have been the
best ever held there, with the possible exception of that of
1889.
We record this fact with great pleasure. Our first con-
cern in these pages is to give honor where honor is due.
Our next is to point out the meritorious features of
any creditable piece of work, and how it could have
been made still better. Following this line, with the Lit-
tleton festival we should say that its commanding feature
of merit was the excellence of the music chosen. Besides
Mr. Zerrahn's new book of chorus selections, which is
singularly good and interesting, five choruses from the
" Messiah,"— "And the Glorv of the Lord," "O Thou
that tellest," " Glory to God in the highest," " Lift up
your heads," and the " Hallelujah Chorus," — made a noble
groundwork for study and for final performance. With
these were introduced the Pastoral Symphony, a few reci-
tatives, and the airs, " O Thou that tellest," " He shall feed
His flock," "Come unto Me," and " I know that my
Redeemer liveth."
For this all thanks ! To Mr. Zerrahn, who suggested
such a scheme, and to the executive committee who
had the courage to adopt it, we offer both our thanks and
our congratulations. It seems quite certain that they were
well rewarded. The chorus was the largest ever gathered
in Littleton — some 225 all told ; and it was drawn by this
very prospect of selections from Handel's "Messiah." On
MUSICAL DEPARTMENT. 99
the side of criticism, however, it should certainly be pointed
out that it was shocking to give selections from that great
oratorio with no male soloist ! Not to begin with " Com-
fort ye my people," and " Every valley shall be exalted," is
simply not to let the people know what the " Messiah "
tastes like. The bass solos can be dispensed with ; the
tenor simply cannot. Very secondarily, we should add
that " I know that my Redeemer liveth " ought never to be
sung by any but a great singer. It was done creditably
at Littleton. If it cannot be done gloriously, better leave
it out, is our mind ; but, of course, the public want to think
that they have heard it. Perhaps they cannot be refused.
With more assurance we should say that " Glory to God "
and " Lift up your heads" are too nearly alike when only
five choruses are to be given. "All we like sheep," illus-
trates a different manner of Handel, and a very character-
istic and delightful one. If Mr. Zerrahn had put that in
the place of " Lift up your heads," he would have done
more for his chorus, and we believe they would have done
more for him.
Of the particular concerts we have but little room to
speak. The artists engaged were the Germania orchestra
(eight pieces), the Macey-Appleton combination, and the
Schubert male quartette of Chicago, with an appended
ladv whistler. All s^ave excellent satisfaction, but one
could but recall how much better soloists Littleton had had
in 1889 and 1890, under the system of getting one high-
class mixed quartette. Nothing calls for special mention,
unless it be a singularly delightful rendering of Gillet's
" Lion du J3al" by the orchestra.
Outside of musical criticism, however, we ought to note
two marked features of this festival. It was the first pub-
lic appearance of Mr. Zerrahn after the very recent death
of his admirable and devoted wife, who was to have been
his companion in this visit to the north country. It was
feared that he would not be able to keep his engagement,
and all who saw how bravely and sweetly he bore himself
through that trying week must have wished to render him
a tribute of respectful sympathy and admiration.
The other great feature of the festival was the pre-
sentation to Mrs. Shepard, in the intermission on Friday
evening, of a purse containing $52.50 in gold, gathered
100 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
for the purpose of the purchase of a souvenir gift from her
host of friends in Littleton. Mrs. Shepard, taken utterly
by surprise, made a charming response, delightful for its
simple genuineness of good feeling. She made a happy
hit in quoting from a recent talk with H. C. Barnabee, in
which he wished they could go to Littleton together again
as they used to five hundred years ago! All Littleton
agrees with Mr. Barnabee, — Martha Dana Shepard is just
the same as she was then !
A LAMENTABLE FAILURE.
The efforts of Mr. E. T. Baldwin to interest piano
teachers and pupils in the city of Manchester in recitals by
the most eminent pianist in America have been in vain.
Mr. Baldwin is a most conscientious teacher and musician.
He has lived long enough and is great enough to overcome
all selfishness, and has a desire to aid in elevating the
standard of music, particularly as regards his favorite instru-
ment, the piano-forte. To that end he arranged these
recitals, and, lest they should savor of speculation, he
announced that the profits were to go to the New Hamp-
shire Music Teachers' Association. He also offered to the
pupils of the scores of piano-forte teachers which Man-
chester can call her own admission at a reduced rate,
expecting such patrons to write the names of their teachers
on the back of the ticket. Not over thirty pupils availed
themselves of this splendid educational opportunity, and
the greatest number of teachers who attended at any one
time was five. Financially, Mr. Baldwin is about one
hundred and fifty dollars poorer than when he began the
series, or, in other words, it has cost him this amount to
find out how little the people of Manchester care for music,
and how thoroughly selfish and indifferent the piano teachers
are. One word expresses the whole situation — " ignorance."
The teachers more than the public are responsible for such
a state of affairs. How can one reasonably expect the
public to be interested in a cause whch professed leaders
and followers ignore? When the home circle is satisfied
and entertained by such music as the " Man in the Moon,"
"The Bowery," and " Ta-Ra-Ra-Boom-de-A," it is igno-
rance that is responsible ; and when men tell you that it is
MUSICAL DEPARTMENT. 101
only fashionable, and not entertaining, to attend the per-
formance of an oratorio or symphony, it is ignorance, not
education or intelligence, that prompts such an insult to art ;
and no class under heaven are responsible but teachers and
musicians themselves. Until the teachers can work together,
with a desire to interpret the art in its true sense to both
pupil and public, revealing its now almost hidden beauties
and wonders, how can they reasonably expect or ask the
public to support or appreciate their undertakings, no mat-
ter how meritorious or worthy? It is hope that gives us
life, that makes the heart strong. On this one word and
thought the heart of every true musician leans. We hope
for something good to come, but our faith is terribly
shaken at times.
The Schubert Club of Laconia gave their first concert
of the season, at the South Church, on Friday evening,
January 27. The talent, aside from the chorus, were the
Crescent Male Quartette of Concord ; Miss Fannie Wilcox
and Mr. A. C. Morse, readers; Miss S. Florence Mallard,
Miss Laura B. Hibbard, autoharp : Mrs. Jennie H. Lougee,
pianist; Mr. J. B. F. Bell, tenor; Miss Mary Susie Tilton,
soprano, and Miss Minnie O. Woodhouse ; Mr. C. S.
Conant, tenor and conductor. The programme embraced
the Evening Hymn by Reinecke, Part Songs by Men-
delssohn, and the Sirens, for female voices, by Harry
Brooks Day. The work of both soloists and chorus was
good, and the public appreciated their efforts enough to give
them a full house. The club are in a prosperous condition,
and have taken up for work for the last concert " Don
Munio," by Dudley Buck, which will be given, with expe-
rienced soloists and orchestral accompaniment, in the
spring.
NEW HAMPSHIRE NECROLOGY.
GEORGE W. ELA.
George W. Ela, born in Portsmouth, January 18, 1807,
died at Allenstown, February 17, 1893.
He was the third son of Joseph and Sarah (Emerson)
Ela, and at sixteen years of age entered the office of the
New Hampshire Journal, Jacob B. Moore, proprietor, in
Concord, to learn the printer's trade, where he remained
for nearly five years, when he went to Dover and started
the Dover Enquirer, of which he was for a time publisher
and editor. The late George Wadleigh was subsequently
associated with him for some years. In 183 1, returning
to Concord, he commenced the publication of the New
Hampshire Statesman, with the late Asa McFarland, but
the latter soon retired and Mr. Ela continued alone for
several years, and afterwards had the late Hon. Jacob H.
Ela as an associate in the business, from which he retired,
on account of failing health, in 1844, an< ^ subsequently
passed most of his time upon a farm in Allenstown. He
married Mary Adelaide Lane of Sutton, who died some
years since.
DR. JOHN R. KIMBALL.
John R. Kimball, M. D., of Suncook, died from pneu-
monia, January 8, 1893.
He was born in Pembroke, December 23, 1824, educated
in the public schools, Hebron (Me.) Academy, and Bow-
doin Medical School, from which he graduated in 1869.
He first settled in Antrim, but removed to Suncook in
1873, where he was in active and successful practice till
his decease. He was a member of the New Hampshire
Medical and Historical societies, and had served as town-
clerk and member of the school board. He was also an
active member of the Pembroke town history committee.
DR. JOHN F. JARVIS.
John Furness Jarvis, M. D., born in Concord, August
8, 1826, died in Boston, February 10, 1893.
He was the son of Dea. John Jarvis, who was the pro-
prietor of the woolen mills at West Concord, since owned
NECROLOGY. 103
by the Holdens. He graduated from Dartmouth College
in the class of 1848, and from the Harvard Medical School
in 1853. He located in practice in Boston after complet-
ing his studies, and there continued till death, meeting with
great success. He was a prominent member of the Massa-
chusetts Medical Society. In 1854 ne married Miss Carrie
C. White of Boston, who survives him, with one son, a
member of the firm of Farr & Jarvis, proprietors of the
Oak Hill House at Littleton.
DR. S. C. WHITTIER.
Samuel Crook Whittier, M. D., a prominent physician
of Portsmouth, died February 1, 1893. He was a native of
Dover, born January 3, 1837, being therefore 56 years of
age at his decease. He graduated from the Harvard
Medical School in 1862, and, in August of that year, was
commissioned by Gov. Andrew assistant surgeon of the
Eleventh Massachusetts regiment, which regiment he joined
in September, serving till May, 1864, when he was
appointed surgeon of the Twenty-Third Massachusetts
regiment, with which he remained till the close of the war.
He located in Portsmouth in 1869, where he continued
in practice. He had been president of the New Hamp-
shire Medical Society, and chairman of the local board of
examining surgeons for the pension bureau.
FRANCIS ALEXANDER MARDEN.
Francis Alexander Marden, a well-known lawyer of
New York, died in that city, February 1, 1893. He was
born in Windham, June 19, 1840, fitted for college at
Phillips Academy, and graduated from Harvard in 1863.
He commenced practice in New York in 1865. Two
years later he went into mercantile business, but soon
returned to his profession, which he pursued with success.
DR. JAMES H. WHEELER.
James H. Wheeler, M. D., born in Dover, September
17, 1831, died in that city, January 26, 1893.
He was the son of John H. Wheeler, a druggist. He
graduated from the College of Physicians and Surgeons
104 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
in New York city in 1862, and immediately commenced
the practice of medicine in his native city, where he
remained, gaining a high reputation in his profession.
He had been president of the Strafford Medical Associa-
tion, and was president of the New Hampshire Medical
Society at the time of his decease. In 187 1 he delivered
the address before the graduating class of Dartmouth
Medical College, and for several years held the office of
examining surgeon under the U. S. pension bureau. He
was a prominent member and a deacon of the First Parish
(Congregational) Church in Dover.
EDWARD H. SAVAGE.
Edward Hartwell Savage, born in Alstead, N. H., May
18, 1812, died in Boston, Mass., January 31, 1893.
He passed his youth in the town of Acworth, but went
to Boston at the age of twenty-one, and was engaged in
various occupations until his appointment on the police
force, in February, 185 1. He was an efficient officer, and
his promotion was rapid, until, in 1870, he was made chief
of police of the city of Boston, holding the position until
the reorganization of the force by the police commission,
in 1878, when he was made probation officer, continuing
until the time of his death. He was the most popular and
efficient police officer Boston ever had, and had published
two or three interesting volumes which his experience
inspired, " Boston by Gaslight," being one of them.
Hon. Jacob Benton.
The Granite Monthly
VOL. XV. APRIL, 1893. NO.
HON. JACOB BENTON.
BY REV. JAMES B. MORRISON.
The sad and tragic death, by a carriage accident, of
the Hon. Jacob Benton, September 29th, 1892, at Lancas-
ter, calls for a more extended notice than the Granite
Monthly was able to publish at the time of his sudden
and violent demise.
He was one of the distinguished men of the famous
Coos count}" bar, that in its ^personnel and practice has
commanded wide attention throughout the state from the
industry and ability of its brilliant membership.
Jacob Benton came from that strong race, mostly of
English stock, that for two centuries, socially, morally and
intellectually, has made the genuine Yankee, pure and
old-fashioned, the theme of a large amount of historic and
biographic literature. They were men of genuine thrift
and enterprise.
Mr. Benton was born in Waterford, Vermont, August
19, 1814. He was the son of Samuel Slade and Esther
(Prouty) Benton. He must have faithfully improved
the advantages of his school-boy days, as he did not
enjoy the benefit of a collegiate course. He attended
academies at Lyndon, Peacham, Newbury, and Manches-
ter, Vt. After completing his education at Manchester,
he went, for a few weeks in 1840, to study law in the
office of Heaton & Reed, Montpelier. In order to obtain
the means to pursue his legal studies he accepted the posi-
tion of principal of the academv at Concord Corner, Vt.,
and taught it with great success for four years. In 1840
he entered the office of Hon. Henry A., afterwards Chief-
Justice Bellows, at Littleton, N. H. From this office he
next entered that of Gen. Ira Young of Lancaster, and
106 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
with him completed his professional studies. He formed
a partnership with Gen. Young on being admitted to the
bar, in July, 1843, and remained with him until his death,
in 1845. Since then he has had three law partners —
Hon. Ossian Ray, 1855-1865 ; J. H. Benton, Jr., 1867-
1871 ; Herbert I. Goss, 1885-1887.
Mr. Benton was a sagacious, vigilant, and thorough
lawyer. He was strong in his forensic arguments, pre-
senting his reasons with clearness, and pressing home his
conclusions with a force which made him one of the most
successful advocates in New Hampshire. Hon. Chester
B. Jordan of Lancaster says, — "Whoever met him, met a
foe worthy of his steel. His resources were unlimited ;
his tact knew no bounds."
The men of northern Vermont and New Hampshire are
of a strong race. Mr. Benton was a noble specimen of
physical manhood, more than six feet in height, and well
built. This physical robustness and his mental vigor he
retained until the end of his long life.
When he began the practice of law in Lancaster, it was
most natural for a man of his positive opinions to become
a party leader. At that time he was a Whig, and the
Democracy reigned supreme in New Hampshire. He
might, being an ambitious man. have allied himself to the
dominant party and taken front rank, but instead of that
he adhered in a most earnest, faithful, unswerving way to
his Whig principles. He advocated them fearlessly and
untiringly, even though by doing so he was kept for many
years in the ranks of the minority. Year after year he
labored to build up a successful opposition to the Demo-
cratic party in Lancaster, and it was largely owing to his
efforts that the town finally became Republican and
remained so for many years. At the breaking up of the
Whig party he identified himself with the Republican.
In that stormy period of the anti-slavery struggle he flung
himself into the ranks, with armor on, to do battle for the
slave. There seems to have been no hesitation on his
part. The call had come to him as to many men of that
troublous time, and he obeyed it with all the power of a
strong manhood ; and in all the years that followed he
never faltered in the support of the Republican party.
Always springing forward, he was instant in season and
HON. JACOB BENTON. 107
out of season in doing the work and serving his party in
high offices of honor and trust in state and nation. He
filled them well, for he was a force in those forensic bat-
tles. He was swift of attack and defence, and most elo-
quently vindicated the Republican party as it plead for
justice and the rights of an oppressed race.
It was in 1854 tnat ^ r - Benton was first elected to the
legislature from Lancaster. He at once took high rank by
his capacity to lead. Lancaster re-elected him in 1855
and again in 1856. In 1855 he probably did as much as
any one to secure the election to the United States Senate
of John P. Hale and James Bell. In 1867 he was elected
from the third New Hampshire district a representa-
tive to the Fortieth congress. The third district comprised
the counties of Sullivan, Cheshire, Grafton and Coos,
extending from Massachusetts to the Canada line. It was
often called the " Comet District," from its extreme length.
In congress Mr. Benton was a useful and influential mem-
ber. He served upon important committees, and was
always in his seat. His vote stands recorded upon every
important measure that came before the house. He made
but few speeches in congress, occupying the attention of
the house only when he had something of interest to say,
and then but briefly. One speech, made February 25th,
1868, before the house sitting as a committee of the
whole, and having under consideration President Johnson's
annual message, in which he severelv criticised the Presi-
dent's policy, was extensively circulated throughout the
country as a political document in the ensuing campaign
of that year. In the Grant campaign of 1868, although
occupied most of the time by his duties as a member of the
committee on retrenchment, sitting in New York city, he
made some notable campaign speeches in New York,
Pennsylvania and New Jersey, and was greeted with
enthusiasm wherever he spoke. He was re-elected to
congress in 1869, and, after the close of his brilliant con-
gressional career, devoted himself to the varied occupa-
tions of farmer, banker, and lawyer, in Lancaster.
He was a wealthy man when he entered congress, but
in his old age he suffered severe business reverses. They
crippled him for a time, but he was able to meet his finan-
cial obligations, although upwards of seventy when he
108 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
became financially embarrassed. Mr. Benton was very-
strong in his friendships, and it is a pleasure to record the
generous friendship of Hon. Luke P. Poland of Ver-
mont in this time of his business troubles. These two
distinguished men had been warm friends for many years.
When other men fell away, as too often happens. Judge
Poland nobly assisted him, and it was largely through his
generous aid of many thousand dollars that Mr. Benton
recovered from his financial difficulties. In spite of his own
indomitable exertions he would not have been able to
have saved his fine property had not Judge Poland been
true, with the sincerity of a perfect friendship. Mr. Benton
loved to tell of the friendship so true as that of Poland's.
Such friendships are rare, but Judge Everett Fletcher of
Lancaster perhaps explains it all, when he says of Mr.
Benton, — " No one could be a better neighbor. Nobody
could be a more delightful companion, socially, than Mr.
Benton."
Lancaster is a wide-awake country town, and noted for
the intelligence and public spirit of its citizens. Among
them all no man took more interest than Mr. Benton. He
was always interested in town affairs, and the beautiful
Main street of the village, lined with noble elms, he took
great pride in keeping up. With the single exception of
Hon. James W. Weeks, he was Lancaster's best road
maker, and that is one of the achievements all public-spirited
citizens take great pride in. Lancaster had no more con-
spicuous citizen than he at the time I became pastor of the
First Unitarian Society of the town. His lovely home,
standing among the trees of his extensive estate, was
always pointed out to the summer visitor. I was welcomed
to his home, and ever found him an entertaining conver-
sationalist.
Mr. Benton was not remarkable for his piety, and did
not belong to any church ; but he was a well-read man,
and the sermons of Dr. Channing and Ward Beecher
were familiar words to him. He sincerely believed in
their liberal theology, and accepted the Christian faith
with perfect freedom of the reason to judge for itself. As
a friend I found him interested in all the work a clergy-
man is called to do, and he thoroughly appreciated the
minister's opportunity in modern life. So it was ever a
HON. JACOB BENTON. 109
pleasant hour, after his six o'clock dinner, to talk with
him. Many a conversation of that twilight hour will linger
in my memory. He loved to talk of those early days of his
in Lancaster, and of the Congregational Church of his
youth, to which he was loyal to the last moment of his life.
Two other friends of mine, in my Lancaster ministry. I
must associate with his memory, — the late Hon. William
Burns and the Hon. Ossian Ray. It is rarely the fortune
of a quiet country clergvman to have the privilege of enjoy-
ing the close intimacy of three such men. They were utterly
unlike, and either one of them would have been sufficient
to have stamped his memory in the hearts of an entire
community. They were all in active practice together,
and accurately understood the value of a public life and a
professional reputation. They possessed the universal
esteem of their fellow-citizens. Staunch men, good citi-
zens, able lawyers, their lives and labors present a sym-
metrical outline and furnish a model that may be followed
with profit. To give up three such friends is one of the
hard things which has come to my lot as a Christian min-
ister :
" I also wait ; but they will come no more,
Those friends of mine whose presence satisfied
The thirst and hunger of my heart. Ah, me !
They have forgotten the pathway to my door ;
Something" is gone from nature since they died,
And summer is not summer, nor can be."
Mr. Benton was especially fortunate in his home rela-
tions. His wife, Louisa Dow, daughter of Gen. Neal
Dow of Portland, Maine, was of great assistance to him
in his congressional career, and has made his home a
happy one. For many years Mrs. Benton has been an
invalid, confined to her room, but has never lost her inter-
est in the town of Lancaster. In the early months of
1892 she began to take steps to have erected a costly
granite drinking-fountain, to be presented to the town as
her free gift of love and interest. It was to have been
presented on October ist, with appropriate dedicatory exer-
cises, but on the very day (September 29) that it was
being erected her husband died before he had seen it,
and all things were changed for her. The end was sud-
den, and turned the light of that glorious September day
to utter darkness. To him it mattered but very little. He
110
THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
would never have been ready to die. He was so full of
life and plans, and expected that long years lay still before
him. One possible moment of sharp agony and it was
over. He left no good-by for wife and friends, but went
home in the full strength of a vigorous old age.
Very tenderly were the last words said over him, the
day of his burial, Sunday, October 2d, by his pastor, Rev.
G. H. Tilton, of the Congregational church. I went to
his home from Laconia the day before his death on a visit,
and so was there to say the last word for his memory.
We had enjoyed the last day together in this life for him,
and as he rested there in his home, with the citizens of Lan-
caster, the members of the bar, and the friends who sadly
mourned his tragic death surrounding him, we would not
have called him back again — but it was hard to have it so.
From his home, where the death-touch had so swiftly come,
he was taken to his beautiful lot on the summit of the hill
in the village cemetery, overlooking the town and valley he
loved so well. At his grave I read the committal service,
and the seventy-eight years of his life were over.
At the eighth annual meeting of the Grafton and Coos
Bar Association he delivered a most impressive address
to the memory of his warm friend, Gen. Gilman Marston.
They were personal friends of many years' standing.
After he had written it he read it to me, and I heartily
praised, as did the Bar Association, when he subsequently
delivered it. The closing sentence did not meet the
approval of my theological view, and I urged him to
strike it out. But when the address came to me in printed
form there stood the objectionable sentence. He evi-
dently liked it, and so it is fitting to insert it here : " He
has gone to his last resting-place, freed forever from the
labors, the trials, and the conflicts of life, to sleep his last
sleep, to wake no more until the archangel's trump shall
sound and awake him again, to summon him to his final
reward."
The Monday following his burial, October 3d, the ele-
gant granite fountain was presented to the town. An
impressive service of dedication was held in Music Hall.
This inscription has been engraved on the front of it, —
" In memory of Jacob Benton, as a gift to the town,
this fountain was erected by his wife, Louisa Dow Ben-
ton, on the day of his death, September 29th, 1892."
EDWARD CRANFIELD.— OCTOBER 4, 16S2-
AUGUST, 1685.— CHARLES II, KING.
BY ALMA J. HERBERT.
New Hampshire suffered a change from the "govern-
ment that was too good to last," though there were some
slight complaints against it, when Edward Cranfield, the
first foreign ruler, was appointed " our Lieutenant-Gov-
ernour and Commander-in-Chief," it was said through the
influence of Mason, to advance his private claims, by a
bargain with the kino-.
Cranfield was of the family of Lord Monteagle, who was
concerned in the detection of the Gunpowder Plot; was
commissioned May 9th, 1682, and arrived in October of
that year; and, on the 23d, reports from Portsmouth, —
"After six weeks and five days from Plimo th on y e first of
October his Majes ties Shippe the Lark come to anchor in
Salem Harbour, fifteen leagues to y e southward of Piscat-
aqua, the Wind Taking her Short, whereupon I went Over-
land and got to Portsmouth on y e Third Instant at night."
In the morning he wrote to the council, but, before sending,
Mr. Waldron's son and another came and conducted him
to the house where that body was assembled, and his com-
mission was read ; and after a pause and some questions —
Waldron and Martyn being excluded from their office — the
oaths were taken on the Holy Evangelists, and he adjourned
the council, "it being the time of gathering their Indian
Corn."
This was one of the oaths : " I, Ed. Cranfield (also
Robt. Mason and others) do declare, That I believe that
there is no Transubstantiacon in y e Sacrament of y e
Lord's Supper or in y e elements of bread and wine at or
atter y e consecration thereof by any person whatsoever."
He brought the province a new seal of silver. He describes
to the home board the one fort of timber, with eight guns,
" Extraordinarily well situated upon a Neck of Land at y"
mouth of the River," the timber "both oke and pine,
whereof N. H. is much pillaged thereof;" the militia of
" horse and ffoot, about four hundred and fifty, whereof
about sixty horse," but badly armed and exercised ; " not
one fishery, the Islands of Sholes* not belonging to the
Later the south half of the islands were mentioned as pertaining' to N. H.
112 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
province and" the four poor towns, "only Portsmouth
having trade." He took residence at Barefoot's on Great
Island, and later, for two years, in the Jaffrey cottage.
The new official was soon disillusioned as to the pros-
pect of making a fortune. Mason utterly failed to meet his
promises of one fifth of all sums received for quit rents, with
one hundred and fifty pounds a year for seven years, secured
by mortgage to the king on all his bonds for twenty-one
years, for Cranfield's salary; and he reports "that however
he (Mason) magnified, all did not amount to one hundred
pounds per annum," and asks that the Province of Maine
may be added. All persons were ordered to take out
leases under Mason within a month, but no one would take
the lands forfeited by failure. There was bitter quarrel.
Waldron and Marty n were reinstated, and the deputy, Bare-
foot, was abetted in his ruthless extortions to secure money.
The provision that only laws enacted by the Assembly
should be enforced was omitted in the code promulgated,
and he had free scope. The Assembly, resisting his
attempt to levy taxes, was dissolved once and again. Ex-
orbitant charges were made for all legal processes,* and
money extorted in lieu of the goods usually tendered ; the
coin was debased, all pieces of eight, however lacking in
weight, were ordered to pass for six shillings.
There was resistance to Barefoot's attempt to force doors
and eject residents, and he was roughly handled, and the
threats and dangers of " gunpowder, scalding water, and
red-hot spits," were reported home. The Gove outbreak
brought the arrested leaders in danger of the terrible
penalty for high treason, but pardons and orders to
release came from England ; but he retained Gove and
Waldron in prison a while after, " to terrify the rest, as all
clemency to such disengenuous people is abused.'"
Foiled in a suit against the owner of a vessel in the har-
bor, he reports that it is impossible to secure verdicts
against church members, and wants arms and "the Lark
frigot" in port to overawe them. He thinks there is " no
dislike to his person, but of his Majesty's rule," and lays
the blame of disaffection on the ministers, who " intermeddle
in all matters of government;" — "the Church of England
* Fees raised from 20s. to 6£.
EDWARD CRANFIELD. 113
must be Established and these Silenced." The people look
upon them as " little less than apostles; it is incredible
what influence they have over the vulgar." November 27,
1683, he writes from Boston: "I found Mr. Moody and
his party so troublesome that I believed myself unsafe to
continue longer amongst them, till I had a friggot and full
instructions to reduce them to better understanding."
December 10th, 1683, he ordered all ministers (though
it would seem that all official proclamations had been made
by them ; if not, certainly at the meeting-houses) to admit
any not of scandalous life to baptism and the Lord's sup-
per, according to the liturgy of the English Church, and
in January sent word to Mr. Moody that he and others would
receive the sacrament in that form on Sunday. The min-
ister refused. To have complied with the order would
have been a violation of English law. He was arrested
and confined in prison for some months.
The zealous governor advises that, after reclaiming the
charter, " it will be necessary to dissolve the University of
Cambridge, for from thence all the several colonies of New
England are supplied." "There is no greater evil to his
Majesty's affairs than these pernicious and rebellious
principles which flow from their college at Cambridge, and
this country can never be well settled till their preachers
be reformed and that college suppressed." Nath'l Weare
sent eight charges against him ; two were sustained.
Disappointed in obtaining a fortune for which he came,
" his injustice drove him away in dishonor," hated by the
people, his methods censured by the powers at home. He
had once and again asked permission to go to England or
elsewhere for the winters, "this cold climate not agreeing
with my thin constitution." The " cold affected his legs,"
and at last the fleet had sailed before leave of absence
arrived. In 1684 he is " absolutely ruined, having spent
in the discharge of my duties here all that I had from the
sale of my house at Whitehall, which is all I had in the
world." By 1685, " It would be the greatest happiness
that ever I had in my life to remove from these unreason-
able people;" and August 15th, 1685, he sailed away to
"Jamaica or Barbados," for the recovery of his health.
He sent to England and received the office of collector,
and while resident of Barbadoes he suggested a tax of four
114 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
and one-half per cent duty on sugar to the British crown,
which was granted by the Assembly of the island and con-
tinued. Favored again by fortune, in the reign of William
III, he procured a ship-of-war at his own expense, and
presented it to the crown. He died about 1700, and was
buried in the Cathedral Church, at Bath, England.
His deputy, Walter Barefoot, held office till Dudley
arrived.
TO LEILA, ON THE ANNIVERSARY OF HER
BIRTH.
BY W. C. STUROC.
October's mellow harvest-breath was blowing
In balmy zephyrs o'er the sunlit hills ;
The falling leaves an autumn crop were sowing,
And dropping gently on the babbling rills.
The woods their tints of sweet decay were flaunting
In all the colors which death's rainbow hath ;
The lake scarce rippled in its weird enchanting,
While dying brakes perfumed the pasture's path.
This was the picture which kind Nature limn'd us,
As swept along the fateful tide of years ;
And this the music which the autumn hymn'd us,
As Leila's birthday once again appears.
What wonder, then, the dreamy poet wandered
O'er granite hills to Leila's rural cot,
To tell in farewells what the heart had pondered,
And wish that joy might crown her future lot?
Ah, Leila ! here, alas, the curtain falleth
On sweetest friendship till the winter's o'er;
May springtime find us, as it light recalleth
Those gleams of grandeur to our eyes once more !
Sunapee, N.H., Oct. 14, 1S92.
THE MANCHESTER SHAKESPEARE CLUB.
BY ETTA F. SHEPARD.
This is an age of intellect and critical investigation. We
must know the spirit of the age, and take the places and
do the work which our new civilization thrusts upon us.
The last twenty years have witnessed great changes in
the character of woman's work, and woman's literary clubs
as well. There is little in the ordinary daily life and work
to feed either the intellectual or spiritual. It must be
sought after, and here is where organized effort is needed.
Women need a formulated course of study, systematic and
exhaustive, in order to find that they can study, and that
they like it. There is a fascination in going to the root of
things; in personal investigation of a subject, which is in
itself a great spur to continuous and increasing effort. In
the club each gains from the other new and helpful sug-
gestions. It was the custom in ancient Greece, in the time of
Herodotus, 484 B. C, to study the philosophy of language.
The Persians put their language into mystic records, unin-
telligible to the masses of the population, and it was only
slowly and with difficulty it was deciphered. That and
contemporary languages have been almost forgotten, while
successive generations of scholars, with infinite toil and
labor, have preserved the Greek language for mankind for
two thousand years. In the light of the nineteenth century,
however, the attainment of knowledge is made easy to all
diligent and earnest seekers.
In the search for new truth, and the readjustment of
human relations, woman comes to the front, and is an
important factor in the problems of the hour. About
eighteen years have elapsed since five young women of
scholarly tastes residing in Manchester, the queen city of
the old Granite State, — Mrs. Sarah S. Reynolds, Mrs. Liz-
zie Burt James, Mrs. Hannah Lewis, Mrs. Ellen Ham, and
Miss Nellie W. Cate, — whose horizon was broadening, and
who aspired to something above the dull routine of every-
day cares, came together, in an entirely informal way at
first, to study somewhat, to understand as far as might be
the fundamental meaning, and to enter into the spirit of the
w r ords and to be able better to appreciate the dramatic
works of the immortal bard of Avon. Their interest grew
116 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
with every reading till it became an absorbing thought. It
was not long before Mrs. Etta F. Shepard became a mem-
ber, and for three years they were called by their friends
the " immortal six." They met regularly once a week, on
Mondays, without any organization or officers, simply call-
ing themselves " the coterie."
One of the number was chosen each week to assign
the parts, as it seemed impossible to do more than study
one character, and be able to render that, even indifferently,
in a week. Teachers in elocution were not as numerous
then as now, but the six, feeling desirous of further knowl-
edge in that art, persuaded Mrs. Henry H. Huse to give
them instruction, she having been, previous to her mar-
riage, a teacher of note in a distant city. She was a very
thorough teacher, and required of her pupils the best of
which they were capable. While with her they made com-
mendable progress. Among the exercises she gave them
were abstracts from Shakespeare's plays.
During those days it was a pastime of the six to memo-
rize certain fine passages and soliloquies, and each rehearse
them under the criticism of the others. They understood
French indifferently well, and Mrs. Reynolds would give
Katherine's part in the play of Henry V with fine effect.
The young club had many pressing invitations, about this
time, to appear in public, but always declined the honor.
They found rare enjoyment, however, in stepping from their
narrow sphere into the company of kings and queens in royal
state, "Thence we looked toward England,
And cited up a thousand heavy times,
During the wars of York and Lancaster,
That had befallen us."
They often thought, "Transfigured in the tender moonlight
of Shakespeare's fancy, what must have been the sensa-
tions of an audience at the first performance of Midsum-
mer Night's Dream !"
There came a time when the coterie thought it was per-
haps best to widen its circle ; that the influx of new thought
would be advantageous. They considered twelve about
the number that could read the plays together with the best
results. They dwelt upon the subject one whole season,
hesitating to break the invisible but magic tie that bound
them ; but at last it was decided that each member should
invite some choice spirit to enter the temple with her, to
THE MANCHESTER SHAKESPEARE CLUB. 117
study, discuss, and draw lessons of wisdom from the writ-
ings of this great author; therefore, Miss B. B. Shepard,
formerly a teacher of note in Manchester schools and
later in New York, Mrs. Lucinda Farmer, a widely known
and gifted artist, Miss Henrietta A. Simmons, from Provi-
dence, R. I., a lady of cultured tastes, Mrs. Lydia A.
Scott, a woman of literary taste, subsequently editor of the
Fireside Department of the Manchester Union, Mrs. Julia
Ferren, for some years principal of a woman's college in
the West and later taking up the lecture field, Miss Eliza-
beth McDougal, formerly preceptress of the Pembroke
Academy, were invited, and joined with the others, which
brought the number up to twelve. They then formally
organized as a Shakespeare club.
There was then, outside of Concord, only one other
Shakespeare club known in the state.
Mrs. Sarah S. Reynolds was chosen first president.
Others followed, but up to 1S84, when Mrs. Reynolds was
again chosen president, with Mrs. Etta Frances Shepard,
vice-president, and Miss Henrietta A. Simmons, secretary,
no records of the weekly work were preserved.
During that season there were twenty-six meetings, and
eight plays were read. One afternoon in the month was
given to miscellaneous reading, each using her own taste
in selection. Later the club took up the life and works of
the best writers, assigning to each member some book of
the author chosen, the sketch to be given orally or in
writing, according to choice.
Hawthorne was selected as the first subject for this exer-
cise. First was given the life of Hawthorne. Then fol-
lowed a synopsis of the Marble Faun, The House of Seven
Gables, The Scarlet Letter, Blithdale Romance, and others.
Mrs. E. A. Wallace always gave her part orally, and with
perfect clearness.
It was during this year that services were held in the
Hanover Street Church, in commemoration of the eighti-
eth birthday of her husband, the Rev. Dr. Cyrus Wallace,
which the club voted to attend, also to send a basket of
flowers to Mrs. Wallace on that occasion. "As many lines
close in the dial's centre," so the year '84 was full of interest
in many ways.
In 1885 Mrs. Etta F. Shepard was chosen president,
118 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
Mrs. Lizzie Burt James, vice-president, Miss Sarah Jane
Green, secretary. There were twenty-six meetings, eight
plays being read, and four authors studied, including Rob-
ert Browning and Elizabeth Barrett Browning, and Sir
Walter Scott, on whose works they spent several afternoons
to the infinite delight of all.
" That Highland halls were open still
To wilder'd wanderers of the hill."
The poet Wordsworth was also taken up.
In 1866 Mrs. Cleora Bailey Cleworth was chosen presi-
dent, Miss Sarah J. Green, vice-president, and Miss B. B.
Shepard, secretary. Before the year ended there was
inaugurated the custom of choosing a presiding officer for
the month, as the work of assigning the parts required so
much time. In this way the duties were made light for
each one. That year eight plays and five poets were
studied, — Shelley, Pope, Bryant, Adelaide Proctor, and
Lowell.
In 1887 this custom of choosing presidents by the month
was continued. For miscellaneous work they read Thomas
Buchanan, Thomas Moore, and other authors' works.
In 1888, presidents by the month not proving as satis-
factory as having one by the year, Miss Henrietta A. Sim-
mons was called to take the chair for the entire period ;
Miss Elizabeth McDougal was vice-president, and Miss
Sarah Jane Green, secretary. This year the assignment
of parts was abandoned. For miscellaneous work the club
studied Longfellow, Goldsmith, and Phebe and Alice
Cary's poems.
In 1889 Mrs. Lucinda Lyman Farmer was chosen presi-
dent, Miss Lizzie Burt James, vice-president, and Miss
Sarah J. Green, secretary. This year Miss Mary Lucie
Sleeper joined the club. Twenty-five meetings were
held, and nine plays were read. For miscellaneous work
Emerson's essays were taken up. Plato said, " Poets
utter great and wise things, which they do not under-
stand." It was suggested by Miss McDougal that writ-
ten opinions of the plays and characters would be a
benefit to the club, and many afternoons were profitably
spent in reading essays on the different incidents of the
play. Miss McDougal was in a great degree the oracle of
THE MANCHESTER SHAKESPEARE CLUB. 119
the club. " Nature and the fortune of circumstances joined
to make her so."
In 1890 Mrs. Lucinda Lyman Farmer was again elected
president, with Miss Lizzie James, vice-president, and Mrs.
Etta F. Shepard, secretary. This year Mrs. Olive Rand
Clarke, Miss Mary Percival Stone, and Mrs. Lizzie A.
Upham joined, which was a very delightful acquisition.
Eight plays were studied. Many afternoons were passed
with Ruskin. Then the reading assumed a varied char-
acter, taking up thrilling times in the history of the
nation, invention, anti-slavery Boston, and much other
reading of an instructive nature.
In 1 891 Mrs. Lydia A. Scott was chosen president, Miss
Henrietta A. Simmons, vice-president, and Miss Sarah J.
Green, secretary. A good deal of work was done this
year. Read King Henry the VI for the first play. A
paper was read on the obsolete words in the play, and one
on societv in the time of Henry the VI. For miscellane-
ous reading Ireland was taken up, making a very exhaust-
ive study of it. Mrs. Scott invited Major P. A. Devine to
give the club a talk on that country, in which he had trav-
elled, and was therefore good authority upon that beautiful
though oppressed land. Papers were read on the geog-
raphy of Ireland, its history, authors, politicians, manufac-
tures and legends.
During this year Mrs. Evalyne French Johnson, Mrs.
Josephine Latham, and Mrs. Mary Call Perkins joined the
club. Later on a study of Central America was made.
There were original papers, each one taking up a differ-
ent phase of the country. The club has now in the pro-
spective a lecture on Mexico, in which much pleasure is
anticipated.
At the last meeting, November 7, 1892, the old board
was again elected, making Mrs. Scott the second time
president. So far this year good work has been done.
King Lear, Cymbeline, The Tempest, and Winter's Tale
have been read. One new office has been created, Miss
McDougal being elected to assist in choosing subjects to
be elaborated by selected members of the class.
When the coterie organized as a Shakespeare club, three
members were appointed to draw up a constitution and by-
laws ; but they were never at any time very closely fol-
120 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
lowed, and in time became practically a dead letter. The
present year a committee of three has been chosen to revise
and amend the old constitution. The membership fee is
placed at one dollar, and a small assessment is made on
the absence of any member from a session. One of the
articles in the by-laws is to the effect that continued absence,
without notifying the president and paying assessments,
disqualifies for membership. That clause, however, is
probably unnecessary, as such a thing is never likely to
occur. Very few have ever left the club, and most of them
have followed its fortunes with unflagging interest, till it
has become very dear to them.
Two beautiful spirits have passed on to the immortals, —
Mrs. Nellie Ham,
" The young and strong- who cherished
Noble longings for the strife,
By the roadside fell and perished,
Heavy with the march of life."
and Mrs. Julia Ferren,
" The holy one and weakly,
Who the cross of suffering bore,
Folded her pale hands so meekly,
Spoke with us on earth no more."
As in the early days, the club has continued the custom
of meeting at the houses of the members, most of them
having commodious and very attractive homes. The sub-
ject of securing a small hall where they could have a per-
manent place to convene has often been agitated, but the
majority thought it more pleasant to meet in the home.
The field day has always been one of unalloyed pleasure,
and never, in the month of May, have they failed to meet
on hill, in dale, forest or mead, by paved fountain or rushy
brook.
One year their field day was passed at Shirley Hill.
The dinner was sumptuous. At each lady's plate was a
basket of flowers. The printed menu was so carefully
arranged with appropriate quotations that it formed a very
handsome souvenir.
" Epicurean cooks sharpen with cloyless sauce his appetite."
One of the field days was passed in the classic shades of
the Uncanoonucs. But for some years they have sat down
THE MANCHESTER SHAKESPEARE CLUB. 121
by the clear waters of Lake Massabesic, with a few invited
guests. There are about three hours at table, over the
toasts and original papers, usually spent.
There have been twenty-nine ladies in all whose names
have been enrolled upon the list of the club. Of those not
mentioned are Mrs. Marianna Morse Furness, Miss Mary
Ann Allison, Miss Jennie Moulton, formerly teachers, Mrs.
Mary James, Mrs. Lizzie Bartlett Adams, Mrs. Lizzie Anna
Runlet, and Mrs. Lillian Appleton Furness. There are
three honorary members, — Mrs. Sarah H. Reynolds, Mrs.
Naine B. Payne, Edward Scott Swazey, who w r as last year
made an honorary member, a grandchild of the president,
a youth of great promise, held in admiring regard by every
member of the club.
There has never been a falling off to reduce the club
again to twelve, but, as they have only averaged enough at
the meeting to make it pleasant and profitable to read, it
has been very satisfactory.
Although the members of the club differ widely in their
religious views, they are about equally divided on the
political questions of the day, and their views in regard to
the proper diversions of life varying somewhat ; yet here
all meet on common ground, in a pleasant, social way.
During the life of the club, all the histories, all the
tragedies, and most of the comedies have several times
been read. At seven plays a year, it requires four or five
years to read all the plays once.
This has always been distinctively a Shakespearian club.
Its members have never swerved from their allegiance or
fealty to the bard of Avon, and have never been disturbed
by the discussions in regard as to whether the plays were
written by Bacon or the Stratford actor.
Many of the ladies of the club have travelled quite
extensively. Some have been through Europe once, others
twice, besides being familiar with all parts of their own
dear America.
As other states have a federation of woman's clubs, which
is a rallying center for the organization of club work, which
gives stimulus to it, and as work advances its scope must grow
apace, why should not clubs in this state correspond with
each other, exchange visits by delegates, and report the
proceedings of one club to another? As in a sister state,
122 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
why should not cards be prepared to facilitate fellowship,
and enable the members, when journeying, to attend grace-
fully the meetings of federated clubs in the places where
they may be visiting? Why should not New Hampshire
be as progressive as other states in this regard?
A SONG CROWN.
BY C. C. LORD.
True Heart would once evoke a song,
And weave Sweet Love a tuneful prize,
And through bright soul-land tripped along,
Where raptures breathe and beauties rise.
The noonday smiled with shining cheer,
The blithe birds piped a glad refrain,
The wind lisped gaily in his ear,
And blossoms decked the hill and plain.
A sprite came forth with happy mien,
And sang, — "True Heart, of earnest gaze,
Of roses white and leaves of green,
Construct thy gift in joyful phase."
Thus, strolling on in paths of light,
In blooming fields his fancy wrought,
And leaves of green and roses white
Became a garland in his thought.
Then, hasting to his idol dear,
He sang, — ' k Sweet Love, be this thy crown,'
And, kindly moved, she loosed a tear,
As on his breast her head fell down.
They keep their tryst since that blest day,
And every tide of sadness stem,
And when True Heart repeats his lay,
Sweet Love puts on her diadem.
THE NEW HAMPSHIRE CINCINNATI.
BY JOHN C. FRENCH.
Some thirty years ago I heard an intelligent old lady
describe an annual meeting of the Society of Cincinnati,
held in Epsom in her girlhood days. Since that time I
have persistently attempted to learn something of its organ-
ization, its members and records, without success until
recently. In a memorial volume, published by the Massa-
chusetts Society, I found mention of the branch in this
state, and learned that its records were deposited with the
New Hampshire Historical Society, and extracts published
in the sixth volume of the society collection. On applica-
tion to that repository of historical data the accommodating
librarian produced to my astonished vision a large, well-
bound volume, containing the records of the New Hamp-
shire Branch of the Society of Cincinnati, covering a period
of forty years, and I have a complete copy of the same,
duly transcribed.
It commences with a copy of a letter from Maj.-Gen.
Baron Steuben of West Point, N. Y., to Maj.-Gen. John
Sullivan, dated July, 1783, urging the organization of a
branch in this state. The first meeting was called at the
house of Gen. Samuel Folsom, in Exeter, and the follow-
ing-named Revolutionary heroes were present and com-
pleted an organization. The records show in plain pen-
manship their signatures and term of service :
Name. Rank. Residence. Term of Service.
John Sullivan, Major-General, Durham, 4 years, 6 mos.
Joseph Cilley, Colonel, Nottingham, 5 years, 6 mos.
Henry Dearborn, Colonel, Nottingham, 7 years, 10 mos.
Jonathan Cass, Captain, Exeter, 6 years, 4 mos.
Ebenezer Sullivan, Captain, Durham, 7 years, 9 mos.
Joseph Mills, Lieutenant, Nottingham, 6 years,
Daniel Gookin, Lieutenant, North Hampton, 8 years, 1 mo.
Samuel Adams, Lieutenant,
Josiah Munro, Captain,
Jonathan Cilley, Lieutenant, Nottingham,
Neal McGarYey, Lieutenant, Epsom,
Michael McClary, Captain, Epsom, 6 years,
William Parker, Surgeon, Exeter, 3 years, 4 mos.
Nicholas Gilman, Captain. Exeter, 6 years, 3 mos.
Joshua Merrow, Lieutenant,
Amos Emerson, Captain. Chester, 5 years,
John Adams, Lieutenant, Stratham,
John Boynton, Lieutenant, Stratham, 7 years,
Samuel Cheney, Captain, Londonderry, 8 years,
124
THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
Name.
Francis Frye,
Z. Rowell,
Rank.
Captain,
Captain,
Lieutenant,
Lieutenant,
Captain,
Lieutenant,
Brigadier-General,
Residence.
Wilton,
Epping,
Epping,
Northwood,
Kensington,
Hollis,
Keene,
Epsom,
Durham,
Nottingham,
North Hampton,
Term of S
9 years,
8 years,
6 years,
4 years,
3 years,
3 years,
8 years,
ervice.
Jonathan Perkins,
John Harvey,
Jonathan Fogg,
Jeremiah Richards,
James Reid,
6 mos.
8 mos.
Jas. Harvey McClary,
John Sullivan,
Joseph Mills, Jr.,
John W. Gookin,
Captain,
Of forty-two meetings, nine were held in Exeter, seven
in Nottingham, four in Durham, three in Deerfield, four-
teen in Portsmouth, one in Dover, three in Epsom, and one
in Epping.
Maj.-Gen. John Sullivan served as president eleven
years ; Gen. Joseph Cilley, five years ; Maj. Joseph Mills,
ten years ; Col. Amos Cogswell, fourteen years, and Gen.
Michael McClary served as treasurer thirty-nine years.
The long term of service of the officers will be noticed.
The First New Hampshire regiment, with numerous
changes, served a longer time than any volunteer regiment
in the country. Comparatively few of the New Hamp-
shire line officers joined the order, and those mostly resided
in the limits of what was then Rockingham county.
Only four of the sons of the original members succeeded
their fathers to perpetuate the order, and after forty annual
reunions on " Independence Day," with convivial services
commensurate with the times and occasions, the closing
page sorrowfully reads as follows :
Portsmouth, July 4, 1S23.
Present : Michael McClary, Daniel Gookin.
Proceeded to the choice of officers:
Amos Cogswell, president; Bradbury Cilley, vice-president ;
Daniel Gookin, secretary; Michael McClary, treasurer.
Examined the treasurer's accounts. There are in his hands
one hundred forty-three dollars and seventy-eight cents ($143.78),
interest by him accounted for to July 1, 1823.
Voted, that the treasurer pay to Charlotte Page, daughter of
the late Joseph Mills, fifteen dollars.
Voted, that the treasurer pay to the children of John Sullivan
ten dollars.
Voted, that the next annual meeting be held at Portsmouth.
DANIEL GOOKIN, Secretary.
THE NEW HAMPSHIRE CINCINNATI. 125
As the society failed to meet in 1824, the interesting
question naturally arises, — Where is the fund and the
accumulated interest? It had been voted to change the
tund from state to United States securities, and the receipts
from interest had averaged about $150 annually for the
forty years, but the treasurer's books were not rescued
from oblivion. The secretary's records are in admirable
condition, and were presented to the New Hampshire
Historical Society in 1843 by the son of Daniel Gookin,
the last secretary.
At the close of the war, the officers of the American
army who had shared the common danger, and whose
friendship had been cemented by eight years of conflict,
desired to combine themselves into a society based on the
principles of friendship and charity, "to endure as long as
they shall endure," or " any of their posterity." General
Washington was chosen president. Out of respect to the
Roman citizen and soldier, Cincinnatus, it was called the
" Society of Cincinnati," the general society to meet trien-
nially, and branch societies in each of the thirteen states to
meet annually on the 4th of July. An officer was eligible
to membership who had held a commission in the army
three years, and who assigned a month's pay to the fund,
and his eldest male descendant could be his successor to
membership.
For over a century this honored and revered society has
demonstrated its pure patriotism and benevolence, and to
become a member has been considered of the highest honor.
The general society, Hon. Hamilton Fish, president, holds
regular meetings, but most of the state societies have failed
to continue existence. Massachusetts and New York
societies still exist, being prominent and wealthy.
Gen. (Gov.) Benjamin Pierce of Hillsborough was vice-
president of the Massachusetts society from 1836 to 1839,
and was succeeded by his three sons, — Col. Benjamin K.
in 1841, Gen. (President) Franklin in 1852, Henry D. in
1873, and his grandson, Kirk Dearborn Pierce, in 1889.
John B. Varick of Manchester, as successor of Col.
Richard Varick, who was mayor of New York city twelve
years, is a member of the New York society, and he, with
Mr. Pierce, are probably the only two members now resid-
ing in the state belonging to the Order of Cincinnati.
MUSICAL DEPARTMENT.
CONDUCTED BY H. G. BLAISDELL.
EDWIN T. BALDWIN.
Edwin Thomas Baldwin was born in New Ipswich, N. H.,
July 9th, 1832, and the following year his parents moved
to Nashua. It is said that somewhere back in the twenties,
before the days of quartette choirs, Mr. Thomas Moore led
the singing in the old South Church at Nashua, and that
his eleven children sung for him, the youngest, the mother
of Edwin, being the leading soprano. His father, an
energetic business man, was also a lover of music and gave
some of his leisure time to singing and practice upon the
violoncello. Young Edwin was but three years old when
his mother died, and during the following ten years he
seemed to have had no permanent home, at times employed
in a bobbin shop, mills, store, or on a farm, vibrating
between Nashua and Manchester, though most of his boy-
hood was spent in the former place.
He attended at various times both public and private
schools in Manchester, also the Nashua Academy, taught
by the late David Crosby. If he ever ran away from
school, it was to follow some band ; and he speaks with
enthusiasm of the hours when, as a very small boy, he
travelled barefooted by the side of the old " Boston Brass
Band,"' in the days when the celebrated bugler, Edward
Kendall, was the leader, ably seconded by his brother James,
no less celebrated as a clarinet player. In those days
Nashua was the leading town in the state ; military enthu-
siasm ran high ; there were no less than five finely uni-
formed and equipped infantry companies, while the Nashua
Artillery was one of the most noted organizations in New
England, and rarely paraded without the " Boston Brass
Band " and a section of dignitaries, who were invited guests
for the day.
In 1842 he received his first lessons on the piano-forte
from a Boston teacher who had been employed to teach in
a private school, visiting Manchester once a week for that
purpose. Three or four years later we find him again in
Nashua, playing a cornet in the ''Nashua Band," and
trying his hand on all sorts of instruments, from a snare
drum to a piccolo.
MUSICAL DEPARTMENT. 127
Here he began more earnest preparation tor his life work,
resuming the study of the piano-forte and of harmony,
under the able guidance of the late Edward Kosmer, a
musician and teacher who probably had no superior in
New Hampshire, remaining with him two or three
years. He subsequently studied with the late George
James Webb and other well-known teachers in Boston.
His career as a teacher of music and church organist com-
menced in January, 1850. in Nashua. Mr. Baldwin
returned to Manchester in the early fall of 185 1, where he has
since resided, though for nearly twenty-five years his time
was quite evenly divided between the two cities.
While his daily occupation was teaching and the study
of piano, organ and harmony, his evenings were devoted
mainly to organizing and instructing clubs, choral societies
and bands, in both Nashua and Manchester ; sharing with
the members in all expenses, asking only, in lieu of salary,
that good music should be studied and that members should
pledge prompt and regular attendance.
For this department of work he seems to have had
special fitness. The choral societies in both Manchester
and Nashua that took part in the great Boston Jubilee, also
the " Nashua Cornet Band," he organized and trained for
the occasion. When, at the breaking out of the War of
the Rebellion, in 1861, the call came for seventy-five
thousand men, he dismissed a large class of pupils and
enlisted as a private in Company C. 1st N. H. Regiment,
as did nearly every member of his band ; and " Baldwin's
Cornet Band," w r as not only the first band that left the
state, but the first to play in the streets of Baltimore after
the attack upon the Massachusetts Sixth and the near anni-
hilation of its Lowell band.
Mr. Baldwin has had several very tempting offers to locate
in larger cities, but Manchester seems to have been his first
love. He has never been obliged to go from place to place
to secure patronage, and to-day, notwithstanding his years
of service, there is a constantly increasing demand upon
his time as a teacher. Long ago he gained the reputation
of being a fine performer on the piano, organ, and various
band instruments, but his chief ambition has been to make
players ; not to exhibit his own technical skill, but to inter-
est, instruct, and, if possible, enthuse his pupils. The
128
THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
unusual excellence of the work which has been done year
after year at his class recitals fully demonstrates his suc-
cess — a success which may be attributed to love for his
profession and his efforts, by close observation and study, to
keep in touch with the general progress of his art and the
most approved methods of instruction.
He is to-day surrounded by competitors who were once
members of his class, while many others once numbered
among his pupils are successful teachers in schools, con-
servatories, and cities in various parts of the country.
As a musician he is at peace with all men and not with-
out honor in his own country. His services as organist
and chorister have been retained for nearly thirty-six years
by the largest Congregational church and society in the
state. He was the first president of the New Hampshire
Music Teachers' Association, and has been twice re-elected.
In the fall of 1861 Mr. Baldwin married Miss Sarah C.
Kendrick of Nashua, by whom he has had two sons and a
daughter. The oldest son, E. K. Baldwin, a good organ-
ist and choir-master, is a well-known young business man
in Lowell, Mass. His youngest son, the late Thomas C.
Baldwin, was a good violinist and singer, but best known
as the faithful and efficient state secretary of the Y. P. S.
C E. A married daughter resides in Quincy, Mass.
The following extract from a brief address by Mr. E. T.
Baldwin of Manchester, before the Congregational Club,
on February 22, 1893, in the North Church, Concord, very
clearlv indicates the attitude of most musicians towards
much of the gospel-hymn music so often heard in our
Sabbath-schools and prayer-meetings. After touching upon
various subjects, Mr. Baldwin said, —
" I have sometimes felt that as a denomination we were in dan-
ger of getting into ruts — too much afraid of new ideas — appar-
ently unmindful of the fact that the world moves and that old
methods will not always meet new conditions ; and I raise the
question, To what extent and in what way can our Sabbath
services be varied and made more attractive, without adopting
secular or sensational methods?
" Perhaps, because of my calling, I may be expected to say
something about music in our devotional meetings. It is, indeed,
an important factor, but, should I express my feelings as fully
as I might, I fear I should precipitate a controversy. I believe,
MUSICAL DEPARTMENT. 129
however, that much of the music in our meetings, in hoth morn-
ing and evening services, is neither elevating nor devotional.
" Of the last meeting of the Saviour with His disciples before
the crucifixion, we read that ' after they had sung an hymn,
they went out.' Would you not like to know what that hymn
was, and to what music they sung it? It may have been a psalm,
simply chanted, or some plaintive melody, but I do not believe
it was ' Beulah Land' or k Hold the Fort.' If there were
bands in Jerusalem in those days, I do not believe thev adopted
the music because they found it to be just the kind for street
quickstep. I do not believe that quadrille bands played it for
Jewish maidens to dance by. Neither do I think it was a melody
that had been made popular as a drinking-song by Roman
soldiers, and because of its popularity adapted to sacred words
and sung by the disciples. I cannot think that the Saviour, had
He been called to conduct a service in the temple on the Sab-
bath, would have permitted a band that had been playing during
the day at some lawn party or beer garden to hurry to the tem-
ple to lead in the service of song; but such things are not
unheard of in our clay. I believe the time has come when the
churches of New Hampshire should enter an earnest and solemn
protest against the use or further introduction into our Sabbath-
schools and prayer-meetings of such undignified and undevo-
tional musical trash as is found in many of our gospel hvmn
books ; and if other denominations will not join us, let the Con-
gregational church alone call a halt. If we cannot stem the tide,
it will surely do us no harm to go on record as opposed to this
trivial and undevotional music.
"•While we seek to make our services attractive, let us not
adopt purely secular or sensational methods, neither forget the
' fitness of things ;' 'God is in holy temple ;' — we enter there to
worship and not simply to be entertained. If the reading of the
word, the prayer, and the sermon are worshipful and devotional,
so also should be the service of song."
THE LISBON FESTIVAL.
The annual festival of the Lisbon Musical Association
occurred February 20-24. Considering that it was held
during Lent, and that the weather was as unpropitious as
imagination could picture, it was a grand success. The
chorus numbered, as usual, about one hundred and twenty-
five, but it has steadily grown in proficiency until it is a fact
that no chorus of its size in the state can compare with it.
The works in hand this season were the " One Hundredth
Psalm" by Lachner, " The Evening Hymn" by Reinecke,
130 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
Part Songs by Lassen and Cowen, and selections from Con-
cone's Mass in F. The soloists were the Misses Clark and
Woodbury of Boston, and Mr. Arthur Burnett, tenor, also
of Boston. Especially to be commended was the duet sing-
ing of the young ladies. Mr. Burnett was a sufferer from a
severe cold and a mistaken idea of what his duties were to be,
hence we reserve criticism. Mrs. Shepard, as usual, pre-
sided at the piano, and, like an old violin, she improves with
age, and this should be considered very complimentary where
one is so proficient from the beginning. She is the faithful
friend of the chorus, the saving-power of the artist, and the
true musical companion of the conductor. Mrs. Morgan of
New York, now a resident at Pike's Station, created a furor,
almost, by her wonderfully sweet soprano voice. She is one
of a very few vocalists who can adapt her voice and her very
nature to the sentiment of the aria or song she is rendering.
It is a great pleasure, as well as simple justice, to speak in
her praise, and we only wish the conditions were such that
New Hampshire could claim her as a representative daugh-
ter of music.
Mr. Mart Dow, the impersonator, calls for especial com-
mendation, and while we can never countenance anything
of this kind as belonging to a musical performance, yet we
must give him the highest position in an artistic sense.
This "side show" to a musical festival is peculiar to north-
ern New Hampshire, and if it is necessary to " draw" the
non-musical element, give us Mr. Dow every time.
Blaisdell's orchestra did excellent work, and the solos by
Master Cotton, violin, Mr. Stockbridge, cello, and Mr.
Wheaton, flute, were well received.
Financially the Association came out with the balance on
the right side. The president, Rev. Mr. Felt, and the
executive committee are entitled to much praise for their
untiring and faithful efforts, which made this eighth annual
such a success. Especially attentive and painstaking was
Mr. Edgar Davison, the chairman of the executive com-
mittee.
Mr. H. G. Blaisdell has been appointed on the Board of
Advisorv Council of Music at the World's Congresses at
Chicago, which will be held July next.
The Concord Choral Society is rehearsing the Oratorio
of the Messiah, which will be given sometime in May.
NEW HAMPSHIRE NECROLOGY.
BERNARD B. WHITTEMORE.
Bernard Bemus Whittemore, born in Peterborough, May
15, 1817, died in Cambridge, Mass., March 5, 1893.
He was a son of Bernard and a grandson of Nathaniel
Whittemore, the latter a Revolutionary soldier. He fitted
for college at Phillips Exeter Academy, and graduated
from Harvard in the class of 1839. ^ e taught school for
a time in Baltimore, after graduation, but studied law and
was admitted to the Hillsborough county bar in 1842. He
practiced for a time in Palmer, Mass., and afterwards in
Amherst, but soon located in Nashua, where he continued
through life. In 1846, in company with his brother, F. P.
Whittemore, a practical printer, he bought the Nashua
Gazette of William Butterfield, and continued to edit that
paper until its sale to the Gazette Company in 1889, a
period of nearly forty-three years. He was the first Demo-
cratic candidate for mayor of Nashua, in 1853, though
failing of election, and was a member of the state senate
in 1852 and 1853. He also served as alderman and city
treasurer, and was a trustee of the Nashua city library
from its establishment till his death. He was unmarried,
and is survived by two brothers and three sisters.
HON. OZIAS M. HATCH.
Ozias Mather Hatch, a prominent citizen of Illinois, and
one of the pioneers of the Republican party in that state,
died at his home, in Springfield, March 12.
He w r as born in the town of Hillsborough in this state,
April 11, 1 814, being the third child of Dr. Reuben Hatch,
a native of Alstead. He received an ordinary common-school
education, supplemented with brief attendance at a private
school and academy, working upon his father's farm in the
summer season, until fifteen years of age, when he went to
Boston and was engaged for seven years as a clerk in the
wholesale and retail grocery of Merriam & Brown. At the
age of twenty-two he removed to Griggsville, Pike county,
Illinois, where his father had gone the previous year. He
was appointed clerk of the circuit court of Pike county,
serving seven years. He subsequently engaged in general
132 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
mercantile business, and, in 185 1, was elected to represent
Pike county in the state legislature. In 1856, upon the
organization of the Republican part}', he was made the
nominee of the party for secretary of state, was elected,
and, after a term of four years, was re-elected, making eight
years' service in all in this responsible position. He was a
close friend of Abraham Lincoln and Richard Yates, and
was deeply interested in the Union cause during the war.
He was an original member of the National Lincoln Monu-
ment Association, and secretary of the same, and was largely
instrumental in securing the funds for the erection of the
Lincoln monument in Oak Ridge Park, Springfield. He
was a public-spirited citizen and prominent in various local
enterprises in Springfield, where he resided after his election
as secretary of state.
In i860 Mr. Hatch married Miss Julia R., daughter of
Pascal P. Enos, one of the prominent early settlers of Spring-
field, who survives him, with their three sons, Ozias M., Jr.,
Pascal E. and Frank L. Hatch.
CARLOS G. HAWTHORNE.
Carlos G. Hawthorne of Hopkinton, a well-known mem-
ber of the Merrimack county bar, died suddenly in Gilman-
ton, March 9, 1893.
He was a native of Hopkinton, a son of Calvin and Rachel
(Jackman) Hawthorne, born September 29, 1827. He
received an academical education, and engaged for some
years in teaching, the last two years in Chicago, where he
went in 1852, meanwhile pursuing the study of law, in the
practice of which he subsequently engaged at Dubuque,
Iowa, where he was located for several years, and served
during the late war as assistant provost-marshal and attorney
of the board of enrollment. He returned to Hopkinton in
1866, and there formed a law partnership with Herman W.
Greene, which continued for some years. He was a man
of keen intellect and an entertaining conversationalist. He
had an arm badly broken by a fall in Concord some years
since, and suffered other injuries from which he never fully
recovered. He married Frances P. Gilman of Gilmanton,
in 1850, who survives him, with one daughter, Jessie A.
NECROLOGY. 133
ANGELIA C. TEWKSBURY.
Mrs. Angelia C, wife of Hon. Robert H. Tewksbury,
ex-mayor of Lawrence, Mass., died in that city, February
10, 1893, of pneumonia.
She was a daughter of Calvin and sister of Carlos G. Haw-
thorne of Hopkinton, born January 13, 1834, and united in
marriage with Mr. Tewksbury, also a native of Hopkinton,
in 1859, since which time her home has been in the city of
which her husband has been a most honored resident, and
where she was herself endeared, by her virtues and graces
of character, to a large circle of friends.
FRANCIS O. FRENCH.
Francis Ormand French, born in Chester, September 12,
1837, died in Tuxedo, N. Y., February 26, 1893.
He was a son of the late Benjamin B. French, formerly
of Newport, who was clerk of the U. S. house of repre-
sentatives from 1845 to 1847, and afterwards commissioner
of public buildings at Washington. He graduated from
Harvard College in 1857 ; was admitted to the bar in i860 ;
was appointed deputy naval officer at Boston in 1862, and
deputy collector the following year. He engaged in the
service of the banking firm of Samuel A. Way of Boston
in 1865, and in 1870 entered the employ of Jay Cooke &
Co., New York. Subsequently he represented prominent
English banking firms in the latter city, and in 1874 was
engaged with others in funding U. S. government loans.
He retired in 1880, but for the last few years had been
president of the Manhattan Trust Co. He married, in
1861, Ellen, a daughter of the late Hon. Amos Tuck.
WILLIAM A. WALLACE.
William Allen Wallace, son of James Wallace, a mer-
chant of Pembroke, born in that town September 28, 1815,
died in Canaan, February 15, 1893. At the age of fifteen,
his father having removed to Canaan, he entered the office
of the New Hampshire Post, at Haverhill, to learn the
printer's trade. Remaining there two years, the paper was
removed to Concord, and he went with it, continuing a
year longer. He then went to Nashua and engaged in the
office of the Telegraph, where he also continued two years,
134 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
after which he started out to make his fortune, working in
various offices temporarily. In 1839 he became foreman
of the Spy office at Worcester, Mass., and in 1846 one
of the editors of the Daily Spy, continuing till 1850,
when he went to California, locating at Los Angeles, where
he was editor of the Star for several years. He also
engaged in teaching and was a member of the school
board. Subsequently he became a correspondent of the
California Alfa and later one of its editors. He travelled
extensively, doing special work for the Alia, and, in 1861
and 1862, was its Washington correspondent. At the close
of the latter year he returned to Canaan and continued
there until death, engaged in agriculture and literary work,
having collected a large amount of matter pertaining to
the history of the town. He married Mary Currier of
Canaan, in January, 1865, by whom he has one son,
James Burns, a lawyer in New York City.
