AN ’ 1.; la % o W DELIVERED IN KEENE, N. H., J%ULY 4:, 1876. AT THE REQUEST 01? THE cm GOVERNMENT, _......BY...._ WILLIAM ORN E WHITE. KEENE: SENTINIBL PRINTING oommmr, BOOK ANTI) JOB mxxtwrrma. ‘I87 6. CITY OF KEENE. In the gem‘ of our Lord, one thousand eight hundred and se'oentyr«-sine. A RESOLUTION in relation to printing the Historical Address of WILLIAM 0. VVI~II’1‘E, J my 4th. V Resolved by the City O’o1mc73ls of the City of Keene, as follows: That the thanks of the City Government be presentedrto the R1tv- 1«mI«3NI> WILLIAM O. VVHITE, for the address delivered by him on the 4th inst. That; at copy of the same be requested for the Press, and that two thousand copies, in pzamphlet form, be printed for the use of the cit- izehs; one copy of the same to be forwarded to Washington, in ac- cordance with the recommendation of the President, and one copy to the clerk of the County Courts. CHARLES SHRIGLEY, President Common Council. E. FARRAR, Mayor. A true Copy.--—AT'I‘ES'I‘: d H. S. MARTIN, City Cleric pro tem. ADDRESS. r~ We are al.l an hundred years old today. For this clay, at least, we identify ourselves with our country, and we know that it will not be the privilege of the youngest, any more than of the oldest among us, to lend our bodily presence at the next centennial. So there is, indeed. a significant sense in which, to—day, we are all of one age. I do not forget that Deacon John Whitman, of Bridgewater, Mass., lived to be one hundred and seven years old—--but upon what conditions? His son testifies that no matter what terrificevents were occur-— ring in the “world, no matter what instances of depravity were reported in private life, the most vehement ezcpression of dis- approbation which he could recall hearing the patriarch use was, “Oh strange I” Now I think it may be conceded that the Young America of Keene will hardly be willing thus rigidly to rule their spirits. We shall hardly find them bartering all their inteijectional e"x:clamations for the mild regimen of “Oh strange I” even to secure the hope of living past an hun- dred years. p Resigning, tl1e1'efore, to the unborn the privilege of being eager and active participants in the 11er:t centennial, we stretch one hand to the shadowy forms of the past, and the other to the shadowy forms of the future, content to be, to-clay, only a connecting link between the two. The pity is that this call of Congress and the I’resident, for some glimpse of historical research to-day, on the part of the various localities in our land, should not be more generally heeded. In any one instance, there may not be much evoked from the records of the past, to stir the sympathies of the listeners. But when we think of the countr «' as a whole, when we consider all our cities and villages, we are reminded G of the coral reefs on the coast of ,Australia, a thousand miles r in extent, the combined work of inmnnerable rnyriads of mi-- croscopic creatures, each one of which has performed his indispensable part in this marvellous architecture. Thus each. contribution, however humble, to thehistory of any village in the land, is so much added to that historic reef, into which, with microscopic eyes, the investigator “"01? future centuries will be glad to pry. The time may come when we of this generation shall be laughed at for thinking ourselves so wise. They that come afterns will wish that we had been more spar-_ ing of our theories, and hadibeen more patient in recording, facts. The theories which an Egyptian l astronomer held five thousand years ago, it may not greatly concern us 1 to know, but his record of theappearance of the star Sirius, once more, after‘ having been concealed by the sun, enables us, with one stroke of the pen, to add seventeen hundred and seventy years b to the already venerable years of the third pyramid of Grizeh. So let us refresh our minds with a few of the incidents that are connectedwith our own story as a frontier settlement, as a village, and subsequently as a city, assuring posterity, in advance, of our thanks, should it add brighter lustre to the name of Keene than all which it has worn before. Yet it is hard to divert our minds event for a moment, from Philadelphia, to-day. In imagination, we are all under the shadow of Indepen-' deuce Hall; We hear the charge, of yore: “Proclairn liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof.” We see its avenues re-peopled with those patriots of an elder day. “How long Will it all last?” is the whispered prayer in their minds, as they think of the germ of national freedom which they are patiently committing to the soil. We turn our eyes away for a moment, and, as we look again, behold their prayer answered in the bursting from the soil of the “Century Plant” of American Liberty, its petals wet with dew drops from heaven,——-the oppressed from other lands, aye, even from our own borders, all clasping hands exultingly beneath its beneficent shelter! It was through the legislation of Massachusetts, in July 1732, that the proprietors of the Upper Ashuelot, (for thus '7 the tract was desig'11eted,) derived their rights. On June :2t"3th. 1734, (one hn11dreclex1d nineteen years before the observ- eiioe of the toWn’s oe11te11ni.el in 18533, which eelelamtiorx oom- inetiiomtecl, strictly, only the one lninclredtli a1n1ive1*se1'y of its cl1e.rter under its present 11e1ne,) We see these prop1'ieto1*s t:‘neeting‘ in "Ooneorcl, Ma.se., “at the house of M1‘. J Ollitthétll Hall, l1’1'l’1-i'10lCl€3l‘. ” In the follovviiig Septeinher, at ‘very few of these pmp1'ietors reeell the um‘;’1'eq11e11tecl wilclemese of their choice, lay the wvey of N o1'tl1'Iield., Mass, its nee.rest civilized neighbor. In the year 1740, tliiey find themselves, upon the aCljl‘1St111e1.‘ll3 of the disputed hon11clm'y line heetween l\Iesseeh11- setts emd New i~I:1.1npsl1i1'e, “exe.l11cleclf'1‘on1 the “province of the Messechtisetts Ba._v, to vvhicli l3l10y2:L'l‘W22LiiGS suppc">sed theniselves to belong, ” end v:.~1,i11l_v l.)eseeol1it1g the powers that he, t‘h.et “they II1:‘I~l.y he emlexfecl to the said hitesseczhlisetts P1'ovi11ee.” It wonlcl be it great pieee of liistorio treason, t<>i1ie11eg'ii1e our l3e::n'1t‘ifu1 ‘v::Ll‘ley., he tieixigg first settled only a. l‘1nn<‘l1*e(:l yeere before the CtO1’111I](~3I1101‘£Ll3lO11 in ;18:33, for it W:i1.S in ihc-it as emly as the year 1736 tlmt lviein street eiilzti-gecfl its l:>o1:de1*s,tl1e following vote l:)ei11g then ‘peseecl: “Fo‘ms1nuel1 es the Town Street ie juclged to be to iiieizwmv eonveliiently to eeec>1:11iclete. tl1eProp1'ietors, Tliet ever_v 1?’rop1'ietor* wl1oee Lotts Ly on the = “West side of the etireet, the.t will leave out of his Lott at the front, or next edjoiiiitmg to sd street, four rods in depth, the whole hredth of their respective Lotte. to eee<)111iclete the sd street, slmll have it inzide up in qL1eI1tity in the Rear, or other end of their Lotte.” ‘What would these Iziuide-laeowtecll men have s:.1.id of some of the st1'eets leivcl out it century later by their successors? There eoon steps Iipon the scene 23. 