Robert Lemuel Campbell - 1858-1936 #5

I went home and changed my clothes. During that coming week a Bro. by the name of James Lemons came to the house and wanted me to go to Northup and work for him and I was to work six months for a cow and he was to board me. I thought I better go, so I went back with him. It was several miles up the river, but it was a nice place right by the forks of the river and a nice large orchard. He had three wives right there and a son living on the ranch. He had a number of milk cows and quite a number of brood mares. Most of his place was pasture and Lucerne for his stock and there was lots of riding to do. You can imagine what a state I was in when I first started to ride after the stock, but had to grin and bear it. Oh, my the first thing in the morning when I would go to seat myself in the saddle. I could have said horrible words if it would have done any good but they would only make fun of me for it was fun for them, but I don't remember while there that I balked or refused to go, though they did many things I did not like.

One morning I was sent across the river to get a couple of horses and they wanted me to ride a horse they called Sailor. In crossing the river I got to the middle of the stream which was well up on the sides of the horse and the old thing laid down in the stream. Of course, under we went and when I came up I swam the other part of the river and let the horse do what it wanted to. When it got all the swim it wanted it went back towards the house, so I tried to catch one of the horses I was sent to get, but they would let me get nearly up to them and then dash away. At last they took to the river and there was only one thing for me to do; take to the river also, so I had another wetting and they learned that I could swim if the river was running high. After that Mr. Lemons got after his boy for playing tricks on me and believe me the women were as bad as the boy they were always close by when anything was to happen.

I got through the six months and he gave me a young animal that would not calve until early fall. I could not sell her and I might say I gave her away. Mother could not look after her and I had made up my mind I was going to get out of there just as soon as I could.

When any teams were going to Milford I would try to go with them, but they would always have an excuse so as not to take me. One day I told my mother I would go anyway if I had to walk out. I met this Bro. Olsen and he told me he was going to Panguitch to his mother who worked up there on a ranch. I asked him if he would mind if I went along. He said it would be company for both of us and we might find work up there during threshing.

The time was set to leave and I told mother what I was going to do. She told me that I would have to take the cow along. I did not know about that, but she insisted, so I got a 30 ft. rope and tied it on to her neck. She was pretty good to lead so we started out afoot. He had a quilt and I had one also. We packed them and led the cow until we got to the other side of Cedar City and when we started off the main road toward the mountains we thought it would be a good thing to put the quilts on the cow and let her take her turn carrying them, so we put the quilts on her back. She did not mind it very much but it took up our rope to tie them on her so we had to drive her instead of leading her. There were some cattle up on the side hills and away she went, quilts, rope, and all so that night we had no quilts, but had to take turns keeping the fire burning while the other one slept. The next morning we had to continue the chase which was a trial. At last, going through some cedars she got caught, the rope catching on one of the cedars, and she wouldn't get away. That night we made a ranch where they gave us a bed and supper and breakfast.

We had an early start, as the cow was kept in a corral during the night. Two days later we made it to where his mother was working. She a a short little body, but she could milk any wild cow that was in a corral. She would follow the cow until she got the cow where she wanted it and the first thing she would hold that cow with her head pressed into her flanks and she would milk her, kick or no kick. While there, my cow had her calf and I sold her and her calf for $25.00.

While we were still there the threshers came to thresh their grain so after that we followed it right along until they got through. Mr. Olsen left there and I hit back to Rockville and got there just in time for making sorghum and peach preserves. John C. Hall gave me work at his sorghum mill. The neighbors would fetch their cane to the mill. Some would want it made to sorghum and some would want some preserves.

The mill was down by the river and likewise their vats for boiling the syrup, which was a night and day job especially for the boss. The cane was run through a mill and the juice was a dirty green color which would be boiled in a vat. While it was boiling someone had to stay and keep taking off the scum and manage the fire so as not to burn the batch of sorghum. When they thought it was done they would take a little out and put it in water to try and see if it would thicken, if it did it was put in molasses barrels. If they wanted preserves they would take the fruit down to the river, put it in the large tubs, throw water on them and take a broom and wash the fuzz off the peaches, changing the water quite often and when they were clean, they were taken to the boilng vat and dumped in the boiling syrup and boiled until it was done and that was put into barrels. It surely is a sticky job, but it makes good preserves and it is a real seller which they take to the Northern settlements and trade for other things.

