William H. Bunours.
March 2, ’38.”
“The trifle” was a small diamond pin that the recipient of it wore for over twenty-five years. Upon the same occasion this invitation was received:
“The undersigned, anxious to show their respect and esteem for their fellow-clerk, Cyrus W. Field, do hereby agree to give him a complimentary supper on Friday evening, March 2, 1838.
| Henry Rutgers Prall, | P. V. Mondon, |
| James Macfarlan, | Jno. K. Walker, |
| Richard McElroy, | Charles B. St. John, |
| John Wm. Byron, | James Beck, |
| Paul Burdock, | W. Thompson, |
| R. Whyte, | M. Goodrich.” |
A letter written on March 6, 1838, by his brother David to his parents ends with these words:
“Cyrus has, as you will see from his letters, etc., left Stewart’s, with the best testimonials of esteem from all his employers and associates. He is a noble young man—and I am proud of him.”
His father had said on parting from him in 1835: “Cyrus, I feel sure you will succeed, for your playmates could never get you off to play until all the work for which you were responsible was done.”
These few words tell us briefly how the following eighteen months were passed:
“On leaving New York I went as far west as Michigan on business for my brother Dudley. I went up the Hudson in a boat to Albany, from thence to, I think, Syracuse in the cars, thence by stage to Buffalo, from Buffalo by steamer to Detroit, and from there to Ann Arbor. On my return East I went to Lee, Mass., as an assistant to my brother, Matthew D. Field. He was a large paper manufacturer; he often sent me on business to Boston, Philadelphia, Washington, and New York.”