May 1, 1897

Raining all day. The Elders held class meeting. I spoke on faith

May 2

Sunday held meeting in the afternoon, Present 4 Elders, 2 saints & 2 believers. We had an abundent flow of the spirit of the Lord.

May 3

Set for my Photo, In the evening sent with Elder Murdock to Mr. & Mrs Frith's, Spent a pleasant evening talking on the principals of the gospel. Staid ail night & eat Breakfast with them next morning.

May 4

Mild sunny day. In the fornoon I cleaned up & rn bed our room. In after noon I went for proofs of Photos & wrote a letter home.

May 5

Warm & pleasant day. I read & studied untill 1 O'clock P.M Shortly after 1 O'clock we made a trip to the Gorham Silver works they being the largest silver works in the World. Through the courtesy of a Mr. J H Clark (an influential sitezen) we were introduced to the cashier of the Co, We had a guide furnished us & we went all through the buildings up stairs & down. The buildings covers over six acres of land. We spent one & one half hours looking at the diferent prosesses of making silverware &c. From there we went to Mr Nelson's, Had a grand supper. Spent the evening singing & talking.

May 6

Reading & study the order of the day. In the evening Bro. Murdock and I visited the Walche's & gave them a brief history of the rise of the Church & & a little history of the book of Mormon. Spent about two hours very pleasantly & I believe with profit. I left my Book of Mormon with then.

May 7

Morning looked dark & gloomy, It had been aranged for Elder Dunyon & myself to take a trip out into the country & go without purse or scrip & we left at about 10 A.M. The day ______ turned beautiful. We took the electric cars far as Auburn about 5 mi & began tracting toward Norwood. Reaching Norwood we called on the Paster of the Baptist church ___ Mr Smith to try to get his church to preach in. Presented to him our licence. He finding out the church we represented would not even talk to us. There was ___ ____re church in the place _____ sent to Auburn for a Preacher. We visited the Deacon a Mister Hadley but he refused to let us preach in his church. We made known our circumstance & was told by many that there was no one who took lodgers or boarders in the town. We had gone without our dinner night ____ing on it looked as though we would go without our supper but the Lord raised up friends & Mr & Mrs Nathan Pierce, christian adventists took us in, gave us supper & a good bed & breakfast the next morning. We found the Pierce's to be very good people. We preached the Gospel to them & left tracks & our blessings with them. Delivered 17 tracks & held 3 gospel Conversations.

May 8

A butiful morning. We called on members of the wheelman's Club who professed no religon (they have a hall) & succeded in getting their hall free of charge to hold meeting in the next day. We canvassed the town leaving tracts & telling people of the meeting to be held the next day at 5 P.M. We delivered ninty five Tracts (only 2 persons refusing to accept of them) We were invited into seven houses & had that many Gospel conversations. Returned in the evening to Providence having spent 60 cents each for car fare & gone without 2 meals.

May 9

Sunday. Elders Dunyon & Welch went to Norwood & filled the apointment. About 40 people turned out to meeting (it being the first meeting held in a public Hall by Mormon Elders in the state of R.I. for over 50 years), The Bretheren were invited to come & hold meeting again in the near future. Elder Murdock & I held meeting in Bro. Denmans house. Present 2 Elders & 3 saints. Bro M. talked 22 minutes & I 26 m. We had a good meeting. In the evening Elder M. & I visited the Theosipherts meeting & listened to a lady from Boston Lecture & I was impressed that in the near future that Society would become a great menace to society.

May 10

Reading & study. In the evening Bro. Murdock & I visited a Mrs Miller who has been a Mormon & lived in Utah but is now a Josephite,[fn2] I reed. 2 letters on this day, one from my Dear wife & son O.D. & one from my dear Father & Mother.

May 11

Wrote to the loved ones at home. Read & studied some. Spent the evening to Mr & Mrs Kershers.

May 12

Reading &c. Mr Kersher sharpen lawn mower. In the evening Elders Dunyon Murdock & I went to the Nelsons & spent the evening. They, the Nelsons are very kind to us. Told us all to come at least once a week & have supper with them. Mr. Nelson also told us if either of us ever needed any money to let him know & if it was in his power he would help us.

May 13

Raining all day.

