August 1899

Tuesday morning we came to Euston Station Clara [Holbrook], Inez [Knight], [Raymond] Knight [Charles G.] Berry [Joseph R.] Squires [John S.] Smith [Eliza] Chipman & I [p. 27] and at 10 oclock left all the people we had known and made friends with for a new place among people we had never seen. We had rather a tiresome journey and arrived at Glasgow at 8 oclock Tues. Aug 1^st. were met by Bros [James L.] McMurrin & [David O.] McKay and driven to the Mission house.

Wed 2^nd. visited an old cathedral, went through the municipal buildings and went to the blind asylum. The municipal building is used about the same as our City and County building. The most stricking part of it is the marble and alabaster finishings and the marble stair case. There is also a beautiful dancing hall. The blind asylum was filthy dirty. There were hundreds of blind people at work some sewing others making baskets brushes doing carpenter work etc. In the evening we went to meeting. Sisters Chipman [Emmeline B.] Wells [Margaret Nightingale] Caine and myself spoke.

Thurs. 3^rd. Went to Queens park in the morning and through the hot houses some of the flowers and plants were very nice. In the after noon we went to [p. 28] the petrified forest. That night I went to a testimony meeting and spoke. Sister Chipman went with Bro M^cMurrin & Bro M^cKay to see Aunt Susa [Young Gates,] Sis. Wells & Caine, Bros Owen, [Louis C.] Duncan, Poulten [James T. Poulton] sail for Utah. I felt lonely after they had gone.

On Fri. we stayed home and cleaned our room, wrote letters, listened to Bro M^cMurrins love story and in the evening went to a street meeting and I had to speak again.

Sat. 5. Aug¹ Bro [Platte D.] Lyman the pres. of the mission came. The boys went out to a street meeting and studied a little wrote a letter to Vienna [Booth].

Sun² 6. Went to three meetings. Bro Lyman and [Henry B.] Thompson and I spoke in the morning and Sisters Urie White and Chipman in the after noon the meetings were well attended and good order prevailed.

Mon 7. Went to a street meeting on Cathedral square in evening. Sewed a little wrote a little and studied a little.

Tues 8 Bros Lyman & McMurrin went away [p. 29] and we went to the train to see them off. I have been awful quiet ever since I have been in Glasgow and tonight Sister Chipman offered me a quarter for a smile. There was a priesthood meeting this morning and every body there spoke. I have rather reversed this day as the meeting came before the brethren went. When we came back from the station Bro M^cKay went to visit some saints, the boys were out to a meeting Sister Chipman played hymns and I true to my custom went to bed, Cried some after which I went to sleep.

Wed. 8 <9> Went with Bro M^cKay to see the place we have to go to tract on our way back we went to the cyclorama to see the Battle of Bannockburn and afterwards to the Art Gallery. it was fairly good One statue of Venus and Cupid was fine. Then we came home and had supper and after that went to a street meeting. There was a man there who opposed us very much but some of the crowd were on our side [p. 30] Bros. M^cKay, Legget [Leggat],³ Sister Chipman & myself spoke.

Thurs 9 <10>. Read, studied, had testimony meeting at night. Before meeting we went to the tram with Bro M^cKay. He was going to London on a “tower [tour]”.

Fri. 10 <11> *Went to a street meeting. Had an attentive crowd but after the meeting was over a fellow jumped into the ring and opposed us. Before we went to meeting we, Bro [David C.] Eccles, Smith, Buchanan [Alexander Buchanan Jr.] Sister C and I went to Queens park to hear the music but their wasn’t any so we wandered around a while, had our pictures taken with a kodac, came home had supper etc.*

Sat 12. We are in our new lodgings slept in the whole in the wall at night.⁴ Caught my first flea in the morning. Wrote some letters had a bath and then went with Sister Reed [Agnes Cooke Reid] out to her sisters. There was a drunk man out there. After supper quite a crowd of people came in, and they sang and talked and then this “full fellow” began to get quite [p. 31] sociable, he got up and came after me and just about caught me when I screamed and ran in to the other room. Where sister Chipman and Reed soon followed and amid many roars of laughter they tried to comfort me. Of course the laugh in its self was extremely comforting. We arrived at 53 about 10 and after waiting for Sister C & Bro Eccles to write a letter to Bro McKay we came home and retiered in to our “hole” and I dreamed of drunken men and persecuted Mormons till 9 oclock.

