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THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS, 


AND 


ACROSS  THE  ROCKY  MOUNTAINS  TO  CALIFORNIA, 


RICHARD  F.  BURTON, 


AUTHOR  OP 


THE  LAKE  REGIONS  OF  CENTRAL  AFRICA,"  ETC. 


iJDxtl)  Illustrations. 


fj 


NEW     YOEK: 

HARPER  &  BROTHERS,  PUBLISHERS, 

FRANKLIN     SQUARE. 

1862. 


''  Cltar  your  mind  of  cant." — Johnson. 

••  MoNTEsrNOS. — America  is  in  more  danger  from  religioui?  fkaaicUm.  The  goremmeQl  ihtrr  a>y 
t:iinking  it  necta^ary  lo  provide  religioui-  instruction  for  the  people  in  any  of  the  new  states,  the  prev- 
alence of  superi-tition,  and  that,  perhaps,  in  some  wild  and  terrible  ^hape,  may  be  looked  for  as  one 
likely  consequence  of  this  great  and  p'jrtentoua  omission.  An  Old  3Ian  of  the  Mountain  might  fin<l 
dupes  and  followers  a*  readily  as  the  All-friend  Jemima ;  and  the  next  Aaron  Burr  who  Beekj;  to  carve 
a  kingdom  for  himself  out  of  the  overgrown  territories  of  the  Union,  rnay  discern  that  fanaticism  i=  the 
m<Ht  effective  weapon  with  which  ambition  can  arm  its.lf :  that  the  way  for  both  is  prepared  by  that 
immorality  which  the  want  of  religion  naturally  and  necessarily  induces,  and  that  camp-m'  eting- 
may  be  very  well  directed  to  forward  the  designs  f>f  military  prophets.  Were  there  another  Moham- 
med to  arise,  there  ie  no  part  of  the  world  where  he  would  find  more  scope  or  fairer  opportunity  than 
in  that  part  of  the  Anglo-American  L'nion  into  which  the  older  statta  continually  discharge  the  rei^- 
leee  part  of  their  population,  leaving  laws  and  Gospel  to  overtake  it  if  they  can,  for  in  the  inarch  of 
modem  colonization  both  are  left  behind." 

Thin  reTnartiahle ]irrfphecy  a2rj>''"red  from  thA  pen  of  Hohert  SMithey,  the  Poet- Laureate,  in  March. 
1829  ("  Sir  Thxrma»  More;  or,  CoUoqvies  on  the  Progress  and  ProxpecU  of  Society"  vol.  i.  Part  11., 
•'  The  Beformation — Dissenters— Metkodista." . 


PROVO.  UTAH 


ebicatiou. 


RICHARD    MONCKTON    MILNES. 


I  HAVE  PREFIXED  YOUR  NAME,  DEAR  MILNES,  TO  "THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS: 

THE  NAME  OP  A  LINGUIST,  TRAVELER,  POET,  AND,  ABOVE  ALL,  A  MAN 

OP  INTELLIGENT  INSIGHT  INTO  THE  THOUGHTS  AND 

FEELINGS  OF  HIS  BROTHER  MEN. 


PREFACE, 


Unaccustomed,  of  late  years  at  least,  to  deal  witli  tales  of 
twice-told  travel,  I  can  not  but  feel,  especially  when,  as  in  the 
present  case,  so  much  detail  has  been  expended  upon  the  trivial- 
ities of  a  Diary,  the  want  of  that  freshness  and  originality  which 
would  have  helped  the  reader  over  a  little  lengthiness.  My  best 
excuse  is  the  following  extract  from  the  lexicographer's  "Jour- 
ney to  the  Western  Islands,"  made  in  company  with  Mr.  Boswell 
during  the  year  of  grace  1773,  and  upheld  even  at  that  late  hour 
as  somewhat  a  feat  in  the  locomotive  line. 

"  These  diminutive  observations  seem  to  take  away  something 
from  the  dignity  of  writing,  and  therefore  are  never  communi- 
cated but  with  hesitation,  and  a  little  fear  of  abasement  and  con- 
tempt. But  it  must  be  remembered  that  life  consists  not  of  a  se- 
ries of  illustrious  actions  or  elegant  enjoyments;  the  greater  part 
of  our  time  passes  in  compliance  with  necessities,  in  the  perform- 
ance of  daily  duties,  in  the  removal  of  small  inconveniences,  in 
the  procurement  of  petty  pleasures,  and  we  are  well  or  ill  at  ease 
as  the  main  stream  of  life  glides  on  smoothly,  or  is  ruflfled  by 
small  obstacles  and  frequent  interruptions," 

True !  and  as  the  novelist  claims  his  right  to  elaborate,  in  the 
"  domestic  epic,"  the  most  trivial  scenes  of  household  routine,  so 
the  traveler  may  be  allowed  to  enlarge,  when  copying  nature  in 
his  humbler  way,  upon  the  subject  of  his  little  drama,  and,  not 
confining  himself  to  the  great,  the  good,  and  the  beautiful,  nor 
suffering  himself  to  be  wholly  engrossed  by  the  claims  of  cotton, 
civilization,  and  Christianity,  useful  knowledge  and  missionary 
enterprise,  to  desipere  in  loco  by  expatiating  upon  his  bed,  his 
meat,  and  his  drink. 

The  notes  forming  the  ground-work  of  this  volume  were  writ- 
ten on  patent  improved  metallic  pocket-books  in  sight  ot  the  ob- 
jects which  attracted  my  attention.  The  old  traveler  is  again 
right  when  he  remarks :   "  There  is  yet  another  cause  of  error  not 


X  PEEFACE. 

always  easily  surmounted,  though  more  dangerous  to  the  veraci- 
ty of  itinerary  narratives  than  imperfect  mensuration.  An  ob- 
server deeply  impressed  by  any  remarkable  spectacle  does  not 
suppose  that  the  traces  will  soon  vanish  from  his  mind,  and,  hav- 
ing commonly  no  great  convenience  for  writing" — Penny  and 
Letts  are  of  a  later  date — "  defers  the  description  to  a  time  of 
more  leisure  and  better  accommodation.  He  who  has  not  made 
the  experiment,  or  is  not  accustomed  to  require  rigorous  accura- 
cy from  himself,  will  scarcely  believe  how  much  a  few  hours  take 
from  certainty  of  knowledge  and  distinctness  of  imagery ;  how 
the  succession  of  objects  will  be  broken,  how  separate  parts  will 
be  confused,  and  how  many  particular  features  and  discrimina- 
tions will  be  found  compressed  and  conglobated  with  one  gross 
and  general  idea."  Brave  words,  somewhat  pompous  and  dif- 
fused, yet  worthy  to  be  written  in  letters  of  gold.  But,  though 
of  the  same  opinion  with  M.  Charles  Didier,  the  Miso- Albion 
(Sejour  chez  le  Grand-Cherif  de  la  Mekkeh,  Preface,  p.  vi.),  when 
he  characterizes  ''un  voyage  de  fantaisie"  as  "le  pire  de  tons  les 
romans,"  and  with  Admiral  Fitzroy  (Hints  to  Travelers,  p.  3), 
that  the  descriptions  should  be  written  with  the  objects  in  view, 
I  would  avoid  the  other  extreme,  viz.,  that  of  publishing,  as  ou"r 
realistic  age  is  apt  to  do,  mere  photographic  representations. 
Byron  could  not  write  verse  when  on  Lake  Leman,  and  the  trav- 
eler who  puts  forth  his  narrative  without  after-study  and  thought 
will  produce  a  kind  of  Persian  picture,  pre-Raphaelitic  enough, 
no  doubt,  but  lacking  distance  and  perspective — in  artists'  phrase, 
depth  and  breadth — in  fact,  a  narrative  about  as  pleasing  to  the 
reader's  mind  as  the  sage  and  saleratus  prairies  of  the  Far  West 
would  be  to  his  ken. 

Ln  working  up  this  book  I  have  freely  used  authorities  well 
known  across  the  water,  but  more  or  less  rare  in  England.  The 
books  principally  borrowed  from  are  "  The  Prairie  Traveler,"  by 
Captain  Marcy ;  "  Explorations  of  Nebraska,''  by  Lieutenant  G. 
A.  Warren ;  and  Mr.  Bartlett's  "  Dictionary  of  Americanisms." 
To  describe  these  regions  without  the  aid  of  their  first  explorers, 
Messrs.  Fremont  and  Stansbury,  would  of  course  have  been  im- 
possible. If  I  have  not  always  specified  the  authority  for  a  state- 
ment, it  has  been  rather  for  the  purpose  of  not  wearying  the  read- 
er by  repetitions  than  with  the  view  of  enriching  my  pages  at  the 
expense  of  others. 

In  commenting  upon  what  was  seen  and  heard,  I  have  endeav- 


PREFACE.  xi 

ored  to  assume — whether  successfully  or  not  the  public  will  de- 
cide— the  cosmopolitan  character,  and  to  avoid  the  capital  erroi-, 
especially  in  treating  of  things  American,  of  looking  at  them 
from  the  fancied  vantage-ground  of  an  English  point  of  view. 
I  hold  the  Anglo-Scandinavian*  of  the  New  World  to  be  in  most 
things  equal,  in  many  inferior,  and  in  many  superior,  to  his  cousin 
in  the  Old ;  and  that  a  gentleman,  that  is  to  say,  a  man  of  edu- 
cation, probity,  and  honor — not,  as  I  was  once  told,  one  who  must 
get  on  onner  and  onnest — is  every  where  the  same,  though  living 
in  separate  hemispheres.  If,  in  the  present  transition  state  of  the 
Far  West,  the  broad  lands  lying  between  the  Missouri  Eiver  and 
the  Sierra  Nevada  have  occasionally  been  handled  somewhat 
roughly,  I  have  done  no  more  than  I  should  have  permitted  my- 
self to  do  while  treating  of  rambles  beyond  railways  through  the 
semi-civilized  parts  of  Great  Britain,  with  their  "  pleasant  primi- 
tive populations" — Wales,  for  instance,  or  Cornwall. 

I  need  hardly  say  that  this  elaborate  account  of  the  Holy  City 
of  the  West  and  its  denizens  would  not  have  seen  the  light  so 
soon  after  the  appearance  of  a  "  Journey  to  Great  Salt  Lake  City," 
by  M.  Jules  Eemy,  had  there  not  been  much  left  to  say.  The 
French  naturalist  passed  through  the  Mormon  Settlements  in 
1855,  and  five  years  in  the  Far  West  are  equal  to  fifty  in  less 
conservative  lands ;  the  results  of  which  are,  that  the  relation  of 
my  experiences  will  in  no  way  clash  with  his,  or  prove  a  tire- 
some repetition  to  the  reader  of  both. 

If  in  parts  of  this  volume  there  appear  a  tendency  to  look  upon 
things  generally  in  their  ludicrous  or  absurd  aspects — from  which 
nothing  sublunary  is  wholly  exempt — my  excuse  must  be  sic  me 
natitra  fecit.  Democritus  was  not,  I  believe,  a  whit  the  worse  phi- 
losopher than  Heraclitus.  The  Procreation  of  Mirth  should  be  a 
theme  far  more  sympathetic  than  the  Anatomy  of  Melancholy, 
and  the  old  Eoman  gentleman  had  a  perfect  right  to  challenge 
all  objectors  with 

rideniem  dicere  verum 
Quid  vetat  ? 

*  The  word  is  proposed  by  Dr.  Norton  Shaw,  Secretary  to  the  Royal  Geographic- 
al Society,  and  should  be  generally  adopted.  Anglo-Saxon  is  to  Anglo- Scandina- 
vian what  Indo-Germanic  is  to  Indo-European;  both  ser\-e  to  humor  the  absurd 
pretensions  of  claimants  whose  principal  claim  to  distinction  is  pretentiousness. 
The  coupling  England  with  Saxony  suggests  to  my  memory  a  toast  once  proposed 
after  a  patriotic  and  fusional  political  feed  in  the  Isle  of  the  Knights — "Malta  .nnd. 
England  united  can  conquer  the  world." 


Xll 


PREFACE. 


Finally,  I  would  again  solicit  forbearance  touching  certain  er- 
lors  of  omission  and  commission  which  are  to  be  found  in  these 
pages.  Her  most  gracious  majesty  has  been  pleased  to  honor  me 
with  an  appointment  as  Consul  at  Fernando  Po,  in  the  Bight  of 
Biafra,  and  the  necessity  of  an  early  departure  has  limited  me  to 
a  single  revise. 

U  St.  James'  Square,  1st  July,  1861 . 


V 


CONTENTS. 


CHAP.  PAGE 

I.    WHY  I  WENT  TO  GEEAT  SALT  LAKE   CITY. — THE  VARIOUS   ROUTES. — THE 

LINE   OF   COUNTRY   TRAVERSED. — DIARIES   AND   DISQUISITIONS 1 

II.    THE    SIOUX   OR   DAKOTAHS 93 

III.  CONCLUDING   THE    ROUTE   TO   THE   GREAT    SALT   LAKE   CITY 131 

IV.  FIRST   WEEK   AT  GREAT   SALT   LAKE    CITY. — PRELIMINARIES 203 

V.    SECOND   WEEK   AT   GREAT   SALT   LAKE   CITY. — VISIT   TO  THE   PROPHET....  237 

VI.   DESCRIPTIVE   GEOGRAPHY,  ETHNOLOGY,  AND   STATISTICS  OF  UTAH  TERRI- 
TORY   272 

VII.    THIRD   WEEK   AT    GREAT   SALT   LAKE   CITY. — EXCURSIONS 322 

VIII.    EXCURSIONS   CONTINUED 343 

IX.    LATTER-DAY   SAINTS. — OP   THE    MORMON   RELIGION 361 

X.    FARTHER   OBSERVATIONS   AT   GREAT    SALT   LAKE    CITY 417 

XI.    LAST  DAYS   AT   GREAT   SALT   LAKE   CITY 441 

XII.    TO   RUBY   VALLEY 443 

XIII.    TO   CARSON   VALLEY 473 

CONCLUSION 499 

APPENDICES 503 


^0  9^aQ 


Q     ■    J 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


PAGE 

GREAT  SALT  LAKE  CITY  FROM  THE  NORTH Frontispiece. 

ROUTE    FROM   THE   MISSOURI   RIVER   TO    THE   PACIFIC tO  face  1 

map  of  the  wasach  mountains  and  great  salt  lake "  1 

general  map  of  north  america "  1 

the  western  yoke 23 

chimney  rock 74: 

scott's  bluffs 77 

INDIANS 94 

PLAN   OP   GREAT   SALT   LAKE    CITT tO  face   193 

STORES   IN  MAIN   STREET 199 

ENDOWMENT   HOUSE    AND   TABERNACLE 221 

THE   prophet's   BLOCK 247 

THE   TABERNACLE 259 

ANCIENT   LAKE   BENCH-LAND 272 

THE   DEAD   SEA 322 

ENSIGN  PEAK 358 

DESERET    ALPHABET 420 

MOUNT  NEBO 443 

FIRST   VIEW   OF   CARSON   LAKE 490 

VIRGINIA   CITY 498 

IN  THE    SIERRA   NEVADA 502 


in^4. 


TS. 


ine  of  Country 

OmISsTm   R»^^^hout  visit- 

ise  a  novel 

3nmark,  by 

,dd  the  last 

bung  rival, 

,  r'.ccah;  and 

^^yce  "in  that 

'4thework- 

.revelatiertl. 

Great_gJ3t 

^s,  not  as  at . 

l^Jittle  skir- 

and  Jack- 

lat  failing, 

^ing  to  the 

^■i'Mie  proper, 

^kn  the  At- ' 

'  "^  e  Occiden- 

<ii^,jLWnteviG:  the 

'^^.^"My^p.igh  clear- 

'£at  Cathay 

.^itious  for 

'I'mmer  of 

,'_,  i.i'X'nianches, 

vernment 

)n;  intes- 

xkotah  or 

Pawnee, 

road  ran. 

nigrants, 

Durposes, 


lanion,  landman  <t  Co 


Ai 


\ 


THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

Why  I  went  to  Great  Salt  Lake  City. — The  various  Koutes. — The  Line  of  Country 
traversed. — Diaries  and  Disquisitions. 

A  TOUR  througli  the  domains  of  Uncle  Samuel  without  visit- 
ing the  wide  regions  of  the  Far  West  would  be,  to  use  a  novel 
simile,  like  seeing  Hamlet  with  the  part  of  Prince  of  Denmark,  by 
desire,  omitted.  Moreover,  I  had  long  determined  to  add  the  last 
new  name  to  the  list  of  "  Holy  Cities  ;"  to  visit  the  young  rival, 
soi-disant,  of  Memphis,  Benares,  Jerusalem,  Rome,  Meccah ;  and 
after  having  studied  the  beginnings  of  a  mighty  empire  "  in  that 
New  World  which  is  the  Old,"  to  observe  the  origin  and  the  work- 
ing of  a  regular  go-ahead  Western  and  Columbian  revelatioT|, 
MiTTolftj^  y^ufh  i>>p  wkli  nf  prospp.ctirip-  the  City  of  the  Great  ^Jlfc 
Lake  in  a  spiritual  point  of  view,  of  seeing  Utah  as  it  is.  not  asqt-.^ 
is^said  to  be,  was  the  mundane  desire  of  enjoying  a  little  skir-  ^ 
imshmg  with  the  savages,  who  in  the  days  of  Harrison  and  Jack- 
son had  given  the  pale  faces  tough  work  to  do,  and  that  failing, 
of  inspecting  the  line  of  route  which  Nature,  according  to  :tke 
general  consensus  of  guide-books,  lias  pointed  out  as  the  prop^>.. 
indeed  the  only  practical  direction  for  a  railway  between  the  At-  ' 
lantic  and  the  Pacific.  The  commerce  of  the  world,  the  Occiden- 
tal Press  had  assured  me,  is  undergoing  its  grand  climacteric :  the 
resources  of  India  and  the  nearer  orient  are  now  well-nigh  clear- 
ed of  "loot,"  and  our  sons,  if  they  would  walk  in  the  paths  of 
their  papas,  must  look  to  Cipangri  and  the  parts  about  Cathay 
for  their  annexations.  . 

The  Man  was  ready,  the  Hour  hardly  appeared  propitious  for 
other  than  belligerent  purposes.  Throughout  the  summer  of 
1860  an  Indian  war  was  raging  in  Nebraska;  the  Comanches, 
Kiowas,  and  Cheyennes  were  "out;"  the  Federal  government 
had  dispatched  three  columns  to  the  centres  of  confusion ;  intes- 
tine feuds  among  the  aborigines  were  talked  of;  the  Dakotah  or 
Sioux  had  threatened  to  "  wipe  out"  their  old  foe  the  Pawnee, 
both  tribes  being  possessors  of  the  soil  over  which  the  road  ran. 
Horrible  accounts  of  murdered  post-boys  and  cannibal, emigrants, 
greatly  exaggerated,  as  usual,  for  private  and  public  purposes, 

A 


,  GjiuKa  Bhm 


THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

Why  I  went  to  Great  Salt  Lake  City. — The  various  Routes. — The  Line  of  Country 
traversed. — Diaries  and  Disquisitions. 

A  TOUR  through  the  domains  of  Uncle  Samuel  without  visit- 
ing the  wide  regions  of  the  Far  West  would  be,  to  use  a  novel 
simile,  like  seeing  Hamlet  with  the  part  of  Prince  of  Denmark,  by 
desire,  omitted.  Moreover,  I  had  long  determined  to  add  the  last 
new  name  to  the  list  of  "Holy  Cities;"  to  visit  the  young  rival, 
soi-disant,  of  Memphis,  Benares,  Jerusalem,  Rome,  Meccah;  and 
after  having  studied  the  beginnings  of  a  mighty  empire  "  in  that 
New  World  which  is  the  Old,"  to  observe  the  origin  and  the  work- 
ing of  a  regular  go-ahead  Western  and  Columbian  revelatic^ 
MiiTor1fij[  -y^itlT  tVip  VLr\^h  nf  prospp.p.ting  the  Citv  of  the  Great  Salbj 
Lake  ina  spiritual  point  of  view,  ofseeing  Utah  as  it  is.  not  as  4^^ 
is^said  to  be,  was  the  mundane  desire  01  enjoying  a  little  skir-  ^ 
mishing  with  the  savages,  who  in  the  days  of  Harrison  and  Jack- 
son had  given  the  pale  faces  tough  work  to  do,  and  that  failing, 
of  inspecting  the  line  of  route  which  Nature,  according  to  :^e 
general  consensus  of  guide-books,  lias  pointed  out  as  the  prop^y ;  ^ 
indeed  the  only  practical  direction  for  a  railway  between  the  At-  \|., 
lantic  and  the  Pacific.  The  commerce  of  the  world,  the  Occiden- 
tal Press  had  assured  me,  is  undergoing  its  grand  climacteric :  the 
resources  of  India  and  the  nearer  orient  are  now  well-nigh  clear- 
ed of  "loot,"  and  our  sons,  if  they  would  walk  in  the  paths  of 
their  papas,  must  look  to  Cipangri  and  the  parts  about  Cathay 
for  their  annexations. 

The  Man  was  ready,  the  Hour  hardly  appeared  propitious  for 
other  than  belligerent  purposes.  Throughout  the  summer  of 
1860  an  Indian  war  was  raging  in  Nebraska;  the  Comanches, 
Kiowas,  and  Cheyennes  were  "out;"  the  Federal  government 
had  dispatched  three  columns  to  the  centres  of  confusion ;  intes- 
tine feuds  among  the  aborigines  were  talked  of;  the  Dakotah  or 
Sioux  had  threatened  to  "  wipe  out"  their  old  foe  the  Pawnee, 
both  tribes  being  possessors  of  the  soil  over  which  the  road  ran. 
Horrible  accounts  of  murdered  post-boys  and  cannibal  emigrants, 
greatly  exaggerated,  as  usual,  for  private  and  public  purposes, 


Chap.  I. 


THE  PACIFIC  KAILEOAD. 


for  a  "  Pacific  Eailroad"  between  the  Mississippi  and  tlie  West- 
ern Ocean,  the  Northern,  Central,  and  Southern.* 

The  first,  or  British,  was  in  my  case  not  to  be  thought  of;  it 
involves  semi-starvation,  possibly  a  thorough  plundering  by  the 
Bedouins,  and,  what  was  far  worse,  five  or  six  months  of  slow 
travel.  The  third,  or  Southern,  known  as  the  Butterfield  or 
American  Express,  offered  to  start  me  in  an  ambulance  from  St. 
Louis,  and  to  pass  me  through  Arkansas,  El  Paso,  Fort  Yuma  on 
the  Gila  Eiver,  in  fact  through  the  vilest  and  most  desolate  por- 
tion of  the  West.  Twenty-four  mortal  days  and  nights — twenty- 
five  being  schedule  time — must  be  spent  in  that  ambulance ;  pas- 
sengers becoming  crazy  by  whisky,  mixed  with  want  of  sleep,  are 
often  obliged  to  be  strapped  to  their  seats ;  their  meals,  dispatch- 
ed during  the  ten-minute  halts,  are  simply  abominable,  the  heats 
are  excessive,  the  climate  malarious ;  lamps  may  not  be  used  at 
night  for  fear  of  unexisting  Indians :  briefly,  there  is  no  end  to 

*  The  following  table  shows  the  lengths,  comparative  costs,  etc.,  of  the  several 
routes  exploited  for  a  railroad  from  the  Mississippi  to  the  Pacific,  as  extracted  from 
the  Speech  of  the  Hon.  Jefferson  Davis,  of  Mississippi,  on  the  Pacific  Railway  Bill 
in  the  United  States  Senate,  January,  1859,  and  quoted  by  the  Hon.  Sylvester  Maury 
in  the  "Geography  and  Resources  of  Arizona  and  Sonora." 


Eoims. 

•a 

i  . 

£■5 
as 

is 

c 

•0 
E 

3 

IS 
Is 
0 

"55 
■•BS 

0  5  £  3 .5  a 

III 

111 

Route  near  forty-seventh  and  forty- 
ninth  parallels,  from  St.  Paul  to 
Seattle 

Miles. 
1955 
ISOO 
2299 

2325 

2535 
2366 
2090 

2174 
174S 
16S3 

Feet. 
18,654 
17,645 
29,120* 

49,985t 

56,514t 
4S,521t 
48,862t 

38,2005 
30,181§ 
33,4545 

Dollars. 
136,871,000 
425,781,000 
122,770,000 

Impracticable. 

Impracticable. 

113,000,000 

99,000,000 

94,000,000 
72,000,000 
7-2,000,000 

535 
374 
899 

SC5 

915 
916 
690 

984 
553 
524 

1490 
14C0 
1400 

14C0 

1620 
1450 
1400 

1190 
1190 
1159 

Feet. 
6,04i 
6,044 
8,373 

10,032 

10,032 
7,550 
7,550 

5,717 
5,717 
5,717 

Route  near  forty-seventh  and  forty- 
ninth  parallels,  from  St  Paul  to 

Route    near  forty-first    and  forty- 
second  parallels,  from  Rock  Isl- 
and, via  South  Pass,  to  Benicia. . . 

Route  near  thirty-eighth  and  thirty- 
ninth  parallels,  from  St.  Louis,  -via 
Coo-che-to-pa   and  Tah-ee-chay- 
pah  passes  to  San  Francisco 

Route  near  thirty-eighth  and  thirty- 
ninth  parallels,  from   St.  Louis, 
via  Coo-chee-to-pa  and  Madeline 

Route  near  thirty-fifth  parallel,from 
Memphis  to  San  Francisco 

Route  near  thii-ty-second  parallel, 
from  Memphis  to  San  Pedro 

Route  near  thirty-second  parallel, 
near    Gaines'    Landing,  t"    San 
Francisco  by  coast  route 

Route  near  thirty-second  parallel, 
from  Gaines'  Landing  to  San  Pedro 

Route  near  thirty-second  parallel, 
from  Gaines'  Landing  to  San  Diego 

•  The  ascents  and  descents  between  Eock  Island  and  Council  Bluffs  are  not  known,  and  therefore 
not  included  in  this  sum.  .  ^  ,  ,  ii,„,„f„,o  n^f  in 

+  The  ascents  and  descents  between  St  Louis  and  Westport  are  not  known,  and  therefore  not  in- 
cluded in  this  sum.  _    .  ,  , ,  j  ti,  „<•„-»  „„»  s„ 

t  The  ascents  and  descents  between  Memphis  and  Fort  Smith  are  not  known,  and  therefore  not  in- 
cluded in  this  sum.  _  ,  .  ,  ,  lu  „_„<•„..«  nnf 

§  The  ascents  and  descents  between  Gaines'  Landing  and  Fulton  are  not  known,  and  therefore  not 
included  in  this  sum. 


4  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

this  Via  Mala's  miseries.  The  line  received  from  the  United 
States  government  upward  of  half  a  million  of  dollars  j^er  annum 
for  carrying  the  mails,  and  its  contract  had  still  nearly  two  years 
to  run. 

There  remained,  therefore,  the  central  route,  which  has  two 
branches.  You  may  start  by  stage  to  the  gold  regions  about 
Denver  City  or  Pike's  Peak,  and  thence,  if  not  accidentally  or 
purposely  shot,  you  may  proceed  by  an  uncertain  ox-train  to 
Great  Salt  Lake  City,  which  latter  part  can  not  take  less  than 
thirty -five  days.  On  the  other  hand,  there  is  "  the  great  emigra- 
tion route"  from  Missouri  to  California  and  Oregon,  over  which 
so  many  thousands  have  traveled  within  the  past  few  years.  I 
quote  from  a  useful  little  volume,  "  The  Prairie  Traveler,"*  by 
Eandolph  B.  Marcy,  Captain  U.  S.  Army.  "  The  track  is  broad, 
well  worn,  and  can  not  be  mistaken.  It  has  received  the  major 
part  of  the  Mormon  emigration,  and  was  traversed  by  the  army 
in  its  march  to  Utah  in  1857." 

The  mail-coach  on  this  line  was  established  in  1850,  by  Colonel 
Samuel  H.  Woodson,  an  eminent  lawyer,  afterward  an  M.  C,  and 
right  unpopular  with  Mormondom,  because  he  sacrilegiously  own- 
ed part  of  Temple  Block,  in  Independence,  Mo.,  which  is  the  old 
original  New  Zion.  The  following  are  the  rates  of  contract  and 
the  phases  through  which  the  line  has  passed. 

1.  Colonel  Woodson  received  for  carrying  a  monthly  mail 
$19,500  (or  $23,000?):  length  of  contract  4  years. 

2.  Mr.  F.  M'Graw,  $13,500,  besides  certain  considerable  extras. 

3.  Messrs.  Heber  Kimball  &  Co.  (Mormons),  $23,000. 

4.  Messrs.  Jones  &  Co.,  $30,000. 

5.  Mr.  J.  M.  Hockaday,  weekly  mail,  $190,000. 

6.  Messrs.  Eussell,  Majors,  &  Waddell,  army  contractors ;  weekly 
mail,  $190,000.t 

Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  in  1856  the  transit  was  in  the  hands 
of  the  Latter-Day  Saints :  they  managed  it  well,  but  they  lost  the 
contracts  during  their  troubles  with  the  federal  government  in 
1857,  when  it  again  fell  into  Gentile  possession.  In  those  early 
days  it  had  but  three  changes  of  mules,  at  Forts  Bridger,  Lara- 
mie, and  Kearney.  In  May,  1859,  it  was  taken  up  by  the  present 
firm,  which  expects,  by  securing  the  monopoly  of  the  whole  line 
between  the  Missouri  River  and  San  Francisco,  and  by  canvass- 
ing at  head-quarters  for  a  bi-weekly — which  they  have  now  ob- 
tained— and  even  a  daily  transit,  which  shall  constitutionally  ex- 
tinguish the  Mormon  community,  to  insert  the  fine  edge  of  that 

*  Printed  by  Messrs.  Harper  &  Brothers,  New  York,  ]  859,  and  Messrs.  Sampson 
Low,  Son,  and  Co.,Ludgate  Hill,  and  amply  meriting  the  honors  of  a  second  edi- 
tion. 

t  In  the  American  Almanac  for  18G1  (p.  19G),  the  length  of  routes  in  Utah  Ter- 
ritory is  1450  miles,  533  of  which  have  no  specified  mode  of  transportation,  and  the 
remainder,  977.  in  coaches;  the  total  transportation  is  thus  170,872  miles,  and  the 
total  cost  $144,G38. 


0  o 


..G 


Chap, 

wedge  which  is  to  open  an  aperture  for  the  Pacific  Railroad  about 

to  be.  At  Saint  Joseph  (Mo.),  better  known  by  the  somewhat 
irreverent  abbreviation  of  St.  Jo,  I  was  introduced  to  Mr.  Alex- 
ander Majors,  formerly  one  of  the  contractors  for  supplying  the 
army  in  Utah — a  veteran  mountaineer,  familiar  with  life  on  the 
prairies.  His  meritorious  efforts  to  reform  the  morals  of  the  laud 
have  not  yet  put  forth  even  the  bud  of  promise.  He  forbade  his 
drivers  and  employes  to  drink,  gamble,  curse,  and  travel  on  Sun- 
days ;  he  desired  them  to  peruse  Bibles  distributed  to  them  gratis ; 
and  though  he  refrained  from  a  lengthy  proclamation  command- 
ing his  lieges  to  be  good  boys  and  girls,  he  did  not  the  less  expect 
it  of  them.  Eesults :  I  scarcely  ever  saw  a  sober  driver ;  as  for 
profanity — the  Western  equivalent  for  hard  swearing — they  would 
make  the  blush  of  shame  crimson  the  cheek  of  the  oldlsis  bargee; 
and,  rare  exceptions  to  the  rule  of  the  United  States,  they  are  not 
to  be  deterred  from  evil  talking  even  by  the  dread  presence  of  a 
"  lady."  The  conductors  and  road-agents  are  of  a  class  superior 
to  the  drivers ;  they  do  thei#  harm  by  an  inordinate  ambition  to 
distinguish  themselves.  I  met  one  gentleman  who  owned  to  three 
murders,  and  another  individual  who  lately  attempted  to  ration 
the  mules  with  wild  sage.  The  company  was  by  no  means  rich ; 
already  the  papers  had  prognosticated  a  failure,  in  consequence 
of  the  government  withdrawing  its  supplies,  and  it  seemed  to 
have  hit  upon  the  happy  expedient  of  badly  entreating  travelers 
that  good  may  come  to  it  of  our  evils.  The  hours  and  halting- 
places  were  equally  vilely  selected ;  for  instance,  at  Forts  Kear- 
ney, Laramie,  and  Bridger,  the  only  points  where  supplies,  com- 
fort, society,  are  procurable,  a  few  minutes  of  grumbling  delay 
were  granted  as  a  favor,  and  the  passengers  were  hurried  on  to 
some  distant  wretched  ranch,*  apparently  for  the  sole  purpose  of 
putting  a  few  dollars  into  the  station-master's  pockets.  The  travel 
was  unjustifiably  slow,  even  in  this  land,  where  progress  is  mostly 
on  paper.  From  St.  Jo  to  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  the  mails  might 
easily  be  landed  during  the  fine  weather,  without  inconvenience 
to  man  or  beast,  in  ten  days ;  indeed,  the  agents  have  offered  to 
place  them  at  Placerville  in  fifteen.  Yet  the  schedule  time  being 
twenty-one  days,  passengers  seldom  reached  their  destination  be- 
fore the  nineteenth ;  the  sole  reason  given  was,  that  snow  makes 
the  road  difiicult  in  its  season,  and  that  if  people  were  accustomed 
to  fast  travel,  and  if  letters  were  received  under  schedule  time, 
they  would  look  upon  the  boon  as  a  right. 

Before  proceeding  to  our  preparations  for  travel,  it  may  be  as 
well  to  cast  a  glance  at  the  land  to  be  traveled  over. 

*  ' '  Rancho"  in  Mexico  means  primarily  a  rude  thatched  hut  where  herdsmen 
pass  the  night;  the  "rancharia"  is  a  sheep-walk  or  cattle-run,  distinguished  from 
a  "hacienda,"  which  must  contain  cultivation.  In  California  it  is  a  large  farm 
with  grounds  often  measured  by  leagues,  and  it  applies  to  any  dirty  hovel  in  the 
Mississippian  Valley. 


g  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

The  United  States  territory  lying  in  direct  line  between  the 
Mississippi  Eiver  and  the  Pacific  Ocean  is  now  about;  1200  miles 
long  from  north  to  south,  by  1500  of  breadth,  in  49°  and  32°  N". 
lat.,  about  equal  to  Equatorial  Africa,  and  1800  in  N.  lat.  88°. 
The  great  uncultivable  belt  of  plain  and  mountain  region  through, 
which  the  Pacific  Eailroad  must  run  has  a  width  of  1100  statute 
miles  near  the  northern  boundary ;  in  the  central  line,  1200 ; 
and  through  the  southern,  1000.  Humboldt  justly  ridiculed  the 
"  maddest  natural  philosopher"  who  compared  the  American  con- 
tinent to  a  female  figure — long,  thin,  watery,  and  freezing  at  the 
58th°,  the  degrees  being  symbolic  of  the  year  at  which  woman 
grows  old.  Such  description  manifestly  will  not  apply  to  the 
2,000,000  of  square  miles  in  this  section  of  the  Great  Eepublic — 
she  is  every  where  broader  than  she  is  long. 

The  meridian  of  105°  north  longitude  (G.) — Fort  Laramie  lies 
in  104°  31'  26" — divides  this  vast  expanse  into  two  nearly  equal 
parts.  The  eastern  half  is  a  basin  or  river  valley  rising  gradually 
from  the  Mississippi  to  the  Black  Sills,  and  the  other  outlying 
ranges  of  the  Eocky  Mountains.  The  average  elevation  near  the 
northern  boundary  (49°)  is  2500  feet,  in  the  middle  latitude  (38°) 
6000  feet,  and  near  the  southern  extremity  (32°),  about  4000  feet 
above  sea  level.  These  figures  explain  the  complicated  features 
of  its  water-shed.  The  western  half  is  a  mountain  region  whose 
chains  extend,  as  far  as  they  are  known,  in  a  general  N.  and  S. 
direction. 

The  99th  meridian  (G.)— Fort  Kearney  lies  in  98°  58'  11"— 
divides  the  western  half  of  the  Mississippian  Yalley  into  two  un- 
equal parts. 

The  eastern  portion,  from  the  Missouri  to  Fort  Kearney — 400 
to  500  miles  in  breadth — may  be  called  the  "Prairie  land."  It 
is  true  that  passing  westward  of  the  97°  meridian,  the  mauvaises 
terres^  or  Bad  Grounds,  are  here  and  there  met  with,  especially 
near  the  42d  parallel,  in  which  latitude  they  extend  farther  to  the 
east,  and  that  upward  to  99°  the  land  is  rarely  fit  for  cultivation, 
thougb  fair  for  grazing.  Yet  along  the  course  of  the  frequent 
streams  there  is  valuable  soil,  and  often  sufiicient  wood  to  support 
settlements.  This  territory  is  still  possessed  by  settled  Indians, 
by  semi-nomads,  and  by  powerful  tribes  of  equestrian  and  wan- 
dering savages,  mixed  with  a  few  white  men,  who,  as  might  be 
expected,  excel  them  in  cunning  and  ferocity. 

The  western  portion  of  the  valley,  from  Fort  Kearney  to  the 
base  of  the  Eocky  Mountains — a  breadth  of  300  to  400  miles — is 
emphatically  "the  desert,"  sterile  and  uncultivable,  a  dreary  ex- 
panse of  wild  sage  (artemisia)  and  saleratus.  The  surface  is  sandy, 
gravelly,  and  pebbly ;  cactus  carduus  and  aloes  abound ;  grass  is 
found  only  in  the  rare  river  bottoms  where  the  soils  of  the  differ- 
ent strata  are  mixed,  and  the  few  trees  along  the  borders  of  streams 
— fertile  lines  of  wadis,  which  laborious  irrigation  and  coal  mining 


Chap.  I. 


THE  WESTERN  GRAZING-GROUNDS. 


might  convert  into  oases — are  the  cotton-wood  and  willow,  to  which 
the  mezquite*  may  be  added  in  the  southern  latitudes.  The  des- 
ert is  mostly  uninhabited,  imVidurable  even  to  the  wildest  Indian. 
But  the  people  on  its  easternland  western  frontiers,  namely,  those 
holding  the  extreme  limit^of  (the  fertile  prairie,  and  those  occupy- 
ing the  desirable  regions  of  tpe  western  mountains,  are,  to  quote 
the  words  of  Lieutenant  Gt  iivjprneur  K.  "Warren,  U.  S.  Topograph- 

nnaissances  and  explanations 
ere  published  in  the  Eeports 


ical  Engineers,  whose  vali:ja 
of  Nebraska  in  1855,  '56j 
of  the  Secretary  of  War,  f 
ulation  and  agriculture 
gives  these  outposts  much 
tic  frontier,  in  view  of  the 
mountains,  between  whi(jt 
ble  trade  would  exist.    T!h  3 
ing  to  the  east  for  a  maifi 
tion  has  passed  over  the 
discoveries  of  gold  have 
pel  it  to  the  fertile  valley 
present  frontier  of  Kansas 
for  all  the  products  of  the 
of  the  mountains  will  rec 
benefits  which  the  westerr 
the  Santa  Fe  tract,  and  sti 
Leavenworth  by  the  opera 
rior  region.     This  flow  of  ^ 
only  in  one  direction ;  but  w 
as  they  eventually  must,  then 
terially  beneficial  to  both." 

The  mountain  region  west 
ert,  extending  between  the 
tie  more  than  400  miles — will 
Though  in  many  parts  arid  a; 
long  bunch  grass  (Festuca),  the 
dactyloides),  the  mesquit  grass  ( 
rather,  as  it  should  be  called,  ' 

wwm),t  which  clothe  the  slopes  west  of  Fort  Laramie,  will  enable 
it  to  rear  an  abundance  of  stock.  The  fertile  valleys,  according 
to  Lieutenant  Warren,  "  furnish  the  means  of  raising  sufiicient 
quantities  of  grain  and  vegetables  for  the  use  of  the  inhabitants, 
and  beautiful  healthy  and  desirable  locations  for  their  homes. 
The  remarkable  freedom  here  from  sickness  is  one  of  the  attract- 
ive features  of  the  region,  and  will  in  this  respect  go  far  to  com- 

*  Often  corrupted  from  the  Spanish  to  muskeet  (Algarobia  glandulosa),  a  locust 
inhabiting  Texas,  New  Mexico,  California,  etc.,  bearing,  liiie  the  carob  generally, 
a  long  pod  full  of  sweet  beans,  which,  pounded  and  mixed  with  flour,  are  a  favorite 
food  with  the  Southwestern  Indians. 

t  Some  of  ray  informants  derived  the  word  from  the  Greek  letter ;  others  make  it 
Hispano-Mexican.  '' 


01 

ihe  Vhore  of  a  sea,  up  to  which  pop- 
advance  and  no  farther.     But  this 

I  he  value  of  places  along  the  Atlan- 
t  ire  settlements  to  be  formed  in  the 

I I  the  present  frontier  a  most  valua- 
( istern  frontier  has  always  been  look- 
but  as  soon  as  the  wave  of  emigra- 
;  portion  of  the  plains,  to  which  the 
"y  given  an  impetus  that  will  pro- 

le  Eocky  Mountains,  then  will  the 
Nebraska  become  the  starting-point 
issippi  Valley  which  the  population 
We  see  the  effects  of  it  in  the 
tier  of  Missouri  has  received  from 
re  plainly  in  the  impetus  given  to 
of  the  army  of  Utah  in  the  inte- 
ucts  has,  in  the  last  instance,  been 
L  those  mountains  become  settled, 
ere  will  be  a  reciprocal  trade  ma- 


rd 


lOf 


of  the  sage  and  saleratus  des- 
and  111th  meridian  (G.) — a  lit- 
time  become  sparsely  peopled, 
sterile,  dreary  and  desolate,  the 
ort/ curly  buffalo  grass  {Sisleria 
s2Mta),  and  the  Gramma,  or 
grass  (Chondrosium  foe- 


ramma 


8  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Cn.vp.  I. 

pensate  the  settler  from  the  Mississippi  Valley  for  his  loss  in  the 
smaller  amount  of  products  that  can  be  taken  from  the  soil.  The 
great  want  of  suitable  building  material,  which  now  so  seriously 
retards  the  growth  of  the  West,  will  not  be  felt  there."  The 
heights  of  the  Kocky  Mountains  rise  abruptly  from  1000  to  6000 
feet  over  the  lowest  known  passes,  computed  by  the  Pacific  Rail- 
road surveyors  to  vary  from  4000  to  10,000  feet  above  sea-level. 
The  two  chains  forming  the  eastern  and  western  rims  of  the  Rocky 
Mountain  basin  have  the  greatest  elevation,  walling  in,  as  it  were, 
the  other  sub-ranges. 

There  is  a  popular  idea  that  the  western  slope  of  the  Rocky 
Mountains  is  smooth  and  regular;  on  the  contrary,  the  land  is 
rougher,  and  the  ground  is  more  complicated  than  on  the  eastern 
declivities.  From  the  summit  of  theWasach  range  to  the  eastern 
foot  of  the  Sierra  Nevada,  the  whole  region,  with  exceptions,  is  a 
howling  wilderness,  the  sole  or  bed  of  an  inland  Sweetwater  sea, 
now  shrunk  into  its  remnants — the  Great  Salt  and  the  Utah  Lakes. 
Nothing  can  be  more  monotonous  than  its  regular  succession  of 
high  grisly  hills,  cut  perpendicularly  by  rough  and  rocky  ravines, 
and  separating  bare  and  barren  plains.  From  the  seaward  base 
of  the  Sierra  Nevada  to  the  Pacific — California — the  slope  is  easy, 
and  the  land  is  pleasant,  fertile,  and  populous. 

After  this  aptrcu  of  the  motives  which  sent  me  forth,  once  more 
a  pilgrim,  to  young  Meccah  in  the  West,  of  the  various  routes,  and 
of  the  style  of  country  wandered  over,  I  plunge  at  once  into  per- 
sonal narrative. 

Lieutenant  Dana  (U.  S.  Artillery),  my  future  compagnon  de  voy- 
age^leit  St.  Louis,"  "the  turning-back  place  of  English  sportsmen," 
for  St,  Jo  on  the  2d  of  August,  preceding  me  by  two  days.  Be- 
ing accompanied  by  his  wife  and  child,  and  bound  on  a  weary 
voyage  to  Camp  Floyd,  Utah  Territory,  he  naturally  wanted  a 
certain  amount  of  precise  information  concerning  the  route,  and 
one  of  the  peculiarities  of  this  line  is  that  no  one  knows  any  thing 
about  it.  In  the  same  railway  car  which  carried  me  from  St,  Louis 
were  five  passengers,  all  bent  upon  making  Utah  with  the  least 
delay — an  unexpected  cargo  of  officials :  Mr.  F^*******  a  federal 
judge  with  two  sons ;  Mr.  TV"****,  a  state  secretary ;  and  Mr. 
Gr****,  a  state  marshal.  As  the  sequel  may  show,  Dana  was  doub- 
ly fortunate  in  securing  places  before  the  list  could  be  filled  up  by 
the  unusual  throng:  all  we  thought  of  at  the  time  was  our  good 
luck  in  escaping  a  septidium  at  St,  Jo,  whence  the  stage  started  on 
Tuesdays  only.  We  hurried,  therefore,  to  pay  for  our  tickets — 
$175  each  being  the  moderate  sum — to  reduce  our  luggage  to  its 
minimum  approach  toward  25  lbs.,  the  price  of  transport  for  ex- 

*  St.  Louis  (Mo.)  lies  in  N.  lat.  28°  37'  and  W.  long.  (G.)  90°  16' :  its  elevation 
above  tide  water  is  461  feet ;  the  latest  frost  is  in  the  first  week  of  March,  the  e.irli- 
est  is  in  the  middle  of  November,  giving  some  11.5  days  of  cold.  St,  Joseph  (Mo,) 
lies  about  N.  lat,  39°  40',  and  W,  long.  (,G.)  34°  54'.     * 


Chap.  I.  KIT.  9 

cess  being  exorbitantly  fixed  at  $1  per  lb.,  and  to  lay  in  a  few 
necessaries  for  the  way,  tea  and  sugar,  tobacco  and  cognac.  I  will 
not  take  liberties  with  my  company's  "kit;"  my  own,  however, 
was  represented  as  follows : 

One  India-rubber  blanket,  pierced  in  the  centre  for  a  poncho, 
and  garnished  along  the  longer  side  with  buttons,  and  correspond- 
ing elastic  loops  with  a  strap  at  the  short  end,  converting  it  into 
a  carpet-bag — a  "sine  qua  non"  from  the  equator  to  the  pole.  A 
buffalo  robe  ought  to  have  been  added  as  a  bed :  ignorance,  how- 
ever, prevented,  and  borrowing  did  the  rest.  With  one's  coat  as 
a  pillow,  a  robe,  and  a  blanket,  one  may  defy  the  dangerous 
"  bunks"  of  the  stations. 

For  weapons  I  carried  two  revolvers:  from  the  moment  of 
leaving  St.  Jo  to  the  time  of  reaching  Placerville  or  Sacramento 
the  pistol  should  never  be  absent  from  a  man's  right  side — re- 
member, it  is  handier  there  than  on  the  other — nor  the  bowie- 
knife  from  his  left.  Contingencies  with  Indians  and  others  may 
happen,  when  the  difference  of  a  second  saves  life :  the  revolver 
should  therefore  be  carried  with  its  butt  to  the  fore,  and  when 
drawn  it  should  not  be  leveled  as  in  target  practice,  but  directed 
toward  the  object  by  means  of  the  right  fore  finger  laid  flat  along 
the  cylinder  while  the  medius  draws  the  trigger.  The  instinct- 
ive consent  between  eye  and  hand,  combined  with  a  little  prac- 
tice, will  soon  enable  the  beginner  to  shoot  correctly  from  the  hip; 
all  he  has  to  do  is  to  think  that  he  is  pointing  at  the  mark,  and 
pull.  As  a  precaution,  especially  when  mounted  upon  a  kicking 
horse,  it  is  wise  to  place  the  cock  upon  a  capless  nipple,  rather 
than  trust  to  the  intermediate  pins.  In  dangerous  places  the  re- 
volver should  be  discharged  and  reloaded  every  morning,  both 
for  the  purpose  of  keeping  the  hand  in,  and  to  do  the  weapon 
justice.  A  revolver  is  an  admirable  tool  when  properly  used ; 
those,  however,  who  are  too  idle  or  careless  to  attend  to  it,  had 
better  carry  a  pair  of  "  Derringers."  For  the  benefit  of  buffalo 
and  antelope,  I  had  invested  $25  at  St.  Louis  in  a  "  shooting-iron" 
of  the  "  Hawkins"  style — that  enterprising  individual  now  dwells 
in  Denver  City — it  was  a  long,  top-heavy  rifle ;  it  weighed  12  lbs., 
and  it  carried  the  smallest  ball — 75  to  the  pound — a  combination 
highly  conducive  to  good  practice.  Those,  however,  who  can 
use  light  weapons,  should  prefer  the  Maynard  breech-loader,  with 
an  extra  barrel  for  small  shot ;  and  if  Indian  fighting  is  in  pros- 
pect, the  best  tool,  without  any  exception,  is  a  ponderous  double- 
barrel,  12  to  the  pound,  and  loaded  as  fully  as  it  can  bear  with 
slugs.  The  last  of  the  battery  was  an  air-gun  to  astonish  the  na- 
tives, and  a  bag  of  various  ammunition. 

Captain  Marcy  outfits  his  prairie  traveler  with  a  "little  blue 
mass,  quinine,  opium,  and  some  cathartic  medicine  put  up  in  doses 
for  adults."  I  limited  myself  to  the  opium,  which  is  invaluable 
when  one  expects  five  consecutive  days  and  nights  in  a  prairie 


10  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

wagon,  quinine,  and  "Warburg's  drops,  -without  which  no  traveler 
should  ever  face  fever,  and  a  little  citric  acid,  which,  with  green 
tea  drawn  off  the  moment  the  leaf  has  sunk,  is  perhaps  the  best 
substitute  for  milk  and  cream.  The  "  holy  weed  Nicotian"  was 
not  forgotten  ;  cigars  must  be  bought  in  extraordinary  quantities, 
as  the  driver  either  receives  or  takes  the  lion's  share :  the  most 
satisfactory  outfit  is  a  quantum  sufficit  of  Louisiana  Pirique  and 
Lynchburg  gold-leaf — cavendish  without  its  abominations  of  rum 
and  honey  or  molasses — and  two  pipes,  a  meerschaum  for  luxury, 
and  a  brier-root  to  fall  back  upon  when  the  meerschaum  shall 
have  been  stolen.  The  Indians  will  certainly  pester  for  matches; 
the  best  lighting  apparatus,  therefore,  is  the  Spanish  mechero,  the 
Oriental  sukhtah — agate  and  cotton  match — besides  which,  it  of- 
fers a  pleasing  exercise,  like  billiards,  and  one  at  which  the  Brit- 
ish soldier  greatly  excels,  surpassed  only  by  his  exquisite  skill  in 
stuffing  the  pipe. 

For  literary  purposes,  I  had,  besides  the  two  books  above 
quoted,  a  few  of  the  great  guns  of  exploration,  Fremont,  Stans- 
bury,  and  Gunnison,  with  a  selection  of  the  most  violent  Mormon 
and  Anti-Mormon  polemicals,  sketching  materials — I  prefer  the 
"improved  metallics"  five  inches  long,  and  serving  for  both  diary 
and  drawing-book — and  a  tourist's  writing-case  of  those  sold  by 
Mr.  Field  (Bible  Warehouse,  The  Quadrant),  with  but  one  altera- 
tion, a  snap  lock,  to  obviate  the  use  of  that  barbarous  invention 
called  a  key.  For  instruments  I  carried  a  pocket  sextant  with  a 
double  face,  invented  by  Mr.  George,  of  the  Eoyal  Geographical 
Society,  and  beautifully  made  by  Messrs.  Gary,  an  artificial  hori- 
zon of  black  glass,  and  bubble  tubes  to  level  it,  night  and  day 
compasses,  with  a  portable  affair  attached  to  a  watch-chain — a 
traveler  feels  nervous  till  he  can  ''orienter"  himself — a  pocket 
thermometer,  and  a  B.  P,  ditto.  The  only  safe  form  for  the  lat- 
ter would  be  a  strong  neckless  tube,  the  heavy  pyriform  bulbs  in 
general  use  never  failing  to  break  at  the  first  opportunity.  A 
Stanhope  lens,  a  railway  whistle,  and  instead  of  the  binocular, 
useful  things  of  earth,  a  very  valueless  telescope — (warranted  by 
the  maker  to  show  Jupiter's  satellites,  and  by  utterly  declining 
so  to  do,  reading  a  lesson  touching  the  non-advisability  of  believ- 
ing an  instrument-maker) — completed  the  outfit. 

The  prairie  traveler  is  not  particular  about  toilet:  the  easiest 
dress  is  a  dark  flannel  shirt,  worn  over  the  normal  article ;  no 
braces — I  say  it,  despite  Mr.  Galton — but  broad  leather  belt  for 
"six-shooter"  and  for  "Arkansas  tooth-pick,"  a  long  clasp-knife, 
or  for  the  rapier  of  the  Western  world,  called  after  the  hero  who 
perished  in  the  "red  butchery  of  the  Alamo."  The  netlier  gar- 
ments should  be  forked  with  good  buckskin,  or  they  will  infalli- 
bly give  out,  and  the  lower  end  should  be  tucked  into  the  boots, 
after  the  sensible  fashion  of  our  grandfathers,  before  those  ridicu- 
lous Wellingtons  were  dreamed  of  by  our  sires.     In  warm  weath- 


Chap.  I.  TOILET.  H 

er,  a  pair  of  moccasins  will  be  found  easy  as  slippers,  but  tbey  are 
bad  for  wet  places ;  they  make  the  feet  tender,  they  strain  the 
back  sinews,  and  they  form  the  first  symptom  of  the  savage  mania. 
Socks  keep  the  feet  cold ;  there  are,  however,  those  who  should 
take  six  pair.  The  use  of  the  pocket-handkerchief  is  unknown 
in  the  plains ;  some  people,  however,  are  uncomfortable  without 
it,  not  liking  "se  emungere"  after  the  fashion  of  Horace's  father. 

In  cold  weather — and  rarely  are  the  nights  warm — there  is 
nothing  better  than  the  old  English  tweed  shooting-jacket,  made 
with  pockets  like  a  poacher's,  and  its  similar  waistcoat,  a  "  stom- 
ach warmer"  without  a  roll  collar,  which  prevents  comfortable 
sleep,  and  with  flaps  as  in  the  Year  of  Grace  1760,  when  men 
were  too  wise  to  wear  our  senseless  vests,  whose  only  property 
seems  to  be  that  of  disclosing  after  exertions  a  lucid  interval  of 
linen  or  longcloth.  For  driving  and  riding,  a  large  pair  of  buck- 
skin gloves,  or  rather  gauntlets,  without  which  even  the  teamster 
will  not  travel,  and  leggins — the  best  are  made  in  the  country, 
only  the  straps  should  be  passed  through  and  sewn  on  to  the 
leathers — are  advisable,  if  at  least  the  man  at  all  regards  his  epi- 
dermis :  it  is  almost  unnecessary  to  bid  you  remember  spurs,  but 
it  may  be  useful  to  warn  you  that  they  will,  like  riches,  make  to 
themselves  wings.  The  head-covering  by  excellence  is  a  brown 
felt,  which,  by  a  little  ingenuity,  boring,  for  instance,  holes  round 
the  brim  to  admit  a  ribbon,  you  may  convert  into  a  riding-hat  or 
night-cap,  and  wear  alternately  after  the  manly  slouch  of  Crom- 
well and  his  Martyr,  the  funny  three-cornered  spittoon-like  "  shov- 
el" of  the  Dutch  Georges,  and  the  ignoble  cocked-hat,  which  com- 
pletes the  hideous  metamorphosis. 

And,  above  all  things,  as  you  value  your  nationality — this  is 
written  for  the  benefit  of  the  home  reader — let  no  false  shame 
cause  you  to  forget  your  hat-box  and  your  umbrella.  I  purpose, 
when  a  moment  of  inspiration  waits  upon  leisure  and  a  mind  at 
ease,  to  invent  an  elongated  portmanteau,  which  shall  be  perfec- 
tion— portable — solid  leather  of  two  colors,  for  easy  distinguish- 
ment — snap  lock — in  length  about  three  feet ;  in  fact,  long  enough 
to  contain  without  creasing  "small  clothes,"  a  lateral  compart- 
ment destined  for  a  hat,  and  a  longitudinal  space  where  the  um- 
brella can  repose :  its  depth — but  I  must  reserve  that  part  of  the 
secret  until  this  benefit  to  British  humanity  shall  have  been  duly 
made  by  Messrs,  Bengough  Brothers,  and  patented  by  myself. 

The  dignitaries  of  the  mail-coach,  acting  upon  the  principle 
"first  come  first  served,"  at  first  decided,  maugre  all  our  attempts 
at  "  moral  suasion,"  to  divide  the  party  by  the'interval  of  a  week. 
Presently  reflecting,  I  presume,  upon  the  unadvisability  of  leaving 
at  large  five  gentlemen,  who,  being  really  in  no  particular  hurry, 
might  purchase  a  private  conveyance  and  start  leisurely  west- 
ward, they  were  favored  with  a  revelation  of  "  'cuteness."  On 
the  day  before  departure,  as,  congregated  in  the  Planter's  House 


12  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap,  1. 

Hotel,  we  were  lamenting  over  our  "morning  glory,"  tlie  neces- 
sity of  parting — in  the  prairie  the  more  the  merrier,  and  the  fewer 
the  worse  cheer — a  youth  from  the  office  was  introduced  to  tell, 
Hope-like,  a  flattering  tale  and  a  tremendous  falsehood.  This 
juvenile  delinquent  stated  with  unblushing  front,  over  the  hos- 
pitable cocktail,  that  three  coaches  instead  of  one  had  been  newly 
and  urgently  applied  for  by  the  road-agent  at  Great  Salt  Lake 
City,  and  therefore  that  we  could  not  only  all  travel  together,  but 
also  all  travel  with  the  greatest  comfort.  "We  exulted.  But  on 
the  morrow  only  two  conveyances  appeared,  and  not  long  after- 
ward the  two  dwindled  off  to  one.  "  The  Prairie  Traveler"  doles 
out  wisdom  in  these  words :  "  Information  concerning  the  route 
coming  from  strangers  living  or  owning  jDroperty  near  them,  from 
agents  of  steam-boats  and  railways,  or  from  other  persons  con- 
nected with  transportation  companies" — how  carefully  he  piles 
up  the  heap  of  sorites — "should  be  received  with  great  caution, 
and  never  without  corroboratory  evidence  from  disinterested 
sources."  The  main  difficulty  is  to  find  the  latter — to  catch  your 
hare — to  know  whom  to  believe. 
I  now  proceed  to  my  Diary. 

THE  STAET. 

Tuesday,  1th  August,  1860. 

Precisely  at  8  A.M.  appeared  in  front  of  the  Patee  House — the 
Fifth  Avenue  Hotel  of  St.  Jo — the  vehicle  destined  to  be  our 
home  for  the  next  three  weeks.     We  scrutinized  it  curiously. 

The  mail  is  carried  by  a  "Concord  coach,"  a  spring  wagon, 
comparing  advantageously  with  the  horrible  vans  which  once  dis- 
located the  joints  of  men  on  the  Suez  route.  The  body  is  shaped 
somewhat  hke  an  English  tax-cart  considerably  magnified.  It  is 
built  to  combine  safety,  strength,  and  lightness,  without  the  shght- 
est  regard  to  appearances.  The  material  is  well-seasoned  white 
oak — the  "Western  regions,  and  especially  Utah,  are  notoriously 
deficient  in  hard  woods — and  the  manufacturers  are  the  well- 
known  coachwrights,  Messrs.  Abbott,  of  Concord,  New  Hamp- 
shire ;  the  color  is  sometimes  green,  more  usually  red,  causing  the 
antelopes  to  stand  and  stretch  their  large  eyes  whenever  the  ve- 
hicle comes  in  sight.  The  wheels  are  five  to  six  feet  apart,  afford- 
ing security  against  capsising,  with  little  "gather"  and  less  "  dish ;" 
the  larger  have  fourteen  spokes  and  seven  fellies;  the  smaller 
twelve  and  six.  The  tires  are  of  unusual  thickness,  and  polished 
like  steel  by  the  hard  dry  ground ;  and  the  hubs  or  naves  and  the 
metal  nave-bands  are  in  massive  proportions.  The  latter  not  un- 
frequently  fall  off  as  the  wood  shrinks,  unless  the  wheel  is  allowed 
to  stand  in  water ;  attention  must  be  paid  to  resetting  them,  or  in 
the  frequent  and  heavy  "sidlins"  the  spokes  may  snap  off  all 
round  like  pipe-stems.  The  wagon-bed  is  supported  by  iron 
bands  or  perpendiculars  abutting  upon  wooden  rockers,  which 


Chap.  I.  MAIL-COACH— MULES.  13 

rest  on  strong  leather  thorouglibraces :  these  are  found  to  break 
the  jolt  better  than  the  best  steel  springs,  which,  moreover,  when 
injured,  can  not  readily  be  repaired.  The  whole  bed  is  covered 
with  stout  osnaburg  supported  by  stiff  bars  of  white  oak ;  there  is 
a  sun-shade  or  hood  in  front,  where  the  driver  sits,  a  curtain  be- 
hind which  can  be  raised  or  lowered  at  discretion,  and  four  flaps 
on  each  side,  either  folded  up  or  fastened  down  with  hooks  and 
eyes.  In  heavy  frost  the  passengers  must  be  half  dead  with  cold, 
but  they  care  little  for  that  if  they  can  go  fast.  The  accommoda- 
tions are  as  follows :  In  front  sits  the  driver,  with  usually  a  con- 
ductor or  passenger  by  his  side ;  a  variety  of  packages,  large  and 
small,  is  stowed  away  under  his  leather  cushion ;  when  the  brake 
must  be  put  on,  an  operation  often  involving  the  safety  of  the  ve- 
hicle, his  right  foot  is  planted  upon  an  iron  bar  which  presses  by 
a  leverage  upon  the  rear  wheels ;  and  in  hot  weather  a  bucket  for 
watering  the  animals  hangs  over  one  of  the  lamps,  whose  com- 
panion is  usually  found  wanting.  The  inside  has  either  two  or 
three  benches  fronting  to  the  fore  or  placed  vis-d-vis ;  they  are 
movable  and  reversible,  with  leather  cushions  and  hinged  padded 
backs;  unstrapped  and  turned  down,  they  convert  the  vehicle 
into  a  tolerable  bed  for  two  persons  or  two  and  a  half  Accord- 
ing to  Cocker,  the  mail-bags  should  be  safely  stowed  away  under 
these  seats,  or  if  there  be  not  room  enough,  the  passengers  should 
perch  themselves  upon  the  correspondence ;  the  jolly  driver,  how- 
ever, is  usually  induced  to  cram  the  light  literature  between  the 
wagon-bed  and  the  platform,  or  running-gear  beneath,  and  thus, 
when  ford-waters  wash  the  hubs,  the  letters  are  pretty  certain 
to  endure  ablution.  Behind,  instead  of  dicky,  is  a  kind  of  boot 
where  passengers'  boxes  are  stored  beneath  a  stout  canvas  curtain 
with  leather  sides.  The  comfort  of  travel  depends  upon  packing 
the  wagon ;  if  heavy  in  front  or  rear,  or  if  the  thoroughbraces  be 
not  properly  "fixed,"  the  bumping  will  be  likely  to  cause  nasal 
hemorrhage.  The  description  will  apply  to  the  private  ambu- 
lance, or,  as  it  is  called  in  the  "West,  "avalanche,"  only  the  latter, 
as  might  be  expected,  is  more  convenient;  it  is  the  drosky  in 
which  the  vast  steppes  of  Central  America  are  crossed  by  the 
government  employes. 

On  this  line  mules  are  preferred  to  horses  as  being  more  en- 
during. They  are  all  of  legitimate  race ;  the  breed  between  the 
horse  and  the  she-ass  is  never  heard  of,  and  the  mysterious  ju- 
mard  is  not  believed  to  exist.  In  dry  lands,  where  winter  is  not 
severe— they  inherit  the  sire's  impatience  of  cold — they  are  in- 
valuable animals;  in  swampy  ground  this  American  dromedary 
is  the  meanest  of  beasts,  requiring,  when  stalled,  to  be  hauled  out 
of  the  mire  before  it  will  recover  spirit  to  use  its  legs.  For  sure- 
ness  of  foot  (during  a  journey  of  more  than  1000  miles,  I  saw  but 
one  fall  and  two  severe  stumbles),  sagacity  in  finding  the  road, 
apprehension  of  danger,  and  general  cleverness,  mules  are  supe- 


14  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

rior  to  their  mothers :  their  main  defect  is  an  unhappy  obstinacy 
derived  from  the  other  side  of  the  house.  They  are  great  in  har- 
dihood, never  sick  nor  sorry,  never  groomed  nor  shod,  even  where 
ice  is  on  the  ground ;  they  have  no  grain,  except  five  quarts  per 
diem  when  snow  conceals  the  grass;  and  they  have  no  stable 
save  the  open  corral.  Moreover,  a  horse  once  broken  down  re- 
quires a  long  rest ;  the  mule,  if  hitched  up  or  ridden  for  short  dis- 
tances, with  frequent  intervals  to  roll  and  repose,  may  still,  though 
"res^e,"  get  over  800  miles  in  tolerable  time.  The  rate  of  travel 
on  an  average  is  five  miles  an  hour ;  sis  is  good ;  between  seven 
and  eight  is  the  maximum,  which  sinks  in  hUly  countries  to  three 
or  four.  I  have  made  behind  a  good  j^air,  in  a  light  wagon,  forty 
consecutive  miles  at  the  rate  of  nine  per  hour,  and  in  California 
a  mule  is  little  thought  of  if  it  can  not  accomplish  250  miles  in 
forty-eight  hours.  The  price  varies  from  $100  to  $130  per  head 
when  cheap,  rising  to  $150  or  $200,  and  for  fancy  animals  from 
$250  to  $400.  The  value,  as  in  the  case  of  the  Arab,  depends 
upon  size;  "rats,"  or  small  mules,  especially  in  California,  are 
not  esteemed.  The  "span" — the  word  used  in  America  for  beasts 
well  matched — is  of  course  much  more  expensive.  At  each  sta- 
tion on  this  road,  averaging  twenty-five  miles  apart — beyond  the 
forks  of  the  Platte  they  lengthen  out  by  one  third — are  three 
teams  of  four  animals,  with  two  extra,  making  a  total  of  fourteen, 
besides  two  ponies  for  the  express  riders.  In  the  East  they  work 
beautifully  together,  and  are  rarely  mulish  beyond  a  certain  tick- 
lishness  of  temper,  which  warns  you  not  to  meddle  with  their 
eai-s  when  in  harness,  or  to  attempt  encouraging  them  by  pre- 
ceding them  upon  the  road.  In  the  West,  where  they  run  half 
wild  and  are  lassoed  for  use  once  a  week,  they  are  fearfully  handy 
with  their  heels ;  they  flirt  out  with  the  hind  legs,  they  rear  Hke 
goats,  breaking  the  harness  and  casting  every  strap  and  buckle 
clean  off  the  body,  and  they  bite  their  replies  to  the  chorus  of 
curses  and  blows :  the  wonder  is  that  more  men  are  not  killed. 
Each  fresh  team  must  be  ringed  half  a  dozen  times  before  it  will 
start  fairly ;  there  is  always  some  excitement  in  change ;  some 
George  or  Harry,  some  Julia  or  Sally  disposed  to  shirk  work  or 
to  play  tricks,  some  Brigham  Young  or  General  Harney  —  the 
Trans- Vaal  Republican  calls  his  worst  animal  "  England" — whose 
stubbornness  is  to  be  corrected  by  stone-throwing  or  the  lash. 

But  the  wagon  still  stands  at  the  door.  "We  ought  to  start  at 
8  30  A.M. ;  we  are  detained  an  hour  while  last  words  are  said, 
and  adieu — a  long  adieu — is  bidden  to  joke  and  julep,  to  ice  and 
idleness.  Our  "  plunder"*  is  clapped  on  with  little  ceremony ;  a 
hat-case  falls  open — it  was  not  mine,  gentle  reader — collars  and 
other  small  gear  cumber  the  ground,  and  the  owner  addresses  to 
the  clumsy-handed  driver  the  universal  G —  d — ,  which  in  these 
lands  changes  from  its  expletive  or  chrysalis  form  to  an  adjec- 

*  In  Canada  they  call  personal  luggage  lutin. 


Chap.  I.  THE  SHSSOURI  EIVEK.  15 

tival  development.  "We  try  to  stow  away  as  mucli  as  possible ; 
the  minor  officials,  with  all  their  little  faults,  are  good  fellows, 
civil  and  obliging ;  they  wink  at  non-payment  for  bedding,  stores, 
weapons,  and  they  rather  encourage  than  otherwise  the  multipli- 
cation of  whisky-kegs  and  cigar-boxes.  We  now  drive  through 
the  dusty  roads  of  St.  Jo,  the  observed  of  all  observers,  and  pres- 
ently find  ourselves  in  the  steam  ferry  which  is  to  convey  us 
from  the  right  to  the  left  bank  of  the  Missouri  Eiver.  The  "  Big 
Muddy,"  as  it  is  now  called — the  Yellow  Eiver  of  old  writers — 
venerable  sire  of  snag  and  sawyer,  displays  at  this  point  the  source 
whence  it  has  drawn  for  ages  the  dirty  brown  silt  which  pollutes 
below  their  junction  the  pellucid  waters  of  the  "  Big  Drink."* 
It  runs,  like  the  lower  Indus,  through  deep  walls  of  stiff  clayey 
earth,  and,  like  that  river,  its  supplies,  when  filtered  (they  have 
been  calculated  to  contain  one  eighth  of  solid  matter),  are  sweet 
and  wholesome  as  its  brother  streams.  The  Plata  of  this  region, 
it  is  the  great  sewer  of  the  prairies,  the  main  channel  and  com- 
mon issue  of  the  water-courses  and  ravines  which  have  carried  on 
the  work  of  denudation  and  degradation  for  days  dating  beyond 
the  existence  of  Egypt. 

According  to  Lieutenant  Warren,  who  endorses  the  careful  ex- 
aminations of  the  parties  under  Governor  Stevens  in  1853,  the 
Missouri  is  a  superior  river  for  navigation  to  any  in  the  country, 
except  the  Mississippi  below  their  junction.  It  has,  however,  se- 
rious obstacles  in  wind  and  frost.  From  the  Yellow  Stone  to  its 
mouth,  the  breadth,  when  full,  varies  from  one  third  to  half  a  mile; 
in  low  water  the  width  shrinks,  and  bars  appear.  Where  tim- 
ber does  not  break  the  force  of  the  winds,  which  are  most  violent 
in  October,  clouds  of  sand  are  seen  for  miles,  forming  banks, 
which,  generally  situated  at  the  edges  of  trees  on  the  islands  and 
points,  often  so  much  resemble  the  Indian  mounds  in  the  Missis- 
sippi Valley,  that  some  of  them — for  instance,  those  described  by 
Lewis  and  Clarke  at  Bonhomme  Island  —  have  been  figured  as 
the  works  of  the  ancient  Toltecs.  It  would  hardly  be  feasible  to 
correct  the  windage  by  foresting  the  land.  The  bluffs  of  the  Mis- 
souri are  often  clothed  with  vegetation  as  far  as  the  debouchure 
of  the  Platte  Eiver.  Above  that  point  the  timber,  which  is  chief- 
ly cotton-wood,  is  confined  to  ravines  and  bottom  lands,  varying 
in  width  from  ten  to  fifteen  miles  above  Council  Bluffs,  which  is 
almost  continuous  to  the  mouth  of  the  James  Eiver.  Every 
where,  except  between  the  mouth  of  the  Little  Cheyenne  and  the 
Cannon  Ball  rivers,  there  is  a  sufficiency  of  fuel  for  navigation ; 
but,  ascending  above  Council  Bluffs,  the  protection  afforded  by 
forest  growth  on  the  banks  is  constantly  diminishing.  The  trees 
also  are  injurious;  imbedded  in  the  channel  by  the  "caving-in" 
of  the  banks,  they  form  the  well-known  sawyers,  or  floating  tim- 
bers, and  snags,  trunks  standing  like  chevaux  de  frise  at  various 
*  A  "Drink"  is  any  river:  the  Big  Drink  is  the  Mississippi. 


16  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

inclinations,  pointing  down  the  stream.  From  tlie  moutli  of  the 
James  Eiver  down  to  the  Mississippi,  it  is  a  wonder  how  a  steam- 
er can  run :  she  must  lose  half  her  time  by  laying  to  at  night, 
and  is  often  delayed  for  days,  as  the  wind  prevents  her  passing 
by  bends  filled  with  obstructions.  The  navigation  is  generally 
closed  by  ice  at  Sioux  City  on  the  10th  of  November,  and  at  Fort 
Leavenworth  by  the  1st  of  December.  The  rainy  season  of  the 
spring  and  summer  commences  in  the  latitude  of  Kansas,  Mis- 
souri, Iowa,  and  Southern  Nebraska,  between  the  15th  of  May 
and  the  30th  of  June,  and  continues  about  two  months.  The 
floods  produced  by  the  melting  snows  in  the  mountains  come 
from  the  Platte,  the  Big  Cheyenne,  the  Yellow  Stone,  and  the 
Upper  Missouri,  reaching  the  lower  river  about  the  1st  of  July, 
and  lasting  a  month.  Elvers  like  this,  whose  navigation  depends 
upon  temporary  floods,  are  greatly  inferior  for  ascent  than  for  de- 
scent. The  length  of  the  inundation  much  depends  upon  the 
snow  on  the  mountains :  a  steamer  starting  from  St.  Louis  on  the 
first  indication  of  the  rise  would  not  generally  reach  the  Yellow 
Stone  before  low  water  at  the  latter  point,  and  if  a  miscalculation 
is  made  by  taking  the  temporary  rise  for  the  real  inundation,  the 
boat  must  lay  by  in  the  middle  of  the  river  till  the  water  deepens. 

Some  geographers  have  proposed  to  transfer  to  the  Missouri, 
on  account  of  its  superior  length,  the  honor  of  being  the  real  head 
of  the  Mississippi ;  they  neglect,  however,  to  consider  the  direc- 
tion and  the  course  of  the  stream,  an  element  which  must  enter 
largely  in  determining  the  channels  of  great  rivers.  It  will,  I 
hope,  be  long  before  this  great  ditch  wins  the  day  from  the  glo- 
rious Father  of  Waters. 

The  reader  will  find  in  Appendix  No.  I.  a  detailed  itinerary, 
showing  him  the  distances  between  camping-places,  the  several 
mail  stations  where  mules  are  changed,  the  hours  of  travel,  and 
the  facilities  for  obtaining  wood  and  water — in  fact,  all  things  re- 
quired for  the  novice,  hunter,  or  emigrant.  In  these  pages  I  shall 
consider  the  route  rather  in  its  pictorial  than  in  its  geographical 
aspects,  and  give  less  of  diary  than  of  dissertation  upon  the  sub- 
jects which  each  day's  route  suggested. 

Landing  in  Bleeding  Kansas — she  still  bleeds* — we  fell  at  once 
into  "  Emigration  Eoad,"  a  great  thoroughfare,  broad  and  well 
worn  as  a  European  turnpike  or  a  Eoman  military  route,  and  un- 
doubtedly the  best  and  the  longest  natural  highway  in  the  world, 

*  And  no  wonder  ! 

"  I  advise  you,  one  and  all,  to  enter  every  election  district  in  Kansas  and  vote  at 
the  point  of  the  bowie-knife  and  revolver.  Neither  give  nor  take  quarter,  as  our  case 
demands  it." 

"I  tell  you,  mark  every  scoundrel  among  you  that  is  the  least  tainted  with  Free- 
soilism  or  Abolitionism,  and  exterminate  him.  Neither  give  nor  take  quarter  from 
them." 

(Extracts  from  Speeches  of  General  Stringfellow — happy  name  ! — in  the  Kansas 
Legislature.) 


Chap.  I.  THE  PRAIRIE.  17 

For  five  miles  the  line  bisected  a  bottom  formed  by  a  bend  in  the 
river,  with  about  a  mile's  diameter  at  the  neck.  The  scene  was 
of  a  luxuriant  vegetation.  A  deep  tangled  wood — rather  a  thick- 
et or  a  jungle  than  a  forest — of  oaks  and  elms,  hickory,  basswood,* 
and  black  walnut,  poplar  and  hackberry  {Celtis  crassifolia),  box  el- 
der, and  the  common  willow  {Salix  longifolia\  clad  and  festooned, 
bound  and  anchored  by  wild  vines,  creepers,  and  huge  llianas,  and 
sheltering  an  undergrowth  of  white  alder  and  red  sumach,  whose 
pyramidal  flowers  were  about  to  fall,  rested  upon  a  basis  of  deep 
black  mire,  strongly  suggestive  of  chills — fever  and  ague.  After 
an  hour  of  burning  sun  and  sickly  damp,  the  effects  of  the  late 
storms,  we  emerged  from  the  waste  of  vegetation,  passed  through 
a  straggling  "  neck  o'  the  woods,"  whose  yellow  inmates  remind- 
ed me  of  Mississippian  descriptions  in  the  days  gone  by,  and  after 
spanning  some  very  rough  ground  we  bade  adieu  to  the  valley 
of  the  Missouri,  and  emerged  upon  the  region  of  the  Grand  Prai- 
rie,f  which  we  will  pronounce  "perrairey." 

Differing  from  the  card-table  surfaces  of  the  formation  in  Illi- 
nois and  the  lands  east  of  the  Mississippi,  the  Western  prairies 
are  rarely  flat  ground.  Their  elevation  above  sea-level  varies 
from  1000  to  2500  feet,  and  the  plateau's  aspect  impresses  the  eye 
with  an  exaggerated  idea  of  elevation,  there  being  no  object  of 
comparison — mountain,  hill,  or  sometimes  even  a  tree — to  give  a 
juster  measure.  Another  peculiarity  of  the  prairie  is,  in  places, 
its  seeming  horizontality,  w^hereas  it  is  never  level :  on  an  open 
plain,  apparently  flat  as  a  man's  palm,  you  cross  a  long  ground- 
swell  which  was  not  perceptible  before,  and  on  its  farther  incline 
you  come  upon  a  chasm  wide  and  deep  enough  to  contain  a  set- 
tlement. The  aspect  was  by  no  means  un23repossessing.  Over 
the  rolling  surface,  which,  however,  rarely  breaks  into  hill  and 
dale,  lay  a  tapestry  of  thick  grass  already  turning  to  a  ruddy  yel- 
low under  the  influence  of  approaching  autumn.  The  uniformity 
was  relieved  by  streaks  of  livelier  green  in  the  rich  soils  of  the 
slopes,  hollows,  and  ravines,  where  the  water  gravitates,  and,  in 
the  deeper  "  intervales"  and  bottom  lands  on  the  banks  of  streams 
and  courses,  by  the  graceful  undulations  and  the  waving  lines  of 

*  The  basswood  (Tilla  Americana)  resembles  our  linden  :  the  trivial  name  is  de- 
rived from  "bast,"  its  inner  bark  being  used  for  mats  and  cordage.  From  the  pli- 
ability of  the  bark  and  wood,  the  name  of  the  tree  is  made  synonymous  with  "dough- 
face" in  the  following  extract  from  one  of  Mr.  Brigham  Young's  sermons :  "I  say, 
as  the  Lord  lives,  we  are  bound  to  become  a  sovereign  state  in  the  Union,  or  an  in- 
dependent nation  by  ourselves ;  and  let  them  drive  us  from  this  place  if  they  can — 
they  can  not  do  it.  I  do  not  throw  this  out  as  a  banter.  You  Gentiles,  and  hickor\' 
and  bassu-ood  Mormons,  can  write  it  do^^Ti,  if  you  please ;  but  write  it  as  I  speak  it." 
The  above  has  been  extracted  from  a  "Dictionary  of  Americanisms,"  by  John  Rus- 
sell Bartlett  (London,  Triibner  and  Co.,  1859),  a  glossary  which  the  author's  art  has 
made  amusing  as  a  novel. 

t  The  word  is  somewhat  indefinite.  Hunters  apply  it  generally  to  the  bare  lands 
lying  westward  of  the  timbered  course  of  the  Mississippi ;  in  fact,  to  the  whole  region 
from  the  southern  Rio  Grande  to  the  Great  Slave  Lake. 

B 


18  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

mottes  or  prairie  islands,  thick  clumps  and  patches  simulating  or- 
chards by  the  side  of  cultivated  fields.  The  silvery  cirri  and  cu- 
muli of  the  upper  air  flecked  the  surface  of  earth  with  spots  of 
dark  cool  shade,  surrounded  by  a  blaze  of  sunshine,  and  by  their 
motion,  as  they  trooped  and  chased  one  another,  gave  a  peculiar 
liveliness  to  the  scene ;  while  here  and  there  a  bit  of  hazy  blue 
distance,  a  swell  of  the  sea-like  land  upon  the  far  horizon,  glad- 
dened the  sight — every  view  is  fair  from  afar.  Nothing,  I  may 
remark,  is  more  monotonous,  except  perhaps  the  African  and  In- 
dian jungle,  than  those  prairie  tracts,  where  the  circle  of  which 
you  are  the  centre  has  but  about  a  mile  of  radius ;  it  is  an  ocean 
in  which  one  loses  sight  of  land.  You  see,  as  it  were,  the  ends  of 
the  earth,  and  look  around  in  vain  for  some  object  upon  which 
the  eye  may  rest :  it  wants  the  sublimity  of  repose  so  suggestive 
in  the  sandy  deserts,  and  the  perpetual  motion  so  pleasing  in  the 
aspect  of  the  sea.  No  animals  appeared  in  sight  where,  thirty 
years  ago,  a  band  of  countless  bisons  dotted  the  plains ;  they  will, 
however,  like  the  wild  aborigines,  their  congeners,  soon  be  follow- 
ed by  beiugs  higher  in  the  scale  of  creation.  These  prairies  are 
preparing  to  become  the  great  grazing-grounds  which  shall  sup- 
ply the  unpopulated  East  with  herds  of  civilized  kine,  and  per- 
haps with  the  yak  of  Tibet,  the  llama  of  South  America,  and  the 
koodoo  and  other  African  antelopes. 

As  we  sped  onward  we  soon  made  acquaintance  with  a  tradi- 
tionally familiar  feature,  the  "  pitch-holes,"  or  "  chuck-holes" — the 
ugly  word  is  not  inappropriate — which  render  traveling  over  the 
prairies  at  times  a  sore  task.  They  are  gullies  and  gutters,  not 
nnliKe  the  Canadian  "  cahues"  of  snow  formation :  varying  from 
10  to  50  feet  in  breadth,  they  are  rivulets  in  spring  and  early  sum- 
mer, and — few  of  them  remain  perennial — they  lie  dry  during  the 
rest  of  the  year.  Their  banks  are  slightly  raised,  upon  the  prin- 
ciple, in  parvo,  that  causes  mighty  rivers,  like  the  Po  and  the  In- 
dus, to  run  along  the  crests  of  ridges,  and  usually  there  is  in  the 
sole  a  dry  or  wet  cunette,  steep  as  a  step,  and  not  unfrequently 
stony ;  unless  the  break  be  attended  to,  it  threatens  destruction  to 
wheel  and  axle-tree,  to  hound  and  tongue.  The  pitch-hole  is  more 
frequent  where  the  prairies  break  into  low  hills ;  the  inclines  along 
which  the  roads  run  then  become  a  net-work  of  these  American 
nullahs. 

Passing  through  a  few  wretched  shanties*  called  Troy — ^last 
insult  to  the  memory  of  hapless  Pergamus — and  Syracuse  (here 
we  are  in  the  third,  or  classic  stage  of  United  States  nomencla- 
ture), we  made,  at  3  P.M.,  Cold  Springs,  the  junction  of  the  Leav- 
enworth route.  Having  taken  the  northern  road  to  avoid  rough 
ground  and  bad  bridges,  we  arrived  about  two  hours  behind  time. 
The  aspect  of  things  at  Cold  Springs,  where  we  were  allowed  an 

*  American  aiithors  derive  the  word  from  the  Canadian  chienU,  a  dog-kcnnel.  It 
is,  however,  I  believe,  originally  Irish. 


Chap.  I.  SQUALOR.  19 

hour's  halt  to  dine  and  to  change  mules,  somewhat  dismayed  our 
fine-weather  prairie  travelers.  The  scene  was  the  rale  "Far 
West."  The  widow  body  to  whom  the  shanty  belonged  lay  sick 
with  fever.  The  aspect  of  her  family  was  a  "  caution  to  snakes:" 
the  ill-conditioned  sons  dawdled  about,  listless  as  Indians,  in  skin 
tunics  and  pantaloons  fringed  with  lengthy  tags  such  as  the  re- 
doubtable "  Billy  Bowlegs"  wears  on  tobacco  labels ;  and  the 
daughters,  tall  young  women,  whose  sole  attire  was  apparently  a 
calico  morning-wrapper,  color  invisible,  waited  upon  us  in  a  pro- 
testing way.  Squalor  and  misery  were  imprinted  upon  the 
wretched  log  hut,  which  ignored  the  duster  and  the  broom,  and 
myriads  of  flies  disputed  with  us  a  dinner  consisting  of  dough- 
nuts, green  and  poisonous  with  saleratus,  suspicious  eggs  in  a  mass- 
ive greasy  fritter,  and  rusty  bacon,  intolerably  fat.  It  was  our 
first  sight  of  squatter  Hfe,  and,  except  in  two  cases,  it  was  our 
worst.  We  could  not  grudge  50  cents  a  head  to  these  unhappies ; 
at  the  same  time,  we  thought  it  a  dear  price  to  pay — the  sequel 
disabused  us — for  flies  and  bad  bread,  worse  eggs  and  bacon. 

The  next  settlement.  Valley  Home,  was  reached  at  6  P.M. 
Here  the  long  wave  of  the  ocean  land  broke  into  shorter  seas,  and 
for  the  first  time  that  day  we  saw  stones,  locally  called  rocks  (a 
Western  term  embracing  every  thing  between  a  pebble  and  a 
boulder),  the  produce  of  nuUahs  and  ravines.  A  well  10  to  12 
feet  deep  supplied  excellent  water.  The  ground  was  in  places  so 
far  reclaimed  as  to  be  divided  off  by  posts  and  rails ;  the  scanty 
crops  of  corn  (Indian  corn),  however,  were  wilted  and  withered 
by  the  drought,  which  this  year  had  been  unusually  long.  With- 
out changing  mules  we  advanced  to  Kennekuk,  where  we  halted 
for  an  hour's  supper  under  the  auspices  of  Major  Baldwin,  whilom 
Indian  agent;  the  place  was  clean,  and  contained  at  least  one 
charming  face. 

Kennekuk  derives  its  name  from  a  chief  of  the  Kickapoos,  in 
whose  reservation  we  now  are.  This  tribe,  in  the  days  of  the 
Baron  la  Hontan  (1689),  a  great  traveler,  but  "  aiblins,"  as  Sir 
Walter  Scott  said  of  his  grandmither,  "a  prodigious  story-teller," 
then  lived  on  the  Eivi^re  des  Puants,  or  Fox  Eiver,  upon  the 
brink  of  a  little  lake  supposed  to  be  the  Winnebago,  near  the 
Sakis  (Osaki,  Sawkis,  Sauks,  or  Sacs),*  and  the  Pouteoustamies 
(Potawotomies).     They  are  still  in  the  neighborhood  of  their 

*  In  the  days  of  Major  Pike,  who,  in  1805-6-7,  explored,  by  order  of  the  govern- 
ment of  the  United  States,  the  western  temtories  of  North  America,  the  Sacs  num- 
bered 700  warriors  and  750  women;  they  had  four  \"illages,  and  hunted  on  the  Mis- 
sissippi and  its  confluents  from  the  Illinois  to  the  Iowa  River,  and  on  the  western 
plains  that  bordered  on  the  Missouri.  They  were  at  peace  with  the  Sioux,  Osages, 
Potawotomies,  Menomenes  or  Folles  Avoines,  lowas,  and  other  Missourian  tribes, 
and  were  almost  consolidated  with  the  Foxes,  with  whose  aid  they  nearly  extermin- 
ated the  Illinois,  Cahokias,  Kaskaskias,  and  Peorians.  Their  principal  enemies 
were  the  Ojibwas.  They  raised  a  considerable  quantity  of  maize,  beans,  and  mel- 
ons, and  were  celebrated  for  cunning  in  war  rather  than  for  courage. 


20  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

dreaded  foes,  the  Sacs  and  Foxes,*  who  are  described  as  stalwart 
and  handsome  bands,  and  thej  have  been  accompanied  in  their 
southern  migration  from  the  waters  westward  of  the  Mississippi, 
through  Illinois,  to  their  present  southern  seats  by  other  allies  of 
the  Winnebagoes,t  the  lowas,  Nez  Perces,  Ottoes,  Omahas,  Kan- 
sas and  Osages,  Like  the  great  nations  of  the  Indian  Territory, 
the  Cherokees,  Creeks,  Choctaws,  and  Chickasaws,  they  form  in- 
termediate social  links  in  the  chain  of  civilization  between  the 
outer  white  settlements  and  the  wild  nomadic  tribes  to  the  west, 
the  Dakotahs  and  Arapahoes,  the  Snakes  and  Cheyennes.  They 
cultivate  the  soil,  and  rarely  spend  the  winter  in  hunting  buffalo 
upon  the  plains.  Their  reservation  is  twelve  miles  by  twenty- 
four  ;  as  usual  with  land  set  apart  for  the  savages,  it  is  well  wa- 
tered and  timbered,  rich  and  fertile ;  it  lies  across  the  path  and  in 
the  vicinity  of  civilization ;  consequently,  the  people  are  great- 
ly demoralized.  The  men  are  addicted  to  intoxication,  and  the 
women  to  unchastity ;  both  sexes  and  all  ages  are  inveterate  beg- 
gars, whose  principal  industry  is  horse-stealing.  Those  Scottish 
clans  were  the  most  savage  that  vexed  the  Lowlands;  it  is  the 
case  here:  the  tribes  nearest  the  settlers  are  best  described  by 

Colonel  B 's  phrase,  "  great  liars  and  dirty  dogs."     They  have 

well-nigh  cast  off  the  Indian  attire,  and  rejoice  in  the  splendors  of 
boiled  and  ruffled  shirts,  after  the  fashion  of  the  whites.  Accord- 
ing to  our  host,  a  stalwart  son  of  that  soil  which  for  generations 
has  sent  out  her  best  blood  westward,  Kain-tuk-ee,  the  Land  of 
the  Cane,  the  Kickapoos  number  about  800  souls,  of  whom  one 
fifth  are  braves.  He  quoted  a  specimen  of  their  facetiousness : 
when  they  first  saw  a  crinoline,  they  pointed  to  the  wearer  and 
cried,  "  There  walks  a  wigwam."  Our  "  vertugardin"  of  the  19th 
century  has  run  the  gauntlet  of  the  world's  jests,  from  the  refined 

*  From  the  same  source  we  learn  that  the  Ottagamies,  called  by  the  French  Les 
Kenards,  numbered  400  warriors  and  500  women :  thcv  had  three  villages  near  the 
confluence  of  the  Turkey  River  with  the  Mississippi,  hunted  on  both  sides  of  the 
Mississippi  from  the  Iowa  stream  below  the  Prairie  du  Chien  to  a  river  of  that  name 
above  the  same  village,  and  annually  sold  many  hundred  bushels  of  maize.  Con- 
jointly with  the  Sacs,  the  Foxes  protected  the  lowas,  and  the  three  people,  since  the 
first  treaty  of  the  two  former  with  the  United  States,  claimed  the  land  from  the  en- 
trance of  the  Jauflione  on  the  western  side  of  the  Mississippi,  np  the  latter  river  to 
the  Iowa  above  the  Prairie  du  Chien,  and  westward  to  the  Missouri.  In  1807  they 
had  ceded  their  lands  lying  south  of  the  Mississippi  to  the  United  States,  reserving 
to  themselves,  however,  the  privileges  of  hunting  and  residing  on  them. 

f  The  Winnebagoes,  Winnipegs  (turbid  water),  or  Ochangras  numbered,  in  1807. 
4,50  waiTiors  and  .500  women,  and  had  seven  villages  on  the  Wisconsin,  Rock,  and 
Fox  Rivers,  and  Green  Bay:  their  proximity  enabled  the  tribe  to  muster  in  force 
within  four  days.  They  then  hunted  on  the  Rock  River,  and  the  eastern  side  of  the 
Mississippi,  from  Rock  River  to  the  Prairie  du  Chien,  on  Lake  Michigan,  on  Black 
River,  and  in  the  countries  between  Lakes  Michigan,  Huron,  and  Superior.  Lieu- 
tenant Pike  is  convinced,  "from  a  tradition  among  themselves,  and  their  speaking 
the  same  language  as  the  Ottoes  of  the  Platte  River,"  that  they  are  a  tribe  who  about 
150  years  before  his  time  had  fled  from  the  oppression  of  the  Mexican  Spaniards, 
and  had  become  clients  of  the  Sioux.  They  have  ever  been  distinguished  for  ferocity 
and  treachery. 


Chap.  I.  "CRIK."  21 

impertinence  of  Mr.  Punch  to  the  rude  grumble  of  the  American 
Indian  and  the  Kaffir  of  the  Cape. 

Beyond  Kennekuk  we  crossed  the  first  Grasshopper  Creek. 
Creek,  I  must  warn  the  Enghsh  reader,  is  pronounced  "crik," 
and  in  these  lands,  as  in  the  jargon  of  Australia,  means  not  "  an 
arm  of  the  sea,"  but  a  small  stream  of  sweet  water,  a  rivulet;  the 
rivers  of  Europe,  according  to  the  Anglo-American  of  the  West, 
are  "  criks."  On  our  line  there  are  many  grasshopper  creeks ;  they 
anastomose  with,  or  debouch  into,  the  Kansas  River,  and  they 
reach  the  sea  via  the  Missouri  and  the  Mississippi.  This  partic- 
ular Grasshopper  was  dry  and  dusty  up  to  the  ankles;  timber 
clothed  the  banks,  and  slabs  of  sandstone  cumbered  the  sole.  Our 
next  obstacle  was  the  Walnut  Creek,  which  we  found,  however, 
provided  with  a  corduroy  bridge;  formerly  it  was  a  dangerous 
ford,  rolling  down  heavy  streams  of  melted  snow,  and  then  crossed 
by  means  of  the  "bouco"  or  coracle,  two  hides  sewed  together, 
distended  like  a  leather  tub  with  willow  rods,  and  poled  or  pad- 
dled. At  this  point  the  country  is  unusually  well  populated ;  a 
house  appears  after  ever}'-  mile.  Beyond  Walnut  Creek  a  dense 
nimbus,  rising  ghost-like  from  the  northern  horizon,  furnished  us 
with  a  spectacle  of  those  perilous  prairie  storms  which  make  the 
prudent  lay  aside  their  revolvers  and  disembarrass  themselves  of 
their  cartridges.  Gusts  of  raw,  cold,  and  violent  wind  from  the 
west  whizzed  overhead,  thunder  crashed  and  rattled  closer  and 
closer,  and  vivid  lightning,  flashing  out  of  the  murky  depths 
around,  made  earth  and  air  one  blaze  of  living  fire.  Then  the 
rain  began  to  patter  ominously  upon  the  carriages;  the  canvas, 
however,  by  swelling,  did  its  duty  in  becoming  water-tight,  and 
we  rode  out  the  storm  dry.  Those  learned  in  the  weather  pre- 
dicted a  succession  of  such  outbursts,  but  the  prophecy  was  not 
fulfilled.  The  thermometer  fell  about  6°  (F.),  and  a  strong  north 
wind  set  in,  blowing  dust  or  gravel,  a  fair  specimen  of  "  Kansas 
gales,"  which  are  equally  common  in  Xebraska,  especially  during 
the  month  of  October.     It  subsided  on  the  9th  of  August. 

Arriving  about  1  A.M.  at  Locknan's  Station,  a  few  log  and  tim- 
ber huts  near  a  creek  well  feathered  with  white  oak  and  Ameri- 
can elm,  hickory  and  black  walnut,  we  found  beds  and  snatched 
an  hourful  of  sleep. 

8th  August,  to  Rock  Creek. 

Resuming,  through  air  refrigerated  by  rain,  our  now  weary  way, 
we  reached  at  6  A.M.  a  favorite  camping-ground,  the  "  Big  Nem- 
ehaw"  Creek,  which,  like  its  lesser  neighbor,  flows  after  rain  into 
the  Missouri  River,  via  Turkey  Creek,  the  Big  Blue,  and  the  Kan-' 
sas.  It  is  a  fine  bottom  of  rich  black  soil,  whose  green  woods  at 
that  early  hour  were  wet  with  heavy  dew,  and  scattered  over  the 
surface  lay  pebbles  and  blocks  of  quartz  and  porphyritic  granites. 
"Richland,"  a  town  mentioned  in  guide-books,  having  disappear- 
ed, we  drove  for  breakfast  to  Seneca,  a  city  consisting  of  a  few 


22  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

shanties,  mostly  garnislied  with  tall  square  lumber  fronts,  inef- 
fectually, especially  when  the  houses  stand  one  by  one,  masking 
the  diminutiveness  of  the  buildings  behind  them.  The  land, 
probably  in  prospect  of  a  Pacific  Railroad,  fetched  the  exagger- 
ated price  of  $20  an  acre,  and  already  a  lawyer  has  "  hung  out  his 
shingle"  there. 

Refreshed  by  breakfast  and  the  intoxicating  air,  brisk  as  a  bot- 
tle of  veuve  Clicquot — it  is  this  that  gives  one  the  "prairie  fever" 
— we  bade  glad  adieu  to  Seneca,  and  prepared  for  another  long 
stretch  of  twenty-four  hours.  That  day's  chief  study  was  of  wag- 
ons, those  ships  of  the  great  American  Sahara  which,  gathering  in 
fleets  at  certain  seasons,  conduct  the  traffic  between  the  eastern 
and  the  western  shores  of  a  waste  which  is  every  where  like  a 
sea,  and  which  presently  will  become  salt.  The  white-topped 
wain — banished  by  railways  from  Pennsylvania,  where,  drawn  by 
the  "Conestoga  horse,"  it  once  formed  a  marked  feature  in  the 
landscape — has  found  a  home  in  the  Far  West.  They  are  not 
unpicturesque  from  afar,  these  long- winding  trains,  in  early  morn- 
ing like  lines  of  white  cranes  trooping  slowly  over  the  prairie,  or 
in  more  mysterious  evening  resembling  dim  sails  crossing  a  roll- 
ing sea.  The  vehicles  are  more  simple  than  our  Cape  wagons — 
huge  beds  like  punts  mounted  on  solid  wheels,  with  logs  for 
brakes,  and  contrasting  strongly  with  the  emerald  plain,  white 
tilts  of  twilled  cotton  or  osnaburg,  supported  by  substantial  oak- 
en or  hickory  bows.  The  wain  is  literally  a  "prairie  ship:"  its 
body  is  often  used  as  a  ferry,  and  when  hides  are  unprocurable 
the  covering  is  thus  converted  into  a  "bull  boat."  Two  stakes 
driven  into  the  ground,  to  mark  the  length,  are  connected  by  a 
longitudinal  keel  and  ribs  of  willow  rods;  cross-sticks  are  tied 
with  thongs  to  prevent  "caving  in,"  and  the  canvas  is  strained 
over  the  frame-work.  In  this  part  of  the  country  the  wagon  is 
unnecessarily  heavy;  made  to  carry  4000  lbs.,  it  rarely  carries 
3000 :  westward  I  have  seen  many  a  load  of  3|-  tons  of  2000  lbs, 
each,  and  have  heard  of  even  6  tons.  The  wheels  are  of  north- 
ern white  oak,  well  seasoned  under  pain  of  perpetual  repairs,  the 
best  material,  "bow-dark"  Osage  orange-wood  {hois  cVarc  or  Mac- 
lura  aurantiaca),  which  shrinks  but  little,  being  rarely  procurable 
about  Concord  and  Troy,  the  great  centres  of  wagon  manufacture. 
The  neap  or  tongue  (pole)  is  jointed  where  it  enters  the  hounds, 
or  these  will  be  broken  by  the  heavy  jolts ;  and  the  perch  is  oft- 
en made  movable,  so  that  after  accidents  a  temporary  conveyance 
can  be  made  out  of  the  debris.  A  long  covered  wooden  box 
hangs  behind :  on  the  road  it  carries  fuel ;  at  the  halt  it  becomes 
a  trough,  being  preferred  to  nose-bags,  which  prevent  the  animals 
breathing  comfortably  ;  and  in  the  hut,  where  every  part  of  the 
wagon  is  utilized,  it  acts  as  a  chest  for  valuables.  A  bucket 
swings  beneath  the  vehicle,  and  it  is  generally  provided  with  an 
extra  chain  for  "  coraling."     The  teams  vary  in  number  from  six 


Chap.  L  THE  "RIPPER."  23 

to  thirteen  yoke ;  they  are  usually  oxen,  an  "  Old  Country"  prej- 
udice operating  against  the  use  of  cows.*  The  yoke,  of  pine  or 
other  light  wood,  is,  as  every  where  in  the  States,  simple  and  ef- 
fective, presenting  a  curious  contrast  to  the  uneasy  and  uncertain 
contrivances  which  still  prevail  in  the  antiquated  Campagna  and 
other  classic  parts  of  Europe.  A  heavy  cross-piece,  oak  or  cot- 
ton-wood, is  beveled  out  in  two  places,  and  sometimes  lined  with 
sheet-lead,  to  fit  the  animals'  necks,  which  are  held  firm  in  bows 
of  bent  hickory  passing -through  the  yoke  and  pinned  above. 
The  several  pairs  of  cattle  are  connected  by  strong  chains  and 
rings  projecting  from  the  under  part  of  the  wood-work. 


THE  AVTSTEKN  YOKE. 


The  "  ripper,"  or  driver,  who  is  bound  to  the  gold  regions  of 
Pike's  Peak,  is  a  queer  specimen  of  humanity.  He  usually  hails 
from  one  of  the  old  Atlantic  cities — in  fact,  from  settled  America 
— and,  like  the  civilized  man  generally,  he  betrays  a  remarkable 
aptitude  for  facile  descent  into  savagery.  His  dress  is  a  harlequin- 
ade, typical  of  his  disposition.  Eschewing  the  chimney-pot  or 
stove-pipe  tile  of  the  bourgeois,  he  affects  the  "Kossuth,"  an 
Anglo-American  version  of  the  sombrero,  which  converts  felt  into 
every  shape  and  form,  from  the  jaunty  little  head-covering  of  the 
modern  sailor  to  the  tall  steeple-crown  of  the  old  Puritan.  He 
disregards  the  trichotomy  of  St.  Paul,  and  emulates  St,  Anthony 
and  the  American  aborigines  in  the  length  of  his  locks,  whose 
ends  are  curled  inward,  with  a  fascinating  sausage-like  roll  not 
unlike  the  Cockney  "  aggrawator."  If  a  young  hand,  he  is  prob- 
ably in  the  buckskin  mania,  which  may  pass  into  the  squaw 
mania,  a  disease  which  knows  no  cure :  the  symptoms  are,  a  leath- 
er coat  and  overalls  to  match,  embroidered  if  possible,  and  finished 
along  the  arms  and  legs  with  fringes  cut  as  long  as  possible,  while 
a  pair  of  gaudy  moccasins,  resplendent  with  red  and  blue  porce- 
lain beads,  fits  his  feet  tightly  as  silken  hose.  I  have  heard  of 
coats  worth  $250,  vests  $100,  and  pants  $150 :  indeed,  the  poorest 
of  buckskin  suits  will  cost  $75,  and  if  hard-worked  it  must  be  re- 
newed every  six  months.  The  successful  miner  or  the  gambler 
— in  these  lands  the  word  is  confined  to  the  profession — will  add 
$10  gold  buttons  to  the  attractions  of  his  attire.  The  older  hand 
prefers  to  buckskin  a  "  wamba"  or  round-about,  a  red  or  rainbow- 

*  According  to  Mormon  rale,  however,  the  full  team  consists  of  one  wagon  (12  fr. 
long,  3  ft.  4  in.  wide,  and  18  in.  deep),two  yoke  of  oxen,  and  two  milch  cows.  The 
Saints  have  ever  excelled  in  arrangements  for  travel  by  land  and  sea. 


24  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

colored  flannel  over  a  check  cotton  shirt;  his  lower  garments, 
garnished  a  tergo  with  leather,  are  turned  into  Hessians  by  being 
thrust  inside  his  cow-hide  Wellingtons ;  and,  when  in  riding  gear, 
he  wraps  below  each  knee  a  fold  of  deer,  antelope,  or  cow  skin, 
with  edges  scalloped  where  they  fall  over  the  feet,  and  gartered 
tightly  against  thorns  and  stirrup  thongs,  thus  effecting  that  grace- 
ful elephantine  bulge  of  the  lower  leg  for  which  "Jack  ashore"  is 
justly  celebrated.  Those  who  suffer  from  sore  eyes  wear  huge 
green  goggles,  which  give  a  crab-like  air  to  the  physiognomy,  and 
those  who  can  not  procure  them  line  the  circumorbital  region  with 
lampblack,  which  is  supposed  to  act  like  the  surma  or  kohl  of 
the  Orient.  A  broad  leather  belt  supports  on  the  right  a  revolv- 
er, generally  Colt's  Navy  or  medium  size  (when  Indian  fighting 
is  expected,  the  large  dragoon  pistol  is  universally  preferred) ; 
and  on  the  left,  in  a  plain  black  sheath,  or  sometimes  in  the  more 
ornamental  Spanish  scabbard,  is  a  buck-horn  or  ivory-handled 
bowie-knife.  In  the  East  the  driver  partially  conceals  his  tools ; 
he  has  no  such  affectation  in  the  Far  West:  moreover,  a  glance 
through  the  wagon-awning  shows  guns  and  rifles  stowed  along 
the  side.  When  driving  he  is  armed  with  a  mammoth  fustigator, 
a  system  of  plaited  cow-hides  cased  with  smooth  leather ;  it  is  a 
knout  or  an  Australian  stock-whip,  which,  managed  with  both 
hands,  makes  the  sturdiest  ox  curve  and  curl  its  back.  If  he 
trudges  along  an  ox-team,  he  is  a  grim  and  grimy  man,  who  de- 
lights to  startle  your  animals  with  a  whip-crack,  and  disdains  to 
return  a  salutation:  if  his  charge  be  a  muleteer's,  you  may  ex- 
pect more  urbanity ;  he  is  then  in  the  "  upper-crust"  of  teamsters ; 
he  knows  it,  and  demeans  himself  accordingly.  He  can  do  noth- 
ing without  whisky,  which  he  loves  to  call  tarantula  juice,  strych- 
nine, red-eye,  corn  juice,  Jersey  lightning,  leg-stretcher,  "tangle- 
leg,"* and  many  other  hard  and  grotesque  names ;  he  chews  to- 
bacco like  a  horse ;  he  becomes  heavier  "  on  the  shoulder"  or  "  on 
the  shyoot,"  as,  with  the  course  of  empire,  he  makes  his  way  west- 
ward ;  and  he  frequently  indulges  in  a  "  spree,"  which  in  these 
lands  means  four  acts  of  drinking-bout,  with  a  fifth  of  rough-and- 
tumble.     Briefly,  he  is  a  post-wagon  driver  exaggerated. 

Each  train  is  accompanied  by  men  on  horse  or  mule  back — 
oxen  are  not  ridden  after  Cape  fashion  in  these  lands.f  The  equip- 
ment of  the  cavalier  excited  my  curiosity,  especially  the  saddle, 
which  has  been  recommended  by  good  authorities  for  military  use. 
The  coming  days  of  fast  warfare,  when  "  heavies,"  if  not  wholly 

*  For  instance,  "  whisky  is  now  tested  by  the  distance  a  man  can  walk  after  tast- 
ing it.  The  new  liquor  called  '  Tanglc-lcg'  is  said  to  be  made  of  diluted  alcohol, 
nitric  acid,  pepper,  and  tobacco,  and  will  upset  a  man  at  a  distance  of  400  yards 
from  the  demijohn." 

t  Captain  Marcy,  in  quoting  Mr.  Andersson's  remarks  on  ox-riding  in  South- 
western Africa,  remarks  that  "a  ring  instead  of  a  stick  put  through  the  cartilage 
of  the  animal's  nose  would  obviate  the  difficulty  of  managing  it."  As  in  the  case 
of  the  camel,  a  ring  would  soon  be  torn  out  by  an  obstinate  beast ;  a  stick  resists. 


Chap.  I.  THE  PKAIRIE  SADDLE.  25 

banished  to  the  limbo  of  things  that  were,  will  be  used  as  mount- 
ed "beef-eaters,"  only  for  show,  demand  a  saddle  with  as  little 
weight  as  is  consistent  with  strength,  and  one  equally  easy  to  the 
horse  and  the  rider.  In  no  branch  of  improvement,  except  in 
hat-making  for  the  army,  has  so  little  been  done  as  in  saddles. 
The  English  military  or  hunting  implement  still  endures  without 
other  merit  than  facility  to  the  beast,  and,  in  the  man's  case,  facul- 
ty of  falling  uninjured  with  his  horse.  Unless  the  rider  be  cop- 
per-lined and  iron-limbed,  it  is  little  better  in  long  marches  than 
a  rail  for  riding.  As  far  as  convenience  is  concerned,  an  Arab 
pad  is  preferable  to  Peat's  best.  But  the  Californian  saddle  can 
not  supply  the  deficiency,  as  will,  I  think,  appear  in  the  course  of 
description. 

The  native  Indian  saddle  is  probably  the  degenerate  offspring 
of  the  European  pack-saddle:  two  short  forks,  composing  the 
pommel  and  cantle,  are  nailed  or  lashed  to  a  pair  of  narrow  side- 
boards, and  the  rude  tree  is  kept  in  shape  by  a  green  skin  or  hide 
allowed  to  shrink  on.  It  remarkably  resembles  the  Abyssinian, 
the  Somal,  and  the  Circassian  saddle,  which,  like  the  "  dug-out" 
canoe,  is  probably  the  primitive  form  instinctively  invented  by 
mankind.  It  is  the  sire  of  the  civilized  saddle,  which  in  these 
lands  varies  with  every  region.  The  Texan  is  known  by  its  cir- 
cular seat ;  a  string  passed  round  the  tree  forms  a  ring :  provided 
with  flaps  after  the  European  style,  it  is  considered  easy  and  com- 
fortable. The  Californian  is  rather  oval  than  circular ;  borrowed 
and  improved  from  the  Mexican,  it  has  spread  from  the  Pacific  to 
the  Atlantic  slope  of  the  Eocky  Mountains,  and  the  hardy  and 
experienced  mountaineer  prefers  it  to  all  others :  it  much  resem- 
bles the  Hungarian,  and  in  some  points  recalls  to  mind  the  old 
French  cavalry  demipique.  It  is  composed  of  a  single  tree  of. 
light  strong  wood,  admitting  a  freer  circulation  of  air  to  the  horse's 
spine  —  an  immense  advantage  —  and,  being  without  iron,  it  can 
readily  be  taken  to  pieces,  cleaned  or  mended,  and  refitted.  The 
tree  is  strengthened  by  a  covering  of  raw-hide  carefully  sewed 
on;  it  rests  upon  a  "sweat-leather,"  a  padded  sheet  covering  the 
back,  and  it  is  finished  off  behind  with  an  "  anchero"  of  the  same 
material  protecting  the  loins.  The  pommel  is  high,  like  the  crutch 
of  a  woman's  saddle,  rendering  impossible,  under  pain  of  barking 
the  knuckles,  that  rule  of  good  riding  which  directs  the  cavalier 
to  keep  his  hands  low.  It  prevents  the  inexperienced  horseman 
being  thrown  forward,  and  enables  him  to  "  hold  on"  when  like- 
ly to  be  dismounted ;  in  the  case  of  a  good  rider,  its  only  use  is 
to  attach  the  lariat,  riata,  or  lasso.  The  great  merit  of  this  "uni- 
corn" saddle  is  its  girthing :  with  the  English  system,  the  strain 
of  a  wild  bull  or  of  a  mustang  "bucker"  would  soon  dislodge  the 
riding  gear.  The  "  sincho"  is  an  elastic  horsehair  cingle,  five  to 
six  inches  wide,  connected  with  "lariat  straps,"  strong  thongs 
passing  round  the  pommel  and  cantle;  it  is  girthed  well  back 


26  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

from  the  horse's  shoulder,  and  can  be  drawn  till  the  animal  suffers 
pain :  instead  of  buckle,  the  long  terminating  strap  is  hitched 
two  or  three  times  through  an  iron  ring.  The  whole  saddle  is 
covered  with  a  machila,  here  'usually  pronounced  macheer,  two 
pieces  of  thick  leather  handsomely  and  fancifully  worked  or 
stamped,  joined  by  a  running  thong  in  the  centre,  and  open  to 
admit  the  pommel  and  cantle.  If  too  long,  it  draws  in  the  stir- 
rup-leathers, and  cramps  the  ankles  of  any  but  a  bowlegged  man. 
The  machila  is  sometimes  garnished  with  pockets,  always  with 
straps  behind  to  secure  a  valise,  and  a  cloak  can  be  fastened  over 
the  pommel,  giving  purchase  and  protection  to  the  knees.  The 
rider  sits  erect,  with  the  legs  in  a  continuation  of  the  body  line, 
and  the  security  of  the  balance-seat  enables  him  to  use  his  arms 
freely :  the  ^jo.se  is  that  of  the  French  schools  in  the  last  century, 
heels  up  and  toes  down.  The  advantages  of  this  equipment  are 
obvious ;  it  is  easier  to  horse  and  man  probably  than  any  yet  in- 
vented. On  the  other  hand,  the  quantity  of  leather  renders  it 
expensive:  without  silver  or  other  ornaments,  the  price  would 
vary  from  $25  at  San  Francisco  to  $50  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City, 
and  the  highly  got-up  rise  to  $250  =  £50  for  a  saddle!  If  the 
saddle-cloth  slips  out,  and  this  is  an  accident  which  frequently 
occurs,  the  animal's  'back  will  be  galled.  The  stirrup-leathers 
can  not  be  shortened  or  lengthened  without  dismounting,  and 
without  leggins  the  board-like  leather  maclieer  soon  makes  the 
moUeis  innocent  of  skin.  The  pommel  is  absolutely  dangerous : 
during  my  short  stay  in  the  country  I  heard  of  two  accidents,  one 
fatal,  caused  by  the  rider  being  thrown  forward  on  his  fork.  Fi- 
nally, the  long  seat,  which  is  obligatory,  answers  admirably  with 
the  Californian  pacer  or  canterer,  but  with  the  high-trotting  mili- 
tary horse  it  would  inevitably  lead — as  has  been  proved  before 
the  European  stirrup-leather  was  shortened — to  hernias  and  other 
accidents. 

To  the  stirrups  I  have  but  one  serious  objection — they  can  not 
be  made  to  open  in  case  of  the  horse  falling ;  when  inside  the 
stiff  leather  macheer^  they  cramp  the  legs  by  bowing  them  in- 
ward, but  habit  soon  cures  this.  Instead  of  the  light  iron  con- 
trivances which  before  recovered  play  against  the  horse's  side, 
which  freeze  the  feet  in  cold,  and  which  toast  them  in  hot  weath- 
er, this  stirrup  is  sensibly  made  of  wood.  In  the  Eastern  States 
it  is  a  lath  bent  somewhat  in  the  shape  of  the  dragoon  form,  and 
has  too  little  weight ;  the  Californian  article  is  cut  out  of  a  solid 
block  of  wood,  mountain  mahogany  being  the  best,  then  maple, 
and  lastly  the  softer  pine  and  cotton-w^ood.  In  some  parts  of  the 
country  it  is  made  so  narrow  that  only  the  toe  fits  in,  and  then 
the  instep  is  liable  to  be  bruised.  For  riding  through  bush  and 
thorns,  it  is  provided  in  front  with  zapateros  or  leathern  curtains, 
secured  to  the  straps  above,  and  to  the  wood  on  both  sides :  they 
are  curiously  made,  and  the  size,  like  that  of  the  Turk's  lantern, 


CuAP.  I.  THE  PRAIRIE  SPUR.— BRIDLE.  27 

denotes  the  owner's  fasliionableness ;  dandies  may  be  seen  with 
the  pointed  angles  of  their  stirrup-guards  dangling  almost  to  the 
ground.  The  article  was  borrowed  from  Mexico  —  the  land  of 
character  dresses.  When  riding  through  prickly  chapparal,  the 
leathers  begin  higher  up,  and- protect  the  leg  from  the  knee  down- 
ward. I  would  not  recommend  this  stirrup  for  Hyde  Park,  or 
even  Brighton ;  but  in.  India  and  other  barbarous  parts  of  the 
British  empire,  where,  on  a  cold  morning's  march,  men  and  offi- 
cers may  be  seen  with  wisps  of  straw  defending  their  feet  from 
the  iron,  and  on  African  journeys,  where  the  bush  is  more  than 
a  match  for  any  texture  yet  woven,  it  might,  methinks,  be  advan- 
tageously used. 

The  same  may  be  said  of  the  spurs,  which,  though  cruel  in  ap- 
pearance, are  really  more  merciful  than  ours.  The  rowels  have 
spikes  about  two  inches  long ;  in  fact,  are  the  shape  and  size  of  a 
small  starfish ;  but  they  are  never  sharpened,  and  the  tinkle  near 
the  animal's  sides  serves  to  urge  it  on  without  a  real  application. 
The  two  little  bell-like  pendants  of  metal  on  each  side  of  the  row- 
el-hinge serve  to  increase  the  rattling,  and  when  a  poor  rider  is 
mounted  upon  a  tricksy  horse,  they  lock  the  rowels,  which  are 
driven  into  the  sincho,  and  thus  afford  auothev  j^oini  cVaj^jmi.  If 
the  rider's  legs  be  long  enough,  the  spurs  cwa.  be  clinched  under 
the  pony's  belly.  Like  the  Mexican,  they  can  be  made  expens- 
ive :  $25  a  pair  would  be  a  common  price. 

The  bridle  is  undoubtedly  the  worst  part  of  the  horse's  furni- 
ture. The  bit  is  long,  clumsy,  and  not  less  cruel  than  a  Chifney. 
I  have  seen  the  Arab  ring,  which,  with  suf&cient  leverage,  will 
break  a  horse's  jaw,  and  another,  not  unlike  an  East  Indian  inven- 
tion, with  a  sharp  triangle  to  press  upon  the  animal's  palate,  ap- 
parently for  the  purpose  of  causing  it  to  rear  and  fall  backward. 
It  is  the  offspring  of  the  Mexican  manege,  which  was  derived, 
through  Spain,  from  the  Moors. 

Passing  through  Ash  Point  at  9  30  A.M.,  and  halting  for  wa- 
ter at  Uncle  John's  Grocery,  where  hang-dog  Indians,  squatting, 
standing,  and  stalking  about,  showed  that  the  forbidden  luxury — 
essence  of  corn — was,  despite  regulations,  not  unprocurable  there, 
we  spanned  the  prairie  to  Guittard's  Station.  This  is  a  clump  of 
board  houses  on  the  far  side  of  a  shady,  well- wooded  creek — the 
Yermilion,  a  tributary  of  the  Big  Blue  Eiver,  so  called  from  its  red 
sandstone  bottom,  dotted  with  granitic  and  porphyritic  boulders. 

Our  conductor  had  sprained  his  ankle,  and  the  driver,  being  in 
plain  English  drunk,  had  dashed  like  a  Phaeton  over  the  "  chuck- 
holes;"  we  willingly,  therefore,  halted  at  11  30  A.M.  for  dinner. 
The  host  was  a  young  Alsatian,  who,  with  his  mother  and  sister, 
had  emigrated  under  the  excitement  of  Califomian  fever,  and  had 
been  stopped,  by  want  of  means,  half  way.  The  improvement 
upon  the  native  was  palpable :  the  house  and  kitchen  were  clean, 
the  fences  neat ;  the  ham  and  eggs,  the  hot  rolls  and  coffee,  were 


28  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Ciiai-.  I. 

fresli  and  good,  and,  although  drought  had  killed  the  salad,, we 
had  abundance  of  peaches  and  cream,  an  offering  of  French  to 
American  taste  which,  in  its  simplicity,  luxuriates  in  the  curious 
mixture  of  lacteal  with  hydrocyanic  acid. 

At  Guittard's  I  saw,  for  the  first  time,  the  Pony  Express  rider 
arrive.  In  March,  1860,  "  the  great  dream  of  news  transmitted 
from  Kew  York  to  San  Francisco  (more  strictly  speaking  from  St. 
Joseph  to  Placerville,  California)  in  eight  days  was  tested."  It 
appeared,  in  fact,  under  the  form  of  an  advertisement  in  the  St. 
Louis  "  Republican,"*  and  threw  at  once  into  the  shade  the  great 
Butterfield  Mail,  whose  Expedition  had  been  the  theme  of  uni- 
versal praise.  Very  meritoriously  has  the  contract  been  fulfilled. 
At  the  moment  of  writing  (ISTov.,  1860),  the  distance  between 
New  York  and  San  Francisco  has  been  farther  reduced  by  the 
advance  of  the  electric  telegraph — it  proceeds  at  the  rate  of  six 
miles  a  day — to  Fort  Kearney  from  the  Mississippi  and  to  Fort 
Churchill  from  the  Pacific  side.  The  merchant  thus  receives  his 
advices  in  six  days.  The  contract  of  the  government  with  Messrs. 
Russell,  Majors,  and  Co.,  to  run  the  mail  from  St.  Joseph  to  Great 
Salt  Lake  City,  expired  the  30th  of  November,  and  it  was  pro- 
posed to  continue  it  only  from  Julesburg  on  the  crossing  of  the 
South  Platte,  480  miles  west  of  St.  Joseph.  Mr.  Russell,  however, 
objected,  and  so  did  the  Western  States  generally,  to  abbreviating 
the  mail-service  as  contemplated  by  the  Post-ofiice  Department. 
His  spirit  and  energy  met  with  supporters  whose  interest  it  was 
not  to  fall  back  on  the  times  when  a  communication  between  New 

*  The  following  is  the  first  advertisement : 

' '  To  San  Francisco  in  eight  days,  by  the  Central  Overland  California  and  Pikb's  Peak 
Express  Company. 

"  The  first  courier  of  the  '  Pony  Express'  will  leave  the  Missouri  Eiver  on  Tuesday, 
April  the  3d,  at  —  o'clock  P.M.,  and  will  run  regularly  weekly  hereafter,  carrying 
a  letter  mail  only.  The  point  on  the  Missouri  Kiver  will  be  in  telegraphic  commu- 
nication with  the  East,  and  will  be  announced  in  due  time. 

"Telegraphic  messages  from  all  parts  of  the  United  States  and  Canada,  in  con- 
nection with  the  point  of  departure,  will  be  received  up  to  5  o'clock  P.M.  of  the  day 
of  leaWng,  and  transmitted  over  the  Placerville  and  St.  Joseph  Telegraph-wire  to 
San  Francisco  and  intermediate  points  by  the  connecting  Express  in  eight  days. 
The  letter  mail  will  be  delivered  in  San  Francisco  in  ten  days  from  the  departure  of 
the  Express.  The  Express  passes  through  Forts  Kearney,  Laramie,  and  Bridger, 
Great  Salt  Lake  City,  Camp  Floyd,  Carson  Citj',  the  Washoe  Silver  Mines,  Placer- 
ville, and  Sacramento.  And  letters  for  Oregon,  "Washington  Territorj',  British  Co- 
lumbia, the  Pacific  Mexican  Ports,  Russian  Possessions,  Sandwich  Islands,  China, 
Japan,  and  India,  will  be  mailed  in  San  Francisco. 

'*  Special  messengers,  bearers  of  letters,  to  connect  with  the  Express  of  the  3d 
April,  will  receive  communications  for  the  Courier  of  that  day  at  No.  481  Tenth 
Street,  Washington  City,  up  to  2  45  P.M.  on  Friday,  March  30th  ;  and  in  New  York, 
at  the  office  cf  J.  B.  Sirnpson,  Room  No.  8  Continental  Bank  Building,  Nassau  Street, 
up  to  6  .50  A.M.  of  31st  March. 

"  Full  particulars  can  be  obtained  on  application  at  the  above  places,  and  from  the 
Ajrents  of  the  Company.  W.  H.  Russell,  President. 

'•Leavenworth  City,  Kansas,  March,  1860. 

''Office,  Xeiv  York. — J.  B.  Simpson,  Vice-President;  Samuel  and  Allen,  Agents, 
St.  Louis,  Mo. ;  H.  J.  Spaulding,  Agent,  Chicago." 


Chap.  I.  THE  PRAIRIE  FIRES.  29 

York  and  California  could  not  be  secured  short  of  twenty-five  or 
thirty  days ;  and,  aided  by  the  newspapers,  he  obtained  a  renewal 
of  his  contract.  The  riders  are  mostly  youths,  mounted  upon  ac- 
tive and  lithe  Indian  nags.  They  ride  100  miles  at  a  time — about 
eight  per  hour — with  four  changes  of  horses,  and  return  to  their 
stations  the  next  day :  of  their  hardships  and  perils  we  shall  hear 
more  anon.  The  letters  are  carried  in  leathern  bags,  which  are 
thrown  about  carelessly  enough  when  the  saddle  is  changed,  and 
the  average  postage  is  $5=£1  per  sheet. 

Beyond  Guittard's  the  prairies  bore  a  burnt-up  aspect.  Far 
as  the  eye  could  see  the  tintage  was  that  of  the  Arabian  Desert, 
sere  and  tawny  as  a  jackal's  back.  It  was  still,  however,  too  early; 
October  is  the  month  for  those  prairie  fires  which  have  so  fre- 
quently exercised  the  Western  author's  pen.  Here,  however,  the 
grass  is  too  short  for  the  full  development  of  the  phenomenon, 
and  beyond  the  Little  Blue  Eiver  there  is  hardly  any  risk.  The 
fire  can  easily  be  stopped,  ab  initio^  by  blankets,  or  by  simply  roll- 
ing a  barrel ;  the  African  plan  of  beating  down  with  boughs  might 
also  be  used  in  certain  places;  and  when  the  conflagration  has 
extended,  travelers  can  take  refuge  in  a  little  Zoar  by  burning  the 
vegetation  to  windward.  In  Texas  and  Illinois,  however,  where 
the  grass  is  tall  and  rank,  and  the  roaring  flames  leap  before  the 
wind  with  the  stride  of  maddened  horses,  the  danger  is  imminent, 
and  the  spectacle  must  be  one  of  awful  sublimity. 

In  places  where  the  land  seems  broken  with  bluffs,  like  an 
iron-bouud  coast,  the  skeleton  of  the  earth  becomes  visible ;  the 
formation  is  a  friable  sandstone,  overlying  fossiliferous  lime,  which 
is  based  upon  beds  of  shale.  These  undergrowths  show  them- 
selves at  the  edges  of  the  ground-waves  and  in  the  dwarf  preci- 
pices, where  the  soil  has  been  degraded  by  the  action  of  water. 
The  yellow-brown  humus  varies  from  forty  to  sixty  feet  deep  in 
the  most  favored  places,  and  erratic  blocks  of  porphyry  and  va- 
rious granites  encumber  the  dry  water-courses  and  surface  drains. 
In  the  rare  spots  where  water  then  lay,  the  herbage  was  still  green, 
forming  oases  in  the  withering  waste,  and  showing  that  irrigation 
is  its  principal,  if  not  its  only  want. 

Passing  by  Marysville,  in  old  maps  Palmetto  City,  a  county 
town  which  thrives  by  selling  whisky  to  rufiians  of  all  descrip- 
tions, we  forded  before  sunset  the  "  Big  Blue,"  a  well-known  trib- 
utary of  the  Kansas  Eiver.  It  is  a  pretty  little  stream,  brisk  and 
clear  as  crystal,  about  forty  or  fifty  yards  wide  by  2  "SO  feet  deep 
at  the  ford.  The  soil  is  sandy  and  solid,  but  the  banks  are  too 
precipitous  to  be  pleasant  when  a  very  drunken  driver  hangs  on 
by  the  lines  of  four  very  weary  mules.  We  then  stretched  once 
more  over  the  "divide" — the  ground,  generally  rough  or  rolling, 
between  the  fork  or  junction  of  two  streams,  in  fact,  the  Indian 
Boab — separating  the  Big  Blue  from  its  tributary  the  Little  Blue. 
At  6  P.M.  we  changed  our  fagged  animals  for  fresh,  and  the  land 


30  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

of  Kansas  for  [N'ebraska,  at  Cotton- wood  Creek,  a  bottom  where 
trees  flourished,  where  the  ground  had  been  cleared  for  corn,  and 
where  we  detected  the  prairie  wolf  watching  for  the  poultry.  The 
fur  of  our  first  coyote  was  light  yellow-brown,  with  a  tinge  of  red, 
the  snout  long  and  sharp,  the  tail  bushy  and  hanging,  the  gait 
like  a  dog's,  and  the  manner  expressive  of  extreme  timidity ;  it 
is  a  far  more  cowardly  animal  than  the  larger  white  buffalo-wolf 
and  the  black  wolf  of  the  woods,  which  are  also  far  from  fierce. 
At  Cotton-wood  Station  we  took  "on  board"  two  way-passengers, 
"  lady"  and  "  gentleman,"  who  were  drafted  into  the  wagon  con- 
taining the  Judiciary.  A  weary  drive  over  a  rough  and  dusty 
road,  through  chill  night  air  and  clouds  of  musquetoes,  which  we 
were  warned  would  accompany  us  to  the  Pacific  slope  of  the 
Eocky  Mountains,  placed  us  about  10  P.M.  at  Rock,  also  called 
Turkey  Creek — surely  a  misnomer ;  no  turkey  ever  haunted  so 
villainous  a  spot !  Several  passengers  began  to  suffer  from  fever 
and  nausea ;  in  such  travel  the  second  night  is  usually  the  crisis, 
after  which  a  man  can  endure  for  an  indefinite  time.  The  "ranch" 
was  a  nice  place  for  invalids,  especially  for  those  of  the  softer  sex. 
Upon  the  bedded  floor  of  the  foul  "doggery"  lay,  in  a  seemingly 
promiscuous  heap,  men,  women,  children,  lambs,  and  puppies,  all 
fast  in  the  arms  of  Morpheus,  and  many  under  the  influence  of  a 
much  jollier  god.  The  employes,  when  aroused  jDretty  roughly, 
blinked  their  eyes  in  the  atmosphere  of  smoke  and  musquetoes, 
and  declared  that  it  had  been  "  merry  in  hall"  that  night — the 
effects  of  which  merriment  had  not  passed  off.  After  half  an 
hour's  dispute  about  who  should  do  the  work,  they  produced  cold 
scraps  of  mutton  and  a  kind  of  bread  which  deserves  a  totally 
distinct  generic  name.  The  strongest  stomachs  of  the  party  made 
tea,  and  found  some  milk  which  was  not  more  than  one  quarter 
flies.  This  succulent  meal  was  followed  by  the  usual  douceur. 
On  this  road,  however  mean  or  wretched  the  fare,  the  station- 
keeper,  who  is  established  by  the  proprietor  of  the  line,  never 
derogates  by  lowering  his  price. 

The  Valley  of  the  Little  Blue,  dth  August. 

A  little  after  midnight  we  resumed  our  way,  and  in  the  state 
which  Mohammed  described  when  be  made  his  famous  night 
journey  to  heaven — hayni  H  naumi  v:a  'Z  yakzdn — we  crossed  the 
deep  shingles,  the  shallow  streams,  and  the  heavy  vegetation  of 
the  Little  Sandy,  and  five  miles  beyond  it  we  forded  the  Big 
Sandy.  About  early  dawn  we  found  ourselves  at  another  station, 
better  than  the  last  only  as  the  hour  was  more  propitious.  The 
colony  of  Patlanders  rose  from  their  beds  without  a  dream  of  ab- 
lution, and  clearing  the  while  their  lungs  of  Cork  brogue,  pre- 
pared a  neat  dejeuner  a  la  fourchette  by  hacking  "  fids"  off  half  a 
sheep  suspended  from  the  ceiling,  and  frying  them  in  melted  tal- 
low.    Had  the  action  occurred  in  Central  Africa,  among  the  Es- 


Chm>.  I.  LITTLE  BLUE  RIVER  VALLEY.  §2 

quimaux,  or  the  Araucanians,  it  would  not  have  escitcd  my  at- 
tention :  mere  barbarism  rarely  disgusts ;  it  is  the  unnatural  co- 
habitation of  civilization  with  savagery  that  makes  the  traveler's 
gorge  rise. 

Issuing  from  Big  Sandy  Station  at  6  30  A.M.,  and  resuming 
our  route  over  the  divide  that  still  separated  the  valleys  of  the 
Big  Blue  and  the  Little  Blue,  we  presently  fell  into  the  line  of 
the  latter,  and  were  called  upon  by  the  conductor  to  admire  it. 
It  is  i^rett}'",  but  its  beauties  require  the  cosmetic  which  is  said  to 
act  unfailingly  in  the  case  of  fairer  things — the  viewer  should 
have  lately  spent  three  months  at  sea,  out  of  sight  of  rivers  and 
women.  Averaging  two  miles  in  width,  which  shrinks  to  one 
quarter  as  you  ascend,  the  valley  is  hedged  on  both  sides  by  low 
rolling  bluffs  or  terraces,  the  boundaries  of  its  ancient  bed  and 
modern  debordements.  As  the  hills  break  off  near  the  river,  they 
show  a  diluvial  formation ;  in  places  they  are  washed  into  a  va- 
riety of  forms,  and  being  white,  they  stand  out  in  bold  relief.  In 
other  parts  they  are  sand  mixed  with  soil  enough  to  support  a 
last-year's  growth  of  wheat-like  grass,  weed-stubble,  and  dead 
trees,  that  look  like  old  corn-fields  in  new  clearings.  One  could 
not  have  recognized  at  this  season  Colonel  Fremont's  description 
written  in  the  month,  of  June — the  "  hills  with  graceful  slopes 
looking  uncommonly  green  and  beautiful."  Along  the  bluffs  the 
road  winds,  crossing  at  times  a  rough  projecting  spur,  or  dipping 
into  some  gully  washed  out  by  the  rains  of  ages.  All  is  barren 
beyond  the  garden-reach  which  runs  along  the  stream ;  there  is 
not  a  tree  to  a  square  mile — in  these  regions  the  tree,  like  the  bird 
in  Arabia  and  the  monkey  in  Africa,  signifies  water — and  animal 
life  seems  well-nigh  extinct.  As  the  land  sinks  toward  the  river 
bottom,  it  becomes  less  barren.  The  wild  sunflower  {Heliantlius) 
— it  seldom,  however,  turns  toward  the  sun — now  becomes  abun- 
dant ;  it  was  sparse  near  the  Missouri ;  it  will  wax  even  more 
plentiful  around  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  till  walking  through  the 
beds  becomes  difiicult.  In  size  it  greatly  varies  according  to  the 
quality  of  the  soil ;  six  feet  is  perhaps  the  maximum.  It  is  a 
growth  of  some  value.  The  oleaginous  seeds  form  the  principal 
food  of  half-starved  Indians,  while  the  stalks  supply  them  with  a 
scanty  fuel :  being  of  rapid  growth,  it  has  been  used  in  the  States 
to  arrest  the  flow  of  malaria,  and  it  serves  as  house  and  home  to 
the  rattlesnake.  Conspicuous  by  its  side  is  the  sumach,  whose 
leaf,  mixed  with  kinnikinik,  the  peel  of  the  red  willow,  forms  the 
immemorial  smoking  material  of  the  "Wild  Man  of  the  North. 
Equally  remarkable  for  their  strong  odor  are  large  beds  of  wild 
onions;  they  are  superlatively  wholesome,  but  they  affect  the 
eater  like  those  of  Tibet.  The  predominant  colors  are  pink  and 
yellow,  the  former  a  lupine,  the  latter  a  shrub,  locally  called  the 
rabbit-bush.  The  blue  lupine  also  appears  with  the  white  mal- 
low, the  eccentric  putoria,  and  the  taraxacum  (dandelion),  so  much 


32  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Ch.u>.  I. 

used  as  salad  in  France  and  in  the  Eastern  States.  This  land  ajD- 
pears  excellentl}'  adapted  for  the  growth  of  manioc  or  cassava. 
In  the  centre  of  the  bottom  flows  the  brownish  stream,  about 
twenty  yards  wide,  between  two  dense  lines  of  tall  sweet  cotton- 
wood.  The  tree  which  was  fated  to  become  familiar  to  us  during 
our  wanderings  is  a  species  of  poplar  {P.  monilifera\  called  by  the 
Americo-Spaniards,  and  b}'-  the  people  of  Texas  and  Xew  Mexi- 
co, "Alamo:"  resembling  the  European  aspen,  without  its  silver 
lining,  the  color  of  the  leaf,  in  places,  appears  of  a  dull  burnished 
hue,  in  others  bright  and  refreshingly  green.  Its  trivial  name  is 
derived,  according  to  some,  from  the  fibrous  quality  of  the  bark, 
which,  as  in  Norway,  is  converted  into  food  for  cattle  and  even 
man ;  according  to  others,  from  the  cotton-like  substance  sur- 
rounding the  seeds.  It  is  termed  "sweet"  to  distinguish  it  from 
a  different  tree  with  a  bitter  bark,  also  called  a  cotton-wood  or 
narrow-leaved  cotton-wood  {Populus  angustifolia),  and  by  the  Ca- 
nadians Iia7xl  amere.  The  timber  is  soft  and  easily  cut ;  it  is  in 
many  places  the  only  material  for  building  and  burning,  and  the 
recklessness  of  the  squatters  has  already  shortened  the  supply. 

This  valley  is  the  Belgium  of  the  adjoining  tribes,  the  once 
terrible  Pawnees,  who  here  met  their  enemies,  the  Dakotahs  and 
the  Delawares:  it  was  then  a  great  buffalo  ground;  and  even 
twenty  years  ago  it  was  well  stocked  with  droves  of  wild  horses, 
turkeys,  and  herds  of  antelope,  deer,  and  elk.  The  animals  have 
of  late  migrated  westward,  carrying  off  with  them  the  "bones  of 
contention."  Some  details  concerning  the  present  condition  of 
these  bands  and  their  neighbors  may  not  be  uninteresting — these 
poor  remnants  of  nations  which  once  kept  the  power  of  North 
America  at  bay,  and  are  now  barely  able  to  struggle  for  exist- 
ence. 

In  1853,  the  government  of  the  United  States,  which  has  ever 
acted  paternally  toward  the  Indians,  treating  with  them  —  Great 
Britain  did  the  same  with  the  East  Indians — as  though  they  were 
a  civilized  peojDle,  availed  itself  of  the  savages'  desire  to  sell  lands 
encroached  upon  by  the  whites,  and  set  apart  for  a  general  res- 
ervation 181,171  square  miles.  Here,  in  the  Far  West,  were  col- 
lected into  what  was  then  believed  to  be  a  permanent  habitation, 
the  indigenes  of  the  land,  and  the  various  bands  once  lying  east 
of  the  Mississippi.  'This  "Indian's  home"  was  bounded,  in  1853, 
on  the  north  by  the  North  western  Territory  and  Minnesota ;  on 
the  south  by  Texas  and  New  Mexico ;  to  the  east  lay  Iowa,  Mis- 
souri, and  Arkansas;  and  to  the  west,  Oregon,  Utah,  and  New 
Mexico. 

The  savages'  reservation  was  then  thus  distributed.  The  east- 
ern portion  nearest  the  river  was  stocked  with  tribes  removed  to 
it  from  the  Eastern  States,  namely,  the  lowas,  Sacs  and  Foxes, 
Kickapoos,  Delawares,  Potawotomies,  Wyandottes,  Quapaws,  Sen- 
ecas,  Cherokees,  Seminoles,  Creeks,  Choctaws,  Chickasaws,  Miamis, 


CuAP.  I.  THE  INDIAN  TERRITOKY.  33 

and  Ottawas.  The  west  and  part  of  the  northeast  —  poor  and 
barren  lands — were  retained  by  the  aboriginal  tribes,  Ponkahs, 
Omahas  or  Mahas,  Pawnees,  Ottoes,  Kansas  or  Konzas,  and 
Osages.  The  central  and  the  remainder  of  the  western  portion — 
wild  countries  abounding  in  buffalo — were  granted  to  the  Western 
Pawnees,  the  Arickarees,  Arapahoes,  Cheyennes,  Kiowas,  Co- 
manches,  Utahs,  Grosventres,  and  other  nomads. 

It  was  somewhat  a  confusion  of  races.  For  instance,  the  Paw- 
nees form  an  independent  family,  to  which  some  authors  join  the 
Arickaree ;  the  Sacs  (Sauk)  and  Foxes,  Winnebagoes,  Ottoes, 
Kaws,  Omahas,  Cheyennes,  Mississippi  Dakotahs,  and  Missouri 
Dakotahs,  belong  to  the  Dakotan  family ;  the  Choctaws,  Creeks, 
and  Seminoles  are  Appalachians ;  the  Wyandottes,  like  the  Iro- 
quois, are  Hodesaunians ;  and  the  Ottawas,  Delawares,  Shawnees, 
Pq^wotomies,  Peorians,  Mohekuneuks,  Kaskaskias,  Piankeshaws, 
Weaws,  Miamis,  Kickapoos,  and  the  Menomenes,  are,  like  the  Ojib- 
was,  Algonquins. 

The  total  number  of  Indians  on  the  prairies  and  the  Eocky 
Mountains  was  estimated  roughly  at  63,000. 

Still  the  resistless  tide  of  emigration  swept  westward :  the  fed- 
eral government  was  as  powerless  to  stem  it  as  was  General  Fitz- 
roy  of  New  South  "Wales  to  prevent,  in  1852,  his  subjects  flock- 
ing to  the  "gold  diggings."  Despite  all  orders,  reckless  whites 
would  squat  upon,  and  thoughtless  reds,  bribed  by  whisky,  tobac- 
co, and  gunpowder,  would  sell  off  the  lands.  On  the  20th  of  May, 
1854,  was  passed  the  celebrated  "Kansas-Nebraska  Bill,"  an  act 
converting  the  greater  portion  of  the  "Indian  Territory,"  and  all 
the  "  Northwestern  Territory,"  into  two  new  territories — Kansas, 
north  of  the  87th  joarallel,  and  Nebraska,  north  of  the  40th.  In 
the  passage  of  this  bill,  the  celebrated  "Missouri  Compromise"  of 
1828,  prohibiting  negro  slavery  north  of  86°  80',  was  repealed, 
under  the  presidency  of  General  Pierce.*    It  provided  that  the 

*  The  "Missouri  Compromise"  is  an  important  event  in  Anglo-American  his- 
tory ;  it  must  be  regarded  as  the  great  parent  of  the  jangles  and  heart-burnings 
which  have  disiinited  the  United  States.  The  great  Jefferson  prophesied  in  these 
words:  "the  Missouri  question  is  a  breaker  on  which  we  lose  the  Missouri  country 
by  revolt,  and  what  more  God  only  knows.  From  the  battle  of  Bunker's  Hill  to  the 
treaty  of  Paris,  we  never  had  so  ominous  a  question." 

The  origin  of  the  trouble  was  this.  In  1817  the  eastern  half  of  the  Mississippi 
Territory  became  the  Territory  of  Alabama,  and — in  those  days  events  had  wings — 
the  14th  of  Dec,  1819,  witnessed  the  birth  of  Alabama  as  a  free  sovereign  and  inde- 
pendent slave  state.  The  South,  strong  in  wealth  and  numbers,  thereupon  moved 
toward  legalizing  slavery  in  the  newly-acquired  Territory  of  IMissouri,  and  when  Mis- 
souri claimed  to  be  admitted  as  a  state,  demanded  that  it  should  be  admitted  as  a 
slave  state.  The  Free-soilers,  or  opposite  party,  urged  two  reasons  why  Missouri 
should  be  a  free  state.  Firstly,  since  the  date  of  the  union  eight  new  states  had 
been  admitted,  four  slave  and  four  free.  Alabama,  the  last,  was  a  slave  state,  there- 
fore it  was  the  turn  for  a  free  state.  Secondly — and  here  was  the  rub — that  "slav- 
ery ought  not  to  be  permitted  in  any  state  or  territory  where  it  could  be  prohibited." 
This  very  broad  principle  involved,  it  is  manifest,  the  ruin  of  the  slave-ocracy.  From 
the  days  of  Mr.  Washington  to  those  of  Mr.  Lincoln,  the  northern  or  labor  states 
have  ever  aimed  at  the  ultimate  abolition  of  servitude  by  means  of  non-extension. 

C 


34  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

riglats  and  properties  of  the  Indians,  within  their  shrunken  pos- 
sessions, should  be  respected.  By  degrees  the  Indians  sold  their 
lands  for  whisky,  as  of  old,  and  retired  to  smaller  reservations. 
Of  course,  they  suffered  in  the  bargain ;  the  savage  ever  parts 
with  his  birthright  for  the  well-known  mess  of  pottage.  The 
Osages,  for  instance,  canceled  $4000,  claimed  by  unscrupulous 
traders,  by  a  cession  of  two  million  acres  of  arable  land.  The 
Potawotomies  fared  even  worse ;  under  the  influence  of  liquor, 
wg  XtyovcTi,  their  chiefs  sold  100,000  acres  of  the  best  soil  on  the 
banks  of  the  Missouri  for  a  mere  song.  The  tribe  was  removed 
to  a  bald  smooth  prairie,  sans  timber  and  consequently  sans  game ; 
many  fled  to  the  extreme  wilds,  and  the  others,  like  the  Acadians 
of  yore,  were  marched  about  till  they  found  homes  —  many  of 
them  six  feet  by  two  —  in  Fever  Patch,  on  the  Kaw  or  Kansas 
River.  Others  were  more  fortunate.  The  Ottoes,  Omahas,  ^d 
Kansas  had  permanent  villages  near  the  Missouri  and  its  two  trib- 
utaries, the  Platte  and  the  Kansas.  The  Osages,  formerly  a  large 
nation  in  Arkansas,  after  ceding  10,000,000  of  acres  for  a  stipend 
of  $52,000  for  thirty  years,  were  settled  in  a  district  on  the  west 
bank  of  the  Neosho  or  Whitewater — the  Grand  River.  They  are 
described  as  the  finest  and  largest  men  of  the  semi-nomad  races, 
with  well-formed  heads  and  symmetrical  figures,  brave,  warlike, 
and  well  disposed  to  the  whites.  Early  in  June,  after  planting 
their  maize,  they  move  in  mounted  bands  to  the  prairies,  feast 
upon  the  buffalo  for  months,  and  bring  home  stores  of  smoked 
and  jerked  meat.  When  the  corn  is  in  milk  they  husk  and  sun- 
dry it;  it  is  then  boiled,  and  is  said  to  be  better  flavored  and 
more  nutritious  than  the  East  Indian  "butah"  or  the  American 
hominy.  After  the  harvest  in  October  they  return  to  the  game 
country,  and  then  pass  the  winter  under  huts  or  skin  lodges. 
Their  chief  scourge  is  small-pox :  apparently,  all  the  tribes  carry 
some  cross.  Of  the  settled  races  the  best  types  are  the  Choctaws 
and  the  Cherokees ;  the  latter  have  shown  a  degree  of  improv- 

The  contest  about  Missouri  began  in  1818,  and  raged  for  three  yeai-s,  complicated  by 
a  new  feature,  namely,  Maine  separating  herself  from  Massachusetts,  and  balancinj^ 
the  admission  of  Alabama  by  becoming  a  free  state.  The  Lower  House  several 
times  voted  to  exclude  the  "peculiar  institution"  from  the  new  state,  and  the  con- 
servative Senate  —  in  which  the  Southern  element  was  ever  predominant  —  as  often 
restored  it.  Great  was  the  war  of  words  among  the  rival  legislators ;  at  length, 
after  repeated  conferences,  both  Senate  and  House  agi-eed  upon  a  bill  admitting  Mis- 
souri, after  her  Constitution  should  be  formed,  free  of  restriction,  but  prohibiting 
slavery  north  of  3G°  30'.  Missouri  acknowledged  the  boon  by  adopting  a  Constitu- 
tion which  denied  the  rights  of  citizens  even  to  free  negroes.  She  was  not  finally 
admittsd  until  the  10th  of  August,  1821,  when  her  Legislature  had  solemnly  cov- 
enanted to  guarantee  the  rights  of  citizenship  to  "the  citizens  of  either  of  the  states." 
Such  is  an  outline  of  the  far-famed  "  Missouri  Compromise."  The  influence  of  the 
Southern  slaveholders  caused  it  to  be  repealed,  as  a  slip  of  Texas  happened  to  lie 
north  of  the  prohibitative  latitude,  and  the  late  Mr.  S.  A.  Douglas  did  it  to  death  in 
1851.  The  Free-soilers,  of  course,  fought  hard  against  the  "sad  repeal,"  and  what 
they  now  fight  about,  forty  years  afterward,  is  to  run  still  farther  south  the  original 
line  of  limitation.     J  line  ilht'  larhri/ma  ! 


CiiAp,  I.  MISSIONAKIES.  35 

ability,  which  may  still  preserve  them  from  destruction ;  they 
have  a  form  of  government,  churches,  theatres,  and  schools  ;  they 
read  and  write  English ;  and  George  Guess,  a  well-known  chief, 
like  the  negro  inventor  of  the  Yai  syllabarium  in  West  Africa, 
produced  an  alphabet  of  sixty-eight  characters,  which,  improved 
and  simplified  by  the  missionaries,  is  found  useful  in  teaching  the 
vernacular. 

Upon  the  whole,  however,  the  philanthropic  schemes  of  the 
government  have  not  met  with  brilliant  success.  The  chiefs  are 
still  bribed,  and  the  people  cheated  by  white  traders,  and  pover- 
ty, disease,  and  debauchery  rapidly  thin  the  tribesmen.  Sensible 
heads  have  proposed  many  schemes  for  preserving  the  race.  Ap- 
parently the  best  of  these  projects  is  to  introduce  the  Moravian 
discipline.  Of  all  missionary  systems,  I  may  observe,  none  have 
hitherto  been  crowned  with  important  results,  despite  the  blood 
and  gold  so  profusely  expended  upon  them,  except  two — those  of 
the  Jesuits  and  the  United  Brethren.  The  fraternity  of  Jesus 
spread  the  Gospel  by  assimilating  themselves  to  the  heathen ;  the 
Unitas  Fratrum  by  assimilating  the  heathen  to  themselves.  The 
day  of  Jesuitism,  like  that  of  protection,  is  going  by.  The  ad- 
vance of  Moravianism,  it  may  safely  be  prophesied,  is  to  come. 
These  civilization  societies  have  as  yet  been  little  appreciated,  be- 
cause they  will  not  minister  to  that  ignorant  enthusiasm  which 
extracts  money  from  the  pockets  of  the  many.  Their  necessarily 
slow  progress  is  irksome  to  ardent  propagandists.  "We  naturally 
wish  to  reap  as  well  as  to  sow ;  and  man  rarely  invests  capital  in 
schemes  of  which  only  his  grandson  will  see  the  results. 

The  American  philanthropist  proposes  to  wean  the  Indian  sav- 
age from  his  nomad  life  by  turning  his  lodge  into  a  log  tent,  and 
by  providing  him  with  cattle  instead  of  buftalo,  and  the  domestic 
fowl  instead  of  grasshoppers.  The  hunter  become  a  herdsman 
would  thus  be  strengthened  for  another  step — the  agricultural 
life,  which  necessarily  follows  the  pastoral.  Factors  would  be  ap- 
pointed instead  of  vicious  traders — coureurs  des  bois,  as  the  Cana- 
dians call  them ;  titles  to  land  would  be  granted  in  fee-simple, 
practically  teaching  the  value  of  property  in  severalty,  alienation 
into  white  hands  would  be  forbidden,  and,  if  possible,  a  cordon 
militaire  would  be  stretched  between  the  races.  The  agricultural 
would  lead  to  the  mechanical  stage  of  society.  Agents  and  as- 
sistant craftsmen  would  teach  the  tribes  to  raise  mills  and  smithies 
(at  present  there  are  mills  without  millers,  stock  without  breed- 
ers, and  similar  attempts  to  make  civilization  run  before  she  can 
walk),  and  a  growing  appreciation  for  the  peace,  the  comfort,  and 
the  luxuries  of  settled  life  would  lay  the  nomad  instinct  forever. 

The  project  labors  only  under  one  difficulty — the  one  common 
to  philanthropic  schemes.  In  many  details  it  is  somewhat  vision- 
ary— Utopian.  It  is,  like  peace  on  earth,  a  "  dream  of  the  wise." 
Under  the  present  system  of  Indian  agencies,  as  will  in  a  future 


36  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

page  appear,  it  is  simply  impossible.  It  lias  terrible  obstacles  in 
the  westward  gravitation  of  the  white  race,  which,  after  sweeping 
away  the  aborigines — as  the  gray  rat  in  Europe  expelled  the  black 
rat — from  the  east  of  the  Mississippi  in  two  centuries  and  a  half, 
threatens,  before  a  quarter  of  that  time  shall  have  elapsed,  to  drive 
in  its  advance  toward  the  Pacific  the  few  survivors  of  now  pop- 
ulous tribes,  either  into  the  inhospitable  regions  north  of  the  49th 
parallel,  or  into  the  anarchical  countries  south  of  the  32  d.  And 
where,  I  may  ask,  in  the  history  of  the  world  do  we  read  of  a  peo- 
ple learning  civilization  from  strangers  instead  of  working  it  out 
for  themselves,  through  its  several  degrees  of  barbarism,  feudal- 
ism, monarchy,  republicanism,  despotism?  Still  it  is  a  noble  proj- 
ect ;  mankind  would  not  willingly  see  it  die. 

The  Pawnees  were  called  by  the  French  and  Canadian  traders 
Les  Loups,  that  animal  being  their  totem,  and  the  sign  of  the  tribe 
being  an  imitation  of  the  wolfs  ears,  the  two  fore  fingers  of  the  right 
hand  being  stuck  up  on  the  side  of  the  head.  They  were  in  the  last 
generation  a  large  nation,  containing  many  clans — Minnikajus,  the 
Sans  Arc,  the  Loup  Fork,  and  others.  Their  territory  embraced 
both  sides  of  the  Platte  Eiver,  especially  the  northern  lands ;  and 
they  rendered  these  grounds  terrible  to  the  trapper,  trader,  and 
traveler.  They  were  always  well  mounted.  Old  Mexico  was  then, 
and  partially  is  still,  their  stable,  and  a  small  band  has  driven  off 
horses  by  hundreds.  Of  late  years  they  have  become  powerless. 
The  influenza  acts  as  a  plague  among  them,  killing  off  400  or 
500  in  a  single  season,  and  the  nation  now  numbers  little  more 
than  300  braves,  or  rather  warriors,  the  latter,  in  correct  parlance, 
being  inferior  to  the  former,  as  the  former  are  subservient  to  the 
chief.  A  treaty  concluded  between  them  and  the  United  States 
in  the  winter  of  1857  sent  them  to  a  reserve  on  the  Loup  Fork, 
where  their  villages  were  destroyed  by  the  Sioux.  They  are 
Ishmaelites,  whose  hand  is  against  every  man.  They  have  at- 
tempted, after  the  fashion  of  declining  tribes,  to  strengthen  them- 
selves by  alliances  with  their  neighbors,  but  have  always  failed 
in  consequence  of  their  propensity  to  plunder  developing  itself 
even  before  the  powwow  was  concluded.  They  and  the  northern 
Dakotahs  can  never  be  trusted.  Most  Indian  races,  like  the  Bed- 
ouin Arabs,  will  show  hospitality  to  the  stranger  who  rides  into 
their  villages,  though  no  point  of  honor  deters  them  from  robbing 
him  after  he  has  left  the  lodge-shade.  The  Pawnees,  African- 
like, will  cut  the  throat  of  a  sleeping  guest.  They  are  easily  dis- 
tinguished from  their  neighbors  by  the  scalp-lock  protruding  from 
a  shaven  head.  After  killing  white  men,  they  have  insulted  the 
corpse  in  a  manner  familiar  to  those  who  served  in  the  Aftghan 
war.  They  have  given  up  the  practice  of  torturing  prisoners, 
saying  that  the  "Great  Spirit,"  or  rather,  as  the  expression  should 
be  translated,  the  "  Great  Father"  no  longer  wills  it.  The  tradi- 
tion is,  that  a  few  years  ago  a  squaw  of  a  hostile  tribe  was  snatch- 


Chap.  I.  THE  PAWNEES.— THE  DELA WAKES.  37 

cd  from  tlie  stake  by  a  ■white  trader,  and  the  action  was  inter- 
preted as  a  decree  of  heaven.  It  is  probably  a  corruption  of  the 
well-known  story  of  the  rescue  of  the  Itean  woman  by  Petalesha- 
roo,  the  son  of  the  "  Knife  Chief"  Like  the  Southern  and  West- 
ern Indians  generally,  as  is  truly  remarked  by  Captain  Mayne 
Reid,*  "  They  possess  more  of  that  cold  continence  and  chival- 
rous delicacy  than  characterize  the  Eed  Men  of  the  forest."  They 
are  too  treacherous  to  be  used  as  soldiers.  Like  most  pedestrian 
Indians,  their  arms  and  bodies  are  light  and  thin,  and  their  legs 
are  muscular  and  well  developed.  They  are  great  in  endurance. 
I  have  heard  of  a  Pawnee,  who,  when  thoroughly  "  stampeded" 
by  his  enemies,  "loped"  from  Fort  Laramie  to  Kearney — 300 
miles — making  the  distance  as  fast  as  the  mail.  This  bad  tribe 
is  ever  at  war  with  their  hereditary  enemies  the  Sioux.  They 
do  not  extend  westward  of  Fort  Kearney.  The  principal  sub- 
tribe  is  the  Arickaree,  or  Eee,  called  Pedani  by  the  Dakotah,  who 
attacked  and  conquered  them.  Their  large  villages,  near  the 
mouth  of  the  Grand  River,  -were  destroyed  by  the  expedition  sent 
in  1825-26,  under  Colonel  Leavenworth,  to  chastise  the  attack 
upon  the  trading  party  of  General  Ashley. 

A  more  interesting  people  than  the  Pawnee  is  the  Delaware, 
whose  oldest  tradition  derives  him  from  the  region  west  of  the 
Mississippi.  Thence  the  tribe  migrated  to  the  Atlantic  shores, 
where  they  took  the  title  of  Lenne  Lenape,  or  men,  and  the  neigh- 
boring races  in  respect  called  them  "  uncle."  William  Penn  and 
his  followers  found  this  remnant  of  the  great  Algonquin  confeder- 
acy in  a  depressed  state :  subjugated  by  the  Five  Nations,  they 
had  been  compelled  to  take  the  name  of  "  Iroquois  Squaws."  In 
those  days  they  felt  an  awe  of  the  white  man,  and  looked  upon 
him  as  a  something  godlike.  Since  their  return  to  the  West  their 
spirit  has  revived,  their  war-path  has  reached  through  Utah  to 
the  Pacific  Ocean,  to  Hudson's  Bay  on  the  north,  and  southward 
to  the  heart  of  Mexico.  Their  present  abodes  are  principally  near 
Fort  Leavenworth  upon  the  Missouri,  and  in  the  Qhoctaw  terri- 
tory near  Fort  Arbuckle,  upon  the  eastern  Colorado  or  Canadian 
River.  They  are  familiar  with  the  languages,  manners,  and  cus- 
toms of  their  pale-faced  neighbors;  they  are  so  feared  as  rifle 
shots  that  a  host  of  enemies  will  fly  from  a  few  of  their  warriors, 
and  they  mostly  lead  a  vagrant  life,  the  wandering  Jews  of  the 
West,  as  traders,  hunters,  and  trappers,  among  the  other  Indian 
tribes.  For  185  years  the  Shawnees  have  been  associated  with 
them  in  intermarriage,  yet  they  are  declining  in  numbers ;  here 
and  there  some  are  lost,  one  by  one,  in  travel  or  battle;  they  have 
now  dwindled  to  about  a  hundred  warriors,  and  the  extinction  of 
the  tribe  appears  imminent.  As  hunters  and  guides,  they  are 
preferred  to  all  others  by  the  whites,  and  it  is  believed  that  they 
would  make  as  formidable  partisan  soldiers  as  any  on  this  conti- 

*  The  Scalp-hunters,  chap  xlii. 


38  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

nent.  "WTien  the  government  of  the  United  States,  after  the  fash- 
ion of  France  and  England,  begins  to  raise  "Irregular  Native 
Corps,"  the  loss  of  the  Delawares  will  be  regretted. 

Changing  mules  at  KLiowa  about  10  A.M.,  we  pushed  forward 
through  the  sun,  which  presently  was  mitigated  by  heavy  nimbi, 
to  Liberty  Farm,  where  a  station  supplied  us  with  the  eternal 
eggs  and  bacon  of  these  miangeurs  de  lard.  It  is  a  dish  constant 
in  the  great  West,  as  the  omelet  and  pigeon  in  the  vetturini  days 
of  Italy,  when,  promj)ted  by  the  instincts  of  self-preservation,  the 
inmates  of  the  dove-cot,  unless  prevented  in  time,  are  said  to  have 
fled  their  homes  at  the  sight  of  Milordo's  traveling  carriage,  not 
to  return  until  the  portent  had  disappeared.  The  Little  Blue  ran 
hard  by,  about  fifty  feet  ■v\'ide  by  three  or  four  deep,  fringed  with 
emerald-green  oak  groves,  cotton-wood,  and  long-leaved  willow: 
its  waters  supply  catfish,  suckers,  and  a  soft-shelled  turtle,  but  the 
fish  are  full  of  bones,  and  taste,  as  might  be  imagined,  much  like 
mud.  The  country  showed  vestiges  of  animal  life,  the  prairie 
bore  signs  of  hare  and  antelope  j  in  the  vallej^,  coj'otes,  wolves, 
and  foxes,  attracted  by  the  carcasses  of  cattle,  stared  us  in  the 
face,  and  near  the  stream,  plovers,  jays,  the  bluebird  (sialia),  and 
a  kind  of  starling,  called  the  swamp  or  redwinged  blackbird,  twit- 
tered a  song  of  satisfaction.  "We  then  resumed  our  journey  over 
a  desert,  waterless  save  after  rain,  for  twenty-three  miles ;  it  is  the 
divide  between  the  Little  Blue  and  the  Platte  rivers,  a  broken  ta- 
ble-land rising  gradually  toward  the  west,  with,  at  this  season,  a 
barren  soil  of  sand  and  clay.  As  the  evening  approached,  a  smile 
from  above  lit  up  into  absolute  beauty  the  homely  features  of  the 
world  below.  The  sweet  commune  with  nature  in  her  fairest 
hours  denied  to  the  sons  of  cities — who  must  contemplate  her 
charms  through  a  vista  of  brick  wall,  or  over  a  foreground  of 
chimney-pots — consoled  us  amply  for  all  the  little  hardships  of 
travel.  Strata  upon  strata  of  cloud-banks,  burnished  to  golden 
red  in  the  vicinity  of  the  setting  sun,  and  polished  to  dazzling  sil- 
very white  above,  lay  piled  half  way  from  the  horizon  to  the  ze- 
nith, with  a  distinct  strike  toward  a  vanishing  point  in  the  west, 
and  dipping  into  a  gateway  through  which  the  orb  of  day  slowly 
retired.  Overhead  floated  in  a  sea  of  amber  and  yellow,  pink  and 
green,  heavy  purple  nimbi,  apparently  turned  upside  down — their 
convex  bulges  below,  and  their  horizontal  lines  high  in  the  air — 
while  in  the  east  black  and  blue  were  so  curiously  blended  that 
the  eye  could  not  distinguish  whether  it  rested  upon  darkening 
air  or  upon  a  lowering  thunder-cloud.  "We  enjoyed  these  beau- 
ties in  silence ;  not  a  soul  said,  "  Look  there !"  or  "  How  pretty !" 

At  9  P.M.,  reaching  "  Thirty-two-mile  Creek,"  we  were  pleas- 
antly surprised  to  find  an  utter  absence  of  the  Irishry.  The  sta- 
tion-master was  the  head  of  a  neat-handed  and  thrifty  family  from 
Vermont ;  the  rooms,  such  as  they  were,  looked  cosy  and  clean- 
and  the  chickens  and  peaches  were  plump  and  well  "  fixed."    Sol- 


Chap.  I.  LA  GRANDE  PLATTE.  '         39 

diers  from  Fort  Kearney  loitered  about  tlie  adjoining  store,  and 
from  them  we  heard  past  fights  and  rumors  of  future  wars  which 
were  confirmed  on  the  morrow.  Remounting  at  10  30  P.M.,  and 
before  moonrise,  we  threaded  the  gloom  without  other  accident 
than  the  loss  of  a  mule  that  was  being  led  to  the  next  station. 
The  amiable  animal,  after  breaking  loose,  coquetted  with  its  pur- 
suers for  a  while,  according  to  the  fashion  of  its  kind,  and  when 
the  ccrne  or  surround  was  judged  complete,  it  dashed  through  the 
circle  and  gave  leg-bail,  its  hoofs  ringing  over  the  stones  till  the 
sound  died  away  in  the  distant  shades. 

The  Platte  River  and  Fort  Kearney,  August  10. 

After  a  long  and  chilly  night — extensive  evaporation  making 
40°  F.  feel  excessively  cold — lengthened  by  the  atrocity  of  the 
musquetoes,  which  sting  even  when  the  thermometer  stands  be- 
low 45°,  we  awoke  upon  the  hill  sands  divided  by  two  miles  of 
level  green  savanna,  and  at  4  A.M.  reached  Kearney  Station,  in 
the  valley  of  La  Grande  Platte,  seven  miles  from  the  fort  of  that 
name.  The  first  aspect  of  the  stream  was  one  of  calm  and  quiet 
beauty,  which,  however,  it  owed  much  to  its  accessories:  some 
travelers  have  not  hesitated  to  characterize  it  as  "  the  dreariest  of 
rivers."  On  the  south  is  a  rolling  range  of  red  sandy  and  clayey 
hillocks,  sharp  toward  the  river — the  "coasts  of  the  Nebraska." 
The  valley,  here  two  miles  broad,  resembles  the  ocean  deltas  of 
great  streams;  it  is  level  as  a  carpet,  all  short  green  grass  with- 
out sage  or  bush.  It  can  hardly  be  called  a  bottom,  the  rise  from 
the  water's  edge  being,  it  is  calculated,  about  4  feet  per  1000. 
Under  a  bank,  from  half  a  yard  to  a  yard  high,  through  its  two 
lawns  of  verdure,  flowed  the  stream  straight  toward  the  slanting 
rays  of  the  rising  sun,  which  glittered  upon  its  broad  bosom,  and 
shed  rosy  light  over  half  the  heavens.  In  places  it  shows  a  sea 
horizon,  but  here  it  was  narrowed  by  Grand  Island,  which  is  fifty- 
two  miles  long,  with  an  average  breadth  of  one  mile  and  three 
quarters,  and  sufficiently  elevated  above  the  annual  flood  to  be 
well  timbered. 

Without  excepting  even  the  Missouri,  the  Platte  is  doubtless 
the  most  important  western  influent  of  the  Mississippi.  Its  val- 
ley offers  a  route  scarcely  to  be  surpassed  for  natural  gradients, 
requiring  little  beyond  the  superstructure  for  light  trains;  and  by 
following  up  its  tributary — the  Sweetwater — the  engineer  finds 
a  line  laid  down  by  nature  to  the  foot  of  the  South  Pass  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains,  the  dividing  ridge  between  the  Atlantic  and 
the  Pacific  water-beds.  At  present  the  traveler  can  cross  the  300 
or  400  miles  of  desert  between  the  settlements  in  the  east  and  the 
populated  parts  of  the  western  mountains  by  its  broad  highway, 
with  never-failing  supplies  of  water,  and,  in  places,  fuel.  Its  banks 
will  shortly  supply  coal  to  take  the  place  of  the  timber  that  has 
thinned  out. 


40  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAIKTS.  Chap.  I. 

The  Canadian  voyageurs  first  named  it  La  Platte,  the  Flat  River, 
discarding,  or  rather  translating  after  their  fashion,  the  musical  and 
picturesque  aboriginal  term,  "Nebraska,"  the  "shallow  stream:" 
the  word  has  happily  been  retained  for  the  Territory.  Springing 
from  the  eastern  slope  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  it  has,  like  all  the 
valley  streams  westward  of  the  Mississippi,  the  Niobrara,  or  Eau 
qui  court,*  the  Arkansas,  and  the  Canadian  River,  a  declination 
to  the  southeast.  From  its  mouth  to  the  junction  of  its  northern 
and  southern  forks,  the  river  valley  is  mostly  level,  and  the  scen- 
ery is  of  remarkable  sameness :  its  singularity  in  this  point  affects 
the  memory.  There  is  not  a  tributary,  not  a  ravine,  in  places  not 
a  tree  to  distract  attention  from  the  grassy  intermediate  bottom, 
which,  plain  as  a  prairie,  extends  from  four  to  five  and  even  twelve 
miles  in  width,  bounded  on  both  sides  by  low,  rolling,  sandy  hills, 
thinly  vegetated,  and  in  few  places  showing  dwarf  bluffs.  Be- 
tween the  forks  and  Fort  Laramie  the  ground  is  more  accented, 
the  land  near  its  banks  often  becomes  precipitous,  the  road  must 
sometimes  traverse  the  tongues  and  ridges  which  project  into  the 
valley,  and  in  parts  the  path  is  deep  with  sand.  The  stream  av- 
erages about  a  mile  in  breadth,  and  sometimes  widens  out  into  the 
semblance  of  an  estuary,  flowing  in  eddies  where  holes  are,  and 
broken  by  far-reaching  sand-bars  and  curlew  shallows.  In  places 
it  is  a  labyrinth  of  islets,  variously  shaj)ed  and  of  all  sizes,  from 
the  long  tongue  which  forms  a  vista  to  the  little  bouquet  of  cool 
verdure,  grass,  young  willows,  and  rose-bushes.  The  shallowness 
of  the  bed  causes  the  water  to  be  warm  in  summer ;  a  great  con- 
trast to  the  clear,  cool  springs  on  its  banks.  The  sole  is  treacher- 
ous in  the  extreme,  full  of  quicksands  and  gravel  shoals,  channels 
and  cuts,  which  shift,  like  those  of  the  Indus,  with  each  year's 
flood ;  the  site  being  nearly  level,  the  river  easily  swells,  and  the 
banks,  here  of  light,  there  of  dark  colored  silt,  based,  like  the  floor, 
on  sand,  are,  though  vertical,  rarely  more  than  two  feet  high.  It 
is  a  river  willfully  wasted  by  nature.  The  inundation  raises  it  to 
about  six  feet  throughout :  this  freshet,  however,  is  of  short  dura- 
tion, and  the  great  breadth  of  the  river  causes  a  want  of  depth 
which  renders  it  unfit  for  the  navigation  of  a  craft  more  civilized 
than  the  Indian's  birch  or  the  Canadian  fur-boat.  Colonel  Fre- 
mont failed  to  descend  it  in  September  with  a  boat  drawing  only 
four  inches.  The  water,  like  that  of  the  Missouri,  and  for  the  same 
reason,  is  surcharged  with  mud- drained  from  the  prairies;  carried 
from  afar,  it  has  usually  a  dark  tinge ;  it  is  remarkably  opaque 
after  floods ;  if  a  few  inches  deep,  it  looks  bottomless,  and,  finally, 
it  contains  little  worth  fishing  for.  From  the  mouth  to  Fort  Kear- 
ney, beyond  which  point  timber  is  rare,  one  bank,  and  one  only, 
is  fringed  with  narrow  lines  of  well-grown  cotton-wood,  red  wil- 

*  For  an  accurate  geographical  description  of  this  little-known  river,  the  reader  is 
referred  to  Lieutenant  Warren's  report,  published  by  the  Secretary  of  War,  United 
States. 


CiiAr.  I.  THE  WILD  GARDEN.  41 

lows,  and  cedars,  which  are  disappearing  before  the  emigrant's 
axe.  The  cedar  now  becomes  an  important  tree.  It  will  not  grow 
on  the  plains,  owing  to  the  dryness  of  the  climate  and  the  excess- 
ive cold ;  even  in  the  sheltered  ravines  the  wintry  winds  have 
power  to  blight  all  the  tops  that  rise  above  prairie  level,  and  where 
the  locality  is  better  adapted  for  plantations,  firs  prevail.  An  in- 
teresting effect  of  climate  upon  the  cedar  is  quoted  by  travelers 
on  the  Missouri  Eiver.  At  the  first  Cedar  Island  (-13°  N.  lat.)  large 
and  straight  trees  appear  in  the  bottom  lands,  those  on  the  bluffs 
being  of  inferior  growth ;  higher  up  the  stream  they  diminish, 
seldom  being  seen  in  any  number  together  above  the  mouth  of 
the  Little  Cheyenne  (-15°  N.  lat.),  and  there  they  are  exceedingly 
crooked  and  twisted.  In  the  lignite  formations  above  the  Mis- 
souri and  the  Yellow  Stone,  the  cedar,  unable  to  support  itself 
above  ground,  spreads  over  the  hill-sides  and  presents  the  appear- 
ance of  grass  or  moss. 

Beyond  the  immediate  banks  of  the  Platte  the  soil  is  either 
sandy,  quickly  absorbing  water,  or  it  is  a  hard,  cold,  unwhole- 
some clay,  which  long  retains  muddy  pools,  black  with  decayed 
vegetation,  and  which  often,  in  the  lowest  levels,  becomes  a  mere 
marsh.  The  wells  deriving  infiltration  from  the  higher  lands  be- 
yond are  rarely  more  than  three  feet  deep ;  the  produce  is  some- 
what saline,  and  here  and  there  salt  may  be  seen  eflSorescing  from 
the  soil  around  them.  In  the  large  beds  of  prele  (an  equisetum), 
scouring  rush,  and  other  aquatic  plants  which  garnish  the  banks, 
myriads  of  musquetoes  find  a  home.  Flowers  of  rich,  warm  color 
appear,  we  remark,  in  the  sandy  parts :  the  common  wild  helian- 
thus  and  a  miniature  sunflower  like  chamomile,  a  thistle  {Carduus 
leucographus\  the  cactus,  a  peculiar  milk-plant  {Asclepias  syrivea)^ 
a  spurgewort  {Asclepias  tuherosa\  the  amorpha,  the  tradescantia, 
the  putoria,  and  the  artemisia,  or  prairie  sage.  The  richer  soils 
and  ravines  produce  in  abundance  the  purple  aster  —  violet  of 
these  regions  —  a  green  plant,  locally  known  as  "Lamb's  Quar- 
ters," a  purple  flower  with  bulbous  root,  wild  flax  with  pretty 
blue  blossoms,  besides  mallow,  digitalis,  anemone,  streptanthis, 
and  a  honeysuckle.  In  parts  the  valley  of  the  Platte  is  a  perfect 
parterre  of  wild  flowers. 

After  satisfying  hunger  with  vile  bread  and  viler  coffee — how 
far  from  the  little  forty-berry  cup  of  Egypt ! — for  which  we  paid 
75  cents,  we  left  Kearney  Station  without  delay.  Hugging  the 
right  bank  of  our  strange  river,  at  8  A.M.  we  found  ourselves  at 
Fort  Kearney,  so  called,  as  is  the  custom,  after  the  gallant  ofl&cer, 
now  deceased,  of  that  name. 

Every  square  box  or  block -house  in  these  regions  is  a  fort ;  no 
misnomer,  however,  can  be  more  complete  than  the  word  applied 
to  the  military  cantonments  on  the  frontier.  In  former  times  the 
traders  to  whom  these  places  mostly  belonged  erected  quadran- 
gles of  sun-dried  brick  with  towers  at  the  angles ;  their  forts  still 


42  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

appear  in  old  books  of  travels :  the  War  Department,  however, 
has  been  sensible  enough  to  remove  them.  The  position  usually 
chosen  is  a  river  bottom,  where  fuel,  grass,  and  water  are  readily- 
procurable.  The  quarters  are  of  various  styles ;  some,  with  their 
low  verandas,  resemble  Anglo-Indian  bungalows  or  comfortable 
farm-houses;  others  are  the  storied  houses,  with  the  "stoop"  or 
porch  of  the  Eastern  States  in  front ;  and  low,  long,  peat-roofed 
tenements  are  used  for  magazines  and  out-houses.  The  best  ma- 
terial is  brown  adobe  or  unburnt  brick;  others  are  of  timber, 
whitewashed  and  clean-looking,  with  shingle  roofs,  glass  win- 
dows, and  gay  green  frames — that  contrast  of  colors  which  the 
New  Englander  loves.  The  habitations  surround  a  cleared  cen- 
tral space  for  parade  and  drill ;  the  ground  is  denoted  by  the  tall 
flag-staff,  which  does  not,  as  in  English  camps,  distinguish  the 
quarters  of  the  commanding  oflS.cer.  One  side  is  occupied  by  the 
officers'  bungalows,  the  other,  generally  that  opposite,  by  the  ad- 
jutant's and  quartermaster's  offices,  and  the  square  is  completed 
by  low  ranges  of  barrack  and  commissariat  stores,  while  various 
little  shops,  stables,  corrals  for  cattle,  a  chapel,  perhaps  an  artil- 
lery park,  and  surely  an  ice-house — in  this  point  India  is  far  be- 
hind the  wilds  of  America — complete  the  settlement.  Had  these 
cantonments  a  few  more  trees  and  a  far  more  brilliant  verdure, 
they  would  suggest  the  idea  of  an  out-station  in  Guzerat,  the  Dec- 
can,  or  some  similar  Botany  Bay  for  decaj'ed  gentlemen  who 
transport  themselves. 

While  at  Washington  I  had  resolved — as  has  already  been  in- 
timated— when  the  reports  of  war  in  the  West  were  waxing  loud, 
to  enjoy  a  little  Indian  lighting.  The  meritorious  intention  — 
for  which  the  severest  "  wig,"  concluding  with  something  person- 
ally offi^nsive  about  volunteering  in  general,  would  have  been  its 
sole  result  in  the  "  fast-anchored  isle" — was  most  courteously  re- 
ceived by  the  Hon.  John  B.  Floyd,  Secretary  of  War,  who  j^ro- 
vided  me  with  introductory  letters  addressed  to  the  officers  com- 
manding various  "departments"* — "divisions,"  as  they  would 

*  The  following  is  a  list  of  tlie  military  departments  into  •which  the  United  States 
are  divided : 

MiLITAET    COMMAXDS. 

Department  of  the  East. — The  country  east  of  the  Mississippi  Eiver ;  head-quarters 
at  Troy,  N.  Y. 

Department  of  the  West. — The  country  west  of  the  Mississippi  River,  and  east  of 
the  Rocky  Mountains,  except  that  portion  included  within  the  limits  of  the  depart- 
ments of  Texas  and  New  Mexico;  head-quarters  at  St.  Louis,  Mo. 

Department  of  Texas. — The  State  of  Texas,  and  the  territory  north  of  it  to  the 
boundaries  of  New  Mexico,  Kansas,  and  Arkansas,  and  the  Arkansas  River,  includ- 
ing Fort  Smith.  Fort  Bliss,  in  Texas,  is  temporarily  attached  to  the  department 
of  New  Mexico ;  head-quarters  at  San  Antonio,  Texas. 

Department  of  New  Mexico. — The  Territory  of  New  INIexico ;  head-quarters  at 
Santa  Fe',  New"  Mexico. 

Department  of  Utah. — The  Territory  of  Utah,  except  that  portion  of  it  lying  west 
of  the  117th  degree  of  west  longitude  ;  head-quarters,  Camp  Floyd,  U.  T. 

Department  of  the  Pacific. — The  country  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  except 


CuAr.  I.  INDIAN  FIGHTING.  43 

be  called  by  Englishmen — in  the  West.  The  first  tidings  that 
saluted  my  ears  on  arrival  at  Fort  Kearney  acted  as  a  quietus : 
an  Indian  action  had  been  fought,  which  signified  that  there 
•would  be  no  more  fighting  for  some  time.  Captain  Sturgis,  of 
the  1st  Cavalry,  U.  S.,  had  just  attacked,  near  the  Eepublican  Fork 
of  Kansas  Kiver,  a  little  south  of  the  fort,  with  six  companies 
(about  350  men)  and  a  few  Delawares,  a  considerable  body  of  the 
enemy,  Comanches,  Kiowas,  and  Cheyennes,  who  apparently  had 
forgotten  the  severe  lesson  administered  to  them  by  Colonel — 
now  Brigadier  General — Edwin  V.  Sumner,  1st  Cavalry,  in  1857, 
and  killed  twenty -five  with  only  two  or  three  of  his  own  men 
wounded.  According  to  details  gathered  at  Fort  Kearney,  the 
Indians  had  advanced  under  a  black  flag,  lost  courage,  as  wild 
men  mostly  will,  when  they  heard  the  pas  de  charge^  and,  after 
making  a  running  fight,  being  well  mounted  as  well  as  armed,  had 
carried  off  their  "  cripples"  lashed  to  their  horses.  I  had  no  time 
to  call  upon  Captain  Sully,  who  remained  in  command  at  Kear- 
ney with  two  troops  (here  called  companies)  of  dragoons,  or  heavy 
cavalry,  and  one  of  infantry ;  the  mail-wagon  would  halt  there 
but  a  few  minutes.  I  therefore  hurriedly  chose  the  alternative 
of  advancing,  with  the  hope  of  seeing  "independent  service"  on 
the  road.  Intelligence  of  the  fight  had  made  even  the  conductor 
look  grave ;  fifty  or  sixty  miles  is  a  flea-bite  to  a  mounted  war- 
party,  and  disappointed  Indians  npon  the  war-path  are  especially 
dangerous — even  the  most  friendly  can  not  be  trusted  when  they 
have  lost,  or  have  not  succeeded  in  taking,  a  few  scalps.  We  sub- 
sequently heard  that  they  had  crossed  our  path,  but  whether  the 
tale  was  true  or  not  is  an  essentially  doubtful  matter.  If  this 
chance  failed,  remained  the  excitement  of  the  buffalo  and  the 
Mormon ;  both  were  likely  to  show  better  sport  than  could  be 
found  in  riding  wildly  about  the  country  after  runaway  braves. 

We  all  prepared  for  the  "  gravity  of  the  situation"  by  discharg- 
ing and  reloading  our  weapons,  and  bade  adieu,  about  9  80  A.M., 
to  Fort  Kearney.  Before  dismissing  the  subject  of  forts,  I  am 
disposed  to  make  some  invidious  remarks  npon  the  army  system 
of  outposts  in  America. 

The  War  Department  of  the  United  States  has  maintained  the 
same  system  which  the  British,  much  to  their  loss — I  need  scarce- 
ly trouble  the  reader  with  a  list  of  evils  done  to  the  soldier  by 
outpost  duty — adopted  and  pertinaciously  kept  up  for  so  long  a 
time  in  India ;  nay,  even  maintain  to  the  present  day,  despite  the 
imminent  danger  of  mutiny.  With  the  Anglo-Scandinavian  race, 
the  hate  of  centralization  in  civil  policy  extends  to  military  or- 

those  portions  of  it  included  within  the  limits  of  the  departments  of  Utah  and  New 
Mexico,  and  the  district  of  Oregon  ;  head-quarters  at  San  Francisco,  California. 

District  of  Oregon. — The  Territory  of  Washington  and  the  State  of  Oregon,  ex- 
cepting the  Rogue  River  and  Umpqua  districts  in  Oregon ;  head-quarters  at  Fort 
Vancouver,  Washington  Territory. 


44  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

ganization,  of  wliich  it  should  be  the  vital  principle.  The  French, 
eifted  with  instinct  for  war,  and  being  troubled  with  scant  preju- 
mce  against  concentration,  civil  as  well  as  military,  soon  aban- 
doned, when  they  found  its  futility,  the  idea  of  defending  their 
Algerian  frontier  by  extended  lines,  block-houses,  and  feeble  in- 
trenched posts.  They  wisely  established,  at  the  centres  of  action, 
depots,  magazines,  and  all  the  recjuisites  for  supporting  large 
bodies  of  men,  making  them  pivots  for  expeditionary  columns, 
which  by  good  military  roads  could  be  thrown  in  overwhelming 
numbers,  in  the  best  health  and  in  the  highest  discipline,  wherever 
an  attack  or  an  insurrectionary  movement  required  crushing. 

The  necessity  of  so  doing  has  long  occurred  to  the  American 
government,  in  whose  service  at  present  "  a  regiment  is  stationed 
to-day  on  the  borders  of  tropical  Mexico ;  to-morrow,  the  war- 
whoop,  borne  on  a  gale  from  the  northwest,  compels  its  presence 
to  the  frozen  latitudes  of  Puget's  Sound."  The  objections  to  al- 
tering their  present  highly  objectionable  system  are  two :  the  first 
is  a  civil  consideration,  the  second  a  military  one. 

As  I  have  remarked  about  the  centralization  of  troops,  so  it  is 
with  their  relation  to  civilians;  the  Anglo-Scandinavian  blood 
shows  similar  manifestations  in  the  Old  and  in  the  New  Country. 
The  French,  a  purely  military  nation,  pet  their  army,  raise  it  to 
the  highest  pitch,  send  it  in  for  glory,  and  when  it  fails  are  to  its 
faults  a  little  blind.  The  English  and  Anglo-Americans,  essen- 
tially a  commercial  and  naval  people,  dislike  the  red  coat ;  they 
look  upon,  and  from  the  first  they  looked  upon,  a  standing  army 
as  a  necessary  nuisance;  they  ever  listen  open-eared  to  projects 
for  cutting  and  curtailing  army  expenditure ;  and  when  they  have 
weakened  their  forces  by  a  manner  of  atrophy,  they  expect  them 
to  do  more  than  their  duty,  and  if  they  can  not  command  success, 
abuse  them.  With  a  commissariat,  transport,  and  hospitals — deli- 
cate pieces  of  machinery,  which  can  not  run  smoothly  when  rough- 
ly and  hurriedly  put  together — unaccustomed  to  and  unprepared 
for  service,  they  land  an  army  3000  miles  from  home,  and  then 
make  the  world  ring  with  their  disappointment,  and  their  com- 
plainings anent  fearful  losses  in  men  and  money.  The  fact  is  that, 
though  no  soldiers  in  the  world  fight  with  more  bravery  and  de- 
termination, the  Anglo-Scandinavian  race,  with  their  present  insti- 
tutions, are  inferior  to  their  inferiors  in  other  points,  as  regards  the 
art  of  military  organization.  Their  fatal  wants  are  order  and 
economy,  combined  with  the  will  and  the  means  of  selecting  the 
best  men — these  belong  to  the  emperor,  not  to  the  constitutional 
king  or  the  president — ^^and  most  of  all,  the  habit  of  implicit  sub- 
jection to  the  commands  of  an  absolute  dictator.  The  end  of  this 
long  preamble  is  that  the  American  government  apparently  thinks 
less  of  the  efiiciency  of  its  troops  than  of  using  them  as  escorts  to 
squatters,  as  police  of  the  highway.  Withal  they  fail ;  emigrants 
will  not  be  escorted ;  women  and  children  will  struggle  when  they 


Chap.  I.  OUTPOST  SYSTEMS.  45 

please,  even  in  an  Indian  country,  and  every  season  has  its  dread- 
ful tales  of  violence  and  starvation,  massacre  and  cannibalism.  In 
France  the  emigrants  would  be  ordered  to  collect  in  bodies  at  cer- 
tain seasons,  to  report  their  readiness  for  the  road  to  the  officers 
commanding  stations,  to  receive  an  escort,  as  he  should  deem 
proper,  and  to  disobey  at  their  peril. 

The  other  motive  of  the  American  outpost  system  is  military, 
but  also  of  civilian  origin.  Concentration  would  necessarily  be 
unpalatable  to  a  number  of  senior  officers,  who  now  draw  what  in 
England  would  be  called  command  allowances  at  the  several  sta- 
tions.* One  of  the  principles  of  a  republic  is  to  pay  a  man  only 
while  he  works ;  pensions,  like  sinecures,  are  left  to  governments 
less  disinterested.  The  American  army — it  would  hardly  be  be- 
lieved— has  no  pensions,  sale  of  commissions,  off-reckonings,  nor 
retiring  list.  A  man  hopelessly  invalided,  or  in  his  second  child- 
hood, must  hang  on  by  means  of  furloughs  and  medical  certificates 
to  the  end.  The  colonels  are  mostly  upon  the  sick-list — one  died 
lately  aged  ninety-three,  and  dating  from  the  days  of  Louis  X.Y1. 
— and  I  heard  of  an  officer  who,  though  practicing  medicine  for 
years,  was  still  retained  upon  the  cadre  of  his  regiment.  Of  course, 
the  necessity  of  changing  such  an  anomaly  has  frequently  been 
mooted  by  the  Legislature ;  the  scandalous  failure,  however,  of  an 
attempt  at  introducing  a  pension-list  into  the  United  States  Navy 
so  shocked  the  public  that  no  one  will  hear  of  the  experiment  be- 
ing renewed,  even  in  corj^ore  vili,  the  army. 

To  conclude  the  subject  of  outpost  system.  If  the  change  be 
advisable  in  the  United  States,  it  is  positively  necessary  to  the 
British  in  India.  The  peninsula  presents  three  main  points,  not 
to  mention  the  detached  heights  that  are  found  in  every  province, 
as  the  great  pivots  of  action,  the  Himalayas,  the  Deccan,  and  the 
Nilgherry  Hills,  where,  until  wanted,  the  Sepoy  and  his  officer,  as 
well  as  the  white  soldier — the  latter  worth  £100  a  head — can  be 
kept  in  health,  drilled,  disciplined,  and  taught  the  hundred  arts 
which  render  an  "  old  salt"  the  most  handy  of  men.  A  few  years 
ago  the  English  soldier  was  fond  of  Indian  service ;  hardly  a  regi- 
ment returned  home  without  leaving  hundreds  behind  it.  Now, 
long,  fatiguing  marches,  scant  fare,  the  worst  accommodation,  and 
the  various  results  of  similar  hardships,  make  him  look  upon  the 
land  as  a  Golgotha ;  it  is  with  difficulty  that  he  can  be  prevented 
from  showing  his  disgust.  Both  in  India  and  America,  this  will 
be  the  great  benefit  of  extensive  railroads :  they  will  do  away  with 
single  stations,  and  enable  the  authorities  to  carry  out  a  system 
of  concentration  most  beneficial  to  the  country  and  to  the  service, 

*  The  aggregate  of  the  little  regular  army  of  the  United  States  in  1860  amounted 
to  18,093.  It  was  dispersed  into  eighty  military  posts,  viz.,  thirteen  in  the  Depart- 
ment of  the  East,  nine  in  the  West,  twenty  in  Texas,  twelve  in  the  Department  of 
New  Mexico,  two  in  Utah  (Fort  Bridger  and  Camp  Floyd),  eleven  in  Oregon,  and 
thirteen  in  the  Department  of  California.  They  each  would  have  an  average  of 
about  225  men. 


46  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SATJsTS.  Chap.  I. 

whicli,  after  many  years  of  sore  drudgery,  may  at  last  discern  the 
good  time  coming. 

In  tbe  United  States,  two  other  measures  appear  called  for  by 
circumstances.  The  Indian  race  is  becoming  desperate,  wild-beast 
like,  hemmed  in  by  its  enemies  that  have  flanked  it  on  the  east 
and  west,  and  are  gradually  closing  in  upon  it.  The  tribes  can 
no  longer  shift  ground  without  inroads  into  territories  already  oc- 
cupied by  neighbors,  who  are,  of  course,  hostile ;  they  are,  there- 
fore, being  brought  to  final  bay. 

The  first  is  a  camel  corps.  At  present,  when  disturbances  on  a 
large  scale  occur  in  the  Far  West — the  spring  of  1862  will  prob- 
ably see  them — a  force  of  cavalry  must  be  sent  from  the  East, 
perhaps  also  infantry.  "  The  horses,  after  a  march  of  500  or  600 
miles,  are  expected  to  act  with  success" — I  quote  the  sensible  re- 
marks of  a  "late  captain  of  infantry"  (Captain  Patterson,  U.  S. 
Arm}') — "against  scattered  bands  of  mounted  hunters,  with  the 
speed  of  a  horse  and  the  watchfulness  of  a  wolf  or  antelope,  whose 
faculties  are  sharpened  by  their  necessities ;  who,  when  they  get 
short  of  provisions,  separate  and  look  for  something  to  eat,  and 
find  it  in  the  water,  in  the  ground,  or  on  the  surface ;  whose  bill 
of  fare  ranges  from  grass-seed,  nuts,  roots,  grasshoppers,  lizards, 
and  rattlesnakes,  up  to  the  antelope,  deer,  elk,  bear,  and  buffalo, 
and  who,  having  a  continent  to  roam  over,  will  neither  be  sur- 
prised, caught,  conquered,  overawed,  or  reduced  to  famine  by  a 
rumbling,  bugle -blowing,  drum -beating  town  passing  through 
their  country  on  wheels,  at  the  speed  of  a  loaded  wagon."  But 
the  camel  would  in  these  latitudes  easily  march  sixty  miles  per 
diem  for  a  week  or  ten  days,  amply  sufficient  to  tire  out  the  stur- 
diest Indian  pony ;  it  requires  water  only  after  every  fifty  hours, 
and  the  worst  soil  would  supply  it  with  ample  forage  in  the  shape 
of  wild  sage,  rabbit-bush,  and  thorns.  Each  animal  would  carry 
two  men,  with  their  arms  and  ammunition,  rations  for  the  time 
required,  bedding  and  regimental  necessaries,  with  material  to 
make  up  a  tente  d'abri  if  judged  necessary.  The  organization 
should  be  that  of  the  Sindh  Camel  Corps,  which,  under  Sir  Charles 
Napier,  was  found  so  efficient  against  the  frontier  Eeloch.  The 
best  men  for  this  kind  of  fighting  would  be  the  Mountaineers,  or 
Western  Men,  of  the  caste  called  "Pikes;"  properly  speaking, 
Missourians,  but  popularly  any  "rough"  between  St.  Louis  and 
California.  After  a  sound  flogging,  for  the  purpose  of  preparing 
their  minds  to  admit  the  fact  that  all  men  are  not  equal,  they 
might  be  used  by  sea  or  land,  whenever  hard,  downright  fighting 
is  required.  It  is  understood  that  hitherto  the  camel,  despite  the 
careful  selection  by  Mr.  De  Leon,  the  excellent  Consul  General 
of  the  United  States  in  Egypt,  and  the  valuable  instructions  of 
Hekekyan  Bey,  has  proved  a  failure  in  the  Western  world.  If 
so,  want  of  patience  has  been  the  sole  cause ;  the  animal  must  be 
acclimatized  by  slow  degrees  before  heavy  loading  to  test  its  pow- 


Chap.  I.  THE  CAMEL  CORPS.  47 

ers  of  strength  and  speed.  Some  may  deem  this  amount  of  delay 
impossible.  I  confess  my  belief  that  the  Anglo-Americans  can, 
within  any  but  the  extremest  limits,  accomplish  any  thing  they 
please — except  unity. 

The  other  necessity  will  be  the  raising  of  native  regiments. 
The  French  in  Africa  have  their  Spahis,  the  Eussians  their  Cos- 
sacks, and  the  English  their  Sepoys.  The  American  government 
has  often  been  compelled,  as  in  the  case  of  the  Creek  battalion, 
which  did  good  service  during  the  Seminole  campaign,  indirectly 
to  use  their  wild  aborigines ;  but  the  public  sentiment,  or  rather 
prejudice,  which  fathers  upon  the  modern  Pawnee  the  burning 
and  torturing  tastes  of  the  ancient  Mohawk,  is  strongly  opposed 
to  pitting  Indian  against  Indian  in  battle.  Surely  this  is  a  false 
as  well  as  a  mistaken  philanthropy.  If  war  must  be,  it  is  better 
that  Indian  instead  of  white  blood  should  be  shed.  And  inva- 
riably the  effect  of  enlisting  savages  and  barbarians,  subjecting 
them  to  discipline,  and  placing  them  directly  under  the  eye  of  the 
civilized  man,  has  been  found  to  diminish  their  ferocity.  The 
Bashi  Buzuk,  left  to  himself,  roasted  the  unhappy  Eussian ;  in 
the  British  service  he  brought  his  j^risoner  alive  into  camp  with 
a  view  to  a  present  or  promotion.  When  talking  over  the  sub- 
ject with  the  officers  of  the  United  States  regular  army,  they  have 
invariably  concurred  with  me  in  the  possibility  of  the  scheme, 
provided  that  the  public  animus  could  be  turned  pro  instead  of 
con ;  and  I  have  no  doubt  but  that  they  will  prove  as  leaders  of 
Irregulars — it  would  be  invidious  to  quote  'names — equal  to  the 
best  of  the  Anglo-Indians,  Skinner,  Beatson,  and  Jacob.  The 
men  would  receive  about  ten  dollars  per  man,  and  each  corps 
number  300.  They  would  be  better  mounted  and  better  armed 
than  their  wild  brethren,  and  they  might  be  kept,  when  not  re- 
quired for  active  service,  in  a  buffalo  country,  their  favorite  quar- 
ters, and  their  finest  field  for  soldierlike  exercises.  The  main 
point  to  be  avoided  is  the  mistake  committed  by  the  British  in 
India,  that  of  appointing  too  many  officers  to  their  Sepoy  corps. 

We  left  Kearney  at  9  30  A.M.,  following  the  road  which  runs 
forty  miles  up  the  valley  of  the  Platte.  It  is  a  broad  prairie, 
plentifully  supplied  with  water  in  wells  two  to  four  feet  deep ; 
the  fluid  is  cool  and  clear,  but  it  is  said  not  to  be  wholesome. 
Where  the  soil  is  clayey  pools  abound ;  the  sandy  portions  are 
of  course  dry.  Along  the  southern  bank  near  Kearney  are  few 
elevations;  on  the  opposite  or  northern  side  appear  high  and 
wooded  bluffs.  The  road  was  rough  with  pitch-holes,  and  for  the 
first  time  I  remarked  a  peculiar  gap  in  the  ground  like  an  East 
Indian  sun-crack — in  these  latitudes  you  see  none  of  the  deep  fis- 
sures which  scar  the  face  of  mother  earth  in  tropical  lands — the 
effect  of  rain-streams  and  snow-water  acting  upon  the  clay.  Each 
succeeding  winter  lengthens  the  head  and  deepens  the  sole  of  this 
deeply-gashed  water-cut  till  it  destroys  the  road.     A  curious  mi- 


48  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

rage  appeared,  doubling  to  four  tlie  strata  of  river  and  vegetation 
on  the  banks.  The  sight  and  song  of  birds  once  more  eharmed 
us  after  a  desert  where  animal  life  is  as  rare  as  upon  the  plains 
of  Brazil.  After  fifteen  miles  of  tossing  and  tumbling,  we  made 
"  Seventeen -mile  Station,"  and  halted  there  to  change  mules. 
About  twenty  miles  above  the  fort  the  southern  bank  began  to 
rise  into  mounds  of  tenacious  clay,  which,  worn  away  into  per- 
pendicular and  precipitous  sections,  composes  the  columnar  for- 
mation called  O'Fallon's  Bluffs.  At  1  15  P.M.  we  reached  Plum 
Creek,  after  being  obliged  to  leave  behind  one  of  the  conductors, 
who  had  become  delirious  with  the  "shakes."  The  establish- 
ment, though  new,  was  already  divided  into  three ;  the  little  land- 
lady, though  she  worked  so  manfully,  was,  as  she  expressed  it, 
"enjoying  bad  health;"  in  other  words,  suffering  from  a  "dumb 
chill."  I  may  observe  that  the  Prairie  Traveler's  opinions  con- 
cerning the  power  of  encamping  with  impunity  upon  the  banks 
of  the  streams  in  this  country  must  not  be  applied  to  the  Platte. 
The  whole  line  becomes  with  early  autumn  a  hotbed  of  febrile 
disease.  And  generally  throughout  this  season  the  stranger 
should  not  consider  himself  safe  on  any  grounds  save  those  de- 
fended from  the  southern  trade-wind,  which,  sweeping  directly 
from  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  bears  with  it  noxious  exhalations. 

About  Plum  Eanch  the  soil  is  rich,  clayey,  and  dotted  with 
swamps  and  "  slews,"  by  which  the  English  traveler  will  under- 
stand sloughs.  The  dryer  portions  were  a  Gulistan  of  bright  red, 
blue,  and  white  flowers,  the  purple  aster,  and  the  mallow,  with  its 
parsnip-like  root,  eaten  by  the  Indians,  the  gaudy  yellow  heli- 
anthus — we  remarked  at  least  three  varieties — the  snowy  mimu- 
lus,  the  graceful  flax,  sometimes  four  feet  high,  and  a  delicate 
little  euphorbia,  while  in  the  damper  ground  appeared  the  polar 
plant,  that  prairie  compass,  the  plane  of  whose  leaf  ever  turns  to- 
ward the  magnetic  meridian.  This  is  the  "  weed-prairie,"  one  of 
the  many  divisions  of  the  great  natural  meadows ;  grass  prairie, 
rolling  prairie,  motte  prairie,  salt  prairie,  and  soda  prairie.  It  de- 
serves a  more  poetical  name,  for 

"These  are  the  gardens  of  the  desert,  these 
The  unshorn  fields,  boundless  and  beautiful, 
For  which  the  speech  of  England  has  no  name.'' 

Buffalo  herds  were  behind  the  hills,  but  we  were  too  full  of 
sleep  to  follow  them.  The  j^lain  was  dotted  with  blanched  skulls 
and  bones,  which  would  have  made  a  splendid  bonfire.  Appar- 
ently the  expert  voyageur  has  not  learned  that  they  form  good 
fuel;  at  any  rate,  he  has  preferred  to  them  the  "chips"  of  which 
it  is  said  that  a  steak  cooked  with  them  requires  no  pepper.* 

We  dined  at  Plum  Creek  on  buffalo,  probably  bull  beef,  the 

*  The  chip  corresponds  with  the  bois  de  vache  of  Switzerland,  the  tezek  of  Arme- 
nia, the  arghol  of  Thibet,  and  tlie  gobar  of  India.  With  all  its  faults,  it  is  at  least 
superior  to  that  used  in  Sindh. 


Chap.  I.  BUFFALO-BEEF.  49 

worst  and  dryest  meat,  save  elk,  that  I  have  iever  tasted ;  indeed, 
without  the  assistance  of  pork  fat,  we  found  it  hard  to  swallow. 
As  every  one  knows,  however,  the  two-year  old  cow  is  the  best 
eating,  and  at  this  season  the  herds  are  ever  in  the  worst  condi- 
tion. The  animals  calve  in  May  and  June,  consequently  they  are 
in  August  completely  out  of  flesh.  They  are  fattest  about  Christ- 
mas, when,  they  find  it  difficult  to  run.  All  agree  in  declarino- 
that  there  is  no  better  meat  than  that  of  the  youno-  buffalo :  the 
assertion,  however,  must  be  taken  cum  grano  salis.  "Wild  flesh 
was  never  known  to  be  equal  to  tame,  and  that  monarch  did  at 
least  one  wise  thing  who  made  the  loin  of  beef  Sir  Loin.  The 
voyageurs  and  travelers  who  cry  up  the  buffalo  as  so  delicious, 
have  been  living  for  weeks  on  rusty  bacon  and  lean  antelope ;  a 
rich  hump  with  its  proper  menstruum,  a  cup  oi  cafe  noir  as  strong 
as  possible,  must  truly  be  a  "tit-bit."  They  boast  that  the  fat 
does  not  disagree  with  the  eater;  neither  do  three  pounds  of  heavy 
pork  with  the  English  plow-boy,  who  has  probably  taken  less  ex- 
ercise than  the  Canadian  hunter.  Before  long,  buffalo  flesh  will 
reach  New  York,  where  I  predict  it  will  be  held  as  inferior  to 
butcher's  meat  as  is  the  antelope  to  park-fed  venison.  While 
hunting,  Indians  cut  off  the  tail  to  test  the  quality  of  the  game, 
and  they  have  acquired  by  habit  a  power  of  judging  on  the  run 
between  fat  and  lean, 

Eesuming  our  weary  ride,  we  watered  at  "Willow  Island 
Eanch,"  and  then  at  "Cold  Water  Eanch" — drinking-shops  all 
— five  miles  from  Midway  Station,  which  we  reached  at  8  P.M. 
Here,  while  changing  mules,  we  attempted  with  sweet  speech  and 
smiles  to  persuade  the  landlady,  who  showed  symptoms  of  ap- 
jDroaching  maternity,  into  giving  us  supper.  This  she  sturdily 
refused  to  do,  for  the  reason  that  she  had  not  received  due  warn- 
ing. We  had,  however,  the  satisfaction  of  seeing  the  emjjloyes  of 
the  line  making  themselves  thoroughly  comfortable  with  bread 
and  buttermilk.  Into  the  horrid  wagon  again,  and  "a  rolliu:" 
lazily  enough  the  cold  and  hungry  night  passed  on.* 

To  the  Forks  of  the  Platte.     Wth  August. 

Precisely  at  1  85  in  the  morning  we  awoke,  as  we  came  to  a 
halt  at  Cotton-wood  Station.  Cramped  with  a  four  days'  and  four 
nights'  ride  in  the  narrow  van,  we  entered  the  foul  tenement, 
threw  ourselves  upon  the  mattresses,  averaging  three  to  each,  and 
ten  in  a  small  room,  every  door,  window,  and  cranny  being  shut 

*  According  to  Colonel  Fremont,  the  total  amount  of  buffalo  robes  purchased  by 
the  several  companies,  American,  Hudson's  Bay,  and  others,  was  an  annual  total  of 
90,000  from  the  eight  or  ten  years  preceding  1843.  This  is  repeated  by  the  Abbe 
Domenech,  Mho  adds  that  the  number  does  not  include  those  slaughtered  in  the 
southern  regions  by  the  Comanchcs  and  other  tribes  of  the  Texan  frontier,  nor  those 
killed  between  March  and  Xovember,  when  the  skins  are  unfit  for  tanning.  In 
1847,  the  town  of  St.  Louis  received  110,000  buffalo  robes,  stags',  deer,  and  other 
skins,  and  twenty-five  salted  tongues. 

D 


50  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SADJTS.  Chap.  I. 

— after  the  fashion  of  these  Western  folks,  ^vho  make  up  for  a 
day  in  the  open  air  by  perspiring  through  the  night  in  unventi- 
lated  log  huts — and,  despite  musquetoes,  slept. 

The  morning  brought  with  it  no  joy.  We  had  arrived  at  the 
westernmost  limit  of  the  "gigantic  Leicestershire"  to  which  buf- 
falo at  this  season  extend,  and  could  hope  to  see  no  trace  of  them 
between  Cotton-wood  Station  and  the  Pacific.  I  can  not,  there- 
fore, speak  ex  caihedrd  concerning  this,  the  noblest  "  venerie"  of 
the  West :  almost  every  one  who  has  crossed  the  prairies,  except 
myself,  can.  Cai^tain  Stansbury""^  will  enlighten  the  sportsman 
upon  the  approved  method  of  bryttling  the  beasts,  and  elucidate 
the  mysteries  of  the  "game-beef,"  marrow-bone  and  depuis,  tongue 
and  tender-loin,  bass  and  hump,  hump-rib  and  liver,  which  latter, 
by-the-by,  is  not  unfrequently  eaten  raw,  with  a  sprinkling  of 
galljf  by  the  white  hunter  emulating  his  wild  rival,  as  does  the 
European  in  Abyssinia.  The  Prairie  Traveler  has  given,  from 
experience,  the  latest  observations  concerning  the  best  modes  of 
hunting  the  animal.  All  that  remains  to  me,  therefore,  is  to  offer 
to  the  reader  a  few  details  collected  from  reliable  sources,  and 
which  are  not  to  be  found  in  the  two  works  above  alluded  to. 

The  bison  {Bison  Americanus)  is  trivially  known  as  the  Prairie 
Buffalo,  to  distinguish  it  from  a  different  and  a  larger  animal,  the 
Buffalo  of  the  Woods,  which  haunts  the  Eocky  Mountains.  The 
"Monarch  of  the  Prairies,"  the  "most  gigantic  of  the  indigenous 
mammalia  of  America,"  has,  it  is  calculated,  receded  westward  ten 
miles  annually  for  the  last  150  years.  When  America  was  dis- 
covered, the  buffalo  extended  down  to  the  Atlantic  shore.  Thirty 
years  ago,  bands  grazed  upon  the  banks  of  the  Missouri  Pdver. 
The  annual  destruction  is  variously  computed  at  from  200,000  to 
300,000  head :  the  American  Fur  Company  receive  per  annum 
about  70,000  robes,  which  are  all  cows ;  and  of  these  not  more 
than  5000  fall  by  the  hands  of  white  men.  At  present  there  are 
three  well-known  bands,  which  split  up,  at  certain  seasons,  into 
herds  of  2000  and  _3000_  each.  The  first  family  is  on  the  head- 
waters of  the  Mississippi ;  the  second  haunts  the  vast  crescent- 
shaped  valley  of  the  Yellow  Stone ;  while  the  third  occupies  the 
prairie  country  between  the  Platte  and  the  Arkansas.  A  fourth 
band,  westward  of  the  Eocky  Mountains,  is  quite  extinct.  Four- 
teen to  fifteen  years  ago,  buffalo  was  found  in  Utah  Yalley,  and 
later  still  upon  the  Humboldt  Eiver:  according  to  some,  they 
emigrated  northward,  through  Oregon  and  the  lands  of  the  Black- 
feet,  It  is  more  probable,  however,  that  they  were  killed  off  by 
the  severe  winter  of  1845,  their  skulls  being  still  found  scattered 
in  heaps,  as  if  a  sudden  and  general  destruction  had  come  upon 
the  doomed  tribe. 

*  Exploration  and  Survey,  etc.,  chap.  ix. 

t  "Prairie  bitters" — made  of  a  pint  of  water  and  a  quarter  ot  a  gill  of  buffalo 
gall — are  considered  an  elixir  vita,  by  old  voyageurs. 


Chap.  I.  THE  BUFFALO.  51 

The  buffalo  is  partially  migratory  in  its  habits :  it  apjDcars  to 
follow  the  snow,  wbicli  jDreserves  its  food  from  destruction.  Like 
the  antelope  of  the  Cape,  when  on  the  "trek,"  the  band  may  be 
reckoned  by  thousands.  The  grass,  which  takes  its  name  from 
the  animal,  is  plentiful  in  the  valley  of  the  Big  Blue ;  it  loves 
the  streams  of  little  creeks  that  have  no  bottom-land,  and  shel- 
ters itself  under  the  sage.  It  is  a  small,  moss-like  gramen,  with 
dark  seed,  and,  when  dry,  it  has  been  comjDared  by  travelers  to 
twisted  gray  horsehair.  Smaller  herds  travel  in  Indian  file ;  their 
huge  bodies,  weighing  1500  lbs,,  appear,  from  afar,  like  piles  erect- 
ed to  bridge  the  plain.  After  calving,  the  cows,  like  the  African 
koodoo  and  other  antelopes,  herd  separately  from  the  males,  and 
for  the  same  reason,  timidity  and  the  cares  of  maternity.  As  in 
the  case  of  the  elephant  and  the  hippopotamus,  the  oldsters  are 
driven  by  the  young  ones,  en  cliarivari,  from  the  band,  and  a  com- 
pulsory bachelorhood  souring  their  temper,  causes  them  to  be- 
come "rogues."  The  albino,  or  white  buffalo,  is  exceedingly  rare ; 
even  veteran  hunters  will  confess  never  to  have  seen  one.  The 
same  may  be  said  of  the  glossy  black  accident  called  the  "silk 
robe,"  supposed  by  Western  men  to  be  a  cross  between  the  pa- 
rent and  the  offspring.  The  buffalo  calf  has  been  tamed  by  the 
Flatheads  and  others :  I  have  never,  however,  heard  of  its  being 
utilized. 

The  Dakotahs  and  other  Prairie  tribes  will  degenerate,  if  not 
disappear,  when  the  buffalo  is  "rubbed  out."  There  is  a  sympa- 
thy between  them,  and  the  beast  flies  not  from  the  barbarian  and 
his  bow  as  it  does  before  the  face  of  the  white  man  and  his  hot- 
mouthed  weapon.  The  aborigines  are  unwilling  to  allow  travel- 
ers, sportsmen,  or  explorers  to  pass  through  the  country  while 
they  are  hunting  the  buffalo ;  that  is  to  say,  preserving  the  game 
till  their  furs  are  ready  for  robes.  At  these  times  no  one  is  per- 
mitted to  kill  any  but  stragglers,  for  fear  of  stampeding  the  band ; 
the  animal  not  only  being  timid,  but  also  in  the  habit  of  hurry- 
ing away  cattle  and  stock,  which  often  are  thus  irretrievably  lost. 
In  due  season  the  savages  surround  one  section,  and  destroy  it, 
the  others  remaining  unalarmedly  grazing  within  a  few  miles  of 
the  scene  of  slaughter.  If  another  tribe  interferes,  it  is  a  casus 
lelli,  death  being  the  punishment  for  poaching.  The  white  man, 
whose  careless  style  of  hathte  is  notorious,  will  be  liable  to  the 
same  penalty,  or,  that  failing,  to  be  plundered  by  even  "  good  In- 
dians;" and  I  have  heard  of  an  English  gentleman  who,  for  per- 
sisting in  the  obnoxious  practice,  was  very  properly  threatened 
with  prosecution  by  the  government  agent. 

What  the  cocoanut  is  to  the  East  Indian,  and  the  plantain  and 
the  calabash  to  various  tribes  of  Africans,  such  is  the  "bos"  to 
the  carnivorous  son  of  America,  l^o  part  of  it  is  allowed  to 
waste.  The  horns  and  hoofs  make  glue  for  various  purposes,  es- 
pecially for  feathering  arrows ;  the  brains  and  part  of  the  bowels 


52  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SADsTS.  Chap.  I. 

are  used  for  curing  skins ;  the' hide  clothes  the  tribes  from  head 
to  foot ;  the  calf-skins  form  their  apishamores,  or  saddle-blankets ; 
the  sinews  make  their  bow-strings,  thread,  and  finer  cord ;  every 
part  of  the  flesh,  including  the  fcetus  and  placenta,  is  used  for 
food.  The  surplus  hides  are  reserved  for  market.  They  are 
prepared  by  the  squaws,  who,  curious  to  say,  will  not  touch  a 
bear-skin  till  the  age  of  maternity  has  passed;  and  they  prefer 
the  spoils  of  the  cow,  as  being  softer  than  those  of  the  bull.  The 
skiUj  after  being  trimmed  with  an  iron  or  bone  scraper  —  this  is 
not  done  in  the  case  of  the  "  parfleche,"  or  thick  sole-leather — 
and  softened  with  brain  or  marrow,  is  worked  till  thoroughly 
pliable  with  the  hands.  The  fumigation,  which  gives  the  finish- 
ing touch,  is  confined  to  buckskins  intended  for  garments.  "When 
the  hair  is  removed,  the  hides  supply  the  place  of  canvas,  which 
they  resemble  in  whiteness  and  facihty  of  folding.  Dressed  with 
the  hair,  they  are  used,  as  their  name  denotes,  for  clothing ;  they 
serve  also  for  rugs  and  bedding.  In  the  prairies,  the  price  ranges 
from  $1  to  $1  50  in  kind ;  in  the  Eastern  States,  from  $5  to  $10. 
The  fancy  specimens,  painted  inside,  decorated  with  eyes,  and 
otherwise  adorned  with  split  porcupine  quills  dyed  a  gamlDOge- 
yellow,  fetch  from  $8  to  835.  A  "bufialo"  {suhaudl  robe)  was 
shown  to  me,  painted  with  curious  figures,  which,  according  to 
my  Canadian  informant,  were  a  kind  of  hieroglyph  or  aide-me- 
moire, even  ruder  than  the  Mexican  picture-writing. 

The  Indians  generally  hunt  the  buffalo  with  arrows.  They  are 
so  expert  in  riding  that  they  will,  at  full  speed,  draw  the  missile 
from  the  victim's  flank  before  it  falls.  I  have  met  but  one  ofl&cer, 
Captain  Heth,  of  the  10th  Eegiment,  who  ever  acquired  the  art. 
The  Indian  hog-spear  has  been  used  to  advantage.  Our  prede- 
cessors in  Eastern  conquest  have  killed  with  it  the  tiger  and  nyl- 
gau ;  there  is,  therefore,  no  reason  why  it  might  not  be  efficiently 
applied  to  the  buffalo.  Like  the  Bos  Caffre,  the  bison  is  dull,  sur- 
ly, and  stupid,  as  well  as  timid  and  wary ;  it  requires  hard  riding, 
with  the  chance  of  a  collar-bone  broken  by  the  horse  falling  into 
a  prairie-dog's  home ;  and  when  headed  or  tired  an  old  male  rare- 
ly fails  to  charge. 

The  flies  chasing  away  the  musquetoes — even  as  Aurora  routs 
the  lingering  shades  of  night — having  sounded  our  reveillee  at 
Cotton-wood  Station,  we  proceeded  by  means  of  an  "eye-opener," 
which  even  the  abstemious  judge  could  not  decline,  and  the  use 
of  the  "skillet,"  to  prepare  for  a  breakfast  composed  of  various 
abominations,  especially  cakes  of  flour  and  grease,  molasses  and 
dirt,  disjDOsed  in  pretty  equal  parts.  After  paying  the  usual  50 
cents,  we  started  in  the  high  wind  and  dust,  with  a  heavy  storm 
brewing  in  the  north,  along  the  desert  valley  of  the  dark,  silent 
Platte,  which  here  spread  out  in  broad  basins  and  lagoons,  pic- 
turesquely garnished  with  broad-leafed  dock  and  beds  of  prek, 
flags  and  water-rushes,  in  which,  however,  we  saw  nothing  but 


Chap.  I.        THE  MODEL  VERANDA.— HALF-WAY  HOUSE.  53 

traces  of  Monsieur  Maringouin.  On  our  left  was  a  line  of  sub- 
conical  buttes,  red,  sandy-clay  pyramids,  semi-detached  from  the 
wall  of  the  rock  behind  them,  with  smooth  flat  faces  fronting  the 
river,  toward  which  they  slope  at  the  natural  angle  of  45°.  The 
land  around,  dry  and  sandy,  bore  no  traces  of  rain ;  a  high  wind 
blew,  and  the  thermometer  stood  at  78°  (F.),  which  was  by  no 
means  uncomfortably  warm.  Passing  Junction-House  Eanch  and 
Fremont  Slough — whisky-shops  both — we  halted  for  "  dinner," 
about  11  A.M.,  at  Fremont  Springs,  so  called  from  an  excellent 
little  water  behind  the  station.  The  building  is  of  a  style  pecul- 
iarto  the  South,  especially  Florida — two  huts  connected  by  a  roof- 
work  of  thatched  timber,  which  acts  as  the  best  and  coolest  of  ve- 
randas. The  station-keeper,  who  receives  from  the  proprietors  of 
the  line  $30  per  month,  had  been  there  only  three  weeks ;  and 
his'  wife,  a  comely  young  person,  uncommonly  civil  and  smiling 
for  a  "  lady,"  supplied  us  with  the  luxuries  of  pigeons,  onions, 
and  light  bread,  and  declared  her  intention  of  establishing  a  poul- 
try-yard. 

An  excellent  train  of  mules  carried  us  along  a  smooth  road  at 
a  slapping  pace,  over  another  natural  garden  even  more  flowery 
than  that  passed  on  the  last  day's  march.  There  were  beds  of 
lupins,  a  brilliant  pink  and  blue  predominating,  the  green  plant 
locally  known  as  "Lamb's  Quarters"  (6%e/2029oc/«/??i  album)]  the 
streptanthis ;  the  milk-weed,  with  its  smnll  white  blossoms;  the 
anemone ;  the  wild  flax,  with  its  pretty  blue  flowers,  and  growths 
which  appeared  to  be  clematis,  chamomile,  and  digitalis.  Distant 
black  dots — dwarf  cedars,  which  are  yearly  diminishing — lined 
the  bank  of  the  Platte  and  the  long  line  of  Eiver  Island ;  they 
elicited  invidious  comparisons  from  the  Pennsylvanians  of  the 
party.     We  halted  at  Half-way  House,  near  O'Fallon's  Bluffs,  at 

the  quarters  of  Mr.  i\[ ,  a  compagnon  de  voyage^  who  had  now 

reached  his  home  of  twenty  years,  and  therefore  insisted  upon 
"standing  drinks."  The  business  is  worth  $16,000  per  annum; 
the  contents  of  the  store  somewhat  like  a  Parsee's  shop  in  "West- 
ern India — every  thing  from  a  needle  to  a  bottle  of  Champagne. 
A  sign-board  informed  us  that  we  were  now  distant  400  miles  from 
St.  Jo,  120  from  Fort  Kearney,  68  from  the  upper,  and  40  from  the 
lower  crossing  of  the  Platte.  As  we  advanced  the  valley  narrow- 
ed, the  stream  shrank,the  vegetation  dwindled,  the  river  islands 
were  bared  of  timber,  and  the  only  fuel  became  bufialo  chip  and 
last  year's  artemisia.  This  hideous  growth,  which  is  to  weary  our 
eyes  as  far  as  central  valleys  of  the  Sierra  Nevada,  will  require  a 
few  words  of  notice. 

The  artemisia,  absinthe,  or  wild  sage  differs  much  from  the  pan- 
acea concerning  which  the  Salernitan  school  rhymed : 

"Cur  moriatur  lioino  cui  Sahia  crescit  in  horto." 

Yet  it  fills  the  air  with  a  smell  that  caricatures  the  odor  of  the 


54  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

garden-plant,  causing  the  traveler  to  look  round  in  astonishment ; 
and  when  used  for  cooking  it  taints  the  food  with  a  taste  between 
camphor  and  turpentine.  It  is  of  two  kinds.  The  smaller  or 
white  species  {A.  jilifolia)  rarely  grows  higher  than  a  foot.  Its 
fetor  is  less  rank,  and  at  times  of  scarcity  it  forms  tolerable  fod- 
der for  animals.  The  Western  men  have  made  of  it,  as  of  the 
"  red  root,"  a  tea,  which  must  be  pronounced  decidedly  inferior 
to  corn  coffee.     The  Indians  smoke  it,  but  they  are  not  particular 

about  what  they  inhale :  like  that  perverse  p n  of  Ludlow, 

who  smoked  the  bell-ropes  rather  than  not  smoke  at  all,  or  like 
school-boys  who  break  themselves  in  upon  ratan,  they  use  even 
the  larger  sage  as  well  as  a  variety  of  other  graveolent  growths. 
The  second  kind  {A.  tridentata)  is  to  the  family  of  shrubs  what 
the  prairie  cedar  is  to  the  trees — a  gnarled,  crooked,  rough-barked 
deformity.  It  has  no  pretensions  to  beauty  except  in  earliest 
youth,  and  in  the  dewy  hours  when  the  breeze  turns  up  its  leaves 
that  glitter  like  silver  in  the  sun ;  and  its  constant  presence  in 
the  worst  and  most  desert  tracts  teaches  one  to  regard  it,  like  the 
mangrove  in  Asia  and  Africa,  with  aversion.  In  size  it  greatly 
varies ;  in  some  places  it  is  but  little  larger  than  the  white  spe- 
cies ;  near  the  Red  Buttes  its  woody  stem  often  attains  the  height 
of  a  man  and  the  thickness  of  his  waist.  As  many  as  fifty  rings 
have  been  counted  in  one  wood,  which,  according  to  the  normal 
calculation,  would  bring  its  age  up  to  half  a  century.  After  its 
first  year,  stock  will  eat  it  only  when  threatened  with  starvation. 
It  has,  however,  its  use ;  the  traveler,  despite  its  ugliness,  hails  the 
appearance  of  its  stifi",  wiry  clumps  at  the  evening  halt :  it  is  easi- 
ly uprooted,  and  by  virtue  of  its  essential  oil  it  makes  a  hot  and 
lasting  fire,  and  ashes  over.  According  to  Colonel  Fremont,  "  it 
has  a  small  fly  accompanying  it  through  every  change  of  eleva- 
tion and  latitude."  The  same  eminent  authority  also  suggests 
that  the  respiration  of  air  so  highly  impregnated  with  aromatic 
plants  may  partly  account  for  the  favorable  efiect  of  the  climate 
upon  consumption. 

At  5  P.M.,  as  the  heat  began  to  mitigate,  we  arrived  at  Alkali 
Lake  Station,  and  discovered  some  "exiles  from  Erin,"  who  sup- 
plied us  with  antelope  meat  and  the  unusual  luxury  of  ice  taken 
from  the  Platte.  We  attempted  to  bathe  in  the  river,  but  found 
it  flowing  liquid  mire.  The  Alkali  Lake  was  out  of  sight ;  the 
driver,  however,  consoled  me  with  the  reflection  that  I  should 
'•  glimpse"  alkali  lakes  till  I  was  sick  of  them. 

Yesterday  and  to-day  we  have  been  in  a  line  of  Indian  "  re- 
moves." The  wild  people  were  shifting  their  quarters  for  grass ; 
when  it  becomes  a  little  colder  they  will  seek  some  winter  abode 
on  the  banks  of  a  stream  which  supplies  fuel  and  where  they  can 
find  meat,  so  that  with  warmth  and  food,  song  and  chat — they 
are  fond  of  talking  nonsense  as  African  negroes — and  smoke  and 
sleep,  they  can  while  away  the  dull  and  dreary  winter.    Before 


CuAP.  I.  THE  RED  IVIEN.  55 

describing  the  scene,  whicli  might  almost  serve  for  a  picture  of 
Bedouin  or  gipsy  life — so  similar  are  the  customs  of  all  savages 
— I  have  something  to  say  about  the  Eed  Man. 

This  is  a  country  of  misnomers.  America  should  not,  accord- 
ing to  the  school-books,  have  been  named  America,  consequently 
the  Americans  should  not  be  called  Americans.  A  geographical 
error,  pardonable  in  the  fifteenth  century,  dubbed  the  old  tenants 
of  these  lands  Indians,*  but  why  we  should  still  call  them  the  Eed 
Men  can  not  be  conceived.  I  have  now  seen  them  in  the  north, 
south,  east,  and  west  of  the  United  States,  yet  never,  except  under 
the  influence  of  ochre  or  vermilion,  have  I  seen  the  Eed  Man  red. 
The  real  color  of  the  skin,  as  may  be  seen  under  the  leggins,  va- 
ries from  a  dead  pale  olive  to  a  dark  dingy  brown.  The  parts 
exposed  to  the  sun  are  slightly 'burnished,  as  in  a  Tartar  or  an 
Aflghan  after  a  summer  march.  Between  the  two  extremes  above 
indicated  there  are,  however,  a  thousand  shades  of  color,  and  often 
the  skin  has  been  so  long  grimed  in  with  pigment,  grease,  and 
dirt  that  it  suggests  a  brick-dust  tinge  which  a  little  soap  or  soda 
would  readily  remove.  Indeed,  the  color  and  the  complexion, 
combined  with  the  lank  hair,  scant  beard,  and  similar  peculiari- 
ties, renders  it  impossible  to  see  this  people  for  the  first  time 
without  the  strongest  impression  that  they  are  of  that  Turanian 
breed  which  in  prehistoric  ages  passed  down  from  above  the 
Himalayas  as  far  south  as  Cape  Comorin. 

Another  mistake  touching  the  Indian  is  the  present  opinion 
concerning  him  and  his  ancestors.  He  now  sufters  in  public  es- 
teem from  the  reaction  following  the  high-flown  descriptions  of 
Cooper  and  the  herd  of  minor  romancers  who  could  not  but  make 
their  heroes  heroes.  Moreover,  men  acquainted  only  with  the  de- 
generate Pawnees  or  Diggers  exteAilfceir  evil  opinions  to  the 
noble  tribes  now  extinct — the  Iroquois  and  Algonquins,  for  in- 
stance, whose  remnants,  the  Delawares  and  Ojibwas,  justify  the 
high  opinion  of  the  first  settlers.  The  exploits  of  King  Philip, 
Pontiac,  Gurister  Sego,  Tecumseh,  Keokuk,  latan,  Captain  J.  Brant, 
Black  Hawk,  Eed  Jacket,  Osceola,  and  Billy  Bowlegs,  are  rapidly 
fading  away  from  memory,  while  the  failures  of  such  men  as  Lit- 
tle Thunder,  and  those  like  him,  stand  prominently  forth  in  mod- 
ern days.  Besides  the  injustice  to  the  manes  and  memories  of 
the  dead,  this  depreciation  of  the  Indians  tends  to  serious  practi- 
cal evils.  Those  who  see  the  savage  lying  drunk  about  stations, 
or  eaten  up  with  disease,  expect  to  beat  him  out  of  the  field  by 
merely  showing  their  faces ;  they  fail,  and  pay  the  penalty  with 

*  Columbus  and  Vespucius  both  died  in  the  conriction  that  they  had  only  dis- 
covered  portions  of  Asia.  Indeed,  as  late  as  1533,  the  astronomer  Schoner  main- 
tained that  Mexico  was  the  Quinsai  of  Marco  Polo.  The  early  navigators  called 
the  aborigines  of  the  New  World  "Indians,"'  believing  that  they  inhabited  the  east- 
em  portion  of  "India,"  a  term  then  applied  to  the  extremity  of  Oriental  Asia. 
Until  the  present  century  the  Spaniards  applied  the  names  India  and  Indies  to  their 
possessions  in  America. 


56  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

their  lives — an  event  ■wbicb.  occurs  every  year  in  some  parts  of 
America. 

The  remove  of  the  village  presented  an  interesting  sight — an 
animated  shifting  scene  of  bucks  and  braves,  squaw-s  and  pap- 
p6oses,  ponies  dwarfed  b}--  bad  breeding  and  hard  living,  dogs  and 
puppies  struggling  over  the  plains  westward.  In  front,  singly  or 
in  pairs,  rode  the  men,  not  gracefully,  not  according  to  the  rules 
of  Mexican  manege^  but  like  the  Abyssinian  eunuch,  as  if  born 
upon  and  bred  to  become  part  of  the  animal.  Some  went  bare- 
backed ;  others  rode,  like  the  ancient  chiefs  of  the  Western  Islands, 
upon  a  saddle-tree,  stirrupless,  or  provided  with  hollow  blocks  of 
wood :  in  some  cases  the  saddle  was  adorned  with  bead  hangings, 
and  in  all  a  piece  of  buffalo  hide  with  the  hair  on  was  attached 
beneath  to  prevent  chafing.  The  cruel  ring-bit  of  the  Arabs  is 
not  unknown.  A  few  had  iron  curbs,  probably  stolen.  For  the 
most  part  they  managed  their  nags  with  a  hide  thong  lashed  round 
the  lower  jaw  and  attached  to  the  neck.  A  whip,  of  various  sizes 
and  shapes,  sometimes  a  round  and  tattooed  ferule,  more  often  a 
handle  like  a  butcher's  tally-stick,  flat,  notched,  one  foot  long,  and 
provided  with  two  or  three  thongs,  hung  at  the  wrist.  Their 
nags  were  not  shod  with  parfleche,  as  among  the  horse-Indians  of 
the  South.  Their  long,  lank,  thick,  brownish-black  hair,  ruddy 
from  the  effects  of  weather,  was  worn  parted  in  the  middle,  and 
depended  from  the  temples  confined  with  a  long  twist  of  otter  or 
beaver's  skin  in  two  cpieues,  or  pig-tails,  reaching  to  the  breast: 
from  the  poll,  and  distinct  from  the  remainder  of  the  hair,  stream- 
ed the  scalp-lock.  This  style  of  hair-dressing,  doubtless,  aids  in 
giving  to  the  coronal  region  that  appearance  of  depression  which 
characterises  the  jSTorth  American  Indians  as  a  race  of  "  Flat- 
heads,"  and  which,  probabi^^leing  considered  a  beauty,  led  to  the 
artificial  deformities  of  the  Peruvian  and  the  Aztec.  The  parting 
in  men,  as  well  as  in  women,  was  generally  colored  with  vermil- 
ion, and  plates  of  brass  or  tin,  with  beveled  edges,  varying  in  size 
from  a  shilhng  to  half  a  crown,  were  inserted  into  the  front  hair. 
The  scalp-lock — in  fops  the  side-locks  also — was  decorated  with 
tin  or  silver  plates,  often  twelve  in  number,  beginning  from  the 
head  and  gradually  diminishing  in  size  as  they  approached  the 
heels ;  a  few  had  eagle's,  hawk's,  and  crow's  feathers  stuck  in  the 
hair,  and  sometimes,  grotesquely  enough,  crownless  Kossuth  hats, 
felt  broadbrims,  or  old  military  casquettes,  surmounted  all  this 
finery.  Their  scanty  beard  was  removed;  they  compare  the 
bushy-faced  European  to  a  dog  running  away  with  a  squirrel  in 
its  mouth.  In  their  ear»  were  rings  of  beads,  with  pendants  of 
tin  plates  or  mother  of  pearl,  or  huge  circles  of  brass  wire  not  un- 
like a  Hindoo  tailor's;  and  their  fore-arms,  wrists,  and  fingers  were, 
after  an  African  fashion,  adorned  with  the  same  metals,  which  the 
savage  ever  prefers  to  gold  or  silver.  Their  other  decorations 
were  cravats  of  white  or  white  and  blue,  oval  beads,  and  neck- 


CuAP.  I.  PRAIRIE-INDIAN  DRESS.  57 

laces  of  plates  like  tliosc  worn  in  the  hair.  The  hody  dress  was  ^ 
a  tight-sleeved  waistcoat  of  dark  drugget,  over  an  American  cot- 
ton shirt ;  others  wore  tattered  flannels,  and  the  middle  was  wrap- 
ped round  with  a  common  blanket,  presented  by  the  government 
agent — scarlet  and  blue  being  the  colors  preferred,  white  rare: "a 
better  stuff  is  the  coarse  broadcloth  manufactured  for  the  Indian 
market  in  the  United  States.  The  leggins  were  a  pair  of  panta- 
loons without  the  body  part — in  their  palmy  days  the  Indians 
laughed  to  scorn  their  future  conquerors  for  tightening  the  hips 
so  as  to  impede  activity — looped  vip  at  both  haunches  with  straps 
to  a  leathern  girdle,  and  all  wore  the  breech-cloth,  which  is  the 
common  Hindoo  languti  or  T-bandage.  The  cut  of  the  leggins  is 
a  parallelogram,  a  little  too  short  and  much  too  broad  for  the 
limb ;  it  is  sewn  so  as  to  fit  tight,  and  the  projecting  edges,  for 
which  the  light-colored  list  or  bordering  is  usually  preserved,  an- 
swers the  effect  of  a  military  stripe.  When  buckskin  leggins  are 
made  the  outside  edges  are  fringed,  producing  that  feathered  ap- 
pearance which  distinguishes  in  our  pictures  the  nether  limbs  of 
the  Indian  brave.  The  garb  ends  with  moccasins,*  the  American 
brogues,  which  are  made  in  two  ways.  The  simplest  are  of  one 
piece,  a  cylinder  of  skin  cut  from  above  and  below  the  hock  of 
some  large  animal — moose,  elk,  or  buffalo — and  drawn  on  before 
shrinking,  the  joint  forming  the  heel,  while  the  smaller  end  is 
sewn  together  for  a  toe.  This  rough  contrivance  is  little  used  but 
as  a  j^is  allcr.  The  other  kind  is  made  of  tanned  hide  in  two 
pieces — a  sole  and  an  upper  leather,  sewn  together  at  the  junction ; 
the  last  is  a  bit  of  board  rounded  off  at  the  end.  They  are  open 
over  the  instep,  where  also  they  can  be  laced  or  tied,  and  they  fit 
as  closely  as  the  Egyptian  raizz  or  under-slipper,  which  they  great- 
ly resemble.  They  are  worn  by  offlfcers  in  the  Far  West  as  the 
expatriated  Anglo-Indian  adopts  the  "  Juti."  The  greatest  incon- 
venience to  the  novice  is  the  want  of  heel ;  moreover,  thej^  render 
the  feet  uncomfortably  tender,  and,  unless  soled  with  jjarfleche  or 
thick  leather,  they  are  scant  defense  against  stony  ground ;  during 
dry  weather  they  will  last  fairly,  but  they  become,  after  a  single 
wetting,  even  worse  than  Bombay -made  Wellingtons.  A  common 
pair  will  cost  $2 ;  when  handsomely  embroidered  with  bead-work 
by  the  squaws  they  rise  to  $15. 

The  braves  were  armed  with  small  tomahawks  or  iron  hatchets, 
which  they  carried  with  the  powder-horn,  in  the  belt,  on  the  right 
side,  while  the  long  tobacco-pouch  of  antelope  sfcn  hung  by  the 
left.  Over  their  shoulders  were  leather  targes,  bows  and  arrows, 
and  some  few  had  rifles ;  both  weapons  were  defended  from  damp 
in  deer-skin  cases,  and  quivers  with  the  inevitable  bead-work,  and 
the  fringes  which  ever)^  savage  seems  to  love.  These  articles 
reminded  me  of  those  in  use  among  the  Bedouins  of  El  Hejaz. 
Their  nags  were  lean  and  ungroomed ;  they  treat  them  as  cruelly 
*  This  Algonquin  word  is  written  moccasson  or  mocasin,  and  is  pronounced  wolcsin. 


58  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

as  do  the  Somal ;  yet  notliing — short  of  whisky — can  persuade 
the  Indian  warrior,  like  the  man  of  Nejd,  to  part  with  a  favorite 
steed.  It  is  his  all  in  all,  his  means  of  livelihood,  his  profession, 
his  pride;  he  is  an  excellent  judge  of  horse-flesh,  though  ignoring 
the  mule  and  ass ;  and  if  he  offers  an  animal  for  which  he  has 
once  refused  to  trade,  it  is  for  the  reason  that  an  Oriental  takes 
to  market  an  adult  slave — it  has  become  useless.  Like  the  Arab, 
he  considers  it  dishonorable  to  sell  a  horse ;  he  gives  it  to  you, 
expecting  a  large  present,  and  if  disappointed  he  goes  away  grum- 
bling that  you  have  "swallowed"  his  property.  He  is  fond  of 
short  races — spurts  they  are  called — as  we  had  occasion  to  see; 
there  is  nothing  novel  nor  interesting  in  the  American  as  there 
is  in  the  Arabian  hippology ;  the  former  learned  all  its  arts  from 
Europeans,  the  latter  taught  them. 

Behind  the  warriors  and  braves  followed  the  baggage  of  the 
village.  The  lodge  poles,  in  bundles  of  four  and  five,  had  been 
lashed  to  pads  or  pack-saddles,  girthed  tight  to  the  ponies'  backs, 
the  other  ends  being  allowed  to  trail  along  the  ground  like  the 
shafts  of  a  truck ;  the  sign  easily  denotes  the  course  of  travel. 
The  wolf-like  dogs  were  also  harnessed  in  the  same  way ;  more 
lupine  than  canine,  they  are  ready  when  hungry  to  attack  man  or 
mule;  and,  sharp-nosed  and  prick-eared,  they  not  a  little  resem- 
ble the  Indian  pariah  dog.  Their  equipments,  however,  were  of 
course  on  a  diminutive  scale ;  a  little  pad  girthed  round  the  bar- 
rel, with  a  breastplate  to  keep  it  in  place,  enabled  them  to  drag 
two  short  light  lodge  poles  tied  together  at  the  smaller  extremity. 
One  carried  only  a  hawk  on  its  back — yet  falconry  has  nfever,  I 
believe,  been  practiced  by  the  Indian.  Behind  the  ponies  the 
poles  were  connected  by  cross-sticks,  upon  which  were  lashed  the 
lodge  covers,  the  buffalo  robes,  and  other  bulkier  articles.  Some 
had  strong  frames  of  withes  or  willow  basket-work,  two  branches 
being  bent  into  an  oval,  garnished  below  with  a  net- work  of  hide 
thongs  for  a  seat,  covered  with  a  light  wicker  canopy,  and  open- 
ing, like  a  cage,  only  on  one  side ;  a  blanket  or  a  buffalo  robe 
defends  the  inmate  from  sun  and  rain.  These  are  the  litters  for 
the  squaws  when  weary,  the  children,  and  the  puppies,  which  are 
part  of  the  family  till  used  for  feasts.  It  might  be  supposed  to 
be  a  rough  conveyance ;  the  elasticity  of  the  poles,  however,  alle- 
viates much  of  that  inconvenience.  A  very  ancient  man,  wrin- 
kled as  a  last  year's  walnut,  and  apparently  crippled  by  oldtwounds, 
was  carried,  prolJably  by  his  great-grandsons,  in  a  rude  sedan.  The 
vehicle  was  composed  of  two  pliable  poles,  about  ten  feet  long, 
separated  by  three  cross-bars  twenty  inches  or  so  apart;  a  blanket 
had  been  secured  to  the  foremost  and  hindermost,  and  under  the 
centre-bit  lay  Senex  secured  against  falling  out.  In  this  way  the 
Indians  often  bear  the  wounded  back  to  their  villages ;  appar- 
ently they  have  never  thought  of  a  horse-litter,  which  might  be 
made  with  equal  facility,  and  would  certainly  save  work. 


Chap.  I.  THE  SQUAWS.  59 

While  the  ricli  squaws  rode,  tlic  poorer  followed  their  pack- 
horses  on  foot,  eying  the  more  fortunate  as  the  mercer's  wife  re- 
gards what  she  terms  the  "  carriage  lady."  The  women's  dress 
not  a  little  resembles  their  lords' ;  the  unaccustomed  eye  often 
hesitates  between  the  sexes.  In  the  fair,  however,  the  waistcoat 
is  absent,  the  wide-sleeved  shift  extends  below  the  knees,  and  the 
leggins  are  of  somewhat  different  cut.  All  wore  coarse  shawls,  or 
white,  blue,  and  scarlet  cloth-blankets  round  their  bodies.  Upon 
the  Upper  Platte  we  afterward  saw  them  dressed  in  cotton  gowns, 
after  a  semi-civilized  fashion,  and  with  bowie-knives  by  their 
sides.  The  grandmothers  were  fearful  to  look  upon — horrid  ex- 
crescences of  nature,  teaching  proud  man  a  lesson  of  humility, 
and  a  memento  of  his  neighbor  in  creation,  the  "  humble  ape" — 
it  is  only  civilization  that  can  save  the  aged  woman  from  resem- 
bling the  gorilla.  The  middle-aged  matrons  were  homely  bodies, 
broad  and  squat  like  the  African  dame  after  she  has  become  mhe 
de  famille ;  their  hands  and  feet  were  notably  larger  from  work 
than  those  of  the  men,  and  the  burdens  upon  their  backs  caused 
them  to  stoop  painfully.  The  young  squaws — pity  it  is  that  all 
our  household  Indian  words,  pappoose,  for  instance,  tomahawk, 
wigwam,  and  powwow,  should  have  been  naturalized  out  of  the 
Abenaki  and  other  harsh  dialects  of  New  England — deserved  a 
more  euphonious  appellation.  The  belle  savage  of  the  party  had 
large  and  languishing  eyes  and  dentists'  teeth  that  glittered,  with 
sleek,  long  black  hair  like  the  ears  of  a  Blenheim  spaniel,  justi- 
fying a  natural  instinct  to  stroke  or  pat  it,  drawn  straight  over  a 
low,  broad,  Quadroon-like  brow.  Her  figure  had  none  of  the  fra- 
gility which  distinguishes  the  higher  race,  who  are  apparently 
too  delicate  for  human  nature's  daily  food  —  jDorcelain,  in  fact, 
when  pottery  is  wanted;  nor  had  she  the  square  corpulency 
which  appears  in  the  negro  woman  after  marriage.  Her  ears  and 
neck  were  laden  with  tinsel  ornaments,  brass-wire  rings  adorned 
her  wrists  and  fine  arms,  a  bead-work  sash  encircled  her  waist, 
and  scarlet  leggins,  fringed  and  tasseled,  ended  in  equally  costly 
moccasins.  When  addressed  by  the  driver  in  some  terms  to  me 
unintelligible,  she  replied  with  a  soft  clear  laugh — the  principal 
charm  of  the  Indian,  as  of  the  smooth-throated  African  woman — 
at  the  same  time  showing  him  the  palm  of  her  right  hand  as 
though  it  had  been  a  looking-glass.  The  gesture  would  have 
had  a  peculiar  significance  in  Sindh  ;  here,  however,  I  afterward 
learned,  it  simply  conveys  a  refusal.  The  maidens  of  the  tribe, 
or  those  under  six,  were  charming  little  creatures,  with  the  wild- 
est and  most  piquant  expression,  and  the  prettiest  doll-like  fea- 
tures imaginable;  the  young  coquettes  already  conferred  their 
smiles  as  if  they  had  been  of  any  earthly  value.  The  boys  once 
more  reminded  me  of  the  East ;  they  had  black  beady  eyes,  like 
snakes,  and  the  wide  mouths  of  young  caymans.  Their  only 
dress,  when  they  were  not  in  "  birth-day  suit,"  was  the  Indian 


60  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I, 

languti.  aSTone  of  the  braves  carried  scalps,  finger -bones,  or 
notches  on  the  lance,  ^vhich  serve  like  certain  marks  on  saw-han- 
dled pistols  farther  east,  nor  had  any  man  lost  a  limb.  The}-  fol- 
lowed us  for  many  a  mile,  peering  into  the  hinder  part  of  our 
traveling  wigwam,  and  ejaculating  "  How  !  How !"  the  normal 
salutation.  It  is  supposed  to  mean  "good,"  and  the  TVestern 
man,  when  he  drinks  to  your  health,  saj-s  "  Here,  how !"  and  ex- 
pects a  return  in  kind.  The  politeness  of  the  savages  did  not 
throw  us  off  our  guard ;  the  Dakotah  of  these  regions  are  expert 
and  daring  kleptomaniacs ;  they  only  laughed,  however,  a  little 
knowingly  as  we  raised  the  rear  curtain,  and  they  left  us  after 
begging  pertinaciously — bakhshish  is  an  institution  here  as  on 
the  banks  of  the  Xile — for  tobacco,  gunpowder,  ball,  copper  caps, 
lucifers,  and  what  not.  The  women,  except  the  pretty  part}'-, 
looked,  methought,  somewhat  scowlingly,  but  one  can  hardly  ex- 
pect a  smiling  countenance  from  the  human  biped  trudging  ten 
or  twenty  miles  under  a  load  fit  for  a  mule.  A  great  contrast 
with  these  Indians  was  a  train  of  "  Pike's  Peakers,"  who,  to  judge 
from  their  grim  looks,  were  returning  disappointed  from  the  new 
gold  diggings.  I  think  that  if  obliged  to  meet  one  of  the  two 
troops  by  moonhght  alone,  my  choice  would  have  fallen  upon 
"  messieurs  les  sauvages." 

At  6  P.M.  we  resumed  our  route,  with  a  good  but  fidgety  train, 
up  the  Dark  Valley,  where  musquetoes  and  sultry  heat  combined 
to  worry  us.  Slowly  traveling  and  dozing  the  while,  we  arrived 
about  9  15  P.M.  at  Diamond  Springs,  a  bright  little  water  much 
frequented  by  the  "lightning-bug"  and  the  big-eyed  "Devil's 
darning-needle,""^  where  we  found  whisky  and  its  usual  accom- 
paniment, soldiers.  The  host  related  an  event  which  he  said  had 
taken  place  but  a  few  days  before.  An  old  mountaineer,  who 
had  married  two  squaws,  was  drinking  with  certain  Cheyennes, 
a  tribe  famous  for  ferocity  and  hostility  to  the  whites.  The  dis- 
course turning  upon  topics  stoical,  he  was  asked  by  his  wild  boon 
companions  if  he  feared  death.  The  answer  was  characteristic: 
"  You  may  kill  me  if  you  like !"  Equally  characteristic  was  their 
acknowledgment;  they  hacked  him  to  pieces,  and  threw  the 
corpse  under  a  bank.  In  these  regions  the  opposite  races  regard 
each  other  as  wild  beasts ;  the  white  will  shoot  an  Indian  as  he 
would  a  coyote.  He  expects  to  go  under  whenever  the  "all- 
fired,  red-bellied  varmints" — I  speak,  oh  reader,  Occidentally — 
get  the  upper  hand,  and  vice  versa. 

The  Platte  River  divides  at  N.  lat.  40°  05'  05'',  and  W.  long. 
(G.)  101°  21'  24".  The  northern,  by  virtue  of  dimensions,  claims 
to  be  the  main  stream.  The  southern,  which  is  also  called  in  ob- 
solete maps  Padouca,  from  the  Pawnee  name  for  the  latans,  whom 

*  The  first  i?  the  firefly,  the  second  is  the  dragon-flv,  called  in  country  parts  of 
England  "  the  Devil's  needle." 


Chap.  I.  THE  PLATTE  EIVER.— AUEORA.  61 

the  Spaniards  term  Comanches,*  averages  600  yards,  about  100 
less  than  its  rival  in  breadtli,  and,  according  to  the  prairie  people, 
affords  the  best  drinking.  Hunters  often  ford  the  river  by  the 
Lower  Crossing,  twenty -eight  miles  above  the  bifurcation.  Those 
with  heavily-loaded  wagons  prefer  this  route,  as  by  it  they  avoid 
the  deep  loose  sands  on  the  way  to  the  Upper  Crossing.  The 
mail-coach  must  endure  the  four  miles  of  difliculty,  as  the  road 
to  Denver  City  branches  off  from  the  western  ford. 

At  10  P.M.,  having  "caught  up"  the  mules,  we  left  Diamond 
Springs,  and  ran  along  the  shallow  river  which  lay  like  a  thin 
sheet  of  shimmer  broken  by  clumps  and  islets  that  simulated,  un- 
der the  imperfect  light  of  the  stars,  houses  and  towns,  hulks  and 
ships,  wharves  and  esplanades.  On  the  banks  large  bare  spots, 
white  with  salt,  glistened  through  the  glooms;  the  land  became 
so  heavy  that  our  fagged  beasts  groaned;  and  the  descents,  water- 
cuts,  and  angles  were  so  abrupt  that  holding  on  constituted  a  fair 
gymnastic  exercise.  The  air  was  clear  and  fine.  My  compan- 
ions snored  while  I  remained  awake  enjoying  a  lovely  aurora, 
and,  Epicurean-like,  reserving  sleep  for  the  Sybaritic  apparatus, 
which,  according  to  report,  awaited  us  at  the  grand  eiahlissement 
of  the  Upper  Crossing  of  La  Grande  Platte. 

This  was  our  fifth  night  in  the  mail- wagon.  I  could  not  but 
meditate  upon  the  difference  between  travel  in  the  pure  prairie 
air,  despite  an  occasional  "  chill,"  and  the  perspiring  miseries  of 
an  East  Indian  dawk,  or  of  a  trudge  in  the  miasmatic  and  pesti- 
lential regions  of  Central  Africa.  Much  may  be  endured  when, 
as  was  ever  the  case,  the  highest  temperature  in  the  shade  does 
not  exceed  98°  F. 

\2th  August.     We  cross  the  Pintle. 

Boreal  aurora  glared  brighter  than  a  sunset  in  Syria.  The 
long  streamers  were  intercepted  and  mysteriously  confused  by  a 
massive  stratum  of  dark  cloud,  through  whose  narrow  rifts  and 
jagged  chinks  the  splendors  poured  in  floods  of  magic  fire.  Near 
the  horizon  the  tint  was  an  opaline  white — a  broad  band  of  calm, 
steady  light,  supporting  a  tender  rose-color,  which  flushed  to  crim- 
son as  it  scaled  the  upper  firmament.  The  mobility  of  the  spec- 
tacle was  its  chiefest  charm.  The  streamers  either  shot  out  or 
shrank  from  full  to  half  length ;  now  they  flared  up,  widening 
till  they  filled  the  space  between  Lucifer  rising  in  the  east  and 
Aries  setting  in  the  west ;  then  they  narrowed  to  the  size  of  a 
span ;  now  they  stood  like  a  red  arch  with  steadfast  legs  and  os- 
cillating summit ;  then,  broadening  at  the  apex,  they  apparently 

*  The  Kaumainsh  (Comanche),  a  warlike  and  independent  race,  who,  with  the 
Apaches,  have  long  been  the  banc  of  New  Spain,  were  in  the  beginning  of  this  cen- 
tury entirely  erratic,  without  any  kind  of  cultivation,  subsisting,  in  fact,  wholly  by 
the  chase  and  plunder.  They  were  then  bounded  westward  Ijy  New  Mexico,  where 
they  have  laid  waste  many  a  thriving  settlement ;  eastward  by  the  Pawnees  and 
Osages  ;  northward  by  the  Utahs,  Kiowas,  and  Shoshonees;  and  southward  by  the- 
nations  on  the  Lower  Red  River. 


62  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

revolved  witli  immense  rapidity ;  at  times  the  stars  shone  undim- 
med  through  the  veil  of  light,  then  they  were  immersed  in  its  ex- 
ceeding brilliancy.  After  a  full  hour  of  changeful  beauty,  paling 
in  one  place  and  blushing  in  another,  the  northern  lights  slowly 
faded  away  with  a  blush  which  made  the  sunrise  look  colder  than 
its  wont.  It  is  no  wonder  that  the  imaginative  Indian,  lookiug 
with  love  upon  these  beauties,  connects  them  with  the  ghosts  of 
his  ancestors. 

Cramped  with  cold  and  inaction — at  6  A.M.  the  thermometer 
showed  only  56°  F.  in  the  sun — hungry,  thirsty,  and  by  no  means 
in  the  mildest  of  humors,  we  hear  with  a  gush  of  joy,  at  3  15 
A.M.,  the  savage  Yep !  yep !  yep !  with  which  the  driver  an- 
nounces our  approach.  The  plank  lodgings  soon  appear;  we 
spring  out  of  the  ambulance ;  a  qualm  comes  over  us ;  all  is  dark 
and  silent  as  the  grave ;  nothing  is  prepared  for  us ;  the  wretches 
are  all  asleep.  A  heavy  kick  opens  the  door  of  the  soon-found 
restaurant,  when  a  pheesy,  drowsy  voice  from  an  inner  room  asks 
us,  in  German-English — so  strong  is  the  causality,  the  crapulous- 
ness  of  why  and  wherefore  in  this  "divided,  erudite  race" — "And 
how  ze  komen  in  ?"  Without  attempting  to  gratify  his  intellect- 
ual cravings,  we  ordered  him  out  of  bed,  and  began  to  talk  of 
supper,  refreshment,  and  repose.  But  the  "critter"  had  waxed 
surly  after  securing  for  himself  a  compound  epithet,  of  which 
"hunds — "  is  the  first  syllable,  and  his  every  negative  answer 
concluded  with  a  faint  murmur  of  "petampt."  I  tried  to  get  his 
bed  for  Mrs.  Dana,  who  was  suffering  severely  from  fatigue.  He 
grumbled  out  that  his  "lady  and  bebbe"  were  occuj)ying  it.  At 
length  I  hit  upon  the  plan  of  placing  the  cushions  and  cloaks 
upon  the  table,  when  the  door  opened  for  a  second  dog-Teuton, 
who  objected  to  that  article  of  furniture  being  used  otherwise  than 
for  his  morning  meal.  Excedes^  and  mastering  with  pain  our  de- 
sire to  give  these  villain  "sausage-eaters"  "particular  fits,"  we  sat 
down,  stared  at  the  fire,  and  awaited  the  vile  food.  For  a  break- 
fast cooked  in  the  usual  manner,  coffee  boiled  down  to  tannin 
(ever  the  first  operation),  meat  subjected  to  half  sod,  half  stew, 
and,  lastly,  bread  raised  with  sour  milk  corrected  with  soda,  and 
so  baked  that  the  taste  of  the  flour  is  ever  prominent,  we  paid 
these  German  rascals  75  cents,  a  little  dearer  than  at  the  Trois 
Freres. 

At  the  Upper  Crossing  of  the  South  Fork  there  are  usually  ten- 
der adieux,  the  wenders  toward  Mormonland  bidding  farewell  to 
those  bound  for  the  perilous  gold  regions  of  Denver  City  and 
Pike's  Peak.  If  "fresh,"  they  take  leave  of  one  another  with 
sincere  commiseration  for  one  another's  dooms,  each  deeming,  of 
course,  his  own  the  brighter.  The  wagons  were  unloaded,  thus 
giving  us  the  opportunity  of  procuring  changes  of  raiment  and 
fresh  caps — our  felts  had  long  disappeared  under  the  influence  of 
sleeping  on  the  perch.     By  some  means  we  retained  our  old  am- 


Chap.  I.  THE  "PADOUCA."  63 

balance,  which,  after  five  days  and  nights,  we  had  learned  to  look 
upon  as  a  home ;  the  Judiciary,  however,  had  to  exchange  theirs 
for  one  much  lighter  and  far  less  comfortable.  Presently  those 
bound  to  Denver  City  set  out  upon  their  journey.  Conspicuous 
among  them  was  a  fair  woman  who  had  made  her  first  appear- 
ance at  Cotton- wood  Creek — fit  place  for  the  lune  de  melasse — 
with  an  individual,  apparently  a  well-to-do  drover,  whom  she 
called  "Tom"  and  "husband."  She  had  forgotten  her  "fixins," 
which,  according  to  a  mischievous  and  scandalous  driver,  consist- 
ed of  a  reticule  containing  a  "bishop,"  a  comb,  and  a  pomatum- 
pot,  a  pinchbeck  watch,  and  a  flask  of  "Bawme" — not  of  Meccah. 
Being  a  fine  young  person  of  Scotch  descent,  she  had,  till  dire 
suspicions  presented  themselves,  attracted  the  attentions  of  her 
fellow- travelers,  who  pronounced  her  to  be  "  all  sorts  of  a  gal." 
But  virtue  is  rabid  in  these  lands,  and  the  purity  of  the  ermine 
must  not  be  soiled.  It  was  fortunate  for  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Mann — the 
names  were  noms  de  voyage — that  they  left  us  so  soon.  In  a  cer- 
tain Southern  city  I  heard  of  a  high  oflicial  who,  during  a  trip 
upon  one  of  the  floating  palaces  of  the  Mississippi,  had  to  repeat 
"deprendi  miserum  est;"  the  fond,  frail  pair  was  summarily  eject- 
ed with  bag  and  bags-age  to  furnish  itself  with  a  down-stream 
passage  on  board  a  lumber  raft. 

We  crossed  the  "  Padouca"  at  6  30  A.M.,  having  placed  our 
luggage  and  the  mails  for  security  in  an  ox  cart.  The  South 
Fork  is  here  600  to  700  yards  broad ;  the  current  is  swift,  but  the 
deepest  water  not  exceeding  250  feet,  the  teams  are  not  compelled 
to  cross  diagonally.  The  channel  was  broken  with  sand-banks 
and  islets;  the  bed  was  dark  and  gravelly;  the  water,  though 
dark  as  hotel  coffee,  was  clear,  not,  as  described  by  Captain  Stans- 
bury,  "  perfectly  opaque  with  thick  yellow  mud,"  and  the  earth- 
banks,  which  rise  to  five  feet,  are  never  inundated.  The  half- 
broken  mules  often  halted,  and  seemed  inclined  to  lie  down ;  a 
youth  waded  on  the  lower  side  of  the  team,  shouting  and  swing- 
ing his  arms  to  keep  them  from  turning  their  heads  down  stream ; 
the  instinct  of  animals  to  find  an  easy  ford  ended  with  a  few  des- 
perate struggles  up  the  black  oozy  mire.  Having  reloaded  on 
the  left  bank,  and  cast  one  last  look  of  hatred  upon  the  scene  of 
our  late  disappointment,  we  set  out  at  7  A.M.  to  cross  the  divide 
separating  the  Northern  and  Southern  Forks  of  the  Platte. 

We  had  now  entered  upon  the  outskirts  of  the  American  wil- 
derness, which  has  not  one  feature  in  common  with  the  deserts 
of  the  Old  World.  In  Arabia  and  Africa  there  is  majesty  in  its 
monotony :  those  awful  wastes  so  brightly  sunburnished  that  the 
air  above  them  appears  by  contrast  black ;  one  vast  and  burning 
floor,  variegated  only  by  the  mirage-reek,  with  nothing  below  the 
firmament  to  relieve  or  correct  the  eye.  Here  it  is  a  brown 
smooth  space,  insensibly  curving  out  of  sight,  wholly  wanting 
"  second  distance,"  and  scarcely  suggesting  the  idea  of  immensi- 


g4  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

ty ;  -we  seem,  in  fact,  to  be  traveling  for  twenty  miles  over  a  con- 
vex, treeless  bill-top.  Tbe  air  became  sultry,  white  clouds  shut 
in  the  skv,  and  presently  arose  tbe  bigb  soutb  wind,  wbicb  at  tbis 
season  blows  a  gale  between  10  AM.  and  3  P.M.  Tbe  ground, 
bleacbed  wbere  sandy,  was  tliinly  scattered  bere  and  tbere  witb 
wiry  grass,  dun  and  withered,  and  witb  coarse  and  sunburnt 
sbrubs,  among  wbicb  tbe  "  leadj)lant"'  {Amorjjlie  canescens)  was  tbe 
cbaracteristic.  A  dwarf  aloetic  vegetation  became  abundant; 
vegetation  was  fast  going  tbe  way  of  all  grass ;  after  rain,  bow- 
ever,  it  is  doubtless  fresb  and  copious.  Tbe  buffalo  grass  sought 
tbe  shade  of  tbe  wild  sage.  A  small  euphorbia,  tbe  cotton-weed, 
a  thistle  haunted  by  the  Cynthia  cardua,  that  butterfly  common 
to  tbe  eastern  and  western  hemispheres,  and  a  bright  putoria, 
mingled  witb  mushrooms  like  huge  bulbs.  Tbe  cactus  was  of 
two  kinds :  the  flat-leaved  species  is  used  by  white  men  to  filter 
water,  and  by  tbe  savages,  who  peel  and  toast  it,  as  provaunt  :* 
there  is  another  globular  variety  (an  ecliinocacius)  lying  stalkless, 
like  a  half  melon,  witb  its  brilliant  flowers  guarded  by  a  panoply 
of  spines.  We  pursued  a  sandy  tract,  broken  by  beds  of  nullahs 
and  fiumaras,  between  two  ridges  of  hillocks,  draining  to  tbe  right 
into  a  low  bottom  denoted  by  a  lively  green,  witb  bays  and  bends 
of  lush,  reed-like  grass.  This  is  tbe  well-known  Lodge-Pole 
Creek  or  Fork,  a  mere  ditch,  the  longest  and  narrowest  of  its 
kind,  rising  from  a  mountain  lakelet  near  the  "New  Bayou"  or 
"Park,"  in  tbe  Black  Hills,  and  falliug  into  the  Soutb  Pork  of 
tbe  Platte,  about  seventy  miles  west  of  the  bifurcation.  By  fol- 
lowing up  tbis  water  along  tbe  Cherokee  trail  to  its  bead  in  tbe 
Cbeyeime  Pass  of  tbe  Eocky  Mountains,  instead  of  describing  tbe 
arc  via  Fort  Laramie,  the  mail  would  gain  61  miles ;  emigrants, 
indeed,  often  prefer  the  short  cut.  Moreover,  from  the  Cheyenne 
Pass  to  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  there  is,  according  to  accounts,  a 
practicable  road  soutb  of  tbe  present  line,  wbicb,  as  it  would  also 
save  time  and  labor,  has  been  preferred  for  tbe  mail  line. 

In  tbe  American  Sahara  animal  life  began  to  appear.  Tbe  co- 
yote turned  and  stared  at  us  as  though  we  were  trespassing  upon 
bis  propert}'.  Tbis  is  the  jackal  of  tbe  Western  world,  tbe  small 
prairie-wolf,  tbe  Canis  lairans,  and  tbe  old  M&sican  coyotl,  best 
depicted  by  tbe  old  traveler.  Abbe  Clavigero,  in  these  words : 
"It  is  a  wild  beast,  voracious  like  tbe  wolf,  cunning  bke  the  fox, 
in  form  like  tbe  dog,  and  in  some  qualities  like  the  jackal."    The 

*  There  is  another  kind  of  cactus  called  bv  the  whites  "whisky-root,"  and  by  the 
Indian  "peioke,"  used  like  the  intoxicating  mushroom  of  Siberia.  "It  grows  in 
Southern  Texas,  in  the  range  of  sand-hills  bordering  on  the  IJio  Grande,  and  in 
gravelly,  sandy  soil.  The  Indians  eat  it  for  its  exhilarating  effect  on  the  system, 
producing  precisely  the  same  excitement  as  alcoholic  drinks.  It  is  sliced  as  you 
would  a  cucumber ;  the  small  piece  is  chewed  and  .swallowed,  and  in  about  the  same 
time  as  comf(jrtably  tight  cocktails  would  'stir  the  divinity  within'  you,  this  indicates 
itself;  only  its  effects  are  what  I  might  term  a  little  l-a-v-o-r-t-l-n-ri,  givinjr  rather 
a  wilder  sco])o  to  the  imagination  .ind  actions." — (A  Correspondent  of  the  New  Or- 
leans Picaijune,  quoted  by  Mr.  Bartlctt.) 


Chap.  I.  THE  PRAIEIE-DOG  VILLAGE.  65 

animal  has  so  often  been  described  that  there  is  little  new  to  say 
about  it.  The  mountain  men  are  all  agreed  upon  one  thing, 
namely,  that  the  meat  is  by  no  means  bad ;  most  of  them  have 
tried  "wolf-mutton"  in  hard  times,  and  may  expect  to  do  so 
again.  The  civilizee  shudders  at  the  idea  of  eating  wolf  from  a 
food-prejudice,  whose  consideration  forms  a  curious  chapter  in 
human  history.  It  is  not  very  easy,  says  Dr.  Johnson,  to  fix  the 
principles  upon  which  mankind  have  agreed  to  eat  some  animals 
and  reject  others ;  and  as  the  principle  is  not  evident,  so  it  is  not 
uniform.  Originally  invented  for  hygienic  purposes,  dietetic  laws 
soon  became  tenets  of  religion,  and  passed  far  beyond  their  orig- 
inal intention:  thus  pork,  for  instance,  injurious  in  Syria,  would 
not  be  eaten  by  a  Jew  in  Russia.  An  extreme  arbitrariness  marks 
the  modern  systems  of  civilized  people :  the  Englishman,  for  in- 
stance, eats  oysters,  periwinkles,  shrimps,  and  frogs,  while  he  is 
nauseated  by  the  snails,  robins,  and  crows  which  the  Frenchman 
uses ;  the  Italian  will  devour  a  hawk,  while  he  considers  a  rabbit 
impure,  and  has  refused  to  touch  potatoes  even  in  a  famine ;  and 
all  delight  in  that  foul  feeder,  the  cluck,  while  they  reject  the  meat 
of  the  cleanly  ass.  The  Mosaic  law  seems  still  to  influence  the 
European  world,  causing  men  to  throw  away  much  valuable  pro- 
vision because  unaccustomed  to  eat  it  or  to  hear  of  its  being  eaten. 
The  systems  of  China  and  Japan  are  far  more  sensible  for  dense- 
ly populated  countries,  and  the  hippophagists  have  shown,  at 
least,  that  one  animal  has  been  greatly  wasted.  The  terrible  fam- 
ines, followed  by  the  equally  fearful  pestilences,  which  have 
scourged  mankind,  are  mainly  owing  to  the  prevalence  of  these 
food-prejudices,  which,  as  might  be  expected,  are  the  most  deeply 
rooted  in  the  poorer  classes,  who  can  least  afford  them. 

I  saw  to-day,  for  the  first  time,  a  prairie-dog  village.  The  little 
beast,  hardly  as  large  as  a  Gruinea-pig,  belongs  to  the  family  of 
squirrels  and  the  group  of  marmots — in  point  of  manner  it  some- 
what resembles  the  monkey.  "  Wish-ton-Wish"  - — an  Indian 
onomatoplasm — was  at  home,  sitting  posted  like  a  sentinel  upon 
the  roof,  and  sunning  himself  in  the  midday  glow.  It  is  not  easy 
to  shoot  him ;  he  is  out  of  doors  all  day ;  but,  timid  and  alert,  at 
the  least  suspicion  t)f  danger  he  plunges  with  a  jerking  of  the  tail, 
and  a  somersault,  quicker  than  a  shy  young  rabbit's,  into  the  near- 
est hole,  peejDing  from  the  ground,  and  keeping  up  a  feeble  little 
cry  (wish !  ton !  wish !),  more  like  the  note  of  a  bird  than  a  bark. 
If  not  killed  outright,  he  will  manage  to  wriggle  into  his  home. 
The  villages  are  generally  on  the  brow  of  a  hill,  near  a  creek  or 
pond,  thus  securing  water  without  danger  of  drowning.  The 
earth  burrowed  out  while  making  the  habitations  is  thrown  up 
in  heaps,  which  serve  as  sitting-places  in  the  wet  season,  and  give 

*  The  name  will  recall  to  mind  one  of  Mr.  Fennimore  Cooper's  admirable  fic- 
tions, the  "  Wept  of  Wish-ton-Wish,"  which  was,  however,  a  bird,  the  "  Whip-poor- 
will,"  or  American  night-hawk. 

E 


65  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

a  look-out  upon  the  adjacent  country;  it  is  more  dangerous  to 
ride  over  them  than  to  charge  a  field  of  East  Indian  "T'hur,'" 
and  many  a  broken  leg  and  collar-bone  have  been  the  result. 
The  holes,  which  descend  in  a  spiral  form,  must  be  deep,  and  they 
are  connected  by  long  galleries,  with  sharp  angles,  ascents  and 
descents,  to  puzzle  the  pursuer.  Lieutenant  Pike  had  140  ket- 
tles of  water  poured  into  one  without  dislodging  the  occupant. 
The  village  is  always  cleared  of  grass,  probably  by  the  necessities 
of  the  tenants,  who,  though  they  enjoy  insects,  are  mainly  grami- 
nivorous, and  rarely  venture  half  a  mile  from  home.  The  limits 
are  sometimes  three  miles  square,  and  the  population  must  be 
dense,  as  a  burrow  will  occur  every  few  paces.  The  Cynomys 
Ludovicianus  prepares  for  winter  by  stopping  the  mouth  of  its 
burrow,  and  constructing  a  deeper  cell,  in  which  it  hibernates  till 
spring  appears.  It  is  a  graceful  little  animal,  dark  brown  above 
and  white  below,  with  teeth  and  nails,  head  and  tail  somewhat 
like  the  gray  sciurus  of  the  States.  The  Indians  and  trappers  eat 
this  American  marmot,  declaring  its  flesh  to  be  fatter  and  better 
than  that  of  the  squirrel.  Some  travelers  advise  exposing  the 
meat  for  a  night  or  two  to  the  frost,  by  which  means  the  rank- 
ness  of  subterranean  flavor  is  corrected.  It  is  undoubted  that  the 
■rattlesnake — both  of  the  yellow  and  black  species — and  the  small 
white  burrowing-owl  {Sln'x  cunicularia)  are  often  found  in  the 
same  warren  with  this  rodent,  a  curious  happy  family  of  rejDtile, 
bird,  and  beast,  and  in  some  places  he  has  been  seen  to  associate 
with  tortoises,  rattlesnakes,  and  horned  frogs  {PJirynosomd).  Ac- 
cording to  some  naturalists,  however,  the  fraternal  harmony  is  not 
so  perfect  as  it  might  be :  the  owl  is  accused  of  occasionally  grat- 
ifying his  carnivorous  lusts  by  laying  open  the  skull  of  Wish-ton- 
Wish  with  a  smart  stroke  of  the  beak.  We  sighted,  not  far  from 
the  prairie-dog  village,  an  animal  which  I  took  to  be  a  lynx ;  but 
the  driver,  who  had  often  seen  the  beast  in  Minnesota  and  Old 
"  Ouisconsinc,"  declared  that  they  are  not  to  be  found  here. 

At  12  45  P.M.,  traveling  over  the  uneven  barren,  and  in  a 
burning  sirocco,  we  reached  Lodge-Pole  Station,  where  we  made 
our  "  noonin."  The  hovel  fronting  the  creek  was  built  like  an 
Irish  shanty,  or  a  Beloch  hut,  against  a  hill  side,  to  save  olie 
wall,  and  it  presented  a  fresh  phase  of  squalor  and  wretchedness. 
The  mud  walls  were  partly  papered  with  "  Harper's  Magazine," 
"Frank  Leslie,"  and  the  "New  York  Illustrated  News;"  the 
ceiling  was  a  fine  festoon-work  of  soot,  and  the  floor  was  much 
like  the  ground  outside,  only  not  nearly  so  clean.  In  a  corner 
stood  the  usual  "  bunk,"*  a  mass  of  mingled  rags  and  buffalo 

*  American  writers  derive  this  word  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  henc,  whence  the 
modern  English  "bench."  It  means  a  wooden  case  used  in  country  taverns  and  in 
offices,  and  serving  alike  for  a  seat  during  the  day  and  a  bed  at  night.  In  towns  it 
is  applied  to  the  tiers  of  standing  bed  peculiar  to  the  lowest  class  of  lodging-houses. 
In  the  West,  it  is  a  frame-work,  in  size  and  shape  like  a  berth  on  hoard  ship,  some- 
times single,  sometimes  double  or  treble. 


Cn-vp.  I.  THE  ANTELOPE.  67 

robes ;  the  centre  of  the  room  was  occupied  by  a  rickety  table, 
and  boxes,  turned  up  on  their  long  sides,  acted  as  chairs.  The 
unescapable  stove  was  there,  filling  the  interior  with  the  aroma 
of  meat.  As  usual,  the  materials  for  ablution,  a  "  dipper"  or  cup, 
a  dingy  tin  skillet  of  scanty  size,  a  bit  of  coarse  gritty  soap,  and 
a  public  towel,  like  a  rag  of  gunny  bag,  were  deposited  upon  a 
rickety  settle  outside. 

There  being  no  "lady"  at  the  station  on  Lodge-Pole  Creek, 
milk  was  unprocurable.  Here,  however,  began  a  course  of  ante- 
lope venison,  which  soon  told  upon  us  with  damaging  effect.  I 
well  knew  the  consequences  of  this  heating  and  bilious  diet  in 
Asia  and  Africa ;  but  thinking  it  safe  to  do  at  Eome  as  the  Eo- 
mans  do,  I  followed  in  the  wake  of  my  companions,  and  suffered 
with  them.  Like  other  wild  meats,  bear,  deer,  elk,  and  even  buf- 
falo, antelope  will  disagree  with  a  stranger;  it  is,  however,  juicy, 
fat,  and  well-flavored,  especially  when  compared  with  the  hard, 
dry,  stringy  stuff  which  the  East  affords ;  and  the  hunter  and 
trapper,  like  the  Indian,  are  loud  in  its  praise. 

The  habitat  of  the  prong-horn  antelope  {Antelompra  Americana^ 
called  "le  cabris"  by  the  Canadian,  and  "the  goat"  by  the  un- 
poetic  mountain  man)  extends  from  the  plains  west  of  the  Mis- 
souri to  the  Pacific  Ocean ;  it  is  also  abundant  on  Minnesota  and 
on  the  banks  of  the  Red  River;  its  southern  limit  is  Northern 
Mexico,  whence  it  ranges  to  53°  N.  lat.  on  the  Saskatchewan.  It 
is  about  the  size  of  a  small  deer,  the  male  weighing  65  lbs.  in 
good  condition.  The  coat  is  coarse  and  wiry,  yellow  dun  on  the 
back,  with  dull  white  under  the  belly,  and  the  tanned  skin  is 
worth  three  dollars.  It  is  at  once  the  fleetest  and  the  wariest 
animal  on  the  prairies,  and  its  sense  of  hearing  as  acute  as  its 
power  of  smell.  The  best  time  for  "  still  hunting"  {i.  e.,  stalking) 
is  at  early  dawn,  when  the  little  herds  of  four  or  five  are  busy 
grazing.  They  disappear  during  the  midday  heats  of  summer, 
and  in  the  evening,  as  in  India  and  Arabia,  they  are  wild  and 
wary.  They  assemble  in  larger  bodies  near  the  Rocky  Mount- 
ains, where  pasturage — not  sage,  which  taints  the  meat — abounds, 
and  the  Indian  savages  kill  them  by  surrounds,  especially  in  win- 
ter, when  the  flesh  is  fattest.  White  men  usually  stalk  them. 
During  the  migration  season  few  are  seen  near  the  road ;  at  other 
times  they  are  often  sighted.  They  are  gifted,  like  the  hippopot- 
amus, with  a  truly  feminine  curiosity ;  they  will  stand  for  min- 
utes to  stare  at  a  red  wagon-bed,  and,  despite  their  extreme  wari- 
ness, they  will  often  approach,  within  shot,  a  scarlet  kerchief  tied 
to  a  stick,  or  any  similar  decoy.  In  manner  they  much  resemble 
the  Eastern  gazelle.  When  the  herd  is  disturbed,  the  most  timid 
moves  off  first,  followed  by  the  rest ;  the  walk  gradually  increases 
from  a  slow  trot  to  a  bounding  gallop.  At  times  they  halt,  one 
by  one,  and  turn  to  gaze,  but  they  presently  resume  flight,  till 
they  reach  some  prominent  place  where  their  keen  vision  can 


68  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

command  the  surrounding  country.  When  well  roused,  they  are 
thoroughly  on  the  alert ;  the  hunter  will  often  find  that,  though 
he  has  moved  toward  them  silently,  up  the  wind  and  under  cover, 
they  have  suspected  sinister  intentions  and  have  shifted  ground. 

Besides  the  antelope,  there  are  three  species  of  deer  in  the  re- 
gions east  of  the  Eocky  Mountains.  Perhaps  the  most  common 
is  the  red  deer  of  the  Eastern  States  {Cervus  Virginianus  ;  le  chev- 
reuil)  :  it  extends  almost  throughout  the  length  of  the  continent, 
and  is  seemingly  independent  of  altitude  as  of  latitude.  The  ven- 
ison is  not  considered  equal  to  that  of  the  antelope ;  travelers, 
however,  kill  off  the  deer  to  save  butchers'  bills,  so  that  it  is  now 
seldom  "  glimpsed"  from  the  line  of  route.  The  black-tailed  or 
long-eared  deer  [Cervus  macrotis)  is  confined  to  the  higher  ground ; 
it  has  similar  habits  to  the  red  variety,  and  is  hunted  in  the  same 
way.  The  long-tailed,  or  jumping  deer  {Cervus  leucrurus,  vulgar- 
ly called  the  roebuck),  affects,  like  the  black-tailed,  the  Eocky 
Mountains.  The  elk  {Cervus  Canadensis)  is  found  in  parts  of 
Utah  Territory  and  forty  miles  north  of  the  mail-road,  near  the 
Wind-Eiver  Mountains — a  perfect  paradise  for  sportsmen.  It  is 
noble  shooting,  but  poor  eating  as  the  Indian  sambar.*  The 
moose  ( Cervus  Alces\  the  giant  of  the  deer  kind,  sometimes  rising 
seventeen  hands  high,  and  weighing  1200  lbs.,  is  an  inhabitant 
of  higher  latitudes — Nova  Scotia,  Canada,  Maine,  and  other  parts 
of  New  England. 

At  Lodge-Pole  Station,  the  mules,  as  might  be  expected  from 
animals  allowed  to  run  wild  every  day  in  the  week  except  one, 
were  like  newly-caught  mustangs.f  The  herdsman — each  station 
boasts  of  this  ofi&cial — mounted  a  nag  barebacked,  and,  jingling 
a  bell,  drove  the  cattle  into  the  corral,  a  square  of  twenty  yards, 
formed  by  a  wall  of  loose  stones,  four  to  five  feet  high.  He 
wasted  three  quarters  of  an  hour  in  this  operation,  which  a  well- 
trained  shepherd's  dog  would  have  performed  in  a  few  minutes. 
Then  two  men  entering  with  lassos  or  lariats,  thongs  of  flexible 
plaited  or  twisted  hide,  and  provided  with  an  iron  ring  at  one 
end  to  form  the  noose — the  best  are  made  of  hemp,  Eussian,  not 
Manilla — proceeded,  in  a  great  "  muss"  on  a  small  scale,  to  secure 
their  victims.     The  lassoj  in  their  hands  was  by  no  means  the 

*  The  elk  is  being  domesticated  in  the  State  of  New  York ;  it  is  still,  however, 
doubtful  whether  the  animals  will  fatten  well  or  supply  milk,  or  serve  for  other  than 
ornamental  purposes. 

t  The  mustang  is  the  Spanish  mestefio.  The  animal  was  introduced  by  the  first 
colonists,  and  allowed  to  run  at  large.  Its  great  variety  of  coat  proves  the  mus- 
tang's degeneracy  from  the  tame  horse ;  according  to  travelers,  cream-color,  skew- 
bald, and  piebald  being  not  uncommon.  "Sparing  in  diet,  a  stranger  to  grain, 
easily  satisfied  whether  on  growing  or  dead  grass,  inured  to  all  weathers,  and  capa- 
ble of  great  labor,"  the  mustang-pony  is  a  treasure  to  the  prairie-man. 

t  According  to  Mr.  Bartlett,  the  lasso  (Span,  "lazo")  is  synonymous  with  "  lariat" 
(Span,  "lariata").  In  common  use,  however,  the  first  word  is  confined  to  the  rope 
with  which  buffaloes,  mustangs,  or  mules  are  caught ;  the  second,  which  in  the  West 
is  popularly  pronounced  "lariet,"  or  "lariette,"  more  generally  means  the  article 


Chap.  I.  CLOUDS  OF  GRASSHOPPEKS.  69 

"  unerring  necklace"  whicli  the  Mexican  vaquero  has  taught  it  to 
be:  they  often  missed  their  aim,  or  caught  the  wrong  animal. 
The  effect,  however,  was  magical:  a  single  haul  at  the  noose 
made  the  most  stiff-necked  mule  tame  as  a  costermonger's  ass. 
The  team  took,  as  usual,  a  good  hour  to  trap  and  hitch  up :  the 
latter  was  a  delicate  operation,  for  the  beasts  were  comically  clever 
with  their  hoofs. 

At  3  P.M.,  after  a  preliminary  ringing,  intended  to  soothe  the 
fears  of  Madame,  we  set  out  au  grand  gcdoj?,  with  a  team  that  had 
never  worked  together  before.  They  dashed  down  the  cahues 
with  a  violence  that  tossed  us  as  in  a  blanket,  and  nothing  could 
induce  them,  while  fresh,  to  keep  the  path.  The  yawing  of  the 
vehicle  was  ominous :  fortunately,  however,  the  road,  though  self- 
made,  was  excellent ;  the  sides  were  smooth,  and  the  whole  coun- 
try fit  to  be  driven  over.  At  first  the  view  was  sadly  monot- 
onous. It  was  a  fair  specimen  of  the  rolling  prairie,  in  nowise 
differing  from  any  other  land  except  in  the  absence  of  trees.  Ac- 
cording to  some  travelers,  there  is  in  several  places  an  apparently 
progressive  decay  of  the  timber,  showing  that  formerly  it  was 
more  extensive  than  it  is  now.  Others  attribute  the  phenomenon 
to  the  destruction  of  forests  in  a  former  era  by  fires  or  by  the  abo- 
rigines. It  is  more  satisfactory  to  account  for  it  by  a  complica- 
tion of  causes — a  want  of  proper  constituents,  an  insufficiency  of 
rain,  the  depth  of  the  water  below  the  surface,  the  severity  of  the 
eight  months  of  winter  snow,  the  fierce  winds  —  the  hardiest 
growths  that  present  their  heads  above  the  level  of  the  prairies 
have  dead  tops — the  shortness  of  the  summers,  and  last,  but  not 
least,  the  clouds  of  grasshoppers.  According  to  Lieutenant  War- 
ren, whose  graphic  description  is  here  borrowed,  these  insects  are 
"  nearly  the  same  as  the  locusts  of  Egypt;  and  no  one  who  has 
not  traveled  on  the  prairie,  and  seen  for  himself,  can  appreciate 
the  magnitude  of  the  swarms.  Often  they  fill  the  air  for  many 
miles  of  extent,  so  that  an  inexperienced  eye  can  scarcely  distin- 
guish their  appearance  from  that  of  a  shower  of  rain  or  the  smoke 
of  a  prairie  fire.  The  height  of  their  flight  may  be  somewhat  ap- 
preciated, as  Mr.  E.  James  saw  them  above  his  head,  as  far  as  their 
size  would  render  them  visible,  while  standing  on  the  top  of  a 
peak  of  the  Eocky  Mountains,  8500  feet  above  the  plain,  and  an 
elevation  of  14,500  above  that  of  the  sea,  in  the  region  where 
the  snow  lies  all  the  year.  To  a  person  standing  in  one  of  these 
swarms  as  they  pass  over  and  around  him,  the  air  becomes  sensi- 
bly darkened,  and  the  sound  produced  by  their  wings  resembles 
that  of  the  passage  of  a  train  of  cars  on  a  railroad  when  standing- 
two  or  three  hundred  yards  from  the  track.  The  Mormon  set- 
tlements have  suffered  more  from  the  ravages  of  these  insects  than 

with  which  animals  are  picketed.  Many  authors,  however,  have  made  "lariat"  the 
equivalent  of  "  lasso."  The  Texans  use,  instead  of  the  hide  lasso,  a  hair  rope  called 
"caberes,"  from  the  Spanish  "cabestro,"a  halter. 


70  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

probably  all  other  causes  combined.  They  destroyed  nearly  all 
the  vegetables  cultivated  last  year  at  Fort  Randall,  and  extended 
their  ravages  east  as  far  as  Iowa." 

As  we  advanced,  the  horizon,  every  where  within  musket-shot 
— a  wearying  sight ! — widened  out,  and  the  face  of  the  country 
notably  changed.  A  scrap  of  blue  distance  and  high  hills — the 
•'  Court-house"  and  others — appeared  to  the  northwest.  The  long, 
curved  lines,  the  gentle  slopes,  and  the  broad  hollows  of  the  divide 
facing  the  South  Fork  changed  into  an  abrupt  and  precipitous  de- 
scent, "gullied"  like  the  broken  ground  of  sub-ranges  attached  to 
a  mountain  chain.  Deep  ravines  were  parted  by  long  narrow 
ridges,  sharp-crested  and  water-washed,  exposing  ribs  and  back- 
bones of  sandstone  and  silicious  lime,  like  the  vertebree  of  some 
huge  saurian :  scatters  of  kunker,  with  a  detritus  of  quartz  and 
granite,  clothed  the  ground,  and,  after  passing  Lodge-Pole  Creek, 
which  bears  away  to  the  west,  the  rocky  steps  required  the  per- 
petual application  of  the  brake.  Presently  we  saw  a  dwarf  cliflP 
inclosing  in  an  elliptical  sweep  a  green  amphitheatre,  the  valley 
of  our  otd  friend  the  Platte.  On  the  far  bank  of  its  northern  fork 
lay  a  forty-mile  stretch  of  sandy,  barren,  glaring,  heat-reeking 
ground,  not  unlike  that  which  the  overland  traveler  looking  south- 
ward from  Suez  sees.*  We  left  far  to  the  right  a  noted  spot, 
Ash  Hollow,  situated  at  the  mouth  of  the  creek  of  the  same  pre- 
nomen.  It  is  described  as  a  pretty  bit  in  a  barren  land,  about 
twenty  acres,  surrounded  by  high  bluffs,  well  timbered  with  ash 
and  cedar,  and  rich  in  clematis  and  other  wild  flowers.  Here,  in 
1855,  the  doughty  General  Harney,  with  700  to  800  men,  "  gave 
Jessie"  to  a  large  war-party  of  Brule  Sioux  under  their  chief  Little 
Thunder,  of  whom  more  anon,  killing  150,  and  capturing  60  squaws 
and  children,  with  but  seven  or  eight  casualties  in  his  own  force. 

Descending  into  the  bed  of  a  broad  "  arroyo,"f  at  this  season 
bone  dr}^,  we  reached,  at  5  45  P.M.,  Mud-Spring  Station,  which 
takes  its  name  from  a  little  run  of  clear  water  in  a  black  miry 
hollow.  A  kind  of  cress  grows  in  it  abundantly,  and  the  banks 
are  bright  with  the  "  morning-glory"  or  convolvulus.  The  sta- 
tion-house was  not  unlike  an  Egyptian  fellah's  hut.  The  material 
was  sod,  half  peat  with  vegetable  matter ;  it  is  taken  up  in  large 
flakes  after  being  furrowed  with  the  plow,  and  is  cut  to  proper 
lengths  with  a  short-handled  spade.  Cedar  timber,:}:  brought  from 
the  neighboring  hills,  formed  the  roof.  The  only  accommodation 
was  an  open  shed,  with  a  sort  of  doorless  dormitory  by  its  side. 

*  According  to  Lieutenant  Warren,  the  tract  called  the  Sand-hills  occupies  an 
area,  north  of  the  Platte,  not  less  than  20, 000  square  miles :  from  between  the  Nio- 
brara and  White  Rivers  to  the  north,  probably  beyond  the  Arkansas  in  the  south. 

t  The  Arabo-Spanish  "arroyo,"  a  word  almost  naturalized  by  the  Anglo-Ameri- 
cans, exactly  corresponds  with  the  Italian  "fiumara"  and  the  Indian  nullah. 

X  The  word  "cedar,"  in  the  United  States,  is  applied  to  various  genera  of  the 
pine  family.  The  red  cedar  (J.  Virginiana)  is  a  juniper.  The  "white  cedar"  of 
the  Southern  swamps  is  a  cypress. 


Chap.  I.  AN  IMPROMPTU  BEDROOM.  71 

We  dined  in  the  shed,  and  amused  ourselves  with  feeding  the  little 
brown-speckled  swamp-blackbirds  that  hopped  about  us  tame  and 
"peerC  as  wrens,  and  when  night  drew  near  we  sought  shelter 
from  the  furious  southern  gale,  and  heard  tales  of  Mormon  suffer- 
ing which  made  us  think  lightly  of  our  little  hardships.*  Dread- 
ing the  dormitory — if  it  be  true  that  the  sultan  of  fleas  inhabits 
Jaffa  and  his  vizier  Grand  Cairo,  it  is  certain  that  his  vermin  ofii- 
cials  have  settled  pro  tern,  on  Emigration  Eoad — I  cast  about  for 
a  quieter  retreat.  Fortune  favored  me  by  pointing  out  the  body 
of  a  dismantled  wagon,  an  article — like  the  Tyriau  keels  whicli 
suggested  the  magalia — often  used  as  a  habitation  in  the  Far  West, 
and  not  unfrequently  honored  by  being  converted  into  a  bridal- 
chamber  after  the  short  and  sharp  courtship  of  the  "  Perraries." 
The  host,  who  was  a  kind,  intelligent,  and  civil  man,  lent  me  a 
"  buffalo"  by  way  of  bedding ;  the  water-proof  completed  my  out- 
fit, provided  with  which  I  bade  adieu  for  a  while  to  this  wear}- 
world.  The  thermometer  sank  before  dawn  to  62°  (F.).  After 
five  nights  more  or  less  in  the  cramping  wagon,  it  might  be  sup- 
posed that  we  should  have  enjoyed  the  unusual  rest  ,•  on  the  con- 
trary, we  had  become  inured  to  the  exercise ;  we  could  have  kept 
it  up  for  a  month,  and  we  now  grumbled  only  at  the  loss  of  time. 

Past  the  Court-house  and  Scott's  Bluffs.     August  13th. 

At  8  A.M.,  afler  breaking  our  fast  upon  a  tough  antelope  steak, 
and  dawdling  while  the  herdsman  was  riding  wildly  about  in 
search  of  his  runaway  mules — an  operation  now  to  become  of 
daily  occurrence — we  dashed  over  the  Sandy  Creek  with  an  elau 
calculated  to  make  timid  passengers  look  "skeery,"  and  began  to 
finish  the  rolling  divide  between  the  two  forks.  We  crossed  sev- 
eral arroyos  and  "  criks"  heading  in  the  line  of  clay  highlands  to 
our  left,  a  dwarf  sierra  which  stretches  from  the  northern  to  the 
southern  branch  of  the  Platte.  The  principal  are  Omaha  Creek, 
more  generally  known  as  "  Little  Punkin,"f  and  Lawrence  Fork.:}: 

*  The  Mormon  emigrants  usually  start  from  Council  Bluffs,  on  the  left  bank  of 
the  Missouri  River,  in  N.  lat.  41°  18'  50",  opposite  Kanesville,  otherwise  called  Win- 
ter Quarters.  According  to  the  "Overland  Guide,"  Council  Bluff's  is  the  natural 
crossing  of  the  Missouri  River,  on  the  route  destined  by  Nature  for  the  great  thor- 
oughfare to  the  Pacific.  This  was  the  road  selected  by  "Nature's  civil  engineers," 
the  buffalo  and  the  elk,  for  their  western  travel.  The  Indians  followed  them  in  the 
same  trail;  then  the  travelers;  next  the  settlers  came.  After  ninety-four  miles' 
marching,  the  Mormons  are  ferried  across  Loup  Fork,  a  stream  thirteen  rods  wide, 
ftdl  of  bars,  with  banks  and  a  bottom  all  quicksand.  Another  150  miles  takes  them 
to  the  Platte  River,  where  they  find  good  camping-places,  with  plenty  of  water,  buf- 
falo-chips, and  grass.  Eighty-two  miles  beyond  that  point  (a  total  of  306),  they  ar- 
rive at  "Last  Timber,"  a  station  so  called  because,  for  tlie  next  300  miles  on  the 
north  side  of  the  Platte,  the  only  sign  of  vegetation  is  "Lone  Tree."  Many  emi- 
grants avoid  this  dreary  "spell"  by  crossing  the  Platte  opposite  Ash  Hollow. "  Oth- 
ers pass  it  at  Platte-River  Ferry,  a  short  distance  below  the  mouth  of  Laramie  River, 
while  others  keep  the  old  road  to  the  north, 

t  Punkin  (i.  e.,  pumpkin)  and  corn  {i.  e.,  zea  maize)  are,  and  were  from  time  im- 
memorial, the  great  staples  of  native  American  agriculture. 

J  According  to  Webster,  "forks"  (in  the  plural) — the  point  where  a  river  divides, 


72  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  1. 

The  latter  is  a  pretty  bubbling  stream,  running  over  sand  and 
stones  washed  down  from  the  Court-house  Eidge ;  it  bifurcates 
above  the  ford,  runs  to  the  northeast  through  a  prairie  four  to 
five  miles  broad,  and  swells  the  waters  of  old  Father  Platte :  it 
derives  its  name  from  a  Frenchman  slaughtered  by  the  Indians, 
murder  being  here,  as  in  Central  Africa,  ever  the  principal  source 
of  nomenclature.  The  heads  of  both  streams  afford  quantities  of 
currants,  red,  black,  and  yellow,  and  cherry-sticks  which  are  used 
for  spears  and  pipe-stems. 

