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to go up to him and try to catch him myself for Mr Gould said if he ran past his horses while he was ploughing they would run and the devil would not stop them & Mrs Stephens was too much frightened. I went along very slowly saying Who? Charley. Who! Charley and he stood perfectly still let me go up and pat his nose and get hold of his mane. When I found I really had hold of him I began to tremble like a leaf. Mr Gould then left his horses and came and put his saddle and so forth As soon as I got on he walked off as gentle as you please. I went over to the claim and waited till Olliver was ready to come home for he had been so full of his antics? that I was afraid that he might take a notion to play me a unclear. Coming home it was delightfull the birds were singing the frogs croaking and numerous insects were humming & buzzing about not excepting the mosquitoes. When I came to the top of the hill I was delighted with the scene I had to stop my horse and gaze upon it, to my left and right were thickets that contained many small poplar trees which are now very green before was was a large flat through which run many brooks which causes the grass to grow very fast near the brooks the grass is of a lighter green than on unclearmaking it appear very handsomely shaded a little to the right ahead is our Charles house with the storks? outhouses &c to the left lay Louises field which is spread on the side of a gently sloping hill near the field on the grass Louises cattle were straying. Along was seen riding a young man horse back and to crown the picture from an opposite direction rode a young lady followed by two gentlemen descending the hill. What a good commencement for a Novel. Now my horse must take fright just as the Lady & gentleman meet on a small bridge, the gent jumps from his horse to the rescue the other gentlemen come running up and ha! ha!! ha!!! fill it out as you please but dont laugh at my rude attempts to describe our beautiful scenery. the two gents were Olliver and John Pettengale? who was coming here to get some proper? We got home without any axcident eat some boiled chicken supper. Mama told us that Louis & Charles had gone to Rockford, that Mr. Hill had been here and talked of buying Charles claim. Mama told him that Papa calculated to enter it and said if he swaped claims Erastus (for that was the way they were to trade) he ought to lose his claim as he knew all the circumstances. He said he should not take it till he saw Papa. He said Erastus wanted to change because he was afraid Papa would enter it. Olliver & I spent the evening which we lengthened out to 11 o clock in playing backgammon or blackgammon as he says. About dark it began to thunder & lighten, it rained considerable during the night 13th Yesterday it was extremely warm but to day it is quite chilly and the north west wind blows very hard. it is pleasant however Mama is making a rag mat. Caroline is unclear and Dick is in all manner of mischief. I feel quite lame & lazy after riding. When Olliver come home he said Mr Cole? had been on the claim breaking. every time Olliver comes home Erastus has something to say about the steers and when Papa is coming home. Spent the evening in playing backgammon just as we were were eating supper there came such a gust of wind as shook our house so as to rattle the dishes and set the rocking chairs rocking. we were little alarmed 14th today the wind has blown teribly. I have been knitting a unclear for Mrs Stephens little girl. Mama has been knitting mending & ironing. I do not feel well thought better than I have been. We are all very much pleased by seeing Papa who has just come on sight. Papa has safely arrived he has a parcel of cake from Mrs Morgan

to Dickey. He said after he got off from the Grand jury they put him as foreman of