Litchfield enquirer., 1867-11-07
COUNTY FROM THE
 SADDLE.

i T | SADDLE.
 We extracct the following from the cor respondence of the Waterbury American l LITcaFIELD-rHE MANSION HoUsE.
 It seems, looking back over the events of to-day, as if we had lived an age So poor a measure is the revolution of the sun of our existence. Memory may fail me, but If recall successfully the deeds which were done when the luminary which has just departed behind tue hills of Now York first tlnged with its beams the dimity our talns of our bedroom. we were in Litch- field. l had dim recollection of seeing e long white form which believed to be that of Barkis, moving nervously in the moonlight around the room, uttering mild explosives against feathers, and tearing the double comfortables from his bed and pre- pairing 8 bivouac on the floor It seems too as If my sweet slumbers was broken by a voice inqniring the distance from some where to somewhere, but that might have been only dream. The music of Pat Ma Joy however, keeping time to succession of vigorous thumps, brought me to realiza- tion of morning and small boy on a sort of treadmill pump, filling his pitchers as he poured out his song renewed my connection with Litchfeld. We consulted over our route in the office of the hotel. If there is any question the frequenters of country hotel pride themselves on answering, it is is one of miles. The man who cannot tell how far it is to anywhere has not been we'll brought up. Barkis' simple interrog ation "How far is it to Dover Plains?" brought on contest about as exciting to the disputants as boat race ''How far is it to Dover Plains?" sald tall man with a slouched hat, looking in through back door, "It's twenty-five miles. 'Dover Plains?" said another man with big whisk- CTS and big eyes appearing at door in the opposite side of the room, s'guess 'tis, it's & good thirty"
 They seemed to scent the word miles and left whatever they where doing and responded to it as call of duty. Well, l gness 'taint more'n twenty-five" said slouched hat somewhat timidly. Big eyes was evidently champion and in an annihi . lating tone he made the attack
 'I shud like ter know what road yer take?"
 ''Why, go to Bulls Bridge and--'
 'Yes, and how far is it to Bulls Bridge?" 1 AS If this was put down in the catechism slouched hat replied hesitatingly, twenty one mile"
 Yes, and how far is it from Bulls Bridge to Dover Plains?'
 "Well," said slouched hat rallying, ''enough to make twenty-five mile"
 ''Yes, but how far is it ask yer?"
 "Well, said slouched hat giving in, ''sev- en or eight mile."
 Flight or nine" put in big eyes as if correcting minor error, land that makes 1 find .1oOo slouched hat and big eyes retreated thongh their several doors.
 We strapped on our baggage and started slowly up Litchfield street, Barkis' horse Kate has an alias 'Betsey Jane" This alias Barkis is apt to apply to her when he wishes to give an order or reproof. Kate was frisky and disposed to crowd the gen. tie Sally. Barkis in voice expressing both sorrow and anger exclaimed "Betsey!" One of these good old souls, the ''salt of the earth kind, who do the nursing in all vil- lage sickness was passing in the path. She turned at the well known name, she thought Barkis had spoken to her. Barkis was confused, the human Betsey was bewilder- ed, Betsey the beast started on a canter, and the old lady on a walk echoed our laughter as we rode off,
 HUNTSVILLE.
 At Huntsville we passed two furnaces for smelling iron ore. They are owned by w. H. Barnum and some one else whose name did not understand. We did not have time to examine them, but expect to see others, as there are plenty in the neighbor- hood. Huntsville is nothing but 8 collec- tion of houses for the workmen at the fur naces. It is part of Canaan, and we 0nr1Jd cIrr Nf the faces of the people. Those whom we saw were obliged to appeal two or three times in every sentence to the Creator, be- fore they could express themselves so as to be understood. This may be evidence of unusual piety, but it hardly produced that impression on us.
 FALLS VILLAGE.
 Over the worst road I ever saw we slowly made our way to Falls Village, where we were welcomed by crowd of people in front of the house. which a tin sign over the door proclaimed to be a hotel. We cantered up highly fattered at our recep- tion, and as everybody looked at us we con- cluded there could be no mistake I antic- ipated loud calls for Barkis and cheers for Wilkins and was prepared to introduce my companion from the hotel steps to the en tnuslastlc crowd, With neat and apprO- priate speech. But the multitude simply expressed their enthusiasm by admiring starings, which is rustic mode of showing the sentiments. We discovered, however, on dismounting and conveying our lug gage to the bar, that the Congressional subcommittee on elections were in session there on the case of W. H. Barnum, mem Der of Congress elect from the 4th district. charged with bribery of voters. We went out to dinner; not, however, until we had examined each lounger in the bar-room and on the stoop to discover an .'M. C."
 Dinner was concluded in silence. The stiffness of a country hotel table is fearful. It is the solemnity of funearl, and the land lord and a melancholy female move around as if performing the last sad offices. We strolled out to view the beauties of Falls Village. Said beauties, at least all we saw of them, drove white horse. The Hous- atomic river comes down here in a stream little larger than the Naugatuck at Water bury, and little way above the village it makes a fall about sixty feet high and two or three hundred feet wide. The banks below the fall are high and the bed of the stream appears to be solid rock worn in- &o cv,oa h 1.