Page:Letters of Life.djvu/294

282 was borne by the Huguenot ancestor who first emigrated to this land for "freedom to worship God."

The cares of maternity, added to those of housekeeping, had interfered with the regular routine of visits to my parents. This was a source of anxiety, as the health of my mother had become delicate, and her elastic spirits gradually subsided into sadness after my ultimate departure. They had been induced occasionally to pass a winter with us, and at the close of one of those visits Mr. Sigourney proposed that they should dispose of their property in Norwich and dwell constantly with us, as the trouble and expense of a separate establishment might thus be spared, while the presence of their baby grandchildren offered a new motive in favor of the arrangement.

His arguments prevailed, and my father, journeying alone to his deserted abode, promptly effected a successful sale of his real estate, movables, etc., and returned at the age of eighty with the vigor of a young man, bringing with him a copious selection of articles, which I prized as memorials of former days. Most grateful was I for this kind permission to dedicate a portion of time and attention to those who had for years suffered from their deprivation. I doubt whether the full responsibility of an only child is often correctly estimated. Their indebtedness for a concentrated and exclusive love of a lifetime, cannot be computed in the arithmetic of language. If a daughter, her