Litchfield enquirer., 1849-12-27
No. SS. WuotE No. 1889

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 name of "The PhRanthrop;st." And
 here, also. but few years ago, dwelt Dr.. ! Aiken, with his sister. the gentle child loving Mrs. Barbauld."
 Still, speculiar sanotity was imparted to the house, By tAe recollection that many of these Beautiful poetic versions of the Pslams were penned within it's ] walls. The building itself seemed to po-
 ssess characteristics analogous to the. spirit and qualities of the guest which it
 so long sheltered. It was square sub-
 stantial red brick building, with stone
 quoins. Such was the strong utiNtaria Il
 framework of the mind of Watts. High up on the roof was a flat surface, encona-
 passed with balusterade. A noas tur-
 ret rose from the middle of the enclosure forming an observatory, where the poet - could command beautiful pan oratnic view of those scenss-0faRatuEe on which he loved to dwell; and one cannot but
 think that he stood there, looking up on
 a quiet clear evening, when he composed his version of the nineteenth pslam, be, fginning with
 "Thc heavens declare thy glory Lord In every star thy wisdom shines" l. The gate by which you went in and out, was richly embellished with carvings of fruits and flowers. The interior was
 mostly finished with rich oak panelings.
 The hall and staircase were ample, and
 the rooms, by their magnitude and hs,ght possessed stately magni6cence> One Experiment. on the 6rst floor was pecr'.Ac- .ly beautiful It was denominatsd [" The Painted Room" Its pannels were filed with landscapes and figures. It must have been gorgeous in its effect; but the general character of the whole building was that of unostentatious soliiitT and weary plainlineas." On tLe right as You enter the hall, WAS the library, where the lcgician and poet thought and wrote; where his mind passed back and forth from earth to heaven, from contempa- ting the glories pf the Godhead, to a survey of the wants and tlle attractions of infant minds: Here he often rehear- sed his songs of praise. One would Ike to stand in the same room, and listen to one's own voice, and to fan,y that he heard ningling with it the reverbrationS of the meliiiuous tones of the poet ly- ing out in continually weakening whis- per, but still all the holier because re- moto in time from the salient point of theiA original impulse.
 In this room he had conversed wish the celebrated MT. whitfield, and had ventured to chide 2 ntly the over-action which is almost sure to mar, in some de- gree, character of such generoxs and warm impulses. Hepe also he met the. Lady Huntington. who desired to greet with holy arbanity all that possessed talents thus consecrated to the cause of true piety. After the usual .sslutatien tho Doctor thus accostsd her: Madam. youv ladyship has come to see me on a very remarkable day. fRis day thrty years ago came hither to the house of my good friSRd Sir Thomas Abney. in. tendiag to spend but one single week un- der bic roof, and have extended py yisi: to the length of exactly thirty years. Lady Abney, who was present. replied: " Sir. what you term long thirty years visit, l consider as the shortest visit fay family ever received" "A coalition like this," says Dr. Johnson, "a state in which the notions of patronage and de- pendence were overpowered by the per ception of recipAcal benefits, deserves a particular memorial.
 Abney House has been removed, bat the grove of cedars and yews andr whose shade the poet loved to finger, and the mound from which he surveyed the park and its green environments before the city had encroached on them, as at pres ent still exist. They have been preserv- ed with jealous care, and while dilapidA- ted walls and deoayiug marble tell of perisbing humaity. theliving branches of those trees, with their enduring yerdare, as they sigh in the breeze, whisper of the 7" green memories" of this great and good man. ~
 The ground is now. in great part. oe- cupied as a cemetery. Near the spot where the house stood, statue of Dr: Watts has been erected by public sub scription. The inscription upon the pe- destral is as follows: l.........
 "In memory of IsaMc Watts, D. D., and in testimony of the high and lasting esteem in which his character and wri- tings are held in the great Christian com- munity by whom the English language is spoken. Of his Piams and Hyms it may be predicted in his own words.
 '.Ages unborn will make his songs,
 The joy snd glory ot their toasues" He was born at Southampton. July l7th 1874. and died November 25th, l74s. after a residence of thirty'six years in the mansion of S.r Thomas Abney, Bart.
 "Few men have left behind such pu- rity of character, or such monuments of laborious piety, He has provided ih-
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