Buchanan County bulletin. [volume] (Independence, Iowa) 1869-1891, 1873-01-03
The Fortune of n New Hampshire
Mill Girl.

\ New Hampshire paper accounts
for one of the large fortunes of thai
State by relating the following
pleasant little history: Several years
ago one Of the young worklng-wo
men of the cotton mills at Great
Falls, Sarah Butlllon by name, was
recalled to her home by the sick
ness of a sister, who had contracted
a dangerous fever. Her faithful
mlnistrations availed not to save
the life of the invalid, and with the
shadow of death in the humble
household came such legacy OF
domestic responsibilities for the
mill girl that she was obliged to
give up all idea of returning to
Great Falls and devote herself to
the care of her poor and aged par
cnts. With cheerful tilial heroism
she accepted the change in her
prospects, though believing that it
debarrcd her from the ultimate i'm
provcment of her worldly condition
which might have resulted from an
Independent self-maintenance; but
there was in store for her from the
hour of her comparative self-rcnun-
clation destiny more wonderful
than her own hands could ever
have wrought. Certain small arti-
cles Of personal property which
she had brought from the mill were
wrapt in q newspaper from one of
the cotton-growing parishes of
Louisiana, and wien, having de-
cided to leave home no more, Miss
Butillon removed said wrapper, her
eye was caught by the appearance
in the print of the latter of her own
family name. A Mr.. Bullion was
mentioned by the Southern paper
as having been one Of several prom
incnt citizens taking part in re-
cent public event at Natchitoches;
and as the name is rather un-
common one, its fair New Hamp-
shire wearcr was seized with an ir-
resistible curiosity to know if she
had kindred among the nabobs OF
the South. Relating the circum-
stance to a familiar companion, who
bantcred her to "writc to the South
about it, she concluded to ascertain
indeed whether the Louisianian
was of her blood, by the only means
at her command. According to
Mr. Boutillon, OF Nachitoches, she
addressed a modest, ingenious letter
ofinquiry, giving her own genealogy
as far as she could trace it, and sug-
gesting that, inasmuch as the name
was an unusual one and never had
come to her in print before, her in
tuition therefrom of a relationship
might possibly prove accurate. In
a fortnight's time came the answer,
very cheerful and cordial in it's
greeting; declaring that the writer
and his correspondents father must
be not remote cousins. The South
erner further wrote that he was a
man of advanced years, without
family, and having few friends for
whom he cared, and that he earnest
ly hoped and wished for continua-
tion OF the correspondence thus
pleasantly pegun. With the con-
sent of her parents, Sarah acceded
to this request, and thereafter the
letters of the Louisianan and the
former mill-girl were in the charac-
ter of an ideal friendship. For
three years the interchange con-
tinued with unbrokcn punctuality;
and then for nearly three months
Miss Butillon's last cpistlc remained
unanswered. Her wonder and sor-
row at the protracted silence grew
more and more, until finally n law
yer's message explained ali. Writ
ling to Miss Sarah Butillon from
Natchitoches, the attorney of the
late Phillip Butillon, Of that place,
had the honor to inform her that
her distant relative and namesake,
dying without nearer kindred, had
bcquethed to her his whole property
amounting in the aggregate to more
than 100000. ''Shortly before
receiving this intelligence" pro
ceeds the narrative, ''the rccipicn,
had given her hand in marriage tc
a young man Of her own rank. with