The daily morning journal and courier., 1899-11-23
LIVES IN A BARN,
Carrie Bennett, Berlin's Wealthy Maid, T Sleeps in a Hay Mound

Carrie Bennett, Berlin's Wealthy Maid
 Sleeps in Hay Mound
 inc citizens of the little town of Der
 In are considerably exercised over the
 eccentric actions of Miss Carrie Bennett
 o1 that place. Carrie" as she is
 known, is the character of the town and
 s always pointed out to every new
 con.er by the natives. She sleeps in a
 barn; no bed does she occupy. but she | hldes away into a mass of hay at night
 ana emerges in the morning with the
 stray -Wlsps clinging to her clothes and the seeds clustered in her frowsy hair.
 According to neighbor, there is a noticeable lack of bathing facilities
 about the premises and her method of
 cooking seems to be mystery. When
 she goes to the village store in the
 morning she always asks for an oppor-
 turity to warm herself at the furnace
 in inc basement. At times she wears
 boots; other times she doesn't Some times she wears one boot while the oth-
 CT foot is decorated with a tangle of
 rags. She keeps horses and fowls, and
 the officers of the Humane society have
 been on the alert to detect some act of cruelty, but without success. Some | time ago horse belonging to Miss Ben nett roamed through the streets with it's body mass of living sores. Com 1 plaint was made and MT. Thrall visited the place, but when he arrived the horse was asad and buried.
 Lately the officials notified her that she must take better care of herself or some action would be taken, and she promised Ito spruce up," as the vil- lagers say, but apparently hasn't start ed yet. Despite. her neglect of herself Miss Bennett is wealthy She carries mortgages amounting to over ten thou sand dollars on five houses in Berlin. She owns two farms in Granby and is said to have big bank account. On her farm she raises apples and vegeta- bles, which she carts to New Britain every day, starting early in the morn ing and not returning till late at nis!t.
 Among those with whom she trades cash is her invariable motto. She goes to the store in Berlin with bills and sil- ve2 galore and asks that check be given her for the amount. These checks, it is said, are apparently never presented. She locks them away and that is the last ever seen of them.
 The question now being widely dis crssed is, What will become of Miss Pennett this winter? The barn in which she lives is an old, brown and red structure, set well back from the road. It's sides are literally bursting out with hay, and nearly every windeW is broken. The hay comes through the windows, through the sides and out of tue top of the barn. Other contents ot the structure are heaps of decayed ap- pies, the odor of which do not add to the attractions of the place as habt3tion, and ald clothes and potatoes
 Outside, one or two cows and q dozen hers wander about, and an old wagon adjacent to the door is filled with de- caying vegetables. There is no fire and no rlnce for fire. The wind whistles through the cracks and it is wonder to many how Miss Bennett has with stood the chilly nights of the past week. The barn stands on a piece of land that Miss Bennett's father, who, it will he died last spring, owned.
 On the place is a fine house once oc- cupied by the family. When her father di' q she sold the house with the stinu- lation that she should retain the barn until she had disposed of the hay. There are some forty tons in it now and t locks as though some time would siapse before it was sold. After leav- ing the old house Miss Bennett rented a little place on Berlin street. This was practically destroyed by fire about two months ago. and it is since that time that Miss Bennett has been sleepng in the barn.
 The villagers have tried to persuade Ter to make better home for herself, put without avail Miss Bennett is for y-five years old: she is a graduate of prep" school and spent some time in ,ollege. She is also said to be an ac- pianist
 Despite the concern which the people If the town feel for her welfare during