11e1pful 11121.11 indeed, “the Worthy Mr. J ecoh Bacon,” as he ie clesigiietecl; the Clerk 1 encl T1‘e2.S111‘@1‘ of the l’1'oprieto1*s three months he“fo1‘e lvley 1st, 1738, when he "‘VV2§LS ehosen_ hy every vote,” es 2:. suitable per»- son to settle in the niinistry of this place. In his letter of :;1OCe1.)i3€LI1(3(%, he says “But, with this, I de- sire your candor in ette11di11g upon my e.dministra.tions, con- sidering yt I em but :3. men Lieflole to ye Like passions, temp- tations, failings and imperfection with other men, and indeed, 1 more in ye way of S’cttom’s nmliee, than you or any else are, 8 but those who are engaged in ye like cause against Ms publick interest, as ye -ministers of Christ“ are.” It is a firm, rounol hand that “worthy” Mr. Bacon Writes,‘ a model for a Scribe. No Wonder that he remained Clerk of‘ the Proprietors, as long as he remained their pastor, He appears to have continued r with them until 1747, nine years after his settlement, when they were all on the eve of abandoning the place to the Indians. He was one of a class numbering thirty-four, who graduated at Harvard College in 1731. , Among the twelve ministers who belonged to the class, I notice the name of I my mother’s great—grandfather, Rev. John Sparhavvk of Salem, , Mass. How different their lot! The “First Church ’? in I Salem, had been gathered more than a century before I Itis not hard to imagine Jacob Bacon as writing to his Salem classmate concerning his _“ perils by heathen,” and “' perils in the vvilderness.” “Come over into Macedonia, and help us, Oh, John Sparhavvk,” may he not have Written? And after the discovery in 1745, of the lifeless body of Deacon Josiah Fisher, near where the late Mr. Charles Lam- son’sbark-house is, We may imctgine him Writing thus ; “ Ah, Sparhavvk, little can you dream What a sorrow has befallen us here I My right-hand man, Deacon Josiah Fisher, is gone! You will scarce believe me, when I tell you how., His lifeless form was found on the road over which he was taking his cow to pasture, and I shudder to tell you that it had been also scalped I There ‘lay, now silent and cold, that face which had so often beamed upon us from the Sanctuary. It was but yesterday that he had said: “ Let us take courage! Having put our hand to the plough, let us not look back.” “ And now the A Lord hath gathered him, as ripened Wheat, into his garner.” And again, hear him addressing his classmate, the following year, just after the tragedy, which culminated in the slaughter of others of his flock. “John Sparhavvk, I can say with Jeremy: “Oh that my head were Waters, and mine eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people I ’ Again hath the Indian enemy been let loose, like Satan, seeking whom he may de- vour. He stealthily pursued good mistress McKenny, stab- bing her in the back, as she, unconscious soul, Was Wearily 9 stepping towemci her 1”)e1*11, to milk her cow. And John B1111z11'6I:.,' imo1'eoVe1'., l1::J..t11 been fetatlly shot. R111111i.1:1g; from his ha1'11, he was high to g;mep the gate of the fort, when the cruel foe took cleeclly a.i.m not his back, and he gave up the ghost. But Ep11rei111 I)c>1f111:111 lmtlx reeeivecl from the Lord the 1na.11t1e of %LI11so1.1,, for he hpreveiolecl 1‘11m‘Ve11o1:1e1y in :21. fierce Wrestle with :3. etztlhwamt :mcji1 went off'vi.eto1'io11e.” Let me ecld th::tt WIe1e11eve1‘ these il112Lgi1'.lfl1‘y letters» eetmlly come into 1113* lmxlcls, they shall . :1.{§:;l>I(::(:‘)x',l1'fl Wellced fl'om his ehu1'e11, ltezur where the Ro1)i11e<::>1:1 fe1'11111o11ee now etexude, past the fort, xxeer twhere tlilztt e<:>mrt1_y g;fc+1h'1t1e1e11:t11, the late Dr. C311e1'1esG. Adm:11e., so long; res-:ei1*1ese for John But- 1e1'dh,—:.t1;hc1 he g;Ih:i111ee(:I fl.(31‘OSS the road to the Mc.Ken11;y 1101136 on the ei;g11t; ef '1_\iIfr. Ali). Ci. ’l7‘l;1a;_yex"e 1“r1:.msio11,— as he ellied over e1h1eI1 it I;'<;'.>£L(1T1, how 'v:'1vihc11y the i111ztg;e1.'_y of the C)1.<:;‘t "1‘eet::m1e11t must 1:1.:;we (f)(tCf111.‘I’€;3(T_1 to him! W’it1:;L the Pselltrzist, he 1’111T1.St I1:.tv<:.-A 5.5:-1hic.1, “ jhfy soul :1.1.x1<:>11g hone,” Mud he mmst }i1:;we also x*ejc:>ti.c::e<'?1 th:tt he too eo1.:11c1 em“ to .‘I'te1h1ova1:1, * ‘ ’ ‘hou lmet known frfx‘1.y e<:m‘1 in :td*ve1h'eitiee.’’ ‘ . How all this; stem 19:1‘1'tiei1:>etiho11 :11‘: the I1e.trc1e}h1ipe of his floelt; ‘11*1ust1h1a.\*e e11cf1e:m.;a<;o1 t1e1ie phi.et1“1h1‘eeq1‘1e relley to him only the more. nA;1"1<;71 when, just hfter all the e.1oniete lzecl 'f§7o1'ee.t1”{e11th.e settlement, he Ie:1:1:*11e<:I that eczzixmee e1e1j;'tt1‘1i1;1gg,' wvee left behimt them by the ”fIi'1h;1n’e_ seat, built all <;e«;;:h>1’x1pletely tver1<11h1anlihe,"’ hie hee1't 1'1111et lruzwe sunk wit};1:ih him. % % ; Nor c:<;:»t;11<:1 l"1ie e1‘11;%»eeq1.1e1h1t 1e1o1ie11ietmy in Plyrnoutll, 1\Ieee., tee} 111i11eti1i1g j1:1;~::t at hth1.11(h:e(fl. y¢:2:ah1's :h1g;<;>, e1i1'd lasting‘ tWe11ty—eeven years, lmve ever 'VV'L"E;.1‘Tl(‘3(f1 hi111 'w1:1<};>t1tly :f_V1‘(')r1flI‘1‘ the exciting f1'o1"1tie1' life in which he W:;a,e evi1t‘ Cemvexr. * * . To hie lztteet <;1ey.~;s'., We <:+m1 i111e.g;i11e how young mnd old g'et11- ered ::u'<:u:11“o1<;1 ]”1:im to ltxeer 1‘I_li1‘J1 deserihe the discovery of .1\~Ie1'1af Fe1*1'y,, the he1*mit, who in his te1‘1*o1' of the I11c1ia.11s, hzLc1e1'eW1ec1 .f'1:om hie ezswe neaxr the 1*iVe1‘—b:mI{ int<;> the houghs of en over- 2 10 hanging tree; and to listen to his recital of the picturesque career of Nathan Blake, who, resisting an impulse secretly to stone his captor to death, was advanced to a vacant chieftain- ship among the Canadian Indians, gained at times the mastery over themin athletic sports, and was at leiigtlit released after two years’ captivity, surviving until the year ’1811, and falling but -seven months s‘11ort~of being a centenariaii. A lad once told me in a sirnilar case, that a man had become‘ 1‘ ‘ almost a cen- turion I” Mr. Nathan Blake, both among Indiaxis and white men, had“certain1y‘long eiijoyecl the honor of 'being a sort or raeentiirion, even7if he were not quite a centeiiarian. 1 After ’ the" three or Your ‘years’ "vacation granted “to the Upper Ashuelot settlers by‘ theiplots of their Iridian enemies, we ‘find these ‘colonists returning‘ in 17 50 pand 1751, and wearing in 1758 the'corporate'name‘of Keene,‘a"naine which thelate Hon. Salma Hale, in histerse, but invaluable "“Annals,” conjectures to have been borrowed by Governor Wentwo1'th from Sir Ben~ gjarnin Keene, ‘who at about this time, was ‘“ Minister from England to Spain.” . The late Rev. Aaron I-Iall "writes-: “ The 3inhabitants of Swanzey and Keene, after they 1*et9'u?‘rnet:°-.l from their dispersion on account‘ of the wars, desirous of "havi11g‘.th‘e gospel preached ‘among t"hern,"ho‘weve‘rUthey were "few in number; ‘accordingly ‘the two towns covenarited togethe1~ to hire preacliingiii con- nection.” R'e‘y. John L. Sibley, ‘the inclefatigable librarian of Harvard College, a rare and accurate antiquarian, ‘writes me “that on Ap'ril'21,‘1’753,ithe churches of Keene and Swanzey met "at'th‘e school house "in Swanzey, and united in ‘installing Rev. Ezra Carpenter, who had at a previous time been the minister ‘of Hull for twenty-five _‘years. He was re-installed, «(and this re-'-‘installing, Rev, Aaron Hali alludes to) Oct. 4, "1753, when the two towns agreed to be one religious society, bearing the expenses equally for three years. Afterwards the anion was centinuecl by annual assessments till 1760, when Keene voted not to join with the people of .,Swanzey in main- taining the worship of God; the minister having the choice of places, preferred Swanzey. The tradition, adds Mr. Sibley, is, “that he was dismissed from Swanzey about 17 65 (though another authority says 1769) at his own request, and the eccle- 11 siastieal council had but just left the meeting house when a tornado struck it and turned it one-quarter round, so that it faced the East instead of the South.” "What omen was attached to this right-about-face movement from the skies, we do not learn. Mr. Carpenter died at Wal- pole, Arig‘. 26, 17 When, in 1753, Rev. Ezra Carpenter began to preach here, a rude fabric had been erected that see-— son, Where Mr. Reuben SteWart’s house now stands, but in De- cember the people voted to build a meeting house forty-‘live feet 10115?‘ and tl1i1.'ty-fwe Wide, several rods West of Mr. Henry Co1ony’s present residence on West street. In J anuary it ap- pears to have been removed to spot near Where the Soldiers’ Monurnent now stands. The rernoval appears to have been made “ in eonszideration of the unfitness of the ground, and the exposedness to fire, and to the enemy, in case of War.” The “ wortliy ” Mr. Cflen1e.11t Sumner was ordained as rninister of Keene, June 11, .17 61, 1:e1r1ai.1'1ing,‘ their pastor for eleven years. Rev. ,"I[)r. .3}::~1rst<)w,i11l1is “ l§I’a1f-eé11tu1'y Sermon” says that “ he was a g 'acluate of Yale College in 1758, and that in 1.77:2, in e<;n’1seq11e1l1ee of difiieulties, he was dismissed at his own request, by an eeelesiastieal ooL1neil.” 011 the 1<%l'l of l*"eli>iru:.1.1'3s', 17 78, Rev. Aaron Hall, a gradu- ate of Yale Cfollegea in ?1".7'i':2, entered upon his tlnrty-sizr. years’ rninist'ry of peace anctl joy, g,‘0l1‘1g' in and out ainorrg his people like a brother beloved. The inl'1abita.11ts have scarcely been anchored tW€31‘1l}y-()I'1€B years after‘ thezir return, when the cloud of War is a.g:1.ir'1 seen lieavily r*ising;, this time over the whole oountry. Frorn the I’r<)vineia.l pa.pers published by the New I~Ian1pshire I~?Iistorieal Society, it appea1's that the population of Keene in 1775 wa.s but 756, of whom 31 out of the 171 males between‘ 16 and 50 years of age, were in the arxny. It is gratifying to notiee that no “ negroes or slaves for life” are reported from Keene, While Exete.r' re"po1'ts 36, and .