Bellows Falls times. [volume] (Bellows Falls, Vt.) 1856-1965, 1873-01-03


hearty, and blessed with retentive
memory, and. he. delights in telling of
the exploits of his ancestors as well as
T. t, Barnum, and we fully believe that.
his stories have a'shallsr sprinkiiIg of.
humbug in them than Those told by the
great Snowman. The following. nara
tive of his is as true as history itself,
and truer than much that comes to us
from medieval times.
Thomas Miner, the grandfather of Mr..
Davis was sailor, shipping from Hart
ford, Connecticut. Coming home from
voyage he met in the street man
who wished to sell Nm whole town
ship of wild land in the e,ate of New
Hampshire. Jack Tar" said he,
couldn't buy who'll township, but
would run the risk to take n ali u town,
bears and all"
"Well," said the old man, al ell
half" and the bargain was closed al
money paid in hard coin.
Like all sailors, Miner was somewhat
venturesome, and this time he bad ma
"venture" without knowing his man
so he told his Captain.
"You fool" said the Captain, "you
are Just like all sailors you don't know
how to take care Of your money. You
will never see The land or the man
again"
So Miner shipped again. He made
one or two voyages, and coming home
once upon time," he told his wife he
was going to see the New Hampshire
land.
"Well," said she, "I'll 60 too. and
take the baby"
So the old mare was saddled, Thomas
having by some hook or crook got
mare, and man, wife and child mounted,
with gun and compass, and all started
for the wilderness. Long, weary, and
many spring days passed ere they ar
rived at Hanover, New Hampshire,
keeping close to the Connecticut river,
which was guide, and from whose wa
ters they quenched their thirst and occa-
sionally caught fish. But they got
| there.
The first question Thomas Miner ask
ed, was, Is there a town hereabouts
| oolIol Canaan 9D
Yes" was the reply, it is down in
the woods eighteen miles and no road"
Nothing daunted, after rest and re-
fresnment, Thomas started, and by the
aid OF "blazed" trees he found his land
after several days search, the "corner"
being indicated by mammoth hemlock
marked Canaan" This was his land
of promise. He Immediately cut an
other hemlock with an axe he brought
from Hanover, and with the limbs, bark
and boughs constructed hut, with the
boughs for bed. The old mare was
turned out to browse.
In the morning he started for the
mare without his hat. Strange to say
thoagh it is true, he was gone three days,
finding the mare in Charlestown, N. H.,
and returning. Now he took bis gun
and went in search of food. lie soon
shot a deer which lasted some lime. He
: did not see man tor six weeks. At
this time he took bis gun and compass
10 see how his land lain. About two
miles off he found man named Scho.
field, who had "squat' on his (Miner's)
land
"Glad to see you, Schofield," said
, Miner "never mind, I'll give you a
hundred acres" And SO he did.
> During the season (it was spring.
they got in. about five acres of grain
and in the autumn had good crop.
Schofeld proved a good neighbor.--
q But Miner wanted more. So he wrote
O twelve letters to as many of his ship
4 mates, inviting them to come and settle
;, beside him, and nine of them came and
o settled, each receiving the gift of one
; hundred acres of land.
., To make a long story short, they all
lived and prospered. and Thomas Miner
lived to see his town have three churches
l., and an academy, and to find himself
ID sent representative to the New Hamp
as shire legislature thirty years in success
e. sion.
lg The child carried into the forest in it
ID mothers arms was educated at Dart
IT. mouth college and became an eminen
at physician in Canada. He had othe
sons and daughters, some of whom set
tied in New Hampshire, and one, witt
), the same adventurous spirit as the ia
~, ther. made his home in the then, nes
state OF Ohio. in which vicinity his de
q scendents now live.
e. When Shakespeare wrote about pa
at thence on monument, he did not refe