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192. Elizabeth Crawford to William H. Herndon.

may the 3 1866

dear Sir

your letter of Aprile the 19 has came to hand and I was glad to hear that you was well pleased with what I had ritten you wish me to tell you the names of some of our wild woods flowers thare is the wild Sweet william wild pink lady slipper wild roses butter fly weed wild huny Succle blue flag yellow flag and thare is A grate many other kinds that I cant recolect the names of at this time now I will give you the names of Some of the garden flowers that was cultivated in this country by the first setlers or nearly So Say in 1824 26 and on for several years and Some of them tell this time the sweet pink the popy the marygold the larkspur the techmenot the pritty by night the lady in the green the sord lilly the flower been the holly hock the batchlers buttens those buttens the girls use to string and hang them up in their houses for an ornament thay ware verry pritty as thay war white

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ones and red ones the roses the Sweet or [illegible] rose the infant rose the pinny the ould maids eyes the velvet pink the mullen pink the garden Sweet williams the carolina pink you wis me to tell you the names of Some of the trees that grew in Spencer county the black oak the white oak the popler the dogwood the hickery the Sweet gum the maple the redbud ash and many other kinds I will give you A few more of the names the willow box elder the plum the crab apple the elam the patalpa this is A beautiful tree when in full bloom the wild plum is plentyful in places in this country well now I will give you A part or all of A Song that abraham lincoln use to Sing cauld it Adam and Eaves wedding Song this Song was Sung at abrahams sisters wedding I do not know A Linkern composed this song or not the first that I ever heard of it was the Linkern family sung it I rather think that A l composed it him Self but I am not certain I know that he was in the habit of makeing Songs and Singing of them I do not wish to rite any thing but the truth I have amed at that all the time I wish he A true history and hope to read A true one when yours is done

Adam and eaves wedding Song as follows

when Adam was created
he dwelt in edons Shade
as Moses has recorded
and soone A bride was made

ten thousand times ten thousand
of creatures swarmed around
before A bride was formed
and yet no mate was found

the lord then was not willing
the man Should be alone
but caused A sleep Apon him
and took from him A bone

and closed the flesh in sted thare of
and then he took the Same
and of it made A woman
and braut her to the man

then Adam he rejoiced
to See his loving bride
A part of his one body
the product of his Side

this woman was not taken
from Adams feet we See
So he must not abuse her
the meaning Seemes to be

this woman was not taken
from Adams head we know
to Show She must not rule him
tis evidently So

this woman She was taken
from under Adams arm
So she must be protected
from injures and harm

mr Herndon please excuse bad riting and mistakes as I am so blind that I cant See the lines on the paper

Elizabeth Crawford

Library of Congress: Herndon-Weik Collection. Manuscript Division. Library of Congress. Washington, D.C. 2554 — 55; Huntington Library: LN2408, 1:198 — 201

nts

Notes.

1. The existence of similar texts, including Geoffrey Chaucer's fourteenth-century narrative "The Parson's Tale," argues against AL's authorship. See Lair, 23 — 25.