Sunday 13. Went to Sunday school and meeting then went out to Bro [William W.] Hamiltons to dinner came back to evening meeting, then went to the mission house for a little time, came home and went to bed.

14 On Monday we went tracting every body was very kind but some how I was very much frightened and worried[.] I gave away 40 tracts. Had one good long conversation with one man, and some that were quite short. [p. 32]

One day we went to Ayr I think it was on the 18, and we had a perfectly lovely time.⁵ We were met at the station by Bro M^cKay and we walked out to Burns home. The road we took was perfectly delightful. On either side were immense trees & they formed an arch way over our heads and the sky was so bright and beautiful I don’t know why all nature seems so peaceful but it does and as soon as I get into the country I immediately change into a dreamy mood and don’t get over it till we are once more back in the smoky, dirty city and the noise of trains and people rouses me again “I slept and dreamed that life was beauty, I woke and found that life was duty.”⁶

Burns home is a little low thatched cottage white washed on the out side and containing very small windows We saw the bed where he was born, there was an old clock that had stopped going, a kind of cupboard, a table two chairs and a fire place it looked very ancient. We went from there to Alloway Kirk the old church & yard where Tam o Shanter saw the ghost dance And there was an old scotchman there who recited [p. 33] Tam O Shanter just fine and then we went over to Burns monument.⁷ All around it were beautiful flowers and trees and grass and in some statues set around under cute little arbors. From there we went to the “Banks of bonny doon” and to the old Brig o Doon where the witches could not cross and then we took a carriage and drove down by the sea shore along the Esplanade and saw queer bathing wagons and then we went down to the Two Brigs, and Bro M^cKay read the poem, from there we proceeded to the old inn where Tam got drunk. “I am loved him like a brother They’d been full for weeks together”. Then we had supper at “The Horseshoe” and came home. The moon was beautiful and I sent my love to all my dear ones by it. Bro M^cKay gave me the little book that we read from on our trip. And I was quite glad he did.

On Sunday the 19 [20] we went to Sunday School & meeting & night meeting after which we came up to the conference house and there Bro’s M^cKay and M^cMurrin Sister & I went part way home with the Misses Scott and our talk on the way home [p. 34] was about McKinnen. I could not sleep that night and for the first time I made a discovery about my self, one that I would rather not have known

On Monday went tracting again and had pretty good success but still I went with fearing and trembling I gave out 20 tracts and had one good long conversation Came home and went to street meeting.

Tues. met the Jenning’s. The train was late and Sister & I Bro Eccles and Bro Buchanan walked up to 130 Barrack St where the former conference house used to be. Came back and met Jennings Sister [Elizabeth Claridge] McCune & Mrs Farlow and in the evening they came up to the conference house.

On Wed <“23^rd.”> we went tracting again gave out 40 tracts, came home and went to street meeting.

Thurs. <24> We went to Ruther Glen to visit Williamsons, Bro McMurrin’s cousins and they received us very kindly. I enjoyed the trip very much and we walked back in the moon light and had a very good walk losing our selves in the mean time and wandering from one street to another. we caught our train, however, Got to Glasgow went after 10 went [p. 35] to call on the Miss Scotts and arrived home at about 12 oclock.

On Fri Bro McKay and I, Sister C. and McMurrin went to Nelsons to dinner, came home and packed Bro McKays trunk. Went to his fare well party in the evening They presented him with a dressing case and a cane I met Bro Maycock. It was awfully warm. I danced the Two Step with Bro McKay. Came home from the party and finished packing the trunk went to bed—but not to sleep.

