Glasgow, Nov. 6, 1880

 

To my Dear Beloved Wife,

 

It is with feelings of pleasure and also of pain that I commence to write to you from the and of our birth after being absent from it so many years.  Now I will give you the reason why I do it with pleasure.  It is because I am a messenger for Christ and as such I have the fullest assurance that God will sustain me as such if I will be faithful to him and do that which is right in his sight for in this only I have the promise of being upheld by his power and have that spirit that shall give me utterance of speech and bring all things to my remembrance both past, present and to come, which I can assure you is really the only spirit that can comfort a servant of the living God out among the world of mankind, away from home, family and friends and all that he may hold dear to him on the earth.  But when I take into consideration the duty that I owe to mankind as one having a portion of the Holy Priesthood what can I say but

 

Farewell all earthly honors I bid you all adieu in order that I may lay claim to the promise of that eternal weight of glory that is promised to the faithful of his servants that will not be ashamed to own him before men.  Then Jesus has declared that he will not be ashamed to own such before his Heavenly Father.  Now this promise alone is enough to encourage one to persevere unto the end for it is only by clinging to the end that we can lay hold of the promise.  Now if I could I would keep my mind from thinking of home but then I cannot, although I expect to do so more as I get used to the ways of the country.

            

Now the reason that I have pain I think you can conceive the reason why--but I will say that I never saw such misery before in all my life.  It looks worse to me now by a thousand times than it did before I left it 26 years ago and then to see still some of the old saints here which have even now little show of getting away from their low miserable condition in which I now find them and again to behold the offspring of my own Father and Mother steeped in the lowest of degradation and poverty. 

 

Now hold your breath when you read this.  She that is my sister Susan has had two dead born children from the bad treatment of her husband.  One of them when it was born it had its little head split open from the kicks that she received from a brute in man's form.  He cares seemingly little for that he has been the means of bringing into the world.  Now this is pain enough to me, they are in the greatest of poverty.  Susan seems to be a smart, good woman.  She has told me such tales that has grieved me very much, but all I can say to her is to cheer up and look forward to better days.

 

The misery that I see on the Trongale is heart rendering.  You see little children in these cold, damp days barefooted and covered with rags and young girls and women disgusting to look upon they are so low in degradation.  This will suffice for my feelings about joy and pain.

 

Now I left Liverpool on Tuesday morning the 2nd of November with the 9:30 a.m. train.  I arrived in Glasgow about 5 o'clock p.m. when I arrived I got into a cab and was taken to No. 7 Cathedral Street.  Just as I got to the foot of the stair I got a little girl that belonged to the family where Bro. Dunbar lived, so you see that I found him very easy.  The same evening the little girl took me to my sister where I stayed till late on Wednesday the 3rd when I called on Uncle George.  He was sick in bed when I called but he soon got up after I called.  I did not stay long as I had not seen Bro. Dunbar so when I returned to the Conference House I found him, he had just returned from (?) where he had been to a meeting.  Soon after I learned his mind about where he wanted me to go.  I have got to go and labour in Ayrshire with Brother Joseph Burt.  So now my mind is reconciled to the work that lays before me and in the course of another week I will be settled and will have begun my missionary labour.

 

After getting to know from Bro. Dunbar where I was to go I then went back to Uncle Georges where I spent a very pleasant evening.  My Uncle has two very interesting daughters, one especially I would like my sons to send their pictures to them or send them to me to give to them.  And also send me some of mother and Janet as I have none of them.

 

Now on Thursday 4th I went out to Coultsten Tole and there I saw John and Agnes Cain.  They were very kind to me and Agnes is as white haired as anything you ever saw.  John does not look so bad yet he is getting old like.  I saw Mary Morrow.  She has got married again.  She looks very well.  I saw Jas. Currie.  He is an old looking man.  The same evening I saw all the saints, that is in Bishopbriggs, which is two Brothers and one of their wives, all together there is just 5 members.  I slept at John Cains all night and on Friday morning I called upon Mrs. Bell whom I found very well and very happy to see me.  She asked very kindly for you and all about our family.  She is a hail old woman.  William Bwell was not at home.  She took me into the same little room where you and I commenced our married life and I can assure you that I had a great many curious reflections while I sat in that little room thinking about my Dear Catie that was once there and now so far away from me and that when first we commenced our career I was such a poor, ignorant collier boy and that now nearly thirty years have passed away since that time when you took possession of that little room.

 

I then called on James Hunter's widow Janet Parker.  James has been dead about 8 years.  She is well off.  One of her sons and two of her daughters are keeping school.  She was glad to see me.  I then called on Charles Muckelhanny who is now 85 years old.  He was only one or two seconds till he called me by name.  His old wife is still alive and they are both fresh looking considering their age.  I then went to Old Auckerine where I found Walter and Jean Nelson.  Watie is thin and skinny but Jean is a great big fat woman.  They were all in bed when I called and Pit clothes laying all over the floor as Watie was working on the midday shift and his son on the night shift.  They were very kind to me and she spoke a great deal about you and asked all about our family.  Walter had been in the United States about four years ago but the times were very bad so he did not stay long.  Now he is nearly used up for work. 

 

I took a walk the other morning out as far as the head of Lancefield (?) Street in Anderson and I saw the building where your Father and Mother lived and where I first kissed my Catie and when I looked up to it I could hardly refrain from crying but then I thought of the pleasure of seeing you again when I had finished the work that I was sent forth to do, so I said be a man and not act as a child, so I turned around and walked away so after all I did not give way to my natural feelings.  Anderson is one of the dirtiest of places I think that you ever saw, at least it looked so to me, I've never been along the Argile Street twice.

 

I am sending you two little books of views of Glasgow and Edinburgh, they cost 1 shilling each.  If you could send me any views of Salt Lake City and surroundings I would be very much pleased.  Now any mail matter that you may send to me you had better send it in care of D. C. Dunbar, No. 7 Cathedral Street, Glasgow, Scotland.  I would be pleased to hear from my loved ones at home at least once a week and now I will say through you to my sons that I want all of them to see and be kind and good to Mother and to thank God that they have been born and brought up with such a woman as their Mother has been.  Also I hope that they will be kind to each other and study each others interest and welfare.  Now my Dear Catie, be sure that you see that prayers are always said in the House while I am absent and I hope that the Holy Spirit will always be your companion.  Give my love to Robert and wife, also William, Thomas, Daniel and Janet, also Sister Granter and Emiline, also Bro. McMaster and all of the Saints.  Tell them I am well at the present altho I feel it very oppressive to breathe on account of the heavy atmosphere and the dense fog which has been here ever since I landed in Liverpool.

 

I hope this will find you all well as it leaves me tonight.

 

From your Loving Husband and Father,

W. S. Brighton

 

PS:  I have not bought any new clothing as yet.  I bought 6 new shirts in New York.  As I now write I have still left 21 shillings so you can see that I have not spent much as yet.