第 5 节
作者:莫莫言      更新:2021-02-18 23:42      字数:9322
  passer…by。 The church was erected by subscription; and these closely  set
  large windows are due to Henry Sherburne; one of the wealthiest citizens
  of   the   period;   who   agreed   to   pay   for   whatever   glass   was   used。   If   the
  building could have been composed entirely of glass it would have been
  done by the thrifty parishioners。
  Portsmouth   is   rich   in   graveyardsthey   seem   to   be   a   New   England
  specialtyancient       and   modern。      Among       the  old   burial…places     the  one
  attached to St。 John's Church is perhaps the most interesting。                   It has not
  been   permitted   to   fall   into   ruin;   like   the   old   cemetery   at   the   Point   of
  Graves。      When a headstone here topples over it is kindly lifted up and set
  on its pins again; and encouraged to do its duty。 If it utterly refuses; and is
  not shamming decrepitude; it has its face sponged; and is allowed to rest
  and sun itself against the wall of the church with a row of other exempts。
  The   trees   are   kept   pruned;   the   grass   trimmed;   and   here   and   there   is   a
  15
  … Page 16…
  An Old Town By The Sea
  rosebush   drooping   with   a   weight   of   pensive   pale   roses;   as   becomes   a
  rosebush in a churchyard。
  The     place    has   about    it  an   indescribable      soothing     atmosphere       of
  respectability   and   comfort。   Here   rest   the   remains   of   the   principal   and
  loftiest in rank in their generation of the citizens of Portsmouth prior to the
  Revolutionstanch;  royalty…loving   governors;   counselors;  and   secretaries
  of    the  Providence       of  New     Hampshire;       all  snugly    gathered     under    the
  motherly wing of the Church of England。                  It is almost impossible to walk
  anywhere without stepping on a governor。 You grow haughty in spirit after
  a   while;   and   scorn   to   tread   on   anything   less   than   one   of   His   Majesty's
  colonels      or   secretary    under     the   Crown。     Here    are   the   tombs     of   the
  Atkinsons;   the   Jaffreys;   the   Sherburnes;   the   Sheafes;   the   Marshes;   the
  Mannings;        the   Gardners;     and    others    of  the   quality。    All   around     you
  underfoot are tumbled…in coffins; with here and there a rusty sword atop;
  and faded escutcheons; and crumbling armorial devices。 You are moving
  in the very best society。
  This; however; is not the earliest cemetery in Portsmouth。                     An hour's
  walk     from     the   Episcopal      yard   will    bring   you    to   the   spot;   already
  mentioned;   where   the   first   house   was   built   and   the   first   grave   made;   at
  Odiorne's   Point。      The   exact     site  of   the  Manor   is    not  known;   but     it  is
  supposed to be a few rods north of an old well of still…flowing water; at
  which the Tomsons and the Hiltons and their comrades slaked their thirst
  more than two hundred and sixty years ago。 Oriorne's Point is owned by
  Mr。   Eben   L。   Odiorne;   a   lineal   descendant   of   the   worthy   who   held   the
  property in   1657。  Not   far   from  the   old spring is the   resting…place   of   the
  earliest pioneers。
  〃This first cemetery of the white man in New Hampshire;〃 writes Mr。
  Brewster; (1。 Mr。 Charles W。 Brewster; for nearly fifty years the editor of
  the Portsmouth Journal; and the author of two volumes of local sketches to
  which   the   writer   of   these   pages   here   acknowledges   his   indebtedness。)
  〃occupies   a   space   of   perhaps   one   hundred   feet   by   ninety;   and   is   well
  walled in。      The western side is now used as a burial…place for the family;
  but two thirds of it is filled with perhaps forty graves; indicated by rough
  head and   foot   stones。 Who there   rest no one   now  living knows。  But the
  16
  … Page 17…
  An Old Town By The Sea
  same care is taken of   their quiet beds as if they were of the proprietor's
  own   family。   In   1631   Mason   sent   over   about   eighty   emigrants   many   of
  whom died in a few years; and here they were probably buried。                 Here too;