Got up early and prepared to go to Greenock to see our friends off Bros Maycock McKay [Robert H.] Anderson sister [Amanda McEwan] Knight etc.⁸ When the old boat went I cried as “usual” and still not as “usual” the effect was the same—the cause widely different.⁹ Well we came back to “53” and it seemed very lonely although the house was crowded with people, Inez & Sister Chipman had their cry and then we prepared to go to Edinburgh. The ride over the beautiful country subdued my feelings and I felt a sweet sad resigned calm that comes to people who put themselves in harmony with nature. Bro McMurrin was very kind. I just love him and the more you know [p. 36] of him the more qualities you see to admire When we arrived at Edinburgh we went from the station along Princess St [Princes Street] it is considered the prettiest st in the world. On one side is a medium high mountain and it is completely covered with beautiful buildings and just where it ends [drawing of a castle] is the great Edinburgh castle where Mary Queen of Scotts once lived it is an immense building and all around it is a big wall it seems as though it is so well fortified that no one on earth could every capture it yet it was taken. Tis said that a young mans sweet heart lived in the castle and that he had a sort of a ladder to climb up by and once he forgot to take it down and the enemies got in to the castle. There is also a window where Mary let her baby down from to some body below so that the enemy could not capture it. This castle is used now for a barracks Down at the foot of the hill is a beautiful park just filled with flowers and then the other st. is elevated about half as high as the castle one. The train runs down through the park and looks so [p. 37] pretty as it goes crawling among the trees and flowers with the lights darting in and out from behind their trunks branches and leaves. Then along the park on the side where we walked were elegant buildings and monuments, one of Sir Walter Scott is elegant and the Art Gallery too is a fine building there being a sort of a colonade all around the out side supported by great pillars of greek architecture and all around the top were figures fine pieces of statuary. Along the other side of princess St were elegant Hotels. It was just getting dark as we walked here and the light in the castle and houses were just being “turned on” a few little stars twinkled at us kindly from the heavens and every thing was extremely beautiful. I was just in a mood to enjoy all of this beauty and when I think of it now, it seemed as though I dreamed it all it seems kind of unreal. We went from Princess St to Calton Hill to see “Nelson’s Monument”. There is a ball that drops from this monument and strikes a wire attached to the castle where their is a cannon [p. 38] And every day just at one oclock the ball drops and fires the cannon at the castle. From the hill we went through a park to Bro Whites at 7 Edina Place, had supper and then went to Bro Worthingtons [W. Moultrie Worthington’s] to sleep and we were so tired that we slept well.

On waking we found it to be stormy we went to meeting Sister C Bro McMurrin & [I] spoke. Went to Bro Whites to dinner went to meeting and “we three” spoke again and then we went out on the street and spoke again. Bro McMurrin said I spoke with the spirit of the Lord and that I did splendidly. I was very thankful I did because I felt very humble and that I needed the blessings of the Lord. We slept at another Sister Whytes that night

