USA > New Hampshire > Rockingham County > Candia > History of the town of Candia, Rockingham County, N.H., from its first settlement to the present time > Part 33
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Phrenology was introduced into the United States about the year 1830 and soon afterwards scores of mountebanks of little learning or ability, with a superficial knowledge of the system entered the lecture field and by telling a good many silly stories, and by making a good deal of fun in their examinations at so much a head, managed to take in the shekels in a wonderfully successful manner.
The first prenologist to visit Candia came to the town in 1843 and held forth in the vestry of the Congregational church. David P. Rowe, the school master about that time was greatly interested in the new doctrine and made many examinations of the heads of the people as an amateur and without reward.
The novelty of phrenology at length wore away and sen- sible people became disgusted with the pretentions of its ignorant advocates and, as a consequence, professional prenologists have been scarce in New England during the past few years. A few honest and patient seekers after the truth who have made a critical and thorough study of the subject have become satisfied that phrenology affords the most complete and philosophical analysis of the functions
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and classification of the human faculties and feelings, which has hitherto been discovered.
CELEBRATIONS.
The declaration of the independence of the colonies at Philadelphia on July 4th, 1776, has often been celebrated by the people of Candia, but there are now only a few records or recollections of those occasions. The first celebration of which we have any account was that of 1812 when the offi- cers and members of the Washington Benevolent Society paraded with music 'and then marched to a pleasant enclosure near the highway on the place which originally belonged to Lt. Abraham Fitts, senior,and is now owned by Frank E. Page. Addresses were made, toasts were given and there were various other exercises. Two or three aged persons of the town who were small boys at the time still remember some of the details of the affair.
In 1826, the 50th anniversary of the Declaration was cel- ebrated by the artillery company commanded by Capt. Eb- enezer Nay which paraded and fired a national salute near the old Congregational meeting house. In the afternoon, Rev. Joseph Wheat of Canaan, the father of Dr. Wheat, preached a sermon in the old church from the following text : "Oh! that men would praise the Lord for his goodness and his wonderful works to the children of men." The preacher, who was a soldier of the Revolution, related some of his experiences in that war and referred to the grand re- sults of the great contest in a very earnest and eloquent manner. Rev. Mr. Wheeler assisted in the exercises of the occasion.
On that day Jefferson, the author, and John Adams, the great advocate of the Declaration, expired. On July 4th, 1828, David Pillsbury, the first graduate of a college from Candia, delivered an eloquent oration at the old church be- fore a large audience. He was escorted to the church by a procession of citizens from Moses Fitts' hall. The pro- cession was accompanied by a band of musicians, among whom was Col. Samuel Cass, with the head of his bass- viol securely tied to his neck by a bandanna handkerchief
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was most conspicuous. The way he sawed upon the strings of his instrument as he marched along was very in- teresting to the by-standers. A large audience was present at the church. A salute was fired by the artillery during the day.
On July 4th, 1831, the Candia Temperance Society, which was organized about the beginning of that year, met at Mas- ter Moses Fitt's hall early in the afternoon and marched in procession to the church. where a temperance address was delivered by a minister from Barrington, named Barry. The day was fine and the people in their best attire, turned out in large numbers. The address, which was quite an able effort, was well spiced with humorous anecdotes, greatly pleased the audience. On the return of the proces- sion to the hall, on motion of John Lane, Esq., a committee was appointed to request the orator to furnish a copy of his address for the press, but he declined to do so.
On July 4th, 1844, a large number of the young people, had a celebration in a grove situated in Capt. Peter Eaton's pasture, near the old school house in District No. 2. Sever- al of the people of the town that year attended a great cel- ebration of the day at Manchester by the Whig and Demo- cratic parties. The Whig party celebrated in a grove at one side of the town and the Democrats at the opposite side.
On the 4th of July, 1848, the one hundredth anniversary of the settlement of the town was observed by a gathering of people at the Congregational meeting house. Francis B. Eaton delivered an appropiate historical address and there were various other exercises.
On the July 4th, 1858, there was a celebration in a grove situated near High Street, upon land now owned by George Brown, and a few rods southwest of the old Ordway place, on a portion of old Caleb Brown place, now owned by Abraham Wallace.