DANIEL J. PARSONS.
Daniel J. Parsons, for many years a practicing lawyer at
Rochester, died February 29, 1893, at tne residence of
George S. Blanchard, in Pembroke.
He was a native of Gilmanton, a son of Josiah and Judith
(Badger) Parsons, born April 15, 1821. He was educated
at Gilmanton Academy ; read law with the late Hon. Ira A.
Eastman ; was admitted to the bar in 1842, and immediately
commenced practice in Rochester. He served many years
on the Rochester school board, and was a member of the
legislature in 1850. For the last five years he has been
disabled by paralysis. He married, in 1852, Ella Green-
field of Rochester, by whom he had a son and two daugh-
ters, surviving, John G. Parsons of Portsmouth, Mrs. O.
L. Temple of Framingham, Mass., and Miss Emma Par-
sons of Boston.
REV. SILAS CURTIS.
Rev. Silas Curtis, one of the oldest and most prominent
clergymen of the Free Baptist denomination in New
England, died at his home in Concord, January 27, 1893.
He was born in Auburn, Me., February 27, 1804; was
educated at the Wesleyan Seminary at Kent's Hill, Me.,
and was ordained a preacher at the F. B. quarterly meet-
NECROLOGY. 135
ing in Topsham, October 4, 1827. He held pastorates at
Angusta, Me., Great Falls, N. H., Lowell and Roxbury,
Mass., and Pittsfield, N. H., removing from the latter place
to Concord in 1856, where he afterwards remained. He
was a member of the publishing committee of the Free
Baptist Printing Establishment from its organization in
1S32 till his death, and was auditor for forty years. He
was agent for the New Hampton Institution several years,
raising $17,000 for its funds. He was thirty years corres-
ponding secretary of the Free Baptist Home Mission Soci-
etv, treasurer sixteen years, and clerk of the general con-
ference from 1835 till 1868, when he resigned. November
9, 1831, he married Patience Gould of Wayne, Me., who
died April 23, 1880.
REV. ANDREW P. PEABODY, D. D., LL. D.
Andrew Preston Peabody, born in Beverly, Mass., March
19, 1811, died in Cambridge, Mass., March 10, 1893.
Dr. Peabody, although not a native of New Hampshire,
nor living in the state at the time of his decease, was for so
long a period of time a resident, and so intimately well
known to many of our most cultured people, that he may
properly be classed as a New Hampshire man ; and that he
so regarded himself is evidenced by the fact that, in accord-
ance with his wishes, his mortal remains were laid to their
final rest in New Hampshire soil, at his old home in Ports-
mouth. He was a graduate of Harvard College in the
class of 1826, being then but fifteen years of age. After
three years spent in teaching, one year being as principal
of the academy at Portsmouth, he entered the Harvard
Divinity School, where he completed the course, and was
ordained and installed pastor of the South Parish (Unita-
rian) Church of Portsmouth, in 1833, which position he
occupied for 27 years, until his election as preacher to Har-
vard University and Plummer Professor of Christian Morals
in that institution, in i860, officiating in those capacities
until his resignation in 1881.
In addition to his pastoral and educational work, he did
much in the way of contribution to American literature,
and was a frequent writer for some of our best periodicals.
He was a member of the American Academy of Arts and
Sciences, the Massachusetts Historical, and several kindred
associations.
EDITOR BATCHELLOR'S STATE PAPERS.
Governor Goodell made no mistake when he selected
Hon. Albert S. Batchellor of Littleton for the important
position of editor of state papers, to succeed the late Isaac
W. Hammond. There is no man in the state better quali-
fied for the position, — no one who has a deeper interest in,
or a keener taste for, the work which the position calls for ;
and the results of his labors thus far, soon to be more fully
manifest, cannot fail to give the greatest satisfaction to all
students of our early state history.
Volume XIX, shortly to be issued, is made up of miscel-
laneous papers of more or less importance, but largely
relating to the boundary-line between New Hampshire and
Massachusetts. Volume XX, already issued, is devoted to
the journals of the senate and house, and records of the
president and council (the latter never having appeared in
print), from 1784 to 1787, an important period in our his-
tory, commencing with the adoption of the first constitution
and the organization of the new state government. As an
appendix to this volume is given a reprint of an old and
rare pamphlet, embracing a life of the Revolutionary
patriot, John Langdon, by his grandson, John Langdon
Elwyn. Volume XXI, which will be issued in a few
weeks, presents the house and senate journals and council
records from 1787 to 1790, and Vol. XXII, soon to follow,
will embody the same from 1790 to 1793. Vol. XXIII,
already commenced, will consist of a complete calendar of
New Hampshire papers in English archives, obtained by
the N. H. Historical Society from B. F. Stevens of London.
The next work to be taken up will be the reproduction
of old town charters, including those granted by Massa-
chusetts, by New Hampshire, and charters of Vermont
towns granted by New Hampshire governors, with plans of
the various grants, all of which will require some four or
five volumes.
Erratum. — An unaccountable error, manifest from the
context, appeared in the sketch of the Hon. Edward F. Mann
in the last issue of the Granite Monthly. The age of
his daughter was given as thirteen years, whereas it should
have been eleven, her birth occurring February 13, 1882.
The Granite Monthly
VOL. XV. MAY, 1893. NO-
rev. CEPHAS B. CRANE, D. D.
Time was when in all our New England communities,
as everywhere in the Christian world, the minister was
regarded not only as the spiritual guide and moral teacher
of the people, but as a natural guardian and mentor,
whose advice should be sought and followed in all matters
affecting the intellectual welfare and the material interests
of the community and of individuals ; and this entirely
without reference to his own personality or characteris-
tics — the breadth of his culture, the quality of his mind, or
the measure of his sympathies and affections. His position
gave him dignity and honor, and entitled him to the rever-
ent regard and trustful confidence of all. Such, how-
ever, is no longer the case. In these days of steam
engines and perfecting presses, of telegraphs and tele-
phones, of electric railways and ocean cables, when com-
munities are no longer isolated and the tour quarters of
the globe are brought into immediate communication with
each other — when by the magic processes of modern skill
the best thoughts of master minds and the greatest pro-
ductions of human genius in all the ages are brought
within the reach of the poorest and humblest — the halo of
position, however exalted, is practically dissolved, and
priest and potentate, minister and magistrate, are regarded
primarily with reference to what they are in heart and
mind, in character and conduct.
While, therefore, we may hope the time will never come
when the Christian ministry, as a whole, will fail to be a
commanding power for good throughout the world, it will
thus be maintained only through the noble character, the
exalted purpose, the pure personality and devoted Chris-
tian spirit, as well as the virile and cultured intellect of
those who enter upon its holy office.
The city of Concord is more than ordinarily fortunate in
138 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
the character and influence of its church organizations.
It has generally been fortunate in the worth and ability of
the men serving as preachers and pastors for these various
organizations. Such is particularly the case at the present
time. It is, indeed, doubtful that there can be found in
New England or the country at large, to-day, a city of
corresponding size where the clergy, as a whole, combine
so much of intellectual culture, high moral worth, and
thorough devotion to their work, and at the same time
manifest such an intelligent interest in all that pertains to
the material, social, and educational welfare of the com-
munity, commanding thereby, individually and collect-
ively, in so large measure the confidence and respect of
the great mass of the people, as is the case in Concord.
Prominent among these clergymen, and a commanding
figure in the community, is the Rev. Dr. Crane, pastor
of the First Baptist Church, who has occupied his position
for the last eight years, and is more generally known
by the people than many who have spent a lifetime in
their midst.
Cephas Bennett Crane, son of Rev. Wheeler I. and
Almena (Riddell) Crane, was born at Marion, Wayne
county, New York, March 29, 1833. His father was of
English and his mother of Scotch-Irish parentage, the
former, who was also a Baptist clergyman, being a native
of New Hampshire, born in the town of Richmond, but
removing to New York in early life, where he ultimately
fitted for the ministry, and held various pastorates in differ-
ent parts of the state.
The early inclination of the son was not in that direc-
tion. Endowed with an ambitious spirit, and duly encour-
aged by his parents, he had gained a good preliminary
education at different select schools and academies, engag-
ing meanwhile to a considerable extent in teaching district
schools, an occupation whose experience and discipline
has contributed in no small degree to develop the mental
powers of aspiring young men, while furnishing the means
for the further pursuit of knowledge. He had determined
to fit himself for the legal profession, and with a view to
the study of the law under the learned and eminent Prof.
Theodore Dwight, he entered Hamilton College ; but
while pursuing the course he was led to an entire change
REV. CEPHAS B. CRANE, D. D. 139
of plan and purpose in life. The claims of religion were
brought forcibly home to his heart, and, uniting himself
with the church, he determined to dedicate his powers to
the service of the Master as a minister of the gospel. To
this end he left Hamilton and entered the University of
Rochester, a leading Baptist educational institution, where
he graduated from the classical department in the class of
1858, which included among its members such men as
William O. Stoddard, the eminent writer, Lemuel Moss,
president of the Chicago University, and subsequently of
Indiana State University, and Prof. William Harkness,
the distinguished astronomer, of the naval observatory at
Washington. After completing the classical course, he
entered the Theological Seminary at Rochester, from
which he graduated in i860, going immediately to his
first pastorate in Hartford, Conn., to which he had been
called by the South Baptist Church of that city, where he
was ordained and entered with earnestness and enthusiasm
upon his chosen life work. His situation was at the same
time a most trying and yet a most advantageous one. Called
in the very outset to the pastorate of an old and flourish-
ing society in one of the most cultured New England
cities, and brought into association with clergymen of
wide repute, great ability, and profound learning, the
young minister had to prove himself worthv in character,
aspiration, and purpose to stand in the ranks of the great
profession whose ornaments in that city were such men as
the venerable Dr. Horace Bushnell, Dr. Calvin E. Stowe,
Dr. Robert Turnbull, Dr. Nathaniel J. Burton, Dr. E. P.
Parker, Dr. S. J. Andrews, Dr. Joel Hawes, Dr. Wil-
liam L. Gage, and others of like celebrity. That he did
so in full measure is evidenced by the fact that his pastorate
here continued for nearly eighteen years, covering a most
prosperous period in the history of the church, during
which he established a high reputation for ability, faithful-
ness, and zeal, and which terminated only through his
acceptance of a call to the pastorate of the First Baptist
Church in Boston — a call which, although regretting the
severance of long-continued and most enjoyable relations
with the Hartford society, he did not feel at liberty to
decline.
During the Boston pastorate, upon which he entered in
140 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
April, 1877, Dr. Crane maintained and increased his
reputation as a representative clergyman of the Baptist
faith, engaging earnestly in all the work directly pertain-
ing to the welfare of his parish, which was among the
oldest and most prominent in the city, and also taking an
active part in the broader work involving the prosperity
of the denomination at large. A Boston pastorate is gen-
erally regarded as a most desirable one for a clergyman
of any denomination. It affords opportunities for intel-
lectual growth and culture surpassed by those of no other
city in the Union. These opportunities Dr. Crane fully
improved, and during his pastorate of seven years held a
position abreast with the progressive thinkers and workers
in the religious and intellectual life of the metropolis.
The First Baptist Church of Boston flourished under
his ministry, and it was during his term of service that
the magnificent house of worship on Commonwealth
Avenue, now its property, was secured. But his incessant
labor told heavily upon his health, notwithstanding his
splendid physique, and a long, severe, and dangerous ill-
ness, from which final recovery was adjudged improbable
by his physicians, resulted, compelling his resignation.
Regaining his health in some measure, and with the
hope that the pure air of New Hampshire might prove
salutary in that direction, he accepted the pastorate of the
First Baptist Church in this city, entering formally upon
his duties April 1, 1885. Here he has remained to the
present time. Improving materially in health, he has been
able to pursue all lines of pastoral activity to the complete
satisfaction of his people, while as a preacher he has not
only commanded their strong admiration and consenting
attention, but has attracted to the congregation many who
never before attended there. The church and society have
greatly prospered under his ministry, and their standing
and influence in the community were never better and
stronger than now, nor has any pastor in the city ever
endeared himself more strongly to his people and to the
general public.
During his ministerial service of thirty-three years,
embracing but three pastorates, he has received calls to
other large and important churches, but believes in rea-
sonably long terms of service wherever one is placed.
REV. CEPHAS B. CRANE, D. D. 141
He has served for a long time as a member of the boards
of various state and national societies of the Baptist
denomination, and while in Boston was a member of the
executive committee of the American Baptist (Foreign)
Missionary Union. He is one of the trustees of both
the Newton and Rochester Theological Seminaries, and
has also served as trustee of various academies. He was
actively instrumental in the organization, last year, of the
Winnipiseogee Baptist Grove Meeting Association, of which
he is president. He has written much for newspapers and
magazines, and many of his sermons have been published.
He received the degree of D. D. from Rochester Univer-
sity in 1875.
He has always manifested a fraternal and catholic spirit,
emphasizing the agreements rather than the disagreements
of the various Christian denominations, and believing that
the church of our Lord is one. While loyal to the truth
as he apprehends it, he concedes to all others the privilege
and right of loyalty to the truth as they apprehend it. He
is a believer in " the sweet reasonableness" of religion,
and counts it an honor to be called a Christian rationalist,
insisting that Christianity is capable of philosophical and
scientific interpretation. His reading covers a wide range
in all departments of knowledge, and he takes great enjoy-
ment therein. He has ever taken an active interest in the
life and welfare of the city, state and nation, endeavoring
always to do his full duty as a citizen. He was elected
chaplain of the New Hampshire legislature for the ses-
sion of 1885, and has served three years as a member of
the Concord school board. His interest in the cause of edu-
cation and the welfare of the schools has always been par-
ticularly strong, and his friendship for the children is as
marked as the unfailing courtesy and geniality of his man-
ner towards all with whom he comes in contact.
Dr. Crane has travelled extensively, having visited the
old world four times, the last during the summer of 1887.
November 14, 1865, he was united in marriage with
Miss Mary A. Day of Hartford, Conn. They have three
children — two daughters, Annie Louise and Mary Riddell,
and one son, Russell Day. The eldest daughter is a
graduate of the Concord High School of the class of 1887,
while the others are now pupils in that institution.
REV. WILLIAM V. GARNER.
Rev. William Vaughn Garner, the immediate prede-
cessor of the Rev. C. B. Crane, D. D., in the pastorate of
the First Baptist Church of Concord, was a native of Wales,
born January 9, 1834. He received his education in Eng-
land, and was there ordained to the ministry, but came to
this country at the age of twenty-seven years. His first
pastorate was at Hastings on the Hudson. From there he
went to Binghampton, N. Y., and afterwards to St. Johns,
New Brunswick. For nine years previous to his settlement
in Concord he was pastor of the Charles Street Baptist
Church in Boston, serving his people and church with effi-
ciency and fidelity, and gaining a high reputation, both
within and without his own denomination, as an eloquent
and forceful preacher.
After the resignation of Rev. Daniel W. Faunce, D. D..
who, after some eight or nine years' service in the pastorate
of the First Baptist Church in Concord, accepted a call to
the Washington Street Church in Lynn, Mass., the Con-
cord church and society, after due deliberation, extended a
call to Mr. Garner, who then, just past forty years of age,
in the early prime of fully developed manhood, earnest,
active and enthusiastic, of fine presence and pleasing man-
ners, might well indeed be regarded as most eligible for
the vacant position. The church edifice was then being
extensively remodeled and refitted, at an expense of some
$12,000, and the condition of the parish was such as to ren-
der the call most acceptable to him.
Removing to Concord, and entering upon his work, in
September, 1875, Mr* Garner soon won the love and confi-
dence of his people, and gained a firm place in the regard
of the general public, through his courteous manner and
liberal spirit. Here he continued for a period of nine
years, during which time about one hundred and fifty mem-
bers were added to the church, and his reputation as a
devoted pastor and an eloquent and persuasive preacher
was fully maintained.
In July, 1884, he removed to Bridgeport, Conn., having
accepted a call to the pulpit of the First Baptist Church in
that city, carrying with him and retaining through life the
affectionate regard of very many Concord people in and
out of his society.
Rev. \Y. V. Garner
REV. WILLIAM V. GARNER. 143
His pastorate in Bridgeport continued successfully for
seven years, at the end of which time he severed his rela-
tions with the parish, to engage in secular occupation,
associating himself with his son, W. V. Garner, Jr., in the
real estate business. He continued preaching, however,
filling the pulpit of the Baptist church in Stratficld, Conn.,
in the absence of the regular pastor, for some time previous
to his decease, which occurred quite suddenly, from a
recently developed heart trouble, on the twenty-third da}'
of November, 1892.
Mr. Garner was united in marriage February 24, 1858,
with Miss Margaret A. Jones, daughter of Dea. John R.
Jones, of the Judson Memorial Church, New York, in
whose affectionate companionship he passed the remainder
of his life, and by whom he is survived, with three daugh-
ters, — Mrs. A. H. Lester, Mrs. Herbert Birdseye, and Mrs.
James H. Crossley, — and one son, William V. Garner, Jr.,
all of Bridgeport. But eight days previous to his decease,
he had himself performed the sacred rites which united his
daughter Emma with Mr. Crossley, and the newly-married
couple were recalled from their wedding tour by the sad
intelligence of his death.
Durincr his residence in Concord Mr. Garner became a
member of White Mountain Lodge, I. O. O. F., continuing
his connection therewith till his decease. While in Bridge-
port he was for six years moderator of the Fairfield County
Baptist Association, holding the position at the time of his
death.
Impressive funeral services were conducted at the home,
315 State street, Bridgeport, on November 28, eight clergy-
men of the city acting as honorary pall-bearers. The
remains, temporarily deposited in the receiving-tomb in
that city, have since been interred at Greenwood, the beau-
tiful " City of the Silent," in Brooklyn, N. Y.
The Watchman, the leading organ of the Baptist denom-
ination, sums up the story of his life in brief but tilting
words in concluding its notice of his death: " Mr. Garner
was an accomplished preacher, a faithful pastor, and a
noble, Christian man. He was highly esteemed by his
brethren in the ministry and bv all who knew him.''
FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH, CONCORD.
The First Baptist Church in Concord is one of the oldest
religious organizations in the city, the first steps towards its
formation having been taken in May, 1818, seventy-five
years ago, and its formal recognition occurring in the month
of September of the same year. A sketch of the history
of this church, from the pen of Howard M. Cook, appeared
in the Granite Monthly for October, 1881, and, in this
connection, but a mere outline is necessary.
During the seventy-five years of its existence the church
has had but seven settled pastors : Rev. William Taylor,
from 181S to 1826; Rev. Nathaniel West Williams, from
1S27 to 1 83 1 ; Rev. Ebenezer Edson Cummings, D. D.,
from 1832 to 1850; Rev. Charles Worthen Flanders, D. D.,
from 1851 to 1866; Rev. Daniel Webster Faunce, D. D.,
from 1866 to 1875 '■> Rev. William Vaughn Garner, from
1875 to 1884; Rev. Cephas Bennett Crane, D.D.,from
1885 to the present time.
The church edifice, a cut of which is herewith presented,
is the oldest house of worship now standing in Concord,
having been erected in 1825, and dedicated December 28
of that year. Its original cost was about $7,000, and at the
time ot its erection it was regarded as a spacious and attract-
ive edifice. It has been enlarged, remodeled and improved
at four different times, — in 1835, 1845, 1854, and 1875, — the
last improvement being quite extensive. The present sub-
stantial chapel was built in 1853, and an addition, for a
ladies' parlor and other needed conveniences, was made in
1877. The fine organ now in the church was donated by
Hon. George A. Pillsbury and his son, Charles A. Pills-
bury, of Minneapolis, former worshippers there, and was
placed in position at the time of the last general remod-
eling, in 1875.
Aside from the First Congregational, or " North "Church,
which is the oldest and was for many years the only one in
town, no other religious organization has exercised a greater
influence in the community, nor has its history more closely
interwoven with that of the city than the First Baptist
Church of Concord, which has always included in its mem-
bership a goodly number of the most intelligent, substan-
tial, and public-spirited citizens.
First Baptist Church, Concord, X. H.
THE TIMBERS OF THE KEARSARGE.
IJY JOSEPH BARNARD.
A few months since the newspapers announced that the
famous old gunboat Kearsarge, whose encounter with
the Confederate cruiser Alabama was one of the most
notable events in naval history incident to the war of the
Rebellion, had been overhauled at Brooklyn, and her tim-
bers found "sound as a nut" after thirty-one years of
service.
It is well known to the general public that this famous
vessel was largely manned by New Hampshire sailors at
the time of its conflict with the Alabama, but it is not gen-
erally known that a considerable portion of the timber for
the frame of the vessel came from this state, and was cut in
the town of Hopkinton, though such is the fact.
For several years before the Rebellion, Hon. J. H. Butler
of Nottingham and the writer had been associated in the
handling of oak timber. In the winter of 1860-6 1 we had
quite a large quantity for ship building at Newburyport
and Portsmouth drawn to the railroad. Some of it was the
best quality of oak, and some was "old growth," which had
become comparatively soft and brittle, but, though not
suitable for the navy, answered very well for use in the
construction of ordinary vessels. In the spring or early
summer following Judge Butler came to see me.* He
stated, if I remember rightlv, that the construction of three
gunboats had been ordered by the government in the navy-
vard at Portsmouth. Our navv was then very small. The
government was in need of more vessels, and the best of
white oak timber was wanted for use in building. We had
already sent a good portion of our best timber, w r hen he
came up again to see if the oak on the " Story lot," so
called, could be purchased. This was a superior lot of oak,
standing on Rattlesnake hill, about sixty rods south of Ty-
ler's station, on the Concord & Claremont railroad.
We drove down to Mr. Story's, and he accompanied us
to the lot. After looking it over, and finding it just what
was wanted, We asked Mr. Story his price for the timber.
* A recent letter to Judge Butler, who has been in failing health for some time
past, brought a response from Mrs. Butler to the effect that he distinctly remem-
bers his association with the writer, and the matter of procuring the timber for
the government used in the construction of the Kearsarge.
146 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
"Ten dollars a ton. where it stands," he answered.
Six or seven dollars was considered a fair price at that
time for oak delivered at the railroad.
Judge Butler motioned me aside, and asked, — "Won't
he take less?"
" I think not," I replied, " but we cannot afford to take it
at that price."
"The government must have it, and immediately," he
responded. " Close the trade."
The next day, which, I believe, was Saturday, I set four
men at work cutting and digging. The remainder of the
day was spent in engaging men ; carpenters, blacksmiths,
wheelwrights, farmers, and day laborers were pressed into
the service. Monday morning I had twenty-one men at
work on the lot, and on Tuesday there were thirty. They
were divided into gangs : first, the choppers and diggers ;
second, the trimmers; third, the beaters and scorers;
fourth, the hewers, — one following closely after the other.
A hardy young man was employed carrying water for the
men to drink, that the work might not be delayed. All
trees with one large root were dug, saving a piece of the
root to make " risers," " futtocks," etc.
The government required all timber hewn square ; but
there was no time for splitting hairs, and some of the tim-
ber was nearly as round when sent away as when it was
standing. As soon as the choppers had moved on the
teams were set at work drawing to the railroad, and cars
were loaded and dispatched as rapidly as possible.
Our forest white oak in its best estate, which is at from
eighty-five to one hundred years' growth, is the hardest,
strongest, and most durable of all our New Hampshire
trees ; and such was the kind from which the frame of the
Kearsarge was built. Old Kearsarge mountain can plainly
be seen from the lot where this timber was cut, and the
vessel was fitly named the Kearsarge. Her length was
214J feet, beam 33 feet, and depth 16 feet. She carried
two eleven-inch smooth-bore guns, one thirty-pound rifle,
and four thirty-two pounders. Her opponent, the Ala-
bama, was built of British oak, and her size and armament
were substantially the same as that of the Kearsarge ; so
the two vessels were quite evenly matched. But the Kear-
sarge stood the heavy pounding, and came out of the fight
THE TIMBERS OF THE KEARSARGE. 147
unharmed, except for one heavy shot that stuck in her stern-
post, while the sides of the Alabama were crushed in, and
she was sunk.
The Kearsarge, as is generally known, was assigned to
take part in the grand Columbian naval review, now about
transpiring in New York harbor.
The following has been kindly furnished me by the pres-
ent commandant of the navy-yard at Portsmouth, George
C. Remey :
U. S. Navy- Yard, Portsmouth, N. H.,
Commandant's Office.
March nth, 1893.
Sir :
In reply to your letter of the 9th inst., I have pleasure in fur-
nishing- you with the following information concerning the U. S.
Str. Kearsarge, built at this yard :
Work on the vessel was commenced June 17, 1S61, and com-
pleted Feb. 5, 1S62.
On Wednesday, Sept. n, 1S61, she was taken into the dry
dock from the "ways" on which she was built, and on Saturday,
Oct. 5, 1S61, was launched (floated) from the dry dock.
A draft of men arrived for the vessel Friday, January 24, 1862,
and she was placed in commission on that date, at about 3
o'clock p. m., and on Wednesday, February 5, 1862, at 11
o'clock a. m., the vessel left the yard.
Very respectfully,
GEO. C. REMEY,
Captain, U. S. N.,
Commanding.
Mr. Joseph Barnard,
Hopkinton, N. H.
[Memo.]
The following material was used in the construction of the hull
of the U. S. Str. Kearsarge:
i( HtV cubic feet live oak, moulded.
S,S52 T 3 ^ cubic feet live oak, promiscuous.
10,206^-V cubic feet white oak, moulded.
3,319x2 cubic feet white oak, promiscuous.
479 cubic feet white oak, keel pieces.
153 cubic feet white oak, rudder stock.
i,688 T V cubic feet white oak plank.
250,848 bd. feet white oak plank.
5,257 cubic feet yellow pine plank stock.
3,326 cubic feet yellow pine, moulded.
92,906 bd. feet yellow pine plank.
1,649 cubic feet yellow pine beams.
148 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
I have reduced the above to board measure, that it may
be better understood, and the total is as follows :
Live oak, 108,204
White oak, 422,439^
Yellow pine, .... 215,690
Total 746,333y 7 2 &• bd. measure.
DAWN AMONG THE ALPS.
BY GEORGE BANCROFT GRIFFITH.
Solemn and silent the mountains stood,
And all in shadow the valleys lay ;
Smooth as a lake hung o'er the wood
The mists that so soon would flee away.
Like a tiny bell from a chalet rang
The time-piece, striking for half-past four;
Then the first faint glow of the dawn upsprang,
And the snow-crowned peaks a rose-hue wore.
In a moment the whole ridge seemed on fire !
Then the herdsman seized his Alpine horn,
And while the rich tints mounted higher
His weird strain welcomed in the morn.
How glowed the landscape beneath, around !
The sun rushed up like a burning ball ;
And, sweet as an angel's trump, the sound
Of the music echoed from hill and fall.
For a thousand leagues the mists were stirred,
The clear air shimmered, the smoke uprose ;
A hymn of praise from afar was heard —
" He blessed our land, may He save our foes !"
So like creeping ghosts the shadows fled,
The bright stars paled in the sk}''s blue dome,
And, with glory wreathed, the mountain's head
Looked down as to bless each fair Swiss home.
CAPTAIN HENRY LOVEJOY.
BY J. W. ROBINSON.
Among the most noted and able men who settled at an
early date in Penny Cook was Capt. Henry Lovejoy. He
must have had an inventive turn of mind as well as a great
amount of perseverance and push. I cannot ascertain that
he was related to either Nathaniel or Ebenezer Lovejoy,
who were among the very first settlers admitted to this
beautiful valley, as shown by the earliest records of Penny
Cook for the years of 1721 and 1725. The first mention I
find of Henry Lovejoy's name was on the 26th day of
March, 1733, when, at a meeting of the proprietors, it was
voted that Mr. Henry Lovejoy and Mr. Barachias Farnum
be accepted and approved of for building of mills on Tur-
key river in Penny Cook.
At a legal meeting of the proprietors of Rumford, held
on the nth day of March, 1734, it was voted that John
Chandler " shall have the liberty to build a saw mill on
Rattle Snake brook, and liberty to flow the great pond
called Rattle Snake pond." Captain Chandler did not
improve the property, but Captain Lovejoy soon acquired
a title to the same, and built a grist mill instead of a saw
mill. I do not learn that Lovejoy and Farnum built a mill
on Turkey river, as at first contemplated. In order to
supply his mill on Rattle Snake brook with water-power,
the Captain, instead of building a dam, performed what
at that time must have been a very difficult task ; he
excavated a canal in very hard ground for some forty rods
and turned the brook through it, thus bringing the water to
the top of the hill or slope that faces to the south-east
(just west of Holden's new mill); there he led the water
through a flume on to an overshot wheel. Near his mill
he built a garrison, or fort. At that time there were no
settlers between him and Canada. The old canal is still
used (or was until very recently) by the Concord Manu-
facturing Company, to conduct the water to their mill.
The hardy pioneers that soon settled in the most desira-
ble localities hereabouts came to the new mill through the
wilderness with their grists on their backs. During the years
of 1745, '46 and '47 the Indians were so troublesome, it is
related, that they used to go in considerable numbers when
they went to mill, but at some distance apart, so as not to
150 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
be ambushed and shot down in a body by the redskins.
One day a party of four went up from the " Street," as the
thickest-settled part of the place was called, each beside his
grist, carrying a gun ready for instant use, with a distinct
understanding that no one was to fire unless an Indian
should be discovered. Everything went well until their
grists were ground and they were returning, when one Zeb
Farnum, who was in the rear, shot a deer. Immediately
each man in front threw down his grist and jumped behind
a big tree, with gun cocked, on the lookout for a foe.
When they learned the cause of the shooting they were
very indignant, but as each had a quarter of venison to
take home with his meal it may be supposed that peace
soon reigned in the camp.
Capt. Lovejoy, soon after the completion of his mill and
garrison, put in a dam just above the mouth or upper end
of his canal, and built a forge, or smelter, and made bar
iron from ore obtained under the high bluff at the bend of
the river above the lower bridge, and it is presumed that
the or.e was carried up through the woods on horseback.
This iron industry became of great importance to the set-
tlers, as well as the grist mill, but the Indians were so
troublesome that provincial troops were stationed at the
Captain's garrison several times to protect the workmen.
It is related that the Indians were much frightened by the
noise caused by Lovejoy's trip-hammer, and by the sparks
thrown off from the hot iron.
Capt. Lovejoy came in time to own nearly all the land
now included in the West Village. Later on, his familv
'having all died, he sold out to Josiah Farnum, and moved
" down east," near the close of the last century, to what
afterwards became the state of Maine, where he died about
1805, at the ripe age of nearly ninety years.
As a lasting and fitting memorial to this intrepid man,
who had the foresight and courage, at that early date and
under such adverse circumstances, to build a mill, garrison,
and forge, and successfully manage them, what can be more
appropriate than to change the name of Rattle Snake hill
to that of Mount Lovejoy? It was under the very shadow
of the hill that the Captain performed such heroic service ;
and, as it has recently been ascertained that the summit of
the hill is nearly eight hundred feet above tide-water, it
may well be called a mountain.
JOSEPH DUDLEY, THE SECOND PRESIDENT.
MAY 25 TO DECEMBER 20, 16S6.
BY ALMA J. HERBERT.
Charles II was dead. The charter of Massachusetts was
vacated. James II, pledged to preserve the laws inviolate,
established a provisional government over Nova Scotia,
Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Narragansett,
called the King's Province, and Joseph Dudley, with a
council of seventeen members selected by the crown, was
appointed ruler, with the title of President. He had
arrived on the Rose, May 14th, and presented his commis-
sion to the officials, who entertained scruples, and considered.
There was no provision for an assembly, nor for the admin-
istration of justice ; but on the 20th they yielded, saying,
" If you do take upon you the government of the people,
altho' we cannot give our assent thereto, yet we hope we
shall demean ourselves as true and loyal subjects to his
Majesty," and appointed a committee to receive and pre-
serve the records of the charter government, and sadly
adjourned. On the 21st the new president went on board
the frigate a little below the castle, the royal flag was dis-
played at the main-top, and at about 5 o'clock in the after-
noon she sailed up to the town, the castle firing twenty-five
guns, the sconce and ships in port, Noddle's Island and the
Charlestown batteries joining in, the frigate replying, and
flags over all. Bradstreet and the other officers met him
with the usual escort, and after the proclamation there were
such festivities as twenty-one pounds charged to the prov-
ince procured. On the 25th the reading of his commis-
sion in the assembly dissolved that body, and ended the
history of fifty-eight years under the old charter. The
president and council issued a call for an assembly, as he
had informed the last that the changes from the old would
be few, and he should hasten "to lay them at his most gra-
cious Majesty's feet for allowance and confirmation." The
obnoxious Randolph, who, in his zeal for royal despotism,
crossed the Atlantic eight times in nine years, still held his
office, and the two quarrelled, and in hatred of Randolph
the people warmed slightly towards Dudlev. On June
10th an order of council — of which John Hicks was the
member from New Hampshire — was issued, setting the
county courts, — " The first at Great Island, the first Tues-
day in October ; the second at Portsmouth, the first Tues-
day in April ; with Richard Chamberlin as Clerk, Mr.
152 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
Pheasant Eastwick, Coroner;" with appeal to a supreme
court three times a year at Boston. September 25th the
queen's birthday was observed by the loyal officers of the
warship with show of bunting, guns, huzzahs, and a jubi-
lee of bonfires on the Island, as they were forbidden in
town for fear of conflagration. Many people were greatly
disturbed by the noise on that Saturday evening, as it was
customary to regard Sunday as beginning at sunset of Sat-
urday. The king's birthday was similarly observed Octo-
ber 14th. The president seems not to have visited New
Hampshire, and the short time left scanty records. Two
matters are worthy of preservation, — " that none presume to
draw drink without license under the penalty of five pounds
for every conviction ;" and " there having been appointed
meet persons for the surveying of ships [either which are
building or defective] and demnified goods, such per-
sons are continued in the service." President Dudley's
short term of office expired December 20th, when Sir Ed-
mund Andros took the oath of office. The first appearance
of Dudley in public life was when sent to England to
defend the people against the claims of Gorges and Mason;
and again, in 1681, pledged not to do or consent to any-
thing that should violate or infringe the liberties and priv-
ileges granted by the charter, — to protest against Ran-
dolph's quo warrantos, — but he saw the way open to his
ambition and went over to the side of royal prerogative,
and the people regarded him as a traitor. He was chief-
justice and president of the council under Andros, and
on that governor's fall, on the accession of William
and Mary, on returning from his official duties, he was
arrested and imprisoned. After a short time in jail he was
guarded in his Roxbury residence till a mob demanded his
imprisonment. The jail-keeper refusing to receive him,
he was left over Sunday with a niece, Mrs. Page. On
Monday the windows were broken there, and to keep the
peace he walked with some gentlemen to the jail and
remained, with frequent protests, till ordered to England
for trial and discharged. He was the first chief-justice of
New York, 169 1-2 ; deputy governor of the Isle of Wight ;
in Parliament, "commending himself to English dissenters
by his piety, and to the court party by his vote." After
ten years of secret intrigue for office in his native land we
shall meet him again.
A SUCCESSFUL V/OMAN.
BY H. II. METCALF.
While volumes have been written to tell the story of the
"self-made" and successful men of our own and other
times, comparatively little has been said or written concern-
ing the world's successful women — those who, while re-
membering and honoring their womanhood and remaining
faithful to all its peculiar obligations and responsibilities,
have asserted their independence of old-time conventional
limitations and their right to make the best of all the powers
with which nature has endowed them, and, acting accord-
ingly, not with noisy demonstration, but with fixed purpose
and quiet determination, have made honorable place for
themselves in the ranks of the world's workers. Such
women there have been, such there are, and many more
there will be in the years to come. Of one of the number
it is the writer's purpose to speak briefly, at this time.
Lydia Abigail Gray, now Mrs. A. M. Scott of Man-
chester, was born in China, Me., February 4, 1841, being
the third daughter and fifth child of Hon. John L. and
Lydia (Carlton) Gray. Her parents — the father of sturdy
Scotch-Irish stock, and the mother of an old English family
— were worthy members of an intelligent rural community,
blessed with honest purpose and a goodl} r family of chil-
dren rather than wealth, and the rearing of those children
worthily and well was the prime object of their lives. The
father, hale and hearty at eighty-five, is still living in the
Pine Tree State ; the mother, a woman of great strength of
character and happy disposition, who made herself the
friend of all with whom she came in contact, entered the
higher life nearly twenty years ago. Five daughters, in-
cluding the subject of this sketch, and one son, the latter
Hon. John Carlton Gray, a prominent lawyer of Oraville,
California, and for some time past a judge of the superior
court, survive. One son, Capt. Lemuel Carlton Gray,
died February 23, 1880.
Her father was a staunch Democrat, and the old Augusta
Age furnished the fireside reading for the household of the
faithful Maine Democrat in those days; among Mrs. Scott's
earliest recollections is that of reading this paper aloud to
her father and others at evening, while another is of writing
154 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
votes previous to the annual election-day for the various
candidates of the party, of which her father was one of the
active leaders in the town, filling various responsible posi-
tions, including membership in the state legislature. To
secure better educational advantages for his family, when
she was thirteen years of age, her father removed to South
China, where she attended the public schools and the acad-
emy, and made such excellent use of her opportunities that
at fifteen she was given a teacher's certificate, which impor-
tant document she still cherishes among her choicest treas-
ures. A little later she commenced writing for newspapers,
mainly for mental discipline and pastime, her first published
productions appearing in the Kennebec yoiirnal, then under
the editorial management of James G. Blaine. She has con-
tinued writing, more or less, through the changing situations
of her life, for various New England papers, her topics per-
taining mainly to the home, to character building and ques-
tions of social import, although she has frequently done
descriptive and reportorial work.
October 24, 1859, when in her nineteenth year, she was
united in marriage, at Augusta, with Albert M. Scott, and
made her home in that city, where her husband, a young
man of twenty-four, was overseer in a cotton factory.
Here their daughter and only child, Hattie Isabelle, was
born, February 23, 1862. But the War of the Rebellion was
then in progress. The call of patriotism summoned the
3'oung husband to the defence of the Union ; the claims of
wife and child held him at their side ; finally she consented
to his enlistment, and he entered the Union service as a ser-
geant in Company B, 2d Maine Cavalry, November 13, 1863,
continuing through the war. Bidding her husband God-
speed as he went forth to do battle under his country's flag,
the young wife, thrown largely upon her own resources for
support of herself and child, looked the future in the face
and with true womanly courage entered upon the path before
her. Teaching was the occupation in which she engaged,
and, putting her heart into her work, she pursued it success-
fully. During the two years of her husband's absence she
learned the lesson of self-reliance, and initiated the work of
developing those previously latent powers which, in the full-
ness of their strength, have made her the well-poised and
successful woman she is to-day.
A SUCCESSFUL WOMAN. 155
After the war Mr. Scott removed with his family to Salem,
and subsequently to Whitinsville, Mass., where he was
engaged for some years in his work of cotton manufactur-
ing. In March, 1872, he removed to the city of Manches-
ter, where he has since resided, holding a good position as
an overseer in the Manchester Mills. Here, for the last
twenty-one years, has been Mrs. Scott's home. Com-
fortably situated and provided for through her husband's
labor, she might, like the average woman, have contented
herself with attention to ordinary domestic duties and the
common rounds of social life. But, having realized her
power for other work, and her right and duty in the line of
greater development and multiplied effort, she has not been
thus content. Neglecting no home duty in the slightest
degree, meeting in full measure every obligation of wife
and mother, fulfilling every just social requirement, she has
passed these limitations and interested herself in other
work, with her own mental and material advancement and
the benefit of others alike in view.
Her decided literary taste has been cultivated and
strengthened. Early in its history she became an active
member of the Manchester Shakespeare Club, has continued
her interest in its work, and is now upon her second term
as president of the organization. Continuing her news-
paper writing, and contributing quite extensively to the
Manchester Union, during the later years of the proprietor-
ship of Campbell & Hanscom, she became editor of the
Fireside department of that paper early in 1880, after the
change in proprietorship, continuing for five years, during
which time her work attracted wide attention, and her
words of hopeful cheer lessened the burdens of many a
housewife, and carried light and comfort to many a home
circle.
With a strong sympathy for disabled soldiers and their
dependent families, she became interested in the outset in
the work of the Woman's Relief Corps, and was a charter
member of Louis Bell Corps, No. 17, of Manchester. Never
seeking, and many times refusing, important official posi-
tions in the corps and department, she wrought earnestly in
the ranks to promote the objects of the organization ; while
the personal effort she has given in numberless cases to aid
worthy veterans in securing pensions is best known . by
156 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
those most closely concerned. She served two years as a
member of the department council in this state, and was
twice delegate-at-large from New Hampshire to the Na-
tional W. R. C. convention, attending the sessions at Port-
land, Me., and San Francisco, Cal. In 1885 she was
appointed by the national president, Mrs. Sarah E. Fuller,
chief of staff, being the first person who ever held that posi-
tion, which she accepted only upon urgent solicitation and
out of consideration for her state. In 1886 she was ap-
pointed by President Elizabeth D'A. Kinne a member of
the national pension committee, her associates being Mrs.
E. Florence Barker, Mrs. Kate B. Sherwood, Mrs. Mary
A. Logan, and Miss Clara Barton, and she contributed her
full share of effort in furthering the important work of the
committee.
The following words from the pen of Mrs. Fuller most
fittingly characterize Mrs. Scott, and her work in and out
of the order :
^ At the Department Convention of the Woman's Relief Corps,
held in Portsmouth, N. H., in January, 1S83, I first met Mrs.
Lydia A. Scott. Her fine intellectual face, well modulated
voice, and commanding presence at once attracted attention. As
a speaker she had the rare ability of expressing herself clearly,
and in language forcible but concise, with a fund of humor that
always pleased, while on all questions relating to the interests of
disabled veterans there was a strong pathos and sense of justice
and equity that proved her a woman of deep thought, and thor-
oughly conversant with the subject.
kt Positively declining nominations for several important posi-
tions, it was evident she did not desire honors or office, but was
a willing worker. Without doubt she has clone more pension
work, and aided more old soldiers to secure their pensions than
any other woman in New England.
" As National President of the Woman's Relief Corps, in 1SS5,
it was my pleasure to tender her the position of Chief of Staff of
National Aides, an office which she filled with great credit to
herself and the order.
"On the journey across the continent with the entire New
England delegations of the G. A. R. and W. R. C, and during
the week of national convention in San Francisco, Mrs. Scott
won hosts of friends, and received the highest compliments from
military men, as well as the old veterans and the most prominent
women of our order, for the lady-like and efficient manner in
A SUCCESSFUL WOMAN. 157
which she performed the duties of an office never before filled by
:i woman.
" Possessing a generous, sympathetic nature, her great warm
heart is ever ready to respond to the call for aid from the sick or
suffering, and many a soldier's widow and orphan children will
rise up and call her blessed.
" Her friendship is constant and true : an affectionate, devoted
wife and mother, her home is indeed a haven of rest, as well as
a bright social center, for her literary ability and attainments
naturally attract the brightest minds of the social and literary
world."
Soon after the marriage of her daughter, November 22,
1882, to Edward Lyon Swazey, a successful young ranch-
man and cattle dealer, then of Wyoming, now residing in
Kansas Citv, she was advised by her physician to engage
in work involving travel and out-door activity. Accord-
ingly she entered the service of the C. A. Nichols Co., the
well-known publishing firm of Springfield, Mass., and
although on her first day's effort, in the city of Concord, she
was advised by one, now a senator in Congress, not to con-
tinue, as she was sure to make a failure in the work, such
was the measure of her success that, within one year from
that date, she was offered a salary of $4,000 per annum by
a responsible firm, which she declined, because acceptance
would take her continuously from home. Subsequently,
for some time, she successfully conducted a general agency
business in various lines, but earl}' in 1892 she engaged as
an agent for the sale of real estate in Kearney, Neb., after
satisfying herself by personal investigation of the complete
reliability of these investments. In this line she has met
with phenomenal success, and at the last annual meeting
she was made one of the directors of the Kearnev Land and
Investment Ccmpaiw.
As to her business capacity, it may be said that the
C. A. Nichols Co. testify to their continued " admiration for
the energy and tact which, under all circumstances, enabled
her to reach the most unapproachable," and they add the
recollection that "during her busiest moments her mother's
heart never forgot that she was still a woman."
A woman she is, indeed, true to her sex and all that per-
tains thereto ; though never an advocate of woman suffrage,
yet ready to meet its responsibilities whenever they may
158 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
come. Never concerning herself in partisan politics, her
advice is nevertheless sought by many a man among her
friends in both parties, as is also her judgment in business
affairs. She has been the true friend, filling almost a
mother's place to more than one young man who owes
success in abundant measure to her kindly interest and
counsel. Though uniting early in life with the Congrega-
tional church, and remaining a member of the Franklin
Street Church, in Manchester, she long ago outgrew all
credal limitations and puts her faith in that practical
Christianity which seeks the greatest good for man, physi-
cal and mental, moral and spiritual, in this world of time
and sense.
THE OLD FARM.
BY C. JENNIE SWAINE.
I watch the folding shadows where the hand of daylight
closes
Around the gilded mountains the soft draperies of night,
And I dream of summer sunsets that were banks of crim-
son roses
In the glowing ether gardens of the fading summer light ;
And across the hills of verdure and the valleys of the
daises
To the pasture by the hillside I am wafted ever on,
And I see the same wild blossoms where'er my pleased
eye fondly gazes
That I used to love to gather at the setting of the sun.
Is the lovely vision real, or am I only thinking
Of the olden golden sunsets with their aftermath of stars,
And the brook's low, distant murmur, and the kine-bell's
silver tinkling,
As they left the fragrant pasture when my hand let down
the bars?
Or are dreams but wandering breezes in the distant wild-
wood shadows,
Where song seems the sweeter in the waning light of day,
THE OLD FARM.
■59
As with little trills of music the lark sails down the
meadow,
Swinging low as if he scented the fragrance of the hay?
Through the changes of the music which the mellow years
are singing,
One strain of all the sweetness grows sweeter still to me,
And amid time's many pictures where the golden lights are
clinging,
The summers on the farm will the dearest ever be ;
For the glory of their sunsets are in rival lights outshining
The real of to-day with its true and living charm,
While memory 'round the past like an ivy-vine is twining,
Where summer immortelles are still blooming on the
farm.
If the earth renewed and blooming in eternity's glad
summer
Should bid me choose a mansion on the spot I love the
best,
With the clearness of the vision that follows death's long
slumber,
On the dear old farm in summer I would surely choose
to rest ;
With my loved ones all about me in youth and bloom
immortal,
And love's wreath mine without loss of flower or star,
This were my heart's true home and heaven's shining
portal,
W T ith the gate between the flower-lands ajar.
MUSICAL DEPARTMENT.
CONDUCTED BY H. G. BLAISDELL.
N. H. M. T. A.
The fourth annual meeting of the New Hampshire Music
Teachers' Association is announced for July 24-28. As
heretofore, the meeting will be held at the Weirs. There
have been many improvements made at this resort the past
winter, which will make our next meeting more pleasant in
every way. We are aware that hotel accommodations are
limited and inadequate to the demands of our meetings —
inadequate in a sense of comfort pertaining to rooms rather
than menu. But why should this stand in the way of our
success? Our mission there is not one of pleasure wholly.
We have a work, a duty to perform for a common good.
We must try to guide the hand that would dictate to our
young in the generation to come the method or methods
which will reveal the hidden beauties and wonders of this
art, developing a God-given talent and taste which is so
sadly neglected, adding to our education and accomplish-
ments as a people, drawing us nearer the Infinite, bringing
sunshine to paths now obscured by the dark clouds ot
neglect. Let us master our selfishness, and work one week
for the good of the present and those yet to come.
The plan now is to do less chorus work, and do it better
than heretofore. The liability to excessive heat and a
desire for more finished renderings has stimulated the pro-
gramme committee to this conclusion. The orchestra, this
season, will be of greater service to the Association than
ever before, as experienced men only have been engaged.
It is also intended to engage one or more vocal artists who
command the highest regard of the musical world in an
artistic sense.
An excursion on the lake for Wednesday afternoon will,
most likely, be arranged this year. Let us urge music
teachers, and all who are interested in music, to make their
plans now to attend this meeting. Come with a determina-
tion to instruct as well as to be instructed. Come full of
spirit and happiness, and help make others so, for why
should it be otherwise? Called together in the very heart
MUSICAL, DEPARTMENT. K)l
of picturesque New Hampshire, on the shores of one of the
most charming lakes in the world, — "The smile of the
Great Spirit," which sends everlasting greeting to all, —
where nature's pictures are so wonderfully drawn, here you
are invited to meet for a divine purpose, obeying a com-
mand and doing a duty which will send every true man
and woman away feeling that the blessing of Him who
ruleth over all is richly and deservedly bestowed upon
them.
CONCORD CHORAL. SOCIETY.
The Concord Choral Society has voted to postpone the
presentation of the "Messiah" until next Christmas, and
give for its next concert the " One Hundredth Psalm," by
Lachner, and other choruses of a miscellaneous character.
Fcr this entertainment only home talent is to be employed.
This, in every sense, is a move in the right direction. To
begin with, no society, except some old organization, can
give so great a work without practice covering at least
one year; in the next place, it is well to give home talent a
hearing in a public concert where the patronage of the
people is solicited, for without such encouragement no
place can ever expect to develop or maintain anything
worthv of mention in either science or art.
NOTES.
The Schubert club of Laconia will give its last concert
for the season May 4. " Don Munio," bv Dudley Buck,
will be performed. Mrs. Gertrude Swayne Mathews,
soprano. Mr. Charles Swayne, tenor, of Boston (both na-
tives of Laconia), Mr. Scribner, basso, of the South
Church choir of Concord, with eight pieces of Blaisdell's
orchestra, have been engaged.
Dr. B. F. Rix of Lowell, Mass., has been engaged as
organist for one year at the Unitarian church in Concord.
A man living in Milford, who holds a responsible town
office, was delegated as one of a committee to visit Boston
to purchase a piano for the town hall. He displayed his
knowledge of the mechanism of the instrument, and relieved
the anxiety of his constituents by assuring them that he
Ifi2 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
should not consent to a purchase until he could examine
the inside, to " see if the pipes were all in and in good
working order."
Manchester is taking a step forward in the line of lady-
violinists. Among the prominent are the Misses Grace and
Myra Webster, daughters of G. N. Webster, the well-
known agent for Hood of Lowell. They give much
promise, and have appeared in the violin recitals at the
New England Conservatory in Boston, with flattering suc-
cess. They are pupils of Emile Mahr, of the N. E. Con-
servatory.
Mr. Charles S. Conant, teacher of music in the public
schools of the cities of Concord and Laconia, has, through
his publisher, Mr. W. K. Day, given the public a very
beautiful sacred song, the text being " Rock of Ages," and
dedicated to Mrs. S. L. Bartlett, one of Concord's best vocal-
ists, who sang it while in manuscript at the exhibition of
Sherman's Phantasma, under the auspices of the Universal-
ist society, at White's Opera House, in February. The
music is written in excellent taste, and shows much talent
in the line of composition.
A successful concert was given in Proctor Hall, Andover,
Thursday evening, April 20, by Concord talent, consisting
of Mrs. S. L. Bartlett, contralto, Mr. I. Eugene Keeler,
tenor, and Miss Ada M. Aspinwall, pianist and accompan-
ist, assisted by Miss Fannie E. Hadley of Fitzwilliam,
reader. Although a storm)'' evening, there was a good-
sized audience in attendance, and a very appreciative one.
NEW HAMPSHIRE NECROLOGY.
HON. DAVID MORRILL.
Hon. David Morrill, born in Canterbury August 12,
1798, died in that town April 6, 1893.
He was of the fourth generation from Ezekiel Morrill, a
pioneer settler from Salisbury, Mass. He was a large
farmer and prominent citizen ; in politics an active Repub-
lican, having been an original abolitionist, and a co-worker
with Stephen S. Foster. He held various town offices,
representing Canterbury in the legislature in 1859, and was
a member of the state senate in i860 and 1861. He had
been twice married, and had eight children, of whom six
survive, five sons and a daughter. Of these two sons,
George P. and Milo S. reside in Canterbury ; the others
are in the West.
BENJAMIN POOR.
Benjamin Poor, born in Raymond September 24, 1795,
died in that town March 30, 1893.
He was the third son and seventh child of Ebenezer and
Sarah (Brown) Poor, and a descendant of Samuel Poor of
Wiltshire, England, who settled in Newbury, Mass., in
1635. He enlisted as a fifer in a state regiment which went
to the defence of Portsmouth in the latter part of the war
of 181 2, and for the last twenty years or more of his life
received a government pension on account of that service.
He became a prominent and influential citizen, held various
town offices, represented Raymond in the state legislature
in 1837 an d 1838, and was one of the road commissioners
for Rockingham county in 1843 and 1844. He was an
extensive farmer, a public-spirited citizen of sound judg-
ment and business sagacity, and in politics a zealous Demo-
crat. He retained his interest in public affairs to the last,
and voted at the election in November, 1892, although then
in feeble health, that being the last time he left home. He
leaves three children, — two daughters and one son, — Mrs.
Sarah J. Moar, Melinda K. and George S. Poor. His wife,
formerly Miss Alice Moore of Chester, with whom he was
united in 1816, died some fifteen years ago.
1(34 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
GREENLEAF CILLEY BARTLETT.
Greenleaf C. Bartlett, a well-known lawyer of Derry,
and a native of Nottingham, born May 7, 1822, died at his
home in Derry April 10, 1893. He commenced the prac-
tice of law in Salem in 1847, but removed to Derry in 1855.
He had been for many years clerk of the Rockingham
county bar, and represented the town of Derry in the
legislature in 1866.
HON. WILLIAM H. SHEPARD.
William H. Shepard, for some years past a prominent
citizen of Deny, died in that town April 10, 1893. He
was born in Holderness May 18, 1S16, where he passed his
early life on a farm, but went to Lowell, Mass., in youth,
and subsequently to Framingham, where he was extensively
engaged in woolen manufacture for a long series of years,
but for some twenty years past had been a resident of Der-
ry, which town he had represented in the legislature. He
also served as a state senator in 1879. He was a director
and vice-president of the Derry National Bank, and his
son, Frederick J. Shepard, is cashier of that institution.
DR. HOMER BROOKS.
Homer Brooks, M. D., a popular physician of Haverhill,
Mass., died in that city April 4, 1893. He was a native
of the town of Franconia, born August 1, 1855. He was
educated at the Littleton High School and Dartmouth Col-
lege, graduating from the latter in 1877 ; he studied medi-
cine with Dr. William Child at Bath, and Dr. Peabody of
Worcester, Mass., and graduated from the Homeopathic
Medical College of New York in 1881, in which year he
married Miss Minna Needham of West Peabody, Mass.,
and commenced the practice of his profession in Haverhill,
where he continued till death. He was successful in prac-
tice, popular and public-spirited as a citizen, and an active
member of the Haverhill school board. He is survived by
a widow and four children.
EZRA S. HARRIS.
Ezra S. Harris, born in Marlow November 27, 1827,
died at Penacook March 23, 1893. Like his father Almon,
NECROLOGY. 165
and grandfather, Bcthuel Harris, he was a prominent woolen
manufacturer, and was proprietor of the Dustin Island
Woolen Mills at Penacook, where he had been engaged in
business for forty-five years. He had been prominent in
public affairs, and represented the town of Boscawen in the
legislature in 1891.
HUGH K. P.AOORE.
Hugh Kelsea Moore, founder and superintendent of the
American Steam Gauge Company of Boston, died at his
home in Maiden, Mass., March 20, 1893.
He was a native of Pembroke, born August 12, 181 5,
but had been a resident of Maiden nearly half a century.
He was prominent in military, musical, and Masonic circles.
Rev. Albert W. Moore, pastor of the Central Congrega-
tional Church of Lynn, is a son of the deceased.
FREDERICK A. LULL.
Frederick A. Lull, born in Lebanon, N. H., September
24, 183 1, died in Cambridgeport, Mass., March 22, 1893.
He was actively engaged in the real estate and insurance
business, and was one of the oldest constables in the city
of Cambridge. He served during the late war in the
Second Massachusetts Heavy Artillery and the Fifth Massa-
chusetts Battery, and was brevetted major for gallant and
meritorious service.
DR. HANSON C. CANNEY.
Hanson C. Canney, M. D., a prominent ph} T sician of
Manchester, died at his home in that city April 21, 1893,
from the results of an accident occurring some two weeks
previously, when he was thrown from a carriage.
Dr. Canney was born in the town of Strafford, Novem-
ber 17, 1839, Dut removed with his parents to Barnstead
when about seven years of age. He worked at farm labor
in early life when not attending the district school, but ac-
quired an academic education at Pittsfield, New Hampton,
and Gilmanton. He studied medicine with Dr. John Wheeler
of Pittsfield, and Prof. A. B. Crosby at Hanover, gradu-
ating from the Dartmouth Medical College in 1864. In Jan-
166 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
nary following he commenced the practice of his profession
in the town of Auburn, where he remained until November,
1874, meeting with a good measure of success in his prac-
tice, and gaining the confidence and respect of his fellow-
townsmen, who made him their superintendent of schools
for several years, and sent him as their representative to the
legislature in 1873 and 1874. In 1875 and 1876 he was
city physician for Manchester, and in the latter year was a
representative in the legislature from ward four. He
always had a strong taste for literature, wrote quite exten-
sively for the press, and was for a time editor and joint
proprietor of the publication known as " The Boys and
Girls of New Hampshire." He had been one of the cen-
sors of the New Hampshire Medical Society, was an
active member of the Masonic fraternity, and one of the
organizers of the Manchester Building and Loan Associa-
tion, of which he was president at the time of his death.
November 13, 1864, he married Ellen M. Nutter, daughter
of William Nutter of Barnstead, by whom he had two
children, of whom one, a daughter of 18 years, survives.
GRAFTON T. NUTTER.
Grafton T. Nutter, born in Wolfeborough July 9, 1825,
died in Boston March 23, 1893.
At the age of thirteen years he left home, where he had
enjoyed but meager educational advantages, and went to
Boston, where he became an apprentice in the cabinet-mak-
ing business, at which he served some years, continuing
the work until 25 years of age, when he commenced rail-
roading, serving first as a brakeman in the employ of the
Grand Trunk road, being soon promoted to freight con-
ductor, in which capacity he ran the first train over the
Niagara Falls Suspension bridge to test its strength. Sub-
sequently, he removed West and became agent of the Chi-
cago, Milwaukee & St. Paul road, but left this position to
become eastern agent of the Chicago & North-Western,
with headquarters in Boston and New York. After the
completion of the Pacific railroads he organized the Cali-
fornia fast freight line. He was the inventor of the Nut-
ter car-hoist and truck-transfer machine, in use upon many
important lines. During some of the later years of his life
NECROLOGY. 167
he was agent of the Erie freight line in Providence and Bos-
ton, but retired from business a year ago. He is survived
bv a son and daughter, the former being John I. Nutter,
New York agent of the Pacific Mail Steamship Company.
SCHUYLER WALKER.
Schuyler Walker, born in Bow, May 15, 181 1, died in
Charlestown, Mass., March 17, 1893.
He spent his early life in his native town, where he mar-
ried Mary C. Green, in August, 1838. He filled all the
offices in the gift of the people of Bow, and represented
them in the legislature, and in the constitutional conven-
tion of 1850. In 1S55 he removed to the town of Alexan-
dria, where he resided till 1869, serving several years as
selectman, as representative in 1864, and as a member of
the board of county commissioners for Grafton county.
From 1869 to 1875 he resided in Bristol, removing to
Massachusetts in the latter year, where he remained till
the death of his wife, in November, 1880, when he returned
to his old home in Bow. He leaves three sons and two
daughters, and was stopping with one of the latter, Mrs.
A. N. Blake of Charlestown, at the time of his decease.
DR. GEORGE H. POWERS.
George H. Powers, M. D., a native of Groton, born
September 26, 1852, died at Acworth April 12, 1893. He
gained an academical education by his own efforts, and
graduated from the Dartmouth Medical College in the class
of 188 1. In November of that year he married Miss Hat-
tie A. Stearns of Lebanon, and immediately commenced
practice in the town of Hopkinton, where he remained until
July, 1888, when he left Hopkinton and located in Concord ;
but in January following, at the solicitation of Dr. C. A.
Allen of Acworth, whose wife, a sister of Mrs. Powers,
had recently deceased leaving several small children, he
removed to the latter town and associated himself in prac-
tice with Dr. Allen. Some time later Dr. Allen removed to
Holyoke, Mass., and Dr. Powers continued alone at Ac-
worth, where he had a wide and very laborious field of
practice. He was an active worker in the Congregational
church, and left a large circle of friends.
"POEMS OF PENACOOK."
Mr. C. C. Lord, who has recently published the " His-
torical Classics of Hopkinton, N. H.," has added another
to his list of useful and entertaining works. The " Poems
of Penacook " represents his latest effort in the line of
adapting local history to classical sentiment. The success
of Mr. Lord's original literary scheme is abundantly-
attested in the approval of his critics. In fact, the success
of his Hopkinton classics has proved the pledge of the
" Poems of Penacook," which is a Concord book, written
and published in consequence of the special requests of his
appreciative readers among the more influential residents
of the capital city. The "Poems of Penacook" represents
two early chapters of Concord's history, adopted and em-
bellished in Mr. Lord's best poetic vein. The story in
each case is told in blank verse, the monotony of which is
at intervals broken and interspersed with lighter specimens
of verse in rhyme, touched off in the author's happiest man-
ner. The local chapters of history are respectively em-
bodied in "The Seer" and "The Last Powwow." The
"Seer" is no other than Passaconnaway, the wonderful
sage of the Penacook tribe of Indians, to whom early local
civilization owed so much on account of his far-seeing intel-
ligence and skillful government, by which he held numerous
confederated tribes in restraint in the presence of the sus-
pected and aggressive white invasion of the Indians' local
primeval home. The "Last Powwow" was an actual
occurrence that historically closed the career of the Pena-
cooks in Concord, and appropriately names the chapter
that recites the progressive downfall of the tribe. The
complete " Poems of Penacook" embraces a copious col-
lection of historical and other notes that greatly assist the
comprehension of the descriptive text.
Poems of Penacook. By C. C. Lord. l2mo. cloth, gilt edges, $1.00. At
Eastman's, Mace's, and Hunt's, Concord, N. H.
PUBLISHER'S NOTE.
Subscribers for the Granite Monthly who have not
vet paid for the current volume, should remit at once, to
i ,-K
secure the benefit of the advance rate, — $1.50 per annum.
When payment is delayed to the end of the year, the price
is $2.00
Rev. Nathan R. Wright.
The Granite Monthly
VOL XV. JUNE, 1893. NO. 6.
REV. NATHAN REED WRIGHT.
BY REV. A. A. MINER, D. D., LL. D.
Among the most useful and honored of the sons of New
Hampshire was the subject of this sketch. Rev. Nathan
Reed Wright, son of Dr. Nathan and Betsey L. Wright,
and the third of a family of nine children, — six sons and
three daughters, — was born February 8, 1810, in Washing-
ton, N. H. His family were among the sturdy yeomanry
of that town, of high character, though of but moderate
resources. His opportunities for education were meagre,
but such as they were he made the most of. His first essay
in that direction was attendance upon a private school, in
a private house, where the economic housewife utilized the
living-room as a schoolroom, dining-room, kitchen, pantr} r ,
and bedroom, the latter proving specially convenient when
any of her little candidates for future honors chanced to
fall asleep.
Graduating shortly from such a school to one in a school-
house of the roughest description, limited to four months
in a year, he made such progress as he could until twelve
years of age, when his family removed to the village.
Until then his church privileges, though five miles distant,
were constantly availed of, while his private religious
training was received at the hands of a venerated grand-
mother, whose Calvinism was of the unmitigated sort.
Removal to the village brought imorovement in school
privileges, though with but slight lengthening of the term.
Here he came into close contact with some of the ablest
men in the state. The Hon. Joseph Healy, member of
Congress, whose eldest son, Hon. John P. Healy, was for
twenty years city solicitor of Boston, Deacon David Farns-
worth, Thomas and Eben Laws, Dr. McQjrestion and
others, with Dr. Wright himself, formed a group whose
discussions and conversations were well fitted to arouse
170 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
the thoughts and kindle the aspirations of an earnest and
ambitious lad.
About this time a new set of influences became more
distinctly operative in Washington and surrounding towns.
Rev. Messrs. Samuel C. Loveland, Robert Bartlett, the
older Skinners, and especially Lemuel Willis and Otis A.
Skinner, all preachers of the gospel as understood by
Universalists, were often heard on the greatest of themes.
Dr. Wright and his family shared in the unwonted interest
awakened. The subject of our sketch partook largely of
its quickening influence. His ambition for education felt
the power of the new life. He became a private pupil of
the Rev. O. A. Skinner, afterwards Dr. Skinner. Later
he entered Hopkinton Academy, and still later was a
private pupil again, this time with the Rev. Broughton
White, pastor of the Congregational Church in Washing-
ton, whom he describes as kt a stern Calvinist, a superior
scholar, and a jolly old man."
It was during these years of his student life that the
writer of this sketch first came to know him. He was
serious, staid, self-controlled, ambitious, high-minded, con-
scientious. It is safe to say that his earlier as well as his
later life was unstained by any unworthy act.
It was not without a struggle and some misgivings that
he came, after years of delay, to his life work. He had
marked aptitude for the medical profession. Assisting
his father not a little in his practice, he came to be known
as the young doctor, and when the father could not be had,
he was often summoned in his place. On one occasion a
messenger came in hot haste, a distance of twenty miles,
with directions to obtain the old doctor if possible ; if not,
to take the young man. The father being absent, the
young man obeyed the summons. He found a very sick
child, and a most distressed household. By a little careful
treatment and much wise counsel the condition of the
child was greatly improved, and the family delighted that
the young doctor providentially came in place of the old.
He was then but eighteen years of age. Practicing medi-
cine afterwards in both Boston and Salem, with no small
measure of success, it grew upon him that medicine was
not destined to be his profession. His experience with
the sick had made him sensible of the popular need of a
REV. NATHAN REED WRIGHT. 171
more cheerful faith, and of a milder and more natural
system of medical treatment. As he sometimes stated it,
" Calomel, Spanish flies, and pure Calvinism are synony-
mous." After a struggle of nearly three years, he says,
" I resolved, God helping me, to preach Christ and Him
crucified — the messenger of peace and salvation."
On January 16, 1835, he married Mrs. Eliza C. Melvin,
daughter of Deacon Jonathan Clark of Washington, who,
though a Baptist, sympathized with his growing faith, and
greatly aided him in the immediate social contests which
were inevitable, and in his life work and successes which
she came gladly to share. He was accustomed to speak
of this conflict as affording precisely the training he
needed. The Bible was his text-book, and divine love the
key to its interpretation. To this book, rather than to any
man, he owed his theological attainments and his pro-
fessional success.
