June, 1870

The first thing I did was buy a revolver, which cost me almost half my money! I strapped it onto the front of my coat, and was immediately stopped by a policeman. The man was very nice to me, and explained that such a thing was illegal in America. So I have learned to leave my gun behind when walking the streets. I found a job in ironworks at Brady’s Bend, Pennsylvania. They have put me to work building huts for miners.

I am lonely. I am homesick. I am tired.

Jacob Riis