2 - two helpless children, surrounded with sick and dying in a steamboat on a river in the wilderness. Every-body on board had all they could do to take care of the sick and the dead on board. Now dear brother you will Bee that I had to be Father and Mother to those two dear children. When the sick died we took them on shore and buried them on the river's bank, and in this way we buried the dead as we sailed up the river. One night we interred ten bodies in one grave, so you may think what a sorrowful time we hade. The settlers who lived along the river would not allow us to go ashore on account of the Cholera, which we had on board, so we were obliged to bury our dead at night time in order to avoid these settlers. Quite a number of those buried by us were after-wards washed away, by the high waters, which that river is subject to in the springtime. So that the spots marked as the Insteresting place of those unfortunates can never be found. There were four hundred and fifty souls in our company, and there is but a very few of them living today. Now my dear brother I have given you a little of my experience across the ocean and up the rivers to council bluffs. When I left the wretched boat all that I had in the world was the two dear children and the clothing upon us. No money. No home and a thousand miles from Salt Lake Valley, Utah. Now those of the company that had the means bought teams and travelled on, but those who did not have the moans had to stay behind. The place where we landed was called Winter Quarters then, it was located by the Church Leaders for those who did but have the means to cross the plains. I remained in this place for two years and in that time I managed to accumulate sufficient means to cross the plains with. At this place I married my present wife. When I married her, she was like myself, she had no moans, but she had determination and hands that were willing to work. She was a young woman, when I married her, one was acquainted with your dear sister before she died, this young woman, who became my wife travelled with us across the sea and up the rivers so you 206