After ministering as a student in various places, he
received ordination at Lempsterin 1838, and settled in Dun-
barton in 1839, preaching half the time in that place and
the remainder in Hopkinton, Bow, Hooksett, Goffstown,
and in many other places. So numerous were the calls
upon him that he engaged others — ministers, or candidates
for the ministry — to assist him, among whom the late Dr.
Ryder of Chicago was the most prominent. The assist-
ance young Ryder thus received at his hands was grate-
fully remembered by him through life, as a bequest of
$1,000 sufficiently attests.
In all the places in which he ministered his labors were
greatly blessed — in Concord, where he may be said to
have laid the foundation of its excellent parish ; in Hook-
sett, where he resided a couple of years ; in Washington,
the native place of himself and wife, where, at a special
meeting called with reference to inviting him, he received
every vote, and where he assisted in the establishment of
Tubbs Union Academy, and rendered other important
educational service, being superintendent of schools for
eighteen consecutive years in Washington and neighbor-
hood — in all the wide country surrounding, where he was
not improperly styled " Bishop" ; in Reading, Mass., where
he settled in 1856, and where, in the midst of marked pro-
fessional success, he endured a great affliction, in 1858, in
172 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
the death of a dear girl of seven years, so reviving his
love of his native state as to carry him back to its hills and
valleys the same year.
Alstead, Swanzey, Hinsdale and neighboring towns
were centers of his itinerating labors until he was called to
Palmer, Mass., where, though his family did not remove
there, he planted a parish that holds high rank in our own
day. After a brief tarry in Franklin, Mass., he cast in
his fortunes with the Second Society in Lynn, of which he
secured a genuine resurrection, and clothed it with all the
insignia of vigorous life. During an interregnum in the
pastorate of the First parish, he was pressed into its service.
This was repeated during a second interregnum, and con-
tinued for eleven months, until a new pastor was found.
In all these places, and in others not named, his ministra-
tions were always effective, solid, and Christian.
Among his professional services none were more warmly
appreciated than his consolations to the bereaved. All
through his ministry he was often called to his native state,
and especially to the neighborhood of his native town, and
other places where he had ministered, that he might apply
the healing balm of Christian consolation to wounded
hearts. After four years of active labor in Amesbury and
Salisbury, and eight years in Dunstable and Tyngsborough,
in 1884, surrendering his pastoral cares, he made his home
again in Lynn, and was here in almost constant requisition
for funeral ministrations, attending, for a series of years,
fifty or more funerals a year, rivaling the work of our
active pastors in our largest parishes, and nearly all, it is
understood, as a labor of love, wholly unrequited, save
by the gratitude of the recipients. Truly did he prove
himself a " Son of Consolation." From 1886 to 1888,
both inclusive, his calls upon the aged, the sick, and the
bereaved aggregated a little less than two thousand.
The value of such services he never stopped to estimate.
The spirit in which he rendered them is best expressed by
himself: " If I have carried the bread of heaven and the
water of life to needy hearts, to afflicted spirits, or to the
homeward-bound languishing on the threshold of time, God
alone can estimate the value."
The Lynn Daily Item of August 2, 1888, contained the
following just and affectionate tribute from the pen of one
REV. NATHAN REED WRIGHT. 173
of its Christian citizens (Mr. J. W. Noves), who had been
a careful observer of his work :
"It is but justice to make honorable mention of the Rev.
Nathan R. Wright, the worthy and venerable clergyman so well
and favorably known as a former pastor of the Second Univer-
salist Society and Church in this city. He has for the last
few years been a resident of Lynn (permanently located, as we
suppose and hope), without a regular pastorate, except being
engaged to perform the pastoral duties (aside from preaching)
pertaining to the First Universalist Society during the pastor's
vacation. His labors in this direction at other times are mani-
fold and wholly voluntary and gratuitous. Thus, virtually,
although not formally, he may be considered an ' assistant
pastor.' He has spent more than half a century in the Master's
service, leading many flocks to the ' green pastures' and beside
the ' still waters ' of life eternal, and is now resting from his life-
long labor as a settled pastor.
" He is remarkably vigorous in his serene old age, and, like his
Divine Master, delights in going about doing good. Many are
the calls he receives, almost daily, to comfort the afflicted, and
minister hope and consolation to mourners — work congenial to
his kind and sympathetic nature. His labors of love are w r ell
known and appreciated throughout the community. They are
bounded by no denominational limit, and prompted by no
pecuniary considerations, his reward being with him. He is
thus winning a chosen place in many a heart and home, and
making the world better for his having lived in it."
As " afflictions do not spring out of the ground," so
preparation for such transcendent work comes only through
the sublime training of profoundest experiences. Twice
was this servant of God prostrated at death's door — once at
twenty-seven years of age, again as he was nearing four-
score. In both instances he was at peace.
On May 2, 1881, after more than forty-six years of
blessed companionship, the partner of his joys, one of the
wisest, calmest, and most faithful of women, was taken
from him. His home broken, his children married, his
voluntary pastoral work unremitting, it is not strange
that he should seek to rebuild that home. After three and
a half years in his lonely pathway, he was united in mar-
riage, November 21, 1884, with Mrs. Sarah R. Blake of
Lynn, by Rev. Dr. Biddle, her former pastor. The sun-
shine of her life warmed his heart and illumined his path-
way to the close of his days.
174 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
Of his two daughters, one, as we have seen, was taken
from him at seven years of age, while the other survives
him. Three of his four sons responded to the call of their
country during the late civil war, one of whom, greatly
beloved, William Henry Ryder, returned no more.
Parental grief was in some measure compensated by the
establishment of national unity, and the shattering forever
of the power of slavery.
No such balm came to the wounded heart in the loss of
another son, Wallace W., his youngest. He was greatly
loved and honored in Lynn, — superintendent of the First
Universalist Parish Sunday-school ; a notary public ; clerk
and assistant treasurer of Lynn Institution for Savings ;
trustee and clerk of a syndicate holding real estate in
Florida. Hoping that a trip to that genial clime would
restore the impaired health of his wife, he embarked with
her on the ill-fated " City of Columbus," January 17, 1884,
both of whom, between three and four o'clock the next
morning, with a hundred others, found a watery grave. The
ship had struck the rock on which stands Gay Head light-
house. Resting easy there, all might have escaped but for
a combination of villanies rarely excelled. The captain,
not yet recovered from a drunken debauch of the night
before, characterized by a rescued sailor as "a hell of a
time," gave orders to "back'er hot," which done, she
immediately sank. The first mate, sworn by the captain to
be 28 years of age, was declared by his mother to be under
21. Not a sailor on board knew how to handle a lifeboat,
and the laws looking to the comfort and safety of the pas-
sengers had been generally disregarded. How facts like
those added to the poignancy of an aged man's grief, no
language can describe.
Great, however, was the satisfaction of this venerable
man in the children that remained to him, one of whom,
the Hon. Carroll D. Wright, commissioner of labor,
Washington, D. C, is among the best known, most gentle-
manly, and most useful men of the country.
Such is but a sketch of one of the most venerable and
widely known sons of New Hampshire. No rhetorician,
not specially captivating in style, not eloquent save in
the sublimity of his subject-matter, he was, nevertheless,
always wholesome, solid, earnest, instructive, spiritual,
consoling.
NEW HAMPSHIRE ANTIQUARIAN SOCIETY.
BY MRS. F. II. BAILEY.
In the year 1859, on tne evening of November 19, three
young men of Hopkinton, N. H., — George H. Crowell,
Darwin C. Bianchard and Silas Ketchum, — met in a room
over the store of Fellows & Huntoon, in the village, and
formed themselves into a society called the Philomathic
Club. It was their fancy that their number should never
exceed seven.
A constitution was drawn up by Darwin C. Bianchard,
and contained this clause: "The club shall never cease,
except by unanimous consent ; and so long as two of its
members live, the club shall live."
In travelling by carriage from Concord to Hopkinton,
the cottage in which Mr. Crowell lived can be seen, part
way up Beech hill. In a chamber of this cottage was
gathered a private collection of relics, minerals, and natural
curiosities. The room had been fitted up by Mr. Crowell,
and on the 13th of October, i860, it was dedicated, with
appropriate ceremonies, "To the use of the Philomathic
Club forever."
In this room the members of the club met, for educa-
tional and social purposes, for eight years, when the house,
having been sold, passed into other hands. During this time
specimens w r ere added to the collection, and after leaving
its first house it was located for a time in Henniker. In
1866 the club met at the home of George H. Ketchum in
Nelson and held a festival, at which time the seven chairs
were filled by the seven members, — the only time in the
history of the club. It was seven years from the time of
its organization before the membership was complete,
namely, George E. Crowell, Darwin C. Bianchard, Silas
Ketchum, Harlan P. Gage, Henry A. Fellows, Henry C.
Day, and George H. Ketchum. Charles F. Whittier, a
former member, having died in the war, his chair was
filled by one of the above named. In 1868 George H.
Ketchum was made treasurer, Silas Ketchum, secretary,
and Henry A. Fellows, curator of the cabinet. These
officers were annually re-chosen to the same office as long
as the club existed.
17(5 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
As the membership was limited, it was voted that hon-
orary members, paying nothing and having no voice, could
be added at discretion. Mr. John F.Jones, Mr. Ira Arthur
Chase, and Captain Grovenor A. Curtice were chosen as
such members. The seven voting members paid one
dollar quarterly as membership fees. In August, 1872,
rooms were hired in Contoocook, a village of Hopkinton,
all the articles removed there, and after arranging and
labeling the collection, it was catalogued, and the doors
were thrown open to the public.
During these years many articles had been added to the
cabinet, it being the purpose of every member to interest
the public in the collection, and have added to the same
such articles as they might have in their possession of his-
torical value.
As time passed, the members became too scattered for
literary and social pursuits, and through a similarity of
tastes among its members the society gradually assumed
the character of an antiquarian as well as a philomathic
body. In November, 1872, the club adopted a new consti-
tution, the first article of which runs as follows : "Name —
This society shall no longer be called the Philomathic
Club, but shall be New Hampshire Philomathic and Anti-
quarian Society.
" The purpose of the society shall be for the collection
and preservation of such articles of apparel, ornament,
furniture, equipage, and garniture, and such implements of
husbandry, mechanic, culinary, and other domestic manu-
factures as will illustrate the modes, resources, and general
condition of the last and former generations ; for the
collection and preservation of family records that have, by
descent from generation to generation, become time-honored
and precious ; for the collection of one copy of all books,
pamphlets, almanacs, maps, charts, etc., published in or
relating to New Hampshire."
The rooms at Contoocook, after nearly twenty years,
became insufficient for the rapidly-growing collection,
whose fame was known throughout the state, and was an
object of much interest to visitors from abroad. Through
the generosity of one whose interest in her native town and
all that pertains to its welfare is unbounded, the present
magnificent home was built. The site of the Timothy
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,
NEW HAMPSHIRE ANTIQUARIAN SOCIETY. 177
Chandler homestead in Hopkinton village was purchased
and the present structure erected during the summer of
1890. Upon the marble tablet in the vestibule is cut the
following inscription :
This building was erected in 1890,
by
LUCIA A. D. ROLLINS LONG,
in affectionate memory of her husband,
WILLIAM H. LONG.
Dedicated and presented to the New Hampshire Antiquarian Society
September 3, 1890.
Owing to an unavoidable delay the dedication services
did not take place until October 10, and were held in the
Congregational church, which was filled to its utmost.
As would seem fitting, Harlan P. Gage, one of the early
members of the society, and a nephew of him in whose
memory the building was erected, was chosen to deliver
the memorial address. During the summer of that year
he was summoned to a higher work, leaving the manu-
script unfinished. The address was completed and deliv-
ered by Mr. Charles Hill of Boston. There were, also,
music, short addresses by prominent men, an oration by
Rev. Dr. Warren A. Cochrane, presentation of the build-
ing from Mrs. Lucia A. D. Long to the New Hampshire
Antiquarian Society by Prof. Arthur W. Goodspeed, and
acceptance by the president of the society, Mrs. Silas
Ketchum.
The present officers of the society are : president, Rev.
T.J. Drumm ; corresponding and recording secretary, Mr.
H. W. Green ; treasurer, Mr. J. S. Kimball ; curator, Mr.
Aaron Smith.
By a vote of the society, at the annual meeting of 1890,
Mrs. Long was made an honorary member.
There are now living two of the three first members —
George H. Crowell and Darwin C. Blanchard. Henry A.
Fellows, one of the seven Philomathic members, died in
Massachusetts, April 18, 1893, making four that have been
taken from the ranks.
In 1892 the town voted to have a free public library, and
an appropriation of $400 was made. The state gave $150,
a public-spirited lady, Mrs. Richerson, bequeathed $800, —
178 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
all of which was to be divided between the libraries of
Hopkinton and the upper village of Contoocook. As a
nucleus, books numbering 1,000 volumes belonging to the
public library, a stock company formed in 1871, were, by
vote of the stockholders, leased to the free public library
for a term of ninety-nine years, without compensation.
The two easterly rooms in the Long Memorial Building
were fitted up, the front one as a reading-room. On the
wall hang lifesize portraits of Mr. and Mrs. William H.
Long. The rear room is supplied with shelves and cases
to hold the books which have from time to time been pur-
chased from the above named funds, the leased volumes,
and donations from private individuals.
Hopkinton can now number among its attractions a free
public library, under good management. Miss Sarah L.
Kimball is librarian.
WILLIAM H. LONG.
BY L. W. REYCROFT.
William II. Long, in whose memory Long Memorial
Hall was erected, was born in Hopkinton, N. H., on the
ninth day of September, 1 S 1 3, the youngest in a family of
ten children. His early childhood was spent in the fashion
of those days, when parents brought their children up in a
Christian faith, and it was there that the foundation of his
life of usefulness was laid. When old enough, he attended
the village school, and between times did such work about
the home as was possible, learning there the lessons which
through life he never forgot. Having passed through the
village school, the next step to the ambitious youth w^as
Hopkinton Academy, a school at that time of no little
merit, where he formed the unquenchable desire for an
education of greater breadth than it was possible to obtain
at home. After two years spent here, and at the earnest
solicitation of two of his friends who were already there,
he went to Yale College, New Haven, Ct., and frankly con-
fessed to Dr. Jeremiah Day, president at that time, his
unfitness. The president, a kind, genial gentleman, said
to him, " Young man, it is not the quantity, but the quality,
we want." His expectations were more than realized, for
William H. Long.
WILLIAM H. LONG. 179
the young man who, in 1836, entered college with nothing
but a strong determination, graduated in 1840, one of the
first twenty in a large class, with a high rank, and taking a
part in the graduation exercises. For two years he had
charge of the music, an exceptional occurrence, and he
had entire charge at the graduation. Just at this time a great
misfortune befell him, for on the very night of his gradua-
tion he was stricken with brain fever, due to his determina-
tion to graduate with honor, and the brilliant youth hovered
for weeks between life and death. However, thanks to that
constitution which had been so carefully nurtured, nature,
very slowly, it is true, began to assert itself, and the young
man was once more able to be about. With his eyes set
longingly upon the Christian ministry, he set steadfastly at
work to attain it, even though he knew it must be at the
greatest personal sacrifice, for his means were small. For
three long years he worked hard, and in 1843 we find him
entered at Yale Divinity School, from which he graduated
in 1846, with every prospect of a brilliant future. Alas
for human hopes ! his one essential point as a speaker and
minister of the gospel — his voice — failed him, and the
greatest disappointment of his life was about to be realized.
Nevertheless, what he was unable to preach he could
practice, and with Christian courage he turned his back
to his disappointment, undismayed, undaunted, simply
determined that from the store of knowledge which for
years he had been harvesting he would yet win a place in
life where even his ambition would be satisfied. As one
and another of the different pursuits in life were canvassed,
he concluded that as a teacher he could use his knowledge
to the best advantage, and give full rein to his tastes, which
were in every sense scholarly. As a teacher, he first began
in West Concord, N. H., in what was known as the Ballard
district. From there he went to Massachusetts, and thence
to Utica, N. Y. After a year spent here he turned his
face towards Boston, Mass., then, as to-day, high in the
educational scale, where, through the recommendation of
Prof. Fiske, D. D., of Chicago Theological School, Mr.
Reed, master of the Washington School, Roxbury (now
part of Boston), appointed him as a substitute, and his
success was so assured that he soon became a permanent
teacher. He continued in the Washington school until a
180 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
new district was formed from part of the Washington,
when he was honored with the promotion to the principal-
ship of the Dearborn School, in 1852.
We must digress here to record his marriage, in 1848, to
Lucia A. D. Rollins, at Nashua, N. H., who was ever to
him a help and comfort through life. As master of the
Dearborn School for thirty years, he retained the love and
respect of teachers, parents, and scholars alike, and it was
with the deepest regret that, owing to ill-health, he resigned
in 1882. Having laid aside his life work, and settled down
to the enjoyment of a competency which was not only
well earned but well deserved, he passed the remainder of
his days in the company of her who for so many years
he had walked through life with, and on the fifth day of
November, 1886, passed into the rest which such a life
must surely find, there to await the time when she whom
he loved so long shall cross the silver stream, and be at
rest in heaven.
LUCIA A. D. LONG.
BY L. W. REYCROFT.
She whose loving tribute stands in memory of William
H. Long was born in Antrim, N. H., the twentieth day
of April, 1 816. She was the third child of Benjamin
and Martha Washington (Nevins) Rollins. Her early
life was spent here, when her parents moved to Massa-
chusetts, and remained there until the forties, when
they settled in Hopkinton, N. H. Then and there
began the acquaintance and friendship which, in due
course of time, ripened into love, the fulfilment of which
was reached in her marriage to William H. Long, on
Christmas day, 1848, at Nashua, N. H. Her love,
unswerving fidelity, and faithful encouragement gave
to her husband the support which in after years he w r as
wont to lean upon. Together they lived a happy, useful,
quiet life. Not blessed with any children, the love, kind-
ness, charity, and everything which would have found in
them a natural course was disseminated into other chan-
nels, and many a heart has cause to thank the kindly hand
which has never been stretched forth in vain, but always
to make some life happier, some home more cheery ; and
*%
Lucia A. D. Long.
LUCIA A. D. LONG. 181
always in that quiet, unassuming manner that would sub-
scribe itself to any charity as "A Friend." Mrs. Long
was proud, and had cause to be, of her illustrious husband ;
and well might she be pleased when she knew that in part
it was due to her co-operation and assistance. When upon
the stage of life Mr. Long acted his part with the utmost
exactness, he found a ready helpmate. When upon a sick-
bed he was laid low, it was then that the love of her who
had promised to love him in " sickness and in health " was
shown in its fullest sense ; for, patient, vigilant, tender
always, she watched that dear life glide slowly but steadily
down to the " bourne from whence no traveller returns."
Mrs. Long still resides in Roxbury ( Boston j, Mass., carrying
well her weight of years, her kindly face yet bearing the
freshness of a younger life, and submissively she waits the
time when her life's work shall have closed, and she will be
united with him who has gone a little before. Truly the
world is better for such a life, and had we more, we should
be nearer the promised millenium. May her life be rounded
out in fullest measure, and when she has passed on, let
there be raised to her such tribute as is her due !
Peacefully gliding down life's stream,
Her voyage almost o'er,
She seems to see, as in a dream,
Her loved one waiting on the golden shore.
THE FUGITIVE.
[Translated from the German of Schiller.]
BY LAURA GARLAND CARR.
Brisk comes the morning, awake and alert,
Purple-tinged sunbeams, coquettishly dancing,
Through the dark fir-trees with young bushes flirt ;
Or, to the heights advancing,
On clouds, like flames, are glancing.
With rapturous, gleeful spring, larks mount in space
To greet, with melody, the sun, —
Already by Aurora won,
And glowing in her fierce embrace.
182 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
O blessed light, on all
Your cheering glances fall !
Hillside and valley, your warming rays renew !
All in a silvery flitter
The spreading meadows glitter,
And a thousand suns are trembling in the pearly dew.
With rustling coolness,
And charming demureness,
Nature drops into play ;
Zephyrs tumble the posies,
And toy with the roses,
Till lowlands are riot with perfumes astray.
High over the city smoke clouds are disporting,
Cattle are lowing, horses stamping and snorting ;
Carts jar as they travel,
Wheels crunch through the gravel,
In the resounding vale ;
The woods are alive with stirring things,
And, buoyant on sunlighted wings,
Hawks, eagles, and falcons hover and sail.
Where shall I find retreat,
Rest for my weary feet,
Love that may soothe and save?
All this fair, laughing earth,
Teeming with youth and mirth,
For me is but a grave.
Spread high, O rosy dawn, and fling
Your crimson kisses over grove and plain !
Rustle in, O twilight dim, and sing
The darkening earth to slumber again !
Morning, O, thy crimson flush
But over death fields creep !
Evening, O, thy calm will hush
My last long sleep !
CAPT. ELEAZER TYNG'S SCOUT JOURNAL.
BY WILLIAM LITTLE.
The Indians of northern Massachusetts and of New
Hampshire were known before the country was settled by
white men as Nipmucks, a word derived from " nipe,"
fresh water, and " auke," a place, which, translated into
English, means fresh-water Indians. They were famous
for naming the places where they happened to live, and the
English, without any particular reason for it, if they found a
few r families in a certain place, called them by their name of
the place. Thus, if a small number lived at Pawtucket, now
Lowell, they were called Pawtuckets ; if a few others, or
even the same Indians, lived at Nashua, they were called
Nashuas. This was also true of the Nipmucks at Amoskeag
Falls, at Penacook, at Winnipesaukee, at Pemigewasset,
and at Pequawket. They were respectively Amoskeags,
Pennacooks, Winnipesaukees, Pemigewassetts, and Pequaw-
kees. The English named other Indians in New Hampshire,
Souhegans, Squamscotts, Newichannocks, Winnecowetts,
Pascataquaukes, Amariscoggins, and Coosucks. They made
thirteen great tribes of them.
In the time of Lovewell's war, when Massachusetts paid
large bounties for Indian scalps, all the Nipmucks in south-
ern New Hampshire moved to the central and northern parts
of the state. Against these nearly all the scout expeditions
of that period were directed. In three years more than
twenty companies of armed soldiers went tramping through
the north woods.
March 31, 1725, Captain (afterwards Colonel) Eleazer
Tyng* of Chelmsford, now Tyngsborough, Massachusetts,
marched for the head waters of the Merrimack, and in May
he sent to the governor the following journal of his expe-
dition, which is copied from "38a" in the office of the
secretary of state, Boston, Mass. :
CAPT. ELEAZER TYNG's SCOUT JOURNAL.
March 30 1725 The men musterd & got ready to inarch
31 They marched out of Town to Nom Keag brook
* Captain Eleazer Tyng was the son of Colonel Jonathan Tyng, who is said to
have been killed by the Indians. The Captain had a brother, Major John Tyng,
who was also killed by the Indians, in 1711.
184 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
April i We marched to Cohasset
2 We marched to Ammuskeag & got our Canoos all up
the Falls, carried our Canoos one mile
April 3 — To Suncook River ; carried our Canoos forty rodds
4 Were Forced to tarry by Reason of the Heighth of the
Wind.
5 To Penacook — To the Irish Fort carried our Canoos
i mile
6 — Were detained by the Snow that fell in the Night &
hung on the Bushes that we could not travel without
wetting our Provision
7 — To the Head of Penacook upper Fall 1 where y e Rain
forced us to Stop
S — Detained all the forenoon by the Weather — In the
afternoon we traveled S miles up the River
9 We marched within 3 miles of Winnipisseoket River
We took out our Canoos, after we had all passed over
to the West Side of Merrimack — Sent a Scout up on
y e East Side to Winnepisseocket River mouth
10 The Weather Detained us
11 Travelled 5 miles N W b N to Pond, 2 which the
Indians used to carry their Canoos into from the
River then we turned more eastward toward the
River three miles
12 9 miles up the River
13 — Hindered by the Rain
14 — Traveled one mile & saw a Camp 3 that lookt new ; but
could not cross the River by Reason of Falls ; a mile
further up we made a Raft & sent over & found it done
last Sumer. Sent a Scout 3 miles up a small River
who found where they had lived & hunted last Spring
& Sumer but no newer sign — another to a Pond 4 who
discovered nothing 6 miles
15 8 miles up the River
16 10 miles to Pemitchuosset Intervalls 5 Sent out a Scout
to a River that leads to Connecticut River
17 Detained by the Weather till afternoon, marched five
miles & all rafted over to the east side of the River
before Sundown
1. Now Sewall's Falls.
2. Webster lake.
3. In Sanbornton.
4. Newfound lake.
5. It will be noticed that Pemigewasset was the name of the country and not
of the river.
CAPT. ELEAZER TYNG's SCOUT JOURNAL. 185
iS 12 miles up the River Found many Signs of their
Having lived on the River about a year or year & half
ago
19 I took 26 men & traveled 20 miles up the River
Rafted over once about noon to look on some trees
that were peeled which we found done last Spring
20 Hindered from marching by Rain. Sent out a Scout
about 6 miles up the River made a Canoo & Raft
to come down sent 3 more Scouts all round
21 Came down to the men we left the 19 Day
22 Sent a Scout of 16 men with 4 Days Provision to that
River 7 that leads to Connecticut, to go up & search
quite to Connecticut River who found English Tracks
& returned the same day about 12 mile down the
River —
23 Coming to one of our old Camps found Capt White had
been there — We came to a small River called Souhe-
gon 8 which comes out of a Pond about S miles from
Winnepissocket Pond
24 Sent a Scout to search about the Pond & the carrying
Place out of Merrimack River into it who returned
Discovering Nothing we returned to the Place where
we campt the 14 Day
25 Tarried by Reason of the Weather
26 Came to our Canoos 3 miles below Winnipisseocket
River
27 To Penacook Fort
28 To Amuskeag
29 To Dunstable
It was our Practice to stop early & before we began to cut
wood to camp, to send out Scouts all Round to 4 or 5 miles
Distance
We came down so quick by Reason we made bark Canoos
which with the Board ones left were sufficient to transport all our
Men.
Eleazer Tyng.
The Indians, at the time of Lovewell's war, must have
been numerous in the Pemigewasset country. All scout
journals speak of finding many signs of them. Captain
John Lovewell killed one and captured another in Campton.
6. The Indians must have been the Pemigewassetts, so called, by the English
custom, after the name of the place in which they lived.
7. Baker river.
8. The outlet of Squam lake, called by the Indians Kusumpe pond.
186 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
Captain Tyng mentions a wigwam on the east side of the
Merrimack river, and the other scout journals speak of
finding many places where they had lived.
Much is said about Indian canoes made of birch bark.
It was a common thing to carry them from the river to the
neighboring ponds and back again, also to Webster, New-
found 9 and Squam lakes. Indians were adepts at making
canoes, and two men with keen axes and knives, which
they procured from the whites, could make a good one in
a day. They made them water-tight by covering the seams
with pitch, which they got by boxing the white pine. Captain
Tyng must also have had some good canoe-makers, for
they made one at North Woodstock, " to come down," and
several others at a place three miles below the mouth of
" Winnipisseocket River," as his journal relates. The
making of these canoes did not delay them a day at either
place.
The Nipmucks, when a few of their number had been
killed, hid in the fastnesses of the mountains, and all the
later expeditions had no success in finding them. When
the contest was over, some came back and lived in the
Pemigewasset and Pequawket valleys till after the old
French and Indian war. They then united with the St.
Francis or Arosagunticooks in Canada.
9. Newfound lake was much visited by the Indians and whites in early times,
and it is passing' strange that no Indian name for it has come down to us.
THE STEAM INTERLUDE.
BY FRANK WEST ROLLINS.
On a bold, rock}' point, pushing its way fearlessly out
into the ocean, stood a low, broad-piazzad house, with
doors and windows wide open, and the scent of the roses
and the sea breeze blowing alternately through. It was a
warm June morning, and the heavens ran clear and blue
from zenith to horizon. Away off on the sea line an occa-
sional sail moved almost imperceptibly, and the waves beat
gently on the rocks below.
Close to the edge of the cliff, indeed almost hanging
over it, was one of those great gnarled w r illow r s, and around
its base a seat had been built many years before, as was
evidenced by the hundreds of names and initials cut in the
wood. On this June morning the seat was occupied by a
man long past his prime, yet erect and soldierly in his
bearing. His snow-white hair was closely cut, and his
keen, gray eyes looked out in a questioning way from
beneath his overarching brows. His cheeks had still the
dark bronze they had worn in earlier years, and which time
could not efface. He looked like a sailor, and had been
one. All his life had been spent on the deck of a man-of-
war, and now, as old age crept on and active service was
no longer possible, he withdrew to this lofty promontory,
where he could w r atch the ever-coming and going sails,
and live over again, in memory and reminiscence, his
eventful life.
On the seat beside him, holding a telescope almost as
long as himself, was a sturdy little fellow of ten, a grand-
child, and he was importuning the old man for something.
" Grandpa, please tell me that story about the steam."
" Why, my boy, I've told that to you before."
"Well, I want to hear it again. Please tell it to me,
Grandpa."
The old man smiled, patted the boy on the head, and
gazed reflectively off over the swelling waters. It was
some moments before he spoke, but the child knew his
ways and waited patiently.
" It was in the summer of 1905," he began. " I was in
command of the Gettysburg, one of those monster battle-
ships. You know there is a picture of the vessel over the
188 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
mantel in the parlor. She was the largest vessel then afloat,
but I won't try to give you the dimensions, as you are too
young to appreciate them. She was covered with armor
that was practically impervious to shot and unbreakable
by collision or shipwreck, as it was made of composition,
the secret of which was known only to the Navy Depart-
ment, and which rendered it not only immensely strong,
but also elastic, so that a shot from the heaviest gun would
rebound from it like a rubber-ball. This armor was the
despair of other navies, which had tried by fair means and
foul to rind out the secret of its composition, without suc-
cess. Her armament of heavy guns for both all-around
and for broadside fire was something unprecedented, and
she also had the honor of being the first vessel to be armed
with the then new electric rifles, which have since revolu-
tionized warfare. She had military masts, with rapid-firing
guns mounted in armor-tops, but no sails. Her engine
and boiler capacity, however, were enormous, and on her
trial trip she had made twenty-seven knots an hour, which
is railroad speed for so large a vessel.
" The summer of 1905 ! Years before you were born, or
before your mother was born, my boy, and yet it seems
but yesterday to me ! I can scarcely realize till I get up
and walk about, or look in the glass, that I am no longer a
young man, ready for life and action. The body is aged,
but the heart, the heart is young. Those were stirring,
busy times. We were engaged in building up our navy
and extending our commerce, and our flag, which had been
noticeable by its absence, was beginning to appear in every
seaport of the world. Our harbors were alive, our wharves
piled high with merchandise, and the sound of the ship-
wright's hammer was heard from Florida to Newfoundland,
from the Gulf of California to Vancouver, and also upon
the great lakes. We led the world again ! Our ships
thronged the commercial ports, while the white sides of our
men-of-war gleamed a joyful welcome to Americans the
world over !
" As I said before, I was in command of the battle-ship
Gettysburg, and we were a week out from New York on
our way to the Pacific. How well I remember my feelings
as we steamed down the harbor accompanied by several
vessels of the Atlantic squadron and by a multitude of
THE STEAM INTERLUDE. 189
steamers, yachts, and tugs. It was a grand sight and a
proud moment for me. My ship was the finest the govern-
ment had ever built — indeed the finest in the world at that
time. In fact, in armor and armament she was entirely
unique, and, as I heard her great engines throbbing under
me, and saw her massive armored bow tossing the waves
from either side like playthings, I felt invincible. I thought
what a wonderful stride when steam replaced sails. And I
gazed in awe at the great volumes of black smoke pouring
from the funnels, and at the white, impetuous steam snort-
ing from her escape-pipes.
" One by one the yachts and tugs were left behind, and
accompanied by the men-of-war we steamed out by Sandy
Hook, where, after parting salutes, they also turned their
prows towards the harbor, and we were left to pursue our
vovage alone. There was enough to do, however. The
ship was new, and a large part of the crew were raw
hands. The crew was a large one, there being a total of
officers, sailors and marines, of over seven hundred. All
the new material had to be broken in, and so the drills
were constant. We were beginning a long voyage with
few breaks. Our coal capacity was enormous, and we
could practically sail around the world without touching at
a single point.
" Notwithstanding the size of our ship, she was easily
handled, for we had every mechanical appliance for less-
ening labor. The anchor was raised by steam, the pumps
were worked by steam, the wheel was controlled by
steam, and even the dishes were washed by steam. The
vessel was lighted by electricity, and could, by means of
multitudes of wires laid in the metal of the vessel, be so
brilliantly illuminated, both outwardly and inwardly, that
the darkest night was like noonday. These wires were so
contrived that they could be brought to a white incandes-
cence by means of electricity, and thus furnish the light.
We had, of course, electric search-light in abundance, — one
at the bow, one at the stern, one on either side, and one in
each of the three tops. The guns could be fired from the
conning-tower by means of electricity ; electric signals and
telephones connected every part of the ship ; the ventila-
tion and heating were run by electricity, while the revolu-
tions of the screw were registered in the pilot-house and
190 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
engine-rooms by an electric contrivance ; our ice was made
by an electric motor, which also distilled our drinking-water,,
and the speed the vessel was making was ascertained by
an electric log. These were all wonderful scientific inven-
tions at the time of which I am writing, but, of course, as
you know, my boy, are dwarfed by the marvelous inventions
of the present day. In short, there was little for the men
to do except to direct and control the work of these two
elements, steam and electricity, drill, paint and scrub,
and stand watch. Of course, in case of action, there would
be enough for them to do in handling the immense pieces
of ordnance and the more lively secondary battery.
" The days passed pleasantly. I was full of my ship.
I watched her every motion with love and admiration as a
mother watches her child. My officers w^ere splendid fel-
lows, and as full of admiration as I was for the magnifi-
cent piece of mechanism. We had one or two old officers
aboard, however, who had served all their days aboard the
old time wooden frigates, with their tall, tapering masts, and
vast, swelling sails, and they could not get over their dislike
for our poor apologies for masts and entire lack of sails.
They shook their heads dubiously when we raved over the
speed we w^ere making, and one of them said, —
" ' Its all very fine and pleasant as long as everything
goes well with your machinery, but if that gives out w r here
are you?'
t i
' But we have three sets of engines and boilers and
screws, and if one gives out w r e can get along very well
with the other two, I replied.'
" ' But suppose they all give out?'
" k Oh ! that's not likely to occur. Who ever heard of
such a case? Anyway, we won't borrow trouble.'
" The days passed rapidly, filled as they were with end-
less duties, and every night our electric log showed the
wonderful speed we were making, carrying us farther
towards the equator. Great rolls of writhing, black smoke
poured from the monstrous stacks and went streaming
behind to the northern horizon, and the trembling throb of
the triple screws forced the massive steel ram through
the windy w r aters with irresistible impulse. I would stand
on the bridge for hours together, watching the magnificent
sight with a feeling of power, a sense of triumph over the
THE STEAM INTERLUDE. 191
elements, and a consciousness of superiority over old ocean
which I cannot describe. What was there that could harm
us? I feared no storm, no armed foe. I was never so
happy in my life.
" Day followed day, and still our speed never slackened.
The great engines kept at their work ceaselessly day and
night. The busy engineers stepped nimbly about, tight-
ening a nut here, touching a gauge there, oiling a valve
or feeling of a crank-pin, and the clink-clank of the valve-
gear was answered by the swish-swish of the pistons as
they swept ponderously up and down, while deep down in
the bowels of the ship the sweating stokers plied their
shovels and fed the roaring, red mouths, always open and
sucking in the food by means of which they lived and per-
formed their stupendous work.
"But on the 29th day of August — how well I remember
that day ! and, in fact, how well the whole world remem-
bers it ! — when we were in latitude 4 15" N. and longi-
tude 35 36" W., a marvelous and inexplicable thing
occurred. It was in this way. The previous night had
been a peculiar one, and I had several times been called
up bv the officer in charge of the deck, who was worried
bv the peculiar appearance of things. There was no
wind, but a very heavy sea suddenly arose, and the
heavens glowed towards the north with a dull red glow,
as though a great conflagration were taking place at
a distance. The men thought they could hear heavy
reports, but I could not distinguish them. It was most
peculiar and alarming, but with dawn all trace of the
matter disappeared, although the sea still ran high.
"The sun rose hot and overpowering. We were now in
the tropics, and every piece of metal was like molten lead
to the touch. About ten o'clock in the morning, as we
were pursuing our undeviating wa} - under a glassy sky, I
noticed a slight diminution in the speed, — a slowing-up of
the screws. I was standing on the bridge at the time.
This slackening of speed was so unusual (not having heard
any command given), I stepped to the officer of the deck,
who stood near the wheel, and asked him what it meant.
' Have you ordered her slowed down, Mr. Parker?'
" 'No, sir; and I was just wondering what the trouble
was.'
192 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
"I stepped to the speaking-tube connecting with the
engine-room, and asked if they were slowing her. They
replied in the negative. I then asked if anything was the
matter with the machinery. There was nothing.
" ' This is strange. We are surely gradually coming to
a standstill, are we not, Mr. Parker?'
" ' Yes, sir ; unquestionably.'
" I was turning to speak to the quartermaster at the
wheel, when the chief-engineer sprang on to the bridge.
" 'Well, what does this mean,' I asked curtly. 'Why
are you stopping the vessel? Anything wrong?'
" ' Not a lever has been touched, sir.'
" ' What is the matter, then?'
" 'That's what troubles me. I can't make out. I wish
you would come below, sir.'
" I followed him to the engine-room. The engines were
still moving slowly and feebly, like a man whose breath is
nearly spent. I ran my eye casually over the machinery,
and glanced at the steam gauge.
"'What does that mean?' And I pointed to the dial,
which indicated but one hundred pounds of pressure, and
the indicator of which was going steadily back towards
zero, denoting reduction of steam pressure every moment.
"The engineer started, and gave a few brief commands
to his assistants who were gathered about. A hurried
examination was made of the boilers, but nothing devel-
oped, and every instant the great pistons were going more
slowly and laboriously.
" 'This won't do,' I said. ' She will be at a standstill in
a few minutes. Anything the matter with the firemen or
fires?'
"'No, sir; Mr. Reed has just reported everything all
right in the fire rooms.'
"'This is very mysterious,' said I, taking the executive
officer away from the other officers who were grouped
around. I can't understand it.'
'"Nor I, sir. Is anything wrong with the machinery, do
you think ? '
" 'Apparently not. The engineers are still examining,
but everything seems all right so far. I am certain that
the trouble is with the boilers, or, at least, we can't make
steam.'
THE STEAM INTERLUDE. 193
"Just then, with a sort of sigh, the engines stopped alto-
gether, and we looked at each other curiously. For a
moment I stood stupidly staring at the machinery, but,
bethinking myself that such an attitude would not do before
the officers, and that something must be done, I turned to
the chief engineer.
"'Make a thorough examination of the boilers; leave
not a bolt nor valve without examination, and when you
have finished report to me in person.'
"I then dispatched a trusted officer to examine the
screws, and started, accompanied by the executive officer,
on a minute tour of inspection myself. This getting dis-
abled in the middle of the Atlantic was no joke.
" The men had aroused from the lethargy caused by the
heat, and were standing around in groups, discussing the
strange occurrence. They were conscious that something
mysterious was happening. The great vessel lay motion-
less, rising and falling slowly on the long surges.
" It took half an hour to make the inspection I had
ordered. During this time I looked things over carefully
myself, but could find no explanation of the trouble. I
returned to the bridge and awaited the report of my officers.
In a few moments the chief-engineer joined me.
" 'Well?'
" ' I can find nothing wrong, sir. The boilers and
machinery seem to be in as good, if not better, condition
than when we sailed.'
" ' Put on forced drafts, and see if you can't get steam
enough to start her.'
" And he went below. I waited impatiently for some
movement. I listened intently for the first throb of the
screw. Minutes dragged by, and a half an hour passed, but
no sound broke the stillness. Volumes of smoke, shot with
flame and spark, tumbled from the funnels, showing that
the fires were working well, but the screw did not revolve.
[to be continued.]
KING EDGAR AND ELFRIDA.
BY FREDERICK MYRON COLBY.
From a height the king hath seen,
In the valley broad and green,
" Bordering on a silver tide,"
Ethelbald's affianced bride.
Rode his gray steed down the hill,
Urged by all a lover's will.
" Listen to me, lady fair,
Slight not now thy fortune rare ;
Wilt thou wed a baron bold
Who has lands and who has gold? "
Proud she answered, with a frown,
" Naught shall tempt me but a crown."
" Sweet dame," he said, " answer me, — -
Wilt thou not a countess be?
Thou shalt wear a coronet
Of pearls in thy coils of jet ; "
But she turned with scorn away —
" Thou wilt live to woo another day."
" Can not a marquis' high renown
Smooth away thy dreaded frown?
Thine escutcheon proud shall bear
Three leopards on its surface fair ; "
But she shook her head and smiled —
" I am a woman, not a child."
Then the king looked veiy wise,
Mirth and laughter in his eyes.
" Duke I am of high degree,
And now thou must many me."
" Nay," she answered, with a sigh,
" Not a haughty duchess, I."
" But, upon my bended knee,
I a crown can offer thee.
King am I of England's realm —
Count the jewels in my helm."
Laughed Elfrida, loud and free,
" Queen of England I will be."
MUSICAL DEPARTMENT.
CONDUCTED BY H. G. BLAISDKLL.
CONCORD TROUBADOURS.
Concord can boast, just now, of a male vocal club of
seventeen members that certainly has no equal anywhere
in the state. The Concord Troubadours are an organiza-
tion of about two years. They have worked patiently and
faithfully to master the difficulties of good ensemble work,
and the success which has attended their efforts has been
highly gratifying. They gave their second concert, at
Phenix hall, on the evening of May 4. A splendid audi-
ence greeted them, and made manifest its satisfaction in
hearty approval of the work done. Assistance was ren-
dered by Miss Bessie Hamlin, soprano, of Boston ; Miss
Ada M. Aspinwall, pianiste, of Concord ; and "Judge"
Green of New York, who catered to the less serious style
of life. All seemed to be at their best, and it must be con-
sidered as an evening of great pleasure for music lovers.
Miss Aspinwall showed marked improvement in her style
and expression. Her solo was intelligently and artistically
performed, and was a source of delight to her many friends
who have watched her progress with more than passing
interest for several years past. We hope the club will go
on perfecting its art and accomplish much in the line of
male chorus work.
NEW YORK SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA.
The recent concert by this celebrated organization, at
White's Opera House, was of unusual interest, and drew
together a very large and enthusiastic audience. Such
concerts are of great assistance to the growth of musical
culture in our midst, and until the people in the country
can hear more such music, we may expect it to be a
difficult task to teach the young or entertain the older; for,
in the first instance, words cannot picture the effects of tone,
196 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
color, or the wonderful depth of the power and beauty of
combining the different families of instruments ; and in the
second place, it is impossible to entertain when people do
not know what to expect or how to listen.
NOTES.
The last concert by the Schubert Club of Laconia was
given May 4. As is usualty the case, the audience was
" small, but very appreciative," which does not " help pay
the fiddler," or conductor, and hall rent. Laconia possesses
a musical taste scarcely commensurate with its ambition,
and until the more accomplished in other lines of art are
willing, for the sake of local pride and a desire to improve,
to lend a helping-hand and attend these concerts, the Schu-
bert Club will have up-hill work to exist.
Mr. J. E. McDuffee, the talented pianist and musician,
of Rochester, has just composed four songs, viz., "Two
Little Birds," " To a Swallow," " The Maid and the Gull,"
and " Farewell to Song" ; also a rhapsodie for piano-forte.
The songs are published by Miles & Thompson, and the
rhapsodie by White, Smith & Co., of Boston.
Mr. and Mrs. F. A. Straw are engaged for the summer
at the Senter House, Centre Harbor, N. H.
St. Paul's surpliced choir, Concord, of thirty-five boys'
and men's voices, will give a concert at an early date.
The Unitarian Society of Concord have engaged Mrs.
Harriet A. Morgan, late of New York, as soprano, for one
year. She is one of the most accomplished lady vocalists
in the country, and a valuable acquisition to our musical
ranks.
NEW HAMPSHIRE NECROLOGY.
GEN. SIMEON B. BROWN.
Gen. Simeon B. Brown, a brave and distinguished officer
in the Union army in the War of the Rebellion, died at his
home in St. Clair, Michigan, March 16, 1893.
He was a native of the town of Bridgewater in this
state, a son of Daniel Brown, a soldier of the war of 1812,
and a native of Candia. He was born March 1, 1812 ;
graduated at New Hampton Academy in 1835, and soon
after emigrated to Detroit, Mich., where he engaged in the
commission business, and became a captain of a militia
company. In 1843 he removed to St. Clair, which was
afterwards his home. He built the St. Clair hotel, then the
largest building of the kind north of Detroit, and was an
active, public-spirited citizen.
Soon after the breaking out of the war he enlisted,
although then nearly fifty years of age, going out as major
in the Sixth Cavalry, of which Gen. Alger was colonel.
He distinguished himself quickly as a brave and deter-
mined fighter, and, in 1862, was made colonel of the
Eleventh Cavalry, subsequently winning the rank of briga-
dier-general. He participated in seventy-two engagements,
and was generally known as the " Hero of Marion," in
which Virginia battle he won his last promotion. At one
time, when on a scouting foray, at the head of 1,000 men,
in East Tennessee, when under command of Gen. Stone-
man, he charged two Confederate brigades, routed them,
and captured their artillery.
Gen. Brown was a prominent Free Mason, the first mem-
ber of the order made in St. Clair county, and was deputy
grand master at the time of his death. He married, in
1836, a daughter of Benjamin Woodworth, brother of
Samuel Woodworth, author of " The Old Oaken Bucket,"
who died in 1867. Two years later he married Mrs.
Harriet Dickey, by whom he had one child, Miss Grace C.
Brown, one of the most accomplished young ladies in St.
Clair. A brother of Gen. Brown, Capt. Richard Brown,
is now living in the town of Bristol in this state, at the
age of 85 years, still active and intelligent.
198 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
HON. W. H. H. ALLEN.
William Henry Harrison Allen, born in Winhall, Vt.,
December 10, 1829, died in New York City, April 26, 1893.
His father was Joseph Allen, a farmer and Methodist
preacher, a descendant of Samuel Allen of Braintree, Eng-
land, who settled in Cambridge, Mass., in 1632. In 1844
his father removed to the town of Surry in this state, which
was his birthplace, and there remained till his death, in
1877. William H. H. secured his preliminary education in
various academies, and under the private tutelage of Joseph
Perry of Keene, and entered Dartmouth College, gradu-
ating, in 1855, in the class with Judge Walbridge A. Field
of Massachusetts, the late Judge William S. Ladd of this
state, Congressman Nelson Dingley of Maine, and others
of note. He taught school some time after graduation, and
read law with Wheeler & Faulker of Keene, and Burke &
Wait of Newport, being admitted to the bar, in the latter
place, at the September term, 1858. In November of that
year he was appointed clerk of the court for Sullivan
county, holding the position till 1863, when he was made
a paymaster in the army, serving two years. He then
returned to Newport and commenced practice, but removed
to Claremont in 1868. He was judge of probate for
Sullivan county from 1867 till 1874, and United States
Register in Bankruptcy from 1867 till 1876, in which year
he was appointed an associate justice of the supreme
judicial court, which position he held till his resignation,
on account of ill health, a few months since. In politics
he was a Republican, and a Unitarian in religious belief,
though attending the Episcopal church in Claremont. He
was twice married. His first marriage was with Ellen E.,
daughter of the late John Joslin of Surry, in 1856, by
whom he had born to him nine children. Two died in
infancy, and the other seven survive. His wife died in
Claremont, in June, 1873. In October, 1874, he married
Sally S., daughter of the late John Sabine, of Strafford,
Vt., who survives him.
HON. JAMES' W. PATTERSON.
James Willis Patterson, born in Henniker July 2, 1823,
died in Hanover May 4, 1893.
Mr. Patterson, an extended sketch of whose career
NECROLOGY. 199
appeared in the Granite Monthly for October, 1892,
graduated from Dartmouth College in 1848; prepared for
the ministry at Yale Divinity School ; was a tutor at Dart-
mouth from 1852 to 1854; professor of mathematics from
1854 to 1859; professor of astronomy from 1859 to ^63 ;
he was also school commissioner for Grafton county from
1858 to 1862. In 1863 he was elected a representative in
Congress, and was re-elected in 1865, and in 1867 was
elected United States senator for six years, serving with
great distinction. Subsequently he travelled extensively
in Europe, and lectured in this country upon various sub-
jects. In 1881 he was appointed state superintendent of
public instruction, and held the position till his resignation,
a few months since, to accept the Willard Professorship of
Rhetoric and Oratory at Dartmouth College. He was a
courteous and genial gentleman, a finished scholar, and the
most accomplished orator New Hampshire has known for
many years. December 24, 1854, he married Sarah Parker
Wilder of Lake Village (now Laconia), by whom he is
survived, with one son, Rev. George W. Patterson of
Hamilton, N. Y.
HON. WILLIAM HEYWOOD.
William Heywood, president of the Grafton and Coos
Bar Association, and the oldest practicing lawyer in the
state, died at his home in Lancaster April 22, 1893.
He was born in Lunenburg, Vt, October 6, 1804;
attended the Concord (Vt.) Academy; read law with Judge
Charles Davis at Waterford and Danville, Vt., and Judge
William A. Fletcher in Detroit, Mich., and was admitted to
the bar, at Guildhall, Vt., in September, 183 1, where he
practiced until his removal to Lancaster, in 1856. He
served in the Vermont senate in 1837 and 1838, was state
attorney for Essex county, Vt., for fifteen years, and also
served the Vermont Constitutional Convention of 1850. He
had an extensive practice, and had been president of the
Grafton and Coos Bar Association since its organization.
He married Miss Susan Hibbard of Concord, Vt., by whom
he had three sons and a daughter ; one son, Henry, for
some time past his partner in business, and the daughter
surviving.
200 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
HON. ROBERT I. BURBANK.
Robert I. Burbank, a well-known lawyer of Boston, died
May 6, 1893.
He was a native of the town of Shelburne, a son of
Barker and Polly (Ingalls) Burbank, born March 26, 1818.
He graduated at Dartmouth in the famous class of 1843,
of which Hon. Harry Brigham was a member. He pursued
his legal studies at the Harvard Law School, and in the
office of Daniel Webster ; was admitted to the Suffolk bar,
and soon secured a good practice. He served in both
branches of the legislature, in the city council, and was
prominent in the state militia, at one time commanding the
First Regiment of Infantry. In 1878 he was appointed
judge of the district court of South Boston, and held that
position up to the time of his death.
HON. HENRY L. BURNHAM.
Hon. Henry L. Burnham, born in Dunbarton, November
25, 1814, died in Manchester, April 30, 1893.
He was a son of Samuel Burnham, was a teacher for
many years, and was prominent in public affairs in Dunbar-
ton and Merrimack county, representing the town in the
legislature, and serving as commissioner and sheriff of the
county; also as state senator in 1864 and 1865. For some
time past his home had been with his son, Hon. Henry E.
Burnham of Manchester.
HON. JOHN K. C. SLEEPER.
John Kilborn Clough Sleeper, born in Bridgewater,
February 7, 1828, died in Maiden, Mass., April 18, 1893.
He was a son of Amos Sleeper, removing with his father
to Concord when about eight years of age. At fifteen he
went into a woolen mill at Holderness (now Ashland), after-
wards attending the Seminary at Newbury, Vt., for a time.
When about eighteen he went to Boston ; afterwards resided
some years at Cleveland, O., for the benefit of his health.
Returning east, he established his home in Maiden, Mass.,
engaging in the millinery business in Boston. He served
on the Maiden school board, as a trustee of the public
library, as a representative in the Massachusetts legislature,
and as mayor of Maiden.
The Granite Monthly
VOL. XV. JULY, 1893. N0 - 7-
HON IRA COLBY.
BY H. H. METCALF.
The impression very generally prevails that the New
Hampshire bar, at the present time, falls below the
standard of twenty-five or fifty years ago in point of
average ability. Whether this impression be well or
ill founded in fact, it is not to be disputed that
there are fewer lawyers of wide popular reputation
in New Hampshire at the present time than was the
case a generation since ; but this results largely, with-
out doubt, from the fact that the course of procedure has
so changed in our courts within the last few decades that
there is comparatively little occasion or opportunity for
the display of those qualities and powers whose exercise
or manifestation so impressed the popular mind in former
years. The tendency in this state has been for some years
past in the direction of the avoidance of jury trials.
There is not one important case brought before a jury
in New Hampshire to-day where there were half a dozen
thirty years ago. Most civil cases of importance go
directly to the judge for hearing, and even in criminal
cases there is a strong tendency to compromise, or effect
some arrangement whereby the expense, trouble, and
uncertainty of a jury trial shall be avoided. It was in
the frequent and hotly-contested jury trials of former
years that lawyers made their reputation with the people
for sagacity and ability, and there is no question but that
the qualities calculated to dazzle an admiring crowd of
listeners were wonderfully developed and strengthened
through this frequent exercise.
Nevertheless, the members of the legal profession still
hold the front rank in the constitution of the body politic,
in New Hampshire as elsewhere ; they are a moving spirit
202 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
in public and political life — a controlling power in the
business world. Legislation is largely directed by them,
and their influence is potent even in social affairs.
Among the more prominent lawyers of the state at the
present time is Hon. Ira Colby of Claremont, who has
certainly no superior in ability at the Sullivan county bar,
and whose connection with public affairs, especially in
the line of legislation, has given him celebrity throughout
the state.
Ira Colby was born in Claremont January u, 1831,
and was the second of a familv of eio-ht children. His
parents went from Henniker, of which town his father
was a native, and settled in Claremont immediately upon
their marriage, which took place April 17, 1827. Both
parents were of purely English descent, and the family on
both sides numbers in its various branches many persons
of distinction. His mother's family name was Foster, her
father, Zebulon Foster, being a descendant in direct line
from Reginald Foster, who came from Exeter, Devonshire,
England, and settled in Ipswich, Essex county, Mass., in
1638. His grandfather, Zebulon Foster, was born in old
Essex, Mass., and was one of a large family of children.
Three of his brothers were in the war of the Revolution,
and one of his sisters was the mother of Rufus Choate.
He married and settled in Essex, where a family of nine
children were born, but he afterwards removed to Henni-
ker to prevent his sons from becoming sea-faring men.
Mr. Colby's mother was eleven years of age at the time
of this removal, and she is still living at the advanced age
of ninety years, and retains to a remarkable degree her
physical and mental powers.
His father, Ira Colby, was one of the most successful
and enterprising farmers of Claremont ; was honored by
it as one of its selectmen and representatives ; was a most
useful citizen, and died at the age of seventy years, with
no stain upon his character or reputation.
The subject of this sketch was brought up on the farm,
and attended the district school until seventeen years of
age. He then for a short time attended the academy at
Sanbornton, N. H., and later the academies at Spring-
field, Vt., and Marlow, N. H. He finished his academical
HON. IRA COLBY. 203
course at Thetford, Vt., entered Dartmouth College
in 1853, and was graduated in 1857, among his class-
mates being the late Gen. E. F. Noyes of Ohio, Win. J.
Forsaith, now judge of the municipal court of Boston, and
Hon. J. B. Richardson of the present board of trustees of
the college.
During the winter months, from the time he began his
academical course to his graduation from college and for
one year thereafter, he taught school, first in his own state,
and afterwards in Massachusetts and Wisconsin.
In September, 1858, he was admitted as a student at
law into the office of Freeman & McClure, at that time the
leading lawyers of Claremont, and, after two years of
study, was admitted, on examination, to the bar of Sulli-
van county. The death of Mr. McClure occurring just
at this time, and Mr. Freeman retiring from business, he
commenced the practice of law in the office where he
had studied, and with the exception of a partnership at
the first with Lyman J. Brooks, Esq., and about four years
afterwards with A. T. Batchelder, Esq., now of Keene,
he has been alone in business, and occupied the same
office in the practice of his profession as a lawver, since
i860.
He has had as students in his office a large number of
young men who are now successful lawyers in various
parts of the country.
He has always been a Republican in politics ; was an
active and zealous supporter of the Union in the time
of the Rebellion ; was a representative in the legislatures
of 1864 and 1865, 1881, 1883 and 1887 ; a member of the
state senate in 1869 and 1870 ; a delegate-at-large to the
Republican National Convention in 1876 ; and for the
entire time from 1864 to 1888, with the exception of two
years, at first by appointment and afterwards by election,
he held the office of solicitor for Sullivan county. In
1889 he w r as appointed by the governor and council a
member of the commission to revise, codify, and amend
the public statutes of New Hampshire, which were pub-
lished in 1891.
On the resignation of Judge Allen, in March, 1893, he
was appointed associate justice of the supreme court,
which position he declined.
204 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
He is a Methodist in religion, as was his father before
him. For many years the father was one of the board of
trustees of his church, and, at his death, the son suc-
ceeded to the office, which he still holds.
June 20th, 1867, he married Miss Louisa M. Way,
daughter of Gordon Way of Claremont, and sister of Dr.
O. B. Way of the same place. They have had two chil-
dren, — a son, Ira Gordon Colby, now a member of the junior
class of Dartmouth College, and a daughter, who died in
infancy.
The foregoing brief outline of Mr. Colby's career indi-
cates a life of unflagging industry, of persistent applica-
tion to professional labor, and of ready response to the
call of the public for service in different directions. As
a citizen he is among the most public-spirited in the com-
munity, and his pride in and love for his native town and
his ready support of all measures calculated to promote its
prosperity and welfare are no less marked than the devo-
tion which he gives to his chosen profession. As a law-
yer he is regarded as a particularly safe and sagacious
counselor, urging no man into litigation where it can rea-
sonably be avoided ; but when fairly engaged in the prose-
cution of any cause giving the same his best energies and
most careful attention.
His long experience at the bar, his thorough familiarity
with the law, and especially with the New Hampshire stat-
utes, which was largely enhanced through his faithful and
laborious service as a member of the last commission for
the revision and codification thereof, together with the
conservative character of his mental organization and
temperament, have been quite generally regarded as fitting
him in more than ordinary measure for judicial service ;
so that when the vacancy upon the supreme bench occa-
sioned by the resignation of the late Judge Allen was to be
filled, he was considered, not in his own county alone but
throughout the whole state, as the most eligible man for
the position, and his declination, when named therefor by
the executive, if not a surprise to those who knew him
best, was certainly a disappointment to the general public.
In his legislative service Mr. Colby became a promi-
nent figure, particularly during his last two terms in the
house. In 1864 and 1865 he was chairman of the com-
HON. IRA COLBY. 205
mittee on elections in that body. As a member of the
senate, in 1869, he served as chairman of the judiciary com-
mittee and a member of the committee on railroads ; and
in 1870, in the same body, he was chairman of the rail-
road committee, and also served on the committees on
banks, towns, and roads, bridges and canals. In 1881 he
was a member of the judiciary committee of the house,
and chairman of the committee on agricultural college.
In 18S3 he was again a member of the judiciary commit-
tee and also of that on the asylum for the insane ; while
in 1887 he was chairman of the normal school committee
and a member of the judiciary. He was at all times faith-
ful in attendance upon committee work and equally inter-
ested and active in the deliberations of the house. In
1883 he introduced and was instrumental in securing the
enactment of the measure generally known as the " Colby
bill," which materially modified the law of the state in
reference to chartering railroad corporations ; while in
1887 h e was tne active leader of those supporting the so-
called " Hazen bill," which failed only through the execu-
tive veto, and in his direction of the contest for its passage
on the floor of the house he manifested the same tenacity
of purpose and indomitable energy combined with skill
and judgment which has characterized his management
of important causes in his legal practice.
Upon several occasions in the past the Republicans of
Sullivan county have urged Mr. Colbv's nomination for
representative in Congress in the district conventions of
that party, not only on local grounds, but also because of
his eminent fitness for the position ; and in the last con-
vention there were many earnest advocates of his nomination
from all sections of the district, although he had himself
taken no action in the furtherance of such object. He
is, indeed, too ignorant or careless of the arts of the self-
seeker for the fullest success in modern political life, even
did his ambition lead him in that direction ; and it is safe
to assume that the remaining years of his active life will
be devoted in the main to the professional labor in which
he has already won enviable distinction.
THE GRANTEES OF CLAREMONT.
BY C. B. SPOFFORD.
The events which led to the granting of the town of
Claremont are but a repetition of those of other towns
along the Connecticut and in Vermont. Previous to the
French and Indian war ( 1754-1761) the only settlements
of importance were at Charlestown, or "Number Four," as
it was then called, Upper Ashuelot, or Keene, and Fort
Dummer, or Hinsdale. From these places the expeditions
were sent, usually taking direct routes to their objective
points, so that the value of the lands through which they
passed became known. When the contest ended the whole
northern part of America became British possessions, and
the ungranted portions were eagerly sought. The title to
these was, however, claimed by both New York and New
Hampshire, the former under the government of Tyron,
the latter under Benning Wentworth. Tyron claimed the
territory as far east as the Connecticut river, while Went-
worth presumed that his authority extended as far west as
that of Massachusetts, or within twenty miles of the Hud-
son river. Both had certain reasons for such claims, and
the dispute over territory was not settled until many years
later. With the close of the war these lands were sought
by adventurers and speculators and generously granted by
both governors. Gov. Wentworth availed himself of the
opportunity to fatten his own purse, rew r ard friends and
relatives as well as a few faithful subjects, and he granted
almost without limit.
By the advice of the council he ordered a survey to be made
of the Connecticut river valley and three tiers of townships
to be laid out on each side, each township to average six
miles square. During the year 1761 sixty of these were
granted on the west side of the river and eighteen on the
east side, among them being Newport in 1761, Cornish in
1763. Besides the fees and presents received for these
grants the governor also reserved for himself five hundred
acres in each of the grants, also a share for the schools,
first settled minister, the Church of England, and the
Society for the Propagation of the Gospel. All of these
reservations were exempt from fees and charges of improve-
THE GRANTEES OF CLAREMONT. 207
merit. Those who obtained the grants seldom settled upon
them, but sold their rights to those who did settle, or sought
purchasers in the neighboring colonies, in some instances
making grants to those who would settle. The passion for
new lands rose to a great height, and in a few years many-
settlers had become occupants of and were tilling the fer-
tile lands along the Connecticut river, the greater part of
whom were from the older settlements in Massachusetts
and Connecticut.
On October 26, 1764, " By the Special Grace certain
knowledge & meer motion, & for the due encouragement
of settling a new plantation within the Province of New
Hampshire" the council, with the advice of " Our Trusty
and well beloved Benning Wentworth, Governor and Com-
mander-in-chief of said province, do upon certain condi-
tions and with certain reservations grant unto the parties
hereafter named the tract of land bounded as follows,
' beginning at a marked tree standing on the easterly bank
of the Connecticut River, which bound is the Northwest-
erly corner of Charlestown, from thence running south
78 ° easterly about six and one half miles to the South-
westerlv angle f NewPort from thence turning off &
running North 8 ° easterly about five and seven eighths
of a mile by New Port aforesaid to the southeasterly angle
ot Cornish. Then turning off again and running north
77 ° westerly about six miles by Cornish aforesaid, to the
Connecticut River thence down the said river as that runs to
the bounds begun at, together with the islands lying in said
river opposite the said premises.'" This tract was further
said to contain by admeasurement 24,000 acres, six miles
square and no more, out of which was made an allowance
of 1,040 acres for highways and unimprovable land, by
reason of rocks, ponds, mountains, and rivers. The tract
was named Claremont, and was divided into seventy-five
equal shares', sixty-nine of whom were named as individu-
als, the remaining six shares being for the governor and
the various societies. The usual reservations were made
for the preservation of white pine trees for his majesty's navy,
and providing for two " Fairs," the dates being left open.
Samuel Ashley was named as the first moderator. We
shall give the names of the grantees as they appear on the
charter, the numbering being our own for the sake of con-
208
THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
veniencc. The first meeting of the proprietors was held
at the house of Hilkiah Grout, in Winchester, N. H., on
February 21, 1767, at which Samuel Ashley was chosen
moderator, and Col. Josiah Willard, clerk. Hilkiah Grout,
although not a grantee, was quite a noted man. He was
born in 1728, was living at Bridgeman's Fort June 24th,
1755, when that place was taken by the Indians, and his
wife and three children were captured and taken to Canada.
He enlisted for the war, and after its close removed to
Winchester, his family being exchanged. He resided in
Winchester about ten years and then removed to Wethers-
field, Vt., where he died. During the trouble of the New
Hampshire grants he was an active partisan on the side
of New York. He was made a justice of the peace in
1777, assistant justice of the court of common pleas in
1788, justice of the court of oyer and terminer in 1782.
In 1775 he served as major of the upper regiment of Cum-
berland county.
The first meeting held in Claremont was at the house
of Thomas Jones, on April 20, 1767.
LIST OF GRANTEES.
I.
Josiah Willard,
■".5
2.
Samuel Ashley,
24
3-
Jeremiah Hall,
2 5
4-
Josiah Willard, Jr.,
26
5-
Thomas Frink, Esq.,
27
6.
John Ellis,
28
7-
Simon Willard,
29
8.
Abraham Scott,
3°
9-
Henry Foster,
3 1
10.
Solomon Willard,
3 2 '
1 1.
Jonathan Hammond,
33
12.
William Heaton,
34
*3-
Prentice Willard,
35
14.
Col. Joseph Hammond,
36.
15-
William Grimes,
37'
16.
Jonathan Willard,
38.
i7-
Samuel Ashley, Jr.,
39'
18.
James Scott,
40,
19.
Samuel Scott,
41.
20.
John Cass,
42.
21.
Joshua Hyde (or Hide),
43-
22.
Nathaniel Eaton,
44.
Gideon Ellis,
Joseph Ellis,
John Grimes,
Joseph Cass,
Jonathan Scott,
William Richardson,
John Pierce,
Thomas Lee,
Stephen Putney,
Timothy Taylor,
Benjamin Freeman,
Oliver Farwell,
Jonathan Searles,
Oliver Farwell, Jr.,
Ephraim Adams,
3S. Phineas Wait,
Oliver Ashley,
Abijah Willard,
Micah Lawrence,
Abel Lawrence,
Lemuel Hedge,
Clement Sumner,
THE GRANTEES OF CLAREMONT.
209
45. Abel Lawrence,
46. Michael Medcalf,
47. Ephraim Dorman,
4S. Joseph Lord,
49. William Willard,
50. Jeremael Powers,
S 1. John Alines,
52. "David Field,
53. Henry Bond,
54. John Hawks,
5v Samuel Field.
