USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Westford > Town of Westford annual report 1886-1895 > Part 24
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sheeting and crash.
7 67.
milk tube
75
ladder
3 30
bedspring
2 50
blankets 5 00
tobacco
4 30
butchering.
3 50
woodsaws and horses
2 70
carfare for tramp.
28
lime
1 00
shingles
1 00
tank ..
.
5 50
hen feed.
5 25
zinc.
1 20
clothes wringer
3 50
haying tools.
1 55
horse blankets
4 75
surcingle
1 00
glass and putty
3 48
turkeys.
6 70
pump
1 50
carfare.
1 68
sundries .
9 81
. .
$2,499 43
Deduct, income from farm.
$1,538 55
gain on personal property.
560 95
expense of keeping tramps.
87 75
cash in S. H. Balch's hands. ....
42 56
2,229 81
Cost of supporting the poor inside the Alms- house .
$269 62
.
.
8 12
stove pipe
49
COST OF SUPPORTING THE POOR OUTSIDE OF THE ALMSHOUSE.
Paid J. F. Smith, M. D., for medical atten- dance on Mrs. W. Taylor and child .
$24 00
Mrs. M. S. Esty
30 00
Mrs Sixey Seams
44 00
Sarah J. Ingalls
125 00
Mary Green .
1 50
Octavo Voran
24 00
$ 248 50
Paid W. J. Sleeper, M. D., for medical atten- dance on Mrs. R. Dugdale
$21 25
C. J. Searles .
12 50
Sarah and Alvin Nutting
31 25
W. Pipers' child.
8 75
Mrs J. Wilkerson and family
30 50
Gardner Perham
1 00
Mrs. C. Vinal
37 00
P. O'Toole 18 75
161 00
Paid Hospital bills for A. H. Woodward, John W. Raymond, Rufus Keyes, Elizabeth Lord, Lettice J. Reed, Mary A. Quinn, and Everett Wayne, Wright & Fletcher, for groceries for Mrs. J. Wilkinson .
77 31
dry goods for Mrs. J. Wilkinson . .
4 68
childrens' clothing
6 00
milk.
7 00 °
wood
15 62
Wright & Bemis, for groceries .... 3 00
36 30
Paid Town of Groton on account of E. Holt and wife.
52 00
City of Lowell for Mrs. Larkin and daughter.
$25 53
for Margaret Whitcomb 1 50
27 03
1 50
taking F. Goss to State Almshouse, Shaw & Son, for groceries funrnished A. L. Patch
13 74
A. P. Richardson, on account of
4 50
Mary Green
G. Drew, for taking, Mary Green to Almshouse.
2 00
Amount carried forward.
$1,684 57
1,060 69
50
Amount brought forward. $1,684 57
Paid S. M. Hutchins, for digging grave for Mrs. Robbins .. 2 50
groceries and care of Mrs. Casey ... 2 51
board of Mrs. Vinal .. . . necesssaries furnished Mrs. A. Per- ham 3 67
44 14
stationery
87
wood and groceries, furnished Isaac Gould
7 81
FOR SERVICES AS OVERSEERS OF THE POOR.
Hammett Wright
$10 00
A. G. Polley . 10 00
W. F. Batch. 10 00
$30 00
5 00
5 00
15 00
56 48
Received from Sate Treasurer, on account A. Taylor .
$ 16 00
9 00
from Lowell, on account Mary Green, from Lowell, on account Dugdale .. from Ayer, on account A. Nutting. . from Tyngsboro', on account Ingalls,
21 25
31 25
93 50
Due from State Treasury, on account Seams,
44 00
Received from Tyngsboro', on account Ingalls, from Orleans, on account Gould . . .
7 81
$254 31
Expense of the poor outside Almshouse ....
$1602 72
STATEMENT.
Cash drawn from Town Treasurer.
