Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1896-03-20
Eugene Field.
Personal RecolIections of II Brattleboro
Girl, who Knew the Poet and HumOr-
list from Childhood up.

out, appeared in the February number of
the Chaperone Magazine of st. Louis. 1t
is from the pen of Mrs. Jane NJ. (Kellogg)
Fisher of that city, Bratteboro girl whom
many of our people know very well, and
whose nom de plume of "Jane McAfeen is
by no means unfamiliar to the readers of
The Phoenix. These extracts from the
article are clipped almost'at random:
In the genealogical history of the family
of the late General Martin Field of New
fame, VT, compiled by his son, Charles
Kellogg Field, we find that the De la FIELDS
and De la Feldes were common before the
reign of Richard ii. During the fourteenth
century the prefix ode La was dropped
and the simple name Field substituted.
John Field, the astronomer, was the most
illustrious known ancestor of the family.
He was born in London, A. d. 1920, and
in 1866 published the first astronomical
tables, calculated on the theory of the
Copernican discoveries, which ever APP
peared in England. In 1858, Philip and
Mary granted him patent for his service,
authorizing him to bear as a crest over his
family arms, what in the language of her
aldry would be described dexter arm
habited gules, issuing from clouds proper
and supporting an armillary sphere Or
The original arms were sable, chevron
between three wheat sheaves, argent"
1t was in the fall of the year 1866 that
first met Eugene and Roswell Field. The
boys, then respectively ID and 10 years of
age, were placed in charge of my mother,
who was going to st. Louis to live, where
their father also resided. Mr.. Field was
anxious to see his sons, and seized this OPP
| E fo1,
to him from their home in Amherst, Mass.
Although relatives of mine on my fathers
side, (Grandma Field and my grandfather
were brother and sister, we had never seen
each other before, for the lads were born
in Missouri and l was born in Vermont.
! My first impression was decidedly favor
able-both lads were fair to look upon and
as full of pranks as the two Dromios. 1t
was very entertaining to watch their antics
on the cars during our long, uncomfortable
journey to the, in those days, far Western
| land. 1t seemed to me they were not still
one minute of the day. AT each station
where the train stopped, they rushed out
and promenaded up and down the platform
in full view of my well-nigh frantic moth
er, calmly waving an adieu as the cars
moved on, and shouting, Goodbye, cousin
Mary, goodbye" By the time she had
given them up to destruction and was fairly
quivering with excitement, they woull
quietly take their seats by her side, say
! ing: 1--WE are all right this time anyway"
thereby filling her with dire forebodings as
to what the next jumping off place might
have in store for them.
When we reached st. Louis we separat-
ed, the boys going with their father, and
my mother establishing herself elsewhere;
but we managed to meet every day. There
was so much to be seen and talked over in
a large city, and we were just at the age to
enjoy everything and believe everything.
We had one never-faling bond IN common
and that was the theatre. Every night we
haunted Ben De Bars old opera house upon
Pine street, and every single morning we
came together to discuss some wonderful
play. l remember Lawrence Barrett was
acting in "Rosedale" at this season, and
creating great sensation in the character
of Eliot Gray. Naturally, these simple
country children who had never witnessed
anything of the kind before, were COM
pletely stage-struck. The brothers grew
so familiar with the play that they were
able TO repeat most of the lines, and we
literally feasted upon "Rosedale'' for two
whole weeks, and retailed it the third
week. / shall never forget how | craned
my neck in the front row of the dress circle
to search for the brothers below, where the
pit used to be, and when our eyes met
what sparkes of delight were thrown across
the dusky building! The affection between
the brothers was very strong the two
motherless boys chung to one another in
mutual admiration, each possessing his
own peculiar talent and proud to recognize
it in the other.
Eugene's sympathies were always drawn
to the poor and needy. "a mans a man
for a. that was written. all over the big
souled author. When his father died, Eu-
gene hunted up his old Irish nurse, whom
he styled "Aunty' Beattie, and who had
been for years employed by his father to
take charge of his apartments. He found
her sick and almost destitute, ministered to
her wants, and at Mr.. Fields funeral
"Aunty' Beattie, the faithful old servant,
entered the church as one of the chief
mourners, leaning upon Eugenes arm, and
the young man guided her up the aisle as
carefully asthough she had beenthe greatest
lady in the land. Everything that needed
protection claimed his attention. He was
a marvellous mimic; he initiated everything |
perfectly; from the soughing of the wind |
around the New England farm house TO |
the farmer without saving wood for the |
winters fuel. You could hear the sound |
of the wheezy saw when it struck the |
tough pine knot, and the gradually de- |
creasng grind of the defunct log as it fell |
from the rickety saw-horse on the ground |
at his feet.
His well-known carelessness about mate |
rial things was almost phenomenal. He |
conscientiously fulfilled the scriptural in
junction about not caring for the morrow, |
or even the day. His wife, nevertheless,
persevered in charging him with light |
household commissions, hoping he might |
change for the better-it was vain hoping |
against hope; he would come home to din |
ner and his patient wife would ask, |
"Where is the meat l told you to buy?" |
"Oh, forgot all about it, but never mind |
the Lord will provide" he invariably an |
swered; and the saying came to be a by |
word in the family.
One Sunday, his little daughter, who |
was just beginning to prattle and take |
notes of everything, accompanied her nurse |
to Sunday school, where she grew very |
much interested in the services. Finally, |
the minister arose and requested some |
members of the school to repeat a sentence |
from the Bible. No one responded, and |
he asked second time, "Cannot some |
child present give me simple verse from |
the Book of books?" Whereupon Eugene's |
baby-girl arose and with a reproachful |
look at the delinquents, piped out her |
fathers comforting assurance, 1.-THE Lord
will provide" and covered herself with |
Il. L. n