56. Simeon Chamberlin,
57. Elijah Alexander,
58. Ebenezer Dodge,
59. Samuel Wells,
60. John Hunt,
61. William Smeed,
62. Col. John Goff, Esq.,
63. Daniel Jones, Esq.,
64. Hon. John Temple, Esq.,
6v Theodore Atkinson, Esq.,
66. Mark Hunking Wentworth,
67. Theodore Atkinson. Jr., Esq.,
65. Col. William Syms,
69. Samuel Davis,
70. J
71. j Gov.Benn'g W entwi
72. Society for the Propagation
of Gospel in Foreign Parts,
73. Support of Schools,
74. First settled minister,
75. Glebe for Church of E'gland.
vorth, }
No. 1. Josiah Willard was born in Lancaster, Mass.,
January 15, 1 71 5. He was a son of Col. Josiah Willard, one
of the grantees and early settlers of Winchester, N. H.,
and for many years commander of Fort Dummer, now
Hinsdale. In 1737 he migrated with his father to Win-
chester, he having, on November 23, 1732, married Han-
nah Hubbard of Groton, Mass., sisters of whom married
Col. Joseph Blanchard of Dunstable, Oliver Farwell of the
same place, and Col. Benjamin Bellows of Walpole.
The elder Josiah died, at Dunstable, December 8, 1750,
at the age of fifty, and the subject of our sketch was com-
missioned colonel, to succeed his father, on the 1 8th of the
same month, which position he held until relieved by Col.
Samuel Ashley, just previous to the outbreak of the Rev-
olutionary war. His position was one of great responsi-
bility and, consequently, influential ; so much so that when
the passion for new lands and settlements agitated the
older towns on the Connecticut river, Col. Willard became
prominent in their charter rights, and with him nearly all
of his relatives and friends.
In addition to Claremont we find him to have been a
grantee of Putney, Vt., Chesterfield, five shares of West-
moreland, Grafton, Jefferson, and doubtless many others,
as we find him to have been associated with Benjamin
Bellows of Walpole, Samuel Chase of Sutton, Mass., and
Cornish, N. H., and Daniel Jones of Hinsdale, as agent
for the sale of lands in no less than twenty-five townships.
210 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
His part in the granting of Claremont is fully set forth
in the following deposition (from a copy in possession of
Isaac H. Long, Esq.), which was taken in connection with
the suit to recover possession of the governor's farm :
" Josiah Willard of Winchester in the county of Cheshire
and state of New Hampshire of lawful age &c. testify and
say that in the year 1764 I took out the charter of the town
of Claremont, agreeing with Gov. Wentworth that 500
acres should be laid out to him in the south west corner of
the said town including the island called Walcotts island.
At the first meeting of the proprietors of said township it
was agree by them that the said 500 acres and island
should be laid out to Gov. Wentworth, and in the year
1767 the same was laid out by the following boundaries.
[Boundaries follow.] I further testify and say that I did
agree with William Porter to settle on the said governor's
farm and do settling duty for which I was to procure for him
the deed of forty acres from the Governor. The said Porter
did so settle and I procured the deed. I further testify
and say that a number of other shares or rights were voted
at the same time and in the same manner as the governors
to be set off by themselves to several proprietors."
As has been said, very little was done for three years
after the charter was granted, the other rights referred to
being those of Col. Wiliam Symes, Col. John Goff, Theo-
dore Atkinson, Mark H. Wentworth, John Temple, Lem-
uel Hedge, Micah Lawrence, John Hunt, Simon Cham-
berlin, Joshua Hide, William Willard, Joseph Lord, Thomas
Frink, Jonathan Hawkes, Daniel Field, Samuel Field, Sam-
uel Ashley, Jr., and Oliver Ashley. Of these rights nearly
all were purchased by Samuel Ashley and Col. Willard as
well as others from other grantees, and the settlement of the
town was largely promoted by these two men as proprie-
tors. That the rights were considered of little value at that
time is evident, for the registry of deeds in Cheshire
county records many transfers for sums varying from two
to five shillings each.
The commencement of the Revolution found Col. Wil-
lard an ardent supporter of the crown, and in an agreement
between the citizens of Keene to " Oppose the Hostility of
the British against the United colonies," all but thirteen
of its citizens signed ; of these one was Col. Willard.
THE GRANTEES OF CLAREMONT. 211
Several of his family also maintained allegiance, one of
whom was his son Solomon.
Col. Willard died, in Winchester, November 19th, 1786
(the gravestone says April 19th, but is incorrect), and part
of his rights which were originally sold to Samson, Solo-
mon, Jonathan and Abel Willard, John Ellis. William
Grimes, Clement Sumner, Michael Medcalf, Elijah Alex-
ander, Stephen Putnam, John Series, Oliver Farwell, Jr.,
Gideon Ellis, Joseph Cass, and John Grimes, were sold
February 4th, 17S7, by Solomon Willard, executor, to
Timothy Grannis of Claremont for 151 pounds four shil-
lings. Much more might be said of this man, but for
further reference the several volumes of State Papers may
be consulted, hardly one of which but that contains allu-
sions to him or to his family.
No. 2. Col. Samuel Ashley was born in Westfield,
Mass., March 20, 1720. An extended sketch of him was
printed in the Granite Monthly for May, 1892, and it
is unnecessary to repeat the same at this time. Of the
sixty-nine individuals who were grantees, the following
were bought out by Col. Ashley: William Willard, Lem-
uel Hedge, Jonathan Hunt, Micah Lawrence, Joshua Hide,
Jonathan Hawkes, David and Samuel Field, Joseph Lord,
and Thomas Frink. Nearly all of these were transferred
in July, 1765. Samuel Ashley removed, about 1783-4, to
Claremont, where he died February 18th, 1792, aged sev-
enty-two.
No. 3. Jeremiah Hall was one of the first settlers and
a proprietor of Keene, going to that town, with six others,
from Concord, Mass., in 1734, under the grant from Mass-
achusetts. In 1753 he, with others, petitioned for a
re-grant under the New Hampshire authorities, the request
being acknowledged April 11, 1753. He was also a
grantee of Westmoreland. He sold his right in Claremont,
May 15th, 1771, to Col. Benjamin Sumner, for 40 pounds.
No. 4. Major Jostah Willard, the eldest son of Col.
Josiah (No. i),was born in Lunenburg, Mass., September
22, 1734. At various times he commanded Fort Dummer
and was also in command of a regiment at Fort Edward
212 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
in 1755. During the Revolutionary war he was a resident
of Keene, but we do not find that he took any part in
those events which led to American independence. He
was the first register of deeds for Cheshire county, and
many volumes yet existing attest his fitness for the position.
Major Willard married three wives, the second of whom
was Mary Jennison, daughter of John and Mary (Hub-
bard) Jennison. To them were born four children.
His right in Claremont was sold by his father to Ezra
Conant of Warwick, Mass., August 29th, 1774. (Conant
became a settler.) Major Willard died, in Keene, June
29th, 1801.
No. 5. Thomas Frink was of Keene and a physician
and surgeon. He was in Col. Samuel Ashley's regiment,
which marched to the relief of Ticonderoga in June, 1777*
serving in his professional capacity. His right was pur-
chased by Col. Ashley, on July 23, 1765, for " five shillings
lawful money."
No. 6. John Ellis, probably from Winchester. He
enlisted from that town for three years, in 1779, receiving
a bounty of seventy-five pounds in advance, and deserted
February 1, 1780. This right was also one of those trans-
ferred to Timothy Grannis by the executor of the estate of
Josiah Willard, and was doubtless purchased by Willard
soon after the granting of the charter.
[CONTINUED NEXT MONTH.]
THE TEST.
BY C. C. LORD.
There is one, like wise Socrates,
Who yields, before unjust decrees,
His life, undaunted, calm, sublime,
With words that, like a holy chime,
Inspire and urge the righteous van,-
" What seems to be is not a ban,
Kind friends ; consider how
In every man one purpose is,
To try whatever work is his,
Then let it try us now ! "
THE TEST. 213
Another is who bears at length,
Like Hercules, of mighty strength,
Twelve labors huge and still lives on,
Each one a prize of virtue won ;
And, while the world with shrinking awe
Regards, he cites and pleads the law, —
" Each step foretokens how
In every man one purpose is,
To try whatever work is his,
Then let it try us now ! "
Again, a soul fulfills his day
Along some still, secluded way,
Content, the truth upon his side,
Its present issue to abide ;
And, questioned of his hopeful part
And end, replies with honest heart, —
" True wisdom shows us how
In every man one purpose is,
To try whatever work is his,
Then let it try us now ! "
Yet thousand, thousand others are,
Who put the evil da}' afar,
And idly seek to shirk the pain
Of earnest faithfulness in vain.
O ye, who thus your care abate,
'Tis coming — coming — soon or late —
When life discovers how
In every man one purpose is,
To try whatever work is his,
Then let it try us now !
CAPTAIN JONATHAN CASS AND FAMILY.
BY ROLAND D. NOBLE.
In the article, "The New Hampshire Cincinnati," by
John C. French, in the Granite Monthly for April,
1893, mention is made of Captain Jonathan Cass of Exe-
ter, which revives some reminiscences of him and of his
family in Ohio. The late Alfred T. Goodman, then Secre-
tary of the Western Reserve Historical Society (Cleveland),
of date February 17, 187 1, in a contribution to the Sf ring-
Held (O.) Advertise?-, makes this notice of Captain Cass:
" In December, 1792, Captain Cass was transferred to the 2d
sub-legion and in the year following served in that command.
When the 3d sub-legion of Wayne's army was formed Cass was
promoted to the rank of Major, his commission bearing date
February 21, 1793. Major Cass served with great applause in
the Indian campaign of 1794-1 an d was afterwards in command
at Fort Hamilton. In November, 1796, Major Cass was assigned
to the 3d U. S. Infantry, and continued in that regiment until his
resignation, which occurred February 15, 1S01. Having, under
an act of Congress, received a warrant for Revolutionary bounty-
land, Major Cass selected and entered a large tract of land on
the Muskingum, at what is now Dresden, fifteen miles above
Zanesville, Ohio, to which place he retired as a private citizen.
There he continued to live, following the humble occupation of a
farmer, until he was called to his final reward, August 14, 1S30.
His widow survived him two years. Major Cass left three sons,
the late General Lewis Cass, of national fame, Charles L. Cass,
an officer of the army, now deceased, and George W. Cass, who
still, at the advanced age of S5, resides on the old homestead at
Dresden. General George W. Cass of Pittsburgh, Pa., is a son
of George W. of Dresden."
The present writer will add that Major Cass also left a
daughter, Mrs. Munroe, at Dresden. Each of the children
was provided by him with a large farm. Commencing
with his at Dresden the aggregate stretched up the pebbly
and beautiful Muskingum, fringed with stately sycamore
and other native trees, for two or three miles. A drive
under their shade along the river bank of a fine summer
day can hardly be excelled in comfort and beauty.
The elegant but unpretentious hospitalities furnished by
Major Cass's descendants — educated and enterprising peo-
IF I WERE NOT I. 215
pie — at their residences on those farms will long be remem-
bered. Doctor Edward Cass, a grandson of Major Cass,
a distinguished physician of Ohio, and perhaps other
descendants of Major Cass, still resides at Dresden. Lewis
Cass was for a time a pupil at Exeter Academy. His
magnificent farm is yet known as the "Lewis Cass Farm,"
although, being in the public service, he never resided on
it, and sold it more than fifty years ago.
Cleveland, O., June, 1S93.
IF I WERE NOT I.
BY PERSIS E. DARROW.
If I were not I, O, who would I be?
Who is purest, sweetest, from taint most free?
Who puts songs into the heart,
Who smiles back the tears that start?
Who, wherever she doth move,
Worketh only works of love?
If I were not I, but were thou, Marie,
Then would my happiness perfected be ;
Would I sigh for nothing more,
Would my cup then bubble o'er?
Nay, dear Marie, I should sigh,
Being thou, that thou wert I,
Else how should love abide with thee and me?
MRS. BELLE MARSHALL LOCKE.
BY A. H. ROBINSON.
The time passed, years ago, when marriage was neces-
sarily regarded as destroying the active individuality of
the woman entering into that relation. The old fiction of
law that husband and wife become one through the merg-
ing of the wife's personality in that of the husband may
still be cherished to some extent and for some purposes,
but it is becoming more and more manifest every day, not
only that the rights, privileges, duties, and responsibilities
of women, generally speaking, are on a par with those of
men, unless hampered by unjust limitations of law or cus-
tom, but also that in entering the married state woman
surrenders none of these, though they may be modified
by circumstances, as are those of man, in entering this or
any other new relation.
It is no strange or uncommon thing, therefore, at the
present time to see a married woman marking out for her-
self and following a career of labor and usefulness, of
study and achievement, either in industrial, educational,
or professional lines, entirely independent of her husband,
and this by no means necessarily because of any require-
ment of physical or domestic need. The woman, indeed,
who, with power and opportunity for work and achievement
in any worthy or useful direction, fails to improve the same
because of her ability to subsist in comfort upon the fruits
of her husband's labor, makes a sorr}^ failure of life at
best, and the truth of this is being more fully recognized
as the years go by.
Among our New Hampshire women pursuing an inde-
pendent career, though neglecting none of the proper
requirements of home and domestic life, is Mrs. Belle
Marshall Locke, wife of City Marshal G. Scott Locke of
Concord, who has come to be known, not only in her own
but adjoining states, as a most accomplished and successful
teacher of vocal and dramatic expression. Mrs. Locke is
a native of the town of Lancaster, a daughter of the late
Anderson J. and Frances (Perkins) Marshall. She
attended the schools of her beautiful native village, com-
pleting the academic course under the instruction of the
well-known educator, Prof. J. C. Irish. In early child-
Vt4AA> *
J
MRS. BELLE MARSHALL LOCKE. 217
hood she attracted marked attention for the facility and
power which she manifested in the line of recitation, her
appreciation of the character and demands of the piece
being almost intuitive. Her talent in this direction was
heartily recognized and encouraged by her parents and
friends, and the best special instruction attainable was
provided. She was also favored with musical gifts of no
mean order, which, coupled with her dramatic abilities,
rendered her a prominent figure upon the local operatic
stage upon frequent occasions, successfully representing
" grown-up" characters while yet a mere child. She also
exhibited strong literary tastes in early life, and at sixteen
years of age was a prolific contributor to the Waverlcy
Magazine and various other publications. Nor has she
neglected her pen in later years, though its productions
are principally confined to subjects in line with her work,
and contributed to publications devoted to vocal culture and
expression.
Although her union with Mr. Locke had occurred at an
early period, immediately upon the close of her school
days, she did not allow her marriage to destroy her iden-
tity or thwart her ambition. She determined to continue
the full use and development of her powers, and this she
has done with the success so generally known. Her first
instructor of general note was Mrs. Edna Chaffee-Noble,
now head of the Chaffee-Noble School of Expression at
Detroit, Mich., and who has also founded two schools of
expression in London, and several others at the West. A
year of study under her direction gave much advance-
ment, but only prepared the way for further study and
greater progress. She entered the New England Con-
servatory College of Orator} 7 in Boston, under the instruc-
tion of Prof. S. R. Kelley, and so energetically did she
apply herself that she completed the usual four years'
course in two years, winning such favor and distinction
by her progress and merit that she was made the single
representative of the college in the second year, at the
grand annual exhibition of the Conservator)'.
Graduating in 1884, with the highest honors, her diploma
being accompanied by commendatory letters of the strong-
est character from her instructors, she was not yet con-
tent with the preparation for her life work, and the follow-
218 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
ing year was passed under the special instruction of
the renowned Leland T. Powers. It was a year of deep
interest in and intense application to the work in hand, and
the result was so successful as not only to win public
approval in a marked degree, but also to call forth the
emphatic commendation of her instructor.
Spending a year in Texas, where her husband was
engaged in the management of an extensive cattle ranche,
for the improvement oi her health, somewhat impaired by too
close application to study, she returned with him to Con-
cord, their former home, where they have resided for the
past seven years, during which time she has devoted her-
self with persistency and fidelity to her chosen life work
as a dramatic and elocutionary instructor. Her thorough
methods and conscientious effort have brought remarka-
ble success, enhancing and extending her reputation w r ith
each succeeding year, till at the present time she has not
less than a hundred different pupils under her instruction
in Concord, in Lawrence, Mass., and in adjacent places.
She has taught in Lawrence for about five years, where
she is a great favorite, and where, as in Concord, dra-
matic representations and recitals under her direction, for
whatever object, are always largely patronized. Many of
her pupils in elocution have won much favor before the
public, while not a few of her dramatic pupils have devel-
oped marked ability, several already sustaining with credit
leading parts in popular companies. In addition to her
direct instruction of many hundreds of individual pupils
in the past seven years, Mrs. Locke has directed the pre-
sentation, in different places, of more than forty plays,
taking a leading part herself, in many cases, with brilliant
success, and has also conducted as many public recitals by
her pupils, and spent one successful season travelling
with a dramatic company of her own organization and man-
agement. She has written one sparkling play, " Myra's
Secret," which was favorably greeted upon presentation,
and is engaged upon another, but allows nothing to inter-
fere with her active and increasing work as an instructor.
Of charming personality and winning manner, endowed
with all social graces and blessed with a sunny tempera-
ment, Mrs. Locke is no less popular in society than in her
professional work, and shines in any circle which may' be
THE STEAM INTERLUDE. 219
favored with her presence. Having scarcely reached the
early prime of womanhood, it is safe to assume that there
is a long career of successful achievement still awaiting
her in the work to which she has given herself with such
zeal and enthusiasm.
THE STEAM INTERLUDE.— Continued.
BY FRANK WEST ROLLINS.
" Impatiently I rang the bell to start her, and my reply
was a call through the speaking-tube. What is it? I
asked.
" ' There's not an ounce of steam,' replied the chief
engineer.
" How are the fires?
" ' Never saw better ones. We ought to have pressure
enough to drive her twenty knots an hour with the fires we
have, but the water does not even boil, though it is at a
terrible heat. Never knew anything like it.'
" My officers were now gathered around me with anxious,
concerned faces, while the crew gazed up at us with curi-
osity. Various suggestions were offered but no solution of
the puzzle could be found. It was morally certain that the
machinery was all right, as the most minute examination
had revealed nothing to account for the stoppage. Besides
we had three separate sets of engines and boilers, and they
had all stopped at the same time and in the same manner.
It was not likely that anything could have given out at the
same moment in each. But the curious and inexplicable
part of the thing was that we could not make steam —
absolutely none. Followed by my officers, we repaired to
the engine-room again, where a glance at the steam gauge
told the story. The engineers were standing about watch-
ing the gauge expectantly, and with puzzled faces.
" We then proceeded to the fire-rooms, and found the
fires roaring, while the stokers crowded the furnaces with
coal till they fairly roared and trembled with the heat.
Still no steam. I put my ear to a boiler, but no sound
indicated any presence of steam, or any boiling. I opened
a cock and scalding-hot water poured out, but no steam. I
220 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
was non-plussed. The trouble was evidently with the
boilers, or at least it consisted of an inability, from some
mysterious cause, to make steam. We had sifted it down
to" that.
" Leaving instructions for the fires to be kept up at a
white heat, I returned to the engine-room and awaited
developments. By this time every soul in the ship was
on the qui vive. I had as good engineers as there were in
the navy, if not in the world, and none of them had ever
heard of such a case. How could such fires fail to make
steam? The question was unanswerable. A visit to my
cabin and an examination of my books on engineering
failed to reveal a parallel case or any explanation of the
matter. I was on my way to the engine-room again when
I heard the look-out announce a sail. I thought to myself
perhaps she can assist us, and then it occurred to me how
ridiculous it was. Who could help us in such a predica-
ment? All we could do was to go on hunting for the
trouble and continue our efforts to make steam.
" After all, I was more puzzled than worried, as I
thought the difficulty could be only temporary, and we
were in no danger, at least for the present. The sea had
quieted down and was like glass, with a long, swinging
undulation on which the powerful fabric swam as buoyantly
as a gull. The great white sides were reflected in the
sparkling water, while the brass work was turned into irri-
descent gold in the morning sun. The only thing to be
feared, as we were in the broad Atlantic, was a sudden
storm, which might, without the use of our engines, leave
the sailless hull at the mercy of the winds and waves.
For a moment I regretted the symmetrical old wooden ships
with their great white sails, on which I had taken my first
lessons in navigation. Thinking over all these possibilities
and contingencies, I turned thoughtfully to the deck.
" How does the sail bear? I asked of the officer of the
deck.
" ' Broad on the port beam, sir,' he replied.
" A glance revealed some dark object low down on the
horizon in the direction indicated. What it was it was
impossible to tell from the deck.
" Hail the lookout, Mr. Brace, and see what it is.
" ' He says it is a steamer, as he can see smoke, sir.'
THE STEAM INTERLUDE. 221
" How is she heading?
" ' She seems to be lying to, sir.'
" Have a watch kept of her, and as soon as she is near
enough, signal that we want to speak her.
" fc Aye, aye, sir.'
" I then joined the engineers in their discussion of the
problem, and it was an hour before I again went on deck ;
and during this time no sign of pressure had appeared
upon the gauge. The first thing I noticed as I put my
head above the companion-way was that the ocean was still
as smooth as a mill pond, and the sky as azure clear as a
mountain stream. The men were gathered at the rail,
gazing at the now clearly visible vessel. I started in
amazement as mv eye fell on her.
" She was lying beam on about five miles off and clearly
visible to the naked eye. I saw at a glance that she was a
man-of-war, and, seizing a glass, I made out the British
ensign. She was of nearly the same class as ourselves,
though not so large, and was one of the finest vessels in
the English navy. There she lay, however, motionless,
rising and falling on the long swells, while great masses of
smoke tumbled in involuted columns from her stacks, and
floated lazily to leeward. Seeing me on deck, Mr. Brace
approached, and informed me that he had signalled that we
wanted to speak her.
" What reply did she make, and why don't she come
within hailing distance?
" ' She replied, all right — we want to speak you.'
" Tell them we are disabled, and ask them to come
within hail.
"In a moment the proper signal was hoisted, and it was
quickly answered from the British vessel.
" ' She replies that her engines have stopped and that
she can't move,' reported Mr. Brace.
" The deuce she does.
" I turned to my officers about me, and we all remarked
on the singularity of the circumstance of two of the finest
vessels of the British and American navies being disabled
within a gun-shot of each other in the wide Atlantic.
" Thinking it advisable and courteous to confer with the
commander of our neighbor, I signalled him that I would
come aboard, and was soon speeding towards the man-of-
222 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
war as fast as twelve oars could carry rne. As we swept
along I thought I noticed that the two vessels were a trifle
nearer than they were when I had first come on deck, and
laid it to the action of some current. The ship, as I dis-
covered on approaching, was the Destroyer, a fact which
I had already surmised, as I knew her well from descrip-
tions and pictures I had seen. The gangway had been
shipped, and as I stepped aboard I was received with
every naval courtesy. I at once followed the commander
to his cabin, where, after a glass of wine, I broached the
subject uppermost in my mind.
" I am in a quandary, I said, and have come aboard
partly to confer with you about it, and to see if you can
offer me any suggestions.
" ' Why, I was about to order my boat away for the
same purpose when you signalled me that you were coming
aboard. I, too, am in a dilemma.'
" Well, it is singular. In fact, everything that happens
now is mysterious. However, I will telL you of my predica-
ment, and then you can post me as to yours. This morn-
ing, about 10 o'clock, without any apparent reason, my
engines stopped, and I have been unable since, with the
hottest fires, to make an ounce of steam.
" As I spoke, the commander of the English vessel
looked at me in the utmost astonisment, and, springing to
his feet, he exclaimed, —
" ' Why, man, that's just what happened to me !
Surely you are joking me ! '
" I sank back in my chair, paralyzed, and we stared at
each other in speechless amazement.
" I am not naturally a believer in the supernatural,
but if this does not partake of the powers of darkness, I
am mistaken, I said, when I could get my breath. What
time did your engines stop?
" ' A few minutes past ten; in fact, the same moment
yours did.'
" Instead of gaining light by my visit I was more mysti-
fied than before. This settled the question that it was no
local trouble with the engines, or boilers even, as it affected
us at the same moment. Could there be anything in the
atmosphere of this particular locality which prevented the
making of steam? For an hour we discussed the question,
THE STEAM INTERLUDE. 223
and cudgelled our brains ; advanced theories, only to throw
them over as untenable, and finally gave it up as a bad
job. We were still talking when an officer entered the
cabin, with an apology for intruding, and informed us that
the two vessels were drifting uncomfortably near together.
"We hurried on deck, and, sure enough, the two great
steel monsters were slowly but surely approaching each
other. It was another case of attraction such as has often
been noted at sea. Two vessels in a dead calm will
frequently draw towards each other without any visible
cause or reason. But the collision of two such vessels
must be avoided, and, springing into my boat, I was soon on
the deck of my own vessel.
" How to avoid the collision which seemed imminent
was the burning question. I had no sails, and if I had had
them there was no wind. The only way I could think of
was to out boats and tow her out of harm. I gave the
necessary orders, and in a few moments all the boats were
piped away. A hawser was run out at right angles to the
bows and all the boats made fast to it in a long line. At a
given signal they all pulled together, and the water flew
and sparkled from the oars as the sturdy backs bent to
their work. Glancing at the Destroyer, 1 saw that she
was following suit, only that she was towing in the oppo-
site direction, so as to pull the head around. I looked
anxiously over the bows to see if we made any progress,
but not a ripple stirred around the ram. We were not mov-
ing. The boats had not moved her a foot. After ten
minutes of tremendous efforts I communicated with the
Destroyer, and asked that all together be tackled on to
our line to see if all the boats could not move one vessel.
This was done, but without effect. The combined strength
of both crews had no effect on the great hull.
" Our relative position was unchanged, and we were
every minute drifting nearer together. We were still
several hundred yards apart, but the approach was as sure
and deadly as though we were being warped together. It
was fascinating but terrible to watch the sheet of interven-
ing water growing narrower and narrower. I was at the
end ot my rope. We had no motive-power, and were as
impotent as though we were in the rapids below Niagara.
We could now talk across the gap, and even hear the foot-
224 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
fall of the men as they walked the deck of our unwelcome
neighbor. The black muzzles of the Destroyer's guns
were looking right into our faces. My heart was like lead,
for I knew what the effect of a collision between such
vessels would be. Suddenly a bright idea struck me. It
was a forlorn hope, but I determined to try it. Springing
upon the rail, I hailed the commander of the Destroyer,
who was on the bridge of his vessel, telling him that I had
a plan which would possibly prevent the collision.
" ' Let's have it, quick ! '
" It is simply to load our port and your starboard guns
with blank cartridge, and when we are near enough to
fire, with the hope that the reaction will drive us apart.
" Waiving his hand as a signal of assent, he sprang from
the bridge, and we both went to work to execute the plan.
The crews were called to quarters, and our port and the
Destroyer's starboard guns w r ere double loaded with blank
cartridge, after which the crews were sent below to escape
as much as possible the terrible concussion. Each gun
could be fired from the conning-tower, or either battery
altogether, by means of electricity, and I knew that the
same appliance was in use on the English vessel. I called
to the commander to fire when I struck the ship's bell,
which he could plainly hear from his position. Our
arrangements were hurriedly made, for time pressed,
though perfect discipline prevailed, and I stood in the
conning-tower, my finger on the electric button, waiting the
proper moment to fire.
" Noiselessly the two leviathans approached each other;
inch by inch, foot by foot the space between us narrowed.
Not a sound was to be heard : a death-like stillness pre-
vailed ; the decks of both vessels were entirety deserted,
every man and officer, except those in the conning-towers,
having gone below to escape the explosion. The suspense
was terrible, for if this experiment failed, the crashing,
crushing collision must follow, and this meant death to
part, if not all, of us. I knew that the commander of the
Destroyer was at his post in the conning-tower, his finger
on the button, his eye and ear alert for the signal.
[to be continued.]
MUSICAL DEPARTMENT.
CONDUCTED BY H. G. BLAISDELL.
CONCERT AT NASHUA.
The choir of the Church of the Immaculate Conception
of Nashua gave a concert on the evening of May 25 tor
the benefit of its organ fund. They were assisted by Miss
Delia Smith of Lowell, soprano; Miss Minnie Sullivan of
Boston, soprano; Mr. T. F. Molloy of Lowell, tenor; Mr.
George Burns of Lowell, bass; Mr. Walter S. Cotton,
violinist, of Nashua, and Cummings's orchestra, also of
Nashua.
Mrs. M. C. Moonev, the organist and directress of the
choir, acted in the capacity of accompanist, and Mr. E. M.
Temple of Nashua was the conductor.
Aside from a fine miscellaneous programme they
performed Mercadante's celebrated Mass in Bb entire.
In addition to the above list of artists Miss Mary Dris-
coll and Mr. James O'Brien assisted in the mass. The
press of Nashua was warm in praises of the combined
efforts of soloists, chorus, and orchestra. Mr. E. M. Tem-
ple was complimented upon the success of his chorus, as
would be naturally expected of one who is both compe-
tent and faithful. Let us hope that Nashua may awaken
from an already too long sleep and do her part in a musical
way, by organizing a mixed chorus for serious study during
the coming winter months.
CONCORD CHORAL UNION.
The Concord Choral Union gave their closing entertain-
ment of the season on Wednesday evening, May 24, at
Phenix hall. They performed Lachner's One Hundredth
Psalm, the Halleluiah Chorus from the Messiah, Rhein-
berger's beautiful "Night Song," and "The Water
Nymphs,"' by Rubinstein, for female voices.
The soloists were Mrs. Morgan, soprano; Mrs. Annie
Dietrich Brown, soprano; Miss Rose F. Jenkins, con-
tralto; Mr. C. S. Conant, tenor; Mr. C. F. Scribner,
basso; Miss C. K. Piper, elocutionist; Miss Ada M.
Aspinwall, pianist and accompanist; and H. G. Blais-
dell, conductor and violinist. The chorus did excellent
226 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
work, particularly so in the One Hundredth Psalm. The
soloists, without exception, appeared to good advan-
tage, and it was a creditable showing of home talent, giv-
ing the people of Concord an opportunity to judge of the
standing and progress of musical culture in their midst.
All things considered it was one of the most pleasing enter-
tainments ever given by the Concord Choral Union.
ST. PAUL'S CHOIR CONCERT.
The choir of St. Paul's (Episcopal) Church of Concord,
consisting of thirty-five boys' and men's voices, H. G.
Blaisdell, choir master, gave a concert in Phenix hall,
Concord, on Tuesday evening, June 6. Master Charles
Furber of Littleton, who has been a member of the choir
for nearly one year, in the aria, " Eye hath not seen, ear
hath not heard," from the Holy City, by Gaul, Master Wal-
pole Pearsons, in a Lullaby, Master Walter Uffenheimer,
piano, and Master Eddie Underhill, violin, gave great sat-
isfaction and pleasure by their masterly performances.
The full choir sang admirably, and, under more favorable
circumstances, might expect a full house to encourage
them. As it was, the boys will realize something besides
" well done " for their work. The tenor and basses of this
choir are equal to any in New England.
PIANO-FORTE RECITALS.
Mr. E. T. Baldwin of Manchester gave a piano recital
at Hanover Street Chapel, on Wednesday evening, June 7,
assisted by his pupils, including Miss Mary Chandler, Miss
Kate L. Smith, Miss Florence J. Drake Miss Minnie E.
Aiken, Miss Clara Ash, Miss Ethel E. Boyd, Miss Blanche
M. Stephens, Miss Alice G. Colby, Miss Alexandrin Bou-
tin, Miss Cora A. Webb, Mr. Harry Whittemore, Mr.
Benjamin Price, Mr. Edwin H. Fradd, and Master Willie
Ryerson. The programme embraced selections from the
works of Mendelssohn, Chopin, Schumann, Saint-Saens,
Moszkowski, Wieniawski, Bach, Godard, S. B. Whitney,
and many less noted but promising authors. This is an
excellent showing for any teacher and one to feel great sat-
isfaction over. Mr. Baldwin is doing goad work for the
cause in New Hampshire, and we doubt if so attractive a
MUSICAL DEPARTMENT. 227
programme in a musical sense can be duplicated by another
teacher in the state.
An invitation recital was given by Mr. E. T. Baldwin of
Manchester, complimentary to his pupil, Miss Mary
Chandler, at Hanover Street Chapel, on Wednesday eve-
ning, June 14. Miss Chandler was assisted by the Misses
Kate L. Smith and Florence J. Drake and Mr. Harry Whit-
temore. Miss Chandler performed Prelude and Fugue in
F minor. Bach ; Erste Grosse Sonate, Op. 42 (first move-
ment), Schubert; Norwegische Tanz, Op. 35, No. 2,
Grieg; Davidsbundier, Op. 6, Nos. 12, 13, Schumann;
Idyllen, Op. 28, No. 4, McDowell ; Valse Gracieuse,
Dvorak ; besides appearing in duets and other selections
in the second part of the programme. Miss Chandler
gives promise of becoming a great artist as her teacher
pictures it. She is patient, conscientious, and a faithful
student during practice hours. With such pupils only can
a teacher fully demonstrate the worth of his method of
instruction.
The pupils of Mrs. Fannie Odlin gave a very pleasing
piano recital at G. A. R. hall, Concord, on Tuesday eve-
ning, May 23. They were assisted by Mrs. Annie Die-
trich Brown, soprano; Miss Rose F. Jenkins, contralto;
Mr. C. S. Conant, tenor; Mr. Erastus Osgood, banjo
soloist. The efforts of the young people were warmly
commended, and reflected great credit upon their faithful
teacher.
NOTES.
The Sacred and Secular Chorus Society of Plymouth,
John Keniston, conductor, gave a concert on Tuesday
evening, June 13. They performed " The Daughter of
Jairus" by Stainer, " Carnovale " by Rossini, "Praise
the Lord" by Gounod, "Dance me so gaily " by Schu-
bert, and " Festival Hymn " by Dudley Buck. Miss Bes-
sie Hamlin of Boston was the soprano soloist, Mrs.
Shepard, piano, and Blaisdell's orchestra.
The boy choir of St. Paul's School, Mr. J. C. Knox,
choir master, attended the concert of the St. Paul's Church
choir in a body, on the evening of June 6. This choir is
the largest and in some senses the best in the state.
228 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
Miss Edith M. Lord, a very promising young lady vio-
linist of Tilton, is now studying with Mr. C. N. Allen of
Boston, and is making rapid progress. We may soon
expect to hear pleasantly of her in an artistic sense.
Newport and Claremont announce musical festivals for
the last of July and second week in August, respectively.
Blaisdell's orchestra, Miss Rose F. Jenkins, and Mr. C.
F. Scribner gave a concert at Warner, on the evening of
June 16, under the auspices of the Warner High School.
Blaisdell's orchestra, Miss Elizabeth Hamlin, soprano, of
Boston, and Mrs. Jessie Eldridge Southwick, elocutionist,
of Boston, gave the commencement concert at the N. H. Con-
ference Seminary, at Tilton, Wednesday evening, June 14.
NEW HAMPSHIRE NECROLOGY.
HON. AMOS A. PARKER.
Amos A. Parker of Fitzwilliam, noted for his great
age and remarkable career, died May 12, 1893, in that
town, where he was born October 8, 1791. He was the
son of Hon. Nahum Parker, United States senator from
1807 to 18 10 ; fitted for college at Appleton Academy, New
Ipswich ; entered the sophomore class at the University of
Vermont, at Burlington, and graduated, second in his class,
in 1813. At the time of his death he was supposed to be the
oldest college graduate in the United States. After gradu-
ation he was for a time tutor at Fredericksburg, Va., but
returned home and studied law with Hon. Levi Chamber-
lin of Keene. He was admitted to the bar in 182 1, and
commenced practice in Epping. In 1823 he became editor
of the New Hampshire Statesman, in Concord. As an
aid on the staff of Governor Morrill, in 1825, he escorted
Gen. Lafayette on his visit to and trip through New
Hampshire. In 1834-5 he travelled extensively through
the South and West, and a book of travels relating his
observations and experience met with an extensive sale.
He also published his "Recollections of Gen. Lafayette,"
NECROLOGY. 221>
and later, when about eighty years of age, a volume of
poems. He was thirteen times elected to the New Hamp-
shire legislature, and was well known as a public speaker.
He was largely instrumental in securing the construction
of the Fitchburg, Cheshire, and Rutland and Burlington
railroads, and was always characterized by an active pub-
lic spirit. He was three times married, and left four
children, one of whom is Hon. John M. Parker of Fitz-
william. His last wife, with whom he lived from 1879
till her death in 1SS6. was Miss Julia Smith, one of the
famous Smith sisters of Glastonbury, Conn.
HON. GEORGE G. LOWELL.
George G. Lowell, a prominent citizen of Dover, died
at his summer residence, York Beach, Me., June 7, 1893.
He was a native of Hallowell, Me., born November 2,
1824. He was one of the California prospectors of 1849.
Returning East in 1852, he settled in Dover, where he
afterwards resided, engaged for many years in mercantile
business. He held various ward and city offices, and was
mayor of Dover in 18S7 and 1888, the new city water
works being established during his incumbency. He was
prominent in the Masonic order, and a leading member of
the Pierce Memorial (Universalist) Society. He is sur-
vived by a widow r , daughter, and two sons.
HON. ORREN C. MOORE.
Orren C. Moore, born in New Hampton August 10,
1839, died at Nashua May 14, 1893.
Removing with his parents to Manchester in childhood,
Mr. Moore received his early education in the schools in
that city, but when quite young learned the printer's trade
in the office of his brother, Frederick A. Moore, at La
Crosse, Wis. Returning to New Hampshire, he worked
at his trade in Manchester some years, where he was clerk
of the common council, and a representative from Ward 4
in the legislature. In 1864 he went to Nashua, as editor
of the Telegraph in that city, of which paper he became
part proprietor in 1867, and continued his connection
therewith through life. He was a brilliant writer, became
active in Republican politics, and also developed remarka-
230 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
ble ability as a speaker. He was four times chosen
a member of the house of representatives from Nashua —
in 1873, '74, '75, and '77 — and was elected a member of
the state senate for two years, in 1878. He was appointed
chairman of the board of railroad commissioners by Gov.
Hale, serving three years, and in 1888 was elected a
member of the 51st Congress from the second district, but
was defeated for re-election by Warren F. Daniell of
Franklin. He is survived by a wife, formerly Miss
Nancy W. Thompson, and one daughter.
PROF. CYRUS BALDWIN.
Cyrus Baldwin, born in Antrim May 14, 181 1, died in
Hill May 30, 1893.
Prof. Baldwin graduated from Dartmouth College in
1839, was f° r a snort time principal at Thetford, Vt,
Academy, and in 1840 became professor of mathematics
and language at Kimball Union Academy, Meriden, con-
tinuing until 1855. He was then two years principal of
Palmyra, N. Y., Union Academy, and in 1857 engaged
in mercantile business at Providence, R. I., where he
continued till 1862, when he again became a teacher at
Freehold, N. J., remaining till 1868. In 1869 he again
took a professorship at Meriden, which he held for three
years, when he retired. For some years previous to his
death he resided in Wilmot, and more recently in Hill.
PROF. MOSES G. FARMER.
Moses G. Farmer, a noted scientist and electrician, for
many years professor of electricity at the United States
Torpedo Station in Newport, R. I., died at Chicago May
25> l8 93-
He was born in the town of Boscawen, Feb. 9, 1820,
was educated at Phillips Exeter Academy and Dartmouth
College, and was for several years principal of the acad-
emy at Eliot, Me. He subsequently devoted himself
entirety to scientific study and invention, gaining a fortune
through the latter, the Boston fire alarm system and the
duplex telegraph being the product of his genius. He is
survived bv two daughters — Mrs. Charles Carlton Coffin
and Miss Mary G. Farmer.
NECROLOGY. 231
DR. BUTLER H. PHILLIPS.
Butler Hubbard Phillips, M. D., born in Gilmanton
August 17, 181 5, died in Suncook May 25, 1893.
He was a son of Russell and Polly (Merrill) Phillips,
was educated at Gilmanton Academy, studied medicine
with Dr. Melvin Wight of Gilmanton, attended lectures
at Dartmouth, graduated from Bowdoin Medical College,
Brunswick, Me., in 1841, and subsequently attended lec-
tures at Jefferson College, Philadelphia. He located in
practice in Pembroke in 1847, and there continued, chang-
ing his residence from Pembroke street to Suncook village,
in 1874. He married, in 1848, Huldah P. Woodward of
Tunbridge, Vt., who died five years since. A daughter,
widow of the late Dr. John R. Kimball, survives.
JOSEPH W. PARMELEE.
Joseph Warren Parmelee was born in Newport Febru-
ary 2, 1818, and died there, May 15, 1893. He was a
descendant, in the fifth generation, from John Parmelee,
who came to this country from England in 1635.
His education was received in Newport and at the Kim-
ball Union Academy at Meriden. After leaving school
he was engaged in teaching to some extent, then turned
his attention to mercantile business in Newport. In 1847
he went to Charleston, S. C, to engage in business in an
old and wealthy honse, into which he was received as a
partner, remaining there until the civil war broke out,
which proved disastrous to his interests. He then went to
New York city, where he was engaged in the dry goods
house of H. B. Claflin & Co. He remained with this
firm until 1879, when he removed to Newport, where he
has since resided.
Mr. Parmelee had a decided taste for literary pursuits,
often contributing to the press both prose and poetry of
more than ordinary merit. Other articles were often writ-
ten of interest to his townspeople, and published in the
local papers.
He was a member of the board of trustees of the Rich-
ards Free Library ; also a secretary of the library from
the beginning. For several years he was superintendent
of the schools, and a member of the board of education in
232 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
Union School District. In all his work he was interested
and faithful. Though naturally fond of repartee and fun,
it not in the least lessened his strong affection for friends
nor dimmed his unwavering faith in all that is good.
He often quoted Whittier's beautiful poem, "The Eter-
nal Goodness, " which is aptly illustrative of his own
firm faith and religious principles. In August, 185 1, he
married Miss Frances Ann, only daughter of the late
Amos Little of Newport, who, with their three children,
survives him. c. s. c.
WILLIAM KALE.
William Hale, born in Dover December 10, 1804, died
in that city June 1, 1893.
He fitted for college in Phillips Exeter Academy, and
graduated from Bowdoin in the famous class of which
Franklin Pierce and Nathaniel Hawthorne were members.
After graduation he entered the mercantile and ship-build-
ing firm, at Dover, of S. & W. Hale, in which his father,
Hon. William Hale, a member of Congress, was a part-
ner, and finally succeeded to their business. He was the
projector of the Cocheco or Dover & Winnipiseogee
Railroad, secured its construction, and was long president
of the corporation. He served as a representative in the
legislature from Dover several years, and was known as
a most enterprising and public-spirited citizen.
REV. FREDERICK T. PERKINS.
Rev. Frederick T. Perkins, born in Sanbornton August
15, 1811, died in Burlington, Vt., April 2, 1893.
He graduated at Yale College in 1839, studied theology
at Yale and Union seminaries, and was settled as pas-
tor of the Congregational Church in East Cambridge,
Mass., in 1843, where he remained eight years. He sub-
sequently held successful pastorates at Manchester, Conn.,
Williamsburg, Mass., New Haven, Conn., Galesburg,
111., and Tilton, this state, but retired from regular pas-
toral service some twelve years ago, making his home with
his son, Prof. George H. Perkins, of the University of
Vermont, at Burlington.
The Granite Monthly
VOL. XV. AUGUST, 1893. NO. 8.
HON. GEORGE W. M. PITMAN.
BY H. H. METCALF.
With a single exception, George W. M. Pitman of
Bartlett has been elected and served as a member of the
New Hampshire legislature for a greater number of terms
than any other man now living. The exception is Hon.
Harry Bingham of Littleton, who has had twenty elections
to the house and two t<> the senate, while Mr. Pitman has
been a representative thirteen terms and a senator twice.
Again, there are few instances in the political history of
the state where the legislative service of any individual
covers so wide a range in the matter of time as that of Mr.
Pitman, his first election being for the legislature of 1853,
and his last for that of 1893 ; and during all the interven-
ing time he has been a prominent figure in public affairs in
town, count)' and state.
The Pitmans of Bartlett have been a conspicuous family
for more than a century. Descended from noble ancestry,
whose progeny had been domiciled lor generations in the
English counties of Devon, Suffolk and Norfolk, Joseph
Pitman, the progenitor of the Bartlett family, was born in
London in 1759, an< ^ emigrated to America shortlv before
the outbreak of the Revolution. Espousing the cause of
the colonists, he served valiantly as a privateersman dur-
ing the great struggle which established the independence
of the re public, and shortly alter the war, with his wife,
Alice Pendexter, a sister of John Pendexter, also one of
the first settlers of the place, established himself in the
wilderness of Stark's Location, which was subsequently
included in the town of Bartlett, in whose incorporation,
in June, 1790, Joseph Pitman was actively instrumental,
and at whose first town meeting he served as moderator.
He was the father of eleven children, the fourth son bein<r
234 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
also named Joseph Pitman, and attaining prominence in
public affairs. He was born July 25, 1788, married Joanna
Meserve, reared a family of six children, of whom George
W. M., the subject of this sketch, was the fourth, and died
October 23, 1875, at the venerable age of eighty-eight,
having commanded the respect and confidence of his
townspeople in the fullest measure. He was a farmer by
occupation, a Democrat in politics, a Universalist in
religion, a great reader and an earnest thinker, and rilled
many responsible positions, including that of state senator,
to which he was elected in 1852.
George W. M. Pitman, fourth child and third son of
Joseph and Joanna (Meserve) Pitman, was born in Bart-
lett, May 8, 1819, and is consequently now in his seventy-
fifth year. He spent his early life upon his father's farm,
with the exception of two or three years at the hotel of his
cousins, Stephen and Ezra Meserve, at the location now
occupied by the well-known East Branch Hotel in Lower
Bartlett, attending the district school when in session, and
subsequently completing his education at the academies in
North Conway and Fryeburg, Me. In 1840 he was united
in marriage with Emeline, daughter of Captain Levi and
Ann M. (Davis) Chubbuck, and continued his residence
in Bartlett, which has always remained his home. This
union has been blessed with eleven children, seven of whom
are now living, to wit, Winthrop M., Lycurgus, Levi C,
Adnah, William, Emma, and Andrew J.
For several years in early manhood Mr. Pitman devoted
himself to teaching, an occupation which his brother Joseph,
another prominent citizen of Bartlett, also successfully fol-
lowed for a long period of time ; but, preferring more
active employment, he made a thorough study of survey-
ing, and subsequently adopted it as a profession. In this
capacity he has perambulated the entire White Mountain
region more extensively than any other man, has platted
vast tracts of its territory, a n d has been called to testify as
a witness, in court, in almost countless cases, many of
which have been complicated and important, involving vast
interests.
He surveyed, originally, Hart's Location, the Thomp-
son and Meserve Purchase, the Sargent Purchase, the
HON. GEORGE W. M. PITMAN. 235
Bean, Gilman and Meserve Purchase, the Pinkham Grant,
besides a large number of smaller tracts. He has also
re-surveyed the lands in Albany, Bartlett, Conway, Chat-
ham, Eaton, Jackson and Madison, to a large extent. He
has probably done more field work than any other man in
the state. He made the survey for the plaintiffs in the
suit. Wells v. The Jackson Iron Manufacturing Co.,
which involved the title to Mt. Washington. In this suit
a new question was raised, which had not been settled. It
was upon what mode had surveys been made in New
Hampshire? Whether upon the magnetic, or the polar
principle? Mr. Pitman took the ground that all surveys
made in New Hampshire had been made on the magnetic
principle, and his position was sustained by the court.
This is probably the first instance in the jurisprudence of
the state in which a surveyor has been called in to estab-
lish and maintain the principle upon which surveys have
been made in New Hampshire. A reference to his brief
and argument in that case is interesting, as almost every-
thing was introduced into the case, even to the meaning
and use of words.
Later, he incidentally took up the study of law, fitting
himself for the bar, and participating in a large amount
of local litigation for the last forty years, and acting as
the trusted adviser in legal controversies for a large por-
tion of the community in Bartlett and vicinity. Meanwhile
he has also been engaged in mercantile life for about forty
years, having a general country store at Lower Bartlett,
and, last but not least, has been quite extensively engaged
in farming, believing the latter occupation to be more
important and no less honorable than any other.
As has heretofore been stated, Mr. Pitman was first
elected to the New Hampshire legislature, as a representa-
tive from Bartlett, in 1853. He received a similar election
at the hands of his townsmen in 1854, 55' 5^' 57' 59»
'62, '63, '64, '65, '68 and '69. In 1870 and 1871 he was
chosen to represent the old Twelfth district, or Democratic
stronghold, in the senate, and for the latter year served as
president of that body, presiding over the exciting session
incident to the change in political control in the state, and
in all the controversies that arose maintaining fully the
dignity of his position, and commanding the personal
236 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
respect of senators of both parties. He has, meanwhile,
held all important town offices, including that of chairman
of the board of selectmen for some twenty years altogether,
and was a member of the board of county commissioners
from 1856 to 1859. In 1874 ne was appointed judge of
probate for the county of Carroll, holding the office and
discharging its duties with conspicuous ability till the next
political overturn in 1876. He also served as a member
of the commission to adjust the war claims of individuals
against the state, in 1863-4.
Judge Pitman has been a member of three constitutional
conventions in New Hampshire, those of 1850, 1876, and
1889, a distinction said to have been enjoyed by no other
citizen. In each of these conventions, as in the legislature,
whenever he has been a member, he performed efficient
service. In the convention of 1876 he was a member of
the Committee on Legislative Department, and in that of
1889 on Bill of Rights and Executive Department. His
last important public service was as a member of the house
in the present legislature, in the session opening in January
last, in which he was one of the most conspicuous mem-
bers on the Democratic side, and was one of those selected
to represent the house in the official delegation from this
state to the World's Fair in Chicago, from which trip he
has recently returned.
Politically an earnest Democrat, he has served his party
faithfully in convention and committee work for nearly
half a century, and has been one of its recognized leaders
in Carroll county for the greater portion of that time. He
is liberal in his religious views, public-spirited, popular
and respected by all classes, and, notwithstanding his
many years of labor, is likely lo remain a power for good
in the community for some time to come. His children
well maintain the family name and influence, one son,
Hon. Lycurgus Pitman of North Conway, having been for
some time conspicuous in public life, and serving in the
state senate in the legislature of i887-'88, being thus a
representative of the third successive generation indirect
line to hold such position, the only instance of the kind
recalled in the history of the state.
Ol his father's family, five are now living, — Jonathan M.,
Dorcas A., G. W. M., Joseph, and Frances E. They all
TO MOUNT WASHINGTON. 237
reside in Bartlett. The oldest is seventy-nine years of age,
and the youngest is sixty-seven.
Seven of his own family are now living. Winthrop M.
resides in Brookline, Mass. ; Lycurgus at North Conway ;
his two daughters reside in Lawrence, Mass. ; William
runs the East Branch House at Lower Bartlett, and An-
drew J. resides with' his father on the home farm.
His second child, Mary A., died at the age of two years.
His oldest daughter, Joan M., died in 1876, aged 34 years.
His oldest son died in 1880, in his thirty-eighth year. He
was one of the proprietors of the East Branch House, and
was one of the most capable business men in that section.
His wife died in 1889, aged sixty-seven years, and his
sixth son, Dr. Joseph II., who was one of the best physi-
cians and surgeons in the state, died in the fall of 1890.
TO MOUNT KEAESARGE.
BY HARVEY HUNTOON.
To you, Kearsarge, my heart is much beholden,
Your hold upon my life is firm and dear ;
Your silent counsel, like your love, is golden,
And faileth not to still all doubt and fear.
Your name, Kearsarge, hath dealt a blow to treason,
For Freedom's sake hath made the world turn pale ;
Your name, Kearsarge. stands aye for right and reason,
And points a moral that can never fail.
You stand alone ; therein is placed your power
To watch and wait while wrong and treason sleep ;
God grant there ne'er shall be a waking hour,
Your life may be to guard and guide and keep.
And when the golden shadows gather round you,
To usher in a night of care's release,
Fill, fill our hearts with praise to Him above you,
Because He is and was the Prince of Peace.
New London, N. H., June 19, 1893.
MEMBERSHIP OF THE SOCIETY OF THE CIN-
CINNATI OF NEW HAMPSHIRE.
Rev. C. L. Tappan, librarian of the N. H. Historical
Society, states that the list of names of members of the
New Hampshire Society of the Cincinnati, as given in the
Granite Monthly for April, was not entirely correct.
He furnishes the following, copied from the original records
now in the keeping of the Historical Society, which is
believed to be correct, just as the names there appear :
COVENANT.
We, the subscribers, Officers of the American Army, do hereby
Voluntarily become members of the foregoing institution ; and
do bind Ourselves to Observe and be Governed by the principles
therein contained.
For the performance Whereof We do pledge to each Other
sacred honour.
Done at Exeter this i?th day of November in the Year 1 7S3.
Names.
Rank.
Time of Res-
ignation, or
Time of Resolution
of Congress
Service, by which
they were
deranged.
Place of
Residence.
Jno. Sullivan, M. Genl. 4 years Resigned Durham
& 6 Nov. 19
months 1779.
Jos. Cilley, Col. 5 years Deranged Nottingham
6 mo. 3d & 2 1st
Octo. 1780.
Henry Dearborn, Lt. Col. 7 years Exeter.
Comm'd't 10 mo.
Jonathan Cass, Capt. 6 years Deranged Exeter.
4 mo. 1st March
17S3-
7 years Deranged. Durham
9 mo.
6 years End of ye Nottingham
War.
r A sol-
dier 1
y r - 7
■I mo. An )■ the North-Hampton
officer
6 years
6 mo.
Eben'r Sullivan, Capt.
Joseph Mills, Lieut.
Daniel Gookin, Lieut.
End of
War.
SOCIETY OF THE CINCINNATI. 239
Sam'l Adams, Lieut.
Josiah Munro. Capt.
Jonathan Cilley, Lieut.
Ne:il McGafley, Lieut.
Mich'l McClary, Capt. 4 years. Oct. 1779. Epsom.
Signed February 5T1-1. 1784.
Wm. Parser, Jr., Surg. 3 years Resigned Exeter.
4 mo. Nov. 1 77S-
Nich's Gilman, C;ipt. 6 years Deranged. Exeter.
3 mo -
Josh'a Merrow, Lieut.
Amos Emerson, Capt. 5 years. Resigned Chester
M;irch,
]7So
James Harvey McClary, son to the Lite Major McClary
killed at the Battle of Bunker Hill. Epsom.
John Adams, Lieut. To the Stratham.
end of
the War.
Joseph Boy n ton, Lieut. 7 ye:irs Deranged Stratham.
Sam'l Cherry, Capt. 8 years To the end Londonderry
of the War.
Isaac Frye. Capt. 9 years To the end Wilton
of the War.
W. Row ell. Capt. 8 years. Ditto Epping
Tonath. Perkins, Lieut. 6 \ ears Ditto Ditto
Adna Penniman, Capt. 4 years Deranged Moultonborough
John Harvey, Lt. 4 sears The end Northwood.
of ye War.
Jere : Fogg. Capt. Eight End of Kensington.
years the War.
six
months.
Jere'h Prichard, Lieut. 3 years, July 1780. Hollas
8 mo.
James Recti, B.GeneralS years En.! of Keene.
tiie War.
Jno. Sullivan, son to the late Capt. Eben'r Sullivan deceased.
Admitted 1S08
Joseph Mills, son to the late Lt. Joseph Mills deceased.
Admitted 1S15.
John W. Gookin, son of Lieut. Daniel Gookin deceased, a
Capt. in the U. S. Army from 181 2 to 181 5 during the late
war.
240 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
The following were admitted members of the Society,
but their names do not appear among the signers of the
Covenant :
Rob. Wilkiris, Lieut. Admitted 1796.
Mr. John Sullivan, eldest son of Gen. Sullivan deceased.
Admitted 1 797.
Mr. Bradbury Cilley, eldest son of Colo. Joseph Cilley deceased.
Admitted 1S00.
Amos Cogswell, Capt. from the Society of Cincinnati of Mass-
achusetts, being now a Citizen of this State, took his seat as a
Member of this Societv. Admitted 1S01.
Seth Walker, Colo., applied for honorary membership in 1S05.
Nathaniel White, Colo., was, after due consideration,
Admitted in 1S05.
These are all the names of members found in the records
of the Society.
SUNSET ON MOUNT WASHINGTON.
BY GEORGE WALDO BROWNE.
The golden arrows cleave thy snow}' crown,
While thy dark vestments take a deeper brown ;
The twilight watchers ward each dark'ning zone,
And, bolder grown, usurp the sunlight's throne ;
Blow, north winds, blow ! aye, set the wild news flying!
The reign of day is o'er — its king is dying!
The length'ning legions leap o'er castellated wall,
O'er ramparts frowning high and sky and all ;
The long light from thy hoary summit flees,
Like spirit hosts across the forest seas ;
Ye swift-winged winds, set the wild news flying !
The king is dying! Echo answers, dying! dying!
THE GRANTEES OF CLAREMONT.
by c. b. spofford.
[continued.]
No. 7. Simon Willard was a brother of Col. Josiah,
and a resident of Winchester. He was also a trrantec of
Chesterfield in 1752. a selectman of Winchester in 1782-84,
and in 1 790 one of' the trustees under the act incorporating
Chesterfield Academy. This right was also purchased by
Josiah Willard, and ultimately by Mr. Grannis.
No. 8. Abraham Scott, probably from Winchester or
Hinsdale. He was, in 1795. a petitioner for the building of
a bridge across the Connecticut at Hinsdale, by means of
a lottery.
No. 9. Henry Foster was a resident of Winchester as
late as 1795.
No. 10. Solomon Willard, of Winchester, son of Col.
Josiah (No. 1). A petition to the general court, in 1785,
states that " He was unfortunate enough to differ in send-
ment from his countrymen who were struggling to gain
and support the Independency of the United States. That
in 1777 he went to Long Island and took protection
under the King and during the war spent most of his time
in that place in a State of Neutrality. That at the time of
the petition he was supporting his aged father and after
reciting the reasons for his petition promises that he will
Behave as a good and faithful subject of the state." The
petition is k% Heartily joined in by his father Josiah, and the
selectmen of the town, one of whom is Simon Willard,"
and all '• Desire that the Prayer of s'd petitioner be
Granted," and the records show it to have been successful.
Solomon Willard's right in Claremont was sold to his father,
and later transferred by himself as executor to Timothy
Grannis of Claremont.
No. 11. Jonathan Hammond was from Swanzey, and
also a grantee of Reading, Vt. He was a brother of Col.
Joseph Hammond, and originally came from Littleton,
Mass., but settled in Swanzey about 1737. Born 1714;
married, July 29, 174.1, Abigail Hastings of Lunenburg,
Mass. ; died September 11, 1777.
242 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
No. 12. Capt. William Heaton, probably a rela-
tive of Nathaniel of Swanzev, as he was a o-rantee of
that town. In 1777 he exchanged farms with Rev.
Clement Sumner of Thetford, Vt., removed there and
opened a tavern, which he conducted a number of years,
it being also the usual place for holding town meetings [pp.
1093-4, Vol. II, Vt. Gazetteer]. He had eight children,
born in Swanzev.
No. 13. Prentice Willard w r as of Winchester and
Putney, Vt., and a son of Col. Josiah (No. 1). In 1784
he was a selectman of the town of Winchester, and a
petitioner for a fishway in the Ashuelot river. He died
at Putney, Vt., March 25, 1796, aged forty-seven years.
His grave is in plain sight of the railroad, on what is
known as the Great Meadow.
No. 14. Col. Joseph Hammond was, in 1744, one of the
first settlers of Swanzey, going to that place when a young
man from Littleton, Mass. He was a colonel in the
French wars, and on receipt of the news of the battle of
Lexington was elected captain of the Swanzey company,
and with sixty-two men marched, April 21, to the defence
of Boston. He was lieutenant-colonel of Col. Ashley's
regiment at the second Ticonderoga alarm, but being
considered too old for active service, was emploved as
mustering officer, and also placed in charge of the trans-
portation of supplies for the army. He resigned June
14, 1779, and his letter was accepted with regrets on
June 19th, accompanied by a vote of thanks from the
Assembly. He was also a grantee of Jefferson, in 1772.
Born about 1722 ; died 1804.
No. 15. William Grimes, Swanzey, his name appearing
on the town records there as early as 1738. He originally
came from Lancaster, Mass., and was also a grantee of
Reading, Vt. His right in Claremont was probably sold
to Josiah Willard, as it was transferred by him to Moody
Dustin of Dunstable on February 8, 1768, with other land
drawn to the right of Michael Metcalf. the consideration
being 42 pounds. Died January 14, 1781.
THE GRANTEES OF CLAREMONT. 243
No. 16. Jonathan Willard, Winchester, also a son of
Josiah. In 1774 he was an early settler of Langdon. His
right was one of those purchased by Timothy Grannis from
the estate of Josiah Willard.
No. 17. Samuel Ashley, Jr., was born in Westfield,
Mass., September 29, 1747, son of Col. Samuel Ashley
(No. 2). He became one of the early settlers of the town,
and served on many important committees : was captain of
the compan)' raised to oppose the advance of Burgoyne,
and served at various other times in the war of indepen-
dence. June, 1785, he was appointed, with two others, as
managers of the lottery, with authority to raise 200 pounds,
the proceeds of which were to be expended in building
"Lottery Bridge." He married, August 9, 1770, Lydia
Doolittle of Northfield, Mass., had several children, some
of whom were born in Claremont. Fie removed, with his
son Charles, to Susquehannah county, Penn., about 1818,
and died there in 1820. Many of his descendants live in
the West, and several became early settlers of Grant
countv, Illinois.
No. 18. James Scott was from Winchester, and later
of Stoddard. He was a soldier from the latter place in the
battle of Bunker hill, and was also at Burgoyne's surren-
der. In 1783 he served the town of Stoddard as selectman.
No. 19. Samuel Scott was probably from Winchester,
as several transfers of real estate are recorded to him
as from that town. He marched with others to the
defence of Ticonderoga in 1777, and was present at Bur-
goyne's surrender.
No. 20. John Cass, of Richmond, was, about 1762-3, a
settler of that town, the first town meeting being held at
his house, he being styled " Innholder," and at which
meeting he was elected moderator, selectman, treasurer,
assessor and highway surveyor.
No. 21. Joshua Hihe (or Hyde), of Putney, Vt., orig-
inally from Deerfield, Mass. This right was sold to
Samuel Ashley, on July 16, 1765, for two shillings.
244 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
No. 22. Nathaniel Heaton, probably from Swanzey,
at the time of the granting of the charter ; but later, in 1784,
we find him a petitioner for the appointment of a Mr.
Freeman as justice of the peace in Hanover, N. II.. and
also for the issuance of paper money sufficient to pay the
debt of the state. It is probable that he sold his rights in
Claremont, or exchanged for others in Hanover, which
was granted in 1761. He had four children, born in
Swanzey between 1761 and 1771.
No. 23. Gideon Ellis was a resident of Keene as early
as 1734, his father having settled there as one of the pro-
prietors. He was, in 1753, a petitioner for the incorpora-
tion of that town, " Praying that if it was Consistent with
the Pleasure of his Exelencey he would insert a clause in
the charter whereby every man may be entitled to those
lands which he thought himself to be the honest owner of."
By the "Annals of Keene" we find him to have been a
member of the Foot Guards, in August, 1773. His right
in Claremont was sold to Josiah Willard.
No. 24. Joseph Ellis, Keene, one of the grantees of
that town and also one of the first settlers. In 1740, at a
proprietors' meeting, grants were made of ten acres of land
to each of thirty-nine parties, of which Joseph Ellis was
one, " As a reward for hazarding their lives and estate
by living there and bringing forward the settlement."
No. 25. John Grimes, one of the first settlers of the
town of Hancock. Part of his right was sold to Benjamin
Tyler, November 22, 1768. Tyler also sold Meadow lot,
No. 7, to Barnabas Ellis, and deeded it as "part of the
original right of John Grimes." The remaining rights in
undivided land were sold to Mr. Grannis by the estate of
Col. Willard.
No. 26. Joseph Cass, probably from Richmond, and a
relative of John (No. 20). This right was also a part of
Josiah Willard's estate.
No. 27. Jonathan Scott was also probably from
Richmond. His right was sold by Willard to Ebenezer
THE GRANTEES OF CLAREMONT. 245
Rice for twenty-nine pounds, the latter becoming one of
the early settlers.
No 28. William Richardson of Pelham was an early-
settler of that town, going there as early as 1722 from
Chelmsford, Mass., and continued to reside there as late
as 1769.
No. 29. John (or Jonathan) Pierce was a lawyer in
Portsmouth, born in 1746. He received a mercantile educa-
tion, and was early in life entrusted with the charge of his
uncle's property, the latter being Mark Flunking Went-
worth, and also with the management of the affairs of the
Masonian Patent. In 1791 and for several years he was a
member of the legislature, and was the principal agent of
the proprietors in the construction of the Piscataqua bridge,
in 1794, also the Concord turnpike. He died, June 14,
1814, aged sixty-eight years.
No. 30. Thomas Lee, probably from Lunenburg, Mass.
No. 31. Stephen Putnam, from Wilton or that part of
which was later formed into the town of Temple. He was
one of the two first families which removed there from Dan-
vers in 1738. This right was sold to Col. Willard, and later
transferred to Mr. Grannis.
No. 32. Timothy Taylor, from Merrimack. He was
justice of the peace and selectman several years. In 1 754 he
was a petitioner for the division of the state into counties.
No. 33. Benjamin Freeman, probably from Swanzey.
No. 34. Oliver Farwfll, of Dunstable, was also an
incorporator of Wilton and Acworth. He married, in Groton,
Mass., Dec 25. 1738, Abigail Hubbard, sister of Hannah,
wife of Col. Willard. Part of this right was sold to Mark
Hunking Wentworth, May 11, 1774, lor sixiy pounds.
Horn November 19, 1717; died October 12, 1808. Gen-
ealogy of family says, died Feb. 12, 1808.
No. 35. Jonathan Serles was probably from Dunstable,
as in 1746 he was a qualified voter, and as such voted to
settle Rev. Samuel Bird as the first minister of that town.
In 1752 he was a grantee of the town of Richmond, and
in 1757 appears as constable ot" Dunstable. Col. Willard
246 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
obtained the right on December 13, 1770, and later it was
sold to Timothy Grannis by Willard's executor.
No. 36. Oliver Farwell, Jr., son of Oliver (No. 34),
like his father, was a grantee of the towns of Acworth
and Claremont. Part of this was sold, July 11, 1 77 1 , by
Gideon Lewis, joiner, to Barnabas Ellis, the price being
thirteen pounds six shillings ; the remainder was sold to
Grannis in 1787. Born June 21 (or 28), 1741 ; lived at
South Merrimack, N. H. ; died 1822.
No. 37. Ephraim Adams was born and lived in Ipswich,
Mass., until 1748! He was a soldier in the French and
Indian wars, and after his return married, and removed to
New Ipswich, N. H., with his brother Benjamin. He was
an enterprising and useful citizen, assisted at the organiza-
tion of the church, and was elected its first deacon, a posi-
tion he occupied until his death. During the Revolutionary
war he assisted greatly in procuring soldiers and arms.
