Litchfield enquirer., 1875-02-11
sem,n.senees of a wanderer.

 yd sI.zs - izss II. ~ 7il Honaelot ,sur caiidhooi. how airsctial siings
 And iIo. CTS und tn her seraph wings
 Dears. thy hills, though ciad in autumn brown,
 Their fairest snEmits which the cedzrs crown. 6Eeeter th5 fragrance of thy summer breeze.
 Than all Arabia breath. along the s. as.
 The stranger gale wait. home the sigh.
 For the hearts temple Is it's own blue sk,.
 Homes.
 Amid all our wanlerings We have eve. felt love Of our native hills, which
 neither time nor distance can sxpei from the hearts clinging tenderness. Nor have
 we met with one born ln dear old Con.
 necticut who remembered aught of its sterling virtues, and uprightness, that did not sigh at the recollection, and the sad contrast afforded elsewhere. We have found intelligence and social culture among the children of all the various na- tionalities who have made this Central and Western New York, or Northern Penn sylvanla, their home. But there is amor al and religious feeling among the chil- dren of the Puritan Fathers unlike that of all others, in its stern integrity, just proportions or moral symmetry, not per ceived among any other class. Even the oddities of a certain "Yankee Robinson, ' or ''Sam Slick" class stand out plainly visible as of better growth than those peculiar to other regions We remember when citizen of our dear old county, who did not regard the Sabbath, and the duty of attendance upon divine worship on that day. lost ''easte" among respectable citi- gems. And we fondly hope that .sthe seed of evil doers" among you have not rooted out these same solid principles with this day.
 We have made these reflections for the purpose of introducing character whom we met many years ago among the Ale ghanies of Northern Pennsylvania. We were engaged in mission field among the mountain fastnesses of those towering hills And here the very name ''Penn's Woods impresses one amid their deep solitude. ''alone with God and his works
 It was in the autumn of 1847, on the headwaters of the "Big Muncy," noun tain stream that forces it's way between huge piles of granite among the rugged hills of old Lycoming county, (row we believe part of Sullivan county). At the door of the log school house, used for 8 church on Sabbaths, our host introdue- ed us to an aged gentleman. of venerable aspect, as ''father Botchford." After our formal greeting weremarked, ''Your name was familiar to our boyhood. are you an Eastern man?" He replied, ''Yes. I was from Connecticut" Our reply was. tsWe also are from Connecticut and knew MT. Botchford who lived in Salisbury on the Under the mountain road',' He replied, ''He is my brother" None but the wan derer who chances to meet one who comes from his native place can know the inter- est which at once become visible in his as, with an eagerness which still is vividly plain to our memory. his eye expressive of joy, he asked of the welfare of old neighbors. His last real dsnce had been in Chapinville. but gen. eration had passed since he left there and bagan his wandenngs. He had at first settled in old Steuben county, N. r., but financial misfortune oyertaking the fami- ly, he had followed his children into these ostensibly to retrieve their losses, but.i seemed to us, as we learned his character and knew more of him, that a higher Power had led his faithful ser want here to plant the pure principles of Gods law among the goddess. and morally He was intelligent and espec- ially well read in all Bible truths, doe trines and proofs. We learned to love him and have here introduced him for the purpose of exhibiting his moraI and reli- gious character. We stated in our for mer letter. we never had met with 8 na- tive of Litchfeld county that did not pre- sent commendabls traits of character, if not rich in worldly goods. yet rich m mor- al or religious worth. Among the most prominent virtues is a love for the Sab bath. and the house of God. with its or dinances Our new acquaintance was no exception to this rule bur was we'll known to be rigidly prompt in all observsnces of both.
 His reverence for the Lords day" was such that he was often persecuted in it, if not for St. At one tune, a little before our visit, he had been summoned to ap- pear in Wllliamsport, the county seat of Lycoming county. as witness in suit there pending. The summons required his presence there at the opening of court, nine o'clock a. m.. of Monday. It was nearly thirty miles to Williamsport and utterly impossible to reach there without starting before midnight on Sabbath eve- ming He was informed team was go ing there on Sabbath afternoon and he could ride, and his informer added. "Now old man we-have got you and your Sab bath, you will have to take part of the day to go." No reply was made, but Sat urday morning he arose early. took his staff and walked the entire distance and spent; the Sabbath with the people of
 God in worship. Ills eye kindled with delight as he related to me the incident, adding. 'T kept Gods day and had the rare privilege of hearing the gospel by sev- eral of God s servants. '' To him it was a vic. tory and to the cause of God an honor, 6
 moral triumph. Hislast home in Connecti-
 ent, he stated, was at Chapinville, Jour own
 home during the opening of life The re-
 ligious influence of public opinion in New
 England at that period was stronger than
 statutes in our Middle states, and still we
 hope is the same. A man who dares to dc
 right and keep the law of his God. its
 spirit and it's letter. in the midst of moral
 delinquency. to be singular. in this re.