After  twelve  miles'  drive  we  fronted  the  Court-house,  the  re- 
markable portal  of  a  new  region,  and  this  new  region  teeming 
with  wonders  will  now  extend  about  100  miles.  It  is  the  mau- 
vaises  terres^  or  Bad  lands,  a  tract  about  60  miles  wide  and  150 
long,  stretching  in  a  direction  from  the  northeast  to  the  south- 
west, or  from  the  Mankizitah  (White -Earth)  Eiver,  over  the  Nio- 
brara {Eau  qui  court)  and  Loup  Fork  to  the  south  banks  of  the 
Platte :  its  eastern  limit  is  the  mouth  of  the  Keya  Paha.  The 
term  is  generally  applied  by  the  trader  to  any  section  of  the 
prairie  country  where  the  roads  are  difficult,  and  by  dint  of  an  ill 
name  the  Bad  lands  have  come  to  be  spoken  of  as  a  Golgotha, 
white  with  the  bones  of  man  and  beast.  American  travelers,  on 
the  contrary,  declare  that  near  parts  of  the  White  River  "some 
as  beautiful  valleys  are  to  be  found  as  any  where  in  the  Far 
West,"  and  that  many  places  "  abound  in  the  most  lovely  and  va- 
ried forms  in  endless  variety,  giving  the  most  striking  and  pleas- 
ing effects  of  light  and  shade."  The  formation  is  the  pliocene  and 
miocene  tertiary,  uncommonly  rich  in  vertebrate  remains:  the 
mauvaises  terres  are  composed  of  nearly  horizontal  strata,  and 
"  though  diversified  by  the  effects  of  denuding  agencies,  and  pre- 
senting in  different  portions  striking  characteristics,  yet  they  are, 
as  a  whole,  a  great  uniform  surface,  gradually  rising  toward  the 
mountains,  at  the  base  of  which  they  attain  an  elevation  varying 
between  3000  and  6500  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea." 

The  Court-house,  which  had  lately  suffered  from  heavy  rain,  re- 
sembled any  thing  more  than  a  court-house ;  that  it  did  so  in  for- 
mer days  we  may  gather  from  the  tales  of  many  travelers,  old  Ca- 
nadian voyageurs,  who  unanimously  accounted  it  a  fit  place  for 
Indian  spooks,  ghosts,  and  hobgoblins  to  meet  in  powwow,  and  to 
"  count  their  coups"  delivered  in  the  flesh.  The  Court-house  lies 
about  eight  miles  from  the  river,  and  three  from  the  road ;  in  cir- 
cumference it  may  be  half  a  mile,  and  in  height  300  feet ;  it  is, 
however,  gradually  degrading,  and  the  rains  and  snows  of  not 
many  years  will  lay  it  level  with  the  ground.  The  material  is  a 
rough  conglomerate  of  hard  marl ;  the  mass  is  apparently  the 
flank  or  shoulder  of  a  range  forming  the  southern  buttress  of  the 
Platte,  and  which,  being  composed  of  softer  stuff,  has  gradually 

or  rather  where  two  rivers  meet  and  unite  in  one  stream.  Each  branch  is  called  .'i 
"fork."     The  word  might  be  useful  to  English  travelers. 


Chap.  I.  THE  COMPATRIOT.  73 

*melted  away,  leaving  this  remnant  to  rise  in  solitary  grandeur 
above  the  plain.  In  books  it  is  described  as  resembling  a  gigan- 
tic ruin,  with  a  huge  rotunda  in  front,  windows  in  the  sides,  and 
remains  of  roofs  and  stages  in  its  flanks ;  verily  potent  is  the  eye 
of  imagination !  To  me  it  appeared  in  the  shape  of  an  irregular 
pyramid,  whose  courses  were  inclined  at  an  ascendable  angle  of 
3b°,  with  a  detached  outwork  composed  of  a  perpendicular  mass 
based  upon  a  slope  of  45° ;  in  fact,  it  resembled  the  rugged  earth- 
works of  Sakkara,  only  it  was  far  more  rugged.  According  to 
the  driver,  the  summit  is  a  plane  upon  which  a  wagon  can  turn. 
My  military  companion  remarked  that  it  would  make  a  fine  nat- 
ural fortress  against  Indians,  and  perhaps,  in  the  old  days  of  ro- 
mance and  Colonel  Bonneville,  it  has  served  as  a  refuge  for  the 
harried  fur-hunter.  I  saw  it  when  set  off  by  weather  to  advant- 
age. A  blazing  sun  rained  fire  upon  its  cream-colored  surface — 
at  11  A.M.  the  glass  showed  95°  in  the  wagon — and  it  stood  bold- 
ly out  against  a  purple-black  nimbus  which  overspread  the  south- 
ern skies,  growling  distant  thunders,  and  flashing  red  threads  of 
"chained  lightning." 

I  had  finished  a  hasty  sketch,  when  suddenly  appeared  to  us 
a  most  interesting  sight — a  neat  ambulance,*  followed  by  a  four- 
gon  and  mounted  soldiers,  from  which  issued  an  officer  in  uniform, 
who  advanced  to  greet  Lieutenant  Dana.  The  traveler  was  Cap- 
tain, or  rather  Major  Marcy,  who  was  proceeding  westward  on 
leave  of  absence.  After  introduction,  he  remembered  that  his  ve- 
hicle contained  a  compatriot  of  mine.  The  compatriot,  whose 
length  of  facial  hair  at  once  told  his  race — for 

"The  larger  the  whisker,  the  greater  the  Tory" — 

was  a  Mr.  A ,  British  vice-consul  at  *  *  *'s,  Minnesota.  Hav- 
ing lately  tried  his  maiden  hand  upon  buffalo,  he  naturally  con- 
cluded that  I  could  have  no  other  but  the  same  object.  Pleasant 
estimate,  forsooth,  of  a  man's  brain,  that  it  can  find  nothing  in 
America  worthy  of  its  notice  but  bison-shooting !  However,  the 
supposition  had  a  couleur  locale.  Every  week  the  New  York  pa- 
pers convey  to  the  New  World  the  interesting  information  that 
some  distinguished  Britisher  has  crossed  the  Atlantic  and  half 
crossed  the  States  to  enjoy  the  society  of  the  "  monarch  of  our 
prairies."  Americans  consequently  have  learned  to  look  upon 
this  Albionic  eccentricity  as  "the  thing."  That  unruly  member 
the  tongue  was  upon  the  point  of  putting  in  a  something  about 

*  The  price  of  the  strong  light  traveling  wagon  called  an  ambulance  in  the  West 
is  about  $250 ;  in  the  East  it.  is  much  cheaper.  With  four  mules  it  will  vary  from 
$750  to  $900 ;  when  resold,  however,  it  rarely  fetches  half  that  sum.  A  journey  be- 
tween St.  Joseph  and  Great  Salt  Lake  City  can  easily  be  accomplished  in  an  ambu- 
lance within  forty  days.  Officers  and  sportsmen  prefer  it,  because  they  have  their 
time  to  themselves,  and  they  can  carry  stores  and  necessaries.  On  the  other  hand, 
"  strikers" — soldier-helps — or  Canadian  engages  are  necessaiy ;  and  the  pleasure  of 
traveling  is  by  no  means  enhanced  by  the  nightly  fear  that  the  stock  will  "bolt,"  not 
to  be  recovered  for  a  week,  if  then. 


74: 


THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 


Chap.  I. 


the  earnest,  settled  purpose  of  shooting  a  prairie-dog,  when  the  re- 
flection that  it  was  hardly  fair  so  far  from  home  to  "  chaff"  a  com- 
patriot evidently  big  with  the  paternity  of  a  great  exploit,  with 
bit  and  bridle  curbed  it  fast. 

Shortly  after  "  liquoring  up"  and  shaking  hands,  we  found  our- 
selves once  more  in  the  valley  of  the  Platte,  where  a  lively  green 
relieved  eyes  which  still  retained  retina-pictures  of  the  barren, 
Sindh-like  divide.  The  road,  as  usual  along  the  river-side,  was 
rough  and  broken,  and  puffs  of  simoom  raised  the  sand  and  dust 
in  ponderous  clouds.  At  12  80  P.M.  we  nooned  for  an  hour  at 
a  little  hovel  called  a  ranch,  with  the  normal  corral ;  and  I  took 
occasion  to  sketch  the  far-famed  Chimney  Eock.  The  name  is 
not,  as  is  that  of  the  Court-house,  a  misnomer :  one  might  almost 
expect  to  see  smoke  or  steam  jetting  from  the  summit.  Like 
most  of  these  queer  malformations,  it  was  once  the  knuckle-end 
of  the  main  chain  which  bounded  ^he  Platte  Yalley ;  the  softer 


CHIMNEY  EOCK. 


adjacent  strata  of  marl  and  earthy  limestone  were  disintegrated 
by  wind  and  weather,  and  the  harder  material,  better  resisting  the 
action  of  air  and  water,  has  gradually  assumed  its  present  form. 
Chimney  Eock  lies  two  and  a  half  miles  from  the  south  bank  of 
the  Platte.  It  is  composed  of  a  friable  yellowish  marl,  yielding 
readily  to  the  knife.  The  shape  is  a  thin  shaft,  perpendicular  and 
quasi  conical.  Viewed  from  the  southeast  it  is  not  unlike  a  giant 
jack-boot  based  upon  a  high  pyramidal  mound,  which,  disposed 
in  the  natural  slope,  rests  upon  the  plain.  The  neck  of  sand- 
stone connecting  it  with  the  adjacent  hills  has  been  distributed  by 
the  floods  around  the  base,  leaving  an  ever-widening  gap  between. 
This  "  Pharos  of  the  prairie  sea"  towered  in  former  days  150  to 
200  feet  above  the  apex  of  its  foundation,*  and  was  a  landmark 
*  According  to  M.  Preuss,  who  accompanied  Colonel  Fremont's  expedition,  "  trav- 


Chap.  I.  KOBIDOUX'  FORT.  75 

visible  for  40  to  50  miles :  it  is  now  barely  85  feet  in  height.  It 
has  often  been  struck  by  lightning ;  imher  edax  has  gnawed  much 
away,  and  the  beginning  of  the  end  is  already  at  hand.  It  is  easy 
to  ascend  the  pyramid ;  but,  while  Pompey's  Pillar,  Peter  Botte, 
and  Ararat  have  all  felt  the  Anglo-Scandinavian  foot,  no  ventur- 
ous scion  of  the  race  has  yet  trampled  upon  the  top  of  Chimney 
Rock,  Around  the  waist  of  the  base  runs  a  white  band  which 
sets  off  its  height  and  relieves  the  uniform  tint.  The  old  sketches 
of  this  curious  needle  now  necessarily  appear  exaggerated ;  more- 
over, those  best  known  represent  it  as  a  column  rising  from  a 
confused  heap  of  boulders,  thus  conveying  a  completely  false  idea. 
Again  the  weather  served  us :  nothing  could  be  more  picturesque 
than  this  lone  pillar  of  pale  rock  lying  against  a  huge  black  cloud, 
with  the  forked  lightning  playing  over  its  devoted  head. 

After  a  frugal  dinner  of  biscuit  and  cheese  we  remounted  and 
pursued  our  way  through  airy  fire,  which  presently  changed  from 
our  usual  pest  —  a  light  dust-laden  breeze  —  into  a  Punjaubian 
dust-storm,  up  the  valley  of  the  Platte.  We  passed  a  ranch  called 
"Robidoux'  Fort,"  from  the  well-known  Indian  trader  of  that 
name  ;*  it  is  now  occupied  by  a  Canadian  or  a  French  Creole, 

elers  who  visited  it  some  years  since  placed  its  height  at  upward  of  500  feet,"  though 
in  his  day  (1842)  it  had  diminished  to  200  feet  above  the  river. 

*  From  the  St.  Joseph  (Mo.)  Gazette:  "  Obituary. — Departed  this  life,  at  his  res- 
idence in  this  city,  on  Wednesday,  the  29th  day  of  August,  1860,  after  a  long  ill- 
ness, Antoine  Robidoux,  in  the  sixty-sixth  year  of  his  age.  Mr.  Robidoux  was  born 
in  the  city  of  St.  Louis,  in  the  year  1794.  He  was  one  of  the  brothers  of  Mr.  Jo- 
seph Robidoux,  founder  of  the  city  of  St.  Joseph.  He  was  possessed  of  a  sprightly 
intellect  and  a  spirit  of  adventure.  When  not  more  than  twenty-two  years  of  age  he 
accompanied  Gen.  Atkinson  to  the  then  very  wild  and  distant  I'egion  of  the  Yellow 
Stone.  At  the  age  of  twenty-eight  he  went  to  Mexico,  and  lived  there  fifteen  years. 
He  then  married  a  very  interesting  Mexican  lady,  who  retinned  with  him  to  the 
States.  For  many  years  he  traded  extensively  with  the  Navajoes  and  Apaches.  In 
1840  he  came  to  this  city  with  his  family,  and  has  resided  here  ever  since.  In  1845 
he  went  out  to  the  mountains  on  a  trading  expedition,  and  was  caught  by  the  most 
terrible  storms,  which  caused  the  death  of  one  or  two  hundred  of  his  horses,  and 
stopped  his  progress.  His  brother  Joseph,  the  respectable  founder  of  this  city,  sent 
to  his  relief  and  had  him  brought  in,  or  he  would  have  perished.  He  was  found  in 
a  most  deplorable  condition,  and  saved.  In  1846  he  accompanied  Gen.  Kearney,  as 
interpreter  and  guide,  to  Mexico.  In  a  battle  with  the  Mexicans  he  was  lanced  se- 
verely in  three  places,  but  he  survived  his  wounds,  and  returned  to  St.  Joseph  in 
1849.  Soon  after  that  he  went  to  California,  and  remained  until  1854.  In  1855 
he  removed  to  New  Mexico  with  his  family,  and  in  1856  he  went  to  Washington, 
and  remained  there  a  year,  arranging  some  business  with  the  government.  He  then 
returned  to  St.  Joseph,  and  has  remained  here  ever  since.  Mr.  Robidoux  was  a  ven- 
remai'kable  man.  Tall,  slender,  athletic,  and  agile,  he  possessed  the  most  graceful 
and  pleasing  manners,  and  an  intellect  of  a  superior  order.  In  every  company  he 
was  affable,  graceful,  and  highly  pleasing.  His  conversation  was  always  interesting 
and  instructive,  and  he  possessed  many  of  those  qualities  which,  if  he  remained  in 
the  States,  would  have  raised  him  to  positions  of  distinction.  He  suffered  for  sev- 
eral years  before  his  death  with  a  terrible  soi-eness  of  the  eyes,  which  defied  the  cura- 
tive skill  of  the  doctors ;  and  for  the  past  ten  years  he  has  been  afflicted  with  drop- 
sy. A  week  or  two  ago  he  was  taken  with  a  violent  hemorrhage  of  the  lungs,  which 
completely  prostrated  him,  and  from  the  effects  of  which  he  never  recovered.  He 
was  attended  by  the  best  medical  skill,  and  his  wife  and  many  friends  were  with 
him  to  the  hour  of  his  dissolution,  which  occurred  on  Monday  morning,  at  four 
o'clock,  at  his  residence  in  this  city.     He  will  be  long  remembered  as  a  courteous, 


76  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

■wlio,  as  usual  with  his  race  in  these  regions,  has  taken  to  himself 
a  wife  in  the  shape  of  a  Sioux  squaw,  and  has  garnished  his  quiv- 
er with  a  multitude  of  whitey-reds.  The  driver  pointed  out  the 
grave  of  a  New  Yorker  who  had  vainly  visited  the  prairies  in 
search  of  a  cure  for  consumption.  As  we  advanced  the  storm 
increased  to  a  tornado  of  north  wind,  blinding  our  cattle  till  it 
drove  them  off  the  road.  The  gale  howled  through  the  pass  with 
all  the  violence  of  a  khamsin,  and  it  was  followed  by  lightning 
and  a  few  heavy  drops  of  rain.  The  threatening  weather  caused 
a  large  party  of  emigrants  to  "fort  themselves"  in  a  corral  near 
the  base  of  Scott's  Bluffs. 

The  corral,  a  Spanish  and  Portuguese  word,  which,  corrupted 
to  "  kraal,"  has  found  its  way  through  Southern  Africa,  signifies 
primarily  a  square  or  circular  pen  for  cattle,  which  may  be  made 
of  tree-trunks,  stones,  or  any  other  convenient  material.  The 
corral  of  wagons  is  thus  formed.  The  two  foremost  are  brought 
near  and  parallel  to  each  other,  and  are  followed  by  the  rest,  dis- 
posed aslant,  so  that  the  near  fore  wheel  of  the  hinder  touches 
the  off  hind  wheel  of  that  preceding  it,  and  vice  versa  on  the  other 
side.  The  "  tongues,"  or  poles,  are  turned  outward,  for  conven- 
ience of  yoking,  when  an  attack  is  not  expected,  otherwise  they 
are  made  to  point  inward,  and  the  gaps  are  closed  by  ropes  and 
yoke  and  spare  chains.  Thus  a  large  oval  is  formed  with  a  sin- 
gle opening  fifteen  to  twenty  yards  across ;  some  find  it  more 
convenient  to  leave  an  exit  at  both  ends.  In  dangerous  places 
the  passages  are  secured  at  night  either  by  cords  or  by  wheeling 
round  the  near  wagons ;  the  cattle  are  driven  in  before  sundown, 
especially  when  the  area  of  the  oval  is  large  enough  to  enable 
them  to  graze,  and  the  men  sleep  under  their  vehicles.  In  safer 
travel  the  tents  are  pitched  outside  the  corral  with  their  doors 
outward,  and  in  front  of  these  the  camp-fires  are  lighted.  The 
favorite  spots  with  teamsters  for  corraling  are  the  re-entering  an- 
gles of  deep  streams,  especially  where  these  have  high  and  precip* 
itous  banks,  or  the  crests  of  abrupt  hills  and  bluffs — the  position 
for  nighting  usually  chosen  by  the  Australian  traveler — where 
one  or  more  sides  of  the  encampment  is  safe  from  attack,  and  the 
others  can  be  protected  by  a  cross  fire.  As  a  rule  Indians  avoid 
attacking  strong  places ;  this,  however,  must  not  always  be  re- 
lied upon ;  in  18M  the  Utah  Indians  attacked  Uintah  Fort,  a 
trading  -  post  belonging  to  M.  A.  Robidoux,  then  at  St.  Louis, 
slaughtered  the  men,  and  carried  off  the  women.  The  corral  is 
especially  useful  for  two  purposes:  it  enables  the  wagoners  to 
yoke  up  with  ease,  and  it  secures  them  from  the  prairie  traveler's 
prime  dread — the  stampede.  The  Western  savages  are  perfectly 
acquainted  with  the  habits  of  animals,  and  in  their  marauding 
expeditions  they  instinctively  adopt  the  system  of  the  Bedouins, 

cultivated,  agreeable  gentleman,  whose  life  was  one  of  great  activity  and  public  use- 
fulness, and  whose  death  will  be  long  lamented." 


Chap.  I. 


SCOTT'S  BLUFFS. 


77 


the  Gallas,  and  the  Somal.  Providing  themselves  with  rattles 
and  other  implements  for  making  startling  noises,  they  ride 
stealthily  up  close  to  the  cattle,  and  then  rush  by  like  the  whirl- 
wind with  a  volley  of  horrid  whoops  and  screams.  When  the 
"  cavallard"  flies  in  panic  fear,  the  plunderers  divide  their  party ; 
some  drive  on  the  plunder,  while  the  others  form  a  rear-guard  to 
keep  off  pursuers.  The  prairie-men  provide  for  the  danger  by 
keeping  their  fleetest  horses  saddled,  bridled,  and  ready  to  be 
mounted  at  a  moment's  notice.  When  the  animals  have  stam- 
peded, the  owners  follow  them,  scatter  the  Indians,  and  drive,  if 
possible,  the  madrina,  or  bell-mare,  to  the  front  of  the  herd,  grad- 
ually turning  her  toward  the  camp,  and  slacking  speed  as  the  fa- 
miliar objects  come  in  sight.  Horses  and  mules  appear  peculiar- 
ly timorous  upon  the  prairies.  A  band  of  buffalo,  a  wolf,  or 
even  a  deer,  will  sometimes  stampede  them ;  they  run  to  great 
distances,  and  not  unfrequently  their  owners  fail  to  recover  them. 
"  Scott's  Bluffs,"  situated  285  miles  from  Fort  Kearney  and  51 
from  Fort  Laramie,  was  the  last  of  the  great  marl  formations 
which  we  saw  on  this  line,  and  was  of  all  by  far  the  most  curious. 
In  the  dull  uniformity  of  the  prairies,  it  is  a  striking  and  attract- 
ive object,  far  excelling  the  castled  crag  of  Drachenfels  or  any  of 
the  beauties  of  romantic  Ehine.  From  a  distance  of  a  day's  march 
it  appears  in  the  shape  of  a  large  blue  mound,  distinguished  only 
by  its  dimensions  from  the  detached  fragments  of  hill  around. 
As  you  approach  within  four  or  five  miles,  a  massive  medieval 
city  gradually  defines  itself,  clustering,  with  a  wonderful  fullness 
of  detail,  round  a  colossal  fortress,  and  crowned  with  a  royal  cas- 
tle. Buttress  and  barbican,  bastion,  demilune,  and  guard-house, 
tower,  turret,  and  donjon-keep,  all  are  there :  in  one  place  para- 


BCOTT'S  BLUFFS. 


78  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

pets  and  battlements  still  stand  upon  the  crumbling  wall  of  a 
fortalice  like  the  giant  ruins  of  Chateau  Gaillard,  the  "Beautiful 
Castle  on  the  Rock ;"  and,  that  nothing  may  be  wanting  to  the 
resemblance,  the  dashing  rains  and  angry  winds  have  cut  the  old 
line  of  road  at  its  base  into  a  regular  moat  with  a  semicircular 
sweep,  which  the  mirage  fills  with  a  mimic  river.  Quaint  figures 
develop  themselves;  guards  and  sentinels  in  dark  armor  keep 
watch  and  ward  upon  the  slopes,  the  lion  of  Bastia  crouches  un- 
mistakably overlooking  the  road ;  and  as  the  shades  of  an  artifi- 
cial evening,  caused  by  the  dust-storm,  close  in,  so  weird  is  its  as- 
pect that  one  might  almost  expect  to  see  some  spectral  horseman, 
with  lance  and  pennant,  go  his  rounds  about  the  deserted  streets, 
ruined  buildings,  and  broken  walls.  At  a  nearer  aspect  again, 
the  quaint  illusion  vanishes ;  the  lines  of  masonry  become  yellow 
layers  of  boulder  and  pebble  imbedded  in  a  mass  of  stiff,  tamped, 
bald  marly  clay ;  the  curtains  and  angles  change  to  the  gashings  of 
the  rains  of  ages,  and  the  warriors  are  metamorphosed  into  dwarf 
cedars  and  dense  shrubs,  scattered  singly  over  the  surface.  Trav- 
elers have  compared  this  glory  of  the  mauvaises  ierres  to  Gibral- 
tar, to  the  Capitol  at  Washington,  to  Stirling  Castle.  I  could 
think  of  nothing  in  its  presence  but  the  Arabs'  "  City  of  Brass," 
that  mysterious  abode  of  bewitched  infidels,  which  often  appears 
at  a  distance  to  the  waj^farer  toiling  under  the  burning  sun,  but 
ever  eludes  his  nearer  search. 

Scott's  Bluffs  derive  their  name  from  an  unfortunate  fur-trader 
there  put  on  shore  in  the  olden  time  by  his  boat's  crew,  who  had 
a  grudge  against  him  :  the  wretch,  in  mortal  sickness,  crawled  up 
the  mound  to  die.  The  politer  guide-books  call  them  "  Capitol 
Hills:"  methinks  the  first  name,  with  its  dark  associations,  must 
be  better  pleasing  to  the  genius  loci.  They  are  divided  into  three 
distinct  masses.  The  largest,  which  may  be  800  feet  high,  is  on 
the  right,  or  nearest  the  river.  To  its  left  lies  an  outwork,  a 
huge,  detached  cylinder  whose  capping  changes  aspect  from  every 
direction ;  and  still  farther  to  the  left  is  a  second  castle,  now  di- 
vided from,  but  once  connected  with  the  others.  The  whole  affair 
is  a  spur  springing  from  the  main  range,  and  closing  upon  the 
Platte  so  as  to  leave  no  room  for  a  road. 

After  gratifying  our  curiosity  we  resumed  our  way.  The  route 
lay  between  the  right-hand  fortress  and  the  outwork,  through  a 
degraded  bed  of  softer  marl,  once  doubtless  part  of  the  range. 
The  sharp,  sudden  torrents  which  pour  from  the  heights  on  both 
sides,  and  the  draughty  winds — Scott's  Bluffs  are  the  permanent 
head-quarters  of  hurricanes — have  cut  up  the  ground  into  a  laby- 
rinth of  jagged  gulches  steeply  walled  in.  We  dashed  down  the 
drains  and  pitch-holes  with  a  violence  which  shook  the  nave-bands 
from  our  sturdy  wheels.*    Ascending,  the  driver  showed  a  place 

*  The  dry  heat  of  the  prairies  in  summer  causes  the  wood  to  warp  by  the  percola- 
tion of  water,  which  the  driver  restores  by  placing  the  wheels  for  a  niglit  to  stand  in 


Chap.  I.  METEOROLOGICAL  PHENONMENON.  79 

where  the  skeleton  of  an  "elephant"  had  been  lately  discovered. 
On  the  summit  he  pointed  out,  far  over  many  a  treeless  hill  and 
barren  plain,  the  famous  Black  Hills  and  Laramie  Peak,  which 
has  been  compared  to  Ben  Lomond,  towering  at  a  distance  of 
eighty  miles.  The  descent  was  abrupt,  with  sudden  turns  round 
the  head  of  earth-cracks  deepened  to  ravines  by  snow  and  rain ; 
and  one  place  showed  the  remains  of  a  wagon  and  team  which  had 
lately  come  to  grief.  After  galloping  down  a  long  slope  of  twelve 
miles,  with  ridgelets  of  sand  and  gravel  somewhat  raised  above 
the  bottom,  which  they  cross  on  their  way  to  the  river,  we  found 
ourselves,  at  o  30  P.M.,  once  more  in  the  valley  of  the  Platte.  I 
had  intended  to  sketch  the  Bluffs  more  carefully  from  the  station, 
but  the  western  view  proved  to  be  disappointingly  inferior  to  the 
eastern.  After  the  usual  hour's  delay  we  resumed  our  drive 
through  alternate  puifs  of  hot  and  cold  wind,  the  contrast  of  which 
was  not  easy  to  explain.  The  sensation  was  as  if  Indians  had  been 
firing  the  prairies — an  impossibility  at  this  season,  when  whatever 
herbage  there  is  is  still  green.  It  may  here  be  mentioned  that, 
although  the  meteorology  of  the  earlier  savans,  namel}^,  that  the 
peculiar  condition  of  the  atmosphere  known  as  the  Indian  sum- 
mer* might  be  produced  by  the  burning  of  the  plain- vegetation, 
was  not  thought  worthy  of  comment,  their  hj^pothesis  is  no  longer 
considered  trivial.  The  smoky  canopy  must  produce  a  sensible 
effect  upon  the  temperature  of  the  season.  "  During  a  still  night, 
when  a  cloud  of  this  kind  is  overhead,  no  dew  is  produced ;  the 
heat  which  is  radiated  from  the  earth  is  reflected  or  absorbed,  and 
radiated  back  again  by  the  particles  of  soot,  and  the  coating  of 
the  earth  necessary  to  prevent  the  deposition  of  water  in  the  form 
of  dew  or  hoar-frost  is  prevented."  According  to  Professor  Hen- 
ry, of  Washington,  "  it  is  highly  probable  that  a  portion  of  the 
smoke  or  fog-cloud  produced  by  the  burning  of  one  of  the  West- 
ern prairies  is  carried  entirely  across  the  eastern  portion  of  the 
continent  to  the  ocean." 

Presently  we  dashed  over  the  Little  Kiowa  Creek,  forded  the 
Horse  Creek,  and,  ^veloped  in  a  cloud  of  villainous  musquetoes, 

some  stream.  Paint  or  varnish  is  of  little  use.  Moisture  may  be  drawn  out  even 
through  a  nail-hole,  and  exhaust  the  whole  interior  of  the  wood-work. 

*  These  remarks  are  borrowed  from  a  paper  by  Professor  Joseph  Henry,  Secre- 
tary of  the  Smithsonian  Institution,  entitled  "Meteorology  in  its  Connection  with 
Agriculture." 

The  Indian  summer  is  sj-nonymous  with  our  St.  Martin's  or  Allhallows  summer, 
so  called  from  the  festival  held  on  the  11th  of  November.  "The  Indians  avail  them- 
selves of  this  delightful  time  for  harvesting  their  corn ;  and  the  tradition  is  that  they 
were  accustomed  to  say  they  always  had  a  second  summer  of  nine  days  before  the 
winter  set  in.  It  is  a  bland  and  genial  time,  in  which  the  birds,  insects,  and  plants 
feel  a  new  creation,  and  enjoy  a  short-lived  summer  ere  they  shrink  finally  from  the 
rigor  of  the  winter's  blast.  The  sky,  in  the  mean  time,  is  generally  filled  with  a  haze 
of  orange  and  gold,  intercepting  the  direct  rays  of  the  sun,  yet  possessing  enough  of 
light  and  heat  to  prevent  sensations  of  gloom  or  chill,  while  the  nights  grow  sharp 
and  frosty,  and  the  necessar}'  fires  give  cheerful  forecast  of  the  social  winter  evenings 
near  at  hand." — The  National  IntelVgencer,  Nov.  26th,  1857,  quoted  by  Mr.Bartlett. 


80  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

entered  at  8  80  P.M.  the  station  in  which  we  were  to  pass  the 
night.  It  was  tenanted  by  one  Reynal,  a  French  Creole — the  son 
of  an  old  soldier  of  the  Grand  Armee,  who  had  settled  at  St.  Louis 
— a  companionable  man,  but  an  extortionate:  he  charged  us  a 
florin  for  every  "  drink"  of  his  well-watered  whisky.  The  house 
boasted  of  the  usual  squaw,  a  wrinkled  old  dame,  who  at  once  be- 
gan to  prepare  supper,  when  we  discreetly  left  the  room.  These 
hard-working  but  sorely  ill-favored  beings  are  accused  of  various 
horrors  in  cookery,  such  as  grinding  their  pinole,  or  parched  corn, 
in  the  impurest  manner,  kneading  dough  ujDon  the  floor,  using 
their  knives  for  any  purpose  whatever,  and  employing  the  same 
pot,  unwashed,  for  boiling  tea  and  tripe.  In  fact,  they  are  about 
as  clean  as  those  Eastern  pariah  servants  who  make  the  knowing 
Anglo-Indian  hold  it  an  abomination  to  sit  at  meat  with  a  new 
arrival  or  with  an  ofl&cer  of  a  "  home  regiment."  The  daughter 
was  an  unusually  fascinating  half-breed,  with  a  pale  face  and 
Franco- American  features.  How  comes  it  that  here,  as  in  Hin- 
dostan,  the  French  half-caste  is  pretty,  graceful,  amiable,  coquet- 
tish, while  the  Anglo-Saxon  is  plain,  coarse,  gauche,  and  ill-tem- 
pered? The  beauty  was  married  to  a  long,  lean  down-Easter, 
who  appeared  most  jealously  attentive  to  her,  occasionally  hint- 
ing at  a  return  to  the  curtained  bed,  where  she  could  escape  the 
admiring  glances  of  strangers.  Like  her  mother,  she  was  able  to 
speak  English,  but  she  could  not  be  persuaded  to  open  her  mouth. 
This  is  a  truly  Indian  prejudice,  probably  arising  from  the  sav- 
age, childish  sensitiveness  which  dreads  to  excite  a  laugh;  even 
a  squaw  married  to  a  white  man,  after  uttering  a  few  words  in  a 
moment  of  ej)ancliement^  will  hide  her  face  under  the  blanket. 

The  half-breed  has  a  bad  name  in  the  land.  Like  the  negro, 
the  Indian  belongs  to  a  species,  sub-species,  or  variety — whichever 
the  reader  pleases — that  has  diverged  widely  enough  from  the 
Indo-European  type  to  cause  degeneracy,  physical  as  well  as  mor- 
al, and  often,  too,  sterility  in  the  offspring.  These  half-breeds  are, 
therefore,  like  the  mulatto,  quasi-mules.  The  men  combine  the 
features  of  both  races ;  the  skin  soon  becomes  coarse  and  wrin- 
kled, and  the  eye  is  black,  snaky,  and  glittering  like  the  Indian's. 
The  mongrels  are  short-lived,  peculiarly  subject  to  infectious  dis- 
eases, untrustworthy,  and  disposed  to  every  villainy.  The  half- 
breed  women,  in  early  youth,  are  sometimes  attractive  enough, 
uniting  the  figure  of  the  mother  to  the  more  delicate  American 
face ;  a  few  years,  however,  deprive  them  of  all  litheness,  grace, 
and  agility.  They  are  often  married  by  whites,  who  hold  them 
to  be  more  modest  and  humble,  less  capricious  and  less  exacting, 
than  those  of  the  higher  type :  they  make  good  wives  and  affec- 
tionate mothers,  and,  like  the  Quadroons,  they  are  more  "  ambi- 
tious"— that  is  to  say,  of  warmer  temperaments — than  either  of 
the  races  from  which  they  are  derived.  The  so-called  red  is  a 
higher  ethnic  type  than  the  black  man ;  so,  in  the  United  States, 


Chap.  I.  M.  EEYNAL,  gl 

where  all  admixture  of  African  blood  is  deemed  impure,  the  abo- 
riginal American  entails  no  disgrace — some  of  the  noblest  of  the 
land  are  descended  from  "Indian  princesses."  The  half-breed 
girls  resemble  their  mothers  in  point  of  industry,  and  they  barter 
their  embroidered  robes  and  moccasins,  and  mats  and  baskets, 
made  of  l)krk  and  bulrush,  in  exchange  for  blankets,  calicoes, 
glass  beads — an  indispensable  article  of  dress — mirrors,  needles, 
rings,  vermilion,  and  other  luxuries.  The  children,  with  their 
large  black  eyes,  wide  mouths,  and  glittering  teeth,  flattened  heads, 
and  remarkable  agility  of  motion,  suggest  the  idea  of  little  ser- 
pents. 

The  day  had  been  fatiguing,  and  our  eyes  ached  with  the  wind 
and  dust.  We  lost  no  time  in  spreading  on  the  floor  the  buffalo 
robes  borrowed  from  the  house,  and  in  defying  the  smaller  ten- 
ants of  the  ranch.  Our  host,  M.  Eeynal,  was  a  study,  but  we  de- 
ferred the  lesson  till  the  next  morning. 

To  Fort  Laramie.     14iA  Augvst. 

M.  Eeynal  had  been  an  Indian  trader  in  his  youth.  Of  this 
race  there  were  in  his  day  two  varieties :  the  regular  trader  and 
the  coureur  des  bois,  or  unlicensed  peddler,  who  was  subject  to  cer- 
tain pains  and  penalties.  The  former  had  some  regard  for  his  fu- 
ture ;  he  had  a  permanent  interest  in  the  Indians,  and  looked  to 
the  horses,  arms,  and  accoutrements  of  his  2y'>'oieges,  so  that  hunting 
might  not  flag.  The  bois  bride  peddler,  having — like  an  English 
advertising  firm — no  hope  of  dealing  twice  with  the  same  person, 
got  all  he  could  for  what  he  could.  These  men  soon  sapped  the 
foundation  of  the  Indian's  discipline.  One  of  them,  for  instance, 
would  take  protection  with  the  chief,  pay  presents,  and  by  increas- 
ing the  wealth,  enhance  the  importance  of  his  protector.  Anoth- 
er would  place  himself  under  the  charge  of  some  ambitious  as- 
pirant to  power,  who  was  thus  raised  to  a  position  of  direct  rival- 
ry. A  split  would  ensue;  the  weaker  would  secede  with  his 
family  and  friends,  and  declare  independence;  a  murder  or  two 
would  be  the  result,  and  a  blood-feud  would  be  bequeathed  from 
generation  to  generation.  The  licensed  traders  have  ever  stren- 
uously opposed  the  introduction  of  alcohol,  a  keg  of  which  will 
purchase  from  the  Indian  every  thing  that  is  his,  his  arms,  lodge, 
horses,  children,  and  wives.  In  olden  times,  however,  the  Maine 
Liquor  Law  was  not,  as  now,  in  force  through  the  territories. 
The  coureur  des  bois,  therefore,  entered  the  country  through  va- 
rious avenues,  from  the  United  States  and  from  Mexico,  without 
other  stock  in  trade  but  some  kegs  of  whisky,  which  he  retailed 
at  the  modest  price  of  $36  per  gallon.  He  usually  mixed  one 
part  of  fire  with  five  of  pure  water,  and  then  sold  a  pint-canful  for 
a  buffalo  robe.  "  Indian  liquor"  became  a  proverbial  term.  Ac- 
cording to  some  travelers,  a  barrel  of  "pure  Cincinnati,"  even  aft- 
er running  the  gauntlet  of  railroad  and  lake  travel,  has  afforded  a 

F 


82  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAIN^TS.  Chap.  I. 

hundred  barrels  of  "good  Indian  liquor."  A  small  bucketful  is 
poured  into  a  wash-tub  of  water;  a  large  quantity  of  "dog-leg" 
tobacco  and  red  pepper  is  then  added,  next  a  bitter  root  common 
in  the  country  is  cut  up  into  it,  and  finally  it  is  colored  with 
burnt  sugar — a  nice  recipe  for  a  morning's  headache !  The  only 
drawback  to  this  trafi&c  is  its  danger.  The  Indian,  wten  intoxi- 
cated, is  ready  for  any  outrageous  act  of  violence  or  cruelty ;  vinos- 
ity  brings  out  the  destructiveness  and  the  utter  barbarity  of  his 
character ;  it  makes  him  thirst  tiger-like  for  blood.  The  ceureur 
'ks  bois,  therefore,  who  in  those  days  was  highly  respected,  was 
placed  in  the  Trader's  Lodge,  a  kind  of  pubHc  house,  like  the 
Iwanza  of  Central  Africa,  and  the  village  chief  took  care  to  sta- 
tion at  the  door  a  guard  of  sober  youths,  sometimes  habited  like 
Europeans,  ready  to  check  the  unauthorized  attempts  of  ambitious 
clansmen  upon  the  whisky-vendor's  scalp.  The  Western  men, 
who  will  frequently  be  alluded  to  in  these  pages,  may  be  divided, 
like  the  traders,  into  two  classes.  The  first  is  the  true  mountain- 
eer, whom  the  platitude  and  tame  monotony  of  civilized  repub- 
lican life  has  in  early  youth  driven,  often  from  an  honored  and 
wealthy  family,  to  the  wilds  and  wolds,  to  become  the  forlorn 
hope  in  the  march  of  civilization.  The  second  is  the  offscouring 
and  refuse  of  the  Eastern  cities,  compelled  by  want,  fatuity,  or 
crime  to  exile  himself  from  all  he  most  loves.  The  former,  after 
passing  through  the  preliminary  stage  greenhorn,  is  a  man  in  ev- 
ery sense  of  the  term :  to  more  than  Indian  bravery  and  fortitude, 
he  unites  the  softness  of  woman,  and  a  child-like  simplicity,  which 
is  the  very  essence  of  a  chivalrous  character;  you  can  read  his 
nature  in  his  clear  blue  eyes,  his  sun-tanned  countenance,  his  mer- 
ry smile,  and  his  frank,  fearless  manner.  The  latter  is  a  knave 
or  a  fool ;  it  would  make  "  bad  blood,"  as  the  Frenchman  says,  to 
describe  him. 

M.  Reynal's  history  had  to  be  received  with  many  grains  of 
salt.  The  Western  man  has  been  worked  by  climate  and  its  con- 
sequences, by  the  huge  magnificence  of  nature  and  the  violent 
contrasts  of  scenery,  into  a  remarkable  resemblance  to  the  wild 
Indian.  He  hates  labor — which  poet  and  divine  combine  to  deifv 
in  the  settled  states — as  the  dire  effect  of  a  primeval  curse;  "loaf" 
he  must  and  will ;  to  him  one  hour  out  of  the  twenty-four  spent 
in  honest  industry  is  satis  snjyerque.  His  imagination  is  inflamed 
by  scenery  and  climate,  difficulty  and  danger ;  he  is  as  supersti- 
tious .as  an  old  man-o'- war's-man  of  the  olden  school ;  and  he  is  a 
transcendental  liar,  like  his  prototype  the  aborigine,  who  in  this 
point  yields  nothing  to  the  African  negro.  I  have  heard  of  a 
man  riding  eighty  miles — forty  into  camp  and  forty  out — in  order 
to  enjoy  the  sweet  delights  of  a  lie.  His  yarns  and  stories  about 
the  land  he  lives  in  have  become  a  proverbial  ridicule ;  he  will 
tell  you  that  the  sun  rises  north  of  what  it  did  se  puero  ;  he  has 
seen  mountains  of  diamonds  and  gold  nuggets  scattered  like  rocks 


CuAP.  I.  M.  REYNAL.  83 

over  the  surface  of  our  general  mother.  I  have  been  gravely  told 
of  a  herd  of  bison  which  arrested  the  course  of  the  Platte  Kiver, 
causing  its  waters,  like  those  of  the  Red  Sea,  to  stand  up,  wall 
fashion,  while  the  animals  were  crossing.  Of  this  Western  order 
is  the  well-known  account  of  a  ride  on  a  buffalo's  horns,  deliver- 
ed for  the  benefit  of  a  gaping  world  by  a  popular  author  of  the 
yellow-binding  category.  In  this  age,  however,  the  Western  man 
has  become  sensitive  to  the  operation  of  "smoking."  A  popular 
Joe  Miller  anent  him  is  this:  A  traveler,  informed  of  what  he 
might  educe  by  "  querying,"  asked  an  old  mountaineer,  who  shall 
be  nameless,  what  difference  he  observed  in  the  country  since  he 
had  first  settled  in  it. 

"  Wal,  stranger,  not  much !"  was  the  reply ;  "  only  when  I  fust 
come  here,  that  'ere  mountain,"  pointing  to  the  tall  Uinta  range, 
"'  was  a  hole !" 

Disembarrassing  M.  Reynal's  recital  of  its  mask  of  improbabil- 
ities and  impossibilities,  remained  obvious  the  naked  fact  that  he 
had  led  the  life  of  a  confirmed  coureur  des  hois.  The  French  Ca- 
nadian and  Creole  both,  like  the  true  Frangais  de  France,  is  loth 
to  stir  beyond  the  devil-dispelling  sound  of  his  chapel-bell ;  once 
torn  from  his  chez  lui,  he  apparently  cares  little  to  return,  and, 
like  the  Englishman,  to  die  at  home  in  his  own  land.  The  ad- 
venturous Canadians — in  whom  extremes  meet — have  wandered 
through  the  length  and  breadth  of  the  continent ;  they  have  left 
their  mark  even  upon  the  rocks  in  Utah  Territory.  M.  Reynal 
had  quitted  St.  Louis  at  an  early  age  as  trader,  trapper,  every 
thing  in  short,  provided  with  a  little  outfit  of  powder,  ball,  and 
whisky.  At  first  he  was  unfortunate.  In  a  war  between  the 
Sioux  and  the  Pawnees,  he  was  taken  prisoner  by  the  latter,  and 
with  much  ado  preserved,  by  the  good  aid  of  his  squaw,  that  use- 
ful article  his  scalp.  Then  fickle  fortune  turned  in  his  favor. 
He  married  several  wives,  identified  himself  with  the  braves,  and 
became  a  little  brother  of  the  tribe,  while  his  whisky  brought  him 
in  an  abundance  of  furs  and  peltries.  After  many  years,  waxing 
weary  of  a  wandering  life,  he  settled  down  into  the  somewhat 
prosaic  position  in  which  we  had  the  pleasure  of  finding  him. 
He  was  garrulous  as  a  veteran  soldier  upon  the  subject  of  his  old 
friends  the  trappers,  that  gallant  advance  guard  who,  sixty  years 
ago,  unconsciously  fought  the  fight  of  civilization  for  the  pure 
love  of  fighting ;  who  battled  with  the  Indian  in  his  own  way, 
surpassing  him  in  tracking,  surprising,  ambuscading,  and  shoot- 
ing, and  never  failing  to  raise  the  enemy's  hair.  They  are  well- 
nigh  extinct,  those  old  pioneers,  wild,  reckless,  and  brave  as  the 
British  tar  of  a  century  past ;  they  live  but  in  story ;  their  place 
knows  them  no  longer;  it  is  now  filled  by  the  "prospector." 
Civilization  and  the  silk  hat  have  exterminated  them.  How 
many  deeds  of  stern  fight  and  heroic  endurance  have  been  ignored 
by  this  world,  which  knows  nothing  of  its  greatest  men,  carent 


34  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

quia  vate  sacro  !  "We  talk  of  Thermopylae  and  ignore  Texas ;  we 
have  all  thrilled  at  the  account  of  the  Mameluke  Bey's  leap ;  but 
how  many  of  us  have  heard  of  Major  Macculloch's  spring  from 
the  cliff? 

Our  breakfast  was  prepared  in  the  usual  prairie  style.  First 
the  coffee — three  parts  burnt  beans,  which  had  been  duly  ground 
to  a  fine  powder  and  exposed  to  the  air,  lest  the  aroma  should 
prove  too  strong  for  us — was  placed  on  the  stove  to  simmer  till 
every  noxious  principle  was  duly  extracted  from  it.  Then  the 
rusty  bacon,  cut  into  thick  slices,  was  thrown  into  the  fry-pan : 
here  the  gridiron  is  unknown,  and  if  known  would  be  little  ap- 
preciated, because  it  wastes  the  "drippings,"  which  form  with 
the  staff  of  life  a  luxurious  sop.  Thirdly,  antelope  steak,  cut  off 
a  corpse  suspended  for  the  benefit  of  flies  outside,  was  placed  to 
stew  within  influence  of  the  bacon's  aroma.  Lastly  came  the 
bread,  which  of  course  should  have  been  "  cooked"  first.  The 
meal  is  kneaded  with  water  and  a  pinch  of  salt;  the  raising  is 
done  by  means  of  a  little  sour  milk,  or  more  generally  by  the 
deleterious  yeast-powders  of  the  trade.  The  carbonic  acid  gas 
evolved  by  the  addition  of  water  must  be  corrected,  and  the 
dough  must  be  expanded  by  saleratus  or  prepared  carbonate  of 
soda  or  alkali,  and  other  vile  stuff,  which  communicates  to  the 
food  the  green-yellow  tinge,  and  suggests  many  of  the  properties 
of  poison.  A  hundred-fold  better,  the  unpretending  chapati,  flap- 
jack, scone,  or,  as  the  Mexicans  prettily  called  it,  "  tortilla !"  The 
dough,  after  being  sufficiently  manipulated  upon  a  long,  narrow, 
smooth  board,  is  divided  into  "biscuits"  and  "dough-nuts,"*  and 
finally  it  is  placed  to  be  half  cooked  under  the  immediate  influ- 
ence of  the  rusty  bacon  and  graveolent  antelope.  "  Uncle  Sam's 
stove,"  be  it  said  with  every  reverence  for  the  honored  name  it 
bears,  is  a  triumph  of  convenience,  cheapness,  unwholesomeness, 
and  nastiness — excuse  the  word,  nice  reader.  This  travelers'  bane 
has  exterminated  the  spit  and  gridiron,  and  makes  every  thing 
taste  like  its  neighbor :  by  virtue  of  it,  mutton  borrows  the  fla- 
vor of  salmon  trout,  tomatoes  resolve  themselves  into  greens.  I 
shall  lose  my  temper  if  the  subject  is  not  dropped. 

We  set  out  at  6  A.M.  over  a  sandy  bottom,  from  which  the 
musquetoes  rose  in  swarms.  After  a  twelve-mile  stretch  the 
driver  pointed  out  on  the  right  of  the  road,  which  here  runs  be- 
tween high  earth-banks,  a  spot  still  infamous  in  local  story.  At 
this  place,  in  1854,  five  Indians,  concealing  themselves  in  the  bed 
of  a  dwarf  arroyo,  fired  upon  the  mail-wagon,  killing  two  drivers 
and  one  passenger,  and  then  plundered  it  of  20,000  dollars. 

*  The  Western  "biscuit"  is  English  roll;  "cracker"  is  English  biscuit.  The 
"dough-nut"  is,  properly  speaking,  a  "small  roundish  cake,  made  of  flour,  eggs, 
and  sugar,  moistened  with  milk  and  boiled  in  lard"  (Webster).  On  the  prairies, 
where  so  many  different  materials  are  unprocurable,  it  is  simply  a  diminutive  loaf, 
like  the  hot  roll  of  the  English  passenger  steamer. 


Chap.  I.  LARAMIE  PEAK.— INDIAN  VILLAGES.  85 

"  Long-chin,"  tlie  leader,  and  the  other  murderers,  when  given 
up  by  the  tribe,  were  carried  to  Washington,  D.  C,  where — with 
the  ultra-philanthropy  which  has  of  modern  days  distinguished 
the  "Great  Father's"  government  of  his  "Poor  Children  of  the 
Plains" — the  villains  were  liberally  rewarded  and  restored  to  their 
homes.*  To  cut  off  a  bend  of  the  Platte  we  once  more  left  the 
valley,  ascended  sundry  slopes  of  sand  and  clay  deeply  cut  by  dry 
creeks,  and  from  the  summit  enjoyed  a  pretty  view.  A  little  to 
the  left  rose  the  aerial  blue  cone  of  that  noble  landmark,  Laramie 
Peak,  based  like  a  mass  of  solidified  air  upon  a  dark  wall,  the 
Black  Hills,  and  lit  up  with  the  roseate  hues  of  the  morning. 
The  distance  was  about  sixty  miles;  you  would  have  guessed 
twenty.  On  the  right  lay  a  broad  valley,  bounded  by  brown 
rocks  and  a  plain-colored  distance,  with  the  stream  winding- 
through  it  like  a  thread  of  quicksilver;  in  places  it  was  hidden 
from  sight  by  thickets  of  red  willow,  cypress  clumps,  and  dense 
cool  cotton-woods.  All  was  not  still  life;  close  below  us  rose 
the  white  lodges  of  the  Ogalala  tribe. 

These  Indian  villages  are  very  picturesque  from  afar  when 
dimly  seen  dotting  the  verdure  of  the  valleys,  and  when  their 
tall  white  cones,  half  hidden  by  willow  clumps,  lie  against  a  blue 
background.  The  river  side  is  the  savages'  favorite  site ;  next  to 
it  the  hill  foot,  where  little  groups  of  three  or  four  tents  are  often 
seen  from  the  road,  clustering  mysteriously  near  a  spring.  Al- 
most every  prairie-band  has  its  own  way  of  constructing  lodges, 
encamping  and  building  fires,  and  the  experienced  mountaineer 
easily  distinguishes  them. 

The  Osages  make  their  lodges  in  the  shape  of  a  wagon-tilt, 
somewhat  like  our  gipsies'  tents,  with  a  frame- work  of  bent  wil- 
low rods  planted  in  the  ground,  and  supporting  their  blankets, 
skins,  or  tree-basts. 

The  Kickapoos  build  dwarf  hay-stack  huts,  like  some  tribes  of 
Africans,  setting  poles  in  the  earth,  binding  them  over  and  lash- 
ing them  together  at  the 'top;  they  are  generally  covered  with 
clothes  or  bark. 

The  Witchetaws,  Wakoes,  Towakamis,  and  Tonkowas  are  de- 
scribed by  the  "  Prairie  Traveler"  as  erecting  their  hunting  lodges 
of  sticks  put  up  in  the  form  of  the  frustrum  of  a  cone,  and  bushed 
over  like  "  boweries." 

All  these  tribes  leave  the  frame-work  of  their  lodges  standing 
when  they  shift  ground,  and  thus  the  particular  band  is  readily 
recognized. 

*  A  United  States  official,  fresh  from  Columbia,  informed  me  that  the  Indians 
there  think  twice  before  they  murder  a  King  George's  man  (Briton),  while  they 
hardly  hesitate  to  kill  a  Boston  man  or  American  citizen.  He  attributed  this  pe- 
culiarity principally  to  the  over  lenity  of  his  own  fjovemment,  and  its  want  of  per- 
sistency in  ferreting  out  and  punishing  the  criminal.  Under  these  circumstances,  it 
is  hardly  to  be  wondered  at  if  the  trader  and  traveler  in  Indian  countries  take  the 
law  in  their  own  hands.  This  excessive  clemency  has  acted  evilly  in  "either  Ind." 
We  may  hope  that  its  day  is  now  gone  by. 


S6  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

The  Sacs,  Foxes,  Winnebagoes,  and  Menomenes  build  lodges 
in  the  form  of  an  ellipse,  some  of  them  30 — 40  feet  long,  by  14-— 
15  wide,  and  large  enough  to  shelter  twenty  people  permanently, 
and  sixty  temporarily.*  The  covering  is  of  plaited  rush-mats 
bound  to  the  jDoles,  and  a  small  aperture  in  the  lodge  acts  as 
chimney. 

The  Delawares  and  Shawnees,  Cherokees  and  Choctaws,  prefer 
the  Indian  pal,  a  canvas  covering  thrown  like  a  tente  d'abri  over 
a  stick  supported  by  two  forked  poles. 

The  Sioux,  Arapahoes,  Cheyennes,  Utahs,  Snakes,  Blackfeet, 
and  Kiowas  use  the  Comanche  lodge  covered  with  bison  skins, 
which  by  dressing^ become  flexible  as  eanvas.  They  are  usually 
of  a  shining  white,  save  where  smoke-stained  near  the  top ;  the 
lodges  of  great  chiefs  are  sometimes  decorated  with  horizontal 
stripes  of  alternate  black  and  white,  and  ornamented  with  figures 
Imman  and  bestial,  crosses,  circles,  and  arabesques.  The  lodge  is 
made  of  eight  to  twenty-four  straight  peeled  poles  or  saplings  of 
ash,  pine,  cedar,  or  other  wood,  hard  and  elastic  if  possible,  about 
20  feet  long ;  the  largest  marquees  are  80  feet  in  diameter  by  35 
feet  high,  and  are  comprised  of  26 — 30  buffalo  skins;  and  they 
are  sometimes  planted  round  a  "  basement"  or  circular  excavation 
two  or  three  feet  deep.  When  pitching,  three  poles  lashed  to  one 
another  with  a  long  line,  somewhat  below  the  thinner  points,  are 
raised  perpendicularly,  and  the  thicker  ends  are  spread  out  in  a 
tripod  to  the  perimeter  of  the  circle  which  is  to  form  the  lodge 
floor;  the  rest  of  the  poles  are  then  propped  against  the  three  first, 
and  disposed  regularly  and  equidistantly  to  make  a  steady  and  se- 
cure conical  frame-work.  The  long  line  attached  to  the  trij)od  is 
then  wound  several  times  round  the  point  where  the  poles  touch, 
and  the  lower  end  is  made  fast  to  the  base  of  the  lodge,  thus  secur- 
ing the  props  in  position.  The  covering  of  dressed,  hairless,  and 
water-proof  cow-buffalo  hide — traders  prefer  osnaburg — cut  and 
sewn  to  fit  the  frame  like  an  envelope,  arid  sometimes  pinned  to- 
gether with  skewers,  is  either  raised  "at  first  with  the  tripod,  or 
afterward  hoisted  with  a  perch  and  spread  round  the  complete 
structure.  It  is  pinned  to  the  ground  with  wooden  pegs,  and  a 
narrow  space  forms  a  doorway,  which  may  be  closed  with  a  blan- 
ket suspended  from  above  and  spread  out  with  two  small  sticks. 
The  apex  is  left  open  with  a  triangular  wing  or  flap,  like  a  lateen 
sail,  and  is  prevented  from  closing  by  a  pole  inserted  into  a  pocket 
at  the  end.  The  aperture  points  to  windward  when  ventilation 
is  required,  and,  drawing  like  a  wind-sail,  it  keeps  the  interior  cool 
and  comfortable ;  when  smoke  is  to  be  carried  off,  it  is  turned  to 
leeward,  thus  giving  draught  to  the  fire,  and  making  the  abode 
warm  in  the  severest  weather;  while  in  lodges  of  other  forms, 

*  The  wigwams,  huts,  or  cabins  of  the  Eastern  American  tribes  were  like  these, 
large,  solid,  and  well  roofed  with  skins.  The  word  "lodge"  is  usually  applied  to 
the  smaller  and  less  comfortable  habitations  of  the  Prairie  Indians. 


Chap.  I.  THE  "  SIBLET  TENT."  87 

you  must  lie  down  on  the  ground  to  prevent  being  asphyxiated. 
By  raising  the  lower  part  so  as  freely  to  admit  the  breeze,  it  is 
kept  perfectly  free  from  musquetoes,  which  are  unable  to  resist 
the  strong  draught.  The  squaws  are  always  the  tent-pitchers, 
and  they  equal  Orientals  in  dexterity  and  judgment.  Before  the 
lodge  of  each  warrior  stands  his  light  spear,  planted  Bedouin-fash- 
ion in  the  ground,  near  or  upon  a  tripod  of  thin,  cleanly -scraped 
wands,  seven  to  eight  feet  long,  which  support  his  spotless  white 
buffalo-skin  targe,  sometimes  decorated  with  his  "totem"  —  we 
translate  the  word  "crest" — and  guarded  by  the  usual  prophy- 
lactic, a  buckskin  sack  containing  medicine.  Readers  of  "Ivan- 
hoe" — they  are  now  more  numerous  in  the  ISTew  than  in  the  Old 
Country — ever  feel  "a  passing  impulse  to  touch  one  of  these  spot- 
less shields  with  the  muzzle  of  the  gun,  expecting  a  grim  warrior 
to  start  from  the  lodge  and  resent  the  challenge."  The  fire,  as  in 
the  old  Hebridean  huts,  is  built  in  the  centre  of  the  hard  dirt  floor: 
a  strong  stick  planted  at  the  requisite  angle  supports  the  kettle. 
and  around  the  walls  are  berths  divided  by  matted  screens ;  the 
extremest  uncleanliness,  however,  is  a  feature  never  absent.  In 
a  quiet  country  these  \dllages  have  a  simple  and  patriarchal  ap- 
pearance. The  tents,  which  number  from  fifteen  to  fifty,  are  dis- 
posed round  a  circular  central  space,  where  animals  can  be  teth- 
ered. Some  have  attached  to  them  corrals  of  wattled  canes,  and 
a  few  boast  of  fields  where  corn  and  pumpkins  are  raised. 

The  Comanche  lodge  is  the  favorite  tenement  of  the  Canadian 
and  Creole  voyageurs,  on  account  of  its  coolness  or  warmth  when 
wanted,  its  security  against  violent  winds,  and  its  freedom  from 
musquetojp.  While  traveling  in  an  Indian  country  they  will  use 
no  other.  It  has  been  simplified  by  Major  H.  H.  Sibley,  of  the 
United  States  Army,  who  has  changed  the  pole  frame- work  for  a 
single  central  upright,  resting  upon  an  iron  tripod,  with  hooks  for 
suspending  cooking  utensils  over  the  fire ;  when  folded  up,  the 
tripod  admits  the  upright  between  its  legs,  thereby  reducing  the 
length  to  one  half — a  portable  size.  The  "  Sibley  tent"  was  the 
only  shelter  of  the  United  States  Army  at  Fort  Scott,  in  Utah 
Territory,  during  the  hard  winter  of  1857-8,  and  gave  universal 
satisfaction.  The  ofl&cers  still  keep  to  the  old  wall-tent.  Tlus 
will,  however,  eventually  be  superseded  by  the  new  form,  which 
can  accommodate  comfortably  twelve,  but  not  seventeen,  the  usual 
number  allotted  to  it.  Captain  Marcy  is  of  opinion  that  of  the 
tents  used  in  the  different  armies  of  Europe,  "none  in  point  of 
convenience,  comfort,  and  economy  will  compare  with  the  'Sibley 
tent'  for  campaigning  in  cold  weather."  In  summer,  however,  it 
has,  like  all  conical  tents,  many  disadvantages :  there  is  always  a 
loss  of  room;  and  for  comfortably  disposing  kit — chair,  table,  and 
camp  couch — there  is  nothing  equal  to  the  wall-tent.  The  price 
of  a  "  Sibley,"  when  made  of  good  material,  is  from  $40  to  $50 
(£8 — £10),  and  it  can  be  procured  from  Baltimore,  Philadelphia, 
and  New  York. 


gg  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

At  10  20  A.M.  we  halted  to  change  mules  at  Bacleau's  Kanch, 
or  as  it  is  more  grandiloquently  called,  "Laramie  City."  The 
"city,"  like  many  a  Western  "town,"  still  appertains  to  the  cate- 
gory of  things  about  to  be ;  it  is  at  present  represented  by  a  sin- 
gle large  "  store,"  with  out-houses  full  of  small  half-breeds.  The 
principal  articles  of  traffic  are  liquors  and  groceries  for  the  whites, 
and  ornaments  for  the  Indians,  which  are  bartered  for  stock  (^.  e., 
animals)  and  peltries.  The  prices  asked  for  the  skins  were  from 
|1_|1  30  for  a  fox  or  a  coyote,  $3  for  wolf,  bear,  or  deer,  $6— $7 
for  an  elk,  $5  for  a  common  buffalo,  and  from  $8  to  $35  for  the 
same  painted,  pictographed,  and  embroidered.  Some  of  the  party- 
purchased  moccasins,  for  which  they  paid  $1 — $2 ;  the  best  arti- 
cles are  made  by  the  Snakes,  and  when  embroidered  by  white 
women  rise  as  high  as  $25.  I  bought,  for  an  old  friend  who  is 
insane  upon  the  subject  of  pipes,  one  of  the  fine  marble-like  sand- 
stone bowls  brought  from  the  celebrated  Coteau  (slope)  des  Prai- 
ries, at  the  head  of  Sioux  Kiver — 

' '  On  the  mountains  of  the  Prairie, 
On  the  Great  Red  Pipe-stone  Quarry." 

This  instrument  is  originally  the  gift  of  Gitchie  Manitou,  who, 
standing  on  the  precipice  of  the  Bed  Pipe-stone  Rock,  broke  off  a 
fragment  and  moulded  it  into  a  pipe,  which,  finished  with  a  reed, 
he  smoked  over  his  children  to  the  north,  south,  east,  and  west. 
It  is  of  queer  shape,  not  unlike  the  clay  and  steatite  articles  used 
by  the  Abyssinians  and  the  Turi  or  Sinaitic  Bedouins.  The 
length  of  the  stick  is  23  inches,  of  the  stem  9-50,  and  of  the  bowl 
5  inches ;  the  latter  stands  at  a  right  angle  upon  the  former;  both 
are  circular;  but  the  2*75  inches  of  stem,  which  project  beyond 
the  bowl,  are  beveled  off  so  as  to  form  an  edge  at  the  end.  The 
peculiarity  of  the  form  is  in  the  part  where  the  tobacco  is  insert- 
ed ;  the  hole  is  not  more  than  half  an  inch  broad,  and  descends 
straight  without  a  bulge,  while  the  aperture  in  the  stem  is  exactly 
similar.  The  red  color  soon  mottles  and  the  bowl  clogs  if  smoked 
with  tobacco ;  in  fact,  it  is  fit  for  nothing  but  the  "kinnikinik"  of 
the  Indians.  To  prepare  this  hard  material  with  the  rude  tools 
of  a  savage  must  be  a  work  of  time  and  difficulty ;  also  the  bowls 
are  expensive  and  highly  valued :  for  mine  I  paid  $5,  and  farther 
"West  I  could  have  exchanged  it  for  an  Indian  pony. 

Having  finished  our  emplettes  at  M.  Badeau's,  we  set  out  at  11  30 
P.M.  over  a  barren  and  reeking  bit  of  sandy  soil.  Close  to  the 
station,  and  a  little  to  the  right  of  the  road,  we  passed  the  barrow 
which  contains  the  remains  of  Lieutenant  Grattan  and  his  thirty 
men.  A  young  second  lieutenant  of  Irish  origin  and  fiery  tem- 
per, he  was  marching  westward  with  an  interpreter,  a  small  body 
of  men,  and  two  howitzers,  when  a  dispute  arose,  it  is  said,  about 
a  cow,  iDetween  his  party  and  the  Brules  or  Burnt-Thigh  Indians. 
The  latter  were  encamped  in  a  village  of  450  to  500  lodges,  which, 
reckoning  five  to  each,  gives  a  total  of  2200  to  2500  souls.     A 


Chap.  I.  THE  BRUL^S  AND  GENERAL  HARNEY.  89 

figlit  took  place;  the  whites  imprudently  discharged  both  their 
cannon,  overshooting  the  tents  of  the  enemy;  their  muskets,  how- 
ever, did  more  execution,  killing  Matriya,  "  the  Scattering  Bear," 
who  had  been  made  chief  of  all  the  Sioux  by  Colonel  Mitchell  of 
the  Indian  Bureau.  The  savages,  seeing  the  fall  of  Ursa  Major, 
set  to  in  real  earnest ;  about  1200  charged  the  soldiers  before  they 
could  reload ;  the  little  detachment  broke,  and  not  a  man  sur- 
vived to  tell  the  tale.  The  whites  in  the  neighborhood  narrowly 
preserved  their  scalps — M.  Badeau  owned  that  he  owed  his  to  his 
Sioux  squaw — and  among  other  acts  of  violence  was  the  murder 
and  highway  robbery  which  has  already  been  recounted.  Both 
these  events  occurred  in  1854.  As  has  been  said,  in  1855,  Gen- 
eral W.  S.  Harney,  who,  whatever  may  be  his  faults  as  a  diplo- 
matist, is  the  most  dreaded  "Minahaska"*  in  the  Indian  country, 
punished  the  Brules  severely  at  Ash  Hollow.  They  were  led  by 
their  chosen  chief  Little  Thunder,  who,  not  liking  the  prospect, 
wanted  to  palaver;  the  general  replied  by  a  charge,  which,  as 
usual,  scattered  the  "  chivalry  of  the  prairies"  to  the  four  winds. 
"Little  Thunder"  was  solemnly  deposed,  and  Mato  Chigukesa, 
"Bear's  Eib,"  was  ordered  to  reign  in  his  stead;  moreover,  in 
1856,  a  treaty  was  concluded,  giving  to  whites,  among  other 
things,  the  privilege  of  making  roads  along  the  Platte  and  White- 
Earth  Elvers  (Mankisita  Wakpa — Smoking-earth  Water)  to  Forts 
Pierre  and  Laramie,  and  to  pass  up  and  down  the  Missouri  in 
boats.  Since  that  time,  with  the  exception  of  plundering  an  En- 
glish sportsman.  Sir  Gr G ,  opposing  Lieutenant  Warren's 

expedition  to  the  Black  Hills,  and  slaughtering  a  few  traders  and 
obscure  travelers,  the  Brules  have  behaved  tolerably  to  their  pale- 
face rivals. 

As  we  advanced  the  land  became  more  barren ;  it  sadly  want- 
ed rain :  it  suffers  from  drought  almost  every  year,  and  what  veg- 
etable matter  the  soil  will  produce  the  grasshopper  will  devour. 
Dead  cattle  cumbered  the  way-side;  the  flesh  had  disappeared; 
the  bones  were  scattered  over  the  ground;  but  the  skins,  mum- 
mified, as  it  were,  by  the  dry  heat,  lay  life-like  and  shapeless,  as 
in  the  Libyan  Desert,  upon  the  ground.  This  phenomenon  will 
last  till  we  enter  the  humid  regions  between  the  Sierra  Nevada 
and  the  Pacific  Ocean,  and  men  tell  wonderful  tales  of  the  time 
during  which  meat  can  be  kept.  The  road  was  a  succession  of 
steep  ascents  and  jumps  down  sandy  ground.  A  Sioux  "  buck," 
mounted  upon  a  neat  nag,  and  wrapped  up,  despite  sun  and  glare, 
as  if  it  had  been  the  depth  of  winter,  passed  us,  sedulously  avert- 
ing his  eyes.     The  driver  declared  that  he  recognized  the  horse, 

*  "Longknife."  The  whites  have  enjoyed  this  title  since  1758,  when  Captain  Gib- 
son cut  off  with  his  sabre  the  head  of  Little  Eagle,  the  great  Mingo  or  Chief,  and 
won  the  title  of  Big-Knife  Warrior.  Savages  in  America  as  well  as  Africa  Mho  ig- 
nore the  sword  always  look  upon  that  weapon  with  horror.  The  Sioux  call  the 
Americans  Wasichi,  or  bad  men. 


90  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

and  grumbled  certain  Western  facetiae  concerning  "hearty-cliokes 
and  caper  sauce." 

In  these  lands  the  horse-thief  is  the  great  enemy  of  mankind ; 
for  him  there  is  no  pity,  no  mercy ;  Lynch-law  is  held  almost  too 
good  for  him;  to  shoot  him  in  flagrante  delicto  is  like  slajdng  a 
man-eating  Bengal  royal  tiger — it  entitles  you  to  the  respect  and 
gratitude  of  your  species.  I  asked  our  conductor  whether  dandi- 
ness  was  at  the  bottom  of  the  "  buck's"  heavy  dress.  "  'Guess," 
was  the  reply,  "  what  keeps  cold  out,  keeps  heat  out  tew !" 

At  12  15  P.M.,  crossing  Laramie's  Fork,  a  fine  clear  stream 
about  forty  yards  broad,  we  reached  Fort  Laramie  —  another 
"fort"  by  courtesy,  or  rather  by  order  —  where  we  hoped  to  re- 
cruit our  exhausted  stores. 

The  straggling  cantonment  requires  no  description :  it  has  the 
usual  big  flag,  barracks,  store-houses,  officers'  quarters,  guard- 
houses, sutlers'  stores,  and  groceries,  which  doubtless  make  a  good 
thing  by  selling  deleterious  "strychnine"  to  passing  trains  who 
can  afford  to  pay  $6  per  gallon. 

Fort  Laramie,  called  Fort  John  in  the  days  of  the  American 
Fur  Company,  was  used  by  them  as  a  store-house  for  the  bear  and 
buffalo  skins,  which  they  collected  in  thousands.  The  old  adobe 
enceinte^  sketched  and  described  by  Fremont  and  Stansbury,  soon 
disappeared  after  the  place  was  sold  to  the  United  States  govern- 
ment. Its  former  rival  was  Fort  Platte,  belonging  in  1842 — when 
the  pale  face  first  opened  this  road — to  Messrs.  Sybille,  Adams, 
and  Co.,  and  situated  immediately  on  the  point  of  land  at  the 
junction  of  Laramie  Fort  with  the  Platte.  The  climate  here  is 
arid  and  parching  in  summer,  but  in  winter  tolerably  mild,  con- 
sidering the  altitude — 1470  feet — and  the  proximity  of  the  Black 
Hills;  yet  it  has  seen  hard  frost  in  September.  It  is  also  well 
defended  from  the  warm,  moist,  and  light  winds,  which,  coming 
from  the  Mexican  Gulf,  cause  "  calentures"  on  the  lower  course 
of  the  river.  The  soil  around  the  settlement  is  gravelly  and  ster- 
ile, the  rocks  are  sand,  lime,  and  clay,  and  there  is  a  solitary,  des- 
olate look  upon  every  thing  but  the  bright  little  stream  that  bub- 
bles from  the  dark  heights.  The  course  is  from  S.W.  to  N.E. : 
about  half  way  it  bifurcates,  with  a  right  fork  to  the  west  and 
main  fork  east,  and  near  Laramie  it  receives  its  main  affluent,  the 
Chugwater. 

My  companion  kindly  introduced  me  to  the  officer  command- 
ing the  fort.  Colonel  B.  Alexander,  10th  Infantry,  and  we  were 
at  once  made  at  home.  The  amiable  mistress  of  the  house  must 
find  charitable  work  enough  to  do  in  providing  for  the  wants  of 
way-worn  friends  who  pass  through  Laramie  from  east  to  west. 
We  rested  and  dined  in  the  cool  comfortable  quarters,  with  only 
one  qualm  at  heart — we  were  so  soon  to  leave  them.  On  these 
occasions  the  driver  seems  to  know  by  instinct  that  you  are  en- 
joying yourself,  while  he,  as  an  outsider,  is  not.     He  becomes. 


Chap.  I.  HORSESHOE  STATION.— "LADIES."  91 

therefore,  unusually  impatient  to  start ;  perhaps,  also,  time  run? 
more  rapidly  than  it  is  wont.  At  any  rate,  after  a  short  two 
hours,  we  were  compelled  to  shake  hands  with  our  kind  and  con- 
siderate hosts,  and  to  return  to  limbo — the  mail-wagon. 

From  Fort  Laramie  westward  the  geological  formation  changes ; 
the  great  limestone  deposits  disappear,  and  are  succeeded  by  a  great 
variety  of  sandstones,  some  red,  argillaceous,  and  compact ;  others 
gray  or  yellow,  ferruginous,  and  coarse.  Pudding-stones  or  con- 
glomerates also  abound,  and  the  main  chain  of  the  Laramie  Mount- 
ains is  supposed  to  be  chiefly  composed  of  this  rock. 

Beyond  the  fort  there  are  two  roads.  The  longer  leads  to  the 
right,  near  the  Platte  Eiver.  It  was  formerly,  and  perhaps  is 
still,  a  favorite  with  emigrants.  We  preferred  the  left,  which, 
crossing  the  edges  of  the  Black  Hills,  is  rough  and  uneven,  but  is 
"some  shorter,"  as  the  guide-book  says,  than  the  other.  The 
weather  began  to  be  unusually  disagreeable  with  heat  and  rain- 
drops from  a  heavy  nimbus,  that  forced  us  to  curtain  up  the  rat- 
tling vehicle ;  perhaps,  too,  we  were  a  little  cross,  contrasting  the 
present  with  the  past — civilized  society,  a  shady  bungalow,  and 
wonderfully  good  butter.  At  4  P.M.,  following  the  Platte  Valley, 
after  two  hours'  drive  we  halted  to  change  mules  at  Ward's  Sta- 
tion, alias  the  "  Central  Star,"  where  several  whites  were  killed 
by  the  Sioux  in  1855,  among  them  M.  Montalan,  a  Parisian. 

Again  we  started  for  another  twenty -five  miles  at  -i  P.M.  The 
road  was  rough,  and  the  driver  had  a  curious  proclivity  for  los- 
ing the  way.  I  have  often  found  this  to  be  the  case  after  passing 
through  a  station.  There  was  little  to  remark,  except  that  the 
country  was  poor  and  bad,  that  there  was  clear  water  in  a  ravine 
to  the  right,  and  that  we  were  very  tired  and  surly.  But  as  sor- 
row comes  to  an  end  as  well  as  joy,  so,  at  9  80  P.M.,  we  drove  in, 
somewhat  consoled,  to  Horseshoe  Station — the  old  Fer  a  Cheval — 
where  one  of  the  road  agents,  Mr.  Slade,  lived,  and  where  we  an- 
ticipated superior  comfort. 

We  were  entiches  by  the  aspect  of  the  buildings,  which  were  on 
an  extensive  scale  —  in  fact,  got  up  regardless  of  expense.  An 
ominous  silence,  however,  reigned  around.  At  last,  by  hard 
knocking,  we  were  admitted  into  a  house  with  the  Floridian  style 
of  veranda  previously  described,  and  by  the  pretensions  of  the 
room  we  at  once  divined  our  misfortune — we  were  threatened 
with  a  "  lady."  The  "  lady"  will,  alas !  follow  us  to  the  Pacific ; 
even  in  hymns  we  read, 

"  Now  let  the  Prophet's  heart  rejoice, 
His  noble  lady's  too." 

Our  mishap  was  really  worse  than  we  expected  —  we  were  ex- 
posed to  two  "  ladies,"  and  of  these  one  was  a  Bloomer.  It  is 
only  fair  to  state  that  it  was  the  only  hermaphrodite  of  the  kind 
that  ever  met  my  eyes  in  the  United  States ;  the  great  founder  of 
the  order  has  long  since  subsided  into  her  original  obscurity,  and 


92     .  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  I. 

her  acolytes  have  relapsed  into  the  weakness  of  petticoats.  The 
Bloomer  was  an  uncouth  being ;  her  hair,  cut  level  with  her  eyes, 
depended  with  the  graceful  curl  of  a  drake's  tail  around  a  flat 
Turanian  countenance,  whose  only  expression  was  sullen  inso- 
lence. The  body-dress,  glazed  brown  calico,  fitted  her  somewhat 
like  a  soldier's  tunic,  developing  haunches  which  would  be  ad- 
mired only  in  venison ;  and — curious  inconsequence  of  woman's  na- 
ture!— all  this  sacrifice  of  appearance  upon  the  shrine  of  comfort 
did  not  prevent  her  wearing  that  kind  of  crinoline  depicted  by 
IsIt. Punch  upon  '-our  Mary  Hanne."  The  pantalettes  of  glazed 
brown  calico,  like  the  vest,  tunic,  blouse,  shirt,  or  whatever  they 
ma}"  call  it,  were  in  peg-top  style,  admirably  setting  off  a  pair  of 
thin-soled  Frenchified  patent-leather  bottines,  with  elastic  sides, 
which  contained  feet  large,  broad,  and  flat  as  a  negro's  in  Unyam- 
wezi.  The  dear  creature  had  a  husband :  it  was  hardly  safe  to 
look  at  her,  and  as  for  sketching  her,  I  avoided  it,  as  men  are  bid- 
den by  the  poet  to  avoid  the  way  of  Slick  of  Tennessee.  The 
other  "  lady,"  though  more  decently  attired,  was  like  women  in 
this  wild  part  of  the  world  generally — cold  and  disagreeable  in 
manner,  full  of  "proper  pride,"  with  a  touch-me-not  air,  which 
reminded  me  of  a  certain 

' '  IMiss  Baxter, 
Who  refused  a  man  before  he  axed  her." 

Her  husband  was  the  renowned  Slade : 

"  Of  gongers  fierce,  the  eyes  that  pierce,  the  fiercest  gouger  he." 

His  was  a  noted  name  for  "  deadly  strife ;"  he  had  the  reputation 
of  having  killed  his  three  men;  and  a  few  days  afterward  the 
grave  that  concealed  one  of  his  murders  was  pointed  out  to  me. 
This  pleasant  individual  "for  an  evening  party"  wore  the  re- 
volver and  bowie-knife  here,  there,  and  every  where.  He  had 
lately,  indeed,  had  a  strong  hint  not  to  forget  his  weapon.  One 
M.  Jules,  a  French  trader,  after  a  quarrel  which  took  place  at  din- 
ner, walked  up  to  him  and  fired  a  pistol,  wounding  him  in  the 
breast.  As  he  rose  to  run  away  Jules  discharged  a  second,  which 
took  efiect  upon  his  back,  and  then,  without  giving  him  time  to 
arm,  fetched  a  gun  and  favored  him  with  a  dose  of  slugs  some- 
what larger  than  revolver  bullets.  The  fiery  Frenchman  had  two 
narrow  escapes  from  Lynch-lawyers :  twice  he  was  hung  between 
wagons,  and  as  often  he  was  cut  down.  At  last  he  disappeared 
in  the  farther  West,  and  took  to  lodge  and  squaw.  The  avenger 
of  blood  threatens  to  follow  him  np,  but  as  yet  he  has  taken  no 
steps. 

It  at  once  became  evident  that  the  station  was  conducted  upon 
the  principle  of  the  "Western  hotel-keeper  of  the  last  generation, 
and  of  Continental  Europe  about  A.D.  1500  —  the  innkeeper  of 
"Anne  of  Geierstein"  —  that  is  to  say,  for  his  own  convenience; 
the  public  there  was  the  last  thing  thought  of.     One  of  our  party 


ChapH.  "LADIES."— the  SIOUX.  95 

who  had  ventured  into  the  kitchen  was  fiercely  ejected  by  the 
"ladies."  In  asking  about  dormitories  we  were  informed  that 
"  lady  travelers"  were  admitted  into  the  house,  but  that  the  ruder 
sex  must  sleep  where  it  could  —  or  not  sleep  at  all  if  it  preferred. 
We  found  a  barn  outside :  it  was  hardly  fit  for  a  decently  brought- 
up  pig ;  the  floor  was  damp  and  knotty ;  there  was  not  even  a 
door  to  keep  out  the  night  breeze,  now  becoming  raw,  and  sev- 
eral drunken  fellows  lay  in  different  parts  of  it.  Two  were  in  one 
bunk,  embracing  maudhngly,  and  freely  calling  for  drinks  of  wa- 
ter. Into  this  disreputable  hole  we  were  all  thrust  for  the  night : 
among  us,  it  must  be  remembered,  was  a  federal  judge,  who  had 
officiated  for  years  as  minister  at  a  European  court.  His  position, 
poor  man !  procured  him  nothing  but  a  broken-down  pallet.  It 
was  his  first  trip  to  the  Far  West,  and  yet,  so  easily  are  Amer- 
icans satisfied,  and  so  accustomed  are  they  to  obey  the  ridiculous 
jack-in-ofiice  who  claims  to  be  one  of  the  powers  that  be,  he 
scarcely  uttered  a  complaint.  I,  for  one,  grumbled  myself  to 
sleep.  May  gracious  Heaven  keep  us  safe  from  all  "ladies"  in 
future !  better  a  hundred  times  the  squaw,  with  her  uncleanh- 
ness  and  civility. 

We  are  now  about  to  leave  the  land  of  that  great  and  danger- 
ous people,  the  Sioux,  and  before  bidding  adieu  to  them  it  will  be 
advisable  to  devote  a  few  pages  to  their  ethnology. 


CHAPTEE  II. 

The  Sioux  or  Dakotahs. 


The  Sioux  belong  essentially  to  the  savage,  in  opposition  to 
the  Aztecan  peoples  of  the  New  World.  In  the  days  of  Major 
Pike  (1805-1807),  they  were  the  dread  of  all  the  neighboring 
tribes,  from  the  confluence  of  the  Mississippi  and  the  Missouri  to 
the  Eaven  Eiver  on  the  latter.  According  to  Lieutenant  War- 
ren, they  are  still  scattered  over  an  immense  territory  extending 
from  the  Mississippi  on  the  east  to  the  Black  Hills  on  the  west, 
and  from  the  forks  of  the  Platte  on  the  south  to  Minsi  Wakan,  or 
the  Devil's  Lake,  on  the  north.  Early  in  the  winter  of  1837  they 
ceded  to  the  L'nited  States  all  their  lands  lying  east  of  the  Missis- 
sippi, which  became  the  Territory  of  Minnesota.  They  are  to  the 
North  American  tribes  what  the  great  Anizeh  race  is  among  the 
Bedouins  of  Arabia.  Their  vernacular  name,  Dakotah,  which 
some  pronounce  Lakotah,  and  others  Nakotah,  is  translated 
"leagued"  or  "allied,"  and  they  sometimes  speak  of  themselves 
as  Osheti  Shakowin,  or  the  "  Seven  Council  Fires."  The  French 
call  them  "les  Coupes-gorges,"  from  their  sign  or  symbol,  and  the 
whites  generally  know  them  as  the  Sues  or  Sioux,  from  the  plu- 


9g  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  II. 

ral  form  of  Nadonaisi,  which  in  Ojibwa  means  an  enemy.     The 
race  is  divided  into  seven  principal  bands,  viz. : 

1.  Mdewakantonwan  (Minowa  Kan  tongs*  or  Gens  du  Lac), 
meaning  "Village  of  the  Mdewakan" — Mille  Lacs  or  Spirit  Lake. 
They  formerly  extended  from  Prairie  du  Chien  to  Prairie  des 
Frangais,  thirty-five  miles  up  the  St.  Peter's  Eiver.  They  have 
now  moved  farther  west.  This  tribe,  which  includes  seven  bands, 
is  considered  the  bravest  of  the  Sioux,  and  has  even  waged  an  in- 
ternecine war  with  the  Folles  Avoinesf  or  Menomenes,  who  are 
reputed  the  most  gallant  of  the  Ojibwas  (Chippewas),  and  who, 
inhabiting  a  country  intersected  by  lakes,  swamps,  water-courses, 
and  impenetrable  morasses,  long  bade  defiance  to  all  their  neigh- 
bors. They  have  received  annuities  since  1838,  and  their  num- 
ber enrolled  in  1850  was  2000  souls. 

2.  Wahpekute  (Washpeconte,  translated  Gens  de  Feuillesti- 
rees,  and  by  others  the  "  Leaf  Shooters").  Their  habitation  lies 
westward  of  the  Des  Moines,  Cannon,  and  Blue-Earth  Elvers, 
According  to  Major  Pike,  they  were  like  the  Bedouin  Ghuzw,  a 
band  of  vagabonds  formed  of  refugees,  who  for  some  bad  deed 
had  been  expelled  their  tribes.  The  meaning  of  their  name  is 
unknown ;  in  1850  they  numbered  500  or  600  souls. 

8.  Sisitonwan  (Sussitongs,  or  the  Village  of  the  Marsh).  This 
band  used  to  hunt  over  the  vast  prairies  lying  eastward  of  the 
Mississippi,  and  up  that  stream  as  high  as  Eaven  Eiver.  They 
now  plant  their  corn  about  Lake. Traverse  (Lac  Travers)  and  on 
the  Coteau  des  Prairies,  and  numbered  in  1850  about  2500 
souls. 

4.  "Wahpetonwans  (Washpetongs,  Gens  des  Feuilles,  because 
they  lived  in  woods),  the  "Village  in  the  Leaves."  They  have 
moved  from  their  old  home  about  the  Little  Eapids  of  the  Minne- 
sota Eiver  to  Lac  qui  Parle  and  Big  Stone  Lake.  In  1850  they 
numbered  1000  to  1200  souls.  They  plant  corn,  have  substi- 
tuted the  plow  for  the  hoe,  and,  according  to  the  missionaries, 

*  The  first  is  the  correct,  the  second  is  the  old  and  incorrect  form  of  writing  the 
name. 

t  The  Folles  Avoines  are  a  small  tribe  esteemed  by  the  whites  and  respected  by 
their  own  race ;  their  himting-grounds  are  the  same  as  those  of  the  Winnebagoes. 
They  speak  a  peculiar  dialect.  But  all  understand  the  copious  and  sonorous,  but 
difficult  and  complicated  Algonquin  or  Ojibwa  —  the  language  of  some  of  the  old 
New  England  races,  Pequots,  Delawares,  Mohicans,  Abenaki,  Narragansets,  Penob- 
scots,  and  the  tribes  about  the  Lake  regions  and  the  head-waters  of  the  Mississippi, 
viz.,  Ottawa,  Potawotomies,  Menomene,  Knisteneaux  or  Cree,  Sac,  Kickapoo,  Mas- 
kigo,  Shawnee,  Miami,  Kaskaskia,  etc.  The  other  great  northeastern  language  is 
that  of  the  Mohawk,  spoken  by  the  Oneida,  Onondaga,  Seneca,  Cayuga,  Tuscarora, 
Wyandotte,  and  Cherokee. 

"Folles  Avoines"  is  the  Canadian  French  for  the  wild  rice  (Ztzania  aquaiica),  a 
tall,  tubular,  reedy  water-plant,  plentiful  on  the  marshy  margins  of  the  northern  lakes 
and  in  the  plashy  waters  of  the  Upper  Mississippi.  Its  leaves  and  spikes,  though 
much  larger,  resemble  those  of  oats.  Millions  of  migrating  water-fowl  fatten  on  it 
before  their  autumnal  flights  to  the  south,  while  in  autumn  it  furnishes  the  Northern 
savages  and  the  Canadian  traders  and  hunters  with  their  annual  supply  of  grain.  It 
is  used  for  bread  by  most  of  the  tribes  to  the  northwest. 


Chap.  II.  THE  SIOUX.  97 

have  made  some  progress  in  reading  and  writing  their  own  hm- 
guage. 

The  above  four  constitute  the  Mississippi  and  Minnesota  Sioux, 
and  are  called  by  those  on  the  Missouri  "Isanti,"  from  Isanati  or 
Isany  ati,  because  they  once  lived  near  Isantamde,  one  of  the  Mille 
Lacs.  They  number,  according  to  Major  Pike,  5775  souls ;  ac- 
cording to  Lieutenant  Warren,  about  6200 ;  and  many  of  those 
on  the  Mississippi  have  long  since  become  semi-civilized  by  con- 
tact with  the  white  settlements,  and  have  learned  to  cultivate  the 
soil.  Others,  again,  follow  the  buffalo  in  their  primitive  wild- 
ness,  and  have  of  late  years  given  much  trouble  to  the  settlers  of 
Northern  Iowa. 

5.  Ihanktonwans  (Yanctongs,  meaning  "  "Village  at  the  End"), 
also  sometimes  called  Wichiyela,  or  First  Nation.  They  are 
found  at  the  mouth  of  the  Big  Sioux,  between  it  and  the  Missouri 
Eiver,  as  high  up  as  Fort  Look-out,  and  on  the  opposite  bank  of 
the  Missouri.  In  1851  they  were  set  down  at  240  lodges =2400 
souls;  they  have  since  increased  to  860  lodges  and  2880  souls, 
of  whom  576  are  warriors.  Distance  from  the  buffalo  country 
has  rendered  them  poor ;  the  proximity  of  the  pale  face  has  de- 
generated them,  and  the  United  States  have  purchased  most  of 
their  lands, 

6.  Ihanktonwannas  (Yanctannas),  one  of  the  "  End  Yillage" 
bands.  They  range  between  the  James  and  the  Missouri  Eivers, 
as  far  north  as  Devil's  Lake.  The  Dakotah  Mission  numbered 
them  at  400  lodges  =  4000  souls  ;  subsequent  observers  at  800 
lodges  =  6400  souls,  and  1280  warriors ;  and,  being  spirited  and 
warlike,  they  give  much  trouble  to  settlers  in  the  Dakotah  Terri- 
tory. A  small  portion  live  in  dirt  lodges  during  the  summer. 
This  band  suffered  severely  from  small-pox  in  the  winter  of 
1856-7.  They  are  divided  into  the  Hunkpatidans  (of  unknown 
signification),  Pabakse  or  Cut-heads,  and  Kiyuksa,  deriders  or 
breakers  of  law.  From  their  sub-tribe  the  Wazikute,  or  Pine 
Shooters,  sprang,  it  is  said,  the  Assiniboin  tribe  of  the  Dakotahs. 
Major  Pike  divides  the  "Yanctongs"  into  two  grand  divisions, 
the  Yanctongs  of  the  North  and  the  Yanctongs  of  the  South. 

7.  Titonwan  (Teton,  "Village  of  the  Prairies"),  inhabiting  the 
trans-Missourian  prairies,  and  extending  westward  to  the  dividing 
ridge  between  the  Little  Missouri  and  Powder  Eiver,  and  thence 
south  on  a  line  near  the  106°  meridian.  They  constitute  more 
than  one  half  of  the  whole  Dakotah  nation.  In  1850  they  were 
numbered  at  1250  lodges =12,500  souls,  but  that  number  was 
supposed  to  be  overestimated.  They  are  allied  by  marriage  with 
the  Cheyennes  and  Arickarees,  but  are  enemies  of  the  Pawnees 
and  Crows.  The  Titonwan,  according  to  Major  Pike,  are,  like 
the  Yanctongs,  the  most  erratic  and  independent  not  only  of  the 
Sioux,  but  "of  all  the  Indians  in  the  world."  They  follow  the 
buffalo  as  chance  directs,  clothing  themselves  with  the  robes,  and 

G- 


98  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  II. 

making  their  lodges,  saddles,  and  bridles  of  the  same  material, 
the  flesh  of  the  animal  furnishing  their  food.  None  but  the  few 
families  connected  with  the  whites  have  planted  corn.  Possess- 
ing an  innumerable  stock  of  horses,  thej  are  here  this  day  and 
five  hundreds  of  miles  off  in  a  week,  moving  with  a  rapidity 
scarcely  to  be  imagined  by  the  inhabitants  of  the  civilized  world : 
they  find  themselves  equally  at  home  in  all  places.  The  Titon- 
wan  are  divided  into  seven  principal  bands,  viz. : 

The  Hunkpapa,  "they  who  camp  by  themselves"  (?).  They  roam 
from  the  Big  Cheyenne  up  to  the  Yellow  Stone,  and  west  to  the 
Black  Hills,  and  number  365  lodges,  2920  souls,  and  58-i  warriors. 

The  Sisahapa  or  Blackfeet  live  with  the  Hunkpapa,  and,  like 
them,  have  little  reverence  for  the  whites:  they  number  165 
lodges,  1321  souls,  and  264  warriors. 

The  Itazipko,  Sans  Arc,  or  "  No  Bows ;"  a  curious  name — like 
the  Sans  Arc  Pawnees,  they  are  good  archers — ^perhaps  given  to 
them  in  olden  times,  when,  like  certain  tribes  of  negroes,  they 
used  the  spear  to  the  exclusion  of  other  weapons :  others,  how- 
ever, translate  the  word  "Bow-pith."  They  roam  over  nearly 
the  same  lands  as  the  Hunkpapa,  number  about  170  lodges, 
1360  souls,  and  272  warriors. 

The  Minnikanye-wozhipu,  "those  who  plant  by  the  water," 
dwell  between  the  Black  Hills  and  the  Platte.  They  number 
about  200  lodges,  1600  inmates,  and  320  warriors :  they  are  fa- 
vorably disposed  toward  the  whites. 

The  Ogalala  or  Okandanda  are  generally  to  be  found  on  or 
about  the  Platte,  near  Fort  Laramie,  and  are  the  most  friendly 
of  all  the  Titonwan  toward  the  whites.  They  number  about  460 
lodges,  3680  souls,  and  736  warriors. 

The  Sichangu,  Briiles  or  Burnt-Thighs,  living  on  the  Niobrara 
and  White-Earth  Elvers,  and  ranging  from  the  Platte  to  the  Chey- 
enne, number  about  380  lodges,  containing  3680  inmates. 

The  Oohenonpa,  "Two  Boilings"  or  "Two  Kettle-band,"  are 
much  scattered  among  other  tribes,  but  are  generally  to  be  found 
in  the  vicinity  of  Fort  Pierre.  They  number  about  100  lodges, 
800  inmates,  and  160  warriors. 

The  author  of  the  above  estimate,  allotting  eight  to  ten  inmates 
to  a  lodge,  of  whom  between  one  fifth  and  one  sixth  are  warriors, 
makes  an  ample  allowance.  It  is  usual  to  reckon  in  a  population 
between  one  fourth,  one  fifth,  and  one  sixth — according  to  the 
work — as  capable  of  bearing  arms,  but  the  civilized  rule  will  not 
apply  to  the  North  American  Indian.  The  grand  total  of  the 
number  of  the  Sioux  nations,  including  the  Isanti,  would  amount 
to  30,200  souls.  Half  a  century  ago  it  was  estimated  by  Major 
Pike  at  21,675,  and  in  1850  the'Dakotah  Mission  set  them  down 
at  25,000.  It  is  the  opinion  of  many  that,  notwithstanding  the 
ravages  of  cholera  and  small-pox,  the  Dakotah  nation,  except  when 
mingled  with  the  frontier  settlements,  rather  increases  than  di- 


Chap.  II.  THE  SIOUX.— THE  OJIBWA.  99 

minishes.  It  lias  been  observed  by  missionaries  that  "wbenever 
an  account  of  births  and  deaths  has  been  kept  in  a  village  the 
former  usually  exceed  the  latter.  The  original  numbers  of  the 
Prairie  Indians  have  been  greatly  overestimated  both  by  them- 
selves and  by  strangers ;  the  only  practicable  form  of  census  is 
the  rude  proceeding  of  counting  their  "  tipi,"  or  skin  tents.  It  is 
still  a  moot  question  how  far  the  Prairie  Indians  have  diminished 
in  numbers,  which  can  not  be  decided  for  some  years.* 

The  Dakotahs  are  mostly  a  purely  hunting  tribe  in  the  lowest 
condition  of  human  society :  they  have  yet  to  take  the  first  step, 
and  to  become  a  pastoral  people.  The  most  civilized  are  the 
Mdewakantonwans,  who,  even  at  the  beginning  of  the  present 
century,  built  log  huts  and  "stocked"  land  with  corn,  beans,  and 
pumpkins.  The  majority  of  the  bands  hunt  the  buffalo  within 
their  own  limits  throughout  the  summer,  and  in  the  winter  pitch 
their  lodges  in  the  clumps  or  fringes  of  tree  and  underwood  along 
the  banks  of  the  lakes  and  streams.  The  bark  of  the  cotton-wood 
furnishes  fodder  for  their  horses  during  the  snowy  season,  and  to 
obtain  it  the  creeks  and  branches  have  been  thinned  or  entirely 
denuded  of  their  beautiful  groves.  They  buy  many  animals  from 
the  Southern  Indians,  who  have  stolen  them  from  New  Mexico. 
or  trapped  them  on  the  plains  below  the  Eocky  Mountains.  Con- 
siderable numbers  are  also  bred  by  themselves.  The  Dakotak 
nation  is  one  of  the  most  warlike  and  numerous  in  the  United 
States  territory.  In  single  combat  on  horseback  they  are  de- 
scribed as  having  no  sujDeriors ;  a  skill  acquired  by  constant  prac- 
tice enables  them  to  spear  their  game  at  full  speed,  and  the  rapid- 
ity with  which  they  discharge  their  arrows,  and  the  accuracy  of 
their  aim,  rival  the  shooting  which  may  be  made  with  a  revolver. 
They  are  not,  however,  formidable  warriors ;  want  of  discipline 
and  of  confidence  in  one  another  render  them  below  their  mark. 
Like  the  Moroccans  in  their  last  war  with  Spain,  they  never  at- 
tack when  they  should,  and  they  never  fail  to  attack  when  they 
should  not. 

The  Dakotahs,  when  first  visited  by  the  whites,  lived  around 
the  head- waters  of  the  Mississippi  and  the  Eed  Eiver  of  the  north. 
They  have  gradually  migrated  toward  the  west  and  southwest, 
guarded  by  their  allies  the  Cheyennes,  who  have  given  names 
successively  to  the  Cheyenne  of  Eed  Eiver,  to  the  Big  Cheyenne 
of  the  Missouri,  and  to  the  section  of  the  country  between  the 
Platte  and  the  Arkansas  which  they  now  occupy.  The  Dakotah 
first  moved  to  the  land  now  occupied  by  the  Ojibwa  (anciently 
known  as  Chippewas,  Orechipewa,  or  Sauteursf ),  which  tribe  in- 

*  At  the  time  of  the  first  settlement  of  the  countrv  by  the  Engh'sh  no  certain  es- 
timate was  made ;  at  the  birth  of  the  thirteen  original  states,  the  Indians,  according 
to  Dr.  Trumbull,  did  not  exceed  150,000.  In  18G0,  the  number  of  Indians  within 
the  limits  of  the  United  States  was  estimated  by  the  Commissioner  of  Indian  Af- 
fairs at  350,000. 

t  The  Kev.  Peter  Jones  (Kahkewagquody),  in  his  history  of  the  Ojibwa  Indians, 


IQQ  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  II. 

habited  tlie  land  between  Sault*  St.  Marie  and  Lake  Winnipeg, 
while  tlieir  allies  the  Crees  occupied  the  country  from  Lake  Win- 
nipeg to  the  Kisiskadjiwan  and  j^ssiniboin  Elvers.  The  plains 
lying  southward  of  the  latter  river  were  the  fields  of  many  a  fierce 
and  bloody  fight  between  the  Dakotahs  and  the  other  allied  two 
tribes,  until  a  feud  caused  by  jealousy  of  the  women  arose  among 
the  former,  and  made  a  division  which  ended  in  their  becoming 
irreconcilable  enemies,  as  they  are  indeed  to  the  present  day. 
The  defeated  party  fled  to  the  craggy  precipices  of  the  Lake  of 
the  Woods,  and  received  from  the  Ojibwa  the  name  of  Assiniboin 
or  Dakotah  of  the  Eocks,  by  which  they  are  now  universally 
known  to  the  whites.  They  retain,  however,  among  themselves 
the  term  Dakotah,  although  their  kinsmen  universally,  when 
speaking  of  them,  called  them  "  hohe"  or  enemies,  and  they  still 
speak  the  Sioux  language.  After  this  feud  the  Assiniboins 
strengthened  themselves  by  alliance  with  the  Ojibwa  and  Cree 
tribes,  and  drove  the  Dakotah  from  all  the  country  north  of  the 
Cheyenne  Eiver,  which  is  now  regarded  as  the  boundary-line. 
The  three  races  are  still  friendly,  and  so  hostile  to  the  Dakotah 
that  no  lasting  peace  can  be  made  between  them;  in  case  of  troub- 
les with  either  party,  the  government  of  the  United  States  might 
economically  and  effectually  employ  one  against  the  other.  The 
common  war-ground  is  the  region  about  Lake  Minsiwakan,  where 
they  all  meet  when  hunting  buffalo.  The  Assiniboin  tribe  now 
extends  from  the  Eed  Eiver  westward  along  the  Missouri  as  far 
as  the  mouth  of  Milk  Eiver :  a  large  portion  of  their  lands,  like 
those  of  the  Cree,  is  British  territory.  They  suffered  severely 
from  small-pox  in  1856-7,  losing  about  1500  of  their  tribe,  and 
now  number  about  450  lodges,  or  8600  souls.  Having  compara- 
tively few  horses,  they  rely  mainly  upon  the  dog  for  transporta- 
tion, and  they  use  its  flesh  as  food. 

The  Dakotah,  according  to  Lieutenant  Warren,  are  still  numer- 
ous, independent,  warlike,  and  powerful,  and  have  the  means  of 
prolonging  an  able  resistance  to  the  advance  of  the  Western  set- 
tlers. Under  the  present  policy  of  the  L^nited  States  government 
— this  is  written  by  an  American — which  there  is  no  reason  to 
believe  likely  to  be  changed,  encroachments  will  continue,  and 
battle  and  murder  will  be  the  result.  There  are  many  inevitable 
causes  at  work  to  produce  war  with  the  Dakotah  before  many 
years.f     The  conflict  will  end  in  the  discomfiture  of  the  natives, 

makes  "Chippewa"  a  corrupted  -word,  sipnifj-ing  the  " Puckered-Moccasin  Peo- 
ple ;"  the  Abbe  Domenech  (Seven  Years'  Residence  in  the  Great  Deserts  of  Nortli 
America" — a  mere  compilation)  draws  an  unauthorized  distinction  between  Chippe- 
was  and  Ojibwas,  but  can  not  say  what  it  is.  He  explains  Ojibwa,  the  form  of 
Ojidwa,  to  mean  "  a  singularity  in  the  voice  or  pronunciation." 

*  Pronounced  "Soo:"  the  word  is  old  French,  still  commonly  used  in  Canada 
and  the  North,  and  means  rapids. 

+  Lieutenant  "Warren  considered  the  greatest  point  of  his  explorations  to  be  the 
knowledge  of  the  proper  routes  by  which  to  invade  their  country  and  to  conquer 
them.     The  project  may  be  found  iu  the  Report  of  the  Secretary  of  War.     I  quote 


Chap.  II.  THE  INDIAN'S  FUTURE.  101 

who  will  tlien  fast  fall  away.  Those  dispossessed  of  their  lands 
can  not,  as  many  suppose,  retire  farther  west ;  the  regions  lying 
beyond  one  tribe  are  generally  occupied  by  another,  with  whom 
deadly  animosity  exists.  Even  when  the  white  settlers  advance 
their  frontier,  the  natives  linger  about  till  their  own  poverty  and 
vice  consign  them  to  oblivion,  and  the  present  policy  adopted  by 
the  government  is  the  best  that  could  be  devised  for  their  exter- 
mination. It  is  needless  to  say  that  many  of  the  Sioux  look  for- 
ward to  the  destruction  of  their  race  with  all  the  feelings  of  de- 
spair with  which  the  civilized  man  would  contemplate  the  extinc- 
tion of  his  nationality.  How  indeed,  poor  devils,  are  they  to  live 
when  the  pale  face  comes  with  his  pestilent  fire-water  and  small- 
pox, followed  up  with  paper  and  pen  work,  to  be  interpreted  un- 
der the  gentle  auspices  of  fire  and  steel  ? 

The  advance  of  the  settlements  is  universally  acknowledged 
by  the  people  of  the  United  States  to  be  a  political  necessity  in 
the  national  development,  and  on  that  ground  only  is  the  dis- 
placement of  the  rightful  owners  of  the  soil  justifiable.  But  the 
government,  instead  of  preparing  the  way  for  settlements  by  wise 
and  just  purchases  from  those  in  possession,  and  proper  support 
and  protection  for  the  indigent  and  improvident  race  thus  dispos- 
sessed, is  sometimes  behind  its  obligations.  There  are  instances 
of  Congress  refusing  or  delaying  to  ratify  the  treaties  made  by  its 
duly  authorized  agents.  The  settler  and  pioneer  are  thus  precip- 
itated into  the  Indian  country,  without  the  savage  having  received 
the  promised  consideration,  and  he  often,  in  a  manner  that  enlists 
the  sympathies  of  mankind,  takes  up  the  tomahawk  and  perishes 
in  the  attempt.  It  frequently  happens  that  the  Western  settlers 
are  charged  with  bringing  about  these  wars ;  they  are  now,  how- 
ever, fighting  the  battles  of  civilization  exactly  as  they  were 
fought  three  centuries  ago  upon  the  Atlantic  shore,  under  circum- 
stances that  command  equal  admiration  and  approval.  While, 
therefore,  we  sympathize  with  the  savage,  we  can  not  but  feel  for 
the  unhappy  squatter,  whose  life  is  sacrificed  to  the  Indian's  venge- 
ance by  the  errors  or  dilatoriness  of  those  whose  duty  it  is  to  pro- 
tect him. 

The  people  of  the  United  States,  of  course,  know  themselves 
to  be  invincible  by  the  hands  of  these  half-naked  savages.  But 
the  Indians,  who  on  their  own  ground  still  outnumber  the  whites, 
are  by  no  means  so  convinced  of  the  fact.  Until  the  army  of 
Utah  moved  westward,  many  of  them  had  never  seen  a  soldier. 
At  a  grand  council  of  the  Bakotah,  in  the  summer  of  1857,  on 
the  North  Fork  of  the  Platte  Eiver,  they  solemnly  pledged  them- 
selves to  resist  the  encroachments  of  the  whites,  and,  if  necessary, 
to  "  whip"  them  out  of  the  country.  The  appearance  of  the 
troops  has  undoubtedly  produced  a  highly  beneficial  effect ;  still, 

Mr.  Warren's  opinion  concerning  the  future  of  the  Dakotahs  as  a  contrast  to  that  of 
the  Dakotah  Mission.     My  own  view  will  conclude  the  case  in  p.  102. 


102  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  H. 

something  more  is  wanted.  Similarly  in  Hindostan,  thougli  the 
natives  knew  that  the  British  army  numbered  hundreds  of  thou- 
sands, every  petty  independent  prince  thought  himself  fit  to  take 
the  field  against  the  intruder,  till  the  failure  of  the  attempt  sug- 
gested to  him  some  respect  for  les  gros  hataillo7is. 

The  Sioux  dijBfer  greatly  in  their  habits  from  the  Atlantic  tribes 
of  times  gone  by.  The  latter  lived  in  wigwams  or  villages  of 
more  stable  construction  than  the  lodge ;  they  cultivated  the  soil, 
never  wandered  far  from  home,  made  their  expeditions  on  foot, 
having  no  horses,  and  rarely  came  into  action  unless  they  could 
"  tree"  themselves.  They  inflicted  horrid  tortures  on  their  prison- 
ers, as  every  English  child  has  read ;  but,  Arab-like,  they  respect- 
ed the  honor  of  their  female  captives.  The  Prairie  tribes  are  un- 
tamed and  untamable  savages,  superior  only  to  the  "Arab"  hordes 
of  great  cities,  who  appear  destined  to  play  in  the  history  of  future 
ages  the  part  of  Goth  and  Yandal,  Scythian,  Bedouin,  and  Turk. 
Hitherto  the  role  which  these  hunters  have  sustained  in  the  econ- 
omy of  nature  has  been  to  prepare,  by  thinning  off  its  wild  ani- 
mals, a  noble  portion  of  the  world  for  the  higher  race  about  to 
succeed  them.  Captain  Mayne  Eeid  somewhere  derides  the  idea 
of  the  Indian's  progress  toward  extinction.  A  cloud  of  authori- 
ties bear  witness  against  him.  East  of  the  Mississippi  the  savage 
has  virtually  died  out,  and  few  men  allow  him  two  prospective 
centuries  of  existence  in  the  West,  unless  he  be  left,  which  he  will 
not  be,  to  himself. 

"Wolves  of  women  born,"  the  Prairie  Indians  despise  agri- 
culture as  the  Bedouin  does.  Merciless  freebooters,  they  delight 
in  roaming ;  like  all  equestrian  and  uncivilized  people,  they  are 
perfect  horsemen,  but  poor  fighters  when  dismounted,  and  they 
are  nothing  without  their  weapons.  As  a  rule  they  rarely  torture 
their  prisoners,  except  when  an  old  man  or  woman  is  handed  over 
to  the  squaws  and  pappooses  "pour  les  amuser,"  as  a  Canadian  ex- 
pressed it.  Near  and  west  of  the  Kocky  Mountains,  however,  the 
Shoshonees  and  the  Yutas  (Utahs)  are  as  cruel  as  their  limited 
intellects  allow  them  to  be.  Moreover,  all  the  Prairie  tribes  never 
fail  to  subject  women  to  an  ordeal  worse  than  death.  The  best 
character  given  of  late  years  to  the  Sioux  was  by  a  traveler  in 
1845,  who  writes  that  "  their  freedom  and  power  have  imparted 
to  their  warriors  some  gentlemanly  qualities ;  they  are  cleanly, 
dignified  and  graceful  in  manners,  brave,  proud,  and  independent 
in  bearing  and  deed." 

The  qualities  of  the  Sioux,  and  of  the  Prairie  tribes  generally, 
are  little  prized  by  those  who  have  seen  much  of  them.  They 
ignore  the  very  existence  of  gratitude ;  the  benefits  of  years  can 
not  win  their  affections.  After  boarding  and  lodging  with  a 
white  for  any  length  of  time,  they  will  steal  his  clothes ;  and,  aft- 
er receiving  any  number  of  gifts,  they  will  haggle  for  the  value 
of  the  merest  trifle.     They  are  inveterate  thieves  and  beggars ; 


Chap.  II.  THE  SIOUX  CHARACTER.  103 

the  Western  settlers  often  pretend  not  to  understand  their  tongue 
for  fear  of  exposing  themselves  to  perpetual  pilfering  and  perse- 
cution ;  and  even  the  squaws,  who  live  with  the  pale  faces,  annoy 
their  husbands  by  daily  applications  for  beads  and  other  coveted 
objects;  they  are  cruel  to  one  another  as  children.  The  obsti- 
nate revengefulness  of  their  vendetta  is  proverbial ;  they  hate 
with  the  "hate  of  Hell;"  and,  like  the  Highlanders  of  old,  if  the 
author  of  an  injury  escape  them,  they  vent  their  rage  upon  the 
innocent,  because  he  is  of  the  same  clan  or  color.  If  struck  by  a 
white  man,  they  must  either  kill  him  or  receive  damages  in  the 
shape  of  a  horse;  and  after  the  most  trivial  injury  they  can  nev- 
er be  trusted.  Their  punishments  are  Draconic ;  for  all  thino-s 
death,  either  by  shooting  or  burning.  Their  religion  is  a  low 
form  of  fetichism.  They  place  their  women  in  the  most  de- 
graded position.  The  squaw  is  a  mere  slave,  living  a  life  of  utter 
drudgery ;  and  when  the  poor  creature  wishes,  according  to  the 
fashion  of  her  sex,  to  relieve  her  feelings  by  a  domestic  "  scene," 
followed  by  a  "  good  crj^,"  or  to  use  her  knife  upon  a  sister  squaw, 
as  the  Trasteverina  mother  uses  her  bodkin,  the  husband,  after 
squatting  muffled  up,  in  hope  that  the  breeze  will  blow  over,  en- 
forces silence  with  a  cudgel.  The  warrior,  consideriog  the  claase 
an  ample  share  of  the  labor-curse,  is  so  lazy  that  he  will  not  rise 
to  saddle  or  unsaddle  his  pony ;  he  will  sit  down  and  ask  a  white 
man  to  fetch  him  water,  and  only  laugh  if  reproved.  Like  a  wild 
beast,  he  can  not  be  broken  to  work ;  he  would  rather  die  than 
employ  himself  in  honest  industry — a  mighty  contrast  to  the  ne- 
gro, whose  only  happiness  is  in  serving.  He  invariably  attributes 
an  act  of  kindness,  charity,  or  forbearance  to  fear.  Ungenerous, 
he  extols,  like  the  Bedouin,  generosity  to  the  skies.  He  never 
makes  a  present  except  for  the  purpose  of  receiving  more  than  its 
equivalent ;  and  an  "  Indian  gift"  has  come  to  be  a  proverb,  mean- 
ing any  thing  reclaimed  after  being  given  away.  Impulsive  as 
the  African,  his  mind  is  blown  about  by  storms  of  unaccountable 
contradictions.  Many  a  white  has  suddenly  seen  the  scalping- 
knife  restored  to  its  sheath  instead  of  being  buried  in  his  flesh, 
while  others  have  been  as  unexpectedly  assaulted  and  slain  by 
those  from  whom  they  expected  kindness  and  hospitality.  The 
women  are  mostly  cold  and  chaste.  The  men  have  vices  which 
can  not  be  named :  their  redeeming  points  are  fortitude  and  en- 
durance of  hardship ;  moreover,  though  they  care  little  for  their 
wives,  they  are  inordinately  fond  of  their  children.  Of  their 
bravery  Indian  fighters  do  not  speak  highly :  they  are  notorious- 
ly deficient  in  the  civilized  quality  called  moral  courage,  and, 
though  a  brave  will  fight  single-handed  stoutly  enough,  they  rare- 
ly stand  up  long  in  action.  They  are  great  at  surprises,  ambus- 
cades, and  night  attacks :  as  with  the  Arabs  and  Africans,  their 
favorite  hour  for  onslaught  is  that  before  dawn,  when  the  enemy 
is  most  easily  terrified  —  they  know  that  there  is  nothing  which 


104  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  II. 

tries  man's  nerve  so  mucli  as  an  unexpected  night  attack  —  and 
when  the  cattle  can  be  driven  off  to  advantage.  In  some  points 
their  characters  have  been,  it  is  now  granted,  greatly  misunder- 
stood. Their  forced  gravity  and  calmness  —  purely  "company 
manners"  —  were  not  suspected  to  cloak  merriment,  sociability, 
and  a  general  fondness  of  feasts  and  fun.  Their  apathy  and 
sternness,  which  were  meant  for  reserve  and  dignity  among  stran- 
gers, gave  them  an  air  of  ungeniality  which  does  not  belong  to 
their  mental  constitutions.  Their  fortitude  and  endurance  of 
pain  is  the  result,  as  in  the  prize-fighter,  of  undeveloped  brain. 

The  Sioux  are  tall  men,  straight,  and  well  made :  they  are  nev- 
er deformed,  and  are  rarely  crippled,  simply  because  none  but 
the  able-bodied  can  live.  The  shoulders  are  high  and  somewhat 
straight ;  the  figure  is  the  reverse  of  the  sailor's,  that  is  to  say, 
while  the  arms  are  smooth,  feeble,  and  etiolated,  the  legs  are  tol- 
erably muscular;  the  bones  are  often  crooked  or  bowed  in  the 
equestrian  tribes ;  they  walk  as  if  they  wanted  the  ligamentum 
teres ;  there  is  a  general  looseness  of  limb,  which  promises,  how- 
ever, lightness,  endurance,  and  agility,  and  which,  contrasted  with 
the  Caucasian  race,  suggests  the  gait  of  a  wild  compared  with  that 
of  a  tame  animal.  Like  all  savages,  they  are  deficient  in  corpo- 
real strength :  a  civilized  man  finds  no  difficulty  in  handling 
them :  on  this  road  there  is  only  one  Indian  (a  Shoshonee)  who 
can  whip  a  white  in  a  "rough  and  tumble."  The  temperament 
is  usually  bilious-nervous;  the  sanguine  is  rare,  the  lymphatic 
rarer,  and  I  never  knew  or  heard  of  an  albino.  The  hands,  es- 
pecially in  the  higher  tribes,  are  decidedly  delicate,  but  this  is 
more  observable  in  the  male  than  in  the  female ;  the  type  is  rather 
that  of  the  Hindoo  than  of  the  African  or  the  European.  The  feet, 
being  more  used  than  the  other  extremities,  and  unconfined  by 
boot  or  shoe,  are  somewhat  splay,  spreading  out  immediately  be- 
hind the  toes,  while  the  heel  is  remarkably  narrow.  In  conse- 
quence of  being  carried  straight  to  the  fore — the  only  easy  posi- 
tion for  walking  through  grass — they  tread,  like  the  ant-eater, 
more  heavily  on  the  outer  than  on  the  inner  edge.  The  sign  of 
the  Indian  is  readily  recognized  by  the  least  experienced  tracker. 

It  is  erroneously  said  that  he  who  has  seen  a  single  Indian  has 
seen  them  all.  Of  course  there  is  a  great  similarity  among  sav- 
ages and  barbarians  of  the  same  race  and  climate.  The  same  pur- 
suits, habits,  and  customs  naturally  produce  an  identity  of  expres- 
sion which,  as  in  the  case  of  husband  and  wife,  parent  and  child, 
moulds  the  features  into  more  or  less  of  likeness.  On  the  other 
hand,  a  practiced  eye  will  distinguish  the  Indian  individually  or 
by  bands  as  easily  as  the  shepherd,  by  marks  invisible  to  others, 
can  swear  to  his  sheep.  I  have  little  doubt  that  to  the  savages 
all  white  men  look  alike. 

The  Prairie  Indian's  hair  and  complexion  have  already  been 
described.     Accordino;  to  some  savasres  the  build  of  the  former 


Chat.  II.  THE  INDIAN  CONSTITUTION.  105 

differs  materially  from  that  of  the  European  and  the  Asiatic.  The 
animal  development  varies  in  the  several  races :  the  Pawnee's  and 
Yuta's  scalp-lock  rarely  exceeds  eighteen  inches  in  length,  while 
that  of  the  Crow,  like  the  East  Indian  Jatawala's,  often  sweeps  the 
ground.  There  are  salient  characteristics  in  the  cranium  which 
bear  testimony  to  many  phrenological  theories.  The  transverse 
diameter  of  the  rounded  skull  between  the  parietal  bones,  where 
destructiveness  and  secretiveness  are  placed,  is  enormous,  some- 
times exceeding  the  longitudinal  line  from  sinciput  to  occiput,  the 
direct  opposite  of  the  African  negro's  organization.  The  region 
of  the  cerebellum  is  deficient  and  shrunken,  as  with  the  European 
in  his  second  childhood :  it  sensibly  denotes  that  the  subject  wants 
"  vim."  The  coronal  region,  where  the  sentiments  are  supposed 
to  lie,  is  rather  flat  than  arched ;  in  extreme  cases  the  face  seems 
to  occupy  two  thirds  instead  of  half  the  space  between  poll  and 
chin.  The  low  conical  forehead  recedes,  as  in  Eobespierre's  head, 
from  the  region  of  benevolence,  and  rises  high  at  the  apex,  where 
firmness  and  self-esteem  reside :  a  common  formation  among  wild 
tribes,  as  every  traveler  in  Asia  and  Africa  has  remarked.  The 
facial  angle  of  Camper  varies,  according  to  phrenologists,  between 
70°  and  80°.  The  projecting  lower  brow  is  strong,  broad,  and 
massive,  showing  that  development  of  the  perceptions  which  is 
produced  by  the  constant  and  minute  observation  of  a  limited 
number  of  objects.  The  well-known  Indian  art  of  following  the 
trail  is  one  result  of  this  property.  The  nose  is  at  once  salient 
and  dilated — in  fact,  partaking  of  the  Caucasian  and  African  types. 
The  nostrils  are  broad  and  deeply  whorled ;  the  nasal  orifice  is 
wide,  and,  according  to  osteologists,  the  bones  that  protect  it  are 
arched  and  expanded ;  the  eyebrows  are  removed,  like  the  beard 
and  mustache,  by  vellication,  giving  a  dull  and  bald  look  to  the 
face ;  the  lashes,  however,  grow  so  thickly  that  they  often  show  a 
sooty  black  line,  suggesting  the  presence  of  the  Oriental  kohl  or 
surma.  The  orbits  are  large  and  square :  largeness  and  square- 
ness are,  in  fact,  the  general  character  of  the  features :  it  doubtless 
produces  that  peculiar  besotted  look  which  belongs  to  the  Indian 
as  to  the  Mongolian  family.  The  conjunctival  membrane  has  the 
whiteness  and  clearness  of  the  European  and  the  Asiatic ;  it  is 
not,  as  in  the  African,  brown,  yellow,  or  red.  The  pupil,  like  the 
hair,  is  of  different  shades  between  black  and  brown :  when  the 
organ  is  blue — an  accident  which  leads  to  a  suspicion  of  mixed 
blood — the  owner  generally  receives  a  name  from  the  peculiarity. 
Travelers,  for  the  most  part,  describe  the  organ  as  '•  black  and 
piercing,  snaky  and  venomous ;"  others  as  "dull  and  sleepy ;" 
while  some  detect  in  its  color  a  mingling  of  black  and  gray.  The 
only  peculiarity  which  I  observed  in  the  pupil  was  its  similarity 
to  that  of  the  gipsy.  The  Indian  first  fixes  upon  you  a  piercing 
glance,  w^hich  seems  to  look  below  the  surface.  Afler  a  few  sec- 
onds, however,  the  eye  glazes  as  though  a  film  passed  over  it,  and 


106  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  II. 

gazes,  as  it  were,  on  vacancy.  The  look  would  at  once  convict 
Eim  of  Jattatura  and  Molocchio  in  Italy,  and  of  El  Ayn,  or  the 
Evil  Eye,  in  the  East.  The  mouth  is  at  once  full  and  compress- 
ed ;  it  opens  widely ;  the  lips  are  generally  hordes  or  everted — 
decidedly  the  most  unpleasant  fault  which  that  feature  can  have 
— the  corners  are  drawn  down  as  if  by  ill  temper,  and  the  two 
seams  which  spring  from  the  alas  of  the  nostrils  are  deeply  traced. 
This  formation  of  the  oral,  combined  with  the  fullness  of  the  cir- 
cumoral  regions,  and  the  length  and  fleshiness  of  the  naked  upper 
lip,  communicates  a  peculiar  animality  to  the  countenance.  The 
cheek-bones  are  high  and  bony ;  they  are  not,  however,  expanded 
or  spread  backward,  nor  do  they,  as  in  the  Chinese,  alter  the  ap- 
pearance of  the  eyes  by  making  them  oblique.  The  cheeks  are 
rather  lank  and  falling  in  than  full  or  oval.  The  whole  maxilla- 
ry organ  is  projecting  and  ponderous.  The  wide  condyles  of  the 
lower  jaw  give  a  remarkable  massiveness  to  the  jowl,  while  the 
chin — perhaps  the  most  characteristic  feature — is  long,  bony,  large, 
and  often  parted  in  the  centre.  The  teeth  are  faultless,  full-sized 
and  white,  even  and  regular,  strong  and  lasting;  and  they  are 
vertical,  not  sloping  forward  like  the  African's.  To  sum  up,  the 
evanishing  of  the  forehead,  the  compression  of  the  lips,  the  breadth 
and  squareness  of  the  jaw,  and  the  massiveness  of  the  chin,  com- 
bine to  produce  a  normal  expression  of  harshness  and  cruelty, 
which,  heightened  by  red  and  black  war-paint,  locks  like  horse- 
hair, j^lumes,  and  other  savage  decorations,  form  a  "rouge  dragon" 
whose  tout  ensemble  is  truly  revolting. 

The  women  when  in  their  teens  have  often  that  heauie  du  dia- 
hle,  which  may  be  found  even  among  the  African  negresses ;  noth- 
ing, however,  can  be  more  evanescent.  When  full  grown  the  fig- 
ure becomes  dumpy  and  trcqni ;  and  the  face,  though  sometimes 
not  without  a  certain  comeliness,  has  a  Turanian  breadth  and  flat- 
ness. The  best  portrait  of  a  sightly  Indian  woman  is  that  of 
Pocahontas,  the  Princess,  published  by  Mr.  Schoolcraft.  The 
drudgery  of  the  tent  and  field  renders  the  squaw  cold  and  unim- 
passioned ;  and,  like  the  coarsest-minded  women  in  civilized  races, 
her  eye  and  her  heart  mean  one  and  the  same  thing.  She  will 
administer  "squaw  medicine,"  a  love  philter,  to  her  husband,  but 
rather  for  the  purpose  of  retaining  his  protection  than  his  love. 
She  has  all  the  modesty  of  a  savage,  and  is  not  deficient  in  sense 
of  honor.  She  has  no  objection  to  a  white  man,  but,  Aflfghan-like, 
she  usually  changes  her  name  to  "  John"  or  some  other  alias.  Her 
demerits  are  a  habit  of  dunning  for  presents,  and  a  dislike  to  the 
virtue  that  ranks  next  to  godliness,  which  nothing  but  the  fear  of 
the  rod  will  subdue.  She  has  literally  no  belief,  not  even  in  the 
rude  fetichism  of  her  husband,  and  consequently  she  has  no  re- 
ligious exercises.  As  she  advances  in  years  she  rapidly  descends 
in  physique  and  morale:  there  is  nothing  on  earth  more  fiendlike 
than  the  vengeance  of  a  cretin-like  old  squaw. 


Chap.  II.  THE  INDIAN'S  RELIGION.  107 

The  ancient  Persians  tanglit  their  progeny  archery,  riding,  and 
truth-telling ;  the  Prairie  Indian's  curriculum  is  much  the  same, 
only  the  last  of  the  trio  is  carefully  omitted.  The  Indian,  like 
other  savages,  never  tells  the  truth ;  verity  is  indeed  rather  an 
intellectual  than  an  instinctive  virtue,  which,  as  children  prove, 
must  be  taught  and  made  intelligible;  except  when  "counting 
his  coups,"  in  other  words,  recounting  his  triumphs,  his  life  is 
therefore  one  system  of  deceit,  the  strength  of  the  weak.  An- 
other essential  part  of  education  is  to  close  the  mouth  during 
sleep :  the  Indian  has  a  superstition  that  all  disease  is  produced 
by  inhalation.  The  children,  "  born  like  the  wild  ass's  colts,"  are 
systematically  spoiled  with  the  view  of  fostering  their  audacity ; 
the  celebrated  apophthegm  of  the  Wise  King — to  judge  from  his 
notable  failure  at  home,  he  probably  did  not  practice  what  he 
preached — which  has  caused  such  an  expenditure  of  birch  and 
cane  in  higher  races,  would  be  treated  with  contempt  by  the  In- 
dians. The  fond  mother,  when  chastening  her  child,  never  goes 
beyond  dashing  a  little  cold  water  in  its  face — for  which  reason 
to  besprinkle  a  man  is  a  mortal  insult — a  system  which,  perhaps, 
might  be  naturalized  with  advantage  in  some  parts  of  Europe. 
The  son  is  taught  to  make  his  mother  toil  for  him,  and  openly  to 
disobey  his  sire ;  at  seven  years  of  age  he  has  thrown  off  all  pa- 
rental restraint ;  nothing  keeps  him  in  order  but  the  fear  of  the 
young  warriors.  At  ten  or  twelve  he  openly  rebels  against  all 
domestic  rule,  and  does  not  hesitate  to  strike  his  father ;  the  pa- 
rent then  goes  off  rubbing  his  hurt,  and  boasting  to  his  neighbors 
of  the  brave  boy  whom  he  has  begotten. 

The  religion  of  the  Xorth  American  Indians  has  long  been  a 
subject  of  debate.  Some  see  in  it  traces  of  Judaism,  others  of 
Sabaeanism ;  Mr.  Schoolcraft  detects  a  degradation  of  Guebrism. 
His  faith  has,  it  is  true,  a  suspicion  of  duality ;  Hormuzd  and 
Ahriman  are  recognizable  in  Gitche  Manitou  and  Mujhe  Mani- 
tou,  and  the  latter,  the  Bad  god,  is  naturally  more  worshiped,  be- 
cause more  feared,  than  the  Good  god.  Moreover,  some  tribes 
show  respect  for  and  swear  by  the  sun,  and  others  for  fire :  there 
is  a  north  god  and  a  south  god,  a  wood  god,  a  prairie  god,  an  air 
god,  and  a  water  god ;  but — they  have  not  risen  to  monotheism 
—  there  is  not  one  God.  iSTone,  however,  appear  to  have  that 
reverence  for  the  elements  which  is  the  first  article  of  the  Zoroas- 
trian  creed ;  the  points  of  difference  are  many,  while  those  of  re- 
semblance are  few  and  feeble,  and  it  is  hard  to  doubt  that  the  in- 
stincts of  mankind  have  been  pressed  by  controversialists  into 
the  service  of  argument  as  traditional  tenets. 

To  judge  from  books  and  the  conversation  of  those  who  best 
know  the  Indians,  he  is  distinctly  a  Fetichist  like  the  African  ne- 
gro, and,  indeed,  like  all  the  child-like  races  of  mankind.*    The 

*  The  reader  who  cares  to  consult  my  studies  upon  the  subject  of  Fctichism  in 
Africa,  where  it  is  and  ever  has  been  the  national  creed,  is  referred  to  "The  Lake 


108  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS,  Chap.  II. 

medicine-man  is  his  mganga,  angekok,  sorcerer,  prophet,  physi- 
cian, exerciser,  priest,  and  rain-doctor ;  only,  as  he  is  rarely  a  cul- 
tivator of  the  soil,  instead  of  heavy  showers  and  copious  crops,  he 
is  promised  scalps,  salmon  trout,  and  buffalo  beef  in  plenty.  He 
has  the  true  Fetichist's  belief — invariably  found  in  tribes  who 
live  dependent  upon  the  powers  of  Kature — in  the  younger  broth- 
ers of  the  human  family,  the  bestial  creation :  he  holds  to  a  met- 
amorphosis like  that  of  Abyssinia,  and  to  speaking  animals. 
Every  warrior  chooses  a  totem,  some  quadruped,  bird,  or  fish,  to 
which  he  prays,  and  which  he  will  on  no  account  kill  or  eat  Dr. 
Livingstone  shows  (chap,  i.)  that  the  same  custom  prevails  in  its 
entirety  among  the  Kaffir  Bakwaina,  and  ojDines  that  it  shows 
traces  of  addiction  to  animal  worship,  like  the  ancient  Egyptians ; 
in  the  prophecies  of  Israel  the  tribes  are  compared  with  animals, 
a  true  totemic  practice.  The  word  totem  also  signifies  a  sub-clan 
or  sub-tribe ;  and  some  nations,  like  the  African  Somal,  will  not 
allow  marriage  in  the  same  totem.  The  medicine-men  give  away 
young  children  as  an  atonement  when  calamities  impend :  they 
go  clothed,  not  in  sackcloth  and  ashes,  but  in  coats  of  mire,  and 
their  macerations  and  self-inflicted  tortures  rival  those  of  the  Hin- 
doos: a  fanatic  has  been  known  to  drag  about  a  buffalo  skull 
with  a  string  cut  from  his  own  skin  till  it  is  torn  away.  In 
spring-time,  the  braves,  and  even  the  boys,  repairing  to  lonely 
places  and  hill-tops,  their  faces  and  bodies  being  masked,  as  if  in 
mourning,  with  mud,  fast  and  pray,  and  sing  rude  chants  to  pro- 
pitiate the  ghosts  for  days  consecutively.  The  Fetichist  is  ever 
^ossly  superstitious ;  and  the  Indians,  as  might  be  expected, 
abound  in  local  rites.  Some  tribes,  as  the  Cheyennes,  wUl  not  go 
to  war  without  a  medicine-man,  others  without  sacred  war-gourds* 
containing  the  tooth  of  the  drum-head  fish.  Children  born  with 
teeth  are  looked  upon  as  portents,  and  when  gray  at  birth  the 
phenomenon  is  attributed  to  evil  ghosts. 

I  can  not  but  think  that  the  two  main  articles  of  belief  which 
have  been  set  down  to  the  credit  of  the  Indian,  namely,  the  Great 
Spirit  or  Creator,  and  the  Happy  Hunting-grounds  in  a  future 
world,  are  the  results  of  missionary  teaching,  the  work  of  Fathers 
Hennepin,  Marquette,  and  their  noble  army  of  martyred  Jesuit 
followers.  In  later  days  they  served  chiefly  to  inspire  the  An- 
glo-American muse,  e.g.: 

"By  midnight  moons  o'er  moistening  dews. 
In  vestments  for  the  chase  arrayed, 
The  hunter  still  the  deer  pursues — 
The  hunter  and  the  deer,  a  shade  ! 


Regions  of  Central  Africa,"  chap.  xix.  The  modes  of  belief,  and  the  manners  and 
customs  of  savage  and  barbarous  races  are  so  similar,  that  a  knowledge  of  the  Afri- 
can is  an  excellent  introduction  to  that  of  the  American. 

*  This  gourd  or  calabash  is  the  produce  of  the  Cticurbha  hgenaria,  or  calabash 
vine.  In  Spanish,  Central,  and  Southern  America,  Cuba  and  the  West  Indies,  they 
use  the  large  round  fruit  of  the  Crescentia  cujete. 


Chap.  U.  THE  INDIAN'S  KELIGION.  109 

And  long  shall  timorous  fancy  see 

The  painted  chief  and  pointed  spear, 
And  Reason's  self  shall  bow  the  knee 

To  shadows  and  delusions  here." 

My  conviction  is,  that  the  English  and  American's  popular  ideas 
upon  the  subject  are  unreliable,  and  th'at  their  embodiment,  beau- 
tiful poetry,  "Lo  the  poor  Indian,"  down  to  "his  faithful  dog 
shall  bear  him  company,"  are  but  a  splendid  myth.  The  North 
American  aborigine  believed,  it  is  true,  in  an  unseen  power,  the 
Manitou,  or,  as  we  are  obliged  to  translate  it,  "  Spirit,"  residing 
in  every  heavenly  body,  animal,  plant,  or  other  natural  object. 
This  is  the  very  essence  of  that  form  of  Fetichism  which  leads  to 
Pantheism  and  Polytheism.  There  was  a  Manitou,  as  he  con- 
ceived, which  gave  the  spark  from  the  flint,  lived  in  every  blade 
of  grass,  flowed  in  the  streams,  shone  in  the  stars,  and  thundered 
in  the  waterfall ;  but  in  each  example — a  notable  instance  of  the 
want  of  abstractive  and  generalizing  power — the  idea  of  the  Deity 
was  particular  and  concrete.  When  the  Jesuit  fathers  suggested 
the  luiity  of  the  Great  Spirit  pervading  all  beings,  it  was  very 
readily  recognized;  but  the  generalization  was  not  worked  out 
by  the  Indian  mind.  lie  was,  therefore,  like  all  savages,  atheistic 
in  the  literal  sense  of  the  word.  He  had  not  arrived  at  the  first 
step.  Pantheism,  which  is  so  far  an  improvement  that  it  opens  out 
a  grand  idea,  the  omnipresence,  and  consequently  the  omnipo- 
tence, of  the  Deity.  In  most  North  American  languages  the 
Theos  is  known,  not  as  the  "  Great  Spirit,"  but  as  the  "  Great 
Father,"  a  title  also  applied  to  the  President  of  the  United  States, 
who  is,  I  believe,  tliough  sometimes  a  step-father,  rather  the  more 
reverenced  of  the  twain.  With  respect  to  the  happy  hunting- 
grounds,  it  is  a  mere  corollary  of  the  monotheistic  theorem  above 
proved.  It  is  doubtful  whether  these  savages  ever  grasped  the 
idea  of  a  human  soul.  The  Chicury  of  New  England,  indeed, 
and  other  native  words  so  anglicized,  appear  distinctly  to  mean 
the  African  Pepo — ghost  or  larva. 

Certain  missionaries  have  left  us  grotesque  accounts  of  the  sim- 
ple good  sense  with  which  the  Indians  of  old  received  the  Glad 
Tidings.  The  strangers  were  courteously  received,  the  calumet 
was  passed  round,  and  they  were  invited  to  make  known  their 
wants  in  a  "  big  talk."  They  did  so  by  producing  a  synopsis  of 
their  faith,  beginning  at  Adam's  apple  and  ending  at  the  Savior's 
cross.  The  patience  of  the  Indian  in  enduring  long  speeches, 
sermons,  and  harangues  has  ever  been  exemplary  and  peculiar,  as 
his  fortitude  in  suft'ering  lingering  physical  tortures.  The  audi- 
ence listened  with  a  solemn  demeanor,  not  once  interrupting  what 
must  have  appeared  to  them  a  very  wild  and  curious  story. 
Called  upon  to  make  some  remark,  these  antipomologists  simply 
ejaculated, 

"Apples  are  not  wholesome,  and  those  who  crucified  Christ 
were  bad  men !" 


IIQ  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap,  U. 

In  their  turn,  some  display  of  oratory  "was  required.  They 
avoided  the  tedious,  long-drawn  style  of  argument,  and  spoke,  as 
was  their  wont,  briefly  to  the  point.  "It  is  good  of  you,"  said 
they,  "to  cross  the  big  water,  and  to  follow  the  Indian's  trail, 
that  5'e  may  relate  to  us  what  ye  have  related.  Now  listen  to 
what  our  mothers  told  us.  Our  first  father,  after  killing  a  beast, 
was  roasting  a  rib  before  the  fire,  when  a  spirit,  descending  from 
the  skies,  sat  upon  a  neighboring  bluff.  She  was  asked  to  eat. 
She  ate  fat  meat.  Then  she  arose  and  silently  went  her  way. 
From  the  place  where  she  rested  her  two  hands  grew  corn  and 
pumpkin ;  and  from  the  place  where  she  sat  sprang  tobacco !" 

The  missionaries  listened  to  the  savage  tradition  with  an  ex- 
cusable disrespect,  and,  not  unnaturally,  often  interrupted  it.  This 
want  of  patience  and  dignity,  however,  drew  upon  them  severe 
remarks.  "Pooh!''  observed  the  Indians.  "When  you  told  us 
what  your  mothers  told  you,  we  gave  ear  in  silence  like  men. 
When  we  tell  you  what  our  mothers  told  us,  ye  give  tongue  like 
squaws.     Go  to !     Ye  are  no  medicine-men,  but  silly  fellows !" 

Besides  their  superstitious  belief  in  ghosts,  spirits,  or  familiars, 
and  the  practice  of  spells  and  charms,  love-philters,  dreams  and 
visions,  war-medicine,  hunting-medicine,  self-torture,  and  incanta- 
tions, the  Indians  had,  it  appears  to  me,  but  three  religious  ob- 
servances, viz.,  dancing,  smoking,  and  scalping. 

The  war-dances,  the  corn-dances,  the  bufiialo-dances,  the  scalp- 
dances,  and  the  other  multiform  and  solemn  saltations  of  these 
savages,  have  been  minutely  depicted  and  described  by  many 
competent  observers.  The  theme  also  is  beyond  the  limits  of  an 
essay  like  this. 

Smoking  is  a  boon  which  the  Old  owes  to  the  New  World.  It 
is  a  heavy  call  upon  our  gratitude,  for  which  we  have  naturally 
been  very  ungrateful. 

"  Non  epulis  tantum,  non  Bacchi  pascimur  usu, 
Pascimur  et  fumis,  ingeniosa  gula  est." 

We  began  by  calling  our  new  gift  the  "holy  herb ;"  it  is  now, 
like  the  Balm  of  Gilead,  entitled,  I  believe,  a  weed.  Among  the 
North  American  Indians  even  the  spirits  smoke;  the  "Indian 
summer"  is  supposed  to  arise  from  the  puffs  that  proceed  from 
the  pipe  of  Nanabozhoo,  the  Ojibwa  Noah.  The  pipe  may  have 
been  used  in  the  East  before  the  days  of  tobacco,  but  if  so  it  was 
probably  applied  to  the  inhalation  of  cannabis  and  other  intoxi- 
cants." On  the  other  hand,  the  Indian  had  no  stimulants.  He 
never  invented  the  beer  of  Osiris,  though  maize  grew  abundantly 
around  him  ;f  the  koumiss  of  the  Tartar  was  beyond  his  mental 

*  The  word  tobacco  (W^'est  Indian,  tobago  or  tobacco,  a  peculiar  pipe),  which  has 
spread  through  Europe,  Asia,  and  Africa,  seems  to  prove  the  origin  of  the  nicotiana, 
and  the  non-mention  of  smoking  in  the  "  Arabian  Nights"  disproves  the  habit  of  in- 
haling any  other  succedaneum. 

+  It  has  long  been  disputed  whether  maize  was  indigenous  to  America  or  to  Asia ; 
learned  names  are  found  on  both  sides  of  the  question.     In  Central  Africa  the  ce- 


Chap.  II.  THE  SMOKING  RITE.  HI 

reach;  and  though  "  Jimsen  weed"*  overruns  the  land,  he  neglect- 
ed its  valuable  intoxicating  properties.  His  is  almost  the  only  race 
that  has  ever  existed  wholly  without  a  stimulant;  the  fact  is  a 
strong  proof  of  its  autochthonic  origin.  It  is  indeed  incredible 
that  man,  having  once  learned,  should  ever  forget  the  means  of 
getting  drunk.  Instead  of  the  social  cup  the  Indian  smoked.  As 
tobacco  does  not  grow  throughout  the  continent,  he  invented  kin- 
nikinik.  This  Indian  word  has  many  meanings.  By  the  hunt- 
ers and  settlers  it  is  applied  to  a  mixture  of  half  and  half,  or  two 
thirds  tobacco  and  one  of  red  willow  bark ;  others  use  it  for  a 
mixture  of  tobacco,  sumach  leaves,  and  willow  rind ;  others,  like 
Euxton  ("Life  in  the  Far  West,"  p.  116),  for  the  cortex  of  the  wil- 
low only.  This  tree  grows  abundantly  in  copses  near  the  streams 
and  water-courses.  For  smoking,  the  twigs  are  cut  when  the  leaves 
begin  to  redden.  Some  tribes,  like  the  Sioux,  remove  the  outer 
and  use  only  the  highly-colored  inner  bark ;  others  again,  like  the 
Shoshonees,  employ  the  external  as  well  as  the  internal  cuticle. 
It  is  scraped  down  the  twig  in  curling  ringlets,  without,  however, 
stripping  it  off;  the  stick  is  then  j)lanted  in  the  ground  before  the 
fire,  and,  when  sufficiently  parched,  the  material  is  bruised,  com- 
minuted, and  made  ready  for  use.  The  taste  is  pleasant  and  aro- 
matic, but  the  effect  is  that  of  the  puerile  ratan  rather  than  the 
manly  tobacco.  The  Indian,  be  it  observed,  smokes  like  all  sav- 
ages by  inhaling  the  fumes  into  the  lungs,  and  returning  them 
through  the  nostrils :  he  finds  pure  tobacco,  therefore,  too  strong 
and  pungent.  As  has  been  said,  he  is  catholic  in  his  habits  of 
smoking ;  he  employs  indifferently  rose-bark  {Rosa  hlanda  ?)\  and 
the  cuticle  of  a  cornus,  the  lobelia,:}:  the  larb,  a  vaccinium,  a  Daph- 
ne-like plant,  and  many  others.  The  Indian  smokes  incessantly, 
and  the  "  calumet"§  is  an  important  part  of  his  household  goods. 

real  is  now  called  as  in  English,  "Indian  corn,"  proving  that  in  that  continent  it  first 
was  introduced  from  Hindostan.  The  Italians  have  named  it  Gran'  Turco,  showing 
whence  it  was  imported  by  them.  The  word  maiz,  mays,  maize,  or  mahiz,  is  a  Carib 
word  introduced  by  the  Spaniards  into  Europe ;  in  the  United  States,  where  "corn" 
is  universally  used,  maize  is  intelligible  only  to  the  educated. 

*  Properly  Jamestown  weed,  the  Datura  stramonium,  the  English  thorn-apple,  un- 
prettily  called  in  the  Northern  States  of  America  "stinkweed."  It  found  its  way 
into  the  higher  latitudes  from  Jamestown  (Virginia),  where  it  was  first  observed 
springing  on  heaps  of  ballast  and  other  rubbish  discharged  from  vessels.  According 
to  Beverly  ("History  of  Virginia,"  book  ii.,  quoted  by  Mr.  Bartlett),  it  is  "  one  of  the 
greatest  coolers  in  the  world ;"  and  in  some  young  soldiers  who  ate  plentifully  of  it 
as  a  salad,  to  pacify  the  troubles  of  bacon,  the  effect  was  "  a  very  pleasant  remedy,  for 
they  turned  natural  fools  upon  it  for  several  days." 

t  The  wild  rose  is  every  where  met  with  growing  in  bouquets  on  the  prairies. 

X  The  Lobelia  inflata,  or  Indian  tobacco,  is  corrupted  by  the  ignorant  Western  man 
to  low  belia  in  contradistinction  to  high  belia,  better  varieties  of  the  plant. 

§  The  calumet,  a  word  introduced  by  the  old  French,  is  the  red  sandstone  pipe, 
described  in  a  previous  page,  with  a  long  tube,  generally  a  reed,  adorned  with  feath- 
ers. It  is  the  Indian  symbol  of  hatred  or  amity;  there  is  a  calumet  of  war  as  well 
as  a  calumet  of  peace.  To  accept  the  calumet  is  to  come  to  terms  ;  to  refuse  it  is  to 
reject  them.  The  same  is  expressed  by  burying  and  digging  up  the  tomahawk  or 
hatchet.  The  tomahawk  and  calumet  are  sometimes  made  of  one  piece  of  stone ; 
specimens,  however,  have  become  very  rare  since  the  introduction  of  the  iron  axe. 


112  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  H. 

He  has  many  superstitions  about  the  practice.  It  is  a  sacred  in- 
strument, and  its  red  color  typifies  the  smoker's  flesh.  The  West- 
ern travelers  mention  offerings  of  tobacco  to,  and  smoking  of  pipes 
in  honor  of,  the  Great  Spirit.  Some  men  will  vow  never  to  use 
the  i^ipe  in  public,  others  to  abstain  on  particular  days.  Some 
will  not  smoke  with  their  moccasins  on,  others  with  steel  about 
their  persons ;  some  are  pledged  to  abstain  inside,  others  outside 
the  wigwam,  and  many  scatter  buffalo  chip  over  their  tobacco. 
When  beginning  to  smoke  there  are  certain  observances ;  some, 
exempli  gratia^  direct,  after  the  fashion  of  Gitche  Manitou,  the  first 
puff"  upward  or  heavenward,  the  second  earthward,  and  the  third 
and  fourth  over  the  right  and  left  shoulders,  probably  in  propitia- 
tion of  the  ghosts,  who  are  being  smoked  for  in  proxy ;  others, 
before  the  process  of  inhaling,  touch  the  ground  with  the  heel  of 
the  pipe-bowl,  and  turn  the  stem  upward  and  averted. 

According  to  those  who,  like  Pennant,  derive  the  North  Amer- 
ican from  the  Scythians,  scalping  is  a  practice  that  originated  in 
High  and  Northeastern  Asia.  The  words  of  the  Father  of  His- 
tory are  as  follows :  "  Of  the  first  enemy  a  Scythian  sends  down, 
he  quaffs  the  blood ;  he  carries  the  heads  of  all  that  he  has  slain 
in  battle  to  the  king ;  for  when  he  has  brought  a  head,  he  is  en- 
titled to  a  share  of  the  booty  that  may  be  taken — not  otherwise ; 
to  skin  the  head,  he  makes  a  circular  incision  from  ear  to  ear, 
and  then,  laying  hold  of  the  crown,  shakes  out  the  skull ;  after 
scraping  off  the  flesh  with  an  ox's  rib,  he  rumples  it  between 
his  hands,  and  having  thus  softened  the  skin,  makes  use  of  it  as 
a  napkin ;  he  appends  it  to  the  bridle  of  the  horse  he  rides,  and 
prides  himself  on  this,  for  the  Scythian  that  has  most  of  these  skin 
napkins  is  adjudged  the  best  man,  etc.,  etc.  They  also  use  the 
entire  skins  as  horse-cloths,  also  the  skulls  for  drinking-cups." — 
("Melpomene,"  iv.,  64,  Laurent's  trans.)  The  underlying  idea  is 
doubtless  the  natural  wish  to  preserve  a  memorial  of  a  foeman 
done  to  death,  and  at  the  same  time  to  dishonor  his  hateful  corpse 
by  mutilation.  Fashion  and  tradition  regulate  the  portions  of 
the  human  frame  preferred. 

Scalping  is  generally,  but  falsely,  supposed  to  be  a  peculiarly 
American  practice.  The  Abbe  Em.  Domenech  ("  Seven  Years' 
Eesidence  in  the  Great  Deserts  of  North  America,"  chap,  xxxix.) 
quotes  the  deccdvare  of  the  ancient  Germans,  the  capiUos  et  cutem 
detrahere  of  the  code  of  the  Visigoths,  and  the  annals  of  Flude, 
which  prove  that  the  "  Anglo-Saxons"  and  the  Franks  still  scalp- 
ed about  A.D.  879.  And  as  the  modern  American  practice  is 
traceable  to  Europe  and  Asia,  so  it  may  be  found  in  Africa,  where 
aught  of  ferocity  is  rarely  wanting.     "  In  a  short  time  after  our 

The  "Song  of  Hiawatha"  (Canto  I.,  The  Peace  Pipe)  and  the  interesting  "Let- 
ters and  Notes  on  the  Manners,  Customs,  and  Conditions  of  the  North  American  In- 
dians"' (vol.  ii.,  p.  IGO),  have  made  the  Eed  Pipe-stone  Quany  familiar  to  the  En- 
glishman. 


Chap.  II.  THE  SCALPING  RITE.  113 

return,"  says  Mr.  Duncan  ("  Travels  in  Western  Africa  in  1845 
and  1846"),  "  the  Apadomey  regiment  passed,  on  their  return,  in 
single  file,  each  leading  in  a  string  a  young  male  or  female  slave, 
carrying  also  the  dried  scalp  of  one  man  supposed  to  have  been 
killed  in  the  attack.  On  all  such  occasions,  when  a  person  is 
killed  in  battle,  the  skin  is  taken  from  the  head  and  kept  as  a 
trophy  of  valor.  It  must  not  be  supposed  that  these  female  war- 
riors kill  according  to  the  number  of  scalps  presented ;  the  scalps 
are  the  accumulation  of  many  years.  If  six  or  seven  men  are 
killed  during  one  year's  war  it  is  deemed  a  great  thing;  one  party 
always  run  away  in  these  slave-hunts ;  but  where  armies  meet 
the  slaughter  is  great.  I  counted  700  scalps  pass  in  this  manner." 
But  mutilation,  like  cannibalism,  tattooing,  and  burying  in  bar- 
rows, is  so  natural  under  certain  circumstances  to  man's  mind 
that  we  distinctly  require  no  traditional  derivation. 

Scalp-taking  is  a  solemn  rite.  In  the  good  old  times  braves 
scrupulously  awaited  the  wounded  man's  death  before  they  "  raised 
his  hair ;"  in  the  laxity  of  modern  daj^s,  however,  this  humane 
custom  is  too  often  disregarded.  Properly  speaking,  the  trophy 
should  be  taken  after  fair  fight  with  a  hostile  warrior ;  this  also 
is  now  neglected.  When  the  Indian  sees  his  enemy  fall  he  draws 
his  scalp-knife — the  modern  is  of  iron,  formerly  it  was  of  flint,  ob- 
sidian, or  other  hard  stone — and  twisting  the  scalp-lock,  which  is 
left  long  for  that  purpose,  and  boastfully  braided  or  decorated  with 
some  gaudy  ribbon  or  with  the  war-eagle's  plume,  round  his  left 
hand,  makes  with  the  right  two  semicircular  incisions,  with  and 
against  the  sun,  about  the  part  to  be  removed.  The  skin  is  next 
loosened  with  the  knife-point,  if  there  be  time  to  spare  and  if  there 
be  much  scalp  to  be  taken.  The  operator  then  sits  on  the  ground, 
places  his  feet  against  the  subject's  shoulders  by  way  of  leverage, 
and,  holding  the  scalp-lock  with  both  hands,  he  applies  a  strain 
which  soon  brings  off  the  spoils  with  a  sound  which,  I  am  told, 
is  not  unlike  "  flop."  Without  the  long  lock  it  would  be  difficult 
to  remove  the  scalp;  prudent  white  travelers,  therefore,  are  care- 
ful, before  setting  out  through  an  Indian  country,  to  "shingle  off" 
their  hair  as  closely  as  possible;  the  Indian,  moreover,  hardly 
cares  for  a  half-fledged  scalp.  To  judge  from  the  long  love-locks 
affected  by  the  hunter  and  mountaineer,  he  seems  to  think  lightly 
of  this  precaution ;  to  hold  it,  in  fact,  a  point  of  honor  that  the 
savage  should  have  a  fair  chance.  A  few  cunning  men  have  sur- 
prised their  adversaries  with  wigs.  The  operation  of  scalping 
must  be  exceedingly  painful ;  the  sufferer  turns,  wriggles,  and 
"squirms"  upon  the  ground  like  a  scotched  snake.  It  is  supposed 
to  induce  brain  fever ;  many  instances,  however,  are  known  of 
men  and  even  women  recovering  from  it,  as  the  former  do  from 
a  more  dreadful  infliction  in  Abyssinia  and  Galla-land ;  cases  are 
of  course  rare,  as  a  disabling  wound  is  generally  inflicted  before 
the  bloodier  work  is  done. 

H 


114  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  II. 

After  taking  the  scalp,  the  Indian  warrior — proud  as  if  he  had 
won  a  mklaille  de  sauvetage — prepares  for  return  to  his  village. 
He  lingers  outside  for  a  few  days,  and  then,  after  painting  his 
hands  and  face  with  lampblack,  appears  slowly  and  silently  before 
his  lodge.  There  he  squats  for  a  while ;  his  relatives  and  friends, 
accompanied  by  the  elders  of  the  tribe,  sit  with  him  dumb  as  him- 
self Presently  the  question  is  put ;  it  is  answered  with  truth,  al- 
though these  warriors  at  other  times  will  lie  like  Cretans.  The 
"  coup"  is  recounted,  however,  with  abundant  glorification ;  the 
Indians,  like  the  Greek  and  Arab  of  their  classical  ages,  are  allow- 
ed to  vent  their  self-esteem  on  such  occasions  without  blame,  and 
to  enjoy  a  treat  for  which  the  civilized  modern  hero  longs  ardent- 
ly, but  in  vain.  Finally  the  "  green  scalp,"  after  being  dried  and 
mounted,  is  consecrated  by  the  solemn  dance,  and  becomes  then 
fit  for  public  exhibition.  Some  tribes  attach  it  to  a  long  pole 
used  as  a  standard,  and  others  to  their  horses'  bridles,  others  to 
their  targes,  while  others  ornament  with  its  fringes  the  outer 
seams  of  their  leggins ;  in  fact,  its  uses  are  many.  The  more 
scalps  the  more  honor ;  the  young  man  who  can  not  boast  of  a 
single  murder  or  show  the  coveted  trophy  is  held  in  such  scant 
esteem  as  the  English  gentleman  who  contents  himself  with  being 
passing  rich  on  a  hundred  pounds  a  year.  Some  great  war-chiefs 
have  collected  a  heap  of  these  honorable  spoils.  It  must  be  re- 
membered by  "  curio"  hunters  that  only  one  scalp  can  come  off 
one  head ;  namely,  the  centre  lock  or  long  tuft  growing  upon  the 
coronal  apex,  with  about  three  inches  in  diameter  of  skin.  This 
knowledge  is  the  more  needful,  as  the  Western  men  are  in  the 
habit  of  manufacturing  half  a  dozen  cut  from  different  parts  of 
the  same  head ;  they  sell  readily  for  $50  each,  but  the  transaction 
is  not  considered  reputable.  The  connoisseur,  however,  readily 
distinguishes  the  real  article  from  "  false  scalping"  by  the  unusual 
thickness  of  the  cutis,  which  is  more  like  that  of  a  donkey  than 
of  a  man.  Set  in  a  plain  gold  circlet  it  makes  a  very  pretty 
brooch.  Moreover,  each  tribe  has  its  own  fashion  of  scalping  de- 
rived from  its  forefathers.  The  Sioux,  for  instance,  when  they 
have  leisure  to  perform  the  operation,  remove  the  whole  head- 
skin,  including  a  portion  of  the  ears ;  they  then  sit  down  and  dis- 
pose the  ears  upon  the  horns  of  a  buffalo  skull,  and  a  bit  of  the 
flesh  upon  little  heaps  of  earth  or  claj'-,  dis230sed  in  quincunx,  ap- 
parently as  an  offering  to  the  manes  of  their  ancestors,  and  they 
smoke  ceremoniously,  begging  the  manitou  to  send  them  plenty 
more.  The  trophy  is  then  stretched  upon  a  willow  twig  bent 
into  an  oval  shape,  and  lined  with  two  semi-ovals  of  black  or  blue 
and  scarlet  cloth.  The  Yutas  and  the  Prairie  tribes  generally, 
when  pressed  for  time,  merely  take  off  the  poll  skin  that  grows 
the  long  tuft  of  hair,  while  the  Chyuagara  or  ISTez  Perces  prefer  a 
long  strip  about  two  inches  wide,  extending  from  the  nape  to  the 
commissure  of  the  hair  and  forehead.     The  fingers  of  the  slain 


CiiAP.  II.  INDIAN  NAMES.  115 

are  often  reserved  for  sevignes  and  necklaces.  Indians  are  aware 
of  tlie  aversion  with  which  the  pale  faces  regard  this  barbarity. 
Near  Alkali  Lake,  where  there  was  a  large  Dakotah  "  tipi"  or  en- 
campment of  Sioux,  I  tried  to  induce  a  tribesman  to  go  through 
the  imitative  process  before  me ;  he  refused  with  a  gesture  indig- 
nantly repudiating  the  practice.  A  glass  of  whisky  would  doubt- 
less have  changed  his  mind,  but  I  was  imwilling  to  break  through 
the  wholesome  law  that  prohibits  it. 

It  is  not  wonderful  that  the  modern  missionary  should  be  un- 
able to  influence  such  a  brain  as  the  Prairie  Indian's.  The  old 
proj)agandists,  Jesuits  and  Franciscans,  became  medicine-men :  like 
the  great  fraternity  in  India,  they  succeeded  by  the  points  of  re- 
semblance which  the  savages  remarked  in  their  observances,  such 
as  their  images  and  rosaries,  which  would  be  regarded  as  totems, 
and  their  fastings  and  prayers,  which  were  of  course  supposed  to 
be  spells  and  charms.  Their  successors  have  succeeded  about  as 
well  with  the  Indian  as  with  the  African ;  the  settled  tribes  have 
given  ear  to  them,  the  Prairie  wanderers  have  not ;  and  the  Euro- 
peanization  of  the  Indian  generally  is  hopeless  as  the  Christiani- 
zation  of  the  Hindoo.  The  missionaries  usually  live  under  the 
shadow  of  the  different  agencies,  and  even  they  own  that  nothing 
can  be  done  with  the  children  unless  removed  from  the  parental 
influence.  I  do  not  believe  that  an  Indian  of  the  plains  ever  be- 
came a  Christian.  He  must  first  be  humanized,  then  civilized, 
and  lastly  Christianized  ;  and,  as  has  been  said  before,  I  doubt  his 
surviving  the  operation. 

As  might  be  expected  of  the  Indian's  creed,  it  has  few  rites  and 
ceremonies ;  circumcision  is  unknown,  and  it  ignores  the  compli- 
cated observances  which,  in  the  case  of  the  Hindoo  Pantheist,  and 
in  many  African  tribes,  wait  upon  gestation,  parturition,  and  al- 
lactation.  The  child  is  seldom  named.*  There  are  but  five 
words  given  in  regular  order  to  distinguish  one  from  another. 
There  are  no  family  names.  The  men,  after  notable  exploits,  are 
entitled  by  their  tribes  to  assume  the  titles  of  the  distinguished 
dead,  and  each  fresh  deed  brings  a  new  distinction.  Some  of  the 
names  are  poetical  enough  :  the  "  Black  Night,"  for  instance,  the 
"Breaker  of  Arrows,"  or  the  ""War  Eagle's  Wing ;"  others  are 
coarse  and  ridiculous, such  as  "  Squash-head,"  "BuU's-tail,"  "Dirty 
Saddle,"  and  "  Steam  from  a  Cow's  Belly ;"  not  a  few  bear  a 
whimsical  likeness  to  those  of  the  African  negroes,  as  "His  Great 
Fire,"  "  The  Water  goes  in  the  Path,"  and  "  Buffalo  Chips"— the 
"  Mavi  ya  Gnombe"  of  Unyamwezi.  The  son  of  a  chief  succeed- 
ing his  father  usually  assumes  his  name,  so  that  the  little  dynasty, 
like  that  of  the  Pharaohs,  the  Eomuli,  or  the  Numas,  is  perpetua- 
ted. The  women  are  not  unfrequently  called  after  the  parts  and 
properties  of  some  admired  or  valued  animal,  as  the  White  Mar- 

*  The  Ojibwa  and  other  races  have  the  ceremony  of  a  burnt-offering  when  the 
name  is  given. 


IIQ  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  U. 

tin,  the  Young  Mink,*  or  tlie  Muskrat's  Paw.  In  the  north  there 
have  been  men  with  as  many  as  seven  wives,  all  "  Martins."  The 
Prairie  Indians  form  the  names  of  the  women  like  those  of  men, 
adding  the  feminine  suffix,  as  Cloud-woman,  Eed-earth-woman, 
Black-day-woman.  The  white  stranger  is  ever  offending  Indian 
etiquette  by  asking  the  savage  "  What's  your  name  ?"  The  per- 
son asked  looks  aside  for  a  friend  to  assist  him ;  he  has  learned  in 
boyhood  that  some  misfortune  will  happen  to  him  if  he  discloses 
his  name.  Even  husbands  and  wives  never  mention  each  others 
names.     The  same  practice  prevails  in  many  parts  of  Asia. 

Marriage  is  a  simple  affair  with  them.  In  some  tribes  the  bride, 
as  among  the  Australians,  is  carried  off  by  force.  In  others  the 
man  who  wants  a  wife  courts  her  with  a  little  present,  and  pickets 
near  the  father's  lodge  the  number  of  horses  which  he  supposes 
to  be  her  equivalent.  As  among  all  savage  tribes,  the  daughter 
is  a  chattel,  an  item  of  her  father's  goods,  and  he  will  not  part 
with  her  except  for  a  consideration.  The  men  are  of  course  po- 
lygamists ;  they  prefer  to  marry  sisters,  because  the  tent  is  more 
quiet,  and  much  upon  the  principle  with  which  marriage  with  a 
deceased  wife's  sister  is  advocated  in  England.  The  women,  like 
the  Africans,  are  not  a  little  addicted  to  suicide.  Before  espousal 
the  conduct  of  the  weaker  sex  in  many  tribes  is  far  from  irre- 
proachable. The  "  bundling"  of  Wales  and  of  ISTew  England  in 
a  former  dayf  is  not  unknown  to  them,  and  many  think  little  of 
thai  ]J7xegusiatio  matrimonii  v^hich^  in  the  eastern  parts  of  the  New 
World,  goes  by  the  name  of  Fanny  Wrightism  and  Free-loveism. 
Several  tribes  make  trial,  like  the  Highlanders  before  the  reign 
of  James  the  Fifth,  of  their  wives  for  a  certain  time  —  a  kind  of 
"  hand-fasting,"  which  is  to  morality  what  fetichism  is  to  faith. 
There  are  few  nations  in  the  world  among  whom  this  practice, 
originating  in  a  natural  desire  not  to  "  make  a  leap  in  the  dark," 
can  not  be  traced.  Yet  after  marriage  they  will  live,  like  the 
Spartan  matrons,  a  life  of  austerity  in  relation  to  the  other  sex. 
In  cases  of  divorce,  the  children,  being  property,  are  divided,  and 
in  most  tribes  the  wife  claims  the  odd  one.  If  the  mother  takes 
any  care  to  preserve  her  daughter's  virtue,  it  is  only  out  of  regard 

*  Putorius  vison,  a  pretty  dark-chestnut-colored  animal  of  the  weasel  kind,  which 
burrows  in  the  banks  of  streams  near  mills  and  farm-houses,  where  it  preys  upon  tlic 
poultry  like  the  rest  of  the  family.  It  swims  well,  and  can  dive  for  a  long  time. 
Its  food  is  small  fish,  mussels,  and  insects,  but  it  will  also  devour  rats  and  mice. 

t  Traces  of  this  ancient  practice  may  be  found  in  the  four  quarters  of  the  globe. 
Mr. Bartlett,  in  his  instructive  volume,  quotes  the  Rev.  Samuel  Pike  ("General  His- 
tory of  Connecticut,"  London,  1781),  who  quaintly  remarks :  "Notwithstanding  the 
great  modesty  of  the  females  is  such  that  it  would  be  accounted  the  greatest  rude- 
ness for  a  gentleman  to  speak  before  a  lady  of  a  garter  or  a  leg,  yet  it  is  thought  but 
a  piece  of  civilitj-  to  ask  her  to  bundle."  The  learned  and  pioushistorian  endeavor- 
ed to  prove  that  bundling  was  not  only  a  Christian,  but  a  \ev\  polite  and  prudent 
practice.  So  the  Rev.  Andrew  Barnaby,  who  traveled  in  New  England  in  liriO-GO, 
thinks  that  though  bundling  may  "  at  first  appear  the  effect  of  grossness  of  charac- 
ter, it  will,  upon  deeper  research,  be  found  to  proceed  from  simplicity  and  inno- 
cence." 


Chat.  II.     FEMALE  CONDUCT.— CHIEFS.— MODE  OF  LIFE.  II7 

to  its  market  value.  In  some  tribes  the  injured  husband  displays 
all  the  philosophy  of  Cato  and  Socrates.  In  others  the  wife  is 
punished,  like  the  native  of  Hindostan,  by  cutting,  or,  more  gen- 
erally, by  biting  off  the  nose-tip.  Some  slay  the  wife's  lover ; 
others  accept  a  pecuniary  compensation  for  their  dishonor,  and 
take  as  damages  skins  or  horses.  Elopement,  as  among  the  Arabs, 
prevails  in  places.  The  difference  of  conduct  on  the  part  of  the 
women  of  course  depends  upon  the  bearing  of  the  men.  "  There 
is  no  adulteress  without  an  adulterer" — meaning  that  the  husband 
is  ever  the  first  to  be  unfaithful  —  is  a  saying  as  old  as  the  days 
of  Mohammed.  Among  the  Arapahoes,  for  instance,  there  is  great 
looseness ;  the  Cheyennes,  on  the  contrary,  are  notably  correct. 
Truth  demands  one  unpleasant  confession,  viz.,  on  the  whole,  chas- 
tity is  little  esteemed  among  those  Indians  who  have  been  cor- 
rupted by  intercourse  with  whites. 

The  dignity  of  chief  denotes  in  the  Indian  language  a  royal 
title.  It  is  hereditary  as  a  rule,  but  men  of  low  birth  sometimes 
attain  it  by  winning  a  name  as  warriors  or  medicine-men.  When 
there  are  many  sons  it  often  happens  that  each  takes  command 
of  a  small  clan.  Personal  prowess  is  a  necessity  in  sagamore  and 
sachem :  an  old  man,  therefore,  often  abdicates  in  favor  of  his 
more  vigorous  son,  to  whom  he  acts  as  guide  and  counselor. 
There  is  one  chief  to  every  band,  with  several  sub-chiefs.  The 
power  possessed  by  the  ruler  depends  upon  his  individual  char- 
acter, and  the  greater  or  lesser  capacity  for  discipline  in  his  sub- 
jects. Some  are  obeyed  grudgingly,  as  the  Sheikh  of  a  Bedouin 
tribe.  Others  are  absolute  monarchs,  who  dispose  of  the  lives 
and  properties  of  their  followers  without  exciting  a  murmur. 
The  counteracting  element  to  despotism  resides  in  the  sub-chief 
and  in  the  council  of  warriors,  who  obstinately  insist  upon  having 
a  voice  in  making  laws,  raising  subsidies,  declaring  warsj  and  rat- 
ifying peace. 

Their  life  is  of  course  simple ;  they  have  no  regular  hours  for 
meals  or  sleep.  Before  eating  they  sometimes  make  a  heave-of- 
fering of  a  bit  of  food  toward  the  heavens,  where  their  forefathers 
are,  and  a  second  toward  the  earth,  the  mother  of  all  things :  the 
pieces  are  then  burned.  They  are  not  cannibals,  except  when  a 
warrior,  after  slaying  a  foe,  eats,  porcupine-like,  the  heart  or  liver, 
with  the  idea  of  increasing  his  own  courage.  The  women  rarely 
sit  at  meals  with  the  men.  In  savage  and  semi-barbarous  socie- 
ties the  separation  of  the  sexes  is  the  general  rule,  because,  as  they 
have  no  ideas  in  common,  each  prefers  the  society  of  its  own. 
They  are  fond  of  adoption  and  of  making  brotherhoods,  like  the 
Africans ;  and  so  strong  is  the  tie,  that  marriage  with  the  sister 
of  an  adopted  brother  is  within  the  prohibited  degrees.  Gam- 
bling is  a  passion  with  them :  they  play  at  cards,  an  art  probably 
learned  from  the  Canadians,  and  the  game  is  that  called  in  the 
States  "matching,"  on  the  principle  of  dominoes  or  beggar-my- 


118  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  H. 

neighbor.  When  excited  they  ejaculate  Will !  Will ! — sharp  and 
staccato — it  is  possibly  a  conception  of  the  English  well.  But  it 
often  comes  out  in  the  place  of  bad,  as  the  Sepoy  orderly  in  India 
reports  to  his  captain,  "Eamnak  Jamnak  dead,  Joti  Prasad  very 
sick — all  veil !"  The  savages  win  and  lose  with  the  stoicism  ha- 
bitual to  them,  rarely  drawing  the  "  navajon,"  like  the  Mexican 
"lepero,"  over  a  disputed  point ;  and  when  a  man  has  lost  his  last 
rag,  he  rises  in  nude  dignity  and  goes  home.  Their  language  ig- 
nores the  violent  and  offensive  abuse  of  parents  and  female  rela- 
tives, which  distinguishes  the  Asiatic  and  the  African  from  the 
European  Billingsgate :  the  worst  epithets  that  can  be  applied  to 
a  man  are  miser,  coward,  dog,  woman.  With  them  good  temper 
is  good  breeding — a  mark  of  gentle  blood,  A  brave  will  stand 
up  and  harangue  his  enemies,  exulting  how  he  scalped  their  sires, 
and  squaws,  and  sons,  without  calling  forth  a  grunt  of  irritation. 
Ceremony  and  manners,  in  our  sense  of  the  word,  they  have  none, 
and  they  lack  the  profusion  of  salutations  which  usually  distin- 
guishes barbarians.  An  Indian  appearing  at  your  door  rarely  has 
the  civility  to  wait  till  beckoned  in ;  he  enters  the  house,  with  his 
quiet  catlike  gait  and  his  imperturbable  countenance,  saying,  if  a 
Sioux,  "How!"  or  "How!  How!"  meaning  Well?  shakes  hands, 
to  which  he  expects  the  same  replj'-,  if  he  has  learned  "paddling 
with  the  palms"  from  the  whites — this,  however,  is  only  expected 
by  the  chiefs  and  braves — and  squats  upon  his  hams  in  the  East- 
ern way,  I  had  almost  said  the  natural  way,  but  to  man,  unlike 
all  other  animals,  every  way  is  equally  natural,  the  chair  or  the 
seat  upon  the  ground.  He  accepts  a  pipe  if  offered  to  him,  de- 
vours what  you  set  before  him — those  best  acquainted  with  the 
savage,  however,  avoid  all  unnecessary  civility  or  generosity :  Mi- 
lesian-like, he  considers  a  benefit  his  due,  and  if  withheld,  he  looks 
upon  his  benefactor  as  a  "  mean  man" — talks  or  smokes  as  long 
as  he  pleases,  and  then  rising,  stalks  off  without  a  word.  His 
ideas  of  time  are  primitive.  The  hour  is  denoted  by  pointing  out 
the  position  of  the  sun ;  the  days,  or  rather  the  nights,  are  reck- 
oned by  sleeps ;  there  are  no  weeks ;  the  moons,  which  are  liter- 
ally new,  the  old  being  nibbled  away  by  mice,  form  the  months, 
and  suns  do  duty  for  years.  He  has,  like  the  Bedouin  and  the 
Esquimaux,  sufficient  knowledge  of  the  heavenly  bodies  to  steer 
his  course  over  the  pathless  sage-sea.  Night-work,  however,  is 
no  favorite  with  him  except  in  cases  of  absolute  necessity.  Count- 
ing is  done  upon  man's  first  abacus,  the  fingers,  and  it  rarely  ex- 
tends beyond  ten.  The  value  of  an  article  was  formerly  determ- 
ined by  beads  and  buffaloes ;  dollars,  however,  are  now  beginning 
to  be  generally  known. 

The  only  arts  of  the  Indians  are  medicine  and  the  use  of  arms. 
They  are  great  in  the  knowledge  of  simples  and  tisanes.  The 
leaves  of  the  white  willow  are  the  favorite  emetic ;  wounds  are 
dressed  with  astringent  herbs,  and  inflammations  are  reduced  by 


Chap.  U.  FIRE-ARMS— BOWS  AND  ARROWS.  Hg 

scarification  and  the  actual  cautery.  Among  some  tribes,  the 
hammara,  or  Turkish  bath,  is  invariably  the  appendage  to  a  vil- 
lage. It  is  an  oven  sunk  in  the  earth,  with  room  for  about  a 
score  of  persons,  and  a  domed  roof  of  tamped  and  timber-propped 
earth — often  mistaken  for  a  bulge  in  the  ground — pierced  with  a 
little  square  window  for  ventilation  when  not  in  use.  A  fire  is 
kindled  in  the  centre,  and  the  patient,  after  excluding  the  air, 
sits  quietly  in  this  rude  calidarium  till  half  roasted  and  stifled  by 
the  heat  and  smoke.  Finally,  like  the  Eussian  peasant,  he  plunges 
into  the  burn  that  runs  hard  by,  and  feels  his  ailments  dropping 
off  him  with  the  dead  cuticle.  The  Indians  associating  with  the 
horse  have  learned  a  rude  farriery  which  often  succeeds  where 
politer  practice  would  fail.  I  heard  of  one  who  cured  the  bites 
of  rattlesnakes  and  copperheads  by  scarifying  the  wounded  beast's 
face,  plastering  the  place  with  damped  gunpowder  paste  and  set- 
ting it  on  fire. 

Among  the  Prairie  tribes  are  now  to  be  found  individuals  pro- 
vided not  only  with  the  old  muskets  formerly  supplied  to  them, 
but  with  yagers,^  Sharp's  breech-loaders,  alias  "Beecher's  Bibles," 
Colt's  revolvers,  and  other  really  good  fire-arms.  Their  shooting 
has  improved  with  their  tools :  many  of  them  are  now  able  to 
"  draw  a  bead"  with  coolness  and  certainty.  Those  who  can  not 
afford  shooting-irons  content  themselves  with  their  ancient  weap- 
ons, the  lance  and  bow.  The  former  is  a  poor  affair,  a  mere  iron 
spike  from  two  to  three  inches  long,  inserted  into  the  end  of  a 
staff  about  as  thick  as  a  Hindostanee's  bamboo  lance ;  it  is  whip- 
ped round  with  sinew  for  strength,  decorated  with  a  few  bunches 
of  gaudy  feathers,  and  defended  with  the  usual  medicine-bag.  The 
bow  varies  in  dimensions  with  the  different  tribes.  On  the  prai- 
ries, for  convenient  use  on  horseback,  it  seldom  exceeds  three 
feet  in  length ;  among  the  Southern  Indians  its  size  doubles,  and 
in  parts  of  South  America  it  is  like  that  of  the  Andamans,  a  gi- 
gantic weapon  with  an  arrow  six  feet  long,  and  drawn  by  bring- 
ing the  aid  of  the  feet  to  the  hands.  The  best  bows  among  the 
Sioux  and  Yutas  are  of  horn,  hickory  being  unprocurable ;  an  in- 
ferior sort  is  made  of  a  reddish  wood,  in  hue  and  grain  not  unlike 
that  called  "  mountain  mahogany."  A  strip  of  raw-hide  is  fitted 
to  the  back  for  increase  of  elasticity,  and  the  string  is  a  line  of 
twisted  sinew.  When  not  wanted  for  use  the  weapon  is  carried 
in  a  skin  case  slung  over  the  shoulder.  It  is  drawn  with  the  two 
forefingers — not  with  the  forefinger  and  thumb,  as  in  the  East — 
and  generally  the  third  or  ring-finger  is  extended  along  the  string 
to  give  additional  purchase.  Savage  tribes  do  little  in  the  way 
of  handicraft,  but  that  little  they  do  patiently,  slowly,  and  there- 
fore well.  The  bow  and  arrow  are  admirably  adapted  to  their 
purpose.  The  latter  is  either  a  reed  or  a  bit  of  arrow-wood  ( Vi- 
burnum dentaium),  whose  long,  straight,  and  tough  stems  are  used 
*  An  antiquated  sort  of  Gennan  rifle,  formerly  used  by  the  federal  troops. 


120  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  II. 

by  the  fletclier  from  the  Mississippi  to  the  Pacific.  The  piles  are 
triangles  of  iron,  agate,  flint,  chalcedony,  opal,  or  other  hard  stone: 
for  war  purposes  they  are  barbed,  and  bird-bolts  tipped  with  hard 
wood  are  used  for  killing  small  game.  Some  tribes  poison  their 
shafts:  the  material  is  the  juice  of  a  buffalo's  or  an  antelope's 
liver  when  it  has  become  green  and  decomposed  after  the  bite  of 
a  rattlesnake ;  at  least  this  is  the  account  which  all  the  hunters 
and  mountaineers  give  of  it.  They  have  also,  I  believe,  vegeta- 
ble poisons.  The  feathers  are  three  in  number ;  those  preferred 
are  the  hawk's  and  the  raven's ;  and  some  tribes  glue,  while  oth- 
ers whip  them  on  with  tendon-thread.  The  stele  is  invariably 
indented  from  the  feathers  to  the  tip  with  a  shallow  spiral  fur- 
row :  this  vermiculation  is  intended,  according  to  the  traders,  to 
hasten  death  by  letting  air  into  or  letting  blood  out  of  the  wound. 
It  is  probably  the  remnant  of  some  superstition  now  obsolete,  for 
every  man  does  it,  while  no  man  explains  why  or  wherefore.  If 
the  Indian  works  well,  he  does  not  work  quickly ;  he  will  expend 
upon  half  a  dozen  arrows  as  many  months;  Each  tribe  has  its 
own  mark ;  the  Pawnees,  for  instance,  make  a  bulge  below  the 
notch.  Individuals  also  have  private  signs  which  enable  them  to 
claim  a  disputed  scalp  or  buffalo  robe.  In  battle  or  chase  the  ar- 
rows are  held  in  the  left  hand,  and  are  served  out  to  the  right 
with  such  rapidity  that  one  long  string  of  them  seems  to  be  cleav- 
ing the  air.  A  good  Sioux  archer  will,  it  is  said,  discharge  nine 
arrows  upward  before  the  first  has  fallen  to  the  ground.  He  will 
transfix  a  bison  and  find  his  shaft  upon  the  earth  on  the  other 
side ;  and  he  shows  his  dexterity  by  discharging  the  arrow  up  to 
its  middle  in  the  quarry  and  by  withdrawing  it  before  the  animal 
falls.  Tales  are  told  of  a  single  warrior  killing  several  soldiers ; 
and  as  a  rule,  at  short  distances,  the  bow  is  considered  by  the 
whites  a  more  effectual  weapon  than  the  gun.  It  is  related  that 
when  the  Sioux  first  felt  the  effects  of  Colt's  revolver,  the  weapon, 
after  two  shots,  happened  to  slip  from  the  owner's  grasp ;  when 
he  recovered  it  and  fired  a  third  time  all  fled,  declaring  that  a 
white  was  shooting  them  with  buffalo  chips.  Wonderful  tales 
are  told  of  the  Indians'  accuracy  with  the  bow :  they  hold  it  no 
great  feat  to  put  the  arrow  into  a  keyhole  at  the  distance  of  forty 
paces.  It  is  true  that  I  never  saw  any  thing  surprising  in  their 
performances,  but  the  savage  will  not  take  the  trouble  to  waste 
his  skill  without  an  object. 

The  Sioux  tongue,  like  the  Pawnee,  is  easily  learned ;  govern- 
ment officials  and  settlers  acquire  it  as  the  Anglo-Indian  does 
Hindostanee.  They  are  assisted  by  the  excellent  grammar  and 
dictionary  of  the  Dakotah  language,  collated  by  the  members  of 
the  Dakotah  Mission,  edited  by  the  Eev.  S.  E.  Piggs,  M.A.,  and 
accepted  for  publication  by  the  Smithsonian  Institution,  Decem- 
ber, 1851.  The  Dakotah  -  English  part  contains  about  16,000 
words,  and  the  bibliography  (spelling-books,  tracts,  and  transla- 


Chap.  II.  THE  SIOUX  LANGUAGE.  121 

tions)  numbered  ten  years  ago  eighteen  small  volumes.  The  work 
is  compiled  in  a  scholar-like  manner.  The  orthography,  though 
rather  complicated,  is  intelligible,  and  is  a  great  improvement 
upon  the  old  and  unartistic  way  of  writing  the  polysynthetic  In- 
dian tongues,  syllable  by  syllable,  as  though  they  were  mono- 
syllabic Chinese ;  the  superfluous  li  (as  DakotaA  for  Dakota),  by 
which  the  broad  sound  of  the  terminal  a  is  denoted,  has  been 
justly  cast  out.  The  peculiar  letters  c/i,  jj,  and  t,  are  denoted  by 
a  dot  beneath  the  simple  sound ;  similarly  the  h  (or  Arabic  lcaf\ 
the  gh  (the  Semitic  ghain)  and  the  kh  {Ma),  which,  as  has  happen- 
ed in  Franco- Arabic  grammars,  was  usually  expressed  by  an  B. 
An  apostrophe  (s\i)  denotes  the  hiatus,  which  is  similar  to  the 
Arab's  hamzah. 

Vater  long  ago  remarked  that  the  only  languages  which  had  a 
character,  if  not  similar,  at  any  rate  analogous  to  the  American, 
are  the  Basc[ue  and  the  Congo,  that  is,  the  South  African  or  Kaffir 
family.  This  is  the  case  in  many  points:  in  Dakotah,  for  instance, 
as  in  Kisawahili,  almost  every  word  ends  in  a  pure  or  a  nasalized 
vowel.  But  the  striking  novelty  of  the  African  tongues,  the  in- 
flexion of  words  by  an  initial,  not,  as  with  us,  by  a  terminal  change 
and  the  complex  system  of  euphony,  does  not  appear  in  the  Amer- 
ican, which  in  its  turn  possesses  a  dual  unknown  to  the  African. 
The  Dakotah,  like  the  Kaffir,  has  no  gender;  it  uses  the  personal 
and  imjDcrsonal,  which  is  an  older  distinction  in  language.  It  fol- 
lows the  primitive  and  natural  arrangement  of  speech :  it  says,  for 
instance,  "  aguyapi  maku  ye,"  bread  to  me  give ;  as  in  Hindos- 
tanee,  to  quote  no  other,  "roti  hamko  do."  So  in  logical  argu- 
ment it  begins  with  the  conclusion  and  proceeds  to  the  premisses, 
which  renders  it  difficult  for  a  European  to  think  in  Dakotah. 
Like  other  American  tongues,  it  is  polysynthetic,  which  appears 
to  be  the  effect  of  arrested  development.  Human  speech  begins 
with  inorganic  sounds,  which  represent  symbolism  by  means  of 
arrows  pointed  in  a  certain  direction,  bent  trees,  crossed  rods, 
and  other  similar  contrivances.  Its  first  stejD  is  monosyllabic, 
which  corresponds  with  the  pictograph,  the  earliest  attempt  at 
writing  among  the  uncivilized.*  The  next  advance  is  polysyn- 
thesis,  which  is  apparently  built  upon  monosyllabism,  as  the  idio- 
graph  of  the  Chinese  upon  a  picture  or  glyph.  The  last  step  is 
the  syllabic  and  inflected,  corresponding  with  the  Phoenico-Ara- 
bian  alphabet,  which  gave  rise  to  the  Greek,  the  Latin,  and  their 
descendants.  The  complexity  of  Dakotah  grammar  is  another 
illustration  of  the  phenomenon  that  man  in  most  things,  in  lan- 
guage especially,  begins  with  the  most  difficult  and  works  on  to- 
ward the  facile.  Savages,  who  have  no  mental  exercise  but  the 
cultivation  of  speech,  and  semi-barbarous  people,  who  still  retain 

*  A  KaflSr  girl  wishing  to  give  a  hint  to  a  friend  of  mine  drew  a  setting  sun,  a 
tree,  and  two  figures  standing  under  it ;  intelligible  enougli,  yet  the  Kaffirs  ignore 
a  syllabarium. 


122  TUE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  II. 

tlie  habit,  employ  complicated  and  liigMj  elaborate  tongues,  e.  g., 
Arabic,  Sanscrit,  Latin,  Greek,  Kaffir,  and  Anglo-Saxon.  With, 
time  these  become  more  simple ;  the  modus  operandi  appears  to 
be  admixture  of  race. 

The  Dakotahs  have  a  sacred  language,  used  by  medicine-men, 
and  rendered  unintelligible  to  the  vulgar  by  words  borrowed  from 
other  Indian  dialects,  and  by  synonyms,  e.^r.,  biped  for  man,  quad- 
ruped for  wolf.  A  chief,  asking  for  an  ox  or  cow,  calls  it  a  dog, 
and  a  horse,  moccasins :  possibly,  like  Orientals,  he  superstitiously 
avoids  direct  mention,  and  speaks  of  the  object  wanted  by  a  hum- 
bler name.  Poetry  is  hardly  required  in  a  language  so  highly 
tigul-ative :  a  hi-hi-hi-hi-hi,  occasionally  interrupted  by  a  few  words, 
composes  their  songs.  The  Eev.  Mr.  Pond  gives  the  following 
specimen  of  "  Blackboy's"'  Mourning  Song  for  his  Grandson,  ad- 
dressed to  those  of  Ghostland : 

Friend,  pause,  and  look  this  way  ; 
Friend,  pause,  and  look  this  way ; 
Friend,  pause,  and  look  thiStway ; 

Say  ye, 
A  Grandson  of  Blackboy  is  coming. 

Their  speech  is  sometimes  metaphorical  to  an  extent  which  con- 
veys an  opposite  Aieaning:  ''Friend,  thou  art  a  fool;  thou  hast  let 
the  Ojibwa  strike  thee,"  is  the  highest  form  of  eulogy  to  a  brave 
who  has  killed  and  scalped  a  foe ;  possibly  a  Malocchio-like  fear, 
the  dread  of  praise,  which,  according  to  Pluiy,  kills  in  India,  un- 
derlies the  habit. 

The  funerals  differ  in  every  tribe ;  the  Sioux  expose  their  dead, 
wrapped  in  blankets  or  buffalo  robes,  upon  tall  poles — a  custom 
that  reminds  us  of  the  Parsee's  "  Tower  of  Silence."  The  Yutas 
make  their  graves  high  up  the  kanyons,  usually  in  clefts  of  rock. 
Some  bury  the  dead  at  fall  length  ;  others  sitting  or  doubled  up ; 
others  on  horseback,  with  a  barrow  or  tumulus  of  earth  heaped 
up  over  their  remains.  The  absence  of  grave-yards  in  an  Indian 
country  is  as  remarkable  as  in  the  African  interior ;  thinness  of 
population  and  the  savage's  instinctive  dislike  to  .any  memento 
mori  are  the  causes.  After  deaths  the  "  keening"  is  long,  loud,  and 
lasting :  the  women,  and  often  the  men,  cut  their  hair  close,  not 
allowing  it  to  fall  below  the  shoulders,  and  not  unfrequently  gash 
themselves,  and  amputate  one  or  more  fingers.  The  dead  man, 
especiallly  a  chief,  is  in  almost  all  tribes  provided  with  a  viati- 
cum, dead  or  alive,  of  squaws  and  boys — generally  those  taken 
from  another  tribe — horses  and  dogs ;  his  lodge  is  burned,  his 
arms,  cooking  utensils,  saddles,  and  other  accoutrements  are  bur- 
ied with  him,  and  a  goodly  store  of  buffalo  meat  or  other  provi- 
sion is  placed  by  his  side,  that  his  ghost  may  want  nothing  which 
it  enjoyed  in  the  flesh.  Like  all  savages,  the  Indian  is  unable  to 
separate  the  idea  of  man's  immaterial  spirit  from  man's  material 
wants :  an  impalpable  and  invisible  form  of  matter — called  "  spir- 


Chap.  II.  THE  INDIAN  PANTOMIME.  123 

it"  because  it  is  not  cognizable  to  the  senses,  whicli  are  the  only 
avenues  of  all  knowledge — is  as  unintelligible  to  them  as  to  a  Lat- 
ter-Day Saint,  or,  indeed,  as  to  the  mind  of  man  generally.  Hence 
the  Indian's  smoking  and  offerings  over  the  graves  of  friends. 
Some  tribes  mourn  on  the  same  day  of  each  moon  till  grief  is  sat- 
isfied ;  others  for  a  week  after  the  death. 

A  remarkable  characteristic  of  the  Prairie  Indian  is  his  habit 
of  speaking,  like  the  deaf  and  dumb,  with  his  fingers.  The  pan- 
tomime is  a  system  of  signs,  some  conventional,  others  instinctive 
or  imitative,  which  enables  tribes  who  have  no  acquaintance  with 
each  other's  customs  and  iongues  to  hold  limited  but  sufficient 
communication.  An  interpreter  who  knows  all  the  signs,  which, 
however,  are  so  numerous  and  complicated  that  to  acquire  them 
is  the  labor  of  years,  is  preferred  by  the  whites  even  to  a  good 
speaker.  Some  writers,  as  Captain  H.  Stansbury,  consider  the 
system  purely  arbitrary ;  others.  Captain  Marcy,  for  instance,  hold 
it  to  be  a  natural  language  similar  to  the  gestures  which  surd- 
mutes  use  spontaneousl|r.  Both  views  are  true,  but  not  wholly 
true ;  as  the  following  pages  will,  I  believe,  prove,  the  pantomimic 
vocabulary  is  neither  quite  conventional  nor  the  reverse. 

The  sign-system  doubtless  arose  from  the  necessity  of  a  com- 
municating medium  between  races  speaking  many  different  dia- 
lects, and  debarred  by  circumstances  from  social  intercourse.  Its 
area  is  extensive :  it  prevails  among  many  of  the  Prairie  tribes, 
as  the  Hapsaroke,  or  Crows,  the  Dakotah,  the  Cheyenne,  and  the 
Shoshonee ;  the  Pawnees,  Yutas,  and  Shoshoko,  or  Diggers,  being 
vagrants  and  outcasts,  have  lost  or  never  had  the  habit.  Those 
natives  who,  like  the  Arapahoes,  possess  a  very  scanty  vocabula- 
ry, pronounced  in  a  qnasi-un  intelligible  way,  can  hardly  converse 
with  one  another  in  the  dark :  to  make  a  stranger  understand 
them  they  must  always  repair  to  the  camp  fire  for  "powwow."  A 
story  is  told  of  a  man  who,  being  sent  among  the  Cheyennes  to 
qualify  himself  for  interpreting,  returned  in  a  week,  and  proved 
his  competence :  all  that  he  did,  however,  was  to  go  through  the 
usual  pantomime  with  a  running  accompaniment  of  grunts.  I  have 
attempted  to  describe  a  few  of  the  simpler  signs :  the  reader,  how- 
ever, will  readily  perceive  that  without  diagrams  the  explanation 
is  very  imperfect,  and  that  in  half  an  hour,  with  an  Indian  or  an 
interpreter,  he  would  learn  more  than  by  a  hundred  pages  of  print. 

The  first  lesson  is  to  distinguish  the  signs  of  the  different  tribes, 
and  it  will  be  observed  that  the  French  voyageurs  and  traders 
have  often  named  the  Indian  nations  from  their  totemic  or  ma- 
sonic gestures. 

The  Pawnees  (Les  Loups)  imitate  a  wolf's  ears  with  the  two 
forefingers — the  right  hand  is  always  understood  unless  otherwise 
specified* — extended  together,  upright,  on  the  left  side  of  the  head. 

The  Arapahoes,  or  Dirty  Noses,  rub  the  right  side  of  that  organ 
*  The  left,  as  a  rule,  denotes  inversion  or  contradiction. 


124  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  II. 

witli  the  forefinger:  some  call  this  bad  tribe  the  Smellers,  and 
make  their  sign  to  consist  of  seizing  the  nose  with  the  thumb  and 
forefinger. 

The  Comanches  (Les  Serpents)  imitate,  by  the  waving  of  the 
hand  or  forefinger,  the  forward  crawling  motion  of  a  snake. 

The  Cheyennes,  Paikanavos,  or  Cut-Wrists,  draw  the  lower  edge 
of  the  hand  across  the  left  arm  as  if  gashing  it  with  a  knife. 

The  Sioux  (Les  Coupe-gorges),  by  drawing  the  lower  edge  of 
the  hand  across  the  throat :  it  is  a  gesture  not  unknown  to  us,  but 
forms  a  truly  ominous  salutation  considering  those  by  whom  it  is 
practiced ;  hence  the  Sioux  are  called  by  the  Yutas  Pampe  Chy- 
imina,  or  Hand-cutters. 

The  Hapsaroke  (Les  Corbeaux),  by  imitating  the  flapping  of 
the  birds'  wings  with  the  two  hands — palms  downward — brought 
close  to  the  shoulders. 

The  Kiowas,  or  Prairie-men,  make  the  signs  of  the  prairie  and 
of  drinking  water.     These  will  presently  be  described. 

The  Yutas,  "  they  who  live  on  mountains,"  have  a  complicated 
sign  which  denotes  "living  in  mountains;"  these  will  be  explain- 
ed under  "sit"  and  "mountains." 

The  Blackfeet,  called  by  the  Yutas  Paike  or  Goers,  pass  the 
right  hand,  bent  spoon-fashion,  from  the  heel  to  the  little  toe  of 
the  right  foot. 

The  following  are  a  few  preliminaries  indispensable  to  the  prai- 
rie traveler : 

Salt! — Raise  the  hand,  with  the  palm  in  front,  and  push  it  back- 
ward and  forward  several  times — a  gesture  well  known  in  the  East. 

Idoii)t  hnoio  you  ! — Move  the  raised  hand,  with  the  palm  in  front, 
slowly  to  the  right  and  left. 

lam  angry  ! — Close  the  fist,  place  it  against  the  forehead,  and  turn 
it  to  and  fro  in  that  position. 

Are  you  friendly  ? — Raise  both  hands,  grasped,  as  if  in  the  act  of 
shaking  hands,  or  lock  the  two  forefingers  together  while  the  hands 
are  raised. 

These  signs  will  be  found  useful  upon  the  prairie  in  case  of 
meeting  a  suspected  band.  The  Indians,  like  the  Bedouin  and 
N.  African  Moslem,  do  honor  to  strangers  and  guests  by  putting 
their  horses  to  speed,  couching  their  lances,  and  other  peculiarities 
which  would  readily  be  dispensed  with  by  gentlemen  of  peaceful 
pursuits  and  shaky  nerves.  If  friendly,  the  band  will  halt  when 
the  hint  Is  given  and  return  the  salute ;  if  surly,  they  will  disre- 
gard the  command  to  stop,  and  probably  will  make  the  sign  of 
anger.     Then — ware  scalp ! 

Come  ! — Beckon  with  the  forefinger,  as  in  Europe,  not  as  is  done 
in  the  East. 

Come  back  I — Beckon  in  the  European  way,  and  draw  the  fore- 
finger toward  yourself. 


CuAP.  II.  THE  INDIAN  PANTOMIME.  125 

Go! — Move  both  hands  edgeways  (the  palms  fronting  the  breast) 
toward  the  left  with  a  rocking-horse  motion. 

Sit ! — Make  a  motion  toward  the  ground,  as  if  to  pound  it  Avith 
the  ferient  of  the  closed  hand. 

Lie  doicn! — Point  to  the  ground,  and  make  a  motion  as  if  of  lymg 
down. 

Sleep  ! — Ditto,  closing  the  eyes. 

Look! — Touch  the  right  eye  with  the  index  and  point  it  outward. 

Hear  ! — Tap  the  right  ear  with  the  index  tip. 

Colors  are  expressed  by  a  comparison  with  some  object  in  sight. 
Many  things,  as  the  blowing  of  wind,  the  cries  of  beasts  and  birds, 
and  the  roaring  of  the  sea,  are  imitated  by  sound. 

See  ! — Strike  out  the  two  forefingers  forAvard  from  the  eyes. 

Smell! — Touch  the  nose-tip.  A  bad  smell  is  expressed  by  the 
same  sign,  ejaculating  at  the  same  time  "Pooh!"  and  making  the 
sign  of  bad. 

Taste  ! — ^Touch  the  tongue-tip. 

Eat! — Imitate  the  action  of  conveying  food  with  the  fingers  to  the 
mouth. 

Drink! — Scoop  up  with  the  hand  imaginary  water  into  the  mouth. 

Smoke  ! — With  the  crooked  index  describe  a  pipe  in  the  air,  be- 
ginning at  the  lips ;  then  wave  the  open  hand  from  the  mouth  to  im- 
itate curls  of  smoke. 

Speak  ! — Extend  the  open  hand  from  the  chin. 

Eight! — Make  a  motion  Avith  both  fists  to  and  fro,  like  a  pugilist 
of  the  eighteenth  century  Avho  preferred  a  high  guard. 

Kill! — Smite  the  sinister  palm  earthAvard  Avith  the  dexter  fist 
sharply,  in  sign  of  "going  down;"  or  strike  out  AA'ith  the  dexter  fist 
toward  the  ground,  meaning  to  "  shut  down ;"  or  pass  the  dexter  in- 
dex under  the  left  forefinger,  meaning  to  "  go  under." 

To  show  that  fighting  is  actually  taking  place,  make  the  gestures 
as  aboA^e  described ;  tap  the  lips  with  the  palm  like  an  Oriental 
woman  when  "keening,"  screaming  the  while  0-a!  0-a!  to  imi- 
tate the  war-song. 

Wash! — ^Rub  the  hand  as  with  invisible  soap  in  imperceptible  wa- 
ter. 

TJiink! — Pass  the  forefinger  sharply  across  the  breast  from  right 
to  left. 

Hide! — Place  the  hand  inside  the  clothing  of  the  left  breast.  This 
means  also  to  put  away  or  to  keep  secret.  To  express  "I  Avon't  say," 
make  the  signs  of 'T'  and  "no"  (which  see),  and  hide  the  hand  as 
above  directed. 

Love  ! — Fold  the  hands  crossAvise  over  the  breast,  as  if  embracing 
the  object,  assuming  at  the  same  time  a  look  expressing  the  desire 
to  carry  out  the  operation.  This  gesture  will  be  understood  by  the 
dullest  squaw. 

Tell  truth! — Extend  the  forefinger  from  the  mouth  ("one  word"). 

Tell  lie! — Extend  the  two  first  fingers  from  the  mouth  ("double 
tongue,"  a  significant  gesture). 


126  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Cuap.  II. 

Steal! — Seize  an  imaginary  object  with  the  right  band  from  under 
the  left  fist.  To  express  horse-steahng  they  saw  with  the  right  band 
down  ujDon  the  extended  fingers  of  the  left,  thereby  denoting  rope- 
cutting. 

Trade  or  exchange  I — Cross  the  forefingers  of  both  hands  before 
the  breast — "  diamond  cut  diamond." 

This  sign  also  denotes  the  Americans,  and,  indeed,  any  white 
men,  who  are  generically  called  by  the  Indians  west  of  the  Eocky 
Mountains  "  Shwop,"  from  our  swap  or  swop,  an  English  Eomany 
word  for  barter  or  exchange. 

The  pronouns  are  expressed  by  pointing  to  the  person  desig- 
nated. For  "I,"  touch  the  nose-tip,  or  otherwise  indicate  self 
with  the  index.  The  second  and  third  persons  are  similarly  made 
known. 

Every  animal  has  its  precise  sign,  and  the  choice  of  gesture  is 
sometimes  very  ingenious.  If  the  symbol  be  not  known,  the  form 
may  be  drawn  on  the  ground,  and  the  strong  perceptive  faculties 
of  the  savage  enable  him  easily  to  recognize  even  rough  draughts. 
A  cow  or  a  sheep  denotes  white  men,  as  if  they  were  their  totems. 
The  Indian's  high  development  of  locality  also  enables  him  to 
map  the  features  of  a  country  readily  and  correctly  upon  the  sand. 
Moreover,  almost  every  grand  feature  has  a  highly  significant 
name,  Flintwater,  for  instance,  and  nothing  is  easier  than  to  com- 
bine the  signs. 

The  hear  is  expressed  by  passing  the  hand  before  the  face  to 
mean  ugliness,  at  the  same  time  grinning  and  extending  the  fin- 
gers like  claws. 

The  huffalo  is  known  by  raising  the  forefingers  crooked  inward, 
in  the  semblance  of  horns  on  both  sides  of  the  head. 

The  elk  is  signified  by  simultaneously  raising  both  hands  with 
the  fingers  extended  on  both  sides  of  the  head  to  imitate  palmated 
horns. 

For  the  deer^  extend  the  thumbs  and  the  two  forefingers  of  each 
hand  on  each  side  of  the  head. 

For  the  antelojje,  extend  the  thumbs  and  forefingers  along  the 
sides  of  the  head,  to  simulate  ears  and  horns. 

Mountain  sheep  are  denoted  by  placing  the  hands  on  a  level  with 
the  ears,  the  palms  facing  backward  and  the  fingers  slightly  re- 
versed, to  imitate  the  ammonite-shaped  horns. 

For  the  heaver^  describe  a  parenthesis,  e.g.  ( ),  with  the  thumb  and 
index  of  both  hands,  and  then  with  the  dexter  index  imitate  the 
wagging  of  the  tail. 

The  dog  is  shown  by  drawing  the  two  forefingers  slightly  open- 
ed horizontally  across  the  breast  from  right  to  left.  This  is  a 
highly  appropriate  and  traditional  gesture :  before  the  introduc- 
tion of  horses,  the  dog  was  taught  to  carry  the  tent  poles,  and  the 
motion  expressed  the  lodge  trail. 

To  denote  the  muh  or  ass.,  the  long  ears  are  imitated  "by  the  in- 
dices on  both  sides  and  above  the  head. 


Chap.  II.  THE  INDIAN  PANTOMIME.  127 

For  the  croiv,  and,  indeed,  any  bird,  the  hands  are  jflapped  near 
the  shoulders.  If  specification  be  required,  the  cry  is  imitated  or 
some  pecuHarity  is  introduced.  The  following  will  show  the  in- 
genuity with  which  the  Indian  can  convey  his  meaning  under  dif- 
ficulties. A  Yuta  wishing  to  explain  that  the  torpedo  or  gymno- 
tus  eel  is  found  in  Cotton-wood  Kanyon  Lake,  took  to  it  thus :  he 
made  the  body  by  extending  his  sinister  index  to  the  fore,  touch- 
ed it  with  the  dexter  index  at  two  points  on  both  sides  to  show 
legs,  and  finally  sharply  withdrew  his  right  forefinger  to  convey 
the  idea  of  an  electric  shock. 

Some  of  the  symbols  of  relationship  are  highly  appropriate,  and 
not  ungraceful  or  unpicturesque.  Man  is  denoted  by  a  sigu  which 
will  not  admit  of  description ;  woman,  by  passing  the  hand  down 
both  sides  of  the  head  as  if  smoothing  or  stroking  the  long  hair. 
A  son  or  daughter  is  expressed  by  making  with  the  hand  a  move- 
ment denoting  issue  from  the  loins :  if  the  child  be  small,  a  bit 
of  the  index  held  between  the  antagonized  thumb  and  medius  is 
shown.  The  same  sign  of  issue  expresses  both  parents,  with  addi- 
tional explanations :  To  say,  for  instance,  "  wy  raother,^^  you  would 
first  pantomime  "/,"  or,  which  is  the  same  thing,  ^^my;^^  then  ^'■loora- 
anf^  and,  finally,  the  symbol  of  parentage.  "J/^  grandmother'^ 
would  be  conveyed  in  the  same  way,  adding  to  the  end  clasped 
hands,  closed  eyes,  and  like  an  old  woman's  bent  back.  The  sign 
for  brother  and  sister  is  perhaps  the  prettiest :  the  two  first  finger- 
tips are  put  into  the  mouth,  denoting  that  they  fed  from  the  same 
breast.  For  the  wife — squaw  is  now  becoming  a  word  of  reproach 
among  the  Indians — the  dexter  forefinger  is  passed  between  the 
extended  thumb  and  index  of  the  left. 

Of  course  there  is  a  sign  for  every  weapon.  The  hnife — scalp 
or  other — is  shown  by  cutting  the  sinister  palm  with  the  dexter 
ferient  downward  and  toward  one's  self:  if  the  cuts  be  made  up- 
ward with  the  palm  downward,  meat  is  understood.  The  toma- 
hawk,  hatchet,  or  axe  is  denoted  by  chopping  the  left  hand  with 
the  right ;  the  sword  by  the  motion  of  drawing  it ;  the  hovj  by  the 
movement  of  bending  it;  and  a  spear  or  lance  by  an  imitation  of 
darting  it.  For  the  gioi,  the  dexter  thumb  and  fingers  are  flashed 
or  scattered,  i.  e.,  thrown  outward  or  upward  to  denote  fire.  The 
same  movement  made  lower  down  expresses  a  instol.  The  arrow 
is  expressed  by  nocking  it  upon  an  imaginar}'-  bow,  and  by  "  snap- 
ping" with  the  index  and  medius.  The  shield  is  shown  by  point- 
ing with  the  index  over  the  left  shoulder,  where  it  is  slung  ready 
to  be  brought  over  the  breast  when  required. 

The  following  are  the  most  useful  words : 

Yes. — Wave  the  hands  straight  forward  from  the  face. 

A^o. — "Wave  the  hand  from  right  to  left,  as  if  motioning  away.  This 
sign  also  means  "  I'll  have  nothing  to  do  with  you."  Done  slowly 
and  insinuatingly,  it  informs  a  woman  that  she  is  charmante — "  not 
to  be  touched"  beincr  the  idea. 


12S  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SADs'TS.  Chap.  II. 

Qood. — Wave  the  hand  from  the  mouth,  extending  the  thumb  from 
the  index  and  closing  the  other  three  fingers.  This  sign  means  also 
"  I  know."  "  I  don't  know"  is  expressed  by  waving  the  right  hand 
with  the  palm  outward  before  the  right  breast,  or  by  moving  about 
the  two  forefingers  before  the  breast,  meaning  "  two  hearts." 

J]a(7. — Scatter  the  dexter  fingers  outward,  as  if  s^jirting  away  wa- 
ter from  them. 

JVoic  {at  once). — Clap  both  palms  together  sharply  and  repeatedly, 
or  make  the  sign  of  "to-day." 

Dai/. — Make  a  circle  with  the  thumb  and  forefinger  of  both,  in  sign 
ot  the  sun.  The  hour  is  pointed  out  by  showing  the  luminary's  place 
m  the  heavens.  The  moon  is  expressed  by  a  crescent  with  the  thumb 
and  forefinger :  this  also  denotes  a  mouth.  For  a  year  give  the  sign 
of  rain  or  snow. 

Many  Indians  ignore  the  quadripartite  division  of  the  seasons, 
which  seems  to  be  an  invention  of  European  latitudes;  the  Per- 
sians, for  instance,  know  it,  but  the  Hindoos  do  not.  They  have, 
however,  distinct  terms  for  the  month,  all  of  which  are  pretty 
and  descriptive,  appropriate  and  poetical ;  e.  g.,  the  moon  of  light 
nights,  the  moon  of  leaves,  the  moon  of  strawberries,  for  April, 
May,  and  June.  The  Ojibwa  have  a  queer  quaternal  division, 
called  Of  sap,  Of  abundance,  Of  fading,  and  Of  freezing.  The  Da- 
kotah  reckon  five  moons  to  winter  and  five  to  summer,  leaving 
one  to  spring  and  one  to  autumn ;  the  year  is  lunar,  and  as  the 
change  of  season  is  denoted  by  the  appearance  of  sore  eyes  and 
of  raccoons,  any  irregularity  throws  the  people  out. 

Kiglit. — Make  a  closing  movement  as  if  of  the  darkness  by  bring- 
ing together  both  hands  with  the  dorsa  upward  and  the  fingers  to 
the  fore :  the  motion  is  from  right  to  left,  and  at  the  end  the  two  in- 
dices are  alongside  and  close  to  each  other.  This  movement  must 
be  accompanied  by  bending  forward  Avith  bowed  head,  otherwise  it 
may  be  misunderstood  for  the  freezing  over  of  a  lake  or  river. 

To-day. — Touch  the  nose  with  the  index  tip,  and  motion  with  the 
fist  toward  the  ground. 

Yesterday. — Make  with  the  left  hand  the  circle  which  the  sun  de- 
scribes from  sunrise  to  sunset,  or  invert  the  direction  from  sunset  to 
sunrise  with  the  right  hand. 

To-morrov:. — Describe  the  motion  of  the  sun  from  east  to  west. 
Any  number  of  days  may  be  counted  i;pon  the  fingers.  The  latter, 
I  need  hardly  say,  are  the  only  numerals  in  the  pantomimic  vocabu- 
lary. 

Among  the  Dakotahs,  when  they  have  gone  over  the  fingers 
and  thumbs  of  both  hands,  one  is  temporarily  turned  down  for 
one  ten ;  at  the  end  of  another  ten  a  second  finger  is  turned  down, 
and  so  on,  as  among  children  who  are  learning  to  count.  "  Opa- 
winge,"  one  hundred,  is  derived  from  "pawinga,"  to  go  round  in 
circles,  as  the  fingers  have  all  been  gone  over  again  for  their  re- 
spective tens;  " kektopawinge"  is  from  "ake"  and  "opawinge" — 
"  hundred  again" — being  about  to  recommence  the  circle  of  their 


Chap.  II.  THE  INDIAN  PANTOMIME.  129 

fingers  already  completed  in  hundreds.  For  numerals  above  a 
thousand  there  is  no  method  of  computing.  There  is  a  sign  and 
word  for  one  half  of  a  thing,  but  none  to  denote  any  smaller  ali- 
quot part. 

Peace. — Intertwine  the  fingers  of  both  hands. 

Fnendshi}). — Clasj)  the  left  with  the  right  hand. 

Glad  (pleased). — Wave  the  open  hand  outward  from  the  breast, 
to  express  "  good  heart." 

A  Ciqx — Imitate  its  form  with  both  hands,  and  make  the  sign  of 
drinking  from  it.  In  this  way  any  utensil  can  be  iutcUigibly  de- 
scribed— of  course,  provided  that  the  interlocutor  has  seen  it. 

Paint. — ^Daub  both  tlie  cheeks  downward  with  the  index. 

Looking-glass. — Place  both  palms  before  the  face,  and  admire  your 
countenance  in  them. 

Bead. — Point  to  a  bead,  or  make  the  sign  of  a  necklace. 

Wire. — Show  it,  or  w'here  it  ought  to  be,  in  the  ear-lobe. 

WJiisJcy. — Make  the  sign  of  "bad"  and  "drink"  for  "bad  water." 

PlanJcet  or  Clothes. — Put  them  on  in  pantomime. 

A  Lodge. — Place  the  fingers  of  both  hands  ridge-fashion  before  the 
breast. 

Fire. — Blow  it,  and  w\irm  the  hands  before  it.  To  express  the 
boiling  of  a  kettle,  the  sign  of  fire  is  made  low  down,  and  an  imagin- 
ary pot  is  eaten  from. 

It  is  cold. — Wrap  up,  shudder,  and  look  disagreeable. 

Pain. — Scatter  the  fingers  downward.  The  same  sign  denotes 
snow. 

Wind. — Stretch  the  fingers  of  both  hands  outward,  pufiing  vio- 
lently the  while. 

A  Storm. — Make  the  rain  sign ;  then,  if  thimdcr  and  lightning  are 
to  be  expressed,  move,  as  if  in  anger,  the  body  to  and  fro,  to  show 
the  wrath  of  the  elements. 

A  Stone. — If  hght,act  as  if  picking  it  up;  if  heavy,  as  if  dropjung  it. 

A  Hill. — Close  the  finger-tij^s  over  the  head :  if  a  mountain  is  to 
be  expressed,  raise  them  high.  To  denote  an  ascent  on  rising  ground, 
pass  the  right  palm  over  the  left  hand,  half  doubling  up  the  latter,  so 
that  it  looks  like  a  ridge. 

A  Plain. — Wave  both  the  palms  outward  and  low  down. 

A  Piver. — Make  the  sign  of  drinking,  and  then  wave  both  the 
palms  outward.  A  rivulet,  creek,  or  stream  is  shown  by  the  drink- 
ing sign,  and  by  holding  the  index  tip  between  the  thumb  and  medi- 
iis ;  an  arroyo  (dry  water-course),  by  covering  up  the  tip  with  the 
thumb  and  middle  finger. 

A  Lake. — Make  the  sign  of  drinking,  and  form  a  basin  with  both 
hands.  If  a  large  body  of  water  is  in  question,  wave  both  palms  out- 
ward as  in  denoting  a  plain.  The  Prairie  savages  have  never  seen 
the  sea,  so  it  would  be  vain  to  attempt  explanation. 

A  Book. — Place  the  right  palm  on  the  left  palm,  and  then  open 
both  before  the  face. 

A  Letter. — Write  with  the  thumb  and  dexter  index  on  the  sinister 
palm. 

A  Wagon. — Koll  hand  over  hand,  imitating  a  wheel. 


130  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  II. 

A  Wa(;o7i-road. — Make  the  wagon  sign,  and  then  wave  the  hand 
along  the  groimd. 

Grass. — Point  to  the  ground  with  the  index,  and  then  turn  the 
fingers  upward  to  denote  growth.  If  the  grass  be  long,  raise  the 
hand  high ;  and  if  yellow,  point  out  that  color. 

The  pantomime,  as  may  be  seen,  is  capable  of  expressing  detail- 
ed narratives.  For  instance,  supposing  an  Indian  would  tell  the 
following  tale — "  Early  this  morning  I  mounted  my  horse,  rode  off 
at  a  gallop,  traversed  a  kanyon  or  ravine,  then  over  a  mountain 
to  a  plain  where  there  was  no  water,  sighted  bison,  followed  them, 
killed  three  of  them,  skinned  them,  packed  the  flesh  upon  my  pony, 
remounted,  and  returned  home" — he  would  symbolize  it  thus: 

Touches  nose — "jT." 

Opens  out  the  jjalms  of  his  hand — "  this  morninff." 

Points  to  east — "  earlyP 

Places  two  dexter  forefingers  astraddle  over  sinister  index — 
'■''  mounted  my  horsed 

Moves  both  hands  upward  and  rocking-horse  fashion  toward  the 
Ml—''fjallopedP 

Passes  the  dexter  hand  right  through  thumb  and  forefinger  of  the 
sinister,  which  are  widely  extended — "  traversed  a  kanyon?'' 

Closes  the  finger-tips  high  oA-er  the  head,  and  waves  both  palms 
outward — '•'•over  a  mountain  to  a plainP 

Scoops  up  Avitli  the  hand  imaginary  water  into  the  mouth,  and  then 
waves  the  hand  from  the  face  to  denote  "no" — '■'■ichere  there  was  no 
water." 

Touches  eye — ^'^  sighted?^ 

Raises  the  forefingers  crooked  inward  on  both  sides  of  the  head — 
"  bison." 

Smites  the  sinister  palm  downward  with  the  dexter  fist — ^'■killed." 

Shows  three  fingers — ^^  three  ofthemr 

Scrapes  the  left  pahn  with  the  edge  of  the  right  hand — "  skinned 
themP 

Places  the  dexter  on  the  sinister  palm,  and  then  the  dexter  palm 
on  the  sinister  dorsiun — '■'•jjcicked  the  flesh  xipon  my  ponyP 

Straddles  the  two  forefingers  on  the  index  of  the  left — '•'•remount- 
ed;"  and,  finally, 

Beckons  toward  self — "  returned  home" 

To  conclude,  I  can  hardly  flatter  myself  that  these  descriptions 
have  been  made  quite  intelligible  to  the  reader.  They  may,  how- 
ever, serve  to  prepare  his  mind  for  a  viva  voce  lesson  upon  the 
prairies,  should  fate  have  such  thing  in  store  for  him. 

After  this  digression  I  return  to  my  prosaic  Diary. 


Chap.  III.  SUNRISE.  131 


CHAPTER  III. 

Concluding  the  Eoute  to  the  Great  Salt  Lake  City. 

Aloitg  the  Black  Hills  to  Box-Elder.     15//i  August. 

I  AROSE  "between  two  days,"  a  little  before  4  A.M.,  and  watch- 
ed the  dawn,  and  found  in  its  beauties  a  soothing  influence,  which 
acted  upon  stiff  limbs  and  discontented  spirit  as  if  it  had  been  a 
spell. 

The  stars  of  the  Great  Bear — the  prairie  night-clock — first  be- 
gan to  pale  without  any  seeming  cause,  till  presently  a  faint  streak 
of  pale  light — dum  %  gurg.,  or  the  wolf's  tail,  as  it  is  called  by  the 
Persian — began  to  shimmer  upon  the  eastern  verge  of  heaven. 
It  grew  and  grew  through  the  dark  blue  air :  one  unaccustomed 
to  the  study  of  the  "gray-eyed  morn"  would  have  expected  it  to 
usher  in  the  day,  when,  gradually  as  it  had  struggled  into  exist- 
ence, it  faded,  and  a  deeper  darkness  than  before  once  more  in- 
vaded the  infinitude  above.  But  now  the  unrisen  sun  is  more 
rapidly  climbing  the  gloomy  walls  of  Koh  i  Kaf — the  mountain 
rim  which  encircles  the  world,  and  through  whose  lower  gap  the 
false  dawn  had  found  its  way — preceded  by  a  warm  flush  of 
light,  which  chases  the  shades  till,  though  loth  to  depart,  they  find 
neither  on  earth  nor  in  the  firmament  a  place  where  they  can  lin- 
ger. Warmer  and  warmer  waxes  the  heavenly  radiance,  gliding 
up  to  the  keystone  of  the  vault  above;  fainter  and  fainter  grows 
the  darkness,  till  the  last  stain  disappears  behind  the  Black  Hills 
to  the  west,  and  the  stars  one  by  one,  like  glow-worms,  "pale  their 
inefiectual  fires" — the  "Pointers"  are  the  longest  to  resist — retreat 
backward,  as  it  were,  and  fade  away  into  endless  space.  Slowly, 
almost  imperceptibly,  the  marvelous  hues  of  "glorious  morn," 
here  truly  a  fresh  "  birth  of  heaven  and  earth,"  all  gold  and  sap- 
phire, acquire  depth  and  distinctness,  till  at  last  a  fiery  flush  ush- 
ers from  beneath  the  horizon  the  source  of  all  these  splendors, 

"  Robed  in  flames  and  amber  light ;" 

and  another  day,  with  its  little  life  of  joys  and  sorrows,  of  hopes 
and  fears,  is  born  to  the  world. 

Though  we  all  rose  up  early,  packed,  and  were  ready  to  pro- 
ceed, there  was  an  unusual  vis  ineriice  on  the  part  of  the  driver : 
Indians  were  about;  the  mules,  of  course,  had  bolted;  but  that 
did  not  suf&ce  as  explanation.  Presently  the  "wonder  leaked 
out:"  our  companions  were  transferred  from  their  comfortable 
vehicle  to  a  real  "  shandridan,"  a  Rocky-Mountain  bone-setter. 
They  were  civil  enough  to  the  exceedingly  drunken  youth — a 
runaway  New  Yorker — who  did  us  the  honor  of  driving  us ;  for 


132  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  III. 

quand  on  a  besom  da  diahJe  on  lui  dit,  "  3Ionsieu7'J^  One  can  not 
expect,  however,  the  diahle  to  be  equally  civil :  when  we  asked 
liim  to  tidy  our  vehicle  a  little,  he  simply  replied  that  he'd  be 
darned  if  he  did.  Long  may  be  the  darning-needle  and  sharp  to 
him!  But  tempers  seriously  soured  must  blow  up  or  burst,  and 
a  very  pretty  little  quarrel  was  the  result :  it  was  settled  blood- 
lessly,  because  one  gentleman,  who,  to  do  him  justice,  showed  every 
disposition  to  convert  himself  into  a  target,  displayed  such  jDcrfect 
unacquaintance  with  the  weapons — revolvers — usually  used  on 
similar  occasions,  that  it  would  have  been  mere  murder  to  have 
taken  pistol  in  hand  against  him. 

As  we  sat  very  disconsolate  in  the  open  veranda,  five  Indians 
stalked  in,  and  the  biggest  and  burliest  of  the  part^^,  a  middle-aged 
man,  with  the  long,  straight  Indian  hair,  high,  harsh  features,  and 
face  bald  of  eyebrows  and  beard,  after  offering  his  paw  to  Mrs, 
Dana  and  the  rest  of  the  party,  sat  down  with  a  manner  of  natural 
dignity  somewhat  trenching  upon  the  impertinent.  Presently, 
diving  his  hand  into  his  breast,  the  old  rat  pulled  out  a  thick  fold 
of  leather,  and,  after  much  manipulation,  disclosed  a  dirty  brown, 
ragged-edged  sheet  of  paper,  certifying  him  to  be  "Little  Thun- 
der," and  signed  by  "  General  Harney."  This,  then,  was  the  chief 
who  showed  the  w^hite  feather  at  Ash  Hollow,  and  of  whom  some 
military  poet  sang : 

"We  didn't  make  a  blunder, 
We  rubbed  out  Little  Thunder, 
And  we  sent  him  to  the  other  side  of  Jordan." 

Little  Thunder  did  not  look  quite  rubbed  out ;  but  for  poesy  fic- 
tion is,  of  course,  an  element  far  more  appropriate  than  fact,  I 
remember  a  similar  effusion  of  the  Anglo-Indian  muse,  which  con- 
signed "  Akbar  Khan  the  Yaghi"  to  the  tune  and  fate  of  the  Kin  or 
of  the  Cannibal  Isles,  with  a  contempt  of  actualities  quite  as  re- 
freshing. The  Western  Indians  are  as  fond  of  these  testimonials 
as  the  East  Indians :  they  preserve  them  with  care  as  guarantees 
of  their  good  conduct,  and  sometimes,  as  may  be  expected,  carry 
about  certificates  in  the  style  of  Bellerophons'  letters.  Little 
Thunder  was  en  rov.te  to  Fort  Laramie,  where  he  intended  to  lay 
a  complaint  against  the  Indian  agent,  who  embezzled,  he  said, 
half  the  rations  and  presents  intended  for  his  tribe.  Even  the 
whites  owned  that  the  "Maje's"  bear  got  more  sugar  than  all  the 
Indians  put  together. 

Nothing  can  be  worse,  if  the  vox  popidi  occidentalis  be  taken  as 
the  vox  Dei^  than  the  modern  management  of  the  Indian  Bureau 
at  Washington.  In  former  times  the  agencies  were  in  the  hands 
of  the  military  authorities,  and  the  of&cer  commanding  the  depart- 
ment was  responsible  for  malversation  of  ofiice.  This  was  found 
to  work  well ;  the  papers  signed  were  signed  on  honOr.  But  in 
the  United  States,  the  federal  army,  though  well  paid,  is  never  al- 
lowed to  keep  any  appointment  that  can  safely  be  taken  away 


I 


CuAP.  III.  THE  INDIAN  DEPARTMENT.  133 

from  it.  The  Indian  Department  is  now  divided  into  six  super- 
intendencies,  viz.,  Northern,  Central,  Southern,  Utah,  New  Mexi- 
co, Washington  and  Oregon  Territories,  who  report  to  the  Indian 
Office  or  Bureau  of  the  Commissioners  of  Indian  AfEiiirs  at  AYash- 
ington,  under  the  charge  of  the  Department  of  the  Interior.  The 
bond  varies  from  $50,000  to  $75,000,  and  the  salary  from  $2000 
to  $2500  per  annum.  The  northern  superintendency  contains 
four  agencies,  the  central  fourteen,  the  southern  five,  the  Utah 
three,  New  Mexico  six,  and  the  miscellaneous,  including  Wash- 
ington, eight.  The  grand  total  of  agents,  including  two  specials 
for  Indians  in  Texas,  is  forty-two.  Their  bond  is  between  $5000 
and  $75,000,  and  the  salary  between  SIOOO  and  $1550.  There 
are  also  various  sub-agencies,  with  pay  of  $1000  each,  and  giving 
in  bonds  $2000.  There  ought  to  be  uo  perquisites ;  an  unscru- 
pulous man,  however,  finds  many  oj)portunities  of  making  free 
with  the  presents ;  and  the  reflection  that  his  ofl&ce  tenure  shall 
expire  after  the  fourth  year  must  make  him  but  the  more  reck- 
less. As  fifty  or  sixty  appointments  =  50  or  60  votes,  x  20  in 
President  electioneering,  fitness  for  the  task  often  becomes  quite 
a  subordinate  consideration ;  the  result  is,  necessarily,  peculation 
producing  discontent  among  the  Indians,  and  the  finale,  death  to 
the  whites.  To  become  a  good  Indian  agent,  a  man  requires  the 
variety  of  qualifications  which  would  fit  him  for  the  guardianship 
of  children,  experience  and  ability,  benevolence  and  philanthropy : 
it  would  be  difficult  to  secure  such  phcenix  for  $200  per  annum, 
and  it  is  found  easier  not  to  look  for  it.  The  remedy  of  these 
evils  is  not  far  from  the  surface — the  restoration  of  the  office  into 
the  hands  of  the  responsible  military  servant  of  the  state,  who 
would  keep  it  quamdiu  se  bene  gesserit^  and  become  better  capable 
of  serving  his  masters,  the  American  people,  by  the  importance 
which  the  office  would  give  him  in  the  eyes  of  his  irroteges.  This 
is  the  system  of  the  French  Bureau  Arabe,  which,  with  its  faults, 
I  love  still.  But  the  pohtical  mind  would  doubtless  determine 
the  cure  to  be  worse  than  the  disease.  After  venting  his  griev- 
ances, Little  Thunder  arose,  and,  accompanied  by  his  braves,  re- 
mounted and  rode  off  toward  the  east. 

While  delayed  by  the  mules  and  their  masters,  we  may  amuse 
ourselves  and  divert  our  thoughts  from  the  battle,  and,  perhaps, 
murder  and  sudden  death,  which  may  happen  this  evening,  by 
studying  the  geography  of  the  Black  Hills.  The  range  forms 
nearly  a  right  angle,  the  larger  limb — ninety  miles — running  east 
to  west  with  a  little  southing  along  the  Platte,  the  shorter  leg — 
sixty  miles — trending  from  north  to  south  with  a  few  degrees  of 
easting  and  westing.  Forming  the  easternmost  part  of  the  great 
trans-Mississippian  mountain  region,  in  the  44th  parallel  and  be- 
tween the  103d  and  105th  meridians,  these  masses  cover  an  area 
of  6000  square  miles.  They  are  supposed  to  have  received  their 
last  violent  upheaval  at  the  close  of  the  cretaceous  period ;  their 


134  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  in. 

bases  are  elevated  from  2500  to  8500  feet — the  highest  peaks  at- 
taining 6700  feet — above  river  level,  -^hile  their  eastern  is  from 
2000  to  3000  feet  below  the  western  foundation.  Their  materials, 
as  determined  by  Lieutenant  Warren's  exploration,  are  success- 
ively metamorphosed  azoic  rock,  including  granite,  lower  Silurian 
(Potsdam  sandstone),  Devonian  (?),  carboniferous,  Permian,  Juras- 
sic, and  cretaceous.  Like  Ida,  thej  are  abundant  in  springs  and 
flowing  streams,  which  shed  mainly  to  the  northeast  and  the' 
southeast,  supplying  the  Indians  with  trout  and  salmon  trout,  cat- 
fish {Pri/ielodus),  and  i^ickerel.  They  abound  in  small  rich  val- 
leys, well  grown  with  grass,  and  wild  fruits,  choke-cherries  (P.  Vir- 
gvaiana),  currants,  sand-buttes  fruit  ( C.  'jnimila  f),  and  buffalo  ber- 
ries {Shepherdia  anjentea^  or  grains  de  boeuf).  When  irrigated, 
the  bottoms  are  capable  of  high  cultivation.  They  excel  in  fine 
timber  for  fuel  and  lumber,  covering  an  area  of  1500  square  miles ; 
in  carboniferous  rock  of  the  true  coal  measures ;  and  in  other  good 
building  material.  As  in  most  of  the  hill  ranges  which  are  off- 
sets from  the  Eocky  Mountains,  they  contain  gold  in  valuable 
quantities,  and  doubtless  a  minute  examination  will  lead  to  the 
discovery  of  many  other  useful  minerals.  The  Black  Hills  are 
appropriately  named:  a  cloak  of  gloomy  forest,  pine  and  juni- 
per, aj^parently  springing  from  a  rock  denuded  of  less  hardy  veg- 
etation, seems  to  invest  them  from  head  to  foot.  The  Laramie 
Hills  are  sub-ranges  of  the  higher  ridge,  and  the  well-known  peak, 
the  Pharos  of  the  prairie  mariner,  rises  about  1°  due  west  of  Fort 
Laramie  to  the  height  of  6500  feet  above  sea  level.  Beyond  the 
meridian  of  Laramie  the  country  totally  changes.  The  broad 
prairie  lands,  unencumbered  by  timber,  and  covered  with  a  rich 
pasturage,  which  highly  adapts  them  for  grazing,  are  now  left  be- 
hind. We  are  about  to  enter  a  drj',  sandy,  and  sterile  waste  of 
sage,  and  presently  of  salt,  where  rare  spots  are  fitted  for  rearing 
stock,  and  this  formation  will  continue  till  we  reach  the  shadow 
of  the  Rocky  Mountains. 

At  length,  the  mules  coming  about  10  45  A.M.,  we  hitched  up, 
and,  nothing  loth,  bade  adieu  to  Horseshoe  Creek  and  the  "la- 
dies." The  driver  sentimentally  informed  us  that  we  were  to  see 
no  more  specimens  of  ladyhood  for  many  days — gladdest  tidings 
to  one  of  the  party,  at  least.  The  road,  which  ran  out  of  sight  of 
the  river,  was  broken  and  jagged ;  a  little  labor  would  have  made 
it  tolerable,  but  what  could  the  good  pastor  of  Oberlin  do  with  a 
folk  whose  only  thought  in  life  is  dram-drinking,  tobacco-chew- 
ing, trading,  and  swapping  ?■*    The  country  was  cut  with  creeks 

*  The  civilized  Anglo-Americans  are  far  more  severe  upon  their  half-barbaroiis 
brethren  than  any  stranper ;  to  witness,  the  followinp : 

A  Hoosier  ("native  of  Indiana)  was  called  upon  the  stand,  away  out  "West,  to  tes- 
tify to  the  character  of  a  brother  Hoosier.     It  was  as  follows : 

" How  long  have  you  known  Bill  Bushwhack?" 

"Ever  since  he  war  bom." 

"What  is  his  general  character?" 


Chap.  III.  LA  BONTfi.— THE  RED  REGION.  135 

and  aiT03''os,  which  separated  the  several  bulges  of  ground,  and 
the  earth's  surface  was  of  a  dull  brick-dust  red,  thinly  scrubbed 
over  with  coarse  grass,  ragged  sage,  and  shrublets  fit  only  for  the 
fire.  After  a  desolate  drive,  we  sighted  below  us  the  creek  La 
Bonte — so  called  from  a  French  voyageur — green  and  bisected  by 
a  clear  mountain  stream  whose  banks  were  thick  with  self-plant- 
ed trees.  In  the  labyrinth  of  paths  we  chose  the  wrong  one : 
presently  we  came  to  a  sheer  descent  of  four  or  five  feet,  and  aft- 
er deliberation  as  to  whether  the  vehicle  would  "  take  it"  or  not, 
we  came  to  the  conclusion  that, we  had  better  turn  the  restive 
mules  to  the  right-about.  Then,  cheered  by  the  sight  of  our  con- 
sort, the  other  wagon,  which  stood  temptingly  shaded  by  the  grove 
of  cotton-wood,  willows,  box  elder  {Negundo  aceroides)^  and  wild 
cherr}'-,  at  the  distance  of  about  half  a  mile,  we  sought  manfully 
the  right  track,  and  the  way  in  which  the  driver  charged  the  mi- 
nor obstacles  was  "  a  caution  to  mules."  We  ought  to  have  ar- 
rived at  2  45  P.M. ;  we  were  about  an  hour  later.  The  station 
had  yet  to  be  built;  the  whole  road  was  in  a  transition  state  at 
the  time  of  our  travel ;  there  was,  however,  a  new  corral  for  "fort- 
ing"  against  Indians,  and  a  kind  of  leafy  arbor,  which  the  officials 
had  converted  into  a  "cottage  near  a  wood." 

A  little  after  4  P.M.  we  forded  the  creek  painfully  with  our 
new  cattle  —  three  rats  and  a  slug.  The  latter  was  pronounced 
by  our  driver,  when  he  condescended  to  use  other  language  than 
anathemata,  "  the  meanest  cuss  he  ever  seed."  We  were  careful, 
however,  to  supply  him  at  the  shortest  intervals  with  whisky- 
drams,  which  stimulated  him,  after  breaking  his  whip,  to  perform 
a  tattoo  with  clods  and  stones,  kicks  and  stamps,  upon  the  recre- 
ant animals'  haunches,  and  by  virtue  of  these  we  accomplished  our 
twenty -five  miles  in  tolerable  time.  For  want  of  other  pleasant- 
ries to  contemplate,  we  busied  ourselves  in  admiring  the  regular- 
ity and  accuracy  with  which  our  consort  wagon  secured  for  her- 
self all  the  best  teams.  The  land  was  a  red  waste,  such  as  travel- 
ers find  in  Eastern  Africa,  which  after  rains  sheds  streams  like 
blood.  The  soil  was  a  decomposition  of  ferruginous  rock,  here 
broken  with  rugged  hills,  precipices  of  ruddy  sandstone  200  feet 
high,  shaded  or  dotted  with  black-green  cedars,  there  cumbered 
by  huge  boulders ;  the  ravine-like  water-courses  which  cut  the 
road  showed  that  after  heavy  rains  a  net-work  of  torrents  must 
add  to  the  pleasures  of  traveling,  and  the  vegetation  was  reduced 
to  the  dull  green  artemisia,  the  azalia,  and  the  jaundiced  potentil- 

"  Letter  A,  No.l — 'bove  par  a  very  great  way." 

"Would  you  believe  him  on  oath?" 

"  Yes,  Sir-ee,  on  or  off,  or  any  other  way." 

"What  is  your  opinion  on  his  qualifications  to  good  conduct?" 

"  He's  the  best  shot  on  the  prairies  or  in  the  woods ;  he  can  shave  the  eye-bristles 

off  a  wolf  as  far  as  a  shootin'-iron  Ml  carry  a  ball ;  he  can  drink  a  quart  of  grog  any 

day,  and  he  chaws  tobacker  like  a  horse." 

So  Bill  Bushwhack  passed  muster. — N.  Y.  Spirit  of  the  Times. 


136  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  III. 

la.  After  six  miles  we  saw  on  tlie  left  of  tlie  path  a  linge  natural 
pile  or  burrow  of  primitive  boulders,  about  200  feet  high,  and  call- 
ed "  Brigham's  Peak,"  because,  according  to  Jehu's  whisky  tied 
story,  the  prophet,  revelator,  and  seer  of  the  Latter-Day  Saints  had 
there,  in  1857  (!),  pronounced  a  4th  of  July  oration  in  the  pres- 
ence of  200  or  800  fair  devotees. 

Presently  we  emerged  from  the  red  region  into  the  normal 
brown  clay,  garnished  with  sage  as  moors  are  with  heather,  over 
a  road  which  might  have  suggested  the  nursery  rhyme, 

* '  Here  we  go  up,  iif ,  up, 

There  we  go  down,  down,  down. " 

At  last  it  improved,  and  once  more,  as  if  we  never  were  to 
leave  it,  we  fell  into  the  Valley  of  the  Platte.  About  eight  miles 
from  our  destination  we  crossed  the  sandy  bed  of  the  La  Prele 
Eiver,  an  arroyo  of  twenty  feet  wide,  which,  like  its  brethren, 
brims  in  spring  with  its  freight  of  melted  snow.  In  the  clear 
shade  of  evening  we  traversed  the  "timber,"  or  well-wooded  lands 
lying  upon  Box-Elder  Creek — a  beautiful  little  stream  some  eight 
feet  broad,  and  at  9  P.M.  arrived  at  the  station.  The  master,  Mr. 
Wheeler,  was  exceptionably  civil  and  communicative ;  he  lent  us 
buffalo  robes  for  the  night,  and  sent  us  to  bed  after  the  best  sup- 
per the  house  could  afford.  "We  were  not,  howevw,  to  be  balked 
of  our  proper  j^leasure,  a  "good  grumble,"  so  we  hooked  it  on  to 
another  peg.  One  of  the  road-agents  had  just  arrived  from  Great 
Salt  Lake  City  in  a  neat  private  ambulance  after  a  journey  of 
three  days,  while  we  could  hardly  expect  to  make  it  under  treble 
that  time.  It  was  agreed  on  all  sides  that  such  conduct  was  out- 
rageous; that  Messrs.  Eussell  and  Co.  amply  deserved  to  have 
their  contract  taken  from  them,  and — on  these  occasions  your  cit- 
izen looks  portentous,  and  deals  darkly  in  threatenings,  as  if  his 
single  vote  could  shake  the  spheres — we  came  to  a  mutual  under- 
standing that  that  firm  should  never  enjoy  our  countenance  or 
support.  "We  were  unanimous ;  all,  even  the  mortal  quarrel,  was 
"  made  up"  in  the  presence  of  the  general  foe,  the  Mail  Company. 
Briefly  we  retired  to  rest,  a  miserable  Public,  and,  soothed  by  the 
rough  lullaby  of  the  coyote,  whose  shrieks  and  screams  perfectly 
reproduced  the  Indian  jackal,  we  passed  into  the  world  of  dreams. 

To  Platte  Bridge.     August  IQth. 

At  8  30  A.M.  we  were  once  more  under  way  along  the  valley 
of  Father  Platte,  whose  physiognomy  had  now  notably  changed 
for  the  better.  Instead  of  the  dull,  dark,  silent  stream  of  the  low- 
er course,  whose  muddy  monotonous  aspect  made  it  a  grievance 
to  behold,  we  descried  with  astonishment  a  bright  little  river, 
hardly  a  hundred  yards  wide — one's  ideas  of  potamology  are  en- 
larged with  a  witness  by  American  travel !  a  mirrory  surface,  and 
waters  clear  and  limpid  as  the  ether  above  them.  The  limestones 
and  marls  which  destroy  the  beauty  of  the  Lower  Platte  do  not 


Chap.  III.  CLIMATE.— THE  FIRST  MORMONS.  I37 

extend  to  tlic  upper  course.  The  climate  now  became  truly  de- 
licious. The  height  above  sca-lcvel — 5000  feet — subjects  the  land 
to  the  wholesome  action  of  gentle  winds,  which,  about  10 — 11 
A.M.,  when  the  earth  has  had  time  to  air,  set  in  regularly  as  the 
sea-breezes  of  tropical  climes,  and  temper  the  keen  shine  of  day. 
These  higher  grounds,  where  the  soil  is  barren  rather  for  want  of 
water  than  from  the  character  of  its  constituents,  are  undoubtedly 
the  healthiest  j^art  of  the  plains :  no  noxious  malaria  is  evolved 
from  the  sparse  growth  of  tree  and  shrub  upon  the  banks  of  the 
river ;  and  beyond  them  the  plague  of  briilcs  (sand-flies)  and  mus- 
quetoes  is  unknown ;  the  narrowness  of  the  bed  also  prevents  the 
shrinking  of  the  stream  in  autumn,  at  which  season  the  Lower 
Platte  exposes  two  broad  margins  of  black  infected  mire.  The 
three  great  elements  of  unhealthiness,  heavy  and  clammy  dews, 
moisture  exhaled  from  the  earth's  surface,  and  the  overcrowding 
of  population — which  appears  to  generate  as  many  artificial  dis- 
eases as  artificial  wants — are  here  unknown:  the  soil  is  never 
turned  up,  and  even  if  it  were,  it  probably  would  not  have  the 
deleterious  effect  which  climatologists  have  remarked  in  the  damp 
hot  regions  near  the  equator.  The  formation  of  the  land  begins 
to  change  from  the  tertiary  and  cretaceous  to  the  primary — gran- 
ites and  porphyries — warning  us  that  we  are  approaching  the 
Eocky  Mountains. 

On  the  road  we  saw  for  the  first  time  a  train  of  Mormon  wag- 
ons, twenty-four  in  number,  slowly  wending  their  way  toward 
the  Promised  Land.  The  "Captain" — those  who  fill  the  dignified 
ofl&ce  of  guides  are  so  designated,  and  once  a  captain  always  a 
captain  is  the  Far  AVestern  rule — was  young  Brigham  Young,  a 
nephew  of  the  Prophet;  a  blondin,  with  yellow  hair  and  beard,  an 
intelligent  countenance,  a  six-shooter  by  his  right,  and  a  bowie- 
knife  by  his  left  side.  It  was  impossible  to  mistake,  even  through, 
the  veil  of  freckles  and  sun-burn  with  which  a  two  months'  jour- 
ney had  invested  them,  the  nationality  of  the  emigrants;  "British- 
English"  was  written  in  capital  letters  upon  the  white  eyelashes 
and  tow-colored  curls  of  the  children,  and  upon  the  sandy  brown 
hair  and  staring  eyes,  heavy  bodies,  and  ample  extremities  of  the 
adults.  One  young  person  concealed  her  facial  attractions  under 
a  manner  of  mask.  I  thought  that  perhaps  she  might  be  a  sul- 
tana, reserved  for  the  establishment  of  some  very  magnificent 
Mormon  bashaw;  but  the  driver,  when  appealed  to,  responded 
with  contempt,  "  'Gruess  old  Briggy  wont  stampede  many  o'  that 
'ere  lot  1"  Though  thus  homely  in  appearance,  few  showed  any 
symptoms  of  sickness  or  starvation ;  in  fact,  their  condition  first 
impressed  us  most  favorably  with  the  excellence  of  the  Perpetual 
Emigration  Funds'  traveling  arrangements. 

The  ]\Iormons  who  can  afford  such  luxury  generally  purchase 
for  the  transit  of  the  plains  an  emigrant's  wagon,  which  in  the 
West  seldom  costs  more  than  $185.     They  take  a  full  week  be- 


138  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  III. 

fore  "well  en  route^  and  endeavor  to  leave  the  Mississippi  in  early 
May,  when  "long  forage"  is  plentiful  upon  the  prairies.  Those 
prospecting  parties  who  are  bound  for  California  set  out  in  March 
or  April,  feeding  their  animals  with  grain  till  the  new  grass  ap- 
pears; after  November  the  road  over  the  Sierra  Nevada  being 
almost  impassable  to  waj^-wdrn  oxen.  The  ground  in  the  low 
|3arts  of  the  Mississippi  Valley  becomes  heavy  and  muddy  after 
the  first  spring  rains,  and  by  starting  in  good  time  the  worst  parts 
of  the  country  will  be  passed  before  the  travel  becomes  very  labo- 
rious. Moreover,  grass  soon  disappears  from  the  higher  and  less 
productive  tracts;  between  Scott's  Bluffs  and  Great  Salt  Lake 
City  we  were  seldom  out  of  sight  of  starved  cattle,  and  on  one 
spot  I  counted  fifteen  skeletons.  Travelers,  however,  should  not 
push  forward  early,  unless  their  animals  are  in  good  condition 
and  are  well  supplied  with  grain  ;  the  last  year's  grass  is  not  quite 
useless,  but  cattle  can  not  thrive  upon  it  as  they  will  upon  the 
grammas,  festucas,  and  buffalo  clover  {Trifolium  reficxum)  of  Utah 
and  New  Mexico.  The  journey  between  St.  Jo  and  the  Mormon 
capital  usually  occupies  from  two  to  three  months.  The  Latter- 
Day  Saints  march  with  a  quasi-military  organization.  Other  em- 
igrants form  companies  of  fifty  to  seventy  armed  men — a  single 
wagon  would  be  in  imminent  danger  from  rascals  like  the  Paw- 
nees, who,  though  fonder  of  bullying  than  of  fighting,  are  ever 
ready  to  cut  oft"  a  straggler — elect  their  "Cap.,"  who  holds  the 
office  only  during  good  conduct,  sign  and  seal  themselves  to  cer- 
tain obligations,  and  bind  themselves  to  stated  penalties  in  case 
of  disobedience  or  defection.  The  "  Prairie  Traveler"  strongly 
recommends  this  systematic  organization,  without  which,  indeed, 
no  expedition,  whether  emigrant,  commercial,  or  exploratory, 
ought  ever  or  in  any  part  of  the  world  to  begin  its  labors;  justly 
observing  that,  without  it,  discords  and  dissensions  sooner  or  later 
arise  which  invariably  result  in  breaking  up  the  company. 

In  this  train  I  looked  to  no  purpose  for  the  hand-carts  with 
which  the  poorer  Saints  add  to  the  toils  of  earthly  travel  a  semi- 
devotional  work  of  supererogation  expected  to  win  a  proportionate 
reward  in  heaven.* 

After  ten  miles  of  the  usual  number  of  creeks,  "Deep,"  "Small," 
"Snow,"  "Mudd}","  etc.,  and  heavy  descents,  we  reached  at  10 
A.M.  Deer  Creek,  a  stream  about  thirty  feet  wide,  said  to  abound 
in  fish.     The  station  boasts  of  an  Indian  agent.  Major  Twiss,  a 

*  Tlie  following  estimate  of  outfit  was  given  to  me  by  a  Mormon  elder,  who  has 
frequently  traveled  over  the  Utah  route.  He  was  accompanied  by  his  wife,  and 
family,  and  help — six  persons  in  total ;  and  having  money  to  spare,  he  invested  it  in 
a  speculation  which  could  hardly  fail  at  least  to  quadruple  his  outlay  at  the  end  of 
the  march :  the  stove,  for  instance,  bought  at  $28,  would  sell  for  $80  to  $120.  The 
experienced  emigrant,  it  may  be  obsei-ved,  carries  with  him  a  little  of  every  thing 
that  may  or  might  be  wanted,  such  as  provisions,  clothing,  furniture,  drugs,  lint,  sta- 
tionery, spices,  ammunition,  and  so  forth  ;  above  all  things,  he  looks  to  his  weapons 
as  likely  to  be,  at  a  pinch,  his  best  friends : 


Chap.  UI.  BUNCH-GRASS.— MORMON  OUTFIT.  139 

post-office,  a  store,  and  of  course  a  grog-shop,  M.  Bissonette,  the 
owner  of  the  two  latter  and  an  old  Indian  trader,  was  the  usual 
Creole,  speaking  a  French  not  unlike  that  of  the  Channel  Islands, 
and  wide  awake  to  the  advantages  derivable  from  travelers :  the 
large  straggling  establishment  seemed  to  produce  in  abundance 
large  squaws  and  little  half-breeds.  Fortunately  stimulants  are 
not  much  required  on  the  plains :  I  wish  my  enemy  no  more  ter- 
rible flite  than  to  drink  excessively  with  M.  Bissonette  of  M.  Bis- 
sonette's  liquor.  The  good  Creole,  when  asked  to  join  us,  naive- 
ly refused:  he  reminded  me  of  certain  "wine-merchants  in  more 
civihzed  lands,  who,  when  dining  with  their  pratique,  sensibly 
prefer  small-beer  to  their  own  concoctions. 

A  delay  of  fifteen  minutes,  and  then  we  were  hurried  forward. 
The  ravines  deepened ;  we  were  about  entering  the  region  of 
kanyons.*  Already  we  began  to  descry  bunch-grass  clothing 
the  hills.  This  invaluable  and  anomalous  provision  of  nature  is 
first  found,  I  believe,  about  fifty  miles  westward  of  the  meridian 
of  Fort  Laramie,  and  it  extends  to  the  eastern  slope  of  the  Sierra 
Nevada.  On  the  Pacific  water-shed  it  gives  way  to  the  wild  oats 
{Avena  fatua),  which  are  supposed  to  have  been  introduced  into 
California  by  the  Spaniards.  The  festuca  is  a  real  boon  to  the 
land,  which,  without  it,  could  hardly  be  traversed  by  cattle.  It 
grows  by  clumps,  as  its  name  denotes,  upon  the  most  unlikely 
ground,  the  thirsty  sand,  and  the  stony  hills ;  in  fact,  it  thrives 
best  upon  the  poorest  soil.  In  autumn,  about  September,  when 
all  other  grasses  turn  to  hay,  and  their  nutriment  is  washed  out 
by  the  autumnal  rains,  the  bunch-grass,  after  shedding  its  seed, 
begins  to  put  forth  a  green  shoot  within  the  apparently  withered 
sheath.  It  remains  juicy  and  nutritious,  like  winter  wheat  in 
April,  under  the  snows,  and,  contrary  to  the  rule  of  the  graminece, 

2  yokes  oxen at  $180  to  $200  00  TOO  lbs.  ham  and  bacon §U  00 

1  cow  (milch) 25  00  150  lbs.  crackers  (sea  biscuits)....  13  13 

1  wagon 87  30  100  lbs.  sugar 9  50 

1  double  cover 8  50    25  lbs.  crystallized  ditto 3  00 

2  ox  yokes : 8  00    24  lbs.  raisins 4  00 

1  ox  chain 150    20  lbs.  currants 3  00 

1  tar-bucket 100    25  lbs.  rice 2  25 

1  large  tent  (09  for  smaller  sizes)     15  00  1  bushel  dried  apples 6  00 

Camp  equipment,  axes,  spades,  |      lo  on  ^      "          "      P^^ches 4  30 

shovels,  triangles  for  fires,  etc.  i  1      "       beans 2  00 

GOO  lbs.  flour '.     25  50  1  stove 28  00 

I  Grand  total $490  98 

*  The  Spanish  caiion — Americanized  to  kanyon — signifies,  primarily,  a  cannon  or 
gun-barrel ;  secondarily,  a  tube,  shaft  of  a  mine,  or  a  ravine  of  peculiar  form,  com- 
mon in  this  part  of  America.  The  word  is  loosely  applied  by  the  AYestern  men,  but 
properly  it  means  those  gorges  through  a  line  of  mountains  Mhose  walls  are  high 
and  steep,  even  to  a  tunnel-like  overhanging,  while  their  soles,  which  affbrd  passages 
to  streams,  are  almost  flat.  In  Northern  Mexico  the  kanyon  becomes  of  stupendous 
dimensions ;  it  is  sometimes  a  crack  in  the  plains  2000  feet  deep,  exposing  all  the 
layers  that  clothe  earth's  core,  with  a  stream  at  the  bottom,  in  sight,  but  impossible 
fur  the  traveler  dying  of  thirst  to  drink  at. 


140  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IH. 

it  pays  tlie  debt  of  nature,  drying  and  dying  about  May ;  yet, 
even  when  in  its  corpsc-liliic  state,  a  light  yellow  straw,  it  con- 
tains abundant  and  highly -flavored  nutriment ;  it  lasts  through 
the  summer,  retiring  up  the  mountains,  again  becomes  gra.ss  in 
January,  thus  feeding  cattle  all  the  year  round.  The  small  dark 
pyriform  seed,  about  half  the  size  of  an  oat,  is  greedily  devoured 
by  stock,  and  has  been  found  to  give  an  excellent  flavor  to  beef 
and  mutton.  It  is  curious  how  little  food  will  fatten  animals 
upon  the  elevated  portions  of  the  prairies  and  in  the  valleys  of 
the  Rocky  Mountains,  I  remarked  the  same  thing  in  Somali- 
land,  where,  while  far  as  the  eye  could  see  the  country  wore  the 
semblance  of  one  vast  limestone  ledge,  white  with  desolation,  the 
sheep  and  bullocks  were  round  and  plump  as  stall-fed  animals. 
The  idea  forces  itself  upon  one's  mind  that  the  exceeding  purity 
and  limpidity  of  the  air,  by  perfecting  the  processes  of  digestion 
and  assimilation,  must  stand  in  lieu  of  quantity.  I  brought  back 
with  me  a  small  packet  of  the  bunch-grass  seed,  in  the  hope  that 
it  may  be  acclimatized:  the  sandy  lands  about  Aldershott,  for 
instance,  would  be  admirably  fitted  for  the  growth. 

We  arrived  at  a  station,  called  the  "Little  Muddy  Creek," 
after  a  hot  drive  of  twenty  miles.  It  was  a  wretched  place,  built 
of  "  dry  stones,"  viz.,  slabs  without  mortar,  and  the  interior  was 
'  garnished  with  certain  efforts  of  pictorial  art,  which  were  rather 
lestes  than  otherwise.  The  furniture  was  composed  of  a  box  and 
a  trunk,  and  the  negative  catalogue  of  its  supplies  was  extensive 
— whisky  forming  the  only  positive  item. 

We  were  not  sorry  to  resume  our  journey  at  1  15  P.M.  After 
eight  miles  we  crossed  the  vile  bridge  which  spans  "Snow  Creek," 
a  deep  water,  and  hardly  six  feet  wide.  According  to  the  sta- 
tion-men, water  here  was  once  perennial,  though  now  reduced  to 
an  occasional  freshet  after  rain:  this  phenomenon,  they  say,  is 
common  in  the  country,  and  they  attribute  it  to  the  sinking  of 
the  stream  in  the  upper  parts  of  the  bed,  which  have  become  po- 
rous, or  have  given  way.  It  is  certain  that  in  the  Sinaitic  regions 
many  springs,  which  within  a  comparatively  few  years  supplied 
whole  families  of  Bedouins,  have  unaccountably  dried  up ;  per- 
haps the  same  thing  happens  in  the  Eocky  Mountains. 

After  about  two  hours  of  hot  sun,  we  debouched  upon  the  bank 
of  the  Platte  at  a  spot  where  once  was  the  Lower  Ferry.*  The 
river  bed  is  here  so  full  of  holes  and  quicksands,  and  the  stream 
is  so  cold  and  swift,  that  many  have  been  drowned  when  bathing, 
more  when  attempting  to  save  time  by  fording  it.  A  wooden 
bridge  was  built  at  this  jDoint  some  years  ago,  at  an  expense  of 
$26,000,  by  one  Regshaw,  who,  if  report  does  not  belie  him,  has 
gained  and  lost  more  fortunes  than  a  Wall  Street  professional 

*  The  first  ferry,  according  to  the  old  Ruide-books,  was  at  Deer  Creek  ;  the  fcc- 
ond  was  at  this  place,  thirty-one  miles  above  the  former;  and  the  third  was  four 
miles  still  farther  on. 


Chap.  III.  COAL-BEDS.— TOLL-BRIDGE.  141 

"  lame  duck."  We  halted  for  a  few  minutes  at  the  indispensable 
store — the  tete  de  pont — and  drank  our  whisky  with  ice,  which, 
after  so  long  a  disuse,  felt  unenjoyablj  cold.  Kemounting,  we 
passed  a  deserted  camp,  where  in  times  gone  by  two  companies 
of  infantry  had  been  stationed :  a  few  stumps  of  crumbhng  wall, 
broken  floorings,  and  depressions  in  the  ground,  were  the  only 
remnants  which  the  winds  and  rains  had  left.  The  banks  of  the 
Platte  were  stained  with  coal :  it  has  been  known  to  exist  for 
some  years,  but  has  only  lately  been  worked.  Should  the  sup- 
ply prove  sufficient  for  the  wants  of  the  settlers,  it  will  do  more 
toward  the  civilization  of  these  regions  than  the  discovery  of 
gold. 

The  lignite  tertiary  of  Is'ebraska  extends  north  and  west  to  the 
British  line ;  the  beds  are  found  throughout  this  formation  some- 
times six  and  seven  feet  thick,  and  the  article  would  make  good 
fuel.  The  true  coal-measures  have  been  discovered  in  the  south- 
eastern portion  of  the  Kebraska  prairies,  and  several  small  seams 
at  different  points  of  the  Platte  Valley.  Dr.  F.  Y.  Hayden,  who 
accompanied  Lieutenant  Warren  as  geologist,  appears  to  think 
that  the  limestones  which  contain  the  supphes,  though  belonging 
to  the  true  coal-measures,  hold  a  position  above  the  workable 
beds  of  coal,  and  deems  it  improbable  that  mines  of  any  import- 
ance will  be  found  north  of  the  southern  line  of  Nebraska.  But, 
as  his  examination  of  the  ground  was  somewhat  hurried,  there  is 
room  to  hope  that  this  unfavorable  verdict  will  be  canceled.  The 
coal  as  yet  discovered  is  all,  I  believe,  bituminous.  That  du^  out 
of  the  Platte  bank  runs  in  a  vein  about  six  feet  thick,  and  is  as 
hard  as  cannel  coal :  the  texture  of  the  rock  is  a  white  limestone. 
The  banks  of  the  Deer  and  other  neighboring  creeks  are  said  also 
to  contain  the  requisites  for  fuel. 

Our  station  lay  near  the  upper  crossing  or  second  bridge,  a 
short  distance  from  the  town.  It  was  also  built  of  timber  at  an 
expense  of  8^0,000,  about  a  year  ago,  by  Louis  Guenot,  a  Que- 
becquois,  who  has  passed  the  last  twelve  years  upon  the  plains. 
He  appeared  very  downcast  about  his  temporal  prospects,  and 
handed  us  over,  with  the  insouciance  of  his  race,  to  the  tender 
mercies  of  his  venerable  squaw.  The  usual  toll  is  50  cents,  but 
from  trains,  especially  of  Mormons,  the  owner  will  claim  $5 ;  in 
fact,  as  much  as  he  can  get  without  driving  them  to  the  opposi- 
tion lower  bridge,  or  to  the  ferry-boat.  It  was  impossible  to 
touch  the  squaw's  supper;  the  tin  cans  that  contained  the  coffee 
were  slippery  with  grease,  and  the  bacon  looked  as  if  it  had  been 
dressed  side  by  side  with  "boyaux."  I  lighted  my  pipe,  and, 
air-cane  in  hand,  sallied  forth  to  look  at  the  country. 

The  heights  behind  the  station  were  our  old  friends  the  Black 
Hills,  which,  according  to  the  Canadian,  extend  with  few  breaks 
as  far  as  Denver  City.  They  are  covered  with  dark  green  pine ; 
at  a  distance  it  looks  black,  and  the  woods  shelter  a  variety  of 


142  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Cii.vp.  III. 

wild  beasts,  the  grizzly  bear  among  the  number.  In  tlie  more 
grassy  spaces  mustangs,  sure-footed  as  mountain  goats,  roam  un- 
caught ;  and  at  the  foot  of  the  hills  the  slopes  are  well  stocked 
with  antelope,  deer,  and  hares,  here  called  rabbits.  The  principal 
birds  are  the  sage-hen  {Tetrao  uroiiliasianm)  and  the  prairie-hen 
{T.  praiensis).  The  former,  also  called  the  cock  of  the  plains,  is 
a  fine,  strong-fljang  grouse,  about  the  size  of  a  full-grown  barn- 
door fowl,  or,  when  younger,  of  a  European  pheasant,  which,  in- 
deed, the  form  of  the  tail,  as  the  name  denotes,  greatly  resembles, 
and  the  neck  is  smooth  like  the  partridge  of  the  Old  World.'^ 
Birds  of  the  year  are  considered  good  eating:  after  their  first 
winter  the  flesh  is  so  impregnated  with  the  intolerable  odor  of 
wild  sage  that  none  but  a  starving  man  can  touch  it.  The  prai- 
rie-hen, also  called  the  "heath-hen"  and  the  "pinnated  grouse," 
affects  the  plains  of  Illinois  and  Missouri,  and  is  rarely  found  so 
far  west  as  the  Black  Hills :  it  is  not  a  migratory  bird.  The  pin- 
nae from  which  it  derives  its  name  are  little  wing-like  tufts  on 
both  sides  of  the  neck,  small  in  the  female,  large  in  the  male. 
The  cock,  moreover,  has  a  stripe  of  skin  running  down  the  neck, 
which  changes  its  natural  color  toward  pairing-time,  and  becomes 
of  a  reddish  yellow :  it  swells  like  a  turkey-cock's  wattles,  till 
the  head  seems  buried  between  two  monstrous  protuberances,  the 
owner  spreading  out  its  tail,  sweeping  the  ground  with  its  wings, 
and  booming  somewhat  like  a  bittern.  Both  of  these  birds,  which 
are  strong  on  the  wing,  and  give  good  sport,  might  probably  be 
naturalized  in  Europe,  and  the  "Societe  cl'Acclimatisation"  would 
do  well  to  think  of  it. 

Returning  to  the  station,  I  found  that  a  war-party  of  Arapahoes 
had  just  alighted  in  a  thin  copse  hard  by.  They  looked  less  like 
warriors  than  like  a  band  of  horse-stealers ;  and,  though  they  had 
set  out  with  the  determination  of  bringing  back  some  Yuta  scalps 
and  fingers,f  they  had  not  succeeded.  On  these  occasions  the 
young  braves  are  generally  very  sulky — a  fact  which  they  take 
care  to  show  by  short  speech  and  rude  gestures,  throwing  about 
and  roughly  handling,  like  spoiled  children,  whatever  comes  in 
their  way.  At  such  times  one  must  always  be  prepared  for  a 
word  and  a  blow;  and,  indeed,  most  Indian  fighters  justify  them- 
selves in  taking  the  initiative,  as,  of  course,  it  is  a  great  thing  to 
secure  first  chance.  However  we  may  yearn  toward  our  "poor 
black  brother,"  it  is  hard  not  to  sj^mpathize  with  the  white  in 

*  The  trivial  names  for  organic  nature  are  as  confused  and  confusing  in  America 
•ns  in  India,  in  consequence  of  the  Old  Country  terms  applied,  per  fas  ct  nefas,  to 
New  Country  gi-owths :  for  instance,  the  spruce  grouse  is  the  Canadian  partridge; 
the  ruffled  grouse  is  the  partridge  of  New  England  and  New  York,  and  the  pheas- 
ant of  New  Jersey  and  the  Southern  States ;  while  in  the  latter  the  common  quail 
(0.  Virtjiniana)  is  called  "  partridge." 

t  The  enemy's  fore  or  other  fin<rer,  crooked  and  tied  with  two  bits  of  the  skin 
which  are  attached  to  the  wrist  or  the  forehead,  is  a  favorite  and  picturesque  orna- 
ment. That  failing,  the  bear's  (especially  the  grizzly's)  talons,  bored  at  the  base,  and 
strung  upon  their  sinews,  arc  considered  highly  honorable. 


CuAP.  III.  THE  WAE-PARTY.  143 

many  aggressions  against  the  ferocious  and  capricious  so-called 
Eed  Man.  The  war-party  consisted  of  about  a  dozen  warriors, 
with  a  few  limber,  lither-looking  lads.  They  had  sundry  lean, 
sore-backed  nags,  which  were  presently  turned  out  to  graze.  Dirty 
rags  formed  the  dress  of  the  band ;  their  arms  were  the  usual  light 
lances,  garnished  with  leather  at  the  handles,  with  two  cropped 
tufts  and  a  long  loose  feather  dangling  from  them.  They  had 
bows  shaped  like  the  Grecian  Cupid's,  strengthened  with  sinews 
and  tipped  with  wire,  and  arrows  of  light  wood,  with  three  feath- 
ers— Captain  Marcy  says,  two  intersecting  at  right  angles ;  but  I 
have  never  seen  this  arrangement — and  small  triangular  iron  piles. 
Their  shields  were  plain  targes — double  folds  of  raw  buifalo  hide, 
apparently  unstuffed,  and  quite  unadorned.  They  carried  mangy 
buffalo  robes ;  and  scattered  upon  the  ground  was  a  variety  of 
belts,  baldricks,  and  pouches,  with  split  porcupine  quills  dyed  a 
saffron  yellow. 

The  Arapahoes,  generally  pronounced  'Eapahoes  —  called  by 
their  Shoshonee  neighbors  Sharetikeh,  or  Dog-eaters,  and  by  the 
French  Gros  Ventres — are  a  tribe  of  thieves  living  between  the 
South  Fork  of  the  Platte  and  the  Arkansas  Eivers.  They  are 
bounded  nortli  by  the  Sioux,  and  hunt  in  the  same  grounds  with 
the  Cheyennes.  This  breed  is  considered  fierce,  treacherous,  and 
unfriendly  to  the  whites,  who  have  debauched  and  diseased  them, 
while  the  Cheyennes  are  comparatively  chaste  and  uninfected. 
The  Arapaho  is  distinguished  from  the  Dakotah  by  the  superior 
gauntness  of  his  person,  and  tlie  boldness  of  his  look ;  there  are 
also  minor  points  of  difference  in  the  moccasins,  arrow-marks,  and 
weapons.  His  language,  like  that  of  the  Cheyennes,  has  never,  I 
am  told,  been  thoroughly  learned  by  a  stranger :  it  is  said  to  con- 
tain but  a  few  hundred  words,  and  these,  being  almost  all  explo- 
sive growls  or  guttural  grunts,  are  with  difficulty  acquired  by  the 
civilized  ear.  Like  the  Cheyennes,  the  Arapaboes  have  been 
somewhat  tamed  of  late  by  the  transit  of  the  United  States  army 
in  1857. 

Among  the  Prairie  Indians,  when  a  war-chief  has  matured  the 
ft)lans  for  an  expedition,  he  babits  himself  in  tbe  garb  of  battle. 
Then,  mounting  his  steed,  and  carrying  a  lance  adorned  with  a 
flag  and  eagle's  feathers,  he  rides  about  the  camp  chanting  his  war- 
song.  Those  disposed  to  volunteer  join  the  parade,  also  on  horse- 
back, and,  after  sufficiently  exhibiting  themselves  to  the  admira- 
tion of  the  village,  return  home.  This  ceremony  continues  till 
the  requisite  number  is  collected.  The  war-dance,  and  the  rites 
of  the  medicine-man,  together  with  perhaps  private  penances  and 
propitiations,  are  the  next  step.  There  are  also  copious  powwows, 
in  which,  as  in  the  African  parlance,  the  chiefs,  elders,  and  warriors 
sit  for  hours  in  grim  debate,  solemn  as  if  the  fate  of  empires  hung 
upon  their  words,  to  decide  the  momentous  question  whether  Jack 
snail  have  half  a  pound  more  meat  than  Jim.     Neither  the  chief 


1-y.  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IU. 

nor  the  -warriors  are  finally  committed  by  the  procession  to  the 
expedition  ;  they  are  all  volunteers,  at  liberty  to  retire ;  and  jeal- 
ous}^, disappointment,  and  superstition  often  interpose  between 
themselves  and  glory. 

The  war-party,  when  gone,  is  thoroughly  gone ;  once  absent, 
they  love  to  work  in  mystery,  and  look  forward  mainly  to  the 
pleasure  of  surprising  their  friends.  After  an  absence  which  may 
extend  for  months,  a  loud,  piercing,  peculiar  cry  suddenly  an- 
nounces the  vanguard  courier  of  the  returning  braves.  The  camp 
is  thrown  at  once  from  the  depths  of  apathy  to  the  height  of  ex- 
citement, which  is  also  the  acme  of  enjoyment  for  those  whose 
lives  must  be  spent  in  forced  inaction.  The  warriors  enter  with 
their  faces  painted  black,  and  their  steeds  decorated  in  the  most 
fantastic  style ;  the  women  scream  and  howl  their  exultation,  and 
feasting  and  merriment  follow  with  the  ceremonious  scalp-dance. 
The  braves  are  received  with  various  degi'ees  of  honor  according 
to  their  deeds.  The  highest  merit  is  to  ride  single-handed  into 
the  enemy's  camp,  and  to  smite  a  lodge  with  lance  or  bow.  The 
second  is  to  take  a  warrior  ^jrisoner.  The  third  is  to  strike  a  dead 
or  fallen  man — an  idea  somewhat  contrary  to  the  Englishman's 
fancies  of  fair  play,  but  intelligible  enough  where  it  is  the  custom, 
as  in  Hindostan,  to  lie  upon  the  ground  "  plaj'ing  'possum,"  and 
waiting  the  opportunity  to  hamstring  or  otherwise  disable  the  op- 
ponent. The  least  of  great  achievements  is  to  slay  an  enemy  in 
hand-to-hand  fight.  A  Pyrrhic  victory,  won  even  at  an  inconsid- 
erable loss, is  treated  as  a  defeat;  the  object  of  the  Indian  guerril- 
la chief  is  to  destroy  the  foe  with  as  little  risk  to  himself  and  his 
men  as  possible ;  this  is  his  highest  boast,  and  in  this  are  all  his 
hopes  of  fame.  Should  any  of  the  party  fall  in  battle,  the  rela- 
tives mourn  by  cutting  off  their  hair  and  the  manes  and  tails  of 
their  horses,  and  the  lugubrious  lamentations  of  the  women  intro- 
duce an  ugly  element  into  the  triumphal  procession. 

In  the  evening,  as  Mrs.  Dana,  her  husband,  and  I  were  sitting 
outside  the  station,  two  of  the  warriors  came  and  placed  them- 
selves without  ceremony  upon  the  nearest  stones.  They  were 
exceedingly  unprepossessing  with  their  small  gipsy  eyes,  high^ 
rugged  cheek-bones,  broad  flat  faces,  coarse  sensual  mouths  evert- 
ed as  to  the  lips,  and  long  heavy  chins ;  they  had  removed  every 
sign  of  manhood  from  their  faces,  and  their  complexions  w'ere  a 
dull  oily  red,  the  result  of  vermilion,  ochre,  or  some  such  pigment, 
of  which  they  are  as  fond  as  Hindoos,  grimed  in  for  years.  They 
watched  every  gesture,  and  at  times  communicated  their  opinions 
to  each  other  in  undistinguishable  gruntings,  with  curious  atterajDts 
at  cachinnation.  It  is  said  that  the  wild  dog  is  unable  to  bark, 
and  that  the  tame  variety  has  acquired  the  faculty  by  attempting 
to  imitate  the  human  voice ;  it  is  certain  that,  as  a  rule,  only  the 
civilized  man  can  laugh  loudly  and  heartily.  I  happened  to  men- 
tion to  my  fellow-travelers  the  universal  dislike  of  savages  to  any 


i 


Chap.  III.  SMOKING.— MORMOXLAND  NEAR.  145 

thing  like  a  sketch  of  their  physiognomies ;  they  expressed  a  doubt 
that  the  Indians  were  subject  to  the  rule.  Pencil  and  paper  were 
at  hand,  so  we  proceeded  to  proof.  The  savage  at  first  seemed 
uneasy  under  the  operation,  as  the  Asiatic  or  African  will  do, 
averting  his  face  at  times,  and  shifting  position  to  defeat  my  pur- 
pose. When  I  passed  the  caricature  round  it  excited  some  mer- 
riment ;  the  subject,  forthwith  rising  from  his  seat,  made  a  sign 
that  he  also  wished  to  see  it.  At  the  sight,  however,  he  screwed 
up  his  features  with  an  expression  of  intense  disgust,  and  mana- 
ging to  "  smudge"  over  the  sketch  with  his  dirty  thumb,  he  left  us 
with  a  "  pooh !"  that  told  all  his  outraged  feelings. 

Presently  the  warriors  entered  the  station  to  smoke  and  tacitly 
beg  for  broken  victuals.  They  squatted  in  a  circle,  and  passed 
round  the  red  sandstone  calumet  with  great  gravit}^,  puffing  like 
steam-tugs,  inhaling  slowly  and  lingeringly,  swallowing  the  fumes, 
and  with  upturned  faces  exhaling  them  through  the  nostrils. 
They  made  no  objection  to  being  joined  by  us,  and  always  before 
handing  the  pipe  to  a  neighbor,  they  wiped  the  reed  mouth-piece 
with  the  cushion  of  the  thumb.  The  contents  of  their  calumet' 
were  kinnikinik,  and,  though  they  accepted  tobacco,  they  prefer- 
red replenishing  with  their  own  mixture.  They  received  a  small 
present  of  provisions,  and  when  the  station-people  went  to  supper 
they  were  shut  out. 

AVe  are  now  slipping  into  Mormonland ;  one  of  the  station- 
keepers  belonged  to  the  new  religion.  The  "madam,"  on  enter- 
ing the  room,  had  requested  him  to  depose  a  cigar  which  tainted 
the  air  with  a  perfume  like  that  of  greens'-water ;  he  took  the  mat- 
ter so  coolly  that  I  determined  he  was  not  an  American,  and,  true 
enough,  he  proved  to  be  a  cabinet-maker  from  Birmingham.  I 
spent  the  evening  reading  poor  Albert  Smith's  "  Story  of  Mont 
Blanc" — Mont  Blanc  in  sight  of  the  Eocky  Mountains ! — and  ad- 
miring how  the  prince  of  entertainers  led  up  the  reader  to  what 
he  called  the  crowning  glory  of  his  life,  the  unperilous  ascent  of 
that  monarch  of  the  Alps,  much  in  the  spirit  with  which  one 
would  have  addressed  the  free  and  independent  voters  of  some 
well-bribed  English  borough. 

We  are  now  about  to  quit  the  region  which  Kature  has  pre- 
pared, by  ready-made  roads  and  embankments,  for  a  railway ;  all 
beyond  this  point  difficulties  are  so  heaped  upon  difficulties — as 
the  sequel  will  prove — that  we  must  hope  against  hope  to  see  the 
"iron  horse"  (I  believe  he  is  so  called)  holding  his  way  over  the 
mountains. 

nth  August.     To  the  Valley  of  the  Sweetwater. 

The  morning  was  bright  and  clear,  cool  and  pleasant.  The 
last  night's  abstinence  had  told  upon  our  squeamishness :  we  man- 
aged to  secure  a  fowl,  and  with  its  aid  we  overcame  our  repug- 
nance to  the  massive  slices  of  eggless  bacon.  At  6  80  A.M.  we 
hitched  up,  crossed  the  rickety  bridge  at  a  slow  pace,  and  pro- 


146  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  III. 

ceeded  for  the  first  time  to  ascend  tlie  left  bank  of  the  Platte. 
The  valley  was  grassy;  the  eternal  sage,  however,  haunted  us; 
the  grouse  ran  before  us,  and  the  prairie-dogs  squatted  upon  their 
house-tops,  enjoj'ing  the  genial  morning  rajs.  After  ten  miles 
of  severe  ups  and  downs,  which,  by-the-by,  nearly  brought  our 
consort,  the  official's  wagon,  to  grief,  we  halted  for  a  few  minutes 
at  an  old-established  trading-post  called  "Eed  Buttes."*  The 
feature  from  which  it  derives  its  name  lies  on  the  right  bank  of, 
and  about  five  miles  distant  from  the  river,  which  here  cuts  its 
way  through  a  ridge.  These  bluffs  are  a  fine  bold  formation, 
escarpments  of  ruddy  argillaceous  sandstones  and  shells,  which 
dip  toward  the  west :  they  are  the  eastern  wall  of  the  mass  that 
hems  in  the  stream,  and  rear  high  above  it  their  conical  heads 
and  fantastic  figures.  The  ranch  was  on  the  margin  of  a  cold, 
clear  spring,  of  which  we  vainly  attempted  to  drink.  The  banks 
were  white,  as  though  by  hoar-frost,  with  nitrate  and  carbonate 
of  soda  efilorescing  from  the  dark  mould.  Near  Eed  Buttes  the 
water  is  said  to  have  a  chalybeate  flavor,  but  of  that  we  were  un- 
able to  judge. 

Having  allowed  the  squaws  and  half-breeds  a  few  minutes  to 
gaze,  we  resumed  our  way,  taking  off  out  caps  in  token  of  adieu 
to  old  Father  Platte,  our  companion  for  many  a  weary  mile.  We 
had  traced  his  course  upward,  through  its  various  phases  and  vi- 
cissitudes, from  the  dignity  and  portliness  of  his  later  career  as  a 
full-grown  river  to  his  small  and  humble  youth  as  a  mountain 
rivulet,  and — interest,  either  in  man  or  stream,  often  results  from 
the  trouble  we  take  about  them — I  looked  upon  him  for  the  last 
time  with  a  feeling  akin  to  regret.  Moreover,  we  had  been  warn- 
ed that  from  the  crossing  of  the  North  Platte  to  the  Sweetwater 
all  is  a  dry,  and  dreary,  and  desolate  waste. 

On  the  way  we  met  a  mounted  Indian,  armed  with  a  rifle,  and 
habited  in  the  most  grotesque  costume.  "Jack" — he  was  recog- 
nized by  the  driver — wore  a  suit  of  buckskin,  and  a  fool's  cap 
made  out  of  an  old  blanket,  with  a  pair  of  ass-ear  appendages  that 
hung  backward  viciously  like  a  mule's ;  his  mouth  grinned  from 
ear  to  ear,  and  his  eyes  were  protected  by  glass  and  wire  goggles, 
which  gave  them  the  appearance  of  being  mounted  on  stalks  like 
a  crustacean's.  He  followed  us  for  some  distance,  honoring  us  by 
riding  close  to  the  carriage,  in  hopes  of  a  little  black-mail ;  but  we 
were  not  generous,  and  we  afterward  heard  something  which  made 
us  glad  that  we  had  not  been  tempted  to  liberality.     He  was  fol- 

*  The  French  word  is  extensively  used  in  the  Rocky  Slountains  and  Oregon, 
"where,"  says  Colonel  Fre'mont  ("  Expedition  to  the  Rocky  ]\Iountains,"  p.  145),  "it 
is  naturalized,  and  which,  if  desirable  to  render  into  English,  there  is  no  word  which 
wonld  be  its  precise  equivalent.  It  is  applied  to  the  detached  hills  and  ridges  which 
rise  abruptly  and  reach  too  high  to  be  called  hills  or  ridges,  and  arc  not  high  enough" 
— he  might  have  added,  are  not  massive  enough — "to  be  called  mountains.  Knob, 
as  applied  in  the  Western  States,  is  their  most  descriptive  term  in  English ;  but  no 
translation  or  perijihrasis  would  preserve  the  identity  of  these  picturesque  landmarks." 


i 


Chap.  III.     THE  DEVIL'S  BACKBONE.— WILLOW  SPRINGS.  I47 

lowed  by  an  ill-favored  squaw,  dressed  in  a  kind  of  cotton  gown, 
remarkable  only  for  the  shoulders  being  considerably  narrower 
than  the  waist.  She  sat  her  bare  nag  cavalierly,  and  eyed  us  as 
we  passed  with  that  peculiarly  unpleasant  glance  which  plain 
women  are  so  fond  of  bestowing. 

After  eighteen  miles'  drive  we  descended  a  steep  hill,  and  were 
shown  the  Devil's  Backbone.  It  is  a  jagged,  broken  ridge  of  huge 
sandstone  boulders,  tilted  up  edgeways,  and  running  in  a  line  over 
the  crest  of  a  long  roll  of  land :  the  tout  ensemble  looks  like  the 
vertebraj  of  some  great  sea-serpent  or  other  long  crawling  animal ; 
and,  on  a  nearer  view,  the  several  pieces  resolve  themselves  into 
sphinxes,  veiled  nuns.  Lot's  pillars,  and  other  freakish  objects.  I 
may  here  remark  that  the  aut  Cccsar  aid  diaholus  of  the  medieval 
European  antiquary,  when  accounting  for  the  architecture  of 
strange  places,  is  in  the  Far  West  consigned  without  partnership 
to  the  genius  loci,  the  fiend  who,  here  as  in  Europe,  has  monopo- 
lized all  the  finest  features  of  scenery.  We  shall  pass  successive- 
ly the  Devil's  Gate,  the  Devil's  Post-office,  and  the  Devil's  Hole — 
in  fact,  we  shall  not  be  thoroughly  rid  of  his  satanic  majesty's  ap- 
purtenances till  Monte  Diablo,  the  highest  of  the  Californian  coast- 
range,  dips  slowly  and  unwillingly  behind  the  Pacific's  tepid  wave. 

We  nooned  at  Willow  Springs,  a  little  doggery  boasting  of  a 
shed  and  a  bunk,  but  no  corral ;  and  we  soothed,  with  a  drink  of 
OLir  whisky,  the  excited  feelings  of  the  rancheros.  The  poor  fel- 
lows had  been  plundered  of  their  bread  and  dried  meat  by  some 
petty  thief,  who  had  burrowed  under  the  wall,  and  they  sorely 
suspected  our  goggled  friend,  Jack  the  Arapaho.  Master  Jack's 
hair  might  have  found  itself  suspended  near  the  fireplace  if  he 
had  then  been  within  rifle-shot ;  as  it  was,  the  two  victims  could 
only  indulge  in  consolatory  threats  about  wreaking  their  venge- 
ance upon  the  first  "doggond  red-bellied  crittur"  whom  good 
fortune  might  send  in  their  way.  The  water  was  unusually  good 
at  Willow  Springs ;  unfortunately,  however,  there  was  nothing 
else. 

At  2  80  P.M.  we  resumed  our  way  through  the  yellow-flower- 
ed rabbit-bush  —  it  not  a  little  resembled  wild  mustard  —  and  a 
thick  sage-heath,  which  was  here  and  there  spangled  with  the 
bright  blossoms  of  the  wilderness.  After  about  twenty  miles  we 
passed,  to  the  west  of  the  road,  a  curious  feature,  to  which  the 
Mormon  exodists  first,  on  dit^  gave  the  name  of  Saleratus  Lake."" 

*  According  to  Dr.  L.  D.  Gale  (Appendix  F.  to  Captain  Stansbury's  "Expedi- 
tion to  the  Great  Salt  Lake"),  who  tested  specimens  of  this  saleratus,  "it  is  com- 
posed of  the  sesquicarbonate  of  soda,  mixed  with  the  sulphate  of  soda  and  chloride 
of  soda,  and  is  one  of  the  native  salts  called  Trona,  found  in  tlie  Northern  Lakes,  in 
Hungary,  Africa,  and  other  countries." 

"Three  prammes  of  this  salt  in  dry  powder,  cleared  of  its  earthy  impurities,  gave 
carbonic  acid  0-9030  of  a  gi-amrae,  which  would  indicate  l*7323i}  grammes  of  the 
sesquicarbonate.  The  other  salts  were  found  to  be  the  muriate  and  sulphate  of 
soda:  the  proportions  were  not  determined." 


148  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  in. 

It  lies  to  tlie  west  of  the  road,  and  is  only  one  of  a  chain  of  alka- 
line waters  and  springs  whose  fetor,  without  exaggeration,  taints 
the  land.  Cattle  drinking  of  the  fluid  are  nearly  sure  to  die ; 
even  those  that  eat  of  the  herhe  salee,  or  salt  grass  growing  upon 
its  borders,  and  known  by  its  reddish-yellow  and  sometimes  blu- 
ish tinge,  will  suffer  from  a  disease  called  the  "  Alkali,"  which  not 
unfrequently  kills  them.  The  appearance  of  the  Saleratus  Lake 
startles  the  traveler  who,  in  the  full  blaze  of  midday  upon  this 
arid  waste,  where  mirage  mocks  him  at  every  turn,  suddenly  sees 
outstretched  before  his  eyes  a  kind  of  Wenham  Lake  solidly  over- 
frozen.  The  illusion  is  so  perfect  that  I  was  completely  deceived, 
nor  could  the  loud  guffaws  of  the  driver  bring  me  at  once  to  the 
conclusion  that  seeing  in  this  case  is  not  believing.  On  a  near 
inspection,  the  icy  surface  turns  out  to  be  a  dust  of  carbonate  of 
soda,  concealing  beneath  it  masses  of  the  same  material,  washed 
out  of  the  adjacent  soil,  and  solidified  by  evaporation.  The  Lat- 
ter-Day Saints  were  charmed  with  their  trouvaille,  and  laid  in 
stores  of  the  fetid  alkaline  matter,  as  though  it  had  been  manna, 
for  their  bread  and  pastr}'.  It  is  still  transported  westward,  and 
declared  to  be  ]3urer  than  the  saleratus  of  the  shops.  'Nea.r  the 
lake  is  a  deserted  ranch,  which  once  enjoyed  the  title  of  "Sweet- 
water Station." 

Four  miles  beyond  this  "  "Waterless  Lake" — Bahr  bila  Ma  as 
the  Bedouin  would  call  it — we  arrived  at  Rock  Independence, 
and  felt  ourselves  in  a  new  region,  totally  distinct  from  the  clay 
formation  of  the  mauvaises  terres  over  which  we  have  traveled 
for  the  last  five  days.  Again  I  was  startled  by  its  surprising  like- 
ness to  the  scenery  of  Eastern  Africa :  a  sketch  of  Jiwe  la  Mkoa, 
the  Eound  Eock  in  eastern  Unyamwezi,  -  would  be  mistaken,  even 
by  those  who  had  seen  both,  for  this  grand  ecJianiillon  of  the 
Eocky  Mountains.  It  crops  out  of  an  open  plain,  not  far  from 
the  river  bed,  in  dome  shape  wholly  isolated,  about  1000  feet  in 
length  by  400—500  in  breadth ;  it  is  60  to  100  feet  in  height,t 
and  in  circumference  1^  to  2  miles.  Except  upon  the  summit, 
where  it  has  been  weathered  into  a  feldspathic  soil,  it  is  bare  and 
bald ;  a  scanty  growth  of  shrubs  j^rotrudes,  however,  from  its  poll. 
The  material  of  the  stern-looking  dome  is  granite,  in  enormous 
slabs  and  boulders,  cracked,  flaked,  seared,  and  cloven,  as  if  by 
igneous  pressure  from  below.  The  prevailing  tradition  in  the 
West  is,  that  the  mass  derived  its  name  from  the  fact  that  Colonel 
Fremont  there  delivered  an  Independence-day  oration ;  but  read 
a  little  farther.  It  is  easily  ascended  at  the  northern  side  and  the 
southeastern  corner,  and  many  climb  its  rugged  flanks  for  a  pe- 
culiarly Anglo- American  purpose — Smith  and  Brown  have  held 

*  I  crave  the  reader's  pardon  for  referrinp  him  to  my  own  publications ;  but  the 
only  account  of  this  Round  Rock  which  has  hitherto  been  published  is  to  be  found 
in  the  "Lake  Regions  of  Central  Africa,"  chap.  viii. 

f  Colonel  Fre'mont  gives  its  dimensions  as  CjO  yards  long  and  -10  feet  high. 


Chap.  IU.  ROCK  INDEPENDENCE.  I49 

higli  jinks  here.  In  Colonel  Fremont's  time  (1842),  every  where 
within  six  or  eight  feet  of  the  ground,  where  the  surface  is  suffi- 
ciently smooth,  and  in  some  places  sixty  or  eighty  feet  above,  the 
rock  was  inscribed  with  the  names  of  travelers.  Ilence  the  In- 
dians have  named  it  Timpe  Nabor,  or  the  Painted  Eock,  corre- 
sponding with  the  Sinaitic  "Wady  Mukattab."  In  the  present 
day,  though  much  of  the  writing  has  been  washed  away  by  rain, 
40,000 — 50,000  souls  are  calculated  to  have  left  their  dates  and 
marks  from  the  coping  of  the  wall  to  the  loose  stones  below  this 
huge  sign-post.  There  is,  however,  some  reason  in  the  proceed- 
ing ;  it  does  not  in  these  lands  begin  and  end  with  the  silly  pur- 
pose, as  among  climbers  of  the  Pyramids,  and  fouilkurs  of^the 
sarcophagi  of  Apis,  to  bequeath  one's  few  poor  letters  to  a  little 
athanasia.  Prairie  travelers  and  emigrants  expect  to  be  followed 
by  their  friends,  and  leave,  in  their  vermilion  outfit,  or  their  white 
house-paint,  or  their  brownish-black  tar — a  useful  article  for  wag- 
ons— a  homely  but  hearty  word  of  love  or  direction  upon  any 
conspicuous  object.  Even  a  bull  or  a  buffalo's  skull,  which,  lying 
upon  the  road,  will  attract  attention,  is  made  to  do  duty  at  this 
Poste  Restante. 

I  will  here  take  the  liberty  of  digressing  a  little,  with  the  char- 
itable purpose  of  admiring  the  serious  turn  with  which  the  United 
States  explorers  perform  their  explorations. 

Colonel  Fremonf^  thus  calls  to  mind  the  earnest  deeds  of  a  by- 
gone daj^.  "  One  George  Weymouth  was  sent  out  to  Maine  by 
the  Earl  of  Southampton,  Lord  Arundel,  and  others,  and  in  the 
narrative  of  their  discoveries  he  says, '  The  next  day  we  ascended 
in  our  pinnace  that  part  of  the  river  which  lies  more  to  the  west- 
ward, carrying  with  us  a  cross — a  thing  never  omitted  by  any 
Christian  traveler — which  we  erected  at  the  ultimate  end  of  our 
route.'  This  was  in  the  year  1605,  and  in  1842  I  obeyed  the  feel- 
ing of  early  travelers,  and  left  the  impressions  of  the  cross  deeply 
engraved  on  the  vast  rock,  one  thousand  miles  beyond  the  Missis- 
sippi, to  which  discoverers  have  given  the  national  name  of  Eock 
Independence." 

Captain  Stansburyf  is  not  less  scrupulous  upon  the  subject  of 
traveling  proprieties.  One  of  his  entries  is  couched  as  follows : 
"  Sunday,  June  10,  barometer  28-82,  thermometer  70°.  The  camp 
rested :  it  had  been  determined,  from  the  commencement  of  the 
expedition,  to  devote  this  day,  whenever  practicable,  to  its  legiti- 
mate purpose,  as  an  interval  of  rest  for  man  and  beast.  I  here 
beg  to  record,  as  the  result  of  my  experience,  derived  not  only 
from  the  present  journey,  but  from  the  observations  of  many  years 
spent  in  the  performance  of  similar  duties,  that,  as  a  mere  matter 
of  pecuniary  consideration,  apart  from  all  higher  obligations,  it  is 
wise  to  keep  the  Sabbath." 

*  Report  of  the  Exploring  Expedition  to  the  Rocky  Mountains,  p.  72, 
]  Stansbury's  Expedition,  ch.  i.,  p.  22. 


150  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IIL 

Lieutenant  "W.  F.  Lynch,  L^nited  States  Nav}-,  who  in  1857  com- 
manded the  United  States  Expedition  to  the  Eiver  Jordan  and  the 
Dead  Sea,*  and  published  a  narrative  not  deficient  in  interest,  thus 
describes  his  proceedings  at  El  Meshra,  the  bathing-place  of  the 
Christian  pilgrims : 

"  This  ground  is  consecrated  by  tradition  as  the  place  -where 
the  Israelites  passed  over  with  the  ark  of  the  covenant,  and  where 
the  blessed  Savior  was  baptized  by  John.  Feeling  that  it  would 
be  desecration  to  moor  the  boats  at  a  place  so  sacred,  we  passed 
it,  and  with  some  difficulty  found  a  landing  below. 

"  My  first  act  was  to  bathe  in  the  consecrated  stream,  thanking 
God,  first,  for  the  precious  favor  of  being  permitted  to  visit  such 
a  spot ;  and,  secondly,  for  his  protecting  care  throughout  our  peril- 
ous passage.  For  a  long  time  after  I  sat  upon  the  bank,  my  mind 
oppressed  with  awe,  as  I  mused  upon  the  great  and  wondrous 
events  which  had  here  occurred."  In  strange  contrast  with  these 
passages  stands  the  characteristic  prophecy,  "  The  time  is  coming 
— the  beginning  is  come  now — when  the  whole  worthless  list  of 
kings,  with  all  their  myrmidons,  will  be  swept  from  their  places, 
and  made  to  bear  a  part  in  the  toils  and  sufferings  of  the  great 
human  famil}',"  etc.,  etc. 

I  would  not  willingly  make  light  in  others  of  certain  finer  sen- 
timents— veneration,  for  instance,  and  conscientiousness — which 
IS'ature  has  perhaps  debarred  me  from  overenjoying;  nor  is  it  in 
my  mind  to  console  myself  for  the  privation  b}'  debasing  the  gift 
in  those  gifted  with  it.  But — the  but,  I  fear,  will,  unlike  "if,"  be 
any  thing  rather  than  a  great  peacemaker  in  this  case — there  are 
feelings  which,  when  strongly  felt,  when  they  well  from  the  bot- 
tom of  the  heart,  man  conceals  in  the  privacy  of  his  own  bosom ; 
and  which,  if  published  to  the  world,  are  apt  to  remind  the  world 
that  it  has  heard  of  a  form  of  speech,  as  well  as  of  argument,  rank- 
ing "under  the  category  of  ad  cajytanchan  vulgus. 

About  a  mile  beyond  Independence  Eock  we  forded  the  Sweet- 
water. "We  had  crossed  the  divide  between  this  stream  and  the 
Platte,  and  were  now  to  ascend  our  fourth  river  valley,  the  three 
others  being  the  Missouri,  the  Big  Blue,  and  the  Nebraska.  The 
Canadian  voyageurs  have  translated  the  name  Sweetwater  from 
the  Indian  Pina  Pa ;  but  the  term  is  here  more  applicable  in  a 
metaphorical  than  in  a  literal  point  of  view.  The  water  of  the 
lower  bed  is  rather  hard  than  otherwise,  and  some  travelers  have 
detected  brackishness  in  it,  yet  the  banks  are  free  from  the  saline 
hoar,  which  deters  the  thirstiest  from  touching  many  streams  on 
this  line.  The  Sweetwater,  in  its  calmer  course,  is  a  perfect  Naiad 
of  the  mountains ;  presently  it  will  be  an  Undine  hurried  by  that 
terrible  Anagkd,  to  which  Jove  himself  must  bend  his  omniscient 
head,  into  the  grisly  marital  embrace  of  the  gloomy  old  Platte. 

*  Chap.  iii.  Authorized  Edition.  Sampson  Low,  Son,  and  Co.,  47  Ludgate  Hill, 
1859. 


