USA > New Hampshire > Cheshire County > Jaffrey > Jaffrey centennial : proceedings of the centennial celebration of the one hundredth anniversary of the incorporation of Jaffrey, N.H., August 20, 1873 > Part 5
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Not to that philanthropy which consists in words and eschews works ; not to that charity which, beginning at home, ends in the same spot ; nor that charity which does hope things are not quite so bad as they are reported, but is fearful that they may be worse ; - but to that philanthropy which does the deeds of the Good Samaritan, and which is open-hearted and open-hand- ed within the limits of prudence; and to that charity which suffereth long and is kind, which envieth not, is not easily pro- voked, thinketh no evil, hopeth all things, and endureth all things.
We dedicate it to Ambition.
Not that ambition which seeks a seat in Congress by bribery, or any other seat by the petty arts of the partisan politician ; - but that ambition described by Lord Mansfield, when he said,- " I wish popularity, but it is that popularity which follows, not that which is run after ; it is that popularity which, sooner or later, never fails to do justice to the pursuit of noble ends by noble means."
We dedicate it to rational Amusement.
Not to the games or pursuits which blunt the conscience, de- prave the habits, enervate the mind, and vitiate the taste ; - but to the recreations which solace from care, stimulate the fancy, develop the muscle, sustain the nerves, and give, through so-
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cial intercourse, a relaxation from toil, a kindly regard for our neighbors, and courtesy to our associates, whether within or without the township.
We dedicate it to the wise and just exercise of all the politi- cal and municipal Rights conferred upon the Town; and to the faithful discharge of all corresponding Duties.
Finally, as the sum of all, we dedicate it to Human Happi- ness, and the Glory of God.
And may His blessing rest upon it, and hallow it, from its. commencement to its termination.
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APPENDIX A.
NOTE TO PAGE 15. - A portion of Jaffrey was included in the original location of Peterborough.
The township of Peterborough was granted by Massachusetts, to inhabitants of that Colony, with power to the grantees to se- lect the particular location. Under the erroneous supposition that the line between Massachusetts and New Hampshire was that claimed by the former, the grantees made their location be- yond the jurisdiction of Massachusetts, and embraced within their "six miles square " a large portion of the valley between the base of the mountain on the east, (now known as Peterboro' mountain), and the Monadnock.
When it was ascertained that the location was within New Hampshire, and fell within the purchase of the Masonian Pro- prictors, Jos. Blanchard, as their agent, cut off a range and a half on the western side, in order to provide for a tier of town- ships east of the Monadnock, and the portion thus cut off was included in Monadnock Nos. 2 & 3, (Jaffrey and Dublin).
The Masonian Proprietors not only released the residue of the township to the grantees under Massachusetts, but gave them, to make up their quantity, a strip of land on the East, of equal extent to that taken off on the West. This however, being on the eastern mountain, was comparatively worthless .- The grant- ecs of Peterboro', in grateful recognition of the kindness of the Masonian Proprietors in confirming so much of their invalid ti- tle, and in giving them an addition to make up their quantity, gave the Proprietors several lots in the township, - but they took care to locate them all in the new addition, on the east !- Ex relatione Dr. Albert. Smith.
APPENDIX B.
NOTE TO PAGE 24. - Something more may be said upon this subject, and as I have no wish to recur to it again, I add here :
The compact made on board the Mayflower, which furnished the foundation of the first Town organization,-at Plymouth,
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was "occasioned, partly by the discontented and mutinous speeches of some of the strangers " on board the ship, and part- ly by the reason that "such an act by them done, (this their condition considered) might be as firm as any patent, and in some respects more sure." The matters which "occasioned " the compact had, therefore, no particular relation to the church polity .- It recited that they were loyal subjects of King James, that they had undertaken for the glory of God, and advancement of the Christian faith, and honor of their King and country, a voyage to plant a Colony,-and by it they combined themselves together, into a civil body politic, for the better promotion of those ends, and by virtue of it, " to enact, constitute and frame such just and equal laws, ordinances, acts, constitutions and of- fices from time to time, as shall be thought most meet and con- venient for the general good of the Colony."
There is nothing, either in the reasons given for the act, or in the purposes of the expedition as recited, or in the agreement actually executed, which indicates that it was derived from the church organization,-or which in any way refers to the Con- gregational polity, or to any particular administration of church government,-and this, taken with the statements which are con- tained in it, tends to show that the town organization in Ply- mouth, which arose from it, was not even suggested by the cler- ical.
