Volume III: Table of Contents

	 Introduction
	 Chapter I:         The Prophet Joseph's Departure from Kirtland and
                    Arrival in Missouri.
	 Chapter II:        Excommunication of Oliver Cowdery and David
                    Whitmer--The Work in England.
	 Chapter III:       Readjustment and Settlement of Affairs at Far
                    West.
	 Chapter IV:        Selection of Lands in Caldwell and Daviess
                    Counties for Settlement--Adam-Ondi-Ahman.
	 Chapter V:         Independence Day at Far West--Sundry Events and
                    Revelations--Epistle of David W. Patten.
	 Chapter VI:        The Beginning of Trouble in Caldwell and Daviess
                    Counties.
	 Chapter VII:       Increasing Difficulties Between the Saints and
                    the Mobs of Daviess and Caldwell Counties.
	 Chapter VIII: Mob Movements in Caldwell, Daviess and Carroll
               Counties--Arrival of Kirtland Camp at Far West.
	 Chapter IX:        The Organization and Journey of Kirtland Camp.

	 Chapter X:         The Journey of Kirtland Camp (Continued).
	 Chapter XI:        Expulsion of the Saints from De Witt, Carroll
                    County, Missouri.
	 Chapter XII:       Movements of the Mob Upon De Witt--Battle of
                    Crooked River--Exterminating Order of Governor
                    Boggs.
	 Chapter XIII: Mob Movements About Far West--Treachery of
               Colonel Hinckle--Sorrowful Scenes.
	 Chapter XIV:       Rivalry Among the Militia Generals for Possession
                    of the Prisoners--"Trial" at Richmond.
	 Chapter XV:        The Case of the Saints Presented to the Missouri
                    Legislature--The Prophet's Communication to the
                    Saints from Liberty Prison.
	 Chapter XVI:       Case of the "Mormons" Before the Missouri
                    Legislature--Close of the Year 1838.
	 Chapter XVII: Preparations for Leaving Missouri--Action of the
               State Legislature.
	 Chapter XVIII:     The Exiled Saints Gather at Quincy--Proposition
                    to Settle at Commerce.
	 Chapter XIX:       Letters to the Prophet--Affairs in
                    England--Petitions.

	 Chapter XX:        Sundry Movements in the Interest of the Exiled
                    Saints--The Prophet's Letters from Liberty
                    Prison.
	 Chapter XXI:       Stirring Scenes about Far West--The Epistle of
                    the Prophet and His Fellow Prisoners.
	 Chapter XXII: The Prophet's Account of His Experiences in
               Missouri--Fulfillment of a Prophetic
               Revelation--Complete Exodus of the Saints from
               Missouri.
	 Chapter XXIII:     Settlement in Commerce, Illinois.
	 Chapter XXIV: Adventures of the Prisoners Remaining in
               Missouri--The Prophet's Narrative of Personal
               Experiences in Missouri.
	 Chapter XXV:       Commerce--The Prophet's History--Doctrinal
                    Development.
	 Chapter XXVI: The Prophet's Ministry in the Vicinity of
               Commerce--Address to the Twelve.
	 Chapter XXVII:     Baptism of Isaac Galland--Epistle of the Twelve
                    to the Church.
	 Chapter XXVIII:    The Escape of Parley P. Pratt and His Fellow
                    Prisoners from Missouri--The Close of an Epoch.

	 Appendix to Volume III: Affidavits of Hyrum Smith et. al. on
                         Affairs in Missouri, 1831-39;
                         Officially Subscribed to Before the
                         Municipal Court of Nauvoo the First Day
                         of July, 1843.


                       INTRODUCTION TO VOLUME III.

    Enlightenment a Factor in Determining Responsibility for Conduct.

	VOLUME THREE concludes, for the present, the history of the Church in
Missouri. I think it proper, therefore, that here should be considered the
causes of the Missouri persecutions, which resulted in the expulsion of
the entire Church from that state.

	There have been, of course, more extensive persecutions than those
inflicted on the Saints in Missouri; but I doubt if there has ever been a
persecution more cruel or terror-laden in its character. Viewed from the
standpoint of its net results there were some fifty people, men, women,
and children, killed outright; about as many more were wounded or cruelly
beaten, and many more perished indirectly because of the exposure to which
they were subjected through the winters of 1833-4 and 1838-9.

	In round numbers it is estimated that between twelve and fifteen
thousand people, citizens of the United States, after being dispossessed
of their lands, were forcibly driven from the state. It is known that they
paid to the United States government for land alone, three hundred and
eighteen thousand dollars, which, at the minimum price of one dollar and a
quarter per acre, would give them land holdings of over two hundred and
fifty thousand acres, which represented for that day very large
interests.

	To this list of results must be added the more horrible one of
several cases of ravishment at Far West; and also, after barely escaping
from the sentence of death pronounced by a court martial, the cruel
imprisonment through weary months of a number of Church leaders.

	In passing judgment upon such matters as these account must be taken
of the age and country in which they occurred; likewise the pretensions to
right views of life, and devotion to freedom on the part of the
perpetrators of the injustice. Undoubtedly a heavier debt is incurred to
history, to humanity and to God, when the parties who resort to such acts
of mob violence and injustice live in an enlightened age, and where the
free institutions of their country guarantee both the freedom and security
of its citizens.

	If in the jungle a man meets a tiger and is torn to pieces, no one
thinks of holding the tiger to any moral accountability. Perhaps the hunt
will be formed to destroy the beast, but that is merely to be rid of a
dangerous animal, and prevent the repetition of the deed. If another meets
a cruel death among savages in heathen lands, while some moral
responsibility would hold against them, according to their degree of
enlightenment, yet the fact that it was an act of savages would be held to
reduce the degree of moral turpitude. And likewise even in civilized
states, in localities to which the vicious may gravitate, when acts of
violence are committed there. some allowance may be, and generally is,
made for the ignorance and general brutality of the particular
neighborhood.

	By this process of reasoning I think it will appear quite clear that
moral responsibility, both on the part of individuals and communities or
nations, increases in proportion to their enlightenment. If, therefore,
this principle be kept in view, the persecution of the Latter-day Saints
by the people of Missouri was a very heinous offense.

	True it may be said that the worst acts of cruelty were perpetrated
by low, brutish men among the mob or in the militia--for these bodies were
convertible from one to the Other on shortest possible notice, and wholly
as the exigencies of the enemies of the Saints demanded--but these were
led and abetted by quite a different order of men: by lawyers, members of
the state legislature, by county and district judges, by physicians, by
professed ministers of the gospel, by merchants, by leading politicians,
by captains, majors, colonels, and generals--of several grades--of the
militia, by many other high officials of the state including the Governor
and Lieutenant Governor, and finally by the action of the state
legislature which appropriated two hundred thousand dollars to defray the
expenses incurred by the mob-militia in carrying out the Governor's order,
exterminating the Saints from the state. These facts are made apparent in
the pages of this and the two preceding volumes of the HISTORY OF THE
CHURCH. The facts cannot be questioned. They are written out most
circumstantially in the Prophet's story. Times, places, and names are
given of the incidents related, and the more important of these may be
corroborated by histories of these events other than our own.

	The persecutions then of the Latter-day Saints in Missouri, and their
anal expulsion from that state, were crimes against the enlightenment of
the age and of the state where the acts Occurred; a crime against the
constitutions and institutions both of the state of Missouri and of the
United States; as also a crime against the Christian religion. All this we
have in mind when speaking of the severity and cruelty of these compared
with other persecutions. The state of Missouri was guilty of a greater
crime when it persecuted the Latter-day Saints than states were which in
the barbarous times of the dark ages persecuted their people; though when
estimated in net results there may have been more murders and robberies,
greater destruction of property, and more wide-spread suffering in the
latter than in the former.

	It is in the light of the principle here laid down that I propose to
review the causes of the persecutions of the Latter-day Saints in
Missouri.

                  The People of Missouri and the Saints.

	The people of the state of Missouri, and especially those living in
western and upper Missouri, in the early decades of the nineteenth
century, were chiefly from the states of the South-- from Kentucky,
Tennessee, Virginia, and the Carolinas. This is not stated as a matter of
reproach, for among the American people there have been no better or
nobler citizens of the Republic than the people of the states enumerated.
I merely make the statement in order to present a fact, and because other
facts grow out of it. To say that Missouri was settled by emigrants from
the states of the South carries with it the explanation why Missouri was
one of the slave states, and her people attached to the social and
industrial methods of life attendant upon that circumstance. That is to
say, they looked with contempt upon manual labor; regarding it as menial
and proper only for slaves to perform. With that idea is closely related
another; namely, that white people who from circumstances were compelled
to perform manual labor, or who followed it from principle, in the eyes of
the people of the South were of an inferior class; contemptuously
characterized by some as "white trash," and by others, inclined to be more
polite, as "poor whites."

	Freedom from manual labor gave to those of active dispositions in
such communities an opportunity to follow the more desirable vocations of
professional life; the law, medicine, the Christian ministry,
merchandizing and general business; or leisure for political or military
activities; or the pursuit of pleasure, fishing, hunting, horse racing,
and social life generally. These conditions naturally resulted in pride,
often in arrogance, and a desperate sort of courage, which held honor high
and weakness and cowardice in contempt; also something of intolerance for
those disposed to set themselves against such an order of things.

	The reader will recognize, of course, that I have so far in mind only
the better element of the population, the least of the evils and some of
the advantages resulting from such industrial and social conditions. There
were, however, quite different and more serious results than any yet noted
arising from this system of society. While those disposed to activity and
inclined to honorable pursuits might enjoy certain advantages from the
system, on the other hand, it fostered man's natural inclination to
idleness and love of ease that comes of idleness; and fostered jealousy
and bitterness against those more industrious and successful. In such a
class the system led to ignorance, irreligion, and criminal tendencies;
constituting them a dangerous element in the community. It was doubtless
this class the Prophet Joseph had in mind when he said soon after his
first arrival in western Missouri: "Our reflections were great, coming as
we had from a highly cultivated state of society in the East, and standing
now upon the confines or western limits of the United States, and looking
into the vast wilderness of those that sat in darkness. How natural it was
to observe the degradation, leanness of intellect, ferocity and jealousy
of a people that were nearly a century behind the times, and to feel for
those who roamed about without the benefit of civilization, refinement, or
religion!"

	Many of the positions in the higher walks of life, in western
Missouri, were sought by the unworthy, the corruptible and the
vicious--men who sought all the advantages of the southern ideals of life
without possessing the refining virtues which for generations in the older
states of the south made some of the evils of the social system that
obtained there at least tolerable. Such were the Brazeales, the Wilsons,
the Hunters, the Kavanaughs, the Likens, the Loveladys, the McCartys, the
McCoys, the Pixleys, the Simsons, the Silvers, the Westons, the Gilliams,
the Birches, the Blacks, the Bogarts, the Clarks, the Liveseys, and the
Penistons.

	Another circumstance which influenced somewhat the character of
western Missouri's population in the early decades of the nineteenth
century, was the fact that these sections of the state constituted part of
the frontiers of the United States, and here had gravitated a more or less
lawless class which sought the security of proximity to the boundary lines
of the United States, from whose confines they could make their escape in
the event of being hard pressed for violations of law in the older states
whence they had come, or in their new habitat. Such were the Lovels, the
Hawkins, the Heatherleys and many others.

	The Latter-day Saints who settled in Missouri from 1831 to 1839 had
come for the most part from the New England States and New York. There
were, therefore, marked differences in character between them and the old
settlers of Missouri; differences of ideas as to industrial and social
life; of moral and religious life. The Saints were descendants chiefly of
the Puritans, and both by inheritance and training had fallen heirs to the
Puritan's strict views of industry, religion and morality. The Puritans
taught that all labor was honorable, and industry a duty. Religion
occupied a large share of their attention--entered in fact into all the
affairs of life--though its duties meant largely a regular attendance upon
church service; a strict observance of the proprieties while there; a
rigid observance throughout of the Sabbath day. Neither work nor
amusements were tolerated on that day. In the olden time among some of
their forefathers it had been unlawful to sit in Boston Common on the
Sabbath or to walk in the streets of Boston, except to church. Once a man
was publicly whipped for shooting a fowl on Sunday. A woman was threatened
with banishment for smiling in church. A person absent from church for
more than one Sunday was in danger of being fined, whipped, or set in the
stocks. Swearing was prohibited in nearly all the New England colonies,
and a split stick was sometimes placed on the swearer's tongue.

	Both food and dress were plain, and the latter, in some instances,
was regulated by law. Amusements were few. Dancing and card-playing were
forbidden, and there was little music. The state sought to take entire
charge of the individual, and supposed that tendency toward immorality
could be stemmed by legislation. In early Connecticut no one under twenty
was allowed to use tobacco, and none to use it more than once a day. The
laws were severe and the penalties cruel. The stocks and whipping-post and
pillory were in frequent requisition to correct moral delinquents. An
offender might be made to stand on a stool in church with the name of his
misdemeanor displayed on his breast. Among the common punishments were
cropping or boring the ears and branding with a hot iron.

	Of course in later years there was a general relaxation from these
severities, and many of these customs and laws, by the time our generation
of Saints came on the scene, were obsolete. Still, the moral and spiritual
atmosphere in which the Saints and their fathers had been reared was
austere in its moral character, and stood in marked contrast to the moral
atmosphere of the South, where, in respect of such things as church
attendance, religious observances, personal liberty in eating, drinking
and amusements, there was wider freedom.

	In the sparsely settled country of western Missouri, the descendants
of the old cavaliers and their following, who settled the South, and the
descendants of the Puritans, who settled the North, were to meet: and very
naturally one may see in these antagonistic elements--aside from the cause
of antagonism which will be found in the newly revealed religion of the
Latter-day Saints--natural causes of irritation between them founded in
the differences of character, and their respective conceptions of
industrial, moral, and religious duties. That the old settlers in
Missouri, even those friendly disposed towards the Saints, recognized the
incompatibility of the two classes is evident from the public utterances
of a mass meeting held at Liberty, in Clay county, when the Saints were
urged to seek a new locality where they could live by themselves. "They
are eastern men," said the address, "whose manners, habits, customs, and
even dialect, are essentially different from our own. We earnestly urge
them to seek some other abiding place, where the manners, the habits, and
customs of the people will be more consonant with their own."

	This difference of character between the Saints and the old settlers
I account one of the causes of the Missouri persecutions.

                         The Question of Slavery.

	The question of slavery in Missouri was a delicate one. It will
perhaps be remembered that it was the application of the territory of
Missouri for admission into the Union, 1818-19, that brought the question
of slavery into one of its acute stages before the country; and
inaugurated a long series of debates in the National Congress on the
subject.

	It was upon the admission of Missouri into the Union in 1821 that the
great Compromise which bears the state's name settled, not the question of
slavery itself, but, for the time, the agitation of it.



	That Compromise consisted finally in this: that while Missouri
herself was admitted with a clause in her constitution permitting slavery,
and also prohibiting free people of color from immigrating into the state,
slavery was forever to be prohibited in all territory of the United States
north of the line thirty-six degrees and thirty minutes north latitude
(the southern boundary line of the state of Missouri); and Missouri was
required "by a solemn, public act" of her legislature, to declare that the
clause in her constitution relating to the immigration of free negroes
into the state, should never be construed to authorize the passage of any
law by which any citizen of either of the states in this Union shall be
excluded from the enjoyment of any of the privileges and immunities to
which he is entitled under the Constitution of the United States.

	These historical facts are referred to here that the reader may be
reminded that slavery was a delicate question in Missouri; that her people
were super-sensitive about it since she was the first territory upon which
the National Congress sought to impose the prohibition of slavery as a
condition precedent to her admission into the Union, which, up to that
time, had been a matter left to the people of the territory seeking
admission to determine for themselves. Of course this attempt at
restriction of slavery was made by northern members of the national
Congress. All the sentiment for the restriction of slavery was in the
North. In 1831 the sentiment for the positive abolition of slavery had
made such progress in Massachusetts, that William Lloyd Garrison
established in Boston "The Liberator," a paper which advocated "the
immediate and unconditional emancipation of every slave in the United
States." As a result of this agitation anti-slavery societies were formed
and active measures taken to advocate these opinions by means of lectures
and pamphlets. These extreme measures against slavery did not meet with
the approval of all or even the majority of the people of New England,
much less with the approval of the people of other northern states. Still
this agitation arose and was chiefly supported in New England. It will not
be difficult to understand, therefore. that any considerable number of
people from that section of the Union immigrating into a slave state would
arouse suspicion; especially when that immigration was into a slave state
upon which, when as a territory she had made application for admission
into the Union, prohibition of slavery was sought to be enforced by the
northern members of the National Congress. Nor will it be sufficient to
dispel this suspicion to aver that these particular immigrants from New
England, and other northern states are not abolitionists; that they take
no part with, and do not share the fanatical sentiments of, the
abolitionists; that their objects and purposes are of an entirely
different and larger character.

	The answer to all this was given in a public document drawn up to
voice the sentiment of a great mass meeting of the people of Clay
county--a people, be it remembered, who at the time (1836) were not
unfriendly towards the Saints. but a people who a few years before had
received the Saints into their homes, and given them shelter when they
were exiles from Jackson county, and who, at the time of the utterance I
am about to quote was published, were in a covenant of peace with the
Saints, and the Saints in a covenant of peace with them- -I say the answer
to all disclaimers on the part of the Saints respecting their not being
abolitionists was found in this public utterance: "They are eastern men,
whose manners, habits, customs and even dialect are essentially different
from our own. They are non-slaveholders, and opposed to slavery, which in
this peculiar period, when abolitionism has reared its deformed and
haggard visage in our land, is well calculated to excite deep and abiding
prejudices in any community where slavery is tolerated and protected."

	I call attention to these facts that the student of the history of
the Church may appreciate the weight of influence they would have in
creating popular sentiment against the Saints; a matter which hitherto, if
I may be permitted to say so, has not been fully appreciated. One can
readily see what a potent factor this sentiment against New England and
other northern states people would be in the hands of political demagogues
and sectarian priests seeking to exterminate what they would respectively
consider an undesirable element in politics and a religious rival. That
both political demagogues and sectarian priests made the most of the
opportunity which hostile sentiment in Missouri against abolition and
abolitionists afforded, abundantly appears in the pages of the first
volume of the Church History. That sentiment was appealed to from the
first; indeed in the very first manifesto of the mob --known as "The
Secret Constitution,"--issued against the Saints in Missouri, it was a
prominent feature. This was at Independence, in July, 1833. In that
"Manifesto" the following passage occurs: "More than a year since, it was
ascertained that they [the Saints] had been tampering with our slaves, and
endeavoring to sow dissensions and raise seditions amongst them. Of this
their Mormon leaders were informed, and they said they would deal with any
of their members who should again in like case offend. But how specious
are appearances. In a late number of the Star, published in Independence
by the leaders of the sect, there is an article inviting free negroes and
mulattoes from other states to become Mormons, and remove and settle among
us. This exhibits them in still more odious colors. It manifests a desire
on the part of their society, to inflict on our society an injury that
they know would be to us entirely insupportable, and one of the surest
means of driving us from the country; for it would require none of the
supernatural gifts that they pretend to, to see that the introduction of
such a caste amongst us would corrupt our blacks, and instigate them to
bloodshed."

	The article on "Free People of Color" referred to appeared in the
Evening and Morning Star for July. The charge of sowing dissensions and
inspiring seditions among the slaves, and inviting free negroes to settle
in Missouri, had no foundation in truth. Concerning such people the
Missouri laws provided that: If any negro or mulatto came into the state
of Missouri, without a certificate from a court of record in some one of
the United States, evidencing that he was a citizen of such state, on
complaint before any justice of the peace. such negro or mulatto could be
commanded by the justice to leave the state; and if the colored person so
ordered did not leave the state within thirty days, on complaint of any
citizen. such person could be again brought before the justice who might
commit him to the common jail of the county, until the convening of the
circuit court, when it became the duty of the judge of the circuit court
to inquire into the cause of commitment; and if it was found that the
negro or mulatto had remained in the state contrary to the provisions of
this statute, the court was authorized to sentence such person to receive
ten lashes on his or her bare back, and then order him or her to depart
from the state; if the person so treated should still refuse to go, then
the same proceedings were to be repeated and punishment inflicted as often
as was necessary until such person departed.

	And further: If any person brought into the state of Missouri a free
negro or mulatto, without the aforesaid certificate of citizenship, for
every such negro or mulatto the person offending was liable to a forfeit
of five hundred dollars; to be recovered by action of debt in the name of
the state.

	The editor of the Star commenting upon this law said: "Slaves are
real estate in this and other states, and wisdom would dictate great care
among the branches of the Church of Christ on this subject.

	So long as we have no special rule in the Church as to people of
color, let prudence guide; and while they, as well as we, are in the hands
of a merciful God, we say: shun every appearance of evil."

	Publishing this law and the above comment was construed by the old
settlers to be an invitation to free people of color to settle in Jackson
county! Whereupon an extra was published to the July number of the Star on
the sixteenth of the month, which said: "The intention in publishing the
article, "Free People of Color," was not only to stop free people of color
from immigrating to Missouri, but to prevent them from being admitted as
members of the Church. * * * * * To be short, we are opposed to having
free people of color admitted into the State."

	But in the face of all this the Missourians still claimed that the
article was merely published to give directions and cautions to be
observed by "colored brethren," to enable them upon their arrival in
Missouri, to "claim and exercise the rights of citizenship."
"Contemporaneous with the appearance of this article"--the above article
in the Star--continued the charge published in the Western Monitor--"was
the expectation among the brethren, that a considerable number of this
degraded caste were only waiting this information before they should set
out on their journey." And this base falsehood was used to inflame the
minds of the old settlers against the Saints.

	I do not refer to this question of slavery in connection with the
persecution of the Saints in Missouri in order to set it down as one of
the causes of that persecution; because, as a matter of fact, the views of
the Saints, and especially of the leading Elders of the Church on that
question were such that they could never be truthfully charged with being
a menace to that institution. The Prophet Joseph himself, at the time of
the Jackson county troubles and subsequently, held very conservative views
on the subject of slavery, surprisingly conservative views when his own
temperament and environment are taken into account, of which fact any one
may convince himself by reading his paper on the subject of abolition in
Volume II of the Church History, pages 436-40.

	Finally, it was given by the inspiration of God to the Prophet first
to utter the most statesman-like word upon this vexed question of slavery,
and had the nation and people of the United States but given heed to his
recommendations it would have settled the question in harmony with the
convictions of the people of the North, and without injustice to the
South. Here follows his statesman-like word, published throughout the
United States in 1844--eleven years before Ralph Waldo Emerson made
substantially the same recommendation, and for which the philosopher
received no end of praise:--

	"Petition, also, ye goodly inhabitants of the slave states, your
legislators to abolish slavery by the year 1850, or now, and save the
abolitionist from reproach and ruin, and infamy and shame. Pray Congress
to pay every man a reasonable price for his slaves out of the surplus
revenue arising from the sale of the public lands, and from the deduction
of pay from the members of Congress. Break off the shackles from the poor
black man, and hire him to labor like other human beings; for an hour of
virtuous liberty is worth a whole eternity of bondage."

	But now to return to the course of the Missourians in misrepresenting
the views of the Saints on the subject of slavery. Notwithstanding the
explicit denials through the "Evening and Morning Star," that the article
on "Free People of Color" was intended to invite such a class into the
state; and the further declaration that the Saints were opposed to such
persons coming into the state; as also the fact that it is doubtful if
there were any free negroes who were members of the
Church--notwithstanding all this, their enemies continued to misrepresent
them, and their views on the subject of slavery. They saw in the fact that
many of them were from New England. where abolition sentiment was rife,
their opportunity to charge them with abolition sentiments and intention
to interfere with slavery, with every prospect of having it quite
generally believed--hence the charge was made and became a pretext if not
a cause of acts of aggression upon the Saints, and as such is a factor
that must be taken account of in these pages.

                             Political Fears.

	I know of no circumstances which developed what the political faith
of the Saints really was during their sojourn in the state of Missouri;
and doubt if any data exists from which it could be determined whether a
majority of them were Whigs of Republican- Democrats, as the party now
designated as the Democratic party was then called. In fact, politics,
local or national, concerned the Saints but very little during their stay
in Missouri. Their minds were occupied by quite other, and I may say,
larger and higher things; and their activities were concerned with other
issues than those political. They were concerned about the redemption of
Zion, her establishment, the proclamation of the Gospel, the salvation of
men, the preparation of the earth for the incoming of that Kingdom whose
King is the Lord. Their mission encompassed the whole world, it was not
confined to the state of Missouri and her petty political affairs; nor
even to the political affairs of the United States, important as they
were. "Mormonism" was a world-movement, not merely a national one. It
concerned itself with the deeper and broader subject of religion, rather
than with the principles and methods of the administration of government,
state or national. Still, in common with other people of the county, state
and nation of which they were citizens, they possessed civil and political
rights and privileges, accompanied as such rights and privileges always
are in a republic with certain duties both to the state and themselves,
among which the exercise of the elective franchise. As this made them a
power in the community, their actual and prospective influence in the
affairs of the counties where they resided, and in the state, was a matter
of frequent discussion among the old settlers in Missouri. I do not know
that it was ever charged that they were Whigs, and that by acting with
that party in Missouri they could wrest the control of the state from the
Republican-Democratic party then in power; though that they were Whigs
might have been inferred from the fact of their being chiefly from New
England and other northern states; yet this was not charged. There was
repeatedly expressed, however, a fear of their political power. In the
document issued by the mob meeting at Independence on the 20th of July,
1833, it is said: " When we reflect on the extensive field in which the
sect is operating, and that there exists in every country a leaven of
superstition that embraces with avidity, notions the most extravagant and
unheard of, and that whatever can be gleaned by them from the purlieus of
vice and the abodes of ignorance, is to be cast like a waif into our
social circle, it requires no gift of prophecy to tell that the day is not
far distant when the civil government of the county will be in their
hands; when the sheriff, the justices, and the county judges will be
Mormons, or persons wishing to court their favor from motives of interest
or ambition."

	It was an effort to prevent members of the Church from voting at an
election at Gallatin, Daviess county, in August, 1838, which led to the
commencement of those acts of hostility against the Saints which ended
ultimately in their expulsion from that state. There was no political
offense even charged against the Saints; only that if permitted to
exercise the franchise they would in time obtain control of the counties
where they resided, so rapidly were they increasing in numbers; and the
old settlers would lose the offices; and as these, old settlers were dear
lovers of office, it was political jealousy born of fear which prompted in
part the acts of aggression against the Saints. When such jealousy is
awakened, pretexts for the justification of its existence are not
difficult to find, and in this instance the old settlers in Missouri
relied upon the false charges of ignorance, superstition, and general
unworthiness of the saints to be considered good citizens of the state.
The charge was not that they were all of one political faith; or that they
voted solidly; or that they were under the political dictation of their
religious leaders; or that religious influence was dragged into political
affairs. None of these charges were made: it was simply a fear that the
old settlers would lose the offices, and the new settlers, the Saints,
being in the majority, would hold them. How much justification there was
for this "fear" may not be determined, since it was based upon no
accomplished fact, but regarded as the natural outcome of the operation of
the political system obtaining in the United States; namely, the right of
the majority to choose the public officers; and if the Saints happened to
be in the majority it was regarded as likely that they would elect their
friends to office, among whom, at least, would have been some members of
their own faith. How the matter would have terminated in the event of the
Saints having been permitted to remain in Missouri--what would have been
the political alignment of the members of the Church I mean, no one can
say. The only political utterance made by any Church leader was that given
out by the Prophet Joseph soon after his arrival in Missouri, and called
at the time "The Political Motto of the Church." I quote it:

     	The Constitution of our country formed by the Fathers of
     Liberty; peace and good order in society; love to God, and good will
     to man. All good and wholesome laws; virtue and truth above all
     things, and Aristarchy [a government by good men] live for ever; but
     woe to tyrants, mobs, aristocracy, anarchy and toryism, and all those
     who invent or seek out unrighteous or evasive law suits, under the
     pretext and color of law or office, either religious or political.
     Exalt the standard of Democracy! Down with that of priestcraft, and
     let all the people say Amen! That the blood of the fathers may not
     cry from the ground against us. Sacred is the memory of that blood
     which bought for us our liberty."

	This surely is sufficiently non-partisan, cosmopolitan and patriotic.
Is it not of the essence of Americanism? And under such sentiments would
not every member of the Church be able to perform his political duty in
either of the great American parties then existing or afterwards to arise?

	It is not necessary to pursue this subject further. It is enough to
say that the political fears of the old settlers of Missouri, though based
upon conjecture as to what could or might happen, were real fears, and
became one of the causes of the Missouri persecutions.

                       The Saints and the Indians.

	The interest of the Saints in the American Indians grows out of the
knowledge they have of their forefathers, revealed through the Book of
Mormon. From the historical parts of that book they learned the origin of
these Indians; that they are of the house of Israel: from the prophetic
parts of the book they learn of their future, that it is to be glorious;
that fallen as their fortunes now are, they will not always remain so;
extinction is not their fate, but before many generations shall pass away
they will become a white and a delightsome people, favored of God, and
prominent in bringing to pass His purposes in the land of Zion-- the two
Americas. It was a mission to the Lamanites or Indians which first brought
several of the Elders of the Church of Christ to western Missouri. When
the people of Missouri learned in what esteem the Saints held the
forefathers of the Indians, and also the Indians themselves, both on
account of their forefathers and the promises of God to them, it was but
reasonable that they should conclude there was--as indeed there is--a
strong sympathy on the part of the Saints towards the Indians; and there
was great reason to believe that this sympathy might become mutual.

	It was in this substratum of truth that the false accusations against
the Saints were founded to the effect that they were seeking to enter into
an alliance with the Indian tribes of the west for the purpose of driving
the old settlers from their possessions in western Missouri. in order that
the Saints with the Indians might possess the land to the exclusion of the
"Gentiles."

	To appreciate the seriousness of this charge, it should be remembered
that the Indian tribes formerly residing east of the Mississippi, about
this time--during President Jackson's two presidential terms,
1829-1837--were being transplanted into the country immediately west of
Missouri, so that there were great numbers of these people-- amounting to
many thousands--being massed just beyond the boundaries of the state. Many
of the tribes were in no amiable mood either. In some instances the terms
of the treaties by which they accepted lands in the Indian territory west
of Missouri, for lands that constituted their old homes in the East and
South, were forced upon them after--to them--disastrous wars; so that it
might well be suspected that they would be ready to follow any leader who
would hold out promise of regaining their lost possessions, or who would
give them the hope of revenge upon their despoilers.

	Let these facts be considered and given their due weight, and the
reader will not find it difficult to perceive what a potent factor against
the Saints this charge of holding communication with the Indians for the
purpose of dispossessing the people of western Missouri of their homes
would be; and, as in the case of the slavery question, their enemies were
not slow to see the advantage, and made the most of it. It was not until
the agitation for the removal of the Saints from Clay county began.
however, 1836, that this charge of bolding communication with the Indians
for the purposes already set forth, was publicly made. Then in the
document adopted at the mass meeting setting forth the several reasons of
the old settlers for asking the Saints to remove from Clay county. this
passage occurs:

     	"In addition to all this, they are charged, as they have
     hitherto been, with keeping up a constant communication with our
     Indian tribes on the frontiers; with declaring, even from the pulpit,
     that the Indians are a part of God's chosen people, and are destined
     by heaven to inherit this land, in common with themselves. We do not
     vouch for the correctness of these statements; but whether they are
     true or false, their effect has been the same in exciting the
     community. In times of greater tranquility, such ridiculous remarks
     might well be regarded as the offspring of frenzied fanaticism; but
     at this time, our defenseless situation on the frontier, the bloody
     disasters of our fellow citizens in Florida and other parts of the
     South, all tend to make a portion of our citizens regard such
     sentiments with horror, if not alarm. These and many other causes
     have combined to raise a prejudice against them, and a feeling of
     hostility, that the first spark may, and we deeply fear will, ignite
     into all the horrors and desolations of a civil war, the worst evil
     that can befall any country."

	Governor Dunklin, shortly after this, in answer to appeals made to
him by the Saints for protection, by the execution of the law, on this
charge of holding communication with the Indians, said: "Your neighbors
accuse your people with holding illicit communication with the Indians,
and of being opposed to slavery. You deny. Whether the charge or the
denial is true, I cannot tell. The fact exists, and your neighbors seem to
believe it true; and whether true or false, the consequences will be the
same (if your opponents are not merely gasconnading), unless you can, by
your conduct and arguments, convince them of your innocence. If you cannot
do this, all I can say to you is that in this Republic the vox populi is
the vox Dei."

	Of course this false accusation was emphatically denied by the
Saints. In a public meeting held by the members of the Church to draw up a
reply to the request of the people of Clay county, that the Saints remove
from that county, they said: "We deny holding any communication with the
Indians, and mean to hold ourselves as ready to defend our country against
their barbarous ravages as any other people. We believe that all men are
bound to sustain and uphold the respective governments in which they
reside, while protected in their inherent and inalienable rights by the
laws of such governments; and that sedition and rebellion are unbecoming
every citizen thus protected, and should be punished accordingly."

	In a communication signed by the Prophet Joseph and several other
presiding officers of the Church, and addressed to the leading men of Clay
county, referring to the Indian charge. this was said: "Another charge of
great magnitude is brought against our friends in the west, that of
keeping up a constant communication with the Indian tribes on the
frontier; with declaring, even from the pulpit, that the Indians are a
part of God's chosen people, and are destined by heaven to inherit this
land, in common with themselves. We know of nothing under the present
aspect of our Indian relations calculated to arouse the fears of the
people of the Upper Missouri more than a combination of influences of this
nature; and we cannot look upon it as being other than one of the most
subtle purposes of those whose feelings are embittered against our
friends, to turn the eye of suspicion upon them from every man who is
acquainted with the barbarous cruelty of rude savages. Since a rumor was
afloat that the western Indians were showing signs of war, we have
received frequent private letters from our friends, who have not only
expressed fears for their own safety, in case the Indians should break
out, but a decided determination to be among the first to repel any
invasion and defend the frontier from all hostilities. We mention the last
fact because it was wholly uncalled for on our part, and came previous to
any excitement on the part of the people of Clay county against our
friends, and must definitely show that this charge is untrue."

	But all these denials went for nothing. As remarked by Governor
Dunklin, whether the denial or the charge was true, people at a distance,
at least, might not tell; quite generally, however, the charge was
believed, and helped to swell the volume of prejudice--already too
great--against the Saints. Indeed, so potent a factor was this charge of
holding illicit communication with the Indians, in arousing prejudice
against the Saints, that it was used against them with great effect after
their settlement in Utah. It was one of the charges made against them at
the time the general government of the United States was induced by their
enemies to send out an army to suppress a rebellion in Utah that had no
existence except in the hate-frenzied minds of the detractors of the
Saints.

	"It is charged," said Stephen A. Douglas in a speech at Springfield,
Illinois, on the 12th of June, 1857--"it is charged * * * * that the
Mormon government, with Brigham Young at its head, is now forming
alliances with Indian tribes in Utah and adjoining territories,
stimulating the Indians to acts of hostility, and organizing bands of his
own followers, under the name of Danites or destroying angels, to
prosecute a system of robbery and murders upon American citizens who
support the authority of the United States, and denounce the infamous and
disgusting practices and institutions of the Mormon government."

	The army came only to find the foregoing with other charges that had
induced the general government to send it to Utah, untrue. But this is
digression.

	Mormon communication with the American Indians for the purpose of
despoiling the Gentiles and taking possession of their lands can never be
set down as one of the causes of the Missouri persecution; for such
communication never took place-- the charge of it was untrue. It was,
however, one of a number of pretexts, and became a factor in creating
public prejudice, which alone made possible the expulsion of the Saints
from Missouri.

                       The Unwisdom of the Saints.

	I come now to one of the most delicate subdivisions of this
Introduction; namely, the unwisdom of the Saints. To appreciate this as a
factor in the Missouri persecutions one needs to take into account not
only human nature, but also human nature under the stress of religious
impulse and influence. First, however, as to the facts involved.

	To the Saints of those times had been given a dispensation of the
Gospel--a new revelation of it. They had been blessed with the spirit of
faith to receive it. To them it was made known that God had again spoken
from heaven; He had again conferred divine authority upon men to act in
His name--many of the brethren, the majority of the male membership of the
Church in fact, held that divine authority, the priesthood of God; the
terms of man's salvation were restated; the spiritual powers and gifts of
the Gospel were guaranteed anew and plenteously enjoyed by the Saints. To
them was made known the truth of a new volume of scripture, the Book of
Mormon. The knowledge imparted by that book was in itself, and especially
to them, wonderful. From it they learned that the ancient inhabitants of
the American continents, the ruins of whose civilization challenged the
curiosity of men and excited their wonder, were of the house of Israel;
the American Indians were their fallen descendants and, of course, also of
the house of Israel and heirs to the general promises made to that people,
to say nothing of special promises made to them as direct descendants of
the house of the patriarch Joseph, son of Jacob. Messiah in his
resurrected and glorified state had visited America and its inhabitants
shortly after His resurrection at Jerusalem, and established the Christian
institution,-- a Christian ministry, and a Christian Church, followed by a
veritable golden age of peace, prosperity, and righteousness; and although
the descendants of that ancient God-favored people were now fallen from
the high estate of their fathers, yet were the promises and prophecies
great concerning them. God would again visit them by His grace, they
should be redeemed from their ignorance and barbarism, and they should yet
be important factors in establishing a "New Jerusalem," the Zion of God on
this land of America, given to the descendants of the ancient patriarch
Joseph, whose descendants principally the Indians are. The Saints had been
even so far favored as to have the place for the chief city of refuge and
safety pointed out to them by revelation; as also the site of its
temple--Independence, Missouri; and they were required by the commandments
of God to bear witness to the world of these things. In view of all this--
the fact that they were made at once the depository and witnesses of these
great revelations, is it not likely that they would regard themselves as a
people peculiarly favored of God? And is it matter of astonishment if some
among them, not possessed of the soundest judgment, should run into an
excess of zeal and give expression to unwise, as also to unwarranted
conclusions?

	Moreover, the Lord had spoken of the future glory of Zion--of the
city, the location of which the Elders were to testify; also of the glory
of the temple, with its future cloud by day and pillar of fire by night;
of the future union of this New-World Zion with the Ancient Zion of Enoch,
where the Lord will make His abode, "and for the space of a thousand years
shall the earth rest;" also of his covenant with them concerning Zion,
both as pertaining to time and eternity, wherein He said: "I have made the
earth rich; and behold it is my footstool, wherefore, again I will stand
upon it; and I hold forth, and deign to give unto you greater riches, even
a land of promise, a land flowing with milk and honey, upon which there
shall be no curse when the Lord cometh: and I will give it unto you for
the land of your inheritance, if you seek it with all your hearts. And
this shall be my covenant with you, you shall have it for the land of your
inheritance, and for the inheritance of your children forever, while the
earth shall stand, and you shall possess it again in eternity, no more to
pass away."

	The Lord said again concerning Zion: "Wherefore I, the Lord, have
said, gather ye out from the eastern lands, assemble yourselves together
ye elders of my Church; go ye forth into the western countries, call upon
the inhabitants to repent, and inasmuch as they do repent, build up
churches unto me; and with one heart and with one mind, gather up your
riches that ye may purchase an inheritance which shall hereafter be
appointed unto you, and it shall be called the New Jerusalem, a land of
peace, a city of refuge,a place of safety for the Saints of the Most High
God; and the glory of the Lord shall be there, insomuch that the wicked
will not come unto it, and it shall be called Zion. And it shall come to
pass, among the wicked, that every man that will not take his sword
against his neighbor, must needs flee unto Zion for safety. And there
shall be gathered unto it out of every nation under heaven; and it shall
be the only people that shall not be at war one with another. And it shall
be said among the wicked, Let us not go up to battle against Zion, for the
inhabitants of Zion are terrible; wherefore we cannot stand."

	These promises to the Saints respecting Zion; these descriptions
given to them of her future sanctified and glorified state; their
connection with a work so exalted and far-reaching, was apt to fire their
minds with a zeal not always tempered with wisdom. It was in vain that
limitations of time and conditions were placed upon these general
descriptions of the future greatness and glory of the city of God; nor
could they understand that their own relationship to these great things
was merely to lay the foundation of them, to locate the site of the future
city and temple, and then bear witness of it to the world. Yet that their
work in connection with the founding of Zion was chiefly this, is clearly
to be seen in the revelations of God to them.

	The immediate and triumphant establishment of Zion, though expected
by many of the Saints, was nowhere contemplated in the revelations of God
to the Church. That hope of immediate establishment and glorification of
Zion was the result of faulty deductions from the revelations of God; but
the Lord was not blind respecting the events about to take place on the
land of Zion, nor did He hold out any false hope to His people had they
but read His revelations aright. A few days before the first conference
held by the Elders on the land of Zion, the Lord said to them through His
Prophet:

	"Hearken, O ye elders of my Church, and give ear to my word, and
learn of me what I will concerning you, and also concerning this land unto
which I have sent you: For verily I say unto you, blessed is he that
keepeth my commandments, whether in life or in death; and he that is
faithful in tribulation, the reward of the same is greater in the kingdom
of heaven. Ye cannot behold with your natural eyes, for the present time,
the design of your God concerning those things which shall come hereafter,
and the glory which shall follow after much tribulation. For after much
tribulation comes the blessings. Wherefore the day cometh that ye shall be
crowned with much glory; the hour is not yet, but is nigh at hand.
Remember this, which I tell you before, that you may lay it to heart, and
receive that which shall follow. Behold, verily I say unto you, for this
cause I have sent you that you might be obedient, and that your hearts
might be prepared to bear testimony of the things which are to come; and
also that you might be honored of laying the foundation, and of bearing
record of the land upon which the Zion of God shall stand; *  *  *  * and
that the testimony might go forth from Zion, yea, from the mouth of the
city of the heritage of God.  *  *  *  *  And now, verily, I say,
concerning the residue of the elders of my Church, the time has not yet
come, for many years, for them to receive their inheritance in this land,
except they desire it through the prayer of faith, only as it shall be
appointed unto them of the Lord. For, behold, they shall push the people
together from the ends of the earth."

