St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1909-02-03
Book Review.
Another Precious Old Classic Resusitated
and Reproduced.

:, rescue of Booklovers once again an
= present, in first class book-making art,
reproduction OF the 1895 edition of 18th
Redeemed Captive Returning to Zion
This is the third in the Hunting series {
n Indian Captivities, the preceding issue
, being reproductions of the Captivity G
w Mrs. Johnson" printed at Windsor il
rs 1914, and THE Captivity and Suffering
ne ofZadock Steele, " to which is prefxed al
le Account of the Burning of Royaton.
% printed at Montpelier in 1916; the sere.
r. being uniform in size and style.
d The publishers show excellent judg
1t ment in selecting George Sheldon, the
J. historian of Deerfield and the lower
e Connecticut Valley, to write the intro
u ductiOn. This wonderful little book,
e THE Redeemed Captive" has passed
through a dozen editions since 1907.
F. P. Wells. the historian OF Newbury,
and the upper Connecticut Valley in his
r history of Newbury, says: "a copy of
the first edition is worth more than its
f weight in gold, and the writer will
vouch that a copy of an edition as late
as 1858 costs more than the entire set
of the Hunting series. In the volume
just published may be found a most
interesting and valuable photography of
the entire subject by Wherefore Eames,
Librarian of the Lenox Library, New
York City. The publishers did well to
select the 1895 edition for reproduction,
for it contains in its appendix much
interesting matter and valuable histori-
cal data.
This edition also contains the first
sermon preached by the Captive after
his return from Canada, which was
delivered in Boston, December 5, 1904, a
few days after his arrival. "The Re-
deemed Captive" like the preceding
books of this series, is of great general
value to lovers of early conditions in
New England-but there are other
reasons why the little volume should
appeal to Vermonters everywhere.
While it is true that the writers of the
other series left descendants who were
and are makers OF the best things in Yer
mont history and conditions, it is super
latively true that the descendants of
THE Redeemed Captive were more
vital in the warp and wool of our being
than were the members of any other
early Vermont family with the possible
exception of the Aliens.
Rev. John Williams, who, at the open
ing OF the story, was pastor of the little
parish at Deerfeld, approximating $50
souls, was about 40 years old The sack
OF Deertleld, as the event is often called,
by the French and Indians, was so
thorough that the entire community
were either killed or taken captive
Among the captives in the Williams
family was little four-year-old Ware
ham, who grew to maturity and became {
minister OF the gospel at Waltham,
Mass, where his son, Samuel, graduate
OF Harvard, class OF 1861, was born April
%, 1743. He became an instructor Al
Harvard, minister of power, and was {
given the degree of Doctor of Laws. {
Rev. Samuel Williams, LII. D., came to |
Rutland in 1888, where he died January
2, 1917. The impress of his ability and t
character was potent everywhere in the /
then little republic of Vermont. He {
preached, he lectured he wrote, he {
worked He was the founder of the Rut-
land Herald, and Vermont's first histor- |
an, the first edition of his history being I
in one volume printed at Walpole, N. H., S
in 1894. The second edition was in ,
two volumes, printed in Burlington in G
1909. Besides numerous sermons and T
addresses which were published +
he wrote a history of the American s
revolution that was first published in r
the Rural Magazine, edited by himself a
and was put into book form bv a New a
Haven publishing house. His remains r
repose in the Old North Burying t
Ground at Rutland. n
But the story ends not here. Charles s
X. Williams, son of Samuel, was born in h
Cambridge, Mass, January "a, 1882, c
and came to Rutland with his parents. 4
He was graduate of Williams College. c
class OF 1900, became for a while tutor b
in that institution, and was admitted to d
the Rutland County Bar in 1903. He |;
represented Rutland in the General AS A
sembly during seven sessions, was states h
attorney, and became a Judge of the V
Supreme Court in 1922, holding the +
office for 20 years and being chief Justice n
Tor IL years. He also held the position D
OF collector OF customs for short time, s.
and was Governor of the state in 1850. O
81. He died March 9, 1853. s.
Governor Williams had two sons. OF o
these the first, Charles L., was born in a
March IA, 1920 Like his +
father he was graduate of Williams n
College and practiced law in Rutland T,
and Brandon, dying III Rutland, Febru- f
airy 10, 1861. He made most valuable h
contribution to Vermont history and hi. r
ography in 1912 by publishing the c
STATISTICS OF the Rutland County Bar a
with Biographical Sketches of its Most +
Distinguished Members" Chauncv K.
the second son, was born in Rutland, T
December 20, 1882, and like his distin-
gulshed father and brother was a grad
uate OF Williams College. He was a =
practlcing lawyer and for many wears {
editor OF the Rutland Herald He was a
student and writer of history and did
much in collecting and arranging Yer A
mont photography. He diedin Rutland.
January 7, 1879.
The Redeemed Captive" is thus seen o
to be indeed not alien to Vermont soil
ne story itself is Vermont's prehistoric q
history. 1t was The Redeemed Can o
tive who preached the first protestant V
sermon on Vermont soil al the mouth IS 10