So with grateful hearts Fred locked the door of the trading house, turned the key over to an old, friendly trapper, who spent his summers in Hartford, and returned to Massachusetts.
The children as well as John Rawlins were in high spirits, and had it not been for the heavily loaded pack horses, they would have galloped all the way to Massachusetts.
But they had to be patient, while day after day they covered small distances through the thick woods.
They were dressed oddly enough, and looked more like Indians than like white people. Agnes was dressed like the boys, with a fur cap on her head, fur coats and trousers on her body, and her feet covered with moccasins. Yet no one took notice of that, for many of the settlers were clothed in this way, since it was hard to obtain woolen cloth from the old country.
When they returned to Massachusetts, they were greeted with great joy, not only by their foster parents, but also by the other villagers, who marveled that children so young had undertaken so serious a venture.
Yet we must not judge the children of that time by standards of our own day. Their life was lived largely outdoors where they grew up like the trees of the ever present forest. Their daily experiences made them alert and self confident, and while they were behind the children of our time in school learning, they knew a thousand arts which the children of our later times have never heard of.
Life was hard, and the struggle for existence made them strong, hardy, and enterprising. Had those early pioneers been of a weaker fiber, the history of our country would never have been written in glory. But let us not forget that the pioneers were mostly men of deep piety, whose rugged strength was rooted in true faith and the fear of God. Let those who scoff at religion, remember that without it our country would never have become what it is today. The fear of God is not only the beginning of wisdom, but also the keynote to prosperity and a nation's success.
CHAPTER VII
IN THE THROES OF WAR
The brief New England summer passed much too quickly for our three friends, for whom summer time meant a long and pleasant vacation. As usual they made trips on horseback or on boat to the other Colonies, which were being planted in New England in ever greater number. In this way they widened their circle of acquaintances, and enjoyed many pleasant hours in company with other good New England youths.