	These statements, when rightly considered, dispel all notion of the
immediate establishment of Zion. The Lord distinctly warns His servants
against any such supposition. He predicts"tribulation"before the glory
shall come. It is only after "much tribulation" that the blessings are
promised. He reminds them that He has "told them before" of this, and asks
them "to lay it to heart," and gives them to understand that it will be
"many years" before some of the Elders of His Church will receive their
inheritance in the goodly land.

	The Lord still further foreshadowed the trouble which afterwards
overtook His people by urging them to make arrangements for the purchase
of the whole region that had been designated as the center place of Zion.
"For, behold, verily I say unto you, the Lord willeth that the disciples,
and the children of men should open their hearts, even to purchase this
whole region of country, as soon as time will permit. Behold, here is
wisdom. Let them do this lest they receive none inheritance, save it be by
the shedding of blood."

	In this same month of August the Lord again said: "Behold, the land
of Zion, I, the Lord, hold it in mine own hands; nevertheless, I, the
Lord, render unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's: wherefore, I, the
Lord, will that you should purchase the lands that you may have advantage
of the world, that you may have claim on the world, that they may not be
stirred up unto anger; for Satan putteth it into their hearts to anger
against you, and to the shedding of blood; wherefore the land of Zion
shall not be obtained but by purchase or by blood, otherwise there is none
inheritance for you. And if by purchase behold you are blessed; and if by
blood, as you are forbidden to shed blood, lo, your enemies are upon you,
and ye shall be scourged from city to city, and from synagogue to
synagogue, and but few shall stand to receive an inheritance."

	About a month after this word, the Lord said: "Behold the Lord
requireth the heart and a willing mind; and the willing and obedient shall
eat the good of the land of Zion in these last days; and the rebellious
shall be cut off out of the land of Zion, and shall be sent away, and
shall not inherit the land; for, verily, I say that the rebellious are not
of the blood of Ephraim, wherefore they shall be plucked out."

	All this makes it very clear that while great things were promised
concerning the establishment of Zion and the glory that is to be hers, yet
all was predicated upon the faithfulness of the Saints in keeping the
commandments of the Lord--in purchasing the lands that constituted the
center place of Zion, and living upon them in all righteousness.

	This they failed to do. In A revelation given in November, 1831, a
few months after the land had been dedicated unto the Lord for the
gathering of His people, He thus complained of those who had assembled in
western Missouri:

     	"And the inhabitants of Zion shall also observe the Sabbath day
     to keep it holy. And the inhabitants of Zion also shall remember
     their labors, inasmuch as they are appointed to labor, in all
     faithfulness; for the idler shall be had in remembrance before the
     Lord. Now, I, the Lord, am not well pleased with the inhabitants of
     Zion, for there are idlers among them; and their children are also
     growing up in wickedness; they also seek not earnestly the riches of
     eternity, but their eyes are full of greediness. These things ought
     not to be, and must be done away from among them: wherefore let my
     servant, Oliver Cowdery carry these sayings unto the land of Zion.
     And a commandment I give unto them, that he that observeth not his
     prayers before the Lord in the season thereof, let him be had in
     remembrance before the judge of my people. These sayings are true and
     faithful; wherefore transgress them not, neither take therefrom."

	In addition to these evils there were jealousies and bickerings among
some of the brethren in Zion, and also between some of the Elders in

	Zion, and leading Elders in Kirtland. In the spring of 1832 the
Prophet visited the Saints in Jackson county, and there were
reconciliations among the brethren, and forgiveness of sins obtained from
the Lord; but shortly after the Prophet's departure for Kirtland these
ill feelings broke out again with renewed bitterness; carelessness as to
keeping the commandments of God characterized the conduct of the Saints in
Zion, and there arose some confusion also in the government of the Church
there, owing to conflicting claims of authority between traveling Elders
and the standing ministry in the branches of the Church. This led to the
following reproof from the Lord in a revelation given on the 22nd and 23rd
of September, 1832:

	And your minds in times past have been darkened because of unbelief,
and because you have treated lightly the things you have received, which
vanity and unbelief hath brought the whole Church under condemnation. And
this condemnation resteth upon the children of Zion, even all: and they
shall remain under this condemnation until they repent and remember the
new covenant, even the Book of Mormon, and the former commandments which I
have given them, not only to say, but to do according to that which I
have written, that they may bring forth fruit meet for their Father's
kingdom, otherwise there remaineth a scourge and a judgement to be poured
out upon the children of Zion: for shall the children of the kingdom
pollute my holy land? Verily, I say unto you, Nay."

	When this revelation, given early in January, 1833, was sent to the
Elders in Zion, it was accompanied also by a letter from the Prophet,
sharply reproving the brethren and Saints in Zion, in which the following
passage occurs:

     	"Let me say unto you, seek to purify yourselves, and also the
     inhabitants of Zion, lest the Lord's anger be kindled to fierceness.
     Repent, repent, it is the voice of God to Zion; and strange as it may
     appear, yet it is true, mankind will persist in self-justification
     until all their iniquity is exposed, and their character past being
     redeemed, and that which is treasured up in their hearts be exposed
     to the gaze of mankind. I say to you (and what I say to you, I say to
     all), hear the warning voice of God, lest Zion fall, and the Lord
     swear in His wrath, 'The inhabitants of Zion shall not enter into my
     rest.'"

	Hyrum Smith and Orson Hyde were appointed by a Council of the High
Priests in Kirtland at this time, to write a letter of reproof and warning
to the brethren in Zion. In this communication the conduct of the Saints
in Zion was reviewed in great plainness. The whole spirit of the
communication may be judged by the following paragraph:

     	"We feel more like weeping over Zion than rejoicing over her,
     for we know that the judgments of God hang over her, and will fall
     upon her except she repent, and purify herself before the Lord, and
     put away from her every foul spirit. We now say to Zion, this once,
     in the name of the Lord, Repent! repent! awake! awake! put on thy
     beautiful garments, before you are made to feel the chastening rod of
     Him whose anger is kindled against you. Let not Satan tempt you to
     think we want to make you bow to us, to domineer over you, for God
     knows this is not the case; our eyes are watered with tears, and our
     hearts are poured out to God in prayer for you, that He will spare
     you, and turn away His anger from you.  *  *  *  Therefore, with the
     feelings of inexpressible anxiety for your welfare, we say again,
     Repent, repent, or Zion must suffer, for the scourge and judgment
     must come upon her."

	All this reproof and warning, however, only produced a partial
repentance, and in July following acts of violence began to be perpetrated
upon the Saints by the old settlers of Missouri, and in the month of
November, under circumstances of great cruelty, all the Saints were driven
from Jackson county, and later more than two hundred of their homes,
together with their public improvements, were destroyed.

	When the Lord revealed to the Prophet Joseph why this affliction had
befallen the people, He said: "Verily I say unto you concerning your
brethren who have been afflicted, and persecuted, and cast out from the
land of their inheritance, I, the Lord, have suffered the affliction to
come upon them wherewith they have been afflicted, in consequence of their
transgressions; yet I will own them, and they shall be mine in that day
when I shall come to make up my jewels. Therefore, they must needs be
chastened and tried, even as Abraham, who was commanded to offer up his
only son; for all those who will not endure chastening, but deny me,
cannot be sanctified. Behold, I say unto you, there were jarrings, and
contentions, and envyings, and strifes and lustful and covetous desires
among them; therefore, by these things they polluted their inheritances.
They were slow to hearken unto the voice of the Lord their God, therefore
the Lord their God is slow to hearken unto their prayers, to answer them
in the day of their trouble. In the day of their peace they esteemed
lightly my counsel; but in the day of their trouble, of necessity they
feel after me. Verily I say unto you, notwithstanding their sins my bowels
are filled with compassion towards them; I will not utterly cast them off;
and in the day of wrath I will remember mercy.

	From this it is very clear that the reason why the Saints were
prevailed against by their enemies and driven from the center place of
Zion, was because of their failure to live up to the high requirements
made of them by the Lord. In subsequent efforts to redeem Zion, by
attempting to return the exiles to Jackson county, the Saints in all parts
of the land again failed to respond with sufficient promptness and
fullness to the requirements of the Lord, for He commanded them again to
consecrate money to purchase lands in Jackson county and in the counties
round about, saying to the Church: "There is even now already in store a
sufficient, yea even abundance, to redeem Zion, and establish her waste
places, no more to be thrown down, were the churches who call themselves
after my name willing to hearken to my voice."

	The Lord also commanded them to gather up their forces and to go in
sufficient strength to possess the land, and maintain their inheritance
against their enemies. This, however, they failed to do. Instead of
raising five hundred men, as they were commanded to do, they started from
Kirtland in "Zion's Camp" with a company of only about one hundred and
thirty men ,and twenty baggage wagons. This number was increased by
additions en route to one hundred and eighty-two men, but even this number
fell far short of the strength required to accomplish the purpose for
which the camp was organized. In the matter of raising money for the
purchase of lands the failure was more conspicuous than in raising men to
take possession of them, and hence this effort to redeem Zion failed.

	Here let me pause in pointing out the unwisdom of the Saints, to make
an explanation, lest there should be a misunderstanding of what is thus
far set down respecting their transgressions, by reason of which they were
prevailed against by their enemies. These transgressions, be it
understood, were no violations of the laws of the land, nor did they
consist in any acts of aggression or of trespass upon their Missouri
neighbors. The old settlers of Missouri themselves are our witnesses here;
for in all their procedure in this Jackson county persecution there is no
accusation made against the Saints of violations of the law. On the
contrary, in their public utterances against the Saints and in
justification of their own course, the old settlers declare--after
expressing their determination to rid their society of the Saints,
peacefully if they could, but forcibly if they must--"that the arm of the
civil law does not afford us a guarantee, or at least a sufficient one,
against the evils which are now inflicted upon us, and seem to be
increasing by the said religious sect." A more emphatic acknowledgement
that the alleged offenses of the Saints were not cognizable by the laws,
that the Saints had not violated the laws of the land, could not be made.

	In their second manifesto the mob said: "The evil is one that no one
could have foreseen, and is therefore unprovided for by the laws; and the
delays incident to legislation would put the mischief beyond remedy."
Another admission that amounts to a declaration, that the Saints, whatever
the nature of the complaints made against them were, had not violated any
of the laws of the state, that their offending was not cognizable by the
laws of the land.

	The transgressions and sinfulness referred to in the revelations and
letters of reproof and warning quoted, and for which transgressions the
Saints were left in the hands of their enemies, were sins against each
other and the Lord--unbelief in the word of God, hardness of heart towards
each other, rejection of the servants of God, fault-finding, bickerings,
jealousies, covetousness, pride, idleness, boastfulness, levity of thought
and conduct, disregard of the scriptures, especially of the Book of
Mormon, neglecting to instruct their children in sacred things and to
bring them up in the fear and admonition of the Lord; all of which were
displeasing to the Lord, contrary to His commandments, and a violation of
the conditions upon which He had promised to redeem Zion and preserve His
people from their enemies. "Ye call upon my name for revelations;" said
the Lord to the Elders in Zion, "and I give them unto you; and inasmuch as
ye keep not my sayings, which I give unto you, ye become transgressors,
and justice and judgment are the penalty which is affixed to my law. *  * 
* I, the Lord, am bound when ye do what I say; but when ye do not what I
say, ye have no promise."

	This, then, was the nature of their offenses; they sinned against the
Lord in the particulars named; they sinned against each other in the
manner described; they did not trespass against their non-Mormon
neighbors, nor break the laws of the land; but they failed to live in
accordance with the high moral and spiritual law of the Gospel; they
failed to meet the conditions on which God was pledged to their
maintenance upon the land of Zion, and hence were left in the hands of
their enemies.

	At the commencement of this subdivision of the Introduction I called
attention to the great things which God had revealed to the Saints, the
greatness of the dispensation committed unto them, accompanied by the
promise to establish Zion and give unto the Saints the land thereof as an
everlasting inheritance. It would be marvelous indeed, and past all human
experience, if these great things did not turn the heads of some of the
weak-minded, and make them vain-glorious and boastful. I doubt not for a
moment that many vain and foolish things were said by such characters in
the presence of, and perhaps directly to, the old settlers of Jackson
county, about the Saints taking possession of the land, and the wicked
being driven away. There was doubtless enough of this kind of talk to give
color to what the Missourians charged on this viz., "They [the Saints]
declare openly that their God hath given them this county of land, and
that sooner or later they must and will take possession of our lands for
an inheritance."

	The Missourians made much of, and attached a sinister meaning to the
following expression in one of the revelations to the Saints: "The land of
Zion shall not be obtained but by purchase or by blood, otherwise there is
none inheritance for you." This the Missourians pretended to regard as a
threat to take possession of their land by armed conquest. Had they read
the context of the passage they would have known how entirely groundless
were their fears, if indeed they had any fears, for I am convinced that
all their expressed apprehensions on this head were mere pretense. The
passage and its context are: "Wherefore the land of Zion shall not be
obtained but by purchase or by blood, otherwise there is none inheritance
for you. And if by purchase, behold you are blessed; and if by blood, as
you are forbidden to shed blood, lo, your enemies are upon you, and ye
shall be scourged from city to city, and from synagogue to synagogue and
but few shall stand to receive an inheritance."

	Clearly this is a warning to the Saints, not a threat to the
Missourians. If the Saints obtained the land by purchase they were
blessed. If by blood--since the Saints were forbidden to shed blood, lo
their enemies would be upon them and they would be driven from city to
city --not the Missourians, but the Saints. In consequence of the
agitation of this matter by the foolish, the following passage occurred in
The Evening and Morning Star for July, 1833, addressed to the churches
scattered abroad: "To suppose that we can come up here and take possession
of this land by the shedding of blood, would be setting at nought the law
of the glorious Gospel, and also the word of our great Redeemer. And to
suppose that we can take possession of this country without making regular
purchases of the same according to the laws of our nation, would be
reproaching this great Republic, in which the most of us were born, and
under whose auspices we all have protection."

	Of this the Missourians said that whether they were to be
dispossessed of their lands "by the hand of the destroying angel, the
judgments of God, or the arm of power, they [the Saints] are not fully
agreed among themselves. Some recent remarks in the Evening and Morning
Star, their organ in this place, by their tendency to moderate such hopes,
and repress such desires, show plainly that many of this deluded and
infatuated people have been taught to believe that our lands were to be
won from us by the sword!"


	Thus the very efforts of the Church to correct the misconceptions and
silence the utterances of the over-zealous and foolish members, were made
to contribute as proof that the Saints contemplated the very armed
conquest of the land which they disclaimed. History, however, will do the
Saints justice, and it will say, and now says, that neither their general
principles, nor the special commandments under which they moved into the
land of Zion, nor any act of theirs warranted the least suspicion that
they at any time contemplated taking possession of the land by force, or
in any other manner whatsoever except by purchase and possession under the
laws of the state of Missouri and the United States. And while history
will do them this justice it will at the same time say that the "fears" of
the Missourians on this head were simulated; that to the foolish boasts of
a few ignorant persons they attached an undue importance because it
happened to give a coloring to their pretended fears in the eyes of those
at a distance who had no opportunity to learn the truth, and tended to
prejudice the public mind against the Saints, and thus served the purpose
of their enemies.

	In like manner there may have been some talk among the same class of
people--the ignorant and over-zealous Church members--respecting the
Indians, and their future union with the Saints in redeeming the land of
Zion; a circumstance which led the good people of Clay county and Governor
Dunklin, to refer to the charge of the Saints holding illicit
communication with the Indians, designing to employ them in taking
possession of the land of Zion. Of this charge also history will and does
vindicate the Saints. It will, and does say, that they disclaimed holding
any such communication; that neither their general principles nor any
special commandment from God, and particularly that no action of theirs
warranted any suspicion on the subject, much less justified the charge of
such a diabolical purpose.

	After the Saints withdrew from Clay county and at the suggestion of
her citizens--including some of the most influential men in western
Missouri, some of whom afterwards attained national reputations--located
in the sparsely settled counties of Caldwell and Daviess, the situation
became somewhat changed. For two years the work of purchasing lands,
locating settlements, opening farms, establishing mercantile houses, and
preparing for manufacturing and commercial enterprises went steadily on.
In Caldwell and adjoining counties, by the autumn of 1838, the Saints had
opened two thousand farms, and paid to the general government three
hundred and eighteen thousand dollars for land, which at the minimum price
for government land would give them over two hundred and fifty thousand
acres. One hundred and fifty houses had been erected in Far West; there
were four dry goods stores, three family groceries, half a dozen
blacksmith's shops, and two hotels. The excavation for a temple 120 by 80
feet had been made, and a large commodious schoolhouse had been erected on
the public square. The town of Adam-Ondi-Ahman was also making rapid
progress.

	By this time the Prophet Joseph and other leading men of the Church
had left Kirtland and located with the Saints in Missouri, and everything
looked propitious for the permanent establishment of the Saints in the
borders of Zion. The Saints had now been driven bodily from Jackson
county; and their homes, store houses and printing establishment had been
destroyed. The courts of Missouri had proven powerless to restore to them
their homes, their lands and other property. The executive of the state
confessed himself powerless to return them to their possessions in Jackson
county, and maintain them there against the wishes of the people of that
county. Indeed, Governor Dunklin had weakly given up the vindication of
the outraged laws of the state, as we have seen, saying that whether the
charges of their enemies or the denials by the Saints were true he could
not tell; their neighbors seemed to believe them true, and whether true or
false the consequences would be the same, unless the Saints by their
conduct and argument could convince the Missourians of their innocence.
"If you cannot do this," said the governor, "all I can say to you is that
in this Republic the vox populi is the vox Dei!" The Saints at some
considerable sacrifice had withdrawn from Clay county at the request of
her citizens, in the interests of peace, and had settled in the new
counties of Caldwell and Daviess, where settlers were few and the country
less desirable than in Jackson and Clay counties. In doing these things
they had repeatedly sacrificed their rights as citizens, both of Missouri
and of the United States. Smitten on the one cheek--speaking
figuratively-- they had turned the other; sued at the law for their coat,
they had given their cloak also; compelled to go one mile with their
enemy, they had gone with him twain. After doing all this for the sake of
peace and the friendship of the Missourians, when the Saints saw forming
again those elements which threatened their peace; when old enemies
appeared upon the new scene of the Saints' activities, and openly
threatened their peace and boasted that they would again prosper by
despoiling them of their new possessions; when they saw the red right hand
of a relentless persecution arming again to plague them, it is small
wonder if righteous anger flushed their cheek, made bright their eyes with
indignation and led them instinctively to form the resolution that they
would submit no more to such acts of despoliation, injustice and outrage.

	It was this sense of outraged justice and humanity which led to the
deliverance of a very noted "Oration" by Sidney Rigdon at Far West, on the
Fourth of July, 1838, in the course of which there was expressed a strong
determination to no more submit quietly to mob violence, and acts of
pillage. At this distance of time from that occasion, and balancing
against the heated utterances of the speaker the subsequent uses made of
them to incite the public mind to that series of acts which culminated in
the expulsion of the Saints from the state, we say those utterances were
untimely, extreme, and unwise. So indeed they were. The speaker seems to
have thrown discretion to the winds, and in the fervor of his rhetoric
made threats of retaliation on behalf of the Saints, if assailed, that
went beyond all bounds of reason and humanity, and proved a very damaging
as also a very potent factor against the Saints in the subsequent
movements of their enemies against them.

	But while this oratorical outburst against injustice was unwise, it
was a very natural thing. The marvel is not that it came at the time it
did, but that it did not come earlier, more vehemently, and that some of
the things it threatened were not effectively carried out. What the
Prophet thought, and how he felt respecting the repeated acts of injustice
heaped upon himself and the Saints in Missouri; how he felt and what he
proposed for the future is made clear in his journal entry for September
1st, 1838; and, fortunately, is more temperately expressed than in the
oration of July the fourth. He said:

     	"There is great excitement at present among the Missourians, who
     are seeking if possible an occasion against us. They are continually
     chafing us, and provoking us to anger if possible, one sign of
     threatening after another, but we do not fear them, for the Lord God,
     the Eternal Father is our God, and Jesus the Mediator is our Savior,
     and in the great I Am is our strength and confidence.

     	"We have been driven time after time, and that without cause;
     and smitten again and again, and that without provocation; until we
     have proved the world with kindness, and the world has proved us,
     that we have no designs against any man or set of men, that we injure
     no man, that we are peaceable with all men, minding our own business,
     and our business only. We have suffered our rights and our liberties
     to be taken from us; we have not avenged ourselves of those wrongs;
     we have appealed to magistrates, to sheriffs, to judges, to
     government and to the President of the United States, all in vain;
     yet we have yielded peaceably to all these things. We have not
     complained at the great God, we murmured not, but peaceably left all,
     and retired into the back country, in the broad and wild prairies, in
     the barren and desolate plains, and there commenced anew; we made the
     desolate places to bud and blossom as the rose; and now the
     fiend-like race is disposed to give us no rest. Their father the
     devil, is hourly calling upon them to be up and doing, and they, like
     willing and obedient children, need not the second admonition; but in
     the name of Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God, we will endure
     it no longer, if the great God will arm us with courage, with
     strength and with power, to resist them in their persecutions. We
     will not act on the offensive, but always on the defensive; our
     rights and our liberties shall not be taken from us, and we peaceably
     submit to it as we have done heretofore, but we will avenge ourselves
     of our enemies, inasmuch as they will not let us alone."

	No one can marvel at the conclusion here arrived at if he will but
pay attention to and give due weight to the enumerated wrongs which
precede it. It would be asking the Saints to be more than human if we say
they ought not to have indulged, much less to have expressed, such
feelings of resentment.

	Meantime, however, we may not close our eyes to the fact that there
was unwisdom manifested on the part of a few of the Saints, which gave
advantage to their enemies, by affording pretexts for some of their
accusations. That unwisdom, as we have seen, consisted of boasting as to
what the Lord would do in the immediate future in giving them possession
of western Missouri as an inheritance; perhaps some unwise allusions to
the supposed part the Lamanites would take in the establishment and
redemption of Zion; and the vehement threats of retaliation in the event
of their being further assailed. These unwise utterances, however, were
made, for the most part, by the overzealous and ignorant. Men who had no
grasp of the real genius of the great work whose foundations were then
being laid; men who, in common with men of like nature in all ages and in
all great movements, have been trouble-breeders; who, in their
contemplation of ultimate results to be achieved, overleaped the
intervening space through which the movement must pass, the difficulties
it must encounter and overcome, the experiences its adherents must gain,
the great and varied labors they must perform. They seem not to understand
that great movements require time for the achievement of their ends; that
time with God is one thing, with man quite another thing; that the thing
which is "nigh at hand" with the Lord may be to men afar off; and
overlooking these important facts leads such men into many errors of
thought and action. It was wholly reprehensible, unwarranted, and
cowardly, however, on the part of the Missourians to take advantage of the
unwise utterances of such characters and charge their sentiments and folly
to the whole body religious, that never entertained such sentiments nor
contemplated the actions such sentiments suggest. And this is to be said
even of those who were unwise enough to give the advantage here noted to
the enemies of the Saints, they at no time or place were ever guilty of
attempting in any manner to carry into effect by any action of their own
the unwise and unwarranted opinions they entertained and expressed. Their
boastings and vain speculations were in relation to what the Lord was
going to do, not what they themselves purposed doing. These utterances
were merely the effervescence of overwrought minds, of overzealous,
foolish, but well meaning and harmless people. Unhappily, however, what
they said gave the enemy an advantage that he was not slow to avail
himself of, and the unwisdom of some of the Saints is a factor that must
be reckoned with in dealing with the causes of the persecutions of the
Saints in Missouri.

               The Real Cause of the Missouri Persecutions.

	Having considered those facts and circumstances which may be regarded
as the minor causes and pretexts of the Missouri persecutions, let us now
come to the heart of the matter, to the real cause of the persecution of
the Saints.

	It was against the Saints as a religious sect that the Missourians
first complained. It was "in consequence of a pretended religious sect of
people" that had settled, and was still settling in their country,"styling
themselves Mormons,"that led the Missourians of Jackson county to pretend
to believe that an important crisis regarding their civil society was at
hand. "It is more than two years," they said, "since the first of these
fanatics, or knaves (for one or other they undoubtedly are), made their
first appearance amongst us, and pretended as they did, and do now, to
hold personal communication and converse face to face with the Most High;
to receive communications and revelations direct from heaven; to heal the
sick by laying on hands; and, in short, to perform all the wonder-working
miracles wrought by the inspired apostles and prophets of old. We believed
them deluded fanatics, or weak and designing knaves, and that they and
their pretensions would soon pass away; but in this we were deceived. *  * 
* They openly blaspheme the Most High God, and cast contempt on His holy
religion, by pretending to receive revelations direct from heaven, by
pretending to speak unknown tongues by direct inspiration, and by divers
pretenses derogatory to God and religion, and to the utter subversion of
human reason."

	The foregoing is quoted from the first "Manifesto," or "Secret
Constitution" of the mob. Somewhat later, in a second manifesto issued to
the public in justification of their contemplated acts of violence against
the Saints, they say: "What would be the fate of our lives and property,
in the hands of jurors and witnesses, who do not blush to declare, and
would not upon occasion hesitate to swear, that they have wrought
miracles, and have been the subjects of miraculous and supernatural cures,
have conversed with God and His angels, and possess and exercise the gifts
of divination and of unknown tongues, and fired with the prospect of
obtaining inheritances without money and without price--may be better
imagined than described.  *  *  *  Of their pretended revelations from
heaven--their personal intercourse with God and His angels--the maladies
they pretend to heal by the laying on of hands--and the contemptible
gibberish with which they habitually profane the Sabbath, and which they
dignify with the appellation of unknown tongues, we have nothing to say:
vengeance belongs to God alone."

	Yet it was because the Saints entertained these religious beliefs
that the mob of Jackson county issuing this "manifesto," proceeded to take
"vengeance" into their own hands, and wreak it upon the Saints. All their
other accusations against them,--namely, idleness, ignorance, inviting
"free negroes" into the state, inciting the slaves to insubordination to
their masters, claiming Jackson county as their inheritance to be obtained
by force if not bloodshed, and poverty--all these charges, except, perhaps
the last (for some of the Saints were very poor, though I have yet to
learn that that is a crime), were absolutely untrue. The Saints, however,
did claim the existence of spiritual power in their religion; that the
channel of communication between God and men by means of revelation, the
visitation of angels, and the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, had been
opened anew; that gifts of the Gospel--tongues, interpretations, visions,
inspired dreams, healings--that all the spiritual powers and graces of the
Gospel, in fact, were manifested in the religion they had accepted. By
this religion, also, they were admonished to righteousness of life; to the
strict observance of the Sabbath; to respect for the name of Deity; to
temperance; to industry; to true speaking and true acting; to patience--in
a word, to godliness; all of which but to live was to place themselves in
marked contrast to those about them, and their righteous lives were a
great rebuke to the general dissolute conduct of the Missourians. It was
this effort at a godly walk and conversation, and the religion which
commanded it, that was offensive in the eyes of the Missourians, and which
led them to form their strong determination to be rid of a people and a
religion which made their own lives a reproach.

	That this was regarded as the chief, if not the sole cause of their
persecution, appears in the subsequent discussion of the Jackson county
difficulties, both pro et con. All other questions, all the minor causes
and pretexts were lost sight of in that discussion. Governor Dunklin, in a
communication to Colonel J. Thornton, in answer to a letter written by
that gentleman proposing a compromise between the Saints and their enemies
in Jackson county, recognizes what he calls "the eccentricity of the
religious opinions of the Mormons" as being the cause of their
persecution. "I am fully persuaded," he remarks, "that the eccentricity of
the religious opinions and practices of the Mormons is at the bottom of
the outrages committed against them."

	In this important communication he no where considers anything else
as the cause of their persecution, but argues at length in favor of their
right to the entertainment of their religious views, eccentric howsoever
they might be, so long as they did not interfere with the rights of
others. "They have the right constitutionally guaranteed to them," he
remarks, "and it is indefeasible, to worship Joe Smith as a man, an angel,
or even as the only true and living God, and to call their habitation
Zion, the Holy Land, or even heaven itself. Indeed, there is nothing so
absurd or ridiculous that they have not a right to adopt as their
religion, so that in its exercise they do not interfere with the rights of
others."

	The people of Clay county when they called upon the Saints to
peaceably remove from their borders and seek a locality where they could
form a community that should be largely, if not exclusively, made up of
their own Church membership, indicated very clearly that it was the
religion of the Saints that was the chief cause of complaint against them.
In a document they published setting forth the reasons why they suggested
such removal, they said; "The religious tenets of this people are so
different from the present churches of the age, that they always have, and
always will, excite deep prejudices against them in any populous country
where they may locate. We, therefore, in a spirit of frank and friendly
kindness, do advise them to seek a home where they may obtain large and
separate bodies of land, and have a community of their own."

	Again, after the surrender at Far West, when the Church leaders had
been betrayed into bondage; after the Saints had delivered up their arms;
after they had signed over their properties to defray the expenses of the
"war;" and when the whole body of the Church was making hasty preparations
to depart from the state, a number of the brethren were assembled on the
temple square at Far West, and in the course of a long speech, which he
read to them, General John B. Clark said:

     	"I am sorry, gentlemen, to see so great a number of apparently
     intelligent men found in the situation you are; and oh! that I could
     invoke that Great Spirit, the Unknown God, to rest upon you, and make
     you sufficiently intelligent to break that chain of superstition, and
     liberate you from those fetters of fanaticism with which you are
     bound--that you no longer worship a man! I would advise you to
     scatter abroad, and never again organize yourselves with Bishops,
     Presidents, etc., lest you excite the jealousies of the people, and
     subject yourselves to the same calamities that have now come upon
     you."

	This to a people whose leaders had been betrayed into the hands of
their enemies; who themselves had been disarmed, though acting only in
defense of their homes and families; who had been compelled at the muzzle
of the musket to sign away their property to defray the expenses of the
militia mobs that had brought their calamities upon them; who were then
under an order of expulsion from the state and making hurried preparations
for their enforced departure--this to men who had sacrificed or had been
robbed of the most sacred rights of American citizenship! And he who thus
addressed the brethren impudently told them in the very speech from which
I quote, that he approved of all that had been done to them! But the
foregoing quotation is not made in order to point out the mockery of the
speech; or the mixture of hypocrisy and blasphemy in it; or the utter
contemptibility of him who delivered it. I quote the passage merely to
point out the fact that it was hatred of their alleged "superstition" and
"fanaticism," in other words the religion of the Saints that was the cause
of their persecution. The crimes against which the Saints are warned for
the future--under penalty of having their present troubles revisited upon
them--is gathering together in large bodies, and organizing themselves
with Bishops, Presidents, etc. In other words it was the religion of the
people and the organization which was both the depository of its
doctrines, and the instrumentality by which they were promulgated--the
Church-- which was the object of the Missourians' animosity, the thing
they were determined to destroy.

	Later, when the Prophet Joseph and other leading brethren were under
examination before Judge Austin A. King at Richmond, Ray county, special
inquiry was made as to the belief of the witnesses in the declaration of
the Prophet Daniel: "And in the days of these kings shall the God of
heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom
shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and
consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever."

	The judge on being answered that the Saints believed the prophecy,
turned to the clerk and told him to write the answer down as it was "a
strong point for treason!" I call it another evidence that it was the
religious beliefs of the Saints that constituted their offense. True the
Prophet and several other brethren were technically held for trial on the
charge of "treason, murder, arson, burglary, robbery, larceny and
perjury," but no one in Missouri ever seriously believed the charges since
they were wholly untrue or grew out of those acts of self defense, and
defense of their families against the aggressions of mob violence-- a
course which all men have a right to take in the protection of their own
lives and the preservation of their homes from the hand of the despoiler.

	The meeting of discordant elements of society--New England people and
people from the Southern States, descendants of Puritans and descendants
of Cavaliers--may have been a cause of dislike, and, on the part of the
Missourians, a cause of irritation against the Saints; the suspected
existence of anti-slavery sentiments among the Saints may have been to the
Missourians a cause of distrust; the interest of the Saints in the Indians
and the beliefs of the former in the future rehabilitation of the latter
as a people favored of God, may have been, under all the circumstances, a
cause of uneasiness to the Missourians; and the desire to plunder the
Saints and to profit by dispossessing them of their lands and homes might
have been, and doubtless was, an incentive to many of the mob who
participated in the events which culminated in the expulsion of the Saints
from the state; but, at bottom, I repeat, it was the destruction of the
religion of the Saints, and of the organization that taught its doctrines,
and controlled its membership in ecclesiastical affairs, that were the
objectives of all that agitation, violence and injustice, which make up
the persecution of the Latter-day Saints in Missouri. But how shall the
truth of this be established beyond reasonable doubt? Listen:--

	The author of the "Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire" gives the
following pen-picture of conditions with reference to religious toleration
which obtained in the empire under the reign of the Antonines, Adrian and
Marcus Aurelius, second century, A. D. "The firm edifice of Roman power
was raised and preserved by the wisdom of ages. The obedient provinces of
Trajan and the Antonines were united by laws, and adorned by arts. They
might occasionally suffer from the partial abuse of delegated authority;
but the general principle of government was wise, simple, and beneficent.
They enjoyed the religion of their ancestors, whilst in civil honors and
advantages they were exalted, by just degrees, to an equality with their
conquerors. The policy of the emperors and the senate, as far as it
concerned religion, was happily seconded by the reflections of the
enlightened, and the habits of the superstitious, part of their subjects.
The various modes of worship, which prevailed in the Roman world, were all
considered by the people as equally true; by the philosopher, as equally
false; and by the magistrate, as equally useful. And thus toleration
produced not only mutual indulgence, but even religious concord. The
superstition of the people was not embittered by any mixture of
theological rancor; nor was it confined by the chains of any speculative
system. The devout polytheist, though fondly attached to his national
rites, admitted with implicit faith the different religions of the earth.
Fear, gratitude, and curiosity, a dream or an omen, a singular disorder,
or a distant journey, perpetually disposed him to multiply the articles of
his belief, and to enlarge the list of his protectors. The thin texture of
the Pagan mythology was interwoven with various but not discordant
materials. As soon as it was allowed that sages and heroes, who had lived
or who had died for the benefit of their country, were exalted to a state
of power and immortality, it was universally confessed that they deserved,
if not the adoration, at least the reverence, of all mankind. The deities
of a thousand groves and a thousand streams possessed in peace their local
and respective influence: nor could the Roman who deprecated the wrath of
the Tiber, deride the Egyptian who presented his offering to the
beneficent genius of the Nile. The visible powers of nature, the planets,
and the elements, were the same throughout the universe. The invisible
governors of the moral world were inevitably cast in a similar mould of
fiction and allegory. Every virtue, and even vice, acquired its divine
representative; every art and profession its patron, whose attributes, in
the most distant ages and countries, were uniformly derived from the
character of their peculiar votaries. A republic of gods of such opposite
tempers and interests required, in every system, the moderating hand of a
supreme magistrate, who, by the progress of knowledge and flattery, was
gradually invested with the sublime perfections of an eternal parent, and
an omnipotent monarch. Such was the mild spirit of antiquity, that the
nations were less attentive to the difference, than to the resemblance, of
their religious worship. The Greek, the Roman, and the Barbarian, as they
met before their respective altars, easily persuaded themselves, that
under various names, and with various ceremonies, they adored the same
deities.  *  *  *  *  Rome, the capital of a great monarchy, was
incessantly filled with subjects and strangers from every part of the
world, who all introduced and enjoyed the favorite superstitions of their
native country. Every city in the empire was justified in maintaining the
purity of its ancient ceremonies; and the Roman senate, using the common
privilege, sometimes interposed to check this inundation of foreign rites.
The Egyptian superstition, of all the most contemptible and abject, was
frequently prohibited; the temples of Serapis and Isis demolished, and
their worshipers banished from Rome and Italy. But the zeal of fanaticism
prevailed over the cold and feeble efforts of policy. The exiles returned,
the proselytes multiplied, the temples were restored with increasing
splendor, and Isis and Serapis at length assumed their place among the
Roman deities.  *  *  *  *  Rome gradually became the common temple of her
subjects; and the freedom of the city was bestowed on all the gods of
mankind."

	Some Christian editors of Gibbon's great work, in their annotations.
hold that the author of the "Decline and Fall" gives in the foregoing a
too favorable view of pagan-religious toleration; but after giving due
weight to the instances of intolerance they cite in evidence of their
contention, and viewing them in connection with the extent of the empire
and the period of time covered by Gibbon's description, I do not regard
them as of sufficient importance to warrant any change in the
representation made by our author of conditions as to religious toleration
in the Roman empire at the time of which he writes. Especially, since
Gibbon himself in a foot note admits that "some obscure traces of an
intolerant spirit appears in the conduct of the Egyptians," the case
chiefly relied upon by his critics to disprove his description of
universal religious toleration in the empire; and in the same note he
refers to the Christians and the Jews as forming an important exception;
so important an exception indeed that he promises, and subsequently gives,
a distinct chapter to the discussion of the subject.

	It is to Christianity as the chief exception to the Roman policy of
universal religious toleration that I wish now to direct attention. Let it
be borne in mind that the spirit of universal religious toleration within
the Roman empire claimed for the second century of our era, largely
obtained also in the first century. It was in this reign of universal
religious toleration that the Christian religion was brought forth and
developed. Christ was born in the eighteenth year of the reign of Tiberius
Caesar, in the Roman province of Palestine, in which, also, His personal
labors as religious teacher and reformer were chiefly confined. In the
villages of Galilee, and subsequently in Samaria and Judea and in the
ancient city of Jerusalem, He went about doing good; speaking words of
encouragement to the oppressed and the poor; healing the sick; opening the
eyes of the blind; cleansing the lepers; teaching, as no one ever taught
before, the fatherhood of God, the brotherhood of men, and proclaiming
Himself the Son of God and the Redeemer of the world. He gathered about
Him a few devout followers, and from their number be established a
priesthood and organized a Church to perpetuate the gentle doctrines He
Himself taught. Strangely enough, notwithstanding the beauty and purity of
His moral precepts, and the gentleness of His own deportment, proclamation
of His doctrines everywhere incited hostility. The people of the village
in which He was reared rejected Him.

	His own people, the Jews, were so hostile that they at last clamored
for His execution; and so deep was their hatred that they were willing
that responsibility for the shedding of His blood should be upon their
heads and upon the heads of their children after them, if only the Roman
authorities would sanction His execution! He was finally crucified amid
the rejoicings of His enemies.

	After His resurrection He appeared among His disciples and
commissioned them to evangelize the world. As they went about this work
they encountered the same spirit of opposition that had met their Master.
Whippings, imprisonment, and martyrdom confronted them on every hand, and
when they extended their labors beyond the borders of Palestine,
notwithstanding the general religious tolerance that obtained in the Roman
empire, the Christians were everywhere spoken against, and their ministers
everywhere opposed and persecuted.

	Passing by the persecutions inflicted upon the Christians by the Jews
--the whipping of Peter and John, under the order of the Jewish Sanhedrin,
the martyrdom of Stephen, the execution of Saint James, the repeated
mobbing and whippings of Paul--I call attention to the first great pagan
persecution under the cruel edict of the Emperor Nero, in the second half
of the first Christian century. The emperor having seton fire the city of
Rome in order that he might view a great conflagration, and wishing to
divert suspicion from himself, he first accused and then tried to compel
the Christians to confess the crime. At this point I summon Tacitus, the
renowned Roman annalist, to tell the remainder of the story:

	"With this view he inflicted the most exquisite tortures on those men
who, under the vulgar appellation of Christians, were already branded with
deserved infamy. They derived their name and origin from Christ, who, in
the reign of Tiberius, had suffered death by the sentence of the
procurator Pontius Pilate. For awhile this dire superstition was checked,
but it again burst forth, and not only spread itself over Judea, the first
seat of this mischievous sect, but was even introduced into Rome, the
common asylum, which receives and protects whatever is impure, whatever is
atrocious. The confessions of those that were seized discovered a great
multitude of their accomplices, and they were all convicted not so much
for the crime of setting fire to the city, as for their hatred of human
kind. They died in torments, and their torments were embittered by insults
and derision. Some were nailed on crosses; others sewn up in the skins of
wild beasts and exposed to the fury of dogs; others, again, smeared over
with combustible materials, were used as torches to illuminate the
darkness of the night. The gardens of Nero were destined for the
melancholy spectacle, which was accompanied with a horse race, and honored
with the presence of the emperor, who mingled with the populace in the
dress and attitude of a charioteer. The guilt of the Christians deserved
indeed the most exemplary punishments, but the public abhorrence was
changed into commiseration from the opinion that those unhappy wretches
were sacrificed, not so much to the public welfare as to the cruelty of a
jealous tyrant."

	This first great persecution of the Christians under the authority of
the Roman emperor, is sufficiently characteristic to describe the other
persecutions which were intermittingly perpetrated upon the Christians
through the two succeeding centuries. What seems to be the most
incongruous circumstance connected with these persecutions is, that they
occurred not only under such wretches as Nero and Domitian, but under such
virtuous emperors as Trajan, Adrian, Marcus Aurelius and Diocletian.
Intermittingly, then, through three troubled centuries, and under
circumstances of the utmost cruelty, persecution raged against the
Christians. As the highest authority on Roman history remarks: "If the
empire had been afflicted by any recent calamity, by a plague, a famine,
or an unsuccessful war; if the Tiber had, or the Nile had not risen above
its banks; if the earth had shaken, or if the temperate order of the
seasons had been interrupted, the superstitious pagans were convinced that
the crimes and impurities of the Christians, who were spared by the
excessive lenity of the government, had at length provoked the divine
justice." And however virtuous the emperors were, or however mild and
equitable in character the governors of the provinces, it is certain that
they did not hesitate to appease the rage of the people by sacrificing the
obnoxious Christian victims. All this at a time, too, when religious
tolerance and in large measure even religious freedom were enjoyed by
those of all other religions within the empire, and in fact we may say
that the persecution of the Christians was the only circumstance which
broke in upon the religious concord of the world. From the apologies of
the early church fathers, addressed to some of the emperors of the second
and third centuries, we find them making the most pathetic complaints to
the effect, "that the Christians who obeyed the dictates, and solicited
the liberty of conscience, were alone, among all the subjects of the Roman
empire, excluded from the common benefits of their auspicious government."

