Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-07-30
have been abandoned because they cannot
be sold or titled with profit.
A Tour Of the State.

a Your OF the state.
In company with ex-Gov. Batchelder, Sec
rotary Of the board of agriculture, I have
been making a tour of New Hampshire,
and have visited every county In the state
to see the results of the policy that has
been adopted; to inspect abandoned
farms that have been taken up by rich
people and adapted for summer homes; to
see other abandoned farms which are still
in the market. and to make known to the
world at large, and particularly to persons
who are seeking summer homes, the ad-
vantages that may be found here.
We started out from Concord in an auto
mobile and found a landscape that looks
very much like old Hampshire. England,
and doubtless for that reason the state was
given Its name. Few parts of the world
are so beautiful at this time Of year. but
the farmers have found that they cannot
cultivate the scenery successfully for any
thing but hay.
The state roads," that is, those which
have been made with state funds, are ex
cellent. They are quite as good as any you
can find in the old countries of Europe.
although they are not so wide. In 1908
Gov. Batchelder secured the passage Of
law by the legislature appropriating $4,000
annually for six years for building roads in
townships that were willing to tax them
selves an equal amount for the same pur-
pose Out Of a total Of 26O towns in the state
100 accepted the option within three months.
and several others have since accepted 1t,
so that the sum of a quarter of million
dollars is being invested annually in mac.
adamizing the country roads, and by the
end of six years 1t will be a pleasure to 60
to any part of New Hampshire in carriage
or automobile. Most Of the roads are good
enough at this time Of year without fur
Their improvement, although those which
have not yet been macadamized are pretty
muddy when 1t rains During our long
- o1N OF trad loo Wa
not have the slightest trouble except at
few places where the roads were UNDER
going repairs.
Series Of Lovely Villages.
AS we left Concord going west we passed
through a series of lovely villages filled
with long succession of comfortable
homes surrounded by groves and gardens
There seemed to be a continuous line of big
white farmhouses and bigger barns all the
way. The barns are monstrous. bigger
than those of Pennsylvania Hopkinton,
where Daniel Webster courted and married
pretty Sarah Fletcher, is one of the love-
Hest villages Of New England: Henniker Is
equally beautiful, a cluster of very white
houses, with very green blinds almost hid
den from the sun by big maple trees. with
library which antedates Mr.. Carnegie's
time Henniker used to be the home OF
Edna Dean Proctor, the poet.
The road runs along the bank OF the Con-
toocook river, and Is shaded with trees near
ly the entire distance to Hillsborough, a
town Of 1000 inhabitants, mostly farmers,
which was the home of Franklin Pierce.
There is q hosiery mill and several other
factories there now. When the canvass for
abandoned farms was originally made the
town of Hillsborough reported sixty, but
every one of them has since been sold to
some city family for a summer home, and
in nearly every case the old farmhouse has
been remodeled and fitted up at a small
expense The usual method Is to put q
bath tub and French range inside and
broad piazza outside.
Hillsborough is typical New Eng and
village Of neatly kept houses which look
as if they were freshly painted. neatly kept
grounds, well shaded and old-fa sihioned
gardens. Two nephews of President Pierce
FRANKLIN and Kirk Pierce by name, reside
here now and occupy his former law office
which is small frame building, with the
sign Pierce Brothers. Lawyers" painted
over the door. They live in big white
houses shaded by beautiful elm trees near
by The Pierce homestead, where the Presi-
dent spent his childhood and early man
hood, is little farther on-a two-story.
Iow-irowed house. with porch along the
first story, and surrounded by maRnifl-
cent naples. 1t has recently been repaired
ant piles of lumber and other debris which
have been allowed to remain rather spoil
the effect President Pierce was born about
three miles away. the lady Of the manor
told us. and was brought there, when he
was three weeks old, in 1904.