If time is of the essence, try the quick soak. For a faster soak, put the beans and water in a saucepan and bring them to a boil. Allow them to boil for about 2 to 3 minutes. Remove the saucepan from the heat, cover it with a lid and let the beans soak for at least 1 hour.
On the way down, I stayed at Comfort Inn in Mount Vernon, which was fairly average. While I was in Mississippi, I stayed at a Holiday Inn Express. It was a step up from the Comfort Inn. The Hampton Inn had the Hilton stamp all over it...the quality and feel was definitely more upscale than the others.
Mount Vernon, Illinois. Mount Vernon known as The King City is a city in and the county seat of Jefferson County, Illinois, United States. The population was 15,277 at the 2010 census. Mount Vernon is the principal city of the Mount Vernon Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Jefferson and Hamilton counties.