CLOSING YEARS.

“Davenport, April 15th, 1890.“Hon. D. C and Mrs. Bloomer:—“Congratulations and benedictions. Fifty golden years exhaust neither love nor hope.“William Stevens Perry,“Bishop of Iowa.”

“Davenport, April 15th, 1890.

“Hon. D. C and Mrs. Bloomer:—

“Congratulations and benedictions. Fifty golden years exhaust neither love nor hope.

“William Stevens Perry,

“Bishop of Iowa.”

Rev. G. W. Crofts also furnished a timely and very beautiful poem. Because of his inability to attend the reception, he called upon the couple Monday afternoon and in a few well chosen words presented it to them. It was the production of the minister’s own pen, and handsomely written on embossed cardboard fastened with orange-tinted ribbons. The poem was beautifully illustrated by Miss S. D. Phere, the cuts being the representations of a well-spent life. Upon its receipt Mrs. Bloomer and her husband were greatly moved. The poem is as follows:

“1840. April 15. 1890.“To Mr. and Mrs. Bloomer.“The Psalmist says that he who goes forth with tears,Conveying precious seed, shall doubtless come againRejoicing, bringing with him sheaves. ’Tis fifty yearsSince you as one were made, and out upon the plainOf Life’s great field together moved, ‘mid hopes and fears,And in your faithful bosoms bearing golden grain.“To-day you come with sheaves, oh rich and golden sheaves!Immortal sheaves, sheaves glowing in the light of heavenSo softly sifting down thro’ life’s autumn leaves;And, while the clouds that deck the sky above are riven,I see the angels smile. And who is there that grievesWhen noble souls in life’s great harvest-field have striven?“This is a day of joy and praise, a crowning day!Together you have walked for fifty years, and HeWho made your hearts to beat as one thro’ all the wayHas been your guide, His voice has stilled the stormy sea;In darkest hours, you’ve heavenward looked and seen the rayOf cloudless hope shine down with sweet tranquillity.“When worn with toil, His loving arms have given you rest;Sustaining grace He gave when you were weak and faint;When sorrows came, ’twas then the haven of His breastThat opened wide and took you in. To each complaintHe lent His ear. In all things, you were truly blestAnd ever upward drawn by love’s divine constraint.“And now upon a lofty Mount you stand and lookBack o’er your pilgrim way; back o’er the fields you’ve sownYou see the stubborn soil, the burning sun, the nookWhere you did rest; and all the way is overstrownWith flowers; flower-wreathed you see the plow and pruning-hook.And on that Mount there comes to you a fadeless crown.“To Faithfulness there comes a crown, a Crown of Life;’Tis one the Lord doth give to those who serve Him well,To heroes true and strong amid the daily strife’Tween right and wrong. For such, the sweetest anthems swellBy holy angels sung, and joy on earth is rife,While thro’ the vanished years you hear a golden bell.“Foremost in every noble work, in every causeWhere God leads on, where Light is seen, where Truth is heard,There have you stood from first to last, the eternal lawsOf Right obeyed. Where’er your lips could frame a wordTo voice the thought, a hand could strike the great applauseOf onward march, your helpful force has been conferred.“To you, this day, a grateful people tribute bringFor all you’ve been to them, for all your steadfastness,For all your words and deeds; for every noble thing,They would this day your true and honest worth confess;They would a golden cup, filled from Affection’s spring,Hold out to you, and thus their gratitude express.“Take, then, the Crown. Both heaven and earth proclaim it yours,The Sower’s crown, the Reaper’s crown, that glows with light,That glows with light and love, and one that aye endures.The Evening Star, that hangs upon the fringe of nightAnd, like a lamp, the weary wanderer alluresAnd tells him of his home afar, is not more bright.“Look round you, then, crowned as you are, and upward, too:Here shine the golden sheaves; there gleam the jasper walls;Around you gather here the noble, good and true,With hearts aglow, and chant their tender madrigals.Around, above, all things are wreathed in smiles for you,While on you, like a burst of sun, God’s blessings fall!”

“1840. April 15. 1890.

“To Mr. and Mrs. Bloomer.

“The Psalmist says that he who goes forth with tears,Conveying precious seed, shall doubtless come againRejoicing, bringing with him sheaves. ’Tis fifty yearsSince you as one were made, and out upon the plainOf Life’s great field together moved, ‘mid hopes and fears,And in your faithful bosoms bearing golden grain.

