96 THE CONNECTICUT POMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



wife, to be my partner, and told her, "We are going to play 

 the Hartford girls." Well, with my knowledge of Hartford,. 

 I knew that I was right into the game on that, and so 

 I asked Mrs. Brown if she would dance the Hartford girls 

 with me. She weighed three hundred, but she dropped 

 a curtsey and said, "With pleasure, sir." And so I took 

 my place with Mrs. Brown at the end of the kitchen. Instead 

 of dancing to that tune, or playing the same tune, the fiddler 

 was going to play, and so we all stood up there in the kitch- 

 en. I thought it was peculiar that the Deacon should not 

 object, but there sat the good Deacon spatting his hands, 

 and saying, "Faster," "What are you doing there?" and keep- 

 ing time: "Hurry up, go on there." He seemed to be enjoying 

 himself to the limit. Well, 1 did not understand how it was, 

 and when we got through, I went over to him, and I said, 

 "Whv did you shut us off when we played the tune, and 

 why did you encourage it when we sang and went through 

 the same motions?" "Why," he says, "young man, I mar- 

 ried a Connecticut girl." (Laughter). Well now, there 

 must be something about the soil and the climate of the old 

 "Nutmeg State" that gives a Hartford girl such a high char- 

 acter that she can sanctify the dance. When some of these 

 fellows come along and look the way you do, I am afraid 

 that they would be a little strong for the Connecticut girl. 

 Now I think that Nature knew her business. You men here 

 with vour wooden nutmegs had to have partners with pretty 

 strong sense to keep you straight, and that is why Nature has 

 made the Connecticut girl of such an exceedingly high char- 

 acter. (Laughter). 



But, gentlemen, to sober down a little after this, — I be- 

 lieve that all the high character and sanctity will be needed, 

 and needed soon, in this country. My friends, I wonder if 

 you ever stop to ask yourselves this question : "Are we worth 

 the price?" Are we worth what we have cost? What do I 

 mean by that? I mean, are we as Americans to-day worthy 

 of all the blood, all the treasure, all the labor, all the hope,. 



