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 HANS MATTSON. 
 
CORNELL 
 
 UNIVERSITY 
 
 LIBRARY 
 
 GIFT OF 
 
 The Collection of 
 Regional History 
 
Cornell University Library 
 E184.S2 M44 
 
 Reminiscences 
 
 olio 
 
 924 032 768 321 
 
Cornell University 
 Library 
 
 The original of this book is in 
 the Cornell University Library. 
 
 There are no known copyright restrictions in 
 the United States on the use of the text. 
 
 http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924032768321 
 
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REMINISCENCES 
 
 THE STOET OF AN IMIGBANT 
 
 Br 
 
 HANS MATTSO]^^ 
 
 Late Consttl General of the United States, in India 
 
 SAINT PAUL 
 
 D. D. MERRILL COJiIPANY 
 
 1892 
 

 f\^X^^i^ 
 
 Copyrighted 1891 
 
 BY 
 
 D. D, MERRILL COMPANY 
 
 ST. PAUL, MINN. 
 
 All Rights Keservi'i 
 
NOTE, 
 
 These reminiscences were written from memory in such leisure moments as the 
 author could spare from a busy life, and published in the Swedish language nearly a 
 year ago. They were intended solely for Swedish readers in the mother country and 
 America, but since their publication in that language it has been urged by many that 
 they ought to be made accessible to English readers also. And this, principally, in 
 order that the children of the old Swedish emigrants, who are more familiar with the 
 English than the Swedish language, may have an opportunity to learn something of the 
 early struggles of their fathers in this country. 
 
 At the same time it was thought that the American reader in general might take 
 pleasure in following the fortunes of one of the many emigrants who owes whatever 
 he has accomplished in life to the opportunities offered by the free institutions of this 
 country, and that it would especially interest him to read the account of oriental life, 
 religion and characteristics as seen by the author during his residence in the wonder- 
 ful land of the Hindoos. 
 
 As to literary finish no claim is made. In a few instances of a descriptive nature 
 recourse has been had to the accounts of other observers. In all other respects the 
 story is a plain recital of the personal experiences of the author, told without preten- 
 sions, as an humble contribution by an emigrant to the history of the emigrants, and 
 of the settlement of the Great West. 
 
 THE AUTHOR. 
 Minneapolis, Minn,, October, 1891. 
 
CHAPTER L 
 
 Ancestry and country home in Sweden — Home influences — My first school 
 years — Christmas — Military life — Departure for America. 
 
 My childhood passed so quietly and smoothly that it 
 would be superfluous to mention it at all, except for the fact 
 that such omission would leave a gap in these reminiscences. 
 For this reason, and, also, in order that the American reader 
 may get some idea of a good country home in Sweden, I 
 shall relate very briefly some incidents from that time. 
 
 My parents belonged to one of those old families '^f pro- 
 prietary farmers, whose spirit of independence and never 
 failing love of liberty, have, from time immemmorial, placed 
 Sweden, as a land of constitutional liberty, in the front rank 
 among all the countries of the Old World. 
 
 Like the descendants of the old Scotch clans the ancestors 
 of my father were noted for certain physical and mental 
 qualities, which made them prominent among the inhabi- 
 ; tants of the district of Yilland, Skane, where most of them 
 had their home. They were independent freeholders and 
 were generally reckoned among the leading men of their dis- 
 trict. They were large and strong with bro<ad shoulders, 
 high and broad foreheads and other family characteristics. 
 The christian names of the male members were generally 
 Bonde, Trued, Lars, Matts, and Hans, and the family can be 
 traced back in the parish records for more than two hundred 
 years. 
 
2 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 My mother was born on the island of Ifo, my father *s fam- 
 ily also came frorn that ivsland and were the owners of the 
 estate described by Du Chaillu in his ''Land of the Midnight 
 Sun*' with the remarkable crypt built by Bishop Andreas 
 Suneson* and the estate still belongs to a second cousin of 
 mine. My father inherited a small sum of money for which^ 
 at the time of his marriage, he bought a land in the parish 
 of Onnestad near the city of Kristianstad. On this property 
 he built a small house, barn, etc., and on the south side of the 
 former a small flower garden was laid out at either end ot 
 which my father planted a spruce tree, one of which grew up 
 into a fine, big tree, the only one of its kind in the whole neigh- 
 borhood, and to which I shall refer farther on. In this unpre- 
 tending little cabin I was born Dec. 23d, 1832, and under its 
 lowly but peaceful roof I spent the first years of my child- 
 hood, together with an elder sister and a younger brother. 
 
 I can yet distinctly remember many incidents from my 
 childhood as far back as my third and fourth year; all these 
 memories are dear and exceedingly pleasant to me. There 
 was no discord, no cause for sorrow and tears in my home 
 during the time of my childhood. Everything bore the 
 stamp of peace and calm, emanating from that spirit of gen- 
 uine old Swedish honesty and sincere piety, which animated 
 my parents. One of my very first recollections is of my 
 father reading aloud the beautiful hymn : 
 
 "The morning light shall wake me 
 To the strains of sacred song," etc., 
 
 At the age of six my schooling commenced under the guid- 
 ance of an itinerant schoolmaster by name of Bergdahl, who 
 taught small children at their homes, stopping one day foi 
 each child at every house and keeping on in that way the 
 whole term which lasted from three to four months. Old 
 Bergdahl was a good and sensible man, far superior to the 
 
 •Note: Vol 2, page 44.8. 
 
 ,^, 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 3 
 
 average men of his class. He seldom punished his pupils ex- 
 cept by appealing to their better nature, and still maintained 
 the best discipline that I have ever seen in any school of even 
 greater pretensions. 
 
 My parents were doing well on their little farm, which 
 they sold about this time, buying a larger one on the Onne- 
 stad Hills. Here they erected larger and more commodious 
 buildings. 
 
 OUR HOME. 
 
 Near the house was a park, a creek, and some large rocks, 
 all of which afforded welcome play-ground, and soon made 
 this place dearer to me than the old home. We were fol- 
 lowed by the school-master who also settled down in our 
 neighborhood, I continued reading another year under his 
 guidance, after which I attended a private school, and at the 
 age of eight was sent to the village school that was super- 
 intended by a lady teacher, a normal school graduate, who 
 was considered one of the best teachers in that part of the 
 country. My parents, desiring a more extensive field for 
 their activity, also rented a large farm, called Kellsagard, 
 near the village church, and we now moved into a still larger 
 and better house. Meanwhile I continued mv attendance at 
 
4 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 the village school until I had learned all that was taught 
 there. During the vacations I worked on my father's farm 
 at such light work as was suited to my age and strength. I 
 had a decided fancy for horses, of which my father raised a 
 (large number, and was always happy for a chance to ride or 
 drive in company with the hired men, and after my twelfth 
 ;year 1 used to break the young colts to the saddle. At the 
 same time I had a great taste for reading and never intended 
 ; to remain long on the farm, but was always meditating on 
 getting a higher education, which would prepare me for a 
 larger field of action than a country farm could offer. At 
 the age of fourteen I was sent to another school, located 
 about three miles from my home. Here I was instructed in 
 the common branches, and in a short time passed through 
 the whole course of studies. I also received instruction from 
 Rev. T. N. Hasselquist, who has played such a prominent 
 part in the Swedish Lutheran Church of America, and took 
 private lessons in arithmetic and writing of Mr. S. J. Will- 
 ard, a bright young teacher, w^ho afterwards married mj 
 only sister, and finally became my companion during our 
 pioneer life in Minnesota. 
 
 Our last home offered many conveniences; the house was 
 well furnished, and so large that the second story could be 
 rented most of the time, and it was occupied alternately by 
 a clergyman with his family, and a captain of the army. 
 These people, and our numerous city friends, exerted a refin- 
 ing and elevating influence on the farm surroundings, and 
 our home was widely noted for its hospitality. My father 
 was a kind-hearted, noble-minded man, and was liked by all 
 who knew him. My mother was a woman of strong char- 
 acter, and wielded a great influence over her surroundings. 
 She managed a household of forty to fifty persons, and on 
 Sundays there was always an extra table set for friends and 
 visitors. Her good-will, however, extended not only to our 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 6 
 
 pleasant associates, but also to the poor, the suffering and 
 the unfortunate. I cannot recall any period of my childhood 
 when we did not harbor some poor, forsaken pauper, waif, 
 orpban or cripple in my father's house. 
 
 Christmas has always been, and is j-et, the greatest of all 
 festivities or holidays among all the Scandinavian peoples. 
 It is not merely a holiday like it is among Americans, but a 
 festival lasting for many days. While the people in the dif- 
 ferent localities of the Scandinavian countries, at the time of 
 my childhood, differed in many customs, they were all alike 
 in making this season one of joyous hospitality, blended 
 with religious worship. I shall endeavor to describe Christ- 
 mas as celebrated in my home in Southern Sweden 50 years 
 ago, and I venture to say that while matters of detail might 
 differ in different parts of the country, the descriptions as a 
 whole will apply to them all. The preparations for Christ- 
 mas commenced in the beginning of December by butchering, 
 brewing and baking, so as to lay in large stores of the essen- 
 tial elements for enjoyment and hospitality. The fattened 
 animals were slaughtered, the tallow made into candles, the 
 meat salted, smoked, and otherwise prepared for a whole 
 year. The rich browm Yule-ale was made in large quantities, 
 and poured in kegs and barrels. Bread of many varieties 
 was baked for days and days, and stored away in proper 
 places, a large share of it being intended for the poor, who 
 began their rounds of calls a week before Christmas, receiv- 
 ing presents of brown and white loaves, large cuts of meats 
 and cheese, rolls of sausage, etc. The school-master, the 
 parish mid-wife, the village night w^atchman, and other 
 semi-public characters of small degree were carefully remem- 
 bered at this time. The village tailor with his journeymen 
 and apprentices appeared a few weeks before Christmas and 
 made the wearing apparel for the family and servants out 
 of home-spun fabrics for the whole year. The village shoe- 
 
6 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 maker with his crowd of workmen followed close upon the 
 former, and made up the boots and shoes out of leather 
 which had been prepared to order, finishing up by repairing 
 the stable harnesses, sometimes making new ones. It was a 
 busy season; the house--wife was kept astir early and late 
 to give directions, and superintending all these things. 
 
 Finally the day of Christmas Eve came, on which everj'- 
 thing must be in readiness, pans and kettles be scoured^ 
 floors scrubbed and strewn wnth white sand and fresh juni- 
 per twigs, even the stables for the cattle receiving an extra 
 scrubbing. The yard was swept and every nook and corner 
 of the premises put in holiday attire, and last of all, the 
 hired men and girls were expected to retire to their respect- 
 ive quarters for a similar cleaning, and make their appear- 
 ance about five o'clock in the afternoon in clean linen and new 
 clothes, ready for the great event, as for a marriage feast. 
 In the mean time pots and kettles were boiling on the hearth 
 in the great kitchen, baskets were being filled and sent off to 
 the poor who were too feeble to call for their gifts ; the fam- 
 ily and servants contenting themselves that day with a 
 lunch, well known all over Sweden as dopparebrod. It being 
 now dark, the longtable was set in the large common room. 
 The whitest linen, the finest plate, plenty of fresh white 
 bread, and two or three home-made cheeses, baskets of cake, 
 and large decanters containing sweet ale, ornamented the 
 table. In front of the seats of husband and wife was placed 
 a large home-made tallow candle with as many branches as 
 there were members of the family. Other candles were 
 placed in candle-sticks or chandeliers, so that there was an 
 abundance of light, in commemoration of the Great Light 
 which came into the world on that eve. There was also a 
 Christmas tree decorated with ribbons, flowers, confection- 
 ery and burning tapers. The lighting of the candles was 
 the signal for all to come to the feast. That evening at least 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 7 
 
 there was no distinction as to persons. Tiie lowest servant- 
 boy had his seat, and received the same attention as the 
 children or members of the family. When all were seated a 
 Christmas prayer was offered by the head of the family, 
 after which a hymn was sung, in which all joined; then were 
 brought in from the kitchen great dishes of "Lut Fisk,'* 
 served with drawn butter and mustard sauce; after that a 
 roast of beef or pork, and at last the Yule-mush. About the 
 time that this w^as finished, some one who had quietly 
 stepped outside returned in the disguise of Santa Claus, and 
 threw baskets full of Christmas presents on the floor. The 
 children and younger servants made a scramble for these, 
 amid shouts of hilarious joy and distributed them according 
 to the directions written on each bundle. No one was for- 
 gotten. Then at the table followed cakes with sweet wine 
 or punch, and nuts and apples, all of which was enjoyed 
 hugely and deliberately, so that it was often ten o'clock 
 before the tables were cleared. The remainder of the even- 
 ing was spent in quiet amusments, such as telling stories 
 about princes and princesses, giants and trolls, conundrums, 
 tricks with cards, etc., and seldom did the happy circle break 
 up until nearly mid-night. 
 
 Christmas day was considered a very holy day. There 
 were no visits made, no work done except of the greatest 
 necessity, such as feeding the animals and keeping up the 
 fires; no cooking was done on that day, but meals were 
 served mostly cold from the delicious head cheese, pork roast 
 and other delicacies, which had been prepared beforehand. 
 The greatest event of all the season, and in fact of the whole 
 year, was the early service (ottesang) in the parish church, 
 at five o'clock on Christmas morning. Hundreds of candles 
 were lighted in chandeliers and candlesticks. The altar was 
 covered with gold embroidered cloth ; the floor was strewn 
 with fresh twigs of juniper, and soon the people began to 
 
8 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 assemble. They came from every house and hamlet, in 
 sleighs with tinkling bells, on horseback, and on foot along 
 every road and winding pathway, usually in groups, swelling 
 as the parties and the roads intersected, many carrying lan- 
 terns or burning pine-knots to light the way. Everywhere 
 the greeting, "Happy Christmas*' w^as heard, but all with 
 joyful solemnity. Outside the church the burning torches 
 were thrown in a pile which formed a blaze that could be 
 seen a long distance off. The church was soon crowded; 
 then the solemn tones of the organ burst forth ; the organist 
 led in the beautiful hymn, "Var halsad skona morgon 
 stund" (Be greeted joyful morning hour), in which every 
 member of the congregation joined, until the temple was 
 filled with their united voices so that the walls almost shook. 
 And when the minister ascended the pulpit, clad in his sur- 
 plice and black cape, he had before him a most devout con- 
 gregation. Of course the sermon was about the Messiah, 
 who was born in the stable, and placed in the manger at 
 Bethlehem. The next service was at ten o'clock, and the rest 
 of the day was spent quietly at home by everybody. 
 
 On the next day, called Second Day Christmas, the previous 
 solemnity was discarded, and the time for visiting and social 
 enjoyments commenced. 
 
 The one permanent virtue most conspicuous during the 
 whole Christmas season, which in those days extended way 
 into the month of January, was hospitality, and next to that 
 or linked with it, charity. It seemed that the heart of every 
 one expanded until it took in every fellow creature high and 
 low, and even the brute animals. Many and many were the 
 loaves of bread, grain and meal thrown out purposely for 
 the birds or stray dogs that might be hungry, and many of 
 the farmers followed the beautiful Norwegian custom of plac- 
 ing sheaves of oats and barley on the roof of their barns that 
 tiie poor birds might also enjoy Christmas. 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 9 
 
 But there were also other ennobling influences which sur- 
 rounded and emanated from our home, and I recollect most 
 yividly those connected with nature. The house was sur- 
 rounded by a large beautiful garden, with choice flowers and 
 fruit, fine grass plats and luxurient trees, the branches of 
 which were alive with singing birds, the most noted among 
 these being the nightingale, which every summer filled the 
 garden with sweet melody. 
 
 Of the incidents of my childhood I will mention a few, 
 which have left the most vivid impression on my mind : 
 
 Once my parents took me along to see the king, who was 
 to pass by on the highway a short distance from our home. 
 The people from the country around had congregated by 
 thousands to see his majesty. Most of them, however, did 
 not get a chance to see anything but a large number of car- 
 riages each of which was drawn by four or six horses, and 
 postillions and servants in splendid liveries. In the midst 
 of this confusion I, however, succeeded in catching a glimpse 
 of King Oscar I, as he passed by. In my childish mind I had 
 fancied that the king and his family and all others, in author- 
 ity were the peculiar and elect people of the Almighty, but 
 after this event which produced avery decided impression on 
 me, I began to entertain serious doubts as to the correctness 
 of my views on this matter. 
 
 At another time I went with my mother to the city of 
 Kristianstad to hear the Rev. Doctor P. Fjellstedt, who had 
 just returned from a missionary tour in India. I can never 
 forget how eloquently he described the Hindoos, and the 
 Brahmin idolatry, all of which aroused in me an eager long- 
 ing to visit the wonderful country and learn to know its - 
 peculiar people. But little did I then dream that I was to 
 go there thirty-six years later as the representative of the 
 greatest country of the world. 
 
 At one time I w^ent in company with my mother to the 
 
10 Story op an Emigrant. 
 
 Danish capital, Copenhagen, we being among the first 
 Swedish families that traveled by rail, for we took the rail- 
 road from Copenhagen to Roskilde, the same being finished 
 several years before any railroads were built in Sweden. 
 
 In the summer of 1847, shortly after my confirmation, I 
 was properly supplied with wardrobe and other necessaries, 
 and saying good-bye to the happy and peaceful home of my 
 childhood, Heft forthe city of Kristianstad to enter the Latin 
 school. In kissing me good-bye my mother urged on me 
 the precious words, which she had inherited from her mother: 
 "Do right and fear nothing." 
 
 When I entered this school I was fourteen years and a-half 
 old, tall of stature and well developed for my age, and, like 
 other country children, somewhat awkward in dress and 
 behavior. 
 
 My schoolmates welcomed me by giving me a nick-name, 
 and trying to pick a quarrel with me, which they also suc- 
 ceeded in doing, and before the end of the first day a drawn 
 battle had been fought, aftei which they never troubled me 
 again. The principal study in this school was Latin, early 
 and late, to which was soon added German, and at the close 
 of the second year, Greek, French, history, geographj'-, and 
 other common branches. I made rapid progress, was 
 awarded a prize at my first examination, and finished the 
 w^ork of two classes in two years, only about half the usual 
 tim6. 
 
 During those two years, and even before that time, I had 
 a peculiar presentiment that I would have to make great 
 mental and physical exertions in the future, and that it was 
 necessary for me to prepare for whatever might happen. 
 Therefore, I often chose the hard floor for my bed and a book 
 for a pillow. At times I would take long walks without 
 eating and drinking, and let my room-mates strike my chest 
 with their fists until it was swollen and inflamed. I even 
 
Story of ak Emigrant. 11 
 
 tried how long I could go without food, and still not lose 
 my mental and physical vigor. 
 
 When I was sixteen years old, an event took place which 
 had a decisive influence on my whole life. 
 
 A captain of the army boarded at my father's home, and 
 was regarded as a member of the family. Among his 
 acquaintances was a young man of my own age, who also 
 had the same christian name as I. One day this young man 
 came to see the captain, and as he approached the house my 
 mother and sister observing him, both exclaimed at the 
 same time, ** There is Hans!" He heard this, and w^as 
 greatly surprised that they knew him, while the fact was 
 that they mistook him for me. At that time I was in the 
 city, but the next day this second Hans visited me, and told 
 me of the incident. If there is such a thing as affinity 
 between men, it certainly existed between him and me; w^e 
 felt ourselves irresistibly drawn towards each other, and 
 from that day we have been more than brothers, and noth- 
 ing but death can separate us. We are of the same size, 
 complexion and age. He had already served a short time as 
 cadet in the artillery, but had been compelled to resign on 
 account of poor health. Now he had recovered and entered 
 service again as a volunteer in the infantry. The events of 
 my life are so closely interwoven with this man and his life, 
 that the reader will often hear of him in these pages. Right 
 here I wish to state, that a more faithful friend and a more 
 noble character cannot be found ; he has always been a help 
 and a comfort to me in the many and strange vicissitudes 
 which we have shared together. His name is Hans Eus- 
 trom, better known in Minnesota as Captain Eustrom. 
 
 The first Danish-German war broke out about this time, 
 and I, with many other youths, felt a hearty sympathy for the 
 Danes. The Swedish government resolved to send troops to 
 help their neighbors, and a few regiments marching through 
 
12 Story op an Emigrant. 
 
 our city fanned our youthful enthusiasm into flame. Finally, 
 a detachment of the artillery, quartered in the city, was or- 
 dered to leave for the seat of war, and now I could no longer 
 restrain myself, but besieged my parents to let me join that 
 part of the army which was going to the battlefield, and 
 to clinch the argument I was ct'uel enough to send word to 
 my distressed mother that if she would not consent I would 
 run away from home and join the army anyway. This last 
 argument made her yield, and in the fall of 1849 1 became an 
 artillery cadet, being then in my seventeenth year. But al- 
 though I won this victory over my mother, whose greatest 
 desire was that I should become a clergyman, she in turn 
 gained a victory over me by persuading the suigeon of the 
 batallion, who was also our family physician, to declare me 
 sick and send me to the hospital, although I had only a slight 
 cold; thus my plan to go with the army to Schleswig-Hol- 
 stein was frustrated. This did not make much difference, 
 however, as the war was virtually closed before our troops 
 arrived at the place of destination, and my time could now 
 be more profitably employed in learning the duties of a sol- 
 dier, and in taking a course of mathematics and other prac- 
 tical branches at the regimental school. 
 
 1 remained in the army a year and a-half, during which 
 time I received excellent instruction in gymnastics, fencing 
 and riding, besides the regular military drill. Two winters 
 were thus devoted to conscientious and thorough work at 
 the military school. 
 
 Knowing that the chances for advancement in the Swedish 
 army during times of peace were at this time very slim for 
 young men not favored with titles of nobility, and being also 
 tired of the monotonous garrison life, my friend Eustrom 
 and myself soon resolved to leave the service and try our 
 luck in a country where inherited names and titles were not 
 the necessary conditions of success. 
 

 Story of An EMtGRAttt 13 
 
 At that time America was little known in out part of the 
 country, only a few persons having emigrated from the whole 
 district. But we knew that it was a new country, inhabited 
 by a free and independent people, that it had a liberal gov- 
 ernment and great natural resources, and these inducements 
 were sufficient for us. My parents readily consented to my 
 emigration, and, having made the necessary preparations, 
 my father took my friend Bustrom and myself down to the 
 coast with his own horses, in the first part of May, 1851. 
 It was a memorable evening, and I shall never forget the 
 last farewell to my home, in driving out from the court into 
 the village street, how I stood up in the wagon, turned to- 
 wards the dear home and waved my hat with a hopeful 
 hurrah to the "folks I left behind." A couple of days' jour- 
 ney brought us to a little seaport, where we. took leave of 
 my father and boarded a small schooner for the city of 
 Gothenburg. 
 
 At that time there were no ocean steamers and no emigrant 
 agents; but we soon found a sailing vessel bound for America 
 on which we embarked as passengers, furnishing our own 
 bedding, provisions and other necessaries, which our mothers 
 had supplied in great abundance. About one hundred and 
 fifty emigrants from different parts of Sweden were on board 
 the brig Ambrosius. In the middle of May she weighed 
 anchor and glided out of the harbor on her long voyage 
 across the ocean to distant Boston. 
 
 We gazed back at the vanishing shores of the dear father- 
 land with feelings of affection, but did not regret the step 
 we had taken, and our bosoms heaved with boundless hope. 
 At the age of eighteen, the strong, healthy youth takes a 
 bright and hopeful view of life, and so did we. Many and 
 bcauti^nl were the air-castles we built as we stood on deck, 
 with our eyes turned towards the promised land of the 
 Nineteenth century. To some of these castles oui? lives have 
 given reality, others are still floating before us. 
 
CHAPTER IT. 
 
 Arrival at Boston— Adventures between Boston and New York — Buffalo 
 — An Asylum — Return to New York — A Voyage — On the Farm in New 
 Hampshire. 
 
 The good brig Ambrosius landed us in Boston on June 29, 
 1851, but during the voyage about one-half of the passen- 
 gers were attacked by small-pox and had to be quarantined 
 outside the harbor. My good friend and 1 were fortunate 
 enough to escape this plague; but instead of this I was taken 
 sick with the ague on our arrival at Boston. 
 
 Now, then, we were in America! The new, unknown 
 country lay before us, and it seemed the more strange as we 
 did not understand a word of the English language. For at 
 that time the schools of Sweden paid no attention to English, 
 so that although I had studied four languages, English, the 
 most important of all tongues, was entirely unknown to me. 
 
 The first few^ weeks of our stay in Boston passed quietly 
 and quickly, but the ague grew^ worse and my purse was get- 
 ting empty. My friend, however, had more money than I 
 and as long as he had a d oiler left he divided it equally be- 
 tween us. I cannot resist the temptati-on to relate a serio- 
 comical escapade of this period, one that to many will recall 
 similar occurences in their own experience as immigrants 
 ignorant of the language of the country. 
 
 In Gothenburg we had become acquainted with a bright 
 young man from Vexio, Janne Tenggren by name, who had 
 also served in the arm v. When we met him he had alreadv 
 
 14 
 
Story of an Emigrant, 15 • 
 
 bought a ticket on a sailing vessel bound for New York, so 
 that we could not make the voyage together. But we 
 agreed to hunt each other up after our arrival in America. 
 We left Sweden about the same time with the understanding 
 that if we arrived first we should meet him in New York, and 
 if he arrived first he should go to Boston to meet us there. 
 
 About a week after our arrival in Boston, we heard that 
 the vessel on which he had embarked had arrived, and I 
 immediately left for New York to fulfill our promise. But, 
 unfortunately, I found he had already gone west, so I bought 
 a return ticket to Boston the same day. The journey was 
 by steamboat to Fall River, thence by rail to Boston. We 
 left New York in the evening. I remained on the deck, and 
 went to sleep about ten o'clock on some wooden boxes. 
 About eleven o'clock I awoke, saw the steamer laying too. 
 and, supposing we were at Fall River, hurried off and fol- 
 lowed the largest crowd, expecting thus to get to the railroad 
 depot. Striking no depot, however, I returned to the har- 
 bor, only to find the steamer gone, and everybody but myself 
 had vanished from the pier. 
 
 There I stood, in the middle of the night, without money, 
 ignorant of the language, and not even knowing where I 
 was! Tired and discouraged I finally threw myself down 
 on a wooden box on the sidewalk, and went to sleep. About 
 five o'clock in the morning a big policeman aroused me by 
 poking at me with his club. This respectable incarnation 
 of social order evidently took me for a tramp or a madman, 
 and as he could not obtain any intelligible information from 
 me in any language known to him, he took me to a small 
 shoe store kept by a German. 
 
 Fortunately, my acquaintance with the German language 
 was sufficient to enable me to explain myself, and I soon 
 found that I had left the steamer several hours too early ; ^m-s-v* 
 that the name of this place was New London, that another 
 
16 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 steamer would come past at the same time tlie next m'ght, 
 so that all I had to do was to wait for that steamer and go 
 to Boston on the same ticket. 
 
 I spent the day in seeing the city and chatting with my 
 friend, the shoe maker, and in the evening returned to the 
 wharf to watch for the Boston steamer. 
 
 This being my ague day, I had violent attacks of ague and 
 fever, so that I was again forced to lie down to rest on the 
 same wooden box. and again went to sleep. After a while I 
 was aroused by the noise of the approaching steamer; rushed 
 on board in company with some other passengers, and con- 
 sidered myself very fortunate when reflecting that I would 
 surely be in Boston the next morning. I had made myself 
 familiar with the surroundings during the day, and when 
 the steamer started, I noticed that it directed its course 
 towards N^w York, instead of Boston. I had no money to 
 pay my fare to New York, could neither borrow nor beg, and 
 so I crawled down in a little hole in the fore part of the 
 steamer, where the tackles a^d ropes were kept, thus, for- 
 tunately, escaping the notice of the ticket collector. 
 
 The next evening I again embarked for Boston and finally 
 arrived safely at my destination. 
 
 We stayed in Boston several weeks, and during that time 
 my ague caused a heavy drain on our small treasury. We 
 had no definite plan, did not know what to do, and as we 
 had never been used to any kind of hard work, matters be- 
 gan to assume a serious aspect, especially in regard to my- 
 self But then, as now, the hope of many a young man was 
 the Great West which, at that time, was comparatively little 
 known even in Boston. Toward the close of the month of 
 July we, therefore, went to Buffalo, which was as far as our 
 money would carry us. Here we put up at a cheap boarding 
 house kept by a Norwegian by name of Lars©n, with whom 
 we stopped while trying to get work. But having learned 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 17 
 
 no trade and being unused to manual labor, we soon found 
 that it was impossible to get a job in the city ;»so we left our 
 baggage at the boarding house and started on foot for a 
 country place named Hamburg, some ten miles distant- 
 where we learned that two of our late companions across 
 the ocean had found employment. On the road to Hamburg, 
 about dusk, we reached a small house by the wayside, where 
 we asked for food and shelter. I was so exhausted that my 
 friend had to support me in order to reach the house. We 
 found it occupied by a Swedish family, which, had just sat 
 down to a bountiful supper. Telling them our condition, we 
 w^ere roughly told to clear out; in Sweden, they said, they 
 had had enough, of gentlemen and would have nothing to do 
 with them here. 
 
 We retraced our steps with sad hearts until a short dis- 
 tance beyond the house we found an isolated barn partly 
 filled with hay. There was no one to object, so we took 
 possession and made it our temporary home. I am glad to 
 say that during a long life among all classes of people, from 
 the rudest barbarians to the rulers of nations, that family of 
 my own countrymen were the only people who made me 
 nearly lose faith in the nobler attributes of man. I have an 
 excuse,however,for this conduct in the fact that in the mother- 
 country, which they had left ayear before, they had probably 
 been abused and exasperated on account of the foolish class 
 distinction then existing there. They evidently belonged to 
 that class of tenants who were treated almost like slaves. 
 The following day we found our late companions a mile 
 from our barn, botb working for a farmer at $15.00 per 
 month, which was then considered big wages. They were 
 older men and accustomed to hard labor, so that their situ- 
 ation was comparatively easy. They received us kindly and 
 procured work for Eustrom with the same farmer, while I, 
 still suffering with the ague, could not then attempt to work. 
 
18 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 and therefore returned to my castle in the meadow, (the hay- 
 barn). There' I remained about a week living on berries 
 which I found in the neighboring woods and a slice of bread 
 and butter, which Eustrom brought me in the evening, when, 
 with blistered hands and sore back, he called to comfort me 
 and help build better air castles for the future. 
 
 A council was finally held among us four, and it was de- 
 cided to send me back to Buffalo with a farmer who was 
 going there the following morning. One of the men Mr. 
 Abraham Sandberg on parting gave me a silver dollar, with 
 the injunction to give it to someone who might need it worse 
 than I, whenever I could do so. I have never met Abraham 
 since ; but I have regarded it as a sacred duty to comply 
 with his request, and, in case these lines should come before 
 his eyes I wish to let him know^ that my debt has been hon- 
 estly paid. 
 
 On reaching the old boarding house in Buffalo the landlord 
 promised that he would send me to a hospital where I could 
 receive proper treatment and care. I made up a little bundle 
 of necessary underwear, and in an hour a driver appeared 
 at the door; I was lilted into the cart and off we went 
 through the muddy streets to the outskirts of the city, where 
 I was duly delivered at a large building which I supposed to 
 be the hospital. It was near evening, and I was brought 
 into a large dining-room, with a hundred others or more, 
 served with supper, corn mush and molasses water, after 
 which I w^as shown to a' bed in a large room among many 
 others. I suffered with fever, and for the first time in my life 
 with loneliness. Exhausted nature finally took out its due, 
 and I slept soundly until awakened in the morning by a loud 
 sound of a gong. As soon as dressed I walked out in the 
 yard, or lawn, back of the building. On one side was a high 
 plank fence, behind which I heard some strange sounds. I 
 found a knot-hole, and, peeping through this, I observed 
 
Story of an Emigrant, 19 
 
 another lawn, on which were many people. They were 
 strange looking; I never saw any like them before. Some 
 were swinging, some dancing, others shouting, singing and 
 weeping and behaving in a most out-of-the-way manner. I 
 wondered and wondered, and finally it dawned upon me 
 that it must be a lunatic asylum. It was, in fact, as I since 
 learned, the county poor farm, where one part was used for 
 the lunatics and the other for paupers like myself. Has it 
 come to this? I asked myself; is this the goal of all my 
 ambition and hopes ? Going back to the room, where I had 
 slept, I stealthily took my little bundle, slipped out through 
 a side door into a back yard, found a gate open and was 
 soon in the street. I started on a run with all the power in 
 me, as if pursued by all the furies of paupers and lunatics, 
 never stopping until I was near the old boarding house, 
 where I was taken in exhausted and in deep despair. I 
 would have killed the landlord for deceiving me if I had been 
 able to do so. One good thing resulted from the sad expe- 
 rience of that day: the mental shock on discovering where 
 I was, cured me for the time being of the ague. 
 
 The next day my friend returned from Hamburg, where he 
 could no longer get any employment on account of his blis- 
 tered hands, and poor health in general. We now put our 
 wise heads together and agreed that we had already had 
 enough of the West for the time being. Having plenty of 
 good clothes, bedding, revolvers and other knick-knacks, we 
 sold to our landlord whatever we could spare, in order to 
 raise money enough to pay our way back to Boston. 
 
 During our stay in Buifalo, our renowned countrywoman, 
 Jenny Lind, happened to give a concert there. We werer 
 standing on the street where we could see the people crowd 
 into the theatre, but that was all we could afford, and we 
 never heard her sing. Our host advised us to go and ask 
 her for help ; but our pride forbade it. 
 
5fO Sto:?y of an Emigrant. 
 
 At this time the Swedes were so little known, and Jenny 
 Lind, on the other hand, so renowned in America, that the / 
 Swedes were frequently called ''Jenny Lind men," this desig- /^ 
 nation being often applied to myself. '' 
 
 Having purchased tickets for Albany, we returned East in 
 the month of August. I still remember how we rode all 
 night in a crowded second-class car, listening to the noisy 
 merry-making of our fellow-passengers; but we understood 
 very little of it, for up to this time we had lived exclusively 
 among our own countrymen, and learned only a few English 
 words — a mistake, by the way, which thousands of immi- 
 grants have made and are still making. 
 
 Arriving at Albany, we sat down by an old stone wall 
 near the railroad depot, to talk over our afifairs. Fate had 
 been against us while w^e remained together, and we prob- 
 ably depended too much upon each other. Accordingly, we 
 decided to part for some time and try our luck separately ; 
 and if one of us met with success he would, of course, soon 
 be able to find a position for the other. We decided by 
 drawing lots that Eustrom should go to Boston and I to 
 New York. When we had bought our tickets there remained 
 one dollar, which we divided, and we left for our respective 
 places of destination the same evening. 
 
 Our landlord in Buflfalo had given us the address of a sail- 
 ors' boarding-house in New York, which was also kept by a 
 Norwegian by the same name of Larson. So when I left the 
 Hudson River steamer early the next morning, I paid my 
 half-dollar to a drayman, who took me to said boarding 
 house. I found Mr. Larson to be a kind, good-natured man, 
 told him my dithculties right out, and asked him to let me 
 stop at his house until I could find something to do. He 
 agreed to this, and for a week or so I tried my best to get 
 work. But, when asked what kind of work I could do, I 
 was compelled to answer that I had learned no trade, but 
 
Story of an Emigrant, 21 
 
 tliat I would gladly try to learn anything and do anything 
 whatever, even sweep the streets, if necessary. As a result 
 of my protracted sickness, I was so weak and exhausted 
 that nobody thought I would be able even to earn my bread. , 
 As to easy or intellectual work, I had no earthly chance, as 
 long as I did not know the English language. Finally Mr. 
 Larson took me to a ship-owner's office. I still remember 
 that a Norwegian captain was cruel enough to remark in 
 my hearing, that he did not intend to take any h.alf-dead 
 corpses along with him to sea. 
 
 After two weeks of fruitless efforts to get work for me, 
 my host finally declared that he could not very well keep me 
 any longer, because his accommodations were crowded with 
 paying customers ; nevertheless, he allowed me to sleep m 
 the attic free of charge, while I had to procure my food as 
 best I could, which I also did for another t^wo weeks. Being 
 a convalescent, I had a ravenous appetite, and, indeed, I 
 found how hard it is to obtain food without having anything 
 to pay for it. Of the few articles of clothing which I brought 
 with me from Buffalo, I had to sacrifice one after another for 
 subsistence. When all other means were exhausted, I was 
 compelled to go to the kitchen-doors and tell my desperate 
 and unfortunate condition by signs, and more than one 
 kind-hearted cook gave me a solid meal. 
 
 Tramps ! In our day there is a great deal of talk about 
 tramps, and it has become customary, to brand as a tramp, 
 any poor wandering laborer who seeks work. There are 
 undoubtedly many who justly deserve this title; but I think 
 there are tramps who are not to blame for their deplorable 
 condition, and who deserve encouragement and friendly 
 assistance, for I have been one of them myself, without any 
 fault or neglect on my part. It always provokes me to hear 
 a young or inexperienced person use the expression ''tramp " 
 so thoughtlessly, and in such a sweeping manner. Long ago 
 
22 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 I made up my mind that no tramp should ever leave my door 
 without such aid as my resources would allow. It is better 
 to give to a thousand undeserving, than to let one unfortu- 
 nate but deserving suffer. 
 
 My good host, like his Buffalo namesake, finally contrived 
 to get rid of me by representing me as a sailor, and hiring 
 me to the captain of the bark *' Catherine," a coasting vessel 
 bound for Charleston, S. C, telling me that I was to serve 
 as cabin boy. My wages w^ere to be five dollars a month, 
 of which he received seven dollars and a-half in advance, so 
 that I could pay my debts and buy a sailor's suit of clothes. 
 
 On the second day of our voyage we encountered a storm. 
 I was on deck with the sailors and the captain stood on the 
 quarter-deck. We were coursing against the wind and were 
 just going to turn when the captain called on me to untie some 
 ropes. Understanding very little English, and being no sailor, 
 I naturally knew nothing about the names of the different 
 ropes, and I grabbed one after another, but invariably 
 missed the right one. The captain was swearing with 
 might and main in English. Seeing that I did not under- 
 stand him he suddenly roared out angrily the name of the 
 rope in good Swedish and added: *'Do you understand me 
 now, you confounded blockhead!" Turning to him, cap in 
 hand, I answered: *'No, captain, I do not know the name 
 of a single rope." ''And still," he continued *'you have fol- 
 lowed the sea three years, what a dunce you are." I 
 answered: "Indeed Mr. Captain, I have never been a sailor, 
 and will never be worth anything at sea. But I am willing 
 and anxious to do all you ask if within my power." The 
 captain, whose name was Wilson, was a Swedish American 
 and, although somewhat gruff, he was in fact one of the 
 noblest men who ever commanded a ship. He immediately 
 saw how the matter stood ; the boarding house man had 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 23 
 
 cheated both him and me and from that hour Captain Wil- 
 son became my friend and benefactor. 
 
 Afterwards I found out ot the whole crew, which numbered 
 twenty-six men, nine-tenths were Scandinavians, but they 
 always used the English language while on board the ship. 
 Captain Wilson told me to see him in his cabm as soon as 
 the work was performed. Here he asked me about my 
 circumstances, and I told him the short story of my life, 
 which elicited his sympathy to such an extent that he even 
 asked me to pardon his rude behavior toward me. He as- 
 signed me to a place to sleep in the cabin ; told the officers 
 not to give me any orders as he was going to do that him- 
 self, and treated me with the utmost kindness and consider- 
 ation in every respect. 
 
 After this I was excused from all work properly belonging 
 to a sailor, but kept the cabin in order, and helped the stew- 
 ard in waiting at the table, and the officers with their cal- 
 culations. During my spare hours I read and conversed 
 w^ith the captain and his two mates, one of whom was a 
 Dane and the other an Irishman, both splendid fellows. The 
 first mate was preparing the second mate for a captain's 
 examination, and I, having recently taken a course in mathe- 
 matics, at a military school, was able to assist them in their 
 studies. 
 
 On the table in the cabin was a large English Bible, with 
 which I spent many happy hours, and by which I learned 
 the English language. At first I used to pick out chapters 
 of the New Testament, which I knew almost by heart, so 
 that I could understand them without a dictionary or an 
 interpreter. After my first conversation with the captain I 
 did not speak another word in the Swedish language during 
 the voyage, and when I returned to Boston, three months 
 afterwards, it seemed to me that I could talk and read 
 English about as well as Swedish. 
 
24 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 I made two trips with the captain from New York to 
 Charleston and back again. At the wharf of Charleston, I 
 was, for the first time in my hfe, brought face to face with 
 American Negro slavery in its most odious aspect. Crowds 
 of Negroes were running along the pier pulling long ropes, by 
 means of which the ships were loaded and unloaded. Each 
 gang of Negroes was under the charge of a brutal overseer, 
 riding on a mule, and brandishing a long cowhide whip, 
 which he applied vigorously to the backs of the half-naked 
 Negroes. During the night they were kept penned up in 
 sheds, which had been erected for that purpose near the 
 wharf. They were treated like cattle, in every respect. This 
 sight influenced me in later life to become a Republican in 
 politics. 
 
 After our second return to New York, Capt. Wilson 
 assumed the command of one of the first clipper ships 
 which carried passengers to California in those days. 
 This was at the most stirring time of the gold fever, and 
 the captain kindly offered to take me along and let me stay 
 out there, an offer which thousands wcnild have accepted. 
 But I w^as never smitten w^ith the gold fever, and, having a 
 distaste for the sea, I said good-bye to the kind captain, 
 never to see him again. My wages were to have been only 
 five dollars a month, but he generously paid me eight 
 dollars, so that I had earned enough money to pay my way 
 to Boston, whence my friend Eustrom had written me and 
 urged me to come. 
 
 I arrived in Boston about the middle of December, and, 
 when I returned to the old boarding house, I spoke English 
 so well that my acquaintenances hardly believed it possible 
 that I could be the same person. Mr. Eustrom was now 
 working as wood polisher. He had made many friends and 
 lived happily and contented on $4 a week. By strict 
 economy these wages sufficed for board, lodging, and clothes. 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 25 
 
 It happened to be an unfavorable time of the year when I 
 arrived, however, and many men who had been employed 
 during the summer were now discharged at the approach of 
 ^winter. Mr. Eustrom's, employer had a good friend in New 
 Hampshire, an old Swedish sailor, Anderson by name, who 
 was farming np there. He promised to let me come and live 
 with him and do whatever chores I could until something 
 might turn up the next spring. 
 
 A few days afterwards I went by rail to Contocook where 
 I was met by Mr. Anderson, who took me out to his hospi- 
 table home a couple of miles from the town. This Anderson 
 was a remarkable man. Having no educatiom to speak of, 
 he was a better judge of human nature and practical affairs 
 of life than any other man I ever met. He was pleased with 
 me, and said he wished I would sit down in the evening and 
 tell him about Sweden, and explain to him what I had learned 
 .'it school. Poor Anderson! He had one fault, rum got the 
 better of him, and it was cheap in New England at that time, 
 only sixteen cents a gallon. He bought a barrel of it at a 
 I. me, and did not taste water as long as the rum lasted. 
 
 The day after my arrival he asked me if I would like to go 
 with him into the woods to help cut some logs. Of course I 
 would, and we took our axes and started off. It was a very 
 cold December dav, and I had thin clothes and no mittens. 
 Mr. Anderson went to cut down a tree, and I commenced to 
 work at one which was already felled. This was the first 
 time I swung an axe in earnest, and after a short while I felt 
 that my hands were getting cold. But I made up my mind 
 not to stop until the log was finished. By holding the axe 
 handle very tight it stopped the circulation of the blood 
 through my fingers, and when I finally stopped and dropped 
 the axe I could not move my fingers, for eight of them were 
 frozen stiff. Mr. Anderson now took off his cap, filled it with 
 snow, put my hands into the snow, and thus we ran to the 
 
26 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 house as fast as our legs would carry us. The doctor tried 
 his very best; but, neverthekss, in a few days the flesh and 
 the nails began to peel off, and two doctors decided to ampu- 
 tate all the fingers on my right hand. Fortunately I did not 
 give my consent, but told them that I would rather die of 
 gangrene than live without hands, for my future depended ex- 
 clusively on them. 
 
 My friend Eustrom, having heard of my misfortune, soon 
 came to visit me, and brought with him an old Irish woman 
 who was something of a doctor, and cured my hands 
 by means of a very simple plaster which she prepared 
 herself. But I was forced into complete inactivity for 
 more than three months, during which time I was entirely 
 Helpless, and had tobe washed, dressed, and fed like an infant. 
 But, as to me, the old proverb has always proved true: 
 ** When things are at the w^orst they'll mend." There were 
 men and women in my accidental home who vsrillingly 
 tended to me in my trouble. May God bless them for it ! 
 In the latter part of March, Mr. Anderson, who had always 
 treated me with the greatest kindness, quite unexpectedly 
 told me that I was now able to work again and could try 
 to get a place with some other family in the neighborhood, 
 because he could not keep me any longer. 
 
 Our nearest neighbor was a genuine Yankee, Daniel Dustin 
 by name. He was very rich, well read, liberal minded, re- 
 spectable and honest, but so close that he would scarcely let 
 his own family have enough food to eat, and his wife was 
 even more stingy. Mr. Dustin agreed to let me work for 
 my board until spring, and then he would give me five 
 dollars a month, which offer I cheerfully accepted. He im- 
 mediately took me out into the woods to chop wood for the 
 summer, and he was to haul it home. The new, tender mus- 
 cles and nails on my fingers made wood chopping very 
 painful to me, and I could feel every blow of the axe through 
 
Stokv of an Emigrant. 27 
 
 my entire body. Never has any man worked so hard for 
 me, when I afterwards hired help for good wages, as I 
 worked for my board here; and, by the way, this board 
 consisted chiefly of potatoes and corn meal cake. When the 
 spring work commenced I got five dollars a month, and had 
 to get up at five o'clock in the morning to do the chores, and 
 then work in the field from seven in the morning until dark. 
 In the beginning of June I got a letter from my parents, stat- 
 ing that my father and brother were going to leave for New- 
 York immediately, and they asked metomeet them there and 
 go West w^ith them. I had never complained in my letters to 
 my parents, but, on the other hand, I had not advised them 
 to come to America, either. They had been advised to do so 
 by some of my fellow-passengers on the ''Ambrosius," who 
 went to Illinois, and were highly pleased with their pros- 
 pects. So I went to Boston again. My father's voyage had 
 been delayed, and I had to wait for him over a month, during 
 .which time I got sick, and would have been in a sorry plight, 
 indeed, if it had not been for my friend Eustrom, who now 
 felt like a rich man, with his six dollars a week. A couple of 
 years later he became the partner of his employer. 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 The Arrival of my Father and Brother— Joiirtiey to Tllitiois— Work oti a 
 Railroad — The Ague — Doctor Ober — Religious Impressions — The Ar- 
 rival of my Mother, Sister and her I-Iusband — A Burning Railroad 
 Train— We go to Minnesota— Our Experience as Wood Choppers and 
 Pioneers. 
 
 Finally my father and brother arrived, and again I turned 
 my course westwards in company with them and their 
 friends. We traveled by rail to Buffalo and across the lake 
 to Toledo, thence by rail again to Chicago. In the summer 
 of 1852 there were no railroads west of Chicago, and our 
 company had to take passage on a canal-boat drawn by 
 horses to La Salle, and from this place we rode in farmers 
 wagons to Andover and Galesburg. The country around 
 there was as yet only in the first stages of development; 
 there was very little money in circulation, and no demand for 
 farm products. The immigrants suffered a great deal from 
 fever and other climatic diseases. 
 
 My brother who was nearly sixteen years old soon ob- 
 tained steady work from an American farmer, while ray 
 father and I had to do different kinds of work, such as build- 
 ing fences, stacking grain, etc. The only pay we could get 
 was checks on some store. I remember what an abundance 
 of provisions there was in that locality, and nobody seemed 
 to be in need. 
 
 A farmer near Galesburg, for whom I worked a week, had 
 so many hens and chickens and eggs, that when people came 
 out from town to buy eggs, they were told to pay ten cents, 
 
 J —28— 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 29 
 
 go out to the barn and fill their baskets with freshly-laid 
 eggs, no matter how big the baski^t. Beef and pork had 
 scarcely any value, and anybody could go into a cornfield 
 that fall and gather a crop on half shares. 
 
 There was much religious interest among the Swedes in 
 Illinois at that time. The Methodists and Lutherans were 
 already building churches, and held services side by side 
 in many of the towns and settlements, although they num- 
 bered only a few families yet. I remember distinctly one 
 Sunday attending service in a Methodist church listening to 
 an eloquent preacher, taking for his text "The Broad and 
 the Narrow Ways." He depicted both in glowing language, 
 and wound up with the following words, pronounced in a 
 broad (Swedish) dialect: "My dear brethren, I have now 
 shown j'^ou the two ways, and you may take which ever you 
 like; that is all the same to me.'* 
 
 My father had taken with him only just enough money to 
 pay his way, although he had by no means exhausted his 
 resources in Sweden, for he had prudently decided to spend 
 at least a year in seeing the country and making himself 
 familiar with its institutions, customs, manner of tilling the 
 soil, etc. At this time he was a strong man, at the age of 
 fifty. In order to obtain steady work, we two, and a few 
 others of our company, hired a man in Galesburg to take us 
 to Rock River, where a bridge for the Chicago & Rock Island 
 Railroad was being built. We all got work, and had to take 
 hold of the spade and the shovel. The wages in those days 
 for railroad laborers were from seventy-five cents to one 
 dollar per day. I received only seventy-five cents, out of 
 which my board was to be paid, which, however, was very 
 cheap, one dollar and a half per week only, k Swede by the 
 name of Hoffman kept a boarding house for thirty-four of us, 
 and all would have been well except for the ague. No man 
 remained there many daj^s without getting the "shakes;" I 
 
3> Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 and my father got them the second day. The lower part of 
 the shanty in which we boarded was used for dining-room 
 and kitchen, the upper for sleeping on the floor. The shanty 
 was as shaky as the ague, which came regularly every other 
 day. Fate had so arranged it that seventeen of us had the 
 chills one day, and seventeen the next day. Hoffman and 
 his wife fortunately also had the chills alternate days, so 
 that there was always one to attend to the cooking. 
 
 Some may doubt it, but it is a solemn fact, that when 
 seventeen ate dinner below, the shaking of those upstairs 
 sometimes shook the house until we could hear the plates 
 rattling on the table. 
 
 During my healthy days I stood on the bottom of Rock 
 River from seven o'clock in the morning until seven at night, 
 throwing wet sand with a shovel onto a platform above, 
 from which it was again thrown to another, and from there 
 to terra firma. The most disagreeable part of the business 
 w^as that one-quarter of each shovel-full came back on the 
 head of the operator. 
 
 After a coupleof weeks the company's paymaster came 
 along, and upon settling my board bill and deducting for the 
 shaking days, I made the discovery that I was able to earn 
 only fifteen cents net per week in building railroad bridges. 
 
 Being half dead by this time from over work and sickness, 
 we decided to see if we could strike an easier job, and, if pos- 
 sible, a ^better climate. We happened to meet a farmer by 
 the name of Peterson, with whom we rode to a place near 
 Moline, where jny father tended to me during my illness. 
 When he was not occupied with this he chopped cord wood 
 from dry old trees. I also tried to assist him in this, but 
 found my strength gone. 
 
 Among the Swedes living in Moline at that time was a 
 jkailor, Johnson by name, a good kind-hearted man who, to- 
 gether with his wife, was always ready to aid bis needy 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 31 
 
 CDUtitrjmen and get something to do for such as could work. 
 I went to him one day to ask for advice orassistancejustas 
 a great many had done before me. I was so weak and sick- 
 ly that they had to assist me in getting into the house, but 
 they received me as if I had been their own son, and, after a 
 short rest, Mr. Johnson took me to one Dr. Ober, who care- 
 fully investigated my mental as well as my physical condition, 
 and told me that such hard work as I had been doing would 
 kill me, and that I ought to rest and take it easy. He was 
 one of those magnanimous, noble men who are to be met 
 with in all climes and walks oi life, but who are easily rec- 
 ognized because they are so few. As I have said before, I 
 have been very fortunate in getting acquainted with the best 
 men and women of different classes and nations with which 
 I have come in contact. While we were sitting in his re- 
 ception room the doctor suddenly left us and went into his 
 private room. In a short time he returned accompanied bv 
 his wife, a lady whose silvery locks and benignantly sympa- 
 thizing looks made her seem more beautiful to me than a ma- 
 donna. Having simply taken a hasty look at me, the doctor 
 and his wife again withdrew, and when they returned he 
 offered to let me stay with them like a member of the family 
 in order that he might try to restore my health; he also 
 allowed me to avail myselfof his library and to attend school, 
 the only condition being that I should do chores around the 
 house and take care of the horses. 
 
 I moved the same day, got a pleasant room and a snug 
 bed, good, substantial food, and, above all, good and 
 friendly treatment, so that from the time I came there until 
 the day I left, I felt as if I had been a child of the house, 
 Dr. Ober, who was a religious man, belonged to the Bap- 
 tist Church, and as I now lived under its beneficient influence, 
 and also became acquainted with the Swedish Baptist Pas- 
 tor, Rev. G. Palmquist, and a few others who constituted 
 
32 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 the nucleus of the First Swedish Baptist Church of America, 
 I became a member of their society before spring and would 
 probably have continued a member of this denomination, if 
 circumstances which were beyond my control, had not 
 brought me to other fields of action and other surroundings. 
 
 This winter passed in a very pleasant manner. In the 
 afternoon I attended an English school, and in the evening I 
 gave instructions in English toother young men and women. 
 The friendship of Dr. Ober and his wife never failed, and 
 many years afterwards I was a welcome guest at their home 
 in La Crosse, Wis., to which place they had moved from 
 Moline. Both ot them now slumber under the sod, but their 
 manv good deeds shall live for ever. 
 
 My father was much pleased with the great west, and he 
 wrote back to the rest of our family in Sweden to come to 
 this country the next summer, and in May I started to meet 
 them in Boston. As there were no railroads to Moline, I took 
 a steamboat to Galena, and thence the stage-coach to Free- 
 port, and from there to Chicago by rail. 
 
 The vessel carrying my mother and the party with her 
 was three months on the ocean, and there was great scarcity 
 of provisions on board. The ship at last arrived, in the 
 month of July, and a couple of days later the whole party, 
 consisting of about two hundred, took the train for the west, 
 I volunteering as their guide and interpreter. All went well 
 until about one hundred miles east of Chicago, when the 
 baggage car attached to our train in front caught fire. 
 It was thought best to try to reach a station, and the 
 burning train sped on at the rate of sixty miles an hour. 
 The scene was a frightful one, the cars crammed full of 
 frightened emigrants, the flames hissing like serpents from 
 car to car, windows cracking, people screaming, and women 
 fainting, all at the same time looking to me, who was not 
 yet twenty years of age, for protection and deliverance. 
 
V 
 
 Story op an Emigrant. 33 
 
 As soon as possible I placed reliable men as guards at the 
 doors to prevent the people from rushing out and crowding 
 each other off the platform. The train did not reach the sta- 
 tion but had to be stopped on the open prairie, where we 
 all '\^ere helped out of the cars with no accident of any kind 
 except every particle of baggage, saving only what the pas- 
 sengers had in their seats with them, was burnt. In due 
 time another train brought us to Chicago, where the rail- 
 road company immediately offered to pay all losses as soon 
 as lists of the property destroyed could be made out 
 and properly verified. I undertook to do all that work 
 without the aid of consul, lawyer or clerk, collecting nearly 
 twenty thousand dollars, for old trunks, spinning-wheels, 
 copper kettles, etc. Having lost nothing myself, T of course 
 received nothing, and as the Company did not consider it 
 their duty to pay me for my trouble, one of the emigrants 
 suggested that they should chip in to compensate me for the 
 valuable services I had rendered. Accordingly the hat was 
 passed, the collection realizing the magnificent sum of two 
 dollars and sixty cents, which was paid me for being their in- 
 terpreter during thelong journey, and for collecting that large 
 sum of money without litigation or delay. No lawyer, consul 
 or agent would have been satisfied with less than five hundred 
 dollars, but I can truthfully say that I never raised a word 
 of complaint, but freely forgave the people on account of 
 their ignorance. Many of them I also served afterwards on 
 the way to Moline and Minnesota. In due time our party 
 arrived in Moline, where my parents bought a small piece 
 of property with the money brought from Sweden. 
 
 Minnesota was then a territory but little known ; yet we 
 had heard of its beautiful lakes, forests, prairies and salu- 
 brious climate. Quite a number of our company had de- 
 cided to hunt up a place for a Swedish settlement where land 
 could be had cheap. It was finally agreed that a few of us 
 
3^ Story of an Emigrant, 
 
 should go to Minnesota and select a suitable place. Being 
 the only one of the party who could speak English, I was 
 naturally appointed its leader. My father also went with us, 
 and so did Mr. Willard and his wife, the whole party taking 
 deck passage on a Mississippi steamer, and arriving at 
 St. Paul in the month of August. 
 
 At that time St. Paul was an insignificant town of a few 
 hundred inhabitants. There we found Henry Russell, John 
 Tidlund, and a few other Swedish pioneers. Mr Willard and 
 I had very little money, and for the few dollars which we did 
 own we bought a little household furniture, and some cook- 
 ing utensils. We therefore at once sought employment for 
 him, while the rest of our party started off in search of a suit- 
 able location for the proposed settlement. 
 
 We had been told that there were a number ofourcountrv- 
 men at Chisago Lake and a few near Carver, but that all 
 had settled on timber lands. We also learned that near Red 
 Wing, in Goodhue county, places could be found with both 
 timber and prairie, and an abundance of good water. Hav- 
 ing looked over the different localities we finally decided on 
 the present town of Yasa, about twelve miles west of Red 
 Wing. The first claims were taken at Relle Creek, south of 
 White Rock, and afterwards others were taken at a spring 
 now known as Willard Spring, near which, the large brick 
 church now stands. 
 
