| Show A NEW ENGLAND HOME the following well written letter wiloh h the by the courtesy or of dent W wilbord ilford woodruff to Is per jad to publish will be peruse I 1 with baat interest 4 JANUARY 17 1893 dear father and mother today hm has teen beu a red letter day in my life via a visit tu go the birthplace of 11 my bers en in connecticut a brief description af which I 1 will try and relate for while voile it is now past midnight mid yet tacy by fancy plays upon my minu and will no not come to me on retiring ia sst night I 1 determined to not bet apart today for this promised visit and accordingly eft left 1 a call with the night t tork dark promptly at that hour there amme a thump at my door that would have e roused a heavier sleeper than my aw eaf arising I 1 dressed handly hasi ily and abw arranging a few necessaries I 1 la u a tend gril I 1 made my way down stairs m leaving the hotel i proceeded up boadway to union square where I 1 oared roid a cab which drove me rapidly felho grand central depot on forty biond street arriving inure thirty before bore rore the train time then thee sarty minute i I 1 daood down wn the be hafting wafting room anxious tara to owe as aa the tee air was carrl kennthe keen the thermometer ranging where below sero ero finally the welcome sound rings out AU A U aboard arnew haven and hartford As A iteM 4 ra rain jin proceeds up the hanks banks of hast flast mar V j a beautiful panora panoramic into view of varying hues flues of lights pro ato imeln presently the harlem is bowed snood and we are speeding along the of long jong laland hound bound towards naw haven where I 1 leave leav the boston row and board a train bound acar northampton numerous towns aad oa 04 hamlets are passed as am we move northward over the rolling country with all its scenery of neld and forest acae ome brown and bare while others are with everlasting verdure verd ure passing through Ceni erville mt carmel farmington and other we at last reached avon at just 41 having been three hours unu anu forty minutes ou on the road leaving the station stat ioD which is built at the entrance to the churchyard I 1 proceeded to the postoffice post office kept by a mr bishop aud and inquired the address of mrs match hatch he informed me she lived about two and a half miles distant deeming the distance too far to walk I 1 secured the service of a native re boloing in the sob sobriquet of gabriel to drive me over in hla his cutter while he was hitching bit ching up I 1 walked over to the graveyard and wandered among the theta 0 ab uba stones onesia lu the hope of seeing a familiar name dame but none was there to toward reward my bay search there are many woodfords Wood fords and thompsons Thomp sons but bu no my angelic companion now being ready I 1 calmed into the cutter tucked the robes carefully about my feet thrust my hands deep into two spacious overcoat pockets and an nou aced toy my readiness to start if it was cold bohi in new york fork it was still colder up here the thermometer registering 8 degrees below wiro on mr gabrielle Gabriel 8 porch the ride over behind a good horse was charming the road we took leads out of avon one half mile to the south when it bonds bends to the right and crosses a valley alost due east for a mile and a halt through a forest sprinkled with ever greens when on reaching mr mf fid ed woodfords Wood fords house it turns to the south again about halt half a mile down this road a big apple tree stands throwing its tm branches far over the cottage standing back ot of it here my driver pulled up with mith an ev air ut ot satisfaction and announced we this to be the home of mrs hatch I 1 had go gone no but a few steps toward the porch when the door flew fiew open and agrey a grey bamrud pleasant faced lady stepped brisk ly forward with the exola exclamation matio it I 1 well ad d this is cousin As ashbell Asha haell etl you guessed right that time lime said 1 I there was no mistaking that her was genuine and I 1 was made ade to feel perfectly alhime from the start starl she wa disappoint ed when I 1 told her bar I 1 would have to return by the evening train as iche had expected me to stay two or three days she introduced me m to her husband mr hatch a very agreeable surf sort of nom ne y england farmer albo to ann Us caa ett iett i and a niece named hattie hatlie woodruff about twenty two years yeara af uge age who proved to be of great service to we ace ti during the day showing me around A mrs woodford Wood tord was waa over visiting when I 1 went but aunt liu diio avery every one calls her by this name here invited her to go home and call another day as she wanted this one to me I 1 discovered thid thia frank manner about her bar in several ways before the day was over she was thoughtful enough to enquire