“The Psalmist says that he who goes forth with tears,

Conveying precious seed, shall doubtless come again

Rejoicing, bringing with him sheaves. ’Tis fifty years

Since you as one were made, and out upon the plain

Of Life’s great field together moved, ‘mid hopes and fears,

And in your faithful bosoms bearing golden grain.

“To-day you come with sheaves, oh rich and golden sheaves!Immortal sheaves, sheaves glowing in the light of heavenSo softly sifting down thro’ life’s autumn leaves;And, while the clouds that deck the sky above are riven,I see the angels smile. And who is there that grievesWhen noble souls in life’s great harvest-field have striven?

“To-day you come with sheaves, oh rich and golden sheaves!

Immortal sheaves, sheaves glowing in the light of heaven

So softly sifting down thro’ life’s autumn leaves;

And, while the clouds that deck the sky above are riven,

I see the angels smile. And who is there that grieves

When noble souls in life’s great harvest-field have striven?

“This is a day of joy and praise, a crowning day!Together you have walked for fifty years, and HeWho made your hearts to beat as one thro’ all the wayHas been your guide, His voice has stilled the stormy sea;In darkest hours, you’ve heavenward looked and seen the rayOf cloudless hope shine down with sweet tranquillity.

“This is a day of joy and praise, a crowning day!

Together you have walked for fifty years, and He

Who made your hearts to beat as one thro’ all the way

Has been your guide, His voice has stilled the stormy sea;

In darkest hours, you’ve heavenward looked and seen the ray

Of cloudless hope shine down with sweet tranquillity.

“When worn with toil, His loving arms have given you rest;Sustaining grace He gave when you were weak and faint;When sorrows came, ’twas then the haven of His breastThat opened wide and took you in. To each complaintHe lent His ear. In all things, you were truly blestAnd ever upward drawn by love’s divine constraint.

“When worn with toil, His loving arms have given you rest;

Sustaining grace He gave when you were weak and faint;

When sorrows came, ’twas then the haven of His breast

That opened wide and took you in. To each complaint

He lent His ear. In all things, you were truly blest

And ever upward drawn by love’s divine constraint.

“And now upon a lofty Mount you stand and lookBack o’er your pilgrim way; back o’er the fields you’ve sownYou see the stubborn soil, the burning sun, the nookWhere you did rest; and all the way is overstrownWith flowers; flower-wreathed you see the plow and pruning-hook.And on that Mount there comes to you a fadeless crown.

“And now upon a lofty Mount you stand and look

Back o’er your pilgrim way; back o’er the fields you’ve sown

You see the stubborn soil, the burning sun, the nook

Where you did rest; and all the way is overstrown

With flowers; flower-wreathed you see the plow and pruning-hook.

And on that Mount there comes to you a fadeless crown.

“To Faithfulness there comes a crown, a Crown of Life;’Tis one the Lord doth give to those who serve Him well,To heroes true and strong amid the daily strife’Tween right and wrong. For such, the sweetest anthems swellBy holy angels sung, and joy on earth is rife,While thro’ the vanished years you hear a golden bell.

“To Faithfulness there comes a crown, a Crown of Life;

’Tis one the Lord doth give to those who serve Him well,

To heroes true and strong amid the daily strife

’Tween right and wrong. For such, the sweetest anthems swell

By holy angels sung, and joy on earth is rife,

While thro’ the vanished years you hear a golden bell.

“Foremost in every noble work, in every causeWhere God leads on, where Light is seen, where Truth is heard,There have you stood from first to last, the eternal lawsOf Right obeyed. Where’er your lips could frame a wordTo voice the thought, a hand could strike the great applauseOf onward march, your helpful force has been conferred.

“Foremost in every noble work, in every cause

Where God leads on, where Light is seen, where Truth is heard,

There have you stood from first to last, the eternal laws

Of Right obeyed. Where’er your lips could frame a word

To voice the thought, a hand could strike the great applause

Of onward march, your helpful force has been conferred.

“To you, this day, a grateful people tribute bringFor all you’ve been to them, for all your steadfastness,For all your words and deeds; for every noble thing,They would this day your true and honest worth confess;They would a golden cup, filled from Affection’s spring,Hold out to you, and thus their gratitude express.

“To you, this day, a grateful people tribute bring

For all you’ve been to them, for all your steadfastness,

For all your words and deeds; for every noble thing,

They would this day your true and honest worth confess;

They would a golden cup, filled from Affection’s spring,

Hold out to you, and thus their gratitude express.