 After selecting this land my father returned to Illinois. In 
 company with the other explorers, I went to St. Paul, where 
 a council was held in which all participated, and at which it 
 was decided that three of us, Messrs. Roos, Kempe, and my- 
 self, should go to our claims that fall and do as much work 
 as possible, until the others could join us the following 
 spring. 
 
 Having made the necessary preparations we three went to 
 Red Wing by steamboat and found a little town with half a 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 35 
 
 dozen families, among whom was the Rev. J. W. Hancock, 
 who for several years had been a missionary among the In- 
 dians. The other settlers were Wm. Freeborn, Dr. Sweeney, 
 H. L. Bevans, and John Day. Besides these we aljso met 
 two Swedes, Peter Green, and Nels Nelson, and a Norwegian 
 by the name of Peterson. On the bank of the river the Sioux 
 Indians had a large camp. The country west of Red Wing 
 was then practically a wilderness, and our little party w^as 
 the first to start in to cultivate the soil and make a perma- 
 nent settlement. 
 
 At Red Wing we supplied ourselves with a tent, a cook 
 stove, a yoke of oxen, carpenter's tools, provisions and other 
 necessaries. Having hired a team of horses, we then packed out 
 goods on a wagon, tied the cattle behind, and started for the 
 new settlement. The first four miles we followed the terri- 
 torial road ; after that we had nothing but Indian trails to 
 guide us. Toward evening we arrived at a grove on Belle 
 Creek, now known as Jemtland. Here the tent was pitched 
 and our evening meal cooked, and only pioneers like our- 
 selves can understand how^we relished it after our long day's 
 tramp. The team was taken back the next day, and we 
 were left alone in the wilderness. 
 
 After a day's exploration we moved our camp two miles 
 further south, to another point near Belle Creek, where Mr. 
 Roos had taken his claim. 
 
 It was now late in September, and our first care w^as to 
 secure enough hay for the cattle, and in a few days we had a 
 big stack. Having read about prairie fires, we decided to 
 protect our stack by burning away the short stubble around 
 it. But a minute and a half was sufficient to convince us 
 that we had made wrong calculations, for within that time 
 the stack itself was burning with such fury that all the water 
 in Belle Creek could not have put it out. Still, this was not 
 the worst of it. Before we had time to recover from our 
 
36 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 astonishment the fire had spread over the best part of the 
 valley and consumed all the remaining grass, which was 
 pretty dry at that time of the year. Inexperienced as we 
 were, we commenced to run a race with the wind, and tried 
 to stop the fire before reaching another fine patch of grass 
 about a mile to the north; but this attempt was, of course, 
 a complete failure, and we returned to our cheerless tent 
 mourning over this serious misfortune. 
 
 The next morning we all started out in different directions 
 to see if any grass was left in Goodhue County, and fort- 
 unately we found plenty of it near our first camping- 
 ground. Having put up a second stack of very poor hay, 
 we proceeded to build a rude log house, and had just finished 
 it when my brother-in-law, Mr. Willard, surprised us by ap- 
 pearing in our midst, having left in Red Wing his wife and 
 baby, now Mrs. Zelma Christensen of Rush City, who is, as 
 far as I know, the first child born of Swedish parents in St. 
 Paul. Mr. Willard who was a scholarly gentleman and not 
 accustomed to manual labor, had found it rather hard to 
 work with shovel and pick on the hilly streets of St. Paul, 
 and made up his mind that he would better do that kind of 
 work on a farm. Messers. Roos and Kempe having furnished 
 all the money for the outfit, I really had no share in it, and 
 as we could not expect Mr. Willard and his family to pass 
 the winter in that cabin, I immediately made up my mind 
 to return with him to Red Wing. In an hour we were ready, 
 and without waiting for dinner we took the trail back to 
 that place. I remember distinctly how, near the head of the 
 Spring Creek Valley, we sat down in a little grove to rest 
 and meditate on the luture. We were both very hungry, 
 especially Mr. Willard, who had now walked over twenty 
 miles since breakfast. Then espying a tempting squirrel in a 
 tree close by, we tried to kill it with sticks and rocks ; but we 
 were poor marksmen, and thus missed a fine squirrel roast. 
 
^-^ Story of an Emigrant. 37 
 
 Tired and very hungry we reached Red Wing late in the 
 afternoon, and soon found my sister, Mrs. Willard, com- 
 fortably housed with one of the families there. Her cheerful 
 and hopeful nature and the beautiful baby on her arm gave 
 us fresh joy and strength to battle with the hardships that 
 wjre in store for us. Mr. Willard and his wife had taken 
 along what furniture they owned, a few eatables and five 
 dollars and fifty cents in cash, which was all that we pos- 
 sessed of the goods of this world. But who cares for money 
 at that age? Mr. W'illard was twenty-five years old, my 
 sister twenty-three, and I twenty, all hale and hearty, and 
 never for a moment doubting our success, no matter what 
 we should undertake. 
 
 Our first work was wood chopping, for which we were 
 less fit than almost anything else. We had to go to a place 
 about three miles above Red Wing, where aman had made a 
 contract to bank up fifteen hundred cords of wood for the 
 Mississippi steamers. There was an old wood chopper's 
 cabin which we repaired b}'- thatching it with hay and earth, 
 ])utting in a door, a small window, and a few rough planks 
 for a floor. In a few days we were duly installed, baby and 
 all, in the little hut which was only twelve by sixteen feet, 
 but to us as dear as a palace to a king. 
 
 We began to chop wood at once. The trees were tall, soft 
 maplesand ash, and our pay was fifty-five cents a cord for soft 
 and sixty-five cents for hard wood. At first both of us could 
 not chop over a cord a day together; but within a week we 
 could chop a cord apiece, and before the winter was over 
 we often chopped three cords together in a day. After a few 
 days we were joined by four Norwegian wood choppers for 
 whom we put up a new cabin to sleep in; but my sister cook- 
 ed for us all, and the others paid for their board to Mr. Wil- 
 lard and myself, who had all things in common. Those four 
 men were better workmen than we, and one of them, Albert 
 
38 Story of an Emigbant. 
 
 Olson, often chopped three cords a day. They were quiet, 
 industrious, and generous fellows, so that we soon became 
 attached to each other, and we were all very fond of the little 
 Zelma. My sister managed our household affairs so well 
 .and kept the little house so neat and tidy that when spring 
 came we were all loth to leave. 
 
 • The weather being fine and the sleighing good in the begin- 
 . ing of January, we hired John Day to take us with his team 
 to our claims while there was yet snow, so that we might 
 chop and haul out logs for the house which Mr. Willard and 
 1 intended to put up in the spring. My sister remained in 
 the cabin, but Albert went with us for the sake of company. 
 We put some lumber on the sled, and provided ourselves with 
 hay and food enough to last a few days, and plenty of quilts 
 and blankets for our bedding. John Day, who was an old 
 frontiersman wjth an instinct almost like that of an Indian, 
 guided us safely to Willard Spring. A few hundred yards 
 below this, in a deep ravine, we stopped near some sheltering 
 trees, built a roaring camp-fire, and made ourselves as comfort- 
 able as possible. Having supped and smoked our evening 
 pipe, we made our beds by putting a few boards on the snow, 
 and the hay and blankets on top of those. Then all four of 
 us nestled down under the blankets and went to sleep. 
 
 During the night the thermometer fell down to forty 
 degrees below zero, as we learned afterwards. If we had sus- 
 pected this and kept our fire burning there would, of course, 
 have been no danger. But being very comfortable early 
 in the night and soon asleep, we were unconscious of danger 
 until aroused by an intense pain caused by the cold, and 
 then we were already so benumbed and chilled that we lacked 
 energy to get up or even move. We found, oncomparingnotes 
 afterw^ards, that each one of us had experienced the same 
 sensations, namely, first an acute pain as if pricked with 
 needles in every fibre, then a deep mental tranquillity which 
 
— Story of an Emigrant. 39 
 
 was only slightly disturbed by a faint conception of some- 
 thing wrong, and by a desire to get up, but without suffici- 
 ent energy to do so. This feeling gradually subsided into 
 one of quiet rest and satisfaction, until consciousness ceased 
 altogether, and, as far as pain was concerned, all was over 
 with us. 
 
 At this stage an accident occurred which saved our lives. 
 Mr. Day, who lay on the outside to the right, had evidently 
 held his arm up against his breast to keep the blankets close 
 to his body. His w^ill-force being gone, his arm relaxed and 
 fell into the snow. As the bare hand came in contact with 
 the snow the circulation of the blood was accelerated, and 
 this w^as accompanied by such intense pain that he was 
 aroused and jumped to his feet. 
 
 Thus we were saved. It took a good while before we 
 could use our limbs sufficiently to build a fire again, and 
 during this time we suffered much more than before. From 
 that experience I am satisfied that those who freeze to death 
 do not suffer much, because they gradually sink into a 
 stupor which blunts the sensibilities long before life is 
 extinct. 
 
 It was about four o'clock when we got up. Of course we 
 did not lie down again that morning, nor did w^e attempt 
 to haul any timber, but started in a bee line across the 
 prairie for the ravine where Mr. Willard and I had seen the 
 tempting squirrel a few months before. We soon found that 
 going over the wild, trackless prairie against the wind, with 
 the thermometer forty degrees below zero was a struggle for 
 life, and in order to keep warm we took turns to walk or 
 run behind the sleigh. In taking his turn Mr. Willard 
 suddenly sat down in the snow and would not stir. We 
 returned to him, and it required all our power of per- 
 suasion to make him take his seat in the sleigh again. He 
 felt very comfortable he said, and would soon catch up with 
 
40 Stoky of an Emigrant. 
 
 us again if we only would let him alone. If we had followed 
 his advice, he would never have left his cold seat again. 
 After a drive of eight miles we arrived at a house on Spring 
 Creek, near Red Wing, where we found a warm room and a 
 good shed for the horses. After anhour's rest we continued 
 the journey, and safely reached our little home in the woods 
 before dark. I do not knew that 1 ever appreciated a home 
 more than I did that rude cabin when again comfortably 
 seated by its warm and cheerful fire-place. 
 
 A few weeks later I had an opportunity to visit St. Paul, 
 and while there attended the wedding of a young Nor- 
 wegian farmer from Carver County and a girl just arrived 
 from Sweden. The cermony was performed by the Rev. 
 Nilsson, a Baptist minister, who had been banished from 
 Sweden on account of proselyting. Among the guests was 
 Mr. John Swainsson, who since became well known among 
 the Swedes of Minnesota, and who died in St. Paul a short 
 time ago. I also made the acquaintance of one Jacob 
 Falstrom, who had lived forty years among the Indians and 
 devoted most of that time to missionary work among them. 
 He was a remarkable man, and was well known among the 
 Hudson Bay employees and other early settlers of the 
 Northwest. As a boy he had deserted from a Swedish vessel 
 in Quebec and made his way through the wilderness, seeking 
 shelter among the Indians; and, by marrying an Indian girl, 
 he had become almost identified with them. I think he 
 told me that he had not heard a -word spoken in his native 
 tongue in thirty-five years, and that he had almost forgotten 
 it when he met the first Swedish settlers in the St. Croix 
 valley. His children are now living there, while he has 
 passed away to the unknown land beyond, honored and 
 respected by all who knew him, Indians as well as white 
 men. 
 
 On my return from St. Paul I stopped at the cabin of Mr 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 41 
 
 Peter Green, at Spring Creek, near Red Wing. The only 
 domestic animals he had was a litter of pigs, and as Mr. 
 Willard and I intended to settle on our land in the spring I 
 thought it might be well to start in with a couple of pigs. 
 Accordingly, I got two pigs from Mr. Green, put them in a 
 bag which I shouldered, and left for our cabin in the woods. 
 According to my calculations, the distance I had to walk 
 ought not to be over three miles, and in order to be sure of 
 not getting lost I followed the Cannon river at the mouth 
 of -which our cabin stood. I walked on the ice where the 
 snow was about a foot deep, and, if I had known of the 
 meanderingcourse of the river, I would never have undertaken 
 to carry that burden such a distance. From nine in the morn- 
 ing until it was almost dark I trudged along with my bur- 
 den on my back, prompted to the greatest exertion by tl.e 
 grunting of the pigs, and feeling my back uncomfortably 
 warm. These v^ere the first domestic animals I ever owned, 
 and I think I well earned my title to them by carrying them 
 along the windings of the river at least ten miles. Both I 
 and the pigs were well received when we reached the cabin. 
 We made a pig pen by digging a hole in the ground and cov- 
 ering it w^ith poles and brush, and fed them on the refuse 
 from the table. Before we were ready to move one of them 
 died, while the other, after being brought to our new farm, 
 ungratefully ran aw^ay, and was most likely eaten up by the 
 wolves, which perhaps was just as agreeable to him as to be 
 eaten by us. 
 
 While living in this camp we saw more Indians thin 
 white men. A band of Sioux Indians camped near us for 
 several weeks. They were very friendly, and never molested 
 us. The men brought us venison and fresh fish, w^hich they 
 caught in great quantities by spearing them through the ice. 
 We gave them bread and coffee, and sometimes invited one or 
 two to dinner after we w^ere through. Their women would 
 
42 
 
 Story op an Emigrant. 
 
 stay for hours with my sister and help her take care of the 
 baby. Indeed they were so fond of the white-haired child 
 that they would sometimes run a race in vying with each, 
 other to get the first chance to fondle her. Sometimes we 
 visited them in their tents in the evening and smoked Kini- 
 kinick with them. Several of their dead reposed in the 
 young trees near our cabin. When somebody died it w^as 
 their custom to stretch the dead body on poles which were 
 tied to young trees high enough to be out of the reach of 
 
 MOUNTAIN CHIEF. 
 
 wild beasts, then cover it with blankets, and finally leave 
 some corn and venison and a jar of water close by. At some 
 subsequent visit to the neighborhood they would gather the 
 bones and bury them at some regular burial-ground, usually 
 on a high hill or bluff. 
 
 Once we saw a regular war dance in Red Wing. A few 
 Sioux had killed two Chippewa^s and brought back their 
 scalps stretched on a frame of young saplings. At a given 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 43 
 
 hour the whole band assembled, and, amid the most fan- 
 tastic gestures, jumping, singing, yelling, beating of tom- 
 toms and jingling of bells, gave a performance which in lurid 
 savageness excelled anything I ever saw. The same Indians 
 again became our neighbors for a short time on Belle Creek 
 the following winter, and we rather liked them, and they us. 
 But eight years later they took part in the terrible massacre 
 of the white settlers in Western Minnesota, and thirty-nine 
 of their men were hanged on one gallows at Mankato in the 
 fall of 1862 and the rest transported beyond our borders. 
 
 Thus our first v^inter in Minnesota passed witbout further 
 incidents, until the beginning of March, wben the weather 
 turned so mild that we were afraid the ice on the Mississippi 
 might break up, and we therefore hurried back to Red Wing. 
 By our wood chopping and Mrs. Willard's cooking enough 
 money had been earned to buy the most necessary articles 
 f jr our new home. When we had procured everything and 
 taken a few days' rest, we again hired Mr. John Day to take 
 us out to our land with his team. Hundreds of thousands 
 of immigrants have had the same experience, and can realize 
 how we felt on that fine March morning, starting from Red 
 Wing with a wagon loaded with some boards on the bottom, 
 a cook stove and utensils, doors, windows, a keg of nails, 
 saws, spades, a small supply of provisions, a bedstead or 
 two with bedding, a few trunks, and a little box containing 
 our spotted pig, Mrs. Willard in the seat with the driver, 
 her baby in her arms, her husband and myself taking turns 
 as guides, John Day shouting to his horses, laughing and 
 joking ; all of us full of hope, strength and determination to 
 overcome all obstacles and coi qti r thewildness. The snow 
 was now nearly gone, and the air was spring-like. 
 
 After a twelve miles' heavy pull we arrived at our destina- 
 tion, and made a temporary tent of sticks and blankets, very 
 much after the Indian fashion. Two of the Nor wegiatiis had 
 
44 Stort of an Emigrant. 
 
 accompanied us to help build our cabin. Mr. Day stopped a 
 couple of days hauling building material, and before night 
 the second day the rear part of our cabin was under roof. 
 After a few days the Norwegians left us, and Mr. Willard and 
 
 . myself had to finish the main part of the building which was 
 also made of round logs. For many a year this rude log 
 
 . cabin was the centre of attraction, and a hospitable stopping 
 place for nearly all the settlers of Vasa. 
 
 In the month of April cold weather set in again, and it 
 was very late in the season when steamboat navigation was 
 opened on the Mississippi. At that time all provisions had 
 to be shipped from Galena or Dubuque, and it happened that 
 the winter's supplies in Red Wing were so nearly gone that 
 not a particle of flour or meat could be bought after the first 
 of April. Our supplies were soon exhausted, and for about 
 two weeks our little family had only a peck of potatoes, a 
 small panful of flour, and a gallon of beans to live on, part of 
 which was a present from Messrs. Roos andKempe, whohad 
 remained all winter on their claims, three miles south of us. 
 They had been struggling against great odds, and had been 
 compelled to live on half rations for a considerable length of 
 time. Even their oxen had been reduced almost to the point 
 of starvation, their only feed being over-ripe hay in small 
 quantities. 
 
 We would certainly have starved if it had not been for my 
 shot-gun, with which I went down into the woods of Belle 
 Creek every morning at day-break, generally returning with 
 pheasants, squirrels, or other small game. One Sunday the 
 weather was so disagreeable and rough that I did not suc- 
 ceed in my hunting, but in feeding the team back of the 
 kitchen some oats had been spilt, and a flock of blackbirds 
 came and fed on them. Through an opening between the 
 logs of the kitchen I shot several dozen of these birds, which, 
 by the way, are not ordinarily very toothsome. But, being 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 45 
 
 a splendid cook, my sister made them into a stew, thickened 
 with a few mashed beans and a handFul of flour — in our es- 
 timation the mess turned out to be a dinner fit forkings. 
 
 Our supplies being nearly exhausted, I started for Red 
 Wing the next morning, partly to save the remaining hand- 
 ful of provisions for my sister and her husband, partly in 
 hopes ol obtaining fresh supplies from a steamboat which was 
 expected about that time. Three days afterwards the 
 steamer arrived. As soon as practicable the boxes were 
 brought to the store of H. L. Bevans. I secured a smoked 
 ham, thirty pounds of flour, a gallon of molasses, some coffee, 
 salt and sugar, strapped it all (weighing almost seventy 
 pounds) on my back, and started toward evening for our 
 cabin in the wilderness. I had to v^alk about fourteen miles 
 along the Indian trail, but in spite of the heavy burden I 
 made that distance in a short time, knowing that the dear 
 ones at home were threatened by hunger; i^erhaps the howl- 
 ing of the prairie wolves near my path also had sometliing 
 to do with the speed. There are events in the life of every 
 person which stand out like mile-stones along the road, and 
 so attract the attention of the traveler on life's journey that 
 they always remain vivid pictures in his memory. My 
 arrival at our cabin that evening was one of those events in 
 our humble life. I will not attempt to describe the joy which 
 my burden brought to all of us, especially to the young 
 mother with the little babe at her breast. 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 Future Hopes — Farm Life — Norwegian Pioneers — The Condition of the 
 Immigrant at the Beginning of the Fifties — Religious Meetings — The 
 Growth of the Settlement— Vasa Township Organized — A Lutheran 
 Church Established— My Wedding— Speculation— The Crisis of 1857 — 
 Study of Law in Red Wing — I am admitted to the Bar and elected 
 County Auditor — Politics in 1860 — War is Imminent. 
 
 We had now commenced a new career, located on our farm 
 claims in the boundless West, with no end to the prospects 
 and possibilities before us. We felt that independence and 
 freedom which are only attained and appreciated in the 
 western wilds of America. 
 From the Mississippi river and almost to the Pacific Ocean, 
 
 was a verdant field for 
 the industry, energy 
 and enterprise of the 
 settler. To be sure, our 
 means and resources 
 Mu^ -^v "'..^--C:^^.-^-' were small, but some- 
 
 OUK WAGON. how wc felt that by 
 
 hard work and good conduct we would some day attain the 
 comfort, independence and position for which our souls 
 thirsted. We did not sit down and wait for gold mines to 
 open up before us, or for roasted pigs to come running by out 
 cabin, but with axe and spade went quietly to work, to do 
 our little part in the building up of new empires. 
 
 In the beginning of May, my father came from Illinois and 
 brought us a pair of steers and a milch cow; this made us 
 
 — 46 — 
 
Stojry of an Emigrant. 47 
 
 rich. We made a wagon with wheels of blocks sawed off an 
 oak log; we also bought a plow, and, joining with our 
 neighbors of Belle Creek, had a breaking team of two pair 
 of oxen. That breaking team and that truck wagon, with 
 myself always as the chief ox driver, did all the breaking, and 
 all the hauling and carting of lumber, provisions, building- 
 material and other goods, for all the settlers in that neigh- 
 hood during the first season. 
 
 Soon others of our party from last year joined us. Some 
 letters which I wrote in Hemlandet describing the country 
 around us, attracted much attention and brought settlers 
 from different parts of the west, and while the Swedes were 
 pouring into our place, then known as "Mattson's Settle- 
 ment," (now well known under the name of Vasa), our friends, 
 the Norwegians, had started a prosperous settlement a few 
 miles to the south, many of them coming overland from Wis- 
 consin, bringing cattle, implements and other valuables of 
 w^hich the Swedes, being mostly poor new-comers> were desti- 
 tute. Many immigrants of both nationalities came as deck 
 passengers on the Mississippi steamers to Red Wing. 
 
 There was cholera at St. Louis that summer, and I re- 
 member how a steamer landed a large party of Norwegian 
 immigrants, nearly all down with cholera. Mr. Willardand 
 myself happened to be in Red Wing at the time, and the 
 American families, considering these Norwegian cholera 
 patients our countrymen, hastily turned them over to our 
 care. We nursed them as best we could, but many died in 
 spite of all our efforts, and as we closed their eyes, and laid 
 them in the silent grave under the bluffs, it never occurred to 
 us that they were anything but our countrymen and 
 brothers. 
 
 From these small beginnings of the Swedish and Nor- 
 wegian settlers in Goodhue county, in the years of 1853 and 
 1854, have sprung results which are not only grand but 
 
43 
 
 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 glorious to contemplate. Looking back to those days I see 
 the little cabin, often with a sod roof, single room used for 
 domestic purposes, sometimes crowded almost to suffoca- 
 tion by hospitable entertainments to new-comers; or the 
 poor immigrant on the levee at Red Wing, just landed from 
 a steamer, in his short jacket and other outlandish costume, 
 perhaps seated on a wooden box, with his wife and a large 
 group of children around him, and wondering how he shall 
 be able to raise enough means to get himself ten or twenty 
 miles into the country, or to redeem the bedding and other 
 household goods which he has perchance left in Milwaukee 
 as a pledge for his railroad and steam-boat ticket. And I 
 
 OUR FIRST HOME. 
 
 see him trudging along over the trackless prairie, searching 
 for a piece of land containing if possible prairie, water and a 
 
Story of ak Emigrant. 49 
 
 little timber, on which to build a home. Poor, bewildered, 
 ignorant, and odd looking, he had been an object of pit j and 
 derision all the way from Gothenburg or Christiania to the 
 little cabin of some country-man of his, where he found 
 rest and shelter until he could build one of his own. 
 
 Those who have not experienced frontier lile, will natu- 
 rally wonder how it was possible for people so poor as a 
 majority of the old settlers were, to procure the necessaries 
 of life, but they should remember that our necessities were 
 few, and our luxuries a great deal less. The bountiful earth 
 soon yielded bread and vegetables ; the woods and streams 
 supplied game and fish ; and as to shoes and clothing, I and 
 many others have used shoes made of untanned skins, and 
 even of gunny-sacks and old rags. Furthermore, the small 
 merchants at the river or other points, were always willing 
 to supply the Scandinavian emigrants with necessary goods 
 on credit, until better times should come. Our people in this 
 country did certainly earn a name for integrity and honesty 
 among their American neighbors, v\rhich has been a greater 
 help to them than money. 
 
 Some of the men would go off in search of work, and in 
 due time return with means enough to help the balance of 
 the family. 
 
 Frontier settlers are always accommodating and generous. 
 If one had more than he needed, he would invariably share 
 the surplus with his neighbors. The neighbors would all 
 turn in to help a new-comer, — haul his logs, build his house, 
 and do other little services for him. 
 
 The isolated condition and mutual aims and aspirations 
 of the settlers brought them nearer together than in older 
 communities. On Sunday afternoons all would meet at some 
 centrally located place, and spend the day together. A cup 
 of coffee with a couple of slices of bread and butter, would 
 furnish a royal entertainment, and when we got so far 
 
50 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 along that we could afford some pie or cake for dessert, the 
 good house-wives were in a perfect ecstacy. The joy sand 
 sorrows of one, were shared by the others, and nowhere in 
 the wide world, except in a military camp, have I witnessed 
 so much genuine cordial friendship and brotherhood as 
 among the frontier settlers in the West. 
 
 One fine Sunday morning that summer, all the settlersmet 
 under two oak trees on the prairie, near w^here the present 
 church stands, for the first religious service in the settlement. 
 It had been agreed that some of the men should take turns 
 to read one of Luther's sermons at each of these gatherings, 
 and I was selected as reader the first day. Some prayers 
 were said and Swedish hymns sung, and seldom did a temple 
 contain more devout worshipers than did that little congre- 
 gation on the prairie. 
 
 Before the winter of 1854-55 set in, we had quite a large 
 community in Vasa, and had raised considerable grain, 
 potatoes and otber provisions. During that winter the Sioux 
 Indians again became our neighbors, and frequently sup- 
 plied us with venison in exchange for bread and coffee. The 
 following spring and summer the settlers increased still 
 faster, several more oxen and other cattle, with a horse or 
 two, were brought in, and I h^d no longer the exclusive 
 privilege of hauling goods on the little truck wagon. 
 
 That summer I again went to Illinois to meet a large 
 party of newly- arrived emigrants from Sweden, who formed 
 a settlement in Vasa, know^n as Skane. The people from 
 different provinces would group themselves together in little 
 neighborhoods, each assuming in common parlance the 
 name of their own province; thus we have Vasa, Skane, 
 Smaland and Jemtland. 
 
 About this time a township was formally organized, 
 and, at my suggestion, given the name of Vasa, in com- 
 memoration of the great Swedish king. Roads were also 
 
Story op an Emigrant. 51 
 
 laid out legally, and a township organization perfected. A 
 school district was formed and soon after an election pre- 
 cinct, and as I was the only person who was master of the 
 English language the duty of attending to all these things 
 devolved upon me. We were particularly fortunate in 
 having many men, not only of good education from the old 
 <:ountry, but of excellent character, pluck and energy, men 
 ' who would have been leaders in their communities if they 
 had remained at home, and who became prominent as soon 
 as they had mastered the English language. This fact, 
 perhaps, gave a higher tone and character to our little com- 
 munity than is common in such cases, and Yasa has since 
 that time furnished many able men in the county offices, in 
 the legislative halls, and in business and educational circles. 
 There can be much refinement and grace even in a log cabin 
 on the w^ild prairie. 
 
 In the beginning of the month of September, 1855, Rev. E. 
 Norelius visited the settlement and organized a Lutheran 
 church. 
 
 Thirty-five years have elapsed since that time, and 
 many of those w^ho belonged to the first church at Yasa now^ 
 rest in mother earth close by the present stately church 
 edifice, which still belongs to the same congregation, and is 
 situated only a short distance from the place where the 
 latter was organized. Rev. Norelius himself lives only a few 
 hundred yards from the church building. Thirty-five years 
 have changed the then cheerful, hopeful young man into a 
 veteran, crowned with honor, and full of wisdom and ex- 
 perience. His beneficent influence on the Swedes of Good- 
 hue county and of the whole Northwest will make his name 
 dear to coming generations of our people. 
 
 On November 23d, in the same fall, the first wedding took 
 place in our settlement. The author of these memoirs was 
 joined in matrimony to Miss Cherstin Peterson, from 
 
52 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 Balingslof, near Kristianstad, whose family had just come 
 to Vasa from Sweden. By this union I found the best and 
 most precious treasure a man can find — a good and dear 
 wife, who has faithfully shared my fate to this day. Rev. J. 
 W. Hancock, of Red Wing, performed the marriage ceremony 
 Horses being very scarce among us in those days, the minister 
 had to borrow an Indian pony and ride on horseback twelve 
 miles — from Red Wing to Vasa. On the evening of our wed- 
 ding day there happened to be a severe snow-storm, through 
 which my young bride was taken from her parents' home to 
 our log house, on a home-made wooden sled, drawn by a 
 pair of oxen and escorted by a number of our young friends, 
 which made this trip of about a quarter of a mile very 
 pleasant, in spite of the oxen and the snow-storm. 
 
 The next winter was very severe, and many of our neigh- 
 bors suffered greatly from colds and even frozen limbs. But 
 there was an abundance of provisions, and, as far as I can 
 remember, no one was in actual need after the first winter. 
 
 In the spring of 1856 several new-comers arrived in our 
 colony. That year marked the climax of the mad land 
 speculation in the Northwest. Cities and towns were staked 
 out and named, advertised and sold everywhere in the state, 
 and people seemed to be perfectly wild, everybody expecting 
 to get rich in a short time without working. The value of 
 real estate rose enormously, and money was loaned at three, 
 four, and even five per cent, a month. Fortunately, very few 
 of the settlers in our neighborhood were seized by this mad 
 fury of speculation. I, however, became a victim. I bought 
 several pieces of land, and sold some of them very profitably, 
 and mortgaged others at an impossible rate of interest. And, 
 the world becoming too narrow forme on the farm, I availed 
 myself of the first opportunity to trade away my land for 
 some property in Red Wing, which was a booming little town 
 at that time. We moved from the plain log cabin on the old 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 53 
 
 farm into a house in town, where I engaged in a successful 
 mercantile business. But speculation was in the air, and be- 
 fore the spring of 1857 my entire stock of merchandize was 
 exchanged for town lots in Wasioja and Geneva, two paper 
 cities further west. Meanwhile my friend Mr, Eustrom, 
 with his young wife and baby, had arrived from Boston, 
 and both of us, w^ith our families and a few^ friends, moved 
 out to Geneva early in the summer, with the intention of 
 building up a city and acquiring riches in a hurry. But 
 at that time the waves of speculation began to subside, 
 and nine-tenths of the cities and towns which were mapped 
 out, and the great enterprises which v\rere inaugurated by 
 enthusiasts like myself suddenly collapsed into a mere 
 nothing. Among these was also Geneva, which is not 
 larger to-day than when we left it, and it was about all I 
 could do to raise enough money to get back to Vasa with 
 my wife. My friend Eustrom pre-empted a claim near Gene- 
 va and remained there. 
 
 Making an inventory of my property after the return to 
 Vasa in 1857, I found that the principal thing I had was a 
 debt of $2,000, bearing an interest of five per cent, a month. 
 In order to pay this debt w^e sold everything we had, 
 even our furniture and my wife's gold w^atch. This was the 
 great crisis of 1857. It stirred up everybody and everything 
 in the country, and it was no wonder that I, being an inex- 
 perienced and enthusiastic young man, had to suffer with so 
 many others. But no\\r the question v^as, what should I do? 
 I could not return to the farm, for I had none; that is, it was 
 encumbered for about twace its value. 
 
 In the midst of these difficulties I went to Red Wing one 
 day to consult a prominent lawyer in regard to some busi- 
 ness matters. During my conversation with him he said: 
 •'You have nothing to do now, you have had enough of spec- 
 ulation, you know the English language, you are tolerably 
 
54 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 well acquainted with our laws, well educated, young and 
 ambitious, why not study law, then ? This state and this 
 county is just the place for you to make a splendid begin- 
 ning in that profession. Come to me, and within a year 
 you can be admitted to the bar, after which you will find it 
 easy to get along." 
 
 ) I returned to Vasa in the evening, and, having consulted 
 my wife, who was visiting her parents, I soon made up my 
 mind. The next day both of us were on the way to Red 
 Wing supplied with clothes, bedding, a few dishes and some 
 provisions, which had been given us by my wife's parents, 
 who also conveyed us to town. In Red Wing we rented a 
 room about sixteen feet square, got a cook stove and a 
 few articles of furniture on credit, and everything was in 
 order for housekeeping and the study of law. I immediately 
 commenced my course of study with that excellent lawyer, 
 Mr. Warren Bristol, who afterwards for many years served 
 as United States Judge in New Mexico, where he recently 
 died. 
 
 This life was something new for my young wife, who had 
 grown up in a house of plenty. Now she had to try her hand 
 at managing our household affairs, with the greatest econ- 
 omy, and she accomplished her task so well that no minister 
 of finance could have done better. In fact we were so poor 
 that winter that we could not afford to buy the tallow can- 
 dles which were necessary for my night studies (kerosene 
 w^as unknown at that time). But every evening during this 
 trying but happy winter my wife made a lamp by pouring 
 melted lard, which her parents sent us, into a saucer, and 
 putting in a cotton wick, and in my eyes this light was more 
 brilliant than the rays from the golden chandeliers in the 
 palaces of the rich. By this light I studied Blackstone, Kent, 
 and other works on law. 
 ■ Late in the spring of 1858 a place became vacant In tht 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 55 
 
 justice of the peace, and I succeeded in getting the appoint- 
 ment to this position, which brought nae a couple of dollars 
 now and then, thus improving our financial condition consid- 
 erably. Early in the summer I was appointed city clerk, 
 with a salary of $12.50 a month, which was quite a fortune 
 for us at that time. After one year's hard study I was ad- 
 mitted to the bar, and my honored teacher accepted me as 
 his partner on good conditions. My profession seemed to be 
 well chosen ; I had plenty to do, and met with all the success 
 I could expect. 
 
 My first case in the district court was before judge McMil- 
 lan, who afterwards became chief justice of our supreme 
 court, and then United States senator. In opening the case 
 I became nervous and excited and would have broken down 
 entirely had it not been for the kindly manner in which the 
 judge overlooked my diffidence, and helped me out of the 
 embarrassment by leading me on and putting the very 
 words in my mouth ; this was only natural to his kind heart, 
 and he probably never remembered it, but to me it was an 
 act of great kindness, never to be forgotten, especially not 
 when more than twenty years after the little incident he 
 needed all his friends to rally for his return to the United 
 States senate, his most formidable opponent being the vener- 
 able and beloved statesman, Alexander Ramsey. 
 
 My law practice lasted only a few months, as I was ap- 
 pointed county auditor to fill a vacancy, and soon afterwards 
 elected to fill the regular term of office, and again re-elected 
 two years later. Before that time no Swedish-American had 
 occupied such responsible civil oflSce in the United States. 
 But I probably made a mistake in accepting this office and 
 thereby turning my back on a profession at which I would 
 undoubtedly have made more easy and rapid progress than 
 by anything else. But for the time being it produced great 
 economical improvements in our private life. Our little 
 
56 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 home, the narrow room which served as bedroom, study, 
 kitchen and parlor, was soon exchanged for a neat little 
 house, and a year later we moved into a larger and more 
 comfortable building, which was our own property. 
 
 Meanwhile the settlement at Vasa had prospered, and the 
 population had materially increased. The Scandinavian 
 settlers had scattered over the neighboring towns and coun- 
 ties with marvelous rapidity. The crisis of 1857 had been 
 an excellent lesson to us all, for, although the price of real 
 estate had fallen to about one-fourth of its former value, 
 the people were better oJBf now than formerly, owing to 
 better management and more prudent economy. 
 
 The Scandinavians had now commenced to take a lively 
 interest in the political discussions which were agitating the 
 entire country at that time. The all absorbing political 
 question of the day was ''slavery" or ''no slavery" in the 
 new territories. It is unnecessary to say that the Scandi- 
 navians were almost to a man in favor of liberty to all men, 
 and that they consequently joined the Republican party, 
 which had just been organized for the purpose of restricting 
 slavery. 
 
 In the winter of 1861, while I was holding the office of 
 auditor the second term, the legislature of Minnesota ap- 
 pointed a committee to revise the tax laws. This com- 
 mittee invited five county auditors, of which number I had 
 the honor to be one, to assist in its v^ork. The tax laws 
 which were formulated by this general committee were in 
 force over twenty years. 
 
 It was about this time the great American statesman, W. 
 H, Seward, visited Minnesota. I heard him make his famous 
 speech in St. Paul, in which, with the gift of prophecy, he de- 
 picted the future grandeur of the twin cities. I also heard 
 Owen Lovejoy, a member of congress from Illinois, and one 
 of the leading anti-slavery agitators of the times. 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 57 
 
 During tlie presidential election of 1860 the political ex- 
 citement ran very high in the whole country. The Southern 
 states had assumed a threatening position, and expressed 
 their intention to secede from the Union if Lincoln was 
 elected president. Throughout the whole country political 
 clubs were organized. The Democrats formed companies 
 which they called "Little Giants," which was the nickname 
 given to Stephen A. Douglas, their candidate for president. 
 
 The Republicans also organized companies which they 
 called "Wide Awakes." I was chosen leader of the Republi- 
 can company in Red Wing. Political meetings were very- 
 frequent during the last few weeks before election, and among 
 the most prominent features of those meetings were proces- 
 sions and parades of the companies, which were uniformed, 
 and carried banners and torches. During the campaign C. 
 C. Andrews and the late Stephen Miller, respective candidates 
 for presidential electors on the Democratic and Republican 
 tickets, held meetings together and jointly debated the im- 
 portant questions of the day, taking of course opposite 
 sides, but within a year both were found as officers in the 
 Union army, gallantly fighting for the same cause. 
 
 About this time a company of militia organized in Red 
 Wing, and I was one of the lieutenants, and took active part 
 in its drill and maneuvers. Although none of the men who 
 took part in these movements could foresee or suspect the 
 approach of the awful struggle which was to plunge the 
 country into a deluge of fire and blood, still they all seemed 
 to have a presentiment that critical times were near at 
 hand, and that it was the duty of all true citizens to make 
 ready for them. It is a significant fact that fifty-four men 
 out of our little company of only sixty, within two years 
 became officers or soldiers in the volunteer army of the 
 United States. Although the Scandinavian emigrants had 
 been in the state only a few years, they still seemed to take 
 
58 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 as great an interest in the threatening political difficulties 
 of the times, and were found to be just as willing as their 
 native fellow-citizens to sacrifice their blood and lives for the 
 Union, 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 The Beginiimg >f tlie Civil War — The Scandinavians talcing' part in it- 
 Appeal in Hemlandet to the Scandinavians of Minnesota — Company 
 D. Organized — The Expressions of the Press — The Departure — The 
 March over the Cumberland Mountains — The Fate of the Third 
 Regiment. 
 
 Going from the court house on the afternoon of April 12th, 
 1861, a friend overtook me with the news that the rebels of 
 the South had fired on Fort Sumpter. The news spread 
 rapidly, and caused surprise and intense indignation. In a 
 few days the governor issued a proclamation that one 
 thousand men should be ready to leave our young state for 
 the seat of v^ar ; more than a sufficient number of companies 
 w^ere already organized to fill this regiment, and the only 
 question was, who were to have the first chance ? This first 
 excitement was so sudden that the Scandinavians, who are 
 more deliberate in such matters, scarcely knew what was 
 going on before the first enlistment was made. 
 
 A few months passed, and the battle of Bull Run was 
 fought. It was no longer a mere momentary excitement ; it 
 was no longer expected that the Rebellion could be subdued 
 in a single battle or within a few months, but it was gener- 
 ally understood that the war would be long and bitter. 
 Then the Scandinavians of Minnesota began to stir. We 
 had heard that a few Swedes in Illinois, especially Major — 
 afterward General — Stohlbrand and a few others, had en- 
 tered the army. A few Scandinavians had also enlisted in 
 
 — 59 — 
 
60 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 the First and Second regiments ; but tliere "was no general 
 rising among them in our state until I published an appeal 
 in the Swedish newspaper Hemlandet in Chicago. The fol- 
 lowing is an extract from that paper : 
 
 "To The Scandinavians of Minnesota! 
 
 "It is liigli time for us, as a people, to arise with sword in hand, and fight 
 for our adopted country and for liberty. 
 
 "This country is in danger. A gigantic power has arisen against it and 
 at the same time against liberty and democracy, in order to crush them. 
 
 " Our state has already furnished two thousand men, and will soon be 
 called upon for as many more to engage in the war. Among the population 
 of the state the Scandinavians number about one-twelfth, a part of its 
 most hardy and enduring people, and ought to furnish" at least three rr 
 four hundred men for this army. This land which we, as strangers, have 
 made our home, has received us with friendship and hospitality. We enjoy 
 equal privileges with the native born. The path to honor and fortune is 
 alike open to us and them. The law protects and befriends us all alike. 
 We have also sworn allegiance to the same. 
 
 " Countrymen, 'Arise to arms; our adopted country calls! * Let us prove 
 ourselves worthy of that land, and of those heroes from whom we descend. 
 
 *'I hereby offer myself as one of that number, and 1 am confident that 
 many of you are ready and willing to do likewise. Let each settlement 
 send forth its little squad. Many in this neighborhood are now ready 
 to go. A third regiment will soon be called by the governor of this 
 state. Let us, then, have ready a number of men of the right kind, and 
 offer our services as a part of the same. Let us place ourselves on the 
 sid^ of liberty and truth, not only with words but with strong arms, — 
 with our lives. Then shall our friends in the home of our childhood rejoice 
 over us. Our children and children's children shall hereafter pronounce our 
 names with reverence. We shall ourselves be happy in the consciousness oi 
 having performed our duty, and should death on the field of battle be our 
 lot, then shall our parents, wives, children and friends find some consolation 
 in their sorrow in the conviction that they, also, by their noble sacrifices, 
 have contributed to the defense and victory of right, justice, and liberty. 
 And a grateful people shall not withhold from them its sympathy and 
 friendship." 
 
 A few days later I left a dear wife, home, and t^^o children, 
 and started for Fort Snelling, but not alone ; about seventy 
 Swedes and thirty Norwegians from Red Wing, Vasa, Chi- 
 sago Lake, Holden, Wanamingo, Stillwater, Albert Lea and 
 
Story of an Emigrant, 
 
 61 
 
 other places, went there with me, or joined us in the course 
 of a few days. 
 
 MUSTERING VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Meanwhile the third regiment had been called, and one 
 hundred of my companions were mustered in as Company D 
 of that regiment, with myself as their captain, a Norwegian 
 friend, L. K. Aaker, formerly a member of our legislature, as 
 first lieutenant, and my old friend H. Eustrom as second 
 lieutenant. Although Company D -was the only military 
 organization in our state consisting exclusively of Scandina- 
 vians, there were quite a number of those nationalities in 
 every regiment and company organized afterwards. 
 
 I may be excused for saying a few words concerning my 
 old military company. It consisted of the very flower of our 
 young men. It was regarded from the start as a model com- 
 pany, and maintained its rank as such during the whole 
 term of four years' service. Always orderly, sober, obedient 
 and faithful to every duty, the men of Company D, though 
 foreigners by birth, won and always kept the affectionate re- 
 
62 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 gard and fullest confidence of their native-born comrades. A 
 large majority of them are resting in the last grand bivouac, 
 many tinder the genial Southern sun, but no word of reproach 
 or doubt of soldierly honor has ever been heard against any 
 of those living or dead. 
 
 About this time a whole regiment of Scandinavians, 
 mostly Norwegians, was organized in Wisconsin, — ^the Fif- 
 teenth Wisconsin Infantry regiment, — which rose to great 
 distinction during its long service. Its brave colonel, Hans 
 Hegg, fell mortally wounded while commanding a brigade 
 on the bloody field at Chickamauga. There were many par- 
 tially or wholly Swedish companies from Illinois, one of 
 which belonged to the Forty-third Illinois regiment, under 
 the lamented Capt. Arosenius, and came under my com- 
 mand a few years later in Arkansas. There were also many 
 prominent Swedish officers in other regiments, such as Gen. 
 C. J. Stohlbrand, Cols. Vegesack, Malmborg, Steelhammar, 
 Broddy, Elfving, and Brydolf, Capts. Stenbeck, Silversparre, 
 Sparrstrom, Lempke, Chas. Johnson, Erik Johnson, Van- 
 strum, Lindberg, etc., and Lieuts. Osborne, Edgren, Liljen- 
 gren, Johnson, Lindall, Olson, Gustafson, Lundberg, and 
 many others whose names I do not now recall. 
 
 In the Goo.dhue county records for October 15, 1861, is a 
 paragraph which states that, as the county auditor, H. 
 Mattson, has voluntarily gone to the war with a company 
 of soldiers to defend our country, it is resolved that leave of 
 absence shall be extended to him, and that the office of 
 county auditor shall not be declared vacant so long as the 
 deputy performs his duties properly. 
 
 The St. [Paul Press of the same date, has the following : 
 
 ''We congratulate Capt. Mattson and his countrymen for 
 
 the splendid c ~ .npany of Swedes and Norwegians which he 
 
 commands. J^ever was a better company mustered in for 
 
 service/ ^ 
 
Stoijy of ak Emigrant. 63 
 
 In tlie beginning of November two steamers arrived at 
 Fort Snelling and took the Third regiment on board. We 
 were ordered to join Buell's arm}' in Kentucky. Company 
 E, of our regiment, was also mainly from Goodhue county, 
 and when the steamers arrived at Red Wing, they stopped 
 half an hour to let Companies D and E partake of a bounti- 
 ful supper, to which they had been invited by their city 
 friends, and to say a last farewell to their families and ac- 
 quaintances. My wife, with the little children, my sister, 
 father, brother, and other relatives, were gathered in a large 
 room in the hotel opposite the landing. The half hour was 
 soon past, and the bugle sounded "fall in." I pass over the 
 partingscene, leaving it to the imagination of the reader, for 
 I cannot find words to describe it myself. I will only relate 
 one little episode. When the bugle sounded for departure I 
 held my little two-year-old daughter in my arms; her arms 
 were clasped around my neck, and, when I endeavored to set 
 her down, she closed her little fingers so hard together that 
 her uncle had to open them by force before he could take 
 her away from me. When a little child was capable of such 
 feelings, it may be surmised what those felt who were able 
 to comprehend the significance of that moment. 
 
 In a few days we were camped on a muddy field in Ken- 
 tucky, quickly learning the duties of soldier-life, and familiar- 
 izing ourselves with the daily routine of an army in the field. 
 
 My military career of four years' duration passed without 
 any event of particular interest or importance ; it was like 
 that of two million other soldiers — to do their duty faith- 
 fully, whatever that duty might be — that was all. 
 
 After eight months' service I was promoted to the rank of 
 major in the regiment. At that time we were serving in 
 middle Tennessee. Shortly afterward our if^giment, with 
 some three thousand men of the troops, made a forced march 
 across the Cumberland mountains. In order to give the 
 
r»4 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 reader an idea of the hardships which the soldiers occasion- 
 ally had to endure on a march, I shall give a short sketch 
 of this. The detachment broke camp in Murfreesboro in the 
 forenoon of a very hot day toward the close of May, and 
 marched twenty miles before night, which -was considered 
 a good distance for the first day. Most of the men suffered 
 from blistered feet, and they were all very tired. We pre- 
 pared our supper, and had just gone to rest in a large open 
 field and were beginning to fall asleep, when, at ten o'clock 
 in the evening, the signal was given to fall in. In a few min- 
 utes the whole force was in line, and silently resumed the 
 march forward. We marched the whole night, the whole of 
 the next day, the following night, and till noon the day 
 after, moving altogether a distance of over eighty miles, 
 over a difficult and partly mountainous country, and stop- 
 ping only one hour three times a day to cook our coffee and 
 eat, while those who sank down by the roadside entirely 
 exhausted were left until the rear-guard came and picked 
 them up. When we finally arrived at our destination the 
 enemy that we were pursuing had already decamped, and 
 we had to return by the same route over which we had 
 come, though more leisurely. Among the many victims of 
 this march was a bright Norwegian lieutenant of my old 
 companj^ Hans Johnson, who died shortly after our return 
 to Murfreesboro. 
 
 A few days afterward the regiment started on an expedi- 
 tion to the South. During this march I got sick with the 
 fever, and would probably have died at Columbia, Tenn., if 
 my friend Eustrom, who at that time was captain of Com- 
 ])any D, had not succeeded in getting me into a rebel family, 
 where I was treated with the greatest care, so that in a few 
 days I was able to go by rail to Minnesota on a twenty 
 days' leave of absence. This took place in the beginning of 
 the month of July, 1862. 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 65 
 
 Having spent a fortnight in the bosom of my family I re- 
 turned, with improved health, to resume my command. I 
 arrived at Chicago on a Sunday morning, and, as I had to 
 wait all day for my train, I went to the Swedish church on 
 Superior street. Leaving the church, I beard a news-boy 
 crying, ''Bxtra number of the Tribune; great battle atMur- 
 freesboro; Third Minnesota regiment in hot fire!" I bought 
 the paper and hurried to the hotel, where another extra edi- 
 tion was handed me. The Union troops had w^on a decisive 
 victory at Murfreesboro, and totally routed the forces of 
 Fornest, consisting of eight thousand cavalry. Later in the 
 evening a third extra edition announced that ''The Third 
 regiment has been captured by the enemy, and is on the 
 march to the prisons of the South." Only a soldier can im- 
 agine my feelings when I received this news. I arrived in 
 Tennessee two days later, only to meet the soldiers return- 
 ing from the mountains where they had been released on 
 w^ritten parole by the enemy. They were sore-footed, ex- 
 hausted, hungry and wild with anger, and looked more like 
 a lot of ragged beggars than the well-discl]3lined soldiers 
 they had been a few days before. All the captured officers 
 had been taken to the South, where the}^ w^ere kept in prison 
 several months. Only two of them succeeded in making 
 their escape. One of those was Capt. Eustrom, who, in 
 company with Lieut. Taylor, made his escape from a hos- 
 pital building, some negroes giving them clothes, and, 
 through almost incredible hardships and dangers, they suc- 
 ceeded in reaching our lines, and I met them two days after 
 my arrival at Nashville. 
 
 The capitulation of our splendid regiment was one of the 
 most deplorable events of its kind during the whole war. It 
 was regarded one of the best regiments of volunteers of the 
 Western army. It had defended itself with great valor, and, 
 
f*^(y Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 in fact, defeated tHe enemy, when for some unaccountable rea- 
 son, Col. H. C. Lester decided to surrender, and he exerted 
 such a great influence over our officers that seven company 
 commanders went over to his side in the council of war, 
 which he called, while the remaining officers and the soldiers 
 were strongly opposed to the capitulation. When the men 
 finally were ordered to stack arms they did so with tears in 
 their eyes, complaining bitterly because they were not al- 
 lowed to fight any longer. All the officers who had been in 
 favor of capitulation were afterward dismissed from service 
 in disgrace. 
 
 Arriving at Nashville I was immediately ordered to assume 
 command of my own scattered regiment, of the Ninth Mich- 
 igan Infantry regiment, and of a battery of artillery, which 
 had also capitulated on that fatal Sunday. Having supplied 
 the men with clothing and other necessaries, I took them 
 by steamboats to a camp for prisoners in St. Louis, and re- 
 turned to Nashville to report the matter in person. On my 
 return to Nashville I was appointed member of a general 
 court martial, and shortly afterwards its president, which 
 position T occupied from July till December, 1862. The suffer- 
 ings which my friend Captain Eustrom had endured during 
 his flight from the rebels shattered his health so that he was 
 soon forced to retire from service. 
 
 About this time the well-known Indian massacre in the 
 western settlements of Minnesota took place. About eight 
 hundred peaceable citizens, mostly v^omen and children, and 
 among those many Scandinavians — were cruelly butchered, 
 and their houses and property burnt and destroyed. The 
 soldiers of the Third regiment had given their parole not to 
 take up arms against the enemy until they were properly ex- 
 changed, but, as this did not have anything to do with the 
 Indian war, they were ordered from St. Louis to Minnesota 
 
SroRY OF AN Emigrant. 67 
 
 and put under the command of Major Welch, of the Fourth 
 regiment, and soon distinguished themselves by their fine 
 oianeuvers and valor in the struggle with the Indians. 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 
 Events of 1863— The Siege of Vicksburg— Anecdotes about Gens. Logan, 
 Stevenson and Grant — Little Rock Captured — Recruiting at Fort Snel- 
 ling— The engagement at Fitzhugh's Woods— Pine Bluff— Winter Quar- 
 ters at Duvall's Bluff— Death of Lincoln— Close of the War— The 
 Third Regiment Disbanded. 
 
 In tlie month of December the officers were exchanged and 
 ordered back to Fort Snelling, to -where the enlisted men had 
 also returned from the Indian war. In January, 1863, we 
 again left Minnesota for the South. The whole of this win- 
 ter and the beginning of spring were devoted to expeditions 
 against guerillas and Confederate recruiting camps in south- 
 ern Tennessee. Most of this time I commanded the regi- 
 ment, four companies of which were mounted. We had to 
 procure horses as best we could, here and there through the 
 country. We had many skirmishes with the enemy, and cap- 
 tured a number of prisoners. 
 
 In the beginning of June we joined the forces that vsrere be- 
 sieging Yicksburg under the command of Gen. Grant, and 
 remained there until that city had capitulated. The siege of 
 Vicksburg is so well known from history that I shall make 
 no attempt to describe it here. For ^Ye consecutive weeks 
 the cannonading was so incessant that the soldiers became 
 as accustomed to it as the passengers on a steamer to the 
 noise of the propeller, and, when the capitulation finally put 
 an end to all this noise, we found it very difficult to sleep for 
 several nights on account of the unusual silence. 
 
 — 68 — 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 69 
 
 The July number of Hemlandet, contained a letter from 
 me, dated Vicksburg, June 24th, from which I make the fol- 
 lowing extract : ^r 
 
 "The army of Gen. Grant is divided into two Grand Divisions, one of 
 which is arranged in a semi-circle toward Vicksburg, only a few hundred 
 yards from the intrenchments of the rebels, the other in a semi-circle turned 
 away from Vicksburg, and fronting the army of Gen. Johnston. We are ah 
 protected by strong intrenchments, and always keep over two thousand 
 men as picket guards, and the same number are digging rifle pits and build- 
 ing intrenchments. 
 
 "Gen. Logan's Division is close up to the intrenchments of the rebels. 
 The Swedish Maj. Stohlbrand is chief of artillery in Logan's Division, and, 
 has, as such, under his special charge one of the most important positions 
 in the beleaguering army. 
 
 " I visited Gen. Logan yesterday, and will relate a little episode concern- 
 ing this brave commander : When Gen. Logan heard that I was a Swede, 
 and wished to see Maj. Stohlbrand, who had just ridden out to look after his 
 batteries, the general, being always full of fun, assumed a very solemn air, 
 and said : * Too bad you did not come an hour sooner, for then you could 
 have seen Stohlbrand. There' — and he went to the door of his tent and 
 pointed across the camp ground — 'there is the tent of Maj. Stohlbrand. 
 Half an hour ago a bomb exploded from the main fort yonder. Poor Stohl- 
 brand ! Only a few remnants were left of the contents of his tent. Poor 
 Stohlbrand! Perhaps you would like to see the remains?' 
 
 "Accompanied by Gens. Stevenson, Ransom, and several other officers, I 
 followed Gen. Logan to the tent 9f Stohlbrand. Then Logan said : ' Out 
 of respect for poor Stohlbrand we have put everything in order again. 
 Here you see his camp stool, there his uniform, and there is his little field cot.' 
 The bed looked as if a dead body was lying on it, covered by a blanket. 
 Logan walked solemnly up to the head of the bed, lifted the blanket, and 
 behold, there was only a bundle of rags! The rest of us, of course, sup- 
 posed that Stohlbrand was dead, and that his corpse was lying on the bed. 
 This little joke made the humorous Logan laugh so that his whole body 
 shook. 
 
 "As to the Swedes in the army, I may mention that, besides our Company 
 D, there are in the same division the company of Capt. Arosenius of the 
 Forty-third Illinois regiment, and that of Capt. Corneliuson of the 
 Twenty-third Wisconsin regiment, and a number of Swedes of the other 
 regiments from Illinois and Wisconsin, and of the Fourth and Fifth Minne- 
 sota regiments. Old Company D is a model, as usual,— -the best one 1 have 
 seen yet. Both officers and men are quiet, orderly, cheerful and obedient, 
 always faithful at their post, and ready to go wherever duty calls them. 
 They are loved and respected by all who come in contact with them. When 
 
70 
 
 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 I feel sad or despondent, all I need do is to walk along the camp street 
 and take a look at some of ray old Scandinavians. Their calm and earnest 
 demeanor always makes me glad and proud. I ask for no greater honor 
 than to point them out to some stranger, saying: 'This is my old 
 company.' 
 
 •'Not these alone, however, but all 6f mj' countrymen whom I met in 
 the army have a good name, and are considered most reliable and able 
 soldiers." 
 
 I shall now relate a couple of anecdotes from the siege of 
 Yicksburg, which I did not mention in the letter to Hem- 
 landet. 
 
 
 grant's headquarters. 
 
 Outside Gen. Logan's tent stood a big magnolia tree. 
 While laughing at Logan's joke Gen. Stevenson picked up a 
 little stick of wood and whittled on it with his penknife, in 
 genuine Yankee fashion. Accidently he dropped his knife, 
 and, w^hile stooping down to pick it up, a fragment of a 
 shell from the rebel batteries came and went tw^o inches deep 
 Into the tree right where his head had been when he w^as 
 whittling. He coolly remarked, ** That piece of iron was not 
 ^ade for me." 
 
 One day as I, in company with Lieut. Col. (afterward 
 
Story of an Emigrant, 71 
 
 Gen.) C. C. Andrews, was visiting Gen. Grant outside of 
 Vicksburg, a wagon drawn by six mules passed close by his 
 headquarters. The driver, an old, rough-looking soldier, 
 
 ARMY WAGON. 
 
 stopped, and asked the way to a certain regiment. Gen. 
 Grant's tent stood on a little elevation, at the foot of which 
 were several fresh w^agon tracks. A number of officers, in- 
 cluding myself, were standing and sitting around the general 
 outside the tent. Gen. Grant, who was dressed in a fatigtie 
 suit and slouched hat, without other marks of distinction 
 than three small silver stars, which could scarcely be distin- 
 guished on his dusty blouse, went toward the driver and, 
 with the most minute particulars, gave him directions how 
 to drive. While he was talking, we observed that the driver 
 showed signs of deep ei^iotion, and finally he alighted from 
 . the mule, which he was riding, stretched out his arms, and, 
 with tears in his eyes, exclaimed: *'My God! I believe it is 
 Gen. Grant! General, do you remember Tommy Donald? 
 I was a soldier in your company during the Mexican ^war ! " 
 With touching kindness the great commander-in-chief now 
 took both hands of the ragged soldier in his, and, like old 
 friends who had not met for a long time, they rejoiced in 
 remembering the companionship of fifteen years before. 
 
