p. 192 | Sister Van Horn

Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · May 30, 1871

Sister Van Horn.

Sister A. P. Van Horn (wife of Eld. I. D. Van Horn), who has filled the important office of secretary of the Publishing Association for nearly two years, has joined her husband in his labors in Minnesota. Her labors have been wearing, and she is now enjoying needed rest. We were all very glad to receive the following from her, written May 20:—

DEAR ONES AT THE OFFICE: I am in a school-house where two or three churches are engaged in business meeting, and as it is the first good opportunity, I will give you a brief account of my journey.

I left Battle Creek at 11:20 on Monday night the 15th, and reached Chicago at about six in the morning—took an omnibus for the N. W. Depot. At ten on Tuesday took the cars over the Wisconsin division of the N. W. R. R. Rode to Watertown, Wis., where I changed cars at 4:25 P. M. This was over the most beautiful part of the country I ever saw. I took the cars at Watertown over the Milwaukee and St. Paul R. R. toward LaCrosse. Rode till one o’clock at night to Winona junction, within three miles of the Mississippi. Here I changed cars for Winona, instead of going to LaCrosse and taking the boat north. But there was no train north till eight o’clock Wednesday morning. There was not a hotel, or a dwelling house at Winona junction, with the exception of a shanty occupied by an Irish family.

When I stepped out of the cars here at one o’clock, I was glad to be assisted by my dear husband. I found that he had made friends with the Roman Catholic baggage master, who had two straw ticks on his bed—so he took one off into the Ticket Office for himself, and left his bedstead with the other tick and a blanket, in the freight room for us. So Isaac put his satchel under my head, for a pillow, under the tick, and used his boots for the same purpose for his own comfort, and here, beside a great load of trunks, we lay down and had two hours good sleep. About six o’clock I spread a towel on a bench in the waiting room, took out eatables from my satchel, gave Isaac an invitation to take breakfast with me—of course he accepted.

At eight o’clock we moved on to Winona where we crossed the Mississippi on a steamer at ten. The river here is about three-fourths of a mile wide. They are building a R. R. bridge here, which they think will be ready to run the cars on by June 1. We took the train for Rochester where we met Bro. Gibson at one P. M. on Wednesday, who took us to his house eight miles distant on Greenwood Prairie. I was not so tired as I expected to be, when I got through.

On Thursday morning I had quite a desire to walk out on one of the bluffs, as the scenery about was all new and strange to me. I could see the city of Rochester where we left the cars more than eight miles from where we now stood; and what I saw here made about such an impression on my mind as when I saw Niagara falls. Here we stopped to read some words of good cheer from the prophet Isaiah, and to give thanks for providential care. In the afternoon we called on three families of Sabbath-keepers. On Friday, we rode twenty miles with Bro. and sister Gibson, to Concord, the place of this meeting.