May 14

Morning fine. Elders Dunyon, Murdock & I walked out to Rodger Williams Park to witness the programme rendered by the the schools of the city. It was Arbor day & there was to be a grand time. The park is beautiful. The ground m_dulating covered with trees grass & flowers & interspersed with beautiful lakes. A heavy rain came up in the after noon which stopped a part of the programme. There was thousands of children present & we saw a number that were lost & did not know which way to take to go home.

Saturday May 15 -- 1897

A fine day. Nothing of note happened untill 4 OcClock P.M. We all went to the Nelsons, had a good supper and at half past 8 P.M. went down to the wharf a little band of nine & witnessed the baptism of Mrs Nelson & Mrs Denman by Elder Dunyon. We then returned to Mrs Nelsons, sang some appropate hymns, had prayers with them & started for home at half past 10 P.M.

Sunday May 16 -- 1897

Us Elders fasted fasted untill half past 4 P.M. Held meeting at 3 P.M, at Bro. Denmans and confirmed Sisters Nelson and Denman. Elders Welch & Crockett being mouth repectively. Had a very good meeting. Elders Welch & Dunyon being the principal speakers. I bore my testimony.

Monday May 17

Recd. letter from loved ones from home with ______ in it, Reading &c.

Tuesday May 18

Elder Murdock & I went to Johnson to see the Sargent of the Police force to get the privelage of holding out door meeting there. We will have to make another call before we know what we can do. Also called at the Textile workers Hall to see about having that building to hold meetings in. Did not find the manager & will have to call a gain.

Wednesday May 19 -- 1897

Bro. M. & I called at Police station, Saw the Sergent, regarding the out door meetings, He refered us back to the Town __m_rt. We called on the Town clerk. He informed us that we would have to put in a petition to the town council for a permit which we have done. We then hunted up the manager of the Textile Union Hall & succeeded in engaging it (the Hall) to hold meeting in the following Sunday evening by paying $2.50 for the use of it. In the evening Elders Murdock, Dunyon & myself visited the Nelson's took supper with them & spent the evening. Mrs Nelson told us how she could not sleep any last Sat. night after being baptized she was so happy & said she heard a beautiful song sang by her bedside about 12 Oclock in the night which was so heavenly that it filled her heart with gratitude & love.

Thursday May 20 -- 97

The day cool & cloudy. The day spent in reading and conversing on the gospel. In the evening Bro. Murdock & I visited the Cook's & had a moderatly pleasant evening. Cook is a peacibal man having some very unreasonible ideas especialy on the sex questions. Bro Welch has written a nice long article to the evening Buliten explaining the Mormon question from a Mormon standpoint. We believe we will be successful in getting it pub.

Friday May 21 -- 1897

Morning cloudy. Elder Dunyon & I took a trip to Norwood to gather up tracts & give out others, visit the people & arange for holding another meeting. We took the car as far as Auburn & leaving that place on foot we walked a long a beautiful road through the woods. The trees, shrubs and flowers are looking very lovely. We steped aside into the deep recess of the elm trees & poured out our hearts to Him who dwells on high & humbly asked him to go before us with his spirit & open up the way that we might find entertainment & be enabled to do good while with the people. In calling on the inhabitants of Norwood we found many who were not willing to read any more of our tracts but the Lord softened the hearts of some & our prayers were answered. We delivered 75 tracts & was given entertainment for the night by Mister Ben Harrington & his good wife who are among the old stock of R.I. They have a geneoligy for seven generations back. They treated us very good, giving us a good supper, bed & breakfast the next morning.

Sat May 22 -- 97

A beautiful & pleasant day. After breakfast we continued our tracting & conversing on the true gospel with all who were willing to listen. We succeeded in getting the Union Hall to hold meeting in on Sun May 23 at 4 P.M. Delivered 23 tracts, notified all the people about the meeting. Had a good dinner with the Pierces (received an order from the young man Pierce (who is a grand son of the folks who entertained us) for a book of Mormon. He has given us more assistance in our labors at Norwood than any other person & now he tells us to make his office in his green our head quarters when ever we are in Norwood. In the afternoon we walked back to Providence having been about two days & one night. Gone without one meal. Walked about 30 miles, spent 5 cents each for car fare & returned feeling that the Lord had truly blessed us. In the evening I visited the Walche's.

