Dr. Daniel Lathrop, a lady of noble bearing, cultivated intellect, and eminent piety, the daughter of John Talcott, Governor of Connecticut, and born in Hartford, May 3, 1717. Though far advanced in years when I first beheld her, time had not impaired either her physical or mental system. Her tall, majestic form, was unbowed, her step elastic, and her heart in ardent, healthful action. My early life retains no more cherished or indelible picture than her beautiful age.
Left childless, and destitute of near male relatives, the care of my father over her affairs had become indispensable; and he, with his household, were tenants of a part of her mansion, which was admirably arranged for the accommodation of two families. His name was Ezekiel Huntley, and he was born in Franklin, in the neighborhood of Norwich, April 12th, 1752. His father, a native of Scotland, emigrated to this country in early life, and married Miss Mary Walbridge, a woman of consistent domestic loveliness and piety. From the comforts of his home he went forth as a colonial soldier in the war waged by our mother land with the French and Indians. Returning from the comparatively successful campaign of 1760, he became a victim of the small-pox on the way, and never more saw the home of his affections.
His widow, my grandmother, is among the gentle, yet strong images of my infancy, seated by the fireside of her son, in quietness and honor.