 When Gen. Grant returned to the tent the conversation 
 turned to the newspaper clamor and general discontent 
 
72 
 
 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 because Vicksburg was not yet taken, upon whicli the gen- 
 eral expressed himself in the foUo^ng words : "I could make 
 another assault and hasten the capture a few days, but will 
 Qot do it because I ic/20vr positively that within ten days the 
 garrison must surrender anyhowr, for I have got them, and 
 will take them all. Let them howl. I don't care. I have 
 got Pemberton tight as wax." Saying which, he closed his 
 right hand and laid it on the little camp table with such 
 force that I noticed the veins filling and turning blue on the 
 back of his hand. These two little incidents give a key to 
 Gen. Grant's whole character, and the secret of his unpar- 
 alleled success, not only in winning battles, but in bagging 
 the entire opposing force. 
 
 A week later Vicksburg fell into our hands. We took 
 thirty-two thousand prisoners, fifteen generals, two thou- 
 sand other officers, and nearly two hundred cannon. 
 
 GENERALS GRANT AND PEMBERTON. 
 
 Abo at a week after the surrender of Vicksburg the Third 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 73 
 
 regiment was transferred to the Seventh army corps, under 
 the command of Gen. Fred. Steele, and took part in the cam- 
 paign against Little Rock. In the beginning of September, 
 when we were only ten miles from Little Rock, our regiment 
 enjoyed the distinction of marching at the head of the infant- 
 ry column. We came upon the Confederate batteries on the 
 wrest bank of the Arkansas river, where a brisk cannonade 
 was opened. This combat afforded the most beautiful sight 
 imaginable, if carnage and slaughter may be called beautiful. 
 We stood on the east side of the river, the Confederates 
 on the west. The water being very lo\sr, a steamer had been 
 grounded about an eighth of a mile above us, and near the 
 steamer the water was so shallow that the cavalry could 
 ford the river ; but just in front of the Third regiment the 
 water was so deep that we had to throw a pontoon bridge 
 for the infantry. 
 
 Our regiment was stationed in a cornfield near the river 
 bank to cover the march across the bridge, and the soldiers 
 were ordered to lie down on the ground. But we found it 
 very difficult to make them obey, for, in their eagerness to 
 cross the river, they felt more like rushing ahead and shout- 
 ing for joy. Many shots from the Confederate batteries 
 passed over our heads, so low that the soldiers, in a sporting 
 mood, jumped up and grabbed with their hands in the air, 
 as if trying to catch them. In less than an hour the bridge 
 across the deep channel was ready. A cavalry brigade had 
 meanwhile mcfved up to the ford above, and now the signa] 
 for crossing was given. The Confederates set fire to the 
 steamer, which they were unable to save. 
 
 It was about noon on one of those glorious autumn days 
 peculiar to this country, which greatly enhanced the impres- 
 sion of the sublime spectacle then to be seen on the Arkansas 
 river. The burning steamer reddening the atmosphere with 
 brilliant flames of fire, a long Hne of cavalry fording the 
 
74. Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 shallow river In three files, the infantry marching by the 
 flank over the pontoon from which they jumped into the 
 water, forming on double-quick, first companies, then bat- 
 talion, whereupon they marched cheerily, in knee-deep water, 
 under flying banners and to the beat of regimental music, 
 while the air was filled with shells and balls. Before the 
 infantry had reached the woods where the batteries of the 
 enemy were hidden, the latter was already in retreat, and 
 Little Rock soon fell into our hands. 
 
 On our march into the captured city the next morning, the 
 Third regiment was again accorded the place of honor at the 
 head of the army. It was designated to act as provost- 
 guard for the purpose of maintaining order, and the whole 
 regiment was soon quartered in the state capitol. Gen. 
 C. C. Andrews, who held the position of colonel at that 
 time, was appointed post commander at Little Rock, and I, 
 who had been promoted to the rank of lieutenant-colonel 
 soon after the surrender of Vicksburg, took command of the 
 regiment, whereby it became my duty to maintain law and 
 order in the captured city. This was an onerous and diffi- 
 cult task, for it must be remembered that the only executive 
 authority in the southern states during the war was vested 
 in the army, and especially delegated to the provost officers 
 and guards. The third regiment was occupied with this 
 task until the following spring, and performed its dut}- so 
 well that the governor of Arkansas, in a message, expressed 
 himself regarding it, in the following language : 
 
 ; "During the time of their service in our capital good order 
 has prevailed, and they have commanded the respect of our 
 citizens. When called upon to meet the enem}^ they have 
 proven themselves equal to any task, and reliable in the hour 
 of imminent danger. Such men are an honor to our govern- 
 ment and the cause which they serve. Their state may justly 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 75 
 
 feel proud of them, and they will prove themselves to be 
 worthy sons of the same wherever duty calls them." 
 
 Toward Christmas I was ordered to Fort Snelling, with 
 a detachment of officers and non-commissioned officers, for 
 the purpose of recruiting our decimated ranks. I remained 
 on this duty till the month of March, and then returned 
 with four hundred recruits. Shortly afterwards the battle 
 of Fitzhugh's Woods, near Augusta, Arkansas, was fought, 
 and the regiment distingxiished itself by very gallant con- 
 duct. During the stay in Little Rock most of the soldiers 
 had re-enlisted for three years, or until the close of the war, 
 whereby we acquired the title of ''Veteran Regiment." But 
 that was not the only distinction which was conferred on 
 our men. A large number of young soldiers had been pro- 
 moted from the ranks to be officers in several negro reg> 
 ments, which were organized in Tennessee and Arkansas, 
 and some as officers of new regiments of our own state. 
 Col. Andrews had meanwhile been promoted to the rank of 
 brigadier-general, and, in April, 1864, I was promoted to 
 colonel of the regiment in his place, and -was shortly after- 
 ward ordered to march with its eight hundred men to Pine 
 Bluff, on the Arkansas river. 
 
 From this time until the beginning of August the regiment 
 experienced such hardships and sufferings from diseases and 
 hard service, that it sustained far greater losses from these 
 causes than any other regiment from our state had met with 
 in open battle. Pine Bluff was a veritable pest-hole; the 
 water was of a greenish color, the air full of germs of dis- 
 ease and poisonous vapors. Continually surrounded and 
 threatened by a vigilant enemy, the exhausted and sickly 
 soldiers had to get up at three o'clock every morning for the 
 purpose of working at the entrenchments and strengthening 
 and protecting our position in different ways. Meanwhile 
 the number of those fit for duty was daily decreasing at an 
 
76 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 appalling rate. The hospitals were overcrowded with pa- 
 tients, and the few men left for duty were continually occu- 
 pied in caring for the sick and burying the dead, until there 
 
 * were not men enough left to bury their dead comrades, and 
 
 * I was obliged to ask a regiment, which had recently arrived, 
 „ to help us perform that sad duty. 
 
 ^ At this critical moment I received orders from Washington 
 to take six companies to Minnesota, on a six weeks' veteran 
 
 '[■ furlough, to which the regiment was entitled. Those went 
 who were able to. Many died on the way, but those of us 
 who survived until we reached Minnesota were soon restored 
 to usual health and strength, so that we could return in due 
 time and again take part in the campaign in Arkansas. The 
 remaining four companies, which had been furloughed the 
 previous winter, were ordered from Pine Bluff to Duvall's 
 Bluff, on White river, where the whole regiment was re- 
 united under my command in the beginning of October, and 
 remained in winter quarters until the spring of 1865. 
 
 Shortly after our return to Arkansas 1 assumed command 
 of the First Brigade, First Division, Seventh army corps. 
 Thisbrigadeconsistedof my own regiment, the Twelfth Mich- 
 igan, the Sixty-first Illinois, and a United States colored 
 regiment. Our prospects for remaining in winter quarters 
 for several months being favorable, many of the higher offi- 
 cers sent for their wives. I did the same, having first 
 erected a comfortable log house for us. My wife and two 
 little children arrived a few days before Christmas, and 
 stayed in the camp the whole winter. No important event 
 took place during the winter, excepting that we were once 
 ordered to make an expedition up White river, with a con- 
 siderable force of cavalry and infantry, and, after a fatiguing 
 march, succeeded in breaking up a camp of irregular Confed- 
 erate troops, and taking many prisoners. 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 77 
 
 I will relate two incidents which took place near Duv all's 
 Bluff, one of a serious, the other of a comic nature. 
 
 The first was the shooting of a young soldier of the 
 Twenty-second Ohio regiment, who time and again had de- 
 serted his post, and finally joined a band of rebel marauders. 
 It became my sad duty to execute the sentence of death. My 
 brigade formed a hollow square, facing inward, and the 
 doomed man, a strong, handsome youth of twenty years, 
 sat on a coffin in an open ambulance, which was driven 
 slowly along the inside of the square, while a band marched 
 in front of the wagon playing a funeral march. After the 
 completion of this sad march the deserter was placed in the 
 middle of the square, in front of the coffin, with his eyes 
 blind-folded. A detachment of twelve men under a ser- 
 geant now fired simpltaneously, upon the signal of the pro- 
 vost marshal. Eight rifles were loaded with balls, and the 
 unfortunate young man fell backwards into his coffin and 
 died without a struggle. 
 
 SHOOTING A DESERTER. 
 
 One day while taking a ride on horseback in company with 
 
78 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 my wife, who had a fine saddle horse, and had become an 
 expert rider during her long stay in the camp, we galloped 
 mile after mile along the fine plain, outside of the picket- 
 lines where men of my own brigade ^were on guard, till at 
 last we found ourselves several miles from the place where 
 we had passed through our lines. Returning toward camp, 
 we struck the picket line at a point where a recently arrived 
 regiment was stationed, and where the ground w^as soft and 
 marshy. Being challenged by the guard I answered who I 
 was, but as he could not plainly distinguish my uniform in 
 the twilight and did not know me personally, he ordered us, 
 with leveled gun, to stand still until he could call the officer 
 of the guard. It was no easy matter to obey his orders, 
 for the horses continually sank down in the soft ground, but 
 finally the officer arrived, and we succeeded in getting to 
 the camp without further trouble. I was not the first officer 
 who thus got into trouble by neglecting to write out a pass 
 for himself. 
 
 On a fine April day, which can never be forgotten, the news 
 came that our president, Abraham Lincoln, had been mur- 
 dered. Stricken w^ith consternation I hurried down to the 
 Third regiment in person to tell the sad news. Never, either 
 before or since, have I witnessed such a scene as the one that 
 followed. Some of the men went completely wild with sor- 
 row, weather-beaten veterans, embracing each other, wept 
 aloud, others swore and cursed. In the prison yard, which was 
 guarded by men belonging to my regiment, a rebel prisoner 
 took off his cap, waived it in the air and cried, "Hurrah for 
 Booth ! " A man by the name of Stark immediately loaded 
 his gun and shot the rebel dead on the spot. Many others, 
 both inside and outside the camp, were shot because they 
 expressed joy at the death of Lincoln. Passions were 
 strong, and all tolerance and patience exhausted among the 
 Union soldiers on that occasion. The main army of the 
 
Story of an Emigrant. • 79 
 
 Confederates had already surrendered when this calamity 
 occurred, and the war was in fact over. A few days after 
 sv^ard we sent our families home. 
 
CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Reconstruction in the South — Third Regiment Mustered Out— The Fare, 
 well Order — Sacrifices and Costs of the War. 
 
 A very important work still remained to be accomplished 
 by the union army, namely, the restoration of law and 
 order in the southern states. I had the honor to be entrusted 
 with a portion of that work, an account of which was given 
 in a paper prepared and read by me before the commandery 
 of the military order Loyal Legion, at one of its meetings in 
 St. Paul, in March, 1889, from which I quote as follows: 
 
 *' After listening to the many interesting addresses on bat- 
 tles and campaigns that have been read before the com- 
 mandery at our monthly meetings, I fear that you will be 
 disappointed, not only with the subject of this paper, but 
 also with the commonplace incidents which I have to relate, 
 and yet I think that the part taken by the Union army in 
 the so-called reconstruction of civil government in the rebel- 
 lious states immediately after the war deserves a place in the 
 history of that army and of the war. All the world knows 
 how bravely our soldiers fought, how willingly they endured 
 hardships of the camp and of the wearisome march, how 
 patiently they bore sickness, wounds, and sufferings of every 
 kind, and how faithfully they obeyed the orders of advance 
 to danger and to death. But there is still another trait of 
 their character, perhaps the greatest of them all, that of the 
 good citizen, who was able, as soon as the last smoke of 
 battle had cleared away, to restrain all feelings of enmitv 
 
 — 80 — 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 81 
 
 and revenge, to take the enemy by the hand, to guide, help, 
 and protect him and his in all the rights of citizenship, and 
 it is of that I would relate some facts that came under my 
 own observation and experience. 
 
 "Having been stationed at Du vall's Bluif, Arkansas, in com- 
 mand of a brigade, of which my own regiment, the Third 
 Minnesota infantry, formed a part, I received orders from 
 Maj. Gen. J, J. Reynolds, commanding the Department of 
 Arkansas, on the 15th of May, 1865, to establish a military 
 post at Batesville, Arkansas, on the upper White river, and 
 to take command of a district comprising the north-eastern 
 portion of that state. The field organization of the Seventh 
 army corps, to which we belonged, was being broken up. 
 Some of the regiments were sent home to be mustered out of 
 service; others were sent to different points for purposes of 
 occupation. M}^ own regiment and two squadrons of the 
 Ninth Kansas Cavalry were detailed for the work given in 
 my charge. . 
 
 '*0n the 18th of May we embarked on steam transports, 
 and reached Batesville on the 20th. A few days later my post 
 headquarters was established at Jacksonport, and the 
 troops were distributed at different points with one or two 
 companies for each, at Batesville, Searcy, Augusta, Powhat- 
 an; and the main force at Jacksonport, from which point 
 frequent cavalry patrols were sent to the outlying stations, 
 
 **The topography of that country is very irregular and 
 unique. The eastern portion, bordering upon the Missis- 
 sippi, is flat and marshy, with many lakes and bayous, and has 
 a rich, alluvial soil. The other portion is very broken, with 
 hills and mountain ridges, rocks, caves and beautiful streams, 
 but poor soil. The lowlands had been occupied by wealthy 
 slave owners, whose sympathies were strong for the South- 
 ern cause. The highlands were occupied by the poorer class, 
 onlv a few of whom had owned slave^^. Manv of this class 
 
82 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 were strong Union men, and soldiers in the Union army. 
 During the great struggle of four years many bloody trag- 
 edies had been enacted between the loyal and the rebel resi- 
 dents, and bitter feelings of revenge still rankled in the 
 
 \ breasts of the survivors. During the w^hole period of the 
 war the country had been swept clean, at rapid intervals, 
 
 ^ by both armies alternately, and each time new atrocities 
 had been perpetrated, and all the worst passions of the peo- 
 ple rekindled. It had also been a place of refuge for the 
 worst rebel elements in southern Missouri, when too hardh^ 
 pressed by our friend Gen. Sanborn* and other Union com- 
 manders. At the time of our arrival the surviving soldiers 
 from both armies were returning to their homes, also many 
 refugees, — rebels from Texas and Union men from the North, 
 — ^most of them to find their families destitute and their 
 property destroyed. 
 
 **The irregular Confederate troops under Gen. Jeff. Thomp- 
 son, numbering some eight thousand men, had not yet sur- 
 rendered, but were scattered over the district in a thoroughly 
 demoralized condition, so that the whole situation was 
 rather peculiar and very bad, and it was a difficult task to 
 prevent fresh outbreaks, and to restore order and get the 
 people started anew in the peaceful avocations of life. 
 
 '*My instructions w^ere to preserve law and order, to organ- 
 ize and arm companies of home colonists for self-protection, 
 to encourage agriculture and commerce, and to assist the 
 citizens in restoring civil government. The men under my 
 command during the early reconstruction period had cer- 
 tainly no reason to love Arkansas, because they had not only 
 buried their best friends and comrades within its borders, 
 but had themselves for months and months experienced there 
 that dreadfu^ suffering most feared by all soldiers, and for 
 which few receive any credit, — namely, the inglorious priva- 
 
 *Gen. John B. Sanborn, who was present when this paper was read. 
 
Story of an Emigrant. g3 
 
 tion of tiie silent watch, — in tlie swamp, in the trenches, in 
 the hospital, on the camp-stretcher, and in the ambu- 
 lance,^when tired, sore, sick, thirsty, lonely, and seem- 
 ingly forsaken by God and man, unknown and with praise 
 unsung, with no cheering sound of drum or bugle, no battle 
 flag or cheer in sight or hearing, no voice of comrades or of 
 guns, and no magic touch of elbows or shouts of victory. 
 These men had experienced all that, and had no special rea- 
 son to sympathize with the inhabitants who had done their 
 full share to bring them into so much misery. And now 
 observe how they treated those inhabitants. Immediately 
 on arriving at Batesville the following order was promul- 
 gated, and, by the aid of an old printing press and swift 
 couriers, scattered all over the district: 
 
 * Headquarters U. S. Forces, 
 'Batesville, Ark., May 22, 1865. 
 'General Order No. 1. 
 
 * I. It is hereby announced to the people of Batesville and surrounding 
 country that the chief object of the federal occupation of this place is their 
 protection against armed forces, of whatever kind, to give encouragement 
 to agriculture and other peaceful pursuits, and to restore commercial inter- 
 course. 
 
 ' II. The public safety and mutual interests demand that all persons liv- 
 ing within our lines and enjoying the protection of the nation's forces shall 
 declare their obedience to the government. 
 
 'III. It is ordered, therefore, that all persons now living or hereafter 
 coming within our picket-lines who have not taken but desire to take the 
 oath of allegiance, with the purpose of restoring and establishing the 
 'national authority, shall register their names without delay m the provost 
 marshal's office, w^here the oath will be administered. 
 * By order of 
 
 ' CoL. H. Mattson, Commanding. 
 ■p. E. FoLSOM, Lieutenant and Post Adjutant.* 
 
 **0n the same day a beginning was made to organize com- 
 panies of home colonists among the great number of Union 
 refugees who had followed the troops to Batesville. Arms 
 and ammunition were placed in their hands, and the follow- 
 ing insttuction given: 
 
84 Stoky of an Emigrant. 
 
 ' Headquakteks U. S. Forces, 
 'Batesville, Ark., May 22. 1865. 
 
 To the ni'^mbers of Companies of Home Colonists: 
 
 'You will, as soon as practicable, depart with your families to your 
 several homes, and there proceed to cultivate the land and secure a crop for 
 the coming year. 
 
 'The arms and ammunition with w^hich you have now been furnished by 
 the government of the United States are for the piot.xtion of yourselves 
 and families, and for no other purpose. 
 
 'The laws of your state guarantee you full redress for private injuries; 
 you will therefore leave all disputes and wrongs to be settled by them and 
 by the military authority of the United States, and it is only against the 
 armed force of marauders that you w^ill resort to the use of these arms; 
 remember, always, that you are not soldiers, but citizens. 
 
 'You will promptly report to your own officers and to the military 
 commander of this post any information you may obtain of armed forces 
 of marauders; and in case of emergency you are authorized to act as a 
 military body in pursuing them. The commanding officer w^ill alw^ays 
 extend to you aid, both in men and subsistence, so far as lies in his power, 
 but you must, like free and independent citizens, place yourselves, by 
 industrious labor, as soon as possible, beyond the necessity of federal 
 support. 
 
 'Let your conduct among your late enemies be such as will elicit their 
 friendship. 
 
 ' By assisting me to carry out the magnanimous policy of our govern- 
 ment you will soon have peace and security restored to your commu- 
 nity, and happiness and plenty to yourselves and your families. 
 "By order of 
 
 ' Col. H. Mattson, Commanding. 
 
 'P. E. FoLSOM, Lieutenant and Post Adjutant.' 
 
 **In a remarkably short time the news of the policy thus 
 announced spread to the most remote parts of the district, 
 and had a very beneficial effect. It inspired hope and confi- 
 dence everywhere. The disloyal people came out of their 
 hiding places, and, with apparent sincerity and gratitude, 
 took the oath of allegiance, and went to work as good citi- 
 zens to perform their part in the work of reconstruction. 
 Union men and rebels shook hands over the bloody chasm, 
 and agreed to bury the past and work together for a better 
 future. 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 85 
 
 "Soon another class of people came in large numbers to 
 seek help and protection from the Union forces. It was the 
 poverty-stricken old men, and the women and children who 
 had lost their natural protectors. Ttw^asa sight sad enough 
 to move the stoutest hearts to look at their helplessness and 
 misery, and I never had a more pleasant duty to perform 
 than that of relieving their wants at the expense of our gen- 
 erous government. The department commander had placed 
 a steamboat at my disposal, and given me unlimited power 
 to draw on the commissary stores at Duvall's Bluff. That 
 steamer made regular trips with supplies for all who were 
 actually in need, and most of the applicants returned to 
 their homes with plenty of flour, bacon, salt, vseed, corn and 
 other necessaries, with a government mule sometimes 
 thrown in to carry the load home, and there was no distinc- 
 tion made between rebels and Unionists, except that the 
 former were placed on their good behavior as to their future 
 conduct. It was in this work that our soldiers, — officers 
 and men, — showed without exception, that trait of char- 
 acter which entitles them to the name of exemplary citizens as 
 well as exemplary soldiers, which they had previously earned 
 in a service of four years. They never forgot that the con- 
 quered inhabitants were our own people, and members of 
 the same great republic. 
 
 "After a while our picket lines were withdrawn, and only 
 enough guards posted to take care of the public property. 
 Citizens and soldiers mingled freely in social intercourse, not 
 as conquerors and conquered, but as friends and equals, our 
 men interesting themselves in everything that tended to the 
 welfare of the citizens, often helping them in their work and 
 business, and always treating the helpless with gallantry 
 and tenderness. On the Fourth of July citizens and soldiers, 
 ex-rebels and Union men, to the number of many hundreds, 
 met under the stars and stripes, in a lovely grove, to celebrate 
 
86 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 the day around an old-fashioned barbecue, and, for nearly 
 two days and a night, enjoyed a feast of brotherly love and 
 good will, all proud of the old banner, and happy to be 
 again united as one people. 
 
 "During the summer elections were held for town and 
 county officers, and as soon as such officers had qualified, the 
 soldiers, even more readily than the citizens themselves, did 
 all in their power to uphold their authority. In many in- 
 stances good penmen and accountants among the soldiers 
 gave their services gratuitously to help the newly-elected civil 
 officers start their books and accounts. To the honor of the 
 rebels, especially the returned soldiers, I must say that they 
 behaved in a most exemplary manner, and accepted the situa- 
 tion with good grace and acted most cordially and loyally 
 toward us. The Freedmen's Bureau was not established 
 in that district during my time of command, but I was in- 
 formed by a friend, Maj. J. M. Bowler, who had com- 
 mand the following winter, that the planters generally 
 yielded to the requirements of that department as soon as it 
 was established; that they made fair contracts with the lib- 
 erated slaves and strictly and carefully observed them, and 
 were in all respects considerate toward the freedmen gener- 
 ally. Of course, I do not mean to say that all the citizens 
 behaved so well. There w^ere exceptions, even in the first 
 days of reconstrnction, and those exceptions were nearly all 
 by the men who had never faced the Union soldiers in open 
 battle, but had either skulked or resorted to guerilla war- 
 fare. But I do mean to say that in those early days, before 
 President Johnson had began to show his final hand, the 
 rebels were disposed to accept the situation in a manly and 
 loyal way, and that, if the policy inaugurated by the Union 
 army had been adhered to, the country would probably 
 have been saved from the Ku-Klux and other horrors of a 
 later period. 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 87 
 
 **Otie strange fact was deeply impressed upon myminddur* 
 ing the time of my command in Northeastern Arkansas, 
 namely, the genuine regret and sorrow among the returning 
 rebel soldiers over President Lincoln's death. They not 
 only respected him, but actually regarded him as a iriend, 
 because they believed him to be kind and just; so that, 
 whatever measures lie might have adopted, had he lived, 
 they believed that they could have submitted to them with 
 full confidence that it would be for the best. I can not better 
 illustrate that feeling, as it was daily manifested to me, than 
 by comparing it to the faith and confidence of erring chil- 
 dren to an offended but loving father. 
 
 "The most noted and influential rebel in the district at that 
 time was, undoubtedly, Gen. Jeff. Thompson. On the 3d 
 of June this noted general arrived at my headquarters at Jack- 
 sonport, pursuant to previous arrangements, to surrender 
 his command, consisting of eight thousand officers and men, 
 who began to crowd in on that and the following day in 
 great numbers. They were the hardest looking soldiers I 
 have ever seen. Jeff. Thompson himself was a man of com- 
 manding appearance, and a perfect gentleman. In my jour- 
 nal of that day T have described him as follows: 'He is a 
 tall, sinewy, weather-beaten man, a queer looking genius, 
 dressed in a suit of snowy white, from the plume in his hat 
 to the heel of his boot, and with a white sword-belt and 
 white gloves. He is a clever chap, full of fun, telling great 
 yarns, and an incessant talker.' I should judge he was 
 about forty -five years old. On the third day after his arrival 
 the troops had all assembled, and the surrender took place 
 in due form. A staff officer from the Department of Missouri 
 and another from the Department of Arkansas witnessed 
 the proceedings and received the documents. When all was 
 finished, Jeff. Thompson had his men assemble on the levee 
 in front of a steamboat, from the cabin-deck of which he 
 
S8 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 delivered his farewell address. I stood by his side while he 
 spoke, and expected every moment to see him pierced by 
 some well-directed bullet from the crowd on shore, but he 
 w^as allowed to finish his address without interruption, after 
 which the men slunk out of sight, and before evening the 
 whole motley crowd had left the town with the determina- 
 tion, as I verily believe, to follow the good advice of their 
 general. The address deserves a place among our papers, 
 and I will read it, as it appeared a few weeks later in Har- 
 per's Magazine, from a verbatim report made by one of my 
 officers. He said : 
 
 ' Many of the eight thousand men I now see around me, very many of 
 you. have been skulking for the last three years in the swamps within a few 
 miles of your own homes, — skulking duty, — and during that time have not 
 seen your own children. I see many faces about me that have not been 
 seen by mortal man for the last three years; and what have you been doing 
 all that time? Why, you have been lying in the swamps until the moss has 
 grown six inches long on your backs, and such men call themselves "chival- 
 rous soldiers." A few weeks ago Gen. Reynolds sent a flag of truce to my 
 headquarters, and I sent out to gather a respectable force to meet those 
 officers, and not one of you responded. A few days later, when Col. Davis 
 and Capt. Bennett, of Gen. Dodge's staff, bore dispatches to me from that 
 general, I attempted again to call about me enough of you to make a re- 
 spectable show, and how many of these brave men reported at the call? 
 One sore-eyed man with green goggles. But you rally likt brave and gal- 
 lant men around Uncle Sam's commissary stores, and I have now come to 
 surrender you, and hope that you will make better citizens than you have 
 soldiers. 
 
 'Those of you who had arms, with a few exceptions, have left them at 
 home, and those who had government horses have failed to report them 
 here. Now let me say to you, one and all, those of you who have retained 
 your arms, as soon as you get home take them to the nearest military post 
 and deliver them up, or burn them, or get rid of them in some manner, for 
 as sure as there is a God in heaven, if they are found in your houses, just so 
 sure will your houses be burned to the ground; and I hope to God every 
 one of you who keep good arms or military property of any kind in your 
 houses will be hanged; and you will, too. 
 
 ' But I want you to go home and work hard and take care of your fcm- 
 
^ Story of an emigrant. 89 
 
 ilies. Work early and late, and get up at night and sec if your crops ar« 
 gro-wing. Above all things avoid political discussions. If any man says 
 * 'nigger" to you, swear that you never knew or saw one in your life. We 
 have talked about the niggers for forty years, and have been out-talked. 
 
 We have fought four years for the niggers, and have been d d badly 
 
 whipped, and now it is not "'your put." The Yankees have won the nigger 
 and will do what they please with him, and you have no say in the matter. 
 If they want him they will take him ; and if they say that you must keep 
 him, you have to do it, and no mistake. I tell you that you have no say in 
 the matter, and you oughtn't to have any. Go honae and stay there. 
 Don't go anywhere but to mill. Don't go to church, for the minister w^ill 
 put knots and mischief in your heads, and get you into trouble. Be good 
 citizens, and then those of you who have been good, honest and brave sol- 
 diers need have nothing to fear ; but I warn those of you who have been 
 nothing but sneaking, cowardly jayhawkers, cutthroats and thieves, that 
 a just retribution awaits you, and I hope to God that the federal authori- 
 ties will hang you, wherever and whenever they find you, and they will do 
 it, sure. 
 
 'Do not complain if you are not permitted to have a voice in elections and 
 civil affairs. You have forfeited all such rights, and it now becomes you to 
 submit to such laws and regulations as the federal authorities may deem 
 proper to enact. I believe and know^ that they will do the best they can for 
 you, especially if you show henceforth that you now desire to merit their 
 confidence by strict obedience to the laws where you may reside. 
 
 ' We are conquered and subjected ; we have no rights, but must accept 
 such privileges and favors as the government may see proper to bestow 
 upon us. Again I say, go home ; attend to your business, and try to raise 
 a new^ generation of boys that shall become better men than you have been.' 
 
 **Jeff. Thompson lived many years alter that day, a good 
 and loyal citizen. He was a brave and generous man, and 
 had always treated our prisoners wnth humanity whenever 
 they had fallen into his hands. His advice to his soldiers 
 echoed the sentiments of the better class of the rebels in the 
 district at that time. 
 
 ** We remained there the whole summer, always impatient 
 to be mustered out and return to our own homes, but never 
 deviating from the orderly and friendly position first taken. 
 Many of the men formed friendships and other connections 
 that have lasted ever since. Some of them returned after 
 
90 Stuky of an Emigrant. 
 
 their muster out, and are still counted among the best citi* 
 zens of that state; some formed engagements with the 
 country girls, and went back to marry them. One of my 
 young captains, a fine St. Paul boy, brought with the regi- 
 ment to Minneapolis, as his bride, the most beautiful woman, 
 as well as the most bitter rebel, of that portion of Arkansas, 
 and I am glad to say that, although she soon returned with her 
 gallant husband tohernativestate, where they still reside, she 
 is now, and has been ever since, as true and loyal to our 
 banner and our cause as any of our Northern wives and 
 mothers. 
 
 **I would not have it understood that all our work was 
 so pleasant and peaceful. Sometimes we had to deal with 
 tough cases of both sexes, and then the iron hand of pow^er 
 was freely used to restrain, but seldom to punish. As a 
 relic of old slave times I will relate one incident of many that 
 came under my observation. 
 
 "One day a very tidy negro woman came and reported 
 that her late master had recently killed her husband. I sent 
 for the former master. He was a leading physician, a man 
 of fine address and culture, who lived in an elegant mansion 
 near the city. He sat down and told me the story, nearly 
 word for word as the woman did. It was substantially as 
 follows: Tom, the negro, had been his body-servant since 
 both were children, and, since his freedom, still remained in 
 the same service. Tom had a boy about eight years old. 
 This boy had done some mischief, and I (said the doctor) 
 called him in and gave him a good flogging. Tom was out- 
 side and heard the boy scream, and after a while he pushed 
 open the door and took the boy from me, telling me that I 
 had whipped him enough. He brought the boy into his own 
 cabin, and then started foi town. I took my gun and ran 
 alter him. When he saw me coming he started on a run and 
 I shot him, of course. ** Wouldn't you have done the same?'* 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 91 
 
 he asked me with an injured look. The killing of his negro 
 for such an offence seemed so right and natural to him that 
 he was perfectly astonished when I informed him that he 
 would have to answer to the charge of murder before a 
 military commission at Little Rock, where he was at once 
 sent for trial. What a great change in sentiment a quarter 
 of a century has produced ! Our children will never learn to 
 realize what a curse slavery was, even while some of them 
 were in their cradles. 
 
 "It has been said that the old soldiers occasionally did a 
 little foraging on their own hook, while in the enemy's coun- 
 try, and I rather think they did ; but I wish to state most 
 solemnl}^ that whatever bad habits the boys might have 
 had in that respect before the surrender of the Confederate 
 army, they reformed at once after that event, most thor- 
 oughly and sincerely, and during the whole summer of 1865, 
 although scattered over a wide country, and almost free 
 from military duty and restraint, there was never a com- 
 plaint made against a man in my command, for depredation 
 of any kind, and I verily believe that the rights of property, 
 even down to the beloved shoat and chicken, were held as 
 sacred by the Union soldiers in our district during that time 
 as those rights are ordinarily held in any well-governed 
 country during times of peace. All things considered I am 
 fully convinced that the excellent conduct of our soldiers in 
 the South during the early days of reconstruction, when the 
 army took a prominent part in that work, did more to es- 
 tablish law and order and to foster friendly and loyal senti- 
 ments towards the Union, than all the laws and constitu- 
 tional amendments enacted for that purpose. Had the 
 great and noble Lincoln lived, or even if President Johnson had 
 remained true to the principles of his early life, and left the 
 Union soldiers at liberty to carry out the firm but humane 
 policy of reconstruction which they inaugurated under the 
 
93 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 ■inspiration of Grant and Sherman, we would have had not 
 only a united country, but a loyal and law abiding people 
 in the South a quarter of a century ago, because the Union 
 soldier was the best citizen and the best teacher of good cit- 
 izenship. Armies of other nations have achieved victories as 
 great as ours, other soldiers than ours have been patient, 
 obedient, enduring and brave, but none in the world's his- 
 tory have shown such greatness in civic virtues as the Union 
 soldiers of the war of the Rebellion." 
 
 In the beginning of September, 1865, the regiment was 
 ordered home, and on September 16th it was mustered out 
 at Fort Snelling, Minnesota, on which occasion the follow- 
 ing general order was read ; 
 
 ' General Order No, 16. 
 ' Officers and Men of the Third Minnesota Regiment : 
 
 ' After four years of active service this regiment is abont to be disbanded. 
 Before another day you will all have received your honorable discharges 
 and be on your way to your quiet, happy homes. The familiar sound of 
 the bugle and drum will no longer be heard among us. The "Stars and 
 Stripes," which we have all learned to love, vill no longer wave over our 
 ranks- 
 
 'You have toiled, struggled and suffered much during the last four years, 
 yet to those who are now here to enjoy the triumph over our enemies and 
 the peace and prosperity of our country, the reward is ample. I know that 
 we will all regard the acts of those years as the noblest and proudest of 
 our lives. For those, our noble comrades, who have fallen victims in the 
 struggle, let us always, with the most tender affection, cherish their 
 memory. 
 
 * You have served your country nobly and faithfully in every field where 
 duty called you, and I am proud to assert that on every occasion 
 and in every locality, from the northwestern frontier, against the savage 
 Indian foes, to the deathly swamps of the Yazoo and Arkansas valleys, 
 against the haughty Southern rebels, — wherever this regiment has been, its 
 rank and file, its bone and sinew, the true representatives of our noble 
 young state, have ever reflected honor and credit on that state. 
 
 * As your commanding officer 1 am greatly indebted to you all, officers 
 and men, for your admirable conduct on all occasions, for your ready obe- 
 dience of O'ders, and for your fidelity, patriotism and perseverance in the 
 discharge of all your toilsome duties. 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 93 
 
 * In bidding you farewell, I give you all my most hearty thanks. May 
 peace, prosperity and happiness ever be your reward. 
 
 'For me, the greatest honor, — greater far than I ever expected to 
 achieve, — is the fact of having so long commanded, and at last led home iu 
 triumph and peace, the always dear and noble Third Minnesota Regiment, 
 
 ' H. Mattson, 
 * Colonel Commanding Regiment. 
 *P. E.FoLSOM, Lieutenant and Adjutant-.'" 
 
 During this war the Union army had mustered in 2,883,- 
 '000 men, 400,000 of whom had lost their lives. To this 
 army Minnesota contributed 25,052, or about one-seventh 
 of her entire population. Of this number 2,500 were killed or 
 died of sickness during the war, and it is calculated that 
 5,000 died since the w^ar on account of w^ounds and diseases 
 contracted during service. The Third regiment had, during 
 four years' service, a total enrollment of 1,417, of which 
 number there w^ere left only 432 men w^hen we returned in 
 September, 1865, The war cost the Union about two bil- 
 lion, seven hundred million dollars. The sacrifice of gold 
 and blood was not too great. Not only America, but the 
 whole human race has gained more through the victories of 
 our army than can be estimated in gold and blood. And the 
 Scandinavians of the West may justly feel proud of the part 
 they tool? in this struggle for liberty and human rights. 
 
CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 My Reason for Taking Part in tbe Civil War — The Dignity of Labor — Tbe 
 Firm Mattson & Webster — Svenska Amerikanaren, its Program and 
 Reception — The State Emigration Bureau of Minnesota — Its Aim, 
 Plan and Work. 
 
 The war which closed with the events narrated in the last 
 chapter was one of the most important of modern times, 
 and proved the greatness and the resources of the American 
 people never properly appreciated before. But it revealed a 
 still greater nobility of character when our immense army, 
 after four years' service, suddenly disbanded, its soldiers 
 quietly and peacefully returning to their common daily toil 
 w^ithout the least disorder or disturbance of any kind. The 
 swords were turned into plowshares as quietly and naturally 
 as if they never had been steeped in blood. 
 
 For my own part — and that was undoubtedly the case 
 with most of our volunteers — I entered the service because 
 I considered it to be my duty to do my little part in defend- 
 ing the country which had adopted me as a citizen, and ilot, 
 as many have supposed, on account of ambition or for the 
 sake of gain ; in fact, as has been shown already, I resigned 
 a more important and remunerative position in the civil 
 service than the one I first accepted in the army; hence it 
 wa^ quite easy for me to exchange the uniform for the plain 
 garb of the citizen and hang my sword among the reminis- 
 cences of the past. 
 
 94> 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 95 
 
 One day shortly after my arrival home, while walking 
 along a street in Red Wing, I noticed a former professor of a 
 university, who had been a captain in the Sixth regiment 
 w^orking in his shirt sleeves with a plane and helping to 
 build a house. After saluting him I asked how he liked this 
 kind of work, to which he answered that another professor 
 had been appointed in his place while he was in the war, and 
 being through with the service, he neither liked nor could 
 afford to be idle. Having acquired some skill in handling 
 carpenter's tools in his youth, he said he found it easy to get 
 -work at two dollars a dav, and meanwhile he could be on 
 the look-out for a position as professor of mathematics at 
 some college or university. 
 
 Here is the key to the greatness of this country: Labor is 
 respected, ^while in most other countries it is looked down 
 upon with slight. The former professor and Capt. Wilson was 
 soon thereafter appointed state superintendent of schools, 
 w^hile, if he had remained idle and dependent upon his rela- 
 tives and friends for assistance, too proud to ^work, he would 
 most likely have been looking around for something to turn 
 up to this day. 
 
 Another little incident, which occurred about this time 
 may interest the Swedish reader. The great Gen. Sherman 
 visited St. Paul, and a banquet ^^as given to him at which 
 I was present. During the conversation I asked about the 
 Swedish Gen. Stohlbrand. " Do you know him ?" Gen. Sher- 
 man inquired. "Yes, sir; he is my countryman, and we 
 served in the same regiment in Sweden," I said. ''Then," 
 said he, "you may be proud of your old comrade, for a 
 braver man and a better artillerv officer than Gen. Stohl- 
 brand could not be found in our entire army." 
 
 At the same time the general told the following: Stohl- 
 brand had served in his corps for some time with the rank of 
 major, and performed such services as properly belong to a 
 
96 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 colonel or brigadier-general ^thout being promoted accord- 
 ing to his merits, because there had been no vacancy in the 
 regiment to which he belonged. Displeased \srith this, Stohl- 
 brand sent in his resignation, which ^was accepted, but Sher- 
 man had made up his mind not to let him leave the arm}', 
 and asked him to go by way of Washington on his return 
 home, pretending that lie wished to send some important 
 dispatches to President Lincoln. In due time Stohlbrand 
 arrived in Washington and handed a sealed package to 
 President Lincoln in person. Having looked the papers 
 through the president extended his hand exclaiming: ''How 
 do you do, General!" Stohlbrand, correcting him, said; *'I 
 am no general, I am only a major." "You are mistaken," 
 said Lincoln, *'you are a general," — ^and he was from that 
 moment. In a few hours he received his commission and re- 
 turned to the army with a rank three degrees higher than 
 that he held a few days before. 
 
 The subject of the conversation thus being Swedish officers, 
 several honorable deeds were told of some of them, among 
 others, how Col. Vegesack, his regiment making a charge 
 with leveled bayonets, and his color-bearer receiving a mor- 
 tal v^ound, himself seized the colors and led his regiment to 
 victory. 
 
 Soon after the close of the w^ar a well-known lav^yer and 
 myself opened a law office in Red Wing, the name of the 
 new firm being Mattson & Webster. I had successfully prac- 
 ticed law but a few months when it w^as announced that a 
 new Swedish newspaper, to be called Svenska Amerikanaren, 
 was to be established in Chicago. This enterprise was 
 backed by a number of prominent Swedes of Illinois, who 
 appointed me editor in chief without my knowledge or so- 
 licitation. At that time there was only one Swedish nevsrs- 
 paper in this country, viz., Hemlandet, which was more of a 
 church than a political paper, hence this was an open and 
 
Storv 0-' AN Emgjiant 97 
 
 large field for me. I accepted the appointment on condition 
 that I should not move to Chicago, but simply help to start 
 the paper and put it on a firm footing, and that I should be 
 allowed to resign in case I fouad this kind of work unfavor- 
 able to my health, which had been very seriously arfected by 
 the hardships and sufferings of the w^ar. 
 
 On September 18, 1866, the first number of the Svenska 
 Anierikanaren was published. I quote from the article an- 
 nouncing my having assumed editorialchargeof thepaperas 
 follov^s: "It shall be my ambition to so write as to advance 
 the interest of the laboring people of our nationality, and to 
 guide them in becoming good American citizens. I am one of 
 that class myself, and duringmy residence in the settlements of 
 the West I have learned to know^ their wants." The paper 
 w^as very favorably received both in this country and in 
 Sweden, and, under the name of Svenska Iribunen, is 
 still exercising a great and good influence among the Swed- 
 ish Americans. 
 
 The following winter (1867) the legislature of Minnesota 
 established a state bureau with the purpose of inducing im- 
 m.igrants to settle in the state, and I was appointed by 
 Gov. W. R. Marshall to be secretary of the board of emi- 
 gration, with the governor and secretary of state as ex~ 
 officio -members ; the Rev. John Ireland, now Catholic Arch- 
 bishop of Minnesota, was also for a time a member of that 
 board. 
 
 The St. Paul Press for March 14, 1867, contained the fol- 
 lowing concerning the new board: 
 
 "The state board of emigration, composed of Gov. Mar- 
 shall, Col. Rogers and Col, Mattson, was organized yester- 
 day, and a general plan of operation agreed upon. We learn 
 that the board concluded that, with the limited means at 
 their disposal, it was not advisable to employ agents to 
 work in Europe, but to use every practicable effort to turn 
 
9S Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 immigrants to Minnesota, after their arrival in this country . 
 Efforts will be made to procure the publication of facts in 
 regard to the state, in eastern and European journals; to 
 make arrangements with railroads, more advantageous to 
 emigrants than, heretofore and to afford them through in- 
 terpreters and otherwise reliable information in regard to 
 the best routes to the state from eastern parts. To give the 
 emigrant a general idea of the characteristics of every local- 
 ity in Minnesota, it is proposed to procure a map or chart 
 of the state, showing its boundaries, streams, lakes, naviga- 
 ble rivers, timber and prairie sections, etc." 
 
 One of my first and most pleasant duties as secretary of 
 the board was to secure aid for the settlers along the Minne- 
 sota river. This locality had suffered from drought the 
 previous year, and the settlers, most of whom were Swedes, 
 Norwegians and Finlanders, were almost entirely destitute, 
 and had no grain left for seed. Having secured an order 
 from the government in Washington for provisions from the 
 commissary department at Fort Ridgely, and being fur- 
 nished with a letter of credit from our own state, I left for 
 the stricken territory in the beginning of April, passing 
 i:hrough the counties of Redwood, Renville, Yellow Medicine 
 and Chippewa. At New Ulm several hundred sacks of 
 flour were purchased, and at Fort Ridgely large quantities 
 of pTOvisIons were taken out of the United States military 
 stores. Agents were appointed to distribute these among 
 the people, seed wheat and com were shipped there from the 
 South, and the settlers were thus relieved. 
 
 Soon after my return to St. Paul the board of emigration 
 
 was again called together, and I was authorized to appoint 
 
 Sv^edish, Norwegian and German agents and interpreters to 
 
 'meet our emigrants in New York and Quebec, and be their 
 
 guides and protectors on the journey through the country 
 
 . to our state. Temporary homes were also secured until the 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 99 
 
 commissioners in the service of the board could get work for 
 those who wanted to work out, and direct the rest to the 
 interior of the state, where they could settle on government 
 land or buy cheap land from private parties. 
 
 Arrangements were made with newspapers in different 
 languages for publishing articles written by myself and 
 others, which contained descriptions of Minnesota and its 
 resources. Pamphlets and maps with more detailed accounts, 
 w^ere printed in Swedish, Norwegian and German, and dis- 
 tributed in the respective countries, on board the ocean 
 steamers, at the railroad stations and at other convenient 
 places. I was the author of nearly all of this literature, in 
 which great pains were taken to describe everything in 
 detail; how the chests or boxes ought to be made and 
 marked before leaving the old country; what articles ought 
 to be taken along; what kind of provisions were most 
 suitable; what measures ought to be taken with reference 
 to cleanliness and behavior during the long and tedious 
 journey, etc. On my visits among our western farmers 
 years afterwards I have often seen pamphlets in Swedish 
 and Norwegian with my name as author standing in the 
 little bookshelf side by side with the Bible, the prayer-book, 
 the catechism, and a few other reminiscences from the old 
 country. I also spent some time attending to the needs of 
 the emigrants in the sea-ports and in Chicago, made arrange- 
 ments with railroad companies for securing better accommo- 
 dations and even free tickets for hundreds of emigrants, who 
 would otherwise have been compelled to part with their 
 companions before reaching their place of destination. 
 
 While performing my duty as secretary of the board of 
 emigration I also acted as land agent for one of our great- 
 est railroad companies, whose line went through Wright, 
 Meeker, Kandiyohi, Swift and Stevens counties, and near 
 Lake Ripley, in Meeker county. I purchased some eight 
 
 \ 
 \ 
 
100 
 
 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 hundred acres of land for myself, on ^which I made extensive 
 improvements and spent some time as a farmer. 
 
 -1 
 
 In the above-named localities tl ere were only a few widely 
 scattered families when I went there in 1867, while it is now 
 one continuous Scandinavian settlement, extending over a 
 territory more than a hundred miles long and dotted over 
 with cities and towns, largely the result of the work of the 
 board of emigration during the years 1867, 1868 and 1869. 
 
' STORi OF AN Emigrant. 101 
 
 The board of emigration did not show partiality toward 
 any portion of the state, but did all its work with a view to 
 the interest of the whole community. Our efforts, however, 
 in behalf of Minnesota brought on a great deal of envy and 
 ill-will from people in other states who were interested in 
 seeing the Scandinavian emigration turned towards Kansas 
 and other states, and this feeling went so far that a promi- 
 nent newspaper writer in Kansas accused me of selling my 
 countrymen to a life not much better than slavery in a land 
 of ice, snow and perpetual winter, where, if the poor emi- 
 grant did not soon starve to death, he would surely perish 
 with cold. Such was at that time the opinion of many con- 
 cerning Minnesota. I would be more than human if I did 
 not, in recalling these incidents, point with pride and satis- 
 faction to the condition of the Scandinavians in Minnesota 
 to-day, but will return to this further on. 
 
 The position which I held enabled me to be of service to 
 countrymen in more ways than one. Thus the interests of 
 the church were by no means neglected, and I think my 
 readers will excuse me for inserting the following lines from 
 the minutes of the eighth annual councij of the Swedish 
 Augustana Synod, held in Berlin, 111., June 13, 1867: 
 
 "Whereas, The same conference reports that Col. Mattson 
 has offered to procure sites for churches, parsonages and 
 burial grounds for Lutheran churches in the new Scandina- 
 vian settlements in Western Minnesota, 
 
 "Therefore Resolved, That the synod express its thanks to 
 Col. Mattson, and request him to get deeds on said property 
 to be given to the different churches of the Augustana 
 Synod, as soon as they are organized at the different places." 
 
 It has always been admitted that during those years the 
 emigrants destined for Minnesota received better care, guid- 
 ance and protection than was ever accorded to a like class 
 before or after that time. It is also acknowledged that the 
 
102 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 state received great benefits in return by being settled by a 
 .superior class of emigrants from tbe northern countries. As 
 ifor my own share in that work, although my efforts were 
 sometimes misunderstood and I myself blamed, as any one 
 will be who has to deal with newly-arrived emigrants,. I 
 •felt much pride and satisfaction in the work, knowing that 
 not only the state, but the emigrants themselves, and even 
 the serving and laboring classes remaining in the old coun- 
 tries, were very greatly benefited thereby. While laboring 
 hard for immigration to Minnesota my chief object was to 
 get the emigrants away from the large cities and make 
 them settle on the unoccupied lands in the northwest, v^here 
 the climate was suitable to them, and w^here it was morally 
 certain that every industrious man or family would acquire 
 independence sooner and better than in the crowded cities of 
 the east. I never attempted to induce anyone to immigrate, 
 but tried to reach those only wbo had already made up 
 their minds to do so, and the only people that I ever induced 
 to leave their mother country w^ere a number of poor serv- 
 ants and tenants among my own or my parents' acquaint- 
 ances for whom I myself paid partly or wholly the cost of 
 the journey. 
 
CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Visit to Sweden in 1868-1869— The Objectof ray Journey— Experiences and 
 Observations During the Same — Difference Between American and 
 Swedish Customs— My Birth-place— Arrival and Visit There — Visit to 
 Christianstad— Visit to Stockholm — The Swedish Parliament — My Re- 
 turn to America — Reflections on and Impressions of the Condition of the 
 Bureaucracy of Sweden. 
 
 For many years I had desired to revisit the home of my 
 childhood, and in December, 1868, saying good-bye to fam- 
 ily and friends, I set out alone on my first visit to Sweden, 
 after an absence of nearly eighteen years. The chief object 
 of the journey was recreation and pleasure; the second ob- 
 iect to make the resources of Minnesota better known 
 among the farming and laboring classes, who had made up* 
 their minds to emigrate. This visit to the fatherland 
 marked an important era in my life. Being only eighteen 
 years old when I first left it, my impressions were vague and 
 imperfect. Nor had I seen much of that beautiful country 
 until my return in 1868. I shall now endeavor to relate 
 some of those impressions and experiences as faithfully as 
 memory permits, and should I have to record some things 
 that will offend certain classes of my countrymen, I do it 
 with no unfriendliness or lack of kindly feeling, but simply 
 in the interest of truth; for after having been a true and 
 loyal American citizen for nearly forty years I still cling to 
 
 103 
 
104 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 Sweden, its people and institutions, with the affection of a 
 child toward its mother. 
 
 When I left Sweden in 1851 there were no railroads. On 
 my return the 23d day of December, 1868, via England, 
 Germany and Copenhagen, I landed at Malmo just in time 
 to ^walk to the railroad station and take the train to Chris- 
 tianstad. The beautiful station with its surroundings, 
 the uniformed and courteous officials in attendance, the 
 well-dressed and comfortable-looking people in the first and 
 second-class waiting room, all made a pleasant impression 
 upon me, which soon was to be disturbed, however, by the 
 following little incident: As I stepped up to the ticket win- 
 dow to buy my ticket I observed a poor working woman at 
 the third-class window with a silver coin in her hand and 
 with tears in her eyes begging the clerk to give her the 
 change and a ticket. I heard her pleading that she had left 
 three little children alone at home, that this was the last 
 train, and if she did not get home with it she would have to 
 walk in the mud after dark. The clerk insultingly refused 
 her, stating that he had no time to bother with her trifles 
 unless she paid the even change; she asked several gentlemen 
 near by to change her money for her, but they all turned away 
 as if fearing contamination by coming in contact with one 
 so poor and lowly.* I had only a few large bills, and as the 
 woman was crowded away, the same clerk at the first-class 
 window took one of my bills, and, w4th a most polite bow, 
 gave me a handful of large and small change. Of course I 
 got the woman her ticket also. This was possibly an excep- 
 tional case, but to me it was a striking example of the 
 difference between Swedish and American ways and cour- 
 tesy. I venture to say that in no railway station or other 
 public place in the whole United States, north or south, east 
 or west, would a poor woman in her circumstances be left 
 
 *The rules in Sweden give the ticket clerks the right to demand even change. 
 
Story of an emigrant. 105 
 
 one minute without a friend and protector. Men of all 
 classes, — from the millionaire to the day-laborer, or even 
 street loafer, — would have vied w^ith each other in trying to 
 be the first to render her assivStance. 
 
 I passed my old home at onnestad station after dark, and 
 soon arrived in Christianstad, where four years of my youth 
 had been spent. It was my purpose this time only to pass 
 through the city without looking up any old acquaintances. 
 This was my thirty-sixth birthday, and, thinking of family 
 and friends in my western home, I felt lonely, and repaired 
 to my room at the hotel. I was not left alone very long, 
 however, for the news of my arrival had preceded me by a 
 telegram from Copenhagen, and soon an old schoolmate 
 called, and a few minutes later the editor of the leading 
 newspaper, Karl Mollersvard, who was exactly of my own 
 age and had been on a short visit to America, and with 
 whom a warm and lasting friendship was soon formed. 
 The stroll through the little city the following morning 
 brought many tender recollections, and I should have enjoyed 
 it more had I not been such an object of attention and curi- 
 osity to everj'body there. 
 
 The advent of the railroad and the leveling of the old for- 
 tifications had brought many improvements on the out- 
 skirts, but the interior of the town with its little, narrow, but 
 rectangular squares, streets and alleys, and its little one and 
 two-story houses had undergone no change. And yet I could 
 hardly realize that it was the same, because those objects 
 which, to my boyish fancy, had seemed grand and imposing 
 now appeared so diminutive that it was more like a dream 
 than a living reality. This was particularly the case when, 
 at noon, I watched the guard-mount of the artillery at the 
 great square, and saw a large number of finely-uniformed 
 officers, many of them grey with age and service, their 
 breasts covered with decorations and crosses. With their 
 
106 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 sabres dragging and clashing against tHe pavement, and 
 their spurs rattling, they walked up to the parade line from 
 which they reviewed a couple of dozen soldiers with an air 
 of solemn dignity, which might have done honor to a Grant, 
 a Sherman, or a Sheridan, while reviewing our hundreds of 
 thousands of veterans of a hundred battlefields. Truly, if 
 the army of Sweden is defective in anything it is not in 
 the dignity and style of the officers of the Yendes artillery ; 
 but, joking aside, the splendid bearing and discipline of the 
 regiment made a good impression. This regiment has in 
 fact become noted as a training school for young men, who 
 are afterwards employed in the railroad service, and in large 
 establishments where ability, punctuality and practical 
 knowledge are necessary. 
 
 Christmas eve found me in Fjelkinge, at the old homestead 
 where my father was born, and where his people had lived 
 for generations. The place was now owned by a cousin of 
 mine, an excellent and very prominent man in his locality. 
 The telegram had not reached this quiet, and, to me, sacred, 
 spot. The astonishment and surprise of my honored cousin 
 and mytwo aged uncles, who were still living, can more easily 
 imagined than described, and I was received with cordiality 
 and joy. That night, spent under the roof of my forefathers, 
 surrounded by the old people and the many dear recollec- 
 tions, and by a new generation that had come into being 
 since my last visit there, stands vividly in m^' memory as 
 one of the most delightful of my life. 
 
 Another cousin of mine, a younger brother of Hans Lar- 
 son, of Fjelkinge, was reccor at Trolle-Ljungby, not far from 
 the old homestead. In his church there was to be an early 
 service Christmas morning. We consequently left Fjelkinge 
 very early, and arrived at Ljungbyjust as the candles were 
 lighted and the service commenced. We entered and sat 
 down in the sacristy just as my cousin had left it to enter the 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 107 
 
 pulpit in the cliurcli. He did not know that we were there^ 
 but we could see him, and hear his words during the solemn 
 **Otte song." On his return with his family to the sacristy 
 after the services, there was another surprise, and such joy 
 as w^e then experienced does not often fall to the lot of mor- 
 tal man. He told us that he had just had a dream about me 
 that very night, and his mind was full of anxiety about my 
 safety; but he had not expected to meet me so soon. Be- 
 tween him and me there had been a bond of friendship and ■ 
 brotherhood, even from childhood, which was now renewed, 
 never to be broken again. 
 
 I had a third uncle, my father's youngest brother, who 
 lived in Yislof, three Swedish miles from Fjelkinge. The sec- 
 ond day after my arrival he sent his son asking me to come 
 to him immediately, as he had been -waiting for me a long 
 time, and I went to his house the same evening. This uncle 
 had been stricken with paralysis two or three years before, 
 and been a bed-ridden invalid ever since, unable to use his 
 limbs, and at times even to speak. His eldest son had gone 
 to Minnesota the previous summer. The evening which I 
 spent at his bedside was a remarkable one. As soon as I 
 approached his bed he partly raised himself to sitting post- 
 ure and began to speak, which he had not been able to do 
 for a long time. His wife v^as sick abed in another room, 
 but his youngest son and two daughters were at his bed- 
 side with myself. He said he had been wanting to die for a long 
 time, but when he had heard that I was to visit Sweden he 
 wished to live until he could see me again. He asked me to 
 tell all about my father, our family and friends, and his eld- 
 est son. Then he asked me to take his family with me to 
 America when he was dead. When he had no more ques- 
 tions to ask or anything to communicate he sent his son for \ 
 two of the neighbors, said good-bye to all of us with the ex- . 
 clamation; ''Thanks for all you have related and promised! 
 
