The daily morning journal and courier., 1895-09-03
oLD SACHEM'S HEAD.
A Touching Reminlscenoe of Days of Lon
 Ago.

A Touching Reminiscenoe of Days of Lon z Ago.
 At Sachem's Head, Guilford Conn, many, many years ago, there was one
 day man blowing in field with yoke of oxen.
 Now and then at the beginning or the
 end of frrow he would stop, and
 raising his hand to shield his eyes look off anxiously towards the water, where
 the British ships were anchored. Every moment he expected to see some moye- ment on the part of the Britishers to | indicate that they were about to land, and what then? Perhaps fire his house and barns. take possession of anything of value which was portable and make him a prisoner. Before very much blow | ing had been accomplished he saw the signs for which he had been watching | so anXiously. A boat was lowered and was making for point of land as near | ly as he could tell just opposite his home He knew what it meant if they | landed, and then with crushing force came the thought of his wife-ill almost | unto death There was no time in those days for the pros and cons, so leaving | his blow and harnessing his oxen to cart, two wheeled one at that, very quickly and with as little commotion as
 possible he went into the house, and in a few minutes appeared with his wife. After laying her very gently on some quilts in the cart he collected as many | of his valuaTbles a he could, put them ! into the cant and started the oxen off | up the hill, leaving all for which he had toiled so hard to the flaming torch of the British We can imagine the feel l ings of the poor man at leaving to the sweet will of the looters the treasures l in house-furnishings perhaps a Chip pendale cabinet, silver porringers, egg shell china and mayhap the old clock, | things which had been brought with | so much trouble and care from the mother country, which country was proving herself anything but a loving mother. The bees buzz away, the air | is sweet with the odor of wild flowers, | it seems impossible that there can be such things as war and strife. The oxen plod along slowly, whisking their I tails at the too importuning flies. They have nearly reached the brow of the hill. Suddenly there is shout. Look | ing back the man sees the red-coats swarming up the hill towards his home. Very soon they see the retreating figure ! of the owner outlined against the sky One, more blood-thirsty than the rest, runs after the settler and fires his gun at the little group, but is too far away to do any harm, and in few minutes returns to his comrades. As the cart rattles along with it's poor, i'll occupant the man turns to take one last look; the red-coats have already fired one barn.
 Sick at heart, he turns away and gee haws, trying if possible to hurry those faithful plodding creatures, the oxen, for he wants to reach shelter before 1 night The house, and all it contained was burned, the foundation alone re- maining even unto this day
 l Almost any native will tell the in- quirng traveller where the old Leete
 house stood and point to the founda-
 tion stones with a great deal of pride After the troubles were over another l | panying it are still in the possession of | a daughter of the house and neither
 love nor money can purchase one foot l of the land so dearly is it loved. One l beautiful day in July I went to Sach- ems Head at the invitation of the own Ter While swinging in a hammock pres ent things seemed to fade away and in 1 the offing I could see man-of-war on which red-coated figures were hurry ling to and fro. Presently boat is low cred and things become still more haZy l and another vision comes of the old l Sachem Chief in war paint and feath | CTS and with tomahawk in hand. Just as he raises his tomahawk to scalp me
 some one says, Come to dinner. Have
 you had a day mare?"
 l Tradition says that favored ones, at
 certain phases of the moon, see a phan
 tom OK cart and driver, the white face
 of the sick woman peering over the edge
 | of the cart, disappearing over the hills
 and far away. F. l.. w.