I 


CuAP.  III.     THE  DEVIL'S  GATE.— RATTLESNAKE  HILLS.  151 

Passing  pleasant,  after  the  surly  ungenial  silence  of  the  Shallow 
River,  is  the  merry  prattle  with  which  she  answers  the  whisper- 
ings of  those  fickle  Batterers,  the  winds,  before  that  wedding-day 
when  silence  shall  become  her  doom.  There  is  a  something  in  the 
Sweetwater  which  appeals  to  the  feelings  of  rugged  men :  even 
the  drivers  and  the  station-keepers  speak  of  "  her"  with  a  bearish 
affection. 

After  fording  the  swift  Pina  Pa,  at  that  point  about  seventy  feet 
wide  and  deep  to  the  axles,  we  ran  along  its  valley  about  six  miles, 
and  reached  at  9  15  P.M.  the  muddy  station  kept  by  M.  Plante, 
the  usual  Canadian.  En  route  we  had  passed  by  the  Devil's  Gate, 
one  of  the  great  curiosities  of  this  line  of  travel.  It  is  the  beau 
ideal  of  a  kanyon,  our  portal  opening  upon  the  threshold  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains :  I  can  compare  its  form  from  afar  only  with 
the  Breche  de  Roland  in  the  Pyrenees.  The  main  pass  of  Aden 
magnified  twenty  fold  is  something  of  the  same  kind,  but  the  sim- 
ile is  too  unsavory.  The  height  of  the  gorge  is  from  300  to  400 
feet  perpendicular,  and  on  the  south  side  threatening  to  fall :  it 
has  already  done  so  in  parts,  as  the  masses  which  cumber  the 
stream-bed  show.  The  breadth  varies  from  a  minimum  of  -iO  to 
a  maximum  of  105  feet,  where  the  fissure  yawns  out,  and  the  to- 
tal length  of  the  cleft  is  about  250  yards.  The  material  of  the 
walls  is  a  gray  granite,  traversed  by  dikes  of  trap ;  and  the  rock 
in  which  the  deep  narrow  crevasse  has  been  made  runs  right 
through  the  extreme  southern  shoulder  of  a  ridge,  which  bears 
appropriately  enough  the  name  of  "  Rattlesnake  Hills."  Through 
this  wild  gorge  the  bright  stream  frets  and  forces  her  way,  sing- 
ing, unlike  Liris,  with  a  feminine  untaciturnity,  that  awakes  the 
echoes  of  the  pent-up  channel — tumbling  and  gurgling,  dashing 
and  foaming  over  the  snags,  blocks,  and  boulders,  which,  fallen 
from  the  cliffs  above,  obstruct  the  way,  and  bedewing  the  cedars 
and  bright  shrubs  which  fringe  the  ragged  staples  of  the  gate. 
Why  she  should  not  have  promenaded  gently  and  quietly  round, 
instead  of  through,  this  grisly  barrier  of  rock,  goodness  only  knows : 
however,  willful  and  womanlike,  she  has  set  her  heart  upon  an 
apparent  impossibility,  and,  as  usual  with  her  sex  under  the  cir- 
cumstances, she  has  had  her  way.  Sermons  in  stones — I  would 
humbly  suggest  to  my  gender. 

Procrastination  once  more  stole  my  chance;  I  had  reserved 
myself  for  sketching  the  Devil's  Gate  from  the  southwest,  but  the 
station  proved  too  distant  to  convey  a  just  idea  of  it.  For  the 
truest  representation  of  the  gate,  the  curious  reader  will  refer  to 
the  artistic  work  of  Mr.  Frederick  Piercy  ;*  that  published  in  Cap- 
tain Marcy's  "  List  of  Itineraries"  is  like  any  thing  but  the  Dev- 
il's Gate ;  even  the  rough  lithograph  in  Colonel  Fremont's  report 
is  more  truthful. 

.We  supped  badly  as  mankind  well  could  at  the  cabaret,  where 
*  Route  from  Liverpool  to  Great  Salt  Lake  City. 


152  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Cuat.  IU. 

a  very  plain  young  person,  and  no  neat-handed  Phyllis  withal, 
supplied  us  with  a  cock  whose  toughness  claimed  for  it  the  hon- 
ors of  grandpaternity.  Chickens  and  eggs  there  were  none; 
butcher's  meat,  of  course,  was  unknown,  and  our  hosts  ignored 
the  name  of  tea ;  their  salt  was  a  kind  of  saleratus,  and  their  sug- 
ar at  least  half  Indian-meal.  When  asked  about  fish,  they  said 
that  the  Sweetwater  contained  nothing  but  suckers,*  and  that 
these,  though  good  eating,  can  not  be  caught  with  a  hook.  They 
are  a  queer  lot,  these  French  Canadians,  who  have  "located" 
themselves  in  the  Far  West.  Travelers  who  have  hunted  with 
them  speak  highly  of  them  as  a  patient,  submissive,  and  obedient 
race,  inured  to  privations,  and  gifted  with  the  reckless  abandon — 
no  despicable  quality  in  prairie  traveling — of  the  old  Gascon  ad- 
venturer ;  armed  and  ever  vigilant,  hardy,  handy,  and  hearty  chil- 
dren of  Nature,  combining  with  the  sagacity  and  the  instinctive 
qualities  all  the  superstitions  of  the  Indians ;  enduring  as  mount- 
ain goats ;  satisfied  with  a  diet  of  wild  meat,  happiest  when  it 
could  be  followed  by  a  cup  of  strong  milkless  coffee,  a  "chasse 
cafe"  and  a  "brule-gueule;"  invariably  and  contagiously  merry; 
generous  as  courageous ;  handsome,  active,  and  athletic ;  sashed, 
knived,  and  dressed  in  buckskin,  to  the  envy  of  every  Indian 
"  brave,"  and  the  admiration  of  every  Indian  belle,  upon  whom, 
if  the  adventurer's  heart  had  not  fallen  into  the  snares  of  the  more 
attractive  half-breed,  he  would  spend  what  remained  of  his  $10  a 
month,  after  coftee,  alcohol,  and  tobacco  had  been  extravagantly 
paid  for,  in  j)resents  of  the  gaudiest  trash.  Such  is  the  voyageur 
of  books :  I  can  only  speak  of  him  as  I  found  him,  a  laz}^  dog, 
somewhat  shy  and  proud,  much  addicted  to  loafing  and  to  keep- 
ing cabarets,  because,  as  the  old  phrase  is,  the  cabarets  keep  him 
— in  idleness  too.  Probably  his  good  qualities  lie  below  the  sur- 
face: those  who  hide  a  farthing  rush-light  under  a  bushel  can 
hardly  expect  us,  in  this  railway  age,  to  take  the  trouble  of  find- 
ing it.  I  will  answer,  however,  for  the  fact,  that  the  bad  points 
are  painfully  prominent.  By  virtue  of  speaking  French  and 
knowing  something  of  Canada,  I  obtained  some  buffalo  robes, 
and  after  a  look  at  the  supper,  wdiich  had  all  the  effect  of  a  co- 
pious feed,  I  found  a  kind  of  out-house,  and  smoked  till  sleep 
weighed  down  my  eyelids. 

Up  the  Sweetwater.     19iA  August. 

We  arose  at  6  A.M.,  before  the  rest  of  the  household,  who,  when 
aroused,  "  hifered"  and  sauntered  about  all  desceuvres  till  their 
wool-gathering  wits  had  returned.  The  breakfast  was  a  little  pic- 
ture of  the  supper ;  for  watered  milk,  half-baked  bread,  and  un- 
recognizable butter,  we  paid  the  somewhat  "steep"  sum  of  75 
cents ;  we  privily  had  our  grumble,  and  set  out  at  7  A.M.  to  as- 

*  A  common  fish  of  the  pcnus  Labio,  of  which  there  are  many  species — chub, 
mullet,  barbel,  horned  dace,  etc. :  they  arc  found  in  almost  nil  the  lakes  and  rivers 
of  North  America. 


CiiAv.III.  RATTLESNAIvE  HILLS.— "ALKALI  LAKE."    ^  I53 

cend  the  Valley  of  the  Sweetwater.  The  river-plain  is  bounded 
by  two  parallel  lines  of  hills,  or  rather  rocks,  running  nearly  due 
east  and  west.  Those  to  the  north  arc  about  a  hundred  miles  in 
extreme  length,  and,  rising  from  a  great  plateau,  lie  ])erpcndicular 
to  the  direction  of  the  real  Eocky  Alountains  toward  which  they 
lead :  half  the  course  of  the  Pina  Pa  subtends  their  southern  base. 
The  Western  men  know  them  as  the  Eattlcsnake  Hills,  while  the 
southern  are  called  after  the  river.  The  former — a  continuation 
of  the  ridge  in  which  the  Sweetwater  has  burst  a  gap — is  one  of 
those  long  lines  of  lumpy,  misshapen,  barren  rock,  that  suggested 
to  the  Canadians  for  the  whole  region  the  name  of  Les  ]\Iontagnes 
Eocheuses.  •  In  parts  they  are  primary,  principally  syenite  and 
granite,  with  a  little  gneiss,  but  they  have  often  so  regular  a  line 
of  cleavage,  perpendicular  as  well  as  horizontal,  that  they  may 
readily  be  mistaken  for  stratifications.  The  stratified  are  slaty 
micaceous  shale  and  red  sandstone,  dipping  northward,  and  cut 
by  quartz  veins  and  trap  dikes.  The  remarkable  feature  m  both 
formations  is  the  rounding  of  the  ridges  or  blocks  of  smooth  na- 
ked granite:  hardly  any  angles  appeared;  the  general  effect  was, 
that  they  had  been  water-washed  immediately  after  birth.  The 
upper  portions  of  this  range  shelter  the  bighorn,  or  American 
moufflon,  and  the  cougar,*  the  grizzly  bear,  and  the  wolf  The 
southern  or  Sweetwater  range  is  vulgarly  known  as  the  Green- 
Eiver  Mountains :  seen  from  the  road,  their  naked,  barren,  and 
sandy  flanks  appear  within  cannon  shot,  but  they  are  distant 
seven  miles. 

After  a  four-miles'  drive  up  the  pleasant  valley  of  the  little 
river-nymph,  to  whom  the  grisly  hills  formed  an  effective  foil, 
we  saw  on  the  south  of  the  road  "  Alkali  Lake,"  another  of  the 
Trona  formations  with  which  w^e  were  about  to  become  familiar ; 
in  the  full  glare  of  burning  day  it  was  undistinguishable  as  to  the 
surface  from  the  round  pond  in  Hyde  Park.  Presently  ascend- 
ing a  little  rise,  we  w^ere  shown  for  the  first  time  a  real  bit  of  the 
far-famed  Eocky  Mountains,  which  was  hardly  to  be  distinguished 
from,  except  by  a  shade  of  solidity,  the  fleecy  sunlit  clouds  rest- 
ing upon  the  horizon :  it  was  Fremont's  Peak,  the  sharp,  snow- 
clad  apex  of  the  Wind  Eiver  range.  Behind  us  and  afar  rose 
the  distant  heads  of  black  hills.  The  valley  was  charming  with 
its  bright  glad  green,  a  tapestry  of  flowery  grass,  willow  copses 
where  the  grouse  ran  in  and  out,  and  long  lines  of  aspen,  beech, 
and  cotton-wood,  while  pine  and  cedar,  cypress  and  scattered  ever- 
greens, crept  up  the  cranks  and  crannies  of  the  rocks.  In  the 
midst  of  this  Firdaus — so  it  appeared  to  us  after  the  horrid  un- 
withering  artemisia  Jehennum  of  last  week — flowed  the  lovely 

*  Locally  called  the  mountain  lion.  This  animal  (F.  nnicohr)  is  the  largest  and 
fiercest  feline  of  the  New  World  :  it  is  a  heast  of  many  names — puma,  cougar,  Amer- 
ican lion,  panther  or  painter,  etc.  Its  habit  of  springing  upon  its  prey  from  trees 
makes  it  feared  by  hunters.     It  was  once  in  the  Kaatskills. 


154  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IH. 

little  stream,  transparent  as  crystal,  and  coquettishlj  changing 
from  side  to  side  in  her  bed  of  golden  sand.  To  see  her  tamely 
submit  to  being  confined  within  those  dwarf  earthen  cliffs,  you 
would  not  have  known  her  to  be  the  same  that  had  made  that 
terrible  breach  in  the  rock- wall  below.  "  Varium  et  mutabile 
semper,"  etc. :  I  will  not  conclude  the  quotation,  but  simply  re- 
mark that  the  voyageurs  have  called  her  "  She."  And  every 
where,  in  contrast  with  the  deep  verdure  and  the  bright  flowers 
of  the  valley,  rose  the  stern  forms  of  the  frowning  rocks,  some 
apparently  hanging  as  though  threatening  a  fall,  others  balanced 
upon  the  slenderest  foundations,  all  split  and  broken  as  though 
earthquake-riven,  loosely  piled  into  strange  figures,  the  lion  couch- 
ant,  sugar-loaf,  tortoise,  and  armadillo  —  not  a  mile,  in  fact,  was 
without  its  totem. 

The  road  was  good,  especially  when  hardened  by  frost.  We 
are  now  in  altitudes  where,  as  in  Tibet,  parts  of  the  country  for 
long  centuries  never  thaw.  After  passing  a  singular  stone  bluff 
on  the  left  of  the  road,  we  met  a  party  of  discharged  soldiers, 
who  were  traveling  eastward  comfortably  enough  in  government 
wagons  drawn  by  six  mules.  'Not  a  man  saluted  Lieutenant 
Dana,  though  he  was  in  uniform,  and  all  looked  surly  as  Indians 
after  a  scalpless  raid.  Speeding  merril}^  along,  we  were  shown 
on  the  right  of  the  road  a  ranch  belonging  to  a  Canadian,  a 
"mighty  mean  man,"  said  the  driver,  "who  oust  gin  me  ole 
mare's  meat  for  b'ar."  We  were  much  shocked  by  this  instance 
of  the  awful  depravity  of  the  unregenerate  human  heart,  but  our 
melancholy  musings  were  presently  interrupted  by  the  same 
youth,  who  pointed  out  on  the  other  side  of  the  path  a  mass  of 
clay  (conglomerate,  I  presume),  called  the  Devil's  Post-office.  It 
has  been  lately  washed  with  rains  so  copious  that  half  the  edifice 
lies  at  the  base  of  that  which  is  standing.  The  structure  is  not 
large :  it  is  highly  satisfactory — especially  to  a  man  who  in  this 
life  has  suffered  severely,  as  the  Anglo-Indian  ever  must  from 
endless  official  and  semi-official  correspondence — to  remark  that 
the  London  Post-office  is  about  double  its  size. 

Beyond  the  Post-office  was  another  ranch  belonging  to  a  Por- 
tuguese named  Luis  Silva,  married  to  an  Englishwoman  who  had 
deserted  the  Salt  Lake  Saints.  We  "staid  a  piece"  there,  but 
found  few  inducements  to  waste  our  time.  Moreover,  we  had 
heard  from  afar  of  an  "  ole  'ooman,"  an  Englishwoman,  a  Miss 
Moore — Miss  is  still  used  for  Mrs.  by  Western  men  and  negroes 
— celebrated  for  cleanliness,  tidiness,  civility,  and  housewifery  in 
general,  and  we  were  anxious  to  get  rid  of  the  evil  flavor  of  Ca- 
nadians, squaws,  and  "  ladies." 

At  11  A.M.  we  reached  "Three  Crossings,"  when  we  found  the 
"miss"  a  stout,  active,  middle-aged  matron,  deserving  of  all  the 
praises  that  had  so  liberall}'-  been  bestowed  upon  her.  The  little 
ranch  was  neatly  swept  and  garnished,  papered  and  ornamented. 


Chap.  III.  MISS  MOORE  AND  HER  HUSBAND.  155 

The  skull  of  a  full-grown  bighorn  hanging  over  the  doorway- 
represented  the  spoils  of  a  stag  of  twelve.  The  table-cloth  was 
clean,  so  was  the  cooking,  so  were  the  children ;  and  I  was  re- 
minded of  Europe  by  the  way  in  which  she  insisted  upon  wash- 
ing my  shirt,  an  operation  which,  after  leaving  the  Missouri,  r^a 
va  sans  dire,  had  fallen  to  my  own  lot.  In  fact,  this  day  intro- 
duced me  to  the  third  novel  sensation  experienced  on  the  west- 
ern side  of  the  Atlantic.  The  first  is  to  feel  (practically)  that  all 
men  are  equal ;  that  you  are  no  man's  superior,  and  that  no  man 
is  yours.  The  second— this  is  spoken  as  an  African  wanderer — 
to  see  one's  quondam  acquaintance,  the  Kaffir,  laying  by  his  grass 
kilt  and  coat  of  grease,  invest  himself  in  broadcloth,  part  his  wool 
on  one  side,  shave  what  pile  nature  has  scattered  upon  his  upper 
lip,  chin,  and  cheeks  below  a  line  drawn  from  the  ear  to  the 
mouth-corner  after  the  fashion  of  the  times  when  George  the 
Third  was  king,  and  call  himself,  not  Sambo,  but  Mr.  Scott.  The 
third  was  my  meeting  in  the  Rocky  Mountains  with  this  refresh- 
ing specimen  of  that  far  Old  "World,  where,  on  the  whole,  society 
still  lies  in  strata,  as  originally  deposited,  distinct,  sharply  de- 
fined, and  rarely  displaced,  except  by  some  violent  upheaval  from 
below,  which,  however,  never  succeeds  long  in  producing  total 
inversion.  Miss  Moore's  husband,  a  decent  appendage,  had  trans- 
ferred his  belief  from  the  Church  of  England  to  the  Church  of 
Utah,  and  the  good  wife,  as  in  duty  bound,  had  followed  in  his 
wake  whom  she  was  bound  to  love,  honor,  and  obey.  But  when 
the  serpent  came  and  whispered  in  Miss  Moore's  modest,  respect- 
able, one-idea'd  ear  that  the  Abrahams  of  Grreat  Salt  Lake  City 
are  mere  "sham  Abrams" — that,  not  content  with  Sarahs,  they  add 
to  them  an  unlimited  supply  of  Hagars,  then  did  our  stout  En- 
glishwoman's power  of  endurance  break  down  never  to  rise  again. 
*'  Not  an  inch  would  she  budge ;"  not  a  step  toward  Utah  Terri- 
tory would  she  take.  She  fought  pluckily'  against  the  impend- 
ing misfortune,  and — a  quelque  chose  malheur  est  hon  ! — she  suc- 
ceeded in  reducing  her  husband  to  that  state  which  is  typified  by 
the  wife  using  certain  portions  of  the  opposite  sex's  wardrobe, 
and  in  making  him  make  a  good  livelihood  as  station-master  on 
the  wagon-line. 

After  a  copious  breakfast,  which  broke  the  fast  of  the  four  days 
that  had  dragged  on  since  our  civilized  refection  at  Fort  Lara- 
mie, we  spread  our  buffalos  and  water-proofs  under  the  ample 
eaves  of  the  ranch,  and  spent  the  day  in  taking  time  with  the 
sextant — every  watch  being  wrong — in  snoozing,  dozing,  chat- 
ting, smoking,  and  contemplating  the  novel  view.  Straight  be- 
fore us  rose  the  Eattlesnake  Hills,  a  nude  and  grim  horizon, 
frowning  over  the  soft  and  placid  scene  below,  while  at  their  feet 
flowed  the  little  river — splendidior  vitro — purling  over  its  pebbly 
bed  with  graceful  meanderings  through  clover  prairillons  and 
garden-spots  full  of  wild  currants,  strawberries,  gooseberries,  and 


156  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Cuap.  UI. 

rattlesnakes ;  while,  contrasting  with  the  green  River  Yalley  and 
the  scorched  and  tawny  rock- wall,  patches  of  sand-hill,  raised  by 
the  winds,  here  and  there  cumbered  the  ground.  The  variety 
of  the  scene  was  much  enhanced  by  the  changeful  skies.  The 
fine  breeze  which  had  set  in  at  8  A.M.  had  died  in  the  attempt 
to  thread  these  heat-refracting  ridges,  and  vapory  clouds,  subli- 
mated by  the  burning  sun,  floated  lazily  in  the  empyrean,  casting 
fitful  shadows  that  now  intercepted,  then  admitted,  a  blinding 
glare  upon  the  mazy  stream  and  its  rough  cradle. 

In  the  evening  we  bathed  in  the  shallow  bed  of  the  Sweet- 
water. It  is  vain  to  caution  travelers  against  this  imprudence. 
Video  meliora  proboque — it  is  doubtless  unwise — but  it  is  also  mera 
stultitia  to  say  to  men  who  have  not  enjoyed  ablutions  for  a  week 
or  ten  days,  "If  3-ou  do  take  that  delicious  dip  you  ma}-  possibly 
catch  fever."  Deteriora  sequor — bathed.  Miss  Moore  warned  us 
strongly  against  the  rattlesnakes,  and  during  our  walk  w^e  care- 
fully observed  the  Indian  rule,  to  tread  upon  the  log  and  not  to 
overstep  it.  The  crotalus,  I  need  hardly  say,  like  other  snakes, 
is  fond  of  lurking  under  the  shade  of  fallen  or  felled  trunks,  and 
when  a  heel  or  a  leg  is  temptingly  set  before  it,  it  is  not  the  beast 
to  refuse  a  bite.  Accidents  are  very  common,  despite  all  precau- 
tions, upon  this  line,  but  they  seldom,  I  believe,  prove  fatal.  The 
remedies  are  almost  endless :  e.g.^  hartshorn,  used  externally  and 
drunk  in  dilution ;  scarification  and  irrumation  of  the  part,  pre- 
ceded, of  course,  by  a  ligature  between  the  limb  and  the  heart ; 
application  of  the  incised  breast  of  a  live  fowl  or  frog  to  the  wound; 
the  dried  and  powdered  blood  of  turtle,  of  this  two  pinches  to  be 
swallowed  and  a  little  dropped  upon  the  place  bitten ;  a  plaster 
of  chewed  or  washed  plantain-leaves — it  is  cooling  enough,  but 
can  do  little  more — bound  upon  the  puncture,  peppered  with  a 
little  finely -powdered  tobacco;  pulverized  indigo  made  into  a 
poultice  with  water;  cauterization  by  gunpowder,  hot  iron,  or 
lunar  caustic ;  cedrou,  a  nut  growing  on  the  Isthmus  of  Panama 
— of  this  remedy  I  heard,  in  loco,  the  most  wonderful  accounts, 
dying  men  being  restored,  as  if  by  magic,  after  a  bit  about  the 
size  of  a  bean  had  been  placed  in  their  mouths.  As  will  be  seen 
below,  the  land  is  rich  in  snakeroots,  but  the  superstitious  snake- 
stone  of  Hindostan — which  acts,  if  it  does  act,  as  an  absorbent  of 
the  virus  by  capillary  attraction — is  apparently  unknown.  The 
favorite  remedy  now  in  the  United  States  is  the  "  whisky  cure," 
which,  under  the  form  of  arrack,  combined  in  the  case  of  a  scor- 
pion-sting with  a  poultice  of  chewed  tobacco,  was  known  for  the 
last  fifty  years  to  the  British  soldier  in  India.  It  has  the  advan- 
tage of  being  a  palatable  medicine ;  it  must  also  be  taken  in  large 
quantities,  a  couple  of  bottles  sometimes  producing  little  effect. 
With  the  lighted  end  of  a  cigar  applied  as  moxa  to  the  wound,  a 
quantum  sufficit  of  ardent  spirits,  a  couple  of  men  to  make  me 
walk  about  when  drowsy  by  the  application  of  a  stick,  and,  above 


Chap.  in.  A  HUBBUB.— "YES,  SURE!"  I57 

all,  "with  the  serious  resolution  not  to  do  any  thing  so  mean  as  to 
"leap  the  twig,"  I  should  not  be  afraid  of  any  snake  yet  created. 
The  only  proviso  is  that  our  old  enemy  must  not  touch  an  artery, 
and  that  the  remedies  must  be  at  hand.  Fifteen  minutes  lost,  you 
are  "down  among  the  dead  men."  The  history  of  fatal  cases  al- 
ways shows  some  delay.* 

We  supped  in  the  evening  merrily.  It  was  the  best  coffee  we 
had  tasted  since  leaving  New  Orleans ;  the  cream  was  excellent, 
so  was  the  cheese.  But  an  antelope  had  unfortunately  been 
brought  in ;  we  had  insisted  upon  a  fry  of  newly-killed  flesh, 
which  was  repeated  in  the  morning,  and  we  had  bitterly  to  regret 
it.  While  I  was  amusing  myself  by  attempting  to  observe  an  im- 
mersion of  Jupiter's  satellites  with  a  notable  failure  in  the  shape 
of  that  snare  and  delusion,  a  portable  telescope,  suddenly  there 
arose  a  terrible  hubbub.  For  a  moment  it  was  believed  that  the 
crotalus  horridus  had  been  taking  liberties  with  one  of  Miss 
Moore's  progeny.  The  seat  of  pain,  however,  soon  removed  the 
alarming  suspicion,  and — the  rattlesnake  seldom  does  damage  at 
night — we  soon  came  to  the  conclusion  that  the  dear  little  fellow 
who  boo-hoo'd  for  forty  had  been  bitten  by  a  musqueto  somewhat 
bigger  than  its  fellows.  The  poor  mother  soon  was  restored  to 
her  habits  of  happiness  and  hard  labor.  Not  contented  with  sup- 
porting her  own  family,  she  was  doing  supererogation  by  feeding 
a  little  rat-eyed,  snub-nosed,  shark-mouthed  half-breed  girl,  who 
was,  I  believe,  in  the  market  as  a  "  chattel."  Mrs.  Dana  pointed 
out  to  me  one  sign  of  demoralization  on  the  part  of  Miss  Moore. 
It  was  so  microscopic  that  only  a  woman's  acute  eye  could  detect 
it.  Miss  Moore  was  teaching  her  children  to  say  "Yes,  surr!"  to 
every  driver. 

To  the  Foot  of  South  Pass.     \^th  August. 

With  renewed  spirit,  despite  a  somewhat  hard  struggle  with 
the  musquetoes,  we  set  out  at  the  respectable  hour  of  5  -io  A.M. 
We  had  breakfasted  comfortably,  and  an  interesting  country  lay 
before  us.  The  mules  seemed  to  share  in  our  gayet}^.  Despite 
a  long  ringing,  the  amiable  animals  kicked  and  bit,  bucked  and 
backed,  till  their  recalcitrances  had  almost  deposited  us  in  the 
first  ford  of  the  Sweetwater.  For  this,  however,  we  were  amply 
consoled  by  the  greater  misfortunes  of  our  consort,  the  official 
■wagon.  After  long  luxuriating  in  the  pick  of  the  teams,  they 
were  to-day  so  thoroughly  badly  "muled"  that  they  were  com- 
pelled to  apply  for  our  assistance. 

We  forded  the  river  twice  within  fifty  yards,  and  we  recog- 
nized with  sensible  pleasure  a  homely -looking  magpie  {Pica  Hud- 

*  The  author  of  "  The  Quadroon"  (chap,  xxxii.,  etc.)  adduces  a  Jiappy  instance  of 
a  "hero"  who,  after  a  delay  and  an  amount  of  exertion  which  certainly  would  liave 
cost  him  his  life,  was  relieved  by  tobacco  and  cured  by  the  snakeroot  {Polygala  Sene- 
ga). The  popular  snakeroots  quoted  by  Mr.  Bartlett  are  the  Seneca  snakeroot  above 
alluded  to,  tha  black  snakeroot  {Cimicifuga  racemosa),  and  the  Virginia  snakeroot 
(.-1  ristolochia  serjyentariu). 


158  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  HI. 

sonica\  and  a  rattlesnake,  not  inappropriately,  considering  wliere 
we  were,  crossed  the  road.  Our  path  lay  between  two  rocky 
ridges,  which  gradually  closed  inward,  forming  a  regular  kanyon, 
quite  shutting  out  the  view.  On  both  sides  white  and  micaceous 
granite  towered  to  the  height  of  300  or  400  feet,  terminating  in 
jagged  and  pointed  peaks,  whose  partial  disruption  covered  the 
angle  at  their  base.  Arrived  at  Ford  No.  5,  we  began  an  ascent, 
and  reaching  the  summit,  halted  to  enjoy  the  fine  back  view  of 
the  split  and  crevassed  mountains. 

A  waterless  and  grassless  track  of  fifteen  to  sixteen  miles  led 
us  to  a  well-known  place — the  Ice  Springs — of  which,  somewhat 
unnecessarily,  a  marvel  is  made.  The  ground,  which  lies  on  the 
right  of  the  road,  is  a  long  and  swampy  trough  between  two 
waves  of  land  which  permit  the  humidity  to  "flrain  down,  and  the 
grass  is  discolored,  suggesting  the  presence  of  alkali.  After  dig- 
ging about  two  feet,  ice  is  found  in  small  fragments.  Its  pres- 
encQj  even  in  the  hottest  seasons,  may  be  readily  accounted  for  by 
the  fact  that  hereabouts  water  will  freeze  in  a  tent  during  July, 
and  by  the  depth  to  which  the  wintry  frost  extends.  Upon  the 
same  principle,  snow  gathering  in  mountain  ravines  and  hollows 
long  outlasts  the  shallower  deposits.  A  little  beyond  Ice  Springs, 
on  the  opposite  side  of,  and  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  distant  from 
the  road,  lie  the  Warm  Springs,  one  of  the  many  alkaline  pans 
which  lie  scattered  over  the  face  of  the  country.  From  the  road 
nothing  is  to  be  seen  but  a  deep  cunette  full  of  percolated  water. 

Beyond  the  "Warm  Springs  lay  a  hopeless-looking  land,  a  vast 
slope,  barren  and  desolate  as  Nature  could  well  make  it.  The 
loose  sands  and  the  granite  masses  of  the  valley  had  disappeared ; 
the  surface  was  a  thin  coat  of  hard  gravelly  soil.  Some  mosses, 
a  scanty  3^ellow  grass,  and  the  dark  gray  artemisia,  now  stunted 
and  shrunk,  were  sparsely  scattered  about.  It  had  already  begun 
to  give  way  before  an  even  hardier  creation,  the  rabbit-bush  and 
the  greasewood.  The  former,  which  seems  to  thrive  under  the 
wintry  snow,  is  a  favorite  food  witb  hares,  which  abound  in  this 
region ;  the  latter  {Ohione^  or  Atnplex  canescens^  the  chamizo  of  the 
]^[exicans)  derives  its  name  from  the  oleaginous  matter  abundant 
in  its  wood,  and  is  always  a  sign  of  a  poor  and  sterile  soil. 
Avoiding  a  steep  descent  by  a  shorter  road,  called  "  Landers'  Cut- 
off," we  again  came  upon  the  Sweetwater,  which  was  here  some- 
what broader  than  below,  and  lighted  upon  good  grass  and  un- 
derbrush, willow  copses,  and  a  fair  halting-place.  At  Ford  No.  6 
—  three  followed  one  another  in  rapid  succession — we  found  the 
cattle  of  a  traveling  trader  scattered  over  the  pasture-grounds. 
He  proved  to  be  an  Italian  driven  from  the  low  country  by  a 
band  of  Sioux,  who  had  slain  his  Shoshqnee  wife,  and  at  one  time 
had  thought  of  adding  his  scalp  to  his  squaw's.  After  Ford  No.  8, 
we  came  upon  a  camping-ground,  usually  called  in  guide-books 
"Eiver  Bank  and  Stream."     The  Sweetwater  is  here  twenty-five 


Chap.  III.     TEMPERATURE.— FIRST  COME,  FIRST  SERVED.  I59 

feet  wide.  About  three  miles  beyond  it  lay  tlie  "  Foot  of  Eidge 
Station,"  near  a  willowy  creek,  called  from  its  principal  inhabi- 
tants the  Muskrat.*  The  ridge  from  which  it  derives  its  name  is 
a  band  of  stone  that  will  cross  the  road  during  to-morrow's  ascent. 
Being  a  frontier  place,  it  is  a  favorite  camping-ground  with  In- 
dians. To-day  a  war  party  of  Sioux  rode  in,  en  route  to  provide 
themselves  with  a  few  Shoshonee  scalps. 

We  made  a  decided  rise  to-day,  and  stood  at  least  6000  feet 
above  the  level  of  the  sea.  The  altitude  of  St.  Louis  beino-  in 
round  numbers  500  feet,  and  reckoning  the  diminution  of  temper- 
ature at  1°  F.  =  100  yards,  we  are  already  19°  to  20°  F.  colder 
than  before.  The  severity  of  the  atmosphere  and  the  rapid  evap- 
oration from  the  earth  cause  an  increase  of  frigidity,  to  which  the 
salts  and  nitrates  upon  the  surface  of  the  soil,  by  absorbing  the 
hydrogen  of  the  atmosphere  —  as  is  shown  by  the  dampness  of 
the  ground  and  the  absence  of  dust  around  the  Saleratus  Lakes — 
greatly  add.  Another  remark  made  by  every  traveler  in  these 
regions  is  the  marked  influence  upon  the  temperature  caused  by 
the  presence  and  the  absence  of  the  sun.  The  day  will  be  sultry 
and  oppressive,  and  a  fire  will  be  required  at  night.  In  the  morn- 
ing, about  11  A.M.,  the  thermometer  showed  80°  Fahrenheit ;  at 
4  P.M.,  the  sky  being  clouded  over,  it  fell  25° ;  before  dawn,  af- 
fected by  the  cold  north  wind  from  the  snows  about  the  Pass,  it 
stood  at  40°. 

The  lowering  firmament  threatened  rain,  of  which,  however, 
the  thirsty  land  was  disappointed.  Moreover,  all  were  agreed  that 
snow  was  to  be  expected  in  another  fortnight,  if  not  sooner.  Grla- 
cial  storms  occasionally  occur  in  July  and  August,  so  that  in  some 
years  the  land  may  be  said  to  have  no  summer.  In  winter  the 
sharpness  of  the  cold  is  such  that  it  can  be  kept  out  only  by 
clothes  of  the  closest  texture ;  the  mountain-men,  like  the  Esqui- 
maux, prefer  to  clothe  themselves  cap-a-pie  in  the  prepared  skins 
of  animals.  TV^e  were  all  animated  with  a  nervous  desire  for 
travel,  but  there  was  the  rub.  The  station-master  declared  that 
he  had  no  driver,  no  authority  to  forward  two  wagonsful,  and  no 
cattle ;  consequently,  that  the  last  comers  must  be  last  served,  and 
wait  patiently  at  Eocky  Eidge  till  they  could  be  sent  on.  They 
would  find  antelopes  in  plenty,  perhaps  a  grizzly,  and  plenty  of 
plover,  crows,  and  delicate  little  ground-squirrelsf  by  the  burrow- 
ful,  to  "  keep  their  hands  in."  We  being  the  first  comers,  a  title 
to  preference  rarely  disputed  in  this  law-and-rule-abiding  land, 
prudently  held   ourselves   aloof     The  Judiciary,  however,  was 

*  Fiber  ziheticus,  a  bearer-like  animal  that  inhabits  the  banks  of  ponds  and 
streams  :  it  has  a  strong  musky  odor  in  summer  only,  and  is  greedily  eaten  by  the 
Indians. 

+  I  had  no  opportunity  of  observing  this  clean,  pretty,  and  vivacious  little  animal, 
whose  chirruping  resembles  that  of  a  bird ;  but  it  appeared  to  be  quite  a  different 
Fpecies  from  tlie  common  striped  and  spotted  prairie-squirrel  {Spermophilus  tredecim- 
linea'.us),  or  the  chipmonk  or  chipmuk  (S.  striatus). 


160  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  III. 

sorely  "exercised."  Being  a  "professor,"  that  is,  a  serious  per- 
son, he  could  not  relieve  his  mind  by  certain  little  moyens  which 
naturally  occurred  to  the  rest  of  the  party.  Many  and  protracted 
■were  the  powwows  that  took  place  on  this  momentous  occasion. 
Sometimes  our  quondam  companions — we  now  looked  upon  them 
as  friends  lost  to  us — would  m3^steriously  disappear  as  though  the 
earth  had  opened  and  swallowed  them,  and  presently  they  would 
return  with  woe-begone  step  and  the  wrinkled  brow  of  care,  sim- 
ulating an  ease  which  they  were  far  from  feeling. 

The  station  rather  added  to  than  took  from  our  discomfort :  it 
was  a  terrible  unclean  hole ;  milk  was  not  procurable  within  thir- 
ty-five miles ;  one  of  the  officials  was  suffering  sorely  from  a  stom- 
ach-ache; there  was  no  sugar,  and  the  cooking  was  atrocious. 
With  a  stray  title-j^ageless  volume  of  some  natural  history  of 
America,  and  another  of  agricultural  reports — in  those  days,  before 
reform  came,  these  scientific  and  highly  elaborate  compositions, 
neatly  printed  and  expensively  got  up  at  the  public  expense,  were 
apparently  distributed  to  every  ranch  and  station  in  the  line  of 
road — I  worked  through  the  long  and  tedious  afternoon.  We 
were  not  sorry  when  the  night  came,  but  then  the  floor  was  knob- 
by, the  musquetoes  seemed  rather  to  enjoy  the  cold,  and  the  banks 
swarmed  with  "  chinches."^'  The  coyotes  and  wolves  made  night 
vocal  with  their  choruses,  and  had  nearly  caused  an  accident. 
One  of  the  station-men  arose,  and,  having  a  bone  to  pick  with  the 
animals  for  having  robbed  his  beef-barrel,  cocked  his  revolver, 
and  was  upon  the  point  of  firing,  when  the  object  aimed  at  started 
up  and  cried  out  in  the  nick  of  time  that  he  was  a  federal  mar- 
shal, not  a  wolf. 

To  the  South  Pass.     August  2Qth. 

We  rose  with  the  daybreak;  we  did  not  start  till  nearly  8  A.M., 
the  interim  having  been  consumed  by  the  tenants  of  our  late  con- 
sort in  a  vain  palaver.  We  bade  adieu  to  them  and  mounted  at 
last,  loudly  pitying  their  miseries  as  they  disappeared  from  our 
ken.  But  the  driver  bade  us  reserve  our  sj'mpathy  and  humane 
expressions  for  a  more  fitting  occasion,  and  declared — it  was  prob- 
ably a  little  effort  of  his  own  imagination — that  those  faithless 
friends  had  spent  all  their  spare  time  in  persuading  him  to  take 
them  on  and  to  leave  us  behind.  I,  for  one,  will  never  believe 
that  any  thing  of  the  kind  had  been  attempted ;  a  man  must  be 
created  with  a  total  absence  of  the  bowels  of  compassion  who 
would  leave  a  woman  and  a  young  child  for  days  together  at  the 
foot  of  Piidge  Station. 

The  road  at  once  struck  away  from  the  Sweetwater,  winding 
up  and  down  rugged  hills  and  broken  hollows.     From  Fort  Lara- 

*  The  chinch  or  chints  is  the  Spanish  chincJie — the  popular  word  for  the  Cimex 
kctularuts  in  tlie  Southern  States.  In  other  parts  of  the  United  States  the  English 
bnp  is  called  a  bed-bup :  without  the  prefix  it  is  applied  to  beetles  and  a  vai'iety  of 
Coleopters,  as  the  ^lay-bug,  Junc-bng,  golden-bug,  etc. 


Chap.  HI.  WILLOW  CREEK.— SOUTH-PASS  CITY.  161 

mie  tlie  land  is  all  a  sandy  and  hillj  desert  where  one  can  easily 
starve,  but  here  it  shows  its  worst  features.  During  a  steep  de- 
scent a  mule  fell,  and  was  not  made  to  regain  its  footing  without 
difficulty.  Signs  of  wolves,  coyotes,  and  badgers  were  abundant, 
and  the  coqs  de  prairie  (sage-chickens),  still  young  and  toothsome 
at  this  season,  were  at  no  pains  to  get  out  of  shot.  After  about 
five  miles  we  passed  by  "  Three  Lakes,"  dirty  little  ponds  north 
of  the  road,  two  near  it  and  one  distant,  all  about  a  quarter  of  a 
mile  apart,  and  said  by  those  fond  of  tasting  strange  things  to  have 
somewhat  the  flavor,  as  they  certainly  have  the  semblance,  of  soap- 
suds. Beyond  this  point  we  crossed  a  number  of  influents  of  the 
pretty  Sweetwater,  some  dry,  others  full :  the  most  interesting  was 
Strawberry  Creek :  it  supplies  plenty  of  the  fragrant  wild  fruit, 
and  white  and  red  willows  fringe  the  bed  as  long  as  it  retains  its 
individuality.  To  the  north  a  mass  of  purple  nimbus  obscured 
the  mountains — on  Fremont's  Peak  it  is  said  always  to  rain  or 
snow — and  left  no  visible  line  between  earth  and  sky.  Quaking- 
Asp  Creek  was  bone  dry.  At  MacAchran's  Branch  of  the  Sweet- 
water we  found,  pitched  upon  a  sward  near  a  willow  copse,  a  Pro- 
vengal  Frenchman — by  what  "hasard  que  les  sceptiques  ajDpellent 
I'homme  d'affaires  du  bon  Dieu"  did  he  come  here  ? — who  begged 
us  to  stop  and  give  him  the  news,  especially  about  the  Indians : 
we  could  say  little  that  was  reassuring.  Another  spell  of  rough, 
steep  ground  placed  us  at  Willow  Creek,  a  pretty  little  j)rairillon, 
with  verdure,  water,  and  an  abundance  of  the  larger  vegetation, 
upon  which  our  eyes,  long  accustomed  to  artemisia  and  rabbit- 
bush,  dwelt  with  a  compound  sense  of  surprise  and  pleasure.  In 
a  well-built  ranch  at  this  place  of  plenty  were  two  Canadian  trad- 
ers, apparently  settled  for  life ;  they  supplied  us,  as  we  found  it 
necessary  to  "  liquor  up,"  with  a  whisky  which  did  not  poison  us, 
and  that  is  about  all  that  I  can  say  for  it.  At  Ford  ISTo.  9,  we 
bade  adieu  to  the  Sweetwater  with  that  natural  regret  which  one 
feels  when  losing  sight  of  the  only  pretty  face  and  pleasant  person 
in  the  neighborhood;  and  we  heard  with  a  melancholy  satisfac- 
tion the  driver's  tribute  to  departing  worth,  viz.,  that  its  upper 
course  is  the  "  healthiest  water  in  the  world."  Near  this  spot, 
since  my  departure,  has  been  founded  "South-Pass  City,"  one  of 
the  many  mushroom  growths  which  the  presence  of  gold  in  the 
Eocky  Mountains  has  caused  to  spring  up. 

Ten  miles  beyond  Ford  No.  9,  hilly  miles,  ending  in  a  long 
champaign  having  some  of  the  characteristics  of  a  rolling  prairie, 
with  scatters  of  white,  rose,  and  smoky  quartz,  granite,  hornblende, 
porphyry,  marble-like  lime,  sandstone,  and  mica  slate — the  two 
latter  cropping  out  of  the  ground  and  forming  rocky  ridges — led 
us  to  the  South  Pass,  the  great  Wasserscheide  between  the  Atlantic 
and  the  Pacific,  and  the  frontier  points  between  the  territory  of 
Nebraska  and  the  State  of  Oregon.  From  the  mouth  of  the  Sweet- 
water, about  120  miles,  we  have  been  rising  so  gradually,  almost 

Xi 


162  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  III. 

imperceptibly,  that  now  "we  unexpectedly  find  ourselves  upon  tlie 
summit.  The  distance  from  Fort  Laramie  is  320  miles,  from  St. 
Louis  1580,  and  from  the  mouth  of  the  Oregon  about  1400 :  it  is 
therefore  nearly  midway  between  the  Mississippi  and  the  Pacific. 
The  dimensions  of  this  memorial  spot  are  7490  feet  above  sea- 
level,  and  20  miles  in  breadth.  The  last  part  of  the  ascent  is  so 
gentle  that  it  is  difficult  to  distinguish  the  exact  point  where  the 
versant  lies :  a  stony  band  crossing  the  road  on  the  ridge  of  the 
table-land  is  pointed  out  as  the  place,  and  the  position  has  been 
fixed  at  N.  lat.  48°  19',  and  W.  long.  108°  40'.*  The  northern 
limit  is  the  noble  chain  of  Les  Montagues  Eocheuses,  which  goes 
by  the  name  of  the  Wind  Eiver;  the  southern  is  called  Table 
Mountain,  an  insignificant  mass  of  low  hills, 

A  pass  it  is  not :  it  has  some  of  the  features  of  Thermopylae  or 
the  Gorge  of  Killiecrankie ;  of  the  European  St.  Bernard  or  Sim- 
plon ;  of  the  Alleghany  Passes  or  of  the  Mexican  Barrancas.  It 
is  not,  as  it  sounds,  a  ghaut  between  lofty  mountains,  or,  as  the 
traveler  may  expect,  a  giant  gateway,  opening  through  Cyclopean 
walls  of  beetling  rocks  that  rise  in  forbidding  grandeur  as  he  pass- 
es onward  to  the  Western  continent.  And  yet  the  word  "  Pass" 
has  its  significancy.  In  that  New  World  where  Nature  has  work- 
ed upon  the  largest  scale,  where  every  feature  of  scenery,  river 
and  lake,  swamp  and  forest,  prairie  and  mountain,  dwarf  their  con- 
geners in  the  old  hemisphere,  this  majestic  level-topped  bluff,  the 
highest  steppe  of  the  continent,  upon  whose  iron  surface  there  is 
space  enough  for  the  armies  of  the  globe  to  march  over,  is  the 
grandest  and  the  most  appropriate  of  avenues. 

A  water-shed  is  always  exciting  to  the  traveler.  What  shall  I 
say  of  this,  where,  on  the  topmost  point  of  American  travel,  you 
drink  within  a  hundred  yards  of  the  waters  of  the  Atlantic  and 
the  Pacific  Oceans — that  divides  the  "doorways  of  the  west 
wind"  from  the  "portals  of  the  sunrise?"  On  the  other  side  of 
yon  throne  of  storms,  within  sight,  did  not  the  Sierra  interpose, 
lie  separated  by  a  trivial  space  the  fountain-heads  that  give  birth 
to  the  noblest  rivers  of  the  continent,  the  Columbia,  the  Colorado, 
and  the  Yellow  Stone,  which  is  to  the  Missouri  what  the  Missouri 
is  to  the  Mississippi,  whence  the  waters  trend  to  four  opposite  di- 
rections :  the  Wind  River  to  the  northeast ;  to  the  southeast  the 
Sweetwater  and  the  Platte ;  the  various  branches  of  the  Snake 
River  to  the  northeast;  and  to  the  southwest  the  Green  River, 
that  finds  its  way  into  the  Californian  Gulf  f    It  is  a  suggestive 

*  Some  guide-books  place  the  water-shed  between  two  small  hills,  the  "Twin 
Peaks,"  about  fifty  or  sixty  feet  high ;  the  road,  however,  no  longer  passes  between 
them. 

t  As  early  as  A.D.  1772  (Description  of  the  Province  of  Carolana,  etc.,  etc.,  by 
Daniel  Cox)  it  was  suggested  that  there  was  a  line  of  water  communication  by 
means  of  the  "northern  branch  of  the  Great  Yellow  Eiver,  by  the  natives  called  the 
River  of  the  Massorites"  (Missouri  Piiver),  and  a  branch  of  the  Columbia  River, 
which,  however,  was  erroneously  supposed  to  disembogue  through  the  Great  Salt 


Chap.  IH.  THE  SOUTH  PASS.  163 

spot,  this  "divortia  aquarum:"  it  compels  Memory  to  revive  past 
scenes  before  plunging  into  the  mysterious  "  Lands  of  the  Here- 
after," which  lie  before  and  beneath  the  feet.  The  Great  Ferry, 
which  steam  has  now  bridged,  the  palisaded  banks  of  the  Hudson, 
the  soft  and  sunny  scenery  of  the  Ohio,  and  the  kingly  course  of 
the  Upper  Mississippi,  the  terrible  beauty  of  Niagara,  and  the 
marvels  of  that  chain  of  inland  seas  which  winds  its  watery  way 
from  Ontario  to  Superior;  the  rich  pasture-lands  of  the  North, 
the  plantations  of  the  semi-tropical  South,  and  the  broad  corn- 
fields of  the  West ;  finally,  the  vast  meadow-land  and  the  gloomy 
desert-waste  of  sage  and  saleratus,  of  clay  and  mauvaise  ierre,  of 
red  hutte  and  tawny  rock,  all  pass  before  the  mind  in  rapid  array 
ere  they  are  thrust  into  oblivion  by  the  excitement  of  a  new  de- 
parture. 

But  we  have  not  yet  reached  our  destination,  which  is  two 
miles  below  the  South  Pass.  Pacific  Springs  is  our  station;  it 
lies  a  little  down  the  hill,  and  we  can  sight  it  from  the  road.  The 
springs  are  a  pond  of  pure,  hard,  and  very  cold  water,  surrounded 
by  a  strip  of  shaking  bog,  which  must  be  boarded  over  before  it 
will  bear  a  man.  The  hut  would  be  a  right  melancholy  abode 
were  it  not  for  the  wooded  ground  on  one  hand,  and  the  glorious 
snow-peaks  on  the  other  side  of  the  "Pass."  We  reached  Pacific 
Springs  at  3  P.M.,  and  dined  without  delay,  the  material  being 
bouillr  and  potatoes — unusual  luxuries.  About  an  hour  after- 
ward the  west  wind,  here  almost  invariable,  brought  up  a  shower 
of  rain,  and  swept  a  vast  veil  over  the  forms  of  the  Wind-Eiver 
Mountains.  Toward  sunset  it  cleared  away,  and  the  departing 
luminary  poured  a  flood  of  gold  upon  the  majestic  pile — I  have 
seldom  seen  a  view  more  beautiful. 

From  the  south,  the  barren  rolling  table-land  that  forms  the 
Pass  trends  northward  till  it  sinks  apparently  below  a  ridge  of 
ojBfsets  from  the  main  body,  black  with  timber — cedar,  cypress,  fir, 
and  balsam  pine.  The  hand  of  Nature  has  marked,  as  though  by 
line  and  level,  the  place  where  vegetation  shall  go  and  no  farther. 
Below  the  waist  the  mountains  are  robed  in  evergreens;  above 
it,  to  the  shoulders,  they  would  be  entirely  bare  but  for  the  at- 
mosphere, which  has  thrown  a  thin  veil  of  light  blue  over  their 
tawny  gray,  while  their  majestic  heads  are  covered  with  ice  and 
snow,  or  are  hidden  from  sight  by  thunder-cloud  or  the  morning 
mist.     From  the  south,  on  clear  days,  the  cold  and  glittering  ra- 

Lake  into  the  Pacific.  The  idea  has  been  revived  in  the  present  day.  Some  assert 
that  tlie  upper  waters  of  the  Yellow  Stone,  which  approach  within  three  hundred 
miles  of  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  are  three  feet  deep,  and  therefore  na^•igable  for  flat- 
bottomed  boats  during  the  annual  inundation.  Others  believe  that,  as  in  the  case 
of  the  Platte,  shallowness  would  be  an  insuperable  obstacle,  except  for  one  or  two 
months.  This  point  will  doubtless  be  settled  by  Captain  W.  F.  Raj-nolds,  of  the 
United  States  Topographical  Engineers,  who,  accompanied  by  Colonel  J.  Bridger, 
was,  at  the  time  of  my  visit  to  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  exploring  the  Valley  of  the 
Yellow  Stone. 


10^  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  HI. 

diance  may  be  seen  at  a  distance  of  a  hundred  miles.  The  mon- 
arch of  these  mountains  is  "  Fremont's  Peak ;"  its  height  is  laid 
'down  at  13,570  feet  above  sea  level ;  and  second  to  it  is  a  hoary 
cone  called  by  the  station-people  Snowy  Peak. 

That  evening  the  "Wind-Eiver  Mountains  appeared  in  marvel- 
ous majesty.  The  huge  purple  hangings  of  rain-cloud  in  the 
northern  sky  set  off  their  huge  proportions,  and  gave  prominence, 
as  in  a  stereoscope,  to  their  gigantic  forms,  and  their  upper  heights, 
hoar  with  the  frosts  of  ages.  The  mellow  radiance  of  the  setting 
sun  diffused  a  charming  softness  over  their  more  rugged  features, 
defining  the  folds  and  ravines  with  a  distinctness  which  deceived 
every  idea  of  distance.  And  as  the  light  sank  behind  the  far 
western  horizon,  it  traveled  slowly  up  the  mountain  side,  till, 
reaching  the  summit,  it  mingled  its  splendors  with  the  snow  — 
flashing  and  flickering  for  a  few  brief  moments,  then  wasting  them 
in  the  dark  depths  of  the  upper  air.  Kor  was  the  scene  kss  love- 
ly in  the  morning  hour,  as  the  first  effulgence  of  day  fell  upon 
the  masses  of  dew-clpud — at  this  time  mist  always  settles  upon 
their  brows  —  lit  up  the  peaks,  which  gleamed  like  silver,  and 
poured  its  streams  of  light  and  warmth  over  the  broad  skirts  re- 
posing upon  the  plain. 

This  unknown  region  was  explored  in  August,  1842,  by  Col- 
onel, then  Brevet  Captain,  J.  C.  Fremont,  of  the  United  States  Top- 
ographical Engineers  ;  and  his  eloquent  descriptions  of  the  mag- 
nificent scenery  that  rewarded  his  energy  and  enterprise  j)rove 
how  easily  men  write  well  when  they  have  a  great  subject  to 
write  upon.  The  concourse  of  small  green  tarns,  rushing  waters, 
and  lofty  cascades,  with  the  gigantic  disorder  of  enormous  mass- 
es, the  savage  sublimity  of  the  naked  rock,  broken,  jagged  cones, 
slender  minarets,  needles,  and  columns,  and  serrated  walls,  2000 
to  8000  feet  high,  all  naked  and  destitute  of  vegetable  earth ;  the 
vertical  precipices,  chasms,  and  fissures,  insecure  icy  passages, 
long  moraines,  and  sloping  glaciers — which  had  nearly  proved 
fatal  to  some  of  the  party ;  the  stern  recesses,  shutting  out  from 
the  world  dells  and  ravines  of  exquisite  beauty,  smoothly  carpet- 
ed with  soft  grass,  kept  green  and  fresh  by  the  moisture  of  the  at- 
mosphere, and  sown  with  gay  groups  of  brilliant  flowers,  of  which 
yellow  was  the  predominant  color :  all  this  glory  and  grandeur 
seems  to  be  placed  like  a  picture  before  our  eyes.  The  reader 
enjoys,  like  the  explorer,  the  fragrant  odor  of  the  pines,  and  the 
pleasure  of  breathing,  in  the  bright,  clear  morning,  that  "mount- 
ain air  which  makes  a  constant  theme  of  the  hunter's  praise,"  and 
which  causes  man  to  feel  as  if  he  had  been  inhaling  some  exhila- 
rating gas.  We  sympatljize  with  his  joy  in  having  hit  upon 
"  such  a  beautiful  entrance  to  the  mountains,"  in  his  sorrow, 
caused  by  accidents  to  barometer  and  thermometer,  and  in  the 
honest  pride  with  which,  fixing  a  ramrod  in  the  crevice  of  "an 
unstable  and  precarious  slab,  which  it  seemed  a  breath  would  hurl 


Chap. III.     GOLD.— GAME.— MUSQUETOES.— A  "SMUDGE."  IQq 

into  the  abyss  below,"  he  unfurled  the  Stars  and  the  Stripes,  to 
wave  in  the  breeze  where  flag  never  waved  before — over  the  top- 
most crest  of  the  Eocky  Mountains.  And  every  driver  upon  the 
road  now  can  tell  how,  in  the  profound  silence  and  terrible  still- 
ness and  solitude  that  afiect  the  mind  as  the  great  features  of  the 
scene,  while  sitting  on  a  rock  at  the  very  summit,  where  the  silence 
was  absolute,  unbroken  by  any  sound,  and  the  stillness  and  soli- 
tude were  completest,  a  solitary  "humble-bee"*  winging  through 
the  black-blue  air  his  flight  from  the  eastern  valley,  alit  upon  the 
knee  of  one  of  the  men,  and,  helas !  "  found  a  grave  in  the  leaves 
of  the  large  book,  among  the  flowers  collected  on  the  way." 

The  Wind-Eiver  Eange  has  other  qualities  than  mere  formal 
beauty  to  recommend  it.  At  Horseshoe  Creek  I  was  shown  a 
quill  fall  of  large  gold-grains  from  a  new  digging.  Probably  all 
the  primitive  masses  of  the  Eocky  Mountains  will  be  found  to 
contain  the  precious  metal.  The  wooded  heights  are  said  to  be  a 
very  paradise  of  sport,  full  of  elk  and  every  kind  of  deer;  pumas; 
bears,  brownf  as  well  as  grizzly ;  the  wolverine  •,X  i^i  parts  the 
mountain  buffalo — briefly,  all  the  noble  game  of  the  Continent. 
The  Indian  tribes,  Shoshonees  and  Blackfeet,  are  not  deadly  to 
whites.  Washiki,  the  chief  of  the  former,  had,  during  the  time 
of  our  visit,  retired  to  hilly  ground,  about  forty  miles  north  of  the 
Foot  of  Eidge  Station.  This  chief — a  fine,  manly  fellow,  equal  in 
point  of  physical  strength  to  the  higher  race — had  b^en  a  firm 
friend,  from  the  beginning,  to  emigrant  and  settler ;  but  he  was 
complaining,  according  to  the  road  officials,  that  the  small  amount 
of  inducement  prevented  his  affording  good  conduct  any  longer 
— that  he  must  rob,  like  the  rest  of  the  tribe.  Game,  indeed,  is 
not  unfrequently  found  near  the  Pacific  Springs ;  they  are  visit- 
ed, later  in  the  year,  by  swans,  geese,  and  flights  of  ducks.  At 
this  season  they  seem  principally  to  attract  coyotes  —  five  mules 
have  lately  been  worried  by  the  little  villains — huge  cranes,  chick- 
en-hawks, a  large  species  of  trochilus,  and  clouds  of  musquetoes, 
which  neither  the  altitude,  the  cold,  nor  the  eternal  wind-storm 
that  howls  through  the  Pass  can  drive  from  their  favorite  breed- 
ing-bed. Near  nightfall  a  flock  of  wild  geese  passed  over  us,  au- 
dibly threatening  an  early  winter.  "We  were  obliged,  before  rest- 
ing, to  insist  upon  a  smudge,  §  without  which  fumigation  sleep 
would  have  been  impossible. 

*  A  species  of  hromus  ox  homhus.  In  the  United  States,  as  in  England,  the  word 
is  often  pronounced  bumble-bee.  Johnson  says  we  call  a  bee  an  humble  bee  that 
wants  a  sting;  so  the  States  call  black  cattle  without  horns  "humble  cows."  It  is 
the  general  belief  of  the  moimtaineers  that  the  bee,  the  partridge,  the  plantain,  and 
the  "  Jamestown  weed"  follow  the  footsteps  of  the  white  pioneers  westward. 

t  Some  authorities  doubt  that  the  European  brown  bear  is  found  in  America. 

X  The  wolverine  {Gnlo  lusciis),  carcajou,  or  glutton,  extends  throughout  Utah  Ter- 
ritory: its  carnivorous  propensities  render  it  an  object  of  peculiar  hatred  to  fur- 
hunters.  The  first  name  is  loosely  used  in  the  States :  the  people  of  Michigan  are 
called  Wolverines,  from  the  large  number  of  mischievous  jirairie  icolves  found  there 
(Bartlett). 

§  This  old  North  of  England  word  is  used  in  the  West  for  a  heap  of  gi-een  bush 


Igg  ■  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IH. 

The  sliantj  -was  perhaps  a  trifle  more  uncomfortable  than  the 
average ;  our  only  seat  was  a  kind  of  trestled  plank,  -which  sug- 
gested a  certain  obsolete  military  punishment  called  riding  on  a 
rail.  The  station-master  was  a  hon  enfant;  but  his  help,  a  Mor- 
mon lad,  still  in  his  teens,  had  been  trained  to  go  in  a  "  sorter" 
jibbing  and  somewhat  uncomfortable  "argufying,"  " highfalutin'  " 
way.  He  had  the  furor  for  fire-arms  that  characterizes  the  ingen- 
uous youth  of  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  and  his  old  rattletrap  of  a  re- 
volver, which  always  reposed  by  his  side  at  night,  was  as  datiger- 
ous  to  his  friends  as  to  himself.  His  vernacular  was  peculiar; 
like  Mr.  Boatswain  Chucks  (Mr.  D s),  he  could  begin  a  sen- 
tence with  polished  and  elaborate  diction,  but  it  always  ended, 
like  the  wicked,  badly.  He  described  himself,  for  instance,  as 
having  lately  been  "  slightly  inebriated ;"  but  the  euphuistic  peri- 
phrasis concluded  with  an  asseveration  that  he  would  be  "  Gord 
domned"  if  he  did  it  again. 

The  night  was,  like  the  day,  loud  and  windy,  the  log  hut  being 
somewhat  crannied  and  creviced,  and  the  door  had  a  porcelain 
handle,  and  a  shocking  bad  fit — a  characteristic  combination.  "We 
had  some  trouble  to  keep  ourselves  warm.  At  sunrise  the  ther- 
mometer showed  85°  Fahrenheit. 

To  Green  River,     August  21st. 

"We  rose  early,  despite  the  cold,  to  enjoy  once  more  the  lovely 
aspect  of  the  "Wind-Eiver  Mountains,  upon  whose  walls  of  snow 
the  rays  of  the  unrisen  sun  broke  with  a  splendid  effect ;  break- 
fasted, and  found  ourselves  e?i  route  at  8  A.M.  The  day  did  not 
begin  well :  Mrs.  Dana  was  suffering  severely  from  fatigue,  and 
the  rapid  transitions  from  heat  to  cold ;  Miss  May,  poor  child ! 
was  but  little  better,  and  the  team  was  re-enforced  by  an  extra 
mule  returning  to  its  proper  station :  this  four-footed  Xantippe 
caused  us,  without  speaking  of  the  dust  from  her  hoofs,  an  im- 
mensity of  trouble. 

At  the  Pacific  Creek,  two  miles  below  the  springs,  we  began  the 
descent  of  the  "Western  water-shed,  and  the  increase  of  tempera- 
ture soon  suggested  a  lower  level.  "We  were  at  once  convinced 
that  those  who  expect  any  change  for  the  better  on  the  counter- 
slope  of  the  mountains  labor  under  a  vulgar  error.  The  land  was 
desolate,  a  red  waste,  dotted  with  sage  and  greasebush,  and  in 
places  pitted  with  large  rain-drops.  But,  looking  backward,  we 
could  admire  the  Sweetwater's  Gap  heading  far  away,  and  the  glo- 
rious pile  of  mountains  which,  disposed  in  crescent  shape,  curtain- 
ed the  horizon ;  their  southern  and  western  bases  wanted,  howev- 
er, one  of  the  principal  charms  of  the  upper  view :  the  snow  had 
well-nigh  been  melted  off.  Yet,  according  to  the  explorer,  they 
supply  within  the  space  of  a  few  miles  the  Green  River  with  a 

or  other  damp  combustibles,  placed  inside  or  to  windward  of  a  house  or  tent,  and 
partially  lighted,  so  as  to  produce  a  thick,  pungent  steam. 


Chap.  III.  THE  GLISTENING  GRAVEL  WATER.  IQ^ 

number  of  tributaries,  wliieli  are  all  called  the  New  Forks.  We 
kept  them  in  sight  till  they  mingled  with  the  upper  air  like  im- 
mense masses  of  thunder-cloud  gathering  for  a  storm. 

From  Pacific  Creek  the  road  is  not  bad,  but  at  this  season  the 
emigrant  parties  are  sorely  tried  by  drought,  and  when  water  is 
found  it  is  often  fetid  or  brackish.  After  seventeen  miles  we  pass- 
ed the  junction  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake  and  Fort  Ilall  roads.  Near 
Little  Sandy  Creek — a  feeder  of  its  larger  namesake — which  after 
rains  is  about  2-5  feet  deep,  we  found  nothing  but  sand,  caked 
clay,  sage,  thistles,  and  the  scattered  fragments  of  camp-fires,  with 
large  ravens  picking  at  the  bleaching  skeletons,  and  other  indica- 
tions of  a  halting-ground,  an  eddy  in  the  great  current  of  man- 
kind, which,  ceaseless  as  the  Gulf  Stream,  ever  courses  from  east 
to  west.  After  a  long  stage  of  twenty-nine  miles  we  made  Big 
Sandy  Creek,  an  important  influent  of  the  Green  Eiver ;  the 
stream,  then  shrunken,  was  in  breadth  not  less  than  five  rods, 
each  =:  16*5  feet,  running  with  a  clear,  swift  current  through  a 
pretty  little  prairillon,  bright  with  the  blue  lupine,  the  delicate 
pink  malvacea,  the  golden  helianthus,  purple  aster  acting  daisy, 
the  white  mountain  heath,  and  the  green  Asclepias  tuberosa,*  a 
weed  common  throughout  Utah  Territory.  The  Indians,  in  their 
picturesque  way,  term  this  stream  Wagahongopa,  or  the  Glisten- 
ing Gravel  Water.f  "We  halted  for  an  hour  to  rest  and  dine ;  the 
people  of  the  station,  man  and  wife,  the  latter  very  young,  were 
both  English,  and  of  course  Mormons ;  they  had  but  lately  be- 
come tenants  of  the  ranch,  but  already  they  were  thinking,  as  the 
Old  Country  people  will,  of  making  their  surroundings  "nice  and 

Beyond  the  Glistening  Gravel  Water  lies  a  mauvaise  ierre^  some- 
times called  the  First  Desert,  and  upon  the  old  road  water  is  not 
found  in  the  dry  season  within  forty -nine  miles — a  terrible /orna- 
daX  for  laden  wagons  with  tired  cattle.  We  prepared  for  drought 
by  replenishing  all  our  canteens — one  of  them  especially,  a  tin 
flask,  covered  outside  with  thick  cloth,  kept  the  fluid  deliciously 
cold — and  we  amused  ourselves  by  the  pleasant  prospect  of  seeing 
wild  mules  taught  to  bear  harness.  The  tricks  of  equine  vicious- 
ness  and  asinine  obstinacy  played  by  the  mongrels  were  so  dis- 
tinct, that  we  had  no  pains  in  determining  what  was  inherited  from 
the  father  and  what  from  the  other  side  of  the  house.  Before 
they  could  be  hitched  up  they  were  severally  hustled  into  some- 

*  Locally  called  milkweed.  The  whites  use  the  silky  cotton  of  the  pods,  as  in 
Arabia,  for  bed-stnffings,  and  the  Sioux  Indians  of  the  Upper  Platte  boil  and  eat  the 
young  pods  with  their  buffalo  flesh.  Colonel  Fremont  asserts  that  he  never  saw  this 
plant  without  remarking  "on  the  flower  a  large  butterfly,  so  nearly  resembling  it  in 
color  as  to  be  distinguishable  at  a  little  distance  only  by  the  motion  of  its  wings." 

t  Similarly  the  Snake  River,  an  eastern  influent  of  the  Colorado,  is  called  Yampa 
Pa,  or  Sweet  Root  (Anethum  graveolens)  Water. 

J  The  Spanish-Mexican  term  for  a  day's  march.  It  is  generally  applied  to  a  wa- 
terless march,  e.g.,  "Jornada  del  Muerto"  in  New  Mexico,  which,  like  some  in  the 
Sahara,  measures  ninety  miles  across. 


158  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chaf.  HI. 

tiling  like  a  parallel  line  witli  tlie  pole,  and  were  tlien  forced  into 
their  places  bj  a  rope  attached  to  the  fore  wheel,  and  hauled  at 
the  other  end  by  two  or  three  men.  Each  of  these  pleasant  ani- 
mals had  a  bell :  it  is  sure,  unless  corraled,  to  run  away,  and  at 
night  sound  is  necessary  to  guide  the  pursuer.  At  last,  being  "all 
aboord,"  we  made  a  start,  dashed  over  the  Big  Sandy,  charged  the 
high  stiff  bank  with  an  imj^etus  that  might  have  carried  us  up  an 
otter-slide  or  a  Montague  Russe,  and  took  the  right  side  of  the 
valley,  leaving  the  stream  at  some  distance. 

Eain-clouds  ajDpeared  from  the  direction  of  the  hills:  appar- 
ently they  had  many  centres,  as  the  distant  sheet  was  rent  into  a 
succession  of  distinct  streamers.  A  few  drojDS  fell  upon  us  as  we 
advanced.  Then  the  fiery  sun  "ate  up"  the  clouds,  or  raised 
them  so  high  that  they  became  playthings  in  the  hands  of  the 
strong  and  steady  western  gale.  The  thermometer  showed  95° 
in  the  carriage,  and  111°  exposed  to  the  reflected  heat  upon  the 
black  leather  cushions.  It  was  observable,  however,  that  the 
sensation  was  not  what  might  have  been  expected  from  the  height 
of  the  mercury,  and  perspiration  was  unknown  except  during  se- 
vere exercise ;  this  proves  the  purity  and  salubrity  of  the  air.  In 
St.  Jo  and  New  Orleans  the  effect  would  have  been  that  of  India 
or  of  a  Turkish  steam-bath.  The  heat,  however,  brought  with  it 
one  evil — a  green-headed  horsefly,  that  stung  like  a  wasp,  and 
from  which  cattle  must  be  protected  with  a  coating  of  gTease  and 
tar.  Whenever  wind  blew,  tourbillons  of  dust  coursed  over  the 
different  parts  of  the  plain,  showing  a  highly  electrical  state  of 
the  atmosphere.  When  the  air  was  unmoved  the  mirage  was 
perfect  as  the  sarab  in  Sindh  or  Southern  Persia ;  earth  and  air 
were  both  so  dry  that  the  refraction  of  the  sunbeams  elevated  the 
objects  acted  upon  more  than  I  had  ever  seen  before.  A  sea  lay 
constantly  before  our  eyes,  receding  of  course  as  we  advanced,  but 
in  all  other  points  a  complete  lusus  naturae.  The  color  of  the  wa^ 
ter  was  a  dull  cool  sky-blue,  not  white,  as  the  "looming"  gener- 
ally is ;  the  broad  expanse  had  none  of  that  tremulous  upward 
motion  which  is  its  general  concomitant ;  it  lay  placid,  still,  and 
perfectly  reflecting  in  its  azure  depths — here  and  there  broken  by 
projecting  capes  and  bluff  headlands — the  forms  of  the  higher 
grounds  bordering  the  horizon. 

After  twelve  miles'  driving  we  passed  through  a  depression 
called  Simpson's  Hollow,  and  somewhat  celebrated  in  local  story. 
Two  semicircles  of  black  still  charred  the  ground ;  on  a  cursory 
view  they  might  have  been  mistaken  for  burnt-out  lignite.  Here, 
in  1857,  the  Mormons  fell  upon  a  corraled  train  of  twenty-three 
wagons,  laden  with  provisions  and  other  necessaries  for  the  fed- 
eral troops,  then  halted  at  Camp  Scott  awaiting  orders  to  advance. 
The  wagoners,  suddenly  attacked,  and,  as  usual,  unarmed — their 
weapons  being  fastened  inside  their  awnings — could  offer  no  re- 
sistance, and  the  whole  convoy  was  set  on  fire  except  two  convey- 


Chap.  III.  VALLEY  OF  THE  GREEN  EIVER.  169 

ances,  wliicTi  were  left  to  carry  back  supplies  for  tlie  drivers  till 
they  could  reach  their  homes.  On  this  occasion  the  dux  facii  wsis 
Lot  Smith,  a  man  of  reputation  for  hard  riding  and  general  gal- 
lantry. The  old  Saint  is  always  spoken  of  as  a  good  man  who 
lives'by  "  Mormon  rule  of  wisdom."  As  at  Fort  Simiter,  no  blood 
was  spilled.  So  far  the  Mormons  behaved  with  temper  and  pru- 
dence ;  but  this  their  first  open  act  of  rebellion  against,  or  secession 
from,  the  federal  authority  nearly  proved  fatal  to  them ;  had  the 
helm  of  government  been  held  by  a  firmer  hand  than  poor  Mr. 
Buchanan's,  the  scenes  of  Nauvoo  would  have  been  acted  again 
at  Great  Salt  Lake  City.  As  it  was,  all  turned  out  cl  merveiUe  for 
the  saints  militant.  They  still  boast  loudly  of  the  achievement, 
and  on  the  marked  spot  where  it  was  performed  the  juvenile  emi- 
grants of  the  creed  erect  dwarf  graves  and  nameless  "wooden" 
tomb-"  stones"  in  derision  of  their  enemies. 

As  sunset  drew  near  we  approached  the  banks  of  the  Big  Sandy 
Eiver.  The  bottom  through  which  it  flowed  was  several  yards 
in  breadth,  bright  green  with  grass,  and  thickly  feathered  with 
willows  and  cotton- wood.  It  showed  no  sign  of  cultivation ;  the 
absence  of  cereals  may  be  accounted  for  by  its  extreme  cold ;  it 
freezes  there  every  night,  and  none  but  the  hardiest  grains,  oats 
and  rye,  which  here  are  little  appreciated,  could  be  made  to  grow. 
We  are  now  approaching  the  valley  of  the  Green  Eiver,  which, 
like  many  of  the  rivers  in  the  Eastern  States,  appears  formerly  to 
have  filled  a  far  larger  channel.  Flat  tables  and  elevated  terraces 
of  horizontal  strata — showing  that  the  deposit  was  made  in  still 
waters — with  layers  varying  from  a  few  lines  to  a  foot  in  thick- 
ness, composed  of  hard  clay,  green  and  other  sandstones,  and  ag- 
glutinated conglomerates,  rise  like  islands  from  barren  plains,  or 
form  escarpments  that  buttress  alternately  either  bank  of  the  wind- 
ing stream.  Such,  according  to  Captain  Stansbury,  is  the  general 
formation  of  the  land  between  the  South  Pass  and  the  "Rim"  of 
the  Utah  Basin, 

Advancing  over  a  soil  alternately  sandy  and  rocky — an  iron 
flat  that  could  not  boast  of  a  spear  of  grass — we  sighted  a  number 
of  coyotes,  fittest  inhabitants  of  such  a  waste,  and  a  long,  distant 
line  of  dust,  like  the  smoke  of  a  locomotive,  raised  by  a  herd  of 
mules  which  were  being  driven  to  the  corral.  We  were  presently 
met  by  the  Pony  Express  rider ;  he  reined  in  to  exchange  news, 
which  de  jmH  et  d' autre  were  simply  nil.  As  he  pricked  onward 
over  the  plain,  the  driver  informed  us,  with  a  portentous  rolling 
of  the  head,  that  Ichabod  was  an  a'mighty  fine  "  shyoot."  Within 
five  or  six  miles  of  Green  Eiver  we  passed  the  boundary  stone 
which  bears  Oregon  on  one  side  and  Utah  on  the  other.  We  had 
now  traversed  the  southeastern  corner  of  the  country  of  Long- 
eared  men,*  and  were  entering  Deseret,  the  Land  of  the  Honey-bee. 

*  Oregon  is  supposed  by  Mr.  Edward  to  have  been  named  by  the  Spaniards  from 
the  immensely  lengthened  ears  (prejones)  of  the  Indians  who  inhabited  it. 


11 Q  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  HI. 

At  6  30  P.M.  we  debouched  upon  tlie  bank  of  the  Green  Eiver. 
The  station  was  the  home  of  Mr.  Macarthy,  our  driver.  The  son 
of  a  Scotchman  who  had  settled  in  the  United  States,  he  retained 
many  signs  of  his  origin,  especially  freckles,  and  hair  which  one 
might  almost  venture  to  describe  as  sandy ;  perhaps  also,  at  times, 
he  was  rather  o'er  fond  of  draining  "  a  cuj)  o'  kindness  yet."  He 
had  lately  taken  to  himself  an  English  wife,  the  daughter  of  a 
Birmingham  mechanic,  who,  before  the  end  of  her  pilgrimage  to 
"  Zion  on  the  tops  of  the  mountains,"  had  fallen  considerably  away 
from  grace,  and  had  incurred  the  risk  of  being  buifeted  by  Satan 
for  a  thousand  years — a  common  form  of  commination  in  the  New 
Faith — by  marrying  a  Gentile  husband.*  The  station  had  the 
indescribable  scent  of  a  Hindoo  village,  which  appears  to  result 
from  the  burning  of  hois  de  vaclie  and  the  presence  of  cattle :  there 
were  sheep,  horses,  mules,  and  a  few  cows,  the  latter  so  lively  that 
it  was  impossible  to  milk  them.  The  ground  about  had  the  effect 
of  an  oasis  in  the  sterile  waste,  with  grass  and  shrubs,  willows  and 
flowers,  wild  geraniums,  asters,  and  various  cruciferce.  A  few  trees, 
chiefly  quaking  asp,  lingered  near  the  station,  but  dead  stumps 
were  far  more  numerous  than  live  trunks.  In  any  other  country 
their  rare  and  precious  shade  would  have  endeared  them  to  the 
whole  settlement ;  here  they  were  never  safe  when  a  log  was 
wanted.  The  Western  man  is  bred  and  perhaps  born — I  believe 
devoutly  in  transmitted  and  hereditary  qualities — with  an  instinct- 
ive dislike  to  timber  in  general.  He  fells  a  tree  naturally  as  a 
bull-terrier  worries  a  cat,  and  the  admirable  woodsman's  axe  which 
he  has  invented  only  serves  to  whet  his  desire  to  try  conclusions 
with  every  more  venerable  patriarch  of  the  forest. f  Civilized 
Americans,  of  course,  lament  the  destructive  mania,  and  the  Lat- 
ter-Day Saints  have  learned  by  hard  experience  the  inveterate 
evils  that  may  arise  in  such  a  country  from  disforesting  the  ground. 
We  supped  comfortably  at  Green-Eiver  Station,  the  stream  sup- 
plying excellent  salmon  trout.  The  kichimichi,  or  buffalo  berry,:}; 
makes  tolerable  jelly,  and  alongside  of  the  station  is  a  store  where 
Mr.  Burton  (of  Maine)  sells  "Valley  Tan"  whisky.§ 

*  Mr.  Brigham  Young,  one  of  the  most  tolerant  of  a  people  whose  motto  is  toler- 
ation, would  not,  I  believe,  offer  any  but  an  official  objection  to  a  Mormon  member 
marrying  a  worthy  Gentile ;  but  even  he — and  it  could  hardly  be  expected  that  he 
should — can  not  overlook  the  sin  of  apostasy.  The  order  of  the  faith  runs  thus  : 
"  We  believe  that  it  is  not  right  to  prohibit  members  of  the  Church  from  marrying 
out  of  the  Church,  if  it  be  their  determination  so  to  do,  but  such  persons  will  be  con- 
sidered weak  in  the  faith  of  our  Lord  and  Savior  Jesus  Christ."  The  same  view  of 
the  subject  is  taken,  I  need  hardly  say,  by  the  more  rigid  kind  of  Eoman  Catholic. 

t  Many  of  the  blades,  being  made  by  convicts  at  the  state  prisons,  are  sold  cheap. 
The  extent  of  the  timber  regions  necessitated  this  excellent  implement,  and  the  sav- 
ing of  labor  on  the  European  article  is  enormous. 

X  A  shrub  10-15  feet  high,  with  a  fruit  about  the  size  of  a  pea,  red  like  a  wild 
rose-hip,  and  with  a  pleasant  sub-acid  flavor :  the  Indians  eat  it  with  avidity,  and  it 
is  cultivated  in  the  gardens  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City. 

§  Tannery  was  the  first  technological  process  introduced  into  the  Mormon  Valley : 
hence  all  home  industry  has  obtained  the  sobriquet  of  "Valley  Tan." 


Chap.  HI.  EXPLOEATION  YET  TO  BE  DONE.  171 

The  Green  River  is  tlie  Rio  Verde  of  tlie  Spaniards,  ■wlio  named 
it  from  its  timbered  shores  and  grassy  islets :  it  is  called  by  the 
Yuta  Indians  Piya  Ogwe,  or  the  Great  Water ;  by  the  other  tribes 
Sitskidiagi,  or  "  Prairie-grouse  River."  It  was  nearly  at  its  lowest 
when  we  saw  it ;  the  breadth  was  not  more  than  830  feet.  In 
the  flood-time  it  widens  to  800  feet,  and  the  depth  increases  from 
three  to  six.  During  the  inundation  season  a  ferry  is  necessary, 
and  when  transit  is  certain  the  owner  sometimes  nets  $500  a  week, 
which  is  not  unfrequently  squandered  in  a  day.  The  banks  are 
in  places  thirty  feet  high,  and  the  bottom  may  average  three  miles 
from  side  to  side.  It  is  a  swift-flowing  stream,  running  as  if  it 
had  no  time  to  lose,  and  truly  it  has  a  long  way  to  go.  Its  length, 
volume,  and  direction  entitle  it  to  the  honor  of  being  called  the 
head  water  of  the  great  Rio  Colorado,  or  Colored  River,  a  larger 
and  more  important  stream  than  even  the  Columbia.  There  is 
some  grand  exploration  still  to  be  done  upon  the  line  of  the  Up- 
per Colorado,  especially  the  divides  which  lie  between  it  and  its 
various  influents,  the  Grand  River  and  the  Yaquisilla,  of  which 
the  wild  trapper  brings  home  many  a  marvelous  tale  of  beauty 
and  grandeur.  Captain  T.  A.  Gove,  of  the  10th  Regiment  of  In- 
fantry, then  stationed  at  Camp  Floyd,  told  me  that  an  expedition 
had  often  been  projected :  a  party  of  twenty -five  to  thirty  men, 
well  armed  and  provided  with  inflatable  boats,  might  pass  without 
unwarrantable  risk  through  the  sparsely  populated  Indian  coun- 
try :  a  true  report  concerning  regions  of  which  there  are  so  many 
false  reports,  all  wearing  more  or  less  the  garb  of  fable — beautiful 
valleys  inclosed  in  inaccessible  rocks,  Indian  cities  and  golden 
treasures — would  be  equally  interesting  and  important.  I  can 
not  recommend  the  undertaking  to  the  European  adventurer: 
the  United  States  have  long  since  organized  and  perfected  what 
was  proposed  in  England  during  the  Crimean  war,  and  which  fell, 
as  other  projects  then  did,  to  the  ground,  namely,  a  corps  of  Topo- 
graphical Engineers,  a  body  of  well-trained  and  scientific  explor- 
ers, to  whose  hands  the  task  may  safely  be  committed.^ 

*  The  principal  explorers  tinder  the  United  States  government  of  the  regions  lying 
west  of  the  Mississippi,  and  who  have  published  works  upon  the  subject,  are  the  fol- 
lowing : 

1.  Messrs.  Lewis  and  Clarke,  in  1804-6,  first  explored  the  Eocky  Mountains  to 
the  Columbia  River. 

2.  Major  Z.  M.  Pike,  in  1805-7,  visited  the  upper  waters  of  the  Mississippi  and 
the  western  regions  of  Louisiana. 

3.  Major,  afterward  Colonel  S.  H.  Long,  of  the  United  States  Topographical  En- 
gineers, made  two  expeditions,  one  in  1819-20  to  the  Rocky  Mountains,  another  in 
1823  to  the  Sources  of  the  St.  Peter  and  the  Lake  of  the  Woods,  whereby  four  vol- 
umes octavo  were  filled. 

4.  Governor  Cass  and  Mr.  Schoolcraft  in  1820  explored  the  Sources  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi and  the  regions  west  and  south  of  Lake  Superior. 

5.  Colonel  H.  Dodge,  U.  S.  Army,  in  1835  traveled  1600  miles  from  Fort  Leav- 
enworth, and  visited  the  regions  between  the  Arkansas  and  the  Platte  Rivers. 

6.  Captain  Canfield,  United  States  Topographical  Engineers,  in  1838  explored 
the  country  between  Forts  Leavenworth  and  Snelling. 


1^2  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  UI. 

"We  passed  a  social  evening  at  Green-River  Station.  It  boast- 
ed of  no  less  tlian  three  Englishwomen,  two  married,  and  one,  the 
help,  still  single.  Not  having  the  Mormonite  retenue,  the  dames 
were  by  no  means  sorry  to  talk  about  Birmingham  and  York- 
shire, their  birthplaces.  At  9  P.M.  arrived  one  of  the  road- 
agents,  Mr.  Cloete,  from  whom  I  gathered  that  the  mail-wagon 
which  once  ran  from  Great  Salt  Lake  City  had  lately  been  taken 
off  the  road.  The  intelligence  was  by  no  means  consolatory,  but 
a  course  of  meditation  upon  the  saying  of  the  sage,  "  in  for  a  pen- 
ny, in  for  a  pound,"  followed  by  another  visit  to  my  namesake's 
grog-shop,  induced  a  highly  philosophical  turn,  which  enabled 
me — with  the  aid  of  a  buffalo — to  pass  a  comfortable  night  in  the 
store. 

22d  August.      To  Tlain's  Fork  and  Millersville. 

"We  were  not  under  way  before  8  A.M.  Macarthy  was  again 
to  take  the  lines,  and  a  Oiovinetto  returning  after  a  temporary 
absence  to  a  young  wife  is  not  usually  rejoiced  to  run  his  course. 
Indeed,  he  felt  the  inconveniences  of  a  semi-bachelor  life  so  se- 
verely, that  he  often  threatened  in  my  private  ear,  chemin  feasant, 
to  throw  up  the  whole  concern. 

After  the  preliminary  squabble  with  the  mules,  we  forded  the 
pebbly  and  gravelly  bed  of  the  river — in  parts  it  looks  like  a 
lake  exhausted  by  drainage — whose  swift  surging  waters  wetted 
the  upper  spokes  of  the  wheels,  and  gurgled  pleasantly  around 
the  bags  which  contained  the  mail  for  Great  Salt  Lake  City.* 

7.  Mr.  M'Cox,  of  Missouri,  surveyed  the  boundaries  of  the  Indian  reservations : 
his  work  was  in  part  revised  by  the  late  Captain  Hood,  United  States  Topograph- 
ical Engineers. 

8.  Mr.  Nicollet  (French)  in  1833-38  mapped  the  country  west  of  the  Upper  Mis- 
sissippi :  he  was  employed  in  1838-9  to  make  a  similar  scientific  reconnoissance  be- 
tween the  Mississippi  and  the  Missouri,  on  which  occasion  he  was  accompanied  by 
Mr.  Fre'mont.     He  died  in  1842. 

The  explorations  of  Colonel  Fre'mont,  Captain  Howard  Stansbury,  Lieutenant 
Gunnison,  and  Lieutenant  Warren  have  been  frequently  alluded  to  in  these  pages. 

9.  Lieutenant,  afterward  Captain  Charles  Wilkes,  U.  S.  Navj^,  set  out  in  1838, 
and,  after  a  long  voyage  of  discovery  in  South  America,  Oceanica,  and  the  Antarc- 
tic continent,  made  San  Francisco  on  August  11,  1841.  It  is  remarkable  tliat  this 
officer's  party  were  actually  pitched  upon  the  spot  (New  Helvetia,  afterward  called 
Sacramento  City)  where  Califomian  gold  was  dug  by  the  Mormons. 

10.  Captain  K.  B.  Marcy,  U.  S.  Army,  "discovered  and  explored,  located  and 
marked  out  the  wagon-road  from  Foi-t  Smith,  Arkansas,  to  Santa  Fe,  New  Mexi- 
co."    The  road  explorers,  however,  are  too  numerous  to  specify. 

11.  Governor  1. 1.  Stevens,  of  Washington  Territory,  surveyed  in  1853  the  north- 
em  land  proposed  for  a  Pacific  railway  near  the  47°-49°  parallels,  from  St.  Paul  to 
Puget  Sound.  No  portion  of  that  line  liad  been  visited  since  the  days  of  Lewis  and 
Clarke,  except  a  small  portion  toward  the  Pacific  Ocean. 

12.  Captain  Raynolds,  United  States  Topographical  Engineers,  accompanied  by 
Colonel  Bridger  as  guide  and  interpreter,^^  still  (1860)  exploring  the  head-waters 
of  the  Yellow  Stone  River. 

*  Sticklers  for  strict  democracy  in  the  United  States  maintain,  on  the  principle 
that  the  least  possible  power  should  be  delegated  to  the  federal  government,  that  the 
transmission  of  correspondence  is  no  more  a  national  concern  than  the  construction 
of  railways  and  telegraphs,  or  the  transit  of  passengers  and  goods.  The  present  sys- 
tem was  borrowed  from  the  monopolies  of  Europe,  and  was  introduced  into  Amer- 


CuAP.  III.      MICHAEL  MARTIN'S  STORE.— AN  ORIGINAL.  173 

We  then  ran  down  the  river  valley,  whicli  was  here  about  one 
mile  in  breadth,  in  a  smooth  flooring  of  clay,  sprinkled  with  wa- 
ter-rolled pebbles,  overgrown  in  parts  with  willow,  wild  cherry, 
bufifalo  berries,  and  quaking  asp.  Macarthy  pointed  out  in  the 
road-side  a  rough  grave,  furnished  with  the  normal  tomb-stone, 
two  pieces  of  wagon-board :  it  was  occupied  by  one  Farren,  who 
had  fallen  by  the  revolver  of  the  redoubtable  Slade.  Presently 
we  .came  to  the  store  of  Michael  Martin,  an  honest  Creole,  who 
vended  the  staple  of  prairie  goods,  Champagne,  bottled  cocktail, 
"eye-opener,"  and  other  liquors,  dry  goods — linen  drapery  —  a 
few  fancy  goods,  ribbons,  and  finery ;  brandied  fruits,  jams  and 
jellies,  potted  provisions,  buckskins,  moccasins,  and  so  forth. 
Hearing  that  Lieutenant  Dana  was  en  route  for  Camp  Floyd,  he 
requested  him  to  take  charge  of  $500,  to  be  paid  to_Mr.  Living- 
ston, the  sutler,  and  my  companion,  with  the  obligingness  that 
marked  his  every  action,  agreed  to  deliver  the  dollars,  sauve  the 
judgment  of  God  in  the  shape  of  Indians,  or  "White  Lidians.""' 
At  the  store  we  noticed  a  paralytic  man.  This  original  lived 
under  the  delusion  that  it  was  impossible  to  pass  the  Devil's  Gate : 
his  sister  had  sent  for  him  to  St.  Louis,  and  his  friends  tried  to 
transport  him  eastward  in  chairs ;  the  only  result  was  that  he  ran 
away  before  reaching  the  Gate,  and  after  some  time  was  brought 
back  by  Indians. 

Eesuming  our  journey,  we  passed  two  places  where  trains  of 
fifty-one  wagons  were  burned  in  1857  by  the  Mormon  Eangers : 
the  black  stains  had  bitten  into  the  ground  like  the  blood-marks 

ica  at  a  time  when  individual  enterprise  was  inadequate  to  the  task ;  in  the  year  one 
of  the  Republic  it  became,  under  the  direction  of  Benjamin  Franklin,  a  state  depart- 
ment, and,  though  men  argue  in  the  abstract,  few  care  to  propose  a  private  mail 
system,  which  would  undertake  the  management  of  some  27,000  scattered  offices 
and  40,000  poorly  paid  clerks. 

On  this  line  we  saw  all  the  evils  of  the  contract  system.  The  requisite  regularity 
and  quickness  was  neglected,  letters  and  papers  were  often  lost,  the  mail-bags  were 
wetted  or  thrown  carelessly  upon  the  ground,  and  those  intrusted  to  the  conductors 
were  perhaps  destroyed.  Both  parties  complain — the  postmaster  that  the  contract- 
ors seek  to  drive  too  hard  a  bargain  with  the  department,  and  the  contractors  that 
they  are  carrying  the  mails  at  a  loss.  Since  the  restoration  (in  1858)  of  the  postal 
communication  with  the  United  States  which  was  interrupted  in  1857,  the  Mormons 
attempt  to  secure  good  service  by  advertising  their  grievances,  and  with  tolerable 
success.  Postmaster  Morrill — a  Gentile — complained  energetically  of  the  mail  serv- 
ice during  the  last  year,  that  letters  were  wetted  and  jumbled  together,  two  of  one 
month  perhaps  and  one  of  another  ;  that  magazines  often  aiTived  four  months  after 
date,  and  that  thirty  sacks  left  at  Rocky  Ridge  were  lost.  The  consequence  was 
that  during  my  stay  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City  the  contractors  did  their  duty. 

When  salaries  are  small  and  families  large,  post-office  robberies  must  at  times  be 
expected.  The  postal  department  have  long  adopted  the  system  of  registered  let- 
ters :  upon  payment  of  five  cents  instead  of  three,  the  letter  is  placed  in  a  separate 
bag,  entered  separately  in  the  office  books,  forwarded  with  certain  precautions,  and 
delivered  to  the  address  only  after  a  receipt  from  the  recipient.  But  the  depart- 
ment disclaims  all  responsibility  in  case  of  loss  or  theft,  and  the  only  value  of  the 
higher  stamp  is  a  somewhat  superior  facility  of  tracking  the  document  that  bears  it. 

*  A  cant  term  for  white  thieves  disguised  as  savages,  which  has  a  terrible  signifi- 
cancy  a  little  farther  "West. 


]^74  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IH. 

in  the  palace  of  Holjrood — a  neat  foundation  for  a  structure  of 
superstition.  Not  far  from  it  was  a  deep  liole,  in  which  the  plun- 
derers had  "cached"  the  iron- work  which  they  were  unable  to 
carry  away.  Emerging  from  the  river  plain  we  entered  upon  an- 
other mauvaise  terre,  with  knobs  and  elevations  of  clay  and  green 
gault,  striped  and  banded  with  lines  of  stone  and  pebbles :  it  was 
a  barren,  desolate  spot,  the  divide  between  the  Green  River  and 
its  western  influent,  the  shallow  and  somewhat  sluggish  Black's 
Fork.  The  name  is  derived  from  an  old  trader :  it  is  called  by 
the  Snakes  Ongo  Ogwe  Pa,  or  "Pine-tree  Stream;"  it  rises  in  the 
Bear-River  Mountains,  drains  the  swamps  and  lakelets  on  the  way, 
and  bifurcates  in  its  upper  bed,  forming  two  principal  branches, 
Ham's  Fork  and  Muddy  Fork. 

Near  the  Pine-tree  Stream  we  met  a  horse-thief  driving  four 
bullocks :  he  was  known  to  Macarthy,  and  did  not  look  over  com- 
fortable. "We  had  now  fallen  into  the  regular  track  of  Mormon 
emigration,  and  saw  the  wayfarers  in  their  worst  plight,  near  the 
end  of  the  journey.  We  passed  several  families,  and  j)arties  of 
women  and  children  trudging  wearily  along :  most  of  the  children 
were  in  rags  or  half  nude,  and  all  showed  gratitude  when  we  threw 
them  provisions.  The  greater  part  of  the  men  were  armed,  but 
their  weapons  were  far  more  dangerous  to  themselves  and  their 
fellows  than  to  the  enemy.  There  is  not  on  earth  a  race  of  men 
more  ignorant  of  arms  as  a  rule  than  the  lower  grades  of  English ; 
becoming  an  emigrant,  the  mechanic  hears  that  it  may  be  neces- 
sary to  beat  oft"  Indians,  so  he  buys  the  first  old  fire-arm  he  sees, 
and  probably  does  damage  with  it.  Only  last  night  a  father 
crossed  Green  River  to  beg  for  a  piece  of  cloth ;  it  was  intended 
to  shroud  the  body  of  his  child,  which  during  the  evening  had 
been  accidentally  shot,  and  the  station  people  seemed  to  think 
nothing  of  the  accident,  as  if  it  were  of  daily  recurrence.  I  was 
told  of  three,  more  or  less  severe,  that  happened  in  the  course  of 
a  month.  The  Western  Americans,  who  are  mostly  accustomed 
to  the  use  of  weapons,  look  upon  these  awkwardnesses  with  a  pro- 
found contempt.  We  were  now  in  a  region  of  graves,  and  their 
presence  in  this  wild  was  not  a  little  suggestive. 

Presently  we  entered  a  valley  in  which  green  grass,  low  and 
dense  willows,  and  small  but  shady  trees,  an  unusually  vigorous 
vegetation,  refreshed,  as  though  with  living  water,  ourjisyes, 
parched  and  dazed  by  the  burning  glare.  Stock  strayedlover 
the  pasture,  and  a  few  Indian  tents  rose  at  the  farther  side ;  the 
view  was  probably  2^(13  grand''  cJiose,  but  we  thought  it  splendidly 
beautiful.  At  midday  we  reached  Ham's  Fork,  the  northwestern 
influent  of  Green  River,  and  there  we  found  a  station.  The 
pleasant  little  stream  is  called  by  the  Indians  Turugempa,  the 
"  Blackfoot  Water." 

The  station  was  kept  by  an  Irishman  and  a  Scotchman — "Daw- 
vid  Lewis :"  it  was  a  disgrace ;  the  squalor  and  filth  were  worse 


Chap.  in.  THE  DIKTY  HOUSE.— A  SCOTCH  IDLER.  175 

almost  than  the  two — Cold  Springs  and  Eock  Creek — whicli  we 
called  our  horrors,  and  which  had  always  seemed  to  bo  the  ne 
plus  ultra  of  Western  discomfort.  The  shanty  was  made  of  dry 
stone  piled  up  against  a  dwarf  cliff  to  save  back  wall,  and  ignored 
doors  and  windows.  The  flies — unequivocal  sign  of  unclean 
living! — darkened  the  table  and  covered  every  thing  put  upon 
it ;  the  furniture,  whicli  mainly  consisted  of  the  different  parts  of 
wagons,  was  broken,  and  all  in  disorder ;  the  walls  were  impure, 
the  floor  filthy.  The  reason  was  at  once  apparent.  Two  Irish- 
women, sisters,*  were  married  to  Mr.  Dawvid,  and  the  house  was 
full  of  "childer,"  the  noisiest  and  most  rampageous  of  their  kind. 
I  could  hardly  look  npon  the  scene  without  disgust.  The  fair 
ones  had  the  porcine  Irish  face — I  need  hardly  tell  the  reader  that 
there  are  three  orders  of  physiognomy  in  that  branch  of  the  Kel- 
tic family,  viz.,  porcine,  equine,  and  simian — the  pig-faced,  the 
horse-faced,  and  the  monkey-faced.  Describing  one  I  describe 
both  sisters;  her  nose  was  "pugged,"  apparently  by  gnawing  hard 
potatoes  before  that  member  had  acquired  firmness  and  consist- 
ency ;  her  face  was  powdered  with  freckles ;  her  hair,  and,  indeed, 
her  general  costume,  looked,  to  quote  Mr.  Dow's  sermon,  as  though, 
she  had  been  rammed  through  a  bush  fence  into  a  world  of  wretch- 
edness and  woe.  Her  dress  was  unwashed  and  in  tatters,  and  her 
feet  were  bare ;  she  would  not  even  take  the  trouble  to  make  for 
herself  moccasins.  Moreover,  I  could  not  but  notice  that,  though 
the  house  contained  two  wives,  it  boasted  only  of  one  cubile,  and 
had  only  one  cubiculum.  Such  things  would  excite  no  surprise 
in  London  or  Naples,  or  even  in  many  of  the  country  parts  of  Eu- 
rope ;  but  here,  where  ground  is  worthless,  where  building  mate- 
rial is  abundant,  and  where  a  few  hours  of  daily  labor  would  have 
made  the  house  look  at  least  respectable,  I  could  not  but  wonder 
at  it.  My  first  impulse  was  to  attribute  the  evil,  uncharitably 
enough,  to  Mormonism ;  to  renew,  in  fact,  the  stock-comjjlaint  of 
nineteen  centuries'  standing — 

"Fcecunda  culpse  secula  miptias 
Primum  inquinavere,  et  genus  et  domns." 

A  more  extended  acquaintance  with  the  regions  west  of  the 
"Wasach  taught  me  that  the  dirt  and  discomfort  were  the  growth 
of  the  land.  To  give  the  poor  devils  their  due,  Dawvid  was  civil 
and  intelligent,  though  a  noted  dawdler,  as  that  rare  phenomenon, 
a  Scotch  idler,  generally  is.  Moreover,  his  wives  were  not  defi- 
cient in  charity ;  several  Indians  came  to  the  door,  and  none  went 
away  without  a  "  bit"  and  a  "  sup."  During  the  process  of  sketch- 
ing one  of  these  men,  a  Snake,  distinguished  by  his  vermilion'd 
hair-parting,  eyes  blackened,  as  if  by  lines  of  soot  or  surma,  and 
delicate  Hindoo-like  hands,  my  eye  fell  upon  the  German-silver 

*  A  man  (Mormon)  may  even  marry  a  mother  and  her  daughters :  usually  the 
relationship  with  the  former  is  Platonic ;  the  tie,  however,  is  irregular,  and  has  been 
contracted  in  ignorance  of  the  prohibited  degrees. 


176  TQE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  CiiAr.  III. 

handle  of  a  Colt's  revolver,  which  had  been  stowed  away  under 
the  blankets,  and  a  revolver  in  the  Lamanite's  hands  breeds  evil 
suspicions. 

Again  we  advanced.  The  air  was  like  the  breath  of  a  furnace ; 
the  sun  was  a  blaze  of  fire — accounting,  bj-the-bj,  for  the  fact 
that  the  human  nose  in  these  parts  seems  invariably  to  become 
cherry-red  —  all  the  nullahs  were  dried  up,  and  the  dust-pillars 
and  mirage  were  the  only  moving  objects  on  the  plain.  Three 
times  we  forded  Black's  Fork,  and  then  debouched  once  more 
upon  a  long  flat.  The  ground  was  scattered  over  with  pebbles 
of  granite,  obsidian,  flint,  and  white,  yellow,  and  smoky  quartz,  all 
water-rolled.  After  twelve  miles  we  passed  Church  Butte,  one 
of  many  curious  formations  lying  to  the  left  hand  or  south  of  the 
road.  This  isolated  mass  of  stiff  clay  has  been  cut  and  ground  by 
wind  and  rain  into  folds  and  hollow  channels  which  from  a  distance 
perfectly  simulate  the  pillars,  groins,  and  massive  buttresses  of  a 
ruinous  Gothic  cathedral.  The  foundation  is  level,  except  where 
masses  have  been  swept  down  by  the  rain,  and  not  a  blade  of 
grass  grows  upon  any  part.  An  architect  of  genius  might  profit- 
ably study  this  work  of  Nature :  upon  that  subject,  however,  I 
shall  j)resently  have  more  to  say.  The  Butte  is  highly  interest- 
ing in  a  geological  point  of  view ;  it  shows  the  elevation  of  the 
adjoining  plains  in  past  ages,  before  partial  deluges  and  the  rains 
of  centuries  had  effected  the  great  work  of  degradation. 

Again  we  sighted  the  pretty  valley  of  Black's  Fork,  whose  cool 
clear  stream  flowed  merrily  over  its  pebbly  bed.  The  road  was 
now  populous  with  Mormon  emigrants ;  some  had  good  teams, 
others  hand-carts,  which  looked  like  a  cross  between  a  wheel-bar- 
row and  a  tax-cart.  There  was  nothing  repugnant  in  the  demean- 
or of  the  party ;  they  had  been  civilized  by  traveling,  and  the 
younger  women,  who  walked  together  and  apart  from  the  men, 
were  not  too  surly  to  exchange  a  greeting.  The  excessive  bar- 
renness of  the  land^'presently  diminished ;  gentian  and  other  odo- 
riferous herbs  appeared,  and  the  greasewood,  which  somewhat  re- 
minded me  of  the  Sindhian  camel-thorn,  was  of  a  lighter  green 
than  elsewhere,  and  presented  a  favorable  contrast  with  the  dull 
glaucous  hues  of  the  eternal  prairie  sage.  We  passed  a  dwarf 
copse  so  strewed  with  the  bones  of  cattle  as  to  excite  our  astonish- 
ment :  Macarthy  told  us  that  it  was  the  place  where  the  2d  Dra- 
goons encamped  in  1857,  and  lost  a  number  of  their  horses  by  cold 
and  starvation.  The  wolves  and  coyotes  seemed  to  have  retained 
a  predilection  for  the  spot ;  we  saw  troops  of  them  in  their  favor- 
ite "location" — the  crest  of  some  little  rise,  whence  they  could 
keep  a  sharp  look-out  upon  any  likely  addition  to  their  scanty 
larder. 

After  sundry  steep  inclines  we  forded  another  little  stream, 
with  a  muddy  bed,  shallow,  and  about  thirty  feet  wide  :  it  is  call- 
ed Smith's  Fork,  rises  in  the  "Bridger  Eange"  of  the  Uinta  Ilills, 


CiiAP.Iir.  THE  UNGENIAL  MAN.— "UNCLE  JACK."  177 

and  slieds  into  Black's  Fork,  tbc  main  drain  of  these  parts.  On 
the  other  side  stood  Millersville,  a  large  ranch  with  a  whole  row 
of  unused  and  condemned  wagons  drawn  up  on  one  side.  Wc 
arrived  at  5  15  P.M.,  having  taken  three  hours  and  fifteen  min- 
utes to  get  over  twenty  miles.  The  tenement  was  made  of  the 
component  parts  of  vehicles,  the  chairs  had  backs  of  yoke-bows, 
and  the  fences  which  surrounded  the  corral  were  of  the  same  ma- 
terial. The  station  was  kept  by  one  Holmes,  an  American  Mor- 
mon, and  an  individual  completely  the  reverse  of  genial ;  he  dis- 
pensed his  words  as  if  shelling  out  coin,  and  he  was  never — by  us 
at  least — seen  to  smile.  His  wife  was  a  pretty  young  English- 
woman, who  had  spent  the  best  part  of  her  life  between  London 
and  Portsmouth ;  when  alone  with  me  she  took  the  opportunity 
of  asking  some  few  questions  about  old  places,  but  this  most  inno- 
cent teie-d-ttie  was  presently  interrupted  by  the  protrusion  through 
the  open  door  of  a  iete  de  mari  au  naturel,  with  a  truly  renfrogm 
and  vinegarish  aspect,  which  made  him  look  like  a  calamity. 
After  supplying  us  with  a  supper  which  was  clean  and  neatly 
seryed,  the  pair  set  out  for  an  evening  ride,  and  toward  night  we 
heard  the  scraping  of  a  violin,  which  reminded  me  of  Tommaso 
Scarafaggio : 

"Detto  il  sega  del  villagio 
Perche  suona  il  violino." 

The  "  fiddle"  was  a  favorite  instrument  with  Mr.  Joseph  Smith, 
as  the  harp  with  David ;  the  Mormons,  therefore,  at  the  instance 
of  their  prophet,  are  not  a  little  addicted  to  the  use  of  the  bow. 
We  spent  a  comfortable  night  at  Millersville.  After  watching 
the  young  moon  as  she  sailed  through  the  depths  of  a  firmament 
unstained  by  the  least  fleck  of  mist,  we  found  some  scattered  vol- 
umes which  rendered  us  independent  of  our  unsocial  Yankee 
host. 

23c?  August.     Fort  Bridger. 

We  breakfasted  early  the  next  morning,  and  gladly  settled  ac- 
counts with  the  surly  Holmes,  who  had  infected  —  probably  by 
following  the  example  of  Mr.  Caudle  in  later  life — his  pretty  wife 
with  his  own  surliness.  Shortly  after  starting — at  8  30  A.M. — 
we  saw  a  little  clump  of  seven  Indian  lodges,  which  our  experi- 
ence soon  taught  us  were  the  property  of  a  white  ;  the  proprietor 
met  us  on  the  road,  and  was  introduced  with  due  ceremony  b}^ 
Mr.  Macarthy.  "  Uncle  Jack"  (Robinson,  really)  is  a  well-known 
name  between  South  Pass  and  Great  Salt  Lake  City;  he  has 
spent  thirty-four  years  in  the  mountains,  and  has  saved,  some 
$75,000,  which  have  been  properly  invested  at  St.  Louis;  as 
might  be  expected,  he  prefers  the  home  of  his  adoption  and  his 
Indian  spouse,  who  has  made  him  the  happy  father  of  I  know  not 
how  many  children,  to  good  society  and  bad  air  farther  east. 

Our  road  lay  along  the  valley  of  Black's  Fork,  which  here  flows 
from  the  southwest  to  the  northeast :  the  bottom  produced  in 

M 


178  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  III. 

plenty  luxuriant  grass,  tlie  dandelion,  and  tlio  purple  aster,  tliick- 
cts  of  a  shrub-like  hawthorn  (craia'gus)^  black  and  white  currants, 
the  willow  and  the  cotton-wood.  "When  almost  in  sight  of  the 
military  post  we  were  addressed  by  two  young  officers,  one  of 
them  an  assistant  surgeon,  who  had  been  engaged  in  the  health- 
ful and  exciting  pursuit  of  a  badger,  whose  markings,  by-the-by, 
greatly  differ  from  the  European ;  they  recognized  the  uniform, 
and  accompanied  us  to  the  station. 

Fort  Bridger  lies  124  miles  from  Great  Salt  Lake  City ;  accord- 
ing to  the  drivers,  however,  the  road  might  be  considerably  short- 
ened. The  position  is  a  fertile  basin  cut  into  a  number  of  bits  b}"- 
Black's  Fork,  which  disperses  itself  into  four  channels  about  1'5 
mile  above  the  station,  and  forms  again  a  single  bed  about  two 
miles  below.  The  fort  is  situated  upon  the  westernmost  islet.  It 
is,  as  usual,  a  mere  cantonment,  without  any  attempt  at  fortifica- 
tion, and  at  the  time  of  my  visit  was  garrisoned  by  two  companies 
of  foot,  under  the  command  of  Captain  F.  Gardner,  of  the  10th 
Eegiment.  The  material  of  the  houses  is  pine  and  cedar  brought 
from  the  Uinta  Hills,  whose  black  flanks  supporting  snowy  cones 
rise  at  the  distance  of  about  thirty-five  miles.  They  are  a  sani- 
tarium, except  in  winter,  when  under  their  influence  the  mercury 
sinks  to  —20°  F.,  not  much  less  rigorous  than  Minnesota,  and 
they  are  said  to  shelter  grizzly  bears  and  an  abundance  of  smaller 
game. 

The  fort  was  built  by  Colonel  James  Bridger,  now  the  oldest 
trapper  on  the  Eocky  Mountains,  of  whom  Messrs.  Fremont  and 
Stansbury  have  both  spoken  in  the  highest  terms.  He  divides 
with  Christopher  Carson,  the  Kit  Carson  of  the  Wind  River  and 
the  Sierra  Nevada  explorations,  the  honor  of  being  the  best  guide 
and  interpreter  in  the  Indian  country :  the  palm  for  prudence  is 
generally  given  to  the  former ;  for  dash  and  hard  fighting  to  the 
latter,  although,  it  is  said,  the  mildest  mannered  of  men.  Colonel 
Bridger,  when  an  Indian  trader,  placed  this  post  upon  a  kind  of 
neutral  ground  between  the  Snakes  and  Crows  (Hapsaroke)  on 
the  north,  the  Ogalalas  and  other  Sioux  to  the  cast,  the  Arapahoes 
and  Cheyennes  on  the  south,  and  the  various  tribes  of  Yutas 
(Utahs)  on  the  southwest.  He  had  some  difliculties  with  the  Mor- 
mons, and  Mrs,  Mary  Ettie  Smith,  in  a  volume  concerning  which 
something  will  be  said  at  a  future  opportunity,  veraciously  reports 
his  barbarous  murder,  some  years  ago,  by  the  Danite  band.  He 
was  at  the  time  of  my  visit  absent  on  an  exploratory  expedition 
with  Captain  Raynolds. 

Arrived  at  Fort  Bridger,  our  first  thought  was  to  replenish  our 
whisky -keg :  its  emptiness  was  probably  due  to  the  "  rapid  evap- 
oration in  such  an  elevated  region  imperfectly  protected  by  tim- 
ber ;"  but,  however  that  may  be,  I  never  saw  liquor  disappear  at 
such  a  rate  before.  Par  jxirenthcse,  our  late  friends  the  officials 
had  scarcely  been  more  fortunate :  they  had  watched  tlicir  whis- 


Chap.  III.  A  SOKE  SUBJECT.— BEER  SPRINGS.  179 

ky  with  the  eyes  of  Argus,  yet,  as  the  driver  facetiously  remark- 
ed, though  the  quantity  did  not  diminish  too  rapidly,  the  quality 
lost  strength  every  day.  We  were  eonducted  by  Judge  Carter  to 
a  building  which  combined  the  function  of  post-office  and  sutler's 
store,  the  judge  being  also  sutler,  and  performing  both  parts,  I 
believe,  to  the  satisfaction  of  every  one.  After  laying  in  an  am- 
ple provision  of  biscuits  for  Miss  May  and  korn-schnapps  for  our- 
selves, we  called  upon  the  commanding  officer,  who  introduced  us 
to  his  officers,  and  were  led  by  Captain  Cumming  to  his  quarters, 
where,  by  means  of  chat,  "  solace- tobacco,"  and  toddy — which  in 
these  regions  signifies  "  cold  with" — we  soon  worked  our  way 
through  the  short  three  quarters  of  an  hour  allowed  us.  The  of- 
ficers complained  very  naturally  of  their  isolation  and  unpleasant 
duty,  which  principally  consists  in  keeping  the  roads  open  for,  and 
the  Indians  from  cutting  ofi",  parties  of  unmanageable  emigrants, 
who  look  upon  the  federal  army  as  their  humblest  servants.  At 
Camp  Scott,  near  Bridger,  the  army  of  the  federal  government 
halted  under  canvas  during  the  severe  winter  of  1857-1858,  and 
the  subject  is  still  sore  to  military  ears. 

"We  left  Bridger  at  10  A.M.  Macarthy  explained  away  the  dis- 
regard for  the  comfort  of  the  public  on  the  part  of  the  contractors 
in  not  having  a  station  at  the  fort  by  declaring  that  they  could 
obtain  no  land  in  a  government  reservation ;  moreover,  that  for- 
age there  would  be  scarce  and  dear,  while  the  continual  influx  of 
Indians  would  occasion  heavy  losses  in  cattle.  At  Bridger  the 
road  forks :  the  northern  line  leads  to  Soda  or  Beer  Springs,*  the 
southern  to  Great  Salt  Lake  City.  Following  the  latter,  we  cross- 
ed the  rough  timber  bridges  that  spanned  the  net- work  of  streams, 
and  entered  upon  another  expanse  of  degraded  ground,  covered 
as  usual  with  water-rolled  pebbles  of  granite  and  porphyry,  flint 
and  greenstone.  On  the  left  was  a  butte  with  steep  bluff  sides, 
called  the  Eace-course :  the  summit,  a  perfect  mesa^  is  said  to  be 
quite  level,  and  to  measure  exactly  a  mile  round — the  rule  of  the 
American  hippodrome.  Like  these  earth  formations  generally, 
it  points  out  the  ancient  level  of  the  land  before  water  had  wash- 
ed away  the  outer  film  of  earth's  crust.  The  climate  in  this  part, 
as  indeed  every  where  between  the  South  Pass  and  the  Great  Salt 

*  These  springs  of  sadly  prosaic  name  are  the  greatest  curiosity  to  be  seen  on  the 
earth.  They  lie  but  a  short  distance  east  of  the  junction  of  the' Fort  Hall  and  the 
California  roads,  and  are  scattered  over,  perhaps,  40  acres  of  volcanic  ground.  They 
do  not,  like  most  springs,  run  out  of  the  sides  of  hills,  but  boil  up  directly  from  a  lev- 
el plain.  Tlic  water  contains  a  gas,  and  has  quite  an  acid  taste :  when  exposed  to 
the  sun  or  air,  it  passes  but  a  short  distance  before  it  takes  the  formation  of  a  crust 
or  solid  coat  of  scarlet  hue,  so  that  the  continued  boiling  of  any  of  these  fountains 
will  "  cr^»  a  stone  to  the  height  of  its  source  (15  or  twenty  feet)  some  10  to  20  feet 
in  diameR-  at  the  bottom,  and  from  2  to  3  feet  at  the  top."  After  arriving  at  a  uni- 
form height,  the  water  has  ceased  to  run  from  several  of  the  "eyes"  to  burst  out  in 
some  other  place.  The  water  spurts  from  some  of  these  very  beautifully. — Horn's 
"Overland  Guide  to  California,"  p.  38.  Thev  are  also  described  bv  Colonel  Fre- 
mont:  "Expedition  to  Oregon  and  North  California  (1843-4-t),"p.  ISG. 


-^QQ  THE  CITY  OF  THE  §AINTS.  Chap.  HI. 

Lake  Valley,  was  an  exaggeration  of  the  Italian,  witli  liot  days, 
cool  nio-bts,  and  an  incomparable  purity  and  tenuity  of  atmosphere. 
We  passed  on  the  way  a  party  of  emigrants,  numbering  359  souls 
and  driving  89  wagons.  They  were  commanded  by  the  patriarch 
of  Mormondom,  otherwise  Captain  John  Smith,  the  eldest  son  of 
Ilyrum  Smith,  a  brother  of  Mr.  Joseph  Smith  the  Prophet,  and 
who,  being  a  child  at  the  time  of  the  murderous  affair  at  Carthage, 
escaped  being  coiffe'd  with  the  crown  of  martyrdom.  He  rose  to 
the  patriarchate  on  the  18th  of  February,  1855 ;  his  predecessor 
was  "  old  John  Smith" — uncle  to  Mr.  Joseph,  and  successor  to 
Mr.  Ilyrum  Smith — who  died  the  23d  of  May,  1854.  He  was  a 
fair-complexioned  man,  with  light  hair.  His  followers  accepted 
gratefully  some  provisions  with  which  we  could  afford  to  part. 

After  passing  the  Mormons  we  came  upon  a  descent  which  ap- 
peared little  removed  from  an  angle  of  35°,  and  suggested  the 
propriety  of  walking  down.  There  was  an  attempt  at  a  zigzag, 
and,  for  the  benefit  of  wagons,  a  rough  wall  of  stones  had  been 
run  along  the  sharper  corners.  At  the  foot  of  the  hill  we  re- 
mounted, and,  passing  through  a  wooded  bottom,  reached  at  12  15 
P.M. — after  fording  the  Big  Muddy — Little  Muddy  Creek,  upon 
whose  banks  stood  the  station.  Both  these  streams  are  branches 
of  the  Ham's  Fork  of  Green  Eiver ;  and,  according  to  the  well- 
known  "  rule  of  contrairy,"  their  waters  are  clear  as  crystal,  show- 
ing every  pebble  in  their  beds. 

Little  Muddy  was  kept  by  a  Canadian,  a  chatty,  lively,  good-hu- 
mored fellow  blessed  with  a  sour  English  wife.  Possibly  the  heat 
— the  thermometer  showed  95°  F.  in  the  shade — had  turned  her 
temper;  fortunately,  it  had  not  similarly  affected  the  milk  and 
cream,  which  were  iDoth  unusually  good.  Jean-Baptiste,  having 
mistaken  me  for  a  Frangaise  cle  France,  a  being  which  he  seemed 
to  regard  as  little  lower  than  the  angels — I  was  at  no  pains  to  dis- 
abuse him — was  profuse  in  his  questionings  concerning  his  im- 
perial majesty,  the  emperor,  carefully  confounding  him  with  the 
first  of  the  family ;  and  so  pleased  was  he  with  my  responses,  that 
for  the  first  time  on  that  route  I  foupd  a  man  ready  to  spurn  cet 
animal  feroce  qiCon  appelle  la  pilce  de  cinq  francs — in  other  words, 
the  "almighty  dollar." 

We  bade  adieu  to  Little  Muddy  at  noon,  and  entered  a  new 
country,  a  broken  land  of  spurs  and  hollows,  in  parts  absolutely 
bare,  in  others  clothed  with  a  thick  vegetation.  Curiously  shaped 
hills,  and  bluffs  of  red  earth  capped  with  a  clay  which  much  re- 
sembled snow,  bore  a  thick  growth  of  tall  firs  and  pines  whose 
sombre  uniform  contrasted  strangely  with  the  brilliant  leek-like, 
excessive  green  foliage,  and  the  tall,  note-paper-colored  trunks  of 
the  ravine-loving  quaking  asp  {Pojmlus  tremuloicles).  Tire  mix- 
ture of  colors  was  bizarre  in  the  extreme,  and  the  lay  of  the  land, 
an  uncouth  system  of  converging,  diverging,  and  parallel  ridges, 
with  deep  divisions — in  one  of  these  ravines,  which  is  unusuallv 


CII.VP.  lU.  QUAIONG-ASP  HILL.— SULPHUE  CREEK.  ig^ 

broad  and  grassy,  rise  the  so-called  Copperas  Springs— =-was  hard- 
ly less  striking.  We  ran  winding  along  a  crest  of  rising  ground, 
passing  rapidly,  by  way  of  farther  comparison,  two  wretched  Mor- 
mons, man  and  woman,  who  were  driving,  at  a  snail's  pace,  a  per- 
manently lamed  ox,  and  after  a  long  ascent  stood  upon  the  sum- 
mit of  Quaking- Asp  Hill. 

Quaking- Asp  Hill,  according  to  the  drivers,  is  1000  feet  higher 
than  the  South  Pass,  which  would  exalt  its  station  to  8400  feet ; 
other  authorities,  however,  reduce  it  to  7900.  The  descent  was 
long  and  rapid — so  rapid,  indeed,  that  oftentimes  when  the  block 
of  wood  which  formed  our  brake  dropped  a  bit  of  the  old  shoe- 
sole  nailed  npon  it  to  prevent  ignition,  I  felt,  as  man  ma}^  be  ex- 
cused for  feeling,  that  catching  of  the  breath  that  precedes  the 
first  five-barred  gate  after  a  night  of  "  heavy  wet."  The  sides  of 
the  road  were  rich  in  vegetation,  stunted  oak,  black-jack,  and  box 
elder  of  the  stateliest  stature ;  above  rose  the  wild  cherry,  and  the 
service-tree  formed  the  busheafbelow.  The  descent,  besides  be- 
ing decidedly  sharp,  was  exceedingly  devious,  and  our  frequent 
"shaves" — a  train  of  Mormon  wagons  was  crawling  down  at  the 
same  time — made  us  feel  somewhat  thankful  that  we  reached  the 
bottom  without  broken  bones. 

The  train  was  commanded  by  a  Captain  Murphy,  who,  as  one 
might  expect  from  the  name,  had  hoisted  the  Stars  and  Stripes — 
it  was  the  only  instance  of  such  loyalty  seen  by  us  on  the  Plains. 
The  emigrants  had  left  Council  Bluffs  on  the  20th  of  June,  an 
unusually  late  date,  and,  though  weather-beaten,  all  looked  well. 
Inspirited  by  our  success  in  surmounting  the  various  difficulties 
of  the  way,  we  "  poked  fun"  at  an  old  Yorkshireman,  who  was 
assumed,  by  way  of  mirth,  to  be  a  Coelebs  in  search  of  polygamy 
at  an  epoch  of  life  when  perhaps  the  blessing  might  come  too 
late ;  and  at  an  exceedingly  plain  middle-aged  and  full-blooded 
negro  woman,  who  was  fairly  warned — the  children  of  Ham  are 
not  admitted  to  the  communion  of  the  Saints,  and  consequently  to 
the  forgiveness  of  sins  and  a  free  seat  in  Paradise — that  she  was 
"  carrying  coals  to  ISTewcastle." 

As  the  rays  of  the  sun  began  to  slant  we  made  Sulphur  Creek ; 
it  lies  at  the  foot  of  a  mountain  called  Pdm  Base,  because  it  is  the 
eastern  wall  of  the  great  inland  basin ;  westward  of  this  point  the 
waters  can  no  longer  reach  the  Atlantic  or  the  Pacific;  each  is 
destined  to  feed  the  lakes, 

"  Nee  Oceani  pervenit  ad  undas." 

Beyond  Sulphur  Creek,  too,  the  face  of  the  country  changes ;  the 
sedimentary  deposit-s  are  no  longer  seen ;  the  land  is  broken  and 
confused,  upheaved  into  huge  masses  of  rock  and  mountains  bro- 
ken by  deep  kanyons,  ravines,  and  water-gaps,  and  drained  by  in- 
numerable streamlets.  The  exceedingly  irregular  lay  of  the  land 
makes  the  road  devious,  and  the  want  of  level  ground,  which  is 
found  only  in  dwarf  parks  and  prairillons,  would  greatly  add  to. 


IQ2  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chat.  III. 

the  expense  of  a  railway.  We  crossed  tlie  creek,  a  fetid  stagnant 
water,  about  ten  feet  wide,  lying  in  a  bed  of  black  infected  mud : 
during  the  spring  rains,  when  flowing,  it  is  said  to  be  wholesome 
enouo-h.  On  the  southern  side  of  the  valley  there  are  some  fine 
fountains,  and  on  the  eastern  are  others  strongly  redolent  of  sul- 
phur ;  broad  seams  of  coal  crop  out  from  the  northern  bluffs,  and 
about  a  mile  distant  in  the  opposite  direction  are  the  Tar  Springs, 
useful  for  greasing  wagon- wheels  and  curing  galled-backed  horses. 

Following  the  valley,  which  was  rough  and  broken  as  it  well 
could  be,  we  crossed  a  small  divide,  and  came  upon  the  plain  of 
the  Bear  Eiver,  a  translation  of  the  Indian  Kuij^apa.  It  is  one 
of  the  most  important  tributaries  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake.  Head- 
ing in  the  Uinta  Eange  to  the  east  of  Kamas  Prairie,*  it  flows 
with  a  tortuous  course  to  the  northwest,  till,  reaching  Beer  Springs, 
it  turns  sharply  round  with  a  horseshoe  bend,  and  sets  to  the 
southwest,  falling  into  the  general  reservoir  at  a  bight  called  Bear- 
River  Bay.  According  to  the  i^ountaineers,  it  springs  not  far 
from  the  sources  of  the  Weber  River  and  of  the  Timpanogos  Wa- 
ter. Coal  was  found  some  years  ago  upon  the  banks  of  the  Bear 
River,  and  more  lately  near  Weber  River  and  Silver  Creek.  It 
is  the  easternmost  point  to  which  Mormonism  can  extend  main 
forte;  for  fugitives  from  justice  "over  Bear  River"  is  like  "over 
Jordan."  The  aspect  of  the  valley,  here  half  a  mile  broad,  was 
prepossessing.  Beyond  a  steep  terrace,  or  step  which  compelled 
us  all  to  dismount,  the  clear  stream,  about  400  feet  in  width,  flowed 
through  narrow  lines  of  willows,  cotton-wood,  and  large  trees, 
which  waved  in  the  cool  refreshing  western  wind ;  grass  carpeted 
the  middle  levels,  and  above  all  rose  red  cliffs  and  buttresses  of 
frowning  rock. 

We  reached  the  station  at  5  80  P.M.  The  valley  was  dotted 
with  the  tents  of  the  Mormon  emigrants,  and  we  received  sundry 
visits  of  curiosity ;  the  visitors,  mostly  of  the  sex  conventionally 
termed  the  fair,  contented  themselves  with  entering,  sitting  down, 
looking  hard,  tittering  to  one  another,  and  departing  with  Parthian 
glances  that  had  little  power  to  hurt.  From  the  men  we  heard 
tidings  of  "a  massacree"  of  emigrants  in  the  north,  and  a  defeat 
of  Indians  in  the  west.  Mr.  Myers,  the  station-master,  was  an 
English  Saint,  who  had  lately  taken  to  himself  a  fifth  wife,  after 
severally  divorcing  the  others;  his  last  choice  was  not  without 
comeliness,  but  her  reserve  was  extreme;  she  could  hardly  be 
coaxed  out  of  a  "  Yes,  sir,"  I  found  Mr.  Myers  diligently  perus- 
ing a  translation  of  "  Volney's  Ruins  of  Empire ;"  we  had  a  chat 
about  the  Old  and  the  New  Country,  which  led  us  to  sleeping- 
teme.     I  had  here  a  curious  instance  of  the  effect  of  the  associa- 

*  So  called  from  the  Camassia  esculenta,  the  Pomme  des  Prairies  or  Pomme 
Blanche  of  the  Canadians,  and  the  prairie  turnip  and  breadroot  of  the  Western 
hunters.  The  Karaas  Prairie  is  a  i)retty  little  bit  of  clear  and  level  ground  near 
the  head  of  the  Timpanogos  River. 


1 


Chap.  III.  KOUGH-AND-TUfilBLE.— MK.  MACARTUY.  183 

tion  of  words,  in  hearing  a  bj-stander  apply  to  the  Founder  of 
Christianity  the  "Mr."  which  is  the  ^'■Kyrios'^  of  the  West,  and  is 
always  prefixed  to  "Joseph  Smith:"  he  stated  that  the  mission 
of  the  latter  was  "  far  ahead  of"  that  of  the  former  prophet,  which, 
by-tlie-by,  is  not  the  strict  Mormon  doctrine.  My  companion  and 
his  family  preferred  as  usual  the  interior  of  the  mail- wagon,  and 
it  was  well  that  they  did  so ;  after  a  couple  of  hours  entered  Mr. 
Macarthy,  very  drunk  and  "  fighting  mad."  He  called  for  sup- 
per, but  supper  was  past  and  gone,  so  he  supped  upon  "fids"  of 
raw  meat.  Excited  by  this  lively  food,  he  began  a  series  of  cap- 
rioles, which  ended,  as  might  be  expected,  in  a  rough-and-tumble 
with  the  other  three  youths  who  occupied  the  hard  floor  of  the 
ranch.  To  Mr.  Macarthy's  language  on  that  occasion  Jion-esco 
referens  ;  every  word  was  apparently  English,  but  so  perverted, 
misused,  and  mangled,  that  the  home  reader  would  hardly  have 
distinguished  it  from  High-Dutch :  e.  g.,  "  I'm  intire  mad  as  a  meat- 
axe  ;  now  du  don't,  I  tell  3-e ;  say,  you,  shut  up  in  a  winkin',  or 
I'll  be  chawed  up  if  I  don't  run  over  you  ;  'can't  come  that  'ere 
tarnal  carryin'  on  over  7?7(?,"  and — 0  si  sic  omnia!  As  no  weap- 
ons, revolvers,  or  bowie-kuives  were  to  the  fore,  I  thought  the 
best  thing  was  to  lie  still  and  let  the  storm  blow  over,  which  it 
did  in  a  quarter  of  an  hour.  Then,  all  serene,  Mr.  Macarthy  call- 
ed for  a  pipe,  excused  himself  ceremoniously  to  himself  for  taking 
the  liberty  with  the  "Cap's."  meerschaum  solely  upon  the  grounds 
that  it  was  the  only  article  of  the  kind  to  be  found  at  so  late  an 
hour,  and  presently  fell  into  a  deep  slumber  upon  a  sleeping  con- 
trivance composed  of  a  table  for  the  upper  and  a  chair  for  the 
lower  portion  of  his  person.  I  envied  him  the  favors  of  Mor- 
pheus :  the  fire  soon  died  out,  the  cold  wind  whistled  through  the 
crannies,  and  the  floor  was  knotty  and  uneven. 

Echo  Kanyon.     Atigust  24<A. 

At  8  15  A.M.  we  were  once  more  en  voyage.  Mr.  Macarthy 
was  very  red-eyed  as  he  sat  on  the  stool  of  penitence :  what  seem- 
ed to  vex  him  most  was  having  lost  certain  newspapers  directed 
to  a  friend  and  committed  to  his  private  trust,  a  mode  of  insuring 
their  safe  arrival  concerning  which  he  had  the  day  before  ex- 
pressed the  highest  opinion.  After  fording  Bear  Eiver — this  part 
of  the  land  was  quite  a  grave-yard — we  passed  over  rough  ground, 
and,  descending  into  a  bush,  were  shown  on  a  ridge  to  the  right 
a  huge  Stonehenge,  a  crown  of  broken  and  somewhat  lanceolate 
perpendicular  conglomerates  or  cemented  pudding-stones  called 
not  inappropriately  Needle  Rocks.  At  Egan's  Creek,  a  tributary 
of  the  Yellow  Creek,  the  wild  geraniums  and  the  willows  flour- 
ished despite  the  six  feet  of  snow  which  sometimes  lies  in  these 
bottoms.  We  then  crossed  Yellow  Creek,  a  water  trending  north- 
eastward, and  feeding,  like  those  hitherto  forded.  Bear  River:  the 
bottom,  a  fine  broad  meadow,  was  a  favorite  camping-ground,  as 


Ig^  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Cn-vr.  III. 

the  many  fire-places  proved.  Beyond  the  stream  we  ascended 
Yellow-Creek  llill,  a  steep  cliain  whicli  divides  the  versant  of  the 
Bear  Eiver  eastward  from  that  of  Weber  Eiver  to  the  west.  The 
ascent  might  be  avoided,  but  the  view  from  the  summit  is  a  fine 
panorama.  The  horizon  behind  us  is  girt  by  a  mob  of  hills, 
Bridger's  Eange,  silver- veined  upon  a  dark  blue  ground  ;  nearer, 
mountains  and  rocks,  cones  and  hog-backs,  are  scattered  about  in 
admirable  confusion,  divided  b}'  shaggy  rollers  and  dark  ravines, 
each  with  its  own  little  water-course.  In  front  the  eye  runs  down 
the  long  bright  red  line  of  Echo  Kanyon,  and  rests  with  aston- 
ishment upon  its  novel  and  curious  features,  the  sublimity  of  its 
broken  and  jagged  peaks,  divided  by  dark  abysses,  and  based 
upon  huge  piles, of  disjointed  and  scattered  rock.  On  the  right, 
about  half  a  mile  north  of  the  road,  and  near  the  head  of  the  kan- 
yon, is  a  place  that  adds  human  interest  to  the  scene.  Cache 
Cave  is  a  dark,  deep,  natural  tunnel  in  the  rock,  which  has  shel- 
tered many  a  hunter  and  trader  from  wild  weather  and  wilder 
men :  the  wall  is  probably  of  marl  and  earthy  limestone,  whose 
whiteness  is  set  off  by  the  ochrish  brick-red  of  the  ravine  below. 

Echo  Kanyon  has  a  total  length  of  twentv-five  to  thirty  miles, 
and  runs  in  a  southeasterly  direction  to  the  "Weber  Eiver.  Kear 
the  head  it  is  from  half  to  three  quarters  of  a  mile  wide,  but  its 
irregularit}^  is  such  that  no  average  breadth  can  be  assigned  to  it. 
The  height  of  the  buttresses  on  the  right  or  northern  side  varies 
from  300  to  500  feet ;  they  are  denuded  and  water-washed  by  the 
storms  that  break  upon  them  under  the  influence  of  southerly 
gales ;  their  strata  here  are  almost  horizontal ;  they  are  inclined 
at  an  angle  of  45°,  and  the  strike  is  northeast  and  southwest.  The 
opposite  or  southern  flank,  being  protected  from  the  dashing  and 
weathering  of  rain  and  wind,  is  a  mass  of  rounded  soil-clad  hills, 
or  sloping  slabs  of  rock,  earth-veiled,  and  growing  tussocks  of 
grass.  Between  them  runs  the  clear,  swift,  bubbling  stream,  in 
a  pebbly  bed  now  hugging  one,  then  the  other  side  of  the  chasm : 
it  has  cut  its  way  deeply  below  the  surface;  the  banks  or  benches 
of  stiff  alluvium  are  not  unfrequently  twenty  feet  high ;  in  places 
it  is  partially  dammed  by  the  hand  of  ISTature,  and  every  where 
the  watery  margin  is  of  the  brightest  green,  and  overgrown  with 
grass,  nettles,  willow  thickets,  in  which  the  hop  is  conspicuous, 
quaking  asp,  and  other  taller  trees.  Echo  Kanyon  has  but  one 
fault :  its  sublimity  will  make  all  similar  features  look  tame. 

We  entered  the  kanyon  in  somewhat  a  serious  frame  of  mind ; 
our  team  was  headed  by  a  pair  of  exceedingly  restive  mules ;  we 
had  remonstrated  against  the  experimental  driving  being  done 
upon  our  vile  bodies,  but  the  reply  was  that  the  animals  must  be 
harnessed  at  some  time.  We  could  not,  however,  but  remark  the 
wonderful  picturesqueness  of  a  scene — of  a  nature  which  in  parts 
seemed  lately  to  have  undergone  some  grand  catastrophe.  The 
gisrantic  red  wall  on  our  right  was  divided  into  distinct  blocks  or 


Chap.  IH.  ECHO  KANYON.— ART  IN  AMEEICA.  185 

quarries  by  a  multitude  of  minor  lateral  kanyons,  which,  after 
rains,  add  their  tribute  to  the  main  artery,  and  each  block  was 
subdivided  by  the  crumbling  of  the  softer  and  the  resistance  of 
the  harder  material — a  clay  conglomerate.  The  color  varied  in 
places  from  white  and  green  to  yellow,  but  for  the  most  part  it 
was  a  dull  ochrish  red,  that  brightened  up  almost  to  a  straw  tint 
where  the  sunbeams  fell  slantingly  upon  it  from  the  strip  of 
blue  above.  All  served  to  set  ofi"  the  curious  architecture  of  the 
smaller  masses.  A  whole  Petra  was  there,  a  S3^stem  of  project- 
ing prisms,  pyramids,  and  pagoda  towers,  a  variety  of  form  that 
enabled  you  to  see  whatever  your  peculiar  vanity  might  be — col- 
umns, porticoes,  fagades,  and  pedestals.  Twin  lines  of  bluffs,  a 
succession  of  buttresses  all  fretted  and  honeycombed,  a  double 
row  of  steeples  slipped  from  perpendicularity,  frowned  at  each 
other  across  the  gorge.  And  the  wondrous  variety  was  yet  more 
varied  by  the  kaleidoscopic  transformation  caused  by  change  of 
position :  at  every  different  point  the  same  object  bore  a  different 
aspect. 

And  now,  while  we  are  dashing  over  the  bouldered  crossings ; 
while  our  naughty  mules,  as  they  tear  down  the  short  steep  pitch- 
es, swing  the  wheels  of  the  mail-wagon  within  half  a  foot  of  the 
high  bank's  crumbling  edge ;  while  poor  Mrs.  Dana  closes  her 
eyes  and  clasps  her  husband's  hand,  and  Miss  May,  happily  un- 
conscious of  all  peril,  amuses  herself  by  perseveringly  perching 
upon  the  last  toe  that  I  should  have  been  inclined  to  offer,  the 
monotony  of  the  risk  may  be  relieved  by  diverting  our  thoughts 
to  the  lessons  taught  by  the  scenery  around. 

An  American  artist  might  extract  from  such  scenery  as  Church 
Butte  and  Echo  Kanyon  a  S3'stem  of  architecture  as  original  and 
national  as  Egypt  ever  borrowed  from  her  sandstone  ledges,  or 
the  North  of  Europe  from  the  solemn  depths  of  her  lir  forests. 
But  Art  does  not  at  present  exist  in  America;  as  among  their 
forefathers  farther  east,  of  artists  they  have  plenty,  of  Art  noth- 
ing. We  can  explain  the  presence  of  the  phenomenon  in  En- 
gland, where  that  grotesqueness  and  bizarrerie  of  taste  which  is 
observable  in  the  uneducated,  and  which,  despite  collections  and 
art-missions,  hardly  disappears  in  those  who  have  studied  the  pur- 
est models,  is  the  natural  growth  of  man's  senses  and  perceptions 
exposed  for  generation  after  generation  to  the  unseen,  unceasing, 
ever-active  effect  of  homely  objects,  the  desolate  aspects  of  the 
long  and  dreary  winters,  and  the  humidity  which  shrouds  the  vis- 
ible world  with  its  dull  gray  coloring.  Should  any  one  question 
the  fact  that  Art  is  not  yet  English,  let  him  but  place  himself  in 
the  centre  of  the  noblest  site  in  Europe,  Trafalgar  Square,  and 
own  that  no  city  in  the  civilized  world  ever  presented  such  a  per- 
fect sample  of  barbarous  incongruity,  from  mast-headed  Nelson 
with  his  coil  behind  him,  the  work  of  the  Satirist's  "  one  man  and 
small  boy,"  to  the  two  contemptible  squirting  things  that  throw 


l^Q  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  CiiAr.  III. 

water  upon  the  pavement  at  his  feet.  Mildly  has  the  "Thunder- 
er" described  it  as  the  "  chosen  home  of  exquisite  dullness  and 
stilted  mediocrity."  The  cause  above  assigned  to  the  fact  is  at 
least  reasonable.  Every  traveler,  who,  after  passing  through  the 
fruitful  but  unpicturesque  orchard  grounds  lying  between  La 
Manche  and  Paris,  and  the  dull  flats,  with  their  melancholy  pop- 
lar lines,  between  Paris  and  L3^ons,  arrives  at  Avignon,  and  ob- 
serves the  jDicturesqueness  which  every  object,  natural  or  artificial, 
begins  to  assume,  the  grace  and  beauty  which  appear  even  in  the 
humblest  details  of  scenery,  must  instinctivel}^  feel  that  he  is  en- 
tering the  land  of  Art.  Not  of  that  Art  which  depends  for  de- 
velopment upon  the  efibrts  of  a  few  exceptional  individuals,  but 
the  living  Art  which  the  constant  contemplation  of  a  glorious 
nature, 

"  That  holy  Virgin  of  the  sage's  creed," 

makes  part  of  a  people's  organization  and  development.  Art, 
heavenly  maid,  is  not  easily  seduced  to  wander  far  from  her  place 
of  birth.  Born  and  cradled  upon  the  all-lovely  shores  of  that  in- 
land sea,  so  choicely  formed  by  Nature's  hand  to  become  the 
source  and  centre  of  mankind's  civilization,  she  loses  health  and 
spirits  in  the  frigid  snowy  north,  while  in  the  tropical  regions — 
Nubia  and  India — her  mind  is  vitiated  by  the  rank  and  luxuri- 
ant scenery  around  her.  A  "pretty  bit  of  home  scenery,"  with 
dumpy  church  tower  —  battlemented  as  the  house  of  worship 
ought  not  to  be  —  on  the  humble  hill,  red  brick  cottages,  with 
straight  tiled  roofs  and  parallelogramic  casements,  and  dwelling- 
houses  all  stiff-ruled  lines  and  hard  sharp  angles,  the  straight 
road  and  the  trimmed  hedgerow  —  such  scenery,  I  assert,  never 
can  make  an  artistic  people ;  it  can  only  lead,  in  fact,  to  a  na- 
tion's last  phase  of  artistic  bathos — a  Trafalgar  Square. 

The  Anglo-Americans  have  other  excuses,  but  not  this.  Their 
broad  lands  teem  with  varied  beauties  of  the  highest  order,  which 
it  would  be  tedious  to  enumerate.  They  have  used,  for  instance, 
the  Indian  corn  for  the  acanthus  in  their  details  of  architecture 
— why  can  not  they  try  a  higher  flight  ?  Man  may  not,  we  read- 
ily grant,  expect  to  be  a  great  poet  because  Niagara  is  a  great 
cataract ;  yet  the  presence  of  such  objects  must  quicken  the  imag- 
ination of  the  civilized  as  of  the  savage  race  that  preceded  him. 
It  is  true  that  in  America  the  class  that  can  devote  itself  exclu- 
sively to  the  cultivation  and  the  study  of  refinement  and  art  is 
still,  comparatively  speaking,  small ;  that  the  care  of  politics,  the 
culture  of  science,  mechanical  and  theoretic,  and  the  pursuit  of 
cash,  have  at  present  more  hold  upon  the  national  mind  than 
what  it  is  disposed  to  consider  the  effeminating  influences  of  the 
humanizing  studies ;  that,  moreover,  the  efforts  of  youthful  gen- 
ius in  the  body  corporate,  as  in  the  individual,  are  invariably 
imitative,  leading  through  the  progressive  degrees  of  reflection 
and  reproduction  to  originality.     But,  valid  as  they  are,  these 


CuAP.  III.  ECHO  STATION.— AN  EXPERIMENT.  187 

reasons  will  not  long  justify  such  freaks  as  the  Americo-Grecian 
capitol  at  Richmond,  a  barn  with  the  tritest  of  all  exordiums,  a 
portico  which  is  original  in  one  point  only,  viz.,  that  it  wants  the 
portico's  only  justification — steps;  or  the  various  domes  original- 
ly borrowed  from  that  bulb  which  has  been  demolished  at  Wash- 
ington, scattered  over  the  country,  and  suggesting  the  idea  that 
the  shape  has  been  borrowed  from  the  butt  end  of  a  sliced  cu- 
cumber. Better  far  the  warehouses  of  Boston,  with  their  mono- 
liths and  frontages  of  rough  Quincy  granite ;  they,  at  least,  are 
unpretending,  and  of  native  growth :  no  bad  test  of  the  native 
mind. 

After  a  total  of  eighteen  miles  we  passed  Echo  Station,  a  half- 
built  ranch,  flanked  by  well-piled  haystacks  for  future  mules. 
The  ravine  narrowed  as  we  advanced  to  a  mere  gorge,  and.  the 
meanderings  of  the  stream  contracted  the  road  and  raised  the 
banks  to  a  more  perilous  height.  A  thicker  vegetation  occupied 
the  bottom,  wild  roses  and  dwarfish  oaks  contending  for  the  mas- 
tery of  the  ground.  About  four  miles  from  the  station  we  were 
shown  a  defile  where  the  Latter-Day  Saints,  in  1857,  headed  b}^ 
Greneral  D.  H.  Wells,  now  the  third,  member  of  the  Presidency, 
had  prepared  modern  Caudine  Forks  for  the  attacking  army  of 
the  United  States,  Little  breastworks  of  loose  stones,  very  like 
the  "  sangahs"  of  the  Affghan  Ghauts,  had  been  thrown  up  where 
the  precipices  commanded  the  road,  and  there  were  four  or  five 
remains  of  dams  intended  to  raise  the  water  above  the  height  of 
the  soldiers'  ammunition  pouches.  The  situation  did  not  appear 
to  me  well  chosen.  Although  the  fortified  side  of  the  bluff  could 
not  be  crowned  on  account  of  deep  chasms  that  separated  the  va- 
rious blocks,  the  southern  acclivities  might  have  been  occupied 
by  sharpshooters  so  effectually  that  the  fire  from  the  breastworks 
would  soon  have  been  silenced ;  moreover,  the  defenders  would 
have  risked  being  taken  in  rear  by  a  party  creeping  through  the 
chapparal*  in  the  sole  of  the  kanyon,  Mr,  Macarthy  related  a 
characteristic  trait  concerning  two  warriors  of  the  Nauvoo  Le- 
gion, Unaccustomed  to  perpendicular  fire,  one  proposed  that  his 
comrade  should  stand  upon  the  crest  of  the  precipice  and  see  if 
the  bullet  reached  him  or  not ;  the  comrade,  thinking  the  request 
highly  reasonable,  complied  with  it,  and  received  a  j-ager-ball 
through  his  forehead. 

Traces  of  beaver  were  frequent  in  the  torrent-bed;  the  "broad- 
tailed  animal"  is  now  molested  by  the  Indians  rather  than  by  the 
whites.  On  this  stage  magpies  and  ravens  were  unusually  nu- 
merous ;  foxes  slunk  away  from  us,  and  on  one  of  the  highest 

*  The  Spanish  "cliapparal"  means  a  low  oak  copse.  The  word  has  been  natu- 
ralized in  Texas  and  New  Mexico,  and  applied  to  the  dense  and  bushy  undergrowth, 
chiefly  of  briers  and  thorns,  disposed  in  patches  from  a  thicket  of  a  hundred  yards  to 
the  whole  flank  of  a  mountain  range  (especially  in  the  Mexican  Tien-a  Calicnte). 
and  so  closely  entwined  that  nothing  larger  than  a  wolf  can  force  a  way  through  it. 


1S8  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Cuap.  III. 

bluffs  a  coyote  stood  as  on  a  pedestal ;  as  near  Baffin  Sea,  these 
craggy  jjeaks  are  their  favorite  howling-places  during  the  severe 
snowy  winters.  We  longed  for  a  thunder-storm :  flashing  light- 
nings, roaring  thunders,  stormy  winds,  and  dashing  rains — in  fact, 
a  tornado — would  be  the  fittest  setting  for  such  a  picture,  so  wild, 
so  sublime  as  Echo  Kanyon.  But  we  longed  in  vain.  The  day 
was  persistently  beautiful,  calm  and  mild  as  a  May  forenoon  in 
the  Grecian  Archipelago.  We  were  also  disaiDpointed  in  our  nat- 
ural desire  to  hold  some  converse  with  the  nymph  who  had  lent 
her  name  to  the  ravine — the  reverberation  is  said  to  be  remark- 
ably fine — but  the  temper  of  our  animals  would  not  have  endured 
it,  and  the  place  was  not  one  that  admitted  experiments.  Rain 
had  lately  fallen,  as  we  saw  from  the  mud-puddles  in  the  upper 
course  of  the  kanyon,  and  the  road  was  in  places  pitted  with  drops 
which  were  not  frequent  enough  to  allay  the  choking  dust.  A 
fresh  yet  familiar  feature  now  appeared.  The  dews,  whose  ex- 
istence we  had  forgotten  on  the  prairies,  were  cold  and  clammy 
in  the  early  mornings;,  the  moist  air,  condensed  by  contact  with 
the  cooler  substances  on  the  surface  of  the  ground,  stood  in  large 
drops  upon  the  leaves  and  grasses.  As  we  advanced  the  bed  of 
the  ravine  began  to  open  out,  the  angle  of  descent  became  more 
obtuse ;  a  stretch  of  level  ground  appeared  in  front,  where  for 
some  hours  the  windings  of  the  kanyon  had  walled  ns  in,  and  at 
2  30  P.M.  we  debouched  upon  the  Weber-River  Station.  It  lies 
at  the  very  mouth  of  the  ravine,  almost  under  the  shadow  of  lofty 
red  bluffs,  called  "The  Obelisks ;"  and  the  green  and  sunny  land- 
scape, contrasting  with  the  sterile  grandeur  behind,  is  exceeding- 
ly pleasing. 

After  the  emotions  of  the  drive,  a  little  rest  was  by  no  means 
unpleasant.  The  station  was  tolerably  comfortable,  and  the  wel- 
come addition  of  potatoes  and  onions  to  our  usual  fare  was  not  to 
be  despised.  The  tenants  of  the  ranch  were  Mormons,  civil  and 
communicative.  They  complained  sadly  of  the  furious  rain-storms, 
which  the  funnel-like  gorge  brings  down  upon  them,  and  the  cold 
draughts  from  five  feet  deep  of  snow  which  pour  down  upon  the 
milder  valley. 

At  4  30  we  resumed  our  journey  along  the  plain  of  the  Weber 
or  Webber  River.  It  is  second  in  importance  only  to  the  Bear 
River :  it  heads  near  the  latter,  and,  flowing  in  a  devious  course 
toward  the  northwest,  falls  into  the  Great  Salt  Lake  a  few  miles 
south  of  its  sister  stream,  and  nearly  opposite  Fremont's  Island. 
The  valley  resembles  that  described  in  yesterday's  diary ;  it  is, 
however,  narrower,  and  the  steep  borders,  which,  if  water- washed, 
would  be  red  like  the  kanyon  rocks,  are  well  clothed  with  grass 
and  herbages.  In  some  places  the  land  is  defended  by  snake- 
fences  in  zigzags,*  to  oppose  the  depredations  of  emigrants'  cattle 

*  This  is  the  simplest  of  all  fences,  and  therefore  much  used  in  the  West.  Tree- 
trunks  are  felled,  and  cither  used  whole  or  split  into  rails ;  they  are  tlicn  disposed  in 


CuAp.  III.     BAUCHMIN'S  CREEK.— CARSON-HOUSE  STATION.        189 

upon  the  wheat,  barley,  and  stunted  straggling  corn  within.  Aft- 
er fording  the  river  and  crossing  the  bottom,  we  ascended  steep 
banks,  passed  over  a  spring  of  salt  water  five  miles  from  the  sta- 
tion, and  halted  for  a  few  minutes  to  exchange  news  with  the  mail- 
wagon  that  had  left  Great  Salt  Lake  City  this  (Friday)  morning. 
Followed  a  rough  and  rugged  tract  of  land  apparently  very  try- 
ing to  the  way-worn  cattle ;  many  deaths  had  taken  place  at  this 
point,  and  the  dead  lay  well  preserved  as  the  monks  of  St.  Ber- 
nard. After  a  succession  of  chuck-holes,  rises,  and  falls,  we  fell 
into  the  valley  of  Bauchmin's  Creek.  It  is  a  picturesque  hollow ; 
at  the  head  is  a  gateway  of  red  clay,  through  which  the  stream 
passes ;  the  sides  also  are  red,  and  as  the  glow  and  glory  of  the 
departing  day  lingered  ujDon  the  heights,  even  artemisia  put  on 
airs  of  bloom  and  beauty,  blushing  in  contrast  with  the  sharp  me- 
tallic green  of  the  quaking  asp  and  the  duller  verdure  of  the  el- 
der (Alnus  viridis).  As  the  evening  closed  in,  the  bottom-land 
became  more  broken,  the  path  less  certain,  and  the  vegetation 
thicker :  the  light  of  the  moon,  already  diminished  by  the  nar- 
rowness of  the  valley,  seemed  almost  to  be  absorbed  by  the  dark 
masses  of  copse  and  bush.  "We  were  not  sorry  to  make,  at  7  45 
P.M.,  the  "Carson-House  Station"  at  Bauchmin's  Fork — the  trav- 
eling had  been  fast,  seven  miles  an  hour — where  we  found  a  log 
hut,  a  roaring  fire,  two  civil  Mormon  lads,  and  some  few  "fixins" 
in  the  way  of  food.  "We  sat  for  a  time  talking  about  matters 
of  local  importance,  the  number  of  emigrants,  and  horse-thieves, 
the  prospects  of  the  road,  and  the  lay  of  the  land,  Bauchmin's 
Fork,  we  learned,  is  a  branch  of  East  Kanyon  Creek,  itself  a  trib- 
utary of  the  Weber  Eiver ;  -  from  the  station  an  Indian  trail  leads 
over  the  mountains  to  Provo  City.  I  slept  comfortably  enough 
upon  the  boards  of  an  inner  room,  not,  however,  without  some  ap- 
prehensions of  accidentally  offending  a  certain  skunk  {Mephitis 
mejyJiitica),  which  was  in  the-  habit  of  making  regular  nocturnal 
visits.  I  heard  its  puppy -like  bark  during  the  night,  but  escaped 
what  otherwise  might  have  happened. 

And  why,  naturally  asks  the  reader,  did  you  not  shut  the  door? 
Because  there  was  none. 

TTie  End — Hurrah  !    August  25th. 

To-day  we  are  to  pass  over  the  Wasach,f  the  last  and  highest 
chain  of  the  mountain  mass  between  Fort  Bridger  and  the  Great 

a  lonp  serrated  line,  each  resting  upon  another  at  both  ends,  like  the  finpers  of  a 
man's  right  hand  extended  and  inserted  between  the  corresponding  finpers  of  the 
left.  The  zigzag  is  not  a  picturesque  object :  in  absolute  beauty  it  is  inferior  even 
to  our  English  trimmed  hedgerow ;  but  it  is  very  economical,  it  saves  space,  it  is  eas- 
ily and  readily  made,  it  can  always  serve  for  fuel,  and,  therefore,  is  to  be  respected, 
despite  tlie  homeliness  of  its  appearance. 

*  In  Captain  Stansbury's  map,  Bauchmin's  Fork  is  a  direct  influent,  and  one  of  the 
largest,  too,  of  the,  Weber  River. 

+  The  word  is  generally  wTitten  Wasatch  or  Wahsatrh.  In  the  latter  the  h  is,  as 
usual,  de  trop ;  and  in  both  the  t,  though  necessary  in  French,  is  totally  uncalled  for 
in  English. 


190  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  III. 

Salt  Lake  Valley,  and — by  the  aid  of  St.  James  of  Compostella, 
who  is,  I  believe,  bound  over  to  be  the  patron  of  pilgrims  in  gen- 
eral— to  arrive  at  our  destination,  New  Hierosolyma,  or  Jerusa- 
lem, alias  Zion  on  the  tops  of  the  mountains,  the  future  city  of 
Christ,  where  the  Lord  is  to  reign  over  the  Saints,  as  a  temporal 
king,  in  power  and  great  glory. 

So  we  girt  our  loins,  and  started,  after  a  cup  of  tea  and  a  bis- 
cuit, at  7  A.M.,  under  the  good  guidance  of  Mr.  Macarthy,  who, 
after  a  whisky  less  night,  looked  forward  not  less  than  ourselves 
to  the  run  in.  Following  the  course  of  Bauchmin's  Creek,  we 
completed  the  total  number  of  fordings  to  thirteen  in  eight  miles. 
The  next  two  miles  were  along  the  bed  of  a  water-course,  a  com- 
plete fiumara,  through  a  bush  full  of  tribulus,  which  accompanied 
us  to  the  end  of  the  journey.  Presently  the  ground  became  rough- 
er and  steej)er:  we  alighted,  and  set  our  beasts  manfully  against 
"Big  Mountain,"  which  lies  about  four  miles  from  the  station. 
The  road  bordered  upon  the  wide  arroyo,  a  tumbled  bed  of  block 
and  boulder,  with  v^ater  in  places  oozing  and  trickling  from  the 
clay  walls,  from  the  sandy  soil,  and  from  beneath  the  heaps  of 
rock — living  fountains  these,  most  grateful  to  the  parched  travel- 
er. The  synclinal  slopes  of  the  chasm  were  grandly  wooded  with 
hemlocks,  firs,  balsam-pines,  and  other  varieties  of  abies,  some  ta- 
pering up  to  the  height  of  ninety  feet,  with  an  admirable  regular- 
ity of  form,  color,  and  foliage.  The  varied  hues  of  the  quaking 
asp  were  there ;  the  beech,  the  dwarf  oak,  and  a  thicket  of  elders 
and  wild  roses ;  while  over  all  the  warm  autumnal  tints  already 
mingled  with  the  bright  green  of  summer.  The  ascent  became 
more  and  more  rugged :  this  steep  pitch,  at  the  end  of  a  thousand 
miles  of  hard  work  and  semi-starvation,  causes  the  death  of  many 
a  wretched  animal,  and  we  remarked  that  the  bodies  are  not  in- 
odorous among  the  mountains  as  on  the  prairies.  In  the  most  fa- 
tiguing part  we  saw  a  hand-cart  halted,  while  the  owners,  a  man, 
a  woman,  and  a  boy,  took  breath.  We  exchanged  a  few  consola- 
tory words  with  them  and  hurried  on.  The  only  animal  seen  on 
the  line,  except  the  grasshopper,  whose  creaking  wings  gave  forth 
an  ominous  note,  was  the  pretty  little  chirping  squirrel.  The 
trees,  however,  in  places  bore  the  marks  of  huge  talons,  which  were 
easily  distinguished  as  the  sign  of  bears.  The  grizzly  does  not 
climb  except  when  young :  this  was  probably  the  common  brown 
variet}-.  At  half  way  the  gorge  opened  out,  assuming  more  the 
appearance  of  a  valley ;  and  in  places,  for  a  few  rods,  were  dwarf 
stretches  of  almost  level  ground.  Toward  the  Pass-summit  the 
rise  is  sharpest :  here  we  again  descended  from  the  wagon,  which 
the  four  mules  had  work  enough  to  draw,  and  the  total  length  of 
its  eastern  rise  was  five  miles.  Big  Mountain  lies  eighteen  miles 
from  the  city.  The  top  is  a  narrow  crest,  suddenly  forming  an 
acute  based  upon  an  obtuse  angle. 

From  that  eyrie,  8000  feet  above  sea  level,  the  weary  pilgrim 


CiiAP.  III.  BIG  KANYON  CREEK.— THE  DANITE.  IQl 

first  sights  his  shrine,  the  object  of  his  long  wanderings,  hardships, 
and  perils,  the  Happy  Valley  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake.  The  west- 
ern horizon,  when  visible,  is  bounded  by  a  broken  wall  of  light 
blue  mountain,  the  Oquirrh,  whose  northernmost  bluff  buttresses 
the  southern  end  of  the  lake,  and  whose  eastern  flank  sinks  in  steps 
and  terraces  into  a  river  basin,  yellow  with  the  sunlit  golden  com, 
and  somewhat  pink  with  its  carpeting  of  heath-like  moss.  In  the 
foreground  a  semicircular  sweep  of  hill-top  and  an  inverted  arch 
of  rocky  wall  shuts  out  all  but  a  few  spans  of  the  valley.  These 
heights  are  rough  with  a  shaggy  forest,  in  some  places  black-green, 
in  others  of  brownish-red,  in  others  of  the  lightest  ash-color,  based 
upon  a  ruddy  soil ;  while  a  few  silvery  veins  of  snow  still  streak 
the  bare  gray  rocky  flanks  of  the  loftiest  peak; 

After  a  few  minutes'  delay  to  stand  and  gaze,  we  resumed  the 
footpath  way,  while  the  mail-wagon,  with  wheels  rough-locked, 
descended  what  appeared  to  be  an  impracticable  slope.  The  sum- 
mit of  the  Pass  was  well-nigh  cleared  of  timber ;  the  woodman's 
song  informed  us  that  the  evil  work  was  still  going  on,  and  that 
we  are  nearly  approaching  a  large  settlement.  Thus  stripped  of 
their  protecting  fringes,  the  mountains  are  exposed  to  the  heat  of 
summer,  that  sends  forth  countless  swarms  of  devastating  crickets, 
grasshoppers,  and  blue-worms ;  and  to  the  wintry  cold,  that  piles 
"up,  four  to  six  feet  high — the  mountain-men  speak  of  thirty  and 
forty — the  snows  drifted  jy  the  unbroken  force  of  the  winds. 
The  Pass  from  Novemb  o  February  can  be  traversed  by  nothing 
heavier  than  "sleighs,  id  during  the  snow-storms  even  these 
are  stopped.  Palling  lu  the  gorge  of  Big  Kanyon  Creek,  after 
a  total  of  twelve  hard  miles  from  Bauchmin's  Fork,  we  reached 
at  11  30  the  station  that  bears  the  name  of  the  water  near  which 
it  is  built.  We  were  received  by  the  wife  of  the  proprietor,  who 
was  absent  at  the  time  of  our  arrival ;  and  half  stifled  by  the  thick 
dust  and  the  sun,  which  had  raised  the  glass  to  103°,  we  enjoyed 
copious  draughts — tani  soil  peu  qualified — of  the  cool  but  rather 
hard  water  that  trickled  down  the  hill  into  a  trough  by  the  house 
side.  '■  Presently  the  station-master,  springing  from  his  light 
"sulky,"  entered,  and  was  formally  introduced  to  us  b}^  Mr.  Mac- 
arthy  as  Mr.  Ephe  Hanks.  I  had  often  heard  of  this  individual 
as  one  of  th  ;  old  triumvirate  of  Mormon  desperadoes,  the  other 
two  beiUj^  rin  Porter  Eockwell  and  Bill  Hickman — as  the  leader 
of  the  drea  1  Danite  band,  and,  in  short,  as  a  model  ruffian.  The 
eai  jften  -caches  the  eye  to  form  its  pictures :  I  had  eliminated  a 
kind  of  mental  sketch  of  those  assassin  faces  which  one  sees  on 
the  Apennines  and  Pyrenees,  and  was  struck  by  what  met  the  eye 
of  sense.  The  "vile  villain,"  as  he  has  been  called  by  anti-Mor- 
mon writers,  who  verily  do  not  try  to  menager  their  epithets,  was 
a  middle-sized,  light-haired,  good-looking  man,  with  regular  feat- 
ures, a  pleasant  and  humorous  countenance,  and  the  m.anly  man- 
ner of  his  early  sailor  life,  touched  with  the  rough  cordiality  of 


]^92  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IH. 

the  mountaineer.  "  Frank  as  a  bear-hunter"  is  a  proverb  in  these 
lands.  He  had,  like  the  rest  of  the  triumvirate,  and  like  most 
men  (Anglo- Americans)  of  desperate  courage  and  fiery,  excitable 
temper,  a'clear,  pale  blue  eye,  verging  upon  gray,  and  looking  as 
if  it  wanted  nothing  better  than  to  light  up,  together  with  a  cool 
and  quiet  glance  that  seemed  to  shun  neither  friend  nor  foe. 

The  terrible  Ephe  began  with  a  facetious  allusion  to  all  our 
new  dangers  under  the  roof  of  a  Danite,  to  which,  in  similar  strain, 
I  made  answer  that  Danite  or  Damnite  was  pretty  much  the  same 
to  me.  After  dining,  we  proceeded  to  make  trial  of  the  air-cane, 
to  which  he  took,  as  I  could  see  by  the  way  he  handled  it,  and  by 
the  nod  with  which  he  acknowledged  the  observation,  "  almighty 
convenient  sometimes  not  to  make  a  noise,  Mister,"  a  great  fancy. 
He  asked  me  whether  I  had  a  mind  to  "  have  a  slap"  at  his  name- 
sake,"- an  offer  which  was  gratefully  accepted,  under  the  promise 
that  "  cufiy"  should  previously  be  marked  down  so  as  to  save  a 
long  ride  and  a  troublesome  trudge  over  the  mountains.  His 
battery  of  "  killb'ars"  was  heavy  and  in  good  order,  so  that  on  this 
score  there  would  have  been  no  trouble,  and  the  only  tool  he  bade 
me  bring  was  a  Colt's  revolver,  dragoon  size.  He  told  me  that  he 
was  likely  to  be  in  England  next  year,  when  he  had  set  the  "  ole 
woman"  to  her  work.  I  suppose  my  look  was  somewhat  puzzled, 
for  ]\Irs.  Dana  graciously  explained  that  every  Western  wife,  even 
when  still,  as  Mrs.  Ej)he  was,  in  her  teens,  commands  that  vener- 
able title,  venerable,  though  somehow  not  generally  coveted. 

From  Big  Kanyon  Creek  Station  to  the  city,  the  driver  "  reck- 
oned," was  a  distance  of  seventeen  miles.  We  waited  till  the 
bright  and  glaring  day  had  somewhat  burned  itself  out ;  at  noon 
heavy  clouds  came  up  from  the  south  and  southwest,  casting  a 
grateful  shade  and  shedding  a  few  drops  of  rain.  After  taking 
friendly  leave  of  the  "  Danite"  chief — whose  cordiality  of  manner 
had  prepossessed  me  strongly  in  his  favor — we  entered  the  mail- 
wagon,  and  prepared  ourselves  for  the  finale  over  the  westernmost 
ridge  of  the  stern  Wasach. 

After  two  miles  of  comparatively  level  ground  we  came  to  the 
foot  of  "  Little  Mountain,"  and  descended  from  the  wagon  to  re- 
lieve the  i^oor  devils  of  mules.  The  near  slope  was  much  short- 
er, but  also  it  was  steeper  far  than  "Big  Mountain."  The  coun- 
terslope  was  easier,  though  by  no  means  pleasant  to  contemplate 
with  the  chance  of  an  accident  to  the  brake,  which  in  all  incon- 
venient places  would  part  with  the  protecting  shoe-sole.  Beyond 
the  eastern  foot,  which  was  ten  miles  distant  from  our  destina- 
tion, we  were  miserably  bumped  and  jolted  over  the  broken 
ground  at  the  head  of  Big  Kanyon.  Down  this  j^ass,  whose  name 
is  a  translation  of  the  Yuta  name  Obitkokichi,  a  turbulent  little 
mountain  stream  tumbles  over  its  boulder-bed,  girt  with  the  usual 
sunflower,  vines  of  wild  hops,  red  and  white  willows,  cotton-wood, 

*  "  Olc  Epliraim"  is  the  mountain-man's  sobriquet  for  the  grizzly  bear. 


Chap.  UI.      A  TICKLISH  ROAD.— EMIGRATION  KANYON.  193 

quaking  asp,  and  various  bushes  near  its  cool  watery  margin, 
and  upon  the  easier  slopes  of  the  ravine,  with  the  shin  or  dwarf 
oak  {Quercus  nana\  mountain  mahogany,  balsam,  and  other  firs, 
pines,  and  cedars.  The  road  was  a  narrow  shelf  along  the  broad- 
er of  the  two  spaces  between  the  stream  and  the  rock,  and  fre- 
quent fordings  were  rendered  necessary  by  the  capricious  wan- 
derings of  the  torrent.  I  could  not  but  think  how  horrid  must 
have  been  its  appearance  when  the  stout-hearted  Mormon  pioneers 
first  ventured  to  thread  the  defile,  breaking  their  way  through  the 
dense  bush,  creeping  and  clinging  like  flies  to  the  sides  of  the 
hills.  Even  now  accidents  often  occur ;  here,  as  in  Echo  Kanyon, 
we  saw  in  more  than  one  place  unmistakable  signs  of  upsets  in 
the  shape  of  broken  spokes  and  j^oke-bows.  At  one  of  the  most 
ticklish  turns  Macarthy  kindly  pointed  out  a  little  precipice  where 
four  of  the  mail  passengers  fell  and  broke  their  necks,  a  pure  in- 
vention on  his  part,  I  believe,  which  fortunately,  at  that  moment, 
did  not  reach  Mrs.  Dana's  ears.  He  also  entertained  us  with  many 
a  tale,  of  which  the  hero  was  the  redoubtable  Hanks :  how  he 
had  slain  a  buffalo  bull  single-handed  with  a  bowie-knife ;  and 
how,  on  one  occasion,  when  refused  hospitality  by  his  Lamanite 
brethren,  he  had  sworn  to  have  the  whole  village  to  himself,  and 
had  redeemed  his  vow  by  reappearing  in  cuevpo^  with  gestures  so 
maniacal  that  the  sulk}^  Indians  all  fled,  declaring  him  to  be  "bad 
medicine."     The  stories  had  at  least  local  coloring. 

In  due  time,  emerging  from  the  gates,  and  portals,  and  deep 
sefrations  of  the  upper  course,  we  descended  into  a  lower  level : 
here  Big,  now  called  Emigration  Kanyon,  gradually  bulges  out, 
and  its  steep  slopes  of  grass  and  fern,  shrubbery  and  stunted 
brush,  fall  imperceptibly  into  the  plain.  The  valley  presently  lay 
full  before  our  sight.  At  this  place  the  pilgrim  emigrants,  like 
the  hajjis  of  Mecca  and  Jerusalem,  give  vent  to  the  emotions  long 
pent'tup  within  their  bosoms  by  sobs  and  tears,  laughter  and  con- 
gratulations, psalms  and  hysterics.  It  is  indeed  no  wonder  that 
the  children  dance,  that  strong  men  cheer  and  shout,  and  that 
nervous  women,  broken  with  fatigue  and  hope  deferred,  scream 
and  faint ;  that  the  ignorant  should  fondly  believe  that  the  "  Spir- 
it of  God  pervades  the  very  atmosphere,"  and  that  Zion  on  the 
tops  of  the  mountains  is  nearer  heaven  than  other  parts  of  earth. 
In  good  sooth,  though  uninfluenced  by  religious  fervor — beyond 
the  natural  satisfaction  of  seeing  a  bran-new  Holy  City  —  even  I 
could  not,  after  nineteen  days  in  a  mail- wagon,  gaze  upon  the 
scene  without  emotion. 

The  sublime  and  the  beautiful  were  in  present  contrast.  Switz- 
erland and  Italy  lay  side  by  side.  The  magnificent  scenery  of 
the  past  mountains  and  ravines  still  floated  before  the  retina,  as 
emerging  from  the  gloomy  depths  of  the  Golden  Pass — the  mouth 
of  Emigration  Kanyon  is  more  poetically  so  called — we  came  sud- 
denly in  view  of  the  Holy  Valley  of  the  West. 


194 


THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  III. 


The  hour  was  about  6  P.M. ;  the  atmosphere  was  touched  with 
a  dreamy  haze,  as  it  generally  is  in  the  vicinity  of  the  lake ;  a  lit- 
tle bank  of  rose-colored  clouds,  edged  with  flames  of  purple  and 
gold,  floated  in  the  upper  air,  while  the  mellow  radiance  of  an 
American  autumn,  that  bright  interlude  between  the  extremes  of 
heat  and  cold,  diffused  its  mild  soft  lustre  over  the  face  of  earth. 

The  sun,  whose  slanting  rays  shone  full  in  our  eyes,  was  set- 
ting in  a  flood  of  heavenly  light  behind  the  bold,  jagged  outline 
of  "Antelope  Island,"  which,  though  distant  twenty  miles  to  the 
northwest,  hardly  appeared  to  be  ten.  At  its  feet,  and  then 
bounding  the  far  horizon,  lay,  like  a  band  of  burnished  silver,  the 
Great  Salt  Lake,  that  still  innocent  Dead  Sea.  Southwestward 
also,  and  equally  deceptive  as  regards  distance,  rose  the  boundary 
of  the  valley  plain,  the  Oquirrh  Kange,  sharply  silhouetted  by  a 
sweep  of  sunshine  over  its  summits,  against  the  depths  of  an  even- 
ing sky,  in  that  direction  so  pure,  so  clear,  that  vision,  one  might 
fancy,  could  penetrate  behind  the  curtain  into  regions  beyond  the 
confines  of  man's  ken.  In  the  brilliant  reflected  light,  which  soft- 
ened off  into  a  glow  of  delicate  pink,  we  could  distinguish  the 
lines  of  Brigham's,  Coon's,  and  other  kanyons,  which  water  has 
traced  through  the  wooded  flanks  of  the  Oquirrh  down  to  the 
shadows  already  purpling  the  misty  benches  at  their  base.  Three 
distinct  and  several  shades,  light  azure,  blue,  and  brown-blue, 
graduated  the  distances,  which  extended  at  least  thirty  miles. 

The  undulating  valley -plain  between  us  and  the  Oquirrh  Range 
is  12-15  miles  broad,  and  markedly  concave,  dipping  in  the  centre 
like  the  section  of  a  tunnel,  and  swelling  at  both  edges  into  bench- 
lands,  which  mark  the  ancient  bed  of  the  lake.  In  some  parts 
the  valley  was  green ;  in  others,  where  the  sun  shot  its  oblique 
beams,  it  was  of  a  tawny  yellowish-red,  like  the  sands  of  the  Ara- 
bian desert,  with  scatters  of  trees,  where  the  Jordan  of  the  West 
rolls  its  opaline  wave  through  pasture-lands  of  dried  grass  dotted 
with  flocks  and  herds,  and  fields  of  ripening  yellow  corn.  Every 
thing  bears  the  impress  of  handiwork,  from  the  bleak  benches  be- 
hind to  what  was  once  a  barren  valley  in  front.  Truly  the  Mor- 
mon prophecy  had  been  fulfilled :  already  the  howling  wilderness 
— in  which  twelve  years  ago  a  few  miserable  savages,  the  half- 
naked  Digger  Indians,  gathered  their  grass-seed,  grasshoppers,  and 
black  crickets  to  keep  life  and  soul  together,  and  awoke  with  their 
war-cries  the  echo  of  the  mountains,  and  the  bear,  the  wolf,  and 
the  fox  prowled  over  the  site  of  a  now  populous  city — "  has  blos- 
somed like  the  rose." 

This  valley — this  lovely  panorama  of  green,  and  azure,  and  gold 
— this  land,  fresh,  as  it  were,  from  the  hands  of  God,  is  apparently 
girt  on  all  sides  by  hills :  the  highest  peaks,  raised  7000  to  8000 
feet  above  the  plain  of  their  bases,  show  by  gulches  veined  with 
lines  of  snow  that  even  in  this  season  winter  frowns  upon  the  last 
smile  of  summer. 


Chap.  III.        :M0UNTAIN  POINT.— THE  HAPPY  VALLEY.  195 

Advancing,  we  exchanged  the  rough  cahues  and  the  frequent 
fords  of  the  ravine  for  a  broad  smooth  highway,  spanning  the 
easternmost  valley -bench — a  terrace  that  drops  like  a  Titanic  step 
from  the  midst  of  the  surrounding  mountains  to  the  level  of  the 
present  valley -plain.  From  a  distance — the  mouth  of  Emigration 
Kanyon  is  about  4-30  miles  from  the  city — Zion,  which  is  not  on 
a  hill,  but,  on  the  contrary,  lies  almost  in  the  lowest  part  of  the 
river-plain,  is  completely  hid  from  sight,  as  if  no  such  thing  exist- 
ed. Mr.  Macarthy,  on  application,  pointed  out  the  notabilia  of  the 
scene. 

Northward,  curls  of  vapor  ascending  from  a  gleaming  sheet — 
the  Lake  of  the  Hot  Springs — set  in  a  bezel  of  emerald  green, 
and  bordered  by  another  lake-bench  upon  which  the  glooms  of 
evening  were  rapidly  gatheringj  hung  like  a  veil  of  gauze  around 
the  waist  of  the  mountains,  ^uthward  for  twenty-five  miles 
stretched  the  length  of  the  valley,''with  the  little  river  winding  its 
way  like  a  silver  thread  in  a  brocade  of  green  anCi  gold.  The 
view  in  this  direction  was  closed  by  "  Mountain  Point,"  another 
formation  of  terraced  range,  which  forms  the  water-gate  of  Jor- 
dan, and  which  conceals  and  separates  the  fresh  water  that  feeds 
the  Salt  Lake — the  Sea  of  Tiberias  from  the  Dead  Sea. 

As  we  descend  the  "Wasach  Mountains,  we  could  look  back  and 
enjoy  the  view  of  the  eastern  wall  of  the  Happy  Yalley.  A  little 
to  the  north  of  Emigration  Kanyon,  and  about  one  mile  nearer 
the  settlement,  is  the  Eed  Butte,  a  deep  ravine,  whose  quarried 
sides  show  mottlings  of  the  light  ferruginous  sandstone  which  was 
chosen  for  building  the  Temple  wall.*  A  little  beyond  it  lies 
the  single  City  of  the  Dead,  decently  removed  three  miles  from 
the  habitations  of  the  living,  and  farther  to  the  north  is  Cit}' -Creek 
Kanyon,  which  supplies  the  Saints  with  water  for  drinking  and 
for  irrigation.  Southeast  of  Emigration  Kanyon  are  other  ra- 
vines. Parley's,  Mill  Creek,  Great  Cotton-wood,  and  Little  Cotton- 
wood, deep  lines  winding  down  the  timbered  flanks  of  the  mount- 
ains, and  thrown  into  relief  by  the  darker  and  more  misty  shading 
of  the  farther  flank- wall. 

The  "  Twin  Peaks,"  the  highest  points  of  the  Wasach  Mount- 
ains, are  the  first  to  be  powdered  over  with  the  autumnal  snow. 
When  a  black  nimbus  throws  out  these  piles,  with  their  tilted-up 
rock  strata,  jagged  edges,  black  flanks,  rugged  brows,  and  bald 
heads  gilt  by  a  gleam  of  sunset,  the  whole  stands  boldly  out  with 
that  phase  of  sublimity  of  which  the  sense  of  immensity  is  the 
principal  element.  Even  in  the  clearest  of  weather  they  are  rare- 
ly free  from  a  fleecy  cloud,  the  condensation  of  cold  and  humid 
air  rolling  up  the  heights  and  vanishing  only  to  be  renewed. 

The  bench-land  then  attracted  our  attention.     The  soil  is  poor. 

*  At  first  a  canal  was  dug  through  the  bench  to  bring  this  material :  the  gray 
granite  now  used  for  the  Temple  is  transported  in  carts  from  the  southern  part  of 
the  valley. 


IQQ  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  HI. 

sprinkled  with  thin  grass,  in  places  showing  a  suspicious  white- 
ness, with  few  flowers,  and  chiefly  producing  a  salsolaceous  plant 
like  the  English  samphire.  In  many  places  lay  long  rows  of  bare 
.  circlets,  like  deserted  tent-floors ;  they  proved  to  be  ant-hills,  on 
which  light  ginger-colored  swarms  were  working  hard  to  throw 
up  the  sand  and  gravel  that  every  where  in  this  valley  underlie 
the  surface.  The  eastern  valley -bench,  upon  whose  western  de- 
clivity the  city  lies,  may  be  traced  on  a  clear  day  along  the  base 
of  the  mountains  for  a  distance  of  twenty  miles :  its  average  breadth 
is  about  eight  miles. 

After  advancing  about  1-50  mile  over  the  bench  ground,  the 
city  by  slow  degrees  broke  upon  our  sight.  It  showed,  one  may 
readily  believe,  to  special  advantage  after  the  succession  of  Indian 
lodges,  Canadian  ranchos,  and  log-hut  mail-stations  of  the  prairies 
and  the  mountains.  The  site  ha433een  admirably  chosen  for  drain- 
age and  irrigation — so  well,  iftdeed,  that  a  "Deus  ex  machina" 
must  be  brought  to  account  for  it.*  About  two  miles  north,  and 
overlooking  the  settlements  from  a  height  of  400  feet,  a  detached 
cone,  called  Ensign  Peak  or  Ensign  Mount,  rises  at  the  end  of  a 
chain  which,  projected  westward  from  the  main  range  of  the 
heights,  overhangs  and  shelters  the  northeastern  corner  of  the 
valley.  Upon  this  "  big  toe  of  the  Wasach  range,"  as  it  is  called 
by  a  local  writer,  the  spirit  of  the  martyred  prophet,  Mr,  Joseph 
Smith,  appeared  to  his  successor,  Mr.  Brigham  Young,  and  pointed 
out  to  him  the  position  of  the  New  Temple,  which,  after  Zion  had 
■'got  up  into  the  high  mountain,"  was  to  console  the  Saints  for 
the  loss  of  Nauvoo  the  Beautiful.  The  city — it  is  about  two  miles 
broad. — runs  parallel  with  the  right  bank  of  the  Jordan,  which 
forms  its  western  limit.  It  is  twelve  to  fifteen  miles  distant  from 
the  western  range,  ten  from  the  debouchure  of  the  river,  and  eight 
to  nine  from  the  nearest  point  of  the  lake — a  respectful  distance, 
which  is  not  the  least  of  the  position's  merits.  It  occupies  the  roll- 
ing brow  of  a  slight  decline  at  the  western  base  of  the  Wasach — 
in  fact,  the  lower,  but  not  the  lowest  level  of  the  eastern  valley- 
bench  ;  it  has  thus  a  compound  slope  from  north  to  south,  on  the 
line  of  its  water  supplies,  and  from  east  to  west,  thus  enabling  it 
to  drain  off  into  the  river. 

The  city  revealed  itself,  as  we  approached,  from  behind  its 
screen,  the  inclined  terraces  of  the  upper  table-land,  and  at  last  it 
lay  stretched  before  us  as  upon  a  map.     At  a  little  distance  the 

*  I  have  frequently  heard  this  legend  from  Gentiles,  never  from  Mormons ;  yet 
even  the  Saints  own  that  as  early  as  1842  visions  of  the  mountains  and  kanyons,  the 
valley  and  the  lake,  were  revealed  to  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  M^ho  declared  it  privily 
to  the  disciples  whom  he  loved.  Thus  Messrs.  O.  Pratt  and  E.  Snow,  apostles,  were 
enabled  to  recognize  the  Promised  Land,  as,  the  first  of  the  pioneers,  they  issued 
from  the  ravines  of  the  Wasach.  Of  course  the  Gentiles  declare  that  the  exodists 
hit  upon  the  valley  by  the  purest  chance.  The  spot  is  becoming  classical :  here 
Judge  and  Apostle  Phelps  preached  his  "  Sermon  on  the  Mount,"  which,  anti-Mor- 
mons sav.  was  a  curious  contrast  to  the  first  discourse  so  named. 


Chap  III.  BULWARKS  OF  ZION.  197 

aspect  was  somewliat  Oriental,  and  in  some  points  it  reminded  me 
of  modern  Athens  without  the  Acropolis.  None  of  the  buildings, 
except  the  Prophet's  house,  were  whitewashed.  The  material — 
the  thick,  sun-dried  adobe,  common  to  all  parts  of  the  Eastern 
world* — was  of  a  dull  leaden  blue,  deepened  by  the  atmosphere 
to  a  gray,  like  the  shingles  of  the  roofs.  The  number  of  gardens 
and  compounds — each  tenement  within  the  walls  originally  re- 
ceived 1-50  square  acre,  and  those  outside  from  five  to  ten  acres, 
according  to  their  distance — the  dark  clumps  and  lines  of  bitter 
cotton-wood,  locust,  or  acacia,  poplars  and  fruit-trees,  apples,  peach- 
es, and  vines — how  lovely  they  appeared,  after  the  baldness  of  the 
prairies ! — and,  finally,  the  fields  of  long-eared  maize  and  sweet 
sorghum  strengthened  the  similarity  to  an  Asiatic  rather  than  to 
an  American  settlement.  The  differences  presently  became  as 
salient.  The  farm-houses,  with  their  stacks  and  stock,  strongly 
suggested  the  Old  Country.  Moreover,  domes  and  minarets — 
even  churches  and  steeples — were  wholly  wanting,  an  omission 
that  somewhat  surprised  me.  The  only  building  conspicuous 
from  afar  was  the  block  occupied  by  the  present  Head  of  the 
Church.  The  court-house,  with  its  tinned  Muscovian  dome,  at 
the  west  end  of  the  city ;  the  arsenal,  a  barn-like  structure,  on  a 
bench  below  the  Jebel  ISTur  of  the  valley — Ensign  Peak ;  and  a 
saw-mill,  built  beyond  the  southern  boundary,  were  the  next  in 
importance. 

On  our  way  we  passed  the  vestiges  of  an  old  moat,  from  which 
was  taken  the  earth  for  the  bulwarks  of  Zion.  A  Eomulian  wall, 
of  puddle,  mud,  clay,  and  pebbles,  six  miles — others  say  2600  acres 
— in  length,  twelve  feet  high,  six  feet  broad  at  the  base,  and  two 
and  three  quarters  at  the  top,  with  embrasures  five  to  six  feet 
above  the  ground,  and  semi-bastions  at  half  musket  range,  was 
decided,  in  1853-5-i,  to  be  necessary,  as  a  defence  against  the  La- 
manites,  whose  name  in  the  vulgar  is  Yuta  Indians.  Gentiles 
declare  that  the  bulwarks  were  erected  because  the  people  want- 
ing work  were  likely  to  "  strike"  faith,  and  that  the  amount  of 
labor  expended  upon  this  folly  would  have  irrigated  as  many 
thousand  acres.  Anti-Mormons  have,  of  course,  detected  in  the 
proceeding  treacherous  and  treasonable  intentions.  Parenthet- 
ically, I  must  here  warn  the  reader  that  in  Grreat  Salt  Lake  City 
there  are  three  distinct  opinions  concerning,  three  several  reasons 
for,  and  three  diametrically  different  accounts  of,  every  thing  that 
happens,  viz.,  that  of  the  Mormons,  which  is  invariably  one-sided; 
that  of  the  Gentiles,  which  is  sometimes  fair  and  just ;  and  that 
of  the  anti-Mormons,  which  is  always  prejudiced  and  violent.  A 
glance  will  show  that  this  much-talked-of  fortification  is  utterly 
harmless ;  it  is  commanded  in  half  a  dozen  places ;  it  could  not 

*  The  very  word  is  Spanish,  derived  from  the  Arabic  (^^\  meaning  "the 
brick  •"  it  is  known  throughout  the  West,  and  is  written  adobies,  and  prononnced  dobies. 


198  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  Ill, 

keep  out  half  a  dozen  sappers  for  a  quarter  of  an  hour ;  and  now, 
as  it  has  done  its  work,  its  foundations  are  allowed  to  become 
salt,  and  to  crumble  away. 

The  road  ran  through  the  Big  Field,  southeast  of  the  city,  six 
miles  square,  and  laid  off  in  five-acre  lots.  Presently,  passing  the 
precincts  of  habitation,  we  entered,  at  a  slapping  pace,  the  second 
ward,  called  Denmark,  from  its  tenants,  who  mostly  herd  together. 
The  disposition  of  the  settlement  is  like  that  of  the  nineteenth 
century  New-World  cities — from  Washington  to  the  future  me- 
tropolis of  the  great  Terra  Australis — a  system  of  right  angles, 
the  roads,  streets,  and  lanes,  if  they  can  be  called  so,  intersecting 
one  another.  The  advantages  or  disadvantages  of  the  rectangular 
plan  have  been  exhausted  in  argument;  the  new  style  is  best 
suited,  I  believe,  for  the  New,  as  the  old  must,  perforce,  remain 
in  the  Old  World.  The  suburbs  are  thinly  settled ;  the  mass  of 
habitations  lie  around  and  south  of  Temple  Block.  The  streets 
of  the  suburbs  are  mere  roads,  cut  by  deep  ups  and  downs,  and 
by  gutters  on  both  sides,  which,  though  full  of  pure  water,  have 
no  bridge  save  a  plank  at  the  troitoirs.  In  summer  the  thorough- 
fares are  dusty,  in  wet  weather  deep  with  viscid  mud. 

The  houses  are  almost  all  of  one  pattern — a  barn  shape,  with 
wings  and  lean-tos,  generally  facing,  sometimes  turned  endways 
to  the  street,  which  gives  a  suburban  look  to  the  settlement ;  and 
the  diminutive  casements  show  that  window-glass  is  not  yet  made 
in  the  Valley.  In  the  best  abodes  the  adobe  rests  upon  a  few 
courses  of  sandstone,  which  prevent  undermining  by  water  or 
ground-damp,  and  it  must  always  be  protected  by  a  coping  from 
the  rain  and  snow.  The  poorer  are  small,  low,  and  hut-like ;  oth- 
ers are  long  single-storied  buildings,  somewhat  like  stables,  with 
many  entrances.  The  best  houses  resemble  East  Indian  bunga- 
lows, with  flat  ropfs,  and  low,  shady  verandas,  well  trellised,  and 
supported  by  posts  or  pillars.  All  are  provided  with  chimneys,  _ 
and  substantial  doors  to  keep  out  the  piercing  cold.  The  office! 
are  always  placed,  for  hygienic  reasons,  outside ;  and  some  have 
a  story  and  a  half — the  latter  intended  for  lumber  and  other  stores. 
I  looked  in  vain  for  the  out-house  harems,  in  which  certain  ro- 
mancers concerning  things  Mormon  had  informed  me  that  wives 
are  kept,  like  any  other  stock.  I  presently  found  this  but  one  of 
a  multitude  of  delusions.  Upon  the  whole,  the  Mormon  settle- 
ment was  a  vast  improvement  upon  its  contemporaries  in  the  val- 
leys of  the  Mississippi  and  the  Missouri.        f 

The  road  through  the  faubourg  was  marked  by  posts  and  rails, 
which,  as  we  advanced  toward  the  heart  of  the  city,  were  replaced 
by  neat  palings.  The  garden-plots  were  small,  as  sweet  earth 
must  be  brought  down  from  the  mountains ;  and  the  flowers  were 
principally  those  of  the  Old  Country — the  red  French  bean,  the 
rose,  the  geranium,  and  the  single  pink;  the  ground  or  winter 
cherry  was  common;  so  were  nasturtiums;  and  we  saw  tansy,  but 


Chap.  IH.  GARDENS.— THE  HOTEL  IN  NEW  ZION.  201 

not  that  plant  for  wbicli  our  souls,  well-nigh  weary  of  hopes  of  ju- 
leps long  deferred,  chiefly  lusted — mint.  The  fields  were  large 
and  numerous,  but  the  Saints  have  too  many  and  various  occupa- 
tions to  keep  them,  Moravian-like,  neat  and  trim;  weeds  over- 
spread the  ground;  often  the  wild  sunflower-tops  outnumbered 
the  heads  of  maize.  The  fruit  had  suffered  from  an  unusually 
nipping  frost  in  May ;  the  peach-trees  were  barren ;  the  vines 
bore  no  produce ;  only  a  few  good  apples  were  in  Mr.  Brigham 
Young's  garden,  and  the  watermelons  were  poor,  yellow,  and 
tasteless,  like  the  African.  On  the  other  hand,  potatoes,  onions, 
cabbages,  and  cucumbers  were  good  and  plentiful,  the  tomato  was 
ripening  every  where,  fat  full-eared  wheat  rose  in  stacks,  and  crops 
of  excellent  hay  were  scattered  about  near  the  houses.  The  peo- 
ple came  to  their  doors  to  see  the  mail-coach,  as  if  it  were  the 
"Derby  dilly"  of  old,  go  by.  I  could  not  but  be  struck  by  the 
modified  English  appearance  of  the  colony,  and  by  the  prodigious 
numbers  of  the  white-headed  children. 

Presently  we  debouched  upon  the  main  thoroughfare,  the  centre 
of  population  and  business,  where  the  houses  of  the  principal 
Mormon  dignitaries  and  the  stores  of  the  Gentile  merchants  com- 
bine to  form  the  city's  only  street  which  can  be  properly  so  call- 
ed. It  is,  indeed,  both  street  and  market,  for,  curious  to  say.  New 
Zion  has  not  yet  built  for  herself  a  bazar  or  market-place.  Near- 
ly opposite  the  Post-office,  in  a  block  on  the  eastern  side,  with  a 
long  veranda,  supported  by  trimmed  and  painted  posts,  was  a  two- 
storied,  pent-roofed  building,  whose  sign-board,  swinging  to  a  tall, 
gibbet-like  flag-staff,  dressed  for  the  occasion,  announced  it  to  be 
the  Salt  Lake  House,  the  principal,  if  not  the  only  establisfiment 
of  the  kind  in  New  Zion.  In  the  Far  West,  one  learns  not  to  ex- 
pect much  of  the  hostelry  ;*  I  had  not  seen  aught  so  grand  for 
many  a  day.  Its  depth  is  greater  than  its  frontage,  and  behind 
it,  secured  by  a  porte  cochere,  is  a  large  yard  for  corraling  cattle. 
A  rough-looking  crowd  of  drivers,  drivers'  friends,  and  idlers,  al- 
most every  man  openly  armed  with  revolver  and  bowie-knife, 
gathered  round  the  doorway  to  greet  Jim,  and  "prospect"  the 
"new  lot;"  and  the  host  came  out  to  assist  us  in  transporting  our 
scattered  effects.  We  looked  vainly  for  a  bar  on  the  ground 
floor ;  a  bureau  for  registering  names  was  there,  but  (temperance, 
in  public  at  least,  being  the  order  of  the  day)  the  usual  tempting 
array  of  bottles  and  decanters  was  not  forthcoming ;  up  stairs  we 
found  a  Gentile  ballroom,  a  tolerably  furnished  sitting-room,  and 
bedchambers,  apparently  made  out  of  a  single  apartment  by  par- 
titions too  thin  to  be  strictly  agreeable.  The  household  had  its 
deficiencies;  blacking,  for  instance,  had  run  out,  and  servants 

*  I  subjoin  one  of  the  promising  sort  of  advertisements : 

"Tom  Mitchell ! ! !  dispenses  comfort  to  the  weary  (!),  feeds  the  hungry  (! !),  and 
cheers  the  gloomy  (!!!),  at  his  old,  well-known  stand,  thirteen  miles  east  of  Fort  Des 
Moines.     Don't  pass  by  me." 


202  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  HI. 

could  not  be  engaged  till  the  expected  arrival  of  the  hand-cart 
train.  However,  the  proprietor,  Mr.  Townsend,  a  Mormon,  from 
the  State  of  Maine — when  expelled  from  Nauvoo,  he  had  parted 
with  land,  house,  and  furniture  for  $50 — who  had  married  an  En- 
glishwoman, was  in  the  highest  degree  civil  and  obliging,  and  he 
attended  personally  to  our  wants,  offered  his  wife's  services  to  Mrs. 
Dana,  and  put  us  all  in  the  best  of  humors,  despite  the  closeness 
of  the  atmosphere,  the  sadness  ever  attending  one's  first  entrance 
into  a  new  place,  the  swarms  of  "  emigration  flies" — so  called  be- 
cause they  appear  in  September  with  the  emigrants,  and,  after  liv- 
ing for  a  month,  die  off  with  the  first  snow — and  a  certain  popu- 
lousness  of  bedstead,  concerning  which  the  less  said  the  better. 
Such,  gentle  reader,  are  the  results  of  my  first  glance  at  Zion  on 
the  tops  of  the  mountains,  in  the  Holy  City  of  the  Far  West. 

Our  journey  had  occupied  nineteen  days,  from  the  7th  to  the 
25th  of  August,  both  included ;  and  in  that  time  we  had  accom- 
plished not  less  than  1136  statute  miles. 


Chap.  IV.  BIBLIOLOGY.  203 


CHAPTER  IV. 

First  Week  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City.  ^-Preliminaries. 

Before  entering  upon  the  subject  of  the  Mormons  I  would 
fain  oli'er  to  the  reader  a  few  words  of  warning.  During  my 
twenty -four  days  at  head-quarters,  ample  opportunities  of  surface 
observation  were  afforded  me.  I  saw,  as  will  presently  appear, 
specimens  of  every  class,  from  the  Head  of  the  Church  down  to 
the  field-hand,  and,  being  a  stranger  in  the  land,  could  ask  ques- 
tions and  receive  replies  upon  subjects  which  would  have  been 
forbidden  to  an  American  of  the  States,  more  especially  to  an  of- 
ficial. But  there  is  in  Mormondom,  as  in  all  other  exclusive 
faiths,  whether  Jewish,  Hindoo,  or  other,  an  inner  life  into  which 
I  can  not  flatter  myself  or  HRf^p.ive.  the-re^der  with  the  idea  of  my 
having  penetraigd.  At  the  same  time,  it  is  only  fair  to  state  that 
no  Gentile,  even  the  unpuej udiced,  who  are  rarce  aves,  however 
long  he  may  live  or  intimately  he  may  be  connected  with  Mor- 
mons, can  expect  to  see  any  thing  but  the  superficies.  The  writ- 
ings of  the  Faithful  are  necessarily  wholly  presumed.  Aiidj_fiual- 
ly,  the  accounts  of  Life  in  the  City  of  the  Saints  publishecl  by  anti- 
TMKjTmons  and  fl.postn,tfis  af^7veTfofnous"and,_j^  their  Sfinous.  dis;:, 
c^pancies  prove,  thoroughly  untrustworthy.  1  may  therefore 
stm  hope,  by  recounting  honestly  and  truthfully  as  lies  in  my 
power  what  I  heard,  and  felt,  and  saw,  and  by  allowing  readers  to 
draw  their  own  conclusions,  to  take  new  ground. 

The  Mormons  have  been  represented,  and  are  generally  believed 
to  be,  an  intolerant  race;  I  found  the  re  versa,  far  nearer  4he  fact. 
The  best  proof  of  this  is  that  there  is  hardly  one^  anti-Mormon 
publication,  however  untruthful,  vioientor_^cancIaTous,  which  I 
did  not  "findl^n  U-feat~SaTri7ake  'Crty.^~The  extent  oFtTie  suB- 

*  A  list  of  works  published  upon  the  subject  of  Mormonism  may  not  be  uninter- 
esting. They  admit  of  a  triple  division — the  Gentile,  the  anti-Mormon,  and  the  Mor- 
mon. 

Of  the  Gentiles,  by  which  I  understand  the  comparatively  unprejudiced  observer, 
the  principal  are, 

1.  The  Exploration  and  Survey  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake  by  Captain  Stansbury,  who 
followed  up  Colonel  Fre'mont's  flyinp  survey  in  1849,  or  two  years  before  the  Mor- 
mons had  settled  in  the  basin,  and  found  the  young  colony  about  2 — 3  years  old. 
Anti-Mormons  find  fault  with  Captain  Stansbury  for  expending  upon  their  adversa- 
ries too  much  of  the  milk  of  human  kindness. 

2.  The  Mormons  or  Latter-Day  Saints,  by  Lieutenant  J.  W.  Gunnison,  of  the  U. 
S.  Topographical  Engineers.  This  officer  was  second  in  command  of  the  exploration 
under  Captain  Stansbury,  and  has  recorded,  in  unpretending  style  and  with  great  im- 
partiality, his  opinions  concerning  the  "rise  and  progress,  peculiar  doctrines,  personal 
conditions  and  prospects"  of  the  Mormons,  "derived  from  personal  observation."  Like 
his  commanding  officer,  Lieutenant  Gunnison  is  accused  of  having  favored  the  New 


204  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IV. 

joined  bibliographical  list  would  deter  me  from  a  theme  so  used 
up  by  friend  and  foe,  were  it  not  for  these  considerations.     In  the 

Faith,  and  yet,  with  all  the  inconsistency  of  the  odium  theologicum,  the  Faithful  are 
charfjed  with  his  subsequent  murder ;  the  only  motive  of  the  foul  deed  being  that 
the  Saints  dreaded  future  disclosures,  and  were  determined,  though  one  of  their 
number  had  been  sent  to  accompany  Captain  Stansbury  as  assistant,  to  prevent  other 
expeditions.  Upon  Lieutenant  Gunnison's  volume  is  founded  "  Les  Mormons"  of  M. 
iltourncau,  first  printed  in  the  "rrcsse,"and  afterward  republished,  Paris,  1866. 

3.  The  Mormons ;  a  Discourse  delivered  before  the  Historical  Society  of  Pennsyl- 
vania, March  2Gth,  1850,  by  Colonel  T.  L.  Kane  (U.  S.  Militia)  :  this  gentleman,  an 
eye-witness,  who  has  touchingly,  and,  I  believe,  truthfully  related  the  details  of  the 
Nauvoo  Exodus,  is  called  by  anti-Mormons  an  "apologist,"  and  is  suspected  of  be- 
ing a  Latter-Day  Saint — baptized  under  the  name  of  Dr.  Osborne — in  Christian  dis- 
guise. Arrived  at  Fort  Bridgcr  in  1857,  he  found  assembled  there  the  three  heads 
of  departments.  Governor  Gumming,  Chief  Justice  Eceles,  and  General  Johnston. 
According  to  the  Saints,  he  was  watched,  spied,  treated  as  a  Mormon  emissary,  and 
nearly  shot  by  a  mistake  made  on  purpose ;  he  was,  however,  supported  by  the  gov- 
ernor against  the  general,  and  the  result  was  a  coolness  most  favorable  to  the  New 
Faith.  Colonel  Kane  is  said  to  have  preserved  an  affectionate  and  respectful  re- 
membrance of  his  friends  the  Mormons. 

4.  History  of  the  Mormons,  by  Messrs.  Chambers,  Edinburgh. 

5.  An  Excursion  to  California,  over  the  Prairies,  Kocky  Mountains,  and  Great  Sier- 
ra Nevada,  by  W.  Kelly,  Esq.,  J.  P.  Mr.  Kelly,  whose  work  shared  at  the  time  of 
its  appearance  the  interest  and  admiration  of  the  public  with  Messrs.  Hue  and  Ga- 
bet's  Travels  in  Tartary,  Tibet,  and  the  Chinese  Empire,  visited  Great  Salt  Lake  City 
in  1849,  an  important  epoch  in  the  annals  of  the  infant  colony,  and  leaves  the  reader 
only  to  regret  that  he  devoted  so  little  of  his  time  and  of  his  two  volumes  to  the  his- 
tory of  the  Saints. 

6.  The  Mormons  or  Latter-Day  Saints,  with  Memoirs  of  the  Life  of  Joseph  Smith, 
the  American  Mahomet.  Office  of  the  National  Illustrated  Library,  198  Strand, 
London.  This  little  compilation,  dealing  with  facts  rather  than  theories,  borrows 
from  the  polemics  of  both  parties,  and  displays  the  calmness  of  judgment  which  re- 
sults from  studying  the  subject  at  a  distance ;  though  Gentile,  it  is  somewhat  in  fa- 
vor with  Mormons  because  it  shows  some  desire  to  speak  the  truth.  This  solid  merit 
has  won  it  the  honor  of  an  abridged  translation  with  the  title  "Les  Mormons" (292 
pages  in  12mo,  Messrs.  Hachette,  Paris,  1854),  by  M.  Ame'dee  Pichot,  and  a  brilliant 
review  by  M.  Prosper  Merimee  in  the  "Moniteur,"  and  reprinted  in  "Les  Melanges 
Ilistoriques  et  Littcraires"  (p.  1-58,  Michel  Levy,  1855). 

7.  A  Visit  to  Salt  Lake,  and  a  Residence  in  the  Mormon  Settlements  at  Utah,  by 
William  Chandless.  London  :  Smith,  Elder,  and  Co.,  1857.  Mr.  Chandless,  about 
the  middle  of  July,  1855,  crossed  the  prairies  in  the  character  of  a  "teamster  for  pay," 
spent  the  end  of  the  year  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  and  thence  traveled  via  Fillmore 
and  San  Bernardino  to  California.  The  book  is  exceedingly  lively  and  picturesque, 
combining  pleasant  reading  with  just  observation,  impartiality,  and  good  sense. 

8.  Voyage  au  Pays  des  Mormons,  par  Jules  Remy  (2  vols.,  E.  Dentu,  Paris,  1860). 
The  author,  accomjjanied  by  Mr.  Brenchley,  M.A.,  traveled  in  July  and  the  autumn 
of  1855  from  San  Francisco  along  the  line  of  the  Carson  and  Humboldt  Rivers  to 
Great  Salt  Lake  City,  and  returned,  like  Mr.  Chandless,  by  the  southern  road.  The 
two  volumes  are  more  valuable  for  the  observations  on  the  natural  history  of  the  lit- 
tle-known basin,  than  for  the  generalisms,  more  or  less  sound,  with  which  the  subject 
of  the  New  Faith  is  discussed. 

Not  a  few  anomalies  appear  in  the  judgments  passed  by  M.  Remy  upon  the  Saints : 
while  in  some  places  they  are  represented  as  fervent  and  full  of  faith,  we  also  read : 
"Le  Mormonisme  n'a  pas  caractcre  de  spontane'ite  des  religions  primitives,  ce  qui  va, 
du  reste,  de  soi,  ni  la  naivete  des  religions  qui  suivirent,  ni  la  since'rite  des  revelations 
ou  des  reformes  rcligicuses  qui,  durant  les  siecles  dcrniers,  ont  pris  place  dans  I'his- 
toire ;"  and  while  Mr.  Joseph  Smith  is  in  parts  tenderly  treated,  he  is  ruthlessly  char- 
acterized in  p.  24  as  un  fourbe  et  vn  iwposteur,  a  "savage  and  gigantic  TartufFe."  An 
excellent  English  translation  of  this  work  has  lately  appeared,  under  the  auspices  of 
Mr.  Jeffs,  Burlington  Arcade,  but  an  account  of  Great  Salt  Lake  City  in  1855  is  as 
archaeological  as  a  study  of  London  life  in  A.D.  1800. 


Chap.  IV.  BIBLIOLOGY.  205 

first  place,  I  have  found,  since  my  return  to  England,  a  prodigious 
general  ignorance  of  the  "Mormon  rule;"  the  mass  of  the  public 
has  heard  of  the  Saints,  but  even  well-educated  men  hold  theirs 

9.  Incidents  of  Travel  and  Adventure  in  the  Far  West,  by  M.  Carvalho,  who  ac- 
companied Colonel  Fremont  in  his  last  exploration.  According  to  anti-Mormons, 
the  account  of  the  Saints  is  far  too  favorable  (1856). 

10.  Geological  Survey  of  the  Territory  of  Utah,  by  H.  Englemann.  "Washington, 
1860. 

The  principal  anti-Mormon  works  are  the  following,  ranged  in  the  order  of  their 
respective  dates.     The  Cons,  it  will  be  observed,  more  than  treble  the  Pros. 

1.  A  brief  History  of  the  Church  of  Christ  of  Latter-Day  Saints  (commonly  called 
Mormons),  including  an  Account  of  their  Doctrine  and  Discipline,  with  the  reason 
of  the  Author  for  leaving  the  said  Church,  by  John  Corrill,  a  member  of  the  Leg- 
islature of  Missouri  (50  pages,  8vo,  St.  Louis,  1839).  I  know  nothing  beyond  the 
name  of  this  little  work,  or  of  the  nine  following. 

2.  Addresses  on  Mormonism,  by  the  Rev.  Hays  Douglas  (Isle  of  Man,  1839). 

3.  Mormonism  weighed  in  the  Balances  of  the  Sanctuary  and  found  Wanting,  by 
Samuel  Haining  (66  pages,  Douglas,  Isle  of  Man,  1839). 

4.  The  Latter-Day  Saints  and  Book  of  Mormon.     By  W.  J.  Morrish,  Ledbury. 

5.  An  Exposure  of  the  Errors  and  Fallacies  of  the  Self-named  Latter-Day  Saints. 
By  W.  Hewitt,  Staffbrdshure. 

6.  Tract  on  Mormonism.     By  Capt.  D.  L.  St.  Clair.     (1840.) 

7.  Mormonism  Unveiled.     By  E.  D.  Howe.     (1841.) 

8.  Mormonism  Exposed.     By  the  Rev.  L.  Sunderland.     (1841.) 

9.  Mormonism  Portrayed ;  its  Errors  and  Absurdities  Exposed,  and  the  Spirit  and 
Designs  of  its  Author  made  Manifest.  By  W.  Harris  (64  pages,  Warsaw,  Illinois, 
1841). 

10.  Mormonism  in  all  Ages ;  or,  the  Rise,  Progress,  and  Causes  of  IMormonism  ; 
wixh  the  Biography  of  its  Author  and  Founder,  Joseph  Smith,  junior.  By  Professor 
J.  B.  Turner,  Illinois  College,  Jacksonville.     (304  pages,  12mo,  New  York,  1842.) 

11.  Gleanings  by  the  Way.  By  the  Rev.  John  A.  Clark,  D.D.  (352  pages  in  12mo, 
Philadelphia,  1842),  Minister  at  "PalmjTa  in  New  York  at  the  time  when  the  New 
Faith  arose. 

12.  The  History  of  the  Saints,  or  an  Expose  of  Joe  Smith  and  Mormonism.  By 
John  C.  Bennett  (344  pages,  12mo,  Boston,  1842).  This  is  the  work  of  a  celebrated 
apostate,  who  for  a  season  took  a  prominent  propagandist  part  in  the  political  history 
of  Mormondom.  Defeated  in  his  hopes  of  dominion,  he  has  revenged  himself  by  a 
volume  whose  title  declares  the  character  of  its  contents,  and  which  wants  nothing 
but  the  confidence  of  the  reader  to  be  highly  interesting.  The  Mormons  speak  of 
him  as  the  Musaylimat  el  Kazzab — Musaylimat  the  Liar,  who  tried,  and  failed  to 
enter  into  partnership  with  Mohammed — of  their  religion. 

The  four  following  works  were  written  by  the  Rev.  Henry  Caswall,  a  violent  anti- 
Mormon,  who  solemnly  and  apparently  honestly  believes  all  the  calumnies  against 
the  "worthless  family"  of  the  Prophet ;  unhesitatingly  adopts  the  Solomon  Spaulding 
story,  discovers  in  Mormon  Scripture  as  many  "anachronisms,  contradictions,  and 
grammatical  errors"  as  ever  Celsus  and  Porphyry  detected  in  the  writings  of  the  ear- 
ly Christians,  and  designates  the  faith  in  which  hundreds  of  thousands  live  and  die 
as  a  "  delusion  in  some  respects  worse  than  paganism,  and  a  system  destined  perhaps 
to  act  like  Mohammedanism  (!)  as  a  scoixrge  upon  corrupted  Christianity"  (sub.  the 
American  ?).  The  Mormons  speak  of  this  gentleman  as  of  a  19th  century  Torque- 
mada :  he  appears  by  his  own  evidence  to  have  combined  with  the  heart  of  the  great 

inquLsitor  some  of  the  head  qualities  of  Mr.  Coroner  W when  insisting  upon  the 

unhappy  Fire-king's  swallowing  his  (Mr.  W.'s)  prussic  acid  instead  of  the  pseudo- 
poison  provided  for  the  edification  of  the  public.  Mr.  Caswall  went  to  Nauvoo  hold- 
ing in  his  hand  an  ancient  MS.  of  the  Greek  Psalter,  and  completely,  according  to 
his  account,  puzzled  the  Prophet,  who  decided  it  to  be  "  reformed  Egyptian."  More- 
over, he  convicted  of  falsehood  the  "wretched  old  creature,"  viz.,  the  maternal  pa- 
rent of  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  called  a  mother  in  Israel,  looked  upon  as  one  of  the  holiest 
of  women,  and  who,  at  any  rate,  was  a  good  and  kind-hearted  mother,  that  could 
not  be  reproached,  like  Luther's,  with  "chastising  her  son  so  severely  about  a  nut 
that  the  blood  came."    It  is  no  light  proof  of  Mormon  tolerance  that  so  truculent  a 


206  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IV. 

to  be  a  kind  of  socialistic  or  communist  concern,  where,  as  in  the 
"world  to  come,  there  is  no  marrying  nor  giving  in  marriage. 

divine  and  opponent /jar  voie  defait  should  have  been  allowed  to  depart  from  among 
a  people  whom  he  luid  offended  and  insulted  without  loss  of  liberty  or  life. 

13.  The  City  of  the  Mormons,  or  three  Days  in  Nauvoo  in  1842  (87  pages,  Messrs. 
Rivingtons,  London,  184:3). 

14.  The  Prophet  of  the  19th  Century;  or,  the  Rise,  Progress,  and  Present  State 
of  the  Mormons  (277  pages,  8vo,  published  by  the  same,  London,  1843). 

15.  Joseph  Smith  and  the  Mormons.  Chapter  xiii.  of  America  and  the  Ameri- 
can Church  (John  and  Charles  Mozley,  Paternoster  Row,  London,  1851). 

16.  Mormonism  and  its  Author;  or,  a  Statement  of  the  Doctrines  of  the  Latter- 
Day  Saints.     London :  Tract  Society,  No.  86G  (10  pages,  1858). 

17.  Narrative  of  some  of  the  Proceedings  of  the  Mormons,  giving  an  Account  of 
their  Iniquities,  with  Particulars  concerning  the  Training  of  the  Indians  by  them ; 
Descriptions  of  their  Mode  of  Endowment,  Plurality  of  Wives,  &c.  By  Catharine 
Lewis  Lynn  (24  pages,  8vo,  1848).  As  will  presently  appear,  when  the  fair  sex  en- 
ters upon  the  subject  of  polygamy,  it  apparently  loses  all  self-control,  not  to  say  its 
senses. 

18.  Friendly  Warnings  on  the  Subject  of  Mormonism.  By  a  Country  Clergyman 
(London,  1850). 

19.  The  Mormon  Imposture:  an  Exposure  of  the  Fraudulent  Origin  of  the  Book 
of  Mormon  (8vo,  Newbury,  London,  18.51). 

20.  Mormonism  Exposed.     By  Mr.  Bowes.     (1851.) 

21.  Mormonism  or  the  Bible;  a  Question  for  the  Times.  By  a  Cambridge  Cler- 
gj'man  (12qio,  Cambridge  and  London,  1852).  According  to  Mormon  view,  the 
title  should  have  been  Mormonism  and  the  Bible. 

22.  History  of  Illinois.  By  Governor  Ford  (Chicago,  1854).  The  author  was  a 
determined  opponent  of  the  New  Faith,  and  gives  his  own  version  of  the  massacres 
at  Carthage  and  Nauvoo  :  it  is  valuable  only  on  the  venerable  principle  "audi  alte- 
ram partem." 

23.  Mormonism.  By  J.  W.  Conybeare,  first  printed  in  the  "Edinburgh  Review" 
(No.  ccii.,  April,  1854,  and  reprinted  in  112  pages,  12mo,  by  Messrs.  Longman,  Lon- 
don, 1854). 

24.  Utah  and  the  Mormons ;  the  History,  Government,  Doctrines,  Customs,  and 
Prospects  of  the  Latter-Day  Saints,  from  Personal  Observations  during  a  Six-months' 
Residence  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City.  By  Benjamin  G.  Ferris,  late  Secretary  of  Utah 
Territory  (347  pages,  12mo,  Messrs.  Harper,  New  York,  1854).  The  author  being 
married,  appears  to  have  lived  among  them  to  as  little  purpose — for  observatian — as 
possible.  Every  thing  is  considered  from  an  anti-Mormon  point  of  view,  and  some 
of  the  accusations  against  the  Saints,  as  in  the  case  of  the  Eldridges  and  the  How- 
ards, I  know  to  be  not  founded  on  fact.  The  calmness  of  the  work,  upon  a  highly 
exciting  subject,  contrasts  curiously  with  the  feminine  violence — the  natural  result 
of  contemplating  polygamy — of  another  that  issued  under  the  same  name. 

25.  Mormonism  Unveiled ;  or,  a  History  of  Mormonism  to  the  Present  Time  (235 
pages,  8vo,  London,  1 855). 

26.  Mormonism  Examined :  a  few  Kind  Words  to  a  Mormon  (Svo,  Bu-mingham, 
1855). 

27.  Female  Life  among  the  Mormons,  published  anonymously  for  the  demand  of 
the  New  York  market,  and  especially  intended  for  the  followers  of  Miss  Lucy  Stone 
and  of  the  Rev.  Miss  Antoinette  Brown,  but  known  to  be  by  Mrs.  Maria  Ward,  who 
subsequently  edited  another  work.  The  authoress,  who  professes  to  have  escaped 
from  the  Mormons,  was  manifestly  never  among  them.  This  "tissu  de  mensonges 
et  de  calomnies, "  as  M.  Remy  somewhat  ungallantly,  but  very  truthfully  styles  it, 
has  had  extensive  currency.  M.  Re'voil  has  given  a  free  translation  of  it,  under  the 
name  of  "Les  Harems  du  Nouveau  Monde"  (308  pages,  Paris,  1856).  Its  success 
was  such  that  its  writercss  was  in  1858  induced  to  repeat  the  experiment. 

28.  The  Mormons  at  Home ;  in  a  Series  of  Letters,  by  Mrs.  Ferris,  wife  of  the 
late  United  States  Secretary  for  Utah  Territoiy  (Dix  and  Edwards,  Broadway,  New 
York,  1856).  The  reasons  for  this  lady's  rabid  hate  may  be  found  in  polygamy, 
which  is  calculated  to  astound,  perplex,  and  enrage  fair  woman  in  America  even 
more  than  her  strong-opinioned  English  sister,  and  in  the  somewhat  contemptuous 


Chap.  IV.  BIBLIOLOGY.  207 

Even  where  this  is  not  the  case,  the  reader  of  travels  will  not 
dislike  to  peruse  something  more  of  a  theme  with  which  he  is  al- 

estimation  of  a  sex — which  is  early  taught  and  soon  learns  to  consider  itself  crea- 
tion's cream — conveyed  in  these  words  of  Mr.  Brigham  Young:  "If  I  did  not  con- 
sider myself  competent  to  transact  business  without  asking  my  wife,  or  any  other 
woman's  counsel,  I  think  I  ought  to  let  that  business  alone." 

Accordingly,  Mrs.  Ferris  finds  herself  in  the  hands  and  of  a  "society  of  fanatics, '' 
controlled  by  a  "gang  of  licentious  villains" — an  impleasant  predicament  pour  cette 
vertu — in  fact,  for  virtue  at  any  time  of  life — characterizes  the  land  as  a  "Botany 
Bay"  for  society  in  general,  and  a  "  region  of  moral  pestilence ;"  and  while  she  lav- 
ishes the  treasures  of  her  pity  upon  the  "poor,  poor  wife,"  holds  her  spiritual  rival 
to  be  tout  bonncment  a  "concubine,"  and  consigns  the  wretches  assembled  here  (sell. 
in  Zion  on  the  tops  of  the  Mountains)  to  the  "very  hottest  part  of  the  infernal  tor- 
rid zone."    Tantasne  animis  ccelestibus  irte? 

The  Mormons  declare  that  they  incurred  this  funny  amount  of  feminine  WTath 
and  suffered  from  its  consequent  pin-pricks  by  their  not  taking  sufficient  interest  in, 
or  notice  of  the  writer,  especially  by  the  fact  that  on  one  occasion — it  is  made  much 
of  in  the  book — some  rude  men  actually  did  walk  over  a  bridge  before  her.  But  com- 
ing direct  from  the  land  of  woman's  rights'  associations,  lecturesses  on  propagand- 
ism  and  voluntary  celibatarians,  whose  "mission"  it  is  to  reform,  purify,  and  exalt 
the  age,  especially  our  wicked  selves,  what  else  could  be  expected  of  outraged  deli- 
cacy and  self-esteem  ?  Not  being  ' '  vivisectors, "  we  can  not,  however,  quite  join  with 
Mrs.  Ferris  in  the  complacency  with  which  she  relates  her  "probing  the  hearts"  of 
her  Mormon  guests  and  visitors  "  with  ruthless  questions"  about  their  domestic  af- 
fairs ;  and  we  remark  with  pleasure  that  in  more  than  one  place  she  has  most  un- 
willingly confessed  the  kindness  and  civility  of  the  Latter-Day  Saints. 

29.  Adventures  among  the  Mormons,  by  Elder  Hawthomthwaite,  an  Apostate 
Mission  aiy.     (1857.) 

30.  The  Mormons,  the  Dream  and  the  Reality;  or,  Leaves  from  the  Sketch- 
book of  Experience.     Edited  by  a  Clergyman.     W.  B.  F.  (8vo,  London,  1857). 

31.  The  Husband  in  Utah;  or.  Sights  and  Scenes  among  the  Mormons.  By  Aus- 
tin N.  Ward.  Edited  by  Mrs.  Maria  Ward,  Author  of  "Female  Life  among  the 
Mormons"  (212  pages,  8vo,  Dei-by  and  Jackson,  Nassau  Street,  New  York,  1857). 
It  is  regretable  that  a  respectable  publisher  should  lend  his  name  to  a  volume  like 
this.  The  authoress  professes  to  edit  the  MS.  left  by  a  nephew  of  her  husband,  who 
lived  among  the  Mormons  en  route  to  California,  went  on  to  the  gold  regions  and 
died.  I  can  not  but  characterize  it  as  a  pure  invention.  The  writer  who  describes 
markets  where  not  one  ever  existed,  and  "the  tall  spires  of  the  Mormon  temples 
glittering  in  the  rich  sunlight"  (p.  15),  there  being  no  spires  and  no  temples  at  Utah, 
can  hardly  expect  to  be  believed,  even  when,  with  all  the  eloquence  of  Mr.  Potts,  of 
the  " Eatanswill  Gazette,"  she  dwells  upon  the  "fanaticism  and  diabolism  that  ever 
attends  (?)  the  hideous  and  slimy  course  of  Mormonism  in  its  progress  over  the 
world."  The  imposture,  too,  is  not  "white;"  it  is  premeditatedly  mischievous.  Al- 
though Brother  Underwood  is  a  fancy  personage.  Miss  Eliza  R.  Snow,  with  whose 
name  improper  liberties  are  taken,  is  no  myth,  but  a  well  educated  and  highly  re- 
spectable reality. 

32.  Fifteen  Years  among  the  Mormons,  being  the  Narrative  of  Mrs.  Mary  Ettie 
V.  Smith,  late  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  a  Sister  of  one  of  the  Mormon  High- 
Priests,  she  having  been  personally  acquainted  with  most  of  the  Mormon  leaders, 
and  long  in  the  confidence  of  the  Prophet  Brigham  Y'oung.  By  Nelson  Winch 
Green.  (Charles  Scribner,  Broadway,  New  York,  1858,  and  unhappily  republished 
by  Messrs.  Routledge,  London.)  This  work,  whose  exceedingly  clap-trap  title  is  a 
key  to  the  "popular"  nature  of  the  contents,  \s,par  excelknce,  the  most  oflfensive  pub- 
lication of  the  kind,  and  bears  within  it  marks  of  an  exceeding  untruthfulness.  The 
human  sacrifices  and  the  abominable  rites  performed  in  the  Endowment  House  are 
reproductions  of  the  accounts  of  hidden  orgies  in  the  Nauvoo  Temple,  invented  and 
promulgated  by  Mr.  Bowes.  The  last  words  placed  in  the  mouth  of  Mr.  Joseph 
Smith,  "My  God!  my  God!  have  mercy  upon  us,  if  there  is  a  God!" — a  palpable 

plagiarism  from  Lord  P 's  will — may  be  a  pious  fraud  to  warn  stray  lambs  from 

the  fold  of  Mormonism,  but  as  a  history  shows,  it  is  wholly  destitute  of  fact.  The 
murder  in  Mr.  Jones',  the  butcher's  house,  so  circumstantially  related,  never  took 


208  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IV. 

ready  perhaps  familiar ;  for  in  this  department  of  literature,  as  in 
history  and  biography,  the  more  we  know  of  a  subject,  the  more 

place.  Colonel  Bridger,  who  is  killed  off  by  the  Danites  at  the  end  of  the  book,  still 
lives ;  and  a  dream  (ch.  xxxviii.)  seems  to  be  the  only  proof  of  Lieutenant  Gunnison 
having  been  slaughtered  by  the  Latter-Day  Saints,  not,  as  is  generally  supposed,  by 
the  Indians.  "Milking  the  Gentiles,"  coining  "Bogus-money,"  "whistling  and 
whittling"  anti-Mormons  out  of  the  town,  the  dangers  of  competition  in  love-matters 
with  an  apostle,  and  the  imminent  peril  of  being  scalped  by  white  Indians,  are  stock 
accusations  copied  from  book  to  book,  and  rendered  somewhat  harmless  by  want  of 
novelty.  But  nothing  will  excuse  the  reckless  accusations  with  which  Mrs.  Smith 
takes  away  the  characters  of  her  Mormon  sisters,  and  the  abominations  with  which 
she  charges  the  wives  of  the  highest  dignitaries.  Among  those  thus  foully  defamed 
is  Miss  Snow,  who  also  ajjpears  as  a  leading  actress  in  IMrs.  Ward's  fiction.  The 
"poetess  of  the  Mormons,"  now  married  to  the  Prophet,  has  ever  led  a  life  of  excep- 
tional asceticism — cold  in  fact  as  her  name.  The  Latter-Day  Saints  retort  upon 
Mrs.  Smith,  of  course,  in  kind,  quoting  Chaucer  (but  whether  truthfully  or  not  I  can 
not  say) : 

"  A  woman  she  was  the  most  discrete  alive, 
Uusbandea  at  chirchc-dore  had  she  had  five." 

33.  Mormonism ;  its  Leaders  and  Designs,  by  John  Hyde,  Jun.,  formerly  a  Mor- 
mon Elder,  and  resident  of  Great  Salt  Lake  City.  (385  pages,  8vo,  W.  P.  Fetridge 
&  Co.,  Broadway,  New  York,  1857.)  This  is  the  work  of  an  apostate  Mormon,  now 
preaching,  I  believe,  Swedenborgianism  in  England :  it  has  some  pretensions  to  learn- 
ing, and  it  attacks  the  Mormons  upon  all  their  strongest  grounds.  It  is  also  satis- 
factory to  see  that  in  the  circumstantial  description  of  the  mysteries  of  the  Endow- 
ment House,  Mrs.  Smith  and  Mr.  Hyde,  whose  account  has  apparently  been  borrow- 
ed by  M.  Remy,  disagree,  thus  justifying  us  in  doubting  both ;  and  it  is  curious  to 
remark,  that  while  the  lady  leans  to  the  erotic,  the  gentleman  dwells  upon  the  trea- 
sonous and  mutinous  tendency  of  the  ceremony.  According  to  Mr.  Hyde,  he  left 
the  Mormons  from  conscientious  motives.  The  Mormons,  who,  however,  never  fail 
thoroughly  to  denigrate  the  character  of  an  enemy,  especially  of  an  apostate,  declare 
that  the  author,  wlien  a  missionary  at  Havre  de  Grace,  proved  useless,  always  shirk- 
ing his  duty  ;  and  that,  since  dismissal  from  the  ministry,  he  has  left  a  wife  unpro- 
vided for  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City. 

The  now  almost  forgotten  polemical  and  anti-Mormon  works  are, 

M.  Favez.     Fragments  sur  J.  Smith  et  les  Mormons.     A  methodistical  brochure. 

Mr.  Gray.     Principles  and  Practices  of  Mormons. 

M.  Guers.     L'Irvingisme  et  le  Mormonisme  juges  par  la  parole  de  Dieu. 

Dr.  Hurlburt's  Mormonism  Unveiled.  This  work  first  set  on  foot  the  story  of 
"Solomon  Spaulding"  having  composed  the  Book  of  JMormon,  concerning  which 
more  anon. 

Mormonism  a  Delusion.    By  the  Rev.  E.  B.  Chalmers. 

Mormonism  Unmasked.     By  R.  Clarke. 

Mormonism,  its  History,  Doctrine,  etc.     By  the  Rev.  S.  Simpson. 

Mormonism  an  Imposture.     By  P.  Drummond. 

The  Latter-Day  Saints  and  their  Spiritual  Views.     By  H.  S.  J. 

Tracts  on  Mormonism.     A  brochure  by  the  Rev.  Edmund  Clay. 
,  A  Country  Clergyman's  Warning  to  his  Parishioners.     (Wertheim  &  M'Intosh, 
London.) 

The  Materialism  of  the  Mormons,  or  Latter-Day  Saints,  Examined  and  Exposed. 
By  S.  W.  P.  Taylder. 

The  Book  of  Mormon  Examined,  and  its  Claims  to  be  a  Revelation  from  God 
proved  to  be  False.     (12mo,  Anonymous.) 

The  principal  notices  of  Mormonism  in  periodical  literature  are, 

Archives  du  Chi-istianisme :  articles  de  MM.  Age'nor  de  Gasparin  et  Monod  sur 
le  Mormonisme.  Nos.  of  the  Uth  of  December,  1852,  and  14th  of  May,  1853,  quoted 
in  the  "Bibliographic  Universelle"  of  MM.  Ferdinand  Denis,  Pinion  et  De  Nar- 
bonne,  under  the  article  "Utah." 

Sectes  religieuses  au  xix"'»  siecle ;  Les  In'ingiens  et  les  Saints  du  Dernier  Jour, 
par  M.  Alfred  Maury.  Revue  des  Deux-Mondes.  Vol.  iii.  of  the  23d  year  (A.D. 
1853),  1st  of  September,  pages  961-995. 


Chap.  IV.  BIBLIOLOGY.  209 

we  want  to  know.     Moreover,  since  1857,  no  book  of  general  in- 
terest has  appeared,  and  the  Mormons  arc  a  progressive  people. 

History  and  Ideas  of  the  Mormons.  "  Westminster  Review,"  vol.  iii.,  pages  196- 
230.     (1853.) 

Le  Mormonisme  et  sa  valeur  morale — La  Societe  et  la  Vie  des  Mormons,  by  M. 
iSmile  Montc'gut,  "Revue  des  Deux-Mondes,"  vol.  i.  of  the  26th  year,  pages  689-725, 
lath  of  February,  1856. 

Visite  aux  Mormons  du  Lac  Sale  par  Jules  Remy.  Articles  in  the  "  Echo  du  Pa- 
cifique, "  San  Francisco,  January  and  February,  18.56. 

L'lllustration,  Journal  Universel.  Vols.  xv.  and  xxi.  Ai-ticles  by  M.  Depping, 
"Sur  les  Mormons"  (1858). 

Biographic  Generale  du  Dr.  Ha>fer,  publie'e  chez  MM.  Didot  freres :  a  long  article 
upon  Mr.  Brigham  Young,  by  M.  Isambert  (1858). 

Une  Campagne  des  Americains  contre  les  Mormons.  By  M.  Auguste  Laugel. 
"Revue  des  Deux-Mondes,"  ler  Septembre,  1859,  pages  194-211. 

Magasin  Pittoresque.  Several  articles  upon  the  Great  Salt  Lake,  by  M.  Ferdi- 
nand Denis.     Vol.  xxvii.,  pages  172-239.     Vol.  xxviii.,  page  207.     (1859-1860.) 

Le  Mormonisme  et  les  Etats-Unis.  "Revue  des  Deux-Mondes,"  15th  April,  1861, 
signed  by  M.  Elise'e  Reclus ;  an  article  formed  chiefly  upon  the  work  of  M.  Remy. 
It  is  an  able  article,  but  written  by  one  who,  unfortunately,  was  never  in  the  country 
— a  sine  qua  non  for  correct  description.  The  "  Revue"  had  already  undertaken  the 
subject  in  the  number  of  the  1st  of  September,  1853,  the  15th  of  February,  1856,  and 
the  1st  of  September,  1859. 

The  foreign  works  omitted  in  the  catalogue  at  the  end  of  this  note  are, 

Mormonismen  och  Swedenborgianismen.     Upsala(8vo,  1851). 

Geschichte  der  Mormonen,  oder  Jiingsten,  Tages-Heiligen  in  Nord-Amerika,  von 
Theodor  Olshausen.     (Gottingen,  244  pages,  8vo,  1856.) 

Geographische  Wanderungen.  Die  Mormonen  und  ihr  Land,  von  Karl  Andree. 
Dresden,  1859. 

The  Mormons  have  published  at  their  General  Repository  only  one  purely  laical 
book,  "The  Route  from  Liverpool  to  Great  Salt  Lake  Valley,"  illustrated  with  steel 
engravings  and  wood-cuts,  from  sketches  made  by  Frederick  Piercy.  Edited  by  James 
Linworth.  It  is  a  highly  creditable  volume,  especially  in  the  artistic  department, 
but  the  letter-press  is  uninteresting,  and  appears  a  mere  peg  upon  which  to  hang  co- 
pious notes  and  official  returns.  The  price  varies  from  £1  to  £1  3s.,  and  the  three 
first  parts,  containing  an  accurate  history  of  the  Latter-Day  Saints'  emigration  from 
Europe  up  to  1854,  may  be  had  separately.  Is.  each. 

So  good  a  theme  for  romance  could  not  fail  to  fall  into  the  hands  of  Captain  Mayne 
Reid,  who  is  to  Mormonism  what  Alexander  Dumas  was  to  Mesmerism.  In  his  pages 
the  exaggerated  anti-Mormon  feeling  attains  its  acme ;  the  explorer  Stansbury,  who 
spoke  fairly  of  the  Saints,  is  thus  qualified  :  "  the  captain  is  at  best  but  a  superficial 
observer" — quite  a  glass-house  stone-throwing  critique.  Mr.  Brigham  Young  is  a 
"vulgar  Alcibiades;"  the  City  of  the  Saints  is  a  "modern  Gomorrah,"  and  the 
Saints  themselves  are  "sanctified  /b?"ians;"  the  plurality  wife  is  a  ^'■femme  entrete- 
nue."  In  the  tale  of  the  "Wild  Huntress,"  a  young  person  married  by  foul  means 
to  Josh.  Stebbing,  the  Mormon,  and  rescued  mainly  by  a  young  hero — of  course  a 
Mexican  volunteer — we  have  a  sound  abuse  of  the  many- wife-system,  despotism, 
theocracy,  Danites,  tithes,  "  plebbishness, "  and  the  "vulgar  ring  which  smacks  (!)  of 
ignoble  origin."  On  the  other  hand,  the  rascal  Wakara,  an  ignoble  sub-chief  of  the 
Yutas,  known  mainly  as  a  horse-thief,  contrasts  splendidly  by  his  valor,  by  his  "del- 
icate attentions"  to  the  pretty  half-caste,  and  by  his  chivalry  and  hospitality,  which 
make  him  a  very  "Rolla  of  the  North  !"   And  this  is  "  fact  taught  through  fiction !" 

The  Mormon  Scriptures,  corresponding  with  the  Old  Testament,  the  Evangels,  and 
the  epistles  of  Christianity,  consist  of  the  following  works :  purely  bibliographical  no- 
tices are  here  given ;  the  contents  will  be  the  subject  of  a  future  page. 

1.  The  Book  of  Mormon,  an  Account  written  by  the  hand  of  Mormon,  upon  plates 
taken  from  the  Plates  of  Mormon.  Translated  by  Joseph  Smith,  Jun.  The  first 
edition  was  printed  in  1830,  at  Palmyra,  New  York,  and  consisted  of  5000  copies. 
Since  that  time  it  has  frequently  been  republished  in  England  and  America :  it  was 
translated  into  French  in  1852  (Marc  Ducloux,  Rue  Saint  Benoit  7,  Paris,  1852),  and 
versions  have  appeared  in  the  German,  Italian,  Danish,  Welsh,  and  Hawaian  tongues. 

0 


210  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IV. 

whose  "  go-a-headitiveness"  in  social  growth  is  only  to  be  com- 
pared with  their  obstinate  conservatism  in  adhering  to  institutions 

2.  The  Book  of  Doctrine  and  Covenants  of  the  Church  of  Jesus  of  Latter-Dav 
Saints,  selected  (I)  from  the  Kevelations  of  God.  By  Joseph  Smith,  President  (336 
pages,  12mo).  The  first  American  edition  was  printed  iu  1832,  or  ten  years  after 
the  Book  of  Mormon,  and  was  published  at  IVIr.  Joseph  Smith's  expense.  Many 
translations  of  this  important  work  have  appeared. 

3.  The  Pearl  of  Great  Price ;  being  a  Choice  Selection  from  the  Revelations, 
Translations,  and  Narratives  of  Joseph  Smith  (56  pages,  8vo,  Liverpool,  first  pub- 
lished in  1851).  This  little  volume  contains  the  Book  of  Abraham,  "  translated  from 
some  records  that  have  fallen  into  our  hands  from  the  catacombs  of  Eg)'pt,  purport- 
ing to  be  the  writings  of  Abraham  while  he  was  in  Egypt,  called  the  Book  of  Abra- 
ham, written  by  his  own  hand  on  papyrus.     With  a  fac-simile  of  three  papyri." 

4.  The  Latter-Day  Saints'  Millennial  Star,  begim  in  1839,  Manchester,  United 
States,  and  now  published  42  Islington,  Liverpool,  every  Saturday.  It  has  reached 
its  21st  volume.  The  periodical  is  a  single  sheet  (16  pages),  and  the  price  is  one 
penny.  It  is  an  important  publication,  embracing  the  whole  history  of  Mormonism; 
the  hebdomadal  issue  now  contains  polemical  papers,  vindications  of  the  Faith,  with  a 
kind  of  appendix,  such  as  emigration  reports,  quarterly  lists  of  marriages  and  deaths, 
varieties,  and  money  lists. 

5.  Journal  of  Discourses  byBrigham  Young  and  others.  First  published  in  1854 
(Svo,  Liverpool).  It  now  appears  in  semi-monthly  numbers,  1st  and  15th,  costing 
'2d.,  making  up  one  volume  per  annum.  The  above-mentioned  and  the  writings  of 
"Joseph  the  Seer  and  Parley  P.  Pratt,  wherever  found,"  are  considered  by  the  au- 
thorities of  the  Church  as  direct  revelations. 

The  Mormons  do  not  hold  the  "Biographical  Sketches  of  Joseph  Smith  the  Proph- 
et .and  his  Progenitors,  for  many  Generations,  by  Lucy  Smith,  mother  of  the  Proph- 
et, "  to  be  entirely  trustworthy.  Beyond  its  two  pages  of  preface  by  Orson  Pratt,  it 
is  deep  below  criticism.  This  work,  18mo,  of  297  pages  (including  "  Elegies"  by  Miss 
E.  R.  Snow),  was  first  printed  in  1853. 

The  Controversialist  works,  not  usually  included  in  the  London  catalogue,  are  the 
following.  They  are  characterized  by  abundant  earnestness  and  enthusiasm,  and  are 
purposely  written  in  a  style  intelligible  to  the  classes  addressed : 

The  Word  of  our  Lord  to  the  Citizens  of  London,  by  H.  C.  Kimball  and  W.  Wood- 
ruflF(lS39). 

The  Millennium,  and  other  Poems ;  to  which  is  annexed  a  Treatise  on  the  Regen- 
eration and  Eternal  Duration  of  Matter,  by  Parley  P.  Pratt,  New  York,  1840. 

A  Cr)-  out  of  the  Wilderness,  by  Elder  Hyde.  This  book  was  first  published  in 
Germany  and  in  German  (120  pages,  in  1842). 

Three  Nights'  Public  Discourse  at  Boulogne-sur-Mer,  by  Elder  John  Taylor  (4G 
pages  in  8vo,  Liverpool,  1 850). 

Three  Letters  to  the  "  New  York  Herald,"  of  James  Gordon  Bennett,  Esq.,  from 
.T.  M.  Grant  (Mayor  and  President  of  the  Quorum  of  Seventies),  of  Utah,  March, 
1852.  These  epistles  have  been  reprinted  in  pamphlet  form;  they  chiefly  set  forth 
Mormon  grievances,  especially  the  injury  done  by  the  federal  ofiicials. 

History  of  the  Persecutions  endured  by  the  Church  of  Jesus  of  Latter-Day  Saints 
in  America,  compiled  from  Public  Documents  and  drawn  from  Authentic  Sources, 
by  C.  W.  Wandell,  Minister  of  the  Gospel  (without  date,  but  subsequent  to  the  64  pp. 
8vo  edition,  printed  at  Sydney). 

Journal  of  the  House  of  Representatives,  Council  and  Joint  Sessions  of  the  First 
Annual  Special  Sessions  of  the  Legislative  Assembly  of  the  Territory  of  Utah,  held  at 
Great  Salt  Lake  City,  1851-1852.  (Printed  by  Brigham  Young,  175  pages  12mo, 
1852.) 

Defense  of  Polygamy,  by  a  Lady  of  Utah  (Mrs.  Belinda  Marden  Pratt)  to  her  Sis- 
ter in  New  Hampshire  (11  pages,  8vo,  first  printed  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City  in  1854, 
and  subsequently  republished  in  the  "Millennial  Star"  of  the  29th  of  July  in  the 
same  year).     I  shall  presently  quote  this  curious  work. 

Acts  and  Resolutions  of  the  Legislative  Assembly  of  the  Territory  of  Utah,  Great 
Salt  Lake  City,  40  pages,  12mo.  First  printed  in  1854,  and  now  published  for  every 
Annual  Session  (that  of '60-'61  being  the  10th)  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City.  Printed  at 
the  "  Mountaineer"  OflSce,  by  John  S.  Davis,  Public  Printer. 


Chap.  IV.  BIBLIOLOGY.  211 

that  date  from  the  days  of  Abraham.     Secondly,  the  natural  his- 
tory of  the  New  Faith — for  such  it  is — through  the  several  periods 

Acts,  Resolutions,  and  Memorials  passed  at  the  several  Annual  Sessions  (the  9th 
in  1859-60)  of  the  Legislative  Assembly  of  the  Territory  of  Utah.  Published  by 
virtue  of  an  Act  approved  January  I9th,  1855,  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  Joseph  Cain, 
afterward  J.  S.  Davis,  Public  Printer,  1855-1860.  460  pages,  12mo.  It  contains 
the  Territorial  Code  of  Deseret,  and  is  purely  secular. 

Keport  of  the  First  General  Festival  of  the  Renowned  Mormon  Battalion,  Great 
Salt  Lake  City.     39  pages  in  8vo. 

Discourses  delivered  by  Joseph  Smith  (30th  of  June,  1843)  and  Brigham  Young 
(18th  of  February,  1855)  on  the  Relations  of  the  Mormons  to  the  Government  of  the 
United  States.     Great  Salt  Lake  City,  16  pages. 

Marriage  and  Morals  in  Utah,  by  Parley  P.  Pratt.     8  pages,  Svo,  Liverpool,  1856. 

Twenty-four  Miracles,  by  O.  Pratt.     Liverpool,  16  pages,  8vo,  1857. 

Latter-Day  Kingdom ;  or,  the  Preparation  for  the  Second  Advent,  by  O.  Pratt. 
Liverpool,  16  pages,  Svo,  1857. 

Spiritual  Gifts,  by  Orson  Pratt.     Liverpool  and  London,  80  pages,  8vo,  1857. 

Universal  Apostasy  ;  or,  the  Seventeen  Centuries  of  Darkness,  by  O.  Pratt,  Liver- 
pool, 16  pages  in  8vo,  1857. 

Compendium  of  the  Faith  and  Doctrines  of  the  Church  of  Jesus  of  Latter-Day 
Saints,  compiled  from  the  Bible,  and  also  from  the  Book  of  Mormon,  Doctrines  and 
Covenants,  and  other  publications  of  the  Church ;  with  an  Appendix,  by  Franklin 
D.  Richards,  one  of  the  Twelve  Apostles  of  said  Church.  42  Islington,  Liverpool, 
243  pages,  long  18mo.  (1857.)  A  concordance  and  compilation  of  the  chief  doc- 
trinal works  and  seven  sermons. 

The  following  is  the  Catalogue  of  English  "Works  published  by  the  Church  of  Je- 
sus Christ  of  Latter-Day  Saints,  and  for  sale  by  Orson  Pratt,  at  their  General  Repos- 
itory and  "Millennial  Star"  Office,  42  Islington,  Liverpool,  and  removed  from  35 
Jewin  Street,  City,  to  30  Florence  Street,  Islington,  Loudon. 

Hymn-Book,  first  edition  in  1851.  Morocco  extra,  4s.;  calf,  gilt  edges,  2s.  6 J. ; 
calf  grained,  2s.;  roan  embossed.  Is.  6c?. 

The  Harp  of  Zion.  Poems  by  John  Lyon.  Published  for  the  benefit  of  the  Per- 
petual Emigrating  Fund.  First  printed  in  1853.  Morocco  extra,  6s.  6d. ;  cloth,  gilt 
extra,  3s.  Qd. ;  cloth  embossed,  2s.  6c?. 

Poems,  Religious,  Historical,  and  Political.  By  Eliza  R.  Snow.  Vol.  I.  Moroc- 
co extra,  6s.  6c?. ;  calf  gilt,  5s. ;   cloth  gilt,  3s.  6c/. ;   cloth  embossed,  2s.  6c/. 

The  Government  of  God,  by  John  Taylor,  one  of  the  Twelve  Apostles.  First  print- 
ed in  1852.     Stiff  covers.  Is.  9c?. 

Latter-Day  Saints  in  Utah.  Opinion  of  Judge  Snow  upon  the  Official  Course  of 
His  Excellency  Gov.  B.  Young — Trial  of  Howard  Egan  on  Indictment,  for  the  Mur- 
der of  James  Monroe,  verdict — A  Bill  to  Establish  a  Territorial  Goveniment  for 
Utah.     The  Territorial  Officers,  etc.     dd. 

One  Year  in  Scandinavia.  Results  of  the  Gospel  in  Denmark  and  Sweden,  by 
Erastus  Snow,  one  of  the  Twelve  Apostles.     3c?. 

Reports  of  Three  Nights'  Public  Discussion  in  Bolton,  between  William  Gibson, 
H.  P.,  Presiding  Elder  of  the  Manchester  Conference  of  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ 
of  Latter-Day  Saints,  and  the  Rev.  Woodviile  Woodman,  Minister  of  the  New  Jeru- 
salem Church.     First  published  in  1851.     6f/. 

Assassination  of  Joseph  and  Hyrum  Smitli ;  also  a  condensed  History  of  the  Ex- 
pulsion of  the  Saints  from  Nauvoo,  by  Elder  John  S.  Fullmer,  Pastor  of  the  Man- 
chester, Liverpool,  and  Preston  Conferences.     First  printed  in  1856.     5c?. 

Testimonies  for  the  Truth ;  a  Record  of  Manifestations  of  the  Power  of  God — mi- 
raculous and  providential — witnessed  in  the  travels  and  experience  of  Benjamin 
Brown,  H.  P.,  Pastor  of  the  London,  Reading,  Kent,  and  Essex  Conferences.  It  is  a 
list  of  the  Miracles  performed  by  the  first  Mormons.    Printed  in  Liverpool,  1853.    4c?. 

Works  hy  Parley  P.  Pratt,  one  of  the  Twelve  Apostles. 
_  Key  to  the  Science  of  Theology ;  designed  as  an  Introduction  to  the  First  Prin- 
ciples of  Spiritual  Philosophy,  Religion,  Law,  and  Government,  as  delivered  by  the 
Ancients,  and  as  restored  in  this  Age,  for  the  Final  Development  of  Universal  Peace, 
Truth,  and  Knowledge.     First  published  iu  1855.     It  is  a  volume  far  superior  in 


212  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IV. 

of  conception,  birth,  and  growth  to  vigorous  youth,  with  fair  prom- 
ise of  stalwart  manhood,  is  a  subject  of  general  and  no  small  im- 

raatter  and  manner  to  the  average  ran  of  Mormon  composition.     Morocco  extra,  5s. 
ad. ;  calf  grained,  3s.  6d. ;  cloth  embossed,  2s. 

The  Voice  of  Warning ;  or,  an  Introduction  to  the  Faith  and  Doctrine  of  ttte 
Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-Day  Saints.  This  work  has  been  translated  into 
French.  Morocco  extra,  4s. ;  calf,  gilt  edges,  3s. ;  calf  grained,  2s.  Gd.;  cloth  emboss- 
ed, Is.  6d. 

Works  by  Orson  Pratt,  A.M.,  one  of  the  Ticelve  Apostles. 

Absurdities  of  Immaterialism ;  or,  a  Reply  to  T.  W.  P.  Taylder's  Pamphlet,  enti- 
tled "The  Materialism  of  the  Mormons,  or  Latter-Day  Saints,  Examined  and  Ex- 
posed."    First  edition  in  1849.     4(i. 

Great  First  Cause  ;  or,  the  Self-moving  Forces  of  the  Universe.     2d. 

Divine  Authenticity  of  the  Book  of  Mormon,  in  6  parts.     Each  part  2d. 

Divine  Authority,  or  the  Question,  was  Joseph  Smith  sent  of  God  ?  First  publish- 
ed in  1848.     2d. 

Remarkable  Visions.     First  published  in  1849.     2d. 

The  Kingdom  of  God,  in  4  parts.  First  edition  in  1849.  Parts  1,  2,  3,  each  Id. 
Part  4,  2d. 

Reply  to  a  Pamphlet  printed  at  Glasgow,  with  the  approbation  of  Clergymen  of 
dififerent  denominations,  entitled,  "  Remarks  on  Mormonism."  First  edition  in  1849. 
2d. 

New  Jerusalem ;  or,  the  Fulfillment  of  Modern  Prophecy.  First  published  in 
1849.     Zd. 

Title  and  Index  to  the  above  Works,  \d. 

The  Seer.  Vol.  I.,  12  numbers;  II.,  8  numbers.  Each  number  2d.  The  two 
volumes  bound  in  one,  in  half  calf,  5s. 

A  Series  of  Pamphlets,  now  being  published  on  the  first  Principles  of  the  Gospel. 

The  following  numbers  arc  already  out:  Chap.  1,  The  True  Faith.  Chap.  2, 
True  Repentance.  Chap.  3,  Water  Baptism.  Chap.  4,  The  Holy  Spirit.  Chap.  5, 
Spiritual  Gifts.     First  printed  in  1857.     Each  number,  2d. 

Works  by  Lorenzo  Snow,  one  of  the  Twelve  Apostles. 

The  Voice  of  Joseph.  A  brief  Account  of  the  Rise,  Progress,  and  Persecutions 
of  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-Day  Saints,  with  their  present  Position  and 
Prospects  in  Utah  Territory ;  together  with  American  Exiles'  Memorial  to  Con- 
gress.    First  published  in  1852.     3c?. 

The  Only  Way  to  be  Saved.  An  Explanation  of  the  First  Principles  of  the  Doc- 
trine of  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-Day  Saints.     Id. 

The  Italian  Mission.    4c?. 

Works  by  Elder  Orson  Spencer,  A.B. 

Letters  exhibiting  the  most  prominent  Doctrines  of  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ 
of  Latter-D.ay  Saints,  in  reply  to  the  Rev.  William  Crowel,  A.IM.,  Boston,  JNIass., 
U.S.  A.  First  printed  in  1852.  Morocco  extra,  4s.;  calf  grained,  2s.  6o?. ;  cloth 
embossed.  Is.  Go?. 

Patriarchal  Order,  or  Plurality  of  Wives.  (Being  the  Fifteenth  Letter  in  Cor- 
respondence with  the  Rev.  William  Crowel,  A.M.)     2c?. 

The  Prussian  Mission  of  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-Day  Saints.  Re- 
port of  Elder  Orson  Spencer,  A.B.,  to  President  Brigham  Young.     2c?. 

Works  by  Elder  John  Jacques. 

Catechism  for  Children.     Cloth,  gilt  edges,  10c?. ;  stiiF  covers,  6c?. 

Exclusive  Salvation,  Ic?. 

Salvation.     A  Dialogue  in  two  parts.     Each  part  Ic?. 

I  will  conclude  this  long  enumeration  with  Catalogue  of  the  principal  Works  in 
foreign  languages. 

Works  in  French. 

Le  Livre  de  Mormon  (Book  of  Mormon),  3s.  6c?. 

Une  Voix  d'Avertissement  (Voice  of  Warning).  Par  Parley  P.  Pratt.  Morocco, 
gilt  edges,  4s. ;  roan,  Is.  9c?. ;  cloth.  Is.  Qd. ;  paper  covers.  Is.  3c/. 


Chap.  IV.  BIBLIOLOGY.  213 

portance.     It  interests  the  religionist,  who  looks  upon  it  as  the 
"scourge  of  corrupted  Christianity,"  as  much  as  the  skeptic,  that 

Les  Mormons  et  leurs  Enemis  (The  Latter-Day  Saints  and  their  Enemies).  Par 
T.  B.  H.  Stenhouse,  President  des  Missions  Suisse  et  Italienne.     Is.  Gd. 

Autorite  Divine  (Divine  Authority).     Par  L.  A.  Bertrand,  Elder,     id. 

De  la  Necessite'  de  Nouvelles  Revelations  prouvee  par  la  Bible.  Par  John  Tay- 
lor, un  des  Douze  Apotres.     4c?. 

Aux  Amis  de  la  Ve'rite  Religieuse.     Par  John  Taylor,  Elder.     2d. 

Epitre  du  President  de  la  Mission  rran9aise  a  I'Eglise  des  Saints  des  Demiers- 
jours  en  France  et  dans  les  lies  de  la  Manche  (Epistle  of  the  President  of  the  French 
Mission,  etc.),  Ihd. 

Traite  sur  le  Bapteme.     Par  John  Taylor,  un  des  Douze  Apotres.    2c?. 

Works  ill  German. 
Das  Buch  Mormon  (The  Book  of  Monnon),  3s.  Gd. 

Eine  Gottliche  Offenbarung ;  und  Belehrung  uber  den  Chestand  (Revelation  on 
Marriage ;  and  Patriarchal  order  or  Plurality  of  Wives).     Stiff  covers,  6c?. 
Zion's  Panier  (Zion's  Pioneer).     No.  1,  3c?. 

Works  in  Italian. 
II  Libro  di  Mormon  (The  Book  of  Mormon).     Morocco  extra,  6s.  6c?. ;  grained 
roan,  4s.  6c?. 

Works  in  Danish. 
Mormons  Bog  (The  Book  of  Mormon).     Grained  roan,  4s. 

Works  in  Welsh.  * 

Llyfr  Mormon  (Book  of  Mormon).     Grained  roan,  4s. ;  roan,  gilt  edges,  4s.  Gd. 
Athrawiaeth  a  Chyfammodau  (Doctrine  and  Covenants).    Grained  roan,  3s.  Gd. ; 

roan,  gilt  edges,  3s.  6c?. 
Llfyr  Hymnau  (Hymn  Book).     Marble  calf,  2s. ;  grained  roan,  2s.  3c?. ;  calf,  gilt 

ed^es,  2s.  6c?. 

Y  Perl  o  Fawr  Bris  (Pearl  of  Great  Price),  Is.  2c?. 

Priodas  a  Moesau  yn  Utah,  gan  Parley  P.  Pratt  (Marriage  and  Morals  in  Utah, 
by  Parley  P.  Pratt),  Id. 

Proph^vyd  y  Jubili  (The  Millennial  Prophet).     Vol.  HI.  unbound,  2s.  O^c?. 

Si/  Elder  Dan  Jones. 

Yr  Eurgrawn  Ysgrythyrol  (Casket,  or  Treatises  on  upward  of  100  subjects).  Half 
calf,  3s.  3c/. ;  unbound,  2s.  6c?. 

Pwy  yw  Duw  y  Saint  ?  (Who  is  the  God  of  the  Saints  ?),  2\d. 

Yr  Hen  Grefydd  Newydd  (The  old  Religion  anew),  6c?. 

Annerchiad  i'r  Peirch,  etc.  (Proclamation  to  the  Reverends,  etc.),  l^c?. 

Gwrthbrofion  i'r  Spaulding  Story  am  Lyfr  Mormon  (Spaulding  Story,  etc.,  re- 
futed), 2d. 

Anmhoblogrwydd  Mormoniaeth  (Unpopularity  of  Mormonism),  Ic?. 

Arweinydd  i  Seion  (Guide  to  Zion),  \\d. 

Pa  beth  yw  jNIormoniaeth ?  (What  is  Mormonism?),  \d.  ' 

Pa  beth  y w  gras  Cadwedigol  ?  (What  is  saving  Grace  ?),  \d. 

Dadl  ar  Mormoniaeth  ?  (Discussion  on  Mormonism),  2c/. 

Anffyddiaeth  Sectyddiaeth  (Skepticism  of  Sectarianism),  Ic?. 

Amddiffyniad  rhag  Cam-gyhuddiadau  (Replies  to  False  Chai-ges),  Ic?. 

Y  Lleidr  ar  y  Groes  (The  Thief  on  the  Cross),  \d. 
"Peidiwch  a'u  Gwrando"  ("Don't  go  to  hear  them"),  \d. 
Egwyddorion  Cyntaf  a  Gwahoddiadau  (First  Principles  and  Invitations),  \d. 
Ai  duw  a  Ddanfonodd  Joseph  Smith  (Divinity  of  Joseph's  Mission),  Ic?. 
Llofruddiad  Joseph  a  Hyrum  Smith  (Assassination  of  Joseph  and  Hyrum  Smith), 

Ic?. 

Tarddiad  Llfyr  Mormon  (Origin  of  the  Book  of  Mormon),  Ic?. 

Dammeg  y  Pren  Ftn\7thlawn  (Parable  of  the  Fruitful  Tree),  \d. 

Darlun  o'r  Byd  Crefyddol  (The  Religious  World  Illustrated),  it/. 

Traethodau  D.  Jones,  yn  rhwyn  mewn  banner  croen  llo  (D.  Jones'  Works  bonad 
in  half  calf),  6s.  4</. 


2][4  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IV. 

admires  how,  in  these  days  of  steam-traveling,  printing,  and  tele- 
gramming,  when  "many  run  to  and  fro,"  and  when  "knowledge'" 
has  been  "increased,"  human  credulity  will  display  itself  in  the 
same  glaring  colors  which  it  wore  ere  the  diffusion  of  knowledge 
became  a  part  of  social  labor.  The  philosophic  observer  will  de- 
tect in  it  a  notable  example  of  how  mejis  agitat  molem,  tHe  "  pow- 
erful personal  influence  of  personal  character,"  and  the  "  eifect 
that  may  be  produced  by  a  single  mind  inflexibly  applied  to  the 
pursuit  of  a  single  object;"  and  another  proof  that  "it  is  easier 
to  extend  the  belief  of  the  multitude  than  to  contract  it  —  a  cir- 
cumstance which  proceeds  from  the  false  but  prevalent  notion 
that  too  much  belief  is  at  least  an  error" on  the  right  side."  The 
"italisrwill  consider  it  in  its  aspect  as'a  new  system  of  coloniza- 
tion. In  America  the  politician  will  look  with  curiosity  at  a 
despotism  thriving  in  the  centre  of  a  democracy,  and  perhaps 
with  apprehension  at  its  future  efforts,  in  case  of  war  or  other 
troubles,  upon  the  destinies  of  the  whilom  Great  Eepublic.  In 
England,  which  principally  supplies  this  number  of  souls,  men, 
instead  of  regarduag  it  as  one  of  many  safety-valves,  will  be  re- 
minded of  their  obligations  toward  the  classes  by  which  Mormon- 
ism  is  fed,  and  urged  to  the  improvement  of  education,  religion, 
and  justice.  And  I  hope  to  make  it  appear  that  the  highly-col- 
ored social  peculiarities  of  the  New  Faith  have  been  used  as  a 
tool  by  designing  men  to  raise  up  enmity  against  a  peaceful  in- 
dustrious,  and  law-abiding  people,  whose  wBble  historyTTasTeen 
a  course  of  cruel  persecution,  which,  if  man  really  believed  in  his 
own  improvement,  would  be  a  disgrace  to  a  self-styled  enlighteh- 
_  ed  age.  The  prejudice  has  naturally  enough  extended  from 
America  to  England.  In  1845,  when  the  Mormons  petitioned 
for  permission  to  retire  to  Vancouver's  Island,  they  met  with 

I3y  Elder  John  Davies. 

Yr  hyn  sydd  o  ran,  etc,  (That  which  is  in  part,  etc.),  \d. 

Epistol  Cyffredinol  Cyntaf  (First  General  Epistle  of  the  first  Presidency),  Id. 

Traethawd  ar  Wyrthiaii  (Treatise  on  Miracles),  \d. 

Etto  Adolvgiad,  etc.,  Chwech  Rhifyn  (Do.  in  reply  to  Anti-Mormon  Lectures"). 
Six  Nos.     (Each  No.  \d.) 

Pregethu  i'r  Ysbrydion  jTi  Ngharchar,  etc.  (Preaching  to  the  Spirits  in  Prison, 
etc.),  \d. 

Ewch  a  Dysgwch  (Go  and  Teach),  \d. 

Darlithiau  ar  Ffydd,  gan  Joseph  Smith  (Joseph  Smith's  Lectures  on  Faith),  id. 

Y  Doniau  Ysbrydol  yn  Mrawdlys  y  Gelyn  (The  Spiritual  Gifts  before  their  Ene- 
mies' Tribunal),  2d. 

Traethawd  ar  Fedydd  (Treatise  on  Baptism),  \d. 

Corff  Crist,  neu  yr  Eglwvs  (The  Body  or  Church  of  Christ),  \d. 

Ffordd  y  Bywyd  Tragyvvyddol  (The  Way  of  Eternal  Life),  Id. 

Yr  Achos  Mawr  Cyntaf,  gan  O.  Pratt  (Great  First  Cause,  by  0.  Pratt),  2d. 

Profvvch  Bob  Peth,  etc.  (Prove  all  things,  etc.),  \d. 

Athrawiaeth  lachus  (Sound  Doctrine),  ^d. 

Ymddyddanion  yn  Gymraeg  a  Saesonaeg  (Dialogues  in  Welsh  and  English),  \d. 

Llythyron  Capt.  Jones  o  Ddyft'iyn  y  li.  H.  Mawr,  yn  desgrifio  arderchawgrwydd 
Seion  (Beauties  of  Zion  described  by  Captain  Jones,  in  a  Series  of  Letters  from 
Great  Salt  Lake  Valley),  2d. 


Chap.  IV.     SAN  FRANCISCO  ROAD.— GOVERNOR  GUMMING.  216 

nothing  but  discouragement.  And  even  in  1860, 1  am  told,  when 
a  report  was  raised  that  Mr.  Brigham  Young  would  willingly 
have  taken  refuge  with  his  adherents  in  the  valley  of  the  Sas- 
katchawan,  the  British  minister  was  instructed  to  oppose  the  use- 
ful emigration  to  the  utmost  of  his  power. 

On  the  evening  of  our  arrival  Lieutenant  Dana  and  I  proceeded 
to  the  store  of  Messrs.  Livingston,  Bell,  and  Co. — formerly  Liv- 
ingston and  Kinkhead — the  sutlers  of  Camp  Floyd,  and  the  most 
considerable  Gentile  merchants  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City ;  he  to 
learn  the  readiest  way  of  reaching  head-quarters,  I  to  make  inqui- 
ries about  the  San  Francisco  road.  We  were  cordially  received 
by  both  these  gentlemen,  who,  during  the  whole  period  of  my 
stay,  did  all  in  their  power  to  make  the  place  pleasant.  Governor 
Bell,  as  he  is  generally  called,  presently  introduced  me  to  his  wife, 
a  very  charming  person,  of  English  descent,  whose  lively  manners 
contrasted  strongly  and  agreeably  with  the  almost  monastic  gloom 
which  the  regime  of  the  "lady-saints"  casts  over  society.  Lieu- 
tenant Dana  was  offered  seats  in  Mr.  Livingston's  trotting-wagon 
on  the  ensuing  Monday.  I  was  less  fortunate.  Captain  Miller, 
of  Millersville,  the  principal  agent  and  director  at  this  end  of  the 
road,  informed  me  that  he  had  lately  ceased  to  run  the  wagon, 
which  had  cost  the  company  $15,000  a  month,  returning  but 
$30,000  per  annum,  and  was  sending  the  mails  on  mule-back. 
However,  my  informants  agreed  that  a  party  would  probably  be 
starting  soon,  and  that,  all  things  failing,  I  could  ride  the  road, 
though  with  some  little  risk  of  scalp.  We  ended  with  a  bottle  of 
Heidseck,  and  with  cigars  which  were  not  unpleasant  even  after 
the  excellent  "  gold-leaf  tobacco"  of  the  States. 

On  the  next  day,  Sunday,  we  walked  up  the  main  street  north- 
ward, and  doubling  three  corners  of  Temple  Block,  reached  the 
large  adobe  house,  with  its  neat  garden,  the  abode  of  the  then 
governor,  Hon.  Alfred  Cumming.  This  gentleman,  a  Georgian 
by  birth,  after  a  long  public  service  as  Indian  agent  in  the  north- 
ern country,  was,  after  several  refusals,  persuaded  by  the  then 
president,  who  knew  his  high  honor  and  tried  intrepidity,  to  as- 
sume the  supreme  executive  authority  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City. 
The  conditions  were  that  polygamy  should  not  be  interfered  with, 
nor  forcible  measures  resorted  to  except  in  extremest  need.  Gov- 
ernor Cumming,  accompanied  by  his  wife,  and  an  escort  of  600 
dragoons,  left  the  Mississippi  in  the  autumn  of  1857,  at  a  time 
when  the  Mormons  were  in  arms  against  the  federal  authority, 
and  ended  his  journey  only  in  April  of  the  ensuing  year.  By 
firmness,  prudence,  and  conciliation,  he  not  only  prevented  any 
collision  between  the  local  militia  and  the  United  States  army, 
which  was  burning  to  revenge  itself  for  the  terrible  hardships  of 
the  campaign,  but  succeeded  in  restoring  order  and  obedience 
throughout  the  Territory.  He  had  been  told  before  entering  that 
his  life  was  in  danger ;  he  was  not,  however,  a  man  to  be  deterred 


2;L5  the  city  of  the  saints.  Chap.  IV. 

from  a  settled  purpose,  and  experiment  showed  that,  so  far  from 
beino-  molested,  he  was  received  with  a  salute  and  all  the  honors. 
Havino-  been  warned  that  he  might  share  the  fate  of  Governor 
Boo-o-s,  who  in  1843  was  shot  through  the  mouth  when  standing 
at  the  window,  he  enlarged  the  casements  of  his  house  in  order 
lo  give  the  shooter  a  fair  chance.  His  determination  enabled  him 
to  issue,  a  few  days  after  his  arrival,  a  proclamation  offering  pro- 
tection to  all  persons  illegally  restrained  of  their  liberty  in  Utah. 
The  scrupulous  and  conscientious  impartiality  which  he  has 
brought  to  the  discharge  of  his  difiicult  and  delicate  duties,  and, 
more  still,  his  resolution  to  treat  the  Saints  like  Gentiles  and  citi- 
zens, not  as  Digger  Indians  or  felons,  have  won  him  scant  favor 
from  either  party.  The  anti-Mormons  use  very  hard  language, 
and  declare  him  to  be  a  Mormon  in  Christian  disguise.  The  Mor- 
mons, though  more  moderate,  can  never,  by  their  very  organiza- 
tion, rest  contented  without  the  combination  of  the  temporal  with 
the  spiritual  power.  The  governor  does  not  meet  his  predecessor, 
the  ex-governor,  Mr.  Brigham  Young,  from  prudential  motives, 
except  on  public  duty.  Mrs.  Gumming  visits  Mrs.  Young,  and  at 
the  houses  of  the  principal  dignitaries,  this  being  nearly  the  only 
society  in  the  place.  As,  among  Moslems,  a  Lady  M.  W.  Mon- 
tague can  learn  more  of  domestic  life  in  a  week  than  a  man  can 
in  a  year,  so  it  is  among  the  Mormons.  I  can  not  but  express  a 
hope  that  the  amiable  Mrs.  Gumming  will  favor  us  with  the  re- 
sults of  her  observation  and  experience,  and  that  she  will  be  as 
disinterested  and  unprejudiced  as  she  is  talented  and  accomplish- 
ed. The  kindness  and  hospitality  which  I  found  at  the  govern- 
or's, and,  indeed,  at  every  place  in  New  Zion,  is  "ungrateful  to 
omit,"  and  would  be  "tedious  to  repeat." 

"We  dined  with  his  excellency  at  the  usual  hour,  2  P.M.  On 
the  way  I  could  dwell  more  observantly  upon  the  main  features 
of  the  city,  which,  after  the  free  use  of  the  pocket-compass,  were 
becoming  familiar  to  me.  The  first  reraark  w^3jthat_everY  me- 
ridional  street  is  traversed  on  both  sides,l)y  a  streamlet  of  limpid 
water,  verdur£:fringed,  and  gurgling  with_ a  murmur  which  would 
make  a  Persian  MooUah  long  for.improper  drinks.  The  supplies 
are  brought  in  raised  and  hollowed  water-courses  from  Gity  Creek, 
Red  Buttes,  and  other  kanyons  lying  north  and  east  of  the  settle- 
ment. The  few  wells  are  never  less  than  forty -five  feet  deep; 
artesians  have  been  proposed  for  the  benches,  but  the  expense 
has  hitherto  proved  an  obstacle.  CitizeiTs^can  now  draw  with 
scanty  trouble  their  drinking  water  in  the  morning,  when  it  is 
purest,  from  the  clear  and  sparkling  streams  that  flow  over  the 
pebbly_i)jeds  before  their  doors.  The  surplus  is  reserved  for  the 
purposes  of  irrigation,  without  which,  as  the  "distillation  from 
above"  will  not  suffice,  Deseret  would  still  be  a  desert,  and  what 
is  not  wanted  swells  the  Gity  Creek,  and  eventually  the  waves  of 
the  Jordan.     The  element,  which  flows  at  about  the  rate  of  four 


CuAP.  IV.  THE  HOLY  CITY.  217 

miles  an  hour,  is  under  a  chief  water-master  or  commissioner,  as- 
sisted by  a  water-master  in  each  ward,  and  by  a  deputy  in  each 
block,  all  sworn  to  see  the  fertiHzing  fluid  fairly  distributed.  At 
the  corners  of  CYcry  ward  there  is  a  water-gate  which  controls  the 
supplies  that  branch  off  to  the  several  blocks,  and  each  lot  of  one 
and  a  quarter  acres  is  allowed  about  three  hours'  iri'igation  during 
the  week.  For  repairs  and  other  expenses  a  property  tax  of  one 
mill  per  dollar  is  raised,  and  the  total  of  the  impost  in  1860  was 
$1163  25.  The  system  works  like_c]ocJv-_.WQrk.  "  The  Act  to  In- 
corporate the  Great  Salt  Lake  City  Water- works"  was  approved 
January  21,  1853. 

Walking  in  a  northward  direction  up  Main,  otherwise  called 
Whisky  Street,  we  could  not  but  observe  the  " mAgnificent.dis- 
tances"  of  the_  settlement,  which,  containing  9000 — 12,000  souls, 
covers  an  area  of.three  miles.  This  broadway  is  132  feet  wide, 
including  the  side-walks,  which  are  each  twenty,  and,  like  the 
rest  of  the  principal  avenues,  is  planted  with  locust  and  other 
trees.  There  are  twenty  or  twenty-one  wards  or  cantons,  num- 
bered from  the  S.E.  "  boustrophedon"  to  the  N.W.  corner.  They 
have  a  common  fence  and  a  bishop  apiece.  They  are  called  after 
the  creeks,  trees,  people,  or  positions,  as  Mill-Creek  Ward,  Little 
Cotton-wood,  Denmark,  and  South  Ward.  Every  ward  contains 
about  nine  blocks,  each  of  which  is  forty  rods  square.  The  area 
of  ten  acres  is  divided  into  four  to  eight  lots,  of  two  and  a  half  to 
one  and  a  quarter  acres  each,  264  feet  by  132.  A _city  ordinance 
places  ihe  iiouses  twenty  feet  behind  the  front  line  of  the  lot, 
leaving  an  intermediate  place  for  shrubbery  or  trees.  This  rule, 
however,  is  not  observed  in  Main  Street. 

The  streets  are  named  from  their  direction  to  the  Temple  Block. 
Thus  Main  Street  is  East  Temple  Street  No.  1 ;  that  behind  it  is 
State  Koad,  or  East  Temple  Street  2,  and  so  forth,  the  ward  being 
also  generally  specified.  Temple  Block  is  also  the  point  to  which 
latitude  and  longitude  are  referred.  It  lies  in  N.  lat.  40°  45'  44", 
W.  long.  (G.)  112°  6'  8",  and  4300  feet  above  sea  level. 

Main  Street  is  rapidly  becoming  crowded.  The  western  block, 
opposite  the  hotel,  contains  about  twenty  houses  of  irregular  shape 
and  size.  The  buildings  are  intended  to  supply  the  principal 
wants  of  a  far- Western  settlement,  as  bakery,  butchery,  and  black- 
smithery,  hardware  and  crockery,  paint  and  whip  warehouse,  a 
"fashionable  tailor" — and  "fashionable"  in  one  point,  that  his 
works  are  more  expensive  than  Poole's  —  shoe-stores,  tannery 
and  curriery ;  the  Pantechnicon,  on  a  more  pretentious  stj-le  than 
its  neighbors,  kept  by  Mr.  Gilbert  Clements,  Irishman  and  ora- 
tor ;  dry-goods,  groceries,  liquors,  and  furniture  shops.  Walker's 
agency,  and  a  kind  of  restaurant  for  ice-cream,  a  luxury  which 
costs  25  cents  a  glass ;  saddlers,  dealers  in  "  food,  flour,  and  pro- 
visions," hats,  shoes,  clothing,  sash  laths,  shingles,  timber,  copper, 
tin,  crockery- ware,  carpenters'  tools,  and  mouse-traps ;    a  watch- 


213  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IV. 

maker  and  repairer,  a  gunsmith,  locksmith,  and  armorer,  soap  and 
candle  maker,  nail-maker,  and  venders  of  "Yankee  notions."  On 
the  eastern  side,  where  the  same  articles  are  sold  on  a  larger  scale, 
live  the  principal  Gentile  merchants,  Mr.  Gilbert  and  Mr.  Nixon, 
an  English  Saint;  Mr.  R.  Gill,  a  "physiological  barber ;"  Mr. 
Godbe's  "apothecary  and  drug  stores;"  Goddard's  confectionery; 
Messrs.  Hockaday  and  Burr,  general  dealers,  who  sell  every  thing, 
from  a  bag  of  potatoes  to  a  yard  of  gold  lace ;  and  various  estab- 
lishments. Mormon  and  others.  Crossing  the  street  that  runs 
east  and  west,  we  pass  on  the  right  hand  a  small  block,  occupied 
by  Messrs.  Dyer  and  Co.,  sutlers  to  a  regiment  in  Arizona,  and 
next  to  it  the  stores  of  Messrs.  Hooper  and  Cronyn,  with  an  am- 
brotype  and  daguerrean  room  behind.  ThiLStores,  I  may  remark, 
are  far  supexior^in  alljioinis,  to  the  shops  in  alTEn^lish  country* 
town  that  is_npt_a  rcgiikr  watering-place.  Beyond  this  lies  the 
adobe  house,  with  its  wooden  Ionic  stoop  or  piazza  (the  portico  is 
a  favorite  here),  and  well-timbered  garden,  occupied  by  Bishoj> 
Hunter;  and  adjoining  it  the  long  tenement  inhabited  by  the  sev- 
eral relicts  of  Mayor  Jedediah  M.  Grant.  Farther  still,  and  fac- 
ing the  Prophet's  Block,  is  the  larger  adobe  house  belonging  to 
General  Wells  and  his  family.  Opposite,  or  on  the  western  side, 
is  the  well-known  store  'of  Livingston,  Bell,  and  Co.,  and  beyond 
it  the  establishment  now  belonging  to  the  nine  widows  and  the 
son  of  the  murdered  apostle.  Parley  P.  Pratt.  Still  looking  west- 
ward, the  Globe  bakery  and  restaurant,  and  a  shaving  saloon,  lead 
to  the  "Mountaineer  Office,"  a  conspicuous  building,  forty-five 
feet  square,  two  storied,  on  a  foundation  of  cut  stone  stuccoed  red 
to  resemble  sandstone,  and  provided  with  a  small  green-balconied 
belvidere.  The  cost  was  $20,000.  It  was  formerly  the  Council 
House,  and  was  used  for  church  purposes.  When  purchased  by 
the  Territory  the  Public  Library  was  established  in  the  northern 
part ;  the  office  of  the  "  Deser^t  News"  on  the  first  story,  and  that 
of  the  "  Mountaineer"  on  the  ground  floor.  This  brings  us  to  the 
1st  South  Temple  Street,  which  divides  the  "Mountaineer"  office 
from  the  consecrated  ground.  In  this  vicinity  are  the  houses  of 
most  of  the  apostles,  Messrs.  Taylor,  Cannon,  Woodruff,  and  0. 
Pratt. 

Crowds w^re flocking  into  Temple J3k)ckfox_afternoon  service; 
yet  I  felt  disappointed  by  the  scene^  j  I  had  expected  to  see  traces 
of  "workmen  in  abundance, Tiewers  and  workers  of  stone  and 
timber,  and  all  manner  of  cunning  men  for  every  manner  of  work," 
reposing  from  their  labors  on  the  Sabbath.  I  thought,  at  any 
rate,  to  find 

"  pars  ducere  mnros 
Molirique  arcem,  et  manibus  subvolvere  saxa." 

It  seemed  hardly  in  accordance  with  the  energy  and  devoted- 
ness  of  a  new  faith  that  a  hole  in  the  ground  should  represent 
the  House  of  the  Lord,  while  Mr,  Brigham  Young,  the  Prophet, 


Chap.  IV.  THE  TEMPLE  BLOCK.  219 

thinking  of  his  ownjjDmfort  before  thp.  glory  of  Gnrl,  is  ^c,c\crp(]^ 
like  Solomon  of  old,  in  what  here  appears  a  palace.  ^  Nor,  reflect- 
ing that  without  a  Temple  the  dead  can  not  be  baptized  out  of 
Purgatory,  was  I  quite  satisfied  when  reminded  of  the  fate  of  Nau- 
voo  (according  to  Gentiles  the  Mormons  believe  that  they  must 
build  nine  temples  before  they  will  be  suffered  to  worship  in  peace), 
and  informed  that  the  purely  provisional  works,  which  had  been 
interrupted  by  the  arrival  of  the  army  in  1858,  would  shortly  be 
improved. 

The  lines  of  Temple  Block — which,  as_iiaiiixl,  is  ten  acres  square 
=  forty  rods  each  way — run  toward  the  cardinal  points.  It  stands 
clear  of  all  other  buildings,  and  the  locust-trees,  especially  those  on 
the  silnny  south  side,  which  have  now  been  planted  seven  years. 
will  greatly  add  to  its  beauties.  It  is  surrounded  with  a  founda- 
tion wall  of  handsomely  dressed  red  sandstone,  raised  to  the  height 
of  ten  feet  by  adobe  stuccoed  over  to  resemble  a  richer  material. 
Each  facing  has  thirty  flat  pilastres,  without  pedestal  or  entabla- 
ture, but  protected,  as  the  adobe  always  should  be,  by  a  sandstone 
coping.  When  finished,  the  whole  will  be  surmounted  by  an  or- 
namental iron  fence.  There  are  four  gates,  one  to  each  side — of 
these,  two,  the  northern  and  western,  are  temporarily  blocked  up 
with  dry  stone  walls,  while  the  others  are  left  open — which  in 
time  will  become  carriage  entrances,  with  two  side  ways  for  foot 
passengers.  According  to  accounts,  the  wall  and  the  foundations 
have  already  cost  one  million  of  dollars,  or  a  larger  sum  than  that 
spent  upon  the  entire  Nauvoo  Temple. 

Temple  Block — the  only  place  of  public  and  general  worship 
in  the  city — was  consecrated  and  a  Tabernacle  was  erected  in  Sep- 
tember, 1847,  immediately  after  the  celebrated  exodus  from  "Egypt 
on  the  banks  of  the  Mississippi,"  on  a  spot  revealed  by  the  past 
to  the  present  Prophet  and  his  adherents.  Two  sides  of  the  wall 
having  been  completed,  ground  was  broken  on  the  14th  of  Feb- 
ruary, 1853,  for  the  foundation  of  the  building.  One  part  of  the 
ceremony  consisted  of  planting  a  post  at  the  central  point,  the 
main  "stake  for  the  curtains  of  Zion:"  every  successive  step  m 
advance  was  commemorated  by  imposing  ceremonies,  salvos  of 
guns,  bands  playing,  crowds  attending,  addresses  by  the  governor, 
Mr.  Brigham  Young,  prayers  and  pious  exercises.  The  founda- 
tions of  the  Temple,  which  are  sixteen  feet  deep,  and  composed 
of  hard  gray  granite,  in  color  like  that  of  Aberdeen  or  Quincy, 
are  now  concealed  from  view;  and  the  lumber  huts  erected  for 
the  workmen  were,  when  the  Mormons  made  their  minor  Hegira 
to  Provo  City,  removed  to  the  Sugar-house  Ward,  three  miles 
southeast  of  the  city. 

The  Temple  Block  is  at.present  a  mere  waste.  _A  central  _ex- 
cavation7  which  resembles  a  large  oblong  grave,  is  said  by  Gentiles 
to  be  the  beginning  of  a  baptismal  font  twenty  feet  /ieep.  The 
southwestern  corner  is  occupied  by  the  Tabernacle,  an  adobe  build- 


220  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IV. 

ing  126  feet  long  from  N.  to  S.,  and  64  wide  from  E.  to  W. :  its 
interior,  ceilinged  with  an  elliptical  arch — the  width  being  its  span 
— can  accommodate  2000 — 3000  souls.  It  urgently  reipires  en- 
larging. Over  the  entrances  at  the  gable  ends,  which  open  to  the 
ISr.  and  S.,  is  a  wood-work  representing  the  sun,  with  his  usual 
coiffure  of  yellow  beams,  like  a  Somali's  wig,  or  the  symbol  of  the 
Persian  empire.  The  roof  is  of  shingles :  it  shelters  under  its  pro- 
jecting eaves  a  whole  colony  of  swallows,  and  there  are  four  chim- 
neys— a  number  insufficient  for  warmth  at  one  season,  or  for  ven- 
tilation at  the  other.  The  speaker  or  preacher  stands  on  the  west 
side  of  the  building,  which  is  reserved  for  the  three  highest  dig- 
nities, viz.,  the  First  Presidency, the  "Twelve"  (Apostles),  and  the 
President  of  the  State  of  Zion :  distinguished  strangers  ate  also 
admitted.  Of  late,  as  in  the  old  Quaker  meeting-houses  at  Phila- 
delphia, the  brethren  in  the  Tabernacle  have  been  separated  from 
the  "sistern,"  who  sit  on  the  side  opposite  the  preacher's  left;  and, 
according  to  Gentiles,  it  is  proposed  to  separate  the  Christians  from 
the  Faithful,  that  the  "goa.ts"  may  no  longer  mingle  with  the  sheep. 

Immediately  north  of  the  Tabernacle  is  the  Bowery — in  early 
spring  a  canopy  of  green  leafy  branches,  which  are  left  to  wither 
with  the  year,  supported  on  wooden  posts.  The  interior  will  be 
described  when  we  attend  the  house  of  worship  next  Sunday. 

In  the  extreme  northwest  angle  of  the  block  is  the  Endowment, 
here  pronounced  On-dewment  House,  separated  from  the  Taber- 
nacle by  a  high  wooden  paling.  The  building,  of  which  I  made 
a  pen  and  ink  sketch  from  the  west,  is  of  adobe,  with  a  pent  roof 
and  four  windows,  one  blocked  up :  the  central  and  higher  por- 
tion is  flanked  by  two  wings,  smaller  erections  of  the  same  shape. 
'The  Endowment  House  is  the  place  of  great  medicine,  and  all  ap- 
pertaining to  it  is  carefully  concealed  from  Gentile  eyes  and? ears: 
the  result  is  that  human  saQriflces  arg  _said  to_be  perfprmed  with- 
m.  its  walls.  Mrs.  Smith  and  Mr.  Hyde  have  described  the  mys- 
terious rites  performed  within  these  humble  walls,  but,  for  reasons 
given  before>. there  is  reason  to  doubjuthe-lruth  of  their  descrip- 
tions ;  such  orgies  as  they  describe  could  not  coexist  with  the  re- 
'spectability  which  is  the  law.,Q£jthe  land.  M.  Eemy  has  detailed 
the  programme  with  all  the  exactitude  of  an  eye-witness,  wJiich 
he  was  not.  The  public  declare  that  the  ceremonies  consist  of 
some  show,  which  in  the  Middle  Ages  would  be  called  a  comedy 
or  mystery — possibly  Paradise  Lost  and  Paradise  Eegained — and 
connect  it  with  the  working  of  a  mason's  lodge.  The  respectable 
«  Judge  Phelps,  because  supposed  to  take  the  place  oFtheTather  of 
Sin  when  tempting  Adam  and  Eve,  is  popularly  known  as  "  the 
Devil."  The  two  small  wings  are  said  to  contain  fonts  for  the 
two  sexes,  where  baptism  by  total  immersion  is  performed.  Ac- 
cording to  Gentiles,  the  ceremony  occupies  eleven  or  twelve  hours. 
The  neophyte,  after  bathing,  is  anointed  with  oil,  and  dressed  in 
clean  white  cotton  garments,  cap  and  shirt,  of  which  the  latter  is 


Chap.  IV.         THE  FUTURE  TEMPLE.— IVm.  STENHOUSE.  223 

rarely  removed — Dr.  Richards  saved  his  life  at  the  Carthage  mas- 
sacre by  wearing  it  —  and  a  small  square  masonic  apron,  with 
worked  or  painted  fig-leaves :  he  receives  a  new  name  and  a  dis- 
tino-uishing  grip,  and  is  bound  to  secrecy  by  dreadful  oaths. 
Moreover,  it  is  said  that,  as  in  all  such  societies,  there  are  several 
successive  degrees,  all  of  which  are  not  laid  open  to  initiation  till 
the  Temple  shall  be  finished.  But — as  every  mason  knows — the 
*'  red-hot  poker"  and  other  ideas  concerning  masonic  institutions 
have  prevailed  when  juster  disclosures  have  been  rejected.  Sim- 
ilarly in  the  Mormonic  mystery,  it  is  highly  probable  that,  in  con- 
sequence of  the  conscientious  reserve  of  the  people  upon  a  subject 
which  it  would  be  indelicate  to  broach,  the  veriest  fancies  have 
taken  the  deepest  root. 

The  other  features  of  the  inclosure  are  a  well  near  the  Taber- 
nacle, an  arched  sewer  in  the  western  wall  for  drainage,  and  at 
the  eastern  entrance  a  small  habitation  for  concierge  and  guards. 
The  future  Temple  was  designed  by  an  Anglo-Mormon  architect. 
Mr.  Truman  0.  Angell.  The  plan  is  described  at  full  length  in 
the  Latter-Day  Saints'  "  Millennial  Star,"  December  2,  1854,  and 
drawings,  apparently  copied  from  the  original  in  the  historian's  of- 
fice, have  been  published  at  Liverpool,  besides  the  small  sketches 
in  the  works  of  Mr.  Hyde  and  M.  Remy.  It  is  hardly  worth 
while  here  to  trouble  the  general  reader  with  a  lengthy  descrip- 
tion of  a  huge  and  complicated  pile,  a  syncretism  of  Greek  and 

n-r  Roman,  Gothic  and  Moorish,  not  revealed  like  that  of  Nauvoo, 
T-V*^  but  planned  by  man,:sd3ich  will  probably  never  be  completed.    It 
has  been  transferred  to  the  Appendix  (JNo,  XL),  for  the  benefit  of 
students :  after  briefly  saying  that  the  wHofe  is  symbolical,  and 
that  it  is  intended  to  dazzle,  by  its  ineffable  majesty,  the  behold- 
er's sight,  I  will  repeat  the  architect's  concluding  words,  which 
are  somewhat  in  the  style  of  Parr's  Life  Pills  advertisements : 
"For  other  particulars,  wait  till  the  house  is  done,  then  come  and 
3ee~rt."" 
^After  dining  with  the  governor,  we  sat  under  the  stoop  enjoy- 
ing, as  we  might  in  India,  the  cool  of  the  evening.     Several  visit- 
ors dropped  in,  among  them  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Stenhouse.     He — Elder 
T.  B.  H.  Stenhouse  —  is  a  Scotchman  by  birth,  and  has  passed 
]L  through  the  usual  stages  of  neophyte  (larva),  missionary  (pupa), 

"^  and  elaer  or  Tully-developed  iSamt  (imago).  Aladame  was  from 
Jersey,  spoke  excellent  French,  talked  English  without  nasaliza- 
tion or  cantalenation,  and  showed  a  highly  cultivated  mind.  She 
had  traveled  with  her  husband  on  a  propagandist  tour  to  Switz- 
erland and  Italy,  where,  as  president  of  the  missions  for  three 
years,  he  was  a  "  diligent  and  faithful  laborer  in  the  great  work 
of  the  last  dispensation."  He  became  a  Saint  in  1846,  at  the  age 
of  21 ;  lived  the  usual  life  of  poverty  and  privation,  founded  the 
Southampton  Conference,  converted  a  lawyer  among  other  great 
achievements,  and  propagated  the  Faith  successfully  in  Scotland 


224  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IV. 

as  in  England.  The  conversation  turned — somehow  in  Great  Salt 
Lake  City  it  generally  does — upon  polj'gani}^,  or  rather  plurality, 
which  here  is  the  polite  word,  and  for  the  first  time  I  heard  that 
phase  of  the  family  tie  sensibly,  nay,  learnedly  advocated  on  re- 
ligious grounds  by  f^jr  1ms.  Mr.  Stenhouse  kindly  offered  to  ac- 
comjDany  me  on  the  ftiCJrrow,  as  the  first  hand-cart  train  was  ex- 
pected to  enter,  and  to  point  out  what  might  be  interesting.  I 
saw  Elder_  and_High-Priest  Stenhouse  almost  every  day  during 
my  stay  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  and  found  in  his  society  both 
pleasure  and  profit.  We  of  course  aYoided  those  mysterious 
points,  into  which,  as  an  outsider,  I  had  no  ri^htjp  enter ;  the  el- 
der was  communicative  enough  upon  all  others,  and  freely  gave 
me  leave  to  use  his  information.  The  reader,  however,  will  kind- 
ly bear  in  mind  that,  being  a  strict  Mormon,  Mr.  Stenhouse  could 
enlighten  me  only  upon  one  side  of  the  subject;  his  statements 
were  therefore  carefully  referred  to  the  "other  part;"  moreover, 
as  he  could  never  see  any  but  the  perfections  of  his  system,  the 
blame  of  having  pointed  out  what  I  deem  its  imperfections  is  not 
to  be  charged  upon  him.  His  pow(^r  of  faith  struck  me  much. 
I  had  once  asked  him  whatTecame  of  the  Mormon  Tables  of  the 
Law,  the  Golden  Plates  which,  according  to  the  Gentiles,  were  re- 
moved by  an  angel  after  they  had  done  their  work.  He  replied 
that  he  knew  not ;  that  his  belief  was  independent  of  all  such  ac- 
cidents ;  that  Mormonism  is  and  must  be  true  to  the  exclusion  of 
all  other  systems.  I  saw  before  me  an  instance  how  the  brain  or 
im^iiiiljjiiix-can,  by  mere  force  of  habit  and  application,  imbue 
TtselfwitlLiiiijc-idea. 

Long  after  dark  I  walked  home  alone.  There  were  no  lamps 
in  any  but  Main  Street,  yet  the  city  is  as  safe  as  at  St.  James's 
Sc^are,  London.  There  are  perhaps  not  more  than  twenty-five 
or  thirty  constables  or  policemen  in  the  whole  place,  under  their 
captain,  a  Scotchman,  Mr.  Sharp,  "by  name  as  well  as  nature  so;" 
and  the  guard  on  public  works  is  merely  nominal.  Its  excellent 
order  must  be  referred  to  the  jjerfect  sj'stem  of  private  police,  re- 
sulting from  the  constitution  of  Mormon  society,  which  in  this 
point  resembles  the  caste  system  of  Hindooism.  There  is  no  se- 
cret from  the  head  of  the  Church  and  State ;  every  thing,  from 
the  highest  to  the  lowest  detail  of  private  and  public  life,  must  be 
brought  to  the  ear  and  submitted  to  the  judgment  of  the  father- 
confessor-in-chief.  Gentiles  often  declare  that  the  Prophet  is  ac- 
q^uainted  with  their  £very..word  half  an  hour  afterltls' spok'en : 
and  from  certain  indices,  into  which  I  hardly  need  enter,  my  opin- « 
ion  is  that,  allowing  something  for  exaggeration,  they  are  not  very 
■  far  wrong.  In  London  and  Paris  the  foreigner  is  subjected,  though 
perTiaps  lie  may  not  know  it,  to  the  same  surveillance,  and  till 
lately  his  letters  were  liable  to  be  opened  at  the  Post-office.  We 
can  not,  then,  wonder  that  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  a  stranger, 
before  proving  himself  at  the  least  to  be  harmless,  should  begin 
by  being  an  object  of  suspicion. 


Chap.  IV.  A  MURDER.— SAFETY  OF  THE  CITY.  225 

On  Monday,  as  the  sun  was  sloping  toward  the  east,  Mr.  Sten- 
house  called  to  let  me  know  that  the  train  had  already  issued 
from  Emigration  Kanyon ;  no  time  to  spare.  We  set  out  together 
*'  down  town"  at  once.  Near  the  angle  of  Main  Street  I  was 
shown  the  place  where  a  short  time  before  my  arrival  a  curious 
murder  was  committed.  Two  men,  named  Johnston  and  Brown, 
mauvais  svjets^  who  had  notoriously  been  guilty  of  foro-ery  and 
horse-stealing,  were  sauntering  home  one  fine  evening,  when  both 
fell  with  a  bullet  to  each,  accurately  placed  under  the  heart-arm. 
The  bodies  were  carried  to  the  court-house,  which  is  here  the 
morgue  or  dead-house,  to  be  exposed,  as  is  the  custom,  for  a  time: 
the  citizens,  when  asked  if  they  suspected  who  did  the  deed,  inva- 
riably replied,  with  a  philosophical  sangfroid,  that,  in  the  first 
place,  they  didn't  know,  and,  secondly,  that  they  didn't  care.  Of 
course  the  Gentiles  hinted  that  life  had  been  taken  by  "  counsel" 
— that  is  to  say,  by  the  secret  orders  of  Mr.  Brigham  Young  and 
his  Vehm.  But,  even  had  such  been  the  case — of  course  it  was 
the  merest  suspicion — such  a  process  would  not  have  been  very 
repugnant  to  that  wild  huntress,  the  Themis  of  the  Eocky  Mount- 
ains. In  a  place  where,  among  much  that  is  honest  and  respect- 
able, there  are  notable  exceptions,  this  wild,  unflinching,  and  un- 
erring justice,  secret  and  sudden,  is  the  rod  of  iron  which  protects 
the  good.  During  rny  residence  at  the  Mormon  City  not  a  single 
murder  was,  to  the  best  of  my  belief,  committed :  the  three  days 
which  I  spent  at  Christian  Carson  City  witnessed  three.  Moreover, 
from  the  Mississippi  to  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  I  noticed  that  the 
crimes  were  for  the  most  part  of  violence,  openly  and  unskillfully 
committed;  the  arsenic,  strychnine,  and  other  dastardly  poisonings 
of  Europe  are  apparently  unknown,  although  they  might  be  used 
easily  and  efiiciently  with  scant  chance  of  detection.  That  white 
emigrants  have  sometimes  wiped  off  the  Indian,  as  the  English 
settler  settled  with  corrosive  sublimate  the  hapless  denizen  of  the 
great  Southern  Continent,  is  scarcely  to  be  doubted ;  at  the  same 
time,  it  must  be  owned  that  they  have  rarely  tried  that  form  of 
assassination  upon  one  another. 