The one hundredth anniversary of the organization of the Congregational church was celebrated at the present Con- gregational meeting house in 1870. Rev. James H. Fitts, a great grandson of Lt. Abraham Fitts, one of the original members of the church, delivered an address, in which
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he gave interesting biographical sketches of the various clergymen who had been settled over the society previous to that time. Among the speakers on the occasion, were Ex-Governor Smyth and Francis B. Eaton, former residents of Candia.
In 1876, the centennial anniversary of the Declaration of Independence was celebrated. At sunrise the bells of the churches were rung, an artillery salute was fired and a large company in military garb marched from the village to the Railroad Depot. At nine o'clock a procession march- ed from the Depot Village to a grove, situated on the farm of John Moore, Esq., near the corner in the following or- der : 1. A military escort, consisting of a company of in- fantry with flint lock muskets, under the command of Geo. Anderson. 2. The Veteran soldiers of the war of the Re- bellion, belonging to Candia, commanded by Capt. J. Lane Fitts. 3. A squadron of cavalry, commanded by Col. Rich- ard J. Sanborn of Deerfield. The batallion accompanied by the Candia Cornet Band, was commanded by Frank Robie. 4. The President and orator of the day, the Com- mittee of Arrangements, invited guests and a concourse of citizens. Plumer W. Sanborn was chief marshal and was assisted by A. F. Patten, E. P. Ingalls and J. Rowland Batch- elder. Austin Cass, chairman of the Committee of Ar- rangements introduced Rufus E. Patten as President of the day. After various preliminary exercises, Rev. James H. Fitts delivered an address, in which he gave a sketch of the war of the Revolution and a detailed account of the part the people of Candia performed in the great struggle. Af- ter dinner which was served upon the grounds, the Presi_ dent read the names of the Candia soldiers who served in the Revolutionary war, and then Woodbury J. Dudley the toast master read various toasts which were responded to as follows : 1. The day we celebrate, response by the band. 2. The clergy of 1776, response by Rev. J. E. Lovejoy. 3. The mothers and daughters of 1776, response by Rev. J. E. Frye. 4. The church and school, response by N. C. Lathrop. 5. Candia Cornet Band, response by the band. 6. Our native'soil, response by Francis B. Eaton.
Our guests from abroad, response by Capt. W. R. Pat-
JOSEPH P. DUDLEY.
Sketch, page 507.
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ten of Manchester. 8. What the fathers established in suf- fering and sacrifice, the sons will cherish and defend, res. ponse by J. Lane Fitts. 9. The town of Candia, response · by Wilson Palmer of Illinois. In the evening there was a display of fireworks.
The following are the names of Vice Presidents, who rep- resented the fourteen school districts : No. 1, John Moore, John Smith ; No. 2, Nehemiah Brown, N. B. Hall ; No. 3, Henry M. Eaton, Benjamin Cass ; No. 4, Abraham Emer- son, Coffin M. French ; No. 5, True French, Benjamin Hub- bard ; No. 6, Joseph Cate, Elias P. Hubbard ; No. 7, Jona- than Martin, Levi Bean; No. 8, Jesse R. Fitts ; No. 9, Ja- cob S. Morrill ; No. 10, Gordon Bean ; No. 11, Joseph C. Langford, John Brown ; No. 12, Rufus E. Patten ; No. 13, Archibald Mc Duffie.
Various relics of Revolutionary times, consisting of pow- derhorns, muskets and other military impliments, were ex- hibited on the occasion. At the close of the exercises the procession reformed and marched to the Corner, where a military review took place.
MAY DAY.
On the first day of May, 1844, a large number of the young men and women belonging to the town, enjoyed a May Day festival in the shade of a great clump of pine- trees which then stood on "the Plain," about half a mile: south of High Street and opposite the residence of Isaac N .. Fitts. Among the members of the party, were Hannah,, Abbie. Emily and Lucretia Lane ; Sarah, Mary, Martha, Hannah, Caroline and Jane Eaton ; Mary, Sarah and Julia French ; John D. Patterson, Coffin Moore, Francis B. Eaton, S. Freeman Rowe and the author of this history. The day was fine and the first item of the programme was a ramble in the woods and pastures for May flowers and checkerber- ries which are very abundant in Candia. The merry party then sat down on improvised seats made of rough pine boards from the fences near the tall pines and partook of a
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nice collation, after which songs, stories and other enter- tainments were in order.
