ti i 



A NEGLECTED HOMESTEAD. 



129 



. i 



time (not waiting for a divorce to be granted ^) — 

 rather a difficult matter in that superlatively stupid 

 town. The hotel had a good cook, and all the 

 delicacies of the season were abundant, and well 

 served ; but a person cannot spend his life in eating 

 and sleeping. 



Let me see, tliere were two other divertissements 

 in vogue which I had almost forgotten — viz., hoisting 

 the demi-john and fighting the tiger. The first of 

 these means drinking Bourbon, the other taking a 

 hand at " faro." Now, I hate soaking indoors, and 

 always have the most confounded luck when I touch 

 a card ; so it may be imagined that I was no way 

 loth to seize any chance that offered to provide 

 change of scene and mode of passing time. Such, 

 providentially, occurred. A legal friend had to go 

 out West to settle some details about transference of 

 property. He requested me to accompany him, and, 

 as an inducement to make me do so, enlarged 

 voluminously upon the excellence and variety of the 

 shooting to be found in the locality to which he was 

 bound. The bait took, so next morning I was ready 

 for the road. I am not permitted to mention the 

 exact locality, but it was a good hundred miles west 

 of the Mississippi river. In due time we arrived at 

 our destination. The country was far from attractive, 

 and had a decided appearance of neglect, with a 

 rapid return to its primaeval state. Before the war, 

 and, therefore, the abolition of slavery, I was told 

 that fine crops had been raised here. Likely enough ; 

 but who has got a head long enough to calculate 

 how many years that is since .'' However, land that 

 has been reclaimed, and afterwards permitted to 

 relapse into its original state, is invariably a favourite 

 resort of game ; at least, I have always found such to 

 be the case. 



* Six weeks' residence in this State is all that is necessary to 

 obtain a dissolution oi marriage. 