Sun May 23 -- 97

A very beautiful morning. Elder Dunyon & I left for Norwood at 2 P.M. to fill the appointment we had made to hold meeting at 4 P.M. __ persons were in attendance. We had a very good meeting, although there were three young ladies who made a great amount of noise laughing & whispering during the time Bro. Dunyon was speaking. I gave a little lecture on order which caused two of the girls to get up & go out. They left the _____ __ ____ _____ up & down the * * * Elders Welch & Murdock held a cottage meeting __ __ ______ & in the evening the four of us held meeting in the Textile Workers Hall * * * Welch occupied the time & I presided. It was a very good meeting, the first Public meeting held in this city for 50 years.

Mon May 24 -- 97

Recd.a letter from the loved ones from home, answered the same and sent home my Photo to my wife.

Tuesday May 25

Weather clear & warm. Elders Wallace & Carnia reached Hadley Mass. a week a go. They walked one hundred & fifty miles, held four meetings, had good bed every night (they went without purse or scrip) & had money given them on the way.

Wednesday May 26

Elder Murdock & I are getting ready to take a trip into the country for a few days. We left River St [fn3] at 4 P,M. Staid all night at the Frith's in Manter. Walked the next day 22 miles that being Thursday May 27 walked through Greenville to Harmony 9 miles. Received entertainment the first place we asked. Walked to Pascoag a manufacturing town & as we did not feel tired we keeped on to Peridgton & began hunting for a place to stay all night. We were refused eight times before we succeeded in getting any one to take us in. We had reached the last house for 4 miles. We found the in old man in the Barn milking. He refused me. I plead with him telling him we would be satisfied with a cup of bread & milk & sleep on the floor but it was no go untill Bro. M. heaved two or three f__tching sighs & said we was to tired to go any farther then the old man relented & we had a good supper & a good bed.

Friday May 28

Morning rainy. After breakfast we bid good bye to our friends (the man's name is Wm Stapels), raised our umbrellas & started out in the rain for Douglass Mass. Reached there at noon. After dinner we set out to see if we could get a place to hold meeting in, We saw the Trustee of the Methodist church but could not get the Church. We hunted up the school Trustee as they have a hall that meetings are held in but was not successful in getting that. We then tried the Josephites and was successful in obtaining their chapel for meeting to be held the following Sunday at 11 A.M. We then walked 6 miles to East Thompson Connecticut, tracted that village & after being refused lodging seventeen times an old gentelman & Lady took us in. The man's name is Lord & he has been an Engineer over 50 years & dames to be the oldest Engineer in the U.S.

Sat. May 29 -- 97

After Breakfast we hunted up the minister & tried to get the privlage to hold meeting in his Church. He had never seen a Mormon before & said he would have to investigate our principels before he would consent to let us preach there. We left tracts with him & conversed at some length on the prin. of the Gospel & had no trouble in confounding on the Bible truths, The Lord being on our side & we having the truth. We left Thompson & walked back to Douglass to Tract the town & give notice of our meeting the next day, Had dinner & and then done the town, There is at Douglass what is called a Holiness Camp ground. There are thousands of people come from all over the U. S. to hold a meeting for ten days each year commensing on the 2nd of July. There are a great many houses build right in among a butiful Pine forest, a large Tabernacle to meet in evenings & rainy days. Then for fine weather they have seats aranged in the side of an enclosing hill with the speaker's stand at the bottom. In this Forest Bowery are seats enough for 3,000 people. The butiful Town is entirley deserted at the present, They are going to pay one preacher this year for doing a part of the preaching during the 10 day camp $3,000. We were quite tired while there & it was so cool & inviting we laid down on one of the benches near the speakers stand & went to sleep,

Sunday May 30 -- 97

The morning warm & fine. When we saw the carrages roaling up to the Chappel my hear began to go down into my boots. We had about 30 to our meeting. We held our meeting 50 minutes. The Lord came to our help & I beleive we mad a good impression. A no. came up & shook our hands & we was offered the Chappel when ever we happened that way. After meeting we started out for Providence, walked to Harmony & staid all night with some People named Appleby who were much intrested in what we had to say to them. I loaned them a voice of Warning, It rained all night. Next morning it looked very stormy,

Monday May 31st -- 97

Reached River St. at 2 P.M. having been gone five days & walked ninty four miles delivered 123 tracts made 128 calls had 15 gospel conversations held one meeting was refused entertainment 35 times but never went without a meal and always had a good bed & never spent a cent on the trip. On reaching head quarters found two letters awaiting me, one from the loved ones from home containing 10 large pages, six of my dear children having sent letter in it.

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