tion except the horse or going about on foot. The roads, such as they were, were few, always rough, and frequently impassable. Trails led here and there, from settlement to settlement, from cabin to cabin, through the wilderness. At first there were no churches and even when their building began they were very few and far apart. To reach and serve the scattered people, it was necessary to carry the Gospel to them. In sickness and in health, in hours of sadness and of happiness, the Circuit Rider was oftentimes the only comforter, the only one on whom to lean, the only connection between the tenant of the cabin and the outside world. He left no call unanswered. He was always at the command of those who needed him. The missionary of God was not only the herald of the Gospel but, in words of another: "He was architect, carpenter, ox driver, axman, painter, blacksmith, and pastor." While preaching the Word he was not only earning a living for himself and his family, but was aiding others in the most practical of ways.
And it must not be understood that these early missionaries were uneducated, uncouth, or uncultured men. How much they knew of the sciences, I know not, but of the Word of God they knew much. However, their daily labors left them scant time for study. Accordingly, not infrequently—as depicted in this group—the Circuit Rider would read his Bible and collect his thoughts while riding slowly to a meeting place where people were assembled to hear his message. There were no cowards, physical, spiritual, or intellectual, among them. Nor was there place for weaklings in those days. Fearless, faithful, and direct, they went about preaching the Bible and what it taught, doing good, helping this one, encouraging that one, facing hardships of every kind. They suffered patiently, they endured much. Some suffered even martyrdom by the hand of the Indian wielding the murderous tomahawk. Others in threading the treacherous rapids of the rivers and mountain streams were swept away. Indeed, death and danger faced them on every hand. Like