$2,455 16
in Master of Almshouse's hands at last settlement 381 95
hands of Overseers of the Poor, at last settlement 24 85
$2,861 96
in hands of Overseers of the Poor
$ 97
in hands of Master of Almshouse 42 56
Gain on personal property . 560 95
Cost of supporting the poor, exclusive of interest on the farm
$604 48
$2,257 48
Paid W. F. Balch, for making out report to State Board Lunacy and Charity ... for making out report to Town. extra time as Overseer . necessaries furnished P. O'Toole ...
$1857 55
31 50
51
VERIFICATION.
Cash received from Town Treasurer, and 1
other sources
$2,861 96
Paid for outside Poor
$1,857 55
Payments at Farm.
2,499 43
$4,356 98
Receipts
1,538 55
2,818 43
$43 53
Cash in S. H. Balch's hands
$ 42 56
in Overseers hands 97
$43 53
Number supported in the Almshouse. 4 receiving two meals and lodging 351 assistance outside of Almshouse. 31
WAYLAND F. BALCH, HAMMETT D. WRIGHT, ALVIN G. POLLEY,
Overseers of the Poor.
APPRAISAL OF THE PERSONAL PROPERTY
AT THE ALMSHOUSE IN WESTFORD, MASS., JAN. 28, 1893.
12 cows
$ 520 00
7 scythes and snaths 5 00
2 horses
250 00
2 bush hooks 1 00
1 bull
25 00
9 hay forks. 3 60
1 calf. 1 00
10 hay rakes 1 50
9 tons English hay
180 00
5 garden rakes 1 50
512 tons stock hay.
75 00
1 grub hoe.
75
Oat fodder
36 00
3 picks and handles
3 00
47 fowls.
33 00
1 stable hoe.
50
2 horse blankets and sur- cingles
: 00
1 ditching knife
1 00
4 halters .
2 00
8 manure forks.
2 50
Currycombs and brushes,
2 50
4 corn cutters 50
25
Harness and axle oil.
50
1 qt. machine oil
2 horse muzzles .
. 00
10 lbs. wire.
75
Grain in barn .
18 80
2 bags and sacks
1 . 00
1 zinc pail.
50
Measures. 1 . 50
Bbl. salt ..
90
50
Harnesses
60 00
1 stone drag
5 00
1 wolf robe.
2 00
1 mowing machine 20 00
4 feed boxes.
1 00
1 waggon jack. 1 00
2 watering troughs.
22 00
1 express waggon. 20 00
15 00
3 shoats
20 00
1 hay waggon.
35 00
1 milking tube.
75
1 farm waggon.
25 00
2 iron bars .
1 50
1 pung
5 00
25 tons ensilage.
150 00
1 sleigh.
10 00
1 corn planter.
8 00
1 roller
6 00
5 hoes. .
1 00
1 horse rake .
15 00
5 potato diggers
1 25
1 wheelbarrow ..
1 50
1 apple picker.
25
1 wheel harrow
25 00
4 sweat collars
1 00
1 harrow .
5 00
2 drag rakes.
1 00
2 dump carts
85 00
1 fanning mill.
3 00
1 ensilage cutter
35 00
1 corn sheller
2 00
1 hay cutter
1 00
7 ladders.
15 00
112 bushels seed corn
1 00
2 storm windows
3 00
1 string bells
1 50
1 cow bell . 50
2 cultivators 6 00
1 one-horse sled.
5 00
4 plows.
25 00
1 two-horse sled .
40 00
12 feet lead pipe . .. ...
. 44
3 bbl. small potatoes. 4 50
14 shovels and grub hoes,
8 00
300 feet oak lumber 6 00
75
2 tie chains and pieces of chains. 65
Lot old iron
50
2 flails .
-
Whiffletrees, neck yokes, and evener 10 00
Wrenches and hammer. . .
2 00
25
1 ox yoke.
50
2 bush axes.
1 00
12 brass balls . .
60
2 hog hooks .
!
Copper faucet and solder, Ice .. . 10 00
1 50
Silo pully and rope 50
1 milk waggon.
4 tubs . 2 00
1 draft chain.
53
1,000 feet pine lumber ....
10 50
1 sack oyster shells 60
1 grindstone.