As  we  issued  from  the  city,  we  saw  the  smoke-like  column 
which  announced  that  the  emigrants  were  crossing  the  bench- 
land;  and  people  were  hurrying  from  all  sides  to  greet  and  to  get 
news  of  friends.  Presently  the  carts  came.  All  the  new  arrivals 
were  in  clean  clothes,  the  men  washed  and  shaved,  and  the  girls, 
who  were  singing  hymns,  habited  in  Sunday  dresses.  The  com- 
pany was  sunburned,  but  looked  well  and  thoroughly  happy,  and 
few,  except  the  very  young  and  the  very  old,  who  suffer  most  on 
such  journeys,  troubled  the  wains.  They  marched  through  clouds 
of  dust  over  the  sandy  road  leading  up  the  eastern  portion  of  the 
town,  accompanied  by  crowds,  some  on  foot,  others  on  horseback, 
and  a  few  in  traps  and  other  "locomotive  doin's,"  sulkies,  and 
buckboards.     A  few  youths  of  rather  a  rowdyish  appearance 


226  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  TV. 

were  mounted  in  all  the  tawdriness  of  Western  trappings — Rocky 
Mountain  hats,  tall  and  broad,  or  steeple-crowned  felts,  covering 
their  scalp-locks,  embroidered  buckskin  garments,  huge  leggins, 
with  caterpillar  or  millepede  fringes,  red  or  rainbow-colored  flan- 
nel shirts,  gigantic  spurs,  bright-hilted  pistols,  and  queer-sheathed 
knives  stuck  in  red  sashes  with  gracefully  depending  ends.  The 
jeunesse  doree  of  the  Valley  Tan  was  easily  distinguished  from  im- 
ported goods  by  the  perfect  ease  with  which  they  sat  and  man- 
aged their  animals.  Around  me  were  all  manner  of  familiar 
faces — heavy  English  mechanics,  discharged  soldiers,  clerks,  and 
agricultural  laborers,  a  few  German  students,  farmers,  husband- 
men, and  peasants  from  Scandinavia  and  Switzerland,  and  corre- 
spondents and  editors,  bishops,  apostles,  and  other  dignitaries  from 
the  Eastern  States.  When  the  train  reached  the  public  square — 
at  Great  Salt  Lake  City  the  '"squares"  are  hollow  as  in  England, 
not  solid  as  in  the  States — of  the  8th  ward,  the  wagons  were 
ranged  in  line  for  the  final  ceremony.  Before  the  invasion  of  the 
army  the  First  President  made  a  point  of  honoring  the  entrance 
of  hand-cart  trains  (but  these  only)  by  a  greeting  in  person.  Of 
late  he  seldom  leaves  his  house  except  for  the  Tabernacle :  when 
inclined  for  a  picnic,  the  day  and  the  hour  are  kept  secret.  It  is 
said  that  Mr.  Brigham  Young,  despite  his  jDOwerful  will  and  high 
moral  courage,_does  not  show  the  remarkable  personal  intrejpidity 
of  Mr.  Joseph  Smith :  his  followers  deny  this,  but  it  rests  on^  the 
best  and  fairest_  Gentile  evidence.  He  has  guards  at  his  gates, 
and  he  never  appears  in  public  unattended  by  friends  and  follow- 
ers, who  are  of  course  armed.  That  such  a  mental  anomaly  often 
exists,  those  familiar  with  the  biographies  of  the  Brahmin  officials 
at  the  courts  of  Poonah,  Sattara,  and  other  places  in  India,  well 
know :  many  a  "  Pant,"  whose  reckless  audacity  in  intrigue  con- 
ducted under  imminent  danger  of  life  argued  the  courage  of  a 
Coeur  de  Lion,  was  personally  fearful  as  Hobbes,  and  displayed 
at  the  death  the  terrors  of  Robespierre.  A  moment  of  fear  is  re- 
counted of  St.  Peter;  Erasmus  was  not  the  stuff  of  which  martyrs 
are  made,  and  even  the  beau  sahreur  once  ran.  However,  in  the 
case  of  the  Prophet  there  is  an  absolute  necessity  for  precautions : 
as  Gentiles  have  themselves  owned  to  me,  many  a  ruffian,  if  he 
found  an  opportunity,  would,  from  pure  love  of  notoriety,  even 
without  stronger  incentive,  try  his  revolver  or  his  bowie-knife 
upon  the  "  Big  Mormon." 

On  this  occasion  the  place  of  Mr.  Brigham  Young  was  taken 
by  President  Bishop  Hunter,  a  Pennsylvanian,  whom  even  the 
most  fanatic  and  intentionally  evil-speaking  anti-Mormon  must 
regard  with  respect.  Preceded  by  a  brass  band — "  this  people" 
delight  in 

"  Sonorous  metal  blowing  martial  sounds" — 

and  accompanied  by  the  City  Marshal,  he  stood  up  in  his  convey- 
ance, and,  calling  up  the  Captains  of  Companies,  shook  hands  with 


Chap.  IV.  SAINTS'  NAMES.— A  "GOWK."  227 

them  and  proceeded  forthwitli  to  business.  In  a  short  time  ar- 
rangements were  made  to  house  and  employ  all  who  re(;[uired 
work,  whether  men  or  women.  IXaving  read  certain  oifensive 
accounts  about  "girl-hunting  elders,"  "gray-headed  gallants,"  and 
"ogling  apostles,"  I  was  somewhat  surprised  to  see  that  every 
thing  was  conducted  with  the  greatest  decorum.  The  Gentiles, 
however,  declare  that  Mr.  Brigham  Young  and  the  high  dignita- 
ries have  issued  an  order  against  "  pre-emption"  on  the  part  of 
their  followers,  who  escort  and  accompany  the  emigrant  trains 
across  the  prairies. 

Mr.  Stenhouse  circulated  freely  among  the  crowd,  and  intro- 
duced me  to  many  whose  names  I  do  not  remember ;  in  almost 
every  case  the  introduction  was  followed  by  some  invitation.  He 
now  exchanged  a  word  with  this  "brother,"  then  a  few  sentences 
with  that  "  sister,"  carefully  suppressing  the  Mr.  and  Madam  of  the 
Eastern  States.  The  fraternal  address  gives  a  patriarchal  and 
somewhat  Oriental  flavor  to  Mormon  converse ;  like  other  things, 
however,  it  is  apt  to  run  into  extremes.  If  a  boy  in  the  streets 
be  asked,  "What's  your  name?"  he  will  reply — if  he  condescends 
to  do  so — "I'm brother  such-and-such's  son."  In  order  to  distin- 
guish children  of  different  mothers,  it  is  usual  to  prefix  the  ma- 
ternal to  the  paternal  parent's  name,  suppressing  the  given  or 
Christian  name  of  monogamic  lands.  Thus,  for  instance,  my  sons 
by  Miss  Brown,  Miss  Jones,  and  Miss  Eobinson,  would  call  them- 
selves Brother  Brown  Burton,  Brother  Jones  Burton,  and  so  on. 
The  Saints — even  the  highest  dignitaries — wave  the  Reverend  and 
the  ridiculous  Esquire;  that  "title  much  in  use  among  vulgar 
people,"  which  in  Old  and  New  England  applies  to  every  body, 
gentle  or  simple,  has  not  yet  extended  to  Great  Salt  Lake  City. 
'rja.G  Mormon  pontifp  and  thp.  pminences  araundhim^-are^-simply 
Brother  or  Mister^ — they  have  the  substance,  and  they  disdain.the 
shadow  of  power.  ^?i  revanche,  among  the  crowd  there  are  as 
many  colonels* and  majors — about  ten  being  the  proportion  to  one 
captain — as  in  the  days  when  Mrs.  Trollope  set  the  Mississippi  on 
fire.  Sister  is  applied  to  women  of  all  ages,  thus  avoiding  the 
difficulty  of  addressing  a  dowager,  as  in  the  Eastern  States,  Mad- 
am, in  contradistinction  to  Mrs.,  her  daughter-in-law,  or,  what  is 
worse,  of  calling  her  after  the  English  way,  old  Mrs.  A.,  or,  Scoitich, 
Mrs.  A.  senior. 

The  dress  of  the  fair  sex  has,  I  observed,  already  become  pe- 
culiar. The  article  called  in  Cornwall  a  "gowk,"  in  other  parts 
of  England  a  "cottage  bonnet,"  and  in  the  United  States  a  "sun- 
bonnet,"  is  here  universally  used,  with  the  difference,  however, 
that  the  Mormons  provide  it  with  a  long  thick  veil  behind,  which 
acts  like  a  cape  or  shawl.  A  loose  jacket  and  a  petticoat,  mostly 
of  calico  or  of  some  inexpensive  stuff,  compose  the  tout  visible. 
The  wealthier  affect  silks,  especially  black.  The  merchants  are 
careful  to  keep  on  hand  a  large  stock  of  fancy  goods,  millinery, 


228  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IV. 

and  other  feminine  adornments.  Love  of  dress  is  no  accident  in 
the  mental  organization  of  that  sex  which  some  one  called  ^i^jov 
<j)iXok6(t/jiov  ;  the  essential  is  a  pleasing  foible,  in  which  the  semi- 
nude  savage  and  the  crinolined  "  civilizee,"  the  nun  and  Quaker- 
ess, the  sinner  and  the  saint,  the  hiche,  the  j)etite  mattresse,  and  the 
grande  dame,  all  meet  for  once  in  their  lives  pretty  much  on  a  par, 
and  on  the  same  ground.  Great  Salt  Lake  City  contains  three 
"millinery  stores,"  besides  thirteen  of  dry  goods  and  two  of  fancy 
goods,  or  varieties;  and  some  exchange  their  merchandise  for 
grain. 

The  contrast  oi physique  between  the  new  arrivals  and  the  older 
colonists,  especially  those  born  in  the  vicinity  of  the  prairies,  was 
salient.  While  the  fresh  importations  were  of  that  solid  and 
sometimes  clumsy  form  and  dimensions  that  characterize  the  En- 
glish at  home — where  '*  beauty  is  seldom  found  in  cottages  or 
workshops,  even  when  no  real  hardships  are  suffered" — the  others 
had  much  of  the  delicacy  of  figure  and  complexion  which  distin- 
guishes the  American  women  of  the  United  States.  Physiologists 
may  perhaps  doubt  so  rapid  and  perceptible  an  operation  of  cli- 
mate, but  India  proves  clearly  enough  that  a  very  few  years  suffice 
to  deteriorate  form  and  color,  especially  in  the  weaker  half  of  hu- 
manity ;  why,  then,  should  we  think  it  impossible  that  a  climate 
of  extremes,  an  air  of  exceeding  purity  and  tenuity,  and  an  arid 
position  4000  feet  above  sea  level,  can  produce  the  opposite  results 
in  as  short  a  space  of  time  ?  But,  whether  my  theory  sl^nd  or  fall, 
the  fact  remains  the  same.  I  remarked  to  my  companion  the 
change  from  the  lymphatic  and  the  sanguine  to  the  bilious-nervous 
and  the  purely  nervous  temperament,  and  admired  its  results,  the 
fining  down  of  redundancy  in  wrist,  ankle,  and  waist,  the  superior 
placidness  and  thoughtfulness  of  expression,  and  the  general  ap- 
pearance of  higher  caste  blood.  I  could  not  but  observe  in  those 
born  hereabouts  the  noble  regular  features,  the  lofty,  thoughtful 
brow,  the  clear,  transparent  complexion,  the  long  silk}'-  hair,  and, 
greatest  charm  of  all,  the  soft  smile  of  the  American  woman  when 
she  does  smile.  He  appeared  surprised,  and  said  that  most  other 
Gentiles  had  explained  the  thinness  of  form  and  reflective  look 
by  the  perpetual  fretting  of  the  fair  under  the  starveling  regime 

of  polygamy.     The  belle  of  the  crowd  was  Miss  Sally  A' ,  the 

daughter  of  a  lawyer,  and  of  course  a  ci  devant  judge.  Strict  Mor- 
mons, however,  rather  wag  the  head  at  this  pretty  person ;  she  is 
supposed  to  prefer  Gentile  and  heathenish  society,  and  it  is  whis- 
pered against  her  that  she  has  actually  vowed  never  to  marry  a 
Saint. 

I  "queried"  of  my  companion  how  the  new  arrivals  usually 
behave  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  when  the  civilization,  or  rather 
the  humanization  of  a  voyage,  a  long  journey,  and  the  sense  of 
helplessness  caused  by  new  position,  have  somewhat  mitigated 
their  British  bounce  and  self-esteem.     "  Pretty  well,"  he  replied ; 


CuAT.  IV.  AN  ILLUSTRATION.— THEATRICALS.  229 

"  all  expect  to  be  at  the  top  of  the  tree  at  once,  and  they  find  them- 
selves in  the  wrong  box ;  no  man  gets  on  here  by  pushing ;  he 
begins  at  the  lowest  seat ;  a  new  hand  is  not  trusted ;  he  is  first 
sent  on  mission,  then  married,  and  then  allowed  to  rise  higher  if 
he  shows  himself  useful."     This  bore  a  cachet  of  truth : 

Les  sots  sont  im  peiiple  nombreux, 

Trouvant  toutes  choscs  faciles ; 
II  faut  Ic  leiir  passer ;  soiivent  ils  sont  lieureux, 

Grand  motif  de  se  croire  habiles. 

{LAne  et  la  Flute.) 

Many  of  these  English  emigrants  have  passed  over  the  plains 
without  knowing  that  they  are  in  the  United  States,  and  look 
upon  Mr.  Brigham  Young  much  as  Eoman  Catholics  of  the  last 
generation  regarded  the  Pope.  The  Welsh,  Danes,  and  Swedes 
have  been  seen  on  the  transit  to  throw  away  their  blankets  and 
warm  clothing,  from  a  conviction  that  a  gay  summer  reigns 
throughout  the  year  in  Zion.  The  mismanagement  of  the  inex- 
perienced travelers  has  become  a  matter  of  Joe  Miller.  An  old 
but  favorite  illustration,  told  from  the  Mississippi  to  California,  is 
this :  A  man  rides  up  to  a  standing  wagon,  and  seeing  a  wretch- 
ed-looking lad  nursing  a  starving  baby,  asks  him  what  the  mat- 
ter may  be:  "  Wal,  now,"  responds  the  youth,  "guess  I'm  kinder 
streakt  —  ole  dad's  drunk,  ole  marm's  in  hy-sterics,  brother  Jim 
be  playing  poker  with  two  gamblers,  sister  Sal's  down  yonder  a' 
courtin'  with  an  in-tire  stranger,  this  'ere  baby's  got  the  diaree, 
the  team's  clean  guv  out,  the  wagon's  broke  down,  it's  twenty 

miles  to  the  next  water,  I  don't  care  a if  I  never  see  Cali- 

forny," 

We  returned  homeward  by  the  States  Eoad,  in  which  are  two 
of  the  principal  buildings.  On  the  left  is  the  Council  Hall  of  the 
Seventies,  an  adobe  tenement  of  the  usual  barn  shape,  fifty  feet 
long  by  thirty  internally,  used  for  the  various  purposes  of  delib- 
eration, preaching,  and  dancing ;  I  looked  through  the  windows, 
and  saw  that  it  was  hung  with  red.  It  is  a  provisional  building, 
used  until  a  larger  can  be  erected.  A  little  beyond  the  Seven- 
ties' Hall,  and  on  the  other  side  of  the  road,  was  the  Social  Hall, 
the  usual  scene  of  Mormon  festivities ;  it  resembled  the  former, 
but  it  was  larger — 73  x  33  feet — and  better  furnished.  The  gay 
season  had  not  arrived ;  I  lost,  therefore,  an  opportunity  of  see- 
ing the  beauty  and  fashion  of  Great  Salt  Lake  City  in  ballroom 
toilette,  but  I  heard  enough  to  convince  me  that  the  Saints,  though 
grave  and  ur^'ovinl,  are  a  highly  socinblp,  people.  "They  delight 
in  sleighing  and  in  private  theatricals,  and  boast  of  some  good 
amateur  actors,  among  whom  Messrs.  B.  Snow,  H.  B.  Clawson, 
and  W.  C.  Dunbar  are  particularly  mentioned.  Sir  E.  L.  Bulwer 
will  perhaps  be  pleased  to  hear  that  the  "Lady  of  Lyons"  ex- 
cited more  furore  here  than  even  in  Europe.  It  is  intended,  as 
soon  as  funds  can  be  collected,  to  build  a  theatre  which  will  vie 


230  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IV. 

with  those  of  the  Old  Countrj^  Dancing  seems  to  be  considered 
an  edifying  exercise.  The  Prophet  dances,  the  Apostles  dance, 
the  Bishops  dance.  A  professor  of  this  branch  of  the  fine  arts 
would  thrive  in  Zion,  where  the  most  learned  of  pedagogues 
would  require  to  eke  out  a  living  after  the  fashion  of  one  Aristo- 
cles,  surnamed  the  "  broad-shouldered."  The  saltation  is  not  in 
the  languid,  done-up  style  that  polite  Europe  affects ;  as  in  the 
days  of  our  grandparents,  "positions"  are  maintained,  steps  are 
elaborately  executed,  and  a  somewhat  severe  muscular  exercise 
is  the  result.  I  confess  to  a  prejudice  against  dancing  after  the 
certain,  which  we  are  told  is  the  uncertain,  epoch  of  life,  and  have 
often  joined  in  the  merriment  excited  among  French  folks  by  the 
aspect  of  some  bald-headed  and  stiff-jointed  "Anglais"  mingling 
crabbed  age  with  joyful  youth  in  a  public  ball.  Yet  there  is  high 
authority  for  perseverance  in  the  practice :  David  danced,  we  are 
told,  with  all  his  might,  and  Scipio,  according  to  Seneca,  was  wont 
thus  to  exercise  his  heroic  limbs. 

Besides  the  grand  fetes  at  the  Social  Hall  and  other  subscrip- 
tion establishments,  there  are  "  Ward  Parties,"  and  "  Elders' 
Weekly  Cotillon  Parties,"  where  possibly  the  seniors  dance  to- 
gether, as  the  Oxford  dons  did  drill— in  private.  Polkas,  as  at 
the  court  of  St.  James's,  are  disapproA^ed  of  It  is  generally  as- 
serted that  to  the  New  Faith  Terpsichore  owes  a  fresh  form  of 
worship,  the  Mormon  cotillon— alias  quadrille — in  which  the  cav- 
alier leads  out,  characteristically,  two  dames.  May  I  not  be  al- 
lowed to  recommend  the  importation  of  this  decided  improve- 
ment into  Leamington  and  other  watering-places,  where  the  pro- 
portion of  the  sexes  at  "hops"  rarely  exceeds  one  to  seven? 

The  balls  at  the  Social  Hall  are  highly  select,  and  are  con- 
ducted on  an  expensive  scale ;  invitations  are  issued  on  embossed 
bordered  and  gilt-edged  white  paper,  say  to  75 — 80  of  the  elite^ 
including  a  few  of  the  chief  Gentiles.  The  ticket  is  in  this  form 
and  style : 


^ilS^^^    il^    S<J><SS«^a    S2iia5S>;, 


Mr and  Ladies  are  respectfully  invited  to  attend  a 

Party  at  the  SOCIAL  YLXLL, 

ON    TUESDAY,   FEBRUARY    7,  1860. 

Tickets,  $10  {£2)  per  Couple. 

Mayor  A.  0.  SMOOT,   )  ,, 
Marshal  J.  C.  LITTLE,)  Managers. 

Committee  of  Slrrangemcnts. 

WrujAM  C.  Staines,  I     William  Eddingtos,  j     John  T.  Caixe, 
H.  B.  ClAWSON,  I      EOBEBT  T.  BlTETON,        |      David  Candlant). 

Great  Salt  Lake  City, 
Feb.  1, 1800. 


Cnxr.  IV.  THE  SUPPER.— DANCING.  231 

The  $10  tickets  -will  admit  only  one  lady  with  the  gentleman ; 
for  all  extra  $2  each  must  be  paid.  In  the  less  splendid  fetes 
$2  50  would  be  the  total  price.  Premiums  are  olBfered  when  the 
time  draws  nigh,  but  space  is  limited,  and  many  a  Jacob  is  shorn 
of  his  glory  by  appearing  with  only  Eaclieljor^a  toliowerj  and 
without  his  train  of  Leahs,  Zilpahs,  and JBinahsT 

An  account  of  the  last  ball  may  be  abridged.  The  hall  was 
tastefully  and  elegantly  decorated;  the  affecting  motto,  "Our 
Mountain  Home,"  conspicuouly  placed  among  hangings  and  eyer- 
greens,  was  highly  eflfectiye.  At  4  P.M.  the  Prophet  and  ex- 
President  entered,  and  "order  was  called."  (N.B. — Might  not 
this  be  tried  to  a  purpose  in  a  London  ball-room  ?)  Ascending 
a  kind  of  platform,  with  uplifted  hands  he  blessed  those  present. 
Farther  East  I  have  heard  of  the  reyerse  being  done,  especially  by 
the  maitre  du  logis.  He  then  descended  to  the  boards  and  led 
off  the  first  cotillon.  At  8  P.M.  supper  was  announced;  covers 
for  250  persons  had  been  laid  by  Mr.  Candland,  "  mine  host"  of 
"  The  Globe."  On  the  following  page  will  be  found  the  list  of 
the  somewhat  substantial  goodies  that  formed  the  carte. 

It  will  be  observed  that  the  cuisine  in  Utah  Territory  has  some 
novelties,  sugIuls  bear  and  beaver.  The  former  meat  is. n  favor- 
ite throughout  theJ^Jest^  especial ly  when  the  animal  is  fresh  from 
feeding ;  after  hibernation  it  is  harcl  and  lean.  In  tbe  Himalayas 
many  a  sportsman,  after  mastering  an  artificial  aversion  to  eat 
bear's  grease,  has  enjoyed  a  grill  of  "cuffy."  The  paws,  which 
not  a  little  resemble  the  human  hand,  are  excellent — exi:)erio  crede. 
I  can  not  pronounce  ex  catliedm  upon  beavers'  tails;  there  is  no 
reason,  however,  why  they  should  be  inferior  to  the  appendage 
of  a  Cape  sheep.  "Slaw" — according  to  my  informants — is  &y- 
nonymous  with  sauer-kraut.  Mountain,  Pioneer,  and  Snowballs 
are  unknown  to  me,  except  by  their  names,  which  are  certainly 
patriotic,  if  not  descriptive. 

After  supper  dancing  was  resumed  with  spirit,  and  in  its  inter- 
vals popular  songs  and  duets  were  performed  by  the  best  musi- 
cians. The  "  finest.party  of  the  sgason"  ended  as  it  begany-adth 
prayer  and  benediction,  at  5  A.M. — thirteen. successive  mortal 
nours — it  shows  a  solid  power  of  en3"un^_enJQyjTTgnjgj_^  "TUid, 
'      ^~"    '    "   waync 


probably,  the  revelers  wended  their  waynome  chanting  some 
kind  of  national  hymn  like  this,  to  the  tune  of  the  "Ole  K^itucky 
shore:" 

"Let  the  chorus  still  be  sung, 
^  V  LotiR  live  Brother  Brigham  Young. 

"*  And  blessed  be  the  Vale  of  Deseret — ret — ret ! 

And  blessed  be  the  Vale  of  Deseret. " 

Returning  to  the  hotel,  we  found  the  justiciary  and  the  official 
party  safely  arrived ;  they  had  been  delayed  three  days  at  Foot 
of  Ridge  Station,  but  they  could  not  complain  of  the  pace  at  which 
they  came  in.     The  judge  was  already  in  confab  with  a  Pennsyl- 


232 


THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 


Chap.  IV. 


TERRITORIAL    AND    CIVIL    BALL, 

SOCIAL  HALL,  Februakt  7,  1860. 


BILL    OF    FAltE. 


jfixst 

Course. 

SOUPS. 

Oyster, 

Vermicelli, 

Ox-tail, 

Vegetable. 

Secontf 

Course. 

MEATS. 

Roast. 

Boiled. 

Beef, 

Sugar-corned  beef, 

Mutton, 

Mutton, 

Mountain  Mutton 

Chickens, 

Bear, 

Ducks, 

Elk, 

Tripe, 

Deer, 

Turkey, 

Chickens, 

Ham, 

Ducks, 

Trout, 

Turkeys. 

Salmon. 

STEWS   AND 

FRICASSEES. 

Oysters  and  Ox  Tongues, 

Chickens, 

Beaver  Tails, 

Ducks, 

Collard  Head, 

Turkeys. 

VEGETABLES. 

Boiled. 

Baked. 

Potatoes, 

Potatoes, 

Cabbage  (i.  e.,  greens). 

Parsnips, 

Parsnips, 

Beans. 

Cauliflower, 

Slaw. 

Hominy. 

Stfrt 

Course. 

Paf:trp. 

Puddings. 

Mince  Pies, 

Custards, 

Green  Apple  Pie, 

Eice, 

Pineapple  Pie, 

English  Plum, 

Quince  Jelly  Pie, 

Apple  Souffle', 

Peach  Jelly  Pie, 

Mountain, 

Currant  Jelly  Pie 

Pioneer. 

Blancmange. 

Jellies. 

iFoutti) 

Course. 

Caken. 

Fniits. 

Pound, 

Kaisins, 

Sponge, 

Grapes, 

Gipsy, 

Apples, 

Varieties. 

Snowballs. 

Candies. 

Nuts. 

Tea. 

Coflfee. 

Chap.  IV.  RELIGIOUS  ACRIMONY.— CLIQUISM.  233 

vanian  compatriot,  Colonel  S.  C.  Stambaugh,  of  the  Militia,  Sur- 
veyor General  of  Utah  Territory.  This  gentleman  is  no  great 
favorite  with  the  Saints :  they  accuse  him  of  a  too  great  skillful- 
ness  in  "  mixing" — cocktails,  for  instance — and  a  degree  of  gen- 
eral joviality  that  swears  {qui  jure)  with  the  grave  and  reverend 
seigniory  around  him.  His  crime,  it  appears  to  me,  chiefly  con- 
sists in  holding  a  fat  appointment.  I  need  hardly  say  that  at 
Great  Salt  Lake  City  party  feeling  rises  higher,  perhaps,  than  in 
any  other  small  place,  because  rehgious  acrimony  is  superadded 
to  the  many  conflicting  interests,'  Every  man's  concerns  are  his 
neighbor's;  no  one,  apparently,  ever  heard  of  that  person  who 
''became  immensely  rich" — to  quote  an  Americanism — by  "mind- 
ing his  own  business,"  As  often  happens,  religion  is  made,  like 
slavery  in  the  Eastern  States  and  opium  in  China,  the  cheval  de 
haiaille ;  the  root  of  the  quarrel  must  be  sought  deeper;  in  other 
words,  interest,  and  interest  only,  is  the  Tisiphone  that  shakes  the 
brand  of  war.  As  Mormonism  grows,  its  frame  becomes  more 
strongly  knit.  Thus  the  Gentile  merchants,  who  have  made  frorg 
l:;jO~to  QUO  per  cent,  on  capital,  were,  at  the  time_  ofm^jyjsit^pre- 
paring  to  sell  off,  because  they  tound  the  conibination  against  them 
overpowering.  For  the  most  part  they  vowprl  t.hnt  thprp.  is  no 
people  with  whom  they  would  rather  do  business.  thacLJlith  the 
Mormons:  praised  their  honesty  and  punctuality  in  payments, 
ahJeompared  them  advantageously  in  siT^h^majters_with  those 
oTthft  olnpr  faith.  Tat,  they  hnd  resolved  to  remove.  The  total 
number  of  Gentiles  in  the  city  is^  probably  not  more  than  300,  a 
small  proportion  to  a  body  of  at  least  9000,  ' " 

A  stranger,  especially  an  official,  is  kindly  warned,  on  his  first 
arrival  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  of  its  inveterate  cliquism,  and  is 
amicably  advised  to  steer  a  middle  course,  without  turning  to  the 
right  or  to  the  left,  between  the  Scylla  and  Charybdis  of  Chris- 
tianity and  Mormonism,  This  mezzo-termine  may  be  j)ossible  in 
ofl&cial  matters ;  in  society  it  is  not.  I  soon  saw  that,  though  a 
traveler  on  the  wing  might  sit  alternately  in  the  tents  of  Shem 
and  Japhet,  a  resident  would  soon  be  obliged  to  dwell  exclusively 
in  either  one  or  the  other.  When  Gentile  and  Mormon  meet, 
they  either  maintain  a  studied  or  surly  silence,  or  they  enter  into 
a  dialogue  which,  on  a  closer  acquaintance  with  its  formation, 
proves  to  be  a  conglomerate  of  "rile"  and  "knagg" — an  unpleas- 
ant predicament  for  those  en  tiers.  Such,  at  least,  was  my  short 
experience,  and  I  believe  that  of  my  companions. 

Colonel  Stambaugh,  a  day  or  two  after  the  introduction,  offered 
to  act  cicerone  through  the  settlement,  and  I  was  happy  to  accept 
his  kindness.  One  fine  evening  we  drove  along  the  Tooele  Eoad 
westward,  and  drank  of  the  waters  of  the  New  Jordan,  which,  to 
the  unregenerate  palate,  tasted,  I  must  say,  somewhat  brackish 
and  ill-flavored.  The  river  is  at  this  season  about  one  hundred 
feet  broad,  and  not  too  deep  below  its  banks  to  be  useless  for  irri- 


234  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IV. 

gation,  which,  as  the  city  increases,  will  doubtless  be  extended. 
It  is  spanned  by  a  wooden  bridge  so  rickety  that  it  shakes  with 
a  child's  tread — the  governor  has  urgently  but  unavailingly  rep- 
resented the  necessity  of  reconstruction.  But,  although  the  true 
"Western,  or  rather  Keltic  recklessness  of  human  life — which  con- 
trasts so  strongly  with  the  sanctity  attached  to  it  by  the  old  Ro- 
man and  the  modern  Anglo-Scandinavian — here  still  displays  it- 
self, in  some  points  there  is  no  disregard  for  improvement.  Mr. 
Brigham_Young  has  seen  the  evils  of  disforesting  the  land,  and 
the  want  of  plantations ;  he  has  lately  contracted  for  planting, 
near  Jordan  and  elsewhere,  a  million,  of-y-mi^tm-trees  at  jthe  rate 
of  one.£eiit-each.  On  the  way  we  saw  several  fine  Durhams  and 
Devons,  which  are  driven  out  every  morning  and  back  every  even- 
ing under  the  charge  of  a  boy,  who  receives  one  and  a  half  cent 
^er  mensem  a  head.  The  aninmla  have  been-.brxaightJicross  the 
prairies  at  great  trouble  and  expense :  stock-breeding  is  one  of  the 
Prophet's  usefulTiobbies,  and  the  difference  between  the  cattle  in 
Utah  Territory  and  the  old  Spanish  herds  still  seen  in  the  coun- 
try parts  of  California  is  remarkable.  The  land,  as  will  presently 
appear,  is  better  calculated  for  grazing  than  for  agriculture,  and  a 
settlement  of  500  souls  rarely  has  less  thaii'iiQQ_head  of  cattle. 

Returningfi'om  Jordan,  we  re-entered  the  city  bytEe  western^ 
road,  and  drove  through  Mr.  Brigham  Young's  block  toward  the 
Northern  Kanj^on.  The  gateway  was  surmounted  by  a  plaster 
group,  consisting  of  a  huge  vulturine  eagle,  perched,  with  wings 
outspread,  neck  bended  as  if  snufiing  the  breeze  of  carrion  from 
afar,  and  talons  clinging  upon  a  yellow  bee-hive — a  most  uncom- 
fortable and  unnatural  position  for  the  poor  animal.  The  device 
is  doubtless  highly  sj^mbolical,  emblematical,  tyj^ical — in  fact,  ev- 
ery thing  but  appropriate  and  commonscnsical.  The  same,  how- 
ever, may  be  said  of  one  of  the  most  picturesque  ensigns  in  the 
civilized  world — what  have  stars  to  do  with  stripes  or  stripes  with 
stars  ?  It  might  be  the  device  of  the  British  or  Austrian  soldier 
—  only  in  their  case,  unlike  the  flag  of  the  United  States,  the 
stripes  should  be  many  aild  the  stars  few.  En  j^cisscmi  we  re- 
marked a  kind  of  guard-room  at  the  eastern  doorway  of  the  White 
House — a  presidential  title  which  the  house  of  prophecy  in  New 
Zion  shares  with  the  house  of  politication"^  at  Washington :  my 
informants  hinted  that,  in  case  of  an  assault  upon  head-quarters 
by  roughs,  marshals,  or  other  officials,  fifty  rifles  could  at  once  be 
brought  to  bear  upon  the  spot,  and  1000  after  the  first  hour.  On 
the  eastern  side  of  the  compound  were  the  stables ;  a  lamb  in  ef- 
figy surmounted  the  entrance,  and  meekly  reposed  under  the  hu- 
mane injunction,  "Take  care  of  your  flocks."  Beyond  this  point 
lay  a  number  of  decrepit  emigi-ant  wagons,  drawn  up  to  form  a 
fence,  a  young  plantation  of  fruitless  peaches,  and  the  remnants 
of  the  falling  wall, 

*  Thft  Western  press  uses  to  "politicatc,"  v.  n.  to  make  a  trade  of  politics,  and 
the  participle  politicating — why  not,  then,  politication  ? 


Chap.  IV.  BRIGHAM'S  KANYON.— UTAH  LIBRARY.  235 

"We  then  struck  into  "City,"  usually  known  as  "Brigham's" 
Kanj^on,  the  Prophet  having  a  saw-mill  upon  the  upper  course. 
It  is  the  normal  deep  narrow  gorge,  with  a  beautiful  little  stream, 
which  is  drawn  off  by  raised  water-courses  at  different  altitudes 
to  supply  the  settlement.  The  banks  are  margined  with  dwarf 
oaks  and.  willows ;  limestone,  sandstone,  and  granite,  all  of  fine 
building  quality,  lie  scattered  about  in  profusion,  while  high  above 
rise  the  acclivities  of  the  gash,  thinly  sprinkled  with  sage  and  sun- 
flower. Artemisia  in  this  part  improves  like  the  population  in 
appearance,  nor  is  it  always  a  sign  of  sterility ;  in  parts  wheat 
grows  well  where  the  shrub  has  been  uprooted.  The  road  along 
the  little  torrent  was  excellent;  it  would  have  cost  $100,000  in 
Pennsylvania,  but  here  much  is  done  by  tithe-work ;  moreover, 
the  respect  for  the  Prophet  is  such  that  men  would  rather  work 
for  him  on  credit  than  take  pay  from  others. 

Being  in  want  of  local  literature,  after  vainly  ransacking  the 
few  book-stalls  which  the  city  contains,  I  went  to  the  Public  Li- 
brary, and,  by  sending  in  a  card,  at  once  obtained  admission.  As 
usual  in  the  Territories  of  the  United  States,  this  institution  is 
supported  by  the  federal  government,  which,  besides  $1500  for 
books,  gave  $5000  for  the  establishment,  and  $-100  from  the  treas- 
ury of  Utah  is  paid  to  the  Territorial  librarian,  Mr.  John  Lyon, 
who  is  also  a  poet.  The  management  is  under  the  Secretary  of 
the  Territory,  and  the  public  desire  to  see  an  extra  grant  of  $500 
per  annum.*     The  volumes,  about  1000  in  number,  are  placed  in 

*  An  Act  in  relation  to  Utah  Library : 

Sec.  1.  Be  it  enacted  by  the  Governor  and  Legislative  Assembly  of  the  Territory 
of  Utah,  That  a  librarian  shall  be  elected  by  a  joint  vote  of  the  Legislative  Assem- 
bly of  the  Territory  of  Utah,  whose  duty  it  shall  be  to  take  charge  of  the  libi'aiy 
(known  in  law  as  the  Utah  Library),  as  hereinafter  pi  escribed. 

Sec.  2.  Said  librarian  shall  hold  his  office  during  the  term  of  two  years,  or  until 
his  successor  is  appointed,  and  shall  give  bonds  for  the  faithful  discharge  of  his  du- 
ties in  the  sum  of  $6000,  and  file  the  same  in  the  office  of  Secretary  of  the  Territory 
before  entering  upon  his  duties,  who  may  also  appoint  a  deputy,  as  occasion  requires, 
to  act  in  his  stead,  under  the  same  restrictions  as  the  principal  librarian. 

Sec.  3.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  librarian  to  cause  to  be  printed,  at  as  early  a 
date  as  practicable,  a  full  and  accurate  catalogue  of  all  books,  maps,  globes,  charts, 
papers,  apparatus,  and  valuable  specimens  in  any  way  belonging  to  said  library ;  also 
to  use  diligent  eftbrts  to  preserve  from  waste,  loss,  or  damage,  any  portion  of  said 
library. 

Sec.  4.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  librarian,  for  and  in  behalf  of  the  Ten-itory  of 
Utah,  to  plant  suits,  collect  fines,  prosecute,  or  defend  the  interests  of  said  library,  or 
otherwise  act  as  a  legal  plaintiff  or  defendant  in  behalf  of  the  Territory,  where  the 
interests  of  the  library  are  concerned. 

Sec.  5.  The  location  of  the  library  shall  be  at  the  seat  of  government  of  the  Ter- 
ritory of  Utah  ,  and  it  shall  be  the  dirty  of  the  librarian  to  have  all  the  books  of  the 
library  orderly  and  properly  arranged  within  the  libran,'-room,  for  the  use  of  such 
officers  and  persons  as  are  named  in  the  fourteenth  section  of  the  Organic  Act  for 
Utah  Territory,  during  each  session  of  the  Legislative  Assembly  of  Utah  ;  provided, 
however,  that  nothing  herein  contained  shall  debar  the  librarian,  in  vacation  of  the 
Legislative  Assembly,  from  permitting  books,  maps,  and  papers  being  drawn  from 
said  library,  for  professional  and  scientific  purposes,  by  officers  of  the  United  States 
and  of  Utah  Territory,  and  other  citizens  of  Utah,  where  the  librarian  shall  judge 
the  public  good  may  justify. 


236  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IV. 

a  large  room  on  the  nortli  side  of  the  "Mountaineer"  office,  and 
the  librarian  attends  every  Thursday,  when  books  are  "loaned" 
to  numerous  applicants.  The  works  are  principally  those  of  ref- 
erence, elementary,  and  intended  for  the  general  reader,  such  as 
travels,  popular  histories,  and  novels.  The  "Woman  in  White" 
had  already  found  her  way  across  the  prairies,  and  she  received 
the  honors  and  admiration  which  she  deserved. 

On  the  evening  of  the  30th  of  August,  after  dining  with  the 
governor,  I  accompanied  him  to  the  Thermal  Springs,  one  of  the 
lions  of  the  place.  We  struck  into  the  north  road,  and  soon  is- 
sued from  the  town.  On  the  right  hand  we  passed  a  large  tum- 
ble-down tenement  which  has  seen  many  vicissitudes.  It  began 
life  as  a  bath-house  and  bathing-place,  to  which  the  white  sul- 
phury waters  of  the  Warm  Springs,*  issuing  from  below  Ensign 
Peak,  were  brought  in  pine-log  pipes.  It  contained  also  a  ball- 
room, two  parlors  for  clubs  and  supper-parties,  and  a  double  kitch- 
en. It  afterward  became  a  hotel  and  public  house  for  emigrants 
to  California  and  Oregon.  These,  however,  soon  learned  to  prefer 
more  central  quarters,  and  now  it  has  subsided  into  a  tannery  of 
low  deo-ree.  About  two  and  a  half  miles  bej-ond  the  northern 
suburb  are  the  Hot  Springs,f  which  issue  from  the  western  slope 

Sec.  G.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  librarian  to  let  out  books  for  a  specified  time, 
and  call  in  the  same  when  due,  inflict  fines  for  damage  or  loss  of  books,  and  collect 
the  same,  and  keep  an  -accurate  account  of  all  his  official  doings  in  a  book  kept  for 
that  purpose,  and  make  an  annual  report  of  the  same  to  the  Legislative  Assembly  of 
Utah :  provided  that  no  fine  shall  be  excessive,  or  more  than  four  times  the  purchase 
price  of  the  book  or  books  for  the  loss  or  damage  of  whiLu  the  fine  may  be  inflicted. 

Sec.  7.  The  librarian  is  hereby  entitled  to  draw  from  the  treasury  of  Utah  for  the 
current  year  as  compensation  for  his  sen-ices  the  sum  of  $400,  not  otherwise  appro- 
priated ;"  also  the  sum  of  $200  to  defray  the  expenses  of  stationery,  printing  cata- 
logue, and  other  contingencies. 
Approved  March  6, 1S53. 

*  The  following  is  the  analysis  of  the  warm  spring  by  Dr.  L.  D.  Gale,  printed  by 
Captain  Stansbury  in  Appendix  F.  It  dates  from  1851,  but  apparently  more  detailed 
trials  have  not  yet  been  made.  One  hundred  parts  of  the  water  (whose  specific 
gravity  was  1-0112)  give  the  following  results: 

Sulphureted  hydrogen  absorbed  in  the  water 0-037454 

"  '    "  combined  with  bases 0-000728 

Carbonate  of  lime  precipitated  by  boiling 0*075000 

"  "     magnesia 0-022770 

Chloride  of  calcium 0-005700 

Sulphate  of  soda 0-064835 

Chloride  of  sodium 0-861600 

1  *0'^^087 
The  usual  temperature  is  laid  down  at  102°  F. 

t  The  water  of  the  Hot  Springs  was  found  to  have  the  specific  gravity  of  1-0130, 
and  100  parts  yielded  solid  contents  1-1454. 

Chloride  of  sodium 0-8052 

"  magnesia 00288 

"  calcium 01096 

Sulphate  of  lime 0-0806 

Carbonate  of  lime 0-0180 

SUica 0-0180 

The  usual  temperature  is  laid  down  at  128°  F. 


Chap.  V.       HARROWGATE  WATERS.— BRIGHAM  YOUNG.  237 

of  the  hills  lying  behind  Ensign  Peak.  A  generous  supply  of 
water,  gushing  from  the  rock  into  a  basin  below,  drains  off  and 
forms  a  lakelet,  varying  according  to  seagt)n  from  one  to  three 
miles  in  circumference.  Where  the  water  first  issues  it  will  boil 
an  egg ;  a  little  below  it  raises  the  mercury  to  128°  F.  Even  at 
a  distance  from  the  source  it  preserves  some  heat,  and,  accord- 
ingly, it  is  frequented  throughout  the  winter  by  flights  of  watei- 
fowl  and  camping  Indians,  whose  children  sit  in  it  to  thaw  their 
half-frozen  limbs.  These  springs,  together  with  the  fresh -water 
lake  and  the  Jordan,  are  held  to  be  more  purifying  than  Abana 
and  Pharphar,  rivers  of  Damascus ;  and,  being  of  the  Harrowgate 
species,  they  will  doubtless  be  useful  to  the  Yalley  people  as  soon 
as  increased  luxury  requires  such  appliances.  When  the  wind 
sets  in  from  the  north,  the  decided  perfume  of  sulphureted  hydro- 
gen and  saleratus  is  any  thing  but  eau  de  Cologne.  An  anti- 
Mormon  writer,  describing  these  springs  and  other  evidences  of 
igneous  and  volcanic  action,  dwells  with  complacency  upon  the 
probability  that  at  some  no  distant  time  New  Zion  may  find  her- 
self in  a  quandary,  and — like  the  Cities  of  the  Plain,  to  which  she 
is  thus  insinuatingly  compared — fuel  for  the  flames.  On  our  way 
home  the  governor  pointed  out  the  remains  of  building  and  other 
works  upon  a  model  farm,  which  had  scarcely  fared  better  than 
that  of  Niger  celebrity.  The  land  around  is  hoar  with  salt,  and 
bears  nothing  but  salsolte  and  similar  hopeless  vegetation. 


CHAPTER  Y. 

Second  Week  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City. — Visit  to  the  Prophet. 

Shortly  after  arriving,  I  had  mentioned  to  Governor  Cum- 
ming  my  desire  to  call  upon  Mr.,  or  rather,  as  his  official  title  is, 
President  Brigham  Young,  and  he  honored  me  by  inquiring  what 
time  would  be  most  convenient  to  him.  The  following  was  the 
answer :  the  body  was  in  the  handwriting  of  an  amanuensis — sim- 
ilarly Mr.  Joseph  Smith  was  in  the  habit  of  dictation — and  the 
signature,  which  would  form  a  fair  subject  for  a  Warrenologist, 
was  the  Prophet's  autograph. 

"  GOVEKNOR  A.  CuMinxG. 

"  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  Ang.  30,  1860. 
"Sir, — In  reply  to  your  note  of  the  29th  iust.,  I  embrace  the  ear- 
liest opportunity  since  my  return  to  inform  you  that  it  will  be  agree- 
able to  rae  to  meet  the  gentleman  you  mention  in  my  office  at  II 
A.M.  to-morrow,  the  31st.  Bkigham  Young." 

The  "  President  of  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-Day 
Saints  all  over  the  World"  is  obliged  to  use  caution  in  admitting 


238  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  V. 

strangers,  not  only  for  personal  safety,  but  also  to  defend  his  dig- 

'      nity  fi'om  the  rude  and  unfeeling  remarks  of  visitors,  who  seem 

to  think  themselves  entitled,  in  the  case  of  a  Mormon,  to  trans- 

\   gress  every  rule  of  civility ^^ — —  ]  "    " — 

'  About  noon,  after  a  prcffininary  visit  to  Mr.  Gilbert — and  a 
visit  in  these  lands  always  entails  a  certain  amount  of  "smiling" 
— I  met  Governor  Gumming  in  Main  Street,  and  we  proceeded 
together  to  our  visit.  After  a  slight  scrutiny  we  passed  the  guard 
— which  is  dressed  in  plain  clothes,  and  to  the  eye  unarmed — and 
walking  down  the  veranda,  entered  the  Prophet's  private  office. 
Several  people  who  were  sitting  there  rose  at  Mr.  Cumming's  en- 
trance. At  a  few  words  of  introduction,  Mr.  Brigham  Young  ad- 
vanced, shook  hands  with  complete  simplicity  of  manner,  asked 
me  to  be  seated  on  a  sofa  at  one  side  of  the  room,  and  presented 
me  to  those  present. 

Under  ordinary  circumstances  it  would  be  unfair  in  a  visitor 
to  draw  the  portrait  of  one  visited.  But  this  is  no  common  case. 
I  have  violated  no  rites  of  hospitality.  Mr.  Brighnn^  Ymm^ty  ia  a 
"seer,  revelator,  and  prophet,  having  all  "the  gifts  _of'Sod  which 
he  bestows  upon  the  Head  of  the  Church:'  his  memoirs,  litho- 
graphs,  photographs,  and  portraits  have  been  published  again  and 
again ;  I  add  but  one  more  likeness ;  and,  finally,  I  have  nothing 
to  say  except  in  his  favor^ 

The  Prophet  was  born  at  Whittingham,  Yermont,  on  the  1st 
of  June,  1801 ;  he  was  consequently,  in  1860,  fifty-nine  years  of 
age:  he  looks  about  forty-five.  La  ceUhi-itt  viemit  —  I  had  ex- 
pected to  see  a  venerablc-looiving  old  man.  Scarcely  a  gray 
thread  appears  in  his  hair,  which  is  parted  on  the  side,  light  col- 
ored,  rather  thick,  and  reaches  below  the  ears  with  a  half  curl. 
He  formerly  wore  it  long,  after  the  Western  style ;  now  it  is  cut 
J.evel  with  the  ear^^Tobes.  The  forehead  is  somewhat  narrow,  the" 
eyebrows  are  thin,  the  eyes  between  gray  and  blue,  with  a  calm, 
comjooscd,  and  somewhat  reserved  expression :  a  slight  droop  in 
tEe  leTt"Tid~made  me  think  that  he  had  suffered  from  paralysis ; 
I  afterward  heard  that  the  ptosis  is  the  result  of  a  neuralgia  which 
has  long  tormented  him.  For  this  reason  he  usually  covers  his 
head,  except  in  his  own  house  or  in  the  Tabernacle.  Mrs.  Ward, 
who  is  followed  by  the  "Revue  des  Deux-Mondes,"  "therefore 
errs  again  in  asserting  that  "his  Mormon  majesty  never. removes 
The  nose,  which  is  fine  and  somewhat  sharp- 


his  hat  in  public."'"" 

pointed,  is  bent  a  little  to  the  left.  The  lips  are  close  like  the 
New  Englander's,  and  the  teeth,  especially  those  of  the  under 
jaw,  are  imperfect.  The  cheeks  are  rather  fleshy,  and  the  line 
between  the  aloe  of  the  nose  and  the  mouth  is  broken ;  the  chin 
is  somewhat  peaked,  and  the  face  clean  shaven  except  under-the 
jaws^  where  the  beard  is  allowed  to  grow.  The  hands  are  well 
made,  and  not  disfigured  by  rings.  The  figure  is  somewhatjarge, 
broad-shoulderoJ,  and  stooping  a  little  when  standing. 


CuAP.  V.  "BRIGHAM."  239 

The  Prophet's  dress  was  neat  and  pLain  ns  n.  Quaker's,  all  gray 
homespun"  except  the  cravat  and  waistcoat!     ii'is  coat  was  of  an- 
tiqrnmrf^nd,  like  the  pantaloons,  bagg}'^  and  the  buttons  were 
black.     A  neck-tie  of  dark  silk,  with  a  large  bow,  was  loosely 
passed  round  a  starchless  collar,  which  turned  down  of  its  own 
accord.     The  waistcoat  was  of  black  satin — once  an  article  of  al- 
most national  dress — single-breasted,  and  buttoned  nearly  to  the 
neck,  and  a  plain  gold  chain  was  passed  into  the  pocket.     The 
boots  were  Wellingtons,  apparently  of  American  make. 
r  Altogether  the  Prophet's  appearance  _Ma£,.thiilpila_gcn^ 
fnrmpr  ni  "[STpw  F.nglnnrl— in  fact,  such  as  he  is:  his  father  was 
an'  agriculturist  and  revolutionary  soldier,  who  settled  "  down 
East."     He  is  a  well-preserved  man ;  a  fact  which  some  attribute 
to  his  habit  of  sleeping,  as  the  Citizen  Proudhon  so  strongly  ad- 
vises, ^m^sdu^eiVpisraanner  is  at  once  affable  and  impressive, 
simple  and  courteous :  his  want  of  pretension  contrasts  favorably 
with  certain  pseudo-prophets  that  I  have  seen,  each  and  every 
of  whom  holds  himself  to  be  a  "Logos"  without  other  claim  save 
a  semi-maniacal  self-esteem.     He  shows  no  signs  of  dogmatism, 
bigotry,  orfanaticism,  and  never  once  entered- — with  me  at  least 
— upon  the^ subject  of  religion.     He  impresses  a  stranger'  with  a 
certain  sense  of  power ;  his  followers  are,  of  course,  wholly  fasci- 
nated by  his  superior  strength  of  brain.     It  is  commonly  said 
there  is  only  one  chief  in  Great  Salt  Lake  Cit}^,  and  that  is  "  Brig- 
ham."     His  temper  is  even  and  placid ;  his  manner  is  cold — in 
fact,  like  his  face,  somewhat  bloodless ;  buFEe  is  neither  morose 
nor  metK&diStlii.  U!ld.  where  0(^(j!i!ji0!i  '^requires,  he  can  use  all  the 
weapons  of  ridicule  to  direful  effect,  and  "  speak  a  bit  ol  nis  imhd" 
iiTa  style  whicii  no  one  forgets.     He  oi'ten  reproves  his  erring 
followers  in  purposely  violent  language,  making  the  terrors  of  a 
scolding  the  punishment  in  lieu  of  hanging  for  a  stolen  horse  or 
cow.     His  powers...  ofjibservation  are  intuitively  strong,  and  his 
friends  declare  him  to  be  gifted  with  an  excellent, memory  and  a 
perfect  judgment  of  character.     If  he  dislikes  a  stranger  at  the 
first  interview,  he  never  seesliim  again.     Of  his  temperance  and 
sobriety  there  is  but  one  opinion.    His  life  is  ascetic :  his  favorite 
food  is  baked  potatoes  with  a  little  buttermilk,  and  his  drink  wa- 
ter: he  disapproves,  as  do  all  strict  Mormons,  of  spirituous  liq- 
uors, and  never  touches  any  thing  stronger  than  a  glass  of  thin 
Lager-bier ;  moreover,  he  abstains  from  tobacco.     Mr.  Hyde  has 
accused  him  of  habitual  intemperance :  he  is,  as  his  appearance 
shows,  rather  disposed  to  abstinence  than  to  the  reverse.     Of  his 
education  I  can  not  speak :  "  nien,  not  books — deedf ,  not  w^rdn^l'  ■ 
has  ever  been  his  motto;  he  probably  lias,  as  Mr.  JKandolph  said 
of  Mr.  Johnston,  "  a  mind  uncorrupted  by  books."     In  the  only 
discourse  which  I  heard  him  deliver,  he  pronounced  impetus,  im- 
petus.    Yet  he  converses  with  ease  and  correctness,  has  neither 
snufiie  nor  pompousness,  and  speaks  as  an  authority  upon  certain 


240  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  V. 

subjects,  such  as  agriculture  and  stock-breeding.  He  assumes  no 
airs  of  extra  sanctimoniousness,  dnd  has  the  pLiin,-simpl£..maP- 
ners  of  honesty.  His  followers  deem  him  an  angel  of  light,  his 
foes  a  gobUn  damned :  he  is,  I  presume,  neither  one  nor  the  other. 
I  can  not  jDronounce  about  his  scrupulousness :  all  the  world  over, 
the  sincerest  religious  belief  and  the  practice  of  devotion  are  some- 
times compatible  not  only  with  the  most  disorderly  life,  but  with 
the  most  terrible  crimes ;  for  mankind  mostly  believes  that 

"II  est  avec  le  ciel  des  accommodemcnts." 

He  has  been  called  hypocrite,  swindler,  forger,  murderer.    I  I^o 
one  looks  it  less7]  The  best  authorities— from  those  who  accuse* 
Mr.  Joseph  Smith  of  the  most  heartless  deception,  to  those  who 
believe  that  he  began  as  an  impostor  and  ended  as  a  prophet — 
find  in  Mr.  Brigham  Young  "  an  earnest,  obstinate  egotistic  en- 
thusiasm, fanned  by  persecution  and  inflamed  by  bloodshed." 
He  is  the  St.  Paul  of  the  New  Dispensation  :  true  and  sincere,  he 
gave  point,  and  energy,  and  consistency  to  the  somewhat  disjoint- 
ed, turbulent,  and  unforeseeing  fanaticism  of  Mr.  Joseph  Smith ; 
and  if  he  has  not  been  able  to  create,  he  has  shown  himself  great 
in  controlling  circumstances.    Finally,  there  is  a  total  absence  of 
pretension  in  his  manner,  and  he  has  been  so  long  used  to  power 
that  he  cares  nothing  for  its  display!    The  arts  by  which  he  rules 
the  heterogeneous  mass  of  conflicting  elements  are  indomitable 
will,  profound  secrecy,  and  uncommon  astuteness. 
■*    Such  is  His  Excellency  President  Brigham  Young,  "  painter  .^ 
and  glazier"  —  his  earliest  craft  —  prophet,  revelator,  translator,      • 
and  seer ;  the  man  who  is  revered  as  king  or  kaiser,  pope  or  pon- 
tiff never  was ;  who,  like  the  Old  Man  of  the  Mountain,  by  hold-      i 
ing  up  his  hand  could  cause  the  death  of  any  one  within  his      ; 
reach ;  who,  governing  as  well  as  reigning,  long  stood  up  to  fight     j* 
with  the  sword  of  the  Lord,  and  with  his  few  hundred  guerrillas, 
against  the  then  mighty  jwwer  of  the  United  States;  who  has 
outwitted  all  diplomacy  opposed  to  him ;  and,  finally,  who  made 
a  treaty  of  peace  with  the  President  of  the  Great  Republic  as 
though  he  had  wielded  the  combined  power  of  France,  Eussia,  ^ 
and  England. 

Remembering  the  frequent  query,  "What  shall  be  done  with 
the  Mormons  ?"  I  often  asked  the  Saints,  Who  will  or  can  suc- 
ceed Mr.  Brigham  Young?  No  one  knows,  and  no  one  cares. 
They  reply,  with  a  singular  disdain  for  the  usual  course  of  his- 
tory, with  a  perfect  faith  that  their  Cromwell  will  know  no  Rich- 
ard as  his  successor,  that,  as  when  the  crisis  came  the  Lord  raised 
up  in  him,  then  unknown  and  little  valued,  a  fitting  successor  to 
Mr.  Joseph  Smith — of  whom,  by-the-by,  they  now  speak  with  a 
respectful  reverential  soiio  voce^  as  Christians  name  the  Founder 
of  their  faith — so,  when  the  time  for  deciding  the  succession  shall 
arrive,  the  chosen  Saints  will  not  be  left  without  a  suitable  theo- 


^^H 


Chap.  V.  "SQUIRE  WELLS."— HEBER  C.  KIMBALL.  241 

crat  to  exalt  the  people  Israel.  The  Prophet  professes,  I  believe, 
to  hold  office  in  a  kind  of  spiritual  allegiance  to  the  Smith  fam- 
ily, of  which  the  eldest  son,  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  the  third  of  that 
dynasty,  has  of  late  years,  though  blessed  by  his  father,  created  a 
schism  in  the  religion.  By  the  persuasions  of  his  mother,  who, 
after  the  first  Prophet's  death,  gave  him  a  Gentile  stepfather,  he 
has  abjured  polygamy  and  settled  in  the  Mansion  House  at  Nau- 
voo.  The  Mormons,  though  ready  to  receive  back  the  family  at 
Great  Salt  Lake  City  when  manifested  by  the  Lord,  hardly  look 
to  him  as  their  future  chief  Thpy  v^\  Viowpyf^,  find  nonp.  jnnrp 
than  Mr.  Brigham  Young,  show  the  best  of  feelingr  toward  the 
descendants  oi  thCTTIounaer,  and  expect  much  from  David  Smith, 
tHe~S^ona  and  posthumous  son  of  him  martyred  at  Carthage. 
B^e'was  called  David,  and  choicely  blessed  before  his  birth  by  his 
father,  who  prophesied  that  the  Lord  will  see  to  his  children. 
Moreover,  all  speak  in  the  highest  terms  of  Mr.  Joseph  A.  Young, 
the  dweller  at  the  White  House,  the  eldest  son  of  the  ex-gov- 
ernor, who  traveled  in  Europe  and  England,  and  distinguished 
himself  in  opposition  to  the  federal  troops. 

After  finishing  with  the  "Lion  of  the  Lord,"  I  proceeded  to 
observe  his  companions.  By  my  side  was  seated  Daniel  H.,  whose 
title  is  "  General,"  Wells,  the  Superintendent  of  Public  Works, 
and  the  commander  of  the  Nauvoo  Legion.  He  is  the  third  Pres- 
ident of  the  Mormon  triumvirate,  and  having  been  a  justice  of  the 
peace  and  an  alderman  in  Illinois,  when  the  Mormons  dwelt  there 
in  1839,  he  is  nsually  known  as  Squire  Wells :  he  became  a  Saint 
when  the  Mormons  were  driven  from  Nauvoo  in  1846,  and  took 
their  part  in  battles  against  the  mob.  In  appearance  he  is  a  tall, 
large,  bony,  rufous  man,  and  his  conduct  of  the  affair  in  1857-8 
is  spoken  of  with  admiration  by  Mormons.  The  second  of  the 
Presidency,  Mr.  Heber  C.  Kimball,  was  not  present  at  that  time, 
but  on  another  occasion  he  was :  Mr.  Brigham  Young  introduced 
me  to  him,  remarking,  with  a  quiet  and  peculiar  smile,  that  during 
his  friend's  last  visit  to  England,  at  a  meeting  of  the  Methodists. 
one  of  the  reverends  attempted  to  pull  his  chair  from  under  him : 
at  which  reminiscence  the  person  alluded  to  looked  uncommonly 
grim.  Mj.  Eoaaball  was  born  in  the  same  year  as  Mr.  Brigham 
Young,  and  was  first  baptized  in  1832 :  he  is  a  devoted  follower 
of  the  Prophet,  a  very  Jonathan  to  this  David,  a  dmar  to  the  New 
Islam.  He  is  a  large  and  powerful  man,  not  unlike  a  blacksmith, 
which  I  believe  he  was,  and  is  now  the  owner  of  a  fine  block,  with 
houses  and  barns,  garden  and  orchard,  north  of  and  adjoining  that 
of  Mr.  Brigham  Young.  The  third  person  present  was  the  apos- 
tle Mr,  Geor-ga_A..Sinith,  the  historian  and  recorder  of  the  Terri- 
tory, and  a  cousin  of  the  first  Prophet:  he  is  a  walkingalmanac 
of  Mormon  events,  and  is  still  full  of  fight,  strongly  in  favor  of 
rubbing  out  the  "wretched  Irishmen  and  Dutchmen  sent  from  the 
East  to  trv  whether  the  Mormons  would  receive  federal  ofl5,cers." 

Q 


242  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  V. 

Mr  Wi1]ff|Tri  Wnorlnify^  like  Mr.  Smith,  one  of  the  original  apos- 
tles, has  visited  England  as  a  missionary,  appeared  before  the  pub- 
lic as  polemic  and  controversialist,  and  has  now  settled  down  as 
an  apostle  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City.  Mr.  Albert  O.  Carrington,  a 
graduate  of  Dartmouth  College,  had  acted  as  second  assistant  on 
the  topographical  survey  to  Captain  Stansbury,  who  speaks  of  him 
as  follows:  "Being  a  gentleman  of  liberal  education,  he  soon  ac- 
quired, under  instruction,  the  requisite  skill,  and  by  his  zeal,  in- 
dustry, and  practical  good  sense  materially  aided  us  in  our  subse- 
quent operations.  He  continued  with  the  party  till  the  termina- 
tion of  the  survey,  accompanied  it  to  the  city  (Washington),  and 
has  since  returned  to  his  mountain  home,  carrying  with  him  the 
respect  and  good  wishes  of  all  with  whom  he  was  associated."  Of 
Mr.  F.  Little,  who  completed  the  septem  contra  Chrislianitaiem  then 
present,  I  shall  have  more  to  say  in  a  future  chapter. 

The  Prophet  received  us  in  his  private  office,  where  he  trans- 
acts the  greater  part  of  his  business,  corrects  his  sermons,  and  con- 
ducts his  correspondence.  It  is  a  plain,  neat  room,  with  the  usual 
conveniences,  a  large  writing-desk  and  money-safe,  table,  sofas, 
and  chairs,  all  made  by  the  able  mechanics  of  the  settlement.  I 
remarked  a  pistol  and  a  rifle  hung  within  ready  reach  on  the 
right-hand  wall ;  one  of  these  is,  I  was  told,  a  newly-invented 
twelve-shooter.  There  was  a  look  of  order,  which  suited  the 
character  of  the  man  :  it  i^  saicLthat  -a-xJoaEjijiadly Jijngsdyig  a 
curtain  hung  awrj^,  "  puts  his  eye  out."  His  style  of  doing  busi- 
ness at  the  desk  or  m  the  field— for  the  Prophet  does  not  disdain 
handiwork — is  to  issue  distinct,  copious,  and  intelligible  directions 
to  his  employes^  after  which  he  dislikes  referring  to  the  subject. 
It  is  typical  of  his  mode  of  acting,  slow,  deliberate,  and  conclusive. 
He  has  the  reputation  of  being  wealthy.  He  rose  to  power  a  poor 
man.  The  Gentiles  nat««dl^jlecl are  that  he  enriched  himself  by 
the  tithes  ?inr1  plnndp.r  nf  hi.«^  fn]]owr;rS,  nn(^  Psppr.mlTy  by  preying 
upon  and  robbing  the  Gentiles.  I  believe,  however,  that  no  one 
paysCliurch-ducs  and  alius  with  more  punctuality  than  the  Proph- 
et, and  that  he  has  far  too  manv  opportunities  of  coininp^  money, 
safely  and  honestly,  to  be  guilty,  like  some  desperate  destitute,  "of 
^the  short-sighted  folly  of  fraud,  in  lb5H  be  owned,  it  is  said,  to 
"being  possessed  of  $250,000,  equal  to"  ^£50^)00,  which  makes  a 
millionaire  in  these  mountains — it  is  too  large  a  sum  to  jeopara- 
ize.~  His  ibrtunes  were  principally  made  in  business :  like  tKe 
Jatelmaum  of  Muscat,  he  is  the  chief  merchant  as  well  as  the 
high  priest.  He  sends  long  trains  of  wagons  freighted  with  vari- 
ous goods  to  the  Eastern  States,  and  supplies  caravans  and  settle- 
ments with  grain  and  provisions.  From,  the  lurnbfiL  which  he 
sold  to  the  federal  troops  for  hutting  themselves  at  Camp  Floyd, 
he  is  supposed  to  have  netted  not  less  than  ^200^000.  This  is 
one  of  the  sorest  points  with  the  army :  all  declare  tFat  the  Mor- 
mons would  have  been  in  rags  or  sackcloth  if  soldiers  had  not 


Chap.  V.  "LEMUFX."— SLAVERY.  248 

been  sent ;  and  they  naturally  grudge  discomfort,  hardship,  and 
expatriation,  whose  only  effect  has  been  to  benefit  their  enemies. 
After  the  few  first  words  of  greeting,  I  interpreted  the  Prophet's 
look  to  mean  that  he  would  not  dislike  to  know  my  object  in  the 
City  of  the  Saints.  I  told  him  that,  having  read  and  heard  much 
about  Utah  as  it  is  said  to  be,  T,  was  n.nx-ions  to  j^ee  Utah  as  it  is. 
He  then  entered  briefly  upon  the  subjects  of  stock  and  agricul- 
ture,  and  described  the  several  varieties  of  soil.  One  delicate  top- 
ic was  touched  upon :  he  alluded  to  the  "  Indian  v^ars,"  as  they 
are  here  called  :  he  declared  that  when  twenix  ai'*^  .mpoited.  kill- 
ed and  wounded,  that  two  or  three  would  be  nearer  the  tr^tli,  and 
that  he  could  domore  with  a  few  pounds  of  flour  anj.y«T-f1g  nf 
cloth  than  all  tEFsabi*e5  Of  th6  camp  could  effect  The  sentiment 
was  cordially  seconded  by  all  present.  fThe  Israelitic  origin  of 
"Lemuel,"  and  perhaps  the  prophecy  that  "many  generations 
shall  not  pass  away  among  them,  save  they  shall  be  a  white  and 
delightsome  people,"^  though  untenable  as  an  ethnologic  theory, 
has  in  practice  worked  at  least  this  much  of  good,  that  the  Mor- 
mons  treat  their  step-brethren  with  far  more  humanity  than^ottier 
T^stern  men :  tbey  feed,  clothe,  and  lodpi^e  them,  and  attach  them 
hy  go-^rl  wnrkci  ^A  tiieir  interests!  Slavery  has  been  legalized"  in 
Utahj  b ut  solely  for  the  purpose  of  inducmg  the  iSaints  to  buy 
children,  who  otherwise  would  be  abandoned  or  destroyed  by  their 
sVarvmg  parents.f     During  my  stay  in  the  city  1  did  not  see  more 

*  Second  Book  of  Nephi,  chap,  xii.,  par.  12.  Lemuel  was  the  brother  of  Nephi ; 
and  the  word  is  used  by  autonomasia  for  the  Lamanites  or  Indians. 

t  The  wording  of  the  following  act  shows  the  spirit  in  which  slavery  was  pro- 
posed: 

_^A    PREAMBLE    AND    AN    ACT    FOR    THE    FARTHER    RELIEF    OF    INDLAN    SLAVES    AND~^ 

PRISONERS. 

"Whereas,  by  reason  of  the  acquisition  of  Upper  California  and  New  Mexico, 
and  the  subsequent  organization  of  the  TeiTitorial  Governments  of  New  Mexico  and 
Utah  by  the  acts  of  the  Congress  of  the  United  States,  these  territories  have  organ- 
ized governments  within  and  upon  what  would  otherwise  be  considered  Indian  terri- 
tory, and  which  really  is  Indian  territory  so  far  as  the  right  of  soil  is  involved,  there- 
by presenting  the  novel  feature  of  a  white  legalized  government  on  Indian  lands ; 
and 

"Whereas  the  laws  of  the  United  States  in  relation  to  intercourse  with  Indians 
are  designed  for,  and  only  applicable  to,  territories  and  countries  under  the  sole  and 
exclusive  jurisdiction  of  the  United  States ;  and 

"  Whereas,  from  time  immemorial,  the  practice  of  purchasing  Indian  women  and 
children  of  the  Utah  tribe  of  Indians  by  Mexican  traders  has  been  indulged  in  and 
carried  on  by  those  respective  people  until  the  Indians  consider  it  an  allowable  traf- 
fic, and  frequently  offer  their  prisoners  or  children  for  sale  ;  and 

"  Whereas  it  is  a  common  practice  among  these  Indians  to  gamble  away  their  own 
children  and  women  ;  and  it  is  a  well-established  fact  that  women  and  children  thus 
obtained,  or  obtained  by  war,  or  theft,  or  in  any  other  manner,  are  by  them  frequent- 
ly carried  from  place  to  place,  packed  upon  horses  or  mules,  larieted  out  to  subsist 
npon  grass,  roots,  or  starve,  and  are  frequently  bound  \vith  thongs  made  of  raw-hide 
antil  their  hands  and  feet  become  swollen,  mutilated,  inflamed  with  pain,  and  wound- 
ed ;  and  when  with  suffering,  cold,  hunger,  and  abuse  they  fall  sick,  so  as  to  become 
troublesome,  are  frequently  slain  by  their  masters  to  get  rid  of  them ;  and 

"Whereas  they  do  frequently  kill  their  women  and  children  taken  prisoners,  ei- 
ther in  revenge,  or  for  amusement,  or  through  the  influence  of  tradition,  unless  they 


A 


244  THE  CITY  OF  'BHE  SAINTS.  Chap.  V. 

than  half  a  dozen  negroes ;  and  climate,  which,  disdaining  man's 
interference,  draws  with  unerring  hand  the  true  and  only  com- 
promise line  between  white  and  black  labor,  has  irrevocably  de- 
cided that  the  African  in  these  latitudes  is  valueless  as  a  chattel, 

are  tempted  to  exchange  them  for  trade,  which  they  usually  do  if  they  have  an  op- 
portunity; and 

"  Whereas  one  family  frequently  steals  the  children  and  women  of  another  family, 
and  such  robberies  and  murders  are  continually  committed,  in  times  of  their  great- 
est peace  and  amity,  thus  dragging  free  Indian  women  and  children  into  Mexican 
servitude  and  slavery,  or  death,  to  the  almost  entire  extirpation  of  the  whole  Indian 
race;  and 

"Whereas  these  inhuman  practices  are  being  daily  enacted  before  our  eyes  in  the 
midst  of  the  white  settlements,  and  within  the  organized  counties  of  the  Territory  ; 
and  when  the  inhabitants  do  not  purchase  or  trade  for  those  so  offered  for  sale,  they 
are  generally  doomed  to  the  most  miserable  existence,  suffering  the  tortures  of  every 
species  of  cruelty,  until  death  kindly  relieves  them  and  closes  the  revolting  scenery : 

"  Wherefore,  when  all  these  facts  are  taken  into  consideration,  it  becomes  the  duty 
of  all  humane  and  Christian  people  to  extend  unto  this  degraded  and  downtrodden 
race  such  relief  as  can  be  awarded  to  them,  according  to  their  situation  and  circum- 
stances; it  therefore  becomes  necessary  to  consider, 

"  First,  the  circumstances  of  our  location  among  these  savage  tribes  under  the  au- 
thority of  Congress,  while  yet  the  Indian  title  to  the  soil  is  left  unextinguished  ;  not 
even  a  treaty  having  been  held,  by  which  a  partition  of  territory  or  country  has  been 
made,  thereby  bringing  them  into  our  door-yards,  our  houses,  and  in  contact  with 
our  every  avocation. 

"Second,  their  situation,  and  our  duty  toward  them,  upon  the  common  principles 
of  humanity. 

"Third,  the  remedy,  or  what  will  be  the  most  conducive  to  ameliorate  their  con- 
dition, preserve  their  lives  and  their  liberties,  and  redeem  them  from  a  worse  than 
African  bondage ;  it  suggests  itself  to  your  committee  that  to  memorialize  Congress 
to  provide  by  some  act  of  national  legislation  for  the  new  and  unparalleled  situation 
of  the  inhabitants  of  this  Territory,  in  relation  to  their  intercourse  with  these  Indians, 
would  be  one  resource,  prolific  in  its  results  for  our  mutual  benefit ;  and,  farther,  that 
we  ask  their  concurrence  in  the  following  enactment,  passed  by  the  Legislature  of  the 
Territory  of  Utah,  January  31,  A.D.  1852,  entitled, 

"  ^  An  Act  for  the  Relief  of  Indian  Slaves  and  Prisoners. 

" '  Sec.  1.  Be  it  enacted  by  the  Governor  and  Legislative  Assembly  of  the  Territory 
of  Utah,  That  whenever  any  white  person  within  any  organized  county  of  this  Terri- 
tory shall  have  any  Indian  prisoner,  child,  or  woman,  in  his  possession,  whether  by 
purchase  or  othei'wise,  such  person  shall  immediately  go,  together  with  such  In- 
dian prisoner,  child,  or  woman,  before  the  selectmen  or  probate  judge  of  the  county. 
If,  in  the  opinion  of  the  selectmen  or  probate  judge,  the  person  having  such  Indian 
prisoner,  child,  or  woman,  is  a  suitable  person,  and  properly  qualified  to  raise  or  re- 
tain and  educate  said  Indian  prisoner,  child,  or  woman,  it  shall  be  his  of  their  duty 
to  bind  out  the  same,  by  indenture,  for  the  term  of  not  exceeding  twenty  years,  at 
the  discretion  of  the  judge  or  selectmen. 

"  '  Sec.  2.  The  probate  judge  or  selectmen  shall  cause  to  be  written  in  the  indenture 
the  name  and  age,  place  where  born,  name  of  parents  if  known,  tribe  to  which  said 
Indian  person  belonged,  name  of  the  person  having  him  in  possession,  name  of  In- 
dian from  whom  said  person  was  obtained,  date  of  the  indenture — a  copy  of  which 
shall  be  filed  in  the  probate  clerk's  office. 

"  'Sec.  .3.  The  selectmen  in  their  respective  counties  are  hereby  authoiuzed  to  ob- 
tain such  Indian  prisoners,  children,  or  women,  and  bind  them  to  some  useful  avo- 
cation. 

"  '  Sec.  4.  The  master  to  whom  the  indenture  is  made  is  hereby  required  to  send 
said  apprentice  to  school,  if  there  be  a  school  in  the  district  or  vicinity,  for  the  term 
of  three  months  in  each  year,  at  a  time  when  said  Indian  child  shall  be  between  the 
ages  of  seven  years  and  sixteen.  The  master  shall  clothe  his  apprentice  in  a  com- 
fortable and  becoming  manner,  according  to  his  said  master's  condition  in  life. 
"  '  Approved  March  7, 1852.' " 


Chap.  V.  THE  PROPHET  NO  COMMON  MAN.  245 

because  his  keep  costs  more  than  his  work  retumsj    The  negro, 
however,  is  not  admitted  to  the  communion  of  Saints  —  rather  a 
hard  case  for  the  Hamite,  if  it  be  true  that  salvation  is  nowhere  to 
be  found  beyond  the  pale  of  the  Mormon  Church — and  there  are 
severe  penalties  for  mixing  the  blood  of  Shem  aad  Japhet  with 
the  accursed  race  of  Cain  and  Canaan.     The  humanity  of  the 
Prophet's  followers  to  the  Lamanite  has  been  distorted  by  Gen- 
tiles into  a  deep  and  dangerous  project  for  "  training  the  Indians" 
to  assassinate  individual  enemies,  and,  if  necessary,  to  act  as  guer- 
rillas against  the  Eastern  invaders.     That  the  Yutas — they  divide  ^ 
the  white  world  into  two  great  classes.  Mormon  and  Shwop,  or  \ 
American  generally — would,  in  case  of  war,  "stand  by"  their  pat- 
rons, I  do  not  doubt ;  but  this  would  only  be  the  effect  of  kind-  \ 
ness,  which  it  is  unfair  to  attribute  to  no  worthier  cause. 

The  conversation,  which  lasted  about  an  hour,  ended  by  the 
Prophet  asking  me  the  line  of  my  last  African  exploration,  and 
whether  it  was  the  same  country  traversed  by  Dr.  Livingstone. 
I  replied  that  it  was  about  ten  degrees  north  of  the  Zambezi. 
Mr.  A.  Carrington  rose  to  point  out  the  place  upon  a  map  which 
hung  against  the  wall,  and  placed  his  finger  too  near  the  equator, 
when  Mr.  Brigham  Young  said,  "  A  little  lower  down."  There 
are  many  educated  men  in  England  who  could  not  have  corrected 
the  mistake  as  well:  witness  the  "London  Eeview,"in  which  the 
gentleman  who  "  does  the  geography" — not  having  the  fear  of  a 
certain  society  in  Whitehall  Place  before  his  eyes — confounds,  in 
all  the  pomp  of  criticism  upon  the  said  exploration,  lakes  which 
are  not  less  than  200  miles  apart. 

When  conversation  began  to  flag,  we  rose  up,  shook  hands,  as 
is  the  custom  here,  all  round,  and  took  leave.  The  first  impres- 
sion left  upon  my  mind  by  this  short  seance,  and  it  was  subse- 
quently confirmed,  was,  that  the  Prophet  is  no  common  man,  and 
that  he  has  none  of  the  weakness  and  vanity  which  characterize 
the  common  uncommon  man.  A  desultory  conversation  can  not 
be  expected  to  draw  out  a  master  spirit,  but  a  truly  distinguished 
character  exercises  most  often  an  instinctive — some  would  call  it 
a  mesmeric — effect  upon  those  who  come  in  contact  with  it ;  and 
as  we  hate  or  despise  at  first  sight,  and  love  or  like  at  first  sight, 
so  Nature  teaches  us  at  first  sight  what  to  respect.  It  is  observa- 
ble that,  although  every  Gentile  writer  has  represented  Mr.  Jo- 
seph Smith  as  a  heartless  impostor,  few  have  ventured  to  apply 
the  term  to  Mr.  Brigham  Young.  I  also  remarked  an  instance 
of  the  veneration  shown  by  his  followers,  whose  affection  for  him 
is  equaled  only  by  the  confidence  with  which  they  intrust  to  him 
their  dearest  interests  in  this  world  and  in  the  next.  After  my 
visit  many  congratulated  me,  as  would  the  followers  of  the  Tien 
Wong,  or  heavenly  King,  upon  having  at  last  seen  what  they 
consider  "  a  per  se"  the  most  remarkable  man  in  the  world. 

Before  leaving  the  Prophet's  Block  I  will  describe  the  rest  of 


246  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  V. 

the  building.  The  grounds  are  surrounded  by  a  high  wall  of 
large  pebble-like  stones  and  mortar — the  lime  now  used  is  very- 
bad — and  strengthened  with  semicircular  buttresses.  The  main 
entrance  faces  south,  with  posts  and  chains  before  it  for  tethering 
horses.  The  "  Lion  House,"  occupied  by  Mrs.  Young  and  her 
family,  is  in  the  eastern  part  of  the  square :  it  is  so  called  from  a 
stone  lion  placed  over  the  large  pillared  portico,  the  work  of  a 
Mr.  TTilliam  Ward,  who  also  cut  the  block  of  white  limestone, 
with  "  Deseret"  beneath  a  bee-hive,  and  other  symbols,  forwarded 
for  the  Washington  Monument  in  1853.  It  is  lamentable  to  state 
that  the  sculptor  is  now  an  apostate.  The  house  resembles  a 
two-storied  East  Indian  tenement,  with  balcony  and  balustrade, 
here  called  an  observatory,  and  is  remarkable  by  its  chunamed 
coat;  it  cost  865,000 — being  the  best  in  the  city,  and  was  finished 
in  one  year.  Before  building  it  the  Prophet  lived  in  the  White 
House,  a  humbler  bungalow  farther  to  the  east;  he  has  now  given 
it  up  to  his  son,  Joseph  A.  Young. 

On  the  west  of  the  Lion  House  lies  the  private  office  in  which 
we  were  received,  and  farther  westward,  but  adjoining  and  con- 
nected by  a  passage,  is  the  public  office,  where  the  Church  and 
other  business  is  transacted.  This  room,  which  is  larger  than  the 
former,  has  three  desks  on  each  side,  the  left  on  entering  being 
those  of  the  public,  and  the  right  those  of  the  private  clerks.  The 
chief  accountant  is  Mr.  Daniel  O'Calder,  a  Scotchman,  whose  sa- 
gacity in  business  makes  him  an  alter  ego  of  the  President.  At 
the  end  opposite  the  door  there  is  a  larger  jpupitre  railed  off,  and 
a  gallery  runs  round  the  upj^er  wall.  The  bookcases  are  of  the 
yellow  box-elder  wood,  which  takes  a  fine  polish ;  and  all  is  neat, 
clean,  and  business-like. 

Westward  of  the  public  office  is  the  Bee  House,  so  named  from 
the  sculptured  bee-hive  in  front  of  it.  The  Hymenopter  is  the 
Mormon  symbol  of  industry ;  moreover,  Deseret  (pronounced  Des- 
erett)  is,  in  "  reformed  Egyptian,"  the  honey-bee;  the  term  is  ap- 
plied with  a  certain  violence  to  Utah,  where,  as  yet,  that  indus- 
trious insect  is  an  utter  stranger.*  The  Bee  House  is  a  large 
buiklinsf,  with  the  long  walls  facing  east  and  west.  It  is  double 
storied,  with  the  lower  windows,  which  are  barred,  oblong :  the 
upper,  ten  in  number,  are  narrow,  and  shaded  by  a  small  acute 
ogive  or  gable  over  each.  The  color  of  the  building  is  a  yellow- 
ish-white, which  contrasts  well  with  the  green  blinds,  and  the  roof, 
which  is  acute,  is  tiled  with  shingles.  It  was  finished  in  1845, 
and  is  tenanted  by  the  "  plurality  wives"  and  their  families,  who 
each  have  a  bedroom,  sitting-room,  and  closet  simply  and  similarly 
famished.     There  is  a  Moslem  air  of  retirement  about  the  Bee 

*  "  And  they  (scj7.  Jared  and  his  brother)  did  also  carry  with  them  Deseret,  which 
by  interpretation  is  a  honey-bee  ;  and  they  did  carry  with  them  swarms  of  bees,"  and 
all  manner  of  that  which  was  upon  the  face  of  the  land,  seeds  of  every  kind." — Book 
of  Ether ^  chap,  i.,  par.  3. 


J  lull  111  i  jtttiiiirite--^-^v??.;:?^^/<'ii!iiiiiiiiii!i'iii.ii iiit laii.' 


Chap.  V.  THE  PROPHET'S  PROGENY.— TITHES.  249 

House ;  the  face  of  woman  is  rarely  seen  at  the  window,  and  her 
voice  is  never  heard  from  without.  Anti-Mormons  declare  it  to 
be,  like  the  state-prison  at  Auburn,  a  self-supporting  establishment, 
for  not  even  the  wives  of  the  Prophet  are  allowed  to  live  in  idle- 
ness, 

I  was  unwilling  to  add  to  the  number  of  those  who  had  annoyed 
the  Prophet  by  domestic  allusions,  and  therefore  have  no  direct 
knowledge  of  the  extent  to  which  he  carries  Dolygamy;  some 
Gentiles  allow  him  seventeen,  others  thirty -six^  out  of  a  house- 
hold of  seventy  members ;  others  an  indefinite  number  of  wives 
scattered  through  the  difterent  settlements.  Of  these,  doubtless, 
many  are  but  wives  by  name,  such,  for  instance,  as  the  widows  of 
the  late  Prophet ;  and  others  are  married  more  for  the  purpose  of 
buUding  up  for  themselves  spiritual  kingdoms  than  for  the  normal 
purpose  of  matrimony.  When  treating  of  Mormon  polygamy  I 
shall  attempt  to  show  that  the  relation  between  the  sexes  as  lately 
regulated  by  the  Mormon  faith  necessitates  polygamy.  I  should 
judge  the  Prophet's  progeny  to  be  numerous  from  the  following 
circumstance :  On  one  occasion,  when  standing  with  him  on  the 
belvidere,  my  eye  fell  upon  a  new  erection  :  it  could  be  compared 
externally  to  nothing  but  an  English  gentleman's  hunting  stables, 
with  their  little  clock-tower,  and  I  asked  him  what  it  was  intended 
for.  "  A  private  school  for  my  children,"  he  replied,  "  directed  by 
Brother  E.  B.  Kelsey."     The  harem  is  said  to  have  cost  $30,000. 

On  the  extreme  west  of  this  block,  backed  by  a  pound  for  es- 
trays,  which  is  no  longer  used,  lies  the  Tithing  House  and  Deseret 
Store,  a  long,  narrow,  upper-storied  building,  with  cellars,  store- 
rooms, receiving-rooms,  pay-rooms,  and  writing  offices.  At  this 
time  of  the  year  it  chiefly  contains  linseed,  and  rags  for  paper- 
making  ;  after  the  harvest  it  is  well  stuffed  with  grains  and  cere- 
als, which  are  taken  instead  of  money  payment.  There  is  nothing 
more  unpopular  among  the  American  Gentiles,  or,  indeed,  more 
unintelligible  to  them,  than  these  Mosaic  tithes,  which  the  English 
converts  pay,  from  habit,  without  a  murmur.  They  serve  for 
scandalous  insinuations,  viz.,  that  the  chiefs  are  leeches  that  draw 
the  people's  golden  blood ;  that  the  imposts  are  compulsory,  and 
that  they  are  embezzled  and  peculated  by  the  principal  dignita- 
ries. I  have  reason  to  believe  that  the  contrary  is  the  case.  The 
tithes  which  are  paid  into  the  "Treasury  of  the  Lord"  upon  the 
property  of  a  Saint  on  profession,  and  afterward  upon  his  annual 
income,  or  his  time,  or  by  substitute,  are  wholly  voluntary.  It 
sometimes  happens  that  a  man  casts  his  all  into  the  bosom  of  the 
Church ;  in  this  case  the  all  is  not  refused,  but — may  I  ask — by 
what  Church  body,  Islamitic,  Christian,  or  pagan,  would  it  be  ? 
If  the  Prophet  takes  any  thing  from  the  Tithing  House,  he  pays 
for  it  like  other  men.  The  writers  receive  stipends  like  other 
writers,  and  no  more ;  of  course,  if  any  one — clerk  or  lawyer — 
wishes  to  do  the  business  of  the  Church  gratis,  he  is  graciously 


250  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  V. 

permitted ;  and  where,  I  repeat,  would  lie  not  be  ?  The  Latter- 
Day  Saints  declare  that  if  their  first  Presidency  and  Twelve  Apos- 
tles— of  whom  some,  by-the-by,  are  poor — grow  rich,  it  is  by  due 
benevolence,  not  by  force  or  fraud.  Much  like  the  primitive  col- 
lege, and  iliost  unlike  their  successors  in  this  modern  day,  each 
apostle  must  have  some  craft,  and  all  live  by  handiwork,  either 
in  house,  shop,  or  field,  no  drones  being  allowed  in  the  social  hive. 
The  tithes  are  devoted  in  part  to  Church  works,  especially  to 
"building  up  temples  or  otherwise  beautifying  and  adorning  Zion, 
as  they  may  be  directed  from  on  high,"  and  in  part  to  the  pros- 
perity of  the  body  politic,  temporal,  and  spiritual ;  by  aiding  faith- 
ful and  needy  emigrants,  and  by  supporting  old  and  needy  Saints. 
Perhaps  the  only  true  charge  brought  by  the  Gentiles  against  this, 
and,  indeed,  against  all  the  public  funds  in  the  Mormon  City,  is, 
that  a  large  portion  finds  its  way  eastward,  and  is  expended  in 
"outside  influence,"  or,  to  speak  plain  English,  bribes.  It  is  be- 
lieved by  Mormons  as  well  as  Gentiles  that  Mr.  Brigham  Young 
has  in  the  States  newspaper  spies  and  influential  political  friends, 
who  are  attached  to  him  not  only  by  the  ties  of  business  and  the 
natural  respect  felt  for  a  wealthy  man,  but  by  the  strong  bond  of 
a  regular  stipend.  And  such  is  their  reliance  upon  this  political 
dodgery — which,  if  it  really  exists,  is  by  no  means  honorable  to 
the  public  morality  of  the  Gentiles — that  they  deride  the  idea  of 
a  combined  movement  from  Washington  ever  being  made  against 
them.  In  1860  Governor  Gumming  proposed  to  tax  the  tithing 
fund ;  but  the  Saints  replied  that,  as  property  is  first  taxed  and 
then  tithed,  by  such  proceeding  it  would  be  twice  taxed. 

"  This  people" — a  term  reiterated  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City  usque 
ad  nauseam — declares  its  belief  "in  being  subject  to  kings,  queen, 
presidents,  rulers,  and  magistrates ;  in  obeying,  honoring,  and  sus- 
taining the  law."  They  are  not  backward  in  open  acts  of  loyalty 
— I  beg  America's  pardon — of  adhesion  to  the  Union,  such  as  sup- 
plying stones  for  the  Washington  Monument  and  soldiers  for  the 
Mexican  War.  But  they  make  scant  pretension  of  patriotism. 
They  regard  the  States  pretty  much  as  the  States  regarded  En- 
gland after  the  War  of  Independence,  and  hate  them  as  the  Mex- 
ican Criollo  does  the  Gachupin — very  much  also  for  the  same 
reason.  Theirs  is  a  deep  and  abiding  resentment,  which  time  will 
strengthen,  not  efface :  the  deeds  of  Missouri  and  IlHnois  will  bear 
fruit  for  many  and  many  a  generation.  The  federal  government, 
they  say,  has,  so  far  from  protecting  their  lives  and  property,  left 
them  to  be  burned  out  and  driven  away  by  the  hands  of  a  mob, 
far  more  cruel  than  the  "red-coated  minions"  of  poor  King  George; 
that  Generals  Harney  and  Johnston  were  only  seeking  the  oppor- 
tunity to  act  Burgoyne  and  Cornwallis.  But,  more  galling  still 
to  human  nature,  whether  of  saint  or  sinner,  they  are  despised, 
"  treated,  in  fact,  as  nobodies" — and  that  last  of  insults  who  can 
bear?     Their  petitions  to  become  a  sovereign  state  have  been 


Chap.  V.  NEW  INDEPENDENCE  DAY.  251 

unanswered  and  ignored.  They  have  been  served  with  "small- 
fry"  politicians  and  "one-horse"  officials:  hitherto  the  phrase  has 
been,  "Any  thing  is  good  enough  for  Utah!"  They  return  the 
treatment  in  kind. 
^  -  "  The  Old  Independence,"  the  "  glorious"  4th  of  July,  76,  is 
treated  with  silent  contempt:  its  honors  are  transferred  to  the 
24th  of  July,  the  local  Independence  Day  of  their  annus  mirahilis 
1847,  when  the  weary  pioneers,  preceding  a  multitude,  which,  like 
the  Pilgrim  fathers  of  New  England,  left  country  and  home  for 
conscience'  sake,  and,  led  by  Captain  John  Brown,  whose  uner- 
ring rifle  saved  them  from  starvation  when  the  Indians  had  stam- 
peded their  horses,  arrived  in  the  wild  waste  of  valley.  Their 
form  of  government,  which  I  can  describe  only  as  a  democratic 
despotism  with  a  leaven  of  the  true  Mosaic  ^theocracy,  enables 
them  to  despise  a  political  system  in  which  they  say — quoting 
Hamilton — that  "every  vital  interest  of  the  state  is  merged  in 
the  all-absorbing  question  of  'who  shall  be  the  next  president.'  " 
There  is  only  one  "Yankee  gridiron"  in  the  town,  and  that  is  a 
private  concern.  I  do  not  remember  ever  seeing  a  liberty-pole, 
that  emblem  of  a  tyrant  majority,  which  has  been  bowed  to  from 
New  York  to  the  Rhine.*  A  favorite  toast  on  public  occasions 
is,  "  We  can  rock  the  cradle  of  Liberty  without  Lmcle  Sam  to 
help  us,"  and  so  forth.  These  sentiments  show  how  the  wind  sets. 
In  two  generations  hence — perhaps  New  Zion  has  a  prophet-mak- 
ing air — the  Mormons  in  their  present  position  will,  on  their  own 
ground,  be  more  than  a  match  for  the  Atlantic,  and,  combined 
with  the  Chinese,  will  be  dangerous  to  the  Pacific  States. 

The  Mormons,  if  they  are  any  thing  in  secular  politics,  are 
Democrats.  It  has  not  been  judged  advisable  to  cast  off  the  last 
rags  of  popular  government,  but,  as  will  presently  appear,  theoc- 
racy is  not  much  disguised  by  them.  Although  not  of  the  black 
or  extreme  category,  they  instinctively  feel  that  polygamy  and 
slavery  are  sister  institutions,  claiming  that  sort  of  kindness  which 
arises  from  fellow-feeling,  and  that  Congress  can  not  attack  one 
without  infringing  upon  the  other.  Here,  perhaps,  they  may  be 
mistaken,  for  nations,  like  individuals,  however  warmly  and  af- 
fectionately they  love  their  own  peculiar  follies  and  prejudices, 
sins  and  crimes,  are  not  the  less,  indeed  perhaps  they  are  rather 
more,  disposed  to  abominate  the  follies  and  prejudices,  the  sins 
and  crimes  of  others.  The  establishment  of  slavery,  however, 
though  here  it  serves  a  humanitarian  rather  than  a  private  end, 

*  The  first  liberty-pole  was  erected  on  the  open  space  between  the  Court-house 
and  Broadway,  New  York.  It  is  a  long  flag-staiF,  often  of  several  pieces,  like  the 
"mast  of  some  tall  ammiral,"  surmounted  by  a  libert}'-cap,  that  Phrygian  or  Mithri- 
datic  coiffure  with  which  the  Goddess  of  Liberty  is  supposed  to  disfigure  herself. 
With  a  peculiar  inconsequence,  "the  whole  is"  said  to  be  "an  allusion  to  Gesler's 
cap  which  Tell  refused  to  do  homage  to,  leading  to  the  freedom  of  Switzerland." — 
Bartlett.  The  French  soon  made  of  their  pevplier  a  jieiip/e  Ik.  The  Americans, 
curious  to  say,  still  believe  in  it. 


252  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  V. 

necessarily  draws  the  Mormons  and  the  Southern  States  together. 
Yet  the  Saints  preferred  as  President  the  late  Mr.  Senator  Doug- 
las, a  Northern  Democrat,  to  his  Southern  rival,  Mr.  Breckinridge. 
They  looked  with  apprehension  of  the  rise  to  power  of  the  Re- 
publican party,  which,  had  not  a  weightier  matter  fallen  into  their 
hands,  was  pledged  to  do  them  a  harm.  I  can  not  but  think  that 
.absolute  independence  is  and  will  be,  until  attained,  the  principal 
end  and  aim  of  Mormon  haute  politique,  and  when  the  disruption 
of  the  Great  Republic  shall  have  become  Q.fait  accompli,  that  Des- 
eret  will  arise  a  free,  sovereign,  and  independent  state.  _ 

Should  this  event  ever  happen,  it  will  make  the  regions  about 
Great  Salt  Lake  as  exclusive  as  Northern  China  or  Eastern  Ti- 
bet. The  obsolete  rigors  of  the  sanguinary  Mosaic  code  will  be 
renewed  in  the  middle  of  the  nineteenth  century,  while  the  stat- 
ute-crime "bigamy"  and  unlimited  polygamy  will  be  legalized. 
Stripes,  or,  at  best,  fine  and  imprisonment,  will  punish  fornication, 
and  the  penalty  of  adultery  will  be  death  by  lapidation  or  behead- 
ing. As  it  is,  even  under  the  shadow  of  the  federal  laws,  the  self- 
convicted  breaker  of  the  seventh  commandment  will,  it  is  said, 
offer  up  his  life  in  expiation  of  his  crime  to  the  Prophet,  who,  un- 
der present  circumstances,  dismisses  him  with  a  penance  that  may 
end  in  the  death  which  he  has  legally  incurred.  The  offenses 
against  chastity,  morality,  and  decency  are  exceptionally  severe.* 

*  Sec.  32  (of  an  "Act  in  relation  to  Crimes  and  Punishment").  Every  person 
who  commits  the  crime  of  adultery  shall  be  punished  by  imprisonment  not  exceed- 
ing twenty  years,  and  not  less  than  three  years;  or  by  fine  not  exceeding  one  thou- 
sand dollars,  and  not  less  than  three  hundred  dollars ;  or  by  both  fine  and  imprison- 
ment, at  the  discretion  of  the  court.  And  when  the  crime  is  committed  between 
parties  any  one  of  whom  is  mamed,  both  are  guilty  of  adultery,  and  shall  be  pun- 
ished accordingly.  No  prosecution  for  adultery  can  be  commenced  but  on  the  com- 
plaint of  the  husband  or  wife. 

Sec.  .33.  If  any  man  or  woman,  not  being  married  to  each  other,  lewdly  and  las- 
civiously associate  and  cohabit  together ;  or  if  any  man  or  woman,  mamed  or  un- 
married, is  guilty  of  open  and  gross  lewdness,  and  designedly  make  any  open  and 
indecent,  or  obscene  exposure  of  his  or  her  person,  or  of  the  person  of  another,  everj- 
such  person  so  offending  shall  be  punished  by  imprisonment  not  exceeding  ten  years, 
and  not  less  than  six  months,  and  fine  not  more  than  one  thousand  dollars,  and  not 
less  than  one  hundred  dollars,  or  both,  at  the  discretion  of  the  court. 

Sec.  3-i.  If  any  person  keep  a  house  of  ill-fame,  resorted  to  for  the  purpose  of 
prostitution  or  lewdness,  he  shall  be  punished  by  imprisonment  not  exceeding  ten 
years,  and  not  less  than  one  year,  or  by  fine  not  exceeding  five  hundred  dollars,  or 
both  fine  and  imprisonment.  And  any  person  who,  after  being  once  convicted  of 
such  offense,  is  again  convicted  of  the  like  offense,  shall  be  punished  not  more  than 
double  the  above  specified  penalties. 

Sec.  35.  If  any  person  inveigle  or  entice  any  female,  before  reputed  virtuous,  to  a 
house  of  ill-fame,  or  knowingly  conceal,  aid,  or  abet  in  concealing  such  female  so 
deluded  or  enticed,  for  the  purpose  of  prostitution  or  lewdness,  he  shall  be  punished 
by  imprisonment  not  more  than  fifteen  years,  nor  less  than  five  years. 

Sec.  3G.  If  any  person  without  lawful  authority  willfully  dig  up,  disinter,  remove, 
or  carry  any  human  body,  or  the  remains  thereof^,  from  its  place  of  interment,  or  aid 
or  assist  in  so  doing,  or  willfully  receive,  conceal,  or  dispose  of  any  such  human  body. 
or  the  remains  thereof;  or  if  any  per.son  willfully  or  unnecessarily,  .-  .id  in  an  im- 
proper manner,  indecently  exposes  those  remains,  or  abandons  a..y  human  body,  or 
the  remains  thereof,  in  any  public  place,  or  in  any  river,  stream,  pond,  or  other  place, 
every  such  offender  shall  be  punished  by  imprisonment  not  exceeding  one  year,  or 


Chap.  V.      JUDGE  PHELPS.— MORALS— ARDENT  SPIRITS.  253 

The  penalty  attached  to  betting  of  any  kind  is  a  fine  not  exceed- 
ing $300,  or  imprisonment  not  exceeding  six  months.  The  im- 
portation of  spirituous  liquors  is  already  burdened  with  an  octroi 
of  half  its  price,  raising  cognac  and  whisky  to  $12  and  $8  per  gal- 
lon. If  the  state  could  make  her  own  laws,  she  would  banish 
"  poteen,"  hunt  down  the  stills,  and  impose  a  prohibitory  duty 
upon  every  thing  stronger  than  Lager-bier.* 

On  the  saddest  day  of  the  year  for  the  bird  which  has  lost  so 
much  good  fame  by  condescending  to  appear  at  table  aux  chonx, 
I  proceeded  with  my  fid  us  Achates  —  save  the  self-comparison  to 
pious  ^neas — on  a  visit  to  Mr.  W.  "W.,  alias  Judge  Phelps,  alias 
"the  Devil."  He  received  me  with  great  civility,  and  entered 
without  reserve  upon  his  hobbies.  His  house,  which  lies  west  of 
Temple  Block,  bears  on  the  weathercock  T2:n  (Job,  xxxviii.,  35, 
"Adsumus:"  "Here  we  are").  Besides  Hebrew  and  other  lin- 
guistic studies,  the  judge  is  a  meteorologist,  and  has  been  engaged 
for  some  years  in  observations  upon  the  climate  of  the  Territory. 
An  old  editor  at  Independence,  he  now  superintends  the  Utah 
Almanac,  and  gave  me  a  copy  for  the  year  1860,  "  being  the  31st 
year  of  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-Day  Saints."  It  is 
a  small  duodecimo,  creditably  printed  by  Mr.  J.  M 'Knight,  Utah, 
and  contains  thirty -two  pages.     The  contents  are  the  usual  tables 

by  fine  not  exceeding  one  thousand  dollars,  or  by  both  fine  and  imprisonment,  at  the 
discretion  of  the  court. 

Sec.  37.  If  any  person  torture  or  cruelly  beat  any  horse,  ox,  or  other  beast,  whether 
belonging  to  himself  or  another,  he  shall  be  punished  by  fine  not  more  than  one 
hundred  dollars. 

Sec.  38.  If  any  person  import,  print,  publish,  sell,  or  distribute  any  book,  pamph- 
let, ballad,  or  any  printed  paper  containing  obscene  language,  or  obscene  prints,  pic- 
tures, or  descriptions  manifestly  tending  to  corrupt  the  morals  of  youth,  or  introduce 
into  any  family,  school,  or  place  of  education,  or  buy,  prociU'C,  receive,  or  have  in  his 
possession  any  such  book,  pamphlet,  ballad,  printed  paper,  picture,  or  description,  ei- 
ther for  the  purpose  of  loan,  sale,  exliibition,  or  circulation,  or  with  intent  to  intro- 
duce the  same  into  any  family,  school,  or  place  of  education,  he  shall  be  punished  by 
fine  not  exceeding  four  hundred  dollars. 

Sec.  39.  If  any  person  keep  a  house,  shop,  or  place  resorted  to  for  the  piirpose  of 
gambling,  or  permit  or  suifer  any  person  in  any  house,  shop,  or  other  place  under  his 
control  or  care  to  play  at  cards,  dice,  faro,  roulette,  or  other  game  for  money  or  oth- 
er things,  such  offender  shall  be  fined  not  more  than  eight  hundred  dollars,  or  im- 
prisonment not  exceeding  one  year,  or  both,  at  the  discretion  of  the  court.  In  a 
prosecution  under  this  section,  any  person  who  has  the  charge  of,  or  attends  to  any 
such  house,  shop,  or  place,  may  be  deemed  the  keeper  thereof. 

*  I  quote  as  an  authority, 

An  Ordinance  regulating  the  Manvfactiiring  and  Vending  of  Ardent  Spirits. 

Sec.  1.  Be  it  ordained  by  the  General  Assembly  of  the  State  of  Desere't,  That  it 
shall  not  be  lawful  for  any  person  or  persons  in  this  state  to  establish  any  distillery 
or  distilleries  for  the  manufacture  of  ardent  spirits  except  as  hereafter  provided  for  ; 
and  any  person  or  persons  who  shall  violate  this  ordinance,  on  conviction  thereof, 
shall  forfeit  all  property  thus  invested  to  the  state,  and  be  liable  to  a  fine  at  the  dis- 
cretion of  the  court  having  jurisdiction. 

Sec.  2.  Be  '*•  farther  ordained.  That  when  the  governor  shall  deem  it  expedient  to 
have  ardent  spmts  manufactured  within  this  state,  he  may  grant  a  license  to  some 
person  or  persons  to  make  p^d  vend  the  same,  and  impose  such  restrictions  thereon 
as  he  may  deem  requisite. 

Approved  Feb.  12, 1851. 


254  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  V. 

of  days,  sunrises,  sunsets,  eclipses,  etc.,  with  advertisements  on  the 
alternate  pages ;  and  it  ends  with  the  denominations  and  value  of 
gold  and  silver  coins,  original  poetry,  "scientific"  notes  concern- 
ing the  morning  and  evening  stars,  a  list  of  the  United  States  of- 
ficers at  Utah,  the  number  of  the  planets  and  asteroids,  diarrhoea, 
and  "moral  poetry,"  and  an  explanation  of  the  word  "almanac," 
concluding  with  the  following  observation : 

"A  person  without  an  almanac  is  somewhat  like  a  ship  at  sea  with- 
out a  compass ;  he  never  knows  what  to  do  nor  when  to  do  it." 

"So  Mormon,  other  sects,  and  Quaker, 
Buy  Almanacs,  and  pay  the  maker. — K.  J." 

The  only  signs  of  sanctity  are  in  the  events  appended  to  the 
days  of  the  week ;  they  naturally  record  the  dates  of  local  inter- 
est, and  the  births  and  deaths  of  prophets  and  patriarchs,  presi- 
dents and  apostles.  Under  the  head  of  "Time,"  however,  some 
novel  information  is  provided  for  the  benefit  of  the  benighted 
chronologist, 

"  Time. — There  is  a  great  mystery  about  time  as  recorded  in  the 
Bible,  Authors  differ  as  to  what  length  of  time  this  world  has  oc- 
cupied since  it  came  into  being.  Add  4004  to  1860,  and  we  have 
5864  years. 

"Again,  some  authors  allow,  before  the  birth  of  the  Savior,  5509 
years,"which,  added  to  1860,  gives  7369  years  since  the  beginning. 

"  The  book  of  Abraham,  as  translated  by  Joseph  Smith,  gives  TOOO 
years  for  the  creation  by  the  gods,  one  day  of  the  Lord  being  a  thou- 
sand years  of  man's  time,  or  a  day  in  Kolob.  This  important  revc; 
lation  of  7000  years  at  first  shows  5960  years  since  the  transgression 
of  Adam  and  Eve,  and  40  years  to  the  next  '  day  of  rest,'  if  the  year 
1900  commences  the  return  of  the  'ten  tribes,'  and  the  first  resurrec- 
tion ;  or  13,000  years  since  the  gods  said,  'Let  there  be  fight,  and 
there  was  light,'  so  that  the  fourteen  thousandth  year  will  be  the  sec- 
ond Sabbath  since  creation. 

"A  day  of  the  Moon  is  nearly  thirty  of  our  days,  or  more  than  ten 
thousand  of  earth's  time.     Verily,  verily, 

"  Man  knows  but  little, 

Nor  knows  that  little  right." 

The  judge  then  showed  me  an  instrument  upon  which  he  had 
expended  the  thought  and  labor  of  years :  it  was  that  grand  de- 
sideratum, a  magnetic  compass,  which,  pointing  with  a  second  nee- 
dle to  the  true  north,  would  indicate  variation  so  correctly  as  to 
show  longitude  by  inspection.  The  article,  which  was  as  rough- 
looking  as  it  could  be,  was  placed  upon  the  table ;  but  it  would 
not,  as  the  inventor  explained,  point  to  the  true  north  unless  in  a 
particular  position.  I  refrain  from  recording  my  hundred  doubts 
as  to  the  feasibility  of  the  operation,  and  my  own  susnicions  con- 
cerning the  composition  of  the  instrument.  I  pres'^^nt.y  took  leave 
of  Judge  Phelps,  pleased  with  his  quaint  Lrudness,  but  somehow 
suspecting  him  of  being  a  little  iUe-montce  on  certain  subjects. 


Chap.  V.  THE  "DESERET  NEWS."— NEWSPAPERS.  255 

As  it  was  newspaper  day,  we  passed  by  the  "Mountaineer" 
office  and  bought  a  copy.  The  press  is  ably  and  extensively  rep- 
resented in  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  as  in  any  other  of  its  "Western 
coevals.'^  Mormonism,  so  far  from  despising  the  powers  of  pica, 
has  a  more  than  ordinary  respect  for  them.f  Until  lately  there 
were  three  weekly  newspapers.  The  "Valley  Tan,"  however, 
during  the  last  winter  expired,  after  a  slow  and  lingering  dysthe- 
sis,  induced  by  overindulgence  in  Gentile  tendencies.  It  was  es- 
tablished in  1858 ;  the  proprietor  was  Mr.  J.  Hartnett,  the  late 
federal  secretary ;  the  editor  was  Mr.  Kirk  Anderson,  followed  by 
Mr.  De  Wolf  and  others  ;  the  issue  hebdomadal,  and  the  subscrip- 
tion high  ==$10  per  annum.  The  recognized  official  organ  of  the 
religion,  which  first  appeared  on  the  15th  of  June,  1850,  is  the 
"Deseret  News,"  whose  motto  is  "Truth  and  Liberty"  under  a 
hive,  over  which  is  a  single  circumradiated  eye  in  disagreeable 
proximity  to  the  little  busy  bee.  It  has  often  changed  its  size, 
and  is  now  printed  in  small  folio,  of  eight  pages,  each  containing 
four  columns  of  close  type :  sometimes  articles  are  clothed  in  the 

*  According  to  the  "Elgin  Courant,"  there  are  between  700  and  800  of  a  fishing 
population  in  Hopeness  who  never  see  a  newspaper. 

t  The  first  Mormon  newspaper  was  the  "Latter-Day  Saints'  Messenger  and  Ad- 
vocate," published  at  Kirtland,  Ohio,  in  the  time  of  Mr.  Joseph  Smith. 

The  "Evening  and  Morning  Star,"  published  at  Independence,  Mo.,  and  edited 
by  W.  W.  Phelps. 

"  Elders'  Journal,"  published  in  1838,  in  the  time  of  Mr.  Joseph  Smith. 

"  The  Upper  Missouri  Advertiser,"  published  about  the  same  time ;  it  did  not  last 
long. 

>'The  Nauvoo  Neighbor"  disappeared  in  the  days  of  the  Exodus. 

"The  Times  and  Seasons,"  containing  a  compendium  of  intelligence  pertaining 
to  the  upbuilding  of  the  kingdom  of  God,  and  the  signs  of  the  Times,  together  witli 
a  great  variety  of  information  in  regard  to  the  history,  principles,  persecutions,  de- 
liverances, and  onward  progress  of  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-Day  Saints. 
Nauvoo  1839-1843.  It  was  edited  by  Elder  John  Taylor  (now  one  of  the  ' '  Twelve") 
under  the  direction  of  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  and  arrived  at  the  fourth  volume  (octavo) : 
this  journal  is  full  of  interesting  matter  to  Mormons. 

"The  Wasp,"  begun  at  Nauvoo  in  1842. 

"The  Frontier  Garden,"  published  at  Council  Bluffs  during  the  Exodus  from 
Nauvoo. 

"The  Seer,"  edited  at  Washington,  by  Elder  Orson  Pratt,  reached  the  second 
volume. 

"The  Gospel  Reflector,"  published  at  Philadelphia,  lasted  for  a  short  time. 

"The  Prophet,"  published  at  New  York. 

"Le  Reflecteur,"  in  French,  published  at  Geneva. 

"Etoile  du  Desere't,  Organe  de  I'Eglise  de  Je'sus-Christ  des  Saints  des  Derniers 
Jours,"  par  John  Taylor,  Paris.  It  lasted  from  May,  1851,  to  April,  1852,  and  forms 
1  vol.  large  8vo,  containing  192  pages. 

"The  Western  Standard,"  edited  and  published  weekly  at  San  Francisco,  Cali- 
fornia, United  States  of  America,  by  Elder  George  Q.  Cannon,  now  an  Apostle  and 
President  of  the  Church  in  Great  Britain.  This  paper,  which  was  distinguished  by 
the  beauty  of  its  type  and  the  character  of  its  composition,  lasted  through  1856  and 
1857;  in  1858  it  ceased  for  want  of  funds. 

"Zion's  W-Jtchman,"  j)nblished  in  Australia. 

"Udgorn  ^"v«on"  (the  Trump  of  Zion),  published  in  Wales,  a  bi-monthly  print, 
which  has  reachci.    'le  nint'r  volume. 

"The  Luminarj%"  St.  hyuis,  Mo. 

"The  Mormon,"  published  in  New  York,  a  hebdomadal  print. 


256  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  V. 

Mormon  alphabet.  It  had  reached  'in  1860  its  tenth  volume ;  it 
appears  every  Wednesday ;  costs  at  Utah  $6  per  annum,  in  En- 
gland £1  135.  Qd.  per  annum,  in  advance ;  single  number  9c?. ; 
and  is  superintended  by  Mr.  Brigham  Young.  It  is  edited  by  Mr. 
Elias  Smith,  also  a  Probate  judge;  he  is  assisted  by  Mr.  M'Knight, 
formerly  the  editor  of  a  paper  in  the  United  States,  and  now  the 
author  of  the  important  horticultural,  agricultural,  and  other  geor- 
gic  articles  in  the  "  Deseret  News."  This  "  Moniteur"  also  con- 
tains corrected  reports  of  the  sermons  spoken  at  the  Tabernacle. 
An  account  of  a  number  may  not  be  uninteresting. 

No.  28,  vol.  X.,  begins  with  a  hymn  of  seven  stanzas,  by  C.  W. 
Bryant.  Follow  remarks  by  President  Brigham  Young,  at  Provo 
and  in  the  Bowery,  Great  Salt  Lake  City;  the  three  sermons, 
which  occupy  four  columns  and  a  half,  are  separated  by  "  Mod- 
ern Germany,  II.,"  by  Alexander  Ott.  There  is  an  article  from 
the  "New  York  Sun,"  entitled  the  "Great  Eastern  in  Court." 
It  is  followed  by  nearly  half  a  page  of  "  Clippings,"  those  little 
recognized  piracies  which  make  the  American  papers  as  amusing 
as  magazines.  Then  come  advertisements,  estray  notices,  and 
others,  which  nearly  fill  the  third  and  sixth  pages,  and  the  col- 
umn at  the  eighth,  which  is  the  conclusion.  I  subjoin  terms  for 
advertising.'^  The  fourth  page  contains  "  News  by  Eastern  Mail" 
— Doings  of  the  Probate  Court — Special  term  of  the  Probate  Court 
— Another  excusable  homicide — The  season — Imprisoning  con- 
victs without  labor — Discharge  of  the  city  police — Swiss  Saints 
(lately  arrived) — Arrival  of  missionaries  at  Liverpool — Drowned, 
Joseph  Vest,  etc. — Deseret  Agriculturing  and  Manufacturing  So- 
ciety —  Information  wanted  —  and  Humboldt's  opinion  of  the 
United  States  (comparing  it  to  a  Cartesian  vortex,  liberty  a  dead 
machinery  in  the  hands  of  Utilitarianism,  etc.).  The  fifth  and 
sixth  pages  detail  news  from  Europe,  the  Sicilies,  Damascus,  and 
India,  proceedings  of  a  missionary  meeting  in  the  Bowery,  and 
tidings  from  Juab  and  Iron  County,  with  a  few  stopgaps,  such  as 
an  explanation  of  the  word  Zouave,  and  the  part  conversion  of 
the  fallen  Boston  elm  into  a  "  Mayor's  seat."  The  seventh  page 
is  agricultural,  and  opens  with  the  "  American  Autumn,"  by  Fan- 
ny Kemble,  four  stanzas.  Then  comes  Sheep-husbandry  No.  iii., 
treating  of  change  of  pasture,  separation  of  the  flock,  and  fall 

*  Advertising. — Ten  lines  or  less  constitute  one  square. 

Regular  Advertisements. 

One  quarter  column  (four  squares  or  less),  for  each  insertion $1  50 

Half  column  (seven  squares  or  less),  each  insertion 3  00 

One  column  (fourteen  squares  or  less) 6  00 

Sundry  Advertisements. 

One  square,  each  insertion (.> $100 

Two      "  "  u>...; 150 

Three    "  "  wl '. 2  00 

Thus  upward,  with  half  a  dollar  to  the  additional  square  for  each  insertion. 


i 


Chap.v.  the  "  deserIit  news."— the  "  mountaineer."        257 

management.  The  other  morceaux  are  "  Training  the  peach-tree," 
"Stick  to  the  Farm,"  an  article  concluding  with  "We  shall  al- 
ways sign  'speed  the  plow;'  we  shall  always  regard  the  Ameri- 
can farmer,  dressed  for  his  employment  ( ! )  and  tilling  his  grounds, 
as  belonging  to  the  order  of  real  noblemen" — the  less  aristocratic 
Englander  would  limit  himself  to  "  Nature's  gentleman ;"  "  Why 
pork  shrinks  in  the  pot,"  and  "  Wheat-straw,  its  value  as  fodder." 
The  eighth  and  last  page  opens  with  "Correspondence,"  and  a 
letter  signed  Joseph  Hall,  headed  "More  results  of  '  civilization,' " 
and  dated  Ogden  City,  Sept.  8,  1860.  It  contains  an  account  of 
occurrences  resulting  in  the  "  death  of  one  John  Cornwell,  a  dis- 
charged government  teamster,  and,  as  is  often  the  case  with  those 
Christians  who  are  sent  to  civilize  the  '  Mormons'  of  these  mount- 
ains, a  corrupt,  profane,  and  quarrelsome  individual,  who  doted 
on  belonging  to  the  '  bully  tribe.'  "  Then  follows  more  news 
from  San  Pete  County.  A  test  of  love  (that  capital  story  out  of 
C.  E.  Leslie's  autobiography).  Siege  of  Magdeburg.  A  hard- 
shell sermon  (preached  at  Oxford,  England),  a  scrap  illustrating 
the  marvelous  growth  of  Quincy,  Illinois,  and  the  Legend  of  the 
origin  of  the  Piano-forte.  The  latter  is  followed  by  a  valuable 
abstract  containing  a  summary  of  meteorological  observations, 
barometric  and  thermometric,  for  the  month  of  August,  1860,  at 
Grreat  Salt  Lake  City,  Utah,  by  W.  W.  Phelps,  and  concluding 
with  a  monthly  journal.*  Then  follow  the  deaths,  six  in  num- 
ber, and  after  one  of  them  is  inserted  [Millennial  Star,  copy]. 
There  are  no  marriages,  and  the  Western  papers,  like  those  of 
the  East,  are  still  hegueules  enough  to  consider  advertising  the 
birth  of  a  child  indelicate ;  at  least  that  was  the  reason  given  to 
me.  The  last  column  contains  the  terms  for  advertising  and  the 
"  fill-up"  advertisements. 

The  "  Mountaineer,"  whose  motto  is  "  Do  what  is  right,  let  the 
consequence  follow,"  is  considered  rather  a  secular  paper.  It  ap- 
pears on  Saturdays,  and  the  terms  of  subscription  are  $6  per  an- 
num; the  occasional  supplement  is  issued  gratis.  It  formerly 
belonged  to  three  lawyers,  Messrs.  Stout,  Blair,  and  Ferguson ;  it 
has  now  passed  into  the  hands  of  the  two  latter.  Mr.  Hosea  Stout 
distinguished  himself  during  the  Nauvoo  troubles;  he  was  the 
captain  of  forty  policemen  who  watched  over  the  safety  of  Mr. 
Joseph  Smith,  and  afterward  went  on  missions  to  India  and  Chi- 
na. Major  S.  M.  Blair  served  under  General  Sam.  Houston  in 
the  Texan  war  of  independence,  and  was  a  distinguished  lawyer 
in  the  Southern  States.  A  description  of  the  "  Deseret  News" 
will  apply  to  the  "  Mountaineer."     I  notice  in  the  issue  of  Sep- 

*  The  maximum  of  the  barometer  during  the  month  is  26-100;  min.  25-400 
"  \._  "     thermometer     "  "       95°  F. ;     "     60°  F. 

There  fell  of  i  -^.i  wat  ;f  0*670  inches  during  five  days  marked  shower)'.  Fifteen 
days  are  marked'c"^'  .)  and  r'^asant,  or  hot  and  dr\',  or  hot  and  very  dry,  the  22d 
being  the  hottest,  jlnd  the  i-'-icrs  are  partially  clear,  or  clear  and  cloudy,  or  hazy 
and  cloudy. 

E 


258  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  V. 

tember  15, 1860,  that  a  correspondent,  quoting  an  extract  from 
.the  "New  York  Tribune"  —  the  great  Kepublican  organ,  and 
therefore  no  favorite  with  the  Mormons  —  says,  outspokenly 
enough  to  please  any  amount  of  John  Bull,  "  The  author  of  the 
above  is  a  most  consummate  liar" — so  far,  so  good — "  and  a  con- 
temptible dastardly  poltroon" — which  is  invidious. 

I  passed  the  morning  of  the  ensuing  Sunday  in  a  painful  but 
appropriate  exercise,  reading  the  Books  of  Mormon  and  of  Mo- 
roni the  Prophet.  Some  writers  tell  me  that  it  is  the  best  extant 
imitation  of  the  Old  Testament ;  to  me  it  seems  composed  only 
to  emulate  the  sprightliness  of  some  parts  of  Leviticus,  Others 
declare  that  it  is  founded  upon  a  romance  composed  by  a  Eev. 
Mr.  Spaulding;  if  so,  Mr.  Spaulding  must  have  been  like  Prince 
Puckler-Muskau  of  traveling  notoriety,  a  romancer  utterly  with- 
out romance.  Surely  there  never  was  a  book  so  thoroughly  dull 
and  heavy :  it  is  monotonous  as  a  sage-prairie.  Though  not  lia- 
ble to  be  terrified  by  dry  or  hard  reading,  I  was,  it  is  only  fair  to 
own,  unable  to  turn  over  more  than  a  few  chapters  at  a  time,  and 
my  conviction  is  that  very  few  are  so  highly  gifted  that  they  have 
been  able  to  read  it  through  at  a  heat.  In  Mormonism  it  now 
holds  the  same  locus  as  the  Bible  in  the  more  ignorant  Eoman 
Catholic  countries,  where  religious  reading  is  chiefly  restricted  to 
Jthe  Breviary,  to  tales  of  miracles,  and  to  legends  of  Saints  Ursula 
and  Bridget.  It  is  strictly  proper,  does  not  contain  a  word  about 
materialism  and  polygamy  - — in  fact,  more  than  one  wife  is  strictly 
forbidden  even  in  the  Book  of  Doctrines  and  Covenants.f  The 
Mormon  Bible,  therefore,  is  laid  aside  for  later  and  lighter  read- 
ing. In  one  point  it  has  done  something.  America,  like  Africa, 
is  a  continent  of  the  future;  the  Book  of  Mormon  has  created  for 
it  an  historical  and  miraculous  past. 

At  9  45  A.M.  we  entered  the  Bowery ;  it  is  advisable  to  go 
early  if  seats  within  hearing  are  required.  The  place  was  a  kind 
of  "  hangar,"  about  a  hundred  feet  long  by  the  same  breadth,  with 
a  roofing  of  bushes  and  boughs  supported  by  rough  posts,  and 
open  for  ventilation  on  the  sides ;  it  can  contain  about  8000  souls. 
The  congregation  is  accommodated  upon  long  rows  of  benches, 
opposite  the  dais,  rostrum,  platform,  or  tribune,  which  looked  like 
a  long  lane  of  boarding  open  to  the  north,  where  it  faced  the  au- 
dience, and  entered  by  steps  from  the  east.  Between  the  people 
and  the  platform  was  a  place  not  unlike  a  Methodist  "pen"  at  a 
camp-meeting :  this  was  allotted  to  the  orchestra,  a  violin,  a  bass, 
two  women  and  four  men  performers,  who  sang  the  sweet  songs 
of  Zion  tolerably  well — decidedly  well,  after  a  moment's  reflec- 

*  Behold  the  Lamanites  (North  American  Indians),  your  brethren,  whom  ye  hate 
because  of  their  filthiness,  and  the  cursings  which  hath  come  upon  their  skins,  are 
more  righteous  than  you,  for  they  have  not  forgotten  the  comrnandi  V'  nt  of  the  Lord, 
which  was  given  unto  our  fathers,  that  they  should  have,  save^'i"  yei'c  one  wife  ;  and 
concubines  they  should  have  none;  and  there  shouldV^:)t  be  whoredoms  committed 
among  them. — Booh  of  Jacob,  chap,  ii.,  par.  9.  *  See  Chap.  IX. 


Chap.  V. 


THE  BOWERY.— MUSIC— DRESS. 


259 


tion  as  to  latitude  and  longitude,  and  after  reminiscences  of  coun- 
try and  town  chapels  in  that  land  where  it  is  said,  had  the  Psalm- 
ist heard  his  own  psalms, 

"In  furious  mood  he  would  have  tore  'em." 

I  was  told  that  "profane" — i.  e.,  operatic  and  other — music  is  per- 
formed at  worship,  as  in  the  Italian  cathedrals,  where  tlaey  are 
unwilling  that  Sathanas  should  monopolize  the  prettiest  airs ;  on 
this  occasion,  however,  only  hymns  were  sung. 


SOtJTU  EKU   UF   TUE   TAUEK.NACXE. 


AYe — the  judge's  son  and  I — took  our  seats  on  the  benches  of 
the  eighth  ward,  where  we  could  see  the  congregation  flocking 
in,  a  proceeding  which  was  not  over — some  coming  from  consid- 
erable distances — till  10  15  A.M.  The  people  were  all  endiman- 
dies ;  many  a  pretty  face  peeped  from  the  usual  sun-bonnet  with 
its  long  curtain,  though  the  "mushroom"  and  the  "pork-pie"  had 
found  their  way  over  the  plains,  and  trim  figures  were  clad  in 
neat  stuff  dresses,  sometimes  silk :  in  very  few  cases  there  was  a 
little  faded  finery — gauze,  feathers,  and  gaudy  colors — such  as  one 
may  see  on  great  festivals  in  an  Old-Country  village.  The  men 
were  as  decently  attired :  the  weather,  being  hot,  had  caused  many 
of  them  to  leave  their  coats  at  home,  and  to  open  their  vests;  the 
costume,  however,  looked  natural  to  working-men,  and  there  was 
no  want  of  cieai^^iness,  such  as  sometimes  lurks  behind  a  bulwark 
of  buttons.  The  elde,-s  and  dignitaries  on  the  platform  affected 
coats  of  black  broadcloth,  and  were  otherwise  respectably  dress- 


260  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  V. 

ed.  All  wore  their  hats  till  the  address  began,  and  then  all  un- 
covered. By  my  side  was  the  face  of  a  blear-eyed  English  serv- 
ant-girl ;  en  revanche  in  front  was  a  charming  American  mother 
and  child :  she  had,  what  I  have  remarked  in  Mormon  meetings 
at  Saville  House  and  other  places  in  Europe,  an  unusual  develop- 
ment of  the  organ  which  phrenologists  call  veneration.  I  did  not 
see  any  Bloomers  "  displaying  a  serviceable  pair  of  brogues,"  or 
"  pictures  of  Grant  Thorburn  in  petticoats."  There  were  a  few 
specimens  of  the  "  Yankee  woman,"  formerly  wondrous  grim, 
with  a  shrewd,  thrifty  gray  eye,  at  once  cold  and  eager,  angular 
in  body  and  mind,  tall,  bony,  and  square-shouldered,  now  soft- 
ened and  humanized  by  transplantation  and  transposition  to  her 
proper  place.  The  number  of  old  j^eople  astonished  me ;  half  a 
dozen  were  sitting  on  the  same  bench ;  these  broken-down  men 
and  decrepit  crones  had  come  to  lay  their  bones  in  the  Holy  City; 
their  presence  speaks  equally  well  for  their  faith  and  for  the  kind- 
heartedness  of  those  who  had  brought  the  encumbrance.  I  re- 
marked some  Gentiles  in  the  Bowery;  many,  however,  do  not 
care  to  risk  what  they  may  hear  there  touching  themselves. 

At  10  A.M.  the  meeting  opened  with  a  spiritual  song.  Then 
Mr.  Wallace  —  a  civilized-looking  man  lately  returned  from  for- 
eign travel — being  called  upon  by  the  presiding  elder  for  the  day, 
opened  the  meeting  with  prayer,  of  which  the  two  short-hand 
writers  in  the  tribune  proceeded  to  take  notes.  The  matter,  as 
is  generally  the  case  with  returned  missionaries  delivering  their 
budget,  was  good ;  the  manner  was  somewhat  Hibernian ;  the 
''valleys  of  the  mountains" — a  stock  phrase,  appeared  and  reap- 
peared like  the  speechifying  Patlander's  eternal  "  emerald  green 
hills  and  beautiful  pretty  valleys."  He  ended  by  imploring  a 
blessing  upon  the  (Mormon)  President,  and  all  those  in  author- 
ity; Gentiles  of  course  were  included.  The  conclusion  was  an 
amen,  m  which  all  hands  joined :  it  reminded  me  of  the  historical 
practice  of  "  humming"  in  the  seventeenth  century,  which  caused 
the  universities  to  be  called  '■'■Hum  el  Hissimi  auditoresJ^ 

Next  arose  Bishop  Abraham  O.  Smoot,  second  mayor  of  Zion, 
and  successor  to  the  late  Jedediah  M.  Grant,  who  began  with 
"  Brethering,"  and  proceeded  at  first  in  a  low  and  methody  tone 
of  voice,  ''  hardly  audible  in  the  gallery,"  to  praise  the  Saints, 
and  to  pitch  into  the  apostates.  His  delivery  was  by  no  means 
fluent,  even  when  he  warmed.  He  made  undue  use  of  the  regu- 
lar Wesleyan  organ — the  nose ;  but  he  appeared  to  speak  excel- 
lent sense  in  execrable  English.  He  recalled  past  persecutions 
without  over-asperity,  and  promised  future  prosperity  without 
over-prophecy.  As  he  was  in  the  midst  of  an  allusion  to  the 
President,  entered  Mr.  Brigham  Young,  and  all  turned,  their  faces, 
even  the  old  lady —  ^^~    ^' 

e 

' '  Peut-on  si  bien  prScher  qti'elle  ne  dorme  au  sermon  ?" — 


Chap.  V.  THE  BOWEKY.— THE  SERMON.  261 

who,  dear  soul !  from  Hanover  Square  to  far  San  Francisco,  plac- 
idly reposes  through  the  discourse. 

The  Prophet  was  dressed,  as  usual,  in  gray  homespun  and  home- 
woven  :  he  wore,  like  most  of  the  elders,  a  tall,  steeple-crowned 
straw  hat,  with  a  broad  black  ribbon,  and  he  had  the  rare  refine- 
ment of  black  kid  gloves.  He  entered  the  tribune  covered  and 
sat  down,  apparently  greeting  those  near  him.  A  man  in  a  fit 
was  carried  out  pumpward.  Bishop  Smoot  concluded  with  in- 
forming us  that  we  should  live  for  God.  Another  hymn  was 
sung.  Then  a  great  silence,  which  told  us  that  something  was 
about  to  happen:  that  old  man  held  his  cough;  that  old  lady 
awoke  with  a  start;  that  child  ceased  to  squall.  Mr.  Brigham 
Young  removed  his  hat,  advanced  to  the  end  of  the  tribune,  ex- 
pectorated stooping  over  the  spittoon,  which  was  concealed  from 
sight  by  the  boarding,  restored  the  balance  of  fluid  by  a  glass  of 
water  from  a  well-filled  decanter  on  the  stand,  and,  leaning  slight- 
ly forward  upon  both  hands  propped  on  the  green  baize  of  the 
tribune,  addressed  his  followers. 

The  discourse  began  slowly ;  word  crept  titubantly  after  word, 
and  the  opening  phrases  were  hardly  audible ;  but  as  the  orator 
warmed,  his  voice  rose  high  and  sonorous,  and  a  fluency  so  re- 
markable succeeded  falter  and  hesitation,  that — although  the  phe- 
nomenon is  not  rare  in  strong  speakers — the  latter  seemed  almost 
to  have  been  a  work  of  art.  The  manner  was  pleasing  and  ani- 
mated, and  the  matter  fluent,  impromptu,  and  well  turned,  spoken 
rather  than  preached :  if  it  had  a  fault  it  was  rather  rambling  and 
unconnected.  Of  course,  colloquialisms  of  all  kinds  were  intro- 
duced, such  as  "he  become,"  "for  you  and  I,"  and  so  forth.  The 
gestures  were  easy  and  rounded,  not  without  a  certain  grace, 
though  evidently  untaught ;  one,  however,  must  be  excepted, 
namely,  that  of  raising  and  shaking  the  forefinger ;  this  is  often 
done  in  the  Eastern  States,  but  the  rest  of  the  world  over  it  is 
considered  threatening  and  bullying.  The  address  was  long. 
God  is  a  mechanic.  Mormonism  is  a  great  fact.  Eeligion  had 
made  him  (the  speaker)  the  happiest  of  men.  He  was  ready  to 
dance  like  a  Shaker.  At  this  sentence  the  Prophet,  who  is  a  good 
mimic,  and  has  much  of  the  old  New  English  quaint  humor,  raised 
his  right  arm,  and  gave,  to  the  amusement  of  the  congregation,  a 
droll  imitation  of  Anne  Lee's  followers.  The  Gentiles  had  sent 
an  army  to  lay  waste  Zion,  and  what  had  they  done?  Why, 
hung  one  of  their  own  tribe!  and  that,  too,  on  the  Lord's  day!* 

*  Alluding  to  one  Thos.  H.  Fer^son,  a  Grentile;  he  tilled,  on  Sept.  17th,  1859, 
in  a  drunken  moment,  A.  Carpenter,  who  kept  a  boot  and  shoe  store.  Judge  Sin- 
clair, according  to  the  Mormons,  was  exceedingly  anxious  that  somebody  should  be 
sus.per  coll.,  and,  although  intoxication  is  usually  admitted  as  a  plea  in  the  Western 
States,  he  iguv  red  it,  and  hanged  the  man  on  Sunday.  Mr.  Ferguson  was  executed 
in  a  place  behind  ...e  city ;  he  appeared  costumed  in  a  Robin  Hood  style,  and  com- 
plained bitterly  to  the  Moimon  troops,  who  were  drawn  out,  that  his  request  to  be 
shot  had  not  been  granted. 


262  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  V. 

The  Saints  have  a  glorious  destiny  before  them,  and  their  moral- 
ity is  remarkable  as  the  beauty  of  the  Promised  Land :  the  soft 
breeze  blowing  over  the  Bowery,  and  the  glorious  sunshine  out- 
side, made  the  allusion  highly  appropriate.  The  Lamanites,  or 
Indians,  are  a  religious  people.  All  races  know  a  God  and  may 
be  saved.  After  a  somewhat  lengthy  string  of  sentences  concern- 
ing the  great  tribulation  coming  on  earth — it  has  been  coming  for 
the  last  1800  years — he  concluded  with  good  wishes  to  visitors 
and  Gentiles  generally,  with  a  solemn  blessing  upon  the  President 
of  the  United  States,  the  territorial  governor,  and  all  such  as  be 
in  authority  over  us,  and,  with  an  amen  which  was  loudly  re-ech- 
oed by  all  around,  he  restored  his  hat  and  resumed  his  seat. 

Having  heard  much  of  the  practical  good  sense  which  charac- 
terizes the  Prophet's  discourse,  I  was  somewhat  disappointed: 
probably  the  occasion  had  not  been  propitious.  As  regards  the 
concluding  benedictions,  they  are  profanely  compared  by  the  Gen- 
tiles to  those  of  the  slave,  who,  while  being  branded  on  the  hand, 
was  ordered  to  say  thrice,  "God  bless  the  State."  The  first  was 
a  blessing.  So  was  the  second.  But  at  the  third,  natural  indig- 
nation having  mastered  Sambo's  philosophy,  forth  came  a  certain 
naughty  word  not  softened  to  "darm"  During  the  discourse,  a 
Saint,  in  whose  family  some  accident  had  occurred,  was  called 
out,  but  the  accident  failed  to  affect  the  riveted  attention  of  the 
audience. 

Then  arose  Mr.  Heber  C.  Kimball,  the  second  President.  He 
is  the  model  of  a  Methodist,  a  tall  and  powerful  man,  a  "gentle- 
man in  black,"  with  small,  dark,  piercing  eyes,  and  clean-shaven 
blue  face.  He  affects  the  Boanerges  style,  and  does  not  at  times 
disdain  the  part  of  Thersites :  from  a  certain  dislike  to  the  Non- 
conformist rant  and  whine,  he  prefers  an  every-day  manner  of 
speech,  which  savors  rather  of  familiarity  than  of  reverence.  The 
people  look  more  amused  when  he  speaks  than  when  others  ha- 
rangue them,  and  they  laugh  readily,  as  almost  all  crowds  will,  at 
the  thinnest  phantom  of  a  joke.  Mr.  Kimball's  movements  con- 
trasted strongly  with  those  of  his  predecessor;  they  consisted  now 
of  a  stone-throwing  gesture  delivered  on  tiptoe,  then  of  a  descend- 
ing movement,  as 

"When  pulpit,  drum  ecclesiastic, 
Was  beat  with  fist  and  not  with  stick." 

He  began  with  generalisms  about  humility,  faithfulness,  obeying 
counsel,  and  not  beggaring  one's  neighbor.  Addressing  the  hand- 
cart emigrants,  newly  arrived  from  the  "  sectarian  world,"  he  warn- 
ed them  to  be  on  the  look-out,  or  that  every  soul  of  them  would 
be  taken  in  and  shaved  (a  laugh).  Agreeing  with  the  Prophet — 
Mr.  Kimball  is  said  to  be  his  echo — in  a  promiscuous  way  con- 
cerning the  morality  of  the  Saints,  he  felt  it  notwithstanding  his 
duty  to  say  that  among  them  were  "some  of  the  greatest  rascals 
in  the  world"  (a  louder  laugh,  and  N.B.,  the  Mormons  are  never 


Chap.  V.  THE  BOWERY.— MR.  KIMBALL'S  STYLE.  263 

spared  bj  their  own  preachers).  After  a  long  suit  of  advice,  a 
propos  de  rien,  to  missionaries,  he  blessed,  amen'd,  and  sat  down. 

I  confess  that  the  second  President's  style  startled  me.  But 
presently  I  called  to  mind  Luther's  description*  of  Tetzel's  ser- 
mon, in  which  he  used  to  shout  the  words  Bring !  bring !  bring ! 
with  such  a  horrible  bellowing,  that  one  would  have  said  it  was  a 
mad  bull  rushing  on  the  people  and  goring  them  with  his  horns ; 
and  D'Aubignc's  neat  apology  for  Luther,f  who,  "  in  one  of  those 
homely  and  quaint,  yet  not  undignified  similitudes  which  he  was 
fond  of  using,  that  he  might  be  understood  by  the  people,"  illus- 
trated the  idea  of  God  in  history  by  a  game  of  cards !  "  .  .  .  Then 
came  our  Lord  God.  He  dealt  the  cards :  .  .  .  This  is  the  Ace 
of  God.  ..."  Mormons  also  think  it  a  merit  to  speak  openly 
of  "  those  things  we  know  naturally :"  they  affect  what  to  others 
appears  coarseness  and  indelicacy.  The  same  is  the  case  with 
Oriental  nations,  even  among  the  most  modest  and  moral.  After 
all,  taste  is  in  its  general  development  a  mere  affair  of  time  and 
place ;  what  is  apt  to  froisser  us  in  the  nineteenth  may  have  been 
highly  refined  in  the  sixteenth  century,  and  what  may  be  exceed- 
ingly unfit  for  Westminster  Abbey  and  Notre  Dame  is  often  per- 
fectly suited  to  the  predilections  and  intelligence  of  Wales  or  the 
Tessin.  It  is  only  fair  to  both  sides  to  state  that  Mr.  Kimball  is 
accused  by  Gentiles  of  calling  his  young  wives,  from  the  pulpit, 
"little  heifers;"  of  entering  into  physiological  details  belonging 
to  the  Dorcas  Society,  or  the  clinical  lecture-room,  rather  than  the 
house  of  worship ;  and  of  transgressing  the  bounds  of  all  decorum 
when  reproving  the  sex  for  its  2^enchcmts  and  ridicules.  At  the 
same  time,  I  never  heard,  nor  heard  of,  any  such  indelicacy  during 
my  stay  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City.  The  Saints  abjured  all  knowl- 
edge of  the  "  fact,"  and — in  this  case,  oiefas  ah  hoste  doceri — so  gross 
a  scandal  should  not  be  adopted  from  Gentile  mouths. 

After  Mr.  Kimball's  address,  a  list  of  names  for  whom  letters 
were  lying  unclaimed  was  called  from  the  platform.  Mr.  El- 
dridge,  a  missionary  lately  returned  from  foreign  travel,  adjourn- 
ed the  meeting  till  2  P.M.,  delivered  the  prayer  of  dismissal,  dur- 
ing which  all  stood  up,  and  ended  with  the  benediction. and  amen. 
The  Sacrament  was  not  administered  on  this  occasion.  It  is  often 
given,  and  reduced  to  the  very  elements  of  a  ceremony ;  even  wa- 
ter is  used  instead  of  wine,  because  the  latter  is  of  Gentile  manu- 
facture. Two  elders  walk  up  and  down  the  rows,  one  carrying  a 
pitcher,  the  other  a  plate  of  broken  bread,  and  each  Saint  partakes 
of  both. 

Directly  the.  ceremony  was  over,  I  passed  through  the  thirty 
carriages  and  wagons  that  awaited  at  the  door  the  issuing  of  the 
congregation,  and  returned  home  to  write  my  notes.  Before  ap- 
pearing in  the  "  Deseret  News"  the  discourses  are  always  recom- 

*  History  of  the  Reformation  of  the  Sixteenth  Century.     Book  iii.,  chap.  i. 
t  Ditto,  Preface. 


26i  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.V. 

posed ;  the  reader,  therefore,  is  warned  against  the  following  re- 
port, which  appeared  in  the  "  News"  of  Wednesday,  the  5th  of 
September. 

"Bowery. — Sunday,  Sept.  2, 10  A.M.,  Bishop  Abraham  O.  Smoot 
addressed  the  congregation.  He  said  he  rejoiced  in  the  opj^ortuuity 
he  had  been  favored  with  of  testing  both  jirinciples  and  men  in  the 
Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-Day  Saints ;  he  was  fully  satisfied 
that  those  who  do  right  are  constantly  filled  with  joy  and  gladness 
by  the  influence  of  the  Holy  Ghost.  Every  man  must  knoAv  God  for 
himself,  and  practice  the  principles  of  righteousness  for  himself;  learn 
the  truth  and  the  light,  and  walk  therein.  Men  are  too  much  in  the 
habit  of  patterning  after  their  neighbors'  actions  instead  of  following 
the  dictates  of  the  Spirit  of  God  ;  if  the  Saints  do  right  they  are  filled 
with  light,  truth,  and  the  power  of  God.  It  has  been  a  matter  of  as- 
tonishment to  many  how  we  could  so  much  rejoice  in  the  things  of 
God,  but  the  reason  is  our  religion  is  true,  and  we  know  it,  for  God 
has  revealed  it  unto  us,  and  hence  we  can  rejoice  in  the  midst  of  ca- 
lamities that  would  make  our  enemies  very  cross,  and  cause  them  to 
swear  about  their  troubles.  Nine  tenths  of  those  who  have  ajjosta- 
tized  have  done  it  on  account  of  prosperity,  like  Israel  of  old,  but  the 
Lord  desires  to  use  us  for  the  advancement  of  his  kingdom,  and  the 
spreading  abroad  of  light  and  truth.  We  should  live  for  God,  and 
prepare  ourselves  for  all  the  temporal  and  spiritual  blessings  of  his 
kingdom. 

"  President  Brigham  Young  said  if  our  heavenly  Father  could  re- 
veal all  lie  wishes  to  his  Saints,  it  would  greatly  hasten  their  perfec- 
tion, and  asked  the  question.  Are  the  people  prepared  to  receive  those 
communications  and  profit  by  them,  that  would  bring  about  their 
speedy  perfection  ?  He  discovered  a  very  great  variety  of  degrees 
of  intelligence  in  the  people ;  he  also  observed  a  manifest  stupidity  in 
the  people  attempting  to  learn  the  principles  of  natural  life.  Ob- 
served that  God  is  just  and  equal  in  his  ways,  and  that  no  man  will 
dare  to  dispute ;  also  that  there  is  no  man  in  our  government  who 
will  speak  truthfully,  and  according  to  his  honest  convictions,  but  who 
will  admit  that  we  are  the  most  law-abiding  people  within  its  juris- 
diction. Remarked  that  all  the  heathen  nations  have  devotional  in- 
stincts, and  none  more  than  the  natives  of  this  vast  continent ;  and 
they  all  worship  according  to  the  best  of  their  knowledge.  The 
whole  human  family  can  be  saved  in  the  kingdom  of  God  if  they  are 
disposed  to  receive  and  obey  the  Gospel.  Reasoned  on  the  subject 
of  fore-ordination,  and  said  the  religion  of  Jesus  Chi'ist  is  designed  to 
make  the  bad  good  and  the  good  better.  Argued  that  there  is  a  feel- 
ing in  every  human  breast  to  acknowledge  the  supremacy  of  the  Al- 
mighty Creator.  God  is  just,  he  is  true,  and  if  this  were  not  the  case 
no  njortal  could  be  exalted  in  his  presence ;  advised  all  to  improve 
upon  the  knowledge  they  had  received  of  the  things  of  God.  Refer- 
red briefly  to  the  birth  of  Christ,  and  the  attendant  opposition  and 
threatening  of  the  governments  of  the  nations  of  the  earth. 

"  President  Ileber  C.  Kimball  followed  with  appropriate  remarks 
on  the  practical  duties  of  life,  the  necessity  of  humility  and  faithful- 
ness among  the  Saints,  and  admonished  all  to  be  obedient  to  the  man- 


Chap.  V.  MR.  BRIGHAM  YOUNG'S  SERMON.  265 

dates  of  heaven,  and  to  the  counsels  of  the  hving  oracles.  In  giving 
advice  to  the  elders  who  are  expected  to  go  on  missions  to  preach 
the  Gospel,  he  said :  '  The  commandment  of  Jesus  to  his  apostles  an- 
ciently has  been  renewed  unto  us,  viz..  Go  ye  therefore,  and  teach  all 
nations,  baptizing  them  in  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and 
of  the  Holy  Ghost ;  teaching  them  to  observe  all  things  whatsoever 
I  have  commanded  you ;  and  lo,  I  am  with  you  alway,  even  unto  the 
end  of  the  world.'  " 

The  student  of  the  subject  may  desire  to  see  how  one  of  these 
sermons  reads;  I  therefore  extract  from  the  "Deseret  News"  one 
spoken  by  Mr.  Brigham  Young  during  my  stay  in  the  city ;  it  is 
chosen  impartially,  neither  because  it  is  better  nor  because  it  is 
worse  than  its  fellows.  The  subject,  it  will  be  observed,  is  unin- 
teresting; in  fact,  what  negroes  call  "  talkee-talkee" — pour  i^sser 
le  temps.  But  Mr.  Brigham  Young  can,  all  admit,  when  occasion 
serves  ability,  "bring  the  house  down,"  and  elicit  thundering 
amens. 

Remaeks  by  President  Brigham  Young,  Bowery,  A.M.,  August 
12, 1860.  {Reported  by  G.  D.  TFaW.)— "I  fully  understand  that  all 
Saints  constantly,  so  to  speak,  pray  for  each  other.  And  when  I  find 
a  person  who  does  not  pray  for  the  welfare  of  the  kingdom  of  God 
on  the  earth,  and  for  the  honest  in  heart,  I  am  skeptical  in  regard  to 
believing  that  person's  religion  to  be  genuine,  and  his  faith  I  should 
consider  not  the  faith  of  Jesus.  Those  who  have  the  mind  of  Christ 
are  anxious  that  it  should  spread  extensively  among  the  people,  to 
bring  them  to  a  correct  understanding  of  things  as  they  are,  that  they 
may  be  able  to  prepare  themselves  to  dwell  eternally  in  the  heavens. 
This  is  your  desire,  and  is  what  we  continually  pray  for. 

"  Brother  J.  V.  Long's  discourse  this  morning  was  sweet  to  my 
taste ;  and  the  remarks  of  Brother  T.  B.  H.  Stenhouse  were  very  con- 
genial to  my  feelings  and  understanding.  Brother  Long  has  good 
command  of  language,  and  can  readily  choose  such  words  as  best  suit 
him  to  convey  his  ideas. 

"  Brother  Stenhouse  remarked  that  the  Gospel  of  salvation  is  the 
great  foundation  of  this  kingdom ;  that  we  have  not  built  up  this 
kingdom,  nor  established  this  organization,  we  have  merely  embraced 
it  in  our  faith ;  that  God  has  established  this  kingdom,  and  has  be- 
stowed the  priesthood  upon  the  children  of  men,  and  has  called  upon 
the  inhabitants  of  the  earth  to  receive  it,  to  repent  of  their  sins,  and 
return  to  him  with  all  their  hearts.  This  portion  of  his  remarks  I 
wish  you  particularly  to  treasure  up. 

"  If  the  Angel  Gabriel  were  to  descend  and  stand  before  you, 
though  he  said  not  a  word,  the  influence  and  power  that  would  pro- 
ceed from  him,  were  he  to  look  upon  you  in  the  power  he  possesses, 
would  melt  this  congregation.  His  eyes  would  be  like  flaming  fire, 
and  his  countenance  would  be  like  the  sun  at  midday.  The  counte- 
nance of  an  holy  angel  would  tell  more  than  all  the  language  in  the 
world.  If  men  who  are  called  to  speak  before  a  congregation  rise 
full  of  the  Holy  Spirit  and  power  of  God,  their  countenances  are  ser- 
mons to  the  people.    But  if  their  affections,  fe*elings,  and  desires  are 


266  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.V. 

like  the  fool's  eye  to  the  ends  of  the  earth,  looking  for  this,  that,  and 
the  other,  and  the  kingdom  of  God  is  far  from  them  and  not  in  all 
their  affections,  they  may  rise  here  and  talk  what  they  please,  and  it 
is  but  like  sounding  brass  or  a  tinkling  cymbal — mere  empty,  un- 
meaning sounds  to  the  ears  of  the  people.  I  can  not  say  this  of  what 
I  have  heard  to-day. 

"  Those  faithful  elders  who  have  testified  of  this  work  to  thousands 
of  people  on  the  continents  and  islands  of  the  sea  will  see  the  fruits 
of  their  labors,  whether  they  have  said  five  words  or  thousands.  They 
may  not  see  these  fruits  immediately,  and  perhaps  in  many  cases  not 
until  the  millennium,  but  the  savor  of  their  testimony  will  pass  down 
from  father  to  son.  Children  will  say, '  The  words  of  life  were  spoken 
to  my  grandfather  and  grandmother ;  they  told  me  of  them,  and  I 
wish  to  become  a  member  of  the  Church  ;  I  also  wish  to  be  baptized 
for  my  father,  and  mother,  and  grandparents ;'  and  they  Avill  come 
and  keep  coming,  the  living  and  the  dead,  and  you  will  be  satisfied 
with  your  labors,  whether  they  have  been  much  or  little,  if  you  con- 
tinue faithful. 

"  Brother  Long  remarked  that  before  he  gathered  to  Zion  he  had 
imbibed  an  idea  that  the  people  were  all  pure  here.  This  is  a  day  of 
trial  for  you.  If  there  is  any  thing  that  should  give  us  sorrow  and 
pain,  it  is  that  any  of  the  brethren  and  sisters  come  here  and  neglect 
to  live  their  religion.  Some  are  greedy,  covetous,  and  selfish,  and 
give  way  to  temptation ;  they  are  wicked  and  dishonest  in  their  deal- 
ings with  one  another,  and  look  at  and  magnify  the  faults  of  every 
body,  on  the  right  and  on  the  left.  '  Such  a  sister  is  guilty  of  pilfer- 
ing ;  such  a  brother  is  guilty  of  swearing,'  etc., '  and  we  have  come 
a  long  distance  to  be  joined  with  such  a  set ;  we  do  not  care  a  dime 
for  "  Mormonism,"  nor  for  any  thing  else.'  The  enemy  takes  the  ad- 
vantage of  such  persons,  and  leads  them  to  do  that  for  which  they 
are  afterward  sorry.  This  is  a  matter  of  great  regret  to  those  who 
wish  to  be  faithful.  But  no  matter  how  many  give  themselves  up  to 
merchandising  and  love  it  better  than  their  God,  how  many  go  to  the 
gold  mines,  how  many  go  back  on  the  road  to  trade  with  the  wick- 
ed, nor  how  many  take  their  neighbors'  wood  after  it  is  cut  and  piled 
up  in  the  kanyons,  or  steal  their  neighbors'  axes,  or  any  thing  that  is 
their  neighbors',  you  live  your  religion,  and  we  shall  see  the  da)' 
Avhen  we  shall  tread  iniquity  imder  foot.  But  if  you  listen  to  those 
who  practice  iniquity,  you  will  be  carried  away  by  it,  as  it  has  carried 
away  thousands.  Let  every  one  get  a  knowledge  for  himself  that 
this  work  is  true.  We  do  not  want  you  to  say  that  it  is  true  until 
you  know  that  it  is ;  and  if  you  know  it,  that  knowledge  is  as  good 
to  you  as  though  the  Lord  came  down  and  told  you.  Then  let  eveiy 
person  say, '  I  will  live  my  religion,  though  every  other  person  goes 
to  hell ;  I  will  walk  humbly  before  God,  and  deal  honestly  with  my 
fellow-beings.'  There  are  now  scores  of  thousands  in  this  Territory 
who  will  do  this,  and  who  feel  as  I  do  on  this  subject,  and  we  will 
overcome  the  wicked.  Ten  filthy,  dirty  sheep  in  a  thousand  cause 
the  whole  flock  to  appear  defiled,  and  a  stranger  would  pronounce 
them  all  filthy ;  but  wash  them,  and  you  will  find  nine  hundred  and 
ninety  pure  and  clean.*   It  is  so  with  this  people ;  half  a  dozen  horse- 


Chap.  V.  MR.  BRIGHAM  YOUNG'S  SERMON.  267 

thieves  tend  to  cause  the  whole  community  to  appear  corrupt  in  the 
eyes  of  a  casual  observer. 

"  Brother  Long  said  that  the  Lord  Avill  deal  out  coi'rection  to  the 
evil-doer,  but  that  he  would  have  nothing  to  do  with  it.  I  do  not 
know  whetlier  I  shall  or  not,  but  I  shall  not  ask  the  Lord  to  do  what 
I  am  not  Avilling  to  do ;  and  I  do  not  think  that  Brother  Long  is  any 
more  or  less  ready  to  do  so  than  I  am.  Ask  any  earthly  king  to  do 
a  work  that  you  would  not  do,  and  he  would  be  insulted.  Were  I 
to  ask  the  Lord  to  free  us  from  ungodly  wretches,  and  not  lend  my 
influence  and  assistance,  he  would  look  upon  me  diflerently  to  what 
he  now  does. 

"  You  have  read  that  I  had  an  agent  in  China  to  mix  poison  with 
the  tea  to  kill  all  the  nations ;  that  I  was  at  the  head  of  the  Vigilance 
Committee  m  California;  that  I  managed  the  troubles  in  Kansas, 
from  the  beginning  to  the  end ;  that  there  is  not  a  liquor-shop  or  dis- 
tillery but  what  Brigham  Young  dictates  it :  so  state  the  newspapers. 
In  these  and  all  other  accusations  of  evil-doing  I  defy  them  to  pro- 
duce the  first  show  of  evidence  against  me.  It  is  also  asserted  that 
President  Buchanan  and  myself  concocted  the  plan  for  the  army  to 
come  here,  with  a  view  to  make  money.  By-and-by  the  poor  wretch- 
es will  come  bending  and  say, '  I  wish  I  was  a  "  Mormon."  '  All  the 
army,  with  its  teamsters,  hangers-on,  and  followers,  with  the  judges, 
and  nearly  all  the  rest  of  the  civil  oflicers,  amounting  to  some  seven- 
teen thousand  men,  have  been  searching  diligently  for  three  years  to 
bring  one  act  to  light  that  Avould  criminate  me ;  but  they  have  not 
been  able  to  trace  out  one  thread  or  one  particle  of  evidence  that 
would  criminate  me ;  do  you  know  why  ?  Because  I  walk  humbly 
with  my  God,  and  do  right  so  far  as  I  know  how.  I  do  no  evil  to 
any  one ;  and  as  long  as  I  can  have  faith  in  the  name  of  the  Lord  Je- 
sus Christ  to  hinder  the  wolves  from  tearing  the  sheei^  and  devour- 
ing them,  without  putting  forth  my  hand,  I  shall  do  so. 

"  I  can  say  honestly  and  truly  before  God,  and  the  holy  angela»and 
all  men,  that  not  one  act  of  murder  or  disorder  has  occurred  in  this 
city  or  Territory  that  I  had  any  knowledge  of,  any  more  than  a  babe 
a  week  old,  until  after  the  event  has  transpired ;  that  is  the  reason 
they  can  not  trace  any  crime  to  me.  If  I  have  faith  enough  to  cause 
the  devils  to  eat  up  the  devils,  like  the  Kilkenny  cats,  I  shall  certainly 
exercise  it.  Joseph  Smith  said  that  they  would  eat  each  other  up  as 
did  those  cats.  They  will  do  so  here,  and  throughout  the  world. 
The  nations  will  consume  each  other,  and  the  Lord  will  suiFer  them 
to  bring  it  about.  It  does  not  require  much  talent  or  tact  to  get  up 
opposition  in  these  days ;  you  see  it  rife  in  communities,  in  meetings, 
in  neighborhoods,  and  in  cities ;  that  is  the  knife  that  will  cut  down 
this  government.  The  axe  is  laid  at  the  root  of  the  tree,  and  every 
ti'ee  that  bringeth  not  forth  good  fruit  will  be  hewn  down. 

"  Out  of  this  Church  will  grow  the  kingdom  which  Daniel  saw. 
This  is  the  very  people  that  Daniel  saw  would  continue  to  grow,  and 
spread,  and  prosper ;  and  if  we  are  not  faithful,  others  will  take  our 
places,  for  this  is  the  Church  and  people  that  will  possess  the  king- 
dom forever  and  ever.  Will  we  do  this  in  our  present  condition  as 
a  people  ?    No ;  for  we  must  be  pure  and  holy,  and  be  prepared  for 


263  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.V. 

the  presence  of  our  Savior  and  God,  in  order  to  possess  the  kingdom. 
Selfishness,  wickedness,  bickering,  tattling,  lying,  and  dishonesty  must 
depart  from  the  people  before  they  are  prejjared  for  the  Savior;  we 
must  sanctify  ourselves  before  our  God. 

"  I  wanted  to  ask  Brother  Long  a  question  this  morning — what  he 
had  learned  in  regard  to  the  original  sin.  Let  the  elders,  who  like 
speculation,  find  out  what  it  is,  i£  they  can,  and  inform  us  next  Sab- 
bath ;  or,  if  you  have  any  thing  else  that  is  good,  bring  it  along.  I 
wish  to  impress  upon  your  minds  to  live  your  religion,  and,  when  you 
come  to  this  stand  to  speak,  not  to  care  whether  you  say  five  words 
or  five  thousand,  but  to  come  with  the  power  of  God  ujDon  you,  and 
you  will  comfort  the  hearts  of  the  Saints.  All  the  soj^histry  in  the 
world  will  do  no  good.  If  you  live  your  religion,  you  will  live  with 
the  Spirit  of  Zion  within  you,  and  will  try,  by  every  lawful  means,  to 
induce  your  neighbors  to  live  their  religion.  In  this  way  we  will  re- 
deem Zion,  and  cleanse  it  from  sin. 

"  God  bless  you.     Amen." 

The  gift  of  unknown  tongues — which  is  made  by  some  physi- 
ologists the  result  of  an  affection  of  the  epigastric  region,  and  by 
others  an  abnormal  action  of  the  organ  of  language — is  now  ap- 
parently rarer  than  before.  Anti-Mormon  writers  thus  imitate 
the  "blatant  gibberish"  which  they  derive  directly  from  Irving- 
ism:  "Eli,  ele,  elo,  ela — come,  coma,  como — reli,  rele,  rela,  relo 
— sela,  selo,  sele,  selum — vavo,  vava,  vavum — sero,  seri,  sera,  se- 
rum." Lieutenant  Gunnison  relates*  a  facetious  story  concerning 
a  waggish  youth,  who,  after  that  a  woman  had  sprung  up  and 
spoken  "  in  tongues"  as  follows,  "  Mela,  meli,  melee,"  sorely  press- 
ed by  the  "  gift  of  interpretation  of  tongues,"  translated  the  sen- 
tence into  the  vernacular,  "  My  leg,  my  thigh,  my  knee."  For 
this  he  was  called  before  the  Council,  but  he  stoutly  persisted  in 
his  "interpretation"  being  "by  the  Spirit,"  and  they  dismissed 
him  with  admonition.  Gentiles  have  observed  that  whatever  may 
be  uttered  "  in  tongues,"  it  is  always  translated  into  very  intelli- 
gible English. 

That  evening,  when  dining  out,  I  took  a  lesson  in  Mormon  mod- 
esty. The  mistress  of  the  house,  a  Gentile,  but  not  an  anti-Mor- 
mon, was  requested  by  a  saintly  visitor,  who  was  also  a  widow,  to 
instruct  me  that  on  no  account  must  I  propose  to  see  her  home. 
"  Mormon  ladies,"  said  my  kind  informant,  "  are  very  strict ;"  un- 
necessarily so  on  this  occasion,  I  could  not  but  think.  Something 
similar  occurred  on  another  occasion :  a  very  old  lady,  wishing  to 
return  home,  surreptitiously  left  the  room  and  sidled  out  of  the 
garden  gate,  and  my  companion,  an  officer  from  Camp  Floyd,  at 
once  recognized  the  object  of  the  retreat.  I  afterward  learned  at 
dinner  and  elsewhere  among  the  Mormons  to  abjure  the  Gentile 
practice  of  giving  precedence  to  that  sex  than  which,  according  to 
Latin  grammar,  the  masculine  is  nobler.     The  lesson,  however, 

♦  The  Mormons.    Chap.  vi.     Social  Condition. 


Chap.  V.  MR.  STAINES.— ADOPTION.— FRUIT.  269 

was  not  new ;  I  had  been  taught  the  same,  in  times  past,  among 
certain  German  missionaries  who  assumed  precedence  over  their 
wives  upon  a  principle  borrowed  from  St.  Paul. 

I  took  the  earliest  opportunity  of  visiting,  at  his  invitation,  the 
Prophet's  gardens.  The  grounds  were  laid  out  by  Mr.  W.  C. 
Staines,  now  on  Church  business  in  London.*  Mr.  Staines  ar- 
rived at  Great  Salt  Lake  City  an  exceptionally  poor  emigrant,  and 
is  now  a  rich  man,  with  house  and  farm,  all  the  proceeds  of  his 
own  industry.  This  and  many  other  instances  which  I  could 
quote  prove  that  although,  as  a  rule,  the  highest  dignitaries  are 
the  wealthiest,  and  although  the  polygamist  can  not  expect  to  keep 
a  large  family  and  fill  at  the  same  time  a  long  purse,  the  Gen- 
tiles somewhat  exaggerate  when  they  represent  that  Church  dis- 
cipline keeps  the  lower  orders  in  a  state  of  pauperdom.  Mr. 
Staines  is  also  the  "  son  of '  Brigham'  by  adoption."  This  custom 
is  prevalent  among  the  Mormons  as  among  the  Hindoos,  but  with 
this  difference,  that  while  the  latter  use  it  when  childless,  the  for- 
mer employ  it  as  the  means  of  increasing  their  glory  in  the  next 
world.  The  relationship  is  truly  one  of  parent  and  child,  by 
choice,  not  only  by  the  mere  accident  of  birth,  and  the  "  son,"  if 
necessary,  lives  with  and  receives  the  necessaries  of  life  from  his 
"  father."  Before  entering  the  garden  we  were  joined  by  Mr. 
Mercer,  who,  long  after  my  departure  from  India,  had  missiona- 
rized  at  Kurrachee  in  "  Scinde,  or  the  Unhappy  Yalley." 

The  May  frost  had  injured  the  fruit.  Grapes  were  but  quarter- 
grown,  while  winter  was  fast  approaching.  I  suggested  to  the 
civil  and  obliging  English  gardener  that  it  would  be  well  to  garn- 
ish the  trellised  walls,  as  is  done  in  Tuscany,  with  mats  which  roll 
up  and  can  be  let  down  at  night.  Bacchus  appeared  in  three 
forms :  the  California  grape,  which  is  supposed  to  be  the  Madeira 
introduced  into  the  New  World  by  the  Franciscan  Missions ;  the 
Catawba — so  called  from  an  Indian  people  on  a  river  of  the  same 
name  —  a  cultivated  variety  of  the  Vitis  lahrusca,  and  still  the 
wine-grape  in  the  States.  The  third  is  the  inferior  Isabella,  named 
after  his  wife  by  "ole  man  Gibbs,"f  who  first  attempted  to  civil- 
ize the  fox-grape  ( Vitis  vuljnna),  growing  on  banks  of  streams  in 
most  of  the  temperate  states.  A  vineyard  is  now  being  planted 
on  the  hill-side  near  Mr.  Brigham  Young's  block,  and  home-made 
wine  will  soon  become  an  item  of  produce  in  Utah.  Pomology  is 
carefully  cultivated ;  about  one  hundred  varieties  of  apples  have 
been  imported,  and  of  these  ninety-one  are  found  to  thrive  as  seed- 
lings :  in  good  seasons  their  branches  are  bowed  down  by  fruit, 
and  must  be  propped  up,  or  they  will  break  under  their  load. 
The  peaches  were  in  all  cases  unpruned :   upon  this  important 

*  I  have  to  thank  Mr.  Staines  for  kind  assistance  in  supplying  me  with  necessary 
items  of  information . 

t  Similarly,  the  Constantia  of  the  Cape  was  named  after  Madam  Van  Stell,  the 
wife  of  the  governor. 


270  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  V. 

point  opinions  are  greatly  divided.  The  people  generally  believe 
that  the  foliage  is  a  protection  to  the  fruit  during  the  spring  frosts. 
The  horticulturists -declare  that  the  "extremes  of  temperature  ren- 
der proper  pruning  even  more  necessary  than  in  France,  and  that 
the  fervid  summers  often  induce  a  growth  of  wood  which  must 
suffer  severely  during  the  inclement  months,  unless  checked  and 
hardened  by  cutting  back.  Besides  grapes  and  apples,  there  were 
walnuts,  apricots  and  quinces,  cherries  and  plums,  currants,  rasp- 
berries, and  gooseberries.  The  principal  vegetables  were  the  Irish 
and  the  sweet  potato,  squashes,  peas — excellent — cabbages,  beets, 
cauliflowers,  lettuce,  and  broccoli ;  a  little  rhubarb  is  cultivated, 
but  it  requires  too  much  expensive  sugar  for  general  use,  and 
white  celery  has  lately  been  introduced.  Leaving  the  garden, 
we  walked  through  the  various  offices,  oil-mill,  timber-mill,  and 
smithy :  in  the  latter  oxen  are  shod,  according  to  the  custom  of 
the  country,  with  half  shoes.  The  animal  is  raised  from  the 
ground  by  a  broad  leather  band  under  the  belly,  and  is  liable  to 
be  lamed  by  any  but  a  practiced  hand. 

On  the  evening  of  the  3d  of  September,  while  sauntering  about 
the  square  in  which  a  train  of  twenty-three  wagons  had  just  biv- 
ouacked, among  the  many  others  to  whom  Mr.  Staines  introduced 
me  was  the  Apostle  John  Taylor,  tlie  "  Champion  of  Eights," 
Speaker  in  the  House,  and  whilom  editor.  I  had  heard  of  him 
from  the  best  authorities  as  a  man  so  morose  and  averse  to  Gen- 
tiles, "who  made  the  healing  virtue  depart  out  of  him,"  that  it 
would  bo  advisable  to  avoid  his  "fierceness."  The  veridique  Mr. 
Austin  AVard  describes  him  as  "an  old  man  deformed  and  crip- 
pled," and  Mrs.  Ferris  as  a  "heavy,  dark-colored,  beetle-browed 
man."  Of  course,  I  could  not  recognize  him  from  these  descrip- 
tions— a  stout,  good-looking,  somewhat  elderly  personage,  with  a 
kindly  gray  eye,  pleasant  expression,  and  a  forehead  of  the  supe- 
rior order  ;  he  talked  of  Westmoreland  his  birthplace,  and  of  his 
European  travels  for  a  time,  till  the  subject  of  Carthage  coming 
upon  the  iapis^  I  suspected  who  my  interlocutor  was.  Mr.  Staines 
burst  out  laughing  when  he  heard  my  mistake,  and  I  explained 
the  reason  to  the  apostle,  who  laughed  as  heartily.  Wishing  to 
see  more  of  him,  I  accompanied  him  in  the  carriage  to  the  Sugar- 
house  Ward,  where  he  was  bound  on  business,  and  cliemin  faisant 
we  had  a  long  talk.  He  pointed  out  to  me  on  the  left  the  mouths 
of  the  several  kanyons,  and  informed  me  that  the  City  Creek  and 
the  Eed  Buttes  on  the  northeast,  and  the  Emigration,  Parley's, 
Mill  Creek,  Great  Cotton-wood  and  Little  Cotton-wood  Kanyons 
to  the  east  and  southeast,  all  head  together  in  two  points,  thus  en- 
abling troops  and  provisions  to  be  easily  and  readily  concentrated 
for  the  defense  of  the  eastern  approaches.  When  talking  about 
the  probability  of  gold  digging  being  developed  near  Great  Salt 
Lake  City,  he  said  that  the  Mormons  are  aware  of  that,  but  that 
they  look  upon  agriculture  as  their  real  wealth.     The  Gentiles, 


Chap.v  the  penitentiary.  271 

however — it  is  curious  that  they  do  not  form  a  company  among 
themselves  for  prospecting — assert  that  the  Church  has  very  rich 
mines,  which  are  guarded  by  those  dragons  of  Danites  more  fierce- 
ly than  the  Hesperidian  Gardens,  and  which  will  never  be  known 
till  Miss  Utah  becomes  Mistress  Deseret.  Arriving  at  the  tall, 
gaunt  Sugar-house  —  its  occupation  is  gone,  while  the  name  re- 
mains— we  examined  the  machinery  eniployed  in  making  thresh- 
ing and  wool-carding  machines,  flanges,  wheels,  cranks,  and  simi- 
lar necessaries.  After  a  visit  to  a  nail  manufactory  belonging  to 
Squire  Wells,  and  calling  upon  Mrs.  Harris,  we  entered  the  Peni- 
tentiary. It  is  a  somewhat  Oriental-looking  building,  with  a  large 
quadrangle  behind  the  house,  guarded  by  a  wall  with  a  walk  on 
the  summit,  and  pepper-caster  sentry-boxes  at  each  angle.  There 
are  cells  in  which  the  convicts  are  shut  up  at  night,  but  one  of 
these  had  lately  been  broken  by  an  Indian,  who  had  cut  his  way 
through  the  wall;  a  Hindoo  "gonnoff"  would  soon  "pike"  out 
of  a  "premonitory"  like  this.  We  found  in  it  besides  the  guard- 
ians only  six  persons,  of  whom  two  were  Yutas.  When  I  re- 
marked to  Gentiles  how  few  were  the  evidences  of  crime,  they  in- 
variably replied  that,  instead  of  half  a  dozen  souls,  half  the  popu- 
lation ought  to  be  in  the  place.  On  our  return  we  resumed  the 
subject  of  the  massacre  at  Carthage,  in  which  it  will  be  remember- 
ed that  Mr.  John  Taylor  was  severely  wounded,  and  escaped  by  a 
miracle,  as  it  were.  I  told  him  openly  that  there  must  have  been 
some  cause  for  the  furious  proceedings  of  the  people  in  Illinois, 
Missouri,  and  other  places  against  the  Latter-Day  Saints ;  that 
even  those  who  had  extended  hospitality  to  them  ended  by  hating 
and  expelling  them,  and  accusing  them  of  all  possible  iniquities, 
especially  of  horse-thieving,  forgery,  larceny,  and  offenses  against 
property,  which  on  the  borders  are  never  pardoned  —  was  this 
smoke  quite  without  fire  ?  He  heard  me  courteously  and  in  per- 
fect temper ;  replied  that  no  one  claimed  immaculateness  for  the 
Mormons ;  that  the  net  cast  into  the  sea  brought  forth  evil  as  well 
as  good  fish,  and  that  the  Prophet  was  one  of  .the  laborers  sent  into 
the  vineyard  at  the  eleventh  hour.  At  the  same  time,  that  when 
the  New  Faith  was  stoutly  struggling  into  existence,  it  was  the 
object  of  detraction,  odium,  persecution — so,  said  Mr.  Taylor,  were 
the  Christians  in  the  days  of  Nero — that  the  border  ruffians,  for- 
gers, horse-thieves,  and  other  vile  fellows  followed  the  Mormons 
wherever  they  went ;  and,  finally,  that  every  fraud  and  crime  was 
charged  upon  those  whom  the  populace  were  disposed,  by  desire 
for  confiscation's  sake,  to  believe  guilty.  Besides  the  theologic 
odium  there  was  also  the  political :  the  Saints  would  vote  for 
their  favorite  candidates,  consequently  they  were  never  without 
enemies.  He  quoted  the  Mormon  rules :  1.  Worship  what  you 
like.  2.  Leave  your  neighbor  alone.  8.  Yote  for  whom  you 
please ;  and  compared  their  troubles  to  the  Western,  or,  as  it  is 
popularly  called,  the  Whisky  insurrection  in  179-i,  whose  "dread- 


272  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VI. 

ful  night"  is  still  remembered  in  Pennsylvania.  Mr.  Taylor  re- 
marked that  the  Saints  had  been  treated  by  the  United  States  as 
the  colonies  had  been  treated  by  the  crown :  that  the  persecuted 
naturall}^  became  persecutors,  as  the  Pilgrim  fathers,  after  flying 
for  their  faith,  hung  the  Quakers  on  Bloody  Hill  at  I3oston ;  and 
that  even  the  Gentiles  can  not  defend  their  own  actions.  I  heard 
for  the  first  time  this  view  of  the  question,  and  subsequently  ob- 
tained from  the  apostle  a  manuscript  account,  written  in  extenso, 
of  his  experience  and  his  sufferings.  It  has  been  transferred  in 
its  integrity  to  Appendix  No.  III.,  the  length  forbidding  its  inser- 
tion in  the  text :  a  tone  of  candor,  simplicity,  and  honesty  renders 
it  highly  attractive. 


ASCIEST  T.ttrp;  BESCH-LAHD. 


CHAPTER  YI. 

Descriptive  Geography,  Ethnology,  and  Statistics  of  Utah  Territory. 

Utah  Territory,  so  called  from  its  Indian  owners,  the  Yuta — 
"  those  that  dwell  in  mountains" — is  still,  to  a  certain  extent,  terra 
incognita,  not  having  yet  been  thoroughly  explored,  much  less 
surveyed  or  settled. 

The  whole  Utah  country  has  been  acquired,  like  Oregon,  by 
conquest  and  diplomacy.  By  the  partition  of  1848,  the  parallel 
of  N.  lat.  42°,  left  unsettled,  between  the  Rocky  Mountains  and 
the  Pacific,  by  the  treaties  of  the  22d  of  October,  1818,  and  the 
12th  of  February,  1819,  was  prolonged  northward  to  N.  lat.  49°, 
thus  adding  to  the  United  States  California,  Oregon,  and  Wash.- 


CiiAP.  VI.  GEOGRAPHY  OF  UTAH  TERRITORY.  273 

ington,  while  to  Britain  remained  Vancouver's  Island  and  the  joint 
navigation  of  the  Columbia  Kiver.  Under  the  Hispano-Ameri- 
cans  the  actual  Utah  Territory  formed  the  northern  portion  of 
Alta  California,  and  the  peace  of  Guadalupe  Hidalgo,  concluded 
in  1848  between  the  United  States  and  Mexico,  transferred  it  from 
the  latter  to  the  former. 

The  present  boundaries  of  Utah  Territory  are,  northward  (42° 
N.  lat.),  the  State  of  Oregon ;  and  southward,  a  line  pursuing  the 
parallel  of  N.  lat.  37°,  separating  it  from  New  Mexico  to  the  south- 
east and  from  California  to  the  southwest.  The  eastern  portion 
is  included  between  106°  and  120°  W.  long.  (G.) ;  a  line  follow- 
ing the  crest  of  the  Green  Ei  ver,  the  Wasach,  the  ]3ear  River,  and 
other  sections  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  whose  southern  extremi- 
ties anastomose  to  form  the  Sierra  Nevada,  separate  it  from  Ne- 
braska and  Kansas.  On  the  west  it  is  bounded,  between  116° 
and  120°  W.  long.,  by  the  lofty  crest  of  the  Sierra  Nevada ;  the 
organization,  however,  of  a  new  territory,  the  "Nevada,"  on  the 
landward  slope  of  the  Snowy  Range,  has  diminished  its  dimen- 
sions by  about  half.  Utah  had  thus  5°  of  extreme  breadth,  and 
14°  of  total  length ;  it  was  usually  reckoned  650  miles  long  from 
east  to  west,  and  350  broad  from  north  to  south.  The  shape  was 
an  irregular  parallelogram,  of  which  the  area  was  made  to  vary 
from  188,000  to  225,000  square  miles,  almost  the  superficies  of 
France. 

The  surface  configuration  of  Utah  Territory  is  like  Central 
Equatorial  Africa,  a  great  depression  in  a  mountain  land :  a  trough 
elevated  4000  to  5000  feet  above  sea  level,  subtended  on  all  sides 
by  mountains  8000  to  10,000  feet  high,  and  subdivided  by  trans- 
verse ridges.  The  "  Rim  of  the  Basin"  is  an  uncontinuous  line 
formed  by  the  broken  chains  of  Oregon  to  the  north,  and  to  the 
south  by  the  little-known  sub-ranges  of  the  Rocky  Mountains ; 
the  latter  also  form  the  eastern  wall,  while  the  Sierra  Nevada 
hems  in  the  west.  Before  the  present  upheaval  of  the  country 
the  Great  Interior  Basin  was  evidently  a  sweetwater  inland  sea ; 
the  bench  formation,  a  system  of  water-marks,  is  found  in  every 
valley,  while  detached  and  parallel  blocks  of  mountain,  trending 
almost  invariably  north  and  south,  were  in  geological  ages  rock- 
islands  protruding  from  the  lake  surface  like  those  that  now  break 
the  continuity  of  that  "  vast  and  silent  sea"  the  Great  Salt  Lake. 
Between  these  primitive  and  metamorphic  ridges  lie  the  secondary 
basins,  whose  average  width  may  be  15 — 20  miles ;  they  open  into 
one  another  by  kanyons  and  passes,  and  are  often  separated  longi- 
tudinally, like  "  waffle-irons,"  by  smaller  divides  running  east  and 
west,  thus  converting  one  extended  strip  of  secondary  into  a  sys- 
tem of  tertiary  valleys.  The  Great  Basin,  which  is  not  less  than 
500  miles  long  by  500  broad,  is  divided  by  two  large  chains,  which 
run  transversely  from  northeast  to  southwest.  The  northern- 
most is  the  range  of  the  Humboldt  River,  rising  5000 — 6000  feet 

S 


274  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VI. 

above  the  sea.  The  southern  is  the  prolongation  of  the  Wasach, 
whose  southwestern  extremity  abuts  upon  the  Pacific  coast  range ; 
it  attains  a  maximum  elevation  of  nearly  12,000  feet.  Without 
these  mountains,  whose  gorges  are  fed  during  the  spring,  and  even, 
in  the  summer,  by  melted  snow,  there  would  be  no  water.  The 
levels  of  the  valleys  are  still  unknown ;  it  is  yet  a  question  how 
far  they  are  irregular  in  elevation,  whether  they  have  formed  de- 
tached lakes,  or  whether  they  slope  uniformly  and  by  steps  toward 
the  Great  Salt  Lake  and  the  other  reservoirs  scattered  at  intervals 
over  the  country. 

The  water-shed  of  the  Basin  is  toward  the  north,  south,  east, 
and  west :  the  affluents  of  the  Columbia  and  the  Colorado  rivers 
carry  off  the  greatest  amount  of  drainage.  One  of  the  geograph- 
ical peculiarities  of  the  Territory  is  the  "  sinking,"  as  it  is  technic- 
ally called,  of  the  rivers.  The  phenomenon  is  occasioned  by  the 
porous  nature  of  the  soil.  The  larger  streams,  like  the  Hum- 
boldt and  the  Carson  rivers,  form  terminating  lakes.  The  small- 
er are  either  absorbed  by  sand,  or  sink,  like  the  South  African 
fountains,  in  j)onds  and  puddles  of  black  mire,  beneath  which  is 
peaty  earth  that  burns  as  if  by  spontaneous  combustion,  and 
smoulders  for  a  long  time  in  dry  weather :  the  waters  either  re- 
appear, or,  escaj)ing  under  the  surface — a  notable  instance  of  the 
"subterranean  river"  —  feed  the  greater  drains  and  the  lakes. 
The  potamology  is  more  curious  than  useful ;  the  streams,  being 
unnavigable,  play  no  important  part  in  the  scheme  of  economy. 

Utah  Territory  is  well  provided  with  lakes ;  of  these  are  two 
nearly  parallel  chains  extending  across  the  country.  The  east- 
ernmost begins  at  the  north,  with  the  Great  Salt  Lake,  the  small 
tarns  of  the  Wasach,  the  Utah,  or  Sweetwater  Eeservoir,  the  Ni- 
collet, and  the  Little  Salt  Lake,  complete  the  line  which  is  fed  by 
the  streams  that  flow  from  the  western  counterslope  of  the  Wa- 
sach. The  other  chain  is  the  drainage  collected  from  the  eastern 
slope  of  the  Sierra  Nevada ;  it  consists  of  ]\[ud.  Pyramid,  Carson, 
Mono,  and  Walker's  lakes.  Of  these,  Pyramid  Lake,  so  called  by 
Colonel  Fremont,  its  explorer,  from  a  singular  rock  in  the  centre, 
is  the  most  beautiful  —  a  transparent  water,  700  feet  above  the 
level  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake,  and  walled  in  by  precipices  nearly 
3000  feet  high. 

The  principal  thermal  features  of  Utah  Territory  are  the  Bear 
Springs,  near  the  Fort  Hall  Eoad.  The  Harrowgate  Springs, 
near  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  have  already  been  alluded  to.  Be- 
tween the  city  and  Bear  Eiver  there  is  a  fountain  of  strong  brine, 
described  as  discharging  a  large  volume  of  water.  There  are 
sulphurous  pools  at  the  southern  extremity  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake 
Valley.  Others  are  chalybeate,  coating  the  earth  and  the  rocks 
with  oxide  of  iron.  Almost  every  valley  has  some  thermal 
spring,  in  which  various  confervse  flourish;  the  difficulty  is  to 
find  good  cold  water. 


Chap.  VI.  CLIMATE  OF  UTAH  TEREITORY.  275 

Another  curious  geograpliical  peculiarity  of  tlie  Territory  is 
the  formation  of  the  mountains.  For  the  most  part  the  ridges, 
instead  of  presenting  regular  slopes,  more  or  less  inclined,  are 
formed  of  short  but  acute  angular  cappings  superimposed  upon 
flatter  prisms.  It  often  happens  that  after  easily  ascending  two 
thirds  from  the  base,  the  upper  part  suddenly  becomes  wall-like 
and  insurmountable. 

Utah  Territory  is  situated  in  the  parallel  of  the  Mediterranean ; 
the  southern  boundary  corresponds  with  the  provinces  along  the 
Amoor  lately  acquired  by  Eussia,  and  with  Tasmania  in  the 
southern  hemisphere.  But  the  elevation,  that  grand  modifier  of 
climate,  renders  it  bleak  and  liable  to  great  vicissitudes  of  tem- 
perature. The  lowest  valley  rises  4000  feet  above  sea  level ;  the 
mountains  behind  Great  Salt  Lake  City  are  6000  feet  high ;  Mount 
Nebo  is  marked  8000,  and  the  Twin  Peaks,  that  look  upon  the 
"  Happy  Yalley,"  were  ascertained  barometrically  by  Messrs.  O. 
Pratt  and  A.  Carrington  to  be  11,660  feet  in  height:  in  the  west- 
ern part  of  the  Territory  the  Sierra  Nevada  averages  2000  feet 
above  the  South  Pass,  and  it  has  peaks  that  tower  thousands  of 
feet  above  that  altitude.  These  snowy  masses,  in  whose  valleys 
thaw  is  seldom  known,  exercise  a  material  effect  upon  the  climate, 
and  cause  the  cultivator  to  wage  fierce  war  with  the  soil.  The 
air  is  highly  rarefied  by  its  altitude.  Captain  Stansbury's  baro- 
metrical observations  for  May,  June,  July,  and  August,  give  as  a 
maximum  27*80  at  9  A.M.  on  the  4th  of  August,  and  minimum 
22*86  at  sunrise  on  the  19th  of  June,  with  a  general  range  be- 
tween 25°  and  26°.  New-comers  suffer  from  difficulty  of  breath- 
ing ;  often  after  sudden  and  severe  exercise,  climbing,  or  running, 
the  effect  is  like  the  nausea,  sickness,  and  fainting  experienced 
upon  Mont  Blanc  and  in  Tibet ;  even  horses  feel  it,  and  must 
pass  two  or  three  months  before  they  are  acclimatized.* 

*  Subjoined  is  an  abstract  of  meteorology  kindly  forwarded  to  me  by  Judge 
Phelps : 

"  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  Utah,  Oct.  24th,  1860. 

"Dear  Sir, — The  following  is  an  abstract  of  meteorological  observations  for  the 
past  year,  from  October,  ]  859,  to  October,  1860,  inclusive : 

Yearly  mean  of  barometer 25'855 

Highest  range 26-550 

Lowest  range 25*205 

Thermometer  attached  (mean) 60° 

Thermometer  (open  air)    "     71° 

Thermometer,  dry  bulb      "     ^ 64° 

Thermometer,  wet  bulb      "     58° 

(All  Fahrenheit.) 

"The  amount  of  fair  days,  244.  The  remaining  121  were  31  stormy  and  the  res- 
idue cloudy  and  foggy. 

' '  The  course  of  the  wind  more  than  two  thirds  of  the  year  goes  round  daily  with 
the  sun  ;  strongest  wind  south ;  worst  for  stock,  north. 

"Highest  range  of  the  thermometer,  96°  in  July;  lowest  range  in  December — 
22°  below  0. 

"The  amount  of  snow  and  rain  water  was  12-257,  which  is  somewhat  over  1  foot. 


276  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VI. 

The  climate  of  the  Basin  lias  been  compared  witli  that  of  the 
Tartar  plains  of  High  Asia.  Spring  opens  in  the  valleys  with 
great  suddenness ;  all  is  bloom  and  beauty  below,  while  the  snow- 
line creeps  lingeringly  np  the  mountain  side,  and  does  not  disap- 
pear till  the  middle  of  June.  Thus  there  are  but  three  months 
of  warmth  in  the  high  lands ;  the  low  lands  have  four,  beginning 
with  a  May-day  like  that  of  England.  At  the  equinoxes,  both 
vernal  and  autumnal,  there  are  rains  in  the  bottoms,  which  in  the 
upper  levels  become  sleet  or  snow.  Between  April  and  October 
showers  are  rare;  there  are,  however,  exceptions,  heavy  down- 
falls, with  thunder,  lightning,  and  hail.  "  Clouds  without  water" 
is  a  proverbial  expression ;  a  dark,  heavy  pall,  which  in  wood- 
land countries  would  burst  with  its  weight,  here  sails  over  the 
arid,  sun-parched  surface,  and  discharges  its  watery  stores  in  the 
kanyons  and  upon  the  mountains.  During  the  first  few  years 
after  the  arrival  of  the  Saints  there  was  little  rain  either  in  spring 
or  autumn ;  in  1860  it  extended  to  the  middle  of  June.  The 
change  may  be  attributed  to  cultivation  and  plantation ;  thus 
also  may  be  explained  the  North  American  Indian's  saying  that 
the  pale-face  brings  with  him  his  rain.  The  same  has  been  ob- 
served in  Kansas  and  New  Mexico,  and  is  equally  remarked  by 
the  natives  of  Cairo,  the  Aden  Coal-hole,  and  Kurrachee.  Seed- 
time lasts  from  April  to  the  10th  of  June. 

The  summer  is  hot,  but  the  lightness  and  the  aridity  of  the  air 
prevent  its  being  unwholesome.  During  my  visit  the  thermom- 
eter (F.)  placed  in  a  room  with  ojoen  windows  showed  at  dawn 
63 — 66° ;  at  noon,  75°  ;  and  at  sunset,  70° :  the  greatest  midday 
heat  was  105°.  The  mornings  and  evenings,  cooled  by  breezes 
from  the  mountains,  were  deliciously  soft  and  pure.  The  abun- 
dant electricity  was  proved,  as  in  Sindh  and  Arabia,  by  frequent 
devils  or  dust-pillars,  like  huge  columns  of  volcanic  smoke,  that 
careered  over  the  miraged  plains,  violently  excited  where  they 
touched  the  negative  earth,  and  calm  in  the  positive  strata  of  the 
"upper  air,  whence  their  floating  particles  were  precipitated.  Dust- 
storms  and  thunder-storms  are  frequent  and  severe.  Clouds  often 
gather  upon  the  peaks,  and  a  heavy  black  nimbus  rises  behind 
the  Wasach  wall,  setting  off  its  brilliant  sunlit  side,  but  there  is 
seldom  rain.  Showers  are  preceded,  as  in  Eastern  Africa,  by 
pufis  and  gusts  of  cold  air,  and  are  expected  in  Great  Salt  Lake 
City  when  the  clouds  come  from  the  west  and  southwest,  oppo- 
site and  over  the  "!^ack  Eock;"  otherwise  they  will  cling  to 
the  hills.  Even  in  the  hottest  weather,  a  cold  continuous  wind, 
as  from  the  nozzle  of  a  forge-bellows,  pours  down  the  deep  damp 

*' All  the  snow  in  the  Valley  was  less  than  3  feet,  while  perhaps  in  the  mountains 
it  was  more  than  10  feet,  which  gives  ample  water  for  irrigation. 
"The  weather  during  the  year  was  steady,  without  extremes. 
"Such  was  Utah  in  ISGO. 

"Respectfully,  I  have  the  honor  to  be,  etc.,  W.  W.  Phelps." 


Chap.  VI.  CLIMATE  OF  UTAH  TERRITORY.  277 

kanj'-ons,  wlierc  the  snow  lingers,  and  travelers,  especially  at  night, 
prepare  to  pass  across  the  ravine  mouths  with  blankets  and  warm 
clothing.  Where  the  federal  troops  encamped  on  the  stony  bench 
opposite  the  Provo  Kanyon,  it  was  truly  predicted  that  they 
would  soon  be  blown  out.  When  summer  is  protracted,  severe 
droughts  are  the  result.  Harvest-time  is  in  the  beginning  of 
July. 

About  early  September  the  heat  ends.  In  1860,  the  first  snow 
fell  upon  the  Twin  Peaks  and  their  neighborhood  on  the  12th 
of  September.  Rains  then  usually  set  in  for  a  fortnight  or  three 
weeks,  and  mild  weather  often  lasts  till  the  end  of  October.  No- 
vember is  partially  a  fine  month ;  after  two  or  three  snowy  days, 
the  Indian  summer  ushers  in  the  most  enjoyable  weather  of  the 
year,  which,  when  short,  ends  about  the  middle  of  November. 

Winter  has  three  very  severe  months,  reckoned  from  Decem- 
ber. Icy  winds  blow  hard,  and  gales  are  sometimes  so  high  that 
spray  is  carried  from  the  Great  Salt  Lake  to  the  City,  a  distance 
of  10 — 12  miles.  In  1854-5  hundreds  of  cattle  perished  in  the 
snow.  Usually  in  mid-winter,  snow  falls  every  day  with  a  high 
westerly  wind,  veering  toward  the  north,  and  thick  with  poudre — 
dry  icy  spiculte,  hard  as  gravel.  The  thermometer  is  not  often 
below  zero  in  the  bottoms;  on  the  13th  of  December,  1859,  how- 
ever, the  thermometer  at  daylight,  with  the  barometer  at  26'250, 
showed  — 22°  (F.) ;  5°  or  6°  lower  than  it  had  ever  been  before. 
The  snow  seldom  lies  in  the  valleys  deeper  than  a  man's  knee ;  it 
is  dry,  and  readily  thawed  by  the  sun.  A  vast  quantity  is  drifted 
into  the  kanyons  and  passes,  where  the  people,  as  in  Styria,  often 
become  prisoners  at  home.  These  crevasses,  hundreds  of  feet 
deep,  retain  their  icy  stores  throughout  the  year.  It  is  asserted  by 
those  who  believe  in  a  Pacific  Railway  upon  this  line*  that  the 
Wasach  can  be  traversed  at  all  seasons ;  at  present,  however, 
sledge  transit  only  is  practicable,  and  at  times  even  that  is  found 
impossible. 

It  can  not  be  doubted  that  this  climate  of  arid  heat  and  dry 
cold  is  eminently  suited  to  most  healthy  and  to  many  sickly  con- 
stitutions: children  and  adults  have  come  from  England  appar- 
ently in  a  dying  state,  and  have  lived  to  be  strong  and  robust 
men.     I  have  elsewhere  alluded  to  the  effect  of  rarefaction  upon 

*  The  Pacific  Railroad  in  1852  was  unknown  to  the  political  world:  in  185G  it 
began  to  be  necessary,  and  shortly  aftem-ard  it  appeared  in  both  "  platforms, "  be- 
cause without  it  no  one  could  expect  to  carry  the  Mississippian  and  Tacific  States, 
Texas,  for  instance,  and  California.  The  Diary  will  show  the  many  difficulties 
which  it  must  encounter  after  crossing  the  South  Pass ;  as  the  West  can  afford  no 
assistance,  provisions  and  material  must  all  come  from  the  East — an  additional  ele- 
ment of  expense  and  delay.  The  estimate  is  roughly  laid  down  at  $100,000,000: 
it  may  safely  be  doubled.  The  well-known  contractor,  Mr.  "WTiitney,  offered  to  build 
it  for  a  reservation  of  thirty  miles  on  both  sides :  the  idea  was  rejected  as  that  of  a 
crazy  man  It  is  promised  in  ten  years,  and  will  probably  take  thirty.  England, 
then,  had  better  look  to  her  line  through  Canada  and  Columbia — it  would  be  worth 
a  hundred  East  Indian  railroads. 


278  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VI. 

the  English  physique:  another  has  been  stated,  namely,  that  the 
atmosphere  is  too  fine  and  dry  to  require,  or  even  to  permit,  the 
free  use  of  spirituous  liquors.  Paralysis  is  rare ;  scrofula  and 
phthisis  are  unknown,  as  in  ^Nebraska — the  climate  wants  that 
humidity  which  brings  forward  the  predisposition.  It  is  also  re- 
markable that,  though  all  drink  snow-water,  and  though  many 
live  in  valleys  where  there  is  no  free  circulation  of  air,  goitre  and 
cretinism  are  not  yet  named.  The  City  Council  maintains  an  ex- 
cellent sanitary  supervision,  which  extends  to  the  minutest  objects 
that  might  endanger  the  general  health.  The  stream  of  emigrants 
which  formerly  set  copiously  westward  is  now  dribbling  back  to- 
ward its  source,  and  a  quarantine  is  established  for  those  w^ho  ar- 
rive with  contagious  diseases.  Great  Salt  Lake  City  is  well  pro- 
vided with  disciples  of  ^sculapius,  against  whom  there  is  none 
of  that  prejudice  founded  upon  superstition  and  fanaticism  which 
anti-Mormon  writers  have  detected.  Dr.  Francis,  an  English  Mor- 
mon, lately  died,  leaving  Dr.  Anderson,  a  graduate  of  Maryland 
College,  to  take  his  place :  Dr.  Bernhisel  prefers  politics  to  physic, 
and  Dr.  Kay  is  the  chief  dentist. 

The  normal  complaints  are  easily  explained  by  local  peculiari- 
ties— cold,  alkaline  dust,  and  overindulgence  in  food. 

Neuralgia  is  by  no  means  uncommon.  Many  are  compelled  to 
wear  kerchiefs  under  their  hats ;  and  if  a  head  be  not  always  un- 
covered, there  is  some  reason  for  it.  Eheumatism,  as  in  England, 
affects  the  poorer  classes,  who  are  insufiiciently  fed  and  clothed. 
Pneumonia,  in  winter,  follows  exposure  and  hard  work.  The 
pleuro-pneumonia,  which  in  1860  did  so  much  damage  to  stock 
in  New  England,  did  not  extend  to  Utah  Territory :  the  climate, 
however,  is  too  like  that  of  the  Cape  of  Storms  to  promise  lasting 
immunity.  Catarrhs  are  severe  and  lasting ;  they  are  accompa- 
nied by  bad  toothaches  and  sore  throats,  which  sometimes  degen- 
erate into  bronchitis.  Diphtheria  is  not  jQt  known.  The  mea- 
sles have  proved  especially  fatal  to  the  Indians:  in  1850,  "Old 
Elk,"  the  principal  war-chief  of  the  Timpanogos  Yutas,  died  of  it : 
erysipelas  also  kills  many  of  the  wild  men. 

For  ophthalmic  disease,  the  climate  has  all  the  efficients  of  the 
Yalley  of  the  Nile,  and,  unless  suitable  precautions  are  taken,  the 
race  will,  after  a  few  generations,  become  tender-eyed  as  Egyp- 
tians. The  organ  is  weakened  by  the  acrid  irritating  dust  from 
the  alkaline  soil,  which  glistens  in  the  sun  like  hoar-frost.  Snow- 
blindness  is  common  on  the  mountains  and  in  the  plains :  the  fa- 
vorite preventive,  when  goggles  are  unprocurable,  is  to  blacken 
the  circumorbital  region  and  the  sides  of  the  nose  with  soot — the 
kohl,  surmah,  or  collyrium  of  the  Far  West:  the-  cure  is  a  drop 
of  nitrate  of  silver  or  laudanum.  The  mucous  membrane  in  horses, 
as  among  men,  is  glandered,  as  it  were,  by  alkali,  and  the  chronic 
inflammation  causes  frequent  hemorrhage:  the  nitrous  salts  in 
earth  and  air  exasperate  to  ulcers  sunburns  on  the  nose  and  mouth : 


Chap.  VI.     DISEASES.— ANIMALS  OF  UTAH  TERRITORY.  279 

it  is  not  uncommon  to  see  men  riding  or  walking  witli  a  bit  of  pa- 
per instead  of  a  straw  between  their  lips.  Wounds  must  be  treat- 
ed to  great  disadvantage  where  the  climate,  like  that  of  Abyssinia, 
renders  a  mere  scratch  troublesome.  The  dryness  of  the  air  pro- 
duces immunity  from  certain  troublesome  excrescences  which 
cause  shooting  pains  in  humid  regions,  and  the  pedestrian  requires 
no  vinegar  and  water  to  harden  his  feet:  on  the  other  hand, 
horses'  hoofs,  as  in  Sindh  and  Arabia,  must  be  stuffed  with  tar,  to 
prevent  sun-crack. 

Under  the  generic  popular  name  "  mountain  fever"  are  includ- 
ed various  species  of  febrile  affections,  intermittent,  remittent,  and 
typhoid :  they  are  treated  successfully  with  quinine. 

Emigrants  are  advised  to  keep  up  hard  work  and  scanty  fare 
after  arrival,  otherwise  the  sudden  change  from  semi-starvation 
and  absence  of  fruit  and  vegetables  upon  the  prairies  to  plenty  in 
the  settlements  may  cause  dyspepsia,  dysentery,  and  visceral  in- 
flammation. Some  are  attacked  by  "liver  complaint,"  the  trivial 
term  for  the  effects  of  malaria,  which,  when  inhaled,  affects  suc- 
cessively the  lungs,  blood,  liverj  and  other  viscera.  The  favorite, 
and,  indeed,  the  only  known  successful  treatment  is  by  mineral 
acids,  nitric,  muriatic,  and  others.^  Scurvy  is  unknown  to  the 
settlers ;  when  brought  in  after  long  desert  marches,  it  yields  read- 
ily to  a  more  generous  diet  and  vegetables,  especially  potatoes, 
which,  even  in  the  preserved  form,  act  as  a  specific.  The  terrible 
scorbutic  disease,  called  the  ''black  canker  of  the  plains,"  has  not 
extended  so  far  west. 

There  is  not  much  sport  with  fur,  feather,  and  fin  in  this  part 
of  the  Far  West :  the  principal  carnivors  of  the  Great  Basin  are 
the  cougar  (F.  unicolor)  and  the  cat-o'-m.ountain,  the  large  and 
small  wolf,  a  variety  of  foxes,  the  red  {V.fulvus)^  the  great-tailed 
( V.  macrourus),  and  the  silver  ( V.  argentatus),  whose  spoils  were 
once  worth  their  weight  in  silver.  There  are  minks,  ermines, 
skunks,  American  badgers,  and  wolverines  or  gluttons,  which  fer- 
ret out  caches  of  peltries  arfti  provisions,  and  are  said  sometimes 
to  attack  man.  Of  rodents  the  principal  are  the  beaver,  a  bur- 
rowing hare,  the  jackass-rabbit  {L.  calloiis),  porcupines,  the  geo- 
mys  or  gophar,  a  sand-rat  peculiar  to  America,  the  woodchuck  or 
ground-hog,  many  squirrels,  especially  the  Spermophilus  tredecim 
lineatus,  which  swarms  in  hilly  ground,  and  muskrat  {F.  ziheticus), 
which,  like  other  vermin,  is  eaten  by  Indians.  The  principal 
pachyderm  is  the  hyrax,  called  by  the  settlers  "cony."  Of  the 
ruminants  we  find  the  antelope,  deer,  elk,  and  the  noble  bighorn, 

*  The  following  is  the  favorite  cure :  it  is  upon  the  principle  of  the  medicinal  bath 
well  known  in  Europe. 

R  Acid.  Nit.  f  i. 

Acid.  Mur.  sii.     Mis. 
Of  this  fifteen  drops  are  to  be  taken  in  a  tumbler  of  water  twice  a  day  before  meals. 
The  local  application  to  the  hepatic  region  is.one  ounce  of  the  nitro-muriatic  acid  in 
a  quart  of  water,  and  applied  upon  a  compress  every  night. 


230  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VI. 

or  Eocky  Mountain  sheep,  the  moufflon  or  argali  of  the  New 
World. 

Of  the  raptors  the  principal  are  the  red-tailed  hawk  {B.  horealin), 
the  sharp-shinned  hawk  {A.  fuscus),  the  sparrow-hawk,  and  the 
vulturine  turkey-buzzard.  Of  game-birds  there  are  several  vari- 
eties of  quail,  called  j)artridges,  especially  the  beautiful  blue  spe- 
cies (0.  Californica),  and  grouse,  especially  the  sage-hen  {T.  uro- 
phasicams)  :  the  water-fowl  are  swans  {C.  Americanus\  wild  geese 
in  vast  numbers,  the  white  pelican,  here  a  migrating  bird,  the  cor- 
morant {Phalacrocorax),  the  mallard  or  greenhead  {A.  hoschas), 
which  loves  the  water  of  Jordan  and  the  western  Sea  of  Tiberias, 
the  teal,  red-breasted  and  green-winged,  the  brant  {A.  hernicla), 
the  plover  and  curlew,  the  gull  (a  small  Larus),  a  blue  heron,  and 
a  brown  crane  {G.  Canadensis),  which  are  found  in  the  marshes 
throughout  the  winter.  The  other  members  of  the  family  are  the 
bluebird  {A.  sialia),  the  humming-bird  {Trochilus),  finches,  wood- 
peckers, the  swamp  blackbird,  and  the  snowbird,  small  passerines : 
there  is  also  a  fine  lark  {Sturnella)  with  a  harsh  note,  which  is  con- 
sidered a  delicacy  in  autumn. 

Besides  a  variety  of  gray  and  green  lizards,  the  principal  Sau- 
rian is  the  Phrynosoma,  a  purely  American  t3'pe,  popular!}^  called 
the  horned  frog — or  toad,  although  its  tail,  its  scaly  body,  and  its 
inability  to  jump  disprove  its  title  to  rank  as  a  batrachian — and 
by  the  Mexicans  chameleon,  because  it  is  supposed  to  live  on  air. 
It  is  of  many  species,  for  which  the  naturalist  is  referred  to  the 
Appendix  of  Captain  Stansbury's  Exploration.  The  serpents  are 
chiefly  rattlesnakes,  swamp-adders,  and  water-snakes.  The  fishes 
are  perch,  pike,  bass,  chub,  a  mountain  trout  averaging  three 
pounds,  and  salmon  trout  which  has  been  known  to  weigh  thir- 
ty pounds.  There  are  but  few  mollusks,  periwinkles,  snails,  and 
fresh-water  clams.* 

The  botany  of  the  Great  Basin  has  been  investigated  by  Messrs. 
Fremont  and  Stansbury,  who  forwarded  their  collections  for  de- 
scription to  Professor  John  Torrey,  of  New  York :  M.  Eemy  has 
described  his  own  herbarium.  To  these  valuable  works  the  read- 
er may  be  referred  for  all  now  known  upon  the  subject. 

*  Mr.  W.  Baird,  in  the  absence  of  Mr.  S.  Woodward,  of  the  British  Museum,  has 
kindly  favored  me  with  the  following  list  of  a  little  collection  from  the  Great  Basin 
which  I  placed  in  his  hands. 

"  British  Miipeum,  Aupust  3(1,  ISCl. 

"Dear  Sik, — The  Helix  (with  open  umbilicus)  is,  I  think,  //.  soUtaria;  the  large 
Physa  is  very  near,  if  not  identical  with  the  P.  elliptica  of  our  collection ;  the  next 
largest  Physa  comes  very  near  P.  gyrina ;  the  larger  Lymnoca  is  L.  catascopium,  the 
smaller  ditto  L.  modlcella.  There  are  two  species  of  the  genus  Lithogljiplms,  the  one 
resembling  very  much  the  L.  naticoides  of  Europe,  but  most  probably  new ;  the  other 
I  should  imagine  to  be  undescribed.  There  is  a  small  Paludina  looking  shell  which 
comes  very  near  the  Paludina  pisduni  of  D'Orbigny.  There  is  a  species  of  A  nodonta 
which  corresponds  with  a  shell  we  have  from  the  Columbia  River,  but  of  which  I  do 
not  know  the  name.  There  is  also  a  species  of  Cijclas  which  may  be  new,  as  I  do 
not  know  at  present  any  species  from  North  America  exactly  like  it.  Boliove  me, 
yours  truly,  W.  Baiud. 

"Capt.  K.  F.  Burton." 


Chap.  VI.  GEOLOGY  OF  UTAH  TERRITORY.  281 

The  rocks  in  Utali  Territory  are  mostly  primitive — granite, 
brick-red  jasper,  syenite,  hornblende,  and  porphyry,  with  various 
quartzes,  of  which  the  most  curious  is  a  white  nodule  surrounded 
by  a  crystalline  layer  of  satin  spar.  The  presence  of  obsidian, 
scoria?,  and  lava — apparently  a  dark  brown  mud  tinged  with  iron, 
and  so  vitrified  by  heat  that  it  rings — evidences  volcanic  action. 
Many  of  the  ridges  are  a  carboniferous  limestone  threaded  by  cal- 
careous spar,  and  in  places  rich  with  encrinites  and  fossil  coral- 
lines ;  it  rests  upon  or  alternates  with  hard  and  compact  grits  and 
sandstone.  The  kanyons  in  the  neighborhood  of  Great  Salt  Lake 
City  supply  boulders  of  serpentine,  fine  gray  granite,  coarse  red 
ochrish  pcecilated  crystalline-white  and  metamorphic  sandstones, 
a  variety  of  conglomerates,  especially  granitic,  with  tufa  in  large 
masses,  talcose  and  striated  slates,  some  good  for  roofing,  gypsum 
(plaster  of  Paris),  pebbles  of  alabaster  and  various  kinds  of  lime- 
stones, some  dark  and  fetid,  others  oolitic,  some  compact  and  mass- 
ive, black,  blue,  or  ash-colored,  seamed  with  small  veins  of  white 
carbonate  of  lime,  others  light  gray  and  friable,  cased  with  tufa, 
or  veneered  with  jade.  The  bottom-soil  in  most  parts  is  fitted  for 
the  adobe,  and  the  lower  hills  contain  an  abundance  of  fossilless 
chalky  lime,  which  makes  tolerable  mortar :  the  best  is  that  near 
Deep  Creek,  the  worst  is  in  the  vicinity  of  Great  Salt  Lake  City. 
Near  Fort  Hall,  in  the  northeast  corner  of  the  basin,  there  is  said 
to  be  a  mountain  of  marble  displaying  every  hue  and  texture : 
marble  is  also  found  in  large  crystalline  nodules  like  arragonite. 

LTtah  Territor}'-  will  produce  an  ample  supply  of  iron.*  Ac- 
cording to  the  Mormons,  it  resembles  that  of  Missouri,  and  the 
gangue  contains  eighty  per  cent,  of  pure  metal,  which,  to  acquire 
the  necessary  toughness,  must  be  alloyed  with  imported  iron. 
Gold,  according  to  Humboldt,  is  constant  in  meridional  mount- 
ains, and  we  may  expect  to  find  it  in  a  country  abounding  with 
crystalline  rocks  cut  by  dikes  of  black  and  gray  basalt  and  porous 
trap,  gneiss,  micaceous  schists,  clayey  and  slaty  shales,  and  other 
argillaceous  formations.  It  is  generally  believed  that  gold  exists 
upon  the  Wasach  Mountains,  within  siglit  of  Great  Salt  Lake  City, 
and  in  1861  a  traveling  party  is  reported  to  have  found  a  fine 
digging  in  the  north.  Lumps  of  virgin  silver  are  said  to  have 
been  discovered  upon  the  White  Mountains,  in  the  south  of  the 
Territory,  and  Judge  Ealston,  I  am  informed,  has  lately  hit  upon 
a  mine  near  the  western  route.  Copper,  zinc,  and  lead  have  been 
brought  from  Little  Salt  Lake  Valley  and  sixty  miles  east  of  the 
Vegas  de  Santa  Clara.  Coal,  principally  bituminous — like  that 
nearer  the  Pacific — is  found  mostly  in  the  softer  limestones  south 
of  the  city,  in  a  country  of  various  marls,  indurated  cla3's,  and 
earthy  sandstones.     In  1855  a  vein  of  five  feet  thick,  in  quality 

*  Magnetic  iron  ore  is  traced  in  the  basaltic  rock ;  cubes  of  bisulphuret  of  iron  are 
found  in  the  argillaceous  schists,  and  cubic  crj-stals  of  iron  pyrites  are  seen  in  white 
ferruginous  quartz. 


282  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VI. 

resembling  tliat  of  Maryland,  was  discovered  west  of  the  San  Pete 
Creek,  on  the  road  to  Manti.  In  Iron  County,  250  to  280  miles 
south  of  Great  Salt  Lake  Cit}'-,  inexhaustible  coal-beds  as  well  as 
iron  deposits  are  said  to  line  the  course  of  the  Green  Eiver,  and, 
that  nothing  may  be  wanting,  considerable  affluents  supply  abund- 
ant water-power.  A  new  digging  had  been  discovered  shortly 
before  my  arrival  on  a  tributary  of  the  Weber  Eiver,  east  of  the 
City  of  the  Saints,  and  upon  the  western  route  many  spots  were 
pointed  out  to  me  as  future  coal-mines.  Timber  being  principally 
required  for  building,  fencing,  and  mechanical  purposes,  renders 
firewood  expensive :  in  the  city  a  cartage  of  fifteen  miles  is  neces- 
sary, and  the  price  is  thereby  raised  from  $7  in  summer  to  a  max- 
imum of  $20  in  the  hard  season  per  cord  of  sixteen  by  four  feet. 
Unless  the  Saints  would  presently  be  reduced  to  the  necessity  of 
"breakfasting  with  Ezekiel,"  they  must  take  heart  and  build  a 
tramroad  to  the  south. 

Saltpetre  is  found — upon  paper:  here,  as  in  other  parts  of 
America,  it  is  deficient :  a  reward  of  $500  offered  for  a  sample  of 
gunpowder  manufactured  from  Valley  Tan  materials  produced  no 
claimants.  Sulphur  is  only  too  common.  Saleratus  or  alkaline 
salts  is  the  natural  produce  of  the  soil.  Borax  and  petroleum  or 
mineral  tar  have  been  discovered,  and  the  native  alum  has  been 
analyzed  and  pronounced  good  by  Dr.  Gale.*  Rubies,  emeralds, 
and  other  small  but  valuable  stones  are  found  in  the  chinks  of  the 
primitive  rocks  throughout  the  western  parts  of  the  Territory. 
I  have  also  seen  chalcedony,  sardonyx,  carnelian,  and  various 
agates. 

Utah  Territory  is  pronounced  by  immigrants  from  the  Old 
Country  to  be  a  "mean  land,"  hard,  dry,  and  fit  only  for  the 
steady,  sober,  and  hard-working  Mormon.  Scarcely  one  fiftieth 
part  is  fit  for  tillage ;  farming  must  be  confined  to  rare  spots,  in 
which,  however,  an  exceptional  fertility  appears.  Even  in  the 
arable  lands  there  is  a  great  variety :  some  do  not  exceed  8 — 10 
bushels  per  acre,  while  Captain  Stansbury  mentions  180  bushelsf 
of  wheat  being  raised  upon  3 '50  acres  of  ground  from  one  bushel 
of  seed,  and  estimates  the  average  yield  of  properly-cultivated 
land  at  40  bushels,  whereas  rich  Pennsylvania  rarely  gives  30 
per  acre.:}:  I  have  heard  of  lands  near  the  fresh- water  lake  which 
bear  from  60  to  105  bushels  per  acre. 

The  cultivable  tracts  are  of  two  kinds,  bench-land  and  bottom- 
land. 

*  100  grammes  of  the  freshly  ciystallized  salt  gave, 

Water .'. 730 

Protoxide  of  manganese 08 '9 

Alumina 04'0 

Sulphuric  acid 18*0 

t  In  the  United  States  the  bushel  of  wheat  or  clover-seed  is  60  lbs. ;  of  corn,  bar- 
ley, and  rye,  oG  lbs. ;  of  oats,  3~> — 3G  lbs. 

X  The  yield  in  Egypt  varies  from  25  to  150  grains  for  one  planted. 


Chap.  VI.  SOIL.— FRUITS.— ALKALINE  SALTS.  283 

The  soil  of  the  bencli-lauds  is  fertile,  a  mixture  of  the  highland 
feldspatli  "with  the  debris  of  decomposed  limestone.  It  is  com- 
paratively free  from  alkalines,  the  bane  of  the  valleys;  but  as 
rain  is  wanting,  it  depends,  like  the  Basses-Pyrenees,  upon  irri- 
gation, and  must  be  fertilized  by  the  mountain  torrents  that  issue 
from  the  kanyons.  As  a  rule,  the  creelvs  dwindle  to  rivulets  and 
sink  in  the  porous  alluvium  before  they  have  run  a  mile  from 
the  hill-foot,  and  reappear  in  the  arid  plains  at  a  level  too  low  for 
navigation :  in  such  places  artesian  wells  are  wanted.  The  soil, 
though  fertile,  is  thin,  requiring  compost :  manure  is  here  allowed 
to  waste,  the  labor  of  the  people  sufiicing  barely  for  essentials. 
I  am  informed  that  two  bushels  of  semence  are  required  for  each 
acre,  and  that  the  colonists  sow  too  scantily:  a  judicious  rotation 
of  crops  is  also  yet  to  come.  The  benches  are  sometimes  exten- 
sive :  a  strip,  for  instance,  runs  along  the  western  base  of  the  "Wa- 
sach  Mountains,  with  a  varying  breadth  of  1 — 3  miles,  from  80 
miles  north  of  Great  Salt  Lake  City  to  Utah  Lake  and  Yalley, 
the  southern  terminus  of  cultivation,  a  total  length  of  120  miles. 
These  lands  produce  various  cereals,  esiDCcially  wheat  and  buck- 
wheat, oats,  barley,  and  a  little  Indian  corn,  all  the  fruits  and  veg- 
etables of  a  temperate  zone,  and  flax,  hemj),  and  linseed  in  abun- 
dance. The  wild  fruits  are  the  service  berr}^,  choke-cherry,  buf- 
falo berry,  gooseberry,  an  excellent  strawberry,  and  black,  white, 
red,  and  yellow  mountain  currants,  some  as  large  as  ounce  bullets. 

The  bottom-lands,  where  the  creeks  extend,  are  better  watered 
than  the  uplands,  but  they  are  colder  and  Salter.  The  refrig- 
erated air  seeks  the  lowest  levels ;  hence  in  Utah  Territory  the 
benches  are  warmer  than  the  valleys,  and  the  spring  vegetation 
is  about  a  fortnight  later  on  the  banks  of  Jordan  than  above  them. 
Another  cause  of  cold  is  the  presence  of  saleratus  or  alkaline 
salts,  the  natural  effect  of  the  rain  being  insufficient  to  wash  them 
out.  Experiment  proved  in  Sindh  that  nothing  is  more  difficult 
than  to  eradicate  this  evil  from  the  soil:  the  sweetest  earth 
brought  from  afar  becomes  tainted  by  it :  sometimes  the  disease 
appears  when  the  crop  is  half  grown ;  at  other  times  it  attacks 
irregularly — one  year,  for  instance,  will  see  a  fine  field  of  wheat, 
and  the  next  none.  When  inveterate,  it  breaks  out  in  leprous 
eruptions,  and  pieces  of  efflorescence  can  be  picked  up  for  use :  a 
milder  form  induces  a  baldness  of  growth,  with- an  occasional 
birth  of  chenopodiacece.  Many  of  the  streams  are  dangerous  to 
cattle,  and  often  in  the  lower  parts  of  the  valleys  there  are  ponds 
and  pools  of  water  colored  and  flavored  like  common  ley.  Ac- 
cording to  the  people,  a  small  admixture  is  beneficial  to  vegeta- 
tion ;  the  grass  is  rendered  equal  for  pasturage  to  the  far-famed 
salt-marshes  of  Essex  and  of  the  Atlantic  coast;  potatoes,  squash- 
es, and  melons  become  sweeter,  and  the  pie-plant  loses  its  acidity. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  beet  has  been  found  to  deteriorate,  no 
small  misfortune  at  such  a  distance  from  the  sugar-cane. 


284  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VI. 

Besides  salt-drought  and  frost,  the  land  has  to  contend  against 
an  Asiatic  scourge.  The  cricket  {Anab7'tis  simplex?)  is  compared 
by  the  Mormons  to  a  "  cross  between  the  spider  and  the  buffalo :" 
it  is  dark,  ungainly,  wingless,  and  exceedingly  harmful.  The  five 
red-legged  grasshopper  {(Ediiwda  corallines),  about  the  size  of  the 
English  migratory  locust,  assists  these  "  black  Philistines,"  and, 
but  for  a  curious  provision  of  nature,  would  render  the  land  well- 
nigh  uninhabitable.  A  small  species  of  gull  flocks  from  its  rest- 
ing-2:)lace  in  the  Great  Salt  Lake  to  feed  upon  the  advancing  host; 
the  "glossy  bird  of  the  valley,  with  light  red  beak  and  feet,  deli- 
cate in  form  and  motion,  with  plumage  of  downy  texture  and 
softness,"  stayed  in  1848  the  advance  of  the  "frightful  bug," 
whose  onward  march  nor  fires,  nor  hot  trenches,  nor  the  cries  of 
the  frantic  farmer  could  arrest.  We  can  hardly  wonder  that  the 
Mormons,  whose  minds,  so  soon  after  the  exodus,  were  excited  to 
the  highest  pitch,  should  have  seen  in  this  natural  phenomenon 
a  miracle,  a  special  departure  from  the  normal  course  of  events, 
made  by  Providence  in  their  favor,  or  accuse  them,  as  anti-Mor- 
mons have  done,  of  forging  signs  and  portents. 

But,  while  many  evils  beset  agriculture  in  Utah  Territory, 
grazing  is  comparatively  safe,  and  may  be  extended  almost  ad 
libitum.  The  valleys  of  this  land  of  Goshen  supply  plentiful  pas- 
turage in  the  winter ;  as  spring  advances  cattle  will  find  gamma 
and  other  grasses  on  the  benches,  and  as,  under  the  influence  of 
the  melting  sun,  the  snow-line  creeps  up  the  hills,  flocks  and 
herds,  like  the  wild  graminivorants,  will  follow  the  bunch-grass, 
which,  vivified  by  the  autumnal  rains,  breeds  under  the  snow, 
and  bears  its  seed  in  summer.  In  the  basin  of  the  Green  River, 
fifty  miles  south  of  Fillmore  City,  is  a  fine  wool-producing  coun- 
try 7000  square  miles  in  area.  Even  the  ubiquitous  sage  will 
serve  for  camels.  As  has  been  mentioned,  Durhams,  Devons,  and 
Merino  tups  have  found  their  way  to  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  and 
the  terrible  milk-sickness*  of  the  Western  States  has  not. 

In  1860  the  Valley  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake  alone  produced 
806,000  bushels  of  grain,  of  which  about  17,000  were  oats.  Lieu- 
tenant Gunnison,  estimating  the  average  yield  of  each  plowed 
acre  at  2000  lbs.  (33-|-  bushels),  a  fair  estimate,  and  "  drawing  the 
meat  part  of  the  ration,  or  one  half,"  from  the  herds  fed  elsewhere, 
fixes  the  maximum  of  population  in  Utah  Territory  at  4000  souls 
to  a  square  mile,  and  opines  that  it  will  maintain  with  ease  one 
million  of  inhabitants. 

Timber,  I  have  said,  is  a  growing  want  throughout  the  coun- 
try ;  the  "  hair  of  the  earth-animal"  is  by  no  means  luxuriant. 
Great  Cotton-wood  Kanyon  is  supposed  to  contain  supplies  for 
twenty  years,  but  it  is  chiefly  used  for  building  purposes.     The 

*  A  fatal  spasmodic  disease  produced  in  the  "Western  States  by  astringent  salts  in 
the  earth  and  water :  it  first  attacks  cattle,  and  then  those  who  cat  the  infected  meat 
or  drink  the  milk.    Travelers  tell  of  whole  villages  being  destroyed  by  it. 


Chap.  VI.      ANNUAL  EXHIBITION  IN  UTAH  TERRITORY. 


285 


Mormons,  unlike  the  Hibernians,  of  wliom  it  "was  said  in  the  last 
century  that  no  man  ever  planted  an  orchard,  have  applied  them- 
selves manfully  to  remedying  the  deficiency,  and  the  next  gen- 
eration will  probably  be  safe.  At  present,  "hard  woods,"  elm, 
hackbcrry,  pecan  or  button-wood,  hickory,  mulberry,  basswood, 
locust,  black  and  English  walnut,  are  wanted,  and  must  be  im- 
ported from  the  Eastern  States.  The  lower  kanyons  and  bottoms 
are  clothed  with  wild  willow,  scrub  maple,  both  hard  and  soft, 
box  elder,  aspen,  birch,  cotton-wood,  and  other  amentaciie,  and  in 
the  south  with  spruce  and  dwarf  ash.  The  higher  grounds  bear 
stunted  cedars  white  and  red,  balsam -and  other  pines,  the  dwarf 
oak,  which,  like  the  maple,  is  a  mere  scrub,  and  the  mountain  ma- 
hogany, a  tough,  hard,  and  strong,  but  grainless  wood,  seldom  ex- 
ceeding eight  inches  in  diameter.  Hawthorn  (a  Cratcpgus)  also 
exists,  and  in  the  southern  and  western  latitudes  the  piiion  (P. 
monophijllus\  varying  from  the  size  of  an  umbrella  to  twenty  feet 
in  height,  feeds  the  Indians  with  its  oily  nut,  which  not  a  little 
resembles  the  seed  of  the  pinaster  and  the  Mediterranean  P.  Pinea, 
and  supplies  a  rich  gum  for  strengthening  plasters. 

The  present  state  of  agriculture  in  the  vicinity  of  Great  Salt 
Lake  City  will  best  be  explained  by  the  prospectus  of  the  annual 
show  for  I860.*    Wheat  thrives  better  than  maize,  which  in  the 


*  List  of  premiums  to  be  awarded  by  tlie  Descre't  Agricultural  and  Manufacturing 
Society,  at  the  Annual  Exhibition,  October  3d  and  4th,  1860. 

Class  A. — Cattle. 
Awarding  Committee — Hector  C.  Haight,  Wm.  Jennings,  Wm.  Miller,  Alex.  Baron, 


Best  Duiliam  bull $11  00 

2d        do.  5  DO 

3d        do.  dip 

Beat  Devon  bull ID  00 


3d  best  Devon  cow  and  calf    dip.  2d  best  blooded  and  woolcd 

Beat   native   or  cross   cow  I        buck $3  00 

and  calf. $5  00     3d        do.  do.  dip. 

2d        do.  do.  3  00  Best  2  ewes  for  blood  and 


2d        do 

3d        do.  

Best  bull  under  1  year 

2d       do.        do 

Best  Durham  cow  and  calf 

2d        do.  do. 

3d        do.  do. 

Best  Devon  cow  and  calf. . 

2d       do.         do. 


Awarding  Committee- 


Best  fenced  and  cultivated 
farm  not  less  than 
twenty  acres 

2d               do. 
Best  fenced  and  cultivated 
garden  

2d  do. 

Best  S  acres  of  sugar-cane 

2d  do. 

3d  do. 

4th  do. 

Best  1  acre  of  sugar-cane. 

2d  do. 

3d              do. 
Best  6  acres  of  wheat 

2d  do.  

3d  do. 


5  00, 
dip.! 
5  OOj 
dip. 
5  00 
3  00 
dip. 
5  OOl 
3  OOl 


3d        do.  do.  dip. 

Be.=t  2  year  old  heifer 3  00 

2d        do.         do dip. 


wool  . . 
2d  do. 
3d        do. 


do. 
do. 


4  00 
2  00 
dip. 


Beet  1  year  old  heifer 2  OOjBest  boar 3  00 

2d        do.        do dip.      2d  do 2  00 

Best  matched  native  cattle.  5  00     3d  do dip. 

2d        do.            do.             3  00  Best  sow  and  pigs 3  00 

3d        do.            do.              dip.      2d         do 2  00 

Be.st  blooded  &  wooled  buck  5  00|    3d         do.          dip. 

Class  B. — Field  Crops. 

-A.  P.  Rockwood,  Joseph  Holbrook,  L.  E.  Harrington,  John 
Rowberry. 


IBest  5  acres  of  com 

2d  do 

$5  00     3d  do 

dip.  I  Best  5  acres  of  turnips 

I     2d  do 

5  00     3d  do. 

dip  I Be.st  5  acres  of  beets 

15  OOi     2d  do 

10  00!     3d  do 

5  00  Best  5  acres  of  carrots  . . . . 

dip.  I     2d  do.  . . . . 

5  OOl     3d  do.  

3  OO'Bcstlacre  of  white  beans. 

dip.      2d  do. 

5  00|     3d  do. 

3  00  Best  1  acre  of  peas 

dip.l    2d  do 


$5  00 
3  00 

dip. 
5  00| 
3  00, 

dip. 
5  001 
3  00 

dip.l 
5  on' 
3  00 

dip.' 
5  00 
3  OOj 

dip.] 
5  00{ 
3  00 


3d  best  1  acre  of  pens 

dip. 

Best  1  acre  of  flax 

$5  00 

2d             do 

3  00 

3d             do 

dip. 

Be.st  1  acre  of  hemp 

5  00 

2d             do 

3  00 

3d             do 

dip. 

Best  1  acre  of  red  clover  . . 

5  00 

2d             do. 

3  00 

3d             do. 

dip. 

Best  1  acre  of  potatoes. . . . 

3  00 

2d             do. 

dip. 

Best  1  acre  of  Hungarian 

3  no 

2d                do. 

2  00 

3d                 do. 

dip. 

Best  acre  of  rye 

3  00 

286 


THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 


Chap.  VI. 


northern  parts  suffers  from  the  late  frosts,  and  requires  a  longer 
summer.  Until  oats  and  barley  can  be  grown  in  sufficient  quan- 
tities, horses  are  fed  upon  heating  wheat,  which  only  the  hardest 


Class  B. — Field  Crops — Continued. 


3d  best  100  lbs.  of  flax dip. 

Best  100  lbs.  hemp $5  00 

2(1             do 2  00 

3d             do dip. 

Best  10  lbs.  manufactured 

tobacco 3  00 

2d  best  20  lbs.  manufac- 
tured tobacco 2  00 


2d  best  acre  of  rye dip. 

Beat  acre  of  turnip.s $3  00 

2d             do.          dip. 

Best  acie  of  beets 3  00 

2d           do dip. 

Best  acre  of  carrots 3  00 

2d             do.          dip. 

Best  100  lbs.  flax 5  00 

2d           do 2  00 

Awarding  Committee  on  Cotton  and  Tobacco — William  Crosby,  Robert  D.  Coving- 
ton, Joshua  T.  Willis,  Jacob  Ilamblin,  Jas.  R.  M'Cullough. 
Best  10  acres  of  cotton $30  00 


3d  best   20  lbs.  manufac- 
tured tobacco dip. 

Best   6  canes   of  Chinese 

sugar-cane $3  00 

2d  do.  2  00 

3d  do.  dip. 

Best  6  canes  of  field-corn. .    2  00 
2d  do.  ..1  00 

3d  do.  . .     dip. 


2d 
3d 
4th 
5th 


do. 
do. 
do. 
do. 


Best  5  acres  of  cotton . . 

2d  do. 

3d  da 

4th  do. 

5th  do. 

Best  2  acres  of  cotton  . , 

2d  do. 


20  00 
15  00 
10  00 

dip. 
25  00 
20  00 
15  00 
10  00 

dip. 
20  00 
15  00 


3d  best  2  acres  of  cotton.  ..$10  00 

4th            do.                 . .  5  00 

5th            do.                 . .  dip. 

Best  1  acre  of  cotton 15  00 

2d             do 10  00 

3d             do.           8  00 

4th            do 5  00 

5th            do.            dip. 

Best  i  acre  of  cotton 10  00 

2d             do 8  00 

3d             do 6  00 


Class  C. — Vegetables. 


4th  best  5  acre  of  cotton. .  $4  00 
5th  do.  . .      dip. 

Best  5  acres  of  tobacco  ...  25  00 
2d  do.  ...   20  00 

3d  do.  ...   15  00 

4th  do.  ...   10  00 

5th  do.  ...      dip. 

Best  1  acre  of  tobacco  ....  15  00 
2d  do.  ....  10  00 

3d  do.  ....     5  00 

4th  do.  ....     dip. 


Awarding  Committee — Sidney  A.  Knowlton,  Charles  H.  Oliphant,  Thos.  Woodbury. 


Bestibrace  cucumbers  . . . 

2d             do. 
Best  3  squashes 

2d         do 

Best  3  pumpkins 

2d  do 

Best  3  water  melons 

2d  do.  

Best  3  cantaloupes 

2d  do 

Best  peck  of  tomatoes. . . 

2d  do. 

3d           do. 
Best  3  early  cabbages 

2d           do. 
Best  3  late  cabbages 

2d  do 

Best  3  red  cabbages 

2d  do 

Best  3  Savoy  cabbages. . . 

2d  do. 

Best  6  stalks  of  celeiy  . . . 


$3  00  2d  best  C  stalks  of  celery. .  dip. 

dip.  Best  6  blood  beets $2  00 

2  00     2d           do dip. 

dip.  Best  0  sugar  beets 2  00 

2  00      2d            do dip. 

dip.  Best  6  carrots 2  00 

2  00     2d          do dip. 

dip.  Best  6  parsnips 2  00 

2  00     2d         do dip, 

dip.  Best  G  turnips 2  00 

2  00     2d         do dip. 

1  00  Best  peck  of  silver  onions.  2  00 

dip.      2d                  do.  dip, 

1  50  Best  peck  of  yellow  onions  2  00 

dip.      2d                  do.  dip. 

1  50  Best  peck  of  red  onions. . .  2  00 

dip.      2d              do.                 ...  dip. 

1  50  Best  peck  of  potatoes 2  00 

dip.  I     2d           do.              dip. 

,    1  50 1  Best  peck  of  sweet  potatoes  5  00 

,     dip.      2d                 do.  2  00 

2  001     3d                 do.  dip. 


Best  quart  of  Lima  beans. 

2d  do. 

Beat  quart  of  bush  beans. . 

2d               do. 
Best  quart  of  peas 

2d  do 

Best  6  stalks  of  rhubarb. . 

2d  do. 

Best  4  heads  of  cauliflower 

2d  do. 

Best  4  heads  of  brocoli. . . . 

2d  do. 

Best  4  heads  of  lettuce. . . . 

2d  do. 

Be.st  bunch  of  parsley  .... 

2d  do.  

Best  collection  of  radishes 

2d  do. 

Best  collection  of  peppers. . 

2d               do. 
Best  egg-plant 

2d   do.   


$2  00 
dip. 
2  00 
dip. 
2  00 
dip. 
2  00 
dip. 
1  00 
dip. 
1  00 
dip. 
1  00 
dip. 
1  00 
dip. 
1  00 
dip. 
1  00 
dip. 
1  00 
dip. 


Class  D. — Fruits  and  Flowers. 


Awarding  Committee — Edward  Sayres,  George  A.  Niel,  Daniel  Graves. 


Best6apples $3  00 

2d        do 2  00 

3d        do 1  00 

4th      do dip. 

Best  C  peaches 3  00 

2d       do 2  00 

3d        do.      1  00 

4th      do dip. 

Best  G  pears 3  00 

2d        do 2  00 

3d        do 1  00 

4th       do dip. 

Best  6  apricots 3  00 

2d        do 2  00 

Zi        do 1  00 

4th      do dip. 


Best  G  quinces $3  00 

2d        do 2  00 

3d        do 1  00 

4tli       do dip. 

Best  3  bunches  of  grapes. ..  3  00 

2d        do.                      ...  2  00 

3d        do.                      ...  1  00 

4th       do.                      ...  dip. 

Best  quart  of  native  grafted 

plums 2  00 

2d                 do.  1  00 

3d                  do.  dip. 

Best  pint  of  currants 2  00 

2d           do.             1  00 

3d           do.            dip. 


Best  specimen  of  English 

cherries $3  00 

2d  do.  2  00 

3d  do.  dip. 

Best  bed  or  hills  of  straw- 
berries    3  00 

2d  do.  2  00 

3d  do.  1  00 

4th  do.  dip. 

Best  raspberries 2  00 

2d        do 1  00 

3d        do dip. 

Best  gooseberries 2  00 

2d        do 1  00 

3d       do.  dip. 


Chap.  VI.  THE  PAST  OF  MOEMONLAND.  287 

riding  enables  tbem  to  digest.  Holcus  saccharatum^  or  Chinese 
millet,  succeeds  where  insufficient  humidity  is  an  obstacle  to  the 
sugar-cane.  The  fault  of  the  vegetables  here,  as  in  California,  is 
excessive  size,  which  often  renders  them  insipid ;  the  Irish  pota- 
to, however,  is  superior  to  that  of  Nova  Scotia  and  Charleston ; 
the  onions  are  large  and  mild  as  those  of  Spain.  The  white  car- 
rot, the  French  bean,  and  the  cucumber  grow  well,  and  the  "  mul- 
ticaulis  mania"  has  borne  good  fruit  in  the  shape  of  cabbage. 
The  size  of  the  beets  suggested  in  1853  the  project  originated  in 
France  by  Napoleon  the  Great:  $100,000  were  expended  upon 
sugar-making  machinery;  the  experiment,  however,  though  di- 
rected by  a  Frenchman,  failed,  it  is  said,  on  account  of  the  alkali 
contained  in  the  root,  and  the  Saints  are  accused  of  having  dis- 
tilled for  sale  bad  spirit  from  the  useless  substance.  The  deserts 
skirting  the  Western  Holy  Land  have  also  their  manna ;  the 
leaves  of  poplars  and  other  trees  on  the  banks  of  streams  distill, 
at  divers  seasons  of  the  year,  globules  of  honey-dew,  resembling 
in  color  gum  Arabic,  but  of  softer  consistence  and  less  adhesive- 
ness :  the  people  collect  it  with  spoons  into  saucers.  Cotton 
thrives  in  the  southern  and  southwestern  part  of  Utah  Territory 
when  the  winter  is  mild :  at  the  meeting-place  of  waters  near  the 
Green  and  Grand  Eivers  that  unite  to  form  the  Colorado,  the 
shrub  has  been  grown  with  great  success. 

The  principal  value  of  Utah  Territory  is  its  position  as  a  great 
half-way  station — a  Tadmor  in  the  wilderness — between  the  Val- 
ley of  the  Mississippi  and  the  Western  States,  California  and  Ore- 
gon ;  it  has  thus  proved  a  benefit  to  humanity.  The  Mormons, 
"flying  from  civilization  and  Christianity,"  attempted  to  isolate 
themselves  from  the  world  in  a  mountain  fastness;  they  were 
foiled  by  an  accident  far  beyond  human  foresight.  They  had  re- 
tired to  a  complete  oasis,  defended  by  sterile  volcanic  passes, 
which  in  winter  are  blocked  up  with  snow,  girt  by  vast  waterless 
and  uninhabitable  deserts,  and  unapproachable  from  any  settled 
country  save  by  a  painful  and  dangerous  march  of  600 — 1000 
miles.  Presently,  in  1850,  the  gold  fever  broke  out  on  the  Pa- 
cific sea-board ;  thousands  of  people  not  only  passed  through 
Utah  Territory,  but  were  also  compelled  to  remain  there  and 
work  for  a  livelihood. '  The  transit  received  a  fresh  impulse  in 
^j'lf^SS  bv  the  gold  discovered  at  Pike's  Peak,  and  in  1859  by  the 
rich  silver  mines  found  in  the  Carson  and  Washoe  Valleys,  on 
the  eastern  slopes  of  the  Sierra  Nevada.  Carson  Valley,  which, 
was  settled  by  Colonel  Eeece  in  1852,  and  colonized  in  1855  by 
500  Mormons,  was  soon  cleared  of  Saints  by  the  influx  of  pros- 
pectors and  diggers,  and  the  other  El  Dorados  drew  oft"  much 

Flowers. 
Best   collectioit  of   China  1 2d  best  collection  of  dahlias    dip.lQd  best  collection  of  cut 

asters $1  00  Best  collection  of  roses $3  OOJ        flower.-' dip. 

2d  do.  dip.]    2d  do.  dip.  ]  Best  collection  of  pot  flowers  $1  00 

Best  collection  of  dahlias  . .  2  00  Best  collection  of  cut  flowera  1  00|    2d  do.  dip. 


288  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Cii.u>.  VI. 

Gentile  population,  -which  was  an  incalculable  boon  to  the  Mor- 
mons. They  thus  rid  themselves  of  the  "  thriving  lawyers,  gam- 
blers, prostitutes,  criminals,  and  desperadoes,  loafers,  and  drunk- 
ards," who  made  New  Jerusalem  a  carnival  of  horrors.  The 
scene  is  now  shifted  to  Denver  and  Carson  cities,  where  rape  and 
robber}'",  intoxication  and  shooting  are  attributed  to  their  true 
causes,  the  gathering  together  of  a  lawless  and  excited  crowd,  not 
to  the  "baleful  shade  of  that  deadly  Upas-tree,  Mormonism." 

The  Mormons,  having  lost  all  hopes  of  safety  by  isolation,  now 
seek  it  in  the  reverse :  mail  communication  with  the  Eastern  and 
Western  States  is  their  present  hobby:  they  look  forward  to 
markets  for  their  produce,  and  to  a  greater  facility  and  economy 
of  importing.  They  have  dreamed  of  a  water-line  to  the  East  by 
means  of  the  Missouri  head- waters,  which  are  said  to  be  naviga- 
ble for  350 — 400  miles,  and  to  the  West  by  the  tributaries  of  the 
Snake  River,  that  afford  400.  Shortly  after  the  foundation  of 
Great  Salt  Lake  Cit}^,  they  proceeded  to  establish,  under  the  ec- 
clesiastical title  "  Stakes  of  Zion  in  the  Wilderness,"  settlements 
and  outposts,  echelonned  in  skeleton,  afterward  to  be  filled  in, 
from  Temple  Block  along  the  southern  line  to  San  Diego.  The 
importance  of  connecting  the  Atlantic  with  the  Pacific  by  a  short- 
er route  than  the  24,000  miles  of  navigation  round  Cape  Horn, 
has  produced  first  a  monthly,  then  a  weekly,  and  lastly  a  daily 
mail,  and  has  opened  up  a  route  from  the  Holy  City  to  Carson 
Valley.  So  far  from  opposing  the  Pacific  Eailroad,  the  local  Leg- 
islature petitioned  for  it  in  1849,  and  believe  that  it  would  in- 
crease the  value  of  their  property  tenfold.  But  as  equal  parts  of 
Mormon  and  Gentile  never  could  dwell  together  in  amity,  exten- 
sive communication  would  probably  result  in  causing  the  Saints 
to  sell  out,  and  once  more  to  betake  themselves  to  their  "wilder- 
ness work"  in  Sonora,  or  in  other  half-settled  portions  of  North- 
ern Mexico.  This  view  of  the  question  is  taken  by  the  federal 
authorities,  who  would  willingl}^,  if  they  could,  confer  upon  the 
petitioners  the  fatal  boon. 

The  Mormon  pioneers,  143  in  number,  when  sent  westward 
under  several  of  the  apostles  to  seek  for  settlements,  fixed  upon 
the  "Valley  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake.  The  advance  colony  of  4000 
souls,  expelled  from  Nauvoo  on  the  Mississippi,  and  headed  by 
"Brigham  the  Seer,"  arrived  there  on  the  24th  of  Jul}'-,  1847,  the 
anniversary  of  which  is  their  4th  of  July — Independence  Day. 
Before  the  end  of  the  first  week  a  tract  of  land  was  ditched,  plow- 
ed, and  planted  with  potatoes.  City-Creek  Kanyon  was  dammed 
for  irrigation ;  an  area  of  forty  acres  was  fortified  after  the  old 
New  England  fashion  by  facing  log  houses  inward,  and  by  a  pal- 
isade of  timber  hauled  from  the  ravines ;  the  city  was  laid  out 
upon  the  spot  where  they  first  rested,  the  most  eligible  site  in 
the  Valley,  and  prayers,  with  solemn  ceremonies,  consecrated  the 
land. 


Chap.  VI.      CONSTITUTION  OF  THE  STATE  OF  DESER£T.  289 

Early  in  1849,  the  Mormons,  irritated  by  the  contemptuous  si- 
lence of  the  federal  government,  assembled  themselves  in  Conven- 
tion, and,  with  the  boldness  engendered  by  a  perfect  faith,  duly 
erected  themselves  into  a  free,  sovereign,  and  independent  people, 
with  a  vast  extent  of  country .'•^'  Disdaining  to  remain  in  statu 
jnqnllari,  they  dispensed  with  a  long  political  minority,  and  rush- 
ed into  the  conclave  of  republics  like  California,  whose  sons  are 
fond  of  comparing  her  to  Minerva  issuing  full-grown  from  the 
cranium  of  Jupiter  into  the  society  of  Olympus.  Eoused  by  this 
liberty,  the  Senate  and  House  of  Eepresentatives  of  the  United 
States  of  America,  in  Congress  assembled,  on  the  9th  of  Septem- 

*  The  following  is  the  preamble  to  the  Constitution:  it  is  a  fair  specimen  of  ISIor- 
mon  plain-dealing. 

Provisional  Government  of  the  State  of  Deseret. — Abstract  of  Convention  Min- 
utes. On  the  15th  of  March,  1849,  the  Convention  appointed  the  following  persons 
a  Committee  to  draft  a  Constitution  for  the  State  of  Desere't,  viz.  :  Albert  Carring- 
ton,  Joseph  L.  Heywood,  William  W.  Phelps,  David  Fullmer,  John  S.  Fullmer, 
Charles  C.  Rich,  John  Taylor,  Parley  P.  Pratt,  John  M.  Bernhisel,  Erastus  Snow. 

March  18th,  18-19.  Albert  Carrington,  chairman  of  the  Committee,  reported  the 
following  Constitution,  which  was  read  and  unanimously  adopted  by  the  Conven- 
tion: 

CONSTITUTION  OF  THE  STATE  OF  DESERlfiT. 

Preamble. — Whereas  a  large  number  of  the  citizens  of  the  United  States,  before 
and  since  the  Treaty  of  Peace  with  the  Republic  of  Mexico,  emigrated  to,  and  set- 
tled in  that  portion  of  the  territory  of  the  United  States  lying  west  of  the  Rocky 
Mountains,  and  in  the  great  interior  Basin  of  Upper  California  ;  and 

Whereas,  by  reason  of  said  treaty,  all  civil  organization  originating  from  the  Re- 
public of  Mexico  became  abrogated  ;  and 

Whereas  the  Congress  of  the  United  States  has  failed  to  provide  a  form  of  civil 
government  for  the  territoiy  so  acquired,  or  any  portion  thereof;  and 

Whereas  civil  government  and  laws  are  necessary  for  the  security,  peace,  and 
prosperity  of  society ;  and 

Whereas  it  is  a  fundamental  principle  in  all  republican  governments  that  all  po- 
litical power  is  inherent  in  the  people,  and  governments  instituted  for  their  protec- 
tion, security,  and  benefit  should  emanate  from  the  same  : 

Therefore  your  committee  beg  leave  to  recommend  the  adoption  of  the  following 
Constitution  until  the  Congress  of  the  United  States  shall  otherwise  provide  for 
the  government  of  the  Territory  hereinafter  named  and  described  by  admitting  us 
into  the  Union.  We,  the  people,  grateful  to  the  Supreme  Being  for  the  bless- 
ings hitherto  enjoyed,  and  feeling  our  dependence  on  Him  for  a  continuation  of 
those  blessings,  do  ordain  and  establish  a  free  and  independent  government, 
by  the  name  of  the  State  of  Deseret,  including  all  the  territory  of  the  United 
States  within  the  following  boundaries,  to  wit:  commencing  at  the  33°  of  north  lat- 
itude, where  it  crosses  the  108°  of  longitude,  west  of  Greenwich ;  thence  running 
south  and  west  to  the  boundary  of  Mexico ;  thence  west  to  and  down  the  main 
channel  of  the  Gila  River  (or  the  northern  line  of  Mexico),  and  on  the  northern 
boundary  of  Lower  California  to  the  Pacific  Ocean;  thence  along  the  coast  north- 
westerly to  the  118°  30'  of  west  longitude;  thence  north  to  where  said  line  inter- 
sects the  dividing  ridge  of  the  Sien-a  Nevada  mountains ;  thence  north  along  the 
summit  of  the  Sierra  Nevada  mountains  to  the  dividing  range  of  mountains  that 
separate  the  waters  flowing  into  the  Columbia  River  from  the  waters  running  into 
the  Great  Basin ;  thence  easterly  along  the  dividing  range  of  mountains  that  sepa- 
rate said  waters  flowing  into  the  Columbia  River  on  the  north,  from  the  waters  flow- 
ing into  the  Great  Basin  on  the  south,  to  the  summit  of  the  Wind  River  chain  of 
mountains;  thence  southeast  and  south  by  the  dividing  range  of  mountains  that 
separate  the  waters  flowing  into  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  from  the  waters  flowing  into  the 
Gulf  of  California,  to  the  place  of  beginning,  as  set  forth  in  a  map  drawn  by  Charles 
Preuss,  and  published  by  order  of  the  Senate  of  the  United  States  in  1848. 


290  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VL 

ber,  1850,  sheared  the  self-constituted  republic  of  its  fair  propor- 
tions, and  reduced  it  to  the  infant  condition  of  New  Mexico,  with 
the  usual  j)roviso  in  the  organic  act  that  when  qualified  for  ad- 
mission as  states  they  shall  become  slave  or  free,  as  their  respect- 
ive Constitutions  may  prescribe.  At  present  one  of  the  principal ' 
Mormon  grievances  is  that,  although  their  country  can,  by  virtue 
of  population,  claim  admission  into  the  Union,  which  has  lately 
been  overrun  with  a  mushroom  growth,  like  Michigan,  Minnesota, 
and  Oregon,  their  prayers  are  not  only  rejected,  but  even  their 
petitions  remain  unnoticed.  The  cause  is,  I  believe,  polj^gamy, 
which,  until  the  statute  law  is  altered,  would  not  and  could  not 
be  tolerated,  either  in  America  or  in  England.  To  the  admission 
of  other  Territories,  Kansas,  for  instance,  the  slavery  question  was 
the  obstacle.  The  pro  party  will  admit  none  who  will  not  sup- 
port the  South,  and  vice  versa.  Perhaps  it  is  well  so,  otherwise 
the  old  and  civilized  states  would  soon  find  themselves  swamped 
by  batches  of  peers  in  rapidly  succeeding  creations. 

The  Mormons  have  another  complaint,  touching  the  tenure  of 
their  land.  The  United  States  have  determined  that  the  Indian 
title  has  not  been  extinguished.  The  Saints  declare  that  no  tribe 
of  aborigines  could  prove  a  claim  to  the  country,  otherwise  they 
were  ready  to  purchase  it  in  perpetuity  by  pay,  presents,  and  pro- 
visions, besides  establishing  the  usual  reservations.  Moreover, 
the  federal  government  has  departed  from  the  usual  course.  The 
law  directs  that  the  land,  when  set  off  into  townships,  six  miles 
square  with  subdivisions,^'  must  be  sold  at  auction  to  the  highest 
bidder.  The  Mormons  represent  that  although  a  survey  of  con- 
siderable tracts  has  been  comj^leted  by  a  federal  ofiicial,  they  are 
left  to  be  mere  squatters  that  can  be  ejected  like  an  Irish  tenant- 
ry, because  the  government,  knowing  their  ability  and  readiness 
to  pay  the  recognized  pre-emption  price  ($1  25  per  acre),  fear  lest 
those  now  in  possession  should  become  lawful  owners  and  perma-" 
nent  proprietors  of  the  soil.f     Polygamy  is  here  again  to  blame. 

The  Mormon  settlements  resemble  those  of  the  French  in  Can- 
ada and  elsewhere  rather  than  the  English  in  Australia,  the  Dutch 
at  the  Cape,  or  the  American  squatters  on  the  Western  frontier. 
They  eschew  solitude,  and  cluster  together  round  the  Church  and 
the  succedaneum  for  the  priest.  In  establishing  these  ''stakes" 
they  proceed  methodically.  A  tentative  expedition,  sent  out  to 
select  the  point  presenting  the  greatest  facihties  for  settlements, 
is  followed  by  a  volunteer  band  of  Saints,  composed  of  farmers, 

*  Viz.,  the  section  of  one  square  mile,  the  half  section  =320  acres,  and  the  quar- 
ter section  of  160  acres:  the  latter  is  the  legal  grant  to  military  settlers.  The  pre- 
emption laws  in  the  United  States  are  just  and  precise ;  but  in  the  mountains  it  is 
about  as  easy  to  eject  a  squatter  as  to  collect  "rint"  from  Western  Galway  in  the 
days  of  Mr.  Martin. 

t  In  England  and  Scotland  the  rent  for  use  of  land  averages  one  quarter  of  the 
gross  produce;  in  France,  one  third;  unhappy  India  gives  one  half;  and  the  Ter- 
ritories of  the  United  States  nearly  nothing. 


Chap.  VI.  COUNTIES  IN  UTAH  TERRITORY.  291 

mechanics,  and  artisans,  headed  by  an  apostle,  president,  elder,  or 
some  other  dignitary.  The  foundations  are  laid  with  long  cere- 
monies. The  fort  or  block-house  is  first  built,  and  when  the  peo- 
ple are  lodged  the  work  of  agriculture  begins.  The  cities  of  Utah 
Territory  are  somewhat  like  tlie  "  towns"  of  Cornwall.  At  pres- 
ent there  are  three  long  lines  of  these  juvenile  settlements  estab- 
lished as  caravanserais  in  the  several  oases.  The  first  is  along 
the  Humboldt  Eiver  to  Carson  Valley;  the  second  is  by  the 
southern  route,  via  Fillmore ;  and  the  third  is  betwixt  the  two, 
along  "Egan's  Eoute,"  the  present  mail  line. 

The  counties,  originally  5,  increased  in  1855  to  12,  are  now 
(1860)  19  in  number,  viz. : 

1.  Great  Salt  Lake  County :  the  chief  town  is  Great  Salt  Lake 
City ;  the  sub-settlements  are  the  Sugar-House,  4  miles  S.  of  Tem- 
ple Block — the  invariable  point  de  depart ;  Mill  Creek,  7  miles ; 
Great  Cotton- wood,  8 — 9  miles;  West  tlordan,  Jordan  Mills,  Herri- 
man,  and  Union,  or  Little  Cotton-wood  Creek,  12  miles ;  Drapers- 
ville,  20 — 21  miles  S. ;  all  small  villages,  with  good  farming  lauds. 

2.  Utah  County :  the  chief  town  is  Provo  or  Provaux,  on  the 
Timpanogos  Eiver,  45  miles;  David  City,  on  Dry  Creek,  28  miles; 
Lake  City,  on  American  Fork,  82  miles  S. ;  Lehi  City,  85  miles 
S. ;  Lone  City,  87  miles  S. ;  Pleasant  Grove  or  Battle  Creek,  41 
miles  S. ;  Springville  or  Hobble  Creek,  58 — 54  miles ;  Palmyra, 
a  small  place  east  of  the  Lake,  and  north  of  Spanish  Fork,  59 — 60 
miles ;  Spanish-Fork  City,  61  miles  S. ;  Pondtown,  64  miles  S. ; 
Payson  City,  on  both  banks  of  the  Peet-Neet  Creek,  64 — 65  miles 
S. ;  and  Santa  Quin,  74  miles  S. 

3.  Davis  County :  chief  town  Farmington ;  others.  Stoker,  Cen- 
tre ville,  12 "50  miles  JN.,  and  Kaysville,  22  miles  N. 

4.  Weber  County :  chief  town  Ogden  City,  on  both  ^ides  of  Og- 
den  Eiver,  40  miles  E. ;  also  North  Ogden. 

5.  Iron  County :  chief  town  Parovau,  so  called  from  the  Pavant 
Indians ;  built  on  Centre  Creek,  255  miles  S.  of  Great  Salt  Lake 
City,  and  96  miles  from  Fillmore,  and  incorporated  in  1851.  Also 
Cedar  City,  near  Little  Salt  Lake,  275  miles  S. ;  St.  Joseph's 
Springs  and  Vegas  de  Santa  Clara,  200  miles  from  Cedar  City. 
The  Aztecs,  as  their  rock  inscriptions  prove,  once  extended  to 
Little  Salt  Lake  Valley. 

6.  Tooele  County :  chief  town  Tooele  Cit}^,  82  miles  W. ;  also 
"  Eastern  Tooele  City,"  26  miles  W. ;  Grantsville,  27  miles  W. ; 
Eichville  and  Cedar  Valley,  40  miles  W. 

7.  San  Pete  Valley  County  and  City,  131  miles,  laid  out  by  the 
presidency  in  1849,  and  incorporated  in  1850 ;  Fort  Ephraim,  130 
miles;  Manti  City,  140  miles,  on  the  southern  declivity  of  Mount; 
Nebo.  Aztecan  pictographs  have  been  found  upon  the  cliffs  in 
San  Pete  Valley. 

8.  Juab  County :  chief  town  Salt  Creek,  in  a  valley  separated 
from  Utah  Valley  by  a  ridge,  on  which  runs  Summit  Creek. 


292  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chat.  VI. 

9.  Box-Elder  County  and  City,  60  miles  N, ;  also  Willow  Creek 
and  Brigham's  City. 

10.  Washington  County :  chief  town  Fort  Harmony,  on  Ash 
Creek,  291  miles  S.,  and  20  miles  N.  of  Eio  Virgen.^" 

*  I  annex  a  description  of  Washington  County,  which  lately  appeared  in  the 
"Dcseret  News:" 

"  Yesterday  afternoon  I  met  in  the  library  of  the  University  the  lion.  Wm.  Cros- 
by, the  representative  from  Washington  County  to  our  Legislature,  who  furnishes  me 
witli  some  items  of  information  respecting  the  county  he  represents  worthy  a  passing 
notice,  especially  as  there  is  so  little  known  of  that  county.  The  inhabitants  are  es- 
timated at  about  1500  persons,  chiefly  engaged  in  farming  and  grazing.  The  coun- 
ty of  Washington  in  area  is  as  large  as  the  State  of  Connecticut,  generally  of  a  bar- 
ren, desert  character,  broken  and  mountainous.  On  the  borders  of  the  Kio  Virgen 
and  the  Santa  Clara  there  are  narrow  strips  of  laud  exceedingly  fertile,  on  which 
every  thing  grows  with  great  richness,  and  at  a  cost  of  very  little  labor.  During 
the  present  year  only  50,000  pounds  of  cotton  have  been  raised,  but,  properly  culti- 
vated and  attended  to,  the  inhabitants  there  could  raise  all  the  cotton  ever  required 
by  the  inhabitants  of  this  Territory.  At  present  its  cultivation  is  almost  neglected 
for  the  want  of  jiroper  facilities  for  its  manufacture.  The  entrance  also  of  the  army 
in  1857,  followed  by  immense  trains  of  goods — which,  by-the-by,  some  of  the  mer- 
chants never  paid  a  cent  for,  and  it  is  very  doubtful  if  they  ever  will — was  also  a 
crushing  competition  to  the  people  of  Washington  County. 

*'  Every  kind  of  fruit  that  has  been  tried  there  grows  with  great  luximance.  The 
apple,  pear,  plum,  apricot,  peach,  and  fig  trees  do  exceedingly  well.  The  English 
walnut-tree  grew  this  year  nine  feet,  and  the  Catawba  grape  grew  nineteen  feet  and 
a  half  before  the  Cth  of  September.  The  bunches  of  those  grapes,  many  of  them, 
measured  nineteen  inches  in  length.  At  Tocqueville,  one  of  the  small  towns  in  that 
county,  one  man  raised  this  year  two  water-melons  from  one  vine  that  weighed,  the 
one  si.xty,  and  the  other  fifty  pounds. 

"At  the  Agricultural  Exhibition,  held  there  last  September,  the  fine  grapes  which 
I  have  mentioned  were  on  exhibition.  At  the  same  time  there  was  exhibited  a  stalk 
of  cotton  containing  three  hundred  and  seven  forms ;  a  radish  measuring  eighteen 
inches  in  circumference;  a  sunflower  head  thirty-six  inches;  and  a  monster  castor- 
bean  stalk ;  a  sweet  potato-vine  five  feet  and  a  half  long ;  and  one  Isabella  grape- 
vine twenty-five  feet  long.  One  man  had  in  his  garden  trees  which  in  six  n\onths 
grew  as  follows; 

ft.  in. 

Washington  rium 8  0 

Apple-trees C  (5 

Apricots 7  0 

Figd T  0 

"In  climate,  Washington  embraces  all  the  varieties  from  frigid  to  torrid,  from 
regions  of  perpetual  frost  to  an  eternal  spring.  Every  kind  of  out-door  ^N'ork,  plow- 
ing, ditching,  building,  etc.,  can  be  pursued  throughout  winter  in  some  parts  of  the 
county,  while  in  others  there  are  killing  frosts  throughout  the  whole  year. 

"I  had  almost  forgotten  to  mention  that  the  soil  is  excellent  for  the  grape,  and 
during  the  present  year  very  fine  tobacco  has  been  grown  there,  as  well  as  madder 
and  indigo.  The  sorghum  raised  there  has  a  magnificent  flavor,  and  without  the 
'patent  fixings,' with  very  little  labor,  and  that  of  the  simplest  character,  good  sugar 
is  made  from  it.  At  the  late  exhibition  the  sorghum  took  the  two  highest  prizes. 
I  believe  the  honorable  member  from  Washington  has  brought  with  him  a  few  gal- 
lons of  this  very  fine  molasses  as  a  cadeati  to  the  Prophet.  To  readers  who  have  ev- 
ery luxury  in  abundance  and  at  very  moderate  figures,  these  items  may  h.ave  little 
interest,  but  to  those  who  watch  the  progress  of  the  people  here,  and  the  reclaiming 
of  the  desert,  this  information  has  great  significance.  In  a  few  years  every  thing 
that  the  people  require  will  be  raised  from  their  own  soil,  and  manufactured  by  their 
own  hands. 

"Mr.  Crosby,  from  whom  I  elicited  these  facts,  was  born  in  Indiana,  but  'brought 
lip'  in  the  Southern  States.  Mormonism  got  hold  of  him  in  1843,  in  the  State  of 
Mississippi.  Following  the  fortunes  of  Brigham,  he  brought  some  nine  or  ten  slaves, 
'very  select  niggers.'    In  1851  he  went  over  to  San  Bernardino,  and  was  bishop 


ft.  in. 

Almond 7  2 

I'eaeh 8  C 

Pears C  0 


Chap.  VI.  COUNTIES  IN  UTAH  TERRITORY.— COAL.  £93 


City, 

Francisco,  and  1200  miles  W.  of  St.  Louis.  The  sum  of  $20,000 
■was  expended  upon  public  buildings,  but  tbe  barrenness  of  the 
soil  has  reduced  the  population  from  100  to  a  dozen  families. 

12.  Green  River  County :  Fort  Supply. 

13.  Cedar  County :  chief  town  Cedar  City.  It  is  built  upon 
an  old  Aztecan  foundation,  rich  in  pottery  and  other  remains. 

14.  Malad  County :  chief  town  Fort  Malad,  properly  so  called 
from  its  slow,  brackish,  and  nauseous  river. 

15.  Cache  County,  the  granary  of  Mormonland,  and  the  most 
fertile  spot  in  the  Great  Basin ;  well  settled  and  much  valued : 
chief  town  Cache  Valley,  80  miles  N. 

16.  Beaver  County :  chief  town  Beaver  Creek,  220  miles  S. 

17.  Shambip  County :  Rich  Valley  and  Deep  Creek. 

18.  Salt  Lake  Islands. 

19.  St.  Mary's  County :  west  of  Shambip  City,  extending  to 
the  Humboldt  River ;  chief  settlement.  Deep  Creek. 

I  found  it  impossible  to  arrive  at  a  true  estimate  of  the  popu- 
lation. Like  the  earlier  English  numberings  of  the  people,  which 
originated  in  bitter  political  controversies — the  charge  of  unfair- 
ness was  brought  as  late  as  1831  against  the  enumerators  in  Ire- 
land— the  census  is  a  purely  party  measure.  The  Mormons, 
desiring  to  show  the  100,000  persons  which  entitle  them  to  claim 
admission  as  a  state  into  the  Union,  are  naturally  disposed  to  ex- 
aggerate their  numbers;  they  are,  of  course,  accused  of  "cooking 
up"  schedules,  of  counting  cattle  as  souls,  and  of  making  every 
woman  a  mother  in  esse  as  in  ^J05se.  On  the  other  hand,  the  anti- 
over  tliere.  The  state  soon  liberated  the  ebony  folks,  and  Mr.  Crosby,  of  course,  lost 
his  $9000  or  $10,000  by  the  operation. 

"The  Superintendent  of  the  Church  Public  Works  and  a  few  others  went  out  ex- 
ploring for  coal  about  the  Weber  some  time  in  August  last,  and  found  a  splendid 
bed  of  minersS.  It  promises  to  be  the  greatest  blessing  that  has  yet  fallen  to  the  lot 
of  the  Saints.  Of  course  I  do  not  look  at  things  with  '  an  eye  of  faith ;'  that  is  their 
business.  But  among  people  paying  $lQ,per  cord  for  wood,  scarce  at  that,  and  sure 
to  be  scarcer,  the  discovery  of  coal  is  an  important  matter.  The  present  coal-bed  is 
about  fifty  miles  distant ;  but,  nevertheless,  paj-ing  $3  per  ton  at  the  mouth  of  the 
pit,  at  which  it  is  now  sold,  it  can  be  brought  into  the  city  and  sold  for  $20.  Last 
year  it  was  sold  here  to  blacksmiths  for  $40.  The  Pacific  Railroad  folks  should 
have  an  eye  on  this.  The  apprehension  that  the  absence  of  coal  and  wood  in  the 
Territory  would  be  a  serious  obstacle  need  not  now  exist.  Though  the  wood  is 
scarce  and  high  priced  as  an  article  of  daily  household  consumption,  railroad  com- 
panies can  get  all  the  lumber  they  require  for  money,  though  they  may  have  to  haul 
it  far  and  pay  a  good  price  for  it.  I  believe  that  the  whole  country  is  full  of  coal, 
and  what  is  not  coal  is  gold  and  silver ;  but  I  earnestly  hope  that  the  day  is  far  dis- 
tant before  the  Mormons  or  any  body  else  discover  the  precious  metals.  The  coal 
discovery,  however,  is  very  important.  The  bishops  of  the  city  have  been  instructed 
to  urge  upon  their  flocks  the  hauling  of  it,  and  it  is  hoped  that  by  constant  travel 
the  snow  will  be  kept  down  and  the  roads  clear  all  the  winter.  A  Scotch  miner, 
who  Iiad  just  returned  from  the  coal-bed,  told  me  the  other  day  that  it  far  exceeded 
any  thing  that  he  had  ever  seen  in  his  own  country,  or  in  the  States,  both  in  quality 
and  abundance." 


294 


THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 


Chap.  VI. 


Mormons  are  as  naturally  inclined  to  underestimate :  moreover, 
*as  the  "census  marshals  receive  but  three  halfpence  per  head, 
they  are  by  no  means  disposed  to  pay  a  shilling  for  the  trouble 
of  ransacking  every  ranch  and  kanyon  -where  the  people  repair 
for  grazing  and  other  purposes.  The  nearest  approach  to  truth 
will  probably  be  met  by  assuming  the  two  opposite  extremes, 
and  by  "  splitting  the  difference." 

In  1849  Mr.  Kelly  estimated  the  Mormons  to  be  "about  5000 
inhabitants  in  the  town,  and  7000  more  in  the  settlements."  In 
1850  the  seventh  of&cial  census  of  the  United  States  numbered  the 
inhabitants  of  Utah  Territory  at  11,354  free +  26  slaves  ==11,380 
souls.  In  1853  the  Saints  were  reckoned  at  25,000  by  the  Gen- 
tiles, and  30,000  to  35,000  by  Mr.  O.  Pratt,  in  the  "  Seer."  In 
1854  Dr.  S.  W.  Richards  estimated  the  number  at  "  probably  from 
40,000  to  50,000"  in  the  United  States,  and  in  Great  Britain  at 
29,797.  In  1856  the  Mormon  census  gave  76,335  souls.  I  sub- 
join a  synopsis  of  the  official  papers.*  In  1858  the  Peace  Com- 
missioners sent  to  Utah  Territory  reported  that  the  Saints  did  not 
exceed  40,000  to  50,000  souls,  half  of  them  foreigners,  and  that 
they  could  bring  7000  men,  of  whom  1000  were  valuable  for  cav- 
alry, into  the  field.  In  1859  M.  Remy  made  the  number  of  Saints 
in  Utah  Territory,  not  including  Nevada,  80,000  souls,  and  the  to- 
tal in  the  world  186,000.  The  last  ofiicial  census,  in  1860,  was 
taken  under  peculiar  disadvantages.     General  Burr,  of  the  firm 

*  The  following;  is  a  condensed  Report  of  the  enumeration  of  the  inhabitants  of 
Utah  Territory,  taken  February,  1856  : 


Countiea. 

Males. 

Females. 

Total. 

Great  Salt  Lake  County. . . . 

12,780 

13,074 

25,804 

Utah                          "    '.... 

G,951 

7,614 

14,565 

Davis                         "      

4,705 

4,575 

9,340 

Weber                      "      .... 

3,486 

3,585 

7,071 

Iron                           " 

2,474 

2,943 

5,417 

Tooele                       "      .... 

1,315 

1,673 

2,988 

San  Pete                  " 

1,110 

1,133 

2,243 

Juab                          " 

807 

1,034 

1,84H 

Box-Elder                "      .... 

822 

717 

1,539 

Washington              " 

V      742 

778 

1,520 

Millard                      «'      .... 

544 

512 

1,056 

Green  River              "      

394 

345 

739 

Cedar                        "      .... 

312 

369 

681 

Malad                        "      .... 

259 

208 

467 

Cache                       "     .... 

240 

223 

463 

Beaver                      " 

118 

126 

244 

Shambip                   " 

83 

64 

147 

Salt  Lake  Islands 

125 

85 

210 

37,277 

39,058 

76,335 

"  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  March  let,  1856. 
"I  do  hereby  certify  that  the  above  is  a  correct  enumeration  of  the  white  inhab- 
itants of  Utah  Territor}',  according  to  the  reports  furnished  by  my  assistants,  and 
which  are  now  on  file  in  my  office.  Leonard  W.  IIardv,  Census  Agent." 

"  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  September  13tli,  1800. 
"The  above  is  a  correct  transcript  from  the  originals  on  file  in  the  Historian's 
Office.  TuoMAs  Bullock,  Clerk." 


Chap.  VI.  POPULATION  OF  UTAH  TERRITORY.  295 

of  Hockaday  and  Burr,  was  appointed  to  that  duty  by  Mr.  Dotson, 
the  anti-Mormon  federal  marshal.  But  as  the  choice  excited  loud 
murmurs,  the  task  was  committed  to  a  clerk  in  the  general's  store, 
and  deputies  for  the  rest  of  the  Territory  were  similarly  chosen. 
The  consequence  is  that  the  Gentile  marshal's  census  of  1860  of- 
fers a  number  of  40,266  free-f29  slaves=a  total  of  40,295  souls; 
while  the  Mormons  assert  their  Territory  to  contain  from  90,000 
to  100,000,  and  the  world  to  hold  from  300,000  to  400,000  Saints. 
Their  rise  is  remarkable,  even  if  we  take  the  statistics  of  the  ene- 
my, which  show  nearly  a  quadrupling  of  the  population  in  ten 
years,  while  Great  Britain  creeps  on  at  a  rate  of  about  ten  per 
cent. :  a  similar  increase  will  in  the  ninth  census  of  1870  give  in 
round  numbers  160,000  persons.  Utah  Territory  now  ranks  sec- 
ond In  the  eight  minor  states :  New  Mexico  (93,541)  and  District 
of  Columbia  (75,076)  take  precedence  of  it,  and  it  is  followed  by 
Colorado  (34,197),  Nebraska  (28,842),  Washington  (11,578),  Neva- 
da (6857),  and  Dakotah  (4839). 

I  have  vainly  aUempted  to  discover  the  proportion  of  native 
Anglo-Americans  to  the  foreign-born.  The  late  Mr.  Stephen  A. 
Douglas,  who  was  supposed  to  know  and  to  befriend  the  Saints, 
asserted  it  to  be  one  to  ten.  This  will  not  hold  good  if  applied 
to  the  authorities,  and  if  it  fails  at  the  head  it  will  be  inapplicable 
to  the  baser  part  of  the  body  politic,  for  the  American  in  Mor- 
mondom  is  the  prophet,  president,  apostle,  bishop,  or  other  high 
dignitary  who  leavens  the  lump  of  ignorance  and  superstition 
kneaded  together  in  the  old  countries.  Of  the  thirteen  members 
of  the  Upper  House,  there  were,  in  1860,  ten  Americans,  two  En- 
glish, and  one  Irishman:  of  the  officers,  viz.,  secretary  and  his 
assistant,  sergeant-at-arms,  messenger,  fireman,  and  chaplain,  four 
were  Americans,  one  English,  and  one  Irishman.  The  members 
of  the  Lower  House,  twenty-six  in  number,  consisted  of  twenty- 
four  Americans  and  two  Englishmen,  including  the  speaker,  Mr. 
John  Taylor :  of  its  six  officers,  four  were  Americans,  one  En- 
glish, and  one  Scotchman.     Both  houses  were  thus  distributed : 


New  York 13 

Massachusetts....  6 

Vermont 5 

England 4 

Ohio 4 


Tennessee 3 

Kentucky 2 

New  Hampshire . .  2 

Pennsylvania 2 

Indiana 2 


Ireland 2 

Scotland 1 

Isle  of  Man 1 

Virginia 1 

Rhode  Island  ....  1 


Grand  total 49 


The  Mormon  emigration  is  without  exception  the  most  inter- 
esting feature  in  their  scheme.  There  is  an  evident  selection  of 
species  in  the  supply:  a  man  must  be  superior  to  many  in  "grit" 
and  energy  who  voluntarily  leaves  his  native  land.  As  regards 
the  national  classification  of  the  converts,  it  may  be  observed  that 
the  supply  depends  upon  the  freedom  of  religious  discussion  at 
home.  Great  Britain  supplies  five  times  more  than  all  the  rest 
of  the  world,  excepting  Denmark.     France  must  be  proselytized 


296  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  YI. 

through  the  Channel  Islands,  and  there  are  few  converts  of  the 
Latin  race,  which  speaks  a  strange  language,  and  is  too  much  at- 
tached to  the  soil  for  extensive  colonization.  Sweden  sends  forth 
few  (67) — a  fine  of  twenty-six  rix-dollars  has  there  been  imposed 
upon  all  who  harbor,  let  rooms  to,  or  hold  to  service  a  Mormon ; 
Denmark  supplies  many  (502),  because  the  Constitution  of  1849 
guaranteed  to  her  religious  liberty ;  Switzerland  is,  after  a  fashion, 
Eepublican ;  Germany  gives  the  fewest.  Propagandism  has  not 
yet  been  thoroughly  organized  east  of  Father  Ehine ;  moreover, 
the  Teuton,  whose  faith  is  mostly  subordinate  to  his  fancy,  finds 
superior  inducements  to  settle  while  passing  through  the  Eastern 
States.  All  the  "diverts"  long  retain  their  motherlandish  char- 
acteristics, andj  associating  together,  are  often  unable  to  understand 
the  English  sermon  at  the  Tabernacle.  The  work  of  proselytiz- 
ing is  slow  in  the  United  States ;  the  analytic  Anglo-American 
prefers  the  role  of  knave  to  that  of  fool,  besides  un  saint  riestpcLS 
honore  dans  son  pays,  upon  the  principle  that  no  man  is  a  hero  to 
his  valet.  At  Great  Salt  Lake  City  I  saw  neither  Kanaka,  Hin- 
doo, nor  Chinese;  these  "exotics"  have  proT)ably  withered  out 
since  the  days  of  M.  Eemy ;  only  one  negro  met  my  sight,  and 
though  a  few  Yutas,  principally  Weber  Eiver,  were  seen  in  the 
streets,  none  of  them  had  Mormonized. 

Emigration  in  Mormondom,  like  El  Hajj  in  El  Islam,  is  the  ful- 
fillment of  a  divine  command.  As  soon  as  the  Saints  could  af- 
ford it,  they  established,  under  the  direction  of  the  First  Presi- 
dency, a  fund  for  importing  poor  converts,  appointed  a  committee 
for  purchasing  transports,  and  established  in  Europe  and  elsewhere 
agents,  who  collected  $5000  in  the  first,  and  $20,000  in  the  second 
year.  In  September,  1850,  a  committee  of  three  oflScers  was  ap- 
pointed to  transact  the  business  of  the  poor  fund,  and  an  ordi- 
nance was  passed  incorporating  the  "  Perpetual  Emigration  Fund 
Company,"  consisting  of  thirteen  members,  including  the  First 
President.  The  Saint  whose  passage  is  thus  defrayed  works  out 
his  debt  in  the  public  ateliers  of  the  Tithing  Office  Department, 
under  the  superintendence  of  the  Third  President;  he  is  supphed 
with  food  from  the  "Deseret  Store,"  and  receives  half  the  value 
of  his  labor,  besides  which  a  tithe  of  his  time  and  toil  is  free. 
The  anti-Mormons  declare  that  by  this  means  the  faces  of  the  poor 
are  ground :  I  doubt  that  so  far-seeing  a  people  as  the  Mormons 
would  attempt  so  suicidal  a  policy. 

According  to  the  late  agent  at  Liverpool,  and  publisher  of  the 
"  Millennial  Star,"  Dr.  S.  W.  Eichards  (Select  Committee  on  Em- 
igrant Ships,  185-i,  ISTo.  12,  p.  8),  the  Mormon  emigration,  under 
its  authorized  agent  and  passenger-broker,  is  better  regulated  than 
under  the  provisions  of  the  Passengers'  Act;  the  sexes  are  berthed 
apart,  and  many  home  comforts  are  provided  for  the  emigrants. 
In  1854  it  was  estimated  not  to  exceed  3000  souls  per  annum,  and 
of  2600  the  English  were  1430,  250  Welsh,  200  Scotch,  and  about 


CUAT.  VI. 


MORMON  EMIGRATION. 


297 


a  score  of  Irish,  making  a  total  of  1900  Britons  to  700  from  the 
Continent.  The  classes  preferred  by  the  Fund  are  agriculturists 
and  mechanics — the  latter  being  at  a  premium — moral,  industri- 
ous, and  educated  people,  "qualified  to  increase  and  enhance  the 
interest  of  the  community  they  go  among."  From  Liverpool, 
whence  all  the  emigration  proceeds,  to  New  Orleans,  the  passage- 
money  varied  from  £3  125.  Qd.  to  £-±,  and  from  New  Orleans  to 
Great  Salt  Lake  City- £20  each.  Of  late  years  that  line  has  been 
abandoned  as  unhealthy  :  the  route  now  lies  by  rail  through  New 
York  and  Chicago  to  Florence,  on  the  ]\Iissouri  River.  The  emi- 
gration season  is  January,  February,  and  March,  and  the  passage 
can  be  made  at  the  quickest  in  twenty-two  days, 

I  now  proceed  to  figures,  which  are  given  in  full  detail,  and 
can  easily  be  verified  by  a  reference  to  Liverpool.  The  official 
reports  are  subjoined,  because  they  speak  well  for  Mormon  ac- 
curacy.*    From  1810-51:  they  reckon  17,195  souls,  and  from 

*    No.  I. — List  of  Latter-Day  Saints'  Emigration,  from  Jixnuary  Gt/i,  1851,  to 
May  15th,  iSGl. 


Dato  of  Sailinar. 


Vessel. 


1851,  January  6 

"  '  22.. 
February  2... 
March  4 

1852,  January  10.. 
February  10. 
March  6 

1 853,  January  17  .. 

"         23.. 

February  5... 

15.. 

"        28.. 

March  2  6 

April  G 

1854,  January  22.. 
February  4... 

"     '    22. 

March  5 

"      12 

April  4 


24. 


November  27. 

1855,  January  G 

7 

"       9 


"  17... 
February  3..., 

"         27., 

March  31 

April  17 


22 

"    26 

June  29 

November  30. 


Ellen 

G.W.  Bourne 

Ellen  Maria 

Olymptis 

Kennebec 

Ellen  Maria 

Rockaway 

Ellen  Maria 

Golconda 

Jersey 

Elvira  Owen 

International 

Falcon 

Camillus 

(Miscellaneous)... 
Benjamin  Adams. 

Golconda 

Windermere 

Old  England 

John  M.Wood.... 

Germanicus 

Marshfield 

Clara  Wheeler.... 
(Miscellaneous)... 
Clara  Wheeler.... 

Rockaway 

James  Nesmith  ... 

Neva 

Charles  Buck 

Isaac  Jeans 

Siddons 

Jurenta 

Chimborazo 

Samuel  Curling... 
William  Stetson... 

Cynosure 

Emerald  Isle 


Captain. 


Phillips.... 
Williams.. 
Whitmore. 

Wilson 

Smith 

Whitmore. 


Whitmore. 

Kerr 

Day 

Owen 

Brown 

Wade 

Day 


Drummond . 

Kerr 

Fairfield 

Barstow 

Hartley 

Fales 

Torrey 

Nelson 


Nelson.... 

Mills 

Goodwin . 

Brown 

Smalley... 
Chipman. 
Taylor.... 

Watts 

Vesper.... 
Curling... 
Jordan  ... 

Pray 

Cornish... 


4G6 
281 
378 
245 
333 
3G9 

30 
332 
321 
314 
345 
425 
324 
228 

23 

6 

464 

477 

45 
393 
220 
366 

29 

34 
422 
440 

24 

13 
403 

16 
430 
573 
431 
581 
293 
159 
350 


298 


THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 


Cuxr.  VI. 


1854-55,  4716  souls ;  the  total  in  fifteen  years  (1840-65)  being 
21,911.     From  1855-56  they  number  4395  souls,  and  from  the 


No.  I. —  Continued. 


Date  of  Sailing. 


1855,  December  12.. 

1856,  February  19.. 

March  23 

April  19 

Mav  4 

May  25 

June  1 


November  17. 

1857,  March  28 

April  25 

May  30 


July  18.... 
1859,  Aprilll... 

July  10.... 

August  20. 
1800,  March  30.. 

Mav  11.... 


1861,  April  15. 

"     22 

May  15 . 


Vessel. 


John  J.  Boyd 

Caravan 

Enoch  Train 

8.  Curling 

Thornton 

Horizon 

Wellfleet 

(Miscellaneous  Ships). 

Columbia 

George  Washington. . . 

Westmoreland 

Tuscarora 

(Miscellaneous) 

Wyoming 

William  Tapscott 

Antarctic 

Emerald  Isle 

Undei'writer 

William  Tapscott 

(Miscellaneous) 

Manchester 

Underwriter 

Monarch  of  the  Sea... 


Captain. 


Austin 

W.  A.  Sands. 
H.P.Rich.... 

Curling 

Collins 

Reed 

Westcott 


Hutchinson.... 
J.  S.  Comings. 
R.  R.  Decan... 
Dunlery 


Brooks 

J.  B.  Bell. 


Cornish 

J.  W.  Roberts. 
J.B.Bell 


Trask 

J.W.  Roberts. 

Gardner 

Total 


512 

457 

534 

707 

764 

856 

140 

69 

223 

817 

544 

547 

50 

36 

725 

30 

54 

594 

731 

263 

379 

624 

950 


21,195 


"  Latter-Day  Saints'  European  Publi.=liinp:  and  Emigration  Office,) 
"4'2  Islington,  Liverpool.  j 

"The  above  are  the  numbers  of  the  Latter-Day  Saints  who  have  taken  passage  on 
ships  chartered  at  this  port  by  the  Church  Emigration  Agent.  Besides  these,  there 
are  manv  who  engage  passages  at  other  offices — not  being  able  to  arrange  their  affairs 
to  go  wlien  we  have  ships  chartered — whose  numbers  we  do  not  have.  Tlie  bulk  of 
our  emigration,  for  the  past  few  years,  has  left  here  in  the  spring.  This  is  the  only 
time  we  have  ships  chartered.  The  scattering  few  who  go  over  in  the  summer  and 
autumn,  with  the  intention  of  remaining  in  the  United  States  until  another  spring, 
we  do  not  keep  any  account  of.  Geo.  Q.  Caxkon." 

No.  II. — General  Summary  of  Emigration,  from  Nov.  30th,  1855,  to  July  Gth^  1856. 
(It  was  discontinued  in  1858,  owin(j  to  troubles  with  the  U.  S.  Government.) 


ship. 

Captain. 

President  of 
Company. 

Pate  of 
Sailing. 

Port  of  Dis- 
embarkation. 

•5 
0 

1 

Emerald  l^-le 

John  J.  Boyd. . . . 

Caravan 

Enoch  Train 

G.  P.  Cornish. . 

.Austin 

W.  A.  Pands. . . 
II.  P.  Rich 

P.  C.  Merrill  . . 

C.  Peterson  . . . 

D.Tyler 

J.  Ferguson  . . . 

D.  Jones 

J.  G.  Willie  . . . 

E.  Martin 

J.  Aubray 

Nov.  30, 18-5.. 
Dec.  12, 1855. . 
Feb.  10,18.50.. 
Mar.  23,  1S56. 
April  19,  1S56. 
May  14,18.50.. 
May  2.5,  1850.. 
June  1, 1856  . . 

New  York. . 
New  Y'ork.. 
New  Y'ork. . 

Boston 

Boston 

New  York. . 

Boston 

Boston 

Total.. 

'34 

43i 

428 
484 
635 

350 
47S 
457 
103 
279 
280 
221 
140 

09 

350 
512 
457 
534 
707 
764 
8.50 
146 

C9 

Thornton 

Horizon 

Wellfleet 

Mwcellaneous  ) 
Ships  (U.  S.)  1 

(!ollins 

Reed 

Westcott 

2(112 

2388 

43;i5  j 

Of  this  number,  as  the  table  shows,  2012  are  P.  E.  Fund  pas.sengers,  of  whom  333 
wore  ordered  out  by  their  friends  in  Utah ;  also  780  members  of  many  )'ears'  stand- 
ing in  the  Chnrcli  have  been  forwarded  to  Utah  under  the  P.  E.  Fund  Co.'s  arrange- 
ments, and  28  are  elders  returning  home  from  missions.  We  have  not  the  means 
of  ascertaining  definitely,  but  the  approximate  numbers  of  those  wlio  started  to  go 


Chap.  VI. 


MORMON  EMIGRATION. 


299 


1st  of  July,  1857,  to  the  SOtli  of  June,  1860,  they  count  2433, 
making  for  the  five  subsequent  years  (1855-60)  a  total  of  6828. 
Thus,  in  the  twenty  years  between  1840-60,  they  show  a  grand 

throuRh  to  Utah  on  their  own  means  is  385,  making  a  total  of  those  who  started 
from  here,  with  the  intention  of  going  through  to  the  Valley  this  season,  about  2397, 
which  will  leave  1998  who  have  located  for  the  present  in  various  parts  of  the  United 
States,  in  order  to  obtain  means  to  complete  then-  journey  whenever  circumstances 
will  permit. 

iMtter-Day  Saints'  Emigration  Report,  from  July  \st,  1857,  to  June  30,  18G0. 


Ship. 

Captain. 

President  of 
Company 

Port  of 
Embarka- 
tion. 

Date  of 
Sailing. 

Port  of 

Diseuibark- 

ntion. 

•3 

CL. 

as 

i 

1 
:!(! 

S 
36 

Wyoming. . . . 

—  Brooks  . . . 

Clias.  Harman. 

Liverpool 

.JulvlS,lS57iHiiladel. 

Wm.Tapscott 

J.  B.  Bell. . . . 

Robt.  F.  Neslen 

Liverpool 

.\pr.  11, 1S59 

X.  York.. 

54 

100 

140 

320 

725 

Antarctic 

Jas.  Chaplott'. . 

Liverpool 

July  10, 1S59 

X.  York.. 

30 

30 

Emerald  Isle. 

—  Cornish. . . 

Henry  Hugs  •  ■ 

Livei-pool 

.\ug.  20, 1S59 

X.  York.. 

54 

54 

Underwriter . 

J.  W.  Roberts 

Jas.  n.  Ro.<3  . . . 

Liverpool 

Mar.  SO,1S60 

X.  York.. 

1 

140 

100 

.^.4T 

.504 

Wm.  Tapscott 

J.  B.  Bell. . . . 

.\sa  Calkin 

Liverpool 

May  11, 1S60 

X.  York.. 

17 

12S 

246 

340 

731 

Miscellane-  ) 
ous  Sbipa  J 

T2 

464 

501 

263 
1306 

203 
2433 

Of  this  number,  as  the  table  shows,  1037  purposed  going  through  to  Utah  under 
P.  E.  Fund,  hand-cart,  and  team  arrangements.  But  we  have  good  cause  to  pre- 
sume that  a  large  number  of  those  who  left  here  with  the  intention  of  settling  for  a 
short  time  in  the  States  (and  are  included  in  the  table  under  that  head)  have  also 
gone  through  to  Utah,  without  settling  on  the  way. 

The  number  of  natives  of  the  various  countries  may  be  classified  as  follows :  From 
the  United  Kingdom  of  Great  Britain  and  Ireland" — English,  1074 ;  Scotch,  126 ; 
Welsh,  173;  Irish,  12.  The  total  number  from  the  Scandinavian  Mission  is  7G2, 
of  which  there  are  528  Danes,  193  Swedes,  and  41  Norwegians.  The  total  number 
from  the  Swiss  and  Italian  ilission  is  211,  of  which  209  are  from  the  Swiss  Cantons, 
and  2  from  Italy.  There  are  also  2  French,  3  Germans,  and  70  elders  returning 
home  from  missions,  making  a  grand  total,  as  per  table,  of  2433  souls. 

Countries. — The  number  of  natives  of  the  various  countries  may  be  classified  as 
follows ; 

England 2G1I 

(Principal   counties — Lancashire, 
Yorkshire,  and  Staflfordshire.) 
Scotland 367 

^^^1^^ -^^1—3645 

Ireland 54 

America 19 

French  Mission  (Channel  Islands)...      9 

Denmark )  (    505  / 

Sweden v  Scandinavian <      67 

Norway )  |      46 

Swiss  Cantons 19 

Piedmont,  Italy 31 

East  India  Mission 2 

Germany 1 


-750 


»      Total 4395  souls. 

The  emigration  in  1861  is  progressing  satisfactorily,  as  the  following  extract 
proves : 

"A  party  of  Mormonites,  consisting  of  17  men,  25  women,  and  11  children,  left 
London  lately  by  the  Northwestern  Railway  for  Liverpool,  en  route  for  the  Salt  Lake 
settlement.  The  emigration  of  Mormonites  from  Great  Britain,  particularly  from 
the  southern  district  of  Wales,  has  during  the  past  ten  weeks  been  on  a  large  scale. 
Their  number  embraces  all  classes ;  one  gentleman,  an  inhabitant  of  Mcrthyr,  Gla- 


300 


THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 


CuAP.  YI. 


total  of  28,739  immigrants.  They  expect  for  tbe  present  year  an 
emigration  of  1500  to  2000  souls  from  the  British  Isles,  independ- 
ent of  some  hundreds  from  the  Scandinavian,  Swiss,  and  other 
missions.  Already  200  teams  have  been  dispatched  from  Great 
Salt  Lake  City  to  assist  with  transport  and  provisions  the  poor 
emigrants  from  Florence.  The  Holy  Land  of  the  West  would 
soon  be  populous  were  it  not  for  two  obstacles :  first,  the  expense 
and  difficulty  of  the  outward  journey ;  secondly,  the  facihty  of 
emigration  to  the  gold  regions  of  Pike's  Peak  and  the  silver  mines 
of  the  Nevada. 

The  London  Conference  has  seventeen  places  of  worship,  and 
numbers  a  little  over  2000  men,  scattered  throughout  Great  Brit- 
ain. In  these  isles  there  is  a  general  Presidency  of  the  Church, 
assisted  by  a  counselor :  these  preside  over  the  pastors  or  presi- 
dents of  districts,  ten  in  number,  who  also,  assisted  by  counselors 
in  their  turn,  direct  and  counsel  the  presidents  of  the  twenty-four 

morgansliirc,  having  contributed  £1000,  and  joined  the  'brethren,'  200  of  whom,  in- 
cluding an  old  woman  upward  of  eighty  years  of  age,  have  just  left  Wales." 


No.  III. — Latter-Daij  Saints'  Emigration,  Spring  q/'1861. 

42  Islington,  Liverpool,  June  20th,  1S61. 
Per  Ship  Underwriter,  Captain  Koberts. 
Males.  Females. 


Per  Ship  Manchester,  Captain  Prask. 

Males.  Females. 

English.... 132  124 

Scotch 3  2 

Irish 2  0 

Welsh 54  57 

Danes 5  0 

Americans 1  0 

T97  l83 


English 234 

Scotch 32 

Irish 3 

Welsh IG 

Norwegian 1 

Americans 3 

289 


Per  Ship  Monarch  of  the  Sea,  Captain  Gardner. 


Males.  Females. 


English 97 

Scotch 25 

Irish 2 

Welsh 17 

German 1 

Swiss 40 

Carried  forward...  182 


105 

27 

1 

17 

0 

48 

198 


Males. 
Brought  forward  ...  182 

Italian 1 

French 1 

Danish..... 175 

Norwegian 24 

Swedish 61 

Total 444 


278 

43 

0 

14 

0 

0 

335 


Females. 

198 

3 

2 

210 

43 

68 

524 


Suinmai-y. 

Males.     Females.     Total. 


English 4G3  507 

Scotch GO  72 

Irish 7  1 

Welsh 87  88 

German 1  0 

Swiss  40  -48 

Italian 1  3 

French 1  2 

Danes 180  210 

Swedes 61  68 

Norwegians 25  43 

Americans 4  0 


970 

132 

8 

175 

1 

88 

4 

3 

390 

129 

68 

4 


-1285 


687 


930       1042       1972  =  1972 


Ciivp.  VI.  MORMON  POLITY.— MEETING  ROOMS.  301 

Conferences,  while  these  superintend  the  presidents  of  the  400 
branches.  The  total  of  members  in  the  whole  European  mission 
is  not  less  than  40,000.  I  subjoin  a  list  of  the  various  places — 
kindly  furnished  to  me  by  an  influential  Saint^which  the  Mor- 
mons have  selected  for  worship  in  London. '-^ 

Two  points  in  this  subject  are  truly  remarkable.  The  first  is 
the  difference  between  Utah  Territory  and  all  other  Anglo-Scan- 
dinavian colonies,  in  which  males  are  usually  far  more  numerous 
than  females.  The  latter^  at  Utah,  by  the  census  of  1856,  are 
1781  in  excess  of  the  former ;  almost  as  great  a  disproportion  as 
the  extra  three  quarters  of  a  million  in  England.  The  second  is 
the  rapid  growth  of  the  ISTew  Faith,  and  the  deep  hold  which  it 
has  taken  upon  Great  Britain.  Few  Englishmen  are  aware  that 
their  metropolis  contains  seventeen  places  of  Mormon  worship, 
and  their  fatherland  an  army  of  4000  volunteer  missionaries.  In 
the  United  States  it  is  also  the  fashion  to  ignore  the  Mormons. 
The  subject,  however,  will  grow  in  importance,  and  it  is  easy  to 
predict  that  before  two  decades  shall  have  elapsed,  Deseret,  unless 
sent  once  more  upon  her  travels,  will  have  forced  herself  into  the 
position  of  an  independent  state. 