	Why was this? Surely it did not arise from any vicious principle
inherent in the Christian religion itself. "If we seriously consider the
purity of the Christian religion," remarks Gibbon, in the opening
paragraph of his great treatise on the "Conduct of the Roman Government
Toward the Christians," "the sanctity of its moral precepts, and the
innocence as well as the austere lives of the greater number of those who,
during the first ages, embraced the faith of the gospel, we should
naturally suppose that so benevolent a doctrine would have been received
with due reverence even by the unbelieving world; that the learned and
polite, however they might deride the miracles, would have esteemed the
virtues of the new sect; and that the magistrates, instead of persecuting,
would have protected an order of men who yielded the most passive
obedience to the laws, though they declined the active cares of war and
government. If, on the other hand, we recollect the universal tolerance of
polytheism, as it was invariably maintained by the faith of the people,
the incredulity of philosophers, and the policy of the Roman senate and
emperors, we are at a loss to discover what new offense the Christians had
committed, what new provocation could exasperate the mild indifference of
antiquity, and what new motives could urge the Roman princes, who beheld
without concern a thousand forms of religion subsisting in peace under
their gentle sway, to inflict a severe punishment upon any part of their
subjects who had chosen for themselves a singular but an inoffensive mode
of faith and worship."

	What, then, I again ask, was the cause of the singular departure from
the enlightened policy of the empire in granting religious toleration and
even large religious freedom to its subjects? I am sure that modern
Christians will scarcely be satisfied with the various causes assigned for
this strange conduct on the part of the Roman emperors who persecuted the
Christians. These causes, or at least the principal ones, are conceded by
both infidel and Christian authorities to be:

	First, the Christians were a sect and not a nation, and were open to
the charge that they had deserted the faith of their forefathers, a thing
inexplicable to the Roman mind. It could be claimed on the part of the
Christians, of course, that this was not true; that so far were they from
deserting the faith of their fathers, that their present Christian faith
was but the complement of their fathers' faith, the fulfillment alike of
its prophecies and symbols--in a word, the gospel was the fulfillment of
the law. This, however, was a refinement of explanation to which the
haughty Romans could not be expected to give attention.

	Second, the Christians condemned and abhorred the public religion of
the state, so closely connected with the affairs of the government, and
hence they were judged to be enemies of the state, a circumstance which
made them objects of detestation to those intrusted with the
administration of the laws.

	Third, the Christians in their worship employed no images, nor
temples, nor incense, nor sacrifices; neither did they represent their God
by any corporeal figure or symbol, therefore they were adjudged to be
atheists, and accordingly detested.

	Fourth, the gloom and austere aspect of the Christians, and their
thorough abhorrence of the common business and pleasures of life, their
denunciation of war, together with their frequent predictions of impending
divine judgments, caused them to be regarded as the enemies of mankind.

	Fifth, the secrecy in which they conducted their religious services
(a policy first born of necessity, because of the fear of their
adversaries, and afterwards continued under the false notion that it would
render their sacred institutions more respectable) drew upon them the
suspicion that they only "concealed what they would have blushed to
disclose;" and this left them open to the misrepresentation and calumny of
their enemies, by which the fury of the multitude was aroused against
them.

	Sixth, the severe simplicity of the Christian mode of worship,
employing as it did neither sacrifices nor an elaborate
priesthood--excited the animosity of the pagan priests and their
servitors, in exact proportion as the Christians became a menace to their
occupation; for it was painfully apparent to them that if Christianity was
successful there would be no need of the pagan priesthood--its occupation
would be gone.

	All these alleged causes for the persecution of the Christians within
the Roman empire may be allowed, though some of them may be more properly
regarded as pretexts for, than causes of the persecution. But back of all
the assigned causes--which are at best but secondary in their nature--one
may see moving a force, the primary cause of the persecution, of which the
apprehensions of magistrates, the hatred of the pagan priesthood, and the
clamor of the multitude were but the outward manifestations. That primary
cause of the persecution of the Christians is to be found in the bitter
hatred of that dark spirit who in heaven, before he fell from his high
estate, was known under the splendid appellation of "The Light Bearer,"
"Lucifer," "Son of the Morning," as high in favor as in station, before
his sin of rebellion against the Father-God.

	Beyond the mere fact that he impiously did rebel in heaven against
God, and that he was impelled thereto by a vaulting ambition which
overleaped itself, the Hebrew scriptures give us little information
concerning Lucifer. No cause for the rebellion is assigned, though
evidence of the fact and reality of the rebellion is abundant. In some
ancient scripture revealed to Joseph Smith, however, the cause of that
Lucifer-led rebellion is stated. It was immediately connected with man's
earth-life, and the means and conditions of his salvation.

	In order that the reader may appreciate the force of the truth to be
presented, it is necessary to remind him that the spirit of man had an
existence before he dwelt in his body of flesh and bones--a self-conscious
existence, in which he possessed all the faculties and attributes that the
spirit or mind of man now possesses; that the time had come when the
present earth-life became necessary to his continued progress; that all
that would take place in that earth- life was known to God--the fall of
man, the wickedness of the human race, the redemption through the
atonement of a sinless sacrifice--all was known, and for all these events
ample provisions were to be made; one chosen to open the series of
dispensations that should make up the history of man's earth- life; one
chosen to redeem man from his fallen state. It was at this point that
Lucifer came before the grand council in heaven saying: Behold-- here am
I, send me, I will be Thy son, and I will redeem all mankind, that one
soul shall not be lost, and surely I will do it; wherefore give me Thine
honor. "But, behold," said the Lord, "My Beloved Son, which was My Beloved
and Chosen from the beginning, said unto Me --Father, Thy will be done,
and the glory be Thine forever. Wherefore, because that Satan rebelled
against Me, and sought to destroy the agency of man, which I, the Lord
God, had given him; and also that I should give unto him Mine own power;
by the power of Mine Only Begotten, I caused that he should be cast down;
and he became Satan, yea, even the devil, the father of all lies, to
deceive and to blind men, and to lead them captive at his will, even as
many as would not hearken unto My voice."

	This discloses the reason of Lucifer's rebellion--opposition to the
plan of man's redemption-- a counter plan that involved the destruction of
the agency of man. Then what?

	"I beheld Satan," says Jesus, "as lightning fall from heaven."

	"And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own
habitation, He hath reserved in everlasting chains, under darkness, unto
the judgment of the great day."

	"And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against
the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, and prevailed not;
neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was
cast out, that old serpent, called the devil, and Satan, which deceiveth
the whole world; he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast
out with him. And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is came
salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His
Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them
before our God day and night. And they overcame him by the blood of the
Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives
unto the death. Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them.
Woe to the inhabiters of the earth, and of the sea! for the devil is come
down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a
short time."

	Lucifer, then, becomes a factor to be reckoned with in the
persecution of the Saints. In heaven he opposed the gospel of Jesus
Christ; cast out into the earth will he not oppose it there? Herein lies
the real cause of the persecution of the Christians within the Roman
empire. So long as the inhabitants of the earth were content with the
pagan superstitions, wherein there was no power of God unto salvation; so
long as they were content with conflicting pagan philosophies, wherein was
no power of God unto salvation, it was a matter of indifference to Lucifer
whether they worshiped Jupiter Olympus, or Isis; Apollo, or Minerva; or
bowed at the philosopher's shrine of the Unknown God-- all were equally
barren of saving power and left the kingdom of Lucifer undiminished in its
strength and numbers; left all nations in his thraldom. But when the
Christ and His apostles came preaching repentance and the coming of the
kingdom of heaven; making known the origin of man and his relationship to
Deity; making known the purpose of God to redeem him from his fallen
state; establishing His Church as the depository of divine truth, and the
instrumentality for conveying to man divine instruction--then Lucifer saw
cause for alarm, for it was evident that the days of his dominion were
numbered; his kingdom must decline if Christianity prevailed; his sway
over the kingdoms of the earth must be broken if Christ was preached: and
hence in all the bitterness of hatred, with all the strength of his
cunning, with all the power of his resourcefulness, and using every
instrumentality he could command--corrupted human nature over which he had
influence; the apprehension of magistrates; the jealousy of pagan
priesthoods-- all were employed to destroy that institution wrought out in
the wisdom of God to bring to pass the salvation of man; and hence the
fire, the sword and the rack; the lions, the dungeons,--in a word, the
pagan persecutions of the Saints of God; Lucifer and his hatred of the
truth the primary cause of all, all other causes and pretexts but
secondary, mere instrumentalities used by him to impede the progress of
and destroy, if possible, the truth, the gospel, wherein lies the power of
man's salvation.

	It is said that history repeats itself; and this in matters of
religion as in other things. In the introduction to the first volume of
the Church History, the paganization of Christianity was discussed at some
length, and when the Lord would again prepare the way for the incoming of
the last dispensation of the Gospel--the dispensation of the fullness of
times --as part of that preparation, He established a great republic in
the New World, the chief corner stone of whose temple of liberty was
religious freedom. The Congress of the United States, by express provision
of the Constitution, is prohibited from making any law respecting an
establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.
Similar guarantees of religious freedom are provided for in the
constitutions of all the states. The clause in Missouri's constitution on
the subject was as follows:

	"All men have a natural and indefeasible right to worship Almighty
God according to the dictates of their own consciences; that no man can be
compelled to erect, support or attend any place of worship, or to maintain
any minister of the gospel or teacher of religion; that no human authority
can control or interfere with the rights of conscience; that no person can
ever be hurt, molested or restrained in his religious professions or
sentiments, if he do not disturb others in their religious worship: that
no person, on account of his religious opinions, can be rendered
ineligible to any office of trust or profit under this state; that no
preference can ever be given by law to any sect or mode of worship; and
that no religious corporation can ever be established in this state."

	Under these guarantees of religious liberty, in both state and
national constitutions, infidels, Jews, and all sects of the Christian
religion lived in unbroken peace. In the colonial history of the country
there had been some intolerance and acts of violence practiced by the
sects of Christians on one another, but in the main, and especially since
the establishment of the republic of the United States, under its present
Constitution, there had been absolute religious freedom. But now a strange
thing occurred. A youth, yet in his early teens, startled the neighborhood
in which he resided with the announcement that he had received a
revelation from God; a new dispensation of the Gospel of Christ had been
committed to him; he is authorized to found again the very Church of
Christ; men are to teach once more by divine authority; and the world is
to be made ready for the incoming of the glorious kingdom, whose king
shall be the resurrected, glorified Christ; and peace and truth and
righteousness are to abound. Strangely enough, notwithstanding all the
guarantees of religious freedom in the state and national constitutions,
this proclamation is resented by the people, and those who advocate it are
persecuted in various ways, until at the last, as set forth in the three
volumes of the Church History now published, it culminated in the death
and misery of many souls, and the final expulsion of from twelve to
fifteen thousand Saints from the state of Missouri, under all the
circumstances of cruelty detailed in this history.

	Why is this violence done to the principle of religious freedom, a
principle that is both the pride and boast of the American people? Why are
constitutions and institutions violated in efforts made by the authorities
of the sovereign state of Missouri to destroy this religion and this
Church of Christ? What is the cause of these Missouri persecutions? In
view of the principles already set forth in these pages, the primary cause
of these persecutions in Missouri will not be difficult to find. In them,
as in the Roman persecutions of the Christians, the cunning and power of
Lucifer will be apparent. So long as only apostate forms of Christianity
obtained; as long as men adhered to mere forms of godliness and denied the
power thereof, so long Lucifer cared not with what devotion they clung to
these lifeless forms of religion. He laughed; his kingdom was
undiminished; the nations were held in his thraldom. But when the Prophet
of the dispensation of the fullness of times announced his revelation;
when God again stood revealed once more before a witness; when the divine
plan of life and salvation was again communicated to men through an
inspired prophet; when the Church of Christ in all its completeness and
power was restored to the earth, then it behoved Lucifer to look to his
dominions, to strengthen his forces, and to prepare for the final conflict
for possession of this world; for now God had taken it in hand to complete
His work of redeeming the earth, of saving men, and overthrowing Lucifer
and his power so far as this earth is concerned; and hence when Joseph
Smith announced his new revelation the incoming of the dispensation of the
fullness of times, Lucifer with all the cunning and power at his command,
and setting in motion every force--the fears and jealousies of men,
misrepresentation and calumny, hatred of righteousness and truth, in a
word, every force that he could summons, every pretext that he could
suggest to men of evil disposed minds was employed to destroy the
inauguration of that work which was to subdue his power, conquer his
dominions, and render men free from his influence. Lucifer's bitterness,
then, his hatred, his cunning, his devisements were the cause of the
Missouri persecutions. All else was secondary, pretext, his
instrumentalities, nothing more.

                               Retribution.

	But what of Missouri? Missouri, who had violated her constitution
which guaranteed religious freedom to all who came within her borders!
Missouri, whose officers from the Governor down entered into a wicked
conspiracy, contrary to all law and righteousness, and drove the Saints
from the state! Missouri, who had violated not only her own constitution
by becoming a party to a religious persecution, but had also violated the
spirit of our times, and outraged the civilization of the nineteenth
century--what of Missouri? Did she pay any penalty for her wrong-doing?
Are states such entities as may be held to an accounting for breaches of
public faith and public morals-- constitutional immoralities? Is there
within the state a public conscience to which an appeal can be made; and
in the event of the public conscience being outraged is there retribution?

	I answer these questions in the affirmative; and hold that Missouri
paid dearly for the violations of her guarantees of religious freedom, and
her lawlessness and her cruelties practiced towards the Latter-day Saints.

	I have already referred to the relationship which the state of
Missouri sustained to the great question of slavery. By the political
compromise which bore her name, Missouri became a "cape of slavery thrust
into free territory." Except for the state of Missouri alone, her southern
boundary line was to mark the furthermost point northward beyond which
slavery must not be extended into the territory of the United States. In
1854, however, the Missouri compromise was practically overthrown by the
introduction into Congress of the "Kansas-Nebraska Act," by Stephen A.
Douglas, United States senator from Illinois. This act provided for the
organization of two new territories from the Louisiana purchase, west of
Missouri and Iowa. The act proposed that the new territories should be
open to slavery, if their inhabitants desired it. This left the question
of slavery in the status it occupied previous to the Missouri Compromise,
and left the people in the prospective states to determine for themselves
whether slavery should or should not prevail in their state. This opened
again the slavery question, and there was begun that agitation which
finally resulted in the great American Civil War.

	As soon as it became apparent that the people of new territories were
to determine for themselves the question of slavery, very naturally each
party began a struggle for possession of the new territory according as
its sentiments or interests dictated. The struggle began by the abolition
party of the north organizing "Emigrant Aid Societies," and sending
emigrants of their own faith into Kansas. The slave holders of Missouri
also sent settlers representing their faith and interests into the new
territory in the hope of bringing it into the Union as a slave state. This
brought on a border warfare in which the settlements of western Missouri
and eastern Kansas alternately suffered from the raids and counter raids
of the respective parties through some six years before the outbreak of
the Civil War. As to which were the more lawless or cruel, the fanatical
abolitionists or the pro-slavery party, the "jayhawkers," as the organized
bands of ruffians of the former party were called, or the "bushwhackers,"
as the similarly organized bands of the pro- slavery men were called, is
not a question necessary for me to discuss here. Both held the laws in
contempt, and vied with each other in committing atrocities The western
counties of Missouri, where the Latter-day Saints had suffered so cruelly
at the hands of people of those counties some eighteen or twenty years
before, were in this border warfare laid desolate, and all the hardships
the Missourians had inflicted upon the Saints were now visited upon their
heads, only more abundantly.

	Speaking of the situation in Missouri in 1861, the out-going
Governor, Robert M. Stewart, in his address to the legislature, and
referring to Missouri and her right to be heard on the slavery question,
said:

     	"Missouri has a right to speak on this subject, because she has
     suffered. Bounded on three sides by free territory, her border
     counties have been the frequent scenes of kidnapping and violence,
     and this state has probably lost as much, in the last two years, in
     the abduction of slaves, as all the rest of the Southern States. At
     this moment several of the western counties are desolated, and almost
     depopulated, from fear of a bandit horde, who have been committing
     depredations--arson, theft, and foul murder upon the adjacent
     border"

	Brigadier-General Daniel M. Frost, who had been employed in
repressing lawlessness in the western counties of Missouri, in reporting
conditions prevailing there in November, 1860, said:

     	"The deserted and charred remains of once happy homes, combined
     with the general terror that prevailed amongst the citizens who still
     clung to their possessions, gave but too certain proof of the
     persecution to which they had all been subjected, and which they
     would again have to endure, with renewed violence, so soon as armed
     protection should be withdrawn."* "In view of this condition of
     affairs," continues the historian of Missouri I am quoting, "and in
     order to carry out fully Governor Stewart's order to repel invasions
     and restore peace to the border, General Frost determined to leave a
     considerable force in the threatened district. Accordingly, a
     battalion of volunteers, consisting of three companies of rangers and
     one of artillery, was enlisted, and Lieutenant-Colonel John S. Bowen,
     who afterwards rose to high rank in the Confederate service, was
     chosen to the command."

	"With the organization of this force, and perhaps owing also, in some
degree, to the inclemency of the season, 'jayhawking,' as such, came to an
end, though the thing itself, during the first two or three years of the
Civil War, and, in fact, as long as there was anything left on the
Missouri side of the border worth taking, flourished more vigorously than
ever. The old jayhawking leaders, however, now came with United States
commissions in their pockets and at the head of regularly enlisted troops,
in which guise they carried on a system of robbery and murder that left a
good portion of the frontier south of the Missouri river as perfect a
waste as Germany was at the end of the Thirty Years' War."

	While this description confines the scenes of violence and rapine to
the border counties south of the Missouri river,--it included Jackson
county, however, which was one of the heaviest sufferers both in this
border warfare and subsequently during the Civil War--still, the counties
north of that stream also suffered from lawlessness and violence.

	At the outbreak of the Civil War Missouri was peculiarly situated.
She was surrounded on three sides by free states. The great majority of
her own people were for the Union, but her government, with Clairborne
Jackson as the state executive, was in sympathy with the South. As the
extreme Southern States one after another seceded from the Union, Missouri
was confronted with the question: What position she ought to assume in the
impending conflict. The question was referred to a state convention in
which appeared no secessionists. Indeed, the people of Missouri in this
election by a majority of eighty thousand decided against secession. The
convention, in setting forth the attitude of the state on the subject,
said that Missouri's position was, "Evidently that of a State whose
interests are bound up in the maintenance of the Union, and whose kind
feelings and strong sympathies are with the people of the Southern States,
with whom we are connected by ties of friendship and blood. We want the
peace and harmony of the country restored, and we want them with us. To go
with them as they are now is to ruin ourselves without doing them any
good."

	While this doubtless voiced the sentiment of a great majority of
Missouri's people, the government of the state and many thousands of its
inhabitants sympathized with the South. The general assembly of the state
authorized the raising and equipment of large military forces held
subject, of course, to the orders of the governor, under the pretense of
being prepared to repel invasion from any quarter whatsoever, and enable
the state to maintain a neutral attitude. The governor refused to raise
Missouri's quota of four regiments under President Lincoln's first call
for seventy-five thousand men to supplies the rebellion, on the ground
that these regiments were intended to form "part of the President's army,
to make war upon the people of the seceded states." This he declared to be
illegal, unconstitutional, and therefore could not be complied with. This
precipitated a conflict between the state and national forces that
resulted in a civil war within the state since some of her citizens sided
with the general government and some with the state.

	On the 20th of April, 1861, the state militia under the governor's
orders captured the Federal arsenal at Liberty, Clay county, and in the
nineteen months following that event "over three hundred battles and
skirmishes were fought within the limits of the state," and it is assumed
that in the last two years of the war, there were half as many more; "and
it may be said of them," continues our historian, "that they were
relatively more destructive of life, as by this time the contest had
degenerated into a disgraceful internecine struggle."

	In the fall of 1864, General Sterling Price penetrated the state at
the head of twelve thousand men; captured Lexington, in Ray county, and
Independence, in Jackson county, and thence made his escape into Arkansas.
"In the course of this raid he marched 1,435 miles, fought forty-three
battles and skirmishes, and according to his own calculation destroyed
upwards of 'ten million dollars' worth of property,' a fair share of which
belonged to his own friends."

	In August, 1863, the celebrated Military Order No. 11 was issued from
Kansas City, by General Thomas Ewing, by which "all persons living in
Cass, Jackson, and Bates counties, Missouri, and in that part of Vernon
included in this district, except those living within one mile of the
limits of Independence, Hickman's Mills, Pleasant Hill, and Harrisonville,
and except those in that part of Kaw township, Jackson county, north of
Brush creek and west of the Big Blue, embracing Kansas City and Westport,
are hereby ordered to remove from their present places of residence within
fifteen days from the date hereof. Those who, within that time, establish
their loyalty to the satisfaction of the commanding officer of the
military station nearest their present place of residence, will receive
from him certificates stating the fact of their loyalty, and the names of
the witnesses by whom it can be shown. All who receive such certificates
will be permitted to remove to any military station in this district, or
to any part of the state of Kansas, except the counties on the eastern
borders of the state. All others shall remove out of this district.
Officers commanding companies and detachments serving in the counties
named will see that this paragraph is promptly obeyed."

	The admonition in the last clause to commanding officers was rigidly
followed; and within the district named scenes of violence and cruelty
were appalling. This order with its cruel execution has been more severely
criticized than any other act during the entire Civil War. The
justification for it has been urged on the ground that Jackson county
afforded a field of operations for Confederates; that here the
bushwhacking marauders recruited their forces, and found the means of
support; that the policy was necessary on the ground of putting an end to
that kind of warfare. On the other hand, it is contended that "tried by
any known standard," the people in that section of Missouri were as loyal
to the Union as were their neighbors in Kansas. "They had voted against
secession; they had not only, thus far, kept their quota in the Union army
full, and that without draft or bounty, but they continued to do so; and
if they did not protect themselves against the outrages alike of
Confederate bushwhackers and Union jayhawkers, it was because early in the
war they had been disarmed by Federal authority and were consequently
without the means of defense."

	By the execution of the order, however, the people in the districts
named "were driven from their homes, their dwellings burned, their farms
laid waste, and the great bulk of their movable property handed over,
without let or hindrance, to the Kansas 'jayhawkers.' It was a brutal
order, ruthlessly enforced, but so far from expelling or exterminating the
guerrillas, it simply handed the whole district over to them." "Indeed,"
continues Lucien Carr, "we are assured by one who was on the ground, that
from this time until the end of the war, no one wearing the Federal
uniform dared risk his life within the devatasted region. The only people
whom the enforcement of the order did injure were some thousands of those
whom it was Ewing's duty to protect."

	Whether justified or not by the attitude of the Jackson county people
in the Civil War, the execution of Order No. 11 certainly was but a
re-enactment, though upon a larger scale, of those scenes which the
inhabitants of that section of the country thirty years before had
perpetrated upon the Latter-day Saints in expelling them from Jackson
county. The awful scenes then enacted inspired the now celebrated painting
by G. C. Bingham, bearing the title "Civil War," and dedicated by the
artist "to all who cherish the principles of civil liberty."

	Connected with the scenes of civil strife in Missouri, is a prophecy
uttered by Joseph Smith many years before they began, and recently
published in a variable paper by Elder Junius F. Wells, in the November
number of the Improvement Era for 1902. Elder Wells, it appears, had the
pleasure of an interview with the Hon. Leonidas M. Lawson, of New York
city, formerly a resident of Clay county, Missouri, and a brother-in-law
of General Alexander W. Doniphan, whose name so frequently occurs in our
pages, dealing with events in the history of the Church while in Missouri.

	In the course of the interview, which took place at the University
Club, New York city, Mr. Lawson referred to an incident connected with a
visit to General Doniphan in 1863. General Doniphan, it will be remembered
by those acquainted with his history, took no part in the Civil War beyond
that of a sorrowful spectator. On the occasion of Mr. Lawson's visit to
him, just referred to, they rode through Jackson county together, and in a
letter to Elder Wells, under date of February 7, 1902. Mr. Lawson relates
the following incident, which is part of a biographical sketch of General
Doniphan, prepared by Mr. Lawson:

	"In the year 1863, I visited General A. W. Doniphan at his home in
Liberty, Clay county, Missouri. This was soon after the devastation of
Jackson county, Missouri. under what is known as 'Order No. 11.' This
devastation was complete. Farms were everywhere destroyed, and the
farmhouses were burned. During this visit General Doniphan related the
following historical fact; and personal incidents:

	"About the year 1831-2, the Mormons settled in Jackson county, Mo.,
under the leadership of Joseph Smith. The people of Jackson county became
dissatisfied with their presence, and forced them to leave; and they
crossed the Missouri river and settled in the counties of De Kalb,
Caldwell and Ray. They founded the town of Far West, and began to prepare
the foundation of a temple. It was here that the troubles arose which
culminated in the expulsion of the Mormons from the state of Missouri
according to the command of Governor Lilburn W. Boggs. This was known in
Missouri annals as the Mormon War. There were many among those who obeyed
the order of the governor, in the state militia, who believed that the
movement against the Mormons was unjust and cruel, and that the excitement
was kept up by those who coveted the homes, the barns and the fields of
the Mormon people. The latter, during their residence in the state of
Missouri, paid, in entry fees for the land they claimed, to the United
States government land office, more than $300,000, which, for that period
represented a tremendous interest. During their sojourn in Missouri the
Mormons did not practice or teach polygamy, so that question did not enter
into it.

	"Following the early excitement, Joseph Smith was indicted for
treason against the state of Missouri, and General Doniphan was one of the
counsel employed to defend him, he having shown a friendly interest in
Smith, whom he considered very badly treated. Joseph Smith was placed in
prison in Liberty, Missouri, to await his trial. This place was the
residence of General Doniphan. His partner in the practice of law was
James H. Baldwin.

	"On one occasion General Doniphan caused the sheriff of the county to
bring Joseph Smith from the prison to his law office, for the purpose of
consultation about his defense. During Smith's presence in the office, a
citizen of Jackson county, Missouri, came in for the purpose of paying a
fee which was due by him to the firm of Doniphan and Baldwin, and offered
in payment a tract of land in Jackson county.

	"Doniphan told him that his partner, Mr. Baldwin, was absent at the
moment, but as soon as he had an opportunity he would consult him and
decide about the matter. When the Jackson county man retired, Joseph
Smith, who had overheard the conversation, addressed General Doniphan
about as follows:

     	"Doniphan, I advise you not to take that Jackson county land in
     payment of the debt. God's wrath hangs over Jackson county. God's
     people have been ruthlessly driven from it, and you will live to see
     the day when it will be visited by fire and sword. The Lord of Hosts
     will sweep it with the besom of destruction. The fields and farms and
     houses will be destroyed, and only the chimneys will be left to mark
     the desolation. "

	"General Doniphan said to me that the devastation of Jackson county
forcibly reminded him of this remarkable prediction of the Mormon
prophet."

                                                    (signed) L. M. LAWSON.

	"There is a prediction of the Prophet Joseph," remarks Elder Wells,
in commenting upon Mr. Lawson's story, "not before put into print, and
history has recorded its complete fulfillment."

	That a just retribution overtook the entire state, as well as the
inhabitants of Jackson county, and other western counties, I think must be
conceded by all who are familiar with the events of her history in the
Civil War. That which she did to an inoffensive people was done to her
inhabitants, especially to those living within the districts formerly
occupied by the Latter-day Saints; only the measure meted out to the
Missourians was heaped up, pressed down, and made to run over.

	The Missourians had complained that the Latter-day Saints were
eastern men, whose manners, habits, customs, and even dialect were
different from their own; but the Missourians lived to see great throngs
of those same eastern men flock into an adjoining territory and infest
their border, so that the settlers of western Missouri became accustomed
to, and learned to endure the strange manners, customs and dialect so
different from their own.

	The Missourians complained of the rapidity with which the Saints were
gathering into the state to establish their Zion; but the Missourians
lived to see hordes of the detested easterners gather into their region of
country by continuous streams of emigrant trains, sent there by "Emigrant
Aid Companies" of New England.

	The Missourians falsely charged that the coming of "Zion's Camp" into
western Missouri to aid their brethren to repossess their homes in Jackson
county, was an armed invasion of the state; but the Missourians lived to
see formidable hosts of eastern and northern men gather upon their
frontiers and frequently invade the state. "The character of much of this
emigration may be gathered," says one historian, "from the fact that the
Kansas Emigration Societies, Leagues and Committees  *  *  *  sent out men
only;" and that in some of their bands Sharp's rifles were more numerous
than agricultural implements." Of course the "Blue Lodges" of Missouri
were organized largely on the same principle as the "Emigrant Aid
Companies" of New England, and adopted practically the same methods,
expecting to add Kansas to the list of slave states. But "certainly,"
remarks Lucien Carr, "if a company of so-called northern emigrants, in
which there were two hundred and twenty-five men and only five women,
whose wagons contained no visible furniture, agricultural implements or
mechanical tools, but abounded in all the requisite articles for camping
and campaigning purposes, were considered as bona fide settlers and
permitted to vote, there could not have been a sufficient reason for
ruling out any band of Missourians who ever crossed the border and
declared their intention of remaining, even though they left the next
day."

	Among the men sent to the borders of Missouri by the "Emigrant Aid
Companies" of New England were some of the most desperate adventurers; and
the Missourians who had pretended to be alarmed at the coming of "Zion's
Camp," and feigned to regard it as an armed invasion of the state, saw
their state repeatedly invaded--especially Jackson county--by the bands of
Union "jayhawkers" organized from among these desperate eastern and
northern men, who ruthlessly laid waste their homes and farms.

	The Missourians had falsely charged the Saints with abolition
madness, with tampering with their slaves, with inviting free negroes into
the state to corrupt their blacks, whose very presence would render their
institution of slave labor insecure; but they lived to see their system of
slave labor abolished by the setting free of some one hundred and fifteen
thousand slaves, valued at $40,000,000, eight thousand of whom were
"martialed and disciplined for war" in the Federal armies, and many of
them marched to war against their former masters.

	Governor Dunklin and his advisors in the government of Missouri
claimed that there was no warrant of authority under the laws and
constitution of the state for calling out a permanent military force to
protect the Saints in the peaceful possession of their homes until the
civil authority proved itself competent to keep the peace and protect the
citizens in the enjoyment of their guaranteed rights; but the people in
the western part of Missouri saw the time come when they themselves prayed
for the same protection; and Governor Stewart, unlike Governor Dunklin,
approved the appointment of a battalion of volunteers consisting of three
companies of rangers and one of artillery, all of which were placed under
command of Lieutenant- Colonel John L. Bowen, to do the very thing the
Saints had prayed might be done in their case. But even this provision
for their protection did not avail; for their old jayhawking enemies soon
reappeared under new conditions --which will be stated in the next
paragraph--under which they renewed their incursions of rapine and murder.

	The state authorities of Missouri converted the mobs which had
plundered the Saints, burned their homes and laid waste their lands, into
the state militia which gave the former mob a legal status, under which
guise they plundered the Saints, compelled them to sign away their
property and agree to leave the state. To resist this mob-militia was to
be guilty of treason; but the people of western Missouri lived to see a
like policy pursued towards them. They suffered much in Jackson and other
western counties in the border war, previous to the opening of the Civil
War, from the inroads of abolition "jayhawkers" in the interest of
anti-slavery. For a time this was in part suppressed by the state militia
under General Frost and by the permanent force stationed on the border
under Lieutenant-Colonel Bowen. but later, and when the Civil War broke
out, these old "jayhawking" leaders "now came with United States
commissions in their pockets, and at the head of regularly enlisted
troops, in which guise they carried on a system of robbery and murder that
left a good portion of the frontier south of the Missouri river as perfect
a waste as Germany was at the end of the Thirty Years' War."

	Such wretches as Generals Lane and Jennison, though Union officers,
and denounced alike by Governor Robinson of Kansas--of course a strong
Union man--and General Halleck, commander-in-chief of the western armies
of the Union, were permitted to disgrace alike the Union cause and our
human nature by their unspeakable atrocities. But they were retained in
office, nevertheless. It was the outrages committed by these men and their
commands, and the Kansas "Red Legs" that led to the equally savage
reprisals on the people of Kansas. In revenge for what western Missouri
had suffered, outlawed Missourians sacked Lawrence, Kansas, a Union city,
massacred one hundred and eighty-three of its inhabitants, and left it in
flames. In justification of their act of savagery, they declared:
"Jennison has laid waste our homes, and the 'Red Legs' have perpetrated
unheard of crimes. Houses have been plundered and burned, defenseless men
shot down, and women outraged. We are here for revenge--and we have got
it." How nearly this language of the Missourians--and there can be no
question that it describes what had been done in Missouri by Lane,
Jennison, and their commands, and the Kansas "Red Legs"--follows the
complaint justly made by the Latter-day Saints years before against the
Missourians! But thank God, there is recorded against the Saints no such
horrible deeds of reprisal.

	The Missourians falsely charged that the Saints held illicit
communication with the Indian tribes then assembled near the frontiers of
the state, and pretended to an alarm that their state might be invaded by
the savages, prompted thereto by "Mormon" fanaticism; but these same
Missourians lived to see cause for real fear of such an invasion when the
Governor of an adjoining state--Arkansas--authorize Brigadier General
Albert Pike to raise two mounted regiments of Choctaw and Chickasaw
Indians to actually invade the state. These regiments of savages were
engaged in the battle of Pea Ridge, on the southwest borders of Missouri.
General Pike, who led them in that battle, dressed himself in gaudy,
savage costume, and wore a large plume on his head --a la Niel Gilliam at
Far West--to please the Indians. It is also charged that before the battle
of Pea Ridge, he maddened his Indians with liquor "that they might allow
the savage nature of their race to have unchecked development. In their
fury they respected none of the usages of civilized warfare, but scalped
the helpless wounded, and committed atrocities too horrible to mention."
The "fear" expressed by the Missourians respecting the alleged illicit
communication of the Saints with the Indians was mere feigning, but with
this example before them, and knowing that there were many thousands of
Indians on their frontiers that might be similarly induced to take up
arms, their former feigned fears became real ones.

	The Missourians instead of demanding the execution of the law in
support of the liberties of the Saints, expressed the fear that the
presence of the Saints would give rise to "Civil War," in which none could
be neutrals, since their homes must be the theatre on which it would be
fought, so they drove the Saints away; but the Missourians lived to see
the outbreak of a civil war in their state that was one of the most
appalling men ever witnessed; and Missouri, when all things are
considered, and especially western Missouri, suffered more than any other
state of the Union. In other states the war lasted at most but four years;
but counting her western border warfare in the struggle for Kansas, the
war was waged in western Missouri from 1855 to 1865, ten years; and for
many years after the close of the Civil War, a guerrilla warfare was
intermittently carried on by bands of outlaws harbored in western
Missouri--especially in Jackson, Ray, Caldwell and Clay counties--that
terrorized the community and shocked the world by the daring and atrocity
of their crimes--including bank robberies in open day, express train
wrecking and robberies, and murders. Not until 1881 was this effectually
stopped by the betrayal and murder of the outlaw chief of these bands.

	Missouri sent into the Union Armies one hundred and nine thousand of
her sons, including eight thousand negroes. About thirty thousand enlisted
in the confederate army. According to official reports the percentage of
troops to population in the western states and territories was 13.6 per
cent, and in the New England states 12 per cent; whilst in Missouri, if
there be added to her quota sent to the northern army the thirty thousand
sent to the confederate army, her percentage was fourteen per cent, or
sixty per cent of those who were subject to military duty. Of the deaths
among these enlisted men, only approximate estimates may be made, since of
the mortality among the Confederates no official records were kept. But of
those who entered the Union service, thirteen thousand eight hundred and
eighty-five deaths are officially reported. The rate of mortality in the
Confederate forces, owing to the greater hardships they endured, and the
lack of medical attendants to care for the wounded, was much higher, and
is generally estimated at twelve thousand, (most of whom were from western
Missouri), which added to the deaths of those in the Union army would
aggregate the loss among the troops from Missouri to twenty-five thousand
eight hundred and eighty-five. "This estimate," says Lucien Carr, "does
not cover those who were killed in the skirmishes that took place between
the home guards and the guerrillas; nor does it include those who were not
in either army, but who were shot down by "bushwhackers" and
"bushwhacking" Federal soldiers. Of these latter there is no record,
though there were but few sections of the state in which such scenes were
not more or less frequent. Assuming the deaths from these two sources to
have been 1,200, and summing up the results, it will be found that the
number of Missourians who were killed in the war and died from disease
during their term of service amounted to not less than 27,000 men."

	The loss in treasure was in full proportion to the loss in blood. The
state expended $7,000,000 in fitting out and maintaining her Union troops
in the field. She lost $40,000,000 in slave property; and four years
after the close of the war--two of which, 1867-8, were remarkably
prosperous--the taxable wealth of the state was $46,000,000 less than it
was in 1860. "In many portions of the state," says the historian to whom I
am indebted for so many of the facts relating to Missouri in these pages,
"especially in the southern and western borders, whole counties had been
devastated. The houses were burned, the fences destroyed, and the farms
laid waste. Much of the live stock of the state had disappeared; and
everywhere, even in those sections that were comparatively quiet and
peaceful, the quantity of land in cultivation was much less than it had
been at the outbreak of the war. Added to these sources of decline, and in
some measure a cause of them, was the considerable emigration from the
state which now took place, and particularly from those regions that lay
in the pathway of the armies, or from those neighborhoods that were given
over to the "bushwhackers." The amount of loss from these different
sources cannot be accurately gauged, but some idea may be formed of it,
and of the unsettled condition of affairs, from the fact that only 41 out
of the 113 counties in the state receipted for the tax books for 1861; and
in these counties, only $250,000 out of the $600,000 charged against them
were collected."

	This only in a general way indicates the losses in property sustained
by the state during the period under consideration, but it assists one to
understand somewhat the enormity of those losses.

	It is in no spirit of gloating exultation that these facts in
Missouri's history are referred to here. It gives no gratification to the
writer to recount the woes of Missouri, and his hope is that it will give
none to the reader. These facts of history are set down only because they
are valuable for the lesson they teach. It may be that visible retribution
does not always follow in the wake of state or national wrong-doing; but
it is well that it should sometimes do so, lest men should come to think
that Eternal Justice sleeps, or may be thwarted, or, what would be worst
of all, that she does not exist. I say it is well, therefore, that
sometimes visible retribution should follow state and national as well as
individual transgressions, that the truth of the great principle that "as
men sow, so shall they reap," may be vindicated. Missouri in her treatment
of the Latter-day Saints during the years 1833-9, sowed the wind; in the
disastrous events which overtook her during the years 1855-65, she reaped
the whirlwind. Let us hope that in those events Justice was fully
vindicated so far as the state of Missouri is concerned; and that the
lessons of her sad experience may not be lost to the world. May the awful
and visible retribution visited upon Missouri teach all states and nations
that when they feel power they must not forget Justice; may it teach all
peoples that states and nations in their corporate capacity are such
entities as may be held accountable before God and the world for their
actions; that righteousness exalteth a nation, while injustice is a
reproach to any people. May the retribution that was so palpably visited
upon the state of Missouri satisfy and encourage the Latter-day Saints;
not that I would see them rejoice in the suffering of the wicked; but
rejoice rather in the evidence that Justice slumbereth not; that their
wrongs are not hidden from the All-seeing eye of God; that they are within
the circle of His love; that they cannot be unjustly assailed with
impunity, however humble and weak they may be. From all these
considerations may they be established in peace, hope, confidence and
charity; knowing that God is their friend; that His arm is strong to
protect; or, if in the course of God's economy in the management of the
affairs of the world it must needs be that for a time they suffer at the
hands of oppressors, that He will avenge them of their enemies; and amply
reward them for their sufferings in His cause.


       HISTORY OF THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS.

                                PERIOD I.

                              
                  HISTORY OF JOSEPH SMITH, THE PROPHET.

                               VOLUME III
                                CHAPTER I.
  THE PROPHET JOSEPH'S DEPARTURE FROM KIRTLAND AND ARRIVAL IN MISSOURI.

	January, 1838.--A new year dawned upon the Church in Kirtland in all
the bitterness of the spirit of apostate mobocracy; which continued to
rage and grow hotter and hotter, until Elder Rigdon and myself were
obliged to flee from its deadly influence, as did the Apostles and
Prophets of old, and as Jesus said, "when they persecute you in one city,
flee to another." On the evening of the 12th of January, about ten
o'clock, we left Kirtland, on horseback, to escape mob violence, which was
about to burst upon us under the color of legal process to cover the
hellish designs of our enemies, and to save themselves from the just
judgment of the law.

	We continued our travels during the night, and at eight o'clock on
the morning of the 13th, arrived among the brethren in Norton Township,
Medina county, Ohio, a distance of sixty miles from Kirtland. Here we
tarried about thirty-six hours, when our families arrived; and on the 16th
we pursued our journey with our families, in covered wagons towards the
city of Far West, in Missouri. We passed through Dayton and Eaton, in
Ohio, and Dublin, Indiana; in the latter place we tarried nine days, and
refreshed ourselves.

	About January 16, 1838, being destitute of money to pursue my
journey, I said to Brother Brigham Young: "You are one of the Twelve who
have charge of the kingdom in all the world; I believe I shall throw
myself upon you, and look to you for counsel in this case." Brother Young
thought I was not earnest, but I told him I was. Brother Brigham then
said, "If you will take my counsel it will be that you rest yourself, and
be assured you shall have money in plenty to pursue your journey."