"> \ 
 
 108 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 Now I am ready to die! Farewell! God bless you all!'* 
 after which he breathed his last. The following spring his 
 famil}'- accompanied me to Minnesota. 
 
 I decided to spend New Year's eve with one of my most in- 
 timate boyhood friends, Mr. Nils Bengtson, in the little vi-' 
 lage of Skoglosa, where I was born. Some of the dearest 
 friends of m^^ parents and a number of my childhood ac- 
 quaintances were present there, and on New Year's day we 
 attended services together in the old church at onnestad 
 My presence was expected, and the church was crowded with 
 people who had been friends and neighbors of my parents, or 
 school and playmates of myself. Even the pastor had chos* 
 en a text applicable to me: **I think of the bygone days, 
 and of the time that is past." The solemn services made a 
 deep impression on all of us. A day or two later, in com- 
 pany with some friends I visited the little cottage where I 
 was born, and where a number of the neighbors had now 
 gathered to see me. One of my earliest recollections from 
 childhood was the spruce tree, which, as I mentioned in the 
 first chapter, was planted in the little garden by my parents. 
 It was the only tree of its kind for a great distance around. 
 It had grown to be a foot in diameter, was very beautiful, 
 and was the pride not only of the present owner of the little 
 farm, but of the whole neighborhood. After breaking off a 
 sprig or two of the tree to carry back to my parents, we left 
 the place early in the evening for Nils Bengtson's home, 
 which was about half a mile distant, and where I was still 
 a guest. 
 
 Early the next morning my host awoke me with the news 
 that the owner of the cottage had arrived before daylight, 
 anxious to communicate a strange accident. Upon being 
 admitted he stated that shortly after I left his house in the 
 evening, a single gust of wind swept by in great force and 
 broke the spruce tree off with a clean cut a few feet from the 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 109 
 
 ground. It seemed very strange to us all, and lie regarded 
 it as an ill-omen, sold the place shortly afterward, and went 
 with me to America the following spring. 
 
 At that time only a few Swedish emigrants had returned' 
 from America, and to see a man who had been eighteen years 
 in America, and had been a colonel in the American army 
 must have been a great curiosity, especially to the country 
 people; for wherever it was known that I would pass, peo- 
 ple flocked from their houses to the roads and streets in 
 order to catch a glimpse of the returned traveler. So great 
 was their curiosity that on New Year's eve the servant girls 
 of Nils Bengtson at Skoglosa, drew lots as to who should 
 carry in our coffee, and thereby get a chance to take the first 
 look at the American colonel. One of the ladies of the house 
 told me afterwards that when the girl returned to the 
 kitchen she put the tray down with great emphasis and dis- 
 appointment, exclaiming indignantly: ''Oh, pshaw! He 
 looks just like any other man ! " 
 
 Now followed a season of visits and entertainments in 
 Christianstad and the neighboring country, w^hich I shall 
 ever hold in grateful remembrance. I was received with cor- 
 diality everywhere among the common people and the middle 
 classes, v^hile the aristocratic classes looked on with distant 
 coldness, as they always do when aman of the people has suc- 
 ceeded in getting beyond what they w^ould call his legitimate 
 station, and is what we would call, in other words, a self" 
 made man. My plain name and humble ancestry were in 
 their eyes a fault that never could be forgiven. This did not 
 trouble me, however, for I sought no favors, or even recogni- 
 tion from the great, but found plenty of delight in the cor- 
 dial welcome of the middle classes. 
 
 In the month of February I visited Stockholm, in company 
 with my friend Nils Bengtson. It was the first time I had 
 been there, and, like all other travelers, I was charmed with 
 
110 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 the beautiftd city, and its gay and festive life. The parlia- 
 ment (Riksdag) was in session, and as a liberal from America 
 I was received with great cordiality by the liberal party. 
 One grand dinner and two evening parties were given by 
 some of its members in my honor, at which some of the most 
 distinguished liberal members of parliament were present. 
 Of course numerous toasts were proposed and speeches 
 made, in one of which I was called upon for my views on the 
 Swedish militia as corresponding largely to the lately dis- 
 banded volunteer army of the United States. 
 
 There was quite a famine in some of the Swedish provinces 
 that winter, and when the government asked the parliament 
 for an appropriation of several millions for carrying on field 
 maneuvers of the army the coming season, the liberals made a 
 strong opposition, preferring to use the money on some pub- 
 lic improvement in the famished provinces. Of course I ex- 
 pressed my sympathy strongly in favor of the volunteer or- 
 ganizations and against the proposed maneuvers of the 
 regulars. A few days afterward my words were quoted in 
 the parliament, and gave rise to a spirited correspondence in 
 one of the Stockholm conservative newspapers. 
 
 Returning to Skane I found myself besieged by people who 
 wished to accompany me back to America in the spring. Hav- 
 ing visited my wife's relatives at Ballingslof, and enjoyed 
 their hospitality, and made some trips to Wermland, Gothen- 
 burg, Lund and Copenhagen, I spent the rest of my time 
 with friends in Christianstad, Ljungby and Qnnestad. 
 
 Having been for many years a Free Mason in America, 
 and advanced to the highest degrees in that order, I was 
 received in great state and full ceremony into the provincial 
 lodge at Christianstad, and on Good Friday, if I remember 
 right, I had the honor of marching in the Masonic procession 
 between the tw.o highest Masons of the province, the aged 
 brothers. Barons Rolamb, wearing their gorgeous uniforms. 
 
Story of an Emigrant. Ill 
 
 while I was dressed only in a plain black dress suit. The 
 procession marched from the lodge to the chapel, only h^f a 
 block distant on the same street, but a great crowd had 
 gathered to see the mystic order, and I noticed many mani- 
 iestations of satisfaction among the masses at the honor 
 bestowed upon me, while I have reason to believe that some 
 of the uniformed brethren silently choked down a grudge 
 over the plain citizen whom the strict rules of the order, for 
 that day at least, had placed in a higher position than most 
 of them could ever hope to attain. 
 
 Time passed swiftly, and, as the crowds of intending emi- 
 grants were increasing daily, it was found that it would be 
 impossible for one steamer to carry them all, so I went early 
 in April to Helsingborg, where one shipload was started for 
 Minnesota under the leadership of Capt. Lindberg, a veteran 
 from the Anglo-Russian and the American war. A few weeks 
 later I followed across the Atlantic with a party which num- 
 bered eight hundred people, and in due time returned to my 
 home in my adopted country. 
 
 On the whole that first visit to Sweden v^as exceedingly 
 pleasant, although there would occasionally come up disa- 
 greeable incidents whenever America ^was the subject of 
 discussion. The laboring and middle classes already at that 
 time had a pretty correct idea of America, and the fate that 
 awaited emigrants there; but the ignorance, prejudice and 
 hatred toward America and everything pertaining to it 
 among the aristocracy, and especially the office holders, was 
 as unpardonable as it was ridiculous. It ^was claimed by 
 them that all was humbug in America, that it was the para- 
 dise of scoundrels, cheats and rascals, and that nothing good 
 could possibly come out of it. They looked upon emigrants 
 almost as criminals, and to contradict them was a sure 
 means of incurring their personal enmity and even insult. 
 
 I remember a conversation at an evening party in Nasby 
 
112 SiORY OF AN Emigrant. 
 
 between a learned doctor and myself. He started with a 
 pr^osition that it was wrong to leave one's native country, 
 because (lod has placed us there, and, although the lot of the 
 majority might be very hard, it was still their duty to 
 remain to toil and pray, and even starve, if necessary, because 
 we owed it to the country which had given us birth. In 
 reply I referred to one of the first commandments of the 
 Bible, that men should multiply, go out and fill up the earth ; 
 th^t if it were wrong for Swedes to emigrate, it was equally 
 wrong for the English, the Germans, the Spaniards and even 
 our progenitors, the ancient Arians, and if so, what would 
 the result be? Portions of this bountiful earth v^ould be 
 overcro^wded, privation, crime, bloodshed and misery would 
 follow, w^hile other continents would lie idle. If it had been 
 wrong to emigrate, America, v^hich to-day is the larder and 
 granary of the world, w^ould have remained in the possession 
 of a few savages. My argument was of no avail ; the doc- 
 tor, otherwise a kind and humane man, ^would rather see his 
 poor countrymen subsist on bread made partly out of bark, 
 which hundreds of them actually did at that very time in 
 one of the Swedish provinces, than have them go to America, 
 where millions upon millions of acres of fertile lands only 
 awaited the labor of their strong arms to yield an abun- 
 dance, not only for themselves, but also for the poor mil- 
 lions of Europe. 
 
 Hard as it is for the individual to change habits of long stand- 
 ing, it is still harder for nations and races to free themselves 
 from prejudices centuries old, especially in a small country 
 like Sweden, isolated from the great nations and thoroughfares 
 of the world. The importance of a military officer in Sweden 
 dates from an age when the common soldier was simply an igno- 
 rant machine, and the difference between "a faithful servant of 
 the king "and a common mortal was immense. The common 
 mortal of to-day, however, is climbing bravely up towards the 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 113 
 
 military demi-god. To command a company, or even a 
 regiment, in modem warfare, especially in times of peace, 
 requires but little tact and skill compared with former times, 
 when such commander often had to act independently and 
 at his own risk, whereas now there is scarcely any branch 
 of business which does not require more talent for its proper 
 management than the command of a company or a regiment. 
 It is therefore not on account of superior merits, but on 
 account of old fogy notions and prejudices that the bureau- 
 cracy, military and civil, consider themselves to be of such 
 immeasurable importance. My experience in life has taught 
 me that individually men do not count for much in the 
 world; that no man amounts to a great deal by himself; 
 and that the highest as well as the lowest is dependent largely 
 upon his fellows. 
 
 What has been said about the military officers applies, in 
 many cases, equally ^vell to the civil officers, or rather, to a 
 class of men holding life tenure offices in the civil serv- 
 ice. Just now civil service reform is the question in 
 American politics, and it means that officers in the civil 
 service shall be appointed for life. I have aWays, for my 
 part, doubted the wisdom of this reform, because I have seen 
 so much evil growing out of that system in Sweden, England 
 and India. To be sure, there -would be much good springing 
 from it, but it is very questionable whether the evil results 
 would not be still greater. 
 
 We Americans hold that all power of government ema- 
 nates from the people (as it certainly does with us), and 
 that the officers of the government, from the president down 
 to the village constable, are merely the servants of the peo- 
 ple, whose duty it is to enforce the laws and preserve good 
 order. In the other countries named it is still, to a certain 
 extent, supposed that God in his wisdom appoints the ruler, 
 that all power lies in him, and that whatever privileges 
 
11* Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 the people receive come as favors from the ruler. The influ- 
 ence and effect of these two ideas are as different in all the 
 ramifications of the system as the ideas themselves are irrec- 
 oncilable. 
 
 In America the humblest citizen goes to a local, state, or 
 United States official with head erect and demands that such 
 and such things be done, according to the law. In the other 
 countries the lowly and even the average individual comes 
 before the magistrate cringing and supplicating for his 
 rights as for a favor. Of course such a false and absurd sys- 
 tem, practiced for hundreds of years, can not fail to leave a 
 strong impression both upon the seekers and the granters of 
 such favors. 
 
 To me, brought up, ever since my boyhood, under the 
 American system, the importance of the civil officers in 
 Sweden seemed to be greatly at variance with the progress 
 made in the elevation of the people in general. I will only 
 take one example: The provincial governor (Landshof- 
 ding) and his immediate subordinates of a little province of 
 the size of half a dozen of our counties, appears with much 
 more pomp and style than any of the governors of our great 
 states ; and I have no doubt that such a governor considers 
 his office to be more important than that of the governors 
 of some of our states, each of which has a population larger 
 than that of the smaller kingdoms of Europe. 
 
CHAPTER X. 
 
 The Importance of the Scandinavian Element— A Swe5e Elected Secretary 
 of State in Minnesota — False Rumors of Indian Depredations — The 
 Northern Pacific Railroad is Built — Trip to Philadelphia — The National 
 Convention at Indianapolis — Delegation to Was'iington — A Swedish 
 Colony in Mississippi Moved to Minnesota — The Second Voyage to 
 Europe. 
 
 Politically the Scandinavians in America had exerted no 
 particular influence beyond that they had generally been 
 counted upon as loyal to the Republican party, and a few of 
 them had held county offices and been members of the state 
 legislatures in Wisconsin and Minnesota. The honor of first 
 bringing out a Scandinavian for a state office belongs to F. 
 S. Christensen, a young Dane, who, in the summer of 1869, 
 was editor of Nor disk Folkeblad in Rochester, Minn. 
 One day he called on me and asked if I would be candidate 
 for secretary of state, providing the Scandinavians of Minne- 
 sota should nominate me, to which I readily assented. A 
 few weeks later a Scandinavian convention was held in 
 Minneapolis and resulted in designating me as their choice 
 for secretary of state. At the Republican state convention 
 held in St. Paul in September that year, I was nominated 
 almost unanimously by the whole Republican party. Being 
 called to the platform after the nomination, I accepted the 
 same in a brief speech, which at the time attracted much at- 
 tention as echoing the sentiments of our people in the West. 
 
 115 
 
116 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 I therefore regard it of sufficient importance to quote it 
 here: 
 
 **Mr. President and Gentlemen of the Convention: 
 
 '* Allow me to tender you my hearty thatiks for the honor you have con- 
 ferred upon rue by this nomination. I feel doubly gratified for the very large 
 majority you gave me. The time does not admit of any extensive re- 
 marks upon my part, yet so much has been said lately regarding the Scan- 
 dinavian element, that the subject, perhaps, requires an explanation from 
 me; and, as the chosen representative of the Scandinavian people of this 
 state in the present campaign, I am authorized to express their views, ar d 
 I do so from a thorough knowledge of them. It is true that we have left 
 our beloved land ; we have strewn the last flowers upon the graves of our 
 forefathers, and have come here to sta3-, come here to live, and come hereto die. 
 We are not a clannish people, nor do we desire to build up a Scandinavian 
 nationality in your midst. You have known us here for many years; you 
 have seen us come among you unacquainted with your language and your 
 customs, and yet 1 know that you will bear me witness how readily and 
 fraternally w^e have mingled with you, learned your language and adopted 
 your ways, and how naturally our children grow^ up as Americans, side by 
 side with yours. We have been cordially received in this great west by your 
 own pioneers, and have become prosperous and happy. Yes, we love this 
 great country of freedom, and we wish to be and remain Americans." 
 
 Being elected a few weeks later by a large majority, I 
 assumed the duties of secretary of state on the 1st of Janu- 
 ary, 1 870. As secretary of state I was still a member ex- 
 officio of the board of emigration, and had charge of all its 
 work and correspondence, which amounted often to a 
 hundred letters a day. 
 
 In the month of June following, rumor came to the capitol 
 of a new Indian outbreak on our western frontier. It was 
 said that Indians had come in the night and committed 
 depredations, and quite an alarm was caused all along the 
 frontier; the bloody massacre of 1862 was still fresh in the 
 memories of our people, and while the state authorities did 
 not believe this rumor, we deemed it necessary to take meas- 
 ures at once for pacifying the people by protecting the 
 frontier. Therefore I started out at once with several hun- 
 dred stand of arms, with ammunition and authority to 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 117 
 
 oiganize tHe settlers into militia companies and commission 
 officers for the same. Selecting a few friends for company 
 and aids, we went by rail as far as Benson, Swift county, 
 thence by ox teams northward, following the frontier settle- 
 ments to the northern portion of Otter Tail county. Four 
 companies of militia were organized and officers duly ap- 
 pointed, the last being in Otter Tail county, with a Swedish 
 count, Ragnar Kalling, as captain. This prompt action 
 stopped the panic, and all has been quiet since that time. 
 The rumor of the Indian depredation proved to have origi- 
 nated with some settlers who, in the disguise of Indians, had 
 tried to scare away a Norwegian from a claim which he had 
 taken from another man. 
 
 During this year one of the greatest railroad enterprises in 
 the w^orld was commenced, namely, the building of the 
 Northern Pacific, extending from Lake Superior to the 
 Pacific coast, a distance of over two thousand miles. The 
 celebrated financier Jay Cooke, of Philadelphia, who had 
 acquired a great reputation as the financial agent of Presi- 
 dent Lincoln's administration during the war, was at the 
 head of the enterprise. The Northern Pacific Company had 
 received a government grant of many millions of acres of 
 land along the proposed railroad, and it required millions 
 upon millions of dollars to build the road. One of the 
 important financial questions ^th Jay Cooke ^was how to 
 derive a revenue from the sale of lands, and hov^ to get 
 settlers and communities started along the line of the road. 
 So ignorant were the people of this country about the region 
 lying within the limits of the Northern Pacific railroad that 
 it was generally supposed to be either barren or too far 
 north for successful agriculture; yet that very region has 
 since proved to be the greatest wheat producing country in 
 the world. Mr. Cooke himself had been all over it with a 
 small party, under the escort of United States cavalry, on 
 
lis Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 an exploring tour, and he was perhaps the only man of that 
 .day who foresaw the future greatness of the Northern Pacific 
 . region. 
 
 :. Late in the fall of 1870 I received a letter from Mr. Cooke, 
 in Philadelphia, inviting me to come and spend a week with 
 him and talk over the new Northwest. Upon the advice 
 of ex-Gov. Marshall, who had spoken of me to Mr. Cooke, 
 the then Gov. Austin and other prominent men, I repaired to 
 Philadelphia, and spent some days at Mr. Cooke's palatial 
 residence near that city. He had also for guests a delegation 
 of French and German bankers, who had just arrived from 
 Europe. Mr. Cooke impressed me as one of the greatest 
 and noblest men I had ever met. His enthusiasm and elo- 
 quent arguments carried everything before him. The millions 
 were raised, largely in Europe, and the road was built, as 
 we all know. The result of my conference with him was my 
 permanent engagement, at a salary more than twice as 
 large as that I had from the state, to repair to Europe in 
 the spring as agent of his enterprise, with headquarters in 
 Sweden, my special duties being to make known in the 
 northern countries of continental Europe the resources of 
 the Northern Pacific, particularlj? the park region in Minne- 
 sota. I was also requested by Mr. Cooke to draw up a 
 general plan on my return home for the disposal of the 
 company's lands, which I did, and that plan was adopted 
 for the guidance of its land and emigration officers and 
 agents. 
 
 In the month of December a national convention was held 
 in the city of Indianapolis, Ind., for the purpose of devising 
 measures for the better protection of emigrants on ocean 
 steamers, and while in transit through this country. All the 
 states interested in emigration sent delegates to that con- 
 vention, and I was one of those representing our state ; my 
 knov^ledge and experience of the subject at issue enabled me 
 
Story op an Emigrant. 119 
 
 t3 take such a part in the proceedings that at the close of 
 the convention, I was appointed one of a committee of five 
 (Gov. McCook, of Colorado, State Treasurer Smith, of Wis- 
 consin, Banker Greenbaum, of Illinois, and a leading news- 
 paper man of Philadelphia, were the other members) to draft 
 a law for the protection of emigrants, and to proceed to 
 Washington and lay the same before the president and con- 
 gress. There I had an opportunity for the second time to 
 meet Gen. Grant, who was then president. I spent much 
 time with him, and he took a lively interest in the emigra- 
 tion question. The result of our work was the passage by 
 the United States congress of the excellent laws in relation 
 to emigration which still remain in force. 
 
 In January, 1871, the state legislature of Minnesota again 
 assembled. The senate then consisted of twenty-two mem- 
 bers, and was opened and organized by Lieut. Gov. Yale, 
 and the house of representatives, with forty-seven members, 
 by myself as secretary of state. 
 
 During that winter I received several touching letters from 
 Swedes located in the state of Mississippi. They were pait 
 of a little colony w^hich had gone there the previous year, 
 direct from Sweden. The climate was unsuitable ; one-fifth 
 of the people had already died, nearly all the rest -were sick, 
 and there was great distress and misery among them. They 
 asked me to get them away into the healthy climate of Min- 
 nesota. They were entirely destitute of means, and had to 
 be placed where the men could obtain employment when 
 they should have regained sufiicient health and strength. 
 
 The Duluth & St. Paul Railroad Company, which was 
 then a part of Jay Cooke's system, upon my request, furnished 
 the necessary means, and sent Mr. F. S. Christensen, hereto- 
 fore mentioned, to Mississippi to bring the party to St. 
 Paul, which he did under many difficulties, in such satisfac- 
 tory manner that upon his return he received an appoint- 
 
120 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 ment by the company as local land agent at Rush City, in 
 which position he remained many years. He is now presi- 
 dent of the bank at that place, being married as before 
 stated, to m3' niece, the little Zelma, whom the Indian 
 squaws were so fond of playing with in the old log cabin. 
 The little colony from Mississippi has certainly demonstrated 
 that the northern climate is by far the best for the northern 
 people. They had left Sweden strong, robust and hopeful 
 men and women ; after having stayed one year in the South 
 they arrived in Minnesota pale, poor and broken down, 
 lacking strength and energy, and almost without hope. 
 
 The railroad company acted most generously towards 
 them. It built them comfortable houses, furnished an 
 abundance of provisions, cooking utensils and other neces- 
 saries; they gave the men employment at liberal wages as 
 soon as they were able to work, and yet many of those very 
 people growled and complained because we did not do more 
 for them. I remember distinctly how one of the women, 
 when her share of groceries and provisions arrived, was per- 
 fectly indignant because there was only granulated sugar, 
 and she had always been **used to drink coffee with lump 
 sugar in Sweden." This bad trait among newly arrived em- 
 igrants from any country is very common, gratitude and 
 contentment being exceptional the first year or two, as all 
 will testify who have had anything to do with them. It 
 really seems that the more that is done for them the less sat- 
 isfied they are. I am glad to say, however, that after a few 
 years they get over this bad fault, and so did the little party 
 from Mississippi, most of whom have all of late years re- 
 pented and even apologized for their former folly and ingrat- 
 itude. They formed the nucleus of the large Swedish settle- 
 ment west of Rush City, now one of the most prosperous in 
 the state. 
 
 After the close of the legislature in the spring of 1871 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 121 
 
 preparations were made for carrying out my agreement with 
 Jay Cooke to go to Europe for an indefinite time. Having 
 been criticised by some of my countrymen, for resigning tlie 
 office of secretary of state at that time, I owe them tl^e 
 fjllowing explanation: First: Personally, I was compa a 
 tively poor, and the salary which I received from the go " 
 emment, with the great draw^-backs for all sorts of charities 
 and public enterprises, which an official in that position has 
 to meet, v^as insufficient to support me and my family, and 
 I considered that I had the same rights as any other citizen 
 to better my pecuniary condition, which I did by accept 'ng 
 the offer of Jay Cooke. Secondly: It was of greater impor- 
 tance to the public, and I could render better service to the 
 state at this period of its early development, as agent for a 
 great railroad company, which fact was fully recognized by 
 our leading public men, and it was with their advice and at 
 their earnest request that I took the step. I accordingly 
 tendered my resignation to the governor of our state, but 
 he, out of polite consideration, preferred that I should take 
 a leave of absence until fall, v^hen the people would have an 
 opportunity at the political convention, to designate my 
 successor, and wrote me the following letter: 
 
 " State of Minnesota, 
 " Executive Department. 
 
 <• St. Paul, May 25, 1871. 
 
 " Col H. Mattzon, Secretary of State: 
 
 " Dear Sir: lycarning that it is your intention, on taking your departure 
 for Europe, to resign your office of secretary of state, allow me to ask you 
 to reconsider that resolution. You will leave a very competent deputy, 
 perfectly acquainted with all the duties of the office, and in whose integ- 
 rity, as well as in his honesty, the public have unlimited confidence. Within 
 a few montns your successor will be indicated by the delegates chosen by 
 tlie people, comprising the dominant party of the state, and then he may 
 be appointed, if you are to resign at all, with no uncertainty as to the 
 popular choice of the individual who should fill that important post. For 
 tl ese reasons I hope you will conclude to withhold your resignation, at 
 
122 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 least for the present. I most cordially wish you a pleasant journey to the 
 field of your new labors, great success there, and a safe return to the land 
 you have served and loved so well. 
 
 "■^yery truly yours, 
 
 "Horace Austin, Governor." 
 
 It is true that even after the state convention the governor 
 did not appoint my successor, but preferred to leave the 
 office nominally in my hands in charge of my very able 
 assistant, the Hon. Pennock Pusey, until the end of the 
 term, so that in fact I did not resign, but kept my office dur- 
 ing the whole term for which I had been elected. 
 
 In the last week of May I left for Sweden the second time, 
 taking my family w^ith me. The journey passed very pleas- 
 antly over England, Germany and Denmark. "We arrived in 
 Hamburg in the morning of the day when the Hamburgian 
 troops returned under Prince Carl from the Franco-Prussian 
 w^ar, and made a triumphant entry into the city, being re- 
 ceived with the greatest enthusiasm by the whole populace. 
 It was indeed a grand sight, as &11 these troops marched by 
 our hotel, men and horses literally covered with ^vreaths, 
 flowers and bouquets, thrown over them by the grateful 
 people. On this journey I carried important business letters 
 from leading railroad men in Minnesota to some capitalists 
 in Holland, T^ho had advanced several million dollars for the 
 construction of railroads in our state. I mention this, 
 because it paved my way to very important business connec- 
 tions vrith prominent Hollanders a few years afterward. 
 
 Shortly before entering upon this journey, a private bank- 
 ing and foreign exchange business was established in St. 
 Paul under the firm name of H . Mattson & Co. My partners 
 were Consul H. Sahlgaard and A. T. Lindholm, who success- 
 fully managed the business during my absence. A few years 
 later this affair was merged into the St. Paul Savings Bank, 
 of which Mr. Sahlgaard became the cashier, while Mr. Lind- 
 holm and myself both withdrew. The banking firm H. Matt- 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 123 
 
 son & Co. was one of the first firms that, as agent for the 
 Cunard Line, introduced the system of prepaid steamship 
 tickets from Europe to America, which has gradually gained 
 the confidence of the people, and developed into a very 
 extensive and important business. 
 
CHAPTER XL 
 
 In Sweden Again — ^Reception at My Old Home — Visit to Northern Sweden— 
 I Field Maneuvers in Sweden — The Opening of Parliament — In Norway — 
 Visit in Stockholm — Royal Palaces — The Gota Canal — A Trip to Fin- 
 land and Russia — King Oscar II. — A Trip to Dalarne in the Winter. 
 
 On June 21, 1871, I landed a second time in my native 
 country at Malmo. As already stated, I was this time 
 accompanied by my wife and children, and intended to remain 
 in Europe several years, w^hich we also did. 
 
 At Hessleholm wre were met by relatives and friends vsrho 
 conducted us to the old city of Christianstad, where we were 
 to make our home. The early part of the beautiful northern 
 summer we spent in visiting friends aiid kinsmen. Entertain- 
 ments, excursions and festivities of all kinds alternated con- 
 tinually. The kindness and hospitality of the people knew 
 no bounds, and no matter how defective some of the old 
 institutions of Sv^eden may be they are in my opinion more 
 than counterbalanced by the many beautiful and noble traits 
 of character of the people, which we observed everywhere, 
 and which are faithfully stored up in our hearts and minds, 
 so that we always find a great delight in looking back to 
 those days. 
 
 Having spent a large portion of the summer in this man- 
 ner, I started in the month of August on a tour to the north- 
 ern part of the countrj^ visiting Stockholm, Upsala, Gefle, 
 Hudiksvall, and several other places. This was my first op- 
 
 124 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 125 
 
 pcrtunity to see the beautiful scenery of northern Sweden, 
 the fine, quiet bays, the magnificent lakes, the pleasant valleys, 
 the green hills, the mountains dark with pine forests, all of 
 which contribute to make the scenery. of Norrland so varied 
 and attractive. 
 
 In the fall I returned to southern Sweden, and had an op- 
 portunity to witness the field maneuvers of the largest por- 
 tion of the Swedish army, and also to meet the popular king 
 Charles XV. The maneuvers were very fine, but, in my opin- 
 ion, the troops could not have endured a long campaign, 
 with its exhaustive marches and hardships. The soldiers 
 complained loudly of fatigue, and quite a number of them 
 were taken sick after the march of only fourteen to eighteen 
 miles, although the weather was fine, cool, and bracing. 
 Compared with our American army during the late war, when 
 marches of twice that distance were quite frequent, the 
 Swedish army ^was inferior ; but these weak points would 
 probably soon be remedied by practice in actual warfare. 
 
 After having seen King Charles I was no longer astonished 
 at his great popularity among the people. There w^as some- 
 thing about him which seemed to electrify and charm every- 
 one who came within the circle of his personal influence. I 
 saw him again the following winter at the opening of par- 
 liament in Stockholm. With all due respect for old Swedish 
 customs and manners, I cannot but compare this pageant to 
 a great American circus — minus the menagerie, of course. 
 I would like to describe this serio-comical demonstration 
 for the benefit of my American readers ; but I am sorry to 
 say that I can no longer remember the titles of the different 
 ofl&cers, heralds, guards, lackeys, pages, etc., — all of them 
 dressed in the most gorgeous costumes, some of them preced- 
 ing, others following the king and the royal princes, who 
 were adorned with all the mediaeval clap-trap insignia of 
 royalty, and wrapped in huge mantles of gay colors, and 
 
126 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 with long trains borne by courtiers or pages. We can com- 
 prehend the importance of a display of this kind a couple of 
 centuries ago, but it seems to me that the common sense of 
 our times demands its abolishment, and unless I am very 
 much mistaken King Charles himself, who was a practical 
 and sensible man, was of the same opinion. 
 
 The same winter I made a visit to Norway, which was 
 repeated the following summer. The social and political 
 conditions of the country reminded me somewhat of America, 
 Norway being ahead of Sweden in that respect, and I am 
 not surprised that the Norwegians are proud of their beauti- 
 ful country. 
 
 One of my most pleasant journeys in Europe was a trip 
 which I took in company with wife and children in the early 
 part of the summer of 1872. On this trip we wrent through 
 the lovely province of Sodermanland, and thence by rail to 
 Stockholm, where we met many old friends and acquain- 
 tances. Midsummerday v^as celebrated in the circle of a 
 number of happy friends at Hasselbakken, and on the follow- 
 ing days we made repeated visits to the enchanting surround- 
 ings of the capital. On one of these outings to Drot- 
 ningholm, a summer palace, we met other American 
 tourists, and I remember distinctly how we all agreed that 
 this "was just the locality for some charitable institution, 
 where the unfortunate poor and suffering members of society' 
 could be taken care of, as, for instance, a home for old 
 widows, or orphans, or old men who have served their 
 country faithfully in peace or war, but have been reduced to 
 poverty in their old age. As a contrast to Drotningholm we 
 pictured in our minds the Soldiers' Home near Washington, 
 where Abraham Lincoln had a few rooms, and found rest 
 and recreation among trees and flowers, and it seemed to us 
 that -some of the country palaces of Sweden might just as 
 well be used for a similar purpose. 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 127 
 
 Having remained in Stockholm for some time, we directed 
 our course southward, by way of the Gota canal, past 
 Motala, Trollhattan, and Gothenburg. How great, how- 
 delightful, how glorious ! Dull and coarse must that man or 
 woman be who can make this trip without being proud of 
 the sons of Sweden and their peaceful avocations. In school 
 I had read the history of Sweden, but it treated chiefly of 
 warfare and of the exploits of the kings, only incident- 
 ally touching the achievements of peaceful work and the 
 development of social and moral culture, which, in my 
 opinion, are of supreme importance, and desei've the great- 
 est honor. But then, it must be remembered that Swedish 
 history was at that time written v^ith the assumption that 
 royalty and a few warriors are the sun and the stars around 
 w^hich the whole people and the country revolve, and from 
 which they received their light and value. A better time has 
 now daw^ned on Sweden, and even common people are 
 acknowledged to have a certain inherent worth. Still I am 
 afraid it will take some time before old prejudices can be dis- 
 pelled. 
 
 In the fall of the same year I took a trip through Finland 
 and Russia, having secured a passport issued by Gen. C. C. 
 Andrews, who was then United States minister in Stock- 
 holm. I went with the steamer Aura from Stockholm to 
 ^^bo, Helsingfors, and Cronstadt. The pine-clad islands and 
 shores of the Bay of Finland afforded a beautiful panorama 
 from the steamer. The sight of Sveaborg made me feel that 
 I was still a Swede in soul and heart, for I was overpowered 
 by a deep sadness when I thought of the heinous treason by 
 which this impregnable fortress was forced to surrender. 
 
 I spent several days in St. Petersburg, during which I took 
 in the chief sights of this grand city, such as St. Isaacs' church, 
 the monument to Peter the Great, the w^inter palaces, etc. 
 It happened to be the anniversary of the coronation of the 
 
128 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 Czar, and I had the pleasure of seeing the magnificent mili- 
 tary parade arrayed for the occasion. My American pass- 
 port opened all doors to me wherever I tried to enter, and I 
 was treated with the greatest politeness by military as well 
 as civil authorities. To an uninitiated eye my personal lib- 
 erty and independence seemed just as great here as in Wash- 
 ington ; but that was not the case, for I knew that my every 
 step was being closely watched. 
 
 One day my guide conducted me to a place in one of the 
 suburbs, where some hundred prisoners w^ere starting on 
 their long journey to Siberia. He also conducted me to the 
 Church of St. Peter and St. Paul, where the Russian Czars 
 are crowned and buried; and through the fortress and 
 prison, in whose moist, murky dungeons the political pris- 
 oners hear the great bell in the steeple striking the hour, and 
 the watchman crying his monotonous, *' God save the Czar." 
 while from year to year the victims of despotism suffer and 
 languish, often on a mere suspicion, and without a fairtrial, 
 until death finally puts an end to their sufferings. What is 
 the reason that politically Russia has always been on the 
 most friendly terms with the United States? How canliberty 
 £ind the rankest tyranny have anything to do with each 
 other? This has always been a riddle to me. I despise the 
 friendship of a despotism like that of Russia, v^here the gov- 
 ernment orders innocent men and women to be seized in the 
 silence of the night, torn away from their homes and fami- 
 lies, incarcerated in dungeons, and subjected to bodily tor- 
 ture and social disgrace simply because they are suspected of 
 ha\'ing expressed or cherished liberal ideas. 
 
 Returning to Sweden by way of Finland I remained a few 
 days at Helsingfors. Having presented my passport to the 
 authorities of the city, the commander of the garrison sent 
 an officer inviting me to visit the barracks and other places 
 of interest. I accepted the invitation and epent two days 
 
Story op an Emigrant. 129 
 
 under the guidance of my cicerone. This was of course a 
 rare treat, and it brought me in contact with many promi- 
 nent citizens and officers. We also took a ride out in the 
 country to see the condition of the peasants. In common 
 with all other Swedes I have always sympathized with un- 
 fortunate Finland, in the belief that its people must be very 
 unhappy and yearn for a reunion with Sweden. This proved 
 to be a great misconception. What a peculiar contradic- 
 tion ! The Russian despots treat the Fins with generosity 
 and justice, and as far as I could understand, the people were 
 highly pleased with Russian supremacy, and would not be- 
 come subjects of Sweden again, even if they could.* 
 
 The following winter I had the honor of meeting King 
 Oscar, of Sweden, at the funeral solemnities arranged by the 
 grand lodge of Free Masons on the occasion of the death of 
 King Charles XV. I have attended quite a number of official 
 gatherings of different kinds in different countries, and seen 
 persons vested with the highest authority conducting the 
 same, but as to true dignity and lofty majesty, King Oscar 
 excelled them all. When I compare him with the czar of all 
 the Russias, or compan ih.<: condition of the Swedes with 
 that of their Russian neighbors, I thank God for my old 
 native land and its noble king. 
 
 Of my numerous trips in Sweden I must mention one in 
 particular, — a journey by sleigh, — in company w^ith my old 
 friend Karl Mollersvard, from Upsala to Gefle, and from 
 Falun south, through Dalarne, past Smedjebacken, and the 
 lakes below this to Vest eras. The beauty of the country of a 
 northern clime does not show itself in its entire splendor 
 until dressed in the garb of winter. The branches of the 
 mighty pines loaded down by the dazzling snow^; millions of 
 snow crystals, more beautiful than diamonds, glittering from 
 
 ♦Since the above was written the Russian government has shown a dispo- 
 sition to treat Finland in a way that will soon change the friendly feelings of the 
 Finnish people. 
 

 ^^ 
 
 •'¥ 
 
 130 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 every twig as the sun sends its first mornin"- rays through 
 the forests; the picturesque costumes of the peasantry ; the 
 comfortable inns -with their fine dishes of northern game; 
 the neat sleighs drawn by small, swift, sure-footed horses ; 
 here and there a smelting furnace or a country church, — all 
 these things combined left en my mind a picture of rural 
 life more quiet, happy and beautiful than I had ever seen 
 before. 
 
 -OO , 
 
CHAPTER XII. 
 
 Visit in Minnesota and Philadelphia — ConYersation with Jay Coote — The 
 ; Crisis of 1873 — Neg^otiations in Holland — Draining of a Lake in Skane— 
 Icelandic Colony in Manitoba — Return to America, 
 
 In the spring of 1873 I returned to Minnesota in company 
 with a large number of immigrants. Being anxious to have 
 my children learn the Swedish language, I left my family in 
 S^?\reden where the children attended school. They spent this 
 summer at Ronneby watering place, where the surroundings 
 are characteristic of the mild and pleasant scenery of south- 
 ern Sweden. 
 
 In traveling from the Atlantic to Minnesota we came by 
 way of the Great Lakes and the Sault St. Marie canal. 
 Having spent a couple of months in Minnesota I returned 
 to Europe again via Philadelphia, New York and Quebec. 
 The reader may remember that the Northern Pacific railroad 
 was building at that time, and that Jay Cooke, by means 
 of his enthusiasm and great popularity, had succeeded in rais- 
 ing large sums of money for this stupendous enterprise. The 
 Union Pacific railroad, south of us, was already in opera- 
 tion, and its owners, fearing the competition of the new 
 road, had resorted to all conceivable schemes to undermine 
 the confidence of the public in the Northern Pacific road and 
 its promoters. Many of those who had furnished money 
 began to feel uneasy, but Jay Cooke went ahead, full of hope 
 and confidence in its final success. Just as I called at his pri- 
 
 131 
 
132 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 vate office in Philadelpliia in August, one of his bookkeepers 
 handed him a card from a prominent moneyed man in Phila- 
 delphia who wished to see him, and the following conversa- 
 tion took place between the two : 
 
 ** What can I do for you, my friend ? " Jay Cooke said. 
 
 **We begin," said the capitalist, **to loseconfidence in your 
 railroad schemes. I have bought $20,000 w^orth of bonds, 
 but I am getting a little afraid, and came to ask your 
 advice." 
 
 "My dear sir, the Northern Pacific Railroad bonds are just 
 as safe as United States bonds," 
 
 *' If this is your conviction, will you please exchange them 
 for my bonds?" 
 
 ** Certainly. Here ; give this" — ^he handed him a slip of pa- 
 per v^ith a few lines on it — "to my cashier, and he will give 
 you United States bonds in exchange." 
 
 The gentleman withdrew perfectly satisfied, and Jay 
 Cooke turned to me with the following explanation: "I 
 have seen the Northern Pacific country; that's the reason I 
 am so confident in the success of this railroad enterprise. If 
 we only succeed in accomplishing the work, I shall certainly 
 prove that I was right; but if we fail, our antagonists will 
 get a grist to their mill. But, whatever the result may be, 
 no one shall have a right to say that I did not stake my fort- 
 une on my conviction." 
 
 The same day I left Philadelphia for Europe, but I had 
 scarcely reached Sweden when the great crisis came. Jay 
 Cooke, whose fortune was estimated at twenty million dol- 
 lars, wras a ruined man. The work on the Northern Pacific 
 railroad was suddenly stopped, and the obligations of the 
 company depreciated to almost nothing. We all remember 
 the terrible crisis that followed. Thousands of people ^were 
 ruined, and the whole country suffered one of the most dis- 
 astrous financial crises of modern times. My own' loss was 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 133 
 
 a very hard blow to me, not merely because I lost my posi- 
 tion, but because my property in Minnesota, which consisted 
 exclusively of real estate, stock and farm products, lost its 
 value. This catastrophe was chiefly due to business jealousy, ' 
 and there was no real cause for the panic, which was also 
 clearly proven afterward. The Northern Pacific railroad 
 has now been completed, and has proven to possess all the 
 merits which Jay Cooke claimed for it. Its obligations are 
 again above par. Jay Cooke has paid every dollar of his 
 debt, with interest, and again lives in affluence and luxury, 
 respected and honored by the whole country. 
 
 Returning to Sweden I passed through Holland, which 
 country I had visited a couple of times before, as already 
 mentioned. I carried important business letters from the 
 leading men of the St. Paul & Pacific Railroad Company, 
 now known as the Great Northern Railroad Company. Dutch 
 capitalists had advanced the money — about twenty million 
 dollars — ^for building this road. The compan}' had received 
 very extensive land grants from the United States govern- 
 ment; but during the first few years after the construction 
 of the road to Breckenridge the country through which it 
 passed was so sparsely settled that the traffic of the road 
 was insufficient topayits running expenses, hence their stocks 
 and obligations depreciated very much in value. But the 
 American railroad officials \<rith whom I had been connected 
 in the capacity of land agent were firmly convinced that if 
 this road could be extended about thirty miles to the 
 Northern Pacific railroad, and a little more time allowed for 
 the settlement of the country along the line, the enterprise 
 would pay a handsome dividend. It was my task to explain 
 this to the Dutch capitalists, and persuade them to advance 
 another $150,000 — a mere trifle compared with what they 
 had invested already — to build said extension, which was to 
 pass through a perfectly level country. The president of the 
 
134» Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 company, George L. Becker, and its land commissioner, 
 Herman E. Trott, had previously visited Holland on the 
 same business. But all our representations were in vain. 
 The Dutch were stubborn, and would not give out another 
 dollar. *'It is of no use," they said, *'to throw away a 
 small sum of good money after a large sum of bad money, 
 for it is all lost, anyway." The crisis of 1873 aggravated 
 the situation still more, for this company, and its bonds 
 were continually depreciating. The St. Paul & Pacific rail- 
 road had pledged itself to accept its own bonds at par in 
 payment for its land, and as I and others had sold hundreds 
 of thousands of acres of this land to new settlers on credit, 
 I tried, and also succeeded, in perfecting an arrangement 
 with the Hollanders, by which the new settlers who had 
 purchased land on credit, were allowed to buy on time the 
 bonds of the company, at about twenty-five per cent, of 
 their face value, and apply the same, without discount, on 
 their debts for the land, a method of liquidation that was 
 highly advantageous to the settlers. As soon as this was 
 found out in Minnesota, bankers and other capitalists sent 
 agents to Holland to make similar arrangements, and, in 
 the course of the next three years, a brisk business was done 
 in exchanging those bonds for land, by which thousands of 
 settlers saved large sums of money, and a number of bankers 
 and agents made small fortunes. If I had returned to Minne- 
 sota immediately I could have realized a very handsome profit 
 by this arrangement; but I had made agreements which com- 
 pelled me to stay in Sweden some length of time, and I left 
 this business in the hands of my former partner, Consul 
 .Sahlgaard, and the St. Paul Savings Bank. But they did 
 • not grasp the importance of this matter until it was too 
 late, and the lion's share of the profits went to new parties, 
 ' who thus reaped the benefit of my plans, as is often the case 
 under such circumstances. 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 135 
 
 As in the case of tHe Northern Pacific Railroad, the subse- 
 quent success of the St. Paul & Pacific Railroad proved that 
 Messrs. Becker, Trott, and myself were right, and if the 
 Dutch bondholders had followed our advice they would not 
 only have saved their twenty million dollars, but also made 
 as much more. The bonds continued to depreciate to almost 
 nothing until the company was declared insolvent, a re- 
 ceiver appointed, and very expensive legal measures were 
 resorted to, until finally the Dutch became disgusted with 
 the whole matter and transferred all their interests to 
 an American syndicate headed by J. J. Hill, of St. Paul, at 
 present the well-known Minnesota railroad king. The sum 
 paid was a mere trifle. Hill's syndicate procured money for 
 building the connecting link and completing the system. 
 The syndicate made twenty million dollars by this transac- 
 tion, and, within five years after the Dutch had sold their 
 bonds for a mere bagatelle and the company had changed 
 its name to the St. Paul, Minneapolis & Manitoba, practi- 
 cally the same bonds were sold on the exchange in Amster- 
 dam for one hundred and fifty cents on the dollar. 
 
 The only profit 1 derived from my connection with this bus- 
 iness was that I gained the respect and confidence of the 
 Dutch capitalists, who very soon understood that they 
 would have been all right if they had followed my advice. 
 Therefore, when another Dutch company, known as the 
 Minnesota Land Company, shortly afterw^ard was brought 
 to the verge of ruin by mismanagement, the affairs of this 
 company were intrusted to my hands, and when the Max- 
 w^ell Land Grant Company of New^ Mexico, which also con- 
 sisted of Dutch capitalists, got into similar trouble they ap- 
 pointed me American manager of the affairs of that com- 
 pany, to which I shall refer further on. 
 
 Soon after my return to Sweden in the fall of 1873 I 
 became interested in an important business enterprise near 
 
 
 / 
 
136 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 my old home. A few years before this a number of English- 
 men had organized a stock company for the purpose of 
 draining a big swamp, and a lake called Hammarsjo, in the 
 vicinity of Christianstad. After expending a large sum of 
 money the company failed to accomplish the undertaking. 
 An officer in the Danish army, Captain M.Rovsing, who had 
 had experience in that kind of work, in company with my- 
 self bought all the privileges and rights as well as the plant 
 and material of the English company, and the w^ork was 
 completed under the supervision of Captain Rovsing in the 
 latter part of 1875. This Captain Rovsing w^as not only a 
 firstclass engineer, but also an able and good man in other 
 respects. I cannot tell whether it is luck or something else, 
 but it is certain that I have always had the good fortune to 
 enter into close business connections, and to form ties of inti- 
 mate friendship, with persons distinguished by the highest 
 sense of honor and integrity, and of those acquaintances 
 Captain Rovsing occupies one of the foremost places. 
 
 During a part of this time I also contributed some time 
 and work toward colonizing the province of Manitoba, 
 and thereby gave an impetus to the establishment of the 
 first Icelandic colony in the Northv^est. 
 
 In the spring of 1874 we moved to Gothenburg, where we 
 stayed until the work at Hammersjo was completed, and in 
 January, 1876, we said good-bye to Sweden, and arrived 
 in America after a stormy voyage of nineteen days across 
 the Atlantic. For sixteen days the storm was so violent 
 that the life-boats and everything which was loose on the 
 deck was swept away by the waves, and the officers serving 
 during the night had to lash themselves to the rigging by 
 ropes, not daring to rely on their hands and feet. 
 
 It is strange how easily people in the course of time get 
 used even to the most unpleasant circumstances. This was 
 illustrated in a striking manner by the few cabin passengers 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 137 
 
 who sat packed together in the cabin during this storm. 
 After a couple of weeks we got so used to it that we finally 
 found our voyage quite endurable. Still we were very glad 
 when the beautiful steamer Circassian of the Allan Line 
 brought us safely to shore in Portland, Me. A few days 
 more on rail, and we were again safe and sound in our deai 
 Minnesota. 
 
CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 GrassTiopper Ra\^ages in Minnesota — The Presidential Election — Choset 
 Presidential Elector — Minnesota Stats Tidaing—Svenska Tribunen in 
 Chicago — Farm in Northwestern Minnesota— Journalistic Work. 
 
 "The world do move*' nowadays, and most emphatically 
 so in the great American Northwest. An absence of four 
 years is almost enough to bury one out of sight, at least 
 that is what I found on returning to Minnesota. The crisis 
 of 1873 had left my finances in anything but a flourishing 
 condition, to which was added the ravages of the grasshop- 
 pers, which caused considerable losses to me on my farm at 
 Litchfield, that being about the only property I then owned. 
 
 My attention was soon drawn from these private reverses 
 to public affairs. The first steps toward re-entering the 
 field of politics was my nomination for presidential elector 
 by the Republican state convention, held at St. Paul in the 
 summer of 1876. At the request of the Republican state 
 central committee, I took an active part in the campaign 
 that followed, as in fact I had done at every previous election 
 since my residence in this state, but this time I spent the 
 whole autumn in making a thorough political canvass 
 through most of the Scandinavian settlements in the state. 
 During that canvass it was my good fortune for a long time 
 to be associated with the late William Windom, then a 
 United States senator, and afterward twice secretary of the 
 treasury. 
 
 Mr. Windom was at that time in the very prime of his 
 
 138 
 
Story op an Emigrant. 139 
 
 noble manhood; his fine mental and physical endowments 
 made him an object df love and veneration among the peo- 
 ple. Though a man of the purest character and exemplary- 
 life, he was a pleasant, boon companion, fond of a joke and 
 a good story, liberal and charitable in his judgment of 
 others, easy and polite in his manners, open-hearted and 
 kind toward all. He was a large, broad-shouldered man, 
 weighing over two hundred pounds, with a high forehead, 
 dark eyes, and smoothly shaved face. As a speaker he was 
 earnest, though quiet, fluent and humorous. He never used 
 tobacco or spirits in any form. We traveled together in all 
 sorts of conveyances, and held meetings in country stores 
 and school houses ; ate and slept in the lowly cabins of the 
 farmers, but everywhere Mr. Windom felt at home, and 
 made every body else feel at ease also. I was afterward 
 with him often and in many places, — from the executive 
 mansion in Washington to the frontier cabin in the west, — 
 and for the last time in New York city, when he went there 
 in August, 1890, to save the nation from a financial crisis, 
 but never did I notice any difference in his conduct toward 
 the humblest laborer or the highest in power. In sorrow 
 and adversity he was a tender friend; in manners he was a 
 Chesterfield; in the senate a Roman, and in the treasury 
 department a Hamilton. By his death the nation, the state 
 of Minnesota, and his numerous friends, among whom for 
 many years I had the honor to be counted, sustained a heavy 
 loss. 
 
 Soon after the close of the campaign I commenced to pub- 
 lish a Swedish weekly newspaper called Minnesota Stats 
 Tidning, in Minneapolis, to which place I had just removed 
 with my family, and continued as its chief editor until the 
 summer of 1881. 
 
 In 1877 friends in Chicago and myself started another 
 Swedish weekly, called Svenska Tribuncn, in that city, and 
 
140 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 for some time I had the actual management of both papers, 
 dividing my time between Minneapolis and Chicago. My aim 
 in this journalistic work was mainly to instruct and educate 
 my countrymen in such matters as might promote their well- 
 V being and make them good Amerian citizens. The Stats 
 : Tidning, or at least a part of it, gradually became a kind 
 "> of catechism on law and political economy, containing infor- 
 mation under the heading ''Questions and Answers." This 
 '^ was intended especially for the Swedish farmers in the state. 
 If a farmer was in doubt as to his legal rights in the case of 
 a road, a fence, the draining of a marsh, or wished to know 
 how to cure a sick horse or other animal, or how he could 
 get money sent from Sw^eden, or if he wished advice or 
 information on any other question relating to everyday 
 life, especially if he got into trouble of some kind, he would 
 write to the Stats Tidning for the desired information. 
 Such letters were then printed in condensed form and fol- 
 lowed by short, clear, pointed answers, and, so far, I have 
 not heard of a single person being misled by those answers. 
 On the other hand, I know that the public, and more es- 
 pecially the newcomers, reaped very great benefits from 
 them. Few persons have any idea of how irksome and 
 laborious this kind of journalism is, and at times I was on 
 the point of giving it up in despair. As an example I will 
 relate one little incident connected with this work. A farmer 
 in a neighboring county had, through ignorance of the home- 
 stead law, met with difficulties in securing title to his claim. 
 
 • As usual he wrote to the Stats Tidning, and received the 
 desired information just in time to save his property, which 
 was worth over $1,000. On a visit to Minneapolis a short 
 
 • time afterward his feeling of gratitude directed him to the 
 office of the paper to express his thanks. In a conversation 
 with him I found that he had never subscribed for the paper 
 himself, but was in the habit of going to his neighbor every 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 141 
 
 Saturday afternoon to read it. I asked if it would not 
 be well for him to subscribe for it also; it might 
 happen to contain useful information in the future, 
 and he could afford to pay for it. To this he answered: 
 **No, I cannot do that, for I have not much time to read, 
 and if I want to read I have some back numbers of a church 
 paper, from Sweden, and should I want to read answers to 
 any questions I can borrow a copy of your paper from my 
 neighbor." So highly did this good and pious farmer, from 
 a financial point of view, appreciate information which had 
 saved him his home. In m^*^ opinion such people do not de- 
 serve reproach, but sympathy on account of their gross ig- 
 norance. It is also a fact, that, during all this time, the in- 
 come received from the paper did not cover its expenses, and 
 if it had not been for other resources the enterprise would 
 have failed even at the very climax of its popularity. 
 
 After five years of untiring journalistic work I was only 
 i:oo glad of an opportunity to sell the paper in the spring of 
 1881 to a publishing company, which soon moved the plant 
 to St. Paul. My former associates, Messrs. Lunnow and 
 Soderstrom, soon after commenced the publication of a new 
 Swedish weekly, called Svenska Folkets Tidning; which has 
 now a larger circulation than any other Swedish paper in 
 our state. Having sold my share in the Svenska Tribunen 
 in Chicago a few years before, and thus being no longer con- 
 nected with any newspapers, I found more time to devote to 
 my wheat farm in the Red River valley. 
 
CHAPTER XIY. 
 
 I am Appointed Cousul-General to India— Assassination of Garfield— De. 
 parture for India— My Stay in Chicago and Washington— Paris and 
 Versailles— Rome- Naples— Pompeii— From Naples to Alexandria— Inter- 
 esting Acquaintances on the Voyage- The First Impressions in Egypt. 
 
 In the morning papers of July 2, 1881, a telegram from 
 Washington announced that President Garfield had ap- 
 pointed me consul-general to India, in the cabinet meeting 
 of the previous evening. The same telegram also announced 
 that the president had leit Washington for New England, 
 where he intended to spend his summer vacation in the 
 country. It was with mingled feelings of satisfaction and 
 misgiving that I faced the opportunity to satisfy my long- 
 ing to see the wonderful Orient, especially India, in which 
 country the missionary Dr. Fjellstedt had aroused my child- 
 ish interest, as stated in the beginning of these reminiscences. 
 Alter consulting wife and children concerning this, to us, im- 
 portant news, I walked down town, receiving congratula- 
 tions from friends and acquaintances on the way, and, 
 arriving at one of the newspaper offices, I found a large 
 crowd of people eagerlj^ reading on a bulletin-board a dis- 
 patch to the effect that President Garfield had been shot by 
 Guiteau. The news caused an excitement and consternation 
 almost as intense as that produced by the assassination of 
 Lincoln. Telegrams were received from Washington contin- 
 ually, and outside the newspaper offices were placed bulle- 
 
 143 
 
14-4 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 tins describing the condition of the wounded president, who 
 was very popular with the American people. The last tele- 
 gram of that day announced that he was very low, and 
 would probably die before morning. The next morning the 
 
 dispatches announced that the president was still living, 
 and that on the previous evening, believing that he had 
 only a few more hours to live, he had caused to be made out 
 my own and four other commissions and had signed them 
 with his dying hand. I feel justified in narrating this in de- 
 tail, inasmuch as I am in possession of the document which 
 contains the last official signature of our second martyred 
 president, and which is a very dear treasure to me. Believ- 
 ing that it will interest the reader to see the last signature 
 of President Garfield, I submit a photographic fac-simile of 
 the same. 
 
 ,.y^^^^.^^cJ^^ 
 
 Garfield's signature. 
 
 I had only one month to prepare for the journey, and on 
 account of the long and expensive voyage, it was decided, 
 in family council, that I should go alone, leaving wife and 
 children in Minneapolis. It was also understood that I 
 wrould only be absent about one year, for it was hardly to 
 be expected that a person of my age could stand the danger- 
 ous climate of India much longer. 
 
 The 17th of August, 1881, was an important day for our 
 little family, for on that day I left my home for a journey 
 of thirteen thousand miles,— to distant Calcutta, the capital 
 of India. Passing through Chicago on the following day, a 
 number of my Swedish friends at that place had arranged a 
 
Story of an EmigraxXa-. 145 
 
 Splendid banquet in my honor. About sixty of us spent a 
 most delightful evening around the bountiful table; but, 
 what I prized more highly than anything else were the 
 friendly and cordial feelings which were expressed in speech 
 and song. 
 
 In Washington I spent a few days in order to receive the 
 last instructions from the state department. Hon. W. Win- 
 dom, who was secretary of the treasury under the adminis- 
 tration of Garfield, accompanied me to the White house, 
 where ih^ president was yet hovering between life and 
 death. We were not admitted to the inner room, which was 
 separated from the front room only by draperies. I can 
 vividly recall the picture of the president's noble wife as she 
 stepped out to us, and, with an expression of the deep" 
 est suffering, affection and hope in her face, told us 
 that the patient had taken a few spoonfuls of broth, and 
 that he now felt much better, and would soon recover- 
 Thus life and hope often build air-castles which are des- 
 tined to be torn down again by the cruel hand of fate. 
 
 When the steamer touched the coast of Ireland the first 
 news which the eager passengers received was that the pres- 
 ident was still living and had been taken to a place on the 
 coast. The voyage across the Atlantic from New York to 
 Liverpool was a pleasure trip in every respect, and was fav- 
 ored by the most delightful weather. On board the White 
 Star Line steamer Celtic, — a veritable palace of its kind, — 
 the passenger had all he could wish, as far as solidity, 
 speed, reliability, order, comfort, and good treatment are 
 concerned. On September 9th I arrived in Paris. It seemed 
 to me as if it had been only a couple of days since I was sit- 
 ting in the midst of that happy company of friends in Chi- 
 cas^o, whose tender and cordial farewell still sounded as an 
 echo in my ears— or maybe in my heart. Nevertheless I was 
 
146 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 already in the grand and happy capital of the third French 
 republic. 
 