He represented the town in the legislature, and filled many
town offices; was a proprietor in the grant of Richmond,
New Ipswich and Temple, one of the incorporators and a
trustee of the New Ipswich Academy at its incorporation
in 1789, it being the second of its kind in the state.
No. 38. Phineas Wait, Groton, Mass. There are two
of this name from this place, father and son. The elder mar-
ried, March 14, 1731-2, Mary Hubbard, and died May 30,
1777, aged sixty-nine. Phineas, second, married Sarah
Pierce of Pepperell, January 28, 1762, and died November
29, 1802, aged sixty-seven years. It is of course not sure
which of these was the grantee.
No. 39. Oliver Ashley was a son of Col. Samuel
Ashley (No. 2), and early became a settler of the town.
He was also a grantee of the town of Grantham, and
his right in that town was sold to John Dorchester, for
twelve pounds, on July 9, 1 771 . He resided in Claremont
from about 1772 until his death, which occurred April 9,
18 1 8, aged seventy-four. A more extended sketch of this
man was also given in connection with that of his father,
Col. Samuel Ashley, in the May number of the Granite
Monthly for 1892.
THE GRANTEES OF CLAREMONT. 247
No. 40. Abijaii Willard, of Winchester. Part of this
right was sold to Amaziah Knights of Claremont, on July
14, 1772, for eighteen pounds. Knights was from North-
field, Mass., and became one of the early settlers.
No. 41. Rev. Micah Lawrence was the Congrega-
tionalist clergyman at Winchester, having been ordained
November 14, 1764, and continued there until 1777. when
he was discharged, the principal cause being his " Unfriend-
liness to the American cause," for which o fie nee he was
confined by the Committee of Safety to a limited territory.
He was born in Farmington, Conn., March 15, 1738-9;
graduated at Harvard 1759; married, in 1765, Eunice,
daughter of Col. Josiah Willard ; died in Keene, October
20, 1798, aged sixty. He sold his right in Claremont to
Samuel Ashley, March 16, 1767, for forty shillings.
No. 42. Abel Lawrence was from Groton, Mass., and
a cousin of Micah. He was born February 25, 1729-30;
died, insolvent, September 20, 1770, aged 41 years. His
right was sold to William Lawrence (probably a brother),
who died in 1780; by him it was sold to Josiah Willard,
and by him to Benjamin Sumner, on July 14, 1772, for
thirty-six pounds. The following epitaph is taken from
his gravestone, for which we are indebted to the records,
as published by Dr. Samuel Abbott Green.
" Memento Mori
Here lies Inter'd the Remains of Abel Lawrence Esq'r son
of ye late Col 'n Wm Lawrence & Susannah his wife.
Being formed by ye God of ye Spirits of all flesh with Su-
periour intellectual abilities he was called forth in Early life
to the management of publick bussiness and acquitted
himself with honour, he was for several years a member of
ye General Court, a Justice of ye peace, he was affable in
his disposition, when he saw any in Distress he felt for
them & was ready to Releive them to the utmost of his
power. Beleiving a state of immortality he endeavoured to
secure happiness therein by the Exercise of Repentance
towards God & faith in Christ after patiently Enduring a
long and distressing illness he submitted to the Stroke of
all Conquering death on the 20th of Sept. A. D. 1770.
Anno yEtatis 41."
C. JENNIE SWAINE.
BY A. H. ROBINSON.
Almost every one has some aspiration or inspiration
which, if followed out, will lead to some beautiful achieve-
ment. The busy housewife devises some new viand to
please the fastidious taste of her lord, and it carries pleas-
ure to other homes than her own ; the modiste plans a new
and pretty costume, and becomes a model in her profession ;
the artist paints a picture which brings himself into rival-
ship with the old masters; the poet writes a poem which
makes his name immortal. — and each is following some bent
or inclination whose yearning voice was heard from the
threshold of life. The subject of this sketch may illustrate
the old adage, " Poets are born, not made."
C. Jennie Clough was born in the town of Pittsfield, as
were both her parents. She is the youngest daughter of
the late Daniel and Mehitable (Watson) Clough, whose
family consisted of three daughters and an only son. The
eldest is the wife of Capt. C. S. Heath of Epsom, and is
known as a local poet of no mean ability, as well as an
occasional writer for the press, whose contributions are
always gratefully received. The second daughter, Lizzie,
married Rev. J. B. Leighton, and is now a resident of
Vineland, N. J. She was considered a fine prose writer,
but the earlier years of her married life were devoted to
the duties incumbent upon a minister's wile, and later an
invalid husband and increasing household cares prevented
the free use of her pen. The name of the son and brother,
D. Ansel Clough, is familiar to most New Hampshire
readers, although he has been dead nearly twenty years.
Possessed of fine artistic talent and an all-absorbing love
for the beautiful, combined with fine conceptions and
marked powers of execution, he was fast making for him-
self an envied name in the world of art, when ill health
compelled him to lay aside pencil and brush, and. shortly
after, an early death blighted the fond hopes of his admir-
ing friends. One of his earlier paintings, a picture of
Major Sturtevant, may now be seen in the Doric hall of
the state house.
Mr. Daniel Clough purchased a farm in Epsom, some-
where in the forties, and Mrs. Swaine's earliest recollections
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C. JENNIE SWAIN. 249
of home are of an old brown house on a lovely hill in
" New Rye." Her love for early associations is very
marked and tender, and the poem in the May number of
the Granite Monthly is a very loving tribute to the old
country farm house where her childhood and youth were
passed. As a scholar Jennie Clough was quick to mem-
orize, and took a deep interest in all studies relating to
nature or art, but she loved best to sit amid the birds and
flowers, with some rude attempt of song in her hand, usu-
ally written upon a picked-up scrap of brown paper. At
the age of sixteen she commenced teaching, dividing her
time for several years between teaching and attending the
old academy at Pembroke. Her compositions in school
were considered superior, and she was encouraged to write
by her teachers and friends.
About this time she commenced to write for the Morning
Star, a religious paper then published at Dover, under the
signature of " C. J." She has continued to contribute to this
paper, and the publishers say of her, — "Mrs. Swaine has
been for many years one of our best-known contributors.
Her verses show true susceptibility to fine impressions, and
some of them have been a real pleasure. One cannot
read her productions without feeling that there is a true
and deep meaning in all her singing."
In 1863 she was married to Charles G. Swaine of Bar-
rington, a prominent citizen and a man of sterling worth.
Their only child, D. Loren Swaine, graduated at Pem-
broke Academy in 1887. He married Angie E., only
daughter of Moses D. Page, Esq., of Dover, with whom
the young couple at present reside. He has the passionate
love for music which his mother has for poetry, and his
talent as a violinist is of a fine order. His wife is an
accomplished vocalist and pianist, and their services are
much solicited and enjoyed in the best circles.
For several years after her marriage Mrs. Swaine devoted
herself to the literary and religious interests of Barring-
ton, writing largely for social and literary entertainments,
with occasional productions for several of the leading
papers. Living on a large farm, she had little time from
household duties and the religious and benevolent work
which, in a quiet way, she delighted most to do. " If I have
anything to do," says Mrs. Swaine, "and every one has
250 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
that, my work is among the lowly, those whom others pass
by." In all charities she believes in following the Bible
injunction, — " Let not your left hand know what your right
hand doeth."
The death of Mrs. Swaine's brother, to whom she was
devotedly attached, preyed so heavily upon her mind that
her physicians advised her to take up her pen as a diver-
sion, which she gladly did, and since that time she has
written extensively for various publications. Her own sor-
rows have made her deeply sympathetic with the afflicted,
and as a memorialist she has endeared herself to many
hearts. She is in sympathy with the sentiments of Odd
Fellowship, and, for her brother's sake as well as her own,
she has written much both for Odd Fellows and Rebekahs.
Her work is nearly all of an impromptu nature, written
while about her work or while riding or walking amid the
beautiful scenery which surrounds her home. She may
often be seen in the early morning before the cares of the
day commence, or at evening when the labors of the day are
over, busily writing upon her little flower-adorned veranda.
She has written many stories and sketches of places
and individuals, usually under a nom de plume, or without
a signature. Her odd moments are spent, at the present
time, upon a story entitled " Lillian Lyle ; or, The Enchanted
Life." She is also compiling a volume of poems for the
press, mostly new. As a writer for the young Mrs. Swaine
has been unusually successful, and the fact that she has
thrice been chosen poet for large public gatherings is a
sufficient proof of the esteem in which she is held by our
young people. As a hymn writer for especial occasions
she has done herself much credit. Though contributing
to several books she has published but one, which is wholly
her own, " Legends and Lilies," lately issued by the Repub-
lican Press Association. The book was well received and
is steadily growing in public favor, and that without any
effort on the part of the author.
When Mrs. Swaine was once asked to contribute a sketch
of her life and work for the gratification of the public, she
said, — kw There is nothing in my life worthy of note, nothing
in my work worthy even of the commendation which it has
received, and it has given me much surprise as well as
pleasure that the public have been so generous with me.
ANCIENT DWELLINGS AND TREES. 251
In return for their generosity, should time be given me, I
feel sure that I can give them far better work in the future,
and ideals more to their taste and my own. I sing my
humble songs for the love of singing. If they please the
public, I am pleased, and more than pleased if they please
the friends I love."
Of Mrs. Swaine an intimate friend says, — " Her strong-
est characteristics are a deeply affectionate and sensitive
nature, easily touched by a kindness, easily hurt by a
wrong. Lenient with every one's faults except her own,
always ready to sacrifice her own comfort and pleasure for
others, to know her well is to know her worth. Her songs
come from a loving and generous heart; her ideals are her
own true conceptions."
ANCIENT DWELLINGS AND TREES IN
CONCORD.
BY J. W. ROBINSON.
At this time, when so many fine dwellings are being
erected in our beautiful city, it may be well to briefly call
the attention of our good people to some of the old land-
marks in that line. There are two very antiquated dwell-
ings situated on Clinton street, at the south end, on oppo-
site sides of the street, which was formerly known as " Bog
Road." The one on the south side was erected by Benja-
min Abbot, maternal great-grandfather of Jeremiah Noyes,
Esq., who came here from Andover, Mass. He was one
of the original proprietors. They pledged themselves each
to build a house within one year or to surrender their hold-
ings and move away, and, as is generally known, every
intending settler for some years afterwards was admitted to
the settlement, if so lucky, by a ballot of the proprietors,
after a somewhat thorough investigation into the previous
character of the applicant. Thus "Penny Cook" was set-
tled by a good class of people, which probably accounts
for the high standing of the inhabitants of Rumford and
Concord, as town and city.
It is thought that Mr. Abbot built his house during the
year of 1730, and about twenty-five years after he built
252 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
the one on the north side of the road for his son. Neither
of the houses has ever been enlarged or improved, though
they have been kept in a fair state of preservation.
Undoubtedly there is hard wood timber enough in them for
several modern dwellings, though, of course, hard wood
frames have not been used for many years past.
Now, as to the ancient trees, it is perfectly safe to say
that out of Concord's great number of fine trees there are
two as grand and beautiful elms as can be found in New
Hampshire or New England, which is, of course, saying a
great deal. One of these trees stands very near the house
first built by Mr. Abbot. The age of the tree, large as it
is, is but one half of that of the house. As there has been
some question regarding the origin of the tree, I recently had
an interview with Mr. Noyes (who is eighty-two years old)
and learned the facts. Mr. Abbot, when leaving Andover
on one of his early visits to this new country without
roads, was compelled to journey on horseback and follow
an Indian trail. Needing a switch to touch up kl Dobbin"
from time to time, he attempted to break off an elm sprout,
which came out of the ground with a portion of the root ; he
retained it ail, and brought it along. On arriving at his
destination, he set it out in the ground just west of his
house, or where he afterwards built it. The youngster from
so far down the river thrived finely in its new home and
became a noted object in the landscape. After many years
the house needed new shingles, and the old ones were
piled up near the tree. Some roguish boys set them on
fire, which so damaged the noble tree that it was subse-
quently cut down. But in the meantime it had done what
it could to perpetuate its race by the shedding its seeds
into congenial soil, and one of its offspring is the now giant
elm standing near the east end of the old house. It is
eleven feet in circumference three feet above the ground,
and it is estimated by good judges to contain at least seven
cords of wood ; but its value is in its great beauty and
refreshing shade. Mr. Noyes well recollects that in his
very early boyhood it was a small sprout, growing up
among the currant bushes. So it must be about as old as
himself. He relates that many years afterwards he sowed
some of its seeds in his garden, and sent one hundred baby
trees in a cigar-box to a friend in Illinois. About sixty of
at Webster's tomb. 253
them lived and are now fine, large trees, an honor lo their
native state.
The largest and undoubtedly the handsomest elm in this
state stands near the Walker schoolhouse at the north end,
on the old Samuel Coffin place, now owned by Milon D.
Cummings. It is sixteen feet six inches in circumference
at four feet above the ground, and at noontime it casts
nearly a perfect circular shadow one hundred and twenty
feet across, or three hundred and sixty feet in circumfer-
ence. This tree is probably about thirty years older than
the one at the south end just noted. It is said that it was
set out. about the year 1782, by the brothers, Capt. Enoch
and Col. John Coffin. Both trees suffered fearfully from the
ravages of the canker worms, about a dozen years ago, as
did nearly all of our elms and apple trees. It was thought
by many people at the time that they might be fatally
injured, but they have entirely recovered their youthful
vigor, and are to-day growing as fast as ever during their
lives. Long, long may the}' live and flourish to ornament
the capital city and be admired by those who appreciate
nature's best efforts !
AT WEBSTER'S TOMB.
BY GEORGE BANCROFT GRIFFITH.
He died — a nation bowed in tears ;
He passed away, yet still lives on,
His speeches ringing in our ears,
Like treasured words of Washington ;
And like that hero's, too, his face
Distinctly rises into view, —
Both mighty leaders of their race,
Courageous, noble, just, and true !
11.
I stand before his sleeping dust
When smiling spring is robed with flowers, -
That idol men could safely trust,
And muse upon his godlike powers ;
254 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
Above the singing of the birds
I seem to hear his voice again,
The patriotic, burning words
That swayed men as winds sway the grain.
in.
I think how Webster led the way
In the great senate round him drawn,
Amidst the wise in service gray,
His eyes prophetic as the dawn ;
That hand upraised with stately grace,
The mind and heart intent, I see,
The lion grandeur of the face —
Each moment's big with destiny !
IV.
The single-hearted purpose scan
For which he lived, stood grandly forth,
And then thank God that such a man
In old New England had his birth ;
And down the avenue I stray,
Where trees majestic now uprear,
His own hand placed along the way,
My pilgrimage made doubly dear.
Ah ! though he died, I said, in tears,
'Tis true that spirit liveth on ;
His words are ringing in our ears,
Pure as the prayer of Washington ;
The fitting honor of his name
Linked with the Union evermore ;
Firm as his native mount his fame,
That white peak seen from shore to shore.
East Lempster, N. H.
THE STEAM INTERLUDE.— Continued.
BY FRANK WEST ROLLINS.
"Just as the two monsters, rising on the swell, seemed
about to crash into each other, and when the muzzles of
the guns were almost mouth to mouth, I raised my arm
and the bell struck, and at the same moment I pressed
the button. A mighty gush of lurid, blinding flame, a
roar that sounded like the crack of doom, and the next
thing I knew I was untangling myself from among a heap
of struggling arms and legs on the deck. At last I man-
aged to stand upright, and while the rest of the occupants
of the tower were getting to their feet, I tried to collect
my scattered senses. I was stunned and dazed, and my
nose was bleeding, but at last I managed to pull myself to
the opening in the conning-tower, and to my great joy saw
the Destroyer at least fifty yards away, and still receding
with a rolling, plunging motion. The air was filled with a
vapor like thin fog, for though we used smokeless powder,
the immense amount of it discharged at short range left a
slight smoke. I noticed also that our relative positions
had changed, for we had forged a little ahead.
"I was fearful of the effect of this terrible concussion
on the crew, but in a moment the men began to pour on
deck from every hatchway, and I realized that they were
uninjured. No serious casualties occurred, and all felt
extremely thankful for our providential escape. The dinner
call, which had been long delayed, was sounded, and we
gathered at the table to discuss the strange situation.
" The day waned and darkness drew on. The moon
rose out of the sea, and there we lay, silently swinging on
the ebon waves; no sound to break the stillness save the
tinkle of the bells, the pipe of the boatswain's whistle, or
the occasional order of some petty officer. Near at hand
la}' the Britisher, smoke still issuing from her stacks, but
no sign of life visible.
" Luckily the weather remained perfect, and for the
present we had nothing to fear, though the proximity ot
the other vessel was a continual menace, and gave me
much uneasiness, especially when darkness fell. I paced
the bridge till midnight wondering how this was all to end,
and seeking in vain for a solution to the perplexing prob-
256 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
lem. At last I turned in, after giving orders for a double
lookout, and directions that I be called immediately if any-
thing unusual occurred.
" When morning dawned the sun arose upon the same
condition of things. No change had taken place in our
relative positions, and we were apparently drifting side by
side in some current. An observation revealed the fact
that we were moving slowly southward. Where were we
drifting and where should we bring up?
" We had given over trying to make steam, simply keeping
our fires going in order that we might increase them if it
seemed of any use. You will hardly believe it, but for two
whole weeks we drifted in this manner, the distances vary-
ing, but we were never more than a mile or two apart.
The weather remained balmy and clear, and frequent visits
of a social nature were exchanged between the officers of
the two vessels. At these meetings and dinners the sub-
ject of our strange adventure was naturally the foremost
topic of conversation, but all our reasoning and discussion
brought us no nearer the mark. We were as much in the
dark as ever. It seemed to be simply a question of where
we should drift to, and from our position and the trend of
our course it seemed likely we should bring up in the
South Atlantic ocean. We were liberally supplied with
food and water and were good for a number of weeks, and
in the meantime we looked for something to turn up, some
change in our condition which would help us out of the
scrape. We were now out of the path of vessels, and no
sails were sighted, although we kept a constant lookout for
them. The ocean was bare and glistening day after day to
the horizon's edge.
"But at last, just as our patience was getting low, a
change came. On the seventeenth of September, the
twentieth day of our ocean imprisonment, about three in
the morning, I was called by the officer of the deck.
ki A change had taken place in the weather. I hurried
on deck, and sure enough our period of calm and safety
was at an end. The sky overhead was inky black, and
not a star was to be seen. The wind, sweeping over the
deck, made a moaning sound as it whistled around the tur-
rets and superstructure ; a difference was perceptible, too,
in the motion of the ship. She no longer rode on an even
THE STEAM INTERLUDE. 257
keel, but plunged slightly, and with an uneasy, jerky
motion. In the distance the outline of the other man-of-
war could be faintly seen. This change made me at once
anxious. A storm was evidently brewing, and here we
were helpless as an old dismantled hulk. No steam, no
sails, no anything. What was the use of our splendid
boilers, our costly machinery, our triple screws? They
might as well have been at the bottom of the sea.
" A glance at the barometer showed a steady fall. A
storm, and that a bad one, was at hand. I paced the deck,
waiting impatientlv for the dawn, but when it came it
afforded no relief. The sea ran sullen and gray, while
dark, uglv-looking clouds packed the heavens and frowned
upon our helplessness. The force of the wind was steadily
increasing, and it was now blowing half a gale. The motion
of the vessel was momentarily becoming more and more
noticeable as she lay in the trough of the sea. My anxiety
increased with the wind, and went up as the barometer
went down. The officers consulted in groups uneasily,
unable to conceal their anxiety from the crew, who were
watching the storm with many dark forebodings.
" As the day wore on the condition of things grew steadily
worse, and when darkness fell it was upon a waste of windy,
thrashing waters, upon which our great unmanageable hull
was tossinn and rolling like a child's toy. The Destroyer,
at a distance of a couple of miles, was in as bad a plight as
ourselves. We could see her as long as it was light rise to
the top of a great billow and then go sinking out ot sight
in the abyss beyond, only to repeat the step over and over
again.
" Our oil lights were hoisted as the darkness came on,
but oh, how we missed our steam ! for we could not use
our search lights, which would have enabled us to keep
the Destroyer in full view. No steam, no electricity, of
course, except from small batteries, enough to keep the
electric bells in action. The danger of collision in the
darkness and with this frightful sea running was imminent,
and we were powerless to prevent it. The two great
unwieldly masses of iron and steel, with their freight of
hundreds of human lives, their intricate and costly ma-
chinery, their great guns and engines of destruction, were
tossing upon the enormous surges, rolling from the depths
258 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
of one abyss to the horrors of another, like sodden logs in a
cataract; and if by chance they should collide, there was
nothing but destruction tor both. The situation was hor-
rible. If we could have done anything, had any employ-
ment to occupy our minds and hands, we could have borne
the suspense better, but we could only wait what seemed to
be the inevitable result with what bravery and resignation
we could command.
" The hatches were battened down, and all means of
ingress to the hull sealed, in order to prevent the mon-
strous waves from swamping us. All the men and officers
were on deck, lashed to the rail, or secured in some way.
The wind, which was now blowing the most terrible
gale it was ever my misfortune to witness, howled and
roared as it swept great volumes of water from the tops of
the waves to be driven in hail across the deck. To breathe
was difficult; to speak or see impossible. Mountains
of water were constantly pouring over the deck, sweeping
everything before them. Nothing movable was left; our
boats had been either carried away, or smashed at the
davits early in the storm.
" Every time we rushed down one of these great decliv-
ities into the seething caldron lashing below to receive us,
I closed my eyes, never expecting to see the light again,
but after what seemed minutes of terrible struggle and
labor, the noble vessel rose once more above the waves and
again began the dizzy climb, only to repeat the sickening
plunge.
"This had been going on for hours, each moment the
storm increasing in violence, and I had given up all hopes
of saving the vessel or our lives. I was momentarily in
expectation of seeing the iron ram of our consort plunging
at us. Suddenly, in the midst of the howling black storm,
I noticed a streak of vivid forked lightning, and this first
flash was followed by another and another, all seeming to
start and radiate from a point directly overhead in the
heavens, and to spread out like the spokes of a wheel from
the hub, while the crash of thunder which accompanied it
was like the explosion of thousands of pounds of dynamite.
[CONCLUDED NEXT MONTH.]
MUSICAL DEPARTMENT.
CONDUCTED BY H. G. BLAISDELL.
ASA LOCKE DREW.
" Every time and day must have had its earnest workers,
its faithful few." To these the world owes its progress.
A very little act, a quaint saying, or an eccentricity, may
immortalize a soldier or a statesman. Many are brought
into prominence by what might be considered accidental
good luck. The world is full, however, of unwritten his-
tory of men who worked and died in the harness, who in
one generation are forgotten except by a small circle of
friends or acquaintances, who live over the past in memory's
sweetest thought, but do no more to immortalize the faith-
ful who lived in their day. This is especially true of the
followers and teachers of any branch of art in our country.
Among, and we may say foremost in his day of the devoted
and faithful music teachers of the past, we find the subject
of our sketch, Asa Locke Drew, who was born in the town
of Barnstead, April 13, 1820. From his early childhood
to the age of seventeen we know little of him, except that
he was devotedly attached to music, and destined to be
counted among its most ardent exemplars. When a mere
boy he began the study of band music and instruments with
that celebrated band teacher, Alonzo Bond, who was there
teaching and conducting the Boscawen Brass Band. It
may sound a little strange to our present generation to hear
that old Boscawen, which at the present day, as you pass
by in the cars, has, as in the past fifteen years, the appear-
ance of a Rip Van Winkle sleep, should at one time have
boasted, and that justly, of the best military band in Mer-
rimack county, if not in the state. Such was the case,
however, and Asa L. Drew was its boy member. He be-
came proficient in his manipulations of the clarinet and
keyed bugle, for cornets were not used then. After leav-
ing Bond he studied with the famous Ned Kendall of
Boston. During this time he also was a most thorough
student in the practice of piano and organ, and was quite
young when )ie accepted his first position as church organ-
ist. He was engaged at nearly all the churches in Concord
and vicinity during his lifetime, and maintained his position
260 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
a long time after fatal disease had fastened upon him, and
only when death looked him squarely in the face did he
surrender. As a piano teacher he was thorough, compre-
hensive, and what would be considered severe. Mistakes
of the slightest nature were never overlooked. The pupil
must obey and understand, even if the entire lesson of one
hour was devoted to one measure. Mr. Drew possessed
that faithfulness in his nature that when disease had lain
hold upon him to such an extent that he could no longer
walk to the piano, he was helped into his chair, and with
that same firm, yet kind nature, would dictate to his pupils ;
and even after taking his bed he wondered why his pupils
did not come to him. His saying to his wife was, when
remonstrated with for working in such feeble health,
"When my pupils are gone, I am gone," and such was the
case, as he took to his bed only three weeks before he died,
from consumption, February 13, 1870.
Mr. Drew married Mary Frances Hosmer of Boscawen
in 1854. Only one child was born to them — a daughter —
Clara West Drew; born March 27, 1862. She inherited
her father's love and taste for the piano. She began her
studies when only four years of age, and made her first
appearance, when scarcely six years of age, at the State
Musical Festival in Concord, receiving a gold medal for
her wonderful performance of Beethoven's Concerto in G
major. After her father gave up his work he, unbeknown
to the family, made arrangements with the well-known
Carlysle Petersilea of Boston for the continuation of her
studies. She afterwards studied piano with Felix Schelling
of Philadelphia, and harmony with the late Dr. Guilmette.
She now lives in New York, engaged as an orchestral
conductor for theatre and opera. She inherits her father's
firmness of character, and is a thorn in the side of the
orchestral performer who dares be negligent, or lacks pro-
ficiency. She understands instrumentation, and is, so far
as we have any knowledge, the only American lady
orchestral director and arranger in this country.
It is proposed in the future to publish, as frequently as
possible, in this department, sketches of the, native-born
musicians of New Hampshire, both those who lived and
died in our state, and those who have gone into more pro-
NECROLOGY. 261
lific and congenial fields. New Hampshire has done much
in a musical way, and has sent a larger number into the
world engaged in a musical life than one would think
without a thorough investigation. There is much of inter-
est to be said of them, and much which ought to stimulate
the present generation to more active service and better
results.
NOTES.
C. S. Conant, teacher of music in the public schools
of Concord, and choirmaster of the South Congregational
Church, goes to Minnesota and takes in the World's Fair
during his vacation.
F. A. Straw and wife are engaged at the Senter House,
Centre Harbor, for the season.
Manchester has another very promising violinist in the
person of Master Cook, a ten-year-old son of W. B. Cook,
violinist in Eastman's orchestra. He already accepts con-
cert engagements, and delights all who attend his concerts.
The September number of the Granite Monthly will
contain a review of the fourth annual meeting of the New
Hampshire music teachers, at the Weirs, July 24-28.
Bandmaster A. F. Nevers accepted a week's engage-
ment with the Boston (Baldwin's) Cadet Band during its
annual encampment at South Framingham.
NEW HAMPSHIRE NECROLOGY.
DR. HENRY M. FRENCH.
Henry Minot French, a prominent physician of Concord
for several years, and also well known in musical circles,
died at Manchester June 13, 1893, after a long and pain-
ful illness. He was a son of ihe late Dr. Leonard French
of Manchester, born in Ashby, Mass., April 1, 1853, and
removed with his parents to Manchester when eight years
of age. His preliminary education was gained in the
Manchester public schools, and he graduated from Dart-
mouth College in the class of 1876. He pursued the
study of medicine with his father and older brother, gradu-
ated from Dartmouth Medical College in 1878, continued
his studies in New York University and Bellevue Hospital,
262 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
and in 1879 was appointed assistant physician in Kings
County Hospital, at Flatbush, L. I. Returning to New
Hampshire, he was appointed assistant physician at the
New Hampshire Asylum for the Insane in Concord, and
in the autumn following opened an office and engaged in
general practice in the same city. In 1883 he was made
physician at the state prison, and held the position four
years. He was a skilful practitioner, and an expert in
certain lines, and was often called to testify in such
capacity in court. He was a fine musician, gifted with a
bass voice of great power and compass, and was a mem-
ber and director of the Unitarian choir in Concord for
several years, and later of the South Congregational choir.
On account of failing health he retired from practice
two years ago, returning to his father's home in Manches-
ter. He was unmarried, and is survived by one brother,
Dr. L. Melville French of Manchester.
ALFRED C. CHENEY.
Alfred Constantine Cheney, born in Groton, N. H.,
April 15, 1838, died at Lake George, N. Y., July 13,
1893. He left home in early youth, going to New York
city, where he first secured employment as an office boy
in a large dry goods establishment, gradually securing
promotion until he became well know r n in the business.
Subsequently he became interested in the towing business
on the Hudson, and was president of the Cheney Towing
Company. He afterwards engaged in banking, and was
made one of the directors of the Garfield National Bank
on its organization, in 1881, and in 1884 became presi-
dent of the institution, which position he held at the time
of his death, which occurred after an illness of some
months, although a fatal termination was not generally
expected. He was an active promoter of the Nicaragua
Canal Company, and was the first president of the Nacar-
aguay Canal Construction Company, in which office he
was succeeded by Warner Miller, the present incumbent.
He was a Republican in politics, an active partisan, and
treasurer of the New York Republican State Committee
in the last gubernatorial campaign in that state. He
served in a New York regiment in the war for the Union,
and was a member of Lafayette Post, G. A. R., of New
York city.
n:.crology. 263
HON. BOLIVAR LOVELL.
Bolivar Lovell, born at the village of Drewsville, in
Walpole, August 30, 1826, died in his native village June
10, 1893.
He was the son of Aldis Lovell, a lawyer of local repute,
and in early youth engaged as a clerk in the mercantile
house of Craven & Hartwell at Providence, R. I. In 1845
he returned home and commenced the study of law in his
father's office, continuing with Hon. Frederick Vose of
Walpole, but in 1847 he accepted the position of deputy
sheriff, which he held for several years till 1855, when he
was made sheriff of Cheshire county, continuing for ten
years. In 1862 he was appointed United States assessor
of internal revenue for the third congressional district,
serving till 1870, when, having been in the meantime
admitted to the bar, he commenced the practice of law at
Alstead, but ten years later removed his residence to
Drewsville. H-e was an active Republican in politics, held
various town offices in Alstead and Walpole, representing
the former town in the legislature, and was a member of
the executive council in 1873-4.
HON. CHARLES A. FOSS.
Charles A. Foss,born in Barrington December 18, 1814,
died in that town June 29. 1893.
He was educated at Gilmanton Academy, and was a
prominent figure in public life in Barrington, and active in
political affairs for half a century. He was one of the
organizers of the Republican party in New Hampshire,
and served in the state legislature in 1855 and 1856, and
had also been moderator for nearly forty years consecu-
tively. He was a member of the executive council in 1875
and 1876. By occupation he was a farmer, and was suc-
cessful in his calling.
EDWARD H. SPAULDING.
Edward H. Spaulding, born in Wilton March 12, 1825,
died there June 20, 1893.
During the greater portion of his active life, Mr. Spauld-
ing was a resident of Nashua, where he was prominent
in public and business affairs, especially in banking and
railroading. He was instrumental in the organization of
264 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
the First National Bank and the City Savings Bank of
Nashua, and was the leading spirit in the movement for
the organization and construction of the Nashua & Acton
railroad, an enterprise which, though under a cloud for a
season, now promises to be an important factor in the future
prosperity of the city. In politics he was a Republican,
and at one time represented ward eight, Nashua, in the
state legislature. He took great interest in historical mat-
ters, particularly such as pertained to his own state, and
had one of the most complete collections of New Hamp-
shire publications to be found anywhere in the state. For
the last few years of his life he had been in failing health,
and lived in retirement on the old homestead at Wilton.
He is survived by a widow and three children.
THE WINE OF MAY AND OTHER LYRICS.*
This book, a New Hampshire publication, the product
of the talent of a New ' Hampshire author, suggests a
profitable reflection. Among the large number of metrical
scribblers of the present day there are some poets. Prof.
Fred Lewis Pattee, the principal of Coe's Academy, in
North wood, is a poet in the etymological sense of the
term, he being literally a " maker," or one who sets forth
original, imaginative ideals in both meter and prose.
Author of "The Wine of May and Other Lyrics," he has
exhibited both poetry and scholarship in pleasant compan-
ionship. Without any effort at pretentious display, he has
compiled and arranged a collection of the gems of his
genius in a peculiarly happy manner. The work com-
prises a number of divisions, made with reference to the
subjects of composition. A collection of " Pastels" pre-
sents a number of poems in prose that exhibit delicacy of
taste and beauty of diction. The volume is a very dainty
one, expressing the excellent mechanical skill of the Repub-
lican Press Association. In its entirety, the book is a credit
to the constructive mind and hand of the Granite State,
attesting the immanence of industrial virtue in our present
local veneration. t c. c. l.
^
*The Wine of May and Other Lyrics. By Fred Lm'is Pattee. 12 mo., cloth,
gilt-edged; pp. 87. Concord, N. H.: Republican Press Association, Railroad
Square. 1893.
—^—^ . ^yc<. c/ <jl^.
The Granite Monthly
VOL XV. SEPTEMBER, 1893. NO. 9.
PRESIDENT TUCKER AND THE NEW
DARTMOUTH.
BY HARRY B. METCALF.
In the rapid onset of American life, which demands
more imperatively every hour the best mental equipment
to maintain its restless progression, advanced education is
coming to be regarded as a necessity, rather than a luxury.
Although the public schools are broadening their field of
instruction, and technical institutes are springing up to
meet the modern requirement for specialization, our col-
leges and universities are summoned to meet a constantly
growing demand for the blessings they bestow. Their
response is a multiplication of pecuniary aids to students,
a broadening and increase of courses, and a modernizing
of the old methods of instruction.
With the millions of money which philanthropy is annu-
ally bestowing upon them, these institutions represent a
tremendous force in our national life ; and with their
growth in influence and power they demand in their
administration the best and ablest manhood our country
can supply. The presidency of an American college
demands in its incumbency not only broad scholarship,
thorough culture, and a personality whose impress is the
stamp of character, but that industry, energy, force, and
foresight which constitute the highest executive ability.
All these qualifications are united in the person of the new
president of Dartmouth College.
William Jewett Tucker was born at Griswold,
Conn., July 13, 1839. He fitted for college at Kimball
Union Academy, that faithful handmaid of Dartmouth,
and entered the latter institution in 1857, graduating with
high honors in 1S61. He spent the two following years
266 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
in teaching, at Laconia and Columbus, Ohio, and entered
the Theological Seminary at Andover in 1863, complet-
ing the course three years later.
Dr. Tucker's first pastorate, which he accepted the year
following his graduation, was over the Franklin Street
Church at Manchester. Here he remained until 1876,
establishing for himself, in the meanwhile, a reputation as
an earnest and brilliant preacher, and well earning the
degree of Doctor of Divinity, which was bestowed by his
alma mater in 1875. ^ n J S76 he accepted a call to the
Madison Square Presbyterian Church of New York city.
A four years' pastorate there completed his active service
in the pulpit, for, in 1880, he assumed the professorship
of Homiletics at Andover. It is as a theological instructor
that the influence of William J. Tucker has been most
broadly felt, for to him, perhaps more than to any other,
is due that liberality in religious teaching that has made
the Andover school such a living force in the theological
world. During his term of service at Andover, which
continued until May 1st of the present year, he contrib-
uted many valuable papers to the Andover Review, of
which he was an editor, lectured on Homiletics at Har-
vard, inaugurated the socialistic movement of which the
Andover House in Boston has illustrated the value and
success, and delivered many addresses from platform and
pulpit, which have marked him as a leader among the
thinkers of the age. His Phi Beta Kappa oration at
Harvard, in June, 1892, "From Liberty to Unity," which
created so profound an impression upon the philosophy of
the day, well illustrates that depth of thought and breadth
of view which characterizes his contributions to the ethical
literature of the times.
In 1876, upon the death of Asa Dodge Smith, the
trustees of Dartmouth offered to Dr. Tucker the presi-
dency of the college. He was then a young man, and his
valuable service in the ministry was being rewarded by the
prospect of still greater achievement in the future. He
deemed it unwise, therefore, to accept the charge which
was offered him, and the vacancy was filled by the elec-
tion of Dr. Bartlett. In 1878, however, upon recom-
mendation of the alumni, he was elected a member of the
board of trustees, and he has served the college continu-
PRESIDENT TUCKER THE NEW DARTMOUTH. 267
ously in that capacity ever since, doing valuable work
upon some of the most important committees of the board.
Upon the resignation of President Bartlett, in the spring
of 1892, the trustees of the college, by a unanimous vote,
again elected Dr. Tucker to the presidency, hoping that
he would at this time view his duty in a different light.
Impressed with the importance of his work at Andover,
however, he again declined the position, in a letter strongly
characterized by sincerity and singleness of purpose.
Great was the regret of all friends of the college, who
recognized in him ideal qualifications for the administra-
tion of the office.
The trustees were now left in darkness. Realizing their
great responsibility, they determined to make haste slowly
in filling the vacant presidency, and elected Prof. John
K. Lord temporary president. The right man for the
place failing to appear, and the impatience of the alumni
being on the increase as the last college vear advanced,
earnest demands were made upon Dr. Tucker to recon-
sider his declination. It was evident that some action
must soon be taken for the welfare of the college, and the
eminent divine responded to the call of duty. Loyalty to
his alma mater commanded his service in the hour of her
need, and he accepted the presidency of the college when
tendered for the third time, in February last. Resigning
his professorship at Andover, May i, he spent the two fol-
lowing months in preparing for his inauguration, which
occurred on Wednesday of Commencement week, June 28,
with impressive ceremonies in the college church.
The friends of the new president and of the college
are warranted in the belief that he will make a model
executive. He brings to the service of Dartmouth the
vigor of a strong manhood, a reputation for broad schol-
arship and progressive thought, and a determination to
improve to the utmost the grand opportunities that lie
before him. As a guide and instructor of vouth he has
ideal qualifications. Of keen perception, generous impul-
ses, and noble bearing, accessible at all times, he will com-
mand the confidence and co-operation of the student-body,
a fact that will count for much in the well-being of the
college.
His inaugural address, in which he reviewed in a mas-
268 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
terly manner the educational progress and system of the
country and the history of Dartmouth, foreshadows a
broad and liberal policy of up-building consistent at all
times with that homogeneity which is the essential charac-
teristic of a college. And he will be aided in his work by
larger resources than the institution has heretofore com-
manded. The Butterheld bequest of nearly $200,000,
received this year, and the Wentworth estate of $500,000,
which has recently become available, together with other
bequests made during the year, have increased the total
trust funds of the college to $1,054,162.48, which is
invested in sound securities. As a result of this increase
in endowment and the progressive spirit which is enter-
ing into the government of the college, the immediate
future will witness a vast improvement in the material
equipment of the institution. The new Butterfield build-
ing, to cost at least $30,000, is to be built at once ; plans
are being drawn up for a new chemical laboratory. Cul-
ver hall, now the property of the college through the
generosity of the state, is to be renovated and remodeled
as a recitation hall ; old Dartmouth hall will either be
entirely modernized or give place to a new dormitory ;
and other buildings are being projected, which, erected
upon a harmonious plan, are to complete a series of col-
lege buildings which will meet every requirement and
supply every convenience. A system of water-works,
upon which rapid progress is now being made, will proba-
bly be in operation before the close of the year.
The granting of trustee representation to the alumni, as
a result of which the government of the college is con-
trolled by its graduates in greater measure than is the
case, probably, in any other institution of its kind in New
England, has aroused an interest and quickened a loyalty
that is now responsive to every need of the college.
Although the influence of the alumni is being felt in every
direction, it is more particularly in the interests of ath-
letics that their best efforts are now being made. They
have fitted up one of the best athletic fields in the country,
at an expense of $15,000, and will at once devote a like
sum to a complete renovation of the gymnasium. The
time has now come when physical development in our
colleges is rightfully placed on the same plane as mental
PRESIDENT TUCKER THE NEW DARTMOUTH. 269
training ; and the new Dartmouth is bound to be unsur-
passed in this important department. President Tucker,
in his inaugural address, expressed in the following words
his views upon this point : "Athletics have a rightful place
in the modern college. They represent a discipline, a cul-
ture, an enthusiasm which are a part of the college life.
Let a wise and generous provision be made to this intent,
not as a concession, not as a means to some ulterior end,
but in recognition of one of the varied elements which go
to make up the training and the culture of the college-bred
man." The government of the college athletics is now
directed by a board of management made up of alumni
and undergraduates, the wisdom of which arrangement is
manifest.
Beginning with the coming college year, Dartmouth
will offer three parallel courses — the classical, the Latin-
scientific, and the Chandler-scientific, the Chandler school
having been united with the college, and also an engineer-
ing term of five years, covering the scientific and
Thayer departments, which is the best in its line that the
country affords. This new arrangement is accompanied
bv a widened range of elective study, the creation of
chairs in sociology, history, biology, and physical culture,
and the establishment of a system of fellowships which
will grant the means of advanced study to deserving stu-
dents. These are some of the initial results in a move-
ment which is to enable New Hampshire's old college to
fully adapt itself to the needs of the new educational era,
and equip its sons for effective service in the great epoch
that is opening for humanity.
Dartmouth is the college of northern New England.
Her family is gathered largely from the hillsides and val-
leys that produce the sturdiest of American stock. Beyond
the bounds of her legitimate domain she does not seek to
extend her blessings ; but to those who naturally turn to
her for the armor of education she presents a shining
shield. It is not in the names of her Websters and Choates
that her greatest glory lies, but in that humbler success
that has attended her sons in every field of human effort,
and proven the value of her training. With the grandeur
of her future opportunity accords the measure of present
responsibility. The auspices are bright, and there is every
270 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
reason to believe that the new administration will [give an
added glory to the reputation of our New Hampshire col-
lege, whose lustre has remained undimned from the day
when Eleazer Wheelock, in the wilderness, blazed the
way of intellectual progress.
SUNSET MEETIN'-HOUSE.
BY C. JENNIE SWAINE.
The meetin'-house is very fine,
The parson's words are splendid,
But still I miss the blessed tone
That once with sermons blended ;
I long to hear the loud amens
That through the pews resounded,
When on the board behind the desk
Some strong appeal was sounded.
I go to meetin' when I can
And listen to the preachin',
But still for exhortation time
My hungry soul keeps reachin' ;
I wish the last amen was said,"
Somehow I keep repeatin',
Longin' to hear Aunt Patience Priest
Git up and talk in meetin'.
If sometimes I had caught a nap,
When parson's leaves were turnin',
I waked when Sister Priest got up,
Whose gift was more than learnin' ;
She let her green silk clash fall back,
Her pale, sweet face disclosin',
And, list'nin' to her heavenly talk,
I thought no more of dozin'.
But when the choir got up to sing,
Each one his own time beatin',
I thought Aunt Patience's daughter Faith
Just made complete the meetin';
Her small white hand, in downward beat,
Fell tremblin' on the railin',
When, lookin' up, she caught my eyes,
Her fair face flashin', palin'.
AT THE SHERBORN REFORMATORY. 271
Ah ! many years has mother Priest
Slept 'neath the churchyard roses,
And, with her babe upon her breast,
Beside her Faith reposes ;
My name upon the headstone is,
I plant the flowers above her,
And, as upon our weddin' morn,
At eventime I love her.
Perhaps across a Christian's mind
Such thoughts should not be flittin',
When sanctuary droppin's fall
Upon me where I 'm sittin' ;
But let who will take up the time,
And if awake or sleepin',
My soul draws nearer to the Lord
While such sweet memories keepin'.
I come to sunset meetin'-house
With every Sunday mornin',
But cannot tell what fangles new
Make up your church adornin' ;
I onlv know that Faith and me
Sit there beside each other,
And wait for exhortation time
And the sweet talk of mother.
AT THE SHERBORN REFORMATORY.
BY GRACE BLANCHARD.
[Mrs. Ellen (Cheney) Johnson, the superintendent referred
to below, and the only female warden in the world, says, "I
am sorry I am not a New Hampshire woman. I only lived there
through my girlhood." Her family moved from Massachusetts
to Weare when she was very young. Later, she came to Con-
cord for music lessons, boarding at the old Phenix hotel, and
singing in the Unitarian Church choir. She married Mr. John-
son, a Boston merchant. Widowed and childless, she took up
the work glanced at in these notes. She is always asked to give
her views before the national conventions of prison reformers,
and New Hampshire should hasten to put her name on its honor
roll. In the Anthropological building at the World's Fair, Mrs.
272 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
Johnson has, by means of costumed dolls, photographs, pro-
ducts, &c, admirably illustrated "her girls" and their indus-
tries. For a fuller account of her success at Sherborn, see The
New England Magazine for March, 1893. — G. B.]
When are women wickedest? Before they are thirty-
one years old, say the statistics of the Women's Prison at
Sherborn, Mass. Ah, then, we shall see behind its ivy-
covered brick walls that saddest of sights — hundreds of
depraved young women ! But at the portal stands a figure
which we at once feel is a bulwark against crime — a woman,
commanding in face and form. The superintendent? Yes,
though that is a cold name to apply to one who comforts
while she controls, and who, though employed by the state
to punish the offence, is God's helper to lift the offender.
She leads the way down one of the prison corridors,
saying, " In these rooms, on the right and left, the new
cases are detained until we can see where they better be
put permanently ;" and, looking in, we see that the rooms
are no more desolate than those in a tip-top house on a
mountain summit, and, as Mrs. Livermore says, put to
shame the quarters where Miss Lizzie Borden was confined.
Next, the superintendent unlocks a door, and we step over
our first prison threshold. A great room, a flood of sun-
shine, rows of tiny cots, and a score of babies. At sight
of the superintendent they roll and toddle and tumble
towards her, crowing with delight. Into her big lap she
takes each one for a frolic, making the dread keys into
playthings. These tots are depraved if ever children were ;
their mothers are serving sentences in another wing of the
building, but here at least they are clean and well and
happy. The half dozen women in charge of this nursery
are convicts, too. The superintendent once cured hostility
between two prisoners by interesting them both in the care
of an orphan bossy ; and what divine healing must descend
when these convict nurses pull together with the noble
young woman physician to save a croupy child.
As we go on to the next hall, the superintendent stops
suddenly, beckons a young woman, and gives the pleasant
order, — " Bring a basket of pears, and follow me." As the
girl departs, the superintendent asks, — " Did you notice her
collar and breast-pin? That means that she has earned, by
good behavior, the right to wear those feminine adorn-
AT THE SHERBORN REFORMATORY. 273
ments. Her ribbon-badge is that of our temperance soci-
ety, and the one stripe in her blue gingham shows she is
in our best class of inmates. The only uniform I have
imposed is this gingham dress, but according to the class
a woman is in, her gown is barred off with one, two, three,
or four blue stripes. And see (opening the dining-room
doors), I give these chipped dishes to the fourth class,
and keep not only an extra article of food but better plates
for those who are getting to be women again. There is
something left in almost every one of my girls that responds
to such treatment. Why, one of my hardest cases glow-
ered sullenly at me at first, when I stopped daily at her
door with a ' Good morning,' but when curiosity at last
made her ask what I did that for, and I told her I never
made a longer call unless I was offered a chair and wel-
come, she gave me both, as woman to woman. Thank
you (to the girl with the pears), now to the work-room."
This was fitted with tables and sewing-machines, at
which sat a hundred prisoners making shirts. The indus-
try brings in over eight thousand dollars income — for this
institution is remarkable in making with one hand what it
has to spend with the other ; yet its great object is to fore-
stall Satan in the employment of idle hands. The super-
intendent takes her place by the desk, at which sits a
supervising matron, and, with hardly a word or gesture,
indicates her will, and the women rise and fall into line,
and file past to receive from her hand the seldom-tasted
fruit. In the laundry the scene is repeated. Here, at
tables so large as to hold an open table-cloth, and allow
several to iron on it at once, stand dozens of women, who
speak to one another any necessary word concerning their
work, and have a smile ready to give for the pear. An
experiment in raising silk worms has given some of the
prisoners a diversion, a great henhouse makes the ques-
tion of breeds and lays a common interest, while light farm
work gives healthy occupation.
The next place to visit is the schoolroom, where we
arrive barely in time to see the fifty or more pupils handing
in their books and slates for the day. Old, gray-headed
sinner, just closing your primer, will you have time for so
much evil plotting now that you have been taught to read
and write? The first sermon to prisoners was preached
274 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
under protection to the preacher of a loaded cannon.
Now, behold, the chaplain of this nineteenth centur}?- prison
holds day and evening school and prayer-meeting ! In the
chapel all texts of wrath have been taken from the walls.
Hymnals and books of a circulating library are here, a
picture of Jesus and the little ones who came unto Him,
and in the place of honor has been hung a great painting
of Christ and the repentant woman, and carved on the
frame are His words, — " Go and sin no more."
As we walk towards the stable to take the carriage for
the station, we are beckoned to a paddock where stands a
superb black bull. The superintendent lays her head and
arm on his neck, giving the petting that has been his since
she took the motherless animal to bring up. What a power
over brute natures this woman has ! Indeed, it was into
her hands that Jesse Pomeroy put the bag of tools with
which he had been meaning to make good his escape.
As we drive away one thought is prominent that was
not so when we came. It is a reformatory prison for
women which we have been visiting. That is its official
title, and it is reformatory in spirit as well as letter. Con-
victs break out from their cells? Not at Sherborn. There
are a dozen conflicting theories of prison government —
but here is Sherborn, a blessed fact. A writer in a recent
Forum says humane treatment has increased criminality.
Would not Sherborn persuade even him that Elizabeth
Frye was right in claiming that women should superintend
women? Wesley was forbidden to preach in jails, " Lest
we should make the prisoners wicked, forsooth," but to-day
there is at Rome a normal school for the training of prison
officials.
Each of the fifty state prisons in the United States may
have its own good and sufficient way of throwing out a
lifeline, but certainly at Sherborn the grand old common-
wealth, by joining hands with its prison commissioners and
the superintendent and her corps of assistants, forms a
human lifeline to rescue the hundreds who have stepped
off the shore of womanhood into the quicksands of vice.
RAMBLES ABOUT A COUNTRY TOWN.
RAMBLE NUMBER LII.
BY FREDERICK MYRON COLBY.
" It seems that you take a pleasure in these walks, sir." — Massinger.
For our ramble this morning we will walk up to the north
village schoolhouse. This suburban institution of learn-
ing stands at what is locally yclept the "Four Corners."
One road runs straight east and west. In the right-hand
corner stands a white-painted schoolhouse, which took the
place of the old yellow structure in 1858. The land it
occupies was taken originally from the farm of E. W. Sar-
gent. Back in the boyhood of those who are now passing
off the stage the schoolhouse stood farther east, in the
field across the road, nearly opposite the Gideon D. Wheeler
house. While it stood there a bear one day walked through
the open door and entered the schoolroom unannounced.
There was a speedy exit of teacher and pupils, and a has-
tening by the country lads after firearms. But Bruin did
not prove such a dangerous visitor after all. He was a
trained bear, and his master arriving upon the spot, the
scholars were treated to a bear dance upon the green,
which quite repaid them for their fright and the loss of
some of their dinner. This incident is placed about the
year 181 2.
We take the right-hand road, the one that leads west, up
the hill. This is a portion of the old north village road,
which extended from Isaac Elliott's, now the C. M. Keyser
place, to Bradshaw Ordway's, where John Ordway now
resides. It was nearly a straight street and just a mile
long. The cluster of houses on this road constituted the
former north village, which also included two or three
other dwellings lower down on the old road towards W. W.
Davis's, where there are only cellars now, and also Wells
Davis and his mills at the Pratt place, and Isaac Dalton
and his tannery at the Levi O. Colby place. Ela's bridge
and the present highway up by Major Davis's and Sylvanus
Harriman's were not thought of at that time, but the river
was crossed a little below the present railroad station, and
the highway wound up over the hill by W. W. Davis's,
276 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
where the boys drive the cows, and came out a few rods
east of C. M. Keyser's house.
I used to wonder, when a boy, why this little rural street
was ever called the north village. I suppose the term
must have been used antiphrastically, for it was south
rather than north from the centre village, which I believed
to be the hub of the town. But this idea was altogether
erroneous. If my readers will drive up the almost deserted
Gould road and out by the " Kiah Corner" to A. N. Gage's,
and count the ruined cellars, some twelve or thirteen, they
will see what a populous, bustling street that must have
been a century ago. It was the inhabitants of this south
road who gave the name to this settlement on the north
road. The name has always " stuck."
There are deserted cellars on this north street. As I
go through the hollow leading to Dalton hill, I cross a rude
plank bridge over Silver brook. This is a famous trout
stream, and when a boy I have caught strings worth men-
tioning — great, handsome fellows that would weigh a pound
apiece — in those deep pools. The brook chatters on, " over
stony ways, in little sharps and trebles," with that old song
made familiar by Tennyson, —
" For men may come and men may go,
But I go on forever."
But the big speckled beauties are not there any longer,
only small fish that scarcely repays the angler for his
trouble. At your right hand, beyond the brook, is a little
field of an acre and a half. It is now a portion of Mrs.
Ruth Sargent's estate, but in the early part of the century
this lot and the pasture to the northwest belonged to Tim-
othy Flanders, one of the eight sons of Zebulon Flanders,
an early settler. Flanders worked for a number of years
in a clothing-mill at Plainfield, and later he travelled over
the country selling "Yankee Notions." Hence he was
familiarly known among his neighbors as " Peddler Tim."
Sometime in 1812 Timothy Flanders bought this land
of Daniel Morrill, built a small house over a little roughly-
stoned cellar, and brought home his bride, Rhoda, the
daughter and eldest child of Jacob and Miriam (Stevens)
Osgood. She was not yet sixteen years of age, her hus-
band being nearly twice as old. They had children, accord-
RAMBLES ABOUT A COUNTRY TOWN. 277
ing to the town records, as follows : Almira, born August
12, 1813; Rhoda, June 26, 1815; George Washington,
September 26, 1817 ; Isaiah H., January 26, 1825; Han-
nah, February, 25, 1827 ; Noah Osgood, 1834, an d Livona,
1837-
Two years after the birth ot his last child Timothy
Flanders committed suicide by hanging. The deed was
committed in what is now Mrs. Sargent's cow pasture, and
the beech tree from whose limbs he swung himself into
eternity was felled for firewood several years ago b} r the
writer's own hands. The widow lived here a few years
longer, and finally went to reside with one of her children,
when the little, low, unpainted structure was taken down
and removed by Webster Barnard, who put it up as the
ell of his cottage, which stood in the garden just below the
present residence of Sylvanus Harriman. Only the old
foundation and the depression where the cellar was remain
to tell us of the former home where so many memories
cluster. The acre-lot was always known in my early days
as the " Rhody field," from Mrs. Flanders, and only
within a year or two I have heard it thus designated by
one of the older residents.
On the opposite side of the highway is a lot covered
with a thrifty second growth. When I was a boy this
was open ground and a part of the mowing- and tillage-land
of Benjamin F. Flanders, who lived in the red house on
the Henniker road now occupied by his son-in-law, David
C. Harriman. I have seen the stout herdsgrass lay in
swarths as large as windrow's on the very ground now
covered with a thick growth of wood. In the upper part
of this former field, and under the very shadow of the two
large pines that grow close to the roadside, is another oblit-
erated cellar. Here, too, was a home in the olden time ,*
here a family gathered around the Lares and Penates ;
here life began ; here it celebrated its heyday festivals, and
here it went out accompanied by all the solemn adjuncts
of death.
We must obliterate the growth of trees, the old stone
wall now standing in front of the spot, and restore an
expanse of lawn, as we recall the past, on that spot. We
shall then have the old yard as it must have been in former'
times. On this spot, somewhere near the beginning of the
278 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
century, probably not later that 1804, Daniel Morrill
reared his domicile and established his home. He was a
son of Zebulon Morrill, who settled on the Matthew D.
Annis place, in Joppa, and lived there many years. The
latter's eldest son, Samuel, followed his father on the same
place, but Daniel purchased a lot in the north village,
which he proceeded to clear, and where he built this house
as we have just stated. The barn stood on the high ground
farther to the west, and its foundations and the old walled
barnyard are still visible. Cherry trees, the descendants
of those set out by the settler, still bloom and bear their
fruit as constant as the seasons. He married Elizabeth
Kelley of Fryeburg, Maine, a niece of Rev. Wm. Kelley,
the first settled minister of Warner, and one or two of his
large family of children must have been born here.
Daniel Morrill was the father of Zebulon, Asa, Eliza,
Samuel, William K., Daniel K., and John. Daniel K. is
the only one living to-day. His residence is in Boston.
Daniel, senior, sold this place, in 181 1, to Cyrus Watson,
and moved down to what is now the main village, where
he built the house now occupied by the Jeffers family.
After living there a number of years he sold to Daniel
Young and went up and built the house on the plain where
his son, Wm. K., resided for many years, now owned by
Mrs. Seba Morrill'. Daniel Morrill died about 1843, aged
65 years.
Cyrus Watson was also a Joppa man by birth, a son of
Jonathan and a grandson of Dea. Parmenas Watson, an
early settler of the town, who lived near where George
Henry Clark now resides. Watson resided here until 1814,
when he sold to his brother-in-law, Benjamin F. Flanders,
who moved down from the little red house on the hill, now
occupied by W. H. Davis. Mr. Watson subsequently car-
ried on blacksmithing at the centre. He was usually
called Capt. Watson, having been an officer in the old
state militia for many years.
[CONCLUDED NEXT MONTH.]
CONTOOCOOK RIVER PARK.
BY C. W. SARGENT.
The opening of this ideal park to the public by the
officials of the Concord Street Railway has been one of
the pleasant happenings of the summer of 1893. Formerly
the cars stopped in Washington square, Penacook, that being
the northern terminus of the railway. Now, taking a car
at the south end of Main street, near the Margaret Pillsburv
Hospital, the extreme southern terminus of the railway,
and passing many points of interest in Concord, West
Concord and Penacook, passengers are landed in the
park directly opposite the old " Borough Dam," having
enjoyed a ride of about fifty minutes, one that is delightful,
and always gratifying to our visitors. On the car is a
lady from Bangor, Me. Looking awhile at the different
views along the route, she enthusiastically remarks, —
"Oh! this is beautiful!" Nor was she alone in her
expressions of delight and admiration. But the car stops
in the grove near a pavilion on one side and a beautiful
stream of water falling over the dam on the other, with
scenery wildly beautiful on both sides of the river. We
are in a natural park — in one of nature's sanitariums.
Dense woods and open clearings commingle in views
above the dam, while below it is the river's rocky bed,
from which bluffs of jagged rock rise fully fifty feet high.
Here, then, is a summer resort of nature's own arrang-
ing. Reaching back from the bluffs on the park side of
the river to the track is an uncleared forest containing
almost every species in the catalogue of New England's
forest trees, all happily blended. Several yellow pines,
near the highest bluff, stand straight as needles, and
without a branch on their trunks for upwards of sixty feet.
The dam is at the "Great Pitch," so called by the
Indians, and was built about forty years ago ; it holds in
reserve the water of the Contoocook for several miles, thus
adding to the park one of its most charming attractions.
Contoocook River Park consists of about twenty-six
acres, all enclosed by a substantial fence, the direct
entrance being at the gate on the east side, on the rail-
way. Near the gate and next to the river, on the north
280 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
side of the track, is the largest as well as the coolest and
most densely shaded grove of the various ones that form
the park. In it ten thousand people can easily be
accommodated. On the south side of the track is the
highest point. It is partly cleared, and a liberty-pole
rising seventy-five feet above the ground has been erected
on its summit, from which "Old Glory" is displayed.
Near this hill, and towards the southern boundary of the
park, is a cleared field, seemingly arranged by nature
for a lawn tennis court or a croquet ground, being per-
fectly level, shaded on both sides, and is about four hun-
dred feet long by sixty feet wide, — just the place for
children.
The grove, already fitted up for the public, is amply pro-
vided with seats, has plenty of movable tables, swings,
water tanks, pavilion, cafe, boathouse and landing, and
other conveniences, with electric lights for evening parties.
All the buildings but the boathouse were erected under
the supervision of Mr. George W. Abbott of Penacook,
and are a credit to the park as well as to his workman-
ship.
Under the direction of Park Superintendent Phillips
improvements are constantly being made. As to the
future of the park what has already been done is a suffi-
cient guaranty that its popularity will not wane. No more
desirable resort for a day's outing, nor one so easy of
access to the people of Concord, or even to parties from
abroad, can be found in the central portion of New Hamp-
shire. Every foot of the twenty-six acres of the park has
something interesting to present us, and we pass out of the
gate satisfied that " a day at the park" gives restfulness,
health, and pleasurable memories.
The parties first suggesting the advantages of this pic-
turesque " vacation land " are among the solid men of Con-
cord. Paul R. Holden and Adam P. Holden have long been
connected with the woolen mills at West Concord. When
a location for a park, such as could be of use to the public
and easily reached by the cars of the street railway, was
in demand, these gentlemen came forward with the claims
of the river park; and, at their invitation, Mr. John H.
Albin, the genial president of the Concord Street Railway
Company, was induced to visit the location. He was so
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CONTOOCOOK RIVER TARK. 281
favorably impressed with its natural attractions that he at
once brought the matter to the attention of the directors of
the corporation, and measures were taken to secure the
property. Several purchases were made, the last one this
present" year, and now the public can long enjoy Contoo-
took River Park.
A day at the park is not complete if the boat ride on the
Contoocook river is omitted, for the scenery above the
dam on the river is exceedingly beautiful. The Contoo-
cook River Steamboat Company, Hon. John Whittaker
of Penacook, manager, have steamers and row boats in
readiness for parties. Mr. Whittaker takes a great inter-
est in the development of the park property, insisting on
keeping it in as natural a condition as possible, and is
working in perfect accord with the railway corporation.
For thirty years he has been a lumberman on the Contoo-
cook, but this has been his first season of running passen-
ger steamers. His thorough acquaintance with every
crook and turn of the river and every rock and tree on his
route is why he is the man for the place. Taking his
seat at the wheel, the boat moves under his guidance, first
northwest, then west, south, west, so that in going and
returning nearly every point of the compass is touched.
We soon pass Pulpit rock, and enter Broad cove. Here
our iolly captain stops at a landing, and invites his pas-
sengers to inspect » Whittaker's Park," and quench their
thirst at the spring. Leaving the spring we ascend Ike
Walton's stairway to the grove above, where a fine view
of the Contoocook river on its northeast course is obtained.
Then, " all aboard" for the "Borough Dam." The trip
down the river is equally as delightful. One member
of the party is an active four-year-old, who at last becomes
quiet on the deck, leaving his mother in the cabin. Her
caution to "sit still" obtains the reply that "she was in
the boat, and the boat won't drown ;" it proved correct, for
we are again in the park, in time for the homeward car.
" Nothing like this in Rhode Island," says the lady from
that state; we add, " Nothing like it in New England."
It seems as if the steamer were moving through the fields
and woods instead of on the river. Soon after leaving the
landing Horse hill comes in sight, and from the deck of
the steamer it is a delightful view. Horse hill was the first
282 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
clearing made by the early settlers, and here they pastured
their horses. That is why the hill has its present name.
Passing Horse hill, Putney hill, in Hopkinton, next comes
in view, and various other familiar localities. Nearly the
entire south bank of the river from the dam to the cove
has trees or shrubbery growing to the water's edge, while
several farm houses are pleasantly located near the river's
banks. And although we spent the day in going about
thirteen miles from our starting-point, the pleasant dis-
covery is that we have enjoyed it all within the limits of
the territory of the capital city.
THE GRANTEES OF CLAREMONT.
BY C. B. SPOFFORD.
[CONTINUED.]
No. 43. Rev. Lemuel Hedge, Warwick, Mass., was
the first settled minister of that town, being ordained there
in 1760. His rights in Claremont were purchased, March
4, 1766, by Col. Samuel Ashley, for two shillings.
No. 44. Rev. Clement Sumner, Keene, was born in
Hebron, Conn., July 15, 1731, being the fifth child of
Dr. William and Hannah (Hunt) Sumner. (His father
removed, in 1767, to Claremont, and died there March 4,
1778; his wife died April 2, 1781. The family consisted
of eleven children, of whom the ninth was Col. Benjamin
Sumner, born Feb. 5, 1737; removed to Claremont in
1767, and died May 9, 1S15. The tenth was Elizabeth,
born May 22, 1749; married Joseph Taylor, of Cornish,
The eleventh, Sarah, born May 22. 1749, married Timothy
Grannis, one of the early settlers of the town.) Clement
Sumner graduated at Yale in 1758, and on March 16,
1761, was given a call, at a salary of thirty-five pounds
sterling and his firewood, with an annual increase of one
pound ten shillings, until fifteen pounds were added, to
preach for the Congregational church of Keene. He was
ordained July 11, 1761, and continued to serve them until
1772, when the people became dissatisfied, and he was
dismissed by a vote of the town and his own consent. He
never became a settled minister afterwards, but preached
THE GRANTEES OK CL.AREMONT. 283
in Thetford, Vt., and other places, from 1773 to 1777. He
afterwards removed to Swanzey, and became a Universal-
ist preacher. He was a grantee of several townships,
among them Shrewsbury, Vt., in which place his right
was sold at public vendue for two pounds eleven shillings.
Like several others of his family he was not in sympathy
with the American cause during the Revolution, and, in
1777, was, with others, fined forty shillings for misdemean-
ors towards the state, "that is, utterances disparaging to
the American cause" [page 593, Vol. VIII, State Papers,
and page 314, Vol. XII]. He was father of twelve
children, six of whom were born in Keene, one in Thet-
ford, and four in Swanzey. He died, in Keene, March 29,
1795. The right was sold to Col. Willard, and later to
Mr. Grannis.
No. 45. Abel Willard, of Winchester, a brother of
Col. Josiah, to whom he sold the right. He was born Jan-
uary 12, 1731-2, and died in London, Eng., November
19, 1789. His wife died in Boston.
No. 46. Michael Metcalf, of Keene, was a lieutenant
in Col. Ashley's regiment, and as such was present at the
battle of Bennington, where he was killed. He was a
grantee of the town of Reading, Vt., as well. The right in
Claremont was sold to Col. Willard, and by his estate to
Mr. Grannis.
No. 47. Ephraim Dorman, of Keene, one of the first
settlers of that place, his name being mentioned as early
as 1738. In 1740 he, with thirty-eight others, drew lots
often acres each, provided that the}- built houses thereon
before 1742 [page 19, Annals of Keene]. In 1753 he
was one of the proprietors of the town under the New
Hampshire charter, and at the first meeting, held in May
of that year. Dorman was voted eight dollars for going to
Portsmouth and securino- the charter. Died in Keene,
May 7, 1795, aged 85 years.
Xo. 48. Joseph Lord, of Putney, Vt., and Westmore-
land, N. H., was a direct descendant from Robert
of Ipswich. Joseph was born about 1704, and grad-
uated from Harvard in 1726. He was one of the first
284 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
five settlers of Athol, Mass., in September, 1735, and was
for many years the leading man of the place, being the
first preacher, magistrate, clerk, treasurer, surveyor, and
tax collector. In 1755 Col. Hinsdale paid him three pounds
six shillings ten pence for preaching four Sabbaths at Hins-
dale. In 1759 ^ e removed to Putney, Vt., and later to
Westmoreland, N. H. Died Dec. 7, 1778. His right was
sold to Samuel Ashley, July 16, 1765, for two shillings.
