The Bennington banner. [volume] (Bennington, Vt.) 1858-1894, 1891-11-20

measles.
WELLS r. SMITH is out again, so as to
be about and walk with the aid of a cane.
'LITTLE NUGGET" which appears it
Library hall, Tuesday the oath inst, S
not mining or back-wOods drama, but
a funny home comedy, with plot full of
elegant music, singing and dancing, and
strictly refined in every particular.
THE Pittsfield Sunday Gail, H. T. Dat
man, editor, Oatman Bros, publishers,
celebrated its third birthday last Sunday,
illustrating the Messrs. Oatman, the ma
chinery used in printing and folding the
Call, and some of the more notable local
matters about Pittsfield. We congratu-
late our old friends on the success they
have made in clean Sunday journalism.
THE Ne,oS- Messenger of Marshall,
Mimi, has an item, under date of Oct.
9th, ult., that will interest the young
mans friends in this locality. 1t says:
''That purse containing SIS in bank
notes and one dollar Canadian BILL be-
lOnged to Frank Cutting, the barber, and
he needs it badly, as he is paying for a
house he has just built, and besides is
getting good ready to be married. If
Vanderbilt or any of us newspaper fell
lows had lost it we would no bother to
mention the matter. Frank carried the
little purse or pouch in his watch pocket,
and it dropped out Saturday"
THE special village meeting, yesterday,
voted to dismiss the second article in the
warning-a proposal to pay $3.50 to the
town on account of centennial expenses
and adopted the following resolution:
ION motion of j. T. Shurtleff, it was
Voted, That the trustees be authorized
to settle the case pending against the
village of Bennington, on behalf of the
state, as to liquor fines, provided it can
be settled on the payment of 81 900; or,
in the event that the State Auditor re-
fuses this offer, that they (the trustees)
shall ascertain the amount for which a
settlement of the case may be had"
The Troy Times editorially says
Speaking, Friday, of the reported dis
covery of gold deposits near Bennington,
VT, Prof. w. p. Mason of the Rensselaer,
Polytechnic institute stated that while
traces of gold may have been found, it is
improbable that vein of ore had been
discovered there. Several years ago,
similar report, but found nothing back
of the trace. why, you may find traces
of gold in any back yard said the pro-
lessor, but it does not follow that a vein
of gold will be found there. Claims have
been staked in this state. but no discOv-
cry of gold has been made Prof. Ma
son said that many specimens had been
sent to the institute laborat ry for analy-
sis. In most cases there was not the
slightest trace of gold, but it was shown
that iron pyrites had been mistaken for
the precious metal
THE visit of the First Degree staff Of
Middleboro lodge (near Boston,, last
Friday, was grand success, and the
visiting Odd Fellows were handsomely
entertained at the Putnam House by
Stark Lodge, No. g. of this village. The
staff comprised twenty-three members
and their manner of comforting the de-
gree was superb. The visitors came up
i'll a special car and returned Saturday
afternoon. While here they visited and
assembled the Battle monument, went
through the Soldiers home, the Valen-
tine mill, and visited other points of
interest. They were greatly surprised
at the majestic proportions of the mon
ument-were obliged to acknowledge its
superiority, in several respect, over Bun
ker hill. The Soldiers home was great
surprise-its complete appointments and
fountain far exceeding preconceived
ideas While at the home, Prof. Foye,
the organist of the staff, sang G. A. r.
hymn for the veterans that was greatly
appreciated. Maj. Coffey did the honOrs
of reception. OF the building committee
of the monument, the visitors were the
recipients of favors from Hon. H. &.
Root and Mai Valentine-the latter tax
ing them through his large mill. This
staff was headed by Mr.. j. b. Ryder, a
| Of W
acted as Degree Master during the work
of Friday evening. We are glad to know
that the distinguished party of down
east manufacturers, business men, ETC.,
gained SO pleasant an impression of our
historic town, as they expressed upon
their departure. We hope they will
come again.
In connection with the Tibbits gold
mine to which we referred last week Dr.
II. c. Day, in the Troy Times, writes
some "reminiscences of an interesting his
torical nature. After describing the
gold" the iron pyrites-''foOl's gOld''-
etc, in the rocks he says: "The locality
of the so-called gold mine is invested
with peculiar interest, as the glamour of
local history hangs over it. By a singu-
lar coincidence it was the scene of the
labOrs of another clergyman, Rev. Itha-
mar Hibbard, who belonged to the sect
known as Separatists, or dissenters from
some of the established forms and creeds
of CongregatiOnalism. But Hubbard was
more than SepaTatist; he was Separ-
atist of the Separatists. He was withal
a dogmatic mOralist and poet. In No
vem0er, 1772, he bought of Joseph Wick
wire a rude long cabin, l4xl6 feet, and
one story high, with half an acre of land
for $3.50. BY subsequent purchases of
land he acquired large track of forest
that surrounded his modest mountain
home. The house, which has long since
gone utterly to decay, stood within four
or five rods of the spot where the men
are prospecting for gold The cellar has
caved in. and is almost completely filled
by the accumuatiOns of the dead vege-
table matter of many years, leaving only
a slight depression in the ground to show
the precise site of this famous house of
the wilderness. For several years Hib-
bard was the minister of a small congre-
CATION that assembled at his house. 1t
is said the church consisted of only
seven members, the number to which
not few have always attached peculiar
Importance in the order of creation. The
simple followers of Hubbard fully be-
lieved in the special favor in which they
were held by God, because there was
Just seven of them. But Ithamar Hib-
bard, though gifted above the average
minister of the time, built his church
upon the sands-the sands of unwise Sc
lection of locality and circumstances. A
church located as his was, far up among
the Businesses of the mountain, cut off