Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1902-04-04
BRIDGING TIME AND SPACE
A Letter from Korea Recalls the Middle
bury of Twenty Five Years Ago.

Election upon the MIDDLEBURY REGISTER
to say that its circulation in Korea Is
very limited, and when a stray copy fell
into my hands the other day it seemed
like voice from out the past. | read it
through from beginning to end and then
read all the advertisements. This copy
was sent me from a good friend to let me
know of the death of Mrs. Higley, for it
contained very appreciative obituary
of that lady, whom | was not fortunate
enough to know personally but some of
whose immediate relatives are old friends
of mine. If this should meet the eye of
any of the ''young people'-alas, not so
young now of the years between 1876
to 1880, they will not wonder that sight
of MIDDLEBURY REGISTER called up
host of pleasant memories. 1t will call
up the genial personally of Prof. @. ID.
Mead and how he used to put us through
our Caesar and Virgil and Anabasis and
Homer. The pleasantest memories of
my life previous to my exile to Korea
center about that Middlebury high
school and its neighborhood, and when
pick up newspaper and my eye falls
on the names of Sheldon and Buttolph
and Chapman and Wainwright and Stew
art and score of others, | experience
distinct shock, veritable sensation; but
a very pleasant one. AS / read over the
names of some of the boys l used to play
with | wonder which of the pretty girls
of my acquaintance they married, and in
my fancy | match them of to suit my
self. | can shut my eyes and see them
all sitting there in the school-room.
There on the boys side were ed" But
tolph, "Hank" Hyde. Eugene Twitchell,
George, John and Phil Stewart, John
Morrison, Geo. Hammond, SD" Aims
worth, Sam Sheldon, ETC., etc., all good
boys except when - but that's too
long story. On the other side of the
room there were Lucia Sutton. Hattie
Chapman, May and Matte Dauns, Ger
tie Fletcher, Matte and Laura Mead,
Florence Parkhill, Julia Eldredge, and
many more, all of whom must long since
have changed their names if men have
: eyes to see.
, Some of those old time friends have
, doubtless been laid away to rest, but
memory holds them and Heaven holds
them.
If were asked to name the spot where
, the pleas ntest hours of my boyhoOd
were spent | should not hesitate mo-
ment. 1t is the music room in the graded
school building, where under the patient
and discriminating tutelage of Miss
Emma IIgley we were introduced to the
mysteries of music. We used to sing
that marvellous song:
40 for the wings, for the wings of n dove;
Far away, far away would rove;
In the wilderness build me nest,
l And remain there forever at rest"
, Little did think then that | should
rove far away to the wilderness of Korea
to build me nest. This is about as far
as one can get away from Middlebury
} and still stick to this little sphere we call
the Earth but tonight leap the longl-
5 tudes and stand in front of the postoflce,
2 which was then just below the Congre-
e gational church. / walk down by Chap
t mans store, down the hill by Sheldon's
= store, across the wooden bridge, and on
e up the dear old street till | see the old
g schoolhouse. We all remember the night
: when the big block burned Just west of
: the bridge. What wild night of it we
: boys had. There's no fun like a fire if
= twelve and seventeen. And the Jokes
a and the fun of those days-they live and
, grow in the memory and keep us young.
4 There are doubtless those who will re-
r member the glorious laugh that rang
r through the crowded postoflice when
!, Pres. Hubert, my father, asked the
: postal clerk how long it would take a
+ letter to get to Moriah On. W, and the
s rascal twas it Geo. Hammond, Jr. p
= asked "Maria who?'
| wonder if the boys still go swimming
at "The Wharf" or at "The Tree" or
: fishing at the Lemon Fair, tramplng
home in the rain through eleven miles of
' Addison county mud.
= We boys had our ideals, too. We used
to wonder whether we would ever equal
! Sam Sheldon on skates, or whether we
would ever be able to swim like Jim
{ Donohue, or whether we would ever be
able to sport pair of gold-plated skates
y like Tom Fletcher, or whether we would
! ever be able to Jump like Charlie Mead,
u or play ball like Pat MeldOn, or sing like
VIII Sheldon, or play accompaniment
u like Frank Whipple, or "speak a piece
Il like Jack Stapleton, or to be as popular
4 with the girls as George Bell, or play a
! snare drum like Fletcher Chapman.
y Alas! we never lived up to our ambitions.
In after life there seem no pleasures
u quite so keen as those of boyhood.
: would rather gather arbutus on Chapman
IL Hill than own gardenful of the choicest
! chrysanthemums of Japan. | would
! rather shoot grey squirrels OF Snake
< Mountain than hunt for tigers in the
II wilds of Korea. | would rather attend
10 one of the old-time promenades that we
used to have at the end of each term OF
school in Middlebury than attend the
swellest ball that New York ever saw
| would rather sing BIRD of the Wild
N erness' in the old time choral society
lr under the baton of Prof. Higley thar
listen to the finest Onera In London.