No. 49. William Willard, Westminster, Vt. This
right was sold to Samuel Ashley, for two shillings, on July
17, 1765. Willard died in 1804, aged 83.
No. 50. Jeremiah Powers, Grafton, Mass., was also a
grantee of Rindge. He sold his right to Amos York, in
1767, who became one of the first settlers, and he in turn
sold one half to Benjamin Brooks, Dec. 15, 1767.
No. 51. John Armes, of Deerfield, Mass., and Brattle-
boro, Vt., was born April 30, 1722. He settled in the
latter place on the " Fairbanks Moore Farm," where for
many years he kept a famous tavern, and which was the
resort of Ethan Allen and the Green Mountain Boys. He
was killed by a kick from a horse, March 6, 1770. He was
also a grantee of Swanzey, in 1753. Married, in Decem-
ber, 1743, Susannah, daughter of Col. Josiah Willard, who
died March 8, 1793, aged 73.
No. 52. David Field was born Jan. 4, 1712. He lived
in Deerfield, Mass., where he was engaged in the fur trade.
He was colonel of the northern Hampshire county regiment,
but resigned, in 1778, on account of his age. In May, 1778,
he was a delegate to the Provincial Congress at Cambridge,
and in 1779-80 a member of the constitutional convention.
The latter part of his life was one of poverty, and most of
his possessions passed into other hands. He married, in
1741, Thankful, daughter of Thomas Taylor, and proba-
bly widow of Oliver Doolittle. There are two traditions
regarding this marriage : one, that she married Field ; the
other, that she married Doolittle, and soon became a
widow. David Field died April 19, 1792. His wife died
March 26, 1803. The share in Claremont was sold, July
19, 1765, to Samuel Ashley, for two shillings.
WISDOM IN FABLES.
BY C. C. LORD.
[Written after perusing Bullinch's "Age of Fable" in company with
two friends.]
Bright friends, we love the days when thought
Revolved creation's sights and sounds,
Nor pledged its faith to sense, that wounds
Pure, sweet imagination, wrought
In mythic tales that charm the ear,
Where'er we list those legends old,
That in these later clays are told
And told, to ever seem more dear.
Proud science, pushing for the van
Of privilege, peers round and tells
Of facts that break the magic spells
That haunt the captive soul of man
That leans on myths. Its aim is just.
Let knowledge free the craven mind
Of superstition, cramped, confined
In chains that gall while grooved with rust !
Yet we refuse to count as dumb
The counsels of the hoary past,
Or make life's contemplation vast
The measure of the time to come.
In pride we own a lore sublime,
That out of deep conviction springs —
The earnest of the soul of things —
That far outweighs mere thought of time,
And holds all treasures old as new,
And new as old, nor wastes a gleam
Of wisdom in an ancient dream
Of things conceived, not seen, yet true.
Hence our delight expands. We see
The secret of the mighty soul
Of ages that on ages roll
Come forth, to live for you and me.
THE STEAM INTERLUDE.— Concluded.
BY FRANK WEST ROLLINS.
"As soon as I could bear the lurid light I looked around for
the Destroyer, and to my horror saw her apparently right
above us on the crest of a huge mountain-like wave, and
just toppling over to come crashing down upon us, for we
were in the vortex below. This sight, which froze my
blood, was seen by all at the same moment, and above the
shriek of the storm I heard the hoarse, agonized cries of
the men. I w r atched her with sickened heart, as she came
plunging like a meteor at us, her great steel ram aiming
as true as though directed by human hands, while the
faces of her men and officers could be distinctly seen on the
deck. Just as I thought the blow was to strike, I closed my
eyes, murmuring a prayer, but, though I waited several
moments, the blow did not fall. Opening my eyes fear-
fully, to my joy I found that a wave as big as the one down
which our fearful antagonist was darting had borne us out
of harm's way, at least for the moment. A faint cheer rang
out over the waste of waters, and we breathed again.
" The lightning still continued, and the picture it
revealed was horrible to contemplate. Not a soul who
witnessed that frightful spectacle of the elements, lashed to
blind, ungovernable fury, ever expected to see light ol day
again. We could catch glimpses of the Destroyer, plung-
ing and rolling, off on our starboard quarter. The air was
filled with electricity ; blue electric flames ran along the
metallic rails, jumped from gun to gun, and glimmered in
ghastly radiance on binnacle and crosshead, while round
globes, like lanterns, surmounted the signal masts ; electric
shocks kept running through my body, and my hair stood
fairly on end with horror and electricity combined ; my
fingers tingled; my eyeballs seemed bulging from my head,
and my teeth chattered. Another minute of it would have
turned every soul on board into a corpse, but it ceased as
suddenly as it began, and as the last flash occurred a
strange change took place. The deep, dark gloom which
followed the intense brilliancy of the electric storm began
to lift, and a pale yellow light, like dawn, broke over the
awful tumult. I looked at my watch and found it was only
one o'clock, so that it could not be sunrise.
THE STEAM INTERLUDE. 287
" This light gradually became stronger, turning from pale
yellow to deep orange, and illuminated the sea till it was as
bright as noonday, but it was not as the light of the sun.
Everything wore a strange tint of deepest orange, an uncanny
tinge, while the heavens were shot with bands of deep purple
running transversely. Many of the men were on their
knees praying, and I must confess the events of the past
few days were enough to justify a man in believing that
the end of the world was at hand. As this light strength-
ened the hurricane abated, and the sea went down. The
great mountains of water were smoothed as by magic, and
in less than ten minutes there was not enough air stirring
to blow out a candle, and the ship was riding as gently as
though in harbor. This sudden change, from the most
awful tumult and raging storm imaginable to absolute quiet
and peace, was indescribable ; words cannot paint it. This
was perhaps the most miraculous circumstance of this
eventful voyage. That a gale of such ferocity should have
entirely disappeared in ten minutes was remarkable enough,
but that a sea which would ordinarily have lasted for days
should have become as a mill pond in the same length of
time, indicated something supernatural, or, at least, a de-
parture from the established and known laws of nature.
" But a few brief moments since our vessel was climbing
mountains with lightning rapidity and falling off their sum-
mits into yawning caldrons of death, while a hurricane
strong enough to blow a man's teeth down his throat
howled around us, and darkness that could be felt envel-
oped us. Now we rode gently and softly on a calm,
placid, summer sea, while the air around us bore the deep
orange tint of an autumnal sunset. A short mile away lay
our companion of so many vicissitudes, and but for her
broken davits and battered appearance you would have
thought she had just come to anchor. I gazed upon this
scene in stupid amazement, for you must remember that by
the clock it was still in the middle of the night. I had not
dared to clear away the lashings which held me, for fear that
this was only a temporary lull to be followed by some-
thing more terrific ; but as minute after minute passed and
nothing occurred to disturb the serenity of the scene, I
finally cast myself adrift, and the other officers, doing like-
wise, gathered around me awestruck and weak from fear.
288 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
The crew cowered under the bulwarks with ashen faces,
and were even more frightened than they had been dur-
ing the storm. We were all eagerly discussing the strange
phenomena, and wondering v/hat would happen next, when
the bell from the engine-room rang. It startled me as,
in our unstrung condition, the least thing was magnified.
I stepped to the tube and answered the call.
"What is it?
" ' She is making steam.'
" Hurrah ! I cried, forgetting myself for the moment.
She is making steam. And without more ado we all hur-
ried to the engine-room, where we found the engineers
eagerly watching the dial of the steam gauge. Sure
enough, the indicator, which for so many days had hung
disconsolate at zero, was slowly but steadily crawling
round the dial. The engineers were jubilant, and I never
felt such a sense of relief in my life. With my engines
working I did not fear anything natural, though I must con-
fess that I had cultivated a very healthy fear of the super-
natural. I knew that a few minutes would give us control
of the ship again.
"When did you first notice the change? I asked the
chief engineer.
" ' At just three bells. I had just looked at the clock
and then glanced at the gauge, more from habit than any-
thing else, and my heart fairly stood still when I saw the
indicator vibrating.'
"Have her fired to her full capacity and put on forced
draft, Mr. Sproul, and start the engines the moment there
is steam enough. There's no knowing what may be com-
ing next.
" 'Aye, aye, sir.'
"'The Destroyer signals that her boilers are making
steam, sir,' reported a cadet at this moment.
" Signal back that ours, too, have started up.
"Would wonders never cease ! The Britisher's engines
stopped simultaneously with ours, and now the minute our
boilers begin to make steam hers also resume their work.
These facts, taken together with the miraculous and super-
natural scenes we had just been witnesses to, left no doubt
in our mind that the cause of the trouble was totally uncon-
nected with our boilers or engines, and due to some occult
THE STEAM INTERLUDE. 289
circumstance entirely beyond our knowledge. But what-
ever the cause, it had evidently ceased to influence us, and
the boilers had resumed their normal action. In less than
half an hour the tremor of the vessel announced that the
screw was in motion, and we once more had control of the
noble vessel. You can imagine the feeling of relief I
experienced when the man at the wheel threw her over
and brought her head to the course. It was like coming
to life after having passed beyond the gates.
" The British steamer soon forged up within hailing dis-
tance, and we concluded, as we were both bound round the
Horn, to keep within signalling distance in case of emer-
gency. We congratulated ourselves and each other on
our escape from what seemed certain death, and then,
giving the signal, we both moved ahead on our course.
" During all this time the strange orange light had contin-
ued, though the purple bands across the sky had gradually
paled away and disappeared. The illumination was now 7 giv-
ing way to the light of day, and it was with a feeling of relief
that we saw the sun rise from its ocean bed and displace
the awesome and spectral refulgence. It seemed as though
things had at last got back to their normal condition and
natural laws were re-established.
"The rest of our voyage was uneventful, but when we
touched at Valparaiso, full of our experiences, and expect-
ing to electrify the civilized world, we were not only dis-
concerted but dumbfounded to learn that we had been play-
ing but an infinitesimal part in a great drama which had had
the world for its stage, all the inhabitants thereof for actors,
and perhaps the peoples of other planets for spectators.
"You have read in your history at school, my boy, how,
on the 29th day of August, 1905, in every part of the
world, water ceased to make steam, and how this strange
event was preceded by certain peculiar conditions of the
atmosphere and heavens, and in some sections by violent
and terrible earthquakes, which destroyed even many of
the mammoth buildings in New York city ; and how this state
of -things lasted for twenty days, when, after great electrical
storms such as I have described, and which were common
over the whole world, the ban seemed to be removed, and
steam, the great motive-power, once more revived.
" You have read what disasters, what sufferings, and
290 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
what trouble it caused. How vessels were lost at sea with
thousands of lives ; how trains were stranded in every
corner of the world, leaving the passengers to get to their
destinations as best they could ; how all the great factories
were stopped and millions of people thrown out of employ-
ment ; how our cities, which depended on electricity gen-
erated by steam, were left in darkness ; how families were
separated, business prostrated, marriages prevented, the
dead buried without the presence of loved ones ; how
bread rose to a dollar a pound and all other necessaries of
life in proportion ; how the streets were filled with people
begging for food ; how mobs of rioters attacked the great
cities ; how horses became worth fabulous prices ; and how,
in fact, for the space of twenty days. the world was in chaos, —
and all because when you put a kettle on the stove steam
refused to come out of the spout."
MUSICAL DEPARTMENT.
CONDUCTED BY H. G. BLAISDELL.
N. H. MUSIC TEACHERS' ASSOCIATION.
The fourth annual meeting of the N. H. Music Teachers'
Association, held at the Weirs, July 24-28, was in every way
a success. This is a very pleasing fact, inasmuch as the
financial depression of the country and the World's Fair
were considered sufficient reason to expect a light attend-
ance. This was, indeed, the first meeting which paid for
itself, and to those who are interested the future of the
association seems bright and full of promise. The chorus
was not so large as in past years, but was made up of
excellent material.
The music attempted, as a rule, required less serious
study than usual. This, in connection with a more willing
spirit, which was manifest throughout among the singers,
gave a more finished performance than hitherto, and was a
source of pleasure to all concerned.
The piano recital of Tuesday forenoon, by Master Harry
C. Whittemore and Miss Mary Chandler of Manchester,
both pupils of Mr. E. T. Baldwin, was interesting, and
gave evidence of great natural ability, particularly so in
MUSICAL DEPARTMENT. l".»l
Master Whittemore. The method, thoroughness, and schol-
arly manner which characterized the performance of the
entire programme places Mr. Baldwin at the head of the
piano-forte teachers of New Hampshire.
The afternoon concert by local talent gave pleasure to a
good audience, and was a credit to all concerned. Where
so many appear it is impossible to particularize, even had
we the desire to do so, and we leave the simple "well
done," which must apply to all.
The vocal and piano-forte recital of Wednesday fore-
noon, by Miss Helen B. Wright and Miss Nellie C. Dean
of Boston, was very entertaining. The efforts of both
were noted for delicacy and refinement. In the voice of
Miss Wright we find much to please and praise. She pos-
sesses the breadth of style which should soon place her at
the front as an oratorio singer. The " Seven Centuries of
English Song," as illustrated by Prof. Louis C. Elson of
Boston, held the profound attention of the audience, and
was a masterly recital of musical history. Rev. Arthur W.
Jenks gave an interesting and instructive talk on " Building
a Sonata."
On Thursday afternoon the first concert by the orchestra
and soloists was given. The orchestra was in excellent
form and did splendid work throughout the week. Miss
Mary E. Montgomery, soprano, of Portsmouth, Miss Jen-
nie F. Woodward of Lowell, Miss Eva Merrill of Laconia,
both contraltos, and Mr. Everett L. Hill of Boston, tenor,
rendered the vocal assistance at the concert. The efforts
of all were eminently satisfactory and worthy of much
praise. Miss Montgomery is the happy possessor of a
remarkably pure soprano voice, capable of the most per-
fect results in the line of oratorio and concert work. We
wish she might see fit to give her whole time to this work.
At the evening concert appeared Miss Bessie Hamlin,
soprano, of Boston, the Oberon Ladies' Quartette of La-
conia, — Mrs. O. M. Prescott, first soprano, Miss Minnie
Woodhouse, second soprano, Mrs. C. K. Sanborn, first
alto, Mrs. Eben Hoyt, second alto, — and Mrs. Harriet R.
Morgan, soprano, late of New York, now of Pike's Station.
Miss Hamlin was the same pleasant, faithful artist as ever.
The Oberon Ladies' Quartette did very fine work, their
voices blending perfectly, singing in good style. In fact,
292 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
they were an agreeable surprise. We are indeed happy to
speak words of praise for Mrs. Morgan. She always does
well, and affords delight. To be faithful to our convictions
we must suggest that she look more to the dramatic
thought in music. With more vigor, with a better appre-
ciation of the climaxes, she would round out her truly fine
voice, and take rank among those at the front.
On Friday, Mr. E. W. Pearson of Nashua, teacher of
music in the schools of that city, gave a practical talk on
the subject of teaching music in the public schools. We
wish every teacher could have enjoyed the modest, candid,
yet pointed talk on this subject. We most positively believe
in Mr. Pearson and his methods ; indeed, we see no other
way for a successful culmination of this all-important work.
We sincerely hope that Nashua will retain Mr. Pearson in
his present position, for surely, in the end, not only will that
city see and feel the power of his argument, but the whole
state will be benefited.
The piano-forte lecture recital, by Edward Baxter Perry
of Boston, in the afternoon, was indeed an hour with the
soul of music. The poetry of music was beautifully por-
trayed. In this man, who is bereft of his sight, we have
a living picture of musical purity, while no one will ever
forget the moments spent with him in the dreamland of
music.
The evening concert brought to a close a very happy
week for the music-lover ; but, while we find much to con-
mend, let us not forget that there is much that is deplora-
ble. One fact which we feel called upon to mention is the
comparatively few chorus singers in our state and the
numerous solo singers, or supposed soloists. There seems
to be a sort of a disease which claims as its victims those
who once stand before an audience with " fear and trem-
bling," and manage to get through a simple song or bal-
lad, so that, from that time on, they are too good to engage
in ensemble work, but occupy seats in the audience and
criticise their superiors, scowl at beautiful harmonies
because they are too ignorant to know what is right, and
retire with an air of " let the poor creatures work, I was
once only a chorus singer myself." What good are such
persons to the cause? What have they done and what
are they doing to advance the art in our land?
MUSICAL DEPARTMENT. 293
Rev. Dr. Waterman has made a faithful president, and
we are to be made happy by another year of his reign.
Mr. E. M. Temple was, as ever, the friend of all laboring
to brino- about results which will in the end benefit the
state. Conscientious and excellent work was done by Miss
Ada M. Aspinwall and Miss Anna L. Melendy, as accom-
panists for soloists and chorus.
In closing, let us urge all interested to send in early
their money for membership tickets for 1894, to Miss Anna
L. Melendy, Nashua, N. H.
NOTES.
Mrs. E. A. Hibbard of Laconia w : as early at her post,
and remained faithful to the end. Such exemplification of
true devotion to the cause is worthy of imitation, and is a
good object-lesson for the coming generations.
Mrs. Charles Bingham, pianist and teacher of music in
the public schools at Littleton, was in attendance at the
meeting. Mrs. Bingham is a born musician, a conscientious
teacher, and a willing worker in the chorus. She could
pose as a soloist, take seats with the curious, and look
wise, but she is not that kind of a musician. Her best
efforts are put fonvard at every proper time and place to
advance the cause and educate the masses.
It is a singular fact that clergymen, as a rule, show very
little interest in the meetings of the N. H. Music Teachers'
Association. Only one church this year was represented
by its clergy — that of the Episcopal denomination. This
is a wrong state of affairs. Vocal music should particu-
larly interest clergymen of all denominations, for a choir
should be considered as necessary to the worship of God
as the minister ; and in no way can the proper style of
choir singing be so fully and completly demonstrated and
developed as by chorus work.
SULLIVAN MUSICAL ASSOCIATION.
The seventeenth annual festival of the Sullivan County
Musical Association was held at Newport, August 7—1 1 .
The chorus numbered about one hundred and fifty voices,
was w r ell balanced, and did excellent work. The works
presented were selections from Gounod's Redemption, Erl
2U4 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
King's Daughter, by Gade, and numbers from the Index.
The soloists were Miss Hamlin, Miss Lillian Carll Smith,
Mr. Ricketson, D. M. Babcock, and Clarence E. Hay.
The orchestra of nine pieces were in part from members
of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Martha Dana Shep-
ard presided at the piano, and Carl Zerrahn was conductor.
The attendance was good, and the local press asserts that
in a musical point of view the festival excelled any ever
before held by the association. It was voted to hold another
festival next year.
CLAREMONT FESTIVAL.
As this issue of the Granite Monthly is sent out, the
ninth annual festival of the Western N. H. Music Associ-
ation opens at Claremont, with Dr. H. R. Palmer of New
York as conductor, Mrs. Martha Dana Shepard, accom-
panist, and the noted Mary Howe-Lavin as the soprano
soloist, Ella Cleveland Fenderson of Boston, contralto,
William Lavin, tenor, and Ivan Morawski, basso. The
Tremont Quartette and Boston Symphony Orchestra also
appear.
NEW HAMPSHIRE NECROLOGY.
PROF. GEORGE H. WHITE.
George H. White, professor of ancient languages in
Oberlin College, who died July 7, at Cleveland, from the
result of a surgical operation, although not a native of
New Hampshire, passed his youth in this state, and his
mother now resides in Goffstown. He was the oldest son
of George A. and Mary A. (Chandler) White, born in
Lawrence, Mass., May 2, 1848, removing with his parents
to Francestown at the age of ten years. He fitted for
college at Francestown Academy, then under charge of
Prof. Frank G. Clarke, now an eminent clergyman of New
York, graduated from Amherst in 1870, and remained at
that college, as a tutor in Latin, for three years, when he
resigned to take charge of Hopkins Academy, at Hadley,
Mass. In 1876 he accepted the professorship of ancient
languages and the principalship of the preparatory depart-
ment at Oberlin, which he held till his death. November
NECROLOGY. 295
30, 1875, ne married Miss Laura J. Billings of South
Deerfield, Mass., by whom he is survived, with three chil-
dren, — a son and two daughters.
HON. OLIVER C. FISHER.
Oliver C. Fisher, born in Deering August 2, 1809, died
in Newton, Mass., August 4, 1893.
In early life he removed to Henniker, where he was
engaged in mercantile business for many years. Subse-
quently he was commissioner of insurance for the state of
New Hampshire, and assistant assessor of internal revenue.
He was prominent in Free Masonry, and was grand lect-
urer of the grand lodge of New Hampshire five years,
from 1870, two years deputy grand master, and one year,
in 1875, grand master of the grand council. He married,
in 1836, Miss Eliza E. Campbell of Henniker, by whom he
is survived, with four sons and two daughters. He removed
to Newton, Mass., in 1872.
C. HOWARD KIMBALL.
C. Howard Kimball, a well-known journalist, died at
Manchester, Sunday, August 6. He was a native of Ames-
bury, Mass., born May 18, 1857, but removed to Manches-
ter, with his parents, in childhood. He graduated from
the Manchester High School in 1870, after which he
studied French and German under private tutors. From
1876 to 1887 ne conducted the Grafton County Journal,
at Plymouth, after which time he was employed in differ-
ent capacities upon Manchester papers. He is survived
by a widow and four children.
HON. ROBERT M. FOSS.
Robert M. Foss, son of John Foss, and grandson of
Joshua Foss, first proprietor of the mill privilege at Bow
Pond in Strafford, died while on a visit in Dover, July 28.
He was born in Barrington, now Strafford, May 7, 1814.
In earl)' manhood he removed, with his brothers, to Pough-
keepsie, N. Y., and subsequently to Chicago, where he
carried, in 1843, the first wood-planing machine ever
taken west of the Alleiihanv mountains. He became
prominent in business and in politics in Chicago, was one
296 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
of the founders of the Republican party in Illinois, was
chairman of the finance committee of the municipal gov-
ernment when "Long John" Wentworth was mayor of
Chicago, and was actively instrumental in the election of
Gen. John A. Logan to the United States senate. A few
years since he married Miss Emma Nealley of Dover, who
survives him.
HON. JOSIAH S. HOBBS.
Josiah S. Hobbs, born in Chatham June 27, 1828, died
at Augusta, Me., August 2, 1893.
His parents removed to Fryeburg, Me., in his childhood,
where he attended school, and also the Liberal Institute
at Norway. He studied law in the office of Hon. D. R.
Hastings of Fryeburg, and was admitted to the bar in
1853. He located in practice in Waterford, Me., in 1855,
and in 1857 and 1858 represented that town in the legisla-
ture. In i860 he was elected register of probate for the
county of Oxford, and removed to Paris, where he held
the office for twelve years. In 1872 he was appointed
state librarian by Governor Perham, and removed to
Augusta, serving the state in that capacity continuously
till 1890, with the exception of three years. In 1858 he
married Emma, daughter of Stevens Smith of Waterford,
by whom he is survived.
DR. RALPH BUGBEE.
Ralph Bugbee, M. D., born in Waterford, Vt., Decem-
ber 20, 1821, died at Littleton July 25, 1893.
Dr. Bugbee had been in active and successful practice
in the town of Littleton for thirty-six years, and was par-
ticularly skilful as a surgeon. He came of a family of
physicians, his father and two brothers also being members
of the medical profession. He graduated from the medi-
cal school at Castleton, Vt., in 1845, an ^ practiced in his
native town nine years and in Franconia three years before
locating in Littleton. He leaves a wife, a son, George,
also a physician, and a daughter, Mary, now Mrs. Blake
of New York.
The Granite Monthly
VOL. XV. OCTOBER, 1893. N0 - IO -
EBENEZER G. WALLACE.
BY H. H. METCALF.
It is one of the characteristics of our American repub-
lic that, under the benign influence of its free institutions,
the young man of humble birth, without the advantages
of wealth and position, may readily make his way to the
front rank in public and professional life, or in the no less
important field of industrial enterprise, if it so be that he
is endowed with the ambition, energy, and perseverance
essential to success in any department of human effort.
It is an undeniable fact, moreover, that the man who,
himself reared in the sphere of common toil, establishes
and develops any legitimate business enterprise which
furnishes remunerative employment to large numbers of
his fellow-men, becomes no less a public benefactor than
he who by his labors furthers the cause of educational
progress, broadens the field of scientific investigation,
establishes a charitable institution, or liberalizes and
improves the methods and policies of government. Espe-
cially is this the case when a just regard for the interests
and welfare of the employe characterizes the management
of the enterprise in question. Such a man, it may safely
be said, was the subject of this sketch, who, in company
with his brother, Edwin Wallace, built up in the town of
Rochester, now one of New Hampshire's thriving cities,
a great manufacturing establishment which has for years
given reliable employment to hundreds of men, and has
been the leading factor in the prosperity of the place, and
who, after a brief illness, departed this life on the 23d day
of August last.
Ebenezer G. Wallace was born January 5, 1823, in
the town of Berwick, Maine. His father, Rev. Lindsey
298 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
Wallace, was a local preacher of the Methodist faith, who
went to Berwick, from Littleton in this state, in early life,
and there married Abigail Gowell, who had inherited
from her father a portion of a large farm, upon which
they settled. In addition to preaching at various points
in the surrounding country, attending funerals and answer-
ing other calls, which returned little or no pecuniary
reward, Lindsey Wallace acted quite extensively as a
local magistrate, and, there being no lawyer in the vicinity,
wrote various legal documents, such as deeds, wills, etc.,
by which the meagre income of the farm was supplemented
to some extent.
When about seventeen years of age Ebenezer G. Wal-
lace became an apprentice at the trade of tanner and cur-
rier, in the employ of Oliver Hill of Berwick, whose
tannery was about two miles from his home. Here he
patiently and conscientiously devoted himself to his work,
laboring through the long days, and a portion of the year
until nine o'clock at night, at forty dollars per year and
board, and also working holidays and extra hours, as
opportunity offered, so that at the close of his apprentice-
ship he had saved over a hundred dollars. At this time
he strongly realized the necessity for a better education
than he had been able to secure through the limited
advantages of the common school, and, in company with
his brother Edwin, he entered Phillips Academy at Exeter,
where they remained three years, earning the money to
meet their expenses by working at their trade in the tan-
nery of Captain Fernald of Exeter, which they secured
at a nominal rent, where they spent their time mornings
and evenings, through the vacations and such days as the
school was not in session, tanning calf skins and other
small stock, yet at the same time keeping abreast with the
best students in their class in their studies, and completing
the college preparatory course with honor.
After completing his studies at Exeter, he abandoned
the purpose, at one time entertained, of pursuing a college
course, and, having developed a decided liking for busi-
ness, went to Rochester, where he commenced tanning in
a small way on his own account in the establishment of
Home & Hall, working also part of the time by the day
for that firm, and also to some extent for another tanner in
EBENEZER G. WALLACE. 299
the same town. Subsequently he also engaged with a
partner in a job of finishing leather for John N. Furber at
his tannery in Farmington, where he was occupied at the
time the news of the discovery of gold in California was
received, in January, 1849. He immediately formed the
determination to go to California in case the news was
confirmed, and, such being the result, in the early part
of February following, having in the meantime disposed
of his tanning interests to his brother Edwin, who had
been engaged in teaching since leaving Exeter, he joined
a Boston organization known as the Bay State Company,
containing over one hundred and forty members, formed
with the idea of proceeding together to California, living
and working in common, and sharing equally the profits
of the enterprise. This idea was abandoned, however,
and the company broken up into small squads before the
overland journey to the land of gold was half completed,
and when the objective point was reached there was still
further division, so that the original company was scat-
tered all over the mining regions. Mr. Wallace engaged
in mining, generally with one companion, and was fairly
successful during his three years' stay in California, saving
more than any other member of the original company,
who had pursued mining alone, with a single exception.
Some who had gone into other business had made more,
while the majority had saved nothing.
He returned home in February, 1852, and in May of
the following year was united in marriage with Miss Sarah
E. Greenfield of Rochester. After a short residence in
Concord he returned to Rochester, and formed a copart-
nership with his brother, under the firm name of E. G. & E.
Wallace, purchasing the tannery of Warren & Richards,
and continuing a constantly developing business for nearly
forty years.
Shortly after the outbreak of the late war, in 1861, fail-
ing to dispose satisfactorily of a large amount of leather
on hand, the firm concluded to add a shoe manufacturing
department to its business, and work up its accumulated
stock in that way. The venture proved successful, and the
business grew from year to year till it became, as stated
in the outset, one of the most extensive in the state and
the chief source of prosperity in the town of Rochester,
300 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
employing altogether some seven hundred men, at a
monthly pay-roll of twenty thousand dollars.
Mr. Wallace was characterized by great industry and
intense application to business. It was his invariable cus-
tom to reach the office at 6 : 15 in the morning, before the
arrival of any of his employes, and he was the last to leave
at night. He never felt that he could take a vacation,
but, in 1874, at tne urgent solicitation of his family and
friends, he revisited California, for relaxation and inspira-
tion amid the scenes of his successful labor in 1849-52.
He was interested in various corporate enterprises
outside his regular business, and was a director in the
Great Falls & Conway Railroad for several years, and
until its absorption by the Boston & Maine. He was for
some time a director in the Page Belting Company of Con-
cord, and also in the Great Falls Manufacturing Company ;
but, owing to a defect of hearing coming on in the latter
part of his life, resigned these positions.
Though an earnest Republican in politics, he had no
ambition for public life, but served his town and the state
efficiently in the legislature for two terms, in 1867 and
1868, being both years a member of the railroad commit-
tee of the house, and chairman of the committee on
retrenchment and reform the latter year.
He is survived by his wife and five children — Albert,
Sumner, Carrie H., Annie, and Josephine. The two sons
will undoubtedly continue in the business as he left it, and
on the same lines. Carrie H«len is the wife of Charles
E. Hussey, now superintendent of schools at Wakefield
and Reading, Mass., and Josephine is the wife of Dr. R.
V. Sweet of Rochester.
SITTING ALONE IN THE TWILIGHT.
BY WALTER MERTON HAZELTINE.
I.
Sitting alone in the twilight of years and twilight of day,
Watching the sun in the heavens sinking and hiding away,
Watching the western hilltops, resplendent, glow with the
gold
Mist of the evening, as the air-shades, fold on fold,
SITTING ALONE IN THE TWILIGHT. 301
Thicken the dim growing landscape, plain, valley and hill,
Till the very echo of silence, grown sweeter, paused and
was still.
ii.
Sitting alone in the twilight of years and twilight of day,
I caught a sound like the music of a heavenly fountain at
play;
Raising my trembling fingers over my heart of hearts,
I tried to sing, but the jar, as when suddenly parts
The strings of a mighty organ, shook my trembling frame,
And the heart which throbbed was broken, now only a heart
in name.
hi.
The music passed in the distance, no longer the fountain
played,
And pressing my hand to my bosom idly my fingers strayed,
Unthinking, restless, and weary over my heart grown
weak,
And seemed with a sudden impulse for a time half for-
gotten to seek
Down through the chambers of has-been and the halls of
memory
For the songs the dearest and sweetest in the days that
used to be.
IV.
Sitting alone in the twilight of age and twilight of day,
As the great sun hid in the shadows and the purple changed
slowly to gray,
The songs and the old-time music came up from the
past to me,
And I wandered once more with the days and the loves
that used to be ;
I wandered out through the twilight, grown deeper with
heart's unrest,
I drank from memory's fountain, and dreamed and the
days grew blest.
NATHANIEL SPRINGER BERRY.
BY COL. J. W. ROBINSON.
On the first day of September, 1796, at Bath, in that
down east country which a quarter of a century later
became the state of Maine, was born Nathaniel Springer
Berry, New Hampshire's principal war governor, who was
for many years known simply as the " Honest Tanner
of Hebron." His grandfather, John Berry, came from
Scotland, and served as a captain of an infantry company
in the Revolutionary war. His father, Abner Berry,
while repairing a brig at his shipyard on the Kennebec
for William King (who became Maine's first governor),
while in a very heated condition, was precipitated into the
river, which caused his death. This was in 1802, when
young Nathaniel was but a few days more than six years
old. His mother's maiden name was Betsey Springer. She
was a daughter of Nathaniel Springer, who was of Swedish
descent. He was a captain of artillery in the war of the
Revolution, and was killed at Bath while defending mili-
tary supplies in store there. A British brig sailed up the
river and opened fire on the garrison, determined to loot
the valuable material, but they met with such a hot recep-
tion that they soon slipped their cables and abandoned
the undertaking. Some years after his father's death his
mother married a New Hampshire man named Morse,
and soon removed to that state. In the town of Bath our
future governor, while a mere lad, learned the saddle and
harness-maker's trade with William Morrison, father of the
late Hon. Charles R. Morrison, of Concord, and afterwards
learned the tanner's trade. From his early youth he sup-
ported himself, and never had but a few months' schooling,
but was almost entirely self-taught.
Although he has held many offices of trust and honor
during his long and useful life, none of them have been
of his own seeking. Soon after becoming of age he
settled in Bristol, where and in the neighboring town of
Hebron he has ever since resided, with the exception of
a few years at Andover, Mass., after retiring from his
active duties as governor. He was elected a representative
in the legislature from Bristol in 1828, '33, '34 and '37, and
from the town of Hebron in 1854. He was eiect ed sena-
NATHANIEL SPRINGER BERRY. 303
tor from the old Eleventh district in 1835 an< ^ 1836. In 1840
he was chosen a delegate to the Democratic national con-
vention at Baltimore, which nominated Martin Van Buren
for president, but made no nomination of a vice-presidential
candidate.
He was appointed associate justice of the court of
common pleas in 1841, and served nine years. He also
served five years as judge of probate for Grafton county,
ending June 5th, 1861, when he was inaugurated governor.
He was for two years lieutenant-colonel of the old 33d
regiment. In 1845 he was nominated for governor by
the Free Soil party, and received votes enough to prevent
an election by the people. Anthony Colby, the Whig
candidate, was elected by the legislature. Judge Berry
was the standard-bearer of the Free Soil party for several
years following, and was nominated and elected governor
by the Republican party in 1861, and again in 1862,
receiving handsome majorities each year on the popular
vote, notwithstanding there were three candidates in the
field.
During his term of office as governor, from June, 1861,
to June, 1863, fifteen regiments of New Hampshire troops,
commencing with the Second, were enlisted, seven during
the first and eight the second year, and he signed, in all,
over seven hundred officers' commissions. He took a deep
interest in the comfort and welfare of the soldiers, and gave
much personal attention to their needs. He was one of the
twenty-two governors of Northern states who met in the
famous conference at Altoona, Pa., in the spring of 1862,
at which an address to the president was prepared, taken
to Washington, and formally presented, Gov. Berry being
selected to make the presentation, which he did in simple,
strong, and straightforward language.
He has been an active member of the Methodist church
and an aggressive champion of the temperance cause for
nearly three fourths of a century. Since retiring from
the gubernatorial chair, thirty years ago, he has, as ever
before, taken a lively interest in all good works going on
around him, and has kept himself well posted upon passing
events, generally, though for some time past he has been
unable to read the current literature even with the aid of
the best procurable glasses, but still reads his bible in very
coarse print.
304 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
It was a great pleasure to the writer to be somewhat
instrumental in arranging a pilgrimage to the beautiful
town of Bristol, on the first day of September, to pay a
tribute of respect to the venerable ex-governor on his
ninety-seventh birthday. Many distinguished men, among
whom were His Excellency Governor John B. Smith,
ex-Governors Frederick Smyth and David H. Goodell,
ex-Congressman Warren F. Daniell, Col. Peter Sanborn,
Hon. Ezra S. Stearns, the venerable Prof. John W. Mer-
rill, Hon. Joseph B. Walker, Hon. John D. Lyman, Col.
Daniel Hall, and many others gladly embraced the oppor-
tunity to personally greet the noble old man whom all
delight to honor. Several telegrams were received during
the day from those who hoped to be present but were at
the last moment prevented, sending cordial greeting and
congratulations on the happy event. Among these were
ex-Governors Person C. Cheney and Charles H. Sawyer,
Hon. Allen Tenney and Hon. N. B. Bryant. Letters of
regret at their inability to be present, and expressing their
admiration for the venerable ex-Governor, were received
from ex-Governors Bell, Weston, Currier, Prescott, and
Tuttle, Chief-Justice Doe, Hon. A. S. Batchellor, and
many other leading citizens.
We found Governor Berry enjoying the best of health,
happy and contented. He considers his labors on earth well
completed, and is simply waiting the summons of his
Master to come up higher, though to all appearances he
may live to become a centenarian. Some of the party
were obliged to return on the first train, and therefore
repaired at once to his residence, and had a brief inter-
view, but those who remained passed a delightful hour
in his company in the afternoon. The governor enter-
tained his friends with many incidents of his long life, and
astonished all by his remarkable memory. He sang a
favorite sacred song, and the Rev. Prof. J. W. Merrill,
who is eighty-five years old, recited an original poem.
After a hearty handshaking by all, and a God bless you
to all by the patriarch, the visitors retired, greatly pleased
with their delightful interview. It has since been ascer-
tained that the governor greatly enjoyed the day, that its
excitements had no injurious effects, and that he was as
well as usual on the days following, and has since enjoyed
his usual good health.
RAMBLES ABOUT A COUNTRY TOWN.
RAMBLE NUMBER LM-Concluded.
BY FREDERICK MYRON COLBY.
Benjamin F. Flanders was another of the sons of Zebu-
Ion Flanders and an older brother of " Peddler Tim." He
was born in 1784, at the present W. M. Flanders place.
In 1805, at the age of twenty-one, he went up on the hill
this side of Bradshaw Ordway's and built the little red
house, and carried there his young bride, Mercy Hall,
daughter of Dr. John Hall, one of the early physicians of
the town. Five of their eleven children were born on the
hill. Their oldest child was Benjamin E. (Seth), born
1806, died in 1884. Moody W., who died in 1891 at the
age of seventy-eight, was the last of the children born
on the hill. The others were born under the pines after
the removal of the family to the valley.
In October, 1836, Mr. Flanders moved his buildings to
the Henniker road, and this place knew a habitation no
more. Several oil-nut trees stand near the spot that were
set out by Mr. Flanders, and not far from the old cellar
there is a magnificent Balm of Gilead tree whose foliage
is a sight in the leafy June. The tree was of large growth
when I was a boy, and before that time was a wonder. In
connection with this tree, a lady, now a resident of Lon-
donderry, relates the following incident, which, though not
particularly important in itself, is of worth as sustaining
the reputation and age of the tree. Back in the early
fifties Samuel W. Colby taught school in the little yellow
schoolhouse before referred to at the "Four Corners."
One day half a dozen of the largest girls rambled off at
intermission to visit this Balm of Gilead tree and secure
some of the fragrant buds. They were late on their return,
and were condemned to stand in the floor with their loot in
their hands. In the warm atmosphere of the schoolroom
the buds soon became sticky, and to complete the punish-
ment they were forced to take hold of hands. It was a
sticky time, and I dare say these young ladies were not
tardy again that term.
We leave the spot where once "groups of merry children
played," and the green orchards where " youths and maid-
ens dreaming strayed," and proceed along the road up
306 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
the hill. Up this same thoroughfare a future governor
went to and fro to school, and later passed on his way
from the old homestead to enter upon business at one of
the busy stores at the centre. Up further on the hill is his
birthplace, and our ramble will include a visit to the Ord-
way homestead, which is still in possession of the family.
It is a rough, picturesque country that we are passing
through. The pasture lands are rapidly growing up to
bushes, scrub pines and silvery birches predominating,
and the little fields are undulating and rocky. We can
look down into the valley now and trace Silver brook by
its borders of second growth to its confluence with the river.
Through the green tufts of the trees rise the spires and
roofs of the distant village, and beyond are the green
sloping sides of Denney, Burnt and Pumpkin hills, with
their fine farms and white farm houses. Back of us are
the Minks, and on the north towers the gray summit of
grand old Kearsarge. It is a sightly place anywhere on
this hillside, and some day, I dare say, airy villas will look
down in stately pride upon the way, for these few farm
houses will inevitably give way to something better.
On the right hand going up is a small one-story-and-a-
half cottage, painted red. In other days a long range of
shed broke off the west wind from the yard, and at the
rear stood a large barn. Both of these are now gone. A
portion of the old barn was worked into the present
structure at the Sylvanus Harriman place. These buildings
were erected by Benjamin F. Flanders, as before related,
who established his first home upon this sightly location.
After Benjamin left the hill, the place was owned and
occupied by his brother, Washington, quite a number of
years. Washington Flanders married Sarah, daughter of
Simeon Sargent, who lived at the present Frank Bartlett
place. Their children, Hazen, Aaron, Alfred, Marcellus,
Mahala, and Ellen, were all born in this house. Wash-
ington died here, comparatively a young man, in 1832.
The farm subsequently came into the possession of Levi
Flanders, another of the sons of Zebulon, who gave it to
his son Daniel. The latter lived here two or three years
and then went West. His brother, Captain Timothy,
occupied the house several months, and later Ebenezer W.
Sargent lived at this place. In 1852 Joseph Ordway came
RAMBLES ABOUT A COUNTRY TOWN. 307
into possession of the farm, keeping it until 1866, when he
sold it to Sylvanus Harriman. The latter still owns the farm,
but the little red cottage he sold, in 1870, to Mrs. Susan E.
Harriman, a daughter of its builder, who used it several
years as a summer residence for herself and children. Its
present occupant is W. H. Davis, a son of John Davis by
Bradford pond, and a brother of John S. Gardner, and
Calvin, whose wife is Lurena, a daughter of Benjamin F.
Flanders.
Beyond the house a brooklet, a tributary to Silver brook,
ripples down from the h^ls to the vales below. You cross
by a plank bridge and ascend a steep hill. Perched on
the summit, with a fine outlook over the valley, is a story
and a half dwelling-house, painted white. This is the resi-
dence of John Ordway, who is the fourth in the line of
ownership of the surrounding estate from the ancient pro-
prietor, his ancestor.
The name of Ordway is of some note in the annals of
Warner. Any one who has glanced over the early records
of the proprietors of the town will there see on almost
every page the name of Dr. Nehemiah Ordway. He was
a resident of Amesbury, a graduate of Harvard college,
and a physician of wide reputation in his day. The Ord-
way family originated from James Ordway, who was born
in Wales in 1620, and, marrying Ann Emery, emigrated to
America about 1648, and settled at Newbury. Dr. Nehemiah
Ordway was the great-grandson of this James and the son
of Deacon John Ordw r ay. He was born in 17 13, and died
January 13, 1779, aged 66 years. Dr. Ordway was one of
the original grantees of Warner, and was clerk of the pro-
prietors a great many years. He was greatly interested
in the settlement of the town and owned a valuable lot at
the lower village, embracing the whole hillside by the
Runels house, which was afterwards the property of
Joseph Bartlett. He visited Warner in 1768 and again in
1773, the last time staying several months, but he never
settled here. That work he left for another's hand to do.
Dr. Nehemiah Ordway was the father of at least two
sons, Rev. Nehemiah and Bradshaw Ordway. Rev. Nehe-
miah, who was born in Amesbury in 1743, and graduated
at Harvard in 1764, preached successively at Warner in
1767, '68, '69, '70 and '71, but not regularly. Among the
308 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
proprietors' bills for 1769 was one for five pounds and
twelve shillings ($18.65) t0 "Nehemiah Ordway, Jr., for
preaching," and in 1771, "one pound and ten shillings to
Nehemiah Ordway, Jr., for preaching." He was subse-
quently settled over the church at Middleton, N. H., and
later at East Haverhill, Mass. He died at Pembroke, in
1836, aged 93 years.
Bradshaw Ordway was younger than his brother, the
exact date of his birth being not far from 1750. He came
to Warner as early as 1782, and built a log cabin on his
father's lot a short distance up th^ hillside across the high-
way from George Colby's residence. His wife was Eleanor
Stevens, a cousin to the wife of General Aquila Davis. In
1784 Bradshaw Ordway exchanged his lot with Joseph
Bartlett for two adjoining lots in the north village. The
same year he sold one of the lots to Isaac Dalton, and, in
1785, Bradshaw Ordway and his family moved up to the
hill. Nehemiah, the oldest of his children, was then a
babe in his mother's arms.
There was a habitation already there. The Bartlett gore,
as it was called, embraced some one hundred and forty
acres. All were sixty-acre lots on the west of this gore.
The two lots that constituted the gore were very irregu-
lar. On the north the width was eighty-seven rods ; at the
south end it tapered to only a few rods in width. In length
it was more than a mile. The original Dalton farm, which
was cut off at the south end, embraced sixty acres. The
remaining portion constituted the farm that Bradshaw
Ordway took possession of one hundred and eight years
ago. Near the center of the estate stood a log cabin
which had been built by Joseph Bartlett a year or two pre
viously. This became the home of the pioneers for a num-
ber of years, certainly until after 1793, for Samuel and
Thomas, who were twins and were born that year, first saw
the light in this structure. The next year, perhaps, or a
year later, a frame building of larger dimensions was
erected by the pioneer. This latter structure stood but
two or three rods from the former habitation and about
thirty rods northwest of the present buildings. To reach
the site of these ancient dwellings one should follow the
path out past the apple trees about twenty rods, then go
straight north about ten more. On a little rise of ground in
RAMBLES ABOUT A COUNTRY TOWN. 309
the center of the field is the site of the former house where
Bradshaw Ordway spent the latter years of his life. Not a
vestige of that early habitation remains to-day. A few
rods beyond this, straight north, is another green knoll,
where rests a large granite rock. Just west of this rock
stood the log cabin erected by Joseph Bartlett, and the first
home of Bradshaw Ordway on the place. A huge elm
overshadowed it during the time it was a habitation. In
my childhood's days a portion of this stump was visible
and also broken pieces of brick, the remnants of the pio-
neer's chimney, but there is nothing there now to show that
•it w r as ever the site of a dwelling-place.
This part of the north village came very near being an
Ordway settlement. Just across the path from the site of
the original home, on a still higher knoll, is the foundation
of the house which Thomas Ordway built for himself a lit-
tle after the close of the second war with Great Britain. The
frame of the house was about thirty by eighteen feet, one
story in height, and was never painted. A well near by
has water of remarkable purity, and the old sweep stood
there when I was a boy.
Thomas Ordway married Polly Ferrin, a daughter of
Benjamin Ferrin, who lived at the present Newton Gove
place. Their two children, Alvah and Susan, were born
in this old house. After living here a number of years
Thomas Ordway sold his little patrimony of thirty-four
acres to Benjamin F. Flanders. The price paid was one
hundred and ten dollars, whose purchasing power, in 1826,
was twice that of the same sum to-day. Mr. Ordway
moved to Bristol, and died there about 1870. His two
children have descendants still living at Evansville, Wis.
The next owner of the Thomas Ordway house was
James Batchelder, who married a daughter of Jacob Mor-
rill in the east part of the town. Batchelder was an
Osgoodite, and remained here only four or five years.
The house then become the home of another child of
Bradshaw Ordway, Deborah, who had married a Dudley
Webster of Bristol. This Webster was a tailor by trade,
and justified the truth of the old adage that it takes nine
tailors to make a man. He deserted his wife, and she and
her three children came here to live. After these children
were old enough to care for themselves, Mrs. Webster gave
310 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
up her home and lived with her brother Nehemiah, and
the land reverted to the original homestead. The old
house was taken down in 1842. One half of the frame was
sold to Captain Timothy Flanders, who set it up for a car-
riage-house at the Dalton place ; the other portion was
used by Levi Flanders, senior, for the same purpose at the
Walter M. Flanders place.
Meanwhile David Ordway had gone out farther to the
south and built him a home. It was a low, one-story
building, thirty by eighteen feet, the long side facing the
south, and was unpainted. The house was built in the
summer of 1812. In 1817 he exchanged with his brother,
Nehemiah, who had put up a dwelling-house in what is
now known as the Stevens lot, a component part of the
Ordway homestead.
This is the house that those of my generation remember
as the " Uncle Miah Ordway house." Nehemiah Ordway
made it his home the remainder of his life. To this house
he brought, in 1818, his young bride, Mary, daughter of
Isaiah Flanders. Here were born his three sons, John,
Joseph, and ex-Governor Nehemiah G. Ordway. An
addition of about sixteen feet was made to the east end, a
little later, which gave the house a remarkable frontage
for so low and narrow a structure. This addition was
known as "Aunt Lucy's parlor." It was the living-room
of Bradshaw Ordway's eldest daughter, Lucy, who spent
her life in the home of her brother.
In this house Bradshaw Ordway died in 1820, , aged
some over seventy years. The latter years of his life were
clouded by spells of partial insanity, and the cares of a
large family fell upon his oldest son, Nehemiah, at an
early age. The remains were interred in the cemetery
back of Union block, where Mrs. Ordway was already
buried. Nehemiah Ordway's wife, Mary, died in 1850,
and was buried beside her kindred. Mr. Ordway subse-
quently married Hannah, one of the seven daughters of
Levi Osgood and widow of Levi Colby, who lived on the
Edmunds place in Joppa. He was drowned in Warner
river, in July, 1862. His brother Samuel, who never mar-
ried, continued to reside in the old house until 1867, when
he went to live with " Brother " Charles Colby on Burnt
hill, where he died in 1874. The next year after he left
THE HARVEST MOON. 311
the house was taken down, and the frame was sold to Rufus
A. Davis, who used a portion of it in making the ell of his
dwelling-house. John Ord way's woodsheds stand over the
old cellar. Mr. Ordway's present residence was erected
in 1853. The barn was built by Nehemiah Ordwav in
1820.
Just south of the maples in the little hollow there formerly
stood the "village smithy." Samuel Ordway was black-
smith as well as farmer, and did considerable work at his
forge up to i860. This shop was a portion of the old
frame house, the first built on the place. It was taken
down several years ago.
THE HARVEST MOON.
BY GEORGE BANCROFT GRIFFITH.
Above the wheat fields, full and round,
When not a living thing made sound,
I watched the harvest moon,
And thought of frowning mountain gates,
Where the lone trapper patient waits
Near waves that sparkle soon ;
Of hunter's white-haired children brave,
Weeping above their mother's grave
Beside some dark lairoon ;
Of that once crimsoned, bright Champlain,
Of Southern gulf and lakes of Maine
Lit by this lovely moon.
I thought of Vernon's peaceful shade,
Of spots where martyred ones were laid
In sturdy manhood's noon ;
Of Alleghanian peaks afar,
Bejewelled by some rising star
And silvered with the moon ;
Of many a blue and tranquil sea
Where balmy south winds whisper free,
And flies the snow-white loon ;
Where, nameless, lonely rivers roam, —
But ah, more fair the haunts of home
Beneath this harvest moon !
J. BAILEY MOORE.
BY GEORGE WALDO BROWNE.
It is the law of natural life that the climate has the mak-
ing and unmaking of its people. The torrid clime of the
tropics can no more bring forth and nourish the earnest
worker of the temperate zone than the olive can bear the
fruit of the apple tree. With equal evidence is it shown
that the soil places the seal of its own ruggedness upon the
brow of its children. The dwellers upon the easily culti-
vated and unproductive plain are naturally indolent and
improvident, while those who have tilled the more stubborn
earth have unconsciously assumed very much of its char-
acter. The good old farming town of Candia, with its
rock-ribbed hills and sinewy valleys, is no exception to the
rule, and whether it be her sons who have preserved the
dignity of her homes, or her Moores, Palmers, Smyths,
Eatons, Sargeants, and others who have brightened the
honor of her name abroad, the list is an exceptionally
strong one.
Four generations of the family of Moore have lived in
Candia, Samuel, the great-grandfather being among the
first settlers of the then called " Charmingfare." The
father of the subject of this sketch, who was also named
Samuel, built a house on " The Hill," since dignified by
the name of High street, and here Jacob Bailey Moore was
born in 1815, he having a twin sister, Jane P., and an
older brother and sister, all of whom he outlived. His
mother was Olive, a daughter of Isaiah Rowe, a soldier of
the Revolution.
Placed with a neighbor at the age of seven to earn his
living by working upon a farm, and getting his early edu-
cation by short intervals of district schooling, his boyhood
was cast in a groove peculiar to the times. In his fifteenth
year, strapping on his back a small bundle containing his
worldly possessions, he walked to Lowell, a distance of
thirty miles, to find employment of John Avery, the agent
of the Hamilton mills. Remaining there, where his associa-
tions were extremely pleasant, two years, he rounded out
his school life by a term at Pembroke Academy. But one
of his contemplative and speculative mind does not close
the book of lessons with his graduation from the tutor's
w\
^Zjp
J. BAILEY MOORE. 313
care, and his studies, broadening into research, continued,
leading him into the higher and wider plane of thought.
Going to Boston when he was eighteen, and, with the
exception of two and one half years in Lynn, living there
eleven years, he was enabled to listen to the lectures and
discussions of the deepest thinkers of the day upon topics
of physical science, literature, and mental and moral phil-
osophy. An apt scholar, a searching reasoner, and pos-
sessor of what was of great importance, a most retentive
memory, with an intense admiration for nature and her
mysterious plans, he sought the acquaintance of such stu-
dents of religious philosophy as Theodore Parker, Ralph
Waldo Emerson, and A. Bronson Alcott, with all of whom
he was on familiar terms.
In 1844, leaving the employment of the shoe store in
Boston where he had been for six years, he came to Man-
chester to live with his mother, his father having died in
1830, making pleasant with a sincere devotion her declin-
ing life. As the fruits of his moral and philosophical
studies, he began lecturing with promising results, but
abandoned this field for newspaper work.
His most effective work in this line was not done until
1861, during the exciting period of secession by the
South and talk of war in all sections of the country, when,
while he had voted for Stephen A. Douglas for president,
he wrote a vigorous article declaring that Abraham Lincoln
had been fairly elected, and calling upon all parties to
rally to the support of the government. Soon after he
became the associate editor of the Daily American, which
position he held about three years. He was next local
editor of the Union three years, and then a reporter for
the Daily Mirror one year. He was a regular corre-
spondent of the Boston journal for seven years, the Her-
ald six, and a contributor to the Post and the Con-
cord People several years. He was the author of
numerous pamphlets and documents, among which were
" New Hampshire at the Centennial," and a " Description
of the Art Exhibition at Philadelphia," both of which were
published by the state. A little over three years ago he
began to write the history of his native town, which, unfort-
unately, he did not live to see completed, though it was
so nearly done that it has been finished since his death and
314 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
is now ready for its subscribers. This work is much more
than an ordinary town history, and it contains the fullest
and most graphic descriptions and impartial criticisms of
the manners and methods of old-time life, as far as the
writer of this article knows, to be found in the state litera-
ture.
Having made his home in Manchester for half a century,
he was one of the best known men in the city, and seen
often on the streets rushing along with his short, rapid
steps, at a headlong pace, or chatting merrily with whom-
ever he met, or again, like the ancient mariner, holding
spellbound some inappreciative listener to an hour's dis-
course upon the beautiful in nature and the cross-purposes
of man, his round countenance beaming with a smile or
crossed with deeper lines as he grew more earnest in his
argument, his was a figure too well remembered to be early
forgotten. As I had occasion to say in my memoir of him
in his history of Candia, a man of versatile gifts, he was
more than a newspaper correspondent or the writer of an
occasional pamphlet. He was an acute logician, with a
ready command of language and an incisive wit few could
match. He was a philosopher with the imagery of a poet,
and a worshipper of the beautiful in the handiwork of
nature ; with a brain fitted to receive impressions swiftly and
faithfully, he was a person of healthful ideas and a cheerful,
generous heart. With his varied talents he was extremely
modest and unassuming, ignoring the opportunities which
came to him for political preferment. With his other
gifts he was an artist of acknowledged talent, and he did
in oil and crayon several meritorious works, including
life-size portraits of Abraham Lincoln, General Grant and
General Stark.
Mr. Moore's mother died in 1869. He had been troubled
with an affection of the heart for some time, and a severe
cold, taken in April, was followed by prostration, from which
he never rallied, and he died May 11, 1893, in his seventy-
eighth year. It was characteristic of the man that he paid
a poll-tax to the time of his death. His remains repose by
the side of those of his parents in the old family lot on
Candia hill. And so passes from life into memory the
unique picture of an artist, author, and philosopher of no
common ability.
AN OLD-TIME NEW HAMPSHIRE CYCLONE.
BY HOWARD M. COOK.
During the past few months the newspapers have con-
tained frequent accounts of disastrous tornadoes or cyclones
in different sections of the West and South, involving,
altogther, the loss of hundreds of human lives and mil-
lions of dollars' worth of property.
It used to be a common remark, which has passed
almost into a proverb, that " New Hampshire is a good
state to emigrate from." And Horace Greeley's advice,
" Go West, young man," will long be remembered. Those
of the sons and daughters of the old Granite State who
have followed this advice have emigrated to the near or
far West, and have thereby improved their condition either
socially or financially, or both, can appreciate the force of
the proverb and the advice. But there are many still left
who are of the opinion that in many respects New Hamp-
shire is a good state to live in.
The granite hills and mountains of our state serve as a
protection against the frequent cyclonic storms that have
visited other sections, and break the force of the winds
that might otherwise prove destructive. Occasionally,
however, under favorable conditions, tornadoes or cyclones
have visited even New Hampshire, and their course has
been marked with devastation. In the }^ear 1821 a storm
swept over the central portion of our state, and even had
the audacity to invade the dominions of old Kearsarge,
passing over a portion of the mountain. It commenced
its course in Croydon, on the east side of Croydon mount-
ain. In Sunapee it demolished a dwelling-house, and
carried a child, who was asleep on a bed, into Sunapee
lake. In New London and Sutton it did considerable
damage, but met with few dwelling-houses and destroyed
no lives. From Sutton it passed over the southwest
branch, a spur of Kearsarge mountain, and a gore of land
belonging to Warner, called Kearsarge gore. At the foot
of the mountain it entirely demolished five barns, unroofed
another, utterly destroyed two dwelling-houses, and dam-
aged another so as to render it useless.
The houses thus wholly destroyed belonged to two broth-
ers, Robert and Daniel Savory, and contained fourteen
persons. In the house of the latter were his aged parents.
316 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
The old gentlemen, as he saw the cloud coming, went into
a chamber to close a window, and was there when the
cyclone struck the house. He was carried a few rods,
dashed upon a rock, and instantly killed. His wife was
badly hurt. A child of Daniel Savory was also killed.
In the house of Robert Savory several were wounded and
bruised, but no lives were lost. The buildings belonging to
these brothers were not only leveled to the foundations,
but the materials and contents were dashed into ten thous-
and pieces and scattered in every direction. Carts, wag-
ons, sleighs, plows, and sleds were carried to a considera-
ble distance and so broken and shattered as to be fit only
for fuel. Stone walls were leveled, and rocks weighing
some four hundred pounds were taken out of their beds by
the force of the wind. Large logs that were bedded in
the ground, fifty feet long, were not weighty enough to
retain their places. An elm tree near where old Mr. Savory
fell, which was one foot at least in diameter, and too
strongly rooted to yield, was twisted like a withe to the
ground, and lay prostrate like a wilted weed. Not an
apple tree was left standing. One barn was taken up
whole, with its contents, and, after being carried several
rods, went to pieces, and flew like feathers in every
direction.
From the neighborhood of the Savorys the cyclone
passed over another spur of the mountain and fell with
great force on the buildings of Peter Flanders and Joseph
True. Their houses, which were but a few rods distant,
one in Warner and the other in Salisbury, were also demol-
ished. In Mr. Flanders's house were nine persons, two of
whom were instantly killed. Mr. Flanders and wife were
badly hurt, but at length recovered. In Mr. True's house
were seven persons, all of whom were most wonderfully
preserved, except two children, ten and twelve years old,
who were badly burned by hot bricks, the brick oven hav-
ing been heated. One of them lingered several weeks in
extreme suffering and then died. The father and mother
of Mrs. True were visiting there. Mr. True and his
father-in-law went to the door and saw the cloud, but
thought at first that they were so under the hill that it
would pass harmless over them. But they were soon con-
vinced that its track was marked with desolation. Mr.
AN OLD-TIME NEW HAMPSHIRE CYCLONE. 317
True gave the alarm to his family and ran under the end
of a shop that happened to stand beyond the violence of
the wind. His father-in-law stood his ground until he
saw the fragments of the barn flying in the air. He then
threw himself flat upon the ground, beside a large pile of
wood. Instantly a rafter from the barn fell endwise close
to him, entering the ground, and a beam also grazed down
upon the rafter and lay at his feet. He and Mrs. Jones
were unharmed. They saw, instead of a new and very
comfortable dwelling-house, a perfect desolation. Not
even a sill remained on its foundation. Even the cellar-
stairs and the hearths, which were of tile eight inches
square, were taken up. The chimney bricks partly covered
Mrs. True, and covered to some depth two of the children.
Mrs. True received but little injury. The cries of the two
children under the weight of hot bricks pierced the heart
of the father. In removing the brick he burned his hands
badly. The children were taken out alive but were in a
state of great suffering, and one of them died. All were
now r found but a babe, about one year old. Supposing it
to be under the bricks, Mr. True renewed his labors ; but
it was heard to cry in another direction, and was found safe
under a sleigh about fifteen rods from the house. When the
cyclone came the sleigh was in the barn, about eight rods
north of the house. The materials of which these houses
were constructed were reduced to kindling-w r ood and scat-
tered in all directions. It was the same with the furniture,
beds, and bedding. A loom, to all appearance, was car-
ried whole about forty rods, and then dashed to pieces.
The width of the cyclone at this place was about twenty-
five rods, while in the higher ground it varied from forty to
sixty rods. The deeper the valley the more violent was
the current of air. The appearance of the ground over
which it passed was as if a mighty torrent had swept over
it. Near the boundary between Warner and Boscaw r en
the desolation ceased.
A woman in Warner who, at a distance of two or three
miles, observed its progress, compared the appearance of
this cyclone to a great elephant's trunk let down out of the
sky and moving majestically along. When it reached
the easterly part of the town of Warner, the lower end
appeared to be taken up from the earth, and to bend around
318 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
in a serpentine form, until it passed behind a black cloud
and disappeared. It was attended with but little rain, and
to people living near Sunapee lake in New London it
appeared as if the lake was rushing up towards heaven.
Spruce boards, which were taken from New London, were
dropped in Canterbury, a distance of about thirty miles.
On the same day, and about the same time of the day,
two other similar cyclones were experienced, which moved
in nearly parallel lines, one passing through Warwick,
Mass., and the other to about the same distance to the
northeast.
The above facts were condensed from the account in
Haywood's New England Gazetteer.
THE GRANTEES OF CLAREMONT.
BY C. B. SPOFFORD.
[CONCLUDED.]
No. 53. Henry Bond, probably from Winchester, N.
H., and later of Maine.
No. 54. Col. John Hawks, of Deerfield, Mass., "the
hero of Fort Massachusetts," was born Dec. 5, 1707. In
early life he entered the military service, and in 1746 was
in command of Fort Massachusetts, when, with a garrison
of twenty-two men, it was assaulted by a force of French
and Indians numbering seven hundred. After a defence
of twenty-four hours he was forced to surrender from lack
of ammunition. He served through the French wars as
sergeant and lieutenant, had charge of the forts at Cole-
raine in 1754-7 ; commanded a company at the attack on
Ticonderoga in 1758, under Abercrombie ; was under Am-
herst, as major, and in 1760 was ranked as lieutenant-
colonel. He was selectman of Deerfield for nine years,
and filled many offices of trust. Married, Dec. 10,1730,
Elizabeth, daughter of John Nims, who died Feb. 27, 1779,
aged 67 years. He died June 26, 1784. Samuel Ashley
purchased the right, on July 19, 1765, for two shillings.
No. 55. Samuel Field, son of David (No. 52), was
born in Deerfield, Mass., Sept. 14, 1743; graduated at
Yale in 1762 ; studied divinity with Rev. Jonathan Ashley ;
afterwards read law with Daniel Taylor of Hinsdale ; was
THE GRANTEES OF CLAREMONT. #19
admitted to the Hampshire county bar, and practiced
through life, and also engaged in trade. He was for sev-
eral years town clerk, and was representative to the general
court of Massachusetts in 1791 ; was also a writer ot con-
siderable ability, and after his death, at Conway, Mass.,
Sept. 17, 1800, a volume of his works in prose and verse
was published, under the title of 4 ' Field's Works."
No. 56. Simeon Chamberlain we are unable to locate
to a certainty. A person by this name was one of the first
settlers of the town of Swanzey, in 1746, and may possibly
be the one mentioned in the rights of Claremont.
No. 57. Elijah Alexander, Winchester, was a son of
Elias, a blacksmith, who removed to that town about 1736.
Elijah was born Feb. 10, 1733 ; was in the Nova Scotia
expedition, 1755, as lieutenant. He married, Nov. 1, 1767,
Susannah Trowbridge of Winchester, who died Nov. 17,
1797. He died Sept. 9, 1774. He was also a grantee of
Richmond. The right in Claremont was among those
transferred to Grannis by the estate of Col. Willard.
No. 58. Ebenezer Dodge, Winchester( ?). The rea-
sons for this conclusion are that he purchased, in 1794. pew
No. 21 in the meeting-house at that place. Part of this
right was sold to Benjamin Tyler by Benjamin Sumner,
on Dec. 4, 1769, indicating that Sumner had bought the
right of Dodge previous to this date.
No. 59. Samuel Wells, Brattleboro, Vt., was born in
Deerfleld, Mass., Sept. 9, 1730 ; he removed to Brattleboro
about 1762. He was a prominent man in the Vermont
controversy on the side of New York ; was judge of infe-
rior courts, 1768-72, representative to the colonial assem-
bly of New York, 1773-5, but during the Revolution was
a Tory. After the war he removed with his family of
eleven children to Canada, where they each had a grant
of 1,200 acres of land. Samuel Wells died in Brattleboro,
Aug. 6, 1786. [See page 64, Vol. V, Vt. Gazetteer.]
No. 60. Hon. Jonathan Hunt, Vernon, Vt., was born
in Northfield, Mass., Sept. 12, 1738 [History of North-
field, Mass.], and died June 1, 1823 [Bridgman's Epi-
taphs] . He was also a proprietor of Richmond and Ches-
terfield, and Guildhall, Vt. ; was a prominent landowner
320
THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
as well as citizen, being at one time lieutenant-governor
of Vermont. This right was sold to Samuel Ashley, on
July 19, 1765, for two shillings.
No. 61. William Smeed, originally from Deerfield,
Mass., where he was born October 22, 1706. Early in
1736 he became a settler of Keene, having, in 1734, by the
payment of five pounds, become a proprietor of that town.
In the fall of 1736, with Seth Heaton and Nathan Blake,
he made preparations to spend the winter in that place,
but provisions giving out, Heaton was dispatched to procure
a supply at Northfield, Mass. Not returning soon, Smeed
and Blake returned to Northfield or Wrentham, and did not
return to Keene until the next spring. [Annals of Keene.]
