The principal dish was almost
certain to be "pot-pie," consisting of boiled turkeys, geese,
chickens, grouse, veal, or venison, with an abundance of
dumplings. This, with cornbread and milk, met the demands of the
occasion; but if the host was able to furnish a cask of rum, his
generosity was thoroughly appreciated.
In the autumn, corn-huskings were a favorite form of diversion,
especially for the young people; and in the early spring
neighbors sometimes came together to make maple sugar. A wedding
was an important event and furnished diversion of a different
kind. From distances of twenty and thirty miles people came to
attend the ceremony, and often the festivities extended over two
or three days. Even now there was work to be done; for as a rule
the neighbors organized a house-building "bee," and before
separating for their homes they constructed a cabin for the newly
wedded pair, or at all events brought it sufficiently near
completion to be finished by the young husband himself.
Even after a day of heavy toil at log-rolling, the young men and
boys bantered one another into foot races, wrestling matches,
shooting contests, and other feats of strength or skill.
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