WILLIAM HULL



  Among the beautiful situations which abound in the
vicinity of Boston, that in Newton, lately occupied as the
residence of Governor Claflin, is very attractive. The
house stands on an elevation above an extensive lawn,
through which winds a large brook, and where groups of
graceful elms throw their shadows along the soft grass in
the summer afternoons. In my childhood this was the
home of my grandfather, William Hull, and one to which
all of the grandchildren loved to go. He had been an
officer in the American army during the whole Revolution,
and had known Washington, Lafayette, and other leaders;
had been for some years governor of Michigan Territory,
and could tell numerous anecdotes of his early days, to
entertain the children who collected around his hospitable
hearth. He would narrate to us stories of the sufferings
and exploits of the Revolutionary troops; of the terrors of
the French Revolution which he saw in Paris in 1798; and
wild Indians among whom he lived in Michigan. A kind
and genial old man, disposed to be a friend to every one,
his house was a rendezvous for many sorts of people, who
made themselves at home in its parlors or its kitchen.
After a youth of adventure and a manhood which had
brought many distinctions and honors, his age had been