Walking the llama trail - The North Star Monthly

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www.northstarmonthly.com NOVEMBER 2009 21Letters from the PastWhen writing was a necessity and an artBy Lynn A. BonfieldLetters were one of thefew ways friends separatedby distance in nineteenth-centuryVermont hadfor communicating witheach other. In the late fall of1834, Archibald Bachop(1819-98) wrote from hishome in Barnet to his formerclassmate, Enos Stevens(1816-77), teaching in Middlebury.The cost of sendingthis letter was 12½ cents,paid by Archibald. Postagerates had been fixed by Congressin 1792 and were extremelyhigh. Until 1855,postage could be paid eitherby the sender or the receiver;after that, prepayment wascompulsory.Internal details reveal thatArchibald wrote this letter inNovember rather than in Octoberas he penned. He knewEnos would be interested in thehiring of local teachers especiallytheir pay. Certainly one of thetopics of conversation for teachers,at this time still primarily aman’s occupation, must havebeen the recent hiring of womento the position, not only in thesummer term when women hadtaught for years, but during thewinter and spring terms. Ratherthan going directly into that subject,Archibald instead poked funat a community–Peacham–thatallowed women teachers in thedistrict schools year round. Heneglected to add that many communitiespreferred women asthey were often paid half theamount paid to male teachers.Today’s readers might findlaughable Archibald’s referenceto the recent lecturer atPeacham’s lyceum who referredto women as the “same to socialsociety that a ruffle is to a shirt.”Clearly, the ladies of Peachamdid not.BarnetOct [November] 5 1834Mr. E[nos] StevensSince I received your letterthe twenty fourth of Oct andwas gratified to hear from thewest of the Green Mountaines.Times pass on hear as usualwithout much news except a fewchangeing events of the daywhich are few and not very interestingsuch as GeorgeCo[w]les has hired a Store, MaryBradley excepts to get Married,ec [etc].The season has arived whenpeople are in search of schoolteachers which I think are not sonumerous as formally & that thereward for service this seasonwill be a little [more] than usual.Only two schools are engaged tomy knowledge. The school inyour Village by James Gilkersonand the one in Deacon StuartsDistrict by myself. Gilkerson has20 Dollars a month. I have 18Dollars board ourselves or runon the streets.The Lyceum at Peacham is asinteresting as last fall as well asmore liberal for those who paidlast year go free this. Those whohave lectured are Noah Worcester[1819-47] Everts Worcester[1807-36] Thomas Goodwillie(1800-67) & Dr [John] McNab[1784-1878]. The Dr[’s] lecturedid not suit the Ladies of P[Peacham] very well for in speakingof the fair sects [sex] he saidthat they were same to social societythat a ruffle is to a shirt[.]The Dr[’s] subject was Knowledgewhich lead him to speak ofthe females, and he gave hisopinion that he saw now [no] improprietywhy a female shouldnot if her inclinatons loud [allowed]her to study a profession,whic would appear rather masculinein the present state ruffleBottle Redemption - Daily Lunch Specials - Lottery TicketsDo you have a chronic health condition that is affecting your life?Any adult with one or more chronic conditionscan participate. A friend or care giver is welcometo attend with you. 10 Participant MinimumPlease check the session you’d like to attend.Mondays, Nov 2–Dec 79:30 a.m. to noon,NVRH Business Ctr 224Fridays, Jan 8–Feb 12, 20109:30 a.m. to noon,NVRH Business Ctr 127shirt society.The Girls are all well as far asmy knowledge extends. JennetShaw has returned to schoolagain at Peacham [Academy] andboards at Mrs Osgoods also herSister. Isabelle Brewer[,] Rumana[Ruhanna] Gleason andsister Jane and Jennet are attendingalso from Barnet.This must suffice at presentas I was so unfortunate a fewweeks since to be thrown from aColt and spraint my wrist so thatthe ligaments were very muchlacerated and I have not beenable to use it but very little sincealthough it has now in part acquiredits usual strength but in avery quakeing quavering shakeingtroting condition.Yours in FriendshipArchibald BachopWould you like to change your life for the better?You will learn:•how to deal with