	There was a brother living in the place who had tried for some time
to sell his farm but could not; he asked counsel of Brother Young
concerning his property; Brother Young told him that if he would do right,
and obey counsel, he should have an opportunity to sell. In about three
days Brother Tomlinson came to Brother Brigham and said he had an offer
for his place; Brother Brigham told him that this was the manifestation of
the hand of the Lord to deliver Brother Joseph Smith from his present
necessities. Brother Brigham's promise was soon verified, and I got three
hundred dollars from Brother Tomlinson, which enabled me to pursue my
journey.

	The weather was extremely cold, we were obliged to secrete ourselves
in our wagons, sometimes, to elude the grasp of our pursuers, who
continued their pursuit of us more than two hundred miles from Kirtland,
armed with pistols and guns, seeking our lives. They frequently crossed
our track, twice they were in the houses where we stopped, once we tarried
all night in the same house with them, with only a partition between us
and them; and heard their oaths and imprecations, and threats concerning
us, if they could catch us; and late in the evening they came in to our
room and examined us. but decided we were not the men. At other times we
passed them in the streets, and gazed upon them, and they on us, but they
knew us not. One Lyons was one of our pursuers.

	I parted with Brother Rigdon at Dublin, and traveling different
routes we met at Terre Haute, where, after resting, we separated again,
and I pursued my journey, crossing the Mississippi river at Quincy,
Illinois.

             TRIAL OF THE FAR WEST PRESIDENCY OF THE CHURCH.

     	Minutes of the Proceedings of the Committee of the whole Church
     in Zion, in General Assembly, at the following places, to-wit: At Far
     West, February 5, 1838; Carter's Settlement on the 6th; Durphy's
     Settlement, on the 7th; Curtis' Dwelling-house on the 8th; and Haun's
     Mills on the 9th. Thomas B. Marsh, Moderator, John Cleminson, Clerk.

	After prayer, the Moderator stated the object of the meeting, giving
a relation of the recent organization of the Church here and in Kirtland.
He also read a certain revelation given in Kirtland, September 3, 1837,
which made known that John Whitmer and W. W. Phelps, were in
transgression, and if they repented not, they should be removed out of
their places; also read a certain clause contained in the appeal
published in the old Star, on the 183rd page as follows:

	"And to sell our lands would amount to a denial of our faith, as that
is the place where the Zion of God shall stand, according to our faith and
belief in the revelations of God."

	Elder John Murdock then took the stand and showed to the
congregation, why the High Council proceeded thus was that the Church have
a voice in the matter; and that he considered it perfectly legal according
to the instructions of President Joseph Smith, Jun.

	Elder George M. Hinkle then set forth the way in which the Presidency
of Far West had been labored with, that a committee of three, of whom he
was one, had labored with them. He then read a written document,
containing a number of accusations against the three presidents. He spoke
many things against them, setting forth in a plain and energetic manner
the iniquity of Elders Phelps and Whitmer, in using the monies which were
loaned to the Church. Also David Whitmer's wrong-doing in persisting in
the use of tea, coffee, and tobacco.

	Bishop Partridge then arose and endeavored to rectify some mistakes
of minor importance, made by Elder Hinkle; also the Bishop spoke against
the proceedings of the meeting, as being hasty and illegal, for he thought
they ought to be had before the Common Council, and said that he could not
lift his hand against the Presidency at present. He then read a letter
from President Joseph Smith, Jun.

	A letter from William Smith was then read by Thomas B. Marsh, who
made some comments on the same, and also on the letter read by Bishop
Partridge.

	Elder George Morey, who was one of the committee sent to labor with
the Missouri Presidency, spoke, setting forth in a very energetic manner,
the proceedings of that Presidency, as being iniquitous.

	Elder Thomas Grover, also, being one of the committee, spoke against
the conduct of the Presidency, and of Oliver Cowdery, on their visit to
labor with them.

	Elder David W. Patten spoke with much zeal against the Presidency,
and in favor of Joseph Smith, Jun., and that the wolves alluded to, in his
letter, were the dissenters in Kirtland.

	Elder Lyman Wight stated that he considered all other accusations of
minor importance compared to Brothers Phelps and Whitmer selling their
lands in Jackson county; that they had set an example which all the Saints
were liable to follow. He said that it was a hellish principle on which
they had acted, and that they had flatly denied the faith in so doing.

	Elder Elias Higbee sanctioned what had been done by the Council,
speaking against the Presidency.

	Elder Murdock stated that sufficient had been said to substantiate
the accusations against them.

	Elder Solomon Hancock pleaded in favor of the Presidency, stating
that he could not raise his hand against them.

	Elder John Corrill then spoke against the proceedings of the High
Council and labored hard to show that the meeting was illegal, and that
the Presidency ought to be arraigned before a proper tribunal, which he
considered to be a Bishop and Twelve High Priests. He labored in favor of
the Presidency, and said that he should not raise his hands against them
at present, although he did not uphold the Presidents in their iniquity.

	Simeon Carter spoke against the meeting as being hasty.

	Elder Groves followed Brother Carter in like observations.

	Elder Patten again took the stand in vindication of the cause of the
meeting.

	Elder Morley spoke against the Presidency, at the same time pleading
mercy.

	Titus Billings said he could not vote until they had a hearing in the
Common Council.

	Elder Marsh said that the meeting was according to the direction of
Brother Joseph, he therefore considered it legal.

	Elder Moses Martin spoke in favor of the legality of the meeting, and
against the conduct of the Presidency, with great energy, alleging that
the present corruptions of the Church here, were owing to the wickedness
and mismanagement of her leaders.

	The Moderator then called the vote in favor of the Missouri
Presidency; the negative was then called, and the vote against David
Whitmer, John Whitmer, and William W. Phelps was unanimous, excepting
eight or ten, and this minority only wished them to continue in office a
little longer, or until Joseph Smith, Jun., arrived.

                                               THOMAS B. MARSH, Moderator,
                                                    JOHN CLEMINSON. Clerk.

        Minutes of Proceedings in Other Settlements than Far West.

	In Simeon Carter's settlement the Saints assembled on the 6th
instant, when they unanimously rejected the three above-named Presidents.
On the 7th, the Saints assembled at Edmond Durphy's, agreeable to
appointment, where the above-named Presidents were unanimously rejected;
also on the 8th at Nahum Curtis' dwelling-house, they were unanimously
rejected by the assembly; also at Haun's Mills, on the 9th, the Saints
unanimously rejected them.

	At a meeting of the High Council the Bishop and his counsel, February
10, 1838, it was moved, seconded, and carried, that Oliver Cowdery,
William W. Phelps, and John Whitmer, stand no longer as chairman and
clerks to sign and record licenses.

	Voted that Thomas B. Marsh and David W. Patten be authorized to
attend to such business for the time being.

	Also voted that Thomas B. Marsh and David W. Patten be presidents,
pro tempore, of the Church of Latter-day Saints in Missouri, until
Presidents Joseph Smith, Jun., and Sidney Rigdon, arrive in the land of
Zion.
                                                    J. MURDOCK, Moderator,
                                                       T. B. MARSH, Clerk.

                    High Council Meeting at Far West.

	The High Council of Zion met in Far West, on Saturday, March 10 1838,
agreeable to adjournment; when after discussion it was resolved,

	First--That the High Council recommend by writing to the various
branches of this Church, that all those who wish to receive ordination,
procure recommends from the branches to which they belong, and have such
recommends pass through the hands of the different quorums for inspection,
previous to the applicants' ordination.

	Second--Resolved that the High Council recommend to all those who
hold licenses, between the ages of eighteen and forty-five, and do not
officiate in their respective offices, be subject to military duty.

	A charge was then preferred against William W. Phelps and John
Whitmer, for persisting in unchristian-like conduct.

	Six councilors were appointed to speak, viz., Simeon Carter, Isaac
Higbee and Levi Jackman, on the part of the accuser; and Jared Carter,
Thomas Grover, and Samuel Bent, on the part of the accused; when the
following letter, belonging to Thomas B. Marsh, was read by

	Brother Marcellus F. Cowdery, bearer of the same, previous to giving
it to its rightful owner:

                                                "FAR WEST, March 10, 1838.

	"Sir--It is contrary to the principles of the revelations of Jesus
Christ and His gospel, and the laws of the land, to try a person for an
offense by an illegal tribunal, or by men prejudiced against him, or by
authority that has given an opinion or decision beforehand, or in his
absence.

	"Very respectfully we have the honor to be,
                                                            DAVID WHITMER,
                                                       "WILLIAM W. PHELPS,
                                                             JOHN WHITMER,
                          "Presidents of the Church of Christ in Missouri.

	"To Thomas B. Marsh, one of the [Twelve] Traveling Councilors."

Attested:                    OLIVER COWDERY,
	Clerk of the High Council of the Church of Christ in Missouri.

I certify the foregoing to be a true copy from the original.
                                                           OLIVER COWDERY,
                                                Clerk of the High Council.

	All the effect the above letter had upon the Council, was to convince
them still more of the wickedness of those men, by endeavoring to palm
themselves off upon the Church, as her Presidents, after the Church had by
a united voice, removed them from their presidential office, for their
ungodly conduct; and the letter was considered no more nor less than a
direct insult or contempt cast upon the authorities of God, and the Church
of Jesus Christ; therefore the Council proceeded to business.

	A number of charges were sustained against these men, the principal
of which was claiming $2,000 Church funds, which they had subscribed for
building a house to the Lord in this place, when they held in their
possession the city plat, and were sitting in the presidential chair;
which subscription they were intending to pay from the avails of the town
lots; but when the town plat was transferred into the hands of the Bishop
for the benefit of the Church, it was agreed that the Church should take
this subscription off the hands of W. W. Phelps and John Whitmer: but in
the transaction of the business, they bound the Bishop in a heavy
mortgage, to pay them the above $2,000, in two years from the date
thereof, a part of which they had already received, and claimed the
remainder.

	The six councilors made a few appropriate remarks, but none felt to
plead for mercy, as it had not been asked on the part of the accused, and
all with one consent declared that justice ought to have her demands.

	After some remarks by Presidents Marsh and Patten, setting forth the
iniquity of those men in claiming the $2,000 spoken of, which did not
belong to them, any more than to any other person in the Church, it was
decided that William W. Phelps and John Whitmer be no longer members of
the Church of Christ of Latter-day Saints, and be given over to the
buffetings of Satan, until they learn to blaspheme no more against the
authorities of God, nor fleece the flock of Christ.

	The Council was then asked if they concurred with the decision, if
so, to manifest it by rising; they all arose.

	The vote was then put to the congregation, and was carried
unanimously.

	The negative was called, but no one voted.

	Brother Marcellus F. Cowdery arose and said he wished to leave it
understood that he did not vote either way, because he did not consider it
a legal tribunal. He also offered insult to the High Council, and to the
Church, by reading a letter belonging to Thomas B. Marsh, before giving it
to him, and in speaking against the authorities of the Church.

	A motion was then made by President Patten, that fellowship be
withdrawn from Marcellus F. Cowdery, until he make satisfaction, which was
seconded and carried unanimously.
						THOMAS B. MARSH,
						DAVID W. PATTEN,
								Presidents.
						EBENEZER ROBINSON,
							Clerk of High Council.

	When I had arrived within one hundred and twenty miles of Far West,
the brethren met me with teams and money to help me forward, and when
eight miles from the city, we were met by an escort, viz., Thomas B. Marsh
and others, who received us with open arms; and on the 13th of March, with
my family and some others I put up at Brother Barnard's for the night.
Here we were met by another escort of the brethren from the town, who came
to make us welcome to their little Zion.

	On the 14th of March, as we were about entering Far West, many of the
brethren came out to meet us, who also with open arms welcomed us to their
bosoms. We were immediately received under the hospitable roof of Brother
George W. Harris, who treated us with all possible kindness, and we
refreshed ourselves with much satisfaction, after our long and tedious
journey, the brethren bringing in such things as we had need of for our
comfort and convenience.

	After being here two or three days, my brother Samuel arrived with
his family.

	Shortly after his arrival, while walking with him and certain other
brethren, the following sentiments occurred to my mind:

         The Political Motto of the Church of Latter-day Saints.

	The Constitution of our country formed by the Fathers of liberty.
Peace and good order in society. Love to God, and good will to man. All
good and wholesome laws, virtue and truth above all things, and
aristarchy, live for ever! But woe to tyrants, mobs, aristocracy, anarchy,
and toryism, and all those who invent or seek out unrighteous and
vexatious law suits, under the pretext and color of law, or office, either
religious or political. Exalt the standard of Democracy! Down with that of
priestcraft, and let all the people say Amen! that the blood of our
fathers may not cry from the ground against us. Sacred is the memory of
that blood which bought for us our liberty.

									JOSEPH SMITH, JUN.
									THOMAS B. MARSH,
									DAVID W. PATTEN,
									BRIGHAM YOUNG,
									SAMUEL H. SMITH,
									GEORGE M. HINKLE,
									JOHN CORRILL,
									GEORGE W. ROBINSON.

            The Prophet's Answers to Questions on Scripture.

	Who is the Stem of Jesse spoken of in the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th
verses of the 11th chapter of Isaiah?.

	Verily thus saith the Lord, it is Christ.

	What is the rod spoken of in the first verse of the 11th chapter of
Isaiah that should come of the Stem of Jesse?

	Behold, thus saith the Lord, it is a servant in the hands of Christ,
who is partly a descendant of Jesse as well as of Ephraim, or of the House
of Joseph, on whom there is laid much power. What is the root of Jesse
spoken of in the 10th verse of the 11th chapter?

	Behold, thus saith the Lord, it is a descendant of Jesse, as well as
of Joseph, unto whom rightly belongs the Priesthood, and the keys of the
Kingdom, for an ensign, and for the gathering of my people in the last
days.

	Questions by Elias Higbee:

	"What is meant by the command in Isaiah, 52nd chapter, 1st verse,
which saith, put on thy strength O Zion? And what people had Isaiah
reference to?"

	He had reference to those whom God should call in the last days, who
should hold the power of Priesthood to bring again Zion, and the
redemption of Israel; and to put on her strength is to put on the
authority of the Priesthood, which she (Zion) has a right to by lineage;
also to return to that power which she had lost.

	"What are we to understand by Zion loosing herself from the bands of
her neck; 2nd verse?"

	We are to understand that the scattered remnants are exhorted to
return to the Lord from whence they have fallen, which if they do, the
promise of the Lord is that He will speak to them, or give them
revelation. See the 6th, 7th and 8th verses. The bands of her neck are the
curses of God upon her, or the remnants of Israel in their scattered
condition among the Gentiles.

The Prophet's Letter to the Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints in Kirtland.

                                                 FAR WEST, March 29, 1838.

	Dear and Well Beloved Brethren--Through the grace and mercy of our
God, after a long and tedious journey of two months and one day, my family
and I arrived safe in the city of Far West, having been met at Huntsville,
one hundred and twenty miles from this place, by my brethren with teams
and money, to forward us on our journey. When within eight miles of the
city of Far West. we were met by an escort of brethren from the city,
viz.: Thomas B. Marsh, John Corrill, Elias Higbee, and several others of
the faithful of the West, who received us with open arms and warm hearts,
and welcomed us to the bosom of their society. On our arrival in the city
we were greeted on every hand by the Saints, who bid us welcome to the
land of their inheritance.

	Dear brethren, you may be assured that so friendly a meeting and
reception paid us well for our long seven years of servitude, persecution,
and affliction in the midst of our enemies, in the land of Kirtland; yea,
verily our hearts were full; and we feel grateful to Almighty God for His
kindness unto us. The particulars of our journey, brethren, cannot well be
written, but we trust that the same God who has protected us will protect
you also, and will, sooner or later, grant us the privilege of seeing each
other face to face, and of rehearsing all our sufferings.

	We have heard of the destruction of the printing office, which we
presume to believe must have been occasioned by the Parrish party, or more
properly the aristocrats or anarchists.

	The Saints here have provided a room for us, and daily necessaries,
which are brought in from all parts of the country to make us comfortable;
so that I have nothing to do but to attend to my spiritual concerns, or
the spiritual affairs of the Church.

	The difficulties of the Church had been adjusted before my arrival
here, by a judicious High Council, with Thomas B. Marsh and David W.
Patten, who acted as presidents pro tempore of the Church of Zion, being
appointed by the voice of the Council and Church, William W. Phelps and
John Whitmer having been cut off from the Church, David Whitmer remaining
as yet. The Saints at this time are in union; and peace and love prevail
throughout; in a word, heaven smiles upon the Saints in Caldwell. Various
and many have been the falsehoods written from Kirtland to this place, but
[they] have availed nothing. We have no uneasiness about the power of our
enemies in this place to do us harm.

	Brother Samuel H. Smith and family arrived here soon after we did, in
good health. Brothers Brigham Young, Daniel S. Miles, and Levi Richards
arrived here when we did. They were with us on the last part of our
journey, which ended much to our satisfaction. They also are well. They
have provided places for their families, and are now about to break the
ground for seed.

	Having been under the hands of [men who urged against me] wicked and
vexatious law suits for seven years past, my business [in Kirtland] was so
deranged that I was not able to leave it in so good a situation as I had
anticipated; but if there are any wrongs, they shall all be noticed, so
far as the Lord gives me ability and power to do so.

	Say to all the brethren, that I have not forgotten them, but remember
them in my prayers. Say to Mother Beaman that I remember her, also Brother
Daniel Carter, Brother Strong and family, Brother Granger and family;
finally I cannot enumerate them all for want of room, I will just name
Brother Knight, the Bishop, etc.; my best respects to them all, and I
commend them and the Church of God in Kirtland to our Heavenly Father, and
the word of His grace, which is able to make you wise unto salvation.

	I would just say to Brother Marks, that I saw in a vision while on
the road, that whereas he was closely pursued by an innumerable concourse
of enemies, and as they pressed upon him hard, as if they were about to
devour him, and had seemingly obtained some degree of advantage over him,
but about this time a chariot of fire came, and near the place, even the
angel of the Lord put forth his hand unto Brother Marks and said unto him,
"Thou art my son, come here," and immediately he was caught up in the
chariot, and rode away triumphantly out of their midst. And again the Lord
said, I will raise thee up for a blessing unto many people." Now the
particulars of this whole matter cannot be written at this time, but the
vision was evidently given to me that I might know that the hand of the
Lord would be on his behalf.

	I transmit to you the Motto of the Church of Latter-day Saints.

	We left President Rigdon thirty miles this side of Paris, Illinois,
in consequence of the sickness of Brother George W. Robinson's wife.

	On yesterday Brother Robinson arrived here, who informed us that his
father-in-law (Sidney Rigdon) was at Huntsville, detained on account of
the ill health of his wife. They will probably be here soon.


	Choice seeds of all kinds of fruit, also choice breeds of cattle,
would be in much demand; and best blood of horses, garden seeds of every
description, and hay seeds of all sorts, are much needed in this place.

	Very respectfully I subscribe myself your servant in Christ, our Lord
and Savior.
						JOSEPH SMITH, JUN.,
			President of the Church of Christ of Latter-day Saints.


                               CHAPTER II.
      EXCOMMUNICATION OF OLIVER COWDERY AND DAVID WHITMER--THE WORK 
                               IN ENGLAND.

	PRESIDENT RIGDON arrived at Far West with his family, Wednesday,
April 4th, having had a tedious journey, and his family having suffered
many afflictions.

        Minutes of a General Conference of the Church at Far West.

                                                  FAR WEST, April 6, 1838.

	Agreeable to a resolution passed by the High Council of Zion. March
3, 1838, the Saints in Missouri assembled in this place to celebrate the
anniversary of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. and to
transact Church business, Joseph Smith, Jun., and Sidney Rigdon,
presiding.

	The meeting was opened by singing, and prayer by David W. Patten,
after which President Joseph Smith, Jun., read the order of the day as
follows; Doors will be opened at 9 o'clock a. m., and the meeting will
commence by singing and prayer. A sexton will then be appointed as a door
keeper, and other services in the House of the Lord. Two historians will
then be appointed to write and keep the Church history; also a general
recorder to keep the records of the whole Church, and to be the clerk of
the First Presidency. And a clerk will be appointed for the High Council,
and to keep the Church records of this Stake. Three presidents will be
appointed to preside over this Church of Zion, after which an address will
be delivered by the Presidency. Then an intermission of one hour, when the
meeting will again convene, and open by singing and prayer. The Sacrament
will then be administered, and the blessing of infants attended to.

	The meeting proceeded to business. George Morey was appointed sexton,
and Dimick Huntington assistant; John Corrill and Elias Higbee,
historians; George W. Robinson, general Church recorder and clerk to the
First Presidency; Ebenezer Robinson, Church clerk and recorder for Far
West and clerk of the High Council; Thomas B. Marsh, President pro tempore
of the Church in Zion, and Brigham Young and David W. Patten, his
assistant Presidents.

	After one hour's adjournment, meeting again opened by David W.
Patten. The bread and wine were administered, and ninety-five infants were
blessed.

						JOSEPH SMITH, JUN., President.
						EBENEZER ROBINSON, Clerk.



          Minutes of the First Quarterly Conference at Far West.

	Agreeable to a resolution of the High Council, March 3, 1838, the
general authorities of the Church met, to hold the Quarterly Conference of
the Church of Latter-day Saints, at Far West, on the 7th of April, 1838.

	President Joseph Smith, Jun., Sidney Rigdon, Thomas B. Marsh, David
W. Patten, and Brigham Young, took the stand, after which the several
quorums, the High Council, the High Priests, the Seventies, the Elders,
the Bishops, the Priests, Teachers and Deacons, were organized by their
Presidents.

	President Joseph Smith, Jun., made some remarks and also gave some
instructions respecting the order of the day. After singing, prayer by
Brigham Young, and singing again, President Smith then addressed the
congregation at considerable length, followed by President Rigdon.

	Adjourned twenty minutes.

	Opened by David W. Patten, who also made some remarks respecting the
Twelve Apostles. He spoke of Thomas B. Marsh, Brigham Young, Heber C.
Kimball, Orson Hyde, Parley P. Pratt, and Orson Pratt, as being men of
God, whom he could recommend with cheerfulness and confidence. He spoke
somewhat doubtful of William Smith, for something he had heard respecting
his faith in the work. He also spoke of William E. McLellin, Luke S.
Johnson, Lyman E. Johnson, and John F. Boynton, as being men whom he could
not recommend to the conference.

	President John Murdock represented the High Council. The report was
favorable. The seats of Elisha H. Groves, Calvin Bebee, and Lyman Wight
were vacant in consequence of their having moved so far away they could
not attend the Council.

	Thomas B. Marsh nominated Jared Carter, to fill the seat of Elisha H.
Groves; John P. Greene that of Calvin Bebee, and George W. Harris that of
Lyman Wight; which nominations were severally and unanimously sanctioned.

	George W. Harris was ordained a High Priest.

	On motion, conference adjourned to the 8th, 9 o'clock a. m.

	Sunday, April 8th, 9 o'clock a. m., conference convened and opened as
usual, prayer by Brigham Young.

	President Joseph Smith, Jun., made a few remarks respecting the
Kirtland Bank. He was followed by Brigham Young, who gave a short history
of his travels to Massachusetts and New York.

	President Charles C. Rich represented his quorum of High Priests, and
read their names. The principal part were in good standing.

	President Daniel S. Miles and Levi W. Hancock represented the
Seventies.

	The quorum of Elders were represented by their President, Harvey
Green, numbering one hundred and twenty-four in good standing.

	President Joseph Smith, Jun., made a few remarks on the Word of
Wisdom, giving the reason of its coming forth, saying it should be
observed.

	Adjourned for one hour.

	Conference convened agreeable to adjournment, and opened as usual,
after which Bishop Partridge represented his Council and the Lesser
Priesthood, and made a report of receipts and expenditures of Church funds
which had passed through his hands.

	It was then moved, seconded and carried, that the First Presidency be
appointed to sign the licenses of the official members of the Church.

	Conference adjourned until the first Friday in July next. JOSEPH
SMITH, JUN., President. EBENEZER ROBINSON, Clerk.

	The following letter was sent to John Whitmer, in consequence of his
withholding the records of the Church in the city of Far West when called
for by the clerk.

     	Mr. John Whitmer, Sir: We were desirous of honoring you by
     giving publicity to your notes on the history of the Church of
     Latter-day Saints, after making such corrections as we thought would
     be necessary, knowing your incompetency as a historian, and that
     writings coming from your pen, could not be put to press without our
     correcting them, or else the Church must suffer reproach. Indeed,
     sir, we never supposed you capable of writing a history, but were
     willing to let it come out under your name, notwithstanding it would
     really not be yours but ours. We are still willing to honor you, if
     you can be made to know your own interest, and give up your notes, so
     that they can be corrected and made fit for the press; but if not, we
     have all the materials for another, which we shall commence this week
     to write.

				Your humble servants,
						JOSEPH SMITH, JUN.,
						SIDNEY RIGDON,
			Presidents of the whole Church of Latter-day Saints.

				Attest: 	EBENEZER ROBINSON, Clerk.

	Wednesday, April 11.--Elder Seymour Brunson preferred the following
charges against Oliver Cowdery, to the High Council at Far West:

	To the Bishop and Council of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints, I prefer the following charges against President Oliver Cowdery.

	"First--For persecuting the brethren by urging on vexatious law suits
against them, and thus distressing the innocent.

	"Second--For seeking to destroy the character of President Joseph
Smith, Jun., by falsely insinuating that he was guilty of adultery.

	"Third--For treating the Church with contempt by not attending
meetings.

	"Fourth--For virtually denying the faith by declaring that he would
not be governed by any ecclesiastical authority or revelations whatever,
in his temporal affairs.

	"Fifth--For selling his lands in Jackson county, contrary to the
revelations.

	"Sixth--For writing and sending an insulting letter to President
Thomas B. Marsh, while the latter was on the High Council, attending to
the duties of his office as President of the Council, and by insulting the
High Council with the contents of said letter.

	"Seventh--For leaving his calling to which God had appointed him by
revelation, for the sake of filthy lucre, and turning to the practice of
law.

	Eighth--For disgracing the Church by being connected in the bogus
business, as common report says.

	"Ninth--For dishonestly retaining notes after they had been paid; and
finally, for leaving and forsaking the cause of God, and returning to the
beggarly elements of the world, and neglecting his high and holy calling,
according to his profession."

	The Bishop and High Council assembled at the Bishop's office, April
12, 1838. After the organization of the Council, the above charges of the
11th instant were read, also a letter from Oliver Cowdery, as will be
found record in the Church record of the city of Far West, Book A. The
1st, 2nd, 3rd, 7th, 8th, and 9th charges were sustained. The 4th and 5th
charges were rejected, and the 6th was withdrawn. Consequently he (Oliver
Cowdery) was considered no longer a member of the Church of Jesus Christ
of Latter-day Saints. Also voted by the High Council that Oliver Cowdery
be no longer a committee to select locations for the gathering of the
Saints.

	April 13.--The following charges were preferred against David
Whitmer, before the High Council at Far West, in council assembled.

	"First--For not observing the Word of Wisdom.

	Second--For unchristian-like conduct in neglecting to attend
meetings, in uniting with and possessing the same spirit as the
dissenters.

	"Third--In writing letters to the dissenters in Kirtland unfavorable
to the cause, and to the character of Joseph Smith, Jun.

	"Fourth--In neglecting the duties of his calling, and separating
himself from the Church, while he had a name among us.

	"Fifth--For signing himself President of the Church of Christ in an
insulting letter to the High Council after he had been cut off from the
Presidency."

	After reading the above charges, together with a letter sent to the
President of said Council, the Council held that the charges were
sustained, and consequently considered David Whitmer no longer a member of
the Church of Latter-day Saints.

	The same day three charges were preferred against Lyman E. Johnson,
which were read, together with a letter from him, in answer to the one
recorded in Far West Record. The charges were sustained, and he was cut
off from the Church.

	The work continued to prosper in England, and Elders Richards and
Russell having previously been called to Preston, to prepare for their
return to America, a general conference was held in the Temperance Hall,
(Cock Pit) Preston, on Sunday, April 1st, for the purpose of setting in
order the churches, etc. Brother Joseph Fielding was chosen President over
the whole Church in England, and Willard Richards and William Clayton
were chosen his Counselors, and were ordained to the High Priesthood and
to the Presidency. This was the first notice given Elder Richards that he
would be required to continue in England. At this conference eight Elders
were ordained, among whom was Thomas Webster, and several Priests,
Teachers and Deacons; about forty were confirmed, who had previously been
baptized; about sixty children were blessed, and twenty baptized that day.
Conference continued without intermission from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. About
fifty official members met in council in the evening.

	From the 1st to the 8th of April Presidents Kimball and Hyde visited
the churches a short distance from Preston, and on the 8th attended
meeting in the "Cock Pit." After preaching by Elder Richards, they bore
their farewell testimony to the truth of the work. After they had closed,
and while Elder Russell was speaking, the enemy severed the gas pipes
which lighted the house, and threw the assembly into darkness in an
instant. The damage was soon repaired, and the design of breaking up the
meeting frustrated.

	On Tuesday, the 10th of April, at 12 o'clock, Elders Kimball and Hyde
left Preston by coach for Liverpool.

	While the Elders were in Liverpool they wrote as follows:

                               A Prophecy.

                                   LIVERPOOL, GOOD FRIDAY, April 13, 1838.

	DEAR BROTHERS AND SISTERS IN PRESTON:--It seemeth good unto us, and
also to the Holy Spirit, to write you a few words which cause pain in our
hearts, and will also pain you when they are fulfilled before you, yet you
shall have joy in the end. Brother Thomas Webster will not abide in the
Spirit of the Lord, but will reject the truth, and become the enemy of the
people of God, and expose the mysteries that have been committed to him,
that a righteous judgment may be executed upon him, unless he speedily
repent. When this sorrowful prediction shall be fulfilled, this letter
shall be read to the Church, and it shall prove a solemn warning to all to
beware.

				Farewell in the Lord,
						HEBER C. KIMBALL,
						ORSON HYDE.

	The foregoing letter was written and sealed in the presence of
Presidents Joseph Fielding and Willard Richards, who had gone to Liverpool
to witness the brethren sail, and, by the writers, committed to their
special charge, that no one should know the contents until the fulfillment
thereof.


	Previous to this period, very few of the foolish and wicked stories
which filled the weekly journals and pamphlets in America concerning the
"Mormons," as the Saints were termed, had found their way into the English
prints; but immediately after Elders Kimball and Hyde left Preston, on or
about the 15th of April, one Livesey (a Methodist Priest who had
previously spent some years in America, and said he heard nothing about
the Saints in America) came out with a pamphlet, made up of forged
letters, apostate lies, and "walk on the water" stories, he found in old
American papers, which he had picked up while in America. But he stopped
the circulation of his own pamphlet by stating to a public congregation,
that he had accidentally found the contents of his pamphlet in old papers
in his trunk, which was quite providential, to stop such abominable work
as the Saints were engaged in; and in the same lecture said he "wished the
people to purchase his pamphlet, as he had been at a great expense to
procure the materials for writing it!" His hearers retired.

	On the 20th of April Elders Kimball and Hyde sailed from Liverpool on
the ship Garrick.


                               CHAPTER III.
           READJUSTMENT AND SETTLEMENT OF AFFAIRS AT FAR WEST.

	April 17.--I received the following:

                      Revelation Given at Far West.

	1. Verily thus saith the Lord, it is wisdom in my servant David W.
Patten, that he settle up all his business as soon as he possibly can, and
make a disposition of his merchandise, that he may perform a mission unto
me next spring, in company with others, even twelve, including himself, to
testify of my name, and bear glad tidings unto all the world;

	2. For verily thus saith the Lord, that inasmuch as there are those
among you who deny my name, others shall be planted in their stead, and
receive their bishopric. Amen.

	I also received the following:

              Revelation Given to Brigham Young at Far West.

	Verily thus saith the Lord, let my servant Brigham Young go unto the
place which he has bought, on Mill Creek, and there provide for his family
until an effectual door is opened for the support of his family, until I
shall command him to go hence, and not to leave his family until they are
amply provided for. Amen.

	April 26.--I received the following:

Revelation Given at Far West making known the will of God concerning the
building up of that place, and of the Lord's House.

	1. Verily thus saith the Lord unto you, my servant Joseph Smith,
Jun., and also my servant Sidney Rigdon, and also my servant Hyrum Smith,
and your counselors who are and shall be appointed hereafter;

	2. And also unto you my servant Edward Partridge, and his counselors;

	3. And also unto my faithful servants, who are of the High Council of
my Church in Zion (for thus it shall be called), and unto all the Elders
and people of my Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, scattered
abroad in all the world;

	4. For thus shall my Church be called in the last days, even the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

	5. Verily I say unto you all, Arise and shine forth, that thy light
may be a standard for the nations,

	6. And that the gathering together upon the land of Zion, and upon
her stakes, may be for a defense, and for a refuge from the storm, and
from wrath when it shall be poured out without mixture upon the whole
earth.

	7. Let the city, Far West, be a holy and consecrated land unto me,
and it shall be called most holy, for the ground upon which thou standest
is holy;


	8. Therefore I command you to build an house unto me, for the
gathering together of my Saints, that they may worship me;

	9. And let there be a beginning of this work, and a foundation, and a
preparatory work, this following summer;

	10. And let the beginning be made on the 4th day of July next, and
from that time forth let my people labor diligently to build an house unto
my name,

	11. And in one year from this day let them recommence laying the
foundation of my house:

	12. Thus let them from that time forth labor diligently until it
shall be finished, from the Corner stone thereof unto the top thereof,
until there shall not any thing remain that is not finished.

	13. Verily I say unto you, let not my servant Joseph, neither my
servant Sidney, neither my servant Hyrum, get in debt any more for the
building of an house unto my name;

	14. But let an house be built unto my name according to the pattern
which I will show unto them.


	15. And if my people shall build it not according to the pattern
which I shall show unto their Presidency, I will not accept it at their
hands.

	16. But if my people do build it according to the pattern which I
shall show unto their Presidency, even my servant Joseph and his
counselors, then I will accept it at the hands of my people.

	17. And again, verily I say unto you, it is my will that the city of
Far West should be built up speedily by the gathering of my Saints,

	18. And also that other places should be appointed for stakes in the
region round about, as they shall be manifested unto my servant Joseph,
from time to time;

	19. For behold, I will be with him, and I will sanctify him before
the people, for unto him have I given the keys of this kingdom and
ministry. Even so. Amen.

	The Teachers' quorum voted today [April 26th] not to hold any member
of the quorum in fellowship, who would not settle his own difficulties in
the Church, and show himself approved in all things; and that they would
not bold any member of the quorum in fellowship who would take unlawful
interest.

	April 27.--This day I chiefly spent in writing a history of the
Church from the earliest period of its existence, up to this date.

                       Minutes of the High Council.

	Saturday, April 28, 1838. This morning Presidents Joseph Smith, Jun.,
and Sidney Rigdon attended the High Council, by invitation.

	The business before the Council was an appeal case, from the branch
of the Church near Guymon's Mill. A Brother Jackson was accuser, and Aaron
Lyon accused. Thomas B. Marsh and David W. Patten presiding.

	It appeared, in calling the Council to order, that some of the seats
were vacant, which the Council proceeded to fill, but as there were not a
sufficient number present who were eligible for the station, Presidents

	Smith and Rigdon were strongly solicited to act as Councilors, or to
preside and let the presiding officers act as Councilors.

	They accepted the former proposal, and President Smith was chosen to
act on the part of the defense, and to speak upon the case, together with
George W. Harris.

	President Rigdon was chosen to speak on the part of the prosecution,
together with George M. Hinkle.


	After some discussion as to whether witnesses should be admitted to
testify against Aaron Lyon, or whether he should have the privilege of
confessing his own sins, it was decided that witnesses should be admitted,
and also the written testimony of the wife of a brother of the name of
Jackson.

	[This trial is written up at great length in the minutes of the Far
West Record, and also in G. W. Robinson's summary of the proceedings
heretofore printed. Condensed, the account of the fault of Brother Aaron
Lyon was this: He claimed to have had a revelation that a Sister Jackson,
who was a married woman, and whose husband was still living, was to become
his wife. Lyon claimed that it had been revealed to him that the woman's
husband was dead. He exerted undue influence in persuading her of these
things, and she consented to be his wife; but before they were married the
woman's husband appeared on the scene, with the result, of course, that
the prospective marriage did not take place. The witnesses were permitted
to testify, although Brother Lyon confessed the facts and admitted his
error. The conclusion of the matter follows as stated by G. W. Robinson,
clerk of the Council].

	Council decided that, inasmuch as this man had confessed his sins,
and asked forgiveness, and promised to make well the paths of his feet,
and do, as much as lies in his power, what God should require at his
hands, he should give up his license as High Priest, and stand as a member
in the Church; and this in consequence of his being considered incapable
of magnifying that office.
                                                           G. W. ROBINSON.

	Sunday, 29.--I spent the day chiefly in meeting with the Saints,
ministering the words of life.

	Monday 30.--The First Presidency were engaged in writing the Church
history and in recitation of grammar lessons, which recitations at this
period were usually attended each morning before writing.

	May 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th.--The First Presidency were engaged in
writing Church history and administering to the sick. Received a letter
from John E. Page on the 4th.

	Saturday, 5.--The Presidency wrote for the Elders' Journal; also
received intelligence from Canada by Brother Bailey, that two hundred
wagons, with families, would probably be here in three weeks; also
listened to an address on political matters delivered by General Wilson,
Federal candidate for Congress.

	Sunday, May 6.--I preached to the Saints, setting forth the evils
that existed, and that would exist, by reason of hasty judgment or
decisions upon any subject given by any people or in judging before they
had heard both sides of a question. I also cautioned the Saints against
men who came amongst them whining and growling about their money, because
they had kept the Saints, and borne some of the burden with others, and
thus thinking that others, who are still poorer, and have borne greater
burdens than they themselves, ought to make up their losses. I cautioned
the Saints to beware of such, for they were throwing out insinuations here
and there, to level a dart at the best interests of the Church, and if
possible destroy the character of its Presidency. I also gave some
instructions in the mysteries of the kingdom of God; such as the history
of the planets, Abraham's writings upon the planetary systems, etc.

	In the afternoon I spoke again on different subjects: the principle
of wisdom, and the Word of Wisdom.

	The Teachers' quorum at Far West numbered twenty-four members.

	Monday, 7.--I spent the day in company with Judge Morain, one of our
neighboring county judges, and Democratic candidate for the state senate.

	I also visited with Elders Reynolds Cahoon and Parley P. Pratt, who
had this day arrived in Far West, the former from Kirtland, the latter
from New York City where he had been preaching for some time; and our
hearts were made glad with the pleasing intelligence of the gathering of
the Saints from all parts of the earth to this place, to avoid the
destructions which are coming upon this generation, is spoken by all the
holy prophets since the world began.

	James G. Marsh, son of Thomas B. Marsh, aged fourteen years, eleven
months, and seven days, died this day, in the full triumph of the
everlasting Gospel.

	Tuesday, 8.--I spent the day with Elder Rigdon in visiting Elder
Cahoon at the place he had selected for his residence, and in attending to
some of our private, personal affairs; also in the afternoon I answered
the questions which were frequently asked me, while on my last journey but
one from Kirtland to Missouri, as printed in the Elders' Journal, vol. I,
Number II, pages 28 and 29, as follows:

	First--"Do you believe the Bible?"

	If we do, we are the only people under heaven that does, for there
are none of the religious sects of the day that do.

	Second--"Wherein do you differ from other sects?"

	In that we believe the Bible, and all other sects profess to believe
their interpretations of the Bible, and their creeds.

	Third--"Will everybody be damned, but Mormons?"

	Yes, and a great portion of them, unless they repent, and work
righteousness.

	Fourth--"How and where did you obtain the Book of Mormon?"

	Moroni, who deposited the plates in a hill in Manchester, Ontario
county, New York, being dead and raised again therefrom, appeared unto me,
and told me where they were, and gave me directions how to obtain them. I
obtained them, and the Urim and Thummim with them, by the means of which I
translated the plates; and thus came the Book of Mormon.

	Fifth--"Do you believe Joseph Smith, Jun, to be a Prophet?"

	Yes, and every other man who has the testimony of Jesus. For the
testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.-- Revelation, xix: 10th
verse.

	Sixth--"Do the Mormons believe in having all things in common?"

	No.

	Seventh--"Do the Mormons believe in having more wives than one?"

	"No, not at the same time. But they believe that if their companion
dies, they have a right to marry again. But we do disapprove of the
custom, which has gained in the world, and has been practiced among us, to
our great mortification, in marrying in five or six weeks, or even in two
or three months, after the death of their companion. We believe that due
respect ought to be had to the memory of the dead, and the feelings of
both friends and children.

	Eighth---"Can they [the Mormons] raise the dead?"

	No, nor can any other people that now lives, or ever did live. But
God can raise the dead, through man as an instrument.

	Ninth--"What signs does Joseph Smith give of his divine mission?"

	The signs which God is pleased to let him give, according as His
wisdom thinks best, in order that He may judge the world agreeably to His
own plan.

	Tenth--"Was not Joseph Smith a money digger?"

	Yes, but it was never a very profitable job for him, as he only got
fourteen dollars a month for it.

	Eleventh--"Did not Joseph Smith steal his wife?"

	Ask her, she was of age, she can answer for herself.

	Twelfth--"Do the people have to give up their money when they join
his Church?"

	No other requirement than to bear their proportion of the expenses of
the Church, and support the poor.

	Thirteenth--"Are the Mormons abolitionists?"

	No, unless delivering the people from priestcraft, and the priests
from the power of Satan, should be considered abolition. But we do not
believe in setting the negroes free.

	Fourteenth--"Do they not stir up the Indians to war, and to commit
depredations?"

