The Rescue of an Old Place 



its command of the meadow, we found 

 that a good sweeping and dusting would 

 do wonders for it, and with that enthusi- 

 asm for setting to rights inborn in the 

 New England breast, we prepared for a 

 grand redding up. 



While the grading of the knoll was go- 

 ing on preparatory to building the house, 

 our factotum, appropriately named Blos- 

 som, since his function was to adorn the 

 place, was busily employed in removing 

 all the unsightly dead limbs from among 

 the live ones, and in hewing down such 

 old Pear and Apple trunks as proved 

 hopeless. 



A corduroy The logs and branches were dragged 

 away to the wettest place in the meadow 

 at the back of the knoll, and transformed 

 into a corduroy road, by which one could 

 pass dry-shod out into the rear street. 

 This floating rubbish, supported by the 

 tangled grass on the marsh, formed a 

 foundation upon which, after inserting a 

 plank water-way at the bottom, for the 

 ebb and flow of the tide, we subsequently 

 built a substantial carriage-road of stones 

 38 



