William Furlsbury Carter Mission to India Part 7

William Furlsbury Carter Mission to India Part 7

I feel like adding two or three more installments to this partial report on William’s mission.  I do not know where the original of this mission journal resides today.  There are two, what I consider to be, complete copies of this journal.  The earliest copy is in the LDS Church History Library and is listed as:

William F. Carter journal, 1852 October-1853 December

Carter, William Furlsbury, 1811-1888

Call Number: MS 479

Page 2 of this manuscript has the following typed message:  The original journal was brought to the Historian’s Office March 4, 1966, by Margery Ann Kinder Wing, granddaughter of William F. Carter.

A Xerox copy was made for the family, and this copy for filing in the H. O.  The journal was returned to her.

Margary Ann Kinder was born on 2 Aug 1907 in Benjamin, Utah the daughter of Sarah Matilda (Sally) Carter and Robert Boyack Kinder.  Sarah Matilda Carter was the daughter of William Furlsbury Carter and Sally Ann Mecham.  Margary Ann Kinder Wing died on 8 Dec 1991.

A second copy of this journal is also at the LDS Church History Library and is a transcription of the above record that is saved as a PDF document:

William F. Carter journal, 1852 October-1853 December

Carter, William Furlsbury, 1811-1888

Number: MS 1897

The final page of this transcription has the following:  This transcription of William F. Carter’s journal is of the Church Archive microfilm copy. The spelling and grammar is William’s, but some punctuation and notes in brackets and italics have been added for clarification. William followed the common practice of spelling as a word sounded, and not always the same way. He bought the journal in San Francisco after he had traveled from Utah to California, so his entries were added later for that period of time. Transcribed May 2001 by Virginia Burgess, a great great great granddaughter. A few words couldn’t be deciphered and some are “best guess.”

This transcription is also found at our Carterville.com site attached to William’s record in the genealogy.  I compared the original Xeroxed journal entries with a letter in the Church History Library archives from William to his brother Dominicus written in 1853.  They appear to be in the same had so I have no doubts that the purported original journal is authentic. 

With that said, I would like to discuss in this entry why William left India after only a few months there.  It must be remembered that William was not a young man – he was 42 years old in 1853.  He had been driven out of Kirtland, Far West and Nauvoo.  He had crossed the plains to Utah.  And now he, and his fellow missionaries, had essentially walked from Utah to California traveling without purse or script (meaning without any money) and embarked on a sailing ship to India.  It appears that his age and all of travails were catching up with him.

The following are excerpts from two of his journal entries:

Sunday the 26 [June, 1853] – “…My Health was tolerable good untill I arived in Chunar by being under a tree in the hot wind & son for about 4 hours and then lying in a dingy for about 40 hours where the Thermomiter stood at from 110 to 120 in the shade, which overheated my Blood To such a degree that I have not had good health since. I had a turn of cholic & then I had the Dioree 3 days and I had a pain in my head and my Cidnies troubled me very much which caused such weekniss in my back that it is without Dificulty that I walk about.”

Monday the 27 [June, 1853] – “Br Jones Caled the Elders together to Council together about our futer [future] Labours…Br Jones asked me where I wanted to gow. I told him I thought that I would have to gow to some Colder Climate to live long. Said he I supose you would rather gow to America than any where else. I told him that if I Could have my choice, I would rather gow to America than anywhere elce. Said Br Jones you can gow where you are a mind to. Br Musser Motioned that I gow home to the vallies of the Mountains. it was seconed on, Carried unanimous. Br Jones then said to the Brethren that he had discovered that I had ben failing ever since I came here. he said that I was to far advanced in years and had been through to many hardships to stand the climate of India. for it was as much as they that were young and full of Nerve Could do to stand it and he was satisfyed that were I to stay here I would not live a great while and for his part he Cheerfully approbated my returning home as soon as posible and that I should gow with his Blessings and have his Prays and all the Brethren Responded to the same and Advised me to get away as soon as posible, for I was Running down as fast as posible &c. I had the Ague sweet [sweat] on me day & night. I could but gust get about the house. I was sow feble.”

So, what exactly was going on with William’s health?  At first glance because of his reactions to the extreme heat he could have been having heat stroke symptoms.  But there was more going on as near the end of the Monday entry in his journal he mentions “Ague sweet” [or sweat}.  Ague is an old name for malaria which is what William had probably contracted.  Malaria is a mosquito-borne disease caused by parasite.  People who get malaria are typically very sick with high fevers, shaking chills, and flu-like illness. (https://www.cdc.gov/malaria/) All of this seems to fit the symptoms William had.  It was an act of kindness that his mission companions encouraged him to leave India and return home.  This decision probably saved his life, for which half of his posterity should be grateful to say the least, as many of his children were born after his return to Utah.