Quite consistently with this origin of the Town organization, there mignt have been a different church polity previously, and any church polity which the signers pleased, might have been adopted afterwards. The church polity of the same people, had, as a matter of course, a similar foundation, that of self-gov- ernment,- but that fact did not of itself originate or give rise to the civil polity. It only accompanied it, each acting within its own sphere.
This organization of Plymouth became substantially a State, as well as a town. But the State was for the purpose of general government, and did not derive its ideal from the church; and when, by reason of the extension of the settlements, other towns were organized, it was for the purpose of ordering and manag-
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ing their local affairs, -- the support of religious teachers, along with the making and mending of highways, -the support of schools, - the preservation of the peace, through the instrumen- tality of the constable, -and tbe prevention of of trespass by cattle, through the institution of pounds.
The principle of self-government upon which the original settlement was founded, and upon which in reference to their local affairs, the Towns were afterwards organized, was not on- ly a fundamental principle with the emigrants, but was a neces- sity under the circumstances attending the emigration. No one had authority to rule, -there were no means of government ex- cept by agreement, or force, -and they agreed upon a govern- ment for themselves, to be administered by themselves. It must have been the same if no church had then been organized among them. The same principle operated in regard to the church .- When the people broke from the authority of the bishops there was no authority in ecclesiastical matters, except their own, and thus Congregationalism came into existence.
It may be said, (and it seems to be the only argument which can be used in favor of the position), that the principles of the churches "led to this form of government,"- that the church organization was first, and that the Town coming after, adopted the same principle of self-government. To this "Post hoc, sed non propter hoc,"-after, but not by reason of the church organ- ization, is a sufficient reply. There must be something more than this, to sustain the assertion that " it was a Congregational Church meeting, that first suggested the idea of a New England Town meeting."
Meetings of subscribers to the Compact made on board the Mayflower, grew out of the Compact itself.
APPENDIX C.
NOTE TO PAGE 38. - Attempts to manufacture cotton, by ma- chinery, were made in this country as early as 1787, and in sub- sequent years in that century. The machinery was imperfect and the results, of course, unsatisfactory. The first mill, in New
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Hampshire, was established in 1804, in New Ipswich. The first cotton mill in Peterboro' was incorporated 1808. It spun and sold yarn, but for years manufactured no cloth .- For these dates I am indebted to a small volume entitled, " Introduction and Early progress of the cotton manufacture in the United States," written by Samuel Batchelder, Esq., a native of Jaffrey, and published in 1863. Prior to the manufacture of cloth here, the cheaper cotton cloth, in the market, was a sleasy fabric, manufac- tured in India and England, -the latter heavily starched, to conceal its flimsy texturc.
Enquiries in several directions enable me to add some infor- mation respecting the manufacture of Woollens.
It appears that a mill, a fulling mill I presume, was erected at Rowley, Mass., as early as 1643, but machinery for carding, spinning, and weaving was of a much later date. Carding ma- chines were introduced into this country about 1794, -into New Ipswich in 1801, and probably soon after into this town. They had then been known in England twenty or thirty years. Some of the first carding machinery used in this country was shipped from England, as hardware, being exported contrary to the laws in force there. See Bulletin of Wool Manufacturers, April-June, 1873, page 193. Article by S. B.
T. Clapp, Agt., Pontoosuc Woollen Mill, Pittsfield, Mass., writes under date of October 9th, that Arthur Schofield started his first carding machine there in 1801; - that the first broad- cloth made in this country was made by him, in that town, in 1804,-and that "in 1808 Schofield manufactured thirteen yards of black broadcloth, which was presented to President Madison, from which his inaugural suit was made. Fine merino sheep were introduced about this time into this town, and Schofield was able to select wool enough to make this single piece, and President Madison was the first President who was inaugurated in American broadcloth."