3 00
Sage . . . . . .. 1 00
4 saw horses.
1 50
1 bbl. broken crackers ... 1 25
25 cords wood
125 00
6 bbl. covers 1 50
1 step ladder.
6 lbs. sausage 90
7 candlesticks
75
40 lbs. lard .
5 60
2 bee hives
2 00
175 lbs. beef and pork 14 00
1 bedstead.
50
60 bars soap 3 00
4 watering pots
2 00
1 meat saw
. 1 50
Table linen .
7 00
4 traps .
1 00
175 bushels potatoes
175 00
3 bbl. crackers 1 50
Turnips, beets, cabbages, and parsnips .
12 00
Pop corn.
2 00
Squashes and pumpkins .. 2 00
11% bushels seed beans ...
3 00
24 cider barrels.
12 00
112 bushels white beans. . 3 00
4 50
80 gallons old cider. ..
8 00
75
1 50
1 cheese press.
25
11% bushels cranberries . .
3 00
3 cranberry rakes
5 00
612 bushels onions
6 50
5 chest drawers.
5 00
9 bbls. apples
15 00
Ice tongs and hook.
2 00
67 jars preserves.
25 00
1 meat cutter
2 50 75
14 bottles catsup
2 00
Set wooden bowls
75
33 lbs. butter
10 00
2 clothes wringers.
4 50
Soft soap.
2 50
1 washing machine
1 00
75 lbs. salt beef.
4 50
Clothes lines
50
350 lbs. salt pork
49 00
Clothes pins
15
125 lbs. ham
18 75
Clothes drier
25
5 wash tubs
3 00
2 washboards.
1 00
5 pails
1 00
2 wash boilers
4 50
7 padlocks
5 00
5 gallons kerosene
45
Old iron .
1 00
Range furniture
10 00
Nails and spikes .
20
1 Range
5 00
10 lbs. white lead
65
5 stoves
26 00
Jug and oil .
40
2 agate
2 40
10 lights glass.
50
2 clothes baskets.
1 00
Screws and nails .
75
3 lanterns
1 50
2 whitewash brushes
. 50
5 flatirons.
1 50
Mason tools ..
1 75
2 water pails
75
Carpenter tools
8 00
Candle moulds
1 00
2 tool chests
75
10 lamps . .
5 axes .
3 50
1 force pump
1 copper pump
1 00
1 fly trap
15
1 barrel header
1 50
2 clocks.
5 00
3 snow shovels
1 00
2 doz. eggs-
70
4 wood saws
3 50
2 jars pie meat.
5 00
1 crosscut saw
2 00
Can goods and extracts. .
5 00
1 steel trap.
25
5 lbs. cheese . .
75
2 tons coal.
14 00
18 tumblers jelly
حت
50
3 peck baskets
75
2 cans salmon
36
7 bushel baskets
2 00
4 cans corn
40
Elevator rope.
¿ bbl. sugar
7 50
1 slop pail
50
1 1b. coffee
35
1 coal sieve
50
2 lbs. tea
. 00
3 oil cans
2 00
Box spices
2 00
2 coal hods
50 1 bbl. flour
5 00
Meat scraps .
1 90 2 doz. candles. 50
Pie and meat fork.
25 1 doz. Mason jars 1 00
1 churn . 1 50
70 gallons cider.
10 50
212 bushels colored beans, 5 rocking chairs
2 gallons boiled cider. ...
3 gallons pickles
1 20
4 apple parers ..
3 00
2 00
30
.
1 25
54
1 slop pail
50
2 lounges 5 00
2 mops .
50
1 cradle.
1 00
4 brooms .
25
Window and door screens, 13 00
Knives, forks, and spoons,
00
6 looking-glasses 1 50
3 bottles colic medicine. .
00
Shovel and tongs
1 00
2 lbs. tobacco ...
80
2 castors
50
30 plated spoons
8 50
2 sieves .
75
1 oil cloth carpet.
9 00
1 dinner bell .
50
1 carpet .
