Litchfield enquirer., 1854-02-16
.'III.,.r, .E Anni.nl lEaaaaarr.

Aln. cofnarn has fsr soma length oI time btok onaaaed. l,s just been issaed from the pre1n by Mes,rs. Buonson C BnoTnrt oi Waterbury. li dccnpies two volumes, ins'sad of one, as in- tended at first, and is entitled
 .s fT,srunr or AhcIExT WooAuURv, Connsciicn,,
 from the fret Indian deed, in lG59 to 1854 in.
 eIuding the present towns of Washington.
 Sonihhury, Beihlem, ROxbury. and part OT
 Oxford and MiddlebuFy. By WM; CorHRRS.r r
 We do not know that we cangive abetter idea of the Book than is comprised in tho following, from ihs Waterbury Amsrican,
 To say that this is an interesting vol tune, is iu0 feeble an expression I0 cnnvev just esiiRate of iIa cbarselcr, or a cor rect idea of the importance which is nt. iached io the work as faiil,fui history mi, only ai WO0dbUFy aS irvas and is---ha, ,l,e ilnhl il sheds upon the early history 0f ,,,l,er towns in iis proximity. Indeed, had we . Cnlhren and a Sl1arl to every town in ihe State who would bend iheirenerges to the collection 0f facts as in The instance be(Ire us, and lay, them before inc pubc--our gnnd old Commonwealth would stand SC coDd to n0 State in the Union in all ina | constitutes the lofty attributes of man-the good. lie patriotic, the intelligent aud ena terprising.
 The author, il is but an act of ilsiice to say, has executed the task before him win research and perseverance worthy ur his subject, having far transcsnded tIis origin al design in consequence of the unexpected accumulation of maierial as te advaiiced in his labors--thus instead of occupy ing n volume of 400 pages, as first announced in the prospcctus-ythe work has reached dou- bic that qnanliiy, requiring an additional volume. It IS matter Hi surprise lo Us how the author obtained such mass Of facts and ncidenis-man of them hunted from the musiy records of by-gOne centu- ries, others from the lips ef trembling age, and the floating annals of sccldental pre-. servsiiOn. He has obtained them however, and whoever reads the History will find them systematically ard clearly arranged tn the volumes before them. lt is a pub Iicati0n of which every descendant of an- cient Woodbury may well be proud--and n0tone of them should fail to place copy in their library, even at double the actual cost. The materials have cost the labor of gears, besides the outlay of large sums of money--io say nothing of the time devoted to tie arrangement and preparation for the press.
 The first chapter is devoted 10 the Phys- icai History of lIe Woodbury Colony. The second and seventh are taken up with a record of lhe Indian Purchases aud other me dents relative thcrcio, ia which copies of ihe original deeds with the sigma lures oi tie chiefs are inserted. As this iorms the foundation of llie future History, these doc umenis are of high importance aud will be read wiihs great interest. Chapters three, four, fivesssix, nine, and eighteen, treat of the Civil History chapters eight and sixteen, of the Ecclesias stical-c pier len, Revolutionary Hislory-chspter leiev. en, History of Souihbury and South Bri. tain Societies, and the town of Soutl,bury. chapter twelve, History of Betllem Snoie ", and ilre town ol Bell,lcns-- chapter thir- teen, History of Judea and New Preston Ecclesiastical Society, and the town of| WashiDgton-c chapter fourteen, History of Roxbury Ecclesiastical Society, and the the town oi Roxbnry-chap,er fifteen, Hsioryo the other Churches beside The Cungregalional--cha seventeen, His, tory If lhe Strict Congregational Society in W oodbury--cIlapl nineteen and iwen- ty, Biographical Sketches ot natives and residents, also oi natives who have emigra. ted from the ancieni town and become dis. tnguished in inc places of their adoption.
 Tie second volume contains Geoyra, ph;cal History of most of the families from the early settlements of the Colony, down to the present time; by which il appears that share of thein came from an aristo- cratic stock in Europe, as the publisher has headed ten of the number with engra wings afstheir coats oi arms. According tO the facts before US the Colony has spraduced military field, as well as in civic life The famous Ethan Allen, and Col. Warner among the number. In addition to this the author presents statistics, containing tie na mes and dates oi all the principal men of the Colony who figured in the war of the revoiuiiOn-- Il Ose who have held judicial, politcal and town ofiices-rull of the members oi the First Cnngregaliohal Church in Woodbury, and the half way
 cnvenan, members under Mir. Stoddard's 's
 ministry, suhse equenily united there,O--and
 a complete Census of'lhe Eames of ihe ore.
 sent residents of the town up 10 Marcli Isl
 1858 &c., &c. @
 Thus we have cndeavorcd to give bsie
 skeieh oc this valuable work--so compli-
 meniary to the researcl, of the author, and
 retlecling the highest honor upon the peo. Ep!e whose history he has so faithfully de. lineaiei. Nor is it less valuable sS fraR
 menisry part Of some future hisiors of our
 glorious old S,a,e-ibe wliole.nf which we
 hope to see al no distant date drawn up 5y
 II hand cnmpeientlo lie task.
 Prapcsals were first issued for ihe work ln 0ne volume Df 500 pagespio be afforded io subscribers for $l the volume, provided sufficient subscribers offered to defrsy the Icxpense. That number was not obIa ined, but tie author went forth on Lis owh res Ipans,biliiy, and has brought il oui in tw,
 volumes. mgking in the aggreeate nearl,
 d0nble ihai number of pages. To do thi he hss been al a heavy expense. and unles lahe wsrk sells readily, he will not only l0s, all his labur, but considerable sum be | aides. This his lltpnSmen and lhes fes;.