	No, and they who reported the story knew it was false when they put
it in circulation. These and similar reports are palmed upon the people by
the priests, and this is the only reason why we ever thought of answering
them.

	Fifteenth--"Do the Mormons baptize in the name of `Joe' Smith?"

	No, but if they did, it would be as valid as the baptism administered
by the sectarian priests.

	Sixteenth-- --"If the Mormon doctrine is true, what has become of all
those who died since the days of the Apostles?"

	All those who have not had an opportunity of hearing the Gospel, and
being administered unto by an inspired man in the flesh, must have it
hereafter, before they can be finally judged.

	Seventeenth--"Does not `Joe' Smith profess to be Jesus Christ?"

	No, but he professes to be His brother, as all other Saints have done
and now do, Matt., xii: 49, 50, "And He stretched forth His hand toward
His disciples and said, Behold my mother and my brethren; for whosoever
shall do the will of my Father, which is in heaven, the same is my
brother, and sister, and mother."

	Eighteenth--"Is there anything in the Bible which licenses you to
believe in revelation now-a-days?"

	Is there anything that does not authorize us to believe so? If there
is, we have, as yet, not been able to find it.

	Nineteenth--"Is not the canon of the Scriptures full?"

	If it is, there is a great defect in the book, or else it would have
said so.

	Twentieth--"What are the fundamental principles of your religion?"

	The fundamental principles of our religion are the testimony of the
Apostles and Prophets, concerning Jesus Christ, that He died, was buried,
and rose again the third day, and ascended into heaven; and all other
things which pertain to our religion are only appendages to it. But in
connection with these, we believe in the gift of the Holy Ghost, the power
of faith, the enjoyment of the spiritual gifts according to the will of
God, the restoration of the house of Israel, and the final triumph of
truth.

	I published the foregoing answers to save myself the trouble of
repeating the same a thousand times over and over again.

	Wednesday, 9.--I attended the funeral of James G. Marsh, and complied
with the request that I should preach on the occasion.

	Thursday, 10.--I listened to an address on the political policy of
our nation, delivered by President Rigdon, at the school house, in the
southwest quarter of the city, to a large concourse of people from all
sections of the county, and from other counties also. Although President
Rigdon was suffering under a severe cold and great hoarseness, yet being
assisted by the Spirit of God, he was enabled clearly to elucidate the
policy of the Federal and Democratic parties from their rise in our
country to the present time, to the understanding of all present, giving
an impartial review to both sides of the question. This address was
delivered in consequence of a partial electioneering Federal speech of
General Wilson at the same place a short time previously, and the politics
of the Church of Latter-day Saints, generally being Democratic. It seemed
desirable to hear an elucidation of the principles of both parties, with
which I was highly edified.

	Friday, 11.--I attended the trial of William E. McLellin and Dr.
McCord, for transgression, before the Bishop's court.

	McCord said he was sorry to trouble the Council on his account, for
he had intended to withdraw from the Church before he left the place; that
he had no confidence in the work of God, or His Prophet, and should go his
way. He gave up his license and departed.

	William E. McLellin stated about the same as McCord, and that he had
no confidence in the heads of the Church, believing they had transgressed,
and had got out of the way, consequently he quit praying and keeping the
commandments of God, and indulged himself in his lustful desires, but when
he heard that the First Presidency had made a general settlement, and
acknowledged their sins, he began to pray again. When I interrogated him,
he said he had seen nothing out of the way himself, but he judged from
hearsay.

	Saturday, 12.-- President Rigdon and myself attended the High Council
for the purpose of presenting for their consideration some business
relating to our pecuniary concerns.

	We stated to the Council our situation, as to maintaining our
families, and the relation we now stand in to the Church, spending as we
have for eight years, our time, talents, and property, in the service of
the Church: and being reduced as it were to beggary, and being still
detained in the business and service of the Church, it appears necessary
that something should be done for the support of our families by the
Church, or else we must do it by our own labors; and if the Church say to
us, "Help yourselves," we will thank them and immediately do so; but if
the Church say, "Serve us," some provision must be made for our
sustenance.

	The Council investigated the matter, and instructed the Bishop to
make over to President Joseph Smith, Jun., and Sidney Rigdon, each an
eighty-acre lot of land from the property of the Church, situated adjacent
to the city corporation; also appointed three of their number, viz.,
George W. Harris, Elias Higbee and Simeon Carter, a committee to confer
with said Presidency, and satisfy them for their services the present
year; not for preaching, or for receiving the word of God by revelation,
neither for instructing the Saints in righteousness, but for services
rendered in the printing establishment, in translating the ancient
records, etc., etc. Said committee agreed that Presidents Smith and Rigdon
should receive $1,100 each as a just remuneration for their services this
year.

	Sunday, 13.--Elder Reynolds Cahoon preached in the forenoon. In the
afternoon President Rigdon preached a funeral sermon on the death of Swain
Williams, son of Frederick G. Williams.

	Monday, 14.--I spent in plowing my garden, while Elder Rigdon was
preparing and correcting some matter for the press. Elder Harlow Redfield
arrived from Kirtland, Ohio.


                               CHAPTER IV.
         SELECTION OF LANDS IN CALDWELL AND DAVIESS COUNTIES FOR 
                       SETTLEMENT--ADAM-ONDI-AHMAN.

	Friday, May 18.--I left Far West, in company with Sidney Rigdon,
Thomas B. Marsh, David W. Patten, Bishop Partridge, Elias Higbee, Simeon
Carter, Alanson Ripley, and many others, for the purpose of visiting the
north country, and laying off a stake of Zion; making locations, and
laying claim to lands to facilitate the gathering of the Saints, and for
the benefit of the poor, in upholding the Church of God. We traveled to
the mouth of Honey Creek, which is a tributary of Grand river, where we
camped for the night. We passed through a beautiful country the greater
part of which is prairie, and thickly covered with grass and weeds, among
which is plenty of game, such as deer, turkey, and prairie hen. We
discovered a large, black wolf, and my dog gave him chase, but he outran
us. We have nothing to fear in camping out, except the rattlesnake, which
is native to this country, though not very numerous. We turned our horses
loose, and let them feed on the prairie.

	Saturday, 19.--This morning we struck our tents and formed a line of
march, crossing Grand River at the mouth of Honey Creek and Nelson's
Ferry. Grand River is a large, beautiful, deep and rapid stream, during
the high waters of Spring, and will undoubtedly admit of navigation by
steamboat and other water craft. At the mouth of Honey Creek is a good
landing. We pursued our course up the river, mostly through timber, for
about eighteen miles, when we arrived at Colonel Lyman Wight's home. He
lives at the foot of Tower kill (a name I gave the place in consequence of
the remains of an old Nephite altar or tower that stood there), where we
camped for the Sabbath.

	In the afternoon I went up the river about half a mile to Wight's
Ferry, accompanied by President Rigdon, and my Clerk, George W. Robinson,
for the purpose of selecting and laying claim to a city plat near said
ferry in Daviess County, township 60, ranges 27 and 28, and sections 25,
36, 31, and 30, which the brethren called "Spring Hill," but by the mouth
of the Lord it was named Adam-ondi-Ahman, because, said He, it is the
place where Adam shall come to visit his people, or the Ancient of Days
shall sit, as spoken of by Daniel the Prophet.

	Sunday, 10.--This day was spent by our company principally at
Adam-ondi-Ahman; but near the close of the day, we struck our tents, and
traveled about six miles north and encamped for the night with Judge Morin
and company, who were also traveling north.

	Monday, 21.--This morning, after making some locations in this place,
which is in township 61, ranges 27 and 28, we returned to Robinson's
Grove, about two miles, to secure some land near Grand River, which we
passed the day previous; and finding a mistake in the former survey, I
sent the surveyor south five or six miles to obtain a correct line, while
some of us tarried to obtain water for the camp.

	In the evening, I called a council of the brethren, to know whether
it was wisdom to go immediately into the north country, or tarry here and
here abouts, to secure land on Grand River, etc. The brethren Spoke their
minds freely on the subject, when I stated to the council that I felt
impressed to tarry and secure all the land near by, that is not secured
between this and Far West, especially on Grand River. President Rigdon
concurred, and the council voted unanimously to secure the land on Grand
River, and between this and Far West.

	Elders Kimball and Hyde this day (21st May) arrived at Kirtland from
England.

	Tuesday, 22.--President Rigdon went east with a company, and selected
some of the best locations in the county, and returned with a good report
of that vicinity, and with information of valuable locations which might
be secured. Following awhile the course of the company, I returned to camp
in Robinson's Grove, and thence went west to obtain some game to supply
our necessities. We discovered some antiquities about one mile west of the
camp, consisting of stone mounds, apparently erected in square piles,
though somewhat decayed and obliterated by the weather of many years.
These mounds were probably erected by the aborigines of the land, to
secrete treasures. We returned without game.

	Wednesday, 23.--We all traveled east, locating lands, to secure a
claim, on Grove Creek, and near the City of Adam-ondi-Ahman Towards
evening I accompanied Elder Rigdon to Colonel Wight's, and the remainder
of the company returned to their tents.

	Thursday, 24.--This morning the company returned to Grove Creek to
finish the survey, accompanied by President Rigdon and Colonel Wight, and
I returned to Far West.

	Friday, 25.--The company went up Grand River and made some locations.
In the afternoon they struck their tents and removed to Colonel Wight's.

	Saturday, 26.--The company surveyed lands on the other side of the
river opposite Adam-ondi-Ahman.

	Sunday, 27.--The company locating lands spent the day at Colonel
Wight's.

	Monday, 28.--The company started for home (Far West), and I left Far
West the same day in company with Brother Hyrum Smith and fifteen or
twenty others, to seek locations in the north, and about noon we met
President Rigdon and his Company going into the city, where they arrived
the same evening.

	President Hyrum Smith returned to Far West on the 30th, and I
returned on the 1st of June, on account of my family, for I had a son born
unto me.

	Monday, June 4.--I left Far West with President Rigdon, my brother
Hyrum and others for Adam-ondi-Ahman, and stayed at Brother Moses Dailey's
over night; and on the morning of the 5th, went to Colonel Lyman Wight's
in the rain. We continued surveying, building houses, day after day, for
many days, until the surveyor had completed the city plat.

	Monday, June 11.--President Joseph Fielding was married to Hannah
Greenwood, Preston, England.

	June 16.--My uncle, John Smith, and family, with six other families,
arrived in Far West, all in good health and spirits. I counseled them to
settle at Adam-ondi-Ahman.

     Minutes of the Meeting which Organized the Stake of Zion called
                             Adam-ondi-Ahman.

	Adam-ondi-Ahman, Missouri, Daviess county, June 25, 1838. A
conference of Elders and members of the Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints was held in this place this day, for the purpose of
organizing this Stake of Zion, called Adam-ondi-Ahman.

	The meeting convened at 10 o'clock a. m., in the grove near the house
of Elder Lyman Wight.

	President Joseph Smith. Jun., was called to the chair. He explained
the object of the meeting, which was to organize a Presidency and High
Council to preside over this Stake of Zion, and attend to the affairs of
the Church in Daviess county.

	It was then moved, seconded and carried by the unanimous voice of the
assembly, that John Smith should act as President of the Stake of
Adam-ondi-Ahman.

	Reynolds Cahoon was unanimously chosen first counselor, and Lyman
Wight second counselor.

	After prayer the presidents ordained Elder Wight as second counselor.

	Vinson Knight was chosen acting Bishop pro tempore by the unanimous
voice of the assembly.

	President John Smith then proceeded to organize the High Council. The
councilors were chosen according to the following order, by a unanimous
vote: John Lemon, first; Daniel Stanton, second; Mayhew Hillman, third;
Daniel Carter, fourth; Isaac Perry, fifth; Harrison Sagers, sixth; Alanson
Brown, seventh; Thomas Gordon, eighth; Lorenzo D. Barnes, ninth; George A.
Smith, tenth ; Harvey Olmstead, eleventh; Ezra Thayer, twelfth.

	After the ordination of the councilors who had not previously been
ordained to the High Priesthood, President Joseph Smith, Jun., made
remarks by way of charge to the presidents and counselors, instructing
them in the duties of their callings, and the responsibility of their
stations, exhorting them to be cautious and deliberate in all their
councils, and be careful and act in righteousness in all things.

	President John Smith, Reynolds Cahoon, and Lyman Wight then made some
remarks.

	Lorenzo D. Barnes was unanimously chosen clerk of this Council and
Stake. After singing the well known hymn, Adam-ondi-Ahman, the meeting
closed by prayer by President Cahoon, and a benediction by President
Joseph Smith, Jun.

						LORENZO D. BARNES,
						ISAAC PERRY,
								Clerks.

	Adam-ondi-Ahman is located immediately on the north side of Grand
River, in Daviess county, Missouri, about twenty-five miles north of Far
West. It is situated on an elevated spot of ground, which renders the
place as healthful as any part of the United States and overlooking the
river and the country round about, it is certainly a beautiful location.

	June 28.--This day Victoria was crowned queen of England.


                                CHAPTER V.
  INDEPENDENCE DAY AT FAR WEST--SUNDRY EVENTS AND REVELATIONS--EPISTLE 
                           OF DAVID W. PATTEN.

	July 4.--The day was spent in celebrating the Declaration of
Independence of the United States of America, and also by the Saints
making a "Declaration of Independence" from all mobs and persecutions
which have been inflicted upon them, time after time, until they could
bear it no longer; having been driven by ruthless mobs and enemies of
truth from their homes, and having had their property confiscated, their
lives exposed, and their all Jeopardized by such barbarous Conduct. The
corner stones of the Houses of the Lord, agreeable to the Commandments of
the Lord unto us, given April 26, 1838, were laid.

	Joseph Smith, Jun., was president of the day Hyrum Smith,
vice-president; Sidney Rigdon, orator; Reynolds Cahoon, chief marshal,
George M. Hinckle and J. Hunt, assistant marshals; and George W. Robinson,
Clerk.

	The order of the day was splendid. The procession commenced forming
at 10 o'clock a. m., in the following order: First, the infantry
(militia); second, the Patriarchs of the Church; the president,
vice-president, and orator; the Twelve Apostles, presidents of the stakes,
and High Council; Bishop and counselors; architects, ladies and gentlemen.
The cavalry brought up the rear of the large procession, which marched to
music, and formed a circle, with the ladies in front, round the
excavation. The southeast Corner stone of the Lord's House in Far West,
Missouri, was then laid by the presidents of the stake, assisted by twelve
men. The southwest corner, by the presidents of the Elders, assisted by
twelve men. The northwest corner by the Bishop, assisted by twelve men.
The northeast corner by the president of the Teachers, assisted by twelve
men. This house is to be one hundred and ten feet long, and eighty feet
broad.

	The oration was delivered by President Rigdon, at the close of which
was a shout of Hosanna, and a song, composed for the occasion by Levi W.
Hancock, was sung by Solomon Hancock. The most perfect order prevailed
throughout the day.

	July 6.--This day I received a letter from Heber C. Kimball and Orson
Hyde, dated at Kirtland Ohio, expressing their good feelings, firmness in
the faith and prosperity.

	Also another letter from my brother Don Carlos Smith, as follows:

                                     NINE MILES FROM TERRE HAUTE, INDIANA.

	Brother Joseph:--I sit down to inform you of our situation at the
present time. I started from Norton, Ohio, the 7th of May, in company with
father, William, Wilkins Jenkins Salisbury, William McClary and Lewis
Robbins, and families, also Sister Singly. We started with fifteen horses,
seven wagons, and two cows. We have left two horses by the way sick, and a
third horse (our main dependence) was taken lame last evening, and is not
able to travel, and we have stopped to doctor him. We were disappointed on
every hand before we started in getting money. We got no assistance
whatever, only as we have taken in Sister Singly, and she has assisted us
as far as her means extended. We had, when we started, $75 in money. We
sold the two cows for $13.50 per cow. We have sold of your goods to the
amount of $45.74, and now we have only $25 to carry twenty-eight souls and
thirteen horses five hundred miles.

	We have lived very close and camped out at night, notwithstanding the
rain and cold, and my baby only two weeks old when we started. Agnes is
very feeble; father and mother are not well and very much fatigued; mother
has a severe cold, and in fact it is nothing but the prayer of faith and
the power of God, that will sustain them and bring them through. Our
courage is good, and I think we shall be brought through. I leave it with
you and Hyrum to devise some way to assist us to some more expense money.
We have unaccountably bad roads, had our horses down in the mud, and broke
one wagon tongue and thills, and broke down the carriage twice, and yet we
are all alive and encamped on a dry place for almost the first time.
Poverty is a heavy load, but we are all obliged to welter under it.

	It is now dark and I close. May the Lord bless you all, and bring us
together, is my prayer. Amen. All the arrangements that brother Hyrum left
for getting money failed; they did not gain us one cent.
                                                             DON C. SMITH.

	The three revelations which I received January 12, 1838, the day I
left Kirtland, were read in the public congregation at Far West; and the
same day I inquired of the Lord, "O Lord! Show unto thy servant how much
thou requirest of the properties of thy people for a tithing," and
received the following answer, which was also read in public:

              Revelation, Given at Far West, July 8, 1838.

	1. Verily, thus saith the Lord, I require all their surplus property
to be put into the hands of the Bishop of my Church of Zion,

	2. For the building of mine house, and for the laying of the
foundation of Zion and for the Priesthood, and for the debts of the
Presidency of my Church;

	3. And this shall be the beginning of the tithing of my people;

	4. And after that, those who have thus been tithed, shall pay
one-tenth of all their interest annually; and this shall be a standing law
unto them forever, for my holy Priesthood, saith the Lord.

	5. Verily I say unto you, it shall come to pass, that all those who
gather unto the Land of Zion shall be tithed of their surplus properties,
and shall observe this law, or they shall not be found worthy to abide
among you.

	6. And I say unto you, if my people observe not this law, to keep it
holy, and by this law sanctify the land of Zion unto me, that my statutes
and my judgments may be kept thereon, that it may be most holy, behold,
verily I say unto you, it shall not be a land of Zion unto you;

	7. And this shall be an ensample unto all the stakes of Zion. Even
so. Amen.

	Also I received the following:

Revelation, given July 8, 1838, making known the disposition of the
properties tithed as named in the preceding revelation.+

	Verily, thus saith the Lord, the time is now come that it shall be
disposed of by a council composed of the First Presidency of my Church,
and of the bishop and his council, and by my High Council, and by mine own
voice unto them, saith the Lord. Even so. Amen.

	Also I received the following:

Revelation given to William Marks, Newel K. Whitney, Oliver Granger and
others, at Far West, July 8, 1838.

	1. Verily thus saith the Lord unto my servant William Marks, and also
unto my servant N. K. Whitney, let them settle up their business speedily
and journey from the land of Kirtland, before I, the Lord, send again the
snows upon the earth;

	2. Let them awake, and arise, and come forth, and not tarry, for I,
the Lord, command it;

	3. Therefore if they tarry it shall not be well with them.

	4. Let them repent of all their sins, and of all their covetous
desires, before me, saith the Lord, for what is property unto me, saith
the Lord?

	5. Let the properties of Kirtland be turned out for debts, saith the
Lord. Let them go, saith the Lord, and whatsoever remaineth, let it remain
in your hands, saith the Lord;

	6. For have I not the fowls of heaven, and also the fish of the sea,
and the beasts of the mountains? Have I not made the earth? Do I not hold
the destinies of all the armies of the nations of the earth?

	7. Therefore will I not make solitary places to bud and to blossom,
and to bring forth in abundance, saith the Lord?

	8. Is there not room enough upon the mountains of Adam-ondi-Ahman,
and on the plains of Olaha Shinehah, or the land where Adam dwelt, that
you should covet that which is but the drop, and neglect the more weighty
matters?

	9. Therefore come up hither unto the land of my people, even Zion.

	10. Let my servant William Marks be faithful over a few things, and
he shall be ruler over many. Let him preside in the midst of my people in
the city of Far West, and let him be blessed with the blessings of my
people.

	11. Let my servant N. K. Whitney be ashamed of the Nicholatine band
and of all their secret abominations, and of all his littleness of soul
before me, saith the Lord, and come up to the land of Adam-ondi-Ahman, and
be a Bishop unto my people, saith the Lord, not in name but in deed, saith
the Lord.

	12. And again, I say unto you, I remember my servant Oliver Granger,
behold, verily I say unto him, that his name shall be had in sacred
remembrance from generation to generation, for ever and ever, saith the
Lord.

	13. Therefore let him contend earnestly for the redemption of the
First Presidency of my Church, saith the Lord, and when he falls he shall
rise again, for his sacrifice shall be more sacred unto me, than his
increase, saith the Lord;

	14. Therefore let him come up hither speedily, unto the land of Zion,
and in the due time he shall be made a merchant unto my name, saith the
Lord, for the benefit of my people;

	15. Therefore let no man despise my servant Oliver Granger, but let
the blessings of my people be on him for ever and ever.

	16. And again, verily I say unto you, let all my servants in the land
of Kirtland remember the Lord their God, and mine house also, to keep and
preserve it holy, and to overthrow the money changers in mine own due
time, saith the Lord. Even so. Amen.

	Also I received the following:

  Revelation given at Far West, July 8, 1838, in answer to the question,
           Show unto us thy will O Lord concerning the Twelve.

	1. Verily, thus saith the Lord, let a conference be held immediately,
let the Twelve be organized, and let men be appointed to supply the place
of those who are fallen.

	2. Let my servant Thomas remain for a season in the land of Zion, to
publish my word.

	3. Let the residue continue to preach from that hour, and if they
will do this in all lowliness of heart, in meekness and humility, and
long-suffering, I, the Lord, give unto them a promise that I will provide
for their families, and an effectual door shall be opened for them, from
henceforth;

	4. And next spring let them depart to go over the great waters, and
there promulgate my gospel, the fullness thereof, and bear record of my
name.

	5. Let them take leave of my Saints in the city Far West, on the

	26th day of April next, on the building spot of my house, saith the
Lord.

	6. Let my servant John Taylor, and also my servant John E. Page, also
my servant Wilford Woodruff, and also my servant Willard Richards, be
appointed to fill the places of those who have fallen, and be officially
notified of their appointment.

                   Minutes of a Meeting of the Twelve.

	Far West, July 9, 1838, a conference of the Twelve Apostles assembled
at Far West, agreeable to the revelation, given July 8, 1838. Present,
Thomas B. Marsh, David W. Patten, Brigham Young, Parley P. Pratt and
William Smith. T. B. Marsh, presiding.

	Resolved 1st. That the persons who are to fill the places of those
who are fallen, be immediately notified to come to Far West; as also,
those of the Twelve who are not present.

	Resolved 2nd. That Thomas B. Marsh notify Wilford Woodruff, that
Parley P. Pratt notify Orson Pratt, and that President Rigdon notify
Willard Richards, who is now in England.

	Voted that President Marsh publish the same in next number of The
Elders' Journal.

	President Rigdon gave some counsel concerning the provisions
necessary to be made for the families of the Twelve, while laboring in the
cause of their Redeemer, advising them to instruct their converts to move
without delay to the places of gathering, and there to strictly attend to
the law of God.
						T. B. MARSH, President.
						G. W. ROBINSON, Clerk.

	Tuesday, 10.-- About this time I visited Adam-ondi-Ahman in company
with President Rigdon, Brother Hyrum, and George W. Robinson.

	Thursday, 26.--The First Presidency, High Council, and Bishop's court
assembled at Far West to dispose of the public properties of the Church in
the hands of the Bishop, many of the brethren having consecrated their
surplus property according to the revelations.

	It was agreed that the First Presidency should keep all their
properties that they could dispose of to advantage, for their support, and
the remainder be put into the hands of the Bishop or Bishops, according to
the commandments.

	Moved, seconded, and carried unanimously:

	"First--That the First Presidency shall have their expenses defrayed
in going to, and returning from Adam ondi-Ahman; equally by the Bishop of
each place.

	"Second--That all the traveling expenses of the First Presidency
shall be defrayed.

	"Third--That the Bishop be authorized to pay orders coming from the
east, inasmuch as they will consecrate liberally, but this is to be done
under the inspection of the First Presidency.

	"Fourth--That the First Presidency shall have the prerogative to
direct the Bishop as to whose orders shall or may be paid by him in this
place, or in his jurisdiction.

	"Fifth--That the Bishop of Zion receive all consecrations from those
living east, west, and south, who are not in the jurisdiction of a Bishop
of any other stake.

	"Sixth--That we use our influence to put a stop to the selling of
liquors in the city Far West, or in our midst, that our streets may not be
filled with drunkenness; and that we use our influence to bring down the
price of provisions.

	"Seventh--That Brother William W. Phelps be requested to draw up a
petition to locate the county seat at Far West."

	Saturday, 28.--I left Far West for Adam-ondi-Ahman, in company with
President Rigdon, to transact some important business, and to settle some
Canadian brethren in that place, as they are emigrating rapidly to this
land from all parts of the country.

	Elder Babbitt, with his company from Canada has arrived, and Brother
Theodore Turley is with him.

	Sunday, 29.--Elders Kimball and Hyde having just returned from
England, preached in Far West.

	Monday, 30.--The circuit court sat in Far West, Judge King presiding.

	I returned this evening from Adam-ondi-Ahman to Far West, with
President Rigdon.

	Tuesday, 31.--Attended the circuit court awhile, and received a visit
from Judge King.

	Some time in July we succeeded in publishing the third number of the
Elders' Journal; Joseph Smith, Jun., editor; Thomas B. Marsh, printer and
publisher. In this number of the Journal was published the following
Epistle of David W. Patten, one of the Twelve Apostles of the last days:

                  The Epistle of EIder David W. Patten.

To the Saints Scattered abroad:

     	DEAR BRETHREN:-- Whereas many have taken in hand to set forth
     the kingdom of God on earth, and have testified of the grace of God,
     as given unto them to publish unto you, I also feel it my duty to
     write unto you, touching the grace of God given unto me, to you-ward,
     concerning the dispensation we have received, which is the greatest
     of all dispensations, and has been spoken of by the mouth of all the
     holy Prophets since the world began.

     	In this my communication to you, I design to notice some of
     these prophecies. Now, the Apostle Paul says on this wise: "For I
     would not brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest
     ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is
     happened to Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles be come in.
     And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come
     out of Zion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from
     Jacob." What is it that he says? "For I would not have you ignorant."
     Ignorant of what? Why of this mystery, that blindness in part had to
     Israel. And to what end? Why, that salvation might come unto the
     Gentiles. "Now if the fall of them be the riches of the world, and
     the diminishing of them the riches of the Gentiles; how much more
     their fullness!" "For I speak to you Gentiles, inasmuch as I am the
     Apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify mine office. 2 (See Rom., xi: 12,
     13). Now we are to understand the Apostle, as speaking of the return
     of Israel, when he said, "How much more their fullness," in their
     return. "For I would not have you ignorant concerning this matter,"
     that blindnesss will depart from them in the day that the fullness of
     the Gentiles is come in. And the reason is very obvious, because it
     is said, that "Out of Zion shall come the deliverer;" and for what
     cause? Why? That the word of God might be fulfilled, that this
     deliverer might, through the grace and mercy of God, "turn away
     ungodliness from Jacob." This work evidently commences at the time
     God begins to take the darkness from the minds of Israel, for this
     will be the work of God by the deliverer, for He shall turn away
     ungodliness from the where family of Jacob, "for this is my covenant
     unto them, when I shall take away their sins."

     	Now, then, we can see that this deliverer is a kind of harbinger
     or forerunner, that is, one that is sent to prepare the way for
     another, and this deliverer is such a one, for he comes to turn away
     ungodliness from Jacob, consequently he must receive a dispensation
     and an authority suitable to his calling, or he could not turn away
     ungodliness from Jacob, nor fulfill the Scriptures. But the words of
     the prophets must be fulfilled, and in order to do this, to this
     messenger must be given the dispensation of the fullness of times,
     according to the prophets. For Paul says again, in speaking of the
     dispensation of the fullness of times, "Having made known unto us the
     mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure, which He hath
     purposed in Himself: that in the dispensation of the fullness of
     times, He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both
     which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in Him."(Ephesians,
     i: 9). And Isaiah says, "And it shall come to pass in that day, that
     the Lord shall set His hand again the second time to recover the
     remnant of His people." (chapter xi: 11). Now is the time that the
     deliverer shall come out of Zion and turn away ungodliness from the
     house of Israel. Now the Lord has said that He would set His hand the
     second time, and we ask, for what, but to recover the house of Jacob?
     For what have they fallen? Most assuredly they have broken the
     covenant that God had made with their fathers, and through their
     fathers with them. For Paul says, "Thou wilt say then, The branches
     were broken off, that I might be grafted in. Well; because of
     unbelief they were broken off, and thou standest by faith. Be not
     highminded, but fear."--Rom., xi: 18, 20.

     	Now it is evident that the Jews did forsake the Lord, and by
     that means they broke the covenant, and now we see the need of the
     Lord setting His hand the second time to gather His people according
     to Eph., i: 10, "That in the dispensation of the fullness of times,
     he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are
     in heaven, and which are on earth." Now, I ask, what is a
     dispensation? I answer, it is power and authority to dispense the
     word of God, and to administer in all the ordinances thereof. This is
     what we are to understand by it, for no man ever had the Holy Ghost
     to deliver the Gospel, or to prophesy of things to come, but had
     liberty to fulfill his mission; consequently the argument is clear;
     for it proves itself; nevertheless I will call on the Scriptures to
     prove the assertion: "If ye have heard of the dispensation of the
     grace of God, which is given me to you-ward : how that by revelation
     he made known unto me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words)."
     (Ephesians, iii: 2.) And also, Colossians, i: 25. "Whereof I am made
     a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me
     for you, to fulfill the word of God." It is evident, then, that the
     dispensation given to the Apostle came to him by revelation from God.
     Then by this we may understand, in some degree, the power by which he
     spake, and also the dispensation of the fullness of times.

     	Now this, at first thought, would appear very small to some who
     are not acquainted with the order of God from the beginning; but when
     we take under consideration the plan of God for the salvation of the
     world, we can readily see that plan carried out most faithfully in
     all its bearings. Soon after the fall of Adam, the plan of salvation
     was made known to him of God Himself; who in like manner, in the
     meridian of time, revealed the same in sending His first begotten Son
     Jesus Christ, who also revealed the same to the Apostles; and God
     raised him from the dead to perfect the plan, and the Apostles were
     made special witnesses of that plan, and testified that in the
     dispensation of the fullness of times, God would gather together in
     one all things in Christ, whether they be things in heaven, or things
     on the earth.

     	Now the thing to be known is, what the fullness of times means,
     or the extent or authority thereof. It means this, that the
     dispensation of the fullness of times is made up of all the
     dispensations that ever have been given since the world began, until
     this time. Unto Adam first was given a dispensation. It is well known
     that God spake to him with His own voice in the garden, and gave him
     the promise of the Messiah. And unto Noah also was a dispensation
     given; for Jesus said, "As it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be
     also in the days of the Son of man;" and as the righteous were saved
     then, and the wicked destroyed, so it will be now. And from Noah to
     Abraham, and from Abraham to Moses, and from Moses to Elias, and from
     Elias to John the Baptist, and from then to Jesus Christ, and from
     Jesus Christ to Peter, James, and John, the Apostles--all received in
     their time a dispensation by revelation from God, to accomplish the
     great scheme of restitution, spoken of by all the holy prophets since
     the world began; the end of which is the dispensation of the fullness
     of times, in the which all things shall be fulfilled that have been
     spoken of since the earth was made.

     	Now the question is, unto whom is this dispensation to be given?
     Or by whom to be revealed? The answer is, to the deliverer that is to
     come out of Zion, and be given to him by the angel of God. "And I saw
     another angel, fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting
     Gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every
     nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, saying with a loud
     voice, Fear God, and give glory to Him: for the hour of His judgment
     is come: and worship Him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea,
     and the fountains of waters." (Revelation, xiv: 6, 7). Now observe,
     this angel delivers the everlasting Gospel to man on the earth, and
     that, too, when the hour of the judgments of God had come on the
     generation in which the Lord should set His hand the second time to
     gather His people, as stated above. Now we have learned that this
     deliverer must be clothed with the power of all the other
     dispensations, or his dispensation could not be called the
     dispensation of the fullness of times, for this it means, that all
     things shall be revealed both in heaven and on earth; for the Lord
     said there is nothing secret that shall not be revealed, or hid that
     shall not come abroad, and be proclaimed upon the house top, and this
     may with propriety be called the fullness of times.

     	The authority connected with the ordinances, renders the time
     very desirable to the man of God, and renders him happy amidst all
     his trials and afflictions. To such a one through the grace of God we
     are indebted for this dispensation, as given by the angel of the
     Lord. But to what tribe of Israel was it to be delivered? We answer,
     to Ephraim, because to him were the greater blessings given. For the
     Lord said to his father Joseph, A seer shall the Lord thy God raise
     up of the fruit of thy loins, and he shall be a choice seer unto the
     fruit of thy loins. Yea, he truly said, Thus saith the Lord, a choice
     seer will I raise up out of the fruit of thy loins, and he shall be
     esteemed highly, and unto him will I give commandment that he shall
     do a work for the fruit of thy loins, his brethren, which shall be of
     great worth unto them, even to the bringing of them to the knowledge
     of the covenants which I have made with their fathers. And I will
     give unto him a commandment that he shall do none other work save the
     work which I shall command him, and I will make him great in mine
     eyes, for he shall do my work, and he shall be great like unto Moses;
     and out of weakness he shall be made strong, in that day when my work
     shall commence among all people, unto the restoring of the house of
     Israel, saith the Lord.

     	And thus prophesied Joseph, saying--Behold, that seer will the
     Lord bless, and they that seek to destroy him shall be confounded.
     Behold, I am sure of the fulfillment of this promise, and his name
     shall be called after the name of his father, and he shall be like
     unto me, for the thing which the Lord shall bring forth by his hand,
     by the power of the Father, shall bring forth my people unto
     salvation.

     	And thus prophesied Joseph, "I am sure of this thing, even as I
     am sure of the promise of Moses." (II Nephi, iii: 6-16). And again,
     Jesus says, as recorded in the Book of Mormon, page 526: "Behold my
     servant shall deal very prudently; he shall be exalted and extolled,
     and be very high. As many as were astonished at thee. * * * So shall
     he sprinkle many nations; the kings shall shut their mouths at him,
     for that which had been told them shall they see; and that which they
     had not heard shall they consider." Upon this servant is bestowed the
     keys of the dispensation of the fullness of times, that from him the
     Priesthood of God, through our Lord Jesus Christ, might be given to
     many, and the order of this dispensation established on the earth.
     And to the Church He has said by commandment, "Wherefore, meaning the
     Church, thou shalt give heed unto all his words and commandments,
     which he shall give unto you as he receiveth them, walking in all
     holiness before me; for his word ye shall receive as if from my own
     mouth, in all patience and faith; for by doing these things, the
     gates of hell shall not prevail against you."-- Doctrine and
     Covenants, sec. xxi.

     	Now, my readers, you can see in some degree the grace given to
     this man of God, to us-ward: that we, by the great mercy of God,
     should receive from under his hands, the Gospel of Jesus Christ,
     having the promise of partaking of the fruit of the vine on the earth
     with him, and with the holy Prophets and Patriarchs, our fathers. For
     those holy men are angels now; and these are they who make the
     fullness of times complete with us; and they who sin against this
     authority given to him (the aforementioned man of God), sin not
     against him only, but against Moroni, who holds the keys of the stick
     of Ephraim [Book of Mormon], and also Elias, who holds the keys of
     bringing to pass the restitution of all things, and also John, the
     son of Zacharias, which Zacharias Elias visited, and gave promise
     that he should have a son, and his name should be John, and he should
     be filled with the spirit of Elias, which John I have sent unto you,
     my servants Joseph Smith, Jun, and Oliver Cowdery, to ordain you to
     this first Priesthood, even as Aaron; and also Elijah who holds the
     keys of committing the power to turn the hearts of the fathers to the
     children, and the hearts of the children to the fathers, that the
     whole earth may not be smitten with a curse; and also Joseph and
     Jacob and Isaac and Abraham, your fathers, by whom the promises
     remain; and also Michael, or Adam, the Father of all, the Prince of
     all, the Ancient of Days; and also Peter and James and John, whom I
     have sent unto you, by whom I have ordained you, and confirmed you to
     be Apostles and especial witnesses of my name, and bear the keys of
     your ministry, and of the same things I revealed unto them, unto whom
     I have committed the keys of my kingdom, and a dispensation of the
     Gospel for the last times, and for the fullness of times, in the
     which I will gather together in one all things, both which are in
     heaven, and which are on earth. (Doctrine and Covenants, sec. xxvii.)

     	Therefore, brethren, beware concerning yourselves, that you sin
     not against the authority of this dispensation, nor think lightly of
     those whom God has counted worthy for so great a calling, and for
     whose sake He hath made them servants unto you, that you might be
     made the heirs of God to inherit so great a blessing, and be prepared
     for the great assembly, and sit there with the Ancient of Days, even
     Adam our father, who shall come to prepare you for the coming of
     Jesus Christ our Lord; for the time is at hand, therefore gather up
     your effects, and gather together upon the land which the Lord has
     appointed for your safety.
                                                          DAVID W. PATTEN.


                               CHAPTER VI.
        THE BEGINNING OF TROUBLE IN CALDWELL AND DAVIESS COUNTIES.

	Wednesday, August 1.---I tarried at home with my family, also the 2nd
and 3rd, to refresh myself after my many late fatigues and arduous duties
which I had been called upon to perform.

	Sunday, 5.---I attended meeting. Elder Erastus Snow preached, after
which I addressed the congregation, and particularly the Elders, on the
principle of wisdom, etc. President Rigdon preached in the afternoon, and
several were confirmed, among whom was Frederick G. Williams, who had
recently been re-baptized.

	Monday, 6.---This morning my council met me at my house, to consider
the conduct of certain Canada brethren, who had settled on the forks of
Grand river, contrary to counsel. On investigation, it was resolved that
they must return to Adam-ondi-Ahman, according to counsel, or they would
not be considered one with us.

	This day the citizens of Caldwell county assembled at Far West, and
organized by calling Elias Higbee to the chair, and appointing George W.
Robinson secretary. W. W. Phelps having resigned the office of postmaster,
it was voted unanimously that Sidney Rigdon be recommended to the
Postmaster General, as the person of our choice to fill the place of W. W.
Phelps, as postmaster in this city.

	In the afternoon, the citizens of Far West assembled in the school
house and organized the meeting by calling Judge Elias Higbee to the
chair, and appointing George W. Robinson, secretary. I stated to the
meeting, that the time had come when it was necessary that we should have
a weekly newspaper, to unite the people, and give the news of the day. It
was unanimously agreed that such a paper be established, and that
President Sidney Rigdon should be the editor. It was also voted that a
petition be circulated to locate the county seat at Far West. I addressed
the meeting on the propriety of the measure, and also on the duty of the
brethren to come into cities to build and live, and carry on their farms
out of the cities, according to the order of God. President Rigdon and
Brother Hyrum Smith spoke upon the same subject.

	Some two weeks previous to this, Judge Morin, who lived at Mill Port,
informed John D. Lee* and Levi Stewart, that it was determined by the mob
to prevent the "Mormons" from voting at the election on the sixth day of
August, and thereby elect Colonel William P. Peniston, who led the mob in
Clay county. He also advised them to go prepared for an attack, to stand
their ground, and have their rights.

	The brethren, hoping better things, gave little heed to Judge Morin's
friendly counsel, and repaired to the polls at Gallatin, the shire town of
Daviess county, without weapons.

	About eleven o'clock a. m., William P. Peniston mounted a barrel, and
harangued the electors for the purpose of exciting them against the
"Mormons" saying "The Mormon leaders are a set of horse thieves, liars,
counterfeiters, and you know they profess to heal the sick, and cast out
devils, and you all know that is a lie." He further said that the members
of the Church were dupes, and not too good to take a false oath on any
common occasion; that they would steal, and he did not consider property
safe where they were; that he was opposed to their settling in Daviess
county; and if they suffered the "Mormons" to vote, the people would soon
lose their suffrage; "and," said he, addressing the Saints, "I headed a
mob to drive you out of Clay county, and would not prevent your being
mobbed now."

	Richard (called Dick) Welding, the mob bully, just drunk enough for
the occasion, began a discussion with Brother Samuel Brown, by saying,
"The Mormons were not allowed to vote in Clay county no more than the
negroes," and attempted to strike Brown, who gradually retreated, parrying
the blow with his umbrella, while Welding continued to press upon him,
calling him a liar, etc., and meanwhile trying to repeat the blow on
Brown. Perry Durphy sought to suppress the difficulty by holding Welding's
arm, when five or six of the mobbers seized Durphy and commenced beating
him with clubs, boards, and crying, "kill him, kill him, when a general
scuffle commenced with fists and clubs, the mobbers being about ten to one
of the brethren. Abraham Nelson was knocked down, and had his clothes torn
off, and while trying to get up was attacked again, when his brother,
Hyrum Nelson, ran in amongst them, and knocked the mobbers down with the
butt of his whip. Riley Stewart struck Welding on the head, which brought
him to the ground. The mob cried out, "Dick Weldin's dead; who killed
Dick?" And they fell upon Riley, knocked him down, kicked him, crying,
"Kill him, kill him; shoot him," and they would have killed him, had not
John L. Butler sprung in amongst them and knocked them down. During about
five minutes it was one succession of knock downs, when the mob dispersed
to get fire arms.

	Very few of the brethren voted. Riley, escaping across the river, had
his wounds dressed, and returned home.

	John L. Butler called the brethren together and made a speech,
saying, "We are American citizens; our fathers fought for their liberty,
and we will maintain the same principles." The authorities of the county
finally came to the brethren, and requested them to withdraw, stating that
it was a premeditated thing to prevent the "Mormons" from voting.

