How I Twice Eloped Author:Catherine Eaves 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: his reins, doffed his hat, and seated on horseback though he was, he poured out a fervent prayer of gratitude to the generous maker of all this abundant country,... more » and the sun, which was just beginning to set, suffused the land with a golden and roseate shimmer, as if indicative of the wealth and love which there lay latent waiting for the immigrants to be therewith blessed,—and he sang aloud to himself, and all surrounding, listening nature,—and his equine friend pricked its ears in token thereof,—sang with his deep, sonorous voice, from the fullness of his heart, a hymn, which his own mother had taught him while he was a mere child, nestling at her knees. It spoke of God's love to man, as revealed by all nature, and he felt as if the angelic spirit of his mother had moved by his side in the still evening, and smilingly approved of this trip to confide to so young and innocent a heart the holy secret of his first love,—the slumbering, heaven-born spark,—the gift of every mortal, the first kindling of the sacred fire, which was confided to every vigorous, manly youth, and virgin, pure and innocent as a vestal. There among that cluster of trees curled the smoke of a camp-fire; he had arrived at his goal somewhat sooner than his slow pace had allowed him to anticipate,—and he held in his reins once more, and his heart beat almost audibly,—how would he broach the subject,—he smiled, the only way for a shy, bucolic swain would be to say nothing at all about it, but just wait, and chance or opportunity, would present itself. After that decision he alighted with a light heart, tied his horse to a tree, and did not forget to pat its neck, and whisper confidentially: -—Now, then, here we are! 1 feel not a little queer aboutit,—I wish, old friend, you could help me out of it. And the h...« less