A Memory of My Boyhood. 



2>7 



setts as "Old Election," this having been 

 formerly the day on which general elections 

 were held in that State. It used to be a 

 day of general jubilation, taking precedence 

 in this respect of the Fourth of July, which 

 wasn't made as much of then as now. The 

 militia companies were usually on parade, 

 and the boys often went shooting, for there 

 were practically no game laws to prevent 

 them. Another observance which served 

 to endear this anniversary to the youthful 

 mind was the manufacture of a species of 

 fruit cake, known to this day in the cookery 

 books as "election cake." Cakes were not 

 too common in those days. 



Zed May was chore-boy for Deacon Tar- 

 bell Bancroft, and the Deacon chanced to 

 own two or three of the huge, clumsy flint- 

 lock muskets, of which at that time one or 

 more were still to be found in most New 

 England homes. They were the same which 

 in the hands of the Massachusetts farmers 

 had on the Concord road given the British 



"ball for ball 

 From behind each fence and barn-yard wall," 



and reddened with their dearest blood the 

 slopes of Bunker's Hill. One of these 

 weapons, with its huge cartridge-box of 

 wood and leather, was a good load for a 

 stout boy; but Zed was strong, and had 

 told me in confidence in the early spring 

 that "if he c'd git the Deacon to let him 

 take one o' them there trainin' guns, he 'n' 

 I'd go a-huntin', come 'lection." 



The boys of our village had a passion 

 for nicknames. Deacon Tarbell Bancroft 

 was one of the mildest of men, but they 

 called him "Deacon Terrible," and Zed was 

 known as "Saturday" — why I know not; 

 but the name of the Deacon was fixed upon 

 him by George Wilder, to whom I used to 

 look up with admiration and awe, as one 

 mature in years and accomplished in all 

 things. Twenty years later it gave me a 

 sort of shock to read on his tombstone that 

 at the time of his death he had been only 

 thirteen years old. 



Saturday was very diligent that spring, 

 and the " terrible " Deacon proved propi- 

 tious, so that the morning of the eventful 

 Wednesday saw two boys, big and little, 

 stumping joyfully across the fields in the 

 direction of the Nashua River, the larger 

 balancing across his shoulder a Queen Anne 

 musket, nearly six feet long Zed could 

 not manage the cross belts and cartridge- 

 box, but he had a bottle of powder and a 

 paper of shot— percussion caps were not 

 needed. Still, in accordance with the rule 

 in old books of military instructions, he 

 carried " two spare flints, a priming-wire and 

 brush." 



Just outside the village Saturday halted, 

 picked his flint with a jack-knife, and plac- 

 ing the butt of his uncouth weapon on the 

 ground at a distance, which enabled him to 

 peer into its muzzle, proceeded, as he said, 

 to " feed " it. In place of the circular 

 wads common at the present day, he used 

 portions of a large hornets' nest, with 

 which he had been careful to provide him- 

 self, in consequence of an old superstition 

 among New England hunters to the effect 

 that it made "the best kind o' waddin' " ; 

 and he sent the charge home with repeated 

 blows of a heavy ramrod, the rattle of 

 which was music in our ears. He then 

 again uncorked the bottle, and carefully 

 pouring a liberal supply of priming into 

 the pan, adjusted the hammer and re- 

 marked : " Naow she's ready for bis'ness. 

 Less go daown on the entervil (intervale). 

 El. Taower tol' me 't he see mor'n five 

 hundred high-holders daown in them wan- 

 nuts, 'n 'f I c'n git 'ithin ten rod o' one on 

 'em, I'll fetch him, I bet ye." 



Half an hour's walk brought us to the 

 walnut grove, where the eye of the hunter 

 soon espied a specimen of the bird he 

 sought — a golden-winged woodpecker. 



I expected to see at once the musket 

 leveled, and had even begun to quake a 

 little in anticipation of its thunderous re- 

 port, but Saturday cautiously edged around 



