St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1896-10-09

to ten cents. Yet it was some time be-
fore it was done. In 1901 it cost eight
cents to send letter from Pcacham to
Hayerhill Postage stamps were far in
the future. Letters were seldom prepaid,
the cost of Transportation was borne by
the receiver.
cannot better illustrate the rates of
postage on newspapers than by giving
some of the old bills which still remain
among the Johnson papers, from which
most Of the information in this article
has been drawn, and which, locally inter-
esting, show incidentally how little
share the general government took in
the dissemination of intelligence.
Captain David Smith Of ST. Johnsbury
TO Thomas Johnson, DR..
To postage of the Portsmouth
Chronicle from oct. LIST, 1879,
to the Sd OF February, 1900, 500"
Barnes Buckmnister of Peacham,
DR..
To postage of the Connecticut
Courant from oct. l. 1899 to
18th OF January 1900, S.23"
"Col. Asa Parker, DR..
To postage of the Boston Centinel
January, 1901, SIS"
1t will thus be seen that the postage on
newspaper for any distance was greater
than its subscription price. Only few
could afford to take a paper from a dis
tant part of the country. In 1895,
when Hon. Thomas Tolman of Green's
boro and Gen. Gratis of Craftsbury
wished to take paper printed twice a
week at Philadelphia they, although
two of the most prominent men in YER
mont in their day, did not know how to
obtain it, and had to write to Col. John
son to contract for the paperand its con-
veyanCe to them.
The first mail carrier travelled on horse
back, conveying their letters in their
saddle-b bags and later in mail bags
strapped to the saddle Their progress
was slow and delays were many. In
1906 letter sent from Manchester, Ohio,
on the Goth OF July was received at New
bury the last day of August Through
what long journeys on horseback,
shifted from one carrier to another,
passed as it were from hand to hand,
and from one backwoods post office to
another, did this worn letter travel, in a
time now long enough to compass the
globe.
By slow degrees the roads began to
improve, streams were bridged and
woods cut down, and the mail carrier
began to transport his charge in a
wagon. But it was long before this
came, and these old papers reveal as
wildly the change which has come over
this section Within hundred years a!
any oi the memorjda which remain.
Speaking OF Haycrhill and Newbury
with which | am most familiar th
more we study their condition at tina
time, the more we wonder at their indif
ference to the conveyance of written anC
printed intelligence. A century ago TIN
population Of both towns was togethe
about twenty-five hundred, and Their
were more college graduates in then
than there are now. There was news
paper published in each town, and not ;
few books were printed by Nathan
Coverly at Haverhill and by his son a
Newbury before this century began
Haverhll had a good academy ant
several residents we'll known all owe
New England. Daniel Farrand of New
bury, Moses Dow and Alden Sprague Q
Haverhll were eminent at the bar. Rev
Ethan Smith of the latter town wa
not only well-known clergyman, bu
the author of several works, widely rea
in their day. One of them an attempt t
prove that the North American Indian
are descendants of the ten lost tribes,
a very ingenious piece of reasoning
The average of intelligence, the e%ten
and variety of general information an
the tone of society seems to hav
been fully equal to that at present
There was this difference that tn
| modern newspaper, reaching ever
family, puts all on level in the receptio
, ofintelligence, In those days the leader
, read and gave their ideas to their TO
lowers.
When we consider all these things, w
find it hard to believe that single ma
. carrier, once week, brought on hors,
, back, not only the mail for Haverhill an
Newbury, but for all the country betwee
: the White Mountains and the rive
valleys that tend toward Lake Chan
plain, as far north as there were settl
ments.
In these days the delay of the mail &c
a single day is considered grievance
: but in 1898, owing to the blunder {
some one in authority, the mail wa
ordered 10 leave Haverhill for Plymout
: and Boston on Wednesdays, while tt
} mail from Newbury to Hanover went o
! Thursdays, and thus letters from New
l bury and all the region above it, whic
, were to go Bostonward, had to lie in til
S Haverhil postofice nearly week. Til
e seems astonishing to us, but so slow wa