$on1e1‘sWorth, with a pop- ulation of but 53%, reports 30, and Winchester and Walpole 10 each, and even Dublin, 1. The town of Surry, according to the Provincial papers, reports seven “ persons” as “ gone in the army,” a liberal proportion of the cloth, one would think, for a population of 2215, and suggestiiig the idea that the town might be willing to spare a few of them. But the enigma is 12, solved when we find Lancaster, I~lawk:e, and Boscawen all sending their goarsons, and no persons. _ The Adjutant-Greneral’s Reports indicate that as early as 17 75, C01. Josiah Willard, of Keene, was at the head of a reg- iment marching to Crown Point. William Ellis appears as Captain, and Benjamin Ellis, as 2d Lieutenant of the Third N. H. Regiment,in 1777, both of Keene. ~ It is a significant fact that the one hundred and thirty-three names which the State papers report as signing the agreement to “ oppose with arms the hostile proceedings of the Brit- ish fleet and armies,” reads as if it were copied from our pres ent Voting lists. We find ourselves in a wi1d.erness of Blakesl and Metcalfs, and Ellises and Orolssfields and Nimses and Wlieelers and Wilclers and .Briggses, &c., while the smaller list of thirteen who refused to sign, has scarcely a repre~ sentative among us. Captain Eliphalet Briggs, though dying in Keene, of small pox, at the age of forty-one, in 17 7 6, had already been in the army, and had been sent delegate from Keene, on August 2d of that year, to consult at "Walpole with delegates from other towns, concerning the public safety. Our local antiquarian, (William S. Briggs, Esq.,) his great grandson,tells me that he well reinembers “Elialszim .L’ims” (“ Captain,” all called him) as he went the round of the streets, 2. ready rhymer. Seated, like a Turk, on the table, he would tell the story of Bunker Hill over and over again, to the charmed ears of the children, his ‘voice wazszing pathetic, as these words came slowly forth: “ But alas, our ammunition failed,” and deepening in impressiveness as he added, “When "we went into battle, there stood my brother, close at my side, but after the firing began, my brother was to be seen never- more.” This Eliakim Nims once resided in the cottage for- merly occupied by Mr. Lucien B. Page. And in this connec- tion it may be interesting to know, that there is a well-supported tradition, that Mr. Luther N urse’s barn, on Beech Hill, was “raised” by one Wheeler, on the very day of the battle of 7 Bunker Hill. There, then, towering far above us, is our mon- ument of that battle. ‘‘ Zach Tufts,” known by some per--, sons as Morgan Tufts, because he was one of Morgan’s Rifle- men, is Well remembered still; a man, one blow from whose 13 lorawny list, was loiig a terror to any interloper who dared to ‘ ' ' 0 I ‘ play any inisclnevous pranks when the remcvalof a building was going on. Ebenezer Carpenter, J. P. Blake and others, ll é are also recalled. “’*"l.\Irs. Betsey I~Ioug;hto11——-110w within less than ten years of the full century of years to which her mother,‘ Mrs. John Leonard, attained, twenty-one years ago———g'rapl1i-, cally recalls Capt. John Houghton, her husband’s father, as he was wont to tell of his march to Bennington, and the big cheese at one farm house on the road, which he was fired with. an ambition to discuss, but which held siege, both agaiiist love and money, and yielded only when he made signal for some of his soldiers to approach. Nathaniel Ki11gsbu1‘y and Dan-, iel Kingshury and Aaron Wilson, were all Revolutionary sol-1 diers ; and they all have descendants still among us. Silas Perry, I met in 1851, and followed him to the grave in 1852,’ ~ He lived to the age of 89. He carne to Keene at about the age of 30, having enlisted in the war from Westminster, Mass. He was wont sadly to recount, how it fell to his lot to be one of the guard at the execution of Major Andre. Once more the name of “ Bac<>n,” gleams before us, as we find that th .- Revolutionary lieutenant, Oliver Bacon of Jafi‘rey, by the testimony of our fellow citizen, Gen. James Wilson, who hap-v pily helped him out of a law suit, was a son of our Rev. J a? col) Bacon, the well-beloved pioneer pastor of Upper Ash-. uelot. we The exploit at the battle of Bennington, resultiiig in the capture, by Josiah Richardson and Joshua Durant, of three Hessians, is familiar to those who have studied I~Ia1e’s TAnnals as faithfully as they should. The most vivid incident, liowever, connected with our part in the Revolutionary war, is reported ‘ in the same work, where Captain Dorrnan calls on Captain Isaac Wyrnari, giving him the news from Concord, in April "75, and adding, “ What shall be done?” The inhabitants meet, by Captain Wyrnan’s direction, “ on the green ;” Capt. Wy,-3 *Mr. Abel Blake vividly recalls Lieut. {Samuel Iéfeaton, who lived on Marlboro’ street, in the house below Mr. Cole’s residence. ' TThe annalisthimself died November 19, 1866, in his 801311 year, leaving two rxhildren, Hon. Geo. S. Hale, a successful and greatl trusted advocate, 111 Bos- I-Iampshire. ton, and Mrs. Sarah, widow of the late Hon. Harry Hi ‘ bard, M. 0., of Bath, New 14 man’ is chosen? l'eader,—and “though far advanced in years’, cheerfully consents to go.” Thirty volunteers are forthcom-— ting. Atsunrise next day, they meet, too early to be cheered by the good word from Gen. Bellows. and others of Walpole, ‘F Keene has shown a noble spirit,” as they hasten on in the track of T the Keene party. , V But of the hardships endured by the women and children who were left at home at the time of the Revolution, we, at this day, can form little conception. A lady once pointedme to the spot, in Winchester, which was the scene of her grand-e mother’s hardships. . Her mother had heard from her the story full often: “ Your father,” she would say, “ left his hoe in the potato hill, and was off for battle at once upon the sum- mons.” “ But what shall we do, the little children and I, who are left behind, when winter threatens?” ‘‘ Kill the cow, and have it salted down, when cold weather begins.” But when, scarce a month afterwards, the cow was found dead on the edge of the forest, the poor woman’s heart was broken, and en she sounded her lament in the ears of a friendly neighbor, he replied, as they walked through the woods to the spot where he buried the cow, “ It’s no use, lVIa’arfi, crying for spilt milk.” This loser of the cow was ‘the great-grandmother of a much respected resident _of this place, Mrs. Farnum F. Lane. “ Do you remember about the Revolutionary war P” I said to the late Mrs. Dorcas Rice, of J affrey, three years since, she then being almost one hundred and four years old. “ I re- member it,” she replied, “because mother took on so bad when father went away to the war.” Thus, we find a. child’s remem- berance of a mother’s tears over her sacrifice to her country, lasting well nigh an hundred years I d When you are walking, for hours together, you know how it feels, after climbing some craggy hill, or descending some sharp ravine, to come out upon a long, dull, level stretch of country, even although the fields on either side be fertile, and the road good. There is little to break the uniformity of the . view. And yet, travel over the level you must, if you would lgetto your journey’s end. So it is with me, friends; be pa- tient, we are coming out upon the level of our “historical 115 sketch,”=but we must move forward uponit, or else we shall "never get through» with the century. But we have one