Esther has two aunts—both very kind to her. One of her aunts is going to America, but the other—her aunt Lucy—is to remain behind. They are bidding each other good-by. The one who has a bonnet on her head is the one that is going. We can tell who are going on the journey by their having hats or bonnets on. Esther’s aunt Lucy, who has no bonnet on, is to remain. When the wagon goes away, she will go into the house again, very sorrowful.
The journey in the covered wagon.
The farmer has provided a covered wagon for the journey, so as to protect his wife, and his mother, and his sister, and his children from the cold wind and from the rain. But they will not go all the way in this wagon. They will go to the sea-shore in the wagon, and then they will embark on board a ship, to cross the Atlantic Ocean.
We can see the ship, all ready and waiting, in the background of the picture, on the right. There will be a great many other families on board the ship, all going to America. There will be sailors, too, to navigate the ship and to manage the sails.
THE VOYAGE.
The voyage in the ship.
The voyage which the emigrants have to take is very long. It is three thousand miles from England to America, and it takes oftentimes many weeks to accomplish the transit. Sometimes during the voyage the breeze is light, and the water is smooth, and the ship glides very pleasantly and prosperously on its way. Then the emigrants pass their time very agreeably. They come up upon the decks, they look out upon the water, they talk, they sew, they play with the children—they enjoy, in fact, almost as many comforts and pleasures as if they were at home on land.
Opposite is a picture of the ship sailing along very smoothly, in pleasant weather, at the commencement of the voyage. The cliff in the background, on the right, is part of the English shore, which the ship is just leaving. There is a light-house upon the cliff, and a town on the shore below.