frustration, pain, fatigue, and isolation•exercise techniques for maintaining and improving strength,flexibility, and endurance; use of medications•how to communicate with health professionals, family, and friends•nutrition and healthy lifestyles… and more!And you will receive:•A 300-page booklet and relaxation audio tape.A FREE PROGRAM FOR PEOPLE WITH CHRONIC CONDITIONSNAMEADDRESSBefore envelopes were introduced, letters were folded so ablank page was available for the address and the letter wassealed with wax. Stamps were not introduced in the UnitedStates until 1847.The original of this letter ispreserved in the Stevens FamilyCollection at Special Collections,Bailey/Howe Library, Universityof Vermont. The editor thanksSylvia Bugbee at UVM, SarahHartwell at Dartmouth, andarchivist/historian Philip P.PHONETO ENROLL CALL 802 748-7590 OR MAIL THIS TO:LAURAL RUGGLES NVRH, PO BOX 905, ST. JOHNSBURY, VT 05819Mason for help in identifyingand researching this letter. Lettersin this series are transcribedas written with no corrections ofspelling, punctuation, or capitalization.Editor’s additions are inbrackets.A FREE PROGRAM FOR PEOPLEWITH CHRONIC CONDITIONS
22 NOVEMBER 2009 THE NORTH STAR MONTHLYA sad story about a grebeBY RETA H. MORSEIt was during an early Januarysnow storm that my 10-yearoldson and I, braving theswirling wet snow but enjoyingthe picturesque beauty of thewintry atmosphere, made ourway toward the Fairbanks Museumof Natural Science in St.Johnsbury, Vt. to see a strangelive water bird which was displayedthere.This all began about the last ofDecember, 1956, when Dr. AlbertE. Grass. a local veterinarian, founda quaint bird stranded in a snowdriftalong the banks of the partly frozenPassumpsic River in the neighboringtown of Lyndonville.He had taken the bird to FrederickMold, director of the FairbanksMuseum where it was soonidentified as a Holboell’s Grebe,Colymbus holboelli, belonging tothe Family Podicipidae, a divingfamily, known to be one of the lowestin order among birds.Mr. Mold had explained thatdue to the nature of the bird it usesits feet as propellers and requires along runway of water to get intoflight. Also, because grebes’ abilityto walk is undeveloped, it couldn’tgo very far, so obviously, it had becometrapped.Although this trip couldn’t becompared with an adventuroustramp into leaf-strewn woodlandswith sounds of birds flittingthrough a thicket, being startled byhuman sounds, we were nonethelessenthusiastic when we reachedour destination.So we paused outside only longenough to stamp our boots, brushthe accumulation of snow from ourcoats and then we entered the museum.Almost at once, at one end ofthe spacious museum, near a glasscabinet displaying a variety ofmounted birds, we noticed thegrebe. The small duck-shaped birdwith its drab plumage of black,brown and silvery gray, and sportinga long pointed bill was swimminggracefully in a portableswimming pool.On a perch nearby was a parrotnamed Joe who was believed to beabout 40 years old, looking downwith idle curiosity. Music was addedto the scene by a group of parakeetsand canaries who chattered andchirped merrily in their cages.We were amused as the grebedisplayed a series of aquatic exhibitions.It swam and dove beneath thewater as well as on the surface withsmooth, skillful motions. Sometimesit swam under the water withonly a part of its head showing, creatinga comical appearance.But the strangest part about thisbird was its feet. We watched withgreat interest when the grebe attemptedto get onto a board, whichwas attached to the edge of thepool. Many times it tried but onlywith the aid of its small wings did itsucceed. A grebe’s long legs and unusualfeet are placed at the extremeof its somewhat streamlined body.The feet are not webbed. Ratherthey are flattened toes spaced with a“horny-like” skin.For a short time it just stoodthere awkward, somewhat resemblingthe penguin, although grebesare much smaller in size. An adultHubbell’s grebe is 19 inches long,but the grebe in the pool, who wasbelieved to be immature, was understandablysmaller.As I sat on a nearby bench andchatted with the attendant, a groupof young children and their teacher,trouped in. They excitedly gatheredaround the fenced-in pool with myson and called out in their childishvoices, coaxing