10 00
1 pair steelyards
1 75
10 beds and bedding
250 00
2 porcelain kettles 00
1 copper kettle. 1 75
1 extension table.
6 00
2 chopping knives and
3 light stands . . . 1 00
trays . 75
Stone ware
2 00
Tin ware.
15 00
2 sick chairs.
1 50
1 cabinet chair
1 00
30 chairs.
15 00
1 sick chair
10 00
1 bed pan.
75
ISAAC E. DAY,
W. H. H. BURBECK, SAMUEL L. TAYLOR, Appraisers of Property.
-
$3,060 25
6 tables ..
5 00
30 curtains and fixtures . . 12 00
1 chamber set
10 00
Crockery ware ; 00
1 injection pipe. 1 00
REPORT ON CEMETERIES.
The Commissioners of Public Cemeteries respectfully report that they inspected the burial grounds of the town last spring, and found repairs and improvements of various kinds to be greatly needed. The fences were in poor condition, particularly in the West burial ground ; many of the older headstones were leaning over the graves, and some of them had fallen ; wild bushes were growing in many places ; the avenues in the cemeteries were not clearly marked out or graded; and there were but few shade trees or ornamental shrubs to be found.
The financial statement appended to this report will indicate the beginnings that have been made in improving the condition of the cemeteries. The'fences have been repaired and the bushes cut. The headstones in Col. John Robinson's lot, in the West burial ground, have been reset, and the lot graded and enclosed by an iron fence given for this purpose by Mr. A. P. Richardson. Granite supports have been ordered for the horizontal slab over the grave of Rev. Willard Hall, in the East burial ground, and will be put in position in the spring.
The financial statement will show, however, that little has been accomplished as yet, and that most of the money appropriated for improvements remains unexpended.
The reason for the failure to expend the money voted by the town, and for the delay in doing the work, is as follows :- Early in the spring difficulty was found in obtaining competent and trust- worthy men for the service required. It was expected that such men could be employed later in the season ; but during the summer and fall it proved to be even more difficult to secure the services of such men as the work called for. None were willing to leave the steady employment in which they were engaged, for a few days' work in the cemeteries.
56
It is the intention of the Commissioners to prevent a recurrence of this difficulty and delay, the ensuing year, by employing a com- petent superintendent of the cemeteries of the town, who will for several months devote all of his time to the work needed in them, and take charge of the men and teams hired to assist him. It is believed that this is the best and most economical way of making the needed improvements and repairs.
In order to meet the expenses which will necessarily be incurred in this long delayed work, your Commissioners respectfully recom- mend that the town raise and appropriate the sum of two hundred dollars, in addition to the unexpended balance of the appropriation made last year.
Respectfully submitted.
GEORGE W. HEYWOOD, ALLAN CAMERON, WM. E. FROST,
Commissioners of Public Cemeteries.
FINANCIAL STATEMENT.
APPROPRIATIONS.
For deceased soldiers' headstones . $ 50 00
For improvement of burial grounds 150 00
Total
$200 00
EXPENSES.
Paid H. Dane for painting fence of Col. John Robinson's lot .. $ 7 20
Wright & Fletcher, for brimstone .
50
Joseph Gould, for socket for headstone,
setting the same, and setting fence of Col. Robinson's lot ..
4 75
L. J. Brow, for mowing grass and brush, 9 50
J. H. Sears, for mowing.
6 00
J. W. Moore, for labor on fences
7 00
S. M. Hutchins.
65
J. T. Colburn, for labor
14 00
Total. 49 60
Balance unexpended
$150 40
AUDITOR'S REPORT.
GRANITEVILLE, MASS., MARCH 1, 1893.
GENTLEMEN-In conformity with the requirements of my duty as Auditor, I have made a thorough and systematic examination of the accounts of Tax Collector, Town Clerk, Selectmen, Overseers of the Poor, Master of the Almshouse, and Town Treasurer; and beg here- with to submit the following report :
TAXES.
