Connecticut western news., 1874-02-20
POPE BUSHNELL
And Ne Olsiell Time.

FRIEND PRAsE.-l am a regular reader o
 your paper. It reaches my post-office bol
 every Saturday; is always readable ant
 rscy, and brings to mind persons an,
 things calculated to awaken in my inc
 recollections of the past. The spicy com
 munications of your correspondents shed |
 cheering pleasantly that seems delightful
 through every number. Were it in my
 power would gladly contribute in return
 moity to those of your readers who have
 so often furnished me with an interesting
 and rejuvenating thought. In careless
 rumage among my old letters and papers N
 few days since, 8 tattered manuscript
 turned up, which proved to be journal of
 my first trip out of Salisbury, or five
 months from home. Some of your pat
 rons will doubtless remember that Salis-
 bury was the place of my nativity. Twas
 the first born of my mothers seven sons.
 and am tho only survivor of her ten chil--
 drsn.
 Perhaps few tXtracts of that boyish
 journal would interest some of your many
 readcrs. The summer of 1903 1 worked
 Tor William Dimmick ou Town Hill as Il
 farm hand, to whom nay father hired me.
 lu November of that year l started on foot
 Tor Cairo, Greene county. N. Y, by way
 Of Vermont and Canada, being under a
 partiHl engagement to teach u winter
 school "t Cairo, (the place was called New Durham at that time). Previous to leav-
 ing home, obtained of the Rev. Joseph
 W Crossman, Abiiah c. Peet and New
 man Holley, school committee of Salis-
 bury. certificate Of qualification, and one
 other signed by the Hon. Martin Strong
 and Robert Bates Esq setting fo-th thlt
 was sober and trus'y. My father gave nhe
 thirteen dollars ill paper money, uhd my
 excellent mother furnished me, in addition
 10 what had on. one shirt, one pair stock
 ings and neck tie, which, tied up in a
 cotton handkerchief, constituted my outf,
 for the winter Thus equipped, withou,
 overcoat. l started on foot and alone from
 near the old Gre Hill. tarried the first
 night ID Sheffield started early nc xt morn
 ing, and was overtaken near Burlington by
 footmsn who said he was going to Can
 ada; scarcely had We exchanged the usual
 salutations when gentleman rode leisure iy past us, dropped suddenly from his sad dle and in moments time bound my jolly companion with 2 rope and declared him
 horse thief. The young man asserted his innocence and declared was the man who stole the said horse, &c. The thief urged
 me to run; the sheriff ordered me to stand: others in pursuit came up and the identity of the man in the rope was established, and he was marched toward Sheffield.
 Nothing strange or noteworthy occurred us passed on through Manchester, New York, Bennington, Vt., to Middleburv. where met my uncle, Jedediah Bushnell. Gov. Chittenden. Judge Paynler and simon Snhth-thc three last named emiera,ed from Salisbury. had of course many inquiries to make. accepted an invita- ton of the governor to tarry with him a couple or days. On parting with him, he gave me fathers blessing and hearty goodbye. From Middlebury went by way of New Haven to Vcrgins, and up the western side of Lake Champlaln to Grown Point. Curiosity led me to visit old fort Ticonderoga, of which the school books of those days made mention. Built by the French; reduced by the English; next ta- ken by the Americans; retaken by the English, and at last 1t fell permanently into the hands of the Americans. The fort was little else than heap of ruins two or three of the buttresses were sti stand ing. testifyiHg fsvorab!y of the builder. While standing alone among the ruins I thought of General Burgoync, Ethan AL len and others who figured on that spot in the war of the Revolution, and imagined could smell powder.
 From thence l wandered west. nearly to the outskirts of Essex county, and put up for the night at German house of enter : tainment; at supper was waited on by , matronly looking woman of middle age whose kindness spoke volumes in her praise. Several young people dropped in about candle lighting, and the house occa- sionally rang with merry peals of laugh . ter; the landlady approached me and said, : Our young folks are going to kicking bee. perhaps you would like to attend. If so, her daughter would accompany me- I and three couple of us were soon . on our way to kicking bee. Something new! What could It mean? Twas too ignorant to decide, and too proud to ex- pose my ignorance, so we passed on. The ! easy civility of my companion soon quick y made me forget that was in company with a stranger, after.a short walk we en- ! tered large log house that literally : swarmed with young ladies and gentlemen. , The latter to the number of I2 or I3 immc- /, diately seated themselves on the floor in circle, feet inward. around pile of home |. spun flannel that looked as if 1t had been steeped in soap suds, and commenced kicking It on all sides. the studs flying in all the cloth oscilating from side to , side of the ring, in accordance with the strength applied, now entirely lifted from E. the floor, and then thrown entirely out Inf the ring. the boys crying too dry, too dry The old gentlemen then showed round the bottle. while the good woman replaced the cloth and doused on more 'uds. The kicking was then renewed with increased vigor, and SO ran the fulling mill '. for two or more hours. The cloth first on ; the floor, then in mid air, next on the |, heads of the operators or out of the ring. sads running like rivers over the floor. up. Ill at last the good woman proro rounced the Ei ! cloth sufficiently fulled, and the kicksrs Y. rose to their feet and scampered off, reap ' bearing in short time gaily dressed, and . at the next moment were each with his la-