comfort. W'e,n1ay get over the ground a little faster, even as we can "take longer strides overthe plains, than over the hill-tops. The embittered feelings engendered by the war did not soon die away, for inJune, 1783, we find the town unanimously ill"? structing their representative, Daniel Kingsbury, “ to use his influence that all who have absented themselves from any of the United States, and joined with, or put themselves under, the protection of the enemies of the United States, be utterly de- ='barred iiroin residing‘ within this State?” And in 17 84, one Elijah Williams, who, as early, as 1773, had been compelled to "stop issuing writs in+’the name of George the 351, (by his an» gry fellow-townsmen) is seized and threatened with running a gauntlet of black beech rods; and there is a violent riot oc- casioned by this attempt to maltreat him. i The Court in Charlestown, before which l1e appeared, next day, allowed him to transact his needful business, and then peaceably to leave :the State. In 1788,, “Rev. Aaron Hall site, as the delegate frem Keene, ‘in the Convention at Iilxetel‘, called fer the discussion of the proceedings of the Coilventioii which :f'ra1n.ecl the United States lfllonstitutioxi, and his -oration, delivered in Keene, on June 30, on which day Kleene celebrated its ratification, is advertised in the -New Hcmgcsmre Recorder. The same journal, upon Oct; «LL, 1788, states that the dedication of the new meeting house in this town, will be on Wednesday, the 29th, when a sermon, suitable to the occasion, will be delivered by Rev. Aaron Hall. This church still stands, although twice remodelled. We also find that some customs could be abandoned in the eighteenth, as well as in the nineteenth century,when we read that “ Isaac Wyman, begs leave to inform the public, that he shall not in future vend any liquors, but would be glad to serve travellers with boarding and lodging, and the best of horse—-keep- ing.” To all the items in this last clause, Rev. Dr. Barstow is understood, (as he at length, occupied this very house) to have been faithful, horse-keeping included, although his guests may have been chiefly of a clerical cast. Did Isaac “ feel itin his bones ” that the soul of this staunch friend of Temperance 16' J "W:2l;S' n:Iarch‘ing on towards this planet, and so conclude thus early to “ set his house*“ in order” for him? " This New ‘ Ilampshire Recorder, to which allusionrhas just been made, first appeared in 1787, being printed by James D. ‘Griflith. ‘The column nowadays headed “ Poetry,” was de- nominated by “ Griffith ” ~ “ The Parnassian Packet,” seeming its designation to challenge a lofty flight, on the part of .EPegasus. Of this challenge he seems to have availed himself in these stanzas, which I extract from a contribution to the "‘ Packet ” about nine years before the death of Washington, to Whose virtues it refers : a r e ‘ V “ And when he drops this earthly crown, He’s onein Heaven of high renown, I-Ie’s deified, exalt him high, I-Ie’s next unto the Trinity. F a My language fails to tell his worth, ; T Unless in Heaven, he is the fourth, This tribute clue to Washington. Exalt him, every mother’s son!” W In the whimsical interrogatory of our own day :——-——-“ HoW’s that for high?” In the “ Parnassian Packet” the Father of’ his Country is evidently made to rank the angel Gabriel; Literature appears also not to have been neglected by Mr. Grrifith, for We find (printed upside down to attract at- tention) this advertisement: “ That Ruby of inestimable value, The oeconomy of human life, translated from an Indian man- uscript, Written by an ancient Brahmin, will be put to press .Within fifteen days. James D. Grifi’ith.” The same editor discloses the prince of sextons, in furnishing the obituary of one of that guild in Derbyshire, Who, during his seventy years of service, according to his own statement, had “buried the parish twice over.” An illustration of some of the difliculties which beset the craft in those days, is afforclecl in the follow-— ing paragraph from the same sheet: “ As paper of the usual size could not be obtained at the paper mill for this day’s pap- er, our customers will excuse the present size.” On March 11th, 1799, the first number of the New Hamp- shire Sentinel appears, Mr. John Prentiss, then twenty-one :~*I;G.Wa.S" in this house that the Trustees of Dartmouth College held their first mee mg. 17 years of age, being its editor, a post which he honorably held for about forty—nine years, surviving twenty—five years after his retirement. “ Payments,” we read, 9 “ must be made quar- terl , to enable the editor to satisfy the demancls of the paper»- maker, the boarding-house, and various other necessary cred- itors. Woocl, butter, cheese, grain, and almost every article used in a family, will be as acceptable as the cash, if brought in season. The editor piromises to use every customer well that will use him well.” We find this advertisement : “Want? ' ed immediatelyyg: A Post-rider to circulate this paper in the towns of Surr 7, Alstead, Marlow, Wasliiiigtoii, Stoddard, Sullivan, Packersfield, Hancock, Dublin, &c. A steady, active person may find his account in immediately commencing this wort.” A l l a r And now, as men curiously scan the annual rings in some venerable and prostrate oak, - let us glance at some of these scars of time, as they give us occasional glimpses into our local history, and into what was going on in the minds of our people. How tame must sidewalk and post-office discussions have been in a community, which, in 1799, gave to Governor G~ilman one hundred and seven votes, while the opposition rallied only two “scattering” votes! But over the sea, for a score of years, matter was daily brewing for agitation, in our New England villages. No wonder that the Sentzfnel revelled chiefly in the llllllllciwal-i011 of foreign news. Sixteen years be- fore the exile to Elba, we read, under date of March 18th, 1799 : “ Confirmation of the death of Bonaparte. Seven ex- presses from Egypt, report Bonaparte and a number of French officers assassinated.” Nine days afterwards, the same paper says: ‘‘ Our readers will see that after report upon report, and confirmation upon confirination, of the death of this . mighty man, he still lives.” we infer that once more there was suspense upon this subject, for in the issue of August 4, 1799, we read, “ of Bonaparte we hear nothing, whether he is dead or alive.” But, Mr. Editor, you will hear from him, and he will live to go crashing through your columns of foreign intelligence for more than twenty years I B A B A classic writer says, “There lived bravemen before the time of Agamenmon ; ” so, lest we should think giat the ~18 Keenites had not begun, in days unblessed with all our umoclern effulgence, to get at books, let us notice this advertisement under date of May 4, 1799: “ The l?roprietors of the Social Library Society arerequested to attend punctually to their an- nual meeting, on Monday next, at the Court House, at 2 p. 111. Aaron I-Iall, Librarian.” And see, this same year, to what flights of patriotism our neighboring town of Swanzey rises, on her Fourtli of July cele- « bration, seventy-seven years ago. Here are two of the toasts : “The eVer—1nemorable Fourth of -July; may it be celebrated with tokens of joy and sentiments of gratitude, as the birth- day of American Independence, until time shall be no more.” ‘i The illustrious VVashington; may his life be prolonged, and his sword abide in strength; may fresh gems be added to his crown of glory, and he have a name better than that of sons and daughters 1 ” Ah, Swanzey, VVestmoreland, Keene, l/Val~ pole and Surry, each in your own borders, rejoice and be glad while you may, exalt ,your great leader and pray for his lengthened life while you ca11. It is the last Fourth of July on which you will. The great patriot’s life goes out with the ebbing tide of the eighteenth century, in the waning days of December. “That a night it was in Keene, when men learned that all was over! Listen: "‘ Immediately on receiving the afflicting tidings in this town, .on Thursday evening, the