The Press., 1889-01-03
LETTER FROM CALIFORNIA.

LETTER FROM CALIFORNIA.
 HOW OUR CORRESPONDENT FOUND MATTERS
 AT THE EAST, AND HOW CALIFORNIA LOOKS
 TO HIM AFTER HIS RETURN.
 Pomona, Cal, Dec. 17th, 1888.
 After spending the autumn months en- toying the Inequalities of our many old neighbors and friends, under almost con- stant dripping clouds, we are safely home again in the land of sunshine and ever blooming flowers. Yet while the weather was not always propitious we found sum- shine and gladness in the hearts of all whom we met. In Monson we visited the fami- lies of G. H. Newton, F. Fenton, H. White, Joel Thompson, H. Nelson, Geo., Chas. and N. A. Thompson, Geo. Brooks, Chas McKendrick, E.. Brown, Mrs. H. Bliss, w Nelson and Capt. Geo. Foskit.
 Among the many any permanent im- provements in Monson are the new town house, academy, Cushman's mill, the sol diers' monument, a couple of water foun- tains and the Universalist church.
 We went from Monson to Wales and wis., ited the family of Rev. Wm. Gordon, who is one of the oldest preachers in the N. D conference, he having entered the ministry in the year 1883, and has done full work eight years longer than any other man now in the conference. He has very promising son now in the divinity school at Yale. Wales has the advantage or dis advantage of being isolated from the rest of creation, and we fully realized the fact as our next objective point was Gilbertville and we were obliged to take stage to Brimfield and disembark there and wait for the Southbridge stage to Palmer and thence by rail to destination. At Gilbert vile we received cordial welcome at the house of Geo. R. Topliff, and at Ware will age we had very pleasant interview at the residence of l.. Fl. Storrs. Mir. Storrs lived number of years in Stafford and since he moved to Ware has been very sqc- cessful in business, and is probably the largest owner of real estate in town outside of the manufacturing companies. His father was from Mansfield, and his mother was daughter of Cyrus Topliff of Will lington.
 Our next point was Wilmington, my na- tive town, where we stopped with the fam. lily of s. D. Topliff, and learned from him the whereabouts of many of our old &C., quaintances and schoolmates of former days. From West Wilmington we took a carriage through the town nearly to the Ashford line, passing through the old Top Tiff school district, where the first sixteen years of my life were spent.
 Forty five years have now passed away since left the place, and it was with no small degree of sadness that viewed the changes these years have wrought, for I learned that of the hundred and thirteen people who then lived in the district not one lives there to-doy. The majority of the younger class moved away, while the enlarged borders of the cemetery and the names graven upon the marble headstoDes showed that the middle-aged and the aged had been gathered in by the sexton. The highways were narrowed up by vigorous growth of bushes, the stone walls were falling over, the rail fences were going to decay, and the pastures, which were once the grazing grounds for many cattle, sheep and horses, are now grown up to jungles and forests. The red paint that was spread upon the ancestral abode by the builder, nearly hundred years ago, still partially adheres to the weather-beaten clapboards, and as we passed strange faces peered from behind the window panes, and the old orchard, oace the best in town, was con. spicuous only by its decaying branches. I never read of Wordsworth's "Oid Oak en Bucket" but my thoughts went brck tC the well by the old homestead, for here was the exact counterpart of his immortal poem, and had hoped once more to draw the moss covered bucket from it's sparkling l depths, but alas the vandalistic hand o1 improvement had swept away the old fa. miliar landmark with it's coveted bucket and placed modern pump in it's stead from which turned away with sadness of heart. ..
 We went to the east part of the town and called at the home of the venerable George Ormsby and wife, nee Rhoda Leon ard. Mrs. Ormsby is we'll versed in ancient and modern lore, and can quote correctly from as many authors as the average col legiate, and is also we'll posted in the polit ical questions of the day, but what puzzles me is that she is decidedly democratic, and I can't for my life of me see how any req sonable person, who has been reared under the fostering hand of our free institutions and love their country and respect theil fellow men and believe in salvation in the world tc come, can be democrat
 l She also reminded me that did her ar injustice ill an article I wrote for The Press | two years ago, giving historical account of my school days, in which said the fav orite mode with the female teachers of i'm parting information to the dullards was tt take them by the arm and apply the switch, while they danced figure to the tune oi their own music. She claims that she never used the switch ill school, and as was but four years old when she taught and have no vivid recollection of being in structed in that way at that term of school therefore l make apology and stand cor rected, and if there were any others who ruled by the preeepts of moral suasion il those days they may consider the apology as applicable to them also. But am sure the great majority of teachers in those days needed the admonition of Solomon and did not spare the rod, for I can dis tinctiy feel tingllng sensation running down from the old welts on my lowel limbs clear to the end of my toes while ] am writing. It also occurs to me in this connection that in giving the names oi teachers in the letter referred to, mad vertantly omitted the name of Abigail Fl dridge, who taught the school for several terms, and was one of the most successful teachers on the list, and if am rightly in. formed she has five brothers who have al ways lived Tn town, and are all successful grangers, and among the most respected citizens of the town.
 Abundant rains have fallen upon the