The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1913-10-25
A STORY FROM THE PAST
How a Little Wilmington Boy Mar
rowIy Escaped Ceath.

Editor of The Banner; Here is a
little story almost tragedy of an
occurrence in Wilmington, VT, near
A. d. 1916. One evening near this
date, Abraham Boyd and his wife
Hannah, after their children ca boy
and gitD were in bed asleep, made
themselves ready to visit their
heighbors. such visits were frequent
and very pleasant to the farmers
and their wives, where quite a large
fire place, filled with blazing logs.
and they would tell the news; To-
this was in war time, and if news
was scarce, witch and hob goblin
stories were told, causing many a
sigh and SILVER to those who were
easily scared. Also those neighbor
hood visits were made pleasant By
singing tunes and such songs as
Lord Thomas, he was n gay fellow,
He was used TO hunting deer;
Fair Ellainor was gay lady,
Lord Thomas he loved her dear"
Lord Brakeman was another popular
song. Another pleasant feature of
those evening visits was supper
where no doubt Bean pc .riage hot,
bean porrige cold" was brought on TO
tempt the appetite and fresh rye
bread, nus cakes and cheese and
milk with a cup of the bohea or
souchcng tea perhaps. A mug Of
Zip or toddy was passed around
sometimes. Not many individual
cups were used then and individual
plates were sea zee. If they had meat
it stood in the center of the cable
and those standing around il were
expected to sop in,' that is, dip
their bread or potatoe in the gravy
and eat it without knife or fork on
plate. On this particular evening.
Abraham and Hannah Boyd, bidding
goodbye 10 all, started for their
home. 1t was, cold night in winter.
The horse probably did not 30 very
fast. | think il was moonlight, but
do not certainly know, but as "old
Dobbin" neared home. some object
in the road INSTRUCTED the sleigh
and the horse stopped. Perhaps the
no, se understood the object Of OBJ
struction.
For beast and bird have seen and
heard.
That which man knoweth not"
Mr.. Boyd stepped out of the sleigh
and found a child in the path i'm
pcding their progress. They made
haste to get home as soon rs pos
sible and found upon lighting a
candle, that The child was their own
His name was Robert Boyd. He
was very cold and much frozen. BY
judicious medical treatment he was
revived and lived to be an old man.
lie was a cripple during the remain
der of his life, losing some of his
fingers and toes caused by the
severe freezing. He apparently
slept unfit near the time OF their re-
turn and awakening with his little
siste who was younger. they both
tried to get out at the door but it
was fastened. Robert succeeded in
raising a window. and got outside,
but his sister could not get up to the
window. He went in quest OF his
parents in night dress with bare
feet and when so cold he could not
walk, he crept If they had not
found him as they did he would have
persisted. That was severe lesson
to his parents. Even at this late
day children are fastened into their
homes to suffer and sometimes burn
TO death. Robert Boyd married Sus-
anna Wheeler OF Nottingham, VI
He was born near 1771 and died
near 1915. His wife Susanna died
near 1858 think they both lived
and died in Wilmington.
Fanny Bowen Shippee