citi- zens caused the bell to be tolled .; the doleful knell was heard until morning. Yesterday, at twelve o’(:lock, the American flag was hoisted in mourning and the bell again tolled until two.” But we may toll the bells with a deeper, heavier knell, if the day ever comes, when the pure, unbribed patriotism of men like Washington, exists only as a shadowy tradition of a former age .1 _ On the following tweiityisecond of February, a more elabo- rate observance of the occasion took place, reproduced in Mr. I-Iale’s Annals. , l Whiat, a man “leaves,” when he dies, is still sometimes a topic of discussion in the community. But in 1802, we find the record, in the Sentiazel, of the death of a patriarcli whose accumulated treasures are recorded, although somewhat of a different character from any California “ Bonanza.” At A1- the remedy more fascinating. I9 stead, Mr. Joseph Hatch, agecl 84, “left one hundred and twenty gmizcl and great grand-cliilclren.” How closely bound to-get.l1er the scanty villagers were in that early day, is afiecté-A ixigly shown from the following incident: For What means, in Al1gl1St 1803, this procession of five hundred people as they more toward the bI1r'yi11g-g1‘ou11cl? Two little sisters, Roxana ancl Mary VVright, mistaking the floating 1noss in the Ashuelot River for solid earth, were swept away by the current, and ” Mr. and Mrs. Phineas Wright .find that the whole village are mourners with them. i A suggestive comnientary upon legislation, is afibrcled thus early, as we read £Ll’1101”lg‘ the chronicles of 1803, the appeal of a Mr. Samuel Ewalt to his constituents in another State, that inasmuch as he has fallen from his horse, and is rendered inca-— pdble of business, he thinks that he is just the man for them to send to the Legislature! And why, friends and neighbors, is illness still found among us, and why do the Doctors still lin- ger within our borders, when, even seventy-three years ago, so priceless a discovery had been made as that of “ Dr. J ena- than Moore’s Essence of Life,” which we are assured “ is good in almost everycase of disease, and will be the means of s11atching thousands fro1n the jaws of death. ‘Whooping cough cured’ in a week.” i “ Some persons,” we are informed, “ will bear double the dose that others will,” a statement which has just enough of a tinge of mystery and horror, to make In 1808, the following; vote in town meeting gives us a glimpse into the existing relations at that period between church and State : “Voted, to grant fifteen dollars to purchase velvet to cover the pulpit cushion.” Under date of February 17 , 1810, we read of the begilining of Dr. Amos Twitchel1’s forty years’ career as a renowned surgeon and physician, in Keene, through the following advertisement: “ Dr. Amos Twitchell has removed from lvlarlboro’ to Keene, and has -talren a rooni at the house of Albe Cady, Esq., where he will punctually at-’ tend all commands in the line of his profession.” What this’ eminent man did while he lived, we all know. But now for a tale to match what We hear of the marvels Wrought beyond , the sea, by the relics of the Saints! A worthy matron once 2?” graceful a-ndl cheerful way, that when he came here he was a very young; man, and that doubtless he should act difi”erently in some respects, were he to begin over again. His personal _ character was always regarded as unblemished. 1 He was soon afterwards, for sixteen years, pastor of a church in Upper Beverlyi, Mass, and subsequently settled in Maine. He died; in 1872., Rev. Zedekiah Smith Barstow. Was the last niinister settled by thezfoum. He was ordained on July 1, 1818. In accepting the call, he says, “ To whom shall an inexperienced advent» urer on life’s troubled and tremulous ocean look for counsel and direction? The ocean is tempestuous, while the voyage: for eternity is hazardous beyond comprehension I ” When the “ adventurer ” had» completed his fii'ty—five years’ residence among us, his style had long before become more compact and vigorous. « In 1824, sm, years afterwards, the “ Keene Con- ,reo*ational Societ * ” known more familiarl * as “ Unitarian,”r 5 7 . was organized, being chiefly composed of seceders from the First Congregational Society. We might infer that a division of theological sentiment, so marked as Was developed during 4 Rev, Mr. Oliphant’s ministry, Would not be quickly harmon- ized. Circumstances minutely recorded in pamphlets printed at the time, led to the Withdrawal of the dissentients, to Whom, in 1823, the church is voted for five Sundays, and in 1826 for thirteen, and in 18:27 for seventeen Sundays. But in 1828 the First Congregational Society secures the full use of the building, upon certain conditions, the chief of which consist in paying seven hundred and fifty dollars, to the seceders, and agreeing to remove the church edifice to the rear. from the common, and thus securing effectually the bounds of Central square, as ‘they now are. ' As an efficient member of the School Committee for many years, as a life—long advocate of Temperance, as an indefati- gable trustee of Dartmouth College, Dr. Barstow is remem- bered; and especially as a friend and neighbor Whose sympa- thies Widened and deepened as his years rolled on. He died March 1st, 1873, aged 8:2, having for upwards of forty years retained the sole charge of his Society. Upon the fiftieth anniversary of his settlement, there was a dinner in his honor ‘23 at the town hall, Subsequently to the <:leli'very of his appro» priate historical discourse in the church.** .. 1 T 1 We rnight gladly follow the fortunes of this church, since, and the fortunes of the various churches in our city, six of which have edifices of their OVYII wherein to Worship. . But we niay suppose them to be coinpetent to make their own records ; at any rate, the time will not permit us to pursue the thread r of our local ecclesiastical history further than it is identified with the town as a corporation. i Keene was not slumbering in years gone lays, quite ‘ so much as the youth of to-day may imagiiie. So early as October 6, 1819, upon the second anniversary of the Cheshire Agriculwl tural Society, three hundred and fifty-—si:: dollars were paid out in premiums. 1 ‘ t 1 I11I+"aulkner & Colony’s office, Whose vvoollen mill, founded bx; another generation of the same name, has so long given employment beneficial to so many people, may be seen a piece of the first Water—wheel which was set up near that spot in 217 7 6, by Eliphalet Briggs. 1 s In 1814, the proprietors of the New I~Iampsl1ire Glas Company are asked to meet at Salem Su1nner’s Tavern, by J 01111 Elliot, clerk. Their factory was on the common, at the upper part of ‘Washington street. Twent_v—five years ago its even- ing lights gleaming; tl11‘oug;l1 the Windows and crannies of the old building, still blazed upon the outer darkness. i , In 1817, Justus Perry advertises “ complete assortment A of glass bottles at the Flint Glass Factory, in Keene, and at much lower prices than the I~Iartford bottles.” His stone“~ building was on Marlboro’ street. About the year 1800, Abi- jah Wilder advertises that he has patented a new and useful improvement in sleigh-runners, and in 1813 “ A. & A. 