Next morning Monday Aug 28 we went again on Princess St but while it was very beautiful the charm that hung over it the night before was partly gone, The twinkling stars and lights had given place to the brilliancy of the sun, the silence had given place to noise, bustle and hurry and my dreamy mood had changed to one of reality. We took an excursion wagon to go to the Forth Bridge. [p. 39] The wagon was “loaded” with Scotch English American and Irish. The day was delightful, the sun had a veil on that toned down his light. Our road led through some beautiful country. It is surprising how soon you come into the country from such a large city The fields, the groves, the green hills had something about them that suggested home, but their is that same indescribable silence and calm that hangs over every thing that we do not find at home. Even the machines seem afraid of breaking the silence and the workers in the fields seem to be standing still. In fact it all looks like an immense painting but the life was lacking I loved to look at it though there is charm about it all that “to see it is to love it” Our driver was awfully funny. a regular happy go lucky man fond of drink as his nose and cheeks bespeak, fat and good natured. We passed the house where Judge Geoffrey [Francis Jeffrey] used to live when hunting and the driver told a story about him, he said “Once when there were some “toughs” about the country they cut off the tails¹⁰ of all the cattle and sheep in the country, and [p. 40] when the men were brought up in court the judge could not find them guilty so he dismissed the case. The farmers were not satisfied with this and complained so the judge said my friends there is only one thing you can do and that is whole sale your cattle as you will never be able to retail¹¹ them”. We passed Lord Roseberrys estate, a very beautiful one 4 miles sq. It is enclosed by a rock wall and covered with beautiful forests gardens etc. and so our 9 miles drive ended at last and we beheld the wonderful “Forth Bridge” all during our ride children had followed us, some singing some playing on fiddels, others keeling over turning hand springs, standing on their heads and walking on their hands, after which they would cry “pour ōōt” “pour ōōt” and then would pick up the pennies thrown to them by the tourists. “Poor little dirty ragged urchins.” But they seemed happy enough.

The Forth Bridge is a marvelous piece of engineering and was built 8 years ago by the Forth [p. 41] bridge R. R. Co. at a cost of three and a quarter million pounds or $16,250,000 It is built on the cantilever principle and covers a stretch of 1¾ miles being constructed of steel laid on huge rock butresses of superior workmanship. In the center of the bridge the expansion and contraction from heat and cold has reached as high as 10 inches, for which split rails are provided which occur at short intervales. In the summer season as many as 300 trains pass over the bridge daily to different parts of the British Isles. It was seven years in building and gave employment to between 3000 and 4000 men, 45 of whom were killed during the period mentioned. A force of 50 men are constantly employed painting it, a job which it takes three years to accomplish. It was at first intended to make the Forth a suspension bridge, but owing to the giving away of the Tay bridge percipitating a train load of merry excursionists to a watery grave, this idea was abandoned and the Cantilever accepted. [p. 42] To get to the boat to come home we passed through a very old fashioned town, the people and the town looked as though they belonged to an other age. Our boat was not long coming and we were soon on our way home again. The sky was over cast and the wind moved as the waves dashed against the boat. sister Chipman stood at the end looking down into the water. Bro Worthington and I were sitting on the side also looking into the water and we were all quite silent. The Italian band consisting of a harp and several other instruments played such werid tunes but they seemed in strange harmony with the day. The coast was rough and rocky and the light house in the distance looked like some ghost of the past warning us not to come to near its domains. A few drops of rain fell, all unheeded by us however, as we were too busy contemplating nature in her angry mood. There were several people out in little boats, one girl all alone, rowing with [p. 43] all her might. her hair was dark and hanging loose—only another¹² picture!!!

We got a little bit wet before we arrived at Sister Whytes. We left Auld Reekie at 9 oclock P.M. arriving home in Glasgow at 10:30.¹³ The lights of the stars and the lights of the city looked peculiarty [particularly] bright in contrast to the dense darkness around. We told Bro M^cMurrin good night and then came and went to bed, and thus ended an other day— “I slept and dreamed that life was beauty I woke and found that life was duty”

Tues. Aug. 28.— Stormy morning—but here is a letter for us.— A letter from Bro McKay— I read it at the breakfast table— I felt, oh well, never mind. We went to the conference house and Bros [James K.] Miller & McMurrin Sister C & I went to call on Mrs Bell— She gave us some home made jam we came home, had dinner at the “53” club and after singing “In the Sweet bye & bye” we told our dear friend Bro McMurrin good bye as he was returning to Liverpool. Came home and wrote to Bro [p. 44] McKay— It stormed the weather was inconsolable at the departure from Scotland of two of our dearest friends—“The two Mc’s.”¹⁴

Wed 30 Went tracting with second tracts had some conversations.

Thurs 31. Went tracting again. Received a letter from a “saved man” contradicting our tract and warning me to leave Salt Lake and Salt Lakers alone.