The Portland daily press., 1882-03-01

January 6, 1878, while her father was in the
army. When the family first occupied the
brick house in Portland, she was eight years
old and recollected the inconvenience and
discomforts of the unfinished quarters in
which they lived while the house was build
ing.
In 1893, June %, Zilpah Wadsworth, in be-
half of the ladies of Portland, presented mil
itary standard to volunteer company called
the Federal volunteers. 1t was the first uni
formed company in Maine Joseph c. Boyd
was captain, and the ensign who received the
standard and replied to the presentation ad-
dress was named Wiggin. In after years,
Mrs. Longfellow described to her daughters
the rehearsal of her speech and the waving Of
the banner on the back steps of her father S
house, to her sister, who personated Ensign
Wiggin. The presentation was from the
front portico of that historic mansion. The
street has been filled up since then, hiding the
stone steps. The motto on the flag was "De-
fend the laws" On e.side was painted the
arms of the United States, and on the other
the same united with the arms of Massachu-
sets.
In 1904 Zilpah Wadsworth became the
wife of Stephen Longfellow, and first kept
house in two story wooden house yet
standing on the south corner of Congress and
Temple streets. When her fathers family left
the brick house for new home in the country
in 1907, she with family of husband and
two sons took the old homestead. Mr.. Long
fellow moved the store and in its place, built
the brick vestibule at the east corner over
which he placed modest sign which was
there within my knowledge-it read "Stephen
Longfellow, Counsellor at law" He occupied
the eastern front room for his law Office, OPEN
ing from the brick entry. In this office, sew
eral young students read "Coke and Black
stone," who became prominent lawyers of
Cumberland county.
One day in 1914 or 15, while Mrs. Longfel-
low was indisposed and the family physician
was in attendance, the servant overheated
the kitchen fue, which took fire and commu-
nicated it to the attic, which the fam
lily knew nothing of until it broke
out through the roof. Mr.. Longfellow was
the chief fire ward of the department, but his
first thought was of his sick wife, whom he
hastily enqnired for of DIR. Weed. He told
Mr.. Longfellow to look to the fire and he
would take care of his wife. When it became
evident that the house must be flooded, the
doctor who was tall muscular man, wrapped
Mrs. Longfelow in blanket and carried her
in his arms into Madam Preble's the next
door, now the hotel. A lady of the family
who wsS then child, described the scene to
me- Her first realization of the danger, was
from seeing her father standing on a post of
the front fence, with brass trumpet to his
mouth. giving loud orders to the gathering
fremen, and gesticulating violently. After it
had nearly destroyed the roof, the fire was
extinguished.
To increase the accommodations for his
large family, Mr.. Longfellow added to the
house q third story and low fOrr- aided or
'hipped" roof took the place of the high two
sided one, with the chimneys the same.
And thus repaired the venerable structure
around which so much of historical interest
clusters has remained to the present time. AL
though overshadowed and crowded upon by its
more pretentious neighbors, it is more enquired
for now by strangers, than any other house
in the city. May the polite and refined de-
scendant of its builder, who is now its mis-
tress long continue to preside there, and dis
pense its traditional hospitalities.