 I had time and opportunity to stay a few days in the 
 large cities through which I passed, each one of which left a 
 particular impression on my mind, and, although they are 
 similar in most respects, each of them has its peculiarities, 
 especially with regard to the character, temperament and 
 customs of the people. I cannot refrain from describing a 
 few of them. Washington did not seem to be itself when I 
 passed through it, a cloud of sadness and mourning brood- 
 ing over it on account of the critical condition of the presi- 
 dent. Boston is prim and stiff, and seems like a place of 
 learning. New York is a turmoil of pleasure and business. 
 '* Hurry up" seems to be written in every face; "tumble 
 harum-scarum in the ever-changing panorama of the 
 world! " Liverpool is a good deal like New York, but on a 
 smaller scale. London is the stiff colossus of Europe. Am- 
 sterdam andRotterdam bear the stamp of thrift, cleanliness, 
 earnestness, and comfort. Antwerp and Brussels that of 
 joyous abandonment. Paris includes everything which is 
 worth seeing in the others, and shows everything in gayer 
 colors and to greater perfection. 
 
 I remained only four daj^s in the city on the Seine, and the 
 impressions of such a short stay are naturally fleeting and 
 probably even unreliable. Paris has its imposing monu- 
 ments fi-om the days of Louis XIV. and the two Napoleons, 
 which glorify the exploits of war; it has its beautiful 
 churches, palaces and museums like other great cities ; but in 
 my eyes the greatness of Paris is to be found in her boulevards 
 and public promenades. I also made a visit to Versailles, the 
 wonderful city of palaces, and spent a day among the great 
 monuments of grandeur and royalty, misery and tyranny. As 
 worksof art they are grand and beautiful, but their historical 
 significance produce varied feelings. In the French capital 
 
Story of an E\-igrant. 147 
 
 everything seemed to indicate comfort and satisfaction. Tlie 
 workman of Paris is a gentleman in the best sense of the word. 
 He feels free, independent, and proud intheconsciousness that 
 he is a part of the state. Soldiers were no longer to be seen 
 in the city; they being garrisoned at Versailles and other 
 neighboring cities ; still there has never before been such a 
 feeling of profound peace and security in France. Liberty is 
 a great educator. The style, name, and other indications 
 of the empire are passing away, and the republic has put its 
 stamp on Paris. The commune is no longer feared, for the 
 state is no longer an enemy of the people, but a protector of 
 its rights and liberty. Fortunate Paris ! Happy France ! 
 
 But I must hurry on, in order to reach the end of my long 
 journey. On the 13th of September I saw the majestic Alps 
 with their snow-clad summits, which seemed to touch ti.e 
 very vault of heaven. The same day I passed through the 
 tunnel at Mont Cenis, and arrived the following day at 
 Rome, via Turin and Florence. And is this great and glori- 
 ous Rome? Yes! These walls, ruins, palaces, and Sabine 
 hills, — aye, the very air I breathe, — all this belongs to the 
 eternal city. From the window of my room in Hotel 
 Malori I can read the signs, — ** Via di Capo le Care," "Via 
 Gregoriana," etc., and among these an index pointing to the 
 Rome and Tivoli street-car line. Indeed, I have seen the 
 great city of Rome, "with its churches, statues, paintings, 
 and ancient ruins and catacombs; the little monument to 
 the Swedish Queen Christina in the St. Peter's church ; the 
 triumphal arch which commemorates the destruction of 
 Jerusalem, and the temple of Vesta where the ancient vestal 
 virgins guarded the sacred fire. Two thousand years thus 
 passed in review before my eyes in a few days. 
 
 From Rome I proceeded to Naples. This city is built on 
 the most beautiful bay in the world, and has a population 
 of six hundred thousand inhabitants. It is built in the form 
 
ill 
 
 PSil 
 'i'*i!'*:.i(}!!;ilS'ill*'';'^¥''' 
 
 m;i||i 
 
 ■|i! 
 
 IS 
 
 o 
 pi 
 
 1 ' '" 
 
 
 '1. Ill' 
 
 |:'l,lii; il 
 
 ,,Hiii::;:ll!']ii!''h;;;|!!![iiiirli 
 
 111.!' 
 
 il'll.l'I'llll' 
 
 ■'SI 
 
 I 
 
 I'jiiiii ( 
 
 11,' ■ ■ ' .1 
 
 "'i'iini'i! 
 
 ' III 'i. 
 
 l|P!||i'!'ilil*iii'!||l!''ll|ii'ii'l'l| 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 149 
 
 of an amphitheatre, with a steep decline toward the water. 
 In the south we see the island of Capri, fifteen miles distant, 
 and on the east coast the volcano Vesuvius, which, by its 
 threatening clouds of smoke, seems to obscure the eastern 
 part of beautiful Naples, although it lies fourteen miles dis- 
 tant from the city. Long before the time of Christ the bay 
 looked about the same as it does now. The chief cities 
 around it at that time were Naples, Herculaneum and 
 Pompeii. Mount Vesuvius, however, did not look as it does 
 now, but rose as a green hill, called ''La Somma," and 
 served as a summer resort for many wealthy Roman patri- 
 cians. The city of Pompeii had about forty thousand in- 
 habitants. On August 23, A. D. 79, terrific rumblings 
 were heard from the interior of La Somma, the summit of 
 which suddenly burst open, and a pillar of ashes, steam, and 
 red-hot rocks shot up through the opening to a great height, 
 and fell, scattering itself over the surrounding country, while 
 streams of melted lava rolled down the hill-sides and buried 
 Herculaneum and everything in it under a layer of ashes and 
 lava to the depth of eighty feet. Toward night the erup- 
 tions increased in force, and before morning Pompeii and 
 some smaller towns were also buried under the glowing riv- 
 ers of volcanic rocks, ashes and mud. 
 
 The remarkable history of this place absorbed my mind as 
 I passed through the two thousand years-old streets of 
 Pompeii, which, in the course of this century have again 
 been brought to light by the removal of the petrified ashes 
 and other volcanic matter. The ancient city now looks a 
 good deal as it did eighteen hundred years ago. It is situ- 
 ated on a round knoll, and measures three miles in circum- 
 ference. The houses are built of stone, and only one story 
 high, with roofs of brick and floors of cut stone, just as the 
 modern houses in that vicinity are built to-day. Every 
 house has an open court in the center, and all aisles and 
 
150 SroRY OF AN Emigrant. 
 
 doors lead to this. Glass windows were not used, but the 
 rooms received light from the open court, which could be 
 covered by canvass as a protection against the sun and 
 rain. I measured the streets. They proved to be twdve 
 feet wide, vsrith a four-foot- wide sidew^alk on either side. The 
 paving consisted of boulders, with a flat surface about 
 twenty inches in diameter, and contained deep grooves 
 made by the chariot wheels. The houses w^ere standing in 
 their original condition, with fresco paintings on the walls 
 and statues in their proper niches. The temples with their 
 sacrificial altars, the theatres, the court, the council-house, 
 and all other public buildings were adorned with marble 
 pillars and choice works of sculpture. I saw a barber-shop 
 with chairs, niches for the soap and mugs, and the waiting 
 sofa. In a baker's house I saw the oven, the dough-trough, 
 scales, and petrified loaves of bread. In a butcher shop 
 were a saw, a knife, and other tools. There were also furni- 
 ture, vessels for cooking, bowls, grain, pieces of rope, and 
 plaster of Paris casts of the human bodies which had been 
 found, generally prostrate, with the face pressed against the 
 ground. There lies a cast of a man with a pleasant smile 
 on his lips; he must have passed unconsciously from sleep to 
 death. But it is fruitless to try and describe this remark- 
 able place w^hich has no parallel on the face of the earth. I 
 heard the Swedish language spoken in this city of the dead, 
 and had the pleasure of making the acquaintance of Alder- 
 man Tornquist and wife, from Wimmerby, and a Doctor 
 Viden and his daughter, from Hernosand. Thus the living 
 meet among the dead, representatives of the new times 
 stand face to face with the dead of antiquity, children 
 of the cool North in the sunny South. What a wonderful 
 world this is, to be sure ! 
 
 The 17th of September I embarked on board the steamer 
 La Seyne, destined for Alexandria in Egypt. The warm, 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 151 
 
 Italian noonday sun poured down its dazzling rays; we 
 were surrounded on all sides by ships and steamers carrying 
 the flags of all nations ; hundreds of fishing crafts were 
 sailing out of the harbor, and in the distance the mighty 
 volcano Vesuvius towered in imposing majesty above the 
 vine-clad hills. There was a life and a traffic which it is 
 difficult to describe. While La Seyne was lying at anchor 
 for several hours out in the bay, Italian singers in their 
 boats swarmed around the ship and entertained the passen- 
 gers with itiusic. Other boats contained three or four men 
 each, who begged the passengers to throw coins into the 
 w^ater. As soon as a coin was thrown, down dived one of 
 the men to the bottom, and invariably returned with the 
 coin in his mouth although the water was very deep, per- 
 haps from seventy-five to one hundred feet. The voyage 
 across the Mediterranean was very pleasant, especially in 
 the vicinity of the islai d of Sicily. The deep blue sky, the 
 orange groves and vineyards on the island, and the neat, 
 white cottages, — all gave an impression of indescribable 
 tranquility and happiness. 
 
 On this voyage, which lasted three days, I became ac- 
 quainted w^ith several interesting persons, among others 
 with a Professor Santamaria, professor in an university 
 in Egypt, and his family, and with a Jesuit priest, 
 Miechen by name. By birth a French nobleman of a very 
 old and rich family, he had been educated for a militar}' 
 life, and had served in the army w^ith distinction, and in the 
 late Franco-German war he had been advanced to the rank 
 of major, although he was only thirty years of age. But 
 suddenly he had been seized with religious enthusiasm, and 
 had given up his illustrious family name, renounced his 
 fortune, his honors, and the brilliant military career which 
 lay open to him, in order to become a priest. After two 
 
152 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 years of theological studies he was ordained a priest, and 
 admitted into the Jesuit order. 
 
 He had now been ordered to supply himself with a full set 
 of certain scientific instruments, and with them to repair to 
 Cairo, Egypt, wrhere he would receive further orders. I 
 talked a great deal with this man. He spoke English flu- 
 ently, and was equally familiar with nearly all the other 
 European languages. He was no fanatic or religious crank, 
 but a polished, cultured gentleman, who had seen and 
 learned to know the world, reaped its honors and tasted its 
 allurements, and he was evidently as liberal and tolerant as 
 myself And this man went to a field of action of which he 
 had no knowledge whatsoever. Probably an honorable 
 position as professor in a university was awaiting him, or 
 perhaps he would have to go to some isolated mountain to 
 observe a phenomenon of nature in the interest of science, or 
 penetrate a malarious wilderness as missionary among sav- 
 ages, where he would be debarred from all intercourse with 
 civilized people, and deprived of all the comforts and con- 
 veniences to which he had been used during his previous life. 
 Still he went willingly and joyfully to his work, completely 
 indifferent as to his fate, thoroughly convinced that he was 
 on the path of duty — to accomplish what God intended he 
 should do. I was on my way to a great country and a 
 court as the representative of one of the greatest nations on 
 earth, but when I walked the deck arm in arm with this 
 humble priest, I felt my inferiority compared with him, and 
 I actually considered his position enviable. On the same 
 voyage I became acquainted with a Danish traveler, — A. 
 d'lrgens-Bergh, — who afterward met me in India, where we 
 visited many places of interest together, and established a 
 friendship which afforded both of us much pleasure. 
 
 On the morning of September 21st the coast of Egypt 
 appeared in sight. There is Alexandria, founded by Alexan 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 153 
 
 der the Great, and formerly renowned for its commerce, and 
 as the centreof learning and culture of the then known world. 
 Even now this city is grand and beautiful, although its 
 beauty and style are different from anythingelse that I have 
 seen. We often form conceptions of things which we have 
 not seen, but which are interesting to us, and when we after- 
 ward find that those conceptions are w^rong we feel disap- 
 pointed. Thus I had always thought of Egypt as a country 
 of a dark tone of color, probably on account of the fertility 
 of the soil of the valley of the Nile, since we Northerners 
 find that fertile soil is dark and poor soil of a lighter color. 
 Therefore I could hardly believe my own eyes when every- 
 thing I saw on the shore looked white. Not only the 
 houses, palaces, and huts, but even the roads and the fields, 
 all had a white color. 
 
 Asw^e neared the harbor, and even before the pilot came on 
 board, we noticed that all the flags were at half-mast. As soon 
 as I landed and had shown my passport to the customs officer 
 an elegant equipage was placed at my disposal under the 
 charge of a dragoman, and we drove to the office of the 
 American consulate, where also the flag was at half-mast. 
 The sad occasion for this soon became apparent. President 
 Garfield had died during my voyage across the Mediterra- 
 nean, and the whole civilized world was in mourning. 
 
CHAPTER XV. 
 
 A-lexandria and its Monuments— The Egyptian " Fellahs "—The Moham- 
 medans and Their Religion — The Voyage Through the Suez Canal — The 
 Red Sea — The Indian Ocean — The Arrival at Calcutta. 
 
 I was now in Africa and Egypt, among the remnants of 
 ancient glory of which I had read so much, and which I so 
 often had longed to see, in the wonder-land of Egypt, with 
 which every Christian child is made acquainted through the 
 first lessons in Bible history, the country to which Joseph 
 was carried as a slave, and whose actual ruler he finally 
 became by dint of his wisdom and virtue. I was in the Nile 
 valley where Pharoah built his magazines and stored up 
 grain for the seven years of famine, and whence Moses con- 
 ducted the children of Israel by means of "a pillar of a 
 cloud and a pillar of fire." In the land of the pyramids 
 everything seemed strange and wonderful, and different 
 from anything I had seen before. The streets crowded with 
 people, the bazaars, the oriental costumes, the Babylonian 
 confusion of all the tongues of the earth, — all this combined 
 made on me an overwhelming impression. Cleopatra's 
 needle; Pompey*s pillar; the caravans of camels on their 
 way into the desert; the old graves and catacombs; the 
 palm groves, the oxen turning the old-fashioned water- 
 wheels which carry the water from the Nile for irrigating 
 the fields, just as in the days of Moses, — all this was repro- 
 duced in actual, living pictures before my wondering eves. 
 
 154, 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 155 
 
 Side by side with these remains of the past we meet with 
 the great European improvements of our days,— the large 
 ships in the harbor, the churches, the schools, the universi- 
 ties, the modern markets for trade and commerce, the splen- 
 did hotels and exchanges. 
 
 ALEXANDRIA. 
 
 I stopped two days in Alexandria. The second day I 
 visited the summer palace of the khedive, or vice-king, on 
 which occasion a funny incident took place. Like every 
 other foreigner coming to Egypt I had bought a sample of 
 the head-gear generally used in that country, consisting of a 
 red cap called **fez," which is madeof very thick, soft felt, and 
 fits very closely to the head. With this cap on and wearing 
 a tightly buttoned black coat I rode in the equipage alread}^ 
 mentioned to the palace. Ishmael Pasha, the former khe- 
 dive, who had just abdicated and left the country, had been 
 very popular among his servants and adherents. I was of 
 the same size and build as he, my beard was cut like his, and 
 
156 Story of an Emigra-:t. 
 
 in my red fez I looked so much like him that when our car- 
 riage passed through the gateway to the palace some of 
 the servants whispered to each other that Khedive Ish- 
 mael had returned, and 'when the coachman stopped at the 
 
 « entrance I was surrounded by a number of servants who 
 greeted me and evinced the greatest joy. The poor creatures 
 
 V soon discovered their mistake. Their good friend the 
 khedive will never return to Egypt, for England and France 
 will not alloi?v' it. He w^as too sincere a friend of his own 
 people, and too independent in dealing with the share- 
 holders of the Suez canal built during his reign. 
 
 Alexandria has a population of two-hundred-fifty thou- 
 sand. It was founded bv Alexander the Great three hundred 
 
 ml 
 
 years before Christ, on account of the great natural advan- 
 tages of this place as a seaport. At the time of Christ it 
 had about half a million inhabitants. It was repeatedly 
 ravaged by destructive wars, and finally completely pillaged 
 by Caliph Omar, who is also said to have burnt its library, 
 the largest and most valuable collection of books of an- 
 tiquity, an act by which civilization suffered an irreparable 
 loss, the library containing the only copies of a number of 
 ancient literary works. It is claimed that the caliph gave 
 his generals the following characteristic answer, when asked 
 what was to be done with the library: **If it contains any- 
 thing contrary to the Koran it is wrong; if it contains any- 
 thing that agrees with the Koran it is superEuous; there- 
 fore, at all events, it ought to be burnt. '* 
 
 The most remarkable of the ancient monuments still 
 remaining in Alexandria is Pompey*s pillar, which is a mon- 
 olithic shaft of polished red granite, seventy-three feet high 
 and twenty-nine feet eight inches in circumference. One of 
 the most interesting objects of a more recent origin was the 
 Caf^ El Paradiso. It consists of an immense restaurant and 
 concert hall, or rather halls, for there are many of them. 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 157 
 
 One of these extends over the water, so that when one sits 
 there drinking genuine Mocha coffee and smoking a Turkish 
 aargileh one can hear the beating of the waves and feel. the 
 
 PILLAK OF POMPEn. 
 
 undulations of the azure Mediterranean. I drove out in- 
 to the country a few miles to see the Egyptian fellahs, or 
 peasants. No— I shall not disgrace the name "peasant" by 
 using it here; for the Egyptian fellah is an ignorant, 
 superstitious, absolutely destitute, and, in every respect, 
 miserable wretch, and is worse off than a slave. Four walls 
 of stones or earth make one or two rooms, with a floor of 
 clay and a roof of straw or sod. A wooden box, a couple of 
 kettles, and some mats made of grass or palm canes, are the 
 only pieces of furniture. A couple of goats, an ass, or, at 
 the very best, a yoke of oxen, are all he possesses in this 
 world. He works hard, and his fare is exceedingly plain. 
 He neither desires nor expects anything better, nothing 
 
153 
 
 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 stimulates hitn to acquire wealth; for that would only give 
 the tax-gatherer a pretext for extra extortions. Miserable 
 Egypt! I have seen much poverty and much misery among 
 men; but of everything I have seen in that line nothing can 
 be compared with the wretched condition of the Egyptian 
 fellah. 
 
 Still these unfortunate people seem to find happiness in 
 their religion. Here some one might object that this is a 
 
 FELLAH HUT. 
 
 wretched happiness, because their religion is Mohammedan- 
 ism or Islamism. Man feels himself drawn to a higher pow- 
 er. No matter what his condition, he longs for a life after 
 this, and searches after an object for his worship, and when 
 he has found this object he will give up his life rather than 
 give up his faith. And still that object for which a person 
 or a nation is willing to sacrifice even life itself is ridiculed 
 and despised by another person and another nation. If the 
 
Story of an JEmigjrant. 
 
 lOi^ 
 
 ignorant -were the only ones who disagree in matters of 
 faith, this condition might be easily explained; but even the 
 highest civilization has failed in its attempts to harnionizf; 
 the different religions, and, in my opinion, this fact ought 
 to make all thinking men tolerant and liberal toward those 
 who hold different religious views. The Mohammedan faith 
 has made a deep and lastingimpressiononapopulation scat- 
 tered over a large part of the 
 surface of our earth, and no 
 one dares deny that its adher- 
 ents are much more devoted to 
 their religion and much more 
 conscientious in observing its 
 rites than we as Christians are 
 with reference to our religion. 
 The adherents of Moham- 
 med now number one hundred 
 and thirty millions, and the 
 number is constantly growing. 
 Many believe that this religion 
 gains so many adherents be- 
 cause it is sensual, and allows 
 all kinds of debauchery. But 
 this supposition runs counter 
 to the facts. It is true, that 
 Mohammed allowed a man 
 to have four wives; but it 
 must be remembered that he 
 FELLAH WOMAN. hmltcd the uumbcr to four, and 
 
 that the number had been unlimited before. The life 
 of an orthodox Musselman is an unbroken chain of self- 
 denial and self-sacrifice, and, in this respect, we must ac- 
 knowlege that he is superior to us Christians. His chief 
 article of faith is expressed in this dogma: ''There is no 
 
160 
 
 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 god but Allah, and Mohammed is his prophet." The lead- 
 ing commandments bearing on the practice of their religion 
 are prayer, ablutions, alms-giving, fasting, and a pilgrimage 
 to Mecca. The use of intoxicating drinks is strictly pro- 
 hibited, hospitality is recommended, gambling and usury are 
 not allowed. Friday is the Mohammedan's day of rest. 
 Since my first visit in Eo:ypt I have been very closely con- 
 nected with many Mohammedans, several of whom have 
 
 'I' ' /,- 
 
 ->^v- - — 
 
 '^i 
 
 
 
 IRRIGATION MILL. 
 
 been members of my own household, and it aObrds me great 
 pleasure to testify that, as far as my observations go, they 
 have lived faithfully according to the precepts of their relig- 
 ion. Nay, I am convinced that in most cases they would 
 renounce property, liberty, and even life itself, rather than 
 violate any of the cardinal precepts of the Koran. But as 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 161 
 
 to the Egyptian fellah, he has no comfort to renounce, his 
 whole life being made up of continual fasting and abstinence 
 from sheer necessity, so that it is comparatively easy for him 
 to be a good Mohammedan. 
 
 Having engaged a berth for the voyage from London to 
 India on the steamer City of Canterbury, which I was to 
 take about this time at the west end of the Suez canal, I 
 could not remain any longer in Egypt, but took the Austrian 
 steamer Apollo to Port Said, at the entrance to the Suez 
 canal. On September 25th, in the evening, I embarked on 
 the City of Canterbury where I made myself comfortable in 
 a fine state-room which had been reserved for me. It takes 
 two da^'s to pass through the Suez canal, which runs 
 through a great sandy plain that was formerly covered by 
 the waters of the Red Sea. Among the many memorable 
 places which were pointed out to us during this passage was 
 also the spot where Moses is said to have conducted the 
 Israelites across the Red Sea. The work on the Suez canal 
 was commenced in 1859 and completed in 1869, and it cost 
 about $95,000,000. The length of the canal is one hundred 
 miles, its width at the surface of the water is three hundred 
 and twenty-eight feet, at the bottom seventy-two feet, and 
 its depth twenty-six feet. To a ship sailing from Sweden 
 or England to Bombay in India, the distance bj'- way of the 
 Suez canal is five thousand miles shorter than by the passage 
 around the Cape of Good Hope. 
 
 I recollect an anecdote which dates from the opening of 
 the canal in 1869. On that occasion an irreverent speaker 
 is claimed to have said in toasting De Lesseps, the French 
 engineer who planned and executed the work, that the lat- 
 ter was the only man who had improved upon the work of 
 the creator: He had connected the waters of the Red Sea 
 
 and those of the Mediterranean. Thus the significance of 
 11 
 
162 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 a great \\rork may also find an expression in the garb of a 
 bold joke. 
 
 Having remained in Suez a short while, the steamer glided 
 out on the Red Sea, keeping close up to the naked coast of 
 Africa. On the second day of our Red Sea voyage we saw 
 Mount Sinai looming up some distance from the coast of 
 Arabia. September is the hottest month of the year in that 
 region, and as ^we had the wind with us, the customary 
 breeze caused by the motion of the steamer was neutralized, 
 and the heat was terrific. We slept on the deck, and we 
 hailed the morning hour with joy on account of the shower- 
 bath w^hich was afforded when the sailors w^ ashed the deck. 
 It is a conundrum to me why this body of v^ater is called 
 the Red Sea, for there is nothing whatever to suggest this 
 color. One day we had a miniature illustration of a sand 
 storm. A strong wind carried the sand from the coast of 
 Africa several miles into the sea and covered the steamer 
 with a layer of fine, wrhite sand, which looked like fre^h 
 snow. We also had a chance to see flying fish which flew 
 over the ship, and occasionally fell down on the deck. 
 These fish were small and silver-colored, their fins looking a 
 good deal like the wings of the bat. They can not turn in 
 their course, nor can they fly up and dovt^n at pleasure, but 
 only upward and forward in a straight line; and when they 
 fall down on the deck they are just as helpless as any other 
 fish out of water. 
 
 Having reached the Indian ocean, the temperature became 
 more pleasant, so that we no longer suffered so much from 
 the heat. At last our splendid steamer plowed its course up 
 the majestic Ganges, the sacred river with its one hundred 
 mouths, on whose peaceful bosom millions and millions of 
 human bodies have been carried to the ocean. For a dis- 
 tance of eighty miles we sailed up this wonderful river, 
 
Story of ax Emigrant. 163 
 
 and on either side we could see cities, temples, palm groves, 
 and large crowds of people. On October 15th we arrived at 
 Calcutta, where I was received by the American vice-consul, 
 and comfortably quartered in the Great Eastern hotel. 
 
CHAPTER XYI* 
 
 India— Its People, Religion, Etc.— The Fertility of the Country- The Cli- 
 mate — The Dwellings — Punkah — Costumes — Calcutta — Dalhousie 
 Square — Life in the Streets. 
 
 This IS India, the wonderful land of the Hindoos. Africa 
 had appeared strange to us compared with Europe and 
 America ; Asia seemed still more so. The Hindoos have a 
 high and very old civilization, but entirely different from 
 that of Europe and America. The country is named after 
 the river Indus. It is hardly equal in area to one-half of 
 the United States, but contains a population of more than 
 two hundred and sixty-nine niillions> eighty-one millions of 
 whom are Mohammedans, one hundred and ninety millions 
 Brahmins, two millions Christians, three and a half mil- 
 lions, Buddhists, Parsees or fire-worshipers, two millions 
 Sikhs, and the rest are Jews or adherents of unknown re- 
 ligions. Queen Victoria of England is Empress of India, 
 and the country is ruled in her name by a viceroy. It is 
 divided into three great presidencies, viz., Bengal, Madras, 
 and Bombay, and these are again divided into a number of 
 districts and native principalities. In order to maintain her 
 supremacy in India, England keeps an army of about two 
 hundred thousand regulars, of whom a little over one-third 
 are English and the rest natives ; and beside these there is a 
 large militia and police force. Most of the native soldiers 
 hail from the mountain districts. The most prominent of 
 
 164. 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 165 
 
 them belong to the Sikhs and Gourkas, two Indian nations. 
 The Sikhs are tall, stately fellows, in my opinion ideal sol- 
 diers for a standing army. The Gourkas are smaller in 
 
 SIKH CAVALRY MAN. 
 
 stature, "but very energetic and hardy ; and both are renowned 
 for their courage and endurance. It is said that a Gourka 
 soldier would rather fight than eat, while a Sikh takes the 
 matter more philosophically, and eats first and then fights. 
 All native regiments are commanded by British officers, and 
 
ItiS Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 .1 native seldom attains the rank of a commanding officer, — 
 not because he is incapable of performing this duty, but 
 rather because the English do not trust him implicitly. 
 
 The bulk of the people belong to the Arian race, as we do; 
 with the exception of the complexion, which is a little 
 darker, their features are the same as ours. Occasionally a 
 Hindoo may have red hair, but never blonde hair and blue 
 eyes. Comparing the higher and the lower classes, the com- 
 plexion of the former is lighter, and their bodies are better 
 built and statelier than those of the lower or laboring classes, 
 who also have a darker skin. The English language is used 
 at the court and in all official circles, and the men of the 
 higher classes among the natives speak and read English. 
 
 The plain of Bengal, in which Calcutta is situated, is trian- 
 gular in form, each side being about one thousand miles in 
 length. It is bounded by the Bay of Bengal, the Indian 
 ocean, the Bay of Persia, and the Himalaya mountains. 
 The soil is very rich, and, having been cultivated for thou- 
 sands of years, it still produces two or three fair crops a year 
 without fertilization or proper cultivation. As the Nile in 
 Egypt deposits a rich sediment over its valley, so does the 
 river Ganges carry from the mountains a whitish, slimy silt, 
 which it deposits during its annual overflow in the plains of 
 Bengal. This silt is a great fertilizer, and thus nature sup- 
 plies what poor husbandry fails to provide. 
 
 It is not my intention to give a description of India and 
 its wonderful people, but simply to give some pen pictures 
 of scenes and incidents which came within the range of my 
 observation and experience during the year and a half which 
 I stayed there. I shall therefore ask the reader to follow me 
 on my daily walks of life as well as to some of the fetes and 
 entertainments where I was a guest, and on my travels 
 through the wonderful country. I had a chance to come in 
 contact with all classes, as the rank to which my official 
 
168 Story of an Eaugrant. 
 
 position entitled me not only opened the doors of the pal- 
 aces and temples to me, but also paved my way to the 
 hnonblest houses. 
 
 India has over five hundred cities. Of these Calcutta is 
 the largest, and has a population of about eight hundred 
 thousand. It is called '* the city of palaces," but only cer- 
 tain portions of the city deserve that name. Owing to the 
 warm climate, the buildings in India, as in all other warm 
 countries, arelow^, seldom more than two stories high, and the 
 •walls and roofs are very thick. The building material gen- 
 erally convsists of brick and cement, the roofs being mostly 
 made of the latter. There are verandas on the sides of the 
 houses, and these, as well as the w^indows, are protected by 
 heavy Venetian blinds. In the evening the doors and "win- 
 dows are thrown open so as to let in the cool night air, but 
 in the morning they are closely shut, so as to keep as much 
 of it as possible. Inside there are many contrivances for 
 protecting the people against the excessive heat. The most 
 important of these is the punkah, consisting of a wooden 
 framework which is stretched with heavy canvass and is 
 about two and a half feet wide, and from ten to twenty feet 
 long, according to the size of the room. It is suspended 
 from the ceiling, and reaches down to the heads of people 
 sitting on chairs. By means of pulleys this punkah is kept 
 in an oscillating motion by coolies stationed in the back of 
 the house or on the back porch, and it creates such a pleas- 
 ant breeze that one forgets all about the heat. Every room 
 or office in the houses of Europeans and Americans has its 
 punkah, and even the churches have a great number of them 
 during the hot season. From March till October the pun- 
 kahs are kept in motion all night over the beds of those who 
 can afford the luxury of four "punka walla" (pullers); for 
 it always takes two pullers for each punkah in the day-time, 
 and two others at night to reheve each other every hour or 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 169 
 
 two. Servants* wages are very low in India, and as the 
 punkah walla belongs to the lowest grade of servants his 
 wages are only five rupees ($2.50) a month, and he must 
 board himself as do all other servants. 
 
 The clothing which people wear also adds largely to their 
 comfort. The cooley, or common laborer, wrears a long 
 piece of cloth wrapped around his waist and tucked up so as 
 to resemble a short pair of drawers, and a head gear some- 
 what resembling a turban; the breast, back, and upper 
 limbs being entirely naked. Both men and women of the 
 
 n 
 
 215 f ;:jf ' ■ 
 
 
 TYPES OF THE LOWEST CASTE. 
 
 better class of natives have loose falling robes of jute, silk or 
 cotton. Europeans generally dress in white linen trousers 
 and jackets, and it is only toward evening when taking a 
 
170 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 drive near the public parks, or at night while attending par- 
 ties and receptions, that etiquette compells them to put on 
 the black dress suit. What strikes the newcomer most on 
 his first arrival in India is perhaps the great number of peo- 
 ple that he meets and sees. The cities are veritable bee-hives 
 of moving crow^ds of people, and the bazaars, shops, and 
 dwellings resemble honey-combs, with their many subdivis- 
 ions, giving each man or group of men the smallest possible 
 space. 
 
 Sitting in m^^ comfortable easy chair with my eyes closed, 
 thinking of the past, I now see a picture of a spot in 
 Calcutta called "Dalhousie Square," where I loved to walk 
 in the cool evening shades. I wish I ^^ere an artist and could 
 paint the picture on canvas for ray readers; but since I am 
 not I will try to describe it with the pen. Dalhousie square 
 is about twice the size of our ordinary city parks ; it is laid 
 out in walks, flower beds and grass plots, and planted with 
 flowers, shrubs and trees of almost every imaginable kind ; 
 it is a perfect gem of a little park. It is surrounded by 
 a high iron railing, with gates at the four corners, which are 
 open in the day time. On one side of the park are the new 
 government office buildings, while the other sides are lined 
 with ordinary business houses, separated from the park by 
 wide streets. The principal one of these streets leads from 
 the viceroy's palace up to the native part of the city, and is 
 generally frequented by a great number of fine carriages, 
 hacks, palanquin bearers, horsemen, and thousands c f 
 pedestrians. 
 
 At one corner is a hack stand, with hacks just like our 
 own; but instead of our American hackdriver we find the 
 native Jehu, or coachman, who, while waiting for a cus- 
 tomer, sits perched on the seat with his feet drawn up under 
 bis body, engaged with needle and thread in sewing a gar- 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 171 
 
 ment for himself or his wife, perhaps, or occupying himself 
 with a piece of embroidery or fine crochet work. 
 
 In front of yonder fine ofiice building is seated a Durwan 
 (doorkeeper), who is a Brahmin or priest. He sits at that 
 door or gate all day long, and sleeps in front of it at night 
 on his little bed, which resembles a camp cot. Early in the 
 morning he takes up his bed and walks with it to the rear, 
 where stands a little cookhouse in which he prepares his 
 food for the day, consisting chiefly of boiled rice and vege- 
 tables. Just now he is reading aloud, and -with a singing 
 voice, from the Shastras (the Hindoo Bible) to a crowd of 
 listeners, who eagerly and reverently seize on every w^ord 
 from the holy writings. Just behind me on a green spot in 
 the park a dozen or more Mohammedans lie prostrate, their 
 foreheads touching the ground, repeating their prayers ; and 
 if it happens to be at the setting of the sun hundreds of peo- 
 ple are seen in the streets, shops, hotel corridors, or wherever 
 they happen to be, turning their faces toward the holy city 
 Mecca, reverently kneeling and saying their evening prayers. 
 
 Here on the side-walk, close by, me sits a money-changer 
 and broker. He has a box filled with coins of almost every 
 kind and description ; he buys and sells gold and silver of 
 other countries, such as are not current in Calcutta, loans 
 money on jewelry and other valuables, and does a general 
 banking business on a very small scale. There comes a 
 peddler, — more of them. Now they are crowding in by the 
 hundred, selling canes, parasols, embroideries, \vatches, 
 jewelry, and trinkets of every description, following the 
 foot passengers, running beside the carriages going at full 
 speed, sticking their goods through the windows and implor- 
 ing the occupants to buy. 
 
 Going around to the more quiet side of the square, I find a 
 professional writer squatted on the side-walk. He has a 
 bundle of dry palm leaves, and a customer of the lowest 
 
172 
 
 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 Hindoo classes stands before him stating what message he 
 wishes to send to his wife and relatives in the country, 
 
 ^ With a sharp steel instrument the writer inscribes some 
 strange Bengal letters on the palm leaf, folds it upintoalittle 
 
 >, package which is sent by a traveling neighbor, or^ perhaps, 
 by a swift messenger, to the dear one in the humble cottage 
 
 V which stands somewhere out on the plain among the rice 
 fields. 
 
 A little further on sits a native barber, also on the side- 
 walk.* Instead of a barber's chair he has a common-sized 
 
 HINDOO BARBER. 
 
 brick. The man who is to be shaved squats down opposite 
 the barber; if the customer is the shorter of the two the 
 brick is put under his feet, but if he is taller the barber puts 
 the brick under his own feet, in order that they may be on a 
 
 *The Hindoos never sit as we do, but squat on the ground and rest the weight 
 of the body on the heels. 
 
Story of ax Emigrant. 173 
 
 perfect level before the operation begins. A Hindoo barber 
 not only shaves and cuts the hair, but also cleans the nails 
 and ears and does other toilet work. 
 
 There I see two stately men walking arm in arm ; they 
 have fine cut, very regular features, and beautiful black hair 
 and beard ; their intelligent looks and easy carriage com- 
 mand attention; they wear japanned shoes, snow white 
 trousers, long white linen coats buttoned close to the chin, 
 and high black hats without brim. They are Parsees, 
 descendants of the ancient Persians and fire- worshipers, and 
 probably merchants and men of wealth. And there again I 
 see a group of Asiatic Jews in skull caps and long gowns, — 
 keen, thoughtful and intelligent, without the slightest change 
 in manners, costumes, or features since the days of the Jews 
 of nineteen hundred years ago. 
 
 In the crowded street I suddenly hear a shout, and see two 
 men running with staffs in their hands, hallooing: ** Stand 
 aside, get out of the way. you fellows! The Prince of Tra- 
 vancore is coming! Clear the road, get out of the way!" 
 Close on the heels of the runners is a magnificent carriage 
 drawn by four Arabian steeds. By the side of the driver sits 
 a trumpeter, who occasionally blows in ^ long horn to make 
 known that the great personage is coming. Inside is the 
 prince, and behind the carriage are four mounted soldiers, 
 his body guard. 
 
 Just coming in sight around a street corner, turning up 
 one of the native streets, is a long line of ox-carts. They 
 are loaded with cotton, jute, hides, indigo, or other native 
 products. They are very light, and are drawn by a pair of 
 Hindoo oxen no larger than a two-year-old heifer of our 
 cattle, but with fine limbs and a high hump over the shoul- 
 ders. They are yoked far apart, about the same way as in 
 Sweden ; but the coolie driver sits close behind them and 
 guides them by a twist of the tail with his hand. Several 
 
174 
 
 Story of an Emigrant, 
 
 palanquin-bearers are passing the square. The palanquin is 
 a long covered box attached to a long pole and carried by 
 four men, two at each end of the pole, which rests on their 
 shoulders. Inside the palanquin is perhaps a Hindoo mer- 
 chant going to a bazaar, or a couple of students going to 
 the university, or maybe the wife of some well-to-do native 
 merchant on the way to the home of her parents. 
 The trees in the park are all full of flowers, like the tulip 
 
 
 INDIGO CART. 
 
 tree and the chestnut in bloom. Innumerable birds of gay 
 colors flutter among the branches of the trees, and on the 
 roofs of the highest houses we discover a couple of the 
 so-called adjutant birds, a species of stork, v^hich stand 
 like sentinels on guard watching the thousaniis of ravens 
 that hover over the city ready to dive for any garbage that 
 may be thrown out into the street or alley. Formerly, 
 these were the only scavengers in the cities of India. A 
 
{Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 175 
 
 dozen coolies who are almost naked are seen running among 
 the carriages sprinkling water on the streets from goat 
 skins, to keep the dust down. 
 
 There comes a family procession of the lower class with a 
 basket of bananas and wreaths of flowers going to the 
 river Ganges to offer sacrifices and enjoy an evening bath in 
 the open river. Early every morning thousands upon thou- 
 
 
 '^■>r;'wffifgyr:'ir^"-"x'-^'"^'^'r: ; 
 
 HINDOO MERCHANTS. 
 
 sands may be seen in the streets bent on a similar errand. 
 Men from Cashmere, Afghanistan, China, Arabia, Thibet, 
 etc., are seen in the throng, dressed in their native costumes. 
 It is a strange and beautiful picture to look at for a little 
 while. I have described only a small portion of it, for fear 
 of tiring the reader. 
 
CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 The Promenades of the Fashionable World— Maidan— The Viceroy— British 
 Dominions in India. 
 
 No European or American walks out doors in India, except- 
 ing a promenade early in the morning or late in the evening. 
 They are either carried in palanquins, or, which is more 
 common, they keep a horse and carriage. Observing the 
 good old rule of adopting the custom of the country, I also 
 procured a phaeton and a gray Arab as well as the indispen- 
 sable Hindoo driver and runner, and I now invite the reader 
 to take a ride with me late in the afternoon, when hundreds 
 of equipages fill the fashionable driveways. 
 
 It is five o'clock in the afternoon, and the dim rays of the 
 setting sun allow us to lower the top of the carriage so that 
 we may have an open view all around. But before doing 
 this, we must exchange the white business suit and broad- 
 brimmed Indian hat (which are made of the light pith of an 
 Indian shrub somewhat similar to our elder bush, and cov- 
 ered with a thin layer of cotton) for the conventional black 
 hat and coat, for these people are dreadfully ceremonious. 
 The chandra takes his place in the driver's seat, and the 
 badon on the steps behind the carriage. They are both 
 dressed in snow-white outer garments, which look a good 
 deal like a common nightgown, and a head dress consisting of 
 ten yards of white muslin, wound several times around the 
 
 head in the shape of a round turban. The Mohammedar 
 
 I7e 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 177 
 
 coachmen and runners generally wear the colors of their 
 masters in the same manner as other native servants do. 
 In my case, of course, it was the red, white and blue sashes, 
 belts and turbans. The runner has his place on a step be- 
 hind the carriage, and it is his duty to jump off and run in 
 front to clear the way whenever it may be necessary. 
 
 We start from the Great Eastern hotel, where I first 
 resided, down a long street called Chowringhee road, which 
 is two miles long and very broad, and lined on the east side 
 b}' English residences built of stone. Every mansion stands 
 in a large garden full of tropical trees and plants, and sur- 
 rounded by a stone wall five feet high. There are wide 
 double gates for carriage drives, and at these gates the dur- 
 wan (gate or doorkeeper) sits the whole day long. On the 
 west side of the street runs a double street-car track, and 
 bej^ond this is an immense common parade or pleasure 
 ground, the Maidan, which extends to the Hoogley, a branch 
 of the Ganges. On the west side it is bounded by the 
 Strand, and on all other sides by a macadamized road about 
 one hundred and fifty feet wide and planted with large, 
 shady trees on either side. The east side of this road is 
 already described. On the north side, from the river to 
 Chowringhee road, between Eden Garden and the palace, it 
 is called the Esplanade. Another hundred-foot-wide road 
 runs south from the palace, and divides the ground into 
 halves. This is called the Red road because it is macadam- 
 ized with crushed red brick. From the Red road opposite 
 Fort William another great road runs to Chowringhee road. 
 A great number of foot-paths cross each other in all 
 directions, and in the evening these are crowded with 
 people in oriental costumes going to their homes in the 
 suburbs. 
 
 Here and there are statues erected to the honor of promi- 
 nent English generals and statesmen, and certain parts of the 
 
 12 
 
178 
 
 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 grounds are also dotted with small groups of palms and 
 other tropical trees. All these trees and plants are different 
 from those growing in the North. Most of them have very 
 broad and thick leaves, nearly all of them bear beautiful 
 flowers, and many of them fruits. They are green the ^whole 
 year round. In the north-east corner of the grounds is a 
 garden of about forty acres which is called Eden. It is ex- 
 ceedingly beautiful and contains a great variety of trees and 
 flowers, an Indian pagoda, lakes, canals and bridges, and 
 thousands of birds enjoying an almost undisturbed existence, 
 and singing and twittering among the trees and flowers. 
 Eden Garden is surrounded by a low brick wall v/ith several 
 
 GOVERNMENT HOUSE. 
 
 gates, the widest of which is the one next to the Strand. In- 
 side this gate is a high orchestra stand, and below a square 
 promenade on the fine grass plat. From six tc seven o'clock 
 in the evening a military band plays to the fashionable world 
 which gathers here to take an evening walk. 
 
 A quarter of a mile below the Eden garden is the histor- 
 ical Fort William, around which Lord Clive and other heroes 
 struggled to found the British Empire of India. Below the 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 179 
 
 fort and next to tlie Strand is the drill-ground, and below 
 this again a large race course. South of Maidan are several 
 suburbs, and beyond these a zoological garden. 
 
 Driving past the imposing orange-colored palace of the 
 viceroy, called the government house, which very much re- 
 sembles our capitol at Washington, but is neither so large 
 nor so elegant, we finally strike the Esplanade, where the 
 Cho wring hee road meets the Red road. We stop a few 
 minutes at the Esplanade to take a look at the gay picture. 
 The Esplanade is crowded with a surging mass of humanity, 
 all going from the river bank to their homes in the Eastern 
 part of the city. It is the sixth day of the new moon, and 
 thousands of men, women and children have been down to 
 the river, washed themselves in its waters, and offered sacri- 
 fices consisting of fruits and flowers. The women are dressed 
 in white, red, yellow, green, blue or violet garments. The 
 smallest children sit astride on the left hip of their mothers, 
 the men carry large baskets of fruit, mostly bananas, on 
 their heads for the river-god received only a small portion, 
 and the rest is to be eaten at home. Here and there among 
 the pedestrians is a well-to do Hindoo who takes his family, 
 consisting of two or three wives and a crowd of children, to 
 the river in an ox-cart. There are hundreds of musicians 
 and peddlers in the throng, and all are joyful and rejoicing. 
 It must be observed that only people of the lower classes 
 take part in such public demonstrations in company with 
 women and children. Fashionable women would never 
 walk beyond the gardens around their own houses and do 
 not appear in company. 
 
 Soon carriages are seen passingby in long rows, either down 
 the Red road or to the right along the Esplanade toward the 
 Strand. We follow the latter and arrive at the river bank ^ 
 where thousands of people are. yet busy with their sacrifices 
 or trading with peddlers for fancy goods and dainties, while 
 
180 Story of an Emigraxt. 
 
 others listen to the music from peculiarly constructed flutes 
 and drums, which vie with each other in producing the most 
 ear-rending discord. Elegantly covered carriages swarm in 
 four lines up and down the road. Most of the occupants 
 are Englishmen with their ladies; but you may also see 
 quite a number of Hindoo princes or noblemen with their 
 ladies in oriental costumes, or Parsee merchants in black 
 silk coats and high caps. To the right there is a veritable 
 forest of ship's masts extending along the beach for miles, 
 and to the left some native soldiers are being drilled. We 
 drive down and have a chat with the English officers and 
 stop to see a game of polo played, the native cavalry con- 
 testing with their English officers, all displaying a wonderful 
 skill. Every now and then a couple of young Englishmen or 
 officers on horseback meet each other, and yonder are two 
 half-naked Hindoos on a jog-trot carrying a load which 
 looks like a big coffin, but which turns out to be a palanquin 
 occupied by a passenger who, in an inclined position, smokes 
 his cigar and takes as much comfort as he can get in that 
 primitive mode of traveling. But see there! At a given 
 sign hundreds of men arrange themselves in long rows with 
 their faces turned to the west, just as the sun sinks below 
 the horizon; they prostrate themselves with their faces 
 turned toward Mecca, and say their evening prayers. They 
 are Mohammedans. 
 
 Returning we stop at the gate to the Eden garden 
 where a large number of equipages have already arrived be- 
 fore us, compelling us to wait for our turn to drive up and 
 get out of the carriage. The garden is now illuminated by 
 thousands of gas and electric lights ; men, women and children 
 walk forth and back on the soft grass plats ; the nlilitary 
 band plays well-known tunes ; Chinese, Parsees, Jews, Hin- 
 doos and Arabs, in the most varied costumes, mingle with 
 each other and with the Europeans. There are plenty of 
 
STORY OF AN EMIGRANT. 
 
 181 
 
 Beats for such as wish to sit down and rest; but it is now 
 time for exercise, and they walk in rows often or more until 
 the baud winds up its program for the evening by 
 playing "God save the Queen." In the midst of a general 
 
 PARSEE FAMILY. 
 
 hurry and confusion ^we hunt up our carriage which was to 
 stop at a certain spot, and return to the crossroad from 
 which the roads of Maidan as well as the streets in the citv 
 may be seen glimmering in the gaslight as far as the eye can 
 reach. When we reach home it is just time to dress for din- 
 ner, which generally begins at eight o'clock, lasting two or 
 three hours. As to fashionable life, social pleasure, display 
 of dress and finery, etc., Calcutta excels every other place in 
 the world. 
 
1S2 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 My exequatur not having arrived from London, I had to 
 obtain a special recognition from the viceroy as American 
 consul-general, after which my formal presentation took 
 place. The Marquis of Ripon was viceroy during my stay in 
 India. On presenting my credentials I had a lengthy conver- 
 sation with him, and learned to admire him from thai 
 moment. From my memorandum book written on that day 
 I quote the following: 
 
 "Lord Ripon is a plain, manly man, whose character, head, and heart 
 would have made him a great man even if he had been born in obscurity, 
 but now he ranks as one of the highest, and is one of the wealthiest of the 
 Enghsh nobles. He said, among other things, to me: 'I hke America and 
 her people very much. I was there on a commission which tended to make 
 America and England better friends, and all such efforts are well worthy 
 all men (he referred to the Alabama treaty, in which as Earl de Gray he 
 was one ot the commissioners). With American and English ideas of liberty 
 it is hard to understand how to rule India. I would educate the natives,' 
 said he, 'even if I believed that it would be dangerous to English power, be- 
 cause it would be right to do so ; but 1 don't think it is dangerous. India has 
 always had a few very able and highly-educated men, while the millions 
 have been in utter ignorance and superstition, and such a condition is more 
 dangerous to English rule than if all are raised in the scale of knowledge. 
 My only object, and I think England's, in India, is to benefit India. Our 
 schools and railroads are doing away with ignorance, and are fast destroy 
 ing the caste system. Considering the natives as enemies, we must put on 
 a bold front and fear no danger, but be always on the guard.' " 
 
 Afterward I became intimately acquainted with this truly 
 noble man, and was proud and happy to be counted by him 
 as one of his very few friends in India who stood by him 
 when the powerful Anglo-Indian bureaucracy turned against 
 him on account of his humane efforts to raise the natives 
 socially and politically. Unfortunately for India, she has 
 not had many British rulers like Lord Ripon, but most of 
 them, in conjunction with the office-holding class, rule 
 India, not for the good of India, but for their own interests. 
 
 Our British friends are certainly entitled to credit for the 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 183 
 
 audacious pluck which they showed when a handful of their 
 soldiers and citizens conquered that great country with its 
 innumerable inhabitants. The only thing, however, that 
 made it possible to do so, and which makes it possible to 
 hold India to-day, is the internal strifes, the jealousies and the 
 religious intolerance among the natives themselves. If they 
 were united they could free the country from the foreigners 
 in a month. But why should they? The country is better 
 governed than ever before, and it is gaining fast in progress 
 and prosperity. Still there is a deep hidden feeling of ill-will 
 toward the English, and the time will yet come when a ter- 
 rible struggle w^ill be fought in India. Perhaps Russia will 
 have a hand in the fight. It will be a bloody, savage war, 
 and wiU cause Great Britain serious trouble. I said that 
 India is better ruled now than ever before; but that is not 
 saying much, for it ought to be ruled still better and more 
 in the interest of the natives. India has civil service with a 
 vengeance, the office-holding class being even more arrogant, 
 proud and independent than the titled nobility. They rule 
 the country with an iron hand, regard it simply as a field 
 for gathering in enormous salaries, and after twenty-five 
 years' service they return to England with a grand India 
 pension. The English look down upon the lower classes 
 with haughty contempt, chiefly because the latter try to in- 
 sinuate themselves into favor with the former by means 
 of all kinds of flattery. Nobody is of any account in India 
 unless he is an ofiicer, either civil or military ; hence all the 
 best talent is circumscribed within narrow office routine 
 limits, and nothing is left for the peaceful industrial pur- 
 suits except what the government may undertake to do, and 
 that is usually confined to railroad and canal improvements. 
 England wants India for a market, therefore nothing is 
 done to encourage manufactures, but rather to cripple them. 
 With the cheapest and most skilled labor in the world, the 
 
184 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 natives of India are compelled to buy even the cotton gar- 
 ments they wear from England though they raise the cottou- 
 themselves, and England is very careful not to establish a 
 nrotective tariff in India. 
 
CHAPTER XYIII. 
 
 An Indian Fete — The Prince of Burdwan — Indian Luxury— The Riches and 
 Romantic Life of an Indian Prince — Poverty and Riches ' 
 
 I shall now invite my reader to accompany me to the city 
 of Burdwan, which is situated about seventy miles north of 
 Calcutta, for the purpose of attending an Indian fete to 
 which I was invited shortly after my arrival at Calcutta. 
 Burdwan is the name of an old principality (as well as of its 
 capital) situated on the great Indian railway. The princi- 
 pality of Burdwan is now under the English government, 
 but it has its own maharajah, or prince, to whom the En- 
 glish government grants certain rights over the people and 
 property of this principality. The ruling prince during my 
 stay in India w^as a young man of about twenty-two years. 
 He had a good European education, spoke English well, and 
 had, to a great extent, adopted European manners and 
 customs. His name was Aftab Chand Muhtab Bahadur. 
 In the beginning of December, 1881, he was installed as 
 maharajah of Burdwan by Sir Ashley Eden, at which time 
 he came into actual possession of his inherited rights ; and 
 this event was celebrated by great festivities in the palace 
 and city of Burdwan. 
 
 The fete which commenced December fifth and closed De- 
 cember tenth was celebrated according to a well-chosen pro- 
 gram for each day. About fifty English civil and military 
 officers with their families were invited as guests to the 
 
 185 
 
186 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 palace. Some of them occupied rooms in the palace, others 
 lived in tents pitched in military order in the palace garden, 
 and about three hundred Indian guests were lodged in pri- 
 vate houses in the city. I was the only foreign guest, and 
 was assigned a neat pavilion, built partly over an artificial 
 lake in the garden, and the second place of honor at all 
 ceremonies — an honor which was, of course, due to the repub- 
 lic which I represented. 
 
 The palace consisted of several large buildings two or three 
 stories high, and several small pavilions, all in Italian style, 
 situated in a park or garden of some forty acres, and sur- 
 rounded by a stone wall twelve feet high, with tw^o beautiful 
 porticos. The largest building contained the private apart- 
 ments of the prince, two large parlors, two dining halls, a 
 ball room, a billiard room, a library, several picture galler- 
 ies and a large armory, — all of them furnished in the most 
 expensive and magnificent style. The floors and stairways 
 were of Italian marble, and the w^alls of the large parlors 
 adorned by huge mirrors set in frames inlaid with emeralds, 
 rubies, and other precious stones. Sculptures of marble 
 from Italy, of porphyry and alabaster from Egypt, and 
 porcelain vases from China, etc., adorned the corridors and 
 niches of the halls of the main building. 
 
 Another large building was inhabited by the women, 
 among whom the mother of the prince is the mistress; but 
 they themselves, as well as the interior of their palace, re- 
 main concealed from the gaze of the guests. Elegant car- 
 riages with drivers, servants and grooms in oriental livery, 
 caparisoned horses, saddles and bridles shining with gold and 
 silver trimmings, were day and night at the disposition 
 of the guests, and at his arrival every guest received a small 
 blank book with fifty leaves on which to write his name and 
 the kind of refreshment he wished, and hundreds of servants 
 dressed in white were always ready to fetch it to him in 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 187 
 
 the palace garden, at the race courses, or in the summer 
 
 houses. 
 The festivities and merriments were arranged so that 
 
 every guest had perfect Hberty and sufficient time to follow 
 
 his own taste. The following may serve as an illustration; 
 
 On Wesdnesday, De- 
 cember 7th, at half- 
 past seven o'clock, a 
 high school was in- 
 spected, and the gov- 
 ernor of Bengal distrib- 
 uted prizes among the 
 scholars; at ten break- 
 fast in the large dining 
 hall; at twelve the in- 
 stalment of the young 
 prince; at two lunch- 
 eon; at three the 
 opening of the races; 
 at half-past seven il- 
 lumination and py- 
 rotechnics ; at eight 
 grand dinner ; at ten a 
 ball in the palace for the 
 ^^J Europeans; and nautch 
 ^^^^^^^^y dancing and music by 
 
 native women in a pa- 
 
 NAUTCH DANCER. 
 
 vilion in the srardeu. 
 
 One day a canal was opened and dedicated. It was twenty 
 miles long, and built for the purpose of supplying several 
 cities and country districts with an abundance of water. 
 All the streets and roads in and around Burdwan were in a ^ 
 splendid condition, wide and macadamized with crushed, 
 b.ick. From the railroad station to the palace and two 
 
188 
 
 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 miles beyond to two villas, as well as along the principal 
 streets in the city, and along all paths and roads in the 
 palace garden, bamboo poles forty feet long were erected on 
 both sides, and about forty feet apart. These poles were all 
 wrapped in red and white glazed paper, and had flags at the 
 top. The poles were connected by lines along which colored 
 glass lamps were suspended six inches apart, and these were 
 all lighted at six o'clock. I was told that there were over 
 forty thousand such lamps, and that it took five hundred 
 
 COLLEGE BUILDING. 
 
 men to fill, light, and attend to them. From nine to twelve 
 o'clock every tiight an electric light was beaming from one 
 of the palace towers, and Wednesday evening there wrs a 
 magnificent display of pyrotechnics around an artificial lake 
 about a mile from the palace. The latter cost about twenty- 
 five thousand dollars. Its effect on men, animals, and the 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 189 
 
 tropical plants was such that a man from the North found 
 It difficult to realize that he was still on this earth of ours, 
 and not far away in the fairy world of fiction. 
 
 Reality is so wonderful in India that I have hardly dared 
 io tell the following without gradually preparing my reader 
 for it. This! young prince, whose guest I was and with 
 whom I talked a good deal, is a poor foundling, having 
 been adopted by the old prince, who died childless, and by 
 the consent of the English government he was made his sole 
 "heir. His landed estates were so large that he paid two 
 million two hundred thousand dollars to the English gov- 
 ernment in annual taxes on the income from his lands ! How 
 large his total income is, nobody knows. Inside the palace 
 Walls, w^hich were protected by a strong bodv-guard night 
 and day, were deep subterranean vaults with secret en- 
 trances, where gold and jewels were concealed in such quan- 
 tities as may be imagined only when it is remembered that 
 during a period of three hundred years the family has been 
 accustomed to accumulate these treasures by at least three 
 **lacs rupees," or one hundred and sixty thousand dollars, a 
 year. But during the same time millions upon millions 
 of people have starved to death in the principality of Bur- 
 dwan, and even now it is safe to say that nine-tenths of the 
 people w^ho cultivate the soil and live on the estates of the 
 maharajah and pay him tribute are so poor that they could 
 scarcely sustain their life a single month in case of drought 
 or inundations. 
 
