We were in a state of terrible suspense all day Tuesday, all day Wednesday, and until noon to-day; starting at every footfall, expecting telegraphic intelligence either from you or from the South, and deplorably ignorant of Seargent’s alarming condition, notwithstanding all the warning we had had.  With one consent we had put far off the evil day....  And now I must bid you good-night, my dearest husband, praying that you may be the beloved of the Lord and rest in safety by Him.

The early years of Mrs. Prentiss’ married life were in various ways closely connected with that of this lamented brother; so much so that he may be said to have formed one of the most potent, as well as one of the sunniest, influences in her own domestic history.  Not only was he very highly gifted, intellectually, and widely known as a great orator, but he was also a man of extraordinary personal attractions, endeared to all his friends by the sweetness of his disposition, by his winning ways, his wit, his playful humor, his courage, his boundless generosity, his fraternal and filial devotion, and by the charm of his conversation.  His death at the early age of forty-one called forth expressions of profound sorrow and regret from the first men of the nation.  After the lapse of nearly a third of a century his memory is still fresh and bright in the hearts of all, who once knew and loved him. [11]

Notwithstanding the shock of this great affliction, Mrs. Prentiss returned to New Bedford much refreshed in body and mind.  In a letter to her friend Miss Lord, dated September 14th, she writes: 

I spent six most profitable weeks at Newark; went out very little, saw very few people, and had the quiet and retirement I had long hungered and thirsted for.  Since I have had children my life has been so distracted with care and sickness that I have sometimes felt like giving up in despair, but this six weeks’ rest gave me fresh courage to start anew.  I have got some delightful books—­Manning’s Sermons. [12] They are (letting the High-churchism go) most delightful; I think Susan would have feasted on them.  But she is feasting on angels’ food and has need of none of these things.

In October of this year Mrs. Prentiss bade adieu to New Bedford, never to revisit it, and removed to Newark; her husband having become associate pastor of the Second Presbyterian church in that place.  In the spring of the following year he accepted a call to the Mercer street Presbyterian church in New York, and that city became her home the rest of her days.  Although she tarried so short a time in Newark, she received much kindness and formed warm friendships while there.  She continued to suffer much, however, from ill-health and almost entirely suspended her correspondence.  A few letters to New Bedford friends are all that relate to this period.  In one to Mrs. J. P. Allen, dated November 2d, she thus refers to an accident, which came near proving fatal: