I landed, I laid down upon the bank
of the on a side of sole leather.
The Prophet came along and
looked at me, and said, "You are
starting on your mission." I said
yes, but I look like a poor instrument
for a missionary; I look more fit for
a hospital or dissecting room than a
mission. He replied, "What do you
say that for? Go ahead in the name
of the Lord, and you shall be healed
and blessed on your mission." I
thanked him. A brother came along
with a wagon, and carried me a few
miles on my road. I started without
purse or scrip, and passed by , who was hewing logs for a
house; he was bare-footed, bare-
headed, without coat or vest on. He
said, "I have no money, but I have
an empty purse; I will give you that."
I went a few rods, and found Elder
building a log cabin.
He said, "I have one dollar, I will
give you that to put in your purse."
He blessed me, and I went my way,
accompanied by Elder .
I had a shake of the ague every other
day, and lay on the bottom of the
wagon while I travelled.
We staid with and at , and held a
meeting with the Saints, who contri-
buted $9 to our necessities, and gave us a horse. Father Colt-
rin was going east; he took us into
his wagon to help us along. We
spent five days in , where
Elder Taylor printed fifteen hundred
copies of a pamphlet upon the persecution. We sold our horse,
and left on the 21st, and continued
our journey. We spent the night of
the 24th with Dr. , of
On the 28th, while travelling, Elder
Taylor fell to the ground as though he
had been knocked down. We admini-
stered to him, and he revived. On
the following day he fell again, and
fainted several times; it seemed as
though the destroyer would take his
life. We travelled with him four days
after he was taken sick. His sickness
proved to be bilious fever. We stop-
ped with him two days at a German
tavern, in , Wayne county,
Indiana, with a kind family with
whom he was acquainted. Father
Coltrin would stay no longer. I pro-
posed to remain with Brother Taylor,
but as I was sick with fever and ague,
and not able to take care of myself,
brother Taylor advised me to continue
my journey with Father , say-
ing, "It is easier to take care of one
sick man than two." I committed
him into the hands of God, and the
family promised to do all in their
power to make him comfortable. I
parted from him with a heavy heart.
Sept. 2—I continued my journey
with Father Coltrin to ,
Ohio. I there took steamer on the
10th for ; had a severe gale,
and did not reach Buffalo until the
12th. I travelled to on a
canal boat; had the ague daily, was
very sick; had no companions except
sectarian priests, who were daily ly-
ing about the "Mormons." I took
stage at Albany for , Con-
necticut, on the night of the 19th, and
rode all night and the following day;
suffered severely with fever and ague.
I arrived at my house in
Farmington on the 21st, quite sick.
I found my father and family well.
On the 27th Sept., 1839, my mater-
nal grandmother, ,
died, aged 84; I was too sick to attend
her funeral. It is a singular incident
that my grandfather, ,
and Anna Thompson his wife, and , all
of one family, died in their 84th year.
On the 4th October, ,
brother to my , died, aged
43. He requested me to preach his
funeral sermon. I had been sick at
my father's house, with the ague, for
fifteen days, attended with a severe
cough, and the hour appointed for the
funeral was the time for my ague, yet
I attended the funeral and preached,
and I had no more ague for many
days. I left on the 7th, and visited
New York, , and , in very poor health.
Nov. 1—I assisted Elders ,
and , to set sail for
. Elder John Taylor had re-
covered from his sickness, and arrived
in New York on the 13th December.
Dec. 19—In company with Elders
John Taylor and , I
went on board the packet-ship Oxford,
and sailed for , where I