That work lasted until the beginning of winter; about that time there was quite a few down with the fever or they call it the third day Ague and it is very seldom that a person living there will sooner or later not come down with it. It soon tells on a person or at least it did on me. The fever would start with chills and would make you shake all over. It wouldn't matter how many bed clothes you had on, you would be cold and shake several hours. Then the fever would start and you couldn't even stand ordinary clothes on. That was the way it was with mother and me. I had it one day and she was down the next day. We had the fever for the remainder of the winter. I was surely getting run down. When spring come, or about the first of April I had a very bad attack of it. From all accounts, I was out of my head as people called it, so when it wore off I told Mother if I did not get away from there they would soon have to lay me away. The before it would come on, I told Mother good-bye. I gook a quilt and a little food and struck out North, going as far as my strength would allow.

When I felt the fever coming on I would leave the road and go some distance, roll up in the quilt and have it to myself. It kept on like that until I got about six miles south of Cedar City. I went to a bunch of Cedars and it was getting late in the evening, so I rolled myself in the quilt. I surely had a time of it that night. Towards morning I sure was sick and it began to snow. I did not know what to do. I was so weak, so I just lay there and the snow fell in a soft blanket on the quilt which seemed to make me better and warmer. I went to sleep. When I opened my eyes, I found about three inches of snow. I got up, shook the quilt and then I went so dizzy and sick I had to lay down again. The sun came out nice and warm so I rolled the quilt the best I could sat by a cedar stump, thinking and debating whether to stay there until the sickness wore off, but it got worse.

I decided to go down to the road so that if anyone same along, they would see me, but while I was going down to the road I began to vomit and I threw up something like a raw egg, as large as a saucer which nearly strangled me. In about an hour I began to feel better and no one came along, so I spent the rest of the day walking about five or six mile to Cedar City.

I stopped at a Camp House for the night and from that day until the present I have suffered much with the chills and fever. The next morning I left the Camp House and was making my way to Milford during which trip I got several rides with freighters going to the railroad at Milford.

When I got to Milford, I got a few days work with Fred Grant who kept an all-round house. That is a saloon and dry goods and anything where there was a dollar to be made.

I worked on the section for quite a while and I got a pass to Salt Lake City. What money I had, I used to rent a room over the old 17th Ward. I went to the store and bought some goods and boxes and made my furniture. Then I sent the money for Mother to come to Salt Lake City. By the time she got there I had got work carrying the hod for a contractor who built houses. He was an Irishman, but a good sort. The only thing I had against him was we had to go to some saloon to get our money and the good part of our wages was spent in drink, so I told him how I was situated and what I was going with my money. He gave me to understand that these saloon people pulled for him in the work he was doing and he wanted to patronize them. After that I was sent with a mason by the name of Platt, to build chimneys or fancy work. We were not very often with the main crowd unless there was nothing else to do.

When Mother arrived we started to keep house, but Mother was so run down that it was hard work for her to go up and down the stairs. I rented two rooms across the street in Sister Fielding's house. She was a aunt to Joseph F. Smith who lived next west. Mother wanted to go to meeting in the 15th Ward as she was acquainted with Brother T. C. Griggs who kept the store, so we joined the church where Bishop Joseph Pollard presides.

One Sunday evening Mother came across an old lady by the name of Frankline whom she knew in London. She told Mother where she lived and Mother promised to visit her the next Sunday evening before meeting time, so according to the appointment we went about two hours earlier than usual and when we got there she had a visitor: a young woman who came over with from the old country. Of course, we were introduced to her and given her history and she had the tooth-ache so bad she was miserable and wished to be excused, so she could go back to the place where she was working. I asked her if I could go with her and she said no, that she knew the way all right so we bid her good-night. I listened to the talk of the two old chums from the London Conference and everyone and their kin until it was time to go to meeting.

About two weeks later I was working on a Hotel near the Walker's building and a little west, with others when I heard them talking about the Cummings. I had heard Mrs. Frankline speak about Cummings, so of course I asked one of the men where this Cummings lived and he gave me the address.

I made it my business to go and inquire, but I could not remember the girl's name, but I knocked on the door and when a real old lady came to the door I asked her if there was a young Sister living there who had come from England. The lady asked me what her name was and I told her that I had forgotten the name, but I showed her about how tall she was and that she had blue eyes. She told me that there was a girl of that description at her son's place, so I thanked her, but I did not go there that evening, which gave the old lady time to tell her son about me inquiring about a young English girl. He told the girl about it and they had quite a laugh about it. [Editor Note: The English girl spoken of here is Victoria Elizabeth Barnard born 19 February 1867 in Hungerford, England.]

They were on the look out when Saturday afternoon came. I hurried home, had my supper and cleaned up and away I went to hunt up the girl. When I knocked on the door Moral Cummings came to the door. I told him who I was and what my business was, so he invited me into the house and in a little while they made their appearance and he said, "Is this the one?" I told him it was "and you don't know her name," he asked. I told him that I did not for I had only seen her once at a friend of my Mother's that came out from London. We spent the evening all together in the parlor. Of course, there were many questions asked about myself and I answered them when I thought it time to go they kindly asked me to come again. I thanked them for their kindness to me and left.