“Take, then, the Crown. Both heaven and earth proclaim it yours,The Sower’s crown, the Reaper’s crown, that glows with light,That glows with light and love, and one that aye endures.The Evening Star, that hangs upon the fringe of nightAnd, like a lamp, the weary wanderer alluresAnd tells him of his home afar, is not more bright.

“Take, then, the Crown. Both heaven and earth proclaim it yours,

The Sower’s crown, the Reaper’s crown, that glows with light,

That glows with light and love, and one that aye endures.

The Evening Star, that hangs upon the fringe of night

And, like a lamp, the weary wanderer allures

And tells him of his home afar, is not more bright.

“Look round you, then, crowned as you are, and upward, too:Here shine the golden sheaves; there gleam the jasper walls;Around you gather here the noble, good and true,With hearts aglow, and chant their tender madrigals.Around, above, all things are wreathed in smiles for you,While on you, like a burst of sun, God’s blessings fall!”

“Look round you, then, crowned as you are, and upward, too:

Here shine the golden sheaves; there gleam the jasper walls;

Around you gather here the noble, good and true,

With hearts aglow, and chant their tender madrigals.

Around, above, all things are wreathed in smiles for you,

While on you, like a burst of sun, God’s blessings fall!”

Many valuable presents were received. One was an elegant silver tea-set from the lawyers of the city; another a beautiful ice-cream set of solid silver in a handsomely ornamented plush case of old-gold velvet, from the rector and vestrymen of St. Paul’s Church. Other elegant souvenirs were sent in by friends from abroad. Indeed, the gifts were so numerous and of so great variety that they almost proved a burden to the recipients who, however, realized that they came to them from generousfriends with hearts full of love and kindness, and most thankfully received them.

Following this happy anniversary, Mrs. Bloomer’s life moved gradually along to its close. In 1891, after returning home from a visit to the Chautauqua Grounds near her residence, she suffered a partial paralysis of her vocal organs and for a short time lost the power of speech; but this trouble soon gradually passed away so that she was once more able to converse with her friends, although not so freely and readily as formerly. Her mind was still clear and her memory remarkably good, and it was during this period that she wrote the reminiscences given in the earlier part of this work. She gradually lost to a considerable extent the activity of movement for which in earlier days she had been noted, and her husband was easily able now to keep up with her in their walks on the streets. Mrs. Bloomer retained her youthful traits to a remarkabledegree, even in advanced years, and her friends frequently noted this and complimented her on her vigor and cheerfulness. On meeting them, she was ever bright and cheerful and had a pleasant smile and word of encouragement for all.

Her early religious convictions remained unimpaired to the end of her life. So long as health permitted, she was a constant and regular attendant upon the services of her church and at the monthly celebration of the Holy Communion. She was active in every good work in the parish, and a steady friend of all benevolent enterprises in the city. During the last few years of her life, she gave much thought to the teachings of Christian Science and read and studied the writings of Mrs. Eddy and others on that subject. While she never gave her adhesion to its peculiar doctrines, yet she found in them very much that she deemed worthy of careful consideration. She bore witness to some of the remarkable results following their application to disease in its various forms; and, on the whole, their studyenlarged her views on religious subjects and perhaps enabled her to look with greater calmness upon the vicissitudes of the present life and the untried realities of the life beyond.

To Mrs. Mary J. Coggshell, of Des Moines, Iowa, who had then recently lost her husband, she wrote in 1889 as follows: “My heart goes out to you in love and sympathy in this sad bereavement, and I pray that the Almighty Father may sustain and comfort you and give you strength to bear up under the great affliction. Mourn not for your beloved one as dead, but think of him as only transferred to another sphere of existence where he still lives and will await your coming. We believe that the life that God gave can never die, that the grave has no power over the spirit, but that it will live on forever doing the Father’s will.”

Her last journey was made to Colorado, in the latter part of the summer of 1894. She spent about two weeks at Colorado Springs and Manitou, mainly in taking electric treatment at the sanatorium of Mrs. Doctor Leonard who had long been an intimate friend; but was preventedby impaired strength from again visiting with her husband many of the interesting places of the vicinity. Another week was spent in a visit to a dear niece and her family in southern Colorado; she returned home about the middle of August, somewhat improved in health and strength. She continued to occasionally accept the kind invitations of her friends to social gatherings, and spent her last Christmas at the home and table of N. P. Dodge, one of the most prominent citizens of Council Bluffs, where she met also her old and long-known neighbor and friend, Mrs. M. F. Davenport. This was, however, the last time she was able to leave her residence. Friends and neighbors continued to visit her to the end and on Friday, December 28th, several were with her during nearly the entire day; they remembered that she appeared remarkably bright and cheerful. The final attack came on the evening of that day, and her brave and noble spirit passed away at twelve o’clock noon on the following Sunday, December 30th, 1894.

