Dear brother Joseph I am happy to improve the presant oppertunity to enform you of my presant situation, I should be more happy if I could enform you that I was p[r]ospering and doing well, but on the contrary I have to enform you that I have just had my house burned and every thing I had in it, though my house and furniture was nothing verry Costly yet it was all I had which consisted of clothing beding house and furniture &C, all we saved, was what we had on our backs which was the poorest we had, to be turned out of dours my self and family in this cold and enclement season of the year is truly trying indeed, it reminded me of the words of the Saviour, the foxes have houls [holes] and the burds of the are [air] have nests but the son of man hath not where to lay his hed, but we are quite happily entertained at presant, at my s whare we are welcomly received, I desine in this letter to give <​you​> a histary in general of my of self, or in other words render an account of my self for a few years past, I suppose it has ben so long since you saw or heard of me you have all most or quite forgot you eaver new me but you will reccollect som few years a gow when you ware living <​in​> Ohio myself in company with brother ware sent from the state of on a mishon to with money for the purpose of purchaseing lands for our brethren, we came to where where agreable to counsyl given to us there we taried through the following winter and summer during which time I went to scool through the winter and during the summer worked considerably on the , when in the fall we a gain persued our Journey to in fulfillment of our mishion on ariveing there we spent our little monies for lands to the [p. [1]]