ric man and anecdotes of him have been repeatedly told. I
attended his church the summer I was in Torringford. He was the
strangest man I ever saw, and would say so many laughable things in his
sermon that it was next to impossible for me to keep from laughing out
loud. His congregation was composed mostly of farmers, and in hot
weather they appeared to be very sleepy. The boys would sometimes play
and make a good deal of noise, and one Sunday he stopped in the middle
of his sermon and looking around in the gallery, said in a loud voice,
"boys, if you don't stop your noise and play, you will certainly wake
your parents that are asleep below!" I think by this time the good
people were all awake; it amused me very much and I have often seen the
story printed. Many a time when I think of Mr. Mills, an anecdote of him
comes into my mind, and I presume that a great many have heard of the
same. He was once traveling through the town of Litchfield where there
was at that time a famous law school. Two or three of the students were
walking a little way out of town, when who should they see coming along
the road but old Mr. Mills. They supposing him to be some old "codger,"
thought they would have a little fun with him. When they met him one of
them asked him "if he had heard the news?" "No," he says, "what is it?"
"The devil is dead." "Is he?" says Mr. Mills, "I am sorry for you--poor
fatherless children, what will become of you?" I understand that they
let him pass without further conversation. He was a good man and looked
very old to me, as he always wore a large white wig.

CHAPTER VII.

REMOVAL TO NEW HAVEN.--FACTORY AT BRISTOL DESTROYED BY FIRE.--OTHER
TROUBLES, ETC.

In the winter of 1844, I moved to the city of New Haven with the
expectation of making my cases there. I had fitted up two large
factories in Bristol for making brass movements only the year before,
and had spared no pains to have them just right. My factory in New Haven
was fitted up expressly for making the cases and boxing the finished
clocks; the movements were packed, one hundred in a box, and sent to New
Haven where they were cased and shipped. Business moved on very
prosperously for about one year. On the 23d of April 1845, about the
middle of the afternoon one of my factories in Bristol took fire, as it
was supposed by some boys playing with matches at the back side of the
building, which set fire to some shavings under the floor. It seemed