"corn-husking frolic" in the neighbourhood of Cincinnati. The corn was
heaped up into a sort of hillock close by the granary, on which the young
"Ohiohians" and "buck-eyes"--the lasses of Ohio are called
"buck-eyes"--seated themselves in pairs; while the old wives, and old
farmers were posted around, doing little, but talking much. Now the laws
of "corn-husking frolics" ordain, that for each red ear that a youth
finds, he is entitled to exact a kiss from his partner. There were two or
three young Irishmen in the group, and I could observe the rogues kissing
half-a-dozen times on the same red ears. Each of them laid a red-ear close
by him, and after every two or three he'd husk, up he'd hold the
redoubtable red-ear to the astonished eyes of the giggling lass who sate
beside him, and most unrelentingly inflict the penalty. The "gude wives"
marvelled much at the unprecedented number of red-ears which that lot of
corn contained: by-and-by, they thought it "a kind of curious" that the
Irishmen should find so many of them--at length, the cheat was discovered,
amidst roars of laughter. The old farmers said the lads were "wide
awake," and the "buck-eyes" declared that there was no being up to the
plaguy Irishmen "no how," for they were always sure to have every thing
their own way. But the mischief of it was, the young Americans took the
hint, and the poor "buck-eyes" got nothing like fair play for the
remainder of that evening. All agreed that there was more laughing, and
more kissing done at that, than had been known at any corn-husking frolic
since "the Declaration."

The farmers of Ohio are a class of people about equivalent to our second
and third rate farmer, inasmuch as they work themselves, but possessing
infinitely more independence in their character and deportment. Every
white male, who is a citizen of the United States, and has resided one
year in the state, and paid taxes, has a vote. The members of the
legislature are elected annually, and those of the senate biennially; half