70 NATURAL HISTORY AXD TOPOGRAPHY OF GROTON, MASS. 



MOAT. 



The two following letters are taken from "The Nation" 

 (New York), under their respective dates, the first, December 

 5, 1901, and the other, May 8, 1902; and they explain them- 

 selves. " Moat " appears to be a folk-word brought over by 

 the early comers, which took root in this neighborhood and 

 has survived. Language is a growth, and not a creation ; 

 and it is always interesting to follow the many changes which 

 come from natural evolution. 



To the Editor ok The Nation: 



Sir, — In the town of Groton, "Massachusetts, the word moat is 

 given to a small body of water usually found at the mouth of various 

 brooks which empty into the Nashua River. For ten, fifteen, or 

 twenty rods above the outlet there is a considerable widening of the 

 small stream ; and the adjacent ground is wet and boggy. In the 

 spring and summer this sheet of water is generally covered with lily- 

 pads, and is much frequented by pickerel. These pond-holes are 

 commonly known among the farmers as moats — a term not in use 

 with the same meaning in the neighboring towns, even though lying 

 on the same river. It hardly seems probable that this use of the word 

 is connected in any way with the ditch around a house or castle, filled 

 with water. Groton is a town very nearly two hundred and fifty years 

 old ; and I am inclined to think that it is a folk-word, brought over 

 from England by the early settlers. 



Governor Boutwell writes me, under date of July 10, 1901, that 

 " the word moat has been in use in Groton during my residence in 

 the town, now more than sixty-six years. At several points on the 

 Nashua River there are shallow channels that are nearly parallel with the 

 river, and that connect with the river at the lower end. These are filled 

 with water from the river. There are two such moats on my premises." 



I should like it if anybody can throw light on the derivation of the word. 



Samuel A. Green. 

 Boston, November 21, 1901. 



To the Editor of The Nation : 



Sir, — Dr. S. A. Green last December called attention in the 

 Nation to the local use in Groton, Mass., of the word " moat " as 