 To describe the w^hole fete would require a whole book, 
 and I therefore select the installation ceremony, which, by 
 the way, was the most important of the festivities. It took 
 place in a small mango forest, about a mile from the palace. 
 A pleasant country road, decorated with banners and 
 spanned by triumphal arches covered with flowers, led to 
 the place. At .nt pavilion sixty feet long and forty feet wide 
 
190 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 was erected about a hundred yards from the road. The 
 tent w^as supported by forty pillars covered with silver tinsel 
 paper, and the canvas consisted of heavy linen woven in 
 many-colored squares, "which w^ere about three feet each way. 
 The sides of the tent were open, and between each of the 
 outer pillars "was stationed a Hindoo soldier dressed in 
 shoes, gray stockings, black knee breeches, and a red coat, 
 one half of which was embroidered with gold and silver, 
 while the head was covered by a red turban richly adorned 
 with gold ornaments. These soldiers were gigantic, dark 
 figures, armed with curved sabres and long lances. They 
 stood immovable as statues, and only the rolling of their 
 flashing eye-balls showed that they were living men. At the 
 upper end of the tent was an elevated platform with a gilt 
 chair for the governor, and behind this, chairs for the 
 European ladies. From the platform to the entrance at the 
 opposite end was an aisle, on each side of which were four 
 rows of chairs for the guests, all numbered and placed 
 according to their rank. The aisle and the walk to the 
 country road -were covered with expensive Persian rugs, and 
 chamberlains in dazzling c(.)stumes conducted the guests 
 ifrom the carriages to the seats assigned to them in the tent. 
 The European officers were seated on the first row to the 
 right, and the Hindoo princes and noblemen on the first row 
 to the left, "with the young maharajah next to the platform. 
 The other chairs were occupied by Hindoo and Mohamme- 
 dan zemindars (proprietors of landed estates), scholars, and 
 dignitaries. 
 
 A most splendid display of costumes in satin and velvet in 
 all possible colors and fashions, all of them richly adorned 
 with gold and silver trimming and embroideries, besides 
 glittering necklaces and diamond rings, added brilliantly 
 to ,th€ scene. AU j;he natives kept their headdresses on, 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 191 
 
 most of them wearing low turbans of colored or white silk, 
 ornamented with gold, pearls and gems. 
 
 Only the prince of Burdwan and the young prince of 
 Kutch Behar were armed, and these only with Damascus 
 cimeters. The prince of Burdwan wore a purple satin gar- 
 ment, red silk shoes and a high cap in the shape of a crown. 
 His breast, neck, headdress and hands glittered with diamonds 
 and rubies. Over this garment he wore a mantle of dark 
 yellow cloth, which was very artistically woven, and cost 
 about ten thousand dollars. Most of the native nobles dis- 
 tinguished themselves by a stately, military bearing, looking 
 both handsome and intelligent. Some of them were very 
 dark, but most had about the same complexion as the Span- 
 iards. Jet black hair and black, flashing eyes were universal, 
 only a single one having dark red dair and beard. 
 
 When all had been seated the governor, accompanied by 
 two adjutants and several servants, arrived. A guard of 
 honor, consisting of one hundred Sepoys, was stationed in 
 front of the tent, and saluted the governor by presenting 
 arms, during which the military band played an English 
 national tune. Eight huge elephants were arranged in a 
 row between the road and the tent ; these were covered by 
 rich caparisons adorned ^th heavy gold and silver embroid- 
 eries, and carryino^ on their backs small pavilions in w^hich 
 richly dressed drivers ^svalked a fevsr steps back and forth. 
 At the door of the tent the governor was received by eight 
 artistically uniformed aids -de -camp carrying marshal's 
 staffs, silver horns, lances and perfumes. 
 
 The act of installation was now in order, and was per- 
 formed in the following manner: The maharajah stepped 
 up before the governor and received from his hand a parch- 
 ment roll, by which the queen conferred authority. Hav- 
 ing read this in a loud and solemn voice, the governor 
 hung a chain of diamonds and rubies around the neck of the 
 
192 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 prince, and made a short congratulatory address to him. 
 The minister of finance brought a silver basin filled with 
 Indian gold coins, which he handed to the governor as an 
 emblem of tribute to the English government. The prince 
 now resumed his seat, and two chamberlains brought gold 
 vessels on silver trays containing attar of roses, and two 
 others brought spices in similar receptacles. The attar of 
 roses -wsis sprinkled over the audience, and each one of the 
 native guests received a small quantity of spices w^rapped in 
 a palm leaf. Finally the band struck up a march, and the 
 whole retinue returned to the carriages by the road side and 
 drove back to the palace. One of the carriages of the pro- 
 cession -was loaded with silver coins, which were thrown 
 right and left to the thousands of poor and beggars, who 
 crowded the road on both sides. In the evening, again, pro- 
 visions and clothing were distributed to about fifteen thou- 
 sand poor, who had flocked in from all parts of Burdwan, 
 but who had not been allowed to enter the city. 
 
CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 Allahabad— Sacred Places— Kumbh Mela — Pilgrimages — Bathing in the 
 Ganges- Fakirs and Penitents— Sacred Rites— Superstitions. 
 
 Allahabad means the dwelling of God, and the Hindoos 
 regard it as one of the most sacred places of India. It is a 
 city of one hundred and fifty thousand inhabitants, and has 
 a strong fortress with an English garrison. It is the seat of 
 the govemment of the north-western provinces, and is situ- 
 ated on a point of land between the rivers Ganges and 
 Jumna, on the great Indian railroad, about five hundred 
 and sixty-five miles from Calcutta, and about the same dis- 
 tance from the Bay of Persia. 
 
 In a tropical climate where rain seldom falls during nine 
 months of the year, it is quite natural that the people 
 regard streams and rivers as their greatest benefactors, 
 and by means of the vivid imagination of the South this sen- 
 timent has occasionally been developed into religious 
 worship and idolatry. In this manner the great Ganges, 
 which flows nearly through the entire length of India, has, 
 since time immemorial, been regarded as sacred, as have 
 also all places w^here three rivers meet. At Allahabad the 
 Jumna meets the sacred Ganges, thus affording two of the 
 necessary conditions to make the place sacred, and it was 
 easy for the fertile imagination of the Brahmins to create 
 the third, which is said to consist in a spiritual current from 
 above, pouring down continually at the point where the 
 
 13 193 
 
194 Story of an Emigrant, 
 
 Jumna and the Ganges meet and mingle. It is claimed that 
 this invisible river is very abundant, especially in the month 
 of Magh, from the middle of January to the middle of Feb- 
 ruary, but the most favorable period in this respect is under 
 the astromical cycle Yuga, which occurs every tv^^elfth year 
 in the month of Magh, and is called ''Kumbh." This oc- 
 curred in 1882, which was therefore a very important year 
 for the Hindoos. 
 
 To bathe in the Ganges always means a spiritual purifica- 
 tion, and to bathe there where the three rivers meet at Alla- 
 habad in the month of Magh is a very sacred rite. Ever}' 
 good Hindoo endeavors, if possible, to bathe at this place at 
 least once during his lifetime ; but to bathe there during the 
 Kumbh Mela, or the twelfth year's cycle, is the most sacred 
 act a Hindoo can perform, and such a bath is said to atone 
 for the greatest sins both of the bather and his nearest rela- 
 tives, be they living or dead. Out of the immense population 
 of India, one hundred and ninety millions profess the above 
 faith. Being a very religious people in their way, and testify- 
 ing to their faith by their works, it is no great wonder that 
 Allahabad in the course of four weeks was visited by nearly 
 two million pilgrims, who came there only for the purpose 
 of bathing in the sacred river. Partly from curiosity and 
 partly in order to obtain reliable information, I also made a 
 short pilgrimage to this place. 
 
 I said that nearly two million people visited Allahabad 
 during the Kumbh Mela, which I attended. They came from 
 all parts of India, men and women, young and old, but es- 
 pecially the old, of all classes from the beggar to the prince, 
 of all castes from the despised coolie to the haughty Brah- 
 min. They came on crowded railroad trains, or on elephants, 
 camels, horses, asses, in ox-carts and in boats on the rivers, 
 but most of them on foot along roads and pathways, across 
 fields and meadows, the living ones carrying the ashes of 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 195 
 
 the cremated bodies of their dead relatives to throw them 
 in the holy river. Many of them had traveled great dis- 
 tances and been on the journey for months. Old men who 
 did not expect to return to their homes, but were in hopes of 
 finding a grave in the sacred waters, and had said good-bye 
 
 
 >»..Vv 
 
 INDIAN CART. 
 
 ' to everything which bound them to life ; cripples and inva- 
 lids expecting to be cured on the banks of the Ganges, con- 
 gregated in large numbers at this sacred place. Fanatical 
 penitents came crawling on hands and feet ; holy Fakirs had 
 measured the way by the length of their own bodies for 
 scores of miles. The penitent Fakir who travels in this 
 manner lies down on the ground with his head toward the 
 place of destination, makes a mark in the ground in front of 
 his head, and crawls forward the length of his body and lies 
 down again w^ith the feet ^where he had his head before; a 
 new mark, another movement ahead, etc., and so he keeps 
 on, one length of his body at a time, until he reaches the 
 
196 
 
 Story oi'' an Emigrant. 
 
 hoi J river. During this journey the Fakir is surrounded and 
 followed by a large concourse of people who furnish him 
 -with food and drink, and regard him as a saint. There are 
 instances of men having traveled over five hundred miles in 
 this manner. Every day and hour the crowd was increased 
 by new arrivals, until the river banks, the fields and roads 
 swarmed with countless masses, — a most wonderful gather- 
 ing. Thousands of Brahmins offered their services to guide 
 
 FAKIRS. 
 
 and bless the pilgrims, most always for a valuable consid- 
 eration; thousands of peddlers sold small idols, flower 
 wreaths, rosaries, and other sacred objects at high prices; 
 others peddled rice, fruit, thin bread and other provisions, 
 and thousands of barbers cut the hair and shaved the tem- 
 ples of the pilgrims. There, in the shade of some mango trees 
 a Hindoo prince had gone into camp with his elephants, 
 horses, soldiers and servants, the retinue consisting of about 
 two hundred people; and yonder in the shadeless valley 
 is a camp of a thousand or more Fakirs huddled together. 
 Many are entirely naked, others are protected by a few 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 197 
 
 yards of dirty cotton cloth, most of them sprinkled with 
 ashes or dry clay, their faces streaked in gray, red or yellow 
 colors, and the hair done up in the shape of a chignon and 
 held together with wet clay; but although presenting a pict- 
 ure of dire want in their persons they have in the camp a 
 large herd of costly elephants richly adorned with covers of 
 satin and velvet embroideried in gold, silver, precious stones 
 and gems, proving that their begging has not been in vain. 
 
 On the river bank is the headquarters of the pilgrims from 
 one of the Southern provinces, and over yonder that of those 
 from the North or East. Everywhere is heard the noise of 
 trading and bargaining, of greeting and ecstacy, of laughter 
 and astonishment, and of the moaning and cries of the sick 
 and suffering — indeed a regular pandemonium. 
 
 The February sun already shone scorchingly hot upon the 
 low, shadeless valley, the thermometer rising to 90°. In the 
 night, however, it ^wns unusually cold for that country, and 
 most of the pilgrims being poor and their clothing and food 
 wretched, dangerous diseases began to break out among the 
 weak and exhausted. The terrible cholera claimed numerous 
 victims every day, many died from weakness and negligence, 
 others again perished through accidents on land and water, 
 for nobody seemed to be very particular about human life, 
 since death just there was considered so very desirable. 
 Along the shores of the river flickered hundreds of fires, at 
 which the remains of the dead are burned to ashes and scat- 
 tered into the river by the officiating Brahmins, to the in- 
 finite edification of the relatives of the dead. 
 
 The Hindoos are a very peaceful and loyal people, and 
 willingly submit to order and discipline. Thus designated 
 groups w^ere conducted to the water at certain times and 
 places, which was highly necessary, as otherwise the strong 
 would have trampled down and crushed the weak. 
 
 The first ceremony consists in shaving the head, or at 
 
198 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 least the front part of it ; the hair which is cut off ought to 
 be ojEered to the Ganges, but the barber smuggles most of it 
 out of the way, to be sold in more civilized countries. From 
 the barber the pilgrim is turned over to the care of the Brah- 
 min, who leads him down into the river, under the following 
 ceremonies: The Brahmin repeats a Sanscrit formula 
 which is called *'Sankalpa," and which states that ''the pil- 
 grim N. N. on the day X. of the month Y., and in the year Z., 
 takes his bath in the sacred water for the purpose and inten- 
 tion of cleansing himself from all sins and frailties," after 
 which the pilgrim immerses himself several times under the 
 water and rinses his mouth with a handful of it, after a few 
 minutes returning to the shore where he is at once sur- 
 rounded by peddlers who offer him flowers, milk and lean 
 cows or goats for sale at an exorbitant price. He always 
 buys the flowers and the milk and offers them to the river, 
 and, if he has sufficient money, he buys a cow or a goat and 
 offers it to the Brahmin ; but if his means are too limited the 
 latter must be content with the few coins the pilgrim can 
 spare. Most of them, however, have brought a handsome 
 offering to the Brahmin, because they regard the duty 
 toward him just as important as the duty toward the river 
 god. 
 
 Then follows the **Shiadda" ceremony, consisting of an 
 offering of cake, sugar, plums and dainties to the ghosts of 
 their deceased relatives ; next a banquet is spread before the 
 Brahmins, the sacred places of the vicinity are visited, offer- 
 ngs are made at most of these, and a present called **vi- 
 dagi" is made to the Brahmin who has attended to the 
 spiritual wants of the giver. 
 
 And now the. object of the long and arduous journey is 
 accomplished, the pilgrimage, ''tisthayatra," is successfully 
 performed, and the cleansed sinner stands ready to begin a 
 new record of sin. He has been plundered of his last penny, 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 199 
 
 and, if he succeeds in reaching his distant home, his neigh- 
 bors and friends will look up to him as an exceptionally 
 happy being, and his own soul is filled with the hope of tem- 
 poral and eternal bliss. 
 
 Those who have reaped the pecuniary benefits of the 
 pilgrimage are the Brahmins and Fakirs, the former through 
 offerings and the latter through begging. They have filled 
 their coffers and collected large herds of cattle, and now 
 they can lead a gay and happy life until the next Mela, w^hen 
 they will again try to fan the dying embers of enthusiasm 
 into a flame b}' sending emissaries all over India for the pur- 
 pose of convincing the credulous populace that it is greatly 
 to be feared that the Ganges will soon lose its powei of 
 salvation, and that therefore as many as possible ought to 
 come next time, which may be the last chance. 
 
CHAPTER XX. 
 
 Benares, the Holy City of the Plindoos — Its Temples and Worshipers — The 
 Sacred Monkeys. 
 
 Returning from Allahabad T visited Benares, the holy city 
 of India and the centre of Hindooism or Brahminism, its 
 religion, art and literature. It is situated on an elevation on 
 the east bank of the Ganges about four hundred and seventy- 
 six miles from Calcutta. Benares is to the Hindoos what 
 Jerusalem was to the Jews, Rome to the mediaeval Chris- 
 tians, and what Mecca is to the Mohammedans, and it is 
 visited by thousands of pilgrims and penitents every year. 
 The learned men or Pundits of India have their academies 
 and gatherings there, and many of its princes and nobles 
 have their costly palaces in which they usually spend a few 
 weeks every year. 
 
 The whole city seems abandoned to sacrificing priests 
 and idolatry in its most divSgusting forms. There are one 
 thousand four hundred temples for idols, and nearly three 
 hundred mosques, besides hundred of shrines, holy graves, 
 weUs, trees and other objects of Hindoo worship. Benares 
 is a very old city ; great and renowned when Babylon and 
 Nineveh were competing with each other; when Tyre sent 
 out her colonists; when Athens was in her infancy; before 
 Rome existed, and long before Nebuchadnezzar had carried 
 the Israelites into captivity. 
 
 We are accustomed to look at hoary ruins with reverent 
 
 200 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 201 
 
 interest, and it is no wonder that the first sight of the his- 
 torical monuments of Benares made a profound impression 
 on my mind. I felt almost as if transported to a time far 
 back in the misty past, and found it difficult to realize that I 
 
 HINDOO TEMPLES. 
 
 walked the same streets, lanes and market places where the 
 Babylonian heralds of war and the ambassadors of Alex- 
 ander the Great were received by the same people whose 
 
202 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 descendants still inhabit the same city, and have retained 
 the same civilization and the same institutions through all the 
 intervening centuries. 
 
 The sun cast its last rays over the memorable city when I 
 had the pleasure of seeing it for the first time. Ata distance 
 of two miles I could see the palaces and temples with their 
 domes, cupolas, and minarets merged into a confused mass, 
 and on the summit of the hill towered the renowned mosque 
 of Kmperor Arungzebes with two minarets, the spires of 
 which rise two hundred and fifty feet above the level of the 
 Ganges. It was a beautiful oriental picture, the most beau- 
 tiful I had yet seen. 
 
 The next morning at sunrise a Mohammedan dragoman 
 or interpreter took me down the river in a boat, and in the 
 course of an hour we passed, according to the estimate 
 of the interpreter, over twenty thousand bathing Hindoos. 
 Every two miles are built ghats, or broad flights of steps 
 down to river, some of these being eighty feet high. Along 
 the edge of the water Brahmins are squatting about twenty 
 feet apart under large sun shades made of palm leaves in the 
 form of an umbrella. These Brahmins have a certain 
 inherited right to these little spots where they have thus 
 raised their sun shades for the purpose of collecting an offer- 
 ing from every bather. Men and women bathe side by side. 
 They all go into the water in their thin cotton suits, and 
 everything is conducted with order and decorum. 
 
 After the bath flowers are offered to the river, and oils and 
 fruits to the Brahmin. 
 
 A short distance above the edge of the water is an open 
 place for the cremation of the bodies of the dead, and on the 
 river close by are scores of boats and barges loaded with 
 wood which is cut into small sticks and is used for the fu- 
 neral-pyres. We stopped a few minutes here while three 
 corpses were brought on biers. They were covered by a 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 203 
 
 white cloth with a red dye-stuff scattered over the chest. 
 The body ^was first immersed in the river and then placed on 
 its pyre, which was kindled by the nearest relative of the de- 
 ceased. After the cremation the ashes were scattered on the 
 river by the Brahmin, w^ho, of course, charged a round sum 
 for these highly important services. 
 
 We next went up the high steps and visited several temples 
 and other objects of interest of which I shall give a brief 
 description. 
 
 The Hindoo temples are not so large as our churches, but 
 only from fifteen to forty feet square, and their style of archi- 
 tecture is frequently very pleasing to the eye. They contain 
 no seats or pulpits, and the ceremonies consist exclusively of 
 offerings, prayers, and signs. People come and go inces- 
 santly, there is no silence or devotion, but all is noise and 
 turmoil. The Brahmins glide quietly around everywhere 
 and watch closely so that no one escapes until he or she has 
 parted with as much loose change as possible, and it fre- 
 quently happens that the Brahmin and the w^orshiper get 
 into a loud quarrel about the fee which the latter is to pay 
 for the benediction. 
 
 We ascended an eight -foot -wide street paved with large 
 flag stones, -which -were crowded with endless rows of peo- 
 ple coming out or going into the temples on either side. To 
 some of these a fe-w steps led downward, to others up- 
 v^rard. 
 
 In some of the nooks and niches formed by the outer walls 
 of the temple sat peddlers selling ornaments, flowers, fruit, 
 boiled rice, popcorn, confectioneries, and small idols, of 
 stone, porcelain, or metal. 
 
 We stepped into the so-called golden temple, dedicated to 
 Bishashar, or Shiva, the most prominent deity of Benares. 
 Like most of the temples it is built of brick, and has a gray 
 coat of plastering on the outside. It has three domes which 
 
204 
 
 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 are covered with colored metal, and the interior is divided 
 into three rooms, in each of which is a stone image rep- 
 resenting the creative 
 
 'i>'»-!l'ti^& 
 
 
 
 principle. The worship- 
 ers throw rice and flowers 
 at these images, and offi- 
 ciating Brahmins contin- 
 ually pour over them 
 water /rom the Ganges. 
 Within a separate inclos- 
 ure is a sacred well called 
 *'Gyan-Bapi," or the v^^ell 
 of knowledge, into which 
 the rice and the flowers 
 from the images are 
 ^washed bj a continual 
 stream of water. Out of 
 this well rises an intoler- 
 able stench from the pu- 
 trefying mass which poi- 
 sons the air in and around 
 the temple, for it is not permitted to take these offerings 
 out of the well. Around the w^ell is a colonnade of small 
 beautiful pillars, back of which, on the east side, is a seven- 
 foot-high stone statue of a bull consecrated to the god of 
 Mahadeva. 
 
 Another temple is divided into stalls which contain well- 
 fed sacred animals, such as bulls, cows, goats and birds, all 
 of which are objects of w^orship of the faithful. This temple 
 was kept more clean than the former, but the bellowing of the 
 animals and the jostling and crowding of the worshipers 
 made the visit to those deities intolerable. 
 
 One of the finest temples in Benares is called **Durga 
 Kund,'* and is devoted to the goddess Durga. It is a large 
 
 DYlNti BKAHMIN. 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 205 
 
 and beautiful pyramidal structure with a number of towers 
 and steeples of different sizes, and the whole building is 
 adorned with fine works of sculpture, representing the sacred 
 animals of Hindoo mythology. Inside the temple, facing a 
 wide entrance, stands a large stone statue of Durga with the 
 face of an ape, and in front of this is a well into which the 
 faithful throw flowers. But the most interesting feature 
 about this temple is the great number of monkeys which are 
 
 MONKEY TEMPLE IN BENARES. 
 
 kept there. A large, square court surmnnds the temple, 
 and in this as well as on the steps, floors, pillars, roof and 
 walls, inside and outside of the temple itself and in the 
 neighboring houses, in the trees, on the streets, in the gar- 
 dens, in short, wherever they can find a footing, there are 
 thousands of gray, yellow, black, white and brown monkeys, 
 with all possible monkey physiognomies and monkey nat- 
 ures, sitting, lying, jumping, hanging and climbing. They 
 are considered sacred and must not be killed, consequently 
 they are increasing so fast that if no interdicts are fulmi- 
 
206 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 nated against them they will soon become the ruling element 
 in Benares. And so assiduously is this temple visited by 
 nwell-to-do and generous worshipers that both the Brah- 
 mins and the monkeys live in affluence and luxury. Incredi- 
 ble a-s it may seem, I have myself seen one crowd of people 
 after another enter this temple and prostrate themselves in 
 worshiping the living monkeys as well as the ape-faced stone 
 image, and then return home rejoicing because the Brahmins 
 have assured them that their worship and offerinsg have 
 opened for them the gates of heaven. 
 
 In some temples domestic animals are sacrificed by the ser- 
 vants of the priests, the blood and the meat being distributed 
 among the priests, the intestines and other offal among the 
 poor. In others, butter, oils, sweetmeats and rice are 
 offered by first givingthe idols a taste in the same manner 
 as our children feed their dolls, whereupon the rest is con- 
 sumed by the priests and the people. In several temples are 
 Fakirs or saints sitting in unnatural positions with lean 
 limbs and vacant looks, and these are also objects of the 
 worship and offerings of the people. In other temples are 
 even lewd women, who, by their dancing and singing, act as 
 mediators between the people and their angry gods. 
 
 As far as these descriptions go, they may be applied to all 
 temples and ceremonies, and the chief and absolute univer- 
 sal feature is the question of money and other offerings to 
 the Brahmins. All the temples are surrounded with beggars 
 who are as importunate as the Brahmins themselYCs, and 
 the w^hole of it makes the European msh to get away from 
 the sacred places of the Orient as soon as possible. 
 
 Man Modir, is the name of a remarkable astronomical ob- 
 servatory which towers above the temples on the Ganges, 
 close to the place where the dead bodies are cremated. It 
 was built two hundred years ago by the emperor, Jai Sing, 
 and still remains in well-preserved condition as an evidence 
 
Story op an Emigrant, 207 
 
 of the deep astronomical knowledge of the Hindoos at that 
 period. It is a large stone building with a flat roof, on 
 which are constructed astronomical instruments and figures 
 of brick and mortar of gigantic proportions. As examples. 
 I shall mention a quadrant which is eleven feet high and 
 nine feet wide in the direction of the meridian, and is made 
 for calculating the altitude of the sun, and another instru- 
 ment, thirty-six feet long and four and one-half feet high 
 which is used in calculating the altitude and distance of a 
 planet or a star from the meridian. 
 
 Descending from the observatory my attention was called 
 to a large crowd of people on a knoll near the river bank. 
 Going over there I found what might be called a religious 
 circus attended by thousands of people, in the midst of which 
 was a group of Fakirs. Most of them were squatting with 
 crossed legs, one arm extended toward the river, and th^^ 
 eyes fixed on a certain spot in the water or on the sky. One 
 w^as squatting on a plank through which long sharp naiJ 
 were driven with their points projecting upward over piti 
 inch. I counted eight such nails about an inch long under 
 each foot. The nails had not caused bleeding wounds, bu^ 
 simply made deep indentures in the flesh which must have 
 been very painful, at least in the beginning. One Fakir had 
 suspended himself on an eight-foot-tall cross, with the head 
 downward, by tieing one of his feet to the top of the crosc 
 by a cord. Formerly they used to suspend themselves by a 
 big iron hook penetrating their muscles, thus swinging their 
 bodies back and forth for hours; but this practice is now 
 prohibited by the English government. An acrobatic Fakir 
 was turning sommersets on a grass mat, and was considered 
 very holy because he could twist his limbs as if they had 
 been without bones. Another carried an iron cage which 
 was forged around his neck, and which he had carried thus 
 for years in order to mortify his flesh. A loathsome dwarf. 
 
20S 
 
 Story of an Em: grant. 
 
 kept in an iron cage, was blessing the admiring crowd, sev- 
 eral dancing girls gave animation to the scene by singing 
 
 FAKIR WITH IRON CAGE. 
 
 and dancing, some Brahmins were exhibiting a sacred bull, ■; 
 others sacred monkeys, and liberal offerings were made 
 everywhere by the enraptured pilgrims. Such are the relig- 
 ious ceremonies in the sacred city of India. 
 During my stay in Benares I visited one of the most re 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 209 
 
 markable ruins in the world, situated six miles from the sa- 
 cred city It is the remnants of two large and tall towers 
 built of brick and cut stone, about three thousand years 
 ago. These towers were closely connected with the history 
 of Buddha, one of .them, according to tradition, being his 
 dwelling and the other his place of worship. This was 
 formerly the site of a great city, called Sarnath. 
 
 TOWER OF SARNATH, 
 
 14 
 
CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 Nimtoolaghat— Cremation in India — Parsee Funeral Rite8. 
 
 India is the only country in the world where the civilization 
 of the East and that of the West are found side by side with 
 equal rights and equal chances of a free and full develop- 
 ment. For, although the English have conquered, and 
 at present rule the country, they have respected the peculiar 
 customs and manners of the Hindoos, and guaranteed them 
 liberty to practice the same and to develop their social and 
 religious institutions in so far as they do not conflict with 
 the generally acknoweldged principles of humanity. 
 
 Accordingly in Calcutta and other cities in India we fre- 
 quently find a stately Christian church side by side w^ith a 
 Hindoo temple with its officiating priests. On one side 
 of the street ^we may see a fine European residence filled w^ith 
 guests around the dinner-table, eating, chatting, and toast- 
 ing just as at home, and on the other a Hindoo villa, where 
 turbaned Brahmins, in a squatting posture, eat their rice or 
 smoke their hokah, while extolling the merits of their jug- 
 gernaut. At popular meetings and fetes European lords» 
 bishops, officials, and ladies are often seen engaged in a 
 friendly conversation with Hindoo princes, or learned pun- 
 dits, Mohammedan warriors, Persian, Armenian or Jewish 
 merchants. On the streets and promenades the European 
 carriage and the Hindoo palanquin are seen side by side; in 
 Calcutta there are scores of high schools and academies on 
 
 210 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 211 
 
 the European plan, and close to these again others where 
 
 young students in oriental costumes and turbaned heads, 
 
 , squat before a half-naked Brahmin, seeking wisdom and 
 
 knowledge from the works of the Vedas or Shastras. 
 ,;. It is therefore not surprising that in the very harbor 
 ''where American and European flags are waving from 
 ' Jiundredsof mast-heads lies Nimtoolaghat, a Hindoo place of 
 , cremation, from which the whole dav \(^n^ dense clouds 
 
 NIMTOOLAGHAT — PLACE OF CREMATION. 
 
 of smoke arise, scattering the vapors of burning human 
 bodies. It is a large brick building which is divided into two 
 apartments by a brick wall. The apartment which is next 
 to the street is covered b}' a roof, but the one next to the 
 harbor is open at the top. The floor is made of clay, 
 excepting the spots under the funeral pyres, where it consists 
 of large flagstones. I have often stood at this place, and it 
 always seemed to me that our cemeteries with their monuf- 
 
212 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 merits, grass plots, trees, and flowers are dear places which, 
 to some extent, reconcile man to stern death, while here 
 e /ervthing seemed dead and hopeless. I will describe for the 
 reader what I saw at one of my visits to this place of deso- 
 lation. On the flagstones in the roofless apartment were six 
 separate pyres, two of w^hich were already reduced to ashes 
 when I entered, two others were about half consumed by the 
 firCj only a few bones being visible among the fire-brands; 
 but on each of the other tw^o was a naked corpse, the out- 
 side of which was scorched by the flames, while blood and 
 water were slowly oozing out of mouth and nostrils, while 
 the burning flesh hissed and sputtered where the heat was 
 most intense, so that the whole presented a shocking sight. 
 A score of half-naked Brahmins were busy around the 
 pyres muttering prayers and making signs over the dead, 
 while the nearest relatives walked around the corpses utter- 
 ing cries of lamentation. Particularly violent was the grief 
 of a young woman whose mother had just been laid upon 
 the pyre, deep sorrow and heart-rending lamentations 
 testifying to the love she had borne the deceased. 
 
 Now the fine-split wood is piled up into a new pyre about 
 six feet long, two feet v^ide, and two and one-half feet high, 
 and four men bring the corpse of a man on a bier. It is cov- 
 ered with a white sheet, which is taken away, so as to leave 
 only a small piece of cloth covering the corpse. This is the 
 body of a Fakir, a stately man with fine features, and past 
 the prime of life. As soon as the body is placed on the pyre, 
 two Brahmins pile fine-split wood around and over it so 
 that only the face is visible. Then comes the eldest son of 
 the deceased and rubbing the face with fresh butter lays 
 several lumps of it on the pyre. He then walks three times 
 around the corpse and lights with a fire-brand a whisk of 
 straw in his father's pyre. The fire spreads rapidly through 
 
Storvt of an Emigrant. 213 
 
 the dry wood. The melting tutter flows through it, the 
 flames roar and crackle, and the dead body makes writhing 
 muscular motions under the influence of the fire, the skin 
 bursting open in several places, and a thin fluid trickling out 
 which adds fuel to the flames. The face shrinks and vanishes 
 under our eyes, an unpleasant smell of burnt flesh per- 
 meates the air, ai d in a little while all is over, and the Brah- 
 mins gather the ashes and scatter them on the waters of the 
 sacred Ganges. 
 
 Who can wonder that a stranger, witnessing such a cere- 
 mony, experiences in his own breast questions and surmises 
 such as these : Is this, then, all? Where is the Fakir who 
 mortified his body by all kinds of torture, who struggled 
 and suffered in order to become acceptable to the gods? 
 Was there nothing more than that shell, consumed before our 
 eyes? Is the man who spent half of his life-time gazing in- 
 to the boundless realm of space and yearning and longing 
 for the unknown, the infinite, no longer in existence? Was 
 his longing only a mockery, or was it a foreshadowing of 
 that w^hich is to come ? What would life be if all terminated 
 in the pyre or in the grave? To what purpose, then, all no- 
 ble endeavors, whose aim and object only relate to the un- 
 certain future? The deepest premonitions of the human 
 soul, and the most beautiful hopes of the heart, how far are 
 these from the thought that all our feelings, our loftiest am- 
 bitions, — in one word the best part of our being, — can be 
 annihilated in a crematory! The Fakir whose body was 
 now^ reduced to ashes had lived in the faith of his immor- 
 tality, had worshiped the deities of his people, because he 
 knew no better, but was he on that account less welcome in 
 the everlasting mansions? 
 
 Formerly the wife was burned alive on the pyre of her 
 husband, but this practice has been abolished by the English 
 
21.4 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 government, althougli it is still said to be adhered to secretly 
 in the interior of the country. That w^oman is considered 
 
 "very fortunate who can enjoy the privilege of *'sati," that 
 is, be burned alive on the funeral pyre of her husband, for 
 thereby she secures unquestionable happiness in the next 
 w^orld. So strongly can religious enthusiasm, even in our 
 days, influence a sensible and civilized people. We generally 
 suppose cremation in India to be an imposing ceremony, 
 such as a great pyre, intense heat, which keeps a devout 
 congregation at a proper distance, etc. Such is not the case, 
 however; for, leaving out the mourning relatives, it may 
 better be compared v^ith the hilarious soldiers around the 
 camp-fire roasting the booty of a nightly raid, — a shote or 
 a quarter of beef. 
 
 An entirely different mode of burial is used among the 
 Parsees, who are descendants of the ancient Persians, and 
 live in the western part of India where they were driven from 
 Iran by the Mohammedans. They profess the religion of 
 Zoroaster, and are fire- worshipers. They regard the earth, 
 air, water and fire as sacred objects, but a corpse, on the con- 
 trary, as something unclean, and therefore they would not 
 pollute the fire by burning the dead, nor soil the earth or the 
 sea by burying them. In place of this they expose the dead 
 bodies in the open air to be devoured by birds of prey. For 
 
 "this purpose are erected towers of stone, on the top of 
 w^hich are iron grates to put the bodies on. In one of the 
 surburbs of Bombay are three such towers on Malabar hill. 
 They are called ''The Towers of Silence." Each of them 
 has only one entrance, and they are about twenty feet high. 
 
 .Large flocks of ravens and vultures surround them sitting 
 
 • on branches of the palm trees in the vicinity. As soon as a 
 corpse is exposed there is a fierce rush for it, and within an 
 hour the birds have consumed everything except, of course, 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 215 
 
 the bones, whicH drop down into a vault under the tower, 
 or are thrown there by means of tongs held by gloved serv- 
 ants, who afterward clean themselves by bathing and 
 change of clothing. 
 
CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 Heathenism and Christianiby — The Religion of the Hindoos — Caste — The 
 Brahmins — Their Tyrann}- — Superstition — The Influence of Chris ^ 
 tianity — Keshub-Chunder-Sen, the Indian Reformer — His faith and In- 
 fluence. 
 
 Having given a sketch of the divine worship, religious 
 rites and sacrificial feasts of tbe Hindoos, I shall now^ call 
 the attention of the reader to a brief description of their 
 religion and spiritual culture in general. 
 
 "In the hoary past India had mighty religious leaders and 
 authors who laid claim to divine authority. Religious sys- 
 tems were announced, and voluminous, erudite verses were 
 published for the guidance of the people, or rather the Brah- 
 mins or priests, which writings are still the Bibles of the 
 Hindoos. The most important of these books are called 
 *Vedas,' 'Shastras,* and 'Puranas.' The lively imagi- 
 nation of the authors and the religious enthusiasm of the 
 people w^ere not content w^ith a few deities, therefore their 
 number has been increased from time to time, until they now 
 amount to thirty -three million gods and goddesses. The 
 most important of the former are Brahma, Visnu and Shiva, 
 and of the latter Durga, Lakshmi and Saraswati. The 
 former are worshiped as the creating, preserving and de- 
 stroying powers, and from these three all the others have 
 originated; at first considered as representatives of certain 
 attributes and principals of the three chief deities, but later 
 
 216 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 217 
 
 as independent, individual deities. Many of these gods are 
 represented by images and pictures, which originally the 
 whole people, but at present only the learned, regard merely 
 as representations of certain divine principals and attributes. 
 Later on these were put in the place of the things which 
 they represented, so that the stone image, the river, the 
 tree, or the animal is regarded as the god himself by the ig- 
 norant multitude. 
 
 "According to the Hindoo doctrine of creation the earth 
 rests on the back of a tortoise, and the human race was origi- 
 nally created members of four different classes or castes. 
 Thus the class or caste distinction of India is closely incor- 
 porated with its religion, and shows that the priests have 
 been very shrewd in founding a religious system which se- 
 cured for themselves not only salvation after death, but, 
 above all, an abundance of the good things of this world. 
 Brahma was from the beginning, and from him emanated 
 Vishnu and Shiva. Thereafter Brahma created first water, 
 then the earth, then from out of his head a man who was 
 the Brahmin, and became the chief of the caste of priests, or 
 the highest class. After this he let a Kshatriya issue from 
 out of his arms, a Vaisya from his loins, and a Sudra from 
 his feet, and which became respectively the progenitors of 
 the three other castes, the warriors, the craftsmen and 
 merchants, and the common laborers. These castes have 
 gradually been divided into many subdivisions, but the four 
 principal ones still remain with all their rigid distinctions. 
 Through certain misdemeanors, w^hich may be very insig- 
 nificant, a person belonging to a higher may be degraged to 
 a lower caste, but one of a lower caste can never rise to 
 a higher, not even by the most meritorious achievements. 
 
 "Of all the cruel chains by which tyrants have fettered men, 
 none has been a more formidable enemy of liberty or a 
 greater impediment to human progress than this dreadful 
 
218 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 sj^stem of caste. It has stifled all noble efforts, all brotberly 
 love and humane feelings; it has plunged the people into 
 superstition, indifference and ignorance; it has doomed 
 ninety -nine hundredths of the myriads of India to the most 
 cruel slavery, in body and in soul; it has placed locks and 
 fetters on the human mind and branded the infant in its 
 mother's womb to infamy and execration; and, the worst of 
 all, it has stifled all incentive to progress and development. 
 It has smothered many noble feelings, and taught men to 
 hate and despise each other; and so strong is the class dis- 
 tinction of this system that a good Hindoo of our day 
 would a thousand times rather die of thirst or hunger than 
 take a glass of water or a piece of bread from a person of a 
 lower caste. Like other evils it has also been a curse to its 
 authors, the Brahmins themselves, by lulling the great majori- 
 ty of them into ignorance and indifference. For why should 
 they take the trouble to study or work when the whole 
 world with its joys, pleasures and honors is open to them 
 anyway ? Space does not allow discussing this matter more 
 fully, hence I will simply cite some of the doctrines which 
 the Brahmins claim to have found in the divine books, and 
 which the people still regard as sacred : 
 
 "Whoever disturbs a Brahmin during his religious contem- 
 plations shall lose his life; if a person of a lower caste 
 sits down on the mat of a Brahmin, his back shall be burned 
 with red-hot irons; if he touches the hair, beard or neck of 
 a Brahmin, the judge shall order both his hands to be cut 
 off; if he listens to evil reports about the Brahmins, molten 
 lead shall be poured into his ears; if he does not arise when 
 a Brahmin approaches, he will be changed into a tree after 
 death ; if he casts an angry look at a Brahmin the god Yama 
 shall pluck out his eyes. The Shastras teach that a gift to a 
 Brahmin is of incalculable value to the giver. Whoever gives 
 a Brahmin a cow shall gain a million years of bliss in 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 219 
 
 heaven, and whoever wishes success in anything must f^te 
 the Brahmins and wash their feet. Whoever bequeathes land 
 or other valuable property to the Brahmins on his death-bed 
 immediately receives forgiveness of sins and the greatest 
 bliss in heaven. To drink the water in which a Brahmin 
 has w^ashed his feet and to lick the dust from under a Brah- 
 min's feet are works of great merit for the life which is to 
 come. No one but a Brahmin is allowed to give religious 
 instruction, and all offerings to the gods must be brought to 
 the Brahmin, because no ceremony will avail anything un- 
 less it is accompanied by an offering to them. Therefore a 
 multitude of ceremonies have been introduced by the Brah- 
 mins in order that their coffers may be well filled. I will 
 name a few of those ceremonies w^hich relate to everybody's 
 life and death, and which cannot, therefore, be neglected. 
 
 As soon as a mother knows she has conceived, a Brahmin 
 must be sent for to read certain formulas ; when the child is 
 born a Brahmin must be called for the same purpose, also 
 when it is a week, six months, two years and eight years 
 old, and again when the young people are to be married ; in 
 all cases of sickness, at the death-bed, at the cremation of 
 the body, and every month the first year after a person's 
 death; and at each one of these visits the Brahmin is entitled 
 to money or other gifts. Also if a family is subject to any 
 misfortune the Brahmin must be called to conjure the evil 
 powers ; if a bird of prey alights on the roof, the owner of 
 the house must call a Brahmin to purify the house by his 
 blessing; when he moves into a newhouse the Brahmin must 
 bless it beforehand ; when a man dies on an unlucky day his 
 son must pay the Brahmin money to ward off a similar ca- 
 1 imity from him; when a well is dug a Brahmin must bless 
 it before its water can be used ; during eclipses of the sun 
 and the moon everybody sends gifts to the Brahmins; at 
 everv change of the moon the Brahmin is entitled to gifts as 
 
220 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 well as oti forty regular holidays every year; during small- 
 pox or cholera ravages he is called to ward off the plague; 
 
 ; the farmer cannot reap his grain, the fisherman cannot goto 
 sea, the merchant cannot make a bargain unkss he has 
 
 •, bought the blessing of the Brahmin and paid for the same. 
 
 ; "And still the Hindoos possess a high culture, and their civi- 
 
 , lization is one of the oldest in the world. They are endowed 
 with a strong religious feeling. They are profound, peace- 
 ful, dihgent, economical and law abiding; many of them 
 have become distinguished in learning, art and science; they 
 have been the teachers of the philosophers and scholars of 
 other nations, and for thousands of years they have pon- 
 dered deeply on questions pertaining to the human soul, im- 
 mortality and the life to come, and endeavored to satisfy 
 their craving and yearning for a closer union v%ith the infi- 
 nite by a devotion and self sacrifices w^liich can well be com- 
 pared with the sufferings of the Christian martyrs. Accord- 
 ingly if any people could attain a higher development and a 
 happy condition by other means than the influence of the 
 Christian religion, that people ought to be the Hindoos. 
 Yet, after all their struggles, we now find them on a lower 
 level than they were thousands of years ago. What a pic- 
 ture! All these millions of civilized, peaceful, diligent, sensi- 
 ble people bend their knees before thirty-three millions of dis- 
 gusting images and pictures, and among all this people, in 
 all their thirty thousand cities there was not a hospital for 
 the sick, not an asylum for the blind or deaf, not a home for 
 lepers or insane, not one voice saying to the lowly and the 
 poor: *'Thou art my brother." 
 
 Then came Buddha, the great reformer, preaching the re- 
 ligion of self denial and human love. The old petrified social 
 fabric and religion were shaken to their foundation, and the 
 system of caste was on the verge of dissolution. Under the 
 first wave of enthusiasm caused by the teachings of Buddha, 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 221 
 
 hospitals for the sick and asylums for the poor were es- 
 tablished. Every fifth year the Buddhistic kings gave away 
 their riches, not only to the monks but also to the poor, 
 to the orphans and outcasts, and even asylums for sick an- 
 imals were established. But Brahminism soon avenged it- 
 self by bloody wars, Buddhism was to a large extent 
 driven out of India, and gradually its noble principles were 
 forgotten. Nearly the same condition as that which pre- 
 vailed before the Buddhistic reformation again prevailed, 
 until the Christian civilization quite recently began to make 
 itself felt through the practical measures introduced by the 
 English government. Woman without liberty, without hu- 
 man worth, and almost without virtue; the countless many 
 oppressed and despised by the privileged few, and not even 
 <illowed to read a religious book at the risk of eternal dam- 
 nation ; one of the greatest and mightiest nations on earth, 
 discordant within itself, divided into different hostile classes; 
 the one suspicious, envious, and full of hate toward the 
 other, all of them humiliated, conquered, and ruled by a 
 few strangers, — the English, — whose forefathers were sav- 
 ages a thousand years after the period when the Hindoos 
 possessed the highest civilization of antiquity. 
 
 The cause of this deplorable condition is clear enough to 
 those w^ho have grown up under the influence of Christian 
 civilization. With all its studies, all its wisdom, all its gen- 
 ius, and all its religious contemplation, this people have neg. 
 lected or spurned the simple truths on which the Christian 
 civilization is founded, — love and charity : "Thou shalt lore 
 thy neighbor as thyself" — ''Inasmuch as ye have done it 
 unto one of the least of these, my brethren, ye have done it 
 unto me," — these beautiful principles are not found in the 
 Hindoo Bibles, and, consequently, not in their acts and 
 hves. 
 
 But a happier day has dawned on India. The star of 
 
00 9 
 
 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 Bethlehem is seen at the horizon. Anew light is kindled 
 which shall soon lead the people out of the ancient dark- 
 ness to a true and happj condition. And, strange enough, 
 the youngest of the nations, — America, — is foremost in mis- 
 sionary work among the oldest, and next to the Americans 
 are the Scotch, the English, the French, the Germans, the 
 Belgians; and even good old Sweden has one or two mis- 
 sion fields there where the results are as yet rather meager; 
 but in the course of time this work, too, will undoubtedly 
 bear golden fruits, for just as surely as people and races are 
 to continue, just as ^urelv shall the simple doctrine which the 
 
 ^reat Master taught be 
 spread and accepted 
 among them all, because 
 t is the only one by 
 which the nations can 
 reach their true destiny. 
 A remarkable attempt 
 at reformation in the 
 spirit of Christianity has 
 been made in our day by 
 a native Hindoo, the late 
 Keshub-Chunder-Sen, the 
 founder of the societ}^, 
 Brahmo Somaj in Cal- 
 cutta, whose object was 
 to introduce the Christian 
 civilization in all its bet- 
 ter forms. One day I 
 went to hear a lecture by 
 this renowned Hindoo 
 KESHUB-cHUNDER-sEN. prophct and teacher, 
 
 which afforded me one of the most pleasant and instructive 
 hcursin my life. The great hall contained an audience o^ 
 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 223 
 
 nearly three thousand people, consisting chiefly of persons 
 of influence and high rank, among the cultured Hindoos of 
 the capital. The speaker was listened to with the greatest at- 
 tention and respect, and the impression he made could not 
 but be beneficial and lasting. I sat very close to the speaker, 
 and took pains to notice his ways and manners while speak- 
 ing to the large audience. His bearing in the pulpit made a 
 remarkable impression, especially when, under the influence 
 of some absorbing and transporting thought, his body was 
 stretched out to its full height, and seemed to grow by the 
 glow of inspiration. He was at that time a man of about 
 forty-five years of age, of robust health, of symmetrical pro- 
 portions, and with a face which beamed with intelligence 
 and enthusiasm. The fame of this man is not limited to his 
 native land, for even in Great Britain, where he spent several 
 months a few years ago, he is very highly respected by think- 
 ing men and women of all classes who are devoted to the 
 progress and improvement of mankind, and in his own 
 country he is almost idolized. His faith, as far as formu- 
 lated in definite language, coincides with that of the Unitari- 
 ans of America, although he called it unitrinitarian, i.e., he 
 believed in one God, the Creator of the world and the father 
 of all men ; and also in Christ and the Holy Spirit as revela- 
 tions of the divine, which is one but not as three different 
 persons in the deity. He believed that the propagation of 
 true religion in the world has been greatly impeded by 
 what he called the idolatry which in Christian countries 
 has grown up around the human person of Jesus Christ, 
 manifested as in the flesh, and he begged the missionaries 
 who came to India not to confuse the minds of the Hin- 
 doos by any such idea as a deity consisting of three different 
 persons ; polytheism had been the curse of India from time 
 immemorial. 
 Such are the main features of the teaching of this reformer 
 
224 
 
 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 wbicli seem to promise a better time for the oppressed peo- 
 ple of India. Later I became more intimately acquainted 
 with him, and he had intended to visit America in my com- 
 pany, but was taken sick shortly before I left India, and died 
 a couple of months thereafter. 
 
CHAPTER XXIII 
 
 Steamboatmg On the Ganges— Life on the River— The Greatest Business 
 Firm in the World — Sceneries — Temples — Serampoor — Boat Races — An 
 Excursion to the Himalayas — Darjieling and Himalaya Railroad- 
 Tea Plantations — Darjieling — Llamas — View from the Mountains. 
 
 Having received all its tributaries on its course from the 
 Himalaya Mountains through Central Hindustan, the Gan- 
 ges has now swelled to such vast proportions that it can- 
 not keep its volume of water within one regular channel 
 through the level, soft soil of the Hindoo Peninsula, but 
 flows into the ocean by several independent channels. One 
 of these which is called the Hoogley, and has been men- 
 tioned already, is at Calcutta, about eighty miles from the 
 sea, as broad as the united Missouri and Mississippi at St. 
 Louis, and still the eastern half of it, close to the city, is so 
 crowded with ships, barges and boats for a distance of six 
 miles that it requires great care and skill at the helm to 
 navigate safely. 
 
 On Jan. 2, 1882, the Calcutta rowing club had arranged 
 a race between Barrackpoor and Serampoor, to which four 
 hundred guests, including myself had been invited. Two 
 large and ten smaller river steamers, all adorned with flow- 
 ers and waving flags, lay around the pier between the Hoog- 
 ley and the Nimtoolaghat waiting for us. Other steamers 
 packed with natives, and Indian river boats with their 
 half-naked rowers, crowded around the little flotilla, partly 
 
 IB 225 
 
2 26 
 
 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 from curiosity, partly in order to sell flowers, garlands and 
 fruits to the guests. On the river bank were thousands of 
 Hindoos and Mohammedans sitting or standing, in white 
 clothes. Here and there was a penitent Fakir, bareheaded, 
 his half-naked body partly covered with ashes, his eyes riv- 
 eted on a point at the horizon or on the water, without be- 
 ing in the least disturbed by the noise and the festivity. 
 From Nimtoolagbat a dozen small clouds of smoke were 
 seen ascending uniting into one column of smoke, above the 
 roofless building. A number of unkempt, half-naked Brah- 
 mins were carrying ashes and bones of cremated bodies 
 from the crematory down to the river. Stately 
 carriages with murky coachmen and fore-runners in white 
 garments arrived in long lines at the pier with the guests of 
 the day. When all were onboard, the steamers whistled, the 
 band struck up "God save the Queen," and the little flotilla 
 steamed up the river amid merry chatting and deafening 
 hurrahs. 
 
 STEAMER ON THE GANGES. 
 
 We first passed hundreds of Indian river boats from twen 
 ty-five to seventy-five feet long, with roofs supported by 
 bamboo poles and loaded with grain, cotton, fruit, jute, 
 goats, etc. The crews consisted of men^ women and chil- 
 dren who live on these river boats for years. They take ad- 
 
Stjry of an Emigrant. 
 
 227 
 
 vantage of the tides in going up or down tlie river, and also 
 use a broad oar in the prow of the boat. 
 
 RIVER BOAT. 
 
 On the west side of the river lies the manufacturing city 
 Howrah, with the largest railroad depot in India, and 
 dock-yards extending about two miles. On the east bank, 
 a short distance above Calcutta are immense w^arehouses and 
 hydratdic presses for preparing jute, a kind of hemp. The 
 largest of these employs three thousand workmen day and 
 night, and belongs to a Greek firm, Rally Brothers, who are 
 said to have the greatest mercantile establishment existing. 
 They own branch houses in thirty-six of the largest com- 
 mercial cities of the world. 
 
 Amid the happy strains of mnsic we passed up the river. 
 Statelv palm trees in small groups rose above the surround- 
 ing groves, villages, temples and houses, while the dense 
 foliage of other kinds of trees hung down the river banks 
 wherever they were allowed to grow. Many of these bore 
 flowers resembling tulips, acacias, jasmines, etc. Birds of 
 the most gorgeous colors, but poor songsters, were flitting 
 
228 
 
 Story of an EMiG.iANT. 
 
 and hopping about among the branches; vast numbers of 
 small, ^white cows and oxen were being herded by children 
 on the meadows between the rice fields along the river, and 
 at intervals of about two miles were temples consecrated to 
 
 
 'i^-^ir; 
 
 
 TEMPLE ON THE RIVER BANK. 
 
 Hindoo gods. These temples were of a beautiful style and of 
 perfect symmetry. Toward the river was an open portico. 
 From this a flight of steps led down to the water. This was 
 a Hindoo bathing place, where the holy water was taken. 
 Just then a number of women were seen on the steps fetchin<» 
 water in clay jars, somewhat similar to the one Rebecca 
 used at the well. These jars are carried either on the head 
 or on the left hip. On either side of the portico, but from 
 fifty to a hundred feet to the rear, stood the temples proper, 
 in rows, facing the river, generally six on either side, with an 
 eight to twelve-foot-wide path between each temple. The 
 temples are about sixteen feet square, with a pointed 
 
Story op an Emigrant. 
 
 229 
 
 roof surmounted by a round cupola/ Tbey are made of 
 brick, with a coating of white plaster on the outside ; there 
 are no windows, and only one door, opening on the river side. 
 
 
 WATER CARRIER. 
 
 Inside this door is a niche in which the idol is placed. Only 
 the Brahmins are allowed to enter these temples; where- 
 fore the common heathen has to content himself with 
 simply looking at the god from the outside; the Christians 
 also are generally kept at a respectful distance. 
 
 Here and there along the banks of the river nestle rustic 
 villages, the houses of which are generally square, and from 
 sixteen to twenty feet on the sides, with pointed thatched 
 roofs. The walls are of bamboo poles, interwoven with 
 grass mats or plastered with mortar. There are no wooden 
 
230 
 
 Story of AxN Emigrant, 
 
 floors, no furniture, and the only utensils are a few bowls of 
 clay for cooking, baking vessels of brass, some straw mats 
 spread on the clay floor to sleep on during the night. The 
 country is low and flat, and during the wet season, which 
 lasts from July to October, destructive inuiadations are quite 
 frequent. 
 
 Our steamers soon approached Barrackpoor, a garrisoned 
 city on the east bank of the river. This place, which is one 
 of the summer residences of the viceroy, has a very beautiful 
 
 '■;>- *'>f-'^^\7^^~-}>^,'''^ 
 
 
 NATIVE HOUSES. 
 
 park, where there are several samples of the remarkable 
 banyan or sacred fig-tree. From the branches of the tree 
 certain shoots grow downward, and when they reach the 
 ground they strike root and grow into new trunks, so that 
 one and the same tree finally covers a vast space of ground, 
 and looks like a pillared hall. In the park at Barrackpoor 
 may be seen one of these trees, large enough to cover one 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 231 
 
 tliousand men. On the west side of the river, directly op- 
 posite, lies the old city of Serampoor, which formerly be- 
 longed to Denmark, buit was taken by the English in the 
 beginning of this century, and now has only a few inscrip- 
 tions and documents which remind us of the Danish period. 
 In the river, midway between these cities, a gigantic 
 government barge was anchored. On this occasion it was 
 covered with canvas, and served as a dining room where a 
 tiffin, or lunch, for four hundred persons was served. Our 
 steamers anchored, and we sat down at the sumptu- 
 
 
 BANYAN TREE. 
 
 ous tables. A band of forty pieces from a Sepoy regimei-it 
 garrisoned at Barrackpoor struck up an English march, the 
 champagne bottles popped, and all was life and joy. After 
 lunch we witnessed six different boat races, all be-- 
 tween Englishmen, and, the prizes having been awarded,, 
 the whole company walked on foot about a mile through a 
 
232 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 fine park to the railway station, wbence a special train car- 
 ried the excursionists back to Calcutta. 
 
 ^ After a summer of eight months in the Bengal lowlands 
 with a constant temperature of 90° to 100° Fahrenheit in 
 
 \ the shade, fresh breezes and cool air become luxuries more 
 keenly enjoyed than those who live in a more temperate cli- 
 
 ^ mate can conceive. To benefit by both I made a short jour- 
 ney in October, 1882, to the celebrated Himalaya mount- 
 ains, among which the city of Darjieling is situated. The 
 train on the Bengal railroad carried us about three hundred 
 miles in a northerly direction through a level lowland teem- 
 ing with gardens, palm groves and rice fields, to Siligori , at 
 the foot of the mountains, where we arrived in the morning 
 at sunrise. Having enjoyed a good breakfast and a bottle 
 of Norwegian export beer at the railway eating house, w^e 
 were transferred to a train on the Darjieling & Himalaya 
 railroad to be carried up seven thousand feet high in a dis- 
 tance of forty-two miles. 
 
 This mountain railroad is so different from all other rail- 
 roads that it deserves a s pecial description. It is narrow 
 gauged in the fullest sense of the word, the distance between 
 the rails being only two feet. The cars are very small and 
 low, and the wheels are about twelve inches in diameter. 
 The car is ten feet long and six feet wide, and contains four 
 seats, each of wbich accommodates four persons ; it is open 
 on the sides so that passengers can get on and off easily and 
 have an open view. The locomotive is no larger than the 
 cars, but powerful enough to pull ten or twelve of them up 
 the mountain at the rate of eight or ten miles an hour. No- 
 where is the track straight even for a distance of a couple 
 of hundred yards, but it winds right and left in the most 
 fantastic manner, and reminded me strikingly of the lines 
 described in one of the old country dances. 
 The signal is given, the pigmy locomotive puffs and sput- 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 233 
 
 ters, tlie train with its load of humanity rolls away up 
 hills and mountains and across awful chasms, up, up, up; 
 hour after hour, with a grade of one to eighteen and twenty- 
 eight, or on an average of twenty-three feet. It winds along 
 the rugged mountain side, over awful chasms, and with 
 such short curves that one's hair stands on end when look- 
 ing down or up the steep cliffs, the summits of which tovv- 
 er above the clouds. A loose stone rolling down, a brok- 
 en rail, or a derailment would immediately hurl the iron 
 horse with its cars and human lives thousands of feet 
 down to the bottom of the abyss, and reduce the w^hole 
 to an unrecognizable wreck. Beautiful trees, grass, flow- 
 ers, creeping plants adorn hills and vales except in the ra- 
 vines and cliffs, where foaming creeks and cataracts have 
 torn away the vegetation by tumultuously tossing them- 
 selves from rock to rock, from cliff to cliff, from valley to 
 valley, gradually uniting in the rivers that continually 
 feed the mighty Ganges. 
 
