Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1916-02-18

last cOulu. n Wnen L got nome,
there stood Rachel in front O. the
house with the door open, N the
light shining out of the fireplace,
holdin' in her han the old revolu-
shin gun; and in the yard laid a
dead wolf"
See to Rachel, you can keep
the wolf from the door ez brave ez
any man, m I'll kiss We fort if we
are armed m she dropped tn old
Ezra, don't you tell that part of
it, interrupted his wife.
Vas, l will, too, fer that's the
sugar on't-and woman-like threw
her arms round my neck"
Weren't you alarmed when the
wolf came bowling around your
door," asked Marktree.
No, not alarmed, but armed; to
tell the truth, l did feel jes' leetle
posed pom. / heerd i'm growlin',
but | kept collected and took down
the ole gun t see if twas loaded,
m found twas; then | opened the
door n pinted it straight at i'm N
pulled the trigger. Dear me, my
shoulders ached most ever sence,
m it makes it ache wus to think
ont. I've heerd mother TELL" con-
tinued she, how Mrs. Samuel Rob-
inson, down in Bennington, fright
ened the wolves away from her door
one night with firebrands, while her
husband was in England as agent
for the settlers of the Hampshire
Grants in 1867. One night, when
living in their log house, she and
her children, David. Jonathan m
Anna, the wolves came and tried at
the door n winders t get in; finally
Mrs. Robinson seized some fire.
brands from the fire, opened the
door and waved them and shouted
with all her might, and the wolves
fled in terror n never bothered her
agin. Her poor husband died of
smallpox while he was in England,
and that most broke the poor
woman's heart.
Dye know" she added, the
first gristmill built in town was the
year the state was admitted into the
Union, and the people came twenty
miles by marked tires to mill. One
man travelled five miles on snow
shoes in the woods, drawing his wife
n baby to reach their log cabin
abode. But for all that I've heerd
mother say that they had lots of fun
in her day, mixed in with their hard.
Ships"
Vas" Joined Uncle Ezra
twan't no uncommon thing fel
the fust settlers to go t. the wood
lots they'd bought, N camp out
miles away from any other human
;; habitation, til they'd got their log
, cabins rolled up. n then go after
, their families; good many on EN-
bro't all their b'longin's on thu
backs, m sometimes drawed 'em ir
on handsleds in the winter with Thu
wives m babies. knew a mar
who said that he was the most re.
spectacle man in the town cos he was
the only man Twin in it. Those was
, stirring days, and Vermont was
| pooty woodsy then, when twas
t called The Equivalent Land"
The author herewith takes the
liberty to quote from an ancient
Vermont history:
When at former day the line
was established between Massachu-
sets and Connecticut, many inhab.
itants who had received grants OF
land from the former province, in
compensation for their former ser.
vices against the French and Indians
: found themselves thrown into the
latter, and were required to aban.
4 don their possessions. The state OF
Massachusetts, with a eommendable
sense of justice, made them, in com.
pensation grant of what is now
} the towns Of Putney, DummerstOr
and marlborough, Vermont
3 hence called in those davs 'Thf