Preble County Democrat. [volume] (Eaton, Ohio) 1857-1859, 1857-09-10
Correspondence,
For the Democrat.

Friend Gould-I now redeem my
promise, and send you few lines from
one of the most beautiful towns in the
Old Bay State. The scenery of this
valley, at this season of the year, is un-
surpassed by any ever found in my
varied wanderings. Northampton has
hong been. celebrated for the neatness
10 q ance Of its private dwellings,
the enterprise of its business men, and
her Bates, Stoddards, and Edwards and
Thompsons have adorned the higher
walks of professional life in the various
departments of Theology, Law and
Medicine, while her classical schools
have sent candidates for the highest
Collegiate honors to Harverd, Yale,
Brunswick and Dartmouth. To this
place in the warm summer months come
toil-worn men of wealth from the duty
heated streets of cities, to breath the
fresh mountain airs, and with their wives
and children to 'ruralize" and dream
day-dreams, and for time forget cor
rodfng business cares. Yonder on
Round Hill, amid those patriarchal trees,
stands the house which the sweet musi-
clan, whose voice charmed our Western
world, and whose virtues and charities
won ourlovc, Jenny Lind stopped awhile
to rest after her triumphant career in
the United States. The view from
Round Hill is one that never tires the
beholder In the west the Husatonic
range of mountains stretches along the
blue outlines of their SUBMITS, shooting
up SO as to be clearly defined against
the sky, while in the south stand Tom
and Holyokc, like lonely giant senti-
nels, while with a musical murmur the
Connecticut glidcs between. Eight
miles to the east the spires of Amherst
shoot up from a green base formed by
shade trees, and the chapel tower of the
College is plainly visible, and still far
ther on rise the hills in billowy success
sion. In the north rises the Sugar Loaf,
a mountain so named from its CONCEAL
form, on whose summit Pic mics are Of
ten held and strains of music, and joy
Gus shouts, and merry peals of laughter
in mixed confusion float away towards
the valley below, waking many an an
swering echo from the rocky caverns of
the mountain side. Though it touches
Pelion and Ossa, yet it is easy for one
ascending to imagine the beautiful plain
below the classic valley of Tempe, and
the silvery Connecticut, the Peneus, and
the busy husbandmen in the fields be-
low the old Mysians, who trembled as
they saw sheeted ghosts of mist steal up
the rocky steps of Old Olympus, and
heard the thunder of Jupiter from its
cloud capped summit. But, 1 ought
not to particularize; all western Massa-
chusetts is abounding in beautiful scene
ry, rich in historical associations, and
from her bright valleys genius has shone
in days gone by, and while Nathaniel
Hawthorn sits so silent, and yet SO bu-
sy under the lone pine tree by his door,
and builds houses with ''seven gables, :"
and makes us shrink as he holds out
his "scarlet letters and Miss Sedg-
wick makes prose poetical, and Fanny
Kemble, with her ''Year of Consolation, y
and the eccentric Beechcr with his dog
noble; and brain not half empticd of
"Star Papers" while they are here, and
while the 'hills, rock-ribbed and an
cient as the sum-" where Bryant in boy
hood caught the beautiful imagery of
"Thanatopsis,' remain, western Massa-
chusetts will never be an uninteresting
resort of the traveller. But think not
that amid these scenes, forget Ohio
/ have only moved from one scene Of
beauty to another, and while the readers
of the Eaton Democrat are reading these
lines, here amid the hills, many an eye
through the poor medium of my de.
,scriptiye powers is striving to behold
your own town, set like a gem in the
deep green of your luxuriant forest:
and fields of waving corn. L hope
may some day visit you again, and res
awhile with the hosts of the "Old Ea
gle" at whose house the weary travele
ever finds the luxury of a home, and a
whose bountiful board he will also finC
the luxuries of the palate prepared in
STYLE and abundance which might elc
vate still higher the reputation of man,
houses styled the best. Now for thi
time good bye. You may hear from m
again, still farther East.
Truly your Friend,
o. WANDERER.
--oc, r,.onoeas 70 Dublish n no,