The  Mormon  polity  is,  in  my  humble  opinion — based  upon  the 
fact  that  liberty  is  to  mankind  in  mass  a  burden  flir  heavier  than 
slavery — the  perfection  of  government.  It  is  the  universal  suf 
frage  of  the  American  States,  tempered  by  the  despotism  of  France 
and  Kussia :  in  moderate  England  men  have  nothing  of  it  but 
that  Tory-Radicalism  to  which  the  few  of  extremest  opinions  be- 
long. At  the  semi-annual  Conferences,  which  take  place  on  the 
6th  of  April  and  the  6th  of  October,  and  last  for  four  days,  all 
officers,  from  the  President  to  the  constable,  are  voted  in  by  direc- 
tion and  counsel — i.  e.,  of  the  Lord  through  his  Prophet ;  conse- 
quently, re-election  is  the  rule,  unless  the  chief  dictator  determine 
otherwise.     Every  adult  male  has  a  vote,  and  all  live  under  an 

*  Latter-Day  Saints'  Meeting  Rooms  in  London  and  vidnity: 

Somers  Toicn — Enston  Hall,  8  George  Street,  Ilampstead  Road. 

Holborn — 148  Holborn,  near  Gray's  Inn  Lane. 

Gosicell  Hall — 46  Goswell  Street. 

Holloway — 1  Cornwall  Place,  Holloway  Road. 

Whitechapel—Y\sg3.\\  Chapel,  North  Street,  Sydney  Street,  Mile  End. 

Poplar — 28  Penny  Fields. 

Barking — Latter-Day  Saints'  Chapel,  North  Street. 

Puddington — Hope  Hall,  Bell  Street. 

Chelsea — Lloyd's  Assembly  Rooms,  1  George  Street,  Sloane  Square. 

Shepherd's  Bush — Latter-r)ay  Saint's  Chapel,  Shepherd's  Bush  Green. 

Camden  TbitJK— Beulah  Cottage,  King's  Road,  Camden  Town. 

On  the  Surrey  Side  of  the  Thames. 

Walworth  Common — Latter-Day  Saints'  Meeting  Room,  2  King  Street,  Old  Kent  Road. 
Lambeth — St.  George's  Hall,  St.  George's  Road,  near  the  Elephant  and  Castle. 
Deptford — Latter-Day  Saints'  Meeting  Room,  Tanner's  Hill. 

Woolwich — Latter-Day  Saints'  Chapel,  Prospect  Row. 

Welling — Latter-Day  Saints'  Meeting  Room,  "Wickham  Lane,  near  Welling. 
Elthavi — Latter-Day  Saints'  Meeting  Room,  at  Mr.  J.  Baily's,  Pound  Place. 


302  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VI. 

iron  sway.  His  poor  single  vote — from  whicli  even  tlie  sting  of 
ballot  has  been  drawn — gratifies  the  dignity  of  the  man,  and  sat- 
isfies him  with  the  autocracy  which  directs  him  in  the  way  he 
should  go.  He  has  thus  all  the  harmless  pleasure  of  voting,  with- 
out the  danger  of  injuring  himself  by  his  vote.  The  reverse,  duly 
carried  out,  frees  mankind  from  king  and  kaiser,  and  subjects 
them  to  snobs  and  mobs.  Mormon  society  is  modeled  upon  a 
civilized  regiment :  the  Prophet  is  the  colonel  commanding,  and 
the  grades  are  nicely  graduated  down  to  the  last  neophyte  or  re- 
cruit. I  know  no  form  of  rule  superior  to  that  of  Great  Salt  Lake 
City ;  it  might  supply  the  author  of  "Happy  Years  at  Hand"  with 
new  ideas  for  the  "  Outlines  of  the  Coming  Theocracy."  It  ex- 
erts its  beneficial  effects  equally  upon  the  turbulent  and  inde- 
pendent American;  the  sensible  and  self-sufiicient  Englishman; 
the  Frenchman,  ever  lusting  after  new  things ;  the  Switzer,  with 
his  rude  love  of  a  most  ^problematic  liberty ;  the  outwardly  cold, 
inwardly  fiery  Scandinavian ;  the  Italian,  ready  to  bow  down  be- 
fore any  practice,  with  the  one  proviso  that  it  miTst  be  successful ; 
and  the  German,  who  demands  to  be  governed  by  theories  and 
Utopianisms,  "worked"  by  professors  "out  of  the  depths  of  their 
self-consciousness." 

The  following  description  of  a  Conference  is  extracted  at  length 
from  the  "  Daily  Missouri  Eepublican"  of  May  4, 1861 : 

Great  Salt  Lake  City,  April  12,  18G1. 

On  the  6th  of  April,  1830,  in  a  small  room  about  fifteen  feet  square, 
in  the  town  of  Fayette,  Seneca  Comity,  New  York,  a  young  country 
lad — Joseph  Smith — and  five  other  persons  organized  that  movement 
now  known  throughout  Christendom  as  "  The  Church  of  Jesus  Christ 
of  Latter-Day  Saints,"  or  Mormonism.  How  the  units  have  each  in- 
creased to  tens  of  thousands,  and  where  those  disciples  have  been 
found,  and  how  they  have  been  converted,  is  not  the  task  I  assign 
myself.  I  assisted,  as  the  Frenchmen  say,  at  the  thirty-first  anniver- 
sary Conference  of  that  obscure  movement,  and  propose  to  give  the 
readers  of  the  "  Republican"  its  picture,  and  "  nothmg  extenuate  nor 
set  down  aught  in  malice." 

Twice  a  year  the  Mormons  assemble  in  Conference,  on  the  6th  of 
April  and  on  the  6th  of  October,  for  the  purpose  of  re-electing  their 
presiding  authorities,  or  making  such  changes  among  them  as  are 
deemed  "  wisdom"  or  "  necessary" — the  chiefs,  also,  making  these  pe- 
riods seasonable  for  general  instruction  to  the  "body" — and  in  April 
electing  and  sending  out  missionaries  to  the  nations  of  the  earth, 
where  Mormonism  is  flourishing,  or  where  the  New  Faith  has  yet  to 
be  introduced. 

As  the  settlements  in  the  Territory  are  widely  scattered,  and  com- 
munication between  them  rare — except  where  business  or  family  pur- 
poses invite — the  Conferences  are  looked  forward  to  with  peculiar 
interest  by  the  people  generally  as  a'time  of  renewing  acquaintance 
and  friendship  with  those  they  have  known  and  been  associated  with 
in  the  Old  World.    To  this  add  the  curiosity  to  see  and  hear  again 


Chap.  VI.  THE  MOKMON  CONFERENCE.  303 

the  "Prophet"  and  his  associates,  and  the  influences  tliat  draw  the 
multitude  to  Conference  is  comprehended. 

Up  to  within  a  few  years  this  country  has,  I  am  told,*  been  rarely 
visited  by  showers  of  rain,  the  husbandmen  depending  almost  entire- 
ly upon  the  melting  snoAVS  of  the  mountains  for  irrigating  fields  and 
gardens.  Very  recently  the  snow  and  rain  had  fallen  in  great  abund- 
ance, and  the  muddy  roads  were  rendered  almost  impassable.  Not- 
withstanding this  obstacle,  the  faithful  screwed  up  courage  and  trav- 
eled in  droves  from  every  part  of  the  Territory,  and  filled  the  streets 
of  the  city  during  Conference  like  a  county  fair. 

Early  on  Saturday  morning  the  carriages  and  Avagons,  equestrians 
and  pedestrians,  thronged  into  the  city,  and  long  before  the  opening 
of  the  Tabernacle  doors  the  people  were  gathering  in  groups,  eager 
for  admission  to  obtain  a  good  seat,  fearing  the  general  rush.  On 
the  Sunday  preceding,  Brigham  had  requested  the  citizens  here  to 
stay  at  home,  and  afford  their  country  brethren  and  sisters  an  oppor- 
tunity of  getting  within  the  Tabernacle;  otherwise  there  would  have 
been  a  poor  show  for  the  strangers,  and  as  it  was  they  were  them- 
selves vastly  too  many  for  the  dimensions  of  the  building. 

THE   CONPEEENCE — FIEST  DAY — ^MOEXIXG   SESSION', 

At  10  o'clock  there  were  on  the  stand,  according  to  technical  rank 
and  authority : 

Of  the  First  Presidency — Presidents  Brigham  Young,  Heber  C. 
Kimball,  and  Daniel  H.  Wells. 

Of  the  Twelve  Apostles — Orson  Hyde,  "VVillford  "Woodruff,  John 
Taylor,  George  A.  Smith,  Ezra  T.  Benson,  Lorenzo  Snow,  and  Frank- 
lin D.  Richards. 

Of  the  First  Presidency  of  the  Seventies — Joseph  Young,  Levi  W. 
Hancock,  Henry  Herriman,  Zera  Pulsipher,  Albert  P.  Rockwood,  and 
Horace  S.  Eldredge. 

Of  the  Presidency  of  the  High  Priests — Edwin  D.  Woolley  and 
Samuel  W.  Richards. 

Of  the  Presidency  of  the  Stake — Daniel  Spencer,  David  Fullmer, 
and  George  B.Wallace. 

Of  the  Presidency  of  the  Bishoj^ric — Edward  Hunter,  Leonard  W. 
Hardy,  and  Jesse  C.  Little. 

Of  the  Patriarchs — John  Smith  and  Isaac  Morley. 

Apostle  Hyde  called  the  meeting  to  order,  and  in  a  moment  all 
talking  was  hushed,  and  a  choir  of  about  a  dozen  persons,  accompa- 
nied by  a  fine-toned  organ  in  the  centre  of  the  building,  sung : 

The  morning  breaks,  the  shadows  flee, 

Lo !  Zion's  standard  is  unfurled ! 
The  dawning  of  a  brighter  day 

Majestic  rises  on  the  world. 

The  clouds  of  error  disappear 

Before  the  rays  of  truth  divine ; 
The  glory  bursting  from  afar, 

Wide  o'er  the  nations  soon  will  shine. 

*  The  article  is  probably  written  by  a  Mormon  elder.  It  is  the  fashion,  however, 
in  newspaper  correspondence — as  the  columns  of  the  "New  York  Herald"  prove — 
to  assume  Gentilism  for  the  nonce. 


tjQ4  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VI. 

The  Gentile  fullness  now  comes  in, 

And  Israel's  blessings  are  at  hand ; 
Lo !  Judah's  remnant,  cleansed  from  sin, 

Shall  in  their  promised  Canaan  stand. 

Jehovah  speaks !  let  earth  give  ear, 

And  Gentile  nations  turn  and  live ; 
His  mighty  arm  is  making  bare. 

His  cov'nant  people  to  receive. 

Angels  from  heaven  and  truth  from  earth 

Have  met,  and  both  have  record  borne ; 
Thus  Zion's  light  is  bursting  forth. 

To  bring  her  ransomed  children  home. 

Apostle  Lorenzo  Snow  offered  prayer,  and  the  choir  sung,  "Praise 
ye  the  Lord ;  'tis  good  to  praise." 

Apostle  Benson  was  first  invited  to  address  the  Conference.  "  Broth- 
er Ezra"  is  generally  called  a  son  of  thunder — great  preacher,  I  sup- 
pose. On  this  occasion  he  aimed  at  being  modest,  and  after  express- 
ing his  gratitude  for  the  privilege  of  being  permitted  to  attend  Con- 
ference, to  come  and  see  the  Prophet,  his  counselors,  and  the  twelve 
apostles,  and  the  good  brothers  and  sisters,  he  was  prepared  to  bear 
his  testimony. 

He  knew  that  Joseph  Smith  was  a  prophet ;  that  his  predictions 
had  been  fulfilled,  and  were  daily  fulfilling,  to  the  joy  of  all  the  Saints. 
He  would  not  stop  there  in  his  testimony ;  he  would  bear  testimony 
to  the  teachings  of  President  Brigham  Young.  His  counselors — He- 
ber  C.  Kirabail  and  Daniel  H.  Wells — were  also  true  as  the  revela- 
tions of  Joseph,  and  he  rejoiced  in  them.  Oh,  what  a  joy  it  Avas  to 
know  that  they  had  such  men  to  lead  them !  What  would  be  the 
condemnation  of  those  who  rejected  their  testimony  ?  Ezra  was 
quite  serious — yea,  serious  to  shuddering. 

The  fearfulness  of  apostasy  was  eloquently  portrayed.  False  spir- 
its attending  it,  and  false  revelations  bestowed  on  the  backslider,  and 
every  other  ugly,  disagreeable  business  was  the  certain  lot  of  the 
apostate,  and  from  which  the  brethren  Avere  decently  Avarned. 

President  Daniel  H.Wells  was  much  pleased  Avith  the  Latter-Day 
work ;  it  Avas  a  great  blessing  to  live  in  the  light  of  the  Gospel.  It 
had  been  but  a  few  years  proclaimed  to  the  Avorld.  The  channel  of 
communication  betAveen  heaA'en  and  earth  Avas  again  open  to  the  chil- 
dren of  men.  Brother  Wells  referred  to  the  state  of  the  nation.  The 
present  trouble  Avas  the  result  of  bad  treatment  to  the  Saints.  The 
people  of  God  had  been  driven  into  the  Avilderness — thousands  might 
have  perished,  and  the  government  Avas  indifferent.  It  Avas  a  polit- 
ical axiom,  that  Avhen  governments  ceased  to  j^rotect,  the  people  Avere 
released  from  their  obligations.  The  government  had  never  protect- 
ed the  Saints  as  other  citizens.  They  had  been  driven  from  place  to 
place,  and  the  murderers  of  Joseph  Smith  had  gone  unpunished.  Fault 
had  been  found  with  the  Mormons  because  they  had  asked  the  gov- 
ernment to  appoint  good  men  as  federal  officers — men  in  whom  they 
had  confidence.  They  were  for  this  called  rebels;  but  they  Avere 
probably  the  only  people  that  Avould  yet  stand  by  the  Constitution 
and  iiphold  it. 

The  government  had  fallen  in  the  eyes  of  the  civilized  world ;  it 


Chap.  VI.  THE  MORMON  CONFERENCE.  305 

had  become  corrupt  and  debased.  Nowadays  nobody  expected  any 
thing  from  pubUc  servants  but  corruption.  These  things  were  well 
known  to  every  body.  The  Saints  had  been  molested  and  could  get 
no  redress.  The  Prophet  Joseph,  moved  by  the  Spirit  of  the  Most 
High,  told  their  enemies  there  that  they  would  see  mobbing  to  their 
heart's  content,  for  the  measure  that  they  meted  to  the  Saints  should 
be  meted  to  them  back  again. 

The  Saints  could  now  see  the  distracted  state  of  the  nations,  and 
the  confusion  of  all  governments.  If  they  were  wise  men  and  Avom- 
en,  they  would  appreciate  the  blessed  inheritance  that  the  Lord  had 
brought  them  to.  He  had  but  one  request  to  make,  and  that  was, 
that  the  people  should  not  only  believe  in  the  counselings  of  Presi- 
dent Young,  but  be  diligent,  and  see  that  his  counseling  prospered. 

President  Heber  C.  Kimball  got  up  with  the  invocation  of  "  God 
bless  the  Saints,  and  peace  be  multiplied  unto  them."  He  respected 
and  loved  good  men  and  women  who  were  striving  to  do  the  will  of 
Heaven.  The  Mormons  were  united,  and  he  wanted  them  to  con- 
tinue so,  and  be  of  one  heart  and  of  one  mind,  and  to  do  as  they  were 
told.  The  South  had  seceded  from  the  Xorth,  but  the  Mormons 
would  never  secede  from  either.  He  had  sometimes  a  kind  of  no- 
tion that  North  and  South  Avould  secede  from  them,  and  if  they  did 
so  the  Mormons  couldn't  help  it,  and  the  Lord  would  yet  make  a 
great  people  of  them,  just  as  fast  as  they  were  able  to  bear  it. 

Heber  had  a  fling  at  "  the  miserable  creatures  who  had  been  sent 
here  one  time  and  another  to  rule  and  judge  them."  The  yoke  was 
off  their  neck;  they  were  away  out  from  the  confusion,  and  the  yoke 
was  on  the  neck  of  their  enemies,  and  the  bow-key  was  m.  Many 
were  engaged  in  trying  to  have  the  Mormons  associate  with  them  in 
a  national  capacity ;  but  they  would  have  nothing  to  do  with  them. 
"  No,  gentlemen  and  ladies,  we  are  free  from  them,  and  will  keep 
free."  Heber  was  satisfied  with  their  position  in  the  mountains. 
Brigham  was  their  governor;  had  always  been  so,  and  would  always 
be  so.  He  went  around  about  with  his  hands  in  his  pocket,  and  gov- 
erned the  people.  They  had  the  Lord  for  ruler,  and  the  men  whom 
he  delegated  could  govern  the  people.  He  had  no  fear,  for  he  lived 
above  the  law ;  he  transgressed  no  law,  and  had  nothing  to  appre- 
hend. With  an  exhortation  to  go  to  and  make  themselves  happy 
and  independent  by  their  own  industry,  Heber's  racy  discourse  term- 
inated with  a  hearty  amen  from  the  congregation. 

President  Brigham  Young  was  much  pleased  to  meet  with  the 
Saints.  The  Church  was  that  day  thirty-one  years  old — it  seemed 
but  a  short  time,  yet  a  great  work  had  been  done.  He  remembered 
when  he  had  a  great  anxiety  to  see  some  person  of  foreign  birth  em- 
brace the  faith.  For  the  first  few  years  it  was  only  Americans  who 
received  it,  but  he  could  now  gaze  upon  tens  of  thousands  from  the 
nations  of  the  Old  World.  He  discarded  miracles  as  being  any  evi- 
dence of  the  divinity  of  any  man's  mission:  men  might  be  astonished 
by  them,  but  the  spirit  only  could  convince  and  satisfy  the  mind.  Re- 
ferred to  Aaron's  operations:  turning  his  stick  into  a  serpent, filling 
the  air  Avith  life,  and  turning  the  rivers  into  blood,  did  not  satisfy. 
He  alluded  to  the  troubles  in  the  States,  and  warned  the  people 

U 


306  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VI. 

against  too  great  anxiety ;  thought  the  nation  was  breaking  up  quite 
fast  enough.  All  he  was  anxious  about  was  the  Saints  being  pre- 
pared for  every  event  in  the  providence  of  the  Lord.  He  sometimes 
wondered  if  the  great  men  of  the  nation  ever  asked  themselves  the 
question,  "  How  can  a  rei^ublican  government  stand  ?"  There  was 
but  one  way  in  which  it  could  endure — as  the  government  of  heaven 
endures  upon  the  basis  of  eternal  truth  and  virtue.  Had  Martin  Van 
Buren  redressed  the  wrongs  committed  against  the  Saints — had  lie 
ordered  the  State  of  Missouri  to  restore  them  to  their  property,  the 
nation  would  be  stronger  to-day  than  it  is.  He  mourned  to  see  the 
corruption,  and  he  sometimes  felt  a  blush  for  being  an  American. 
He  had  been  reared  by  the  green  mountains  of  Vermont,  and  could 
look  down  upon  the  nation  and  mourn  that  he  had  no  power  to  save 
it.  Although  he  had  no  reason  to  doubt  that  President  Lincoln  was 
as  good  a  man  as  ever  sat  in  the  chair  of  state,  he  liad  little  hope  of 
his  accomplishing  much.  He  was  powerless,  because  of  the  corrup- 
tions that  had  been  introduced  and  fostered  by  the  chief  men  of  the 
nation.  "Abraham's"  authority  and  power  was  like  a  rope  of  sand  : 
he  was  weak  as  water.  The  governments  that  had  been  had  put 
aside  the  innocent,  justified  thieving  and  every  species  of  debauch- 
ery, and  had  fostered  every  one  that  plundered  the  coffers  of  the  peo- 
ple, and  said  let  it  be  so. 

The  choir  sung, "  Arise,  oh  glorious  Zion,"  and  with  a  benediction 
from  President  Joseph  Young  we  got  home  for  dinner. 

AFTEKNOON   SESSION. 

At  2  P.M.  the  choir  sung, 

"  Great  God  attend  while  Zion  sings," 
and  Bishop  Lorenzo  D.Young  prayed. 

The  choir  sung, 

"  All  hail  the  glorious  day,  by  prophets  long  foretold." 

Attention  was  requested  from  the  congregation,  and  Apostle  John 
Taylor  was  to  put  all  the  presiding  authorities  before  the  people  for 
re-election.  Twice  a  year,  in  April  and  October,  all  the  presidents 
are  presented  and  voted  on  separately,  and  such  dismissals  or  changes 
made  that  are  deemed  proper.  On  this  occasion  there  were  some 
additions  made,  but  not  a  dissentient  voice  heard.  The  present  pre- 
sidins:  authorities  in  Mormondom  are  : 

Briirham  Young  as  President  of  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of 
Latter-Day  Saints ;  Heber  C.  Kimball,  his  first,  and  Daniel  H.  Wells, 
his  second  counselors. 

Orson  Hyde  as  President  of  the  Quorum  of  the  Twelve  Apostles; 
and  Orson  'Pratt,  sen.,  Willford  Woodruff,  John  Taylor,  George  A. 
Smith,  Amasa  Lyman,  Ezra  T.  Benson,  Charles  C.  Ptich,  Lorenzo  Snow, 
Erastus  Snow, Franklin  D.Richards,  and  George  Q.Cannon,  as  mem- 
bers of  the  said  Quorum. 

John  Smith,  Patriarch  of  the  whole  Church. 

Daniel  Spencer  as  President  of  this  Stake  of  Zion ;  and  David  Full- 
mer and  Georcce  B.Wallace, his  counselors. 

William  Ed'dinfjton,  James  A. Little,  John  V.Long,  John  L.Blythe, 
George  Nebeker,JohnT.Caine,  Joseph  W.Young, Gilbert  Clements, 


I 


Chap.  VI.  THE  MORMON  CONFERENCE.  307 

Brigliam  Young,  jun.,  Franklin  B.  Woolley,  Orson  Pratt,  jun.,  and 
Howard  Silencer,  as  members  of  the  High  Council. 

John  Young  as  President  of  the  High  Priests'  Quorum ;  Edwin  D. 
Woolley  and  Samuel  W.  Richards,  his  counselors. 

Joseph  Young,  President  of  the  first  seven  Presidents  of  the  Sev- 
enties ;  and  Levi  W.  Hancock,  Henry  Herriman,  Zera  Pulsipher,  Al- 
bert P.  Rockwood,  Hoi-ace  S.  Eldredge,  and  Jacob  Gates,  as  members 
of  the  first  seven  Presidents  of  the  Seventies. 

John  ]N"ebeker  as  President  of  the  Elders'  Quorum ;  and  Elnathan 
Eldredge  and  Joseph  Felt,  his  counselors. 

Edward  Hunter  as  Presiding  Bishop ;  Leonard  W.  Hardy  and  Jes- 
se C.  Little,  his  coimselors. 

Lewis  "Wight  as  President  of  the  Priests'  Quorum ;  "Wilham  "Whi- 
ting and  Samuel  Moore,  his  Counselors. 

M'Gee  Harris  as  President  of  the  Teachers'  Quorum ;  Adam  Speirs 
and  David  Bowman,  his  counselors. 

John  S.  Carpenter  as  President  of  the  Deacon's  Quorum ;  William 
F.  Cook  and  Warren  Hardy,  his  counselors. 

Brigham  Young  was  presented  as  Trustee  in  Trust  for  the  Church 
of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-Day  Saints. 

Daniel  H.  Wells  as  Superintendent  of  Public  Works. 

Truman  O.  Angell,  Architect  for  the  Church. 

Brigham  Young,  President  of  the  Perpetual  Emigrating  Fund  to 
gather  the  poor. 

Heber  C.  Kimball,  Daniel  H.  Wells,  and  Edward  Hunter,  his  as- 
sistants and  agents  for  said  fund. 

George  A.  Smith,  Historian  and  general  Church  Recorder ;  and 
Willford  Woodruff,  his  assistant. 

Besides  the  time  consumed  in  putting  every  name  separately  for 
the  action  of  the  assembly,  there  was  a  good  deal  of  instruction  given 
about  the  severities,  which  is  of  no  outside  interest. 

Apostles  John  Taylor  and  George  A.  Smith,  and  Patriarch  Assac 
Morley,  addressed  the  audience. 

The  apostle  Taylor  thought  the  Mormons  the  freest  people  on  the 
earth.  They  could,  if  they  would,  reject  their  rulers  twice  a  year: 
they  had  the  opportunity.  The  vmity  of  the  Saints  pleased  them. 
He  questioned  Vox  2)ojmli,  vox  Dei.  He  got  facetious,  and  wonder- 
ed how  they  would  get  along,  both  North  and  South,  with  that  doc- 
trine. If  the  voice  of  the  people  in  the  North  was  the  voice  of  God, 
and  the  voice  of  the  people  in  the  South  was  the  voice  of  God,  he  was 
a  little  interested  to  know  with  which  of  them  he  would  really  be. 
[J.  Voice  in  the  stand:  "Xot  either  of  them."] 

With  the  Saints  it  was  Vox  Dei,  vox  pojniU;  the  voice  of  God 
first,  and  the  voice  of  the  people  afterward.  The  Spirit  dictated  and 
the  Saints  sustained  it.  But  what  were  they  after  ?  Did  they  seek 
to  subdue  and  put  their  feet  on  the  necks  of  men  ?  to  rule  and  dictate 
nations  ?  No.  It  was  only  the  "  little  stone  cut  out  of  the  mount- 
ains," growing  into  the  kingdom  that  the  prophets  foresaw  that  would 
be  established  in  the  last  days.  The  Mormons  had  never  troubled 
their  neighbors,  but  their  neighbors  kept  meddling  with  them.  They 
had  sent  an  array  here,  but  the  Mormons  did  not  seek  to  harm  them 


308  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VI. 

when  they  had  the  chance.  They  came  here  with  the  intention  to  kill 
the  Mormons  if  they  could ;  but  they  couldn't,  for  the  Lord  wouldn't 
let  them.  Their  enemies  had  hunted  them  like  wolves ;  but  the  Lord 
had  said,  "  Touch  not  mine  anointed,  and  do  my  projihets  no  harm." 
They  had  kept  the  army  out  at  Ham's  Fork  shaking  and  shivering 
till  they  cooled  down.  "  Brother  Taylor"  was  real  well  pleased  with 
things  in  general,  and  concluded  with  Hallelujah. 

Apostle  George  A.  Smith  was  exceedingly  humorous  over  the  de- 
mocracy. There  was  no  head  to  it ;  the  centre  of  its  intelligence 
Avas  the  belly,  and  the  principal  portion  of  the  body  was  in  the  boots. 
Several  plundering  operations  were  alluded  to,  and  Uncle  Sam  had 
been  sadly  victimized  by  his  boys.  The  government  had  been  a  mis- 
erable goose  for  politicians  to  pluck.  Abe  Lincoln  had  now  the  hon- 
or of  presiding  over  a  portion  of  what  was  once  the  United  States ; 
he  had  been  elected  by  the  religious  portion  of  the  States.  "  George 
A."  remembered  when  the  folks  of  New  York  sold  her  slaves  to  Vir- 
ginia. Their  conscience  Avould  not  allow  them  to  retain  their  fellow- 
beings  in  bondage — oh,  they  Avere  mighty  squeamish  !  They  could 
take  the  money  from  Virginia,  and  as  they  got  more  religion  and 
more  conscience  they  were  exceedingly  anxious  for  Virginia  to  set 
them  loose ! 

That  religious  fanaticism  that  had  been  mixed  up  with  politics 
would  lead  to  bloodshed.  They  were  more  to  be  dreaded  than  infi- 
dels. They  were  cruel  in  their  fanaticism.  The  Republicans  first 
whipped  old  Buck*  into  the  Utah  war,  and  they  Avhi2:)ped  him  for 
getting  into  it,  and  whijjped  him  awfully  for  getting  out  of  it — he 
got  out  of  it  too  soon.  Politicians  Avere  in  confusion,  and  the  Lord 
Avould  keep  them  there.  He  labored  to  show  the  folly  of  men  Avor- 
shiping  a  God  Avithout  body,  parts,  or  passions,  for  such  being,  if  be- 
ing he  might  be  called,  must  be  destitute  of  principles  and  poAver. 
He  argued  that  the  God  worshiped  by  sectarians  could  not  be  the 
being  that  wrestled  Avith  Jacob,  that  conversed  Avith  Moses,  and  wrote 
with  his  finger  upon  tables  of  stone.  He  said  that  Joseph  Smith  had 
prophesied  when  the  Saints  were  driven  from  Jackson  County,  Mis- 
souri, that  if  the  gOA^ernment  did  not  redress  our  wrongs,  they  should 
haA'e  mob  upon  mob  until  mob  power,  and  that  alone,  should  govern 
the  whole  land. 

He  bore  testimony  to  the  truth  of  the  work  in  which  he  was  en- 
gaged, and  said  if  the  Latter-Day  Saints  would  listen  to  President 
Young's  instructions  as  they  oiight  to  do,  they  would  soon  be  the 
wealthiest  people  upon  the  face  of  the  earth.         J^ 

The  choir  sung  "  The  Standard  of  Zion." 

Air — "  Star  Spangled  Banner ." 
Oh  see !  on  the  tops  of  the  mountains  unfurled, 

The  ensign  of  promise,  of  hope,  and  salvation, 
From  their  summits  how  nobly  it  waves  to  the  woild, 

And  spreads  its  broad  folds  o'er  the  good  of  each  nation; 
A  signal  of  light  for  the  lovers  of  right, 
To  rally  where  truth  will  soon  triumph  in  might. 

'Tis  the  ensign  of  Israel  streaming  abroad, 

And  ever  shall  wave  o'er  the  people  of  God. 

*  Mr.  Buchanan. 


Chap.  VI.  THE  MOEMON  CONFERENCE.  309 

By  an  angel's  strong  hand  to  the  earth  it  was  brought 

From  the  regions  of  glory,  where  long  it  lay  folded ; 
And  holy  ones  here,  for  the  arduous  work  taught 

By  the  priesthood  unflinching  and  faithful  uphold  it ; 
Its  crown  pierces  heav'n,  and  'twill  never  be  riv'ti, 
'Till  the  rule  of  the  earth  will  to  Jesus  be  given. 

For  the  ensign  of  Israel's  streaming  abroad, 

And  ever  shall  wave  o'er  the  people  of  God. 

Tis  the  emblem  of  peace  and  good-will  to  mankind, 

That  prophets  have  sung  of  when  freed  by  the  spirit, 
And  a  token  which  God  has  for  Israel  designed. 

That  their  seed  may  the  land  of  their  fathers  inherit ; 
Many  nations  will  say,  when  they  see  its  bright  ray, 
To  the  mountains  of  God  let  us  hasten  away ; 

For  the  ensign  of  Israel's  streaming  abroad, 

And  ever  shall  wave  o'er  the  people  of  God. 

Its  guardians  are  sending  their  ministers  forth. 

To  tell  when  the  Latter-Day  kingdom  is  founded, 
And  invite  all  the  lovers  of  truth  on  the  earth, 

Jew,  Christian,  and  Gentile,  to  gather  around  it ; 
The  cause  will  prevail,  though  all  else  may  assail, 
For  God  has  decreed  that  his  works  shall  not  fail ; 

Oh  !  the  ensign  of  Israel's  streaming  abroad, 

And  ever  shall  wave  o'er  the  people  of  God. 

Patriarch  Morley  pronounced  the  benediction,  and  the  first  day's 
conference  terminated. 

SECOXD   DAT. 

The  crowd  on  the  Sunday  far  exceeded  that  of  the  preceding  day. 
The  streets  around  the  Temple  Block  were  literally  filled  with  people 
and  carriages.  The  Tabernacle  could  not  hold  a  third  of  those  who 
were  anxious  to  hear.  Every  seat  and  standing-place  was  occupied 
long  before  the  opening  of  proceedings.  As  soon  as  Brigham  reach- 
ed the  inside  vestry,  he  sent  out  some  of  the  apostles  and  elders  to 
preach  to  the  outsiders,  sufficiently  distant  from  the  Tabernacle  as 
not  to  disturb  each  other  with  their  preaching. 

I  have  already  filled  so  much  paper  that  I  fear  trespassing  too  much 
upon  your  columns  with  the  details  of  the  second  day  at  the  present 
time,  as  Brigham  was  very  explicit  on  the  subject  of  plurality  of 
wives,  and  it  was  the  only  time  I  ever  heard  him  on  the  "  pecuhar 
institution." 

Altogether  it  was  a  great  conference,  and,  as  the  foregoing  exhib- 
its, the  apostles  enjoyed  a  particular  free  and  easy  time  of  it. 

In  its  territorial  status  an  anomaly  has  been  forced  upon  the 
Mormon  population.  It  must  receive  officers  appointed  and  sal- 
aried by  the  federal  government,  viz. : 

A  governor,  with  a  salary  of  $2500  (£500)  per  annum,  payable 
quarterly. 

A  secretary  to  government,  $1000. 

A  chief  justice  to  the  Supreme  Court,  $2500. 

An  associate  do.  do.  $1000. 

Do.  do.  do.  $1000. 

A  district  attorney,  $400. 

A  marshal,  $400  (not  including  perquisites). 


^IQ  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VI. 

A  superintendent  of  Indian  affairs,  |2500. 
A  surveyor  general,  12500.* 

The  governor,  wlio  is  also  commander-in-cliief  of  tlie  militia, 
holds  office  for  four  years,  unless  sooner  removed  by  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  United  States,  or  until  appointment  of  a  successor. 
He  has  the  usual  right  of  pardoning  territorial  offisnses,  and  of  re- 
prieving offenders  against  the  federal  government.  He  approves 
all  laws  passed  by  the  Legislative  Assembly  before  they  can  take 
effect ;  he  commissions  all  officers  appointed  under  the  laws,  and 
takes  care  that  the  laws  are  faithfully  executed. 

The  secretary  holds  office  for  the  same  time :  his  duty  is  to  re- 
cord, preserve,  and  transmit  copies  of  all  laws  and  proceedings  of 
the  Legislative  Assembly,  and  all  acts  and  proceedings  of  the  gov- 
ernor in  his  executive  department.  In  case  of  death,  removal, 
resignation,  or  necessary  absence  of  the  governor  from  the  Terri- 
tory, he  acts  temporarily  until  the  vacancy  is  filled  up ;  and  prac- 
tically he  looks  forward  to  being  a  member  of  Congress  in  the 
House  of  Eepresentatives  of  the  United  States. 

The  marshal  holds  office  for  a  similar  term :  his  duty  is  to  exe- 
cute all  processes  issued  by  the  courts  when  exercising  their  func- 
tions as  Circuit  and  District  Courts  of  the  United  States.  In  dis- 
turbed countries,  as  California  of  the  olden  time,  the  marshal's 
principal  office  seems  to  have  been  that  of  being-  shot  at. 

The  executive  arm  would,  in  any  other  Territory,  be  found  to 
work  easily  and  well :  it  is,  in  fact,  derived,  with  certain  modifica- 
tions, from  that  original  Constitution  which  has  ever  remained  to 
new  states  the  great  old  model.  Among  the  Mormons,  however, 
there  is  necessarily  a  division  and  a  clashing  of  the  two  princi- 
ples :  one,  the  federal,  republican,  and  laical ;  the  other,  the  theo- 
cratic, despotic,  and  spiritual.  The  former  is  the  State,  under 
which  is  the  Church.  The  latter  is  the  Church,  under  which  is 
the  State,  and  hence  complications  which  call  for  a  cutting  solu- 
tion. As  long  as  the  Prophet  and  President  was  also  the  tempcv 
ral  governor,  so  long  the  Mormons  were  contented:  now  they 
must  look  forward  to  a  change. 

The  Legislative  Assembly  consists  of  an  "  Upper  House,"  a 
President  and  Council  of  thirteen,  and  a  House  of  Eepresenta- 
tives, or  Lower  House,  of  twenty-six  members,  whose  term  of  of- 
fice is  one  year.  An  appointment  of  the  representation  based 
upon  a  census  is  made  in  the  ratio  of  population :  the  candidates, 
however,  must  be  bond  fide  residents  of  the  counties  or  districts 
for  which  they  stand.  No  member  of  the  Legislative  Assembly 
is  allowed  to  hold  any  appointment  created  while  he  was  in  of- 
fice, "  or  for  one  year  thereafter,"  and  the  United  States  officials 
— post-masters  alone  excepted — can  not  become  either  senators 
or  representatives.     The  legislative  pover  extends  to  the  usual 

*  The  delegate  to  Washington  receives  "$8  per  diem,  not  including  'mileage.'" 


CuAP.  Vi;  VOTERS  AND  VOTING.— LEGISLATIVE  ASSEMBLY.      311 

rightful  and  constitutional  limits.  "No  law  shall  be  passed  in- 
terfering with  the  primary  disposal  of  the  soil ;  no  tax  shall  be 
imposed  upon  the  property  of  the  United  States,  nor  shall  the 
lands  or  other  property  of  non-residents  be  taxed  higher  than  the 
lands  or  other  property  of  residents.  All  the  laws  passed  by  the 
Legislative  Assembly  and  government  shall  be  submitted  to  the 
Congress  of  the  United  States,  and,  if  disapproved,  shall  be  null 
and  of  no  effect." 

Every  free  male  (white)  inhabitant*  above  the  age  of  twenty- 
one,  who  has  resided  in  the  county  for  sixty  days  before  the  elec- 
tion, is  entitled  to  vote,  and  is  eligible  for  office ;  the  right  is  lim- 
ited to  citizens  of  the  United  States,  including  those  recognized 
by  treaty  with  the  Mexican  Eepublic  (2d  of  Feb.,  1848),  and  ex- 
cluding, as  usual,  the  military  servants  of  the  federal  government. 
Great  fault  was  found  by  anti-Mormons  with  the  following  per- 
missions in  the  act  regulating  elections  (Jan.,  1853),  because  they 
artistically  enough  abolish  the  ballot  while  they  retain  the  vote.f 

Sec.  5.  Each  elector  shall  provide  himself  with  a  vote,  containing  the  names  of  the 
persons  he  wishes  elected,  and  the  offices  he  would  have  them  to  fill,  and  present  it 
neatly  folded  (!)  to  the  judge  of  the  elections,  who  shall  number  and  deposit  it  in  the 
ballot-box ;  the  clerk  shall  then  write  the  name  of  the  elector,  and  opposite  it  the 
number  of  his  vote. 

Sec.  6.  At  the  close  of  the  election  the  judge  shall  seal  up  the  ballot-box,  and  the 
list  of  the  names  of  the  electors,  and  transmit  the  same  without  delay  to  the  county 
clerks. 

"In  a  Territory  so  governed,"  remarks  Mr.  Secretary  Ferris, 
"  it  will  not  excite  surprise  that  cases  of  extortion,  robbery,  mur- 
der, and  other  crimes  should  occur,  and  defy  all  legal  redress,  or 
that  the  law  should  be  made  the  instrument  of  crime." 

The  deduction  is  unfair.  The  real  cause  why  crime  goes  un- 
punished must,  as  will  presently  appear,  be  sought  in  an  unfriend- 
ly and  conflicting  judiciary.     The  act  itself  can  produce  nothing 

*  When  the  vexed  passage,  "We  hold  these  truths  to  be  self-evident,  that  all  men 
are  created  equal,"  written  in  1776,  is  interpreted  in  1860,  it  must  be  read,  "all  (free 
white)  men"  to  be  consistent  and  intelligible.  Similarly  "persons  bound  to  labor" 
must  be  considered  a  euphuism  for  slaves.  The  "American  Mirabeau,"  Jefferson, 
who  framed  the  celebrated  Declaration,  certainly  did  not  consider,  as  the  context  of 
his  life  proves,  slaves  to  be  his  equals.  What  he  intended  the  Mormons  have  ex- 
pressed. 

Again,  what  can  be  clearer  than  that  the  Constitution  contemplated  secession  ? 
If  an  adult  citizen  is  allowed  to  throw  off  his  allegiance,  surely  the  body  of  citizens 
called  a  state  have,  a  majori,  a  right  to  withdraw  from  a  "federal  union." 

t  The  first  Legislative  Assembly  was  elected  in  the  summer  of  1851,  and  held  a 
session  in  the  following  autumn  and  winter.  An  historian's  office  was  established, 
courts  were  organized,  cities  incorporated,  and  a  small  body  of  Temtorial  laws  were 
passed.  The  second  Legislative  Assembly  met  on  the  15th  of  January,  1852,  at  the 
Council  House,  and  after  the  organization  of  the  two  houses,  they  came  together  to 
receive  the  message  of  the  governor,  Mr.  Brigham  Young.  The  archon,  when  noti- 
fied of  the  hour,  entered,  sat  down  in  the  speaker's  chair,  and  on  being  asked  if  he 
had  any  communication  to  make,  handed  his  message  to  the  President  of  the  Coun- 
cil, who  passed  it  for  reading  to  the  Clerk  of  the  House.  The  message  was  a  lengthy 
and  creditable  document ;  of  course,  it  was  severely  criticised,  but  the  gravamen  of 
the  charges  was  the  invidious  phrase  used  by  the  Prophet  to  his  lieges,  "for  your 
guidance." 


312  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VI. 

but  good ;  it  enables  the  wise  few  to  superintend  the  actions  of 
the  unwise  many,  and  it  subjects  the  "  tyrant  majority,"  as  ever 
should  be  the  case,  to  the  will  of  the  favored  minority.  As  the 
Conqueror  of  Siudh  often  saiS,  "  "When  noses  are  counted,  the 
many  are  those  without  brains." 

The  bad  working  of  a  divided  executive  is  as  nothing  compared 
with  the  troubles  occasioned  by  the  opposition  judiciaries,  federal 
and  territorial. 

An  act  (19th  of  Jan.,  1855)  provides  that  a  Supreme  Court  of 
the  United  States  be  held  annually  on  the  first  Monday  in  Janu- 
ary, at  Fillmore  City ;  each  session  to  be  kept  open  at  least  one 
day,  and  no  session  to  be  legal  except  on  adjournment  in  the  reg- 
ular term.  Another  act  (-Ith  of  Feb.,  1852)  directed  that  the  Dis- 
trict Courts,  now  three  in  number,  shall  exercise  original  jurisdic- 
tion both  in  civil  and  criminal  cases  when  not  otherwise  provided 
by  law,  and  also  have  a  general  supervision  over  all  inferior  courts, 
to  prevent  and  correct  abuses  where  no  other  remedy  is  provided. 
The  above  are  officered  by  the  federal  government. 

Section  23d  of  the  same  act  provides  for  a  Judge  of  Probate — 
of  course  a  Mormon — elected  hy  the  joint  vote  of  the  Legislative  As- 
semhhj  and  commissioned  hy  the  governor.  His  tenure  of  office  is 
four  years,  and  he  holds  regular  sessions  on  the  second  Mondays 
of  March,  June,  September,  and  December  of  each  year.  The  Pro- 
bate Court,  besides  the  duties  which  its  name  suggests,  has  the  ad- 
ministration of  estates,  and  the  guardianship  of  minors,  idiots,  and 
insane  persons ;  with  these  its  ^^roper  offices,  however,  it  combines 
power  to  exercise  original  jurisdiction^  both  civil  and  crimincd,  reg- 
ulated only  by  appeal  under  certain  conditions  to  the  District 
Courts.  Of  late  the  anomaly  has  been  acknowledged  by  the  Su- 
preme Court.*  Inferior  to  the  Probate  Court,  and  subject  to  its 
revision,  are  the  Justices  of  the  Peace,  the  Municipal  Court,  and 

*  The  Court  held,  First.  That  the  9th  section  of  the  Org.inic  Act  vested  all  judicial 
power  in  the  Supreme,  District,  and  Probate  Courts,  and  in  Justices  of  the  Peace. 

Second.  That  the  only  restriction  placed  upon  these  courts  was  as  to  Justices  of 
the  Peace,  refusing  them  jurisdiction  to  try  any  case  involvinrr  the  title  or  boundary 
to  land,  or  any  suit  where  the  claim  or  demand  exceeded  one  hundred  dollars. 

Third.  That  by  virtue  of  that  clause  of  the  Organic  Act  which  provides  that  "the 
jurisdiction  of  the  several  courts  therein  provided  for,"  including  the  Probate  Courts, 
"  shall  be  as  limited  hy  lair,"  that  the  Legislature  had  the  right  to  provide  by  law  for 
the  exercise  by  the  Probate  Courts  of  jurisdiction  in  civil  and  criminal  cases. 

Fourtli.  That  as  the  Organic  Act  conferred  common  law  and  chancery  jurisdiction 
upon  the  Supreme  and  District  Courts  respectively,  that  this  jurisdiction  belonged  to 
these  courts  exclusively,  and  that  the  Probate  Courts  were  confined  to  the  jurisdic- 
tion conferred  by  statute,  and  such  jurisdiction  might  be  exercised  concurrently  with 
the  District  Courts  to  the  extent  provided  by  statute. 

Fifth.  That  as  the  Legislature  had  passed  a  law  conferring  upon  the  Probate  Courts 
concurrent  jurisdiction  with  the  District  Courts  to  hear  and  determine  civil  as  well 
as  criminal  cases  within  their  respective  counties,  and  had  provided  the  manner  in 
which  this  jurisdiction  should  be  exercised,  that  the  trial,  conviction,  and  sentence  of 
the  prisoner  were  valid  and  binding  in  law  until  reversed  by  an  appellate  court. 

Although  Judge  Shaver,  one  of  the  best  of  jurists,  tacitly  acknowledged  the  juris- 
diction of  Probate  Courts,  Judge  Kinney  is  the  first  who  has  dared  assert  his  deci- 
sion judicially. 


CiiAP.  VI.  CONFLICTING  JUDICIARIES.  813 

the  three  selectmen  in  each  organized  county.  Besides  the  Pro- 
bate Courts,  the  Mormons  have  instituted,  as  will  presently  ap- 
pear. Ecclesiastical  High  Council  under  the  Church  authorities 
and  the  President,  provided  with  ample  powers  of  civil  and  crim- 
inal jurisdiction,  and  fully  capable  of  judging  between  Saint  and 
Saint. 

In  describing  the  operations  of  the  two  conflicting  judiciaries, 
I  shall  borrow  the  words  of  both  parties. 

According  to  the  Mormons,  the  increased  chicanery  of  the  fed- 
eral government  has  arrived  at  full  development  in  their  Territo- 
ry.* The  phrase  has  been,  "  Any  thing  is  good  enough  for  Utah." 
The  salary  is  too  inconsiderable  to  satisfy  any  but  the  worst  kind 
of  jack-in-office,  and  the  object  of  those  appointed  is  to  secure  no- 
toriety in  the  Eastern  States  by  obstructing  justice,  and  by  fo- 
menting disturbances  in  the  West.  The  three  judges  first  ap- 
pointed from  Washington  in  June,  1851,  became  so  unpopular, 
that  in  the  autumn  of  the  same  year  they  were  obliged  to  leave 
Utah  Territory — one  of  them  with  a  "flea  in  his  ear"  duly  insert- 
ed by  Mr.  Brigham  Young.  I  shall  not  quote  names,  nor  will  the 
reader  require  them.  Another  attempted  to  break  the  amnesty 
in  1858,  and  when  asked  for  suggestions  by  the  Legislative  As- 
sembly, proposed  an  act  for  the  prevention  and  punishment  of 
polygamy,  and  urged  the  Senate  to  divide  the  land  between  the 
proposed  Territories ;  finally,  this  excellent  Christian  hung  a  Gen- 
tile brother  on  the  Lord's  day.  Another  killed  himself  with  opi- 
um ;  another  was  a  notorious  drunkard ;  and  another  was  addict- 
ed to  gambling  in  his  cellar.  A  judge  disgraced  himself  with  an 
Indian  squaw,  who  entered  his  court,  and,  coram  publico,  demand- 
ed her  honorarium,  and  another  seated  on  the  bench  his  mistress 
— la  malgre  Ada,  as  she  is  termed  by  M.  Eemy,  the  Gentile  trav- 
eler— and  the  Mormons  have  not  yet  learned  to  endure  Alice 
Peirce,  or  to  worship  the  Goddess  of  Eeason  in  that  shape.  An- 
other attempted  to  convict  Mr.  Brigham  Young  of  forgery.  The 
marshal  was,  in  one  case,  a  ci-devant  teamster,  who  could  hardly 
write  his  own  name.  Besides  the  vileness  of  their  characters, 
their  cliqueism  and  violent  hostility  have  led  to  prostitution  of 
justice ;  a  Mormon  accuse  was  invariably  found  guilty  by  them, 
a  Gentile  was  invariably  acquitted.  Thus  the  Probate  Courts, 
properly  jurisdictors  of  the  dead,  were  made  judges  of  the  living 
in  all  civil  and  criminal  cases,  because  justice  was  not  obtainable 
from  the  Supreme  District  and  the  Circuit  judges  appointed  by 
the  federal  government.  To  the  envenomed  reports  of  these  offi- 
cials the  Saints  attribute  all  the  disturbances  in  1857-58,  and  sun- 

*  The  Utah  correspondent  of  the  "  New  York  Herald,"  \vriting  from  Salt  Lake  un- 
der date  of  April  26th,  states  that  the  fall  of  Fort  Sumter  and  the  secession  of  Vir- 
ginia had  created  intense  interest  among  the  "  Saints."  The  news  was  read  in  the 
Tabernacle  by  Brigham  Yoimg,  and  the  disciples  were  asked  to  believe  that  this  was 
merely  the  prediction  of  Mr,  Joseph  Smith  about  the  breaking  up  of  the  American 
Union, 


814 


THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VI. 


dry  high-handed  violations  of  the  constitutional  liberties  and  the 
dearest  rights  of  American  citizenship.  For  instance,  the  Indian 
war  of  18o2  cost  them  $200,000 ;  they  repeatedly  memoriahzed 
Cono-ress  to  defra}^,  strictly  according  to  precedent,  these  expendi- 
tures, and  yet,  from  1850  to  1855,  they  have  received,  in  payment 
of  expenses  and  treaties,  grants  and  presents,  only  the  sum  of 
$95,940.  Though  Utah  Territory  has  practiced  far  more  econo- 
my than  Oregon  or  California,  the  drafts  forwarded  by  the  Super- 
intendent of  Indian  Affairs  to  the  Treasury  at  Washington  are 
totally  neglected,  or  are  subjected  to  delays  and  frivolous  annoy- 
ances. The  usual  treaties  with  the  Indians  have  not  been  held 
by  the  federal  government.  The  Mormons'  requisition  for  be- 
coming a  state  is  systematically  ignored,  and  this  ignoble  minor- 
hood  is  prolonged,  although  they  can  show  five  head  of  souls  for 
three  possessed  by  California  at  the  time  of  her  admittance — an- 
other instance  of  a  "  rancorous  persecuting  spirit,  excited  by  false 
and  malicious  representations."  He  who  lifteth  up  an  ensign  on 
the  mountains  is  now  "about  to  destroy  a  certain  nation  under 
the  name  of  the  sour  grape  (Catawba?);"  and  the  Mormons  see 
in  the  present  civil  war  at  once  retribution  for  their  injuries,  and 
the  fulfillment  of  the  denunciations  of  Joseph  the  Seer  against  the 
"Grentile  land  of  strife  and  wickedness."  Assuredly  Fate  has 
played  marvelously  into  their  hands. 

The  federal  officials  retort  with  a  counter  charge  against  the 
Saints  of  systematically  obstructing  the  course  of  justice.  A 
Mormon  must  be  tried  by  his  peers ;  however  guiltj'-,  he  will  be 
surely  acquitted,  as  a  murdering  fugitive  slave  in  the  North,  or 
a  thievish  filibuster  in  the  South;  that  it  is  vain  to  attempt  juris- 
diction over  a  people  who  have  an  ecclesiastical  Star-Chamber  and 
Vicyilance  Committee  working  out  in  darkness  a  sectarian  law; 
that  no  civilized  government  could  or  would  admit  into  a  com- 
munity of  Christian  states  a  power  founded  on  prophethood  and 
polygamy,  a  theoderaocracy,  with  a  Grand  Lama  presiding  over 
universal  suffragators ;  that  all  accusations  of  private  immorality 
proceed  from  a  systematic  attack  upon  the  federal  Union  through 
its  officers ;  and,  finally,  that,  so  thin-skinned  is  Mormon  sensibil- 
ity, a  torrent  of  vituperation  follows  the  least  delay  made  with  re- 
spect to  their  "  ridiculous  pretensions." 

The  author  speaks.  Of  course  there  are  faults  on  both  sides, 
and  each  party  has  nothing  better  to  do  than  to  spy  out  the  oth- 
er's sins  of  omission  and  commission.  The  Americans  {i.  e.,  anti- 
Mormons),  never  very  genial  or  unprejudiced,  are  not  conciliato- 
ry ;  they  rage  violently  when  called  Grentiles,  and  their  "  respect- 
ability," a  master-passion  in  Columbian  lands,  is  outraged,  maid- 
en-modesty-like, by  the  bare  mention  of  polygamy.  On  the  other 
hand,  the  Latter-Day  Saints,  who  now  flourish  in  the  Mountain 
Territory,  and  who  expect  eventually  to  flourish  over  the  whole 
earth,  "  are  naturally  prepared  to  hate  and  denigrate  all  beyond 


Chap.  VI.      COKPORATION  OF  GREAT  SALT  LAKE  CITY.  315 

the  pale  of  their  own  faith."  If  the  newly-arrived  judge  fails, 
within  the  first  week,  to  wait  upon  Mr.  President,  he  or  his  may 
expect  to  be  the  subject  of  an  offensive  newspaper  article.  If 
another  live  among  his  co-religionists  at  Camp  Floyd,  he  is  con- 
victed of  cliqueism,  and  is  forthwith  condemned  as  a  foe.  What- 
ever proceeds  from  the  federal  government  is  and  must  be  dis- 
tasteful to  them ;  to  every  address  they  reply,  "  To  your  tents,  0 
Israel!"  "Their  nobles  shall  be  of  themselves,  and  their  gov- 
ernor shall  proceed  from  the  midst  of  them,"  is  the  shaft  which 
they  level  against  the  other  party,  and  which  recoils  upon  them- 
selves. The  result  is  that  if  the  territorial  j  udiciary  sentences  a 
criminal,  he  appeals  to  the  federals,  and  at  once  obtains  cassation 
— and  vice  versa.  The  usual  procedure  in  criminal  cases  is  to 
make  oath  before  a  magistrate,  who  thereupon  commands  the 
marshal  to  take  the  accused  into  custody,  and  "them  safely  keep," 
so  that  he  may  produce  their  bodies  before  the  first  sessions  of 
the  United  States  District  Courts ;  if  the  magistrate  be  a  Mor- 
mon, he  naturally  refuses  to  prosecute  and  persecute  a  brother 
Saint — and  vice  versa.  Thus  many  notorious  offenders,  whom  the 
Mormons  would,  for  their  own  sakes,  willingly  see  cut  off  from 
the  congregation — in  simple  words,  hung — escape  with  impunity 
after  the  first  excitement  has  settled  down :  the  most  terrible 
crimes  are  soon  forgotten  in  the  party  fight,  and  in  the  race  to 
"go  ahead;"  after  five  years  they  become  pabulum  for  the  local 
antiquary. 

I  have  thus  attempted,  with  feeble  hand,  to  divide  the  blame 
between  both  the  great  contending  parties,  and  may  fairly,  I  hope, 
expect  to  be  unanimously  rejected  by  both. 

The  ordinance  to  incorporate  Great  Salt  Lake  City  was  ap- 
proved by  the  General  Assembly  of  the  State  of  Deseret  on  the 
19th  of  January,  1851,  and  the  body  municipal  was  constituted, 
like  Fillmore,  Ogden,  and  other  cities  in  the  Territory.  The 
City  Council  consists  of  a  mayor,  four  aldermen,  and  one  com- 
mon councilor  per  ward — formerly  there  were  but  nine ;  they  are 
elected  by  votes,  with  the  usual  qualifications ;  are  sworn  or  affi- 
anced to  support  the  federal  and  territorial  Constitution,  and  re- 
tain office  for  two  years.  They  collect  the  taxes,  which,  however, 
must  not  exceed  1-50  per  cent,  per  annum  upon  the  assessed 
value  of  all  taxable  property,  real  and  personal."^     They  appoint 

*  The  property-tax,  like  tithes,  forming  tlie  Church  funds  and  the  revenue  of  the 
civil  covernnient^  are  general;  the  octroi  ($20  for  100  lbs.  of  every  thing  entering 
the  Territory  from  the  e.ist,  and  $25  from  the  west)  and  water-tax  are  local,  and 
confined  to  towns.  I  can  not  find  any  other  recognized  imposts.  The  anti-Mor- 
mons declare  that  the  Saints  arc  overburdened  with  taxation.  The  Saints  assert 
that  their  burden  is  light,  especially  when  compared  ivith  the  Mormons'  taxation  of 
the  Atlantic  cities,  which  averages  from  double  to  treble  that  of  London  and  Paris 
— a  little  drawback  to  Liberty  when  she  must  be  bought  for  her  weight  in  gold. 

In  the  Auditor's  report  accompanying  the  Governor's  Message  of  1860,  there  arc 
some  items  of  general  interest  to  people  outside,  as  well  as  to  those  in  the  Territory. 
The  report  states  that  "  the  total  valuation  of  property  assessed  in  the  Territory  for 


310  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Cuap.  VI. 

their  recorder,  treasurer,  assessor,  collector,  marshal,  and  supervi- 
sor of  streets,  and  have  sole  charge  of  the  police.  They  establish 
and  support  schools  and  hospitals,  regulate  "hacking,"  "tippling 
houses,"  and  gambling  and  billiard-tables;  inspect  lumber,  hay, 
bread  and  provisions,  and  provide  against  fires — which  here,  con- 
trary to  the  rule  throughout  England  and  the  Eastern  States,  are 
rare  and  little  to  be  feared ;  direct  night-lighting  and  the  storage 
of  combustibles,  and  regulate  streets,  bridges,  and  fences.  They 
have  power  to  enforce  their  ordinances  by  fines  and  penalties. 
Appeals  from  the  decisions  of  the  mayor  and  aldermen  are  made 
to  the  Municipal  Court,  composed  of  the  mayor  as  chief  justice, 
and  the  aldermen  as  associate  justices,  and  from  the  Municipal 
Court  to  the  Probate  Court  of  Grreat  Salt  Lake  City. 

In  the  young  settlements  of  the  Far  West  there  is  a  regular 
self-enforced  programme  of  manufacturing  progress.  The  first 
step  is  to  establish  flouring  or  grist  mills,  and  lumber  or  saw  mills, 
to  provide  for  food  and  shelter.  After  these  sine  qua  nons  come 
the  comforts  of  cotton-spinning,  wool-carding,  cloth-weaving,  tai- 
loring, and  shoemaking.  Lastly  arise  the  luxuries  of  life,  which 
penetrate  slowly  into  this  Territory  on  account  of  the  delay  and 
expense  of  transporting  heavy  machinery  across  the  "wild  desert 
plains."  The  minor  mechanical  contrivances,  the  remarkable  in- 
ventions of  the  Eastern  States — results  of  a  necessity  which  re- 
moves every  limit  to  human  ingenuity — such  as  sewing-machines, 
cataract  washing-machines,  stump-extracting  machines,  and  oth- 
ers, which,  but  for  want  of  hands,  would  never  have  been  dream- 
ed of,  are  not  unknown  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City. 

The  subjoined  extract  from  the  list  of  premiums  of  the  Deseret 
Agricultural  Society*  will  explain  the  industrj^  at  Great  Salt  Lake 

the  year  18G0  (Green  Eiver  and  Carson  counties  excepted)  amounts  to  $4,673,900." 
Assessors  in  Utah  are,  I  presume,  like  assessors  every  where,  not  likely  to  obtain  an 
exaggerated  estimate  of  the  value  of  property,  as  on  that  estimate  assessments  are 
made.  Property,  therefore,  may  be  set  down  at  a  much  larger  figure  than  that  given 
in  the  above  extract.  The  Territorial  tax  at  one  half  of  one  per  cent,  is  $23,369  50. 
As  an  evidence  of  the  increase  of  ]X)pulation  and  of  improvement  in  property,  the  ex- 
cess of  Territorial  tax  is  over  that  of  last  year  $13,278  33 — five  sixths  of  which  is 
collected  in  Great  Salt  Lake  County,  and  that  chielly  in  this  city.  Of  the  other 
counties,  the  report  states,  "The  counties  of  Weber,  Box-Elder,  and  Juab  each  show 
a  decrease  in  the  valuation  of  property:,  compared  with  the  assessment  for  1859,  of  16 
per  cent.,  and  Iron  County  a  decrease  of  33  per  cent.,  while  the  counties  of  Beaver, 
San  Pete,  and  Cache  show  a  more  than  corresponding  increase  in  the  following  ratio, 
viz. :  Beaver,  36  ;  San  Pete,  50 ;  and  Cache,  900  per  cent.  The  increase  in  the  three 
last-named  counties,  especially  Cache,  may  account  in  some  measure  for  the  decrease 
in  the  other  counties  named,  from  the  fiict  that,  during  the  fall  of  1859  and  the  spring 
of  1860,  very  many  wealthy  families  moved  with  their  stock  and  effects  to  form  new 
settlements  in  Cache  and  San  Pete  counties,  and  probably  the  same  may  be  said  of 
Beaver." 

The  tax  of  all  the  counties  amounts  to  $23,369  50;  the  totals  of  auditor's  awards 
issued  $19,184  88,  which,  together  with  $5450  95  payable  on  appropriations  here- 
tofore made,  shows  that  the  Mormons  have  the  good  sense  to  keep  clear  of  a  Terri- 
torial debt. 

*  The  act  incorporating  the  society,  which  was  established  "with  a  view  of  pro- 
moting the  arts  of  domestic  industry,  and  to  encourage  the  production  of  articles 


Chap.  VI. 


INDUSTRY  OF  GREAT  SALT  LAKE  CITY. 


517 


City  in  1860 — will  prove  that  the  infant  colony  has  supplied  all 
its  actual  wants,  and  will  show  what  energy  and  perseverance  can 

from  the  native  elements  in  tliis  Territory,'  was  approved  on  January  17,  1856.  Tlie 
Board  consists  of  a  President,  six  Directors,  a  Treasurer,  and  a  Secretary — the  lat- 
ter, my  friend  jNIr.  Thomas  Bullock. 

Class  E. — Farming  Implements  made  in  the  Tekkitory. 


Awarding  Committee — Ira  Eldredge,  Daniel  Carter,  Levi  E.  Bitter. 


Best  plow $5  00 

2d  do 3  00 

3d   do dip. 

Best  subsoil  plow 5  00 

2d          do 3  00 

3d          do dip. 

Bei't  lian-ow 5  00 

2d     do 3  00 

3d     do dip. 

Best  field-roller 5  00 

2d        do dip. 

Best  drill  and  irrigator  ...  5  00 

2d              do.              ...  dip. 

Best  corn-planter 5  CO 

2d         do.           dip. 

Best  1  horse  com  cultivator  5  00 

2d                 do.  dip. 

Best  gi'ain-cradle 5  00 

2d        do.          ,  dip. 


Best  horse-rake $5  00 

'2d        do dip. 

Be^t  garden-rake 1  00 

3d         do.          dip. 

Best  hay-rake 1  00 

2d       do dip. 

Best  hay-fork 1  00 

2d      do dip. 

Best  manure-fork 1  00 

2d          do dip 

Best  scythe-anath 2  00 

2d          do dip. 

Best  set  of  garden  tools 3  00 

2d             do.              ....  1  00 

3d             do.              dip. 

Best  shovel 2  00 

2d    do dip. 

Best  spade 2  00 


2d  best  spade 

Best  hoe 

2d  do 

Best  wheel-barrow 

2d  do 

Best  cheese-press 

2d  do 

Best  chum 

2d    do 

Best  butter  tub  and  firkin. 

2d               do. 
Best  washing  machine 

2d  do.  

3d             do. 
Best  spinning-wheel 

2d  do 

Best  6  com  brooms 

2d  do 


dip. 

$3  00 

dip. 
2  00 

dip. 
2  00 

dip. 
2  00 

dip. 

2  00 
dip. 

3  00 
2  00 

dip. 
2  00 
dip. 
2  00 
dip. 


Be-fit  reaping  machine  . . 

2d  do. 

3d  do. 

Best  tlireshing  macliine 

2d  do. 

3d               do. 
Best  famiing-mill 


Agricultural  Machines. 

$10  00  2d  best  fanning  mill $2  00 

5  00|     Sd  do.  dip. 

dip.  I  Best  com-sheller 3  00 


10  00 
6  00 
dip. 
3  00 


2d         do. 

3d  do 

Best  corn  and  cob  mill 
2d  do. 


2  00 
dip. 
5  00 
dip. 


Best  hemp  and  flax  dress- 
ing machine $6  00 


2d  do. 

Best  hay  and  straw  cutter 

2d  do. 

Best  vegetable  root-cutter. 

2d  do. 


dip. 
5  00 
dip. 
5  00 
dip. 


Class  F. — Machinery. 
Awarding  Committee — Frederick  Keslcr,  John  Kay,  William  J.  Silver. 


Best  steam-engine $10  00 

2d           do.          dip. 

Best  fire-engine 10  00 

2d        do dip. 

Best  garden-engine 5  00 

2d           do.           dip. 

Bestbalance 5  00 


Best  lath  machine $5  00l2d  best  stone-sawing  ma- 

2d  do.  dip.  chine dip. 

Best  stave  machine 5  00  Best  pump  for  a  well $5  00 

2d  do.  dip.      2d  do.  dip. 

Best    stone -dressing    ma-  Best  water-wheel  for  mis- 
chine  5  00         ing  waterfor  irrigation 

2d                  do.  dip.  I     2d                  do. 


2(1     do dip.  I  Best  stone-sawing  machine    5  001    3d 

Class  G. — Leather. 


do. 


5  00 
3  00 
dip. 


Awarding  Committee— Seth  Taft,  John  Lowe,  Francis  Platte. 


Best  side  sole  leather $3  OOjBest  side  skirting $2  00 

2d             do.            dip.      2d          do dip. 

Best  side  upper  cowhide  . .     3  00 ,  Best  saddle 5  00 

2d                do.                . .      dip.  I     2d     do dip. 

Best  kip-skin 3  OO^Best  light  hamess 5  00 


2d      do. 
Best  calf-skin 

2d      do 

Best  Morocco-skin. 

2d  do. 

Best  side  harness  . 

2d         do. 


dip.l     2d          do dip. 

8  00  Best  heavy  harness 5  00 

dip.l     2d            do dip. 

3  00  Best  bridle 3  00 

dip.  I     2d    do dip. 

3  00, Best  pair  gentlemen's  fine 

dip.         boots 1  00 

I     2d                 do.  dip. 


Best  pair  gentlemen's  stoga 

boots 

2d  do. 

Best  pair  gentlemen's  fine 


2d  do. 

Best  pair  ladies'  bootees  . 

2d  do. 

Best  pair  ladies'  shoes . . . 

2d  do. 

Best  blacking  or  polish. . , 

2d  do. 


$1  00 
dip. 

1  00 

dip. 
1  CO 

dip. 
1  00 

dip. 
1  00 

dip. 


Class  H. — Clothes,  Dry-Goods,  and  Dye-Stuefs. 
Awarding  Committee— E.  R.  Young,  John  Needham,  N.  H.  Felt. 


Beat  made  suit  of  clothes. .  $5  00 
2d  do.  . .     3  00 

3d  do.  ..      dip. 

Best  made  suit  of  buckskin  5  00 
ad  do.  3  00 


3d  beat  made  suit  of  buck, 
akin 

Best  5  yards  of  colored  flan- 
nel   

2d  do. 


3d  best  5  yards  of  colored 

dip.  flannel dip. 

Best  5  yards  of  white  flan- 

$2  OOj        nel .fS  00 

1  OOl    2d  do.  1  00 


318 


THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 


Chap.  VI, 


effect  against  time  and  all  manner  of  obstructions.     Besides  the 
industries  mentioned  below,  there  are  stores,  cutlery  shops,  watch- 


Class  II. — Clothes,  Dkt-Goods,  and  Dye-Stuffs — Continued, 


Cd  best  5  yards  of  white 

flannel dip. 

Best  5  yards  of  white  jeans  $3  00 

2d                 do.  1  00 

3d                  do.  dip. 

Best5yard3  of  colored  jeans  2  00 

2d                 do.  1  00 

3d                 do.  dip. 

Best  5  yards  of  white  Lin- 

sey 2  00 

2a                 do.  1  00 

3d                 do.  dip. 

Best  5  yards  of  colorad  Lin- 

sey 2  00 

2d                 do.  1  00 

8d                 do.  dip. 

Best  5  yards  of  kersey  ....  2  00 

2d             do.             ....  1  OO: 

3d             do.             ....  dip. 

Beat    5    yards    of  woolen 

cloth 2  OOl 

2d                 do.  1  OOl 


l3d  best  5  yards  of  woolen 

I        cloth dip. 

Best  pair  of  woolen  blankets  $3  00 

I     2d                 do.  dip. 

Best  piece  of  woolen  carpst  2  OO! 

2d                 do.  dip.  j 

Best  piece  of  rag  carpet.. .  2  00^ 

2d               do.              ...  dip. 

Best  coverlet 2  00 

2d      do dip. 

Be.=<t  hearth-nig 2  00 

2d        do dip. 

Best  woolen  shawl 2  00 

2d          do.          dip. 

Best  5  yards  of  linen 2  00 

2d             do.            dip. 

Best  1  lb.  of  linen  thread. .  1  00 

2d                do.              . .  dip. 

Best  fur  hat 2  00 

2d     do di]). 

Best  fur  cap 2  00 

2d     do dip. 


[Best  cloth  cap 

2d      do 

Best  fur  muff 

2d      do 

Best  fur  cape 

2d      do 

Best  1  lb.  indigo 

2d         do 

3d         do 

4th        do 

Best  1  lb.  madder 

2d  do 

3d  do 

4th        do 

Best  colored  cloth  from  any 
materi.ils  produced  in 
this  Territorj',  aside 
from  indigo  or  madder 

2d       do. 

3d       do. 

4th      do. 


$1  00 
dip. 
1  00 
dip. 
1  00 
dip. 
10  00 
5  00 
3  00 
dip. 
10  00 
5  00 
8  00 
dip. 


10  00 
5  00 
3  00 
dip. 


Class  I. — Fckniture,  Cooper-wake,  etc. 
Awarding  Committee — Miles  Romney,  Archibald  N.  Hill,  Thomas  AUman. 


Best  bureau $3  00 

2d     do dip. 

Best  sofa 3  00 

2d  do dip. 

Best  bedstead 3  03 

2d      do dip. 

Best  six  chairs 3  00 

2d       do dip. 

Best  centre-table 3  00 

2d         do dip. 

Best  dining-table 3  00 

2d         do dip. 

Best  ladies'  work-stand. . .  2  00 

2d              do.              ...  dip. 


Best  office-desk 

2d        do 

$3  00 
dip. 
2  00 
dip. 

2  00 
dip. 

2  00 
dip. 

2  00 
dip. 

1  00 
dip. 

Best  gallon  of  varnish 

2d             do. 
Best  gallon  of  castor-oil . . . 

2d               do. 
Best  gallon  of  linseed-oil. . 

2d               do. 
Best  gallon  of  turpentine. 

2d                 do. 

3d                 do. 
Best  5  lbs.  of  rosin 

2d          do 

3d          do 

Best  5  lbs.  of  lampblack  . . 

2d               do. 

3d               do. 

$2  00 
dip. 
2  00 
dip. 
2  00 

2  00 
dip. 
2  00 
1  00 

Best  rocking-chair 

2d           do 

Best    specimen   of    wood 

carving 

2d                 do. 
Best  specimen  French  pol- 
ish       

2d                 do. 
B?st     specimen     cooper's 

2d                 do. 

Best  specimen  of  glue 

2d             do. 

2  00 
1  00 
dip. 

Class  J. — Painting,  Engraving,  etc. 
Awarding  Committee — James  M.  Barlow,  James  Beck,  John  H.  Rumell. 


Best    specimen    of    sign- 
painting  

2d  do. 

3d  do. 

Best  specimen  of  graining 

2d  do. 

8d  do. 

Best  specimen  of  printing 

2d  do. 

3d                 do. 
Best  specimen  of  book-bind- 
ing   

2d  do. 

3d  do. 


53  00 

2  00 
dip. 

3  00 

2  0) 
dip. 

3  00 

2  00 
dip. 

3  00 
2  00 
dip. 


Best  specimen  of  paper  ...  $3  00 

2d              do.              ...  2  00 

3d              do.              ...  dip. 
Best  landscape   of   Great 

Salt  Lake  Valley 3  00 

2d                 do.  dip. 
Best  bird's-eye  view  of  Salt 

j        LakeCity 3  00 

I     2d                 do.  dip. 

Best  oil  painting 2  00 

2d         do.         dip. 

Best  transparent  window- 

I        blinds 2  00 

2d                 do.  dip. 

[Best  piece  of  sculpture ....  2  00 


2d  best  piece  of  .sculpture . . 
Best  specimen  of  turning. . 

2d  do. 

Best  specimen  of  engraving 

2d                do. 
Best  specimen  of  penman- 
ship   

2d                 do. 
3d                 do. 
Best  specimen  of  penman- 
ship in  Deserct  char- 
acter   

2d  do. 

3d  do. 


dip. 

$2  00 
dip. 

2  00 
dip. 

3  00 
2  00 
dip. 


3  00 
2  00 
dip. 


Class  K. — Cctlert,  Hardware,  etc. 
Awarding  Committee — Levi  Richards,  Zechariah  B.  Derrick,  Jonathan  Pugmire. 


Best  specimen  of  cutlery 

ou  a  card $3  00 

2d                 do.  2  00 

Sd                 do.  dip. 

Best  pruning  shears 1  00 

2d           do.           dip. 

Best  rifle 5  OOiBest  axe 

2d  do. 2  OOl    2d  da 


3d  best  rifle dip. 

Best  revolving  pistol $5  00 

2d  do.  3  00 

3d  do.  dip. 

Best  5  lbs.  gunpowder — sol.  med. 

2d  do.  dip. 

2  00 


?y&  best  axe dip. 

Best  door-lock $2  00 

2d       do 1  00 

3d  best  door-lock dip. 

Best  shovel  and  tongs  ....  2  00 

2d             do.             ....  1  00 

3d             do.             ....  dip. 


1  00, Best  andiroDs 2  00 


Chap.  VI. 


INDUSTRY  OF  GREAT  SALT  LAKE  CITY. 


319 


makers  and  jewelers,  painters  and  glaziers,  brush-makers,  cabinet- 
makers, and  skillful  turners — for  the  most  part  English.  Iron 
and  brass  founderies  are  in  contemplation,  and  a  paper-mill  is 


Class  K. — Cutlery,  Hardwaue,  etc. — Continued. 


2d  best  andirons $1  00,  Best  specimen  of  twine  and 

3d      do dip.  cord 

Best  5  lbs.  of  cut  nails 3  00     2d                 do. 

2d             do.             3  00  Best  specimen  of  whips. . . 

3d             do.             dip.l     2d               do. 

Best  5  lbs.  of  wrought  nails  2  00  Best  specimen  of  baskets. . 

2d                 do.  1  OOl     2d               do. 

3d                 do.  dip.  I     3d               do. 

Be.'?t  50  yards  of  rope 2  00  Best    specimen    of    combs 

2d             do.            1  OOl        made  ofhorn,  bone,  and 

3d            do.            dip.         mountain  mahogany. . 

2d  do. 


|3d  best  specimen  of  combs 
$100         made  of  horn,  bone,  and 
dip.         mountain  mahogany  . .     dip. 

1  OOjBest  specimen  of  glass — sU.  med. 
dip.  I     '2d  do.  dip. 

2  00  Best  specimen  of  earthen- 
1  CO 

dip. 


ware $3  00 


2d                 do.  2  00 

3d                 do.  dip. 

Best  sand-paper 2  00 

3d         do.        1  00 

3d         do dip. 


Class  L. — Women's  "Work. 
Awarding  Committee — Mrs.  Fanny  Little, Taft,  Marion  Beatie,  Sarah  Bro\ni. 


Best    ornamental    needle- 
work  $1  00 

2d                 do.  0  50 

3d                 do.  dip. 

Best  specimen  of  Ayrshire 

needlework 1  00 

2d                 do.  0  50 

3d                 do.  dip. 

Best  ottoman  cover 1  00 

2d           do.          0  50 

8d          do.          dip. 

Best  table  cover 1  00 

2d        do 0  50 

3d         do dip. 

Best  worked  shawl 1  00 

2d           do 0  50 

8d           do.          dip. 

Best    worked    collar    and 

handkerchief 1  00 

2d                 do.  0  50 

3d                 do.  dip. 

Best  worked  cushion 1  00 

2d             do.            0  53 

3d             do.            dip.l 


Best  lace  cap $1  00 

2d      do 0  50 

3d      do dip. 

Best  group  of  flowera 1  00 

2d             do.            0  .^0 

3d             do.             dip. 

Best    specimen    of    wax 

flowers 1  00 

2d  do.  f   0  50 

3d                 do.  dip. 

Best  ornamental  shell-work  1  oo 

2d                 do.  0  50 

3d                 do.  dip. 

Best  pair  worked  slippers .  1  00 

2d                 do.  0  50 

3d                 do.  dip. 

Best  pair  woolen  hose 1  00 

2d             do.             0  5 1 

3d              do.              ....  dip. 

Best  pair  cotton  hose 1  00 

2d             do 0  50 

3d              do.             dip. 

Best  embroidered  shawl . .  1  00 

2d               do.               . .  0  50 

Class  M. — Produce. 


2d  best  embroidered  shawl  dip. 

Best   variety   of    crochet- 
work $1  00 

2d                 do.  0  50 

3d                 do.  dip. 

Best  worked  quUt 1  oO 

2d    do 0  50 

3d    do.    dip. 

Best  patch-work  quilt 1  00 

2d             do.              ....  0  50 

3d             do.              ....  dip. 

Best  specimen  of  knitting.  1  00 

2d                 do.  0  50 

3d                 do.  dip. 

Best  straw  hat 2  00 

2d        do 1  00 

3d        do dip. 

Best  straw  bonnet 2  00 

2d          do.          1  00 

3d         do.          dip. 

Best    specimen    of    braid 

straw  or  grass 1  00 

2d                 do.  0  50 

3d                 do.  dip. 


Awarding  Committee — Ricliard  Golightly,  George  Goddard,  Eli  B.  Kelsey. 


Best  5  lbs.  of  butter . 

2d           do.           1  00 

3d           do.            dip. 

Best  cheese 2  00 

2d    do.    1  00 

3d    do dip. 

Best  ham 2  00 

2d  do 1  00 

3d  do dip. 

Best  10  lbs.  of  sugar 10  00 

2d           do 5  00 

3d           do.           dip. 

Best  gallon  of  molassea  ...  2  00 


$2  00j2d  best  gallon  of  molasses.  $1  CO 


3d  do.  dip. 

Best  home-made  wine  ....  3  00 

2d  do.  ....  2  00 

3d  do.  dip, 

Best  preserves,  pumpkins.  1  00 

2d  do.  dip. 

Best  preserves,  tomatoes. .  1  00 

2d  do.  . .  dip. 

Best  preserves  of  any  kind  1  00 

2d  do.  dip. 

Best  pickles,  cucumbers  . .  1  00 

2d  do.  . .  dip. 


Best  pickles,  tomatoes  ....  $1  00 

2d             do.              : . . .  dip. 

Best  pickle=,  cabbages 1  00 

2d             do.             ....  dip. 

Best  pickles,  onions 1  00 

2d            do.            dip. 

Best  5  lbs.  of  soap 3  00 

2d          do 2  00 

od          do.          dip. 

Best  3  lbs.  of  starch 2  00 

2d            do 1  00 

3d           do.           dip. 


Class  N. — Essays. 

Awarding  Committee — President  and  Board  of  Directors. 

Best  essay  on  agriculture  $10  00' Best  essay  on  horticulture  $10  00;Best  essay  on  home  manu- 

2d  do.  sil.  med.     2d  do.  sil.  med.l        factures $10  00 

I  I    2d  do.  eU.  mcd. 

By  order  of  the  Board  of  the  Deseret  Agricultural  and  Manufacturing  Society. 

Edward  Hunter,  President. 
Thomas  Bullock,  Secretary. 
Great  Salt  Lake  City,  May  13, 1860. 


320  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VI. 

coming  across  the  prairies.  The  cutlery  is  good,  the  swords, 
spears,  and  Congress  knives,  the  pruning-hooks,  saws,  and  locks 
are  yearly  improving,  and  the  imitations  of  Colt's  revolvers  can 
hardly  be  distinguished  from  the  originals.  The  distilleries,  of 
course,  can  not  expect  prizes.  The  whisky  of  Utah  Territory, 
unlike  the  Monongahela  or  rye  of  Pennsylvania,  and  the  Bour- 
bon, or  maize  brandy  of  Kentucky,  is  distilled  from  wheat  only ; 
it  is,  in  fact,  the  korn  schnapps  of  the  trans-Rhenine  region.  This 
"Valley  Tan,"  being  generally  pure,  is  better  than  the  alcohol  one 
part  and  water  one  part,  colored  with  burnt  sugar  and  flavored 
with  green  tea,  which  is  sold  under  the  name  of  Cognac.  Ale 
and  cakes  are  in  higher  flavor  than  the  "  villainous  distillation :" 
there  are  two  large  and  eight  small  breweries  in  which  a  palata- 
ble Lager-bier  is  made.  The  hop  grows  wild  and  luxuriant  in 
every  kanyon ;  and  there  is  no  reason  why  in  time  the  John  Bar- 
leycorn of  the  Saints  should  not  rival  that  of  the  sinners  in  lands 
where  no  unfriendly  legislation  tries,  or  will,  it  is  hoped,  ever  try, 

"To  rob  a  poor  man  of  his  beer." 

Hand-labor  obtains  $2  per  diem,  consequently  much  work  is 
done  at  home.  The  fair  sex  still  cards,  spins,  and  weaves,  as  in 
Cornwall  and  "Wales,  and  the  plurality  system  supplies  them  with 
leisure  for  the  exercise  of  the  needle.  Excellent  blankets,  the 
finest  linens,  and  embroidered  buckskin  garments,  varying  in 
prices  from  $75  to  $500 — a  splendid  specimen  was,  at  the  time 
of  my  stay,  being  worked  for  that  "Champion  of  oppressed  na- 
tionalities," M.Louis  Kossuth — are  the  results. 

As  in  India,  the  mere  necessaries  of  life  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City 
are  cheap:  the  foreign  luxuries,  and  even  comforts,  are  exorbi- 
tantly dear.  A  family  may  live  almost  for  nothing  upon  vege- 
tables grown  in  their  own  garden,  milk  from  their  own  cows, 
wheaten  bread,  and  butter  which  derives  a  peculiar  sweetness 
from  the  bunch-grass.  For  some  reason,  which  no  one  can  ex- 
plain, there  is  not,  and  there  never  has  been,  a  market  at  Great 
Salt  Lake  City ;  consequently,  even  meat  is  expensive.  Freight 
upon  every  article,  from  a  bar  of  soap  to  a  bar  of  iron,  must  be 
reckoned  at  14  cents  {7d.)  per  lb.  coming  from  the  East,  and  25-30 
cents  from  the  West.  Groceries  and  clothing  are  inordinately 
high-priced.  Sugar,  worth  6  cents  in  the  United  States,  here 
fetches  from  37^  to  45  cents  per  lb.  Tea  is  seldom  drunk,  and  as 
coffee  of  10  cents  per  lb.  in  the  States  here  costs  40-50  cents, 
burnt  beans  or  toasted  corn,  a  caricature  of  chicory,  is  the  usual 
succedaneum.  Counterblasters  will  be  pleased  to  hear  that  to- 
bacco fetches  $1  per  lb.,  and  cigars  from  5  to  6  cents  each — a 
London  price.  Servants'  wages  vary  from  $30  to  $40  per  men- 
sem— nearly  £100  per  annum ;  consequently,  master  has  a  strong 
inducement  to  marry  the  "  missus's"  Abigail.  Thus  the  expense 
of  living  in  L^tah  Territory  is  higher  than  in  the  Eastern  States, 


Chap.  VI. 


PRICES  AT  GREAT  SALT  LAKE  CITY. 


321 


where  again  it  exceeds  that  of  England.  In  Great  Salt  Lake 
City  $10,000  (=£2000)  per  annum  would  be  equal  to  about  £500 
in  London.  Fortunately  for  the  poor,  the  excessive  purity  of  the 
air,  as  in  the  Arabian  Desert,  enables  them  to  dispense  with,  and 
not  to  miss,  many  articles,  such  as  stimulants,  which  are  elsewhere 
considered  necessaries.  The  subjoined  "  nerrick"  of  prices  current 
at  the  General  Tithing  Office  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City  will  best 
explain  the  state  of  things  in  1860.  A  remarkable  feature,  it 
will  be  observed,  is  the  price  of  wheat — $1  50  per  bushel — more 
than  double  its  current  value  in  the  Mississippian  States.* 

*  General  Tithing  Office  Prices  Current,  Great  Salt  Lake  City : 
Wheat,  extra  produce  tithing $1  50  "ei  bush.  Mutton $0  OS  @0  12il|!It). 


labor  and  produce  tithing.     2  00 

Barley 150  " 

Com 150  " 

Rye 1  50  " 

Oats 1  00  <■'■ 

Buckwheat 1  25  " 

Teas  and  beans 2  00  >•' 

Potatoes 0  75  " 

Beets 0  50  " 

Carrots 0  50  " 

Parsnips 0  50  " 

Onions 2  00  " 

Turnips 0  25  " 

Tomatoes 1  00  " 

Cabbages $0  02  @0  10  each. 

Pumpkins  and  squash 0  02  @0  08  " 

Melons 0  02  @0  10  " 

Cucumbers 0  01  " 

Pigs,  four  weeks  old 3  00  " 

Chickens 0  10  @0  25  " 

Ducks 0  15  @0  25  "• 

Beef,  6  J  average. 

Hind  quarter 0  07  13  K\ 

Fore        "       0  06  " 

Tallow 0  10  @0  20  «' 

Pork 0  12i@0  20  " 

Lard 0  15  @0  20  " 


Veal 0  O.S  (u  0  05 

Bear 0  08  @0  12}- 

Tea 1  50  @3  50 

Coffee 0  40  @0  GO 

Sugar 0  35  @0  60 

Milk 0  10  i!qt. 

Kggs 0  ISt^doz. 

Butter 0  25  "e?  n. 

Cheese 0  12i@0  25 

Salt,  fine 0  04 

Salt,  coarse 0  10 

Cast  steel,  warranted 0  37^@0  50 

Spring  steel 0  37? 

Blister  steel    0  18  @0  30 

Iron 0  10 

Molasses,  good 3  00  13  gall. 

Vinegar 0  50  ®0  75       " 

Lumber,  extra  produce  tithing  4  00  13  100. 

"       labor  tithing 5  00      " 

Shingles,  best Id  00  13  lOOn. 

2d  quality 8  00       " 

Shingles,  cotton-wood 8  00       " 

2d  quality 6  00       " 

Poves ." 0  1-2|  eacli. 

Turkeys 1  50  @2  50      " 

Fox  and  wolf  skins 0  75      " 

Ox  hair 0  50  i!  bush. 

Edwakd  Huntek,  Presiding  Bishop. 


322 


THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 


Chap.  VII. 


THE  DEAD    SEA. 


CHAPTER  YIL 

Third  Week  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City. — Excursions. 

Governor  Gumming  had  asked  me  to  accompany  Madam  and 
himself  to  the  shores  of  the  lake,  with  an  ulterior  view  to  bathing 
and  picnicking. 

One  fine  morning,  at  10  A.M.,  duly  provided  with  the  neces- 
saire  and  a  thermometer — which  duly  snapped  in  two  before  im- 
mersion— we  set  out  down  the  west  road,  crossed  the  rickety  two- 
laned  bridge  that  spans  the  holy  stream,  and  debouched  upon  a 
mirage-hauated  and  singularly  ugly  plain.  Wherever  below  the 
line  of  debordement  of  the  lake's  spring  freshet,  it  is  a  mere  des- 
ert ;  where  raised,  however,  the  land  is  cultivable,  from  the  Wa- 
sach  Mountains  to  Spring  Point,  at  the  north  of  the  Oquirrh,  giv- 
ing about  eighty  square  miles  of  fertile  land.  The  soil,  as  near 
the  lake  generally,  is  a  thin  layer  of  saline  humus,  overspreading 
gravel  and  pebbles.  The  vegetation  is  scattered  artemisia,  rose- 
bushes, the  Eu-pliorhia  hiberosa  and  other  varieties  of  milk-weed, 
the  greasewood,  salicornias,  and  several  salsolacese.  There  are 
numerous  salt  deposits,  all  wet  and  miry  in  the  rainy  season;  and 
the  animals  that  meet  the  sight  are  the  coyote,  the  badger,  and 
the  hideous  Phrynosoma.  A  few  blue  cranes  and  sage-chickens, 
which  are  eatable  till  October,  were  seen ;  and  during  winter  the 
wild-fowl  are  found  in  large  flocks,  and  the  sweet-water  streams 
are  stocked  with  diminutive  fish.  In  contrast  with  the  bald  and 
shaven  aspect  of  the  plain,  rose  behind  us  the  massive  forms  of 


Chap.  VII.  MARE  MORTUUM.  323 

the  Wasacli  Mountains,  robed  in  forests,  mist-crowned,  and  show- 
ing a  single  streak  of  white,  which  entitles  them  to  the  poetical 
boast  of  eternal  snow — snow  apparently  never  being  respectable 
without  eternity. 

After  fifteen  miles  of  good  road  we  came  to  the  Point  o'  the 
Mountain — the  head  of  the  Oquirrh,  also  called  West  Mountain 
— where  pyramidal  buttes  bound  the  southern  extremity  of  the 
lake.  Their  horizontal  lines  are  cleanly  cut  by  the  action  of  wa- 
ter, and  fall  in  steps  toward  the  plain.  Any  appearance  of  regu- 
larity in  the  works  of  Nature  is  always  pleasing — firstly,  because 
it  contrasts  with  her  infinite  diversty ;  and,  secondly,  because  it 
displays  her  grandeur  by  suggesting  comparison  with  the  minor 
works  of  mankind.  Eanches  and  corrals,  grass  and  cattle,  now 
began  to  appear,  and  the  entrance  of  a  large  cave  was  pointed  out 
to  me  in  the  base  of  the  buttes.  We  drove  on,  and  presently 
emerged  upon  the  shores  of  this  "dead  and  desert" — this  "still 
and  solitary"  sea.  It  has  not  antiquity  enough  to  have  become 
the  scene  of  fabulous  history ;  the  early  Canadian  voyageurs^  how- 
ever, did  their  best  to  ennoble  it,  and  recounted  to  wondering 
strangers  its  fearful  submarine  noises,  its  dark  and  sudden  storms, 
and  the  terrible  maelstrom  in  its  centre,  which,  funnel-like,  de- 
scended into  the  bowels  of  the  earth.  I  believe  that  age  is  its 
only  want;  with  g-wasi-lifeless  waters,  a  balance  of  evaporation 
and  supply — ever  a  mystery  to  the  ignorant — and  a  horned  frog, 
the  Dead  Sea  of  the  New  World  has  claims  to  preternaturalism 
at  least  equal  to  those  of  its  sister  feature,  the  volcano  of  depres- 
sion, in  the  Old  Hemisphere. 

The  first  aspect  of  Mare  Mortuum  was  by  no  means  unprepos- 
sessing. As  we  stood  upon  the  ledge,  at  whose  foot  lies  the  sel- 
vage of  sand  and  salt  that  bounds  the  wave,  we  seemed  to  look 
upon  the  sea  of  the  Cyclades.  The  sky  was  light  and  clear,  the 
water  of  a  deep  lapis-lazuli  blue,  flecked  here  and  there  with  the 
smallest  of  white  horses — tiny  billows,  urged  by  the  warm  soft 
wind  ;  and  the  feeble  tumble  of  the  surf  uj)on  the  miniature  sands 
reminded  me,  with  the  first  surveyor,  "  of  scenes  far,  far  away, 
where  mightier  billows  pay  their  ceaseless  tribute  to  the  strand." 
In  front  of  us,  and  bounding  the  extreme  northwest,  lay  Antelope 
or  Church  Island,  rising  in  a  bold  central  ridge.  This  rock  forms 
the  western  horizon  to  those  looking  from  the  city,  and  its  deli- 
cate pink — the  effect  of  a  ruddy  carpet  woven  with  myriads  of 
small  flowers — blushing  in  the  light  of  the  setting  sun,  is  ever  an 
interesting  and  beautiful  object.  Nearer,  it  has  a  brown  garb, 
almost  without  a  tinge  of  green,  except  in  rare,  scattered  spots ; 
its  benches,  broken  by  gashes  and  gullies,  rocks  and  ravines,  are 
counterparts  to  those  on  the  main  land ;  and  its  form  and  tintage, 
softened  by  the  damp  overhanging  air,  and  contrasting  with  the 
light  blue  sky  and  the  dark  ultramarine  streak  of  sea  at  its  base, 
add  greatly  to  the  picturesqueness  of  the  view.     The  foreground 


;324  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VII. 

is  a  strip  of  sand,  yellow  where  it  can  be  seen,  incrusted  with 
flakes  of  salt  like  the  icing  of  a  plum-cake,  and  bearing  marks  of 
submergence  in  the  season  of  the  spring  freshets.  At  the  water's 
edge  is  a  broken  black  line  of  a  peculiar  drift,  which  stands  boldly 
out  from  the  snowy  whiteness  around.  "Where  my  sketch  was 
taken  I  looked  as  through  a  doorway,  whose  staples  were  two  de- 
tached masses  of  stone.  On  the  right  rose  an  irregular  heap  of 
conglomerate  and  sandstone,  attached  to  the  ledge  behind,  and 
leaning  forward  as  if  about  to  fall.  On  the  left,  the  "  Black  Kock," 
which  can  be  seen  as  a  dot  from  the  city,  a  heap  of  flint  conglom- 
erate, imbedded  in  slaty,  burnt,  and  altered  clay,  formed  the  ter- 
minating bluff  to  a  neck  of  light  sand  and  dark  stone. 

Before  proceeding  to  our  picnic,  I  will  briefly  resume  the  his- 
tory and  geography  of  this  Mare  Mortuum.  The  Baron  de  la 
Hontan,  the  French  governor  of  Placentia,  in  Newfoundland, 
about  1690,  heard  from  Indians  of  a  Great  Salt  Water,  which  he 
caused  to  disembogue  through  a  huge  river  into  the  South  Sea 
or  Pacific  Ocean.  Like  the  Lake  Tanganyika,  in  Central  Africa, 
it  was  arrayed  in  the  garb  of  fable,  800  leagues  of  length,  30  of 
breadth,  with  "100  towns  about  it,"  like  Mr.  Cooley's  highly  im- 
a'ginative  "Zanganica,"  and  navigated  in  large  boats  by  the  sav- 
age Mozeemleks,  who  much  remind  one  of  the  old  semi-mythical 
"  Mono-moezi."  Doubtless  many  a  trapper  and  obscure  trader 
has  since  that  time  visited  it;  a  name  or  two  has  been  found  upon 
the  adjacent  rocks,  but  those  were  braves  who,  to  speak  metaphor- 
ically, lived  before  the  age  of  Agamemnon.  In  1845,  Colonel 
Fremont,  then  engaged  with  his  second  expedition,  made  a  par- 
tial flying  survey,  which,  in  1849-50,  was  scientifically  completed 
by  Captain  Howard  Stansbury. 

In  geologic  ages  the  lake  occupied  the  space  between  the  Sierra 
Madre  on  the  east,  and  the  ranges  of  Goose  Creek  and  Humboldt 
River  on  the  west.  The  length  is  roughly  computed  at  500  miles 
from  north  to  south,  the  breadth  from  350  to  500,  and  the  area  at 
175,000  square  miles.  The  waters  have  declined  into  the  lowest 
part  of  the  basin  by  the  gradual  upheaval  of  the  land,  in  places 
showing  thirteen  successive  steps  or  benches.  A  freshet  of  a  few 
yards  would  submerge  many  miles  of  flat  shore,  and  a  rise  of  650 
feet  would  in  these  days  convert  all  but  the  highest  peaks  of  the 
surrounding  eminences  into  islands  and  islets,  the  kanyons  into 
straits,  creeks,  and  sea-arms,  and  the  bluffs  into  slightly  elevated 
shores.  Popular  opinion  asserts  that  the  process  of  desiccation  is 
going  on  at  the  rate  of  about  half  a  mile  in  ten  years.  But  the 
limits  of  beach  and  drift  line  laid  down  by  Captain  Stansbury  are 
still  well  defined,  and  the  shrinking  of  the  volume  may  be  ranked 
with  its  "  sinking" — like  the  sink  of  the  Humboldt  and  other  riv- 
ers— an  empirical  explanation,  by  which  the  mountaineer  removes 
the  difficulty  of  believing  that  evaporation  can  drain  off  the  sup- 
plies of  so  many  rivers. 


Chap.  VII.  THE  GREAT  SALT  LAKE.  325 

The  lake,  whicli  is  about  the  size  of  the  African  Chad,  occupies 
the  northeastern  corner  of  Utah  Territory,  and  lies  to  the  north- 
west of  the  Great  Salt  Lake  Valley,  which  is  forty  miles  long  by 
about  twelve  in  breadth.  The  major  axis  of  the  irregular  paral- 
lelogram is  sixty  to  seventy  miles  in  length  from  north  to  south, 
by  thirty  to  thirty-five  from  east  to  west.  Its  altitude  has  been 
laid  down  at  4200  feet  above,  while  the  Dead  Sea  of  Palestine  is 
1300  feet  below  sea  level.  The  principal  influents,  beginning 
from  the  north,  are  the  Bear  River,  the  Weber  River,  and  the  Jor- 
dan. They  supply  the  balance  of  evaporation,  which  from  water 
is  greater,  and  from  high  lands  is  usually  less,  than  the  rain.  The 
western  side  is  a  perfect  desert — a  salt  and  arid  waste  of  clay  and 
sand,  with  the  consistence  of  mortar  when  wet,  which  can  not  boast 
of  a  single  stream ;  even  the  spriags  are  sometimes  separated  by 
"  jornadas"  of  seventy  miles.  When  the  rivers  are  in  flood,  the 
lake,  it  is  said,  rises  to  a  maximum  of  four  feet,  overflowing  large 
tracts  of  level  saline  plain,  winding  between  the  broken  walls  of 
rock  which  surround  it  on  all  sides.  Near  its  shores  the  atmos- 
phere is  reeking,  bluish,  and  hazy,  from  the  effects  of  active  evap- 
oration, and  forms  a  decided  change  from  the  purity  and  trans- 
parency of  the  air  elsewhere.  Surveyors  have  observed  that  it  is 
a  labor  to  use  telescopes  for  geoditic  purposes,  and  that  astronom- 
ical observations  are  very  imperfect.  The  quantity  of  vapor  is 
less,  and  evaporation  has  less  tension  and  density  from  the  sur- 
face of  salt  than  of  fresh  water ;  here,  however,  the  operation  is 
assisted  by  sunheat  sufficient  to  produce  an  aeriform  state,  and  by 
a  wind  brisk  enough  to  prevent  the  vapor  accumulating  over  the 
surface. 

The  water  of  this  remarkable  feature,  which  so  curiously  repro- 
duces the  marvels  of  Judea,  contains  nearly  one  quarter  of  solid 
matter,  or  about  six  times  and  a  half  more  than  the  average  solid 
constituents  of  sea- water,  which  may  be  laid  down  roughly  at  three 
and  a  half  per  cent,  of  its  weight,  or  about  half  an  ounce  to  the 
pound.*    The  Bead  Sea  is  its  sole  known  superior.     The  specific 

*  " One  hundred  parts  by  weight  were,"  says  Dr.  Gale,  "evaporated  to  dryness  in 
a  water-bath  below  the  boiling-point,  and  then  heated  to  about  300°  of  the  ther- 
mometer, and  retained  at  that  heat  till  the  mass  ceased  to  lose  any  weight.    It  gave 
solid  contents  22-422  (?),  and  consisted  of 
Chloride  of  sodium  (com-  \      In  the  Abbe' 

mon  salt) 20-196         |  Domenech's 

Sulphate  of  soda 1-834         I  work  the  anal- 
Chloride  of  magnesium.    0-252         rysis    is    taken 

Chloride  of  calcium a  trace  from  Col.Fre'- 

Total 22-282(?)"J  mont:  thus — 

The  waters  of  the  Dead  Sea  give  solid  contents  24-580,  and  consist  of 

Chloride  of  sodium 10-360 

"calcium 3-920 

"        "  magnesium 10-246 

Sulphate  of  soda '054 

Total 24-580 


r  Chloride  of  sodium 97-80 

"         "  calcium....      0-61 
"        "  magnesium      0-24 

Sulphate  of  soda 0-23 

"        "lime 112 

Total 100-00 


326  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VII. 

gravity  is  1-170,  distilled  water  being  1-000;  the  North.  Atlantic, 
between  latitude  25°  K  and  longitude  52°  W.  (G.),  1-020 ;  and  the 
Dead  Sea,  at  60°  Fahrenheit,  from  1-22742  to  1-180.  The  vulgar 
estimate  of  its  saltness  is  exaggerated.  I  have  heard  at  Salt  Lake 
City  of  one  bucket  of  saline  matter  being  produced  by  the  evap- 
oration of  three ;  and  that  meat  can  be  salted,  and  corned  beef 
converted  into  junk,  after  twelve  or  fourteen  hours  in  the  natural 
unevaporated  brine.  It  is  used  without  preparation  by  the  citi- 
zens, who  have  not  adopted  the  precautions  recommended  by  Dr. 
Gale.*  It  is  collected  by  boys,  shoveled  into  carts  at  the  points 
of  the  beach  where  the  winds  dash  up  the  waves — forming  a  reg- 
ular wind- tide — and  is  sold  in  retail  at  half  a  cent  per  pound,  or 
two  shillings  per  hundred  pounds.  The  original  basin  of  geolog- 
ical ages  was,  doubtless,  as  the  shells  have  proved,  fresh  water. 
The  saline  substances  are  brought  down  by  rain,  which  washes 
the  soil  and  percolates  through  the  rocky  ledges,  and  by  the  riv- 
ers, which  are  generally  estimated  to  contain  from  ten  to  one 
hundred  grains  of  salt  per  gallon,  f  and  here  probably  more,  owing 
lo  the  abundance  of  soda.  The  evaporation  is,  of  course,  nearly 
pure,  containing  but  very  minute  traces  of  salts. 

It  has  been  generally  stated  that  the  water  is  fatal  to  organic 
life.  The  fish  brought  down  the  rivers  perish  at  once  in  the  con- 
centrated brine ;  but,  according  to  the  people,  there  is  a  univalve, 
like  a  periwinkle,  found  at  certain  seasons  within  the  influence 
of  its  saline  waves ;  and  I  observed,  floating  near  the  margin,  del- 
icate moss-like  algae.  Governor  Gumming  mentioned  his  having 
seen  a  leaf,  of  a  few  inches  in  length,  lined  with  a  web,  which 
shelters  a  vermicular  animal,  of  reddish  color,  and  about  the  length 
')f  the  last  joint  of  the  little  finger.     Near  the  shore,  also,  muci- 

The  strongest  natural  brine  in  the  United  States,  according  to  Professor  Beck,  is 
that  of  the  Syracuse  Saline,  New  York,  which  contains  17"3o  per  cent,  of  chloride  of 
sodium. 

*  "The  salt  water"  (it  is  elsewhere  called  "one  of  the  purest  and  most  concen- 
trated brines  known  in  the  world")  "yields  about  20  per  cent,  of  pure  common  salt, 
and  about  2  per  cent,  of  foreign  salts ;  most  of  the  objectionable  parts  of  which  are 
the  chloride  of  lime  and  the  chloride  of  magnesia,  both  of  which,  being  very  deli- 
quescent, attract  moisture  from  the  damp  atmosphere,  which  has  the  effect  to  moist- 
•  •n  and  partially  dissolve  the  common  salt,  and  then,  when  the  mass  is  exposed  to 
dry  air  or  heat,  or  both,  a  hard  crust  is  formed.  I  believe  I  have  found  a  remedy 
for  the  caking,  which  is  cheap  and  easily  used.  It  consists  in  sprinkling  over  the 
^alt  obtained  by  the  evai)oration  of  the  water,  and  heaped  up  in  a  bin  or  box  contain- 
ing a  porous  bottom  of  blankets  or  other  like  material,  a  cold  solution  of  the  salt  as 
it  is  concentrated  from  the  lake  till  crystals  begin  to  be  deposited.  This  concen- 
trated brine,  while  it  will  dissolve  none  of  the  common  salt,  will  dissolve  all  the  chlo- 
rides of  calcium  and  magnesium,  and  cany  them  down  through  the  porous  bottom, 
and  thus  leave  the  salt  purer  and  better  than  any  now  found  in  our  markets.  For 
persons  who  are  obliged  to  prepare  temporarily  the  salt,  as  travelers  passing  through 
the  country,  the  water  of  the  lake,  without  concentration,  may  be  used  for  washing 
out  the  deliquescent  chlorides,  sprinkling  the  heap  of  salt  by  a  watering-pot  at  inter- 
vals of  two  or  three  hours  during  a  single  day,  and  allowing  it  to  drain  and  dry  at 
night,  and  be  spread  to  the  sun  an  hour  or  two  the  following  morning." 

t  "The  Physical  Geography  of  the  Sea"  (by  Captain  Maury),  chap,  ix.,  §  502, 
quoted  from  "  Youmans'  Chemistry, " 


Chap.  VII.  ISLANDS  IN  GREAT  SALT  LAKE.  327 

laginous  matter,  white,  pink,  and  rusty,  like  macerated  moss,  ad- 
heres to  the  rocky  bed,  and  lies  in  coagulated  spots  upon  the 
sand.  We  may  fairly  doubt  the  travelers'  assertion  that  this 
Dead  Sea  contains  no  living  thing;  whereas  neither  animalcula? 
nor  vestige  of  animal  matter  were,  according  to  Lieutenant  Lynch, 
detected  by  a  powerful  microscope  in  the  waters  of  the  Asphal- 
tite  Lake. 

The  Great  Salt  Lake  is  studded  with  an  archipelago  of  islands, 
which  would  greatly  add  to  its  charms  were  their  size  commen- 
surate with  its  diminutive  limits.  These,  beginning  from  the 
north,  are, 

1.  Dolphin  Island,  so  called  from  its  shape,  a  knoll  of  rock  and 
shoal  near  the  northwestern  end,  surrounded  by  about  three  feet 
of  water. 

2.  Gunnison's  Island,  a  large  rock  and  small  outlier,  southeast 
of  the  former,  and  surrounded  with  water  from  nine  to  twelve 
feet  deep. 

3.  Hat  Island,  southeast  of  Gunnison's,  the  smallest  of  the  isles, 
with  a  reef  sunk  about  seven  feet :  it  was  probably  part  of  the 
following,  and  is  separated  from  it  by  a  narrow  channel  nowhere 
more  than  six  feet  in  depth. 

4.  Carrington  Island,  so  named  from  the  Mormon  surveyor,  a 
circular  mass  with  a  central  peak :  the  water  is  from  three  to  six 
feet  deep  on  every  side  except  the  western  and  southwestern, 
which  are  shoals  and  shallows.  It  contains  no  springs,  but  is 
rich  in  plants  and  flowers,  as  the  sego,  also  spelled  sigo,  seacoe. 
and  segose  {CalocJiortus  luteus,  an  onion-like  bulb  or  tuber  about 
the  size  of  a  walnut,  more  nutritious  than  palatable,  much  eaten 
as  a  table  vegetable  by  the  early  Mormons  and  the  root-digging 
Indians,  and  even  now  by  white  men  when  half  starved),  a  cleome, 
a  malvastrum,  a  new  species  of  malacothrix,  and  several  others. 

5.  Stansbury  Island,  the  second  largest  in  the  lake,  an  ovate 
mass,  with  a  high  central  ridge,  dome-shaped  above,  and  rising 
3000  feet,  twenty -seven  miles  in  circumference,  and  about  twelve 
in  length.  During  the  dry  season  it  is  formed  into  a  peninsula 
by  a  sand-bank  connecting  it  with  the  lake's  western  shore.  Thus 
antelopes,  deer,  and  coyotes  pass  over  to  browse  upon  the  plants 
and  to  attack  the  young  of  the  ducks,  geese,  plover,  gulls,  and 
pelicans,  that  make  their  homes  upon  the  cliffs :  it  is  also  used  for 
grazing  purposes.  The  principal  plants  are  a  comandra^  and  sun- 
dry new  species  of  heuchera,  perityle,  and  sienaciis.  Fossils  and 
shells  are  found  in  scatters. 

6.  Antelope,  also  called  Church  Island,  because  the  stock  of  the 
Saints  is  generally  kept  there.  Lying  to  the  east  and  northeast 
of  the  preceding,  and  in  shape  an  irregular  and  protracted  conoid, 
it  is  the  largest  of  the  islands,  sixteen  miles  long  by  six  of  ex- 
treme width,  with  a  western  ridge  and  an  eastern  line  of  broken 
peaks,  which  attain  a  maximum  of  3000  feet  above  the  lake  and 


328  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VII. 

7200  above  sea  level.  It  lies  twenty  miles  to  the  northwest  of  the 
city,  and  the  narrow  passage  between  it  and  the  opposite  plain  is 
fordable.  This  island  is  surrounded  on  the  north  by  a  tufa  bed 
twelve  feet  deep ;  eastward  by  six  feet  of  water ;  southeast  and 
south  by  shoals ;  and  westward  by  a  deposit  of  black  mud :  the 
deepest  sounding  in  the  lake,  thirty-five  feet,  is  found  between  it 
and  Stansbury  Island.  Off  the  northwestern  coast  is  a  rock,  call- 
ed, after  its  principal  peculiarity,  Egg  Island :  in  the  eastern  cliff 
there  is  said  to  be  a  cave,  described  to  resemble  the  Blue  Grotto 
at  Capri,  which  has  been  partially  explored.  Formerly  there  was 
a  small  pinnace  on  the  "  Big  Shallow  ;"  it  has  either  been  wreck- 
ed or  broken  up  for  fuel.*  Antelope  Island  contains  arid  ravines 
and  a  few  green  valleys,  besides  a  spring  of  pure  water,  and,  being 
safe  from  Indians,  it  is  much  esteemed  as  a  grazing-place. 

7.  Fremont  Island,  so  named  by  Captain  Stansbury  from  the 
first  explorer,  who  called  it,  after  the  rude  dissipation  of  a  dream 
of  "  tangled  wilderness  of  trees  and  shrubbery,  teeming  with  game 
of  every  description  that  the  neighboring  region  afforded,"  "Dis- 
appointment Island."  The  Mormons  have  preferred  "  Castle  Isl- 
and," suggested  by  its  mural  and  turreted  peak,  that  rises  above 
the  higher  levels.  It  lies  north  and  northeast  from  Antelope  Isl- 
and, parallel  with  the  mouth  of  the  Weber  River,  and  south  of 
Promontory  Point,  the  bluff  termination  of  a  rocky  tongue  which 
separates  Bear-River  Bay  from  the  body  of  the  lake.  Its  shape 
is  a  semilune,  fifteen  miles  in  circumference,  abounding  in  plants, 
especially  the  Indian  onion,  but  destitute  of  wood  and  water. 
Here,  on  the  summit.  Captain  Fremont  lost  the  "  brass  cover  to 
the  object-end  of  his  spy-glass" — disdain  not,  gentle  reader,  these 
little  reminiscences  !  —  and  Captain  Stansbury  failed  to  find  the 
relic. 

I  was  surprised  by  the  want  of  freshness  and  atmospheric  elas- 
ticity in  the  neighborhood  of  the  lake :  the  lij)S  were  salted  as  by 
sea  air,  but  there  the  similarity  ended.  We  prepared  for  bathing 
by  unhitching  the  mules  upon  the  usual  picnicking  place,  a  patch 
of  soft  white  sand  between  the  raised  shore  of  the  lake  and  the 
water  brink.  The  bank  supplies  a  plentiful  stream  of  water,  pota- 
ble, though  somewhat  brackish,  bitter,  and  sulphurous  :  it  shows 
its  effects,  however,  in  a  clump  of  plants,  wild  roses,  and  the  eu- 
phorbia of  many  names,  silk-plant,  vache  a  lait,  capote  de  sacarie, 
and  milk-plant.  The  familiar  magpie  prevented  the  solitude  of 
the  scene  being  too  impressive.  Here  was  also  a  vestige  of  hu- 
manity, a  kind  of  "lean-to"  of  dry  stone  wall,  with  the  bank  for  a 
back -bone :  you  might  have  ridden  over  it  without  knowing  that 
it  belonged  to  Mrs.  Smith  of  Vermont,  now  departed,  unless  warn- 

*  In  th*;  "Revue  des  Deux-Mondes"  (April,  1861)  we  are  told  that,  "Pendant 
I'etd  un  petit  bateau  a  vapeur  fait  un  service  re'gulier  sur  le  Lac  Sale."  Fresh  proof, 
if  it  be  required,  how  difficult,  or  rather  how  impossible,  it  is  for  any  amount  of  talent 
or  ingenuity  in  a  reviewer  to  supply  the  want  of  actual  eye-seeing  information.  The 
' '  Lac  Sale"  is  not  yet  come. 


Chap.  VII.         THE  BATH  IN  THE  GREAT  SALT  LAKE.  329 

ed  off  by  the  sudden  appearance  of  what  your  superior  sagacity 
would  have  discovered  to  be  a  chimney. 

The  bathing-place  is  behind  the  Black  Eock.  The  approach  is 
first  over  the  fine  soft  white  sand,  like  that  of  the  sea-shore,  but 
shell-less,  soppy  where  it  receives  the  spring-water,  and  almost  a 
quicksand  near  the  lake.  The  foot  crunches  through  caked  and 
crusty  salt-flakes,  here  white,  there  dark  green,  there  dun-colored 
ilke  hois  de  vache,  and  every  where  the  reverse  of  aromatic,  and 
sinks  deep  into  the  everlastingly  wet  sand  below.  This  leads  to 
the  neck  of  broken,  riven  stone  pavement,  whose  head  is  the  Black 
Rock.  As  the  lake  is  neared,  the  basalt-like  surface  becomes  red 
and  rusty,  the  points  are  diamonded  by  sparkling  spicule,  and  in 
the  hollows  and  crevices  where  the  waters  have  dried  to  salt  it 
gathers  in  the  form  of  icy  lumps.  A  dreadful  shock  then  awaits 
the  olfactory  nerves.  The  black  mud  of  peculiar  drift  before  al- 
luded to  proves  to  be  an  aceldama  of  insects :  banks  a  full  foot 
high,  composed  of  the  larvce^  exuvice,  and  mortal  coils  of  myriads 
of  worms,  musquetoes,  gnats,  and  gallinippers,  cast  up  by  the 
waves,  and  lining  the  little  bay,  as  they  ferment  and  fester  in  the 
burning  sun,  or  pickle  and  preserve  in  the  thick  brine.*  Escaping 
from  this  mass  of  fetor,  I  reached  the  farther  end  of  the  promon- 
tory where  the  Black  Eock  stood  decorously  between  the  bath- 
ing-place and  the  picnic  ground,  and  in  a  pleasant  frame  of  curi- 
osity descended  into  the  new  Dead  Sea. 

I  had  heard  strange  accounts  of  its  buoyancy.  It  was  said  to 
support  a  bather  as  if  he  were  sitting  in  an  arm-chair,  and  to  float 
him  like  an  unfresh  egg.  My  experience  diifers  in  this  point 
from  that  of  others.  There  was  no  difficulty  in  swimming,  nor 
indeed  in  sinking.  After  sundry  immersions  of  the  head,  in  order 
to  feel  if  it  really  stang  and  removed  the  skin,  like  a  mustard 
plaster — as  described — emboldened  by  the  detection  of  so  much 
hyperbole,  I  proceeded  to  duck  under  with  open  eyes,  and  smart- 
ed "for  my  pains."  The  sensation  did  not  come  on  suddenly; 
at  first  there  was  a  sneaking  twinge,  then  a  bold  succession  of 
twinges,  and  lastly  a  steady,  honest  burning  like  what  follows  a 
pinch  of  snuff  in  the  eyes.  There  was  no  fresh  water  at  hand ; 
so,  scrambling  upon  the  rock,  I  sat  there  for  half  an  hour,  pre- 
senting to  Nature  the  ludicrous  spectacle  of  a  man  weeping  flow- 
ing tears.  A  second  experiment  upon  its  taste  was  equally  satis- 
factory ;  I  can  easily  believe,  with  Captain  Stansbury,  that  a  man 
overboard  has  little  chance  against  asphyxiation ;  vox  faucibus 
hcesii  was  the  least  that  could  be  said  concerning  its  effects  upon 
my  masticators.  Those  who  try  such  experiments  may  be  warn- 
ed that  a  jug  filled  at  the  fresh  spring  is  necessary  in  more  ways 
than  one.     The  hair  on  emersion  is  powdered  like  the  plastered 

*  According  to  Mr.  T.  R.  Peale  (quoted  by  Captain  Stansbury,  Appendix  C), 
"More  than  -fTfths  of  the  mass  Is  composed  of  the  larva;  and  exuviae  of  the  Chirono- 
mus,  or  some  species  of  musqueto,  probably  undescribed." 


330  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VII. 

locks  of  tlie  knights  of  flamingo-plusli  and  bell-hanging  shoulder- 
knots,  and  there  is  a  clammy  stickiness,  which  is  exceedingly  un- 
pleasant. Salt,  moreover,  may  be  scraped  from  the  skin — imag- 
inative bathers  have  compared  themselves  to  Lot's  wife — and  the 
Ethiop,  now  prosaically  termed  "  nigger,"  comes  out  after  a  bath 
bleached,  whitewashed,  and  with  changed  epidermis. 

Notwithstanding  the  fumet  from  the  kitchen  of  that  genius  loci 
whom  I  daurna  name,  we  dined  with  excellent  appetite.  While 
the  mules  were  being  hitched  to,  I  found  an  opportunity  of  an- 
other survey  from  below  the  Black  Eock:  this  look-out  station 
is  sometimes  ascended  by  those  gifted  with  less  than  the  normal 
modicum  of  common  sense.  The  lands  immediately  about  the 
lake  are  flat,  rising  almost  imperceptibly  to  the  base  of  abrupt 
hills,  which  are  broken  in  places  by  soft  and  sandy  barriers,  irre- 
claimable for  agriculture,  but  here  and  there  fit  for  grazing;  where 
springs  exist,  they  burst  out  at  too  low  a  level  for  irrigation. 
The  meridional  range  of  the  Oquirrh,  at  whose  northern  point  we 
were  standing,  divides  the  Great  Salt  Lake  Valley  from  its  west- 
ern neighbor  Tooele  or  Tuilla,  which  in  sound  curiously  resem- 
bles the  Arabic  Tawileh — the  Long  Yalley.  It  runs  like  most 
of  these  formations  from  north  to  south :  it  is  divided  by  a  trans- 
verse ridge  declining  westward,  and  not  unaptly  called  Traverse 
Mountain,  from  Rush  Valley,  which  again  is  similarly  separated 
from  Cedar  Valley.  From  the  point  where  we  stood,  the  only 
way  to  Tooele  settlement  is  round  the  north  point  of  West  Mount- 
ain, a  bold  headland,  rugged  with  rocks  and  trees.  Westward  of 
Tooele  Valley,  and  separated  by  a  sister  range  to  the  Oquirrh, 
lies  Spring  Valley,  so  called  because  it  boasts  a  sweet  fountain, 
and  south  of  this  "  Skull  Valley" — an  ominous  name,  but  the  evil 
omen  was  to  the  bison. 

Bidding  a  long  farewell  to  that  inland  briny  sea,  which  appar- 
ently has  no  business  there,  we  turned  our  faces  eastward  as  the 
sun  was  declining.  The  view  had  memorable  beauties.  From  the 
blue  and  purple  clouds,  gorgeously  edged  with  celestial  fire,  shot 
up  a  fan  of  penciled  and  colored  light,  extending  half  way  to  the 
zenith,  while  in  the  south  and  southeast  lightnings  played  among 
the  darker  mist-masses,  which  backed  the  golden  and  emerald 
bench-lands  of  the  farther  valley.  The  splendid  sunset  gave  a 
reflex  of  its  loveliness  to  the  alkaline  and  artemisia  barrens  be- 
fore us.  Opposite,  the  Wasach,  vast  and  voluminous,  the  store- 
house 'of  storms,  and  of  the  hundred  streams  that  cool  the  thirsty 
earth,  rose  in  stern  and  gloomy  grandeur,  which  even  the  last 
smile  of  day  failed  to  soften,  over  the  subject  plain.  Northward, 
to  a  considerable  distance,  the  lake-lands  lay  uninterrupted  save 
by  an  occasional  bench  and  a  distant  swell,  resembling  the  upper 
convexity  of  a  thunder-cloud.  As  we  advanced,  the  city  became 
dimly  discernible  beyond  Jordan,  built  on  ground  gently  rising 
away  from  the  lake,  and  strongly  nestling  under  its  protecting 


Chap.  VII.  TRIP  TO  CAMP  FLOYD.  331 

mountains.  A  little  to  its  northeast,  a  thin  white  vapor,  like 
the  spray  of  a  spouting  whale,  showed  the  direction  of  the  Hot 
Springs :  as  time  wore  on  it  rolled  away,  condensed  by  the  cool- 
ing air,  like  the  smoke  of  a  locomotive  before  the  evening  breeze. 
Then  the  prominent  features  of  the  city  came  into  view,  the  build- 
ings separated  themselves  from  their  neighbors  by  patches  and 
shades  of  several  green,  the  streets  opened  out  their  regular  rows 
and  formal  lines;  once  more  we  rolled  over  Jordan's  rickety 
bridge,  and  found  ourselves  again  in  the  Holy  City  of  the  Far 
West. 

The  ultimate  destination  of  the  Judiciary  whom  I  had  accom- 
panied was  Carson  Valley,  in  the  Sierra  Nevada,  a  distance  of 
some  hundreds  of  miles  through  a  wild  country  where  "lifting  of 
hair"  is  by  no  means  uncommon.  The  judge,  though  not  a  suck- 
ing diplomat,  had  greenly  relied  upon  bona  verla  at  Washington 
for  transportation,  escort,  and  other  necessaries  which  would  be 
easily  procurable  at  Camp  Floyd.  It  was  soon  found  advisable 
to  apply  to  the  military  authorities  at  the  cantonment.  The 
coach,  as  I  have  said,  had  ceased  to  run  beyond  Great  Salt  Lake 
City.  In  May,  1858,  a  contract  had  been  made  with  Major  George 
Chorpenning  to  transport  mails  and  passengers  —  the  fare  being 
$120— from  Utah  to  California,  he  receiving  $130,000.  This  last- 
ed till  September,  1859,  when  the  drivers,  complaining  that  the 
road-agents  charged  with  paying  them  for  eighteen  months  had 
expended  the  '^ rocks"  in  the  hells  of  San  Francisco,  notably 
evinced  their  race's  power  of  self-government  by  seizing  and  sell- 
ing off  by  auction  wagons  and  similar  movable  property.  On  the 
20th  of  S[arch,  1860,  it  came  into  the  hands  of  the  proprietors  of 
the  Eastern  line,  Messrs.  Eussell  and  Co.,  who  ran  a  mail- wagon 
first  to  California,  then  to  Camp  Floyd,  and  lastly,  on  the  1st  of 
June,  finding  their  expenditure  excessive,  packed  the  mails  on 
mules.*  Single  travelers  were  sometimes  thus  pushed  through, 
starting  on  the  Wednesdays,  once  a  fortnight ;  for  a  party  like 
ours  such  a  proceeding  would  have  been  impossible.  Conse- 
quently, the  judge  and  I  set  out  for  Camp  Floyd  to  see  what  could 
be  done  by  "  Uncle  Sam"  and  his  "  eagles." 

Mr.  Gilbert  —  of  the  firm  of  Gilbert,  Gerrish,  and  Co.,  general 
(Gentile)  merchants — offered  us  seats  in  his  trotting  wagon,  drawn 
by  a  fine  tall  pair  of  iron-gray  mules,  that  cost  $500  the  twain, 
and  were  christened  Julia  and  Sally,  after,  I  believe,  the  fair  daugh- 
ters of  the  officer  who  had  lately  commanded  the  district.  With 
a  fine  clear  day  and  a  breeze  which  veiled  us  with  dust-hangings 
— the  highway  must  be  a  sea  of  mud  in  wet  weather — we  set  out 
along  the  county  road,  leading  from  the  southeastern  angle  of  the 
Holy  City.  Our  route  lay  over  the  strip  of  alluvium  that  sepa- 
rates the  Wasach  Mountains  from  the  waters  of  Jordan :  it  is  cut 
by  a  multitude  of  streamlets  rising  from  the  kanyons ;  the  prin- 

*  They  carry  50  to  60  lbs. ;  and  the  schedule  time  to  Placerville  is  sixteen  davs. 


332  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VII. 

cipal  are  Mill  Creek,  Big  Cotton-wood,  Little  Cotton-wood,  Dry 
Cotton-wood,  and  Willow  Creek,  The  names  are  translated  from 
the  Indians,  and  we  saw  from  the  road  traces  of  the  aborigines, 
who  were  sweeping  crickets  and  grass-seed  into  their  large  con- 
ical baskets — among  these  ragged  gleaners  we  looked  in  vain  for 
a  Ruth.  Near  Big  Cotton-wood,  where  there  is  a  settlement  dis- 
tant seven  miles  from  the  city,  an  English  woman  came  across  the 
fields  and  complained  that  she  had  been  frightened  by  four  In- 
dian braves  who  had  been  riding  by  to  bring  in  a  stolen  horse. 
The  waters  of  the  kanyons  are  exceedingly  cool,  sweet,  and  clear, 
and  suggested  frequent  reference  to  a  superior  kind,  of  tap  which 
had  been  stored  away  within  the  trap.  In  proportion  as  we  left 
the  city,  the  sterility  of  the  River  Valley  increased ;  cultivation 
was  unseen  except  upon  the  margins  of  the  streams,  and  the  look 
of  the  land  was  "  real  mean."  In  front  of  us  lay  the  denticulated 
bench  bounding  the  southern  end  of  the  valley. 

After  twenty  miles  from  the  city  we  reached  a  ranch  on  rising 
ground,  near  the  water-gate  of  the  Jordan.  It  was  built  at  an 
expense  of  $17,000,  and  was  called  the  Utah  Brewery.  Despite, 
however,  the  plenty  of  hop  and  barley,  the  speculation  proved  a 
failure,  and  the  house  had  become  a  kind  of  mail-station.  Be- 
tween it  and  the  river  were  a  number  of  little  rush-girt  "eyes" — 
round  pools,  some  hot,  others  cold — and  said  to  be  unfathomable ; 
that  is  to  sa}'',  from  twenty  to  thirty  fathoms  deep.  They  related 
that  a  dragoon,  slipping  with  his  charger  into  one  of  them,  found 
a  watery  grave,  where  a  drier  death  might  have  been  expected. 
At  the  ranch  we  rested  for  an  hour,  but  called  in  vain  for  food. 
From  the  Utah  Brewery,  which  is  about  halfway,  drivers  reckon 
twenty-two  miles  to  Camp  Floyd,  making  a  total  of  forty-two  to 
forty-three  miles  between  the  head-quarters  of  the  saint  and  the 
sinner,  and  we  therefore  looked  forward  to  a  "  banian  day." 

About  noon  we  hitched  to  and  proceeded  to  ascend  Traverse 
Mountain,  a  ridge-like  spur  of  the  Wasach,  running  east  and  west. 
It  separates  the  Valley  of  the  Northern  or  Great  Salt  Lake  from 
the  basin  of  the  Utah,  or  Sweetwater  Lake,  to  the  southward,  and 
is  broken  through  by  the  waters  of  Jordan.  The  young  river — 
called  Piya  Ogwap,  or  the  Big  Water,  by  the  Shoshonees — here 
rushes  in  a  foaming  shallow  stream,  that  can  barely  float  a  dug- 
out, over  a  rocky,  pebbly  bed,  in  the  sole  of  a  deep  but  short  kan- 
yon,  which  winds  its  way  through  the  cross  range.  The  descent 
is  about  100  feet  in  two  miles,  after  which  the  course  serpentines, 
the  banks  fall,  and  the  current  becomes  gentle. 

As  we  toiled  up  the  Dug-way,  the  graded  incline  that  runs 
along  the  shoulder  of  the  mountain,  we  saw  a  fine  back  view  of 
the  Happy  Valley  through  an  atmosphere  clear  as  that  of  the 
English  littoral  before  rain.  Advancing  higher,  we  met,  face  to 
face,  an  ambulance  full  of  uniform  e7i  route  to  the  Holy  City,  drawn 
by  four  neat  mules,  and  accompanied  by  strikers — military  serv- 


Chap.  VII.  UTAH  LAKE.  333 

ants.  We  drew  up,  the  judge  was  readily  recognized,  and  I  was 
introduced  to  Captains  Hetb,  Clarke,  and  Gibson,  and  to  Lieuten- 
ant Robinson.  They  began  with  an  act  of  charity,  supplying  ham 
sandwiches  to  half-starved  men,  and  I  afterward  spent  pleasant 
evenings  with  them  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  and  became  Captain 
Heth's  guest  at  Camp  Floyd.  Their  kindness  and  hospitality 
lasted  to  the  end  of  my  stay.  After  the  usual  "liquoring  up," 
they  pointed  to  Ash  Hollow,  the  depths  below,  where  the  Mor- 
mons had  intended  to  make  a  new  Thermopylaa.  Promising  to 
meet  them  again,  we  then  shook  hands  and  resumed  our  road. 

The  steep  descent  on  the  counterslope  of  Traverse  Mountain 
disclosed  to  us  the  first  sight  of  Utah  Lake,  which  is  to  its  sister 
what  Carmel  is  to  Lebanon.  It  was  a  soft  and  sunny,  a  placid 
and  beautiful  landscape,  highly  refreshing  after  the  arid  lands  on 
the  other  side.  A  panorama  of  lake,  plain,  and  river  lay  before 
us.  On  the  east,  south,  and  west  were  rugged  walls  and  peaks  of 
mountain  and  hill ;  and  northward  a  broad  grassy  slope  rose  to 
the  divide  between  the  valleys  of  the  Fresh  and  of  the  Salt  Lake. 
From  afar  the  binding  of  plain  round  the  basin  appeared  so  nar- 
row that  the  mountains  seemed  to  dip  their  feet  into  the  quiet 
reservoir ;  and  beyond  the  southern  point  the  lone  peak  of  lofty 
jS'ebo  stood,  to  adopt  the  Koranic  comparison,  like  one  of  the  pins 
which  fasten  down  the  plains  of  earth.  A  nearer  approach  dis- 
covers a  broad  belt  of  meadow,  rich  alluvial  soil,  in  parts  marshy, 
and  in  others  arable,  wheat  and  root-crop  flourishing  in  the  bot- 
tom, and  bunch-grass  upon  the  acclivities.  The  breadth  is  great- 
er to  the  west  and  south  of  the  lake  than  in  other  parts.  It  is  cut 
by  many  a  poplar-fringed  stream  that  issues  from  the  tremendous 
gorges  around — the  American  Fork,  the  Timpanogos*  or  Provo 
River,  and  the  Spanish  Fork.  On  the  near  side,  beyond  the  wind- 
ing Jordan,  lay  little  Lehi,  whose  houses  were  half  hid  by  black 
trees ;  and  eastward  of  the  Utah  Water,  dimly  visible,  was  Provo 
City,  on  a  plaui  watered  by  four  creeks.  Such  were  the  environs 
of  the  Sea  of  Tiberias. 

The  Utah  Lake,  another  Judean  analogue,  derives  its  supplies 
from  the  western  versant  of  the  Wasach.  -It  is  in  shape  an  irreg- 
ular triangle,  the  southern  arm  forming  a  very  acute  angle.  The 
extreme  length  is  thirty  miles,  and  the  greatest  breadth  is  fifteen. 
It  owes  its  sweetness,  which,  however,  is  by  no  means  remarkable, 
to  its  northern  drainage,  the  Piya  Ogwap,  alias  Utah  Outlet,  alias 
Jordan  River.  Near  the  shores  the  water  soon  deepens  to  fifteen 
feet ;  the  bottom  is  said  to  be  smooth,  uniform,  and  very  profound 
in  places;  but  probably  it  has  never  been  sounded.     The  bed, 

*  From  Timpa,  a  rock,  and  ogioabe,  contracted  to  oge,  a  river,  in  the  Yuta  dialect. 
In  English  maps  published  as  late  as  seven  years  ago,  "  Timpanogos"  is  applied  to 
the  Great  Salt  Lake !  Provo  or  Provaux  is  the  name  of  a  Canadian  trapper  and 
trader,  who  in  past  times  defeated  with  eighty  men  a  thousand  Indians,  and  was 
killed  at  the  moment  of  victory.  The  Mormons  call  the  City  Provo,  and  Gentiles 
prefer  as  a  "rile"  Timpanogos. 


33J.  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VH. 

where  it  shows,  is  pebbly ;  a  white,  chalky  incrustation  covers  tho 
shallower  bottom ;  shells,  especially  the  fresh- water  clam,  are  nu- 
merous upon  the  watery  margin ;  the  flaggy  "  Deseret  weed"  in 
the  tulares  is  ten  feet  high,'^  and  thicket  is  dense  in  places  where 
rock  does  not  occupy  the  soil.  The  western  side  is  arid  for  want 
of  influents;  there  is  a  "lone  tree,"  a  solitary  cotton-wood,  con- 
spicuous amid  the  grazing-ground  of  bunch-grass,  sage,  and  grease- 
wood,  and  the  only  inhabitants,  excepting  a  single  ranch. — ^Evan's 
— are,  apparently,  the  Phrynosoma  and  the  lizard,  the  raven  and 
the  jackass-rabbit.  The  Utah  Lake  freezes  in  December,  Janu- 
ary, and  February.  At  these  months  the  Jordan  rolls  down  floes 
of  ice,  but  it  is  seldom  to  be  traversed  on  foot.  In  the  flood  sea- 
son it  rises  two,  and  the  wind  tide  extends  to  about  three  feet.  It 
is  still  full  of  fish,  which  in  former  times  were  carried  off  in  bar- 
rels. The  white  trout  weigh  thirty  pounds.  There  are  many 
kinds  of  mountain  trout  averaging  three  pounds,  while  salmon 
trout,  suckers,  and  mudfish  are  uncommonly  large  and  plentiful ; 
water-snakes  and  "  horsehair  fish"  are  also  found. 

After  descending  the  steep  incline  we  forded  the  Jordan,  at  that 
point  100  feet  broad,  and  deep  to  the  wagon-hubs.  The  current 
was  not  too  swift  to  prevent  the  growth  of  weeds.  The  water 
was  of  sulphury  color,  the  effect  of  chalk,  and  the  taste  was  brack- 
ish, but  not  unpleasant;  cattle  are  said  to  like  it.  The  fording 
was  followed  by  a  long  ascent,  the  divide  between  Utah  Valley 
and  its  western  neighbor  Cedar  Valley.  About  half  way  between 
the  Brewery  and  the  Camp  is  a  station,  held  by  a  Shropshire  Mor- 
mon, whose  only  name,  as  far  as  I  could  discover,  was  Joe  Dug- 
out, so  called,  like  the  Watertons  de  Waterton,  from  the  style  of 
his  habitation.  He  had  married  a  young  woman,  who  deterred 
him  from  giving  her  a  sister — every  Oriental  language  has  a  word 
to  express  what  in  English,  which  lacks  the  thing,  is  rudely  trans- 
lated "  a  rival  wife" — by  threatening  to  have  his  ears  cut  off  by 
the  "  horfficers."  Joe,  however,  seemed  quite  resigned  to  the 
pains  and  penalties  of  monogamy,  and,  what  was  more  to  our 
purpose,  had  a  good  brew  of  porter  and  Lager-bier. 

Having  passed  on  the  way  a  road  that  branches  off  to  the  old 
camp,  which  was  deserted  for  want  of  water,  we  sighted  from  afar 
the  new  cantonment.  It  lies  in  a  circular  basin,  surrounded  by 
irregular  hills  of  various  height,  still  wooded  with  black  cedar, 
where  not  easily  felled,  and  clustering  upon  the  banks  of  Cedar 
Creek,  a  rivulet  which  presently  sinks  in  a  black  puddly  mud. 
For  a  more  thoroughly  detestable  spot  one  must  repair  to  Grharra, 
or  some  similar  purgatorial  place  in  Lower  Sindh.  The  winter 
is  long  and  rigorous,  the  summer  hot  and  uncomfortable,  the  alka- 
line water  curdles  soap,  and  the  dust-storms  remind  one  of  the 

*  Tulare  Is  a  marsh  of  bulrush  (Scirpns  lacustris'),  which  is  found  extending  over 
immense  tracts  of  river  valley  in  Western  America.  "Tooly"  water,  as  it  is  pro- 
nounced, is  that  which  is  flavored  or  tainted  by  it. 


CuAP.VII.  CAMP  FLOYD.  335 

Punjaub.  I  lost  no  time  in  suggesting  to  my  compagnon  de  voy- 
age, Lieutenant  Dana,  as  a  return  for  his  kindness  in  supplying 
me  with  a  "Bayonet  Exercise,"  and  other  papers,  our  old  cam- 
paigning habit  of  hanging  wet  canvas  before  every  adit,  and  re- 
ceived the  well-merited  thanks  of  Madam.  The  hardest  part  of 
these  hardships  is  that  they  are  wholly  purposeless.  Every  adobe 
brick  in  the  place  has  been  estimated  to  have  cost  a  cent,  as  at 
Aden  each  cut  stone  was  counted  a  rupee ;  and  the  purchase  of 
lumber  has  enriched  the  enemy.  In  1858  the  Peace  Commis- 
sioners sent  by  the  supreme  government  conceded  to  the  Mor- 
mons a  point  which  saved  the  Saints.  The  army  was  not  to  be 
"  located"  within  forty  miles  of  Great  Salt  Lake  City ;  thus  the 
pretty  sites  about  Utah  Lake  were  banned  to  them,  and  the  Mor- 
mons, it  is  said,  "jockeyed"  them  out  of  the  rich  and  fertile  Cache 
Valley,  eighty  miles  north  of  the  head-quarters. 

A  broken  wall  surrounds  this  horrid  hole.  Julia  and  Sally 
carried  us  in  with  unflagging  vigor.  We  passed  through  Fair- 
field, less  euphoniously  termed  Frogtown,  the  bazar  of  the  can- 
tonment on  the  other  side  of  the  creek.  During  the  days  when 
Camp  Floj^d  contained  its  full  complement  of  camp  followers — 
6000  souls — now  reduced  to  100  or  200  men,  it  must  have  been 
a  delectable  spot,  teeming  with  gamblers  and  blacklegs,  grog- 
house-keepers  and  prostitutes :  the  revolver  and  the  bowie-knife 
had  nightly  work  to  do  there,  and  the  moral  Saints  were  fond  of 
likening  Frogtown  to  certain  Cities  of  the  Plains.  Of  late  years 
it  has  become  more  respectable,  and  now  it  contains  some  good 
stores. 

We  removed  from  the  wagon  the  mail-bags  containing  letters 
for  the  camp,  and  made  ourselves  at  home  with  the  hospitable 
Gilbert.  On  the  next  day,  after  "  morning  glory"  and  breakfast, 
we  called  upon  the  ofl&cer  commanding  the  department.  Colonel 
P.  St.  G.  Cooke,  of  the  2d  Dragoons,  and  upon  the  commandant 
of  the  cantonment,  Lieutenant  Colonel  C.  F.  Smith.  They  intro- 
duced us  to  the  greater  part  of  the  officers,  and,  though  living  in 
camp  fashion,  did  not  fail  to  take  in  the  strangers  after  the  an- 
cient,'not  the  modern,  acceptation  of  the  term.  It  is  a  sensible 
pleasure,  which  every  military  man  has  remarked,  to  exchange 
the  common  run  of  civilian  for  soldier  society  in  the  United 
States.  The  reveille  in  the  morning  speaks  of  discipline;  the 
guard-mounting  has  a  wholesome  military  sound ;  there  is  a  habit 
of  'tention  and  of  saluting  whicli  suggests  some  subordination ; 
the  orderlies  say  "  Sir,"  not  Sirree  nor  Sirree-bob.  The  stiffness 
and  ungeniality  of  professionals,  who  are  all  running  a  race  for 
wealth  or  fame,  give  way  in  a  service  of  seniority,  and  where  men 
become  brothers,  to  the  frankness  which  belongs  to  the  trade  of 
arms.  The  Kshatriya,  or  fighting  caste,  in  the  States  is  distinctly 
marked.  The  officers,  both  of  the  navy  and  the  army,  are,  for 
the  most  part.  Southerners,  and  are  separated  by  their  position 


336  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VH. 

from  general  society.  The  civilian,  as  was  the  case  in  England 
twenty  years  ago,  dislikes  the  uniform.  His  principal  boasts  are. 
that  he  pays  his  fighting  servants  well,  and  that  he — a  militia- 
man— is  far  superior  to  the  regular.  A  company  of  Cadets,  called 
the  Chicago  Zouaves,  during  the  summer  of  1860,  made  a  sensa- 
tion throughout  the  land.  The  newspaper  writers  spoke  of  them 
in  terms  far  higher  than  have  been  lavished  upon  the  flower  of 
the  French  army ;  even  the  military  professionals  were  obliged 
to  join  in  the  cry.  As  a  republican,  the  citizen  looks  upon  a  sol- 
dier as  a  drone.  "  I  hate  those  cormorants,"  said  to  me  an  Amer- 
ican diplomat,  who,  ixir  'parenthlse^  bad  made  a  fortune  by  the  law, 
as  he  entered  a  Viennese  cafe.  L'arte  della  guerra  presto  s'  impara 
is  his  motto,  and  he  evinces  his  love  of  the  civilian  element  by 
giving  away  a  considerable  percentage  of  commissions  in  the  army 
to  those  whose  political  influence  enables  them  to  dispense  with 
the  preparation  of  West  Point. 

I  am  here  tempted  to  a  few  words  concerning  the  cheap  de- 
fense and  the  chief  pride  of  the  United  States,  viz.,  her  irregular 
army.  The  opposite  table  shows  the  forces  of  the  militia  to  be 
three  millions,  while  the  regular  army  does  not  number  19,000. 
The  institution  is,  therefore,  a  kind  of  public,  a  writing,  speaking, 
voting  body,  which  makes  itself  heard  and  felt,  while  the  exist- 
ence of  the  regulars  is  almost  ignored.  To  hint  aught  against  the 
militia  in  the  United  States  is  sure  seriously  to  "rile  up"  your 
civil  audience,  and  Elijah  Pogram  will  perhaps  let  you  know  that 
you  can  not  know  what  you  are  talking  about.  The  outspoken 
Britisher,  despite  his  title  and  his  rank  as  a  general  officer,  had  a 
"  squeak"  for  his  commission  when,  in  the  beginning  of  the  vol- 
unteer mania,  he  spoke  of  the  new  levies  as  a  useless  body  of  men: 
it  is  on  the  same  principle  in  the  United  States.  Thus  also  the 
liberal  candidate  declares  to  his  electors  his  "firm  belief  that,  with 
all  our  enormous  expenditure,  the  country  had  not  felt  itself  se- 
cure, and  straightway  a  noble  arm  of  defense,  springing  unbought 
from  the  patriotism  of  the  people,  had  crept  into  existence,  form- 
ing a  better  shield  for  our  national  liberties  than  all  that  we  had 
been  able  to  buy  with  our  mounds  of  gold."  (Cheers.)  The  ci- 
vilian in  the  United  States  boasts  of  his  military  institutions,  his 
West  Point  and  his  regular  army,  and  never  fails  to  inform  a 
stranger  that  it  is  better  paid  than  any  force  in  Europe.  On  the 
other  hand,  he  prides  himself  upon,  as  he  is  probably  identified 
with,  the  militia. 

That  writing,  speaking,  and  voting  have  borne  fruit  in  favor 
of  the  militia,  may  be  read  in  the  history  of  the  Americo-Mexican 
War.  The  fame  of  the  irregulars  penetrated  to  Calcutta  and  Chi- 
na: it  was  stopped  only  by  the  Orient  sun.  But  who  ever  heard  of 
the  regulars?  The  "newspaper  heroes"  were  almost  all  militiamen, 
rangers,  and  other  guerrillas:  "keeping  an  editor  in  pay"  is  now 
a  standing  sarcasm.     The  sages  of  the  Eevolution  initiated  a  yeo- 


Chap.  VII. 


UNITED  STATES  MILITIA. 


837 


MILITIA  FORCE  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

General  Abstract  of  the  Militia  Force  of  the  United  States,  according  to  the  latest  Re- 
turns received  at  the  Office  of  the  Adjutant  General, 


Stutos  and  Territories. 


For 
the 
Year 


£  g  General!  Field 
n.a  I  Staff  jOfficers, 
(S§    Officers,      etc. 


Total       Non-comuus. 
comn.i»-  .sionedOtficers, 

sioned         Musicmno, 
Officers.    Artihcers,  ai 


Maine 

New  Hampshire 

Massachusetts 

Vermont 

Rhode  Island 

Connecticut 

New  York 

New  Jersey 

Pennsylvania 

Delaware 

Maryland 

Virginia 

North  Carolina 

South  Carolina 

Georgia 

Florida 

Alabama 

Louisiana 

Mississippi 

Tennessee 

Kentucky 

Ohio 

Michigan 

Indiana 

Illinois 

Wisconsin 

Iowa 

Missouri 

Arkansas 

Texas 

California 

Minnesota 

Oregon. 

Washington  Territory 
Nebraska  Tenitory.... 

Kansas  Territory 

Territory  of  Utah 

Territory  of  N.  Mexico 
District  of  Columbia.. 


1856! 

1854J 

1859 

1843 

1858 

1858 

1856 

1852 

1858 

1827 

1838 

1858 

1845 

1856 

1850 

1845 

1851 

1859 

1838 

1840 

1852 

1858 

1854 

1832 

1855 

1855 

1853 
1859 
1847 
1857 
1859 


1853 
1852 


52 

202 

47 

51 

22 

9 

299 


36 
119 
111 
224 
106 
82 
1,531 


68 


71 
544 


133 

135 

91 

14 

142 

129 

70 

79 

14 


123 

110 


17 

39 

45 

126 


10 


657 
535 
624 
95 
775 
542 
856 
392 
1,165 


147 

566 


215 

4 

179 

248 

11 


230 
895 
353 
801 
26 
199 
5,495 


364 
1,763 


340 

1,227 

521 

1,088 
156 
293 

7,388 


447 
2,397 


3,449 
1,909 
4,296 

508 
1,883 
2,105 

348 
2,644 
3,517 


2,358 
2,154 


904 

6 
911 
940 
17. 


48       235 
28       1851 


4,267 
2,599 
5,050 

620 
2,832 
2,792 

825 
3,607 
4,870 


73,248 
32,311 

157,347 
22,827 
16,555 
51,312 

329,847 


8,782 
44,467 


2,858 
2,861 


1,142 


1,139 

1,248 
330 


75,181 
33,473 
73,649 
11,502 
73,830 
88,532 
35,259 
67,645 
84,109 


94,236 
51,052 


50,179 

117,959 
46,611 
18,518 

207,400 


285         2,536 
2261        7,975 


73,552 
33,538 

157,868 
23,915 
16,711 
51,605 

337,235 
81,984 

350,000 

9,229 

40,864 

150,000 
79,448 
36,072 
78,699 
12,122 
76,062 
91,324 
36,084 
71,252 
88,979 

279,809 

97,094 

53,913 

257,420 

51,321 

118,047 
47,750 
19,766 

207,730 
23,972 


2,821 
8,201 


Grand  aggregate...! |515  2,374  9,884  38,687,51,460,1,876,342  3,070,9871 


rnanry  second  to  none  in  the  •world :  tliej  liad,  hovrever,  among 
them  crowds  of  frontiersmen  accustomed  to  deal  with  the  bear 
and  the  Indian,  not  with  the  antelope  and  the  deer.  The  Texan 
Eangers  in  later  times  were  a  first-rate  body  of  men  for  irregular 
purposes,  not  to  be  confounded  with  the  militia,  yet  always  put 
forward  as  a  proof  how  superior  to  the  "sweepings  of  cities,"  as 
the  regular  army  was  once  called  in  the  Senate,  are  the  irregulars, 
who  "never  fire  a  random  shot,  never  draw  trigger  till  their  aim 
is  sure,"  and  are  "here  to-night  and  to-morrow  are  fifty  miles  off." 
But  the  true  modern  militia  is  pronounced  by  the  best  authorities 


338  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VH. 

— indeed,  bj  all  who  hold  it  no  economy  to  be  ill  served,  for  any 
but  purely  defensive  purposes,  a  humbug,  -which  costs  in  cam- 
paigns more  blood  and  gold — neglect  of  business  is  perhaps  the 
chief  item  of  the  expenditure — than  a  standing  army  would.  As 
a  '"  Grarde  IS^ationale"  it  is  quite  efficient.  When  called  out  for 
distant  service,  as  in  the  Mexican  War,  every  2'>(:^i'n,  fault  becomes 
apparent.  Personally  the  men  suffer  severely  from  unaccustomed 
hardship  and  exposure ;  in  dangerous  climates  they  die  like  sheep ; 
half  are  in  hospital,  and  the  other  half  must  nurse  them :  Nature 
soon  becomes  stronger  than  martial  law;  under  the  fatigue  of 
the  march  they  will  throw  away  their  rations  and  military  nec- 
essaries rather  than  take  the  trouble  to  carry  them :  improvident 
and  wasteful,  their  convoys  are  timid  and  unmanageable.  Men- 
tally they  are  in  many  cases  men  ignoring  the  common  restraints 
of  society,  profoundly  impressed  with  insubordination,  which  dis- 
plays equality,  which  has  to  learn  all  the  wholesome  duty  of  obe- 
dience, and  which  begins  with  as  much  respect  for  discipline  as 
for  the  campaigns  of  Frederick  the  Grreat.  If  inclined  to  retire, 
they  can  stay  at  home  and  obtain  double  or  treble  the  wages: 
not  a  few  are  driven  to  service  by  that  enthusiasm  which,  as  Sir 
Charles  Napier  well  remarked,  readily  makes  men  run  away. 
Their  various  defects  make  organization  painfully  slow.  In  camp 
they  amuse  themselves  with  drawing  rations,  target  practice,  ask- 
ing silly  questions,  electing  officers,  holding  meetings,  issuing  or- 
ders, disobeying  orders,  "'cussing  and  discussing:"  the  sentinels 
will  sit  down  to  a  quiet  euchre  after  planting  their  bayonets  in  the 
ground,  and  to  all  attempts  at  dislodging  them  the  reply  will  be, 
"  You  go  to  — — ,  Cap. !  I'm  as  good  a  man  as  you."  In  the 
field,  like  all  raw  levies,  they  are  apt  to  be  alarmed  by  any  thing 
unaccustomed,  as  the  sound  of  musketry  from  the  rear,  or  a  threat- 
ened flank  attack :  they  can  not  reserve  their  fire ;  they  aim  wild- 
ly, to  the  peril  of  friend  and  foe,  and  they  have  been  accused  of 
unmilitary  cruelties,  such  as  scalping  and  flaying  men,  shooting 
and  killing  squaws  and  children.  And  they  never  fail,  after  the 
fashion  of  such  men,  to  claim  that  they  have  done  all  the  fight- 
ing.* 

Such  is,  I  believe,  the  United  States  militia  at  the  beginning  of 
a  campaign.  After  a  reasonable  time,  say  a  year,  w^hich  kills  off 
the  weak  and  sickly,  and  rubs  out  the  brawler  and  the  mutineer ; 
when  men  have  learned  to  distinguish  the  difference  between  the 
often  Dutch  courage  of  a  bowie-knife  squabble  and  the  moral  for- 
titude that  stands  firm  in  presence  of  famine  or  a  night  attack, 
then  they  become  regulars.  The  American — by  which  I  under- 
stand a  man  whose  father  is  born  in  the  United  States — is  a  first- 
rate  soldier,  distinguished  by  his  superior  intelligence  from  his 
compeers  in  other  lands;  but  he  rarely  takes  to  soldiering.  There 
are  not  more  than  five  of  these  men  per  compan}',  the  rest  being 

*  These  remarks  were  penned  in  1860 ;  I  see  no  reason  to  alter  them  in  18G1. 


Chap.  VII.  HATRED  AND  MURDER.  339 

all  Germans  and  Irishmen.  The  percentage  in  the  navy  is  great- 
er, yet  it  is  still  inconsiderable.  The  Mexican  War,  as  History 
"writes  it,  is  the  triumph  of  the  militia,  whom  old  "  Rough  and 
Eeady"  led  to  conquest  as  to  a  "manifest  destiny."*  On  the  oth- 
er hand,  the  old  and  distinguished  officer  who  succeeded  General 
Taylor  has  occasionally,  it  is  said,  given  utterance  to  opinions  con- 
cerning the  irregulars  which  contrast  strongly  with  those  general- 
ly attributed  to  him. 

At  Camp  Floyd  I  found  feeling  running  high  against  the  Mor- 
mons. "  They  hate  us,  and  we  hate  them,"  said  an  intelligent 
officer ;  consequently,  every  statement  here,  as  in  the  city,  must 
be  received  with  many  grains  of  salt.  At  Camp  Floyd  one  hears 
the  worst  version  of  every  fact,  which,  as  usual  hereabouts,  has  its 
many  distinct  facets.  These  anti-Mormons  declare  that  ten  mur- 
ders per  annum  during  the  last  twelve  years  have  been  commit- 
ted without  punishment  in  New  Zion,  whereas  New  York  averages 
18'33.  They  attribute  the  phenomenon  to  the  impossibility  of 
obtaining  testimony,  and  the  undue  whitewashing  action  of  juries, 
which  the  Mormons  declare  to  be  "punctual  and  hard-working  in 
sustaining  the  dignity  of  the  law,"  and  praise  for  their  "  unparal- 
leled habits  of  industry  and  sobriety,  order,  and  respect  to  just 
rights."  Whatever  objection  I  made  was  always  answered  by  the 
deception  of  appearances,  and  the  assertion  that  whenever  a  stran- 
ger enters  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  one  or  two  plausible  Mormons 
are  told  off  to  amuse  and  hoodwink  him.  Similarly  the  Mormons 
charge  the  Christians  with  violent  injustice.  On  a  late  occasion, 
the  mayor  of  Springville,  Mr.  H.  F.  Macdonald,  and  the  bishop 
were  seized  simply  because  they  were  Church  dignitaries,  on  the 
occasion  of  a  murder,  and  the  former,  after  durance  vile  of  months 
at  Camp  Floyd,  made  his  escape  and  walks  about  a  free  man, 
swearing  that  he  will  not  again  be  taken  alive.  In  1853,  Captain 
J.  W.  Gunnison  and  seven  of  his  party  were  murdered  near  Nicol- 
let on  Sevier  River,  twenty-five  miles  south  of  Nephi  City.  The 
anti-Mormons  declare  that  the  deed  was  done  under  high  counsel, 
by  "white  Indians,"  to  prevent  the  exploration  of  a  route  to  Cali- 
fornia, and  the  disclosures  which  were  likely  to  be  made.  The 
Mormons  point  to  their  kind  treatment  of  the  previous  expedition 
upon  which  the  lamented  officer  was  engaged,  to  the  friendliness 
of  his  book,  to  the  circumstance  that  an  Indium  war  was  then  rag- 
ing, and  that  during  the  attack  an  equal  number  of  Yuta  Indians 
were  killed.  M.  Remy  distinctly  refers  the  murder  to  the  Pahvant 
Indians,  some  of  whom  had  been  recently  shot  by  emigrants  to 
California.f     The  horrible  "  Mountain  Meadow  Massacre":}:  was, 

*  And  it  will  be  remembered,  the  Mexicans  were  not  Austrians  or  Russians. 

+  See  Translation,  vol.  i.,  p.  463. 

J  The  following  is  the  account  of  that  affiiir,  officially  given,  of  course,  by  anti- 
Mormons  :  On  the  4th  or  5th  of  September,  1857,  a  larp;e  emigrant  train  from  Ar- 
kansas, proceeding  to  California  with  horses,  mules,  and  ox-wagons,  conveying  stores 
of  clothing  and  valuables,  was  suddenly  attacked  near  a  spring  at  the  west  end  of 


340  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VII. 

according  to  the  anti-Mormons,  committed  by  tlie  Saints  to  re- 
venge the  death  of  an  esteemed  apostle  —  Parley  P.  Pratt — who, 
in  the  spring  of  1857,  when  traveling  through  Arkansas,  was 
knived  by  one  Hector  M'Lean,  whose  wife  he  had  converted  and 
taken  unto  himself  The  Mormons  deny  that  the  massacre  was 
committed  by  their  number,  and  ask  the  Gentiles  why,  if  such  be 
the  case,  the  murderers  are  not  brought  to  justice?  They  look 
upon  Mr.  P.  P.  Pratt's  proceeding  —  even  in  El  Islam,  the  women 
of  the  infidels  are,  like  their  property,  Italol^  or  lawful  to  those  who 
win  them — as  perfectly  justifiable.*    In  February,  1869,  occurred 

Mountain  Meadow  Valley.  The  Indialns,  directed  by  white  men,  cut  off  from  water 
the  travelers,  who  had  fortified  themselves  behind  the  vehicles,  which  they  filled  with 
earth,  and  killed  and  wounded  several.  When  the  attacked  jiarty,  distressed  by 
tliirst  and  a  galling  fire,  sliowed  symjitoms  of  surrender,  several  Mormons,  among 
whom  the  leaders,  John  D.  Lee  and  Elder  Isaac  C.  Haight,  are  particularly  men- 
tioned, approached  them  with  a  white  flag,  and  by  soft  words  persuaded  them  tb.at  if 
t!iey  would  give  up  their  weapons  thoy  should  be  safely  forwarded  to  Panther  Creek 
and  Cedar  City.  The  emigrants  unwisely  disarmed  themselves,  and  flocked  toward 
the  spring.  The  work  of  murder  and  robbery  began  near  a  patch  of  scrub-oak  brush, 
about  one  mile  and  a  half  from  water.  Between  115  and  120  adults  were  slain. 
Tiiree  emerged  from  the  valley ;  of  these,  two  were  soon  overtaken  and  killed,  and 
the  third  was  slaughtered  at  Muddy  Creek,  distant  about  fifty  miles.  One  of  the 
JNIormons  —  the  name  has  been  variously  given  —  is  accused  of  a  truly  detestable 
deed  ;  a  girl,  sixteen  years  old,  knelt  to  him,  imploring  mercy  ;  he  led  her  away  into 
the  thicket — and  then  cut  her  throat.  Seventeen  cliildrcn,  aged  from  two  months 
to  seven  years,  were  taken  from  the  Indians  by  the  whites,  and  were  distributed 
among  the  several  Mormon  families  in  Cedar  City,  Fort  Harmony,  Santa  Clara,  etc. 
Of  these,  sixteen  were  recovered,  and  the  seventeenth  was  found  in  the  April  of  1858. 
Mr.  Jacob  Forney,  the  late  Superintendent  of  Indian  Affixirs,  conducted  the  investi- 
gation on  the  part  of  the  federal  government;  he  reported  that  white  men  joined  in 
the  murder  and  tlie  robbery.  The  Mormons  of  course  deny,  in  totn,  complicity  with 
the  Indians,  and  remark  that  many  trains — for  instance,  to  cpiote  no  others,  the  em- 
igrants at  Sublette's  Cut-off,  Oregon,  in  August,  1858 — have  similarly  suffered,  and 
that  they  can  not  be  responsiljle  for  the  misfortunes  which  men  who  insult  and  ill- 
treat  the  natives  bring  upon  themselves. 

*  The  following  is  an  extract  from  the  "  Millennial  Star,"  July  25th,  1857.  The 
article  is  headed  "More  of  tlie  Assassination:"  "We  publish  the  following  extract 
from  a  letter  written  by  two  gentlemen  to  the  editor  of  a  New  York  pajicr.  The  let- 
ter was  dated  Flint-Cherokee  Nation,  Arkansas,  May  17th,  1857,  and  says  that  after 
Elder  Pratt  was  arrested  in  the  Indian  country,  he  was  '  placed  under  a  strong 
guard,  and  by  a  military  escort  conveyed  in  chains  to  the  Supreme  Coixrt,  Van  Bu- 
ren,  Arkansas.  The  case  being  promptly  investigated,  and  there  being  no  evidence 
upon  which  a  bill  of  indictment  could  be  found,  he  was  liberated  on  the  13th  instant. 
Brother  Pratt,  being  without  arms,  and  without  friends  to  protect  him,  and  knowing 
that  M'Lean  was  thirsting  for  his  blood,  and  that  he  had  the  aid  of  a  mass  of  the 
corrupt,  money-bought  citizens  of  Van  Buren,  endeavored  to  make  his  escape  on 
horseback,  unmolested ;  but  every  road  and  passway  being  under  strict  w.atch,  he  did 
not  succeed  in  getting  far  till  his  path  was  discovered.  M'Lean  and  half  a  dozen 
other  armed  fiends  pursued  him ;  and  Brother  Pratt  being  totally  unarmed,  they  suc- 
ceeded in  killing  him  without  I)eing  hurt.  Two  of  the  i)arty  iu  advance  intercepted 
his  road,  and  brought  him  to  a  halt,  wliile  M'Lean  and  the  others  came  u]i  in  the 
rear.  M'Lean  discharged  a  six-shooter  at  him,  but  the  balls  took  no  effect:  some 
passed  through  his  clothes,  others  lodged  in  his  saddle.  TIio  parties  now  being  in 
immediate  contact,  M'Lean  stabbed  him  (both  being  on  horseback)  with  a  heavy 
bowic-kuife  twice  under  the  left  arm.  Brother  Pratt  dropped  from  his  horse,  and 
M'Lean  dismounted,  and  probed  the  fatal  wounds  still  deeper;  he  then  got  a  Der- 
ringer from  one  of  his  aids,  and,  as  Brother  Pratt  lay  dying  upon  his  back,  shot  him 
in  the  ujjper  part  of  the  breast,  dropping  the  pistol  by  the  side  of  the  victim.  The 
assassin  then  mounted  his  horse  and  fled.     This  occurred  within  a  few  steps  of  the 


Chap.  VH.  SERGEANT  PIKE.— MR.  HENNEFER.  341 

sundry  disturbances  between  tlie  soldiers  and  citizens  at  Eusli  Val- 
ley, tliirty-five  miles  west  of  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  in  which  Mr. 
Howard  Spencer,  nephew  to  Mr.  Daniel  Spencer,  a  squatter,  while 
being  removed  from  a  government  reservation  by  First  Sergeant 
Rcdph  Pike  of  the  10th  Infantry,  raised  a  pitchfork,  and  received 
in  return  a  broken  head.  Shortly  afterward  the  sergeant,  having 
been  summoned  to  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  was  met  in  Main  Street 
and  shot  down  before  all  present.  The  anti-Mormons,  of  course, 
declare  the  deed  to  have  been  done  by  Mr.  Spencer,  and  hold  it, 
under  the  circumstances — execution  of  duty  and  summons  of  jus- 
tice— an  unpardonable  outrage ;  and  the  officers  assert  that  they 
could  hardly  prevent  their  men  arming  and  personally  revenging 
the  foul  murder  of  a  comrade,  who  was  loved  as  an  excellent  sol- 
dier and  an  honest  man.*  The  Mormons  assert  that  the  "shoot- 
ing" was  done  by  an  unknown  hand ;  that  the  sergeant  had  used 
unnecessary  violence  against  a  youth,  who,  single-handed  and  sur- 
rounded by  soldiers,  had  raised  a  pitchfork  to  defend  his  head, 
and  that  the  provocation  thus  received  converted  the  case  from 
murder  to  one  of  justifiable  homicide.  In  the  month  of  June  be- 
fore my  arrival,  a  Lieutenant  Saunders  and  Assistant  Surgeon 
Covey  had  tied  to  a  cart's  tail  and  severely  flogged  Mr.  Hennefer, 
a  Mormon.  The  opposition  party  assert  that  they  recognized  in 
him  the  man  who  two  years  before  had  acted  as  a  spy  upon  them 
when  sitting  in  Messrs.  Livingston's  store,  and,  when  ordered  to 
"make  tracks,"  had  returned  with  half  a  dozen  others,  and  had 
shot  Dr.  Covey  in  the  breast.  The  Mormons  rejDresent  Mr.  Hen- 
residence  of  a  farmer  by  the  name  of  Wire.  Two  gentlemen,  being  at  the  house  at 
the  time,  saw  the  whole  affair,  and  have  made  oath  to  what  they  witnessed  before  a 
coroner's  jury.  Brother  Pratt  survived  the  work  of  this  assassin  two  hours  and  a 
half,  and  was  enabled  to  tell  those  who  came  to  his  assistance  who  he  was,  that  he 
had  been  murdered  by  a  fiend  for  doing  his  duty,  and  gave  full  instructions  as  to 
what  course  should  be  pui-sued  in  interring  his  body,  and  the  disposition  of  the  means 
and  property  connected  with  his  person.  His  instructions  were  fully  attended  to  by 
Elder  Higginsou  and  Mrs.  M'Lean,  who  reached  the  place  of  his  assassination  the 
same  evening.  Those  who  saw  his  last  moments  state  that  Brother  Pratt  died  with- 
out a  murmur  or  a  groan,  and  apparently  without  a  pain,  perfect!}-  resigned  to  the 
will  of  Heaven.  Brother  Pratt  told  Elder  Iligginson,  the  morning  after  his  arrest, 
that  his  enemies  would  kill  him,  and  requested  Elder  Higginson  to  go  through  with 
this  s])ring's  emigration  to  Utah,  and  carry  the  news  of  his  death  to  the  Chuixh  and 
his  family.  This  Elder  Higginson  will  do,  the  Lord  helping.  After  perpetrating 
this  heaven-daring  deed,  ^I'Lean  returned  to  Van  Burcn  and  made  it  known.  Aft- 
er remaining  in  town  several  hours,  and  walking  the  streets  with  impunity,  he  was 
escorted  by  a  number  of  citizens  of  Van  Buren  to  the  boat,  and  took  his  leave  of  the 
place.  Verily  we  had  long  thought  that  the  bloodthirsty  mobocrats  of  Missouri  and 
Illinois  were  without  a  parallel  in  the  world,  but  we  now  yield  the  ]ialm  to  the 
Church-going  citizens  of  Van  Buren,  for  they  have  proven  to  the  world  that  they  are 
a  den  of  murderers  and  assassins.  George  Higginson. 

George  Crouch.'" 
*  On  this  occasion.  Cedar  Fort,  a  neighboring  settlement,  with  cultivation,  and  a 
few  huts,  near  Camp  Floyd,  was  attacked  at  night  by  camp-followers  (soldiers) ;  a 
single  calf  was  killed  (the  whole  place  was  burned  to  the  ground),  and  the  damages 
speedily  ro.se  from  a  dozen  to  $10,000,  claimed  from  Congress  (which  did  not  half 
repay  the  injury  done). 


342  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VII. 

nefer  to  be  a  peaceful  citizen,  and  quiet,  unoffending  man,  thus 
brutally  outraged  by  tyrannical  servants  of  government,  and, 
moreover,  prove  for  him  an  alibi  from  the  original  cause  of  quar- 
rel. I  have  given  but  a  few  instances:  all  are  equally  contra- 
dictory, and  tantas  covijjonei'e  lites  quis  audetf 

Strongly  disclaiming  the  idea  that  the  ofl&cers  who  discussed 
with  me  the  subject  at  Camp  Floyd  had  any  tendency  to  exag- 
geration or  to  set  down  aught  in  malice,  and  quite  conscious,  as 
they  never  failed  to  remark,  that  a  stranger  is  allowed  to  see  only 
the  beau  cote  of  the  New  Faith,  I  can  not  but  think  that  their 
views  are  greatly  warped  by  causes  external  to  it.  This  is  to  be 
expected.  Who,  after  the  massacre  of  Cawnpore,  would  have  ad- 
mitted into  his  mind  a  shadow  of  excuse  for  Nana  Sahib  ?  Among 
so  many,  however  blinded  and  fanatic,  and  however  fond  of  po- 
lygamy— this  is  ever  the  first  reproach — there  must  be  some  good 
men.  Yet  from  the  "chief  impostor"  to  the  last  "acolyte,"  all 
are  represented  to  be  a  gang  of  miscreants.  The  Mormons  are 
far  more  tolerant ;  they  have  praise  for  those  Gentiles,  even  fed- 
eral ofl&cers,  who  have  abstained  from  injuring  them.  They  speak 
well  of  Lieutenant  Colonel  E.  J.  Steptoe,  9th  Regiment  of  Infantry, 
and  the  officers  of  his  force ;  -  of  General  Wilson,  afterward  the 
Navy  Agent  at  San  Francisco ;  and  of  the  present  commandant. 
Colonel  Cooke.  They  have  nothing  to  say  against  Judge  Reed, 
or  Mr.  John  J.  Kinney,  the  Chief  Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court ; 
and  when  Judge  Leonidas  Shaver  died  in  1855,  they  put  the  pa- 
pers in  mourning,  and  buried  the  Gentile  in  their  cemetery.  They 
do  not  abuse  even  their  merchant  rivals.  Mr.  J.  B.  Kimball,  to 
mention  no  other,  is  generally  praised  and  trusted.  But  when  they 
find  it  necessary  or  advisable  to  take  away  a  man's  character,  they 
can  do  it,  "  and  no  mistake."  At  the  same  time,  their  tolerance 
and  discipline  are,  to  say  the  least,  remarkable.  Judge  Brocchus,f 
to  quote  but  one,  would  run  the  risk  of  being  torn  to  pieces  in 
almost  any  fanatical  meeting  in  Europe. 

At  Camp  Floyd  I  was  introduced  to  Colonel  G.  II.  Crossman, 
Department  Quarter-master  General,  and  Major  Montgomery  of 
the  same  department ;  to  Dr.  Porter,  who  was  uncommonly  and 
unnecessarily  shy  upon  the  subject  of  a  "sick  certificate;"  and  to 
Lieutenant  N.  A.  M.  Dudley,  when  we  passed  many  a  merry  time 
over  "simpkin."  It  is  hardly  necessary  to  say  that  the  judge, 
having  no  authority  to  demand,  did  not  obtain  either  escort  or 
carriage.  Colonel  Cooke  frankly  told  him  that  he  had  neither 
men  nor  conveyance  at  libert}'-,  and  even  if  they  were  that  he 
could  not  exceed  orders.  The  Secretary  of  War  is  ready  to  "be 
down"  upon  such  offenses,  and  in  the  United  States  Army  prob- 

*  Mr.  Hyde  (chap,  vi.)  gives  the  official  document  in  which  these  officers  peti- 
tioned President  Pierce  to  reappoint  Mr.  Brigham  Young  as  Governor  and  Superin- 
tendent of  Indian  Affairs  in  Utah  Territory,  and  it  speaks  volumes  in  praise  of  the 
much-abused  Saints.  t  Chap.  vi. 


1 


Chap.  VIII.  "BOSTON."— COTTON- WOOD  KAN  YON.  343. 

ably  more  officers  throw  up  tlie  service  from  distress  for  leave 
than  in  the  English  army.  It  was  clear  that  we  must  travel  with- 
out the  dignities,  so  we  inspected  an  ambulance  and  a  four-mule 
team,  for  which  the  Hungarian  refugee,  its  owner,  asked  $1000 — 
but  little  beyond  its  worth.  After  an  exceedingly  satisfactory 
day  in  a  private  sense,  I  passed  the  evening  at  Captain  Gove's, 
and  watched  with  astonishment  the  game  of  Boston.  Invented 
by  the  French  prisoners  in  the  islands  of  the  American  Liverpool, 
and  abounding  in  "grand  miser}^,"  "little  misery,"  and  other  ap- 
propriate terms,  it  combines  all  the  difficulties  of  whist,  ecartd,  pi- 
quet, brag,  and  cribbage,  and  seems  to  possess  the  same  attractions 
which  beam  upon  the  mind  of  the  advanced  algebraic  scholar. 
Fortunately  there  was  an  abundance  of  good  commissariat  whisky 
and  excellent  tobacco,  whose  attractions  were  greater  than  that  of 
Boston.  On  the  morrow,  a  gloomy  morning,  with  cold  blasts  and 
spatters  of  rain  from  the  southwest,  and  the  tameness  of  the  snow- 
birds— ^which  here  represent 

"  Cock  Kobin  and  Jenny  Wren, 
God  Almighty's  cock  and  hen" — 

warned  us  that  the  j&ne  season  was  breaking  up,  and  that  we  had 
no  time  to  lose.  So,  inspanning  Julia  and  Sally,  we  set  out,  and 
after  six  hours  reached  once  more  the  City  of  the  Saints. 


CHAPTER  YIIL 

Excursions  continued. 


I  HAD  long  been  anxious  to  visit  the  little  chain  of  lakes  in  the 
Wasach  Mountains,  southeast  of  the  cit}',  and  the  spot  .where  the 
Saints  celebrate  their  "  Great  Twenty -fourth  of  July."  At  din- 
ner the  subject  had  been  often  on  the  carpet,  and  anti-Mormons 
had  informed  me,  hinting  at  the  presence  of  gold,  that  no  Gentile 
was  allowed  to  enter  Cotton-wood  Kanyon  without  a  written  per- 
mit from  the  President  Prophet.  Through  my  friend  the  elder  I 
easily  obtained  the  sign  manual ;  it  was  explained  to  me  that  the 
danger  of  fires  in  a  place  which  will  supply  the  city  with  lumber 
for  a  generation,  and  the  mischievousness  of  enemies,  were  at  the 
bottom  of  the  precaution.  Before  starting,  however,  two  Saints 
were  chosen  to  accompany  me,  Mr.  S ,  and  Mr.,  or  rather  Col- 
onel, Feramorz,  popularly  called  Ferry,  Little.  This  gentleman, 
a  partner,  relative,  and  connection  of  Mr.  Brigham  Young,  is  one 
of  the  "Seventies;"  of  small  and  spare  person,  he  is  remarkable 
for  pluck  and  hardihood,  and  in  conjunction  with  Ephe  Hanks, 
the  Danite,  he  has  seen  curious  things  on  the  Prairies. 

A  skittish,  unbroken,  stunted,  weedy  three-year-old  for  myself, 
and  a  tall  mule  for  my  companion,  were  readily  lent  by  Mr.  Ken- 


344  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VIII. 

nedy,  an  Irish.  Gentile  and  stock-dealer,  who,  being  bound  on  bus- 
iness to  California,  was  in  treaty  with  us  for  reward  in  case  of 
safe-conduct.  We  chose  the  morning  of  the  14th  of  September, 
after  the  first  snow  had  whitened  the  peaks,  and  a  glorious  cool, 
clear  day  it  was  —  a  sky  diaphanous,  as  if  earth  had  been  roofed 
with  rock  crystal.  While  awaiting  the  hour  to  depart  under  the 
veranda  of  the  hotel.  Governor  Gumming  pointed  out  to  me  BUI 
Hickman,  once  the  second  of  the  great  "  Danite"  triumvirate,  and 
now  somewhat  notorious  for  meddling  with  Church  property. 
He  is  a  good-looking  fellow,  about  forty-five,  rather  stout  and 
square,  with  high  forehead,  open  countenance,  and  mild,  light  blue 
eye,  and  owns,  I  believe,  to  only  three  deaths.  On  the  last  Christ- 
mas-day, upon  occasion  of  a  difficulty  with  a  youth  named  Lot 
Huntingdon,  the  head  of  the  youngster  party,  he  had  drawn  his 
"  bowie,"  and  a  "  shooting"  took  place,  both  combatants  exchang- 
ing contents  of  revolvers  across  the  street,  both  being  well  filled 
with  slugs,  and  both  living  to  tell  the  tale. 

"Do  you  know  what  that  fellow  is  saying  to  himself?"  asked 
the  governor,  reading  the  thoughts  of  a  fiercely  frowning  youth, 
who  swaggered  past  us. 

I  confessed  to  the  negative. 

"  He  is  only  thinking,  '  D — d  gov'rnor,  wonder  if  he's  a  better 
man  than  me,'  "  said  my  interlocutor. 

About  4  P.M.  we  mounted  and  rode  out  of  the  city  toward  the 
mouth  of  the  kanyon,  where  we  were  to  meet  Mr.  Little.  Passing 
by  the  sugar-mills  and  turning  eastward,  after  five  or  six  miles 
we  saw  at  a  distance  a  block  of  buildings,  which  presently,  as  if 
by  enchantment,  sank  into  the  earth ;  an  imperceptible  wave  of 
ground  —  a  common  prairie  formation  —  had  intervened.  From 
the  summit  of  the  land  we  again  sighted  the  establishment.  It  is 
situated  in  the  broad  bed  of  a  (hj  fiumara — which  would,  by-the- 
by,  be  a  perilous  place  in  the  tropics — issuing  from  Parley's  Kan- 
yon. The  ravine,  which  is  sometimes  practiced  by  emigrant 
trains,  is  a  dangerous  pass,  here  and  there  but  a  few  rods  wide, 
and  hemmed  in  by  rocks  rising  perpendicularly  2000  feet.  The 
principal  house  was  built  for  defense,  the  garden  was  walled  round, 
and  the  inclosure  had  but  two  small  doors. 

We  were  met  at  the  entrance  by  Mr.  Little,  who,  while  supper 
was  being  prepared,  led  us  to  the  tannery  and  the  grist-mill,  of 
which  he  is  part  proprietor.  The  bark  used  for  the  process  is  the 
red  fir,  costing  $25  per  cord,  and  the  refuse  is  employed  in  com- 
posts. The  hides  are  received  unsalted ;  to  save  labor,  they  are 
pegged  to  soak  upon  wheels  turned  by  water-power.  The  leather 
is  good,  and  under  experienced  European  workmen  will  presently 
become  cheaper  than  that  imported  from  England. 

Beyond  the  tannery  was  an  adobe  manufacture.  The  brick  in 
this  part  splits  while  burning,  consequently  the  sun-dried  article 
is  preferred ;  when  the  wall  is  to  be  faced,  pegs  are  driven  into  it 


Chap.  VHI.  EVERY  CHILD  A  RELATIVE.  345 

to  hold  the  plaster.  The  material  is  clay  or  silt  from  the  creek, 
puddled  witli  water,  and  if  saltish  it  is  better  than  sweet  soil ; 
unity  of  color  and  formation  are  the  tests  of  goodness.  Each 
brick  weighs,  when  dry,  16  lbs.,  and  the  mould  is  mostly  double. 
On  the  day  after  making  they  are  stacked,  and  allowed  to  stand 
for  two  months ;  the  season  is  June,  July,  and  August,  after  which 
it  becomes  too  cold.  The  workman  is  paid  75  per  cent. ;  400  per 
diem  would  be  tolerable,  700  good  work ;  thus  an  able-bodied 
bricklayer  can  make  twenty-one  shillings  a  day — rather  a  con- 
trast to  the  wages  of  an  unfortunate  laborer  in  England. 

Keturning  home,  we  walked  through  Mr.  Little's  garden,  and 
admired  its  neatness.  The  fruit-trees  were  mostly  barren;  in 
this  year  the  city  sets  down  a  loss  of  $100,000  by  frost.  I  tasted, 
for  the  first  time,  the  Californian  grape,  "  uvas  admodum  maturas, 
ita  voluit  anni  intemperies ;"  they  not  a  little  resembled  the  north- 
ern French.  A  single  vine  sometimes  bears  $100  worth.  There 
was  a  little  rhubarb,  but  it  is  not  much  used  where  sugar  costs 
forty-five  cents  per  pound.  After  supping  with  Mr.  Little,  his 
wife  and  family,  we  returned  to  the  andronids,  and  prepared  for 
the  night  with  a  chat.  The  principal  point  illustrated  was  the 
curious  amount  of  connection  caused  l3y  polygamy;  all  men, 
calling  each  other  brothers,  become  cousins,  and  it  is  hardly  pos- 
sible, among  the  old  Mormons,  to  stop  a  child  in  the  street  with- 
out finding  that  it  is  a  relative.  I  was  surprised  at  the  comfort, 
even  the  luxury,  of  a  Mormon  householder  in  these  remote  wilds, 
and  left  it  with  a  most  favorable  impression. 

At  the  dawn  of  the  next  day  we  prepared  to  set  out ;  from  the 
city  to  the  mouth  of  the  kanyon  the  distance  is  about  thirteen, 
and  to  the  lakelets  twenty-seven  miles.  Mr.  Little  now  accom- 
panied us  on  horseback,  and  his  son  James,  whom  I  may  here 
safely  call  a  boy,  was  driving  a  buck-board.  This  article  is  a 
light  gig-body  mounted  upon  a  thin  planking,  to  which  luggage 
is  strapped ;  it  can  go  where  a  horse  can  tread,  and  is  easier  to 
both  animals  than  riding  down  steep  hills.  The  boy,  like  Mor- 
mon juveniles  generally,  had  a  great  aptitude  at  driving,  riding, 
and  using  the  axe ;  he  attended  a  school,  but  infinitely  preferred 
that  of  Nature,  and  showed  all  the  disjDOsition  to  become  the  father 
of  a  stout,  brave  Western  man.  As  in  the  wilder  parts  of  Aus- 
tralia, where  the  pedagogue  has  less  pay  than  the  shepherd,  "  keep 
a  school"  is  here  equivalent  to  semi-starvation ;  there  is  no  super- 
stitious aversion,  as  the  G-entiles  have  asserted,  to  a  modicum  of 
education,  but  the  state  of  life  renders  manual  labor  more  honored 
and  profitable.  "While  the  schoolmaster  gains  $2  60  per  mensem, 
a  ditcher  would  make  the  same  sum  per  diem.  Besides  impa- 
tience of  study,  the  boys  are  ever  anxious  to  become  men — "bring 
up  a  child  and  away  it  goes,"  says  the  local  proverb — and  litera- 
ture will  not  yet  enable  a  youth  to  marry  and  to  set  up  house- 
keeping in  the  Eocky  Mountains. 


346  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VIII. 

Our  route  lay  over  the  bencli ;  on  our  riglit  was  a  square  adobe 
fort,  that  had  been  used  during  the  Indian  troubles,  and  fields  and 
houses  were  scattered  about.  Passing  the  mouth  of  Parley's 
Kanyon,  we  entered  the  rich  bottom-land  of  the  Great  Cotton- 
wood, beautified  with  groves  of  quaking  asp,  whose  foliage  was 
absolute  green,  set  off  by  paper -white  stems.  After  passing 
through  an  avenue  of  hardheads,  i.  e.,  erratic  granite  boulders, 
which  are  carted  to  the  city  for  building  the  Temple,  we  turned 
to  the  left  and  entered  the  mouth  of  the  kanyon,  where  its  sides 
flare  out  into  gentler  slopes. 

A  clear  mountain  stream  breaks  down  the  middle.  The  bed 
is  a  mass  of  pebbles  and  blocks :  hornblende ;  a  white  limestone, 
almost  marble,  but  full  of  flaws ;  red  sandstone,  greenstone,  and  a 
conglomerate  like  mosaic-work.  The  bank  is  thick  with  the  pop- 
lar, from  which  it  derives  its  name;  willow  clumps;  the  alder, 
with  its  dry,  mulberry -like  fruit ;  the  hop  vine,  and  a  birch  whose 
bark  is  red  as  the  cherry-tree's.  Above  the  stream  the  ravine 
sides  are  in  places  too  steep  for  growth ;  as  a  rule,  the  northern  is 
never  wooded  save  where  the  narrowness  of  the  gorge  impedes 
the  action  of  the  violent  south  winds.  On  the  lower  banks  the 
timber  is  mostly  cleared  off.  Upon  the  higher  slopes  grow  the 
mountain  mahogany  and  the  scrub  maple  wherever  there  is  a  foot 
of  soil.  There  is  a  fine,  sturdy  growth  of  abies.  The  spruce,  or 
white  pine,  rises  in  a  beautifully  regular  cone  often  100  feet  high ; 
there  are  two  principal  varieties  of  fir,  one  with  smooth  light  bark, 
and  the  other,  which  loves  a  higher  range,  and  looks  black  as  it 
bristles  out  of  its  snowy  bed,  is  of  a  dun  russet.  Already  appear- 
ed the  splendid  tints  which  make  the  American  autumn  a  fit  sub- 
ject ^^pictorihus  ahiue  poetise  An  atmosphere  of  blue  seemed  to 
invest  the  pines ;  the  maple  blushed  bright  red ;  and  the  willow 
clumps  of  the  bed  and  the  taj^estry  of  ferns  had  turned  to  vegeta- 
ble gold,  while  snow,  bleached  to  more  than  usual  whiteness  by 
intervals  of  deep  black  soil,  flecked  the  various  shade  of  the  poison 
hemlocks  and  balsam  firs,  and  the  wild  strawberry,  which  the 
birds  had  stripped  of  fruit. 

Great  Cotton- wood  Kanyon,  like  the  generality  of  these  ravines 
in  the  western  wall  of  the  Wasach,  runs  east  and  west  till  near 
the  head,  when  it  gently  curves  toward  the  north,  and  is  separated 
from  its  neighbor  by  a  narrow  divide.  On  both  sides  the  con- 
tinuity of  the  gap  is  cut  by  deep  jagged  gullies,  rendering  it 
impossible  to  crown  the  heights.  The  road,  which  winds  from 
side  to  side,  was  worked  by  thirty-two  men,  directed  by  Mr.  Little, 
in  one  season,  at  a  total  expense  of  $16,000.  After  exhausting 
Red  Buttes,  Emigration,  and  other  kanyons,  for  timber  and  fuel. 
Great  Cotton-wood  was  explored  in  1854,  and  in  1856  the  ascent 
was  made  practicable.  In  places  where  the  gorge  narrows  to  a 
gut  there  were  great  difficulties,  but  rocks  were  removed,  while 
tree-trunks  and  boughs  were  spread  like  a  corduroy,  and  covered 


Chap.  VIII.  GREAT  COTTON-WOOD  KANYON.  347 

over  with  earth  brought  from  a  distance :  Mormon  energy  over- 
came every  obstacle.  It  is  repaired  every  summer  before  the  an- 
niversary festival ;  it  suffers  during  the  autumn,  and  is  preserved 
from  destruction  by  the  winter  snows.  In  many  places  there  are 
wooden  bridges,  one  of  which  pays  toll,  and  at  the  end  of  the  sea- 
son they  become  not  a  little  rickety.  As  may  be  imagined,  the 
water-power  has  been  utilized.  Lines  and  courses  carefully  lev- 
eled, and  in  parts  deeply  excavated,  lest  the  precious  fluid  should 
spread  out  in  basins,  are  brought  from  afar,  and  provided  with 
water-gates  and  coffer-dams.  The  mills  are  named  after  the  let- 
ters C,  B,  A,  D,  and  lastly  E.  Already  700,000  square  feet  of 
lumber  have  been  cut  during  this  summer,  and  a  total  of  a  mill- 
ion is  expected  before  the  mills  are  snowed  up ;  you  come  upon 
these  ugly  useful  erections  suddenly,  round  a  sharp  turn  in  the 
bed ;  they  have  a  queer  effect  with  their  whirring  saws  and  crash 
of  timber,  forming  a  treble  to  the  musical  bass  of  the  water-gods. 

We  halted  at  the  several  mills,  when  Mr.  Little  overlooked 
his  accounts,  and  distributed  stores  of  coffee,  sugar,  and  tobacco. 
After  the  first  five  miles  we  passed  flecks  of  snow ;  the  thermom- 
eter, however,  in  the  shade  never  showed  less  than  60°  F.  In 
places  the  hill  sides  were  bald  from  the  effect  of  avalanches,  and 
we  saw  where  a  house  had  lately  been  swept  away.  In  others  a 
fine  white  limestone  glistened  its  dece|)tion.  After  passing  Mill 
D,  we  debouched  upon  the  basin  also  called  the  Big  Prairie,  a 
dwarf  turfy  savanna,  about  100  yards  in  diameter,  rock  and  tree 
girt,  and  separated  from  Parley's  Kanyon  on  the  north  by  a  tall, 
narrow  wall.  "We  then  ascended  a  slope  of  black,  viscid,  slippery 
mud,  in  which  our  animals  were  nearly  mired,  with  deep  slush- 
holes  and  cross-roots :  as  we  progressed  the  bridges  did  not  im- 
prove. On  our  left,  in  a  pretty  grove  of  thin  pines,  stood  a  bear- 
trap.  It  was  a  dwarf  hut,  with  one  or  two  doors,  which  fall  when 
Cufiy  tugs  the  bait  from  the  figure  of  4  in  the  centre.  These 
mountaineers  apparently  ignore  the  simple  plan  of  the  Tchuvash, 
who  fill  up  with  corn-brandy  a  hollow  in  some  tree  lying  across 
"old  Ephraim's"  path,  and  catch  him  dead  drunk.  In  many 
places  the  quaking-asp  trunks  were  deeply  indented  with  claw- 
scars,  showing  that  the  climbing  species  is  here  common.  Shortly 
before,  a  bear  had  been  shot  within  a  few  miles  of  Great  Salt 
Lake  City,  and  its  paws  appeared  upon  the  hotel  table  cVhule. 

About  mid  afternoon  we  dismounted,  and  left  our  nags  and 
traps  at  Mill  E,  the  highest  point,  where  we  were  to  pass  the 
night.  Mr.  Little  was  suffering  from  a  severe  neuralgia,  yet  he 
insisted  upon  accompanying  us.  With  visions  of  Albano,  Killar- 
ney,  and  Windermere,  I  walked  up  the  half  mile  of  hill  separating 
us  from  Great  Cotton-wood  Lake.  In  front  rose  tall  pine-clad 
and  snow-strewed  peaks,  a  cul  de  sac  formed  by  the  summit  of  the 
Wasach.  We  could  not  see  their  feet,  but  instinct  told  me  that 
they  dropped  around  the  water.     The  creek  narrowed  to  a  jump. 


348  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VIII. 

Presently  we  arrived  at  a  kind  of  punch-bowl,  formed  by  an  am- 
phitheatre of  frowning  broken  mountains,  highest  and  most  snowy 
on  the  southeast  and  west,  and  nearly  clear  of  snow  and  trees  on 
the  east.  The  level  ground,  perhaps  one  mile  in  diameter,  was  a 
green  sward,  dotted  with  blocks  and  boulders,  based  on  black  hu- 
mus and  granite  detritus.  Part  of  it  was  clear,  the  rest  was  ivy- 
grown,  with  pines,  clumps,  and  circlets  of  tall  trees,  surrounded 
by  their  young  in  bunches  and  fringes,  as  if  planted  by  the  hand 
of  man.  There  were  signs  of  the  last  season's  revelry — heaj)s  of 
charcoal  and  charred  trunks,  rough  tables  of  two  planks  support- 
ed by  trestles,  chairs  or  rail-like  settles,  and  the  brushy  remnants 
of  three  "boweries."  Two  skulls  showed  that  wolves  had  been 
busy  with  the  cattle.  Freshly-caught  trout  lay  upon  the  table, 
preserved  in  snow,  and  in  the  distance  the  woodman's  axe  awoke 
with  artful  sound  the  echoes  of  the  rocks. 

At  last  we  came  upon  the  little  tarn  which  occupies  the  lowest 
angle,  the  western  ridge  of  the  punch -bowl  or  prairie  basin.  Un- 
known to  Captain  Stansbury,  it  had  been  visited  of  old  by  a  few 
mountain-men,  and  since  1854  by  the  mass  of  the  Mormons.  Ac- 
cording to  my  informants  it  is  the  largest  of  a  chaplet  of  twelve 
pools,  two  to  the  S.W.  and  ten  to  the  S.E.,  which  are  probably 
independent  bulges  in  the  several  torrent  beds.  Some  are  de- 
scribed as  having  no  outlet,  yet  all  are  declared  to  be  sweet  water. 
The  altitude  has  not  been  ascertained  scientifically.  It  is  roughly 
set  down  between  9500  and  10,000  feet.  It  was  then  at  its  small- 
est—  about  half  a  mile  long  by  one  quarter  broad.  After  the 
melting  of  the  snow  it  spreads  out  over  the  little  savanna.  The 
bottom  is  sandy  and  gravelly,  sloping  from  ten  to  twenty  feet 
deep.  It  freezes  over  in  winter,  and  about  25-80  May  the  ice 
breaks  up  and  sinks.  The  runnel  which  feeds  it  descends  from 
the  snow-capped  peak  to  the  south,  and  copious  supplies  trickle 
through  the  soppy  margin  at  the  base  of  the  dripping  hills  around. 
The  surplus  escapes  through  a  head  to  the  north,  where  a  gated 
dam  is  thrown  across  to  raise  the  level,  and  to  regulate  the  water- 
power.  The  color  is  a  milky  white ;  the  water  is  warm,  and  its 
earthy  vegetable  taste,  the  effect  of  the  weeds  that  margin  it,  con- 
trasts with  the  purity  of  the  creek  which  drains  it.  The  fish  are 
principally  mountain  trout  and  the  gymnotus  eel.  In  search  of 
shells  we  walked  round  the  margin,  now  sinking  in  the  peaty 
ground,  then  clambering  over  the  boulders — white  stones  that, 
rolled  clown  from  the  perpendicular  rocks  above,  simulated  snow 
— then  fighting  our  way  through  the  thick  willow  clumps.  Our 
quest,  however,  was  not  rewarded.  After  satisfying  curiosity,  we 
descended  by  a  short  cut  of  a  quarter  of  a  mile  under  tall  trees 
whose  shade  preserved  the  snow,  and  found  ourselves  once  more 
in  Mill  E. 

The  log  hut  was  of  the  usual  make.  A  cold  wind — the  mer- 
cury had  fallen  to  50°  F. — rattled  through  the  crannies,  and  we 


Chap.  VIII.       FELLING  TREES.— INDEPENDENCE  DAY.  3.^9 

prepared  for  a  freezing  night  by  a  blazing  fire.  The  furniture — 
two  bunks,  with  buffalo  robes,  tables  and  chairs,  which  were  bits 
of  plank  mounted  on  four  legs — was  of  the  rudest.  I  whiled 
away  the  last  hours  of  light  by  adding  to  my  various  accomplish- 
ments an  elementary  knowledge  of  felling  trees.  Handling  the 
timber-axe  is  by  no  means  so  simple  a  process  as  it  appears.  The 
woodman  does  it  by  instinct;  the  tyro,  who  is  always  warned 
that  he  may  easily  indent  or  slice  off  a  bit  of  his  leg,  progresses 
slowly  and  painfully.  The  principal  art  is  to  give  the  proper  an- 
gle to  the  blade,  to  whirl  the  implement  loosely  round  the  head, 
and  to  let  it  fall  by  the  force  of  its  own  weight,  the  guiding  hand 
gliding  down  the  haft  to  the  other,  in  order  not  to  break  the  blow. 
"We  ate  copiously ;  appetite  appeared  to  come  by  eating,  though 
not  in  the  Parisian  sense  of  the  phrase — what  a  treasure  would 
be  such  a  sanitarium  in  India !  The  society  was  increased  by  two 
sawyers,  gruff  and  rugged  men,  one  of  whom  suffered  from  oph- 
thalmia, and  two  boys,  who  successfully  imitated  their  elders. 

Our  fireside  chat  was  sufficiently  interesting.  Mr.  S de- 
scribed the  ceremonies  of  the  last  Mormon  Independence  Da}-. 
After  the  prehminaries  had  been  settled  as  below,*  the  caravans 

*  Extract  from  the  Great  Salt  Lake  correspondent  of  that  amiable  and  conscien- 
tious periodical,  the  "New  York  Herald." 

"77ie  Great  Twenty-fourth  of  July. 

"In  my  last  I  gave  your  readers  a  full  account  of  the  Mormon  demonstrations  on 
the  anniversary  of  American  independence.  That  done,  they  have  now  before  them 
the  celebration  of  their  own  independence.  Adhesiveness  is  largely  developed  in  the 
Mormon  cranium.  They  will  hold  on  to  their  notions.  On  the  24th  of  July,  1847, 
Brigham,  at  the  head  of  the  pioneers,  entered  this  now  beautiful  valley — then  a  bar- 
ren wilderness.  Forgetful  of  the  means  that  forced  them  here,  the  day  was  set  apart 
for  rejoicing.  They  laid  aside  the  weeds  of  mourning,  and  consecrated  the  day  to 
feasting  and  dancing.  The  Twenty-fourth  is  the  day  of  deliverance  that  will  be 
handed  down  to  generations  when  the  Fourth  is  immeasurably  forgotten.  Three 
years  ago,  two  thousand  persons  were  congregated  at  the  head-waters  of  Big  Cotton- 
wood, commemorating  independence,  when  messengers  from  the  East  arrived  with 
the  intelligence  that  the  troops  were  on  the  plains.  I  need  not  farther  allude  to  what 
was  then  said  and  done ;  sufBce  it,  things  have  been  so  disjointed  since  that  Big  Cot- 
ton-wood has  been  left  alone  in  solitude.  Setting  aside  the  restraint  of  years,  it 
seems  that  the  faithful  are  to  again  enjoy  themselves.  The  following  card  tells  the 
marching  orders ;  the  interstices  will  be  filled  up  with  orations,  songs,  prayers,  dances, 
and  every  kind  of  athletic  game  that  the  young  may  choose  to  indulge  in : 

"  Twenty-fourth  of  July  at  the  Head-quarters  of  Big  Cotton-wood. — President  Brig- 
ham  Young  respectfully  invites  to  attend  a  picnic  excursion  to  the  lake  in  Big 

Cotton-wood  Kanyon,  on  Tuesday,  the  24th  of  July. 

y  Reguhtions. — You  will  be  required  to  start  so  as  to  pass  the  first  mill,  about  four 
miles  up  the  kanyon,  before  twelve  o'cloc-k  on  Monday,  the  23d,  as  no  person  will  be 
allowed  to  pass  that  point  after  two  o'clock  P.M.  of  that  day.  All  persons  are  for- 
bidden to  smoke  segars  or  pipes,  or  kindle  fires  at  any  place  in  the  kanyon,  except  on 
the  camp-ground.  The  bishops  are  requested  to  accompany  those  invited  from  their 
respective  wards,  and  see  that  each  person  is  •well  fitted  for  the  trip  yviih  good,  sub- 
stantial, steady  teams,  wagons,  harness,  hold-backs  and  locks,  capable  of  completing 
the  journey  without  repair,  and  a  good  driver,  so  as  not  to  endanger  the  life  of  any 
individual.  Bishops,  heads  of  families,  and  leaders  of  small  parties  will,  before  pass- 
ing the  first  mill,  furnish  a  full  and  complete  list  of  all  persons  accompanying  them, 
and  hand  the  same  to  the  guard  at  the  gate. 

"  Committee  of  Arrangements.— A.  0.  Smoot,  John  Sharp,  L.  W.  Hardy,  A.  Cun- 


350  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VIH. 

set  out  from  the  Holy  City.  In  1860  there  were  1122  souls,  56 
carriages,  163  wagons,  235  horses,  159  mules,  and  168  oxen.  They 
bivouacked  for  the  night  upon  the  road,  and  marched  with  a  cer- 
tain ceremony.  The  first  President  issued  an  order  allowing  any 
one  to  press  forward,  though  not  at, the  expense  of  others;  still 
no  one  would  precede  hira ;  nor  would  the  second  advance  before 
the  third  President  —  a  good  example  to  some  who  might  want 
teaching.  Moreover,  the  bishops  had  the  privilege  of  inviting, 
or,  rather,  of  permitting  the  people  of  their  several  wards,  even 
Gentiles,  to  attend.  The  "  pioneers" — the  survivors  of  the  noble 
143  who,  guided  by  their  Joshua,  Mr.  Brigham  Young,  first  at- 
tempted the  Promised  Land — were  distinguished  by  their  names 
on  banners,  and  the  bands  played  lustily  "  God  save  the  King," 
and  the  "Star-spangled  Banner,"  "Happy  Land,"  and  "Du-dah." 
At  six  on  the  fine  morning  of  the  2-±th,  which  followed  ugly 
weather,  a  salute  of  three  guns,  in  honor  of  the  First  Presidency, 
was  fired,  with  music  in  the  intervals,  the  stars  and  the  stripes 
floating  on  the  top  of  the  noblest  staff",  a  tall  fir-tree.  At  9  A.M. 
a  salute  of  thirteen  guns,  denoting  the  age  of  New  Zion,  and  at 
6  P.M.  twelve  guns,  corresponding  with  the  number  of  the  apos- 
tles, were  discharged  with  similar  ceremonies.  The  scene  must 
have  been  lively  and  picturesque  around  the  bright  little  tarn,  and 
under  the  everlasting  hills  —  a  holiday  crowd,  with  wagons  and 
ambulances  drawn  up,  tents  and  marquees  pitched  under  the 
groves,  and  horse-races,  in  which  the  fair  sex  joined,  over  the  soft 
green  sward.  At  10  P.M.,  after  the  dancing  in  the  boweries  had 
flagged,  the  bands  finished  with  "  Home,  sweet  Home,"  and  the 
Saints  returned  to  their  everj'-day  occupations. 

Mr.  Little  also  recounted  to  us  his  experiences  among  the  In- 
dians, whom  he,  like  all  the  Mormons,  firmly  believed  to  be  chil- 
dren of  Israel  under  a  cloud.  He  compared  the  medicine  lodge 
to  a  masonic  hall,  and  declared  that  the  so-called  Eed  Men  had 
signs  and  grips  like  ourselves ;  and  he  related  how  an  old  chief, 
when  certain  symbolic  actions  were  made  to  him,  wept  and  wail- 
ed, thinking  how  he  and  his  had  neglected  their  observances. 
The  Saints  were  at  one  time  good  masons ;  unhap|)ily  they  want- 
ed to  be  better.  The  angel  of  the  Lord  brought  to  Mr.  Joseph 
Smith  the  lost  key-words  of  several  degrees,  which  caused  him, 
when  he  appeared  among  the  brotherhood  of  Illinois,  to  "  work 
right  ahead"  of  the  highest,  and  to  show  them  their  ignorance  of 
the  greatest  truths  and  benefits  of  masonry.  The  natural  result 
was  that  their  diploma  was  taken  from  them  by  the  Grand  Lodge, 
and  they  are  not  admitted  to  a  Gentile  gathering.  Now  heathens 
without  the  gate,  they  still  cling  to  their  heresy,  and  declare  that 
other  masonry  is,  like  the  Christian  faith,  founded  upon  truth,  and 

ningham,  E.  F.  Sheets,  F.  Keslcr,  Thomas  Callister,  A.  H.  Raleigh,  Henry  Moon. 
J.  C.  Little.  Marshal  of  the  Dav ;  Colonel  E.  T.  Burton  will  arrange  the  Guard. 
"Great  Salt  Lake  City,  July  10,  ISGO." 


Chap.  VIII.     FREE-MASONRY.— MORALITY.— TOLERANCE.  ^51 

originally  of  the  eternal  Church,  but  fallen  away  and  far  gone  in 
error.     There  is  no  race,  except  perhaps  antiquaries,  more  credu- 
lous than  the  brethren  of  tlic  mystic  craft.     1  have  been  told  by 
one  who  may  have  deceived  himself,  but  would  not  have  deceived 
me,  that  the  Eoyal  Arch,  notoriously  a  corruption  of  the  Koyal 
Arras,  is  known  to  the  Bedouins  of  Arabia ;  while  the  dairy  of 
the  Neilgherry  Todas,  with  its  exclusion  of  women,  and  its  rude 
ornamentation  of  crescents,  circles,  and  triangles,  was  at  once  iden- 
tified with  the  "old  religion  of  the  world  whose  vestiges  survive 
among  all  people."     But  these  are  themes  unfit  for  an  "  entered 
apprentice."     Mr.  Little  corroborated  concerning  the  Prairie  In- 
dians and  the  Yutas  what  is  said  of  the  settled  tribes,  namely,  that 
the  comforts  of  civilization  tend  to  their  destruction.     The  men, 
enervated  by  indoor  life  for  half  the  year,  are  compelled  at  times 
to  endure  sudden  privation,  hardship,  and  fatigue,  of  which  the 
results  are  rheumatism,  consumption,  and  fatal  catarrhs.     Yet  he 
believed  that  the  "valleys  of  Ephraim"  would  yet  be  full  of  them. 
He  spoke  freely  of  the  actualities  and  prospects  of  Mormonism. 
My  companions  asserted  with  truth  that  there  is  not  among  their 
number  a  single  loafer,  rich  or  poor,  an  idle  gentleman  or  a  lazy 
vagabond,  a  drunkard  or  a  gambler,  a  beggar  or  a  prostitute. 
Those  honorable  professions  are  membered  by  the  Gentiles.   They 
boasted,  indeed,  of  what  is  sometimes  owned  by  their  enemies, 
that  there  are  fewer  robberies,  murders,  arsons,  and  rapes  in  Utah 
than  in  any  other  place  of  equal  population  in  the  world.     They 
held  that  the  laws  of  the  United  States  are  better  adapted  to  se- 
cure the  happiness  of  a  small  community  than  to  consolidate  the 
provinces  of  a  continent  into  one  huge  em.pire,  and  they  looked 
confidently  forward  to  the  spread  of  Mormonism  over  the  world. 
They  claimed  for  themselves,  like  other  secessionists,  "  le  droit  sa- 
ere  cVinsurreclion,^''  against  which  in  vain  the  Grentiles  raged  and 
the  federal  government  devised  vain  things.    They  declared  them- 
selves to  be  the  salt  of  the  Union,  and  that  in  the  fullness  of  time 
they  shall  break  the  republic  in  pieces  like  a  potter's  vessel.     Of 
Washington,  Jefferson,  and  the  other  sages  of  the  Eevolution  they 
speak  with  all  respect,  describing  them  as  instruments  in  the  hand 
of  the  Almighty,  and  as  Latter-Day  Saints  in  will  if  not  in  deed. 
I  was  much  pleased  by  their  tolerance;  but  tolerance  in  the  West 
is  rather  the  effect  of  climate  and  occupation  than  of  the  reason- 
ing faculty.     Gentiles  have  often  said  before  me  that  jMormonism 
is  as  good  as  any  other  religion,  and  that  Mr.  Joseph  Smith  "had 
as  good  a  right  to  establish  a  Church  as  Luther,  Calvin,  Fox, 
Wesley,  or  even  bluff  Kinf^  Hal."     The  Mormons  are  certainly 
the  least  fanatical  of  our  faiths,  owning,  like  Hindoos,  that  every 
man  should  walk  his  own  waj'-,  while  claiming  for  themselves  su- 
periority in  belief  and  politics.     At  Nauvoo  they  are  said  to  have 
been  puffed  up  by  the  rapid  growth  of  their  power,  and  to  have 
been  presumptuous,  haughty,  insolent,  and  overbearing ;  to  have 


352  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VIII. 

assumed  a  jurisdiction  independent  of,  and  sometimes  hostile  to, 
the  nine  counties  around  them  and  to  the  States;  to  have  attached 
penalties  to  speaking  evil  of  the  Prophet;  and  to  have  denied 
the  validity  of  legal  documents,  unless  countersigned  by  him  who 
was  also  mayor  and  general.  They  are  certainly  changed  for  tlie 
better  in  these  days.  With  respect  to  their  future  views,  the  anti- 
Mormons  assert  that  Saints  have  now  been  driven  to  the  end  of 
their  tether,  and  must  stand  to  fight  or  deliver;  that  the  new 
Territory  of  Nevada  will  presently  be  a  fatal  rival  to  them ;  that 
the  States  will  no  longer  tolerate  this  theocratic  despotism  in  the 
bosom  of  a  democracy ;  and  that  presently  they  must  be  wiped 
out.  The  Mormons  already  discern  the  dawning  of  a  brighter 
day.  In  the  reaction  which  has  taken  place  in  their  favor  they 
fear  no  organized  attack  by  the  United  States  on  account  of  lobby 
influence  at  Washington,  and  the  vis  inerticz  inherent  in  so  slow 
and  unwieldy  a  body  as  the  federal  government.  They  count 
upon  secession,  cjuoting  a  certain  proverb  touching  conjunctures 
when  honest  men  come  in.  They  believe  that  the  supernatural 
aid  of  God,  plus  their  vote,  will  presently  make  them  a  state. 
"  Some  time  this  side  of  the  great  millennium"  they  will  realize 
their  favorite  dream,  restoration  (which  might  indeed  happen  in 
ten  years)  to  their  quondam  Zion — Independence,  Mo.,  the  cen- 
tre of  the  old  terrestrial  Paradise.  Of  this  j^romised  land  their 
President  said,  with  "something  of  prophetic  strain,"  "while  wa- 
ter runs  and  grass  grows,  while  virtue  is  lovely  and  vice  hateful, 
and  while  a  stone  points  out  a  sacred  spot  where  a  fragment  of 
American  liberty  once  was" — Lord  Macaulay's  well-known  Zea- 
lander  shall  apparently  take  his  passage  by  Cunard's — "  I  or  my 
posterity  will  plead  the  cause  of  injured  innocence,  until  Missouri 
makes  atonement  for  all  her  sins,  or  sinks  disgraced,  degraded, 
and  damned  to  hell,  where  the  worm  dieth  not,  and  the  fire  is  not 
quenched."  Then  shall  the  Jews  of  the  Old  World  rebuild  the 
Temple  of  Solomon,  and  the  Jews  of  the  New  World  (the  Mor- 
mons) recover  their  own  Zion.  Gog  and  Magog — that  is  to  say, 
the  kings  of  the  Gentiles — and  their  hosts  shall  rise  up  against 
the  Latter-Day  Saints,  who,  guided  by  a  prophet  that  wields  the 
sword  of  Laban,  shall  mightily  overthrow  them  at  the  battle  of 
Armageddon.  Then  the  spears,  bows,  and  arrows  (probably  an 
abstruse  allusion  to  the  descendants  of  our  Minies  and  Arm- 
strongs) shall  be  burned  with  fire  seven  years ;  the  earth  and  its 
fulhicss  shall  be  theirs,  and  the  long-looked-for  millennium  shall 
come  at  last.  And  as  prophecy  without  date  is  somewhat  liable 
to  be  vague  and  indefinite,  these  great  events  are  fixed  in  Mr. 
Joseph  Smith's  Autobiography  for  the  year  of  grace  1890.  Mean- 
time they  can  retire,  if  forbidden  the  Saskatchewan  Kiver  and 
Vancouver's  Island,  to  the  rich  "mincrales"  in  "Sonora  of  the 
Gold  Mountains." 

On  the  morning  of  the  next  day,  Sunday,  the  16th  of  Septem- 


Chap.  VIII.    THE  "GAUGE  OF  PHILOSOPHY."— MISSIONARIES.      353 

ber,  -we  mounted  and  rode  slowly  on.  I  had  neglected  to  take 
"leggins,"  and  the  loss  of  cuticle  and  cutis  was  deplorable.  Once 
at  the  Tabernacle  was  enough  :  on  this  occasion,  however,  non-at- 
tendance was  a  mistake.  There  had  been  a  little  "  miff"  between 
Mr.  President  and  the  "Gauge  of  Philosophy,"  Mr.  0.  Pratt.  The 
latter  gentleman,  who  is  also  an  apostle,  is  a  highly  though  prob- 
ably a  self-educated  man,  not,  as  is  stated  in  an  English  work,  a 
graduate  of  Trinity  College,  Dublin.  The  Usrnan  of  the  New 
Faith,  writer,  preacher,  theologian,  missionary,  astronomer,  philos- 
opher, and  mathematician — especially  in  the  higher  branches he 

has  thrust  thought  into  a  faith  of  ceremony  which  is  supposed  to 
dispense  with  the  trouble  of  thinking,  and  has  intruded  human 
learning  into  a  scheme  whose  essence  is  the  utter  abrogation  of 
the  individual  will.  He  is  consequently  suspected  of  too  much 
learning;  of  relying,  in  fact,  rather  upon  books  and  mortal  paper 
than  that  royal  road  to  all  knowledge,  inspiration  from  on  high, 
and  his  tendencies  to  let  loose  these  pernicious  doctrines  often 
bring  him  into  trouble  and  place  him  below  his  position.  In  his 
excellent  discourse  delivered  to-day  he  had  declared  the  poverty 
of  the  Mormons,  and  was  speedily  put  down  by  Mr.  Brigham 
Young,  who  boasted  the  Saints  to  be  the  wealthiest  (z.  e.,  in  good 
works  and  post-obit  prospects)  people  in  the  world.  I  had  tried 
my  best  to  have  the  pleasure  of  half  an  hcfur's  conversation  with 
the  Gauge,  who,  however,  for  reasons  unknown  to  me,  declined. 
At  the  same  meeting  Mr.  Heber  C.  Kimball  solemnly  consigned 
to  a  hotter  place  than  the  tropics  Messrs.  Bell  and  Livingston,  the 
cause  being  their  supposed  complicity  in  bringing  in  the  federal 
troops.  I  write  it  with  regret,  but  both  of  these  gentlemen,  when 
the  sad  tidings  were  communicated  to  them,  showed  a  quasi-Pha- 
raonic  hardening  of  the  carnal  heart.  A  measure,  however,  was 
on  this  occasion  initiated,  which  more  than  compensated  for  these 
small  ridicules.  To  the  present  date  missionaries  were  sent  forth, 
to  Canton  even,  or  Kurrachee,  like  the  apostles  of  Judea,  working 
their  passages  and  supporting  themselves  by  handiwork;  being 
wholly  without  purse  or  scrip,  baggage  or  salary,  they  left  their 
business  to  languish,  and  their  families  to  want.  When  man  has 
no  coin  of  his  own,  he  is  naturally  disposed  to  put  his  hand  into 
his  neighbor's  pocket,  and  the  greediness  of  a  few  unprincipled 
propagandists,  despite  the  prohibitions  of  the  Prophet,  had  caused 
a  scandal  by  the  richness  of  their  "plunder."  A  new  ordinance 
was  therefore  issued  to  the  thirty  new  nominees.*     The  mission- 

*  The  following  is  a  copy  of  the  elder's  certificate,  officially  signed  by  the  presi- 
dent and  his  two  councilors,  and  supplied  to  the  departing  missionary: 

"  To  all  Persons  to  whom  this  Letter  shall  come  : 
"This  certifies  that  the  bearer,  Elder  A.B.,  is  in  full  faith  and  fellowship  ■with 
the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-Day  Saints,  and  by  the  general  authorities  of 
said  Church  has  been  duly  appointed  a  mission  to  Liverpool  to  preach  the  Gospel. 
and  administer  in  all  the  ordinances  thereof  pertaining  to  his  office. 

"And  we  invite  all  men  to  give  heed  to  his  teachings  and  counsels  as  a  man  of 

z 


354  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VIH. 

aries  were  forbidden  to  take  from  their  converts,  and  in  compen- 
sation they  would  receive  regular  salaries,  for  which  funds  were 
to  be  collected  in  the  several  wards.  On  the  same  evening  I  was 
informed  a  single  ward,  the  13th,  subscribed  $3000.  That  Sun- 
day was  an  important  day  to  myself  also ;  I  posted  a  "  sick  cer- 
tificate," advising  extension  of  leave  for  six  months,  signed  by  W. 
F.  Anderson,  M.D.,  of  the  University  of  Maryland.  It  was  not 
wholly  en  regie;  it  required  two  signatures  and  the  counter-signa- 
ture of  H.  B.  M.'s  consul  to  affirm  that  the  signatures  were  bond 
fide,  not  "bogus."  But  the  signer  was  the  only  M.D.  in  the  place, 
H.  B.  M.'s  nearest  consul  was  distant  about  600  miles,  and  to  sug- 
gest that  a  gentleman  may  be  quietly  forging  or  falsifying  his  sig- 
nature is  to  incur  an  unjustifiable  personal  risk  in  the  Far  West. 

Still  bent  upon  collecting  the  shells  of  the  Basin,  I  accepted  Mr. 

S 's  offer  of  being  my  guide  to  Ensign  Peak,  where  they  are 

said  to  be  found  in  the  greatest  number.  Our  route  lay  through 
the  broken  wall  which  once  guarded  the  land  against  Lemuel, 
and  we  passed  close  by  the  large  barn-like  building  callafiihe 
Arsenal,  where  the  military  school  will  also  be.  Motives  oi^li- 
cacy  prevented  my  asking  questions  concerning  the  furniture  of 
the  establishment.  Anti-Mormons,  however,  whisper  that  it  con- 
tains cannon,  mortars,  and  other  large-scaled  implements  of  de- 
struction, prepared,  of  ^course,  for  treasonable  purposes.  The  Ar- 
senal naturally  led  us  into  conversation  concerning  the  Nauvoo 
Legion,  the  Mormon  Battalion,  the  Dauite  band,  and  other  things 
military,  of  which  the  reader  may  not  be  undesirous  of  knowing 
"  some." 

The  Nauvoo  Legion  was  organized  in  1840,  and  was  made  to 
include  all  male  Saints  between  the  ages  of  sixteen  and  fifty.  In 
1842  it  numbered  2000  men,  well  officered,  uniformed,  armed, 
and  drilled.  It  now  may  amount  throughout  the  Territory  to 
6000 — 8000  men:  the  IJtah  militia,  however,  is  officially  laid 
down  in  the  latest  returns  at  2821.  In  case  of  war,  it  would  be 
assisted  by  30,000  or  40,000  Indian  warriors.  The  Legion  is  com- 
manded by  a  lieutenant  general,  at  present  Mr.  Daniel  C.  Wells, 
the  Martin  Hofer  of  this  Western  Tyrol;  the  major  general  is 
Mr.  C.  D.  Grant,  who,  in  case  of  vacancy,  takes  command.  The 
lieutenant  general  is  elected  by  a  majority  of  the  commissioned 
officers,  and  is  then  commissioned  by  the  governor :  he  organizes 
the  Legion  into  divisions,  brigades,  regiments,  battalions,  compa- 
nies, and  districts :  his  staff,  besides  heads  of  departments — adju- 
tant, commissary  quarter-master,  paymaster,  and  surgeon  general 

God,  sent  to  open  to  them  the  door  of  life  and  salvation,  and  assist  him  in  his  trav- 
eb,  in  whatsoever  things  he  may  need. 

"And  we  pray  God,  the  Eternal  Father,  to  bless  Elder  A.  B.,  and  all  who  receive 
him  and  minister  to  his  comfort,  with  the  blessings  of  heaven  and  earth,  for  time  and 
for  all  eternity,  in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ :   Amen. 

"  Signed  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  Territory  of  Utah, ,  186-,  in  behalf  of  said 

Church." 


Chap.  VIII.  THE  NAUVOO  LEGION.— GRANTS.  355 

— ;Consists  of  three  aids  and  two  topographical  engineers  with  the 
rank  of  colonel,  a  military  secretary  with  the  rank  of  lieutenant 
colonel,  and  two  chaplains.  The  present  adjutant  general  is  Mr. 
William  Ferguson,  one  of  the  few  Irish  Saints,  originally  sergeant- 
major  in  the  Mormon  battalion,  who,  after  the  fashion  of  the 
Western  world,  combines  with  the  soldier  the  lawyer  and  the 
editor.  The  minutest  directions  are  issued  to  the  Legion  in  "An 
Act  to  provide  for  the  farther  Organization  of  the  Militia  of  the 
Territory  of  Utah  (Territorial  Laws,  chap.  35),  and  it  is  divided 
into  military  districts  as  below.*  There  is,  moreover,  an  inde- 
pendent battalion  of  Life  Guards  in  Great  Salt  Lake  County  not 
attached  to  any  brigade  or  division,  but  subject  at  all  times  to  the 
call  of  the  governor  and  lieutenant  general.  There  are  also 
minute-men,  picked  lighters,  ready  to  mount,  at  a  few  minutes' 
notice,  upon  horses  that  range  near  the  Jordan,  and  to  take  the 
field  in  pursuit  of  Indians  or  others,  under  their  commandant 
Colonel  Burton.  These  corps  form  the  nuclei  of  what  will  be, 
after  two  generations,  formidable  armies.  The  increase  of  Saintly 
population  is  rapid,  and  from  their  childhood  men  are  trained  to 
arms :  each  adult  has  a  rifle  and  a  sabre,  a  revolver  and  a  bowie- 
knife,  and  he  wants  only  practice  to  become  a  good,  efficient,  and 
well-disciplined  soldier.  Grants  amounting  to  a  total  of  $5000 
have  at  different  times  been  apportioned  to  military  purposes, 
buildings,  mounting  ordnance,  and  schools :  Gentiles  declare  that 
it  was  required  for  education,  but  I  presume  that  the  Mormons, 
like  most  people,  claim  to  know  their  own  affairs  best.  As  in  the 
land  of  Liberty  generally,  there  is  a  modified  conscription;  "all 
free  male  citizens" — with  a  few  dignified  exceptions  and  exempts 
— are  subject  to  soldier's  duty  within  thirty  days  after  their  ar- 
rival at  any  military  district  in  the  Territory. 

*  There  are  eleven  originally  established,  viz. : 

1st.  The  Great  Salt  Lake  Military  District  shall  include  all  the  militia  within  the 
boundaries  of  Great  Salt  Lake  City. 

2d.  The  Davis  Military  District  shall  include  all  the  militia  within  the  limits  of 
Davis  Count}'. 

3d.  The  Weber  Military  District  shall  include  all  the  militia  within  the  limits  of 
Weber  County. 

4th.  The  Western  Jordan  Military  District  shall  include  all  the  militia  in  Great 
Salt  Lake  County  west  of  the  Jordan  River. 

5th.  The  Tooele  Military  District  shall  include  all  the  militia  within  the  limits  of 
Tooele  County. 

6th.  The  Cotton-wood  Military  District  shall  include  all  the  militia  in  Great  Salt 
Lake  County  south  of  the  south  line  of  Great  Salt  Lake  City  and  east  of  the  Jordan 
River. 

7th.  The  Utah  Jlilitary  District  shall  include  all  the  militia  in  Utah  County. 

8th.  The  San  l\'te  Military  District  shall  include  all  the  militia  within  the  limits 
of  San  Pete  County. 

9th.  The  Parovan  Military  District  shall  include  all  the  militia  within  the  limits 
of  Millard  County. 

10th.  The  Iron  Military  District  shall  include  all  the  militia  within  the  limits  of 
Iron  County. 

11th.  The  Green  River  Military  District  shall  include  all  the  militia  within  the 
limits  of  Green  River  County. 


356  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VHI. 

That  the  Mormon  battalion  did  good  service  in  the  Mexican 
War  of  1847  is  a  matter  of  history.  It  was  sent  at  a  most  critical 
conjuncture.  Application  was  made  to  the  Saints,  when  upon  the 
point  of  commencing  their  exodus  from  Egypt,  through  the  deserts 
of  Paran  and'Sin,  where  the  red  Amalekite  and  the  Moabite  lay 
in  wait  to  attack  them,  and  when  every  male  was  wanted  to  de- 
fend the  old  and  sick,  the  women  and  children,  and  the  valuables 
of  which  the  Egyptian  had  not  despoiled  them.  Yet  the  present 
Prophet  did  not  hesitate  to  obey  the  call :  he  sent  off  500  of  his 
best  men,  who  fought  through  the  war  and  shared  in  the  triumph. 
Providence  rewarded  them.  It  was  a  Mormon — James  W.  Mar- 
shall— who,  when  discharged  from  service,  entered  with  some  com- 
rades the  service  of  a  Swiss  land-owner.  Captain  Suter — a  rem- 
nant of  Charles  X.'s  guard — near  Sacramento,  on  the  American 
River,  and  who,  in  January,  1848,  when  sinking  a  mill-run  or 
water-run,  discovered  the  shining  metal  which  first  made  Califor- 
nia a  household  word.  On  the  return  of  the  battalion  to  Great 
Salt  Lake  City,  laden  with  nearly  half  a  million  of  gold,  a  minf 
was  established,  and  a  $5  piece  was  added  to  the  one  million  dol- 
lars which  forms  the  annual  circulation  of  the  United  States.  It 
bears  on  the  reverse,  "  Holiness  to  the  Lord,"  surmounting  a 
three-cornered  cap,  placed  over  a  single  eye:  the  former  alludes, 
I  was  told,  mystically  to  the  first  Presidency ;  the  obverse  having 
two  hands  clasped  over  the  date  (1849),  and  the  words  "  Five 
Dollars,  G.  S.  L.  C.  P.  G."  The  $5  appeared  somewhat  heavier, 
though  smaller  than  an  English  sovereign.  Anti-Mormons  ad- 
duce this  coinage  as  an  additional  proof  of  saintly  presumption; 
but  it  was  legally  done:  a  Territory  may  not  stamp  precious 
metal  with  the  federal  arms,  but  it  has  a  right  to  establish  its  own. 
They  adduce,  moreover,  a  severe  charge,  namely,  that  the  $5  piece 
was  15-20  per  cent,  under  weight,  and  j^et  was  forcibly  made 
current.  One  remarkable  effect  the  gold  certainly  had.  When 
the  Kirtland  Safety  Savings  Bank,  established  by  Mr.  Joseph 
Smith  in  February,  1831,  broke,  he  stout-heartedly  prophesied 
that  before  twenty  years  should  elapse  the  worthless  paper  should 
be  again  at  par.  The  financial  vaticination  was  true  to  the  let- 
ter.* 

*  The  Mormons  quote  two  other  prophecies  both  equally  offensive  to  the  United 
States,  and  both  equally  well  known. 

On  the  26th  of  April,  1 843,  Mr.  Joseph  Smith  distinctly  declared,  in  the  name 
of  the  Lord,  that  before  the  arrival  of  the  Son  of  Man  the  "question  of  slavery 
would  cause  a  rebellion  in  Soutli  Carolina,"  and  effect  a  "division  of  the  Southern 
apainst  the  Northern  States."  It  was  a  calamity  easy  to  be  foreseen,  but  we  look 
with  anxiety  to  the  unfulfilled  portion,  the  "terrible  bloodshed"  which  will  result. 

In  184G,  when,  humanly  speaking,  want  and  destitution  stared  the  Saints  in  the 
face,  Mr.  Brigham  Young  predicted  that  within  five  years  they  would  be  wealthier 
than  before.  This  was  palpably  fulfilled  in  1849,  when  the  passage  of  emigrants  to 
California  enabled  the  Saints  to  exchange  their  supplies  of  food  for  goods  and  valu- 
ables  at  enormous  profits. 

I  commend  these  "uninspired  prophecies"  to  the  simple-minded  translator  of 
■*' Forewamings,  Prophecies  on  the  Church,  Antichrist  (who  was  born,  we  are  told. 


I 


Chap.  VIII.        THE  DANITE  BAND.— THE  JEBEL  NUR.  359 

The  "  Danite  band,"  a  name  of  fear  in  the  Mississippi  Valley, 
is  said  by  anti-Mormons  to  consist  of  men  between  the  ages  of 
seventeen  and  forty-nine.  They  were  originally  termed  Daugh- 
ters of  Gideon,  Destroying  Angels — the  Gentiles  say  Devils — 
and,  finally,  Sons  of  Dan,  or  Danites,  from  one  of  whom  it  was 
prophesied  that  he  should  be  a  serpent  in  the  path.  They  were 
organized  about  1837,  under  D.  W.  Patten,  popularly  called  Cap- 
tain Fearnot,  for  the  purpose  of  dealing  as  avengers  of  blood  with 
Gentiles;  in  fact,  they  formed  a  kind  of  "Death  Society,"  Des- 
peradoes, Thugs,  Hashshashiyun — in  plain  English,  assassins  in 
the  name  of  the  Lord.  The  Mormons  declare  categorically  the 
whole  and  every  particular  to  be  the  calumnious  invention  of  the 
impostor  and  arch  apostate  Mr.  John  C.  Bennett,  whilom  mayor 
of  Nauvoo;  that  the  mystery  and  horror  of  the  idea  made  it 
equally  grateful  to  the  knave  and  fool  who  persecuted  them,  and 
that  not  a  trader  could  be  scalped,  nor  a  horse-stealer  shot,  nor  a 
notorious  villain  of  a  Gentile  knived  without  the  deed  of  blood 
being  attributed  to  Danite  hands  directed  by  prophetic  heads. 
It  was  supposed  that  the  Danites  assume  savage  disguises:  "he 
has  met  the  Indians"  was  a  proverbial  phrase,  meaning  that  a 
Gentile  has  fallen  into  the  power  of  the  destroying  angels.  I  but 
express  the  opinion  of  sensible  and  moderate  neutrals  in  disbe- 
lieving the  existence  of  an  organized  band  of  "Fidawi;"  where 
every  man  is  ready  to  be  a  Danite,  Danites  are  not  wanting.  Cer- 
tainly, in  the  terrible  times  of  Missouri  and  Illinois,  destroying 
angels  were  required  to  smite  secretly,  mysteriously,  and  terribly 
the  first-born  of  Egypt ;  now  the  necessity  has  vanished.  This, 
however,  the  Mormons  deny,  declaring  the  existence  of  the  Dan- 
ites, like  that  of  spiritual  wives,  to  be,  and  ever  to  have  been,  lit- 
erally and  in  substance  totally  and  entirely  untrue. 

Meanwhile  we  had  nearly  ascended  the  Jebel  ISTur  of  this  new 
Meccah,  the  big  toe  of  the  Wasach  Mountains,  and  exchanged  the 
sunny  temperature  below  for  a  cold  westerly  wind,  that  made  us 
feel  snow:  the  air  improved  in  purity,  as  we  could  judge  by  the 
effects  of  carcasses  lying  at  different  heights.  The  bench  up  which 
we  trod  was  gashed  by  broad  ravines,  and  bore  upon  its  red  soil 
a  growth  of  thin  sage  and  sunflower.  A  single  fossil  and  two 
varieties  of  shells  were  found:  iron  and  quartz  were  scattered 
over  the  surface,  and  there  is  a  legend  of  gold  having  been  dis- 
covered here.  Presently,  standing  upon  the  topmost  bluff,  we  sat 
down  to  enjoy  a  view  which  I  have  attempted  to  reproduce  in  a 
sketch.  Below  the  bench  lay  the  dot-like  houses  of  Zion.  Wc 
could  see  with  bird's-eye  glance  the  city  laid  out  like  a  chess- 
board, and  all  the  length  and  breadth  of  its  bee-line  streets  and 

four  years  ago),  and  Revelations  in  the  Last  Times."  Messrs.  Smith  and  Young's 
vatieinations  will  be  found  quite  as  respectable  as  the  "Visions  of  an  Aged  Nun" 
and  the  "Predictions  of  Sister  Rosa  Columba."  Prophecy,  being  the  highest  aim 
of  human  induction,  is  apparently  universally  and  equally  diffused. 


360  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  VIU. 

crow-flight  avenues,  which,  bordered  bj  distance-dwarfed  trees, 
narrowed  to  threads  as  they  drew  toward  a  vanishing  point.  Be- 
yond the  suburbs  stretched  the  valley  plain,  sprinkled  with  little 
plantations  clustering  round  the  smaller  settlements,  and  streaked 
by  the  rivulets  which,  arising  from  the  frowning  pine-clad  heights 
on  the  left,  flowed  toward  the  little  Jordan  of  this  young  Judea  on 
the  right.  The  extreme  south  was  bounded  by  the  denticulated 
bench  which  divided  like  a  mole  the  valleys  of  the  Great  Salt  and 
Utah  Lakes.  Already  autumn  had  begun  :  the  purpling  plain  and 
golden  slopes  shed  a  dying  glory  over  the  departing  year,  while 
the  mellowing  light  of  evening,  and  aerial  blue  from  above,  toned 
down  to  absolute  beauty  each  harsher  feature  of  the  scene. 

After  lingering  for  a  while  over  the  fair  coujy  d^ceil,  we  descend- 
ed, holding  firm  the  sage-bushes,  the  abrupt  western  slope,  and  we 
passed  by  the  warm  Harrowgate  spring,  with  its  sulphury  blue 
waters,  white  lime-like  bed,  and  rushy  margins  in  dark  earth,  snow- 
capped with  salt  efflorescence.  As  we  entered  the  city  we  met  a 
noted  Gentile  innocently  driving  out  a  fair  Saint:  both  averted 
their  faces  as  they  passed  us,  but  my  companion's  color  darkened. 
All  races  have  their  pet  prohibitions  and  aversions,  their  likes  and 
dislikes  in  matters  of  sin.  Among  the  Mormons,  a  suspicion  of 
immorality  is  more  hateful  than  the  reputation  of  bloodshed.  So 
horse-thieving  in  the  Western  States  is  a  higher  crime  than  any 
other — in  fact,  the  sin  which  is  never  forgiven.  An  editor  thus 
unconcernedly  sums  up  the  history  of  one  lately  shot  when  plun- 
dering stock:  "He  was  buried  by  those  who  meted  out  to  him 
summary  justice,  not  exactly  attending  to  law,  but  upon  a  more 
speedy,  economical,  and  salutary  principle,  and  a  stake  was  placed 

at  the  head  of  his  grave,  on  which  was  inscribed  '  A.  B.  B , 

shot  for  horse-stealing,  July  1,  I860.' " 

Entering  the  city  by  the  northwest,  we  passed  the  Academy  of 
the  7th  Ward.  Standing  in  a  10-acre  block,  it  is  a  large  adobe 
building  with  six  windows,  built  for  a  hotel,  and  bought  for  edu- 
cational purposes  by  the  Prophet.  Forms  and  tables,  scattered 
with  the  usual  school-books,  were  the  sole  furniture,  and  the  doors 
were  left  open  as  if  they  had  nothing  to  defend.  My  companion 
had  a  truly  brotherly  way  of  treating  his  co-religionists ;  he  never 
met  one,  however  surly -looking,  without  a  salute,  and  when  a  door 
was  opened  he  usually  walked  in.  Thus  we  visited  successively 
a  water-power-mill,  a  tannery,  and  an  English  coachmaker,  paint- 
er, and  varnisher.  Some  of  the  houses  which  we  passed  were 
neat  and  cleanly  curtained,  especially  that  belonging  to  an  En- 
glishwoman whose  husband.  Captain  R ,  had  lately  left  her  in 

widowhood.  We  finished  with  the  garden  of  Apostle  Woodruff, 
who  introduced  us  to  his  wife,  and  showed  us  work  of  which  he 
had  reason  to  be  proud.  Despite  the  hard,  ungrateful  soil  which 
had  required  irrigation  for  the  last  ten  years,  there  were  apricots 
from  Malta,  the  Hooker  strawberries,  here  worth  $5  the  plant, 


Chap.  IX.  CEMETERY.— THE  WORD  "  MORMON."  361 

plum-trees  from  Kew  Gardens,  French  and  Californian  grapes, 
wild  plum  and  buffalo  berry,  black  currants,  peaches,  and  apples 
— with  which  last  we  were  hospitably  loaded — in  numbers.  The 
kitchen  garden  contained  rhubarb,  peas,  potatoes,  Irish  and  sweet, 
asparagus,  white  and  yellow  carrots,  cabbages,  and  huge  beets: 
the  sugar-cane  had  been  tried  there,  but  it  was  not,  like  the  sweet 
holcus,  a  success. 

The  last  time  I  walked  out  of  Great  Salt  Lake  City  was  to  see 
the  cemetery,  which  lies  on  the  bench  to  the  northeast  of  the  set- 
tlement. There  is  but  one  cemetery  for  saint  and  sinner,  and  it 
has  been  prudently  removed  about  three  miles  from  the  abodes 
of  the  living.  The  tombs,  like  the  funeral  ceremonies,  are  simple, 
lacking  the  "  monumental  mockery"  which  renders  the  country 
church-yard  in  England  a  fitter  study  for  farce  than  for  elegy. 
On  occasions  of  death,  prayers  are  offered  in  the  house,  and  the 
corpse  is  carried  at  once  to  its  last  home.  The  grave-yard  is  wall- 
ed round,  and  contains  a  number  of  occupants,  the  tombs  being 
denoted  by  a  stone  or  board,  with  name  and  date,  and  sometimes 
a  religious  sentence,  at  the  head  and  foot. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

Latter-Day  Saints. — Of  the  Mormon  Religion. 

No  less  an  authority  than  Alexander  von  Humboldt  has  char- 
acterized positive  religions  in  general  as  consisting  of  an  historical 
novelette  more  or  less  interesting,  a  system  of  cosmogony  more  or 
less  improbable,  and  a  code  of  morals  mostly  pure.*  Two  thirds 
of  this  description  apply  to  the  faith  of  the  Latter-Day  Saints : 
they  have,  however,  escaped  pateological  criticism  by  adopting 
Genesitic  history,  and  by  "  swallowing  Eve's  apple"  in  the  infancy 
of  their  spiritual  life. 

Before  proceeding  to  comment  upon  the  New  Dispensation — 
for  such,  though  not  claiming  or  owning  to  be,  it  is — I  may  com- 
pare the  two  leading  interpretations  of  the  word  "Mormon,"  which, 
as  has  been  well  remarked,f  truly  convey  the  widely  diverging 
opinions  of  the  opposers  and  supporters  of  Mormonism.  Mormon 
(jiop/LKvv)  signifies  literally  a  lamia,  a  maniola,  a  female  spectre ; 
the  mandrill,  for  its  ugliness,  was  called  Cynocephalus  mormon. 
"Mormon,''  according  to  Mr.  Joseph  Smith's  Mormonic,  or  rather 
Pantagruelic  interpretation,  is  the  best — scil,  of  mankind.     "  We 

*  A  somewhat  free  version  of  "toutes  les  re'lifjrions  positives  offient  trois  parties 
tlistinctes ;  im  traitc'  de  mceurs  partout  le  meme  ct  tres  pur,  un  reve  ge'ologique,  et 
un  mythe  ou  petit  roman  historique :  le  dernier  e'le'ment  obtient  le  pks  d'importance." 
— LX.  Letter,  Dec.  3d,  1841. 

t  The  Mormons,  or  Latter-Day  Saints,  by  Lieutenant  J.  W.  Gunnison,  of  the 
United  States  Topographical  Engineers.     Philadelphia,  1852. 


^ 


3g2  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IX. 

say  from  the  Saxon  good^  the  Dane  god^  the  Goth  goder^  the  Ger- 
man gut^  the  Dutch  goed^  the  Latin  honus^  the  Greek  kcdos^  the  He- 
brew toh^  and  the  Egyptian  mon.  Hence,  with  the  addition  of 
More,  or  the  contraction  Mor,  we  have  the  word  Mormon,  which 
means  Uterally  "  more  good."  By  faith  it  is  said  man  can  remove 
mountains :  perhaps  it  will  also  enable  him  to  believe  in  the  spirit 
of  that  philology  that  revealed  unto  Mr.  Joseph  Smith  his  deriva- 
tion, and  rendered  it  a  shibboleth  to  his  followers.  This  is  not 
the  place  to  discuss  a  subject  so  broad  and  so  long,  but  perhaps — 
the  idea  will  suggest  itself^ — the  mind  of  man  most  loves  those  er- 
rors and  delusions  into  which  it  has  become  self-persuaded,  and  is 
most  fanatic  concerning  the  irrationalities  and  the  supernaturali- 
ties  to  which  it  has  bowed  its  own  reason. 

Unaccountably  enough,  seeing  that  it  means  "  more  good,"  sal, 
the  best  of  mankind,  the  word  Mormon  is  distasteful  to  its  dis- 
ciples, who  look  upon  it  as  Jew  by  a  Hebrew,  Mohammedan  by  a 
Moslem,  and  Komanist  or  Puseyite  by  the  sectarian  Christian. 
They  prefer  to  be  called  Latter-Day  Saints,  or,  to  give  them  their 
title  in  full,  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-Day  Saints,  in 
contradistinction  to  the  Former-Day  Saints.  Latter  Day  alludes 
to  the  long-looked-for  convulsion  that  will  end  the  present  qui- 
escent geologic  epoch.  Its  near  approach  has  ever  been  a  favor- 
ite dogma  and  improvement  subject  of  the  Christian  Church,  from 
the  time  of  St.  Paul  to  that  of  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  and  Drs.  Wolff 
and  Gumming;*  for  who,  inquires  Panurge,  "is  able  to  tell  if  the 
world  shall  last  yet  three  years  ?"  Others  read  it  as  a  prophecy 
that  "  Gentilism,"  alias  "  the  corrupted  Christianity  of  the  age,"  is 
"  on  its  last  legs."  Even  as  "  Saints"  is  a  term  which  has  been 
applied  from  time  immemorial  in  the  Apocalypse  and  elsewhere 
to  the  orthodox,  i.  e.,  those  of  one's  own  doxy,  and  as  Enoch  speaks 
of  "  saints"  before  the  Flood  or  Noachian  cataclysm,  so  the  honor- 
able title  has  in  these  days  been  appropriated  by  seers,  revelators, 
and  prophets,  and  conferred  upon  the  Lord's  chosen  people,  i.  e., 
themselves  and  their  followers.  According  to  anti-Mormons,  the 
name  Latter-Day  Saints  was  assumed  in  1835  by  the  Mormons  at 
the  suggestion  of  Sidney  Eigdon. 

Before  beginning  a  description  of  what  Mormonism  really  is,  I 
would  succinctly  lay  down  a  few  positions  illustrating  its  genesis. 

1.  The  religious  as  well  as  the  social  history  of  the  progressive 
Anglo-Saxon  race  is  a  succession  of  contrasts,  a  system  of  reac- 
tions ;  at  times  retrogressive,  it  has  a  general  onward  tendency  to- 
ward an  unknown  development.  The  Unitarians  of  .New  En- 
gland, for  instance,  arose  out  of  Calvinism.  The  Puritanism  of 
the  present  generation  is  the  natural  consequence  of  the  Kation- 
alism  which  preceded  it. 

2.  In  what  a  French  author  terms  "le  triste  dtat  de  dissolution 

*  The  Mormon  Prophet  fixed  "the  end  of  the  world"  for  A.D.  1890;  Dr.  Gum- 
ming, I  believe,  in  1870. 


Chap.  IX, 


THE  MORMON  ELEMENT.— STATISTICS. 


863 


dans  lequel  git  le  Chr^tiente  de  nos  jours" — the  splitting  of  the 
Church  into  three  grand  divisions,  Koman,  Greek,  and  Eastern, 
the  convulsion  of  the  Northern  mind,  which  created  Protestant- 
ism, and  the  minute  subdivision  of  the  latter  into  Episcopalians 
and  Presbyterians,  Lutherans  and  Calvinists,  Quakers  and  Shak- 
ers, the  multiform  Methodists  and  various  Baptists,  and,  to  quote 
no  farther  varietes  des  eijlises,  the  Congregationalists,  Unitarians, 
and  Universalists  —  a  rationalistic  race  finds  reason  to  inquire, 
"What  is  Christianity?"  and  holds  itself  prepared  for  a  new  faith, 
a  regeneration  of  human  thought  —  in  fact,  a  religious  and  social 
change,  such  as  the  Reformation  of  the  sixteenth  century  repre- 
sented and  fondly  believed  itself  to  be."^* 

3.  Mormonism  boasts  of  few  Roman  Catholic  or  Greek  con- 
verts ;  the  French  and  Italians  are  rare,  and  there  is  a  remarkable 
deficiency  of  Germans  and  Irish  —  those  wretched  races  without 
nationality  or  loyalty  —  which  have  overrun  the  Eastern  Ameri- 
can States.  It  is,  then,  to  Protestantism  that  we  must  look  for  the 
origin  of  the  New  Faith. 

4.  In  1800-1804,  and  in  1820,  a  mighty  Wesleyan  "revival," 
which  in  Methodism  represents  the  missions  and  retreats  of  Ca- 
tholicism, had  disturbed  and  excited  the  public  mind  in  America, 
especially  in  Kentucky  and  Tennessee.  The  founder  of  Mormon- 
ism, Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  his  present  successor,  and  his  principal  dis- 
ciples and  followers,  were  Campbellites,  Millerites,  Ranters,  or  oth- 
er Methodists.     Wesleyan  sectarianism,  like  the  old  Arab  pagan- 


ize %2oms  Denominations  in  the  United  States,  accordivf/  to  the  Census  of  1861. 
(From  the  "  American  Almanac"  of  1S61.) 


Denominations. 


Baptist 

Christian 

Congregational 

Dutch  Reformed... 

Episcopal 

Free 

Friends 

German  Reformed. 

Jewish 

Lutheran 

Mennonite 

Methodist 

Moravian 

Presbyterian 

Roman  Catholic... 

Swedenborgian 

Tunker 

Union 

Unitarian 

Universalist 

Minor  sects 


8,791 
812 

1,674 
324 

1,422 

361 

714 

327 

31 

1,203 

110 

12,487 

331 

4,584 

1,112 
15 
52 
619 
243 
494 
325 


Total 36,011 


Aggregate 

Accommods- 

lion. 


3,130,878  356 
296,050  365 
795,177i475 
181,986  561 
625,213  440 
108,605  300 
282,823  396 
156,932  479 
16,575  534 
531,100  441 
29,900J272 

4,209,333  337 
112,185' 338 

2,040,316  445 
620,950  558 
5,070  338 
35,075,  674 
213,552  345 
137,367  565 
20.5,462  415 
115,347,354 


13,849,8961  384 


Total  Value  of 
Church  Property 


$10,931,382 

845,810 

7,973,962 

4,096,730 

11,261,970 

251,255 

1,709,867 

965,880 

371,600 

2,867,886 

94,245 

14,636,671 

443,347 

14,369,889 

8,973,838 

108,100 

46,025 

690,065 

3,268,122 

1,766,015 

741,980 


$1,244 
1,041 
4,763 

12,644 

7,919 

698 

2,395 

2,953 

11,987 
2,383 
856 
1,174 
1,339 
3,135 
8,069 
7,^06 
885 
1,114 

13,449 
3,576 
2,283 


$80,416,639  $2,400 


354  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IX. 

ism  in  El  Islam,  still  shows  its  traces  in  the  worship  and  various 
observances  of  a  doxology  which  by  literalism  and  exaggeration 
has  wholly  separated  itself  from  the  older  creeds  of  the  world. 
Thus  we  tind  Mormonism  to  be  in  its  origin  English,  Protestant, 
anti-Catholic,  Methodistic. 

It  may  be  advisable  briefly  to  trace  the  steps  by  which  we  ar- 
rive at  this  undesirable  end.  The  birth  of  Komanism,  according 
to  the  Reformed  writers,  dates  from  certain  edicts  issued  by  Theo- 
dosius  II.  and  by  Valentinian  III.,  and  constituting  the  Bishop  of 
Rome  "  Rector  of  the  whole  Church,"  The  newly-born  hierarchy 
found  tender  nurses  in  Justinian,  Pepin,  and  Charlemagne,  and  in 
the  beginning  of  the  eleventh  century  St.  Gregory  VII.  (Hilde- 
brand  the  Great)  supplied  the  prime  want  of  the  age  by  establish- 
ing a  visible  theocracy,  with  a  vicar  of  Jesus  Christ  at  its  head. 
To  the  existence  of  a  mediatorial  priestly  caste,  the  officials  of  a 
spiritual  despotism,  claiming  power  of  censure  and  excommunica- 
tion, and  the  gift  of  the  crown  terrestrial  as  well  as  celestial,  anti- 
papistical  writers  trace  the  various  vices  and  corruptions  inherent 
in  a  semi-barbarous  age,  the  "  melancholy  duality"  of  faith  and 
works  of  religion  and  morality  which  seems  to  belong  to  the 
Southern  mind,  and  the  Oriental  semi-Pelagianism  which  taught 
that  man  might  be  self-sanctified  or  vicariously  saved,  with  its 
logical  deductions,  penance,  benefices,  indulgences.  An  excessive 
superstition  endured  for  a  season.  Then  set  in  the  inevitable  re- 
action :  the  extreme  religiousness,  that  characteristic  of  the  earn- 
est quasi-pagan  age  of  the  Christian  Church,  in  the  fullness  of 
time  fell  into  the  opposite  excess.  Rationalism  and  its  natural  con- 
sequences, infidelity  and  irreligion. 

Reformers  were  not  wanting  before  the  Reformation.  As  ear- 
ly as  1170,  Pierre  Vaud,  or  Valdo,  of  Lyons,  sold  ofi:'  his  merchan- 
dise, and  appealing  from  popery  to  Scripture  and  to  primitive 
Christianity,  as  in  a  later  day  did  Jeremy  Bentham  from  St.  Paul 
to  his  Master,  attacked  the  Roman  hierarchy.  John  Wicliffe 
(1310-1385)  is  claimed  by  his  countrymen  to  have  originated  the 
"liberal  ideas"  by  which  British  Protestantism  was  matured;  it  is 
owned  even  by  foreigners  that  he  influenced  opinion  from  Oxford 
to  far  Bohemia.  He  died  peaceably,  but  the  Wicliffites,  who  pres- 
ently were  called  Lollards — "tares"  sown  by  the  fiend  —  though 
supported  by  the  Commons  against  Henry  IV.  and  his  party,  the 
dignified  clergy,  suffered,  until  the  repeal  of  the  Act  "de  ha^reticis 
comburendis,"  the  fiercest  persecution.  During  the  reign  of  Hen- 
ry V.  they  gained  strength,  as  the  pronunciamento  of  20,000  men 
in  St.  Giles's  Fields  under  Sir  John  Oldcastle  proves:  the  cruel 
death  of  their  leader  only  served  to  strengthen  them,  supported 
as  they  were  by  the  lower  branch  of  the  Legislature  in  their  op- 
position to  the  crown.  On  the  Continent  of  Europe  the  great  fol- 
lower of  Wicliffe  was  John  Huss,  who  preached  in  Bohemia  about 
a  century  before  the  days  of  Luther,  and  who,  condemned  by  the 


Chap.  IX.  HISTORY  OF  MORMONISM.— METHODISM.  365 

Councils  of  Constance  and  Basic,  perished  at  the  stake  in  1432. 
Jerome  Savonarola,  tortured  and  burnt  in  1498,  and  other  minor 
names,  urged  forward  the  fatal  movement  until  the  Northern  ele- 
ment once  more  prevailed,  in  things  spiritual  as  in  things  tempo- 
ral, over  the  Southern ;  the  rude  and  violent  German  again  at- 
tacked the  soft,  sensuous  Italian,  and  Martin  Luther  hatched  the 
egg  which  the  schools  of  Kabelais  and  Erasmus  had  laid.  It  was 
the  work  of  rough-handed  men ;  the  reformer  Zuingle  emerged 
from  an  Alpine  shepherd's  hut;  Melancthon, the  theologian,  from 
an  armorer's  shop,  as  Augustine,  the  monk,  from  the  cottage  of  a 
poor  miner.  Such,  in  the  16th  century,  on  the  Continent  of  Eu- 
rope, were  the  prototypes  and  predecessors  of  Messrs.  Joseph 
Smith,  Oliver  Cowdery,  Sidney  Kigdon,  and  Brigham  Young, 
who  arose  nearly  three  centuries  afterward  in  the  New  World. 

In  England,  when  the  unprincipled  tyranny  of  Henry  YIII.  had 
established,  by  robbing  and  confiscating,  hanging  and  quartering, 
that  "  reformed  new-cast  religion,"  of  which  Sir  Thomas  Brown 
"disliked  nothing  but  the  name,"  the  bigotry  of  the  ultra-reform- 
atory school  lost  no  time  in  proceeding  to  extremes.  William 
Chillingworth,  born  A.D.  1602,  and  alternately  Protestant,  Cath- 
olic, Socinian,  and  Protestant,  put  forth  in  his  "Eeligion  of  Prot- 
estants a  safe  Way  of  Salvation,"  that  Chillingworthi  Novissiraa, 
"the  Bible  and  nothing  but  the  Bible."  This  dogma  swept  away 
ruthlessly  all  the  cherished  traditions  of  a  past  age  —  the  ancient 
observed  customs  of  the  Church — 'all,  in  fact,  that  can  beautify 
and  render  venerable  a  faith,  and  substituted  in  their  stead  a  bald 
Bibliolatry  which  at  once  justifies  credulity  and  forbids  it;  which 
tantalizes  man  with  the  signs  and  wonders  of  antiquity,  and  yet 
which,  with  an  unwise  contradictoriness,  forbids  him  to  revise  or 
restore  them.  And  as  each  man  became,  by  Bible-reading,  his 
own  interpreter,  with  fullest  right  of  private  judgment,  and  with- 
out any  infallible  guide — the  inherent  weakness  of  reformation — 
to  direct  him,  the  broad  and  beaten  highway  of  belief  was  at  once 
cut  up  into  a  parcel  of  little  footpaths  which  presently  attained 
the  extreme  of  divergence. 

One  of  the  earliest  products  of  such  "  religious  freedom"  in  Eng- 
land was  Methodism,  so  called  from  the  Methodistic  ph3'-sicians  at 
Rome.  The  founder  and  arch-priest  of  the  schism,  the  Rev.  John 
Wesley,  son  of  the  Rector  of  Epworth  in  Lincolnshire,  and  born  in 
1703,  followed  Luther,  Calvin,  and  other  creedmongers  in  acting 
upon  his  own  speculation  and  peculiar  opinions.  One  of  his  ear- 
liest disciples — only  eleven  years  younger  than  his  master  —  was 
the  equally  celebrated  George  Whitfield,  of  Gloucester.  Suffice 
it  to  remark,  without  dwelling  upon  their  history,  that  both  these 
religionists,  and  mostly  the  latter,  who  died  in  1770  at  Newberry, 
New  England,  converted  and  preached  to  thousands  in  America! 
there  establishing  field-services  and  camp-meetings,  revivals  and 
conferences,  which,  like  those  of  the  French  Convulsionists  in  the 


366  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IX. 

last  century,  galvanized  Christianity  with  a  wild  and  feverish  life. 
Falling  among  uneducated  men,  the  doctrine,  both  in  England  and 
the  colonies,  was  received  with  a  bewilderment  of  enthusiasm, 
and  it  soon  produced  the  usual  fruits  of  such  phrensy — prophe- 
cies that  fixed  the  end  of  the  world  for  the  28th  of  February,  1763, 
miraculous  discernment  of  angels  and  devils,  mighty  comings  of 
the  power  of  Qod  and  outpourings  of  the  Spirit,  rhapsodies  and 
prophecies,  dreams  and  visions,  accompanied  by  rollings,  jerks, 
and  barks,  roarings  and  convulsions,  syncope,  catalepsy,  and  the 
other  hysterical  affections  and  obscure  disorders  of  the  brain, 
forming  the  characteristic  symptoms  of  religious  mania. 

Thus,  out  of  the  semi-barbarous  superstitions  of  the  Middle 
Ages,  succeeded  by  the  revival  of  learning,  which  in  the  15th 
century  followed  the  dispersion  of  the  wise  men  of  the  East  from 
captured  Byzantium,  proceeded  "Protestant  Eationalism,"  a  sys- 
tem which,  admitting  the  right  of  private  judgment,  protested 
against  the  religion  of  Southern  Europe  becoming  that  of  the 
whole  world.  From  Protestantism  sprung  Methodism,  which  re- 
stored to  man  the  grateful  exercise  of  his  credulity — a  leading  or- 
gan in  the  human  brain — his  belief  in  preternatural  and  super- 
natural agencies  and  appearances,  and  his  faith  in  miraculous  com- 
munication between  God  and  man ;  in  fact,  in  that  mysticism  and 
marvel-love,  which  are  the  columns  and  corner-stones  of  religion. 
Mormonism  thus  easily  arose.  It  will  be  found  to  contain  little 
beyond  a  literal  and  verbal  interpretation  of  the  only  book  which 
Chillingworth  recognizes  as  the  rule  for  Christians,  and  a  pointed 
condemnation  of  those  who  make  the  contents  of  the  Bible  typi- 
cal, metaphysical,  or  symbolical,  "as  if  God  were  not  honest  when 
he  speaks  with  man,  or  uses  words  in  other  than  their  true  ac- 
ceptation," or  could  "  palter  in  a  double  sense."  It  proposed  as 
its  three  general  principles,  firstly,  total  immersion  in  the  waters 
of  baptism  in  the  name  of  the  three  sacred  names ;  secondly,  the 
commissioning  of  prophets,  apostles,  and  elders  to  administer  in 
things  holy  the  revelation  and  authority  of  heaven  ;  and,  thirdly, 
the  ministering  of  angels,  New  Tables  of  the  Law  appeared  in 
the  Golden  Plates.  Another  Urim  and  Thummim  revealed  to 
Mr.  Joseph  Smith  that  he  was  of  the  house  of  Israel  and  the  tribe 
of  Joseph,  the  inheritor  of  all  things  promised  to  that  favored 
seed.  It  tempered  the  superstitions  of  popery  with  the  rational- 
ism of  the  Protestant ;  it  supplied  mankind  with  another  sacred 
book  and  with  an  infallible  interpreter.  Human  belief  had  now 
its  weight  to  carry:  those  pining  for  the  excitement  of  thauma- 
turgy  felt  satisfied.  The  Mormons  were  no  longer  compelled  to 
ask  "what  made  miracles  cease,"  and  "  why  and  in  which  A.D.  was 
the  power  taken  from  the  Church."  It  relieved  them  from  hold- 
ing an  apparent  absurdity,  viz.,  that  the  voices  and  visitations,  the 
signs,  miracles,  and  interventions — in  fact,  all  that  the  Bible  sub- 
mitted to  human  faith  had  ended  without  reason  about  the  time 


Chap.  IX.      TRUE  PROTESTANTS.— THE  BOOK  OF  MORMON.  367 

when  one  Constantine  became  king,  and  do  not  recommence  now 
when  they  are  most  wanted.  The  Mormons  are  not  forced  to 
think  that  God  is  virtually  dead  in  the  world;  the  eminently 
practical  tendencies  of  the  New-World  race  cause  them  to  de- 
velop into  practice  their  contradiction  of  an  inference  from  which 
human  nature  revolts.  They  claim  to  be  the  true  Protestants, 
/.  e.,  those  who  protest  against  the  doctrines  of  a  ceased  fellowship 
between  the  Creator  and  the  creature  made  in  his  image;  they 
gratify  their  self-esteem  by  sneering  at  those  who  confine  them- 
selves to  the  old  and  obsolete  revelation,  and  by  pit3-ing  the  blind- 
ness and  ignorance  that  can  not  or  will  not  open  its  eyes  to  the 
new  light.  Hence  it  follows  that  few  Catholics  become  Mormons, 
and  that  those  few  become  bad  Mormons.  Man's  powers  of  faith 
grow,  like  his  physical  force,  with  exercise.  He  considers  over- 
belief  a  venial  error  compared  with  under-belief,  and  he  pro- 
gresses more  easily  in  belief  than  he  can  retrograde  into  disbelief. 
Thus  Catholicism  has  spread  more  widely  over  the  world  than 
the  less  credulous  Protestantism,  and  the  more  thanmaturgic  Mor- 
monism  is  better  adapted  to  some  minds — the  Hindoo's,  for  in- 
stance— than  Catholicism. 

In  Mormonism,  or,  rather,  in  Mormon  sacred  literature,  there 
are  three  epochs  which  bring  us  down  to  the  present  day.  The 
first  is  the  monogamic  age,  that  of  the  books  of  Mormon,  and  of 
Doctrines  and  Covenants — 1830-1843.  The  second  is  the  poly- 
gamic, from  the  first  revelation  of  "celestial  marriage"  to  Mr.  Jo- 
seph Smith  in  18-43,  and  by  him  communicated  to  three  followers 
only,  until  its  final  establishment  by  Mr.  Brigham  Young  in  1852, 
when  secrecy  was  no  longer  deemed  necessary.  The  third  is  the 
materialistic  period;  the  doctrine,  "not  founded  on  modern  su- 
pernatural revelation,  but  on  reason  and  common  sense,"  was  the 
work  of  1848-1849. 

The  first  epoch  laid  the  foundations  of  the  Faith.  It  produced 
the  Book  of  Mormon,  "  an  abridgment  written  by  the  hand  of 
Mormon  upon  plates  taken  from  the  plates  of  Nephi.  "Wherefore 
it  is  an  abridgment  of  the  record  of  the  people  of  ISTephi,  and  also 
of  the  Lamanites ;  written  to  the  Lamanites,  who  are  a  remnant 
of  the  house  of  Israel,  and  also  to  Jew  and  Gentile :  written  by 
way  of  commandment,  and  also  by  the  spirit  of  prophecy  and  of 
revelation.  Written  and  sealed  up,  and  hid  up  unto  the  Lord, 
that  they  might  not  be  destroyed :  to  come  forth  by  the  gift  and 
power  of  God  unto  the  interpretation  thereof:  sealed  by  the  hand 
of  Mormon,  and  hid  up  unto  the  Lord,  to  come  forth  in  due  thne 
by  the  way  of  Gentile ;  the  interpretation  thereof  by  the  gift  of 
God!" 

"  An  abridgment  taken  from  the  Book  of  Ether  also,  which  is 
a  record  of  the  people  of  Jared,  who  were  scattered  at  the  time 
the  Lord  confounded  the  language  of  the  people,  when  they  were 
building  a  tower  to  get  (!)  to  heaven ;  which  is  to  show  unto  the 


368  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IX. 

remnant  of  the  house  of  Israel  what  great  things  the  Lord  hath 
done  for  their  fathers;  and  that  they  may  know  the  covenants 
of  the  Lord,  that  they  are  not  cast  off  forever;  and  also  to  the 
convincing  of  the  Jew  and  Gentile  that  Jesus  is  the  Christ,  the 
Eterxal  God,  manifesting  himself  to  all  nations ;  and  now,  if 
there  are  faults,  they  are  the  mistakes  of  men ;  therefore  condemn 
not  the  things  of  God,  that  ye  may  be  found  spotless  at  the  judg- 
ment-seat of  Christ.     Moroni." 

"  Translated  by  Joseph  Smith,  Jun." 

This  extract  is  followed  by  the  testimony  of  three  witnesses, 
Oliver  Cowderj^,  David  Whitmer,  and  Martin  Harris,  who  declare 
to  have  seen  the  Golden  Plates  with  their  engravings,  which  were 
shown  to  them  by  the  power  of  God,  not  of  man ;  and  that  they 
knew  by  the  voice  of  God  that  the  records  had  been  translated 
by  the  gift  and  power  of  God.  Furthermore  they  "  declare  with 
words  of  solemnness  that  an  angel  of  God  came  down  from  heaven, 
and  he  brought  and  laid  before  our  eyes,  that  we  beheld  and  saw 
the  plates  and  the  engravings  thereon."  They  conclude  with 
these  solemn  words :  "  And  the  honor  be  to  the  Father,  and  to 
the  Son,  and  to  the  Holy  Ghost,  which  is  one  God,  Amen."  Then 
comes  "  also  the  testimony  of  eight  witnesses" — four  Whitmers, 
three  Smiths,  and  one  Page- — who  make  it  "  known  unto  all  na- 
tions, kindred,  tongues,  and  people,  unto  whom  this  -work  shall 
come,  that  Joseph  Smith,  Jun.,  the  translator  of  this  work,  has 
shown  unto  us  the  plates  of  which  hath  been  spoken,  which  have 
the  appearance  of  gold ;  and  as  many  of  the  leaves  as  the  said 
Smith  has  translated  we  did  handle  with  our  hands ;  and  we  also 
saw  the  engravings  thereon,  all  of  which  has  the  appearance  of 
ancient  work  and  of  curious  workmanship.  And  this  we  bear 
record  with  words  of  soberness  that  the  said  Smith  has  shown 
unto  us,  for  we  have  seen  and  hefted,  and  know  of  a  suret}^  that 
the  said  Smith  has  got  the  plates  of  which  we  have  spoken.  And 
we  give  our  hands  unto  the  world,  to  witness  unto  the  world  that 
which  we  have  seen ;  and  we  lie  not,  God  bearing  witness  of  it." 

The  nature  of  the  Latter-Day  Saints'  Biblion  will  best  be  under- 
stood from  the  subjoined  list  of  contents.f 

*  The  total  witnesses  are  thus  eleven,  exactly  the  number  that  bore  evidence  to 
the  original  Christian  miracles, 
t  At  the  ertd  of  this  chapter  I  have  inserted  a  svnopsis  of  Mormon  chronology. 


FinsT  Book  of  N'Epni. 
I.angiiag.-  of  the  Record. 
Kephi's  Abridgment. 
Lehi'8  Dream. 

I,ehi  d,  parts  into  the  WUdemess. 
Nephi  slayeth  Laban. 
Sftriah  complaias  of  Lfhi's  Vision. 


Messiah  and  John  prophesied  of. 
Olive-branches  broken  off. 
Nephi's  Vision  of  Mary. 
Do.  the  Crucifixion  of  Christ. 
Do.  Darkness  and  Eai-thquake. 
Great  abominable  Church. 
Discovei  y  of  the  Promised  Land. 


(/'ontcnts  of  the  brass  Plates.  Bible  spoken  of. 

L'^hraael  poes  with  Nephi.  Book  of  Mormon  and  Holy  Ghost 

Kephi's  Brethren  rebel,  and  bind     promised. 

him.  Other  Books  come  forth. 

Lehi's  Dream  of  the  Tree,  Rod,  Bible  and  Bonk  of  Mormon  one. 

etc.  I  Promises  to  the  Gentiles. 


Two  Churches. 

The  Work  of  the  Father  to  com- 
mence. 
A  Man  in  ^yhite  Eobes  (.Tohn). 
Nepliites  come  to  Knowledge. 
Rod  of  Iron. 

The  Sons  of  Lehi  take  Wives. 
Director  found  (Ball). 
Nephi  broke  his  Bow. 
Directors  work  by  Faith. 
Ishmael  died. 

Lehi  and  Nephi  threatened. 
Nephi  commanded  to  build  a  Ship. 


Chap.  IX. 


THE  MORMON  BIBLE. 


369 


The  Book  of  Covenants  and  Doctrines  is  -what  the  Vedanta  is 
to  the  Yedas,  the  Talmud  to  the  Old  Testament,  the  Traditions  to 


Nephi  about  to  bo  worshiped  by 

his  lirethren. 
Ship  fluislicd  and  entered. 
Dancing  in  the  Ship. 
Xeplii  bound  ;  Ship  driven  back. 
Anived  on  tlie  rromised  Land. 
I'latcs  of  Ore  made. 
Zeno^,  Xeum,  and  Zenock. 
I.-iaiah'-s  Writings. 
Holy  One  of  Israel. 

Second  Book  of  Nepui. 
Lehi  to  his  Son?. 
Opposition  in  all  Things. 
Adam  fell  that  Men  might  be. 
Joseph  saw  our  Day. 
A  choice  Seer. 
Writings  grow  together. 
Prophet  promised  to  tlie  Laman- 

ites. 
Joseph's  Prophecy  on  brass  Plates. 
Lehi  buried. 
Kephi's  Life  sought. 
Kephi  separated  from  Laman. 
Temple  built. 
Skin  of  Blackness. 
Prie.sts,  etc.,  consecrated. 
Make  othrr  Plates. 
Isaiah's  Words  (by  Jacob). 
Angels  to  a  Devil. 
Spirits  and  Bodies  rounited. 
Baptism. 

No  Kings  upon  this  I^ud. 
Isaiah  prophesieth. 
Kod  of  tlie  Stem  of  Jesse. 
Seed  of  Joseph  perish  not 
Law  of  Moses  kept. 
Clirist  shall  show  himself 
Signs  of  Christ,  Birth  and  Death. 
Whisper  from  the  Dust;  Book 

sealed  up. 
Priestcraft  forbidden. 
Sealed  Book  to  be  brought  forth. 
Three  Witnesses  behold  the  Book. 
The  Words  [read  this,  I  pray  thee]. 
Seal  up  the  Book  again. 
Their  Priests  shall  contend. 
Teach  with  their  Leiirning,  and 

deny  the  Holy  Ghost. 
Rob  the  Poor. 
A  Bible,  a  Bible. 
Men  judged  of  the  Books. 
White  and  a  delightsome  People. 
Work  commence  among  all  leo- 

ple. 
Lamb  of  God  baptized. 
Baptism  by  water  and  Uoly  Ghost. 

Book  of  Jacob. 
Nephi  anointed  a  King. 
Nephi  died. 

Nephites  and  I.amanitcs. 
A  righteous  Brancli  from  Joseph. 
Lamanites  shall  sciurge  you. 
More  than  one  AVifo  forbidden. 
Trees,'\Vaves,  and  ilountains  obey 

us. 
Jews  looked  beyond  the  Mark. 
Tame  Olive-tree. 
Nethermost  Part  of  the  Vineyard. 
Fruit  laid  up  against  the  Season. 
Another  Branch. 
Wild  Fruit  had  overcome. 
Lord  of  the  Vineyard  wept. 
Branches  overcome  the  Hoots. 
Wild  Branches  plucked  off. 
Sberem  the  Anti-Christ. 


A  Sign ;  Shcrom  smitten. 
Knos  takes  the  Plates  from  his 
Father. 

The  Book  of  Enos. 
Enos,  thy  Sins  are  foi-given. 
Records  thieatened  by  Lamanites, 
Lamanites  eat  raw  Meat. 

The  Book  op  Jaeom. 
N'cphitc-s  waxed  strong. 
Lamanites  drink  Blood. 
Fortify  Cities. 
Plates  delivered  to  OmnL 

The  Book  of  Omni. 
Plates  given  to  Amaron. 
I'lates  given  to  Chemijjh. 
Mosiali  warned  to  flee. 
Zarahemla  discovered. 
Engravings  on  a  Stone, 
(luriantumr  discovered. 
His  Parent.s  came  from  the  Tower. 
Plates  delivcx'ed  to  King  Benja- 
min. 

TuE  Words  op  Morjion. 
False  Christs  and  Prophets. 

Book  op  Mostau. 

Mosiah  made  King,  and  received. 

The  Plates  of  Brass,  Sword,  and 
Director. 

King  Benjamin  teachcth  the  Peo- 
ple. 

TheirTent  Doors  toward  the  Tcm 
pie. 

Coming  of  Chiist  foretold. 

Beggars  not  denied. 

Sons  and  Daughters. 

Mosiah  began  to  reign. 

Ammon,  etc.,  boimded  and  im- 
prisoned. 

Limhi's  Proclamation. 

Twenty-four  Plates  of  Gold. 

.-'eer  and  Translator. 

Record  of  Zeniff. 
A  Battle  fought. 
King  Laman  died. 
Xoah  made  King. 
.Vbinadi  the  I'rophet. 
Resurrection. 
Alma  believed  Abinadi. 
Abinadi    cast    into    I'rison    and 

scourged  with  fagots. 
Waters  of  Mormon. 
The  Dauglitors  of  the  Lamanites 

stolen  by  King  Noah's  Priests. 
Records  on  Plates  of  Ore. 
Last  Tribute  of  Wine. 
Lamanites'  deep  Sleep. 
King  Limlii  baptized. 
Priest  and  Teachers  labor. 
Alma  saw  an  AngeL 
Alma  fell  (dumb). 
King  Jlosiah's  Sons  preach  to  the 

Lamanites. 
Translation  of  Records. 
Plates  delivered  by  LimhL 
Translated  by  two  Stones. 
People  back  to  the  Tower. 
Kecords  given  to  Alma. 
Jiulges  appointed. 
King  Mosiah  died. 
Alma  died. 
Kings  of  Nephi  ended. 

Aa 


The  Book  op  Alma. 

Xehor  slew  (iidcou. 

Anilici  made  King. 

Amlici  slain  in  Battle. 

Amlicites  painted  red. 

Alma  baptized  in  Sidon. 

.Lima's  Preacliing. 

•Vlma  ordained  Elders. 

Commanded  to  meet  often. 

Alma  saw  an  Angel. 

Amulek  saw  an  Angel. 

Lawyers  questioniug  Amulek. 

Coins  named. 

Zeezrom  the  Lawyer. 

Zeezrom  trembles. 

Election  spolcen  of. 

Melchizedek  Priesthood. 

Alma  and  Amulek  stoned. 

Records  burned. 

Prison  rent. 

Zeezrom  healed  and  baptized. 

Xehor's  Desolation. 

Lamanites  converted. 

Flocks  scattered  at  Sebua. 

Ammon  smote  off  Arms. 

Ammon  and  King  Lamoni. 

King  Lamoni  fell. 

Ammon  and  the  Queen. 

icing  and  (jueen  prostrate. 

Aaron,  etc.,  delivered. 

Jerusalem  built. 

Preaching  in  Jerusalem. 

Lamoni's  Father  converted. 

Land  Desolation  and  Bountiful. 

Anti-Nephi-Lehies. 

General  CouncU. 

Swords  buried. 

1005  massacred. 

Lamanites  perish  by  Fire. 

Slavery  forbidden. 

Anti  -  Neplii  -  Lehies  removed  to 

Jershon,  called  Ammonites. 
Tremendous  Battle. 
Anti-Christ,  Korihor. 
Korilior  struck  dumb.  [gel. 

The  Devil  in  the  Form  of  aUxVu- 
Korihor  trodden  down. 
Alma's  Mission  to  Zoriimites. 
Rameumptom  (holy  Stand). 
Alma  on  Hill  Onidah. 
.\Ima  on  Faith. 
Prophecy  of  Zenos. 
Prophecy  of  Zenock. 
.\mulek's  Knowledge  of  Christ. 
Cliarity  recommended. 
Same  Spirit  possess  your  Body. 
Believers  cast  out. 
Alma  to  Ilelaman. 
Plates  given  to  Ilelaman. 
"24  Plates  and  Directors. 
Gazelem,  a  Stone  (secret). 
Liahona,  or  Compass. 
Alma  to  Shiblon. 
Alma  to  Corianton. 
Unpardonable  Sia. 
Resurrection. 
Restoration. 
Justice  in  Punishment. 
If,  Adam,  took.  Tree,  Life. 
Jlcrcy  rob  Justice. 
Moroni's  Stratagem. 
Slaughter  of  L;imanites. 
Jloroni's  Speech  to  Zerah?mnah. 
I'Tophecy  of  a  Soldier. 
I..amanite3'  Covenant  of  Peace. 
Alma's  Prophecy  400  years  after 

Christ. 


370 


THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 


Chap.  IX. 


the  Gospel,  and  the  Ahadis  to  the  Koran — a  necessary  supple- 
ment of  amplifications  and  explanations.     It  contains  two  parts. 


Dwindle  in  Unbeliuf. 

Alma's  strange  Departure. 

Ainalickiah  leadetli  away  the  Peo- 
ple ;  destroyeth  the  Church. 

Standard  of  Moroni. 

Joaepli's  Coat  rent. 

Jacob's  I'ropliccy  of  Jo?eph'n  Seed 

Fevers  in  the  Land;  I'lant^  and 
Eoots  for  Ui^eases. 

Amalickiah's  Plot. 

Tlie  Kin;^  stabbed. 

Amalickiah  marries  the  Queen, 
and  is  acknowledged  King. 

Fortifications  by  Moroni. 

Ditches  filled  with  dead  Bodies. 

Amalickiali's  Oatli. 

Pahoran  appointed  Judge. 

Army  against  King-men. 

Amulickiali  slain. 

Ammornn  made  King. 

Bountiful  fortified. 

Dissensions. 

200O  young  Men. 

Moroni's  Kpistle  to  Ammoron. 

Ammoron's  Answer. 

Lamanites  made  drunk. 

Moroni's  Stratagem. 

Helaman's  i'.pistlc  to  Moroni. 

Helaraan's  Stratagem. 

Mothers  tatight  Faith. 

Lamanites  surrendered. 

City  of  Antiparah  taken. 

City  of  Curaeni  taken. 

200  of  the  2000  fainted. 

Prisoners  rebel;  slain. 

Manli  taken  by  Stratagem. 

Moroni  to  the  Governor. 

Governor's  Answer. 

King  Pachus  slain. 

Cords  and  Ladders  prepared. 

Nepliihah  taken. 

Teancum's  Stratagem ;  slain. 

Peace  established. 

Moronihah  made  Commander. 

Helaman  dies. 

Sacred  Things ;  Shiblon. 

Moroni  died. 

6400  emigrated  >rorth. 

Ships  built  by  nagoth. 

Sacred  Tilings  committed  to  Hela- 
man ;  Shiblon  died. 

Tub  Book  of  Helaman. 
Pahoran  died. 
Pahoran  appointed  Judge. 
Kishkumen  slew  I'ahoraii. 
Pacuraeni  appointed  Judge. 
Zaraherala  taken. 
Pacumeni  killed. 
Coriauturar  slain. 
Lamanites  surrendered. 
Helaman  appointed  Judge, 
fc-ecret  Signs  discovered,  andKish- 

knnien  st.abbed. 
Gadianton  fled. 
Emigration  Northward. 
Cement  Houses. 
Slany  Books  and  Records. 
Hidaman  died. 
Xeplii  made  Judge. 
Nt'philes  become  wicked. 
Nephi  gave  the  Judgment  Seat  to 

Cezoram. 
Nephi  and  Lehi  preached  to  the 
8000  baptized.  [Lamanites. 

Alma  and  Nephi  surrounded  with 
Angels  administer.  [Fire. 


Cezoram  and  Son  murdered. 

Gadianton's  Itobbers. 

Gadianton' s  Kobbcrs  destroyed. 

Nephi's  I'ropliecy. 

Gadianton's  Itobbers  are  Judges. 

Chief  Judge  sliiu. 

St'antum  detected. 

Keys  of  the  Kingdom. 

\ephi  taken  away  by  the  Spirit. 

Famine  in  the  Land. 

Gadianton's  Band  destroj'ed. 

Famine  removed. 

Samuel's  1  rophecy. 

Tools  lost. 

Two  Days  and  a  Night;  Light. 

.Sign  of  the  Crucifixion. 

Samuel  stoned,  etc. 

Angels  appeared. 

Book  ok  Netoi. 

Lachoncus  chief  Judge. 

Nephi  receives  the  Itecords. 

Ncplii's  strange  Departure. 

No  Darkness  at  Night. 

Lamanites  became  white. 

Giddianhi  to  Lachoncus. 

Gidgiddoni  chief  Judge. 

Giddianhi  slain. 

Zemnarihah  hanged. 

Robbers  surrendered. 

Mormon  abridges  the  Records. 

Church  began  to  1)0  broken  up. 

Government  of  the  Land  destroy 
ed. 

Chief  Judge  murdered. 

Divided  into  Tribes. 

Nephi  raised  the  Dead. 

Sign  of  the  Crucifixion. 

Cities  destroyed,  Earthquakes, 
Darkness,  etc. 

Law  of  Moses  fulfilled. 

Christ  appeared  to  Ncphites. 

Print  of  the  Nails. 

Nephi  and  others  called. 

Baptism  commanded. 

Doctrine  of  Christ. 

Christ  the  End  of  the  Law. 

Other  Sheep  spoken  of. 

Blessed  are  the  Gentile. 

Gentile  Wickedness  on  the  Land 
of  Joseph. 

Tsaiah's  Words  fulfilled. 

Jesus  healed  the  Sick. 

Christ  blessed  Children. 

Little  Ones  encircled  with  Fire. 

Christ  administered  the  Sacra- 
ment. 

Christ  tauglit  his  Disciples. 

Names  of  the  Twelve. 

The  Twelve  taught  the  Multitude. 

Baptism,  Holy  Ghost,  and  Fire. 

Disciples  made  white. 

Jesus  came,  second  Time. 

Faith,  great. 

Clirist  breaks  Bread  again. 

Miracle ;  Bread  and  Wine. 

Gentiles  destroyed  (Isaiah). 

Zion  established. 

From  Gentiles  to  your  Seed. 

Sign;  Father's  Work  commenced. 

He  shall  be  marred. 

Gentiles  destroyed  (Isaiah). 

New  Jerusalem  built. 

Work  commence  among  all  the 
Tribes. 

Isaiah's  Words. 

Saints  did  arise. 


Malachi's  Prophecy.  [mon. 

Faith  tried  by  the  Book  of  Mor- 
(Jhildren's  Tongues  loosed. 
The  Dead  raised. 
Baptism  and  Holy  Ghost. 
All  Things  cnramon. 
Clirist  appeared  third  Time. 
Moses's  Cliurch. 
Three  Nephites  tarry. 
The  Twelve  caught  up. 
(Jhange  upon  their  Bodies. 
Disciples  raise  the  Dead. 
Zaraheinla  rebuilt.  [stead. 

Other  Disciples  ordained  in  their 
Nephi  died;  Amos  kcjjt  the  liec- 

ords  in  his  stead. 
Amos  died,  and  his  Son  Amos  kept 

the  Records. 
Prisons  rent  by  the  Three. 
Secret  Comliinations. 
Amaron  liid  Records. 

Book  of  Mormon. 
Three  1  lisciples  taken  away. 
Mormcju  forbidden  to  preach. 
Mormon  appointed  Leader. 
Samuel's  Prophecy  fulfilled. 
Mormon  makes  a  Record. 
Lands  divided. 
The  Twelve  shall  judge. 
Desolation  taken. 
Women  and  Children  sacrificed. 
Mormon  took  the  Records  hid  In 

Shim. 
Mormon  repented  of  his  Oath  and 

took  Command. 
fJoining  forth  of  Records. 
Records  hid  in  Cumorah. 
•230,000  Nepliites  slain. 
Shall  not  get  Gain  by  tlie  Plates. 
These  Things  shall  come  forth  out 

of  the  Earth. 
The  State  of  the  World. 
Miracles  cease ;  Unbelief. 
Disciples  go  into  all  the  World 

and  preach. 
Language  of  the  Book. 

Book  ok  Etiier. 
Twenty-four  1  latcs  found. 
Jarcd  cried  unto  the  Ijord. 
Jared  went  down  to  the  Valley  of 

Nimrod. 
Descrct  Honey-bee. 
Barges  built. 

Decree  of  God ;  choice  Land. 
Free  from  Bondage. 
Four  Years  in  Tents  at  Morian- 

cumcr. 
Lord  talked  three  Hours. 
Barges  like  a  Dish. 
ICigiit  Vessels  ;  sixteen  Stones. 
Lord  touched  the  Stones. 
Finger  of  the  Lord  seen. 
Jared's  Brother  saw  the  Lord. 
Two  Stones  given. 
Stones  sealed  up. 
Went  aboard  of  Vessels. 
Furious  Wind  blew. 
344  Days'  Passage. 
Orihah  anointed  King. 
King  Shulc  taken  captive. 
Shule's  Son  slew  Noah.  [tivo. 

Jared  carries  his  Father  away  cap- 
The  Daughter  of  Jared  danced. 
Jared  anointed  King  by  tlie  Hand 

of  Wickedness. 


I 


Chap.  IX. 


DOCTEINES  AND  COVENANTS. 


571 


The  first,  of  sixty-four  pages,  is  entitled  "Lectures  on  Faith ;"  al- 
though published  in  the  name  of  the  Prophet  Joseph,  it  was  writ- 
ten, men  say,  by  Sidney  Eigdon.  The  second,  which,  with  the 
Appendix,  concludes  the  book,  is  called  Covenants  and  Command- 
ments (5c?7.,  of  the  Lord  to  his  servants  of  the  Church  of  Jesus 
Christ  of  Latter-Day  Saints). 

Of  the  Lectures,  the  first  is  upon  "  Faith  itself — what  it  is."  It 
treats  the  subject  in  the  normal  way,  showing  how  much  faith  is 
unconsciously  exercised  by  man  in  his  every-day  life,  and  making 
it  "  the  principle  by  which  Jehovah  acts."  The  second  is  concern- 
ing "the  subject  on  which  Faith  rests,"  and  contains  an  ancient 
chronology  from  Adam  to  Abraham,  showing  how  the  knowledge 
of  God  was  preserved.  The  third,  on  the  attributes  of  God,  en- 
larges upon  the  dogma  that  "  correct  ideas  of  the  character  of  God 
are  necessary  in  order  to  the  exercise  of  faith  in  him  for  life  and 
salvation."  The  fourth  shows  the  "connection  there  is  between 
correct  ideas  of  the  attributes  of  God,  and  the  exercise  of  faith  in 
him  unto  eternal  life."  The  fifth,  following  those  that  treat  of  the 
being,  character,  perfection,  and  attributes  of  God,  "speaks  of  the 
Godhead" — meaning  the  Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost — and  ex- 
plains the  peculiarities  of  the  "  personage  of  tabernacle."  The 
sixth  "  treats  of  the  knowledge  which  persons  must  have,  that  the 
tenor  of  life  which  they  preserve  is  according  to  the  will  of  God, 
in  order  that  they  may  be  enabled  to  exercise  faith  in  him  unto 
life  and  salvation."  The  seventh  and  last  discusses  the  effects  of 
faith.  Each  lecture  is  followed  by  "  questions  and  answers  on  the 
foregoing  principles,"  after  the  fashion  of  school  catechisms,  and 
to  asterisk'd  sentences  a  note  is  appended :  "  Let  the  student  com- 
mit the  paragraph  to  memor}-."  There  is  one  merit  in  the  lec- 
tures :  like  Wesley's  Hymns,  they  are  written  for  the  poor  and  sim- 
ple ;  consequently,  they  are  read  where  a  higher  tone  of  thought 
and  style  would  remain  unheeded. 

The  "  Lidex  in  order  of  date  to  Part  Second"  will  explain  its 
contents."    The  Appendix  contains  twelve  pages  of  revelation  on 


Jared  murdered,  and  Akish  reign- 
ed in  his  Stead. 
Names  of  Animal?. 
Poi.-^onou:f  Serpents. 
Kiplalijsh's  cruel  licign. 
Morianton  anointed  King. 
Poisonous  Serpents  destroyed. 
Many  wicked  Kings. 
Moroni  on  Faith. 
Miracles  by  Faith. 
Moroni  saw  Jesus. 
New  Jerusalem  spoken  of. 
Kther  cast  out. 

Records  finished  in  the  Cavity  of 
Secret  Ccmbinations.  [a  Rock. 
War  in  all  the  Land. 


King   Shared    murdered   by  his  Manner  of  Ordination. 


High -priest;  the  High -priest 

was  murdered  by  Lib. 
Lib  slain  by  eoriantumr. 
Dead  Bodies  cover  the  Land,  and 

none  to  bury  them. 
i?,000,000  of  Men  slain, 
liill  llamah. 
Cries  rend  the  Air. 
Slept  on  their  Swords. 
Coriantumr  slew  Shiz. 
Do.  fell  to  the  Earth. 
Records  liid  by  Ether. 

POOK   or   MOKONI. 

Christ's  Words  to  the  Twelve. 


Order  of  Sacrament. 

Order  of  Baptism. 

Faith.  Hope,  Charity. 

Baptism  of  little  Children. 

Women  fed  on  their  Husband.'' 
Flesh. 

Daughters  murdered  and  eaten. 

Sufferings  of  Women  and  Chil- 
dren. 

Can  not  recommend  them  to  God. 

Moroni  to  the  Lamanites. 

4-0  Years  since  the  Sign. 

liecords  sealed  up  (Moi-oni). 

Gifts  of  the  Spirit. 

God's  Word  shall  hiss  forth. 


*  Index  in  the  order  of  date  to  Part  Second : 


S«c. 

30.  Revelation  to  J.  Smith,  jun July,  lSi!8. 

31.  Revelation  to  J.  Smith,  sen Feb.,  1829. 

32.  Revelation  to  J.  Smith,  jun.,  and 

M.  Harris March,  1829. 


8.  Revelation  to  O.  Cowdery  and  J. 

Smith,  jun April,  1S29. 

53.  Revelation  whether  John  tarried 

on  earth April,  1820. 


372 


THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 


Chap.  IX. 


marriage,  government,  and  laws  in  general,  and  finally  tlie  "  mar- 
tyrdom of  Joseph  Smith"  (no  longer  junior)  "  and  his  brother  Hy- 


Sec. 

a4.  Hevelation  to  O.  Cowdery April,  1829. 

35.  lievelation  on  translation,  to  (). 

Cowdery April,  1S29. 

30.  Revelation  on  losing  some  of  the 

Botik  of  Mormon Slay,  1820. 

3T.  Revelation  to  II.  Smith May,  1829. 

3S.  Revelation  to  J.  Knight,  .=en.  . . .  Miiy,  lS2i). 
30.  Revelation  to  D.  Whitmer June,  1829. 

40.  Revelation  to  J.  Whitmer June,  1829. 

41.  lievelation  to  P.  ■WHiitmer,  jun.  .  Juno,  1S29. 

42.  Revelation  to   O.  Cowdery,    D. 

Whitmer,  and  M.  Ilarrirt June,  1S29. 

43.  Revelation  to  choose  Twelve. . ..  June,  1S29. 

44.  Revelation  to  M.  Harris March,  1830. 

2.  Revelation  on  Church   govern- 
ment   April  C,  1S30. 

4".  Revelation  to  J.  Smith,  jun April  G,  1S30. 

4T.  Itevelation  on  re-baptism April,  1830. 

45.  Revelation   to  O.   Cowderv,  II. 

Smith,  and  S.  H.  Smith,  etc.. .  April,  1330. 
9.  Revelation  to  J.  Smith,  jun.,  and 

O.  Cowdeiy July,  1830. 

49.  Revelation  to  Emma  Smith July,  1830. 

40.  Revelation  to  J.  Smith,  jun.,  O. 

Cowdery,  and  J.  Whitmer  . . .  July,  1S30. 

50.  Revelation   on   Sacrament,  first 

paragraph August,  1830. 

50.  Revelation  on  ditto,  second  and 

third  paragraphs Sept.,  1830. 

51.  Revelation   to  O.  Cowdery  and 

the  Church Sept., 1830. 

10.  Revelation  to  six  elders Sept.,  1830. 

52.  Revelation  to   D.  Whitmer,   P. 

Wliitmer, jun.,and.J.A\liitmer  Sept.,  1S30. 
.'53.  Revelation  to  T.  15.  Mar.-h Sept.,  1830. 

54.  Revelation  to  P.  P.  Pratt  and  Z. 

Peterson Octobsr,  1830, 

55.  Revelation  to  E.  Thayre  and  N. 

Sweet October,  1S30. 

50.  Revelation  to  O.  Pratt Xov.,  1830. 

11.  Revelation  to  J.  Smith,  jun.,  and 

S.  Rigdon Dec. ,  1830. 

57.  Revelation  to  E.  Partridge Dec,  1830. 

53.  Revelation  to  J.  Smith,  jun.,  and 

S.  Rigdon Dec,  1S30. 

12.  Revelation  to  the  Church Jan,  2,  1S31. 

3'>.  Revelation  to  J.  Covill Jan.  5, 1831. 

CO.  lievelation  concerning  J.  Covill.  Jan.,  1831. 

61.  Revelation  appointing  E.  Part- 

ridge bishop Feb.  4, 1831. 

13.  Revelation  on  Laws  of  the  Church  Feb.  9, 1831. 

14.  Revelation  to  tlie  Church Feb.,  1831. 

62.  Revelation  calling  the  elders  to- 

gether  Feb.,  1831. 

15.  Revelation  on  Prophecy 5Iar.  7, 1831. 

10.  Revelation  on  the  Gifts Mar.  8, 1831. 

63.  Revelation  to  J.  Smith,  jun.,  and 

J.  Whitmer Mar.  8, 1831. 

64.  Revelation  to  settle  certain  fam- 

ilies for  the  present March,  1831. 

65.  Revelation  concerning  the  Shak- 

ers  March,  1831. 

17.  Revelation  on  the  Spirit May,  1831. 

23.  Revelation  to  E.  Partridge,  con- 
cerning the  Colesville  branch, 

in  Thompson May,  1831. 

OC.  Revelation  on  sending  elders  to 

Miaaouri  June  7, 1831. 

67.  Revelation  to  S.  Gilbert June,  1S31. 

63.  Revelation  to  Newel  Knight June,  1«31. 

69.  Revelation  to  W.  W.  Phelps. . . .  June,  1831. 

70.  Revelation  to  T.  B.  Marsh  and  E. 

Thayre , June,  1831. 

27.  Revelation  on  the  location  of  Zion  July,  1831. 

18.  Revelation  on  the  tribulations  of 

Zion Aug.  1, 1831. 


|f5ec. 

19.  Revelation  on  the  Sabbath Aug.  7, 1831. 

71.  Revelation  to  certain  men  to  re- 
turn from  Missouri Aug.  8, 1831. 

1 72.  Revelation  of  Destructions  upon 

the  Waters Aug.  12, 183L 

73.  Revelation  to  certain  elders  on 

the  Bank  of  Mis.souri Aug.  13, 1831. 

20.  Reveliition  to  the  Church  in  Kirt- 

land August,  1831. 

21.  Revelation  given  in  Kirtland. . .  Sept.  11, 1831. 

24.  Revelation  on  I'rayer ,  October,  1831. 

75.  Revelation  to  W.  E.  M'Lellin...  October,  1831. 

1.  Revelation,  or  the  Lord's  preface 

to  this  book Nov.  1, 1831. 

25.  Revelation  on  the  testimony  of 

the  Commandments Nov.,  1831. 

22.  Revelation  to  O.  Hyde,  L.  and  L. 

Johnson,  W.  E.  M'Lellin,  and 

Items  of  Law Nov.,  1831. 

103.  Revelation,  or  Appendix Nov.  3, 1831. 

28.  Revelation  to  O.  Cowdery  and  J. 

Whitmer Nov.,  1831. 

26.  Revelation  on  Stewardships  ....  Nov.,  1831. 
1)1.  Revelation  to  J.  Smith,  jun.,  and 

S.  Rigdon Nov.,  1831. 

90.  Revelation  appointing  a  bishop 

in  Kirtland Dec.  4, 1831. 

29.  Revelation,  elders'  duty  till  Con- 

ference   Jan.  10, 1832. 

74.  Revelation,  explanation  on  Co- 

rinthians   Jan.,  1832. 

SS.  Revelation  to  several  elders  in 

Amherst Jan.  2.5, 1832. 

92.  Revelation,  a  Vision Feb.  16, 1832. 

70.  Revelation  on  the  order  of  Enoch  March,  1832. 

77.  Revelation  to  Jared  Carter March,  1832. 

78.  Revelation  to  S.  Buniett March,  1832. 

80.  Revelation  to  F.  G.  Williams. . .  March,  1832. 
S7.  lievelation  on  the  order  of  Enoch  April  26, 1832. 
89.  Revelation  in  addition  to  the  law  April  30, 18.-!2. 

4.  Revelation  on  Priesthood Sept.  22-3,  do. 

6.  lievelation, Parableof the Wlieat, 

etc Dec.  6, 1832. 

7.  Revelation  called  the  olive  leaf.  Dec.  27, 1832. 

81.  Revelation,  a  Word  of  Wisdom.  Feb.  27, 1833. 

85.  Revelation  conceniing  the  keys 
of  the  kingdom Mar.  8, 1833. 

93.  Revelation  concerning  the  Apoc- 
rj-pha Mar.  9, 1833. 

94.  Revelation  on  the  order  of  Enoch, 

etc Mar.  1.%  18.33. 

83.  Revclation,Jobn's  record  ofChrist  May  6,  1833. 
S4.  Revelation  on  the  building  of  the 

Lord's  houses May  6, 1833. 

