Annals of our ancestors; one hundred and fifty years of history in the ...

26 ANNALS OF OUR ANCESTORS
first-born of their parents "Sister Sallie." There is a story I
recall of her infancy. One of the neighbors had told grand-
father that the child might inherit his deafness, and this so
troubled him he determined to test the babe's hearing for him-
self. He took her outdoors and placed her near a flat stone,
upon which he hammered, and the sound startled little Sarah
so that she cried out. Satisfied from her expression that she
heard him, and wild with joy, he snatched her up and bore her
in triumph to the house.
Joseph early gave promise of becoming the upright, honest
man he was to the end. His name stood for industry and un-
selfishness. He so early developed frugality that while still
young he had a start in the world, a house and lot in Cincinnati
and a sawmill near. He grew tall and strong, and his endurance
was a marvel. In him were the seeds of truest nobility,
and these grew into deeds we must ever remember. Our father,
Benjamin Watkins, also showed in childhood signs of the man
to be; a great mind and heart were promised, and though he
had a blend of the lion in his nature, he had a better side, a
tender and kindly nature which, with the family trait of hon-
esty, made him a true and obedient son.
The blossoming wilderness, the peace and growing prosperity,
the good and bright little children, all tended to make
even arduous toil seem light, and the way before stretched out
full of hope; but unexpected shadows were gathering there.
When the three children were still small, they began to lose
the precious sense of sight. First, cataract appeared upon
the eyes of the two older ones; and when Joseph was nine years
old he became quite blind. For two years our grandparents
waited for an oculist to come over those separating mountains,
to know if it were possible for the sight of their children to be
restored. Ah, those were weary, waiting days, like unto the
waiting for grandmother's son William! At last an oculist
did come from the East, and although the skill of that period
was not as to-day, Joseph's sight was restored by the good
physician. Dr. John Martin. We do not know exactly about
the state of Aunt Sallie 's eyes at this time; her bhndness may
have developed later, or the cataract on her eyes may have been