tting
sun. Accordingly they started. At the end of one month the baby died. A
piece of wood from the cradle was all they had to mark its lonely
resting place. With sad hearts they went on, and, in a few weeks, with
grief for her child, her old home, her kindred and friends, the mother
also died. She, too, was left alone on the far-off prairies, and the sad
pageant moved on. Another child soon shared the same fate, and then a
span of horses died, and one wagon, with all the things they could most
easily spare, was abandoned. Arrived at their destination none of the
golden dreams was realized. The expensive journey, the struggles in
starting under new circumstances, and the loss of the mother's thrift
and management, made the father so discouraged and reckless that much of
his property was wasted, and his earthly career was soon ended. Through
the heroic energy and good management of the eldest daughter, the little
patrimony, in time, was doubled, and the children well brought up and
educated in the rudiments of learning, so that all became respectable
members of society. Her advice to all young people is, if you are
comfortably established in the East, stay there. There is no royal road
to wealth and ease, even in the Western States!

In spite of the discomforts we suffered in the Kansas campaign, I was
glad of the experience. It gave me added self-respect to know that I
could endure such hardships and fatigue with a great degree of
cheerfulness. The Governor and I often laughed heartily, as we patiently
chewed our gum arabic and slippery elm, to think on what a gentle
stimulus we were accomplishing such wonderful feats as orators and
travelers. It was fortunate our intense enthusiasm for the subject gave
us all the necessary inspiration, as the supplies we gathered by the way
were by no means sufficiently invigorating for prolonged propagandism.

I enjoyed these daily drives over the vast prairies, listening to the
Governor's descriptions of the early days when the "bushwhackers and
jayhawkers" made their raids on the inhabitants of the young free State.
The courage and endurance of the women, surrounded by dangers and
discomforts, surpassed all description. I count it a great privilege to
have made the acquaintance of so many noble women and men who had passed
through such scenes and conquered such difficulties. They seemed to live
in an atmosphere altogether beyond their surroundings. Many educated
families from New