the grebe to get intothe water. The friendly grebe, willingto comply, slid with silent easeinto the water and loudly called outcluck-cluck-cluck-kow-kow-kow,startling the youngsters momentarily.When the attendant tossedsome small fish into the pool thechildren laughed gaily as the grebecaught them with its swift movementand ate them greedily. Whenit first came to the museum itwouldn’t eat by itself at all. Foodhad to be forced into its mouth tokeep it alive. The attendant told uswhen they picked the grebe out ofthe water, his feet and legs would goso fast that they appeared to be ablur.As I glanced past the grebe tolook outdoors, I was surprised thatit was getting dark. We had becomeso interested in the grebe that wefailed to notice how late it was getting.We buttoned our coats andwent outside. It had stopped snowing.Snowplows were cleaning thestreets as we trudged homeward.After our first visit, we wentmany times to the museum to seethe grebe. It seemed to feel right athome.Around April, when the grebehad been at the museum fourmonths, it became restless. It flutteredabout in the pool and spreadits wings attempting to take-off. Mr.Mold had planned to take it to someopen water as soon as the weatherwas truly spring-like, but a tragedyoccurred.Quite suddenly it became ill anddied in a very short time. Dr. Grassexamined the bird and determinedthat it had died of intestinal stoppage.Even though it didn’t get thechance to swim in deep waters againit gave pleasure to all who came tosee it. And we feel sure it will not beforgotten easily.Chef David Hale and culinary studentsplan 5th annual Cabot Gourmet BuffetFor the fifth year in arow, Cabot chefDavid Hale is workingwith culinary students toput on the “New TraditionsSupper,” a gourmetbuffet which has becomean anticipated epicureantreat in central Vermont.This year’s meal will beserved Friday, Nov. 6 atthe Cabot UnitedChurch.“A group of us got togetherfive years ago and decidedwe wanted to create anannual supper in Cabot thatwas different from thechicken pie, ham and bakedbean scenario you see inother towns,” Hale explained.“We decided to dosomething that’s ours andonly ours.” The resultingCabot meal features linentable clothes and gourmetcuisine all served in a buffetformat.Hale is the former executivechef for Auberge duSoleil in Napa Valley, California.In 2001 he and hiswife, Libby, moved toChurchill Road in Cabotwhere they live with theirtwo children Eli and Gage.He came to Vermont toserve as campus executivechef for the New EnglandCulinary Institute (NECI).He now commutes in theother direction, north onRoute 2, to St. JohnsburyAcademy where he is theculinary arts teacher for 23culinary students.“It’s a great range of students,”he explained. “Somewant to continue in the foodservice industry and somejust want to be proficient inthe kitchen. They are learningtransferable skills thatwill help these guys no matterwhat they do down theroad.”The students at the academywill work with Hale toprepare the Cabot meal. Thefinal stages of prepping andthe actual serving will beconducted by students fromthe New England CulinaryInstitute as part of their“service learning requirement.”Cabot church and communitymembers work togethereach year to makethis meal a success.“I am not a full timemember of the church, Haleexplained. “But I understandthe integral role thechurch plays in the community.The people who benefitfrom this event are myneighbors.”“I love the camaraderieof this meal,” he added.“Everyone gets together topull this off, students andcommunity members. And Ilove that happy buzz in theroom as everyone digs intotheir food.”Reservations are necessaryfor this event and servingsare offered at 5 pm,6:15 pm and 7:30 pm. at theCabot Church on MainStreet. Tickets: Adults, $12;Senior citizens $10; Children12 or under $6. Take-out isavailable - 426-3281. Proceedsbenefit United Churchof Cabot.Amish MadeFurniture • Quilts • Nonperishable Food ItemsToys • Candles • Blankets & MoreSpecial Order Catalogs AvailableVisit usat thecornerofroute 2andHill St.inDanvilleVTtuesdaythrusaturday10 a.m.to6 p.m.802684.9900stop by and see katie at the corner of route 2 and Hill Street in Danville VT• 802.684.9900open: tuesday - saturday 10 a.m. - 6 p.m.
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