The amount of taxes assessed on the polls and on the Real and Personal Estate, within the Town of Westford for the year 1892, which I found on a close in- spection of Tax Collector's book, and as submitted to you in my report of Nov. 23,1892, was. $12,666 41
Number of Polls added since my report, 3 at $2.00 each 6 00
Total tax levy for 1892.
$12,672 41
UNCOLLECTED TAXES MARCH 1, 1893.
Uncollected Taxes, 1890, Alec Fisher, Col- lector. $272 42
Uncollected Taxes, 1891, Alec Fisher, Col- lector 580 53
Total. $ 852 95 Uncollected Taxes, 1892, Isaac E. Day, Col- lector
1,334 49
Making a total of. $2,187 44
On examination of Town Clerk's account, I find the number of dogs licensed for the year ending Nov. 30, 1892, was 156.
Total amount of license fees was
Total amount Clerk's fees was. 31 20
$324 00
Balance paid to the County Treasurer as per
his vouchers in hands of Town Clerk, was
$292 80
58
I found proper vouchers for all orders drawn by the Selectmen on Town Treasurer.
I made no audit of accounts of H. B. Ruiter, Master of the Alms- house, for March 1892, as a settlement was made with him about April 1, 1892.
Examination of the accounts of Master of the Almshouse from April 1, 1892, shows the total receipts from all sources from April 1, 1892, to March 1, 1893, to be . Total expenditures.
$1,478 74 1,436 18
Balance, cash on hand March 1, 1893, was ...
$42 56
Inspection of the accounts of Overseers of the Poor, shows a cash balance, March 1, 1892, of
$ 6 85
Receipts from all sources for the year ending March 1, 1893, was.
2,769 56
Making a total of
$2,776 41
Total expenditures were 2,775 44
Balance, cash on hand.
$ 97
The accounts of Overseers of the Poor and Master of the Alms- house were properly vouched.
On examination of the accounts of Town Treasurer I find :
The whole amount of receipts during the year ending March 1, 1893, was. $28,541 72
The whole amount of expenditures during the year ending March 1, 1893, was. 25,553 70
Excess of receipts over expenditures. $2,988 02
The balance in the Treasury, March 1, 1892, was. $ 2,833 80
The amount received into the Treasury, during the year ending March 1, 1893, was. 28,541 72
Making a total of. $31,375 52 The amount paid from the Treasury during the year ending March 1, 1893, was .. 25,553 70
The balance in the Treasury, March 1, 1893, was .
$5,821 82
59
I most heartily congratulate the Town of Westford ou having a Treasurer who is a thoroughly good accountant. All of his accounts are so accurately and systematically kept, the labor of auditing was greatly facilitated.
FINANCIAL.
The financial condition of the town, March 1, 1893, as taken from the Treasurer's books and other sources is as follows, viz :
RESOURCES.
Due for State Aid to soldiers' families.
$1,144 50
Due for Military Aid to indigent soldiers. 99 00
Taxes of 1890, remaining uncollected
272 42
Taxes of 1891, remaining uncollected
580 53
Taxes of 1892, remaining uncollected.
1,334 49
Balance of cash in the Treasury .
5,821 82
Balance of cash in hands of Overseers of the
Poor, and Master of Almshouse 43 53
$9,296 29
LIABILITIES.
Note First National Bank, Lowell.
7,000 00
Balance in favor of the Town.
$2,296 29
Respectfully submitted, ARTHUR B. PLIMPTON, Auditor.
To Messrs. J. HENRY READ, SHERMAN H. FLETCHER, GEORGE W. HEYWOOD, Selectmen of Westford.
LIST OF JURORS, 1893.
The following names will be reported at the annual March meet- ing, to be placed in the Jury Box, subject to revision by the Town :
FRANK W. BANISTER.
AUGUSTUS BUNCE.
WILLIAM H. H. BURBECK.
GEORGE W. BUSSEY.
GEORGE F. CARKIN.
JAMES H. O'BRIEN.
ALBERT R. CHOATE.
HOUGHTON G. OSGOOD.
LEWIS C. DANE.
WILBERT E. PARSONS.
FRANCIS L. FLETCHER.
