Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: that party, and they were already speaking of him as a candidate to represent them in Congress. His time was devoted to the duties which devolved on him as Editor, and it was seldom he joined in a pleasure party. But in this instance he had accepted the cordial invitation of farmer Edwards, who told him if he refused, he should think partiality for his city associations, made him feel above associating with the plain farmers of the West. Thus urged he could not refuse. Mr. Edwards was one of the early settlers of Illinois, and was personally acquainted with almost every family in Quincy. All the young folks of the village, for at this early period, Quincy was only a village, were invited. These, with the neighbors within the vicinity, would form a large party, and preparations were made to entertain them with true Western hospitality. The sun, whose bright rays had been reflected back from the crystallized surface of the snow, during the day, with a brilliancy almost blinding, is now sinking low in the western horizon. Mrs. Edwards surveys wiih a satisfied look, the long table spread in the dining room, and loaded with the delicious viands, and delicacies with which a Western farmer’s larder abounds, and which his wife and daughters know so well how to serve up for their guests. Being satisfied that every thing was arranged to her taste, she turned to her two blooming daughters, Kate and Bell, saying:
Now girls, it is nearly sundown, you would better go dress. The sleighs will be coming in soon, and you must be ready to receive the company. I guess I can manage every thing myself now until supper is ready.
Let Kate go dress, said the merry-hearted Bell, I will help you awhile longer; you know Kate wants to make a conquest of Mr. Stanmore, but as I have no such ambit…