Page:Samantha on Children's Rights.djvu/267

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if we tried to, and then the stars come out and glistened in the clear sky overhead, and the crescent moon hung in the east like a great silver hammock for angels to lay down in and rest their wings some. And almost simeltaneous with the stars overhead come the lightin' of a thousand lights around us, behind us, and before us, sparkling, glittering, shining lights of all shapes and colors glancin' through the evergreen boughs and soft foliage, and hung in long lines of brilliant color from tree to tree. The hotel looked as if it wuz a sea of light inside, and the big tent looked as brilliant as Aladin's palace, and the long line of little booths on each side looked, too, as if they had been brought from Arabia and sot down there, so strange and brilliant they looked with gorgeous curtains and tables all heaped up with beautiful objects to sell and lights sparklin' everywhere.

Well, by the time we got rousted up and walkin' round and viewin' the seen the music had struck up in a tent by itself, enchantin' music that seemed to roust up our souls and bodies, too. Pretty girls and handsome wimmen wuz standin' behind the tables in them little booths sellin' their wares for the benefit of that Heathen to the brilliant crowd that wuz beginnin' to fill the walks and tents, a brilliant crowd indeed, for every costoom of every age wuz represented.

And they wuz so beautiful, and the music wuz so soft and enchantin', that I did wish that Heathen could have looked on that seen that wuz bein' done for him. I believe it would have shamed him if he had any shame, and he wouldn't eat up any more missionaries, not for some time, anyway, but then, as I told Josiah, he probable wouldn't feel to home here and probable wuzn't dressed decent for the occasion.