In a Different Direction

On my Sunday hikes I usually go down to Ballard Park and Gooseneck Cove, and then depending on weather and other considerations I might go on to Brenton Point. But today I went in the opposite direction. I had some errands in the north end of town, and it would have been a major pain to go hiking around the southernmost points of town only to have to go all the way up in the other direction. So I decided to hike around the cemeteries on Farewell St. (Common Burying Ground, Braman Cemetery, North Cemetery) and up the railroad tracks. I was hoping to get some typically Fall-ish shots, but Fall comes late here by the sea, plus it was a very bright day, which caused two of the shots I was especially aiming for in the way of Fall color not to work out because of the harsh lighting. Oh well...

On my way to the railroad tracks I passed by the "Governors Cemetery", where several colonial governors are buried. I didn't really stop to photograph here, but Peter Easton's stone sort of jumped out at me while I was walking by on the sidewalk outside the cemetery wall. Who am I to ignore a call like that?











Walking through the Common Burying Ground on my way back home I noticed this remarkable stone from 1716. I'd never really noticed it before, I think because the stones in this row face away from the cemetery lane that passes through this section. Today for some reason I just decided to walk around the front of the stones, and got this surprise - a stone whose epitaph is all in Latin. It's the only one I've ever seen in Newport. I have no idea who Jacob Meinzeis was, but apparently he was educated and erudite. My Latin has rusted a good deal through disuse, but one thing stands out; he was a Scot (Scoto Britannus), which leads me to think that the stone carver couldn't spell, and the man's name is Jacob Menzies (Menzies being a Scottish clan).




While on the railroad tracks I got lots of pictures which either didn't work because of the harsh lighting, or just didn't look the way I'd seen them in person when I got home and downloaded them to the computer. Some things just don't translate well as photographs, I've learned. But I did manage to get this shots of an American Copper butterfly casting its shadow on the stones beside the tracks.

Tomorrow, being the Columbus Day holiday, I'll do my usual Sunday hike, so you all won't be without your weekly dose of woodland paths, meadows, and salt marsh. Until then!

© 2009 by A. Roy Hilbinger