Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1908-04-21
Early DAYS In Hartford.

In my youthful days I used to enjoy
hearing my grandmother tell me of thu
things that happened as long ago al
1900 in Hartford, then called East But
terrified.
At the time of the Revolution my
grandfather enlisted. He was born In
Plympton, Mass. He hoed and moved
and held the pillow, and longed for TWEEN
ty-one. His birthday came. His father
urged, but stoutly he resisted. His
sisters wept, his mother prayed, but of
he went and listed. They marched him
on through wet and dry, to tunes more
loud than charming, and Juggling KNAPP.
sack, box and gun, twas harder work
than farming.
At the close of the war he found him,
self in the upper part of the state OF
New York. His regiment got its dis.
charge about the first of December, and
all he had to do then was to get home
the best way he could, walking over
frozen ground. Soon his shoes gave
out, his old shoes. He had no money,
and if he had it would not have been
much use to him, for if you recollect,
continental money did not command
much of premium in those days.
He made it his home at his fathers
place until 1902. He went to the Banks
fishing summers and courted my grand
mother winters. Then they got mar
ried. In the year 1900 he made up his
mind to 90 down east and take up a
farm. He got to Hartford about the
first of May, felled his trees, built log
house, and got chance to spud in some
corn on the clearing of one of his neigh
bors who had been there two years.
In the spring of 1901 he sent to Massa-
chusetts for my grandmother and chill
dren to meet him at Portland. They
packed up their household goods in two
big chests II have one of those old chests
in nv possession now and started for
Portland in what was called a packet at
that time. They marched and counter
marched the Atlantic Ocean for ten
days, and finally arrived at Portland.
There they met my grandfather with a
pair of 3-year-old steers and the old
mare hitched to sled. The reason be
took sled was that he could not get
through with anything but sled.
He loaded his goods on his sled, put a
bushel of rye on the old mares back,
secured it we'll, and my grandmother
used the bag of rye for a side-saddle.
Then he tied my father, boy of 3 years,
on behind, and my uncle Otis, boy OF l
year, in front. My uncle Charles, boy
of 6 years, came with his father on the
sled.
How long they we're making the jour
ney | don't remember, but my grand
mother got there first and found the
clearing and some neighbors to receive
her. They were very glad to see her
and showed her into the house. And
oh! what house! No floor, nothing
but big stump for furniture, one half
bag of meal for food, tin cup or spider
to cook it in.
have often heard my grandmother
say she was never homesick, but she did
not lack much of it then. She was a
tailoress by trade, so she made trade
with a neighbor to 60 to North Turner
and get load of boards, and pay him in
making clothes.
My grandfather showed up then, and
said, "Bathsheby," pronounced Bashe)
what in the devil are you going to do
with them boards?" She said, "You
find me handsaw and look on and you
will see." She got her floor down and
had boards enough left to put up a few
shelves. The neighborS whispered
among themselves that Bill Cushman's
wife was a little too tony for new
country.
recollect one story she told me that
always pleased me. One day Mrs. Dear
born, neighbor, came to make call.
She had a new, large size bonnet.
When she came in my grandmother was
out, SO she took off her bonnet and laid
it on the shelf. When my grandmother
came in she saw the bonnet and thought
it was our old black cat. She grabbed a
mortar pestle and let fly, and it knocked
the bonnet into cooked hat.
One more incident l call to mind. In
those days they had no settled preachers.
Once in while a travelling preacher
came through the place. He would stop
Saturday and advertise to preach the
next day. All the boys were sent for
miles around to give notice. One Sat
urday man rode up and said he was a
travelling missionary and would like to
preach if they would let him. So after
dinner the boys were sent out to spread
the Gospel. About bed time he offered
prayer, and then they gave him candle
and told him to 60 up the ladder and
90 to bed. 1t was hot night in June.
About midnight bat flew into the
house. The old man said the bat had
got to die if he could hit him. The bat
went up the scuttle. The old man fol-
lowed with candle in one hand and
shovel in the other. The preacher,
scared almost to death, rose up and
cried, "Spare my life, you may take my
money" My grandfather said, "You
d fool, lay down and go to sleep. l
don't want your money. I'm after that
bat.n WIN. CUsHMAN.