“Two days afterwards Peter left for his command, which was still encamped on the battle-field of Pittskill Landing. He felt as though he could do camp duty if no more. He wore the same sad countenance that had become fastened upon him since he had been pondering over his mother's dream.
“Col. Anderson was still very weak, but was nervous about the future and extremely anxious to recover sufficiently to take the field. His bloodless face and trembling motion showed that he couldn't perform field duty for some time to come. He made a request, however, for the detail of Capt. Day, of Col. Harden's regiment, as one of his aides-de-camp. The order for the detail, in accordance with his wishes, he soon received, but delayed sending it forward, leaving Capt. Day with Col. Harden until such time as he should be able to be assigned to duty. In talking over with Gen. Anderson the situation and the mission I had to perform, we concluded, inasmuch as he was only slightly known through the West, that he could travel through Ohio, Indiana and Illinois on a prospecting tour and be less liable to suspicion than myself, known as I was in many parts of the country, and that the journey was just what he needed to give him strength.
“Preparatory to his undertaking the expedition we thought proper to visit Joseph Dent on the farm, and have the General more fully posted in the mysteries of the Golden Circle. We at once repaired to the farm. While there Dent instructed him thoroughly, he having it at his tongue's end, as he had been meeting with the Circle frequently in the neighborhood, under the advice of Peter and myself. Gen. Anderson carefully wrote down everything in his pocket memorandum book, and after frequently going over the signs, manipulations, passwords, etc., with Dent, we left for home. All the preliminaries were then arranged, so that the General was to start as soon as he considered himself sufficiently strong to undergo the fatigues of the journey.
“Late in the evening the form of a tall, well-proportioned man appeared at the door and rapped. I said 'Come.' He entered, saying, 'Father, how are you?' I saw it was my son Jackson, from St. Paul, Minn. After hearty greetings, I introduced him to Gen. Anderson and wife. Aunt Sarah soon entered the room, and the meeting between mother and son was most touching. In the conversation that ensued Jackson soon disclosed the fact that he was on his way to join the army somewhere, not entirely defined in his own mind; but came by to pay a visit to us first.
“Gen. Anderson seemed at once to take a fancy to Jack son, and proposed that he make application for a Captaincy in the Regular Army and be assigned to him as one of his staff officers. This was readily acceded to by my son. The papers were made out, and Jackson started for Washington the next morning to make the request of the President, the understanding being that he was to return to my house and await the future movements of Gen. Anderson. His mother, hearing of this arrangement, was better satisfied with it than she would have been if he had started out in some regiment; but she wept bitter tears at the thought of all her sons endangering their lives.
“She said to me:
“'Daniel, if our whole family, or a greater part of them should be lost, who will remember it to our honor, and where will sympathy for us come from? You know the youth who fired the Ephesian Dome is remembered, while the builder is forgotten.'
“These words of my good wife are constantly ringing in my ears. How true! how true!”