Please excuse this brown sheet it was taken on account of its size & plainer ruling — Burlington Iowa March 20th 1849 Wilford & Phebe Woodruff Dear friends Almost two years having elapsed since I left you & the City of Saints & not having recieved one word from you as yet I feel inclin'd to address a few lines to you as I have been won't to do in former days but how unlike are my feelings on this occasion to what they formerly were when ...

had established me in my then present faith neither have I since that time felt any obstrutction in my mind on account of this Doctrine excepting my anxiety to have my children see with me on this subject. I exspect however that some, if not many of the Brethren in Burlington some of which may have gone to the Bluffs have entertained the Idea that I had become a believer in Mr Strang as being call'd to lead the church from the fact ...

steady employ at his Trade getting a good living &c, but as I have remarked in the first part of this sheet a reccollection of the past seems to cast a dark shade both over the scene & ^my own^ mind for I must say that I have been next to being confounded as it regards many things relating to my Journeying West. I set out with a full conf- idence that it was according to the will of God I also felt full confidence in the good feelings of my family friends towards me honestly ...

There seemed to be from time to time while at the Bluffs conciderable effort exerted to prove me out guilty of something, or somewhat, or of some misdemeanour of conduct but after all I could not find that there was any thing of a tangible nature or at least so much so as to be productive of any evil whatever but not so with the things which I have to speak of for indeed some of them were of weighty consequences for who can deny that a persons reputation & character is not ...