Connecticut western news., 1876-09-01

times, and the extraordinary dry time and abundance of sand and dust, rendering it so extremely unpleasant to travel with wa gons, and the attendance has been good throughout. The Centennial sermon of last Friday was, as it was expected it would be, the best of all. It was unqucstionably the best sermon heard in thls section for a very long time at least The Rev. Dr. Lord is very eloquent preacher, and hay ing of course prepared himself for one of his first class efforts on the occasion of preaching a grand centennial sermon, he filled his hearers completely full. It was our great misfortune to not be permitted to hear this sermon, but we have heard enough of it from those who seemed to be | almost charmed with it, to be thoroughly convinced it was worth long journey to hear. Very many other sermons were cer- tainly excellent, for we heard some of them and know whereof we speak.
 We understand the various collections made to defray the expenses of the meet ings have been responded to cheerfully and generously. The various churches, sixty-two all told, were asked to contribute to defray the expense of constructing the cottage of the presiding elder, MT. Goss, ot Poughkeepsie, and among the very first asked were two of the members of the First M. E. church of Sheffield, and before they could be choked off paid full tenth of the entire cost of the building. If a few oth- CTS of this church had by chance been asked, there would have been no opportu. nity for anybody else to make manifest their generosity and love for the presiding elder
 Immediately after the close of the regu- lar forenoon sermon last Tuesday, the Rev. Mr. Wardell of NIiddletown, N. Y., came forward and asked the people to contribute to assist his church in paying the heavy in debtedness that was weighing them down Yes, almost crushing them. They began the building of their church edifice in the prosperous times that preceded our panic and it's cost far exceeded the estimation and the panic coming on plunged them ir
 
 free themselves, and now ask assistance from ether sources. The case appeared t( be worthy one, and over @ hundred an( 1 fifty dollars were given on this occasion MT. w. showed the audience a United l. States one hundred dollar bond, with all it: coupons of accumulated interest attached and which he said was gwen to him to as sist in paying the debts of his society il Middletown. by Mrs. John Cofing of Van Deusenville. Our readers need no furthe remarks on this generous donation of Mrs Cofing to a worthy object, for they yer. well know she is in the habit of doinl those things with considerable regularity or in other words, about as often as oppor- tunities present themselves.
 The meetings will be brought to a clos Thursday of this week, and the worship pers will return to their homes, the clotl tents will be folded, and in a day, as it were the miniature village of cottages will stan' silent and alone. For almost whole yea again will these forty houses stand with n' occupants, save perchance the materna squirrel will find a snug corner in which t' store her shack for the coming hard winter or build her nest for the nurture of he young family as the spring months return Solemn, still and alone; the camp fire gone out, ,and the cheerful voices that mad their rooms ring with their glory hallelu jahs, are heard no more. The shrill whis : tie of the whip-po-will echoes and re echoe from their barren walls. and as the fu moon courses across the evening sky out , side, the fitful shadows from the tall pine will stalk phantomlike across the symmet r:cal array of empty seats. Oh! who woul ! live there when all are gone