An extended, and very interesting, article on the subject, ap- pears in the Boston Commercial Bulletin, of Nov. 15th, (as these sheets are passing through the press), which states that Arthur
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and John Schofield came to this country from England in 1793, and took up their residence in Charlestown, - that after look- ing around a few weeks they determined to make a start in the manufacture of wollen cloth by hand, - that John built the first machinery himself, and having completed " a hand loom, spin- ning jenny, &c., on the 28th of October he sold the first product of this loom, 24} yards of broadcloth [?] for £16-16s., and 20 yards of mixed broadcloth for £12;"-that they removed to Newburyport in that year, for the purpose of starting a factory with improved machinery, and built a carding machine, which was first put together in a room in Lord Timothy Dexter's sta- ble, and then operated by hand, for the purpose of showing its operation. " This was in the year 1794, and was the first card- ing machine for wool made in the United States ; and at this place were made the first spinning rolls carded by machinery."
A factory was started by them, and others, in Byfield, in 1795. A single carding machine and two double ones were placed in it. " A coarse kind of flannel called baize " was woven. What oth- er cloth was manufactured is not stated.
They established a factory at Montville, in Conn., about 1798.
It appears further that in 1801, Arthur, having removed to Pittsfield, had a carding machine there, - advertised for wool to card, - and built carding machines for other persons.
It is then stated, "The first broadcloth made by Arthur Schofield after his arrival in Pittsfield was in 1804. The cloth was a gray mixed, and when finished, was shown to different merchants, and offered for sale but could find no purchasers in the village. A few weeks subsequently, Josiah Bissell, a lead- ing merchant in town, made a voyage to New York, for the pur- pose of buying goods, and brought home two pieces of Scho- field's cloths, which was purchased for the foreign article. Scho. field was sent for to test the quality, and soon exhibited to the merchant his private marks on the same cloth which he had be- fore rejected."
Then comes the statement respecting the manufacture of broad- cloth in 1808, which President Madison wore when inaugurated.
Considering all these statements the reasonable conclusion ap- pears to be, that the first broadcloth manufactured in this coun-
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try was made in 1804, by Arthur Schofield, as stated by Mr. Clapp. It seems improbable that the cloth manufactured in Charlestown in 1794 could have been broadcloth.
At the period of which I speak, wool was carded partly by hand, but the carding machines generally turned out the rolls, which were spun upon the domestic great wheel, and woven in the loom, like the cotton, and then fulled and dressed by the clothier.
The great wheel and the loom have disappeared before their gigantic competitors ; and the linen wheel, which spun the flax,- humble little machine,- has gone along with its larger compan- ions, although large linen manufactures have not succeeded in establishing themselves here to any great extent. - The prepa- ration of the ground, the seed and the sowing, - the pulling, rotting, breaking, swingling and hatchelling of the flax, - with the spinning and weaving superadded,-involved too great an amount of labor for a successful competition with the foreign manufacturer, as soon as the profit from other branches enabled the farmer to purchase the foreign article, manufactured where labor is so much cheaper. - Besides, the manufacture of cot- . ton cloth, by machinery, reduced the cost of that, so that it su- perseded the use of linen, in a very great degree.
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RESONANT cheers were given as Boston " men of high degree " filed in at 11.30 A. M., and took seats upon the platform after a pertinent introduction by President Cutter. The party included Mayor Henry L. Pierce, Alderman L. R. Cutter, (chairman of the board who bore the visitors' expenses), Gibson, Brown and Sayward ; John A. Haven, president, and Nathaniel J. Bradlee, ex-president of Cochituate Water Board ; Alfred T. Turner, auditor of accounts ; Joseph Davis, city surveyor ; H. A. Blood, Superintendent of the Boston, Clinton & Fitchburg Railroad ; President Howe of the Bedford & Taunton Railroad, and four companionable reporters representing the Boston Post, News, Globe and Advertiser.
The President then said :- The breezes that play around old Monadnock, so like the elixer of life to the weary wander- er, have called to us, among many others, a lady noted for her vocal powers. She has kindly consented to favor us with a song. I now introduce to this audience, the sweet songstress from the "Old Bay State,"
MRS. ANNA GRANGER DOW.
Mrs. Dow then sang " The Heavens are Telling," with telling effect.
The President then introduced the REV. RUFUS CASE. who read
A POEM,
BY MISS MARY BELLE FOX, OF JAFFREY, N. H.
A hundred times has Autumn seen His forest branches stripped and bare ;
A hundred times, when winds blew keen, White Winter's snows have filled the air;
A hundred times Spring's magic wiles, Have clothed with green the hillsides brown;
And now the last fair summer smiles
That rounds the century of our Town.
