Page:Scenes in my Native Land.pdf/59

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TALCOTT MOUNTAIN.
55

The lay of gratitude be given,
The prayer in secret speed to heaven.

Here peace, though exiled and opprest,
By those she came to save distrest,
Might find repose from war's alarms,
And gaze on nature's treasured charms;
Beneath these mountain shades reclined,
Breathe her sad dirge o'er lost mankind,
Or on mild virtue's tranquil breast,
Close her tired eye in gentle rest,
Forget her wounds, her toil, her pain,
And dream of Paradise again.




About nine miles from the city of Hartford, Connecticut, on the summit of Talcott Mountain, is the beautiful country residence of Daniel Wadsworth, Esq., known by the name of Monte-Video. Leaving the main road, you turn northward, into one constructed by the proprietor of this extensive domain, and which conducts you, by an easy ascent, bordered on the right by towering precipitous cliffs, and on the left so overshadowed by trees, that were it not for openings, occasionally cut through their branches, revealing glances of imposing scenery, you would scarcely be conscious of the eminence you were attaining.

After a ride of a mile and a half, a gate, enclosure, and tenant's house, all in the Gothic style, strike the