'Wilder offer patent wheel-heads at twelve dollars a dozen.” These were made, it appears, in the old Wooden store—house, near Faulkner & Co1ony’s saw-mill. The tan;-yard on Main street is an evidence that this industry is not a thing of yesterday *Seven Weeks afterwards, (on August 19, 1868) occurred the Golden Wedding of Rev. Dr. and Mrs. Barstovv, when numerous guests assembled at his homestead,‘ ---the old Wyman Tavern already referred to. We may here add that the North room. or‘ this mansion, witnessed the consultation, in 1775, ( the evening; previous to the march) of the company Which, under Capt. Isaac Wyman, set 011‘ for Lex- ington, from “ the green” in front of this building. ‘.34 among us, being established by that man of enterprise, the late Wifliam Lamson, who died between forty and fifty years since, It is now a quarter of a century since our first steam-planing mill was established. And if at an early period there was not so much recreation afforded by the spectacle of the drill of fire companies, the announcement, in 1815, by Isaac Parker, captain, that “ the Keene Light Infantry meet for practice,” a indicates that some sort of drill was going on here. It was as the commander of this company, that General James Wilson delivered the fourth of July oration more than forty years since, standing, as he tells me, in the pulpit of the old church, in his military equipments. It may surprise some of us to read an advertisement so early as August 27, 1885, of the “ Keene Railroad Company,” Salma Hale, Samuel Dinsmoor, Justus Perry, Phineas Han- derson and John A. Fuller being “ Commissioners.” The stockholders make choice of seven directors. It is stated that “ the road is expected to strike the Massachusetts Line in the direction of Lowell or Wo1*ceste1'.” How different an as- pect, already, has the Cheshire, actually completed thirteen years after that period, together with the Ashuelot Railroad, not long afterwards, given" to Keene? And when we place by the side of this railroad gift, secured for us at so great a sacrifice on the part of its projectors, our it Goose Pond water, which the people love so well that they feel loath to coax it to find any way out of town if it will only come in, we may feel that with the addition of gas and the telegraph, we of the nineteenth century, can, on the whole, as regards the material comforts of life, keep rather more than abreast of our fathers. W And yet it did not cost these men as much to travel fifty years ago, as we might now suppose. Under date of July 26, 1825, we readthese words, “ Seats may now be had from Walpole to Saratoga for the trifling some of one dollar and fifty cents.” In 1834, appears the announcement, “ The North Star Line of Coaches will take passengers from Keene to Boston for $2.50, and to Lowell by the same price.” “ By taking this ” line,” it is is added, “ you are but twelve hours on the way *The first report made by'_any town committee on the subject of “Water,” bears date Apx-i114, 1860. 25 froin Boston to Keene. Try it! ” Three years earlier, in 1831, appears this inviting programme, “Connecticut River Valley Steamboat Company. LeavevBel1ows Falls, Wa1pro1e,, Westinoreland, for Hartford every Monday; Putney, Chester» field, Brattleboro, Vernon and Hinsdale, every Tuesday; Northfield and Gill ever 7 Wednesday. Return Boats leave every Monday.” I . In 1840, appears notice of the annual meeting of the “ Keene Thief Detecting Association.” ‘When it was formed, and how long it lasted, we do not know. It is, at all events,’ plain that Keene has not always been slumbering as regards its great moral interests. Look at the subject of Temperance. Let us abundantly rejoice at the existence of a “ Reform Club,” organized in our city during this centennial year, and numbering more than twenty-four hundred strong, which has aroused us from our transient lethargy. Rev. ‘Dr. Barstow used to say that when he came hither in 3.818, he found the custom existing, of pro- viding “spirit” at funerals, for the “ bearers,” and that he steadfastly resisted it. Under the date of 1820, the Town Records contain this vote : “ In order to remove a principal I cause of pauperism, Voted, that the Selectmen be requested to see that the laws relating to licensed and unlicensed houses be strictly enforced, and to take such other measures for the suppression of intemperarice. as to them 111:. y seem advisable.” In 18:29, the “ New Ilampshire State 'I‘emperance Society” was formed. The late _T~Ion. Thomas M. Edwards was choos- en vice president ofllfiiis Society in 1835. In 1831 we find in Keene, the “S,ociety,forfi the promotion of Temperance,” with . Dr. Amos Twitchell ;f'or president, and '’’*Rev. T. R. Sullivan secretary. In 1836 we; ,1Je1‘ceive a notice of the meeting of . the ‘* Young 1’eople’s%Association~for the Promotion of Tem- perance.” A b Upon October 16th, lgill, the “ Keene Total Abstinence Association” is formed, with sea‘ hmwlrecl signers, Hon. Salma Hale, president. This Society continued its existence more *At the centennial dinner Rev. Dr. Barstow alluded to_ Mr. S. as “ The distin- guished Thomas Russell Sullivan.” He died near Boston, 111 December, 1862, aged 63. VVhi1e in Keene he edited The Liberal Preczcher. 4 as than ten years. The “ Cheshire County Washiiigtoii Total Abstinence Societ r,” of which the late Dr. Amos Twitchell was president, held meetings until within about ten years, and has never been formally dissolved. From 1852 to 1855, there were numerous lectures upon this subject delivered among us; but after the enactment of the desired law, there ' was too great a disposition to lean too heavily upon their new I ers, agreeably to the vote of the town.” A ally. Yet the “ Sons of Temperance,” the “Good Templars,” the “ Keene Temperance League”and the’ “Keene Temperance Alliance,” have been sending forth gleams of light, at inter- vals, into the moral wilderness of Intemperance. On March 15, 1848, some eight years before the enactment of a prohibitory law, a ballot was taken in town meeting upon this question: “‘ Is it expedient that a lawybe enacted by the ‘ General Court,’ prohibiting the sale of wine or other spiritu- ous liquors, except for chemical, medicinal, or mechanical pur- poses? ” The Town Records show that the vote stood --- yeas 183, nays-95. ' I I I ” . In 17 64, it appears from I~Iale’sl Annals, that the town voted six pounds sterling to defray the charges of a school, and in 1766, it is “voted that the security for the money given to the town by Captain Nathaniel Fai1~ba11ks, deceased, the in- l terest of which was for the use of I a school in this town, be delivered to the care of the town treasurer, and .his"successors I in oflice for the time being.” Judge Daniel ewcomb is cred- ited by Josiah P. Cooke, Esq., in I—Iale’s Annals, with having founded a private school about 1793, mainly at his own ex- pense; and as the best friend of “ go6d.». «~l€§£l1‘11i11g‘ ” that the town had. “ In 1821 the Town Recordsstate that it is Voted that the town will, at their annual illeetiiig, in each year, choose five or more suitable persons to constitute a committee" of examination, whose duty it shall to examine those per- sons who shall ofi"er themselves as inst1~ncto1's of the public schools within the town; and in 1823, itis voted that Zede- kiah S. Barstow, Aaron Appleton, John Elliot, John Prentiss and Thomas M. Edwards, be a committee to examine teach-» In 1828, we find from the Town Records, that there was an endeavor to establish a high school, Rev. Z. S. Barstow, Rev. 6 2"?" Thomas Russell Sullivan, pastor of the “Keene Conygregatiom al (Unitarian) Society,” Gren. Justus Perr -*, Aaron Hall (son of the deceased ministerof that name) and Azel Vlrilder, being a committee on that subject. It was also “ voted that the } instructor of this school shall not endeavor to inculcate, in, school, doctrines peculiar to any one religious sect, nor dis- tribute to his scholars any religious publication.” it was agreed that the school might be kept during the first year, seven, and during the second year, eight months,” “which,” it was urged, “ is at least three and four months longer than a school has usually been kept by a master.” It appears from minutes kept by the late Dr. Barstow, (secretar 7) that after two or three months spent in writing to the presidents of Dartmouth, Amherst, Middlebury, and Yale Colleges, Mr. Edward E. Eels, a graduateof Middlebury College, was en» gaged as high school teacher for two months, at $25 a month, independent of board. His term expired January 29, 1829. Subsequently, Mr. A. H. Bennett was the instructor for three months, “ at $40 a month, including board.” So short—lived was this school. i The next time we hear of high school, it has leased, in 1853, the Keene Academy building, erected about sixteen years previous, and taken its principal, the efficient ‘William Torrance, with Miss Louisa P. Stone, of Newburyport, as as- sistant. Mr. Torrance, two years afterwards, died. The pur-- chase of this Academy edifice was afterwards secured by pro- cess of law. What would the persons, who, forty—-seven years ago, found it so hard to raise $300 dollars a year for a high school teacher, have said, could they have seen, in vision, our new and spacious high school building, completed this year, at a cost of about $50,000? We find that at the “ State Common School Convention” at Concord, June 6th, 1843, the meeting was called to order by Hon. Salma I-Iale, of Keene, and that the committee for Keene were Hon. Hale, Rev. A. A. Livermore (who suc- ceeded Rev. T. R. Sullivan, in 1836) and Mr. Isaac Sturte- Vant. i*°Mr. Livermore’s services to the town in behalf of edu- *M1j. Livcrmore was the author o1'a_Cornmcntary upon the Gospels, “ Acts, ” and “ Ron1a_n§; ” or a Prize Essay, solicited by the American Peace Society, and a volume or Sermons. 