96.  Revelation  on  Chastening June,  1833. 

97.  Revelation  showing  the  order  of 
Enoch's  stake June  4, 1833. 

82.  Revelation  for  a  school  in  Zion  .  Aug.  2, 1833. 

86.  Revelation,  Laws  of  tlie  Ancients  Aug.  6, 1S33. 

79.  Revelation  to  J.  Murdock August,  1833. 

95.  Revelation  to  J.  Smith  and  S. 
Rigdon  in  Pen-ysburg Oct.  12, 1833. 

98.  Revelation,  Parable  on  Zion Dec.  16, 1833. 

Organization  of  the  High  Coun- 
cil  Feb.  17, 1834. 

101.  Revelation,  Redemption  of  Zion 

by  power Feb.  24, 1834. 

99.  Revelation  on  Enoch's  order  for 

the  poor AprU23,1834. 

102.  Revelation  given    on    Fishing 
River,  Missouri Juno  22, 1834. 

100.  Revelation  to  Warren  A.  Cow- 
dery   Nov.,  1834. 

3.  Quorums  of  Priesthood. 

104.  Revelations  to  T.  1!.  Marsh  con- 
cerning the  Twelve July  23, 1837. 


1 


CUAP,  IX. 


POLYGAMY. 


373 


rum."  Eespccting  tlic  connubial  state,  the  Gentile  and  exoteric 
reads  with  astonishment  the  follo^Ying  sentence  (no  date,  but  be- 
tween 1842  and  1843) :  "  Inasmuch  as  this  Church  of  Christ  has 
been  reproached  with  the  crime  of  fornication  and  polygamy,  we 
declare  that  we  believe  that  one  man  should  have  one  wife,  and 
one  woman  but  one  husband,  except  in  case  of  death,  w^hen  either 
is  at  liberty  to  marry  again." 

The  polygamic  era  directly  followed  the  monogamic :  it  became 
the  custom  of  the  Churcli  when,  on  their  toil-conquered  oasis  in 
the  Great  Desert,  the  Mormons  found  themselves  in  comparative 
security.  I  give  in  extenso  the  sole  command  of  heaven  upon  the 
subject  of 

CELESTIAL  MAREIAGE: 

A  REVELATION   OX  THE   PATRIARCHAL   ORDER   OP   STATRIMOXY,   OR 

PLURALITY    OF    WIVES. 

Given  to  Joseph  Smith,  the  Seer,  in  J^mivoo,  July  12th,  1843, 

1.  Verily,  then  saith  the  Lord  unto  you,  my  servant  Joseph,  that 
inasmuch  as  you  have  inquired  of  my  hand  to  know  and  understand 
wherein  I,  the  Lord,  justified  my  servants  Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jacob, 
as  also  Moses,  David,  and  Solomon,  my  servants,  as  touching  the  prin- 
ciple and  doctrine  of  their  having  many  wives  and  concubines:  Be- 
hold, and  lo,  I  am  the  Lord  thy  God,  and  will  answer  thee  as  touch- 
ing this  matter :  therefore  prepare  thy  heart  to  receive  and  obey  the 
instructions  which  I  am  about  to  give  unto  you ;  for  all  those  who 
have  this  law  revealed  unto  them  must  obey  the  same ;  for  behold, 
I  reveal  unto  you  a  new  and  an  everlasting  covenant ;  and  if  ye  abide 
not  that  covenant,  then  are  ye  damned ;  for  no  one  can  reject  this  cov- 
enant, and  be  permitted  to  enter  into  my  glory ;  for  all  who  will  have 
a  blessing  at  my  hands  shall  abide  the  law  which  was  appointed  for 
that  blessing,  and  the  conditions  thereof,  as  was  instituted  from  be- 
fore the  foundations  of  the  world ;  and  as  pertaining  to  the  new  and 
everlasting  covenant,  it  was  instituted  for  the  fullness  of  my  glory ; 
and  he  that  recciveth  a  fullness  thereof  must  and  shall  abide  the  law, 
or  he  shall  be  damned,  saith  the  Lord  God. 

2.  And  verily  I  say  unto  you,  that  the  conditions  of  this  law  are 
these :  All  covenants,  contracts,  bonds,  obligations,  oaths,  vows,  per- 
formances, connections,  associations,  or  expectations  that  are  not 
made  and  entered  into,  and  sealed  by  the  Holy  Spirit  of  promise,  of 
him  who  is  anointed,  both  as  well  for  time  and  for  all  eternity,  and 
that,  too,  most  holy,  by  revelation  and  commandment,  through  the 
medium  of  mine  anointed,  whom  I  have  appointed  on  the  earth  to 
hold  this  power  (and  I  have  apj^ointed  unto  my  servant  Joseph  to 
hold  this  power  in  the  last  days,  and  there  is  never  biit  one  on  the 
earth  at  a  time  on  whom  this  power  and  the  keys  of  the  priesthood 
are  conferred),  arc  of  no  efficacy,  virtue,  or  force  in  and  after  the  res- 


S«f. 

lOT.  Revelation",  Tithing July  8, 1S38. 

103.  Ileveliitions  on  the  Temple  and 

Nauvoi)  hou^e Jan.  19, 1S41. 

in.5.  J.  Smitli'.s  address Sept.  1,  1S42. 

lOG.  J.  Smith's  address Sept.  C,  1842. 


Sec. 

109.  Marriage. 

110.  Governments  and  laws  in  gen- 

eral. 

111.  Martyrdom  of  Joseph  and  Hy- 

rum  Smith. 


374  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chaf.  IX. 

urrection  from  the  dead ;  for  all  contracts  that  are  not  made  unto 
this  end  have  an  end  when  men  are  dead. 

3.  Behold,  mine  house  is  a  house  of  order,  saith  the  Lord  God,  and 
not  a  house  of  confusion.  Will  I  accejit  of  an  oftejjing,  saith  the  Lord, 
that  is  not  made  in  my  name  ?  Or  Avill  I  receive  at  your  hands  that 
which  I  have  not  appointed  ?  And  will  I  appoint  unto  you,  saith  the 
Lord,  except  it  be  by  law,  even  as  I  and  my  Father  ordained  unto 
you  before  the  world  was  ?  I  am  the  Lord  thy  God,  and  I  give  unto 
you  this  commandment,  that  no  man  shall  come  unto  the  Father  but 
by  me,  or  by  my  word  which  is  my  law,  saith  the  Lord ;  and  every 
thing  that  is  in  the  Avorld,  Avhether  it  be  ordained  of  men,  by  thrones, 
or  j^rincipalities,  or  powers,  or  things  of  name,  whatsoever  they  may 
be,  that  are  not  by  me,  or  by  my  word,  saith  the  Lord,  shall  be  thrown 
down,  and  shall  not  remain  after  men  are  dead,  neither  in  nor  after 
the  resurrection,  saith  the  Lord  your  God  ;  for  whatsoever  things  re- 
maineth  are  by  me,  and  whatsoever  things  are  not  by  me  shall  be 
shaken  and  destroyed. 

4.  Therefore,  if  a  man  marry  him  a  wife  in  the  world,  and  he  mar- 
ry her  not  by  me,  nor  by  my  word,  and  he  covenant  with  her  so  long 
as  he  is  in  the  world,  and  she  with  him,  their  covenant  and  marriage 
is  not  of  force  when  they  are  dead,  and  when  they  are  o\it  of  the 
world ;  therefore  they  are  not  bound  by  any  law  when  they  are  out 
of  the  world;  therefore,  when  they  are  out  of  the  world,  they  neither 
marry  nor  are  given  in  marriage,  but  are  appointed  angels  in  heaven, 
which  angels  are  ministering  servants,  to  minister  for  those  who  are 
Avorthy  of  a  far  more  and  an  exceeding  and  an  eternal  weight  of  glo- 
ry ;  for  these  angels  did  not  abide  my  law,  therefore  they  can  not  be 
enlarged,  but  remain  separately  and  singly,  without  exaltation,  in 
their  saved  condition,  to  all  eternity,  and  from  henceforth  are  not 
gods,  but  are  angels  of  God  forever  and  ever. 

5.  x\nd  again,  verily  I  say  unto  you,  if  a  man  marry  a  wife,  and 
make  a  covenant  with  her  for  time  and  for  all  eternity,  if  that  cove- 
nant is  not  by  me  or  by  my  word,  which  is  my  law,  and  is  not  sealed 
by  the  Holy  Spirit  of  promise,  through  him  whom  I  have  anointed 
and  appointed  unto  this  power,  then  it  is  not  valid,  neither  of  force, 
when  they  are  out  of  the  world,  because  they  are  not  joined  by  me, 
saith  the  Lord,  neither  by  my  word  ;  when  they  are  out  of  the  world, 
it  can  not  be  received  there,  because  the  angels  and  the  gods  are  ap- 
pointed there,  by  whom  they  can  not  pass :  they  can  not,  therefore, 
inherit  my  glory,  for  my  house  is  a  house  of  order,  saith  the  Lord 
God. 

6.  And  again,  verily  I  say  unto  you,  if  a  man  marry  a  wife  by  my 
word,  which  is  my  law,  and  by  the  new  and  everlasting  covenant, 
and  it  is  sealed  unto  them  by  the  Holy  Spirit  of  promise,  by  him  who 
is  anointed,  unto  whom  I  have  appointed  this  power,  and  the  keys  of 
this  priesthood,  and  it  shall  be  said  unto  them,  ye  shall  come  forth  in 
the  first  resurrection ;  and  if  it  be  after  the  first  resurrection,  in  the 
next  resurrection  ;  and  shall  inherit  thrones,  kingdoms,  principalities, 
and  powers,  dominions,  all  heights  and  depths,  then  shall  it  be  Avritten 
in  the  Lamb's  Book  of  Life  that  he  sliall  commit  no  murder  wliercby 
to  shed  innocent  blood ;  and  if  ye  abide  in  my  covenant,  and  commit 


CuAP.  IX.  POLYGAMY  REVEALED.  375 

no  murder  ■\vhereby  to  shed  innocent  blood,  it  shall  ae  done  unto 
them  in  all  things  Avhatsoever  my  servant  hath  put  upon  them,  in 
time  and  through  all  eternity,  and  shall  be  of  full  force  when  they 
are  out  of  the  world ;  and  they  shall  pass  by  the  angels,  and  the 
gods  Avhich  are  set  there,  to  their  exaltation  and  glory  in  all  things, 
as  hath  been  sealed  upon  their  heads,  which  glory  shall  be  a  fullness 
and  a  continuation  of  the  seeds  forever  and  evei\ 

7.  Then  shall  they  be  gods,  because  they  have  no  end ;  therefore 
shall  they  be  from  everlasting  to  everlasting,  because  they  continue ; 
then  shall  they  be  above  all,  because  all  things  are  subject  unto  them. 
Then  shall  they  be  gods,  because  they  have  all  power,  and  the  angels 
are  subject  unto  them. 

8.  Verily,  verily  I  say  unto  you,  except  ye  abide  my  law,  ye  can 
not  attain  to  this  glory ;  for  straight  is  the  gate  and  narrow  the  way 
that  leadeth  unto  the  exaltation  and  continuation  of  the  lives,  and  few 
there  be  that  find  it,  because  ye  receive  me  not  in  the  world,  neither 
do  ye  knoAV  me.  But  if  ye  receive  me  in  the  world,  then  shall  ye 
know  me,  and  shall  receive  your  exaltation,  that  where  I  am  ye  shall 
be  also.  This  is  eternal  life,  to  know  the  only  wise  and  true  God, 
and  Jesus  Christ  whom  he  hath  sent.  I  am  he.  Receive  ye,  there- 
fore, my  law.  Broad  is  the  gate  and  wide  the  way  that  leadeth  to 
death,  and  many  there  are  that  go  in  thereat,  because  they  receive 
me  not,  neither  do  they  abide  in  my  law. 

9.  Verily,  verily  I  say  unto  you,  if  a  man  marry  a  wife  according 
to  my  word,  and  they  are  sealed  by  the  Holy  Spirit  of  j^romise  ac- 
cording to  mine  appointment,  and  he  or  she  shall  commit  any  sin  or 
transgression  of  the  new  and  everlasting  covenant  whatever,  and  all 
manner  of  blasphemies,  and  if  they  commit  no  murder  wherein  they 
shed  innocent  blood,  yet  they  shall  come  forth  in  the  first  resurrec- 
tion, and  enter  into  their  exaltation,  but  they  shall  be  destroyed  in 
the  flesh,  and  shall  be  delivered  unto  the  buffetings  of  Satan  unto 
the  day  of  redemption,  saith  the  Lord  God. 

10.  The  blasphemy  against  the  Holy  Ghost,  which  shall  not  be  for- 
given in  the  world  nor  out  of  the  world,  is  in  that  ye  commit  murder 
Avherein  ye  shed  innocent  blood,  and  assent  unto  my  death  after  ye 
have  received  my  new  and  everlasting  covenant,  saith  the  Lord  God ; 
and  he  that  abideth  not  this  law  can  in  nowise  enter  into  my  glory, 
but  shall  be  damned,  saith  the  Lord. 

11.  I  am  the  Lord  thy  God,  and  will  giA'e  unto  thee  the  law  of  my 
holy  priesthood,  as  was  ordained  by  me,  and  my  Father  before  the 
world  was.  Abraham  received  all  things,  Avhatsoever  he  received, 
by  revelation  and  commandment,  by  my  word,  saith  the  Lord,  and 
hath  entered  into  his  exaltation,  and  sitteth  upon  his  throne. 

12.  Abraham  received  pi-omises  concerning  his  seed  and  of  the  fruit 
of  his  loins — from  whose  loins  ye  are,  viz.,  my  servant  Josej^h — which 
were  to  continue  so  long  as  they  were  in  the  world  ;  and  as  touching 
Abraham  and  his  seed  out  of  the  world,  they  should  continue ;  both 
in  the  world  and  out  of  the  world  should  they  continue  as  innumera- 
ble as  the  stars ;  or,  if  j^e  were  to  count  the  sand  upon  the  sea-shore, 
ye  could  not  number  them.  This  promise  is  yours  also,  because  ye 
are  of  Abraham,  and  the  promise  was  made  unto  Abraham  j  and  by 


376  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IX. 

this  law  are  the  continuation  of  the  works  of  my  Father,  wherein  he 
glorifieth  himself.  Go  ye,  therefore,  and  do  the  works  of  Abraham ; 
enter  ye  into  my  law,  and  ye  shall  be  saved.  But  if  ye  enter  not  into 
my  law  ye  can  not  receive  the  promises  of  my  Father  which  he  made 
unto  Abraham. 

13.  God  commanded  Abraham,  and  Sarah  gave  Hagar  to  Abra- 
ham to  wife.  And  why  did  she  do  it  ?  Because  this  was  the  law, 
and  from  Hagar  sprang  many  people.  This,  therefore,  was  fulfilling, 
among  other  things,  the  promises.  Was  Abraham,  therefore,  under 
condemnation  ?  Verily,  I  say  unto  you.  Nay  ;  for  I,  the  Lord,  com- 
manded it.  Abraham  was  commanded  to  offer  his  son  Isaac ;  nev- 
ertheless, it  was  written.  Thou  shalt  not  kill.  Abraham,  however,  did 
not  refuse,  and  it  was  accounted  unto  him  for  righteousness. 

14.  Abraham  received  concubines,  and  they  bare  him  children,  and 
it  was  accounted  unto  him  for  righteousness,  because  they  were  given 
unto  him  for  righteousness,  because  they  Avere  given  unto  him,  and 
he  abode  in  my  law ;  as  Isaac  also,  and  Jacob  did  none  other  things 
than  that  which  they  were  commanded,  and  because  they  did  none 
other  things  than  that  which  they  were  commanded,  they  have  en- 
tered into  their  exaltation,  accox'ding  to  the  promises,  and  sit  upon 
thrones  ;  and  are  not  angels,  but  are  gods.  David  also  received 
many  wives  and  concubines,  as  also  Solomon,  and  Moses  my  servant ; 
and  also  many  others  of  my  servants,  from  the  beginning  of  creation 
xmtil  this  time;  and  in  nothing  did  they  sin  save  in  those  things 
which  they  received  not  of  me. 

15.  David's  wives  and  concubines  were  given  unto  him,  of  me,  by 
the  band  of  Xathan,  my  servant,  and  others  of  the  prophets  who  had 
the  keys  of  this  power ;  and  in  none  of  these  things  did  he  sin  against 
me,  save  in  the  case  of  Uriah  and  his  wife;  and  therefore  he  hath 
fallen  from  his  exaltation,  and  received  his  portion ;  and  he  shall  not 
inherit  them  out  of  the  world ;  for  I  gave  them  unto  another,  saith 
the  Lord. 

16.  I  am  the  Lord  thy  God,  and  I  gave  imto  thee,  my  servant  Jo- 
seph, an  appointment,  and  to  restore  all  things ;  ask  what  ye  will,  and 
it  shall  be  given  unto  you,  according  to  my  word ;  and  as  ye  have 
asked  concerning  adultery,  verily,  verily  I  say  unto  you,  if  a  man  re- 
ceiveth  a  wife  in  the  new  and  everlasting  covenant,  and  if  she  be  with 
another  man,  and  I  have  not  appointed  unto  her  by  the  holy  anoint- 
ing, she  hath  committed  adultery,  and  shall  be  destroyed.  If  she  be 
not  in  the  new  and  everlasting  covenant,  and  she  be  with  another 
man,  she  has  committed  adultery;  and  if  her  husband  be  with  anoth- 
er woman,  and  he  Avas  under  a  vow,  he  hath  broken  his  vow,  and  hath 
committed  adultery ;  and  if  she  hath  not  committed  adultery,  but  is 
innocent,  and  hath  not  broken  her  vow,  and  she  knoweth  it,  and  I  re- 
veal it  unto  you,  my  servant  Joseph,  then  shall  you  have  power,  by 
the  power  of  my  holy  priesthood,  to  take  her  and  give  her  imto  him 
that  hath  not  committed  adultery,  but  hath  been  faithful,  for  he  shall 
be  made  ruler  over  many ;  for  I  have  conferred  upon  you  the  keys 
and  power  of  the  priesthood,  wherein  I  restore  all  things,  and  make 
known  unto  you  all  things  in  due  time. 

17.  And  verily,  verily  I  say  unto  you,  that  whatsoever  you  seal  on 


Chap.  IX.  POLYGAMY  KEVEALED.  377 

earth  shall  be  sealed  in  heaven ;  and  Avhatsocvcr  you  bind  on  earth, 
in  my  name  and  by  my  word,  saith  the  Lord,  it  shall  be  eternally 
bound  in  the  heavens ;  and  whosesoever  sins  you  remit  on  earth,  shall 
be  remitted  eternally  in  tlie  heavens ;  and  whosesoever  sins  ye  retain 
on  earth,  shall  be  retained  in  heaven. 

18.  And  again,  verily  I  say,  whomsoever  you  bless  I  will  bless,  and 
whomsoever  you  curse  I  will  curse,  saith  the  Lord ;  for  I,  the  Lord, 
am  thy  God. 

19.  And  again,  verily  I  say  unto  you,  my  servant  Joseph,  that  what- 
soever you  give  on  earth,  and  to  whomsoever  you  give  any  one  on 
earth,  by  my  word,  and  according  to  my  law,  it  shall  be  visited  with 
blessings,  and  not  cursings,  and  with  my  power,  saith  the  Lord,  and 
shall  be  Avithout  condemnation  on  earth  and  in  heaven ;  for  I  am  the 
Lord  thy  God,  and  will  be  with  thee  even  imto  the  end  of  the  world, 
and  tln-ough  all  eternity ;  for  verily  I  seal  upon  you  your  exaltation, 
and  prepare  a  throne  for  you  in  the  kingdom  of  my  Father  with  Abra- 
ham your  father.  Behold,  I  have  seen  your  sacrifices,  and  will  for- 
give all  your  sins ;  I  have  seen  your  sacrifices  in  obedience  to  that 
which  I  have  told  you :  go,  therefore,  and  I  make  a  way  for  your  es- 
cape, as  I  accepted  the  offering  of  Abraham  of  his  son  Isaac. 

20.  Verily  I  say  unto  you,  a  commandment  I  give  unto  mine  hand- 
maid, Emma  Smith,  your  Avife,  whom  I  have  given  unto  you,  that  she 
stay  herself,  and  j'jartake  not  of  that  which  I  commanded  you  to  of- 
fer unto  her ;  for  I  did  it,  saith  the  Lord,  to  prove  you  all,  as  I  did 
Abraham,  and  that  I  might  require  an  ofiering  at  your  hand  by  cov- 
enant and  sacrifice ;  and  let  mine  handmaid,  Emma  Smith,  receive  all 
those  that  have  been  given  unto  my  servant  Joseph,  and  who  are 
virtuous  and  pure  before  me ;  and  those  who  are  not  pure,  and  have 
said  they  are  pure,  shall  be  destroyed,  saith  the  Lord  God ;  for  I  am 
the  Lord  thy  God,  and  ye  shall  obey  my  voice :  and  I  give  unto  my 
servant  Joseph  that  he  shall  be  made  ruler  over  many  things,  for  he 
hath  been  faithful  over  a  few  things,  and  from  henceforth  I  will 
strengthen  him. 

21.  And  I  command  mine  handmaid,  Emma  Smith,  to  abide  and 
cleave  unto  my  servant  Joseph,  and  to  none  else.  But  if  she  will 
not  abide  this  commandment,  she  shall  be  destroyed,  saith  the  Lord  ; 
for  I  am  the  Lord  thy  God,  and  will  destroy  her  if  she  abide  not  in 
my  law ;  but  if  she  will  not  abide  this  commandment,  then  shall  my 
servant  Joseph  do  all  things  for  her,  even  as  he  hath  said ;  and  I  will 
bless  him,  and  multiply  him,  and  give  unto  him  an  hundred-fold  in 
this  world,  of  fathers  and  mothers,  brothers  and  sisters,  houses  and 
lands,  wives  and  children,  and  crowns  of  eternal  lives  in  the  eternal 
worlds.  And  again,  verily  I  say,  let  mine  handmaid  forgive  my  serv- 
ant Joseph  his  trespasses,  and  then  shall  she  be  forgiven  her  tresjiass- 
es  wherein  she  has  trespassed  against  me ;  and  I,  the  Lord  thy  God, 
will  bless  her  and  multiply  her,  and  make  her  heart  to  rejoice. 

22.  And  again  I  say,  let  not  my  servant  Joseph  put  his  property 
out  of  his  hands,  lest  an  enemy  come  and  destroy  him,  for  Satan  seek- 
eth  to  destroy ;  for  I  am  the  Lord  thy  God,  and  he  is  my  servant ; 
and  behold,  and  lo,!  am  Avith  him,  as  I  was  Avith  Abraham  thy  father, 
even  unto  his  exaltation  and  glory. 


378  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Cuap.  IX. 

23.  Now,  as  touching  the  law  of  the  priesthood,  there  are  maiiy 
things  pertaining  thereunto.  Verily,  if  a  man  be  called  of  my  Fa- 
ther, as  was  Aaron,  by  mine  own  voice,  and  by  the  voice  of  him  that 
sent  me,  and  I  have  endowed  him  Avith  the  keys  of  the  power  of  this 
priesthood, if  he  do  any  thing  in  my  name,  and  according  to  my  law, 
and  by  my  word,  he  will  not  commit  sin,  and  I  will  justify  him.  Let 
no  one,  therefore,  set  on  my  servant  Joseph;  for  I  will  justify  him; 
for  he  shall  do  the  sacrifice  which  I  require  at  his  hands,  for  his  trans- 
gressions, saith  the  Lord  your  God. 

24.  And  again,  as  pertaining  to  the  law  of  the  priesthood :  If  any 
man  espouse  a  virgin,  and  desire  to  espouse  another,  and  the  first 
give  her  consent;  and  if  he  esjiouse  the  second,  and  they  are  virgins, 
and  have  vowed  to  no  other  man,  then  is  he  justified;  he  can  not 
commit  adultery,  for  they  are  given  unto  him  ;  for  he  can  not  com- 
mit adultery  with  that  that  belongeth  unto  them,  and  to  none  else : 
and  if  he  have  ten  virgins  given  unto  him  by  this  law,  he  can  not 
commit  adultery,  for  they  belong  to  him,  and  they  are  given  unto 
him;  therefore  is  he  justified.  But  if  one,  or  either  of  the  ten  vir- 
gins, after  she  is  espoused,  shall  be  with  another  man,  she  has  com- 
mitted adultery,  and  shall  be  destroyed  ;  for  they  are  given  unto  him 
to  multiply  and  replenish  the  earth,  according  to  my  commandment, 
and  to  fulfill  the  promise  which  was  given  by  ray  Father  before  the 
foundation  of  the  world,  and  for  their  exaltation  in  the  eternal  worlds, 
that  they  may  bear  the  souls  of  men  ;  for  herein  is  the  work  of  my 
Father  continued,  that  he  may  be  glorified. 

25.  And  again,  verily,  verily  I  say  unto  you,  if  any  man  have  a 
wife  who  holds  the  keys  of  this  power,  and  he  teaches  unto  her  the 
law  of  my  priesthood  as  pertaining  to  these  things,  then  shall  she  be- 
lieve, and  administer  imto  him,  or  she  shall  be  destroyed,  saith  the 
Lord  your  God ;  for  I  Avill  destroy  her ;  for  I  will  magnify  my  name 
upon  all  those  who  receive  and  abide  in  my  law.  Therefore  it  shall 
be  lawful  in  me,  if  she  receive  not  this  law,  for  him  to  receive  all 
things  whatsoever  I,  the  Lord  his  God,  will  give  iinto  him,  because 
she  did  not  believe  and  administer  unto  him,  according  to  my  Avord ; 
and  she  then  becomes  the  transgressor,  and  he  is  exempt  from  the 
law  of  Sarah,  who  administered  unto  Abraham  according  to  the  law, 
when  I  commanded  Abraham  to  take  Hagar  to  wife.  And  noAV,  as 
pertaining  to  this  law :  Yerily,  verily  I  say  unto  you,  I  will  reveal 
more  unto  you  hereafter ;  therefore  let  this  suflice  for  the  present. 
Behold,  I  am  Alpha  and  Omega.     Amen. 

Following  the  revelation  is  this  explanation : 

Pluuality  of  Wives  is  a  doctrine  very  popular  among  most  of 
mankind  at  the  present  day.  It  is  practiced  by  the  most  powerful 
nations  of  Asia  and  Africa,'  and  by  numerous  nations  inhabiting  the 
islands  of  the  sea,  and  by  the  aboriginal  nations  of  the  great  western 
hemisphere.  The  one-wife  system  is  confined  principally  to  a  few 
small  nations  inhabiting  Europe,  and  to  those  who  are  of  European 
origin  inhabiting  America.  It  is  estimated  by  the  most  able  histori- 
ans of  our  day  that  about  four  fifths  of  the  population  of  the  globe 
believe  and  practice,  according  to  their  respective  laws,  the  doctrine 
of  a  plurality  of  wives.     If  the  popularity  of  a  doctrine  is  in  propor- 


Chap.  IX.  POLYGAMY  EXPLAINED.  379 

tion  to  the  numbers  who  beheve  in  it,  then  it  follows  that  the  phiral-  ) 
ity  system  is  four  times  more  popular  among  the  inhabitants  of  the  \ 
eartli  tlian  the  one-ioife  system.  ^  '"^~^ 

Those  nations  who  practice  the  plurality  doctrine  consider  it  as 
virtuous  and  &s  right  for  one  man  to  have  many  wives  as  to  have 
one  only.  Therefore  they  have  enacted  laws  not  only  giving  this 
right  to  their  citizens,  but  also  protecting  them  in  it,  and  punishing 
all  those  who  infringe  upon  the  chastity  of  the  marriage  covenant 
by  committing  adultery  with  any  one  of  the  wives  of  his  neighbor. 
Those  nations  do  not  consider  it  possible  for  a  man  to  commit  adul- 
tery with  any  one  of  those  women  to  whom  he  has  been  legally  mar- 
ried according  to  their  laws.  The  posterity  raised  up  unto  the  hus- 
band through  each  of  his  wives  are  all  considered  to  be  legitimate, 
and  provisions  are  made  in  their  laws  for  those  children  the  same  as 
if  they  were  the  children  of  one  wife.  Adulteries,  fornications,  and 
all  uuvirtuous  conduct  between  the  sexes  are  severely  punished  by 
them.  Indeed,  plurality  among  them  is  considered  not  only  virtuous 
and  right, but  a  great  check  or  preventive  against  adulteries  and  un- 
lawful connections,  which  are  among  the  greatest  evils  -willLwhich 
nations  are  cursed,  producing  a  vast  amount  of  suifering  and  misery, 
devastation  and  death ;  undermining  the  very  foundations  of  hapi)i- 
ness,  and  destroying  the  frame-work  of  society  and  the  peace  of  the 
domestic  circle. 

Some  of  the  nations  of  Europe  who  believe  in  the  one-wife  system 
have  actually  forbidden  a  plurality  of  wives  by  their  laws,  and  the 
consequences  are  that  the  whole  country  among  them  is  overrun 
with  the  most  abominable  practices ;  adulteries  and  unlawful  con- 
nections prevail  through  all  their  villages,  towns,  cities,  and  countrj'- 
jjlaces  to  a  most  fearful  extent.  And  among  some  of  these  nations 
these  sinks  of  wickedness,  wretchedness,  and  misery  are  licensed  by 
law,  while  their  piety  would  be  wonderfully  shocked  to  authorize  by 
law  the  plurality  system,  as  adopted  by  many  neighboring  nations.^ 

The  Constitution  and  laws  of  the  United  States,  being  founded  ) 
upon  the  jirinciples  of  fi-eedom,  do  not  interfere  with  marriage  rela- 
tions, but  leave  the  nation  free  to  believe  in  and  practice  the  doctrine 
of  a  plurality  of  wives,  or  to  confine  themselves  to  the  one-wife  sys- 
tem, just  as  they  choose.  This  is  as  it  should  be:  it  leaves  the  con- 
science of  man  untrammeled,  and,  so  long  as  he  injures  no  person, 
and  does  not  infringe  upon  the  rights  of  others,  he  is  free  by  the  Con- 
stitution to  marry  one  Avife,  or  many,  or  none  at  all,  and  becomes  ac- 
countable to  God  for  the  righteousness  or  unrighteousness  of  his  do- 
mestic relations. 

The  Constit^ition  leaves  the  several  States  and  Territories  to  enact 
such  laws  as  they  see  proper  in  regard  to  marriages,  provided  that 
they  do  not  infringe  upon  the  rights  of  conscience  and  the  liberties 
guaranteed  in  that  sacred  document.  Therefore,  if  any  State  or  Ter- 
ritory feels  disposed*  to  enact  laws  guaranteeing  to  each  of  its  citi- 
zens the  right  to  marry  many  wives,  such  laws  Avould  be  perfectly 
constitutional ;  hence  the  several  States  and  Territories  practice  the 
one-wife  system  out  of  choice,  and  not  because  they  are  under  any 
obligations  so  to  do  by  the  national  Constitution.     Indeed,  we  doubt 


350  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IX. 

very  much  whether  any  State  or  Territory  has  the  constitutional 
rio-ht  to  make  laws  prohibiting  the  plurality  doctrine  in  cases  where 
it  is  practiced  by  religious  societies  as  a  matter  of  conscience  or  as  a 
doctrine  of  their  religious  faith.  The  first  Article  of  the  Amend- 
ments to  tlie  Constitution  says  expressly  that  "  Congress  shall  make 
no  law  respecting  an  establishment  of  religion,  or  prohibitinff  the  free 
exercise  thereof. ^^  Kow,if  even  Congress  itself  has  no  power  to  pass 
a  law  "  prohibiting  the  free  exercise  of  religion,"  much  less  has  any 
State  or  Territory  power  to  pass  su^h  an  act. 

The  doctrine  of  a  plurality  of  wives  was  believed  and  practiced  by 
Abraham,  the  father  of  the  faithful ;  and  we  find  that,  while  in  this 
practice,  the  angels  of  God  frequently  ministered  to  him,  and  at  one 
time  dined  with  him ;  and  God  manifested  himself  to  him,  and  en- 
tered into  familiar  conversation  with  him.  Neither  God  nor  his  an- 
gels reproved  Abraham  for  being  a  i5olygamist,but,  on  the  contrary, 
the  Almighty  greatly  blessed  him,  and  made  promises  imto  him,  con- 
cerning both  Isaac  and  Isiimael,  clearly  showing  that  Abraham  prac- 
ticed what  is  called  polygamy  under  the  sanction  of  the  iVlmighty. 
Now  if  the  father  of  the  faithful  was  thus  blessed,  certainly  it  should 
not  be  considered  irreligious  for  the  faithful,  who  are  called  his  chil- 
dren, to  walk  in  the  steps  of  their  father  Abraham.  Indeed,  if  the 
Lord  himself,  through  his  holy  prophets,  should  give  more  wives 
unto  his  servants,  as  he  gave  them  unto  the  prophet  David,  it  would 
be  a  great  sin  for  them  to  refuse  that  which  he  gives.  In  such  a 
case,  it  would  become  a  matter  of  conscience  with  them,  and  a  part 
of  their  religion,  and  they  would  be  bound  to  exercise  their  faith  in 
this  doctrine,  and  practice  it,  or  be  condemned ;  therefore  Congress 
would  have  no  power  to  prohibit  the  free  exercise  of  this  part  of 
their  religion,  neither  would  the  States  or  Territories  have  power 
constitutionally  to  pass  a  law  "prohibiting  the  free  exercise  thereof." 
Now  a  certain  religious  society,  called  Shakers,  believe  it  to  be  wrong 
for  them  to  marry  even  one  wife  ;  it  certainly  would  be  unconstitu- 
tional for  either  the  Congress  or  the  States  to  pass  a  law  compelling 
all  peo])le  to  marry  at  a  certain  age,  because  it  would  infringe  upon 
the  rights  of  conscience  among  the  Shakers,  and  they  would  be  pro- 
hibited the  free  exercise  of  their  religion. 

From  the  foregoing  revelation,  given  through  Joseph  the  Seer,  it 
will  be  seen  that  God  has  actually  commanded  some  of  his  servants 
to  take  more  wives,  and  has  pointed  out  certain  duties  in  regard  to 
the  marriage  ceremony,  showing  that  they  must  be  married  for  time 
and  for  all  eternity,  and  showing  the  advantages  to  be  derived  in  a 
future  state  by  this  eternal  union  ;  and  showing  still  farther  that,  if 
they  refused  to  obey  this  command,  after  having  the  law  revealed  to 
them,  they  should  be  damned.  This  revelation,  then,  makes  it  a  mat- 
ter of  conscience  among  all  the  Latter-Day  Saints ;  and  they  embrace 
it  as  a  part  and  portion  of  their  religion,  and  verily  believe  that  they 
can  not  be  saved  and  reject  it.  Has  Congress  power,  then,  to  pass 
laws  "  prohibiting"  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-Day  Saints 
'"'•the  free  exercise!''  of  this  article  of  their  religion?  Have  any  of  the 
States  or  Territories  a  constitutional  right  to  pass  laws  "  prohibiting 
the  free  exercise  of  the  religion"  which  the  Church  of  the  Saints  con- 


Chap.  IX.  POLYGAMY  EXPLAINED.  381 

scientiously  and  sincerely  believe  to  be  essential  to  tlieir  salvation  ? 
Ko,  they  have  no  such  right. 

The  Latter-Day  Saints  have  the  most  implicit  confidence  in  all  the 
revelations  given  through  Joseph  the  Pi-ophet,  and  they  -would  much 
sooner  lay  down  their  lives  and  suffer  martyrdom  than  to  deny  the 
least  revelation  that  was  ever  given  to  him.  In  one  of  the  revela- 
tions through  him,  we  read  that  God  raised  up  wise  men  and  inspired 
them  to  write  the  Constitution  of  our  country,  that  the  freedom  of 
the  people  might  be  maintained,  according  to  the  free  agency  which 
he  had  given  to  them ;  that  every  man  might  be  accountable  to  God 
and  not  to  man,  so  far  as  religious  doctrines  and  conscience  are  con- 
cerned. And  the  more  we  examine  that  sacred  instrument,  framed 
by  the  wisdom  of  our  illustrious  fathers,  the  more  we  are  compelled 
to  believe  that  an  invisible  power  controlled,  dictated,  and  guided 
them  in  laying  the  foundation  of  liberty  and  freedom  upon  this  great 
western  hemisphere.  To  this  land  the  Mohammedan — the  Hindoo 
— the  Chinese  can  emigrate,  and  each  bring  with  him  his  score  of 
wives  and  his  hundred  children,  and  the  glorious  Constitution  of  our 
country  will  not  interfere  with  his  domestic  relations.  Under  the 
broad  banner  of  the  Constitution,  he  is  protected  in  all  his  family  as- 
sociations ;  none  have  a  right  to  tear  any  of  his  wives  or  his  children 
from  him.  So,  likewise,  imder  the  broad  folds  of  the  Constitution, 
the  Legislative  Assembly  of  the  Territory  of  Utah  have  the  right  to 
pass  laws  regulating  their  matrimonial  relations,  and  protecting  each 
of  their  citizens  in  the  right  of  marrying  one  or  many  wives,  as  the 
case  may  be.  If  Congress  should  rej^eal  those  laws,  they  could  not 
do  so  on  the  ground  of  their  being  unconstitutional.  And  even  if 
Congress  should  repeal  them,  there  still  w^ould  be  no  law  in  Utah 
prohibiting  the  free  exercise  of  that  religious  right ;  neither  do  the 
citizens  of  Utah  feel  disposed  to  pass  such  an  unconstitutional  act 
which  would  infringe  upon  the  most  sacred  rights  of  conscience. 

Tradition  and  custom  have  great  influence  over  nations.  Long- 
established  customs,  whether  right  or  wrong,  become  sacred  in  the 
estimation  of  mankind.  Those  nations  who  have  been  accustomed 
from  time  immemorial  to  the  practice  of  what  is  called  polygamy 
would  consider  a  law  abolishing  it  as  the  very  height  of  injustice  and 
oppression ;  the  very  idea  of  being  limited  to  the  one-wife  system 
would  be  considered  not  only  oppressive  and  unjust,  but  absolutely 
absurd  and  ridiculous;  it  would  be  considered  an  innovation  upon 
the  long-established  usages,  customs,  and  laws  of  numerous  and  pow- 
erful nations ;  an  innovation  of  the  most  dangerous  character,  calcu- 
lated to  destroy  the  most  sacred  rights  and  privileges  of  family  asso- 
ciations— to  upset  the  very  foundations  of  individual  rights,  rendered 
dear  and  sacred  by  being  handed  down  to  them  from  the  most  re- 
mote ages  of  antiquity. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  European  nations  who  have  been  for  cen- 
turies restricted  by  law  to  the  one-wife  theory  would  consider  it  a 
shocking  innovation  upon  the  customs  of  their  fathers  to  abolish  their 
restrictive  laws,  and  to  give  freedom  and  liberty  according  to  the 
plurality  system.  It  is  custom,  then,  in  a  great  degree,  that  forms 
the  conscience  of  nations  and  individuals  in  regard  to  the  marriage 


382  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IX. 

relationships.  Custom  causes  four  fifths  of  the  population  of  the 
globe  to  decide  tliat  polygamy,  as  it  is  called,  is  a  good,  and  not  an 
evil  practice ;  custom  causes  the  balance,  or  the  remaining  fifth,  to 
decide  in  opposition  to  the  great  majority. 

Those  individuals  who  have  strength  of  mind  sufficient  to  divest 
themselves  entirely  from  the  influence  of  custom,  and  examiiie  the 
docti-ine  of  a  plurality  of  wives  under  the  light  of  reason  and  revela- 
tion, will  be  forced  to  the  conclusion  that  it  is  a  doctrine  of  divine 
origin ;  that  it  was  embraced  and  practiced  under  the  divine  sanc- 
.^  tion  by  the  most  rigliteous  men  who  ever  lived  on  the  earth :  holy 
prophets  and  patriarchs,  who  Avere  inspired  by  tlie  Holy  Ghost — who 
were  enrapt  in  the  visions  of  the  Almighty — who  conversed  with 
holy  angels — who  saw  God  face  to  face,  and  talked  with  him  as  a 
man  talks  with  his  friend — were  "  polygamists,"  that  is,  they  had 
many  wives — raised  up  many  children  by  them — and  were  never  re- 
proved by  the  Holy  Ghost,  nor  by  angels,  nor  by  the  Almighty,  for 
believing  in  and  practicing  such  a  doctrine ;  on  the  contrary,  each 
one  of  these  "polygamists"  received  by  revelation  promises  and  bless- 
ings for  himself,  for  his  wives,  and  for  his  numerous  children  born 
unto  him  by  his  numerous  wives.  Moreover,  the  Lord  himself  gave 
revelation  to  difterent  Avives  belonging  to  the  same  man,  revealing  to 
them  tlic  great  blessings  Avhich  should  rest  upon  their  posterity ;  an- 
o-els  also  were  sent  to  comfort  and  bless  them ;  and  in  no  instance  do 
Ave  find  them  reproved  for  haA'ing  joined  tliemselves  in  marriage  to 
a  "  polygamist."  Indeed,  the  Lord  Iiimself  gave  laws  not  to  prohibit 
"  polygamy,"  but  showing  his  will  in  relation  to  the  children  raised 
np  by  the  different  Avives  of  the  same  man ;  and,  furthermore,  the 
Lord' himself  actually  officiated  in  giving  David  all  the  wives  of  Saul; 
this  occurred,  too,  Avheu  David  already  had  several  wives  which  he 
had  previously  taken :  therefore,  as  the  Lord  did  actually  give  into 
David's  own  bosom  all  the  Avives  of  Saul,  he  must  not  only  have 
sanctioned  "  polygamy,"  but  established  and  instituted  it  upon  a  sure 
foundation,  by  giving  the  wives  himself,  the  same  as  he  gave  Eve  to 
Adam.  Therefore  those  Avho  are  completely  divested  from  the  in- 
fluence of  national  customs,  and  Avho  judge  concerning  this  matter 
by  the  Word  of  God,  are  compelled  to  believe  that  the  plurality  of 
Avives  Avas  once  sanctioned  for  many  ages  by  the  Almighty ;  and  by 
a  still  fartlier  research  of  the  divine  oracles  they  find  no  intimations 
that  this  divine  institution  Avas  ever  repealed./  It  Avas  an  institution, 
not  originated  under  the  law  of  Moses,  but  of  a  fir  more  ancient 
date ;  and  instead  of  being  abolished  by  that  law,  it  Avas  sanctioned 
and  perpetuated  ;  and  Avhen  Christ  came  to  fulfill  that  laAA',  and  to 
do  it  aAvay  by  the  introduction  of  a  better  covenant,  he  did  not  abol- 
ish the  plurality  system :  not  being  originated  under  that  laAV,  it  was 
not  made  null  and  void  when  that  law  Avas  done  aAvay.'V  Indeed, 
there  Avere  many  things  in  connection  Avith  the  law  that  were  not 
abolislied  Avhen  the  laAV  Avas  fulfilled ;  as,  for  instance,  the  Ten  Com- 
mandments, Avhich  the  people  under  the  Gospel  covenant  were  still 
obliged  to  obey ;  and  until  Ave  can  find  some  laAV  of  God  abolishing 
and  prohibiting  a  plurality  of  Avives,  Ave  are  compelled  to  believe  it 
a  divine  institution ;  and  Ave  are  furthermore  comiielled  to  believe, 


Chap.  IX.  POLYGAMY  EXPLAINED.  383 

that  if  this  institution  be  entered  into  now,  nndcr  the  same  principles 
which  governed  the  holy  prophets  and  patriarchs,  that  God  Avill  ap- 
probate it  now  as  much  as  he  did  then ;  and  that  the  persons  who 
do  thus  practice  it  conscientiously  and  sincerely  are  just  as  honora- 
ble in  the  sight  of  God  as  those  who  have  but  one  wife.  And  that 
which  is  honorable  before  God  should  be  honorable  before  men  ;  and 
no  one  should  be  despised  when  ho  acts  in  all  good  conscience  upon 
any  principle  of  doctrine ;  neither  should  there  be  laws  in  any  of 
these  States  or  Territories  to  compel  any  individual  to  act  in  viola- 
tion to  the  dictates  of  his  own  conscience;  but  every  one  should  be 
left  in  all  matters  of  religion  to  his  own  choice,  and  thus  become  ac- 
countable to  God,  and  not  to  his  fellow-man. 

If  the  people  of  this  country  have  genei-ally  formed  different  con- 
clusions from  us  upon  this  subject,  and  if  they  have  embraced  relig- 
ions which  are  more  congenial  to  their  minds  than  the  religion  of  the 
Saints,  Ave  say  to  them  that  they  are  welcome  to  their  own  religious 
views;  the  laws  should  not  interfere  with  the  exercise  of  their  relig- 
ious rights.  If  we  can  not  convince  you  by  reason  nor  by  the  Word 
of  God  that  your  religion  is  wrong,  we  will  not  persecute  you,  but 
will  sustain  you  in  the  privileges  guaranteed  in  the  great  Charter  of 
American  Liberty :  we  ask  from  you  the  same  generosity — protect 
us  in  the  exercise  of  our  religious  rights — convince  us  of  our  errors 
of  doctrine,  if  we  have  any,  by  reason,  by  logical  arguments,  or  by 
the  Word  of  God,  and  we  will  be  ever  grateful  for  the  information, 
and  you  Avill  ever  have  the  pleasing  reflection  that  you  have  been 
the  instruments  in  the  hands  of  God  of  redeeming  your  fellow-beings 
from  the  darkness  which  you  may  see  enveloping  their  minds.  Come,'^ 
then,  let  us  reason  together,  and  try  to  discover  the  true  light  ui3o"&^ 
all  subjects  connected  with  our  temporal  or  eternal  happiness ;  and 
if  we  disagree  in  our  judgments,  let  us  impute  it  to  the  weakness  and 
imperfections  of  our  fallen  natures,  and  let  us  pity  each  other,  and 
endeavor  with  patience  and  meekness  to  reclaim  from  error,  and  save 
the  immortal  soul  from  an  endless  death. 

Mormonism,  it  will  be  observed,  claims  at  once  to  be,  like  Chris- 
tianity, a  progressive  faith,  with  that  development  of  spiritualism  " 
which  the  "  Tracts  for  the  Times"  exemplified,  and,  like  El  Islam, 
to  be  a  restoration  by  revelation  of  the  pure  and  primeval  religion 
of  the  world.  Convinced  that  plurality  was  unforbidden  by  the 
founders  of  the  former  faiths,  the  Mormons,  as  well  as  the  follow- 
ers of  the  Arabian  Prophet,  have  obej^ed  the  command  of  their 
God  to  restore  it,  and  that,  too,  although  the  Anglo-Scandinavian 
race  every  where  agrees,  after  the  fashion  of  pagan  and  mono- 
gamic  Eome,  to  make  it  a  common-law  crime.  Politically  consid- 
ered, the  Mormons  deem  it  necessary  to  their  existence  as  a  peo- 
ple. Contrary  to  the  scientific  modern  economist,  from  Mr.  Mal- 
thus  to  Mr.  Mill,  they  hold  population,  not  wealth,  learning,  civil- 
ization, nor  virtue,  to  be  the  strength  of  a  nation ;  they  believe 
that  numbers  decide  the  rise  and  fall  of  empires,  and  that,  as  Na- 
ture works  the  extinction  of  her  doomed  races  by  infecundity, 
and  as  the  decline  of  a  people's  destiny  is  first  detected  in  the 


384  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IX. 

diminution  of  its  census,  so  tlicy  look  upon  the  celestial  promises 
of  prolificity  made  to  the  patriarchs  of  old  as  the  highest  temporal 
blessing.  They  admit  in  the  lawgiver  only  a  right  to  legislate 
for  the  good  of  those  who  are  to  obey  his  laws,  not  to  gratify  his 
"  whimsy  whamsies,"  and  that  the  liberty  which  man  claims  by 
the  dignity  of  his  nature  permits  him  to  choose  the  tie,  whether 
polyandric,  monogamic,  or  polygamic,  that  connects  him  with  the 
opposite  sex.  Mr,  Parley  P.  Pratt  ("  Marriage  and  Morals  in 
Utah,"  p.  3)  is  explicit  upon  this  subject: 

"  If  we  find  laws,  statutes,  covenants,  and  precedents  emanating 
from  God ;  sworn  to  by  himself  to  be  everlasting ;  as  a  blessing 
to  all  nations — if  we  find  these  have  to  do  with  exceeding  multi- 
plicity of  race,  and  with  family  and  national  organization  and  in- 
crease— if  such  institutions  are  older  than  Moses,  and  are  found 
perpetuated  and  unimpaired  by  Moses  and  the  prophets,  Jesus 
and  the  apostles,  then  it  will  appear  evident  that  no  merely  hu- 
man legislation  or  authority,  whether  proceeding  from  emperor, 
king,  or  people,  has  a  right  to  change,  alter,  or  pervert  them." 

The  third  epoch  is  that  of  Materialism.  In  this  the  Mormons 
are  preceded,  to  quote  but  a  few  schools,  by  the  classic  Academ- 
ics— by  the  Jews,  who  believed  in  a  material  and  personal  Demi- 
urgus,  and  by  many  fathers  of  the  Christian  Church,  who  held  the 
soul  of  man,  while  immortal,  to  be  material.  Matter  with  them, 
as  with  Newton,  is  an  aggregate  of  "sohd,  massy,  hard,  impene- 
trable, and  movable  particles."  Ecspecting  the  intelligence  of  its 
units  and  molecules — the  test  of  true  materialism — they  are  some- 
what hazy ;  they  deride  the  peripatetic  dogma  of  perception  by 
species  or  phantasms,  and  at  the  same  time  ignore  the  doctrine  of 
Hobbes,  Spinoza,  Priestley,  and  others,  who  recognize  no  .separate 
existence  for  the  mind  or  spirit^  except  as  a  union  of  atoms  or 
particles,  which,  unorganized,  have  neither  feeling  nor  thought. 
They  define  matter  as  a  something  that  exists  in  and  occupies 
space  between  any  two  instants,  and  is  susceptible  of  division, 
and  of  being  removed  from  one  portion  of  space  to  another.  Un- 
like other  metaphysicians,  who  confess  ignorance  as  to  the  sub- 
stratum of  mind  and  matter,  they  boast  acquaintance  with  the  es- 
sence of  all  substances,  solidity,  which  with  them  is  not  a  mere 
property.  Although  the  ultimate  atoms  of  matter  can  not  come 
under  the  cognizance  of  the  senses,  they  are  none  the  less  assured 
of  their  solidity,  viz.,  that  they  fill  a  certain  amount  of  space,  and 

*  "If  man,"  says  Dr.  Priestloy,  "be  a  material  being,  and  the  power  of  thinking 
the  result  of  a  certain  organization  of  the  brain,  docs  it  not  follow  that  all  his  func- 
tions must  be  regulated  by  the  laws  of  mechanism,  and  that,  of  consequence,  all  his 
actions  proceed  from  an  iiTcsistible  necessity  ?"  It  is  the  gloiy  of  the  present  ago, 
the  highest  result  of  our  nineteenth  century  physiological  and  statistic  studies,  brought 
to  bear  by  a  master-mind  of  the  age  upon  the  History  of  Civilization — to  establish 
the  fact  that  mankind  progresses  by  investigating  the  laws  of  phenomena ;  in  fact, 
to  jM-ovc,  not  to  conjecture,  that  such  racchauism  really  exists.  I  need  hardly  name 
Mr.  Buckle. 


Chap.  IX.  MOEMON  MATERIALISM.  385 

are  unable  ever  to  fill  a  greater  or  a  lesser — in  fact,  to  believe 
otherwise  would  be  impossible.  They  hold  to  different  kinds  of 
matter,  for  instance,  the  fleshly  body  and  the  spiritual  body,  which 
differ  in  quality  as  iron  and  oxygen.  Mind  and  spirit,  therefore, 
are  real,  objective,  positive  substances,  which,  like  the  astral  spirit 
of  the  old  alchymists,  exists  in  close  connection  with  the  compo- 
nent parts  of  the  porous,  material  body,  Immaterialism  is,  with 
them,  simply  absurd ;  it  is  a  belief  which  requires  a  man  to  put 
faith  in  a  negation  of  time,  space,  and  matter ;  in  fact,  in  the  zero 
of  existence,  in  an  entity  whose  ens  admits  no  proof,  and  which 
can  be  described  only  by  negative  conditions  and  qualities,  by 
saying  what  it  is  not.  They  contend  that  the  materiality  of  spirit 
once  taken  away  would  negative  its  existence;  that  an  "immate- 
rial being"  is  a  contradiction  in  terms ;  and  that  immateriality  is 
another  name  for  nothing ;  therefore,  that  the  spirituality  of  spir- 
it "  is  an  unphilosophical,  unscriptural,  and  atheistical  doctrine." 
The  theses  supported  by  Mr.  Orson  Pratt,  the  apostle  of  material- 
ism, are  the  following : 

I.  That  Immaterialism  is  irrational  opposed  to  true  philosophy. 

II.  That  an  Immaterial  substance  (i.  e.,  a  something  existing 
which  is  not  matter  and  is  distinct  from  matter,  which  is  not  de- 
pendent upon  matter  for  its  existence,  which  possesses  no  prop- 
erties nor  qualities  in  common  with  matter,  and  which  possesses 
properties  and  qualities  all  entirely  different  from  those  of  matter) 
can  not  exist. 

III.  That  a  real  material  unchangeable  spirit,  possessing  parts 
and  extension,  inhabits  the  body. 

Immaterialists  who  believe  in  "an  inexplicable,  incomprehen- 
sible, imaginary  something  without  extension  or  parts,  as  taught 
in  the  first  of  the  Thirty -nine  Articles,"  are  therefore  the  wor- 
shipers of  an  immortal  Nihil — of  a  Nothing  clothed  with  almighty 
powers. 

It  is  abundantly  evident  that  the  partition  between  the  spiritu- 
alist and  the  materialist  is  mainly  philological,  a  dispute  of  words, 
a  variation  of  terms,  spirit  and  matter  differing  about  as  much  as 
azote  and  nitrogen.  The  deductions,  however,  from  the  Mormon's 
premises  lead  him,  as  the  following  extracts  prove,  far.* 

"  The  Godhead  consists  of  the  Father,  the  Son,  and  the  Holy 
Spirit.  The  Father  is  a  material  being.  The  substance  of  which 
he  is  composed  is  wholly  material.  It  is  a  substance  widel}^  dif- 
ferent in  some  respects  from  the  various  substances  with  which 
we  are  more  immediately  acquainted.  In  other  respects,  it  is  pre- 
cisely like  all  other  materials.  The  substance  of  his  person  oc- 
cupies space  the  same  as  other  matter.  It  has  solidity,  length, 
breadth,  and  thickness,  like  other  matter.     The  elementary  mate- 

*  From  Mr.  Apostle  Orson  Pratt's  "Absurdities  of  Immaterialism,"  and  his  trea- 
tise on  the  "Kingdom  of  God."  It  is  hardly  possible  not  to  believe  that  the  author 
has  borrowed  most  of  his  theories  from  Mr.  Carlyle's  "Republican." 

Bb 


gS6  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IX. 

rials  of  his  body  are  not  susceptible  of  occupying  at  tbe  same  time 
the  same  identical  space  with  other  matter.  The  substance  of  his 
person,  like  other  matter,  can  not  be  in  two  places  at  the  same  in- 
stant. It  requires  time  for  him  to  transport  himself  from  place  to 
place.  It  matters  not  how  great  the  velocity  of  his  movement, 
time  is  an  essential  ingredient  to  all  motion,  whether  rapid  or  slow. 
It  differs  from  other  matter  in  the  superiority  of  its  powers,  being 
intelligent,  all-wise,  and  possessing  the  property  of  self-motion  to 
a  for  greater  extent  than  the  coarser  materials  of  nature.  '  God 
is  a  spirit;'  but  that  does  not  make  him  an  immaterial  being,  a 
being  that  has  no  properties  in  common  with  matter."  .... 

"  All  the  foregoing  statements  in  relation  to  the  person  of  the 
Father  are  equally  applicable  to  the  person  of  the  Son. 

"  The  Holy  Spirit,  being  one  part  of  the  Godhead,  is  also  a  ma- 
terial substance,  of  the  same  nature  and  properties  in  many  re- 
spects as  the  Spirits  of  the  Father  and  Son.  It  exists  in  vast,  im- 
measurable quantities,  in  connection  with  all  material  worlds. 
This  is  called  God  in  the  ScrijDtures,  as  well  as  the  Father  and 
Son.  God  the  Father  and  God  the  Son  can  not  be  every  where 
present ;  indeed,  they  can  not  be  even  in  two  places  at  the  same 
instant;  but  God  the  Holy  Spirit  is  omnipresent:  it  extends 
through  all  space,  intermingling  with  all  other  matter,  yet  no  one 
atom  of  the  Holy  Spirit  can  be  in  two  places  at  the  same  instant, 
which  in  all  cases  is  an  absolute  impossibility.  It  must  exist  in 
inexhaustible  quantities,  which  is  the  only  possible  way  for  any 
substance  to  be  omnipresent.  All  the  innumerable  phenomena 
of  universal  nature  are  produced  in  their  origin  by  the  actual 
presence  of  this  intelligent,  all-wise,  and  all-powerful  material  sub- 
stance called  the  Holy  Spirit.  It  is  the  most  active  matter  in  the 
universe,  producing  all  its  operations  according  to  fixed  and  def- 
inite laws  enacted  by  itself,  in  conjunction  with  the  Father  and 
the  Son.  What  are  called  the  laws  of  nature  are  nothing  more 
nor  less  than  the  fixed  method  by  which  this  spiritual  matter 
operates.  Each  atom  of  the  Holy  Spirit  is  intelligent,  and,  like 
other  matter,  has  solidity,  form,  and  size,  and  occupies  space.  Two 
atoms  of  this  Spirit  can  not  occupy  the  same  space  at  the  same 
time,  neither  can  one  atom,  as  before  stated,  occupy  two  separate 
spaces  at  the  same  time.  In  all  these  respects  it  does  not  differ 
in  the  least  from  all  other  matter.  Its  distinguishing  character 
istics  from  other  matter  are  its  almighty  jDowers  and  infinite  wis- 
dom, and  many  other  glorious  attributes  which  other  materials  do 
not  possess.  If  several  of  the  atoms  of  this  Spirit  should  exist 
united  together  in  the  form  of  a  person,  then  this  person  of  the 
Holy  Spirit  would  be  subject  to  the  same  necessity"  (N.B.,  this 
out-anagkes  anagke)  "  as  the  other  two  persons  of  the  Godhead — 
that  is,  it  could  not  be  every  where  present.  No  finite  number 
of  atoms  can  be  omnipresent.  An  infinite  number  of  atoms  is 
requisite  to  be  every  where  in  infinite  sj)ace.     Two  persons  receiv- 


Chap.  IX.  MND  AND  MATTER.— DOXOLOGY.  387 

ing  the  gift  of  the  Holy  Spirit  do  not  receive  at  the  same  time  the 
same  identical  particles,  though  they  each  receive  a  substance  ex- 
actly similar  in  kind.  It  would  be  as  impossible  for  them  to  re- 
ceive the  same  identical  atoms  at  the  same  instant  as  it  would  be 
for  two  men  at  the  same  time  to  drink  the  same  identical  pint  of 
water." 

I  will  offer  another  instance  of  the  danger  of  meddling  with 
such  edged  tools  as  mind  and  matter — concerning  which  mankind 
knows  nothing  beyond  certain  properties — in  the  following  answer 
addressed  by  Mr.  Pratt  to  the  many  who  have  been  "traditionated 
in  the  absurd  doctrines  of  immaterialism."  "  The  resemblance 
between  man  and  God  has  reference,  as  we  have  already  observed, 
to  the  shape  or  figure :  other  .qualities  may  or  may  not  resemble 
each  other.  Man  has  legs,  so  has  God,  as  is  evident  from  his  ap- 
pearance to  Abraham.  Man  walks  with  his  legs;  so  does  God 
sometimes,  as  is  evident  from  his  going  with  Abraham  toward 
Sodom.  God  can  not  only  walk,  but  he  can  move  up  or  down 
through  the  air  without  using  his  legs  as  in  the  process  of  walking 
(Gen.,  xvii.,  22,  and  xi.,  5,  and  xxxv.,  13) — '  a  man  wrestled  with 
Jacob  until  the  breaking  of  day ;'  after  which  Jacob  says,  '  I  have 
seen  God  face  to  face,  and  my  life  is  preserved'  (Gen.,  xxxii., 
24r-30).  That  this  person  had  legs  is  evident  from  his  wrestling 
with  Jacob.  His  image  and  likeness  was  so  much  like  man's, 
that  Jacob  at  first  supposed  him  to  be  a  man.  God,  though  in  the 
figure  of  a  man,  has  many  powers  that  man  has  not  got.  He  can 
go  upward  through  the  air.  He  can  waft  himself  fi-oni  world  to 
world  by  his  own  self-moving  powers.  These  are  powers  not  pos- 
sessed by  man,  only  through  faith,  as  in  the  instances  of  Enoch  and 
Elijah.  Therefore,  though  in  the  figure  of  a  man,  he  has  powers 
far  superior  to  man." 

This  part  of  the  subject  may  profitably  be  concluded  by  quoting 
the  venerable  adage,  "  Qui  nescit  ignorare  nescit  scirV^ 

I  now  offer  to  the  reader  a  few  remarks  upon  the  fourteen  articles 
of  the  Mormon  doxology,*  leaving  him  to  settle  whether  it  be  a 
kakodoxy  or  a  kakistodoxy. 

I.  "We  believe  ix  God,  the  Eternal  Father,  and  his 
Son  Jesus  Christ,  and  in  the  Holy  Ghost." — Of  the  thou- 
sand sects  and  systems  that  have  used  this  venerable  Kalmah  or 
formula  of  Christian  faith,  none  have  interpreted  it  more  peculiar- 
ly than  the  Mormons. 

The  First  Person  is  a  perfected  man,  once  a  dweller  upon  earth : 
advancing  in  intelligence  and  power,  he  became  such  that  in  com- 
parison with  man  he  may  be  called  the  Infinite.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith, 
in  his  last  sermon  preached  at  Nauvoo,  thus  develops  his  remark- 
able anthropomorphosis :  "  First,  God  himself,  who  sits  enthroned 

*  From  an  article  published  in  the  "Frontier  Guardian,"  then  edited  bv  the 
Apostle  Orson  Hyde. 


338  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IX. 

in  yonder  heavens,  is  a  man  like  one  of  yourselves ;  that  is  the 
great  secret.  If  the  veil  was  rent  to-day,  and  the  great  God  who 
holds  this  world  in  its  orbit,  and  upholds  all  things  by  his  power, 
if  you  were  to  see  him  to-day,  you  would  see  him  in  all  the  per- 
son, image,  and  very  form  as  a  man ;  for  Adam  was  created  in 
the  very  fashion  and  image  of  God ;  Adam  received  instruction, 
walked,  talked,  and  conversed  with  Him,  as  one  man  talks  and 
communes  with  another." 

The  Second  Person  is  the  "  Son  Jesus  Christ,"  the  material  off- 
spring of  the  First  by  the  Virgin  Mary,  who  was  duly  married, 
after  betrothal  by  the  angel  Gabriel,  to  the  Eternal  Father,  on 
the  plains  of  Palestine :  the  Holy  Babe  was  the  "  tabernacle"  pre- 
pared for  and  assumed  by  the  Spirit  Son.  The  Son  is  the  Cre- 
ator: when  in  the  material  spirit  still,  he  took  of  the  "unformed 
chaotic  matter  element  which  had  an  existence  from  the  time  God 
had,  and  in  which  dwells  all  the  glorj^,"  and  formed  and  peopled 
this  jolanetary  world,  which  he  afterward  redeemed.  He  is  to  be 
worshiped  as  Lord  of  all,  heir  of  the  Father  in  power,  creation, 
and  dominion.  "What  did  Jesus  do?"  "Why,  I  do  the  things 
that  I  saw  my  Father  do  when  worlds  came  rolling  into  existence. 
I  saw  my  Father  work  out  his  kingdom  with  fear  and  trembling, 
and  I  must  do  the  same."     ("  Last  Sermon,"  p.  61.) 

The  Paraclete  has  already  been  described :  it  differs  from  the 
other  two  Persons  in  being  a  merely  spirit-material  soul  or  exist- 
ence without  a  "  tabernacle."  Thus  the  Mormons  mingle  with  a 
Trinity  a  very  distinct,  though  not  a  conflicting  Duality. 

The  Mormon  Godhead  may  be  illustrated  by  a  council  com- 
posed of  three  men,  possessing  equal  wisdom,  knowledge,  and 
truth,  together  with  equal  qualifications  in  every  other  respect: 
each  would  be  a  separate  person  or  a  substance  distinct  from  the 
other  two,  and  yet  the  three  would  compose  but  one  body.  This 
body  consists  of  three,  viz.,  Eloheim,  Jehovah,  and  Michael,  which 
is  Adam,  From  the  Christian  apostles  and  the  Apocalypse,  the 
Mormons  deduce  the  dogma  of  gods  in  an  ad  mjinitum  ascending 
series :  man,  however,  must  limit  his  obedience  to  the  last  heaven- 
ly Father  and  Son  revealed  by  the  Holy  Spirit.  And  as  God  is 
perfect  man,  so  is  perfect  man  God :  any  individual,  by  faith  and 
obedience,  can,  as  the  Brahminical  faith  asserts,  rise  to  the  position 
of  a  deity,  until,  attaining  the  power  of  forming  a  planet,  peopling, 
redeeming  it,  and  sitting  therq  enthroned  in  everlasting  power. 
The  Mormons,  like  the  Moslems,  believe  that — "  things  of  earth, 
customs,  and  ceremonies,  being  patterned  after  things  in  the  Spirit 
world  and  future  abodes  of  the  gods" — there  are  inferior  glories 
and  pleasures  for  "  hewers  of  wood  and  drawers  of  water."  Li 
the  eternal  heavens  there  are  three  great  mansions,  the  celestial 
of  the  sun,  the  celestial  of  the  stars,  and  the  terrestrial :  the  other 
state  is  called  the  Lake  of  Fire,  or  the  Burning  Caldron. 


Chap.  IX.  MORMON  DOXOLOGY.  389 

II.  "  We  believe  that  men  will  be  punished  for  their 

OWN   SINS,  AND  NOT  FOR  Adam's  TRANSGRESSIONS."  —  Yet  the 

Mormons  hold  the  Son  to  be  necessary  to  reconcile  fallen  man  to 
the  Father  and  the  Holy  Spirit,  to  sanctify  and  purify  the  affec- 
tions of  men,  and  also  to  dwell  in  them  as  a  teacher  of  truth. 
"  The  spiritual  substance  of  man  was  formed  in  the  beginning  aft- 
er the  same  image  as  the  spiritual  substance  of  the  persons  of  the 
Father  and  the  Son.  Previously  to  the  fall,  these  spirits  were  all 
moral  in  their  nature ;  by  the  fall  the  spirits  of  men  lost  their  mo- 
rality and  virtue,  but  not  their  essence — that  continued  the  same : 
by  the  new  birth  man  regains  his  morality  and  virtue,  while  the 
essence  remains  the  same ;  it  now  becomes  a  moral,  virtuous 
image,  whereas  the  same  substance  was  before  immoral.  Paul 
(1  Cor.,  XV.,  49),  in  speaking  of  the  resurrection,  says,  'As  we  have 
borne  the  image  of  the  earthl}^,  let  us  bear  also  the  image  of  the 
heavenly !'  "  Unlike  the  more  advanced  faiths — El  Islam  and 
Unitarianism — the  Mormons  retain  the  doctrine  of  a  "  fall."  It 
contrasts  strangely  with  their  dogma  of  man's  perfectibility. 
They  have  not  attempted  to  steer  clear  between  the  Scylla  and 
Charybdis  of  predestination  and  free  will. 

III.  "We  believe  that  through  the  Atonement  of 
Christ  all  mankind  may  be  saved  by  obedience  to  the 
LAWS  AND  ORDINANCES  OF  THE  GosPEL." — After  Adam  had  fall- 
en from  his  primal  purity,  a  council  was  held  in  heaven  to  debate 
how  man  should  be  saved  or  redeemed  from  the  state  of  evil. 
The  elder  brother  Lucifer,  son  of  the  morning,  the  bright  star  in 
glory,  and  the  leader  of  heavenly  hosts,  declared,  when  appealed 
to,  that  he  would  save  man  in  his  sins.  But  he  who  is  emphatic- 
ally called  "the  Son" — Christ — answered,  I  will  save  hmifrom  his 
sins.  Lucifer,  the  "  archangel  ruined,"  rebelled,  was  cast  out  from 
the  planetary  abode  of  the  Father,  and  became,  under  the  name 
of  Satan,  the  great  ruler  and  "head  devil"  of  evil  spirits,  and  of 
the  baser  sort  of  imps  and  succuhi.  I  can  not  say  whether  in 
their  mysteries  the  Mormons  represent  Sathanas  as  the  handsome 
man  of  El  Islam,  or  the  horned,  tailed,  and  cloven-footed  monster 
which  monkish  Europe  fashioned  probably  after  pagan  Pan. 

IV.  "  We    BELIEVE   THESE    ORDINANCES  ARE,  IST.  FaITH  IN 

THE  Lord  Jesus  ;  2d.  Eepentance  ;  3d.  Baptism  by  immer- 
sion FOR  THE  REMISSION  OF  SINS ;  4tH.  LaYING  ON  OF  HANDS 
BY  THE  GIFT  OF  THE  HOLY  SPIRIT ;    5tH.  ThE  LoRD'S  SuPPER." 

— Faith  is  not  only  the  "  evidence  of  things  that  appear  not,  the 
substance  of  things  to  be  hoped  for,"  the  first  principle  of  action, 
and  an  exercise  of  the  will  in  intelligent  beings  toward  accom- 
plishing holy  works  and  purposes,  with  a  view  to  celestial  glory ; 
it  is  also  the  source  of  power  both  on  earth  and  in  heaven.  We 
find  that  by  faith  God  created  the  world  (Ileb.,  xi.,  8) ;  and,  "  take 


g90  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IX. 

this  principle  or  attribute  a^vay  from  the  Deity,  he  'vvoiild  cease  to 
exist."  ("Lectures  on  Faith,"  sec.  1.)  "Faith,  then,  is  the  first 
great  governing  principle  ■which  has  power,  dominion,  and  author- 
ity over  all  things."  (Ibid.)  Of  the  second  ordinance,  it  was  re- 
Tcaled,  "  Say  nothing  but  repentance  unto  this  generation"  ("  Cov- 
enants and  Commandments,"  sec.  37);  a  very  comprehensive  and 
valuable  rule  to  those  under  "svhom  their  brethren  must  sit.  As 
regards  the  third,  the  child  succeeds  its  parent  in  moral  responsi- 
bility at  eight  years  of  age,  when  it  must  be  baptized  "  in  the  name 
of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  Amen," 
into  the  Church.  Infant  baptism  is  regarded  as  a  Bida'at  or  in- 
novation— a  sin.  Baptism  by  immersion — any  other  method  be- 
ing considered  a  vain  ceremony — remits  our  peccata,  but  it  must 
be  repeated  after  each  mortal  act.  ("Covenants  and  Command- 
ments," sec.  2,  par.  21.)  Vicarious  baptism  for  the  dead  is  found- 
ed upon  St.  Paul's  saying  concerning  the  fathers,  that  they  can  not 
without  us  be  made  perfect,  and  "otherwise  what  shall  they  do 
that  are  baptized  for  the  dead,  if  the  dead  rise  not  again  at  all  ? 
Why  are  they  then  baptized  for  them?"  (1  Cor.,  xv.,  29.)  Im- 
mersion in  water  is  the  symbol  of  death,  emersion  of  the  resurrec- 
tion, and  the  baptismal  font  is  a  simile  of  the  grave ;  but  baptism 
for  the  dead  is  acceptable  only  in  the  Temple.  ("  Covenants  and 
Commandments,"  sec.  103.)  There  being  a  probationary  state 
while  the  earth  endures  in  the  Spirit  world — the  purgatorial  doc- 
trine of  Yirgil  and  others — the  dead  can  by  proxy  "  fulfill  all 
righteousness ;"  and  the  Saints  are  enjoined  that  "the  greatest  re- 
sponsibility that  God  has  laid  upon  us  is  to  look  after  our  dead ;" 
so  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  in  his  "Last  Sermon,"  says,  "Every  man 
who  has  got  a  friend  in  the  eternal  world  can  save  him,  unless  he 
has  committed  the  unpardonable  sin;  so  you  can  see  how  you 
can  be  a  Savior."  A  man  baptized  for  deceased  relations  traces 
back  the  line  to  one  that  held  the  priesthood  among  his  progeni- 
tors, who,  being  a  saint,  will  take  the  place  of  sponsor,  and  relieve 
him  of  farther  responsibility.  All  thus  admitted  to  salvation  will 
be  added  at  the  resurrection  to  the  household  of  the  bajDtized  per- 
son, who  will  reign  as  a  patriarch  forever,  his  rank  and  power 
among  kingly  spirits  being  proportioned  to  his  wives  and  his  chil- 
dren— adopted  or  begotten — and  his  baptizees.  The  fourth  ordi- 
nance, or  laying  on  of  hands  by  the  water's  side,  is  a  perfection  of 
the  regeneration  begun  in  baptism,  and  whereby  the  recipient  is 
promoted  to  the  Melchisedek  priesthood ;  the  order  was  revealed, 
or  rather  renewed,  in  1831.  ("  Covenants  and  Commandments," 
sec.  66.)  The  fifth  ordinance,  touching  the  Eucharist,  is  instituted 
_"  in  remembrance  of  the  Lord  Jesus  :"the  elder  or  priest  admin- 
isters it  kneeling  with  the  Church,  praying  and  blessing  first  the 
bread  and  then  the  wine.  ("  Covenants  and  Commandments," 
sec.  2.)  The  second  element  was  changed  by  a  direct  revelation 
(Sept.,  1830),  saying,  "  You  shall  not  purchase  wine  nor  strong 


Chap.  IX.  MOKMON  DOXOLOGY.  391 

drink  of  your  enemies,"  since  wliicli  time  'water  has  been  substi- 
tuted. Mormons,  young  and  old,  equally  take  tbe  sacrament  ev- 
ery Sabbath. 

Y.  "  We  believe  that  man  must  be  called  of  God  by  in- 
spiration, AND  BY  LAYING  ON  OF  HANDS  FKOM  THOSE  WHO  ARE 
DULY  COMMISSIONED  TO  PREACH  THE  GoSPEL  AND  ADMINISTER  IN 

THE  ORDINANCES  THEREOF." — The  Momions  hold  to  a  regular 
apostolic  succession.  "Every  elder"  (which  includes  the  apos- 
tles), "jDriest,  teacher,  or  deacon,  is  to  be  ordained  according  to 
the  gifts  and  callings  of  God  unto  him ;  and  he  is  to  be  ordained 
by  the  power'  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  which  is  the  one  who  ordains 
him." 

YI.  "We  BELIEVE  IN  THE  SAME  ORGANIZATION  THAT  EXISTED 
IN  THE  PRIMITIVE  ChURCH,  VIZ.,  APOSTLES,  PROPHETS,  PaSTORS, 

Evangelists,  etc." — The  proper  signification  of  these  words  will 
be  explained  when  treating  of  the  Mormon  hierarchy. 

YI.  "We  believe  in  the  powers  and  gifts  of  the  ever- 
lasting Gospel,  viz.,  the  gift  of  faith,  discerning  of  spir- 
its, PROPHECY,  revelations,  VISIONS,  HEALING,  TONGUES,  AND 
THE  INTERPRETATION  OF  TONGUES,  WISDOM,  CHARITY,  BROTHERLY 

LOVE,  ETC." — The  everlasting  Gospel  means  the  universal  order 
and  arrangement  of  things  springing  from  the  "  two  self-existing 
principles  of  intelligence  and  element,  or  matter,"  and  forming 
the  law  under  which  the  primordial  gods  came  into  being.  Ac- 
cording to  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  "God  himself  could  not  create  him- 
self," and  "Intelligence  exists  upon  a  self-existent  principle:  it 
is  a  spirit  from  age  to  age,  and  there  is  no  creation  about  it."  In 
the  far  eternity  two  of  the  elementary  material  asons  met,  com- 
pared intelligence,  and  calling  in  a  third  to  council,  united  in  what 
became  the  first  power,  superior  because  prior  to  all  others,  and 
ever-enduring  by  the  union  of  other  ajons.  Under  this  union 
arose  a  "law  governing  itself  and  all  things" — the  everlasting 
Gospel.  The  seer  has  not  left  on  record  the  manner  in  which  the 
head  god  originated :  the  other  gods,  however,  sprung  from  him 
as  children.  Heaven  has  not  only  kings,  but  queens — the  Sakti 
of  Hindooism,  and  the  various  Ario-pagan  faiths — who  are  the 
mothers  of  gods,  of  men's  souls,  and  of  all  spiritual  existences. 
St.  John  saw  a  portion  of  the  everlasting  Gospel  in  the  "little 
book"  in  the  hand  of  the  angel  "coming  down  from  heaven"  to 
proclaim  again  on  earth  the  Church  of  Christ,  a  type  of  Moroni, 
who  taught  the  fullness  of  knowledge  to  Joseph  the  Seer,  that 
the  gladder  tidings  might  be  preached  to  men  with  the  "signs 
following"  which  were  promised  to  the  primitive  apostles. 

As  regards  the  discerning  of  spirits,  the  human  soul  is  not  vis- 
ible to  mortal  eyes  without  a  miracle,  nor  is  it  ponderable :  it 


392  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IX. 

passes  througli  the  body  as  the  electric  fluid  through  the  earth. 
Yet,  in  reality,  it  is  more  substantial  than  the  body,  for  it  can  not 
be  changed  nor  destroyed ;  it  "  coexisted  equal  with  God,"  and 
had  no  beginning,  which  would  argue  the  possibility  of  an  end, 
and  "it  is  immortal  as  God  himself."  It  is  uncreate:  "God  never 
did  have  power  to  create  the  spirit  of  man  at  all — the  very  idea 
lessens  man  in  my  estimation — I  know  better."  ("Last  Sermon," 
p.  62.)  Spiritual  existences  have  a  choice  of  two  paths.  Either 
they  must  remain  cribbed,  cabined,  and  confined  in  their  own 
ethereal  order  and  proper  sphere,  to  be  called  and  sent  as  angels, 
heralds,  or  ministers  from  one  planet  or  planetary  system  to  an- 
other; and  thus  the  Mormon,  as  the  Moslem,  places  angelic  na- 
ture below  human,  saying  with  St.  Paul  (1  Cor.,  vi.,  8),  "  Know 
you  not  that  we  shall  judge  angels?"  or  they  may  choose,  like 
the  precreated  spirits  of  El  Islam  in  the  Yaum  i  Alast — the  Day 
of  Am-I-Not  (thy  God)? — the  probation  of  an  earthly  taberna- 
cle ;  and,  ignoring  their  past  existence,  descend  below  all  things 
■  to  attain  a  higher  than  celestial  glory,  and  perfection  in  the  attri- 
butes of  power  and  happiness.  As  with  the  metempsychosist, 
there  are  grades  of  tabernacles.  The  lowest  of  humans  is  the  Af- 
rican, who,  being  a  "  servant  of  servants  unto  his  brethren,"  is 
"cursed  as  to  the  priesthood,"  and  therefore  can  not  "attain  to 
any  thing  above  a  dim-shining  glory."  Above  him  is  the  In*- 
dian,  for  the  Eed  Men,  through  repentance,  obedience,  and  ac- 
ceptance of  the  new  Evangelism,  can  rebecome  a  "fair  and  de- 
lightsome people,"  worthy  of  their  Hebrew  sires.  Below  the 
negro  is  the  brute  tabernacle,  into  which  the  still  rebellious  spirit 
descends,  until,  yielding  to  Gospel  law,  it  is  permitted  to  retrace 
its  course  through  the  successive  changes  to  splendor  and  perfec- 
tion. So,  "  when  we  are  tormented  by  a  refractory  horse  or  an 
obstinate  ass,  it  may  not  be  amiss  to  reflect  that  they  were  actu- 
ated by  an  apostate  soul,  and  exemplifying  a  few  of  the  human 
infirmities."  The  same  words  might  be  spoken  orthodoxically 
by  a  Jain  or  a  Banyan. 

The  soul  is  supposed  to  take  possession  of  the  tabernacle  at  the 
quickening  of  the  embryon.     At  bajDtism  the  Saint  may  ask  in 
faith  for  some  particular  spirit  or  genius — an  idea  familiar  to  the 
adepts  and  spiritualists  of  this  generation.     Every  one  also  has 
evil,  false,  and  seducing  spirits  at  variance  with  the  good,  a  fancy 
reminding  us  of  the  poetical  Moslem  picture  of  the  good  guardian 
sitting  upon  man's  right  shoulder,  and  whispering  into  his  ear 
suggestions  against  which  the  bad  spirit  on  the  left  contends. 
Revelations  are  received  by  prayer  and  mighty  faith,  but  only 
when  diligence  and  sagacity  fail  to  secure  the  desired  information 
— where  God  has  appointed  means  he  will  not  work  by  miracles 
nor  will  a  "c/e  7)r(/?/??r/{s"  act  without  a  more  concrete  action 
Heavenly  communications  vouchsafed  to  the  seer  must  be  regis 
tered,  and  kept  for  promulgation  when  the  Saints  can  bear  them 


CiiAP.  IX.  INTERPRETATION  OF  SCRIPTURE.  393 

for  many  "  would  be  offended  and  turn  back  if  the  whole  truth" 
— polygamy,  for  instance — "  were  dashed  down  in  a  mass  before 
them.''  Of  prophetic  times  it  may  be  observed  that  the  habitat 
of  God  the  Father  is  the  planet  Kolob,  whose  revolutions — one 
of  which  is  the  beginning  and  the  end  of  a  day  equal  to  1000  ter- 
restrial years — are  the  measure  of  heavenly  time.  The  Deity,  be- 
ing finite,  employs  agents  and  auxiliaries,  e.  (/.,  light,  sound,  elec- 
tricity, inspiration,  to  communicate  knowledge  to  his  world  of 
worlds.  An  angel  commissioned  as  a  messenger  to  earth  is  taken 
either  from  the  chief  or  from  a  minor  planet,  and  it  naturally 
measures  time  by  the  days  and  weeks,  the  months  and  years,  of 
its  own  home — a  style  of  computation  which  must  not  a  little 
confuse  our  poor  human  chronology. 

"  Tongues"  does  not  signify,  as  at  the  date  of  the  first  Pente- 
cost, an  ability  to  address  heteroglottists  in  their  several  lan- 
guages, which  would  render  the  gift  somewhat  too  precise  and 
Mezzofantian  for  these  days.  It  means  that  man  moved  by  the 
Spirit  shall  utter  any  set  of  sounds  unintelligible  even  to  himself, 
but  which,  being  known  to  the  Lord,  may,  by  special  permission 
to  exercise  the  "  gift  of  interpretation  of  tongues,"  be  explained 
by  another  to  those  addressed.  The  man  gravid  with  "tongues" 
must  "  rise  ou  his  feet,  lean  in  faith  on  Christ,  and  open  his  lips, 
utter  a  song  in  such  cadence  as  he  chooses,  and  the  Spirit  of  the 
Lord  will  give  an  interpreter,  and  make  it  a  language."  The  lin- 
guistic feat  has  of  late  years  been  well  known  in  England,  where 
it  was,  of  course,  set  down  to  imposture.  It  may  more  charitably 
be  explained  by  an  abnormal  affection  of  the  organ  of  language 
on  the  part  of  the  speaker  of  "tongues,"  and  in  the  interpreter 
by  the  effect  of  a  fervent  and  fooling  faith. 

yill.  "  We  believe  the  word  of  God  recorded  in  the 
Bible  ;  we  also  believe  the  word  of  Gsod  recorded  in  the 
Book  of  Mormon,  and  in  all  other  good  books." — Some 
Christians  have  contended  that  the  Biblia  of  the  Jews  have  been 
altered ;  that  the  last  chapter  (verse  5)  of  Deuteronomy,  for  in- 
stance, recording  the  death  and  burial  of  Moses,  was  not  written 
by  Moses.  The  Moslems  assert  that  the  Scripture  of  both  He- 
brew and  Christian  has  not  only  been  misunderstood,  but  has  de- 
signedly been  corrupted  by  Baulus  (St.  Paul)  and  other  Greekish 
Jews ;  that  the  Gospel  of  Infancy,  and  the  similar  compositions 
now  banished  into  the  apocryphal  New  Testament,  are  mere  ex- 
crescences upon  the  pure  commands  of  Jesus.  The  Mormons 
hold  with  the  latter.  They  believe,  however,  that  the  infinite 
errors  and  interpretations  have  been  removed  by  "Joseph  the 
Seer,"  to  whom  was  given  the  "key  of  all  languages" — he  has 
quoted  in  his  writings  only  15  out  of  3500 — and  the  following 
specimen  of  his  ultra-Bentleian  emendations,  borrowed  from  the 
"  Last  Sermon,"  may  sufl&ce ; 


391  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IX. 

"I  will  make  a  comment  on  tlie  very  first  sentence  of  the  his- 
tory of  the  creation  in  the  Bible"  {i.  e.,  "in  King  James's  ver- 
sion;" he  had  probably  never  seen  even  the  Douay  translation). 
"  It  first  read,  '  The  head  one  of  the  gods  brought  forth  the  gods.'"^ 
If  you  do  not  believe  it,  you  do  not  bcheve  the  learned  man  of 
God.  And,  in  farther  explanation,  it  means, '  The  head  god  called 
together  the  gods,  and  sat  in  grand  council.  The  grand  council- 
ors sat  in  yonder  heavens,  and  contemplated  the  worlds  that  were 
created  at  that  time.'  The  Bible  is,  therefore,  held  to  be  the 
foundation  book."  Mr.  Joseph  Smith's  inspired  translation  or 
impudent  rifacciamenio  is  believed  to  exist  in  MS.:  in  due  time 
it  will  probably  be  promulgated.  But  the  "Word  of  God  is  not 
confined  to  the  Bible ;  the  Book  of  Mormon  and  the  Doctrines 
and  Covenants  are  of  equal  authority,  strands  of  the  "  three-fold 
cord,"  connecting  by  the  Church  God  and  man.  If  these  revela- 
tions contradict  one  another,  the  stumbling-block  to  the  weak  in 
faith  is  easily  removed  by  considering  the  "situations"  under 
which  they  were  vouchsafed:  "heaven's  government  is  conduct- 
ed on  the  principle  of  adapting  revelation  to  the  varied  circum- 
stances of  the  children  of  the  kingdom" — a  dogma  common  to  all 
revelationists.  Additional  items  may  be  suj^plied  to  the  Mor- 
mons from  day  to  day,  a  process  by  which  a  "flood  of  light  has 
poured  into  their  souls,  and  raised  them  to  a  view  of  the  glorious 
things  above."  The  present  seer,  revelator,  translator,  and  proph- 
et, however,  shows  his  high  wisdom  by  seeing,  revealing,  trans- 
lating, and  prophesying  as  little  as  possible.  Yet  he  even  repeats, 
and  probably  believes,  that  revelation  is  the  rock  upon  which  the 
Church  is  founded. 

IX.  "  We  believe  all  that  God  has  revealed,  all  that 

HE  DOES  NOW  EEVEAL,  AND  WE  BELIEVE  THAT  HE  WILL  REVEAL 
MANY  MORE  GREAT  AND  IMPORTANT  THINGS  PERTAINING  TO  THE 
KINGDOM  OF  GOD  AND  MeSSIAH'S  SeCOND  CoMING." — Much  of 

this  has  been  explained  above.  The  second  coming  of  Christ  is 
for  the  restoration  or  restitution  of  all  things,  as  foretold  by  the 
prophet  Isaiah.  When  the  living  earth  was  created,  the  dry  land 
emerged  from  the  waters,  which  gathered  by  command  into  one 
place.  The  "Voice  of  Warning"  draws  an  interesting  picture  of 
a  state  of  things  hitherto  unknown  to  geologist  and  palaeogeogra- 
pher.  "  There  was  one  vast  ocean  rolling  around  a  single  im- 
mense body  of  land,  unbroken  as  to  continents  and  islands;  it 
was  a  beautiful  plain,  interspersed  with  gently  rising  hills  and 
sloping  vales ;  its  climate  delightfully  varied  with  heat  and  cold, 
wet  and  dry;  crowning  the  year  with  productions  grateful  to 
men  and  animals,  while  from  the  flowery  plain  or  spicy  grove 
sweet  odors  were  wafted  on  every  breeze,  and  all  the  vast  creation 

*  I  nood  hardly  say  that  in  the  original  the  words  are  "at  its  head  (beginning) 
the  gods  (ho)  created  the  earth  and  the  heaven." 


Chap.  IX.  RESTORATION  OF  THE  TEN  TRIBES.  895 

of  animated  beings  breathed  naught  but  health,  peace,  and  joy." 
Over  this  paradise,  this  general  garden,  "man  reigned,  and  talked 
face  to  face  with  the  Supreme,  with  only  a  dimming  veil  between." 
After  the  diffusion  of  sin,  which  followed  the  fall,  came  the  puri- 
fication of  the  Noachian  cataclj^sm,  and  in  the  days  of  Peleg  "  the 
earth  was  divided,"  i.  e.,  the  Homeric  circumambient  sea  was  in- 
terposed between  portions  of  land  rent  asunder,  which  earthquakes 
and  upheavals  subsequently  broke  into  fragments  and  islands. 
We  learn  from  the  whole  and  varied  Scriptures  that  before  the 
second  coming  of  Christ  the  several  pieces  shall  be  dovetailed  into 
one,  as  they  were  in  the  morn  of  creation,  and  the  retiring  sea 
shall  reassume  its  pristine  place,  when  Samudra  Devta  was  en- 
throned by  the  Eishis.  The  earth  is  thus  restored  for  a  people 
purified  to  innocence,  and  is  fitted  for  the  first  resurrection  of  the 
body  to  reign  with  the  Savior  for  a  thousand  years. 

X.  "We  believe  ix  the  literal  gatheeixg  of  Israel,  axd 

IX  THE  RESTORATIOX  OF  THE  TeX  TrIBES  ;  THAT  ZlOX  WILL  BE 
ESTABLISHED  UPOX  THE  WeSTERX  CoXTIXEXT  ;  THAT  ChRIST 
WILL  REIGX  PERSOXALLY  UPOX  THE  EARTH  A  THOUSAXD  YEARS ; 
AXD  THAT  THE  EARTH  WILL  BE  REXEWED  AXD  RECEIVE  ITS  PAR- 
ADISIACAL GLORY." — The  only  novelty  in  this  article  is  the  "lo- 
cation" of  Zion,  which  has  already  been  transferred  from  Palestine 
to  the  celestial  regions  in  the  Valley  of  the  Mississippi ;  this,  in 
the  present  era,  when  the  old  cradles  of  civilization  upon  the  Gan- 
ges and  Indus,  the  Euphrates  and  the  ISTile,  have  been  well-nigh 
depopulated  or  exhausted,  promises  to  become  one  of  the  vast 
hives  from  which  the  human  swarm  shall  issue.  The  American 
continent,  as  the  Book  of  ^Mormon  informs  us,  was,  at  the  time  of 
the  Crucifixion,  shaken  to  its  foundation :  towns  and  cities,  lakes 
and  mountains,  were  buried  and  formed  when  "  the  earth  writhed 
in  the  convulsive  throes  of  agonizing  nature."  After  all  the  seed 
of  Israel  shall  have  been  raised  from  the  dead,  they  shall  flock  to 
Zion  in  Judea,  and  the  saints  of  other  races  shall  be  gathered  to 
New  Jerusalem  in  America:  both  these  cities  shall  be  "built  with 
fine  stones,  and  the  beauty  of  all  precious  things."  At  the  end 
of  the  millennium  comes  the  great  sabbath  of  rest  and  enjoyment ; 
the  earth  shall  become  celestial  through  the  baptism  of  fire,  while 
the  two  holy  cities  shall  be  caught  up  (literally)  into  heaven,  to 
descend  with  the  Lord  God  for  their  light  and  their  temple,  and 
shall  remain  forever  on  the  new  earth  "under  the  bright  canopy 
of  the  new  heavens." 

XL  "We  believe  ix  the  literal  resurrectiox  of  the 

BODY,  AXD  THAT  THE  REST  OF  THE  DEAD  LIVE  XOT  AGAIX  UXTIL 

THE  THOUSAXD  YEARS  ARE  EXPIRED." — Man,  it  has  been  shown, 
is  a  duality  of  elements.  The  body  is  gross,  the  spirit — under 
which  the  intellect  or  mind  is  included — is  refined  matter,  perme- 


396  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IX. 

ating,  vivifying,  and  controlling  the  former :  the  union  or  fusion 
of  the  two  constitutes  the  "living  soul"  alluded  to  by  Moses  (Gen., 
ii.,  7)  in  the  Adamical  creation.  Death  followed  the  fall  of  the 
great  patriarch,  who,  we  are  told,  is  called  in  Scripture  Michael, 
the  Ancient  of  Days,  with  hair  like  wool,  etc.  But  in  technical 
Mormon  phrase,  "Adam  fell  that  man  might  be,"  and  ate  the  for- 
bidden fruit  with  a  full  foreknowledge  of  the  consequences  —  a 
Shiah  belief.  The  "fall,"  therefore,  was  a  matter  of  previous  ar- 
rangement, in  order  that  spirits  choosing  to  undertake  their  proba- 
tions might  be  fitted  with  "  tabernacles,"  and  be  born  of  women. 
Death  separates  the  flesh  and  the  spirit  for  a  useful  purpose,  but 
the  latter  keeps  guard  over  every  particle  of  the  former,  until,  at 
the  fiat  of  resurrection,  the  body  is  again  "  clothed  upon,"  and 
perfect  man  is  the  result — a  doctrine  familiar  to  the  mediums. 
Such  is  also  the  orthodox  Sunnite  faith.  The  heretical  peculi- 
arity of  the  Mormon  resurrection  is  this :  the  body  will  be  the 
same  as  before,  "  except  the  blood,"  which  is  the  natural  life,  and, 
consequently,  the  principle  of  mortality.  A  man  restored  to  flesh 
and  blood  would  be  subject  to  death;  "flesh  and  bones,"  there- 
fore, will  be  the  constitution  of  the  "  resurrected"  body.  This 
idea  clearly  derives  from  the  Genesitic  physiology,  which  teaches 
that  "  the  life  of  the  flesh  is  in  the  blood"  (Levit.,  x^di.,  14) ;  life 
being,  according  to  the  moderns,  not  an  absolute  existence  nor 
objective  entity,  but  a  property  or  condition  of  the  corporeal 
mechanism — the  working,  as  it  were,  of  the  engine  until  arrested 
by  material  lesion.  It  is  confirmed  in  the  Mormon  mind  by  the 
Savior  bidding  his  disciples  to  handle  his  limbs,  and  to  know  that 
he  had  flesh  and  bones,  not  blood. 

XII.  "We  CLAIil  THE  PRIVILEGE  OF  WORSHIPING  ALMIGHTY 
God  ACCORDING  TO  THE  DICTATES  OF  CONSCIENCE  UNMOLESTED, 
AND  ALLOW  ALL  MEN  THE  SAME  PRIVILEGE,  LET  THEM  WORSHIP 

HOW  OR  WHERE  THEY  MAY." — This  article  embodies  the  tenets 
of  Roger  Williams,  who,  in  establishing  his  simple  democracy, 
provided  that  the  will  of  the  majority  should  rule,  but  "only  in 
civil  things."  The  charter  of  Rhode  Island  (1644)  contains  the 
memorable  words:  "No  person  within  the  said  colony  shall  be 
molested,  punished,  disquieted,  or  called  in  question  for  any  dif- 
ferences of  opinion  in  matters  of  religion  who  does  not  actually 
disturb  the  public  peace."  But  how  often  has  this  been  mouthed 
— how  little  it  has  affected  mankind  !  Would  London — boasting 
in  the  nineteenth  century  to  be  the  most  tolerant  of  cities — allow 
the  Cardinal  of  Westminster  to  walk  in  procession  through  her 
streets  ? 

XIII.  "We  believe  in  being  subject  to  kings,  queens, 

PRESIDENTS,  RULERS,  AND  MAGISTRATES,  IN  OBEYING,  HONORING, 

AND  SUSTAINING  THE  LAW." — When  treating  of  the  hierarchy,  it 


Chap.  IX,  MORMON  "  AGGLOMERATION."  397 

will  be  made  apparent  that  subjection  to  temporals  and  Gentiles 
must  be  purely  nominal.  At  the  same  time,  it  must  be  owned 
that,  throughout  North  America,  I  may  say  throughout  the  New 
World,  the  Mormon  polity  is  the  only  fixed  and  reasonable  form 
of  government.  The  "turnpike-road  of  history,"  which  Fisher 
Ames,  nearly  a  century  ago,  described  as  "  white  with  the  tomb- 
stones  of  republics,"  is  in  a  fair  way  to  receive  fresh  accessions, 
while  the  land  of  the  Saints  prorrfises  continuance  and  progress. 

XIY.  "We  believe  in  being  honest,  true,  chaste,  tem- 
perate, BENEVOLENT,  VIRTUOUS,  AND  UPRIGHT,  AND  IN  DOING 
GOOD  TO  ALL  MEN ;  INDEED,  "WE  MAY  SAY  THAT  WE  FOLLOW  THE 
ADMONITION  OF  PaUL  ;  WE  '  BELIEVE  ALL  THINGS,'  WE  '  HOPE 
ALL  THINGS,'  WE  HAVE  ENDURED  VERY  MANY  THINGS,  AND  HOPE 
TO  BE  ABLE  TO  'ENDURE  ALL  THINGS.'  EVERY  THING  LOVELY, 
VIRTUOUS,  PRAISEWORTHY,  AND  OF  GOOD  REPORT,  WE  SEEK  AFT- 
ER, LOOKING  FORWARD  TO  THE  'RECOMPENSE  OF  REWARD.'  BUT 
AN  IDLE  OR  LAZY  PERSON  CAN  NOT  BE  A  CHRISTIAN,  NEITHER 
HAVE  SALVATION.  He  IS  A  DRONE,  AND  DESTINED  TO  BE  STUNG 
TO   DEATH,  AND   TUMBLED    OUT    OF   THE    HIVE."  —  All    OVCr    the 

American  Union  there  is  an  apotheosis  of  labor ;  the  Latter-Day 
Saints  add  to  it  the  damnation  of  osiosity. 

This  brief  outline  of  Mormon  faith  will  show  its  strange,  but,  I 
believe,  spontaneous  agglomeration  of  tenets  which,  were  its  dis- 
ciples of  a  more  learned  and  philosophical  body,  would  suggest 
extensive  eclecticism.  But,  as  I  have  already  remarked,  there  is 
a  remarkably  narrow  limit  to  religious  ideas :  the  moderns  vainly 
attempt  invention  when  combination  is  now  the  only  possible 
process.  In  the  Tessarakai  Decalogue  above  quoted,  we  find  syn- 
cretized  the  Semitic  Monotheism,  the  Persian  Dualism,  and  the 
Triads  and  Trinities  of  the  Egyptians  and  the  Hindoos.  The 
Hebrews  also  have  a  personal  Theos,  the  Buddhists  avataras  and 
incarnations,  the  Brahmans  self-apotheosis  of  man  by  prayer  and 
penance,  and  the  East  generally  holds  to  quietism,  a  belief  that  re- 
pose is  the  only  happiness,  and  to  a  vast  complication  of  states  in 
the  world  to  be.  The  Mormons  are  like  the  Pythagoreans  in  their 
precreation,  transmigration,  and  exaltation  of  souls ;  like  the  fol- 
lowers of  Leucippus  and  Democritus  in  their  atomic  materialism ; 
like  the  Epicureans  in  their  pure  atomic  theories,  their  summum 
honum^  and  their  sensuous  ^speculations;  and  like  the  Platonists 
and  Gnostics  in  their  belief  of  the  ^on,  of  ideas,  and  of  moving 
principles  in  element.  They  are  fetichists  in  their  ghostly  fancies, 
their  evestra,  which  became  souls  and  spirits.  They  are  Jews  in 
their  theocracy,  their  ideas  of  angels,  their  hatred  of  Gentiles,  and 
their  utter  set^regation  from  the  great  brotherhood  of  mankind. 
They  are  Christians  inasmuch  as  they  base  their  faith  upon  the 
Bible,  and  hold  to  the  divinity  of  Christ,  the  fall  of  man,  the 
atonement,  and  the  regeneration.     They  are  Arians  inasmuch  as 


398  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IX. 

they  hold  Christ  to  be  "  the  first  of  God's  creatures,"  a  "  perfect 
creature,  but  still  a  creature."  They  are  Moslems  in  their  views 
of  the  inferior  status  of  -womankind,  in  their  polygamy,  and  in 
their  resurrection  of  the  material  body :  like  the  followers  of  the 
Arabian  Prophet,  they  hardly  fear  death,  because  they  have  elab- 
orated "continuation."  They  take  no  leap  in  the  dark;  they 
spring  from  this  sublunary  stage  into  a  known,  not  into  an  un- 
known world :  hence  also  their  Worship  is  eminently  secular,  their 
sermons  are  political  or  commercial,  and  —  religion  being  with 
them  not  a  thing  apart,  but  a  portion  and  parcel  of  every-day  life 
— the  intervention  of  the  Lord  in  their  material  affairs  becomes 
natural  and  only  to  be  expected.  Their  visions,  prophecies,  and 
miracles  are  those  of  the  lUuminati,  their  mysticism  that  of  the 
Druses,  and  their  belief  in  the  Millennium  is  a  completion  of  the 
dreams  of  the  Apocalyptic  sects.  Masonry  has  evidently  entered 
into  their  scheme ;  the  Demiurgus  whom  they  worship  is  "as  good 
at  mechanical  inventions  as  at  any  other  business."  With  their 
later  theories,  Methodism,  Swedenborgianism  —  especially  in  its 
view  of  the  future  state — and  Transcendentalism  are  curiously  in- 
termingled. And,  finally,  we  can  easily  discern  in  their  doctrine 
of  afiinity  of  minds  and  sympathy  of  souls  the  leaven  of  that  faith 
which,  beginning  with  the  Mesmer,  and  progressing  through  the 
Eochester  Eappers  and  the  Poughkeepsie  Seer,  threatens  to  ex- 
tend wherever  the  susceptible  nervous  temperament  becomes  the 
characteristic  of  the  race. 

The  Latter-Day  Saints  do  not  deny  this  agglomeration.*  They 
maintain  that,  being  guided  by  the  Spirit  unto  all  truth,  they  have 
sifted  it  out  from  the  gross  mass  of  error  that  obscures  it,  and  that 
whatever  knowledge  has  been  vouchsafed  to  man  may  be  found 
in  their  possession.  They  assert  that  other  sects  were  to  them 
what  the  Platonists  and  the  Essenes  were  to  Christianity.  More- 
over, as  has  been  seen,  they  declare  their  faith  to  be  still  in  its 
infancy,  and  that  many  dark  and  doubtful  subjects  are  still  to  be 
decided  by  better  experience  or  revelation. 

I  borrow  the  following  resume  of  Mormonism  from  Lieutenant 
Gunnison— a  Christian  writer— of  course,  without  endorsing  any 
one  of  his  opinions. 

"  In  Mormonism  we  recognize  an  intuition  of  Transcendental- 
ism—intuition, we  s/iy,  for  its  founder  was  no  scholar  in  the  ideal- 
istic philosophy.  He  trampled  under  foot  creeds  and  formulas, 
and  soared  away  for  perpetual  inspiration  from  the  God ;  and  by 
the  will,  which  "he  calls  faith,  he  won  the  realms  of  truth,  beauty, 
and  happiness.     Such  things  can  only  be  safely  confided  to  the 

*  "  One  of  the  grand  fundamental  principles  of  INIormonism"  (says  Mr.  Joseph 
Smith  in  his  sermon  preached  on  the  0th  of  Julv,  1843)  "is  to  receive  truth,  come 

whence  it  mav." "Presbyterians,  Ba]itists,  Methodists,  Catholics,  Moliammed- 

ans,  etc.,  are  they  in  possession  of  anv  truth?  Yes,  they  have  all  a  little  truth  mix- 
ed with  error.  We  ought  to  gather  together  all  the  good  and  true  principles  which 
are  in  the  world,  and  keep  them,  otherwise  we  shall  neve»  become  pure  Mormons." 


Chap.  IX.  MELCHISEDEK  PRIESTHOOD.  399 

Strong  and  pure-minded,  and  even  tliey  must  isolate  themselves 
in  self- idolatry,  and  be  'alone  "with  the  alone,'  and  seek  converse 
with  the  spirit  of  man's  spirit. 

"But  this  prophet  was  educated  by  passion,  and  sought  to  be 
social  with  the  weak ;  he  therefore  baptized  spiritually  in  the  wa- 
ters of  materialism.  Instead  of  evolving  the  godlike  nature  of 
the  human  spirit,  he  endeavored  to  prove  that  humanity  was  al- 
ready divinity  by  investing  Deity  with  what  is  manlike — men 
were  to  be  like  gods  by  making  gods  men." 

The  form  of  Mormon  government  is  not  new :  it  is  the  theoc- 
racy of  the  Jews,  of  the  Jesuit  missions  in  Brazil,  Paraguay,  and 
elsewhere,  and  briefly  of  all  communities  in  which,  contrary  to  the 
fitness  of  things.  Church  is  made  to  include,  or,  rather,  exclude 
State.  In  opposition  to  El  Islam,  they  maintain  that  a  hieratic 
priesthood  is  necessary  to  the  well-being  of  a  religion.  They  di- 
vide it  into  two  grand  heads,  of  which  all  other  officers  and  au- 
thorities are  appendages.  The  first  is  called  the  Melchisedek 
priesthood,  "because  Melchisedek  was  such  a  great  high  priest."* 
The  second,  which  is  a  supplement  to  the  former,  and  administers 
outward  ordinances,  is  the  Aaronic  or  Levitical,  "because  it  was 
conferred  upon  Aaron  and  his  seed  throughout  all  their  genera- 
tions." To  the  Melchisedek  belong  the  high  priest,  priests,  and 
elders ;  to  the  Aaronic  the  bishops,  the  teachers  or  catechists,  and 
the  deacons. 

"  The  power  and  authority  of  the  higher,  or  Melchisedek  priest- 
hood, is  to  hold  the  keys  of  all  the  spiritual  blessings  of  the 
Church,  to  have  the  privilege  of  receiving  the  mysteries  of  the 
kingdom  of  heaven,  to  have  the  heavens  opened  unto  them,  to 
commune  with  the  general  assembly  and  Church  of  the  first-bom, 
and  to  enjoy  the  communion  and  presence  of  God  the  Father,  and 
Jesus  the  Mediator  of  the  New  Covenant. 

"  The  power  and  authority  of  the  lesser,  or  Aaronic  priesthood, 
is  to  hold  the  keys  of  the  ministering  of  angels,  and  to  administer 
in  outward  ordinances  the  letter  of  the  Gospel — the  baptism  of 
repentance  for  the  remission  of  sins — agreeable  to  the  covenants 
and  commandments." 

The  apex  of  the  Mormon  hierarchy  is  the  First  Presidency, 
now  Messrs.  Young,  Kimball,  and  Wells,  who  have  succeeded  to 
Peter,  James,  and  John  in  the  Gospel  Church,  and  who  correspond 
on  earth  to  the  Trinity  in  heaven — numero  Deus  impare  gaudet. 
The  presiding  high  priest  over  the  high  priesthood  of  the  Church 
— par  excellence,  "  ^/je"  President,  also  ex-officio  seer,  revelator,  trans- 
lator, and  prophet,  is  supreme.  The  two  sub-chiefs  or  counselors 
are  ^-wowi-equal :  the  first,  however,  takes  social  precedence  of  the 
second.  This  quorum  of  the  presidency  of  the  Church,  elected 
by  the  whole  body,  is  the  centre  of  temporal  as  of  ecclesiastical 

*  These  and  the  following  quotations  arc  borrowed  from  sections  2  and  3  of  "  Cov- 
enants and  Commandments." 


400  '-THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IX. 

power.  It  claims,  under  God,  tlie  right  of  life  and  death ;  it  holds 
the  keys  of  heaven  and  hell,  and  from  its  decrees  there  is  no  ap- 
peal except  to  the  general  assembly  of  all  the  quorums  which  con- 
stitute the  spiritual  authorities  of  the  Church.  ;■ 

The  second  in  rank  is  the  Patriarch.  The  present  incumbent 
is  a  nephew  of  the  first  seer,  who  succeeded  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  sen., 
the  father  of  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.*  As  the  sire  of  the  Church, 
his  chief  duty  is  to  administer  blessings :  it  is  an  ofl&ce  of  dignity 
held  for  life,  whereas  all  others  expire  after  the  semestre. 

Follows  the  "  Second  Presidency,"  the  twelve  traveling  coun- 
selors, "  called  to  be  the  twelve  apostles  or  special  witnesses  of  the 
name  of  Christ  in  all  the  world,"  modeled  with  certain  political 
modifications  after  the  primitive  Christian  Church,  and  abbrevi- 
atively  termed  "  The  Twelve."  The  President  of  the  High  Apos- 
tolic College,  or,  in  his  default,  one  of  the  members,  acts  as  coad- 
jutor, in  the  absence  of  a  member  of  the  First  Presidency.  The 
Twelve  come  nearer  the  masses,  and,  acting  under  direction  of  the 
highest  authority,  build  up  the  Church,  ordain  and  set  in  order  all 
other  officers,  elders,  priests,  teachers,  and  deacons:  they  are  em- 
powered to  baptize,  and  to  administer  bread  and  wine — the  em- 
blems of  the  flesh  and  blood  of  Christ ;  to  confirm  those  who  are 
baptized  into  the  Church  by  the  laying  on  of  hands  for  the  bap- 
tism of  fire  and  the  Holy  Ghost ;  to  teach,  expound,  exhort,  bap- 
tize, and  watch  over  the  Church,  and  to  take  the  lead  in  all  meet- 
ings. They  preside  over  the  several  "  Stakes  of  Zion ;"  there  is 
one,  for  instance,  to  direct,  under  the  title  of  president,  the  Euro- 
pean, and  another  the  Liverpool  mission.  If  there  be  several  to- 
gether, the  eldest  is  the  standing  president  of  the  quorum,  and  they 
act  as  councilors  to  one  another. 

The  fourth  body  in  rank  is  the  Seventies.  The  "  Seventy"  act 
in  the  name  of  the  Lord,  under  direction  of  the  "Twelve,"  in  build- 
ing up  the  Church,  and,  like  them,  are  traveling  ministers,  sent 
first  to  the  Gentiles,  and  then  to  the  Jews.  Out  of  the  "  Seventy" 
are  chosen  seven  presidents,  of  whom  one  presides  over  the  other 
six  councilors :  these  seven  choose  other  seventy  besides  the  first 
seventy,  "  and  also  other  seventy,  until  seven  times  seventy,  if  the 
labor  in  the  vineyard  of  necessity  requires  it."  In  1853  the  min- 
utes of  the  Mormon  General  Conference  enumerated  the  "  Seven- 
ties" at  1572.  Practically  the  seventy  members  are  seldom  com- 
plete. The  chief  of  these  traveling  propagandists,  the  working 
bees  of  the  community,  is  the  "President  of  all  the  Seventies." 

The  fifth  body  is  composed  of  "high  priests  after  the  order  of 
the  Melchisedek  priesthood,  who  have  a  right  to  officiate  in  their 
own  standing,  under  the  direction  of  the  Presidency,  in  adminis- 
tering spiritual  things,"  and  to  "  officiate  in  all  the  offices  of  the 
Church  when  there  are  no  higher  authorities  present."  Thus 
charged  with  the  execution  of  spiritual  affairs,  they  are  usually 
*  So  called  in  revelation  until  the  death  of  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  sen. 


Chap.  IX.     THE  MORMON  BISHOP.— THE  HIGH  COiraCIL.  401 

aged  and  fatherly  men.     Among  the  high  priests  are  included, 
ex-officio,  the  bishops  and  the  high  council. 

The  Mormon  iiriaKoirog  is  a  steward,  who  renders  an  account 
of  his  stewardship  both  in  time  and  eternity,  and  who  superin- 
tends the  elders,  keeps  the  Lord's  store-house,  receives  the  funds 
of  the  Church,  administers  to  the  wants  of  those  beneath  him, 
and  supplies  assistance  to  those  who  manage  the  "literary  con- 
cerns," probably  editors  and  magazine  publishers.  The  bishopric 
is  the  presidency  of  the  Aaronic  priesthood,  and  has  authority 
over  it.  No  man  has  a  legal  right  to  the  office  except  a  literal 
descendant  of  Aaron.  As  these,  however,  are  noii  inventi,  and  as 
a  high  priest  of  the  Melchisedek  order  may  officiate  in  all  lesser 
offices,  the  bishop,  who  never  affects  a  nolo  episcojMri^  can  be  or- 
dained by  the  First  Presidency,  or  Mr.  Brigham  Young.  Thus 
the  episcopate  is  a  local  authority  in  stakes,  settlements,  and  wards, 
with  the  directorship  of  affairs  temporal  as  well  as  spiritual.  This 
"  overseer"  receives  the  tithes  on  the  commutation-labor,  which 
he  forwards  to  the  public  store-house ;  superintends  the  registra- 
tion of  births,  marriages,  and  deaths,  makes  domiciliary  visits,  and 
hears  and  determines  complaints  either  laical  or  ecclesiastic. 

The  High  Council  was  organized  by  revelation  in  Kirtland 
(Feb.  17,  1834)  for  the  purpose  of  settling,  when  the  Church  or 
the  "  Bishop's"  council  might  fail,  important  difficulties  that  might 
arise  between  two  believers.  Eevelation  directed  it  to  consist  of 
twelve  high  priests,  ascertained  by  lots  or  ballot,  and  one  or  three 
presidents,  as  the  case  might  require.  The  first  councilors,  when 
named,  were  asked  if  they  would  act  in  that  office  according  to 
the  law  of  heaven :  they  accepted,  and  at  once,  more  Americano — 
"  voted."  After  deciding  that  the  President  of  the  Church  should 
also  be  President  of  the  Council,  it  was  laid  down  that  the  duty 
of  the  twelve  councilors  should  be  to  cast  lots  by  numbers,  and 
thereby  ascertain  who  of  the  twelve  shall  speak  first,  commencing 
with  number  one,  and  so  in  succession  to  number  twelve.  In  an 
easy  case  only  two  speak ;  in  a  difficult  one,  six.  The  defendant 
has  a  right  to  one  half  of  the  council,  and  "  those  who  draw  even 
numbers,  that  is,  2,  4,  6,  8, 10,  and  12,  are  the  individuals  who  are 
to  stand  up  in  behalf  of  the  accused,  and  to  prevent  insult  or  in- 
justice." After  the  evidence  is  heard,  and  the  councilors,  as  well 
as  the  accuser  and  the  accused,  have  "  said  their  say,"  the  president 
decides,  and  calls  upon  the  "  twelve"  to  sanction  his  decision  by 
their  vote.  When  error  is  suspected,  the  case  is  subject  to  a 
"  careful  rehearing ;"  and  in  pecuhar  difficulties  the  appeal  is  to 
revelation.  I  venture  to  recommend  this  form  of  special  jury  to 
those  who  have  lost  faith  in  a  certain  effete  and  obsolete  "  pal- 
ladium of  British  liberty"  that  dates  from  the  days  of  Ethelbert. 
After  all,  it  is  sometimes  better,  ywrare  in  verba  magisiri,  especially 
of  an  inspired  master. 

The  High  Council  is  a  standing  council.     It  bears  the  same  re- 

Cc 


402  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IX. 

lationship  to  the  federal  power  as  the  university  Sex  viri  to  a  court 
of  civil  law  in  England,  and  it  saves  the  saints  the  expense  of  Gen- 
tile proceedings,  which  may  roughly  be  set  down  at  fifty  per  cent. 
The  sessions  take  place  in  the  Social  Hall.  Such  an  institution, 
which  transfers  to  St.  Peter  all  the  duties,  salaries,  and  honors 
which  Justinianus  gives,  is,  of  course,  most  unpopular  among  the 
anti-Mormons,  who  call  it  Star-Chamber,  and  other  ugly  names. 
I  look  upon  it  rather  as  the  Punchayat  {quinque  viri)  Court  of 
East  India,  a  rough  but  ready  instrument  of  justice,  which,  like 
spontaneous  growths  generally,  have  been  found  far  superior  to 
the  exotic  institutions  forced  upon  the  popular  mind  by  profes- 
sional improvers. 

The  Latter-Day  Saint,  when  in  a  foreign  land,  can  be  punished 
for  transgression  by  his  own  people.  The  presiding  authority 
calls  a  council  to  examine  the  evidence  for  and  against  the  of- 
fense ;  and  if  guilt  be  proven,  the  offender,  after  being  officially 
suspended  from  his  missionary  functions  and  the  fellowship  of  the 
Church,  is  sent,  with  a  special  report,  to  be  tried  by  his  own  presi- 
dency at  Great  Salt  Lake  City. 

The  elders  are  those  from  whom  the  apostles  are  taken ;  they 
are,  in  fact,  promoted  priests  charged  with  all  the  duties  of  that 
order,  and  with  the  conduct  of  meetings,  "  as  they  are  led  by  the 
Holy  Ghost,  according  to  the  commandments  and  revelations  of 
God."  They  hold  Conferences  once  in  every  three  months,  re- 
ceive their  licenses  from  the  elders  or  from  the  Conferences ;  they 
are  liable  to  be  sent  on  missions,  and  are  solemnly  enjoined,  by  a 
revelation  of  January,  1832,  to  "gird  up  their  loins  and  be  sober." 

The  priest  is  the  master  mason  of  the  order.  It  is  his  duty  to 
preach,  teach,  expound,  exhort,  baptize,  administer  the  sacrament, 
visit  domiciliarily,  exhort  the  saints  to  pray  "  vocally  and  in  se- 
cret," ordain  other  priests,  teachers,  and  deacons,  take  the  lead  of 
meetings  when  there  is  no  elder  present,  and  assist  the  elder  when 
occasion  requires. 

Of  the  Aaronic  order,  the  head  are  the  bishops ;  under  them 
are  two  ranks,  who  form  the  entered  apprentices  of  the  Mormon 
lodge. 

1st.  The  teachers,  who  have  no  authority  to  baptize,  to  admin- 
ister the  sacrament,  or  to  lay  on  hands,  but  who  "warn,  expound, 
exhort,  teach,  and  invite  all  to  come  unto  Christ,  watch  over  the 
Church,  and  take  the  lead  of  meetings  in  the  absence  of  the  elder 
or  priest."  Of  these  catechists  one  or  two  is  usually  attached  to 
each  bishop. 

2d.  The  deacon,  or  Smicovoc,  an  assistant  teacher.  He  also  acts 
as  treasurer  to  the  missions  in  the  several  branches  of  the  Church, 
collects  money  for  the  poor,  and  attends  to  the  temporal  wants 
of  converts. 

The  rise  of  the  "  Church  of  Christ  in  these  last  days  dates  from 
1830,  since  the  coming  of  our  Lord  and  Savior  Jesus  Christ :" 


Chap.  IX.        "UPPER  CRUST."— THE  JAREDITE  EXODUS.  403 

thus,  A.D.  1861  is  Annus  Joseph!  Smithii  31.  In  that  year  Mi- 
rabilis  the  book  of  Mormon  appeared,  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ 
of  Latter-Day  Saints  was  organized,  and  the  Body  Ecclesiastic, 
after  the  fashion  of  those  preceding  it,  was  exodus'd  or  hegira'd 
to  Kirtland,  Ohio. 

The  actual  composition  of  the  Mormon  hierarchy  is  that  of  a 
cadre  of  officers  to  a  skeleton  army  of  saints  and  martyrs,  which 
may  be  filled  up  ad  infinitum.  It  is  inferior  in  simplicity,  and 
therefore  in  power,  to  that  which  the  Jesuit  organization  is  usu- 
ally supposed  to  be,  yet  it  is  not  deficient  in  the  wherewithal  of 
a  higher  grasp.  It  makes  state  government,  especially  that  of 
Gentile  communities,  an  excrescence  upon  the  clerical  body.  The 
first  president  is  the  governor ;  the  second  is  the  lieutenant  gov- 
ernor; the  third  is  the  secretary  of  state;  the  High  Council  is 
the  Supreme  Court;  the  bishops  are  justices  of  peace:  briefly, 
the  Church  is  legislative,  judiciary,  and  executive — what  more  can 
be  required  ?  It  has  evidently  not  neglected  the  masonic,  mono- 
theistic, and  monocratic  element,  as  opposed  to,  and  likely  to  tem- 
per the  tripartite  rule  of  Anglo-American  civil  government.  The 
first  president  is  the  worshipful  master  of  the  lodge,  the  second 
and  third  are  the  senior  and  junior  wardens,  while  the  inferior 
ranks  represent  the  several  degrees  of  the  master  and  apprentice. 
It  symbolizes  the  leveling  tendencies  of  Christianity  and  pro- 
gressiveism,  while  its  civil  and  ecclesiastical  despotism  and  its 
sharp  definition  of  rank  are  those  of  a  disciplined  army — the 
model  upon  which  socialism  has  loved  to  form  itself.  In  society, 
while  all  are  brothers,  there  is  a  distinct  aristocracy,  called  west 
of  the  Atlantic  "upper  crust;"  not  of  titles  and  lands,  nor  of  bales 
and  boxes,  but  of  hierarchical  position;  and,  contrary  to  what 
might  be  expected,  there  is  as  little  real  social  fusion  among  Mor- 
mons as  between  the  "sixties,"  the  "forties,"  and  the  "twenties" 
of  silly  Guernsey. 

Having  now  attempted,  after  the  measure  of  my  humble  ca- 
pacity, to  show  what  Mormonism  is,  I  will  try  to  explain  what 
Mormonism  is  not.  The  sage  of  Norwich  ("Eel.  Med.,"  sect,  vi.) 
well  remarked  that  "every  man  is  not  a  proper  champion  of 
truth,  nor  fit  to  take  up  the  gauntlet  in  the  cause  of  verity ;"  and 
that  "many,  from  the  ignorance  of  these  maxims,  have  too  rashly 
charged  the  troops  of  error,  and  remain  as  trophies  to  the  enemies 
of  truth."  The  doctrine  may  fitly  be  illustrated  by  pointing  out 
the  prodigious  aid  lent  to  Mormonism  by  the  self-inflicted  defeats 
of  anti-Mormonism. 

The  Jaredite  exodus  to  America  in  dish-like  "  barges,  whose 
length  was  the  length  of  a  tree,"  and  whose  voyage  lasted  344 
days,  is  certainly  a  trial  of  faith.  The  authority  of  Mormonic  in- 
spiration is  supposed  to  be  weakened  by  its  anachronisms  and 
other  errors:  the  mariner's  compass,  for  instance,  is  alluded  to 
long  before  the  fourteenth  century.     The  Mormons,  however,  re- 


404  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IX. 

ply  that  the  "Lialiona"  of  their  Holy  Book  is  not  a  compass,  and 
that  if  it  were,  nothing  could  be  said  against  it :  the  Chinese  claim 
the  invention  long  before  the  days  of  Flavio,  and  the  Moslems 
attribute  it  to  one  of  their  own  saints.*  The  "  reformed  Egyp- 
tian" of  the  Golden  Bible  is  ridiculed  on  the  supposition  that  the 
Hebrew  authors  would  write  either  in  their  own  tongue,  in  the 
Syrian,  or  in  the  Chaldaic,  at  any  rate  in  a  Semitic,  not  in  a  Coptic 
language.  But  the  first  disciples  of  the  Gospel  Church  were 
Jews,  and  yet  the  Evangel  is  now  Greek,  As  regards  the  Golden 
Plates,  it  is  contended  that  the  Jews  of  old  were  in  the  habit  of 
writing  upon  papyrus,  parchment,  and  so  on,  not  upon  metal,  and 
that  such  plates  have  never  been  found  in  America.  But  of  late 
years  Himyaritic  inscriptions  upon  brass  tablets  have  been  for- 
warded from  Yemen  to  the  British  Museum.  Moreover,  in  1843, 
six  brass  plates  of  a  bell  shape,  covered  with  ancient  glyphs,  were 
discovered  by  a  "  respectable  merchant"  near  Kinderhook,"  Uni- 
ted States,  proving  that  such  material  was  not  unknown  to  the 
ancient  Semites  and  to  the  American  aborigines.  The  word 
"  Christ"  often  occurs  ("  Book  of  Mormon,"  p.  8,  etc.)  long  before 
the  coming  of  the  Savior,  But  the  Book  of  Mormon  was  written 
in  the  "  reformed  Egyptian :"  the  proper  noun  in  question  w^as 
translated  "Christ"  in  English  by  the  prophet,  an  "unlearned 
young  man,"  according  to  his  own  understanding,  and  for  the  bet- 
ter comprehension  of  his  readers.  The  same  argument  applies 
to  such  words  as  "synagogues,"  "alpha  and  omega,"  "steel,'* 
"S.S.E.,"  etc.;  also  to  "elephant,"  "cow,"  "horse,"  "ass," 
"  swine,"  and  other  pachyderms  and  solidunguls,  which  were 
transported  to  America  after  the  Columbian  discovery :  they  are 
mere  translations,  like  the  fabulous  unicorn  of  the  Old  Testament 
and  the  phoenix  of  the  apocrj-phal  New  Testament  (Clement  I., 
xii.,  2):  elephant,  for  instance,  manifestly  means  mastodon,  and 
swine,  peccary,  Ptolemy's  theor}^  of  a  moving  earth  is  found  an- 
ticipated. But  who  shall  limit  revelation  ?  and  has  not  the  Mo- 
saic Genesis,  according  to  a  multitude  of  modern  divines,  antici- 
pated all  the  latest  discoveries  ?  The  Lord  describes  America  to 
Jared  ("Book  of  Mormon,"  p.  78)  as  an  "isle  of  the  sea,"  and  the 
accuracy  of  the  geography  is  called  in  question.  But  in  the  Se- 
mitic and  other  Eastern  tongues,  insula  and  peninsula  are  synony- 
mous. Moreover,  if  Dr.  Kane's  open  circumpolar  ocean  prove 
aught  but  a  mvth,  the  New  World  is  wholly  insulated  even  by 
ice  from  the  Old.  Other  little  contradictions  and  inaccuracies, 
which  abound  in  the  inspired  books,  are  as  easily  pooh-pooh'd  as 
objections  to  the  conflicting  genealogies,  and  the  contradictory 
accounts  of  the  Crucifixion  by  the  professors  of  the  elder  faith. 

The  "  vulgarity"  of  Mormonism  is  a  favorite  theme  with  the 
anti-Mormon,  The  low  origin  and  "  plebbishness"  of  the  apostles' 
names  and  of  their  institutions  (e.  g.,  the  "Twelve,"  the  "Seven- 

*  First  Footsteps  ia  East  Africa,  chap,  i. 


Chap.  IX.  OBJECTIONS  TO  MORMONISM.  405 

ties"),  the  snuffling  Puritanic  style  wliicli  the  learned  Gibbon 
hated,  and  execrable  grammar  (e.  f/.,  in  the  first  page,  "  Nephi's 
brethren  rebelleth  against  him"),  and  the  various  Yankeeisms  of 
the  New  Scriptures,  are  cited  as  palpable  proofs  of  fraud.  But 
the  primitive  apostles  of  Christianity  were  of  inferior  social  rank 
and  attainments  to  the  first  Mormon  converts,  and  of  the  reformers 
of  Luther's  age  it  may  be  asked,  "  Where  was  then  the  gentle- 
man ?"  The  Syriac-Greek  of  the  New  Testament,  with  its  mani-- 
fold  flaws  of  idiom  and  diction,  must  have  produced  upon  the  po- 
lite philosophers  and  grammarians  of  Greece  and  Rome  an  effect 
even  more  painful  than  that  which  the  Americanisms  of  the 
Book  of  Mormon  exercise  upon  English  nerves.  These  things 
are  palpably  stumbling-blocks  disposed  sleeper-wise  upon  the 
railroad  of  faith,  lest  Mr.  Christian's  progress  should  become  a 
mere  excursion.  Gentiles  naturally  feel  disposed  to  smile  when 
they  find  in  the  nineteenth  century  prophets,  apostles,  saints ;  but 
the  Church  only  gains  by  the  restoration  and  reformation  of  her 
primitive  discipline.  The  supernatural  action  of  the  Holy  Spirit 
believed  in  by  the  Mormons  as  by  the  Seekers  (1645),  the  Cami- 
sards  (1688),  the  Leeites  and  Wilkinsonians  (1776),  is  the  best  an- 
swer to  that  atheistic  school  which  holds  that  God  who  once  lived 
is  now  dead  to  man.  As  of  the  Ayat  of  El  Islam,  so  of  the  rev- 
elations with  which  Mr.  Joseph  Smith  was  favored,  it  is  remarked 
that  their  exceeding  opportuneness  excites  suspicion.  But  of 
what  use  are  such  messages  from  Heaven  unless  they  arrive 
dpropos?  Mr.  0.  Hyde  contends,  after  the  fashion  of  wiser  men, 
that  ambiguity,  and,  if  I  may  use  the  word,  a  certain  achronology, 
characterize  inspired  prophecy :  it  is  evident  that  only  a  little 
more  inspiration  is  wanted  to  render  it  entirely  unambiguous. 

The  other  sentimental  objections  to  Mormonism  may  briefly  be 
answered  as  follows : 

'•''That  the  holiest  of  words  is  j)rofanely  applied  to  man.^^  But  as 
Moses  (Ex.,  iv.,  16)  was  "  instead  of  God  to  Aaron"  (Ex.,  vii.,  1), 
and  was  "  made  a  god"  to  Pharaoh,  and  as  the  Savior  declared 
that  "  he  called  them  gods  unto  whom  the  word  of  God  came" 
(John,  xi.,  35),  the  Mormons  evidently  use  the  word  in  its  old 
and  scriptural  sense.  Thus  they  assert  that  Mr.  Joseph  Smith  is 
the  god  of  this  generation,  Jesus  is  his  god,  Michael  or  Adam  is 
the  god  of  Jesus,  Jehovah  is  the  god  of  Adam,  and  Eloheim  is  the 
god  of  Jehovah. 

t "  That  credible  persons  have  testified  to  the  had  character  of  Mr. 
Joseph  Smith,  junior,  as  a  tnoney-digger,  a  cheat,  a  liar,  a  vidgar  im- 
postor, or,  at  best,  a  sincere  and  ignorant  fanatic^  The  Mormons 
reply  that  such  has  been  the  history  of  every  prophet.  They 
point  with  triumph  and  yearning  love  to  the  story  of  their  mar- 
tyrs life,  to  his  intense  affection  for  his  family,  and  to  their  devo- 
tion to  him.  They  boast  of  his  invincible  boldness,  energy,  en- 
thusiasm, and  moral  courage  ;\that  he  never  flinched  from  his 


406  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IX. 

allotted  tasks,  from  the  duties  which  he  was  commissioned  to  per- 
form ;  that  he  was  fifty  times  dragged  by  his  enemies  before  the 
tribunals,  and  was  as  often  acquitted ;  that  he  never  hesitated  for 
a  moment,  when  such  act  was  necessary,  to  cut  off  from  the  Church 
those  who,  like  Oliver  Cowdery,  had  been  the  depositaries  of  his 
intimate  secrets ;  that  his  career  was  one  long  Bartholomew's 
Day,  and  that  his  end  was  as  glorious  as  his  life  was  beautiful. 
In  America  Mr.  Joseph  Smith  has  by  the  general  suffrage  of  anti- 
Mormons  been  pronounced  to  be  a  knave,  while  his  successor, 
Mr.  Brigham  Young,  has  been  declared  by  the  same  high  author- 
ity— vox  diaboli,  the  Mormons  term  it — to  be  a  self-deluded  but 
true  man.  I  can  scarcely  j)ersuade  myself  that  great  events  are 
brought  about  by  mere  imposture,  whose  very  nature  is  feeble- 
ness :  zeal,  enthusiasm,  fanaticism,  which  are  of  their  nature 
strong  and  aggressive,  better  explain  the  abnormal  action  of  man 
on  man.  On  the  other  hand,  it  is  impossible  to  ignore  the  dear 
delights  of  fraud  and  deception,  the  hourly  pleasure  taken  by 
some  minds  in  finessing  through  life,  in  concealing  their  real 
selves  from  the  eyes  of  others,  and  in  playing  a  part  till  by  habit 
it  becomes  a  nature.  In  the  estimation  of  unprejudiced  persons 
Mr.  Joseph  Smith  is  a  man  of  rude  genius,  of  high  courage,  of  in- 
vincible perseverance,  fired  by  zeal,  of  great  tact,  of  religious  fer- 
vor, of  extraordinary  firmness,  and  of  remarkable  talent  in  gov- 
erning men.  It  is  conceded  that,  had  he  not  jDOssessed  "strong 
and  invincible  faith  in  his  own  high  pretensions  and  divine  mis- 
sion," he  would  probably  have  renounced  the  unprofitable  task 
of  prophet,  and  sought  refuge  from  persecution  and  misery  in 
private  life  and  honorable  industry.  Be  that  as  it  may,  he  has 
certainly  taken  a  place  among  the  notabilities  of  the  world — he 
has  left  a  footprint  upon  the  sands  of  time. 

"  That  Mr.  Joseph  Smith  i^rophesied  lies^''  and  that  ^Hhrough  greed 
of  gain  he  robbed  the  pidjlic  hy  a'ppropriating  the  moneys  of  the  Kirt- 
land  BanhJ''  The  Mormons  rejDly  that  many  predictions  of  un- 
doubted truth  undeniably  passed  their  prophet's  lips,  and  that 
some — e.  g.^  those  referring  to  the  Mormon  Zion  and  to  the  end 
of  the  world — may  still  prove  true.  With  reference  to  the  fact 
that  Martin  Harris  was  induced  by  the  seer  to  pay  for  the  publi- 
cation of  the  Book  of  Mormon,  it  is  pleaded  that  the  Christian 
apostles  (Acts,  iv.,  35)  also  received  money  from  their  disciples. 
The  failure  of  the  Kirtland  Bank  (A.D.  1837)  is  thus  explained  : 
During  the  Prophet's  absence  upon  a  visit  to  the  Saints  at  Toron- 
to, the  cashier,  Warren  Parrish,  flooded  the  district  with  worthless 
paper,  and,  fearing  discovery  on  his  master's  return,  decamped 
with  $25,000,  thereby  causing  a  suspension  of  payment.  Regard- 
ing other  peccadilloes,  the  Mormons  remark  that  no  prophet  was 
ever  perfect  or  infallible.  Moses,  for  instance,  was  not  suffered 
for  his  sins  to  enter  the  Promised  Land,  and  Saul  lost  by  his  mis- 
conduct the  lasting  reign  over  Israel. 


Chap.  IX.  OBJECTIONS  TO  MORMONISM.  407 

"T7iat  the  three  original  witnesses  to  the  '■Booh  of  Mormon^  aposta- 
tized and  denied  its  truth. ''^  To  this  the  Mormons  add,  that  after  a 
season  those  apostates  duly  repented  and  were  rebaptized;  one 
has  died ;  the  second,  Martin  Ilarris,  is  now  a  Saint  in  Kirtland, 
Ohio;  and  the  third,  Sidney  Rigdon,  to  whom  the  faith  owed  so 
much,  left  the  community  after  the  Prophet's  martyrdom,  saying 
that  it  had  chosen  the  wrong  path,  but  never  rejecting  Mormon- 
ism  nor  accusing  it  of  fraud.  The  witnesses  to  those  modern  ta- 
bles of  the  law  (the  Golden  Plates)  were  but  eleven  in  ioto^  and 
formed  only  three  families  interested  in  the  success  of  the  scheme. 
The  same  paucity,  or  rather  absence  of  any  testimony  which  would 
be  valid  in  a  modern  court  of  justice,  marks  the  birth  of  every 
new  faith,  not  excluding  the  Christian.  And,  finally,  wickedness 
proved  against  the  witnesses  does  not  invalidate  the  value  of  their 
depositions.  The  disorders  in  the  conduct  of  David  and  Solomon, 
for  instance,  do  not  affect  the  inspiration  of  the  Psalms  and  Can- 
ticles. 

"  That  Mormon  apostles  and  elders^  as  Parley  P.  Pratt  and  John 
Taylor^  denied  the  existence  of  polygamy^  even  after  it  ivas  hnoivn  and 
practiced  by  their  community.^^  The  Mormons  reply  that  they  nev- 
er attempted  to  evade  the  imputation  of  the  true  patriarchal  mar- 
riage :  they  merely  asserted  their  innocence  of  the  "  spiritual  wife- 
dom,"  the  Free  Loveism  and  the  Fanny  Wrightism  of  the  Eastern 
States — charges  brought  against  them  by  the  anti-Mormons. 

Having  thus  disposed  of  the  principal  allegations,  I  will  more 
briefly  allude  to  the  minor. 

/ "  That  the  Mormons  do  not  allow  monogamyJ^  This  I  know  not 
to  be  the  fact,  as  several  of  my  acquaintances  had  and  have  but 
one  wife.  I  "  That  a  midtiiude  of  saints,  propihets^  and  apostles  are  in 
full  chase  after  a  woman,  ivhom  the  absence  of  her  husband  releases 
from  her  vows  ;  that  the  missionary  on  duty  ap)points  a  proxy  or  vi- 
carious head  to  his  house,  and  that  his  spouses  are  married  pro  tem- 
pore to  elders  and  ap)0stles  at  horned  Mrs.  Ferris  has  dreamed  out 
this  "  abyss  of  abomination,"  and  then  uses  it  to  declaim  against. 
But  is  it  at  all  credible?  "Would  not  such  conduct  speedily  de- 
moralize and  demolish  a  society  which  even  its  enemies  own  to 
be  peculiarly  pure?  ''That  the  Mormons  are  '  jealous  fellows'  " — a 
curious  contradiction  of  the  preceding  charges.  The  Saints  hold 
to  the  semi-seclusion  of  Athens,  Rome,  and  Syria,  where  "she  was 
the  best  of  women  of  whom  least  is  said,  either  of  good  or  harm," 
believing  with  the  world  generally  that  opportunity  often  makes 
the  thief.  ''That  the  Mormons  ' swap),^  sell,  exchange,  and  transfer 
their  wives  to  Indians^  Mrs.  Ferris  started  the  story,  which  car- 
ries its  own  refutation,  by  chronicling  a  report  of  the  kind ;  and 
Mr.  Ward  improves  upon  it  by  supplying  false  instances  and 
names.  "That  the  utmost  latitude  of  manners  is  alloived  in  the  ball- 
room and  the  theatre,^^  which  are  compared  to  the  private  reunions 
of  Rosanna  Townsend  and  other  Aspasias.     The  contrary  is  no- 


^03  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IX. 

toriously  the  case.  "  That  the  young  Mormons  are  frequently  guilty 
of  the  crimes  of  Absalom  and  other  horrible  offenses.^^  Unprejudiced 
Gentiles  always  deny  the  truth  of  such  accusations.  "  That  the 
Mormon  has  no  home,  and  that  Mormon  houses  are  dirty,  slovenly, 
and  uncomfortable.''''  The  !Far  West  is  not  remarkable  for  neat- 
ness :  the  only  exceptions  to  the  rule  of  filth  which  I  have  seen 
are  in  the  abodes  of  the  Mormons.  "  Thcd  '■  plurality  families'  are 
in  a  state  of  perpetual  stormP  I  believe  that  many  a  "  happy  En- 
glish home"  is  far  stormier,  despite  the  holy  presence  of  mono- 
gamy. Even  Mrs.  Ferris  tells  of  two  wives,  one  young,  the  other 
old,  "who  treated  each  other  with  that  degree  of  affectionate  cor- 
diality which  properly  belongs  to  the  intercourse  between  mother 
and  daughter,"  and — naively  wonder-struck  by  what  she  could 
not  understand — exclaims,  "What  a  strange  spectacle!"  '■'■That 
women  must  he  married  to  he  saved.''^  The  orthodox  Mormon  be- 
lief is  that  human  beings  are  sent  into  the  world  to  sow  seed  for 
heaven ;  that  a  woman  who  wittingl}-,  and  for  stupid  social  Bel- 
gravian-mother  motives,  fails  in  so  doing,  neglects  a  vital  duty, 
and  that  whoso  gives  not  children  to  the  republic  has  lived  in 
yain — an  opinion  which  the  Saints  are  contented  to  share  with 
Moses  and  Mohammed,  Augustus  Caesar  and  Napoleon  Bonaparte. 
"  That  the  Mormons  marry  for  eternity.''''  They  believe  that  Adam 
and  Eve,  when  wholly  pure,  were  so  married,  and  that  redemption 
signifies  a  complete  restoration  to  all  the  privileges  lost  by  the 
fall.  "  That  Mormons  are  '■sealed''  to  rich  old  women.'"  The  vetula 
heata  exists,  I  believe,  almost  universally.  "  That  Mormons  marry 
and  seal  for  the  dead.''^  As  has  been  seen,  it  is  a  principle  of  faith 
that  all  ordinances  for  the  living  may  vicariously  be  performed 
for  those  departed.  "  That  Mormon  ivomen  are  ixde,  thin,  hadly  and 
carelessly  dressed,  and  poorly  fed — that  they  exhibit  a  sense  of  depres- 
sion and  degradation^^  I  found  them  exceedingly  pretty  and  at- 
tractive, especially  Miss .    "  That  it  is  dangerous  to  he  the  rival 

of  a  Mormon  elder  in  love  and  husiness.^^  This  is  true  only  so  far 
that  the  Saint  is  probably  a  better  man  than  the  Gentile.  I  have 
been  assured  by  Gentiles  that  they  would  rather  trust  the  follow- 
ers of  Mr.  Joseph  Smith  than  their  own  people,  and  that,  under 
Mormon  rule,  there  never  has  been,  and  never  can  be,  a  case  of 
bankruptcy.  The  hunters  and  Indian  traders  dislike  the  Saints 
for  two  chief  reasons :  in  the  first  place,  the  hunting-grounds  have 
been  narrowed ;  and,  secondly,  industry  and  sobriety  have  taken 
the  place  of  rollicking  and  dare-devilism.  "  That  the  Mormons  are 
bigoted  and  intolerantJ^  The  Mormon's  golden  rule  is,  "Mind  your 
own  business,  and  let  your  neighbor  mind  his."  At  Great  Salt 
Lake  City  I  found  all  the  most  violent  anti-Mormon  books,  and 
have  often  heard  Gentiles  talk  in  a  manner  which  would  not  be 
tolerated  in  Paris,  London,  and  Eome.  "  That  the  Church  claims 
possession  of,  and  authority  over,  a  dead  disciple's  goods  and  chattels.''^ 
This  is  done  only  in  cases  when  heirs  fail.     "  Thcd  it  is  the  Mor- 


Chap.  IX.  POLITICAL  OBJECTIONS.  409 

mon^s  duty  to  lay  all  his  possessions  at  the  apostles'  feety  The  Mor- 
mons believe  that  the  Lord  has  ordered  his  Church  to  be  estab- 
lished on  earth ;  that  its  success  involves  man's  salvation ;  that 
the  apostles  are  the  pillars  of  the  sacred  edifice,  and  that  the  dis- 
ciple is  bound,  like  Barnabas,  when  called  upon,  to  lay  his  all  at 
the  apostles'  feet ;  practically,  however,  the  measure  never  takes 
place.  "  That  the  high  dignitaries  are  enriched  by  tithes  and  by  p)lun- 
dering  the  people.'"  I  believe,  for  reasons  before  given,  this  asser- 
tion to  be  as  wholly  destitute  of  fact  as  of  probability.  "  That  the 
elders  borroio  money  from  their  Gentile  disciples^  and  that  the  Saints 
'milk  the  Gentiles'  "  The  Mormons,  like  sensible  men,  do  not  deny 
that  their  net  has  drawn  up  bad  fish  as  well  as  good ;  they  assert, 
however,  and  I  believe  with  truth,  that  their  community  will  bear 
comparison  in  point  of  honesty  with  any  other. 

I  have  already  remarked  how  thoroughly  hateful  to  the  petu- 
lant fanatical  republican  of  the  New  World  is  the  Mormon  state 
within  state,  their  absolute  aristocracy  clothed  in  the  wolf-skin  of 
democracy;  and  I  have  also  shown  how  little  of  that  "largest 
liberty,"  concerning  which  the  traveler  in  the  United  States  hears 
so  often  and  sees  so  seldom,  has  been  extended  to  them  or  to  their 
institutions.  Let  us  now  consider  a  few  of  the  jDolitical  objections 
to  Mormonism.  , 

"  That  the  Mormon  Church  overshadoivs  and  controverts  the  actions 
and  opinions^  the  property^  and  even  the  lives  of  its  membeis."  The 
Mormons  boast  that  their  Church,  which  is  their  state,  does  so 
legitimately,  and  deny  any  abuse  of  its  power.  "  That  the  Church 
usufps  and  exercises  the  legislative  and  pioliticcd  business  of  the  Ter- 
ritory." The  foregoing  pages  disprove  this.  "  Thcd  the  Church  or- 
ganizes and  commands  a  military  force."  True,  for  her  own  pro- 
tection. "  That  the  Church  disposes  of  p)ublic  lands  on  her  own 
terms."  The  Mormons  reply  that,  as  squatters,  they  have  earned 
by  their  improvements  the  right  of  pre-emption,  and  as  the  fed- 
eral government  delaj's  to  recognize  their  title,  they  approve  of 
the  Church  so  doing.  ^'■That  the  Church  has  coined  money  and 
forced  its  circulation."  The  former  clause  is  admitted,  and  the  ex- 
cellence of  the  Californian  gold  is  warranted ;  the  latter  is  justly 
treated  with  ridicule.  "  That  the  Church  levies  the  tenth  part  of  every 
thing  from  its  members  under  the  charge  of  tithing."  The  Mormons 
derive  this  practice  from  the  laws  of  Moses,  and  assert  that  the  gift 
is  purely  a  free-will  offering  estimated  by  the  donor,  and  never 
taken  except  from  those  who  are  in  full  communion.  "  That  the 
Church  imposes  enormous  taxes  iipon  Gentile  citizens."  The  Mor- 
mons own  that  they  levy  a  large  octroi,  in  the  form  of  a  regulated 
license  system,  upon  ardent  spirits,  but  they  deny  that  more  is 
taken  from  the  Gentile  than  from  the  Saint.  "  That  the  Church 
supervises  and  penetrates  into  the  domestic  circle,  and  enjoins  and  in- 
culcates obedience  to  her  own  counsels,  as  articles  of  faith  paramount 
to  all  the  obligations  of  society  and  morality,  allegiance  and  law." 


410  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IX. 

The  Mormons  reply  that  the  counsel  and  the  obligations  run  in 
the  same  grooves. 

Mormonism  in  England  would  soon  have  fallen  to  the  level 
of  Leeisni  or  Irvingism ;  its  teachers  to  the  rank  of  the  South- 
coteans  and  Muggletonians.  Its  unparalleled  rise  and  onward 
march  could  have  taken  place  only  in  a  new  hemisphere,  in  an- 
other world.  Its  genius  is  essentially  Anglo-American,  without 
one  taint  of  Gallic,  Teutonic,  or  Keltic.  It  is  Eationalistic :  the 
analytic  powers,  sharpened  by  mundane  practice,  and  wholly  un- 
encumbered by  religious  formal  discipline,  are  allowed,  in  things 
ultra  mundane,  a  scope,  a  perfect  freedom,  that  savors  of  irrever- 
ence :  thus  the  Deity  is  somewhere  spoken  of  as  a  "  right-hand 
man."  It  is  Exaggerative  in  matter  as  in  manner:  the  Penta- 
teuch, for  instance,  was  contented  with  one  ark,  Mormonism  re- 
quired eight.  It  is  Simplificative :  its  fondness  for  facilitation  has 
led  it  through  literalism  into  that  complete  materialism  which,  to 
choose  one  point  only,  makes  the  Creator  of  the  same  species  as 
his  creature.  It  is  Imitative  to  an  extent  that  not  a  vestige  of 
originality  appears :  the  Scripture  names  are  carefully  moulded 
in  Hebrew  shape ;  and,  to  quote  one  of  many  instances,  the  death- 
bed of  the  first  patriarch  ("  Life  of  Joseph  Smith,  the  Prophet," 
chap,  xlii.)  is  a  trave^tie  of  that  of  Israel,  with  his  prayers,  proph- 
ecies, and  blessings ;  while  the  titles  of  the  apostles,  e.  g.,  Lion  of 
the  Lord,  are  literally  borrowed  from  El  Islam.  It  has  a  mystic 
element  the  other  side  of  its  severe  rationalism,  even  as  the  Amer- 
ican character  mixes  transcendentalism  with  the  purest  literalism, 
as  Mr.  Emerson,  the  Sufi,  contrasts  with  the  Pilgrim  fathers 'and 
Sam  Slick.  It  is  essentially  Practical,  though  commonplaces  and 
generalisms  are  no  part  of  its  composition.  Finally,  it  is  admi- 
rably puffed,  as  the  note  upon  Mormon  bibliography  proves — bet- 
ter advertised  than  Colonel  Colt's  excellent  revolvers. 

I  had  i^roposed  to  write  a  chapter  similar  to  this  upon  the  Mor- 
mon annals.  After  sundry  attempts,  the  idea  was  abandoned  in 
despair.  It  would  be  necessary  to  give  two  distinct  or  rather  op- 
posite versions — according  to  the  Mormons  and  the  anti-Mormons 
— of  every  motive  and  action  which  have  engendered  and  pro- 
duced history.  Such  a  style  would  not  be  lively.  Moreover,  the 
excessive  positivism  with  which  each  side  maintains  its  facts,  and 
the  palpable  sacrifice  of  truth  to  party  feeling,  would  make  it  im- 
possible for  any  but  an  eye-witness,  who  had  lived  through  the 
scenes,  and  had  preserved  his  impartiality,  to  separate  the  wheat 
from  the  chaff.  The  Mormons  declare  that  if  they  knew  their 
prophet  to  be  an  impostor,  they  could  still  love,  respect,  and  fol- 
low him  in  this  life  to  the  next.  The  Gentiles,  I  can  see,  would 
not  accept  him,  even  if  he  were  proposed  to  them  by  a  spirit  from 
the  other  world.  There  is  little  inducement  in  this  case  to  break 
the  scriptural  injunction,  "Judge  not." 

Under  these  considerations,  I  have  added  to  the  Appendix 


Chap.  IX.  MORMON  CHRONOLOGY.  411 

(No.  Y.)  a  detailed  clironological  table  of  Mormon  events :  it  is 
compiled  from  both  parties,  and  has  at  least  one  merit — impar- 
tiality. 


CHRONOLOGY  OF  THE  MOST  IMPORTANT  EYENTS 
RECORDED  IN  THE  BOOK  OF  MORMON. 

(By  Elder  James  Marsden,  and  printed  in  the  Compendium  of  Faith  and  Doctrines.^ 
B.C. 
600.  Lehi,  Sariah,  and  their  four   sons,  Laman,  Lemuel,  Sam,  and 

Nephi,  left  Jerusalem  by  the  commandment  of  God,  and 

journeyed  into  the  wilderness  of  Arabia  (p.  17,  44,  97,  pars. 

3,  47,  4). 
592.  Lehi  and  his  family  arrived  at  the  land  Bountiful,  so  called  be- 
cause of  its  much  fruit.    Its  modern  name  is  Arabia  Felix,  or 

Arabia  the  Happy  (p.  36,  par.  17). 
570.  Jacob  and  Joseph  Avere  consecrated  priests  and  teachers  over 

the  people  of  Nephi  (p.  66,  par.  6). 
560.  Nephi  was  commanded  to  make  a  second  volume  of  plates  (p. 

67,  par.  6). 
545.  Nephi  commanded  Jacob  to  write  on  the  small  plates  such 

things  as  he  considered  most  precious  (p.  114,  par.  1). 
421.  Jacob  having  committed  the  records  into  the  hands  of  his  sou 

Enos,  and  Enos  being  old,  he  gave  the  records  into  the  hands 

of  his  son  Jarom  (p.  133,  136,  pars.  9,  7). 
400.  The  people  of  Nephi  kept  the  law  of  Moses,  and  they  rapidly 

increased  in  numbers,  and  were  greatly  prospered  (p.  137, 

par.  3). 
362.  Jarom  being  old,  delivered  the  records  into  the  hands  of  his  son 

Omni  (p.  138,  par.  6). 
324.  Omni  was  a  wicked  man,  but  he  defended  the  Nephites  from 

their  enemies  (p.  138,  par.  2). 
280.  Amaron  delivered  the  plates  to  his  brother  Chemish  (p.  139, 

par.  3). 
124.  After  Abinadom,  the  son  of  Chemish,  Amaleki,*  the  son  of 

Abinadom,  King  Benjamin,  and  Mosiah  had  successively  kept 

the  records,  Mosiah,  the  son  of  King  Benjamin,  was  conse- 
crated king  (p.  157,  par.  2). 
121.  Mosiah  sent  sixteen  men  to  the  laud  of  Lehi-Nephi  to  inquire 

concerning  their  brethren  (p.  158,  par.  2). 
91.  Mosiah  died,  having  conferred  the  records  ujion  Alma,  who  was 

the  son  of  Alma.    Mosiah  also  established  a  republican  form 

*  While  Amaleki  was  keeping  the  records,  Mosiah,  the  father  of  King  Benjamin, 
and  as  many  as  would  hearken  to  the  voice  of  God,  were  commanded  to  go  into  the 
wilderness,  and  were  led  by  the  power  of  the  Almighty  to  the  Land  of  Zarahemla, 
where  they  discovered  a  people  who  left  Jerusalem  at  the  time  that  Zedekiah  was 
carried  away  captive  into  Babylon.  They  were  led  by  Miilek,  the  only  surviving 
son  of  Zedekiah ;  and  on  their  arrival  in  America,  met  with  Coriantumr,  the  late 
king  of  the  Jareditcs,  who  were  slain  a  little  pre^^ous  to  the  immigration  of  Mulek 
and  his  people  (p.  139,  40,  411,  549,  pars.  6,  9). 


412  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IX. 

B.C, 

of  government,  and  appointed  Alma  the  first  and  chief  judge 
of  the  land  (p.  205,  209,  pars.  1,  1). 

90.  Nehor  suiFered  an  ignominious  death  for  apostasy  and  for  kill- 
ing Gideon  (p.  210,  pars.  3,  4). 

86.  The  usurper  Amlici  was  slain  by  Alma.  In  this  year  many  bat- 
tles were  fought  between  the  Xephites  on  the  one  hand,  and 
the  Amlicites,  who  were  Nephite  revolutionists,  and  the  La- 
manites  on  the  other.  The  Nejihites  were  mostly  victorious 
(p.  215,  217,  pars.  14,  18). 

85.  Peace  was  restored  and  many  were  baptized  in  the  waters  of 
Sidon,  and  became  members  of  the  Church  (p.  218,  par.  1). 

84.  Peace  continued,  and  three  thousand  five  hundred  became  mem- 
bers of  the  Church  of  God  (p.  218,  par.  2). 

83.  The  members  of  the  Church  became  proud  because  of  their 
great  riches  (p.  218,  par.  3). 

82.  Alma  delivered  up  the  office  of  chief  judge  to  Nephilah,  and 
confined  himself  wholly  to  the  high  priesthood,  after  the  holy 
order  of  God  (p.  219,  par.  5). 

81.  Alma  performed  a  mission  to  the  land  of  Melek,  and  to  the  City 
Ammonihah  (p,  230,  pars.  2,  3). 

80.  Alma  and  Amulek  were  delivered  from  prison  by  the  mighty 
power  of  God  (p.  251,  par.  11). 

79.  The  Lamanites  destroyed  the  people  of  Ammouihah  (p.  253, 
par.  2). 

76.  There  was  peace  during  three  years,  and  the  Church  was  great- 
ly prospered  (p.  254,  par.  8). 

75.  Ammon  performed  a  successful  mission  among  the  Lamanites 
(p.  288,  par.  10). 

73.  Korihor,  the  great  anti-Christ,  made  his  appearance  (p.  290, 
par.  2). 

72.  Alma  committed  the  record  to  the  keeping  of  his  son  Helaman, 
and  commanded  him  to  continue  the  history  of  his  people  (p. 
310,  par.  5). 

71.  The  Nephites  obtained  a  complete  victory  over  the  Lamanites 
in  the  borders  of  Manti  (p.  331,  par.  16). 

71.  Helaman  performed  a  Successful  mission  among  the  Nephites 
(p.  333,  par.  4). 

69.  Moroni  commanded  that  the  Nephites  should  fortify  all  their 
cities.     They  also  built  many  cities  (p.  346,  pai'.  l). 

68.  This  was  the  most  comfortable,  prosperous,  and  hapjjy  year  that 
the  Nephites  had  ever  seen  (p.  348,  par.  3). 

65.  The  people  of  Morianton  prevented  from  escaping  to  the  North 
or  Lake  Country.  Also  Nephilah  died,  and  his  son  Pahoran 
succeeded  him  as  chief  judge  of  the  land  (p.  348,  pars.  5,  8). 

64.  A  contention  between  the  advocates  of  monarchy  on  the  one 
hand,  and  of  republicanism  on  the  other,  was  peaceably  set- 
tled by  the  voice  of  the  people.  But  4000  of  the  monarchy 
men  were  slain  for  refusing  to  take  up  arms  in  defense  of 
their  countiy  against  the  Lamanites  (p.  350,  par.  3). 

63.  Preparations  for  war  between  the  Nephites  and  the  Lamanites 
were  made  (p.  354,  par.  4). 


i 


Chap.  IX.  MOEMON  CHEONOLOGY.  413 

B.C. 

62.  The  same  continued  (p.  355,  par.  4). 

61.  Moroni  retook  the  city  of  Melek,  and  obtained  a  complete  vic- 
tory over  the  Lamanites  (p.  356,  par.  12). 

60.  Moroni,  by  stratagem,  overcame  the  Lamanites,  and  liberated 
his  people  from  prison  (p.  363,  par.  7). 

59.  Moroni  received  an  epistle  from  Helaraan,  of  the  city  of  Judea, 
in  which  is  set  forth  the  wonderful  victories  obtained  in  that 
part  of  the  land  over  the  Lamanites  (p.  364,  par.  1). 

58.  Moroni  obtained  possession  of  the  city  of  Nephilah  (p.  386,  par. 
18). 

54.  Peace  having  been  restored,  the  Church  became  very  prosper- 
ous, and  Helaman  died  (p.  387,  par.  3). 

53.  Shiblon  took  jiossession  of  the  sacred  records,  and  Moroni  died 
(p.  387,  pars.  1,  2). 

52.  5400  men,  with  their  wives  and  children,  lefl  Zarahemla  for  the 
North  country  (p.  388,  par.  3). 

50.  Shiblon  conferred  the  sacred  records  upon  Helaman,  the  son  of 
Helaman,  and  then  died  (p.  388,  par.  5). 

49.  Pahoran,  the  chief  judge,  having  died,  his  son  Pahoran  was  ap- 
pointed to  succeed  hun.  This  Pahoran  was  murdered  by 
Kisheumen,  and  his  brother  Pacumeni  was  appointed  by  his 
successor  (p.  389,  par.  3). 

48.  Coriantumr  led  a  numerous  host  against  Zarahemla,  took  the 
city,  and  killed  Pacumeni ;  but  Moronihah  retook  the  city, 
slew  Coriantumr,  and  obtained  a  complete  victory  over  the 
Lamanites  (p.  390,  par.  5). 

47.  Helaman  was  appointed  chief  judge,  and  the  band  of  Gadian- 
ton  robbers  was  organized  (p.  392,  par.  8). 

46.  Peace  reigned  among  the  Xephites  (p.  393,  par.  1). 

45.  Peace  continued  (p.  393,  par.  1^. 

44.  Peace  continued  (p.  393,  par.  1). 

43.  Great  contention  among  the  Nephites;  many  of  them  traveled 
northward  (p.  394,  par.  2). 

36.  Helaman  died,  and  his  son  Xephi  was  appointed  chief  judge. 

31.  The  Nephites,  because  of  their  wickedness,  lost  many  of  their 
cities,  and  many  of  them  were  slain  by  the  Lamanites  (p.  397, 
par.  8). 

28.  The  Nephites  repented  at  the  preaching  of  Moronihah  (p.  397, 
par.  10). 

27.  Moronihah  could  obtain  no  more  possessions  from  the  Laman- 
ites. Nephi  vacated  the  office  of  chief  judge  in  favor  of  Ce- 
zoram  (p.  398,  399,  pars.  11, 13).  The  greater  part  of  the  La- 
manites became  a  righteous  people  (p.  403,  par.  25). 

26.  Nephi  and  Lehi  went  northward  to  preach  unto  the  people  (p. 
404,  par.  26). 

23.  Cezoram  was  murdered  by  an  imknown  hand  as  he  sat  on  the 
judgment-seat.  His  son,  who  was  appointed  to  succeed  hira, 
was  also  murdered  (p.  404,  par.  28). 

22.  The  Nephites  became  very  wicked  (p.  406,  par.  31). 

21.  The  Lamanites  observed  the  laws  of  righteousness,  and  utterly 
destroyed  the  Gadianton  robbers  from  among  them  (p.  406, 
par.  32). 


414  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IX. 

B.C. 

20.  Men  belonging  to  the  Gadianton  band  usurped  the  judgment- 

seat  (p.  407,  par.  1). 

18.  Nephi  prophesied  many  important  things  against  his  people  (p. 

416,  par.  15). 

14.  Three  years'  famine  brought  the  people  to  repentance,  and 

caused  them  to  destroy  the  Gadianton  robbers  (p.  417,  pars. 
2,3). 
13.  Peace  being  restored,  the  people  spread  themselves  abroad,  to 
repair  their  waste  places  (p.  418,  par.  4). 

12.  The  majority  of  the  people,  both  Nephites  and  Lamailites,  be- 

came members  of  the  Church  (p.  418,  par.  4). 
9.  Certain  dissenters  among  the  Nephites  stirred  up  the  Laman- 

ites  against  their  brethren,  and  they  revived  the  secrets  of 

Gadianton  (p.  419,  par.  5). 
5.  The  Lamanites  prevailed  against  the  Nephites,  because  of  their 

great  wickedness  (p.  420,  par.  7). 
4.  Samuel  the  Lamanite  performed  a  mission  among  the  Nephites 

(p.  422,  par.  1). 
1.  Great  signs  and  wonders  were  given  unto  the  people,  and  the 

words  of  the  Prophets  began  to  be  fulfilled  Q).  431,  par. 

10). 
Lachoueus  was  the  chief  judge  and  governor  of  the  land.     Ne- 

l^hi  gave  the  records  into  the  hands  of  his  son  Nephi  (p.  432, 

par.  1). 
The  Lord  revealed  to  Nephi  that  he  would  come  Into  the  world 

the  next  day,  and  many  signs  of  his  coming  were  given  (p. 

433,  par.  3). 

A.C. 

3.  The  Gadianton  robbers  committed  many  depredations  (p.  434, 

par.  6). 

4.  The  Gadianton  robbei'S  greatly  increased  (p.  434,  par.  6). 

9.  The  Nephites  began  to  reckon  their  time  from  the  coming  of 
Christ  (p.  435,  par.  8). 

13.  The  Nephites  were  joined  by  many  of  the  Lamanites  in  defense 

against  the  robbers,  who  had  now  become  very  numerous  and 
formidable  (p.  436,  par.  9). 

15.  The  Nephites  were  worsted  in  several  engagements  (p.  436, 

par.  10), 

16.  Gidgidoni,  who  was  a  chief  judge  and  a  great  prophet,  was  ap- 

pointed commandei'-in-chief  (p.  438,  par.  3). 

17.  The  Nephites  gathered  themselves  together  for  the  purpose  of 

mutual  defense,  and  provided  themselves  with  seven  years' 
provisions  (p.  439,  par.  4). 

19.  A  great  battle  was  fought  between  the  Nephites  and  the  Gadi- 

anton robbers,  in  which  the  latter  were  defeated,  and  their 
leader,  Giddianhi,  was  slain  (p.  440,  pars.  6,  8). 

21.  The  Nephites  slew  tens  of  thousands  of  the  robbers,  and  took 

all  that  were  alive  prisoners,  and  hanged  their  leader,  Fem- 
narihah  (p.  441,  442,  pars.  9,  10). 
25.  Mormon  made  new  plates,  upon  which  he  made  a  record  of  what 


Chap.  IX.  MORMON  CHRONOLOGY.  415 

A.C. 

took  place  from  the  time  Lelii  left  Jerusalem  until  his  own 
day,  and  also  a  history  of  his  own  times  (p.  443,  par.  11). 
26.  The  Nephites  spread  themselves  abroad  on  their  former  posses- 
sions (p.  445,  par.  l). 

30.  Lachoneus,  the  son  of  Lachoneus,  was  apjiointed  governor  of  the 

land.  He  was  murdered,  and  the  people  became  divided  into 
numerous  tribes  (p.  446,  447,  pars.  3,  4). 

31.  Nephi  having  great  faith  in  God,  angels  did  minister  to  him 

daily  (p.  449,  par.  8). 

32.  The  few  who  were  converted  through  the  preaching  of  Nephi 

were  greatly  blessed  of  God  (p.  449,  par.  10). 

33.  Many  were  baptized  into  the  Church  (p.  449,  par.  10). 

34.  A  terrible  temjiest  took  jDlace,  which  changed  and  deformed  the 

whole  face  of  the  land.  Three  days  elapsed  during  which  no 
light  was  seen. 
The  voice  of  Jesus  Christ  was  heard  by  all  the  people  of  the 
land,  declaring  that  he  had  caused  this  destruction,  and  com- 
manding them  to  cease  to  offer  burnt-offerings  and  sacrifices 
(p.  453,  pars.  7,  8). 

35.  In  this  year  Jesus  Christ  appeared  among  the  Nephites,  and 

unfolded  to  them  at  large  the  principles  of  the  Gospel  (p. 
455,  pars.  11,  1).  The  apostles  of  Christ  formed  a  Church 
of  Christ  (p.  492,  par.  l). 

36.  Both  the  Nephites  and  the  Lamanites  were  all  converted,  and 

had  all  things  in  common  (p.  492,  par.  2). 

37.  Many  miracles  were  wrought  by  the  disciples  of  Jesus  (p.  492, 

par.  3). 
59.  The  people  rebuilt  the  city  of  Zarahemla,  and  were  very  pros- 
perous (p.  493,  par.  3). 

100.  The  disciples  of  Jesus,  whom  he  had  chosen,  had  all  gone  to 
Paradise  except  the  three  who  obtained  the  promise  that 
they  should  not  taste  of  death  (p.  493,  par.  5). 

110.  Nephi  died,  and  his  son  Amos  kejDt  the  record  (p.  493,  par. 
6). 

194.  Amos  died,  and  his  son  Amos  kept  the'record  (p.  494,  par.  7). 

201.  The  people  ceased  to  have  all  things  in  common;  they  became 
proud,  and  were  divided  into  classes  (p.  494,  par.  7). 

210.  There  were  many  churches  who  were  opposed  to  the  true 
Church  of  Christ  (p.  494,  par.  8). 

230.  The  people  dwindled  in  unbelief  and  wickedness  from  year  to 

year  (p.  494,  par.  8). 

231.  A  great  division  took  place  among  the  people  (p.  495,  par.  8). 
244.  The  wicked  part  of  the  people  became  stronger  and  more  nu- 
merous than  the  righteous  (p.  495,  par.  9). 

260.  The  people  began  to  build  up  the  secret  oaths  and  combinations 

of  Gadianton  (p.  495,  par.  9). 
300.  The  Gadianton  robbers  spread  themselves  all  over  the  face  of 

the  land  (p.  496,  par.  10). 
305.  Amos  died,  and  his  brother  Ammaron  kept  the  record  in  his 

stead  (p.  496,  par,  11). 
320.  Ammaron  hid  up  all  the  sacred  records  unto  the  Lord,  and  gave 


416  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  IX. 

A.C. 

commandment  unto  Mormon  concerning  them  (p.  496,  pars. 
11,1). 
321.  A  war  commenced  between  the  Nephites  and  Lamanites,  in 
which  the  former  were  victorious  (p.  497,  par.  2). 

325.  Mormon  was  restrained  from  preaching  to  the  people,  and  be- 

cause of  their  wickedness,  and  the  prevalence  of  sorceries, 
witchcrafts,  and  magic,  their  treasures  slipped  away  from 
them  (p.  497,  par.  2). 

326.  Mormon  was  appointed  leader  of  the  Nephite  armies  (p.  498, 

par.  3). 
330.  A  great  battle  took  place  in  the  land  of  Joshua,  in  which  the 
Nephites  were  victorious  (p.  498,  joar.  3). 

344.  Thousands  of  the  Nephites  were  hewn  down  in  their  open  re- 

bellion against  God  (p.  499,  par.  4). 

345.  Mormon  had  obtained  the  plates  according  to  commandment 

of  Ammaron,  and  he  made  an  account  of  the  wickedness  and 
abominations  of  his  people  (p.  499,  par.  5). 

346.  The  Nephites  were  driven  north wai'd  to  the  land  of  Shem,  and 

there  fought  and  beat  a  powerful  army  of  the  Lamanites  (p. 

500,  par.  6). 

349.  The  ISTephites  obtained  by  treaty  all  the  land  of  their  inherit- 
ance, and  a  ten  years'  peace  ensued  (p.  500,  par.  6). 

360.  The  king  of  the  Lamanites  sent  an  epistle  to  Mormon  indicating 

that  they  were  again  preparing  for  war  (p.  501,  par.  7). 

361.  A  battle  took  place  near  the  City  of  Desolation.    The  Nei)hites 

were  victorious  (p.  501,  par.  8). 

362.  A  second  battle  ensued  with  the  like  result  (p.  501,  jxar.  8). 

Mormon  now  gave  uj)  the  command  of  the  Nephite  army  (p. 

501,  par.  9). 

363.  The  Lamanites  obtained  a  signal  victory  over  the  Nephites,  and 

took  possession  of  the  City  of  Desolation  (p.  502,  par.  1). 

364.  The  Nephites  retook  the  City  of  Desolation  (p.  503,  par.  2). 

366.  The  Lamanites  again  took  possession  of  the  City  of  Desolation, 

and  also  succeeded  in  taking  the  City  of  Teancum  (p.  503, 
par.  3).  _ 

367.  The  Nephites  avenged  the  murder  of  their  wives  and  children, 

and  drove  the  Lamanites  out  of  their  laud ;  and  ten  years' 
peace  ensued  (p.  503,  par.  3). 
375.  The  Lamanites  came  again  to  battle  with  the  Nephites,  and  beat 
them  (p.  504,  pai*.  3). 
The  Nephites  from  this  time  forth  were  prevailed  against  by 
the  Lamanites ;  Mormon  therefore  took  all  the  records  which 
Ammaron  had  hid  up  imto  the  Lord  (]->.  504,  par.  3). 

379.  Mormon  resumed  the  command  of  the  Nephite  armies  (p.  504, 

par.  4). 

380.  Mormon  wrote  an  abridged  account  of  the  events  Avhich  he  had 

seen  (p.  505,  par.  5). 
384.  The  Nephites  encamped  around  the  hill  Cumorah.    Mormon  hid 
up  in  the  hill  Cumorah  all  the  plates  that  were  committed  to 
his  trust,  except  a  few  which  he  gave  to  his  son  Moroni  (p. 
507,  pars.  1,2). 


Chap.  X.  THE  COURT-HOUSE.— P.  K.  DOTSON.  4I7 

A.C. 

The  battle  of  Cumorah  was  fouglit,  in  which  two  hundred  and 
thirty  thousand  of  the  Nci^hites  were  slain  (p.  507,  pars.  2,  3). 

400.  All  the  Nephites,  as  a  distinct  people,  except  Moroni,  were  de- 
stroyed (p.  509,  par.  1). 

421.  Moroni  finished  and  sealed  up  all  the  records,  according  to  the 
commandment  of  God  (p.  5G1,  par.  1). 


CHAPTER  X. 

Farther  Observations  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City. 

0^'E  of  my  last  visits  was  to  the  court-house  on  an  interesting 
occasion.  The  Palais  de  Justice  is  near  where  the  old  fort  once 
was,  in  the  western  part  of  the  settlement.  It  is  an  unfinished 
building  of  adobe,  based  on  red  sandstone,  with  a  flag-staff  and  a 
tinned  roof,  which  gives  it  a  somewhat  Muscovite  appearance,  and 
it  cost  $20,000.  The  courts  and  Legislature  sit  in  a  neat  room, 
with  curtains  and  chandeliers,  and  polished  pine-wood  furniture, 
all  as  yet  unfaded.  The  occasion  which  had  gathered  together 
the  notabilities  of  the  place  was  this :  Mr,  Peter  Dotson,  the 
United  States  Marshal  of  the  Territorj^,  living  at  Camp  Floj-d, 
and  being  on  the  opposition  side,  had  made  himself — the  Mor- 
mons say — an  unscrupulous  partisan.  In  July,  1859,  he  came 
from  the  cantonment  armed  with  a  writ  issued  by  Mr.  Delana  R. 
Eckels,  Chief  Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court,  and  accompanied  by 
two  officers  of  the  United  States  Army,  to  the  Holy  City  for  the 
purpose  of  arresting  a  Mr.  Mackenzie — now  in  the  Penitentiary 
for  counterfeiting  "quarter-masters'  drafts" — an  engraver  by  pro- 
fession, and  then  working  in  the  Deseret  store  of  Mr.  Brigham 
Young.  Forgery  and  false  coining  are  associated  in  the  Gentile 
mind  with  Mormonism,  and  inveterately  so;  whether  truly  or 
not,  I  can  not  say  :  it  is  highly  probable  that  Mr.  Bogus's*  habi- 
tat is  not  limited  by  latitude,  altitude,  or  longitude ;  at  the  same 
time,  the  Saints  are  too  much  en  evidence  to  entertain  him  pub- 
licly. The  marshal,  probably  not  aware  that  the  Territory  had 
passed  no  law  enabling  the  myrmidons  of  justice  to  seize  suspi- 
cious implements  and  apparatus  made  main  forte^  levied,  despite 
due  notice,  upon  what  he  found  appertaining  to  Mr.  Mackenzie, 
a  Bible,  a  Book  of  Mormon,  and — here  was  the  rub — the  copper 
plates  of  the  Deseret  Currency  Association.  This  plunder  was 
deposited  for  the  night  with  the  governor,  and  was  carried  in  a 

*  Bogus,  according  to  Mr.  Bartlett,  who  quotes  the  "Boston  Courier"  of  June  12, 
1857,  is  a  Western  cornijition  of  Borghese,  "a  very  corrupt  individual,  who,  twenty 
years  ago  or  more,  did  a  tremendous  business  in  the  way  of  supplying  the  great  West 
and  portions  of  the  Soutliwcst  with  counterfeit  bills  and  drafts  on  tictitious  banks." 
The  word  is  now  ap])licd  in  the  sense  of  sham,  forged,  counterfeit,  and  so  on ;  there 
are  bogus  laws  and  bogus  members ;  in  fact,  bogus  enters  every  where. 

Dd 


418  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  X. 

sack  on  tlie  next  day  to  Camp  Floyd.  Then  the  anti-Mormons 
sang  lo  pceans;  they  had — to  use  a  Western  phrase — "got  the 
dead  wood  on  Brigham ;"  letters  traced  back  to  officials  appeared 
in  the  Eastern  and  other  papers,  announcing  to  the  public  that 
the  Prophet  was  a  detected  forger.  Presently,  the  true  character 
of  the  copper  plates  appearing,  they  were  generously  offered  back ; 
but,  as  trespass  had  been  committed,  to  say  nothing  of  libel,  and 
as  all  concerned  in  the  affair  were  obnoxious  men,  it  was  resolved 
to  try  law.  A  civil  suit  was  instituted,  and  a  sum  of  $1600  was 
claimed  for  damage  done  to  the  plates  by  scratching,  and  for  loss 
of  service,  which  hindered  business  in  the  city.  The  unfortunate 
marshal,  who  was  probably  a  "  cat's-paw,"  had  "  caught  a  Tartar ;" 
he  possessed  a  house  and  furniture,  a  carriage  and  horses,  all  of 
which  were  attached,  and  the  case  of  "  Brigham  Young,  sen.,  vs. 
P.  K.  Dotson,"  ended  in  a  verdict  for  the  plaintiff,  viz.,  value  of 
plates  destroyed,  $1668 ;  damages,  $648  66.  The  anti-Mormons 
declared  him  a  martyr ;  the  Mormons,  a  vicious  fool ;  and  sensi- 
ble Grentiles  asserted  that  he  was  rightly  served  for  showing  evil 
animus.  The  case  might  have  ended  badly  but  for  the  prudence 
of  the  governor.  Had  a  descent  been  made  for  the  purpose  of 
arrest  upon  the  Prophet's  house,  the  consequences  would  certain- 
ly have  been  serious  to  the  last  degree. 

The  cause  was  tried  in  the  Probate  Court,  which  I  have  ex- 
plained to  be  a  Territorial,  not  a  federal  court.  The  Honorable 
Elias  Smith  presided,  and  the  arguments  for  the  prosecution  and 
the  defense  were  conducted  by  the  ablest  Mormon  and  anti-Mor- 
mon lawyers.  I  attended  the  house,  and  carefully  watched  the 
proceedings,  to  detect,  if  possible,  intimidation  or  misdirection ; 
every  thing  was  done  with  even-handed  justice.  The  physical 
aspect  of  the  court  was  that  which  foreign  travelers  in  the  Far 
West  deUght  to  describe  and  ridicule,  wholly  forgetting  that  they 
have  seen  the  same  scene  much  nearer  home.  His  honor  sat  with 
his  chair  tilted  back  and  his  boots  on  the  table,  exactly  as  if  he 
had  been  an  Anglo-Indian  collector  and  magistrate,  while  by  a 
certain  contraction  and  expansion  of  the  dexter  corner  of  his  well- 
closed  mouth  I  suspected  the  existence  of  the  quid.  The  posi- 
tion is  queer,  but  not  more  so  than  that  of  a  judge  at  Westmin- 
ster sleeping  soundly,  in  the  attitude  of  Pisa's  leaning  monster, 
upon  the  bench.  By  the  justice's  side  sat  the  portly  figure  of  Dr. 
Kay,  opposite  him  the  reporters,  at  other  tables  the  attorneys ;  the 
witnesses  stood  up  between  the  tables,  the  jury  were  on  the  left, 
and  the  public,  including  the  governor,  was  distributed  like  wall- 
flowers on  benches  around  the  room. 

There  is  a  certain  monotony  of  life  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City 
which  does  not  render  the  subject  favorable  for  description.  More- 
over, a  Moslem  gloom,  the  result  of  austere  morals  and  manners, 
of  the  semi-seclusion  of  the  sex,  and,  in  my  case,  of  a  reserve  aris- 
ing toward  a  stranger  who  appeared  in  the  train  of  federal  offi- 


Chat.  X.  HISTORIAN  AND  RECORDER'S  OFFICE.  419 

cials,  hangs  over  society.  There  is  none  of  that  class  which,  ac- 
cording to  the  French  author,  repose  des  femmes  du  monde.  We 
rose  early — in  America  the  climate  seems  to  militate  against  slug- 
abedism  —  and  breakfasted  at  any  hour  between  6  and  9  A.M. 
Ensued  "  business,"  which  seemed  to  consist  principally  of  cor- 
recting one's  teeth,  and  walking  about  the  town,  witli  occasional 
"liquoring  up."  Dinner  was  at  1  P.M.,  announced,  not  by  the 
normal  gong  of  the  Eastern  States,  which  lately  so  dircfully  of- 
fended a  pair  of  Anglo-Hibernian  ears,  but  by  a  hand-bell  which 
sounded  the  pas  de  charge.  Jostling  into  the  long  room  of  the 
ordinary,  we  took  our  seats,  and,  seizing  our  forks,  proceeded  at 
once  to  action,  after  the  fashion  of  Puddingburn  House,  where 

"They  who  came  not  the  first  call, 
Got  uo  meat  till  the  next  meal." 

Nothing  but  water  was  drunk  at  dinner,  except  when  a  gentle- 
man preferred  to  wash  down  roast  pork  with  a  tumbler  of  milk ; 
wine  in  this  part  of  the  world  is  of  course  dear  and  bad,  and  even 
should  the  Saints  make  their  own,  it  can  scarcely  be  cheap  on  ac- 
count of  the  price  of  labor.  Feeding  ended  with  a  glass  of  liquor, 
not  at  the  bar,  because  there  was  none,  but  in  the  privacy  of  one's 
chamber,  which  takes  from  drinking  half  its  charm.  Most  well- 
to-do  men  found  time  for  a  siesta  in  the  early  afternoon.  There 
was  supper,  which  in  modern  English  parlance  would  be  called 
dinner,  at  6  P.M.,  and  the  evening  was  easily  spent  with  a  friend. 
One  of  my  favorite  places  of  visiting  was  the  Historian  and 
Eecorder's  Office,  opposite  Mr.  Brigham  Young's  block.  It  con- 
tained a  small  collection  of  volumes,  together  with  papers,  official 
and  private,  plans,  designs,  and  other  requisites,  many  of  them 
written  in  the  Deseret  alphabet,  of  which  I  subjoin  a  copy.*  It 
is,  as  will  readily  be  seen,  a  stereographic  modification  of  Pit- 
man's and  other  systems.  Types  have  been  cast  for  it,  and  arti- 
cles are  printed  in  the  newspapers  at  times ;  as  man,  however, 
prefers  two  alphabets  to  one,  it  will  probably  share  the  fate  of  the 
"  Fonetik  Nuz."  Sir  A.  Alison  somewhere  delivers  it  as  his  opin- 
ion that  the  future  historian  of  America  will  be  forced  to  Europe, 
where  alone  his  material  can  be  found ;  so  far  from  this  being  the 
case,  the  reverse  is  emphatically  true :  every  where  in  the  States, 
even  in  the  newest,  the  Historical  Society  is  an  institution,  and 
men  pride  themselves  upon  laboring  for  it.  At  the  office  I  used 
to  meet  Mr.  George  A.  Smith,  the  armor-bearer  to  the  Prophet  in 
the  camp  of  Zion,  who  boasts  of  having  sown  the  first  seed,  built 
the  first  saw-mill,  and  ground  the  first  flour  in  Southern  Utah, 
whence  the  nearest  settlements,  separated  by  terrible  deserts,  were 
distant  200  miles.  His  companions  were  Messrs.  "W.  Woodruff, 
Bishop  Bentley,  who  was  preparing  for  a  missionary  visit  to  En- 
gland, and  Wm.  Thomas  Bullock,  an  intelligent  Mormon,  who  has 
had  the  honor  to  be  soundly  abused  in  Mrs.  Ferris's  11th  letter. 

*  See  next  page. 


420 


THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 


Chap,  X. 


THE  DESERET 

ALPHABET. 

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The  lady's  "  wicked  Welshman" — I  suppose  she  remembered  the 
well-known  line  anent  the  sons  of  the  Cymri — 

"Taffy  is  a  Welshman,  Taffy  is  a  thief"— 

is  no  Cambrian,  but  an  aborigine  of  Leek,  Stafibrdshire,  England, 
and  was  from  1838  to  1843  an  excise  officer  in  her  majesty's  In- 


I 


Chap.  X.  FEDERAL  OFFICIALS.  421 

land  Revenue ;  he  kindly  supplied  me  -with  a  plan  of  the  city,  and 
other  information,  for  which  he  has  my  grateful  thanks. 

At  the  office,  the  undying  hatred  of  all  things  Gentile-federal 
had  reached  its  climax ;  every  slight  offered  to  the  faith  by  anti- 
Mormons  is  there  laid  up  in  lavender,  every  grievance  is  careful- 
ly recorded.  There  I  heard  how,  at  a  general  conference  of  the 
Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-Day  Saints,  in  September,  1851, 
Perry  E.  Brocchus,  a  judge  of  the  Supreme  Court,  having  the  de- 
sign of  becoming  Territorial  delegate  to  Congress,  ascended  the 
rostrum  and  foully  abused  their  most  cherished  institution,  po- 
lygamy.* He  was  answered  with  sternness  by  Mr.  Brigham 
Young,  and  really,  under  the  circumstances,  the  Saints  behaved 
very  well  in  not  proceeding  to  voies  de  feats.  Mr.  Brocchus,  see- 
ing personal  danger,  left  the  city  in  company  with  Chief  Justice 
L.  C.  Brandenburg  and  Mr.  Secretary  Harris,  whom  the  Mormons 
very  naturally  accused  of  carrjdng  away  $24,000,  the  sum  appro- 
priated by  Congress  for  the  salary  and  the  mileage  of  the  local 
Legislature,  thus  putting  a  clog  upon  the  wheels  of  government. 
I  also  heard  how  Judge  Drummond,  in  1856,  began  the  troubles 
by  falsely  reporting  to  the  federal  authority  that  the  Mormons 
were  in  a  state  of  revolt ;  that  they  had  burned  the  public  library, 
and  were,  in  fact,  defying  the  Union — how,  bigotry  doing  its  work, 
the  officials  at  Washington  believed  the  tale  without  investiga- 
tion, and  sent  an  army  which  was  ready  to  renew  the  scenes  of 
St.  Bartholomew  and  Nauvoo.  The  federal  troops  were  rather 
pitied  than  hated ;  had  they  been  militia  they  would  have  been 
wiped  out;  but  "wretched  Dutchmen,  and  poor  devils  of  Irish- 
men," acting  under  orders,  were  sim]3ly  despised.  iLheiv fainkin- 
tise  was  contrasted  most  unfavorably  with  the  fiery  Mormon  youth 
that  was  spoiling  for  a  fight ;  that  could  ride,  like  part  of  the 
horse,  down  places  where  no  trooper  dared  venture ;  that  picked 
up  a  dollar  at  full  gallop,  drove  off  the  invaders'  cattle,  burned 
wagons,  grass,  and  provisions,  ofi*ered  to  lasso  the  guns,  and,  when 
they  had  taken  a  prisoner,  drank  with  him  and  let  him  go — how 
Governor  Cumming,  after  his  entry,  at  once  certified  the  untruth- 
fulness of  the  scandal  spread  by  Judge  Drummond,  especially  that 
touching  the  library  and  archives,  and  reported  that  no  federal 
officer  had  ever  been  killed  or  even  assaulted  by  the  Saints — how 
the  effiscts  of  these  misrepresentations  have  been  and  still  are  se- 
rious. In  1857,  for  instance,  the  mail  was  cut  off,  and  a  large 
commercial  community  was  left  without  postal  communication 
for  a  whole  year :  the  ostensible  reason  was  the  troubled  state  of 
the  Territory ;  the  real  cause  was  the  desire  of  the  Post-office  De- 
partment to  keep  the  advance  of  the  troops  dark.    The  Mormons 

*  On  the  5th  of  April,  18G0,  the  Chamber  of  Representatives  at  Washington  pass- 
ed a  projected  law  to  repress  polygamy  by  a  majority  of  149  to  60.  Fortunately,  the 
Committee  of  the  Senate  had  no  time  to  report  upon  it,  and  the  slave  discussion  as- 
sumed dimensions  which  buried  Mormonism  in  complete  oblivion. 


422  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  X. 

complain  that  tliey  have  ever  been  made  a  subject  of  political 
capital.  President  Van  Buren  openly  confessed  to  them,  "  Gen- 
tlemen, your  cause  is  just,  but  I  can  do  nothing  for  you ;  if  I  took 
your  part  I  should  lose  the  vote  of  Missouri."  Every  grievance 
against  them,  they  say,  is  listened  to  and  readily  believed :  as  an 
example,  a  Mr.  John  Eobinson,  of  Liverpool,  had  lately  represent- 
ed to  her  Britannic  majesty's  Secretary  for  Foreign  Affairs  that 
his  mother  and  sister  were  detained  in  Utah  Territory  against 
their  will;  the  usual  steps  were  taken;  the  British  minister  ap- 
plied to  the  United  States  Secretary  of  State,  who  referred  the  af- 
fair to  the  governor  of  the  Territory ;  after  which  process  the  tale 
turned  out  a  mere  canard.  This  sister  had  been  married  to  INIr. 
Ferguson,  adjutant  general  of  the  Nauvoo  Legion ;  the  mother 
had  left  the  City  of  the  Saints  for  Illinois,  and  had  just  written  to 
her  son-in-law  for  means  by  which  she  could  return  to  a  place 
whence  she  was  to  be  rescued  by  British  interference.  To  a  false 
prejudice  against  themselves  the  Mormons  attribute  the  neglect 
with  which  their  project  of  colonizing  Vancouver's  Island  was 
treated  by  the  British  government,  and  the  active  opposition  to 
bo  expected  should  they  ever  attempt  to  settle  in  the  Valley  of 
the  Saskatchewan.  And  they  think  it  poor  policy  on  the  part  of 
England  to  "bluff  off"  100,000  moral,  industrious,  and  obedient 
subjects,  who  would  be  a  bulwark  against  aggression  on  the  part 
of  the  States,  and  tend  materially  to  prepare  the  thousand  miles 
of  valley  between  the  Mississippi  and  the  Pacific  for  the  coming 
railway. 

At  the  office  I  also  obtained  details  concerning  education  in 
Great  Salt  Lake  City.  Before  commencing  the  subject  it  will  be 
necessary  to  notice  certain  statements  relating  to  the  ingenuous 
youth  of  Utah  Territory.  It  is  generally  asserted  that  juvenile 
mortality  here  ranks  second  only  to  Louisiana,  and  the  fault  is,  of 
course,  charged  upon  polygamy.  A  French  author  talks  of  the 
mortalite  effrayante  among  the  newly-born,  while  owning,  anoma- 
lously, that  the  survivors  sont  braves  et  rohustes.  I  "doubt  the 
fact."  Mr.  Ferris,  moreover,  declares  that  there  is  "  nowhere  out 
of  the  Five  Points  of  New  York  City  a  more  filthy,  miserable, 
and  disorderly  rabble  of  children  than  can  be  found  in  the  streets 
of  Great  Salt  Lake  City."  As  far  as  my  experience  goes,  it  is 
the  reverse.  I  was  surprised  by  their  numbers,  cleanliness,  and 
health,  their  hardihood  and  general  good  looks.  They  are  bold 
and  spirited.  The  Mormon  father,  like  the  Indian  brave,  will  not 
allow  the  barbarous  use  of  the  stick ;  but  this  is  perhaps  a  gener- 
al feeling  throughout  the  States,  where  the  English  traveler  first 
observes  the  docility  of  the  horses  and  the  indocility  of  the  chil- 
dren. But,  as  regards  rudeness,  let  a  man  "  with  whiskers  under 
his  snout,"  i.  e.,  mustaches,  ride  through  a  village  in  Essex  or 
Warwickshire,  and  he  will  suffer  more  contumely  at  the  hands 
of  the  infant  population  in  half  an  hour  than  in  half  a  year  in  the 


Chap.  X.  CHILDREN  OF  THE  SAINTS.  423 

United  States  or  in  Utah.  M.  Eemy,  despite  a  "  vif  desir''''  to 
judge  favorably  of  the  Saints,  could  not  help  owning  that  the 
children  are  mostly  givssiers,  mentews,  libertins  avant  Vuge ;  that 
they  use  un  langage  hoiiteux,  comme  si  les  mysieres  de  la  polygamie 
leur  avaient  eie  reveUs  des  Tdge  de  raison.  Apparently  since  1855 
ceite  corruption  precoce  has  disappeared.  I  found  less  premature 
depravity  than  in  the  children  of  European  cities  generally.  Mr. 
J.  Hyde  also  brings  against  the  juvenile  Saints  severe  charges, 
too  general,  however,  not  to  be  applicable  to  other  lands.  "  Cheat- 
ing the  confiding  is  called  smart  trading ;"  the  same  has  been  said 
of  New  England.  "Mischievous  cruelty,  evidences  of  spirit;"  the 
attribute  of  Plato's  boys  and  of  the  "Western  frontiers  generally. 
"Pompous  bravado,  manly  talk;"  not  unusual  in  New  York, 
London,  and  Paris.  "  Eeckless  riding,  fearless  courage ;"  so  ap- 
parently thinks  the  author  of  "  Guy  Livingstone."  "  And  if  they 
outtalk  their  fathers,  outwit  their  companions,  whip  their  school- 
teacher, outcurse  a  Gentile,  they  are  thought  to  be  promising 
greatness,  and  are  praised  accordingly.  Every  visitor  to  Salt 
Lake  will  recognize  the  portrait,  for  every  visitor  proclaims  them 
to  be  the  most  whisky-loving,  tobacco-chewing,  saucy,  and  preco- 
cious children  he  ever  saw."  This  is  the  glance  of  the  anti-Mor- 
mon eye  pure  and  simple.  Tobacco  and  whisky  are  too  dear  for 
childhood  at  the  City  of  the  Saints ;  moreover,  twenty  years  ago, 
before  Tom  Brown  taught  boys  not  to  be  ashamed  of  being  called 
good,  a  youth  at  many  an  English  public  school  would  have  been 
"  cock  of  the  walk"  if  gifted  with  the  rare  merits  described  above. 
I  remarked  that  the  juveniles  had  all  the  promptness  of  reply  and 
the  peremptoriness  of  information  which  characterizes  the  Scotch 
and  the  people  of  the  Eastern  States.  A  half-educated  man  can 
not  afford  to  own  ignorance.  He  must  answer  categorically  every 
question,  however  beyond  his  reach ;  and  the  result  is  fatal  to  the 
diaries  of  those  travelers  who  can  not  diagnostize  the  disease. 

Mormon  education  is  of  course  peculiar.  The  climate  predis- 
poses to  indolence.  While  the  emigrants  from  the  Old  Country 
are  the  most  energetic  and  hard-working  of  men,  their  children, 
like  the  race  of  backwoodsmen  in  mass,  are  averse  to  any  but 
pleasurable  physical  exertion.  The  object  of  the  young  colony  is 
to  rear  a  swarm  of  healthy  working  bees.  The  social  hive  has  as 
yet  no  room  for  drones,  book-worms,  and  gentlemen.  The  work 
is  proportioned  to  their  powers  and  inclinations.  At  fifteen  a  boy 
can  use  a  whip,  an  axe,  or  a  hoe — he  does  not  like  the  plow — to 
perfection.  He  sits  a  liare-backed  horse  like  a  Centaur,  handles 
his  bowie-knife  skillfully,  never  misses  a  mark  with  his  revolver, 
and  can  probably  dispose  of  half  a  bottle  of  whisky.  It  is  not  an 
education  which  I  would  commend  to  the  generous  youth  of  Paris 
and  London,  but  it  is  admirably  fitted  to  the  exigencies  of  the  sit- 
uation. With  regard  to  book-work,  there  is  no  difficulty  to  ob- 
tain in  Great  Salt  Lake  City  that  "  mediocrity  of  knowledge  be- 


42-i  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  X. 

tween  learning  and  ignorance"  whicli  distinguished  the  grammar- 
schools  of  the  "Western  Islands  in  the  days  of  Samuel  Johnson. 
Amid  such  a  concourse  of  European  converts,  any  language,  from 
Hebrew  to  Portuguese,  can  be  learned.  Mathematics  and  the  ex- 
act sciences  have  their  votaries.  There  are  graduates  of  Ilarvard, 
Dartmouth,  and  other  colleges.  I  saw  one  gentleman  who  had 
kept  a  school  in  Portsmouth,  and  another,  who  had  had  a  large 
academy  in  Shropshire,  taught  in  the  school  of  the  14th  ward. 
Music,  dancing,  drawing,  and  other  artlets,  which  go  by  the  name 
of  accomplishments,  have  many  votaries.  Indefatigable  travelers 
there  are  in  abundance.  Almost  every  Mormon  is  a  missionary, 
and  every  missionary  is  a  voj^ager.  Captain  Gibson,  a  well-known 
name  for  "  personal  initiative"  in  the  Eastern  Main,  where  he  was 
seized  by  the  Dutch  of  Java,  lately  became  a  convert  to  Mormon- 
ism,  married  his  daughter  to  Mr.  Brigham  Young,  and  in  sundry 
lectures  delivered  in  the  Tabernacle,  advised  the  establishment  of 
a  stake  of  Zion  in  the  "  Islands  of  the  Seas,"  which  signified,  I 
suppose,  his  intention  that  the  Netherlands  should  "  smell  H — 11." 
Law  is'  commonly  studied,  and  the  practice,  as  I  have  shown,  is 
much  simplified  by  the  absence  of  justice.  A  solicitor  from  Lon- 
don is  also  established  here.  Theology  is  the  growth  of  the  soil, 
i Medicine  is  represented  by  two  graduates — one  of  Maryland ;  the 
other,  who  prefers  politics  to  practice,  of  New  York.  I  am  at 
pains  to  discover  what  gave  rise  to  the  Gentile  reports  that  the 
Mormons,  having  a  veritable  horror  of  medicine,  leave  curing  to 
the  priests,  and  dare  not  arrogate  the  art  of  healing.  Masterships 
and  apprenticeships  are  carefully  regulated  by  Territorial  law. 
Every  one  learns  to  read  and  write ;  probably  the  only  destitutes 
are  the  old  European  pariahs,  and  the  gleanings  from  the  five  or 
six  millions  of  English  illiterati.  The  Mormons  have  discovered, 
or,  rather,  have  been  taught,  by  their  necessities  as  a  working 
population  in  a  state  barely  twelve  years  old,  that  the  time  of 
school  drudgery  may  profitably  be  abridged.  A  boy,  they  say, 
will  learn  all  that  his  memory  can  carry  during  three  hours  of 
book-work,  and  the  rest  had  far  better  be  spent  in  air,  exercise, 
and  handicraft.  To  their  eminently  practical  views  I  would  of- 
fer one  suggestion,  the  advisability  of  making  military  drill  and 
extension  movements,  with  and  without  weapons,  a  part  of  schol- 
arhood.  For  "setting  up"  the  figure,  forming  the  gait,  and  exer- 
cising the  muscles,  it  is  the  best  of  gymnastic  sj-stems,  and  the 
early  habit  of  acting  in  concert  with  others  is  a  long  stride  in  the 
path  of  soldiership. 

While  it  is  the  fashion  with  some  to  deride  the  attempts  of  this 
painstaking  and  industrious  community  of  hard-handed  men  to 
improve  their  minds,  other  anti-Mormons  have  taken  the  popular 
ground  of  representing  the  Saints  as  averse  to  intellectual  activ- 
ity, despisers  of  science,  respecters  only  of  manual  labor,  and  "sm- 
gulihement  epris  de  la  force  hrutaley    It  is  as  ungenerous  as  to  rid- 


Chap.  X.  MORMON  EDUCATION.  425 

icule  tlic  proceedings  of  an  Englisli  Mechanics'  Institute,  or  the 
compositions  of  an  "  Ed.  Mechanics'  Magazine."  The  names  of 
their  literary  institutions  are,  it  is  true,  somewhat  pretentious  and 
grandiloquent;  but  in  these  lands  there  is  every  where  a  leaning 
toward  the  grandiose.  Humility  does  not  pay.  Modesty  lauda- 
tur  et  alget. 

As  early  as  December,  185-1,  an  act  was  approved  enabling  the 
Chancellor  and  Board  of  Eegeuts  of  the  University  of  the  State 
of  Dcseret  to  appoint  a  superintendent  of  common  schools  for  the 
Territory  of  Utah,  and  duly  qualified  trustees  were  elected  to  as- 
sess and  collect  for  educational  purposes  a  tax  upon  all  taxable 
property.  In  the  same  year  a  pathetic  memorial  was  dispatched 
to  Congress,  requesting  that  honorable  body  to  appropriate  the 
sum  of  $5000  to  advance  the  interests  of  the  University  estab- 
lished by  law  in  the  City  of  Great  Salt  Lake.  I  know  not  wheth- 
er it  was  granted.  As  yet  there  is  no  educational  tax  leviable 
throughout  the  Territory.  Each  district  makes  its  own  regula- 
tions. A  city  rate  supports  a  school  in  each  ward.  The  build- 
ings are  of  plain  adobe,  thirty  feet  by  twenty.  They  also  serve 
as  meeting-places  on  Sabbath  evenings.  There  are  tutoresses  in 
three  or  four  of  the  school-houses,  who  teach  all  the  year  round, 
whereas  male  education  is  usually  limited  by  necessity  to  the  three 
winter  months.  A  certain  difficulty  exists  in  finding  instructors. 
As  in  Australia,  the  pedagogue  is  cheaper  than  a  porter,  and 
"  turning  schoolmaster"  is  a  proverbial  phrase  about  equivalent 
to  coming  upon  the  parish. 

The  principal  educational  institutions  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City 
have  been  the  following : 

1.  The  Deseret  Universal  Scientific. 

2.  The  "  Polysophical  Society,"  a  name  given  by  Judge  Phelps. 

3.  The  Seventies'  Variety  Club. 

4.  The  Council  of  Health,  a  medico-physiologio-clinical  and  ma- 
tronly establishment,  like  the  Dorcas  Societies  of  the  Eastern 
States. 

5.  The  Deseret  Theological  Institution,  whose  President  was 
Mr.  Brigham  Young. 

6.  The  Deseret  Library  and  Musical  Society. 

7.  The  Phrenological  and  Horticultural  Society. 

8.  The  Deseret  Agricultural  and  Manufacturing  Society,  which 
has  already  been  alluded  to.  It  has  many  branch  societies,  whose 
members  pay  an  annual  subscription  of  $1. 

9.  The  Academy  founded  in  April,  18G0,  with  an  appropria- 
tion by  the  local  Legislature  of  Church  money  to  the  extent  of 
$2500.  Science  and  art  are  to  be  taught  gratis  to  all  who  will 
pledge  themselves  to  learn  thoroughly  and  to  benefit  the  Terri- 
tory by  their  exertions.  The  superintendent  is  Mr,  Orson  Pratt ; 
and  his  son,  Mr.  O.  Pratt,  junior,  together  with  Mr.  Cobb,  a  Gen- 
tile, acts  as  teacher.     At  present  those  educated  are  males ;  in 


426  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  X. 

course  of  time  a  girl  class  will  be  established  for  accomplisbineiits 
and  practical  education. 

The  Historian's  Office  was  ever  to  me  a  place  of  pleasant  re- 
sort ;  I  take  my  leave  of  it  with  many  expressions  of  gratitude 
for  the  instructive  hours  passed  there. 

It  will,  I  suppose,  be  necessary  to  supply  a  popular  view  of  the 
"  peculiar  institution,"  at  once  the  bane  and  blessing  of  Mormon- 
ism — plurality.  I  approach  the  subject  with  a  feeling  of  despair, 
so  conflicting  are  opinions  concerning  it,  and  so  difficult  is  it  to 
naturalize  in  Europe  the  customs  of  Asia,  Africa,  and  America, 
or  to  reconcile  the  habits  of  the  19th  century  A.D.  with  those  of 
1900  B.C.  A  return  to  the  patriarchal  ages,  we  have  seen,  has 
its  disadvantages. 

There  is  a  prevailing  idea,  especially  in  England,  and  even  the 
educated  are  laboring  under  it,  that  the  Mormons  are  Communists 
or  Socialists  of  Plato's,  Cicero's,  Mr.  Owen's,  and  M.  Cabet's  school ; 
that  wives  are  in  public,  and  that  a  woman  can  have  as  many 
husbands  as  the  husband  can  have  wives — in  fact,  to  speak  collo- 
quially, that  they  "all  pig  together."  The  contrary  is  notably 
the  case.  The  man  who,  like  Messrs.  Hamilton  and  Howard 
Egan,  murders,  in  cold  blood,  his  wife's  lover,  is  invariably  ac- 
quitted, the  jury  declaring  that  civil  damages  mark  the  rottenness 
of  other  governments,  and  that  "  the  principle,  the  only  one  that 
beats  and  throbs  through  the  heart  of  the  entire  inhabitants  (!)  of 
this  Territory,  is  simply  this :  The  man  luho  seduces  his  neighbor'' s 
ivife  must  die,  and  her  nearest  relation  must  hill  himy  Men,  like' 
Dr.  Vaughan  and  Mr.  Monroe,  slain  for  the  mortal  sin,  perish  for 
their  salvation ;  the  Prophet,  were  they  to  lay  their  lives  at  his 
feet,  would,  because  unable  to  hang  or  behead  them,  counsel  them 
to  seek  certain  death  in  a  righteous  cause  as  an  expiatory  sacri- 
fice,"^ which  may  save  their  souls  alive.  Their  two  mortal  sins 
are :  1.  Adultery ;  2.  Shedding  innocent  blood. 

This  severity  of  punishing  an  offense  which  modern  and  civ- 
ilized society  looks  upon  rather  in  the  light  of  a  sin  than  of  a 
crime,  is  clearly  based  upon  the  Mosaic  code.  It  is  also,  lex  loci, 
the  "common  mountain  law,"  a  "religious  and  social  custom," 
and  a  point  of  personal  honor.  Another  idea  underlies  it :  the 
Mormons  hold,  like  the  Hebrews  of  old,  "children  of  shame"  in 
extreme  dishonor.  They  quote  the  command  of  God,  Deuteron- 
omy (xxiii.,  2),  "a  mamzer  shall  not  enter  into  the  Church  of  the 
Lord  till  the  tenth  generation,"  and  ask  when  the  order  was  re- 
pealed. They  would  expel  all  impurity  from  the  Camp  of  Zion, 
and  they  adopt  every  method  of  preventing  what  they  consider  a 
tremendous  evil,  viz.,  the  violation  of  God's  temple  in  their  own 
bodies. 

*  The  form  of  death  has  yet  to  be  decided.  They  call  this  a  scriptural  practice, 
viz.,  "  to  deliver  such  a  one  unto  Satan  for  the  destruction  of  the  flesh,  that  the  spirit 
may  bo  saved  in  the  day  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ"  (1  Cor.,  v.,  5). 


Chap.  X.        THE  WIFE.— DIVOKCE.— THE  VIRGIN'S  END.  427 

The  marriage  ceremony  is  performed  in  tlie  temple,  or,  that  be- 
ing impossible,  in  Mr.  Brigham  Young's  office,  properly  speaking 
by  the  Prophet,  who  can,  however,  depute  any  follower,  as  Mr. 
Heber  C.  Kimball,  a  simple  apostle,  or  even  an  elder,  to  act  for  him. 
When  mutual  consent  is  given,  the  parties  are  pronounced  man 
and  wife  in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ,  prayers  follow,  and  there  is 
a  patriarchal  feast  of  joy  in  the  evening. 

The  first  wife,  as  among  polygamists  generally,  is  ilie  wife,  and 
assumes  the  iusband's  name  and  title.  Her  "  plurality  "-partners 
are  called  sisters — such  as  Sister  Anne  or  Sister  Blanche — and 
are  the  aunts  of  her  children.  The  first  wife  is  married  for  time, 
the  others  are  sealed  for  eternity.  Hence,  according  to  the  Mor- 
mons, arose  the  Gentile  calumny  concerning  spiritual  wifedom, 
which  they  distinctly  deny.  Girls  rarely  remain  single  past  six- 
teen— in  England  the  average  marrying  age  is  thirty — and  they 
would  be  the  pity  of  the  community  if  they  were  doomed  to  a 
waste  of  youth  so  unnatural. 

Divorce  is  rarely  obtained  by  the  man  who  is  ashamed  to  own 
that  he  can  not  keep  his  house  in  order ;  some,  such  as  the  Pres- 
ident, would  grant  it  only  in  case  of  adultery :  wives,  however, 
are  allowed  to  claim  it  for  cruelty,  desertion,  or  neglect.  Of  late 
years,  Mormon  women  married  to  Gentiles  are  cut  off  from  the 
society  of  the  Saints,  and,  without  uncharitableness,  men  suspect 
a  sound  previous  reason.  The  widows  of  the  Prophet  are  mar- 
ried to  his  successor,  as  David  took  unto  himself  the  wives  of 
Saul ;  being  generally  aged,  they  occupy  the  position  of  matron 
rather  than  wife,  and  the  same  is  the  case  when  a  man  espouses  a 
mother  and  her  daughter. 

It  is  needless  to  remark  how  important  a  part  matrimony  plays 
in  the  history  of  an  individual,  and  of  that  aggregate  of  individu- 
als, a  people ;  or  how  various  and  conflicting  has  been  Christian 
practice  concerning  it,  from  the  double  marriage,  civil  and  relig- 
ious, the  former  temporary,  the  latter  permanent,  of  the  Coptic  or 
Abyssinian  Church,  to  the  exaggerated  purity  of  Mistress  Anna 
Lee,  the  mother  of  the  Shakers,  who  exacted  complete  continence 
in  a  state  established  according  to  the  first  commandment,  cresciie 
et  multiplicamini.  The  literalism  with  which  the  Mormons  have 
interpreted  Scripture  has  led  them  directly  to  polygamy.  The 
texts  promising  to  Abraham  a  progeny  numerous  as  the  stars 
above  or  the  sands  below,  and  that  "in  his  seed  (a  polygamist)  all 
the  families  of  the  earth  shall  be  blessed,"  induce  them,  his  de- 
Foendants,  to  seek  a  similar  blessing.  The  theory  announcing  thatLj 
"  the  man  is  not  without  the  woman,  nor  the  woman  without  the 
man,"  is  by  them  interpreted  into  an  absolute  command  that  both 
sexes  should  marry,  and  that  a  woman  can  not  enter  the  heavenly 
kingdom  without  a  husband  to  introduce  her.  A  virgin's  end  is 
annihilation  or  absorption,  nox  est  -peri^etua  una  dormienda;  and 
as  baptism  for  the  dead — an  old  rite,  revived  and  founded  upon 


428  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Ciiap.  X. 

the  writings  of  St.  Paul  quoted  in  the  last  chapter — ^has  been  made 
a  part  of  practice,  vicarious  marriage  for  the  departed  also  enters 
into  the  Mormon  scheme.  Like  certain  British  Dissenters  of  the 
royal  burgh  of  Dundee,  who  in  our  day  petitioned  Parliament  for 
permission  to  bigamize,  the  Mormons,  with  Bossuet  and  others, 
see  in  the  New  Testament  no  order  against  plurality,*  and  in  the 
Old  dispensation  they  find  the  practice  sanctioned  in  a  family, 
ever  the  friends  of  God,  and  out  of  which  the  Kedeemer  sprang. 
Finally,  they  find  throughout  the  nations  of  the  earth  three  po- 
lygamists  in  theory  to  one  monogame. 

The  "  chaste  and  j)lural  marriage,"  being  once  legalized,  finds  a 
multitude  of  supporters.  The  anti-Mormons  declare  that  it  is  at 
once  fornication  and  adultery  —  a  sin  which  absorbs  all  others. 
The  Mormons  point  triumphantly  to  the  austere  morals  of  their 
community,  their  superior  freedom  from  maladive  influences,  and 
the  absence  of  that  uncleanness  and  licentiousness  which  distin- 
guish the  cities  of  the  civilized  world.  They  boast  that,  if  it  be 
an  evil,  they  have  at  least  chosen  the  lesser  evil ;  that  they  prac- 
tice openly  as  a  virtue  what  others  do  secretly  as  a  sin — how  full 
is  society  of  these  latent  Mormons! — that  their  plurality  has  abol- 
ished the  necessity  of  concubinage,  cryptogam}^,  contubernium, 
celibacy,  manages  du  treizihne  arrondissement,  with  their  terrible 
consequences,  infanticide,  and  so  forth ;  that  they  have  removed 
their  ways  from  those  "whose  end  is  bitter  as  wormwood,  and 
sharp  as  a  two-edged  sword."  Like  its  sister  institution  Slavery, 
the  birth  and  growth  of  a  similar  age.  Polygamy  acquires  vim  by 
abuse  and  detraction :  the  more  turpitude  is  heaped  upon  it,  the 
brighter  and  more  glorious  it  appears  to  its  votaries. 

There  are  rules  and  regulations  of  Mormonism — I  can  not  say 
whether  they  date  before  or  after  the  heavenly  command  to  plu- 
ralize — which  disprove  the  popular  statement  that  such  marriages 
are  made  to  gratify  licentiousness,  and  which  render  polygamy  a 
positive  necessity.  All  sensuality  in  the  married  state  is  strictly 
forbidden  beyond  the  requisite  for  insuring  progeny — the  prac- 
tice, in  fact,  of  Adam  and  Abraham.  During  the  gestation  and 
nursing  of  children,  the  strictest  continence  on  the  part  of  the 
mother  is  required — rather  for  a  hygienic  than  for  a  religious  rea- 
son. The  same  custom  is  practiced  in  part  by  the  Jews,  and  in 
whole  by  some  of  the  noblest  tribes  of  savages ;  the  splendid 
physical  development  of  the  Kaffir  race  in  South  Africa  is  attrib- 

*  Ilistoire  des  Variations,  liv.  iv.  "L'Evangile  n'a  ni  revoquo  ni  defendu  ce  qui 
avait  ete  pcrmis  dans  la  loi  de  Moise  a  I'egard  du  mariape :  Jesus  Christ  n'a  i)as 
change  la  police  exterieure,  mais  il  a  ajoute  seulcment  la  justice  et  la  vie  eternelle 
pour  re'compense."  So,  in  1539,  the  Landgrave  Pliilip  of  Hesse,  wishing  to  marry 
a  second  wife  while  the  first  was  alive,  was  permitted  to  "commit  bigamy"  by  the 
eminent  reformers,  M.  Luther,  Kuhorn  (M.  Bucer),  Melancthon,  and  others,  with  the 
sole  condition  of  secrecy.  In  the  present  age,  the  Eight  Rev.  J.  W.  Colenso,  D.D. 
and  Bishop  of  Natal,  "not  only  tolerates  polygamy  in  converts,  but  defends  it  on 
the  ground  of  religion  and  humanity." 


Chap.  X.  P0LYGA3HY.  429 

uted  by  some  authors  to  a  rule  of  continence  like  that  of  the  Mor-' 
mons,  and  to  a  lactation  prolonged  for  two  years.  The  anomaly 
of  such  a  practice  in  the  midst  of  civilization  is  worthy  of  a  place 
in  De  Balzac's  great  repertory  of  morbid  anatomy :  it  is  only  to  be' 
equaled  by  the  exceptional  nature  of  the  Mormon's  position,  his) 
past  fate  and  his  future  prospects.  Spartan-like,  the  Faith  wants"" 
a  race  of  warriors,  and  it  adoptS'^e  best  means  to  obtain  them. 

Besides  religious  and  physiological,  there  are  social  motives  for 
the  plurality.  As  in  the  days  of  Abraham,  the  lands  about  New 
Jordan  are  broad  and  the  people  few.  Of  the  three  forms  that 
unite  the  sexes,  polygamy  increases,  while  monogamy  balances, 
and  polyandry  diminishes  progeny.  The  former,  as  Montesquieu 
acutely  suggested,  acts  inversely  to  the  latter  by  causing  a  pre- 
ponderance of  female  over  male  births :  "  U n  fait  important  a 
noter,"  says  M.  Eemy,  "c'est  qu'il  y  a  en  Utah  beaucoup  plus  de 
naissances  de  filles  que  de  gar9ons,  resultat  oppose  a  ce  qu'on  ob- 
serve dans  tons  les  pays  ou  la  monogamie  est  pratiquee,  et  par- 
faitement  conforme  a  ce  qu'on  a  remarque  chez  les  polygames 
Mussulmans."  M.  Eemy's  statement  is  as  distinctly  affirmed  by 
Mr.  Hyde,  the  Mormon  apostate.  In  the  East,  where  the  census 
is  unknown,  we  can  judge  of  the  relative  proportions  of  the  sexes 
only  by  the  families  of  the  great  and  wealthy,  who  invariably 
practice  polygamy,  and  we  find  the  number  of  daughters  mostly 
superior  to  that  of  sons,  except  where  female  infanticide  deludes 
the  public  into  judging  otherwise.  In  lands  where  polyandry  is 
the  rule,  for  instance,  in  the  Junsar  and  Bawur  pergunnahs  of  the 
Dhun,  there  is  a  striking  discrepancy  in  the  proportions  of  the 
sexes  among  young  children  as  well  as  adults :  thus,  in  a  village 
where  400  boys  are  found,  there  will  be  120  girls ;  and,  on  the 
other  hand,  in  the  Grurhwal  Hills,  where  polygamy  is  prevalent, 
there  is  a  surplus  of  female  children.  The  experienced  East  In- 
dian official  who  has  published  this  statement*  is  "inclined  to 
give  more  weight  to  nature's  adaptability  to  national  habit  than 
to  the  possibility  of  infanticide,"  for  which  there  are  no  reasons. 
If  these  be  facts,  Nature  then  has  made  provision  for  polygamy 
and  polyandry :  our  plastic  mother  has  prepared  her  children  to 
practice  them  all.  Even  in  Scotland  modern  statists  have  ob- 
served that  the  proportion  of  boys  born  to  girls  is  greater  in  the 
rural  districts ;  and,  attributing  the  phenomenon  to  the  physical 
weakening  of  the  parents,  have  considered  it  a  rule  so  established 
as  to  "  affiard  a  valuable  hint  to  those  who  desire  male  progeny." 
The  anti-Mormons  are  fond  of  quoting  Paley :  "  It  is  not  the  ques- 
tion whether  one  man  will  have  more  children  by  five  wives,  but 
whether  these  five  women  would  not  have  had  more  children  if 
they  had  each  a  husband."  The  Mormons  reply  that  —  setting 
aside  the  altered  rule  of  production — their  colony,  unlike  all  oth- 

*  Hunting  in  the  Himalaya,  by  R,  H.  W.  Dunlop,  C.B.,  B.C.S.,  F.R.G.S.,  Lon- 
don, Richard  Bentley,  1860. 


430  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  X. 

ers,  numbers  more  female  than  male  immigrants ;  consequently 
that,  without  polygamy,  part  of  the  social  field  would  remain  un- 
tilled* 

To  the  unprejudiced  traveler  it  appears  that  polygamy  is  the 
rule  where  population  is  required,  and  where  the  great  social  evil 
has  not  had  time  to  develop  itself  In  Paris  or  London  the  insti- 
tution would,  like  slavery,  die  a  natural  death ;  in  Arabia  and  in 
the  wilds  of  the  Rocky  Mountains  it  maintains  a  strong  hold  upon 
the  affections  of  mankind.  Monogamy  is  best  fitted  for  the  large, 
wealthy,  and  flourishing  communities  in  which  man  is  rarely  the 
happier  because  his  quiver  is  full  of  children,  and  where  the  He- 
tsera  becomes  the  succedaneum  of  the  "plurality-wife."  Polyan- 
dry has  been  practiced  principally  by  priestly  and  barbarous 
tribes, f  who  fear  most  for  the  increase  of  their  numbers,  which 
would  end  by  driving  them  to  honest  industry.  It  reappears  in 
a  remarkable  manner  in  the  highest  state  of  social  civilization, 
where  excessive  expenditure  is  an  obstacle  to  freehold  property, 
and  the  practice  is  probably  on  the  increase. 
,■  ^'     j:he  other  motive  for  polygamy  in  Utah  is  economy.    Servants 

C     are  rare  and  costly  ;  it  is  cheaper  and  more  comfortable  to  marry 
)    them.     Many  converts  are  attracted  by  the  prospect  of  becoming 

/  wives,  especially  from  places  where,  like  Clifton,  there  are  sixty- 
four  females  to  thirty-six  males.  The  old  maid  is,  as  she  ought 
to  be,  an  unknown  entity.  Life  in  the  wilds  of  Western  America 
is  a  course  of  severe  toil :  a  single  woman  can  not  23erform  the 
manifold  duties  of  housekeeping,  cooking,  scrubbing,  washing, 
darning,  child-bearing,  and  nursing  a  family.  A  division  of  labor 
is  necessary,  and  she  finds  it  by  acquiring  a  sisterhood.  Through- 
out the  States,  whenever  a  woman  is  seen  at  manual  or  outdoor 
work,  one  is  certain  that  she  is  Irish,  German,  or  Scandinavian. 
The  delicacy  and  fragility  of  the  Anglo-American  female  nature 
is  at  once  the  cause  and  the  effect  of  this  exemption  from  toil. 

The  moral  influence  diffused  over  social  relations  by  the  jDres- 
ence  of  polygyny  will  be  intelligible  only  to  those  who  have  stud- 
ied the  workings  of  the  system  in  lands  where  seclusion  is  prac- 
ticed in  its  modified  form,  as  among  the  Syrian  Christians.     In 

*  I  am  sure  of  the  correctness  of  this  assertion,  which  is  thus  denied  in  general 
terms  by  M.  Eecliis,  of  the  Revue  des  Deux-Mondes.  "A  la  fin  de  1858,  on  comp- 
tait  sur"  le  Territoire  3617  maris  polypames,  dont  1117  ayant  cinque  femraes  ou 
d'avantape :  mais  un  prand  nombre  de  ]\Iormons  n'avaient  encore  pu  trouver 
d'e'pouses ;  il  est  probable  meme  que  le  chiffre  des  hommcs  depasse  celui  des  femmes, 
comme  dans  tous  les  pays  peuple's  d'emigrans.  L'e'quilibre  entre  les  sexes  n'est  pas 
encore  etabli." 

t  The  Mahabharata  thus  relates  the  origin  of  the  practice  in  India.  The  five 
princely  Pandava  brothers,  when  contending  for  a  prize  offered  by  the  King  of  Dro- 
na  to  tiic  most  succesi^ful  archer,  agreed  to  divide  it  if  any  of  them  should  prove  the 
winner.  Arjun,  the  eldest,  was  declared  victor,  and  received  in  gift  Draupadi,  the 
king's  daughter,  who  thus  became  the  joint-stock  property  of  the  whole  fraternity. 
They  lived  en  famiUe  for  some  years  at  the  foot  of  Bairath,  the  remains  of  which,  or 
rather  a  Ghoorka  structure  on  the  same  site,  are  still  visible  on  a  hill  near  the  N.W. 
comer  of  the  Dhun.     (Hunting  in  the  Himalaya,  chap,  vii.) 


1 


CiiAP.  X.  MORMON  WOMEN.— POLYGAMY.  431 

America  society  splits  into  two  parts— man  and  woman — even 
more  readily  than  in  England ;  each  sex  is  freer  and  happier  in 
the  company  of  its  congeners.  At  Great  Salt  Lake  City  there  is 
a  gloom  like  that  which  the  late  Professor  H.  H.  Wilson  described 
as  being  cast  by  the  invading  Moslem  over  the  innocent  gayety 
of  the  primitive  Hindoo.  The  choice  egotism  of  the  heart  called 
Love — that  is  to  say,  the  propensity  elevated  by  sentiment,  and 
not  undirected  by  reason,  subsides  into  a  calm  and  unimpassioned 
domestic  attachment:  romance  and  reverence  are  transferred,  with 
the  true  Mormon  concentration,  from  love  and  liberty  to  religion 
and  the  Church.  The  consent  of  the  first  wife  to  a  rival  is  sel- 
dom refused,  and  a  menage  a  trois^  in  the  Mormon  sense  of  the 
phrase,  is  fatal  to  the  development  of  that  tender  tie  which  must 
be  confined  to  two.  In  its  stead  there  is  household  comfort,  af- 
fection, circumspect  friendship,  and  domestic  discipline.  Woman- 
hood is  not  petted  and  spoiled  as  in  the  Eastern  States ;  the  inev- 
itable cyclical  revolution,  indeed,  has  rather  placed  her  below  j^ar, 
where,  however,  I  believe  her  to  be  happier  than  when  set  upon 
an  uncomfortable  and  unnatural  eminence. 

It  will  be  asked,  AVhat  view  does  the  softer  sex  take  of  polyg- 
yny ?  A  few,  mostly  from  the  Old  Country,  lament  that  Mr.  Jo- 
seph Smith  ever  asked  of  the  Creator  that  question  which  was 
answered  in  the  afiirmative.  A  very  few,  like  the  Curia  Electa, 
Emma,  the  first  wife  of  Mr.  Joseph  Smith — who  said  of  her,  by- 
the-by,  that  she  could  not  be  contented  in  heaven  without  rule — 
apostatize,  and  become  Mrs.  Bridemann.  The  many  are,  as  might 
be  expected  of  the  easily-moulded  weaker  vessel,  which  proves 
its  inferior  position  by  the  delicate  flattery  of  imitation,  more  in 
favor  of  polygyny  than  the  stronger. 

For  the  attachment  of  the  women  of  the  Saints  to  the  doctrine 
of  plurality  there  are  many  reasons.  The  Mormon  prophets  have 
expended  all  their  arts  upon  this  end,  well  knowing  that  without 
the  hearty  co-operation  of  mothers  and  wives,  sisters  and  daugh- 
ters, no  institution  can  live  long.  They  have  bribed  them  with, 
promises  of  Paradise — they  have  subjugated  them  with  threats 
of  annihilation.  With  them,  once  a  Mormon  always  a  Mormon. 
I  have  said  that  a  modified  reaction  respecting  the  community  of 
Saints  has  set  in  throughout  the  States ;  people  no  longer  wonder 
that  their  missionaries  do  not  show  horns  and  cloven  feet,  and  the 
federal  officer,  the  itinerant  politician,  the  platform  orator,  and  the 
place-seeking  demagogue,  can  no  longer  make  political  capital  by 
bullying,  oppressing,  and  abusing  them.  The  tide  has  turned,  and 
will  turn  yet  more.  But  the  individual  still  suffers :  the  apostate 
Mormon  is  looked  upon  by  other  people  as  a  scamp  or  a  knave, 
and  the  woman  worse  than  a  prostitute.  Again,  all  the  fervor  of 
a  new  faith  burns  in  their  bosoms  with  a  heat  which  we  can  little 
appreciate,  and  the  revelation  of  Mr.  Joseph  Smith  is  considered 
on  this  point  as  superior  to  the  Christian  as  the  latter  is  in  others 


432  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  X 

to  the  Mosaic  Dispensation.  Polygamy  is  a  positive  command 
from  heaven:  if  the  flesh  is  mortified  by  it,  iant  mieux — "no  cross, 
no  crown;"  "blessed  are  they  that  mourn."  I  have  heard  these 
words  from  the  lijDS  of  a  well-educated  Mormon  woman,  who,  in 
the  presence  of  a  Gentile  sister,  urged  her  husband  to  take  unto 
himself  a  second  wife.  The  Mormon  household  has  been  de- 
scribed by  its  enemies  as  a  hell  of  envy,  hatred,  and  malice — a 
den  of  murder  and  suicide.  The  same  has  been  said  of  the  Mos- 
lem harem.  Both,  I  believe,  suffer  from  the  assertions  of  preju- 
dice or  ignorance.  The  temper  of  the  Kew  is  so  far  superior  to 
that  of  the  Old  Country,  that,  incredible  as  the  statement  may 
appear,  rival  wives  do  dwell  together  in  amit}^,  and  do  quote  the 
proverb  "the  more  the  merrier."  Moreover,  they  look  with  hor- 
ror at  the  position  of  the  "  slavey"  of  a  pauper  mechanic  at  being 
required  to  "  nigger  it"  upon  love  and  starvation,  and  at  the  ne- 
cessity of  a  numerous  family.  They  know  that  nine  tenths  of  the 
miseries  of  the  poor  in  large  cities  arise  from  early  and  imprudent 
marriages,  and  they  would  rather  be  the  fiftieth  "sealing"  of  Dives 
than  the  toilsome  single  wife  of  Lazarus.  The  French  saying  con- 
cerning motherhood — "?e  premier  ernbellit,  h  second  detruit^  k  troi- 
sieme  gate  iout,'^  is  true  in  the  "\Yestern  world.  The  first  child  is 
welcomed,  the  second  is  tolerated,  the  third  is  the  cause  of  tears 
and  reproaches,  and  the  fourth,  if  not  prevented  by  gold  pills  or 
some  similar  monstrosity,  causes  temper,  spleen,  and  melancholy, 
with  disgust  and  hatred  of  the  cause.  What  the  Xapoleonic  abo- 
lition of  the  law  of  primogeniture,  combined  with  centralization 
of  the  peasant  class  in  towns  and  cities,  has  effected  on  this  side 
of  the  Channel,  the  terrors  of  maternity,  aggravated  by  a  highly 
nervous  temperament,  small  cerebellum,  constitutional  frigidity, 
and  extreme  delicacy  of  fibre,  have  brought  to  pass  in  the  older 
parts  of  the  Union. 

Another  curious  effect  of  fervent  belief  may  be  noticed  in  the 
married  state.  When  a  man  has  four  or  five  wives,  with  reason- 
able families  by  each,  he  is  fixed  for  life  :  his  interests,  if  not  his 
affections,  bind  him  irrevocably  to  his  new  faith.  But  the  bach- 
elor, as  well  as  the  monogamic  youth,  is  prone  to  backsliding. 
Apostasy  is  apparently  so  common  that  many  of  the  new  Saints 
form  a  mere  floating  population.  He  is  proved  by  a  mission  be- 
fore being  permitted  to  marry,  and  even  then  women,  dreading  a 
possible  renegade,  with  the  terrible  consequences  of  a  heavenless 
future  to  themselves,  are  shy  of  saying  yes.  Thus  it  happens 
that  male  celibacy  is  mixed  up  in  a  curious  way  with  polygamy, 
and  that  also  in  a  faith  whose  interpreter  advises  youth  not  to  re- 
main single  after  sixteen,  nor  girls  after  fourteen.  The  celibacy 
also  is  absolute ;  any  infraction  of  it  would  be  dangerous  to  life. 
Either,  then,  the  first  propensity  of  the  phrenologist  is  poorly  de- 
veloped in  these  lands — this  has  been  positively  stated  of  the 
ruder  sex  in  California — or  its  action  is  to  be  regulated  by  habit 
to  a  greater  degree  than  is  usually  believed. 


Chap.  X.  MKS.  PRATT'S  OPINION.  433 

I  am  conscious  that  my  narrative  savors  of  incredibility ;  the 
fault  is  in  the  subject,  not  in  the  narrator.  Exoneravi  animan 
meam.  The  best  proof  that  my  opinions  are  correct  will  be  the 
following  quotation.  It  is  a  letter  addressed  to  a  sister  in  New 
Hampshire  by  a  Mrs.  Belinda  M.  Pratt,  the  wife  of  the  celebrated 
apostle,  M.  Kemy  has  apparently  dramatized  it  (vol.  ii.,  chap,  ii.) 
by  casting  it  into  dialogue  form,  and  placing  it  in  the  mouth  of 
unefemme  distingiiee.  Most  readers,  feminine  and  monogamic,  will 
remark  that  the  lady  shows  little  heart  or  natural  affection ;  the 
severe  calm  of  her  judgment  and  reasoning  faculties,  and  the 
soundness  of  her  physiology,  can  not  be  doubted.     / 

"Great  SaltXat'e  City,  Jan.  12,  1854. 

"Dear  Sister, — Your  letter  of  October  2  was  received  on  yester- 
day. My  joy  on  its  reception  was  more  than  I  can  express.  I  had 
waited  so  long  for  your  answer  to  our  last,  that  I  had  almost  con- 
cluded my  friends  were  oifended,  and  would  write  to  me  no  more. 
Judge,  then,  of  my  joy  when  I  read  the  sentiments  of  friendship  and 
of  sisterly  affection  expressed  in  your  letter. 

"  We  are  all  well  here,  and  are  prosperous  and  happy  in  our  fami- 
ly circle.  My  children,  four  in  number,  are  healthy  and  cheerful, 
and  fast  expanding  their  j^hysical  and  intellectual  faculties.  Health, 
peace,  and  prosperity  have  attended  us  all  the  day  long. 

"  It  seems,  my  dear  sister,  that  we  are  no  nearer  together  in  our 
religious  views  than  formerly.  Why  is  this  ?  Are  we  not  all  bound 
to  leave  this  world,  with  all  we  possess  therein,  and  reap  the  reward 
of  our  doings  here  in  a  never-ending  hereafter  ?  If  so,  do  Ave  not  de- 
sire to  be  undeceived,  and  to  Jcnoio  and  to  do  the  truth  f  Do  we  not 
all  wish  in  our  very  hearts  to  be  sincere  with  ourselves,  and  to  be 
honest  and  frank  with  each  other  ? 

"  If  so,  you  will  bear  with  me  patiently  while  I  give  a  few  of  my 
reasons  for  embracing  and  holding  sacred  that  particular  point  in  the 
doctrine  of  the  Church  of  the  Saints  to  which  you,  my  dear  sister, 
together  with  a  large  majority  of  Christendom,  so  decidedly  object. 
I  mean,  a  '■plurality  of  tcives.'* 

"  I  have  a  Bible  which  I  have  been  taught  from  my  infancy  to  hold 
sacred.  In  this  Bible  I  read  of  a  holy  man  named  Abraham,  who  is 
represented  as  the  friend  of  God,  a  faithful  man  in  all  things,  a  man 
who  kept  the  commandments  of  God,  and  who  is  called  in  the  New 
Testament '  the  father  of  the  faithful.'  See  James,  ii.,  23 ;  Rom,,  iv,, 
16;  Gal.,iii.,  8,  9,  16,  29. 

"  I  find  this  man  had  a  plurality  of  wives,  some  of  which  were 
called  concubines.  See  Book  of  Genesis ;  and  for  his  concubines,  see 
XXV.,  6. 

"  I  also  find  his  grandson  Jacob  possessed  of  four  wives,  twelve 
sons,  and  a  daughter.  These  wives  are  spoken  very  highly  of  by  the 
sacred  writers  as  honorable  and  virtuous  women.  '•These^  say  the 
Scriptures, '  did  build  the  house  of  Israel? 

"  Jacob  himself  was  also  a  man  of  God,  and  the  Lord  blessed  him 
and  his  house,  and  commanded  him  to  be  fruitful  and  multiply.  See 
Gen.,  XXX.  to  xxxv.,  and  particularly  xxxv.,  10, 11. 

E  E 


434  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  X. 

"  I  find  also  that  the  twelve  sons  of  Jacob  by  these  four  wives  be- 
came princes,  heads  of  tribes,  patriarchs,  whose  names  are  had  in  ev- 
erlasting remembrance  to  all  generations. 

"  Now  God  talked  with  Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jacob  frequently,  and 
his  angels  also  visited  and  talked  with  them,  and  blessed  them  and 
their  wives  and  children.  He  also  reproved  the  sins  of  some  of  the 
sons  of  Jacob  for  hating  and  selUng  their  brother,  and  for  adultery. 
But  in  all  his  communications  with  them  he  never  condemned  their 
family  organization,  but,  on  the  contrary,  always  approved  of  it,  and 
blessed  them  in  this  respect.  He  even  told  Abraham  that  he  would 
make  him  the  father  of  many  nations,  and  that  in  him  and  his  seed 
all  the  nations  and  kindreds  of  the  earth  should  be  blessed.  See 
Gen.,  xviii.,  17-19 ;  also  xii.,  1-3.  In  later  years  I  find  the  plurality 
of  wives  perpetuated,  sanctioned,  and  provided  for  in  the  law  of 
Moses. 

"  David  the  Psalmist  not  only  had  a  plurality  of  wives,  but  the 
Lord  himself  spoke  by  the  mouth  of  Nathan  the  prophet,  and  told 
David  that  he  (the  Lord)  had  given  his  master's  wives  into  his  bo- 
som ;  but  because  he  had  committed  adultery  with  the  wife  of  Uriah, 
and  had  caused  his  murdei',  he  would  take  his  wives  and  give  them 
to  a  neighbor  of  his,  etc.     See  2  Sam.,  xii.,  T-11. 

"  Here,  then,  we  have  the  Word  of  the  Lord  not  only  sanctioning 
polygamy,  but  actually  giving  to  King  David  the  wives  of  his  master 
(Saul),  and  afterward  taking  the  wives  of  David  from  him,  and  giv- 
ing them  to  another  man.  Here  we  have  a  sample  of  severe  reproof 
and  punishment  for  adultery  and  murder,  while  polygamy  is  author- 
ized and  approved  by  the  Word  of  God. 

"  But  to  come  to  the  Xew  Testament.  I  find  Jesus  Christ  speaks 
very  highly  of  Abraham  and  his  family.  He  says, 'Jl/a???/  shall  come 
from  the  east^  and  from  the  icest,  andfrora  the  norths  and  from  the 
souths  and  shall  sit  doicn  with  Abi'aham,  Isaac^  and  Jacob  in  the 
kingdom  of  God.''     Luke,  xiii.,  28, 29. 

"Again  he  said,  ''If  ye  xcere  Abraham^  seed  ye  would  do  the  works 
of  Abraham.'' 

"  Paul  the  apostle  wrote  to  the  saints  of  his  day,  and  informed  them 
as  follows:  'As  many  of  you  as  have  been  baptized  into  Christ  have 
put  on  Christ ;  and  if  ye  are  Christ's,  then  are  ye  Abraham's  seed, 
and  heirs  according  to  the  promise. 

"He  also  sets  forth  Abraham  and  Sarah  as  patterns  of  faith  and 
good  works,  and  as  the  father  and  mother  of  faithful  Chiistians,  who 
should,  by  faith  and  good  works,  aspire  to  be  coimted  the  sons  of 
Abraham  and  daughters  of  Sarah. 

"  Now  let  us  look  at  some  of  the  works  of  Sarah,  for  which  she  is 
so  highly  commended  by  the  apostles,  and  by  them  held  up  as  a  pat- 
tern for  Christian  ladies  to  imitate.  '•JSI'o'io  Sarah,  Abrara's  wife,  bare 
him  no  children  /  and  she  had  a  handmaid,  an  Egyptian,  whose 
name  was  Hagar.  And  Sarah  said  unto  Abram,  Behold  now,  the 
Lord  hath  restrained  me  from  bearing :  I ^yray  thee,  go  in  unto  my 
maid:  it  may  be  that  I  may  obtai7i  children  of  her.  And  Abram 
/learkened  unto  the  voice  of  Sarah.  And  Sarah,  Abram'' s  icife,  took 
Hagar  her  maid,  the  Egyptian,  after  Abram  had  dwelt  ten  years  in 


Chap.  X.  MRS.  PRATT'S  OPINION.  435 

the  land  of  Canaan.,  an9,  gave  her  to  her  husband  Abr am  to  be  his 
wife.''     See  Gen.,  xvi.,  1-3. 

"  According  to  Jesus  Christ  and  the  apostles,  then,  the  only  way 
to  be  saved  is  to  be  adopted  into  the  great  family  of  polygamists  by 
the  Gospel,  and  then  strictly  follow  their  examples. 

"Again,  John  the  Kevelator  describes  the  Holy  City  of  the  heav- 
enly Jerusalem,  with  the  names  of  the  twelve  sons  of  Jacob  inscribed 
on  the  gates.     Rev.,  xxi.,  12. 

"To  sum  up  the  whole,  then,  I  find  that  polygamists  were  the 
friends  of  God ;  that  the  family  and  lineage  of  a  polygamist  were  se- 
lected in  Avhich  all  nations  should  be  blessed ;  that  a  polygamist  is 
named  in  the  New  Testament  as  the  father  of  the  faithful  Christians 
of  after  ages,  and  cited  as  a  pattern  for  all  generations ;  that  the  Avife 
of  a  polygamist,  who  encouraged  her  husband  in  the  practice  of  the 
same,  and  even  urged  him  into  it,  and  officiated  in  giving  him  anoth- 
er wife,  is  named  as  an  honorable  and  virtuous  woman,  a  pattern  for 
Christian  ladies,  and  the  very  mother  of  all  holy  women  in  the  Chris- 
tian Church,  whose  aspiration  it  should  be  to  be  called  her  daugh- 
ters ;  that  Jesus  Christ  has  declared  that  the  great  fathers  of  the 
polygamic  family  stand  at  the  head  in  the  kingdom  of  good ;  in 
short,  that  all  the  saved  of  after  generations  should  be  saved  by  be- 
coming members  of  a  polygamic  family ;  that  all  those  who  do  not 
become  members  of  it  are  strangers  and  aliens  to  the  covenant  of 
promise,  the  commonwealth  of  Israel,  and  not  heirs  according  to  the 
promise  made  to  Abraham ;  that  all  people  from  the  east,  west,  north, 
or  south,  who  enter  into  the  kingdom,  enter  into  the  society  of  po- 
lygamists, and  under  their  patriarchal  rule  and  government ;  indeed, 
no  one  can  even  approach  the  gates  of  heaven  without  beholding  the 
names  of  twelve  polygamists  (the  sons  of  four  different  women  by 
one  man)  engraven  in  everlasting  glory  upon  the  pearly  gates. 

"  My  dear  sister,  with  the  Scriptures  before  me,  I  could  never  find 
it  in  my  heart  to  reject  the  heavenly  vision  Avhich  has  restored  to 
man  the  fullness  of  the  Gospel,  or  the  Latter-Day  prophets  and  apos- 
tles, merely  because  in  this  restoration  is  included  the  ancient  law 
of  family  organization  and  government  preparatory  to  the  restora- 
tion of  all  Israel. 

"  But,  leaving  all  Scripture,  history,  or  precedent  out  of  the  ques- 
tion, let  us  come  to  Nature's  laAV.  What,  then,  aj^pears  to  be  the 
great  object  of  the  marriage  relations  ?  I  answer,  the  multiplying 
of  our  species,  the  rearing  and  training  of  children. 

"  To  accomplish  this  object,  natural  law  would  dictate  that  a  hus- 
band should  remain  apart  from  his  wife  at  certain  seasons,  which,  in 
the  very  constitution  of  the  female,  are  untimely;  or,  in  other  words, 
indulgence  should  be  not  merely  for  pleasure  or  wanton  desires,  but 
mainly  for  the  purpose  of  procreation. 

"  The  mortality  of  nature  would  teach  a  mother  that,  during  Na- 
ture's process  in  the  formation  and  growth  of  embryo  man,  her  heart 
should  be  pure,  her  thoughts  and  affections  chaste,  her  mind  calm, 
her  passions  without  excitement,  while  her  body  sliould  be  invigor- 
ated with  every  exercise  conducive  to  health  and  vigor,  but  by  no 
means  subjected  to  any  thing  calculated  to  disturb,  irritate,  weary,, 
or  exhaust  any  of  its  functions. 


436  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAISTS.  Chap.  X. 

"  And  while  a  kind  husband  should  nourish,  sustain,  and  comfort 
the  "wife  of  his  bosom  by  every  kindness  and  attention  consistent 
with  her  situation  and  with  his  most  tender  aJiection,  still  he  should 
refirain  trom  all  those  untimely  associations  which  are  forbidden  in 
the  sreat  constitutional  laws  of  female  nature,  which  laws  we  see 
carried  out  in  almost  the  entire  animal  economy,  human  animals  ex- 
cepted. 

'•  Polygamy,  then,  as  practiced  under  the  patriarchal  law  of  God. 
tends  ciirectly  to  the  chastity  of  women,  and  to  sound  health  and 
morals  in  the  constitutions  of  their  oftspring. 

'•  You  can  read  in  the  law  of  God.  in  your  Bible,  the  times  and  cir- 
cumstances under  which  a  woman  should  remain  apart  from  her  hus- 
band, durinsT  which  times  she  is  considered  unclean ;  and  should  her 
husband  come  to  her  bed  under  such  circumstances,  he  would  com- 
mit a  gross  sin  both  against  the  laws  of  nature  and  the  wise  provi- 
sions of  God's  law,  as  revealed  in  his  word ;  in  short,  he  would  com- 
mit an  abomination  ;  he  would  sin  both  against  his  own  body,  against 
the  body  of  his  wife,  and  against  the  laws  of  procreation,  in  which 
the  health  and  morals  of  his  o&pring  are  directly  concerned. 

'•  The  polygamic  law  of  God  opens  to  all  vigorous,  healthy,  and 
virtuous  females  a  door  by  which  they  may  become  honorable  wives 
of  virtuous  men,  and  mothers  of  faithful,  virtuous,  healthy,  and  vig- 
orous chil-iren. 

"  And  here  let  me  ask  you.  my  dear  sister,  what  female  in  all  Xew 
Hampshire  would  marry  a  drtmkard,  a  man  of  hereditary  disease,  a 
debauchee,  an  idler,  or  a  spendthrift ;  or  what  woman  would  become 
a  prostitute,  or,  on  the  other  hand.  Uve  and  die  single,  or  without 
forming  those  inexpressibly  dear  relationships  of  wife  and  mother,  if 
the  Abrahamic  covenant,  or  patriarchal  laws  of  God.  were  extended 
over  your  State,  and  held  sacred  and  honorable  by  all  ? 

"Dear  sister, in  your  thoughtlessness  you  inquire, 'Why  not  a  plu- 
rality of  husbands  as  weU  as  a  plurality  of  wives  ?'  To  which  I  re- 
ply, Ist.  God  has  never  commanded  or  sanctioned  a  plurality  of  hus- 
bands ;  2d.  '■Jf.in  is  the  head  of  the  xcomari.^  and  no  woman  can  serve 
two  lords ;  3d.  Such  an  order  of  things  wotild  work  death  and  not 
life,  or,  in  plain  language,  it  would  multiply  disease  instead  of  chil- 
dren. In  feet,  the  exp^eriment  of  a  plurality  of  husbands,  or  rather 
of  one  woman  tor  many  men,  is  in  active  operation,  and  has  been  for 
centuries,  in  all  the  principal  towns  and  cities  of  ^  Christendom  P  It 
is  the  genius  of '  Christian  ifistitiitionsJ'  falsely  so  called.  It  is  the 
residt  of  'Jlystery  Babylon^  the  great  irhore  of  all  the  earth?  Or,  in 
other  words,  it  is  the  result  of  making  void  the  holy  ordinances  of 
God  in  relation  to  matrimony,  and  introducing  the  laws  of  Rome,  in 
which  the  clergy  and  nuns  are  forbidden  to  marry,  and  other  mem- 
bers only  permitted  to  have  one  wife.  This  law  leaves  females  ex- 
posed to  a  life  of  sm^e'- blessedness,''  without  husband,  chUd,  or  friend 
to  provide  for  or  comfort  them ;  or  to  a  life  of  poverty  and  loneli- 
ness, exposed  to  temptation,  to  perverted  affections,  to  unlawful  means 
to  gratily  them,  or  to  the  necessity  of  selling  themselves  for  lucre. 
While  the  man  who  has  abundance  of  means  is  tempted  to  spend  it 
on  a  mistress  in  secret,  and  in  a  lawless  way,  the  law  of  God  would 


1 


Chap.  X-  MBS.  PRATTS  OPINION.  437 

have  given  her  to  him  as  an  honorable  wife.  These  circumstances 
give  rise  to  murder,  infanticide,  suicide,  disease,  remorse,  despair, 
wretchedness,  poverty,  imtimely  death,  with  all  the  attendant  train 
of  jealousies,  heartrending  miseries,  want  of  confidence  in  families, 
contaminating  disease,  etc. ;  and,  finally,  to  the  horrible  license  sys- 
tem, in  which  governments  called  Christian  license  their  fair  daugh- 
ters, I  will  not  say  to  play  the  beast,  but  to  a  degradation  far  beneath 
them ;  for  every  species  of  the  animal  creation,  except  man,  refrain 
from  such  abominable  excesses,  and  observe  in  a  great  measure  the 
laws  of  nature  in  procreation. 

"  I  again  repeat  that  Xature  has  constituted  the  female  differently 
from  the  male,  and  for  a  different  purpose.  The  strength  of  the  fe- 
male constitution  is  designed  to  flow  in  a  stream  of  Ufe^  to  nourish 
and  sustain  the  embryo,  to  bring  it  forth,  and  to  nurse  it  on  her  bo- 
som. When  Xature  is  not  in  operation  within  her  in  these  particu- 
lars and  for  these  heavenly  ends,  it  has  wisely  provided  relief  at  reg- 
ular periods,  in  order  that  her  system  may  be  kept  pure  and  healthy, 
without  exhausting  the  fountain  of  life  on  the  one  hand,  or  drying 
up  its  river  of  life  on  the  other,  till  mature  age  and  an  approaching 
change  of  worlds  render  it  necessary  for  her  to  cease  to  be  fruitful, 
and  give  her  to  rest  a  while,  and  enjoy  a  tranquil  life  in  the  midst  of 
that  family  circle,  endeared  to  her  by  so  many  ties,  and  which  may 
be  supposed,  at  this  period  of  her  life,  to  be  approaching  the  vigor 
of  manhood,  and  therefore  able  to  comfort  and  sustain  her. 

'-  Xot  so  with  man.  He  has  no  such  drawback  upon  his  strength. 
It  is  his  to  move  in  a  wider  sphere.  K  God  shall  coimt  him  worthy 
of  a  hundred  fold  in  this  life  of  wives  and  children,  and  houses,  and 
lands,  and  kindreds,  he  may  even  aspire  to  patriarchal  sovereignty-, 
to  empire ;  to  be  the  prince  or  head  of  a  tribe  or  tribes ;  and,  like 
Abraham  of  old,  be  able  to  send  forth,  for  the  defense  of  his  coimtry, 
himdreds  and  thousands  of  his  own  warriors,  bom  in  his  own  house. 

"  A  noble  man  of  God,  who  is  full  of  the  Spirit  of  the  Most  High, 
and  is  counted  worthy  to  converse  with  Jehovah  or  with  the  Son  of 
God.  and  to  associate  with  angels  and  the  spirits  of  just  men  made 
perfect — one  who  will  teach  his  children,  and  bring  them  up  in  the 
light  of  unadulterated  and  eternal  truth — is  more  worthy  of  a  hund- 
red wives  and  children  than  the  ignorant  slave  of  passion,  or  of  vice 
and  folly,  is  to  have  one  wife  and  one  child.  Indeed,  the  God  of 
Abraham  is  so  much  better  pleased  with  one  than  with  the  other, 
that  he  wotdd  even  take  away  the  one  talent,  which  is  habitually 
abused,  neglected,  or  put  to  an  improper  use,  and  give  it  to  him  who 
has  ten  talents. 

"  In  the  patriarchal  order  of  family  government  the  wife  is  botmd 
to  the  law  of  her  husband.  She  honors, '  calls  him  lord.'  even  as  Sa- 
rah obeyed  and  honored  Abraham.  She  Hves  for  him,  and  to  in- 
crease his  glory,  his  greatness,  his  kingdom,  or  family.  Her  affec- 
tions are  centred  in  her  God,  her  husband,  and  her  children. 

"The  children  are  also  under  his  government  worlds  without  end. 
'  WJiile  life,  or  thought,  or  being  lasts,  or  immortality  endwres^  they 
are  bound  to  obey  him  as  their  father  and  king. 

"  He  also  has  a  head  to  whom  he  is  responsible.    He  must  keep 


438  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  X. 

the  commandments  of  God  and  observe  his  laws.  He  must  not  take 
a  wife  unless  she  is  given  to  him  by  the  law  and  authority  of  God. 
He  must  not  commit  adultery,  nor  take  liberties  with  any  woman 
except  his  own,  who  are  secured  to  him  by  the  holy  ordinances  of 
matrimony. 

"  Hence  a  nation  organized  imder  the  law  of  the  Gospel,  or,  in  oth- 
er words,  the  law  of  Abraham  and  the  patriarchs,  would  have  no  in- 
stitutions tending  to  licentiousness  ;  no  adulteries,  fornications,  etc., 
would  be  tolerated.  No  houses  or  institutions  would  exist  for  tral- 
fic  in  shame,  or  in  the  life-blood  of  our  fair  daughters.  Wealthy  men 
would  have  no  inducement  to  keep  a  mistress  in  secret,  or  milawful- 
ly.  Females  would  have  no  grounds  for  temptation  in  any  such  law- 
less life.  Neither  money  nor  pleasure  could  tempt  them,  nor  poverty 
drive  them  to  any  such  excess,  because  the  door  would  be  open  for 
every  virtuous  female  to  form  the  honorable  and  endearing  relation- 
ships of  wife  and  mother  in  some  virtuous  family,  where  love,  and 
peace,  and  plenty  would  crown  her  days,  and  truth  and  the  practice 
of  virtue  qualify  her  to  be  transplanted  with  her  family  circle  in  that 
eternal  soil  where  they  might  multiply  their  children  without  pain, 
or  sorrow,  or  death,  and  go  on  increasing  in  numbers,  in  wealth,  in 
greatness,  in  glory,  might,  majesty,  power,  and  dominion,  in  worlds 
without  end. 

"  Oh  my  dear  sister,  could  the  dark  veil  of  tradition  be  rent  from 
your  mind — could  you  gaze  for  a  moment  on  the  resurrection  of  the 
just — could  you  behold  Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jacob,  and  their  wives 
and  cliildren,  clad  in  the  bloom,  fresliness,  and  beauty  of  immortal 
flesh  and  bones — clothed  in  robes  of  tine  white  linen,  bedecked  with 
precious  stones  and  gold,  and  surrounded  with  an  offspring  of  im- 
mortals as  countless  as  the  stars  of  the  firmament  or  as  the  grains  of 
sand  upon  the  sea-shore,  over  which  they  reign  as  kings  and  queens 
forever  and  ever,  you  would  then  know  something  of  the  weight  of 
those  words  of  the  sacred  writer  which  are  recorded  in  relation  to 
the  four  wives  of  Jacob,  the  mothers  of  the  twelve  patriarchs,  name- 
ly, '■These  did  build  the  house  of  Israel.'' 

"  Oh  that  my  dear  kindred  could  but  realize  that  they  have  need 
to  repent  of  the  sins,  ignorance,  and  traditions  of  those  perverted  sys- 
tems which  are  misnamed  '  Christianity,^  and  be  baptized — buried  in 
the  water,  in  the  likeness  of  the  death  and  burial  of  Jesus  Christ,  and 
rise  to  newness  of  life  in  the  likeness  of  his  resurrection ;  receive  his 
Spirit  by  the  laying  on  of  the  hands  of  an  apostle,  according  to  prom- 
ise, and  forsake  the  world  and  the  pride  thereof.  Thus  they  would 
be  adopted  into  the  family  of  Abraliara,  become  his  sons  and  daugh- 
ters, see  and  enjoy  for  themselves  the  visions  of  the  Spirit  of  eternal 
truth,  which  bear  witness  of  tlie  family  order  of  heaven,  and  the  beau- 
ties and  glories  of  eternal  kindred  ties,  for  my  pen  can  never  describe 
them. 

"  Dear,  dear  kindred :  remember,  according  to  the  New  Testament, 
and  the  testimony  of  an  ancient  apostle,  if  you  are  ever  saved  in  th(^ 
kingdom  of  God,  it  must  be  by  being  adopted  into  the  family  of  po- 
lygamists — the  family  of  tlie  great  patriarch  Abraham ;  for  in  his 
seed,  or  family,  and  not  out  of  it^'' shall  all  the  nations  and  kindreds 
of  the  earth  be  blessed.'' 


Chap.  X.  MRS.  PRATT'S  OPINION.  439 

"You  say  yon  believe  polygamy  is  '- licentious  f  that  it  is  '•  ahoin- 
inahle^^ '  beastly,^  etc. ;  '  the  practice  only  of  the  most  barbarous  na- 
tions, or  of  the  Dark  Ages,  or  of  some  great  or  good  men  who  were 
left  to  commit  gross  sins.'  Yet  you  say  you  are  anxious  for  me  to 
be  converted  to  your  faith ;  and  that  we  may  see  each  other  in  this 
life,  and  be  associated  in  one  great  family  in  that  life  which  has  no 
end. 

"  Now,  in  order  to  coraj^ly  with  your  wishes,  I  must  renoimce  the 
Old  and  New  Testaments ;  must  count  Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jacob, 
and  their  families,  as  licentious,  wicked,  beastly,  abominable  charac- 
ters ;  Moses,  Nathan,  David,  and  the  prophets,  no  better.  I  must 
look  upon  the  God  of  Israel  as  partaker  iu  all  these  abominations,  by 
holding  them  in  fellowship ;  and  even  as  a  minister  of  such  iniquity, 
by  giving  King  Saul's  wives  into  King  David's  bosom,  and  afterward 
by  taking  David's  wives  from  him,  and  giving  them  to  his  neighbor. 
I  must  consider  Jesus  Christ,  and  Paul,  and  John,  as  either  living  in 
a  dark  age,  as  full  of  the  darkness  and  ignorance  of  barbarous  climes, 
or  else  willfully  abominable  and  wicked  in  fellowshiping  polygamists, 
and  representing  them  as  fathers  of  the  faithful  and  rulers  in  heaven. 
I  must  doom  them  all  to  hell,  with  adulterers,  fornicators,  etc.,  or 
else,  at  least,  assign  to  them  some  nook  or  corner  in  heaven,  as  igno- 
rant persons,  who,  knowing  but  little,  were  beaten  with  few  stripes; 
while,  by  analogy,  I  must  learn  to  consider  the  Roman  popes,  clergy, 
and  nuns,  who  do  not  marry  at  all,  as  foremost  in  the  ranks  of  glory, 
and  those  Catholics  and  Protestants  who  have  but  one  wife  as  next 
in  order  of  salvation,  glory,  immortality,  and  eternal  life. 

"Now,  dear  friends,  much  as  I  long  to  see  you,  and  dear  as  you 
are  to  me,  I  can  never  come  to  these  terms.  I  feel  as  though  the 
Gospel  had  introduced  me  into  the  right  family,  into  the  right  line- 
age, and  into  good  company.  And,  besides  all  these  considerations, 
should  I  ever  become  so  beclouded  with  unbelief  of  the  Scriptures 
and  heavenly  institutions  as  to  agree  with  my  kindred  in  New  Hamp- 
shire in  theory,  still  my  practical  circumstances  are  different,  and 
would,  I  fear,  continue  to  separate  us  by  a  wide  and  almost  impassa- 
ble gulf. 

"For  instance, I  have  (as  you  see,  in  all  good  conscience,  founded 
on  the  Word  of  God)  formed  fomily  and  kindred  ties  which  are  in- 
expressibly dear  to  me,  and  which  I  can  never  bring  my  feelings  to 
consent  to  dissolve.  I  have  a  good  and  virtuous  husband  whom  I 
love.  We  have  four  little  children  which  are  mutually  and  inex- 
pressibly dear  to  us.  And,  besides  this,  my  husband  has  seven  other 
living  wives,  and  one  who  has  departed  to  a  better  world.  He  has 
in  ail  upward  of  twenty-five  children.  All  these  mothers  and  chil- 
dren are  endeared  to  me  by  kindred  ties,  by  mutual  affection,  by  ac- 
quaintance and  association ;  and  the  mothers  in  particular,  by  mutual 
and  long-continued  exercises  of  toil,  patience,  long-suffering,  and  sis- 
terly kindness.  We  all  have  our  imperfections  in  this  life ;  but  I 
know  that  these  are  good  and  worthy  women,  and  that  ray  husband 
is  a  good  and  worthy  man ;  one  who  keeps  the  commandments  of 
Jesus  Christ,  and  presides  in  his  family  like  an  Abraham.  He  seeks 
to  provide  for  them  with  all  diUgence ;  he  loves  them  all,  and  seeks 


440  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  X. 

to  comfort  them  and  make  them  happy.  He  teaches  them  the  com- 
mandmeuts  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  gathers  them  about  him  in  the  fam- 
ily circle  to  call  upon  his  God,  both  morning  and  evening.  He  and 
his  family  have  the  confidence,  esteem,  good-will,  and  fellowship  of 
this  entire  Territory,  and  of  a  wide  circle  of  acquaintances  in  Europe 
and  America.  He  is  a  practical  teacher  of  morals  and  religion,  a 
promoter  of  general  education,  and  at  present  occupies  an  honorable 
seat  in  the  Legislative  Council  of  this  Territory. 

"  Now,  as  to  visiting  my  kindred  in  New  Hampshire,  I  would  be 
pleased  to  do  so  were  it  the  will  of  God.  But,  first,  the  laws  of  that 
State  must  be  so  modified  by  enlightened  legislation,  and  the  customs 
and  consciences  of  its  inhabitants,  and  of  my  kindred,  so  altered,  that 
my  husband  can  accompany  me  with  all  his  wives  and  children,  and 
be'  as  much  respected  and  honored  in  his  family  organization  and  in 
his  holy  calling  as  he  is  at  home,  or  in  the  same  manner  as  the  patri- 
arch Jacob  would  have  been  respected  had  he,  with  his  wives  and 
children,  paid  a  visit  to  his  kindred.  As  my  husband  is  yet  in  his 
youth,  as  well  as  myself,  I  fondly  hope  we  shall  live  to  see  that  day ; 
for  already  the  star  of  Jacob  is  in  the  ascendency ;  the  house  of  Is- 
rael is  about  to  be  restored ;  while  '■Mystery  Babylon^  with  all  her  in- 
stitutions, awaits  her  own  overthrow.  Till  this  is  the  case  in  New 
Hampshire,  my  kindred  will  be  under  the  necessity  of  coming  here 
to  see  us,  or,  on  the  other  hand,  we  will  be  mutually  compelled  to 
forego  the  pleasure  of  each  other's  company. 

"  You  mention  in  your  letter  that  Paul  the  apostle  recommended 
that  bishops  be  the  husband  of  one  wife.  Why  this  was  the  case  I 
do  not  know,  unless  it  was,  as  he  says,  that  while  he  was  among  Ro- 
mans he  did  as  Romans  did.  Rome  at  that  time  governed  the  world, 
as  it  were ;  and,  although  gross  idolaters,  they  held  to  the  one-Avife 
system.  Under  these  circumstances,  no  doubt,  the  apostle  Paul,  see- 
ing a  great  many  polygamists  in  the  Church,  recommended  that  they 
had  better  choose  for  this  particular  temporal  ofiice  men  of  small  fam- 
ines, who  would  not  be  in  disrejiute  with  the  government.  This  is 
precisely  our  course  in  those  countries  where  Roman  institutions 
still  bear  sway.  Our  elders  there  have  but  one  wife,  in  order  to  con- 
form to  the  laws  of  men. 

"  You  inquu*e  why  Elder  W.,  when  at  your  house,  denied  that  the 
Church  of  this  age  held  to  the  doctrine  of  plurality.  I  answer  that 
he  might  have  been  ignorant  of  the  fact,  as  our  belief  on  this  point 
was  not  published  till  1852.  And  had  he  known  it,  he  had  no  right 
to  reveal  the  same  until  the  full  time  had  arrived.  God  kindly  with- 
held this  doctrine  for  a  time,  because  of  the  ignorance  and  prejudice 
of  the  nations  of  mystic  Babylon,  that  peradventure  he  might  save 
some  of  them. 

"  Now,  dear  sister,  I  must  close.  I  wish  all  my  kindred  and  old 
acquaintances  to  see  this  letter,  or  a  copy  thereof,  and  that  they  will 
consider  it  as  if  written  to  themselves.  I  love  them  dearly,  and  great- 
ly desire  and  pray  for  their  salvation,  and  that  we  may  all  meet  with 
Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jacob  in  the  kingdom  of  God. 

"  Dear  sister,  do  not  let  your  prejudices  and  traditions  keep  you 
from  believing  the  Bible,  nor  the  pride,  shame,  or  love  of  the  world 


Chap.  XI.         MOKMONISM  THE  FAITH  OF  THE  POOR.  44I 

keep  you  from  your  seat  in  the  kingdom  of  heaven,  among  the  royal 
family  of  polygamists.     Write  often  and  freely. 

"  With  sentiments  of  the  deepest  afiection  and  kindred  feeling,  I 
remain,  dear  sister,  your  aflectionate  sister, 

"  Belinda  Makden  Pkatt." 


CHAPTER  XI. 

Last  Days  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City. 

I  NOW  terminate  my  observations  upon  the  subject  of  Mormon- 
ism.  It  will  be  remarked  that  the  opinions  of  others — not  my 
own — have  been  recorded  as  carefully  as  my  means  of  study  have 
permitted,  and  that  facts,  not  theories,  have  been  the  object  of  this 
dissertation. 

It  will,  I  think,  be  abundantly  evident  that  Utah  Territory  has 
been  successful  in  its  colonization.  Every  where,  indeed,  in  the 
New  World,  the  stranger  wonders  that  a  poor  man  should  tarry 
in  Europe,  or  that  a  rich  man  should  remain  in  America ;  noth- 
ing but  the  strongest  chains  of  habit  and  vis  inertice  can  reconcile 
both  to  their  miserable  lots.  I  can  not  help  thinking  that,  mor- 
ally and  spiritually,  as  well  as  physically,  the  proteges  of  the  Per- 
petual Emigration  Fund  gain  by  being  transferred  to  the  Far 
West.  Mormonism  is  emphatically  the  faith  of  the  poor,  and 
those  acquainted  with  the  wretched  condition  of  the  English  me- 
chanic, collier,  and  agricultural  laborer — it  is  calculated  that  a 
million  of  them  exist  on  ,£25  per  annum — who,  after  a  life  of  ig- 
noble drudgery,  of  toiling  through  the  year  from  morning  till 
night,  are  ever  threatened  with  the  work-house,  must  be  of  the 
same  opinion.  Physically  speaking,  there  is  no  comparison  be- 
tween the  conditions  of  the  Saints  and  the  class  from  which  they 
are  mostly  taken.  In  point  of  mere  morality,  the  Mormon  com- 
munity is  perhaps  purer  than  any  other  of  equal  numbers.*  I 
have  no  wish  to  commend  their  spiritual,  or,  rather,  their  materi- 
alistic vagaries — a  materialism  so  leveling  in  its  unauthorized  de- 
ductions that  even  the  materialist  must  reject  it;  but  with  the 
mind  as  with  the  body,  bad  food  is  better  than  none.  When 
wealth  shall  be  less  unequally  distributed  in  England,  thus  doing 
away  with  the  contrast  of  excessive  splendor  and  utter  destitu- 
tion, and  when  Home  Missions  shall  have  done  their  duty  in  ed- 
ucating and  evangelizing  the  unhappy  pariahs  of  town  and  coun- 
try, the  sons  of  the  land  which  boasts  herself  to  be  the  foremost 
among  the  nations  will  blush  no  more  to  hear  that  the  Mormons 
or  Latter-Day  Saints  are  mostly  English. 

About  the  middle  of  September  the  time  of  my  departure  drew 
nigh.  Judge  Flennikin  found  a  change  of  venue  to  Carson  Val- 
ley necessary ;  Thomas,  his  son,  was  to  accompany  him,  and  the 
*  I  refer  the  reader  to  Appendix  IV. 


442  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  XI. 

Territorial  marshal,  Mr.  Grice — a  quondam  volunteer  in  the  Mex- 
ican War — was  part  of  the  cortege.  Escort  and  ambulance  had 
been  refused ;  it  was  imperative  to  find  both.  Several  proposals 
were  made  and  rejected.  At  last  an  eligible  presented  himself. 
Mr,  Kennedy,  an  Irishman  from  the  neighborhood  of  Dublin,  and 
an  incola  of  California,  where  evil  fate  had  made  him  a  widower, 
had  "swapped"  stock,  and  was  about  to  drive  thirty-three  horses 
and  mules  to  the  "  El  Dorado  of  the  West."  For  the  sum  of  $150 
each  he  agreed  to  convey  us,  to  provide  an  ambulance  which  cost 
him  $300,  and  three  wagons  which  varied  in  price  from  $25  to 
$75.  We  had  reason  to  think  well  of  his  probity,  concerning 
which  we  had  taken  counsel ;  and  as  he  had  lost  a  horse  or  two, 
and  had  received  a  bullet  through  the  right  arm  in  an  encounter 
with  the  Yuta  Indians  near  Deep  Creek  on  the  3d  of  July  of  the 
same  year,  we  had  little  doubt  of  his  behaving  with  due  prudence. 
He  promised  also  to  collect  a  sufficient  armed  party ;  and  as  the 
road  had  lately  seen  troubles — three  drivers  had  been  shot  and 
seventeen  Indians  had  been  reported  slain  in  action  by  the  fed- 
eral troops — we  were  certain  that  he  would  keep  his  word.  It 
was  the  beginning  of  the  hungry  season,  when  the  Indians  would 
be  collecting  their  pine  nuts  and  be  plotting  onslaughts  upon  the 
spring  emigrants. 

I  prepared  for  difficulties  by  having  my  hair  "shingled  off" 
till  my  head  somewhat  resembled  a  pointer's  dorsum,  and  deeply 
regretted  having  left  all  my  wigs  behind  me.  The  marshal  un- 
dertook to  lay  in  our  provisions :  we  bought  flour,  hard  bread  or 
biscuit,  eggs  and  bacon,  butter,  a  few  potted  luxuries,  not  forget- 
ting a  goodly  allowance  of  whisky  andkorn  schnapps,  whose  only 
demerit  was  that  it  gave  a  taste  to  the  next  morning.  The  trav- 
eling canteen  consisted  of  a  little  china,  tin  cups  and  plates,  a  cof- 
fee-pot, frying-pan,  and  large  ditto  for  bread-baking,  with  spoons, 
knives,  and  forks. 

The  last  preparations  were  soon  made.  I  wrote  to  my  friends, 
among  others  to  Dr.  Norton  Shaw,  who  read  out  the  missive 
magno  cum,  risu  audientium^  bought  a  pair  of  leather  leggins  for 
$5,  settled  with  M.  Gebow,  a  Gamaliel  at  whose  feet  I  had  sat  as 
a  student  of  the  Yuta  dialect,  and  defrayed  the  expenses  of  living, 
which,  though  the  bill  was  curiously  worded,*  were  exemplarily 

*  The  bill  in  question  : 

Gt.  S.  L.  City,  Septeber  18th,  1860. 
Captain  Burten  to  James  Townsend,  Dr. 

Aug.  27.  14  Bottle  Beer 600 

Belt  &  Scabbard 500 

Cleaning  Vest  and  Coat 250 

2  Bottles  Branday 450 

Washing 525 

to  Cash,  five  dollars 500 

to  3  weaks  3  days  Bord 3425 

62-50 

Cash,  five  dollars 500 

67-60 


CuAP.XU.       ADIEUX.— "ALL  ABOORD."— MOUNT  NEBO. 


443 


inexpensive.  Colonel  Stambaugh  favored  me  with  a  parting  gift, 
the  "  Manual  of  Surveying  Instructions,"  which  I  preserve  as  a 
reminiscence,  and  a  cocktail  whose  aroma  still  lingers  in  my  ol- 
factories. My  last  evening  was  spent  with  Mr.  Stambaugh,  when 
Mr.  John  Taylor  was  present,  and  where,  with  the  kindly  aid  of 
Madam,  we  drank  a  cafe,  au  lait  as  good  as  the  Cafe  de  Paris  af- 
fords. I  thanked  the  governor  for  his  frank  and  generous  hospi- 
tality, and  made  my  acknowledgments  to  his  amiable  wife.  All 
my  adieux  were  upon  an  extensive  scale,  the  immediate  future 
being  somewhat  dark  and  menacing. 

The  start  in  these  regions  is  coquettish  as  in  Eastern  Africa. 
We  were  to  depart  on  Wednesday,  the  19th  of  September,  at  8 
A.M. — then  10  A.M. — then  12  A.M. — then,  after  a  deprecatory 
visit,  on  the  morrow.  On  the  morning  of  the  eventful  next  day, 
after  the  usual  amount  of  "  smiling,"  and  a  repetition  of  adieux, 
I  found  myself  "  all  aboord,"  wending  southward,  and  mentally 
ejaculating  Hierosolymam  quando  revisam? 


'_'_av^s; 


MOinJT  NEBO. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

ToRubyVaUey. 

Mounted  upon  a  fine  mule,  here  worth  $240,  and  "  bound"  to 
fetch  in  California  $400,  and  accompanying  a  Gentile  youth  who 
answered  to  the  name  of  Joe,  I  proceeded  te  take  my  first  lesson 


444  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.XU. 

in  stock-driving.  We  -^ere  convoying  ten  horses,  which,  not  be- 
ing wild,  declined  to  herd  together,  and,  by  their  straggling,  made 
the  task  not  a  little  difl&cult  to  a  tyro.  The  road  was  that  leading 
to  Camp  Floyd  before  described.  At  the  Brewery  near  Mount- 
ain Point  we  found  some  attempts  at  a  station,  and  were  charged 
Si  50  for  frijoles,  potatoes,  and  bread :  among  other  decorations 
on  the  wall  was  a  sheet  of  prize-fighters,  in  which  appeared  the 
portraiture  of  an  old  man,  once  the  champion  of  the  light  weights 
in  the  English  ring,  now  a  Saint  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City.  The 
day  was  fine  and  wondrous  clear,  affording  us  a  splendid  back 
view  of  the  Happy  Valley  before  it  was  finally  shut  out  from 
sight,  and  the  Utah  Lake  looked  a  very  gem  of  beauty,  a  diamond 
in  its  setting  of  steely  blue  mountains.  After  fording  the  Jordan 
we  were  overtaken  by  Mr.  Kennedy,  who  had  been  delayed  by 
more  last  words,  and  at  the  dug-out  we  drank  beer  with  Shrop- 
shire Joe  the  Mormon,  who  had  been  vainly  attempting  to  dig 
water  by  a  divining  rod  of  peach-tree.  When  moonlight  began 
to  appear,  Joe  the  Gentile  was  ordered  by  the  "  boss"  to  camp  out 
with  the  laorses,  where  fodder  could  be  found  gratis,  a  command- 
ment which  he  obeyed  with  no  end  of  grumbling.  It  was  deep 
in  the  night  before  we  entered  Frogtown,  where  a  creaking  little 
Osteria  supplied  us  with  supper,  and  I  found  a  bed  at  the  quar- 
ters of  my  friend  Captain  Heth,  who  obligingly  insisted  upon  my 
becoming  his  guest. 

The  five  days  between  the  20th  and  the  26th  of  September 
sped  merrily  at  my  new  home.  Camp  Floyd;  not  pressed  for 
time,  I  embraced  with  pleasure  the  opportunity  of  seeing  the  most 
of  my  American  brothers  in  arms.  My  host  was  a  son  of  that 
Old  Dominion  of  Queen  Elizabeth,  where  still  linger  traces  of  the 
glorious  Cavalier  and  the  noble  feudal  spirit,  which  (alas !)  have 
almost  disappeared  from  the  mother  country ;  where  the  genea- 
logical tree  still  hangs  against  the  wall ;  where  the  principal  fam- 
ilies, the  Kelsons,  Harrisons,  Pages,  Seldens,  and  Aliens,  intermar- 
ry and  bravely  attempt  to  entail ;  and  where  the  houses,  built  of 
brick  brought  out  from  England,  still  retain  traces  of  the  seven- 
teenth century.  A  winter  indeed  might  be  passed  most  pleasant- 
ly on  the  banks  of  James  River  and  in  the  west  of  Virginia — a 
refreshing  winter  to  those  who  love,  as  I  do,  the  traditions  of  our 
ancestors. 

From  Captain  Heth  I  gathered  that  in  former  times,  in  Western 
America  as  in  British  India,  a  fair  aborigine  was  not  unfrequent- 
ly  the  copartner  of  an  officer's  hut  or  tent.  The  improved  com- 
munication, however,  and  the  frequency  of  marriage,  have  abol- 
ished the  custom  by  rendering  it  unfashionable.  The  Indian 
squaw,  like  the  Beebee,  seldom  looked  upon  her  "mari"  in  any 
other  light  but  her  banker.  An  inveterate  beggar,  she  would  beg 
for  all  her  relations,  for  all  her  friends,  and  all  her  tribe,  rather 
than  not  beg  at  all,  and  the  lavatory  process  required  always  to 


CuAT.  XII.  SPEEES.— ARMY  GRIEVANCES.  445 

be  prefaced  with  the  bribe.  Officers  who  were  long  thrown  among 
the  Prairie  Indians  joined,  as  did  the  Anglo-Indian,  in  their  nautch- 
es  and  other  amusements,  where,  if  whisky  was  present,  a  cut  or 
stab  might  momentarily  be  expected.  The  skin  was  painted  white, 
black,  and  red,  the  hair  was  dressed  and  decorated,  and  the  shirt 
was  tied  round  the  waist,  while  broadcloth  and  blanket,  leggins 
and  moccasins  completed  the  costume.  The  "  crack  thing  to  do" 
when  drinking  with  Indians,  and  listening  to  their  monotonous 
songs  and  tales,  was  to  imitate  Indian  customs ;  to  become,  under 
the  influence  of  the  jolly  god,  a  Hatim  Tai ;  exceedingly  gener- 
ous ;  to  throw  shirt  to  one  man,  blanket  to  another,  leggins  to  a 
third — in  fact,  to  return  home  in  breech-cloth.  Such  sprees  would 
have  been  severely  treated  by  a  highly  respectable  government ; 
they  have  now,  however,  like  many  a  pleasant  hour  in  British  In- 
dia, had  their  day,  and  are  sunk,  many  a  fathom  deep,  in  the  gen- 
uine Anglo-Scandinavian  gloom. 

I  heard  more  of  army  grievances  during  my  second  stay  at 
Camp  Floyd.  The  term  of  a  soldier's  enlistment,  five  years,  is 
too  short,  especially  for  the  cavalry  branch,  and  the  facilities  for 
desertion  are  enormous.  Between  the  two,  one  third  of  the  army 
disappears  every  year.  The  company  which  should  number  84 
has  often  only  50  men.  The  soldier  has  no  time  to  learn  his 
work ;  he  must  drive  wagons,  clear  bush,  make  roads,  and  build 
huts  and  stables.  When  thoroughly  drilled  he  can  take  his  dis- 
charge, and  having  filled  a  purse  out  of  his  very  liberal  pay  ($11 
per  mensem),  he  generally  buys  ground  and  becomes  a  landed 
proprietor.  The  officers  are  equally  well  salaried  ;  but  marching, 
countermarching,  and  contingent  expenses  are  heavy  enough  to 
make  the  profession  little  better  than  it  is  in  France.  The  Secre- 
tary of  War  being  a  civilian,  with  naturally  the  highest  theoretic- 
al idea  of  discipline  and  command  combined  with  economy,  is  al- 
ways a  martinet ;  no  one  can  exceed  the  minutest  order,  and  leave 
is  always  obtained  under  difficulties.  As  the  larger  proportion 
of  the  officers  are  Southern  men,  especially  Virginians,  and  as  the 
soldiers  are  almost  entirely  Germans  and  Irish — the  Egyptians  of 
modern  times — the  federal  army  will  take  little  part  in  the  ensu- 
ing contest.  It  is  more  than  probable  that  the  force  will  disband, 
break  in  two  like  the  nationalities  from  which  it  is  drawn.  As 
far  as  I  could  judge  of  American  officers,  they  are  about  as  repub- 
lican in  mind  and  tone  of  thought  as  those  of  the  British  army. 
They  are  aware  of  the  fact  that  the  bundle  of  sticks  requires  a 
tie,  but  they  prefer,  as  we  all  do.  King  Stork  to  King  Log,  and 
King  Log  to  King  Mob. 

I  took  sundry  opportunities  of  attending  company  inspections, 
and  found  the  men  well  dressed  and  tolerably  set  up,  while  the 
bands,  being  German,  were  of  course  excellent,  Mr.  Chandless 
and  others  talk  of  the  United  States  army  discipline  as  something 
Draconian ;  severity  is  doubtless  necessary  in  a  force  so  consti- 


446  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  XII. 

tuted,  but — a  proof  of  their  clemency — desertion  is  the  only  crime 
punishable  by  flogging.  The  uniform  is  a  study.  The  States 
have  attempted  in  the  dress  of  their  army,  as  in  the  forms  of  their 
government,  a  moral  impossibility.  It  is  expected  to  be  at  once 
cheap  and  soldier-like,  useful  and  ornamental,  light  and  heavy, 
pleasantly  hot  in  the  arctic  regions,  and  agreeably  cool  under  the 
tropics.  The  "military  tailors"  of  the  English  army  similarly 
forget  the  number  of  changes  required  in  civilian  raiment,  and, 
loolving  to  the  lightness  of  the  soldier's  kit,  wholly  neglect  its  ef- 
ficiency, its  capability  of  preserving  the  soldier's  life.  The  feder- 
al uniform  consists  of  a  brigand-like  and  bizarre  sombrero,  with 
Mephistophelian  cock-plume,  and  of  a  blue  broadcloth  tunic,  im- 
itated from  the  old  Kentuckian  hunter's  surtout  or  wraj)per,  with 
terminations  sometimes  made  to  match,  at  other  times  too  dark 
and  dingy  to  please  the  eye.  Its  principal  merit  is  a  severe  re- 
publican plainness,  very  consistent  with  the  prepossessions  of  the 
people,  highly  inconsistent  with  the  customs  of  military  nations. 
Soldiers  love  to  dress  up  Mars,  not  to  clothe  him  like  a  butcher's 

boy- 

The  position  of  Camp  Floyd  is  a  mere  brick-yard,  a  basin  sur- 
rounded by  low  hills,  which  an  Indian  pony  would  have  little  dif- 
ficulty in  traversing;  sometimes,  however,  after  the  fashion  of  the 
land,  though  apparently  easy  from  afar,  the  summits  assume  a 
mural  shape,  which  would  stop  any  thing  but  a  mountain  sheep. 
The  rim  shows  anticlinal  strata,  evidencing  upheavals,  disruption, 
and,  lastly,  drainage  through  the  kanyons  which  break  the  wall. 
The  principal  vegetation  is  tLe  dwarf  cedar  above,  the  sage  green- 
wood and  rabbit-bush  below.  The  only  animals  seen  upon  the 
plain  are  jackass-rabbits,  which  in  places  afford  excellent  sport. 
There  are  but  few  Mormons  in  the  valley ;  they  supply  the  camp 
with  hay  and  vegetables,  and  are  said  to  act  as  spies.  The  offi- 
cers can  not  but  remark  the  coarse  features  and  the  animal  ex- 
pression of  their  countenances.  On  the  outskirts  of  camp  are  a 
few  women  that  have  taken  sanctuary  among  the  Gentiles,  who 
here  muster  too  strong  for  the  Saints.  The  principal  amusement 
seemed  to  be  that  of  walking  into  and  out  of  the  sutlers'  stores, 
the  hospitable  Messrs.  Gilbert's  and  Livingston's  —  a  passe  temps 
which  I  have  seen  at  "  Sukkur  Bukkur  Rohri" — and  in  an  even- 
ing ride,  dull,  monotonous,  and  melancholy,  as  if  we  were  in  the 
vicinity  of  Hyderabad,  Sindh. 

I  had  often  heard  of  a  local  lion,  the  Timpanogos  Kanyon,  and 
my  friends  Captains  Heth  and  Gove  had  obligingly  offered  to 
show  me  its  curiosities.  After  breakfast  on  the  23d  of  September 
— a  bright  warm  day — we  set  out  in  a  good  ambulance,  well  pro- 
vided with  the  materials  of  a  two  days'  picnic,  behind  a  fine  team 
of  four  mules,  on  the  road  leading  to  the  Utah  Lake.  After  pass- 
ing Simple  Joe's  dug-out  we  sighted  the  water  once  more ;  it  was 
of  a  whitish-blue,  like  the  milky  waves  of  Jordan,  embosomed  in 


CuAP.  XI  r.  JORDAN  BRIDGE.— AMERICAN  FORK.  447 

the  embrace  of  tall  and  bald-headed  hills  and  mountains,  whose 
monarch  was  Nebo  of  the  jagged  cone.  Where  the  wind  current 
sets  there  are  patches  of  white  sand  strewn  with  broken  shells 
and  dried  water- weed.  Near  Pelican  Point,  a  long,  projecting 
rocky  spit,  there  is  a  fine  feeding-ground  for  geese  and  ducks,  and 
swimmers  and  divers  may  always  be  seen  dotting  the  surface. 
On  the  south  rises  a  conspicuous  buttress  of  black  rock,  and  thir- 
ty miles  off  we  could  see  enormous  dust  columns  careering  over 
the  plain.  The  western  part  of  the  valley,  cut  with  suncracks 
and  nullahs,  and  dotted  with  boulders,  shelves  gradually  upward 
from  the  selvage  of  the  lake  to  small  divides  and  dwarf-hill  ranges, 
black  with  cedar-bush,  and  traversed  only  by  wood  roads.  On 
the  east  is  the  best  wheat  country  in  this  part  of  the  Territory ;  it 
is  said  to  produce  106  bushels  per  acre. 

After  seventeen  miles  we  crossed  Jordan  Bridge,  another  rick- 
ety affair,  for  which,  being  Mormon  property,  we  paid  50  cents ; 
had  we  been  Saints  the  expense  would  have  been  one  half  Two 
more  miles  led  us  to  Lehi,  a  rough  miniature  of  Great  Salt  Lake 
City,  in  which  the  only  decent  house  was  the  bishop's ;  in  British 
India  it  would  have  been  the  collector  and  magistrate's.  My 
companions  pointed  out  to  me  a  hut  in  which  an  apostate  Mor- 
mon's throat  had  been  cut  by  blackened  faces.  It  is  gratifying  to 
observe  that  throughout  the  United  States,  as  in  the  Old  Country, 
all  historical  interest  pales  before  a  barbarous  murder.  As  we  ad- 
vanced a  wall  of  rock  lay  before  us ;  the  strata  were  in  confusion 
as  if  a  convulsion  had  lately  shudd^ed  through  their  frame,  and 
tumbled  fragments  cumbered  the  btf^e,  running  up  by  precipitous 
ascents  to  the  middle  heights.  The  colors  were  as  grotesque :  the 
foreground  was  a  mass  of  emerald  cane,  high  and  bushy ;  beyond 
it,  the  near  distance  was  pink  with  the  beautiful  bloom  most  un- 
poetically  termed  "hogweed,"  and  azure  with  a  growth  like  the 
celebrated  blue-grass  of  Kentucky ;  while  the  wall  itself  was  a 
bloodstone  dark  green  with  cedar — which,  100  feet  tall,  was  dwarf- 
ed to  an  inch — and  red  stained  with  autumnal  maple,  and  below 
and  around  the  brightest  yellow  of  the  faded  willow  formed  the 
bezel,  a  golden  rim. 

Two  miles  and  a  half  from  Lehi  led  us  to  American  Fork,  a 
soft  sweet  spring  of  snow-water,  with  dark  shells  adhering  to 
white  stones,  and  a  quantity  of  trout  swimming  the  limpid  wave. 
The  bridge  was  rickety  and  loose  planked — in  fact,  the  worst  I 
ever  saw  in  the  United  States,  where,  as  a  rule,  the  country  bridges 
can  never  be  crossed  without  fear  and  trembling;  the  moderate 
toll  was  $1  both  ways.  Three  miles  and  a  half  more  placed  us 
at  Battle  Creek,  where  in  1853  the  Yuta  Indians  fled  precipitate- 
ly from  a  Mormon  charge.  Six  miles  over  a  dusty  beach  con- 
ducted us  to  the  mouth  of  the  kanyon,  a  brown  tract  crossed  by  a 
dusty  road  and  many  a  spring,  and  showing  the  base  of  the  op- 
posite wall  encumbered  with  degraded  masses,  superimposed  upon 


448  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  XIL 

which  were  miniature  castles.  The  mouth  of  the  ravine  was  a 
romantic  spot:  the  staples  were  sister  giants  of  brown  rock — here 
sheer,  their  sloping — where  pines  and  hrs  found  a  precarious  root- 
hold,  and  ranged  in  long  perspective  lines,  while  between  them, 
through  its  channel,  verdant  with  willow,  and  over  a  clear  peb- 
bly bed,  under  the  screes  and  scaurs,  coursed  a  mountain  torrent 
more  splendid  than  Ruknabad. 

We  forded  the  torrent  and  pursued  the  road,  now  hugging  the 
right,  then  the  left  side  of  the  chasm.  The  latter  was  exceeding- 
ly beautiful,  misty  with  the  blue  of  heaven,  and  rising  till  its  so- 
lidity was  blent  with  the  tenuity  of  ether.  The  rest  of  the  scenery 
was  that  of  the  great  Cotton- wood  Kanyon ;  painting  might  ex- 
press the  difference,  language  can  not.  After  six  miles  of  a  nar- 
row winding  road,  we  reached  the  place  of  Cataracts,  the  princi- 
pal lion  of  the  place,  and  found  that  the  season  had  reduced  them 
to  two  thin  milky  lines  coursing  down  bitumen-colored  slopes  of 
bare  rock,  bordered  by  shaggy  forests  of  firs  and  cedars.  The 
shrinking  of  the  water's  volume  lay  bare  the  formation  of  the  cas- 
cades, two  steps  and  a  slope,  which  at  a  happier  time  would  have 
been  veiled  by  a  continuous  sheet  of  foam. 

After  finding  a  suitable  spot  we  outspanned,  and,  while  recruit- 
ing exhausted  nature,  allowed  our  mules  to  roll  and  rest.  After 
dining  and  collecting  a  few  shells,  we  remounted  and  drove  back 
through  a  magnificent  sunset  to  American  Fork,  where  the  bish- 
op, Mr.  Lysander  Dayton,  of  Ohio,  had  offered  us  bed  and  board. 
The  good  episkopos  was  of  course  a  Mormon,  as  we  could  see  by 
his  two  pretty  wives ;  he  supplied  us  with  an  excellent  supper  as 
a  host,  not  as  an  innkeeper.  The  little  settlement  was  Great  Salt 
Lake  City  on  a  small  scale — full  of  the  fair  sex ;  every  one,  by- 
the-by,  appeared  to  be,  or  about  to  be,  a  mother.  Fair,  but,  alas ! 
not  fair  to  us ;  it  was  verily 

"Water,  water  every  where, 
And  not  a  drop  to  drink !" 

Before  setting  out  homeward  on  the  next  day  we  met  O.  Por- 
ter Rockwell,  and  took  him  to  the  house  with  us.  This  old  Mor- 
mon, in  days  gone  by,  sufiered  or  did  not  suffer  imprisonment  for 
shooting  or  not  shooting  Governor  Boggs,  of  Missouri :  he  now 
herds  cattle  for  Messrs.  Russell  and  Co.  His  tastes  are  apparent- 
ly rural ;  his  enemies  declare  that  his  life  would  not  be  safe  in 
the  City  of  the  Saints.  An  attempt  had  lately  been  made  to  as- 
sassinate him  in  one  of  the  kanyons,  and  the  first  report  that 
reached  my  ears  when  en  route  to  California  was  the  murder  of 
the  old  Danite  by  a  certain  Mr.  Marony.  He  is  one  of  the  tri- 
umvirate, the  First  Presidency  of  "  executives,"  the  two  others 
being  Ephe  Hanks  and  Bill  Hickman — whose  names  were  loud 
in  the  land ;  they  are  now,  however,  going  down ;  middle  age  has 
rendered  them  comparatively  inactive,  and  the  rising  generation, 
Lot  Huntington,  Ike  Clawson,  and  other  desperadoes,  whose  teeth 


Chap.  XII.  THE  OLD  "DANITE."  449 

and  claws  are  full  grown,  are  able  and  willing  to  stand  in  their 
stead.  Peter  Eockwell  was  a  man  about  fifty,  tall  and  strong, 
witlu/imple  leather  leggins  overhanging  his  huge  spurs,  and  the 
saw-handles  of  two  revolvers  peeping  from  his  blouse.  His  fore- 
head was  already  a  little  bald,  and  he  wore  his  long  grizzly  locks 
after  the  ancient  fashion  of  the  United  States,  plaited  and  gather- 
ed up  at  the  nape  of  the  neck ;  his  brow,  puckered  with  frown- 
ing wrinkles,  contrasted  curiously  with  his  cool,  determined  gray 
eye,  jolly  red  face,  well  touched  up  with  "  paint,"  and  his  laugh- 
ing, good-humored  mouth.  He  had  the  manner  of  a  jovial,  reck- 
less, devil-may-care  English  ruffian.  The  officers  called  him  Por- 
ter, and  preferred  him  to  the  "  slimy  villains"  who  will  drink  with 
a  man  and  then  murder  him.  After  a  little  preliminary  business 
about  a  stolen  horse,  all  conducted  on  the  amiable,  he  pulled  out 
a  dollar,  and  sent  to  the  neighboring  distillery  for  a  bottle  of  Val- 
ley Tan.  The  aguardiente  was  smuggled  in  under  a  cloth,  as 
though  we  had  been  respectables  in  a  Moslem  country,  and  we 
were  asked  to  join  him  in  a  "squar'  drink,"  which  means  spirits 
without  water.  The  mode  of  drinking  was  peculiar.  Porter, 
after  the  preliminary  sputation,  raised  the  glass  with  cocked  little 
finger  to  his  lips,  with  a  twinkle  of  the  eye  ejaculated  "Wheat!" 
that  is  to  say,  "  good,"  and  drained  the  tumbler  to  the  bottom : 
we  acknowledged  his  civility  with  a  "here's  how,"  and  drank 
Kentucky-fashion,  which  in  English  is  midshipman's  grog.  Of 
these  "  squar'  drinks"  we  had  at  least  four,  which,  however,  did 
not  shake  Mr.  Eockwell's  nerve,  and  then  he  sent  out  for  more. 
Meanwhile  he  told  us  his  last  adventure  —  how,  when  ascending 
the  kanyon,  he  suddenly  found  himself  covered  by  two  long  ri- 
fles ;  how  he  had  thrown  himself  from  his  horse,  drawn  his  re- 
volver, and  crept  behind  a  bush,  and  how  he  had  dared  the  en- 
emy to  come  out  and  fight  like  men.  He  spoke  of  one  Obry,  a 
Frenchman,  lately  killed  in  a  street-quarrel,  who  rode  on  business 
from  Santa  F6  to  Independence,  about  600  miles,  in  110  hours. 
Porter  offered,  for  the  fun  of  the  thing,  to  excel  him  by  getting 
over  900  in  144.  When  he  heard  that  I  was  preparing  for  Cali- 
fornia, he  gave  me  abundant  good  advice — to  carry  a  double-bar- 
reled gun  loaded  with  buck-shot ;  to  "  keep  my  eyes  skinned," 
especially  in  kanyons  and  ravines ;  to  make  at  times  a  dark  camp 
— that  is  to  say,  unhitching  for  supper,  and  then  hitching  up  and 
turning  a  few  miles  ofifthe  road ;  ever  to  be  ready  for  attack  when 
the  animals  were  being  inspanned  and  outspanned,  and  never  to 
trust  to  appearances  in  an  Indian  country,  where  the  red  varmint 
will  follow  a  man  for  weeks,  perhaps  peering  through  a  wisp  of 
grass  on  a  hill-top  till  the  time  arrives  for  striking  the  blow.  I 
observed  that,  when  thus  speaking.  Porter's  eyes  assumed  the  ex- 
pression of  an  old  mountaineer's,  ever  rolling  as  if  set  in  quick- 
silver. For  the  purpose  of  avoiding  "White  Indians,"  the  worst 
of  their  kind,  he  advised  me  to  shun  the  direct  route,  which  he 

Ff 


450  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  XII. 

represented  to  be  about  as  fit  for  traveling  as  is  li — 11  for  a  pow- 
der magazine,  and  to  journey  via  Fillmore  and  the  wonder-bear- 
ing White  Mountains  ;*  finally,  he  comforted  me  with  an  assur- 
ance that  either  the  Indians  would  not  attempt  to  attack  us  and 
our  stock — ever  a  sore  temptation  to  them — or  that  they  would 
assault  us  in  force  and  "  wipe  us  out." 

