Early American Authenticity. Choose from our Colonial Early
American collection of informal furniture and know that you've chosen real
craftsmanship. Faithful expressions of America's earliest furniture, skillfully exe-
cuted in warm maple or lovely white pine. /?. .
For a colorful brochure showing selec- Maxw1 Royal
tons from The Exciting Americans, %' r Chair Company
send 50N to Maxwell Royal. Po se.ox s75 oryNonhc.ame .2o101


Nature
takes 100 years
to duplicate original

Vermont WETEA

The characteristic deep texture and color of naturally
weathered boards develops slowly through countless sea-
sons of sun, rain and snow.
Vermont Weatherboard reproduces all these .important
qualities in solid, individual pine boards without the dirt,
odor, or problems found in using salvaged lumber. Weath-
erboard's prefinished on both sides and even on the ship-
lapped edges. It's perfect for interior uses and on outside
projects, it's virtually maintenance free.
You can buy Vermont Weatherboard in Home Owner Con-
venience Packs, buy the amount you need to eliminate
waste, or in larger bulk quantities from discriminating
dealers everywhere. Available in 6", 8" and 10" widths,
8', 10', and 12' lengths (even lengths to 16' available).
Write or call us for information and your nearest dealer's name.
For reliable results, insist on Original Vermont Weatherboard.
\ermont WEATHERBOARD, INC.
Box EAL10. Wolcott. Vermont 05680 (802) 472-5513


Continued from page 39
rington and more information about the Inn: Some
rooms have Hitchcock chairs made in nearby Riverton;
below stairs a laundry room has washers and driers run
by computer cards; all rooms have individually con-
trolled heating and air conditioning.
Within the Inn's complex there is a flower shop, art
gallery, photograph studio, bakery, barber shop and a
pub. The Litchfield Hills Book Center, just off the lobby,
is presided over by Peter and Patricia Van Doren. (Peter
is the nephew of Mark Van Doren, who lived in nearby
Cornwall before his death in 1972.) The Book Center is a
marvelous entree to the history and activities of the sur-
rounding towns-Goshen, Litchfield, Norfolk, New
Preston, Northfield, Kent-where there is skiing, swim-
ming, boating, golf, music, ballet, riding, and hiking. Just
south, on Route 8, in the town of Thomaston an 1878
Opera House has been restored and offers a variety of
programs, summer and winter.
Sunday breakfast is of the continental variety. You
serve yourself and sit in that wonderful lobby-Mrs.
Conley's old square house. Bill was right on deck, told
us to help ourselves and thought he might as well have
some himself. He ducked under a 45-star American flag
and emerged from a collection of antiques hung around,
behind, and over the desk-carriage lanterns, copper and
brasses, old signs. He was interested in the history of the
Inn and of Connecticut, as was everyone else we met. His
father collects old books, he said-did we know that
John Brown was born in Goshen? About 1800, he
thought, though only the chimney stones and a plaque
mark the site of the house on John Brown Road. We
asked if there was any truth to the story that Connecticut
is known as the Nutmeg State because the Yankee ped-
dlers were suspected of passing off wooden nutmegs as
real ones. "Ayup," he said, he guessed there might be,
but he hadn't seen any wooden nutmegs around lately.
Our other breakfast companion wanted to know if we
had seen the newspaper and menu listing all the
"firsts" of Torrington. He told us then about the
metal revolving plate that had been installed in the livery
stable after 1910. You drove your car onto this round
plate, which was then rotated so the car faced the door
and you could drive out in forward gear. Then he and Bill
got onto the great fire that destroyed several buildings in
the city a year or two ago, and they were still talking
about it when we left.
In the back hall on the way to the parking lot we
passed a four-seater carriage with its original lanterns.
What fun it would be to hitch it up and travel the country
roads the Yankee peddlers knew so well! I must go back,
because I forgot to ask if the old wall telephone works!


Early American L IA-


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