2'8" cation and t'empera'nce were unstinted. He was a‘ man made to beloved. On May 11th, 1843, an address was delivered at the annual meeting of their “ Cheshire Common School Asso- ciation, at Marlboro‘, by VVi-lliam P. Wheeler‘, which appears to have been published. Thus‘ early did this lamented advo- cate, Whose loss is so fresh, seek to identify himself with the well-being of the community. Mr. W’. S. Biriggs has shown me “ The Keene Directory for I83‘1,”f1’om which it appears that the‘ number of “ scholars ” that year Was seven hundred and siXty—eight. In 1875, the number was one thousand four lii-undrecl and forty-seven. 1 , In 1845, and for a short time p1*eviou=s, a “ Teachers’ Insti- tute ” was established in the county, by private subscription. On March 1:2, 1850, Keene votes seventy-five dollars for a “Teachers Institute,” on condition of the co«-operation of other towns in the county. . ~ 1 % . Yet any Word, however brief, concerning educational mat- tersin Keene, would be incomplete, which did not chronicle the “ School for Youiig Ladies and Misses,” in Which, under date of 1817, Miss Fiske and Miss Sprague advertise that they shall “ pay all possible attention to the improvement of the ~- manners, morals and minds of their pupils.” . 8 i 8 On April 11, 1811, at the age of’ tvventy-seven, Miss Catha-— brine Fiske beganlher sch-ool in Keene, which, in May, 1814, underthe designation of “ The Female Seminary,” was con-K ducted for twenty—three years, with signal success, until her death in 1837. a Miss Fiske had been engaged in teaching for fifteen years, before coming to Keene. Rev. Dr. Barstovv, in anobituary sketch, published in the Boston Recorder for Sep- tember 1st, .1837, estimates that during the thi1‘ty~eight years of her service, more than two thousand five hundred pupils ' came under her care. He commends especially “ her tact in eliciting the dormant energies of some minds, a11d the stimu- lus afforded to those that were apt to rlearn.” One friend of’ mine had scarcely set foot in Canada, when a lady said : “ So you are from Keene? I was once there myself, at Miss Fiske’s school!” Another friend found that she had scarce reached Spain, when she was favored even there, with some reminiscence of Miss Fiske’s school. Miss Withington, after- 29 wards the late Mrs. Stewart Hastings, and Miss Barnes, now Mrs. T. H. Leverett, were among theteachers associated with Miss Fiske in her school. Miss Withington conducted it for a while after Miss Fiske’s decease. The Directory of 1831 records the existence of the Cheshire Athenaeum, with six hundred volumes; Joel Parker, president. The “ Keene Book Society,” which had existed for a num- 1 ber of years previous, reports Rev. T. R. Sullivan, as presi- dent, Salma Hale, and S. Dinsmoor, J r., as executive com- mittee, George Tilden as treasurer and librarian, J. W. Prentiss as 1 secretary, with two hundred and seventy-five vol- umes. The €‘Keene Forensic Society and Lyceum” (Joel Par- ker president) also greets our eyes on these pages. Ten years later, 1 we find a discussion advertised on the part of the “ Keene Lyceum,” upon this subject: “ Is Great Britain justified in her war against“China? ” Evidently, without the intervention of a distant “Lecture l3ureau,”i the minds of the residents were not in‘ complete stagnation, while they had a Lyceum and De- bating Society, marshalled by such a man as Joel Parker. Our later “ Keene Athenaeum” was established in 1859. The “Free Public Library” in which is was merged, and which is sup- ported by an annual grant* from the city, (which name the old town took upon herselfin 1874) now numbers about three thousand volumes. Might not steps have been taken still earlier, toward founding such a library, had Keene devoted her share of the fanied United States “ Surplus Revenue ” in a way different from what is indicated, in the following vote? “ Voted,” March 8th, 1842, “ That the public money of the United States, deposited with the town, by the Act of January 13, 1837, and all interest which has accrued thereon, be di- vided equally among those persons, being American citizens, who Were residents in the town on the flrst day of January last, and who shall continue to reside therein until the first day of April next, and who shall be taxed in said town for their polls or ratable estate, the current year, and such other persons, being citizens and residents, as aforesaid, as may be over seventy years of age, (paupers excepted) and are there by exernpt from taxes.” Seven thousand eight hundred and *Five hundrecl dollars in the year 1876. 5 #1 30 “seven dollars, it appears, was the suni” thus jinglecl into the pockets of the people. The town of Provincetown, Mass, put their share into a plank sidewalk over their drifting sands. They were determined to have some common benefit from the money, even although it were not an eminently intellectual one. 0 How much the “Keene Harmonic Society” and the “ Keene Musical Association,” chronicled in the Directory of 1831, paved the way for the prosperous annual Musical Conventions with which Keene has been identified for a score of years——- who can tell? it , On March 9, 1847, on motion of Hon. Phineas I-Ianderson, a committee was appointed to devise ways and rnearis for building or procuring a town hall. The cost, aside from the tower and “extension,” a much later expense, appears, from the committee’sreport of March 12, 1850, to have been: for land, $1,750; whole cost, including land, $15,816.89. The building erected by the “ Cheshire Provident Institu- tion for Savings ”i' a few years since, is a fine monument to this beneficeut enterprise. It is seldom that for more than two score years, a treasurer is spared to witness the extending sweep of such a movement, and even to see a second institu- tion: of kindred character. But Mr. George Tilden, who handed their books to the depositors in “the day of small things,” now renders the same oflice to the grandchildren of many whose hands have long since crumbled into dust. The “Natural History Society,” organized a few years since, has served to develop a wholesome zeal for the study of na- ture on the part of our youth, and has held its meetings with marvellous assiduity, and is steadily collecting a museum. A “ Society for the Better Protection of Anals ” was or- ganized last year, at the urgent entreaty of 1 the late lVIrs_. L. *'.[‘his 1831 Directory mentions the Farmers’ Museum newspaper as established in 1828. In addition to ‘the oft quoted New Hampshire Seoitm-el, the American News, conducted by "the late Benaiah Cook, was in circulation in 1851, when the writer came to Keene, Mr. H. A. Bill was then the editor of the Cheshire Re gupéican. The Sentinel and the Republican have long had sole possession of the . e ,, T This Bank was chartered in Jul , 1833, and went into operation in September, with Mr. Tilden as treasurer. Its eposits are now about $2,000,000. 1 The “ Keene Five Cents Savings Bank,” established in 1868. Its deposits now amount to $714,000. Let posterity understand thatwe have also, four “National Banks” in Keene. 1 1 ‘risen, ,, 31 M. Handerson, our lamented postmistress, and was largely aided in the maturing of its constitution by the late I-Ion.