ELBERT H. FLAGG.
HORACE E. GOULD.
CHARLES M. GRIFFIN.
GEORGE H. HARTFORD. FRANK C. HILDRETH.
MELBOURNE F. HUTCHINS.
HARRY L. NESMETH.
ALVIN G. POLLEY.
HIRAM WHITNEY.
J. EVERETT WOODS. HAMMETT D. WRIGHT.
J. HENRY READ, SHERMAN H. FLETCHER, GEORGE W. HEYWOOD, Selectmen of Westford.
COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS.
MIDDLESEX SS.
To ISAAC E. DAY, one of the Constables of the Town of West- ford, in said County, GREETING :
You are hereby required in the name of the Commonwealth afore- said, to notify and warn all the inhabitants of said town qualified to vote in elections and also in town affairs, to meet at the Town House, in said Westford, on Monday the Twentieth day of March, being the third Monday in said month, at eight o'clock A. M. The polls will be opened at 8.15 o'clock A. M., and closed at one o'clock P. M .; and they are then and there to act upon the following articles to wit :
Ist. To choose a Moderator.
2d. To bring in their votes for Town Clerk, for one year ; one Sel- ectman, one Overseer of Poor, one Assessor, two School Committee, one Trustee of the Town Library, one Commis- sioner of Public Burial Grounds, all for three years ; Town Treasurer, Collector of Taxes, two Constables, and one Auditor, all for one year; also to vote on the following question : "Shall licenses be granted for the sale of intoxi- cating liquors," all on one ballot.
3d. To hear the report of the Selectmen, and act in relation to the same.
4th. To hear the report of the Overseers of the Poor, and act in relation to the same.
5th. To hear the report of the School Committee, and act in rela- tion to the same.
6th. To hear the report of the Trustees of the Town Library, and act in relation to the same.
7th. To hear the report of the Selectmen on Guide Boards, and act in relation to the same.
62
8th. To hear the report of the Commissioners of Public Burial Grounds, and act in relation to the same.
9th. To see if the Town will accept the report of the Auditor ap- pointed to audit the accounts of the Town Officers, or act in relation to the same.
10th. To see if the Town will accept the list of Jurors as reported by the Selectmen, or act in relation to the same.
11th. To raise and appropriate money to repair Roads and Bridges.
12th.
To raise and appropriate money for Public Schools.
13th. To raise and appropriate money for the support of the Poor.
14th. To raise and appropriate money for School Text Books.
15th. To raise and appropriate money to defray Town debts and charges, or act in relation to the same.
16th. By request of Overseers of Poor, to see if the Town will raise and appropriate the sum of five hundred dollars ($500), to repair and paint buildings at Town Farm, or act in relation to the same.
17th. By request of School Committee, to see if the Town will raise and appropriate the sum of five hundred dollars ($500), to repair School Houses and rebuild fences at same, as follows: Centre School, repair chimney, paint inside building and rebuild fence ; Nashoba School, shingle building ; Parkerville School, rebuild fence ; Minot's Corner School, rebuild fence ; Nabnassett School, rebuild fence and deepen well; Long- sought-for School, paint building; Lyon School, rebuild fence, or act in relation to the same.
18th. To see if the Town will authorize the Town Treasurer, under the written direction of the Selectmen, to borrow money from time to time to meet the demands on the treasury, or act in relation to the same.
19th. To choose all other Town Officers necessary to be chosen by hand vote, or act in relation to the same.
20th. To see what action the town will take to dispose of old school furniture, or act in relation to the same.
21st. By request of Samuel L. Taylor, to see if the Town will vote to rescind so much of the vote passed March 7th, 1870, as to printing a full and complete schedule of property at the Poor Farm, as appraised hereafter by the committee appointed for that purpose, or act in relation to the same.
22d. To see if the Town will authorize the Selectmen to procure a seal for the use of the Town, or act in relation to the same.
AND YOU ARE DIRECTED to serve this warrant by posting up true and attested copies at the Town House and each Depot in said
63
Westford, eight days at least before the time of holding said meeting.
