Litchfield enquirer., 1836-09-08
Fcs.s als Ala1andria 0a'...s; ..,,,,

...@,1zRATTON TO THE WEST s
 .Itng of emigration reminds me ct a
 ,,cident was an eye witness q, gnu wL.o ..I.sI
 @srhaps, it may not De deense1 yt:. - PA.S .,
 here to relate. nag Des. .Ia f sssI-;.,,s ,. "
 .it',ation on which to locate myself for life
 b,,t -ssher as a traveller, who after pursuing
 .te hent of his curiosity through a land, rep
 ,aeseDted as flowing with milk and honey ,vas on his return to his friends with the fnl lest conviction, from what he saw, that witl alI its inperfections, there was no place like home. I had understood that gentleman formerly of my native county, was living [ short distance from where made stop, 0nC Iconcluded, as it was not much out of my way that | would call and see him. Accordingly | set a,,t for the residence of the emigrant with a desire to see how he was established and to give him such information as posses sed in relation to his friends across the noun tains. I found my host engaged in repair inc the fires that had been built around his dwelling at short distances, to protect the cat tie from the annoyances of the rnusquetoes and it was singular, to one not accustomed to the sight, to see how well the dumb bruteS understood this precauti0n in their behalf.- They walked to and fro through the spaces between the fires, flashing themselves with their brushes, and rubbing each other as they passed with an instinct almost remarka- ble.
 After contemplating this scene for some moraents was ushered into tlle-not house but log cabin of the emigrant, with a cor diality of manner that told me where he was raised. He had been resident of this spot about three years, and after incessant toll and innumerable vexations, had succeeded in building the cabin in which he lived, and had cleared about ten acres of land. He had also got some stock around, but the torment ing infiictions of the musquetoes had so wor- ried the cattle that their appearance lndicat- ed the greatest suffering. He informed me that the purchase of his land, and the expen- ses of his family, some of whom had been sick most of the time, together with the ex- nenses ii incurred Cured in improvements on the place. had exhausted his means, aId he was then without the ability to remove, although he was anxious to do so. The residence oI our emigrant was about five miles from any i other human habitation, was accessible Dy l only one wretched road, and was rendered stilf more intolerable by the unpleasant notes l ofthe whip-poor wills and frogs-his family ! acolaintance And here, in this dreary sol itude, cut off from society which they loved and by which they were beloved, dwelt as excellent man and as admirable woman as ever forsook abundance and happiness at hone among their friends, to seek them in a | fuller measure, among strangers. He was of respectable connexions, had received good | education, and studied law for considerable time with view of making it a profession but distrusting his abilities, or finding the pursuit hackneyedo or overdone, and it's ranks filled up witha doubtful admixture of materi- als, he determined, like wise man, to em- brace the profession of his fathers and follow the plough for living. He married beau tiful and excellent girl, was in thriving way in the neighborhood in which he was born, and with his application and economy, would, no doubt have succeeded to wealth. But the enigrating mania broke out in this neigh borhood, and he fell victim to it. He sold out, and with two or three others bent his way | to the land of promise. Three years had l now rolled round since his departure from his home, and he assured me the whole peril | cd had been one of sickness and disappoint- ment. He had not despaired, for he was not | of a temperament to despair, but he had lost 1 much ofthe natural cheerfulness of his dispo- l sition, was driven, by necessity, into sort of stoical school of philosphy, thought the world by no means poetical, but plain matter of | fact concern, and that part of it called " the | west" in particular, not the thing it was cracked up to be.
 In tactsour hero was in the scar and yel- low ieaf," not of years but of feeling; and it | was m some such mood as this, while sitting at the table on the second afternoon of my ar- l rival, that our conversation turned upon home | and the thousand delightful associations con nected with it. aWe have not found things as we expected" j" said the emigrant in a sub- dued tone, but we must bear with them and hope for something better for the fOture-it is long lane that has no turn. and our. pros poets may yet brighten up, and leave US rloth- ing to be sorry for.' aThey may brighten up" said the wife, .but it will only be When you and are in the grave; or too old to en- Joy them. What prospect have we here in this wilderness, deprived of even the sight. much less of the intercourse of neighbors, fhat can compensate for the sacrifices we have made, and the sufferings we have endured ? Yes, our prospects may brighten, we may not always be as we are now, without neighbors and pleasures ofsociety, but we shall always have something to be sorry for, while the friends we loved and scenes we delighted in, are stricken from our sight and no more to be enjoyed torever.n Here her articnlations became obstructed- her heart was full--and she gave way to . flood of tears. AS soon as could wipe away little drop that had gath. cred m my own eye, in spite of all that could do, | turned to look at our stoic philoso. pheE, but there was nothing of the stoic ir him--his visions of wealth and all his antici. pations of the future, had suddenly given way before the simple but affecting eloquence q his wife-he melted into tears.
 The scenes that begun, and the association. that cemented them, are no longer present tt
 me senses, and wanting these disinteresteC
 ana indissoluble features, our after attach
 menus are generally any thing but of tho
 Meart-tnefe are persons, it is true, to whom