Of her last sickness and death, the CouncilBluffsDaily Nonpareilof January 1st, 1895, gave the following report:

“Mrs. Amelia Jenks Bloomer died at her home, No. 123 Fourth Street, Sunday at noon of heart failure at the advanced age of 76. For years she had been afflicted with stomach trouble, which gradually affected her heart and brought on a serious attack last Friday, from which she never rallied.“About six o’clock in the evening she was sitting in her accustomed place reading, when suddenly she fell back in her chair and exclaimed: ‘I am sick; I am sicker than I ever was before in my life.’ Her husband was sitting opposite to her at the time and quickly came to her assistance. She was in intense pain, and a physician was at once summoned. He was unable to give her much relief and she continued in a very critical condition during the night and all day Saturday.

“About six o’clock in the evening she was sitting in her accustomed place reading, when suddenly she fell back in her chair and exclaimed: ‘I am sick; I am sicker than I ever was before in my life.’ Her husband was sitting opposite to her at the time and quickly came to her assistance. She was in intense pain, and a physician was at once summoned. He was unable to give her much relief and she continued in a very critical condition during the night and all day Saturday.

“It soon became evident that she could not rally from the attack and the physicians told Mr. Bloomer and the anxious friends about herbedside that she could not recover. She was conscious during the entire time and bore her suffering bravely. Sunday morning she began to sink rapidly. Towards the end her pain seemed to leave her, and she fell into a quiet sleep from which she never awoke. Her husband was at her bedside holding her hand and noted the gradual slowing of the pulse which ceased to be perceptible about noon, when he knew she had passed away.

“In the death of Mrs. Amelia Bloomer Council Bluffs loses one of its oldest and most prominent residents. She was one of the early pioneers of the west and for many years has been a striking, picturesque character of western Iowa. Her prominence in the woman-suffrage movement made her one of the eminent American women of the century. Her name has become firmly linked with every reform movement for the uplifting and betterment of woman’s condition during the last fifty years.

“Her life was an intensely busy one, filled with many deeds of kindness and charity asidefrom the active part she always took in the temperance cause and the advancement of her sex. During her last years, however, she was unable to actively engage in the work, but was always ready and willing to discuss these cherished subjects in her characteristic, fluent manner. Up to within a few years of her death she had been a contributor to prominent journals, and her advice and counsel was always highly esteemed by the more active workers of the equal-rights cause. Her death will be felt throughout the entire nation as an irreparable loss to the cause she so warmly espoused.

“Although her death will bring sorrow to many a friend, the remembrance of her kindly life and true, Christian character will remain as an inspiration to them for all time to come. Earnest and steadfast as were her life and character, so she died trusting in the faith that has always shone through her kind words and deeds. She will never be forgotten, for her influence, with that of other good women, has done more to make the civilization of the west a possibility than the many inventions of modern science. Her great strength of character, manifested byher earnest and energetic life, was a part of the truly essential civilizing influence that sustained the early settlers in the rough experiences of the frontier. It was her intention before she died to publish reminiscences of these stirring times, and her sudden death left several manuscripts unfinished. What has been missed by her sudden taking off, leaving this work incomplete, can only be judged by those who knew her best.

“Mrs. Bloomer’s circle of friends in Council Bluffs was large, and she was highly esteemed and loved by all who knew her. She was an excellent entertainer, and was a great favorite among the young people of the Episcopal Church of which she was a faithful member. She was very fond of society and took an active part in church and charitable work. Her death, although she has been an invalid for several years, was very sudden. On Christmas day, she was able to be about and with her husband took dinner at the home of Mr. and Mrs. N. P. Dodge. She was in excellent spirits at the time and enjoyed the holiday festivities with much interest. On the day of her last attack,a number of friends called upon her and she spent the afternoon pleasantly chatting with them. The sudden announcement of her death came as a shock, for the fact of her serious illness had not yet become generally known.”

