Free Hannah Saves Samuel (Wanted: Wives In The West 1) by Trinity Ford Page B

reputation and make other fine, upstanding citizens want to move there.
     
    When the pastor met with the young men in his congregation, they complained about the lack of proper women to settle down with and raise a family – a true homestead on the plains. Many of them chose to head up the Chisolm Trail on a two-month cattle drive instead of setting down roots and working for the new processing plant or railway.
     
    Not everyone in the congregation was pleased with the pastor’s idea to publish mail order bride ads on the east coast. After all, it was exactly what Charlie Everman, owner of the Emerald Saloon, had done to get the famous “painted ladies” to come to the bad side of town. Although his purpose was different, and the types of women were, too, many didn’t care that his gesture was pure.
     
    The idea had come to him when he saw Samuel Radcliff sitting in the back of the church one Sunday morning, his head bobbing as he struggled to stay awake from his late night gambling away the money he’d worked hard for in a drunken stupor, trying to dull his pain. The pastor knew he was in a tug-of-war with the Devil himself for this kind soul of this church member. Samuel had been hurting for months now. He had come here to set down roots, with the promise to return to his home in Georgia, marry Abigail Husted and bring her back with him.
     
    He’d held up his end of the bargain, braving the Wild West and securing gainful employment with the meat processing plant so he could afford a beautiful ranch just on the outskirts of town. He envisioned himself raising a big family, teaching his sons how to raise cattle and fish. He’d introduced himself to those in the congregation and become like a son to the elders. He couldn’t wait for them to meet Abigail.
     
    Before he could return to wed her, he got a letter in the mail. She had married another and apologized to Samuel for letting him down. Ever since that day, Samuel had been distant with the townspeople. Part of it was embarrassment, Pastor Littlejohn figured. After all, Abigail was all he could talk about as they got to know him. Now, everyone knew he had been jilted. He was humiliated and broken-hearted. All he wanted was to disappear.
     
    “A wife is what he needs,” the Pastor, unable to get the fight for his flock off his mind, told his wife, Mabel, after church that day.
     
    “Well, why don’t you find him one?” she asked.
     
    “In case you haven’t noticed,” he said, “Fort Worth isn’t exactly overflowing with Godly women. I’m finding it hard to compete with the Acre and the women Charlie brought in with his ads out on the east coast. Even if I wanted to introduce Samuel to a nice, young woman, there’s no one to choose from!”
     
    “Now, Stanley Littlejohn,” she said as she kissed his forehead while he sat eating his dinner, “I’ve never known you to back down in a fight against evil! You need to listen for the voice of the Lord and let Him guide you to the answer.” Mabel always kept him grounded whenever he was in turmoil. He felt blessed to see her beautiful face and have her by his side each and every day.
     
    The pastor had tossed and turned all night. How could he find a suitable woman – not only for Samuel, but for the other men yearning for a Christian soul mate – and convince her to leave her life behind and settle down here forever? After all, most respectable young women wouldn’t travel across the country to an unknown place, and few would be willing to work like the women in the frontier often did. “I’ve got it!” he shouted as he shot upright in bed in the middle of the night.
     
    “Why, Stanley Littlejohn!” Mabel said, alarmed. “You scared me half to death! Are you having a nightmare?”
     
    “No, Mabel,” he said excitedly. “I’ve found the answer. Isaiah 43:6: I will say to the north, Give up; and to the south, keep not back: bring my sons from far, and my daughters from the ends of the