When  the  drinking  was  finished  we  exchanged  a  cordial  2^oig- 
nee  de  main  with  Porter  and  our  hospitable  host,  who  appeared 
to  be  the  creme  de  la  crane  of  Utah  County,  and  soon  found  our- 
selves again  without  the  limits  of  Camp  Floyd. 

On  the  evening  of  the  25th  of  September,  the  judge,  accompa- 
nied by  his  son  and  the  Marshal  of  the  Territory,  entered  the  can- 
tonment, and  our  departure  was  fixed  for  the  next  day.  The 
morning  of  the  start  was  spent  in  exchanging  adieux  and  little 
gifts  with  men  who  had  now  become  friends,  and  in  stirrup-cups 
which  succeeded  one  another  at  no  longer  intervals  than  quarter 
hours.  Judge  Crosby,  who  had  arrived  by  the  last  mail,  kindly 
provided  me  with  fishing-tackle  which  could  relieve  a  diet  of 
eggs  and  bacon,  and  made  me  regret  that  I  had  not  added  to  my 
outfit  a  Maynard.  This,  the  best  of  breech-loading  guns,  can  also 
be  loaded  at  the  muzzle ;  a  mere  carbine  in  size,  it  kills  at  1300 
yards,  and  in  the  United  States  costs  only  $-i0  =  £8.  The  judge, 
a  remarkable  contrast  to  the  usual  Elijah  Pogram  style  that  still 
affects  bird's-eye  or  ^speckled  white  tie,  black  satin  waistcoat,  and 
swallow -tailed  coat  of  rusty  broadcloth,  with  terminations  to 
match,  had  been  employed  for  some  time  in  Oregon  and  at  St. 
Juan :  he  knew  one  of  my  expatriated  friends  —  poor  J,  de  C, 
whose  exile  we  all  lament — and  he  gave  me  introductions  which 
I  found  most  useful  in  Carson  Valley.  Like  the  best  Americans, 
he  spoke  of  the  English  as  brothers,  and  freely  owned  the  defi- 
ciencies of  his  government,  especially  in  dealing  with  the  frontier 
Indians. 

We  started  from  Lieutenant  Dudley's  hospitable  quarters,  where 
a  crowd  had  collected  to  bid  us  farewell.  The  ambulance,  with 
four  mules  driven  by  Mr.  Kennedy  in  person,  stood  at  the  door, 
and  the  parting  stirrup-cup  was  exhibited  with  a  will.  I  bade 
farewell  with  a  true  regret  to  my  kind  and  gallant  hosts,  whose 
brotherly  attentions  had  made  even  wretched  Camp  Floyd  a 
pleasant  sejour  to  me.  At  the  moment  I  write  it  is  probably  des- 
olate, the  "  Secession"  disturbances  having  necessitated  the  with- 
drawal of  the  unhappies  from  Utah  Territory. 

About  4  P.M.,  as  we  mounted,  a  furious  dust-storm  broke  over 
the  plain  ;  perhaps  it  may  account  for  our  night's  meprise,  which 

*  An  emigrant  company  lately  followed  this  road,  and  when  obliged  by  the  death 
of  their  cattle  to  abandon  their  kit,  they  found  on  the  tramp  a  lump  of  virgin  silver, 
which  was  carried  to  California:  an  exploring  party  afterward  dispatched  failed, 
however,  to  make  the  lead.  At  the  western  extremity  of  the  White  ]\iountains  there 
is  a  mammoth  cave,  of  which  one  mile  has  been  explored  :  it  is  said  to  end  in  a  prec- 
ipice, and  the  enterprising  Major  Egan  is  eager  to  trace  its  course. 


Chap.  XII.     JOHNSTON'S  SETTLEMENT.— A  MEAN  PLACE.  451 

a  censorious  reader  might  attribute  to  our  copious  libations  of 
whisky.  The  road  to  the  first  mail  station,  "  Meadow  Creek," 
lay  over  a  sage  barren ;  we  lost  no  time  in  missing  it  by  forging 
to  the  west.  After  hopelessly  driving  about  the  country  till  10 
P.M.  in  the  fine  cool  night,  we  knocked  at  a  hut,  and  induced  the 
owner  to  appear.  He  was  a  Dane  who  spoke  but  little  English, 
and  his  son,  "skeert"  by  our  fierceness,  began  at  once  to  boo- 
hoo.  At  last,  however,  we  were  guided  by  our  "foreloper"  to 
"Johnston's  settlement,"  in  Eock  Valley,  and  we  entered  by  the 
unceremonious  process  of  pulling  down  the  zigzag  fences.  After 
some  trouble  we  persuaded  a  Mormon  to  quit  the  bed  in  which 
his  wife  and  children  lay,  to  shake  down  for  us  sleeping-places 
among  the  cats  and  hens  on  the  floor,  and  to  provide  our  animals 
with  oats  and  hay.  Mr.  Grice,  the  marshal,  one  of  the  handiest 
of  men,  who  during  his  volunteer  service  in  Mexico  had  learned 
most  things  from  carrying  a  musket  to  cooking  a  steak,  was  kind 
enough  to  prepare  our  supper,  after  which,  still  sorely  laden  with 
whisky  dying  within  us,  we  turned  in. 

To  Meadow  Creek.     27th  September. 

We  rose  with  the  dawn,  the  cats,  and  the  hens,  sleep  being  im- 
possible after  the  first  blush  of  light,  and  I  proceeded  to  inspect 
the  settlement.  It  is  built  upon  the  crest  of  an  earth-Wave  rising 
from  grassy  hollows ;  the  haystacks  told  of  stock,  and  the  bunch- 
grass  on  the  borders  of  the  ravines  and  nullahs  rendered  the  place 
particularly  fit  for  pasturage.  The  land  is  too  cold  for  cereals : 
in  its  bleak  bottoms  frost  reigns  throughout  the  year;  and  there 
is  little  bench-ground.  The  settlement  consisted  of  half  a  dozen 
huts,  which  swarmed,  however,  with  women  and  children.  Mr. 
Kennedy  introduced  us  to  a  Scotch  widow  of  mature  3'ears,  who 
gave  us  any  amount  of  butter  and  buttermilk  in  exchange  for  a 
little  tea.  She  was  but  a  lukewarm  Mormon,  declaring  polygamy 
to  be  an  abomination,  complaining  that  she  had  been  inveigled  to 
a  mean  place,  and  that  the  poor  in  Mormondom  were  exceedingly 
poor.  Yet  the  canny  body  was  stout  and  fresh,  her  house  was 
clean  and  neat,  and  she  washed  her  children  and  her  potatoes. 

"We  had  wandered  twenty -five  miles  out  of  the  right  road,  and 
were  still  distant  fifteen  to  sixteen  from  the  first  mail  station. 
For  the  use  of  the  floor,  flies,  and  permission  to  boil  water,  we 
paid  our  taciturn  Mormon  $2,  and  at  noon,  a  little  before  the 
bursting  of  the  dusty  storm-gusts,  which  reproduced  the  horrors 
of  Sindh,  we  found  ourselves  once  more  in  the  saddle  and  the  am- 
bulance. We  passed  by  a  cattle  track  on  rolling  ground  dotted 
with  sage  and  greasewood,  which  sheltered  hosts  of  jackass-rab- 
bits, and  the  sego  with  its  beautiful  lily -like  flowers.  After  cross- 
ing sundry  nullahs  and  pitch-holes  with  deep  and  rugged  sides, 
we  made  the  mail  station  at  the  west  end  of  Eush  Valley,  which 
is  about  twenty  miles  distant  from  Camp  Floyd.     The  little  green 


452  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Cuap.  XII. 

bottom,  -witli  its  rusli-bordered  sinking  spring,  is  called  by  Captain 
Simpson  "Meadow  Creek."  We  passed  a  pleasant  day  in  re- 
volver practice  with  Al.  Huntington,  the  renowned  brother  of 
Lot,  who  had  lately  bolted  to  South  California,  in  attempts  at  rab- 
bit-shooting— the  beasts  became  very  wild  in  the  evening — and 
in  dining  on  an  antelope  which  a  youth  had  ridden  down  and 
pistoled.  With  the  assistance  of  the  station-master,  Mr.  Faust, 
a  civil  and  communicative  man,  who  added  a  knowledge  of  books 
and  drugs  to  the  local  history,  I  compiled  an  account  of  the  sev- 
eral lines  of  communication  between  Great  Salt  Lake  City  and 
California, 

Three  main  roads  connect  the  land  of  the  Saints  with  the  EI 
Dorado  of  the  West — the  northern,  the  central,  and  the  southern. 

The  northern  road  rounds  the  upper  end  of  the  Great  Salt 
Lake,  and  falls  into  the  valleys  of  the  Humboldt  and  Carson  Elv- 
ers. It  was  explored  in  1845  by  Colonel  Fremont,*  who,  when 
2")assing  over  the  seventy  waterless  miles  of  the  western,  a  contin- 
uation of  the  eastern  desert,  lost  ten  mules  and  several  horses. 
The  "  first  overland  trip"  was  followed  in  1846  by  a  party  of  em- 
igrants under  a  Mr.  Hastings,  who  gave  his  name  to  the  "cut-off" 
which  has  materially  shortened  the  distance.  The  road  has  been 
carefully  described  in  Kelly's  California,  in  Horn's  "  Overland 
Guide,"  afM  by  M.  Eemy.  It  is  still,  despite  its  length,  preferred 
by  travelers,  on  account  of  the  abundance  of  grass  and  water: 
moreover,  there  are  now  but  two  short  stretches  of  desert. 

The  southern  road,  via  Fillmore  and  San  Bernardino,  to  San 
Pedro,  where  the  traveler  can  embark  for  San  Francisco,  is  long 
and  tedious;  water  is  found  at  thirty-mile  distances;  there  are 
three  deserts ;  and  bunch  and  other  grasses  are  not  plentiful.  It 
has  one  great  merit,  namely,  that  of  being  rarely  snowed  up,  ex- 
cept between  the  Rio  Yirgen  and  Great  Salt  Lake  City  :  the  best 
traveling  is  in  Spring,  when  the  melting  snows  from  the  eastern 
hills  fill  the  rivulets.     This  route  has  been  traveled  over  by 

*  Explored  is  used  in  a  modified  sense.  Every  foot  of  ground  passed  over  by 
Colonel  Fremont  was  perfectly  well  known  to  the  old  trappers  and  traders,  as  the 
interior  of  Africa  to  the  Arab  and  Portuguese  pombeiros.  But  this  fact  takes  noth- 
ing away  from  the  honors  of  the  man  who  first  surveyed  and  scientifically  observed 
the  country.  Among  those  who  preceded  Colonel  Fremont,  the  most  remarkable, 
perhaps,  was  Sylvester  Pattie,  a  Virginian,  who,  having  lost  his  wife  in  his  adopted 
home  on  the  Missouri,  resolved  to  trap  upon  and  to  trace  out  the  head-waters  of  the 
Yellow  River.  The  little  company  of  five  persons,  among  whom  were  Pattie  and  his 
son,  set  out  on  the  20th  of  June,  182-1,  and  on  the  22d  of  August  arrived  at  the  head- 
waters of  the  Platte,  where  they  found  General  Pratt  proceeding  toward  Santa  Fe'. 
Pattie,  in  command  of  IIG  men,  crossed  the  dividing  ridge,  descended  into  the  valley 
of  the  Rio  Grand  del  Norto,  entered  Santa  Fe,  and  trapped  on  the  Gila  River.  The 
party  broke  up  on  the  27th  of  November,  1826,  when  Pattie,  accompanied  by  his  son 
and  six  others,  descended  the  Colorado,  and,  after  incredible  hardships,  reached  the 
Hispano- American  missions,  where  they  were  received  with  the  customary  inhuman- 
ity. The  father  died  in  durance  vile ;  the  son,  after  being  released  and  vaccinated 
at  San  Diego,  reached  San  Francisco,  whence  he  returned  home  via  Vera  Cruz  and 
New  Orleans,  after  an  absence  of  six  years.  The  whole  tale  is  well  told  in  "Har- 
per's Magazine." 


Chap.  XII.  PIONEER  EXPLORERS.  453 

Messrs.  Cliandless  and  Eemy,  wlio  have  well  described  it  in  theii- 
picturesque  pages.  I  add  a  few  notes,  collected  from  men  who 
have  ridden  over  the  ground  for  several  years,  concerning  the 
stations :  the  information,  however,  it  will  be  observed,  is  merely 
hearsay.* 

The  central  route  is  called  Egan's  by  the  Mormons,  Simpson's 
by  the  Gentiles.  Mr.  or  Major  Howard  Egan  is  a  Saint  and  well- 
known  guide,  an  indefatigable  mountaineer,  who  for  some  time 
drove  stock  to  California  in  the  employ  of  Messrs.  Livingston,  and 
who  afterward  became  mail-agent  under  Messrs.  Chorpenning  and 
Eussell.  On  one  occasion  he  made  the  distance  in  twelve  days, 
and  he  claims  to  have  explored  the  present  post-ofiice  route  be- 
tween 1850  and  the  winter  of  1857-1858.  Captain  J.  H.  Simp- 
son, of  the  federal  army,  whose  itinerary  is  given  ih  Appendix  I., 
followed  between  May  and  June,  1859.  He  traveled  along  Egan's 
path,  with  a  few  unimportant  deviations,  for  300  miles,  and  left  it 
ten  miles  west  of  Euby  Yalley,  trending  southward  to  the  suite 
of  the  Carson  Eiver.  On  his  return  he  pursued  a  more  southerly 
line,  and  fell  into  Egan's  route  about  thirty  miles  west  of  Camp 
Eloyd.  The  emploijts  of  the  route  prefer  Egan's  line,  declaring 
that  on  Simpson's  there  is  little  grass,  that  the  springs  are  mere 
fiumaras  of  melted  snow,  and  that  the  wells  are  waterless.  Bad, 
however,  is  the  best,  as  the  following  pages  will,  I  think,  prove. 

To  Tophet.     28ih  September. 

On  a  cool  and  cloudy  morning,  which  at  10  A.M.  changed  into 
a  clear  sunny  day,  we  set  out,  after  paying  $3  for  three  feeds,  to 
make  the  second  station.  Our  road  lay  over  the  seven  miles  of 
plain  that  ended  Eush  Yalley :  we  saw  few  rabbits,  and  the  sole 
vegetation  was  stunted  sage.     Ensued  a  rough  divide,  stony  and 

*  The  distance  from  Great  Salt  Lake  City  to  San  Bernardino  is,  according  to  my 
infoi'mant,  about  750  miles,  and  has  been  accomplished  in  fourteen  days.  The  road 
runs  through  Provo  to  Salt  Cruz,  formed  by  a  desert  of  50-60  miles,  and  making 
Se\ner  River  the  half-way  point  to  the  capital.  At  Corn  Creek  is  an  Indian  farm, 
and  Weaver  is  64  miles  from  Pillmore.  Cedar  Spring  is  the  entrance  to  Paravan 
Valley,  where  as  early  as  1806  there  was  a  fort  and  a  settlement.  Then  comes 
Fillmore,  the  ten-itorial  capital,  and  96  miles  afterward  it  passes  through  Paravan 
City  in  Little  Salt  Lake  Valley.  At  Cold  Creek  it  forks,  the  central  road  being  that 
mostly  preferred.  The  next  station  is  Mountain  Meadows,  the  Southern  Rim  of  the 
Basin,  celebrated  for  its  massacre ;  ensues  the  Santa  Clara  River,  and  thence  a  total 
of  70  miles,  divided  into  several  stages,  lead  to  the  Rio  Virgen.  After  following  the 
latter  for  20-30  miles,  the  path  crosses  the  divide  of  Muddy  River,  and  enters  a  des- 
ert 55-67  miles  in  breadth  leading  to  Las  Vegas.  Thirt}'  miles  beyond  that  point 
lies  a  pretty  water  called  "Mountain  Springs,"  a  preliminary  to  "Dry  Lake,"  a 
second  desert  40-45  miles  broad,  and  ending  at  an  alkaline  water  called  Kingston 
Springs.  The  third  desert,  40  miles  broad,  leads  to  a  post  established  for  the  pro- 
tection of  emigrants,  and  called  Bitter  or  Bidder's  Springs,  115  miles  from  Las 
Vegas.  The  next  stage  of  35  is  to  the  Indian  River,  a  tributary  of  the  Colorado, 
whence  there  is  another  military  establishment :  the  land  is  now  Californian.  Thence 
following  and  crossing  the  course  of  the  stream,  the  traveler  sights  the  Sierra  Ne- 
vada. After  50  miles  down  the  Mohave  Kanyon  is  San  Bernardino,  once  a  thriving 
Mormon  settlement,  90  miles  from  San  Pedro  and  120  from  San  Diego,  where  water 
conyeyance  is  found  to  San  Francisco. 


454  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chat.  XII. 

dusty,  wifh  cahues  and  pitch-lioles :  it  is  known  by  the  name  of 
General  Johnston's  Pass.  The  hills  above  it  are  gray  and  bald- 
headed,  a  few  bristles  of  black  cedar  protruding  from  their  breasts, 
and  the  land  wears  an  uninhabitable  look.  After  two  miles  of 
toil  we  halted  near  the  ruins  of  an  old  station.  On  the  right  side 
of  the  road  was  a  spring  half  way  up  the  hill :  three  holes  lay 
full  of  slightly  alkaline  water,  and  the  surplus  flowed  off  in  a 
black  bed  of  vegetable  mud,  which  is  often  dry  in  spring  and 
— ^  summer.  At  "Point  Look-out,"  near  the  counterslope  of  the  di- 
vide, we  left  on  the  south  Simpson's  route,  and  learned  by  a  sign- 
post that  the  distance  to  Carson  is  533  miles.  The  pass  led  to 
Skull  Valle}^,  of  ominous  sound.  According  to  some,  the  name 
is  derived  from  the  remains  of  Indians  which  are  found  scattered 
about  a  fine  spring  in  the  southern  parts.  Others  declare  that  the 
mortal  remains  of  bison  here  lie  like  pavement-stones  or  cannon 
balls  in  the  Crimean  Yalley  of  Death.  Skull  Yalley  stretches 
nearly  southwest  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake  plain,  with  which  it  com- 
municates, and  its  drainage,  as  in  these  parts  generally,  feeds  the 
lake.  '  Passing  out  of  Skull  Yalley,  we  crossed  the  cahues  and 
pitch-holes  of  a  broad  bench  which  rose  above  the  edge  of  the 
desert,  and  after  seventeen  miles  beyond  the  Pass  reached  the 
station  which  Mormons  call  Egan's  Springs,  anti-Mormons  Simp- 
son's Springs,  and  Gentiles  Lost  Springs. 

Standing  upon  the  edge  of  the  bench,  I  could  see  the  Tophet 
in  prospect  for  ns  till  Carson  Yalley :  a  road  narrowing  in  per- 
spective to  a  point  spanned  its  grisly  length,  awfully  long,  and 
the  next  mail  station  had  shrunk  to  a  little  black  knob.  ■  All  was 
desert :  the  bottom  could  no  longer  be  called  basin  or  valley :  it 
was  a  thin  fine  silt,  thirsty  dust  in  the  dry  season,  and  putty -like 
mud  in  the  spring  and  autumnal  rains.  The  hair  of  this  unlove- 
ly skin  was  sage  and  greasewood :  it  was  warted  with  sand-heaps ; 
in  places  mottled  with  bald  and  horrid  patches  of  salt  soil,  while 
in  others  minute  crystals  of  salt,  glistening  like  diamond-dust  in 
the  sunlight,  covered  tracts  of  moist  and  oozy  mud.  Before  us, 
but  a  little  to  the  right  or  north,  and  nearly  due  west  of  Camp 
Floyd,  rose  Granite  Mountain,  a  rough  and  jagged  spine  or  hog's- 
back,  inhabited  only  by  wolves  and  antelopes,  hares  and  squirrels, 
grasshoppers,  and  occasionally  an  Indian  family.  Small  sweet 
springs  are  found  near  its  northern  and  southern  points.  The 
tradition  of  the  country  declares  it  to  be  rich  in  gold,  which,  how- 
ever, no  one  dares  to  dig.  Our  road  is  about  to  round  the  south- 
ern extremity,  wheeling  successively  S.  and  S.E,,  then  W.  and 
N.W.,  then  S.W.  and  S.E.,  and  S.W.  and  N.W.— in  fact,  round 
three  quarters  of  the  compass ;  and  for  three  mortal  days  we  shall 
sight  its  ugly  frowning  form.  A  direct  passage  leads  between  it 
and  the  corresponding  point  of  the  southern  hill :  we  contemplate, 
through  the  gap,  a  blue  ridge  where  lies  Willow-Spring  Station, 
the  destination  of  our  party  after  to-morrow ;  but  the  straight  line 


Chap.  XII.     THE  GEEAT  DESERT.— OUR  PARTY.         455 

which  saves  so  much  distance  is  closed  by  bogs  for  the  greater 
part  of  the  year,  and  the  size  of  the  wild  sage  would  impede  our 
wagon-wheels. 

The  great  desert  of  Utah  Territory  extends  in  length  about  800 
miles  along  the  western  side  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake.  Its  breadth 
varies :  a  little  farther  south  it  can  not  be  crossed,  the  water,  even 
where  not  poisonous,  being  insufficient.  The  formation  is  of  bot- 
toms like  that  described  above,  bench-lands,  with  the  usual  paral- 
lel and  perfectly  horizontal  water-lines,  leaving  regular  steps,  as 
the  sea  settled  down,  by  the  gradual  upheaval  of  the  land.  They 
mark  its  former  elevation  upon  the  sides  of  the  many  detached 
ridges  trending  mostly  N".  and  S.  Like  the  rim  of  the  Basin, 
these  hills  are  not  a  single  continuous  mountain  range  which 
might  be  flanked,  but  a  series  of  disconnected  protrusions  above 
the  general  level  of  the  land.  A  paying  railway  through  this 
country  is  as  likely  as  a  profitable  canal  through  the  Isthmus  of 
Suez :  the  obstacles  must  be  struck  at  right  angles,  with  such  as- 
sistance as  the  rough  kanyons  and  the  ravines  of  various  levels 
afford. 

We  are  now  in  a  country  dangerous  to  stock.  It  is  a  kind  of 
central  point,  where  Pavant,  Gosh  Yuta  (popularly  called  Gosh 
Ute),  and  Panak  (Bannacks)  meet.  Watches,  therefore,  were  told 
off  for  the  night.  Next  morning,  however,  it  was  found  that  all 
had  stood  on  guard  with  unloaded  guns.  ■ 

To  Fish  Springs.     29<A  September. 

At  Lost  Springs  the  party  was  mustered.  The  following  was 
found  to  be  the  material.  The  Eas  Kafilah  was  one  Kennedy,  an 
Irishman,  whose  brogue,  doubly  Dublin,  sounded  startlingly  in  the 
Great  American  Desert.  On  a  late  trip  he  had  been  victimized 
by  Indians.  The  savages  had  driven  off  two  of  his  horses  into  a 
kanyon  within  sight  of  the  Deep-Creek  Station.  In  the  hurry  of 
pursuit  he  spurred  up  the  ravine,  followed  by  a  friend,  when, 
sighting  jerked  meat,  his  own  property,  upon  the  trees,  he  gave 
the  word  sauve  qui  x>eut.  As  they  whirled  their  horses  the  Yutas 
rushed  down  the  hill  to  intercept  them  at  the  mouth  of  the  gorge, 
calling  them  in  a  loud  voice  dogs  and  squaws,  and  firing  sundry 
shots,  which  killed  Kennedy's  horse  and  pierced  his  right  arm. 
Most  men,  though  they  jest  at  scars  before  feeling  a  wound,  are 
temporarily  cowed  by  an  infliction  of  the  kind,  and  of  that  order 
yras  the  good  Kennedy. 

The  next  was  an  excellent  traveler,  by  name  Howard.  On  the 
road  between  Great  Salt  Lake  City  and  Camp  Floyd  I  saw  two 
men,  who  addressed  me  as  Mr.  Kennedy  the  boss,  and,  finding  out 
their  mistake,  followed  us  to  the  place  of  rendezvous.  The  par- 
ty, with  one  eye  gray  and  the  other  black,  mounted  upon  a  miser- 
able pony,  was  an  American.  After  a  spell  at  the  gold  diggings 
of  California  he  had  revisited  the  States,  and  he  now  wished  to 


^r- 


456  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  XII. 

return  to  his  adopted  country  without  loss  of  time.  He  was  a 
hardy,  line-tempered  fellow,  exceedingly  skilled  in  driving  stock. 
His  companion  was  a  Frenchman  and  ex-Zouave,  who,  for  reasons 
best  known  to  himself,  declared  that  he  came  from  Cuba,  and  that 
he  had  forgotten  every  word  of  Spanish.  Like  foreigners  among 
Anglo-Scandinavians  generally,  the  poor  devil  fared  badly.  He 
could  not  hold  his  own.  With  the  most  labor,  he  had  the  worst 
of  every  thing.  He  felt  himself  mal  place^  and  before  the  end  of 
the  journey  he  slunk  away. 

At  Lost  Springs  we  were  joined  by  two  Mormon  fugitives, 
"pilgrims  of  love,"  who  had,  it  was  said,  secretly  left  the  city  at 
night,  fearing  the  consequences  of  having  "  loved  not  wisely,  but 

too  well."     The  first  of  the  Lotharios  was  a  Mr.R ,  an  English 

farrier-blacksmith,  mounted  upon  an  excellent  horse  and  leading 
another.  He  soon  took  offense  at  our  slow  rate  of  progress,  and, 
afflicted  by  the  thought  that  the  avenger  was  behind  him,  left  us 
at  Deep  Creek,  and  "  made  tracks"  to  Carson  City  in  ten  days, 
with  two  horses  and  a  total  traveling  kit  of  two  blankets.  We 
traced  him  to  California  by  the  trail  of  falsehoods  which  he  left 

on  the  road.     His  comrade,  Mr.  A ,  a  New  Englander,  was 

also  an  apostate  Mormon,  a  youth  of  good  family  and  liberal  edu- 
cation, who,  after  ruining  himself  by  city  sites  and  copper  mines 
on  Lake  Superior,  had  permanently  compromised  himself  with  so- 
ciety by  becoming  a  Saint.  Also  a  Lothario,  he  had  made  his  es- 
cape, and  he  proved  himself  a  good  and  useful  member  of  society. 
I  could  not  but  admire  the  acuteness  of  both  these  youths,  who, 
flying  from  justice,  had  placed  themselves  under  the  protection 
of  a  judge.  They  reminded  me  of  a  debtor  friend  who  found 
himself  secure  from  the  bailiff  only  within  the  walls  of  Spike  Isl- 
and or  Belvidere  Place,  Southwark. 

Another  notable  of  the  party  was  an  apostate  Jew  and  soidisant 
apostate  Mormon  who  answered  to  the  name  of  Rose.  He  had 
served  as  missionary  in  the  Sandwich  Islands,  and  he  spoke  Ka- 
naka like  English.  His  features  were  those  which  Mr.  Thackeray 
loves  to  delineate ;  his  accents  those  which  Robson  delights  to  im- 
itate. He  denied  his  connection  with  the  Hebrews.  He  proved 
it  by  eating  more,  by  driving  a  better  bargain,  by  doing  less  work 
than  any  of  the  party.  It  was  truly  refreshing  to  meet  this  son 
of  old  Houndsditch  in  the  land  of  the  Saints,  under  the  shadow 
of  New  Zion,  and  the  only  drawback  to  our  enjoyment  was  the 
general  suspicion  that  the  honorable  name  of  apostate  covered  the 
less  respectable  calling  of  spy.  He  contrasted  strongly  with  Jim 
Gilston  of  Illinois,  a  lath-like  specimen  of  humanity,  some  six  feet 
four  in  length — a  perfect  specimen  of  the  Indianized  white,  long 
hair,  sun-tanned,  and  hatchet-faced ;  running  like  an  ostrich,  yelp- 
ing like  a  savage,  and  ready  to  take  scalp  at  the  first  provocation. 
He  could  not  refrain,  as  the  end  of  the  journey  drew  nigh,  from 
deserting  without  paying  his  passage.     Mr.  Colville,  a  most  de- 


Chap.  XII.  "GENTLE  ANNIE."— "YOU  i3J5;r."  457 

termined  Yankee,  far  advanced  in  years,  was  equally  remarkable. 
He  had  $90  in  his  pocket.  He  shivered  for  want  of  a  blanket, 
and  he  lived  on  hard  bread,  bacon,  and  tea,  of  which  no  man  was 
ever  seen  to  partake.  Such  were  the  seven  "  free  men,"  the  inde- 
pendent traders  of  the  company.  There  were  also  six  "broths  of 
boys,"  who  paid  small  sums  up  to  $40  for  the  benefit  of  our  es- 
cort, and  who  were  expected  to  drive  and  to  do  general  work. 
TraveUng  soon  makes  friends.  No  illusions  of  amicitia,  however, 
could  blind  my  eyes  to  the  danger  of  entering  an  Indian  country 
with  such  an  escort.  Untried  men  for  the  most  part,  they  would 
have  discharged  their  weapons  in  the  air  and  fled  at  the  whoop 
of  an  Indian,  all  of  them,  including  Jake  the  Shoshonee,  who  had 
been  permitted  to  accompany  us  as  guide,  and  excepting  our 
stanch  ones,  Howard,  "  Billy"  the  colt,  and  "Brandy"  the  dog. 

The  station  was  thrown  somewhat  into  confusion  by  the  pres- 
ence of  a  petticoat,  an  article  which  in  these  regions  never  fails  to 
attract  presents  of  revolvers  and  sides  of  bacon.  "  Gentle  Annie," 
attended  by  three  followers,  was  passing  in  an  ambulance  from 
California  to  Denver  City,  where  her  "friend"  was.  To  most  of 
my  companions'  inquiries  about  old  acquaintances  in  California, 
she  replied,  in  Western  phrase,  that  the  individual  subject  of  their 
solicitude  had  "got  to  git  up  and  git,"  which  means  that  he  had 
found  change  of  air  and  scene  advisable.  Most  of  her  sentences 
ended  with  a  "you  5e^,"  even  under  circumstances  where  such, 
operation  would  have  been  quite  uncalled  for.     So  it  is  related 

that  when  Dr.  P ,  of  Camp  Floyd,  was  attending  Mrs.  A.  B.  C. 

at  a  most  critical  time,  he  asked  her  tenderly,  "  Do  you  suffer 
much,  Mrs.  C.  ?"  to  which  the  new  matron  replied,  "You  hetP^ 

"We  set  out  about  noon,  on  a  day  hot  as  midsummer  by  con- 
trast with  the  preceding  nights,  for  a  long  spell  of  nearly  fifty 
miles.  Shortly  after  leaving  the  station  the  road  forks.  The 
left-hand  path  leads  to  a  grassy  spring  in  a  dwarf  kanyon  near 
the  southern  or  upper  part  of  a  river  bottom,  where  emigrants 
are  fond  of  camping.  The  hills  scattered  around  the  basin  were 
of  a  dark  metallic  stone,  sunburnt  to  chocolate.  The  strata  were 
highly  tilted  up  and  the  water-lines  distinctly  drawn.  After  eight 
miles  we  descended  into  the  yellow  silty  bed  of  a  bald  and  barren 
fiumara,  which  was  not  less  than  a  mile  broad.  The  good  judge 
sighed  when  he  contrasted  it  with  Monongahela,  the  "  river  of  the 
falling  banks."  It  flows  northward,  and  sinks  near  the  western 
edge  of  the  lake.  At  times  it  runs  three  feet  of  water.  The  hills 
around  are  white-capped  throughout  the  winter,  but  snow  seldom 
lies  more  than  a  week  in  the  bottoms. 

After  twenty  miles  over  the  barren  plain  we  reached,  about 
sunset,  the  station  at  the  foot  of  the  Dugway.  It  was  a  mere 
"  dug-out" — a  hole  four  feet  deep,  roofed  over  with  split  cedar 
trunks,  and  provided  with  a  rude  adobe  chimney.  The  tenants 
were  two  rough  young  fellows — station-master  and  express  rider 


458  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  XU. 

—  witk  tlieir  friend,  an  English  bull-dog.  One  of  them  had 
amused  himself  by  decorating  the  sides  of  the  habitation  with 
niches  and  Egyptian  heads.  Rude  art  seems  instinctively  to  take 
that  form  which  it  wears  on  the  banks  of  Nilus,  and  should  some 
Professor  Eafinesque  discover  these  traces  of  the  aborigines  after 
a  sepulture  of  a  century,  they  will  furnish  materials  for  a  rich 
chapter  on  anti-Columbian  immigration.  Water  is  brought  to 
the  station  in  casks.  The  youths  believe  that  some  seven  miles 
north  of  the  "  Dugway"  there  is  a  spring,  which  the  Indians,  after 
the  fashion  of  that  folk,  sensibly  conceal  from  the  whites.  Three 
wells  have  been  sunk  near  the  station.  Two  soon  led  to  rock; 
the  third  has  descended  120  feet,  but  is  still  bone  dry.  It  passes 
first  through  a  layer  of  surface  silt,  then  through  three  or  four 
feet  of  loose,  friable,  fossilless,  chalky  lime,  which,  when  slaked, 
softened,  and,  mixed  with  sand,  is  used  as  mortar.  The  lowest 
strata  are  of  quartz  gravel,  forming  in  the  deeper  parts  a  hard 
conglomerate.  The  workmen  complained  greatly  of  the  increas- 
ing heat  as  they  descend.  Gold  now  becomes  uppermost  in  man's 
mind.  The  youths,  seeing  me  handle  the  rubbish,  at  once  asked 
me  if  I  was  prospecting  for  gold. 

After  roughly  supping  we  set  out,  with  a  fine  round  moon  high 
in  the  skies,  to  ascend  the  "  Dugway  Pass"  by  a  rough  dusty  road 
winding  round  the  shoulder  of  a  hill,  through  which  a  fiumara 
has  burst  its  way.  Like  other  Utah  mountains,  the  highest  third 
rises  suddenly  from  a  comparatively  gradual  incline,  a  sore  for- 
mation for  cattle,  requiring  draught  to  be  at  least  doubled.  Ar- 
riving on  the  summit,  we  sat  down,  while  our  mules  returned  to 
help  the  baggage-wagons,  and  amused  ourselves  with  the  strange 
aspect  of  the  scene.  To  the  north,  or  before  us,  and  far  below, 
lay  a  long  broad  stretch,  white  as  snow  —  the  Saleratus  Desert, 
west  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake.  It  wore  a  grisly  aspect  in  the  sil- 
very light  of  the  moon.  Behind  us  was  the  brown  plain,  sparse- 
ly dotted  with  shadows,  and  dewless  in  the  evening  as  in  the 
morning.  As  the  party  ascended  the  summit  with  much  noisy 
shouting,  they  formed  a  picturesque  group — the  well-bred  horses 
wandering  to  graze,  the  white-tilted  wagons  with  their  panting 
mules,  and  the  men  in  felt  capotes  and  huge  leather  leggins.  In 
honor  of  our  good  star  which  had  preserved  every  hoof  from  ac- 
cident, we  "liquored  up"  on  that  summit,  and  then  began  the  de- 
scent. 

Having  reached  the  plain,  the  road  ran  for  eight  miles  over  a 
broken  surface,  with  severe  pitch-holes  and  wagon-tracks  which 
have  lasted  many  a  month ;  it  then  forked.  The  left,  which  is 
about  six  miles  the  longer  of  the  two,  must  be  taken  after  rains, 
and  leads  to  the  Devil's  Hole,  a  curious  formation  in  a  bench  un- 
der "  High  Mountain,"  about  ninety  miles  from  Camp  Floyd,  and 
south,  with  a  little  westing,  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake.  The  Hole  is 
described  as  shaped  like  the  frustrum  of  an  inverted  cone,  forty 


Chap.  XII.  THE  DEVIL'S  HOLE.— SLOUGHS.  459 

feet  in  diameter  above,  twelve  to  fifteen  below.  As  regards  the 
depth,  four  lariats  of  forty  feet  each,  and  a  line  at  the  end,  did 
not,  it  is  said,  reach  the  bottom.  Captain  Simpson  describes  the 
water  as  brackish.  The  drivers  declare  it  to  be  half  salt.  The 
Devil's  Hole  is  popularly  supposed  to  be  an  air-vent  or  shaft 
communicating  with  the  waters  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake  in  their 
subterraneous  journey  to  the  sea  (Pacific  Ocean).  An  object  cast 
into  it,  they  say,  is  sucked  down  and  disappears ;  hence,  if  true, 
probably  the  theory. 

We  chose  the  shorter  cut,  and,  after  eight  miles,  rounded  Mount- 
ain Point,  the  end  of  a  dark  brown  butte  falling  into  the  plain. 
Opposite  us  and  under  the  western  hills,  which  were  distant  about 
two  miles,  lay  the  station,  but  we  were  compelled  to  double,  for 
twelve  miles,  the  intervening  slough,  which  no  horse  can  cross 
without  being  mired.  The  road  hugged  the  foot  of  the  hills  at 
the  edge  of  the  saleratus  basin,  which  looked  like  a  furrowed  field 
in  which  snow  still  lingers.  In  places,  warts  of  earth  tufted  with 
greasewood  emerged  from  hard,  flaky,  curling  silt-cakes ;  in  oth- 
ers, the  salt  frosted  out  of  the  damp  black  earth  like  the  miniature 
sugar- plums  upon  chocolate  bonbons.  We  then  fell  into  a  saline 
resembling  freshly -fallen  snow.  The  whiteness  changes  to  a  slaty 
blue,  like  a  frozen  pond  when  the  water  still  underlies  it ;  and, 
to  make  the  delusion  perfect,  the  black  rutted  path  looked  as  if 
lately  cut  out  after  a  snow-storm.  Weird  forms  appeared  in  the 
moonlight.  A  line  of  sand-heaps  became  a  row  of  railroad  cars ; 
a  raised  bench  was  mistaken  for  a  paling ;  and  the  bushes  were 
any  thing  between  a  cow  and  an  Indian.  This  part  of  the  road 
must  be  terrible  in  winter ;  even  in  the  fine  season  men  are  often 
compelled  to  unpack  half  a  dozen  times. 

After  ascending  some  sand-hills  we  halted  for  the  party  to  form 
up  in  case  of  accident,  and  Mr.  Kennedy  proceeded  to  inspect 
while  we  prepared  for  the  worst  part  of  the  stage — the  sloughs. 
These  are  three  in  number,  one  of  twenty  and  the  two  others  of 
100  yards  in  length.  The  tule,  the  bayonet-grass,  and  the  tall 
rushes  enable  animals  to  pass  safely  over  the  deep  slushy  mud, 
but  when  the  vegetation  is  well  trodden  down,  horses  are  in  dan- 
ger of  being  permanently  mired.  The  principal  inconvenience  to 
man  is  the  infectious  odor  of  the  foul  swamps.  Our  cattle  were 
mad  with  thirst;  however,  they  crossed  the  three  sloughs  suc- 
cessfully, although  some  had  nearly  made  Dixie's  Land  in  the 
second. 

Beyond  the  sloughs  we  ascended  a  bench,  and  traveled  on  an 
improved  road.  We  passed  sundry  circular  ponds  garnished  with 
rush ;  the  water  is  sulphury,  and,  according  to  the  season,  is  warm, 
hot,  or  cold.  Some  of  these  debord,  and  send  forth  what  the  So- 
ma! would  call  Biya  Gora,  "night-flowing  streams."  About  3 
A.M.,  cramped  with  cold,  we  sighted  the  station,  and  gave  the 
usual  "  Yep !  yep  I"    A  roaring  fire  soon  revived  us ;  the  strong 


460  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  XII. 

ate  supper  and  tlie  weak  went  to  bed,  thus  ending  a  somewhat 
fatiguing  day. 

To  Willow  Creek.     ZQth  September. 

On  this  line  there  are  two  kinds  of  stations — the  mail  station, 
where  there  is  an  agent  in  charge  of  five  or  six  "  boys,"  and  the 
express  station — every  second — where  there  is  only  a  master  and 
an  express  rider.  The  boss  receives  $50 — $75  per  mensem,  the 
boy  $35.  It  is  a  hard  life,  setting  aside  the  chance  of  death — no 
less  than  three  murders  have  been  committed  by  the  Indians  dur- 
ing this  year — the  work  is  severe ;  the  diet  is  sometimes  reduced 
to  wolf-mutton,  or  a  little  boiled  wheat  and  rye,  and  the  drink 
to  brackish  water;  a  pound  of  tea  comes  occasionally,  but  the 
droughty  souls  are  always  "out"  of  whisky  and  tobacco.  At 
"Fish  Springs,"  where  there  is  little  danger  of  savages,  two  men 
had  charge  of  the  ten  horses  and  mules ;  one  of  these  was  a  Ger- 
man Swiss  from  near  Schaffhausen,  who  had  been  digging  for 
gold  to  little  purpose  in  California. 

A  clear  cool  morning  succeeding  the  cold  night  aronsed  us  be- 
times. Nature  had  provided  an  ample  supply  of  warm  water, 
though  slightly  sulphury,  in  the  neighboring  pot-holes,  and  at  a 
Kttle  distance  from  the  station  was  one  conveniently  cool.  The 
fish  from  which  the  formation  derives  its  name  is  a  perch-like 
species,  easily  caught  on  a  cloudy  day.  The  men,  like  the  citi- 
zens of  Suez,  accustom  themselves  to  the  "rotten  water,"  as  stran- 
gers call  it,  and  hardly  relish  the  purer  supplies  of  Simpson's 
Springs  or  Willow  Springs:  they  might  have  built  the  station 
about  one  mile  north,  near  a  natural  well  of  good  cool  water,  but 
apparently  they  prefer  the  warm  bad. 

The  saleratus  valley  looked  more  curious  in  daylight  than  in 
moonlight.  The  vegetation  was  in  regular  scale;  smallest,  the 
rich  bunch-grass  on  the  benches;  then  the  greasewood  and  the 
artemisia,  where  the  latter  can  grow ;  and  largest  of  all,  the  dwarf 
cedar.  All  was  of  lively  hue,  the  herbage  bright  red,  yellow,  and 
sometimes  green,  the  shrubs  were  gray  and  glaucous,  the  cedars 
almost  black,  and  the  rim  of  hills  blue-brown  and  blue.  We  had 
ample  time  to  contemplate  these  curiosities,  for  Kennedy,  whose 
wits,  like  those  of  Hiranyaka,  the  mouse,  were  mightily  sharpen- 
ed by  the  possession  of  wealth,  had  sat  uj)  all  night,  and  wanted  a 
longer  sleep  in  the  morning.  After  a  breakfast  which  the  water 
rendered  truly  detestable,  we  hitched  up  about  10  A.M.,  and  set 
out  en  route  for  Willow  Springs. 

About  an  hour  after  our  departure  we  met  the  party  command- 
ed by  Lieutenant  Weed,  two  subaltern  officers,  ninety  dragoons, 
and  ten  wagons ;  they  had  been  in  the  field  since  May,  and  had 
done  good  service  against  the  Gosh  Yutas.  We  halted  and  "  liq- 
uored up,"  and,  after  American  fashion,  talked  politics  in  the 
wilderness.  Half  an  hour  then  led  us  to  what  we  christened 
"Kennedy's  Hole,"  another  circular  bowl,  girt  with  grass  and 


I 


Chap.  XII.  THE  DESERT  VIEW.— SPORTING.  461 

rush,  in  tlie  plain  under  a  dark  brown  rock,  witli  black  bands  and 
scatters  of  stone.  A  short  distance  beyond,  and  also  on  the  right 
of  the  road,  lay  the  "Poison  Springs,"  in  a  rushy  bed:  the  water 
was  temptingly  clear,  but  the  bleached  bones  of  many  a  quadru- 
ped skeleton  bade  us  beware  of  it.  After  turning  a  point  we  saw 
in  front  a  swamp,  the  counterpart  of  what  met  our  eyes  last  night; 
it  renewed  also  the  necessity  of  rounding  it  by  a  long  southerly 
sweep.  The  scenery  was  that  of  the  Takhashshua  near  Zayla,  or 
the  delicious  land  behind  Aden,  the  Arabian  sea-board.  Sand- 
heaps —  the  only  dry  spots  after  rain — fixed  by  tufts  of  metallic 
green  salsola>,  and  guarded  from  the  desert  wind  by  rusty  cane- 
grass,  emerged  from  the  wet  and  oozy  plain,  in  which  the  mules 
often  sank  to  the  fetlock.  The  unique  and  snowy  floor  of  thin 
nitre,  bluish  where  deliquescent,  was  here  solid  as  a  sheet  of  ice ; 
there  a  net- work  of  little  ridges,  as  if  the  salt  had  expanded  by 
crystallization,  with  regular  furrows  worked  by  rain.  i\.fter  heavy 
showers  it  becomes  a  soft,  slippery,  tenacious,  and  slushy  mud, 
that  renders  traveling  exceeding  laborious ;  the  glare  is  blinding 
by  day,  and  at  night  the  refrigerating  j)roperties  of  the  salt  render 
the  wind  bitterly  cold,  even  when  the  mercury  stands  at  60°  F. 

We  halted  to  bait  at  the  half-way  house,  the  fork  of  the  road 
leading  to  Pleasant  Valley,  an  unpleasant  place,  so  called  because 
discovered  on  a  pleasant  evening.  As  we  advanced  the  laud  im- 
proved, the  salt  disappeared,  the  grass  was  splendidly  green,  and, 
approaching  the  station,  we  passed  Willow  Creek,  where  gophar- 
holes  and  snipes,  willows  and  wild  roses,  told  of  life  and  gladden- 
ed the  eye.  The  station  lay  on  a  bench  beyond  the  slope.  The 
express  rider  was  a  handsome  young  Mormon,  who  wore  in  his 
felt  hat  the  effigy  of  a  sword ;  his  wife  was  an  Englishwoman, 
who,  as  usual  under  the  circumstances,  had  completely  thrown  off 
the  Englishwoman.  The  station-keeper  was  an  Irishman,  one  of 
the  few  met  among  the  Saints.  Nothing  could  be  fouler  than  the 
log  hut ;  the  flies  soon  drove  us  out  of  doors ;  hospitality,  howev- 
er, was  not  wanting,  and  we  sat  down  to  salt  beef  and  bacon,  for 
which  we  were  not  allowed  to  pay.  The  evening  was  spent  in 
setting  a  wolf-trap,  which  consisted  of  a  springy  pole  and  a  noose: 
we  strolled  about  after  sunset  with  a  gun,  but  failed  to  bag  snipe, 
wild-fowl,  or  hare,  and  sighted  only  a  few  cunning  old  crows,  and 
black  swamp-birds  with  yellow  throats.  As  the  hut  contained 
but  one  room,  we  slept  outside.  The  Gosh  Yuta  are  apparently 
not  a  venturesome  people ;  still,  it  is  considered  advisable  at  times 
to  shift  one's  sleeping  quarters,  and  to  acquire  the  habit  of  easily 
awaking. 

To  Deep  Creek  and  halt.     1st  and  2d  of  October^  18G0. 

A  "  little  war"  had  been  waging  near  Willow  Springs.  In  June 
the  station  was  attacked  by  a  small  band  of  Gosh  Yuta,  of  whom 
three  were  shot  and  summarily  scalped ;  an  energetic  proceeding, 
which  had  prevented  a  repetition  of  the  affair.     The  savages,  who 


462  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Cuap.  XII. 

are  gatlieriDg  their  pine-nut  "harvest,  and  are  driven  by  destitution 
to  beg  at  the  stations,  to  which  one  meal  a  week  will  attach  them, 
are  now  comparatively  peaceful :  when  the  emigration  season  re- 
commences they  are  expected  to  be  troublesome,  and  their  num- 
bers—  the  Pa  Yutas  can  bring  12,000  warriors  into  the  field  — 
render  them  formidable.  "Jake,"  the  Shoshonee,  who  had  fol- 
lowed us  from  Lost  Springs,  still  considered  his  life  in  danger ;  he 
was  as  unwilling  to  wend  his  way  alone  as  an  Arab  Bedouin  or  an 
African  negro  in  their  respective  interiors.  With  regard  to  our- 
selves. Lieutenant  Weed  had  declared  that  there  was  no  danger ; 
the  station  people  thought,  on  the  contrary,  that  the  snake,  which 
had  been  scotched,  not  killed,  would  recover  after  the  departure 
of  the  soldiers,  and  that  the  work  of  destruction  had  not  been  car- 
ried on  with  sufiicient  vigor. 

At  6  A.M.  the  thermometer  showed  45°  F. ;  we  waited  two 
hours,  till  the  world  had  time  to  warm.  After  six  miles  we  reach- 
ed "Mountain  Springs,"  a  water-sink  below  the  bench-land,  tufted 
round  with  cotton-wood,  willow,  rose,  cane,  and  grass.  On  our 
right,  or  eastward,  lay  Granite  Eock,  which  we  had  well-nigh 
rounded,  and  through  a  gap  we  saw  Lost-Springs  Station,  distant 
apparently  but  a  few  hours'  canter.  Between  us,  however,  lay 
the  horrible  salt  plain — a  continuation  of  the  low  lands  bounding 
the  western  edge  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake — which  the  drainage  of 
the  hills  over  which  we  were  traveling  inundates  till  June. 

After  twelve  miles  over  the  bench  we  passed  a  dark  rock, 
which  protects  a  water  called  Beading's  Springs,  and  we  halted 
to  form  up  at  the  mouth  of  Deep-Creek  Kanyon.  This  is  a  dan- 
gerous gorge,  some  nine  miles  long,  formed  by  a  water-course 
which  sheds  into  the  valley  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake.  Here  I  rode 
forward  with  "Jim,"  a  J^oung  express  rider  from  the  last  station, 
who  volunteered  much  information  upon  the  subject  of  Indians. 
He  carried  two  Colt's  revolvers,  of  the  dragoon  or  largest  size, 
considering  all  others  too  small.  I  asked  him  what  he  would  do 
if  a  Gosh  Yuta  appeared.  He  rei^lied  that  if  the  fellow  were 
civil  he  might  shake  hands  with  him,  if  surly  he  would  shoot 
him ;  and,  at  all  events,  when  riding  away,  that  he  would  keep 
a  "stirrup  eye"  upon  him:  that  he  was  in  the  habit  of  looking 
round  corners  to  see  if  any  one  was  taking  aim,  in  which  case  he 
would  throw  himself  from  the  saddle,  or  rush  on,  so  as  to  spoil 
the  shooting — the  Indians,  when  charged,  becoming  excited,  fire 
without  effect.  He  mentioned  four  Bed  Men  who  could  "  draw 
a  bead"  against  any  white;  usually,  however,  they  take  a  minute 
to  load ;  they  require  a  long  aim,  and  they  stint  their  powder. 
He  pointed  out  a  place  where  Miller,  one  of  the  express  riders, 
had  lately  been  badly  wounded,  and  lost  his  horse.  Nothing,  cer- 
tainly^, could  be  better  fitted  for  an  ambuscade  than  this  gorge,  with 
its  caves  and  holes  in  snow-cuts,  earth-drops,  and  lines  of  strata, 
like  walls  of  rudely -piled  stone ;  in  one  place  we  saw  the  ashes 


CuAv.  XII.     DEEP-CREEK  STATION.— MR.  WADDINGTON.  463 

of  an  Indian  encampment;  in  another,  a  whirlwind,  curling,  as 
smoke  would  rise,  from  behind  a  projecting  spur,  made  us  advance 
with  the  greatest  caution. 

As  we  progressed  the  valley  opened  out,  and  became  too  broad 
to  be  dangerous.  Near  the  summit  of  the  pass  the  land  is  well 
lined  with  white  sage,  which  may  be  used  as  fodder,  and  a  dwarf 
cedar  adorns  the  hills.  The  ground  gives  out  a  hollow  sound, 
and  the  existence  of  a  spring  in  the  vicinity  is  suspected.  De- 
scending the  western  water-shed,  we  sighted,  in  Deep-Creek  Val- 
ley, St.  Mary's  County,  the  first  patch  of  cultivation  since  leaving 
Great  Salt  Lake.  The  Indian  name  is  Aybii-pa,  or  the  Clay-col- 
ored Water ;  pity  that  America  and  Australia  have  not  always 
preserved  the  native  local  terms.  It  is  bisected  by  a  rivulet  in 
which  three  streamlets  from  the  southern  hills  unite ;  like  these 
features  generally,  its  course  is  northward  till  it  sinks :  fields  ex- 
tend about  one  mile  from  each  bank,  and  the  rest  of  the  yellow 
bottom  is  a  tapestry  of  wire  grass  and  wheat  grass.  An  Indian 
model  farm  had  been  established  here;  the  war,  however,  pre- 
vented cultivation ;  the  savages  had  burned  down  the  house,  and 
several  of  them  had  been  killed  by  the  soldiers.  On  the  west  of 
the  valley  were  white  rocks  of  the  lime  used  for  mortar :  the  hills 
also  showed  lias  and  marble-like  limestones.  The  eastern  wall 
was  a  grim  line  of  jagged  peaks,  here  bare  with  granite,  there 
black  with  cedar ;  they  are  crossed  by  a  short  cut  leading  to  the 
last  station,  which,  however,  generally  proves  the  longest  way, 
and  in  a  dark  ravine  Kennedy  pointed  out  the  spot  where  he  had 
of  late  nearly  left  his  scalp.  Coal  is  said  to  be  found  there  in 
chunks,  and  gold  is  supposed  to  abound;  the  people,  however, 
believing  that  the  valley  can  not  yet  support  extensive  immigra- 
tion, conceal  it  probably  by  "counsel." 

At  4  P.M.  we  reached  the  settlement,  consisting  of  two  huts 
and  a  station-house,  a  large  and  respectable-looking  building  of 
unburnt  brick,  surrounded  by  fenced  fields,  water-courses,  and 
stacks  of  good  adobe.  We  were  introduced  to  the  Mormon  sta- 
tion-master, Mr.  Sevier,  and  others.  They  are  mostly  farm-la- 
borers, who  spend  the  summer  here  and  supply  the  road  with  pro- 
visions: in  the  winter  they  return  to  Grantsville,  where  their 
families  are  settled.  Among  them  was  a  Mr.  Waddington,  an  old 
Pennsylvanian  and  a  bigoted  Mormon.  It  is  related  of  him  that 
he  had  treasonably  saved  300  Indians  by  warning  them  of  an  in- 
tended attack  by  the  federal  troops.  lie  spoke  strongly  in  favor 
of  the  despised  Yutas,  declared  that  they  are  ready  to  work,  and 
can  be  led  to  any  thing  by  civility.  The  anti-Mormons  declared 
that  his  praise  was  for  interested  motives,  wishing  the  savages  to 
labor  for  him  gratis ;  and  I  observed  that  when  Mr.  Waddington 
started  to  cut  wood  in  the  kanyon,  he  set  out  at  night,  lest  his 
dust  should  be  seen  by  his  red  friends. 

The  Mormons  were  not  wanting  in  kindness ;  they  supplied  us 


464  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  XII. 

with  excellent  potatoes,  and  told  us  to  make  their  house  our  home. 
We  preferred,  however,  living  and  cooking  afield.  The  station 
was  dirtj  to  the  last  degree :  the  flies  suggested  the  Egyptian 
plague ;  they  could  be  brushed  from  the  walls  in  thousands;  but, 
though  sage  makes  good  brooms,  no  one  cares  to  sweep  clean. 
This,  I  repeat,  is  not  Mormon,  but  Western :  the  people,  like  the 
Spaniards,  apparently  disdain  any  occupation  save  that  of  herding 
cattle,  and  will  do  so  till  the  land  is  settled.  In  the  evening  Jake 
the  Shoshonee  came  in,  grumbling  loudly  because  he  had  not 
been  allowed  to  ride ;  he  stood  cross-legged  like  an  African,  ate 
a  large  supper  at  the  station,  and  a  second  with  us.  No  wonder 
that  the  savage  in  civilization  suffers,  like  the  lady's  lapdog,  from 
"liver."  lie  was,  however,  a  first-rate  hand  in  shirking  any  work 
except  that  of  jDeering  and  peeping  into  every  thing;  neither  Gos- 
pel nor  gunpowder  can  reform  this  race.     Mr.E ,  the  English 

farrier  and  Lothario,  left  us  on  this  day,  after  a  little  quarrel  with 
Kennedy.  We  were  glad  to  receive  permission  to  sleep  upon  the 
loose  wheat  in  an  inner  room :  at  8  A.M.  the  thermometer  had 
shown  59°  F.,  but  on  this  night  ice  appeared  in  the  pails. 

The  next  day  was  a  halt ;  the  stock  wanted  rest  and  the  men 
provisions.  A  "beef" — the  Westerns  still  retain  the  singular  of 
"beeves" — was  killed,  and  we  obtained  a  store  of  potatoes  and 
wheat.  Default  of  oats,  which  are  not  common,  this  heating  food 
is  given  to  horses — 12  lbs.  of  grain  to  14  of  long  forage — and  the 
furious  riding  of  the  Mormons  is  the  only  preventive  of  its  evil 
effects.  The  people  believe  that  it  causes  stumbling  by  the  swell- 
ing of  the  fetlock  and  knee  joint ;  similarly  every  East  Indian 
ghorewalla  will  declare  that  wheaten  bread  makes  a  horse  tokkar 
khana — "eat  trips."  The  employes  of  the  station  were  quiet  and 
respectable,  a  fact  attributed  by  some  of  our  party  to  the  want  of 
liquor,  which  is  said  to  cause  frequent  fights.  Our  party  was  less 
peaceable;  there  had  been  an  extensive  prigging  of  blankets;  the 
cold  now  made  them  valuable,  and  this  drove  the  losers  "fight- 
ing mad." 

En  route  again.     3d  October. 

The  severity  of  the  last  night  made  us  active ;  the  appearance 
of  deep  snow  upon  the  mountains  and  of  ice  in  the  valleys  was 
an  intelligible  hint  that  the  Sierra  Nevada  which  lay  before  us 
would  be  by  no  means  an  easy  task.  Despite,  therefore,  the  idle- 
ness always  engendered  by  a  halt,  and  the  frigid  blasts  which  pour- 
ed down  from  the  eastern  hills,  where  rain  was  falling  in  torrents, 
we  hitched  up,  bade  adieu  to  our  Mormon  host,  and  set  out  about 
4  P.M.  Antelope  Springs,  the  next  station,  was  30  miles  distant; 
we  resolved,  therefore,  to  divide  it,  after  the  fashion  of  Asia  and 
Africa,  by  a  short  forenoon  march. 

The  road  runs  to  the  southwest  down  the  Deep-Creek  Yallcy, 
and  along  the  left  bank  of  the  western  rivulet.  Near  the  divide 
we  found  a  good  bottom,  with  plenty  of  water  and  grass ;  the  only 


Chap.  XIL         EIGHT-MILE  SPRINGS.— SHELL  CREEK.  465 

fuel  was  the  sage-bush,  which  crackled  merrily,  like  thorns,  under 
the  pot,  but  tainted  the  contents  with  its  medicinal  odor.  The 
wagons  were  drawn  up  in  a  half  circle  to  aid  us  in  catching  the 
mules ;  the  animals  were  turned  out  to  graze,  the  men  were  di- 
vided into  watches,  and  the  masters  took  up  their  quarters  in  the 
wagons.  Age  gave  the  judge  a  claim  to  the  ambulance,  which 
was  admitted  by  all  hands ;  I  slept  with  "  Scotch  Joe,"  an  exceed- 
ingly surly  youth,  who  apparently  preferred  any  thing  to  work. 
At  8  P.M.  a  storm  of  wind  and  rain  burst  upon  us  from  the  S.W. : 
it  was  so  violent  that  the  wagons  rocked  before  the  blast,  and  at 
times  the  chance  of  a  capsiz'e  suggested  itself.  The  weather  was 
highly  favorable  for  Indian  plundering,  who  on  such  nights  ex- 
pect to  make  a  successful  attack. 

To  the  Wilderness,     ith  October, 

"We  awoke  early  in  the  frigid  S.W.  wind,  the  thermometer 
showing  39°  F.  After  a  few  hundred  yards  we  reached  "Eight- 
mile  Springs,"  so  called  from  the  distance  to  Deep  Creek.  The 
road,  which  yesterday  would  have  been  dusty  to  the  hub,  was  now 
heavy  and  viscid ;  the  rain  had  washed  out  the  saleratus,  and  the 
sight  and  scent,  and  the  country  generally,  were  those  of  the  en- 
virons of  a  horse-pond.  An  ugly  stretch  of  two  miles,  perfectly 
desert,  led  to  Eight-mile-Spriug  Kanyon,  a  jagged  little  ravine 
about  500  yards  long,  with  a  portaled  entrance  of  tall  rock.  It 
is  not,  however,  considered  dangerous. 

Beyond  the  kanyon  lay  another  grisly  land,  if  possible  more 
deplorable  than  before ;  its  only  crops  were  dust  and  mud.  On 
the  right  hand  were  turreted  rocks,  around  whose  base  ran  Indian 
trails,  and  a  violent  west  wind  howled  over  their  summits.  About 
1  30  P.M.  we  came  upon  the  station  at  Antelope  Springs :  it  had 
been  burned  by  the  Gosh  Yutas  in  the  last  June,  and  had  never 
been  rebuilt.  "George,"  our  cook,  who  had  been  one  of  the  in- 
mates at  the  time,  told  us  how  he  and  his  confreres  had  escaped. 
Fortunately,  the  corral  still  stood :  we  found  wood  in  plenty,  wa- 
ter was  lying  in  an  adjoining  bottom,  and  we  used  the  two  to 
brew  our  tea. 

Beyond  Antelope  Springs  was  Shell  Creek,  distant  thirty  miles 
by  long  road  and  eighteen  by  the  short  cut.  We  had  some  diffi- 
culty in  persuading  Kennedy  to  take  the  latter ;  property  not  only 
sharpens  the  intellect,  it  also  generates  prudence,  and  the  ravine  is 
a  well-known  place  for  ambush.  Fortunately  two  express  riders 
came  in  and  offered  to  precede  us,  which  encouraged  us.  About 
3  P.M.  we  left  the  springs  and  struck  for  the  mouth  of  the  kan- 
yon, which  has  not  been  named ;  Sevier  and  Parish  are  the  rival 
claimants.  Entering  the  jagged  fir  and  pine-clad  breach,  we  found 
the  necessity  of  dismounting.  The  bed  was  dry — it  floods  in 
spring  and  autumn — but  very  steep,  and  in  a  hole  on  the  right 
stood  water,  which  we  did  not  touch  for  fear  of  poison.    Reach- 

G  G 


466  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  XH. 

ing  the  summit  in  about  an  hour  we  saw  below  the  shaggy  fore- 
ground of  evergreens,  or  rather  ever-blacks,  which  cast  grotesque 
and  exaggerated  shadows  in  the  last  rays  of  day,  the  snowy-white 
mountains,  gloriously  sunlit,  on  the  far  side  of  Shell  Creek.  Here 
for  the  first  time  appeared  the  pinon  pine  (P.  Monophyllus)^  which 
forms  the  principal  part  of  the  Indian's  diet ;  it  was  no  beauty  to 
look  upon,  a  dwarfish  tree,  rendered  sbrub-like  by  being  feathered 
down  to  the  ground.  The  nut  is  ripe  in  early  autumn,  at  which 
time  the  savages  stow  away  their  winter  provision  in  dry  ravines 
and  pits.  The  fruit  is  about  the  size  of  a  pistachio,  with  a  de- 
cided flavor  of  turpentine,  tolerably  palatable,  and  at  first  laxa- 
tive. The  cones  are  thrown  upon  the  fire,  and  when  slightly 
burnt  the  nuts  are  easily  extracted ;  these  are  eaten  raw,  or  like 
the  Hindoo's  toasted  grains.  The  harvest  is  said  to  fail  every 
second  year.  Last  season  produced  a  fine  crop,  while  in  this  au- 
tumn many  of  the  trees  were  found,  without  apparent  reason  but 
frost,  dead. 

We  resumed  the  descent  along  a  fiumara,  which  presently 
"  sank,"  and  at  5  P.M.  halted  in  a  prairillon  somewhat  beyond. 
Bunch-grass,  sage-fuel,  and  water  were  abundant,  but  the  place 
was  favorable  for  an  attack.  It  is  a  golden  rule  in  an  Indian 
country  never  to  pitch  near  trees  or  rocks  that  can  mask  an  ap- 
proach, and  we  were  breaking  it  in  a  place  of  danger.  However, 
the  fire  was  extinguished  early,  so  as  to  prevent  its  becoming  a 
mark  for  Indians,  and  the  pickets,  placed  on  both  sides  of  the  ra- 
vine, were  directed  to  lie  motionless  a  little  below  the  crest,  and 
to  fire  at  the  first  comer.  I  need  hardly  say  we  were  not  mur- 
dured ;  the  cold,  however,  was  uncommonly  piercing. 

To  ^'Roller's Roost."     5tk  October. 

We  set  out  at  6  A.M.  the  next  morning,  through  a  mixture  of 
snow  and  hail  and  howling  wind,  to  finish  the  ravine,  which  was 
m  toto  eight  miles  long.  The  descent  led  us  to  Spring  Valley,  a 
bulge  in  the  mountains  about  eight  miles  broad,  which  a  sharp 
divide  separates  from  Shell  Valley,  its  neighbor.  On  the  summit 
we  fell  into  the  line  of  rivulet  which  gives  the  low  lands  a  name. 
At  the  foot  of  the  descent  we  saw  a  woodman,  and  presently  the 
station.  Nothing  could  more  want  tidying  than  this  log  hut, 
which  showed  the  bullet-marks  of  a  recent  Indian  attack.  The 
master  was  a  Fran9ais  de  France,  Constant  Dubail,  and  an  ex- 
Lancier :  his  mother's  gossip  had  received  a  remittance  of  2000 
francs  from  a  son  in  California,  consequently  he  had  torn  himself 
from  the  sein  oi  sa  2^CLuvre  mere^  and  with  three  others  had  started 
in  search  of  fortune,  and  had  nearly  starved.  The  express  riders 
were  three  roughs,  of  whom  one  was  a  Mormon.  We  passed  our 
time  while  the  mules  were  at  bait  in  visiting  the  springs.  There 
is  a  cold  creek  200  yards  below  the  station,  and  close  by  the  hut 
a  warm  rivulet,  said  to  contain  leeches.     The  American  hirudo, 


Chap.  XU.  AN  UGLY  PLACE.— COLD  COMFORT.  467 

however,  has  a  serious  defect  in  a  leech — it  will  not  bite ;  the  fac- 
ulty, therefore,  arc  little  addicted  to  hirudination ;  country  doctors 
rarely  keep  the  villainous  bloodsuckers,  and  only  the  wealthy  can 
afford  the  pernicious  luxury,  which,  imported  from  Spain,  costs 
$12  per  dozen,  somewhat  the  same  price  as  oysters  at  Nijni  Nov- 
gorod. 

The  weather,  which  was  vile  till  10  A.M.,  when  the  glass  show- 
ed 40°  (F.),  promised  to  amend,  and  as  the  filthy  hole — still  full 
of  flies,  despite  the  cold — offered  no  attraction,  we  set  out  at  2 
P.M.  for  Egan's  Station,  beyond  an  ill-omened  kanyon  of  the  same 
name.  We  descended  into  a  valley  by  a  regular  slope — in  pro- 
portion as  we  leave  distance  between  us  and  the  Great  Salt  Lake 
the  bench  formation  on  this  line  becomes  less  distinct — and  trav- 
ersed a  barren  plain  by  a  heavy  road.  Hares  and  prairie-hens 
seemed,  however,  to  like  it,  and  a  frieze  of  willow  thicket  at  the 
western  end  showed  the  presence  of  water.  "We  in  the  ambu- 
lance halted  at  the  mouth  of  the  kanyon ;  the  stock  and  the  boys 
had  fallen  far  behind,  and  the  place  had  an  exceedingly  bad  name. 
But  the  cold  was  intense,  the  shades  of  evening  were  closing  in, 
so  we  made  ready  for  action,  looked  to  the  priming  of  gun  and 
revolver,  and  then  en  avant  I  After  passing  that  kanyon  we 
should  exchange  the  land  of  the  Gosh  Yuta  for  those  of  the  more 
friendly  Shoshonee. 

An  uglier  place  for  sharp-shooting  can  hardly  be  imagined. 
The  floor  of  the  kanyon  is  almost  flush  with  the  bases  of  the  hills, 
and  in  such  formations,  the  bed  of  the  creek  which  occupies  the 
sole  is  rough  and  winding.  The  road  was  vile  —  now  winding 
along,  then  crossing  the  stream — hedged  in  with  thicket  and  dot- 
ted with  boulders.  Ahead  of  us  was  a  rocky  projection  which 
appeared  to  cross  our  path,  and  upon  this  Point  Dangerous  every 
eye  was  fixed. 

Suddenly  my  eye  caught  sight  of  one  fire — two  fires  under  the 
black  bunch  of  firs  half  way  up  the  hill-side  on  our  left,  and  as 
suddenly  they  were  quenched,  probably  with  snow.  Nothing 
remained  but  to  hear  the  war-whoop,  and  to  see  a  line  of  savages 
rushing  down  the  rocks.  We  loosed  the  doors  of  the  ambulance, 
that  we  might  jump  out,  if  necessary,  and  tree  ourselves  behind 
it;  and  knowing  that  it  would  be  useless  to  return,  drove  on  at 
our  fastest  speed,  with  sleet,  snow,  and  wind  in  our  faces.  Under 
the  circumstances,  it  was  cold  comfort  to  find,  when  we  had  clear- 
ed the  kanyon,  that  Egan's  Station  at  the  farther  mouth  had  been 
reduced  to  a  chimney-stack  and  a  few  charred  posts.  The  Gosh 
Yutas  had  set  fire  to  it  two  or  three  days  before  our  arrival,  in 
revenge  for  the  death  of  seventeen  of  their  men  by  Lieutenant 
Weed's  party.  We  could  distinguish  the  pits  from  which  the 
wolves  had  torn  up  the  corpses,  and  one  fellow's  arm  projected 
from  the  snow.  After  a  hurried  deliberation,  in  which  Kennedy 
swore,  with  that  musical  voice  in  which  the  Dublin  swains  de- 


468  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  XH. 

light,  that  "shure  we  were  all  kilt" — the  possession  of  property 
not  only  actuates  the  mind,  and  adds  industry  to  its  qualities,  it 
also  produces  a  peculiar  development  of  cautiousness — we  un- 
hitched the  mules,  tethered  them  to  the  ambulance,  and  planted 
ourselves  behind  the  palisade,  awaiting  all  comers,  till  the  boys 
could  bring  re-enforcement.  The  elements  fought  for  us:  al- 
though two  tongues  of  high  land  directly  in  front  of  us  would 
have  formed  a  fine  mask  for  approach,  the  snow  lay  in  so  even  a 
sheet  that  a  prowling  coyote  was  detected,  and  the  hail-like  sleet 
which  beat  fiercely  on  our  backs  would  have  been  a  sore  incon- 
venience to  a  party  attacking  in  face.  Our  greatest  disadvantage 
was  the  extreme  cold;  it  was  difficult  to  keep  a  finger  warm 
enough  to  draw  a  trigger.  Thomas,  the  judgeling,  so  he  was 
called,  was  cool  as  a  cucumber,  mentally  and  bodily :  youths  gen- 
erally are.  Firstly,  they  have  their  ^^preuves'^  to  make;  second- 
ly, they  know  not  what  they  do. 

After  an  hour's  freezing,  which  seemed  a  day's,  we  heard  with 
quickened  ears  the  shouts  and  tramp  of  the  boys  and  the  stock, 
which  took  a  terrible  load  off  the  exile  of  Erin's  heart.  We 
threw  ourselves  into  the  wagons,  numbed  with  cold,  and  forgot, 
on  the  soft  piles  of  saddles,  bridles,  and  baggage,  and  under  heaps 
of  blankets  and  buffalos,  the  pains  of  Barahut.  About  3  A.M. 
this  enjoyment  was  brought  to  a  close  by  arriving  at  the  end  of 
the  stage,  Butte  Station.  The  road  was  six  inches  deep  with 
snow,  and  the  final  ascent  was  accomplished  with  difficulty.  The 
good  station-master,  Mr.  Thomas,  a  Cambrian  Mormon,  who  had, 
he  informed  me,  three  brothers  in  the  British  army,  bade  us  kind- 
ly welcome,  built  a  roaring  fire,  added  meat  to  our  supper  of  cof- 
fee and  doughboy,  and  cleared  by  a  summary  process  among  the 
snorers  places  for  us  on  the  floor  of  "Eobber's  Boost,"  or  "  Thieves' 
Delight,"  as  the  place  is  facetiously  known  throughout  the  coun- 
try-side. 

Halt  at  "  Iiobbei-^s  Boost/'     6th  October. 

The  last  night's  sound  sleep  was  allowed  to  last  through  the 
morning.  This  day  was  perforce  a  halt :  the  old  white  mare  and 
her  colt  had  been  left  at  the  mouth  of  the  kanyon,  and  one  of  the 
Shoshonee  Indian  servants  of  the  station  had  been  persuaded  by 
a  bribe  of  a  blanket  and  some  gunpowder  to  return  for  them. 
About  noon  we  arose,  expecting  a  black  fog,  and  looked  down 
upon  Butte  Valley,  whose  northern  edge  we  had  traversed  last 
night.  Snow  still  lay  there — that  bottom  is  rarely  without  frost 
— but  in  the  fine  clear  sunny  day,  with  the  mercury  at  43°  F.  in 
the  shade,  the  lowest  levels  re-became  green,  the  hill  cedars  turn- 
ed once  more  black,  earth  steamed  like  a  garment  hung  out  to 
dry,  and  dark  spots  here  and  there  mottled  the  hills,  which  were 
capped  with  huge  turbans  of  muslin-like  mist.  While  the  Sho- 
shonee is  tracking  and  driving  the  old  mare,  we  will  glance  around 
the  "  Bobber's  Boost,"  which  will  answer  for  a  study  of  the  West- 
ern man's  home. 


I 


CuAP.  Xn.  THE  WESTERN  MAN'S  HOME.  469 

It  is  about  as  civilized  as  the  Galway  shanty,  or  the  normal 
dwelling-place  in  Central  Equatorial  Africa,  A  cabin  fronting 
east  and  west,  long  walls  thirty  feet,  with  port-holes  for  windows, 
short  ditto  fifteen;  material,  sandstone  and  bog  ironstone  slabs 
compacted  with  mud,  the  whole  roofed  with  split  cedar  trunks, 
reposing  on  horizontals  which  rested  on  perpendiculars.  Behind 
the  house  a  corral  of  rails  planted  in  the  ground ;  the  inclosed 
space  a  mass  of  earth,  and  a  mere  shed  in  one  corner  the  only 
shelter.  Outside  the  door — the  hingeless  and  lockless  backboard 
of  a  wagon,  bearing  the  wounds  of  bullets — and  resting  on  lintels 
and  staples,  which  also  had  formed  parts  of  locomotives,  a  slab 
acting  stepping-stone  over  a  mass  of  soppy  black  soil  strewed  with 
ashes,  gobs  of  meat  offals,  and  other  delicacies.  On  the  right  hand 
a  load  of  wood ;  on  the  left  a  tank  formed  by  damming  a  dirty 
pool  which  had  flowed  through  a  corral  behind  the  "Eoost." 
There  was  a  regular  line  of  drip  distilling  from  the  caked  and 
hollowed  snow  which  toppled  from  the  thick  thatch  above  the 
cedar  braces. 

The  inside  reflected  the  outside.  The  length  was  divided  by 
two  perpendiculars,  the  southernmost  of  which,  assisted  by  a  half- 
way canvas  partition,  cut  the  hut  into  unequal  parts.  Behind  it 
were  two  bunks  for  four  men :  standing  bedsteads  of  poles  plant- 
ed in  the  ground,  as  in  Australia  and  Unyamwezi,  and  covered 
with  piles  of  ragged  blankets.  Beneath  the  frame-work  were 
heaps  of  rubbish,  saddles,  cloths,  harness,  and  straps,  sacks  of 
wheat,  oats,  meal,  and  potatoes,  defended  from  the  ground  by  un- 
derlying logs,  and  dogs  nestled  where  they  found  room.  The 
floor,  which  also  frequently  represented  bedstead,  was  rough,  un- 
even earth,  neither  tamped  nor  swept,  and  the  fine  end  of  a  spring 
oozing  through  the  western  wall  kept  part  of  it  in  a  state  of  eter- 
nal mud.  A  redeeming  point  was  the  fireplace,  which  occupied 
half  of  the  northern  short  wall:  it  might  have  belonged  to  Guy  of 
Warwick's  great  hall ;  its  ingle  nooks  boasted  dimensions  which 
one  connects  with  an  idea  of  hospitality  and  jollity;  while  a  long 
hook  hanging  down  it  spoke  of  the  bouillon-pot,  and  the  iron 
oven  of  hot  rolls.  Nothing  could  be  more  simple  than  the  furni- 
ture. The  chairs  were  either  posts  mounted  on  four  legs  spread 
out  for  a  base,  or  three-legged  stools  with  reniform  seats.  The 
tables  were  rough  -  dressed  planks,  two  feet  by  two,  on  rickety 
trestles.  One  stood  in  the  centre  for  feeding  purposes ;  the  other 
was  placed  as  buffet  in  the  corner  near  the  fire,  with  eating  appa- 
ratus— tin  coffee-pot  and  gamelles,  rough  knives,  "pitchforks," 
and  pewter  spoons.  The  walls  were  pegged  to  support  spurs  and 
pistols,  whips,  gloves,  and  leggins.  Over  the  door,  in  a  niche, 
stood  a  broken  coffee-mill,  for  which  a  flat  stone  did  duty.  Near 
the  entrance,  on  a  broad  shelf  raised  about  a  foot  from  the  ground, 
lay  a  tin  skillet  and  its  "dipper."  Soap  was  supplied  by  a  hand- 
ful of  gravel,  and  evaporation  was  expected  to  act  towel.     Under 


470  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  XII. 

the  board  was  a  pail  of  water  witli  a  floating  can,  which,  enabled 
the  inmates  to  supply  the  drainage  of  everlasting  chaws.  There 
was  no  sign  of  Bible,  Shakspeare,  or  Milton ;  a  noljwell-Street 
romance  or  two  was  the  only  attempt  at  literature.  En  revanche^ 
weapons  of  the  flesh,  rifles,  guns,  and  pistols,  lay  and  hung  all 
about  the  house,  carelessly  stowed  as  usual,  and  tools  were  not 
wanting — hammers,  large  borers,  axe,  saw,  and  chisel.  An  almost 
invariable  figure  in  these  huts  is  an  Indian  standing  cross-legged 
at  the  door,  or  squatting  uncomfortably  close  to  the  fire.  He  de- 
rides the  whites  for  their  wastefulness,  preferring  to  crouch  in 
parties  of  three  or  four  over  a  little  bit  of  fuel  than  to  sit  before  a 
blazing  log.  These  savages  act,  among  other  things,  as  hunters, 
brino;ing  home  rabbits  and  birds.  We  tried  our  revolvers  against 
one  of  them,  and  beat  him  easily ;  yet  they  are  said  to  put,  three 
times  out  of  four,  an  arrow  through  a  keyhole  forty  paces  off.  In 
shooting  they  place  the  thumb  and  forefinger  of  the  right  hand 
upon  the  notch,  and  strengthen  the  pull  by  means  of  the  second 
finger  stretched  along  the  bowstring.  The  left  hand  holds  the 
whipped  handle,  and  the  shaft  rests  upon  the  knuckle  of  the  index. 

From  Mr.  Thomas  we  heard  an  account  of  the  ajEfair  which  took 
place  near  Egan's  Kanyon.  In  the  last  August,  Lieutenant  Weed 
happened  to  be  "on  a  scout,"  with  seventeen  mounted  riflemen, 
after  Indians.  An  express  rider  from  the  West  had  ridden  up  to 
the  station,  which,  being  in  a  hollow,  can  not  be  seen  from  afar, 
and  found  it  surrounded  by  Gosh  Yuta  Indians.  The  fellows  had 
tied  up  the  master  and  the  boy,  and  were  preparing  with  civilized 
provisions  a  good  dinner  for  themselves,  to  be  followed  by  a  little 
treat  in  the  form  of  burning  down  the  house  and  roasting  their 
captives.  The  Indians  allowed  the  soldiers  brought  up  by  the  ex- 
press rider  to  draw  near,  thinking  that  the  dust  was  raised  by 
fresh  arrivals  of  their  own  people ;  and  when  charged,  at  once 
fled.  The  mounted  riflemen  were  armed  with  revolvers,  not  with 
sabres,  or  they  would  have  done  considerable  execution ;  as  it  was, 
seventeen  of  the  enemy  remained  upon  the  field,  besides  those 
who  were  carried  off  by  their  friends.  The  Indian  will  always 
leave  a  scalped  and  wounded  fellow-tribesman  in  favor  of  an  un- 
scalped  corpse. 

In  the  evening  the  Shoshonee  returned,  bringing  with  him  the 
white  mare  and  her  colt,  which  he  had  recovered  selon  lid  from 
the  hands  of  two  Gosh  Yutas.  The  weather  still  held  up ;  we 
had  expected  to  be  snowed  up  in  five  days  or  so ;  our  departure, 
therefore,  was  joyfully  fixed  for  the  morrow. 

To  Ruby  Valky.     7th  October. 

A  frosty  night  was  followed  by  a  Tuscan  day :  a  cold  tramon- 
tana  from  the  south,  and  a  clear  hot  sun,  which  expanded  the 
mercury  at  10  A.M.  to  70°  F.  After  taking  leave  of  the  hospi- 
table station-master,  we  resumed  the  road  which  ran  up  the  short 


Chap.XH.  ruby  valley.— "UNCLE  billy."  471 

and  heavy  ascent,  through  a  country  here  and  there  eighteen 
inches  deep  in  snow,  and  abounding  in  large  sage  and  little  rab- 
bits. A  descent  led  into  Long  Valley,  whose  northern  end  we 
crossed,  and  then  we  came  upon  a  third  ascent,  where,  finding  a 
sinking  creek,  a  halt  was  called  for  lunch.  Tke  formation  of  the 
whole  country  is  a  succession  of  basins  and  divides.  Ensued  an- 
other twelve  miles'  descent,  which  placed  us  in  sight  of  Ruby  Val- 
ley, and  a  mile  beyond  carried  us  to  the  station. 

Ruby  Valley  is  a  half-way  house,  about  300  miles  from  Great 
Salt  Lake  City,  and  at  the  same  distance  from  Carson  Valley.  It 
derives  its  name  from  the  small  precious  stones  which  are  found 
like  nuggets  of  gold  in  the  crevices  of  primitive  rock.  Tho 
length  of  the  valley  is  about  100  miles,  by  three  or  four  broad, 
and  springs  are  scattered  in  numbers  along  the  base  of  the  west- 
ern mountains.  The  cold  is  said  to  be  here  more  severe  than  in 
any  place  on  the  line  of  road,  Spring  Valley  excepted.  There  is, 
however,  excellent  bench-land  for  grazing.  In  this  season  the 
scenery  is  really  pretty.  The  white  peaks  tower  over  hill-land 
black  with  cedar,  and  this  looks  down  upon  the  green  bottom 
scattered  over  with  white  sage — winter  above  lying  by  the  side 
of  summer  below. 

We  were  received  at  the  Ruby -Valley  Station  by  Colonel  Rogers, 
better  known  as  "  Uncle  Billy."  He  had  served  in  the  troublous 
days  of  California  as  marshal,  and  has  many  a  hairbreadth  escape 
to  relate.  He  is  now  assistant  Indian  agent,  the  superintendent 
of  a  government  model  farm,  and  he  lives  en  garqon^  having  left 
his  wife  and  children  at  Frogtown.  "We  were  soon  introduced  to 
the  chief  of  the  country,  Chyiikupichya  (the  "  old  man"),  a  word 
of  unpronounceable  slur,  changed  by  whites  into  Chokop  ("earth"). 
His  lands  are  long  to  the  north  and  south,  though  of  little  breadth. 
He  commands  about  500  warriors,  and,  as  Uncle  Billy  is  return- 
ing to  Frogtown,  he  is  collecting  a  large  hunting-party  for  the  au- 
tumnal battue.  In  18-i9  his  sister  was  wantonly  shot  by  emigrants 
to  California.  He  attacked  the  train,  and  slew  in  revenge  five 
men,  a  fact  with  which  we  were  not  made  acquainted  till  after  our 
departure.  His  father  and  grandfather  are  both  alive,  but  they 
have  abdicated  under  the  weight  of  years  and  infirmities,  reserv- 
ing their  voices  for  the  powwow. 

We  dined  in  the  colonel's  stone  hut,  and  then  saw  the  lions 
feed ;  after  us,  Chokop  and  five  followers  sat  down  with  knife 
and  fork  before  a  huge  tureen  full  of  soft  pie,  among  which  they 
did  terrible  execution,  champing  and  chewing  with  the  noisiness 
of  wild  beasts,  and  eating  each  enough  for  three  able-bodied  sail- 
ors. The  chief,  a  young  man  twenty -five  years  old,  had  little  to 
denote  the  Indian  except  vermilion  where  soap  should  have  been ; 
one  of  his  companions,  however,  crowned  with  eagle's  feathers  dis- 
posed in  tulip  shape,  while  the  claws  depended  gracefully  down 
his  back,  was  an  object  worthy  of  Guinea.     All  were,  however,  to 


472  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  XH. 

appearance,  happy,  and  for  the  first  time  I  heard  an  Indian  really 
laugh  outright.  Outside  squatted  the  common  herd  in  a  costume 
which  explains  the  prevalence  of  rheumatism.  The  men  were  in 
rags,  yet  they  had  their  coquetry,  vermilion  streaked  down  their 
cheeks  and  across  their  foreheads — the  Indian  fashion  of  the  om- 
nilocal  rouge.  The  women,  especially  the  elders,  were  horrid  ob- 
jects, shivering  and  half  dressed  in  breech-cloths  and  scanty  capes 
or  tippets  of  wolf  and  rabbit  skin :  the  existence  of  old  age,  how- 
ever, speaks  well  for  the  race.  Both  are  unclean ;  they  use  no 
water  where  Asiatics  would ;  they  ignore  soap,  and  rarely  repair 
to  the  stream,  except,  like  animals,  in  hot  weather. 

We  then  strolled  about  the  camp  and  called  upon  the  two  Mis- 
tresses Chokop.  One  was  a  buxom  dame,  broad  and  strong,  with 
hair  redolent  of  antelope  marrow,  who  boasted  of  a  "  wikeap"  or 
wigwam  in  the  shape  of  a  conical  tent.  The  other,  much  her 
junior,  and  rather  pretty,  was  sitting  apart  in  a  bower  of  bushes, 
with  a  newly-born  pappoose  in  a  willow  cage  to  account  for  her 
isolation :  the  poor  thing  would  have  been  driven  out  even  in  the 
depth  of  winter,  and  were  she  to  starve,  she  must  do  without  meat. 
As  among  the  Jews,  whenever  the  Great  Father  is  angry  with  the 
daughters  of  Eed  Men,  they  sit  apart;  they  never  touch  a  cook- 
ing utensil,  although  it  is  not  held  impure  to  address  them,  and 
they  return  only  when  the  signs  of  wrath  have  passed  away. 
The  abodes  of  the  poorer  clansmen  were  three-quarter  circles  of 
earth,  sticks,  and  sage-bush  to  keep  off  the  southerly  wind.  A 
dog  is  usually  one  of  the  occupants.  Like  the  African,  the  In- 
dian is  cruel  to  his  brute,  starves  it  and  kicks  it  for  attempting  to 
steal  a  mouthful:  "Love  me,  love  my  dog,"  however,  is  his  mot- 
to, and  he  quarrels  with  the  stranger  that  follows  his  example. 
The  furniture  was  primitive.  Upon  a  branch  hung  a  dried  ante- 
lope head  used  in  stalking:  concerning  this  sport  Uncle  Billy 
had  a  story  of  his  nearly  being  shot  by  being  mistaken  for  the 
real  animal ;  and  tripods  of  timber  supporting  cloths  and  mocca- 
sins, pans,  camjD-kettles,  stones  for  grinding  grass-seed,  and  a  vari- 
ety of  baskets.  The  material  was  mostly  willow  twig,  with  a 
layer  of  gum,  probably  from  the  pine-tree.  Some  were  water- 
tight like  the  "  Han"  of  Somaliland ;  others,  formed  like  the  Ro- 
man amphora,  were  for  storing  grain ;  while  others,  in  giant  cock- 
ed-hat shape,  were  intended  for  sweeping  in  crickets  and  the  grass- 
seeds  upon  which  these  Indians  feed.  The  chief  graminete  are  the 
atriplex  and  chenopodaceous  plants.  After  inspecting  the  camp 
we  retired  precipitately :  its  condition  was  that  of  an  Egyptian 
army's  last  nighting-place. 

About  two  miles  from  the  station  there  is  a  lake  covered  with 
water-fowl,  from  the  wild  swan  to  the  rail.  I  preferred,  however, 
to  correct  my  Shoshonee  vocabulary  under  the  inspection  of  Mose 
Wright,  an  express  rider  from  a  neighboring  station.  None  of 
your  "  one-horse"  interpreters,  he  had  learned  the  difficult  dialect 


Chap.  XIII.  PRICE  OF  A  GOVERNMENT  FARM.  473 

in  his  youth,  and  he  had  acquired  all  the  intonation  of  an  Indian. 
Educated  beyond  the  reach  of  civilization,  he  was  in  these  days 
an  oddity ;  he  was  convicted  of  having  mistaken  a  billiard  cue 
for  a  whip  handle,  and  was  accused  of  having  mounted  the  post 
supporting  the  electric  telegraph  wire  in  order  to  hear  what  it 
was  saying.  The  evening  was  spent  in  listening  to  Uncle  Billy's 
adventures  among  the  whites  and  reds.  He  spoke  highly  of  his 
jiroteges^  especially  of  their  affection  and  fidelity  in  married  life: 
they  certainl}^  appeared  to  look  upon  him  as  a  father.  He  owed 
something  to  legerdemain ;  here,  as  in  Algeria,  a  Houdin  or  a 
Love  would  be  great  medicine-men  with  whom  nobody  would 
dare  to  meddle.  Uncle  Billy  managed  to  make  the  post  pay  by 
peltries  of  the  mink,  wolf,  woodchuck  or  ground-hog,  fox,  badger, 
antelope,  black-tailed  deer,  and  others.  He  illustrated  the  pecul- 
iarities of  the  federal  government  bj;^  a  curious  anecdote.  The 
indirect  or  federal  duties  are  in  round  numbers  $100,000,000,  of 
which  $60,000,000  are  spent,  leaving  a  surplus  of  forty  for  the 
purpose  of  general  corruption :  the  system  seems  to  date  from  the 
days  of  the  "ultimus  Eomanorum,"  President  Jackson.  None 
but  the  largest  claimants  can  expect  to  be  recognized.     A  few 

years  ago  one  of  the  Indian  agents  in was  asked  by  a  high 

official  what  might  be  about  the  cost  of  purchasing  a  few  hundred 
acres  for  a  government  farm.  After  reckoning  up  the  amount  of 
beads,  wire,  blankets,  and  gunpowder,  the  total  was  found  to  be 
$240.  The  high  official  requested  his  friend  to  place  the  state- 
ment on  paper,  and  was  somewhat  surprised  the  next  morning  to 
see  the  $240  swollen  to  $40,000.  The  reason  given  was  charac- 
teristic: "  What  great  government  would  condescend  to  pay  out 
of  £8,000,000  a  paltry  £48,  or  would  refuse  to  give  £8000  ?" 


CHAPTER  XIIL 

To  Carson  Valley. 


Before  resuming  the  Itinerary,  it  may  be  advisable  briefly  to 
describe  the  various  tribes  tenanting  this  Territory. 

We  have  now  emerged  from'  the  Prairie  Indians,  the  Dakotah, 
Crow,  Kiowa,  Comanche,  Osage,  Apache,  Chej^enne,  Pawnee,  and 
Arapaho.  Utah  Territory  contains  a  total  of  about  19,000  souls 
of  two  great  kindred  races,  the  Shoshonee  or  Snake,  and  the  Yuta, 
called  Uche  by  the  Spaniards  and  Ute  by  the  Anglo-American 
trappers.  Like  the  Comanche  and  Apache,  the  Pimas,  the  Lipans, 
and  the  people  of  the  Pueblos,  they  are  of  the  Hispano-American 
division,  once  subject  to  the  Conquistadores,  and  are  bounded 
north  by  the  Panak*  (Bannack)  and  the  once  formidable  Black- 

*  The  Panak  is  a  small  tribe  of  500  souls,  now  considered  dangerous :  the  greater 


474  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  XHI. 

feet.  The  Shoshonee  own  about  one  third  of  the  Territory ;  their 
principal  settlements  lie  north  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake,  and  on  the 
line  of  the  Humboldt  or  Mary  Eiver,  some  400  miles  west,  and 
100  to  125  south  of  the  Oregon  line.  They  number  about  4500 
souls,  and  are  wildest  in  the  southeast  parts  of  their  motherland. 
The  Yuta  claim  the  rest  of  the  Territory  between  Kansas,  the  Si- 
erra Nevada,  New  Mexico,  and  the  Oregon  frontier.  Of  course 
the  two  peoples  are  mortal  foes,  and  might  be  well  pitted  against 
each  other.     The  Snakes  would  form  excellent  partisan  warriors. 

The  Shoshonee  number  fourteen  tribes  regularly  organized; 
the  principal,  which  contains  about  12,000  souls,  is  commanded 
by  Washaki,  assisted,  as  usual,  by  sub-chiefs,  four  to  six  in  num- 
ber. Five  bands,  numbering  near  1000  each,  roam  about  the 
mountains  and  kanyons  of  Great  Salt  Lake  County,  Weber,  Bear, 
Cache,  and  Malad  Valleys,  extending  eighty  miles  north  from  the 
Holy  City.  These  have  suffered  the  most  from  proximity  with 
the  whites,  and  no  longer  disdain  agriculture.  One  band,  150  to 
180  in  number,  confines  itself  to  the  North  Californian  Eoute  from 
Bear  and  Malad  Yalleys  to  the  Goose-Creek  Mountains.  Seven 
bands  roam  over  the  country  from  the  Humboldt  River  to  100 
miles  south  of  it,  and  extend  about  200  miles  from  east  to  west: 
the  principal  chief,  Wanamuka,  or  "  the  Giver,"  had  a  band'  of 
155  souls,  and  lived  near  the  Honey  Lake. 

The  Yuta  claim,  like  the  Shoshonee,  descent  from  an  ancient 
people  that  immigrated  into  their  present  seats  from  the  north- 
west. During  the  last  thirty  years  they  have  considerably  de- 
creased according  to  the  mountaineers,  and  have  been  demoral- 
ized mentally  and  physically  by  the  emigrants :  formerly  they 
were  friendly,  now  they  are  often  at  war  with  the  intruders.  As 
in  Australia,  arsenic  and  corrosive  sublimate  in  springs  and  pro- 
visions have  diminished  their  number.  The  nation  is  said  to  con- 
tain a  total  of  14,000  to  15,000  souls,  divided  into  twenty-seven 
bands,  of  which  the  following  are  the  principal : 

The  Pa  Yuta  (Pey  Utes)  are  the  most  docile,  interesting,  and 
powerful,  containing  twelve  bands  ;*  those  in  the  west  of  the  Ter- 

part  resides  in  Oregon,  the  smaller  about  ninety  miles  in  the  N.E.  of  the  Territory, 
where  they  hunt  the  bison  and  the  elk.  For  thirty  years  they  have  traded  with  Fort 
Bridger,  and  when  first  known  they  numbered  1200  lodges.  "  Horn,"  their  principal 
chief,  visited  the  place  in  April,  1858.  Mr.  Forney,  the  late  Superintendent  of  In- 
dian Affairs  in  Utah  Territory,  granted  them  a  home  in  the  lands  of  Washaki,  and 
they  have  intermarried  and  lived  peaceably  with  the  Shoshonee. 

*  These  are,  1.  Wanamuka's ;  2.  San  Joaquim,  near  the  forks  of  that  river  in  Car- 
son Valley,  numbering  170;  3.  Hadsapoke,  or  Horse-stopper  band,  of  110,  in  Gold 
Kanyon,  on  Carson  River ;  4.  Wahi  or  Fox  band,  on  Big  Bend  of  Carson  River,  130 
in  number ;  5  and  6.  Odakeo,  "Tall-man  band,"  and  Petodseka,  "White-Spot  band," 
round  the  lakes  and  sinks  of  the  Carson  and  Walker  Rivers,  numbering  484  men, 
372  women,  and  405  children;  7.  Tosarke,  "Gray-head  band,"  their  neighbors;  8. 
Tonoziet,  "Woman-helper  band,"  on  the  Truckce  River,  below  Big  Meadows,  num- 
bering 280  souls ;  9.  Torape,  or  "Lean-man  band,"  on  the  Truckce  River,  near  Lone 
Crossing,  3G0  souls ;  10.  Goncga,  the  "  Dancer  band,"  290  souls,  near  the  mouth  of 
the  Truckce  River;  11.  Watsequendo,  the  "Four  Crows,"  along  the  shores  of  Pyra- 


Chap.  XHI.  THE  GOSH  YUTA,  ETC.  475 

ritorj,  on  the  Humboldt  Eiver,  number  6000,  and  in  the  south 
2200  souls ;  they  extend  from  forty  miles  west  of  Stony  Point  to 
the  Californian  line,  and  northwest  to  the  Oregon  line,  and  inhab- 
it the  valley  of  the  Fenelon  River,  which,  rising  from  Lake  Big- 
ler,  empties  itself  into  Pyramid  Lake.  The  term  means  Water 
Yuta,  that  is  to  say,  those  who  live  upon  fish  which  they  take 
from  lakes  and  rivers  in  wiers  and  traps  of  willow,  perferring  that 
diet  to  roots,  grass-seed,  lizards,  and  crickets,  the  food  of  the  other 
so-called  Digger  tribes. 

Gosh  Yuta,  or  Gosha  Ute,  is  a  small  band,  once  frottcjts  of  the 
Shoshonee,  who  have  the  same  language  and  limits.  Their  prin- 
cipal chief  died  about  five  years  ago,  when  the  tribe  was  broken 
up.  A  body  of  sixty,  under  a  peaceful  leader,  were  settled  per- 
manently on  the  Indian  farm  at  Deep  Creek,  and  the  remainder 
wandered  40  to  200  miles  west  of  Great  Salt  Lake  City.  Through 
this  tribe  our  road  lay ;  during  the  late  tumults  they  have  lost 
fifty  warriors,  and  are  now  reduced  to  about  200  men.  Like  the 
Ghuzw  of  Arabia,  they  strengthen  themselves  by  admitting  the 
outcasts  of  other  tribes,  and  will  presently  become  a  mere  banditti. 

Pavant,  or  Parovan  Yuta,  are  a  distinct  and  self-organized  tribe, 
under  one  principal  and  several  sub-chiefs,  whose  total  is  set  down 
at  700  souls.  Half  of  them  are  settled  on  the  Indian  farm  at  Corn 
Creek ;  the  other  wing  of  the  tribe  lives  along  Sevier  Lake,  and 
the  surrounding  country  in  the  northeast  extremity  of  Fillmore 
Valley,  fifty  miles  from  the  city,  where  they  join  the  Gosh  Yuta. 
The  Pavants  breed  horses,  wear  clothes  of  various  patterns,  grow 
grain,  which  the  Gosh  Yutas  will  not,  and  are  as  brave  and  im- 
provable as  their  neighbors  are  mean  and  vile. 

Timpenaguchj^a,*  or  Timpana  Yuta,  corrupted  into  Tenpenny 
Utes,  who  dwell  about  the  kanyon  of  that  name,  and  on  the  east 
of  the  Sweetwater  Lake.  Of  this  tribe  was  the  chief  "Wakara,  who 
so  called  himself  after  Walker,  the  celebrated  trapper ;  the  noto- 
rious horse-stealer  proved  himself  a  friend  to  the  Latter-Day 
Saints.  He  died  at  Meadow  Creek,  six  miles  from  Fillmore  City, 
on  the  29th  of  January,  1855,  and  at  his  obsequies  two  squaws, 
two  Pa  Yuta  children,  and  fifteen  of  his  best  horses  composed  the 
"  customs." 

Uinta  Yuta,  in  the  mountains  south  of  Fort  Bridger,  and  in  the 
country  along  the  Green  River.  Of  this  tribe,  which  contains  a 
total  of  1000,  a  band  of  500,  under  four  chiefs,  lately  settled  on 
the  Indian  reservations  at  Spanish  Fork. 

Sampichya,  corrupted  to  San  Pete  Utas ;  about  eighty  warriors, 
settled  on  the  Indian  farm  at  San  Pete.  This  and  the  Spanish- 
Fork  Farm  number  900  inhabitants. 

Elk-Mountain  Yutas,  who  are  set  down  at  2000  souls,  by  some 

mid  Lake,  320  sonls  ;  ]  2.  The  second  Wanamuka's  band,  500  in  number,  along  the 
shores  of  the  Northern  Mud  Lake. 

*  In  the  Yuta  language  meaning  "water  among  the  stones." 


476  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  XIII. 

even  8000 ;  they  -wander  over  the  southeast  portion  of  the  Terri- 
tory, and,  like  the  Uinta  Yntas,  are  the  most  independent  of  white 
settlers. 

Weber-River  Yutas  are  those  principally  seen  in  Great  Salt 
Lake  City ;  they  are  a  poor  and  degraded  tribe.  Their  chief  set- 
tlement is  forty  miles  to  the  north,  and,  like  the  Gosh  Yutas,  they 
understand  Shoshonee. 

Among  the  Yutas  are  reckoned  the  Washoe,  from  500  to  700 
souls.  They  inhabit  the  eastern  slopes  of  the  Sierra  Nevada,  from 
Honey  Lake  to  the  West  Fork  of  Walker's  River  in  the  south. 
Of  this  troublesome  tribe  there  are  three  bands :  Captain  Jim's, 
near  Lake  Bigler,  and  Carson,  Washoe,  and  Eagle  Valleys,  a  total 
of  842  souls ;  Pasuka's  band,  340  souls,  in  Little  Valley ;  and  Deer 
Dick's  band,  in  Long  Valley,  southeast  of  Honey  Lake.  They 
are  usually  called  Shoshoko,*  or  "  Digger  Indians" — a  term  as  in- 
sulting to  a  Shoshonee  as  nigger  to  an  African. 

Besides  the  Parawat  Yutas,  the  Yampas,  200 — 800  miles  south, 
on  the  White  River ;  the  Tabechya,  or  Sun-hunters,  about  Tete  de 
Biche,  near  Spanish  lands ;  and  the  Tash  Yuta,  near  the  Navajoes : 
there  are  scatters  of  the  nation  along  the  Californian  road  from 
Beaver  Valley,  along  the  Santa  Clara,  Virgen,  Las  Vegas,  and  Mud- 
dy Rivers  to  New  Mexico. 

The  Lidian  Bureau  of  Utah  Territory  numbers  one  superin- 
tendent, six  agents,  and  three  to  six  farm-agents.  The  annual 
expenditure  is  set  down  at  $40,000 ;  the  Mormons  declare  that  it 
is  iniquitously  embezzled,  and  that  the  total  spent  upon  the  In- 
dians hardly  exceeds  $1000  per  annum.  The  savages  expect 
blankets  and  clothing,  flour  and  provisions,  arms  and  ammuni- 
tion :  they  receive  only  a  little  tobacco,  become  surly,  and  slay 
the  settlers.  It  is  understood  that  the  surveyor  general  has  rec- 
ommended to  the  federal  government  the  extinction  of  the  Indian 
title — somewhat  upon  the  principle  of  the  English  in  Tasmaniaf 
and  New  Zealand — to  grounds  in  the  Utah  Territory,  and  the 
establishment  of  a  land-office  for  the  sale  of  the  two  millions  of 
acres  already  surveyed.  Until  the  citizens  can  own  their  farms 
and  fields  under  the  existing  pre-emption  laws,  and  until  the 
troublesome  Indians  can  be  removed  by  treaty  to  reservations 
remote  from  white  settlements,  the  onward  march  of  progress  will 
be  arrested.  The  savage  and  the  civilized  man,  like  crabbed  age 
and  youth,  like  the  black  and  gray  rat,  can  not  live  together :  the 
former  starves  unless  placed  in  the  most  fertile  sj^ots,  which  the 
latter  of  course  covets ;  the  Mormons  attempt  a  peace  policy,  but 

*  It  is  said  to  mean  "one  who  Roes  on  foot." 

t  Van  Diemen's  Land,  in  the  days  of  Captain  Flinders  (A.D.  1800,  two  genera- 
tions ago),  had  a  population  of  100,000  souls,  now  well-nigh  annihilated  by  strong 
waters  and  corrosive  sublimate.  Neither  man  nor  woman  was  safe  in  the  vicinity 
of  a  native  tribe ;  the  Anglo-Scandinavian  race  thus  found  it  necessary  to  wipe  out 
a  people  that  could  not  be  civilized— a  f;iir  instance  of  the  natural  selection  of  spe- 
cies.    And  New  Zealand  now  threatens  to  walk  the  path  of  Tasmania. 


CiiAP.  XIII.  THE  INDIAN  FAEMS.  477 

the  hunting-grounds  arc  encroached  upon,  and  terrible  massacres 
are  the  result.  Here,  as  elsewhere,  the  battle  of  life  is  fiercely 
fought.     It  has  been  said, 

"  Man  differs  more  from  mau 
Thau  beast  from  beast." 

Yet  every  where  we  trace  the  mighty  resemblance. 

The  three  principal  farms  which  now  form  the  nuclei  of  future 
reservations  are  those  at  Spanish  Fork,  San  Pete,  and  Corn  Creek. 
The  two  latter  have  often  been  denuded  by  the  grasshopper ;  the 
former  has  fared  better.  Situated  in  Utah  Valley,  under  the  shel- 
ter of  lofty  Nebo,  it  extends  northward  within  four  miles  of  the 
Sweetwater  Lake,  and  on  the  northeast  is  bounded  by  the  Spanish- 
Fork  Creek,  rich  in  trout  and  other  fish.  It  was  begun  five  years 
ago  for  the  Yutas,  who  claim  the  land,  and  contains  a  total  of 
13,000  acres,  of  which  500  have  been  cultivated;  900  have  been 
ditched  to  protect  the  crop,  and  1000  have  been  walled  round 
with  a  fence  six  feet  high.  Besides  other  improvements,  they 
have  built  a  large  adobe  house  and  two  rail  corrals,  and  dug  dams 
and  channels  for  irrigation,  together  with  a  good  stone -curbed 
well.  Under  civilized  superintendence  the  savages  begin  to  la- 
bor, and  the  chiefs  aspire  to  erect  houses.  Yet  the  crops  have 
been  light,  rarely  exceeding  2500  bushels.  San  Pete  Farm,  in 
the  valley  and  on  the  creek  of  the  same  name,  lies  150  miles  south 
of  Great  Salt  Lake  City ;  it  supports,  besides  those  who  come  for 
temporary  assistance,  a  band  of  thirty  souls ;  200  acres  have  been 
planted  with  wheat  and  potatoes,  two  adobe  houses  and  a  corral 
have  been  made,  and  irrigating  trenches  have  been  dug.  Corn- 
Creek  Farm,  in  Fillmore  Valley,  was  begun  about  four  years  ago ; 
300  acres  have  been  broken  up,  several  adobe  houses  have  been 
built  for  the  Indians  and  the  farm  agent,  with  the  usual  adjuncts, 
corral  and  fences.  The  crickets  and  grasshoppers  have  commit- 
ted sad  havoc  among  the  wheat,  corn,  and  potatoes.  It  is  now 
tenanted  by  a  Pahvant  chief  The  Uinta  Farm  is  near  Fort  Bridg- 
er.  Those  lately  opened  in  Deep  Creek  and  Euby  Valleys  have 
this  year  lain  fallow  in  consequence  of  Indian  troubles ;  the  soil, 
however,  is  rich,  and  will  produce  beets,  potatoes,  onions,  turnips, 
and  melons.  It  is  proposed  to  place  the  Pa  Yutas  and  Washoes 
in  the  Truckee  Meadows,  on  the  lands  "watered  by  the  majestic 
Kuyuehup,  or  Salmon-Trout  Eiver,"  where,  besides  fish  and  pinon 
forests,  there  are  15,000  acres  fit  for  cultivation  and  herding.  The 
Indian  agents  report  that  the  cost  will  be  $150,000,  from  which 
the  Mormons  deduct  at  least  two  O's. 

The  Yuta,  though  divided  into  many  tribes  and  bands,  is  a  dis- 
tinct race  from  its  prairie  neighbors,  speaking  a  single  lavgue  mere 
much  diversified  by  dialect.  They  are  a  superstitious  brood,  and 
have  many  cruel  practices — human  sacrifices  and  vivisepulture — 
like  those  of  Dahomey  and  Ashantee.  Their  religion  is  the  usual 
African  and  Indian  fetichism,  that  germal  faith  which,  under  fa- 


478  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  XIH. 

vorable  influences  and  among  higher  races,  developed  itself  by 
natural  means — or  as  explained  by  a  mythical,  distinct,  and  inde- 
pendent revelation — into  the  higher  forms  of  Judaism,  Christian- 
ity, and  El  Islam.  In  the  vicinity  of  the  Mormons  many  savages 
have  been  baptized,  and  have  become  nominal  Saints,  They  di- 
vide white  men  into  Shwop  or  Americans  and  Mormons.  Their 
learned  men  have  heard  of  Washington,  but,  like  the  French  peas- 
ant's superstition  concerning  Napoleon,  they  believe  him  to  be 
still  alive.  They  have  a  name  for  the  Book  of  Mormon,  and  have 
not  learned,  like  their  more  civilized  Eastern  neighbors,  to  look 
upon  it  as  the  work  of  Mujhe  Manitou,  the  bad  god,  who,  like 
Wiswakarma  of  the  Hindoos,  amuses  himself  by  caricaturing  and 
parodying  the  creatures  of  the  good  god.  They  are  not  cannibals 
— the  Wendigo  is  a  giant  man-eater  of  a  mythologic  type,  not  an 
actual  anthropophage — but,  like  all  Indians,  especially  those  of 
New  England,  they  "  feel  good"  after  eating  a  bit  of  the  enemy, 
a  natural  display  of  destructiveness :  they  will  devour  the  heart 
of  a  brave  man  to  increase  their  courage,  or  chop  it  up,  boil  it  in 
soup,  engorge  a  ladleful,  and  boast  they  have  drunk  the  enemy's 
blood.  They  are  as  lialDle  to  caprice  as  their  Eastern  neighbors. 
A  prisoner  who  has  distinguished  himself  in  battle  is  as  often  dis- 
missed unhurt  as  porcupined  with  arrows  and  killed  with  cruel 
tortures ;  if  they  yield  in  ingenuity  of  inflicting  pain  to  the  Al- 
gonquins  and  Iroquois,  it  is  not  for  want  of  inclination,  but  by 
reason  of  their  stupidity.  Female  captives  who  fall  into  their 
hands  are  horribly  treated ;  I  was  told  of  one  who,  after  all  man- 
ner of  atrocities,  scalping  included,  escaped  with  life.  They  have 
all  the  savage's  improvidence;  utility  is  not  their  decalogue.  Both 
sexes,  except  when  clothed  by  a  charitable  Mormon,  are  nearly 
naked,  even  in  the  severest  weather ;  they  sleep  in  sleet  and  snow 
unclothed,  except  with  a  cape  of  twisted  rabbits'  furs  and  a  mis- 
erable attempt  at  moccasins,  lined  with  plaited  cedar  bark :  leg- 
gins  are  unknown,  even  to  the  women.  Their  ornaments  are  ver- 
milion, a  few  beads,  and  shell  necklaces.  They  rarely  suffer  from 
any  disease  but  rheumatism,  brought  on  by  living  in  the  warm 
houses  of  the  whites,  and  various  consequences  of  liver  complaint, 
produced  by  overgorging :  as  with  strong  constitutions  generally, 
they  either  die  at  once  or  readily  recover.  They  dress  wounds 
with  pine  gum  after  squeezing  out  the  blood,  and  their  medicine- 
men have  the  usual  variety  of  savage  nostrums.  In  the  more  des- 
ert parts  of  the  Territory  they  are  exceedingly  destitute.  South 
of  Cedar  City,  even  ten  years  ago  they  had  fields  of  wheat  and 
corn  of  six  acres  each,  and  supported  emigrants ;  some  of  them 
cultivate  yearly  along  the  stream-banks  peas,  beans,  sweet  pota- 
toes, and  squashes.  They  live  upon  the  flesh  of  tlae  bear,  elk, 
antelope,  dog,  wolf,  hare,  snake,  and  lizard,  besides  crickets,  grass- 
hoppers, ants,  and  other  vermin.  The  cactus  leaf,  piuon  nut,  and 
various  barks ;  the  seed  of  the  bunch-grass  and  of  the  wheat  or 


Chap.  XIH.  THE  YUTAS.  479 

yellow  grass,  somewhat  resembling  rye;  the  rabbit-bush  twigs, 
which  are  chewed,  and  various  roots  and  tubers;  the  soft  sego 
bulb,  the  rootlet  of  the  cat-tail  flag,  and  of  the  tule,  which,  when 
sun-dried  and  powdered  to  flour,  keeps  through  the  winter,  and 
is  palatable  even  to  white  men,  conclude  the  list  of  their  dainties. 
When  these  fail  they  must  steal  or  starve,  and  the  dilemma  is  eas- 
ily solved,  to  the  settler's  cost. 

The  Yutas  in  the  vicinity  of  the  larger  white  settlements  con- 
tinually diminish ;  bands  of  150  warriors  are  now  reduced  to  35. 
Some  of  the  minor  tribes  in  the  southern  part  of  the  Territory, 
near  New  Mexico,  can  scarcely  show  a  single  squaw,  having  traded 
them  off  for  horses  and  arms ;  they  go  about  killing  one  another, 
and  on  kidnapping  expeditions,  which  farther  diminish  the  breed. 
The  complaint  which  has  devastated  the  South  Sea  Islands  rages 
around  the  City  of  the  Saints,  and  extends  to  the  Eio  Virgen.  In 
six  months  six  squaws  were  shot  by  red  Othellos  for  yielding 
their  virtue  to  the  fascinations  of  tobacco,  whisky,  and  blankets; 
the  Lotharios  were  savage  as  well  as  civilized.  The  operation  of 
courting  is  performed  by  wrapping  a  blanket  round  one's  be- 
loved ;  if  she  reciprocates,  it  is  a  sign  of  consent.  A  refusal  in 
these  lands  is  often  a  serious  business ;  the  warrior  collects  his 
friends,  carries  off  the  recusant  fair,  and,  after  subjecting  her  to 
the  insults  of  all  his  companions,  espouses  her.  There  is  little 
of  the  shame  which  Pliny  attributes  to  the  "Barrus."  When  a 
death  takes  place  they  wrap  the  body  in  a  skin  or  hide,  and  drag 
it  by  the  leg  to  a  grave,  which  is  heaped  up  with  stones  as  a  pro- 
tection against  wild  beasts.  They  mourn  till  the  end  of  that 
moon,  allow  a  month  to  elapse,  and  then  resume  their  lamenta- 
tions for  another  moon:  the  interval  is  gradually  increased  tiU 
the  grief  ends.  It  is  usual  to  make  the  dead  man's  lodge  appear 
as  desolate  as  possible. 

The  Yuta  is  less  servile,  and,  consequently,  has  a  higher  ethnic 
status  than  the  African  negro ;  he  will  not  toil,  and  he  turns  at  a 
kick  or  a  blow.  The  emigrant  who  addresses  him  in  the  usual 
phrase,  "  D —  your  eyes,  git  out  of  the  road  or  I'll  shoot  you !"  is 
pretty  sure  to  come  to  grief.  Lately  the  Yutas  demanded  com- 
pensation for  the  use  of  their  grass  upon  the  Truckee  Eiver,  when 
the  emigrants  fired,  killing  Wanamuka  the  chief.  After  the  death 
of  two  or  three  whites,  Mayor  Ormsby,  of  the  militia  at  Carson 
Valley,  took  the  field,  was  decoyed  into  a  kanyon  by  Indian  cun- 
ning, and  perished  with  aU  his  men. 

To  "  Chohop's'  Pass.     Sth  October,  18G0. 

The  morning  was  wasted  in  binding  two  loose  tires  upon  their 
respective  wheels ;  it  was  past  noon  before  we  were  en  route.  We 
shook  hands  cordially  with  Uncle  Billy,  whose  generosity — a  vir- 
tue highly  prized  by  those  who,  rarely  practicing,  expect  it  to  be 
practiced  upon  them — has  won  for  him  the  sobriquet  of  the  "  Big- 


480  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  XIII. 

hearted  Father."  He  had  vainly,  however,  attempted  to  rescue 
my  silver  pen-holder,  whose  glitter  was  too  much  for  Indian  vir- 
tue. Our  route  lay  over  a  long  divide,  cold  but  not  unpictur- 
esquc,  a  scene  of  light-tinted  mountain  mahogany,  black  cedar, 
pure  snowy  hill,  and  pink  sky.  After  ten  miles  we  reached  the 
place  where  the  road  forks;  that  to  the  right,  passing  through 
Pine  Valley,  falls  into  the  gravelly  ford  of  the  Humboldt  Eiver, 
distant  from  this  point  eighty  to  eighty -five  miles.  After  sur- 
mounting the  water-shed  we  descended  over  bench-land  into  a 
raw  and  dreary  plain,  in  which  greasewood  was  more  plentiful 
than  sage-bush.  "Huntingdon  Valley"  is  traversed  by  Smith's 
Fork,  which  flows  northward  to  the  Humboldt  Eiver ;  when  we 
crossed  it  it  was  a  mere  rivulet.  Our  camping-ground  was  at  the 
farther  end  of  the  plain,  under  a  Pass  called  after  the  chief  Cho- 
kop ;  the  kanyon  emitted  a  cold  draught  like  the  breathing  caves 
of  Kentucky.  We  alighted  at  a  water  near  the  entrance,  and 
found  bunch-grass,  besides  a  little  fuel.  After  two  hours  the 
wagon  came  up  with  the  stock,  which  was  now  becoming  weary, 
and  we  had  the  usual  supper  of  dough,  butter,  and  coffee.  I 
should  have  slept  comfortably  enough  upon  a  shovel  and  a  layer 
of  carpet-bags  had  not  the  furious  south  wind  howled  like  the 
distant  whooping  of  Indians. 

To  the  Wilderness  again.     Otli  October. 

The  frosty  night  was  followed  by  a  thaw  in  the  morning.  "We 
hastened  to  ascend  Chokop's  Pass  by  a  bad,  steep  dugway :  it  lies 
south  of  "  Eailroad  Kanyon,"  which  is  said  to  be  nearly  flat-soled. 
A  descent  led  into  "  Moonshine,"  called  by  the  Yutas  Pahannap 
Valley,  and  we  saw  with  pleasure  the  bench  rising  at  the  foot  of 
the  pass.  The  station  is  named  Diamond  Springs,  from  an  eye 
of  warm,  but  sweet  and  beautifully  clear  water  bublDling  up  from 
the  earth.  A  little  below  it  drains  off  in  a  deep  rushy  ditch,  with 
a  gravel  bottom,  containing  equal  parts  of  comminuted  shells :  we 
found  it  an  agreeable  and  opportune  bath.  Hard  work  had  be- 
gun to  tell  upon  the  temper  of  the  party.  The  judge,  who  ever 
preferred  monologue  to  dialogue,  aweary  of  the  rolling  prairies 
and  barren  plains,  the  bald  and  rocky  ridges,  the  muddy  flats, 
saleratus  ponds,  and  sandy  wastes,  sighed  monotonously_  for  the 
woodland  shades  and  the  rustling  of  living  leaves  near  his  Penn- 
sylvanian  home.  The  marshal,  with  true  Anglo- American  impet- 
uosity, could  not  endure  Paddy  Kennedy's  "  slow  and  shyure" 
style  of  travel;  and  after  a  colloquy,  in  which  the  holiest  of 
words  were  freely  used  as  adjectives,  participles,  and  exclama- 
tions, offered  to  fight  him  by  way  of  quickening  his  pace.  The 
boys — four  or  five  in  number — ate  for  breakfast  a  quarter  of  beef, 
as  though  they  had  been  Kaffirs  or  Esquimaux,  and  were  threat- 
ened with  ration-cutting.  The  station  folks  were  Mormons,  but 
not  particularly  civil :  they  afterward  had  to  fly  before  the  sav- 


Chap.  XIII.       SHEAWIT  CREEK.— THE  WHITE-KNIVES.  481 

ages,  which,  perhaps,  they  will  be  pleased  to  consider  a  "judg- 
ment" upon  them. 

Shortly  after  noon  we  left  Diamond  Springs,  and  carried  on  for 
a  stretch  of  seven  miles  to  our  lunching-ground,  a  rushy  water, 
black  where  it  overlies  mud,  and  bluish-green  where  light  gravel 
and  shells  form  the  bottom :  the  taste  is  sulphury,  and  it  abounds 
in  confervas  and  animalculte  like  leeches  and  little  tadpoles.  Aft- 
er playing  a  tidy  bowie-knife,  we  remounted,  and  passed  over  to 
the  rough  divide  lying  westward  of  Moonshine  Valley.  As  night 
had  closed  in,  we  found  some  difficulty  in  choosing  a  camping- 
place  :  at  length  we  pitched  upon  a  prairillon  under  the  lee  of  a 
hill,  where  we  had  bunch-grass  and  fuel,  but  no  water.  The  wind 
blew  sternly  through  the  livelong  night,  and  those  who  suffered 
from  cramps  in  cold  feet  had  little  to  do  with  the  "  sweet  restorer, 
balmy  sleep." 

To  Shemoit  Creek.     \Otli  October. 

At  6  A.M.  the  mercury  was  sunk  only  to  29°  F.,  but  the  ele- 
vation and  rapid  evaporation,  with  the  fierce  gusty  wind  cours- 
ing through  the  kanyon,  rendered  the  sensation  of  cold  painful. 
As  usual  on  these  occasions,  "  George,"  our  chef,  sensibly  pre- 
ferred standing  over  the  fire,  and  enwrapping  himself  with  smoke, 
to  the  inevitable  exposure  incurred  while  fetching  a  cofiee-pot  or 
a  tea-kettle.  A  long  divide,  with  many  ascents  and  descents,  at 
length  placed  in  front  of  us  a  view  of  the  normal  "distance" — 
heaps  of  hills,  white  as  bridal  cakes,  and,  nearer,  a  sand-like  plain, 
somewhat  more  yellow  than  the  average  of  those  salt-bottoms : 
instinct  told  us  that  there  lay  the  station-house.  From  the  hills 
rose  the  smokes  of  Indian  fires :  the  lands  belong  to  the  Tusa- 
wichya,  or  White-Knives,  a  band  of  the  Shoshonees  under  an  in- 
dependent chief.  This  depression  is  known  to  the  Yutas  as  Shea- 
wit,  or  Willow  Creek :  the  whites  call  it,  from  Mr.  Bolivar  Eob- 
erts,  the  Western  agent,  "  Eoberts'  Springs  Valley,"  It  lies  286 
miles  from  Camp  Floyd :  from  this  point  "  Simpson's  Eoad" 
strikes  off  to  the  S.E.,  and  as  Mr.  Howard  Egan's  rule  here  termi- 
nates, it  is  considered  the  latter  end  of  Mormondoni.  Like  all 
the  stations  to  the  westward,  that  is  to  say,  those  now  before  us, 
it  was  burned  down  in  the  late  Indian  troubles,  and  has  only  been 
partially  rebuilt.  One  of  the  era2:>loyes  was  Mr.  Mose  Wright,  of 
Illinois,  who  again  kindly  assisted  me  with  correcting  my  vocab- 
ulary. 

About  the  station  loitered  several  Indians  of  the  White-Knife 
tribe,  which  boasts,  like  the  old  Sioux  and  the  modern  Flatheads, 
never  to  have  stained  its  weapons  with  the  blood  of  a  white  man. 
They  may  be  a  respectable  race,  but  they  are  an  ugly :  they  re- 
semble the  Diggers,  and  the  children  are  not  a  little'like  juvenile 
baboons.  The  dress  was  the  usual  medley  of  rags  and  rabbit 
furs:  they  were  streaked  with  vermilion;  and  their  hair — con- 
trary to,  and  more  sensibly  than  the  practice  of  our  grandfathers 

H  H 


482  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  XIII. 

— was  fastened  into  a  frontal  pigtail,  to  prevent  it  falling  into  the 
eyes.  These  men  attend  upon  the  station  and  herd  the  stock  for 
an  occasional  meal,  their  sole  payment.  They  will  trade  their 
skins  and  peltries  for  arms  and  gunpowder,  but,  African-like, 
they  are  apt  to  look  upon  provisions,  beads,  and  tobacco  in  the 
light  of  presents. 

A  long  march  of  thirty-five  miles  lay  before  us.  Kennedy  re- 
solved to  pass  the  night  at  Sheawit  Creek,  and,  despite  their  grum- 
bling, sent  on  the  boys,  the  stock,  and  the  wagons,  when  rested 
from  their  labor,  in  the  early  afternoon.  We  spent  a  cosy,  pleas- 
ant evening — such  as  I  have  enjoyed  in  the  old  Italian  days  be- 
fore railroads — of  travelers'  tittle  and  Munchausen  tattle,  in  the 
ingle  comer  and  round  the  huge  hearth  of  the  half-finished  sta- 
tion, with  its  holey  walls.  At  intervals,  the  roarings  of  the  wind, 
the  ticking  of  the  death-watch  (a  well-known  xylophagus),  boring 
a  home  in  the  soft  cotton-wood  rafters,  and  the  bowlings  of  the 
Indians,  who  were  keening  at  a  neighboring  grave,  formed  a  rude 
and  appropriate  chorus.  Mose  Wright  recounted  his  early  ad- 
ventures in  Oregon ;  how,  when  he  was  a  greenhorn,  the  Indians 
had  danced  the  war-dance  under  his  nose,  had  then  set  upon  his 
companions,  and,  after  slaying  them,  had  displaj^ed  their  scalps. 
He  favored  us  with  a  representation  of  the  ceremony,  an  ursine 
performance — the  bear  seems  every  where  to  have  been  the  sire 
of  Terpsichore — while  the  right  hand  repeatedly  clapped  to  his 
lips  quavered  the  long  loud  howl  into  broken  sounds:  "Howh! 
howh !  howh  !  ow !  ow !  ough !  ough !  aloo !  aloo !  loo !  loo !  oo !" 
We  talked  of  a  curious  animal,  a  breed  between  the  dog  and  the 
bear,  which  represents  the  semi-fabulous  jumard  in  these  regions: 
it  is  said  to  be  a  cross  far  more  savage  than  that  between  the  dog 
and  the  wolf.  The  young  grizzly  is  a  favorite  pet  in  the  West- 
ern hut,  and  a  canine  graft  is  hardly  more  monstrous  than  the 
progeny  of  the  horse  and  the  deer  lately  exhibited  in  London. 
I  still  believe  that  in  Africa,  and  indeed  in  India,  there  are  acci- 
dentally mules  bimanous  and  quadrumanous,  and  would  suggest 
that  such  specimens  should  be  sought  as  the  means  of  settling  on 
a  rational  basis  the  genus  and  species  of  "  homo  sapiens." 

Mose  Wright  described  the  Indian  arrow-poison.  The  rattle- 
snake— the  copperhead  and  the  moccasin  he  ignored — is  caught 
with  a  forked  stick  planted  over  its  neck,  and  is  allowed  to  fix  its 
fangs  in  an  antelope's  liver.  The  meat,  which  turns  green,  is  car- 
ried upon  a  skewer  when  wanted  for  use :  the  flint-head  of  an  ar- 
row, made  purposely  to  break  in  the  wound,  is  thrust  into  the 
poison,  and  when  withdrawn  is  covered  with  a  thin  coat  of  glue. 
Ammonia  is  considered  a  cure  for  it,  and  the  Indians  treat  snake- 
bites with  the  actual  cautery.  The  rattlesnake  here  attains  a 
length  of  eight  to  nine  feet,  and  is  described  as  having  reached 
the  number  of  seventy-three  rattles,  which,  supposing  (as  the  the- 
ory is)  that  after  the  third  year  it  puts  forth  one  per  annum,  would 


Chap.  XIII.       ST.  MARTIN'S  SUMMER.— "DRY  CREEK."  433 

raise  its  age  to  that  of  man :  it  is  much  feared  in  Utah  Territory. 
We  were  also  cautioned  against  the  poison  oak,  which  is  worse 
than  the  poison  vine  east  of  the  Mississippi.  It  is  a  dwarf  bush 
with  quercinc  leaves,  dark  colored  and  prickly  like  those  of  the 
holly :  the  effect  of  a  sting,  of  a  touch,  or,  it  is  said,  in  sensitives 
of  its  proximity,  is  a  painful  itching,  followed  by  a  rash  that  lasts 
three  weeks,  and  other  highly  inconvenient  consequences.  Strong 
brine  was  recommended  to  us  by  our  prairie  doctor. 

Among  the  employes  of  the  station  was  an  intelligent  young 
mechanic  from  Pennsylvania,  who,  threatened  with  consumption, 
had  sought  and  soon  found  health  in  the  pure  regions  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains.  He  looked  forward  to  revisiting  civilization, 
where  comforts  were  attainable.  In  these  wilds  little  luxuries 
like  tea  and  coffee  are  often  unprocurable ;  a  dudeen  or  a  cutty 
pipe  sells  for  a  dollar,  consequently  a  hollowed  potato  or  corn-cob 
with  a  reed  tube  is  often  rendered  necessary ;  and  tobacco  must 
be  mixed  with  a  myrtaceous  leaf  called  by  the  natives  "  timaya," 
and  by  the  mountaineers  "larb" — possibly  a  corruption  of  "I'herbe" 
or  "la  yerba."  Newspapers  and  magazines  arrive  sometimes  twice 
a  year,  when  they  have  weathered  the  dangers  of  the  way.  Econ- 
omy has  deprived  the  stations  of  their  gardens,  and  the  shrinking 
of  emigration,  which  now  dribbles  eastward,  instead  of  flowing  in 
full  stream  westward,  leaves  the  exiles  to  amuse  themselves. 

To  Dry  Creek.   Uth  October. 

We  arose  early,  and  found  that  it  had  not  "  frosted ;"  that  flies 
were  busy  in  the  station-house ;  and  that  the  snow,  though  thick 
on  the  northern  faces,  had  melted  from  the  southern  shoulders  of 
the  hills — these  were  so  many  indices  of  the  St.  Martin's,  or  In- 
dian summer,  the  last  warm  glow  of  life  before  the  cold  and  pal- 
lid death  of  the  year.  At  6  A.M.  we  entered  the  ambulance,  and 
followed  a  good  road  across  the  remains  of  the  long,  broad  Shea- 
wit  Valley.  After  twelve  miles  we  came  upon  a  water  surround- 
ed by  willows,  with  dwarf  artemisia  beyond  —  it  grows  better  on 
the  benches,  where  the  subsoil  is  damper,  than  in  the  bottoms  — 
and  there  we  found  our  lazy  boys,  who,  as  Jim  Gilston  said,  had 
been  last  night  "  on  a  drunk."  Resuming  our  way,  after  three 
miles  we  reached  some  wells  whose  alkaline  waters  chap  the  skin. 
Twenty  miles  farther  led  to  the  west  end  of  the  Sheawit  Valley, 
where  we  found  the  station  on  a  grassy  bench  at  the  foot  of  low 
rolling  hills.  It  was  a  mere  shell,  with  a  substantial  stone  corral 
behind,  and  the  inmates  were  speculating  upon  the  possibility  of 
roofing  themselves  in  before  the  winter.  Water  is  found  in  tol- 
erable quantities  below  the  station,  but  the  place  deserved  its 
name,  "  Dry  Creek." 

A  fraternal  recognition  took  place  between  Long  Jim  and  his 
brother,  who  discovered  each  other  by  the  merest  accident.  Gil- 
ston, the  employe,  was  an  intelligent  man :  at  San  Francisco  he 


484  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  XIII. 

had  learned  a  little  Chinese,  and  at  Deep  Creek  he  was  studying 
the  Indian  dialects.  He  had  missed  making  a  fortune  at  Carson 
Valley,  where,  in  June  or  July,  1859,  the  rich  and  now  celebrated 
silver  mines  were  discovered ;  and  he  warned  us  against  the  dan- 
ger of  tarrying  in  Carson  City,  where  revolvers  are  fired  even 
into  houses  known  to  contain  "ladies."  Colonel  Totten,  the  sta- 
tion-master, explained  the  formation  of  the  gold  diggings  as  beds 
of  gravel,  from  one  to  120  feet,  overlying  slate  rock. 

Dry-Creek  Station  is  on  the  eastern  frontier  of  the  western 
agency ;  as  at  Roberts'  Creek,  supplies  and  literature  from  Great 
Salt  City  east  and  Carson  City  west  are  usually  exhausted  before 
they  reach  these  final  points.  After  a  frugal  feed,  we  inspected  a 
grave  for  two,  which  bore  the  names  of  Loscier  and  Applegate, 
and  the  date  21st  of  May.  These  men,  employes  of  the  station, 
were  attacked  by  Indians  —  Panaks  or  Shoshonees,  or  possibly 
both :  the  former  was  killed  by  the  first  fire  ;  the  latter,  when  shot 
in  the  groin,  and  unable  to  proceed,  borrowed,  under  pretext  of 
defense,  a  revolver,  bade  good-by  to  his  companions,  and  put  a 
bullet  through  his  own  head :  the  remainder  then  escaped.  Both 
these  poor  fellows  remain  unavenged.  The  Anglo-American, 
who  is  admirably  protected  by  the  officials  of  his  government  in 
Europe,  Asia,  and  Africa,  is  systematically  neglected — teste  Mex- 
ico— in  America.  The  double  grave,  piled  up  with  stones,  show- 
ed gaps  where  the  wolves  had  attempted  to  tunnel,  and  blue-bottle 
flies  were  buzzing  over  it  in  expectation.  Colonel  Totten,  at  our 
instance,  promised  that  it  should  be  looked  to. 

The  night  was  comfortably  passed  at  Dry  Creek,  under  the  lee- 
ward side  of  a  large  haystack.  The  weather  was  cold,  but  clear 
and  bright.     We  slept  the  sleep  of  the  just. 

To  Simpson's  Park.     \2th  October. 

At  the  time  of  the  cold  clear  dawn,  whose  gray  contrasted 
strongly  with  the  blush  of  the  most  lovely  evening  that  preceded 
it,  the  mercury  stood  at  45°  F.  Shortly  after  8  A.M.  we  were 
afield,  hastening  to  finish  the  long  divide  that  separates  Roberts' 
Creek  Valley  from  its  western  neighbor,  which,  as  yet  unchristen- 
ed,  is  known  to  the  b'hoys  as  Smoky  Valley.  The  road  wound  in 
the  shape  of  the  letter  U  round  the  impassable  part  of  the  ridge. 
Crossing  the  north  end  of  Smoky  Valley,  we  came  upon  rolling 
ground,  with  water- willows  and  cedars  "  blazed" — barked  with  a 
gash — for  sign-posts.  Ensued  a  long  kanyon,  with  a  flat  sole,  not 
unlike  Egan's,  a  gate  by  which  the  swift  shallow  stream  had  bro- 
ken through  the  mountains :  in  places  it  was  apparently  a  cul  de 
sac;  in  others,  shoulder  after  shoulder  rose  in  long  perspective, 
with  points  and  projections  behind,  which  an  enemy  might  easily 
turn.  The  granite  walls  were  of  Cyclopean  form,  with  regular 
lines  of  cleavage,  as  in  the  Rattlesnake  Hills,  which  gave  a  false 
air  of  stratification.     The  road  was  a  mere  path  along  and  across 


Chap.  XIIL  SBIPSON'S  PARK.  485 

the  rivulet  bed,  and  the  lower  slopes  were  garnished  with  the  pep- 
per-grass and  the  everlasting  bunch-grass,  so  truly  characteristic 
of  the  "  Basin  State."  Above  us,  in  the  pellucid  sky,  towered  the 
eagle  in  his  pride  of  place ;  the  rabbit  ran  before  us  from  the 
thicket;  the  ground-squirrel  cached  himself  in  the  sage-bush;  and 
where  distance  appeared,  smokes  upcurling  in  slow,  heavy  masses 
told  us  that  man  was  not  far  distant.  A  second  divide,  more  ab- 
rupt than  the  former,  placed  us  in  sight  of  Simpson's  Park  —  and 
such  a  park  !  a  circlet  of  tawny  stubble,  embosomed  in  sage-grown 
hills,  the  "  Hire"  or  "  Look-out,"  and  others,  without  other  tree 
but  the  deformed  cedars.  The  bottom  is  notorious  for  cold ;  it 
freezes  even  in  June  and  July ;  and  our  night  was,  as  may  be 
imagined,  none  of  the  pleasantest. 

The  station-house  in  Simpson's  Park  was  being  rebuilt.  As 
we  issued  from  Mormondom  into  Christendom,  the  civility  of  our 
hosts  perceptibly  diminished ;  the  judge,  like  the  generality  of 
Anglo-Americans,  did  unnecessary  kow-tow  to  those  whom  re- 
publicanism made  his  equals,  and  the  "gentlemen,"  when  asked 
to  do  any  thing,  became  exceedingly  surly.  Among  them  was 
one  Giovanni  Brutisch,  a  Venetian,  who,  flying  from  conscription, 
had  found  a  home  in  Halifax :  an  unfortunate  fire,  which  burned 
down  his  house,  drove  him  to  the  Far  West.  He  talked  copious- 
ly of  the  Old  Country,  breathed  the  usual  aspirations  of  Italia  tma, 
and  thought  that  Garibaldi  would  do  well  "^e  7i07i  lo  molestano'^ — 
a  euphuism  accompanied  by  a  look  more  expressive  than  any  nod. 
The  station  was  well  provided  with  good  minies,  and  the  men  ap- 
parently expected  to  use  them  ;  it  was,  however,  commanded  by 
the  neighboring  heights,  and  the  haystacks  were  exposed  to  fire 
at  a  time  of  the  year  when  no  more  forage  could  be  collected. 
The  Venetian  made  for  us  some  good  light  bread  of  wheaten 
flour,  started  or  leavened  with  hop- water,  and  corn-bread  "  short- 
ened" with  butter,  and  enriched  with  two  or  three  eggs.  A  hid- 
eous Pa  Yuta  and  surly  Shoshonee,  whom  I  sketched,  loitered 
about  the  station :  they  were  dressed  in  the  usual  rabbit-skin 
cape,  and  carried  little  horn  bows,  with  which  they  missed  small 
marks  at  fifteen  paces.  The  boys,  who  were  now  aweary  of 
watching,  hired  one  of  these  men  for  a  shirt — tobacco  was  not  to 
be  had,  and  a  blanket  was  too  high  pay — to  mount  guard  through 
the  night.  Like  the  Paggi  or  Eamoosee  of  Western  India,  one 
thief  is  paid  to  keep  off  many :  the  Indian  is  the  best  of  wardens, 
it  being  with  him  a  principle  not  to  attack  what  the  presence  of 
a  fellow-tribesman  defends. 

To  Reese's  River.     13th  October. 

Simpson's  Park  lies  195  miles  from  Carson  City,  where  we 
might  consider  the  journey  at  an  end ;  yet  the  cold  of  night  did 
not  allow  us  to  set  out  before  10  A.M.  Our  route  lay  across  the 
park,  which  was  dotted  with  wheat-grass  and  broom-like  reeds 
rising  from  a  ground  saupoudr^  like  salt.     Presently  we  began 


-1.86  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  XIII 

to  ascend  Simpson's  Pass,  a  long  kanyon  wliose  sloping  sides  and 
benches  were  dotted  with  the  green  bunch-grass.  At  the  divide 
we  found  the  "  Sage  Springs,"  whose  position  is  too  elevated  for 
the  infiltration  of  salt:  they  are  consequently  sweet  and  whole- 
some. Descending  by  a  rugged  road,  we  sighted  every  where  on 
the  heights  the  fires  of  the  natives.  They  were  not  symbols  of 
war,  but  signals — for  which  smokes  are  eminently  adapted — made 
by  tribes  telegraphing  to  one  another  their  being  en  route  for  their 
winter  quarters.  Below  us,  "  Eeese's  Eiver"  Valley  might  have 
served  for  a  sketch  in  the  African  desert:  a  plain  of  saleratus, 
here  yellow  with  sand  or  hay,  there  black  with  fire,  there  brown 
where  the  skin  of  earth  showed  through  her  garb  of  rags,  and  be- 
yond it  were  chocolate-colored  hills,  from  whose  heads  curled 
blue  smokes  of  volcanic  appearance. 

Bisecting  the  barren  plain  ran  a  bright  little  stream,  whose 
banks,  however,  had  been  stripped  of  their  "  salt  grass :"  pure  and 
clear  it  flows  over  a  bed  of  gravel,  sheds  in  a  northerly  direction, 
and  sinks  at  a  distance  of  about  twenty  miles.  From  afar  we  all 
mistook  the  course,  deceived,  as  travelers  often  are,  by  the  hori- 
zontality  of  the  lines.  Leaving  on  the  right  the  road  which  forks 
to  the  lower  ford,  we  followed  that  on  the  left  hand  leading  to  the 
station.  There  can  not  be  much  traveling  upon  these  lines :  the 
tracks  last  for  years,  unafifected  by  snow :  the  carcasses  of  animals, 
however,  no  longer  mummified  us  as  in  the  Eastern  prairies,  are 
readily  reduced  to  skeletons. 

The  station-house  in  the  Eeese-Eiver  Valley  had  lately  been 
evacuated  by  its  proprietors  and  burnt  down  by  the  Indians :  a 
new  building  of  adobe  was  already  assuming  a  comfortable  shape. 
The  food  around  it  being  poor  and  thin,  our  cattle  were  driven 
to  the  mountains.  At  night,  probably  by  contrast  with  the  tor- 
rid sun,  the  frost  appeared  colder  than  ever :  we  provided  against 
it,  however,  by  burrowing  into  the  haystack,  and,  despite  the 
jackal-like  cry  of  the  coyote  and  the  near  tramping  of  the  old 
white  mare,  we  slept  like  tops. 

To  Smith's  Creek,     lith  October. 

Before  8  A.M.  we  were  under  way,  bound  for  Smith's  Creek. 
Our  path  stretched  over  the  remainder  of  Eeese's  Eiver  Valley, 
an  expanse  of  white  sage  and  large  rabbit-bush  which  affords  fuel 
even  when  green.  After  a  long  and  peculiarly  rough  divide,  we 
sighted  the  place  of  our  destination.  It  lay  beyond  a  broad 
plain  or  valley,  like  a  huge  white  "splotch"  in  the  centre,  set  in 
dirty  brown  vegetation,  backed  by  bare  and  rugged  hills,  which 
are  snow-topped  only  on  the  north ;  presently  we  reached  the 
"splotch,"  which  changed  its  aspect  from  that  of  a  muddy  pool 
to  a  yellow  floor  of  earth  so  hard  that  the  wheels  scarcely  made 
a  dent,  except  where  a  later  inundation  had  caused  the  mud  to 
cake,  flake,  and  curl — smooth  as  ice  without  being  slippery.     Be- 


Chap.  XIII.     "OLE  HELLION."— COLD-SPRINGS  STATION.  487 

yond  that  point,  guided  by  streams  meandering  through  willow- 
thickets,  we  entered  a  kanyon — all  are  now  wearying  of  the  name 
— and  presently  sighted  the  station  deep  in  a  hollow.  It  had  a 
good  stone  corral  and  the  usual  haystack,  which  fires  on  the  hill- 
tops seemed  to  menace.  Among  the  station-folks  we  found  two 
New  Yorkers,  a  Belfast  man,  and  a  tawny  Mexican  named  Anton, 
who  had  passed  his  life  riding  the  San  Bernardino  road.  Tlie 
house  was  unusually  neat,  and  displayed  even  signs  of  decoration 
in  the  adornment  of  the  bunks  with  osier-work  taken  from  the 
neighboring  creek.  "We  are  now  in  the  lands  of  the  Pa  Yuta, 
and  rarely  fail  to  meet  a  party  on  the  road :  they  at  once  propose 
"shwop,"  and  readily  exchange  pine  nuts  for  "white  grub,"  i.  e., 
biscuits.  I  observed,  however,  that  none  of  the  natives  were  al- 
lowed to  enter  the  station-house,  whereas  in  other  places,  espe- 
cially among  the  Mormons,  the  savages  squeezed  themselves  into 
the  room,  took  the  best  seats  near  the  fire,  and  never  showed  a 
sj^mptom  of  moving. 

To  Cold  Springs.     I5th  October. 

After  a  warmer  night  than  usual — thanks  to  fire  and  lodging 
— we  awoke,  and  found  a  genial  south  wind  blowing.  Our  road 
lay  through  the  kan3^on,  whose  floor  was  flush  with  the  plain; 
the  bed  of  the  mountain  stream  was  the  initiative  of  vile  travel- 
ing, which,  without  our  suspecting  it,  was  to  last  till  the  end  of 
the  journey.  The  strain  upon  the  vehicle  came  near  to  smashing- 
it,  and  the  prudent  Kennedy,  with  the  view  of  sparing  his  best 
animals,  gave  us  his  worst — two  aged  brutes,  one  of  which,  in  con- 
sequence of  her  squealing  habits,  had  won  for  herself  the  title  of 
"  ole  Hellion."  The  divortia  aquarum  was  a  fine  water-shed  to 
the  westward,  and  the  road  was  in  Y  shape,  whereas  before  it  had 
oscillated  between  U  and  WW.  As  we  progressed,  however,  the 
vallej-s  became  more  and  more  desert,  the  sage  more  stunted,  and 
the  hills  more  brown  and  barren.  After  a  midday  halt,  rendered 
compulsory  by  the  old  white  mare,  we  resumed  our  way  along 
the  valley  southward,  over  a  mixture  of  pitch-hole  and  boulder, 
which  forbids  me  to  forget  that  day's  journey.  At  last,  after 
much  sticking  and  kicking  on  the  part  of  the  cattle,  and  the  men- 
tal refreshment  of  abundant  bad  language,  self-adhibited  by  the 
men,  we  made  Cold-Springs  Station,  which,  by  means  of  a  cut 
across  the  hills,  could  be  brought  within  eight  miles  of  Smith's 
Creek. 

The  station  was  a  wretched  place,  half  built  and  wholly  un- 
roofed ;  the  four  boys,  an  exceedingly  rough  set,  ate  standing,  and 
neither  paper  nor  pencil  was  known  among  them.  Our  animals, 
however,  found  good  water  in  a  rivulet  from  the  neighboring  hills, 
and  the  promise  of  a  plentiful  feed  on  the  morrow,  while  the  hu- 
mans, observing  that  a  "beef"  had  been  freshly  killed,  supped 
upon  an  excellent  steak.  The  warm  wind  was  a  pleasant  con- 
trast to  the  usual  frost,  but,  as  it  came  from  the  south,  all  the 


488  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  XIII. 

weather-wise  predicted  that  rain  would  result.  We  slept,  how- 
ever, without  such  accident,  under  the  haystack,  and  heard  the 
loud  howling  of  the  wolves,  which  are  said  to  be  larger  on  these 
hills  than  elsewhere. 

To  Sand  Springs.     16iA  October. 

In  the  morning  the  wind  had  shifted  from  the  south  to  a  more 
pluvial  quarter,  the  southeast — in  these  regions  the  westerly  wind 
promises  the  fairest — and  stormy  cirri  mottled  the  sky.  We  had 
a  long  stage  of  thirty -five  miles  before  us,  and  required  an  early 
start,  yet  the  lazy  b'hoys  and  the  weary  cattle  saw  10  A.M.  be- 
fore we  were  en  route.  Simpson's  road  lay  to  our  south ;  we  could, 
however,  sight,  about  two  miles  distant  from  the  station,  the  east- 
ernmost formation,  which  he  calls  Gibraltar  Gate.  For  the  first 
three  miles  our  way  was  exceedingly  rough ;  it  gradually  im- 
proved into  a  plain  cut  with  nullahs,  and  overgrown  with  a  chap- 
paral,  which  concealed  a  few  "burrowing  hares."  The  animals 
are  rare ;  during  the  snow  they  arc  said  to  tread  in  one  another's 
trails  after  Indian  fashion,  yet  the  huntsman  easily  follows  them. 
After  eight  miles  we  passed  a  spring,  and  two  miles  beyond  it 
came  to  the  Middle  Gate,  where  we  halted  from  noon  till  5  15 
P.M.  Water  was  found  in  the  bed  of  a  river  which  fills  like  a 
mill-dam  after  rain,  and  a  plentiful  supply  of  bunch-grass,  whose 
dark  seeds  it  was  difficult  to  husk  out  of  the  oat-like  capsules.  We 
spent  our  halt  in  practicing  what  Sorrentines  call  la  caccia  degV 
itccellazzi,  and  in  vain  attempts  to  walk  round  the  uncommonly 
wary  hawks,  crows,  and  wolves. 

liitching  to  as  the  sun  neared  the  western  horizon,  we  passed 
through  the  Gate,  narrowly  escaping  a  "  spill"  down  a  dwarf  preci- 
pice. A  plain  bounded  on  our  left  by  cretaceous  bluffs,  white  as 
snow,  led  to  the  West  Gate,  two  symmetrical  projections  like  those 
farther  eastward.  After  that  began  a  long  divide  broken  by  fre- 
quent chuck-holes,  which,  however,  had  no  cunette  at  the  bottom. 
An  ascent  of  five  miles  led  to  a  second  broad  basin,  whose  white 
and  sounding  ground,  now  stony,  then  sandy,  scattered  over  with 
carcass  and  skeleton,  was  bounded  in  front  by  low  dark  ranges 
of  hill.  Then  crossing  a  long  rocky  divide,  so  winding  that  the 
mules'  heads  pointed  within  a  few  miles  to  N.,  S.,  E.,  and  W.,  we 
descended  by  narrow  passes  into  a  plain.  The  eye  could  not  dis- 
tinguish it  from  a  lake,  so  misty  and  vague  were  its  outlines: 
other  senses  corrected  vision,  when  we  sank  up  to  the  hub  in  the 
loose  sand.  As  we  progressed  painfully,  broken  clay  and  dwarf 
vegetation  assumed  in  the  dim  shades  fantastic  and  mysterious 
forms.  I  thought  myself  once  more  among  the  ruins  of  that  Arab 
village  concerning  which  Lebid  sang, 

"Ay  me !  ay  me !  all  lone  and  drear  the  dwellinp-place,  the  home — 
On  Mina,  o'er  Rijam  and  Ghool,  wild  beasts  unheeded  roam." 

Tired  out  and  cramped  with  cold,  we  were  torpid  with  what 
the  Bedouin  calls  El  Rakl— la  Ragle  du  Desert,  when  part  of  the 


Chap.  XIII.        SAND-SPRINGS  STATION.— CAESON  LAKE.  491 

brain  sleeps  while  the  rest  is  wide  awake.  At  last,  about  2  30 
A.M.,  thorouglily  "knocked  up" — a  phrase  which  I  should  ad- 
vise the  Englishman  to  eschew  in  the  society  of  the  fair  Colum- 
bian— we  sighted  a  roofless  shed,  found  a  haystack,  and,  reckless 
of  supper  or  of  stamping  horses,  fell  asleep  upon  the  sand. 

To  Carson  Lake.     11  th  October. 

Sand-Springs  Station  deserved  its  name.  Like  the  Brazas  de 
San  Diego  and  other  mauvaises  terres  near  the  Rio  Grande,  the 
land  is  cumbered  here  and  there  with  drifted  ridges  of  the  finest 
sand,  sometimes  200  feet  high,  and  shifting  before  every  gale. 
Behind  the  house  stood  a  mound  shaped  like  the  contents  of  an 
hour-glass,  drifted  up  by  the  stormy  S.E.  gale  in  esplanade  shape, 
and  falling  steep  to  northward  or  against  the  wind.  The  water 
near  this  vile  hole  was  thick  and  stale  with  sulphury  salts :  it 
blistered  even  the  hands.  The  station-house  was  no  unfit  object 
in  such  a  scene,  roofless  and  chairless,  filthy  and  squalid,  with  a 
smoky  fire  in  one  corner,  and  a  table  in  the  centre  of  an  impure 
floor,  the  walls  open  to  every  wind,  and  the  interior  full  of  dust. 
Hibernia  herself  never  produced  aught  more  characteristic.  Of 
the  eni2)Io2/es,  all  loitered  and  sauntered  about  desce.uvres  as  cretins, 
except  one,  who  lay  on  the  ground  crippled  and  apparently  dying 
by  the  fall  of  a  horse  upon  his  breast-bone. 

About  11  A.M.  we  set  off  to  cross  the  ten  miles  of  valley  that 
stretched  between  us  and  the  summit  of  the  western  divide  still 
separating  us  from  Carson  Lake.  The  land  was  a  smooth  salera- 
tus  plain,  with  curious  masses  of  porous  red  and  black  basalt  pro- 
truding from  a  ghastly  white.  The  water-shed  was  apparently 
to  the  north,  the  benches  were  distinctly  marked,  and  the  bottom 
looked  as  if  it  were  inundated  every  year.  It  was  smooth  except 
where  broken  up  by  tracks,  but  all  off  the  road  was  dangerous 
ground :  in  one  place  the  horses  sank  to  their  hocks,  and  were 
not  extricated  without  difiiculty.  After  a  hot  drive — the  glass 
at  9  A.M.  showed  74°  F. — we  began  to  toil  up  the  divide,  a  sand 
formation  mixed  with  bits  of  granite,  red  seeds,  and  dwarf  shells, 
whose  lips  were  for  the  most  part  broken  off.  Over  the  fine  loose 
surface  was  a  floating  haze  of  the  smaller  particles,  like  the  film 
that  veils  the  Arabian  desert.  Arrived  at  the  summit,  we  sighted 
for  the  first  time  Carson  Lake,  or  rather  the  sink  of  the  Carson 
River.  It  derives  its  name  from  the  well-known  mountaineer 
whose  adventurous  roamings  long  anticipated  scientific  explora- 
tion. Supplied  by  the  stream  from  the  eastern  flank  of  the  Sierra 
Nevada,  it  is  just  such  a  lake  as  might  be  formed  in  any  of  the 
basins  which  we  had  traversed — a  shallow  sheet  of  water,  which, 
in  the  cloudy  sky  and  mitigated- glare  of  the  sun,  looked  pale  and 
muddy.  Apparently  it  was  divided  by  a  long,  narrow  ruddy 
line,  like  ochre-colored  sand  ;  a  near  approach  showed  that  water 
on  the  right  was  separated  from  a  saleratus  bed  on  the  left  by  a 


492  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  XIU. 

thick  bed  of  tule  rush.  Stones  imitated  the  sweep  of  the  tide,  and 
white  particles  the  color  of  a  wash. 

Our  conscientious  informant  at  Sand-Springs  Station  had  warn- 
ed us  that  upon  the  summit  of  the  divide  we  should  find  a  per- 
pendicular drop,  down  which  the  wagons  could  be  lowered  only 
by  means  of  lariats  affixed  to  the  axle-trees  and  lashed  round 
strong  "stubbing -posts."  We  were  not,  however,  surprised  to 
find  a  mild  descent  of  about  30°.  From  the  summit  of  the  divide 
five  miles  led  us  over  a  plain  too  barren  for  sage,  and  a  stretch  of 
stone  and  saleratus  to  the  watery  margin,  which  was  troublesome 
with  sloughs  and  mud.  The  cattle  relished  the  water,  although 
tainted  b}^  the  rush ;  we  failed,  however,  to  find  any  of  the  fresh- 
water clams,  whose  shells  were  scattered  along  the  shore. 

Eemounting  at  5  15  P.M.  we  proceeded  to  finish  the  ten  miles 
which  still  separated  us  from  the  station,  by  a  rough  and  stony 
road,  perilous  to  wheel  conveyances,  which  rounded  the  southern 
extremity  of  the  lake.  After  passing  a  promontory  whose  bold 
projection  had  been  conspicuous  from  afar,  and  threading  a  steep 
kanyon  leading  toward  the  lake,  we  fell  into  its  selvage,  which 
averaged  about  one  mile  in  breadth.  The  small  crescent  of  the 
moon  soon  ceased  to  befriend  us,  and  we  sat  in  the  sadness  of  the 
shade,  till  presently  a  light  glimmered  under  Arcturus,  the  road 
bent  toward  it,  and  all  felt  "jolly."    But, 

"  Hen,  heu!  nos  miseros,  quam  totus  homuncio  nil  est !" 

A  long  dull  hour  still  lay  before  us,  and  we  were  approaching 
civilized  lands.  "Sink  Station"  looked  well  from  without;  there 
was  a  frame  house  inside  an  adobe  inclosure,  and  a  pile  of  wood 
and  a  stout  haystack  promised  fuel  and  fodder.  The  inmates, 
however,  were  asleep,  and  it  was  ominously  long  before  a  door 
was  opened.  At  last  appeared  a  surly  cripple,  who  presently 
disappeared  to  arm  himself  with  his  revolver.  The  judge  asked 
civilly  for  a  cup  of  water ;  he  was  told  to  fetch  it  from  the  lake, 
which  was  not  more  than  a  mile  off,  though,  as  the  road  was  full 
of  quagmires,  it  would  be  hard  to  travel  at  night.  Wood  the 
churl  would  not  part  with :  we  offered  to  buy  it,  to  borrow  it,  to 
replace  it  in  the  morning;  he  told  us  to  go  for  it  ourselves,  and 
that  after  about  two  miles  and  a  half  we  might  chance  to  gather 
some.  Certainly  our  party  was  a  law-abiding  and  a  self  govern- 
ing one ;  never  did  I  see  men  so  tamely  bullied ;  they  threw  back 
the  fellow's  sticks,  and  cold,  hungry,  and  thirsty,  simply  began  to 
sulk.  An  Indian  standing  by  asked  $20  to  herd  the  stock  for  a 
single  night.  At  last,  George  the  Cordon  Blue  took  courage; 
some  went  for  water,  others  broke  up  a  wagon-plank,  and  supper 
after  a  fashion  was  concocted. 

I  preferred  passing  the  night  on  a  side  of  bacon  in  the  wagon 
to  using  the  cripple's  haystack,  and  allowed  sleep  to  steep  my 
senses  in  forgetfulness,  after  deeply  regretting  that  the  Mormons 
do  not  extend  somewhat  farther  westward. 


CuAP.  XIII.      FORT  CHUKCHILL.— FIGHTING  LAWYERS.  493 

To  Fort  Churchill.     18th  October. 

The  b'lioys  and  tlie  stock  were  doomed  to  remain  near  the  Car- 
son Lake,  where  forage  was  abundant,  while  we  made  our  way  to 
Carson  Valley  —  an  arrangement  not  effected  without  excessive 
grumbling.  At  last  the  deserted  ones  were  satisfied  with  the 
promise  that  they  should  exchange  their  desert  quarters  for  civ- 
ilization on  Tuesday,  and  we  were  permitted  to  start.  Crossing  a 
long  plain  bordering  on  the  Sink,  we  "snaked  up"  painfully  a 
high  divide  which  a  little  engineering  skill  would  have  avoided. 
From  the  summit,  bleak  with  west  wind,  we  could  descry,  at  a 
distance  of  fifty  miles,  a  snowy  saddle-back — the  Sierra  Nevada. 
When  the  deep  sand  had  fatigued  our  cattle,  we  baited  for  an 
hour  to  bait  in  a  patch  of  land  rich  with  bunch-grass.  Descend- 
ing from  the  eminence,  we  saw  a  gladdening  sight :  the  Carson 
Eriver,  winding  through  its  avenue  of  dark  cotton- woods,  and  afar 
off  the  quarters  and  barracks  of  Fort  Churchill.  The  nearer  view 
was  a  hard-tamped  plain,  besprinkled  with  black  and  red  porous 
stones  and  a  sparse  vegetation,  with  the  ruddy  and  yellow  autum- 
nal hues ;  a  miserable  range  of  low,  brown,  sunburnt  rocks  and 
hills,  whose  ravines  were  choked  with  white  sand-drifts,  bounded 
the  basin.  The  farther  distance  used  it  as  a  foil ;  the  Sierra  de- 
veloped itself  into  four  distinct  magnificent  tiers  of  snow-capped 
and  cloud- veiled  mountain,  whose  dissolving  views  faded  into  thin 
darkness  as  the  sun  disappeared  behind  their  gigantic  heads. 

While  we  admired  these  beauties  night  came  on ;  the  paths  in- 
tersected one  another,  and,  despite  the  glow  and  gleam  of  a  camp- 
fire  in  the  distance,  we  lost  our  way  among  the  tall  cotton-woods. 
Dispersing  in  search  of  information,  the  marshal  accidentally  stum- 
bled upon  his  predecessor  in  office,  Mr.  Smith,  who  hospitably  in- 
sisted upon  our  becoming  his  guests.  He  led  us  to  a  farm-house 
already  half  roofed  in  against  the  cold,  fetched  the  whisky  for 
which  our  souls  craved,  gave  to  each  a  peach  that  we  might  be 
good  boys,  and  finally  set  before  us  a  prime  beefsteak.  Before 
sleeping  we  heard  a  number  of  "  shooting  stories."  Where  the 
corpse  is,  says  the  Persian,  there  will  be  the  kites.  A  mining  dis- 
covery never  fails  to  attract  from  afar  a  flock  of  legal  vultures — 
attorneys,  lawyers,  and  judges.  As  the  most  valuable  claims  are 
mostly  parted  with  by  the  ignorant  fortunate  for  a  song,  it  is  usu- 
al to  seek  some  flaw  in  the  deed  of  sale,  and  a  large  proportion  of 
the  property  finds  its  way  into  the  pockets  of  the  acute  profession- 
al, who  works  on  half  profits.  Consequently,  in  these  parts  there 
is  generally  a  large  amount  of  unscrupulous  talent.  One  gentle- 
man judge  had  knived  a  waiter  and  shot  a  senator;  another,  al- 
most as  "heavy  on  the  shyoot,"  had  in  a  single  season  killed  one 
man  and  wounded  another.  My  informants  declared  that  in  and 
about  Carson  a  dead  man  for  breakfast  was  the  rule ;  besides  ac- 
cidents perpetually  occurring  to  indifferent  or  to  peace-making 
parties,  they  reckoned  per  annum  fifty  murders.     In  a  peculiar 


494  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  XIII. 

fit  of  liveliness,  an  intoxicated  gentleman  will  discharge  his  re- 
volver in  a  ballroom,  and  when  a  "  shyooting"  begins  in  the  thin- 
walled  frame  houses,  those  not  concerned  avoid  bullets  and  splin- 
ters by  jumping  into  their  beds.  During  my  three  da3''s'  stay  at 
Carson  City  I  heard  of  three  murders.  A  man  "  heavy  on  the 
shoulder,"  who  can  "hit  out  straight  from  the  hip,"  is  a  valuable 
acquisition.  The  gambler  or  professional  player,  who  in  the  East- 
ern States  is  exceptionably  peaceful,  because  he  fears  the  p)ublicity 
of  a  quarrel,  here  must  distinguish  himself  as  a  fighting-man.  A 
curious  story  was  told  to  illustrate  how  the  ends  of  justice  might, 
at  a  pinch,  in  the  case  of  a  popular  character,  be  defeated.  A 
man  was  convicted  of  killing  his  adversary  after  saying  to  the  bj'- 
standers,  "  Stoop  down  while  I  shoot  the  son  of  a  dog  (female)." 
Counsel  for  the  people  showed  malice  prepense  ;  counsel  for  defense 
pleaded  that  his  client  was  rectus  in  curia,  and  manifestlj^  couldn't 
mean  a  man,  but  a  dog.  The  judge  ratified  the  verdict  of  acquit- 
tal. 

Such  was  the  state  of  things,  realizing  the  old  days  of  the  Cali- 
fornian  gold-diggings,  when  I  visited  in  1860  Carson  City.  Its 
misrule,  or  rather  want  of  rule,  has  probably  long  since  passed 
away,  leaving  no  more  traces  than  a  dream.  California  has  been 
transformed  by  her  Vigilance  Committee,  so  ignorantly  and  un- 
justly declaimed  against  in  Europe  and  in  the  Eastern  States  of 
the  Union,  from  a  savage  autonomy  to  one  of  the  most  orderly  of 
the  American  republics,  and  San  Francisco,  her  capital,  from  a  den 
of  thieves  and  prostitutes,  gamblers  and  miners,  the  offscourings 
of  nations,  to  a  social  status  not  inferior  to  any  of  the  most  favor- 
ed cities. 

Hurrah  again — in  !     \^th  October. 

This  day  will  be  the  last  of  my  diary.  We  have  now  emerged 
from  the  deserts  of  the  Basin  State,  and  are  debouching  upon 
lands  where  coaches  and  the  electric  telegraph  ply. 

After  a  cold  night  at  the  hosj^itable  Smith's,  and  losing  the  cat- 
tle, we  managed  to  hitch  to,  and  crossed,  not  without  difficulty, 
the  deep  bed  of  the  Carson  River,  which  runs  over  sands  glitter- 
ing with  mica.  A  little  beyond  it  we  found  the  station-house, 
and  congratulated  ourselves  that  we  had  escaped  a  twelve  hours' 
durance  vile  in  its  atmosphere  of  rum,  korn  schnapps,  stale  tobac- 
co, flies,  and  profane  oaths,  not  to  mention  the  chance  of  being 
"wiped  out"  in  a  "difference"  between  a  soldier  and  a  gambler,  or 
a  miner  and  a  rider. 

From  the  station-house  we  walked,  accompanied  by  a  Mr.  0. — 
who,  after  being  an  editor  in  Texas,  had  become  a  mail-rider  in 
Utah  Territory  —  to  the  fort.  It  was,  upon  the  principle  of  its 
eastern  neighbors,  a  well-disposed  cantonment,  containing  quarters 
for  the  ofl^cers  and  barracks  for  the  men.  Fort  Churchill  had 
been  built  during  the  last  few  months :  it  lodged  about  two  com- 
panies of  infantry,  and  required  at  least  2000  men.     Captain  F.  F. 


Chap.  XIII.  FORT  CHURCHILL.  495 

Flint  (6tli  Regiment)  was  then  commanding,  and  Lieutenant  Col- 
onel Thomas  Swords,  a  deputy  quarter-master  general,  was  on  a 
tour  of  inspection.  We  went  straight  to  the  quarter-master's  of- 
fice, and  there  found  Lieutenant  Moore,  who  introduced  us  to  all 
present,  and  supplied  us  with  the  last  newspapers  and  news.  The 
camp  was  Teetotalist,  and  avoided  cards  like  good  Moslems :  we 
were  not,  however,  expected  to  drink  water  except  in  the  form  of 
strong  waters,  and  the  desert  had  disinclined  us  to  abstain  from 
whisky.  Finally,  Mr.  Byrne,  the  sutler,  put  into  our  ambulance 
a  substantial  lunch,  with  a  bottle  of  cocktail,  and  another  of  cog- 
nac, especially  intended  to  keep  the  cold  out. 

The  dull  morning  had  threatened  snow,  and  shortly  after  noon 
the  west  wind  brought  up  cold  heavy  showers,  which  continued 
with  intervals  to  the  end  of  the  stage.  Our  next  station  was  Mil- 
ler's, distant  15  to  16  miles.  The  road  ran  along  the  valley  of 
Carson  River,  whose  trees  were  a  repose  to  our  eyes,  and  we  con- 
gratulated ourselves  when  we  looked  down  the  stiff  clay  banks, 
30  feet  high,  and  wholly  unfenced,  that  our  journey  was  by  day. 
The  desert  was  now  "  done."  At  every  few  miles  was  a  drink- 
ing "  calaboose  :"*  where  sheds  were  not  a  kettle  hung  under  a 
tree,  and  women  peeped  out  of  the  log  huts.  They  were  proba- 
bly not  charming,  but,  next  to  a  sea  voyage,  a  desert  march  is  the 
finest  cosmetic  ever  invented.     We  looked  upon  each  as  if 

"Her  face  was  like  the  Milky  Way  i'  the  sky, 
A  meeting  of  gentle  lights  without  a  name." 

At  Miller's  Station,  which  we  reached  at  2  30  P.M.,  there  really 
was  one  pretty  girl — which,  according  to  the  author  of  the  Art 
of  Pluck,  induces  proclivity  to  temulency.  While  the  rain  was 
heavy  we  sat  round  the  hot  stove,  eating  bread  and  cheese,  sau- 
sages and  anchovies,  which  Rabelais,  not  to  speak  of  other  honest 
drinkers,  enumerates  among  provocatives  to  thirst.  When  we 
started  at  4  P.M.  through  the  cold  rain,  along  the  bad  road  up  the 
river  bed,  to  "  liquor  up"  was  manifestly  a  duty  we  owed  to  our- 
selves. And,  finally,  when  my  impatient  companions  betted  a 
supper  that  we  should  reach  Carson  City  before  9  P.M.,  and  seal- 
ed it  with  a  "  smile,"  I  knew  that  the  only  way  to  win  was  to  ply 
Mr.  Kennedy,  the  driver,  with  as  many  jiocida  as  possible. 

Colder  waxed  the  weather  and  heavier  the  rain  as,  diverging 
from  the  river,  we  ascended  the  little  bench  upon  which  China- 
town lies.  The  line  of  ranches  and  frame  houses,  a  kind  of  length- 
without-breadth  place,  once  celebrated  in  the  gold-digging  days, 
looked  dreary  and  grim  in  the  evening  gloom.  At  5  30  P.M. 
we  were  still  fourteen  miles  distant  from  our  destination.  The 
benches  and  the  country  round  about  had  been  turned  topsy-turvy 
in  the  search  for  precious  metal,  and  the  soil  was  still  burrowed 

*  The  Spanish  is  calahozo,  the  French  calahouse.  In  the  Hispano-American 
conntrics  it  is  used  as  a  "common  jail"  or  a  "dog-hole,"  and,  as  usual,  is  converted 
into  a  verb. 


496  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  Chap.  XIII. 

with  shaft  and  tunnel,  and  crossed  at  every  possible  spot  by  flumes, 
at  which  the  natives  of  the  Flowery  Laud  still  found  it  worth 
their  while  to  work.  Beyond  China-town  we  quitted  the  river, 
and  in  the  icold  darkness  of  night  we  slowly  began  to  breast  the 
steep  ascent  of  a  long  divide. 

We  had  been  preceded  on  the  way  by  a  young  man,  driving 
in  a  light  cart  a  pair  of  horses,  which  looked  remarkable  by  the 
side  of  the  usual  Californian  teams,  three  pair  with  the  near  wheel- 
er ridden.  Arriving  at  a  bad  place,  he  kindly  called  out  to  us, 
but  before  his  warning  could  be  taken  a  soft  and  yielding  sensa- 
tion, succeeded  by  a  decided  leaning  to  the  right,  and  ending  with 
a  loud  crash,  announced  an  overturn.  In  due  time  we  were  ex- 
tricated, the  pieces  were  picked  up,  and,  though  the  gun  was  bro- 
ken, the  bottle  of  cocktail  fortunately  remained  whole.  The 
judge,  probably  and  justly  offended 'by  my  evil  habit  of  laughing 
out  of  season,  informed  us  that  he  had  never  been  thrown  before, 
an  announcement  which  made  us  expect  more  "  spills."  The  un- 
happy Kennedy  had  jumped  off  before  the  wheels  pointed  up 
hill ;  he  had  not  lost  a  hoof,  it  is  true,  on  the  long  march,  but  he 
wept  spirits  and  water  at  the  disappointing  thought  that  the  am- 
bulance, this  time  drawn  by  his  best  team,  and  laden  with  all  the 
dignities,  bad  come  to  grief,  and  would  not  be  fit  to  be  seen. 
After  100  yards  more  another  similar  series  of  sensations  an- 
nounced a  repetition  of  the  scene,  which  deserved  the  e|)itaph, 

"  Hie  jacet  amphora  vini." 

This  time,  however,  falling  down  a  bank,  we  "came  to  smash;" 
the  bottle  (eheu !)  was  broken,  so  was  the  judge's  head,  while  the 
ear  of  the  judgeling — serve  him  right  for  chaffing! — was  cut,  the 
pistols  and  powder-flasks  were  half  buried  in  the  sand,  a  variety 
of  small  objects  were  lost,  and  the  flying  gear  of  the  ambulance 
was  a  perfect  wreck.  Unwilling  to  risk  our  necks  by  another 
trial,  we  walked  over  the  rest  of  the  rough  ground,  and,  conduct- 
ed by  the  good  Croly,  found  our  way  to  "Dutch  Nick's,"  a  ranch 
and  tavern  apparently  much  frequented  by  the  teamsters  and 
other  roughs,  who  seemed,  honest  fellows !  deeply  to  regret  that 
the  accident  had  not  been  much  more  serious. 

Eemounting  after  a  time,  we  sped  forward,  and  sighted  in  front 
a  dark  line,  but  partially  lit  up  about  the  flanks,  with  a  brilliant 
illumination  in  the  centre,  the  Kursaal  of  Mr,  Hopkins,  the  local 
Crockford.  Our  entrance  to  Penrod  House,  the  Fifth  Avenue  of 
Carson  City,  was  by  no  means  of  a  triumphal  order ;  Nature  her- 
self seemed  to  sympathize  with  us,  besplashing  us  with  tears  heav- 
ier than  Mr.  Kennedy's.  But  after  a  good  supper  and  change  of 
raiment,  a  cigar,  "  something  warm,"  and  the  certainty  of  a  bed, 
combined  to  diffuse  over  our  minds  the  calm  satisfaction  of  hav- 
ing surmounted  our  difficulties  tant  hien  que  mal. 

*  *  -;^  *  *  * 


^i;' 


VIRGINIA  CITY.     (From  the  NortheastJ 


CONCLUSION.  499 


CONCLUSION. 

The  traveler  and  the  lecturer  have  apparently  laid  down  a  law 
that,  whether  the  journey  does  or  does  not  begin  at  home,  it  should 
always  end  at  that  "  hallowed  spot."  Unwilling  to  break  through 
what  is  now  becoming  a  time-honored  custom,  I  trespass  upon  the 
reader's  patience  for  a  few  pages  more,  and  make  my  final  salaam 
in  the  muddy-puddly  streets,  under  the  gusty,  misty  sky  of  the 
"Liverpool  of  the  South." 

After  a  day's  rest  at  Carson  City,  employed  in  collecting  cer- 
tain necessaries  of  tobacco  and  raiment,  which,  intrinsically  vile, 
were  about  treble  the  price  of  the  best  articles  of  their  kind  in 
the  Burlington  Arcade,  I  fell  in  with  Captain  Dall,  superintend- 
ent of  the  Ophir  mines,  for  whom  I  bore  a  recommendation  from 
Judge  Crosby,  of  Utah  Territory.  The  valuable  silver  leads  of 
Virginia  City  occupied  me,  udder  the  guidance  of  that  hospitable 
gentleman,  two  da3^s,  and  on  the  third  we  returned  to  Carson  City, 
via  the  Steam-boat  Springs,  Washoe  Valley,  and  other  local  lions. 
On  the  24th  appeared  the  boj^s  driving  in  the  stock  from  Carson 
Lake :  certain  of  these  youths  had  disappeared ;  Jim  Gilston,  who 
had  found  his  brother  at  Dry-Creek  Station,  had  bolted,  of  course 
forgetting  to  pay  his  passage.  A  stage-coach,  most  creditably 
horsed,  places  the  traveler  from  Carson  City  at  San  Francisco  in 
two  days  ;  as  Mr.  Kennedy,  however,  wished  to  see  me  safely  to 
the  end,  and  the  judge,  esteeming  me  a  fit  Mentor  for  youth,  had 
intrusted  to  me  Telemachus,  alias  Thomas,  his  son,  I  resolved  to 
cross  the  Sierra  by  easy  stages.  After  taking  kindly  leave  of  and 
a  last  "  liquor  up"  with  my  old  com2')agnons  de  voyage^  the  judge 
and  the  marshal,  we  broke  ground  once  more  on  the  25th  of  Oc- 
tober. At  Genoa,  pronounced  Ge-noa,  the  county  town,  built  in  a 
valley  thirteen  miles  south  of  Carson,  I  met  Judge  Cradlebaugh, 
who  set  me  right  on  grounds  where  the  Mormons  had  sown  some 
prejudices.  Five  days  of  a  very  dilatory  travel  placed  us  on  the 
western  slope  of  the  Sierra  Nevada ;  the  dugways  and  zigzags  re- 
minded me  of  the  descriptions  of  travelers  over  the  Andes ;  the 
snow  threatened  to  block  up  the  roads,  and  our  days  and  nights 
were  passed  among  teamsters  en  route  and  in  the  frame-house  inn. 
On  the  30th  of  November,  reaching  Diamond  Springs,  I  was  ad- 
vised by  a  Londoner,  Mr.  George  Fryer,  of  the  "  Boomerang  Sa- 
loon," to  visit  the  gold  diggings  at  Placerville,  whither  a  coach 
was  about  to  start.  At  "  Hangtown,"  as  the  place  was  less  eu- 
phoniously termed,  Mr.Collum,  of  the  Cary  Ilouse,  kindly  put  me 
through  the  gold  washing  and  "  hydraulicking,"  and  Dr.  Smith, 
an  old  East  Indian  practitioner,  and  Mr.  "White,  who  had  collected 


500  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 

some  fine  specimens  of  minerals,  made  the  evenings  pleasant.  I 
started  on  the  1st  of  November  by  coach  to  Folsom,  and  there 
found  the  railroad,  which  in  two  hours  conducts  to  Sacramento : 
the  negro  coachmen  driving  hacks  and  wagons  to  the  station,  the 
whistling  of  the  steam,  and  the  hurry  of  the  train,  struck  me  by 
the  contrast  with  the  calm  travel  of  the  desert. 

At  Sacramento,  the  newer  name  for  New  Helvetia — a  capi- 
tal mass  of  shops  and  stores,  groggeries  and  hotels — I  cashed  a 
draught,  settled  old  scores  with  Kennedy,  who  almost  carried  me 
off  by  force  to  his  location,  shook  hands  with  Thomas,  and  trans- 
ferred myself  from  the  Golden  Eagle  on  board  the  steamer  Queen 
City.  Eight  hours  down  the  Sacramento  Eiver,  past  Benicia — 
the  birthplace  of  the  Boy — in  the  dark  to  the  head- waters  of  the 
glorious  bay,  placed  me  at  the  "  El  Dorada  of  the  West,"  where  a 
tolerable  opera,  a  superior  supper,  and  the  society  of  friends  made 
the  arrival  exceptionably  comfortable. 

I  spent  ten  pleasant  days  at  San  Francisco.  There  remained 
some  traveler's  work  to  be  done :  the  giant  trees,  the  Yosemite  or 
Yohamite  Falls — the  highest  cataracts  yet  known  in  the  world — 
and  the  Almaden  cinnabar  mines,  With  British  Columbia,  Vancou- 
ver's Island,  and  Los  Angelos  temptingly  near.  But,  in  sooth,  I 
was  aweary  of  the  way ;  for  eight  months  I  had  lived  on  board 
steamers  and  railraod  cars,  coaches  and  mules ;  my  eyes  were  full 
of  sight-seeing,  my  pockets  empty,  and  my  brain  stuffed  with  all 
manner  of  useful  knowledge.  It  was  far  more  grateful  to  flaner 
about  the  stirring  streets,  to  admire  the  charming  faces,  to  enjoy 
the  delicious  climate,  and  to  pay  quiet  visits  like  a  "  ladies'  man," 
than  to  front  wind  and  rain,  muddy  roads,  arrieros,  and  rough 
teamsters,  fit  only  for  Eembrandt,  and  the  solitude  of  out-stations. 
The  presidential  election  was  also  in  progress,  and  I  wished  to 
see  with  my  eyes  the  working  of  a  system  which  has  been  face- 
tiously called  "  universal  suffering  and  vote  by  bullet."  Mr.  Con- 
sul Booker  placed  my  name  on  the  lists  of  the  Union  Club,  which 
was  a  superior  institution  to  that  of  Leamington ;  Colonel  Hook- 
er, of  Oregon,  and  Mr.  Tooney,  showed  me  life  in  San  Francisco ; 
Mr.  Gregory  Yale,  whom  I  had  met  at  Carson  City,  introduced 
me  to  a  quiet  picture  of  old  Spanish  happiness,  fast  fading  from 
California ;  Mr.  Donald  Davidson,  an  old  East  Indian,  talked  East 
Indian  with  me ;  and  Lieutenants  Macpherson  and  Brewer  accom- 
panied me  over  the  forts  and  batteries  which  are  intended  to  make 
of  San  Francisco  a  New- World  Cronstadt.  Mr.  Polonius  sensibly 
refused  to  cash  for  me  a  draught  not  authorized  by  my  circular 
letter  from  the  Union  Bank.  Mr.  Booker  took  a  less  prudential 
and  mercantile  view  of  the  question,  and  kindly  helped  me  through 
with  the  necessaire — £100.  My  return  for  all  this  kindness  was, 
I  regret  to  say,  a  temperate  but  firm  refusal  to  lecture  upon  the 
subject  of  Meccah  and  El  Medinah,  Central  Africa,  Indian  cotton, 
American  politics,  or  every  thing  in  general.    I  nevertheless  bade 


! 


CONCLUSION.  501 

my  adieux  to  San  Francisco  and  the  hospitable  San  Franciscans 
with  rearret. 

On  the  15th  of  November,  the  Golden  Age,  Commodore  Wat- 
kins,  steamed  out  of  the  Golden  Gates,  bearing  on  board,  among 
some  520  souls,  the  body  that  now  addresses  the  public.  She 
was  a  model  steamer,  with  engines  and  engine-rooms  clean  as  a 
club  kitchen,  and  a  cuisine  whose  terrapin  soup  and  deviled  crabs 
a  la  Baltimore  will  long  maintain  their  position  in  my  memory — 
not  so  long,  however,  as  the  kindness  and  courtesy  of  the  ancient 
mariner  who  commanded  the  Golden  Age.  On  the  28th  we  spent 
the  best  part  of  a  night  at  Acapulco,  the  city  of  Cortez  and  of  Doiia 
Marina,  where  any  lurking  project  of  passing  through  ill-condi- 
tioned Mexico  was  finally  dispelled.  The  route  from  Acapulco 
to  Vera  Cruz,  over  a  once  well-worn  highway,  was  simply  and  ab- 
solutely impassable.  Each  sovereign  and  independent  state  in 
that  miserable  caricature  of  the  Anglo-American  federal  Union 
was  at  daggers  drawn  with  all  and  every  of  its  next-door  neigh- 
bors ;  the  battles  were  paper  battles,  but  the  plundering  and  the 
barbarities — cosas  de  Mejico ! — were  stern  realities,  A  rich  man 
could  not  travel  because  of  the  banditti  ;  a  poor  man  would  have 
been  enlisted  almost  outside  the  city  gates;  a  man  with  many 
servants  would  have  seen  half  of  them  converted  to  soldiers  un- 
der his  eyes,  and  have  lost  the  other  half  by  desertion,  while  a 
man  without  servants  would  have  been  himself  press-gang'd ;  a 
Liberal  would  have  been  murdered  by  the  Church,  and  a  Church- 
man— even  the  frock  is  no  protection — would  have  been  martyr- 
ed by  the  Liberal  party.  For  this  disappointment  I  found  a  phil- 
osophical consolation  in  various  experiments  touching  the  influ- 
ence of  Mezcal  brandy,  the  Mexican  national  drink,  upon  the  hu- 
man mind  and  body. 

On  the  15th  of  December  we  debarked  at  Panama ;  horridly 
wet,  dull,  and  dirty  was  the  "place  of  fish,"  and  the  "  Aspinwall 
House"  and  its  Mivart  reminded  me  of  a  Parsee  hotel  in  the  fort, 
Bombay.  Yet  I  managed  to  spend  there  three  pleasant  circlings 
of  the  sun.  A  visit  to  the  acting  consul  introduced  me  to  M. 
Hurtado,  the  Intendente  or  military  governor,  and  to  a  charming 
countrywoman,  whose  fascinating  society  made  me  regret  that  my 
stay  there  could  not  be  protracted.  Though  politics  were  run- 
ning high,  I  became  acquainted  with  most  of  the  officers  of  the 
United  States  squadron,  and  only  saw  the  last  of  them  at  Colon, 
alias  Aspinwall.  Messrs.  Boyd  and  Power,  of  the  "  Weekly  Star 
and  Herald,"  introduced  me  to  the  officials  of  the  Panama  Rail- 
road, Messrs.  Nelson,  Center,  and  others,  who,  had  I  not  expressed 
an  aversion  to  "  dead-headism,"  or  gratis  traveling,  would  have 
offered  me  a  free  passage.  Last,  but  not  least,  I  must  mention 
the  venerable  name  of  Mrs.  Seacole,  of  Jamaica  and  Balaklava. 

On  the  8th  of  December  I  passed  over  the  celebrated  Panama 
Railway  to  Aspinwall,  where  Mr.  Center,  the  superintendent  of 


502 


THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 


the  line,  made  the  evening  highly  agreeable  with  conversation 
aided  by  "  Italia,"  a  certain  muscatel  cognac  that  has  yet  to  reach 
Great  Britain.  We  steamed  the  next  morning,  under  charge  of 
Captain  Leeds,  over  the  Caribbean  Sea  or  Spanish  Main,  bound 
for  St.  Thomas.  A  hard-hearted  E.N.E.  wind  protracted  the  voy- 
age of  the  Solent  for  six  days,  and  we  reached  the  Danish  settle- 
ment in  time,  and  only  just  in  time,  to  save  a  week's  delay  upon 
that  offensive  scrap  of  negro  liberty-land.  On  the  9th  of  Decem- 
ber we  bade  adieu  with  pleasure  to  the  little  dungeon-rock,  and 
turned  the  head  of  the  good  ship  Seine,  Captain  Eivett,  toward 
the  Western  Islands.  She  played  a  pretty  wheel  till  almost  with- 
in sight  of  Land's  End,  where  Britannia  received  us  with  her  char- 
acteristic welcome,  a  gale  and  a  pea-soup  fog,  which  kept  us  cruis- 
ing about  for  three  days  in  the  unpleasant  Solent  and  the  South- 
ampton Water. 


LN   THE   blEBBA  NETAOA. 


APPENDICES. 


APPENDICES. 


I.  EMIGRANT'S  ITINERAEY, 

Showing  the  distances  between  camping-places,  the  several  mail-stations  where  mules 
are  changed,  the  hours  of  travel,  the  character  of  the  roads,  and  the  facilities  for 
obtaining  water,  wood,  and  grass  on  the  route  along  the  southern  bank  of  the 
Platte  River,  from  St.  Joseph,  Mo.,  via  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  to  Carson  Valley. 
From  a  Diary  kept  between  the  7th  of  August  and  the  19th  of  October,  1860. 


No.  of  I 
Mail. 


Miles.     Start. 


Leave  St.  Joseph,  Missouri,  in  N.  lat.  39°  40',  and 
W.  long.  94°  50'.  Cross  Missouri  River  by  steam 
ferry.  Five  miles  orbottom  land,  bend  in  river 
and  settlements.  Over  rolling  prairie  2000  feet 
above  sea  level.  After  6  miles,  Troy,  capital  of 
Doniphan  Co.,  Kansas  Territory,  about  a  dozen 
shanties.   Dine  and  change  mules  at  Cold  Spring 

— good  water  and  grass 

Road  from  Fort  Leavenworth  (N.  lat.  39°  21' 
14",  and  W.  long.  94°  44')  falls  in  at  Cold  Spring, 
distant  15  miles. 

From  St.  Jo  to  Cold  Spring  there  are  two 
routes,  one  lying  north  of  the  other,  the  former 
20,  the  latter  24  miles  in  length. 

After  10  miles.  Valley  Home,  a  whitewashed  shan 
ty.  At  Small  Branch  on  Wolf  River,  12  miles 
from  Cold  Spring,  is  a  fiumara  on  the  north  of 
the  road,  with  water,  wood,  and  grass.  Here  the 
road  from  Fort  Atchinson  falls  in.  Kennekuk 
Station,  44  miles  from  St.  Joseph.  Sup  and 
change  mules 

Two  miles  beyond  Kennekuk  is  the  first  of  the  three 
Grasshopper  Creeks,  flowing  after  rain  to  the 
Kansas  River.  Road  rough  and  stony;  water, 
wood,  and  grass.  Four  miles  beyond  the  First 
Grasshopper  is  Whitehead,  a  young  settlement 
on  Big  Grasshopper ;  water  in  pools,  wood,  and 
grass.  Five  and  a  half  miles  beyond  is  Walnut 
Creek,  in  Ivickapoo  Co.:  pass  over  corduroy 
bridge ;  roadside  dotted  with  shanties.  Thence 
to  Locknan's,  or  Big  Muddy  Station 

Seventeen  miles  beyond  Walnut  Creek,  the  Third 
Grasshopper,  also  falling  into  the  Kansas  River 
Good  camjiing-ground.  Ten  miles  beyond  lies 
Richland,  deserted  site.  Thence  to  Seneca,  cap 
ital  of  Nemehaw  Co.  A  few  shanties  on  the  N 
bank  of  Big  Nemehaw  Creek,  a  tributary  of  the 
Missouri  River,  which  affords  water,  wood,  and 
glass 

Cross  Wildcat  Creek  and  other  nullahs.  Seven 
miles  beyond  Seneca  lies  Ash  Point,  a  few  wood 


20- 
24 


22- 
23 


25 


18 


A.M. 
9  30 


P.M. 
3 


Aug.  7 


P.M. 
4 


P.M. 


Aug.  7 


P.M. 
9 


A.M. 
3 


A.M. 
1 


A.M. 
6 


Aug.7,8 


Aug.  8 


606 


THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 


start.      Arrival.        Date. 


10. 


It. 


12. 


13. 


U. 


en  huts,  thence  to  "Uncle  John's  Grocery," 
where  liquor  and  stores  are  procurable.  Eleven 
miles  from  Big  Nemehaw,  water,  wood,  and  grass 
are  found  at  certain  seasons  near  the  head  of  a 
ravine.  Thence  to  Vermilion  Creek,  which  heads 
to  the  N.E.,  and  enters  the  Big  Blue  20  miles 
above  its  mouth.  The  ford  is  miry  after  rain, 
and  the  banks  are  thickly  wooded.  Water  is 
found  in  wells  40-43  feet  deep.  Guittard's  Sta- 
tion  

Fourteen  miles  from  Guittard's,  Marysville,  capital 
of  Washington  Co.,  affords  supplies  and  a  black- 
smith. Then  ford  the  Big  Blue,  tributary  to 
Kansas  River,  clear  and  swift  stream.  Twelve 
miles  W.  of  Marysville  is  the  frontier  line  be- 
tween Kansas  and  Nebraska.  Thence  to  Cot- 
ton-wood Creek,  fields  in  hollow  near  the  stream. 

Store  at  the  crossing  very  dirty  and  disorderly. 
Good  water  in  spring  400  yards  N.  of  tlie  road  ; 
wood  and  grass  abundant.  Seventeen  and  a 
half  miles  from  the  Big  Blue  is  Walnut  Creek, 
where  emigrants  encamp.  Thence  to  West  Tur- 
key or  Rock  Creek  in  Nebraska  Territory,  a 
branch  of  the  Big  Blue :  its  approximate  alti 
tude  is  1485  feet 

After  19  miles  of  rough  road  and  musquetoes,  cross 
Little  Sandy,  5  miles  E.  of  Big  Sandy ;  w^ater 
and  trees  plentiful.  There  Big  Sandy  deep  and 
heavy  bed.     Big  Sandy  Station 

Cross  hills  forming  divide  of  Little  Blue  River,  as 
cending  valley  60  miles  long.  Little  Blue  fine 
stream  of  clear  water  falling  into  Kansas  River ; 
every  where  good  supplies  and  good  camping- 
ground.     Along  the  left  bank  to  Kiowa 

Rough  road  of  spurs  and  gullies  runs  up  a  valley  2 
miles  wide.  Well  wooded  chiefly  with  cotton- 
wood,  and  grass  abundant.  Ranch  at  Liberty 
Fann,  on  the  Little  Blue 

Cross  divide  between  Little  Blue  and  Platte  River ; 
rough  road,  musquetoes  troublesome.  Approx- 
imate altitude  of  dividing  ridge  2025  feet.  Sta 
tion  at  Thirty-two-Mile  Creek,  a  small  wooded 
and  winding  stream  flowing  into  the  Little  Blue 

After  27  miles  strike  the  Valley  of  the  Platte,  along 
the  southern  bank  of  the  river,  over  level  ground, 
good  for  camping,  fodder  abundant.  After  1 
miles  Fort  Kearney  in  N.  lat.  40°  38'  45",  and  W 
long.  98°  58' 11":  approximate  altitude  2500  feet 
above  sea  level.  Groceries,  cloths,  provisions, 
and  supplies  of  all  kinds  are  to  be  procured  from 
the  sutler's  store.  Beyond  Kearney  a  rough  and 
bad  road  leads  to  "  Seventeen-Mile  Station''. 

Along  the  south  bank  of  the  Platte.  Buffalo  chips 
used  for  fuel.  Sign  of  buffalo  appears.  Plum- 
Creek  Station  on  a  stream  where  there  is  a  bad 
crossing  in  wet  weather 

Beyond  Plum  Creek,  Willow-Island  Ranch,  where 
supplies  are  procurable.  Road  along  the  Platte, 
wood  scarce,  grass  plentiful,  buffalo  abounds; 
after  20  miles  "  Cold-Water  Ranch."  Halt  and 
change  at  Midway  Station 


20 


25 


26 


23 


19 


24 


34 


21 


25 


A.M. 


P.M. 
1 


P.M. 
10  30 


A.M. 
9  30 


P.M. 

2  30 


NOON. 
12 


P.M. 
6 


P.M. 
6 

P.M. 
11 

P.M. 
12 

A.M. 

4 

A.M. 
6 

A.M 
10 

A.M. 
11 

P.M. 
3 

P.M. 
4 

P.M 
9 

A.M 


P.M. 
1  15 


P.M. 


APPENDIX  I. 


607 


SUrt.      Arrival.  [       Dat«. 


15. 


16. 


17. 


18. 
19. 


20. 


21. 


23. 


24. 


26. 


Along  the  Valley  of  the  Platte,  road  muddy  after 
rain,  fuel  scarce,  grass  abundant,  camp  traces 
every  where.  Ranch  at  Cotton-wood  Station,  at 
this  season  the  western  limit  of  buffalo 

Up  the  Valley  of  the  Platte.  No  wood ;  buffalo 
chips  for  fuel.  Good  camping-ground ;  grass  on 
small  branch  of  the  Platte.  To  Junction-House 
Ranch,  and  thence  to  station  at  Fre'mont  Springs 

Road  passes  O'Fallon's  Bluffs.  ' '  Half-way  House, " 
a  store  and  ranch,  distant  120  miles  from  Fort 
Kearney,  400  from  St.  Joseph,  40  from  the  Low- 
er Crossing,  and  G8  from  the  Upper  Crossing  of 
the  South  Fork  (Platte  River).  The  station  is 
called  Alkali  Lake 

Road  along  river  ;  no  timber ;  grass,  buffalo  chips, 
and  musquetoes.  Station  at  Diamond  Springs 
near  Lower  Crossing 

Road  along  river.  Last  4  miles  very  heavy  sand, 
avoided  by  Lower  Crossing.  Poor  accommoda- 
tion at  Upper  Ford  or  Crossing  on  the  eastern 
bank,  where  the  mail  passes  the  stream  en  route 
to  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  and  the  road  branches 
to  Denver  City  and  Pike's  Peak 

Ford  Platte  600  yards  wide,  2 -50  feet  deep,  bed 
gravelly  and  solid,  easy  ford  in  diy  season.  Cross 
divide  between  North  and  South  Forks,  along 
the  bank  of  Lodge-Pole  Creek.  Land  arid;  wild 
sage  for  fuel.     Lodge-Pole  Station 

Up  Lodge-Pole  Creek  over  a  spur  of  table-land ; 
then,  striking  over  the  prairie,  finishes  the  high 
divide  between  the  Forks.  Approximate  alti- 
tude 3500  feet.  On  the  right  is  Ash  Hollow, 
where  there  is  plenty  of  wood  and  a  small  spring. 
The  station  is  Mud  Springs,  a  poor  ranch 

Route  lies  over  a  rolling  divide  between  the  Forks, 
crossing  Omaha,  Lawrence,  and  other  creeks, 
where  water  and  grass  are  procurable.  Cedar  is 
still  found  in  hill-gullies.  About  half  a  mile 
north  of  Chimney  Rock  is  a  ranch  where  the 
cattle  are'changed 

Road  along  the  south  bank  of  North  Ford  of  Platte 
River.  Wild  sage  the  only  fuel  in  the  valley : 
small  spring  on  top  of  first  hill.  Rugged  laby- 
rinth of  paths  abreast  of  Scott's  Bluffs,  which  lie 
o  miles  S.  of  river,  in  N.  lat.  41°  48'  26",  and  W. 
long.  103°  45'  02".  Water  found  in  first  ravine 
of  Scott's  Bluffs  200  yards  below  the  road,  cedars 
on  heights.     To  station 

Road  along  the  river ;  crosses  Little  Kiowa  Creek, 
a  tributary  to  Horse  Creek,  which  flows  into  the 
Platte.  Ford  Horse  Creek,  a  clear  shallow  stream 
with  a  sandy  bottom.     No  wood  below  the  hills. . 

Route  over  sandy  and  heavy  river  bottom  and  roll- 
ing ground,  leaving  the  Platte  on  the  right :  cot- 
ton-wood and  willows  on  the  banks.  Ranch  at 
Laramie  City  kept  by  M.  Badeau,  a  Canadian, 
who  sells  spirits,  Indian  goods,  and  outfit 

After  9  miles  of  rough  road  cross  Laramie  Fork 
and  enter  Fort  Laramie,  N.  lat.  42°  12'  38",  and 
W.  long.  104°  31'  26".  Altitude  4519  feet.  Mil- 
itary post,  with  post-office,  sutler's  stores,  and 


27 


30 


25 


35 


24 


16 


26 


P.M. 

9 


iA.M. 

'6  15 


NOON. 
12 

P.M. 
6 


P.M. 
11 


A.M. 
6  30 


P.M. 
3 


A.M. 


P.M. 

1  30 


P.M. 
G  30 


A.M. 
6 


A.M. 
1  45 


A.M. 
11 


P.M. 


P.M 

10  15 


A.M. 
3  15 


Aug.  1 1 
Aug.  11 

Aug.  11 
Aug.  11 

Aug.  12 


P.M. 

12  45  Aug.  12 


P.M. 
5  45 


Aug.  12 


P.M. 

12  30  Aug.  13! 


P.M. 
5  30 


P.M. 

8  30 


Aug.  13 


Aug.  13 


P.M. 

10  20  Aug.  14 


508 


THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 


27. 


29. 


30. 


31. 


32. 


33. 


MUes.     Start.     Arrival. 


34. 


other  conveniences.     Thence  To  Ward's  (Station 

on  the  Central  Stai-,  small  ranch  and  store 

Rough  and  bad  road.  After  14  miles  cross  Bitter 
Cotton-wood  Creek;  water  rarely  flows;  after 
rain  10  feet  wide  and  6  inches  deep ;  grass  and 
fuel  abundant.  Pass  Indian  shop  and  store.  At 
Bitter  Creek  branch  of  Cotton-wood  the  road  to 
Salt  Lake  City  forks.  Emigrants  follow  the  Up- 
per or  South  road  over  spurs  of  the  Black  Hills, 
some  way  south  of  the  river,  to  avoid  kunyons  and 
to  find  grass.  The  station  is  called  Horseshoe 
Creek,     licsidence  of  road-agent,  Mr.  Slade,  and 

one  of  the  worst  places  on  the  line 

Road  forks;  one  line  follows  the  Platte,  the  other 
turns  to  the  left,  over  "cut-off;"  highly  undulating 
ridges,  crooked  and  deeply  dented  with  dry  beds 
of  rivers;  land  desolate  and  desert.  No  wood  nor 
water  till  end  of  stage.  La  Bonte  River  and  Sta- 
tion; unfinished  ranch  in  valley ;  water  and  grass 
Road  runs  G  miles  (wheels  often  locked)  on  rugged 
red  land,  crosses  several  dry  beds  of  creeks,  and 
springs  with  water  after  melting  of  snow  and 
frosts  in  dry  season,  thence  into  the  Valley  of  the 
Platte.  After  17  miles  it  crosses  the  La  Prele 
(Rush  River),  a  stream  1 0  feet  wide,  where  water 
and  wood  abound.  At  Box-Elder  Creek  Station 
good  ranch  and  comfortable  camping-ground.... 
Along  the  Platte  River,  now  shrunk  to  100  yards. 
After  10  miles,  M.  Bissonette ;  at  Deer  Creek,  a 
post-oflSce,  blacksmith's  shop,  and  store  near  In- 
dian Agency.  Thence  a  waste  of  wild  sage  to 
Little  Muddy,  a  creek  with  water.  No  accom- 
modation nor  provisions  at  station 

After  8  miles  cross  vile  bridge  over  Snow  Creek. 
Thence  up  the  river  valley  along  the  S.  bank  of 
the  Platte  to  the  lower  ferry.  To  Lower  Bridge, 
old  station  of  troops.     To  Upper  Bridge,  where 

the  ferry  has  now  been  done  away  with 

Road  ascends  a  hill  7  miles  long  ;  land  rough,  bar- 
ren, and  sandy  in  dry  season.  After  10  miles,  red 
spring  near  the  Red  Buttcs,  an  old  trading-place 
and  post-office.  Road  then  leaves  the  Platte 
River  and  strikes  over  high,  rolling,  and  barren 
prairie.  After  18  miles,  "Devil's  Backbone." 
Station  at  Willow  Springs ;  wood,  water,  and 
grass ;  good  place  for  encampment,  but  no  accom- 
modation nor  pi'ovisions.  On  this  stage  mineral 
and  alkaline  waters  dangerous  to  cattle  abound.. 
After  3  miles,  Green  Creek,  not  to  be  depended 
upon,  and  Prospect  Hill,  a  good  look-out.  Then, 
at  inteiTals  of  3  miles,  Harper's,  Woodworth's, 
and  Greasewood  Creeks,  followed  by  heavy  sand. 
At  17  miles,  "  Saleratus  Lake,"  on  the  west  of 
the  road.  Four  miles  beyond  is  "  Independence 
Rock,"  Ford  Sweetwater,  leaving  the  "Devil's 
Gate"  on  the  right.  Pass  a  blacksmith's  shop. 
Sage  the  only  fuel.     Plante  or  Muddy  Station ; 

family  of  Canadians  ;  no  conveniences 

Along  the  winding  banks  of  the  Sweetwater.  After 
4  miles,  "Alkali  Lake"  S.  of  the  road.  Land  dry 
and  stony ;  stunted  cedars  in  hills.     After  12 


18 


P.M. 
12  15 


25 


25 


25 


20 


18 


28 


33 


P.M. 
5 


A.M. 

10  45 


P.M. 

4 


A.M. 

8  30 


P.M. 
1  15 


A.M. 
6  30 


P.M. 
2  30 


P.M. 


Aug.  14 


P.M. 
9  30 


A.M. 

2  45 


P.M. 
9 


NOON 
12 


P.M. 
4  15 


P.M 

12  50 


P.M. 
9  15 


Aug.  14 


Aug.  15 


Aug.  15 


Aug.  16 


Aug.  16 


Aug.  17 


Aug.  17 


APPENDIX  I. 


509 


Miles.  I    Start.      Arrival. 


35. 


36. 


37. 


38. 


39. 


40. 


miles, the  "Devil's  Post-office,"  a  singular  blutt' 
on  the  left  of  the  road,  and  opposite  a  ranch  kept 
by  a  Canadian.  RIail  station  "Three  Cross- 
ings," at  Ford  No.  3;  excellent  water,  wood, 
grass,  game,  and  wild  currants 

Up  a  kanyon  of  the  Sweetwater.  Ford  the  river  5 
times,  making  a  total  of  8.  After  16  miles,  "Ice 
Springs"  in  a  swamjiy  valley,  and  one  quarter  of  a 
mile  beyond  "Warm  Springs."  Then  rough  de- 
scent and  waterless  stretch.  Descend  by  "  Lan- 
der's Cut-off"  into  fertile  bottom.  "  Rocky  Ridge 
Station ;"  at  Muskrat  Creek  good  cold  spring, 
grass,  and  sage  fuel 

Up  the  bed  of  the  creek,  and,  ascending  long  hills, 
leave  the  Sweetwater.  After  4  miles,  3  alkaline 
ponds  S.  of  the  road.  Rough  path.  After  7  miles, 
"  Strawberry  Creek,"  6  feet  wide ;  good  camping- 
ground  ;  willows  and  ])oplars.  One  mile  beyond 
is  Quaking-Asp  Creek,  often  dry.  Three  miles 
beyond  lies  M'Achran's  Branch,  33x2.  Then 
"  Willow  Creek,"  10  X  2  ;  good  camping-ground 
At  Ford  No.  9  is  a  Canadian  ranch  and  store 
A  long  table-land  leads  to ' '  South  Pass,"dividing 
trip  between  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific,  and  thence 
2  miles  to  the  station  at  "Pacific  Springs;"  wa 
ter,  tolerable  grass,  sage  fuel,  and  musquetoes. .. 

Cross  Miry  Creek.  Road  down  Pacific  Creek; 
water  scarce  for  20  miles.  After  11  miles,  "Dry 
Sandy  Creek  ;"  water  scarce  and  too  brackish  to 
drink  ;  grass  little  ;  sage  and  greasewood  plenti 
ful.  After  16  miles,  "Sublette's  Cut-off,"  or  the 
"Dry  Drive,"  turns  N.W.  to  Soda  Springs  and 
Fort  Hall :  the  left  fork  leads  to  Fort  Bridger  and 
Great  Salt  Lake  City.  Four  miles  beyond  the 
junction  is  "Little  Sandy  Creek,"'  20-25x2; 
grass,  timber,  and  good  camping-ground.  Eight 
miles  beyond  is  "  Big  Sandy  Creek,"  clear,  swift, 
and  with  good  crossing,  110  X  2.  The  southern 
route  is  the  best ;  along  the  old  road,  no  water 
for  49  miles.     Big  Sandy  Creek  Station 

Desolate  road  cuts  off  the  bend  of  the  river;  no 
grass  nor  water.  After  12  miles,  "Simpson's 
Hollow."  Fall  into  the  Valley  of  Green  River, 
half  a  mile  wide,  water  110  yards  broad.  After 
20 J  miles,  Upper  Ford;  Lower  Ford  7  miles  be- 
low Upper.  Good  camping-ground  on  bottom ; 
at  the  station  in  Green  River,  grocery,  stores,  and 
ferry-boat  when  there  is  high  water 

Diagonal  ford  over  Green  River ;  a  good  camping- 
ground  in  bottom.  Follow  the  valley  for  4  miles ; 
grass  and  fuel.  Michel  Martin's  store  and  gro- 
cery. The  road  leaves  the  river  and  crosses  a 
waterless  divide  to  Black's  Fork,  100x2;  grass 
and  fuel.     Wretched  station  at  Ham's  Fork 

Ford  Ham's  Fork.  After  12  miles  the  road  forks 
at  the  2d  striking  of  Ham's  Fork,  both  branches 
leading  to  Fort  Bridger.  Mail  takes  the  left- 
band  path.  Then  Black's  Fork,  20  x  2 ,  clear  and 
pretty  valley,  with  grass  and  fuel,  cotton-wood 
and  yellow  currants.  Cross  the  stream  3  times. 
After  12  miles,  "  Church  Butte."    Ford  Smith's 


25 


35 


35 


33 


32 


24 


A.M. 

7 


A.M. 

45 


A.M, 
7  45 


A.M. 
11 


Aug.  18 


P.M. 

12  45' Aug.  19! 


P.M. 
3 


Aug.  20 


A.M. 


P.M. 
1  45 


A.M. 


P.M 
12  50 


P.M. 
6  30 


NOOK. 
12 


Aug.  21 


Aug.  21 


Aug.  22 


510 


THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 


Jliles.     Start. 


41. 


42. 


43. 


44. 


45. 


Fork,  '60  feet  wide  and  shallow,  a  tributary  of 
Black's  Fork.  Station  at  Millersville  on  Smith's 
Fork ;  large  store  and  good  accommodation  . . 

Road  runs  up  the  valley  of  Black's  Fork.  After  12 
miles,Fort  Bridger,  in  N.  lat.  41°  18'  12",  and  W. 
long.  110°  32'  23",  on  Black's  Fork  of  Green  Riv- 
er. Commands  Indian  trade,  fuel,  corn;  little 
grass.  Post-office,  sutler's  store,  grocerj',  and 
other  conveniences.  Thence  rough  and  rolling 
ground  to  Muddy  Creek  Hill ;  steep  and  stony 
descent.  Over  a  fertile  bottom  to  Big  Muddy 
and  Little  Muddy-  Creek,  which  empties  into 
Black's  Fork  below  Fort  Bridger.  At  Muddy 
Creek  Station  there  is  a  Canadian,  provisions, 
excellent  milk;  no  stores 

Rough  country.  The  road  winds  along  the  ridge  to 
Quaking- Asp  Hill,  7900  (8400  ?)  feet  above  sea 
level.  Steep  descent ;  rough  and  broken  ground 
After  18  miles.  Sulphur  Creek  Valley;  stagnant 
stream,  flowing  after  rain  ;  ford  bad  and  muddy. 
Station  in  the  fertile  valley  of  Bear  River,  which 
turns  northward  and  flows  into  the  east  side  of 
the  lake ;  wood,  grass,  and  water.  Poor  accom- 
modations at  Bear  River  Station 

Road  runs  by  Needle  Rocks ;  falls  into  the  Valley 
of  Egan's  Creek.  "Cache  Cave"  on  the  right 
hand.  Three  miles  below  the  Cave  is  Red  Fork 
in  Echo  Kanyon;  unfinished  station  at  the  en- 
trance. Rough  road ;  steep  ascents  and  descent* 
along  Red  Creek  Station  on  Weber  River,  which 
falls  into  Salt  Lake  south  of  Bear  River 

Road  runs  down  the  Valley  of  the  Weber.  Ford 
the  river.  After  5j  miles  is  a  salt  spring,  where 
the  road  leaves  the  river  to  avoid  a  deep  kanyon, 
and  turns  to  the  left  into  a  valley  with  rough 
paths,  trj'ing  to  wheels.  Then  crosses  a  mount- 
ain, and,  ascending  a  long  hill, descends  to  Bauch 
min's  Creek,  tributary  to  Weber  River.  Creek 
18  feet  wide,  swift,  pebbly  bed,  good  ford;  grass 
and  fuel  abundant.  The  station  is  called  Car 
son"s  House ;  accommodations  of  the  worst 

Ford  Bauchmin's  Creek  13  times  in  8  miles.  After 
2  miles  along  a  small  water-course  ascend  Big 
Mountain,  whence  first  view  of  Great  Salt  Lake 
City,  12  miles  distant.  After  14  miles.  Big  Kan- 
yon Creek.  Six  miles  farther  the  road  leaves  Big 
Kanyon  Creek,  and  after  a  steep  ascent  and  de- 
scent makes  Emigration  Creek.  Cross  Little 
Mountain,  2  miles  beyond  Big  ^Mountain  ;  road 
rough  and  dangerous.  Five  miles  from  Emigra- 
tion Kanyon  to  Great  Salt  Lake  City.  Road 
through  "Big  Field"  6  miles  square 


20 


25 


20 


36 


22 


P.M. 

2 


Arrival.  I       Date. 


P.M. 
5  15 


A.M.I  P.M. 

8  30jl2  15  Aug.  23 


Aug.  22 


NOON. 

12 


A.M. 
8  15 


P.M. 
4  30 


29 


A.M. 

7 


P.M. 

5  30  Aug.  23 


P.M 

2  30  Aug.  24 


P.M 

7  45  Aug.  24 


P.M. 

7  15 


Aug.  28 


Gkeat  Salt  Lake  Citt,  N.  lat.  40°  46'  08" 

W.  long.  112' 06' 08"  (G.) 
Altitude  4300  feet. 

The  variation  of  compass  at  Temple  Block  in  1849  was  15°  47  23",  and  in  ISGO  it 
was  15°  54',  a  slow  progress  toward  the  east.  (In  the  Wind-River  Mountains,  as  laid 
down  by  Colonel  Fremont  in  1842,  it  was  E.  18°.)  In  Fillmore  Valley  it  is  now  18° 
15',  and  three  years  ago  was  about  17°  east;  the  rapid  progression  to  the  east  is  ac- 


APPENDIX  I. 


511 


companied  with  extreme  irregularity,  which  the  people  attribute  to  the  metallic  con- 
stituents of  the  soil. 

Total  of  days  between  St.  Jo  and  Great  Salt  Lake  City 1 !) 

Total  stages 45 

Distance  in  statute  miles 113G 

From  Fort  Leavenworth  to  Great  Salt  Lake  City 1168 


ITINERARY  OF  THE  MAIL-ROUTE  FROM  GREAT  SALT  LAKE  CITY 
TO  SAN  FRANCISCO. 


start.    'Arrival.  [       Date. 


1 

and 
2. 


44 


20 


Road  through  the  south  of  tlie  city,  due  south  along 
the  right  bank  of  the  Jordan.  Cross  many  creeks, 
viz.,  Kanyon  Creek,  4^-  miles;  Mill  Creek,  2i ; 
First  or  Great  Cotton-wood  Creek,  2 ;  Second 
ditto,  4;  Fork  of  road,  li;  Dry  Creek,  3k; 
Willow  Creek,  2|. 

After  22-23  miles,  hot  and  cold  springs,  and 
half-way  house,  the  breweiy  under  the  point  of 
the  mountain.  Road  across  Ash-Hollow  or  Jor- 
dan Kanyon,  2  miles.  Fords  river,  knee  deep ; 
ascends  a  rough  divide  between  Utah  Valley  and 
Cedar  Valley,  10  miles  from  camp,  and  finally 
reaches  Cedar  Creek  and  Camp  Floyd 

Leaves  Camp  Floyd ;  7  miles  to  tlie  divide  of  Cedar 
Valley.  Crosses  the  divide  into  Rush  Valley ; 
after  a  total  of  18 '2  miles  reaches  Meadow  Creek; 
good  grass  and  water.  Rush  Valley  mail  station 
1  mile  beyond;  food  and  accommodation 

Crosses  remains  of  Rush  Valley  7  miles.  Up  a 
rough  divide  called  General  Jolmston's  Pass. 
Spring,  often  dry,  200  yards  on  the  right  of  the 
road.  At  Point  Look-out  leaves  Simpson's  Road, 
which  runs  south.  Cross  Skull  Valley  ;  bad  road. I 
To  the  bench  on  the  eastern  flank  of  the  desert. 
Station  called  Egan's  Springs,  Simpson's  Springs,  | 
or  Lost  Springs ,  grass  plentiful,  water  good 27 

New  station;  road  forks  to  S.E.,  and  leads,  after 
5  miles,  to  grass  and  water.  After  8  miles,  riv-| 
er  bottom,  1  mile  broad.  Long  line  over  desert 
to  express  station,  called  Dugway ;  no  grass, 
and  no  water 

Steep  road  2  J  miles  to  the  summit  of  Dugway  Pass. 
Descend  by  a  rough  incline ;  8  miles  beyond  the 
road  forks  to  Devil's  Hole,  90  miles  from  Camp 
Floyd  on  Simpson's  route,  and  6  miles  S.  of  Fish 
Springs.  Eight  miles  beyond  the  fork  is  Mount- 
ain Point ;  road  winds  S.  and  W.,  and  then  N.  to| 
avoid  swamp,  and  crosses  3  sloughs.  Beyond  the] 
last  is  Fish-Spring  Station,  on  the  bench — a  poor 
place ;  water  plentiful,  but  bad.  Cattle  iiere  drink 
for  the  first  time  after  Lost  Springs,  distant  48  miles 

Road  passes  many  pools.  Half  way  forks  S.  to  Plea.s- 
ant  Valley  (Simpson's  line).  Road  again  rounds 
the  swamp,  crossing  S.  end  of  Salt  Plain.  After 
21  miles,  "Willow  Creek;"  water  rather  brackish. 
Station  ' '  Willow  Springs"  on  the  bench  below  the 
hills,  at  W.  end  of  desert ;  grass  and  hay  plentiful 

Road  ascending  the  bench,  turns  N.  to  find  the  pass. 
After  6  miles,  Mountain  Springs ;  good  water, 


20 


28 


22 


10  30 


9  80 


10  30  9  30 


A.M. 

9  30   4  30 


Sept.  20 


Sept.  27 


12 


Sept.  28 


P.M 

5  30  Sept.  29 


P.M.  A.M. 

6  30  j  3  30 


A.M. 
10 


3  30 


Sept.  29 


Sept.  30 


512 


THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 


start.    I  Arrival.         Date. 


10, 


II. 


12. 


13. 


U. 


15. 


16. 


17. 


18. 


fjrast;,  and  fuel,  ^iix  miles  beyond  is  Deep-Creek 
Kanyon,  a  dangerous  ravine  9  miles  long.  Then 
descends  into  a  fertile  and  well-watered  valley, 
and  after  7  miles  enters  Deep-Creek  mail  sta- 
tion.    Indian  farm 

Along  Willow  Creek.  After  8  miles,  "Eight-Miles 
Springs;"  water,  grass,  and  sage  fuel.  Kanyon 
after  2y  miles,  .500  yards  long  and  easy.  Then 
19  miles  through  Antelope  Valley  to  the  station 
of  the  same  name,  burnt  in  June,  ISCO,  by  In- 
dians. Simpson's  route  from  Pleasant  Valley, 
distant  12'5  miles,  falls  into  the  E.  end  of  Ante- 
lope Valley,  from  Camp  Floyd  151  miles 

Road  over  the  valley  for  2  miles  to  the  mouth  of 
Shell-Creek  Kanyon,  6  miles  long.  Kough  road ; 
fuel  plentiful.  Descends  into  Spring  Valley,  and 
then  passes  over  other  divides  into  Shell  Creek, 
where  there  is  a  mail  station ;  water,  grass,  and 
fuel  abundant 

Descends  a  rough  road.  Crosses  Stcptoe  Valley 
and  bridged  creek.  Eoad  heavy,  sand  or  mud 
After  16  miles,  Egan's  Kanyon,  dangerous  for 
Indians.  Station  at  the  W.  mouth  burned  by 
Indians  in  October,  1860 

Pass  the  divide,  fall  into  Butte  Valley,  and  cross  its 
N.  end.  Bottom  very  cold.  Mail  station  half 
way  up  a  hill;  a  very  small  spring;  grass  on  the 
N.  side  of  the  hill.     Butte  Station 

Ascend  the  long  divide ;  2  steep  hills  and  falls. 
Cross  the  N.  end  of  Long  Valley,  all  barren. 
Ascend  the  divide,  and  descend  into  Ruby  Val- 
ley ;  road  excellent ;  water,  grass,  and  bottom ; 
fuel  distant.     Good  mail  station 

Long  divide ;  fuel  plenty  ;  no  grass  nor  water.    Aft- 
er 10  miles  the  road  branches  to  the  right  hand 
to  Gravelly  Ford  of  Humboldt  River.     Cross  a 
drj-  bottom.     Cross  Smith's  Fork  of  Humboldt 
River  in  Huntingdon  Valley;   a  little  stream 
bunch-grass  and  sage  fuel  on  the  W.  end.     As 
cend  Chokop's  Pass,  Dugway,  and  hard  hill ;  de 
scend  into  Moonshine  Valley.     Station  at  Dia- 
mond Springs ;  warm  water,  but  good 

Cross  Moonshine  Valley.  After  7  miles  a  suljjhur- 
ous  sjjring  and  grass.  Twelve  miles  beyond  as- 
cend the  divide ;  no  water ;  fuel  and  bunch-grass 
plentiful.  Then  a  long  divide.  After  9  miles, 
the  station  on  Roberts'  Creek,  at  the  E.  end  of 
Sheawit,  or  Roberts'  Springs  Valley 

Down  the  valley  to  the  west ;  good  road;  sage  small; 
no  fuel.  After  12  miles,  willows  and  water-holes; 
3  miles  beyond  there  are  alkaline  wells.  Station 
on  the  bench ;  water  below  in  a  dry  creek  ;  grass 
must  be  brought  from  15  miles 

Cross  a  long  rough  divide  to  Smoky  Valley.  At 
the  northern  end  is  a  creek  called  "Wanahonop," 
or  "Netwood,"  i.  e.,  trap.  Thence  a  long  rough 
kanyon  to  Simpson's  Park ;  grass  plentifid ;  wa- 
ter in  wells  10  feet  deep.  Simpson's  Park  in 
Shoshonee  country,  and,  according  to  Simpson's 
Itinerary,  348  miles  from  Camp  Floyd 

Cross  Simpson's  Park.     Ascend  Simpson's  Pass,  a 


28 


A.M.  P.M. 

8         4 


30 


18 


18 


18 


22 


A.M. 


A.M. 
6 


P.M. 

2 


P.M. 


A.M. 


23 


28 


35 


25 


A.M. 


A.M. 


A.M. 
6  30 


A.M. 
8  15 


Oct.  1 


P.M. 
4 


P.M. 
11 


P.M. 

6 


A.M. 
3 


P.M. 

1  45 


Oct.  3, 4 


Oct.  5 


Oct. 


Oct.  6 


Oct.  7 


P.M. 
1  45 


P.M. 
1  45 


P.M. 

12  30 


P.M. 

2  25 


Oct.  8, 9 


Oct.  10 


Oct.  U 


Oct.  12 


APPENDIX  I. 


513 


No.  of 
Mail. 


19. 


20. 


21. 


23. 


24. 


long  kanyon,  with  sweet  "  Hagc  Springs"  on  the 
summit;  bunch-grass  plentiful.  Descend  to  the 
fork  of  the  road ;  right  hand  to  the  lower,  left 
hand  to  the  upper  ford  of  lleese's  Kivcr.  Water 
perennial  and  good  ;  food  poor 

Through  the  remainder  of  lieese's  Kivcr  Valley. 
After  a  long  divide,  the  Valley  of  Smith's  Creek  ; 
saleratus ;  uo  water  nor  grass.  At  last,  the  sta- 
tion, near  a  kanyon,  and  hidden  from  view.  The 
land  belongs  to  the  PaYutas 

Ascend  a  rough  kanyon,  and  descend  to  a  barren 
and  saleratus  plain.  Toward  the  south  of  the 
valley  over  bench-land,  rough  with  rock  and 
pitch-hole.  "Cold  Springs  Station"  half  built 
near  stream ;   fuel  scarce 

At  the  west  gate,  2  miles  from  the  station,  good 
grass.  After  8  miles,  water.  Two  miles  beyond 
is  the  middle  gate ;  Avater  in  fiumara,  and  grass 
near.  Beyond  the  gate  are  2  basins,  long  di 
vides,  winding  road  to  "  Sand  Springs  Valley ;" 
bad  water;  little  grass 

Cross  the  valley,  10  miles  to  the  summit,  over  slough 
inundations  and  bad  road.  Summit  shifting 
sand.  Descend  5  miles  to  Carson  Lake ;  water 
tolerable ;  tule  abundant.  Eound  the  S.  side  of 
the  lake  to  the  sink  of  Carson  River  Station ;  no 
provisions;  pasture  good  ;  fuel  scarce 

Cross  a  long  plain.  Ascend  a  very  steep  divide, 
and  sight  Sierra  50  miles  distant.  Descend  to 
Carson  River.  Fort  Churchill  newly  built.  Sut- 
ler's stores,  etc 

Carson  City 

Carson  City  lies  on  the  eastern  foot  of  the  Sier- 
ra Nevada,  distant  552  statute  miles,  according 
to  Captain  Simpson,  from  Camp  Floyd.  The 
present  itinerary  reduces  it  to  544,  and,  adding  44 
miles,  to  atotalof  588  from  Great  Salt  Lake  City. 


Miles.     Start.      Arrival.'       Vale. 


28 


35 


A.M 
10 


A.M. 

7  20 


A.M. 

8  15 


A.M. 
9  50 


P.M. 


Oct.  13 


P.M. 

2  45  Oct.  14 


P.M. 

4  15  Oct.  15 


P.M. 
2  30 


A.M.  P.M. 
11        9 


A.M. 

9  30 

11 


Oct.  IG 


Oct.  17 


P.M. 

7  ]5;0ct.  18 

10  30  Oct.  19 


Itixerart  of  Captain  J.  H.  Sisipson's  Wagon-road  from  Camp  Floyd  to  Genoa, 
Carson  Valley,  Utah  Territory.  Explored  by  direction  of  General  A.  G.  Johnston, 
commanding  the  Department  of  Utah,  between  the  2d  of  May  and  the  12th  of  June, 
1859. 


so 


0*0 

S  g" 

—  E  S 

No.  of 
Camp. 

Wood. 

Grass. 

18-2 

1 

W 

28-1 

2 

w 

w 

G 

44-3 

3 

w 

Wil- 
low 

w 

G 

Camp  Floyd,  wood  and  grass  in  vicinity 

Meadow  Creek 

Cross  Meadow  Creek  (Rush  Valley),  mail") 
station  i  mile ) 

Spring  i  mile  to  the  right  of  General  John-  ^ 
ston's  Pass,  just  after  passing  the  summit. 
This  spring  furnishes  but  little  water,  even  > 
in  the  spring,  and  in  the  summer  would  be  j 
most  probably  dry J 

Simpson's  Springs,  mail  station 

Summit,  Short-cut  Pass 

Kk 


18-2 
1 

8-9 

lG-2 
21-C 


18^ 

9-9 
lC-2 


514 


THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS 


S53 

Jo" 


la's 


No.  of 
Camp. 


1*6  miles  below  summit . 


Tolerable  grass  skirting  a  low  range  of  rocks) 
on  the  right  of  the  road j 

A  little  grass;   sage  in  valley 

Devil's  Hole  ;   water  slightly  brackish 

Fish  Springs,  mail  station 

Warm  Springs 

Grass  in  considerable  quantity  of  good  character 

Alkaline  spring  to  the  right  of  the  road ;  wa-> 
ter  not  drinkable j 

Sulphur  springs;  water  abundant  and  palatable 

Spring,  Pleasant  Valley,  mail  station 

East  side  of  Antelope  Valley 

Spring  Valley ;  good  grass  on  the  west  bench ) 
and  slopes ) 

Cross  a  marsh ;  road  takes  up  a  fine  stream ; ) 
grass  all  along ) 

Leave  Creek 

Spring,  copious;   grass  fine 

East  side  of  Steptoe  Valley,  mail  station 

Steptoe  Creek;  dry  in  summer 

Mouth  of  Egan  Kanyon 

Spring ;  source  of  Egan  Creek 

West  side  of  Butte  Valley.  Mail  station  ;  a"\ 
very  small  spring,  barely  sufficient  for  1 
cooking  purposes,  near  the  top  of  the  hill ;  [ 
grass  on  the  N.  side  of  same  hill J 

Spring  1  mile  west  side  of  summit  of  range.... 

Ruby  Valley,  mail  station 

Smith's  Fork,  Humboldt  River,  Hunting-) 
don's  Creek ) 

Small  mountain  stream 

Spring  left  of  the  road 

Near  west  foot  of  Cho-kupe  Pass 

Spring  in  Pah-hun-nupe  Valley 


Do.  west  side  of  Pah-hun-nupe  Valley 

She-a-wi-te  (Willow)  Creek 

Bed  of  Nash  River;  water  in  pools,  probably) 
not  constant ) 

Small  spring;  grass  on  mountain  side,  2)_ 
miles  off j 

Wons-in-dam-me,  or  Antelope  Creek 

Creek 

Creek  west  side  of  valley 

Wan-a-ho-no-pe  (Netwood  trap)  Creek 

Do.  do.         do        

Simpson's  Park,  according  to  topographer,  \ 
Lieutenant  Putnam,  and  guide,  Colonel  > 
Reese J 

Small  spring  in  Simpson's  Pass  (same  authority) 

Ford  of  Reese's  River 

Reese's  River 

Leave  Reese's  River 

Small  spring  to  the  left  of  the  road,  just  be- 
fore reaching  the  summit  of  the  Pass 

Lieutenant  J.  L.  Kirby  Smith's  Creek... 


1-6 


7-8 

4-8 
6-7 
5-4 
3-4 
2G-4 


1 

13-4 


3-5 

3 

2-8 

1 

6-5 

6-8 

1 


lG-2 

12 
9-2 

14-4 

3-3 
1-2 

5-8 
7-8 

5-6 

14-9 

11-G 

5-9 

7 

4-3 
9 

13-G 
4-G 

4-9 

3- 
8-2 
2-G 
3-4 

10- 

7'8 


23-2 


24-7 
29-7 


2-5 
13-4 
12- 

19- 


11-1 


13-3 


18-1 


12 
9-2 


67- 


92-2 


12-19 


125- 

138-4 

150-9 

169-9 


181-0 
194-3 


212-4 


224-4 
233  G 


17-G 
7-1 

13-3 
14-9 

17-5 

7- 


251-2 

258-3 

271-6 

286-5 

304- 
311- 


13-7324-7 


18-2 
4-9 


13-8 


342-9 


347-8 


361-6 


11 
12 


13 


21-2  382-8 


16 
17 

19 

20 
21 


24 


grass 
G 
G 


Ctw 
GW 


W,S 

w 
w 

GW 


W 
W 
W 


W 
W 
W 

w 
w 

w 

w 

GW 


GW 
GW 
GW 

s,w 

GW 
S,W 


S,W 

w 

s,w 
s,w 

s,w 

s,w 


w 
w 
w 

w 
w 

w 

w 
w 


w 
w 
w 


2G    GW  W 


APPENDIX  n. 


615 


Hi  i?ii 


No.  of 
Camp. 


Engleman's  Creek 

Lieutenant  Putnam's  Creek 

Do.  South  Fork 

Rock  Creek 

Do 

Do.       Sinks 

Spring- water  kegs  should  be  filled  for  2  days. 
Camp  from  this  in  alkaline  flat 

Gibraltar  Gate 

Creek  joins  Gibraltar  Creek 

Middle-Gate  Spring 

West  Gate 

Dry  wells  ;  alkaline  valley;  very  poor  camp ; 
water  and  grass  alkaline,  and  little  of  ei- 
ther,    llabbit-bush  fuel-. 

Creek  connecting  the  two  lakes  of  Carson.  ^ 
Road  can  be  shortened  some  eight  or  ten 
miles  by  striking  across  the  head  of  Alka- 
line Valley  after  getting  about  nine  miles 
from  Camp  30,  and  then  proceeding  di- 
rectly to  the  shore  of  Carson  Lake.  It  is 
not  necessary  to  go  so  far  north  as  the 
connecting  creek  referred  to 

Leave  Carson  Lake 

Walker's  River 

Do.        do 

Do.        North  Bend 

Small  spring,  not  sufficient  for  a  large  com-) 
mand  ;  grass  i  mile  south ) 

Carson  River 

Do.      do 

Pleasant  Grove ;  cross  Carson  River  and  get) 
into  Old  Emigrant  Road.     Mail  station ..]" 

China  Town.     Gold  diggings 

Carson  City.     East  foot  of  Sierra  Nevada 

Genoa.  Do.         do.         do.     


1-G 

8-G  10-2'393- 

2-7 


3-1 
1-7 


0-G 
4-2 
3-2 
3-5 

21-0 


9-7 
21 


U-1 


8-7 


14-7 


24-5 


lG-6 


1-2 
10- 
6-3 


1-9 
3-0  19-0 


401-7 


41G-4 


440-9 


457-5' 


488-7 
498-7 
505- 


9-0 


9-0 


7-4 
11-619-0 


524- 
533- 

552- 


12-9:i2-9|564-9  | 


29 


30 


31 


S,W 
W 

w 
w 


s,w 

Rab 
bush 


Dry 

rush 


W 
W 
W 

S,W 


w 


G 
G 

R,G 


R,G 
G 
G 
G 

G 


G 
G 

G 

Wi    G 


(Signed),  J.  H.  Simpson,  Capt.  Top.  Engineers. 

To  Brevet  Major  F.  J.  Porter,  Assist.  Adj.  Gen.,  Dept.  Utah,  Camp  Floyd. 


II.  DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  ]MORMON  TEMPLE. 
[Extracted from  the  Deserit  Nexcs.'\ 

The  following  is  a  brief  detail  of  the  temple,  taken  from  drawings  in  my  office  in 
Great  Salt  Lake  City. 

The  Temple  Block  is  40  rods  square,  the  lines  running  north  and  south,  east  and 
west,  and  contains  10  acres.  The  centi-e  of  the  temple  is  156  feet  6  inches  due  west 
from  the  centre  of  the  east  line  of  the  block.  The  length  of  said  house  east  and  west  is 
1 86^  feet,  including  towers,  and  the  width  99  feet.  On  the  east  end  there  are  three  tow- 
ers, as  also  on  the  west.  Draw  a  line  north  and  south  118^  feet  through  the  centre  of 
the  tower,  and  you  have  the  north  and  south  extent  of  ground-plan,  including  pedestal. 

We  depress  "into  the  earth  at  the  east  end  to  the  depth  of  16  feet,  and  enlarge  all 
around  beyond  the  lines  of  wall  3  feet  for  a  footing.  The  north  and  south  walls  are 
8  feet  thick  clear  of  pedestal ;  they  stand  upon  a  footing  of  16  feet  wall  on  its  bear- 
ing, which  slopes  3  feet  on  each  side  to  the  height  of  1\  feet.  The  footing  of  the 
towei-s  rise  to  the  same  height  as  the  side,  and  is  one  solid  piece  of  masonry  of  rough 
ashlars,  laid  in  good  lime  mortar. 


516  THE  CITY  OE  THE  SAINTS. 

The  basement  of  the  main  building  is  divided  into  many  rooms  by  walls,  all  hav- 
ing footings.  The  line  of  the  basement  floor  is  6  inches  above  the  top  of  the  footing. 
From  the  towers  on  the  east  to  the  towers  on  the  west,  the  face  of  the  earth  slopes  6 
feet;  4  inches  above  the  earth  on  the  east  line  begins  a  promenade  walk  from  11  to 
22  feet  wide  around  the  entire  building,  and  approached  by  stone  steps  as  the  earth 
slopes  and  requires  them.  There  are  four  towers  on  the  four  corners  of  the  building, 
each  starting  from  their  footing  of  2G  feet  square  ;  these  continue  IG^  feet  high,  and 
come  to  the  line  of  the  base  string  course,  which  is  8  feet  above  the  promenade  walk. 
At  this  point  the  towers  are  reduced  to  25  feet  square ;  they  then  continue  to  the 
height  of  38  feet,  or  the  height  of  the  second  string  course.  At  this  point  they  are 
reduced  to  23  feet  square  ;  they  then  continue  38  feet  high  to  the  third  string  course. 
The  string  courses  contmue  all  around  the  building,  except  when  separated  by  but- 
tresses.    These  string  courses  are  massive  mouldings  from  solid  blocks  of  stone. 

The  two  east  towers  then  rise  25  feet  to  a  string  course  or  cornice.  The  two  west 
towers  rise  19  feet,  and  come  to  their  string  course  or  cornice.  The  four  towers  then 
rise  9  feet  to  the  top  of  battlements.  These  towers  are  cylindrical,  having  17  feet  di- 
ameter inside,  within  which  stairs  ascend  around  a  solid  column  4  feet  in  diameter, 
allowing  landings  at  the  various  sections  of  the  building.  These  towers  have  each 
five  ornamental  windows  on  two  sides  above  the  basement.  The  two  centre  towers 
occupy  the  centre  of  the  east  and  west  ends  of  the  building,  starting  from  their  foot- 
ings 31  feet  square,  and  break  off  in  sections  in  line  with  corner  towers,  to  the  height 
of  the  third  string  course.  The  east  centre  tower  then  rises  40  feet  to  the  top  of  bat- 
tlements ;  the  west  centre  tower  rises  34  feet  to  the  top  of  battlements.  All  these 
towers  have  spires ;  the  east  centre  tower  rises  200  feet,  while  the  west  centime  tower 
rises  190  feet.  All  these  towers  at  their  corners  have  octagon  turrets,  terminated  by 
octagon  pinnacles  5  feet  diameter  at  base,  4  feet  at  first  story,  and  three  feet  from 
there  up.  There  are  also  on  each  side  of  these  towers  two  buttresses,  except  where 
they  come  in  contact  with  the  body  of  the  main  building.  The  top  of  these  buttress- 
es show  forty-eight  in  number,  and  stand  upon  pedestals.  The  space  between  the 
buttresses  and  turrets  is  2  feet  at  the  first  story.  On  the  front  of  the  two  centre  tow- 
ers are  two  large  windows,  each  32  feet  high,  one  above  the  other,  neatly  prepared  for 
that  place. 

On  the  two  west  comer  towers,  and  on  the  west  end  a  few  feet  below  the  top  of 
battlements,  may  be  seen  in  alto-relievo  and  bold  relief  the  great  dipper,  or  Ui"sa  Ma- 
jor, with  the  pointers  ranging  nearly  toward  the  north  star.  (Moral :  the  lost  may 
find  themselves  b)'  the  priesthood.) 

I  will  now  glance  at  the  main  body  of  the  house.  I  have  before  stated  that  the 
basement  was  divided  into  many  rooms.  The  central  one  is  arranged  for  a  baptismal 
font,  and  is  59  feet  long  by  35  feet  wide,  separated  from  the  main  wall  by  four  rooms, 
two  on  each  side,  19  feet  long  by  12  feet  wide.  On  the  east  and  west  sides  of  these 
rooms  are  four  passages  12  feet  wide ;  these  lead  to  and  from  by  outside  doors,  two 
on  the  north  and  two  on  the  south.  Farther  east  and  west  from  these  passages  are 
four  more  rooms,  two  at  each  end,  28  feet  wide  by  38^  long.  These  two  thin  walls 
occupy  the  basement.  All  the  walls  start  off  their  footings,  and  rise  IG^  feet,  and 
there  stop  with  groin  ceiling. 

We  are  now  up  to  the  line  of  the  base  string  course,  8  feet  above  the  promenade 
or  steps  rising  to  the  temple,  which  terminates  at  the  cope  of  the  pedestal,  and  to  the 
first  floor  of  said  house.  This  room  is  joined  to  the  outer  courts,  these  courts  being 
the  width  between  towers  16  feet  by  9  in  the  clear.  We  ascend  to  the  floors  of  these 
courts  (they  being  on  a  line  -n-ith  the  first  floor  of  the  main  house)  by  four  flights  of 
stone  steps  9^  feet  wide,  arranged  in  the  basement  work,  the  first  step  ranging  to  the 
outer  line  of  towers.     From  these  courts  doors  admit  to  any  part  of  the  building. 

The  size  of  the  first  large  room  is  120  feet  long  by  80  feetwide ;  the  height  reaches 
nearly  to  the  second  string  cours?.  The  room  is  arched  over  in  the  centre  with  an 
elliptical  arch,  which  drops  at  its  flank  10  feet,  and  has  38  feet  span.  The  side  ceil- 
ings have  one  fourth  elliptical  arches,  which  start  from  the  side  avails  of  the  main 
building  16  feet  high,  and  terminate  at  the  capitals  of  the  columns,  or  foot  of  centre 
arch,  at  the  height  of  24  feet.  The  columns  obtain  their  bearings  direct  from  the 
footings  of  the  said  house  ;  these  columns  extend  up  to  support  the  floor  above.  The 
outside  walls  of  this  story  are  7  feet  thick.  The  space,  from  the  termination  of  the 
foot  of  the  centre  arch  to  the  outer  ,wall,  is  divided  into  sixteen  compartments,  eight 
in  each  side,  making  rooms  14  feet  by  14,  clear  of  partitions,  and  10  feet  high,  leav- 
ing a  passage  of  G  feet  wide  next  to  each  flank  of  the  centre  arch,  which  is  approach- 


APPENDIX  ni.  517 

eel  from  the  ends.     These  rooms  arc  each  lighted  hj  an  elliptical  or  oval  window, 
whose  major  axis  is  vertical. 

The  second  large  room  is  one  foot  wider  than  the  room  below ;  this  is  in  conse- 
quence of  the  wall  being  but  G  feet  thick,  falliug  off  G  inclies  on  the  inner  and  G  on 
the  outer  side.  The  second  string  course  provides  for  this  on  the  outer  side.  The 
rooms  of  this  story  are  similar  to  those  below.  The  side  walls  have  nine  buttresses 
on  a  side,  and  have  eight  tiers  of  windows,  live  in  each  tier. 

The  foot  of  the  basement  windows  are  8  inches  above  the  promenade,  rise  3  feet 
perpendicular,  and  terminate  in  a  semicircular  head.  The  first-story  windows  liave 
12  feet  long  of  sash  to  the  top  of  the  semicircular  head.  The  oval  windows  have  G  J 
feet  length  of  sash.  The  windows  of  the  second  story  are  the  same  as  those  below. 
All  these  frames  have  4^  feet  width  of  sash.  The  pedestals  under  all  the  buttresses 
project  at  their  base  2  feet;  above  their  base,  which  is  15  inches  by  4^  feet  wide,  on 
each  front  is  a  figure  of  a  globe  3  feet  11  inches  aci'oss,  whose  axis'  corresponds  with 
the  axis  of  the  earth. 

The  base  string  course  forms  a  cope  for  those  pedestals.  Above  this  cope  the  bitt- 
tresses  arc  SV  feet,  and  continue  to  the  height  of  100  feet.  Above  the  promenade, 
close  imdcr  the  second  string  course  on  each  of  the  buttresses,  is  the  moon,  represent- 
ed in  its  different  phases.  Close  under  the  third  string  course  or  cornice  is  the  face 
of  the  sun.  Immediately  above  is  Saturn  with  his  rings.  The  buttresses  terminate 
with  a  projected  cope. 

The  only  difference  between  the  tower  buttresses  and  the  one  just  described  is,  in- 
stead of  Saturn  being  on  them,  we  have  clouds  and  rays  of  light  descending. 

All  of  these  symbols  are  to  be  chiseled  in  bas-relief  on  solid  stone.  The  side  walls 
continue  above  the  string  course  or  cornice  Si  feet,  making  the  walls  9G  feet  high, 
and  are  formed  in  battlements  interspersed  with  stars. 

This  roof  is  quite  flat,  rising  only  8  feet,  and  is  to  be  covered  with  galvanized  iron 
or  some  other  metal.  The  building  is  to  be  othenvise  ornamented  in  many  places. 
The  whole  structure  is  designed  to  symbolize  some  of  the  great  architectural  work 
above.  The  basement  windows  recede  in  from  the  face  of  the  outer  wall  to  the  sash 
frame  23  inches,  and  are  relieved  by  a  large  cavetto,  while  on  the  inside  they  are  ap- 
proached by  stone  steps. 

Those  windows  above  the  base  recede  from  the  face  of  the  wall  to  the  sash  frame 
3  feet,  and  are  suiTounded  by  stone  jambs  formed  in  mouldings,  and  surmounted  by 
labels  over  each,  which  terminate  at  their  horizon,  excepting  the  oval  windows,  whose 
labels  terminate  as  columns,  which  extend  from  an  enriched  string  course  at  the  foot 
of  each  window  to  the  centre  of  the  major  axis.  My  chief  object  in  the  last  para- 
graph is  to  show  to  the  judgment  of  any  who  may  be  baffled  how  those  windows  can 
be  come  at,  etc.,  etc.  AH  the  windows  in  the  towers  are  moulded,  and  have  stone 
jambs,  each  being  crowned  with  label  mouldings.  The  whole  house  covers  an  area 
of  2 1,850  feet. 

For  farther  particulars,  wait  till  the  house  is  done,  then  come  and  see  it. 

(Signed),  Trcjian  O.  Asgell,  Architect. 


m.  THE  MAKTYRDOM  of  JOSEPH  SJHTH. 

BY   APOSTLE   JOHN   TAYLOR. 

Being  requested  by  George  A.  Smith  and  Willford  "Woodruff,  Church  historians, 
to  write  an  account  of  events  that  transpired  before  and  took  place  at  the  time  of  the 
martyrdom  of  Joseph  Smith,  in  Carthage  jail,  in  Hancock  County,  State  of  Illinois, 
I  wi-ite  the  following  principally  from  mcmoiy,  not  having  access  to  any  public  docu- 
ments relative  thereto  farther  than  a  few  desultory  items  contained  in  Ford's  ' '  His- 
tory of  Illinois."  I  must  also  acknowledge  myself  considerably  indebted  to  George 
A.  Smith,  who  was  with  me  when  I  ^\Tote  it,  and  who,  although  not  there  at  the 
time  of  the  bloody  transaction,  yet  from  conversing  with  several  persons  who  were  in 
the  capacity  of  Church  historians,  and  aided  by  an  excellent  memory,  has  rendered 
me  a  considerable  ser\-ice.  These  and  the  few  items  contained  in  the  notes  at  the 
end  of  this  account  is  all  the  aid  I  have  had.  I  would  farther  add  that  the  items 
contained  in  the  letter,  in  relation  to  dates  especially,  may  be  considered  strictly 
correct. 

After  having  written  the  whole,  I  read  it  over  to  the  Hon.  J.  M.  Bernhiscl,  who. 


518  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 

with  one  or  two  slight  alterations,  pronounced  it  strictly  correct.  Brother  Bemhisel 
was  present  most  of  the  time.  I  am  afraid  that,  from  the  length  of  time  that  has 
transpired  since  the  occurrence,  and  having  to  rely  almost  exclusively  on  my  memor}^, 
there  may  be  some  slight  inaccuracies,  but  I  believe  that  in  the  general  it  is  strictly 
correct ;  as  I  figured  in  those  transactions  from  the  commencement  to  the  end,  they 
left  no  slight  impression  on  my  mind. 

In  the  year  ISH,  a  very  great  excitement  prevailed  in  some  parts  of  the  counties 
of  Hancock,  Brown,  and  other  neighboring  counties,  in  relation  to  the  "Mormons," 
and  a  spirit  of  vindictive  hatred  and  persecution  was  exhibited  among  the  people, 
which  was  manifested  in  the  most  bitter  and  acrimonious  language,  as  well  as  by 
acts  of  hostility  and  violence,  frequently  thi'eatcning  the  destruction  of  the  citizens  of 
Nauvoo  and  vicinity,  and  utter  annihilation  of  the  "  Mormons"  and  "  Mormonisra," 
and  in  some  instances  breaking  out  in  the  most  violent  acts  of  ruffianly  barbarity  ; 
persons  were  kidnapped,  whipped,  prosecuted,  and  falsely  accused  of  various  crimes ; 
their  cattle  and  houses  injured,  destroyed,  or  stolen ;  vexatious  prosecutions  were 
instituted  to  vex,  harass,  and  annoy.  In  some  remote  neighborhoods  they  were  ex- 
pelled from  their  homes  without  redress,  and  in  others  violence  was  threatened  to 
their  })ersons  and  property,  while  in  otliers  every  kind  of  insult  and  indignity  was 
heaped  upon  them,  to  induce  them  to  abandon  their  homes,  the  county,  or  the  state. 

These  annoyances,  prosecutions,  and  persecutions  were  instigated  through  different 
agencies  and  by  various  classes  of  men,  actuated  by  different  motives,  but  all  uniting 
in  the  one  object,  prosecution,  persecution,  and  extermination  of  the  Saints. 

There  were  a  number  of  wicked  and  corrupt  men  living  in  Nauvoo  and  its  vicinity 
who  had  belonged  to  the  Church,  but  whose  conduct  was  incompatible  with  the 
Gos]iel ;  they  were  accordingly  dealt  M-ith  by  the  Church  and  severed  from  its  com- 
munion ;  some  of  these  had  been  prominent  members,  and  held  official  stations 
either  in  the  city  or  Church.  Among  these  was  John  C.  Bennett,  formerly  Mayor ; 
William  Law,  Councilor  to  Joseph  Smith ;  Wilson  Law,  his  natural  brother,  and 
general  in  the  Nauvoo  Legion ;  Dr.  R.  D.  Foster,  a  man  of  some  property,  but  with 
a  very  bad  reputation ;  Francis  and  Chauncey  Higbee,  the  latter  a  young  lawyer,  and 
both  sons  of  a  respectable  and  honored  man  in  the  Church,  known  as  Judge  Elias 
Higbee,  who  died  about  twelve  months  before. 

Besides  these,  there  were  a  great  many  apostates,  both  in  the  city  and  countiy, 
of  less  notoriety,  who,  for  their  delinquencies,  had  been  expelled  from  the  Church. 
John  C.  Bennett  and  Francis  and  Chauncey  Higbee  were  cut  off  from  the  Church ; 
the  former  was  also  cashiered  from  his  generalship  for  the  most  flagrant  acts  of 
seduction  and  adultery  ;  and  such  was  the  scandalous  nature  of  the  developments  in 
their  cases,  that  the  high  council  before  whom  they  were  tried  had  to  sit  with  closed 
doors. 

William  LaM',  although  councilor  to  Joseph,  was  found  to  be  his  most  bitter  foe 
and  maligner,  and  to  hold  intercourse,  contrary  to  all  law,  in  his  own  house,  with  a 
young  lady  resident  with  him,  and  it  was  afterward  proved  that  he  had  conspired 
with  some  Missourians  to  take  Joseph  Smith's  life,  and  was  only  saved  by  Josiah 
Arnold,  who,  being  on  guard  at  his  house,  prevented  the  assassins  from  seeing  him. 
Yet,  although  having  murder  in  his  heart,  his  manners  were  generally  courteous  and 
mild,  and  he  was  well  calculated  to  deceive. 

General  Wilson  Law  was  cut  off  from  the  Church  for  seduction,  Hilsehood,  and 
defamation ;  both  the  above  were  also  court-martialed  by  the  Nauvoo  Legion  and 
expelled.  Foster  was  also  cut  off.  I  believe,  for  dishonesty,  fraud,  and  falsehood.  I 
know  he  was  eminently  guilty  of  the  whole,  but  whether  these  were  the  specific 
charges  or  not,  I  don't  know,  but  I  do  know  that  he  M'as  a  notoriously  wicked  and 
corrupt  man. 

Besides  the  above  characters  and  "Mormonic"  apostates,  there  were  other  three 
parties.  The  first  of  these  may  be  called  religionists,  the  second  politicians,  and  the 
third  counterfeiters,  blacklegs,  horse-thieves,  and  cut-throats. 

The  religious  party  were  chagrined  and  maddened  because  "Mormonism"  came 
in  contact  with  their  religion,  and  they  could  not  oppose  it  from  the  Scriptures ;  and 
thus,  like  the  ancient  Jews,  when  enraged  at  tlie  exhibition  of  their  follies  and 
hypocrisies  by  Jesus  and  his  apostles,  so  these  were  infuriated  against  the  Mormons 
because  of  their  discomfiture  by  them  ;  and  instead  of  owning  the  truth  and  rejoicing 
in  it,  they  were  ready  to  gnash  upon  them  with  their  teeth,  and  to  persecute  the  be- 
lievers in  principles  which  they  could  not  disprove. 

The  political  party  were  those  who  were  of  opposite  politics  to  us.     There  were 


APPENDIX  in.  519 

always  two  parties,  the  Wliigs  and  Democrats,  and  we  could  not  vote  for  one  with- 
out offending  the  other ;  and  it  not  unfrequently  happened  that  candidates  for  office 
would  place  the  issue  of  their  election  upon  opposition  to  the  "Mormons,"  in  order 
to  gain  political  influence  from  religious  prejudice,  in  which  case  the  "Mormons" 
were  compelled,  in  self-defense,  to  vote  against  them,  which  resulted  almost  invaria- 
bly against  our  opponents.  This  made  them  angrj-;  and,  although  it  was  of  their 
own  making,  and  the  "Mormons"  could  not  be  exj^ected  to  do  otherwise,  yet  they 
raged  on  account  of  their  discomfiture,  and  sought  to  wreak  their  fury  on  the  "Mor- 
mons." As  an  instance  of  the  above,  when  Joseph  Duncan  was  candidate  for  the 
office  of  Governor  of  Illinois,  he  pledged  himself  to  his  party  that,  if  he  could  be 
elected,  he  would  exterminate  or  drive  the  "Mormons"  from  the  state.*  The  con- 
sequence was  that  Governor  Ford  was  elected.  The  "Whigs,  seeing  that  they  had 
been  outgeneraled  by  the  Democrats  in  securing  the  ' '  Mormon"  vote,  became  seri- 
ously alarmed,  and  sought  to  repair  their  disaster  by  raising  a  kind  of  crusade  against 
that  people.  The  Whig  newspapers  teemed  with  accounts  of  the  wonders  and  enor- 
mities of  Nauvoo,  and  of  the  awful  wickedness  of  a  party  which  could  consent  to 
receive  the  support  of  such  miscreants.  Governor  Duncan,  who  was  really  a  brave, 
honest  man,  and  who  had  nothing  to  do  with  getting  the  "  Moimon"  charters  passed 
through  the  Legislature,  took  the  stump  on  this  subject  in  pood  earnest,  and  expected 
to  be  elected  governor  almost  on  this  question  alone.  The  third  party,  composed 
of  counterfeiters,  blacklegs,  horse-thieves,  and  cut-throats,  were  a  pack  of  scoundrels 
that  infested  the  whole  of  the  Western  country  at  that  time.  In  some  districts  their 
influence  was  so  great  as  to  control  important  state  and  county  offices.  On  this 
subject  Governor  Ford  says  the  following  : 

"Then,  again,  the  northern  part  of  the  state  was  not  destitute  of  its  organized 
bands  of  rogues,  engaged  in  murders,  robberies,  horse-stealing,  and  in  making  and 
passing  counterfeit  money.  These  rogues  were  scattered  all  over  the  north,  but  the 
most  of  them  were  located  in  the  counties  of  Ogle,  Winnebago,  Lee,  and  De  Kalb. 

"In  the  county  of  Ogle  they  were  so  numerous,  strong,  and  well  organized  that 
they  could  not  be  convicted  for  their  crimes.  By  getting  some  of  their  numbers  on 
the  juries,  by  producing  a  host  of  witnesses  to  sustain  their  defense  by  perjured  evi- 
dence, and  by  changing  the  venue  of  one  county  to  another,  by  continuances  from 
term  to  term,  and  by  the  inability  of  witnesses  to  attend  from  time  to  time  at  distant 
and  foreign  counties,  they  most  generally  managed  to  be  acquitted. "t 

There  was  a  combination  of  horse-thieves  extending  from  Galena  to  Alton.  There 
were  counterfeiters  engaged  in  merchandising,  trading,  and  store-keeping  in  most 
of  the  cities  and  villages,  and  in  some  districts,  I  have  been  credibly  informed  by 
men  to  whom  they  have  disclosed  their  secrets,  the  judges,  sheriffs,  constables,  and 
jailers,  as  well  as  professional  men,  were  more  or  less  associated  with  them.  These 
had  in  their  employ  the  most  reckless,  abandoned  wretches,  who  stood  ready  to  carry 
into  effect  the  most  desperate  enterprises,  and  were  careless  alike  of  human  life  and 
property.  Their  object  in  persecuting  the  "]\Iormons"  was  in  part  to  cover  their 
own  rascality,  and  in  part  to  prevent  them  from  exposing  and  prosecuting  them  ;  but 
the  principal  reason  was  plunder,  believing  that  if  they  could  be  removed  or  driven 
they  would  be  made  fat  on  Mormon  spoils,  besides  having  in  the  deserted  city  a  good 
asylum  for  the  prosecution  of  their  diabolical  pursuits. 

This  conglomeration  of  apostate  Mormons,  religious  bigots,  political  fanatics,  and 
combination  of  blacklegs,  all  united  their  forces  against  the  "  Alormons,"  and  organ- 
ized themselves  into  a  part}-,  denominated  "anti-Mormons."  Some  of  them,  we 
have  reason  to  believe,  joined' the  Church  in  order  to  cover  their  nefarious  practices, 
and  when  they  were  expelled  for  their  unrighteousness  only  raged  with  greater  vio- 
lence. They  circulated  everj-  kind  of  falsehood  that  they  could  collect  or  manufac- 
ture against  the  IMormons.  They  also  had  a  paper  to  assist  them  in  their  propaga- 
tions called  the  "Warsaw  Signal,"  edited  by  a  Mr.  Thomas  Sharp,  a  violent  and 
unprincipled  man,  who  shrunk  not  from  any  enormity.  The  anti-Mormons  had 
public  meetings,  which  were  very  numerously  attended,  where  they  passed  resolutions 
of  the  most  violent  and  inflammatorj-  kind,  threatening  to  drive,  expel,  and  exterm- 
inate the  "  Mormons"  from  the  state,  at  the  same  time  accusing  them  of  all  the 
vocabulary  of  crime. 

They  appointed  their  meetings  in  various  parts  of  Hancock,  JI'Donough,  and  other 
counties,  which  soon  resulted  in  the  organization  of  armed  mobs,  under  the  direction 

•  Spo  hia  remarks  as  contained  in  his  llistory  of  IllinolB,  p.  269, 
t  Ford's  History  of  Illinois,  p.  240. 


520  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 

of  officers  who  reported  to  their  head-quarters,  and  the  reports  of  which  were  pub- 
lished in  the  anti-Mormon  paper,  and  circulated  through  the  adjoining  counties. 
We  also  published  in  the  "Times  and  Seasons"  and  the  "Nauvoo  Neighbor"  (two 
papers  published  and  edited  by  me  at  that  time)  an  account,  not  only  of  their  pro- 
ceedings, but  our  own.  But  such  was  the  hostile  feeling,  so  well  arranged  their 
plans,  and  so  desperate  and  lawless  their  measures,  that  it  was  with  the  greatest  dif- 
ficulty that  we  could  get  our  papers  circulated ;  they  were  destroyed  by  postmasters 
and  others,  and  scarcely  ever  arrived  at  the  place  of  their  destination,  so  that  a  great 
many  of  the  people,  who  would  have  been  otherwise  peaceable,  were  excited  by  their 
misrepresentations,  and  instigated  to  join  their  hostile  or  predatory  bands. 

Emboldened  by  the  acts  of  those  outside,  the  apostate  "Mormons,"  associated  with 
others,  commenced  the  publication  of  a  libelous  paper  in  Nauvoo,  called  the  "  Nauvoo 
Expositor."  This  paper  not  only  reprinted  from  the  others,  but  put  in  circulation 
the  most  liljelous,  false,  aud  infamous  reports  concerning  the  citiiiens  of  Nauvoo,  and 
especially  the  ladies.  It  was,  however,  no  sooner  put  in  circulation  than  the  indig- 
nation of  the  whole  community  was  aroused ;  so  much  so,  that  they  threatened  its 
annihilation ;  and  I  do  not  believe  that  in  any  other  city  in  the  United  States,  if  the 
same  charge  had  been  made  against  the  citizens,  it  would  have  been  permitted  to 
remain  one  day.  As  it  was  among  us,  imder  these  circumstances,  it  was  thought 
best  to  convene  the  City  Council  to  take  into  consideration  the  adoption  of  some 
measures  for  its  removal,  as  it  was  deemed  better  that  this  should  be  done  legally 
than  illegally.  Joseph  Smith,  therefore,  who  was  then  mayor,  convened  the  City 
Council  for  that  pui-pose ;  the  paper  was  introduced  and  read,  and  the  subject  ex- 
amined. All,  or  nearly  all  present,  expressed  their  indignation  at  the  course  taken 
by  the  "Expositor,"  which  was  owned  by  some  of  the  aforesaid  apostates,  associated 
with  one  or  two  others :  Wilson  Law,  Dr.  Foster,  Charles  Ivins,  and  the  Higbees 
before  referred  to,  some  lawyers,  store-keepers,  and  others  in  Nauvoo  who  were  not 
"Mormons,"  together  with  the  "anti-Mormons"  outside  of  the  city,  sustained  it. 
The  calculation  was,  by  false  statements,  to  unsettle  the  minds  of  many  in  the  city, 
and  to  form  combinations  there  similar  to  the  anti-ilormon  associations  outside  of 
the  city.  Various  attempts  had  therefore  been  made  by  the  party  to  annoy  and  irri- 
tate the  citizens  of  Nauvoo ;  false  accusations  had  been  made,  vexatious  lawsuits 
instituted,  threats  made,  and  various  devices  resorted  to  to  influence  the  public  mind, 
and,  if  possible,  to  induce  us  to  the  commission  of  some  overt  act  that  might  make 
us  amenable  to  the  law.  With  a  perfect  knowledge,  therefore,  of  the  designs  of 
these  infernal  scoundrels  who  were  in  our  midst,  as  well  as  of  those  who  surrounded 
us,  the  City  Council  entered  upon  an  investigation  of  the  matter.  They  felt  that 
they  were  in  a  critical  position,  and  that  any  move  made  for  the  abating  of  that 
press  would  be  looked  upon,  or  at  least  represented,  as  a  direct  attack  upon  the  lib- 
ei'ty  of  speech,  and  that,  so  far  from  displeasing  our  enemies,  it  would  be  looked  upon 
by  them  as  one  of  the  best  circumstances  that  could  transpire  to  assist  them  in  their 
nefarious  and  bloody  designs.  Being  a  member  of  the  City  Council,  I  well  remem- 
ber the  feeling  of  responsibility  that  seemed  to  rest  upon  all  present ;  nor  shall  I  soon 
forget  the  bold,  manly,  independent  expressions  of  Joseph  Smith  on  that  occasion  in 
relation  to  this  matter.  He  exhibited  in  glowing  colors  the  meanness,  coiTuption, 
and  ultimate  designs  of  the  "anti-Mormons;"  their  despicable  characters  and  un- 
godly influences,  especially  of  those  who  were  in  our  midst ;  he  told  of  the  responsi- 
bility that  rested  upon  iis,  as  guardians  of  the  public  interest,  to  stand  up  in  the 
defense  of  the  injured  and  oppressed,  to  stem  the  current  of  corruption,  and,  as  men 
and  saints,  to  put  a  stop  to  this  flagrant  outrage  upon  this  people's  rights.  He  stated 
that  no  man  was  a  stronger  advocate  for  the  liberty  of  speech  and  of  the  press  than 
himself;  yet,  when  this  noble  gift  is  uttei-ly  prostituted  and  abused,  as  in  the  present 
instance,  it  loses  all  claim  to  our  respect,  and  becomes  as  great  an  agent  for  evil  as 
it  can  possibly  be  for  good  ;  and  notwithstanding  the  apparent  advantage  we  should 
give  our  enemies  by  this  act,  yet  it  behooved  us,  as  men,  to  act  independent  of  all 
secondary  influences,  to  perform  the  part  of  men  of  enlarged  minds,  and  boldly  and 
fearlessly  to  discharge  the  duties  devolving  upon  us  by  declaring  as  a  nuisance,  and 
removing  this  filthy,  libelous,  and  seditious  sheet  from  our  midst. 

The  subject  was  discussed  in  various  forms,  and  after  the  remarks  made  by  the 
mayor,  every  one  seemed  to  be  waiting  for  some  one  else  to  speak.  After  a  consid- 
erable pause,  I  arose  and  expressed  my  feelings  frankly,  as  Joseph  had  done,  and 
numbers  of  others  followed  in  the  same' strain  ;  and  I  think,  but  am  not  certain,  that 
I  made  a  motion  for  the  removal  of  that  press  as  a  nuisance.     This  motion  was  finally 


APPENDIX  III.  .  521 

put,  and  carried  by  all  but  one ;  and  he  conceded  that  the  measure  was  just,  but  ab- 
stained through  fear. 

Several  members  of  the  City  Council  were  not  in  the  Church.  The  following  is 
the  bill  referi'ed  to : 

BUI  for  Removing  of  the  Press  of  the  "  Nauvoo  Exjwsitor.'"* 
"  Resolved  by  the  City  Council  of  the  City  of  Nauvoo,  that  the  printing-office  from 
whence  issues  the  '  Nauvoo  Expositor'  is  a  public  nuisance ;  and  also  all  of  said  '  Nau- 
voo Expositors'  which  may  be  or  exist  in  said  establishment ;  and  the  mayor  is  in- 
structed to  cause  said  establishment  and  papers  to  be  removed  without  delay,  in  such 
manner  as  he  shall  direct. 

"Passed  June  10th,  184:4.  Geo.  W.  Haekis,  President /jro  iem. 

"W.  EiciiARDS,  Recorder." 

After  the  passage  of  the  bill,  the  marshal,  John  P.  Green,  was  ordered  to  abate  or 
remove,  which  he  forthwith  proceeded  to  do  by  summoning  a  posse  of  men  for  that 
purpose.  The  press  was  removed  or  broken,  I  don't  remember  which,  by  the  mar- 
shal, and  the  types  scattered  in  the  street. 

This  seemed  to  be  one  of  those  extreme  cases  that  require  extreme  measures,  as 
the  press  was  still  proceeding  in  its  inflammatory  course.  It  was  feared  that,  as  it 
was  almost  universally  execrated,  should  it  continue  longer,  an  indignant  people 
might  commit  some  overt  act  which  might  lead  to  serious  consequences,  and  that  it 
was  better  to  use  legal  than  illegal  means. 

This,  as  was  foreseen,  was  the  very  course  our  enemies  wished  us  to  pursue,  as  it 
afforded  them  an  opportunity  of  circulating  a  very  plausible  stoiy  about  the  "Mor- 
mons" being  opposed  to  the  liberty  of  the  press  and  of  free  speech,  which  they  were 
not  slow  to  avail  themselves  of.  Stories  were  fabricated,  and  facts  perverted  ;  false 
statements  were  made,  and  this  act  brought  in  as  an  example  to  sustain  the  wliole  of 
their  fabrications  ;  and,  as  if  inspired  by  Satan,  they  labored  with  an  energy  and  zeal 
worthy  of  a  better  cause.  They  had  runners  to  circulate  their  reports,  not  only 
through  Hancock  Co.,  but  in  all  the  surrounding  counties ;  these  reports  were  com- 
municated to  their  "anti-Mormon"  societies,  and  these  societies  circulated  them  in 
their  several  districts.  The  "anti-Mormon"  paper,  the  "Warsaw  Signal,"  was  filled 
with  inflammatory  articles  and  misrepresentations  in  relation  to  us,  and  especially  to 
this  act  of  destrojdng  the  press.  We  were  represented  as  a  horde  of  lawless  ruffians 
and  brigands,  anti-American  and  anti-republican,  steeped  in  crime  and  iniquity,  op- 
posed to  freedom  of  speech  and  of  the  press,  and  all  the  rights  and  immunities  of  a 
free  and  enlightened  people  ;  that  neither  persons  nor  property  were  secure  ;  that  we 
had  designs  upon  the  citizens  of  Illinois  and  of  the  United  States,  and  the  people 
were  called  u]Jon  to  rise  en  masse,  and  put  us  down,  drive  us  away,  or  exterminate  us 
as  a  pest  to  society,  and  alike  dangerous  to  our  neighbors,  the  state,  and  common- 
wealth. 

These  statements  were  extensively  copied  and  circulated  throughout  the  United 
States.  A  true  statement  of  the  facts  in  question  was  published  by  us  both  in  the 
"Times  and  Seasons"  and  the  "Nauvoo  Neighbor,"  but  it  was  found  impossible  to 
circulate  them  in  the  immediate  counties,  as  they  were  destroyed  at  the  post-offices 
or  othei'wise  by  the  agents  of  the  anti-Mormons,  and,  in  order  to  get  the  mail  to  go 
abroad,  I  had  to  send  the  papers  a  distance  of  thirty  or  forty  miles  from  Nauvoo, 
and  sometimes  to  St.  Louis  (upward  of  two  hundred  miles),  to  insure  its  proceeding 
on  its  route,  and  then  one  half  or  two  thirds  of  the  papers  never  reached  the  place  of 
destination,  being  intercepted  or  destroyed  by  our  enemies. 

These  false  I'cports  stirred  up  the  community  around,  of  whom  many,  on  account 
of  religious  prejudice,  were  easily  instigated  to  join  the  "  anti-I\Iormons, "  and  em- 
bark in  any  crusade  that  might  be  undertaken  against  the  "Mormons ;"  hence  their 
ranks  swelled  in  numbers,  and  new  organizations  were  formed,  meetings  were  held, 
resolutions  passed,  and  men  and  means  volunteered  for  the  extirpation  of  the  ' '  Mor- 
mons." 

These  also  were  the  active  men  in  blowing  up  the  fury  of  the  people,  in  hopes  that 
a  popular  movement  might  be  set  on  foot,  which  would  result  in  the  expulsion  or  ex- 
termination of  the  "Mormon"  voters.  For  this  purpose  public  meetings  had  been 
called,  inflammatory  speeches  had  been  made,  exaggerated  reports  had  been  exten- 
sively circulated,  committees  had  been  appointed,  who  rode  night  and  day  to  spread 
•  Des.  Xewg,  No.  2D,  Sept.  23, 1S5T,  p.  22G. 


522  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 

the  reports  and  solicit  the  aid  of  neighboring  counties,  and  at  a  public  meeting  at 
Warsaw  resolutions  were  passed  to  expel  or  exterminate  the  "Mormon"  population. 
This  was  not,  however,  a  movement  which  was  unanimously  concurred  in.  The 
county  contained  a  goodly  number  of  inhabitants  in  favor  of  peace,  or  who  at  least 
desired  to  be  neutral  in  such  a  contest.  These  were  stigmatized  by  the  name  of 
"Jack  Mormons,"  and  there  were  not  a  few  of  the  more  furious  exciters  of  the  people 
who  o]3enly  expressed  their  intention  to  involve  them  in  the  common  expulsion  or 
extermination. 

A  system  of  excitement  and  agitation  was  artfully  planned  and  executed  with  tact. 
It  consisted  in  spreading  reports  and  rumors  of  the  most  fearful  character.  As  ex- 
amples :  On  the  morning  before  my  arrival  at  Carthage  I  was  awakened  at  an  early 
hour  by  the  frightful  report,  which  was  asserted  with  confidence  and  apparent  conster- 
nation, that  the  "  Mormons"  had  already  commenced  the  work  of  bui-ning,  destruc- 
tion, and  murder,  and  that  every  man  capable  of  bearing  arms  was  instantly  wanted 
at  Carthage  for  the  protection  of  the  county. 

We  lost  no  time  in  starting ;  but  when  we  arrived  at  Carthage  we  could  hear  no 
more  concerning  this  story.  Again,  during  the  few  days  that  the  militia  were  en- 
camped at  Carthage,  frequent  applications  were  made  to  me  to  send  a  force  here,  and 
a  force  there,  and  a  force  all  about  the  country,  to  prevent  murders,  robberies,  and 
larcenies  wliich,  it  was  said,  were  threatened  by  the  "Mormons."  No  such  forces 
were  sent,  nor  were  any  such  offenses  committed  at  that  time,  except  the  stealing  of 
some  provisions,  and  there  was  never  the  least  proof  that  this  was  done  by  a  "Mor- 
mon." Again,  on  my  late  visit  to  Hancock  County,  I  was  informed  by  some  of  their 
violent  enemies  that  the  larcenies  of  the  "  Mormons"  had  become  unusually  numer- 
ous and  insufferaljle.  They  admitted  that  but  little  had  been  done  in  this  way  in 
their  immediate  vicinity,  but  they  insisted  that  sixteen  horses  had  been  stolen  by  the 
"Mormons"  in  one  night  near  Lima,  and,  upon  inquiry,  was  told  that  no  horees  had 
been  stolen  in  that  neighborhood,  but  that  sixteen  horses  had  been  stolen  in  one  night 
in  Hancock  County.  This  last  informant  being  told  of  the  Hancock  stoiy,  again 
changed  the  venue  to  another  distant  settlement  in  the  noi-thern  edge  of  Adams.  * 

In  the  mean  time  legal  proceedings  were  instituted  against  the  members  of  the 
City  Council  of  Nauvoo.  A  writ,  here  subjoined,  was  issued  upon  the  affidavit  of 
the  Laws,  Foster,  Higbees,  and  Ivins,  by  Mr.  Morrison,  a  justice  of  the  peace  in  Car- 
thage, the  county  seat  of  Hancock,  and  put  into  the  hands  of  one  David  Bettesworth, 
a  constable  of  the  same  place. 

Writ  issued  upon  affidavit  hy  Thomas  Morrison,  J.  P.,  State  of  Illinois,  Hancock 

Count )j,  ss. 

"The  people  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  to  all  constables,  sheriff's,  and  coroners  of 
said  state,  greeting : 

"Whereas  complaint  hath  been  made  before  me,  one  of  the  justices  of  the  peace 
in  and  for  the  County  of  Hancock  aforesaid,  upon  the  oath  of  Francis  M.  Higbee,  of 
said  county,  that  Joseph  Smith,  Samuel  Bennett,  John  Taylor,  William  W.  Phelps, 
Hyrum  Smith,  John  P.  Green,  Stephen  Perry,  Dimick  B.  Huntington,  Jonathan 
Dunham,  Stephen  Markham,  William  Edwards,  Jonathan  Holmes,  Jesse  P.  Har- 
mon, John  Lytic,  Joseph  W.  Coolidge,  Harvey  D.  Redfield,  Porter  Rockwell,  and 
Levi  Richards,  of  said  county,  did,  on  the  10th  day  of  June  instant,  commit  a  riot  at 
and  witliin  the  county  aforesaid,  wherein  they  with  force  and  violence  broke  into  the 
printing-office  of  the  'Nauvoo  Expositor,'  and  unlawfully  and  with  force  burned  and 
destroyed  the  printing-press,  type,  and  fixtures  of  the  same,  being  the  property  of 
William  Law,  Wilson  Law,  Charles  Ivins,  Francis  M.  Higbee,  Chauneey  L.  Higbee, 
Robert  D.  Foster,  and  Charles  A.  Foster. 

"These  are  tlierefore  to  command  you  forthwith  to  apprehend  the  said  Joseph 
Smith,  Samuel  Bennett,  John  Taylor,  William  W.  Phelps,  Hyrum  Smith,  John  P. 
Green,  Stephen  Perry,  Dimick  B.  Huntington,  Jonathan  Dunham,  Stephen  Mark- 
ham,  William  Edwards,  Jonathan  Holmes,  Jesse  P.  Harmon,  John  Lytle,  Joseph W. 
Coolidge,  Harvey  D.  Redfield,  Porter  Rockwell,  and  Levi  Richards,  and  bring  them 
before  me,  or  some  other  justice  of  the  peace,  to  answer  the  premises,  and  farther  to 
be  dealt  with  according  to  law. 

' '  Given  under  my  hand  and  seal  at  Carthage,  in  the  county  aforesaid,  this  11th  day 
of  June,  A.D.  1844.  Thomas  Morkison,  J.  P."     (Seal.)t 

•  Ford's  Uiatory  of  Illinois,  p.  330, 331.  t  Dea.  News,  No.  30,  Sept.  30, 1857,  p.  233. 


APPENDIX  III.  523 

The  council  refused  not  to  attend  to  the  legal  proceedings  in  the  case,  but,  as  the 
law  of  Illinois  made  it  the  privilege  of  the  persons  accused  to  go  "or  appear  before 
the  issuer  of  the  writ,  or  any  other  justice  of  peace,"  they  requested  to  be  taken  be- 
fore another  magistrate,  either  iu  the  city  of  Nauvoo  or  at  any  reasonable  distance 
out  of  it. 

This  the  constable,  who  was  a  mobocrat,  refused  to  do ;  and  as  this  was  our  legal 
privilege,  we  refused  to  be  dragged,  contrary  to  law,  a  distance  of  eighteen  miles,  when 
at  the  same  time  we  had  reason  to  believe  that  an  organized  band  of  mobocrats  were 
assembled  for  the  purpose  of  extermination  or  murder,  and  among  whom  it  would 
not  be  safe  to  go  without  a  superior  force  of  armed  men.  A  writ  of  habeas  corpus 
was  called  for,  and  issued  by  the  municipal  court  of  Nauvoo,  taking  us  out  of  the 
hands  of  Bettesworth,  and  placing  us  in  the  charge  of  the  city  marshal.  We  went 
before  the  municipal  com-t,  and  were  dismissed.  Our  refusal  to  obey  this  illegal  pro- 
ceeding was  by  them  construed  into  a  refusal  to  submit  to  law,  and  circulated  as 
such,  and  the  people  either  did  believe,  or  professed  to  believe,  that  we  were  in  open 
rebellion  against  the  laws  and  the  authorities  of  the  state.  Hence  mobs  began  to  as- 
semble, among  which  all  through  the  country  inflammatory  speeches  were  made,  ex- 
citing them  to  mobocracy  and  violence.  Soon  they  commenced  their  prosecutions 
of  our  outside  settlements,  kidnapping  some,  and  whipping  and  otherwise  abusing 
others. 

The  persons  thus  abused  fled  to  Nauvoo  as  soon  as  practicable,  and  related  their 
injuries  to  Joseph  Smith,  then  mayor  of  the  city,  and  lieutenant  general  of  the  Nau- 
voo Legion  ;  they  also  went  before  magistrates,  and  made  afiidavits  of  what  they  had 
sufiered,  seen,  and  heard.  These  affidavits,  in  connection  with  a  copy  of  all  our  pro- 
ceedings, were  forwarded  by  Joseph  Smith  to  Mr.  Ford,  then  Governor  of  Illinois, 
with  an  expression  of  our  desire  to  abide  law,  and  a  request  that  the  governor  would 
instruct  him  how  to  proceed  in  the  case  of  the  arrival  of  an  armed  mob  against  the 
city.  The  governor  sent  back  instructions  to  Joseph  Smith  that,  as  he  was  lieu- 
tenant general  of  the  Nauvoo  Legion,  it  was  his  duty  to  protect  the  city  and  surround- 
ing country,  and  issued  orders  to  that  effect.  Upon  the  reception  of  these  orders  Jo- 
seph Smith  assembled  the  people  of  tlie  city,  and  laid  before  them  the  governor's  in- 
structions ;  he  also  convened  the  ofiicers  of  the  Nauvoo  Legion  for  the  purpose  of 
conferring  in  relation  to  the  best  mode  of  defense.  He  also  issued  orders  to  the  men 
to  hold  themselves  in  readiness  in  case  of  being  called  upon.  On  the  following  day 
General  Joseph  Smith,  with  his  staft",  the  leading  officers  of  the  Legion,  and  some 
prominent  strangers  who  were  in  our  midst,  made  a  survey  of  the  outside  boundaries 
of  the  city,  which  was  very  extensive,  being  about  five  miles  up  and  down  the  river, 
and  about  two  and  a  half  back  in  the  centre,  for  the  purpose  of  ascertaining  the  po- 
sition of  the  ground,  and  the  feasibility  of  defense,  and  to  make  all  necessary  arrange- 
ments in  case  of  an  attack. 

It  may  be  well  here  to  remark  that  numbers  of  gentlemen,  who  were  to  us  stran- 
gers, either  came  on  purpose  or  were  passing  through  Nauvoo,  who,  upon  learning 
the  position  of  things,  expressed  their  indignation  against  our  enemies,  and  avowed 
their  readiness  to  assist  us  by  their  council  or  othenvise ;  it  was  some  of  these  who 
assisted  us  in  reconnoitering  the  city,  and  finding  out  its  adaptability  for  defense, 
and  the  best  mode  of  protection  against  an  armed  force.  The  Legion  was  called  to- 
gether and  drilled,  and  every  means  made  use  of  for  defense  ;  at  the  call  of  the  offi- 
cers both  old  and  young  men  came  forward,  both  denizens  from  the  city  and  from 
the  outside  regions,  and  I  believe  at  one  time  they  mustered  to  the  number  of  about 
five  thousand. 

In  the  mean  time  our  enemies  were  not  idle  in  mustering  their  forces  and  com- 
mitting depredations,  nor  had  they  been ;  it  was,  in  fact,  their  gathering  that  called 
ours  into  existence ;  their  forces  continued  to  accumulate ;  they  assumed  a  threatening 
attitude,  and  assembled  in  large  bodies,  armed  and  equipped  for  war,  and  threatened 
the  destruction  and  extermination  of  the  "Mormons."  An  account  of  their  out- 
rages and  assemblages  was  forwarded  to  Governor  Ford  almost  daily,  accompanied 
by  affidavits  furnished  by  eyewitnesses  of  their  proceedings.  Persons  were  also  sent 
out  to  the  counties  around  with  pacific  intentions,  to  give  them  an  account  of  the 
true  state  of  affairs,  and  to  notify  them  of  the  feelings  and  dispositions  of  the  people 
of  Nauvoo,  and  thus,  if  possible,  quell  the  excitement.  In  some  of  the  more  distant 
counties  these  men  were  very  successful,  and  produced  a  salutary  influence  upon  the 
minds  of  many  intelligent  and  well-disposed  men.  In  neighboring  counties,  how- 
ever, where  "  anti-Mormon"  influence  prevailed,  they  produced  little  effect.     At  the 


524  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 

same  time,  guards  were  stationed  around  Nauvoo,  and  picket-guards  in  the  distance. 
At  length  opposing  forces  gathered  so  near  that  more  active  measures  were  taken ; 
reconnoitering  parties  were  sent  out,  and  the  city  proclaimed  under  martial  law. 
Things  now  assumed  a  belligerent  attitude,  and  persons  passing  through  the  city 
were  questioned  as  to  what  they  knew  of  the  enemy,  while  passes  were  in  some  in- 
stances given  to  avoid  difficulty  with  the  guards.  Joseph  Smith  continued  to  send 
on  messengers  to  the  governor  (Philip  B.  Lewis  and  other  messengers  were  sent). 
Samuel  James,  then  residing  at  La  Harpe,  cari'ied  a  message  and  dispatches  to  him, 
and  in  a  day  or  two  after  Bishop  Edward  Hunter  and  others  went  again  with  fresh 
dispatches,  representations,  affidavits,  and  instructions ;  but  as  the  weather  was  ex- 
cessively wet,  the  rivers  swollen,  and  the  bridges  washed  away  in  many  places,  it  was 
with  great  difficulty  that  they  proceeded  on  their  journeys.  As  the  mobocracy  had 
at  last  attracted  the  governor's  attention,  he  started  in  company  with  some  others 
from  Springfield  to  the  scene  of  trouble,  and  missed,  I  believe,  both  Brothers  James 
and  Hunter  on  the  road,  and  of  course  did  not  see  their  documents.  He  came  to 
Carthage,  and  made  that  place,  which  was  a  regular  mobocratic  den,  his  head- 
quarters ;  as  it  was  the  county-seat,  however,  of  Hancock  County,  that  circumstance 
might,  in  a  measui-e,  justify  his  staying  there. 

To  avoid  the  appearance  of  all  hostility  on  our  part,  and  to  fulfill  the  law  in  every 
particular,  at  the  suggestion  of  Judge  Thomas,  judge  of  that  judicial  district,  who 
had  come  to  Nauvoo  at  the  time,  and  who  stated  that  we  had  fulfilled  the  law,  but, 
in  order  to  satisfy  all,  he  would  counsel  us  to  go  before  Esquire  Wells,  *  who  was  not 
in  our  Church,  and  have  a  hearing.  We  did  so,  and  after  a  full  hearing  we  were 
again  dismissed. 

The  governor  on  the  road  collected  forces,  some  of  whom  were  respectable ;  but  on 
his  arrival  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  difficulties  he  received  as  militia  all  the  compa- 
nies of  the  mob  forces  who  united  with  him.  After  his  arrival  at  Carthage  he  sent 
two  gentlemen  from  there  to  Xauvoo  as  a  committee  to  wait  upon  General  Joseph 
Smith,  informing  him  of  the  arrival  of  his  excellency,  M'ith  a  request  that  General 
Smith  would  send  out  a  committee  to  wait  upon  the  governor  and  represent  to  him 
the  state  of  affairs  in  relation  to  the  difficulties  that  then  exi>ted  in  the  county.  We 
met  this  committee  while  we  were  reconnoitering  the  city,  to  find  out  the  best  mode 
of  defense  as  aforesaid.  Dr.  J.  M.  Bernhiscl  and  myself  were  appointed  as  a  com- 
mittee by  General  Smith  to  wait  upon  the  governor.  Previous  to  going,  however, 
we  were  furnished  with  affidavits  and  documents  in  relation  both  to  our  proceedings 
and  those  of  the  mob ;  in  addition  to  the  general  history  of  the  transaction,  we  took 
with  us  a  duplicate  of  those  documents  which  had  been  forwarded  by  Bishop  Hunter, 
Brother  James,  and  others.  We  started  from  Carthage  in  company  with  the  afore- 
said gentleman  at  about  7  o'clock  on  the  evening  of  the  21st  of  June,  and  arrived  at 
Carthage  at  about  11  P.!M.  We  put  up  at  the  same  hotel  with  the  governor,  kept  by 
a  Mr.  Hamilton ;  on  our  arrival  we  found  the  governor  in  bed,  but  not  so  with  the 
other  inhabitants.  The  town  was  filled  with  a  perfect  set  of  rabble  and  rowdies,  who, 
under  the  influence  of  Bacchus,  seemed  to  be  holding  a  grand  saturnalia,  whooping, 
yelling,  and  vociferating  as  if  Bedlam  had  broken  loose. 

On  our  arrival  at  the  hotel,  and  while  supper  was  preparing,  a  man  came  to  me, 
dressed  as  a  soldier,  and  told  me  that  a  man  named  David  Cam  had  just  been  taken 
prisoner,  and  was  about  to  be  committed  to  jail,  and  wanted  me  to  go  bail  for  him. 
Believing  this  to  be  a  ruse  to  get  me  out  alone,  and  that  some  violence  was  intended, 
after  consulting  with  Dr.  Bernhisel,  I  told  the  men  that  I  was  well  acquainted  with 
Mr.  Carn,  that  I  knew  him  to  be  a  gentleman,  and  did  not  believe  that  he  had  trans- 
gressed law,  and,  moreover,  that  I  considered  it  a  very  singular  time  to  be  holding 
courts  and  calling  for  security,  particularly  as  the  town  was  full  of  rowdyism. 

I  informed  him  that  both  Dr.  Bernhisel  and  myself  would,  if  necessaiy,  go  bail  for 
him  in  the  morning,  but  that  we  did  not  feel  ourselves  safe  among  such  a  set  at  that 
late  hour  of  the  night. 

After  sujjper,  on  retiring  to  our  room,  we  had  to  pass  through  another,  which  was 
separated  from  ours  only  by  a  board  partition,  the  beds  in  each  room  being  placed 
side  by  side,  with  the  exception  of  this  fragile  partition.  On  the  bed  that  was  in  the 
room  which  we  passed  through  I  discovered  a  man  by  the  name  of  Jackson,  a  des- 
perate character,  and  a  reputed,  notorious  cut-throat  and  murderer.  I  hinted  to  the 
doctor  that  things  looked  rather  suspicious,  and  looked  to  see  that  my  arms  were  in 
order.  The  doctor  and  I  both  occupied  one  bed.  We  had  scarcely  laid  down  when 
•  J\ow  a  member  of  the  First  Presidency. — Ed. 


APPENDIX  III.  525 

a  knock  at  the  door,  accompanied  by  a  voice,  announced  the  approach  of  Chauncey 
Higbee,  the  young  lawyer  and  apostate  before  referred  to. 

He  addressed  himself  to  the  doctor,  and  stated  that  the  object  of  his  visit  was  to 
obtain  the  release  of  Daniel  Carn  ;  that  Carn  he  believed  to  be  an  honest  man ;  that 
if  he  had  done  any  thing  wrong,  it  was  through  improper  counsel,  and  that  it  was  a 
pity  that  he  should  be  incarcerated,  particularly  when  he  could  be  so  easily  released ; 
he  urged  the  doctor,  as  a  friend,  not  to  leave  so  good  a  man  in  such  an  un])lcasant 
situation  ;  he  finally  prevailed  upon  the  doctor  to  go  and  give  bail,  assuring  him  that 
on  his  giving  bail  Cam  would  be  immediately  dismissed. 

During  this  conversation  I  did  not  say  a  word.  Iligbee  left  the  doctor  to  dress, 
with  the  intention  of  returning  and  taking  him  to  the  court.  As  soon  as  Higbce  had 
left,  I  told  the  doctor  that  he  had  better  not  go  ;  that  I  believed  this  affair  was  all  a 
ruse  to  get  us  sep.nrated ;  that  they  knew  we  had  documents  with  us  from  General 
Smith  to  show  to  the  governor ;  that  I  believed  their  object  was  to  get  possession  of 
those  papers,  and,  perhaps,  when  they  had  separated  us,  to  murder  one  or  both.  The 
doctor,  wdio  was  actuated  by  the  best  of  motives  in  yielding  to  the  assumed  solicitude 
of  Higbee,  coincided  with  my  views ;  he  then  went  to  Higbce,  and  told  him  that  he 
had  concluded  not  to  go  that  night,  but  that  he  and  I  would  both  wait  upon  the 
justice  and  Mr.  Carn  in  the  morning. 

That  night  I  lay  awake  with  my  pistols  under  my  pillow,  waiting  for  any  emer- 
gency. Nothing  more  occurred  during  the  night.  In  the  morning  we  arose  early, 
and  after  breakfast  sought  an  interview  Mitli  the  governor,  and  were  told  that  we 
could  h.ave  an  audience,  I  think,  at  10  o'clock.  In  the  mean  time  we  called  upon 
Jlr.  Smith,  a  Justice  of  the  Peace,  who  had  Mr.  Carn  in  charge.  We  represented 
that  we  had  been  called  upon  the  night  before  by  two  different  parties  to  go  bail  for 
a  Mr.  Daniel  Carn,  whom  we  were  informed  he  had  in  custody,  and  that,  believing 
Mr.  Carn  to  be  an  honest  man,  we  had  come  now  for  that  purpose,  and  were  pre- 
pared to  enter  into  recognizances  for  his  appearance,  whereupon  Mr.  Smith,  the" 
magistrate,  remarked  "  that,  under  the  present  excited  state  of  affairs,  he  did  not 
think  he  would  be  justified  in  receiving  bail  from  Naiivoo,  as  it  was  a  matter  of  doubt 
whether  property  would  not  be  rendered  valueless  there  in  a  few  days. 

Knowing  the  party  we  had  to  deal  with,  we  were  not  much  surprised  at  this  sin- 
gular proceeding ;  we  then  remarked  that  both  of  us  possessed  property  in  farms  out 
of  Nauvoo  in  the  country,  and  referred  him  to  the  county  records.  He  then  stated 
that  such  was  the  nature  of  the  charge  against  Mr.  Carn  that  he  believed  he  would 
not  be  justified  in  receiving  any  bail.  We  were  thus  confirmed  in  our  opinion  that 
the  night's  proceedings  before,  in  relation  to  their  desire  to  have  us  give  bail,  was  a 
mere  ruse  to  separate  us.  We  were  not  pennitted  to  speak  with  Carn,  the  real 
charge  against  whom  was  that  he  was  traveling  in  Carthage  or  its  neighborhood : 
what  the  fictitious  one  was,  if  I  then  knew,  I  have  since  forgotten,  as  things  of  this 
kind  were  of  daily  occurrence. 

After  waiting  the  governor's  pleasure  for  some  time  we  had  an  audience ;  but  such 
an  audience !  He  was  surrounded  by  some  of  the  vilest  and  most  unprincipled  men 
in  creation ;  some  of  them  had  an  appearance  of  respectability,  and  many  of  them 
lacked  even  that.  Wilson,  and,  I  believe,  William  Law,  were  there,  Foster,  Frank 
and  Chauncey  Higbee,  Mr.  Mar,  a  lawyer  from  Nauvoo,  a  mobocratic  merchant  from 
Warsaw,  the  aforesaid  Jackson,  a  number  of  his  associates,  among  whom  was  the 
governor's  secretarj-,  in  all  some  fifteen  or  twenty  persons,  most  of  whom  were  recre- 
ant to  virtue,  honor,  integrity,  and  everj'  thing  that  is  considered  honorable  among 
men.  I  can  well  remember  the  feelings  of  disgust  that  I  had  in  seeing  the  governor 
surrounded  by  such  an  infiimous  group,  and  on  being  introduced  to  men  of  so  ques- 
tionable a  character ;  and  had  I  been  on  private  business,  I  shoidd  have  turned  to 
depart,  and  told  the  governor  that  if  he  thought  proper  to  associate  with  such  ques- 
tionable characters,  I  should  beg  leave  to  be  excused  ;  but  coming  as  we  did  on  pub- 
lic business,  we  could  not,  of  course,  consult  our  private  feelings. 

We  then  stated  to  the  governor  that,  in  accordance  with  his  request,  General  Smith 
had,  in  response  to  his  call,  sent  us  to  him  as  a  committee  of  conference ;  that  we 
were  acquainted  with  most  of  the  circumstances  that  had  transpired  in  and  about 
Nauvoo  lately,  and  were  prepared  to  give  him  all  information ;  that,  moreover,  we 
had  in  our  possession  testimony  and  affidavits  confirmatory  of  what  we  should  say, 
which  had  been  forwarded  to  him  by  General  Joseph  Smith ;  that  communications 
had  been  forwarded  to  his  excellency  by  Mr.  Hunter,  James,  and  others,  some  of 
which  had  not  reached  their  destination,  but  of  which  we  had  duplicates  with  us. 


526  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 

We  then,  in  brief,  related  an  outline  of  the  difficulties,  and  the  course  we  had  pur- 
sued from  the  commencement  of  the  troubles  up  to  the  present,  and  handing  him  the 
documents,  respectfully  submitted  the  whole.  During  our  conversation  and  explana- 
tions with  the  governor  we  were  frequently  rudely  and  impudently  contradicted  by 
the  fellows  he  had  around  him,  and  of  whom  he  seemed  to  take  no  notice. 

He  opened  and  read  a  number  of  the  documents  himself,  and  as  he  proceeded  he 
was  frequently  interrupted  by  "that's  a  lie,"  "that's  a  God  damned  Jie,"  "that's  an 
infernal  falsehood,"  "that's  a  blasted  lie,"  etc. 

