"As we stood and looked we could see the long, fertile, southern plains under the noon-day sun; the woods and forest lay around them like a fringe in the distance; so minute and life-like did the very trees and bushes appear that I could almost tell what species they belonged to. Other pictures, in which we were ten times more interested, showed us the northern and southern armies on the march with flags flying, or else they were encamped on the edge of a wood among the lofty trees. There were also scenes of war and a battle which looked really too dreadful, even to behold the pictures of them. At such times I felt quite inclined to shut my eyes on such awful scenes. 'If such is the mere picture,' I said to myself, 'what must the reality of actual war be.' When we had thoroughly satisfied ourselves with this famous little peep-show, we came out, considering that we had had a good five cents' worth,—I mean five cents a piece! And so we moved on to our friend's house, where we had a most uncommonly warm welcome, and where we spent the whole day, some other friends coming in to see us during our pleasant visit.
"I must not forget to tell you that at the farm house at 'Richmond Hill' they have quite a fine piano; and, as my experience during the great Abolition campaign in the North made me quite an adept at speaking and singing in public, I have been able to entertain these good Gibsons and other Canadian friends with some of the music and songs I used to play and sing. Our girls also have dome very well on the piano, to be so young yet.
"We all send our warmest love to you; and if I see any good reason for writing you again before we leave Richmond Hill, will send you another Canadian letter before our return home, and I remain, my dear Tom, ever your most affectionate wife,
"BEULAH LINCOLN."
When we had been a month at Richmond Hill, and were getting ready for our departure on the following day, the girls had a great desire to write their papa. So I furnished them with the writing materials, upon which they put their heads and thoughts together, and wrote the letter that follows:
"RICHMOND HILL, October, 1864.
"Our Dear Papa:—
"With great pleasure we send you this letter, we your daughters, who love you. We are all quite well, and hope you are well also amidst the dangers and toils of the war. All the letters and other things that you sent us to Buffalo were forwarded to us to Richmond Hill, in Canada. We have read your letters over and over again with great interest, and the friends here have read some of them that told all about the military operations in the fields, and they were very well pleased with their contents, for the Gibsons are great union people too.
"As the weather here has been most delightfully sunny, and we have been so much in the open air on these Canadian hills, both mama and our two selves have gotten quite fat, and also look as people do when they come from the bathing places on the sea shore. We also feel right good, all three of us, for we have had a grand time, and been so very kindly used. Thus our hearts and minds are content, and we are going home to Buffalo to-morrow filled with pleasure, like heavily laden bees going humming to their hives with plenty of sweet honey.
"We have been to church in the town every Sunday since we came here. The Gibsons are Presbyterians, and so we went to the Presbyterian church, and indeed it is very beautiful. We stood up to pray instead of kneeling down as we do at Vine Street, in Buffalo, but Dr. Bell is a famous preacher.