HEREOF FAIL NOT, and make return of this warrant with your doings thereon, to the Town Clerk, at the time and place of holding the meeting aforesaid.
Given under our hands and seals, this first day of March, in the year of your Lord eighteen hundred and ninety-three.
J. HENRY READ, . SHERMAN H. FLETCHER, GEORGE W. HEYWOOD, .
Selectmen of Westford.
LIBRARY REPORT.
The Trustees of the Westford Public Library respectfully submit the following report for the year ending Feb. 17, 1893 :
It will be seen from the table at the close of this report that an unusually large number of books have been added to the Library during the past year.
The appropriation, Library funds, and dog tax have made it pos- sible for the Trustees, after carefully selecting the usual amount of current literature of all classes, to purchase the Century Dictionary, "a complete English dictionary " combined with " the cream of all the great modern encyclopedias"; also to replace poorly-printed, worn, and antiquated copies with modern and well-bound editions of such standard authors as Shakespeare, Dickens, Bulwer-Lytton, Victor Hugo, George Eliot, Burke, Byron, Whittier, and Longfellow.
It is the aim of the Trustees to place upon the Library shelves only such books as will be of permanent value, but the ephemeral character of much of the fiction of the day renders the task of selection for Class H somewhat difficult. A few really fine novels come out each year, while of an indifferent or even questionable class there is a vast number, from which the least objectionable must be chosen. If the modern novel prove unsatisfactory, why not follow Ralph Waldo Emerson's rules for reading : " 1, Never read a book that is not a year old. 2, Never read any but famed books," and renew acquaintance with old friends, some of whom present themselves to you anew this year.
The Library has recently been the recipient of two large dona- tions of valuable books : Forty-nine volumes, including twenty-one . volumes of Harper's Magazine, four of Blackwood's, four of Every Saturday, two of Household Words, and two of Donovan's "South Wales and Monmonthshire," have come from the estate of Mrs. Catharine Abbot, to be a perpetual reminder of the debt of gratitude
!
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due her memory for faithful service rendered to the Library in the years that are past.
The people of the Town are indebted to Mrs. Helen Howland Prescott, of New Bedford, for the "Report of the U. S. Coast Survey for 1854," Gillis' " Report of the U. S. Naval Expedition to the Southern Hemisphere in 1849-52," four volumes of Agassiz's Contributions to the " Natural History of North America," Audu- bon's " Quadrupeds of North America" in three quarto volumes, and a complete set of Littell's Living Age, comprising one hundred and ninety-five volumes. The volumes of Audubon are beautifully illustrated, long ago out of print, and of great value. The Living Age has always contained the choicest selections from the best English magazines and reviews, and this complete set must be regarded as a most valuable supplement to all of the best works in our Library. For half a century the contributions of the ablest writers and thinkers of England have been reprinted in the Living Age. Much of the best fiction of this period is to be found in its pages ; and it greatly enlarges the resources of the Library by its multitude of elaborate essays in biography, history, and science, and in literary and historical criticism. The Library contains no other set of volumes which equals these in usefulness or in pecuniary value ; and they will be regarded with increased interest, and more highly prized, from the fact that Mrs. Prescott has presented them in memory of her late husband, Hon. Oliver Prescott, born in West- ford, and a life-long lover of his native town, but for many years an honored and influential citizen of New Bedford.
A file of Academy graduation programmes and a set of the invi- tations, programmes, etc., issued for the Centennial Celebration of the founding of the Academy, with a report of the addresses and proceedings, have been placed in the Library.
Acknowledgement is made to the donors of the following books : two volumes Scribner's Monthly, by L. W. Wheeler ; Temperance Reform in Mass., 1813-83, George Faber Clarke, of W. Acton; " Feast of the Virgins," by H. L. Gordon; " Souvenir of 24th National Encampment of G. A. R. Boston, 1890"; two old caucus notices, valuable as curiosities, by S. H. Fletcher ; Certificate of Stock in Agricultural Library of Westford, Mass., by Miss R. E. Luce.
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