Elder John Reeve, writing from on board the S. S. Wyoming, Sept. 10, 1884, says:
"All is well with the company of Saints who left Liverpool on the 30th ultimo The hand of the Lord has been over us, and, although we have experienced very squally weather, and head winds all the way, yet a good spirit has been manifested among the Saints, everything has passed off peaceably, and good feelings have prevailed throughout the whole company. Of course we have encountered the usual amount of prejudice among the passengers, and a little knot of rough gentile characters tried to annoy and irritate the steerage passengers of our company, but Brother [Benjamin] Bennett, and all the elders associated with him, have preached patience and forbearance to the Saints, and so, finding their efforts to annoy did not produce the effect desired, they ceased their attentions. No meetings were held on the first Sunday, except prayer meetings, which have been [p.621] held regularly every night and morning, but on Sunday, the 7th instant, meetings were held below by both British and Scandinavian Saints, and a good spirit prevailed. Many of the strangers aboard attended our meetings and gave good attention, seeming to be quite interested. All the elders and several of the steerage Saints attended divine service in the saloon Sunday morning, our meeting being held in the afternoon. Altogether, I think I may say that a very pleasant time has been passed by all, and the captain and all the officers and crew have been very - yes, exceedingly kind to us since the first hour we came aboard.
Those who felt well enough amused themselves with the usual games on board. The first game played was the most general; this was a game of forfeits, and old Neptune claimed the tribute. It was somewhat laughable, even to those who were playing the game, to see the very doleful countenances of each other as they parted with the tribute, but after the second day things began to look more cheerful, and other games became more general, such as shuffle board, rope quoits, pitching leaden quoits, and playing chess and checkers. Of course in the gent's smoking room cards were the order every day, but none of the Saints participated in this game. As the effect of seasickness became conspicuous by its absence, the most important game of all was played three times a day in the saloon, and to see the way tables were loaded and cleared again was very suggestive of a famine overtaking us, should anything occur to render our voyage a little longer than usual. Guion & Company fully sustained their reputation for the excellence of their tables, and not a single complaint has been made by any one. The viands were of the first quality, which is a matter of course with ships of the Guion Line, the tables were all filled and appetites were of as good quality as the viands. I cannot speak from experience as to the excellence of the wine list, but to judge by observation I should say they (the wines) were of as good quality as everything else, and I think all on board may cherish pleasant memories of the time spent on the staunch ship Wyoming on this her 122nd trip as a passenger steamer across the bosom of the mighty Atlantic.
We are now drawing near the shores of the United States, expecting to reach New York about 9 or 10 o'clock this evening. The pilot was taken aboard yesterday about 400 miles out from New York, and today everybody is on the "qui vive" looking out for ships and land and enquiring for news, a few papers having been brought on board by the pilot. There have been neither births nor deaths on board, and the health of the Saints is excellent, with the exception of one sister, who was very far gone in consumption when she embarked. It is a little doubtful if she will be able to reach Utah, but her faith that she will is very strong.
I forgot to mention that we had about five hours detention or delay when about twenty-four hours out from Queenstown, the lever of the throttle valve broke, and the vessel laid to until damages were repaired. With this exception all has gone well, and we now return thanks to Almighty God for his kind, preserving care over us, and ask that our voyage through life may terminate as favorably, and that we may all reach the harbor of celestial lives and glory with God our Father and Jesus Christ our elder brother." [p.622]
BIB: Reeve, John [Letter], Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star 46:39, (Sept. 29, 1884) pp. 621-22. (CHL)
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