A few days after that I was old to go to the Lion House and ask for Mr. Rossitor and he would show me what he wanted done. I went there and when I asked for Mr. Rossitor, was informed that he was not at home, but had left word what was to be done. The girl who worked there came over on the same ship as the English girl and her name was Jinney Goodman, as I found out afterwards. She told me what was to be done and said there was a door in the passage that closed over the door that I was to open and being dark, I could not see the door, so I went out and told the girl I could not see any door there, but she would not show me for quite a while. At last she told me when I got in the passage to shut the kitchen door and then I would feel another door, to open it and I would have light to see what was wanted. I did as she told me and found it was the WC. I began to tear down the wall that led out to the ashpen as they wanted a bathroom made out of the ashpen and toilet. While were building there the English girl came over to see Jinney and of course she told her I wanted her to show me where the toilet was and she wouldn't show me. This came out afterwards.

I made two or three visits to Mr. Cummings's place after I had cleaned up and at last they invited me to stop when I left work which I did quite often. While she was working there they wanted Mr. Cummings to help move the range which he did not do and she undertook to do it herself. She hurt herself internally and they had to take her to the hospital. She was in the Deseret Hospital and was under Dr. Cannon. My Mother was working there and I was told all about how it came about. While she was in the hospital her Father had left Bountiful and gone to Provo to work for A.W. Smoot who was President of the Utah Stake. He came up on Sundays to see his daughter and of course, we met and he was displeased with her for encouraging me and told Dr. Cannon he was going to take her to Provo against the Doctor's wishes. He told her he was going to get married and there was no need of her having to work.

After awhile the Doctor gave his consent for her to be moved and he took her to Provo. He wanted her to marry a young man by the name of Joseph Herriaman, but she would not give her consent. He got her a place with Brother Smoot's second wife so she would be close to him. She wrote to me and told me all that was done and that Jinney Goodman had come to Provo and was going to Marry Dave Stagg. She asked me if I would come to the wedding, which I did. Not only that, but I hired out the Sam Liddlard to do the scaffolding on the Stake Tabernacle. When her Father found out that I was going to work at Provo, he let, or rather sent, her back to Salt Lake City. She worked at George H. Taylor's and he had a large house. She took sick again and had to go back to the hospital. When I got through at the tabernacle I returned to Salt Lake.

When I went to the hospital to see her, her father was there and he had quite a time. He threatened her several times but he left her there until the Doctor gave his consent for her to leave the hospital and then he took her to Provo with him.

That was about the time the Denver and Rio Grand was being built towards Green River, up the Spanish Fork Canyon. Nephi Giles of Bountiful, Utah and I had no other work for the Winter so we thought we would go and work there. We applied for work and were sent out on the construction train, taking out ties and rails. When we got to the end of the track, it was near Price. We went to work in the same gang, and worked steady through all kinds of weather, until we were getting near the tunnels. The bosses were getting unbearable to work with as the weather was so cold and work was not being accomplished as they thought it should. They were losing money and that made them act that way. At last Nephi told me he could not stand to work like that and he was going to quit in the morning. When they were called out in the morning to go to work, he told the boss of the gang that we wished to leave. The boss didn't want us to quit but Nephi would not go to work, so we waited until they came in for dinner. Then the boss gave us our time and we started for the North.

We stopped at a tie camp and when the train came along, we asked the conductor to give us a lift, but he wouldn't do it unless we paid him $10.00 each. Of course, we would not give it to him, so we had to walk. Our shoes were very thin and walking in the snow was getting tiresome. When a train came along they wouldn't let us on and when we came to a place where we could get food, they would surely lay it on for everything we had to have to eat, so we didn't buy anymore than we really had to have and would go as long as we could without. We kept doing that until we arrived at Provo and then I told Nephi that I was going to take the train from there to Salt Lake, so we had to wait until morning. I told him to come with me and went to Brother Smoot's place and went into the stable. Joe Smoot was out there and I asked him if he would tell Lizzie Barnard that I wanted to see her.

He told her but he didn't tell her who it was that wanted her and it took her quite a while before she came out to where we were. It was a surprise to her when she saw me, for I was tired, dirty and my clothes were not the best looking, but she went to see Aunt Diannah and told her about us and we were invited into the house as she was acquainted with me.

We soon felt at home and made comfortable as if we were somebody. A good wash and a good supper and when we were through we had to tell them how we managed on the journey and about the work on the road. Best of all was a bed to lay on. As we had to do the best we could while on the road, mostly among the ties that were along the road and change about with two quilts while the other would keep the fire.

To be continued.