MESMERISM.
In 1842, the subject of mesmerism was introduced into New Hampshire. By a peculiar movement of the hands of one person over the head and along the arms of another who sits in a perfectly passive condition, the latter, if sus- ceptible to an influence not yet fully understood, is soon thrown into a sleep or trance and is held in that condition at the will of the former. The subject, or mesmerized per- son, often becomes so insensible to outward impressions, that his teeth may be extracted and severe surgical opera- tions may be performed upon him without causing him pain. The person operated upon, when in the trance, will sometimes discourse upon a variety of subjects with far greater ability than is possible for him to do in his normal state. It is claimed that many persons in the mesmerized condition become clairvoyants, or clear seeing, and are able to accurately describe places and persons many miles distant and far beyond the reach of their ordinary senses ; and are also able to read the thoughts and feelings of per- sons which are not expressed in speech or by any other signs whatever. Mesmerism was practiced in Candia forty- five years ago to a considerable extent. Some young per- sons who lived then on North Road became particularly fa- mous locally as operators and subjects in this line. The strange phenomena which is now usually called hypnot- ism is at this time attracting the attention of philosophers in Europe and America.
DECORATION DAY.
,
Two or three years after the close of the war of the Re- bellion, it became the custom in the Northern States to dec- orate with flags and flowers the graves of deceased soldiers who served in the Union army. It was arranged that the ceremony should take place in the various cities and towns simultaneously upon one of the last days of May. Deco-
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ration day has been observed in Candia during thirty years, and the town has annually appropriated a small sum to defray the necessary expenses. The ceremony is per- formed by the members of the D. B. Dudley Post, G. A. R., of the town.
MARKING SOLDIERS' GRAVES.
At the annual town meeting in March, 1877, it was voted to appropriate the sum of $150 for the purpose of placing a small marble monument over the graves of Candia sol- diers who were buried in town. Col. Rufus E. Patten was appointed agent to procure and set the monuments in their proper places. Col. Patten, in due time, reported that he had attended to the duties assigned him, and that 118 sol- diers graves had been identified and suitably marked. The whole name of each soldier and the date of the war in which he served is inscribed upon the monuments. With the ex- ception of one or two mistakes, the work was well done and a vote of thanks was extended to Col. Patten by the citizens of the town. The monuments were furnished by C. F. Greeley of Exeter.
ENLARGING THE OLD CEMETERY.
At the annual meeting in 1890, it was voted to enlarge the old cemetery near the Congregational church by the- purchase from Albert Bean of a parcel of land adjoining the south and west sides of the said old burial ground. The land, consisting of about one acre,' was accordingly purchased and a considerble part of it was laid out into burial lots.
THE SOLDIERS MONUMENT.
In the beginning of 1892, Hon. Frederick Smyth offered to furnish at his own expense an appropriate monument in honor of the soldiers belonging to Candia, who served in the armies of the United States in defence of the Union, on conditon that the town would provide a suitable found-
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ation for the structure. At the annual town meeting of that year it was voted to accept the generous offer and to ap- propriate the sum of $200 for the construction of the found- ation of the monument. The base of the monument is to be a handsome block of granite on the top of which there will stand a bronze figure of a Union Soldier.
RECEPTION OF GOY. SMYTH.
In February, 1879, a committee of the citizens of the town invited Gov. Smyth to give a public address before-the people of the town relating to his travels in the various countries of the Old World. Gov. Smyth accepted the in- vitation and upon his arrival at the railroad station, at the time appointed, accompanied by his wife, he was escorted to the Congregational church by the Lane Rifles, in com- mand of Capt. H. T. Eaton, headed by the Candia Band. A large audience was present at the church. Moses F. Emerson, Esq., presided and he introduced the guest of the evening in a short address, after which Gov. Smyth gave a somewhat detailed acco int of the visit of himself and wife to Egypt, Palestine and other places of historic interest. In the course of his address he spoke of passing near the shores of the Island of Candia in the Mediterran- ian sea on the passage from Naples to Alexandria, and how their thoughts went back to Candia the place of their birth, which was named for the island famous in history hun- dreds of years before America was discovered by Colum- bus.