	The brethren held a council about one-fourth of a mile out of town,
where they saw mob recruits coming in, in small parties, from five and
ten, to twenty-five in number cursing and swearing, and armed with clubs,
pistols, dirks, and some guns. The brethren not having arms, thought it
wisdom to return to their farms, collect their families, and hide them in
a thicket of hazel bush, which they did, and stood guard around them
through the night, while the women and children lay on the ground in the
rain.

	Tuesday, 7.--A report came to Far West this morning, by way of those
not belonging to the Church, to the effect that at the election at
Gallatin, yesterday, two or three of our brethren were killed by the
Missourians, and left upon the ground, and not suffered to be inferred;
that the brethren were prevented from voting, and a majority of the
inhabitants of Daviess county were determined to drive the Saints from
that county.

	On hearing this report, I started for Gallatin, to assist the
brethren, accompanied by President Rigdon, Brother Hyrum Smith, and
fifteen or twenty others, who were armed for their own protection; and the
command of the company was given to George W. Robinson.

	On our way we were joined by the brethren from different parts of the
county, some of whom were attacked by the mob, but we all reached Colonel
Wight's that night in safety, where we found some of the brethren who had
been mobbed at Gallatin, with others, waiting for our counsel. Here we
received the cheering intelligence that none of the brethren were killed,
although several were badly wounded.

	From the best information, about one hundred and fifty Missourians
warred against from six to twelve of our brethren, who fought like lions.
Several Missourians had their skulls cracked. Blessed be the memory of
those few brethren who contended so strenuously for their constitutional
rights and religious freedom, against such an overwhelming force of
desperadoes!

	Wednesday, 8.--After spending the night in counsel at Colonel
Wight's, I rode out with some of the brethren to view the situation of
affairs in that region, and among others, called on Adam Black, justice of
the peace, and judge elect for Daviess county, who had some time previous
sold his farm to Brother Vinson Knight, and received part pay according to
agreement, and afterwards united himself with a band of mobbers to drive
the Saints from, and prevent their settling in, Daviess county. On
interrogation, he confessed what he had done, and in consequence of this
violation of his oath as magistrate, we asked him to give us some
satisfaction so that we might know whether he was our friend or enemy,
whether or not he would administer the law in justice; and politely
requested him to sign an agreement of peace, but being jealous he would
not sign it, but said he would write one himself and sign it, which he
did, as follows--

                         Adam Black's Agreement.

I, Adam Black, a justice of the Peace of Daviess county, do hereby Sertify
to the people, coled Mormin, that he is bound to suport the Constitution
of this State, and of the United State, and he is not attached to any mob,
nor will not attach himself to any such people, and so long as they will
not molest me, I will not molest them. This the 8th day of August, 1838.
                                                        ADAM BLACK, J. P.

	Hoping he would abide his own decision, and support the law, we left
him in peace, and returned to Colonel Wight's at Adam-ondi-Ahman.

	In the evening some of the citizens from Mill Port called on us, and
we agreed to meet some of the principal men of the county in council, at
Adam-ondi-Ahman the next day at twelve o'clock, noon.

	Thursday, 9.--The Committee assembled at Adam-ondi-Ahman at twelve,
according to previous appointment, viz., on the part of Mill Port
citizens, Joseph Morin, Senator elect: John Williams, representative
elect; James B. Turner, clerk of the circuit court, and others: on the
part of the Saints, Lyman Wight, Vinson Knight, John Smith, Reynolds
Cahoon, and others. At this meeting both parties entered into a covenant
of peace, to preserve each other's rights, and stand in each other's
defense; that if men did wrong, neither party would uphold them or
endeavor to screen them from justice, but deliver up all offenders to be
dealt with according to law and justice. The assembly dispersed on these
friendly terms, myself and friends returning to Far West, where we arrived
about midnight and found all quiet.

	Friday, 10.--Being somewhat fatigued I spent the day with my family,
transacting but little business.

	The spirit of mobocracy continued to stalk abroad, notwithstanding
all our treaties of peace, as will be seen by the following affidavit--

                          Peniston's Affidavit.

STATE OF MISSOURI, )
RAY COUNTY.        ) ss.

	Personally appeared before me, the undersigned, judge of the Fifth
Judicial Circuit, William P. Peniston, and makes oath that he has good
reason to believe, and that he verily does believe, that there is now
collected and embodied in the County of Daviess, a large body of armed
men, whose movements and conduct are of a highly insurrectionary and
unlawful character; that they consist of about five hundred men, and that
they, or a part of them, to the number of one hundred and twenty, have
committed violence against Adam Black, by surrounding his house, and
taking him in a violent manner, and subjecting him to great indignities,
by forcing him, under threats of immediate death, to sign a paper writing
of a very disgraceful character, and by threatening to do the same to all
the old settlers and citizens of Daviess county; and that they have, as a
collected and armed body, threatened to put to instant death this affiant
on sight; and that he verily believes they will accomplish that act
without they are prevented; and also that they have threatened the same to
Wm. Bowman and others; and this affiant states that he verily believes all
the above facts to be true, and that the body of men now assembled do
intend to commit great violence to many of the citizens of Daviess county,
and that they have already done so to Adam Black; and this affiant verily
believes, from information of others, that Joseph Smith, Jun., and Lyman
Wight are the leaders of this body of armed men, and the names of others
thus combined are not certainly known to this affiant; and he further
states the fact to be that it is his opinion, and he verily believes, that
it is the object of this body of armed men, to take vengeance for some
injuries, or imaginary injuries, done to some of their friends, and to
intimidate and drive from the county ali the old citizens, and possess
themselves of their lands, or to force such as do not leave, to come into
their measures and submit to their dictation.

                                                      WILLIAM P. PENISTON.

	Sworn to and subscribed before me the undersigned judge, as
aforesaid, this 10th day of August, 1838.
                                                           AUSTIN A. KING.

	The above was also sworn to by William Bowman, Wilson McKinney, and
John Netherton. So it is that when men's hearts become hardened and
corrupt, they will more readily swear to lies than speak the truth.

	At this time some of the brethren had removed with their families
from the vicinity of Gallatin, to Diahman and Far West, for safety.

	Saturday, 11.--This morning I left Far West, with my council and
Elder Almon W. Babbitt, to visit the brethren on the Forks of Grand river,
who had come from Canada with Elder Babbitt, and settled at that place
contrary to counsel.

	In the afternoon, after my departure, a committee from Ray county
arrived at Far West, to inquire into the proceedings of our society in
going armed into Daviess county, complaint having been entered in Ray
county by Adam Black, William P. Peniston, and others. The committee from
Ray county requested an interview with a committee of Caldwell, and a
general meeting was called at the city hall, at six in the evening, when
it was stated that they were assembled to take into consideration the
doings of the citizens of Ray county, wherein they have accused the
"Mormons" of this place of breaking the peace, in defending their rights
and those of their brethren in the county of Daviess. The meeting was
organized by appointing Bishop Edward Partridge, chairman; and Geo. W.
Robinson, clerk. The meeting adopted the following--

                               Resolutions.

	"Resolved 1st. That a committee of seven be appointed to confer with
the committee from Ray county.

	"Resolved 2nd. That this committee, with their secretary, be
authorized to answer such questions as may be offered by the committee
from Ray county, and as are named in the document presented to this
meeting, purporting to be the preamble and resolutions of the citizens of
Ray county.

	"Resolved 3rd. That whereas the document referred to has no date or
signature, our committee judge of the fact, and act accordingly.

	"Resolved 4th. That our committee report their proceedings to this
meeting as soon as possible.
						"EDWARD PARTRIDGE, Chairman,
						"GEO. W. ROBINSON, Clerk."

	Sunday, 12.--I continued with the brethren at the Forks of Grand
river, offering such counsel as their situation required.

	Monday, 13.--I returned with my council to Far West. We were chased
ten or twelve miles, by some evil designing men but we eluded their
pursuit. When within about eight miles of home, we met some brethren who
had come to inform us that a writ had been issued by Judge King, for my
arrest, and that of Lyman Wight, for attempting to defend our rights
against the mob.

	Tuesday and Wednesday, 14 and 15.--I spent principally at home,
engaged in domestic affairs.

	Thursday, 16.--I spent principally at home.

	The sheriff of Daviess county, accompanied by Judge Morin called and
notified me that he had a writ to take me to Daviess county, for trial for
visiting that county on the seventh instant.

	It had been currently reported that I would not be apprehended by
legal process, and that I would not submit to the laws of the land; but I
told the sheriff that I intended always to submit to the laws of our
country, but I wished to be tried in my own county, as the citizens of
Daviess county were highly exasperated at me, and that the laws of the
country gave me this privilege. Upon hearing this, the sheriff declined
serving the writ, and said he would go to Richmond, and see Judge King on
the subject. I told him I would remain at home until his return.

	The sheriff returned from Richmond, and found me at home (where I had
remained during his absence), and informed me very gravely, that I was out
of his jurisdiction, and that he could not act in Caldwell county, and
retired.

	August 20.--Nothing peculiar transpired at Far West, from the
sixteenth to this day, when the inhabitants of the different parts of the
county met to organize themselves into Agricultural Companies. I was
present and took part in their deliberations. One company was formed
called the "Western Agricultural Company,"which voted to enclose one field
for graIn containing twelve sections, seven thousand six hundred and
eighty acres of land. Another company was also organized, called the
"Eastern Agricultural Company," the extent of the field not decided.

	Tuesday, 21.--Another company was formed, called the "Southern
Agricultural Company," the field to be as large as the first mentioned.

	Wednesday, 22.--I spent part of the day in counseling with several
brethren upon different subjects.

	The brethren continued to gather to Zion daily.

	Some time this month the Saints were warned by the mob to leave De
Witt, Carroll county.

	Thursday, 23.--This day I spent transacting a variety of business
about the city.

	Friday, 24.--I was at home. Also on the 25th, 26th, 27th, 28th, 29th,
and 30th.

                         Affidavit of Adam Black.

STATE OF MISSOURI, )
COUNTY OF DAVIESS. ) ss.

	Before me, William Dryden, one of the justices of the peace of said
county, personally came Adam Black, who being duly sworn according to law,
deposeth and saith: that on or about the 8th day of August, 1838, in the
county of Daviess, there came an armed force of men, said to be one
hundred and fifty-four, to the best of his information, and surrounded his
house and family, and threatened him with instant death if he did not sign
a certain instrument of writing, binding himself, as a justice of the
peace for said county of Daviess, not to molest the people called Mormons;
and threatened the lives of himself and other individuals, and did say
they intended to make every citizen sign such obligation, and further said
they intended to have satisfaction for abuse they had received on the
Monday previous, and that they could not submit to the laws' and further
saith, that from the best information and his own personal knowledge, that
Andrew [Alanson] Ripley, George A. Smith, Ephraim Owens, Harvey Humstead,
Hiram Nelson, A. Brown, John L. Butler, Cornelius [P.] Lott, John Wood, H.
Redfield, Riley Stewart, James Whitaker, Andrew Thor, Amos Tubbs, Dr.
Gourze, and Abram Nelson was guilty of aiding and abetting in committing
and perpetrating the above offense.
                                                               ADAM BLACK.

	Sworn to and subscribed this the 28th of August, 1838.
                                                                W. DRYDEN.
                             Justice of the Peace of the County aforesaid.

	This document, with that of the 8th of August, of said Black, shows
him in his true light--a detestable, unprincipled mobocrat and perjured
man.

	Thursday, 30.--This day Governor Boggs issued the following order to
General Atchison--

                     Proclamation of Governor Boggs.

           HEADQUARTERS OF MILITIA, ADJUTANT GENERAL'S OFFICE,
                                                        August 30th, 1838.

	General David R. Atchison, 3rd Division, Missouri Militia.

	SIR--Indications of Indian disturbances on our immediate frontier,
and the recent civil disturbances in the counties of Caldwell, Daviess,
and Carroll, render it necessary, as a precautionary measure, that an
effective force of the militia be held in readiness to meet either
contingency. The Commander-in-Chief therefore orders that you cause to be
raised immediately, within the limits of your division, to be held in
readiness, and subject to further orders, four hundred mounted men, armed
and equipped as infantry or riflemen, and formed into companies according
to law, under officers already in commission. The Commander-in-Chief
suggests the propriety of your causing the above to be carried into
effect, in a manner calculated to produce as little excitement as
possible, and report your proceedings to him through the Adjutant General.
			By order of the Commander-in-Chief,
						B. M. LISLE, Adjutant-General.

	A similar letter was also addressed to Major Generals John B. Clark,
Samuel D. Lucas, David Willock, Lewis Bolton, Henry W. Crawther, and
Thomas D. Grant.

	I spent considerable time to day in conversation with Brother John
Corrill, in consequence of some expressions made by him, in presence of
several brethren who had not been long in the place. Brother Corrill's
conduct for some time had been very unbecoming, especially in a man in
whom so much confidence had been placed. He said he would not yield his
judgment to anything proposed by the Church, or any individuals of the
Church, or even the Great I Am, given through the appointed organ, as
revelation, but would always act upon his own judgment, let him believe in
whatever religion he might. He stated he would always say what he pleased,
for he was a Republican, and as such would do, say, act, and believe what
he pleased.

	Mark such republicanism as this! A man to oppose his own judgment to
the judgment of God, and at the same time to profess to believe in that
same God, who has said, "The foolishness of God is wiser than man; and the
weakness of God is stronger, than man."

	President Rigdon also made some observations to Brother Corrill,
which he afterwards acknowledged were correct, and that he understood
things different after the interview from what he did before.


                               CHAPTER VII.
       INCREASING DIFFICULTIES BETWEEN THE SAINTS AND THE MOBS OF 
                      DAVIESS AND CALDWELL COUNTIES.

	Saturday, September 1, 1838.--The First Presidency, with Judge
Higbee, as surveyor, started this morning for the half-way house, as it is
called, kept by Brother Littlefield, some fourteen or fifteen miles from
Far West, directly north--for the purpose of appointing a city of Zion,
for the gathering of the Saints in that place, for safety, and from the
storm which will soon come upon this generation, and that the brethren may
be together, and that they may receive instructions to prepare them for
that great day which will come upon this generation as a thief in the
night.

	There is great excitement at present among the Missourians, who are
seeking if possible an occasion against us. They are continually chafing
us, and provoking us to anger if possible, one sign of threatening after
another, but we do not fear them, for the Lord God, the Eternal Father is
our God, and Jesus the Mediator is our Savior, and in the great I Am is
our strength and confidence.

	We have been driven time after time, and that without cause; and
smitten again and again, and that without provocation; until we have
proved the world with kindness, and the world has proved us that we have
no designs against any man or set of men, that we injure no man, that we
are peaceable with all men, minding our own business, and our business
only. we have suffered our rights and our liberties to be taken from us;
we have not avenged ourselves of those wrongs; we have appealed to
magistrates, to sheriffs, to judges, to government and to the President of
the United States, all in vain; yet we have yielded peaceably to all these
things. We have not complained at the Great God, we murmured not, but
peaceably left all; and retired into the back country, in the broad and
wIld prairies, in the barren and desolate plains, and there commenced
anew; we made the desolate places to bud and blossom as the rose; and now
the fiend-like race is disposed to give us no rest. Their father the
devil, is hourly calling upon them to be up and doing, and they, like
willing and obedient children, need not the second admonition; but in the
name of Jesus Christ the Son of the living God, we will endure it no
longer, if the great God will arm us with courage, with strength and with
power, to resist them in their persecutions. We will not act on the
offensive, but always on the defensive; our rights and our liberties shall
not be taken from us, and we peaceably submit to it, as we have done
heretofore, but we will avenge ourselves of our enemies, inasmuch as they
will not let us alone.

	But to return again to our subject. We found the place for the city,
and the brethren were instructed to gather immediately into it, and soon
they should be organized according to the laws of God. A more particular
history of this city may be expected hereafter, perhaps at its
organization and dedication. We found a new route home, saving, I should
think, three or four miles. We arrived at Far West about the close of day.

	The High Priests met at Brother Pea's at Far West, and received Levi
Richards into their quorum.

	Sunday, 2.--The First Presidency attended meeting as usual in the
morning. I tarried at home in the a art of the time in company with a
gentleman from Livingston county, who had become considerably excited, on
account of a large collection of people, as he said, to take Joseph Smith,
Jun., and Lyman Wight, for going to one Adam Black's in Daviess county;
and as the said President Smith and Colonel Wight had resisted the officer
who had endeavored to take them, accordingly these men are assembling to
take them--as they say. They are collecting from every part of the
country, to Daviess county. Report says that they are collecting from
eleven counties, to help take two men who had never resisted the law or
officer, nor had they thought of doing so, and this their enemies knew at
the same time, or many of them at least knew it. This looks a little too
much like mobocracy, it foretells some evil intentions. The whole of upper
Missouri is in an uproar and confusion.

	This evening I sent for General Atchison, of Liberty, Clay county,
who is the major general of this division--to come and counsel with us,
and to see if we could not put a stop to this collection of people, and to
put a stop to hostilities in Daviess county. I also sent a letter to Judge
King containing a petition for him to assist in putting down and
scattering the mob collecting in Daviess county.

	Monday, 3.--Nothing of importance occurred today. Reports come in
concerning the collection of a mob in Daviess county, which has been
collecting ever since the election in Daviess county, on the sixth of
August last. I was at home most of the day.

	This evening General Atchison arrived in Far West.

	Tuesday, 4.--This day I spent in council with General Atchison. He
says he will do all In his power to disperse the mob. We employed him and
Alexander Doniphan (his partner) as our counsel in law. They are
considered the first lawyers in upper Missouri.

	President Rigdon and myself commenced this day the study of law,
under the instruction of Generals Atchison and Doniphan. They think, by
diligent application, we can be admitted to the bar in twelve months.

	The result of our consultation with our lawyers was that myself and
Colonel Wight volunteer to be tried by Judge King in Daviess county.
Colonel Wight was present, having been previously notified to attend the
consultation. Accordingly, Thursday next, was appointed for the trial, and
word to that effect was sent to Judge King (who had previously agreed to
try the case). All are to meet at Brother Littlefield's, near the county
line in the southern part of Daviess county. I was at home in the evening
after six o'clock.

	Wednesday, 5.--I gave the following affidavit, that the truth might
appear before the public in the matter in controversy:

           The Prophet's Affidavit on the Adam Black Incident.

STATE OF MISSOURI, )
CALDWELL COUNTY    ) ss.

	Before me, Elias Higbee, one of the justices of the county court,
within and for the county of Caldwell aforesaid, personally came Joseph
Smith, Jun., who, being duly sworn according to law, deposeth and saith:
That on the seventh day of August, one thousand eight hundred and
thirty-eight, being informed that an affray had taken place in Daviess
county, at the election, in the town of Gallatin, in which two persons
were [reported] killed, and one person badly wounded, and fled to the
woods to save his life; all of which were said to be persons belonging to
the society of the Church of Latter-day Saints; and further, said
informant stated that those persons who committed the outrage would not
suffer the bodies of those who had been killed to be taken off the ground
and buried.

	These reports, with others, one of which was that the Saints had not
the privilege of voting at the polls as other citizens; another was that
those opposed to the Saints were determined to drive them from Daviess
county, and also that they were arming and strengthening their forces and
preparing for battle; and that the Saints were preparing and making ready
to stand in self defense--these reports having excited the feelings of the
citizens of Far West and vicinity, I was invited by Dr. Avard and some
others to go out to Daviess county, to the scene of these outrages; they
having previously determined to go out and learn the facts concerning said
reports.

	Accordingly some of the citizens, myself among the number, went out,
two, three, and four, in companies, as they got ready. The reports and
excitement continued until several of those small companies through the
day were induced to follow the first, who were all eager to learn the
facts concerning this matter. We arrived in the evening at the house of
Lyman Wight, about three miles from Gallatin, the scene of the reported
outrages. Were we learned the truth concerning the said affray, which had
been considerably exaggerated, yet there had been a serious outrage
committed. We there learned that the mob was collected at Millport, to a
considerable number; that Adam Black was at their head; and that they were
to attack the Saints the next day, at the place we then were in, called
Adam-ondi-Ahman. This report we were still inclined to believe might be
true, as this Adam Black, who was said to be their leader, had been, but a
few months before, engaged in endeavoring to drive those of the society
who had settled in that vicinity, from the county. This had become
notorious, from the fact that said Black had personally ordered several of
said society to leave the county.

	The next morning we dispatched a committee to said Black's, to
ascertain the truth of these reports, and to know what his intentions
were; and as we understood he was a peace officer, we wished to know what
we might expect from him. They reported that Mr. Black, instead of giving
them any assurance of peace, insulted them and gave them no satisfaction.
Being desirous of knowing the feelings of Mr. Black for myself, and being
in want of good water, and understanding that there was none nearer than
Mr. Black's spring, myself with several others mounted our horses and rode
up to Mr. Black's fence.

	Dr. Avard, with one or two others who had ridden ahead, went into Mr.
Black's house; myself and some others went to the spring for water. I was
shortly after sent for by Mr. Black, and invited into the house, being
introduced to Mr. Black by Dr. Avard. Mr. Black wished me to be seated. We
then commenced a conversation on the subject at the late difficulties, and
present excitement. I found Mr. Black quite hostile in his feelings toward
the Saints; but he assured us he did not belong to the mob, neither would
he take any part with them; but said he was bound by his oath to support
the Constitution of the United States, and the laws of the State of
Missouri. Deponent then asked him if he would make said statement in
writing, so as to refute the statement of those who had affirmed that he
(Black) was one of the leaders of the mob. Mr. Black answered in the
affirmative. Accordingly he did so, which writing is in possession of the
deponent. The deponent further saith, that no violence was offered to any
individual in his presence, or within his knowledge; and that no insulting
language was given by either party, except on the part of Mrs. Black, who,
while Mr. Black was engaged in making out the above-named writing, (which
he made with his own hand), gave to this deponent, and others of his
society, highly insulting language and false accusations, which were
calculated in their nature to greatly irritate, if possible, the feelings
of the bystanders belonging to said society, in language like this--being
asked by the deponent if she knew anything in the "Mormon" people
derogatory to the character of gentlemen, she answered in the negative,
but said she did not know but the object of their visit was to steal
something from them. After Mr. Black had executed the writing, deponent
asked Mr. Black if he had any unfriendly feelings towards the deponent,
and if he [the deponent] had not treated him genteelly. He answered in the
affirmative. Deponent then took leave of said Black and repaired to the
house of Lyman Wight. The next day he returned to Far West, and further
this deponent saith not.
                                                        JOSEPH SMITH, JUN.

	Sworn to and subscribed this fifth day of September, A. D. 1838.

                                                 ELIAS HIGBEE, J. C. C. C.

Judge King arrived at Far West, on his way to Daviess to meet the proposed
trial. General Atchison had gone before Judge King arrived, and the judge
tarried all night. I was at home after six o'clock in the evening.

	Thursday, 6.--At half-past seven this morning, I started on
horseback, accompanied by several brethren, among whom were my brother
Hyrum and Judge Elias Higbee, to attend my trial at Brother Littlefield's.
I thought it not wisdom to make my appearance before the public at the
county seat of Daviess county, in consequence of the many threats made
against me, and the high state of excitement. The trial could not proceed,
on account of the absence of the plaintiff, and lack of testimony, and the
court adjourned until tomorrow at ten o'clock in the morning, at a Mr.
Raglin's, some six or eight miles further south, and within half a mile of
the line of Caldwell. Raglin is a regular mob character. We all returned
to Far West, where we arrived before dark.

	Friday, 7.--About sunrise I started with my friends, and arrived at
Mr. Raglin's at the appointed hour. We did not know but there would be a
disturbance among the mob characters today; we accordingly had a company
of men placed at the county line, so as to be ready at a minute's warning,
if there should be any difficulty at the trial.

	The trial commenced; William P. Peniston, who was the prosecutor, had
no witnesses but Adam Black, but he contrived to swear to a great many
things that never had an existence, and I presume never entered into the
heart of any other man, and in fine, I think he swore by the job, and that
he was employed so to do by Peniston.

	The witnesses on the part of the defense were Dimick B. Huntington,
Gideon Carter, Adam Lightner, and George W. Robinson.

	The judge bound Colonel Wight and myself over to court in a five
hundred dollar bond. There was no proof against us to criminate us, but it
is supposed he did it to pacify as much as possible, the feelings of the
mobbers. The judge stated afterwards, in the presence of George W.
Robinson, that there was nothing proven against us worthy of bonds, but we
submitted without murmuring a word, gave the bonds, with sufficient
securities, and all returned home the same evening.

	I found two persons in Daviess county at the trial, who were sent
from Chariton county as a committee, to inquire into all this matter, as
the mobbers had sent to that place for assistance, they said, to take
Smith and Wight; but their real object was to drive the brethren from the
county of Daviess, as had been done in Jackson county. They said the
people in Chariton county did not see proper to send help without knowing
for what purpose they were doing it, and this they said was their errand.
They accompanied us to Far West, to hold a council with us, in order to
learn the facts of this great excitement, which is, as it were, turning
the world upside down. We arrived home in the evening.

	The Presidency met in council with the committee from Chariton
county, together with General Atchison, where a relation was given of our
affairs in general, the present state of excitement, and the cause of all
this confusion. The gentlemen from Chariton expressed their fullest
satisfaction upon the subject, and considered they had been outrageously
imposed upon in this matter. They left this afternoon apparently perfectly
satisfied with the interview.

	News came this evening that the mob were to attack Adam-ondi-Ahman,
and a few of the brethren from Far West started to assist the brethren to
defend themselves.

	Sunday, 9.--This morning a company in addition to that which went
last evening went to Adam-ondi-Ahman to assist the brethren there in their
defense against the mob.

	Captain William Allred took a company of ten mounted men and went to
intercept a team with guns and ammunition, sent from Richmond to the mob
in Daviess county. They found the wagon broken down, and the boxes of guns
drawn into the high grass near by the wagon; there was no one present that
could be discovered. In a short time two men on horseback came from
towards the camp of the mob, and immediately behind them was a man with a
wagon; they all came up and were taken by virtue of a writ on the
supposition that they were abetting the mob, by carrying guns and
ammunition to them. The men were taken together with the guns to Far West;
the guns were distributed among the brethren, for their defense, and the
prisoners were held in custody. This was a glorious day indeed, the plans
of the mob were frustrated in losing their guns, and all their efforts
appeared to be blasted. Captain Allred acted under the civil authorities
in Caldwell, who issued the writ for securing the arms and arresting the
carriers. The prisoners were brought to Far West for trial.

	The mob continue to take prisoners at their pleasure; some they keep,
and some they let go. They try all in their power to make us commit the
first act of violence. They frequently send in word that they are
torturing the prisoners to death, in the most cruel manner, but we
understand all their ways, and their cunning and wisdom are not past
finding out.

	Monday, 10.--This day the prisoners taken by Captain Allred on
Sunday, viz., John B. Comer, William L. McHoney, and Allen Miller, were
brought be fore Albert Petty, justice of the peace for examination. The
prisoners asked for bail, to allow time to get counsel. The law allowed no
bail, but the court adjourned till Wednesday to give time to the prisoners
to get counsel.

	After the arrest the facts were communicated to Judge King by letter,
under date of Richmond, September 10th, asking his advice how to dispose
of the guns and prisoners.

	Judge King advised by letter to turn the prisoners loose, and let
them receive kind treatment; that the guns were government property, in
the care of Captain Pollard of his vicinity, but whether they went by his
authority or permission he could not say, he was at a loss to give any
advice about them; but said that they should not, through any agency of
his, be taken from us to be converted and used for illegal purposes. The
letter was signed by A. A. King (directed to Messrs. Smith and Rigdon).

	Under the same date Judge King advised General Atchison "to send two
hundred or more men, and dispel the forces in Daviess county and all the
assembled armed forces in Caldwell, and cause those "Mormons' who refuse
to give up, to surrender, and be recognized, for it will not do to
compromise the law with them." What compromise need there be, Judge King,
for no "Mormons" had refused to surrender to the requisitions of the law?
It is mob violence, alone, that the "Mormons" are contending against.

	A petition was this day made out by the citizens of Ray county,
directed to General Atchison asking him to call out the militia to
suppress the insurrection in Caldwell and Daviess counties, and save the
effusion of blood, which must speedily take place unless prevented. Signed
by Jesse Coates and twenty-eight others.

	Wednesday, 12.--This day the prisoners, [Allred's] John B. Comer and
his comrades, were put upon trial. It was proven to the court that the
guns were taken by one of the prisoners and that he with the others were
taking them to Daviess county to arm the mob. It was also proved that the
mob was collecting for the purpose of driving the Saints from their homes.
The prisoners were held to bail for their appearance at the circuit court,
Comer as principal, the others were merely in his service.

	This day also a communication was sent to Governor Boggs, dated
Daviess county, containing all the falsehoods and lies that the evil
genius of mobocrats, villains, and murderers could invent, charging the
"Mormons" with every crime they themselves had been guilty of, and calling
the "Mormons" impostors, rebels, Canadian refugees, emissaries of the
prince of darkness, and signed, "The Citizens of Daviess and Livingston
Counties."

	Under this date, General Atchison informed the Governor, by letter
from headquarters at Richmond that on the solicitation of the citizens and
the advice of the judge of the circuit, he had ordered out four companies
of fifty men each from the militia of Clay county, and a like number from
Ray; also four hundred men to hold themselves in readiness if required,
all mounted riflemen, except one company of infantry. The troops were to
proceed immediately to the scene of excitement and insurrection.


                              CHAPTER VIII.
    MOB MOVEMENTS IN CALDWELL, DAVIESS AND CARROLL COUNTIES--ARRIVAL 
                      OF KIRTLAND CAMP AT FAR WEST.

	ABOUT this time [September 12th] sixty or more mobbers entered De
Witt and warned the brethren to leave that place.

	Friday, 14.--I was at home after three o'clock in the evening.

	William Dryden, Justice of the Peace in Daviess county, stated to the
Governor, in a long communication, that he had issued a writ against
Alanson Ripley, George A. Smith, and others, for assaulting and
threatening Adam Black, on the eighth of August last; and that the
officer, with a guard of ten men, in attempting to serve the writ, was
forcibly driven from the town where the offenders were supposed to be, and
that the "Mormons" were so well armed and so numerous in Caldwell and
Daviess, that the judicial power of those counties was wholly unable to
execute a writ against a "Mormon," and that the "Mormons" held the
"institutions of the country in utter contempt," with many more such
falsehoods of the blackest kind. Upon this representation Governor Boggs
issued an order to General David R. Atchison, of the third Division of
Missouri militia, through the Adjutant General, B. M. Lisle, to raise a
sufficient force of troops under his command, and aid the civil officers
in Daviess county, to execute all writs and other processes, in their
charge, and especially assist the officer charged with the execution of a
writ issued by William Dryden, Justice of the Peace, on the twenty-ninth
of August last, for the arrest of Alanson Ripley, George A. Smith and
others, and bring the offenders to justice. The following letter gives a
tolerable fair view of the movements of the militia for a few days past:

                      Doniphan's Report to Atchison.

            HEADQUARTERS, FIRST BRIGADE, 3RD DIVISION MISSOURI
            MILITIA, CAMP AT GRAND RIVER, September 15, 1838.

	Major General David R. Atchison, Commanding 3rd Division Missouri
Militia:

	SIR:--In pursuance of your orders, dated 11th instant, I issued
orders to Colonel William A. Dunn, commanding the 28th regiment, to raise
four companies of mounted riflemen, consisting of fifty men each; also to
Colonel John Boulware, commanding 70th regiment, to raise two companies of
mounted riflemen, consisting each of like number to start forthwith for
service in the counties of Caldwell and Daviess.

	On the same day, Colonel Dunn obtained the four companies of
volunteers required from the 28th regiment, and on the morning of the 12th
I took the command in person, and marched to the line of Caldwell, at
which point, I ordered the colonels to march the regiments to the timber
of Crooked river. I then started for Far West, the county seat of
Caldwell, accompanied by my aid alone.

	On arriving at that place, I found Comer, Miller, and McHoney, the
prisoners mentioned in your order. I demanded of the guard, who had them
in confinement, to deliver them over to me, which was promptly done. I
also found that the guns that had been captured by the Sheriff and
citizens of Caldwell, had been distributed and placed in the hands of the
soldiery, and scattered over the country; I ordered them to be immediately
collected and delivered up to me. I then sent an express to Colonel Dunn
to march the regiment by daylight, for that place, where he arrived about
seven a. m., making forty miles since ten o'clock, a. m., on the previous
day.

	When my command arrived, the guns were delivered up, amounting to
forty-two stand, three stand could not be produced, as they had probably
gone to Daviess county. I sent these guns under a guard to your command in
Ray county, together with the prisoner Comer, the other two being citizens
of Daviess I retained, and brought with me to this county, and released
them on parol of honor, as I conceived their detention illegal.

	At eight o'clock a.m., we took up the line of march, and proceeded
through Millport in Daviess county, thirty-seven miles from our former
encampment, and arrived at the camp of the citizens of Daviess and other
adjoining counties, which amounted to between two and three hundred, as
their commander, Dr. Austin, of Carroll county, informed me. Your order
requiring them to disperse, which had been forwarded in advance of my
command, by your aid, James M. Hughes, was read to them, and they were
required to disperse. They professed that their object for arming and
collecting was solely for defense, but they were marching and counter
marching guards out; and myself and others who approached the camp were
taken to task and required to wait the approach of the sergeant of the
guard. I had an interview with Dr. Austin, and his professions were all
pacific. But they still continue in arms, marching and counter marching.

	I then proceeded with your aid, J. M. Hughes, and my aid, Benjamin
Holliday, to the Mormon encampment commanded by Colonel Lyman Wight. We
held a conference with him, and he professed entire willingness to disband
and surrender up to me every one of the Mormons accused of crime, and
required in return that the hostile forces, collected by the other
citizens of the county, should also disband. At the camp commanded by Dr.
Austin, I demanded the prisoner, demanded in your order, who had been
released on the evening after my arrival in their vicinity.

	I took up my line of march, and encamped in the direct road between
the two hostile encampments, where I have remained since, within about two
and a half miles of Wight's encampment, and sometimes the other camp is
nearer, and sometimes further from me. I intend to occupy this position
until your arrival, as I deem it best to preserve peace, and prevent an
engagement between the parties, and if kept so for a few days, they will
doubtless disband without coercion. I have the honor to be, yours with
respect,

                                                           A. W. DONIPHAN,
                  Brig-General 1st Brigade, 3rd Division Missouri Militia.

	By this it is clearly seen that the officers and troops acting under
the Governor's orders had very little regard for the laws of the land,
otherwise Comer, Miller, and McHoney would not have been discharged by
them.

	I was at and about home this day, attending to my business as usual.

	Sunday, 16.--Held meeting in the afternoon, had preaching and
breaking of bread. I was at home all day with my family.

	Monday, 17.--I was counseling with the brethren at home and about the
city.

                    Atchison's Report to the Governor.

               HEADQUARTERS 3RD DIVISION, MISSOURI MILITIA,
                       GRAND RIVER, Sep. 17, 1838,

	To his Excellency the Commander-in-Chief:

	SIR:--I arrived at the county seat of this county, Daviess, on the
evening of the 15th instant, with the troops raised from the militia of
Ray county, when I was joined by the troops from Clay county under the
command of General Doniphan. In the same neighborhood I found from two to
three hundred men in arms, principally from the counties of Livingston,
Carroll and Saline. These men were embodied under the pretext of defending
the citizens of Daviess county, against the Mormons, and were operating
under the orders of a Dr. Austin from Carroll county. The citizens of
Daviess, or a large portion of them, residing on each side of Grand river,
had left their farms, and removed their families either to the adjoining
counties, or collected them together at a place called the Camp Ground.
The whole county on the east side of Grand river appears to be deserted,
with the exception of a few who are not so timid as their neighbors. The
Mormons of Daviess county have also left their farms, and have encamped
for safety at a place immediately on the east bank of Grand river, called
Adam-ondi-Ahman. The numbers are supposed to be about two hundred and
fifty men, citizens of Daviess county, and from fifty to one hundred men,
citizens of Caldwell county; both parties have been scouting through the
country, and occasionally taking prisoners, and threatening and insulting
each other, but as yet no blood has been shed. I have ordered all armed
men from adjoining counties to repair to their homes; and Livingston
county men, and others, to the amount of one hundred men, have returned.
and there remain now about one hundred and fifty, who will, I am in hopes,
return in a few days. I have been informed by the Mormons, that all of
those who have been charged with a violation of the laws will be in today
for trial; when that is done. the troops under my command will be no
longer required in this county, if the citizens of other counties will
return to their respective homes. I have proposed to leave two companies
of fifty men each, in this county, and discharge the remainder of the
troops; said two companies will remain for the preservation of order,
until peace and confidence are restored. I also enclose to your Excellency
the report of General Doniphan, and refer you for particulars to Major
Rogers.

	I have the honor to be your obedient servant,
			D. R. ATCHISON,
				Major General 3rd Division Missouri Militia.

	Tuesday, 18.--I have been at home all day, considerably unwell, but
am somewhat better this evening.

	This day the Governor ordered Captain Childs to have the Boonville
Guards mounted, with ten days' provisions, and in readiness to march on
his arrival at the end of the week. The Governor also ordered General S.
D. Lucas, of the fourth division to march immediately with four hundred
mounted men to the scene of difficulty, and co-operate with General
Atchison. Similar orders were issued to Major Generals Lewis Bolton, John
B. Clark, and Thomas D. Grant.

	Wednesday, 19.--I was at and about home.

	Thursday, 20.--I was at home until about ten o'clock, when I rode out
on horseback. I returned a little before sunset, and was at home through
the evening.

	The following extracts from General Atchison's letter of this date,
to the Governor, from Liberty, will give a pretty correct view of the
movements of the militia.

              Excerpts of Atchison's Letter to the Governor.

	SIR:--The troops ordered out for the purpose of putting down the
insurrection supposed to exist in the counties of Daviess and Caldwell,
were discharged on the 20th instant, with the exception of two companies
of the Ray militia, now stationed in the county of Daviess, under the
command of Brigadier General Parks. It was deemed necessary in the state
of excitement in that county that those companies should remain there for
a short period longer, say some twenty days, until confidence and
tranquility should be restored. All the offenders against the law in that
county, against whom process was taken out, were arrested and brought
before a court of inquiry, and recognized to appear at the Circuit Court.
Mr. Thomas C. Birch attended to the prosecution on the part of the State.
The citizens of other counties who came in armed, to the assistance of the
citizens of Daviess county, have dispersed and returned to their
respective homes, and the Mormons have also returned to their respective
homes, so that I consider the insurrection, for the present at least, to
be at an end. From the best information I can get, there are about two
hundred and fifty Mormon families in Daviess county, nearly one half of
the population, and the whole of the Mormon forces in Daviess, Caldwell,
and the adjoining counties, is estimated at from thirteen to fifteen
hundred men, capable of bearing arms. The Mormons of Daviess county, as I
stated in a former report, were encamped in a town called Adam-ondi-Ahman,
and are headed by Lyman Wight, a bold, brave, skillful, and I may add, a
desperate man; they appeared to be acting on the defensive, and I must
further add, gave up the offenders with a good deal of promptness. The
arms taken by the Mormons, and prisoners were also given up upon demand,
with seeming cheerfulness.

	The mob this day again threatened De Witt.

	Friday, 21.--I was about home.

	Saturday, 22.--I went out early in the morning, returned to breakfast
at half past seven, and took an airing on horseback at nine in the
morning.

           Petition of the Saints of De Witt to Governor Boggs.

                               DE WITT, CARROLL COUNTY, STATE OF MISSOURI,
                                                       September 22, 1838.

	To his Excellency Lilburn W. Boggs, Governor of the State of
Missouri:

	Your Petitioners, citizens of the county of Carroll, do hereby
petition your Excellency, praying for relief: That whereas, your
petitioners have on the 20th instant, been sorely aggrieved, by being
beset by a lawless mob, certain inhabitants of this and other counties, to
the injury of the good citizens of this and the adjacent places; that on
the aforesaid day, there came from one hundred to one hundred and fifty
armed men, and threatened with force and violence, to drive certain
peaceable citizens from their homes, in defiance of all law, and
threatened then to drive said citizens out of the county, but, on
deliberation, concluded to give them, said citizens, till the first of
October next, to leave said county; and threatened, if not gone by that
time, to exterminate them, without regard to age or sex, and destroy their
chattels, by throwing them into the river. We therefore pray you to take
such steps as shall put a stop to all lawless proceeding; and we, your
Petitioners, will ever pray, &c.

	Benj. Kendrick.		John Tillford,
	Dudley Thomas, 		H. G. Sherwood,
	William P. Lundow, 		John Murdock,
	Jno. Kendrick, 		G. M. Hinkle,
	Thos. Dehart,			James Valance,
	Francis Brown,			Jabez Lake,
	Albert Loree 			H. M. Wallace,
	Samuel Lake,			D. Thomas, (non-Mormon)
	Asa Manchester,
	Wm. Winston, 			Nathan Harrison,
	John Clark,			Elizabeth Smith,
	Thos. Hollingshead,		Henry Root,
	Asa W. Barnes,			A. L. Caldwell,
	Elijah T. Rogers,		Rufus Allen,
	John Dougherty,		Ezekiel Barnes,
	Moses Harris,			D. H. Barnes,
	Perry Thayer,			Wm. S. Smith,
	B. B. Bartley,			James Hampton,
	Jonathan Harris,		Robert Hampton,
	Wm. J. Hatfield,		Jonathan Hampton,
	Oliver Olney,			George Peacock,
	John Thorp,			Daniel Clark,
	H. T. Chipman,			John Proctor,
	David Dixon,			James McGuin,
	Benj. Hensley, 		Smith Humphrey,
			Franklin N. Thayer.

	Sunday, 23.--I attended meeting both forenoon and afternoon, and was
at home in the evening.

	Monday, 24.--I was at home until half-past eight a. m., when I rode
out on horseback, and returned about five in the evening.