Yon mountain calls to us to-day, And draws us with persuasive voice,
" This is your Town's memorial day, My children, keep it and rejoice :
While waving tree, and rock, and hill. With silent voices manifold.
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Greet those who dwell among them still, And those who knew them well of old."
" Come, stand, as on my breezy height, And view the backward-sweeping past, Then read your own deeds in the light The lives of others on them cast ; And let old memories stir your hearts, Like breezes whispering through my pines, Till the unbidden tear-drop starts, To read time's half-effaced lines."
And gladly we that call obey. And gladly do we gather here, Turning our faces toward that way Whence shall the past's dim forms appear. But who can lift with steady hand That misty curtain hanging low, Shrouding the half-forgotten land, That far, dim land of long ago ?
Not one among us here can see So far adown the winding way, And say, " I do remember me What was on our Town's natal day ; When people cried, ' God save the King,' Though freedom's pulses stirred their breast ; Though swelled the seed about to spring Of our great nation of the West."
A stalwart band of men were they, The early settlers of our Town, Loud rang their axes day by day, That hewed the forest monarchs down. Men not afraid of honest toil, They sought the wilds a home to win, And gladly from the virgin soil Gathered their harvest treasures in.
They built them houses large and plain, Where clustered their life's richest joys ; Where round them rose a numerous train Of healthy, happy girls and boys. That children's minds have need of food, That they may grow, full well they knew, And built the district school-house rude, Wherein rich fruits of knowledge grew.
They felt the goodness of the Lord, Whose hand had led them all their days, And gladly built with one accord, A house where they his name might praise. Here still that ancient building stands, Scarce changed in outward form appears, Unharmed by the destructive hands, Of near a century's changeful years.
"Twas when they raised that frame-work strong, One fair June morning, calm and still,
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They heard,-or fancy led them wrong,- The far-off guns at Bunker Hill; Whence rose that patriotic wave That o'er the land impetuous swept, Waking in hearts of all the brave The love of freedom that had slept.
Quickly our fathers stirred them then ; They left their homes, and took the gun, And bore their part, as valiant men, In that long strife that freedom won. Then with " clear shining after rain." The sun of peace dispersed their fears, And in their quiet homes again, Passed on their uneventful years.
Where are they now? The bell that swings In yon old tower the tale doth tell, Whene'er with solemn tone it rings Some parted soul a funeral knell; Each to the grave has journeyed on, There each in lasting quiet sleeps, The while his white memorial stone The door of his low dwelling keeps.
In yonder " city on the hill " The blooming sod above their breasts, Where all is peaceful, calm, and still, Their pastor with his people rests. Life held him here a hundred years, And kept him from his heavenly crown, . Till weary with its griefs and fears, He laid the heavy burden down.
O, friends, who seek in vain to-day, Some long-remembered, well-known face, Perchance ye on yon marbles may An answer to your questions trace. For sleep our fathers not alone, Full many of their children too, Have crossed life's boundary, one by one, And paid the debt to nature due.
There rest our sons in hallowed graves, Who fell 'neath war's red, cruel hand ; Who gave their brave young lives to save, From traitor's foul designs our land. O honored sires ! O household dead, O soldiers true, sleep calm and sound ! Life bears us on with steady tread. On to the rest that ye have found.
Full well we know that this, our town. Has little worth in stranger's eyes. We love it, for it is our own, And holds us by a thousand ties. Here peace and plenty mark our lot, Now. e'en as in " the good old time,"
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And Change and Progress question not To lay on us their hands sublime.
N'er entered in our father's dreams, Some changes that the years have wrought; Our locomotives rush and scream, A fearsome thing they would have thought. No prophecy the housewife's wheel Sung to them of the jarring looms, That ply their giant frames of steel, In our tall factory's many rooms.
Our merry streams, that down the hills Go leaping on their sea-ward way, Are caught and held by busy mills, Whom, willing subjects, they obey ; There great stones crush the yellow corn, There clanging saws harsh tumult make, Where trees put off their forest form, And shapes for our convenience take.
Here nature's ever open book Displays its pictured pages too, Showing to all who choose to look, Many a goodly pleasant view. No lack of beauty, rugged hill And rock-strewn field have need to own, When o'er them Summer's hand of skill, A drapery of green has thrown.
