TWENTIETH ANNUAL MEETING. loi 



and was sleeping the sleep of the just, when, somewhere, per- 

 hap=. at Trenton, I was awakened by the gentle voice of a lady, 

 sa}ing to the porter: "Isn't there a lower berth on this 

 train?" "No, Miss, there is no lower berth, everything was 

 full wl-.en they left New York." "But I can't get into an 

 upper berth." "Oh, yes, you can, this stepladder is very easy, 

 and when you get up there it is a very fine bed." "Yes, but 

 who is in the lower berth?" And he said: "Don't you worry 

 about that." (This is where you come in, gentlemen.) "Don't 

 worry about that, it is a very fine looking old gentleman in 

 the lower berth that boarded the train at New York, and he 

 won't do you any harm." (Loud laughter.) So that decided 

 me to come. I think you may assume that when you have seen 

 me and then compared me with the other gentlemen you have 

 heard before, you will say you are getting something for 

 your money at least. 



You may not be able to understand and comprehend that 

 fully any more perhaps than the Frenchman who called one 

 morning to see a gentleman and was told that he couldn't be 

 seen because he wasn't up yet, "call to-morrow." He called 

 again in the morning and was told he couldn't see the gentle- 

 man because he wasn't down. Said the Frenchman : "Eet 

 is ver' strange. Yesterday I call and I do not see ze gentle- 

 man because he is not up, to-day I cannot see ze gentleman 

 because he is not down. Will you please tell me when he 

 will be in ze middle?'' (Laughter.) I am pretty near in the 

 middle of my discourse, but I want to say a few things, I 

 don't want to make a speech, but I just want to say some- 

 thing about Connecticut and its re-discovery. 



Many of you here present remember with me the time 

 when a good many Connecticut farmers, those of little faith 

 in our soil, climate and our people, were tempted by the allur- 

 ing advertisements of land agents, to sell out the old Con- 

 necticut farm for what they could get, and go down into sunny 

 sections of New Jersey and the South, where they were told 

 that with a few acres of land, growing grapes and berries, 

 thev could live in wealth and luxur\- to the end of their davs. 



