Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1886-05-21
HAPPY SOMERSRT

THE TOWN, ITS rosr OFFICE AND ITS posrMs.
TREss SUDDENLY MADE FAMOUS THE pHn-
NIX DID II WITH ITS LITTLE PARAGRAPH.
The Pbmuix has done one good deed IL
it never does another. Through the medium
Of it's little paragraph printed two weeks
ago, telling about Inspector Lamson's inter
view with plucky postmistress Sutton. Il has
brought that somewhat retired hamlet TO sud
den fame, and given it's postmistress. her house
and her kitchen place in the portrait gal
lery Of the country. Our paragraph went the
rounds Of the daily press, the Boston Globe
got hold Of II, and in deadly fear last some
competitor should pull in ahead, Col TAYLOR
started of instanter an artist and reporter bv
special express to illustrate and write up this
rare find OF news and enterprise The train
stopped at Bennington and the reporter
neither ate nor slept until he had pulled him.
self by his bootstraps through the mud and
over the hills TO Mrs. Sutton's door He
seems to have found the good woman at
home and in communicative mood. for he
interviewed" her to the extent of a column.
He made good use OF pen and pencil. bis
boot-straps and the special express bore him
quickly back to Boston, and last Tuesday be.
hold Somerset was known to fame. On III ed
itorial page appeared a double column mic
ture of the Sutton house, another of the post
office, kitchen stove and all, and a portrait of
the postmistress herself. Tue Globe has
daily circulation Of an even 100 600, which
has largely increased since Tuesday-and now
half a million people know all about Somer
set who had never heard of it or its po,t Of
foe until Me-. Lamson and The Phmlix-
started it on the road to fame. This is what
the Globe reporter says Mrs Sutton told him
ain little one-story house at the end OF a crook
Ell lane through the woods upon the top Of high
hill at the edge Of Somerset ownshp, Is cOutanrd
the post office to which rrferencn has besn mat,
a ma
cost, together with farm OF 300 acres which sur
rounds II, the modest sum Of 5000. Real estate
does not command fancy prices In Somerset anI
most Of the land IN the town could be bought with
the nne timber standing upon it, for 81 an acre.
of the house, small, low room in the ell Tor II il
there where the man Is received, sorted aud dellv-
cred. little Od-tashioned desk Is not 80 crowded
10y the accumulated incoming and outgoing mails of
the town tn room cannot be found upon aud ia il
for the toys OF the pOstnstress's baby boy, an Oc-
caslonal article OF clothing and other hOu ehold
odds aud ends. The chief insignia OF the nos; mi
business srS an oF and r9sy pair OF apothecaYs
letters In the front Of the desk and paddock Of Of
metal cast. Within an arms length OF the postal
desk the Kitchen stove aud wOOd-bOx stand. while
the walls aud door have much more the appearance
Of place for the performance Of domestic rather
"Mrs. sutton, the postmistrcss, is a pronounced
brunette, while her husband is an equally marked
blonde, and neither has yet advanced far from the
twenties In age. While the husband was break Sing
up neighborlng field, intending to SOW It down to
oats the wife was busy with the household duties
''Thls ONCE don't amount to much was her a i
most unnecessary remark when the subject Of her
unicia position was alluded to- Sin mi. arst two
months that had the ONCE there was only a In
stamps cancelled here, and that was the largest
amount Ia any quarter since the uftlce was estab-
lished. As they only pay me the amount Of stamps
auclled for my services, you can see that 1t dolT
pay very well, and wouldn't keep the ONCE II It
wasn't for the sake Of having the ONCE near 10y and
accommodating the neighbOrs.'
There's been something published in the pa
pers about this ONCE, she said with an Injured ar
and It amt true. Brattleboro paper ad an arl.
Gle where II SAID mat the population Of this town Is
sXy-seVen, Hnu thal SEVENTEEN OF them are voters.
Now we were counting the voters up only the other
night, and their amt more than thirteen or four
teen and guess know them ALL
''Then It said had planted the post ONCE In a
box BY the kitchen stove as II 1t made any differ
whether that desk is In this room or any other.
And 1t said that Insist on locking The house aud
going visiting Just when please. IL Is no such
thing = she exclaimed with an air OF righteous In
dignatOn. 'rhe mail Is only brought here Tues
days and Saturdays, ana l am always at home on
those days. There's nobody complained OF my
closing the house but Mr.. Chase and he donit mai.
ronize the ONCE, but sends his letters to Dover six
miles away, to be mailed, just to spite me. He
haint allied but just one letter here since I've been
postmistress and then he had one OF the ueignbors
address the envelope aud bring 1t here, so that
shouldn't know that he'd sent It,
''Mr. Chase's conduct would seem rather unreal
sonHble was remarked
unreasonable why IFS - and she hesl,at.
ed for a word with sort Of hesitation that indcat-
ed unutterabe Kings. The trouble with MIR. Chase
Is that he wants 70 have the ONCE over IN his pal
Of the town, aud that's two miles from here, but
there amt but two families over there, and she
seemed to be thinking Of the Inconvenience which
II would cause the Tour or I'VE families IN her
ton Of Somerset to have to go two miles farther to
ge; their letters.
going away from home, so that the mail bag would
tie left hanging on a tree in front Of the house.
It's no such thing the mail bag was never left
hanging on tree la the world, and II 1t was dOn
what difference IL would make to him, for he
never has any letters come here, but always tC
Dover Besides, no mail comes or goes here from
Tuesday to Saturday. and don't see why shouldn't
60 away II want TO Thursdays and Fridays
at was evident that an income OF less than SIC
compensation for the loss Of all visiting privileges
here last week. she added, .and told min that i
the rest Of the people In the town wanted me tC
stay acre every day would do so, but wouldn'
thing to that; he only said that II mail arrived
saturday night should keep the ONCE open Til
O'Clock, and that's fair enough"
The thing that troubles US about this bust
ness is fear lest service under a Democratic
administration has got Mr.. Lamson into baC
habit of lying. Wherever the truth may liz
between his story aud Mrs. Sutton's it Ger
tainly is a fact that the Inspector told US OF
the day of his return, that Mrs. Sutton sale
''she shouldn't keep tho office open all tn
week for anybody two days was enough
and the rest Of the time she should fasten III
the house amigo away il she wanted to-" II
this Mr. L,mson added that hs told her Ssh,
must keep the the Office open during all ordi
nary business hours, or he should order tn
Office removed or discontinued"
We observe with profound sorrow that tn
Argus this week accuses The PIT 9nix of ly
ing about Mrs. Sutton on the superstition tina
she was Democrat. Our only authority Of
this point was Inspector Lamson, and he toll
us that Mrs. Sutton was Republican VIII
was appointed last summer.
One account says that while Mr.. Lamsoi
was inspecting" the Somerset Office he hear
a couple OF woodpeckers tapping on a hem
lock tree at the back of the house. and tina
he mistook their noise for the camor of tn
Somerset populace trying to break in and 90
their mail
Another report and one undoubtedly NOR
reliable, is that Mrs. Sutton now has "hg
ure 4" trap set for Lamson in the edge Of til
woods, and il he ever goes that way agai
there will Immediately afterward be II vacar
cy to be filled in the New England Divisio
OF Post Office Inspectors.