if I 1 was hungry and I 1 gave her to understand most moat emphatically that I 1 was havi having par taken of breakfast early yesterday erday she soon had prepared some delicious butter dayt beefsteak and coffee and it did taste floe fine after my lou lourede tride breakfast being over mr hatch atoll hitched charlie into the cutter while aunt lin muffled me up in a big comforter and with hattie battle as 84 my fair it atilde ide we proceeded to visit the places of great greatest ert interest we drove first to the cemetery and dismounting tied the horse up to the fence and entered this sacred spot proceeding up the center walk we soon found great grandfather and grandmother Wood ruffa resting places with the tomb stones facing west I 1 recognized them in a moment from the photos photon which you have of them it would be difficult to describe the feeling which came over me as I 1 gazed upon this hallowed resting place of my long since departed kindred and add thought that perhaps you bad stood on the same spot many years before it may have been the cold that caused my eyen to moisten mol sten this Is a delightful spot such as one could wish to rest in till called forth to a brighter existence A an a iron fence surrounds the yard and a row of splendid pines cast their approving shadows a upon this matchless home of the 10 dead with slow steps we quit this place but not before gathering erin gabit a bit of evergreen from one oneff of the graves our next call is at the allen alien place of which I 1 am content with an external view proceeding some distance farther east on this road we turn to tho south and pass the old judge place which is somewhat dilapidated and unoccupied at present and now comes the most moot interesting experience of all the visit to the old mill and your birthplace we tied our horse at the mill and got out of the sleigh two brothers named holmes are running the kleeb one of them we found raking ice out of the race so the water could reach the wheel wheal which is situated at the back of the highest part as shown in the photograph the ater is carrier to it by means of an 18 inch inclined woden wo den pi pethe upper end of which connect with the old race as it stood when you left it half a century ago I 1 entered the old saw mill and picked out what must have been the post where you broke your leg when riding the jog carriage the race is well grown over with young maples the high part of the will mill was partly artly baradi after you left and has baa since been rebuilt the 1 lower 0 war part is used as a grist mill mill and t the he upper part as a turning shop chop H having satisfied myself here bare we drove up to the house and securing our horse bores to a ring driven in the large maple at the south east corner we crossed the old threshold which your feet so often trod in childhood the place has been somewhat changed since you left the door in the west center has been closed and anew a new one cut cat nearer the south corner the northwest room where you were were born has been enlarged by the removal of the staircase which has been replaced by a new one opposite the entrance before referred to the old bake oven is now used for fa n pantry and the large rough stone at the entrance to the some iame remains undisturbed I 1 entered a back storeroom store roo ois n in the garret which has no embellishments other than the rough hewn rafters and nail penetrated sheeting this to is probably as it was 85 years ago the annex at the back contains a rock lined collar cellar partly filled with blocks block of wood and other debris the shingles are well twisted and cracked as aa are also the sidings which seem to be try ing ta wrest themselves free from the bonds boddis that have held them for so many ages age the hill to the southeast is still well covered with timber I 1 followed along the banks of the creek where you used need to catch the speckled beauties but did not attempt to fish sh any as an the day was cold thanking mr and mrs holmes for their kindness we proceeded down the road in b s southerly direction until turning the point of a pond we boot bent to the right and finally back to mrs haschle hatchs le having described almost a circle in our lourney journey we pass the old house grandfather ilton brilton bu our way back which we visited later in the day on foot aunt lin had a nice dinner ready at four after partaking of which we had a pleasant visit and hattie drove me over to the station to in time for the 7 train which brought me safely back to new york and here bore I 1 am happier and better with many a pleasant memory indelibly im impressed presse upon my memory by this one days visit to our grand old now new england home with love to all the family I 1 remain your affectionate son jea H WOODRUFF |
