Litchfield enquirer., 1873-12-11
LiTcnFlELp.

manslaughter case. In the case of State against Mary Humphrey of Norfolk. fol liquor selling, there was conviction and fine of $20. In the case against Lewis Humphrey for malicious injury to a.bug' gy and harness, the jury disagreed. Mir. Lawrence, of Norfolk, made favorable impression on his first appearance at the bar. This week, trial of court business has recommended. In Shelton vs Short, the plf. recovers g and $13.A costs. In Woodruff vs Baldwin for allowing Knoz to ''escape" from jail. there was judgment for delft. and motion for new trial. In Cogswell vs State the Court held the pro. ceedings before the justice void for want of appointment of a guardian. ss
 The ladies of both Congregational and Episcopal Societies are organizing social gatherings for the winter on the plan adopted by the Congregstionaiists, last season. We have oftenlreferred to the inherent difficulties of village society. Litchfeld suffers. like other places of it's size, from the tendency of society to strat- Uy into social grades like those which prevail in cities, without having the num- bers to make that kind of social arrange ment very satisfactory. In summer, when numerous transient and regular city visitors are here, their social forms natur- ally prevail. and our society divides into grades resembling theirs. In winter, so- ciety inclines to revert to more general forms, substituting for the horizontal planes of division that separate the social grades of the city, those perpendicular lines of denominational difference which cut through society from top to bottom, in many if not most country towns. On the whole, this form of social organiza- tion is good one. It gives reality to the tie that binds christians together in their various brotherhoods. It promotes bet ter feeling among the ordinary social grades and strata by letting each know something of the other. Nevertheless the sectarian feature has it's evils. It tends to intensity denominational differences. Of course each denomination welcomes visitors from sister denominations and visitors of no denomination. Still the joyial Methodist may feel that these en- joyable social gatherings are primarily designed to build up other denominations; and the society loving politician, or ed- itor, may not attend as often as he would like for fear of being undeservedly set down as christian statesman"
 One of the winter institutions of Litchfeld should be good singing school. It must be an institution" to be of any real use. Last winter Mir. Buckingham had tolerably large class of girls and boys who got 8 fair start in vocal music. But, unless the rudiments of the art, scarcely mastered in one sea- son, are followed by the practice of oth- CT seasons, the money and time spent in the first effort is wasted. Children need to practice every winter regularly for several years before they can become singers. When so trained if they have good voices they naturally go into the church choirs when they grow up, and, in village of this size, there ought to a. constant sup ply of singers coming on sufficient for all the choirs and also to form strong cho- ral society for the practice of higher order of music. But no such results can be expected from spasmodic efforts and occasional singing schools. Few ever learn to sing except when quite young. Girls, indeed, usually get some instruc- tion in vocal as we'll as instrumental mu- sic in the regular course of their eduoa- tion; but the boys, in a village like this where there are no regular singing schools, never learn to use the voices and to cul- tivate the musical talent nature has given them. AS necessary consequence the natural supply of male singers dries up entirely. In one of our choirs there is but single "man singer" left. We have no material for chorus because we have not the requisite tenors and basses.
 Coming to practical proposition for the remedy of this evil, why cannot some of the ladies who teach music in this place take the school of last winter where Mfr. Buckingham left it, and go on with it, expecting that the class will reorganize, winter after winter, till we can raise the singers we stand in such urgent need of. It is only by steady culture. steady growth, that such result can be attained. The churches ought to contribute liberal ly to such an object, for it's is they who suffer most from the present deplorable condition of choral music in Litchfield.
 On the organization of Co. H Colonel Vessels, Mir. s. E. Cheney, and the edi- itor of this paper, became Capt. Shum- ways bondsmen for the safe keeping of the arms, &e., delivered to the company.
 Since the Cuban scare, Mir. Cheney has written to the Quartermaster General re- queating that his name should be taken
 of the bond, for the reason that Go. H was to be ordered into the U. s. service to fight Cuba. Whether Mir. Cheney's fears are for the guns-which isn't complimen-
 tary to the valor of our soldiers-or lest
 they may slaughter the benevolent Penin-
 sulars too numerously-which isn't com plimentary to their discretion-they are
 in either case groundless. Our militis
 cannot be ordered out of the country, in
 eirstplace;inthe next, should they be or.
 dered into the national service, the old bond
 is discharged and . new one taken to the
 United States. Moreover Mir. Cheney cannot be released without consent of his
 fellow bondsmen. We are not obduratt
 on this point. but the Colonel is. He in sista that he really enjoys association will