 The track follows a twentj'-five-foot-wide driveway, the 
 most part of which is hewn out of the solid rock, and on this 
 highway may be seen the mountaineers from Nepaul and 
 Thibet driving large numbers of pack animals (ponies and 
 cattle) carrying products of Europe and America into and 
 beyond the mountains to the peoples of northern Asia. Here 
 and there on the green hills are the best tea plantations of 
 India. These long, low, white buildings are the residences 
 and factories of the planters, and close by are the dwellings 
 of the native laborers, consisting of long rows of thatched 
 huts, and in terraces along the steep hills are endless rows of 
 tea bushes, among which laborers dressed in picturesque 
 costumes of gay colors are busy picking tea, advancing in 
 irregular lines — resembling the skirmish lines of an army. 
 This picture is at first seen against the horizon, so far up 
 that the men can scarcely be distinguished from the bushes, 
 
234, 
 
 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 and a couple of hours later the same picture may be viewed 
 far down in a deep valley. 
 
 After awhile at the head of a long valley appear lofty, 
 white objects whose summits rise far up above the mist and 
 the clouds ; it is the highest peaks of the Himalaya mountains, 
 from sixty to one hundred miles distant. Thus the journey 
 is continued up the mountains until the train finally stops 
 at Darjieling, which is one of the most noteworthy places in 
 the world. It is a sanitarium, and the surnmer residence of 
 the government of Bengal, and during the hot season makes 
 a favorite resort for many of the Hindoo nobles and princes 
 
 PALACE AND TEMPLE IN THE HIMALAYAS. 
 
 as well as Europeans. The city has a few thousand inhabi- 
 tants, the majority of whom are Thibetan and Nepaul 
 mountaineers. There we see the Christian church, the Mo- 
 hammedan mosque and the Hindoo temple in close prox- 
 imity to each other, and on the streets one may often meet 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 235 
 
 Catholictnonkscarryingthecrucifix, and Llamas or Thibetan 
 priests in long, brown felt mantles, turning their praying- 
 wheel, which consists of an artistically made machine of sil- 
 ver, in which are engraved the following words: "Rum 
 mahnee padme hang," which means, ** Hail thee, jewel and 
 lotus flower," or *' Glory to God." 
 
 Residences, churches, hotels and all public and private 
 buildings lie in a semi-circle on the western slope of one ot 
 the mountains, offering a very fine picture. Excellent roads 
 are built in zigzag form up and down over hills and mount- 
 ains. There are scarcely any carriages but a kind of palan- 
 quin called dandies, and small ponies which are so sure- 
 footed that they can climb up and down the mountains like 
 goats. Both men and women ride these or are carried by 
 three strong bearers from Thibet. Darjieling is elevated 
 eight thousand feet above the level of the sea, and at this 
 place black clouds may often be seen sweeping along the 
 western side far below one's feet. The air is so clear, fresh 
 and salubrious that it seems to infuse new strength, vitality 
 and almost new life. It impels either to activity or to sleep ; 
 it is impossible to sit still or be mentally inactive. The view 
 of the landscape below is claimed to be the most beautiful in 
 the whole world. Beneath the terraces on which we walk 
 are seen smiling valleys, one below another, away down 
 far into the plains of Bengal, variegated by rivers, forests, 
 cities and many-colored fields, and far away to the distant 
 north against the blue horizon, one great mountain rises 
 above and beyond another, capped with eternal crowns of 
 snow high up among the restless clouds — twenty thousand 
 feet higher than Darjieling, and tw^enty-nine thousand feet 
 above the sea, — over five miles in height. 
 
 The loftiest peaks are Kinchinjunga forty-five miles, and 
 Mount Everest, sixty miles distant from Darjieling. It is 
 claimed that these peaks can be seen for a distance of 
 
236 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 three hundred miles in clear weather. There these mighty 
 giants stand clad in snowy garbs, like sentinels at 
 the portals of infinite space, seemingly belonging more to 
 heaven than to earth. No wonder that the Hindoos look 
 at them with solemn awe, for cold and insensible to beau- 
 ty and grandeur must he be, who does not, at this sight, 
 feel his own littleness and the inconceivable greatness of 
 the creator. 
 
CHAPTER XXIY. 
 
 Cholera and other Diseases — The Causes of Cholera— How the Soldiers are 
 Protected Against it — Sudden Deaths — Fevers— The Teraj — Contempt 
 for Death— The Cholera Hospital— The Sistersof Mercy— The Princes 
 Tagore — Hindoo Family Customs — Hindoo Gallantry^-A Hindoo 
 Pete. 
 
 The cholera has its home proper in India, and breeds in 
 the Bengal lowlands after the rainy season, which closes in 
 the fall. Its ravages are most pronounced in the month of 
 December, but cases are quite frequent the whole year round. 
 During my second year's sojourn in India it was very violent 
 in December, but I would scarcely have known of it at all if 
 my official duties had not made it incumbent on me to re- 
 port from the board of health of India to that of the United 
 States at Washington. Now and then I was reminded of 
 the existence of the malady by the sudden deaths of my ac- 
 quaintances. On three different occasions I enjoyed a pleas- 
 ant evening entertainment in company with a number of 
 friends, one of whom was not only dead, but even buried 
 before the next morning. 
 
 Although India is ravaged by different deadly diseases, 
 especially a kind of fever of which people die after one or two 
 days' sickness; still, disease and death are scarcely ever 
 mentioned among Anglo-Indians. They don't like to talk 
 about such unpleasant things. A friend is suddenly and un- 
 expectedly snatched away from social circles, but his death 
 
 237 
 
238 Story of ax Emigrant. 
 
 is seldom or never mentioned, just as if a secret and united 
 agreement of taciturnity had been entered into by the sur- 
 vivors. Once I was invited to dine at the table d'hote of 
 the officers at the military station Dum-Dum, a few miles 
 from Calcutta. I drove out there in the evening, and at 
 eight o'clock I had dinner in company with about forty offi- 
 cers, the majority of whom belonged to the Scotch frontier 
 regiment. Col. Chapman, one of the party, was a jolly old 
 Scotch warder^ and Lieut. -Col. Hill was my host. After a 
 splendid dinner such as India alone can offer, the company 
 grouped themselves around several whist-tables according 
 to the custom in the higher circles among the English. Col. 
 Chapman was my partner, and we parted company at one 
 o'clock. I accompanied Lieut.-Col. Hill to his villa, and re- 
 tired for the night. At eight o'clock the next morning he entered 
 my room with the sad news that he was just returning from 
 the funeral of Col. Chapman. The stern old warrior who 
 returned unscathed from twenty battle-fields was attacked 
 by the cholera at two o'clock, died at four o'clock, and was 
 buried at six o'clock. Such is life in India. 
 
 At the foot of the Himalayas is a very extensive territory 
 .called Teraj. Its soil is very fertile and adapted for tea cult- 
 ,ure. The whole territory is covered with timber, bushes 
 and other plants, which, with the exception of certain culti- 
 vated portions, form an impenetrable jungle, affording a 
 natural resort for tigers, leopards, and other wild beasts. 
 The lofty mountains and the dense jungles shut out the sun, 
 and the whole region is full of poisonous vapors which arenev-, 
 er dispelled. It would be almost certain death for an Euro- 
 pean <to live there for any length of time, and it is customary 
 even in passing through the country on" the railway train tc 
 take double doses of quinine as a precaution. The fever and 
 cholera which are thus generated in the jungles and spread 
 through the jrice fields cause terrible ravages, not only among 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 239 
 
 the Europeans, but also among the natives. Medical science 
 has done a great deal to mitigate this evil, and the cholera, 
 at least, has been carefully studied and controlled by the 
 medical department of the Anglo-Indian army, so at present 
 the malady is not feared so much as might be expected. 
 The germs of the disease consist of microbes, v^hich are car- 
 ried in swarms by the wind. If such a pestiferous current of 
 air strikes a place where soldiers are stationed, they are im- 
 mediately ordered to break camp, and in a few hours the 
 whole force is marching at a right angle with the wind, and 
 after a day's march and a night's bivouac the physicians are 
 generally able to tell whether the troops are out of the chol- 
 era district or not. If not, the march is continued day after 
 day, always at a right angle v^ith that of the precedingday, 
 until the air contains no more cholera microbes. 
 
 Old officers of the army told me that they had seen the 
 cholera pass over one part of the camp attacking every 
 fourth man on one side of the camp street without touching 
 a single one on the other. It is claimed that the fear and 
 anxiety caused by this dreadful malady are even more danger- 
 ous than the disease itself. 
 
 One day while sitting at my breakfast table I received a 
 message from the University hospital that an American Sciil- 
 or was very anxious to see me beforehedied. I immediately 
 drove over there and was met at the entrance by the pres- 
 ident. Dr. J. M. Coates, but ^tvhen I arrived in the cholera 
 apartment the man had just died. A sister of mercy was 
 present at his death-bed, and had promised to carry his last 
 message to me, which consisted in a greeting of love and a 
 few trinkets to be sent to his mother in the state of Maine, 
 There was a large apartment filled with cholera patients. 
 Many of the native patients were visited by their friends and 
 relatives ; for the Hindoos do not entertain any fear of death, 
 but rather court it, believing that a death causedby aconta- 
 
240 Story of an Emigrant, 
 
 gious disease or apDisonous snake is simply a dispensation 
 of Providence bv which they are called away to a better life. 
 
 As an illustration of this fact I mention the following inci- 
 dent: One day while I was inspecting an American vessel a 
 Hindoo laborer fell overboard, and a Norwegian sailor 
 plunged into the water and saved him. After being brought 
 safely on the deck the Hindoo became so angry at the Nor- 
 wegian that he could have killed him, simply because he had 
 prevented his entering paradise. Such occurrences are quite 
 frequent. 
 
 I mentioned that I met a sister of mercy at the death-bed 
 of an American cholera patient in the hospital. I cannot 
 neglect this opportunity to express my heartfelt gratitude 
 to these noble women, the modern nuns of the Catholic 
 church. I have seen them in the dens of degradation and 
 wretchedness in the American cities, among the sick, 
 wounded and dying soldiers on the battle-fields of the South ; 
 I have seen them in an Arabian sea-port, searching for pov- 
 erty-stricken travelers, among the cholera patients and 
 among the unfortunate inmates of the prisons of India, 
 always performing the same angelic duty, helping the poor, 
 tending the sick, and comforting the despondent. 01 
 course I am no Catholic, nor is it my intention to defend the 
 Catholic faith ; but I wish to acknowledge my appreciation 
 of and pay my respect to the noble work which the priests 
 and nuns of that church are carrying on among the lowl}? 
 and erring members of our race. 
 
 The Hindoos are the most polite and clever people I evei 
 saw. Their manners are exquisitely fine; no rudeness, no 
 profanity, no intemperance is to be found among them, not 
 even among the lowest classes. As has been said alread3', 
 the higher classes are exceedingly polished and cleanly; all 
 treat their parents and old people with marked respect. I 
 shall narrate a few incidents to illustrate this : Shortly after 
 
Story op an Emigrant. 
 » 
 
 241 
 
 my arrival in Calcutta I became acquainted with the two 
 Princes Tagore, especially the younger of them. They are 
 titled princes, and enormously rich. They have many pal- 
 aces, hundreds of secretaries, workingmen, servants, and 
 pensioners, and, as is the custom among the Hindoos, 
 whose families are governed according to the principles of 
 patriarchal life, they all live together and get their support 
 from the common property. I visited 
 them several times, but mostly the 
 younger prince who was at that time 
 about forty-five years old, and a great 
 admirer of America. Although a man 
 of that age and rank he never talked 
 in the presence of his elder brother un- 
 til the latter had by a word or a nod 
 signified that he was allowed to 
 speak. A son is never allowed to talk 
 in the presence of his father until the 
 latter has finished. The eldest member 
 of the family is its highest ruler, and 
 even the Princes Tagore would never 
 take any important steps before ob- 
 taining the consent of their aged 
 mother. 
 
 Many prominent Hindoos and Mo- 
 hammedans, some of whom were 
 native rulers, came and visited me, before they invited me 
 to their great fetes. One of ine frequent visitors was Dr. 
 L. N. Maitra, a Brahmin of the highest class, and one oi 
 the most intelligent and clever men I met in India. He used 
 to sit with me for hours, telling about the life, history 
 and religion of the Hindoos. Having become acquainted 
 with each other by several months' intercourse, one day 
 he sat a long while at my house as if absorbed in deep 
 
 16 
 
 DR. MAITRA KEADING 
 SANSKRIT. 
 
242 
 
 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 thought, and when he was ready to leave he asked if ] 
 would allow him to recite a Hindoo proverb in Sanskrit. 
 In doing this he proved himself to be a fine elocutionist, 
 and it seemed to me that I had never heard more music in 
 prose, although I could not, of course, understand a single 
 word of it. 
 
 I asked him for a translation, and the next day he sent 
 me one with the assurance that he intended to apply the 
 proverb to me. It reads thus: ''Do not enter into a very 
 intimate acquaintance with anybody; but if you do, see 
 that your friend is not a stranger; but if he is a stranger, 
 
 see to it that he is 
 not an educated 
 man ; but if he is ed- 
 ucated, never part 
 from him; but if fate 
 compels you to part 
 from him, then try 
 to control that 
 which we cannot 
 control, that is, die, 
 for death alone can 
 make up for the loss 
 of such a good 
 man." I have told 
 this to show not 
 only the Hindoo's 
 conception of the 
 happiness of death, 
 but also his exquis- 
 ite politeness and 
 MY CHIEF CLERK. dcHcacy of fecHno-. 
 
 When a Hindoo wishes to pay an elderly man or woman 
 hisrespect orin some manner honortheni, he calls them father 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 243 
 
 or mother, or, if they are his equals in age, brother or 
 ; sister. Even to-day, when my former clerks write to me 
 J they call me father, and ask me to remember them to 
 f their dear mother, that is, my wife. 
 
 I On a few occasions some Hindoo princes and nobles 
 
 < would arrange special entertainments and ietes for me, or 
 
 rather in honor of the country represented by me, and on 
 
 , such occasions the invitation was not limited to me, but 
 
 was extended to my friends also, so that I could take with 
 
 me of these as many as I pleased. 
 
 The Tagore family had a beautiful country house outside 
 the city, where, one day shortly after my arrival, a party 
 was given in honor of myself as representing the United 
 States. Among the friends who accompanied me on this 
 occasion was the Danish traveler, D' Irgens-Bergh, whose 
 acquaintance I had made on my journey from Naples to 
 Alexandria. The villa might more correctly have been called 
 a palace, for it was on a grand scale and a perfect gem of 
 architectural beauty. The floors and walls of all apartments 
 were of marble. A beautiful and finely kept park surrounded 
 the palace, and here, on the evening of our visit, hundreds of 
 Chinese lanterns illuminated the spacious grounds. The 
 most brilliant feature of the entertainment was music ren- 
 dered by a complete orchestra of native musicians who used 
 Hindoo instruments entirely different from ours ; but pianos, 
 guitars and other instruments with which we are acquainted, 
 were also used. The younger prince was a great lover of 
 music, and maintained, at his own expense, a conservatory 
 of music and a large orchestra, giving instruction in 
 music free of charge to any young man who w^as peculiarly 
 ". gifted in that line. He is also well versed in Sanskrit Utera- 
 ture, and has written several scientific works in Sanskrit. 
 Before I left he presented me with one of these works con- 
 
244 Story op an Emigrant. 
 
 tainmg his autograph, which is reproduced here as a sample 
 of the hand- writing of an educated Hindoo; 
 
 ^JUk ^.hx.^ey^'^ V-^^jr—*^^^^};^ C^^^^A^Uu^.iA^/r 
 
 /Tv^y^ 
 
 Our refreshments at the fete consisted of dainties prepared 
 by native cooks. Cream, rice, sugar, eggs, fish, flour, and 
 spices were the chief ingredients of the different courses. 
 Champagne and other European drinks were served with 
 the courses, and after the repast we were offered coffee, 
 and the servants brought wash basins and towels. Finally 
 the major domo passed an urn-shaped golden goblet, 
 placed on a gold tray. In this goblet was a fine sponge 
 soaked with attar of roses, which costs about a dollar a drop, 
 and in which the guests dipped the tips of their fingers and 
 moistened their foreheads and clothes. The least contact 
 with this attar causes a fragrance which lasts for months. 
 
 Neither on this occasion nor at any other festivity ar- 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 245 
 
 ranged by native Hindoos were any of the women present 
 or visible to us, although we knew they were close enough 
 to see us through windows or gratings. The men them-*; 
 selves assisted in waiting on us, but tasted nothing in. 
 our presence. When finally the carriages drove up and the 
 ;uests pirted ea:h on^ of tham received a huge bouquet of ■ 
 beautiful, fragrant flowers. 
 
 <r 
 
 
 
 .^JIAJAH TAG ORE. 
 
 
CHAPTER XXY. 
 
 Agriculture, Manufacture and Architecture — Wheat Growing — The Farm 
 Laborer — His Condition, Implements, etc. The Taj -Mahal— Jugglers- 
 Snake Charmers — From My Journal. 
 
 A. large majority of the Hindoos are agriculturists. The 
 staple crops are wheat, rice, and different species of pease. 
 The ^wheat production of India exerts a great influence on 
 the grain market of Europe, and is one of the most danger- 
 ous competitors to our American wheat. Having been ordered 
 by the United States gOYernment to report on the wheat 
 growing of India, I made this a special object of investiga- 
 tion and study, and in December, 1882, sent a report to the 
 government in Washington which is our first reliable infor- 
 mation on that subject; it elicited a great deal of attention, 
 • and was a source of genuine surprise in this country. I sub- 
 mit a few extracts from this report : 
 
 The annual wheat production of India now reaches two hundred and 
 ■ forty million bushels, of which two hundred million may be exported, while 
 . the natives make their bread from other kinds of grain. The total area 
 devoted to wheat each year is now a little over twenty million acres, and 
 the best average yield is thirteen and one-half bushels per acre. Wheat 
 ' growing is now receiving the special attention of the general and local gov- 
 ernments, and important works are being made and projected for an exten- 
 sive system of canal irrigation. One o( these, the Sirhind canal in the Pun- 
 jab, has just been completed; it was bUilt mainly by prison labor, is five hun- 
 ,'dred and two miles long, and will irrigate seven hundred and eighty 
 thousand acres through two thousand five hundred miles of minor channels. 
 The wheat is sown in the autumn and harvested in March or April ; it is 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 247 
 
 usually sown in drills or rows, weeded like garden stuff, and in quantities 
 not much larger than garden patches in theUnitec States. The agricultural 
 population numbers nearly two hundred millions; it is the aggregate of 
 innumerable little units which, in agriculture, as in everything else in India, 
 brings the country into importance; and this fact is so closely interwoven 
 with the whole social, industrial and legal network of India, that it bears 
 a strong influence even upon the future question of Indian versus American 
 wheat. 
 
 The Indian agriculturist, — "Ryot,"— can in no sense be compared to the 
 American farmer, but rather to the late serf of Russia. He is a tenant on 
 hard conditions, and is by custom and bigotry almost a fixture on the spot 
 of land w^here he was born; his farming is done on a very small scale ana 
 according to old methods, to which he clings with religious veneration; h.s 
 
 P1.0WING IN INDIA. 
 
 wants are very few, and he endures poverty and even hunger with patience; 
 he cultivates his patch of five to fifteen acres on shares for the landed pro- 
 prietor, — "zemindar." — who holds under rental to the government, and the 
 better half of his gross income generally goes to the zemindar, the priest 
 (Brahmin) and the usurer, in the form of rent, presents, offerings and inter- 
 
248 
 
 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 est, and if he can net ten cents a day by his hard and hopeless labor, that 
 will suffice for the most pressing wants of his household. His home is a 
 mud, or bamboo-hut, his property a pair of small bullocks, a few cows, 
 calves and goats, a wooden cart, and a few brass and earthen pots, in all 
 worth about fifty dollars, and h s implements and tools are of the rudest 
 kind, such as his ancestors used a thousand years ago ; and yet he is making 
 some progress under British rule, and finds his wants increasing, and at 
 the same time better outlets for his produce and better recompense for his 
 labor, and on the whole, is so independent on ten cents a day, that he will 
 eat or store his wheat rather than sell it below a certain price. Of course 
 he does not employ machinery in farming, but plows his land with a crook- 
 ed piece of iron-pointed wood, harrows it with an instrument resembling a 
 common ladder laid flat on the ground and dragged by little bullocks cross- 
 ways over the held ; he sows by hand, reaps with a rude sickle, carries the 
 sheaves home on his back or in the bullock cart, threshes them with a 
 wooden club, or lets the cattle tramp out the grain, and cleans it by hand- 
 
 wmnowmg. 
 
 LABORERS AT THE INDIGO PRESS. 
 
 India of course yields a great number of other kinds of ng^ri- 
 cultural products, especially the indigo plant, from wliich 
 
Story op an Emigrant. 249 
 
 the renowned dye-stuff is made; rape, mustard and other 
 species of seeds from -which oils are pressed, the opium plant, 
 etc. 
 
 In the cities and towns the people devote themselves to 
 trades and handicrafts, in some of which they attain greater 
 perfection than any other people. Their beautiful carvings 
 in wood and ivory, their exquisite embroideries, their textiles 
 and yarns exceed everything in that line. But their ability 
 is not due to any genius or ingenuity, but to close observa- 
 tion and patient application. According to their religious 
 tenets the sons must learn the trade of their father, and they 
 begin to work at his side as soon as they can handle a needle, 
 chisel, or other tool, and continue the practice day after day, 
 year after year, until they also in turn, have taught their 
 children and grandchildren the same trade. Certain places 
 are noted for certain industries, as Dakka for its fine muslin ; 
 Benares for its embroideries, etc. The muslin weavers of 
 Dakka can with their hands spin and weave fabrics which 
 are almost as fine as cobweb, and a person who is not ac- 
 customed to such work would not be able to feel the thread 
 .between his fingers; but the sensitiveness of the Hindoo 
 spinner in Dakka has been developed to such an extraordi- 
 nary degree during a hundred generations that he is able to 
 perform works which would be perfectly impossible for 
 others. I have seen a garment presented to a Hindoo king 
 which was so fine in texture that, although it was a com- 
 plete suit, it was folded up and safely packed into a mango 
 shell, which is only a little larger than an almond shell, and 
 thus presented. I have in my possession a little box tw^o 
 inches wide and four inches long, made of sandal-wood and 
 adorned with fine carvings ; all the edges are inlaid with 
 pieces of ivory, in which are again inlaid more than two 
 thousand separate pieces of different metals so skilfully put 
 
250 
 
 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 together that the joints can not be detected even by using a 
 magnifying glass. 
 
 In architecture the Hindoos also distinguished themselves 
 centuries ago by the erection of buildings which are still ob- 
 jects of the admiration of the world. One of these master 
 works of architecture is regarded as the most beautiful ever 
 erected by the hands of men. It is the Tn^-Mahal at Agra, 
 
 TAJ-MAHAL. 
 
 a mausoleum erected by emperor Shah Jehan over the re- 
 mains of his wife, Bengos Begum, who died in 1630. "During 
 a period of seventeen years after her death Shah Jehan col- 
 lected building material of marble and precious stones to be 
 used in the construction of the mausoleum. All parts of In- 
 dia contributed to this, as did the different parts of tha Holy 
 Land to the temple of Solomon, and its estimated cOvSt is 
 twenty-five million dollars. It is built in Moorish style, with 
 slender pillars, and its majesty and beauty profoundly im- 
 press the beholder. M xny buildings in the world excel this 
 
 ?w<|»»s^; 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 251 
 
 temple in size, but none can rival it in ideal beauty and fin- 
 ish. It looks more like a temple of thanksgiving and praise 
 than an abode of sorrow, and the spirit of love seems to fill 
 its silent chambers, quickening and warming the cold mar- 
 ble and transforming the whole building into a dream, into 
 a psalm in stone. It is rich in mosaics, and precious stones 
 of different colors assume the shape of fresh vines and living 
 flowers. There it stands in solemn silence on the banks of 
 the Jumna, like an enchanted vision. It seemed to grow in 
 magnificent splendor before my eyes as I approached it. 
 The airy dome and the white marble pillars glittered in fab- 
 ulous, mystic beauty, and towered far above the gigantic 
 cypress trees, which stood in rows like sentinels around it. 
 One enters the park in firont of the main building through a 
 pillared archway of colossal dimensions, built of red sand- 
 stone and surmounted by twenty-six white cupolas. The 
 height of the arches is one hundred and forty feet. 
 
 " Taj-Mahal is erected on a base of red sand-stone nine hun- 
 dred and sixty-four feet long and three hundred and twenty- 
 nine feet wide, one side of which is washed by the river 
 Jumna, and on each of the four comers is a tower of red 
 sand-stone covered by a white marble kiosk. Two mosques 
 take up the east and west sides. From this ground rises a fine 
 terrace of white marble, three hundred and thirteen feet 
 square, in the center of which is the beautiful main building 
 itself. At each angle is an airy marble spire of exquisite 
 style, surmounted by a noble cupola resting on eight pillars. 
 They are about one hundred and fifty feet high, and a spiral 
 stairway leads to the vci'y top. The ground-plan of Taj- 
 Mahal forms a regular octangle. The four sides on which 
 the entrances are located are each about one hundred and 
 thirty feet long, and turn to the four cardinal points of the 
 compass. The roof is seventy feet above the base. Over 
 each corner is a gorgeous spire, and over the center towers a 
 
252 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 marble dome measuring seventy feet in diameter, and ris* 
 ing to a height of one hundred and twenty feet. It is cov- 
 ered by a gilt vault in the shape of a half-moon about two 
 hundred and sixty feet above the floor. All this is of the 
 \ finest Jaypoor marble, carefully polished, and still retaining 
 
 its pure color. 
 V ''Notwithstanding the colossal size of Taj-Mahal, every 
 ^ part of it, from the foundation to the dome, is adorned with 
 artistically executed designs, and the whole is as carefully 
 wrought as the finest ebony ornament. Thus the entire Koran 
 is inscribed on it. Even to-day the burial vault of the beau- 
 tiful queen is filled with the fragrance of roses, jasmines and 
 sandal-wood. The graves of the empress and emperor con- 
 stitute sarcophagi of the purest marble, covered with elegant 
 inlays of agate, carnelians, lapis lazuli and other precious 
 stones, and surrounded by a six-foot-high gallery in the open 
 net- work of which Jilies, roses and other flowers of gems 
 are inlaid. The dome in Taj -Mahal produces an echo which 
 is more pleasant, pure and lasting than any other. A 
 single musical sound produced by the human voice seems to 
 flow or soar up there like a prolonged, pleasant modulation, 
 which dies away so slo-wly that one seems to hear it after it is 
 silent, just as one seems to see a lark after following it with 
 the eyes after it has disappeared. Twenty thousand work- 
 men were engaged for twenty-two years in erecting this 
 mausoleum." 
 
 These recollections from India would be incomplete if I 
 should omit to describe some of the wonderful tricks which 
 I saw performed by Hindoo jugglers. As I was sitting one 
 day in an open place before the hotel in Benares, together 
 with some English army oflScers, an ordinary looking Hin- 
 doo of the lower classes, accompanied by a small boy, ap- 
 peared before us, and asked permission to show the mango 
 trick- This being granted, the boy scraped up some earth 
 
Stort of an Emigt!Akt. 253 
 
 01 the road before our eves, and made a little mound of it 
 on the floor of the open veranda in front of the hotel. 
 The magician, who had no other garment on than a loose- 
 ly wrapped cotton cloth, usually worn by the men, and in 
 his hand a white cloth and a little bag containing a few 
 sticks and other small implements, stooped down beside 
 the little mound of earth, and, with his eyes fixed on us, 
 took a mango kernel about twice the size of a peach stone, 
 which he planted in the little mound. Having smoothed the 
 mound with his hands he recited several prayers and in- 
 cantations, and made some motions over the mound w^ith 
 a magic wand, carefully assuming an air of expectancy. Af- 
 ter a minute or t^wo we saw the mound slowly opening at 
 the top and the tender shoot of a plant coming up through 
 the crack. The Hindoo sat v^ith folded hands, occasionally 
 breathing on the plant, and every now and then he would 
 invoke some invisible being. Meanwhile the plant grew tall- 
 er and more solid, until it finally assumed the shape of a 
 dwarf tree, which kept growing and sent out branches and 
 leaves. This development took place gradually and 
 slowly, until finally a ripe mango fruit was seen hanging 
 down from one of the branches. During this wonderful per- 
 formance the magician had only now and then for a mo- 
 ment covered the plant with the cloth in his hand. 
 
 At another time, when I was on the deck of a large steam- 
 er, a Hindoo accompanied by a little girl asked the passen- 
 gers to permit him to perform a trick. This being granted, 
 he placed a round wicker basket, resembling a paper waste- 
 basket, on the deck, and the little girl sat down in it so that 
 her head and feet were flush with the edge of the basket, 
 which was thus fairly filled up by the girl. Thereupon the 
 Hindoo put the cover on and took a long, straight, double- 
 edged sword which he ran through the basket in all direc- 
 tions. It was a shocking sight, some of the ladies screamed, 
 
254, 
 
 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 others fainted. But when he removed the cover from the 
 basket the girl came out aHve and without injury. The 
 sword v^as handed to us for inspection, and I am perfectly 
 sure that it was a straight, solid, honest infantry weapon. 
 During all this time the basket stood on the deck of the ship 
 so that no springs, machinery or other contrivance could be 
 concealed under it.. 
 
 Snake charmers are very common in India. "When one of 
 these is to perform a trick he asks for a piece of paper, which 
 
 iil||lp^^'^^^^^^'^^ 
 
 SNAKE CHARMERS. 
 
 he puts in the out-stretched hand of the spectator, and be- 
 gins to play on his flute, and stare with his eyes as if he sees 
 something near the hand. His whole body seems to be 
 changed ; writhing like a Avorm, he continually plays on the 
 instrument and keeps his eyes riveted on the hand. Sudden- 
 ly he rushes forward and points to the same. But the spec- 
 tator sees nothing, and the charmer again plays and con- 
 torts his body still more wildly. His arms are bare up to 
 the el bo w4, and .he holds the flute with both hands. Sud- 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 255 
 
 denly lie throws his flute away, continues his motions and 
 repeats incantations. Again he points to the paper, and 
 while the observer turns his eyes in that direction without 
 seeing anything unusual, the charmer presses his folded hands 
 down on it and pulls out three large cobras, raising their 
 heads and stretching out their poisonous tongues in differ- 
 ent directions while he holds them in his hand." 
 
 These and similar tricks are performed daily, yet no one 
 has been able to detect how they are done. The theory of 
 hypnotism has recently been advanced, and it does not seem 
 improbable. 
 
 The following extract from my journal may be of interest : 
 
 Oct. 8, 18 '2. — Yesterday I witnessed one of the most important expres- 
 s'ons of public opinion ever recorded in Asia; in favor of religioas liberty. 
 Three thousand prominent persons, mostly Hindoos and Mohammedans, 
 and a few Christians and Parsees, assembled in the city hall of Calcutta, 
 and brilliant speeches were made eliciting most animated applause from 
 the native non-Christian inhabitants as a protest against the police prose- 
 cuting the salvation army, lately arrived in Bombay. What do the 
 Ameii^an and Erropean Christians think of the necessity for Brahmins. 
 Mohammedans, and Parsees to protest against prosecutions oy Christians 
 agairst Chr'stians? 
 
 Dmjie'ing, Oct. 17, 1882. — Here dwells a tribe of motint>.ineers who are 
 polyj,ndrists, the reverse of polygamists. Each woman I'as several hus- 
 bands, who are generally brothers or near relatives. This practice has 
 locally decreased the population, while in all other Hindoo sects it is vap- 
 idly increasing. 
 
 The English aristocracy is strongly represented here. The summer resi- 
 dence of the Bengal government, which is located here, as well as the excel- 
 lent sanitarium, attract thousands of travelers. Excursions, dinners, balls 
 and other festivities follow^ each other in rapid succession. This afternoon I 
 was present at one of these gatherings, and met the Greek merchant Ptdochi, 
 and made other interesting acquaintances. This evening shall attena a ball 
 given by the governor of Bengal. At all these parties " simkirii,'' or cham- 
 pagne, flows in streams. Life is gay and luxurious among tli4, anstocracj' 
 in India. 
 
 Nov. 23, 1882. — Was present at a quiet and select entertainment with 
 the king of Kutch Behar, in his palace in Calcutta. His wife is a daughter 
 of the erreat Hindoo reformer Keshub-Chunder-Sen ; she is a well edu- 
 
2Z6 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 cated, beautiful woman, who, together with her husband, the young and 
 elegant king, defies the Hindoo caste restrictions, and appears pubHcly in 
 company with other ladies and gentlemen. 
 
 Dec. 28, 1882. — Attended the decennial missionary conference; five hun 
 dred missionaries from all parts of Asia, Africa and Australia were present, 
 and made it a most interesting religious convention. It was a. gathering 
 of highly cultivated, intelligent, courageous men and women, from the gray 
 haired veteran to the young novice fresh from college. The American mis- 
 sionaries took a most prominent part, notable among whom w^as Dr. Tho- 
 bum, since made a bishop in the mcthodist church. There were also three- 
 Swedes, with whom I formed an acquaintance, — Ungert, Edman and Erik- 
 son. 
 
 Jan. 18,^ 1883. — Attended the great state ball in the palace of the 
 viceroy. Fifteen hundred guests were present, and the throng formed a 
 brilliant picture of beauty, fashion and royal splendor. There were many 
 native nobles, princes and rulers, the most prom'nent ones being the gawk- 
 war (king) of Baroda, and the Kahn of Khelat. Wherever the gawkwar 
 went he was closely followed by half a dozen turbaned attendants and four 
 bodyguards armed with daggers and cimeters, or Damascus blades. His 
 garment consisted of blue and green plush and satin, and the tjiany-colored 
 turban was ailmost covered with diamonds. It was claimed that the jewels 
 he wore that evening on his breast and turban had a value of two million 
 dollars. 
 
 Feb. 10, 1883. — In spite of all efforts to live quietly I am incessantly 
 drawn into the whirl of social life ; yesterday I attended one of the most 
 pleasant festivities of the season. It was a magnficient fete given by the 
 Mohammedan prince Raj a KajendraNarj'an Bahadur in his gorgeous palace 
 and parks in Shova Bazar in honor of the British victory in Egypt. Three 
 thousand guests were present. All kinds of amusements w^ere arranged, 
 suchasdancing,concerts, a circus with uninterrupted performances, nautches 
 or dances performed by native dancing girls, etc. In different parts of the 
 palace refreshments were served, all in the same grand style as the rest of 
 the entertainment. The parks and gardens were illuminated by thousands 
 of Chinese lanterns and many electric lights. 
 
 The following is also taken from ray journal: 
 
 * * * Received visits from the Reverend Phillips Brooks and Joseph 
 Cook, and fi-om a young Swedish count, Wachtmeister by name, who was 
 on his way through Asia, and also from a young prince fi-om Madagascar, 
 a son of the queen of that country, who, under the guidance of Ludvig Lar- 
 Bon, a Norwegian sea captain, made a voyage through the seas of Asia for 
 the purpose of learning practical navigation. The young prince spoke 
 English fluently, and was a very intelligent man. 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 257 
 
 Attended a great festival at a masonic lodge where about one hundred 
 and filty members of the order were present, among whom were men of near- 
 ly every nationality and religion. The Master's degree was conferred 
 on three brothers who knelt before the same altar. One was a Christian, 
 and took his obligation with the hand on the bible; one was a Mohamme- 
 dan, who took it with the hand on the Koran ; the third, a Hindoo, with 
 his hand on the Shastra. The obligation was dictated by an English lord, 
 judge of the supreme court, assisted by the secretary of the Grand Lodge, 
 my friend Rust omji, a Parsee and fire-worshiper. With the religious in- 
 tolerance in India, where all unite in hating the Christians, it is only 
 among the Free Masons, who know of no nationality, race or other bar- 
 rier, that such things are possible. 
 
 Visited the temple of the goddess Kali in a suburb of Calcutta. Kali is 
 the goddess of hate and vengence, and this temple is one of the most cele- 
 brated in India. One hundred and fifty Brahmin priests officiate in the 
 
 same. The chief priest, 
 R o o n ish-Chunder-Mokerje, 
 was a young man with liber- 
 al education. He had spent 
 several years in American 
 mission schools. His oflSce 
 is held by inheritance. He 
 w^as a most agreeable com- 
 panion, well versed in west- 
 ern as well as Sanskrit liter- 
 ature. Once upon telling 
 him that I had an intimate 
 friend in Sweden who was a 
 Christian priest, he gave me 
 some pictures of the goddess 
 Kali and other idols to send 
 him with his compliments. 
 In return, I had the pleasure 
 a few months later to prt sent 
 him with a Swedish Bible, 
 with his name in golden 
 letters on thecover.from my 
 friend, the Swedish minister, 
 which present he cherished 
 very highly. This Bible is 
 THE GODDESS KALI, 
 now kept in the temple of Kali. 
 
 At my request Mokerje prepared a brief extract of the religious doc- 
 trine of the Hindoos, which reads as follows: 
 17 
 
258 
 
 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 " We believe in heaven and hell as temporary abodes of reward and pun- 
 ishment. When a man dies his good and evil deeds are weighed on the scales. 
 First he goes to heaven to receive his reward, then to hell to suffer in pro- 
 portion to his sins. When everything is squared up he airain returns to the 
 world in the form of another being, the same process is repeated again and 
 ayfairi, and he can attain perfect bliss only after he has reached such a stage 
 Df development that he can do neither good nor evil deeds, but must lose 
 himself in the contemplation of God until he finally ceases to exist as an 
 individual being, and is reunited with God of whom he really constitutes a 
 part." 
 
 Was invited to the home of Col. Gordon to see some proofs of occulta- 
 tion, which is very wide-spread in India, and witnessed phenomena, which 
 were so strange, that I hesitate to write them down. I saw heavy ob- 
 jects moving in the air through the room above our heads, and a man with 
 the chair on which he sat risine several feet from the floor without the aid 
 force what- 
 
 of any visible 
 ever. 1 heard a. s'ate pen 
 cil, moved by an invisible 
 power, writing on a slate, 
 and read in plain English 
 what was written. I also 
 saw in the same manner a 
 pen writing on paper with 
 ink, and felt with my hand 
 the moisture of the ink. I 
 know not wherein the in- 
 visible power consisted 
 which caused these phenom- 
 ena, but that such a pow- 
 er does exist I know for cer- 
 tain, forin this case, at least, 
 there was no chance for de- 
 ception. 
 
 At the home of the prince 
 Tagore I met the renowned 
 Madame Blavatsky, and 
 many Hindoo theosophists. 
 She is a large, corpulent 
 woman, with intelligent, 
 though rether coarse, feat- 
 ures. She believes that 
 
 she is attended by Kut- ABPUL, MY MOHAMMEDAN SERVANT. 
 Humis-Lal-Sing, a Buddhistic hermit who is claimed to be two thousand 
 years old, and have the power of moving his "astral body" as swiftly 
 as thought to the most distant places. For my part I saw nothing 
 remarkable among the theosophists, but it is <x. common behef among the 
 
260 
 
 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 Hindoos that certain pundits, orlearned men.who for years have lived in the 
 mountains as hermits, abstainlngfrom food and all sensual pleasures, there- 
 by attain such a power of mind over matter as to be able to separate the 
 former from the body and let it, untrammeled by the laws of matter, move 
 from place to place, still retaining the same form and ability to speak and 
 act. Whether this is so or not I cannot say, but this I know, that "there 
 
 a e more things in heaven and earth than an 
 dreamed of in our philosophy." 
 
 What luxuries one may enjoy here in the most 
 pleasant company, — a glorious nature, palatial 
 residences, choice fruits, dishes and wines, pleas- 
 ures of all kinds, surrounded by a host ol servants, 
 who, in snow-white garments and with bare 
 feet, noiselessly and swiftly move about in order 
 to gratify one's desires upon the slightest sign,— 
 and still how I long for the home in the North, 
 "with the cool winds and frost and snow •which 
 quicken the blood, give appetite, and*fill one with 
 a feeling of surging vitality and energy, unknown 
 in the enervating climates of the South. 
 
 From my veranda I see a crowd of people on 
 
 the street who seem to pay homage to some one. 
 
 It proves to be an idiotic begger, Sobulla. The 
 
 Hindoos believe that when a person has lost his 
 
 reason he is filled with the spirit of God, and 
 
 hence they always treat the insane with respect 
 
 and tender care. 
 
 This April heat makes it easy to realize the 
 
 SOBUJLLA, AN IDIOT. Hindoo proverb, which says: " Never run when 
 
 you may walk, never walk when you may stand still, never stand when 
 
 you may sit, never sit when you may l.e down." 
 
CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 The Women of India — The Widows — The American Zenana — Prizes Awarded 
 in a Girl's School — Annandabai Joshee — Her Visit to America — Reports 
 to the Government — Departure from India — Burmah — Ceylon — Arabia — 
 Cairo. 
 
 From our point of view the social condition of women 
 in India is highly deplorable. The women are not regarded 
 as the equals of men, but rather as an appendix to them. 
 Their religion teaches that they have no acknowledged rights 
 as individuals, and that the only happiness they can attain 
 in this world and in the world to come is to become wives 
 and mothers of men, and that the more a woman sacrifices 
 herself for man the greater will be her reward in the future. 
 If the man to whom she is married dies, the remainder of her 
 life is full of sorrow and suffering, and it is only in the life 
 hereafter that she can expect any happiness, and that by be- 
 ing reunited with him. 
 
 This belief gave rise to the so-called *'sati,'* or the custom 
 to burn the wife on her deceased husband's pyre in 
 order that she might at once be reunited with him and 
 enjoy salvation through him. ** Sati " is now prohibited by 
 the English government, but every widow in India is still 
 doomed to a life of misery and degradation. 
 
 When we consider that polygamy is practiced to a very 
 large extent among the rich <!o that a man is allowed to 
 
 261 
 
262 
 
 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 have auy number of wives, and may keep on taking new 
 wives as long as he lives, it may easily be understood what 
 a great number of widows there must be. There is an old 
 man, for example, who dies and leaves many widowc> of dif- 
 ferent ages, some of them only ten or twelve years old, none 
 of whom are allowed to marry a second time. They are de- 
 prived of all ornaments, and compelled to wear a very coarse, 
 plain dress, to live on the plainest food, and work hard for 
 the man who inherits the property of the deceased husband, 
 and wrho is generally his brother or his son. This is the rea- 
 son that rich families have a large number of women in all 
 ranks and conditions, from the mistress of the house, which 
 position is held by the husband's mother, to the humblest 
 servant woinan. The education of women is prohibited ; 
 hence they are very much like children, playing v^ith their 
 dolls, jewels and other toys, and having no higher idea of 
 
 MISSION HOME AND SCHOOL. 
 
 life in general than what the}^ have been taught in the nurs- 
 ery. It is rather fortunate, therefore, that these lamentable 
 victims of prejudice live in ignorance, as long as the present 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 263 
 
 condition exists, for otherwise their life would be still more 
 miserable. 
 
 In the course of the last few years missionaries from Europe 
 and America have opened schools for the education of girls. 
 The most prominent of these is located in Calcutta, and has 
 many branches in other parts of India. It is called *'the 
 American Zenana,*' or ladies' mission, and during my stay in 
 India it was managed by a Miss Hook, a very estimable 
 lady of Danish descent, the fruits of whose noble work will 
 be of incalculable value to future millions of Hindoo women. 
 
 At an examination in this school I had the honor of distrib- 
 uting the prizes, consisting of five hundred American dolls 
 sent by Cyrus Field of New York. The recipients were the 
 most dainty and pretty little girls one could see. I wish I 
 could describe this festivity. I sat on the platform in the 
 great hall with Miss Hook to the right, a pundit or learned 
 Brahmin to the left, and surrounded by the American and 
 native teachers and some American tourists. The immense 
 hall might be compared with a beautiful flower terrace alive 
 with different colors, every little girl shining like a pretty 
 flower in her red, green, white, blue or purple dress, her pret- 
 ty black hair sparkling with gold and silver ornaments or 
 jewels. They were all listening with close attention until 
 their names were called, vsrhen they modestly, their faces 
 beaming with joy, stepped up to receive the pretty dolls sent 
 by the generous American. 
 
 At first these schools met with bitter opposition on the 
 part of the better classes of natives, but these prejudices 
 gradually died away, and at present the mission schools 
 are not subject to either persecution or ill-will. 
 
 One day in February, 1883, I received a visit at my home 
 by a Brahmin of the highest class, accompanied by his young 
 wife and her little sister. Her name was A-nnandabai 
 Joshee. Her husband was postmaster in the old Danish city 
 
264 
 
 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 Serarapoor. lie was a highly educated man, about forty 
 years of age, with fine, affable manners. His wife was 
 nineteen years old, and they had been married nine years. 
 
 With the exception of the 
 queen of Kutch Behar and a 
 few in the Zenana mission, 
 she was the first educated 
 Hindoo woman that I had 
 met. Her husband had 
 given her an excellent edu- 
 cation. 
 Their errand was to con- 
 ^ suit me and, if possible, ob- 
 tain my assistance in a 
 matter of the greatest im- 
 portance to the w^omen of 
 India. The young woman 
 had reflected somewhat in 
 I this manner: *' Since I 
 5 have acquired education, 
 ^ and the same amount of 
 $ knowledge as a man, why 
 may not other women in 
 ANNADABAi josHEE. India do the same? In 
 
 America many-women are renowned for their great learning, 
 and m£tny of them are doctors of medicine. The women of 
 India are not allow^ed to be visited by any man except their 
 husband, and as all our physicians are men, who cannot see 
 and carefully examine their female patients, they cannot, of 
 course, prescribe proper treatment for them; hence many 
 women in India must suifer and die without a remedy, which 
 often could be avoided if women studied medicine. If 
 American women can become physicians, then I can, and I 
 have decided to go to America and enter the female medical 
 
Stoky of an Emigrant. 265 
 
 -college in Philadelphia and study for the degree of doctor of 
 medicine, and then return to India and do good among my 
 •. countrywomen, and disprove the false doctrine which keeps 
 -.''Hindoo women in ignorance and degradation." Her hus- 
 ,- band was very enthusiastic for her plan, and, being rich, 
 :was also able to assist her in carrying it out if I v^rould 
 favor it and contribute toward its realization by reason of 
 - the influence my official position gave. 
 
 A few weeks later, the noble minded little Brahmin ^wo 
 man w^as on her way across the great ocean to that country 
 where not only man but also woman enjoys a free exist- 
 ence. She carried official letters from me to all American 
 authorities with which she might come in contact, also to 
 the mayor of Philadelphia, and to the state department at 
 Washington. Before leaving Calcutta she delivered an ex- 
 tempore address before a large audience at the University 
 of Serampoor, of which address I have made the following 
 extracts : 
 
 "I am asked hundreds of questions about my going to 
 America. I take this opportunity to answer some of them. 
 I go to America because I v^rish to study medicine. I now 
 address the ladies present here, w^ho will be the better judg- 
 es of the importance of female medical assistance in India. 
 I never consider this subject without being impressed that 
 .none of those societies so laudably established in India for 
 ' the promotion of science and female education have ever 
 thought of sending one of their female members into the 
 ' more civilized parts of the world to procure thorough medi- 
 cal knowledge, in order to open here a college for the in- 
 struction of women in medicine. The want of female 
 physicians in India is keenly felt in every quarter. Ladies, 
 both European and native, are naturally averse to expose 
 themselves in cases of emergency to treatment by doctors 
 of the other sex. There are some female doctors in India 
 
266 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 from Europe and America, who, being foreigners, and dif- 
 ferent in manners, customs and language, have not been of such 
 use to our women as tbey might. As it is very natural that 
 Hindoo ladies who love their ownconntry and people should 
 not feel at home with the natives of the other countries, we 
 Indian women absolutely derive no benefit from these for- 
 eign ladies. They indeed have the appearance of supplying 
 our need, but the appearance is delusive. In my humble 
 opinion there is a growing need for Hindoo lady doctors in 
 India, and I volunteer to qualify myself for one. 
 
 Are there no means to study in India? I do not mean to 
 say there are no means, but the difficulties are many and 
 great. There is one college at Madras, and midwifery class- 
 es are open in aU the presidencies; but the education im- 
 parted is defective and insufficient, as the instructors are 
 conservative, and to some extent jealous. I do not find fault 
 with them. That is the character of the male sex. We 
 must put up with this inconvenience until we have a class of 
 educated ladies to relieve these men. I am neither a Chris 
 tian nor a Brahmin. To continue to live as a Hindoo, and 
 go to school in any part of India, is very difficult. A con- 
 vert who wears an English dress is not so mrch stared at. 
 Native Christian ladies are free from the opposition or pub- 
 lic scandal which Hindoo ladies like myself have to meet 
 within and without the Zenana. If 1 go alone by train or 
 in the street some people co ne near to stare and ask im- 
 pertinent questions to annoy me. Example is better than 
 precept. Some few years ago. when I was in Bombay, I used 
 to go to school. When people sav^ me going w^ith my books 
 in my hand they had the goodness to put their heads out 
 of the windov^ just to have a look at me. Some stopped 
 their carriages for the purpose. Others walking in the 
 streets stood laughing, and crjdng out so that I could hear: 
 •• What is this? Who is this lady who is going to school 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 267 
 
 with boots and stockings on?" Does not this show tliat 
 the Kali Ugla has stamped its character on the minds of the 
 people? Ladies and gentlemen, you can easily imagine what 
 effect questions like this would have on your minds if you 
 had been in my place ! 
 
 Once it happened that I was obliged to stay in school for 
 some time, and go tw^ice a day for my meals to the house oi' 
 a relative. Passers-by, Tvhenever they saw me going, gath- 
 ered round me. Some of them made fun and wereconvulsed 
 with laughter. Others, sitting respectably on their veran- 
 das, made ridiculous remarks, and did not feel ashamed to 
 throw pebbles at me. The shop-keepers and venders spit at 
 the sight of me, and made gestures too indecent to describe. 
 I leave it to you to imagine what was ray condition at such 
 time, and how I could gladly have burst through the crowd 
 to make my home nearer. 
 
 Yet the boldness of my Bengali brethren cannot be exceded, 
 and is still more serious to contemplate than the instances 
 I have given from Bombay. Surely it deserves pity. If I 
 go to take a walk on the strand, Englishmen are not so bold 
 as to look at me. Even the soldiers are never troublesome, 
 but the Baboo boys* have their levity by making fun of every- 
 thing. "Who are you?" *' What caste do you belong to? " 
 *' Whence do you come? '* "Where do you go? " — are in mj 
 opinion, questions that should not be asked by strangers. 
 There are some educated native Christians here in Seram poor 
 who are suspicious; they are still wondering whether I am 
 married or a widow; a woman of bad character or excom- 
 municated. Dear audience, does it become my native and 
 Christian brethren to be so uncharitable? Certainly not. 
 I place these unpleasant things before you that those whom 
 they concern moit may rectify them, and that those who 
 
 •Rdncated Hindoo of tlie middle class. 
 
2G8 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 have never thought of the difficulties may see that I am not 
 going to America through any ^whim or caprice. 
 
 Shall I not be excommunicated when I return to India? 
 Do yon think I should be filled with consternation at this 
 
 ; threat? I do not fear it in the least. Why should- 1 be cast 
 out, w^hen I have determined to live there exactlv as I do 
 
 . here? I propose to myself to make no change in my customs 
 and manners, food or dress. I will go as a Hindoo and 
 
 ' come back here to live as a Hindoo. 1 will not increase my 
 wants, but be as plain and simple as my forefathers, and as 
 I am now. If my countrymen wish to excommunicate me, 
 why do they not do it now? They are at liberty to do so." 
 After my return to America I visited her twice at the med- 
 ical college in Philadelphia, where she became everybody's 
 favorite, being one of the best students that ever crossed the 
 threshhold of the institution. She did not renounce her re- 
 ligion or her habits of life, but observed all of these strictly. 
 After three years of hard study she passed her examination 
 with high standing, and practiced a few months in Ameri- 
 can hospitals, but she gradually succumbed to the dread 
 disease, pulmonary consumption, and returned to India af- 
 ter an absence of four years, only to die in Poonah, the city 
 where her ancestors had lived as highly respectable people 
 for two thousand years past. She left India with the curse 
 of the Brahmins on her head, but returned as the idol of her 
 people. Thousands upon thousands crowded around her 
 home, almost worshiping the frail, noble being whose youth- 
 .ful life was slowly ebbing away. 
 
 Strange are the ways of Providence. When Rev. Dr. Fjell- 
 stedt kindled a desire to see India in the bosom of the young 
 country boy, who could then have guessed that this boy was 
 to become a medium to assist that Brahmin woman who 
 was destined to be the first one of the millions of India to 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 26S 
 
 clear the way to education and liberty for her unfortunate 
 sisters ! 
 
 Besides my report on wheat culture I sent numerous of- 
 ficial reports to our government on different industries, and 
 other matters in India, such as tea culture, the decline of 
 American shipping in Asia, the railroads, the population of 
 India, our commercial relations with India, etc. These re- 
 ports attracted such attention in Washington that during 
 the month of February, 1883, I received orders from the 
 state department to make a tour of inspection to those 
 provinces and cities which belonged to my district and re- 
 port to the government anything of national interest. 
 Shortly after receiving this order, which was accompanied 
 by a leave of absence for six months, I also received a cable- 
 gram from Holland offering me the position of managing 
 American director of the Maxwell Land Grant Company in 
 New Mexico, whereof more hereafter. 
 
 On the 12th of April I turned over all my official affairs to 
 the vice-consul, Mr. C. C. Bancroft, and took the steamer 
 RaipatoonahforBurmah, where I visited the most important 
 seaports, Rangoon, Mulmain, and Akjab. Buddhism is there 
 the prevailing religion, and the caste system, such as is found 
 among the Hindoos, is unknown. The people are more 
 prosperous. The city of Rangoon has, among other nota- 
 ble objects, a celebrated Buddhist pagoda, the great dome of 
 which is covered with solid gold plate. The pagoda is sit- 
 uated on a high elevation above the city, and the dome is 
 one of the most notable and costly works of architecture in 
 the world. It is visible at a great distance out on the ocean, 
 and when the tropical sun throws its rays on it, it looks like 
 a flame offire, whose splendor is too dazzling for the eyes to 
 endure. 
 
 At a dinner party arranged for me by the A^merican con- 
 sul at Rangoon, I met many of the prominent men in this 
 
270 
 
 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 city. Among these a judge of the supreme court, one Mr. 
 Allen, \\^ho, late in the evening, at a game of whist, inlormed 
 me that he had on that day been engaged in the trial of a 
 Birmese prince accused of murder, and that he should pro- 
 nounce sentence the following day, I could see that he had 
 already made up his mind; still he politely asked me a few 
 questions on international law with reference to the trial. 
 The next day the prince was sentenced to death because he 
 had violated the law of the land, which seems to prove that 
 the English administration of justice in Asia is no respecter 
 of persons. 
 In Birmah elephants are used for loading and unloading 
 
 fiLEPHANTS I'lLING TIMBER. 
 
 goods in the harbors. In the city of Mulmain I saw some 
 of these wise animals piling up heavy timber in a lumber 
 yard. The elephant put his tusks under the beam and his 
 trunk over it and handled it with great ease. Having 
 lifted the beam on the pile, he looked at it carefully to see 
 if it lay in right shape, and if not, he would move it 
 with his trunk. It was wonderful to see how well these 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 271 
 
 animals seemed to understand wliat their drivers said. If a 
 verj' big log could not be moved in the usual manner he 
 would roll it with his feet or shove it with his head, or even 
 put a chain around it and pull it along, and all this at the 
 command of the driver who remained sitting on the head of 
 the animal. 
 
 On April 25 I again embarked, this time on the steamer 
 Asia, sailing across the Bay of Bengal, and arrived on the 
 first day of May at the 
 seaport, Bimlipatam, on 
 the Madras coast. It 
 -was a pleasant city of ^2 
 white houses, and situ- 
 ated at the foot of a high 
 volcano. Here I saw for 
 the first time the notori- 
 ous car of Juggernaut, in 
 which the imaee of the 
 
 god is dragged through 
 the streets. The car is 
 of stupendous size, and 
 rests on sixteen wheels- 
 Thousands of pilgrims 
 followed the car, and 
 formerly many of the 
 worshipers used to 
 throw themselves under the car of juggernaut. 
 
 the wheels in order to be crushed to death ; but this bar- 
 baric custom has been prohibited by the English govern- 
 ment. The idol of Juggernaut is regarded as very sacred, 
 for according to tradition it contains a bone of Krishna, 
 the Hindoo Apollo, one of the ten incarnations or manifesta- 
 tions of the god Vishnu. This relic worship,which is otherwise 
 unknown to the orthodox Hindoo faith, is a remnant of 
 
272 
 
 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 Buddhism, which formerly prevailed throughout the whole 
 province of Orisa. 
 
 On the second day we arrived at Kokotiada, where a 
 flotilla of nearly one hundred short-masted sailing vessels of 
 native construction aiter having received their cargoes lay 
 waiting for us. Again we steamed away along the coast, 
 stopping at the seaports Kalingapatam, Vizagapatam. 
 Alasulipatara, and finally arrived at Madras, on the fifth of 
 
 BUDDHA TEMPLE AT CEYLON. 
 
 May. This is one of the handsomest cities in Asia. It is 
 situated near the equator, so that it is very hot there; but 
 the fresh ocean breezes cool the air in the afternoon, and 
 ma^e the temperature particularly delightful. 
 
 On the 10th of May I left with the steamer Assam for 
 Ceylon, and arrived at Colombo, the principal city and har- 
 bor on this island, on the 13th. Ceylon is called the pearl of 
 of Asia, and justly so. I remained there two days, in the 
 company of the American consul, and visited the cinnamon 
 groves, the Buddhifc.tic cemples, and other objects of interest. 
 