‘ Wilhaml.P. Wheeler. On March 14, 1860, the town accepts the one thousand dol- lar bequest of the late David A, Simmons, of Roxbury, Mass., (a native of Keene) “ toward the relief and comfort of such of the poor of the town, requiring assistance therefrom———es-A pecially the aged and infirm; ” a condition of the bequest being that the selectmen shall keep the same well invested, and distribute only the income. _ t A residence of a quarter of a century among you, prompts‘ me to say, that I have never known the place for which its resi- dents cherished a greater attachment. How dear these hills and forests and streams are_to them 1 Rev. Dr. George G. Ingersoll,°** (who, in 1850, retired hither for the last thirteen years of his life) in a poem recited at the centennial dinner, in 1853, after we had listened to H011. Joel Parker’s address at the town hall, exemplifies this strong local attachment, in these words : ‘ ‘* The.Keone that was, dream of an earlier year, . Its very name was music to my ear. Like some sweet, far-off, visionary scene, My very name for Fairy-Land was “ Keene.” The Keene that is, pride of eshuelot vale, With heart and tongue, I bid thee hail! ' Where better seek, where better hope to find, Rest for the frame, yet not to starve the mind? In this sweet spot Where Nature does her part To meet the earnest cravings of the heart, With friends and books and blessed memories,-- One might, With Heavens blessings, look for peace, Beneath our hills which rise on either side, By sparkling‘ streams, which through our valley glide.” A most interesting feature in the life of Keene, has been the semi—annual terms of the Court. From the lips. of Judges no longer living‘, I have rejoiced to hear the testimony, that the manners of our court room, the professional courtesies of the members of the bar, one toward another, were in refresh—~ _-‘* He was the only Mson oi‘ l\_Iajor Geoizgc I11ge1'so1l, Ooinmander at West Point, N. Y., irom 1796 to 1:301. Magor Ingersoll died six Weeks after retiring to Keene in 1805, when his son George was but eight years old. ~32 ing contrast to what might be witnessed here and there in S other quarters of the State. May the same spirit go into the new century! Keene has furnished six members of Congress, all from this profession; Peleg Sprague, Samuel Dinsmoor, Senior, Joseph Buffuin, Salma. Hale, James VVilson, J r., and Thomas MacKay Edwards. ‘ Samuel Dinsmoor, and his son Samuel Dinsmoor, Jr., have been the only Governors elected from Keene ; Levi Chamber- lain of the Cheshire bar, being at one time the opposing candi- date, of the latter. Mr. Chamberlain, well knowing that in Keene the men of his own political stripe preponderated, playfully suggested, with his characteristic mirth, that to avoid putting ‘-the State to so niuch trouble, Mr. Dinsmoor and he had best “ leave the case out” to the decision of the friends and neigh-. vbors by whom they were best known I It was a memorable v scene, when in the sunlight of the afternoon of May 20th,i1861, the late EX-Governor Dinsmoor stood upon the platform erected for the occasion, on Central Square, and, in presence of a multitude, said, as he introduced to them Hon. James VVilson, still happily spared ,to us, (both *‘dec’orated with the red, white and blue ;) l“ Amid the general gloom which perwrades the community, there is, yet, one cause ‘‘ for 'congratulation,~—l-—that we at last see a united North.” Representing differing political organizations, these honored men served to typify the patriotism, which, in that trying hour, fused so many hearts in one. How the women, moved with 2a common purpose, toiled week after week, year after year, in connection with the “ Soldier’s Aid Societ r,” or to help the ‘benevolent work of the United States Sanitary Commission 1* Howilike romance sound some of the surprises caused by the handicraft of the New Hampshire woinenq“ A Dublin soldier- boy, in his distant hospital, gains strength to scan the names inscribed upon his album-quilt, and is strangely stirred, as the S , "* So early as March 11, 1862, the town votes three thousand dollars for the relief . of wives, children, or parents of volunteers. ‘r After the subsidence of the war, five hundred dollars a year were paid by a combination of persons in the various reli ions societies, for two or three years, to the “ Keene Freedmairs Aid Society.” he“Ladies’ Charitable Socie ” unites as it has for many years, the sympathies of all the parishes. The “ valids’ Home " has been ately founded chiefl by the efforts of the “Keene Con orega- tional (or Unitarian) Society”; its chie benefactor being the late Charles ‘Wilson, who left to the Home the sum of one thousand dollars. 33 ‘names grow more and more familiar, until at lasthe sees ‘the. hand—writing of his own mother. , As we recall those memorable days, how that company of the Second Regiment, moving forth from our railroad station», at the signal of prayer, comes back to our minds, and those tents of the New Hamp_shire Sixth, as for weeks together, they whitened the plains beyond the Ashuelot! How shall I speak of the courage, the patience, the devotion of such men? I abandon the attempt. a In summer and winter, week in and week out, they have their perpetual orator. There he stands in brazen panoply of armor! If you have never heed«-' ed him, you will not heed me I But in his meditative attitude, ‘ to me he specks, not wholly of the storm-cloud of battle, nor of freedom dawning upon millions of a once enslaved race .; he seems to dream besides, of brighter days for his country, «days when ‘‘ men shall beat their» swords into ploughshares, and their spears into _pruning hooks, nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.” The time shall come when no living tongue among their com- rades shall be left to tell of Lane and Leverett, of Metcalf ‘and Flint, Crossfield and Rugg, and Howard and Cheney, and their associates, who returned, not alive, to the dear old home! One by one, all who bore part in the gigantic con- test shall have passed onward. Yet, even then, God grant that those silent lips may speak eloquently to the future dwell»- ers in this happy valley, of those sons of Keene, who in behalf of their country presented ‘F their bodies a living sacrifice.” Ye living hostswof the departed, gathered invisibly with us today, ye who ploughed these stubborn furrows in years gone by, ye, who watched for the midnight war-whoop, ye, who in later days, were summoned to the field by the Revolutionary tocsin, or who flew to your Country’s defence in the War of the Rebellion, pray that we may enter upon the new century de- termined to hold all who fill offices of honor and trust in the nation, to a rigid accountability, yet at the same time cherish- ing fresh faith in the expanding destinies of the Republic! And ye, an unseen host, who are coming after, ye, who, a hundred years from to-day, beguiled by your earth-dream, shall call us all, “ dead,” we beg you not to forget us wholly, ‘ 34 as you, in your turn, gather here! Here’s a Warm hand for you across the arches of the coming century! We pledge ourselves, God Willing, to be with you then, though your “ eyes ” should be “ holden” that you shall “ not know” us! Remember how dear this valley was to us! It can be no dearer to you! Carry education, tenaperanee, literature, re-‘ ligion, to a higher, purer pitch than We have! And say “Anien,” as We do, to these tirne—honored Words of Sir Wm. Jones, which We leave with you as our benediction: “ What constitutes a State P Not high-raised battlement or 1abour’d mound, Thick Wall or rnoated gate; Not cities proud, with spires and turrets croWn’d; Not bays and broad arrn’d ports, dWhere, laughing at the storm, rich navies ride; Not starr’d and Spangled courts . ‘ - Where low-brovved baseness Wafts perfume to pride. No :-——~Men, high minded men, With powers as far above dull brutes endued ' In forest, brake or den, As beasts excel cold rocks and brambles rude ;— Men who their duties know, But know their rights, and knowing, dare maintain, Prevent the 1ong—ain1’d blow And crush the tyrant, While they rend the chain ;—~—-~ d These constitute a State! ”