Sweet is the blooming orchard's breath, Rich glow their boughs through Autumn's care; Pleasant their shadowy trees, beneath The dwellings, scattered here and there. Sunny the pastures, sloping down To grassy meadows, cool and low ; Grand the old woods, whose columns brown The golden sunshine sets aglow.
Our winding river brightly gleams Mid green, low banks its waters lave : And one clear, flowing mountain stream, Holds gifts of healing in its wave. Our ponds, like fretted silver shields, Dropped by some fabled gods of old, When worsted on celestial fields,- The woods, with leafy arms, enfold. 1
There the sweet water-lily lies, And in the wave her beauty sees ; There many a timid, wild bird flies, And sings in the encircling trees. Near them, the pink Azalea breathes Her sweetness on June's balmy air ; And there the glossy Laurel wreathes Her virgin blossoms, pale and fair.
But what, Monadnock, shall we say Of thee, thou dear to every heart
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That knew thee in its childhood's day, Ere life from nature grew apart ? Thy silent eloquence, is fraught With meanings deep, and grandly true, Unconciously, our young hearts caught And held then, better than we knew.
For always in our later years, However far our footsteps roam, Our mountain clear to sight appears, When fancy paints our early home. Grand mays't thou seem to stranger's eyes, And strangers tongues thy praises sing ; We hold thee in our memories, And love thee like a human thing.
God of our fathers, unto Thee With humble gratitude, to-day, We bow the reverential knee ; And at Thy throne our homage pay. We pray Thee, bless our native Town, From henceforth, as Thou hast of old ; And shower upon her children down, Thy mercies, great and manifold.
Though, when the coming century's years Have passed, a swift and changeful train, Not one of all who gather here, Shall on the shores of Time remain ; May we in Thine own blessed land, Where life and joy shall never cease, Beneath Thy trees of healing stand, And walk upon Thy hills of peace.
HYMN OF GRATITUDE.
BY MISS ERMINA C. CAMPBELL.
Sung by the Choir.
We come, O God, a happy throng, Our grateful hearts to raise, With glad accord, in swelling song. In sweetest notes of praise.
From out thy boundless store, O God ! An hundred years have shed Their gifts on us who breathe to-day, And on the sleeping dead.
How countless are the fragrant thoughts Which cluster round those years ! What toiling hosts have shared their joys, Their thronging hopes and fears.
With hearts that thrill with solemn awe, We pause upon our way, To view once more the shrouded Past, And greet the new-born day.
The pæan of an hundred years Is echoing in each heart ; Its grandly sweet and solemn strains Will nevermore depart.
We come, O God! to render thanks, Our grateful hearts to raise, With fervent homage and with awe, In sweetest songs of praise.
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President Cutter "took the floor" for a moment and said :
Ladies and Gentlemen : - As our friends from Boston can re- main with us only a short time, we propose to defer dinner until half past one, therefore I now introduce to you C. A. Parks, Esq., of East Jaffrey, as Toastmaster of the day.
TOASTMASTER PARK'S REMARKS.
Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen; Fellow Citizens of Juf- frey : - I am grateful for the honor you have conferred upon me in your selection of a Master for your "Centennial feast." It is an office the duties of which will afford me much pleasure and impose upon me little labor, for I regard it as my special prov- ince not to attempt any speech myself today, but simply to re- introduce to you some of your old friends and acquaintances whose voices were familiar in the years past, and whose count- enances you welcome here, where you have gathered in one common brotherhood to celebrate the one hundredth natal day of your mother town.
I am glad that I am privileged, through a right of adoption by Jaffrey, to be present on this occasion and to participate in these. exercises by proposing a few sentiments of an appropriate char- acter for your consideration ; and I hope from the responses to which we may listen, we shall be able to gather much of profit- able entertainment, and that in the words of those whom Jaffrey is happy to remember and honor on this day, there will come to us all many fruitful lessons respecting the reminiscences of the past and many golden hopes for the future.
We are honored today by Boston in the presence here of her Mayor and her Board of Aldermen, a body of gentlemen whose position distinguishes them as Boston's most worthy representa- tives. A sentiment has been selected for the Honorable Mayor, suggestive not only of the geographical proximity of New Hamp- shire to the city over which he presides, but also of that honest gratitude and pride over Boston's high rank and increasing great- ness as a metropolis, in which Jaffrey may be permitted to share through those of her sons she has given the great city to enroll among her honored names. It is this : " Jaffrey enjoys the hon-
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