On the thirteenth of January, 1895, her rector, Rev. Eugene J. Babcock, delivered a memorial discourse on the life and character of Mrs. Bloomer in St. Paul’s Church, Council Bluffs. In this he reviewed the main incidents in Mrs. Bloomer’s life, and concluded as follows:“Mrs. Bloomer also held the relation of pioneer to this parish. On the two registers in my possession the first woman’s name is hers.“On my journey hither to assume the rectorship, I visited by the way at my former home in Michigan. There I first learned of Mrs. Bloomer from a gentleman whom I had met in a college connection while I was an undergraduate. He was a former resident of Seneca Falls, and informed me that in my new home I should meet a unique and striking person in Mrs. Bloomer, whose early days were associated with a remarkable career; that she was nowliving quietly, ill health having compelled her to forego active duties; and that she was now advanced in years.“Our arrival here was signalized by becoming guests in the Senior Warden’s home. In this we did as all the clergy had done before, for no other home in this city has been the hospitable asylum for so many of the cloth. Among ourselves, the happy descriptive of ‘Saints’ Rest’ has come in vogue. From Mrs. Bloomer that pleasant smile, which often had to triumph over bodily ailment, was my greeting. This showing of hospitality was in keeping with her ambition, which she frequently sacrificed to her personal discomfort.“Going back to a view of her early days, we are prepared now to forecast her activity in church affairs. Such a nature could not sit by with hands folded. Following her acceptance of gospel privileges through which she came into this church, she immediately entered into parish activities at Seneca Falls. Being a woman of action, she did her part in the then somewhat limited sphere of woman’s church work. Little as it may have been comparatively, it was another demand upon her already enlarging engagements.“Her removal to this city deprived her ofthe worship of her own church. The then line of demarcation of the religious public into ‘Mormons’ and ‘Gentiles’ very likely infused into the latter a fellow sympathy. Soon after her settlement here, the Rev. Mr. Rice invited her to attend a meeting of a sewing society which was held at his house. This happened to be the annual meeting; she was elected president of the society, and Mrs. Douglas first director. In her ‘Early Recollections’ her felicitous comment is this: ‘Thus putting their affairs in the hands of two Episcopalians.’ But evidently affairs did not suffer at their hands, for they ‘carried through a successful fair’ which secured money to put the first church of the Congregationalists into shape for use.“Her usual interest in what concerned her came out in the organization of this parish. She entered with the same characteristic zeal and expenditure of means into its upbuilding, both as to what was preliminary and also permanent. She has been a good example of what woman can do, and faithful in her service. The women of this parish have worked so assiduously in raising money that among men it has become a lost art.“In spite of advanced years and impairment of strength, she responded with her kindlysupport to my call for organization of a Woman’s Parochial Aid Society. Her kindness to me was ever constant and uniform, and her ingenuous frankness such as I always enjoyed. Plain and albeit of rugged candor in her speech, such is better for this world than the honey covering of deceit. A former Rector, the Rev. Mr. Webb, writes respecting her: ‘My impression of her kindness of heart is that it never failed; and I believe more firmly than ever that it was God’s own cause which she so characteristically espoused, and labored so long and faithfully to promote.’“She had the habit of clipping from newspapers whatever took her fancy. Her recent quiet and somewhat afflicted living, owing to her illness, was given to reading, needle work and entertaining of guests when circumstances admitted. As the golden clouds brightened in the west of her life’s decline, there came a strong inward faith. A late clipping seems to speak her thought: ‘As the weeks and months fly past, do you not think that the spirit of our daily prayer ought to be—“‘Break, my soul, from every fetter,Him to know is all my cry;Saviour, I am thine forever,Thine to live and thine to die,Only askingMore and more of life’s supply’?’“She passed into Paradise on Sunday, December 30, 1894, and left a name worthy to be entered among the illustrious galaxy of notables whom the past year has numbered with the dead. On a beautiful winter’s day, all that remained of mortality was brought to this church, so large an object of her affection, and here, with impressive funeral rites which speak comfortably our blessed hope, we committed her body to the ground. And as the sweet notes of the committal anthem broke in upon the constrained stillness of the scene, how appropriate were the words—mutely echoed by the hushed assembly: ‘Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord * * * for they rest from their labors’!”

“Mrs. Bloomer also held the relation of pioneer to this parish. On the two registers in my possession the first woman’s name is hers.

“On my journey hither to assume the rectorship, I visited by the way at my former home in Michigan. There I first learned of Mrs. Bloomer from a gentleman whom I had met in a college connection while I was an undergraduate. He was a former resident of Seneca Falls, and informed me that in my new home I should meet a unique and striking person in Mrs. Bloomer, whose early days were associated with a remarkable career; that she was nowliving quietly, ill health having compelled her to forego active duties; and that she was now advanced in years.

