Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1873-10-17

| HE, services and character but to be most
| htly done, that service requires the best
| talents OF one who l. not only equal with,
but superior, in classical scholarship, and
profound learning in arts, sciences. history,
| law and craftsmanship, to him who is TO be
measured. a tyro can hippantly praise or
loolishly criticise; but thcjust judge should
| be wiser than the man who Is to be Judged
| With this conception of the work best to
be done, deemed myself utterly unfit to
undertake it, and ilaty refused n broad in
vltatiOn sent 10 me. When that invitation
was changed, to n specific request to prepare
biographical sketch, determined to at
tempt it, and have come, with a grateful
and admiring heart, to lay my offering on
| the grave of Chipman.
Nathaniel ChIpman was descendant, in
| the fourth generation, from John Chipman
of Barnstable, England, who came to Mas.a-
| chusetts in 1880 and married a daughter of
John Rowland (the last male survivor but
| one Of those who came in the May-h0wer),
and settled in Barn>table, Mass. Nathaniel
was born in Salisbury Conn, Nov Is, 1852,
the first son Of Samuel Chipman of Sails
bury. and Hannah Austin of Sufield,
| Conn.
The father of Nathaniel was both black
smith and farmer, an industrious and meth
odleal man, who kept all his sons in con-
stan. employment, either in the shop or on
| the farm. y descendant Of the Puritans,
| he was himself puritanical. lie subjected
all the affairs Of his family to an orderly
| system, one rule, rigidly enforced upon
every member. being to retire carly to rest,
and to rise carly for work The days were
| given to labor, NatLaniel's on the. farm
| and the evenings to reading books drawn
from wcll-selected town library and to
! ifee conversation on the topics suggested by
the books.
At the age of twenty, with mind and
| body well disciplined by this sort Of domcs-
! tie education, and a fixed habit Of untiring
| industry, young Chapman entered Upon
preparatory classical studies with the min
lister Of his parish, and IN nine months he
! fitted himself ior Yale College, which he
| entered IN l413. In college he took high
rank IN the regular courses Of study but
| being both industrious and wisely iudepcnd-
ent, hc went far beyond the curriculum.
/ into q course oi general reading and iitera-
| ~ studies. lie quit college for the field, as
! lieutenant in tie continental army, before
! his senior term had ended but he had well
| mastered more than the prescribed stldie~
and was hou1rel with the usual collegiate
/ degree in his absence.
/ of his service in the army little j. known
g.
/ for an officer oi his rank. We know. from
/ the dates of his letters rather than from any
/ dc>criutior- ar co!uulaints In them. thar he
/ endured the horror. of Valley Forge in the
winter OF I119. when. to use the language
! of Washington. the pav Of the officers vas
Insufficient Cr ttcir decent subsistence and
{ the army was naked and starving. III
! He alsl endured all .. the pressing alarms
and dangers of tBecampai.,1 lof III. '' IL !
Ono of tE-ruan'- letters indicates that be
wa. I'm tie battle of Monmouth. I'm which
/ Washington defeated Sir Henry Clinton
/ The d,tes of his urhIishcd letters al this
time Show also tLat he was under tie eve of
Wa-hinrton and ~, may sqC.'v conjecture
tl..t ths-e ana ,bcn he received the insDira-
tiou which determined his future political
jl. t,tt,, end October In. I--s. he re-
I.efa.t-v terieral hi. re-irration IN Wa.f-
,noton on tbe solo rr3und that be c1ull I
nj rfr.,si- i,, tl.. -.,-tire without bs,.,min,
cifl.ra Le--ar r- n debtor t1 an amount
tbat would 6,,',,rr,ss and nerha7,s ruin him
f,rf fifs t2I This re.igrafion was accept-
cI rs many Lad hscn gir tie same reasons
nine months earlier. CLipmau'~ patrilt-
ism and rotisra- carried him IN the very
vcr.-s Of r.in. and Washington excused him
f-am further -lf.erire- and sacrifices That
i-a GOOD rlc, In har % consnrc from any
source.
March I'd. l--a seirc ic-. than months
fr'.l tbr 5ate Of Tie letter r,.irninr his
-ica,s-ancv-Chiuman Lal completed his
c5Br-c.,f study f5r the bar. and was admit
ted an attorney In the courts of Connecti-
cgt ON that day hc wrote q letter con-
cei,... prre rln- which proved. however
% ie cmircnt-v prophetic. IL have been
dubbed an attorney. he wrote to brother
student. - and pfaro~e I'm o few DAYS 90
take ap las abode In the State Of Vermont.
Ua. la. ha: cannot but laugh 20
think vlara flash we Shall make. when We
COM. z, D., members of Congress And
thcn arai7. Lam vcvei when think how
many --cn. rbc-e are by which we must
mount ~ t.gt pinnacle ofhappiucss. Let's
-s.. Fir-t AN attorney. tbeu. a .slectraan.
n hufGr- i1.ticr. a deputy an assistant.
le9snci.1 .1r in Vermont or representative In