No. 62. Col. John Goff was born in Boston in 1701,
and was a son of John Goff of Londonderry, being, with
his father, a grantee of that town. He was a noted Indian
fighter, and was with Love well in the celebrated fight at
Pequawket. In 1734 he moved to Cohos Brook, near what
is now known as Goff's Falls, and within the limits of the
present city of Manchester, at which place he built a mill.
In 1738 he removed to the adjoining town of Bedford, and
still later, in 1748, back to his place on Cohos Brook. He
was a major in the regiment which went to Crown Point
in 1756, was lieutenant-colonel in 1757-8-9, and colonel
in 1760. Subsequently he was colonel of the Ninth N. H.
regiment, and judge of probate for Hillsborough county,
1 77 1-6. He was a large landowner, being also a grantee
of Goffstown, — which bears his name, — Jefferson, and
New Boston. He died in Derryfield, now Manchester,
October 20, 1788, aged 87 years.
No. 63. Daniel Jones, Eso^., was of Hinsdale. In 1766
he was one of a number who petitioned for the remission
of taxes from New Hampshire, the reason being that the
disputed line of the town caused them to be taxed in both
New York and New Hampshire. The subject was brought
about by means of a resolution, passed in town meeting
October 30, 1765, at which Daniel Jones and two others
were appointed a committee to petition the general court
of New Hampshire for an abatement for that year. The
record was made by the town clerk, Daniel Jones. [Pages
386, 387, Vol. IX, State Papers.]
THE GRANTEES OF CLAREMONT. 321
No. 64. Hon. John Temple, of Portsmouth, was lieu-
tenant-governor and surveyor-general of customs for the
northern part of America. He was a grantee of Piermont
and Temple, which bears his name.
No. 65. Hon. Theodore Atkinson was born in New-
castle, N. H.,in 1697; graduated at Harvard, 1718, and in
1734 was admitted as a member of the governor's council ;
he was collector, naval officer, and sheriff' of the province.
In 1746 he bought from John Tufton Mason one fifth of the
whole state ; that is, such parts of it as had not been
granted or settled. He died in 1779, aged 82. The town
of Atkinson was named for him, he being at one time the
owner of the whole township. His wife was Hannah
Wentworth, a sister of Gov. Benning Wentworth.
No. 66. Mark Hunking Wentworth, Portsmouth,
was father of Gov. John Wentworth (mentioned in the
sketch of No. 67), and brother of Benning Wentworth,
who was governor at the time the charter was granted.
He w r as also owner of two fifths of the Masonian rights.
His right in Claremont was sold, May 31, 1774, to Josiah
Willard, for sixty pounds ; but, as he had previously, on
the nth of May, for the same consideration, bought a part
of the rights of John Grimes and Oliver Farwell, it is
probable that the transfers were merely a transfer of terri-
tory. Mark H. Wentw r orth died, in Portsmouth, in 1785.
No. 67. Theodore Atkinson, Jr., the only son of
Theodore and Hannah (Wentworth) Atkinson, was born
in 1736, graduating from Harvard in 1757. He was a mem-
ber of the council of w r hich his father was president, and
for many years was the secretary of the province. May
13, 1762, he married Frances Deering Wentworth, from
whom was named the towns of Francestown and Deering.
A very pretty love affair might at this time be introduced, —
of a former acquaintance with John Wentworth ; of his
departure to England, and return two years previous to
the death of Atkinson, which occurred Oct. 28, 1769;
how, ten days after, the widow r laid aside the garments of
mourning for those of the wedding with her first love,
Governor John Wentworth.
322 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
No. 68. Col. William Symes, Swanzey, was one of the
first settlers of that town, but appears to have lived in
various places. He had lands granted to him in North-
field, Mass., in 1721, on condition that he settle there ; was
in Deerfield, October, 1725 ; at Northfield again in 1731 ; at
Winchester, 1743 to 1753, and in November of that year
was prominently engaged in the project of raising five hun-
dred men to form a military colony on the Connecticut river
at Cow r as. The St. Francis Indians claiming the territory,
the project was abandoned. In 1755 Col. Symes was in
command of the fort at Keene. He was, in 1764, esquire
of Hinsdale; in 1768, colonel at Northfield. He was also
a grantee of Haverhill. He married, in 1728-9, Thankful
(Hawks), widow of Daniel Ashley, and mother of Col.
Samuel Ashley.
No. 69. Capt. Simon Davis, of Greenwich, Mass., was
one of the first settlers of Chesterfield, N. H., in 1762, and
also a grantee of Swanzey. He was selectman of Ches-
terfield in 1767, and died probably in 1784-5. [History of
Chesterfield.] His right in Claremont was sold to Barna-
bas Ellis of Hebron, Conn., on May 7, 1767, for thirty-
two pounds.
Nos. 71 and 72. Gov. Benning Wentworth, of Ports-
mouth, was born in 1695, and was the eldest son of Lieut. -
Gov. John Wentworth. Graduating from Harvard in 17 15,
he was appointed councillor in 1734, and in 1741, by the
removal of Gov. Belcher, was appointed governor. He
resigned in 1766, and died Oct. 14, 1770. Much more
might be said of this man, but it would be superfluous in
this connection. The tract, which was known as the gov-
ernor's farm, was sold by him to Capt. George Hubbard,
and was for many years the subject of much controversy
between the heirs of Col. Joseph Waite and Mr. Hubbard.
The latter finally won the suit, and it has been since 1798
in possession of Mr. Hubbard's descendants, being now
owned by Isaac Long, Esq., a great-grandson of Mr.
Hubbard.
The remaining four shares were, upon the drawings of
lots, faithfully cared for, and each received its proportion.
THE GRANTEES OF CLAREMONT. 323
The minister's share was in the first instance given to Rev.
George Wheaton, who became, in 1771 , the first settled
minister of the town. He died soon after his ordination,
and the tract was given back to the town by Mr. Wheaton's
father, and later granted to Rev. Augustine Hibbard, who
became the next minister, and a son-in-law of Col. Samuel
Ashley. In 1799 the undivided lands were surveyed, and
such proportion as belonged to the public rights were sur-
veyed into lots of twenty acres, " according to an estima-
tion ; quantity for quality," and these, with the lots pre-
viously drawn, were accepted as follows :
Ambrose Cossitt, for the Society of Propagation, as
trustee.
Sanford Kingsbury and Timothy Grannis, as wardens
of Union Church, for the Glebe lands.
Sanford Kingsbury and Gideon Handerson, as select-
men of the town accepting for the school lands. These have
been sold at various times as occasion came, and part of
them used for town purposes. The town hall stands on
part of school lot No. 29, and the old burying-ground in
the village occupies a part of the same tract. The lands
of the Society of Propagation were, in 1808, transferred to
the general trustees of the Society in America. The pro-
prietorship of the town remained vested in a legitimate
body of owners, of whom the Sumners, Strowbridges,
Grannis, and others, were stockholders. Occasional meet-
ings were held for the sale of lots, the surveying of unsold
lands and other business, until 1858 (Oct. 28), at which
meeting Solon C. Grannis was chosen clerk, and David H.
Sumner, moderator. At this meeting it was voted, "that,
as said Sumner was a large proprietor of the lands unsold,
that none be sold except by his written consent." This
David H. Sumner was a nephew of Rev. Clement Sum-
ner, one of the original grantees. So ends the history of
the proprietorship. But two of the grantees became set-
tlers, although indirectly the Sumners became proprietors
soon after they moved to town. The early settlers, in sev-
eral instances, bought rights and sold to other settlers,
among them being Mr. Grannis, Joseph and Christopher
York, Amos Conant, Barnabas Ellis, Joseph Alden, and
several others.
MUSICAL DEPARTMENT.
CONDUCTED BY H. G. BLAISDELL.
DAVID B. STORY.
Until a very recent date the musical profession in New
Hampshire was represented by what are known as self-
made men. Among the more prominent of these may be
regarded the subject of this sketch. David B. Story was
born in Hopkinton, January 19, 1836. His love for music
was made manifest at an early age. His first effort was
the study of the French horn, which he soon laid aside for
the trombone, which was more in use, and has always been
his chosen instrument, although he has mastered to a satis-
factory degree almost every band instrument. At an early
age he began the study of vocal music with Miss C. C. P.
Learned, who was considered an accomplished musician
and teacher, and for over twenty years he was tenor in St.
Andrews church choir in Hopkinton. His tutors in instru-
mental music were the once famous Alonzo Bond of Bos-
ton, and, later, Gustave W. Ingalls of Concord. He was
a charter member of the old Hopkinton band. Later on
he was, for several years, connected with the Concord
cornet band and the once celebrated Brigade band. The
only stringed instrument Mr. Story ever studied was the
contra bass. He became quite proficient on this instru-
ment, and was a member of Gibson's quadrille band of
Henniker, and subsequently identified himself with Brown
& Ingalls' orchestra of Concord, which in those days was
the " crack" organization of New Hampshire.
Mr. Story married, on the 6th of February, 1857, Miss
Sarah J. French of Boston. They have been blessed with
five children, as follows : J. Henry, Ada S., Fred W.,
Charles F., and Benjamin F. Story. All are living except
Ada. J. Henry is a well-known, successful druggist of
Laconia. Fred W. is the proprietor of a fancy goods
house in Laconia and the popular manager of the depot
cafe at the Weirs. Charles F. is the proprietor of the auc-
tion rooms in Laconia, and Benjamin F. is in business in
Boston. Of these Fred W. and Charles F. turned, for a
considerable time, their attention to music. Fred became
very proficient as a violinist and Charles studied trombone.
MUSICAL DEPARTMENT. 325
After moving to Laconia they organized what was well
known as Story's orchestra, whch was one of the best organ-
izations in the state.
Mr. Story has always been identified with the best
musical interests of the state ; a willing worker, always
coming to the front to help the cause, and with a kind
word for all who enter the profession. He never stooped
to the jealousies so common among the profession, but his
rivals were always treated with great consideration and
kindness, and were, as a rule, among his best friends.
Aside from his musical life Mr. Story has been a suc-
cessful hotel manager. No man ever entered his door
but he was made to feel at home at once. Mr. Story has
been elected by the people to many important offices, and
has an enviable record in this direction. He was many
years high sheriff of Belknap count} 7 , during which admin-
istration he was called upon to take charge of the execu-
tion of the murderer Samon. At present he is proprietor
of Story's tavern at the Weirs, and is meeting with the
success so justly due him. He is a member of Rublee's
City Band and has, we trust, many years of usefulness
before him.
NOTES.
Mr. A. F. Nevers has gone on a four weeks' trip with
Brooks' celebrated military band of New York to the
Pittsburgh exposition.
Blaisdell's orchestra is soon to reorganize, and Mr. Blais-
dell is to take entire charge of the business, as formerly.
Mr. C. S. Conant retires from the position of teacher of
music in the Laconia public schools, and is succeeded by
Mr. Fred Osgood of Laconia.
Edward Baxter Perry is likely to appear in a piano-forte
recital in Concord, October 18th.
The Western N. H. Musical Association's recent festival
at Claremont, under the direction of Dr. Palmer of New
York, with Mrs. Martha Dana Shepard, pianist, was one
of the most successful in the history of the organization.
Mary Howe-Lavin was the greatest vocal attraction, of
course. Several Concord singers, including Prof. Conant
and Mrs. S. L. Bartlett, were well received.
NEW HAMPSHIRE NECROLOGY.
DR. FRANKLIN LANE.
Franklin Lane, M. D., born in Exeter, December 6,
1822, died in East Orange, N. J., July 24, 1893.
He was a son of Joel Lane, and was educated at Phillips
Academy, Exeter and Bowdoin College, graduating from
the latter in 1842. He subsequently pursued the study of
medicine at the Berkshire Medical Institute and at Belle-
vue College, New York city. He established himself
in practice in Baltimore, Md., where he continued with
marked success until 1869, when, on account of failing health,
he removed to Vineland, N. J. There his health improved
and he continued in practice some twenty years, retiring in
1889. In early life he edited the Exeter News Letter for
a time, and subsequently founded the 'Journal at Lewis-
ton, Me. While in Baltimore he was for a long time lit-
erary editor of the American. He leaves a wife, formerly
Miss Appleton, two sons, and three daughters.
HON. JOHN J. BELL.
Hon. John J. Bell, born in Chester, October 30, 1827,
died suddenly, from apoplexy, in Manchester, August 22,
i8 9 3-
He was a son of the late Hon. Samuel D. Bell, chief-
justice of New Hampshire, received an academical educa-
tion, graduated at the Dane Law School, Cambridge,
Mass., and was admitted to the Hillsborough county bar
in 1848, having pursued his legal studies with his father and
the late Hon. William C. Clarke at Manchester. He prac-
ticed in Nashua, Milford, and in Carmel, Me., and settled
in Exeter in 1864, which was his residence ever afterward.
He was justice of the Exeter police court from 1876 to
1883, served in the state legislature in 1883, '85, '87, and
'91, and also upon various important commissions, being
chairman of the state library commission at the time of his
decease. He was also an active member and president of
the New Hampshire Historical Society, and previous to
his death had been prominently mentioned as a probable
candidate of the Republican party for governor. He was
extensively engaged in railroad affairs, and was a conspicu-
ous member of the Masonic fraternity.
NECROLOGY. 327
LUCIUS A. YOUNG.
Lucius A. Young, born in Lisbon, July 10, 1850, died
at Southern Pines, N. C, August 14, 1893.
He was a son of the late J. R. Young, of the Parker &
Young Manufacturing Company of Lisbon, and spent
most of his life in that town, where he was engaged in
mercantile business, and was editor of the Lisbon Index.
He was for several years town clerk, and was postmaster
at Lisbon during the first administration of President
Cleveland.
Nine years ago, in 1884, he went to Southern Pines,
where he located for the benefit of his health, and actively
identified himself with the business and development of
the place, publishing a newspaper and engaging in the real
estate business. But a few weeks before his death, which
was from consumption, he received the appointment of
postmaster at Southern Pines.
HON. CHARLES R. MORRISON.
Hon. Charles R. Morrison, eminent as a jurist and legal
author and compiler, died at his residence in Concord,
September 15, 1893, after a brief illness.
He was a son of William Morrison of Bath, born Janu-
ary 22. 1 819, was educated in the public schools and New-
bury (Vt.) Seminary, studied law with Goodall & Woods
of Bath, was admitted to the Grafton county bar in July,
1842, and immediately commenced practice, in partnership
with Ira Goodall. In March, 1845, he removed to Haver-
hill, and attained such distinction at the bar that he was
appointed an associate justice of the court of common
pleas by Governor Dinsmoor, August 4, 1851, continuing
on the bench until the Know Nothing overturn in 1855,
when he returned to practice. He served as adjutant of
the Eleventh N. H. regiment in the war of the rebellion,
was twice wounded in the battle of Fredericksburg, and
shot through the abdomen at Spottsylvania. After the
war, he settled in practice in Manchester, but devoted him-
self largely for several years to the preparation and pub-
lication of his "Digest of New Hampshire Reports,"
"Town Officer," "Justice and Sheriff and Attorney's
Assistant," and "Digest of Laws Relating to Public
328
THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
Schools," of which new and revised editions have also been
issued.
In 1886 he removed to Concord, which was subsequently
his home. He was a Congregationalist in religion and a
Democrat in politics, and sincerely attached to both church
and party. He was also a charter member and first presi-
dent of the New Hampshire Society of Sons of the Amer-
ican Revolution. December 22, 1842, he married Susan
Fitch of Littleton, who survives him without children.
BOOKS OF NEW HAMPSHIRE INTEREST.
Two books of widely different character, the one deal-
ing with the details of the history of a New Hampshire
town, and the other embodying the poetical productions of
a young man specially favored by the muses, have recently
come to hand.
The History of Candia, by J. Bailey Moore, in an octavo
volume of 528 pages, is a particularly valuable contribu-
tion to the increasing, but still comparatively small, num-
ber of our New Hampshire town histories. It is somewhat
out of the ordinary line of these publications, being almost
as unique as William Little's History of Warren, and dis-
playing in its various chapters some of the striking mental
qualities of the author, whose career, which closed just as
the work was approaching completion, is sketched else-
where in this number by George Waldo Browne, who
completed and published the volume.
"The Prayer Cure in the Pines and other Verses," by
Clarence Henry Pearson, in a neat little duodecimo volume
of 106 pages, issued by The Writer Publishing Co. of Bos-
ton, is indeed a literary treasure, every line being redolent
of the spirit of true poetry. Several of the poems which
the book contains appeared originally in the Granite
Monthly, and their striking merit was recognized by
many readers. The author is a New Hampshire boy, and
will be remembered by many as a young lawyer at Laconia
some years since. He spent some time in Michigan, and
is now located at Sequachee, Tenn.
^
The Granite Monthly
VOL. XV. NOVEMBER, 1893. NO. n
HON. EDGAR ALDRICH.
BY H. H. METCALF.
The position of United States District Judge, in any part
of the country, has always been regarded as one of great
dignity and honor. It is a position which has been
occupied by many of the most eminent jurists, often prov-
ing a stepping-stone to still higher position and greater
honor in the judicial field. In our own district of New
Hampshire, while the incumbents of the office have not been
numerous (only six men in all having occupied the position
since the establishment of the court), they have been men
of abilitv and distinction. The list includes the names of
John Sullivan, eminent in the early military as well as
civil history of New Hampshire, who served from Sep-
tember 26, 1789, till January 23, 1795 ; John Pickering,
1795 to 1804; John S. Sherburne, 1804 to 1830; Matthew
Harvey, 1830 to 1866; Daniel Clark, 1866 to 1891, and
Edgar Aldrich, the present incumbent, who was nominated
by President Harrison, February 16, 1891, the nomination
being confirmed by the senate four days later. The long-
est term of service was that of Judge Harvey, which
exceeded thirtv-five years ; while that of his successor,
Judge Clark, was nearly twenty-five years. Judge Har-
vey had distinguished himself in public life before going
upon the bench, having served in both branches of the
legislature, as president of the senate, member of the
executive council, representative in congress, and gov-
ernor of the state ; while Judge Clark had won the high-
est rank at the bar, and been for ten years a member of the
United States senate, resigning his place therein to accept
the appointment at the hands of President Johnson, upon
Judge Harvey's decease.
330 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
Edgar Aldrich, whose appointment to the office left
vacant by the death of Judge Clark was very generally
recommended by members of the bar throughout the state,
is a native of the town of Pittsburg, formerly known as
Indian Stream Territory, a section the jurisdiction of which
was in dispute between our own and the British govern-
ment for many years, and whose people, in 1830, set up
and maintained for some time an independent government,
pending the settlement of the controversy. It was about
this time that Ephraim C. Aldrich, grandfather of the sub-
ject of this sketch, removed from the state of Connecticut
and located in the territory, with his family, which also
included a son, Ephraim C, the father of Edgar, born
February 4, 1818, who became a prominent and influ-
ential citizen of Pittsburg, was conspicuous in town affairs
for many years, was a deputy provost-marshal and largely
instrumental in raising men and money for the Union
service during the late war, and was also an active man-
ager of the Upper Coos River and Lake Improvement
Company. He married, in 1840, Adaline Bedel Haynes,
a granddaughter of the noted Gen. Moody Bedel, a soldier
of the Revolution and of the War of 1812, who was also
one of the pioneers of the Indian Stream country. They
had six children, of whom but three survive — Frank, of
the well-known firm of Eustis & Aldrich, wholesale starch
merchants of Boston, Mass., Edgar, and Isabel, w T ife of
Justus W. Baldwin of Pittsburg. The father died Feb-
ruary 25, 1880, but the mother is still living. Edgar, who
was born February 5, 1848, remained at home, receiving
such educational advantages as the district school afforded,
until fourteen } r ears of age, when he entered the academy
at Colebrook, where he continued about three years, and
soon after commenced the study of law in the office of
Ira A. Ramsey of that town. He subsequently entered
the law department of the University of Michigan, at Ann
Arbor, graduating therefrom, in March, 1868, with the
degree of LL. B., when twenty years of age.
Returning to Colebrook, he was admitted to the bar of
Coos county at the following August term of court, upon
motion of the late Hon. Hiram A. Fletcher, who stated,
upon moving such action, that he would attain the age of
twenty-one before the next session of the court. He
HON. EDGAR ALDRICH. 331
opened an office and commenced the practice of his pro-
fession in Colebrook, continuing alone until January i,
1882, when he formed a partnership with William H.
Shurtleff, under the firm name of Aldrich & ShurtlefF,
which continued four years. Later he was for three years
similarly associated with James I. Parsons, and was again
alone in practice until his removal to Littleton, January
1, 1881, where he became the partner of Hon. George A.
Bingham. In May, 1882, Daniel Remick was admitted to
the firm, which continued under the style of Bingham,
Aldrich & Remick, until Judge Bingham's second appoint-
ment to the supreme bench, in December, 1884. Subse-
quently the firm of Aldrich & Remick pursued practice
until January, 1889, after which Mr. Aldrich was alone
until his appointment as U. S. District Judge.
While in practice at Colebrook he was twice appointed
solicitor for Coos county, first by Governor Straw, in 1872,
serving until the political overturn in 1874, an d again by
Governor Cheney, in 1876, serving until June, 1879, anc ^
establishing a reputation as an able and efficient prosecu-
ting officer. In November, 1^84, he was elected a mem-
ber of the legislature from the town of Littleton. Although
without previous legislative experience, he was nominated
by the Republican caucus for speaker of the house, and
elected to that position, for whose difficult and delicate
duties he developed a surprising aptness, acquitting himself
throughout the session in a manner which would have done
credit to a veteran parliamentarian.
At the outset of his professional career Judge Aldrich
entered at once into the preparation and trial of causes,
paying comparatively little attention to the ordinary routine
of office work. He took delight in the exciting legal and
forensic contests which have characterized the practice of
both the Coos and Grafton bars, and an examination of
the reports will demonstrate his active and conspicuous
participation in many of the important causes on the north-
ern dockets during the last two decades. One of the most
important and interesting causes in which he was engaged,
and one in which he added greatly to his reputation for
ability and research, was that of the Connecticut River
Lumber Co. vs. Olcott Falls Co., in which he was associated
with Hon. Irving W. Drew of Lancaster, as counsel for the
332 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
plaintiff, defendant's counsel being the late Hon. William
S. Ladd of Lancaster, and Hon. Jeremiah Smith of Dover.
This was a bill in equity to regulate the respective water-
rights of the plaintiff corporation, using the stream for
navigation purposes in floating its logs, and of the defend-
ant mill owners. The right of trial by jury was claimed
by defendant's counsel, on the alleged constitutional ground
embodied in Article 20 of the Bill of Rights, which guar-
antees the right of trial by jury in all controversies
concerning property, "except in cases in which it has
been heretofore otherwise used and practiced." The ques-
tion involved in this contention was one of constantly recur-
ring interest, and one which had long been the subject of
much attention and research, with no definite result. Mr.
Aldrich devoted his entire energies to the work in hand,
and with such effect that, in his able and exhaustive oral
argument in reply to Judge Smith, at the December law-
term, 1889, which was regarded by the court as so worthy
an effort as to warrant its publication in full in Vol. 65,
N. H. Reports, he secured a favorable determination, the
court holding that no such right, as the defendant claimed,
existed.
For some time previous to Judge Aldrich's appointment
it had been generally considered, and not without warrant,
that the position of U. S. District Judge for New Hamp-
shire was, practically, a sinecure — a post of honor and
emolument, involving comparatively little labor. Although
under the general provisions of the Federal statutes the
judge of any district court in the circuit, which in our
case embraces the states of Maine, New Hampshire, Mass-
achusetts and Rhode Island, may be called upon, when-
ever in the opinion of the circuit judge the public business
so requires, to hold the circuit or district court in any
state or district in the circuit, very little outside service
had been required of the New Hampshire district judge
for many years, and the work of the court in the district
itself had been very light. But almost contemporaneously
with the appointment of Judge Aldrich came the act of
congress, approved March 3, 1891, creating the circuit
court of appeals, for the relief of the supreme court, to
which questions of law are taken from the various district
and circuit courts, which provides that such court shall
HON. EDGAR ALDRICH. 333
consist of the associate justice of the supreme court
assigned for the circuit, the circuit judges in attendance
(an additional judge having been provided in each cir-
cuit), and the district judges within the circuit, presiding
in the order of rank and seniority of their commissions.
This act largely increased the duties of all the Federal
judges (the salary of the district judge being at the same
time properly increased from $3,500 to $5,000 per annum),
so that, ever since his appointment, Judge Aldrich has
found his time very fully occupied, having been called
largely into service in the Massachusetts courts, where, as
in his immediate district, he has already won an enviable
reputation as a courteous, discriminating, and conscien-
tious administrator of justice.
Dartmouth College conferred upon Judge Aldrich the
honorary degree of Master of Arts in 1891. As a public
speaker he takes high rank, and has delivered several
notable addresses upon special and anniversary occasions,
among which may be named his address, in 1886, before
the Grafton and Coos Bar Association, of which he has
been a prominent member, upon the question — "Shall the
Law and Trial Courts be Separated?"; that before the
court upon the death of Judge Frederick Chase of Hano-
ver, at the September term, 1890; his eulogy of Gen.
Gilman Marston, before the Grafton and Coos Bar Associ-
ation, January, 1891 ; and his address at the last meeting
of the Southern New Hampshire Bar Association, upon —
"Delays Incident to the Removal of Causes from the
State to the Federal Courts," &c. It may also be noted
that he has been invited to deliver an address before the
New Hampshire Historical Society at its next annual
meeting, upon the Indian Stream controversy.
Judge Aldrich was united in marriage, October 7, 1872,
with Louise M. Remick, daughter of Samuel K. Remick
of Colebrook. They have two children — a daughter,
Florence M., born July 1, 1874, an accomplished young
lady, who has been educated in the public schools, at
Tilden Seminary, West Lebanon, St. Mary's School,
Concord, and Abbott Academy, Andover, Mass. ; and a
son, Ephraim Fred, born June 9, 1878, now a student at
Phillips Academy, Andover.
Although on account of his official duties, spending
334 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
much of his time in Boston, he retains his home in Little-
ton, where he has a finely appointed and beautifully located
residence on Church street, commanding a delightful view
of the village and the charming valley of the Ammon-
oosuc.
Thoroughly democratic and unostentatious in manner,
readily approachable and courteous to all, Judge Aldrich
is popular alike in the general community and in the pro-
fession of which he is a conspicuous representative. Of
fine presence and strong physique, he is also endowed
with vigorous intellectual powers ; and with a full appre-
ciation of the labors and responsibilities of his position,
and the zeal and earnestness of comparative youth in
meeting all their requirements, there is good reason for
belief that he has before him a career of usefulness and
honor, creditable alike to himself and to the New Hamp-
shire district.
FORGIVE.
BY CLARENCE H. PEARSON.
Crush your anger down, 'tis the wiser part,
It will grow and grow till it fills } 7 our heart
If you nurse it and let it live ;
What tho' he wronged you, and glories still
In the deed malign that has wrought you ill? —
For your own sake, friend, forgive.
Forgive and pity and leave him alone ;
He must reap, God help him, what he has sown
Ere the days of his life are told ;
For the seeds of rancor grow naught but tares,
And woe is the harvest that malice bears,
And they yield an hundred fold.
Oh ! drear is the snow-crowned arctic peak
When the howling wind blows cold and bleak
In a wild and angry mood ;
But drearer yet is the luckless breast
Where the vulture of hate has made her nest
And hatched her hellish brood.
SEABROOK SKETCHES.
BY CLARKSON DEARBORN.
No portion of New Hampshire is more rich and interesting
to the historical student than that which is now Rocking-
ham county, between the Piscataqua river on the north and
Salisbury, Mass., on the south. Not only on account of
the important events which have transpired within its bor-
ders, but also for being the residence of many families
whose descendants are scattered throughout the old Granite
State, and who can trace their lineage back to those sturdy
pioneers who, during the privations of the wilderness
and the hostility of the red man, laid the foundations of the
towns and cities of New Hampshire as firm as her own
granite hills.
From the time of its first discovery by Capt. John Smith,
in 1614, and the earliest grant made to Mason & Gorge's,
in 1622, it received a variety of names. It was called New
Hampshire by Capt. John Mason (the original patentee).
In 1623 it was styled Laconia, and in some of our old his-
tories, Capt. Mason Patent and Pascataqua.* It was first
occupied more or less by a class of adventurers and specu-
lators, whom the greed of gain and the desire to domineer
over the people induced to obtain grants and titles to the
land, and it is a singular fact that its boundaries and rights
have been more or less in dispute almost to the present
time.
In 1 64 1 all of these settlements submitted to Massachu-
setts and were included in the county of Norfolk, which
extended from the Merrimac to the Pascataqua river. For
many years they received but little attention from the
mother country. In 1679 New Hampshire was made a
royal province by commission from Charles II. The com-
mission was brought to Portsmouth by Edward Randolph,
whose subsequent acts are fair examples of the injustice
and unscrupulous treatment the early settlers were sub-
jected to.
Portsmouth, also called Strawberry Bank, and Hampton
formerly included the whole seaboard of New Hampshire,
about sixteen miles in length, and were, later, sub-divided
♦Farmer's N. H. Gazetteer.
336 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
into smaller townships. Hampton Falls was incorporated
in 1712, and Seabrook, so called on account of its many
brooks meandering through to the sea, was set off from
Hampton Falls and granted, June 13, 1763, to Jonathan
Weare, Richard Smith, John Moulton, Ebenezer Knowl-
ton, Winthrop Gove, Henry Robie, Elisha Brown, Benj.
Leavitt, Isaac Brown, and others. Joseph Dow, Christo-
pher Hussey, and Thomas Philbrick were the first settlers.
Here in the little southeast corner of Rockingham county,
included within the present limits of Seabrook, have been
born and lived some noted persons, and many incidents of
interest have transpired. Here was born the first president
of New Hampshire; here lived and died Edward Gove,
the fearless defender of popular rights in old colonial
times, the first man to lead in open resistance to the tyranny
of royal rulers in New Hampshire, and the first to suffer
punishment for adhesion to the principles of liberty.
The following extract from an historical address, deliv-
ered by Joseph Dow, M. A., at Hampton, December 25,
1838, gives a good idea of the early history and the gov-
ernment of Cranfield in New Hampshire :
" Hampton was settled by authority of Massachusetts, and it
was for many years considered under the jurisdiction of that col-
ony. In 1643 a new county was formed, embracing all the
towns between the Merrimac and Pascataqua rivers. This was
called the county of Norfolk. The number of towns within its
limits was six. Salisbury was the shire town ; Portsmouth and
Dover, however, had courts of their own.
k ' Capt. John Mason, to whom a large part of it (Norfolk
county) had been granted by charter, was dead (died 1635).
His heirs made some opposition as to the claim of Massachusetts.
About 1677 or 1678 the heir of Mason made an attempt to
recover possession of New Hampshire. He claimed the soil of
the province as his own property. Agents were sent over to
England, and a hearing was granted them before the highest
judicial authorities. The judges reported that Mason's heir had
no right of government in New Hampshire, and they further
reported that the four towns of Portsmouth, Dover, Exeter, and
Hampton were beyond the limits of Massachusetts. But in
regard to Mason's right to the soil of New Hampshire they
expressed no opinion. This report was accepted and confirmed
by the king in council. New Hampshire was then separated
from Massachusetts, with which it had been for so long time so
happily united.
SEABROOK SKETCHES. 337
"The commission for the government of New Hampshire
passed the great seal on the iSth of September, 1679. Under
the new order of things, a president and six counsellors were
appointed by the crown, and these were authorized to choose
three other persons to be added to their number. An assembly
was also to be called. The whole number of voters in the four
towns was two hundred and nine, fifty-seven of whom belonged to
Hampton. The assembly consisted of eleven members, three
from each of the four towns, except Exeter, which sent only two,
that town having but twenty voters. The members from Hamp-
ton were Anthony Stanyan, Thomas Marston and Edward Gove.
Among the counsellors were Christopher Hussey and Samuel
Dalton of Hampton. The assembly met at Portsmouth on the
1 6th of March, 1680.
"In 16S2 another change was introduced into the government.
Edward Cranfield was appointed lieutenant-governor and com-
mander-in-chief of New Hampshire. This change was effected
through the influence of Mason's grandson, an heir. Cranfield's
commission was dated May 9th, 1682. Within a few days after
publishing his commission, he began to exhibit his arbitrary
disposition, by suspending two of the counsellors. The next
year he dismissed the assembly, because they would not comply
with all of his requests. This act of Cranfield very much
increased the discontent of the people. In Hampton, par-
ticularly, and in Exeter it created a great excitement.
Edward Gove of Hampton (now Seabrook) , a member of the
assembly that had been dismissed, was urgent for a revolution,
but couid not induce the leading men in the province to join him
in a confederacy to overthrow the government. He collected
his followers and appeared in arms ; but was at length induced
to surrender. He was soon after tried for high treason, was
convicted, and received sentence of death. His property was
confiscated. He was sent to England, and after remaining
imprisoned in the Tower of London three years, was pardoned
and returned home, and his estate was restored to him. Several
other persons were also tried for treason, two of whom belonged
to Hampton. These were convicted of being accomplices with
Gove, but were reprieved, and at length pardoned without
being sent to England.
" Not long after, when the courts had all been organized in a
way highly favorable to Mason, he commenced suits against
several persons for holding lands and felling timber, which he
claimed. These suits were decided in his favor. A large num-
ber were despatched in a single day, and the costs were made
very great. When the estates of those prosecuted were exposed
for sale, no purchasers could be found, so they still retained pos-
session of them. At length the grievances of the people were
338 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
past endurance, and they resolved to complain directly to the
king. Nathaniel Weare of Hampton (now Seabrook) was
according chosen their agent and despatched to England. In
consequence of his representations, censures were passed on
some of Cranfleld's proceedings, and he soon after left New
England and sailed for the West Indies.
u It seems that Hampton people had much confidence in the
ability and good sense of Edward Gove, for, in 1689, less than
four years after his return home from the Tower of London, he
was appointed a commissioner with five others to attend a con-
vention to resolve upon some method of government for New
Hampshire. The persons chosen were Henry Green, Henry
Dow, Nathaniel Weare, Samuel Sherburne, Morris Hobbs,
and Edward, Gove. The meeting at which these delegates,
or commissioners, were chosen was held January, 16S9-90.
After a preamble mentioning that commissioners had been
chosen by the people of Portsmouth and of Dover, and that
the people of Hampton had been invited to pursue a similar
course, the determination of the town is expressed as follows :
" 'We, therefore, ye Inhabitants of the Town of Hampton, in
answer to their request have agreed to send thes sixe persons as
our comishoners to joyne with ye comishoners of ye other
Towns in ye province to cofer about and resolve upon a method
of Government within the province — And what ye sayd comish-
oners of the whole province or the majer part of them shall
conclude and agree upon as to ye settlement of Government
amongst us — If thes our sayd comishoners (viz) Henry Green
Esqre, Ensign Henry Dow, Mr. Nathaniel Wire, Capt. Samuel
Shewborne, Morris Hobbs, Senior, and Mr. Edward Gove, in
discorsing and agreeing about ye same, if they or ye majer part
of them shall se just cause to comply and agree with the other
comishoners as to ye way and method of Government that shall
be settled amongst us And shall subscribe thereto — We the
Inhabitants of ve Town of Hampton reposing especiall Trust
and confidence in our sayed comishoners, what they shall agree
to, or the majer part of them, We shall hould as good and valued
to all intents and purposes ; Hereby obledging our selves to veld
all ready obdience thereto, untill Their Majesties Order shall
arive for ye Setelment of Government over us.'"
Edward Gove emigrated from London, England, to New
England in 1640, in company with his father and brother,
whose names were John. They settled and died in Cam-
bridge, Mass. But Edward, about 1655, removed to Hamp-
ton, N. H. In 1660 he married Hannah Titcomb and
settled on a farm in the present limits of Seabrook. The
SEABROOK SKETCHES. 389
ancient house now standing on it was built by his son John
in 1 713 , and has always remained in the possession of the
Gove family. It is now owned and occupied by one of his
descendants, Miss Sarah Elma Gove. Adjacent to his
farm was Nathaniel Weare's, where was born Meshech
Weare, the first president of New Hampshire. Edward
Gove had thirteen children, of whom only two sons, John
and Ebenezer, lived to marry and have children. His
daughter Mary married Joseph Sanborn, and was grand-
mother to Phebe (Sanborn) Philbrick, the wife of Capt.
Samuel Philbrick, who moved from Seabrook and settled
in Weare, N. H.
An old eight-legged table once belonging to Mary
Gove is kept as an interesting relic by her descendants, the
Misses Philbrick, now residing in Salem, Mass.
Abigail Sanborn, a daughter of Joseph and Mary (Gove)
Sanborn, married, October 7th, 1703, Ebenezer Dearborn,
one of the grantees of the town of Chester.
On this farm Edward Gove lived in 1682, when Gov.
Cranfield assumed the control of affairs in New Hampshire,
and by his acts became very obnoxious to the people,
especially by dissolving the assembly, a proceeding with-
out a precedent in the history of the colonies. This act
was looked upon with a jealous eye by the prominent men
of New Hampshire, and by none more so than by Edward
Gove, a member of the assembly and a man of influence
at that time. The feeling among the people was that of
grave fear. Although they had left the mother country
for liberty's sake, the old customs still clung to them, and
the idea of the divine right of kings was not wholly oblit-
erated from their minds. Its accomplishment took almost
another century, and when Edward Gove sounded the
tocsin of revolution it was not responded to with that con-
cert of action and energy which marked the uprising in
1775 ; but Gove's rebellion, so called, was an epoch in the
history of New Hampshire of more importance than most
historians give to it, and indeed was the beginning of the
great struggle for freedom from the tyranny of kings. He
and his followers were arrested, and tried for high treason
(Edward Gove was sentenced to be hung and drawn in
quarters, but was finally taken to the Tower of London,
and in less than two and a half years was pardoned, and
340 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
returned home April, 1686).* His adherents were convicted
of being accomplices, but were respited. They were
John Gove (son of Edward), William Hely of Hampton,
Joseph, John, and Robert Wadleigh (three brothers),
Thomas Rawlins, Mark Baker, and John Sleeper of Exe-
ter. His own words at the time of his arrest indicate the
deep interest and concern for the welfare of the colonies, —
" If ever New England had need of a Solomon or a David
it is now." And while he lingered in the Tower of Lon-
don, condemned to an awful death, the spirit of unrest still
remained in the minds of the people, and finally culminated
* Following are copies of the king's order and the pardon of Edward Gove.
[L. S-] JAMES R.
Whereas Edward Gove was neare three years since apprehended tryed and
condemned for High Treason in Our Colony of New England in America, and
in June 1683 was Committed Prisoner to the Tower of London. We have
thought fit hereby to signify Our Will and Pleasure to you, that you cause him
the said Edward Gove to be inserted in the next Generall Pardon that shall come
out, for the poor Convicts of Newgate, without any condition of trasporta-
tion, he giving such Security for his good behavior, as you shall think requisite.
And for so doing this shall be your Warrant Given at Our Court at Windsor
the 14 day of September 1685 in the first yeare of Our Reigne.
To Our Trusty & Wellbeloved 1 By his Majt' s com'and
the Recorder of Our City Sunderland,
of London and all others
whom it may concern J
Edward Gove to be inserted in ye Generall Pardon.
[the king's seal.] At the Court at Whitehall
the 9 th of April 16S6
Present
The Kings most Excellent Majesty
in Councill
Upon reading the Petition of Edward Gove Setting forth that his maty was
graciously pleased to order the Pet r should be released from his imprisonment in
the Tower and that he should be inserted in the next pardon of the Convicts
in Newgate. But in Regard the said Pardon as he is informed will not issue till
Michaelmas next, and for that his family beyond the sea are in a necessitous
condition, he humbly prays his maty to signify to the Government of New
England, His said Gracious Pardon and that he may be restored to his Estate and
Condition
His Maty in Councill is thereupon this day pleased to order that the Rt. Hon-
o b 'e the Earle of Sunderland doe pepare a letter fo his maty s signature — signify-
ing to the Governmt of New England that his majesty has graciously pardoned
the said Edward Gove, and Requiring them to restore him to his Estate there.
W m Bridgeman
SEABROOK SKETCHES. 341
in the American Revolution. He died in Hampton (now
Seabrook) July 29, 1691.
The following is an exact copy of an unpublished letter
written to him by his daughter during his confinement in
the Tower, and now in possession of one of his ancestors,
and shows the quaint style and address of those times :
(Directed thus :)
"For
my honoured father Edward Gove
In the tower or elswhere
I pray deliver with care."
"From Hampton The 31st of ye first month 16S6
" Dear and kind father, through god's good
mercy having this opportunity to send unto ye hoping in ye Lord
yt ye art in good health. Dear father my desire is yt god in his
good mercy would bee pleased to keep ye both in body and soul
— Loving father it is our duty to pray unto god that hee w r ould
by his grace give us good hearts to pray unto him for grace and
strength to support us so yt ye love of our hearts and souls
should be always fixed on him whereby we should Live A heav-
enly Life while we are on ye earth so yt gods blessing may be
with us always — as our Savior — Christ in ye world ye shall have
troubles but in mee ye shall have peace. So in ye Lord Jesus
Christ ye true Light of ye world There is peace joy and Love
with strength & power & thuth to keep all thoses yt trust in him
"■Dear father I hope god in his good mercy will be pleased
to bring us together. Again to his glory and our good interest
ye Let us heare from ye all opportunityes as may bee for it is
great joy to us to hear from ye father. I have one Little daugh-
ter, my husband is troubled with a could, he Remembers his
duty to ye.
"So no more at present, I Rest thy Dutiful son and
daughter.
"Abraham Clements &
"Hannah Clements"
BIG TREES IN NEW HAMPSHIRE.
BY HON. J. D. LYMAN.
I shall not yield to J. W. Robinson in admiration of the
majestic elm in Concord, in front of the old Samuel Coffin
house. Taking into consideration its size, symmetry, and
height, I used to point it out to visitors as one of the grandest
and most beautiful trees I had ever seen. It is easily the
king of the beautiful elms in our beautiful capital, while
the plane tree or sycamore, on Main street, is the king of
all the trees I have ever seen of its kind. But I think
Colonel Robinson will, upon inquiry, find larger elms than
that on the Coffin place, in this state. The Crowninshield
elm, which 1 went to see in Maiden, Mass., is much larger.
Its huge size, and the belief that Washington once hitched
his horse to it, makes it famous. The " Bridal elm," near
the road from Exeter to Hampton, when I measured it, was
sixteen feet and nine inches in circumference, four feet
from the ground. This tree received its name, says tradi-
tion, from a couple meeting a magistrate in the road near
it, when on their way to get married, and he performed the
ceremony there in the road. This tree, with its majestic
harp-shaped top, was exceedingly beautiful till the ice,
a few winters since, considerably damaged it. Across its
spurs, one foot from the ground, I found its circumfer-
ence about twenty-five feet. Not far from this tree, on the
same road, the elm near the Gilbert Rollins house I found
sixteen feet in circumference, four feet from the ground.
On towards Boar's Head the road swings round under the
charming, low, widespreading elm at the J. J. Leavitt
place. This tree measures fourteen feet, five inches, four
feet from the ground. As you drive from Hampton into
Exeter, before you cross the bridge, you see the majestic
elm in the sidewalk at the old Joshua Getchell place which,
some few years since, I found measured sixteen feet ten
inches, two feet from the ground, and fourteen feet ten
inches, four feet from the ground. This tree is said to have
been set out in 1775. These four majestic trees stand in or
near the same road, leading from the river bridge in Exe-
ter to Hampton Beach, and to see all of them, and also
other fine ones, you have to travel only some seven miles,
BIG TREES IN NEW HAMPSHIRE. 343
and that over one of the best roads in or out of New
England.
The white pine, cut by Governor Tuttle and his associ-
ates, including Councillor Farrington, on the John F. Torr
lot in Rochester, January, 1892, was one of the noblest
pines I have ever seen standing. It was a little over two
hundred years old. This tree sprouted into life about the
time that the Indians were killing the citizens of Durham
and other towns, and Major Waldron of Dover was military
chieftain of what little there then was of New Hampshire.
The pine that bore the seed from which this tree grew, its
father and mother, may have been growing before Colum-
bus discovered America, when Richard the III was reign-
ing, when Edward the V and his brother were murdered in
the Tower, and England and Scotland were almost con-
stantly at war with each other. I was invited to see this
magnificent monarch of the forest fell by the axemen of
the genial governor and his associates, but failed to be
present. " Straight as a gun and sound as a nut," this
grand old tree measured about five feet across its stump,
and was thirty-eight inches in diameter twenty feet from the
ground, thirty-three inches at forty feet, thirty inches at
sixty feet, twenty-three inches at eighty feet, sixteen inches
at one hundred feet. The lumber when sawed measured
four thousand five hundred and five feet. Mr. Torr was
offered one hundred and twenty-five dollars for this tree
about thirty years ago, when masts for ships were in
demand, but it was ultimately sold for about one half of
what was then offered for it.
It was with emotions at least akin to pity that I once set
the men to cut an exceedingly beautiful and perfectly
" upright" pine, which had soared one hundred and thirty-
six feet towards the starry heavens, as faultless in its per-
fection as were Phillips Brooks or John G. Whittier in their
Christian characters. May not such perfectly developed,
upright trees be properly regarded as moral teachers?
JERE O'HALLORAN.
BY MARION HOWARD.
Tonsorialism is strictly a practical art; there is nothing
poetic about it, and yet the Granite State has produced a
young man who combines this art with that of verse-mak-
ing. He is talented and promising in that line, and, better
still, he is a self-made man who has won his way towards
success solely through honest endeavor and industry.
He has made many valuable friends. His verses, hun-
dreds of which have been set to music, show poetic genius,
possessing as they do the merit of originality, fine senti-
ment, and ready wit. Without education to aid him his
efforts are indeed remarkable.
Boston's poet-barber isjere O'Halloran, born in Fisherville
(now Penacook), November 14, 1861. He is the son of
Edward and Catherine (Ford) O'Halloran, who came to
this country from County Cork, Ireland. Mr. O'Halloran,
senior, entered the employ of the Hon. C. H. Amsden,
where he remained thirteen years. He died in 187 1, and
ten years later, on Halloween, his faithful wife passed
away. Three children were born, the subject of this
sketch being the eldest. The lad had been attending the
district school, and was a bright scholar. On the death of
his father, young as he was, he realized the necessity of
going to work, and, at the age of ten, he entered the cot-
ton mill, where he remained three years ; then he sought
employment with Mr. Amsden in his furniture factory. A
year later an opportunity presented itself to learn the gro-
cery business in the establishment of the Hon. J. C. Line-
han. This not proving to his taste, he next tried the
woolen trade with E. S. Harris of Fisherville, where he
remained three years, working ten and one half hours per
day. During this time he was seized with a desire to
acquire the barber's profession, so all his spare hours,
evenings, and Sundays were devoted to the labor. It
suited him so well ; it seemed so much cleaner and more
congenial that he finally adopted it, and gave up his situa-
tion in the mill. He was for some time employed byB. F.
Morse. Later he opened a shop of his own, and, during
! P'^44^^)
jere o'halloran. 345
the summer season, he successfully carried on his business
at Boar's Head and at the Hotel Fiske, Old Orchard, serv-
ing in the latter hostelry in a double capacity — that of head
waiter and barber. He was very popular at this famous
resort, and was presented with many valuable gifts at the
end of the season.
During the winter months, while running his little shop
in his native town, he was much sought after as an enter-
tainer, and it was he who originated the Fisherville Min-
strels, acting as a sort of " Pooh Bah " of the organization,
but chiefly as a rhymester and joke-maker. During the
days of roller-skating he was immensely popular, and his
management of the rink, his artistic skating, and his clever
poetical advertising made him famous throughout the state
and in Massachusetts, where he won many prizes for his
skill.
Mr. O'Halloran was married, at the age of twenty-one,
to Miss Maud Josephine Elliott of Concord, a young lady
of many talents. They have one son, Edward, known as
"Master Eddie," a musical wonder, who first delighted a
select Salem audience when only 6 years old, and who is in
demand at various entertainments in classic Cambridge.
He is a very promising scholar, and will be given all the
advantages of proper schooling.
Mr. and Mrs. O'Halloran moved to Cambridge in 1888,
where they now reside. Mr. O'Halloran was offered a fine
position in the leading establishment of tonsorialism in
Boston, located in Young's hotel. He had not been in his
new quarters two years before he was advanced to his pres-
ent position, that of general manager of the popular Brat-
tle Street parlors. His patrons are of the best class of cit-
izens.
Our poet-barber's gift of verse-making made itself known
when he was only thirteen years old. In 1887 his first
song, "You Know," was set to music by Sam Lucas, and
it has been sung the country over. His later songs are,
" I Love the Dear Old Banjo Best of All," " The Old Brass
Knocker on the Door" (his special pride), " Games on the
the Old Village Green," "When Your Money's Gone
Your Friends are very Few," and a beautiful string of
verses on the touching scene in Hoyt's " Temperance
Town," and dedicated to Miss Elsie Lombard. He has
346 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
recently been engaged in writing a song for the well known
tenor, Mr. Herbert Johnson.
Jere O'Halloran, in appearance, is a slender, dark-eyed,
intelligent-appearing young man, with a finely-shaped
head, and a clear, manly countenance. He is wide-awake,
ambitious, and an honest man in every sense of the word.
PIONEER SETTLERS OF WEST DUNSTABLE-III.
BY C. S. SPAULDING.
Large tracts of land were granted in West Dunstable to
various individuals by the Massachusetts Colonial Court
between the years 1659 and 1716. Some were granted in
payment for services rendered in the Narragansett war ;
some w r ere granted in payment for civil service rendered to
the commonwealth ; some were purchased, others were
granted on a promise of building a mill within the bounds
of the grant in a given time.
In a volume of Massachusetts laws, published in 1726,
entitled " Acts and Laws passed by the Great and General
Court or Assembly of his Majesties Province of Massa-
chusetts Began and Held at Boston Wednesday the 30th
day of May, 17 16," chapter II, page 252, appear the fol-
lowing :
k ' An act j 'or settleing of Grants — Whereas sundary Grants
of Lands have been made by the General Court at divers times,
unto particular Persons, of which Grants the greatest part have
been taken up ; but some may be yet standing out,
" Be it therefore Enacted by his Excelency the Governor,
Council, & Representatives in General Court Assembled, and
by the authority of the same, that all persons claiming a right to
any tract, or tracts of land, by Grant from die General Court,
And not yet laid out ; Shall within the space of three 3 years, from
the publication of this Act bring in a copy of their Grant to the
General, Assembly of this Province in order to have the same
laid out and confirmed to them ; And all such as neglect or
refuse to bring in their claims as above said shall ferfeit their
rights to said Grants," &c.
Agreeable to this law, Jonathan Blanchard of Dunsta-
ble was engaged to make a copy of the original draft, or
PIONEER SETTLERS OF WEST DUNSTABLE. 347
plan, of West Dunstable, which he did under date of June,
1720.*
The grantees were exceedingly anxious to dispose of
their property to the best advantage, and as soon as there
was a prospect of inducing people to make a settlement
an effort was made to influence them, by posting large and
small handbills setting forth the advantage of settling in
the new country. These handbills were posted pretty
generally throughout Middlesex and Essex counties about
the time of the contest between New Hampshire and Mas-
sachusetts in regard to the state line boundary question,
which occurred between the years 1731 and 1741. Each
state wishing to obtain jurisdiction over as many towns as
possible, the agitation of this question helped to promote
settlements in the region west of the Merrimack river.
In the spring of 1738 eight men, with their families, com-
ing mostly from Middlesex county, settled in West Dun-
stable, in the vicinity of what was afterwards called
Monson. Their names were Thomas, William, and
David Nevins, Wooley, William Colburn, James
Wheeler, Philip Woolerich, and John Martin. They
brought their entire effects in an ox cart, plodding their
way through the Dunstable wilderness, guided only by
marked trees. Erecting log huts, clearing off the forests,
and making paths was their first employment. Thomas
Nevins served as sergeant in the old French war, and
afterwards went West, where he left numerous descendants.
David Nevins was one of the first settlers of Plymouth,
N. H. Samuel Leeman, an early settler, has already been
mentioned in the Granite Monthly (December number,
Vol. 14). William Nevins was a prominent man in the new
settlement; was selectman, moderator, &c. He was the
father of five sons, all of whom served in the Revolution.
He died February 15, 1785, aged 66, and was buried in the
old churchyard at Hollis. William Colburn was the ancestor
of nearly all the Colburns of Hollis. He died April 3d,
1769, aged 79, and was buried at Hollis. James Wheeler
was an honest, hard-working yeoman, and ancestor of nearly
all the Wheelers of Hollis. He lived and died on the
* This plan was made on parchment, is now in a tolerable state of preserva-
tion, and may be seen at the office of the Hillsborough county registry of deeds,
at Nashua.
348 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
farm he settled on, which has ever since remained in the
Wheeler family — a period of one hundred and fifty-five
years. Philip Woolerich resided in West Dunstable only
a few years. John Martin and his son John were soldiers
in the old French war.
The first settlement in the Nissitissit hill section of West
Dunstable was made by Moses Saunders of Marlborough,
Mass., during the spring of 1738 or 1739. He commenced a
clearing, built his log hut, and erected a saw-mill about this
time, which was the first one in West Dunstable. The dam
is still to be seen, a few rods northeast of the dwelling-
house at the Daniel Bailey place, in Hollis. This mill was
situated on the south branch of Witch brook near its
headwaters, on the verge of a deep and picturesque val-
ley. This brook has its source in the Nissitissit or Birch
hill section of Hollis, being fed by springs all along the
eastern slope of these hills. Before the old-growth forests
were cut, these brooks furnished a never-failing supply of
water, and were well filled with trout.
On these hills, prior to the settlement, the wolf, bear, cata-
mount and panther roamed in great numbers. Some were
seen as late as the beginning of the present century.
It was in this wild region that Mr. Saunders reared a
family of four children, the births of whom are found
recorded in the old Monson records. It is said that Mr.
Saunders sawed the boards for the first meeting-house in
West Dunstable, built in 1741. Its dimensions were, "22
by 20 feet and 9 feet stud, with one Glass Window." He
also sawed the lumber for nearly all the dwellings in the
young settlement.
In the spring of 1747, fearing an Indian invasion, Mr.
Saunders became alarmed for his personal safety, and
moved his family to Southborough, Mass., where he lived
on a large and well cultivated farm. Tradition says that
he saw Indians lurking in the woods several days before
he left. They seemed bent on the destruction of every
mill and its owner. Quite a number were destroyed about
this time in various sections of the state. Their motive for
doing this, as Dr. Belknap says, " was to retard the settle-
ments, and prevent clearing off their hunting-grounds."
The water power of Witch brook is now owned and
utilized by Daniel W. and David N. Hayden ; their mill
THE LIBRARY MOVEMENT IN NEW HAMPSHIRE. 349
being situated only a few rods below the Saunders mill
site. They are engaged in the lumber and coopering busi-
ness, and by their untiring industry have acquired quite a
large property. They enjoy the confidence and esteem of
the people of Hollis, having served them as selectmen, as
well as in minor town offices.
DESTINY.
BY JERE O'HALLORAN.
For some 'tis a world of pleasure,
For others a world of care ;
Love locked in the heart as a treasure
May give way to despair.
Joy may give way to sorrow
At the great Almighty's will ;
We know not our lot to-morrow —
It may be for good or ill.
THE LIBRARY MOVEMENT IN NEW-
HAMPSHIRE.*
BY LOUISE FITZ.
It is not until the close of the Revolutionary war that
America, finally freed from the heavy burdens entailed by
her long struggle for independence, begins to cherish any
particular regard for schools and other institutions of
learning.
New Hampshire, like the other states of the Union, took
part in the founding of schools and in the establishment of
libraries, and her remarkable success in the latter work is
deserving of special mention. To New Hampshire belongs
the honor of having been the first state in the Union to
adopt a general library law. Not inaptly has she been
called "the mother of the free library system." Hence it
follows that a careful study of the library movement in
♦This paper was read at the meeting of the New Hampshire Library Associ-
ation, at Littleton, September 15, 1893.
350 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
New Hampshire is full of importance and fraught with
many interesting details.
Let it not be supposed that the idea of a free public
library, as we now understand the term, was recognized in
its fulness in those early days. By no means. The libra-
ries which came into existence in New Hampshire, close
upon the enactment of its early library law, were termed
social libraries. At that time, the establishment of these
so-called social libraries was the easiest, the cheapest, and
the most effectual mode of diffusing knowledge among the
people.
These social libraries were not unlike the subscription
libraries which exist to-day. Each citizen, upon the pay-
ment of six or eight dollars, and a small additional sub-
scription each year, was constituted a proprietor and
entitled to the use of all the resources the library afforded.
Thus it may be seen that the early libraries of New
Hampshire were not free, and that, consequently, only the
more prosperous and well-to-do citizens could avail them-
selves of the privileges they afforded.
The first library of this kind was the Dover Social
Library, which was incorporated December 18, 1792 ; but
inasmuch as Dr. Jeremy Belknap, in his history of New
Hampshire, written about 1792, recommends the estab-
lishment of social libraries, it is evident that in those early
days they were not so numerous as a devoted and public-
spirited citizen might desire.
No doubt Dr. Belknap's suggestion was a timely one,
for we note with satisfaction that from 17 92-1838 many
library associations, social libraries, and reading clubs were
incorporated ; most of these in the very early part of this
century, though a few followed in 1797-99. From 1792-
1838, a period of little less than fifty years, two hundred
and fifteen library associations were incorporated in the
state of New Hampshire.
It is probable that the public-school libraries — the real
pioneers and progenitors of our free town libraries, since
they were practically free to all the inhabitants and derived
their support from taxation and state grants — did not exist
in New Hampshire as in most of the other New England
states. Undoubtedly the early and general prevalence of
the library corporations provided for the library needs of
THE LIBRARY MOVEMENT IN NEW HAMPSHIRE. 351
the people and rendered unnecessary the public-school
library system.
Meagre though the resources afforded by the social
libraries may seem to us, in those early days they were
held in high esteem and played an important part in the
education of the people. Books were infinitely more diffi-
cult to procure then than now, and the collections of the
book clubs and of the library associations were of great
value. In those days, the question whether we estimate at
their true worth those things which do not cost us too much
could never have arisen. The resources of our forefathers
were few and were possible only at the cost of great strug-
gle and sacrifice. Books in those days were rated at
their own intrinsic worth, and the few which could be
obtained were gratefully cared for and profitably used.
The idea of a free public library, as practically exem-
plified now in several states, is of comparatively recent
origin. In the public libraries of all classes in the United
States, in the year 1800, there were not more than 80,000
volumes.
As has been already said, New Hampshire was the first
state in the Union to recognize the expediency of establish-
ing public libraries. More than forty years ago a bill was
introduced in the New Hampshire legislature with the title,
"An act for the establishment of public libraries." This
bill was adopted, without amendment, and became a law
on the 7th of July, 1849. By this law towns were
authorized to grant money to establish and maintain public
libraries, the amount of such grants being fixed by the
voters of the respective towns.
Thirteen years before the enactment of this general state
library law, the town of Peterborough, by a vote of April
9th, 1833, established a town library. With the establish-
ment of the Peterborough Library, sixty years ago, the
American idea of a free town library first took tangible
shape. So far as is now known the library at Peter-
borough was the first free -public library supported by
municipal taxation among English-speaking people.
New Hampshire is entitled to claim also the additional
distinction of establishing one of the earliest state libraries,
and of being one of the first three states in the Union
to form a state library association. By means of this
352 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
organization New Hampshire's library interests are actively
furthered, and much good work is accomplished by the
interchange of ideas necessarily resulting. The New
Hampshire Library Association was the earliest incorporated
society of the kind, its act of incorporation being approved
August 16th, 1839.
Satisfied that New Hampshire may well be proud of her
early interest in libraries, and of her success in their estab-
lishment, let us now glance at the more recent library
progress in this state. Of this we cannot speak with so
great enthusiasm. There would seem to have been a lull
in the good work so early and successfully prosecuted,
and for many years the old-time library associations, the
somewhat inadequate social libraries, and the reading-
clubs, not calculated to satisfy the needs of an ever-increas-
ing population, are all that New Hampshire offers to her
inhabitants. Only recently has she recalled her early inter-
est in library matters and set about fulfilling the promise
of former days.
There is, perhaps, no more difficult and unsatisfactory
task than that of comparing doubtful statistics. The data
with regard to the libraries of this state are, as yet, quite
incomplete, and though an earnest effort is being made to
obtain recent and reliable statistics, this effort has not yet
been entirely successful. The data, however, may be
trusted as far as they go, and perhaps by their careful
consideration we shall gain at least a relative idea of New
Hampshire's past accomplishments as well as of her present
library needs.
We know that in the year 1800 there were not more than
eighty thousand books in all the public libraries of the
United States, and that seventy-five years later there were
more than two hundred thousand volumes in the state of
New Hampshire alone.
The most recent library statistics of New Hampshire
show a goodly number of entirely free public libraries con-
taining about two hundred and eighty thousand volumes.
This means about one hundred and seventy-five free pub-
lic libraries, and provides approximately one hundred and
thirty volumes to every one hundred of the inhabitants of
the state. There are still nearly sixty towns without free
library privileges.
THE LIBRARY MOVEMENT IN NEW HAMPSHIRE. 353
When New Hampshire fully realized the necessity of
establishing town libraries absolutely free to all of the
inhabitants, further library legislation was necessary to
accomplish this result. With this end in view, the legisla-
ture of New Hampshire, in 189 1, following the example
set by Massachusetts one year previous, created a com-
mission whose duty it is " to promote the establishment
and efficiency of free public libraries."
The library commission is authorized to grant one hun-
dred dollars' worth of books to every town not possessing a
free library. The commissioners select and purchase all
books to be so provided, but no town is entitled to the benefit
of these provisions until they have been accepted at a reg-
ular town meeting, nor until the town has provided in a
manner satisfactory to the board of commissioners for the
care, custody, and distribution of the books.
This library law further stipulates that, to secure assist-
ance from the state, an annual appropriation must be made
by each town of not less than fifty dollars if its last
assessed valuation was $1,000,000 or upward; not less
than twenty-five dollars if said valuation was $1,000,000
and not less than $250,000; or not less than fifteen dollars
if said valuation was less than $250,000.
The commission serves without compensation. Its pres-
ent members are Josiah H. Whittier of East Rochester,
George T. Cruft of Bethlehem, Hosea W. Parker of Clare-
mont, and Arthur R. Kimball, Librarian of the State Library
at Concord. The commission has recentlv met with a
severe loss in the death of its chairman, Hon. John J.
Bell, late president of the New Hampshire Library Associa-
tion.
The first meeting of the library commission was held
February 9th, 1891, and J. H. Whittier was chosen secre-
tary. Mr. Whittier was the author, or rather the adapter,
of the library act from that enacted by Massachusetts,
and to him is due, more than to any other person, its suc-
sessful passage through the legislature.
Soon after organizing, the library commissioners issued
circulars, which were widely distributed, calling attention
to the library law and the benefits that must necessarily
follow the establishment of a free public library. The
result of their labors has been very gratifying, and has
354 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
proved conclusively that the people are alive to the impor-
tance of this question.
In all eighty-one towns voted favorably regarding the
acceptance of the provisions of the law.* The favorable
action so generally taken seems to have gone far to solve
the question of the establishment of free public libraries,
and the result of the first year's work of the Free Library
Commission of New Hampshire cannot but be gratifying
to those who believe in the educational value of the library.
At a corresponding rate the question of the establish-
ment of libraries in New Hampshire will be solved within
a few years. In the future will come the problem of
proper maintenance and a consideration of the true posi-
tion to be assumed by the state.
Already there has been proposed the enactment of a
law making it obligatory upon all towns to raise by taxa-
tion a small annual sum to be expended in maintaining
free public libraries. This proposed law fixes the tax at
the rate of thirty dollars for every dollar of public taxes
apportioned to the individual towns. To towns in which
this sum does not amount to one hundred dollars the state
is to lend a helping hand by a grant of books equal to the
difference between the sum and one hundred dollars. This
would insure every public library at least one hundred
dollars a year for new books, and the cost to the state would
be comparatively small.
Formerly it was believed that when a law was enacted
allowing towns to establish and maintain libraries the
matter was settled, and no further legislation was necessary.
Now we feel that this is not so. We recognize that it is
an easier matter to start a library than to continue its
existence and care for its future well-being.
In towns that are abundantly able to provide proper
library facilities, a general supervision of the library inter-
ests would seem to be the whole duty of the state. In the
small and sparsely-settled towns the case is different, and
if it shall be proved that the smaller and poorer towns of
the state are not able to support and maintain their own
* More recent returns show the number of towns taking favorable action
under this act to be in all about one hundred and twelve. About a dozen or
fifteen of the towns included in this aggregate will fail to effect a full compliance
with the law, or establish free public libraries under its provisions.
FRIENDLIKENESS. 355
libraries, surely no one who recognizes the educative
value of the free public library will object to the expendi-
ture of a small annual sum by the state to help the
sparsely-settled rural districts to the enjoyment of those
" legacies that a great genius leaves, to mankind, which are
delivered down from generation to generation, as presents
to the posterity of those who are yet unborn."
Unlike all other public charities, the free library is
equally generous to those who have and to those who
lack, and the responsibility rests upon the citizens of
New Hampshire to think twice before refusing to enact
such legislation as shall render possible, not only the uni-
versal establishment, but also the proper maintenance, of
free public libraries.
FRIENDLIKENESS.
BY FRANK WALCOTT HUTT.
One friend, in every season proved and known
That he indeed is friendly, this thy need ;
One comrade of thy comrades, who hath heed
Of the full measure of that undertone
Wherewith thy longing unconfessed, makes moan ;
One, instant like thine other self, to read
The signs whereof the heart is said to bleed
When it must suffer and endure alone.
His is the truest friendship whose high calm
Hath reined his first great pity, and upborne
By his strong presence thine own weariness.
Then, after silence and the soothing balm
Of blessed tears, he best with thee may mourn
Who hath well learned how only tears can bless.
Manchester, N. H., September, 1893.
THOUGHT ETCHINGS.
BY GEORGE BANCROFT GRIFFITH.
INNOCENT LAUGHTER.
When red ripe lips their pearls disclose,
And each cheek wears a full blown rose,
It flows, a silver rill of cheer,
Sweet as heaven's music to the ear.
GOOD DEEDS.
O'er honored ashes storied urns we raise,
That, crumbling soon, are buried from men's sight;
But warm and fragrant with judicious praise,
Good deeds for coming ages will delight.
DISPARAGEMENT.
Of none you meet depreciation show, —
Even an atom can a shadow throw !
No one disparage, while forgiving much,
Since meanest insect feels the lightest touch !
RIGHT LIVING
Lifting, cheering, strength'ning, giving,
Rounding out each golden hour, —
This is royal, Christian living,
This is life's consummate flower !