TIME-PIECES.
The earliest instuments used in the town for keeping time were the sun dial and hour-glass. The dials, made of pewter, consisted of a circular disk upon the outer edge of which were figures to indicate the hours and, in the cen- tre, an upright, triangular piece called the gnomon. The instrument was tightly fastened to a window stool facing the sun and as the sun moved apparently from the east to west a shadow was cast by the gnomon upon the
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figures on the dial. In the daytime, when the 'sky was clear, the dial gave the time correctly.
The hour glass consisted of two wooden cups in form of a tunnel of exactly the same size, capable of holding about a quarter of a pint of fine dry sand. The two cups were united at the small ends. The size of the aperture of the small ends of the cups were so graduated that a cupful of sand would run from one of the cups to the other in the space of one hour. By inverting the position of the cups, the sand in the full one would run back into the other. By enlarging the opening in the small end of the cups the sand was made to run out in two or three minutes, as might be desired. Specimens of the sun dials and hour glasses are still in the possession of some of the families in the town.
The first clocks were probably introduced about the year 1795. The works were made by hand and the clocks were made to run eight days. The cost of these clocks was about fifty dollars; the most of them were probably made by Abiel and Timothy Chandler of Concord. Among those who owned eight day brass clocks previous to 1815 were William Robie, Benjamin Pillsbury, Samuel Anderson, Moses Fitts, Jonathan Pillsbury, John Carr, Nathaniel Rowe, Benjamin Hubbard.
In 1826, wooden clocks were made in Connecticut in great numbers and sold in all the states of the Union. In 1827, a peddler from Connecticut sold a large number of this kind in Candia, which were made by H. Hoadly of Plymouth in that state. The peddler would call at a house and ask the privilege of setting up one of his clocks for trial. The family genenally consented and the works of a clock were set up on a little shelf in a corner of a room. In three or four months, the peddler would call around to enquire for his clock, and he was almost always sure to find that the family had become so attached to the time- piece that they could not bear to have it taken away. Af- ter running sixty-five years, some of these wooden clocks, which cost about eight dollars, are still in use in the town and keeping good time.
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James Critchett, who lived on Lot No. I in the northwest part of the town, was a very ingenious mechanic and made wooden clocks and repaired watches and clocks.
There were but few watches in town previous to 1820, and few could afford to buy them. Most of the watches, which were then owned in the United States, came from England and Switzerland. Within the past twenty years great manufactories of watches have been erected in this country and vast quantities of the finest quality are made by machinery. A very good time keeper with nickel plat- ed case can now be had for five or six dollars.
WITCHCRAFT.
The Pilgrims and Puritans who settled in New England inherited from their ancestors in England a belief in witch- craft. Prof. E. D. Sanborn of Dartmouth college, in re- ferring to this delusion in his History of New Hampshire, says, "the Pilgrims and their children believed in witchcraft because it was the transmitted creed of all the preceding ages; the churches preached it; the law punished it; the Bi- ble taught it and the people feared it." It was supposed that Satan sometimes made a compact with certain people by which they agreed to serve him, and, in return, were giv- en supernatural powers, and could fly swiftly through the air and pass through a key-hole unseen, walk like a fly on the ceiling, take the form of a cat or some other animal, snuff out the candle, overturn a load of hay, cause the cows to hold their milk, make it impossible for the butter to form by churning, call up the spirits of the dead and to worry and afflict people in divers ways.
The New Hampshire Provincial Assembly at Portsmouth, in 1679, passed the following act: "If any Christian called a witch that is or hath a witch or connected with a famil- iar spirit, he or they shall be put to death." Similar laws were enacted in Massachusetts and many excellent men and women were tried, convicted and hung for witchcraft on the testimony of ignorant fanatics, who ought to have been whipped smartly through the streets to cure them of their folly and wickedness.
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A hundred years ago and more, many of the people of Candia firmly believe in witches and many of the troub- les and misfortunes they encountered, which they could not readily explain, were attributed to witches living in the town.
