St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1884-04-12
w. G. KENTZEL, Editor
RHOD4 FARR4ND.

RHOD4 FARRdND.
In the last of these Centennial days,
Let me sing song to Il woman's praise:
liow she proved herself in that time OF strife,
Worthy OF being patriots wife.
little woman she waS-not young,
But ready OF Wit and quick OF tongue:
One of the kind of which Solomon told;
Setting their price above rubies and gold.
A memory brave clings around her name;
Twas Rhoda Farrand. and worthy Of fame.
Though scarce she dreamed 'twould be woven
IN rhymes.
In these-her grand daughters daughters
times.
Just out of the clamor of wars alarms,
Lay in tranquil quiet the Jersey farms:
And all of the produce in barn and shed
By the lads and girls was harvested.
For the winds of winter with storm and chill
Swept bitterly over each ned and hill.
Her husband was with the army, and she
Was left on the farm at Parsippany-
When she heard the sound OF d horses feet,
And Marshal Doty rode up the street;
He paused but moment. and handed down
A letter for Rhoda from Morristown,
In her husbands hand-how she seized the
sheet;
The children came running with eager feet:
There were Nate and Betty, Hannah and Dan,
To list to the letter, and thus IL ran,
After best greeting TO children and wife:
Heart of his heart, and the life of his life,
/ read from the paper. wrinklei and brown,
1--WE are here for the winter in Morristown,
And a sorry sight are our men to-day.
In tatters and rags with no sign OF pay
As we marched TO camp, ii man looked
back,
By the dropping blood he could trace our
For scarcely man has decent shoe,
And there's not stocking the army through;
So send us stockings as quick as You can,
My company needs them, every man,
And every man is a neighbors lad;
Tell this to their mothers; they need u'em
bad
Then. if never before. beat Rhoda' heart,
Twas time to be doing a woman part.
She turned to her daughters, Hannah and
Bet;
..Girls eae,. eEa your needles a stocking set.
Get my CLOAK and hood; as for you, son Dan,
Yoke up the steers just as quick as you can;
Put cnair in the wagon, as you re awe,
will sit and knit, while you go and drive.
They started at once on Nhippany road,
She knitting away while he held the goad.
On the SISTERS Prudence and Mary Ball.
She would not go ill., she sat IN her chalr
And read to the girls her letter from there.
That was enough, for their brothers three
Were in Lieutenant Farranfs company.
Then on Rhoda went, stopping mere ano
there,
Still while she was riding her fingers flew,
And minute by minute the stocking grew.
Across the country, so withered ana brown
There mellow and rich, lay the Smiths broat
lands.
With them she took dinner and warmed he
Next toward Hanover Neck Dan turned th'
steers,
Where her cousins, the Kitchels, had lived 70
With the Kitchels she supped, when home
ward turned,
While above her the stars like lantern
burned.
And she stepped from her chair, helped by he
With her first days work and her stocking
done.
On Rockaway River, so bright and clear,
The brown leaf skins in the fall of the yeal
Around through the hills it curves like a
arm.
And nolds in its clasp more than one brigh
Through Rockaway valley next day drov
Boy though he was, yet he worked like a man
His mother behind him sat in her chair,
~-SttH h,sttttng. but knlting another par,
And stopped for minute at Comptons forge
Then on to B9onton and there they were fet
While the le4er was passed around and reau
Knit" said&eoda to all, ',as fast as you can
Send the stdW6pgs to me. and my son Dan
The first of neNt week will drive me~iown.
And FL take the stockings to Morristown.
Then from Boonton home and at set of sun
She entered herhouse Irih her stockings dom
On Thursday they knit from the morn ii
She and the girls, with all their might.
When the yarn gave out they carded an
spun.
When the wool was gone, then they killed
sheep
A cosset-but nobody stopped to weep.
They pulled the fleece, and they carded ava.
Ann spun and knitted from night until da.
In all the country no woman could rest,
But they knitted on like people possessed
And Parson Condit expounded his views
On the Sabbath day unto empty pewS,
Except for few stray lads who came
And sat in the gallery, to save the name.
On Monday morn at an early hour
The stockings came in perfect shower
A shower that lasted until the night;
Black, brown and gray ones and mixed blu
and white.
There were pairs one hundred and thirt.
three,
Long Ones remember, up to the knee;
And the next day RhOda carried them dow
In the old oX-wagon to Morristown.
hear like an echo the soldiers cheers
For Rhoda aud Dan. the wagon and steers,
Growing wilder yet for the chief in comman
While up at salute to the brow flies eat
hand
As Washington passes. desiring then
To thank Mistress Farrand in name of h
men.
But the words that her husbands lips let ia
81 knew you would do il" were best of all.
And think in these Centennial days
That she should be given her need of prais
And while we are singing of "Auld La,
Syne,'
Her name with the others deserves to shin
Eleanor A. Hunter, in the Continent.