Git the gals and boys together.
"Pardners all for a quadrille,"
Cheeks aglow with frosty weather,
Hearts that never felt a chill;
Youth an' music never weary,
Tho' they meet in hall or hut—
When the sun is on the prairie
An' the drift is in the cut.
"Sashy by an' s'lute yer pardners.
Sashy back an' how d'ye do!"
Everybody's feelin' funny
An' the fiddle feels it too.
Out o' doors the storm may sputter,
But within the skies are bright,
Pansies peekin' out, an' butter-
Cups a bobbin' in the light.
O, the joy of healthful pleasure!
O, the trip of tireless feet!
While the fiddle fills each measure
With its music wild an' sweet;
Glints of sun the shadows vary,
Though from out the world we're shut,
When the snow is on the prairie
An' the drift is in the cut.
During that winter Dakota had an actual snowfall, on the average, of more than twelve feet; much snow remained upon the ground until late in April, and then, under the influence of a warm south wind, was converted into water in a single day. The broad prairies were simply
