And all because a lady asked a common thief to eat supper with her and treated him as a guest.
Here is Jim's letter to the railroad company, written in a large, sprawling handwriting:
"To Whom It May Concern--and chiefly the Union Pacific Railroad Company: The undersigned was once Jim Bowles, train robber. I am a reformed man from this day. I ain't got religion exactly, but the world is a better place than I thought it was. I made a mistake. There are some mighty nice people in it, after all. I herewith return moneys took; henceforth from now on forever more, amen, I lead a new life, so help me God! There are two kinds of repentant sinners. The ones that pray all day for forgiveness and forgets to work, and them that works so hard they haven't got no time to pray. I'm the last kind. I'm going to work. Amen!
Imagine a lovely valley, green and fertile, encircled by a great chain of mountains. Glistening to the westward, like a gem on its bosom, is a beautiful lake, and from the very heart of the valley rises the city itself. It nestles at the foot of a vast granite temple, which towers above the homes of the citizens like a great, gray mountain.
"Perhaps the Land of Canaan looked like this to the Israelites," exclaimed Mary Price, as the Comet paused on the steep road in order to give our pilgrims their first glimpse of the old Mormon city. For the last thirty-six hours they had been surfeited with magnificent scenery.
"Snow-capped mountains and cañons and waterfalls are getting to be just everyday affairs," wrote Billie to her father, still in distant Russia.
It was a rest to their eyes and their minds, therefore, to look down on this peaceful and exquisite valley, Evelyn's home.
"It's all very beautiful," observed Miss Campbell. "I'm sure I never saw a more enchanting scene in my life. But there's one thing that makes it more beautiful to me even than the Vale of Cashmere, and that's a hot bath. I'm looking forward to a hot bath, my dears, and a good night's rest on a hair mattress in the best hotel in the city. I trust you feel the same."
"We look a good deal like a United States geological surveying party, after three months in the wilderness," answered Daniel Moore, looking quizzically at the girls' sunburned faces, and glancing down at his gray flannel shirt, borrowed from Jim Bowles.