Several very excellent women who lived in various parts of the town, at that time, were thought to be witches by very foolish persons simply because they were eccentric in their ways and manners. In one case a farmer's wife, who had churned all day long, was unable to change the cream to butter. At length it was supposed that the diffi- culty was caused by the spirit of a witch, which had got into the churn. A horse shoe heated very hot was thrown into the foaming cream, and the housewife, after churning a few minutes, was rejoiced to find the butter had come all right without further trouble. The stupid family believed the heated horse shoe had burned the spirit of the witch and drove it away. They did not know the hot horse shoe raised the temperature of the cream and caused the won- derful phenomenon they had witnessed. Numerous other cases illustrating the superstition of the times could be re- lated.
People used to nail horse shoes over their doors to keep out witches and horse shoes may still be seen over doors of some of the houses in the town. In old times the peo- ple firmly believed in signs, good and bad. To see the new moon over the right shoulder was considered a good omen, but a bad one when seen over the left shoulder. When the horns of the new moon appeared in a nearly perpendicular position, it was said to be a sign of rain, but when they ap- peared in a horizontal position, it was a sign of a drought. A dog howling in the night, or a bug ticking in the wall of a room, were signs that some of the family would soon die. Nobody would get married, start on a journey or com- mence some important business on Friday. Christ died on Friday and therefore it was a day of gloom and sadness. Nearly all persons convicted of murder or other capital crimes have been executed on Friday. Chief Justice Doe of the New Hampshire Supreme Court, in order to express his contempt for such foolish whims, has for some time
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been in the habit of sentencing criminals to be executed on Tuesday or some other day in the week rather than on Fri- day.
It will no doubt be many a long day before the majority of the inhabitants of the earth will comprehend the fact that the universe is governed by unerring and unchanging laws at all times and under all conditions.
THE INDIANS. ·
A few arrow heads, stone gouges and other Indian im- plements have been found in various parts of the town, which show that the aborigines frequently visited the lo- cality for the purpose of hunting wild game or fishing, but there is no evidence that they ever had a permanent settle- ment here. For some time after old Chester was first set- tled the Indians were beligerent and it has been said that Lieut. Thomas Smith and one John Karr, (not the Carr who came to Candia,) was captured, in 1720, and carried off. The first settlers of Chester for a number of years lived in houses quite near to each other and built a garrison, or fort, to which they could flee in case of an Indian alar m. During the French-Indian war, the people of that town were in considerable danger of Indian attacks, but no great harm was done. Massabesic Lake was a fine fishing place and the Indians dwelt near its shores in considerable num- bers, and cultivated and raised corn, beans, etc., to some extent. Many Indian relics have been found in Auburn and vicinity. The early settlers of Candia never had any trouble on account of Indians.
THE ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH.
The electric telegraph first came into practical use, in 1844. S. F. B. Morse, a distinguished portrait painter of New York city, about that time invented a method of pro- ducing signs for all the letters by transmitting a current of electricity through an iron wire. The first electric line which was established in the world for use was that which ran between Baltimore and the city of Washington. The first
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HISTORY OF CANDIA. 425
public message which passed over the line was the an- nouncement that James K. Polk had been nominated at Baltimore as the Democratic candidate for President. The first submarine ocean telegraph was laid between England and the United States, in 1858, the cable being sunk to the depth of more than two miles in the deepest part of the At- lantic ocean. A telegraph line between Manchester and Portsmouth passed through Candia on the line of the rail- road more than thirty years ago but no telegraph station was established in Candia until. 1891.
THE TELEPHONE.
The invention of an instrument by which sounds could be transmitted by an electric current and a conversation carried on between two persons who are hundreds of miles apart was made in 1877. Five years later, the New Eng- land Telephone Company established a line between Dea. W. J. Dudley's store at the village and Manchester, Boston and many other places in the country. By the use of this instrument addresses or sermons delivered in a public building can be heard by people situated many miles dis- tant. Sermons delivered by Henry Ward Beecher in his church in Brooklyn, were distinctly heard in various other cities. The invention of the electric light was made about the year 1878 and came into use in many cities four years , later. Though there are no electric lights in Candia, the people of the town can see the beautiful reflections upon the clouds of those in use at Manchester.
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