	The governor, having heard that peace had been restored in Daviess
and Caldwell counties, ordered Generals Clark, Crowther, Lewis, and Bolton
to discharge their troops. The order was dated at Jonesborough.

	Tuesday, 25.--General Parks wrote the governor from Mill Port, that
he had been in the upper part of Daviess county to assist the constable in
bringing offenders to justice, and that the major-general, with the troops
from Ray and Clay counties on the 18th instant, (except two companies from

	Ray under his command) were disbanded. In this letter General Parks
said:

     	Whatever may have been the disposition of the people called
     Mormons, before our arrival here, since we have made our appearance
     they have shown no disposition to resist the laws, or of hostile
     intentions. There has been so much prejudice and exaggeration
     concerned in this matter, that I found things entirely different from
     what I was prepared to expect. When we arrived here, we found a large
     body of men from the counties adjoining, armed and in the field, for
     the purpose, as I learned, of assisting the people of this county
     against the Mormons, without being called out by the proper
     authorities.

     	P. S.--Since writing the above, I received information that if
     the committee do not agree, the determination of the Daviess county
     men is to drive the Mormons with powder and lead.

	The same day, General Parks wrote General Atchison as follows:

     	I am happy to be able to state to you, that the deep excitement
     existing between the parties, has in a great degree ceased; and so
     far I have had no occasion to resort to force, in assisting the
     constables. On tomorrow, a committee from Daviess county meets a
     committee of the Mormons at Adam-ondi-Ahman, to propose to them to
     buy or sell, and I expect to be there.

	Wednesday, 26.--Fifteen or twenty of the Mormons were cited to trial
at Gallatin where Lyman Wight has pledged himself to me that they will
attend.

	I was at home until ten or eleven o'clock in the morning, when I rode
out, and returned home and spent the evening.

	The mob committee met a committee of the brethren, and the brethren
entered into an agreement to purchase all the lands and possessions of
those who desired to sell and leave Daviess county. The High Council of
Adam-ondi-Ahman was immediately called and Elders Don C. Smith, George A.
Smith, Lorenzo D. Barnes and Harrison Sagers were appointed to go
immediately to the churches in the south and east and raise men and means
to fulfill the contract. The committee arrived at Far West late in the
evening, and called upon me and gave me the foregoing information. I
approved of the action of the brethren.

	Thursday, 27.--I was home and about the city.

   Extract of a Letter from General Atchison to Governor Boggs, Dated--

                                            LIBERTY, September 27th, 1838.

	The force under General Parks is deemed sufficient to execute the
laws and keep the peace in Daviess county. Things are not so bad in that
county as represented by rumor, and, in fact, from affidavits I have no
doubt your Excellency has been deceived by the exaggerated statements of
designing or half crazy men. I have found there is no cause of alarm on
account of the Mormons; they are not to be feared; they are very much
alarmed.

	Friday, 28.--I was about home until near sundown, when I rode out.

	Elder John E. Page arrived at De Witt with his Canada company
sometime this week.

	Saturday, 29.--I rode out on horseback, returning about three in the
afternoon and spent the evening at home.

	Sunday, 30.--I left home about ten o'clock in the morning.

	Monday, October 1.--I returned home about five o'clock where I
tarried the remainder of the evening. The mob having left Daviess county
(after they were organized into a militia by Atchison, Doniphan and Parks
and disbanded) went to Carroll county and gathered at De Witt, threatening
vengeance to the Saints without regard to age, sex or condition; but
Daviess county was for a season freed from those peace disturbers.

	Tuesday, 2.--The mob pressed harder upon De Witt and fired upon the
Saints.

	The Kirtland Camp arrived in Far West from Kirtland. I went in
company with Sidney Rigdon, Hyrum Smith, Isaac Morley and George W.
Robinson, and met them some miles out, and escorted them into the city,
where they encamped on the public square directly south, and close by the
excavation for the Lord's House. Here friends greeted friends in the name
of the Lord. Isaac Morley, Patriarch at Far West, furnished a beef for the
camp. President Rigdon provided a supper for the sick, and the brethren
provided for them like men of God, for they were hungry, having eaten but
little for several days, and having traveled eleven miles this day; eight
hundred and sixty miles from Kirtland, the way the camp traveled.


                               CHAPTER IX.
             THE ORGANIZATION AND JOURNEY OF KIRTLAND CAMP.

	AT a meeting of the Seventies in the House of the Lord in Kirtland,
on the sixth day of March, 1838, the moving of the Saints from Kirtland to
the land of Missouri, in accordance with the commandments and revelations
of God, was spoken of and also the practicability of the quorum of the
Seventies locating in as compact a body as possible in some stake of Zion
in the west, where they could meet together when they were not laboring in
the vineyard of the Lord; and also could receive counsel from the Twelve
and the First Presidency in matters pertaining to their mission to the
nations with greater facilities than they would if scattered here and
there over all the face of the land.

	The subject was discussed at some length, and a resolution was passed
requesting the Councilors to consult together and make a report on the
subject at the next meeting of the quorum. The meeting was then adjourned
to Saturday, the 10th instant, at one o'clock p. m.

	At that time the quorum met again and the Presidents reported that
they had consulted together on the subject referred to them at the last
meeting, and that they were of the opinion that the subject should be laid
before the First Presidency of the Church for their counsel and advice;
and also if it would be thought expedient to appoint the place for their
location in Far West or some other place where it should seem good unto
them.

	The measures proposed by the Councilors were unanimously approved of
by the members of the quorum present. The Presidents further stated that
they had taken into consideration the extreme poverty of the Seventies in
Kirtland and vicinity, and that it seemed to them almost an impossible
thing for the quorum [as such] to move from this place under existing
circumstances; that the measures entered into by the High Council and High
Priests for removing the Saints had failed and they had given up making
any further attempts after their scheme of going by water had fallen
through, and that they had further advised every individual of the Church
wishing to go up unto Zion to look out for himself individually and make
the best of it he could.

	Much was said on the subject; and while the subject of going up in a
body--which seemed to be the prevailing desire of the members present--was
under discussion, the Spirit of the Lord came down, in mighty power, and
some of the Elders began to prophesy that if the quorum would go up in a
body together, and go according to the commandments and revelations of
God, pitching their tents by the way, that they should not want for
anything on the journey that would be necessary for them to have; and
further that there should be nothing wanting towards removing the whole
quorum of Seventies that would go in a body, but that there should be a
sufficiency of all things for carrying such an expedition into effect.

	President James Foster arose in turn to make some remarks on the the
subject, and in the course of his address he declared that he saw a vision
in which was shown unto him a company (he should think of about five
hundred) starting from Kirtland and going up to Zion. That he saw them
moving in order, encamping in order by the way, and that he knew thereby
that it was the will of God that the quorum should go up in that manner.

	The Spirit bore record of the truth of his assertions for it rested
down on the assembly in power, insomuch that all present were satisfied
that it was the will of God that the quorum should go up in a company
together to the land of Zion, and that they should proceed immediately to
make preparations for the journey. The Councilors were requested to devise
the best course to be pursued to carry the plan into effect, and the
meeting adjourned to Tuesday, 13th, at one p. m.


	In the forenoon of that day the Council of the Seventies met and
invited President Hyrum Smith, and sent for President William Marks, but
he was not at home, and consequently did not attend. Benjamin S. Wilber,
in absence of the clerk, was invited to act as clerk pro tem. After the
meeting was opened by President Hyrum Smith by prayer, they proceeded to
draw up under the supervision of President Smith the outlines of the
following Constitution for the organization and government of the camp,
which was adopted at the meeting in the afternoon.

	At the time appointed in the afternoon the quorum met according to
adjournment. Several of the High Council and High Priests attended the
meeting. The Spirit of God was manifested as before. The subject was
discussed and the Constitution presented, which was approved by the quorum
and by the visiting Elders who testified that the movement was of god and
recommended it to the brethren of the Church; and said that they should
lay the subject immediately before their own quorums. On motion it was
resolved that two of the quorum should be appointed to act as members of
the Council, pro tem, in the place of Daniel S. Miles and Levi
Hancock--who were then in the west--till the camp should arrive at Far
West. This to be in accordance with the first article of the Constitution,
which recognized the whole seven [First Seven Presidents of the Seventy]
as councilors of the camp.

	On motion it was resolved that the President of Seventies should have
the right of nominating the two assistant councilors and all other
officers of the camp required by the Constitution, or on the journey, up
to the land of Zion. In accordance with the above resolution Elias Smith,
clerk of the Council, and Benjamin S. Wilber, were nominated and received
the unanimous vote of the quorum as Councilors of the camp. The
Constitution was read and explained to the meeting item by item, that
there might be no misunderstanding concerning any part of it or of the
motives and designs of the Seventies in the movement then in agitation;
and those who subscribed to the Constitution were exhorted to make all
preparations in their power to carry into effect the object of the camp,
and the meeting was adjourned to Saturday, 17th, at one p. m.

                            The Constitution.

	The council of the Seventies met this day in the attic story of the
Lord's House and took into consideration the propriety and necessity of
the body of the Seventies going up to the land of Zion in a company
together the present season, and adopted the following rules and laws, for
the organization and government of the camp:

	First--That the Presidents of the Seventies, seven in number, shall
be the Councilors [i. e. leaders] of the camp; and that there shall be one
man appointed as treasurer, who shall by the advice of the Councilors
manage the financial concerns during the journey, and keep a just and
accurate account of all monies received and expended for the use of the
camp.

	Second--That there shall be one man appointed to preside over each
tent, to take charge of it; and that from the time of their appointment
the tent-men shall make all necessary arrangements for the providing of
teams and tents for the journey; and they shall receive counsel and advice
from the Councilors; and furthermore, shall see that cleanliness and
decency are observed in all cases, the commandments kept, and the Word of
Wisdom heeded, that is, no tobacco, tea, coffee, snuff or ardent spirits
of any kind are to be taken internally.

	Third--That every man shall be the head of his own family, and shall
see that they are brought into subjection according to the order of the
camp.

	Fourth--That all those who shall subscribe to the resolutions, rules
and regulations, shall make every exertion, and use all lawful means to
provide for themselves and their families, and for the use and benefit of
the camp to which they belong; and also to hand over to the Seven
Councilors all monies appropriated for that purpose on or before the day
the camp shall start.

	Fifth--That the money shall be retained in the hands of the
Councilors, being divided proportionately among them for safety and to be
paid over to the Treasurer as circumstances may require.

	Sixth--That any faithful brethren wishing to journey with us can do
so by subscribing to, and observing these rules and regulations.

	Seventh--That every individual shall at the end of the journey-- when
a settlement is to be made, or as soon thereafter as their circumstances
will admit--pay their proportional part of the expenses of the journey. By
expenses it is understood all that is necessarily paid out for the use of
a team, wagon or cow, if they safely arrive at the place where the camp
shall finally break up.

	Eighth--That these rules and laws shall be strictly observed, and
every person who shall behave disorderly and not conform to them shall be
disfellowshiped by the camp and left by the wayside.

	Ninth--That this shall be the law of the camp in journeying from this
place up to the land of Zion, and that it may be added unto or amended as
circumstances may require by the voice of those who shall subscribe unto
it.

	[The names of the persons and number in their respective families,
who subscribed to the foregoing constitution].

	NAME 		No. in family 
 James Foster........................6  Eleazer King, Jun.
...............3
 Josiah Butterfield..................4  Thomas G. Fisher ................
4
 Zerah Pulsipher.................... 7  Alfred Brown.....................
2
 Joseph Young....................... 5  Stephen Headlock.................
2
 Henry Harriman......................2  John R.
Folger....................4
 Elias Smith.........................3  Nathan K. Knight.................
9

 W. S. Wilbur....................... 2  Joel
Judd.........................3
 Joshua S. Holman....................8  Thomas Nickerson.................
4
 J. D. Parker........................3  Brother Nickerson's family.......
5
 Duncan McArthur.....................9  David D.
Demming..................2
 Stephen Starks..................... 6  Nancy Richerson
..................3
 Anson Call..........................3  Joseph
McCaseland.................4
 Amos B. Fuller..................... 3  Hiram H. Byington................
4
 Jeremiah Willey.................... 4  David
Gray........................8
 Hiram Dayton...................... 12  Alexander Wright.................
1
 Truman O. Angell....................4  Adonijah
Cooley...................5
 Dominicus Carter....................6  Elijah
Cheney.....................2
 Jonathan H. Holmer..................3  Jesse
Baker.......................2
 J. B. Noble.........................7  Elias Pulsipher .................
8
 Levi B. Wilder..................... 6  Jason Brunett....................
7
 James S. Holmon.....................7  E. B. Gayland....................
6
 Amos Nickerson......................6  Samuel Fowler....................
8
 Lewis Eager.........................3  David K. Dustin..................
2
 Stephen Shumway ....................3  Charles Bird.....................
7
 Enoch S. Sanborn....................5  Thomas Butterfield...............
3
 Jonathan Crosby.....................2  William Field....................
5
 Jonathan Hampton....................4  William Shuman...................
7
 Otis Shumway.......... .............7  Cornelius Vanleuven..............
3
 Frederick M. Vanleuven..............6  Benjamin K. Hull.................
6
 Benjamin Butterfield............... 7  Oliver Olney.....................
9
 Eleazer King. ..................... 7  William Bosley...................
2
 John Tanner........................10  Joseph Pine......................
6
 Alanson Pettingill................. 5  Noah Packard.....................
9
 William Perry ......................4  John M. King.....................
4
 Warren Smith....................... 7  Jonathan Dunham..................
4
 Samuel Barnet...................... 5  Joel H. Johnson..................
6
 William Carpenter...................5  Austin W. Cowles.................
9
 John Greabble...................... 8  Jonathan H. Hale.................
5
 Arnold Healey...................... 3  George W. Brooks.................
4
 Joel Harvey.........................5  Abraham Wood.....................
4
 Justin Blood........................5  Shearman A. Gilbert..............
3
 Reuben Daniels..................... 7  William B. Pratt.................
4
 James Putnam....................... 6  Samuel Parker....................
4
 Daniel Pulsipher................... 4  Daniel
Bowen......................7
 Charles Thompson................... 2  Richard Brasier..................
4
 Nathan B. Baldwin.................. 2  John Pulsipher...................
2
 Michael Griffith....................6  Alba Whittle.....................
6
 Henry Stevens...................... 3  Joel Drury.......................
5
 Levi Osgood........................ 5  Jonathan Fisher..................
5
 Cyrus B. Fisher.................... 6  Benjamin Baker...................
6
 Elijah Merriam..................... 2  Amasa
Cheney......................6
 Samuel Hale.........................3  Josiah
Miller....................10
 Martin Hanchet..................... 5  Amos
Baldwin.....................12
 Orin Cheney.........................9  John
Sweat.......................10
 George Stringham................... 6  Daniel Allen, Jun................
4
 Mary Parker........................ 4  Stephen Richardson...............
8
 Julia Johnson.......................8  Martin H. Peck...................
6
 Zemira Draper...................... 6  John Lameraux....................
6
 Isaac Rogers........................4  Jesse P. Harmon .................
6
 Abram Boynton...................... 7  John Vanleuven, Jun..............
9
 Michael McDonald................... 5  Aaron Cheney.....................
6
 James Brown........................ 7  Nathan Cheney....................
4
 Alexander Campbell.................  	Edwin P. Merriam.................
3
 Joseph C. Clark.................... 6  Henry Munroe.....................
3
 Jared Porter........................3  Ira P. Thornton..................
7
 William Earl.......................11  Oliver Rowe......................
6
 Daniel Bliss........................2  Stephen Rowe.....................
6
 Isaac W. Pierce ....................5  John Thorp ......................
7
 Jabez Lake..........................5  Daniel L. Nuptire................
3
 Samuel Mulliner.................... 5  William Gribble..................
3
 Aaron M. York...................... 4  Charles N. Baldwin...............
2
 James Strop.........................6  William Draper, Sen..............
2
 Reuben Hedlock..................... 8  Laban Morris.....................
2
 Andrew Lamereaux................... 7  Lucius N. Scovil.................
4
 William Wilson..................... 3  Aaron Johnson....................
4
 John Carter.........................2  Joseph Coon .....................
4
 Samuel Parker...................... 4  Nathan Staker....................
6
 Isaac Dewitt........................8  Asa
Wright.......................10
 Hiram Griffiths.....................3  Zephaniah W. Brewster............
9
 John Hamond........................ 6  Munro Crosier....................
2
 Arnold Stevens..................... 6  Asaph Blanchard..................
1
 Gardner Snow....................... 3  Ethan A. Moore...................
8
 George Snow........................ 2  William Carey....................
 Thomas Draper.....................   	James Lethead....................
 Abram Bond......................... 3  John Rulison.....................
8

	March 17.--Met again agreeable to adjournment in the attic story of
the Lord's House, at 1 p. m. A general attendance of those belonging to
the camp and many others belonging to the different quorums of the Church
came in. The room was full to overflowing. Elder Josiah Butterfield,
presided. After opening by prayer the object of the meeting was stated by
the chairman, viz., the removing of the Saints to Zion. Elder James Foster
next laid before the meeting the movements of the Seventies in relation to
that desired object and was followed by EIders Joseph Young, Henry
Harriman, Zera Pulsipher, and by others of the different quorums, who
highly approved of the proceedings of the quorum of Seventies in relation
to the order of removing and of the organization of the camp. The
Constitution was read by the clerk, which was spoken of in terms of
commendation by all who spoke. Much of the Spirit of God was manifested on
this occasion and the hearts of all made glad in anticipation of their
deliverance from Kirtland.

	President Hyrum Smith came in and addressed the meeting at some
length on the movements of the Saints in Kirtland in relation to their
emigration to the land of Zion since the commandment had gone forth for
the honest in heart to rise up and go up unto that land. He stated that
what he had said and done in reference to chartering a steamboat, for the
purpose of removing the Church as a body, he had done according to his own
judgment without reference to the testimony of the Spirit of God; that he
had recommended that course and had advised the High Council and High
Priests to adopt that measure, acting solely by his own wisdom, for it had
seemed to him that the whole body of the Church in Kirtland could be
removed with less expense in the way he had proposed than in any other. He
said further that the Saints had to act often times upon their own
responsibility without any reference to the testimony of the Spirit of God
in relation to temporal affairs, that he has so acted in this matter and
has never had any testimony from God that the plan of going by water was
approved of by Him, and that the failure of the scheme was evidence in his
mind that God did not approve of it.

	He then declared that he knew by the Spirit of God that the movements
that were making by the quorum of the Seventies for their removal and the
plan of their journeying was according to the will of the Lord. He advised
all who were calculating to go up to Zion at present, whose circumstances
would admit, to join with the Seventies in their plan and go up with them;
and if he were so situated that he could join the camp himself and go with
them, he would do so, and strictly comply with the rules which had been
adopted for the regulation of the camp on the journey. It would be his
delight to go as an individual without having any concern whatever in the
management of affairs, either directly or indirectly, during the journey.

	In answer to an inquiry that was made about the difficulties that
might attend the movements of so large a body, he observed that no score,
for there would no difficulty attend the camp, if there should be 5,000
persons in it. The more the better; and the advantages of their going
altogether would be greater than they could possibly be if they should go
in small companies, as provisions and other necessities could be purchased
in large quantities much cheaper than they could by small squads who would
be under the necessity of buying at great disadvantage.

	After advising the camp not to be too particular in regard to the
Word of Wisdom and advised them to have the assistance of the High Council
in carrying the plan into execution, and giving other advice about
organizing the camp, President Hyrum Smith retired.

	The Constitution being read again, about forty who did not belong to
the quorum of Seventies came forward and subscribed their names to it,
making in all about eighty. The meeting was then adjourned to Tuesday,
March 20th, at 1 p.m.

	March 20.--In the afternoon the Seven Councilors met to consult on
the best measures to be pursued for procuring teams and tents and other
things necessary for the journey. After considering the subject carefully
it was thought that two good teams and one tent, if no more could be
obtained, would suffice for eighteen persons; and that it would be
advisable to appoint the overseers of tents at the meeting to be held in
the afternoon, whose duty according to the Constitution would be to form
their companies of eighteen, or as near that number as circumstances will
admit of, and proceed immediately to procure teams and a tent for the
same, and to make all necessary arrangements for the journey.

	Elders Oliver Granger, Mayhew Hillman and Harvey Redfield and some
others attended who were requested to express their views of the
expedition, as a rumor had gone forth that they considered it an
impracticable undertaking and one that would never be accomplished. Elder
Granger said that he considered it would be the greatest thing ever
accomplished since the organization of the Church or even since the exodus
of Israel from Egypt if the Saints in Kirtland, considering their poverty,
should succeed in going from that place in a body, and that it would
require great wisdom and prudence and the most determined perseverance to
effect such a measure, though he considered it possible to do it and
believed God would bless them in so doing.

	Elder Redfield spoke at some length and said that in consequence of
the rumors which were afloat he had thought the Seventies were taking
unwarrantable ground, and had expressed his views freely on the subject,
and rather justified himself on that score, though he condemned the
principle of believing reports which were put in circulation without first
considering their foundation and the source from which they came. He said
he was convinced that the things he had heard were untrue concerning some
movements which he had heard the Seventies were making, and the
declarations and denunciations they gave some of the other quorums, which
had come to his ears, were likewise without foundation. He said he was
heart and hand with the Council of the Seventies in their endeavors to
remove the Saints in Kirtland to the land of Zion, and the Spirit
testified to him that the movements were in righteousness and according to
the will of God.
	Elder Hillman spoke in confirmation of what his brethren had said,
approved of the movement and said that the High Priests and High Council
had at a meeting held a day or two previous passed a resolution to uphold
and support the Seventies in their undertaking.

	A selection of names for overseers of tents was made and the meeting
adjourned.

	At one p. m. the members of the camp and others who attended met in
the upper court of the Lord's House. Elder Henry Harriman presided, and
opened by prayer. He also addressed the meeting followed by Elder Foster,
both setting forth the greatness of the undertaking in hand, of the
necessity of every individual bestirring himself and making every exertion
to prepare for the journey. The names of those who had signed the
Constitution were read over, that if there were any objection against
their going in the camp in consequence of any difficulty that might exist
or of disobedience to the commandments of the Lord it might be made
manifest by those who might know of the existence of any such thing.

	The names of those selected for overseers of tents were read over one
by one and were voted in by the voice of the camp, and Jonathan H. Hale
was appointed treasurer, and the meeting was then adjourned.

	After the 20th of March the Council met often to counsel on the
things which from time to time pressed themselves upon their attention
relative to the preparation necessary for the journey, things both
spiritual and temporal; and to ask counsel and give their advice that they
might decide in righteousness all things pertaining to their calling and
the affairs of the camp, and to implore their heavenly Father to provide
means to soften the hearts of the enemies of the Saints, in Kirtland, and
in the region round about: that His people might be delivered from their
power, as they have fallen into the hands of their enemies like Israel of
old, in consequence of disobedience and their slowness of heart to obey
the commandments of the Lord which He had given unto them; and that He
would have mercy upon them and deliver them from bondage in this land,
that they might go up to the land of Zion according to the commandments
and revelations of the Lord by His servant Joseph Smith, Jun., and
according to the pattern given unto them.

	In these meetings for counsel and prayer God truly verified His
promises; for when His servants asked they received, and His Spirit was
poured out upon them abundantly, from time to time manifesting the will of
the Lord concerning the movements necessary to be made in order to carry
the arduous undertaking into effect, in removing the quorum of Seventies,
and those that joined with them, from Kirtland to the land of Zion.

	The extreme poverty of the majority of those belonging to the camp
and the depression of their spirits in consequence thereof and the
downfall of Kirtland; the opposition of those who had dissented from the
Church and of those who from the beginning had opposed the commandments of
God which He had established in the last days among the children of men,
and last of all, though not least, the opposition of many who called
themselves Saints, were obstacles which presented themselves in formidable
aspect against the exertions of the Council to bring about the order of
things to be entered into in order to accomplish the work, and to unite
the feelings of the brethren and to restore their confidence in each
other, which had in a great measure been lost during the past year, or
since the failure of their imaginary means of speculation, of grandeur and
wealth.

	Thursday, July 5.--The camp commenced organizing on a piece of land
in the rear of the house formerly occupied by Mayhew Hillman, about one
hundred rods south of the House of the Lord, in Kirtland. The morning was
beautiful. At an early hour the heavens were overspread with a cloud which
continued to hide the scorching rays of the sun till towards evening, when
it moved away. The horizon at every point that was unobstructed by
intervening objects was clear, and everything seemed to indicate that the
God of heaven has His all-searching eye upon the camp of the Saints, and
had prepared the day for the express purpose of organizing the camp, that
the Saints might start on their journey in the order which had been shown
in the beginning. About twenty tents were pitched in the course of the day
and several other companies came on late who had not time to pitch their
tents. Many spectators from the towns round about came to behold the
scene, and, with few exceptions, they behaved with the greatest decorum.
The day was solemn to all concerned and the greatest solemnity was visible
on the countenances of the Saints who expected to tarry for a season in
Kirtland, and also on the countenances of many of the unbelievers in the
everlasting Gospel of Jesus Christ and of the great work of the gathering
of the Saints of the Most High in these last days of wickedness before
God's judgments shall have been poured out without measure upon the
wicked, to sweep them off from the face of the earth.

	Between four and five hundred of the camp tented on the ground during
the night. The spectators retired at a late hour and left the camp in
quietude. The night was clear and the encampment and all around was solemn
as eternity; which scene, together with the remembrance of those other
scenes through which the Saints in Kirtland had passed during the last two
years all presented themselves to the thinking mind; and, together with
the greatness of the undertaking, the length of the journey, and many
other things combined, could not fail to awaken sensations that could be
better felt than described.

	Friday, July 6.--At an early hour in the morning the people began to
assemble to witness the exodus of the camp, and several hundred persons
had gathered together before all things could be arranged in order to move
off from the ground without confusion, all of which consumed most of the
forenoon. At twelve o'clock, noon, the camp began to move, and at
half-past twelve the whole company had left the ground in order, and took
up their line of march towards Chester, south from Kirtland, where they
encamped at six o'clock p. m., a distance of seven miles from Kirtland.

	After the tents were pitched and all things arranged an enumeration
of the camp was taken, when it was ascertained that there were in the camp
529 souls present--a few necessarily absent--of which 256 were males, and
273 females. There were 105 families, all on the ground excepting five,
which had not time to get ready in season to start with the camp, two of
which came up in the evening; of the others Elder Martin H. Peck joined at
Petersburgh; the other two, Elders S. Shumway and Brother Charles Wood,
joined the camp at the same place a few hours after. President William
Marks and some other brethren from Kirtland accompanied the camp to
Chester, and on parting with the Councilors blessed them, in the name of
the Lord, and left his blessing with them, and with the camp, covenanting
to uphold them by the prayer of faith and required the same of the
Councilors and of the brethren of the camp.

	The feelings of the brethren on leaving Kirtland and parting with
those who were left behind were somewhat peculiar, notwithstanding the
scenes they had passed through in Kirtland ; but the consciousness of
doing the will of their heavenly Father, and obeying His commandments in
journeying to Zion, over balanced every other consideration that could
possibly be presented to their minds, and buoyed up their spirits, and
helped them to overcome the weaknesses and infirmities of human nature
which men are subject to here on the earth.

	Saturday, July 7.--Started from Chester about half-past six in the
morning, and camped in Aurora, Portage county--thirteen miles from
Chester--at four p. m., on the farm of Mr. Lacey. The road between Chester
and Aurora, through Russell and Bainbridge, in Geauga county, was bad and
somewhat hilly. The weather being extremely warm and the camp not being
sufficiently accustomed to moving and acting in concert, all contributed
to make some confusion in the camp during the latter part of the day. One
wagon, Andrew Lamereaux's, broke down twice and some other small accidents
happened, but nothing very serious. During the day several children were
sick, some dangerously so, and some adults were attacked by the destroyer.

	Sunday, July 8.--Public worship at eleven o'clock, Elder Joseph Young
preached. Many came in the course of the day to visit the camp The
generally treated us with great civility, though there were some
exceptions. In the afternoon about half-past five the heads of families
were called together and were instructed by Elders Foster, Pulsipher,
Butterfield and Dunham to keep their families in more strict subjection to
the laws of God, and to adhere strictly to the Constitution of the camp.
They were told that the destroyer was in the camp and some would fall
victims to his power if they did not comply with the requisitions of the
Lord.

	A vote was called and the camp covenanted a new strictly to observe
the laws of the camp and the commandments of the Lord. Soon after
night-fall a company of marauders were heard about the camp, but we were
not molested during the night.

	Monday, July 9.--At seven in the morning the camp began to move,
passed through the village of Aurora, through the corner of Streetsborough
to Hudson, a handsome village, in which is situated the "Western Reserve
College." Stopped at one o'clock near the south line of that town. David
Elliot broke his wagon down near Streetsborough, and Samuel Hale's wagon
tongue was broken a little south of the village of Hudson. The fourth
division of the camp came up about two o'clock, at which time the first
moved on and passed through Stowe Corners, so called, across the
Pittsburgh and Akron canal (which is yet in an unfinished state at the
falls on the Cuyahoga river, which empties into Lake Erie at Cleveland),
and encamped for the night on Mr. Camp's farm, at Talmadge, at half-past
six in the evening. The first, second and third divisions came on to the
grounds together, the fourth, composed chiefly of ox teams, did not come
up till ten o'clock. The roads were generally good, the country level,
with few exceptions, the weather extremely warm, but nearly all withstood
the fatigue of the day with fortitude and patience, feeling thankful for
the blessings which the Lord bestowed upon the camp of His Saints.

	The country through which we passed this day was better adapted to
pasturage than tillage, the grass generally looked well, some fine fields
of wheat were seen which had began to whiten for the harvest.

	Joel H. Johnson's oxen failed and were left behind, and some others
were very much fatigued and did not arrive at the encampment until late at
night. Traveled twenty miles, which was three or four more than we should
have done if accommodations for the teams could have been obtained short
of that distance.

	Tuesday, July 10.--Before starting the Council drew up the following
resolutions for the further organization of the camp, which were
unanimously adopted:

     	Resolved--First. That the engineer of the camp shall receive
     advice from the Councilors concerning the duties of his office, and
     that he shall call on his assistants to perform those duties which he
     cannot attend to himself, and that he shall be relieved from the
     arduous task of [personally] superintending the movements of the camp
     during the journey.

     	Second--That the horn shall be blown for rising at four o'clock,
     and at twenty minutes past four for prayer every morning, at which
     time each overseer shall see that the inmates of his tent are in
     order, that worship may commence throughout the camp at the same
     time, immediately after the blowing of the horn.

     	Third--That the head of each division shall keep a roll of all
     able-bodied men, and that he shall call out as many men each night as
     the engineer shall require of his division to stand on guard.
     One-half of which guard shall stand the fore part of the night, and
     the other the latter part, being regularly relieved by the engineer
     or one of his assistants at one o'clock in the morning.

     	Fourth--That every company in the camp is entitled to an equal
     proportion of the milk whether the cows are owned by the individuals
     of the several tents or not, and that it shall be so distributed, as
     near as may be, among the several companies in the camp.

     	Fifth--That Thomas Butterfield shall be appointed herdsman of
     the camp, whose duty it shall be to superintend the driving of the
     cows and other stock, and to see that they are well taken care of on
     the journey, and that he shall call on as many as shall be necessary
     to assist him in performing those duties.

     	Sixth--That in no case at present shall the camp move more than
     fifteen miles in one day, unless circumstances shall absolutely
     require it.

	Joel H. Johnson sold one of his oxen for ten dollars, the other came
up with the camp.

	The camp began to move at nine o'clock and passed through the village
of Talmadge, one mile, then turned southwest to Middleburg a fine village
situated on a branch of the Cuyahoga, three miles from Talmadge, and
encamped for the night in the town of Coventry, about one mile from the
village of Akron, which is situated on the Ohio and Erie canal. At twelve
o'clock, for the purpose of lightening our loads, we left some of our
goods on the canal boats to be conveyed by water. The wind rose high and
the roads were dusty which made it hard traveling on account of the dust.
In the afternoon we had a small shower of rain, the first that had fallen
since the camp started. Benjamin Butterfield left the camp in the morning
and started off by himself. Traveled this day six miles. Brother John
Hammond broke his wagon, the only accident.

	Wednesday, July 11.--After the goods that were to be sent by water
were conveyed to Akron, the camp moved on, all but the first division
which waited to attend to the burial of Brother and Sister Wilbur's little
son, aged six months and twelve days, who died at 11 o'clock a. m. and was
interred in an orchard on the farm of Israel Allen in Coventry, at 2 p. m.
He had been sick two or three days, and some other children in the camp
had also been sick, but all recovered excepting Brother Wilbur's son.
Passed this day through New Portage on the Ohio canal, which we crossed
two or three miles below that place, and encamped on the farm of Mr.
Bockmans, in Chippeway township, county of Wayne. A heavy shower of rain
fell in the afternoon and the whole company got thoroughly wet for the
first time since we started; but very few complained, however, and all
retired to rest wet and weary after the usual duties of the evening were
ended.

	The country through which we passed this day was somewhat uneven and
swampy. Near New Portage it is low and to all appearance must be quite
unhealthful. The crops of wheat, corn and grass look well, the wheat being
generally about ripe and ready to harvest. John Hammond broke his wagon
again today and was left behind to repair it, and did not get up to the
encampment at night. Traveled this day eleven miles.

	Thursday, July 12.--Left the encampment at half-past eight; passed
through the village of Doylestown, situated on a hill in the township of
Chippeway. Crossed Chippeway creek; some of the headwaters of the
Muskingum river came through the township of Milton, where we stopped at
one p. m. to feed. Then passed through the township of Green into Wayne,
and encamped on the farm of Mr. ----------------, two miles from Wooster,
at seven in the evening. The road was rough in some places, in some places
stony, and, in consequence of the shower of rain which fell the day
before, in some places muddy.

	The country through which we passed today is somewhat hilly, the soil
productive and the crops of wheat, corn and oats look fine and beautiful.
Timber, principally of oak, with some chestnut and some other kinds of
forest trees, is scattered here and there.

	John Hammond overtook us in the morning on horseback, his wagon had
broken again, the third time, so it could not be easily mended. The
Council advised him to go back and get the brethren residing near New
Portage to assist him in exchanging it for another, or let him have one to
go up to Zion with, and have it returned to them, as he had now fallen so
far behind that we could not well assist him without hindering many
others.

	Nathan B. Baldwin broke one of his wagon tires, and Henry Harriman
one of his axle-trees, and stopped near Chippeway creek to have them
mended. Brother Baldwin came up in the evening and Henry Harriman the next
morning.

	It rained a little in the course of the day, the air was cool and the
horses and oxen performed the journey with greater ease than any other day
since the camp started. Traveled in the course of the day about seventeen
miles.

	Friday, July 13.--The fourth division left the encampment about eight
o'clock, the third and second followed, and the first left at nine Passed
through Wooster, the county seat of Wayne county, a large and beautiful
village surrounded by a fertile country and is a place of considerable
business. There are eight or ten public houses and several synagogues for
worship, and many other commodious and elegant buildings in the village
which is in Wayne township.

	At Wooster we took the road to Mansfield, west from Wooster
thirty-three miles. Passed through the village of Jefferson, a small place
in the township of Plain, thence to Reedsborough in Mohican township, and
encamped a little after five p. m. on the farm of William Crothers, in
Mohican, thirteen miles from Wooster, making this day sixteen miles.

	The country west of Wooster is rather hilly, some beautiful flats on
the creeks, though not in so good a state of cultivation as in many other
places. Crossed Applecreek east of Wooster, and Killbuck west of the town,
a branch of the White Woman and Mohican creek, which fall into the same
stream in Coshocton county. The roads were somewhat better than between
New Portage and Wooster, though more hilly. On the flats of Mohican the
road was bad, being muddy and stony. The country west of Wooster is not so
productive as it is north of that place through which we passed on the
twelfth inst., yet some beautiful fields of grain were seen. Two wagons
failed this day, Joseph C. Clark's and Edwin P. Merriam's. The first was
mended at Wooster, the other broke down just at the entrance of the field
in which we pitched our tents. Bought four barrels of flour, the first
provisions we purchased after the camp started. The people between
Kirtland and Wooster were generally apprised of our coming before we
arrived, and were not so much surprised to see us as they were west of
that place. After we left the main road to Columbus, as we followed along,
they seemed astonished and filled with wonder and amazement at seeing so
large a body moving together, and some did not fail to express their
feelings with warmth to the brethren as they passed along, declaring
against the "fallacy", as they called it, of "Jo Smith's" prophecies, and
expressing their pity for the deluded believers in modern revelation. We
saw this day the first harvesting of grain of any kind, though many of the
farmers in Wayne county had done most of their haying.

	Saturday, July 14.--Struck our tents at seven a. m. and the fourth
division left the encampment followed by the third and second, the first
left at eight. We passed through Jeromeville, a small village situated on
a branch of the Mohican, thence through the village of Haysville in
Vermillion township, county of Richland, and pitched our tents on the farm
of Mr. Solomon Braden, in the town of Petersborough. The country we passed
through this day is beautifully diversified with hills and valleys. The
timbered lands were covered principally with oak, the roads good, the
weather warm and dry. Brother William Perry turned over his wagon and his
wife and children were hurt, though not dangerously. A young woman, a
daughter of John Vanleuven, Jun., came very near being killed by having a
wagon run over her, these were the only accidents that occurred during the
day. This was the first day since we left Kirtland that we traveled
without breaking down one or more wagons. Pitched our tents at two p. m.
on a hill near the east line of Petersburg township and washed and
prepared for the Sabbath. In the afternoon a complaint was prepared by N.
B. Baldwin against Abram Bond for murmuring and other unchristian-like
conduct. The Council, after hearing the complaint and the defense,
referred the case to the company in their own tent to settle among
themselves. This was the second complaint made to the Council of any
consequence on the way from Kirtland. Traveled this day ten miles.

	Sunday, July 15.--The Council met in the morning and made some
arrangements about the order of the day. Elder Josiah Butterfield and
Joseph Young were appointed to preside during the day.

	At eleven o'clock public worship commenced. Many of the citizens of
the town attended, most of whom behaved well, and treated us with respect.
Elder Jonathan Dunham delivered a discourse on the first principles of the
Gospel, from Mark, 16th chapter, followed by several others of the Elders.

	Martin H. Peck came up and joined the camp about noon, and Stephen
Shumway and Charles Wood came up in the afternoon. John Hammond, who was
left behind at New Portage in consequence of breaking his wagon, also
joined us again. Benjamin Butterfield, who left the camp at Talmadge,
Portage county, found his way into camp again in the course of the day.

	Monday, July 16.--Started in our usual order in the morning,
traveling west toward Mansfield, through which we passed in the afternoon
about four o'clock. Passed through the village of Petersburg two miles
from our encampment, then through Mifflic township, three or four miles
east of Mansfield. In Madison township we were met by the sheriff and a
deputy, and a Mr. Stringer, who had taken out a warrant for several of the
brethren for Kirtland Safety Society money, and took Josiah Butterfield,
Jonathan Dunham and Jonathan H. Hale for Joseph Young, and committed them
to jail. As we came to Mansfield we were honored by the discharge of
artillery, but as the Lord would have it we were not enjoined nor molested
more than by insulting language from some of the numerous crowd of persons
that thronged the streets. From Mansfield we came through Newcastle, In
the township of Springfield, and encamped on the farm of Frederick Cassel
over night. Mansfield is a fine village, the county seat of Richland,
situated on a hill surrounded by a fertile country. Traveled this day
sixteen miles.


	Benjamin Butterfield left the camp again before night in ill humor
and went off by himself.

	Tuesday, July 17.--Started at eight in the morning; passed through
the village of Ontario in Springfield thence through the town of Sandusky
into Jackson, in Crawford county, and encamped six miles east of Bucyrus,
the county seat of Crawford county. Traveled sixteen miles.

	The country we passed through between Mansfield and Bucyrus is the
highest in the State of Ohio, being on the headwaters of the Sciota which
falls into the Ohio, and of the Sandusky that falls into Erie, the country
though high is generally level.

	Just at dark the brethren who had been committed to prison came up.
They were discharged by the court at 12 o'clock, noon, after which they
traveled twenty-two miles.

	The court for Richland county was in session and would have been
adjourned the evening the brethren, Josiah, Butterfield Jonathan Dunham
and Jonathan H. Hale, were arrested, had it not been for that occurrence.
Their case was called on the same evening and adjourned till eight o'clock
next morning. Dominicus Carter went back from our camp and staid with them
till they were liberated. We were all glad and thanked the Lord for their
deliverance out of the hands of our enemies.

	Wednesday, July 18.--The Council met in the morning and called
together the overseers of tents and gave them some instructions concerning
their duty in presiding over their tents, and Dominicus Carter was
appointed commissary of the camp, and Aaron M. York chosen overseer of
tent No. 3, third division, in his place; and the tent removed to No. 5,
first division. About eight the camp started, passed through Benjamin and
took the road to upper Sandusky, and stopped at one p. m. on the edge of a
prairie to rest. For the first time we had the privilege of encamping
without pay. The road in the afternoon in some places was rather bad in
the groves between the openings of the grand prairie, the edge of which
bordered on the right of our road from our encampment east of Bucyrus till
we encamped at night in the town of Grand Prairie, county of Marion, on
the line between that county and Crawford, ten miles southwest from
Bucyrus. Passed through the township of Antrim, in Crawford county, in the
afternoon. Traveled this day sixteen miles. As we passed through Bucyrus
the people seemed much agitated and made many remarks concerning us. One
man said he had received a liberal education and had prepared himself for
the ministry, but it now availed him nothing. The movements of the
"Mormons" were actions and not words, and looked more like love and like
the spirit of union than anything that had come under his observation.

