Excerpt from Lyrics of Home-Land

Leaving the old New England farm-house where I was born, I commenced my career, beyond my native hills, by teaching a district school. During that interesting period of my existence it was my pleasure and privilege to sojourn with many families of whose simplicity and hospitality I still cherish kindly remembrances. I have heard the pattering raindrops and the rattling hail upon the shingles, and have listened to the howling of the winter wind about the great gables and massive chimneys of many old farm-houses. I have slept in the spare bed, behind whose snowy valance the winter's store of butternuts was spread to dry. I have chased the highway cow, have labored through long, sultry days in field and meadow, have hunted and fished amid the vernal mountains, have been one of the social group accustomed to congregate at the village store, and have often sat by the olden time fire-place and heard my share of that small gossip so common in country neighborhoods. I have traveled from town to town, always mingling closely with the people, and I can say, without exaggeration, that, with few exceptions, I have found kindness, benevolence, generosity and good-will wherever I have been, and therefore can affirm, with good reason, that these very excellent qualities are the most prominent characteristics of the average American.

About the Publisher

Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com

This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully, any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.