INTRODUCTION 5 



Solon refers to his attendance at a little red schoolhouse 

 near Lisbon, an accident in a sawmill in which he was 

 nearly killed, a boyhood love affair with a pretty cousin, 

 and to other incidents of that time. 1 We may surmise 

 that the years of his sojourn with Captain Bottom, in 

 part at least, were fairly pleasant. 



This stewardship came to an end in 1818, as a petition 

 was made by Solon (for reasons not apparent) on July 

 18, requesting that his uncle, Vine Robinson, of Brooklyn, 

 Connecticut, be appointed his guardian. This request 

 was duly granted. 2 A leading citizen of the community, 

 a merchant, and a judge of the county court, Vine Rob- 

 inson was noted for his integrity and intelligence and 

 on several occasions represented his town in the legisla- 

 ture. 3 His home at Brooklyn is still in existence, and is 

 occupied at present by one of his descendants, Mrs. 

 Albert S. Field. While it is not definitely known that 

 Solon lived in this house, it is probable that he did, since 

 his description of a New England kitchen of his boyhood, 

 published in The Plow in 1852, corresponds so closely to 

 one in the Field house as to be clearly recognizable. 4 As- 

 sociation with his uncle's family in his formative years 

 brought Solon into close contact with the best society 

 that Brooklyn afforded, and it is perhaps due to hearing 

 Vine Robinson's pronounced advocacy of the principles 

 of temperance that we later find Solon a devotee of this 

 cause. 5 



1 "Have You Forgotten When," written from Jacksonville, Flor- 

 ida, to Mrs. Caroline S. Fitch, Anoka, Minnesota, November, 1876. 

 Robinson bore the scars of the sawmill accident until his death. 



2 Connecticut Archives : Pomfret Probate District Court Records, 

 Brooklyn, August 4, 1818, no. 3462. 



3 Vine Robinson was born in Windham, Connecticut, July 25, 

 1767, and died in Brooklyn, Connecticut, January 18, 1843. Rob- 

 inson Genealogy, 1:145-46. 



4 April, 1852, pp. 106-7; New York American Agriculturist, Oc- 

 tober, 1851 (10:298-99). 



5 Lamed, Ellen D., History of Windham County, Connecticut 

 . . ., 2:475-77 (Worcester, Mass., 1880). 



