We made troughs, tapped hard maples on each side of the creek; took our
oxen, sled and two barrels (as the trees were scattered) to draw the sap
to the place we had prepared for boiling it.

Now I had an employment entirely new to me: boiling down sap and making
sugar, in the woods of Michigan. This was quite a help to us in getting
along. We made our own "sweet" and vinegar, also some sugar and molasses
to sell. Some springs, we made three or four hundred pounds of sugar.
Sugar was not all the good things we had, for there was one added to my
father's family, a little sister, who was none the less lovely, in my
eye, because she was of Michigan, a native "Wolverine."

Now father's family, all told, consisted of mother and six children. The
children grew to be men and women, and are all alive to this day,
January 26, 1875.

After we came to Michigan mother's health constantly improved. She soon
began to like her new home and became more cheerful and happy. I told
her we had, what would be, a beautiful place; far better than the rocks
and hills we left, I often renewed my promise that if she and I lived and
I grew to be a man, we would go back, visit her friends and see again the
land of her nativity.

To cheer her still more we received a letter from Mr. G. Purdy of York
State, telling us that he was coming to Michigan in the fall, with his
wife (mother's beloved sister, Abbie,) and her youngest sister, Sarah,
was coming with them.

Asa Blare, the young man who picked up the Indian's knife, bought forty
acres of government land joining us on the east, built him a house, went