GOD'S GOODNESS.
He shows us the way that He is going,
Invites us to follow in that path, too ;
And, going before, plows for our sowing,
Then gives to the fruitage its light and dew !
E. Lempster, N. H.
NEW HAMPSHIRE NECROLOGY.
WILLIAM M. THAYER.
William M. Thayer, for many years active in journal-
ism, died at Hotel Vassler, in Boston, September 20, 1893.
He was a son of Warren Thayer of Acworth, and was
born in that town August 19, 1837. He commenced
newspaper work at an early age, and was for some time
during the period of the late war editor of a paper in
Elmira, New York. Subsequently he returned to New
Hampshire, and was for several years a member of the
firm of Thayer & Guppy, editors and publishers of the
Daily Times and States and Union, at Portsmouth. Dis-
posing of his interest in those papers, he w r ent to Boston,
in 1873, and engaged as a reporter on the Post, becoming,
soon, night editor of the paper, which position he held for
seven or eight years, when he resigned to take the office of
the New r York and Boston Rapid Transit Company. For
the last few years subsequent to his death he had been
engaged in the sale of stock in various enterprises. He
was twice married, his second wife, with whom he was
united June 10, 1875, being Miss Hattie J. Flagg of Rox-
bury, Mass., which place was subsequently his residence.
She survives him, also two sons by his first marriage.
CHARLES P. DANFORTH.
Charles P. Danforth, born in Milford September 16,
1812, died in Nashua October 19, 1893. He wasengaged,
in youth, in the manufacture of whips, with his father, at
Amherst, but removed to Nashua and went into business
for himself. In the fall of 1839 ^ e purchased the Nashua
Gazette, which he edited and published for six years, until
his appointment as postmaster by President Polk, in 1845.
Afterwards he was in the tailoring business for some time.
He was sheriff of Hillsborough county in 1855, and for
some years subsequently, and also served as alderman and
representative in the legislature from ward one, Nashua.
He was a leading member of the Universalist society in
Nashua, and had been for fifty-six years connected with
its Sunday-school. In 1840 he married Miss Nancy H.
Pierce, by whom he had three sons, all deceased. The
358 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
widow and two grandsons are now at Rosana, in the
Argentine Republic, South America.
TIMOTHY C. EASTMAN.
Timothy C. Eastman, president of the Eastman Com-
pany, cattle and sheep exporters of New York city, died
at his country home, in Tarry town on the Hudson, October
ii, 1893.
He was a native of the town of Croydon, born May 30,
1821. He was educated in the common schools and at
Kimball Union Academy, and married, in 1845, Lucy,
daughter of John Putnam of Croydon and a sister of
Hon. George F. Putnam, now of Kansas City. In 1850
he removed to Ohio and engaged extensively in the milk
business at Cleveland. Later he engaged in the cattle
trade in connection, operating upon a large scale in the
Cleveland market, and subsequently extending the busi-
ness to Boston and New York. In 1857 he removed to
New York city, where he greatly increased his business,
and was a pioneer in the exportation of cattle for the
European market, amassing a large fortune. He was a
member of the New York and Manhattan clubs, of the
New England Society of New York, and of the Ameri-
can Geographical Society.
REV. LEWIS HOWARD.
Rev. Lewis Howard, one of the oldest members of the
N. H. Methodist Episcopal Conference, died at his home,
in Springfield, October 6, 1893.
He was a son of Abial and Keziah (Bartlett) Howard, born
in West Bridgewater, Mass., December 4, 1802, removing
with his parents to Grantham, in this state, at the age of
two years, where he was reared and educated and became
a prominent citizen, engaging for many years in teaching,
and taking an active part in politics as one of the " Old
Guard" Freesoilers. In 1839 ne joined the M. E. Con-
ference, and engaged in the ministry, continuing preach-
ing, almost without cessation though without a regular
appointment for some years past, till nearly the time of
his death. He had been stationed, among other places,
at Haverhill, Claremont, Nashua, Dover, Salem, Suncook,
NECROLOGY. 359
Lisbon, Plymouth, and Contoocook, in this state, and
Haverhill, Mass. He was for four years presiding elder
of the Concord District, and two years connected with the
N. H. Conference Seminary, at Tilton. He first married
Sally Stone of Grantham, with whom he lived to celebrate
their golden wedding anniversary. After her death he
married Mrs. Ferona Clement of Springfield, who survives
him, with one son by the former wife — Capt. Daniel E.
Howard of Concord. He is also survived by two broth-
ers — Abial of Grantham, and Rev. Nathan Howard of
Kingman, Kan. ; also one sister, Mrs. Madison Hayward
of West Andover.
PROF. LYMAN B. HOW.
Lyman Bartlett How, A. M., M. D., professor of anat-
omy in Dartmouth Medical College, at Hanover, and for
many years a prominent physician of Manchester, died at
Hanover September 15, 1893, from consumption.
He was the son of Rev. Moses and Frances (Dearborn)
How, born in New Bedford, Mass., February 25, 1838.
He graduated from Dartmouth College in the class of
i860, and from the Medical College in 1863, having mean-
while attended a course of lectures at the College of
Physicians and Surgeons in New York city. He served
for a time as assistant in the De Melt Dispensary in New
York, but located in Manchester in 1864, where he gained
an extensive practice and a wide reputation, remaining
there except during such time as his connection with the
Medical College at Hanover, which has continued for
more than a quarter of a century past, required his pres-
ence in the latter place. He was a prominent member of
the N. H. Medical Society, and was its president in 1890.
He married, in 1866, Mrs. Mary L. P. Taylor of Hanover,
by whom he is survived, with two daughters.
WILLIAM G. BILLINGS.
William G. Billings, Grand Master of the Independent
Order of Odd Fellows of New Hampshire, died at his
home in Portsmouth, Friday, September 1, 1893.
He was a native of Kittery, Me., born September 10,
1852, but had resided in Portsmouth for many years, where
360 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
he was engaged in business as a sash and blind manufac
turer. He had been prominent in Masonry as well as Odd
Fellowship, and was Past Master of St. John's Lodge, F.
and A. M., of Portsmouth, and Past Commander of De-
Witt Clinton Commandery, K. T., of that city. He had
but recently been married, and his death resulted from
diphtheria.
CHARLES O. EASTMAN.
Charles O. Eastman, born in Lisbon October 25, 1824,
died in Claremont October 4, 1893.
He had been a resident of Claremont since early man-
hood, and was postmaster there from January, 1861, to
July, 1870, and town clerk in 187 1, after which he was
actively engaged in the business of fire insurance till
nearly the time of his decease. He leaves a widow, who
is a sister of Col. Lysander H. Carroll of Concord.
PUBLISHERS' NOTES.
The non-appearance of the Musical Department in this
issue of the Granite Monthly is due to the inability of
the conductor — Mr. H. G. Blaisdell — to furnish material
therefor in due season.
An interesting sketch of Gen. Eleazer Wheelock Ripley,
of legal and military fame, will appear early in the next
volume of this magazine.
'b*
Any subscriber who has not yet paid for the current vol-
ume of the Granite Monthly must remit within the next
thirty days in order to secure the benefit of the $1.50 rate.
w
The Granite Monthly
VOL XV. DECEMBER, 1893. NO. 12.
WILLIAM CANT STUROC.
BY H. H. METCALF.
Forty-three years ago there came into the little town 01
Sunapee, in Sullivan county, on the western border of the
romantic lake of the same name, whose charms were then
comparatively unknown, but are now heralded through
the land, and annually attract hundreds of people, — among
whom are many of the most intellectual and cultured in
the country, poets, authors, and savants who make their
summer home upon its emerald shores, — a young man
named William C. Sturoc, a son of " bonny" Scotland, a
lover of the beautiful in nature and of honestv among men.
He came from Montreal, on a visit to a friend. He found
in the scenery about this beautiful lake —
" Sweet Granite Katrine of this mountain land " —
as his muse has termed it in later days — much to remind
him of his native country, rugged mother of sturdy sons
and comely daughters, amid whose lakes and mountains
his early life was passed ; and the impression left upon his
poetic nature, though developed in no immediate purpose,
unquestionably exerted a powerful influence in subsequently
determining the location of his permanent abiding-place.
It was during this visit that he was favored with an intro-
duction to the late Hon. Edmund Burke of Newport, and
formed an acquaintance with that talented and remarkable
man, whose intellectual power bore the stamp of genius,
which ultimately grew into strong and enduring friendship.
Acting upon the advice of Mr. Burke, the young man, who,
since leaving his native land, had spent several years in
Montreal, engaged in the daily avocation of a mechanic,
but attending a literary and scientific institution during the
evenings, where he had gained a good knowledge of mod-
362 THE GRANITE MONTHLY-
ern science and of at least two languages beside his own,
decided to engage in the study of law, and ultimately
entered upon the same in Mr. Burke's office.
It w r as impossible for a young man of positive and yet
susceptible nature to be brought into close association with
such a man as Mr. Burke without imbibing in no small
degree the views which he entertained concerning public
and political questions, and forming a devoted attachment
to the principles and policies of government which he
espoused and cherished, especially when the same were in
harmony with his own ideas of right and justice and his
own conceptions of duty. It is not strange, therefore,
that, in the exciting political period in which he came into
the country, and under the tutelage and influence of such a
man as Edmund Burke, the subject of our sketch soon
became as strongly interested in politics as in law, and that
not a long time elapsed before he was championing upon
the stump in the political contests of the day the Jeffer-
sonian doctrines to which he has given his adherence, and
in fealty to which he has never swerved. The writer well
remembers the first political address to which he ever
listened, in the Sullivan county hamlet where several of his
early years were passed, which address, earnest, impetuous
and convincing, indicative alike of the devotion of the
speaker and of stronger power of argument and expres-
sion yet to be developed, was given by Mr. Sturoc soon
after entering upon his legal studies at Newport, and was
probably his own first effort in that direction.
Admitted to the bar in Sullivan county in 1855, and
establishing his residence the following year in Sunapee,
where he has ever since had his home, Mr. Sturoc soon
became a prominent figure in the public life of the com-
munity, notwithstanding the fact that his student habits,
his native love of pastoral life, and his strong poetic tem-
perament have combined to withhold him from that active
practice of his profession, in which he might otherwise have
won high distinction. He soon commanded the full confi-
dence of his townsmen, and through all the years down to
the present time has been their confidential adviser in all
matters involving questions of a legal nature, and has trans-
acted an extensive general office business. At the same time
his legal reading has been extensively pursued, especially
WILLIAM CANT STUROC. 363
upon constitutional lines. In evidence of the extent of his
research and ability in this direction may be cited the fact
that, in 187 1, he was the author of a series of articles
appearing in the New Hampshire Patriot over the nom dc
■plume of "Junius," which were attributed by many law-
yers at the time to the late Hon. Edmund L. dishing,
subsequentlv chief-justice of the supreme court, especially
those upon the subject of " A Constitutional Judiciary."
For four years successively, from 1865 to 1869, Mr.
Sturoc was elected by his townsmen as their representative
in the general court, where he took and maintained a
prominent position among the leaders upon the Democratic
side of the house, both in debate and general legislative
work, and that at a time when the membership upon that
side included many of the master minds of the party in the
state. In parliamentary discussion, as upon the stump as
a campaign speaker, his terse and clear-cut sentences,
incisive delivery and ready comprehension of the point in
issue, made him a foeman worthy the steel of any debater,
while in his impassioned moments his oratory often reached
the point of true eloquence. For many years, indeed,
" Sturoc of Sunapee " was a notable figure on convention
occasions, and when speaking was in order seldom failed
to respond most happily to the repeated calls of his many
admirers.
But his love of rural pursuits and strong devotion to litera-
ture, covering of course the congenial realm of poetry,
have tended to lead him in later years from active partici-
pation in political matters, although he permitted the use
of his name at one time as the candidate of his party for
state senator in the Sullivan district, and more than once
received a handsome support for a congressional nomina-
tion. His occasional poetic productions, given to the pub-
lic through various channels in the past, have demonstrated
through their fineness and delicacy of sentiment, combined
with vigor of expression, the real poet soul with which he
is endowed, have undoubtedly won him truer admiration
than anything he has accomplished in other directions, and
have inspired the hope for which, we trust, there is rea-
sonable promise of fulfillment, that ere his lifework is
ended he may gather up for preservation in substantial
form the charming gems of fancy to which his muse has
364 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
given birth. In July, 1867, ne received from Dartmouth
College the honorary degree of Master of Arts.
Not only in his adopted home, but in his native land
have the productions of his pen commanded attention and
admiration, while he has received favorable notice in
various publications on both sides of the water, including
Ross' "Scottish Poets in America"; an elegantly illus-
trated quarto published in Arbroath, his native place, and
Edwards' " Modern Scottish Poets," a work published at
Brechin, Scotland, and now reaching sixteen volumes, in
the fourth of which are presented a number of his shorter
poems, with an appreciative biographical notice, in con-
cluding which the writer says: "In his longer poems
scenery is graphically depicted, and the rhyme is easy and
flowing. All his songs have the true ring of Scottish feel-
ing, dressed in simple, hearty language. They are delicate
and beautiful, and marked by true poetical inspiration."
Mr. Sturoc is not the man to boast of his ancestry, and
if their claim to notice rested solely on the ground of con-
ferred titles, the writer of this sketch believes he would not
permit the same to be mentioned, for he would, no doubt,
readily quote the lines of Burns —
" The rank is hut the guinea's stamp,
The man 's the gowd for a' that."
But when, on both sides of his family, the hereditary trait
has been for generations marked intellectual strength, he
will pardon his biographer for naming a few of the links
backward, all verified by the local and general histories of
his native land.
" Cantsland," an estate in Kincardineshire, Scotland,
near Fasque, the patrimonial residence of the Gladstones,
had for several hundred years been in the possession of the
Cants, and although it has passed into new hands it still
bears the ancient name. St. Cyrus, in the same county,
was the dwelling-place of James Cant, the maternal grand-
father of the subject of this sketch ; and this James Cant
was cousin to the famous Immanuel Cant (Kant), whose
parents removed from Scotland in 1722, just two years
before the birth of the philosopher at Koenigsberg, Prus-
sia.* Immanuel died in 1804.
* All the biographers of Immanuel agree as to the nativity of his parents, and
the substitution, by Immanuel, of the initial K for C in his name.
WILLIAM CANT STUROC. 365
The grandfather of Mr. Sturoc had four daughters, —
Helen, Ann, Margaret, and Jane, and one son, John, who,
after a life of great activity, sleeps " the sleep that knows
no waking" in the quiet little graveyard of Trumbull,
Conn., near Bridgeport; and beside him rests his son,
Rev. James Cant, who preached in that town for twenty
years.
Ann Cant was the mother of Mr. Sturoc, and was mar-
ried to Francis Sturoc of Arbroath in Forfarshire, Scotland,
on the 19th of December, 1808, as the "Marriage Lines"
and the records of the Kirk session of St. Vigeans parish
declare. To Francis, by his wife Ann, were born ten
children, the ninth of whom was William C. Sturoc, who
first saw the light on the 4th of November, 1822. The
father of William died in 1851, aged 77 years, the mother
having died some years previous. Only three of this large
family now remain, — Betsey Robertson of Aldbar, Scot-
land, William C. of Sunapee, and Margaret Sturoc of
Andover, Mass.
Having spoken of the maternal ancestors of Mr. Sturoc,
it only remains to be said of the paternal side of his family
that the Sturoc of Panbride — the favorite parish of Lord
Panmure, and the place of the " Live and let live" monu-
ment of that noble family — were a more than commonly
able set of men, and that Francis, the father of William,
was well known as highly cultured and profoundly read,
and, although a business man simply, he lived and died
respected by all who knew him. Of other members of
the Sturoc family it may be generally stated that they
developed clerical proclivities. James Sturoc, the uncle
of William, was an able Baptist preacher in Arbroath ;
David Sturoc, a cousin, was of the Original Secession,
and preached at Midholm, near Selkirk; James Lawson,
another cousin, was a preacher of the same denomi-
nation ; and Rev. John Sturoc, son of David, is to-day
the front man of that ecclesiastical organization in Edin-
burgh, Scotland. Rev. David was a man of very ready
speech and pen, and sixty years ago repeatedly entered
into public debate with the renowned Dr. Wardlaw of
Glasgow.
The great-grandfather of William, James Sturoc, died
in Panbride in 1750, as his epitaph tells, and in his day
366 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
had written a book of " Hymns and Spiritual Songs."
It is barely possible that the poetical vein in the "Bard of
Sunapee" has descended from that distant source. But it
may also be truly stated that Ann Cant Sturoc had a mind
well stored with the literature, especially the ballad lore,
of her native land, and that she used, as a kind Scottish
mother would, to pour into the open ears of her susceptible
child the quaint but thrilling ballads of the "land of the
mountain and the flood."
December 12, 1856, Mr. Sturoc was united in marriage
with Sarah C. Chase, a cousin of the late Chief-Justice J.
E. Sargent of Concord, who departed this life February 9,
1889. ^ s home is a line old mansion, occupying a com-
manding location at " The Harbor," built by his wife's
ancestors a century ago, and remodelled by himself in
i860. Here, especially in summer time, comes many a
visitor from far and near to see and hear the " Bard of
Sunapee," and a hearty Scotch welcome from the master
is the unfailing response to the summons of the door-bell,
while his general hospitality has long been proverbial.
As an interesting conversationalist, his peer is seldom
found; while as neighbor, friend and citizen, he is faithful
to the minutest obligation.
Although past his "threescore years and ten," he is still
active and vigorous in body as in mind, having made an
extended visit to the great international exhibition at Chi-
cago the present season, and enjoying in the fullest meas-
ure the manifold triumphs of human genius and skill there
accumulated.
He has an excellent library, containing many rare and
antique works as well as the products of modern thought
and advancement. For the last twenty years, since his
retirement from active politics, his studies have been
largely scientific, embracing more immediately the fixed
sciences of astronomy, geology, and cerebral physiology.
His political views are, as they always have been and
always will be, Jeffersonian ; while as far as so-called
creeds are concerned, he often repeats the couplet of the
English poet, —
" For modes of faith let graceless zealots fight ;
His can't be wrong whose life is in the right."
As a choice specimen of Mr. Sturoc's poetry, and one
NATHANIEL P. ROGERS AND FAMILY. 367
which compares favorably with any of the recognized gems
of Scottish or American song, we present, in closing, his
beautiful lines to
MARY.
I saw a vision in my boyhood's days
So bright, so pure, that in my raptur'd dreaming
Its tints of emerald and its golden rays
Had more of heavenly than of earthly seeming.
The roseate valley and the sunlit mountain
Alike, enchanted as by wand of fairy.
Breathed out as from a high and holy fountain
On flower and breeze the lovely name of Mary.
That youthful vision time hath not effaced,
But year by year the cherished dream grew deeper,
And memory's hand at midnight hour oft traced,
Once more, the faithful vision of the sleeper ;
No chance or change could ever chase away
This idol thought that o'er my life would tarry,
And lead me in my darkest hours to say —
: ' My better angel is my hoped-for Mary."
The name was fk'd— a fact of fate's recording—
And swayed by magic all this single heart ;
The strange decree disdained a novel wording,
And would not from my happy future part ;
As bright 'twas writ as is the milky way—
The bow of promise in a sky unstarry —
That shed its light and shone with purest ray
Through cloud and tempest round the name of Mary.
Burns hymn'd HIS " Mary" when her soul had passed
Away from earth and all its sin and sorrow,
But mine hath been the spirit that hath cast
A gleam of sunshine on each blessed morrow ;
And crowned at last this trusting heart hath been
With fruits of faith that naught on earth could vary,
For I have lived until my eyes have seen
The vision real in the form of Mary.
NATHANIEL P. ROGERS AND FAMILY.
BY ALMA J. HERBERT.
It was a great day for the anti-slavery cause when, in
June, 1838, Nathaniel Peabody Rogers, one of the noblest
of New Hampshire's sons of genius, — the brilliant lawyer,
the keen wit, the line, classical scholar, the Christian heri-
tor of a long line of ministers, — in the honor and dignity
of ripe maturity, endowed with magic pen, music, and ora-
tory, threw himself, renouncing a competent fortune and
368 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
brilliant prospects, whole heart, mind and soul, a heart
true, loving, alive in every fibre to the interests of human-
ity, an intellect acute, trained, polished, a soul pure, cour-
ageous as the mountain eagle, into the breach occasioned
by the death of the saintly Joseph Horace Kimball, and
became editor of the little Abolition paper, The Herald of
Freedom.
The principles of the little sheet, published at Concord,
N. H., certainly in the first years, should have claimed
the support of every patriot, every Christian. Blinded
patriot and Christian scorned, hissed. How few to-day
can appreciate the bitterness of the battle ! But the seed
was sown ; the blood of the martyrs ran in the veins of
all the family. Mrs. Rogers, born at Newbury, Vt.,
was the second of the nine daughters of Judge Daniel
Farrand of Burlington. A few weeks after the birth of
the youngest daughter the mother died, and the babe,
Mrs. Nathaniel E. Russell of Fairfield, Mass., was con-
signed to the care of Mary Porter, the second sister, who
nobly honored the trust. The circle of sisters, all gifted
Christian women, received the best educational advantages
of the day, and well improved them. The grand scenery
around Lake Champlain, and its islands and mountains on
either side, stimulated to an intense love of nature ; and
the inspiration of patriotism in the war of 1812 was fan-
ned by the battle fought only a few miles away, the guns
heard on shore. Mary read well at four } T ears, and at five
had memorized Pope's "Messiah" verbatim. One or two
readings sufficed to fix a poem in her retentive memory,
and thenceforth she continued to store up the richest wealth
of the age, and to the last her recitations were the delight
of all listeners. We who have so much cannot imagine
the wild luxury of joy experienced by well read-youth
over each new creation of the "Great Wizzard's " pen,
nor their interest in history, the classics, and Shakespeare.
Such was the cultured wife of Rogers. She followed him
in his anti-slavery views with unflinching support and cheer-
fully accepted all the resultant trials, and few knew how
severe they were ; but no complaint nor bitterness fell
from her lips ; she kept sweet and found inspiration in
difficulties. The most unobtrusive of reticent women, but
when drawn out, like her husband, a most delightful con-
NATHANIEL P. ROGERS AND FAMILY. 309
versationalist. And it was such a family that society
ostracised ! but they had Garrison, Whittier, who wrote his
"In Memoriam" there, with one of the daughters in Qua-
ker garb as an inspiration, Wendell Phillips, and scores
of others " of whom the world was not worthy" as familiar
guests at the frugal board, and converse high was daily
bread. " We did not expect Mr. Pierpont here when he
lectured, but he came. We were at the table, with only
bread and milk, and I gave him bowl and spoon, as he wished
to stop with us." But violence, contumely, and wrong will
tell, and, after years of physical suffering, from an injury
received at college, and confinement for some time to his
couch, October 16, 1846, Rogers passed on to solve the
mystery of the ages, and, one Sunday afternoon, the
clouds weeping bitterly, the precious dust was laid beneath
the turf in a still unmarked grave !*
Ere long the bereaved wife and seven children returned
to the ancestral lands in the beautiful valley of the Pemi-
gewasset, accompanied by Mr. John R. French, who had
married the elder daughter, Frances, to engage in fruit
culture, and later were scattered. Mary, Mrs. Thomas L.
Kimball, far away in the sunset land, claimed the almost
idolized mother, and her last twenty years were spent in
Omaha, Neb., blessing and blessed, excelling in all house-
wifely acts, with an intense love of child-life, ever ready
for kind deeds, yet kept abreast with the literature of
the day — after the age of seventy reviving her interest in
the French, reading and speaking the language with facil-
ity. She kept at hand the New Testament, Shakespeare,
Scott and other poets, and John Fiske. "What shall we
study?" was one of her last questions. Her instincts
were so pure that her judgment was rarely at fault ; loving
simplicity, and womanly timid, her moral courage rose to
the heights of the sublime ; the wish that the mystery of
the future life "were a little more tangible" and the
natural dread of death melted in loving; trust. It was
given in her last years to walk in sandals of light in the
Beula Land, till on the 4th of April, 1890, fully conscious,
and confined to her bed but three days, she was reunited
to those long gone before. Ninety-three years ! what a
vista to review !
* When will New Hampshire honor herself by honoring that grave ?
370 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
Mrs. French, leaving two sons, one a prosperous lawyer
in Omaha, died at Edenton, North Carolina, of some
form of congestive chills common to that Dismal Swamp
region, her beautiful life a sacrifice to the bitterness of the
people among whom Mr. French held some official station
after the war. She died July 22, 1866.
The second daughter, Caroline, Mrs. Victor Smith,
whose husband was appointed by Lincoln, at the request
of Salmon P. Chase, collector of the Puget Sound dis-
trict, is regarded as kk a central figure," kk one of the most
important of characters," " the first white woman in Port
Angeles, and the pioneer mother of Chellum county, Wash-
ington," had a life of varied experience among savage
Indians and scarcely less savage whites in that great
Western section. When the custom-house was washed
away, in 1863, she saved two lives at the risk of her own.
A widow, with a life of noble record, devoted to suffering
humanity. After her mother's death she was taken very
seriously ill at Omaha, and lay long on the very border-
land of shadows, most assiduously attended by the sisters.
When partially recovered she desired to return to her
son's, at the Sound, and arrived there greatly worn and
debilitated.
Ellen, the beautiful sweet singer, so beloved by her
music pupils and by so many in Concord, who had rescued
her nephew from death in a burning building, always del-
icate, and greatly needing rest and recuperation after the
long watch of love, went with Lucie, the youngest sister,
to visit friends at Colorado Springs. Suddenly, in the
midst of the enjoyment of nature in that lovely region,
some bilious trouble was followed by convulsion, extreme
debility and death, September 17, 1890.
The fact of the decease of her devoted and self-sacrific-
ing sister was withheld from Caroline as long as possible,
but in her very low and enfeebled condition the shock,
when known, speedily reunited the loving sisters, Caroline
dying at the house of her son, Norman R. Smith, the sec-
ond of her five children, January 31, 1891. Mr. French
died soon after at Boise City, Idaho.
Daniel, the oldest of Mr. Rogers's sons, resides in Min-
burn, Iowa, and has a family of eight children, six of
them sons.
THE MAYHEW PIKE. oil
Charles Stewart, who not long ago so sadly ended life
in St. Paul, where he had a happy home, his wife the
recent recipient of a munificent bequest, and two daugh-
ters. He had been president of the board of trade and
largely active in business circles. Suddenly, without
apparent cause, he became insane. When one sought to
snatch him from the railing of the bridge, he cried, " I am
an angel ; angels do not fall, they fly."
Mrs. Kimball, Mary, is most pleasantly situated, with
all that earth can give, and more blessed in her children —
three of them married well and settled near — and in her
grandchildren, the youngest daughter, Belle, still in the
home nest, as is Lucia Anne, her youngest sister.
THE MAYHEW PIKE.
BY FRED LEWIS PATTEE.
Roll back the years a century
And ride with me the May hew pike,
For far and near no road its like ;
Through pathless woods for miles and miles,
Through tangled swamps and deep defiles
It ran, a pulsing artery,
Between the forest and the sea.
And day by day what life and sound
Went surging o'er the Mayhew road,
With prancing four and merry load ;
With shout and din and crack of whip
The stage-coach made its weekly trip,
And passed the ox-teams, homeward bound.
And peddler on his busy round.
And o'er it rolled the heavy drays
That all the week from Boston town
Had slowly toiled, well laden down
With varied load that far had come,
Of salt and fish, molasses, rum, —
The few chief things he could not raise, —
The sire of old New England days.
372 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
And here and there the tavern stand
Threw wide to all its ample door ;
At night a mighty tire would roar
Within its ponderous chimney-side ;
The jolly host, known far and wide,
Dispensed the cheer with liberal hand,
With merry tales convulsed the band.
Not late the hours — to bed at nine,
The stage-coach comes with early morn,
Announced by shout and whip and horn ;
With nourish grand and dust and roar
At highest speed it gains the door.
The urchin looks in awe supine,
And vows to be a " whip " sometime.
Alas, how frail all man uprears !
Who travels now the Mayhew pike?
For miles and miles no hoof-beats strike
From year to year its aged bed ;
Its patrons all are with the dead,
Save one or two, who tell, with tears,
The glory of the early years.
Forgotten is the tavern stand,
And dead the landlord many a year ;
Departed all the merry cheer.
The rattling stage and loaded drays
Have perished with the olden days ;
The progress of an age more grand
Has swept them by with ruthless hand.
Yet oft where yonder wood appears
I stumble on this beaten way,
Grown o'er with grass and lichens gray,
With forests to the left and right
That hide the old turnpike from sight,
And sit sometimes, and half in tears
I muse upon the changing years.
SEABROOK SKETCHES.— No. II.
BY CLARKSON DEARBORN.
The first settlement was made in Seabrook about 1650,
by Thomas Philbrick, Jr., who received a grant of land,
and this estate has remained in the possession of the Phil-
brick family by inheritance, for eight generations, down to
the present owner, George A. Philbrick. On this farm
Captain Samuel Philbrick was born, July 13, 1734. He
removed to Weare in 1770, and was a prominent and hon-
ored citizen of that town. He was captain in the Ninth
militia regiment of New r Hampshire, also a member of the
Committee of Safety. His first commission, given in 1775,
was signed by Matthew Thornton, president of the colony
of New Hampshire. He died December 28, 1806. His
youngest son, Hon. Joseph Philbrick, was associate judge
of the court of sessions for the county of Hillsborough for
several years. The ancient farmhouse now standing on the
farm was built in 1783 by Joseph Philbrick, a minister of the
Society of Friends. Two majestic elms, over one hundred
years old, stand in front of this old mansion, while others of
later growth on either side of the street throw their cool
shade to the weary traveller, making Seabrook village one
of the most picturesque and attractive between Newbury-
port and Portsmouth.
A company of French soldiers who fought in the Revo-
lution were entertained here, and camped in the old Friends'
meeting-house over night while on their way to Ports-
mouth to embark for France. Here Elias Hicks, the noted
Unitarian Quaker minister, held appointed meetings in
1816, and Benjamin Lundy of Baltimore, Md., was a guest
of Joseph Philbrick when on his way to and from Port-
land, Me. He was one of the first anti-slavery agitators,
and editor of a paper called "The Genius of Universal
Emancipation." He was born in New Jersey in 1789, and
died 1839. Lorenzo Dow, the famous itinerant preacher,
was also a guest at this house while preaching in Seabrook.
He was born Oct. 16, 1777, at Coventry, Tolland county,
Conn. During a thirty -three years' ministry he travelled
over 200,000 miles. He died in Georgetown, District of
Columbia, Feb. 2, 1834.
Samuel Philbrick, born on the old farm in Seabrook in
374 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
1789, the eldest son of Joseph Philbrick, the much esteemed
minister of the Society of Friends, was a man of marked
ability and individuality of character. The Liberator, in
speaking of him after his death, says, — "His marked char-
acteristic was integrity." He abhorred everything that bore
the semblance of dissimulation, and appreciated at its true
value an ingenuous, straightforward course of conduct, being
himself a pattern of trustworthiness, and remarkable for his
frankness and plainness of speech, without respect of per-
sons, in all his dealings, but was of a modest and retiring
disposition. He had rare business talent, consummate
judgment in all financial matters, and the most perfect
order and method. He was a wise and sagacious counsel-
lor. In whatever he did he endeavored to keep a con-
science void of offence, to meet all his engagements and
discharge all the duties of life in the spirit of exact recti-
tude. He was treasurer of the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery
Society for nearly twenty years ; a director of the Eastern
Railroad and the Atlantic Bank, Boston. For many years
he had a large amount of money in trust to his sole man-
agement. He spent most of his early years on his father's
farm, but in 18 10 commenced school-teaching, at which he
was engaged some three years, after which he went into
mercantile business, being first employed in Lynn, Mass.,
by Thomas Rich, a merchant in the skin, leather and shoe
trade. In 1815 he commenced the commission leather
business himself, and in 1822 he opened a store in Boston
for the sale of leather and hides, where he was very suc-
cessful, having accumulated a large property before the
unparalleled revulsion which took place in mercantile
affairs in 1837, causing every bank in the Union to stop
payment for one or more years. He had taken warning
from the extravagantly wild and extensive speculations
which prevailed during 1836, and was fully prepared for
the event, having closed up the greater part of his business
and secured his property from liability of loss before the
revulsion occurred. At the time of his death his property
was estimated at more than half a million dollars. Com-
mencing with very small means, never borrowing money
of individuals, never endorsing for others nor receiving
their endorsements, keeping his business always limited
within his means of control, and never experiencing the
SEABROOK SKETCHES. 375
least embarrassment in meeting every engagement with
punctuality, his business was therefore necessarily limited
in extent, yet always made sure by cautious and discrim-
inating judgment, and free from those perplexing reverses
so frequent in mercantile pursuits. In 1830 he removed
with his family to Brookline, Mass., purchased an estate
there, delightfully situated, which continued to be his resi-
dence for the remainder of his life; he died Sept. 19, 1859,
leaving a widow, two sons and a daughter. The two sons
were graduates of Harvard University. Edward S. Phil-
brick, the eldest son, who died four years ago, was an emi-
nent civil engineer. The daughter married Lieut. Stephen
Decatur, a nephew of Commodore Decatur, of historic fame.
Samuel Philbrick early gave his countenance and sup-
port to the anti-slavery movement, and was ever true to the
principles he professed. He was a friend of Garrison,
May, Phillips, Parker, Hopper, and all the early cham-
pions of the great cause of human freedom. Many a fugi-
tive found shelter under his roof. In 1837 tne sisters, Sarah
and Angelina Grimke, found a home in his house, and in
his parlors gave their first addresses on the subject of slav-
ery to an audience of Brookline ladies. They did not
know, while speaking, that the poet John G. Whittier sat
in an adjoining room, listening intentlv to every word the)'
uttered. They had many stormy experiences, and both
perilled their lives for the sake of principle. It is not easy
to believe that the friend who harbored them in Brookline
was annoyed and threatened, and his family ostracised,
simply because he insisted on taking a colored domestic
into church with him, and allowing her a seat in his own
pew.
The old house, once so noticeable to the traveller on the
road from Newburyport to Portsmouth, on account of its
antique style, was built, in 1636, by order of the general
court of Massachusetts, and was called the "bound house."
Mr. Dummer and Mr. Spencer were chosen a committee to
erect the house in Winnicumet, and it was accordingly built
under their direction by Nicholas Eaton. It is supposed
that it was intended as a mark of possession rather than of
limit, in order to claim the jurisdiction over the salt marshes
for the sake of the hay. There is no evidence that a settle-
ment was made until two years afterwards. It was origi-
376 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
nally built of white oak timbers, hewed seventeen inches
square, which were laid one upon the other, with clam-
shell mortar between. This house was afterwards enlarged,
boarded over and clapboarded, and came into the posses-
sion of Jonathan Green, who was killed by the Indians near
his barn. During the Indian wars it served as a garrison,
and was more generally known as the old garrison-house
of Seabrook. In 1703 Ebenezer Gove (son of Edward
Gove) and his descendants owned it, and occupied it until
near the time it was taken down, in 1879. The last owner
and occupant of this ancient dwelling by the name of Gove
was Nathan, more familiarly known by the people in the
neighborhood as "Uncle Nate," noted for his quaint say-
ings and mother wit, and his skill in hunting and fishing,
and whose opinions on all matters pertaining to the craft
were accepted as oracles not to be doubted.
On the other side of the road, nearly opposite, formerly
stood the house where the mother of Hon. Caleb dishing,
the celebrated jurist, was born, and here her parents always
lived. Their name was Dow. This part of Hampton,
now Seabrook, was attacked by the Indians, and several
persons were killed, among them Nicholas Bond, near the
mouth of the New Zealand road, so-called. Aug. 17, 1703,
a party of thirty Indians killed fifty persons in Hampton;
among the number, Widow Muzzey, a celebrated preacher
of the Quakers, or Friends, was killed with a tomahawk
near the " slough," so called. A large earthen vessel
which she was carrying home from the pottery is now kept
as a relic by one of the descendants of Edward Gove.
In the last part of the seventeenth century, probably
about 1690, a society of Friends was formed. In 17 14 a
meeting-house was built on land deeded by one of their
members (Thomas Chase). He also gave the burial-lot
around it and the lot on the north side of the Friends' lot,
and there he was buried. A gravestone marks the spot.
He was born in 1643, and died Oct. 23, 1714. His parents
were Thomas and Elizabeth (Philbrick) Chase. She was
born in England in 1626, and in 1630 came with her father,
Thomas Philbrick, and family to New England, in com-
pany with Sir Richard Saltonstall and others, landing at
Salem, Mass. ; they soon went to Watertown, but prefer-
ring to be near the seashore, in 1645 they removed to Hamp-
SEABROOK SKETCHES. 377
ton. His son, John, had previously moved to Hampton, in
1639, in season to secure the first grants of land. In 1657,
this John, with wife and daughter, were drowned, sailing in
a vessel from Hampton river, bound for Boston. This
event is the origin of Whittier's poem, "The Wreck of the
Rivermouth."
" Once in the old colonial days,
Two hundred years ago and more,
A boat sailed down through the winding ways
Of Hampton river to that low shore,
Full of a goodly company
Sailing out on the summer sea,
Veering to catch the land breeze light,
With the Boar to the left and Rocks to right."
Elizabeth (Philbrick) Chase's last husband was Judge
Henry Robie, one of the judges under Cranfield's adminis-
tration. Elizabeth's sister, Martha, married John Cass, who
was an ancestor of Gen. Lewis Cass, six years minister to
France, governor of Michigan, United States senator, and
secretarv of state in President Buchanan's cabinet.
J
The society of Friends in Seabrook was quite numerous,
and the monthly and quarterly meetings were occasions of
great interest. These meetings were frequently attended
by many noted preachers. Here John G. Whittier came
with his parents. Among the settled ministers were Joseph
Philbrick and Mrs. Comfort Collins, who lived to the
great age of 105 years, and died in 18 18. The last two
ministers were Edward Gove, a descendant of Edward
Gove of Tower fame, and his wife Elizabeth. " Quaker
Edward," as he was called, and his wife were preachers of
great power and strength to the society ; but after their
death the meetings were discontinued, and the old meeting-
house, removed to another part of the town, was used for
other purposes. He began to preach about 183b, and died
at Seabrook, Sept. 3, 1877, aged 84 years, 11 months, 18
days. He was a son of Stephen and Hulda (Bassett) Gove,
who were of Lynn, Mass. His wife, Elizabeth (Morrill)
Gove, of North Berwick, Me., died at Seabrook, April 28,
1873, aged 76 years, 11 months. She was a talented
speaker and a lovely woman. Whittier writes of her ten-
derly, in " The Friend's Burial" :
" My thoughts are all in yonder town,
Where, wept by many tears,
To-day my mother's friend lays down
The burden of her years.
378 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
" No sound should break the quietude
Alike of earth and sky;
O wandering wind in Seabrook wood,
Breathe but a half-heard sigh !"
This wood mentioned by Whittier is a beautiful forest,
with romantic paths here and there, for many years a
famous resort of merry May parties to gather the beautiful
trailing arbutus and enjoy the refreshing odor of the pines.
To the young Nimrod it is a paradise, abounding in game,
and its brooks are the haunts of the young disciples of
Walton. Here by a small stream many years ago was
built a saw-mill ; but for the lack of sufficient power it
failed to be a success, and the old mill went to decay, and
left a name to the woods which is historic, the name of
"Folly Mill."
The old Presbyterian meeting-house in Seabrook was
built in 1763. It was two stories high, with gallery around
three sides of it, and the old-fashioned square pews, lofty
pulpit, and over-hanging sounding-board. It stood broad-
side to the road ; the belfry was built on the south end of
the main building, and the spire was surmounted with the
ancient weathercock. Rev. Samuel Pearley was the first min-
ister, and was called " Parson Pearley." He resided in the
ancient house which was built, in 1705, by Nathaniel Weare
(the father of Meshech Weare) for his son Daniel, and is
the oldest house now standing in Seabrook. It is known
as the old Boyd house, the last owner by that name being
David F. Boyd.
On February 6, 1799, Rev. Elias Hull was installed the
second pastor. Rev. Caleb Prentiss preached the sermon
from Isaiah xlii : 1. Not an original member of the church
was then living. The singers were all dressed in white,
and although it was a very cold day in winter the house
was not heated, as was the custom in those days. Mr. Hull
was a Congregationalist, and preached until April 6, 1817.
He died February 28, 1822. In 1828 Rev. Mr. Ropes, a
Baptist, was installed. He resigned April 3, 1830. Rev.
Oliver Barren preached from April 1, 1832, to May, 1833.
From that time the house, mostly vacated as a place of wor-
ship, was suffered to go to decay. The birds built their
nests in its belfry, and, what was a curious circumstance, a
small cherry tree sprang up and grew for several years in
the gutter of the eaves. The clapboards, worn and weather-
SEABROOK SKETCHES. 379
beaten, hung loosely to its ancient walls. It stood, a relic
of better days, until 1858, when it was turned around and
remodelled for a town house below and a Baptist church
above. With its new spire and white coat of paint it would
not be recognized as the old meeting-house of Seabrook.
The two physicians who practiced the greatest length of
time were named Dearborn. Dr. Edward Dearborn was
born in Chester, July 16, 1776, and settled in Seabrook
about 1800, where he practiced over fifty years. He was a
public-spirited man, and very much interested in Seabrook
village, where he had built his residence, a large, square
house, three stories high, in the old colonial style, which are
so numerous in the old seaport towns of Portsmouth, New-
buryport and Salem. He also induced his neighbors on
the street to build in the same way, and assisted some who
did not care to pay the extra expense. He donated the
organ and bell to the Congregational church, which stood
on the boundary-line between Hampton Falls and Sea-
brook, and at his death, which occurred March 1, 185 1, the
sum of four thousand dollars to the society. He also gave
fifteen thousand dollars to found the academy now known
as Dearborn Academy. His wife, Phebe (Knight) Dear-
born, daughter of Enoch and Anna (Eastman) Knight,
descended on her mother's side from Hannah Dustin of
Indian fame, was born in Atkinson, August 21, 1777. She
died in Seabrook, March 16, 1852.
Dr. Edward Dearborn had two brothers, who were physi-
cians. Cyrus, who settled in East Salisbury, Mass., had a
successful practice of over fifty years, and died in 1872 ;
Ebenezer, who settled in Nashua in 181 6, and practiced
forty years. He was a councillor, and president of the
New Hampshire Medical Society. His nephew, Jonathan
Dearborn, M. D., studied medicine with him, practiced in
Seabrook more than forty years, and died December 12,
1877. He was a skillful physician and surgeon, and sus-
tained the reputation of the Dearborns as a race of doctors.
On a road called the "Walton road" once stood an
ancient house, recently destroyed by fire, formerly the
home of Lieut. Ephraim Eaton, a Revolutionary soldier,
where was born his granddaughter, who, after the death of
her father, Ephraim Eaton, Jr., removed with her mother
to Newburyport, Mass., and there became recognized as a
380 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
singer of rare talent in the choirs of the churches in that
city. She married Rev. Henry Eaton, a Universalist cler-
gyman, and was the mother of Rev. Charles H. Eaton,
the young and talented successor of Dr. Chapin.
The first stage route in America was through Hampton,
from Boston to Portsmouth. The stage was drawn by two
horses, and could accommodate only three persons. No-
vember 9, 1840, the Eastern Railroad began running trains
through from Newburyport to Portsmouth, and now an
electric road extends from Newburyport to the state line,
and is knocking at the door of New Hampshire for admis-
sion to pass over the same route where, more than a cen-
tury ago, the old stage-coach rumbled slowly along, and
will, it is hoped, by the grace of the great and general court,
yet become a through line from Boston to the cities of the
Pine Tree State.
Seabrook now enjoys the possession of a beautiful library
building, the generous gift of the late Augustus Brown of
Salem, Mass., one of Seabrook's sons. It was dedicated
September 1, 1893.
TO SILVER BROOK.*
BY FREDERICK MYRON COLBY.
How sparkling is your silver tide,
O mountain brook, my home beside,
As through the vale your waters pour
In rippling song or cascade's roar,
Past meads fair-fringed with bosky green,
Past many a sweet idyllic scene
Fast mirrored in your limped blue.
Bright waving grasses pearled with dew
Bend o'er your brink with jaunty grace ;
There the wild columbine hides its face.
Where'er your dancing waters flow
The mallow r s and the Mayflowers grow.
* A romantic little trout stream which flows from the east side of the Minks
and empties into Warner River at Riverbow Park bears the name of Silver Brook.
Its length is about three miles, through a picturesque region of woods, meadow
and pasture lands. Nearly a mile of this course is in full view of the early-
home of the writer.
NEW HAMPSHIRE MEN IN MICHIGAN. 381
Castalian fount was ne'er more sweet
Than are your waters wild and fleet,
And where they spring from Stewart's hill,
Joined on the way by brook and rill,
One has to pass a league or more
Before your gleaming race is o'er.
The wooded Minks look calmlv down
Upon your course without a frown,
And Kearsarge's hoary peak
Upon the north its vigils keep.
The leaves of birch and maple dance
Above your pools where sunbeams glance,
While here and there are hazel covers,
Cosy retreats for youthful lovers ;
Hemlocks and firs their shadows throw
Out and beyond your curve and flow,
And where you join the teeming river
Supple willows bend and quiver.
mountain brook, no other stream
Enchants me like your silver gleam,
And as you haste past woods and ridges
And babble under wooden bridges,
Now dashing high o'er rocks your spray,
Now lying still like a smooth highway,
Broadening ever from where you rise,
Shimmering under the sunlit skies,
1 wonder if in any land
There's that to match your dream-blessed strand.
NEW HAMPSHIRE MEN IN MICHIGAN.
BY EMMA L. MILLS.
New England characteristics have been indelibly stamped
upon this state ; so much so, it may be said, that Michigan
is a New England state in the arms of the great lakes. No
other state has done more to impress these characteristics
upon the Peninsular State than has New Hampshire through
her noble sons who have left her hills and valleys and
made their homes in " Mitcha-Lagiegan," the Chippewa
tongue for "the country of the great lakes," Michigan.
Almost every great industry has had its primal force given
382 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
it by a New Hampshire pioneer. Every profession has
been ennobled and honored by men educated at Dartmouth
College. The present school system and the great uni-
versity in Ann Arbor were founded by that noble son of
New Hampshire and great commoner of the United States,
Lewis Cass. In the political arena no state has had its
lines more distinctly laid down and so tightly drawn, the
result of the long service in state and federal politics of
Lewis Cass, a sterling Democrat, and Zachariah Chandler,
a staunch Republican, the former a son of old Exeter, and
the latter a native of Bedford. Search the histories of the
states, and no other case can be found where a New Eng-
land state has had so much to do in moulding the character,
the political economy, and the ethics of another as has
New Hampshire that of the Wolverine State.
A brief reference to some of the New Hampshire men
who have made their homes in Michigan is sufficient to cor-
roborate these statements. First and foremost among them is
Lewis Cass, who was born in Exeter, Oct. 9, 1782, and went
to Detroit in 181 2. He was territorial governor in 18 13—
1817, in 1820, 1822, 1825, and 1828. He was a United
States senator for many years, a cabinet officer, and United
States minister abroad. In 1848 he was the Democratic
candidate for president. He died June 17, 1866, at the age
of 84 years.
The next prominent son of New Hampshire in Michi-
gan was Zachariah Chandler, who was born in Bedford,
Dec. 1, 1813, and came to Detroit in 1833. He was a suc-
cessful business man, and the leader of the Republican
party, organized under the oaks in Jackson, for a long time
both in the Peninsular State and the United States. He was
a United States senator for many years, and Secretary of
the Interior under President Hayes. He will be remem-
bered as the prime leader in the 1876 presidential contest,
which resulted in the inauguration of Rutherford B. Hayes
as president in place of Samuel J. Tilden.
Other New Hampshire men may be named briefly, as
follows :
John Ball was born in Hebron, Nov. 12, 1794, and was
graduated from Dartmouth College in 1820. He was one
of the pioneers in Grand Rapids. He followed the law as
a profession, and dealt heavily in real estate. He held
NEW HAMPSHIRE MEN IN MICHIGAN. 383
many public offices, and was a life-long Democrat. Mr.
Ball died at the advanced age of 90 years.
Charles C. Comstock was born in Sullivan, March 5,
1818, and went to Grand Rapids in 1855, engaging in
lumbering and manufacturing. He was mayor of Grand
Rapids in 1863, and member of congress in 1873. Mr.
Comstock is one of the solid men of Grand Rapids, and
has done much to make it the furniture city of the world.
John S. Barry was born in Amherst, Jan. 29, 1802. He
adopted the law as a profession, and went to White Pigeon
in 183 1. He was governor of the state in 1843, 1845 an ^
1850, and was the only man ever holding the office three
terms. He died, in Constantine, Jan. 14, 1870.
Jay R. Monroe was born in Surry, April 11, 1806, and
was graduated from Dartmouth College in 1826. He went
to Michigan in 1836, and built the first house in South
Haven. He was a lawyer, and judge under the territorial
government. He was one of the organizers of the State
Board of Agriculture.
Charles Dickey was born in Londonderry, April 3, 1813,
and went to Marshall, Mich., in 1836. He has been a
state senator and judge of probate.
Rev. Luman Foote was born in Hanover, February 18,
1794, and was graduated from the University of Vermont
in 18 1 8. He followed the law, and removed to Charlotte
in 1840. In the latter part of his life he lived in Kala-
mazoo.
Franklin Moore was born in Manchester, in February,
1802. He was a member of the New Hampshire legisla-
ture in 1826. In 1832 he went to Detroit. No man has
stamped his individuality more indelibly upon many lines
of business in the Wolverine State than has Mr. Moore.
Sullivan M. Cutcheon was born in Pembroke, Oct. 4,
1833. He was graduated from Dartmouth in 1856. After
graduation he went to Ypsilanti and engaged in teaching.
He has been speaker of the Michigan house of representa-
tives, comptroller of the United States treasury, and was
United States district attorney under President Hayes.
Byron M. Cutcheon, a brother of the above, born in
Pembroke, May 11, 1836, removed to Michigan in early
life, and graduated from the University at Ann Arbor in
1 861. He served one year as principal of the high school
384 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
at Ypsilanti, enlisted in the Union army, rose to the rank
ot brevet brigadier-general, graduated from the Ann Arbor
law school in 1866, was a presidential elector in 1868, was
elected to the forty-eighth and several subsequent con-
gresses, and was a regent of the University from 1875 to
1883. He is now located in practice at Manistee-
William T. Powers is a native of Bristol, having been
born in that place July 8, 1820. He located in Grand
Rapids in 1847. Mr. Powers has done much to develop
manufacturing in Grand Rapids. He is a large owner of
real estate, and proprietor of Powers' opera house.
W. H. Woodworth was born in Dorchester, Jan. 14,
1828, and became a bobbin-boy in the Stark mills in Man-
chester. In 1853 he removed to Lyons, Ionia county,
Mich. He has held the office of judge of probate for Ionia
county.
David E. Deming was born in Cornish, June 14, 1796.
He emigrated to Plainwell in 1833, and practiced medicine
successfully many years.
Morris J. Cross was born in Grantham, July 24, 1831.
He came to Grand Haven in 1869. He is a prominent
lawyer in Ottawa county.
Rev. Samuel Graves, D. D., first saw the light in Ac-
worth, March 25, 1820. He settled in Grand Rapids in
1848. He was prominent in the state as a pulpit orator.
Abel Page was born in Rindge, June 30, 1785, and went
to Grand Rapids in 1836. He was a heavy dealer in real
estate.
Milton Frost was born in Cheshire, April 30, 1823. He
went to Detroit in 1855, where he engaged in manufac-
turing.
Uriah Smith, born in Milton, May 2, 1832, went to Bat-
tle Creek in 1855. He nas written many works, and is a
leader in the Seventh Day Baptist denomination.
Daniel C. Powers was born in Croydon, Jan. 30, 1822.
He settled in Cold water in 1855, where he followed medi-
cine successfully.
Warren Chapman was born in Newmarket, July 24, 18 12.
He went to St. Joseph in 1843. He became a state sena-
tor, and was otherwise prominent in public life.
•Dr. Freeman McClintock was born in Hillsborough,
Oct. 28, 181 1. He practiced medicine in Royalton, where
he located in 1833.
NEW HAMPSHIRE MEN IN MICHIGAN. 385
Schuyler Hodges is a native of New Hampton, where he
was born Sept. I, 1798. He settled in Pontiac in 1820,
and was for many years sheriff of Oakland county.
Henry R. Chamberlin was born in Pembroke, March 17,
1824, and went to Three Oaks in 1843. He has been a
member of the Prison Board of Pardons. At present he is
warden of the state prison, in Jackson.
John C. Clarke was born in Chester, March 3, 1822.
He went to St. Clair in 1857, and engaged in lumbering.
He has been president of the bank in St. Clair.
Oliver L. Spaulding was born in Jaffrey, August 2, 1833,
and emigrated to St. Johns in 1856. He was a brigadier-
general of Michigan troops in the late war.
James F.Joy is a native of Durham, born Dec. 20, 1810.
He was graduated from Dartmouth in 1836, and at once
went to Detroit. He made railroads a life work, and has
been interested in pushing many lines through Michigan.
Prof. Joseph Estabrook was born in Bath, in 1820. In
1840 he removed to Tecumseh, and engaged in teaching.
He has been a professor in the State Normal School, at
Ypsilanti, and state superintendent of public instruction.
Alfred Russell was born in Plymouth, March 18, 1830.
He was graduated from Dartmouth in 1850. In 1852 he
went to Detroit, and entered upon the practice of the law.
He is one of the leading members of the Michigan bar
to -da}'.
Daniel Pitman was born in Lyndeborough, Jan 8, 1824,
wa.s graduated from Dartmouth in 1851, and went to Kala-
mazoo in 1854. He has been a teacher in the State Nor-
mal School at Ypsilanti.
Rev. John D. Pierce was born in Chesterfield, Jan. 18,
1797. He was graduated from Brown University in 1822,
and went to Marshall in 1831. He preached in Ypsilanti
a number of years.
Rev. Morgan J. Smith was born in Great Falls, April
26, 1833, an ^ came to Grand Rapids in 1857, as pastor of
the Park Congregational Church, which place he filled until
1S03. He died in Dansville, N. Y., October 1, 1883.
J. Webster Childs is a native of Henniker, where he was
born June 16, 1826. In 1848 he went to Augusta, where
he has become a prosperous farmer.
Joseph Dillon is a native of Wilton, and was appointed
386 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
chief of the registry department, under Col. G. G. Briggs
of the Grand Rapids post-office, in 1890, and still holds the
position. He was state representative in 1887 and 1888.
Mark Bailey of Kalamazoo is a native ofDunbarton. He
is one of the prosperous merchants of the Celery City.
Charles W. Moore of Detroit was born in Canterbury, in
1845, an d came to the City of the Straits, in 1880, as the
Michigan manager of the New York Life Insurance Co.
Since he took charge of the business he has raised it from
the sixth to the first place in point of premium income.
He was elected from the first representative district in
Wayne county, on the Republican ticket, to the legislature
of 1 893-1 894. He is a member of the Michigan Club, and
a thirty-third degree Mason.
Samuel P.Jackson was born in Londonderry, in 1817.
His father moved to Manchester in 18 19, where, in 1845,
he commenced mercantile life, from which he retired in
1874. He served on the school board in that city, and was
twice elected to the legislature of his native state, and to the
constitutional convention in 1876. In 1883 he removed to
Monroe, Mich., and with his sons engaged in the manu-
facture of paper, and has contributed largely to the success
of the Monroe Manufacturing Co. He was elected to the
house of 1889-90 on the Democratic ticket, and re-elected
to that of 1891-92.
The city of Jackson may be said to contain a New Hamp-
shire colony, for there reside in that city twenty-three
families who emigrated from various sections of the Granite
State, or are descendants from New Hampshire pioneers.
Among the more prominent may be named the following :
George A. VV. Dodge, member of the firm of Warner &
Dodge, hardware dealers. He came from Concord many
years ago, where his brother, Howard A. Dodge, is a
member of the firm of Humphrey & Dodge, in the capital
city. Hon. Josiah C. Richardson, ex-member of the Board
of Public Works, is a native of Keene, and came to Jack-
son twenty years ago. He is the senior member of the
firm of Richardson & Knight, wholesale dealers in millin-
ery. A. E. Ball came from Concord in 1868, and for many
years was with J. R. Hill & Co. He conducted a carriage-
trimming establishment until 1890, when he was appointed
to a state prison position under Governor Winans. A. G.
IN MEMORIAM LOIS CORBIN DUNTON. 387
Walker, of the firm of Waldron & Walker, grain dealers, is
a native of Pittsfield, and for some years was connected
with the People, a newspaper in Concord. The two latter
are uncompromising Democrats.
A movement is on foot to organize a New Hampshire
society in the Central City, the prime mover being Mr.
Richardson, who holds that New Hampshire is pretty well
up to the promised land. His able lieutenants are Messrs.
Ball, Dodge, and Walker.
IN MEMORIAM— LOIS CORBIN DUNTON.*
My old-time friend,
In thine accustomed place I meet thee now
No more. No more thy cheerful voice, bright smile,
And hearty hand-clasp greet me at the door,
And bid me welcome as in days gone by.
Thine earthly home, where wholesome joy once dwelt,
And cast the influence of its spirit sweet
On all who came within, with sorrow's pall
Is darkened now, and in the gloom sits he
Who knew thee best on earth and loved thee most ;
While all thy friends are saddened by the thought
That never more 'mid scenes of time and sense
Thy presence and its cheer shall they enjoy.
But sorrow's cloud, however dark and drear,
Like other clouds its silver lining hath
And rifts of gold ; and from the other shore
There comes, perchance, a radiant gleam of light,
Which, shining through the rift, dispels the gloom,
Brings hope and courage to the saddened heart,
And cheers thy dear ones on their earthly way ;
For it proclaims thy life and love beyond,
And promise gives that when earth's life is o'er
They shall resume companionship with thee
In that fair land where death is never known,
Where sorrow's tear bedims no more the eye,
And love eternal reigns in everv heart.
& J H. H. M.
* Lois, daughter of Hon. Austin Corhin, Sr., and wife of William Dunton,
born in Newport, Dec. 21, 1819, died in that town, July 7, 1893. She was a true
woman in all that the term implies. "None knew her but to love her; none
named her but to praise."
MUSICAL DEPARTMENT.
CONDUCTED BY H. G. BLAISDELL.
DUTY OF MUSIC TEACHERS.
We would suggest that the teachers of music in our pub-
lic schools come together in convention at least once a year
and compare notes and relate their experiences, making
suggestions for their own improvement as well as the
enlightenment of the school boards, while at the same time
giving the public some idea of their work and the good
resulting therefrom. All professions have their quarterly
or annual meetings for the purpose of improvement and the
general advantage. If we have men or women of no ideas
engaged to instruct the young in the art of music in our
state, it is time they were exposed, and given a leave of
absence. If, on the contrary, they have ideas, such ideas
are none too good for the public, or that portion of the
public who are interested in musical matters. The field of
music is vast, and none of us can claim to have hardly
explored its borders. I dare assert that fully one half of
the teaching done within our state lines is purely a matter
of bluff. The teacher, under these circumstances, is enti-
tled to about as much consideration, in the sense of accom-
plishment, as is the woman who, during the annual spring
cleaning, applies the paint to her garden furniture, in com-
parison with the landscape painter. Teachers throughout
the state have been invited to attend the meeting at the
Weirs, and have been given liberty to impart their knowl-
edge to others, to ask questions, or to listen in silence.
Neither the above inducements nor their love for the art
have as yet enlisted the sympathy of any great number.
If matters are not managed to suit them, why not communi-
cate with the president, or attend the meetings and pub-
licly make their wants known? A slight intimation on the
part of themselves or friends will elect them to office, and
the position of musical director is open to any who long
for its delights and comforts. Why non-committal? Why
not come out as "for or against," that themselves or others
may profit by their conduct? Experience teaches us that
advice or criticism like this is seldom heeded ; but one com-
MUSICAL DEPARTMENT. 389
fort is left us — it may anger, and that is proof of some kind
of life and impressions. " It is the constant dropping that
wears the stone."
THE PERRY PIANO-FORTE RECITAL.
The piano-forte lecture-recital of Edward Baxter Perry,
at Phenix hall, Concord, on the evening of October 25,
was very poorly attended. This was a matter of surprise,
as it is indeed a rare occasion when the music-lovers of
Concord — and they are supposed to be numerous — have
an opportunity of listening to so great an artist. Even the
students of music, particularly of piano, gave evidence of a
lack of interest by not accepting the tickets at a reduced
rate to hear a great master of their chosen instrument. Few,
very few teachers, attended. The honest, conscientious
teachers were there, and a few of their pupils. The teach-
ers without a method or purpose, except the money they
may humbug from their victims, were absent; so were
their pupils. Of Mr. Perry everything delightful can be
truthfully written. An artist by nature, gifted by his Maker,
a man whose very soul is fed upon the beauties of poetry
and music; a man who, having been deprived of his sight,
turned his wonderful powers to the study of the language
of the tone spheres. To him every form, cadence, or com-
bination has its language. The tone colors of the grand
orchestra are as plain and vivid to his sight as the beauties
of nature are to the landscape artist. To his audience he
tells the story, with ease and simplicity, of the tenderest
love or the fiercest struggles of the warrior. Then turning
to his much loved instrument — yes, more than that, his
companion — he lives the story over again, and out of the
depths of dreamland he paints the picture too vivid to be
misunderstood, too beautiful to be forgotten. We are a
musical people, but only tunefully so.
NOTES.
The Schubert Club of Laconia began its season's rehear-
sals on Monday evening, November 6, under the most
favorable circumstances. The older singers have once more
taken an interest, and the attendance at this first rehearsal
was the most encouraging for several years. The music
390 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
to be studied for their first performance will be "The Water
Lilies," by Ed. Sachs; "The Water Nymphs," for female
voices, by Rubenstein ; a lullaby, " Good Night, Sweet
Child," by Dregart ; a four-part song, b)'- Arthur Sullivan,
"Joy to the Victors," and two four-part songs, by Men-
delssohn. H. G. Blaisdell of Concord is the director this
season, and Miss Jennie Lougee, pianist.
Prof. John Jackman, who died in his native town of Bos-
cawen, November 16, at the age of seventy years, was a
noted music teacher for over forty years, living most of that
time in Concord. He was one of the most widely known
vocal and instrumental teachers in New England, and was
at one time teacher of music in the Concord public schools.
He was associated with Messrs. Morey and Davis in the
management of the N. H. Musical Conventions for many
years. He was also active in the management of church
choirs in Concord.
The Lancaster Musical Association holds its second
annual festival December 4-8. H. G. Blaisdell is engaged
as conductor, with Mrs. Shepard as pianist.
Miss Ada M. Aspinwall of Concord was the accompan-
ist for the musical festival at Potsdam, N. Y., Nov. 20-24.
The Pease brothers of Laconia, cornetists, are justly win-
ning many compliments for their excellent performances
as soloists and in duet work.
Martha Dana Shepard, the eminent pianiste and accom-
panist, of Boston, and a much loved daughter of New
Hampshire, has been visiting at her old home in Ashland.
The Episcopal church at Manchester is to have a boy
choir.
Keene promises a musical festival during the coming
winter.
NEW HAMPSHIRE NECROLOGY.
CAPTAIN DANIEL MARCY.
Captain Daniel Marcy, born in Portsmouth November
7, 1809, died in that city November 3, 1893.
After attending the schools of his native city until four-
teen years of age, Captain Marcy, impelled by a strong
love for the sea, shipped for a voyage, which proved to him
a most interesting and exciting one, and confirmed his
inclination for a seafaring life. Three years later he was
engaged as an able-bodied seaman on the ship Liverpool,
going to New Orleans for cotton, thence to Liverpool, and
home to Portsmouth with a cargo of coal. In less than
three }^ears later he was mate of a fine vessel, and in 183 1
became a master. He followed the sea successfullv for
mJ
more than a score of years, and later engaged extensively
in ship-building in Portsmouth.
Politically, Captain Marcy was a strong Democrat, and
was elected by his part}' to various positions of honor and
responsibility. He was three years an alderman and two
years an assessor in Portsmouth, represented his ward four
times in the state legislature, was twice a member of the
state senate, and a representative from the First New
Hampshire district in the Federal congress from 1861 to
1863, rendering great assistance to Union soldiers in Wash-
ington during that time. He was a delegate in the National
Democratic Convention, in Charleston, in i860, and the
Democratic candidate for governor of New Hampshire in
1876. He was a public-spirited citizen, and was connected
with various banking and other corporate institutions in
Portsmouth, and was ever noted for his great generositv
and kindness of heart. He was twice married ; first, to
Henrietta, daughter of Franklin Priest of Portsmouth, by
whom he had three children, Henry L. and Judah T.
Marcy, now retired ship-masters, and Henrietta, wife of
Captain Shirley B. Cunningham, who died some months
since. After his first wife's death, in 1852, he married
Katherine T., daughter of Captain Ebenezer Lord, who
survives him, with one son, George, now engaged in busi-
ness in Kansas. An extended biographical sketch of
Captain Marcy appeared in the Granite Monthly, Vol.
I, No. 12.
392 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.
HON. CHARLES H. BELL.
Charles H. Bell, son of John Bell, born in Chester
December 18, 1823, died in Exeter November 11, 1893.
He graduated at Dartmouth College in the class of 1844,
studied law, was admitted to the bar, and commenced prac-
tice in Chester, but subsequently removed to Great Falls,
where he was in partnership with Nathaniel Wells. In
1854 he removed to Exeter, where he continued to reside
through life, retiring from active practice about twenty-five
years ago, and devoting his time to literature and history,
with some attention to politics. He was ten years solicitor
for Rockingham county, served in both branches of the
state legislature, being also speaker of the house and presi-
dent of the senate ; was United States senator for a time by
appointment of Governor Prescott ; was elected governor by
the Republicans, in 1880, and was president of the last
constitutional convention. In 1881 he received the degree
of LL. D. from Dartmouth College. At the time of his
death he had substantially completed a history of the bench
and bar of New Hampshire. In 1847 Mr. Bell married
Sarah A. Gilman of Exeter. She died in 1850, leaving
two daughters. In 1887 Mr. Bell was married to Mary E.,
widow of Joseph T. Gilman, who survives him.
CAPTAIN WILLIAM H. THOMPSON.
William H. Thompson, born at Salmon Falls, N. H.,
February 9, 1824, died at Salem, Mass., November 20,
1893.
Captain Thompson engaged in manufacturing in Maine
early in life, and at twenty-three years of age was superin-
tendent of the Pepperell Mills, which position he held
fourteen years. He was subsequently for a long time
treasurer of the Kearsarge Mills at Portsmouth. After
retiring he travelled extensively for some time, and finally
settled in Salem, where he built an elegant residence, and
lived in comparative seclusion, being noted for his eccen-
tric habits.
/
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