50 FRANCIS PEABODY 



burned down. It. was the building where the late George Parker 

 lived The frames and hiniber for these two buildings were 

 brought from Tabusintac and got out by Benjamin Stymiest. The 

 pine sills of the Parker htDUse were still sound and good when it 

 was burned They were pine sills squared with the axe, and I do 

 not think could be duplicated to-day in New Brunswick. 



What Peabody's religious convictions were I do not know, but 

 he attended the Presbyterian church regularly in his later years. 

 The very year that he came here there catne also the fii'st 



Protestant minister, Rev. Urquhart, and the next year or the 



second, 1801 or 1802, was built the Moorfield church, opposite the 

 lower end of Chatham, across the river, »t what is now called Mill 

 Bank. 



The Rev. D. Henderson has in his possession a silver Com- 

 munion Flagon, with the date 1805. which belonged to this con- 

 gregation . The services and the people were at this time very 

 primitive ; for instance, the service was held on alternate 

 Sund ys at Wilson's Point and at Moorfield. The people came 

 from both up and down the river in canoes, which contained the 

 worthy householder, his whole family, a picnic basket of pro- 

 visions and a jug of West India rum. The canoe was hauled up on 

 the beach, and the people sat around on the shore or in the grave- 

 yard till the service commenced, but as very iew had watches (and 

 the sexton evidently had none) a pair of the minister's pants were 

 hung out of the manse window when it was time to ring the 

 church bell, and all filed into their pews or rather benches to hear 

 a sermon from one hour to one-and-a-half hours in length. Then 

 came intermission of half an hour or so, when the picnic baskets 

 and jugs of Jamaica were interviewed, which no doubt infused 

 sufficient spirit for another one to one-and-a-half hours' service in 

 the afternoon. 



The people at this time, both male and female, dressed entirely 

 in homespun, until one day a sprightly and rather "sporty" lady 

 marched up between the rows of benshes in a silk dress. No, I am 

 not SToing to tell you the lady's ntime, but suffice it that the 

 swish of that silk dress and the name of the wearer have echoed 

 down through the years to the present day. Whether Peabody 

 was among those worshippers at Moorfield or not I cannot find 

 out, but probably he was, as I know for certain that he attended 



