The Wellington enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 1867-188?, 1881-01-27
PERSONAL "REMINISCENCES.
An Old Clock.
A STORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS.
written for the ESrxRrRIsR.)


flashed across my mind as to the events
of my past life, and, fell into retros-
pect which ran backward-intod decades
long since gone to eternity-which took
the form of mental story somewhat as
follows:
The first consciousness 1 had was of
finding myself adopted by a newly mar
ried pair of young people in a small
village in the State of New York,
SO long ago that it is almost i'm
possible to state its precise name. How
ever that is not important. Younger
and fairer of face than now, 1 was
looked upon rs being at once ornamen-
tai and useful. Though 1 now retain
the general contour, and full ability
to keep pace with time that did in
my younger days, l show a somewhat
worn appearance, and perhaps justly.
too, when one considers the great
amount OF labor performed, with but
little relaxation from any cause. My
OF iginal owner took great pride in my
strict attention to business, and, have
heard him say ''that such another timer
did not exist in the seven Counties" 1t
was also his boast late in life; when his
hair was silvered with the frosts of many
years, "that 1 was no trouble to him,
nor had he ever expended SO much Us
the sum of half sheckle of silver on
my account, in forty years" In fact, 1
was never, in his life time, sent 20 the
silversmith for any repair whatsoever,
two new cord, constituting the whole
repairs, and those done by himself at a
cost of less than the sum before men,
toned. While thus cogitating upon
the past, my mind touched upon the
many important events in the history
of this country since my advent upon
the sea Of time. Perhaps 1t may be
we'll to state just here that L was usher
ed into active life by one Eli Terry, at
Plymouth, Connecticut, in the year
1917, with Il guarantee, if well, used to
do good service for 4 term of one hun
dred years, and went to business at
once. But to return to our subject-;he
many changes which have come under
my notice in the past sixty odd years.
Steam had recently been applied to
navigation; it was looked upon as the
eighth wonder of the world, and I re-
member how it surprised me to hear
my possessor sIy che hid made the
passage from Albany to New York IN
the Caremont, the first steamer built,
also enlarging upon the great results
sure to follow such an important inven-
tion. Soon followed railroads, then the
panic and hard times of 1887, the tele-
graph, was, and rumors Of wars
abroad, the Mexican war at home, the
panic of 81, our own civil war, the
peace following, the many sharp po-
liticai contests, all winding up with the
election Of that wise, scholarly, man
General James a. Garfield, to the high
est office in the gift of the people; all
this AMI much more have been discuss
ell under my notice, and have given me
much good material for thought.
After forty-six years of almost inces-
sent labor for my original purchaser,
it became known to me that he had
passed from this life by a sad accident
while abroad, and in consequence there
came a change of masters. fell to the
lot of the youngest son of the family,
of whom 1 had some acquaintance, he
having been rover since the age of
thirteen, but finally settled gracefully
down TO the realities of a bene dictine
signs of wanting renovation, my inter
nal organs were closged with the dust
of time, and slowly but surely 1 lapsed
into decline, finally yielding to my
old age an many infirmties, which re-
suited in calling Il skilled adviser, who,
upon critical examination, declared it
his opinion ''that my system had not
been cieansed from impurieties in forty
years" The fact of the case was that
it had been over fifty. He soon set me
right and went about my affairs as
merrily as when those fifty wears W re
standing in my future to be ticked of
by constant application, but no amount
of labor could recover tho time lost in
my illness, and this has been source
of deep regret since that lamentable
event.
Time Lassed joyfully with me in the
home of my new master, but some de-
feet, a broken cog l believe, brought
me to stand still again, and, covering
my face with both haEds for very chag-
rim, etammered out some apology,
tried to go on, but it was useless eff
fort. Surely, thought I, my time has
not come to quit this active life, for I
had hoped to complete my century of
labor. Having taken up my residence
in Wellington some years before. skill
full advice prevailed, was soon on my
feet again, where I continue to this
hour, my last advisor giving it as his
opinion would live to fulfill the term
of the first guarantee. Naturally
modest aud diiident in speaking of my
achievements, yet the great amount of
travel and labor accomplished by inces-
SAINT application to my own busln sss hav.
ing no time to attend to that of others,
may be be an incentive to those who
are not naturally industrious, to apply
themselves more closely to their inter-
ests.
Then to- show what has been ac-
In sixty-three years it will
be necessary to go into details of my
to a considerable extent,
also to make a number of mathematical
to that end. 1 will begin
by showing that the key being the
prime mover in my affairs ia EMIT ed to
the first consideration. 1 will base my
on sixty years of service,
which will make due allowance for