These  men  evidently  winced  at  an  exposure  of  their  acts,  and  thus  vulgarly,  im- 
pudently, and  falsely  repudiated  them.  One  of  their  number,  Mr.  Mar,  addressed 
himself  several  times  to  me  while  in  conversation  with  the  governor.  I  did  not  no- 
tice him  until  after  a  frequent  i-epetition  of  bis  insolence,  when  I  informed  him  "that 
my  business  at  that  time  was  with  Governor  Ford,"  whereupon  I  continued  my  con- 
versation with  his  excellency.  During  the  conversation  the  governor  expressed  a 
desire  that  Joseph  Smith,  and  all  parties  concerned  in  passing  or  executing  the  city 
law  in  relation  to  the  press,  had  better  come  to  Carthage ;  that,  however  repugnant 
it  might  be  to  our  feelings,  he  thought  it  would  have  a  tendency  to  allay  public  ex- 
citement, and  prove  to  tlie  people  what  we  professed,  that  we  wished  to  be  governed 
by  law.  We  represented  to  him  the  course  he  had  taken  in  relation  to  this  matter,  and 
our  willingness  to  go  before  another  magistrate  other  than  the  Municipal  Court ;  the 
illegal  refusal  of  our  request  by  the  constable ;  our  dismissal  by  the  Municipal  Court, 
a  legally  constituted  tribunal;  our  subsequent  trial  before  Squire  Wells  at  the'in- 
stance  of  Judge  Thomas  (the  circuit  judge),  and  our  dismissal  by  him;  that  we  had 
fulfilled  the  law  in  every  particular ;  that  it  was  our  enemies  who  were  breaking  the 
law,  and,  having  murderous  designs,  were  only  making  use  of  this  as  a  pretext  to 
get  us  into  their  power.  The  governor  stated  that  the  people  viewed  it  differently, 
and  that,  notwithstanding  our  opinions,  he  would  recommend  that  the  people  should 
be  satisfied.  We  then  remarked  to  him  that,  should  Joseph  Smith  comply  with  his 
request,  it  would  be  extremely  unsafe,  in  the  present  excited  state  of  the  country,  to 
come  without  an  armed  force ;  that  we  had  a  sufficiency  of  men,  and  were  competent 
to  defend  ourselves,  but  that  there  might  be  danger  of  collision  should  our  foi'ces  and 
that  of  our  enemies  be  brought  into  such  close  proximity.  He  strenuously  advised  us 
not  to  bring  any  arms,  and  pledged  his  faith  as  governor,  and  the  faith  of  the  state,  that 
we  should  he  protected,  and  that  he  ivould  guarantee  our  perfect  safety. 

We  had  at  that  time  about  five  thousand  men  under  arms,  one  thousand  of  which 
would  have  been  amply  sufficient  for  our  protection. 

At  the  termination  of  our  interview,  and  previous  to  our  withdrawal,  after  a  long 
conversation  and  the  perusal  of  the  documents  which  we  had  brought,  the  governor 
infomied  us  that  he  would  prepare  a  written  communication  for  General  Joseph 
Smith,  which  he  desired  us  to  wait  for.  We  were  kept  waiting  for  this  instrument 
some  five  or  six  hours. 

About  5  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  we  took  our  departure  with  not  the  most  pleasant 
feelings.  The  associations  of  the  governor,  the  spirit  that  he  manifested  to  compro- 
mise with  these  scoundrels,  the  length  of  time  that  he  had  kept  us  waiting,  and  his 
general  deportment,  together  with  the  infernal  spirit  that  we  saw  exhibited  by  those 
whom  he  had  admitted  to  his  councils,  made  the  prospect  any  thing  but  promis- 
ing. 

We  returned  on  horseback,  and  arrived  at  Nauvoo,  I  think,  at  about  8  or  9  o'clock 
at  night,  accompanied  by  Captain  Yates  in  command  of  a  company  of  mounted  men, 
who  came  for  the  purpose  of  escorting  Joseph  Smith  and  the  accused  in  case  of  their 
complying  with  the  governor's  request,  and  going  to  Carthage.  We  went  directly 
to  Brother  Joseph's,  when  Ca])tain  Yates  delivered  to  liim  the  governor's  communi- 
cation. A  council  was  called  consisting  of  Joseph's  brother  Hyrum,  Dr.  Richards, 
Dr.  Bernhisel,  myself,  and  one  or  two  others,  when  the  following  letter  was  read  from 
the  governor : 

Governor  Ford's  Letter  to  the  Mayor  and  Common  Council  of  Nauvoo. 

"  Head  Quarters,  Cartilage,  June  21st,  1844. 

"To  the  Hon.  the  Mayor  and  Common  Council  of  the  City  of  Nauvoo : 

"Gentlemen, — Having  heard  of  the  excitement  in  this  part  of  the  country,  and 

judging  that  my  presence  here  might  be  necessary  to  prcsen-e  the  peace  and  enforce 

the  laws,  I  arrived  at  this  jjlace  this  morning.     Both  before  and  since  my  arrival, 

complaints  of  a  grave  character  have  been  made  to  me  of  certain  proceedings  of  your 


APPENDIX  in.  527 

honorable  body.  As  chief  magistrate,  it  is  my  duty  to  see  that  impartial  justice  shall 
be  done,  uninfluenced  by  the  excitement  here  or  in  your  city. 

"I  think,  before  any  decisive  measure  shall  be  adopted,  that  I  ought  to  hear  the 
allegations  and  defenses  of  all  parties.  By  adopting  this  course  I  have  some  hope 
that  the  evils  of  war  may  be  averted;  and,  at  any  rate,  I  will  be  enabled  by  it  to  un- 
derstand the  true  merits  of  the  present  difficulties,  and  shape  my  course  with  refer- 
ence to  law  and  justice. 

"For  these  reasons,  I  have  to  request  that  you  will  send  out  to  me,  at  this  place, 
one  or  more  well-infonned  and  discreet  persons,  who  will  be  capable  of  layinji  before 
me  your  version  of  the  matter,  and  of  receiving  from  me  such  explanations  and  reso- 
lutions as  may  be  determined  on. 

"  Colonel  Elam  S.  Freeman  will  present  you  this  note  in  the  character  of  a  herald 
from  the  governor.  You  will  respect  his  character  as  such,  and  permit  him  to  pass 
and  repass  free  from  molestation. 

"Your  messengers  are  assured  of  protection  in  person  and  property,  and  will  be 
returned  to  you  in  safety. 

"I  am,  gentlemen,  with  high  considerations,  most  respectfully  your  obedient  serv- 
ant,    *  Thomas  Ford,  Governor  and  Commander-in-Chief."* 

AYe  then  gave  a  detail  of  our  interview  with  the  governor.  Brother  Joseph  was 
very  much  dissatisfied  with  the  governor's  letter  and  with  his  general  deportment, 
and  so  were  the  council,  and  it  became  a  serious  question  as  to  the  course  we  should 
pursue.  Various  projects  were  discussed,  but  nothing  definitely  decided  upon  for 
some  time.  In  the  interim  two  gentlemen  amved ;  one  of  them,  if  not  both,  sons  of 
John  C.  Calhoun.  They  had  come  to  Nauvoo,  and  were  very  anxious  for  an  inter- 
view with  Brother  Joseph.  These  gentlemen  detained  him  for  some  time;  and  as 
our  council  was  held  in  Dr.  Berahisel's  room  in  the  Mansion  House,  the  doctor  lay 
down ;  and  as  it  was  now  between  2  and  3  o'clock  in  the  morning,  and  I  had  had  no 
rest  on  the  previous  night,  I  was  fatigued,  and  thinking  that  Brother  Joseph  might 
not  return,  I  left  for  home  and  rest. 

Being  very  much  fatigued,  I  slept  soundly,  and  was  somewhat  surprised  in  the 
morning  by  Mrs.  Thompson  entering  my  room  about  7  o'clock,  and  exclaiming  in 
surprise,  "  ^Yhat,  you  here !  the  brethren  have  crossed  the  river  some  time  since." 
"What  brethren?"  I  asked.  "Brother  Joseph,  and  Hyrum,  and  Brother  Rich- 
ards." I  immediately  arose  upon  learning  that  they  had  crossed  the  river,  and  did 
not  intend  to  go  to  Carthage.  I  called  together  a  number  of  persons  in  whom  I  had 
confidence,  and  had  the  type,  stereotype  plates,  and  most  of  the  valuable  things  re- 
moved from  the  printing-otfice,  believing  that,  should  the  governor  and  his  force  come 
to  Nauvoo,  the  first  thing  they  would  do  would  be  to  burn  the  printing-ofiice,  for  I 
knew  that  they  would  be  exasperated  if  Brother  Joseph  went  away.  We  had  talked 
over  these  matters  the  night  before,  but  nothing  was  decided  upon.  It  was  Brother 
Joseph's  opinion  that,  should  we  leave  for  a  time,  public  excitement,  which  was  then 
so  intense,  would  be  allayed ;  that  it  would  throw  on  the  governor  the  responsibility 
of  keeping  the  peace ;  that,  in  the  event  of  any  outrage,  the  onus  would  rest  upon  the 
governor,  who  was  ami^ly  prepared  with  troops,  and  could  command  all  the  forces  of 
the  state  to  preserve  order ;  and  that  the  acts  of  his  own  men  would  be  an  overwhelm- 
ing proof  of  their  seditious  designs,  not  only  to  the  governor,  but  to  the  world.  He 
moreover  thought  that,  in  the  East,  where  he  intended  to  go,  public  opinion  would 
be  set  right  in  relation  to  these  matters,  and  its  expression  would  partially  influence 
the  West,  and  that,  after  the  first  ebullition,  things  would  assume  a  shape  "that  would 
justify  his  return.  I  made  arrangements  for  crossing  the  river,  and  Brother  Elias 
Smith  and  Joseph  Cain,  who  were  both  employed  in  the  printing-oflice  with  me,  as- 
sisted all  that  lay  in  their  power,  together  with  Brother  Brower  and  several  hands  in 
the  printing-office.  As  we  could  not  find  out  the  exact  whereabouts  of  Joseph  and 
the  brethren,  I  crossed  the  river  in  a  boat  furnished  by  Brothers  Cyrus  H.Wheelock 
and  Alfred  Bell ;  and  after  the  removal  of  the  things  of  the  printing-office.  Joseph 
Cain  brought  the  account-books  to  me,  that  we  might  make  arrangements  for  their 
adjustment ;  and  Brother  Elias  Smith,  cousin  to  Brother  Joseph,  went  to  obtain 
money  for  the  journey,  and  also  to  find  out  and  report  to  me  the  location  of  the 
brethren.  As  Cyrus  H.  Wheelock  was  an  active,  enterprising  man,  and  in  the  event 
of  not  finding  Brother  Joseph  I  calculated  to  go  to  Upper  Canada  for  the  time  being, 
and  should  need  a  companion,  I  said  to  Brother  Wheelock,  "  Can  you  go  with  me  ten 
•  Dea.  News,  No.  33,  Oct.  21, 1S57,  p.  25T. 


528  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 

or  fifteen  hundred  miles?"  lie  answered  "Yes."  "Can  you  start  in  half  an  hour?" 
"Yes."  However,  I  told  him  that  he  had  better  see  his  family,  who  lived  over  the 
river,  and  prepare  a  couple  of  iiorses  and  the  necessary  equipage  for  the  journey,  and 
that,  if  we  did  not  find  Brother  Joseph  before,  we  would  start  at  nighttall.  A  laugh- 
able incident  occurred  on  the  eve  of  my  departure.  After  making  all  the  prepara- 
tions I  could  previous  to  leaving  Nauvoo,  and  having  bid  adieu  to  my  family,  I  went 
to  a  house  adjoining  the  river  owned  by  Brother  Eddy.  There  I  disguised  myself  so 
as  not  to  be  known,  and  so  effectually  was  the  transformation  that  those  who  had 
come  after  me  with  a  boat  did  not  know  me.  I  went  down  to  the  boat  and  sat  in  it. 
Brother  Bell,  thinking  it  was  a  stranger,  watched  my  moves  for  some  time  very  im- 
patiently, and  then  said  to  Brother  Wheelock,  "I  wish  that  old  gentleman  would  go 
away ;  "he  has  been  pottering  around  the  boat  for  some  time,  and  I  am  afraid  Elder 
Taylor  will  be  coming."  When  he  discovered  his  mistake,  he  was  not  a  little  amused. 
I  was  conducted  by  Brother  Bell  to  a  house  that  was  surrounded  by  timber  on  the 
opposite  side  of  the  river.  There  I  spent  several  hours  in  a  chamber  with  Brother 
Joseph  Cain,  adjusting  my  accounts;  and  I  made  arrangements  for  the  stereotype 
plates  of  the  "Book  of  Mormon,"  and  "Doctrine  and  Covenants,"  to  be  forwarded 
East,  thinking  to  supply  the  company  with  subsistence  money  through  the  €ale  of 
these  books  in  the  East. 

My  horses  were  reported  ready  by  Brother  Wheelock,  and  funds  on  hand  by  Brother 
Elias  Smith.  In  about  half  an  hour  I  should  have  started,  when  Brother  Elias  Smith 
came  to  mc  with  word  that  he  had  found  the  brethren ;  that  they  had  concluded  to 
go  to  Carthage,  and  wislied  me  to  return  to  Nauvoo  and  accompany  them.  I  must 
confess  that  I  felt  a  good  deal  disappointed  at  this  news,  but  I  immediately  made 
preparations  to  go.  Escorted  by  Brother  Elias  Smith,  I  and  my  party  went  to  the 
neighborhood  of  JNIontrose,  where  we  met  Brother  Joseph,  Ilyrum,  Brother  Richards, 
and  others.  Dr.  Bernhisel  thinks  that  W.  W.  Phelps  was  not  with  Joseph  and  Hy- 
rum  in  the  morning,  but  that  he  met  him,  myself,  Joseph,  and  Hyrum,  W.  Richards, 
and  Brother  Calhoun,  in  the  afternoon,  near  Montrose,  returning  to  Nauvoo.  On 
meeting  the  brethren  I  learned  that  it  was  not  Brother  Joseph's  desire  to  return,  but 
that  he  came  back  by  request  of  some  of  the  brethren,  and  that  it  coincided  more  with 
Brother  Hyrum's  feelings  than  with  those  of  Brother  Joseph.  In  fact,  after  his  re- 
turn, Brother  Hyrum  expressed  himself  as  perfectly  satisfied  with  the  course  taken, 
and  said  that  he  felt  much  more  at  ease  in  his  mind  than  he  did  before.  On  our  re- 
turn the  calculation  was  to  throw  ourselves  under  the  immediate  protection  of  the 
governor,  and  to  trust  to  his  word  and  faith  for  our  preservation. 

A  message  was,  I  believe,  sent  to  the  governor  that  night,  stating  that  we  should 
come  to  Carthage  in  the  morning,  the  party  that  came  along  with  us  to  escort  us  back, 
in  case  we  returned  to  Carthage,  having  returned.  It  would  seem  from  the  follow- 
ing remarks  of  General  Ford  that  there  was  a  design  on  foot,  which  was,  that  if  we 
refused  to  go  to  Carthage  at  the  governor's  request,  there  should  be  an  increased  force 
called  for  by  the  governor,  and  that  we  should  be  destroyed  by  them.  In  accordance 
with  this  project.  Captain  Yates  returned  with  his  posse,  accompanied  by  the  constable 
•who  held  the  writ.  The  following  is  the  governor's  remark  in  relation  to  this  affair : 
"The  constable  and  his  escort  returned.  The  constable  made  no  effort  to  arrest 
any  of  them,  nor  would  he  or  the  guard  delay  their  departure  one  minute  beyond  the 
time,  to  see  whether  an  arrest  could  be  made.  Upon  their  return  they  reported  that 
they  had  been  informed  that  the  accused  had  fled,  and  could  not  be  found.  I  imme- 
diately ])roposed  to  a  council  of  officers  to  march  into  Nauvoo  wilh  the  small  force 
then  under  my  command,  but  the  officers  were  of  ojiinion  that  it  was  too  small,  and 
many  of  tliem  insisted  upon  a  farther  call  of  the  militia.  Upon  reflection  I  was  of 
opinion  that  the  officers  were  right  in  the  estimate  of  our  force,  and  the  project  for 
immediate  action  was  abandoned.  I  was  soon  informed,  however,  of  the  conduct  of 
constable  and  guard,  and  then  I  was  perfectly  satisfied  that  a  most  base  fraud  had 
been  attempted;  that,  in  fact,  it  \vas  feared  that  the  'Mormons'  would  submit,  and 
thereby  entitle  themselves  to  the  protection  of  the  law.  It  was  veiy  apparent  that 
many  of  the  bustling,  active  spirits  were  afraid  that  there  would  be  no  occasion  for 
calling  out  an  overwhelming  militia  force,  for  marching  it  into  Nauvoo,  for  probable 
mutiny  when  there,  and  for  the  extermination  of  the  '  Mormon'  race.  It  appeared 
that  the  constable  and  the  escort  were  fully  in  the  secret,  and  acted  well  their  part  to 
promote  the  conspiracy."* 

In  the  morning  Brother  .Tosnph  had  an  interview  with  the  oflQcers  of  the  Legion, 
*  lord's  History  of  lUinoii,  page  333. 


» 


APPENDIX  III.  529 

with  the  leading  members  of  the  City  Council,  and  with  the  principal  men  of  the 
city.  The  officers  were  instructed  to  dismiss  their  men,  but  to  have  them  in  a  state 
of  readiness  to  be  called  upon  in  any  emergency  that  might  occur. 

About  half  past  G  o'clock  the  members  of  tlie  City  Council,  the  marshal.  Brothers 
Joseph  and  Hyrum,  and  a  number  of  others,  started  for  Carthage,  all  on  horseback. 
"We  were  instructed  by  Brother  Josej)!!  Smith  not  to  take  any  arms,  and  we  conse- 
quently left  them  behind.  We  called  at  the  house  of  Brother  Fellows  on  our  way 
out.  Brother  Fellows  lived  about  four  miles  from  Carthage.  While  at  Brother 
Fellows'  house,  Captain  Dunn,  accompanied  by  Mr.  Coolie,  one  of  the  governor's 
aid-de-camps,  came  up  from  Carthage  eii  route  for  Nauvoo  with  a  recpii^ition  from 
the  governor  for  the  state  arms.  AVe  all  returned  to  Nauvoo  with  them;  tlie  gov- 
ernor's request  was  complied  with,  and,  after  taking  some  refreshments,  we  all  re- 
turned to  proceed  to  Carthage.  We  ai-rived  there  late  in  the  night.  A  great  deal 
of  excitement  prevailed  on  and  after  our  arrival.  The  governor  had  received  into 
his  company  all  of  the  companies  that  had  been  in  the  mob ;  these  fellows  were 
riotous  and  disorderl}-,  hallooing,  yelling,  and  whooping  about  the  streets  like  In- 
dians, many  of  them  intoxicated;  the  whole  presented  a  scene  of  rowdyism  and  low- 
bred ruffianism  only  found  among  mobocrats  and  desperadoes,  and  entirely  revolting 
to  the  best  feelings  of  humanity.  The  governor  made  a  speech  to  them  to  the  effect 
that  he  would  show  Joseph  and  H}Tum  Smith  to  them  in  the  morning.  About  here 
the  companies  with  the  governor  were  drawn  up  into  line,  and  General  Demming,  I 
think,  took  Joseph  by  the  arm  and  Ilyrum  (Arnold  says  that  Joseph  took  the  gov- 
ernor's arm),  and  as  he  passed  through  between  the  ranks,  the  governor  leading  in 
front,  ver\-  politely  introduced  them  as  General  Joseph  Smith  and  General  Hyrura 
Smith.*  All  were  orderly  and  courteous  except  one  company  of  mobocrats — the 
Carthage  Grays — who  seemed  to  find  fault  on  account  of  too  much  honor  being  paid 
to  the  Mormons.  There  was  afterward  a  row  between  the  companies,  and  they 
came  pretty  near  having  a  fight ;  the  more  orderly  not  feeling  disposed  to  endorse 
or  submit  to  the  rowdyism  of  the  mobocrats.  The  result  was  that  General  Dem- 
ming, who  was  very  much  of  a  gentleman,  ordered  the  Carthage  Grays,  a  company 
under  the  command  of  Captain  Smith,  a  magistrate  in  Carthage,  and  a  most  violent 
mobocrat,  under  arrest.  This  matter,  however,  was  shortly  afterward  adjusted,  and 
the  difficulty  settled  between  them.  The  mayor,  aldermen,  councilors,  as  well  as 
the  marshal  of  the  city  of  Nauvoo,  together  with  some  persons  who  had  assisted  the 
marshal  in  removing  the  press  in  Nauvoo,  appeared  before  Justice  Smith,  the  afore- 
said captain  and  mobocrat,  to  again  answer  the  charge  of  destroying  the  press ;  but 
as  there  was  so  much  excitement,  and  as  the  man  was  an  unprincipled  villain  before 
whom  we  were  to  have  our  hearing,  we  thought  it  most  prudent  to  give  bail,  and 
consequently  became  security  for  each  other  in  $500  bonds  each,  to  appear  before 
the  County  Court  at  its  next  session.     We  had  engaged  as  counsel  a  lawyer  by  the 

*  The  "Desert't  News"  gives  the  following  account  of  Joseph  and  Hyriim  Smith's  passing  through 
the  troops  in  Carthage : 

"  Carthage,  June  25th,  1S44. 

"  Quarter  past  9.  The  goremcrr  came  and  invited  Joseph  to  walk  with  him  through  the  troops. 
Joseph  solicited  a  few  moment's  private  conversation  with  him,  which  the  governor  refused. 

"  While  refusing,  the  governor  looked  down  at  his  shoes,  as  though  he  was  ashamed.  They  then 
walked  through  the  crowd,  with  Brigadier  General  Jlincr,  I;.  Demming,  and  Dr.  Richards,  to  Gen- 
eral Demming's  quarters.  Tlie  people  appeared  quiet  until  a  company  of  Carthage  Grays  flocked 
round  the  doors  of  General  Denmiing  in  an  uproarious  manner,  of  which  notice  was  sent  to  the  gov- 
ernor. In  the  mean  time  the  governor  had  ordered  the  Sl'Donough  troops  to  be  drawn  up  in  line, 
for  Joseph  and  Ilyrum  to  pass  in  front  of  them,  they  having  requested  that  they  miglit  have  a  clear 
view  of  the  General  Smitlis.  Joseph  Iiad  a  conversation  loith  the  (lovernor  for  about  ten  vmiutes, 
v)hen  he  again  j^ledged  the  faith  of  the  state  tliat  he  and  his  friei\da  should  be  protected  from  vio- 
lenr.e. 

"  Robinson,  the  post-mastor,  said,  on  report  of  martial  law  being  proclaimed  in  Nauvoo,  he  had 
stopped  the  mail,  and  notified  the  post-master  general  of  the  state  of  things  in  Hancock  County. 

"•From  the  general's  quarters  Joseph  and  Hyrum  went  in  front  of  the  lines,  in  a  hollow  square  of 
a  company  of  Carthage  Grays ;  at  seven  minutes  before  10  they  arrived  in  front  of  the  lines,  and 
pa.ssed  before  the  whole,  Joseph  being  on  the  right  of  General  Demming  and  Hyrum  on  his  left, 
Elders  Richards,  Taylor,  and  Phelps  following.  Joseph  and  Ilyrum  were  introduced  by  Ciovernor 
Ford  about  twenty  times  along  the  line  as  General  Joseph  Smitli  and  General  Ilyrum  Smith,  the 
governor  walking  in  front  on  the  left.  The  Carthage  Grays  refused  to  receive  them  by  that  intro- 
duction, and  some  of  the  officers  threw  up  their  hats,  drew  their  swords,  and  said  they  would  intro- 
duce themselves  to  the  damned  Mormons  in  a  diflferent  style.  The  governor  mildly  entreated  them 
not  to  act  so  rudely,  but  their  excitement  increased  ;  the  governor,  however,  succeeded  in  pacifying 
them  by  making  a  speech,  and  promising  them  that  they  should  have  'full  satisfaction.'  General 
Smith  and  party  returned  to  their  lodgings  at  five  minutea  past  10." — Des.  Sews,  No.  35,  Nov.  4, 
1S5T,  page  2T4. 

Ll 


530  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 

name  of  "Wood,  of  Burlington,  Iowa ;  and  Reed,  I  think,  of  Madison,  Iowa.  After 
some  little  discussion  the  bonds  were  signed,  and  we  were  all  dismissed. 

Almost  immediately  after  our  dismissal,  two  men — Augustine  Spencer  and  Nor- 
ton— two  worthless  fellows,  whose  words  would  not  have  been  taken  for  five  cents, 
and  the  first  of  whom  had  a  short  time  previously  been  before  the  mayor  in  Nauvoo 
for  maltreating  a  lame  brother,  made  athdavits  that  Joseph  and  Ilyrum  Smitli  were 
guilty  of  treason ;  and  a  writ  was  accordingly  issued  for  their  arrest,  and  the  con- 
stable Bettcsworth,  a  rough,  iinprincij)led  man,  wished  immediately  to  hurry  them 
away  to  prison  without  any  hearing.  His  rude,  uncouth  manner  in  the  administra- 
tion of  what  he  considered  the  duties  of  his  office  made  him  exceedingly  repulsive  to 
us  all.  But,  independent  of  these  acts,  the  proceedings  in  this  case  were  altogether 
illegal.  Providing  the  court  was  sincere,  which  it  was  not,  and  providing  these 
men's  oaths  were  true,  and  that'Joscph  and  Ilyrum  were  guilty  of  treason,  still  the 
whole  course  was  illegal. 

The  magistrate  made  out  a  mittimus,  and  committed  them  to  prison  without  a 
hearing,  which  he  had  no  right  legally  to  do.  The  statute  of  Illinois  expressly  pro- 
vides that  "all  men  shall  have  a  hearing  before  a  magistrate  before  they  shall  be 
committed  to  prison ;"  and  Mr.  Robert  H.  Smith,  the  magistrate,  had  made  out  a 
mittimus  committing  them  to  prison  contrary  to  law  without  such  hearing.  As  I 
was  informed  of  this  illegal  proceeding,  I  went  immediately  to  the  governor  and  in- 
formed him  of  it.  Whether  he  was  apprised  of  it  before  or  not,  I  do  not  know  ;  but 
my  opinion  is  that  he  was. 

I  represented  to  him  the  characters  of  the  parties  who  had  made  oath,  the  outra- 
geous nature  of  the  charge,  the  indignity  ottered  to  men  in  the  position  which  they 
occupied,  and  declared  to  him  that  he  knew  very  well  it  was  a  vexatious  proceeding, 
and  that  the  accused  were  not  guilty  of  any  such  crime.  The  governor  replied,  "  He 
was  very  sorry  that  the  thing  had  occurred  ;  that  he  did  not  believe  the  charges,  but 
that  he  thought  the  best  thing  to  be  done  was  to  let  the  law  take  its  course."  I 
then  reminded  him  that  we  had  come  out  there  at  his  instance,  not  to  satisfy  the 
law,  which  we  had  done  before,  but  the  ])rcjudices  of  the  people,  in  relation  to  the 
affair  of  the  press ;  that  at  his  instance  we  Jiad  given  bonds,  which  we  could  not  by 
law  be  i-equired  to  do  to  satisfy  the  people,  and  that  it  was  asking  too  much  to  re- 
quire gentlemen  in  their  position  in  life  to  suffer  the  degradation  of  being  immured 
in  a  jail  at  the  instance  of  such  worthless  scoundrels  as  those  who  had  made  this 
aflSdjivit.  The  governor  replied  "  that  it  w\as  an  un]tlcasant  affair,  and  looked  hard  ; 
but  that  it  was  a  matter  over  which  he  had  no  control,  as  it  belonged  to  the  judici- 
ary ;  that  he,  as  the  executive,  could  not  interfere  with  their  proceedings,  and  that 
he  had  no  doubt  but  that  they  would  immediately  be  dismissed."  I  told  him  "that 
we  had  looked  to  him  for  protection  from  such  insults,  and  that  I  thought  we  had  a 
right  to  do  so  from  the  solemn  promises  which  he  had  made  to  me  and  to  Dr.  Bern- 
hisel  in  relation  to  our  coming  without  guard  or  arms;  that  we  had  relied  upon  bis 
faith,  and  had  a  right  to  expect  him  to  fulfill  his  engagements  after  we  had  placed 
ourselves  implicitly  under  his  care,  and  complied  with  all  his  requests,  although  ex- 
tra-judicial." 

He  replied  "that  he  would  detail  a  guard,  if  we  required  it,  and  see  us  protected, 
but  that  he  could  not  interfere  with  the  judiciary."  I  expressed  my  dissatisfaction 
at  the  course  taken,  and  told  him  "that,  if  we  were  to  be  subject  to  mob  rule,  and 
to  be  dragged,  contrary  to  law,  into  prison  at  the  instance  of  every  infernal  scoim- 
drel  whose  oaths  could  be  bought  for  a  dram  of  whisky,  his  protection  availed  very 
little,  and  we  had  miscalculated  his  promises." 

Seeing  there  was  no  prospect  of  redress  from  the  governor,  I  returned  to  the  room, 
and  found  the  constable  Bettcsworth  very  urgent  to  hurry  Brothers  Joseph  and  Ily- 
rum to  prison,  while  the  brethren  were  remonstrating  with  him.  At  the  same  time 
a  great  rabble  was  gatliered  in  the  streets  and  around  the  door,  and  from  the  rowdy- 
ism manifested  I  was  afraid  there  was  a  design  to  murder  the  prisoners  on  the  May 
to  jail. 

Without  conferring  with  any  person,  my  next  feeling  was  to  procure  a  guard,  and, 
seeing  a  man  habited  as  a  soldier  in  the  room,  I  went  to  him  and  said,  "I  am  alraid 
there  is  a  design  against  the  lives  of  the  Messrs.  Smith;  will  you  go  immediately 
and  bring  your  captain;  and,  if  not  convenient,  any  other  captain  of  a  company, 
and  I  will  ])ay  you  well  for  your  trouble  ?"  lie  said  he  would,  and  departeil  forth- 
with, and  soon  returned  with  his  captain,  whose  name  I  have  forgotten,  and  intro- 
duced him  to  me.     I  told  him  of  my  fears,  and  requested  him  immediately  to  fetch 


APPENDIX  III.  531 

his  company ;  he  departed  forthwith,  and  arrived  at  the  door  with  them  just  at  the 
time  when  the  constable  was  hurrying  tlie  brethren  down  stairs.  A  number  of  the 
brethren  went  along,  together  with  one  or  two  strangers ;  and  all  of  us,  safely  lodged 
in  j)rison,  remained  there  during  the  night. 

At  the  request  of  Joseph  8mith  fur  an  interview  with  the  governor,  he  came  the 
next  morning,  Thursday,  June  2Gth,  at  half  past  9  o'clock,  accompanied  by  Colonel 
Geddes,  when  a  lengthy  conversation  was  entered  into  in  relation  to  the  existing 
difficulties ;  and  after  some  preliminary  remarks,  at  the  governor's  request,  Brother 
Joseph  gave  him  a  general  outline  of  tlie  state  of  affairs  in  relation  to  our  difficul- 
ties, the  excited  state  of  the  country,  the  tumultuous  mobocratic  movements  of  our 
enemies,  the  precautionary  measures  used  by  himself  (Joseph  Smith),  the  acts  of  the 
city  council,  the  destruction  of  the  press,  and  the  moves  of  the  mob  and  ourselves  up 
to  that  time. 

The  following  report  is,  I  believe,  substantially  correct : 

Governor.  "  General  Smith,  I  believe  you  have  given  me  a  general  outline  of  the 
difficulties  that  have  existed  in  tlie  country  in  the  documents  forwarded  to  me  by 
Dr.  Bernhisel  and  Mr.  Taylor;  but,  unfortunately,  there  seems  to  be  a  great  dis- 
crepancy between  your  statements  and  those  of  your  enemies.  It  is  true  that  you 
are  substantiated  by  evidence  and  affidavit,  but  for  such  an  extraordinary  excite- 
ment as  that  which  is  now  in  tlie  country  there  must  be  some  cause,  and  I  attribute 
the  last  outbreak  to  the  destruction  of  the  'Expositor,'  and  to  your  refusal  to  com- 
ply with  the  writ  issued  by  Esquire  Morrison.  The  press  in  the  United  States  is 
looked  upon  as  the  great  bulwark  of  American  freedom,  and  its  destruction  in  Nau- 
voo  was  represented  and  looked  upon  as  a  high-handed  measure,  and  manifests  to 
the  people  a  disposition  on  your  part  to  suppress  the  liberty  of  speech  and  of  the 
press.  This,  with  your  refusal  to  comply  with  the  requisitions  of  a  writ,  I  conceive 
to  be  the  principal  cause  of  this  difficulty ;  and  you  are  moreover  represented  to  me 
as  turbulent,  and  defiant  of  the  laws  and  institutions  of  your  country." 

General  Smith.  "Governor  Ford,  you,  sir,  as  governor  of  this  state,  ai-e  aware  of 
the  persecutions  that  I  have  endured.  You  know  well  that  our  course  has  been  peace- 
able and  law-abiding,  for  I  have  furnished  this  state  ever  since  our  settlement  here 
with  sufficient  evidence  of  my  pacific  intentions,  and  those  of  the  people  with  whom 
I  am  associated,  by  the  endurance  of  every  conceivable  indignity  and  lawless  outrage 
perpetrated  upon  me  and  upon  this  people  since  our  settlement  here ;  and  you  your- 
self know  that  I  have  kept  you  well  posted  in  relation  to  all  matters  associated  with 
the  late  difficulties.  If  you  have  not  got  some  of  my  communications,  it  has  not 
been  m}*  fixult. 

"  xVgreeably  to  your  orders,  I  assembled  the  Nauvoo  Legion  for  the  protection  of 
Nauvoo  and  the  surrounding  country  against  an  armed  band  of  marauders :  and 
ever  since  they  have  been  mustered  I  have  almost  daily  communicated  with  you  in 
regard  to  all  the  leading  events  that  have  transpired ;  and  whether  in  the  cajjacity 
of  mayor  of  the  city,  or  lieutenant  general  of  the  Nauvoo  Legion,  I  have  striven, 
according  to  the  best  of  my  judgment,  to  preserve  the  peace  and  to  administer  even- 
handed  justice ;  but  my  motives  are  impugned,  my  acts  are  misconstrued,  and  I  am 
grossly  and  wickedly  misrepresented.  I  sup])Ose  I  am  indebted  for  my  incarceration 
to  the  oath  of  a  worthless  man,  who  was  arraigned  before  me  and  fined  for  abusing 
and  maltreating  his  lame,  helpless  brother.  That  I  should  be  charged  by  you,  sir, 
who  know  better,  of  acting  contrary  to  law,  is  to  me  a  matter  of  surprise.  Was  it 
the  Mormons  or  our  enemies  who  first  commenced  these  difficulties?  You  know 
well  it  was  not  us ;  and  when  this  turbulent,  outrageous  people  commenced  their 
insurrectionary  movements,  I  made  you  acquainted  with  them  officially,  and  asked 
your  advice,  and  have  followed  strictly  your  counsel  in  every  particular.  "Who  or- 
dered out  the  Nauvoo  Legion  ?  I  did,  under  your  direction.  For  what  purpose  ? 
To  suppress  the  insurrectionary  movements.  It  was  at  your  instance,  sir,  that  I  is- 
sued a  proclamation  XJalling  upon  the  Nauvoo  Legion  to  be  in  readiness  at  a  mo- 
ment's warning  to  guard  against  the  incursions  of  mobs,  and  gave  an  order  to  Jona- 
tiian  Dunham,  acting  major  general,  to  that  effect. 

"Am  I,  then,  to  be  charged  for  the  acts  of  others?  and  because  lawlessness  and 
mobocracy  abound,  am  I,  when  carrying  out  your  instructions,  to  be  charged  with 
not  abiding  law  ?  Wliy  is  it  that  I  must  be  made  accountable  for  other  men's  acts? 
If  there  is  trouble  in  the  country,  neither  I  nor  my  people  made  it ;  and  all  that  we 
have  ever  done,  after  much  endurance  on  our  part,  is  to  maintain  and  uphold  the 
Constitution  and  institutions  of  our  coimtrj',  and  to  protect  an  injured,  innocent,  and 
persecuted  people  against  misrule  and  mob  violence. 


532  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 

"  Concerning  the  destruction  of  the  press  to  which  you  refer,  men  may  differ 
somewhat  in  their  opinions  about  it ;  but  can  it  be  supposed  that  after  all  the  indig- 
nities to  which  they  have  been  subjected  outside,  that  jicople  could  suffer  a  set  of 
worthless  vagabonds  to  come  into  their  city,  and,  right  under  their  own  eyes  and 
protection,  vilify  and  calumniate  not  only  themselves,  but  the  character  of  their 
wives  and  daughters,  as  was  impudently  and  unblushingly  done  in  that  infamous 
and  filthy  sheet  ? 

"There  is  not  a  city  in  the  United  States  that  would  have  suffered  such  an  indig- 
nity for  twenty-four  hours.  Our  whole  people  were  indignant,  and  loudly  called 
upon  our  city  authorities  for  a  redress  of  their  grievances,  which,  if  not  attended  to, 
they  themselves  would  have  taken  into  their  own  hands,  and  have  summarily  pun- 
ished the  audacious  wretches  as  they  deserved.  The  principles  of  equal  rights  that 
have  been  instilled  into  our  bosoms  from  our  cradles  as  American  citizens  forbid  us 
submitting  to  everj-  foul  indignity,  and  succumbing  and  pandering  to  wretches  so  in- 
famous as  these.  But,  independent  of  this,  the  course  that  we  pursued  we  consid- 
ered to  be  sti-ictly  legal ;  for,  notwithstanding  the  result,  we  were  anxious  to  be  gov- 
erned strictly  by  law,  and  therefore  we  convened  the  city  council ;  and  being  desi- 
rous in  our  deliberations  to  abide  by  law,  we  summoned  legal  counsel  to  be  present 
on  the  occasion.  Upon  investigating  the  matter,  we  found  that  our  city  charter  gave 
us  power  to  remove  all  nuisances.  Furthermore,  after  considting  Blackstone  upon 
what  might  be  considered  a  nuisance,  it  appeared  that  that  distinguished  lawyer, 
who  is  considered  authority.  I  believe,  in  all  our  courts,  states  among  other  things 
that  'a  libelous  and  filthy  press  may  be  considered  a  nuisance,  and  abated  as  such.' 
Here,  then,  one  of  the  most  eminent  English  barristers,  whose  works  are  considered 
standard  with  us,  declares  that  a  libelous  and  filthy  press  may  be  considered  a  nui- 
sance ;  and  our  own  charter,  given  us  by  the  Legislature  of  this  state,  gives  us  the 
power  to  remove  nuisances ;  and  by  ordering  that  press  to  be  abated  as  a  nuisance, 
we  conceived  that  we  were  acting  strictly  in  accordance  with  law.  We  made  that 
order  in  our  coi'porate  capacity-,  and  the  city  marshal  carried  it  out.  It  is  possible 
there  may  have  been  some  better  way,  but  I  must  confess  that  I  could  not  see  it. 

"In  relation  to  the  ^^Tit  sensed  upon  us,  we  were  willing  to  abide  the  consequences 
of  our  own  acts,  but  were  unwilling,  in  answering  a  writ  of  that  kind,  to  submit  to 
illegal  exactions,  sought  to  be  imposed  upon  us  under  the  pretense  of  law,  when  we 
knew  they  were  in  open  violation  of  it.  When  that  document  was  presented  to  me 
by  Mr.  Bettesworth,  I  offered,  in  the  presence  of  more  than  twenty  persons,  to  go  to 
any  other  magistrate,  either  in  our  city,  in  Appanoose,  or  in  any  other  place  where 
we  should  be  safe,  but  we  all  refused  to  put  ourselves  into  the  power  of  a  mob.  What 
right  had  that  constable  to  refuse  our  request  ?  He  had  none  according  to  law  ;  for 
you  know.  Governor  Ford,  that  the  statute  law  in  Illinois  is,  that  the  parties  sen-ed 
with  the  writ  'shall  go  before  him  who  issued  it,  or  some  other  justice  of  the  peace.' 
Why,  then,  should  we  be  dragged  to  Carthage,  where  the  law  does  not  compel  us  to 
go  ?"  Does  not  this  look  like  many  others  of  our  persecutions  with  which  you  are  ac- 
quainted ?  and  have  we  not  a  right  to  expect  foul  play  ?  This  very  act  was  a  breach 
of  law  on  his  part,  an  assumption  of  power  that  did  not  belong  to  him,  and  an  at- 
tempt, at  least,  to  deprive  us  of  our  legal  and  constitutional  rights  and  privileges. 
What  could  we  do,  under  the  circumstances,  different  from  what  we  did  do?  We 
sued  for,  and  obtained  a  writ  of  habeas  corpus  from  the  Municipal  Court,  by  vhich 
we  were  delivered  from  the  hands  of  Constable  Bettesworth,  and  brought  before  and 
acquitted  by  the  Municipal  Court.  After  our  acquittal,  in  a  conversation  with  Judge 
Thomas,  although  he  considered  the  acts  of  the  party  illegal,  he  advised  that,  to  sat- 
isfy the  people,  we  had  better  go  before  another  magistrate  who  was  not  in  our 
Church.  In  accordance  with  his  advice,  we  went  before  Esquire  Wells,  with  whom 
you  are  well  acquainted ;  both  parties  were  present,  witnesses  were  called  on  both 
sides,  the  case  was  fully  investigated,  and  we  were  again  dismissed.  And  what  is 
this  pretended  desire  to  enforce  law,  and  wherefore  are  these  lying,  base  rumors  put 
into  circulation  but  to  seek  through  mob  influence,  under  pretense  of  law,  to  make 
us  submit  to  requisitions  which  are  contrary  to  law  and  subversive  of  every  principle 
of  justice  ?  And  when  you,  sir,  required  us  to  come  out  here,  we  came,  not  because 
it  was  legal,  but  because  you  required  it  of  us,  and  we  were  desirous  of  showing  to 
you,  and  to  all  men,  that  we  shrunk  not  from  the  most  rigid  investigation  of  our  acts. 
SVe  certainly  did  expect  other  treatment  than  to  be  immured  in  a  jail  at  the  instance 
of  these  men,  and  I  think,  from  your  plighted  faith,  we  had  a  right  so  to  expect,  after 
disbanding  our  own  forces,  and  putting  ourselves  entirely  in  your  hands.     And  now, 


APPENDIX  III. 


Odd 


after  having  fulfilled  my  part,  sir,  as  a  man  and  an  American  citizen,  I  call  upon 
you,  Governor  Ford,  to  deliver  us  from  this  place,  and  rescue  us  from  this  outrage 
that  is  souglit  to  be  practiced  u]ion  us  by  a  set  of  infamous  scoundrels." 

Governor  Ford.  "But  you  have  placed  men  under  arrest,  detained  men  as  prison- 
ers, and  given  passes  to  others,  some  of  which  I  have  seen." 

John  P.  Green,  City  Marshal.  "Perhaps  I  can  explain.  Since  these  difficulties 
have  commenced,  you  are  aware  that  we  have  been  placed  under  very  peculiar  cir- 
cumstances ;  our  city  has  been  placed  under  a  very  rigid  police  guard ;  in  addition 
to  this,  frequent  guards  have  been  ))laced  outside  the  city  to  prevent  any  sudden  sur- 
prise, and  those  guards  have  questioned  suspected  or  suspicious  persons  as  to  their 
business.  To  sti-angers,  in  some  instances,  passes  have  been  given  to  prevent  diffi- 
culty in  passing  those  guards ;  it  is  some  of  these  passes  that  you  have  seen.  No 
person,  sir,  has  been  imprisoned  without  a  legal  cause  in  our  city." 

Governor.  "Why  did  you  not  give  a  more  speedy  answer  to  the  posse  that  I  sent 
out?" 

General  Smith.  "We  had  matters  of  importance  to  consult  upon;  your  letter 
showed  any  thing  but  an  amiable  spirit.  We  have  suffered  immensely  in  Missouri 
from  mobs,  in  loss  of  property,  imprisonment,  and  otherwise.  It  took  some  time 
for  us  to  weigh  duly  these  matters  ;  we  could  not  decide  upon  matters  of  such  im- 
portance immediately,  and  your  posse  were  too  hasty  in  returning  ;  we  were  consult- 
ing for  a  large  people,  and  vast  interests  wei'e  at  stake.  We  had  been  outrageously 
imposed  upon,  and  knew  not  how  far  we  could  trust  any  one ;  besides,  a  question 
necessarily  arose,  How  shall  we  come  ?  Your  request  was  that  we  should  come  un- 
armed. It  became  a  matter  of  serious  importance  to  decide  how  far  promises  could 
be  trusted,  and  how  far  we  were  safe  from  mob  violence." 

Colonel  GcdJes.  "It  certainly  did  look,  from  all  I  have  heard,  from  the  general 
spirit  of  violence  and  mobocracy  that  here  prevails,  that  it  was  not  safe  for  you  to 
come  unprotected." 

Governor  Ford.  "I  think  that  sufficient  time  was  not  allowed  by  the  posse  fov  you 
to  consult  and  get  read}'.  They  were  too  hasty ;  but  I  suppose  they  found  them- 
selves bound  by  their  orders.  I  tliink,  too,  there  is  a  great  deal  of  truth  in  what  you 
say,  and  your  reasoning  is  plausible,  but  I  must  beg  leave  to  differ  from  you  in  rela- 
tion to  the  acts  of  the  city  council.  That  council,  in  my  opinion,  had  no  right  to 
act  in  a  legislative  capacity  and  in  that  of  the  judiciary.  They  should  have  passed 
a  law  in  relation  to  the  matter,  and  then  the  Municipal  Court,  upon  complaint,  could 
have  removed  it ;  but  for  the  city  council  to  take  upon  themselves  the  law-making 
and  the  execution  of  the  law  is  in  my  opinion  wrong ;  besides,  these  men  ought  to 
have  had  a  hearing  before  their  property  was  destroyed ;  to  destroy  it  without  was 
an  infringement  on  their  rights;  besides,  it  is  so  contrary  to  the  feelings  of  American 
people  to  interfere  with  the  press.  And,  furthermore,  I  can  not  but  think  that  it 
would  have  been  more  judicious  for  you  to  have  gone  with  Mr.  Bettesworth  to  Car- 
thage, notwithstanding  the  law  did  not  require  it.  Concerning  your  being  in  jail, 
I  am  sony  for  that ;  I  wish  it  had  been  otherwise.  I  hope  you  will  soon  be  re- 
leased, but  I  can  not  interfere." 

Joseph  Smith.  "Governor  Ford,  allow  me,  sir,  to  bring  one  thing  to  your  mind 
that  you  seem  to  have  overlooked.  You  state  that  you  think  it  would  have  been  bet- 
ter for  us  to  have  submitted  to  the  requisition  of  Constable  Bettesworth,  and  to  have 
gone  to  Carthage.  Do  you  not  know,  sir,  that  that  writ  was  served  at  the  instance 
of  an  '  anti-Mormon'  mob,  who  had  passed  resolutions,  and  published  them,  to  the 
effect  that  they  would  exterminate  the  '  Mormon'  leaders  ?  and  are  you  not  informed 
that  Captain  Anderson  was  not  only  threatened  when  coming  to  Nauvoo,  but  had  a 
gim  fired  at  his  boat  by  this  said  mob  in  Warsaw  when  coming  up  to  Nauvoo,  and 
that  this  very  thing  was  made  use  of  as  a  means  to  get  us  into  their  hands ;  and  we 
could  not,  without  taking  an  armed  force  with  us,  go  there  without,  according  to 
their  published  declarations,  going  into  the  jaws  of  death?  To  have  taken  a  force 
would  only  have  fanned  the  excitement,  and  they  would  have  stated  that  we  wanted 
to  use  intimidation  ;  therefore  we  thought  it  the  most  judicious  to  avail  ourselves  of 
the  protection  of  law." 

Governor  Ford.  "I  see,  I  see." 

Joseph  Smith.  "Furthermore,  in  relation  to  the  press,  you  say  that  you  differ  from 
me  in  opinion.  Be  it  so;  the  thing,  after  all,  is  only  a  legal  difficulty,  and  the 
courts,  I  should  judge,  are  competent  to  decide  on  that  matter.  If  our  act  was  ille- 
gal, we  are  willing  to  meet  it ;  and  although  I  can  not  see  the  distinction  that  you 


534  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 

draw  about  the  acts  of  the  city  council,  and  what  difference  it  could  have  made  in 
point  of  fact,  law,  or  justice  between  the  citj'  councils  acting  together  or  separate,  or 
how  much  more  legal  it  would  have  been  for  the  Municipal  Court,  who  were  a  part 
of  the  city  council,  to  act  separate  instead  of  with  the  councilors,  yet,  if  it  is  deemed 
that  we  did  a  wrong  in  destroying  that  press,  we  refuse  not  to  ]jay  for  it ;  we  are  de- 
sirous to  fulfill  the  law  in  every  particular,  and  are  responsible  for  our  acts.  You 
say  that  the  parties  ought  to  have  had  a  hearing.  Had  it  been  a  civil  suit,  this,  of 
course,  woyld  have  been  proper ;  but  there  was  a  flagrant  violation  of  every  princi- 
ple of  right — a  nuisance  ;  and  it  was  abated  on  the  same  principle  that  any  nuisance, 
stench,  or  putrefied  carcass  would  have  been  removed.  Our  first  step,  therefore,  was 
to  stop  the  foul,  noisome,  filthy  sheet,  and  then  the  next  in  our  opinion  would  have 
been  to  have  prosecuted  the  man  for  a  breach  of  public  decency.  And  furthermore, 
again  let  me  say.  Governor  Ford,  I  shall  look  to  you  for  our  protection.  I  believe 
you  are  talking  of  going  to  Xauvoo ;  if  you  go,  sir,  I  wish  to  go  along.  I  refuse  not 
to  answer  any  law,  but  I  do  not  consider  myself  safe  here." 

Govei-nor.  "I  am  in  hopes  that  you  will  be  acquitted,  and  if  I  go  I  will  certainly 
take  you  along.  I  do  not,  however,  apprehend  danger.  I  think  3"ou  are  perfectly 
safe  either  here  or  any  where  else.  I  can  not,  however,  interfere  with  the  law.  I 
am  placed  in  peculiar  circumstances,  and  seem  to  be  blamed  by  all  parties." 

Joseph  Smith.  "Governor  Ford,  I  ask  nothing  but  what  is  legal;  I  have  a  right 
to  expect  protection,  at  least  from  yoti ;  for,  independent  of  law,  you  have  pledged 
your  faith  and  that  of  the  state  for  my  protection,  and  I  wish  to  go  to  Nauvoo." 

Governor.  "And  you  shall  have  protection.  General  Smith.  I  did  not  make  this 
promise  without  consulting  my  otficers,  who  all  pledged  their  honor  to  its  fulfillment. 
I  do  not  know  that  I  shall  go  to-morrow  to  Nauvoo,  but  if  I  do  I  will  take  you 
along." 

At  a  quarter  past  ten  o'clock  the  governor  left. 

At  about  half  past  twelve  o'clock,  Mr.  Reed,  one  of  Joseph's  counsel,  came  in,  ap- 
parently much  elated;  he  stated  that,  "upon  an  examination  of  the  law,  he  found 
that  the  magistrate  had  transcended  his  jurisdiction,  and  that,  having  committed 
them  without  an  examination,  his  jurisdiction  ended ;  that  he  had  him  upon  a  pin- 
hook  ;  that  he  ought  to  have  examined  them  before  he  committed  them,  and  that, 
having  violated  the  law  in  this  particular,  he  had  no  fiirther  power  over  them ;  for, 
once  committed,  they  were  out  of  his  jurisdiction,  as  the  power  of  the  magistrate  ex- 
tended no  farther  than  their  committal,  and  that  now  they  could  not  be  brought  out 
except  at  the  regular  session  of  the  Circuit  Court,  or  by  a  Mrit  of  habeas  corpus ;  but 
that  if  Justice  Smith  would  consent  to  go  to  Nauvoo  for  trial,  he  would  compromise 
matters  with  him,  and  overlook  this  matter." 

Mr.  Eeed  flirther  stated  that  "the  'anti-Mormons,'  or  mob,  had  concocted  a 
scheme  to  get  out  a  writ  from  IMissouri,  with  a  demand  upon  Governor  Ford  for  the 
arrest  of  Joseph  Smith  and  his  conveyance  to  Missouri,  and  that  a  man  by  the  name 
of  Wilson  had  returned  from  JNIissouri  the  night  before  the  burning  of  the  press  for 
this  purpose." 

At  half  past  two  o'clock  Constable  Bettesworth  came  to  the  jail  with  a  man  named 
Simpson,  professing  to  have  some  order,  but  he  would  not  send  up  his  name,  and  the 
guard  would  not  let  him  pass.  Dr.  Bernhisel  and  Brother  "Wasson  went  to  inform 
the  governor  and  council  of  this.  At  about  twenty  minutes  to  three  Dr.  Bernhisel 
returned,  and  stated  that  he  thought  the  governor  was  doing  all  he  could.  At  about 
ten  minutes  to  three  Hyrum  Kimball  appeared  with  news  from  Nauvoo. 

Soon  after  Constable  Bettesworth  came  with  an  order  from  Esquire  Smith  to  con- 
vey the  prisoners  to  the  court-house  for  trial.  He  was  informed  that  the  process  was 
illegal,  that  they  had  been  placed  there  contrary  to  law,  and  that  they  refused  to 
come  unless  by  legal  process.  I  was  informed  that  Justice  Smith  (who  was  also 
Captain  of  the  Carthage  Grays)  went  to  the  governor  and  informed  him  of  the  mat- 
ter, and  that  the  governor  replied,  "You  have  your  forces,  and  of  course  can  use 
them."  The  constable  certainly  did  return,  accompanied  by  a  guard  of  armed  men, 
and  by  force,  and  under  protest,  hurried  the  prisoners  to  the  court. 

About  four  o'clock  the  case  was  called  by  Captain  Robert  F.  Smith,  J.  P.  The 
coimsel  of  the  prisoners  called  for  subpoenas  to  bring  witnesses.  At  twenty-five  min- 
utes past  four  he  took  a  copj'  of  the  order  to  bring  the  prisoners  from  jail  to  trial, 
and  afterward  he  took  names  of  witnesses. 

Counsel  present  for  the  state  :  Higbee,  Skinner,  Sharpe,  Emmons,  and  Morrison. 
Twenty-five  minutes  to  five  the  writ  was  returned  as  sei"ved,  June  25th. 


APPENDIX  III.  535 

Many  remarks  were  made  at  the  court  tliat  I  paid  but  little  attention  to,  as  I  con- 
sidered the  wliole  tiling  illegal  and  a  complete  burlesque.  Wood  objected  to  the 
proceedings  in  toto,  in  consequence  of  its  illegality,  showing  that  the  prisoners  were 
not  only  illegally  committed,  but  tiiat,  beinj^once  committed,  the  magistrate  had  no 
farther  power  over  them ;  but  as  it  was  the  same  magistrate  before  whom  he  was 
pleading  who  imprisoned  them  contrary  to  law,  and  the  same  who,  as  captain,  forced 
them  from  jail,  his  arguments  availed  but  little.  lie  then  urged  that  the  prisoners  be 
remanded  until  witnesses  could  be  liad,  and  ajiplied  for  a  continuance  for  that  purpose. 
Skinner  suggested  until  twelve  o'clock  next  day.  Wood  again  demanded  until  wit- 
nesses could  be  obtained;  that  the  comt  meet  at  a  specified  time,  and  that,  if  wit- 
nesses were  not  present,  again  adjourn,  without  calling  the  prisoners.  After  various 
remarks  from  Reed,  Skinner,  and  others,  the  court  stated  that  the  writ  was  served 
yesterday,  and  that  it  will  give  until  to-mon-ow  at  twelve  M.  to  get  witnesses. 

We  then  returned  to  jail.  Immediately  after  our  return  Dr.  Bernhisel  went  to 
the  governor,  and  obtained  from  him  an  order  for  us  to  occupy  a  large  ojien  room 
containing  a  bedstead.  I  rather  think  that  the  same  room  had  been  appi-opriated 
to  the  use  of  debtors ;  at  any  rate,  there  was  free  access  to  the  jailer's  house,  and  no 
bars  or  locks  except  such  as  might  be  on  the  outside  door  of  the  jail.  The  jailer, 
Mr.  George  W.  Steghall,  and  his  wife,  manifested  a  disposition  to  make  us  as  com- 
fortable as  they  could ;  we  ate  at  their  table,  which  was  well  provided,  and  of  course 
paid  for  it. 

I  do  not  remember  the  names  of  all  who  were  with  us  that  night  and  the  next 
morning  in  jail,  for  several  Avent  and  came  ;  among  those  that  we  considered  station- 
ary were  Stephen  jMarkham,  John  S.  Fulmer,  Captain  Dan  Jones,  Dr.  Williard  Rich- 
ards, and  myself.  Dr.  Bernhisel  says  that  he  was  there  from  Wednesday  in  the  aft- 
ernoon until  eleven  o'clock  next  daj'.  We  were,  however,  visited  by  numerous 
friends,  among  whom  were  Uncle  John  Smith,  Hyrum  Kimball,  Cyrus  H.  Wheelock, 
besides  lawyers,  as  counsel.  There  was  also  a  great  variety  of  conversation,  which 
•was  rather  desultory  than  otherwise,  and  referred  to  circumstances  that  had  tran- 
spired ;  our  former  and  present  grievances ;  the  spirit  of  the  troops  around  us,  and 
the  disposition  of  the  governor ;  the  devising  for  legal  and  other  plans  for  deliver- 
ance;  the  nature  of  testimony  required;  the  gathering  of  proper  witnesses;  and  a 
variety  of  other  topics,  including  our  religious  hopes,  etc. 

During  one  of  these  conversations  Dr.  Richards  remarked:  "Brother  Joseph,  it  is 
necessary  that  you  die  in  this  matter,  and  if  they  will  take  me  in  your  stead,  I  will 
suffer  for  you."  At  another  time,  when  conversing  about  deliverance,  I  said,  "Broth- 
er Joseph,  if  you  will  permit  it,  and  say  the  word,  I  will  have  j'ou  out  of  this  prison 
in  five  hours,  if  the  jail  has  to  come  down  to  do  it."  My  idea  was  to  go  to  Nauvoo, 
and  collect  a  force  sufficient,  as  I  considered  the  whole  affair  a  legal  farce,  and  a  fla- 
grant outrage  upon  our  liberty  and  rights.     Brother  Josejih  refused. 

Elder  Cyrus  Wheelock  came  in  to  see  us,  and  when  he  was  about  leaving  drew  a 
small  pistol,  a  six-shooter,  from  his  pocket,  remarking  at  the  same  time,  "Would 
any  of  you  like  to  have  this  ?"  Bi'other  Joseph  immediately  replied,  "Yes,  give  it  to 
me  ;"  whereupon  he  took  the  pistol,  and  put  it  in  his  pantaloons  pocket.  The  pistol 
was  a  six-shooting  revolver,  of  Allen's  patent ;  it  belonged  to  me,  and  was  one  that 
I  furnished  to  Brother  Wheelock  when  he  talked  of  going  with  me  to  the  East,  pre- 
vious to  our  coming  to  Carthage.  I  have  it  now  in  my  possession.  Brother  Whee- 
lock went  out  on  some  errand,  and  was  not  suffered  to  return.  The  report  of  the 
governor  having  gone  to  Nauvoo  without  taking  the  prisoners  along  with  him 
caused  very  unjsleasant  feelings,  as  we  were  apprised  that  we  were  left  to  the  tender 
mercies  of  the  Carthage  Grays,  a  company  strictly  mobocratic,  and  whom  we  knew 
to  be  our  most  deadly  enemies,  and  their  captain.  Esquire  Smith,  was  a  most  unprin- 
cipled villain.  Besides  this,  all  tlie  mob  forces,  comprising  the  governor's  troops, 
were  dismissed,  with  the  exception  of  one  or  two  companies,  which  the  governor  took 
with  him  to  Nauvoo.  The  great  part  of  the  mob  was  liberated,  the  remainder  was 
our  guard. 

We  looked  upon  it  not  only  as  a  breach  of  fiiith  on  the  part  of  the  governor,  but 
also  as  an  indication  of  a  desire  to  insult  us,  if  nothing  more,  by  leaving  us  in  the 
proximity  of  such  men.  The  prevention  of  Wheelock's  return  was  among  the  first 
of  their  hostile  movements. 

Colonel  Markham  then  went  out,  and  he  was  also  prevented  from  returning.  lie 
was  very  angrj'  at  this,  but  the  mob  paid  no  attention  to  him;  they  drove  him  out  of 
town  at  the  point  of  the  bayonet,  and  threatened  to  shoot  him  if  he  returned ;  he 


536 


THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 


went,  I  am  informed,  to  Nauvoo  for  the  purpose  of  raising  a  company  of  men  for  our 
protection.  Brother  Fulmer  went  to  Nauvoo  after  witnesses :  it  is  my  opinion  that 
Brother  Wheelock  did  also. 

Some  time  after  dinner  we  sent  for  some  wine.  It  has  heen  reported  by  some  that 
this  was  taken  as  a  sacrament.  It  was  no  such  thinji;  our  spirits  were  generally 
dull  and  heav}',  and  it  was  sent  for  to  revive  us.  I  think  it  was  Captain  Jones  who 
went  after  it,  but  they  would  not  suffer  him  to  return.  I  believe  we  all  drank  of  the 
Avine,  and  gave  some  to  one  or  two  of  the  prison  guards.  We  all  of  us  felt  unusually 
dull  and  languid,  with  a  remarkable  depression  of  spirits.  In  consonance  with  those 
feelings  I  sang  the  following  song,  that  had  lately  been  introduced  into  Nauvoo,  en- 
titled, "A  poor  wayfaring  man  of  grief,"  etc. 

1.  A  poor  wayfaring  man  of  grief 

Hath  often  cross'd  me  on  my  way, 
Who  sued  so  liumbly  for  relief 
That  I  could  never  answer  Xay. 


2. 1  had  not  power  to  ask  liLs  name, 
Wliither  he  went,  or  whence  he  came ; 
Yet  there  was  something  in  his  eye 
That  won  my  love,  I  know  not  why. 

3.  Once,  when  my  scanty  meal  was  spread. 

He  enter' d — not  a  word  he  spake ! 
Just  perishing  far  want  of  bread ; 
I  gave  him  all :  he  hless'd  it,  brake, 

4.  And  ate,  but  gave  me  part  again ; 
Mine  was  an  angel's  portion  then, 
For  while  I  fed  with  eager  haste, 
The  crust  was  manna  to  my  taste. 

3. 1  spied  him  where  a  fountain  burst 

Clear  from  the  rock — his  strength  was  gone — 
The  heedless  water  mock'd  his  thirst ; 
He  heard  it,  saw  it  hurrying  on. 

C.  I  ran  and  raised  the  suff'rer  up; 
Thrice  from  the  stream  he  drain'd  my  cup, 
Dipp'd,  and  return'd  it  running  o'er ; 
I  drank,  and  never  thirsted  more. 

7.  'Twas  night :  the  floods  were  out ;  it  blew 
A  Avinter  hurricane  aloof; 
I  heard  his  voice  abroad,  and  flew 
To  hid  him  welcome  to  my  roof. 


S.  I  warm'd,  I  clothed,  I  cheer'd  my  guest, 
I  laid  him  on  my  couch  to  rest; 
Then  made  the  earth  my  bed,  and  seem'd 
In  Eden's  garden  while  I  dream'd. 

9.  Stripp'd,  wounded,  beaten  nigh  to  death, 
I  found  him  by  the  highway  side; 
I  roused  his  pulse,  brought  back  his  breath, 
Revived  his  spirit,  and  suppUed 

10.  Wine,  oil,  refreshment :  he  was  heal'd ; 
I  had  myself  a  wound  conceal'd, 

But  from  that  hour  forgot  the  smart, 
And  peace  bound  up  my  broken  heart. 

11.  In  prison  I  saw  him  nest,  condcmn'd 
To  meet  a  traitor' s  doom  at  morn ; 

The  tide  of  lying  tongues  I  stemra'd, 
And  honor'd  him  'mid  shame  and  scorn. 

12.  My  friendship's  utmost  zeal  to  try. 
He  a=ked  if  I  for  him  would  die; 
The  flesh  was  weak;  my  blood  ran  chill; 
But  the  free  spirit  cried  "I  will." 

13.  Then  in  a  moment  to  my  view 
The  stranger  stai-ted  from  disguise  ; 

The  tokens  in  his  hands  I  knew ; 
The  Savior  stood  before  mine  eyes. 

14.  He  spake — and  my  poor  name  he  named — 
"Of  me  thou  hast  not  been  ashamed ; 
These  deeds  shall  thy  memorial  be; 
Fear  not ;  thou  didst  them  uuto  me.' 


The  song  is  pathetic,  and  the  tune  quite  plaintive,  and  was  veiy  much  in  accord- 
ance Avith  our  feelings  at  the  time,  for  our  spirits  were  all  depressed,  dull,  and 
gloomy,  and  surcharged  with  indefinite  ominous  forebodings.  After  a  lapse  of  some 
time, ijrother  Hyrum  requested  me  again  to  sing  that  song.  I  replied,  "Brother 
Hyrum,  I  do  not  feel  like  singing;"  when  he  remarked,  "Oh!  never  mind;  com- 
mence singing,  and  you  will  get  the  spirit  of  it."  At  his  request  I  did  so.  Soon 
afterward  I  A\as  sitting  at  one  of  the  front  windows  of  the  jail,  when  I  saw  a  number 
of  men,  with  painted  faces,  coming  round  the  corner  of  the  jail,  and  aiming  toward 
the  stairs.  The  other  brethren  had  seen  the  same,  for,  as  I  went  to  the  door,  I  found 
Brother  H}Tum  Smith  and  Dr.  Eichards  already  leaning  against  it ;  they  both  press- 
ed against  the  door  with  their  shoulders  to  prevent  its  being  opened,  as  the  lock  and 
latch  were  comparatively  useless.  "While  in  this  position,  the  mob,  who  had  come  up 
stairs,  and  strove  to  open  the  door,  probably  thought  it  was  locked,  and  fired  a  ball 
through  the  keyhole  ;  at  this  Dr.  Richards  and  Brother  Hyrum  leaped  back  from  the 
door,  with  their  faces  toward  it ;  almost  instantly  another  ball  passed  through  the 
panel  of  the  door,  and  struck  Brother  Hp-um  on  the  left  side  of  the  nose,  entering  his 
face  and  head ;  simultaneously,  at  the  same  instant,  another  ball  from  the  outside 
entered  his  back,  passing  through  his  body  and  striking  his  watch.  The  ball  came 
from  the  back,  through  the  jail  window,  o])])osite  the  door,  and  must,  from  its  range, 
have  been  fired  from  the  Carthage  Grays,  as  the  balls  of  fire-arms,  shot  close  by  the 
jail,  would  have  entered  the  ceiling,  we  being  in  the  second  ston-,  and  there  never 
was  a  time  after  that  Hyrum  could  have  received  the  latter  wound.  Immediately, 
when  the  balls  struck  him,  he  fell  flat  on  his  back,  crying  as  he  fell,  "I  am  a  dead 
man  !"     He  never  moved  aftervvard. 

I  shall  never  forget  the  feeling  of  deep  sympathy  and  regard  manifested  in  the 
countenance  of  Brother  Joseph  as  he  drew  nigh  to  Hyrum,  and,  leaning  over  him, 


APPENDIX  III.  537 

exclaimed,  "Oh!  my  poor,  dear  brother  Hyrum."  He,  ho-\vever,  instantly  arose, 
and  with  a  firm,  quick  step,  and  a  determined  expression  of  countenance,  approach- 
ed the  door,  and  pulling  the  six-shooter  left  by  Brother  Wheclock  from  his  pocket, 
opened  the  door  slightly,  and  snapped  the  pistol  six  successive  times ;  only  three  of 
the  barrels,  however,  were  discharged.  I  afterward  understood  that  two  or  three 
were  wounded  by  these  discharges,  two  of  whom,  I  am  informed,  died.  I  had  in  my 
hands  a  large,  strong  hickory  stick,  brought  there  by  Brother  Markham,  and  left  by 
him,  which  I  had  seized  as  soon  as  I  saw  the  mob  approach ;  and  while  Brother  Jo- 
seph was  firing  the  pistol,  I  stood  close  behind  him.  As  soon  as  he  had  discharged 
it  he  stepped  back,  and  I  immediately  took  his  place  next  the  door,  while  he  occupied 
the  one  I  had  done  while  he  was  shooting.  Brother  Kichards,  at  this  time,  had  a 
knotty  walking-stick  in  his  hands  belonging  to  me,  and  stood  next  to  Brother  Joseph, 
a  little  farther  from  the  door,  in  an  oblique  direction,  apparently  to  avoid  the  rake  of 
the  fire  from  the  door.  The  firing  of  Brother  Joscj)!!  made  our  assailants  pause  for 
a  moment ;  very  soon  after,  howe-ver,  they  pushed  the  door  some  distance  open,  and 
protruded  and  discharged  their  guns  into  the  room,  when  I  parried  them  off  with  my 
stick,  giving  another  direction  to  the  balls. 

It  certainly  was  a  terrible  scene :  streams  of  fire  as  thick  as  my  arm  passed  by  mc 
as  these  men  fired,  and,  unarmed  as  we  were,  it  looked  like  certain  death.  I  re- 
member feeling  as  though  my  time  had  come,  but  I  do  not  know  when,  in  any  crit- 
ical position,  I  was  more  calm,  nnrufflcd,  and  energetic,  and  acted  with  more  prompt- 
ness and  decision.  It  certainly  was  far  from  pleasant  to  be  so  near  the  muzzles  of 
those  fire-arms  as  they  belched  forth  their  liquid  flame  and  deadly  balls.  While  I 
was  engaged  in  parrying  the  guns.  Brother  Joseph  said,  "That's  right,  Brother  Tay- 
lor ;  parry  them  ofl:'  as  well  as  you  can."  These  were  the  last  words  I  ever  heard  him 
speak  on  earth. 

Every  moment  the  crowd  at  the  door  became  more  dense,  as  they  were  unques- 
tionably pressed  on  by  those  in  the  rear  ascending  the  stairs,  until  the  whole  entrance 
at  the  door  was  literally  crowded  with  muskets  and  rifles,  which,  with  the  swearing, 
shouting,  and  demoniacal  expressions  of  those  outside  the  door  and  on  the  stairs,  and 
the  firing  of  guns,  mingled  with  their  horrid  oaths  and  execrations,  made  it  look  like 
Pandemonium  let  loose,  and  was,  indeed,  a  fit  representation  of  the  horrid  deed  in 
which  they  were  engaged. 

After  parrying  the  guns  for  some  time,  which  now  protruded  thicker  and  farther 
into  the  room,  and  seeing  no  hope  of  escape  or  protection  there,  as  we  were  now  un- 
armed, it  occurred  to  me  that  we  might  have  some  friends  outside,  and  that  there 
might  there  be  some  chance  of  escape,  but  here  there  seemed  to  be  none.  As  I  ex- 
pected them  every  moment  to  rush  into  the  room  —  nothing  but  extreme  cowardice 
having  thus  far  kept  them  out  —  as  the  tumult  and  pressure  increased,  without  any 
other  hope,  I  made  a  spring  for  the  window,  which  was  right  in  front  of  the  jail  door, 
where  the  mob  was  standing,  and  also  exposed  to  the  fire  of  the  Carthage  Grays,  who 
were  stationed  some  ten  or  twelve  rods  otf.  The  weather  w^as  hot,  we  all  of  us  had 
our  coats  off,  and  the  window  was  raised  to  admit  air ;  as  I  reached  the  window,  and 
was  on  the  point  of  leaping  out,  I  was  struck  by  a  ball  from  the  door  about  midway 
of  my  thigh,  which  struck  the  bone,  and  flattened  out  almost  to  the  size  of  a  quarter 
of  a  dollar,  and  then  passed  on  through  the  fleshy  part  to  within  about  half  an  inch 
of  the  outside.  I  think  some  prominent  nerve  must  have  been  severed  or  injured,  for 
as  soon  as  the  ball  struck  mc  I  fell  like  a  bird  when  shot,  or  an  ox  struck  by  a  butch- 
er, and  lost  entirely  and  instantaneously  all  power  of  action  or  locomotion.  I  fell  on 
to  the  window-sill,  and  cried  out,  "  I  am  shot !"  Not  possessing  any  power  to  move, 
I  felt  myself  falling  outside  of  the  window,  but  immediately  I  fell  inside,  from  some, 
at  that  time,  unknown  cause  ;  when  I  struck  the  floor  my  animation  seemed  restored, 
as  I  have  seen  sometimes  squirrels  and  birds  after  being  shot.  As  soon  as  I  felt  the 
power  of  motion  I  crawled  under  the  bed,  which  was  in  a  corner  of  the  room,  not  far 
from  the  window  where  I  received  my  wound.  While  on  my  way  and  under  the 
bed  I  was  wounded  in  three  other  places ;  one  ball  entered  a  little  below  the  left 
knee,  and  never  was  extracted  ;  another  entered  the  forepart  of  my  left  arm,  a  little 
above  the  wrist,  and,  passing  down  by  the  joint,  lodged  in  the  fleshy  part  of  my  hand, 
about  midway,  a  little  above  the  upper  joint  of  my  little  finger;  another  struck  me 
on  the  fleshy  part  of  my  left  hip,  and  tore  away  the  flesh  as  large  as  my  hand,  dash- 
ing the  mangled  fragments  of  flesh  and  blood  against  the  wall. 

My  wounds  were  painful,  and  the  sensation  produced  was  as  though  a  ball  had 
passed  through  and  down  the  whole  length  of  my  leg.     I  veiy  well  remember  my  re- 


538  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 

flections  at  the  time.  I  had  a  very  painful  idea  of  becoming  lame  and  decrepit,  and 
being  an  object  of  pitv,  and  I  felt  as  though  I  had  rather  die  than  be  placed  in  such 
circumstances. 

It  would  seem  that  immediately  after  my  attcmi)t  to  leap  out  of  the  window,  Jo- 
seph also  did  the  same  thing,  of  which  circumstance  I  have  no  knowledge  only  from 
information.  The  first  thing  that  I  noticed  was  a  cry  that  he  had  leajjcd  out  of  the 
window.  A  cessation  of  firing  followed,  the  niolj  rushed  down  stairs,  and  Dr.  Kich- 
ards  went  to  the  window.  Immediately  aftcnvard  I  saw  the  doctor  going  toward 
the  jail  door,  and  as  there  was  an  iron  door  at  the  head  of  the  stairs  adjoining  our 
door  which  led  into  the  cells  for  criminals,  it  struck  me  that  the  doctor  was  going  in 
there,  and  I  said  to  him,  "  Stop,  doctor,  and  take  nic  along."  He  proceeded  to  the 
door  and  opened  it,  and  then  returned  and  dragged  me  along  to  a  small  cell  pre- 
pared for  criminals. 

Brother  Richards  was  very  much  troubled,  and  exclaimed,  "  Oh  !  Brother  Taylor, 
is  it  possible  that  tliey  have  killed  both  Brother  Hyrum  and  Joseph  ?  it  can  not  sure- 
ly be,  and  yet  I  saw  "them  shoot  him ;"'  and,  elevating  his  hands  two  or  three  times, 
he  exclairncd,  "Oh  Lord,  my  God,  spare  thy  servants!"  He  then  said,  "Brother 
Taylor,  this  is  a  terrible  event;"  and  he  dragged  mc  farther  into  the  cell,  saying,  "I 
am"  sorry  I  can  not  do  better  for  you  ;"  and,  taking  an  old,  filtliy  mattress,  he  cover- 
ed me  with  it,  and  said,  "That  may  hide  you,  and  you  may  yet  live  to  tell  the  tale, 
but  I  expect  they  will  kill  me  in  a  few  moments."  While  lying  in  this  position  I  suf- 
fered the  most  excruciating  ])ain. 

Soon  afterward  Dr.  Richards  came  to  mc,  informing  me  that  the  mob  had  precip- 
itately fled,  and  at  the  same  time  confirming  my  worst  fears  that  Joseph  was  assui-cd- 
Iv  dead.  I  felt  a  dull,  lonely,  sickening  sensation  at  the  news.  When  I  reflected 
that  our  noble  chieftain,  the  prophet  of  the  living  God,  had  fallen,  and  that  I  had 
seen  his  brotlier  in  the  cold  embrace  of  death,  it  seemed  as  though  there  was  an  open 
void  or  vacuum  in  the  great  field  of  human  existence  to  me,  and  a  dark,  gloomy 
chasm  in  the  kingdom,  and  that  we  were  left  alone.  Oh,  how  lonely  was  that  feel- 
ing !  how  cold,  barren,  and  desolate !  In  the  midst  of  difficulties  he  was  always  the 
first  in  motion  ;  in  critical  position  his  counsel  was  always  sought.  As  our  prophet 
he  approached  our  God,  and  obtained  for  us  his  will ;  but  now  our  prophet,  our 
counselor,  our  general,  our  leader  was  gone,  and,  amid  the  fiery  ordeal  that  we  then 
had  to  pass  through,  Ave  were  left  alone  without  his  aid,  and  as  our  future  guide  for 
things  spiritual  or  temporal,  and  for  all  things  pertaining  to  this  world  or  the  next, 
he  had  spoken  for  the  last  time  on  earth. 

These  reflections  and  a  thousand  others  flashed  upon  my  mind.  I  thought.  Why 
must  the  good  perish,  and  the  virtuous  be  destroyed  ?  Why  must  God's  nobility,  the 
salt  of  the  earth,  the  most  exalted  of  the  human  family,  and  the  most  perfect  types 
of  all  excellence,  fall  victims  to  the  cruel,  fiendish  hate  of  incarnate  devils  ? 

The  poignancy  of  my  grief,  I  ])resume,  however,  was  some\\  hat  allayed  by  the  ex- 
treme suff"ering  that  I  endured  from  my  wounds. 

Soon  afterward  I  Avas  taken  to  the  head  of  the  stairs  and  laid  there,  Mhere  I  had  a 
full  view  of  our  beloved  and  now  murdered  brother  Ilyrum.  There  he  lay  as  I  had 
left  him ;  he  had  not  moved  a  limb ;  he  lay  jjlacid  and  calm,  a  monument  of  great- 
ness even  in  death ;  but  his  noble  spirit  had  left  its  tenement,  and  was  gone  to  dwell 
in  regions  more  congenial  to  its  exalted  nature.  Poor  Hyrum  !  he  was  a  great  and 
a  good  man,  and  my  soul  was  cemented  to  his.  If  ever  there  was  an  exemplary, 
honest,  and  virtuous  man,  an  embodiment  of  all  that  is  noble  in  the  human  form, 
H\Tum  Smith  was  its  representative. 

While  I  lay  there  a  number  of  persons  came  around,  among  whom  was  a  physician. 
The  doctor,  on  seeing  a  ball  lodged  in  my  left  hand,  took  a  penknife  from  liis  pock- 
et and  made  an  incision  in  it  for  the  purpose  of  extracting  the  ball  therefrom,  and 
having  obtained  a  pair  of  carpenter's  compasses,  made  use  of  them  to  draw  or  pry 
out  the  ball,  alternately  using  the  penknife  and  compasses.  After  sawing  for  some 
time  with  a  dull  penknife,  and  jn-ying  and  pulling  with  the  compasses,  he  ultimately 
succeeded  in  extracting  the  ball,  which  was  about  a  half  ounce  one.  Some  time  aft- 
erward he  remarked  to  a  friend  of  mine  that  "I  had  nerves  like  the  devil  to  stand 
what  I  did  in  its  extraction."  I  really  thought  I  had  need  of  nen-es  to  stand  such 
surgical  butchery,  and  that,  whatever  my  norves  may  be,  his  practice  was  devilish. 

This  company  wished  to  remove  me  to  Mr.  Hamilton's  hotel,  the  place  Avhere  we 
had  staid  previous  to  our  incarceration  in  jail.  I  told  them,  however,  that  I  did  not 
wish  to  go ;  I  did  not  consider  it  safe.     They  protested  that  it  was,  and  that  I  was 


I 


APPENDIX  III.  539 

safe  with  them;  that  it  was  a  perfect  outrage  for  men  to  be  used  as  we  had  been ; 
that  they  were  my  friends;  that  it  was  for  my  good  they  were  counseling  me,  and 
that  I  could  be  better  taken  care  of  there  than  here. 

I  replied,  "I  dont  know  you.  Who  am  I  among?  I  am  surrounded  by  assas- 
sins and  murderers  ;  witness  your  deeds !  Don't  talk  to  me  of  kindness  or  comfort ; 
look  at  your  murdered  victims.  Look  at  me  !  I  want  none  of  your  counsel  nor  com- 
fort.    There  may  be  some  safety  here ;  I  can  be  assured  of  none  any  where,"  etc. 

They  "God  damned  their  souls  to  hell,"  made  the  most  solemn  asseverations,  and, 
swore  by  God  and  the  devil,  and  every  thing  else  that  they  could  think  of,  that  they' 
would  stand  by  me  to  death  and  protect  me.  In  half  an  hour  every  one  of  them  had 
fled  to  the  town. 

Soon  after  a  coroner's  juiy  wore  assembled  in  the  room  over  the  body  of  II}Tum. 
Among  the  jurors  was  Captain  Smith,  of  the  "Carthage  Grays,"  who  had  assisted 
in  the  murder,  and  the  same  justice  before  whom  we  had  been  tried.  I  heard  the 
name  of  Francis  Higbce  as  being  in  the  neighborhood ;  on  hearing  his  name  men- 
tioned, 1  immediately  rose  and  said,  "Captain  Smith,  you  are  a  justice  of  the  peace; 
I  have  heard  his  name  mentioned  ;  I  want  to  swear  my  life  against  him."  I  was  in- 
foriued  that  word  was  immediately  sent  to  him  to  leave  the  place,  which  he  did. 

Brother  Kichards  was  busy  daring  this  time  attending  to  the  coroner's  inquest, 
and  to  the  removal  of  the  bodies,  and  making  arrangements  for  their  removal  from 
Carthage  to  Nauvoo. 

When  we  had  a  little  leisure,  he  again  came  to  me,  and  at  his  suggestion  I  was  re- 
moved to  Hamilton's  tavern ;  I  felt  that  he  was  the  only  friend,  the  only  person,  that 
I  could  rely  upon  in  that  town.  It  was  with  difficulty  that  sufficient  persons  could 
be  found  to  carry  me  to  the  tavern ;  for  immediately  after  the  murder  a  great  fear 
fell  u])on  all  the  people,  and  men,  women,  and  children  fled  with  great  precipitation, 
leaving  nothing  nor  any  body  in  the  town  but  two  or  three  women  and  children,  and 
one  or  two  sick  persons. 

It  was  with  great  difficulty  that  Brother  Eiehards  prevailed  upon  My.  Hamilton, 
hotel-keeper,  and  his  family,  to  stay;  they  would  not  until  Brother  Eichards  had 
given  a  solemn  promise  that  he  would  see  them  protected,  and  hence  I  was  looked 
upon  as  a  hostage.  Under  these  circumstances,  notwitlistanding,  I  believe  they  were 
hostile  to  the  "  Mormons,"  and  were  glad  that  the  murder  had  taken  place,  yet  they 
did  not  actually  participate  in  it ;  and,  feeling  that  I  should  be  a  protection  to  them, 
they  staid. 

The  whole  community  knew  that  a  dreadful  outrage  had  been  perpetrated  by  those 
villains,  and  fearing  lest  the  citizens  of  Nauvoo,  as  they  possessed  the  power,  might 
have  a  disposition  to  visit  them  with  a  terrible  vengeance,  they  fled  in  the  wildest 
confusion.  And,  indeed,  it  was  witli  very  great  difficulty  that  the  citizens  of  Nauvoo 
could  be  restrained  ;  a  horrid,  barbarous  murder  had  been  committed,  the  most  sol- 
emn pledge  violated,  and  that,  too,  while  the  victims  were,  contrary  to  the  require- 
ments of  the  law,  putting  themselves  into  the  hands  of  the  governor  to  pacify  a  pop- 
idar  excitement.  This  outrage  was  enhanced  by  the  reflection  that  we  were  able  to 
protect  ourselves  against  not  only  all  the  mob,  but  against  three  times  their  number 
and  that  of  the  governor's  troops  ])ut  together.  These  were  exasperated  by  the  speech 
of  the  governor  in  town.  The  whole  events  were  so  faithless,  so  dastardly,  so  mean, 
cowardly,  and  contemptible,  without  one  extenuating  circumstance,  that  it  would  not 
have  been  surprising  if  the  citizens  of  Nauvoo  had  arisen  en  ijiasse,  and  blotted  the 
wretches  out  of  existence.  The  citizens  of  Carthage  knew  they  would  have  done  so 
under  such  circumstances,  and,  judging  us  by  themselves,  they  were  all  panic-stricken 
and  fled.  Colonel  Markham,  too,  after  his  expulsion  from  Carthage,  had  gone 
home,  related  the  circumstances  of  his  ejectment,  and  was  using  his  influence  to  get 
a  company  to  go  out.  Fearing  that  when  the  people  heard  that  their  prophet  and 
patriarch  had  been  murdered  under  the  above  circumstances  they  might  act  rashly, 
and  knowing  that,  if  they  once  got  roused,  like  a  mighty  avalanche  they  would  lay 
the  country  waste  before  them  and  take  a  terrible  vengeance — as  none  of  the  twelve 
were  in  Nauvoo,  and  no  one,  perhaps,  with  sufficient  influence  to  control  the  people, 
Dr.  Richards,  after  consulting  me,  wrote  the  following  note,  fearing  that  my  family 
might  be  seriously  affected  by  the  news.  I  told  him  to  insert  that  I  was  slightly 
wounded. 


5J,0  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 

William  Richards's  Note  from  Cartlmrje.  Jail  to  Nauvoo.* 

"  Carthage  Jail,  8  o'clock  5  niin.  P.M.,  June  27tli,  1844. 
"  Joseph  and  Hpnim  are  dead.  Taylor  wounded,  not  very  badly.  I  am  well. 
Our  guard  was  forced,  as  we  believe,  by  a  band  of  Missourians  from  100  to  200.  The 
job  was  done  in  an  instant,  and  the  party  fled  toward  Nauvoo  instantly.  This  is  as 
i  believe  it.  The  citizens  here  are  afraid  of  the  Mormons  attacking  them ;  I  prom- 
ise them  no.  W.  Richards. 
"N.B. — The  citizens  promise  us  pi'otection;  alarm  guns  have  been  fired. 

"John  Taylor." 

I  remember  signing  my  name  as  quickly  as  possible,  lest  the  tremor  of  my  hand 
should  be  noticed,  and  their  fears  too  excited. 

A  messenger  was  dispatched  immediately  with  that  note,  but  he  was  intercepted 
by  the  governor,  who,  on  hearing  a  cannon  fired  at  Carthage,  which  was  to  be  the 
signal  for  the  murder,  immediately  fled  with  his  company,  and  fearing  that  the  citi- 
zens of  Nauvoo,  when  apprised  of  the  horrible  outrage,  would  immediately  rise  and 
pursue,  he  turned  back  the  messenger,  who  was  George  D.  Grant.  A  second  one 
was  sent,  who  was  treated  similarly ;  and  not  until  a  thu-d  attempt  could  news  be  got 
to  Nauvoo. 

Samuel  H.  Smith,  brother  to  Joseph  and  HjTum,  was  the  first  brother  that  I  saw 
after  the  outrage ;  I  am  not  sure  whether  he  took  the  news  or  not ;  he  lived  at  the 
time  at  Plymouth,  Hancock  County,  and  was  on  his  way  to  Carthage  to  see  his 
brothers,  when  he  was  met  by  some  of  the  troops,  or  rather  mob,  that  had  been  dis- 
missed by  the  governor,  and  who  were  on  their  way  home.  On  learning  that  he  was 
Joseph  Smith's  brother  they  sought  to  kill  him,  but  he  escaped,  and  fled  into  the 
woods,  where  he  was  chasecl  for  a  length  of  time  by  them  ;  but,  after  severe  fotigue, 
and  much  danger  and  excitement,  he  succeeded  in  escaping,  and  came  to  Carthage. 
He  was  on  horseback  when  he  arrived,  and  was  not  only  very  much  tired  with  the 
fatigue  and  excitement  of  the  chase,  but  was  also  very  much  distressed  in  feelings  on 
account  of  the  death  of  his  brother.  These  things  produced  a  fever,  which  laid  the 
foundation  for  his  death,  which  took  place  on  the  30th  of  July.  Thus  another  of  the 
brothers  fell  a  victim,  although  not  directly,  but  indirectly  to  this  infernal  mob. 

I  lay  from  about  five  o'clock  until  two  next  morning  without  having  my  wounds 
dressed,  as  there  was  scarcely  any  help  of  any  kind  in  Curthage,  and  Brother  Kich- 
ards  was  busy  with  the  dead 'bodies,  preparing  them  for  removal.  My  wife  Leonora 
started  early" the  next  day,  having  had  some  little  trouble  in  getting  a  company  or  a 
physician  to  come  with  her ;  after  considerable  difliculty  she  succeeded  in  getting  an 
escort,  and  Dr.  Samuel  Bennet  came  along  with  her.  Soon  after  my  father  and 
mother  arrived  from  Quakie,  near  which  place  they  had  a  farm  at  that  time,  and 
hearing  of  the  trouble,  hastened  along. 

General  Demmiug,  Brigadier  General  of  the  Hancock  County  Jlilitia,  was  very 
much  of  a  gentleman,  and  showed  me  eveiy  courtesy,  and  Colonel  Jones  also  was 
very  solicitous  about  my  welfare. 

I  was  called  upon  by  several  gentlemen  of  Quincy  and  other  places,  among  whom 
was  Judge  Ralston,  as  well  as  by  our  own  people,  and  a  medical  man  extracted  a  ball 
from  my  left  thigh  that  was  giving  me  much  pain  :  it  lay  about  half  an  inch  deep, 
and  my"  thigh  was  considerably  swollen.  The  doctor  asked  me  if  I  would  be  tied 
during' the  "operation;  I  told  iiim  no;  that  I  could  endure  the  cutting  associated 
with  the  o])oration  as  well  without,  and  I  did  so ;  indeed,  so  great  was  the  pain  I  en- 
dured that  the  cutting  was  rather  a  relief  than  otherwise. 

A  vei-v-  laughable  incident  occurred  at  the  time :  my  wife  Leonora  went  into  an 
adjoining  room  to  pray  for  me,  that  I  might  be  sustained  during  the  operation. 
While  on  her  knees  at  ]jrayer,  a  Mrs.  Bedell,  an  old  lady  of  the  Methodist  associa- 
tion, entered,  and,  patting  Mrs.  Taylor  on  her  back  with  her  hand,  said,  "There's  a 
good  lady,  pray  for  God  to  forgive" your  sins;  pray  that  you  may  be  converted,  and 
the  Lord  may  "have  mercy  on  your  soul." 

The  scenc'was  so  ludicrous'that  Mrs.  Taylor  knew  not  whether  to  laugh  or  be  an- 
gry. Mrs.  Taylor  informed  me  that  INIr.  Hamilton,  the  father  of  the  Hamilton  who 
kept  the  house",  rejoiced  at  the  murder,  and  said  in  company  "that  it  was  done  up 
in  the  best  possible  style,  and  showed  good  generalship;"  and  she  farther  believed 
that  the  other  branche"s  of  the  family  sanctioned  it.  These  were  the  associates  of  the 
•  "  Des.  Xews,"  Xo.  33,  Nov.  25, 1857,  p.  297. 


APPENDIX  in.  541 

old  lady  referred  to,  and  yet  she  could  talk  of  conversion  and  saving  souls  in  the 
midst  of  blood  and  murder :  such  is  man  and  such  consistency. 

The  ball  being  extracted  was  the  one  tliat  first  struck  me,  which  I  before  referred 
to ;  it  entered  on  the  outside  of  my  loft  thigh,  about  five  inches  from  my  knee,  and, 
passing  rather  obliquely  toward  my  body,  had,  it  would  seem,  struck  the  bone,  for  it 
was  flattened  out  nearly  as  thin  and  large  as  a  quarter  of  a  dollar. 

The  governor  passed  on,  staying  at  Caithage  only  a  few  minutes,  and  he  did  not 
stop  until  he  got  fifty  miles  from  Xauvoo.  Tliere  had  been  various  opinions  about 
the  complicity  of  the  governor  in  the  murder,  some  supposing  that  he  knew  all  about 
it,  and  assisted  or  winked  at  its  execution.  It  is  somewhat  difficult  to  form  a  correct 
opinion ;  from  the  facts  presented  it  is  very  certain  that  things  looked  more  than  sus- 
picious against  him. 

In  the  first  ])lace,  he  positively  knew  that  we  had  broken  no  law. 

Secondly.  He  knew  that  the  mob  had  not  only  passed  inflammatory  resolutions, 
threatening  extermination  to  the  "  ISIormons,"  but  that  they  had  actually  assembled 
armed  mobs  and  commenced  hostilities  against  us. 

Tliirdly.  He  took  those  very  mobs  that  had  been  arrayed  against  us,  and  enrolled 
them  as  his  troops,  thus  legalizing  their  acts. 

Fourthly.  He  disbanded  the  Nauvoo  Legion,  which  had  never  violated  law,  and 
disarmed  them,  and  had  about  his  person  in  the  shape  of  militia  known  mobocrats 
and  violators  of  the  law. 

Fifthly.  He  requested  us  to  come  to  Carthage  without  arms,  promising  protection, 
and  then  refused  to  interfere  in  delivering  us  from  prison,  although  Joseph  and  Hy- 
rum  were  put  there  contrary  to  law. 

Sixthly.  Although  he  refused  to  interfere  in  our  behalf,  yet,  when  Captain  Smith 
went  to  iiim  and  informed  him  that  the  persons  refused  to  come  out,  he  told  him 
that  "he  had  a  command  and  knew  what  to  do,"  thus  sanctioning  the  use  of  force 
in  the  violation  of  law  when  opposed  to  us,  whereas  he  would  not  for  us  interpose  his 
executive  authority  to  free  us  from  being  incarcerated  contrary  to  law,  although  he 
was  fully  informed  of  all  the  facts  of  the  case,  as  we  kept  him  posted  in  the  affairs 
all  the  time. 

Seventhly.  He  left  the  prisoners  in  Carthage  jail  contrary  to  his  plighted  faith. 

Eighthly.  Before  he  went  he  dismissed  all  the  troops  that  coiild  be  relied  upon, 
as  v,-ell  as'many  of  the  mob,  and  left  us  in  charge  of  the  "Carthage  Grays,"  a  com- 
pany that  he  knew  were  mobocratic,  our  most  bitter  enemies,  and  who  had  passed 
resolutions  to  exterminate  us,  and  who  had  been  placed  under  guard  by  General 
Demming  only  the  day  before. 

Ninthly.  He  was  informed  of  the  intended  murder,  both  before  he  left  and  while 
on  the  road,  by  several  ditterent  parties. 

Tenthly.  When  the  cannon  was  fired  in  Carthage,  signifying  that  the  deed  was 
done,  he  immediately  took  up  his  line  of  march  and  fled.  How  did  he  know  that 
this  signal  portended  their  death  if  he  was  not  in  the  secret  ?  It  may  be  said  some 
of  the  party  told  him.  How  could  he  believe  what  the  party  said  about  the  gun- 
signal  if  he  could  not  believe  the  testimony  of  several  individuals  who  told  him  in 
positive  terms  about  the  contemplated  murder? 

He  has,  I  believe,  stated  that  he  left  the  "Carthage  Grays"  there  because  he  con- 
sidered that,  as  their  town  was  contiguous  to  ours,  and  as  the  responsibility  of  our 
safety  rested  solely  upon  them,  they  would  not  dare  suffer  any  indignity  to  befidl  us. 
This  very  admission  shows  that  he  did  really  expect  danger ;  "and  then  "he  knew  that 
these  people  had  published  to  the  world  that  they  would  exterminate  us,  and  his 
leaving  us  in  their  hands  and  talking  of  their  responsibilities  was  like  leaving  a 
llamb  in  charge  of  a  wolf,  and  trusting  to  its  humanity  and  honor  for  its  safe-keep- 
ing. 

It  is  said,  again,  that  he  would  not  have  gone  to  Nauvoo,  and  thus  placed  himself 
in  the  hands  of  the  "]\Iormons,"  if  he  had  anticipated  any  such  event,  as  he  would 
be  exposed  to  their  wrath.  To  this  it  may  be  answered  that  the  "ilormons"  did 
not  know  their  signals,  while  he  did ;  and  they  were  also  known  in  Warsaw,  as  well 
as  in  other  places ;  and  as  soon  as  the  gun  was  fired,  a  merchant  of  Warsaw  jump- 
ed upon  his  horse  and  rode  directly  to  Quincy,  and  reported  "Joseph  and  Hvrura 
killed,  and  those  who  were  with  them  in  jail."  He  reported  farther  "that  they  were 
attempting  to  break  jail,  and  were  all  killed  by  the  guard."  This  was  their  story; 
it  was  anticipated  to  kill  all,  and  the  gun  was  to  be  the  signal  that  the  deed  was  ac- 
complished.    This  was  known  in  Warsaw.     The  governor  also  knew  it  and  fled ; 


542  TIIE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 

and  he  coiilJ  really  be  in  no  danger  in  Nauvoo,  for  the  ]\Iormons  did  not  know  it, 
and  lie  had  plenty  of  time  to  escape,  which  he  did. 

It  is  said  that  he  made  all  his  officers  promise  solemnly  that  they  would  help  him 
to  protect  the  Smiths ;  this  may  or  may  not  be.  At  any  rate,  some  of  these  same 
officers  helped  to  murder  them. 

The  strongest  argument  in  tlie  governor's  favor,  and  one  that  would  bear  more 
weight  with  us  than  all  the  rest  put  together,  would  be  that  he  could  not  believe  them 
capable  of  such  atrocity;  and,  thinking  that  their  talk  and  thrcatenings  were  a  mere 
ebullition  of  feeling,  a  kind  of  braggadocio,  and  that  there  was  enough  of  good  moral 
feeling  to  control  the  more  violent  passions,  he  trusted  to  their  faith.  There  is,  in- 
deed, a  degree  of  plausibility  about  this,  but  when  we  put  it  in  juxtaposition  to  the 
amount  of  evidence  that  he  was  in  possession  of  it  weighs  very  little.  He  had  noth- 
ing to  inspire  confidence  in  them,  and  every  thing  to  make  him  mistrust  them.  Be- 
sides, why  his  broken  faith  ?  why  his  disregard  <jf  what  was  told  him  by  several  par- 
tics?  Again,  if  he  knew  not  the  plan,  how  did  he  understand  the  signal?  Why  so 
oblivious  to  every  thing  pertaining  to  the  "JMormon"  interest,  and  so  alive  and  in- 
jterested  about  the  mobocrats  ?  At  any  rate,  be  this  as  it  may,  he  stands  responsible 
for  their  blood,  and  it  is  dripping  on  his  garments.  If  it  had  not  been  for  his  prom- 
;ises  of  protection,  they  would  have  protected  themselves;  it  was  plighted  faith  that 
'led  them  to  the  slaughter ;  and,  to  make  the  best  of  it,  it  was  a  breach  of  that  faith 
and  a  non-fulfillment  of  that  promise,  after  repeated  warnings,  that  led  to  their  death. 

Having  said  so  much,  I  must  Jeave  the  governor  with  my  readers  and  with  his 

God.     Justice,  I  conceive,  demanded  this  much,  and  truth  could  not  be  told  with 

less ;  as  I  have  said  before,  my  opinion  is  that  the  governor  would  not  have  planned 

-this  murder,  but  he  had  not  sufficient  energy  to  resist  popular  opinion,  even  if  that 

-oinnion  led  to  blood  and  death. 

It  was  rumored  that  a  strong  political  partj',  numbering  in  its  ranks  many  of  the 
prominent  men  of  the  nation,  were  engaged  in  a  plot  for  the  overthrow  of  Joseph 
Smith,  and  that  the  governor  was  of  this  party,  and  Sharj),  Williams,  Captain  Smith, 
and  others,  were  his  accomplices,  but  whether  this  was  thq  case  or  not  I  don't  know. 
It  is  very  certain  that  a  strong  political  feeling  existed  against  Joseph  Smith,  and  I 
have  reason  to  believe  that  his  letters  to  Henry  Clay  were  made  use  of  by  political 
parties  opposed  to  Mr.  Clay,  and  were  the  means  of  that  statesman's  defeat.  Yet,  if 
such  a  comljination  as  the  one  referred  to  existed,  I  am  not  apprised  of  it. 

While  I  lay  at  Carthage,  previous  to  Mrs.  Taylor's  arrival,  a  pretty  good  sort  of  a 
man,  who  was  lame  of  a  leg,  waited  u]5on  me,  and  sat  iq)  at  night  with  me ;  after 
Mrs.  Taylor,  my  mother  and  others  waited  upon  me. 

Many  friends  called  ujion  me,  among  whom  were  Richard  Ballantync,  Elizabeth 
Taylor,  several  of  the  Perkins  family,  and  a  number  of  the  brethren  from  Macedonia 
and  La  Harpe.  Besides  these,  many  strangers  from  Quincy,  some  of  whom  express- 
ed indignant  feelings  against  the  mob  and  sympathy  for  myself.  Brother  Alexander 
Williams  called  upon  me,  who  suspected  that  they  had  some  designs  in  keeping  mc 
there,  and  stated  "that  he  had  at  a  given  point  in  some  woods  fifty  men,  and  that 
if  I  would  say  the  word  he  would  raise  other  fifty,  and  fetch  me  out  of  there."  I 
thanked  him,  but  told  him  I  thought  there  was  no  need.  However,  it  would  seem 
that  I  was  in  some  danger ;  for  Colonel  Jones,  before  referred  to,  when  absent  from 
me,  left  two  loaded  i)istols  on  the  table  in  case  of  an  attack,  and  some  time  after- 
ward, when  I  had  recovered  and  was  publishing  the  aflair,  a  lawyer,  Mr.  Backman, 
stated  that  he  had  jn-evcnted  a  man  bv  the  name  of  Jackson,  before  referred  to,  from 
ascending  the  stairs,  who  was  coming"  with  a  design  to  murder  me,  and  that  now  he 
was  sorrv  he  had  not  let  him  do  the  deed. 

There"  were  others,  also,  of  whom  I  heard  that  said  I  ought  to  be  killed,  and  they 
would  do  it,  but  that  it  was  too  damned  cowardly  to  shoot  a  wounded  man ;  and 
thus,  by  the  chivalry  of  mnrderers,  I  was  prevented  from  being  a  second  time  muti- 
lated o"r  killed.  Many  of  the  mob,  too,  came  around  and  treated  me  with  apparent 
respect,  and  the  officers  and  people  generally  looked  upon  me  as  a  hostage,  and  fear- 
ed that  my  removal  would  be  the  signal  for  the  rising  of  the  Mormons. 

I  do  not  remember  the  time  that  I  staid  there,  but  I  think  three  or  four  days  after 
tlic  murder,  when  Brother  Marks  with  a  carriage,  Brother  James  Aldred  with  a  wag- 
on, Dr.  Ells,  and  a  number  of  others  on  horseback,  came  for  the  purpose  of  taking 
me  to  Nauvno.  I  was  very  weak  at  the  time,  occasioned  by  the  loss_  of  blood  and 
the  great  discliarge  of  mv  wounds,  so  that  when  Mrs.  Taylor  asked  me  if  I  could  talk 
I  could  barely  whisper  no.     Quite  a  discussion  arose  as  to  the  propriety  of  my  re- 


i 


APPENDIX  UI.  543 

moval,  the  physicians  and  people  of  Carthage  protesting  that  it  would  be  my  death, 
while  my  friends  were  anxious  for  my  removal  if  possible. 

I  suppose  the  former  were  actuated  by  the  above-named  desire  to  keep  mc.  Col- 
onel Jones  was,  I  believe,  sincere ;  he  has  acted  as  a  friend  all  the  time,  and  he  told 
Mrs.  Taylor  she  ou<rht  to  persuade  mc  not  to  go,  for  he  did  not  believe  I  had  strength 
enough  to  reach  Xauvoo.  It  was  finally  agreed,  however,  that  I  should  go  ;  but  as 
it  was  thought  that  I  could  not  stand  riding  in  a  wagon  or  carriage,  they  ])rcparcd  a 
litter  for  me  ;  I  was  carried  down  stairs  and  put  upon  it.  A  number  of  men  assist- 
ed to  carry  me,  some  of  whom  had  been  engaged  in  the  mob.  As  soon  as  I  got 
down  stairs,  I  felt  much  better  and  strengthened,  so  that  I  could  talk ;  I  suppose  the 
etfect  of  the  fresh  air. 

When  we  had  got  near  the  outside  of  the  town  I  remembered  some  woods  that  we 
had  to  go  through,  and  telling  a  person  near  to  call  for  Dr.  Ells,  who  was  riding  a 
very  good  horse,  I  said,  "  Doctor,  I  perceive  that  the  people  are  getting  fatigued 
with  carrying  me ;  a  number  of  Mormons  live  about  two  or  three  miles  from  here, 
near  our  route ;  will  you  ride  to  their  settlement  as  quietly  as  possible,  and  have 
them  come  and  meet  us  ?"  He  started  off"  on  a  gallop  immediately.  My  object  in 
this  was  to  obtain  protection  in  case  of  an  attack,  x-ather  than  to  obtain  help  to  cany 
me. 

Very  soon  after  the  men  from  Carthage  made  one  excuse  after  another,  until  they 
had  all  left,  and  I  felt  glad  to  get  rid  of  them.  I  found  that  the  tramping  of  those 
carrying  me  produced  violent  pain,  and  a  sleigh  was  pi'oduced  and  attached  to  the 
hind  end  of  Brother  James  Aldred's  wagon,  a  bed  placed  upon  it,  and  I  propped  up 
on  the  bed.  Mrs.  Taylor  rode  witli  me,  applying  ice  and  ice-water  to  my  wounds. 
As  the  sleigh  was  dragged  over  the  grass  on  the  i:irairic,  which  was  quite  tall,  it 
moved  very  easily  and  gave  me  very  little  ])ain. 

When  I  got  within  five  or  six  miles  of  Nauvoo  the  brethren  commenced  to  meet 
mc  from  the  city,  and  they  increased  in  number  as  we  drew  nearer,  until  there  was 
a  very  large  company  of  people  of  all  ages  and  both  sexes,  principally,  however, 
men. 

For  some  time  there  had  been  almost  incessant  rain,  so  that  in  many  low  places  in 
the  prairie  it  was  from  one  to  three  feet  deep  in  Avater,  and  at  such  places  the  breth- 
ren whom  we  met  took  hold  of  the  sleigh,  lifted  it,  and  carried  it  over  the  water ;  and 
when  we  arrived  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  city,  where  the  roads  were  excessively 
muddy  and  bad,  the  brethren  tore  down  the  fences,  and  we  passed  through  the  fields. 

Never  shall  I  forget  the  difterence  of  feeling  that  I  experienced  between  the  place 
that  I  had  left  and  the  one  that  I  had  now  arrived  at.     I  had  left  a  lot  of  reckless, 
bloodthirsty  murderers,  and  had  come  to  the  City  of  the  Saints,  the  people  of  the  liv-  - 
ing  God ;  friends  of  truth  and  righteousness,  thousands  of  whom  stood  there  with  - 
warm,  true  hearts  to  oflFer  their  friendship  and  services,  and  to  welcome  my  return. 
It  is  true  it  was  a  painful  scene,  and  brought  sorrowful  remembrances  to  mind,  but 
to  me  it  caused  a  thrill  of  joy  to  find  myself  once  more  in  tha  bosom  of  my  friends, - 
and  to  meet  with  the  cordial  welcome  of  true,  honest  hearts.     W^hat  was  very  re- 
markable, I  found  myself  very  much  better  after  my  aiTival  at  Nauvoo  than  I  was 
when  I  started  on  my  journey,  although  I  had  traveled  eighteen  miles. 

The  next  day,  as  some  change  was  wanting,  I  told  Jlrs.  Taylor  that  if  she  could 
send  to  Dr.  Richards,  he  had  my  purse  and  watch,  and  they  would  find  money  in  my 
purse. 

Previous  to  the  doctor  leaving  Carthage,  I  told  him  that  he  had  better  take  my 
purse  and  watch,  for  I  was  afraid  the  people  would  steal  them.     The  doctor  had  tak- 
en my  pantaloons'  pocket,  and  put  the  watch  in  it  with  the  purse,  cut  off  the  pock- 
et, and  tied  a  string  round  the  top ;  it  was  in  this  position  when  brought  home.     My 
family,  however,  were  not  a  little  startled  to  find  that  my  watch  had  been  struck  with 
a  ball.     I  sent  for  my  vest,  and,  upon  examination,  it  was  found  that  there  was  a  cut,  1 
as  if  with  a  knife,  in  the  vest  pocket  which  had  contained  my  watch.     In  the  pocket  ! 
the  fragments  of  the  glass  were  found  literally  ground  to  powder.     It  then  occurred  - 
to  me  that  a  ball  had  struck  me  at  the  time  I  felt  myself  falling  out  of  the  window,  - 
and  that  it  was  this  force  that  threw  me  inside.     I  had  often  remarked  to  Mrs.  Ta}'-  _ 
lor  the  singular  fact  of  finding  mj'self  inside  the  room,  when  I  felt  a  moment  before, 
after  being  shot,  that  I  was  falling  out,  and  I  never  could  account  for  it  until  then ;  ' 
but  here  the  thing  was  fully  elucidated,  and  was  rendered  plain  to  my  mind.     I  was 
indeed  falling  out,  when  some  villain  aimed  at  my  heart.     The  ball  struck  my  watch, 
and  forced  me  back  ;  if  I  had  fallen  out  I  should  assuredly  have  been  killed,  if  not 


544  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 

by  the  fall,  by  those  around,  and  this  ball,  intended  to  dispatch  me,  was  turned  by  an 
overruling  Providence  into  a  messenger  of  mercy,  and  saved  my  life.  I  shall  never 
forget  the  feelings  of  gratitude  that  I  then  experienced  toward  my  heavenly  Father ; 
the  whole  scene  was  vividly  portrayed  before  me,  and  my  heart  melted  before  the 
Lord.  I  felt  that  the  Lord  had  preserved  me  by  a  special  act  of  mercy;  that  my  time 
had  not  yet  come,  and  that  I  had  still  a  work  to  perform  upon  the  earth. 

(Signed),  John  Taylor. 

NOTES. 

In  addition  to  the  above  I  give  the  following : 

_Dr.  Bernhisel  informed  me  that  Joseph,  looking  him  full  in  the  face,  and  as  sol- 
emn as  eternity,  said,  "I  am  going  as  a  lamb  to  the  slaughter,  but  I  am  as  calm  as 
a  summer's  morning.  I  have  a  conscience  void  of  oftense  toward  God  and  man." 
I  heard  him  state,  in  reply  to  an  interrogatory,  made  cither  by  myself  or  some  one 
in  my  hearing,  in  relation  to  the  best  course  to  pursue,  "I  am  not  now  acting  ac- 
cording to  my  judgment;  others  must  counsel,  and  not  me,  for  the  present,"  or  in 
words  to  the  same  effect. 

The  governor's  remarks  about  the  press  may  be  partially  correct,  so  far  as  the 
legal  technicality  was  concerned,  and  the  order  of  administering  law.  The  proper 
way  would  perhaps  have  been  for  the  City  Council  to  have  passed  a  law  in  regard 
to  the  removal  of  nuisances,  and  then  for  the  Municipal  Court  to  have  ordered  it  to 
be  abated  on  complaint.  Be  this  as  it  may,  it  was  only  a  variation  in  form,  not  in 
fact,  for  the  Municipal  Court  formed  part  of  the  City  Council,  and  all  voted ;  and, 
furthermore,  some  time  after  the  miirder,  Governor  Ford  told  me  that  the  press  ought 
to  have  been  removed,  but  that  it  was  bad  policy  to  remove  it  as  we  did ;  that  if  we 
had  only  let  a  mob  do  it,  instead  of  using  the  law,  we  could  have  done  it  without 
difficulty,  and  no  one  would  have  been  imjjlicated.  Thus  the  governor,  who  would 
have  winked  at  the  proceedings  of  a  mob,  lent  his  aid  to,  or  winked  at,  the  proceed- 
ings of  mob  violence  in  the  assassination  of  Joseph  and  llyrum  Smith,  for  removing 
a  nuisance  according  to  law,  because  of  an  alleged  informality  in  the  legal  jjroceed- 
ings  or  a  legal  technicality. 

I  must  here  state  that  I  do  not  believe  Governor  Ford  would  have  planned  the 
murder  of  Joseph  and  Hyrum  Smith ;  but,  being  a  man  that  courted  popular  opin- 
ion, he  had  not  the  firmness  to  withstand  the  mob,  even  when  that  mob  were  seeking 
to  imbrue  their  hands  in  the  blood  of  innocence ;  he  lent  himself  to  their  designs, 
and  thus  became  a  partaker  of  their  evil  deeds. 

I  will  illustrate  this  vexed  question  with  the  following  official  paper,  which  ap- 
peared in  the  "Deseret  News,"  No.  30  : 

"Two  of  the  brethren  arrived  this  evening  (June  13th,  ISil),  from  Carthage,  and 
said  that  about  300  mobbers  were  assembled  there,  with  the  avowed  intention  of 
coming  against  Nauvoo.  Also  that  Hamilton  was  paying  a  dollar  per  bushel  for 
corn  to  feed  their  animals." 

The  following  was  published  in  the  Warsaw  Signal  Office ;  I  insert  it  as  a  speci- 
men of  the  unparalleled  corruption  and  diabolical  falsehood  of  which  the  human  race 
has  become  capable  in  this  generation  : 

"  At  a  mass  meeting  of  the  citizens  of  Hancock  County,  convened  at  Carthage  on 
the  11th  d.ay  of  June,  1844,  Mr.  Knox  was  appointed  President,  John  Doty  and 
Lewis  F.  Evans,  Vice-Presidents,  and  William  Y.  Head,  Secretary. 

"Henry  Stephens,  Esq.,  presented  the  folloAving  resolutions,  passed  at  a  meeting 
of  the  citizens  of  Warsaw,  and  urged  the  adoption  of  them  as  the  sense  of  this  meet- 
ing: 

"PREAMBLE  AND  RESOLUTIONS. 

"Whereas  information  has  reached  us,  about  which  there  can  be  no  question, 
that  the  authorities  of  Nauvoo  did  recently  jiass  an  ordinance  declaring  a  printing- 
press  and  newspaper  published  by  the  opponents  of  the  Prophet  a  nuisance,  and  in 
pursuance  thereof  did  direct  the  marshal  of  the  city  and  his  adherents  to  enter  by 
force  the  building  from  whence  the  paper  was  issued,  and  violently  (if  necessary)  to 
take  possession  of  the  press  and  printing  materials,  and  thereafter  to  burn  and  de- 
stroy the  same ;  and  whereas,  in  pursuance  of  said  ordinance,  the  marsh.al  and  his 
adherents,  together  with  a  mob  of  Mormons,  did,  after  sunset  on  the  evening  of  the 
10th  inst.,  violently  enter  said  building  in  a  tumultuous  manner,  burn  and  destroy 
the  press  and  other  materials  found  on  the  premises  ; 


APPENDIX  in.  545 

*'  And  wliereas.Hyrum  Smith  did,  in  presence  of  the  City  Council  and  the  citizens 
of  Nauvoo,  ofler  a  reward  for  the  destruction  of  the  printing-press  and  materials  of 
the  '  Warsaw  Signal, '  a  newspaper  also  opposed  to  his  interest ; 

"And  wlicreas  the  liberty  of  the  press  is  one  of  the  cardinal  principles  of  our  gov- 
ernment, firmly  guaranteed  by  the  several  Constitutions  of  the  states  as  well  as  the 
United  States ; 

"And  whereas  Hyrura  Smith  has  within  the  last  week  publicly  threatened  the 
life  of  oue  of  our  valued  citizens,  Tlios.  C.  Sharp,  the  editor  of  the  'Signal:' 

"Therefore  be  it  solemnly  Resolved  by  the  citizens  of  Warsaw  in  public  meeting 
assembled, 

"  That  we  view  the  recent  ordinance  of  the  city  of  Nauvoo,  and  the  proceedings 
thereunder,  as  an  outrage  of  an  alarming  character,  revolutionary  and  tyrannical  in 
its  tendency,  and,  being  under  color  of  law,  as  calculated  to  subvert  and  destroy  in 
the  minds  of  the  community  all  reliance  on  the  law. 

'■^Resolved,  That  as  a  community  we  feel  anxious,  when  possible,  to  redress  our 
grievances  by  legal  remedies  ;  but  the  time  has  now  arrived  when  the  law  has  ceased 
to  be  a  protection  to  our  lives  and  property ;  a  mob  at  Nauvoo,  under  a  city  ordi- 
nance, has  violated  the  highest  privilege  in  our  government,  and  to  seek  redress  in 
the  ordinary  mode  would  be  utterly  ineffectual. 

'■'■Resolved,  That  the  public  threat  made  in  the  council  of  the  city  not  only  to  de- 
stroy our  printing-press,  but  to  take  the  life  of  its  editor,  is  suflScient,  in  connection 
with  the  recent  outrage,  to  command  the  efforts  and  the  services  of  every  good  citi- 
zen to  put  an  immediate  stop  to  the  career  of  the  mad  Prophet  and  his  demoniac 
coadjutors.  We  must  not  only  defend  ourselves  from  danger,  but  we  must  resolutely 
carry  the  war  into  the  enemy's  camp.  We  do  therefore  declare  that  we  will  sustain 
our  press  and  the  editor  at  all  hazards.  That  we  will  take  full  vengeance — terrible 
vengeance,  should  the  lives  of  any  of  our  citizens  be  lost  in  the  effoi-t.  That  we  hold 
ourselves  at  all  times  in  readiness  to  co-operate  with  our  fellow-citizens  in  this  state, 
Missouri,  and  Iowa,  to  exterminate — utterly  exterminate,  the  wicked  and  abomi- 
nable Mormon  leaders,  the  authors  of  our  troubles. 

^^ Resolved,  That  a  committee  of  five  be  appointed  forthwith  to  notify  all  persons 
in  our  township  suspected  of  being  the  tools  of  the  Prophet  to  leave  immediately  on 
pain  of  INSTANT  vengeance.  And  we  do  recommend  the  inhabitants  of  the  adjacent 
townships  to  do  the  same,  hereby  pledging  om-selves  to  render  all  the  assistance  they 
may  require. 

^'Resolved,  That  the  time,  in  our  opinion,  has  arrived  when  the  adherents  of  Smith, 
as  a  body,  should  be  driven  from  tlie  surrounding  settlements  into  Nauvoo ;  that  the 
Prophet  and  his  miscreant  adherents  should  then  be  demanded  at  their  hands,  and 
if  not  surrendered,  a  war  of  extermination  should  be  waged,  to  the  entire  de- 
struction, if  necessary  for  our  protection,  of  his  adherents.  And  we  do  hereby  rec- 
ommend this  resolution  to  the  consideration  of  the  several  townships,  to  the  Mass 
Convention  to  be  held  at  Carthage,  hereby  pledging  ourselves  to  aid  to  the  utmost 
the  complete  consummation  of  the  object  in  view,  that  we  may  thereby  be  utterly  re- 
lieved of  the  alarm,  anxiety,  and  trouble  to  which  we  are  now  subjected. 

' '  Resolved,  That  every  citizen  arm  himself,  to  be  prepared  to  sustain  the  resolu- 
tions herein  contained. 

"Mr.  Roosevelt  rose  and  made  a  brief  but  eloquent  speech,  and  called  upon  the 
citizens  throughout  the  country  to  render  efficient  aid  in  carrying  out  the  spirit  of 
the  resolutions.  Mr.  Roosevelt  then  moved  that  a  committee  of  seven  be  appointed 
by  the  chair  to  draft  resolutions  expressive  of  our  action  in  future. 

"Mr.  Catlin  moved  to  amend  the  motion  of  Mr.  Roosevelt  so  that  the  committee 
should  consist  of  one  from  each  precinct ;  which  motion,  as  amended,  w^as  adopted. 

"The  chair  then  appointed  the  following  as  said  committee:  Colonel  Levi  Wil- 
liams, Rocky  Run  Precinct ;  Joel  Catlin,  Augusta ;  Samuel  Williams,  Carthage ; 
Elisha  Worrell,  Chili;  Captain  Maddison,  St.  Mary's;  John  M.  Ferris,  Fountain 
Green ;  James  Rice,  Pilot  Grove ;  John  Cams,  Bear  Creek ;  C.  L.  Higbee,  Nau- 
voo ;  George  Robinson,  La  Harpe  ;  and  George  Rockwell,  Warsaw. 

"On  motion  of  Mr.  Sympson,  Walter  Bagby,  Esq.,  was  requested  to  address  the 
meeting  during  the  absence  of  the  committee.  He  spoke  long  and  eloquently  upon 
the  cause  of  our  grievances,  and  expressed  his  belief  that  the  time  was  now  at  hand 
when  we  were  individually  and  collectively  called  upon  to  repel  the  innovations  upon 
our  liberties,  and  suggested  that  points  be  designated  as  places  of  encampment  at 
which  to  rendezvous  our  forces,  that  we  may  be  ready,  when  called  upon,  for  efficient 
action, 

M  M 


546  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 

"Dr.  Barns,  one  of  the  persons  who  went  with  the  oflScers  to  Nauvoo  for  the  pur- 
pose of  arresting  the  rioters,  having  just  arrived,  came  into  the  meeting,  and  report- 
ed the  result  of  their  proceedings,  which  was,  that  the  persons  charged  in  the  writs 
were  duly  arrested,  but  taken  from  the  officer's  hands  on  a  writ  oi habeas  corpus  from 
the  Municipal  Court,  and  discharged,  and  the  following  potent  words  entered  upon 
the  records — honorably  discharged. 

"On  motion  of  O.  C.  Skinner,  Esq.,  a  vote  of  thanks  was  tendered  to  Dr.  Barns 
for  volunteering  his  services  in  executing  said  writs. 

"Francis  M.  Higbee  was  now  loudly  called  for.  He  stated  his  personal  knowl- 
edge of  the  Mormons  from  their  earliest  history,  throughout  their  hellish  career  in 
Missouri  and  this  state,  which  had  been  characterized  by  the  darkest  and  most  dia- 
bolical deeds  which  had  ever  disgraced  humanity. 

"The  committee  appointed  to  draft  resolutions  brought  in  the  following  report, 
which,  after  some  considerable  discussion,  was  unanimously  adopted : 

"  '  Whereas  the  officer  charged  with  the  execution  of  a  writ  against  Joseph  Smith 
and  others,  for  riot  in  the  County  of  Hancock,  which  said  writ  said  officer  has  served 
upon  said  Smith  and  others ;  and  whereas  said  Smith  and  others  refuse  to  obey  the 
mandate  of  said  writ ;  and  whereas,  in  the  opinion  of  this  meeting,  it  is  impossible 
for  the  said  officer  to  raise  a  posse  of  sufficient  strength  to  execute  said  writ;  and 
whereas  it  is  the  opinion  of  this  meeting  that  the  riot  is  still  progressing,  and  that 
violence  is  meditated  and  determined  on,  it  is  the  opinion  of  this  meeting  that  the 
circumstances  of  the  case  require  the  interposition  of  executive  power :  Therefore, 

"  '  Resolved,  That  a  deputation  of  two  discreet  men  be  sent  to  Springfield  to  solicit 
such  interposition. 

'' '  2d.  Resolved,  That  said  deputation  be  furnished  with  a  certified  copy  of  the 
resolution,  and  be  authorized  to  obtain  evidence  by  affidavit  and  otherwise  in  regard 
to  the  violence  which  has  already  been  committed  and  is  still  farther  meditated.' 

"Dr.  Evans  here  rose  and  expressed  his  wish  that  the  above  resolutions  would  not 
retard  our  operations,  but  that  we  would  each  one  arm  and  equip  ourselves  forth- 
with. 

"The  resolutions  passed  at  Warsaw  were  again  read  by  Dr.  Bams,  and  passed  by 
acclamation. 

"On  motion  of  A.  Sympson,  Esq.,  the  suggestion  of  Mr.  Bagby,  appointing  places 
of  encampment,  was  adopted,  to  wit :  Warsaw,  Carthage,  Green  Phiins,  Spilman's 
Landing,  Chili,  and  La  Harpe. 

"On  motion,  O.  C.  Skinner  and  Walter  Bagby,  Esqrs.,  were  appointed  a  commit- 
tee to  bear  the  resolutions  adopted  by  this  meeting  to  his  excellency  the  governor, 
requiring  his  executive  interposition. 

"On  motion  of  J.  H.  Sherman,  a  Central  Corresponding  Committee  was  ap- 
pointed. 

"Ordered,  That  J.  H.  Sherman,  H.  T.  Wilson,  Chauncy  Robinson,  Wm.  S.  Free- 
man, Thomas  Morrison,  F.  M.  Higbee,  Lyman  Prentiss,  and  Stephen  H.  Tyler  be 
said  committee. 

"  On  motion  of  George  Rockwell,  ^ 

'■'■Resolved,  That  constables  in  the  different  precincts  hold  themselves  in  readiness 
to  obey  the  officer  in  possession  of  the  writs,  whenever  called  upon,  in  summoning 
the  posse. 

"  On  motion,  the  meeting  adjourned. 

"John  Knox,  President. 

"John  Doty,  )   yice-Presidcnts 

"  Lewis  F.  Evans,    S    v  ice  i  resiacnts. 

"  W.  Y.  Head,  Secretary." 

The  following  will  conclude  the  "  Expositor  Question :" 

"  Nauvoo,  June  14th,  1844. 

"  giR^ — I  write  you  this  morning  briefly  to  inform  you  of  the  facts  relative  to  the 
removal  of  the  press  and  fixtures  of  the  '  Nauvoo  Expositor'  as  a  nuisance. 

"  The  8th  and  10th  instant  were  spent  by  the  City  Council  of  Nauvoo  in  receiving 
testimony  concerning  the  character  of  the  '  Expositor,'  and  the  character  and  designs 
of  the  proprietors. 

"In  the  investigation  it  appeared  evident  to  the  Council  that  the  proprietors  were 
a  set  of  unprincipled,  lawless  debauchees,  counterfeiters,  bogus-makers,  gamblers, 
peace-disturbers,  and  that  the  grand  object  of  said  proprietors  was  to  destroy  our 


I 


APPENDIX  IV.  547 

constitutional  rights  and  chartered  privileges ;  to  overthrow  all  good  and  wholesome 
regulations  in  society;  to  strengthen  themselves  against  the  municipality;  to  fortify 
themselves  against  the  Church  of  which  I  am  a  member,  and  destroy  all  our  relig- 
ious rights  and  privileges  by  libels,  slanders,  falsehoods,  perjury,  etc.,  and  sticking  at 
no  coiTuption  to  accomplish  their  hellish  purposes ;  and  that  said  paper  of  itself  was 
libelous  of  the  deepest  dye,  and  very  injurious  as  a  vehicle  of  defamation,  tending  to 
corrupt  the  morals,  and  disturb  the  peace,  tranquillity,  and  happiness  of  the  whole 
community,  and  especially  that  of  Nauvoo. 

"After  a  long  and  patient  investigation  of  the  character  of  the  'Expositor,'  and 
the  characters  and  designs  of  its  proprietors,  the  Constitution,  the  Charter  (see  Ad- 
denda to  Nauvoo  Charter  from  the  Springfield  Charter,  sec.  7),  and  all  tiie  best  au- 
thorities on  the  subject  (see  Blackstone,  iii.,  5,  and  n.,  etc.,  etc.),  the  City  Council  de- 
cided that  it  was  necessary  for  the  '  peace,  benefit,  good  order,  and  regulations'  of 
said  city,  'and  for  the  protection  of  property,'  and  for  'the  happiness  and  prosperity 
of  the  citizens  of  Nauvoo,'  that  said  'Expositor'  should  be  removed;  and  declaring 
said  '  Expositor'  a  nuisance,  ordered  the  maj^or  to  cause  them  to  be  removed  without 
delay,  which  order  was  committed  to  the  marshal  by  due  process,  and  by  him  exe- 
cuted the  same  day,  by  removing  the  paper,  press,  and  fixtures  into  the  streets,  and 
burning  the  same ;  all  which  was  done  without  riot,  noise,  tumult,  or  confusion,  as 
has  already  been  proved  before  the  municipality  of  the  city;  and  the  particulars  of 
the  whole  transaction  may  be  expected  in  our  next '  Nauvoo  Neighbor.' 

"I  send  you  this  hasty  sketch  that  your  excellency  may  be  aware  of  the  lying  re- 
ports that  are  now  being  circulated  by  our  enemies,  that  there  has  been  a  '  mob  at 
Nauvoo,'  and  'blood  and  thunder,^  and ' sivearing  (hat  tico  men  were  killed,'  etc.,  etc.,  as 
we  hear  from  abroad,  are  false — false  as  Satan  himself  could  invent,  and  that  nothing 
has  been  transacted  here  but  what  has  been  in  perfect  accordance  with  the  strictest 
principles  of  law  and  good  order  on  the  part  of  the  authorities  of  this  city ;  and  if 
your  excellency  is  not  satisfied,  and  shall  not  be  satisfied,  after  reading  the  whole 
proceedings,  which  will  be  forthcoming  soon,  and  shall  demand  an  investigation  of 
our  municipality  before  Judge  Pope,  or  any  legal  tribimal  at  the  Capitol,  you  have 
only  to  write  your  wishes,  and  we  will  be  forthcoming ;  we  will  not  trouble  you  to 
file  a  writ  or  send  an  officer  for  us. 

"I  remain,  as  ever,  a  friend  to  truth,  good  order,  and  your  excellency's  humble 
servant,  (Signed),  Joseph  Smith. 

"  His  Excellency  Thomas  Ford." 


IV. 

I  THINK  that  the  unpalatable  assertion  in  the  text  will  be  proved  by  the  following 
contrasted  extracts  from  the  London  "Times"  and  the  "Desere't  News." 

The  Black  Country. — The  reports  of  the  assistant  commissioners  engaged  in  the 
recent  education  inquiry  contain  some  very  painful  notices  of  the  state  of  morals  in 
some  parts  of  the  kingd'  m.  In  collier  villages  in  Durham,  where  the  men  earn  high 
wages,  which  they  know  no  way  of  spending  but  in  the  gratification  of  animal  appe- 
tites, the  condition  of  the  people  in  respect  to  morals  and  manners,  it  is  said,  may  not 
be  described.  Adultery  is  made  a  matter  of  mere  jest,  and  incest  also  is  frightfully 
common,  and  seems  to  excite  no  disgust.  In  some  of  those  parts  girls  mingle  with 
boys  at  school  till  13,  14,  or  15  j'ears  of  age,  and  that  in  schools  not  superintended  by 
women ;  it  is  impossible  to  state  the  coarseness  of  manners  that  prevails  in  these 
schools.  Coming  south,  into  Staffordshire,  we  are  told  that  in  the  union  of  Dudley, 
where  boys  and  girls  can  earn  high  wages,  their  independence  of  their  pai-ents'  aid 
to  maintain  them  leads  to  a  remarkable  independence  of  conduct,  and,  in  fact,  no 
restraint  is  put  upon  their  inclinations  either  by  their  parents  or  the  opinion  of  the 
neighborhood.  It  is  held  rather  a  shame  to  an  unmarried  woman  not  to  have  had  a 
child ;  and  the  assistant  commissioner,  Mr.  Coode,  says  that  the  details  given  to  him 
by  the  most  respectable  and  trustworthy  witnesses  would,  if  they  could  be  reported, 
be  discredited  by  most  men  of  the  world  only  acquainted  with  the  ordinary  profligacy 
of  the  poor ;  but  he  adds  that,  not^vithstanding  all  this,  the  behavior  and  manners  in 
other  respects  of  girls  and  women  is  not  in  public  less  decent  than  that  in  places  of 
better  repute,  and  it  is  generally  asserted  that  this  early  corruption  of  females  does 
not  hinder  them  from  being  very  good  neighbors,  and  excellent,  hard-working,  and 
affectionate  wives  and  mothers.     Education  in  this  district  is  not  much  prized  ;  it  is 


648  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 

a  common  saying,  "The  father  went  to  the  pit  and  he  made  a  fortnne,  the  son  went 
to  school  and  he  lost  it."  But  so  much  has  been  done  by  the  upper  classes  in  pro- 
viding schools  for  the  lower  that  education  is  gradually  making  its  way,  and  many 
who  can  not  read  are  ashamed  of  their  deficiency,  and  desirous  to  have  their  chil- 
dren taught.  In  a  village  where  an  energetic  clergyman,  who  has  adopted  a  rough, 
strong  style  of  preaching,  has  succeeded  in  filling  his  church,  Mr.  Coode  noticed  dur- 
ing the  service  that  all  the  people  affected  to  find  the  place  in  the  books  furnished 
to  them,  but  full  half  the  books  were  held  upside  down,  and  within  his  observation 
not  one  was  open  at  the  right  place,  except  where  some  young  person  taught  to  read 
in  the  school  was  by  to  find  it. 

An  Ordinance  relating  lo  Houses  of  Ill-fame  and  Prostitution. 

Sec.  1.  Be  it  ordained  by  the  City  Council  of  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  that  any  per- 
son or  persons  who  shall  be  found  guilty  of  keeping,  or  shall  be  an  inmate  of  any 
house  of  ill-fame,  or  place  for  the  practice  of  fornication  or  adultery,  or  knowingly 
own  or  be  interested  as  proprietor  or  landlord  of  any  such  house,  or  any  person  or 
persons  harboring  or  keeping  about  his,  her,  or  their  j.rivate  premises  any  whore- 
master,  strumpet,  or  whore,  knowing  them  to  be  guilty  of  following  a  lewd  course  of 
life,  shall  be  liable  to  a  fine  for  each  ofiense  not  exceeding  one  hundred  dollars,  or 
imprisonment  not  exceeding  six  months,  or  both  fine  and  imprisonment,  at  the  dis- 
cretion of  the  court  having  jurisdiction.  In  a  prosecution  under  this  section,  the 
person  having  charge  of  any  house  or  place  shall  be  deemed  the  keeper  thereof. 

Sec.  2.  It  shall  be  lawful,  on  the  trial  of  any  person  before  said  court  charged 
with  either  of  the  offenses  named  in  the  preceding  section,  for  the  city  to  introduce 
in  support  of  such  charge  testimony  of  the  general  character  and  reputation  of  the 
person  or  place  touching  the  offense  or  charge  set  forth  in  the  complaint,  and  the  de- 
fendant may  likewise  resort  to  testimony  of  a  like  nature  for  the  purpose  of  disprov- 
ing such  charge. 

Sec.  3.  No  person  shall  be  incapacitated  or  excused  from  testifying  touching  any 
offense  committed  by  another  against  any  of  the  provisions  set  forth  in  the  first  sec- 
tion of  this  ordinance  by  reason  of  his  or  her  having  participated  in  such  crime,  but 
the  evidence  which  may  be  given  by  such  pei'son  shall  in  no  case  be  used  against  the 
person  so  testifying. 

Sec.  4.  The  word  adultery,  as  made  use  of  in  this  ordinance,  shall  be  construed  to 
mean  the  unlawfully  cohabiting  together  of  two  persons  when  either  one  or  both  of ' 
such  persons  are  married ;  and  the  word  fornication  shall  be  construed  to  mean  the 
cohabiting  together  of  two  unmarried  persons. 

Passed  December  30th,  18G0.  A.  0.  Smoot,  Mayor. 

Egbert  Campbell,  City  Recorder. 


V.  CHRONOLOGICAL  ABSTRACT  OF  MORMON  HISTORY. 

1801.  June  1.  Birth  of  Mr.  Brigham  Young,  at  Wittingham,  Vermont,  U.  S.  In 
this  year  Mr.  Heber  C.  Kimball  also  was  born  (June  14th). 

1805.  Dec.  23.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  son  of  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  sen.,  generally  call- 
ed "Old  Father  Smith,"  and  Lucy  Mack,  known  as  "Mother  Smith," born 
at  Sharon,  Windsor  Co.,  Vermont. 

1812.  A  book  called  the  "Manuscript  Found"  was  presented  to  Mr.  Patterson,  a 
bookseller  at  Pittsburgh,  Penn.,by  Mr.  Solomon  Si)alding  or  Spaulding,  of 
Crawford,  Penn. ;  bom  in  Ashford  Co.,  and  a  graduate  of  Dartmouth  Col- 
lege. The  author  died,  the  bookseller  followed  him  in  1826,  and  the  book 
fell  into  the  hands  of  a  printer's  compositor,  Sidney  Rigdon,  one  of  the  earli- 
est Mormon  converts.  Anti-Mormons  identify  parts  of  the  "Book  of  Mor- 
mon" with  the  "Manuscript  Found."  The  Saints  deny  the  existence  of  a 
Patterson,  and  assert  that  Mr.  Spaulding's  book  was  a  mere  historical  and 
idolatrous  romance  concerning  the  Ten  Lost  Tribes,  altogether  different  from 
their  Biblion.  They  trace  the  calumny  to  a  certain  Doctor  (so  called  because 
a  seventh  son)  Philastus  Ilurlbert  or  Hnrlbut,  an  apostate  excommunicated 
for  gross  immorality,  and  bound  over  in  $500  to  keep  the  peace,  after  threat- 
ening to  murder  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.  ;  and  they  observe  that  in  those 
early  days  their  Prophet  was  too  unlearned  a  man  to  adapt  or  to  alter  a 
manuscript. 


APPENDIX  V.  549 

1814,  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  powerfully  awakened  by  the  preaching  of  Mr.  Lane,  an 

earnest  Methodist  minister. 

1815.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Smith  removed  with  their  family — Alvin,  Hyrum,  Sophronia,  Jo- 

seph, Samuel,  Ephraim,  William,  and  Catharine,  from  Vermont  to  New  York. 
They  first  lived  at  Palmyra,  Wayne  Co.,  for  ten  years,  and  then  passed  on 
to  Manchester,  Ontario  Co.,  the  site  of  the  Ilill  Cumorah,  where  they  tar- 
ried eleven  or  twelve  years. 

1820.  Many  religious  revivals  in  Western  New  York.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith  becomes 
partial  to  Methodism  (J.  Hyde,  chap.  viiL).  Early  in  the  spring  of  the  year 
occurred  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.'s  first  or  preparatory  vision  announcing  his 
ministry. 

1823.  Sept.  20.  Second  vision ;  the  Angel  of  the  Lord  revealed  in  rather  a  solemn 
way  to  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  the  existence  of  the  Gold  riates,  which,  ac- 
cording to  anti-Mormons,  he  and  his  brother  Hyrum  had  been  employed  in 
forging  and  fabricating  for  some  years.  On  the  next  day  (22d)  Mr.  Joseph 
Smitii,  jun.,  opened  the  place  where  the  Plates  were  deposited  and  saw  them. 

1825.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  was  employed  by  a  person  called  Stroude  to  dig  for 
him,  near  Hartwich,  Oswego  City,  N.  Y.  Money-diggers  were  then  common 
in  that  part  of  the  state,  seeking  the  buried  treasures  of  Captain  Kidd,  the 
buccaneer.  Near  Hartwich,  between  the  years  1818-1832,  lived  Mrs.  Spaul- 
ding,  and  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  stole  the  "Manuscript  Found"  from  a  trunk 
full  of  papers  (J.  H.). 

1827.  Jan.  18.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  married  Miss  Emma  Hale,  daughter  of  Isaac 

Hale,  of  South  Bainbridge,  Chenango  Co.,  N.  Y.  This  person  afterward  be- 
came the  Cyria  Electa,  or  Elect  Lady,  and  ended  by  apostatizing  and  mar- 
rying a  Gentile. 

Sept.  22.  The  Golden  Plates  which  the  angel  announced  were  taken  up 
from  the  Hill  Cumorah  with  a  mighty  display  of  celestial  machinery,  and 
the  Breastplate  and  the  Urim  and  Thummim  were  found.  According  to 
Gentiles,  the  latter  was  a  "peep-stone  stolen  from  Willard  Chase." 

1828.  February.  Martin  Harris,  a  farmer  from  whom  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  had 

borrowed  $50  to  defray  expenses  of  printing  the  "Book  of  Mormon,"  sub- 
mitted a  transcript  of  the  characters  to  Professor  Anthon  and  Dr.  Mitchell 
of  New  York.  The  former  pronounced  them  to  be  a  "singular  scroll,"  and 
"  evidently  copied  after  the  Mexican  Calendar  given  by  Humboldt." 

July.  Translation  of  the  "  Book  of  Mormon"  suspended  in  consequence  of 
Martin  Hari'is  stealing  (116-118?)  pages  of  the  manuscript,  which  were  never 
replaced.  For  this  reason  he  was  not  enrolled  among  the  glorious  first  six 
converts  to  Monnonism. 

1829.  April  16.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  saw  O.  Cowdery  the  first  time.     Translation 

of  the  "  Book  of  Mormon"  resumed,  O.  Cowdery  acting  as  secretary. 

May  15.  John  the  Baptist  ordained  into  the  Aaronic  priesthood  Mr.  Jo- 
seph Smith,  jun.,  and  O.  Cowdery,  his  amanuensis,  who  forthwith  baptized 
each  other. 

June  or  July.  The  Plates  of  the  "Book  of  Mormon"  were  shown  by  the 
Angel  of  God  to  the  three  earthly  witnesses — Oliver  Cowdery,  David  Whit- 
mer,  and  Martin  Harris. 

1830.  The  "  Bonk  of  Mormon"  was  translated  and  published,  and  this  year  is  No.  1 

of  the  Mormon  ^ra. 

April  0.  The  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-Day  Saints  was  organized 
at  Manchester,  N.  Y.  It  began  with  six  members  or  elders  being  ordained, 
viz.,  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  sen.,  ^Ir.  Hyrum  Smith,  Mr.  .Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  Mr. 
Samuel  Smith,  Mr.  Oliver  Cowdery,  and  Mr.  Joseph  Knight.  The  Sacrament 
was  administered,  and  hands  were  laid  on  for  the  gift  of  the  Holy  Ghost  on 
this  first  occasion  in  the  Church. 

April  11.  Oliver  Cowdery  preached  the  first  public  discourse  on  this  dis- 
pensation, and  the  principles  of  the  Gospel  as  revealed  to  Mr.  Joseph  Smith, 
jun.  During  this  month  the  first  miracle  was  performed  by  the  power  of 
God  in  Colesville,  Broome  Co.,  N.  Y. 

June  1.  First  Conference  of  the  Church  at  Fayette,  Seneca  Co.,  N.  Y. 
During  this  month  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  was  twice  arrested  on  false  pre- 
tenses, tried,  and  acquitted ;  while  his  wife,  by  special  revelation,  was  entitled 
"Elect  Lady"  and  "Daughter  of  God." 


550  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 

August.  Parley  P.  Pratt  and  Sidney  Rigdon  were  converted. 
Sept.  19.  O.  Pratt  baptized. 

October.  The  first  missionaries  to  the  Lamanites  were  appointed. 
December.   Sidney  Rigdon  visited  the  Prophet. 

1831.  January.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  set  out  for  Kirtland,  the  birthplace  of  Sid- 

ney Rigdon. 

Feb.  1.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  an-ived  at  Kirtland,  Ohio,  the  first  of  his 
many  Hegiras. 

Feb.  9.  God  commanded  the  elders  to  go  forth  in  pairs  and  preach. 

March  8.  John  Whitmer  was  appointed  Church  recorder  and  historian 
by  revelation. 

June  6.  The  Melchizedek,  or  Superior  Priesthood,  was  first  conferred  upon 
the  elders. 

June  10-19.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  and  sundry  Saints  transferred  them- 
selves from  Kirtland,  Ohio,  to  Jackson  County,  Missouri,  where  they  arrived 
in  the  middle  of  July.  The  Land  of  Zion  was  dedicated  and  consecrated 
for  the  gathering  of  the  Saints,  and  the  first  log  was  laid  in  Kaw  township, 
twelve  miles  west  of  Independence,  Missoui'i. 

Aug.  2-3.  Site  for  the  temple  of  New  Zion  dedicated,  a  little  west  of  In- 
dependence. 

Aug.  4.  First  Conference  of  the  Church  in  the  land  of  Zion  held. 

Aug.  9.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  returned  from  Independence  to  Kirtland, 
and,  arriving  about  the  end  of  the  month  (27th?),  established  the  fatal  "Kirt- 
land Safety  Society  Bank." 

1832.  March  25.   Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  and  Sidney  Rigdon  were  tarred  and  feath- 

ered by  a  mob  for  attempting  to  establish  communism  and  dishonorable  deal- 
ing, forgery,  and  swindling  (J.  H.). 

March  26.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  acknowledged  the  President  of  the 
High  Priesthood  at  a  General  Council  of  the  Church ;  visited  his  flock  in 
Missouri. 

April  2.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  left  Ohio  for  Missouri,  and  arrived  at 
Independence  on  the  24th. 

April  14.  Mr.  Brigham  Young,  converted  by  Elder  Samuel  Smith,  and 
baptized  by  Eleazar  Millard,  in  this  year  went  to  Kirtland,  Ohio,  and  became 
a  devoted  follower  of  the  Prophet. 

May  1.  At  an  CEcumenical  Council  held  at  Independence,  Mo.,  it  was  de- 
cided to  print  the  "  Book  of  Doctrines  and  Covenants." 

May  6.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  left  Missouri  for  Kirtland,  where  he  ar- 
rived in  June. 

June.  The  first  Mormon  periodical,  the  "Evening  and  Morning  Star," 
was  published  by  the  Church,  under  the  superintendence  of  Mr.  W.  W. 
Phelps,  at  Independence,  Mo.,  where  the  Saints  numbered  1200  souls. 

Nov.  6.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.'s,  son  Joseph  born  at  Kirtland,  Ohio. 

In  this  year  Mr.  Heber  C.  Kimball  was  baptized. 
1883.  Jan.  22.  Gift  of  tongues  conferred. 

Feb.  2.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  finished  his  inspired  retranslation  of  the 
New  Testament. 

March  18.  The  Quorum  of  Three  High  Priests,  viz.,  Mr.  Joseph  Smith, 
jun.,  Sidney  Rigdon,  a  Campbellite  or  reformed  Baptist  preacher,  and  Fred- 
erick G.  Williams,  an  early  convert,  was  organized  as  a  Presidency  of  the 
Church  in  Kirtland,  and  forthwith  proceeded  to  have  visions  of  the  Savior, 
of  concourses  of  angels,  etc.,  etc. 

July  2.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  finished  the  translation  of  the  Bible. 

July  20.  A  mob  of  Missourians  in  Jackson  City  tore  down  the  new  news- 
paper office,  tarred,  feathered,  and  whipped  the  'Saints.  Thereupon,  three 
days  afterward,  the  Saints  agreed  with  their  persecutors  to  leave  Jackson  Co., 
and  laid  the  corner-stone  of  the  Lord's  House  in  Kirtland. 

Sept.  11.  A  printing-press  was  established  at  Kirtland  for  the  publication 
of  the  "  Latter-Day  Saints'  Messenger  and  Advocate,"  Bishop  Partridge  be- 
ing at  the  head  of  the  Church  in  Zion. 

Oct.  8.  Elders  W.  W.  Phelps  and  O.  Hyde  presented  to  the  governors  of 
Missouri  a  petition  from  the  Saints  of  Jackson  City  praying  for  redress. 

Oct.  31.  Ten  Mormon  houses  destroyed  by  the  popidace  in  Jackson  Co. 


APPENDIX  V.  551 

Two  of  a  mob  were  killed  by  the  Saints.  "This  was  the  first  blood  shed, 
and  the  Mormons  shed  it"  (J.  H.).  Until  Nov.  4,  the  persecutions  continued 
till  the  Saints  evacuated  Jackson  Co.,  and  fled  to  Clay  Co. 

December.  Persecutions  raged  against  the  Saints  in  Van  Buren  Co.,  Mo. 

Dec.  18.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  sen.,  was  ordained  Patriarch. 

Dec.  27.  The  mob  permitted  Messrs.  Davis  and  Kelley  to  carry  the  estab- 
lishment of  the  "  Evening  and  Morning  Star"  to  Liberty,  Clay  Co.,  Mo., 
where  they  began  to  publish  the  "Missouri  Enquirer." 

1834.  Feb.  17.  A  First  Presidency  of  Three  and  a  High  Council  of  Twelve  were  first 

organized. 

Feb.  20.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun. ,  began  to  raise  a  small  army  for  carrying 
out  his  dreams  of  physical  conquest  and  temporal  sovereignty  (J.  H.) ;  also 
to  defend  himself  against  the  Missourian  mob. 

May  3.  At  a  Conference  of  Elders  in  Kiitland,  the  bo4y  ecclesiastic  was 
first  named  "The  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-Day  Saints."  The 
body  of  Zelph,  the  Lamanite,  was  dug  up  by  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  in  Il- 
linois. 

May  5.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  marched  on  Missouri  with  150  Mor- 
mons (?).  In  other  words,  left  Kirtland  for  Missouri  with  a  company  for  the 
redemption  of  Zion. 

June  19.  The  cholera  broke  out  in  "Zion's  camp"  soon  after  its  arrival  in 
Missouri,  and  a  ten'ible  storm  scattered  the  mob. 

June  23.  The  camp,  after  suffering  from  cholera,  arrived  at  Liberty,  Clay 
Co.,  Missouri. 

June  29  (or  Nov.  29  ?).  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  and  Oliver  Cowdery  first 
make  a  "Conditional  Covenant  ^\'ith  the  Lord"  that  they  would  pay  tithing. 
This  was  its  first  introduction  among  the  Latter-Day  Saints. 

July  9.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  left  Clay  Co.  and  returned  to  Kirtland, 
where  he  arrived  about  the  end  of  the  month. 

1835.  Feb.  14.  A  Quorum  of  Twelve  Apostles  was  organized,  among  whom  were 

Brighara  Young  and  Heber  C  Kimball.  The  former,  being  then  thirtj'-four 
years  old,  was  appointed  the  head  of  the  Apostolic  College,  and,  receiving 
the  gift  of  tongues,  was  sent  on  a  missionary  tour  toward  the  east. 

Feb.  21.  First  meeting  of  the  Twelve  Apostles. 

Feb.  28.  The  organization  of  the  Quorum  of  Seventies  began. 

May  3.  The  Twelve  left  Kirtland  on  their  firet  mission. 

July.  The  rolls  of  Egv^ptian  papyrus,  which  contained  the  writings  of 
Abraham  and  Joseph  in  Egypt,*  were  obtained  in  the  early  part  of  this 
month. 

Aug.  17.  At  a  General  Assembly  at  Kirtland,  the  "Book  of  Doctrines  and 
Covenants"  was  accepted  as  a  rule  of  faith  and  practice,  including  the  "  Lec- 
tures on  Faith"  delivered  by  Sidney  Rigdon. 

1836.  Jan.  4.  A  Hebrew  professorship  established  at  Kirtland. 

Jan.  21.  The  authorities  of  the  Church  in  Kirtland  met  in  the  Temple 
school-room,  and  anointed  and  blessed  one  another,  when  visions  of  heaven 
were  opened  to  many. 

March  24-27.  The  House  of  the  Lord  in  Kirtland,  costing  $40,000,  was 
dedicated. 

April  3.  In  the  House  of  the  Lord,  the  Savior,  Moses,  Elias,  and  Elijah 
appeared  to  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  and  O.  Cowdery,  and  delivered  the  keys 
of  the  several  priesthoods,  and  unlimited  power  in  things  temporal  and  spir- 
itual. 

May.  The  Mormons  were  requested  by  the  citizens  to  remove  from  Clay 
Co.,  Mo.,  to  Carroll,  Davies,  and  Caldwell  Counties,  and  founded  the  city  of 
"Far  West"  in  Caldwell  Co. 

1837.  June  12.  Messrs.  H.  C.  Kimball  and  O.  Hyde,  and  on  the  13th  W.  Eichards, 

set  out  to  convert  England  (returned  in  July,  1838).  This  was  the  first  or- 
ganized foreign  mission, 

July  20.  Elders  H.  C.Kimball,  0.  Hyde,  W. Eichards,  J.  Goodson,  T.Rus- 
sell, and  Priest  J.  Fielding,  leaving  Kirtland  on  June  13,  sailed  from  New 

•  "  Nemo  mortalium  omnibus  horia  sapit"  is  well  proved  by  the  Mormon  attempts  to  decipher  hie- 
roglyphics. M.  Remy  has  given,  with  the  assistance  of  M.  f  huodule  Devoria,  a  terrible  blow  to  the 
Bw>k  of  Abraham  in  the  seventeenth  note  at  the  end  of  his  second  volume. 


552  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 

York  in  the  ship  "Garrick"  (July  1),  and  landed  at  Liverpool.  Three  days 
afterward  Preston  had  the  honor  of  first  hearing  the  preaching  of  the  Gos- 
pel as  revealed  to  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.  The  first  baptism  by  divine  au- 
thority was  performed  by  immersion  in  the  River  Kibble  (July  30),  and  the 
first  confirmation  of  members  took  place  at  Walkerford  Chaidgey  (Aug.  4). 

July  27.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  was  prosecuted  with  a  vexatious  lawsuit 
at  Painesville,  Ohio. 

Sept.  27.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  left  Kirtland  to  establish  gathering- 
places  and  visit  the  Saints  in  Missouri,  and  arrived  in  Far  West  about  the 
last  of  October  or  the  first  of  November. 

Dec.  10.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  arrived  in  Kirtland  from  Missouri. 

Dec.  25.  The  first  Conference  of  Mormons  in  England  was  held  in  the 
Cock-pit,  Preston.  An  extensive  apostasy  befell  during  this  month  in  Kirt- 
land, Ohip;  and  the  "Safety  Society  Bank"  failed,  to  the  great  scandal  of 
Morraondom. 
1838.  Jan.  12.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  and  Sidney  Rigdon  fled  from  Kirtland  to  es- 
cape mob  violence,  and  arrived  at  Far  West  on  March  l-t. 

April  12  and  13.  Martin  Harris,  Oliver  Cowdery,  and  David  Whitmer, 
the  three  witnesses  to  the  "Book  of  Mormon"  (others  say  O.  Cowdeiy,  D. 
Whitmer,  and  L.  E.  Johnson),  charged  with  lying,  theft,  counterfeiting,  and 
defaming  the  Prophet's  character,  were  cut  off  from  the  Church  (J.  H.). 
Orson  Hyde,  Thos.  B.  Marsh,  W.  W.  Phelps,  and  others  apostatized,  accused 
the  Prophet  of  being  accessory  to  several  thefts  and  murders,  and  of  med- 
itating a  tyranny  over  that  part  of  Missouri,  and  eventually  over  the  whole 
republic  (J.  H.). 

April  20.  Elders  H.  C.  Kimball  and  O.  Hyde  sailed  from  Liverpool  on 
their  return  home. 

July  4.  Sidney  Eigdon,  in  an  anniversary  discourse  called  "Sidney's  Last 
Sermon,"  threatened  Gentiles  and  apostates  with  violence;  the  "Danite 
Band,"  according  to  anti-Moimons,  was  at  once  organized. 

July  G.  The  Saints  were  again  persecuted ;  565  Saints  left  Kirtland  for 
Missouri,  and  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  was  carried  before  Judge  King. 

Aug.  6.  Troubles  in  Gallatin  Co.  occasioned  by  elections.  The  Mormons 
say  that  persecutions  of  the  Saints  commenced  in  Davies  Co.,  Mo. 

Aug.  and  Sept.  Emeutes  between  the  mob  and  the  Mormons :  the  latter 
seized  sixty  to  eighty  stand  of  anns  at  Richmond,  and  fired  on  the  militia, 
mistaking  them  for  the  mob.  The  militia,  after  losing  several  of  their  num- 
ber, returned  the  fire,  killing  Mr.  D.  W.  Patten  (J.  H.). 

Sept.  7.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jr.,  was  tried  before  Judge  King,  of  Davies  Co. 

Sept.  25.  The  Saints,  attempting  political  rule  in  Davies  Co.,  were  at- 
tacked by  the  citizen  mob,  who  murmured  at  being  placed  imder  Mormon 
rule  (J.  II.),  and  forced  the  intruders  to  vacate.  Mr.  Brigham  Young  fled 
for  his  life  to  Quincy,  111. 

Oct.  1.  After  a  battle  in  Carroll  Co.,  Mo.,  the  Saints  agreed  to  evacuate 
the  town  of  De  Witt,  Carroll  Co.  (Oct.  11). 

Oct.  25.  At  the  battle  of  Crooked  River,  D.  W.  Patten,  alias  Captain  Fear- 
not,  the  head  of  the  Danites,  was  killed  (Mormon  Calendar). 

Oct.  27.  General  Lilburn  W.  Boggs,  of  Missouri,  issued  his  "extermina- 
tion order"  to  General  J.  B.  Clark. 

Oct.  30.  The  militia  (mob),  to  revenge  the  death  of  their  comrades, 
slaughtered  sixteen  Mormons  and  two  boys  at  Haun's  Mills. 

Oct.  31.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  and  others,  were  betrayed  by  J.  M. 
Hinckle. 

Nov.  1.  General  J.  B.  Clark,  with  a  military  force,  surrounded  Far  West, 
and  took  prisoners  (by  stratagem)  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  Mr.  Hyrum  Smith, 
and  forty  others,  who  were  placed  in  jail,  tried  by  court-martial,  and  sen- 
tenced to  be  shot — a  catastrophe  prevented  by  General  Doniphan.  The 
Saints  gave  up  their  arms,  and  Far  West  was  plundered  by  the  mob. 

Nov.  2.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  and  his  fellow-prisoners  left  Far  West  for 
Independence. 

Nov.  4.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  and  his  fellow-prisoners  were  kindly  re- 
ceived at  Independence. 

Nov.  12.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith  and  52  others  were  tried  at  Richmond,  Ray 


APPENDIX  V.  553 

Co.,  Mo.,  and,  after  a  narrow  escape  from  being  shot  by  the  militia,  were 
handed  to  the  civil  authorities,  placed  in  close  confinement  in  Liberty  jail, 
and  released. 

December.  The  Saints  withdrew  into  Illinois. 

1839.  Feb.  14  and  March  26.  Mr.  Brigham  Young  and  others  fled  from  Far  West  to 

Illinois,  and  attempted  to  relay  the  foundations  of  the  Temple  at  the  New 
Jerusalem,  twelve  miles  west  of  Independence,  Jackson  Co.,  Missouri. 

April  G.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  and  his  fellow-prisoners  were  removed 
for  trial  from  Richmond  to  Gallatin,  Davies  Co. 

April  9.  The  trial  of  the  prisoner  commenced  before  Judge  King. 

April  15.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  and  his  companions  left  Davies  for 
Boone  Co.,  and  on  the  way  escaped  from  their  jailor-guards. 

April  lS-22.  The  Saints  evacuated  Far  West,  and  arrived  with  Mr.  Joseph 
Smith,  Jan.,  at  Quincy,  Illinois. 

April  2G.  Mr.  Brigham  Young  privily  laid  the  foundation  of  a  Temple  at 
Independence  (M.  Remy).  A  Conference  was  held  at  the  Temple  Lot,  in 
Far  West,  in  fulfillment" of  a  revelation  given  July  8th,  1838.  (Appendix  to 
"Compendium  of  Faith  and  Doctrines,''  etc.) 

May  9.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  visited  Commerce,  Hancock  Co.,  Illinois, 
at  the  invitation  of  Dr.  Isaac  Galland,  of  whom  he  obtained,  gratis,  a  large 
tract  of  land  to  induce  the  ^lormons  to  immigrate,  and  upon  the  receipt  of 
revelation  called  his  people  around  him,  and  sold  them  the  town  lots  (J.  H.). 

June  11.  The  first  house  was  built  by  the  Saints  at  Commerce,  a  new 
"State  of  Zion,"  afterward  called  Nauvoo — the  beautiful  site — which  pres- 
ently contained  15,000  souls. 

June  27.   Orson  Hyde,  the  Apostle,  returned  to  the  Church. 

July  i.  P.  P.  Pratt  and  Morris  Phelps  escaped  from  the  jail  in  Columbia, 
Boone  Co.,  Missouri. 

Aug.  29.  Elders  P.  P.  Pratt  and  O.  Pratt  set  out  on  their  first  mission  to 
England,  followed  on  Sept.  18  bv  Elders  Brigham  Young  and  H.  C.  Kimball, 
and  on  Sept.  20,  21,  by  Elders  G.  A.  Smith,  R.  Hedlock,  and  T.  Turley :  O. 
Hyde,  though  previously  appointed  by  revelation,  did  not  accompany  them 
(J.  H. ).     The  result  was  a  body  of  709  converts. 

Oct.  29.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  S.  Rigdon,  E.  Higbee,  and  O.  P.  RockweU, 
the  chief  of  the  Danites,  set  out  from  Nauvoo  as  delegates  from  the  Church 
to  the  general  government,  and  arrived  on  the  28th  of  November  at  Wash- 
ington, D.  C,  seeking  to  obtain  redress  from  Congress  for  their  losses  in 
Missouri. 

1840.  March  4.  Jlr.  Joseph  Smith,  jun.,  returned  from  Washington  to  Nauvoo. 

March  9.  Elders  Young,  Kimball,  P.  P.  Pratt,  O.  Pratt,  Smith,  and  Hed- 
lock sailed  from  New  York  for  England. 

April  6.  The  English  mission  from  New  York  landed  at  Liverpool. 

April  15.  Elder  O.  Hyde  set  out  from  Nauvoo  on  a  mission  to  Jeru- 
salem. 

April  21.  Commerce  was  finally  named  Nauvoo. 

May  27.  The  first  number  of  the  "Latter-Day  Saints'  Millennial  Star" 
was  published  at  Manchester.  ■ 

June  6.  The  first  company  of  emigrating  Saints  sailed  from  Liverpool,  and 
reached  New  York  in  July  20.  About  the  1st  of  June  appeared  the  first 
English  edition  of  the  "Latter-Day  Saints'  Hymn  Book." 

Aug.  7.  The  first  regular  company  of  200  emigrants,  conducted  by  Elders 
Theodore  Turley,  a  returning  missionary,  and  William  Clayton,  an  early 
English  convert,  sailed  from  Liverpool  to  New  York. 

Sept.  14.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  sen.,  died  at  Nauvoo. 

Oct.  3.  The  Mormons  began  to  build  their  Temple,  and  petitioned  the 
Legislature  of  Illinois  for  the  incorporation  of  Nauvoo. 

Dec.  IG.  The  municipal  charter  of  the  city  of  Nauvoo  became  law. 

1841.  January.  The  first  English  edition  of  the  "Book  of  Mormon"  was  published. 

Feb.  4.  The  Nauvoo  Corporation  Act,  passed  in  the  preceding  winter, 
began  to  be  in  force.  The  Nauvoo  Legion  was  organized  by  Mr.  Joseph 
Smith,  who  made  himself  its  lieutenant  general. 

April  6.  The  comer-stone  of  the  House  of  the  Lord  in  Nauvoo  was  laid. 
A  second  mission,  composed  of  Elders  B.  Young,  H.  C.  Kimball,  O.  Pratt, 


554  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 

W.  Woodruff,  J.  Taylor,  G.  A.  Smith,  and  W.  Eichards  left  New  York  on 
April  2d,  and  landed  at  Liverpool  on  May  20. 

June  5.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith  was  arrested  under  a  requisition  from  the  Gov- 
ernor of  the  State  of  Missouri,  was  tried  at  Monmouth,  Illinois,  on  the  9th, 
and  was  acquitted  on  the  next  day. 

July  1.  Messrs.  Brigham  Young  and  Heber  C.  Kimball  returned  from  En- 
gland. 

Nov.  8.  The  baptismal  font  in  Nauvoo  Temple  was  dedicated. 

1842.  March  1.  "Book  of  Abraham"  translated  and  published  in  "Times  and  Sea- 

sons." 

May  6.  Attempt  to  assassinate  Lieutenant  Governor  Boggs,  attributed  to 
O.  P.  Rockwell. 

May  19.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith  made  Mayor  of  Nauvoo. 

Aug.  G.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith  prophesied  that  the  Saints  would  be  driven  to 
the  Rocky  Mountains. 

Aug.  8.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith  arrested  a  second  time  under  circumstances 
similar  to  those  of  the  first. 

Dec.  7.  Mr.  O.  Hyde  returned  from  his  mission  to  Palestine. 

Dec.  26.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  charged  with  assassination,  was  arrested  a 
third  time  under  a  requisition  from  the  Governor  of  the  State  of  Missouri. 

In  this  year  polygamy  began  to  be  whispered  about  Nauvoo  (J.  H.). 

1843.  Jan.  5.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith  acquitted  at  Springville. 

Jan.  20.   Mr.  O.  Pratt  received  b.ick  into  the  Church. 

May  6.  Lieutenant  Governor  L.  W.  Boggs  (under  Governor  D.  Dunklin), 
of  Missouri  (who  had  oft'ended  the  Mormons  by  driving  them  from  the  state 
in  1838),  was  shot  in  the  mouth  through  an  open  window — an  act  generally 
attributed  to  O.  P.  Rockwell,  Chief  of  the  Danites,  "with  the  connivance 
and  under  the  instructions  of  Joseph  Smith"  (J.  H.).  In  this  year  Mr.  Jo- 
seph Smith  became  Mayor  of  Nauvoo,  vice  J.  C.  Bennett,  "cut  off  for  im- 
itating Smith  in  his  spiritual  wifedom"  (J.  H.).  Anti-Mormons  declare  that 
in  1843  polygamy  was  enjoined  a  second  time,  but  not  practiced  till  1852. 

June  23.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith  again  arrested,  and  released  on  July  2. 

July  12.  Revelation  enjoining  polygamy  received. 

Aug.  30.  General  J.  A.  Bennett  baptized. 

Nov.  4.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith  sent  his  letters  to  the  candidates  for  the  Pres- 
idency of  the  United  States. 

Nov.  28.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith  addresses  a  memorial  to  Congress  respecting 
the  transactions  at  Missouri. 

1844.  Feb.  7.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith  issued  his  address  as  candidate  for  the  Presidency 

of  the  United  States. 

May  17.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith  was  carried  in  triumph  through  the  streets  of 
Nauvoo. 

May  4.  Francis  M.  Higbee,  expelled  for  disobedience  from  the  Church, 
prosecuted  Mr.  Joseph  Smith  for  slander,  and  arrested  him  under  a  capias: 
the  defendant  then  sued  out  a  habeas  corpus  before  the  Municipal  Court  of 
Nauvoo,  of  which  he  was  mayor. 

May  G.  Dr.  R.  D.  Foster  and  Mr.AVilliam  Law,  having  libeled,  in  the 
"Expositor"  paper,  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  accusing  him  of  having  taken  to  spir- 
itual wife  Mrs.  Foster,  were  punished  by  the  marshal  and  municipal  officers, 
who,  with  a  posse,  broke  the  press  as  a  nuisance,  and  burned  the  types.  The 
libelers  fled,  and  took  out  a  warrant  against  Mr.  Joseph  Smith  and  others, 
who  resisted  and  repelled  the  officer  in  charge,  whereupon  the  militia  was 
ordered  out. 

June  13.  The  Gentiles  armed  against  the  Mormons. 

June  17.  Mr.  Joseph  Smith  arrested  and  released. 

June  24.  Governor  Ford,  of  Illinois,  persuaded  the  Smiths,  under  the 
pledge  of  his  word,  and  the  faith  .and  honor  of  the  state,  to  yield  up  their 
arms,  and  sent  them  prisoners  under  the  charge  of  sixty  militia-men,  the 
Carth.age  Grays,  a  highly  hostile  body,  commanded  by  Captain  Smith,  to 
Carthage,  the  capital  of  H.ancock  Co.,  eighteen  to  twenty  miles  from  Nau- 
voo, where  5000  Mormons  were  in  arms. 

June  25.  The  prisoners  were  arrested  by  the  constable  on  a  charge  of 
treason. 


APPENDIX  V.  555 

June  26.  The  governor  again  pledged  himself  for  the  personal  safety  of 
his  prisoners. 

June  27  (Thursday).  A  body  of  200  armed  Missourians,  with  their  faces 
painted  and  blackened,  broke  into  Carthage  jail,  and  at  5  P.M.  murdered,  in 
a  most  cowardly  and  brutal  manner,  Mr.  Joseph  Smith  and  his  brother  Hy- 
rum,and  desperately  wounded  Mr.  John  Taylor ;  Dr.Willard  Richards  alone 
escaping. 

Aug.  15.  The  Twelve  Apostles,  with  Mr.  Brigham  Young  at  the  head, 
assumed  the  Presidency  of  the  Church,  and  addressed  an  Encyclical  to  "all 
the  Saints  in  the  world." 

Oct.  7.  Mr.  Brigham  Young,  the  President  of  the  Twelve  Apostles,  came 
from  Boston,  and  succeeded  to  the  Presidency  of  the  Church,  defeating  Sid- 
ney Rigdon,  who  was  forthwith  cut  off,  and  delivered  over  to  the  buflctings 
of  Satan. 

Nov.  17.  Mr.  David  Smith,  son  of  the  Prophet,  born  at  the  Nauvoo  Man- 
sion. 

1845.  The  Mormon  leaders  determined  to  abandon  Nauvoo. 

May.  The  capstone  of  the  Mormon  Temple  was  laid,  and  endowments  be- 
gan. 

Sept.  11.  Twenty-nine  Mormon  houses  burnt  by  the  Gentiles. 

Sept.  24.  The  charter  of  Nauvoo  was  repealed  by  the  State  Legislature. 
The  authorities  of  the  Church  made  a  treaty  with  the  mob  to  evacuate  the 
"  Beautiful  City"  on  the  following  spring.  Several  places  were  proposed : 
Vancouver's  Island  by  Mr.  John  Taylor,  Texas  by  Mr.  Lyman  Wight,  Cali- 
fornia by  others ;  at  last  they  chose  some  valley  in  the  Eocky  Mountains 
(J.  II.). 

1846.  January.  Baptism  for  the  dead  was  administered  in  the  Mississippi  River ;  on 

the  26th.  a  band  of  Mormon  pioneers  left  Nauvoo,  and  "located"  at  Council 
Bluffs,  Iowa. 

February.  The  firet  Mormon  exodus  began  with  this  month ;  2000  souls 
crossed  the  frozen  Mississippi  en  route  for  Council  Bluffs. 

April  24.  The  exiled  Saints  arrived  at  Garden  Grove,  Iowa  Territory. 

May  1.  Dedication  of  the  Temple  at  Nauvoo. 

May  16.  The  pioneer  camp  of  the  Saints  arrived  at  Mount  Pisgah,  Iowa 
Territory. 

June-July.  Tlie  Mormon  battalion  (500  men),  on  being  called  for  by  the 
general  government,  set  out  for  the  Mexican  campaign.  "Mr.  Brigham 
Yoimg  sells  a  company  of  his  brethren  for  $20,000"  (J.  H.).  "You  shall 
have  your  battalion  at  once,  if  it  has  to  be  a  class  of  our  elders, "  said  Mr. 
Brigham  Young  (Captain  H.  Stansbury). 

Sept.  10-13.  After  three  days  of  fighting  the  few  survi\'ing  Saints  were 
expelled  from  Nauvoo  in  a  "cruel,  cowardly,  and  brutal  manner." 

Sept.  16.  The  trustees  of  the  Church  in  Nauvoo  made  a  treaty  with  the 
mob  for  the  surrender  of  their  city,  and  its  immediate  evacuation  by  the 
remnant  of  the  Saints.  Toward  the  end  of  this  year  and  the  beginning  of 
the  next,  the  Quorum  of  Three  was  reorganized  at  a  special  conference,  held 
at  Council  Bluffs,  Iowa,  Mr.  Brigham  Young  nominating  his  coadjutors. 
The  "Twelve"  delivered  themselves  of  an  epistle  to  the  Saints,  urging  them 
to  recommence  the  gathering. 

1847.  April  14.  The  pioneer  band,  143  men,  headed  by  Mr.  Brigham  Young,  and 

driving  seventy  wagons,  left  winter  quarters,  Omaha  Nation,  on  the  west 
bank  of  the  Missouri  River,  and  followed  Colonel  Fremont's  trail  over  the 
Rocky  Mountains. 

July  23.  Messrs.  O.  Pratt,  W.  Woodruff,  and  a  few  others  arrived  at  the 
valley  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake. 

July  24.  Mr.  Brigham  Young  and  the  main  body  entered  the  valley  on 
this  day,  which  became  a  solemn  anniversary  in  the  Church.  The  Mormons 
proceeded  to  lay  the  foundations  of  the  city. 

Oct.  31.  Mr.  Brigham  Young  returned  to  Council  Bluffs. 

1848.  Feb.  20.  The  emigration  from  England  reopened  after  a  suspension  of  two 

years. 

May.  Mr.  Brigham  Young  (whose  appointment  had  been  confirmed  by  a 
General  Conference  held  at  Kanesville,  Iowa)  left  winter  quarters  the  sec- 


556 


THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 


ond  time,  and,  followed  by  Mr.  H.  C.  KimbaU  and  the  mass  of  the  Saints, 
reached  the  Promised  Land  in  September. 

September.  Some  ^lormons  who  had  started  from  New  York  for  San 
Francisco,  expecting  to  find  the  Church  in  California  or  Vancouver's  Island, 
arrived  in  Great  Salt  Lake  Citv  from  the  West. 

Nov.  10.   The  Temple  in  Nauvoo  burnt. 
18-19.  March  5.  At  a  convention  held  in  Great  Salt  Lake  Citv  the  Constitution  of 
the  State  of  Desere't  was  drafted,  and  the  Legislature  was  elected  under  its 
provisions. 

July  2.  Delegates  sent  to  Washington  petitioned  for  admission  into  the 
Union  as  a  free,  sovereign,  and  independent  state. 

August.  Captain  Stansburj-  and  Lieutenant  Gunnison,  Topographical  En- 
gineers, by  order  of  the  federal  government,  suiTeved  Great  Salt  Lake  Val- 
ley. 

Sept.  9.  A  bill  organizing  Utah  Territory  was  signed  by  President  Fill- 
more. The  Perpetual  Emigration  Fund  was  organized.  Five  Yutas  were 
killed  in  battle  by  Captain  John  Scott  and  his  Mormons. 

1850.  April  5.   The  Assembly  met,  and  Utah  Territory  was  duly  organized. 

May  27.  The  walls  of  the  Temple  at  Nauvoo  were  blown  down  by  a  hur- 
ricane. 

June  1-t.  The  first  missionaries  to  Scandina^aa  landed  in  Copenhagen, 
Denmark. 

June  15.  The  first  number  of  the  "Deseret  News"  appeared  under  the 
editorship  of  Dr.  "Willard  Richards. 

Aug.  12.  The  first  baptisms  in  Denmark  by  legal  authority  in  this  Dis- 
pensation took  place. 

Sept.  9.  The  "Act"  for  organizing  the  Territory  of  Utah  became  a  law. 
Mr.  Brigham  Young  was  appointed  Governor  and  Superintendent  of  Indian 
Afi'airs  in  L'tah  Temtory  by  President  Fillmore,  w^ho  signed  the  act.  The 
judges,  Brocchus,  Day,  and  Brandeburg,  and  Mr.  Secretary  Harris,  arrived 
at  Great  Salt  Lake  City. 

Sept.  22.  Judge  Brocchus  insulted  the  people,  and,  accompanied  by  the 
other  federal  oflBcers,  fled  from  the  Ten-itor}% 

Oct.  13.  The  first  company  of  Perpetual  Emigration  Fund  emigrants  ar- 
rived in  Great  Salt  Lake  City  from  the  L'nited  States. 

Dec.  7.  The  first  branch  of  the  Church  in  France  was  organized  at  Paris. 

In  1850  was  the  Indian  War.  iSIr.  Higbee  was  the  first  white  settler  slain, 
and  many  of  the  Yutas  were  killed. 

1851.  Jan.  9.  Great  Salt  Lake  City  was  incorporated. 

Feb.  3.  Mr.  Brigham  Young  sworn  in  as  Governor  of  Utah. 

April  5.  Legislature  of  Provisional  State  of  Desere't  dissolved.  The  Legis- 
lative Assembly  was  elected  under  the  Territorial  Bill.  A  memorial  signed 
by  13,000  names  was  forwarded  to  her  Britannic  majesty's  government,  pro- 
posing for  a  relief  by  emigration  of  a  portion  of  the  poorer  subjects  to  colo- 
nize Oregon  or  Vancouver's  Island,  the  latter  being  about  the  dimensions  of 
England. 

April  7.  The  Tabernacle  was  built,  and  at  a  General  Conference  in  Great 
Salt  Lake  City  it  was  voted  to  build  a  Temple. 

Sept.  22.  Opening  of  the  Legislature  of  Utah  Territory.  Great  trouble 
with  the  government  of  the  United  States  fomented  by  the  federal  officials' 
march.  The  Legislature  forbade  by  ordinances  the  sale  of  anns,  ammuni- 
tion, and  spirituous  liquors  to  the  Indians. 

Dec.  13.  Parovan  City,  on  Centre  Creek,  Iron  Co.,  Utah  Territory,  founded. 

1852.  June.  Fifteen  Frenchmen  baptized  in  Paris. 

Aug.  29.  The  revelation  on  the  celestial  law  of  marriage,  alias  polygamy 
(bearing  date  1843),  was  published  by  Mr.  Brigham  Young. 

Sept.  3.  The  first  company  of  Perpetual  Emigration  Fund. converts  from 
Europe  reached  Great  Salt  Lake  City. 

Dec.  13.  The  Legislative  Assembly  of  Utah  Territory  met  for  the  first 
time.  The  judges  and  the  Secretarj-  of  State  appointed  by  President  Pierce 
came  to  hand. 

1853.  Jan.  17.  The  Desere't  Iron  Company  was  chartered  by  the  Legislature  of  Utah 

Territory. 


APPENDIX  V.  557 

Jan.  25.  The  missionary  elders  O.  Spencer  and  J.  Hontz  anived  in  Ber- 
lin, Prussia,  and  were  banished  on  the  2d  of  February. 

Feb.  14.  Temple  Block  was  consecrated,  ground  was  broken  for  the  found- 
ation of  tlie  Temple,  and  the  excavations  began. 

March  7.  The  first  missionaries  to  Gibraltar  arrived  there. 

April  6.  Corner-stone  of  the  new  Temple  laid  with  religious  rites. 

In  the  summer  (July)  and  autumn  of  this  year  were  serious  Indian  troubles. 
At  6  A.M.,  Oct.  26th,  Lieutenant  J.  W.  Gunnison  and  eight  men  of  his  party, 
including  the  botanist,  M.  Creutzfeldt,  were  massacred  on  the  border  of  Se- 
vier River,  twenty  miles  north  of  Lake  Sevier. 

Nov.  1.  The  first  number  of  the  "Journal  of  Discourses"  was  published 
in  England.  This  year  Keokuk  was  made  the  outfitting  place  for  emi- 
grants. 

1854.  January.  New  alphabet  adopted  by  the  University  of  Desere't. 

April  7.  Mr.  J.  M.  Grant  was  appointed  to  the  First  Presidency,  vice  W. 
Richards,  deceased  on  March  11th. 

May  23.  The  patriarch  John  Smith  died,  and  was  succeeded  by  another 
John  Smith,  son  of  Hyrum  Smith,  and  nephew  of  the  Prophet. 

June  28.  John  Smith,  son  of  Hyrum  Smith,  was  appointed  Patriarch  over 
the  Church. 

August.  Colonel  Steptoe,  commanding  about  1000  federal  troops,  arrived 
at  Great  Salt  Lake  City. 

Sept.  9.  At  the  instance  of  Colonel  Steptoe,  who  refused  to  resign  his  mil- 
itary commission,  Mr.  Brigham  Young  was  reappointed  governor,  and  held 
the  office  until  1857.     Even  the  Gentiles  memorialized  in  his  favor. 

1855.  Jan.  29.  Walchor,  alias  Wakara,  alias  Walker,  chief  of  the  Yuta  Indians,  died 

(was  secretly  put  to  death  and  buried  by  Jordan,  Mr.  Chandless). 

May  5.  Endowment  House  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City  consecrated. 

May  11.  Treaty  of  peace  concluded  with  the  Yuta  Indians. 

May.  Colonel  Steptoe,  after  a  stay  of  six  months,  marched  with  the  United 
States  cavalry  to  California. 

August  (July  ?).  Judge  Drummond,  Surveyor  General  Burr,  and  other 
United  States  officials,  arrived  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City. 

In  the  fall  of  this  year  one  third  of  the  crops  was  destroyed  by  drought  and 
grasshoppers. 

October.  A  branch  of  the  Church  was  organized  in  Dresden  (15th) ;  Elder 
O.  Spencer  died  on  the  29th.  The  First  Presidency  of  the  Church  proposed 
in  a  general  epistle  that  Saints  emigrating  by  the  Perpetual  Emigration  Fund 
should  cross  the  Prairies  and  Rocky  Mountains  with  hand-carts. 

Dec.  10.  The  local  Legislature  met  for  the  first  time  at  Fillmore,  the  Ter- 
ritorial capital,  and  passed  a  bill  authorizing  an  election  of  delegates  to  a 
Territorial  Convention  for  the  purpose  of  forming  a  State  Constitution,  and 
to  petition  Congress  for  the  admission  of  Utah  into  the  Union.  They  also 
passed  a  bill  authorizing  a  census. 

Most  of  the  Mormons  became  polygaraists(J.H.). 

1856.  March  17.  A  convention  of  delegates  met  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  and  adopt- 

ed a  State  Constitution,  sending  Messrs.  John  Taylor  and  George  A.  Smith, 
apostles,  both  as  delegates  to  Washington,  with  a  view  to  obtaining  admission 
into  the  Union  as  a  state.  No  answer  was  returned.  During  the  very  se- 
vere winter  and  spring  half  the  stock  perished  by  frost,  and  grain  became 
very  scarce. 

May.  Judge  W.  W.  Drummond  left  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  after  having 
forwarded  false  charges  of  rebellion,  burning  the  library,  and  destroying  the 
archives:  these  reports  caused  all  the  troubles  with  the  United  States. 

The  practice  of  tithe-paying  was  introduced  among  the  Saints  in  Europe. 
Iowa  City  was  made  the  outfit  point  for  the  Plains. 

June.     Lucy  Mack,  the  Prophet's  mother,  died. 

Sept.  26.  The  first  hand-cart  train  crossed  the  Plains,  and  arrived  at  Great 
Salt  Lake  City. 

1857.  (The  winter  of  Mormon  discontent.)    March.  Judge  Drummond  reported  cal- 

umnies against  the  Mormons. 

April.  Surveyor  General  Burr  and  other  United  States  ofiScials  left  Utah 
Territory  and  returned  to  the  United  States. 


558  THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 

The  Territorial  Legislature  petitioned  Congress  to  send  better  officers,  or 
to  permit  the  Monnons  to  appoint  bona  fide  citizens  and  residents.' 

Mail  communication  with  the  States — the  "Y  Express"  established  by 
Mr.  Brigham  Young — was  cut  off,  to  keep  the  Mormons  ignorant  of  tlie  steps 
taken  against  them,  and  this  continued  for  nearly  a  year.  The  Press  in  the 
United  States  generally  opined  that  the  Mormons  were  to  be  "wiped  out." 

May  14.  Apostle  Parley  P.Pratt  killed  by  Hector  M'Lean  in  Kansas. 

June  29.  Brigadier  General  W.  S.  Harney,  commanding  Fort  Leaven- 
worth, was  ordered  to  take  charge  of  the  array  of  Utah.  He  was  removed 
after  declaring  that  he  would  "hang  Brigham  first  and  try  him  afterward," 
and  was  succeeded  first  by  Colonel  Alexander,  and  afterward  by  General 
Johnston. 

Sept.  3,  4.  Indians  aided  by  white  men  massacred  115  to  120  emigrants 
at  Mountain  Meadow. 

In  this  month  1400  men,  artillery  and  liners  of  the  5th  and  10th  regiments, 
appeared  upon  the  Sweetwater,  followed  by  1000  more,  making  the  whole  force 
amount  to  2400  men,  a  kind  of  2>osse  coiuitatus  to  enforce  obedience  to  the 
federal  laws. 

Sept.  15.  Mr.  Brigham  Young  issued  the  remarkable  document  subjoined.* 
General  Wells  was  ordered  to  occupy  the  passes  in  the  Wasach  Mountains, 
and  20 IG  Mormons  prepared  to  defend  their  hearths  and  homes  against  the 
violence  of  the  United  States.  Captain  Van  Vliet  arrived  at  Great  Salt 
Lake  City. 

Oct.  5-6.  The  Mormons,  who  were  "spoiling  for  a  fight,"  burned,  with- 
out the  orders  of  their  governor,  two  provision  trains,  one  of  fifty-one  and 
the  other  of  twenty-three  wagons,  causing  great  want  and  violent  exaspera- 
tion in  the  army  of  Utah. 

•         ProcJaviation  by  the  Governor,  proclaiming  Martial  Law  in  the  Territory  of  Utah. 

"  Citizens  of  Utah, — We  are  invaded  by  a  hostile  force,  who  are  evidently  assailing  us  to  accom- 
plish our  overthrow  and  destruction. 

"  For  the  last  twenty-five  years  we  have  trusted  officials  of  the  government,  from  constables  and 
justices  to  judges  govemon',  and  presidents,  only  to  be  scorned,  held  in  derision,  insulted,  and  betray- 
ed. Our  houses  have  been  plundered  and  then  burned,  our  fields  laid  waste,  our  principal  men  butch- 
ered while  vindcr  the  pledged  faith  of  the  government  for  their  safety,  and  our  families  driven  from 
their  homes  to  find  that  shelter  in  the  barren  wilderness,  and  that  protection  among  hostile  savages, 
which  were  denied  them  in  the  boasted  abodes  of  Christianity  and  civilization. 

"The  Constitution  of  our  common  country  guarantees  unto  us  all  that  we  do  now  or  have  ever 
claimed. 

"If  the  constitutional  rights  which  pertain  unto  us  as  American  citizens  were  extended  to  Utah, 
according  to  the  spirit  and  meaning  thereof,  and  fairly  and  impartially  administered,  it  is  all  that  we 
could  ask — all  that  we  have  ever  asked. 

"  Our  opponents  have  availed  themselves  of  prejudice  existing  against  us  because  of  our  religious 
faith  to  send  out  a  formidable  liost  to  accomplisli  our  destruction.  AVe  have  had  no  privilege,  no  op- 
portunity of  defending  ourselves  from  the  false,  foul,  and  unjust  aspersions  against  us  before  the  na- 
tion. The  government  has  not  condescended  to  cause  an  investigating  committee  or  otlier  person  to 
be  sent  to  inquire  into  and  ascertain  the  truth,  as  is  customary  in  such  cases. 

"AVe  know  those  aspersions  to  be  false,  but  that  avails  us  nothing.  AVe  are  condemned  unheard, 
and  forced  to  an  issue  with  an  armed  mercenary  mob,  which  has  been  sent  against  us  at  tlie  instiga- 
tion of  anonymous  letter-writers  ashamed  to  father  the  base,  slanderous  falsehoods  which  they  have 
given  to  the  public ;  of  corrupt  officials,  who  have  brought  false  accusations  against  us  to  screen  them- 
selves in  their  own  infamy;  and  of  hireling  priests  and  howling  editors,  who  prostitute  the  truth  for 
filthy  lucre's  sake. 

"  The  issue  which  has  been  thus  forced  upon  n?  compels  us  to  resort  to  the  great  fii-st  law  of  sclf- 
preseiration,  and  stand  in  our  own  defense — a  right  guaranteed  unto  us  by  the  genius  of  the  institu- 
tions of  our  country,  and  upon  which  the  government  is  based. 

"Our  duty  to  ourselves,  to  our  families,  requires  us  not  to  tamely  submit  to  be  driven  and  slain 
■without  an  attempt  to  preserve  ourselves.  Our  duty  to  our  country,  our  holy  religion,  our  God,  to 
freedom  and  liberty,  requires  that  we  should  not  quietly  stand  still  and  see  those  fetters  forging 
around  which  are  calculated  to  enslave  and  bring  us  in  subjection  to  an  unlawful  military  despotism, 
such  as  can  only  emanate  [in  a  country  of  constitutional  law]  from  usurpation,  tyranny,  and  oppres- 
sion. 

"  Therefore  I,  Brigham  Young,  Governor  and  Superintendent  of  Indian  Affaii's  for  the  Territory 
of  Utah,  in  the  name  of  the  people  of  the  United  States  in  the  Territory  of  Utah, 

"  Ist.  Forbid  all  armed  forces,  of  every  description,  from  coming  into  this  Territory  under  any  pre- 
tense whatever. 

"  2d.  That  all  the  forces  in  said  Territory  hold  themselves  in  readiness  to  march  at  a  moment's 
notice,  to  r  p?l  any  and  all  such  invasion. 

"3d.  Martial  law  is  litreby  declared  to  exist  in  this  Territory  from  and  after  the  publication  of 
this  proclamation ;  and  no  person  shall  be  allowed  to  pass  or  repass  into,  or  through,  or  from  tliis  Ter- 
ritory without  a  permit  from  the  proper  officer. 

"  Given  under  my  hand  and  seal  at  Great  .Salt  Lake  City,  Territory  of  Utah,  this  fifteenth  day  of 
,     September,  A.I),  eighteen  hundred  and  fifty-seven,  and  of  the  Independence  of  the  United 

^^■^'    Steleaof  America  the  eighty-second,  Bbigiiam  YounG." 


APPENDIX  V.  559 

NoTcmber.  Army  of  Utali  encamped  near  Green  Eiver. 

Nov.  21.  Proclamation  of  Mr.  Gumming,  the  new  governor. 

Dec.  15.  Mr.  Brigham  Young's  message  to  the  Legislature  of  Utah. 
1858.  Jan.  IG.  Address  of  citizens  of  Great  ISalt  Lake  City  sent  to  President  Bu- 
chanan. 

February.  Colonel  Kane  reached  Great  Salt  Lake  City. 

April  5.  Governor  A.  Gumming  appointed  to  Utah  Territory  after  the 
thankless  offer  had  been  refused  by  sixteen  or  seventeen  political  persons; 
left  Camp  Scott,  near  Fort  Bridger,  and  on  the  12th  of  April  entered  Great 
Salt  Lake  City.     The  "rebellion  in  Utah" found  to  be  a  pure  invention. 

Mr.  Brigham  Young,  followed  by  25,000  souls,  marched  to  Provo,  with 
their  stock,  flocks,  and  chattels,  even  their  furniture. 

April  15.  Governor  Gumming  officially  reported  a  respectful  reception, 
and  the  illumination  of  Echo  Kanyon ;  also  that  the  records  of  the  United 
States  Courts,  then  in  charge  of  a  Mormon,  Mr.  W.  H.  Hooper,  Secretary  joro 
tent.,  the  Territorial  Library,  in  charge  of  Mr.  W.  C.  Staines,  and  other  pub- 
lic property,  were  all  unimpaired,  the  contrary  report  having  constituted  the 
causa  belli. 

April  2i.  Governor  Gumming  issued  a  proclamation  that  he  would  as- 
sume effective  protection  of  all  persons  illegally  restrained  of  their  liberty  in 
Utah.  Few  availed  themselves  of  his  offer.  The  Indian  agent.  Dr.  T. 
Garland  Hurt,  was  accused  of  having  incited  the  Uinta  Indians  to  acts  of 
hostility  against  the  Mormons — a  standing  charge  and  counter  charge  in  the 
United  States. 

May  21.  The  governor  made  a  requisition  that  "no  hinderance  maybe 
hereafter  presented  to  the  commercial,  postal,  or  social  communications 
throughout  the  Territoiy." 

May  29.  The  "Peace  Commissioners"  from  Washington,  ex-Governor  Laz- 
arus W.  Powell,  of  Kentucky,  and  Major  Ben  M'CuUoch,  of  Texas,  the  cel- 
ebrated Indian  fighter,  arrived  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City  (where  they  staid  till 
June  2),  and  after  proclaiming  a  general  amnesty  and  free  pardon,  obtained 
permission  for  the  army  of  Utah  to  enter  the  Territory,  and  to  encamp  at  a 
place  not  nearer  than  forty  miles  from  New  Zion. 

June  12.  Mr.  Brigham  Young  ti'eated  with  the  Peace  Commissioners. 

June  14:.  The  President's  pardon  "for  all  treasons  and  seditions"  was  pro- 
claimed by  the  governor,  and  accepted  by  the  citizens. 

June  26.  The  federal  troops,  having  left  Camp  Scott,  passed  through  the 
deserted  City  of  the  Saints,  led  by  Lieutenant  Colonel  Cooke,  who  rode,  ac- 
cording to  Mormon  report,  with  head  uncovered :  they  remained  for  two  days 
encamped  on  the  Jordan,  outside  the  settlement,  and  then  moved  twelve  to 
fifteen  miles  westward  for  wood  and  grass. 

1859.  The  Legislature  sat  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City. 

Judge  Charles  S.  Sinclair  attempted  to  break  faith  by  misinterpreting  the 
amnesty,  and  nearly  caused  collision  between  the  federal  troops  and  the  Mor- 
mons. 

The  Hon.  John  Cradlebaugh,  ex-officio  judge  of  the  Second  Judicial  Dis- 
trict Court,  Utah  Territory,  quartered  a  company  of  110  men  in  the  court- 
house and  public  buildings  of  Provo,  thereby  causing  disturbances :  Govern- 
or Gumming  protested  against  the  proceeding. 

The  Dcsere't  currency  plates  were  seized  at  Mr.  Brigham  Young's  house. 

Jan.  2.  Religious  service,  interrupted  by  the  war,  again  performed  in  the 
Tabernacle. 

Feb.  28.  Troubles  between  the  citizens  at  Uush  Valley  and  the  federal 
troops  under  General  A.  J.  Johnston,  commanding  the  Department  of  Utah. 

March  25.  Mr.  Howard  Spencer,  nephew  of  Mr.  Daniel  Spencer,  was  se- 
verely wounded  by  First  Sergeant  Ralph  Pike,  Company  I  of  the  10th  Regi- 
ment. 

Aug.  10.  Sergeant  Pike,  summoned  for  trial  to  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  was 
shot  in  the  street,  it  is  supposed  by  Mr.  H.  Spencer. 

In  this  month  the  citizens  of  Carson  Valley  declared  themselves  independ- 
ent of  Utah  Territory. 

1860.  Mr.  Forney,  Indian  Superintendent,  Utah  Temtory,  and  highly  hostile  to  the 

Mormons,  was  removed. 


^ 


560 


THE  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 


Troubles  with  the  troops.     Mr.  Heneage,  a  Mormon  citizen,  was  flogged 
at  a  cart's  tail  by  two  federal  officers  under  a  little  mistake. 

June  20.  Major  Ormsby  (militia)  and  his  force  destroyed  by  the  Indians 
near  Honey  Lake. 
1861.  The  federal  troops  evacuated  the  Land  of  the  Saints. 


INDEX. 


Aborigines,  American.    See  Indians.  [Arroyo,  fiumara  or  nullah,  an,  70. 

Absinthe.     i.-e«  Sage,  wUd.  Arrow-poison  of  the  Indians,  4S2. 

Academy  of  the  7tli  Ward  of  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  Arrows  of  the  North  American  Indian,  119,  UO. 


3G0. 
Adobe  manufactory  near  Great  Salt  Lake  City, 

344-5. 
Adobe  of  the  Western  World,  197. 

"     origin  of  the  name,  197,  iiote. 
Adoption  among  the  North  American  Indians,  117. 

"        Mormon  principle  of,  269. 
Adultery,  Mormon  punishment  for,  426. 
Agricultural  Society  of  Deseret,  316. 
Agriculture,  list  of  premiums  awarded  at  the  an- 
nual show,  2S5-287,  note. 
Agriculture,  present  state  of,  in  Great  Salt  Lake 

Valley,  2S5. 
Alamo.     See  Cotton-wood-tree. 
Albino,  rarity  of  an,  among  the  Indians,  104. 
Albinos  among  buffaloes,  51. 
Alcoliol  distilled  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  320. 
Alexander,  Colonel  B. ,  his  hospitality,  90. 
Algse  in  Great  Salt  Lake,  326. 
Algarobia  grandulosa,  or  mezquite-tree,  7. 
Alkali  Lake,  153. 

"        "     Station  on  the  Platte  Kiver,  54. 
Almanac,  the,  published  in  Utah,  253. 
America,  shape  of  the  continent  of,  6. 
American  Foik,  447. 
'•Americanisms,  Dictionary  of,"  Bartlett's,  quoted, 

17,  note. 
Animal  life,  absence  of,  on  the  Gr.and  Prairie,  IS. 
"        "    in  the  American  Sahara,  04. 
"      worehip  of  the  American  Indians,  103. 
Animals  and  vegetables,  confusing  trivial  names 

for,  in  .\raerica,  142,  note. 
Animals,  Indian  signs  for,  126. 
"         of  the  Uinta  Hills,  173. 
''         small  quantity  of  food  required  to  fiitten, 
in  the  Rocky  Mountains  and  in  Somali-land,  140. 
Animals,  wild,  at  Kocky  Bridge,  159. 

"  "     in  the  wooded  heights  of  the  Wind- 

River  Mountains,  165. 
Animals,  wild,  of  the  Black  Hills,  142. 

"  "     of  the  Rattlesnake  Hills,  153. 

"  "     of  Utah  Territory,  279. 

Antelope  at  Rocky  Ridge,  159. 
"        its  habitat,  67. 
"        its  meat,  67. 

"        or  Church  Island,  194,  323,  327. 
"        Springs,  464,  465. 
"        the  (.\ntelocapra  Americana),  67. 
Ant-hUls,  196. 

Apadoraey  female  warriors,  113. 
Arapaho,  or  Dirty-Nose  Indians,  14^,  143. 
"        loose  conduct  of,  117. 
"        sign  of  the  tribe  of,  123,  124 
"        their  lodges,  86. 
"        their  personal  appearance,  143,  144 
'■'■        visit  of  some,  from  a  neighboring  camp, 
142. 
Archery,  Sioux  skill  in,  120. 
Arickaree,  or  Ree  Indians,  37. 
Arms  of  the  North  American  Indians,  57,  119 
"•     ignorance  of  the  lower  grades  of  English  of 
the  use  of,  174. 
Army  of  the  United  States,  remarks  on  the,  336. 
"     grievances  of  the,  445. 


Arrow-wood  (Viburnum  dentatum),  119. 

Art  in  America,  remarks  on,  186,  1S7. 

Artemisia.     See  Sage,  wild. 

Asclepias  tuberosa,  common  in  Utah  Territory,  167. 

Ash  Hollow,  70. 

'        "        General  Harney's  defeat  of  the  Brule 

Sioux  at,  70,  S.i. 
Ash-Hollow  Creek,  70. 
Asslniboin  Indians,  97. 

*•'       their  present  habitat,  100. 
River,  100. 
Aurora  borealis,  a  splendid,  in  the  prairies,  61. 
Avena  fatua  of  the  Pacific  Water-shed,  139. 

Badeau's  Ranch,  or  Laramie  City,  SS. 
Badgers  at  Rocky-Bridge  Station,  161. 
Bartlett's  "  Dictionary  of  AmericanLims"'  quoted, 

17,  note. 
Basswood,  17. 

"  Basswood  Mormons,"  17,  note. 
Bath,  the  hot  air  and  water,  of  the  North  Amer- 
ican Indian,  119. 
Bathing  and  its  dangers,  156. 
Battle  Creek,  447. 
Bauchmin's  Creek,  189,  190. 

"■  "•      vaUey  of,  189. 

"•  Fork,  1S9. 

"  "      station  at,  189. 

"Bear's  Rib,"  Mato  Chigukesa,  made  chief  of  the 

Brule  Sioux,  89. 
Bear  Bay,  182. 

flesh  of  the,  as  food,  231. 
in  Cotton- wood  Kan  von,  347. 
of  the  Black  Hills,  142. 
River,  1S2,  138,  325. 

"     coal  found  on  the  banks  of,  182. 
"     Mountains,  174 
Springs,  in  Utah  Territory,  274 
the  grizzly,  193. 
traps,  347. 
Beavers  in  the  torrent-bed  of  Echo  Kanyon,  187. 

tails  of,  as  food,  231. 
Bedstead,  populousness  of,  202. 
Bee,  a,  on  the  topmost  summit  of  the  Rocky  Mount- 
ains, 165. 
Bee  House  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  246. 
Beer,  or  Soda  Springs,  179. 

«     of  Great  Salt  Lake  Citv,  320. 
Beet-root  grown  in  Great  Salt  Lake  Valley,  287. 
Bell,  Governor,  of  Great  Salt  Lake  <.;ity,  215. 
Bench-land  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake  Valley,  195. 
Bennett,  J.  C,  his  work  on  the  Mormons,  205,  note. 
Big  Field,  near  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  198. 
Bighorn,  or  American  moufflon,  153,  155. 
Big  Kanyon,  192. 
Big  Mountain,  190. 
''  "  pass  of  the,  190,  191. 

Bill  of  fare  at  a  supper  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  232. 
Birds  near  Fort  Kearney,  48. 
"     of  Utah  Territory,  280. 
"     wild,  of  the  South  Pass  of  the  Rocky  Mount- 
ains, 165. 
Bishops,  the  Mormon,  400. 
Bison  Americanus.     See  Buffalo. 


Nn 


562 


INDEX. 


Bissonette,  51.,  the  Creole,  139. 
Blackfeet,  or  Sisahapa  Indians,  93. 
"         sign  of  the  tribe  of,  124. 
"         their  friendliness  to  whites,  165. 
"         tlieir  lodges,  86. 
Black  HilU,  the,  91. 

"         "     the,  animals  to  which  they  afford  shel- 
ter, 142. 
Black  Hills,  geography  of  the,  134. 
Black  Rock,  near  Great  Salt  Lake,  324 

"        "     view  from  the,  330. 
Black's  Fork  Kiver,  174,  176. 

"  "     vegetation  of,  177,  178. 

Bloomer  dress,  91,  92. 
Blue  River,  Big,  29. 
"        "      Little,  38. 
"        "  "     fish  of  the,  3S. 

Bine-Earth  River,  Indians  west  of,  96. 
Bluffs  on  the  prairies,  29. 
Bogus,  origin  of  the  term,  417,  note. 
Bonhomme  Island,  sand-banks  at,  15. 
"  Book  of  Mormon,"  the.    See  "•  Mormon,  Book  o£" 
Books  nece:-sary  to  the  Western  traveler,  10. 

"     on  Mormonism,  list  of,  203,  7iote. 
Botany  of  Utah  Territory,  280. 
Boulders,  huge  natural  pile  of,  Brigham's  Peak,  136. 

"        in  Great  Cotton-wood  Kanyon,  346. 
Bow  and  arrow  of  the  North  American  Indian,  119. 
Bowery,  the,  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  220. 

"       visit  to  the,  258. 
Box-Elder  Creek,  136. 
Boys,  Indian,  59. 
"Brass,  City  of,"  of  the  Arabs,  78. 
Braves,  Indian,  57. 
Bread  made  in  the  prairies,  84 
Bread-root  of  the  Western  hunters,  182,  TWte. 
Breakfast  in  the  prairies,  84. 
Brewery,  Utah,  332. 

Brick-making  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  344,  34.5. 
Bridger,  Colonel  James,  the  celebrated  trapper,  178. 
"       Fort,  178. 

"       Range  of  the  Uinta  Hills,  176. 
Bridle  and  bit  used  on  the  prairies,  27. 
Brigham's  Kanyon,  194, 235. 
'••         Peak,  136. 

"  "      the  driver's  story  of,  136. 

"British-English"  Mormons  on  the  road  to  Great 

Salt  Lake  City,  137. 
Brule  .Sioux  Indians,  their  habitat,  93.    See  Sioux. 
Brutisch,  Giovanni,  the  Venetian,  4S5. 
Bugs,  bed,  160,  note. 

"     other,  160,  note. 
Buffalo,  absence  of  the,  on  the  Grand  Prairie,  18. 
"       annual  destruction  of,  50. 
"       berry,  the,  cultivated  in  Great  Salt  Lake 
City,  170,  note. 
Buffalo,  Britishers  and  buffalo  sliooting,  73. 

"       extinct  westward  of  the  Rocky  Mountains, 
50. 
Buffalo,  former  and  present  number  of,  50. 
"      grass,  51. 
"       herds  of,  48. 

"       Indian  mode  of  hunting  it,  51,  52. 
"       Indian  mode  of  preparing  the  skins  of,  52, 
"•       its  habits,  51. 

"       number  of  robes  purchased  by  the  several 
companies,  49,  note. 
Buffalo,  three  great  families  of,  50. 
"       uses  to  which  it  is  put,  51,  52. 
"       wild,  as  compared  with  tame  meat,  49. 
Bullock,  \V.  T.,  the  Mormon,  419. 
Bunch-grass,  139. 

"      ''    its  geographical  limits,  139. 
"  proposed  acclimatization  of,  140. 

Bundling  among  the  North  American  Indians,  116. 

"        antiquity  of  the  practice,  116,  note. 
"Bunk,"  the,  at  Lodge-Pole  Station,  66. 
Bumt-Tliigh  Indians,  their  habitat,  98. 
Butt«  Station,  468. 
Buttes,  Red,  trading-post  of,  146. 

"       meaning  of  the  word,  146,  note. 
Batterfield,  or  American  Express,  route  of  the,  3. 


Butterfield,  or  American  Express,  its  receipts  from 
government,  4 

Cache  Cave,  134. 

"••   Valley,  335. 
Cacti  of  the  American  wilderness,  64. 
Cactus,  intoxicating,  64,  note. 
Calidarium,  the  Indian,  119. 
California,  establishment  of  the  mail-coach  route 

from  Missouri  to,  4. 
California,  roads  from  Great  Salt  Lake  City  to,  452. 
"  slope  and  surface  of  the  land  of,  8. 

"  time  for  setting  out  foi-,  138. 

Calumet,  the,  regarded  as  a  sacred  instrument, 

112. 
Camel  corps,  proposal  for  establishing  a,  for  Amer- 
ican outpost  duty,  46. 
Camp  Floyd,  description  of,  334. 
"         "      hatred  of  the  Moimons  expressed  at, 
339. 
Camp  Floyd,  position  of  the  camp,  446. 
"      second  visit  to,  444 
"      the  sick  certificate,  342. 
"      trip  to,  331. 
Scott,  near  Fort  Bridger,  179. 
Canadians,  French,  settled  in  the  Far  West,  152. 
Canis  latrans,  the,  64. 
Cannibals,  how  far  the  North  American  Indians 

are,  117. 
Cannon  River,  Indians  west  of,  96. 
Card-playing  among  the  North  American  Indians, 

117. 
Carrington,  Albert  O.,  the  Mormon,  242. 

'  Island,  327. 

Carson  City,  494,  496. 

"         "     lawless  violence  of,  288. 
"      House  Station,  189. 
"      Kit,  the  celebrated  guide  and  Indian  in- 
terpreter, 178. 
Carson  Lake,  274,  491. 

River,  493. 
Carter,  Judge,  and  his  store,  179. 
Caswall,  Rev.  Hemy,  his  works  on  Mormonism, 

205,  note. 
Cattle  starved  in  some  regions,  138. 

numbers  of  skeletons  seen,  138. 
Cedar  Creek,  334. 

"     effect  of  climate  upon  the  growth  of  the,  41. 
"     gradually  diminishing,  53. 
"     Island,  the  first,  in  the  Missouri,  41. 
"     the  name,  as  used  in  the  United  States,  70, 
note. 
Ceremony  and  manners,  Indian  want  of,  118. 
Chamizo,  or  greasewood,  158. 
Chandless,  WUliam,  his  work  on  Mormonism,  204, 

note. 
Cherokees,  their  present  condition,  35. 

"         their  lodges,  86. 
Cheyenne  Indians,  the,  99. 

"  "        sign  of  their  tribe,  124. 

"  "        their  chastity,  117. 

"  "        their  lodges,  86. 

Chieftainship  among  tlie  Indians,  117. 
Children,  Indian  fondness  for,  103. 
Indian,  59. 

of  the  Monnons,  422-3. 
of  the  Prophet,  249. 
Chimney  Rock,  the,  74 
China-town,  Carson  River,  496. 
Chinche,  or  bug,  the,  160,  note. 
"Chip"  fires  in  the  prairies,  48. 
Chipmonk,  or  Chipmuk,  the,  159,  note. 
Chippewas.     See  Ojibwa  Indians?. 
Choctaw  Indians,  their  lodges,  80. 
Chokop's  Pass,  480. 
Chronology  of  the  most  important  events  recorded 

in  the  Book  of  Mormon,  411. 
Chugwater,  the,  90. 

Church  Butte,  geological  formation  of,  176. 
Churchill,  Fort,  493. 

Cities,  formation  of,  in  Utah  Territory,  291. 
City-Creek  Kanyon,  195. 


INDEX. 


563 


Climate  of  Platto  Bridge,  137. 

"       of  the  country  near  Fort  Bridger,  1T9, 180. 
"       of  Utah  Territory,  275. 
(Uotliing  necessary  to  tlie  Prairie  traveler,  10. 
Coaches,  mail,  from  Missouri  to  (JalUbrnia  and  Or- 
egon, 4. 
Coaches,  materials  of  which  they  are  made,  13. 
"       slow  rate  of  traveling,  5. 
"       the  "Concord  coach,"  12. 
Coal  found  on  tlie  banks  of  the  Hear  and  "Weber 

Rivers,  and  at  Silver  Creek,  182. 
Coal  in  Nebraska,  141. 
"    in  Utah  Territory,  2S1. 
"    near  Sulphur  Creek,  1S3. 
"    on  the  banks  of  the  Platte  River,  141. 
Cold  Springs,  in  Kansas,  18. 
"  "        squatter  life  at,  19. 

"  "        Station,  487. 

Cold-Water  Ranch,  49. 
Colorado,  Rio,  fountain-head  of  the,  163. 
Columbia  River,  fountain-head  of  the,  162, 
Comanche  Indians,  the,  CO,  note. 

"  "         their  lodges,  SO. 

Compass,  the  prairie,  48. 
"Concord  coach,"  description  of  the,  12. 
Conference,  description  of  a  .Mormon,  302-9. 
Constitution  of  the  State  of  Deser  Jt,  289,  note. 
Cookery,  dirty,  of  Indian  squaws,  SO. 

"        bill,  in  the  prairie?,  84. 
Coon's  Kanyon,  194 
Copperas  Springs,  ISl. 
Coi-poration  of  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  315. 
Corrals,  mode  of  forming,  70. 
Corrill,  John,  his  work  on  Mormonisra,  205,  note. 
Cotton  grown  in  Great  Salt  Lake  Valley,  2S7. 
Cotton-weed,  the,  64. 
Cotton-wood  Creek,  30. 

"  Kanyon,  Great,  343. 

"  "  "       celebration  of  Mor- 

mon Independence  Day  at,  34">,  note. 
Cotton-wood  Kanyon,  Great,  timber  of,  284,  285. 
"  "  "       visit  to,  846. 

"  Lake,  Great,  347. 

"  Station,  in  Nebra.'ika,  30,  49. 

"  tree,  the,  or  Alamo,  32. 

"  "     its  uses,  32. 

Cougar,  the,  or  mountain  lion,  153,  and  note. 
Council  Bluffs,  the  natural  crossing  of  the  Mis- 
souri, 71,  note. 
Council  Hall  of  the  Seventies  in  Great  Salt  Lake 

City,  229. 
Council,  the  High,  of  the  Mormons,  401. 
Counties,  list  of,  of  Utah  Territory,  291-3. 
(Joureurs  des  bois,  or  unlicensed  peddlers,  81. 
Court-house  Ridge,  the,  72. 

"  "      description  of  it,  72. 

"  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  417. 

"  interesting  case  tried  in  the,  417. 

Cox,  Daniel,  his  idea  of  a  water  communication 
between  the  ilissouri  and  the  Columbia  Rivers, 
102,  163,  note. 
Coyotes,  or  jackals  of  the  Western  World,  64. 
"        at  Rocky-Bridge  Station,  100,  101. 
"        in  Echo  Kanyon,  ISS. 
"        near  Black"  .s  Fork,  170. 
Cree  Indians,  their  habitat,  100. 
Creek,  Ash-Hollow,  70. 
"      Battle,  447. 
"      Bauchmin's,  189,  190. 
"      Box-Elder,  130. 
"      Cedar,  334. 
"      Cotton-wood,  30. 
"      Deer,  138. 
"      Dry,  483. 
"      Egan's,  183. 
"      Grasshopper,  21. 
"      Horse,  79. 
"      Hoi-seshoe,  165. 
"      Kanyon,  Big,  191. 
"  "         East,  189. 

"      Kiowa,  Little,  79. 
"      La  Bontc,  135. 


Creek,  Meadow,  451. 

'      Mill,  195. 

'      Muddy,  Little,  140. 

'      Nemehaw,  Big,  21. 

'      Omaha,  or  Little  Punkin,  7L 

'      Pacific,  160. 

'      Plum,  48. 

'       Quaking  Asp,  161. 

'      Sandy,  71. 

'  "        Big,  107. 

'  "       Little,  167. 

'      Sheawit,  482. 

'      Shell,  405,  466. 

'      Silver,  182. 

'      Smith's,  480. 

'      Snow,  140. 

'      Strawberry,  16L 

'      Sulphur,  ISl. 

'      Thirty-two-inile,  33. 

'      Turkey,  30. 

'      Vermilion,  27. 

'      Walnut,  21. 

'      Willow,  161,  461. 

'      Yellow,  183. 
Creeks,  or  "criks"  in  America,  21. 
Crickets  (Anabrus  simplex?),  scourge  of,  in  Utah 

Territory,  284. 
Crops  in  Great  Salt  Lake  Valley,  201. 
Crosby,  Judge,  450. 
Cumming,  Hon.  A.,  governor  of  Great  Salt  Lake 

City,  215. 
Cumming,  Hon,  A.,  his  impartial  discharge  of  hia 

duties,  216. 
Curriculum  of  the  Prairie  Indians,  107. 
Cursing  and  swearing  in  America,  14. 
Cynomys  Ludovicianus,  or  prairie-dog,  66. 

Davies,  Elder  John,  his  Mormon  works,  214,  note. 
Dakotahs.     See  Sioux. 

"         meaning  of  the  name,  95. 
Dana,  Lieutenant,  compa{jnon  de  voyage,  8. 
Dancing,  Mormon  fondness  for,  230. 
Danite  band,  account  of  the,  G53. 
Dark  Valley,  60. 

Davis,  Hon.  Jefferson,  his  estimate  of  the  cost  of  a 
railway  from  the  Mississippi  to  the  Pacific,  3, 
note. 
Dayton,  Lysander,  the  Mormon  Bishop,  and  his 

wives,  448. 
Dead,  Indian  mode  of  burial  of  the,  122. 
Deep-Creek  Kanyon,  462. 
"      Station,  403. 
"     Valley,  403. 
Deer  Creek,  ISS. 
"        "       establishment  at,  139. 
"     kinds  of,  found  in  the  regions  east  of  the  Rocky 
Mountains,  OS. 
Delaware  Indians,  account  of  the,  37. 

"  "       their  lodges,  86. 

Denmark  Ward  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  198. 
Oenver  City,  lawless  violence  of,  2SS. 
Deseri't,  agricultural  society  of,  285. 
"       alphabet,  the,  420. 
"       Store,  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  249. 
"        the  land  of  the  honey-bee,  16  >.«. 
"  Deser 't  News,"  account  of  the,  2.'')5. 
Desert,  fertility  of  its  cJistem  and  westcmfrontii''n>,7. 
"      from  I'ort  Kearney  to  the  base  of  the  Rocky 
Mountains,  6. 
Desert  mostly  uninhabited,  7. 
'      the  First,  167. 

'      the  Great,  of  Utah  Territory,  ^\  458. 
Des  Moines  River,  Indians  west  of  th'  90. 
Devil's  Backbone,  the,  147. 

"      darning-needle,  or  dragon  fly,  60. 
"      Gate,  the  clpbrnted  kanyon  of  the,  161. 
"      Hoi?,  the,  453,  459. 
"       Lake,  Indians  of,  97. 
"      Post-office,  the,  154. 
Diamond  Springs,  60,  480. 

"  "        tragedy  at,  60. 

Diseases  of  Utah  Territory,  278. 


664 


INDEX. 


Diseases  to  which  the  Indians  are  liable,  278, 

'♦  Divide,"  the,  between  the  Green  River  and  Black's 
Forl£,  174. 

"  Divide,"  the,  between  the  Little  Blue  and  Platte 
Rivers,  3S. 

"Divide,"  the,  between  the  Platte  and  Sweet-wa- 
ter Rivers,  its  sterility,  146. 

Divorce  among  the  Mormons,  427. 

Dogs,  Indian,  58,  472. 

Dog-Teutons  in  the  prairies,  02. 

Dolphin  I:^land,  3-7. 

Do.xology,  Mormon,  remarks  on  the  fourteen  ar- 
ticles of,  387,  et  S(q. 

Dragon-fly,  or  devil's  darning-needle,  CO. 

Dress,  Indian,  57,  59. 

"     of  the  Mormon  fair  sex,  227. 

Drivers  of  mail-coaches,  their  immorality,  5. 
"       or  "■'  rippers,"  tlie,  of  the  wagon-lrain,  23 

Drought,  trials  of,  on  the  counterslope  of  the  Rocky 
Mountains,  167. 

Dry  Creek,  483. 

Dubail,  Constant,  the  woodman,  466. 

Dug-out,  Joe,  and  his  station,  334,  444. 

Dust-storms  in  the  Valley  of  the  Platte,  75. 
"  of  Utah,  276,  450,  451. 

"  on   the   counterslope   of  the   Rocky 

Mountains,  168. 

East  Kanyon  Creek,  183. 
Kau  qui  court,  or  Niobrara  River,  40,  72. 
Echo  Kanyon,  184 
*'  "        beavers  in  the  torrent-bed  of,  1S7. 

"  "        Station,  1S7. 

"  "        the  Mormons'  breastworks  in,  187. 

"■  "        vegetation  of,  187. 

Education  in  Deseret  and  England  compared,  5^5. 

"         in  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  422,  423,  425. 
Egan,  Maior  Howard,  453. 
Egan's  Creek,  183. 
"      Spring?,  454,  455. 
"      Station,  467. 
Eggs  and  bacon,  a  constant  dish  in  the  West,  33. 
Eight-mile-Spring  Kanyon,  465. 

"•  Springs,  465. 

Elder,  rank  of,  in  the  Mormon  hierarchy,  402. 
EUc,  the  (Cervus  Canadensis),  habitat  of,  68. 
Emigrants,  diseases  to  which  they  are  liable,  279. 
"  Mormon,  arrival  of,  at  Great  Salt  Lake 

City,  225-6. 
"•Emigration  Road"  in  Kansas,  16. 
Emigration  Kanyon,  193. 

"  Mormon  system  of,  295. 

"  statistics  of,  297. 

Endowment  House  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  220. 

"  "•     mysteries  of  the,  220. 

Ensign  Peak,  spirit  of  Joseph  Smitli  on,  196. 
Evening  in  the  prairies,  38. 

Explorers,  listof  the  principal,  of  the  United  States, 
who  have  published  works  on  the  subject,  171, 
172,  nole. 
Eye  of  the  Indian,  105. 
"Eye-opener,"  an,  £.2. 

Faces,  Indian,  105, 106. 

Faith,  articles  of  the  Mormon,  3S7,  et  scq. 

Farms,  Indian,  477. 

Farriery  of  the  Indians,  110. 

Febrile  affections  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  279. 

Feet  of  the  Indians,  104. 

Fences,  ''snake,"  of  the  "West,  188. 

Feraraorz,  Colonel,  343. 

Ferris,  B.  J.,  his  work  on  Mormonism,  206,  not''. 

"      Mrs.,  her  work  on  "Tlie  Mormons  atllome," 

206,  207,  note. 
Ferry,  the  Lower,  over  the  Platte,  140. 
Fite  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  account  of  a,  230-2. 
Fetichism  of  the  North  .Vmerican  Indians,  107. 
"Fever,  the  Prairie,"  22. 
Fingers  considered  as  a  trophy  by  the  Indians,  142, 

note. 
Fireflie',  or  lightning-bugs,  60. 
Fires,  prairie,  29. 


'Fires,  prairie,  mode  of  stopping,  29. 
Fir-trees  of  Great  Cotton-wood  Kanyon,  346. 
lish  of  the  streams  flowing  from  the  Black  Ilills, 

134. 
FL^h  of  the  Sweetwater,  152. 

"    of  the  Wasach  Lakes,  348. 

"    of  Utah  Lake,  334. 

"    Springs,  460. 

"    water  of  Great  Salt  Lake  fatal  to,  326. 
Fiumara.     See  Arroyo. 
Floods  of  the  Missouri,  16. 
Flowei's  on  the  banks  of  La  Grande  Platte  River, 

41,  45,  53. 
Folles  Avoines  Indians,  96,  note. 
Food  prejudices,  65. 

Foot  of  Ridge  Station,  near  the  Sweetwater,  159. 
Fort  Bridger,  178. 

"     Churchill,  403,  494 
Forts,  frontier,  a  csmiel  corp.'  proposed  for,  4B. 

"  "        oftlie  United  States  described,  41, 42. 

"  "       remarks  on  the  army  system  of  out- 

posts in  the  United  States,  43,  44. 
Fox-River  Indians,  their  tents,  86. 

"         the,  or  Riviere  des  Puantes,  19. 
Foxes  in  Echo  Kanyon,  1S7. 
Fremont,  Colonel,  his    exploration  of  the  Rocky 

Mountains,  164. 
Fremont,  Colonel,  his  traveling  proprieties,  149. 
"         Island,  328. 

"         Peak,  in  the  Rocky  Mountains,  150, 161. 
"  "      its  height  above  sea-level,  164. 

Slough,  53. 
"•         Sifricg.-,  station  at,  53. 
"  "        the  model  veranda  at,  53. 

Frogtown,  or  Fairfield,  335. 
Fruit  in  the  gardens  of  tlie  Prophet,  269. 

"     wild,  of  Utah  Territory,  283. 
Funeral  ceiemonies  of  the  Sioux  Indians,  122. 
Fustigator,  the  mammoth,  of  the  American  wagon- 
ers, 24. 

Gambling,  fondness  of  the  North  American  Indian 

for,  117. 
Game,  abundance  of,  in  the  Wind-River  Mount- 
ains, 68,  165. 
Gamma,  or  gramma,  grass  of  the  slopes  west  of 

Fort  Laramie,  7. 
Gardens  of  the  Prophet,  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City, 

269. 
Gener.il  Johnston's  Pass,  454. 
Geological  formation  at  Fort  Laramie,  90. 
"  "  of  Church  Butte,  176. 

"  "■  of  Echo  Kanyon,  184. 

"  "  of  the  banks  of  the  Platte  at 

Snow  Creek,  141. 
Geological  formation  of  the  Black  Hills,  134. 
"  "  of  the  gold  diggings,  484 

"  "  of  the  Mauvaises  Terres,  or 

Bad  Lands,  72. 
Geological  formation  of  tlie  Rattlesnake  Hills,  153. 
"  "  of  the  valley  of  the  Green 

River,  169. 
Geological  formation  of  Utah  Territory,  194. 
"  "  westward  of  the  fort,  9L 

Germans  in  the  prairies,  their  behavior,  62. 
Gibraltar  Gate,  488. 

Gift,  an  Indian,"  tlie  proverb,  103. 
Gilston,  Jim,  of  Illinois,  456. 
Gills,  Indian,  59. 
Gold  found  in  the  Wind-River  Mountains,  165. 

"    found  in  Utah  Territory,  281. 

"    mines  near  the  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  270, 

271. 
Golden  Pass  of  Emigration  Kanyon,  193. 
Gospel,  grotesque  accounts  of  the  manner  in  which 

the  Indians  of  old  received  the,  109. 
Government  of  the  Moi-mons,  301. 
Grain,  quantity  produced  in  the  Valley  of  Great 

Salt  Lake,  284. 
Grand  Island,  in  the  Platte  River.  39. 

"      River,  Neosho,  or  White  Water,  the  Osages 

settled  on  the,  34 


i 


INDEX. 


565 


Granite  Mountain,  454. 

"       Rock,  46-'. 
Grape,  the  Culifornian,  345. 
Grasd,  bunch,  7. 

"     salt,  148. 
Grasses  of  the  slopes  west  of  Fort  Laramie,  7. 
Grasshopper  Creek,  21. 
Grasshoppers  (Oidipoda  corallipes),  clouds  of,  in 

the  prairie.-*,  69. 
Grasshoppers,  ravages  of,  69,  70. 

"  scourge  of,  in  Utah  Territory,  284. 

Grattan,  Lieutenant,  liis  fatal  fight  with  the  Si- 
oux, 88. 
Graves  of  tlie  Mormon  emigration  route,  174. 
Grazing-grounds  in  Utali  'Icrritory,  2S4. 

"         "         of  tlie  Weit,  their  fertility  and 

freedom  from  sickncs.s,  7. 
Greasewood  at  Black's  Fork,  176. 

"  the  (Obiono  or  Atriplex  canescens), 

153. 
Great  Salt  Lake,  account  of  an  excursion  to,  322. 

"        "       "      air  on  tlie  shores  of,  323. 

"       "       "      bathing-place  on,  329. 

"       "       "      buoyancy  of,  329. 

"•       "       "      history  and  geography  of,  324. 

"       "       "      islands  of,  327-8. 

"•'       "       "      lands  immediately  about,  330. 

"       "        "      quantity  of  salt  in,  325. 

"•       "•       "      City,  Academy  of  the  7th  Ward 

in,  360. 
Great  Salt  Lake  City,  admirable  site  of,  196. 

"       "       "        "     Agricultural  Society  of  Des- 

eret,  316. 
Great  Salt  Lake  City,  arrival  of  caravan  of  emi- 
grants at,  225-6. 
Great  Salt  Lake  City,  cheapness  of  the  necessaries 

of  life  at,  320. 
Great  Salt  Lake  City,  coinage  of,  356. 

"       "       "•        "     conduct  of  federal  officials 

at,  421. 
Great  Salt  Lake  City,  corporation  of,  315. 

"       "       "        "     Council  Hall  of  the  Seven- 
ties at,  229. 
Great  Salt  Lake  City,  course  of  life  in,  41S-19. 

"       "       "        "■     Court-house  of,  417. 

"       "       "■        "     crops  in  the  valley  of,  201. 

"       "       "        "     Denmark  Ward  in,  193. 

"       "       "        "     departure  from,  441-3. 

"       "       "        "     eastern  wall  of  Great  Salt 

Lake  Valley,  ir  5.  # 

Great  Salt  Lake  City,  education  in,  422,  423,  425. 

"       "       "        "     Endowment  House  at,  220. 

"       "       "        "     excursions  in,  322. 

"       "       "        "     first  view  of,  193. 

"       "       "        "     foundation  of  the,  288. 

"       "       "•        "     gold  mines  in  Utah,  271. 

"       "       "        "     Governor  Camming,  215. 

"       "       "        "     hand-labor,  articles  of,  in, 

320. 
Great  Salt  Lake  City,  Historian  and  Recorder's 

Office  in,  419,  426. 
Great  Salt  Lake  City,  houses  of,  197,  103. 

"        "       "        "■     indu.stry  in,  316. 

"       "       "        "     Lion  House  at,  246. 

"       "•       "        "     list  of  articles  of  industry' 

at,  317-20,  note. 
Great  Salt  Lake  City,  militia  of,  354-5. 

"       "       "        "     murders  committed  in  and 

near,  339. 
Great  Salt  Lake  City,  newspapers  published  in, 

255. 
Great  S-ilt  Lake  City,  no  market-place  in,  201. 

"•       "       "        "     price.',  i>20-l. 

"        "       "        "     principal  schools  in,  425. 

"       "       "        "     promulgation  of  the  Consti- 
tution at,  289,  note. 
Great  Salt  Lake  City,  public  opinion  in,  197. 

"       "       "        "     roads   from,  to   California, 

452. 
Great  Salt  Lake  City,  Fafety  of,  224. 

«'       "      "        "     Salt  Lake  lIoH?>e  Hotel,  201. 

M       "      I'        ii     Bchoola  in,  345. 


Great  Salt  Lake  City,  shops  in,  217. 

''       "       "        "•     Social  HaU  and  files  at, 230. 

"       "       "        "     streets  of,  216,  217. 

"       "       "        "     supply  of  water  in,  216, 217. 

"       "       "        "     the  Tabernacle  at,  219, 220. 

"       "       '■        "     taxes  of,  315. 

"       "       "        "     Temple  Block  at,  217-23. 

"       ''       "        "     the  Bee  lIou.<e  at,  246. 

"       "       "        "     the  Bowery  at,  220, 258. 

"       "       "        "     the  bulwarks  ofZion  at,  197. 

"       "       "        "■     the  I'enitcntiary  at,  271. 

"        "       "        "■     the  Prophet' a  house  at,  234, 

245-6. 
Great  Salt  Lake  City,  the  public  and  private  of- 
fices of  the  Prophet  at,  246. 
Great  Salt  Lake  City,  the  public  library  at,  235. 

"       "       ''        "     the  River  New  Jordan,  233. 

"       "       "        "     view  of,  from  the  Waaach 

Mountains,  35D. 
Great  Salt  Lake  City,  visit  to  the  Prophet  nt,  237-8. 
Green  River,  formation  of  the  valley  of  the,  103. 

"         "      fountain-head  of  the,  162. 

"•         "      its  breadth  and  depth,  171. 

"         "      its  length,  volume,   and  direction, 

171. 
Green  River,  its  tributaries,  167. 

"  "      Macarthy's  station  on  the,  170. 

"         "      Mountains,  the,  W3. 

"         "     salmon  trout  of  the,  170. 

"         "      Spanish  and  Indian  names  of  the, 

171. 
Green-Paver  Station,  170, 172. 

"         "     wool-producing  country  in  the  basin 

of  the,  2S4. 
Grounds,  Bad,  or  mauvaises  tcrres  of  the  United 

States,  6. 
Grouse,  pinnated,  142. 

Guenot,  Louis,  his  bridge  over  the  Platte,  141. 
Guess,  George,  the  Cherokee  chief,  35. 
Guittard's  Station,  27. 

"  "        the  host  at,  27. 

Gunnison,  Lieutenant,  his  work  on  Mormonism, 

203,  204,  note. 
Gunnison,  Lieutenant,  his  resume  of  Mormonism, 

398. 
Gunnison,  Lieutenant,  murder  of,  339. 
Gunnison's  Island,  327. 

Hair,  Indian  mode  of  dressing  the,  55, 
Half-breeds,  English  and  French,  compared,  80. 

"■  women,  SO. 

Halfway  House,  halt  at  the,  53. 

"  "       the  store  at  the,  53. 

Ham's  Fork,  174. 

"  "     the  wretched  station  at,  174,  175. 

Hand-labor,  articles  of,  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City, 

320. 
Hands  of  the  Indians,  104. 
Hanks,  the  redoubtable  Mr.  Ephe,  the  Danite,  191. 

"      stories  of,  193. 
Ilapsaroke  Indians,  or  Les  Corbeaux,  124. 
"  "         sign  of  the  tribe,  124. 

Uamev,  General,  his  defeat  of  the  BriUo  Sioux  at 

Ash 'Hollow,  70,  89. 
Harrowgate  Springs  in  the  Wasach  Jlountainr, 

360. 
Hat  Island,  327. 
Hawkins's  rifles,  9. 
Hayden,  Dr.  F.  V.,  his  opinion  on  coal  in  Kebra,'!- 

ka,  141. 
Heat  of  the  sun  beyond  Ham's  Fork,  176. 
Heath-hen,  the,  142. 
Hickman,  Bill,  the  Danite,  191,  344. 
Hierarchy  of  the  Mormons,  399,  403. 
High  Mountain,  453. 
Historian  and  Recorder's  Office  in  Great  Salt  Lake 

City,  419,  426. 
Holmes,  the  ungenial  man,  177. 
Horse  Creek,  79. 

"         "      breakfast  at,  84 

"         "      inmates  of  the  station  ct,  SO,  81. 
Horse-fly,  a  green-headed,  168. 


566 


INDEX. 


HorsKhoe  Creek,  gold  found  at,  1C5. 

"  Station,  91. 

Horses,  Indian,  56,  57-8. 

"      of  the  Dakotah  Indians,  99. 
■Horse-stealing,  punishment  for,  in  the  Western 

States,  90,  Mo. 
Hotels  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  201. 

"     in  the  tar  West,  201,  note. 
Hot  springs  near  Great  r^alt  Lake  City,  236. 

"         "      analysis  of  the  water  of,  236,  note. 
Houses,  materials  of,  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  197, 

198. 
Howard,  Mr.,  457. 
Humboldt  Kiver,  4S0. 
Hunkpapa  Indians,  98. 
Huukpatidan  Indians,  97. 
Hunter,  President  Bishop,  226. 
Huntingdon  Valley,  -iSO. 
Hurricanes  of  Scott's  Bluffs,  78. 
Hyde,  John,  his  work  on  Monnoniam,  208,  note. 

Ice  springs,  158. 

Ihanktonwan  Indians,  their  habitat  and  present 

condition,  97. 
Immorality  of  the  mail-coach  drivers,  5. 
Independence  Day,  New,  of  the  Mormons,  251, 

349. 
Independence  Day,  New,  celebration  of,  349,  note. 
India,  remarks  on  the  army  system  of  outposts  in, 

43,45. 
Indian  arms,  57,  119. 
"      arts,  llS-19. 
"     boys  and  girls,  59,  107. 
"      camp,  an,  472. 
"     character,  102—3. 

"     creed,  few  rites  and  ceremonies  of  the,  115. 
'■'•      curriculum  of  the  Praine,  107. 
"      dancing,  110. 

"     departments  of  the  United  States,  manage- 
ment of  the,  132. 
Indian  dress,  57,  59. 
"      farms,  477. 
"     fighting,  43. 
"      half-breeds,  SO. 
"      "  home,"  the,  32. 
'■'•      horses,  56,  57-S. 
"     kleptomania,  60, 102, 103. 
"      marriages,  116. 

"     mode  of  hunting  the  buffalo  and  preparing 
the  skins,  51,  52. 
Indian  mode  of  stampeding  animals,  76-7. 
"         "     of  wearing  the  hair,  56. 
"     names,  115. 
"      population  in  the  middle  of  the  last  and 
present  centuries,  99,  Tiote. 
Indian  prejudice  against  speaking,  80. 
"      religion  of  the,  107. 
"     reservation,  distribution  of  the,  32. 
"      scalping,  112. 

"      skull,  form  and  dimensions  of  the,  105. 
"      smoking,  110, 111-12. 
"     summer,  the,  79,  4S3. 
"     the  name,  a  misnomer  for  American  abo- 
rigines, 55. 
Indian  village,  description  of  the  remove  of  an,  56. 
"     villages  and  tents,  85. 
"     women,  106. 
Indians,  accoimt  of  the  Pawnees,  36. 

"       best  scheme  for  preserving  the  race  of,  35. 
"       causes  which  rapidly  thin  the  tribesmen, 
34 
Indians,  difiBculties  attending  the  scheme  of  civili- 
zation of  the,  36. 
Indians,  effects  of  alcohol  among  the  various  tribes 

of,  82. 
Indians,  ferocity  of,  and  whites,  60. 

"       grotesque  accounts  of  the  manner  in  which 

they  formerly  received  the  Gospel,  109. 

Indians,  how  treated  by  the  United  States,  32. 

"       kindness  of  the  Mormons  to  the,  245. 

"      languages  of  the  northeastern  tribes  of, 

96,  note. 


Indians,  Lieutenant  Weed's    defeat  of  the  Gosh 

Yutas,  467,  470. 
Indians,  mistaken  public  opinion  of  the,  and  of 

their  ancestors,  55. 
Indians,  proposals  for  raising  native  regiments  of, 

47. 
Indians,  the  American  philanthropist's  mode  of 

civilizing  the,  35. 
Indians,  the  Comanches,  61,  note. 
"       the  dignity  of  chief,  117. 
"       their  arrow-poison,  4S2. 
"       their  course  of  life,  117. 
"       their  future  considered,  lOL 
"       their  '-home,"  32. 
"       their  murder  of  Loscier  and  Applegate, 
4S4. 
Indians,  their  opinion  of  their  own  strength,  101. 
"•       their  progress  toward  extinction,  102. 
"•       their  Turanian  origin,  55. 
"       the,  of  Utah  Territory,  473. 
"       the  squaws,  59. 
*•'       the  Yutas,  474-6. 

"       total  number  of,  on  the  prairies  and  the 
Eocky  Mountains,  33. 
Indians,  tribes  and  sub-tribes  of  the  Sioux,  96. 
Industry  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  G16. 

list  of  articles  of,  317-320,  note. 
Intoxicating  drink,  a  new,  24,  note. 

"  "      mode  of  manufacturing  "  In- 

dian liquor,"  81-2. 
Intoxicating  drink,  one  made  from  a  cactus,  64, 

note. 
Irish  women  in  the  West,  175. 
Iron  Countv,  coal  and  iron  found  in,  2S2. 

"    found'in  Utah  Territory,  181. 
Island,  Antelope,  or  Church,  194,  323,  327. 
''      Bonhomme,  15. 
"      Carrington,  327. 
"      Cedar,  the  first,  in  the  Missonri,  41. 
"      Dolphin,  327. 
"      Fremont,  328. 
"      Grande^  in  the  Platte  Puver,  39. 
"      Gunnison's,  3.:7. 
"      Hat,  327.      ' 
"       Stansbury,  327. 
Islets  of  La  Grande  Platte  Eiver,  40. 
Itazipko,  Sans  Arc,  or  No-Bow  Indians,  their  hab- 
itat, 93. 
itinerary,  the  emigrant's,  505. 

''     '    of  the  maU  route  from  Great  Salt  Lake 
City  to  San  Francisco,  51L 


■Jack,  the  Arapaho  Indian,  and  his  squaw,  146, 
147. 

.Jackal,  the,  of  the  Western  world,  64.     See  Co- 
yote. 

Jacques,  Elder  John,  his  Mormon  works,  212,  note. 

James  River,  Indians  of,  97. 

Jesuitism  as  a  means  of  civilization  of  the  In- 
dians, G5. 

Jimsen  weed.  111. 

Jo,  St.,  city  of,  12, 15. 

Johnston's  Settlement,  451. 

Jones,  Elder  Dan,  his  Mormon  works,  213,  note. 

Jordan,  New,  its  course  in  the  Wasach  Mountains. 
S32. 

Jordan,  New,  the  river  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City, 
233,  325. 
Jornada,"  or  day's  march,  167. 

Junction-House  Kanch,  53. 

Kamas  Prairie,  182,  and  note. 
Kiine,  Colonel  T.  L.,  account  of  him,  204,  note. 
"•  "•         '^     his  work  on  the  Mormons, 

204,  note. 
Kansas,  a  specimen  of  .squatter  life  in,  19. 
,      "       "bleeding,"  16. 

"       "gales,"  21. 

"       prairies  of,  17. 

"       rainy  season  in,  16. 

"       shanties  in,  IS. 
"  Kansas -Nebraska  Act,"  passing  of  the,  33. 


i 


INDEX. 


567 


Kanyon  Creek,  Big,  191. 

"  ••'        "    etntion  at,  101. 

"      near  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  purity  of  the 
■wrater  of  the,  332. 
Kanyon,  the  Devil's  Gate,  151. 
Kanyons,  stupendous,  of  Northern  Jlexico,  139, 

note. 
Kanyons,  the,  of  America,  139,  note. 
Kearney,  Fort,  41. 

"  "     longitude  of,  C. 

Kelly,  W.,  Esq.,  J.  P.,  his  chapters  on  Mormon- 
ism,  204,  note. 
"Keening"  the  dead  practiced  among  the  In- 
dians, 122. 
Kennedy,  the  Ras  Kafilah,  455. 
Kennedy's  Hole,  460. 
Kennekuk,  in  Kansas,  halt  nt,  19. 
Kickapoo  Indians,  description  of  the,  20. 

"  ^       mode  of  building  the  tents  of 

the,  85. 
Kickapoo  Indians,  strength  of  the  trihe  of,  20. 

"  "       the,  19. 

Kimball,  Hcber  C,  his  address  in  the  Bowery,  262. 
"  "         the  president,  account  of,  241. 

Kinnikinik  smoked  by  the  American  Indian,  111. 

"         the,  31. 
Kiowa  Creek,  Little,  79. 

"     Indians,  lodges  of  the,  SO. 
"  "       or  Prairie-men,  sign  of  the  tribe  of 

the,  124. 
Kisiskadjiwan  River,  Indians  on  the,  100. 
Kit,  the  traveler's,  9. 
Kiyuksa,  or  breakers  of  law,  Indians,  97. 
Kleptomania  of  the  Indians,  60. 

"  ofthe  Sioux,  102, 103. 

La  Bonte  Creek,  135. 

"  Ladies"  in  the  Prairies,  91,  92. 

Lake  Alkali,  153. 

"    Carson,  274,  401. 

"    Cotton -wood,  Great,  347. 

"    Devil's,  97. 

"    Great  Salt,  194,  322,  323. 

"    Little  Salt,  274. 

"    Miniswakan,  100. 

"    Mono,  274. 

"    Mild,  274. 

"    Nicollet,  274. 

"    of  the  Hot  Springs,  195. 

"    of  the  Wasach  Mountains,  347. 

"    of  the  Woods,  100. 

"    Pyramid,  274. 

"    qui  Parle,  90. 

"     Saleratus,  147. 

"    Stone,  90. 

"    Traverse,  96. 

"    Utah,  or  Sweet-water  Reservoir,  274,  332, 

440. 
Lake,  Walker's,  274. 

"     Winnipeg,  100. 
Lakes,  Three,  161. 

Lance,  the,  of  tl»e  North  American  Indian,  119. 
Land-tenure  of  the  Mormons,  290. 
Lander's  Cut-off,  1.58. 
Language,  its  peculiarities,  121. 

"         men's  first  and  progressive  steps  in, 

121. 
Language,  the,  of  the  Sioux,  120. 

"  the  pantomime  of  the  Indians,  or  sign- 

system  of,  123. 
Languages  of  the  Northeastern  Indians,  96,  note. 
Laramie  City,  88. 

"  "     prices  of  skins  at,  88. 

"       Fort,  climate  and  soil  at,  90. 
"  "     formerly  Fort  John,  90. 

"  "     longitude  of,  6. 

"         "     vegetation  of  the  slopes  west  of,  7. 
"       Hills,  geography  of  the,  134. 
"       Peak,  79. 
Laramie's  Fork,  90. 
Lasso,  the,  08. 
Last-Timber  Station,  71,  note. 


Lawrence  Fork,  71. 

"  "     origin  of  the  name,  72. 

Lt-adplant  (Amorphe  canescens),  the,  of  the  Amer- 
ican wilderness,  64. 
Leaf-shooter  Indians,  96. 
Leather  manufactured  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City, 

344. 
Leeches,  American,  466-7. 
Legislative  Assembly  of  Utah  TeiTitory,  810. 
Lehi  City,  447. 

Liberty-poles  in  the  United  States,  251. 
Library,  public,  of  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  235. 
Lightniug-bug,  or  fire-fly,  00. 
Lignite  in  Nebraska,  141. 
Lion  House  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  246. 

the  mountain,  or  cougar,  153,  and  note. 
Litters,  Indian,  58. 
Little  Mountain,  192. 

Mr.,  his  tannery,  344. 
Locknau's  Station,  21. 

"        vegetation  of,  2L 
Lodge-Pole  Creek,  or  Fork,  64. 

"        "    Station,  66. 

"        "         "       squalor  and  wretchedness  of, 

66. 
London,  Mormon  meeting-houses  in  and  about,  301, 

note. 
Long-chin,  the  Indian  murderer,  85. 

"    Valley,  471. 
Look-out  Fort,  97. 

Louis,  St.,  altitude  and  temperature  of,  159. 
Loup  Fork,  ferry  across,  71,  note. 
Lynch,  Lieutenant  W.  F.,  his  proprieties  of  travel, 

150. 
Lynn,  Catharine  Lewis,  her  work  on  Mormonism, 

206,  note. 

Macarthy,  Mr.,  his  establishment,  170,  172. 
"  his  rough-and-tumble,  183. 

"  of  Green-River  Station,  170. 

Mail-coach  route  from  Missouri  to  California  and 
Oregon,  4. 

Mail-coach,  slow  rate  of  traveling,  5. 

Main,  or  Whisky  Street,  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City, 
217. 

Maize,  question  as  to  its  being  indigenous  to  Amer- 
ica, 110,  note. 

Majors,  Jlr.  Alexander,  his  efforts  to  reform  the 
morals  of  his  mail  drivers,  5. 

Mankizitah,  or  White-Earth  River,  72. 

Manna  in  Great  Salt  Lake  Valley,  287. 

Manufacturers  in  Utah  Territory,  317-20. 

Marcy,  Major,  73. 

"  "       his  "Prairie  Traveler"  quoted,  4. 

Market-place,  absence  of  a,  in  Great  Salt  Lake 
City,  201. 

Marriage  among  the  Mormons,  427,  432. 

"        among  the  North  American  Indians,  116. 

Marshall,  James  W.,  his  discovery  of  Californian 
gold,  350. 

Martin,  Michael,  his  store,  173. 

Marysville,  or  old  Palmetto  City,  trade  of,  29. 

Materialism,  Mormon,  384. 

Matriya,  the  "•  Scattering  Bear,"  death  of,  89. 

Mauvaises  Terres,  or  Bad  Lands,  extent  of  the,  72. 

Mdewakantonwaa  Indians,  civilization  of  the,  100. 
"  "        habitat  of  the,  96. 

Meadow  Creek,  451,  452. 

Medical  men  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  278. 

Medicine-man  of  the  Indians,  108. 

"        the  Indians'  knovvledge  of,  118,  119. 

Medicines  necessary  to  tlie  AVestern  traveler,  9, 10. 

Menomene  Indians,  habitat  of  the,  96. 
"  "        tents  of  the,  86. 

Meteorology  of  Utah  Territory,  275. 

Methodism,  foundation  of,  305. 

Mexico,  Northern,  stupendous  kanyons  of,  139,  notf. 

Mezquite,  or  muskeet-tree  (Algarobia  glandul03a),7. 

Midway  Station,  49. 

Military  departments  into  which  the  United  States 
are  divided,  42,  43,  note. 

Militia  force  of  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  354-6. 


568 


INDEX. 


Militia  force  of  the  United  States,  general  abstract 


Mormon  polygamy,  373,  42G,  458,  431,  433. 


of  the,  336,  33T, 
Milk  River,  Indiana  of,  100. 
"    weed  (Asclepias  tuberosa)  common  in  Utah 
Territory,  167. 
Milk-sickness  of  the  Western  States,  284. 
ilill  Creek,  i:i5. 

Miller,  Captain,  of  MiUersville,  215. 
Miller's  Station,  405. 
Millersvill?,  on  Smith's  Fork,  177. 
Mills,  saw,  a  night  pa^.sed  in  one  of  the,  34S. 

"        "    in  the  kanyons,  347. 
Minis  wakan  Lake,  100. 
Minnesota  Indians,  96,  97. 
Minnikanye-wozhipu  Indians,  habitat  of  the,  OS. 
Mirage,  a  curious,  47,  4S. 

"       on  the  counterslope  of  the  Rocky  Mount- 
ains, 164. 
MissionariM,  certificates  supplied  to,  353,  354,  iiote. 
"  from  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  353,  354. 

"  number  of,  in  Great  Britain,  301. 

Mississippi,  the,  15. 

"  Indians  of  the,  96. 

"  Missouri  Compromise,"  the,  33. 

"  "  "    origin  of  the  trouble 

which  gave  rise  to  the,  33,  34,  7wte. 
Missouri,  establishment  of  the  mail-coach  route 

from,  to  C;alifomia  and  Oregon,  4. 
Missouri,  rainy  season  in,  16. 

"        River,  navigation  of  the,  15. 
"  "     sand-banks  of  the,  15. 

"  "     Ra\vyer8  and  snags  of  the,  15. 

"  "     the  Great,  15. 

"  '■'■     the  Little,  Indians  of  the,  10. 

"  "      winter  season  on  the,  16. 

Moccasins,  Indian  mode  of  making,  57. 

"         use  of,  to  the  prairie  traveler,  11. 
Modesty,  Mormon,  instance  of.  268. 
MoUusks  of  Utah  Territory,  2S0. 
Mono  Lake,  274 

Montagnes  Rocheuses,  Les,  153, 102. 
Moonshine  Valley,  4S0. 
Moore,  "Miss,"  and  lier  ranche,  154. 

*'  "       her  history,  15^. 

Moose  deer  (Cervus  Alces),  habitat  of  the,  CS. 
Moravianism  regarded  as  a  means  of  civilization 

of  the  Indians,  35. 
Mormon  agglomeration  of  aU  that  is  good  in  all 

sects,  307,  398. 
Mormon  balls  and  suppers  at  Social  Hall,  2S0-2. 
"       Bible,  367. 

"  "     contents  of  the,  3C8,  note. 

"Mormon,  Book  of,"  367,  note. 

"  "        chronology  of  the  most  im- 

portant events  recorded  in  the,  411. 
Mormon  Conference,  description  of  a,  302-303. 
"       dispensation  of  Mr.  Joseph  s-'mith,  183. 
"       doctrines  and  covenants,  371. 
"       doxology,  remarks  on  the  fourteen  articles 
of  the,  387,  et  seq. 
Mormon  emigrants,  137, 176,  ISO,  181, 132,  2-25. 
"  "         miseries  of  one  of  the,  174, 175 

"       emigration,  system  of,  2t5. 
"  "  the  rcETular  track  of,  174 

"       estimate  of  outfit  for  the  Utah  route,  138, 
note. 
Mormon  feat  at  Simpson's  Hollow,  168. 
"         "    near  Green  River,  173. 
"       fugitives  on  the  road,  450. 
"       gift  of  tongues,  268. 
"       government,  upnn  what  it  is  based,  301. 
"       hierarchy,  the,  390. 
"       History,  chronological  abstract  of,  548. 
"       lad,  a,  in  the  South  Pass,  106. 
"       lectures  on  faith,  371. 
"        materialism,  384. 
"       meaning  of  the  word,  361-2. 
"       meeting-rooms  in  London  and  its  vicinity, 
list  of,  301,  note. 
Mormon  modesty,  268. 
"       namp»,  227. 
"       neophytes,  behavior  of  the,  228-9. 


Prophet,  visit  to  the,  237,  et  seq. 
"        Saints,  dress  of  tlie  fair,  227. 
"       Scriptures,  list  of  tlie,  209,  note. 
"       shanty,  Dawvid  Lewis  and  his  dirty,  174, 
175. 
Mormon  tolerance,  351. 

"       wagons,  trains  of,  on  the  road,  137, 170, 
180,  131. 
Mormonism,  deep  root  which  it  has  taken  in  Great 

Britain,  301. 
Mormonism,  final  remarks  on,  441. 

"  Lieutenant  Gunnison's  resume  of,  393. 

"  list  of  v/orks  published  upon  the  sub- 

ject of,  203,  note. 
Mormonism,  objections  to,  404 

sketch  of,  361,  et  seq. 
what  it  is  not,  403. 
Monnonland,  account  of,  272. 
Mormons,  children  of  the,  423. 

"        description  of  their  Temple,  514 
"        fondness  of  the,  for  sleighing,  private 
theatricals,  and  dancing,  229-31. 
Mormons,  foundation  of  their  city,  2S8. 

"•         how  they  regard  the  United  States,  150. 
"        kindness  of  the,  to  the  Indian.=,  245. 
"        period  for,  leaving  the  Mi.ssi.ssippi,  1S8. 
"        political  prospects  of  the,  352. 
"        promulgation  of  their  Constitution,  289, 
note. 
Mormons,  remarks  upon  the  articles  of  their  doxol- 
ogy, 3S7,  ct  seq. 
Mormons,  sketch  of  the  religion  of  the,  301. 

"        tenure  by  which  they  hold  their  lands, 
290. 
Mormons,  their  belief  as  to  marriages  between  a 

Saint  and  a  Gentile,  170,  note. 
Mormons,  their  complaints  against  Congress,  289, 

290. 
Mormons,  their  Emigration  Road,  71. 
"         their  hierarchy,  309. 
"        their  materialism,  384. 
"         their  Nauvoo  Legion,  354-5. 
"        their  new  Independence-day,  251. 
"        their  newspapers,  255. 
"        their  politics,  251. 
'■'■         tlieir  polygamy,  373. 
"         their  punishmi  nt  for  adultery,  252. 
"        their  quasi-military  organization  on  the 
march,  138. 
Mormons,  their  sermons  in  the  Bowery,  260,  264 

their  tithes,  240-50. 
Morning  on  the  prairies,  131. 
Motherhood,  how  regarded  in  the  AVestem  States, 

432. 
Moufflon,  the  American,  153,  155. 
Mountain,  Big,  190. 
"         Ensign,  190. 
"  Little,  192. 

"         Meadow  Massacre,  £39. 
"  Point,  195,  459. 

"         Quaking-Asp,  181. 
"  Rim-Base.  181. 

"■         Springs,  4:2. 
Mountaineer,"  Mormon  newspaper,  25T. 
Mountaineers  of  the  West.  81. 
Mountains,  Bear-River,  174. 
"  Black.  133,  142. 

"  Granite,  454. 

' '  Green-River,  or  S  weet- water  Hills,  153. 

"  High,  458. 

"  Laramie,  91,  134. 

"  Laramie  Peak,  79,  85. 

"         of  Utah  Territory,  singular  formation 
of  the,  275. 
Mountains,  Oquirrh,  191,  194,  322. 
"  Rocky,  153.  et  seq. 

"  Traverse,  332. 

"  Uinta,  176,  178. 

"  Wasach.  189,  lf5,  S22,  330. 

"  WTiite,  450. 

"  Wind-River,  68, 102,  103,  164,  166. 


INDEX. 


569 


Mud  Lake,  274. 

"    !*pring  (station.  71. 
Muddy  Creek,  Hig,  ISO. 

"  "      Little,  140,  ISO. 

"  "  "     the  Canadian  station-master 

at,  ISO. 
Muddy  Creek,  Little,  wretched  station  at,  140. 

"      Fork,  174. 
Miiles  in  the  West,  135. 

"      obstinacy  of,  14. 

"     of  Central  America,  i3,  14. 

"     rate  of  pri.)grcsa  of,  l4. 

"     recalcitrancies  of,  157,  167. 
>Iurder,  Moinion  punishmeut  for,  426. 
Murders  in  and  near  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  225, 

339. 
Murders  in  Carson  City,  225. 
Murphy,  Captain,  his  loyalty,  ISl. 
Muskrat  Stati-m,  159. 

"        the,  15.1,  note. 
Mustang  of  the  Black  Hills,  143. 

"        the,  or  prairie  pony,  OS,  note. 
Myers,  Mr.,  the  Mormon  of  Bear- River  Valley, 

ISJ. 
Mysteries  of  Endowment  House  in  Great  Salt  Lake 

City,  220. 

Names,  Indian,  il5. 

'^       of  the  Mormons,  2i!7. 
Nauvoo  Legion,  account  of  the,  354-5. 

"  "       story  of  two  warricirs  of  the,  1S7. 

Nebraska,  meaning  of  the  word,  40. 

"         River.     See  Platte,  La  Grande. 

"         SoutheiTi,  rainy  season  in,  16. 
Needle  Rocks,  183. 
Nemehaw  Creek,  Big,  21. 
Neophytes,  Mormon,  behavior  of  the,  228-9. 
Newspapers  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  255. 
Nicollet  Lake,  274. 

Niobrara,  or  Eau  qui  court  River,  40,  72. 
Nullah.     See  Arroyo. 

Oat.s,  wild  (Avena  fatua),  of  the  Pacific  water-shed, 
139. 

"Obelisks,  the,"  18S. 

O'Fallon's  Bluffs,  48,  53. 

Officials,  feileral,  behavior  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City 
of  the,  4'1. 

Ojibwa  Indians,  habitat  of  the,  100, 101. 
''      the  n.nme,  100,  note. 

Ogalala,  or  Okandanda  Indians,  habitat  of  the,  9S. 
"        village  of  the,  85. 

Omaha  Creek,  or  Little  I'unkin,  71. 

Onions,  wild,  of  the  valley  of  the  Little  Blue  River, 
31. 

Oohenonpa  Indians,  habitat  and  numbers  of  the,  98. 

Ophthalmia  in  Utah  Territory,  2TS. 

Opinion,  public,  in  Great  Salt  Lake  Citv,  107. 

0.iuirrh  Jlountains,  191, 194,  322. 

Oregon,  boundary-stone  Ixjtwcen  it  and  Utah,  1C9. 
"       establishment  of  the  mail-coach  route 
from  Missouri  to,  4. 

Oregon,  origin  of  the  name,  169,  note. 

Omisby,  Mayor,  his  death,  479. 

Osagea,  account  of  the  tribe  of  the,  S4. 
"       ces.-ion  of  the  territory  of  the,  ri4. 
"      mode  of  building  the  lodges  of  the,  85. 

Ottagamies,  the  Indian  tribe  of,  20,  7iote. 

Outfit,  the  traveler's,  9. 

Outposts,  remarks  on  the  United  States  army  sys- 
tem of,  43,  44. 

Owl,  the  burrowing  (.Strix  cunicularia),  06. 

O-xen  shod  nt  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  270. 

Ox-riding,  24,  note. 

Pabakse,  or  Cut-Head  Indians,  97. 
Pacific  Creek,  107. 

"      Railroad,  difficulties  of  a,  277. 

"  "■        routes  proposed  for  a,  3. 

"      Spring,  1C3. 

"  "       station  at,  103, 166. 

Padouca  River,  60,  63. 


Pantomime,  Indian,  or  speaking  with  the  fingers, 

123. 
Pantomime,  preliminaiy  signs  for  the  traveler,  124. 
"  signs  of  some  of  the  Indian  tribes,  123. 

"  various  other  signs,  124-30. 

Panama,  501. 
Parley's  Kanyon,  195,  344. 

Patriarch,  rank  of,  in  the  Mormon  hierarchy,  400. 
Pawnee  Indians,  account  of  the,  36. 

"  "        principal  sub-tribes  of  the,  37. 

"  "        readiness  of  the,  to  cut  off  a  sin- 

gle traveler,  138. 
Pawnee  Indian.=,  sign  of  the  tribe  of  the,  123. 
Peddlers,  liccn.-ed  and  unlicensed,  81. 
Penitentiary,  the,  of  Great  .*alt  Lake  City,  271. 
Phelps,  Judge  and  Apostle,  his  "Sermon  on  the 

Mount,"  190,  no'e. 
Phelps,  Judge  and  Apostle,  visit  to,  253. 
Pigeons  a  constant  di.-h  in  Italy,  38. 
"  Pike's  Peakers"  on  the  road,  00. 
Pine-tree  Stream,  174. 
Pine  Valley,  4S0. 
Pinon-tree,  fruit  of  the,  466. 

"  (P.  monophyllus)  of  the  West,  285. 

Pipes  of  the  Coteau  des  Prairies,  88. 
"  Pitch-holes  or  chuck-holes"  of  the  prauies,  IS. 
I'lacei-ville  City,  499. 
Platte  Briilge,  delicious  climate  of,  137. 
"      Fort,  90. 

"      River,  a  dust  storm  in  the  valley  of  the,  75. 
"         "     appearance  of  the,  at  Platte  Bridge, 
136. 
Platte  River,  beauty  of  the  banks  of  the,  39. 
"         "     character  of  the  soil  beyond  the  im- 
mediate banks  of  the,  41. 
Platte  River,  coal  found  on  the  banks  of  the,  141. 
"         "     division  of  the,  into  the  northern  and 
southern  streams,  CO. 
Platte  River,  farewell  to  the,  146. 
"  "     fording  the,  63. 

"  "     La  Grande,  or  Nebraska,  39. 

"  "     Lower  Ferry  over  tlie,  140. 

"  "     noxious  exhalations  from  the,  4S. 

"  "     shallowness  of  the,  41. 

"         "     tender  adieux  at  the  upper  crossing 
of  the,  62. 
Platte  River,  timber  on  the  banks  of  the,  40,  41. 

"     wild  garden  on  tlie  shores  of  the,  41. 
Pleasant  Valley,  401. 
Plum  Creek,  4S. 

"      Ranche,  soil  about,  4S. 
Poetry  of  the  Sioux  Indians,  122. 
Point  Look-out,  454. 
Poison  Springs,  461. 

PoL-ons,  animal  and  vegetable,  of  the  Prairie  In- 
dians, 120. 
Polar  plant,  the,  48. 
Police,  private,  of  Mormon  life,  224. 

'      public,  of  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  224. 
Polygamy  among  the  Mormons,  373,  426. 
"         justification  of,  3.S4. 
"         Mre.  Pratfs  letter  on,  433,  et  seq. 
"        results  of,  4i:8. 

"         revelation  to  Joseph  Smith  on,  373. 
"         views  of  women  respecting,  431. 
Pony  Express,  the,  28,  wte. 

"  "     on  the  road,  1G9.  ~ 

•         "        postage  by  the,  29. 
"         riders  of  the,  29. 
Population  of  Utah  Territoiy,  294. 

"  "  "        e.xcess  of  females,  301. 

Populus  tremuloide',  the,  ISO. 
Postal  system  of  the  United  States,  evils  of  the 

contract  system,  172,  173,  nofe. 
Powder  River,  Indians  of  the,  97. 
Prairie,  ab.-ence  of  animal  life  on  the,  18. 
"       an  evening  in  the,  38. 
"       compass,  the,  4S. 
"       dog,  the  (Cynomys  Ludovicianus),  66. 
"  "      bis  associates,  reptiles,  birds,  and 

beasts,  66. 
Prairie-dog  village,  C5. 


570 


INDEX. 


Prairie  fever,  cause  of  the,  22.  IRevolvera,  value  of,  9. 

"      fires,  the,  29.  Eeynal,  M.,  of  Horse-Creek  Station,  80. 

eflfects  of,  on  the  temperature  of  I  "  sketch  of,  and  his  career,  81. 


the  air,  79. 

Pi-alrie  hen,  heath  hen,  or  pinnated  grouse,  142. 
"      land  of  the  United  States,  C. 
"      monotony  of  the,  IS. 

■        rolling,  69. 


or  "  perrairey,"  the  Western,  peculiarities  River,  Assiniboin,  100 


Rice,  the  wild  (Zizania  aquatica),  96,  7iot€, 
Richland  town  extinct,  21. 
Rifles,  Hawkins's,  9. 

Riggs's,  Rev.  S.  R.,  dictionary  of  the  Sioux  lan- 
guage, 120,  121. 


of  the,  IT 

Prairie,  pitch-holes  or  "chuck-holes"  of  the,  IS. 
"      ponv,  or  mustang,  6S,  note. 
"      saddle,  the,  24,  25. 
"      skeleton  of  the  earth  at  the  blufife,  29. 
"      squirrel,  the  (Spermophilus  tredecim-linca 
tus),  159,  note. 
Prairie  storm,  a,  21. 

"       the  grand,  17. 
•'  Prairie  Traveler,"  the,  of  Captain  PL  B.  Jlarcy, 

quoted,  4. 
Prairie  trees,  progressive  decay  of  the,  C9, 
"      turnip,  the,  1S2,  note. 
"       "weed,"  48. 
"      -wolf,  or  coyote,  64. 
"         "     the,  30. 
Prairie.?,  alternate  pufis  of  hot  and  cold  winds  in 

the,  79. 
Prairies,  blanched  bones  on  the,  4S. 

'^       clouds  of  grasshoppers  in  the,  69. 
"       names  of  different  kinds  of,  48. 
"       the  buffalo  the  "  monarch  of  the,"  50. 
Pratt,  Mrs.  Belinda  M.,  letter  of,  on  polygamy,  433, 

ct  seq. 
Pratt,  Orson,  account  of,  353. 
"         "      "•  the  Gauge  of  Philosophy,"  Mormon 
works  of,  212,  note. 
Pratt,  Parley  P.,  Mormon  works  of,  211,  212,  note. 

"  "         murder  of,  340,  and  note. 

Prile  River,  the,  130. 

President,  rank  of,  in  the  Mormon  hierarchy,  399. 
Prices  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  321. 
Priests,  high,  rank  of,  in  the  Mormon  hierarchy,  399. 
Prophecies  of  Joseph  Smith  and  Brigham  Young, 

356,  note. 
Protestantism,  origin  of,  364. 
Provo  City,  189,  219,  333,  note. 

"      River,  333. 
Puma,  the,  153,  note. 
Punishments,  Indian,  103. 
Punkin  Creek,  Little,  71. 
Pyramid  Lake,  274. 

Qnaking-Asp  Creek,  161. 
"        "    Hill,  181. 
"       "    (Populus  tremuloide.?),  ISO. 

Eabbit-bush,  the,  158. 

Race-course  Bluff,  179. 

Railroad  Kanyon,  480. 

"       Pacific,  Mr.  Jefferson  Davis's  estimate  of 
the  cost  of  the,  3,  note. 

Rain-storms  at  Weber-liiver  Station,  188. 

Rainy  season  in  Kansas,  ^lissouri,  Iowa,  and  South- 
em  Nebraska,  16. 

"  Ranch,"  the,  at  Turkey  Creek,  30. 

Rancho,  the,  in  Mexico  and  California,  5,  ncte. 

Rattlesnake  bites  and  their  remedies,  156. 
"  Hills,  the,  151, 153. 

Rattlesnakes,  156. 

Red  Butte,  195. 
"    region,  the,  136. 

Reese's  River,  486. 

Regsliaw,  Mr.,  his  bridge  over  the  Platte,  140. 

Reid,  ('aptain   Mayne,   remarks   on   his   "Wild 
Huntress,"  209,  note. 

Religion  of  the  Indians  generally,  107. 

"  "     Mormons,  sketch  of  the,  361,  et  seq. 

«'  "     Sioux,  103. 

Religions  of  the  United  State?,  list  of,  363,  note. 

Remy,  Jules,  and  Mr.  Brenchley,  their  work  on  the 
Mormons,  204,  vo'e. 

Revenge,  Indian,  103. 


Bank  and  Stream  camping-ground  on  the 
Sweetwater,  158. 
River,  Bear,  182,  325. 

"     Black's  Fork,  174,  176,  177. 
"     Blue,  Big,  29. 
"        "      Earth,  96. 
"        "      Little,  31,  38. 
"      Cannon,  96. 
"      Carson,  493. 
"     Colorado,  163. 
"     Columbia,  162. 
"     Des  Moines,  96. 
"      Fox,  19. 

"     Fremont's  Peak,  153, 161,  164. 
"     Grand,  Neosho,  or  White-Water,  34 
"     Green,  162,  166,  170,  284. 
"     Ham's  Fork,  174. 
"     Humboldt,  480. 
"     James,  97. 
"     Klsiskadjiwan,  100. 
"      Milk,  100. 
"     Mississippi,  15,  97. 
"     Missouri,  15,  97. 
"  "        Little,  97, 

"     Muddy  Fork,  174. 
"     New  Jordan,  233,  325. 
"     Niobrara,  or  Eau  qui  court,  40,  72. 
'•     Padouca,  60,  63. 

"     Platte,  La  Grande,  or  Nebraska,  39,  60. 
"     Platte,  162. 
"     Powder,  97. 
"     Prele,  136. 
"     Reese's,  485,  486. 
"     Sandy,  Big,  30, 169. 
"  "      Little,  30. 

"      Sioux,  Big,  97. 
"     Smith's  Fork,  176. 
"     Snake,  162. 
"     Snowy-Peak,  164. 

"      Sweetwater,  or  Pina  Pa,  150,  153,  161,  162. 
"     Timpanogos,  182,  333. 
"     Weber,  182,  ISS,  189,  325. 
"     ■\\Tiite-Earth,  or  Mankizitah,  72. 
"     Wind,  162. 
"     Yellow-Stone,  162. 
Road  from  Fort  Kearnev,  47. 

from  the  Black  HUls,  134. 
Roads  from  Great  Salt  Lake  City  to  California,  452. 
"     junction  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake  City  and 
Fort  Hall,  167. 
Robber's  Roost  Station,  468. 
Robidoux,  Antoine,  notice  of,  75,  note. 

Fort,  75. 
Robinson  ("  Uncle  Jack"),  177. 
Rock,  Independence,  148. 
"  "  names  inscribed  on,  149. 

"     or  Turkey  Creek,  30. 
"  "  "     the  "  ranch"  at,  30. 

Rocks"  of  the  West,  19. 
Rockwell,  Orrin  Porter,  account  of,  44S-9. 

excellent  advice  of,  449. 
the  Danite,  191. 
Rocky  Mountains,  a  himible-bee  on  the  topmost 

summit  of  the,  165. 
Rocky  Mountains,  first  view  of  the,  153. 

"  "  heights  of  the,  7,  153,  et  seq. 

"  "  surface  of  the  land  on  the  west- 

ern slopes  of  the,  8. 
Rocky  Mountains,  temperature  on  the  counterslope 

of  the  South  Pass  of  the,  168. 
Rogers,  Colonel,  or  "Uncle  Billy,"  471. 
Rose,  the  apostate  Jew  and  Mormon,  456. 
Routes  proposed  for  a  Pacific  Railroad,  3. 


INDEX. 


571 


Routes  proposed  for  a  Pacific  Railroad,  difficulties 

of,  27T. 
Ruby  Valley,  471. 
Russell,  Jlr.  \V.  IL,  and  the  Pony  Express,  2S,  and 

■note. 
Russell,  Mr.  AV.  H.,  and  the  Pony  Express,  sloW' 

ness  of  the  transport  by,  136. 
Rush  Valley,  451,  453. 

Sac  Indians,  tents  of  the,  86. 

"  the,  19. 

Saddle,  the  native  Indian,  25. 

"       the  pniirie,  24,  25. 
Sage  at  Kocky-Bridge  Station,  161. 
"    hen  or  prairie-hen,  142. 
"     Springs,  4S6. 

"    wild  (artemisia  or  absinthe),  description  of, 
53,  54. 
Saleratus  Lake,  147,  143. 

"  "     startling  appearance  of,  14S. 

Salmon  trout  of  the  Green  Kiver,  170. 
Salt  grass,  14S. 
"    Lake  City,  Great.     See  Great  Salt  Lake  City. 
"       "    Great.     See  Great  Salt  Lake. 
"       "    House  Hotel,  201. 
"       "    Little,  274. 

"   quantity  of,  in  the  water  of  Great  Salt  Lake, 
325-6. 
Saltpetre  not  found  in  Utah  Territory,  2S2. 
San  Francisco,  500. 
Sand-banks  of  the  Missouri,  15. 

"    hills,  the  tract  called  the,  70,  note. 
"     Springs  Station,  491. 
Sandstone  at  Grasshopper  Creek,  21. 
Sandy  Creek,  71. 

"         "      Big,  or  Wagahongopa,  167. 
"  "      Little,  167. 

Sandy  River,  Big,  30,  169. 

"         "      Little,  30,  169. 
Sans  Arc  Sioux  Indians,  habitat  of  the,  98. 
Sault  Ste.  Marie,  Indians  at,  100. 
Saurians  of  Utah  Territory,  280. 
Sawyers  and  snags  of  the  Missouri,  15. 
Scalping,  origin  of  the  custom  of,  112. 

"        considered  as  a  religious  rite,  113. 
Schools  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  345. 

"       principal,  425. 
Scott's  Bluffs,  77. 

"  "      hurricanes  of,  78. 

"  "      origin  of  the  name,  T3. 

Scythians,  scalping  rites  of  the,  112. 
Seasons,  the,  in  Utah  Territory,  277. 
Seneca  City,  in  Kansas,  21. 
Seventeen-mile  Station,  43. 
Seventies,  the,  in  the  >iormon  liierarchy,  400. 
Sevier,  Mr.,  the  Mormon,  463. 
Shanties,  18. 

"        of  Seneca  City,  21,  22. 
"       origin  of  the  word,  IS,  note. 
Shanty,  a,  in  Kansas,  19. 

"       the,  at  Pacific  Springs,  106. 
"       the  dirty,  of  Ham's  Fork,  174,  175. 
Shawnees,  their  lodges,  86. 
Sheawit  Creek,  4S2. 
Shell  Creek,  405,  466. 
Shops  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  217. 
Shoahonee  Indians,  473-4. 

"  "       their  friendliness  to  •whites, 

165. 
Sibley,  Major,  his  improved  tent,  87. 
Sichangu,  Brule,  or  Burnt-Thigh  Indians,  habi- 
tat of  the,  98. 
Sierra  Nevada,  the,  493. 

Sign-system  of  language  among  the  Indians,  123. 
Silva,  Luis,  and  his  wife,  154. 
Silver  found  in  Utah  Territory,  2S1. 

"     virgin,  found  in  the  White  Mountains,  450, 
note. 
Simpson's  Hollow,  163. 

"  "       feat  of  the  Monnons  at,  168. 

"         Park,  435. 
"         Pass,  486. 


Simpson's  Road,  431. 

Sioux  Indian,  a  "  buck,"  89. 

"         "•      meaning  of  the  name  "  Sioux,"  95, 

96. 
Sioux  Indians,  books  piinted  in  their  tongue,  120, 

121.  ' 

Sioux  Indians,  character  of  the,  102. 

"  "        constitution  of  the,  104. 

"•  "       dependence  of  the,  on  the  buffalo 

for  subsistence,  51. 
Sioux   Indians,  destruction  of  Lieutenant  Grattan 

and  his  party  by  the,  SS. 
Sioux  Indians,  funeral  ceremonies  of  the,  122. 

''  "        future  of  the,  100, 101. 

"  '         habits  of  the,  in  former  times  and 

at  present,  102. 
Sioux  Indians,  language  of  tlie,  120. 

"  "        lodges  of  the,  86. 

"  "        manners  and  customs  of  the,  99. 

"  "        murder  of  M.  Montalan  by  the,  91. 

'■  "        poetry  and  songs  of  the,  122. 

"  '■'■        present  habitat  of  the,  B5. 

"  "        principal  bands  into  wliich  the  race 

is  divided,  95-9S. 
Sioux  Indians,  religion  of  the,  103. 

"  "        revenge  of  the,  103. 

"  "        sacred  language  of  the,  122. 

"•  "        sign  of  the  tribe  of,  124. 

"  "        skill  in  archery  of  the,  120. 

"  "        the  Brule,  their  defeat  at  Ash  Hol- 

low, 70. 
Sioux  Indians,  women  of  the,  103. 

"     River,  Big,  97. 
.Sisahapa,  or  Blackfeet  Indians,  98. 
Sisitonwan  Indians,  habitat  of  the,  96. 
Skins,  prices  of,  at  Laramie  City,  SS. 
Skull  of  the  Indian,  its  form  and  dimensions,  105. 

"     Valley,  454. 
Skunk,  the,  1S9. 
Slade,  the  redoubtable,  92,  173. 
Slaveiy  legalized  in  Utah,  243. 
Sleighing  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  229. 
Smith,  Captain  John,  the  Mormon  patriarch,  180. 

"      George  A.,  the  Mormon  apostle,  account 

of,  241. 
Smith,  Joseph,  account  of  the  martyrdom  of,  517. 

"  "•       his  works,  209,  210,  7iote. 

"•  "       his  second  son  David,  241. 

"•  "       his  son  Joseph,  of  Nauvoo,  240. 

'■'•  "       vindicated,  405-6. 

"      Mrs.  M.  E.  v.,  her  works  on  Mormonism, 

207,  208,  note. 
Smitli's  Creek,  4S6. 
"       Fork,  176. 
Smoking  among  the  American  Indians,  110. 

"        material  of  tlie  WUd  Man  of  the  North,  31. 
Smoky  Valley,  4S4. 
Smoot,  Bishop  Abraham  O.,  his  address  in  the 

Bowery,  260. 
"  Smudge,"  a,  before  sleep,  165. 
Snags  and  sawyers  of  the  Missouri,  15. 
Snake  Indians  at  Ham's  Fork.  174. 
'  "      lodges  of  the,  86. 

'     River,  fountain-head  of  the,  162. 
'         "      Indian  name  for,  167,  note. 
Snakeroots,  156,  157,  note. 
Snow  Creek,  140. 

"      country  about,  141,  142. 
Lorenzo,  his  Mormon  works,  212,  note. 
Snowy  Peak,  164. 
Social  Hall  in  Great  Salt  Laice  City,  229. 

<■        "     fetes  at,  230,  231. 
Soda,  carbonate  of,  in  Saleratus  Lake,  147,  and 

note. 
Soda,  or  Beer  Springs,  179. 
Soil  at  Fort  Laramie,  90. 

'    beyond  the  immediate  banks  of  La  Grande 

Platte  River,  41. 
Soil  near  Plum  Kanche,  on  the  Platte  River,  48. 

'    of  Big  Sandy  River,  169. 

'   of  the  bench-land  of  Great  Salt  Lake  Valley, 

195. 


572 


INDEX. 


Soil  of  the  c-iuntry  beyond  the  Warm  Springs,  15S. 

"    of  the  Valley  of  the  Black  HUls,  134. 

"    of  Utah  I  erritory,  283. 
Soldiers,  ai'my  grievances  of,  445. 
"        at  Camp  Floyd,  444. 
*'        di.-*(liarged,  on  the  road  home,  154. 
"        disliked  in  the  United  States,  336. 
"       manners  and  customs  of  the,  of  former 

times,  444-5. 
Soldiers,  United  States,  dress  of,  446. 
Songs  of  the  Sioux  Indians,  122. 
South-Pass  City,  in  tlie  Rocky  Mountains,  IGl. 

"         "    of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  161. 

"        "    its  extent  and  height  above  sea  level, 

162. 
South  Pass  the  fountain-head  of  some  of  the  great 

rivers  of  America,  161. 
Spencer,  Elder  Orson,  his  works  on  Mormonism, 

212,  note. 
Spring  Valley,  400. 
Spur,  the  prairie,  27. 
Squatter  life  in  Kansas,  a  specimen  of,  10. 

"         "   difficulties  and  dangers  of,  101. 
SquaTvs,  Indian,  59. 

"  "       dirty  cookery  of  the,  80. 

"        of  the  Sioux  Indians,  103. 
Squirrel,  the  chipraonk  or  cliipmuk,  159,  note. 
"        the  ground,  159. 
"        the  spotted  prairie,  1.59,  vote. 
Staines,  Mr.  W.  C,  the  Mormon,  209. 
Stalking  tlie  antelope  on  the  prairies,  07. 
Stambaugh,  Colonel,  233. 
Stampede,  tlie  great  dread  of  the  prairie  traveler, 

70. 
Stansbury,  Captain,  his  scruples  as  to  the  observ 

ance  of  Sunday  on  tlie  marcli,  149. 
Stansbury,  Captain,  his  work  on  Mormonism,  203, 

note. 
Stansbury  Island,  827. 

Stenhouse,  Elder  T.  B.  II.,  and  his  wife,  223. 
Stirrup,  the  prairie,  20. 
Store,  a,  in  the  Valley  of  the  Platte,  53. 
Storm,  prairie,  at  Walnut  Creek,  21. 

"      of  dust  in  tlie  Valley  of  the  Platte,  1o 
Stone  Lake,  Big,  Indian  tribes  at,  96. 

"     used  for  tlie  Mormon  temple,  105. 
Strawberries,  wild,  101. 
Strawberry  Creek,  101. 
Streets  of  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  210,  217. 
Sturgis,  Captain,  his  chastisement  of  the  Indians, 

43. 
Suckers,  the  fisli  so  called,  152. 
Sugar  House  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  271. 
Sulphur  Creek,  ISl. 

Sulphurous  pools  in  Great  Salt  Lake  Valley,  274 
Sumach,  the,  31. 
Summer,  tlie  Indian,  79,  4S3. 
Sumner,  Brigadier  General,  his  chastisement  of  the 

Indians,  4:j. 
Sunflower,  the,  in  the  Valley  of  the  Little  Blue 

River,  31. 
Sunflower,  v.alue  of  its  seeds,  31. 
Superstition  of  tlie  Indian,  107,  lOS. 
Sweetwater  Hills,  or  Green-River  Mountains,  the, 

153. 
Sweetwater  River,  influents  of  the,  101. 
"  "      its  beauty,  153,  154. 

"  "      its  water,  150. 

"  "      M'.Xchran's  Braneli  of,  161. 

"  "      or  Pina  Pa,  150,  158. 

Syracuse,  in  Kansas,  18. 

Tabernacle,  the,  of  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  219, 

220. 
Table  Mountain,  162. 

Tangle-leg,  a  new  intoxicating  liquor,  24,  note. 
Tannery  of  Mr.  Little  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  344. 
Tar  .^Springs,  182. 

Taxes  of  (ireat  Salt  Lake  City,  315. 
T.aylor,  John,  tlie  Mormon  apostle,  270. 
Teachers  and  deacons  in  the  Mormon  hierarchy, 

403. 


Teeth  of  the  Indian,  106. 
Temperature  at  Fort  Laramie,  90. 

"  at  the  Foot  of  Ridge  Station,  159. 

"  of  St.  Louis,  159. 

"  on   the  counterslope  of  the  Rocky 

Mountains,  168. 
Temple  Block  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  217. 

"•      description  of  the,  515. 
Tent,  Major  Sibley's,  87. 
Tents  of  the  Prairie  Indians,  85,  86. 
Tetrao  pratensis,  142. 

"      urophasianus,  142. 
Thermal  Springs  near  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  236. 

"  ^^  "  "    analy- 

sis of  the  waters  of,  236,  note. 
Thirty-two-mile  Creek,  38. 

"  "•      the  station  at,  38. 

Three  Lakes,  161. 

"  Thunder,  Little,"  chief  of  the  Brule  Sioux,  de- 
feated and  deposed,  89. 
"Thunder,  Little,"  description  of,  132. 

"  "        visit  from,  132. 

Thunder-storms  in  Utah,  276. 
Timber  of  Grasshopper  Creek,  21. 

"       of  Great  Cotton-wood  Kanyon,  346. 
"       of  La  Grande  Platte  River,  40,  41,  53. 
"•       of  Locknan's  Station,  21. 
"       of  the  Black  Hills,  134. 
"       of  the  Mississippi,  15. 
"       progressive  decay  of  prairie,  69. 
"       the  Western  man's  instinctive  dislike  of, 
170. 
Timber,  want  of,  in  Utah  Territory,  2S4. 
Time,  the  Indian's  notion  of,  118. 
Timpanogos  Kanyon,  visit  to,  445. 
■'  or  Prove  River,  333. 

'  Water,  182. 

Tithes  paid  by  the  Mormons,  249. 
Tithing  House  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  249. 
Titonwan  Indians,  habitat  and  present  condition 

of  the,  97. 
Titonwan  Indians,  sub-tribes  of  the,  98. 
Tobacco,  the  traveler's  outfit  of,  10. 

use  of,  among  the  Amei'ican  Indians,  110. 
Toilet  of  the  prairie  traveler,  10. 
Tolerance  of  the  Mormons,  351. 
Tongues,  gift  of,  208. 
Tonlcowas,  tents  of  the,  85. 
Tophet,  464 

Totem,  the,  of  the  Indian,  108. 
Towakamies,  tents  of  tlie,  85. 
Townsend,  Mr.,  the  Mormon  hotel-keeper,  202. 
Traders,  licensed  and  unlicensed,  81. 
Trafalgar  Square,  barbarous  incongruity  of,  185. 
Trapper,  the,  of  sixty  years  ago,  83. 
Travel,  proprieties  of,  149. 

Travelers,  mismanagement  of  inexperienced,  229. 
Traveling,  slow  rate  of,  of  the  mail-coaches  from 

Missouri  to  California  and  Oregon,  5. 
Traverse,  Lake,  Indians  at,  90. 

Mountain,  332. 
Trona  formation  of  Alkali  Lake,  153. 

"of  Saleratus  Lake,  147,  note. 
Troy,  in  Kansas,  18. 
Turkey  Creek,  or  Rock,  30. 

"       the  "ranch"  at,  30. 
Turnip,  the  pr.airic.  182,  note. 
'Twelve,  the,"  in  the  Mormon  hierarchy,  400. 
"  Twin  Peaks"  of  the  Wasach  Slountains,  195. 
Twiss,  Major,  138. 

tTinta  Hills,  176,  178. 
Uncle  John's  Grocery,  27. 

"  "       Indians  at,  27. 

United  States,  eastern  and  western  divisions  of 
the,  6. 

nited  States,  extent  of  the,  6. 
"  "      military   departments   into  which 

they  are  divided,  42,  43,  note. 
United  States,  "Prairie  land"  of  the,  6. 

"  "      present  policy  of  the,  toward  the  In- 

dian, 101. 


INDEX. 


573 


United  States,  proposal  for  establishing  a  camel 

corps  in  tlie,  40. 
United  State.-,  reniJirks  on  the  army  system  of  out- 
posts in  the,  43,  44. 
Utah  Indians,  lodges  of  the,  SG. 

"    Lalce,  or  Sweetwater  Keservoir,  274,  332,  444, 

446.  t 

Utali  TeiTitory,  bad  effects  of  conflicting  judiciaries 

in,  312. 
Utah  Territory,  boundaries  of,  273. 

"  "         cities  and  counties  of,  291-3. 

"  "         climate  of,  2r5. 

"  "         configuration  of  the  country,  273. 

"  "         di.seases  in,  27S. 

"•  "         geograpliy  of,  273. 

"  "        geology  of,  2S1. 

"  "         grazing  in,  2S4. 

"  "        Indians  of,  473. 

"•  "         lakes  of,  274. 

"  "        Legislative  Assembly  of,  310. 

"  "         minerals  of,  2S1. 

"  "         Mormon  government  in,  301. 

"  "         origin  of  the  name,  272. 

"  ''         population  nf,  294. 

"  "         present  state  of  agriculture  in,  2S5. 

"  "         principal  value  of,  2S7. 

"  "         proposed  route  to,  3. 

"  "         rights  of  the  citizens  of,  311. 

"  "         scourges  of  crickets  and  grasshop- 

pers in,  284. 
Utah  Ten-itory,  singular  fonnation  of  the  mount- 
ains of,  275. 
Utah  Territory,  soil  of,  283. 

"  "        springs  of,  274. 

"  "         tlie  Great  Uesert  of,  455. 

"  "         the  InJian  bureau  of,  476. 

"  "         the  p.ist  of  MoiTOonland,  288. 

"  "         United  States  officials  in,  309-10. 

"  "        -want  of  timber  in,  284-5. 

"  "         wild  animals  of,  279. 

Valley  Home,  in  Kansas,  19. 
"  Valley  Tan,"  origin  of  the  name,  170,  and  note. 
Vegetables  grown  in  Great  Salt  Lake  Valley,  287. 
Vegetation  at  Black  Fork,  176,  177-S. 

"  at  Quaking- Asp  Hill,  ISl. 

'■'■  of  Big  Kanyon,  192,  193. 

"  of  Big  Mountain,  190. 

"  of  Big  Sandy  Greek,  167,  169. 

''  of  Great  Cotton-wood  Kanyon,  346. 

"  of  Kansas,  17. 

'■'■  of  Little  Blue  River,  31. 

"  of  the  banks  of  La  Grande  Platte  Riv- 

er, 41,  4S,  52,  53. 
Vegetation  of  tlie  valleys  of  the  Black  Hills,  134 

''  of  the  Wind-River  Mountains,  163. 

Veranda,  a  model,  53. 
Vermilion  Creek,  27. 
Viburnum  dentatura,  119. 
Villages,  Indian,  86. 
Violin,  Mormon  fondness  for  the,  177. 

Waddington,  Mr.,  the  Mormon,  463. 
Wigjhongopa,  or  Glistening  Gravel  Water,  167. 
Wagon  trains  of  tlie  Great  American  Saliara,  22. 
Wagons,  various  uses  of  the,  of  tlie  prairies,  71. 

"        price  of  the,  called  ambulances,  73  nole. 
Wahpekute  Indians,  habitat  of  the,  96. 
Wahpetonwan  Indians,  habitat  of  the,  96. 
Wakoes,  tents  of  the,  85. 
Walker's  Lake,  274. 
Wallace,  Mr.,  at  the  Bowery,  260. 
Walls,  the  great,  of  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  197. 
Walnut  Cr.  ek,  21. 

"  "      prairie  storm  at,  21. 

War-parties  among  the  Indian.",  143. 

"    party,  return  home  of  a,  1 44. 
Ward,  Mrs.  Maria,  her  work  on  Monnonism,  206, 

note. 
Ward,  W.,the  Mormon  sculptor  and  apostate,  246. 
Wards  into  which  Great  Salt  Lake  City  is  divided, 

217. 


Ward's  Station,  or  the  "Central  Star,"  91. 
Warm  Springs,  l.'iS. 

"  "       barren  country  beyond,  153. 

Warren,  Lieutenant  Gouverneur  K.,  report  of,  on 

Nebraska  quoted,  7. 
WaiTior.-i,  Indian,  57. 
Wasach  ilountains,  189.  195. 

"  "•  eternal  snow  of  the,  323. 

Washiki,  the  Shoshonee  cliief,  105. 
Washington  (Jounty,  Ltaii  Territory,  description 

of,  292,  noti: 
Water  communication,  idea  of,  between  the  Mis- 
souri and  the  Columbia  Rivers,  102,  103,  note. 
Water,  none  in  the  First  Desert,  107. 

"      scarcity  of,  on  the  couuterslope  of  the  Rocky 
Mountains,  160. 
Water,  supply  of,  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  216. 
Wazikute  Indians,  97. 

Weapons  necessary  to  the  Western  traveler,  9. 
''        of  the  North  American  Indians,  57,  119, 
120. 
Weber  River,  182. 

"      head  and  course  of  the,  183,  325. 
"     rain-storms  and  cold  winds  of,  183. 
"      Station,  183. 
"     tributaries  of  the,  189. 
"      valley  of  the,  188. 
Weed-prairie,  the,  48. 
Wells,  General,  the  Mormon  president,  account  of, 

241,  354. 
Western  man's  home,  description  of  a,  468-9. 
Whisky  a  favorite  with  the  wagon  diivers,  24. 

"        ''Valley  Tan,"  170. 
White-Earth  River,  or  Mankizitah,  72. 
"      Knife  Indians,  481-2. 
"      Mountains,  450. 
"  White  Savages"  of  the  West,  173,  and  note. 
Wichiyela,  or  First-Nation  Indians,  97. 
Wigwams,  huts,  or  cabins  of  the  Kustem  Ameri- 
can Indians,  86,  note. 
Wilderness,  the  American,  63. 

"  "  animal  life  in,  64, 

Willow  Creek,  161. 

"  "     a  little  war  at,  461. 

"  "     Canadian  settlers  at,  101. 

"  "     station  at,  461. 

"       Island  Ranch,  49. 
"       Springs  Station,  147. 
"       the  red,  the  bark  of,  smoked.  111. 
Wind,  alternate  hot  and  cold  puffs  of,  in  the  prai- 
ries, 79. 
Wind  River,  fountain-head  of  the,  162. 
"  Mountains,  162,  163,  164. 

"•  "  evening  view  of  the,  164. 

"  "  game  in  the,  63. 

"  "  gold  found  in  the,  165. 

"  "  morning  in  the,  166. 

"  "  wild  animals  of  the  wood- 

ed heights,  165. 
Winds,  cold,  of  Weber-River  Station,  183. 
Wind-storms  of  the  South  Pass,  165. 
Wind,  west,  almost  invariable  at  the  South  Pass, 

163. 
Winnebagoes,  Winnipegs,  or  Ochangras,  Indian 

tribe  of  the,  20,  note. 
Winnebagoes,  their  tents,  86. 
Winnipeg  Lake,  Indians  on,  100. 
Witchetaws,  tents  of  the,  85. 
Wright,  Mose,  472-3,  4S1-2. 
Wolves  at  Rocky  Bridge  Station,  160,  161. 
"      near  Black's  Fork,  176. 
"      the  prairie,  30. 
Women,  exce.'^s  of  the  female  over  the  male  pop- 
ulation in  Utah  Territory,  301. 
Women,  house  of  the  wives  of  the  Prophet  in  Great 

Salt  Lake  City,  246. 
Women,  Indian,  59,  106. 

"       Indian  names  of,  115. 
"       marriage  among  the  North  Americau  In- 
dian?, 116. 
Women,  Mormon  marriage,  427,  432. 
"       Mormon,  their  polygamy,  431. 


574 


INDEX. 


Women,  motherhood,  how  regarded  in  the  West- 
em  Statee,  432. 
Women  of  the  Mormoni?,  22S,  430. 
"       of  the  Sioux  Indians,  1U3. 
"       the  lialf-breed,  SO. 

"       their  separation  from  the  men  at  meals, 
117. 
Woodruff,  Willford,  the  Mormon  apostle,  242. 

"  "         his  garden,  360. 

Woods,  Lake  of  the,  Indians  of  the,  100. 
Woodson,  Colonel  S.  H.,  his  establishment  of  the 
mail-coach  route  from  Missouri  to  California 
and  Oregon,  4. 
Wool-producing  country  ia  the  basin  of  the  Green 
River,  2S4. 

YeUow  Creek,  1S3. 
"  "       Hill,  184 

"      Stone  River,  fountain-head  of  the,  162. 
Yoke,  the,  of  the  great  American  Sahara,  23. 
Yosemite,  or  Yohamite  Falls,  500. 
Young,  Brigham,  President,  extract  from  one  of 
his  sermons,  IT,  Twte. 


Young,  Brigham,  address  of,  at  the  Conference, 

305-6. 
Young,  Brigham,  address  of,  in  the  Bowery,  261. 
"  *'  alleged  personal  fear  of,  226. 

"  "  character  of,  239-245. 

"  "  gardens  of,  269. 

"  "his  opinion  of  woman's  counsel, 

207,  rwfe.    * 
Young,  Brigham,  house  of,  234 

"  "  mode  of  life  of,  240,  243. 

''  "  nephew  of  the  Prophet,  157. 

"  "  personal  appearance  of,  233-9. 

"  "  remarks    of,    on   the    "Indian 

Wars,"  243. 
Young,  Brigham,  visit  to,  237-8. 
"  "  wealth  of,  242. 

"  "  wives  and  children  of,  24^. 

Yuta  Indians,  "they  who  live  on  mountains," 

sign  of  their  tribe,  124,  4T7. 
Yuta  Indians,  a  little  war  with  the,  401. 
"  "        kindness  of  the  Moi-mons  to  the,  245. 

"  "       graves  of  the,  122. 

Zizania  aquatica,  96,  note. 


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persevering,  and  resolute. — London  Spectator. 

A  traveler  of  wide  and  varied  experience,  a  close  observer  of  people  and  things,  a  con- 
scientious historian,  and  withal  a  savan  occupying  a  position  of  distinguished  merit,  Dr. 
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able obstacles  and  dangers,  indicates  the  possession  of  those  qualities — that  enthusiasm 
of  discovery,  that  shrewdness  of  observation,  and  that  practical  tact  —  which  lend  the 
charm  of  heroic  and  romantic  interest  to  his  personal  narrative.  The  discoveries  made 
are  of  the  highest  importance  as  bearing  upon  the  future  destiny  of  the  African  continent. 
N.  Y.  Evangelist. 

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Observer. 

It  can  not  fail  to  find  its  way  into  the  lihrjiries  of  most  ec\)6\&TB.—Lynchbi(rg  Virginian. 

The  personal  details  give  the  woik  great  interest. — Philadelphia  Press. 

The  heart  of  Africa  is  at  last  laid  open  to  our  view.  It  is  no  longer  a  land  of  darkness 
and  of  the  shadow  of  death.  It  is  no  longer  a  desert  waste,  a  pestilential  mar.=h,  or  the 
hiding-place  of  wild  beasts  and  bloody  men.  The  physical  features,  the  natural  products, 
the  races,  the  governments,  the  religions  of  the  vast  interior  of  Africa  are  spread  out  be- 
fore us  with  a  minuteness  of  detail  that  leaves  hardly  any  thing  to  be  added  to  our  knowl- 
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