The Home of John Howard Payne (with illustration) [pp. 713-714]

T()XS'
[ou
kNAL.
No. 196.J
NEW YORK, DECEMBER 28, 1872.
[VOL. VIII.
THE HOME OF JOHN HOWARD PAYNE.
save that offered by private families; but its
growii)g popularity renders the erection of
hotels almost certain, and fl~en good-by to its
old-fashioiied simplicity!
In this town the Rev. Lyman Beecher
officiated as minister during a period of
twelve years, from 1~98 to 1810; and during
his rcsi~lence in the town two of his distin
AST HAMPTON, the home of John How ard Payne, is the most easterly town
of Long Island, on the southern shore. It
was settled in 1649 by thirty families from
Lynn and adjacent towns of Massachusetts,
the land having been purchased of the famous
Montauk tribe, remnants of which are still
found about Montauk Point. This part of
fathers di(l, bear witness to the humanity and
forethought of the first settlers of this region.
East Hampton consists simply of one wide
street, nearly three hundred feet ~~ide. There
are no hotels, no shops, no manufactories.
The residences are principally farmers' houses,
congregated in a village after the French
method, with their f;trms stretching to the
HOME OP JOHN HOWARD PAYNE
our country does not seem to have the bloody
Indian record that distinguishes so many
sections. The early settlers, for the most
part, lived harmoniously with the original occupants of the soil. In stead of making the
red-man their determined`enemy, measures
seem to have been taken to secure his kindly
eoo~peratiun; and the remains of the ancient
tribe tiow "p on the island, fishing in the same
seas and hunting upon the same ground their
ocean-shore on one side, and to the pineplains that lie between the town and the bay
on the other. Its wide street is lined with
old trees, and a narrow roadway wanders
through a sea of green grass on either side.
Perhaps no town in America retains so nearly
the primitive habits, tastes, and ideas of our
forefathers as East Hampton. It is rapidly
becoming a favorite place of summer resort,
visitors at present finding no accommo~ation
guished children, Catharine and Edward
were born. But East Hampton is not only
renowned as the residence of Lyman Beecher,
but of one peculiarly associated with our best
impulses and feelings. It was here that
John Howard Payne, author of "Home,
Sweet Home," passed his boyhood. It is
commonly asserted that he was born in the#.
very old, sl~inglod cottage pointed out as his
resldence; bitt of this there is some doubt.
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