  doubtless;     rest  the  remains     of  several   of   those   whose    names     stand
  conspicuous in our early state records。〃
  17
  … Page 18…
  An Old Town By The Sea
  IV。 A STROLL ABOUT TOWN
  (continued)
  WHEN       Washington      visited   Portsmouth     in  1789    he  was    not  much
  impressed by the architecture of the little town that had stood by him so
  stoutly in the struggle for independence。 〃There are some good houses;〃
  he   writes;   in   a   diary   kept   that   year   during   a   tour   through   Connecticut;
  Massachusetts;   and   New   Hampshire;   〃   among   which   Colonel   Langdon's
  may be esteemed the first; but in general they are indifferent; and almost
  entirely of wood。 On wondering at this; as the country is full of stone and
  good clay for bricks; I was told that on account of the fogs and damp they
  deemed them wholesomer; and for that reason preferred wood buildings。〃
  The   house   of   Colonel   Langdon;   on   Pleasant   Street;   is   an   excellent
  sample of the solid and dignified abodes which our great…grandsires had
  the sense to build。 The art of their construction seems to have been a lost
  art these fifty years。 Here Governor John Langdon resided from 1782 until
  the time of his death in 1819a period during which many an illustrious
  man passed between those two white pillars that support the little balcony
  over   the   front   door;   among   the   rest   Louis   Philippe   and   his brothers;   the
  Ducs   de   Montpensier   and   Beaujolais;   and   the   Marquis   de   Chastellus;   a
  major…general       in   the    French     army;    serving    under     the   Count     de
  Rochambeau; whom  he accompanied   from France   to the   States in 1780。
  The   journal   of   the   marquis   contains   this   reference   to   his   host:   〃After
  dinner we went to drink tea with Mr。 Langdon。 He is a handsome man; and
  of noble carriage; he has been a member of Congress; and is now one of
  the first people of the country; his house is elegant and well furnished; and
  the   apartments   admirably   well   wainscoted〃   (this   reads   like   Mr。   Samuel
  Pepys); 〃and he has a good manuscript chart of the harbor of Portsmouth。
  Mrs。   Langdon;   his   wife;   is   young;   fair;   and   tolerably   handsome;   but   I
  conversed less with her than her husband; in whose favor I was prejudiced
  from  knowing   that   he   had   displayed   great   courage   and   patriotism  at   the
  time of Burgoynes's expedition。〃
  It was at the height of the French Revolution that the three sons of the
  18
  … Page 19…
  An Old Town By The Sea
  Due d'Orleans were entertained at the Langdon mansion。 Years afterward;
  when     Louis    Philippe    was    on   the  throne    of  France;    he   inquired    of  a
  Portsmouth       lady   presented     at  his   court   if  the   mansion     of   ce  brave
  Gouverneur Langdon was still in existence。
  The house stands back a decorous distance from the street; under the
  shadows       of  some     gigantic    oaks   or   elms;   and    presents    an   imposing
  appearance as you approach it over the tessellated marble walk。 A hundred
  or two feet on either side of the gate; and abutting on the street; is a small
  square building of brick; one story in heightprobably the porter's lodge
  and tool…house of former days。 There is a large fruit garden attached to the
  house; which is in excellent condition; taking life comfortably; and having
  the   complacent   air   of   a   well…preserved   beau   of   the   ancien   regime。   The
  Langdon   mansion   was   owned   and   long   occupied   by   the   late   Rev。   Dr。
  Burroughs;   for   a   period   of   forty…seven   years   the   esteemed   rector   or   St。
  John's Church。
  At the other end of Pleasant Street is another notable house; to which
  we shall come by and by。 Though President Washington found Portsmouth
  but moderately attractive from an architectural point of view; the visitor of
  to…day; if   he have   an   antiquarian taste;  will   find himself   embarrassed   by
  the number of localities and buildings that appeal to his interest。 Many of
  these   buildings   were   new   and   undoubtedly   commonplace   enough   at   the
  date    of   Washington's      visit;  tim