Page:The Granite Monthly Volume 5.djvu/108

 88 THE GRANITE MONTHLY.

Numerous monuments mark the resting place of various members of the Stark and McKinstry famiHes.

I turned from the place with regret. How solemn and beautiful everything was ! It impressed me profoundly. Two Sabbath's marked that week for me : one, in the quiet village church, where I fear I gave a heedless ear ; the other, in this lovely cemetery, where my head was humbled in the presence of the great and beautiful brought to dust, and where a grand sacred symphony was per- formed, — wanting only the genius of Liszt or Tennyson to interpret it in its wealth of harmony from the singing of the great pines to the warbhng of the tiniest bird.

��LETTER EROM S. HALE TO GOV. WILLL4M PLUMER.

��Keene, April 24, 1S25.

My Dear Sir: I have ascertained that Daniel Newcomb was born at Nor- ton, in Massachusetts, in 1746. He was educated at Cambridge, was a classmate and roommate of Benj. West, grailuated in 1768, studied law with Judge Lowell (having Christopher Gore for a fellow student), was admitted an attorney of the Inferior Court, Suffolk county, October, 1778, came to Keene in 1779. In the interval between leaving college and commencing the study of the law, he kept a Latin School a few years at Wrentham. He married Miss Stearns, daughter of the Rev. Mr. Stearns of Lunenburg, and for his second wife Mrs. Hannah Goldthwait, formerly Miss Daress, of Boston. He was a Judge of the Inferior Court of this county and of the Superior (Jourt, a sena- tor from this district, and President of Cheshire Bank. He was a good classi- cal scholar, had a remarkable memory, was fond of quotations, and read much. As a lawyer he was respectable, but had too much diffidence and sensibility to succeed as an advocate. He died in 181 8, at the age of seventy-two. Per- haps I ought to add that he was intimate with Mr. West, that he invited Mr. W. to come to this county, and gave him his choice of Keene or Charlestown. Mrs. N. has several letters written by West, from Charlestown, S. C, to her late husband.

I should have sent the foregoing sketch of Judge Newcomb sooner, but waited to send with it some account of Gens. Allen and Shepard, which have been promised, but have not yet arrived. In looking over the Judge's pamph- lets (who was a very bookworm), I found three relating to the constitution of this State, printed in 1791 or '92 ; 1 suspect one was written by yourself. I found, also, an Address to the Inhabitants of Berkshire, 1778 ; Considerations on lowering tie value of Gold Coins, Boston, 1762, being an answer to Hutch- inson ; Narrative of the Indian School, 1772; Address to the Inhabitants of British Settlements on Slave-keeping, Philadelphia printed, Boston reprinted, 1773, which are now safe in my repository. I shall forward you notices of the other gentlemen as soon as I receive them.

Respectfully and truly yours,

S. HALE.

�� �