Story of an iiMiGRANT. 273 
 
 Along the coast south of Colombo is a drive-way for several 
 miles, passing through groves of cinnamon and other spice 
 trees v^^hich fill the air with fragrance. Thei e are al«o arti- 
 ficial lakes, canals, parks and flower gardens in endless pro- 
 fusion; in a word, this place is one of the most delightful 
 spots I have ever seen. 
 
 The Egyptian patriot Arabi Pasha was recently banished 
 to this island on account of his taking such a prominent part 
 in the late rebellion in Egypt. I drove out to his fine resi- 
 dence located near the sea, and found him to be a very 
 pleasant and highly educated man, who spoke English fluent- 
 ly, and with whom I soon became on friendly terms on ac- 
 count of my sympathy for the Egyptian people. 
 
 Ceylon is the centre of modern Buddhism in India. The 
 temples of the Buddhists are very interesting to see. Many 
 of their priests are men of learning and culture. I spent a 
 few hours with them, and received much attention on their 
 part on account of my being a representative of America. 
 There is an old tradition among the Hindoos that the gar- 
 den of Eden was situated on the island of Ceylon. The 
 Hindoo narrative of the fall of man has many features in 
 common with the biblical narrative, but with this dift'erence: 
 that Adam, being reproached for his sins, did not, according 
 to the Hindoo legend, put the blame on Eve, but took it all 
 on himself, and said that he alone was to blame, and that 
 the woman should not be cursed. It is further told that 
 when they were expelled from paradise they turned their 
 course northward, and when they came to the shallow water 
 w^hich separates Ceylon from the main land of Asia, Adam 
 took Eve in his arms and carried her across 
 
 Having remained two days at this delightful place we em- 
 barked again, and on the 20th of May we were steaming 
 along the coast of Arabia, being within sight of land the 
 whole morning. In my note-book I find the following lines 
 
274 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 for this day: *' Under thick canvass there is a strangely 
 mixed cro^wd of people on the half-deck, gathered for divine 
 worship, and when they closed the same by singing; 
 
 'O, hear us as we cry to Thee 
 For those in peril on the sea,' 
 
 the voices of Mohammedans, Jews, Buddhists and Brahmins 
 from a dozen different countries were blended with those of 
 the Christians." 
 
 We spent the 22d of May in the city of Aden, in South 
 Arabia. This place is hot and dreary. Accompanied by one 
 of my fellow-passengers I took a ride on camel-back through 
 the desert to the celebrated water reservoirs. It seldom 
 rains more than once in every three years at this place. To 
 preserve the water that falls on these occasions the Arabi- 
 ans have built a series of cisterns, or large reservoirs, for the 
 water along the foot of a mountain. These cisterns are 
 made with great architectural skill ; they are built of stone 
 and cement, and are much more compact and durable than 
 similar ^vorks of modern times. Water is a great luxury in 
 Southern Arabia, and it is customary to offer the driver a 
 drink of water for his camel or horse as an encourage- 
 ment to drive a little faster or to show him a favor. At the 
 same time the driver does not object to a tip, which in ori- 
 ental countries is called, as in Ep^ypt, "backshish," an ex- 
 pression with which every traveler soon becomes familiar. 
 
 From Aden we had a pleasant voyage up the Red sea to 
 Suez. The cholera was, so to speak, in the air, and our 
 steamer was the last one which escaped quarantine. From 
 Suez I traveled in company with some other passengers by 
 rail to Cairo. We stopped an hour at the little city Ism ailia, 
 which is situated on the canal, and is a fine place, noted es- 
 pecially for the great fete given by Count F. de Lesseps at 
 the opening of the Suez canal, for which occasion a fine pal- 
 ace was built for the accommodation of Empress Eugenie of 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 275 
 
 Prance. On the way to Cairo we passed througH the valley 
 which in the bible is called Goshen, and which Pharaoh 
 gave to the brothers of Joseph to live in, and where the 
 brick yards are located in which the Israelites were com- 
 pelled to make brick without straw and oppressed in dif- 
 ferent \\^ays by their task-masters. 
 
 During the day I had occasion to see a portion of the 
 canal "Bahr Jussuf," or Joseph's canal, a masterwork some 
 four thousand years old, which the legend ascribes to Jo- 
 seph, and which still proves w^hat a blessing this man con- 
 ferred upon the people of Egypt, not only by w^arding off the 
 dread famine, but also by executing many great and useful 
 works. The canal began at Siut, on the Nile, and mean- 
 dered through the valley on the west side of the river for a 
 distance of nearly two hundred and fifty miles, until its lev- 
 el was so far above that of the river that its waters could be 
 carried westward into the province of Fajuin, and change its 
 formerly sterile soil into the richest and most fertile fields. 
 
CFAPTER XXVII. 
 
 Cairo — Cheop's Pyramid — Venice — Tiie St. Gottliard Tunnel — On the Rhine 
 — Visit in Holland and England— Father Nugent — Arrival at New York. 
 
 The train has stopped, and we are in Cairo, the capital of 
 Egypt. The beautiful, the joyous, the memorable Cairo, 
 with its gorgeous mosques, its half mystic, half historical 
 monuments, its narrow streets, and a life, a commotion and 
 an oriental splendor strongly reminding one of the legends 
 "One Thousand and One Nights." In company w^ith afriend 
 from America I visited the principal mosques, bazars, parks 
 and other places of interest, and the next day we drove out 
 to the great Cheop's pyramid, ^which is located about eight 
 miles from the city. Here I again met with a monument of 
 antiquity which filled me with wonder and admiration. The 
 pyramid of Cheops was built before the birth of Moses, — yes, 
 before Jacob came down with his sons to Egypt, — and it is 
 possible that Joseph pointed out the same to his aged father 
 as a proof of the greatness of the country and its resources. 
 
 According to Herodotus one hundred and twenty thou- 
 sand men were occupied twenty years in building it. Its base 
 covers about eleven acres, and its height is about four hun- 
 dred and eighty feet. One can get an approximate idea of 
 the enormous mass of material in it, when it is calculated 
 that it contains stone enough to build a wall one and a-half 
 fjet thick and ten feet high around all England, — a distance of 
 nearly nine hundred miles. 
 
 276 
 
278 
 
 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 The renowned Sphinx is liewn out of the solid rock. It is 
 n a reclining position, and, although partly buried by sand, 
 I could easily trace its back for a distance of thirty paces. 
 
 At the foot of the pyramid I met an Arabian chief, a gest- 
 ure from whom showed me that he belonged to the mystic 
 brotherhood of Free Masons, w^hich gave rise to warm hand- 
 shaking, and an interesting conversation through the aid oi 
 my interpreter. In pressing the hand of this son of the desert 
 sighing under despotism, and reading the feelings of his 
 heart through the wrinkles of his face, while he talked of the 
 great country in the West, whence I came, and whose free 
 institutions, granting equal rights to all, were to him a 
 
 THE PYRAMIDS AND THE SPHINX. 
 
 heavenly li^ht pointing forward and upward, I felt more deep- 
 ly than ever before what a blessing it is to be a citizen of a 
 commonwealth w'here a man is measured, not b\^ his birth 
 or his wealth, but by his own personal merits. 
 
 Returning to Cairo the remainder of the day was spent in 
 the Boulak museum, among the most wonderful antiquities 
 
Story op an Emigrant. 
 
 279 
 
 of the world. Shortly before there had been discovered in 
 the Nubian hills, beneath the temple Dayr-el-Baheree, a 
 burial place containing the bodies of the old Egyptian kings. 
 These had been brought to Cairo, where a separate wing of 
 of the museum had been opened for their keeping, and there 
 they lay in their coffins in a fine state of preservation, owing 
 to the Egyptian method of embalming. Therewere the very 
 men who built the pyramids; there was Amases I., the 
 founder of the new empire, Thotines III., the great Sethi L, 
 
 
 ,.^<^M 
 
 '' '''"'[lIlJliMHlllMll 
 
 
 RAMSES n., WHEN YOUNG. 
 
 and his famous son Ramses II., and that Pharaoh who is 
 supposed to have brought up Moses; there was also his 
 
280 
 
 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 daughter Mirrhis, who afterward became his queen, the 
 same who found Moses as an infant floating in the Nile. 
 
 Their bodies — yes, even their features — were well preserved. 
 They lie in coffins of wood, which show skilled v^orkmanship, 
 the corners being carefully dovetailed together. Even thei.* 
 shrouds and ornaments of flowers and herbs show plainly 
 
 * hf _',--'i-ir:-.-,-: .'- ■ 
 
 sattSE-.-'- 
 
 j,,,,^.tf^i;1P-':;-,.-r'i" 
 
 |%-*r , 
 
 M 
 ^'***-i 
 
 
 RAMSES n. 
 
 that "the style of dressing the dead among the Egyptians 
 four thousand years ago ^vas very much the same as it is 
 now with us. 
 When I stood among the ruins of Pompeii or of the tower 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 281 
 
 Sarnath, the Home of Buddha, I thought nothing could be 
 more wonderful and awe-inspiring than those hoary monu 
 ments; but here lay before my eyes the very man who for 
 many years was a friend and protector of Moses, with his 
 wonderful, commanding features and eagle nose, his long 
 dark hair, which lay in thick folds under his neck. The arms, 
 rings, jewels and other ornaments worn by those kings and 
 their queens, formed part of this wonderful collection, and, 
 
 NILE BOAT. 
 
 by their skillful workmanship, showed the high degree of 
 civilization of the ancient Egyptians. 
 
 The following day I took the train for Alexandria. The 
 railroad follows the river Nile in its general course. The 
 valley is densely populated, and wretched mud houses and 
 villages appear in every direction. The cholera had now 
 broken out in its most deadly form, and we sa^wmany dead 
 and dying at the stations. The steamer Tanjore lay ready 
 to sail for Europe, and I was soon comfortably quartered in 
 one of its spacious cabins. 
 
282 
 
 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 On Sunday, June 3d, a beautiful Italian day, as "we were 
 rapidly steaming north through the Adriatic sea, we could 
 see the coast of Greece to the right and that of Italy to the 
 left. We arrived at Brindisi the same afternoon, and at 
 Venice two days later. Surely the beauties of nature and of 
 art that meet the eye in this lovely city seem to be the climax 
 of everything beautiful on earth, and, quietly gliding forward 
 during many hours through numerous canals in a hall- 
 dreamy, halt-waking condition, with two silent gondoliers 
 
 RIALTO BRIDGE IN VENICE. 
 
 at the oars, I could scarcely realize whether this was a beau- 
 tiful dream, an illusion, or reality. 
 
 The next morning, accompanied by an in terpreter, I walked 
 through St. Mark's square, carefully studying its many 
 wonderful attractions, its splendid shops, the clock, the 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 283 
 
 thousands of tame doves, the belfry of St. Mark's, the pal- 
 ace of the Doges, the marble pillars of the winged lions, and 
 finally, the most remarkable of all, the wonderful church 
 with its irregular, yet harmonious, unique and impressive 
 architecture. In the church were seen ordinary visitors 
 roaming about under the domes, humble worshipers count- 
 ing their beads and rosaries, closely-shaved monks and ro\^al 
 officers with clanging sabres, and artists busy with their 
 studies. 
 
 With a shudder T crossed the Bridge of Sighs, with its hor- 
 rid associations, and spent.a quarter of an hour in the dark 
 dungeons to which it leads, and in which so many poor 
 mortals, prisoners often without accusers and guiltless of 
 crime, had sighed and suffered through the cruelties of man 
 to man, well knowing that when they crossed that bridge 
 into the dungeon, they had left all earthly hope behind. 
 
 In Venice I parted with my American companion, Mr. 
 Robins, in whose company I had traveled all the wa}'- from 
 Madras. 
 
 Having promised to be in Holland at an early day, I was 
 compelled to hurry, and left Venice on the evening of the 
 second day. This time I took the route through the St. 
 Gotthard tunnel, which is nine and a half miles long, and 
 through which it takes nearly half an hour to pass. The 
 beautiful lake Como and the grand Alpine scenery have been 
 so often described, that I consider it superfluous to dwell on 
 them in these pages. 
 
 In Mayennes I left the railroad and took the steamer down 
 the beautiful Rhine to Cologne, passing the vine-clad hills 
 and the mediaeval castles, in delightful conversation with 
 some American and Swedish tourists just returning from the 
 German watering places. 
 
 From Cologne I traveled by rail to Rotterdam, where I 
 arrived June 9th, and met my old friend, G. P. Ittman, one 
 
284 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 of the men with whom I formerly had business connections 
 concerning railroad matters in Minnesota. The following 
 day he accompanied me to the Hague to see Baron de Con- 
 stant Rebeque, one of those European noblemen who w^ould 
 have been a nobleman even if he had been born in a hut. He 
 v^ras then chamberlain of the king, and one of the directors 
 of the Maxwell Land Grant Company', the management of 
 which had been offered to me as already stated. 
 
 The next day we all met at the office of the vice-president 
 of the company, the banker Mr. W. F. Ziegelar. The board 
 of directors held a meeting, at which I was elected business 
 manager for America, and it was decided that Messrs. 
 Ziegelar and Rebeque should meet me in America a month 
 later, and that all of us should then proceed to New Mexico 
 to inspect the property and investigate the economical 
 standing of the company, after which I could decide wheth- 
 er I would accept the position or not. 
 
 A few days later Mr. Ziegelar accompanied me to London, 
 where one of the directors and many of the creditors of the 
 Maxwell Company resided. Here I also found some friends 
 from India, and in their company spent a couple of days at 
 the beautiful country residence of an English nobleman, Sir 
 Balfour. Among the prominent and excellent men with 
 whom I formed an acquaintance at that place was Maj. 
 Horace Durrant, formerly of the queen's hussars, who was 
 also largely interested in the Maxwell Company, and one of 
 the men from different countries, nationalities and creeds 
 who will always live in my memory like beaming stars on 
 life's varied journey. 
 
 Soon afterward I renewed my acquaintance "with John ' 
 Ennis in Liverpool, an Irishman, and a friend of mine for 
 more than twenty years. He is a man who is never happier 
 than when he can do someone a favor, and he has had oc- 
 casion to do me many. In the evening he took me out to 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 285 
 
 see a sight, as he called it, and truly a wonderful sight it 
 was. In a vacant space among the back streets and alleys 
 of Liverpool, near the shipping, stood erected an enormous 
 tent, containing seats for three thousand people. My friend 
 Ennis led mc through the back entrance onto the platform, 
 where a few ladies and gentlemen were already seated. The 
 tent was lighted with gas ; the people were crowding in- 
 to it through half a dozen different entrances. I have never 
 seen such a crowd before or since. There were thieves, pick- 
 pockets, beggars, prostitutes, drunkards and ragamuffins of 
 both sexes and of all ages, the very slums and filth of that 
 great seaport, laughing, shouting, cursing, weeping, and 
 noisy in every way. 
 
 Soon the great tent was filled, and could contain no more. 
 
 Then a little man appeared on the platform, whom Mr. 
 Ennis introduced to me as the Rev. Father Nugent, an Irish 
 Catholic priest, very small in stature, but with a coun- 
 tenance beaming with intelligence and benevolence. He 
 stepped to the front, and the moment he was seen by the 
 vast audience order and perfect silence reigned. 
 
 Here was another Keshub-Chunder-Sen, but with no new 
 religion or doctrine to advance, only re-echoing what the 
 man of Nazareth had said to the same class of people eigh- 
 teen centuries ago. This priest has done much noble work, 
 rescued many from a life of degradation, brought up and 
 secured places in America for thousands of street gamins and 
 orphans, and his name is better known, especially among 
 the English-speaking Catholics, than that of any king or 
 emperor. And who would not rather be a Father Nugent than 
 a king ? 
 
 In the morning of the fourth of July I arrived in New York 
 city, and soon found President Chester Arthur, Gen . Garfield's 
 successor, occupying rooms near my own in the Fifth Ave- 
 nue hotel. After breakfast I was given an interview with 
 
286 
 
 Story of an Emigfa' t. 
 
 him, and, of course, was pleased to learn that he had fol- 
 lowed my little work in India with interest, and expressed 
 much regret when I informed him of my intention to resign 
 at the expiration of my leave of absence. 
 
CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 
 Home from India — A Friendly Reception— Journey to New Mexico — The 
 Maxwell Land Grant Company- — Renewed Visits to England and Hol- 
 land — Re-elected Secretary of State— Visit of the Swedish OflScers in 
 Minneapolis and St. Paul — Two Hundred and Fiftieth Anniversary of 
 the Lauding of the First Swedes in Delaware. 
 
 On the Sth of July I was again home with family and 
 friends in Minneapolis, and found everything pretty much as 
 I had left it nearly two years previously, except that my good 
 old father had gone to his final rest. A couple of days later I 
 visited ray farm, in the Red River valley, and my old and 
 faithful friend Capt. H. Eustrom, who lived close by and 
 was then holding an important office, and who had faithful- 
 ly attended to my interests at that place during my absence. 
 
 My Scandinavian friends had meanwhile arranged a re- 
 ception for me, and on the 11th some eighty of them joined 
 in a banquet at Lyndale Hotel, then situated in the suburbs 
 of Minneapolis at Lake Calhoun. The afternoon was devoted 
 to a steamboat tour around the beautiful lake, and in the 
 evening the party all sat down to a sumptuous banquet, 
 where many addresses of welcome and tokens of friendship 
 were spoken, read and sung. I had been absent nearly tw^o 
 years, seen and experienced much of the world and enjoyed 
 many pleasures, but I found the old saying true; "There is 
 no place like home." These two years had been of particular 
 
 287 
 
268 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 importance in the history of the cities of Minneapolis and St. 
 Paul. The population had nearly trebled during that time, 
 and such improvements had been made that I could hardly 
 recognize them. 
 
 A vveek after my return my friends from Holland arrived, 
 and we proceeded to New Mexico, where w^e found the great 
 Maxwell estate, valued at ten million dollars, and containing 
 one and a half million acres of land, consisting of coal fields, 
 gold mines, timber and grazing lands, in a deplorable condi- 
 tion caused by extravagance and mismanagement- We found 
 that there was nearly a million dollars of current debts, 
 whilethe income was not sufficient to buy postage stamps to 
 carry on the necessary business correspondence. 
 
 An agreement was finally effected whereby the former pres- 
 ident and American manager relinquished his interest and 
 resigned his position; the Holland directors determined to 
 raise the necessary funds in Europe, and I agreed to under- 
 take the liquidation of the affairs of the company. 
 
 Shortly after I repaired to Washington to report my in- 
 spection tour in India, and tender my resignation, which was 
 accepted, an unusual courtesy being shown me by ex- 
 tending my leave of absence to January the next year. The 
 following two years w^ere devoted principallv to business 
 journe3's to Nev^ Mexico, England and Holland. I visited 
 the latter countries four times during that period. With the 
 powerful aid of Baron Rebeque, who had spent several 
 months with me in this country in the summer and fall of 
 1883, a syndicate, backed by several million dollars, was at 
 last formed in Holland, and the whole estate was turned 
 over to it. Having accomplished this, I voluntarily with- 
 drew^ from the concern, and returned to my own farm and 
 home in Minnesota. 
 
 The Maxwell estate is situated within the Rocky moun- 
 tain region, on an elevation of from six thousand to twelve 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 289 
 
 thousand feet above the sea. The cliinate is delightful and 
 the scenery beatttiful, but the country is not fit for cultiva- 
 tion, except such parts as can be irrigated. Hence most of 
 it is devoted to stock raising, and herds of countless cattle 
 wereroaming over the prairies, the Maxwell Company alore 
 owning at the time I left its service nearly twenty thousand 
 head. 
 
 In the fall of 1886 I was for the second time elected secre- 
 tary of state by the citizens of Minnesota, re-elected in 1888^ 
 and thus made for the third time the head of the state de- 
 partment. 
 
 In the fall of 1887 the citizens of Minneapolis -were hon- 
 ored by a visit from a large number of Swedish, Norwegian 
 and Danish military officers, non-commissioned officers and 
 soldiers. They arrived by an express train from Chicago, 
 and v^^ere met at the union depot by thousands of people. 
 The Swedish Guard, Normanna Infantry, and the society 
 Dania were paraded outside the depot building. The guests 
 were received by a committee, and conducted in procession 
 through the illuminated and crowded streets to Dania hall, 
 where a splendid banquet vt^as enjoyed, while music was dis- 
 coursed by the Svea and Normanna bands. The city ma^-or, 
 Dr. Ames, made an address of welcome, after which several 
 Scandinavians made speeches. I had been elected as the 
 spokesman for the Swedes, and expressed myself as follows: 
 
 *' Honored Guests from Sweden, Norway and Denmark : 
 
 *' From the place where we now stand the roar of the St. Anthony falls 
 may be heard through the still night. You are, therefore, far back in the 
 depths of the American West ; and yet this is only the modern gate of en- 
 trance to the great North-west. 
 
 ** A couple of hours ago a half do^en railway trains left our depot over 
 different roads and are now speeding on toward the setting sun, and some 
 of them do not cease their journey until they have passed distances greater 
 than that between London and Rome, through fertile, but, as yet, mostly 
 unsettled regions. Thirty-four years ago T. with a few other of your 
 countrymen , some of the earliest in Minnesota, gazed for the fiisttimeat 
 

Story of an Emigrant. 291 
 
 tlie St. Anthony falls. There was no city, not even a sign of a city, on this 
 side of the river; the red man chased his game in the woods where our 
 churches and school-houses now stand ; the country west of us was an un- 
 known wilderness, Minnesota did not exist as a state, and many of our 
 western states, which now contain millions of happy inhabitants, were not 
 even projected. 
 
 "Now, on the contrary, our state alone is a mighty empire, with a pop- 
 iilation of nearly a million and a half, and with an assessed valuation of 
 six hundred million dollars. Minnesota now produces a hundred million 
 bushels of grain annually on her fertile fields, six hundred and fifty million 
 feet of lumber from her forests, and her infant iron mines already show an 
 annual production of half a million tons of rich ore The Scandinavians 
 constitute more than one-fourth of the population of the state, and pro- 
 duce at least one-third of our agricultural products on the'r own lands, 
 as most of them arc farmers. The amount of grain which in Minnesota 
 alone is annually produced, would be more than sufficient to furnish the 
 whole population of Sweden with bread from the beginning to the end of 
 each year. 
 
 "Our beautiful city of Minneapolis has already a population of one hun- 
 dred and sixty thousand, of w^hich at least one-fourth, or forty thousand, 
 are Scandinavians or their descendants. 
 
 "I hope you will all have an opportunity to see our city with your own 
 eyes before you leave us,— its mills, churches, schools and happy homes, — 
 and will therefore not consume the time by referring to these. 
 
 "As to yourselves, gentlemen, we have heard what has been said to yott 
 so expressively in Chicago by our Iriends there, and we join them heartily 
 in their praise. 
 
 "When we heard that the soldiers and representatives of Denmark, Nor- 
 way^ and S^^'eden would honor us with a visit we all rejoiced, and v^re have 
 come together this evening to express our joy in a cordial welcome. 
 
 "We have intentionally conducted you to this hall where we may, under 
 our ow^n roof, pay you our homage in the plain manner of our sturdy 
 Scandinavian forefathers, and give you an opportunity to .see us as we are 
 in our daily life. We are men of the people; we have come here as poor im. 
 migrants, ignorant of the language and of the customs of the country. Our 
 sole heritage was our strong arms and our good cheer, — no, excuse me, an- 
 other heritage of more worth than gold or genius have we brought from 
 our old homesteads, — our share of Northern fidelity, strength, and virtue; 
 and the talent confided to us we have used in all branches of industry, sci- 
 ence, fine arts, in the service of the community, the state, and the Union, 
 in peace and in war, and we perform our share in the great national work, 
 the result of which is a new and powerful commonwealth, the foundation 
 of which lies in the individual worth and right of man. 
 
 "I think I can see a Providential dispensation in this,- that when the time 
 
292 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 arrived for fhe new world to take its place among the nations with a new 
 and powerful cosmopolitan race, the Scandinavian people were also chosen 
 to contribute a part in that grand w^ork, and that it was especially reserved 
 for the 'men of the people' to receive in this country free and equal oppor- 
 tunity for their development. Who can fail to see the stamp of the Scandi- 
 navian people on the entire social fabric of the new world ? 
 
 "We w^ould be forgetful if we did not gratefully remember the great good 
 which the fatherland has bestowed upon us from tender childhood to the 
 very hour when we bid it farewell ; we would be unworthy of the name and 
 fame of our fathers if w^e did not honor and love as a dear mother the ever 
 memorable land of our birth, and you, its worthy representatives, as our 
 relatives and brothers. 
 
 "Your presence amongus is a proud event, and its remembrance shall be 
 cherished as one of the most pleasant. And when you return to those dear 
 places where we took the first steps on life's eventful journey, w^e wish you 
 to take back cordial greetings from us all, and say to our kindred that we 
 teach our children to love and honor the people and institutions in the 
 Northern lands, although they havenever seen them ; and say to them that, 
 far out in the wide West by the laughing water of Hiawatha, and hundreds 
 of miles beyond, are friends and brothers whose fidelity and afiection neither 
 time nor distance can obliterate." 
 
 The address was responded to with much feeling by Col. 
 Liljehok of Sweden. The festivities continued amid address- 
 es, music and song until long past midnight. The following 
 day the guests were shown around the city, after which they 
 visited St. Paul, where they also received a cordial welcome, 
 and v^ere presented to the governor. 
 
 The following year, on the 14th of September, an event 
 took place which deserves particular mention. It was the 
 celebration of the two hundred and fiftietb anniversary of 
 the landing of the first Swedish settlers on the Delaware. 
 The Revs. J. Enstam and C. J. Petri, together with myself, 
 in the middle of the summer called a meeting of Swedish- 
 American citizens to prepare for such celebration. Commit- 
 tees were appointed and elaborate preparations made, to 
 which nearly all the Swedes lent a willing and helping hand. 
 The great exposition building was given up to our use; 
 bands af music wer^e engaged, a choir of one hundred and 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 293 
 
 fifty Swedish singers, mostly from the different churches, 
 was trained, and eminent orators, statesmen and professors 
 were invited. A souvenir badge was sold at the Swedish 
 business places in the city ; the net proceeds, — amounting to 
 about eight hundred dollars, — were donated to the fund for 
 therelief of the sufferers by the great fires in Sundsvall, Ume^ 
 and Lilla Edet in Sweden. • 
 
 The program of the day included a fine parade with bands ^ 
 of music and banners; but a heavy rain came early in the 
 day, and the parade had to be abandoned, and the people in- 
 structed to assemble at the exposition building at their own 
 convenience, which they also did, in such great numbers that 
 before thehour of opening the exercises ever^^seat and stand- 
 ing place in the great auditorium were occupied. Many 
 came from distant towns, cities and states; a special train 
 brought nearly one thousand from St. Paul, with marshals, 
 music and banners; the general council of the Lutheran Church, 
 then assembled in Minneapolis, came in a body and occupied 
 seats on the platform to the right of Cappa's Seventh New 
 York Regiment Band, while the Swedish chorus of one hun- 
 dred and fifty voices, under Prof. Norman, occupied the plat- 
 form to the left. • 
 
 The platforms were decorated with numerous society ban- 
 ners, and the colors of Sweden were seen everywhere. The 
 loftj' pillars reaching to the roof were wrapped in alternate 
 stripes of blue and yellow, the national colors of Sweden, 
 and side by side and uppermost were the stars and stripes. 
 A large picture of the old Swedes Church in Wilmington, 
 Delaware, built in 1698, was hung in front of the speakers' 
 platform, and attracted general attention. 
 
 As chairman of the committee of arrangements I had the 
 honor to act as presiding officer of the day. The govern- 
 ment of Sweden was represented by Consul Sahlgaard, with 
 other distinguished guests, and the historical society of 
 
294 
 
 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 Delaware by Maj. Geo. Q. White. As near as can be esti- 
 ; mated there were fully fifteen thousand people present, 
 
 and the interest manifested by that vast audience can best 
 
 be understood from the fact that thousands stood upon 
 ^ their feet during the whole proceedings, which lasted three 
 
 hours. 
 
 OLD SWKDES CHURCH AT WILMINGTON. 
 
 The festivities commenced at two o'clock in the afternoon 
 with a musical selection by Cappa's band, at the close of 
 which the audience Mras w^elcomed by myself in the follow- 
 ing words: 
 
 " The discovery of America was the greatest event which had taken place 
 from the days of Christ tillit was made, but the settlement of America 
 by the right kind of people was, in its beneficial effects upon the human race, 
 a matter of still greater importance. It seems like an order of Divine Prov- 
 idence that this new world was left in its natural or savage state during 
 all the dark centuries of schooling and experiments in Asia, Africa and Eu- 
 rope, in order that it might remain a virgin soil for the higher civilization 
 which was to follow. 
 
 "To establish this civilization, based upon true principles of government 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 295 
 
 required not only wisdom and strength, but toleration, brotherliood, jus- 
 tice and exalted virtue. The people chosen for that great work came irom 
 different countries and different conditions of life, — the English Pilgrims to 
 New England, the Dutch, the Swedes and the Quakers to the middle coun- 
 try, the English Cavaliers, the Scotch Highlanders and the French Hugue 
 nots to the South, — and in them all, combined and intermingled, were found 
 the elements of body and of mind, which have given to the world its best 
 government, its greatest nation, and its highest civilization. 
 
 ** Since the English were the largest in number their language became the 
 language of all, and for that reason, perhaps, history has been partial to 
 those who first spoke it. Memorials and anniversaries have often been cel- 
 ebrated over the landing of the Pilgrims and the valor of the knights; their 
 just praise has been written and sung a thousand times, so that their hon- 
 ored names have become precious household words among the generations 
 of our day, while the others have often been forgotten or ignored. 
 
 "Fully recognizing the merits of all, we have assembled here to-day from 
 many parts of the United States to commemorate a great historical event, 
 — in celebrating the two hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the landing of 
 tbe Swedes on the Delaware, and to do honor to their memory in prayer, 
 song and speech, and to this intellectual feast 1 bid you all a hearty wel- 
 come. " 
 
 This celebration was unquestionably the largest and most 
 important gathering that ever took place among the Swedes 
 in America ; great attention was paid to it all over the 
 country, and it contributed greatly toward placing the 
 Swedes rightly in the estimation of the people, throwing c 
 clearer light on the achievements of the past, and empha- 
 sizing the importance of the Swedish- Americans of the pres- 
 ent. 
 
CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 The Causes of Immigration — American Influence on Europe, and Especially 
 on Sweden — The Conditionof the Swedes in America — American Charac- 
 teristics — Antipathy against Foreigners — The Swedish Press on America 
 — American Heiresses. 
 
 Much has been said on the causes of immigration. These 
 are numerous, but the chief cause I have found to be that the 
 people of the old world are now being aroused to the fact 
 that the social conditions of Europe, with its aristocracy and 
 other inherited privileges, are not founded on just princi- 
 ples, but that the w^ay to success ought to be equally open 
 for all, and determined, not by privileges of birth, but by the 
 inherent worth of man. And here in America is found a civ- 
 ilization which is, to a large extent, built on equality and the 
 recognition of personal merit. This and the great natural 
 resources of the country, the prospects for good wages which 
 a new continent affords, and in many cases greater religious 
 liberty, draws the people of Europe, at any rate from Sweden, 
 to this country . 
 
 Sweden is a very good country, but more especially so for 
 those w^ho are fortunate enough to be born to title, hon- 
 or or riches. To be sure, even there instances are known of 
 men from the ordinary walkg of life making their way to 
 wealth and prominence; but those are exceptions, possible 
 only in cases of unusually great personal merit. Here, on 
 the other hand, the reverse is the rule ; the self-made man ac- 
 
 296 
 
Story op an Emigrant. 297 
 
 complishes most, as instanced by the history of our presi- 
 dents, governors, financiers and other distinguished men. 
 And this is quite natural, for the prospects and possibilities 
 which a man sees before hira in this country stimulate his 
 ambition, and arouse his energies to surmount the greatest 
 difficulties. 
 
 The new ideas now permeating society in Europe, and 
 which will gradually transform it, have, to a great extent, 
 originated in America, more particularly the idea of brother- 
 hood, the sympathy with equals, the conviction that it is 
 our duty to better the condition of our fellow-men, and not 
 despise them, even if they are unfortunate. In this respect, 
 as well as in many others, America exerts a great influence 
 over Europe. To me the better situated classes of Sweden 
 seem short-sighted in their hostility to emigration, for a man 
 of broad views must admit that emigration has been benefi- 
 cial even to Sweden herself. It may not have benefited the 
 higher classes directly, as they cannot hire servants and la- 
 borers as cheaply as formerly ; but the people have benefited 
 by it as a whole, their condition being now better than for- 
 merly, when competition between the laborers was greater 
 
 America also exerts a great influence on the mentg,l and 
 moral development of the people of Sweden, although this 
 may not be so apparent on the surface. The thousands and 
 hundreds of thousands of letters written every year by Swed- 
 ish-Americans to the people of the working classes of 
 Sweden arouse the latter's ambition, and develop liberal, 
 political and religious ideas among them. No one can cal- 
 culate the scope of this influence, to say nothing of the elo- 
 quent language spoken by the millions of crowns which are 
 annually sent home to poor relatives and friends, and which 
 either lighten the burden of poverty or enable the recipients 
 to prepare a brighter future for themselves in this country, 
 and how many a poor, down-trodden fellow, who could ex- 
 
298 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 pect nothing better than the poor-house in his old age in 
 Sweden has become an able and useful citizen in this countrv ! 
 
 When the poor young laboring man or "woman, who in 
 Sweden has felt the oppression of poverty and looked for- 
 ward to a life without hope, arrives in this country, the 
 timid, bashful looks give way to hopefulness and self-reliance. 
 It is true that this is often carried too far, especially in the 
 line of expensive and extravagant dress, which sometimes 
 makes the wearer appear ridiculous; but these are trifles, 
 the main thing being that those people learn to know their 
 own worth, and are able to create a brighter future for them- 
 selves. 
 
 The tact and manner acquired within a short time by com- 
 mon laborers who looked thoughtless and careless while at 
 home, are simply astonishing. A Swedish diplomat, who 
 visited Minnesota twenty years ago, and, among others, 
 met one of his father's former farm laborers, who w^as now 
 in good circumstances, in an official report to the govern- 
 ment of Sv/eden expressed his astonishment at the change 
 which the Swedish people had undergone in that respect. 
 
 It cannot be denied that many among the higher classes in 
 Sweden feel very unfriendly toward the United States, and 
 it was even not long ago a common saying among themi 
 "America is the paradise of all rogues and rascals." 
 
 Many Americans suppose themselves to be better than all 
 others, and believe theircountry and institutions to be perfect. 
 In this they are mistaken, for in several respects this country 
 is as yet in its infancy, and has many defects which the coun- 
 tries in the north of Europe have long since outgrown. As 
 one instance I would mention that the school system is al- 
 together too dependent on local influences, so that while the 
 common schools in the northern cities and tow^ns are very 
 fine, — in some instances perfect, — those in the country rate 
 very low compared with the same class in Sweden, Norway, 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 290 
 
 Denmark, and Northern Germany. Another case in point is 
 the systemof taxation which notably gives unprincipled men 
 of wealth opportunities for escape, while the poorer classes 
 are taxed for the full amount of their property, the burden 
 thus falling proportionately heaviest where it ought to be 
 lightest, and vice versa. Again, the laws which make pos- 
 sible rings, monopolies, andtrusts, to the great prejudice of the 
 people, or permit gambling on the produce of the country as 
 carried on in the great commercial marts of America, robbing 
 the producer of the fair wages of his toil, and many other 
 things which would not be tolerated among the nations of 
 Europe. Thus it lies within the powder of one man, in this our 
 great stateof Minnesota and other states, to make orunmake 
 cities, towns, and communities, by a single edict locating a 
 railroad, fixing a time-table, and in many other ways exer- 
 cising arbitrary power that no European ruler would think 
 of assuming. The execution of our laws, also, in many 
 places has proven highly unsatisfactory, often making our 
 much-boasted jury system, especially in criminal cases, a 
 farce and a disgrace. 
 
 The trouble is that political demagogues and Fourth of 
 July orators continually keep pointing out only the best 
 sides of our institutions, which undoubtedly are both many 
 and great, while few have the courage to speak of the de- 
 fects and short-comings. 
 
 As for the conduct of the native Americans toward the 
 immigrants who settle among them, I venture to say that 
 although they consider themselves very tolerant, and are so 
 in a general way, they are in many respects very intolerant 
 and prejudiced; but this is owing to a lack of knowledge 
 concerning other nations. It is true that the immigrant, es- 
 pecially from the north of Europe, is bidden welcome, and is 
 generally well received, but he is expected to be content with 
 shoveling dirt, chopping wood, carrying water, plowing the 
 
300 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 ;' fields, and doing otHer manual labor, no one disputing his 
 
 ■ right or his fitness for these occupations. But when he be- 
 
 • gins to compete with the native American for honor and 
 emolument in the higher walks of life, he is often met with 
 coldness, mingled, perhaps, with a little envy, and although 
 
 ■ the adopted citizen may, in many instances, start on an 
 'equal footing with the natives in culture, intelligence, and 
 •business ability, it is only exceptionally that he willberecog- 
 l nized as an equal socially; and there is scarcely an adopted 
 
 citizen of the non-English-speaking nationalities who has not 
 deeply realized the truth of this statement. 
 
 It may be safely said that it will on an average take two 
 generations before the children of the non-English-speaking 
 immigrants shall cease to suffer more or less from these preju- 
 dices. Certainly the children of immigrant parents, although 
 born and brought up in this country, are often subjected to 
 sneers and taunts by their more fortunate playfellows, even 
 within the walls of the American public schools. 
 
 This antipathy is most noticeable in places where the num- 
 ber of foreigners is very great, but less where they are 
 few, and may be explained and partly excused by the fact 
 that, when a great number of foreigners live together they 
 are more apt to maintain their customs, language and 
 amusements, which differ from those of the native-born. 
 But the chief reason is that when the immigrants, most of 
 whom belong to the hard-working classes, arrive directly 
 
 • from a long and exhausting journey, they are often poorly 
 dressed, awkw^ard and ignorant of the language and customs 
 of the country, and look forlorn and crestfallen. The first 
 impression v^hich the native American thus receives remains 
 
 • with him, while he does not stop to consider that the same 
 class of people coming from America to Europe would not 
 appear to better advantage if they should go there as immi- 
 grants. Nor does he consider the injustice of judging whole 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 301 
 
 nationalities by their less favored representatives tinder such 
 circumstances. There are, of course, many noble exceptions 
 among the native Americans; but as to genuine tolerance 
 between different nationalities, I have seen far more of it in 
 the great cosmopolitan cities of Europe, Asia and Africa, 
 than in America. 
 
 But these shortcomings may be easily overlooked for the 
 many noble traits of character which all admit him to possess 
 And most striking and beautiful of these is the honor and 
 respect he shows to woman. There is no other country in 
 the world where woman is treated with such consideration, 
 and where she is as safe and honored as among Americans, 
 and if we judge nations by the way their women are treated, 
 as I think we should, the American nation has no peer in the 
 world. 
 
 But if the Americans have a one-sided and w^rong concep- 
 tion of foreigners, so have also many foreign people a wrong 
 conception of America, and we ought not to blame the former 
 more than the latter. The Swedish press, for instance, — 
 with praise-worthy exceptions, of course, — has always 
 shoAvn great prejudice orignorance in its treatment of Ameri- 
 ca, and especially of the Sw^edish-Americans. Thus it has 
 always been ready to dwell on the dark sides and keep silent 
 about that which is praiseworthy in this country. If, for 
 instance, a lawless deed has been perpetrated on the frontier 
 it is pointed to as a sample of American civilization, with- 
 out considering that such things take place only in the west- 
 ; ern cow-boy or mining life, the days of which will soon be- 
 long to the past. And if an immigrant, who, deservedly or 
 undeservedly, has been unsuccessful writes a letter to his old 
 home and slanders America, how eager the newspapers are 
 to rush into print with it. Even if the man has been here 
 only a few months, and seen only a small spot of the country, 
 they are still ready to accept his story as reliable testimony, 
 
302 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 and judge the whole country accordingly. But this by no 
 means applies to Sweden and the Swedish press alone; it 
 may with equal truth be said of the Europeans and the press 
 of Europe generally. 
 
 There is no gainsaying the fact, however, that new- 
 comers as a rule must expect adversity and difficulty on 
 account of being strangers, and because of their unfamil- 
 iarity with the English language. And such as are unac- 
 customed to manual labor and have not learned a trade 
 stand a poor chance, especially in the beginning. Book 
 learning is of little use at first, for there is no lack of educat- 
 ed people in America, Hence it is a great mistake for young 
 men with nothing but an education to depend upon to come 
 here with the expectation of making a fortune, for the only 
 way to success will at first generally be by taking hold of 
 the spade or the axe. Have they the courage to do this? Then 
 let them come, for opportunities will open after a while to 
 those who shall deserve them. Certificates of character and 
 recommendation are here of little value; titles and family 
 connections of still less. One cares not much for w^hat you 
 have been ; but only for what you are. 
 
 In the last civil war a young German officer came to Pres- 
 ident Lincoln and offered his services as a volunteer in the 
 army. The man had high recommendations, and talked a 
 great deal about his noble birth, and even intimated that 
 royal blood was flowing through his veins. Having patient- 
 ly listened to all this, Lincoln, putting his hand on the young 
 man's shoulder, said, encouragingly : "Don't let this trouble 
 you, my friend, for I assure you that if you only do your duty 
 w^ell and faithfully, these things will be no impediment to your 
 success. We are not so unjust in America as to think less of 
 a man on account of his European titles. No, I can assure 
 you that you have precisely the same chance for advance- 
 ment and success as if you had been a man of the people, 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 303 
 
 provided you prove as competent and meritorious as one 
 of them." 
 
 I have often heard Europeans wonder how it is that with 
 such a democratic spirit so many American heiresses seem 
 anxious to marry European noblemen. But it should be re- 
 membered in the first place that there are not many, but com- 
 paratively only a few^ who manifest this desire, andalsothat 
 those few by no means represent public opinion here. On 
 the other hand, is it not quite natural that when European 
 gentlemen of the highest classes meet and get acquainted 
 with American girls, their social and intellectual equals, that 
 a mutual attachment may in most cases be the true motive 
 for such alliances ? For, as the grand Lincoln remarked, 
 when the European nobleman possesses all other requisite 
 qualifications his titles are no barrier to his success, either in 
 the army, in business affairs, or with the fair sex. Old 
 names and titles are usually a guaranty of good education, 
 culture, and other praiseworthy acquisitions. 
 
 In my contact with the world and with men of different 
 peoples and races, I have found that it is unjust to judge them 
 by nations or classes, as if one nation or one class were 
 necessarily better or worse than others, for there are both 
 good and bad characters among all, and a good man is 
 just as good, and a bad one just as bad, w^hether he be Hin- 
 doo, Mohammedan, or Christian, American or Swede, no- 
 bleman or peasant. Much good may be hidden under a 
 coarse and common exterior, and we must not search for 
 virtue only among the accomplished, the rich, and the fine- 
 looking. Just as much, indeed, isfound among the lowly and 
 unobserved; and in the quiet, humble daily w^alks of life are 
 constantly enacted deeds of heroism and virtue which arc 
 never knovvrn or applauded by the world, though fully as de- 
 serving as many of those which are given an honored place 
 in the annals of history ; yes, often much more so. 
 
CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 REVIEW. 
 
 A few weeks ago I made a short visit to Vasa, our first 
 home in Minnesota. The occasion was the eighty-seventh 
 birthday of my mother, who still lives near the old home- 
 stead.* With spirited horses I drove in company with a son 
 and a grandson over the same road which was first marked 
 out by our simple ox w^agon thirty-eight years before. 
 
 What a change! The former w^ildemess changed into 
 smiling fields dressed in the purest green of early summer, 
 and along the whole road are fine homes, nearly all of w^hich 
 belong to Swedish- Americans, who commenced their career 
 as poor immigrants like myself, or to their children, most of 
 whom are to the manor-bom. 
 
 We stop twelve miles from Red Wing close to our old farm, 
 at a little cottage surrounded by tall trees. There, by the 
 window, sits grcatgrandma, w^atching eagerly for someone 
 whom she kno-ws always spends that day with her. 
 
 Close to the quiet home stands the large Lutheran church, 
 one of the finest country churches in America, and to the 
 peaceful cemetery surrounding it we all soon make a pilgrim- 
 age to scatter flowers on the graves where my good father 
 and sister, my wife's parents, sister, and many other near 
 relatives have found a resting place. The little cemetery is 
 clothed in a flowery carpet of nature's own garb, and stud- 
 
 •Since dead. 
 
 304 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 306 
 
 ded with several hundred marble monuments with inscrip- 
 
 SWEDISH CHURCH IN VASA. 
 
 ^^<-^ 
 
 tions that testify to the Swedish ancestry of those who rest 
 
 under them. 
 
 20 
 
306 SroRY OF AN Emigrant. 
 
 From this place, which is the most elevated point in Vasa, 
 the surrounding country affords a picture of such rural 
 peace and beauty, that even a stranger must involuntarily 
 pause to wonder and admire; how much more, then, I, who 
 was the first white man that trod this ground! Below, 
 toward the south, we see the wooded valley, watered by a 
 little creek from Willard's spring, where w-e came near per- 
 ishing that cold January night in 1854; at the head of the 
 valley, the hill where we built the first log cabin ; immedi- 
 ately beyond this hill the hospitable home of my wife's par- 
 ents, from which I brought my young bride to our own 
 happy little home, which stood on another bilinear the same 
 spring, and of which a part still remains; here, just below 
 the church, is the field I first plowed ; over there in the grove 
 where we cut logs and fencing material, stands now the 
 orphan home, established by Rev. E. Norelius; and on the 
 other side the road is his handsome residence and garden, 
 but he himself sits inside, frail and suffering on account of 
 the hardships of the first few years. 
 
 Close by are the post-office, two stores, a blacksmith shop, 
 a school-house, two smaller churches, one Methodist and 
 one Baptist, and several other public and private buildings, 
 and a few miles farther north, near the Cannon river, are 
 two railroads, running from the Mississippi westward, con- 
 necting with other roads which span the continent, and only 
 terminate on the shores of the Pacific ocean. 
 
 All around, so far as the eye can see, are green fields, graz- 
 ing, herds of cattle, planted and natural groves, comforta- 
 ble buildings, and great white-painted school-houses. Not 
 a hill, not a valley or a grove but they call forth touching 
 recollections, some mingled with sorrow and pain, but by far 
 the most bright and cheerful; for here I spent the first hope- 
 ful years of my manhood ; here we lived, the first Swedes in 
 Minnesota, in a circle of innocent and faithful friends ; here I 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 307 
 
 won the w^ife who tenderly and faithfully has shared the vi- 
 cissitudes of life with me, in sorrow and in joy ever the same; 
 here those of my countrymen who followed me w^hen I was 
 yet but a youth, have acquired independence, happiness, and 
 such esteem that the settlement of Vasa has a reputation 
 among the communities of the state which reflects honor up- 
 on the memory of the great king whose name it bears. 
 
 But this picture of development, culture and progress is 
 not confined to this settlement, for countless other Scandi- 
 navian settlements in the west and northwest have made as 
 great progress within a comparatively short time. 
 
 On my arrival in 1852 the Mississippi river was the north- 
 western boundary line of civilization with the exception of 
 the state of Iowa, which then had only a small population. 
 Since that time twelve new states further west have been 
 peopled and admitted into the Union. There was no rail- 
 road west of Chicago ; now the immense distance between 
 the Mississippi and the Pacific ocean is spanned by four 
 giant railroads, while more than a hundred trunk and branch 
 lines intersect the country in all directions, and lakes and 
 rivers are navigated by hundreds of steamers, which com- 
 pete with the railroads in carrying the products of the West 
 to the Atlantic, whence they are distributed over the whole 
 civilized world. 
 
 Hundreds of cities that did not exist, even by name, have 
 since sprung up as if by magic, and some of them have al- 
 ready become renowned throughout the world for their in- 
 dustry, commerce and culture. Among them are Min- 
 neapolis and St. Paul, already intertwining their 
 arms around each other in an embrace that will 
 soon unite them into one. The former did not fexist 
 when I first gazed on St. Anthony falls, which now furnishes 
 motive power for its magnificent mills and factories, and the 
 latter was a town of about two thousand inhabitants. 
 
h 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 309 
 
 Their combined population is now one-third of a million. 
 St. Paul contains a large number of Scandinavians, but 
 Minneapolis seems to be their favorite city, the Swedes alone 
 numbering over forty thousand. They have many churches, 
 private schools, academies and other institutions of learning. 
 The three Scandinavian nationalities agree pretty well in 
 our good state, and have united their efforts in several enter- 
 prises of some magnitude. In Minneapolis there are several 
 banks and other monetary institutions owned and controlled 
 by them, not to mention hundreds of other important com- 
 mercial and manufacturing establishments due to the enter- 
 prise of our countrymen. Having gradually learned the 
 language and the ways of this country, a surprisingly large 
 number of the Scandinavians who began their career as 
 common laborers have engaged successfully in business on 
 their own account, and many have devoted themselves to 
 professions demanding a higher education, which is greatly 
 facilitated by a number of excellent academies and colleges 
 established and supported by them in several of the western 
 states. A great number of county offices are filled by the 
 Scandinavian- Americans ; in our legislature there aregeneral- 
 lyfrom thirty to forty members of that nationality ; many of 
 them have occupied positions of the highest trust and honor 
 as officers of the state and of the United States, and no one 
 can deny the fact that they have universally proved them- 
 
 h selves fully equal in ability and trust-worthiness to the 
 
 .native born. 
 
 :'^ But it is not only in Minneapolis or in Minnesota, but 
 throughout the whole country that the Scandinavians have 
 gained such a good name, that in all the recent agitation 
 against foreign emigrants, not one voice has been heard 
 against them. They learn the English language well and 
 fjuickly, and assimilate readily with the native American ele- 
 ment, which is natural enough considering that they are to 
 
310 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 a very large extent of tHe same blood and ancestry as the 
 English people, and that the English language is borrowed 
 to no small extent from the Scandinavian. 
 
 Americans often express astonishment at the ease and cor- 
 rectness with which the Scandinavian immigrants acquire 
 the English language. A little study of philology will readily 
 account for it. If we take, for instance, the names of house- 
 hold goods, domestic animals, and other things appertain- 
 ing to the common incidents of plain every-day life, we find 
 the English words almost identical with the Scandinavian 
 terms, only varying in the form of spelling or perhaps pro- 
 nunciation, as those are apt to change with time and locali- 
 ty. For example: English — ox, cow, swine, cat, hound, rat, 
 mouse, hen, goose, chicken; Swedish — oxe, ko, svin, katt, 
 hund, rotta, mus, hona, g^s, kyckling. Of implements: 
 English — wagon, plow, harrow, spade, axe, knife, kettle, pot, 
 pan, cup ; Swedish — wagn, plog, harf, spada, yxa, knif, kit- 
 tel, potta, panna, kopp. Or the part of our own bodies, 
 such as: English — hair, skin, eyes, nose, ears, mouth, lips, 
 teeth, shoulders, arm, hand, finger, nail, foot, toe, etc.; 
 Swedish — h^r, skinn, ogon, nasa, oron, mun, lapp, tand, 
 skuldra, arm, hand, finger, nagel, fot, and tk. Or of the oc- 
 cupations of the common people, such as: English — spin, 
 weave, cook, sow, sew; Swedish — spinna, vafva, koka, s^, 
 sy, etc. In this connection it may not be out of place to 
 quote one of England's most eminent authors and scholars, 
 Edward Bulwer Lytton, who says : 
 
 "A magnificent race of men were those war sons of the old North, whom 
 our popular histories, so superficial in their accounts of this age, include 
 in the common name of the ' Danes.' 
 
 "They replunged into barbarism the nations over which they swept; but 
 from the barbarism they reproduced the noblest element of civilization. 
 Swede, Norwegian and Dane, differing in some minor points, when close- 
 ly examined, had yet one common character viewed at a distance. They 
 had the same prodigious energy, the same passion for freedom, individual 
 and civil, the same splendid errors in the thirst for fame and the point of 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 311 
 
 honor, and above all, as a main cause of civilization, they -were wonderfal- 
 !y pliant and malleable in their adventures with the people they overran. 
 
 "At that time, A. D. 1055, these Northmen, under the common name of 
 Danes, were peaceably settled in no less than fifteen counties in England; 
 their nobles abounded in towns and cities beyond the boundaries of those 
 coimties, which bore the distinct appellation of Danelagh. They were num- 
 erous in London, in the precincts of which they had their own burial- 
 place, to the chief mimicipal court of which they gave their own appella- 
 tion — ^the Husting." 
 
 It is, of course, impossible to ascertain the exact number 
 of Scandinavians and their descendants in this country, but 
 we can come very near it by studying the statistics of the 
 United States treasury department, a recent report from which 
 gives the number of emigrants during the last seventy years 
 from Sweden and Norway as 943,330, and from Denmark as 
 146,237, or a total since the year 1820 of 1,089,567; while 
 the same report gives the number during the same period 
 from Germany as 4,551,719; Ireland, 3,501,683; England, 
 1,460,054; English Colonies, 1,029,083; Austria-Hungaria, 
 464,435; Italy, 414,513; France, 370,162; Russia, 356,- 
 353; Scotland, 329,192; Switzerland, 174,333. 
 
 When we take into consideration the numerous Swedish 
 colonies that settled in Delaware, Pennsylvania and New 
 Jersey in the seventeenth century, and their descendants, to- 
 gether with the descendants of Scandinavian emigrants of 
 the last seventy years, I think it is safe to estimate the total 
 population of Scandinavian descent at over four millions, or 
 fully one-sixteenth of the entire population of the United 
 States. The very fact that the nationality assimilates so 
 readily with the native American element causes it to be 
 lost sight of; and it should be so, for the only desirable 
 immigrants to this country are those who cease to be for- 
 eigners, and merge right into the American nation. Such are 
 certainly the Scandinavians. They do not bring over any 
 grievances from the mother country to correct or avenge,; 
 and there are no Clan-na-Gael, no Mafia societies among 
 
312 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 them, nor are there any anarcHists or revolutionists. They 
 come here to build homes for themselves and their children ; 
 they are contented and grateful for the privileges of Ameri- 
 . can citizenship, and make themselves w^orthy of it by push- 
 ing into the front rank in the onward march of education, 
 philanthropy and religion, as well as in material progress. 
 . One illustration, among many that might be given, is 
 , found in the report of a late conference of the Swedish 
 ' Lutheran Church, from which it appears that they have 
 now in Minnesota alone two hundred and forty-five parish- 
 es, with one hundred and seventy-nine churches, valued at 
 over six hundred thousand dollars, and all paid for. The 
 Norwegian Lutheran Church would undoubtedly show equal 
 if not better results, though I cannot give the exact figures. 
 It is a great mistake which some make, to think that it 
 is only for their brawn and muscle that the Northmen have 
 become a valuable acquisition to the American population ; 
 on the contrary, they have done and are doing as much as 
 any other nationality within the domain of mind and heart. 
 Not to speak of the early discovery of America by the Scan- 
 dinavians five hundred years before the time of Columbus, 
 they can look back with proud satisfaction on the part 
 they have taken in all respects to make this great republic 
 what it is to-day. 
 
 The early Swedish colonists in Delaware, Pennsylvania 
 and New Jersey worked as hard for liberty and independence 
 as the English did in New England and in the South. There 
 .were no tories among them, and when the continental con- 
 gress stood wavering equal in the balance for and against 
 the adoption of the Declaration of Independence, it was a 
 Swede, John Morton (Mortenson), of the old Delaware 
 stock, who gave the casting vote of Pennsylvania in favor 
 of the sacred document. 
 When nearly a century later the great rebellion burst up- 
 
Story of an Emigrant. 313 
 
 on the land, a gallant descendant of the Swedes, Gen. Robert 
 Anderson, met its first shock at Fort Sumter, and, 
 during the bitter struggle of four years which followed, the , 
 Scandinavian-Americans were as true and loyal to their ^ 
 adopted country as their native-born neighbors, giving their, 
 unanimous support to the cause of the Union and fighting j 
 valiantly for it ; nor should it be forgotten that it was the . 
 Swede John Ericson, who, by his inventive genius, saved the I 
 navy and the great seaports of the United States, and that 
 it was another Swede by descent, Admiral Dahlgren, who 
 furnished the model for the finest guns of our artillery. 
 Surely love of freedom, valor, genius, patriotism and religi- 
 ous fervor was not planted in America by the seeds brought 
 over in the Mayflower alone. 
 
 Yes, it is verily true that the Scandinavian immigrants, 
 from the early colonists of 1638 to the present time, have 
 furnished strong hands, clear heads and loyal hearts to 
 the republic. They have caused the wilderness to blossom 
 like the rose; they have planted schools and churches on 
 the hills and in the valleys ; they have honestly and ably 
 administered the public affairs of town, county and state; 
 they have helped to make wise laws for their respective 
 commonwealths and in the halls of congress; they have, 
 with honor and ability, represented their adopted country 
 abroad; they have sanctified the American soil by their 
 blood, shed in freedom's cause on the battle-fields of the 
 revolution and the civil war; and though proud of their 
 Scandinavian ancestry, they love America and American 
 institutions as deeply and as truly as do the descendants 
 of the Pilgrims, the starry emblem of liberty meaning 
 as much to them as to any other citizen. 
 
 Therefore, the Scandinavian-American feels a certain sense 
 of ownership in the glorious heritage of American soil, with 
 its rivers, lakes, mountains, valleys, woods and prairies, and 
 
314 Story of an Emigrant. 
 
 in all its noble institutions ; and he feels that the blessings 
 which he enjoys are not his by favor or sufferance, but by 
 right ; by moral as well as civil right. For he took posses- 
 sion of the wilderness, endured the hardships of the pioneer, 
 contributed his full share toward the grand results accom 
 plished, and is in mind and heart a true and loyal American 
 "citiiien. 
 
 THE END. 
 
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