Sunbury American. [volume] (Sunbury, Pa.) 1848-1879, 1849-01-20
FOR THE YOUNG.
THE QUILTING PARTY.

If not, you will do well to read our descrip-
ton, which, OF course, must fall far short Of
the reality, and this reality, as the thing is
now nearly obsolete, you may never have
the satisfaction of witnessing. 'ris one OF
the pleasantest things in the whole round
of country life to attend one of these
gatherings together of the young, and light
hearted. Let it be understood in the first
place that these quiltings are indispensable.
The quilts, &C., must be made; the girls
must have their 'things ready" as the phrase
is: or they will assuredly meet with no at
tention from the marriage-seeking young
men. The preparation of the requisites of
domestic life is sort of implied declaration
Of readiness 10 receive the addresses Of the
lover, and to encounter the perils of matri-
mony, and is understood and acted upon
accordingly.
When Quilting is 10 take place, the
respectable young ladies Of the neighbor-
hood are all invited there is no aristocra-
cy; no singing out of favored individuals.
They assemble early at the dwelling of
their friend, and Immediately fall to work,
as if their very lives depended upon their
exertions.-They consider it absolutely ne
ccssary to forward their work in such man.
ner as to prevent any material encroack-
ment of it upon the hilarity and mirih Of
the evening. The evening is always look
ed forward to with great deal of saisfac-
tion, and many a fine eye glances impa-
tiently at the slowly setting sun. whose tar
diness seems TO mock the fevcrlsh anticipa-
tion ofthe fair quilters.
Night at length comes; New England
winter night--for the Quilting is usually in
the long evenings of Winter-with its gor-
geous skies; clear, beautifully clear in the
dark coloring of sky, moonlight resting
like smile upon the white lustre of the
snow, streaming through the naked branch
es of the wild forest trees, and flashing like
pale fires upon the distant icy hills. The
merry sound of bells now rings upon the
ears Of the fair listeners within doors.-
"The fellows are coming" cries some eager
voice, and sudden smile steal like cleo
tricity around the apartment. There is
moment of rapid preparation; hasty CLAM
cling at the small mirror; a trembling ad-
justment of curls and combs-and then all
are seated demurely at work. One after
another the ''fellows arrive, until the apart
ment is literally crowded with as merry a
company as ever laughed away an evening.
The girls however, still remain persever-
ingly at their work, their fair heads stoop-
ing almost to the outstretched quilt before
them, now and then, exchanging a sly
glance, or a smart reply, or meaning nod,
with the fine, healthy-looking young gen.
tlemen around them. They are soon inter-
rupted; one complains of the loss of her
thimble, another that her thread has been
taken away, and third that the ''fellows
plague her so that she wont work, nor
touch So" and in few moments Babel
like confusion is effected, very much 10 the
satisfaction Of all parties. The owner of
the quilt now interieres, and carefully re-
moves the quilting frame, blushing all the
while at the good natured Jokes of the
young men relative TO herself, her Guilt,
and her lover, who-if she is so fortunate
as to have one-is pretty sure to be present.
The scene is now all life and gaety. In
one part of the room may be seen the stu
dent the old village Doctor, amusing and
astonishing by his quotations of Latn-and
laughing at the amazemcnt of his friends.
Hard by is the schoolmaster of the district,
privileged and favored parsonage, you
may know him by his pale cheek and fair
hands. He is leaning famliarly over the
chair of a pretty girl; the very fairest in
the room. She is telling his fortune, by
the odd and curious method of palmistry
tracing out with her own pretty fingers the
various lines of good and bad fortune which
intersect the hand of the master. There
are strange bushes on her cheek, and they
steal at times even to her neck, with va
riable and beautiful play of coloring. She
knows that the eye of the general iavorite
is upon her, and her young heart is thrill
ling with new sense of joy. Nor will
her pleasant dream be broken in upon by
disappointment. There is admiration and
honest love, but nothing of the deceitfu!
and the designing, in the gaze of her lover.
Meanwhile the sports of the evening 90
on. The ''Blind Mans Buff" with its odd
encounters and very ridiculous mishaps
the play of 'Pawn," with its kindly pres
sure OF fingers; the whirling of pewter
plate, in default Of catching which before
its revolution ceases, the delinquent, if a
male, is doomed to kiss all the fair cheeks
in the company, and rice persa if female.
Then, too, there is mock marriage ccre-
mony of leaping over the broomstck-a
pretty certain precursor of that more impos-
ing ceremony whose bones are broken only
by death.
But the evening passes away almost ill.,
sensibly, and the time for departure arrives
The sleighs are speedily laden with the
merry company, and the tingle of bells
and the loud cheers from one vehicle to
another, and the rich-toned laugh of the
fair travellers, break upon the calm cold
air Of midnight. There is nothing on earth
like sleigh ride by moonlight when the
path is smoothly worn, and the horse
springs onward as freely and lightly as ifhe
were running wild in the desert, and rejoi
cling in his untamed freedom.
We can duly appreciate the blessings O
refined society; we know how much the
rugged asperities of our nature are softenee
by an intercourse with those whose mind