The Republican journal., 1882-11-09

'Merrie England' Oceans BRIDE
Amid her wales and rocky shelves
Had tiny gentry ycelpcd Ewes;
Who lived to trip the heel and toe
Through midnight's hour till cock did crow;
Where harvest moon showed fruit was ripe,
They skipped through reels to cltn pipe
Beneath some huge and leatv oak,
Their tutc-lkc voices silence broke.
The Advocate must have been IN some sense
the "organ" of the students. the writer brcom-
ing acontributor on leaving school. ana writing
of travels and adventures in Texas ana Of Il
march across the Plains with the Utah army in
1873. But Il good many verses were written
which did not help to fill either the Advocates
columns or its waste basket, and here is the
concluding verse Of poem the scene OF which
was the sehool-room 1t is evident that the
writer's Thought, were sunlctiIiIts directed else
where than to his studies:
gazed upon your snow-white brow, which was as
lilies fair,
| watched the sun beams glancing upon Your gold
en- halr.
And when | turned me to my book saw your
image there.
A fayoritc resort of some of the students WAS
the bookstore of Willard Small, and those who
loved books soon had the run of the shelves and
counters. The proprietor himself was ii those
days more of student than a busines, man;
more of Il bOok-readcr than bookseller. We
all looked up to him as Il man of great and va
ried learning, and his fame soon extended be
yond Auburn. He was called to Boston to till
a responsible position with Phillips. Samson 4
Co., the original publishers of the Atlantic
Monthly, and of Uncle Toms Cabin. and
soon after went to Europe on business for the
ali. / ID,
his return and spent very enjoyable half hour.
Some four or five years ago while visiting in
Maiden, Mass, my friends spoke Of their next
door neighbor man of wonderful knoW-
edge and ability and who occupied the position
of translator, reader and general adviser in Il
Boston publishing house. On enquiry learned
that it was none other than the willard Small
had known in school boy days. regret that
| was unable to renew the acquaintance then
Recently he went into the publishing business
in Boston on his own account and learn from
the Lewiston Journal that 'the head quarters
of public school teachers and educators is the
bookstore of Willard Small, formerly Of Au-
burn"
Where girls and boys congregate Cupid is
SURF 10 Dt, lnOuSH nc sItltS he SC;ttItfS 10 less
execution than those reserved for older folks.
But while the passion he inspires seems very
real and very earnest, the sweetheartS of
school boy days generally become the happy
wives of other fellows. Then there were
pleasant rambes with fair companions along
the Little Androscoggin in spring and autumn,
and sleighing parties when winter regned.
Well do remembers Maying party just be-
fore my school days ended. when the usual
order of things was reversed, and the bows
were crowned kings of May by their respective
sweethearts. The shades of evening were fall
ing as, somewhat weary from the days exer-
tions we reached our homes and exchanged
good nights, and in one instance Il long good
bye.
The busy Lewiston of to-day was thriving
place twenty-five years ago. A writer of that
date says: "The village of Lewiston Falls is an
exceedingly business-like and enterprising
place, which has grown up like magic within
few years in Il picturesque spot on the An
droscoggin River. Just at the point where the