“Our arrival here was signalized by becoming guests in the Senior Warden’s home. In this we did as all the clergy had done before, for no other home in this city has been the hospitable asylum for so many of the cloth. Among ourselves, the happy descriptive of ‘Saints’ Rest’ has come in vogue. From Mrs. Bloomer that pleasant smile, which often had to triumph over bodily ailment, was my greeting. This showing of hospitality was in keeping with her ambition, which she frequently sacrificed to her personal discomfort.

“Going back to a view of her early days, we are prepared now to forecast her activity in church affairs. Such a nature could not sit by with hands folded. Following her acceptance of gospel privileges through which she came into this church, she immediately entered into parish activities at Seneca Falls. Being a woman of action, she did her part in the then somewhat limited sphere of woman’s church work. Little as it may have been comparatively, it was another demand upon her already enlarging engagements.

“Her removal to this city deprived her ofthe worship of her own church. The then line of demarcation of the religious public into ‘Mormons’ and ‘Gentiles’ very likely infused into the latter a fellow sympathy. Soon after her settlement here, the Rev. Mr. Rice invited her to attend a meeting of a sewing society which was held at his house. This happened to be the annual meeting; she was elected president of the society, and Mrs. Douglas first director. In her ‘Early Recollections’ her felicitous comment is this: ‘Thus putting their affairs in the hands of two Episcopalians.’ But evidently affairs did not suffer at their hands, for they ‘carried through a successful fair’ which secured money to put the first church of the Congregationalists into shape for use.

“Her usual interest in what concerned her came out in the organization of this parish. She entered with the same characteristic zeal and expenditure of means into its upbuilding, both as to what was preliminary and also permanent. She has been a good example of what woman can do, and faithful in her service. The women of this parish have worked so assiduously in raising money that among men it has become a lost art.

“In spite of advanced years and impairment of strength, she responded with her kindlysupport to my call for organization of a Woman’s Parochial Aid Society. Her kindness to me was ever constant and uniform, and her ingenuous frankness such as I always enjoyed. Plain and albeit of rugged candor in her speech, such is better for this world than the honey covering of deceit. A former Rector, the Rev. Mr. Webb, writes respecting her: ‘My impression of her kindness of heart is that it never failed; and I believe more firmly than ever that it was God’s own cause which she so characteristically espoused, and labored so long and faithfully to promote.’

“She had the habit of clipping from newspapers whatever took her fancy. Her recent quiet and somewhat afflicted living, owing to her illness, was given to reading, needle work and entertaining of guests when circumstances admitted. As the golden clouds brightened in the west of her life’s decline, there came a strong inward faith. A late clipping seems to speak her thought: ‘As the weeks and months fly past, do you not think that the spirit of our daily prayer ought to be—

“‘Break, my soul, from every fetter,Him to know is all my cry;Saviour, I am thine forever,Thine to live and thine to die,Only askingMore and more of life’s supply’?’

“‘Break, my soul, from every fetter,

Him to know is all my cry;

Saviour, I am thine forever,

Thine to live and thine to die,

Only asking

More and more of life’s supply’?’

“She passed into Paradise on Sunday, December 30, 1894, and left a name worthy to be entered among the illustrious galaxy of notables whom the past year has numbered with the dead. On a beautiful winter’s day, all that remained of mortality was brought to this church, so large an object of her affection, and here, with impressive funeral rites which speak comfortably our blessed hope, we committed her body to the ground. And as the sweet notes of the committal anthem broke in upon the constrained stillness of the scene, how appropriate were the words—mutely echoed by the hushed assembly: ‘Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord * * * for they rest from their labors’!”

In a grassy plat in beautiful Fairview Cemetery, overlooking the cities of Council Bluffs and Omaha, lies the grave of the true woman, the earnest reformer, the faithful Christian, whose history is delineated in these pages; and near its foot stands a modest monument bearing this inscription:

“IN MEMORIAMAMELIA JENKS, WIFE OF D. C. BLOOMERDIED DEC. 30TH, 1894AGED 76 YEARS, 7 MONTHS, AND 3 DAYSA PIONEER IN WOMAN’S ENFRANCHISEMENT”

And here the author and compiler, commending these pages to the kindly consideration of his readers, brings his labor of love to a close.

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