An Old And Curious Document

There are few people, iu the western states, at least, who can trace their ancestery back to the middle of the 17th centupy in this country. lint the city editor of the Courier has a genealógica! record of bis family that provea hini a genuine yankee, and traces back in unbroken line to a period previoua to 1642. The ancestor from wliom sprang the Pond family in America, cauie from England, bnt at what time is not known. Tlie first record of him that can be fouud is that of his marriage, on Nov. 14, 1642, at Windsor, Conn. ïhe probate court records in Hartford, Conn., yield an interesting document, being 'the last will this ancestor, Samuel Pond, together with an inventory of the estáte. The enuumeration of his prpperty sounds very queer, and is as follows : Inventorv of ye Estáte of Sammuell Pond of Windsor, deceased, made March ye lötb,l'54. Imprimís, In houssing aud Laúd adioiiimg- L I L s P 12 akers 2 f 80 00 00 W ín ve hittleMendow- 2 " 2 í 10 00 00 ín i'lymonth 8 " 12 00 00 Iuye'woods ii " 100 00 Bought of Mr. Hauf ord-13 " 5 5 00 Kousht of Mr. Brauker.10 " 3 10 00 ín ye inner Room of ye house 2 Bedsteads and Bedding 4 10 00 7 yards Llnnlng Cloth 00 14 00 His apparrell 3 14 00 8 old ehesls.aud other small thiugs in ve inner rooin l 10 00 Il'is arms 1 00 00 In Pewter 1 14 00 InBrass 2 00 00 In Iron Potts- 1 08 0(1 In other thiugs in outer Room 2 03 00 (Sü po of Bacon 1 10 00 (urn in House 8 16 00 other tmiigs 111 ye onamtjors i v mí One yoke Steera. 11 10 00 2 young Steers 0 00 00 2 rearlings 2 15 00 Oiie heafer. 2 10 00 ■li'ows 16 00 00 j 1 he tuckliug for ye oxeu 2 07 1KI Two swine-l 1 04 00 Slim ïotllis 12'J 02 (10 I L S. P. ín debts due Sam" Pond-ll (K) 00 S.-im11 Fond iudebted 9 00 00 Honry Wolcott, Jr. John Moore, Ko. Howard, Benedictus A Alford X mark. Sammuell Dyed Mcli. lJth. 1654. lntestate, left bohind liini Sarah, his wifeIsaac. his eldest sonue eight vears of age. Sammuell, his second sonnesix vears of age. Nathaniel, tbird soune three years of age aud quarter. Sarah, his daughter, 2 years oue month of age. The Court orders the Estáte to be divided to ye Widow, forty pounds,and ye rest of ye Estate to be equally divided betweeu ye four childreu. It will be noticed that the gentleman's wearing apparel was valued at more than 22 acres of land. Tliis estáte was considered a rich one in those days, although footing up at only a little over ÍÜ00, an amouut that would hardly be wortli probating now. The family bas grown numerous since ' tbose days, aud spreads to all parts of the country, but all trace their orlgin i'roiu tbis ancestor. A further fact is perhaps noticeable that while no one of the family ever attained any great inence - a meiuber of congress being tlie most important - none of thatname have ever been known as crimináis. The family seem to occupy tlie happy medium between the extremes.