	Thursday, July 19.--The second, third and fourth divisions started
about eight o'clock, the first stayed on the ground, some of them until
afternoon, to repair wagons. Traveled through a prairie country to Little
Sandusky, a little north of west from the place of our encampment on the
night of the eighteenth. Then turned west and pitched our tents on the
west side of the prairie, about a mile and a half from the village of
Sandusky. Traveled this day seven and one-half miles. No particular
occurrence through the day worthy of notice. Encamped for the first time
in a straight line, and being on a prairie the tents and wagons presented
a beautiful picture to a distant beholder, and could not fail to bring to
the mind of anyone familiar with the history of the journeyings of Israel
from Egypt, the prophecy of Balaam, concerning Israel's prosperity, and
his pathetic exclamation, when he beheld them abiding in their tents from
the top of Peor: "How goodly are thy tents, O Jacob, and thy tabernacles,
O Israel! As the valleys, as they spread forth, as gardens by the river
side, as the trees of lignaloes which the Lord hath planted, and as cedar
trees beside the waters."

	Friday, July 20.--The Council met in the morning to attend to another
complaint preferred by E. B. Gaylord, superintendent of the fourth
division, against Abram Bond for murmuring and complaining, and for
personal abuse. Elder Zera Pulsipher, who presided, gave him a severe
reprimand for his conduct in general on the journey and for abusing others
without any provocation, and he was informed that he would be left by the
wayside if he did not reform, and behave more like a man of God than he
had of late, or for a few days past. Some other business relative to our
circumstances and situation in journeying was talked over and the Council
unanimously decided that the camp should be called together before we
started and some instructions given to them concerning their duties, and
also to reprimand some for indulging themselves in covetousness and
murmuring against the Council, and also others of the camp who held
important stations as captains of divisions or overseers of tents.

	The camp was accordingly called together and such instructions given
them as the Spirit of the Lord dictated, by Elders Pulsipher, Young,
Butterfield, Foster and Harriman, which had the desired effect in
restoring good order and the spirit of union in the camp.

	On motion of Samuel Parker it was unanimously resolved that the
Councilors should be excused from standing on guard during the journey
that they might have more time to counsel together and to attend to those
duties which necessarily devolved upon them as Councilors of the camp.
James A. Clark, Jared Porter and Daniel Bliss were appointed to assist the
herdsman in taking care of the herds, as it was found too arduous for one.
The camp started about nine and traveled westwardly two miles to
Bowsherville, which is one hundred and forty-three miles from Detroit;
thence four miles in the same direction, and then turned south and came
through the village of Burlington, situated on Taymockty creek, a branch
of the Sandusky, and pitched our tents in the highway near a schoolhouse,
about one-half mile from Burlington, in the township of Grand, Marion
county, between three and four o'clock p. m.

	A heavy shower of rain feIl soon after we encamped and it continued
to rain most of the night. Most of the company got thoroughly wet.
Distance this day nine and one-half miles.

	Saturday, July 21.--Started about eight a. m.; traveled southwesterly
through the township of Goshen, Hardin county to the Sciota river, in the
township of Dudley, where we stopped to refresh ourselves and teams, at
Judge Wheeler's.  From thence we came to Mr. Bosman's, in township of
Jackson, where we encamped in the highway, seven miles from Sciota, making
in all sixteen miles. It was quite cool and comfortable traveling, but the
road was extremely bad, being in some places almost impassable, but the
Lord attended us and His blessings were multiplied upon us so that no
accident of any account happened to us during the day. Newel K. Knight
broke an axle-tree out of his wagon which was mended in a short time.

	Sunday, July 22.--On account of forage we were under the necessity of
traveling about five miles through Rush creek, and pitched our tents on a
rise of ground, by the wayside, on the farm of Mr. Partial, inn-keeper in
the town of Rush Creek, Logan county, and held public meeting at five p.
m. Attended to offering our sacraments to the Most High, breaking bread
for the first time on our journey. The first two Sabbaths after we started
on our journey we were so circumstanced and thronged with visitors that we
omitted attending to the ordinance of the Lord's Supper. At our meeting in
the afternoon the Lord blessed us by the outpouring of His Spirit, our
hearts were comforted and most of the camp felt thankful for the blessings
conferred upon us by our heavenly Father, thus far on the journey to the
land of Zion.

	As we passed along the road in the morning, molesting no one, some of
the company were saluted in modern style by having eggs thrown at them by
some ruffians from their dwellings near the road, but on seeing some of
our company stop, they desisted from their course fearing the consequences
from appearances, and even showed three or four bayonets, intimating that
they would defend themselves in case of assault. No one, however, intended
doing any harm to them, and only wished them to understand that we noticed
their intrusion upon our privileges as citizens to travel the high road
unmolested. Sometime in the night a luminous body about the size of a
cannon ball came down from over the encampment near the ground then
whirled round some forty or fifty times and moved off in a horizontal
direction, soon passing out of sight.

	Monday, July 23.--The camp began to move at a quarter past seven a.
m., and came through the village of Rushsylvania, where we were threatened
before our arrival with prosecution for "Kirtland Bank Money," signed by
F. G. Williams, president, and Warren Parrish, cashier. Some of the
company passed on from our encampment in the morning to find out what was
intended against us, but no person made any attempt to stop any one, and
we passed on in safety. From Rushsylvania we came through the village of
Bellefontaine, the county seat of Logan county; twelve miles thence to
McKee's creek, a branch of the Miami, in the township of Union, and camped
at the side of the creek at seven o'clock. Traveled this day sixteen
miles.

	On the road near Bellefontaine one of the sons of Martin H. Peck, had
a wagon wheel run over his leg, but as the Lord would have it, and to the
astonishment of all--considering the weight of the load on the wagon--he
received no particular injury, although the wheel ran over the boy's leg
on a hard road without any obstruction whatever. The wheel made a deep cut
in the limb, but after hands were laid on him in the name of the Lord, the
boy was able to walk considerable in the course of the afternoon. This was
one, but not the first, of the wonderful manifestations of God's power
unto us on the journey.

	After we left Bucyrus hill we came to Bellefontaine, the road was in
many places very bad, especially in the backwoods. In Marion and Hardin
counties provisions were scarce and could not be obtained, consequently we
were obliged to do with what we had; and here was another manifestation of
the power of Jehovah, for seven and a half bushels of corn sufficed for
the whole camp, consisting of six hundred and twenty souls, for the space
of three days, and none lacked for food, though some complained and
murmured because they did not have that to eat which their souls lusted
after.

	Tuesday, July 24.--We lay in our encampment at McKee's creek through
the day to wash our clothes and refresh our teams, as they were very much
fatigued by traveling for several days on a rough and muddy road. We took
two jobs, one of chopping cord wood, and one of shoemaking, and earned
about twenty dollars, besides mending and repairing several wagons and
putting things in order in the camp.

	Wednesday, July 25.--Started on our journey and came through West
Liberty, situated on Mad river, thence into the township of Salem,
Champaign county, and encamped about two miles north of Terbana on the
farm of Joseph Vance, Governor of the state of Ohio. The encampment was
formed near his residence, at six o'clock, having traveled twelve miles
this day. The country in the valley of Mad river is level and beautiful
and very fertile. We saw extensive fields of wheat on each side of the
way, mostly reaped, and crops of all kinds were far better than any we had
seen elsewhere on our journey.

	In the evening the camp was called together by the Council, and some
of them severely reprimanded in general terms for their unchristian-like
conduct, and much instruction given concerning our duties to God, and a
one another, in order to move on our journey in righteousness, that we
might obtain the favor of the Lord, and have His blessings attend us from
day to day.

	After the assembly was dismissed, the Council returned and listened
to a complaint presented by B. S. Wilbur against Stephen Starks, for some
unchristian-like conduct during the day. The trouble was amicably settled
to the satisfaction of all concerned. The Council adjourned, after
transacting some other business, at eleven o'clock p. m. From Kirtland to
our encampment in Salem, is two hundred and fifteen miles.

	Thursday, July 26.--Camp began to move at eight o'clock; the first
division, however, did not leave the grounds until after eleven. Several
of the brethren went out to labor both yesterday and today, in order to
procure means to further us on our journey, and they did not come up with
us at night. We traveled south through the village of Urbana, the county
seat of Champaign county; thence into the township of Moneyfield, Clark
county, and camped on the farm of Mr. A. Breneman, four and one half miles
off the National road at Springfield. Traveled twelve miles, plus two
hundred and fifteen miles from Kirtland, equals two hundred and
twenty-seven miles.

	The camp was called together in the evening and a timely lecture was
given by Elder Pulsipher, on our situation, and all were exhorted to be
united in heart and hand in order to join together. The Spirit of the Lord
was manifested and we returned to our tents feeling thankful for the
blessings of the Lord upon us.

	Friday, July 27.--Continued our journey to Springfield on the
National road, one hundred and seventy-one miles from Wheeling, in
Virginia. Crossed Buck creek, a branch of Mad river just before entering
the village on the north. Springfield is a large and beautiful village,
the county seat of Clark county, containing about three thousand
inhabitants. There are many elegant buildings of brick, and it seems to be
a place of considerable trade.

	A little west of Springfield we left the National road and took the
road to Dayton, distance from Springfield twenty-five miles, and passed
through the township of Mad river, and a small village called Washington
in the same township, and pitched our tents just at dark in a grove near
Lenox, in Mad river township. The day was excessively warm and the road
dusty, but we all arrived safely at our encampment in the evening, except
some of those who stopped to labor. Many of the people all along the road
seemed quite astonished to see so many in the company. Some judging there
were three hundred teams, and made some curious remarks concerning us and
"Jo Smith;" and one man threatened to shoot Elder Dunham if he did not
immediately leave his premises when he called to procure forage for our
teams at noon. After we encamped a stage went by and the passengers
behaved as they passed us more like the savages of the west than anything
we have seen since the commencement of our journey. Distance traveled
today, fifteen miles. J. D. Parker, who had left Kirtland some time after
we did, overtook us at our encampment this evening and staid with us till
Monday morning.

	Saturday, July 28.--We removed from Mad river township and came to
Fairfield, three miles, thence to Bath township and encamped about noon
half a mile from the road on the banks of Mad river in Green county, five
and one half miles from Dayton. Distance this day nine miles. Distance
from Kirtland, two hundred and fifty-one miles.

	Sunday, July 29.--We held a public meeting in a grove on a farm of
Mr. Houghman, about one fourth of a mile from our encampment, at eleven
o'clock, Elder Zera Pulsipher preached.

	In the afternoon we had a sacrament meeting on the camp grounds.
Elder Duncan McArthur, after the administration of the Lord's Supper, bore
testimony of the truth of the revelations of the Lord in these last days
to the numerous spectators who were present, and in a brief way made known
unto them some of those things that the Lord was doing in the earth; and
others that would shortly come to pass among the inhabitants thereof. The
Spirit of God attended his testimony and we had a joyful meeting.

	The Council met in the morning to regulate some things relative to
the duties of the day, and adjourned till five p. m. At that time they met
again and took into consideration the case of Abram Bond and unanimously
resolved that for his murmuring and not giving heed to the regulations of
the camp, he should be disfellowshiped by the camp and left to the care of
himself, which decision was made known unto him and approbated by those
who were present at the time. He accordingly left the camp the next day.
Warren Smith, who left Kirtland about the first of June, came into the
camp with his family and joined us. William Gribble--whose wife
accompanied us from Kirtland --also joined the camp this day. We found
many of the Saints from Kirtland and other places, and Elder John E. Page,
with a part of his company that started from Oak Point, in St. Lawrence
county, New York, whither they had fled in the course of the past winter,
from the commotions and rumors of war in Canada. They were scattered
along the road from Springfield to Dayton, some of them laboring for means
to prosecute their journey and some had stopped to recruit their teams as
well as their purses, that they might continue their journey after the
warm season had passed. Many of them came to visit us and were received
with feelings of gratitude for the goodness of our heavenly Father for the
preservation of our lives and for the privilege of meeting each other in
this land of strangers.

	The weather has been extremely hot and dry in the land, and in the
southwestern part of the state of Ohio, for many weeks: and rain was much
needed, and supplication was made to the God of Israel for rain on the
land in this region of country, at the meeting in the forenoon, and at the
close of the service in the afterpart of the day. Elder Dunham and Elder
Charles Thompson each held a meeting in the afternoon, about two miles
from camp.

	Monday, July 30.--We remained in our encampment during the day and
were visited by several gentlemen, and were solicited to tarry in this
place for a season and take a job on the Springfield and Dayton turnpike.
Some of the brethren went out to make what discoveries they could relative
to labor, and partly engaged some small jobs on condition that we tarried
here for a few days. In the afternoon and evening it rained on each side
of us, that is, to the north and to the south, and at no great distance
from us quite hard, to all appearances; and we also had a small shower in
the afternoon, though not enough to water the earth sufficiently, yet it
cooled the air and greatly revived both the animal and vegetable kingdoms,
for which we thank that

	Being that rules the armies of heaven and the inhabitants of the
earth, and sendeth rain both upon the just and upon the unjust.

	Elder John E. Page, who preached about one mile from us in the
evening, tarried with us over night and left us in the morning to go to
his family at Fairfield, five miles and one half distant, where they had
resided for a few weeks since the Canada camp (John E. Page's company) had
stopped.

	Tuesday, July 31.--A part of our company went off to work on a job of
raising a levee for Mr. Hushman, and some one way and some another to
labor during the day. In the morning all the men in the camp were called
out and were made acquainted with our pecuniary circumstances, and an
inquiry made who, if any wished to leave the camp and look out for
themselves. One man, Brother Asa Wright, said that his wife had always
been opposed to going in the camp, and that he had told some of the
brethren in the camp that in consequence of that and some other things it
was his choice to leave. Elder Stephen Headlock also complained of the
murmuring of some of the camp, and said that he had rather leave the
camp--though he desired with all his heart to go in it up to the land of
Zion--than to hear so much complaining as he had for a few days past, and
had freely expressed his mind before to that effect to some of the
brethren.

	He was reprimanded by Elder Pulsipher for his own neglect of duty and
told to set his own tent in order, and then if he knew of any infringement
on the rules of the camp by others, to try, as the law of God required, to
reclaim the offenders and restore them to order that the blessings of God
might be poured out upon the camp during the long and tedious journey
which still lay before it. A vote was taken to see how many were desirous
of stopping and laboring, if the Council thought advisable to do so. Some
further inquiries were made concerning the conditions that had been or
might be offered to the camp to make a piece of turn pike road or do any
other work that might be obtained by the Council, and under their
superintendency, when all, with a few exceptions,--and they were persons
unable to labor-- voted to abide by the advice of the Council, and would
stay or go, as they should advise or direct.

	Elder John E. Page made a short speech, exhorting all to fulfill
their covenants, let what would come, life or death, inasmuch as they were
in righteousness before God, and said that all our deeds would be had in
remembrance; that we would be rewarded for them, whether good or evil,
both in time and in eternity; and further observed that the journeying of
the Saints to Zion in obedience to the commandments of the Lord afforded
an opportunity for them to become what they desired; either to be as great
and as noble as they could or to sink into obscurity in the eyes of God
and His Saints and be the least in this last kingdom which God has set His
hand to build up upon the earth. After making many appropriate remarks he
implored the blessings of heaven upon us, which was responded to by a
hearty amen, and then all dispersed to attend to the duties of the day.

	In the course of the day we took a job of making half a mile of
turnpike, and removed our encampment into a beautiful grove near the edge
of a prairie about one-fourth of a mile, and about the same distance from
Mad river. Here we began to make preparations to commence work, but made
little progress, for most of the laboring men were absent, and we did not
get our tents pitched till nearly night.

	Wednesday, August 1.--Began at an early hour to make arrangements to
commence our job. Sent off part of the men to finish the levee and some to
build a fence around our camp, and about twelve o'clock made a beginning
on the road. A few sick in the camp this day, but most of us were in good
health and satisfied with our situation.

	Thursday, August 2.--Very warm and dry as it had been for many days,
with the exception of the showers on Monday evening.

	Progressed with our labors on the road rather slowly, for we were not
in condition to work to good advantage, as we had not tools enough, and
had been on our journey so long that it was rather fatiguing to labor hard
in the commencement. Some sickness in the camp, but no more than would be
expected, owing to our change of climate, and the extreme heat and drouth
in the land.

	Friday, August 3.--Made great progress in the turnpike, and the
desponding spirits of some began to revive, for laboring had looked to
some to be rather a hard way to procure means to prosecute our journey,
though but few complained. Some new cases of sickness, but many of those
who were unwell the day before were recovering fast. The men and boys in
camp were called together in the evening and instructed by the Council as
the Spirit of the Lord manifested unto them concerning cleanliness and
decency and the importance of being industrious in laboring with their
hands to procure means to go on our way. The covenant to put our strength,
our properties and monies together for the purpose of going together in
the camp to Zion, and of delivering the poor from their poverty and
oppression in the land of Kirtland was adverted to by Elders Pulsipher and
Foster, and all exhorted and entreated to give heed to it if they wished
to enjoy the blessings of the Lord.

	The Council at a meeting held in the afternoon had taken into
consideration the propriety of appointing three men to sit as councilors
or judges [known as an Assistant Council, see p. 128] to settle matters
and difficulties between brethren, that the Council might be relieved in
some measure from the arduous duties of settling controversies and have
more time to devote to other things that devolved upon them as Presidents
of the camp. Duncan McArthur, Gordon Snow and George Stringham were
nominated, and the subject was laid before the meeting in the evening to
receive the unanimous approbation of all present. The many blessings
conferred on us by our Heavenly Father since He first made known His will
unto the Council of Seventies, that it was His will that the Seventies
should go to Zion in a camp together, were recapitulated and our hearts
were made glad and we rejoiced in the Rock of our salvation whose mercies
had been extended unto us, notwithstanding our murmurings against Him and
slowness of heart to believe His words, and the many promises which He had
made unto us. At the close of the meeting our united prayers ascended to
God in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ, for the recovery of Elder Jacob
Chapman's family who resided near the city of Dayton, and had sent unto us
for some of the Elders to go and lay hands on them in the name of the
Lord, as they were sorely afflicted with disease, and for the recovery of
the sick in our own camp, and that the destroyer might cease to make
inroads among us.

	Saturday, August 4.--Our circumstances about the same as on the day
previous. A heavy shower towards evening cooled the air and greatly
revived the vegetation which was suffering for want of rain in the country
round about. In the evening the camp was called together again and the
names of those who had absented themselves from labor were read over and
those who had no excuse for their absence were severely reprimanded, and
the overseers of tents instructed by the Council to withhold the usual
rations allotted from such individuals as could but would not labor, that
the idler should not eat the bread of the laborer, according to the
commandments of the Lord.--Doctrine and Covenants, sec. xlii.


                                CHAPTER X.
                THE JOURNEY OF KIRTLAND CAMP. (CONTINUED).

	Sunday, August 5.--One month had passed away since the camp was
organized and we were all present in the camp with few exceptions. Elder
Joseph Young preached from Acts xvi, and 30th verse, on the principles of
salvation through the Gospel of Jesus Christ. A respectable congregation
of strangers assembled with us and gave the best attention to what was
declared unto them. The sacrament of the Lord's supper was administered in
the afternoon by Elders Foster and Wilbur and the services of the day were
closed by singing and imploring the blessings of God upon us and upon the
Saints of the Most High in every land, and for the triumph of Christ's
kingdom on the earth. The Council met after the public services of the day
were ended, to transact some business of the camp which seemed to be
necessary; and after that was disposed of Elder Zera Pulsipher suggested
the propriety of ordaining George Stringham to the office of an Elder, and
said that the Spirit had borne witness to him for some time that it was
the will of the Lord that he should be ordained to that office. The
subject was taken into consideration and the Council decided that he
should be ordained if it was congenial to his own feelings. On being
interrogated he said that he was willing to be ordained and would do
anything the Lord required of him for the building up of His kingdom on
the earth. Elder James Foster with some others then proceeded to ordain
him according to the rules of the Church of Latter-day Saints, an Elder in
said Church. The Council then adjourned.

	Monday, August 6.--Some complaining in the camp and some sick,
principally children and aged persons. We progressed finely in our labors
on the road, and a greater interest seemed to be manifested for the
welfare of the whole body than had been since the camp stopped. John
Hammond lost one of his horses in the night, the first one that had died
during our journey.

	Tuesday, August 7.--No occurrence worthy of note during the day. The
destroyer continued to afflict us with sickness as a body, and many of the
men were unable to labor. In the evening the laborers were called together
and some instructions were given to them concerning our labors and the
necessity of diligence impressed upon those who manifested an indifference
to the general interest of the whole camp.

	Wednesday, August 8.--This morning found another of our horses dead,
one that had been bought for the benefit of the camp, and before noon we
had to kill another that had his leg broken. It belonged to John Matthews
who had left the camp a few days before without the consent of the
Council. Sickness still prevailed among us though the laboring men were in
better health than usual and the spirit of love and union was manifested
by most of the camp and all that were able labored cheerfully without a
murmur during the day. In the evening a child of Hiram H. Byington died,
which was the second time death had entered our camp on the road from
Kirtland to this place.

	Thursday, August 9.--Brother Byington's child was buried at twelve
o'clock. Some sickness in the camp this day, but not quite so much as
there has been for a few days past. A little shower about noon cooled the
air though enough did not fall to water the earth which was suffering from
want of rain and had been for some time, insomuch that the shower that
fell on the 4th instant did not suffice to water it enough to restore
vegetation to its natural state, and the crops of corn and other grains
were suffering almost beyond description in the region of country round
about.


	Friday, August 10.--The weather continued extremely hot and dry.
Elder James Foster took his tent in company with J. S. Holman, S. Shumway
of the 3rd division and Joel Harvey of the 4th, with the inmates of their
tents and went to work on a job of building a levee for Mr. Hushman about
two miles from the camp, where E. B. Gaylord of the 4th division had moved
his tent a few days before, and was digging a ditch for the same
individual. In the evening a daughter of Thomas Carico, aged one year and
five months, died, and was buried the next day.

	Saturday, August 11.--One or two showers of rain cooled the air and
revived the languid and drooping spirits of those in the camp, and
symptoms of better health were visible on the countenances of the
afflicted. In the fore part of the night Sarah Emily, daughter of
Dominicus Carter, aged about two years and three months, died, being the
fourth one the destroyer took from our midst.

	Sunday, August 12.--Elder Pulsipher preached in the forenoon to a
large congregation of strangers most of whom gave the best attention. At
two p. m. the funeral of Elder Carter's child was attended, and at four
Elder John E. Page, who had been invited, preached a sermon on the
gathering of Israel and the location of Mount Zion, after which the
Council met to regulate and set in order some things that seemed to be
necessary in the camp, in order to preserve harmony and union among us.
Elder Charles Thompson was called in question for something he had taught
concerning the order of moving of the camp. After being shown the
impropriety of his conduct, and the fallacy of some of his views and the
effect the promulgating of them had and would have in the camp, he made
ample retraction before the Council, and before the camp which was called
together for that purpose in the evening.

	Several brethren from Elder Page's camp and others that resided in
this region of country spent the Sabbath with us. Among the number were
Elder Nelson and Brother Ide, who resided near the city of Dayton. Several
of the brethren who had resided in Kirtland, being now on the way to the
land of Zion, had stopped to labor near us and they were also present, and
met with us at communion which was administered by Elders John E. Page and
Jonathan H. Hale at the close of the meeting in the afternoon.

	Monday, August 13.--Richard D. Blanchard joined the camp by the
consent of the Council. Somewhat cooler towards evening than it had been
for some time. About twenty sick in the camp, mostly women and children,
but none are dangerously ill. The laborers were called together again in
the evening and some instructions given them concerning our labors and
prospects in relation to means to prosecute our journey, and a spirit of
union was manifested which cheered our hearts and made us thankful to the
God of Israel for that and the many other blessings we daily received from
His liberal hand.

	Tuesday, August 14.--The day passed away as usual. For some time past
most of the laborers were able to perform the work assigned them, and but
few comparatively were sick in the camp, and these generally were growing
better.

	Wednesday, August 15.--It rained most of the afternoon which hindered
us from our labors a considerable part of the time.

	Brother Jonas Putnam and family by the advice of the Council left the
camp and moved about twelve miles on to a farm belonging to Brother Ide to
take charge of it while he [Brother Ide] went to prepare a place for
himself and the small branch of the Church in this vicinity in some of the
Stakes of Zion in the west. We were not willing that Brother Putnam should
leave the camp upon any other principle than that of mutual consent of all
concerned, for he was esteemed by all as a just man, and devout, and one
that was worthy of the fellowship of the Saints. Elder Elijah Cheney who
had left Kirtland before the camp with his family came into our encampment
in the forenoon having been blessed of the Lord on his journey and was
received with a hearty welcome by the brethren of the camp.

	Thursday, August 16.--Elder B. S. Wilbur took about twenty men with
Elder George Stringham and his tent and company and went to the city of
Dayton to do a job of work which had been engaged by the advice of the
Council.

	In the evening G. W. Brooks and wife were called before the Council
and inquiry made into some things which had been in circulation for some
days respecting them, and in the course of the investigation it was
acknowledged that Brother Brooks' wife had used tea most of the time on
the road, and had used profane language, and she declared she would still
pursue the same course, and it was not in the power of her husband or the
Council to stop it. She further said that she was not a member of the
Church and did not expect to come under the rules of the camp.

	The decision of the Council was that they must leave the camp, and
Brother Brooks was severely reprimanded for not keeping his tent in order
according to the Constitution of the camp, and not keeping his family in
subjection, as a man of God, especially as an Elder of Israel.

	Friday, August 17.--Elders J. Foster and Henry Harriman, having
finished the job of embankment [levee] came back in to the encampment
themselves but did not bring back their tents. In the afternoon the
Council met and several of the members of the camp were tried for breach
of the Constitution, and Nathan K. Knight presented an appeal from a
decision of the Assistant Council on a charge preferred against himself
and wife by Amos Jackson, overseer of his tent, for some misdemeanor in
respect to the order of the camp and unchristian-like conduct on the
journey, which decision was that they had violated the Constitution of the
camp and disregarded their covenant to observe and keep it, and
consequently must be left by the wayside. After an inquiry into the affair
the decision made [by the Assistant Council] was confirmed by the Council
of the camp.

	Josiah Miller was advised, in consequence of the conduct of his
son-in-law, Aaron Dolph, who was not a member of the Church, and would not
conform to the order of the camp, to take his family and go by himself.

	Nathan Staker was requested to leave the camp in consequence of the
determination of his wife, to all appearances, not to observe the rules
and regulations of the camp. There had been contentions in the tent
between herself and Andrew Lamereaux, overseer of the tent, and also
contentions with his family several times on the road, and after the camp
stopped in this place. The Council had become weary of trying to settle
these contentions between them. Andrew Lamereaux having gone to Dayton to
labor, taking his family with him, was not present at the Council, neither
was there any new complaint made, but the impossibility of Brother Staker
to keep his family in order was apparent to all, and it was thought to be
the best thing for him to take his family and leave the camp. Some other
things were brought before the Council and inquiry made into the conduct
of several individuals, and the Council had come to the determination to
put iniquity from the camp wherever it could be found, that God's anger
might be turned away and His blessings rest down upon us.

	Saturday, August 18.--Josiah Miller, agreeable to the counsel given
him, took his family and left the camp with the best of feelings existing
between him and the Council of the camp; he left it only in consequence of
the disposition of his son-in-law, Aaron Dolph, to set at naught the
Constitution by which the camp were bound by agreement to put their
strength, properties and monies together in order to move the camp to the
land of Zion.

Another child died this day, aged about three years, a daughter of Martha
Higby, who was in company with Z. H. Brewster. Sister Higby's husband had
left her some time before the camp started. The brethren finished their
job at Mr. Harshman's on Friday, and at Dayton on Saturday. The health of
the camp was much better than usual since we stopped here.

	Sunday, August 19.--As usual a large congregation met With us and
gave good attention to the services of the day. Elder Joel H. Johnson, by
the request of Elders Young and Harriman, who presided, preached on the
first principles of the Gospel from Galatians i, in the forenoon. In the
afternoon the sacrament was administered agreeable to the commandments of
the Lord.

	Monday, August 20.--Nathan K. Knight and George W. Brooks, who had
been excluded from the camp as before stated, left the camp. Daniel Bliss
went with George W. Brooks by the consent of the Council--at his own
request--as he was not well provided for as to a place for his family to
ride on the road.

	Tuesday, August 21.--Two boys born in the camp in the morning. One,
the son of Gardner Snow, the other of Frederick M. Vanleuven. The Council
held a consultation in the afternoon and concluded to make preparations to
start on our journey as soon as possible, if the Lord did not open the way
clearly before us to tarry longer in this place. J. A. Clark was excluded
from the camp.

	Wednesday, August 22.--Finished our job of grading in the morning and
the remainder of the day most of us rested ourselves, and made some
preparation to start again on our way. Extremely hot, and the earth
parched with drought to a greater degree than has been known for many
years in this region of country.

	Andrew J. Squires called on us on his way to Kirtland on Tuesday
afternoon, and left again after having some consultation with the Council
of the Seventies about his standing in the Church, and went on his way to
Kirtland.

	Thursday, August 23.--The Council met to regulate some things and
concluded to start on Monday, the 27th instant, and to labor all the time
we could till that time. Several resolutions were passed among which was
the following: That those of the camp who were absent should come back to
the encampment and that the vacancies in overseers of tents be filled and
then all called together and instructed more particularly concerning the
duties of their office before the camp shall start again; that the camp
shall be reorganized, inasmuch as some have left since its organization.

	John Hammond was expelled by the assistant Council from the camp for
not standing at the head of his family, his wife making much disturbance
in the tent, of which Brother Hammond was the overseer. Friday, August
24.--Most of the brethren who were absent came into the camp during the
day to make preparations to go on our journey.

	Elder Joseph Young went to Dayton to attend the funeral of William
Tenny, late of Kirtland, who died yesterday.

	Saturday, August 25.--In the afternoon the overseers of the tents
were called together by the Council, and inquiry made into the affairs of
each tent to see if there were any difficulties existing among them or any
other persons in the camp. The inquiry resulted in discovering much that
was not as it should be. Several tents were in disorder, and the Council
proceeded to make inquiry and to set in order the inmates of those tents
that were in a state of confusion. Most of the difficulties were amicably
settled, one exception. John Rulison was turned out of the camp by the
assistant Council. The same Council were directed to go to Brother
Nickerson's tent and set it in order; breaking the Word of Wisdom and
disbelief in some of the revelations constituted the difficulties in this
tent.
	Sunday, August 26.--As usual a public meeting was held in the
forenoon and a sacrament meeting in the afternoon. The Spirit of the Lord
was poured out on the assembly and some were convinced of the truth of
what was declared unto them.

	Monday, August 27.--Having finished our turnpike contract, we made
every possible exertion to continue our journey on the morrow, by shoeing
horses and fixing wagons. We had a blacksmith shop in operation in the
camp for several days, doing the necessary work.  In the evening a heavy
shower of rain fell which was greatly needed, and it seemed for some time
past that it would be almost impossible for us to travel in consequence of
the drought, and the dust that flew on the highway; but as the Lord had
been merciful to us before, so He was in this instance, for which we felt
thankful in very deed.

	Tuesday, August 28.--Made every exertion in our power to start, but
found it impossible about noon, as we had to make provisions for several
families who had been deprived of a team by those who were turned out of
the camp taking their teams with them.

	Charles Wood was expelled from the camp by two of the Council, James
Foster and Henry Harriman, on the 27th. Brother Wood was tenting about two
miles from our encampment with two or three other families, who for some
misdemeanor had been expelled from the camp. Brothers Foster and Harriman,
by the consent of all concerned, acted in this matter without a majority
of the Council being present, but this was not the practice of the
Council, as a majority was considered necessary to have a trial or council
concerning any matter relating to the affairs of the camp; but in this
instance no exceptions were made by any. In the evening the brethren in
the camp were called together and our labors and tribulations were talked
over. The Spirit of God rested down upon the camp with power, and after
singing the hymn, "The spirit of God like a fire is burning," we concluded
by a song, "Hosanna to God and the Lamb," and retired with joyful hearts
to our tents.

	Wednesday, August 29.--Early in the morning we began to leave the
ground, having the previous day reorganized as far as possible. Z. H.
Brewster and his father-in-law, J. Higby who was with him, were left
behind for want of a team to carry them with their families.

	We passed through the city of Dayton, situated near the junction of
Mad river with the Great Miami, and took the road to Eaton and traveled
through the township of Jefferson and put up in the township of Jackson,
near the village of Johnsville, twelve miles from Dayton, and pitched our
tents in the highway, having traveled eighteen miles. Having been at work
one month we all were thankful for the privilege of again marching on our
way.

	Our labors in Bath and its vicinity amounted to about ----.

	Thursday, August 30.--Traveled through Twin township on the north
line, and through Washington township, in Preble county; passed through
the village on of Alexander, in Twin township and then through the village
of Eaton, twelve miles from Johnsville, and pitched our tents on the line
of Indiana and Ohio, eleven miles from Eaton, having traveled twenty-four
miles, and are now two hundred and ninety-three miles from Kirtland.

	The land from Dayton to the Ohio line is generally bad, and covered
with maple, beach, elm, ash, whitewood and other northern timber; and the
soil after leaving the bottoms of the Miami is not so fertile as the lands
on that [Miami] and Mad river. The road was generally good, and the
weather extremely fine. Our teams stood the journey much better than when
we first started from Kirtland.

	On Thursday a daughter of Otis Shumway died, at Eaton, on the road,
and was buried in the woods near where we camped at night, in the township
of Jackson, Preble county, Ohio.

	Friday, August 31.--Started early, crossed the line of Indiana a few
rods from our encampment into the township of Wayne, Wayne county Indiana.
We came to the village of Richmond, on the east branch of Whitewater, four
miles. Richmond is a flourishing place on the national road, which we came
to soon after we passed the line, or between there and Richmond. From
Richmond we came to Centerville, the county seat of Wayne county, six
miles; and thence we came to the village of Germantown, eight miles, and
encamped for the night near that village, about sunset. Crossed during the
day several tributary streams of the Whitewater, the principal of which
was Nolands Fork, west of Centerville. Traveled fourteen miles.

	September 1.--The camp started at eight a.m. We came through a small
village called Cambridge one mile from Germantown; then through Dublin
three miles; through Louisville, nine miles; then to Flatrock, in Franklin
township, Henry county; thence to Roysville, on the east side of Blue
river, and Knight's Town, on the east side ten miles, and encamped by the
side of the way one mile west of Knight's Town, just at dark. The air was
cool in the evening and after the fires were built, which was necessary
for our comfort and convenience, our encampment looked beautiful, and we
attracted the attention of all who passed by* and of the citizens of the
neighborhood who declared that our company exceeded any they had before
seen in all their lives. Distance from Kirtland three hundred and
thirty-five miles

	Sunday, September 2.--Frost seen in the morning. being quite cool, we
thought it our duty to go on our way, so we started at eight o'clock, and
came through the small villages of Liberty and Portland, and stopped at
noon in Center township, Hancock county, at Mr. Caldwell's, about nine
miles from our encampment. Here the son of E. P. Merriam died; the body
was carried on to our place of encampment at night. In the afternoon we
came through Greenfield, the county seat of Hancock county. Crossed Sugar
creek, nine miles, and encamped at night on Buck creek on the west line of
Hancock county, and east line of Marion county, having traveled twenty-one
miles through a low, level country of clay soil and hard road. The crops
of corn were small, and all grain scarce. The weather is cool and the
roads good, but from appearances they had been almost impassable. Three
hundred and fifty-six miles from Kirtland.

	Monday, September 3.--Cold and frosty in the morning. We arose at
four, as usual, and at half-past five Sister Bathsheba Willey, who was
sick when we started from Kirtland, died and was buried together with
Brother Merriam's child in the northeast corner of T. Ruther's orchard,
Jones township, Hancock county, about one-fourth of a mile east from Buck
creek. The stage broke Lucius N. Scovil's wagon down. We came this day to
Indianapolis, on the east side of White river, the metropolis of the state
of Indiana, and pitched our tents at night six and one-sixth miles west of
the city, in Wayne township, on the farm of Brother Miller. Distance from
Kirtland, three hundred and seventy-three miles.

	Tuesday, September 4.--In the morning B. S. Wilbur, who had been left
behind in Dayton, Ohio, to transact some business, came up in the stage
about four o'clock. The camp was called together in the morning, and
warned by the Council of the displeasure of our heavenly Father with some
for their wickedness, and that His judgments would fall upon them with
greater weight than they had if there was not a speedy repentance. The
Council also entreated all to be humble and pray much, for the destroyer
was in our midst and many were afflicted. Ira Thornton, overseer of tent
No. eight, third division, by leave of the Council, stayed behind to go up
to the land of Zion with his father-in-law, who resided near our
encampment, and was going to start in a few days. Brother Thornton during
the journey had been a faithful brother, and stopped now merely on his
wife's account, and not that he was or had been disaffected with the
movements in the camp or with the management of the Council.

	Josiah Butterfield stopped to get a wagon wheel made, and the camp
started at a late hour. We came through Cumberland village, two miles ;
thence through Plainfield, in Guilford township, Hendricks county, five
miles; and stopped at noon in Liberty township, two miles east of
Bellville, five miles from Plainfield, through which we passed in the
afternoon; thence through the village of Bellville eight miles, and
encamped late in the evening about three miles west of Bellville, having
traveled twenty-three miles. David Elliot left the camp this morning.
Distance from Kirtland, three hundred and ninety-six miles.

	Wednesday, September 5.--Thomas Nickerson's child died in the night,
and was buried where we stopped at noon on the farm of Noal Fouts, west of
the village of Putnamville. Passed this day through Mt. Meridian.
Putnamville, and Manhattan. Crossed Walnut and McCray creek and encamped
by the side of the way just west of Clay county, having traveled twenty
miles. Distance from Kirtland, four hundred and sixteen miles.

	Thursday, September 6.--Traveled thirteen miles through a fine
country, good road, and pitched our tents between two and three miles east
of Terre Haute, the county seat of Vigo county, situated on the west side
of the Wabash, on a swell of land in a beautiful prairie surrounded by a
fruitful and fertile country. Distance from Kirtland, four hundred and
thirty-three miles.

	Friday, September 7.--Sometime in the night a daughter of Otis
Shumway died; and in the morning a child of J. A. Clark died. Both were
buried in the graveyard in Terre Haute through which we passed, and
crossed the Wabash about twelve o'clock at both ferries, and left the
national road and turning to the right, took the North Arm Prairie road to
Paris. Traveled nine miles, and encamped in LaFayette township,
three-fourths of a mile east of the Illinois line. The distance from
Kirtland, the way we came, to Terre Haute is four hundred and thirty-six
miles. E. Cherry did not come up, and was left behind; his family was
sick.

	Saturday, September 8.--Crossed the Illinois line in the morning into
Edgar county; crossed the North Arm Prairie, so-called; crossed Sugar
creek and came through Paris, the county seat of Edgar county, and
traveled fourteen miles on a prairie, and put up for the night at a late
hour, pitching our tents on the prairie near the house of Mr. Keller, who
appeared friendly and obliging. Traveled today twenty-five miles. Distance
from Kirtland, four hundred and seventy miles.

	Sunday, September 9.--Started early, and came to Ambro creek, in a
grove, two miles, and encamped during the day. The fourth division came up
just as we started in the morning; for they were unable to travel as fast
as the other divisions owing to the heat of the day on Saturday. Distance
from Kirtland, four hundred and Seventy-two miles.

	The Council met after we encamped, and after much consultation
concluded to call the heads of families together and lay before them our
situation with respect to means and the prospects before us and the
apparent impossibility of our obtaining labor for ourselves and for the
support of our families in the city of Far West during the coming winter;
and to advise them, especially those that did not belong to the Seventies,
to commence looking for places for themselves where they could procure a
subsistence during the Winter and procure means sufficient to remove them
to Missouri in the Spring. Accordingly in the afternoon the camp were
called together and those things laid before them for their consideration,
which seemed to meet with the approval of a large majority of the heads of
families in the camp. Distance from Kirtland, four hundred and seventy-two
miles.

	Monday, September 10.--Considerable anxiety seemed to be manifested
by some concerning the advice of the Council, and some complained, like
ancient Israel, and said that they did not thank the Council for bringing
them so far, and had rather been left in Kirtland, and some said one thing
and some another. Among the number were Aaron Cheney, Nathan Cheney,
William Draper and Thomas Draper and Henry Munroe, who were sent for, to
come and settle with the clerks and look out for quarters immediately.
Themira Draper, Alfred Draper and Cornelius Vanleuven left the camp with
them. Reuben Daniels, whose wife was sick and had a son born in the night,
together with Ethan A. Moore and Joel Harvey, also left the camp to stop
for a few days and then pursue their journey by themselves. After the camp
started Joseph Coon stopped because his wife was sick. We traveled five or
six miles west of the little Ambarras, where we encamped. We passed
through a small place called Independence, which is in an oak opening, in
which we had encamped. It was about six miles through it, and then we
crossed through a prairie fifteen miles, and encamped on the west side of
the East Ocha or Kaskaskias, some of the teams not coming up to the
encampment till twelve o'clock.  Traveled twenty-two miles. Distance from
Kirtland, four hundred and ninety-four miles.

	Tuesday, September 11.--Crossed another prairie, fourteen miles, and
encamped at four p. m. on the west side of the West Ocha, in Macon county,
having traveled sixteen miles. Distance from Kirtland, five hundred and
ten miles.

	Many in the camp at this time were sick and afflicted. Some with
fever and ague, and some with one thing and some with another. The most
dangerous were Elder Josiah Willey and John Wright, son of Asa Wright,
aged about fourteen years.

	Wednesday, September 12.--Started at eight o'clock and crossed
another prairie twelve miles, then through a piece of timber land on the
headwaters of San Juan river, then over a three-mile prairie, and stopped
to refresh our teams in the edge of the wood a little after noon, sixteen
miles from our encampment of the night before. In the afternoon crossed
over a prairie four miles, then through a piece of timbered land, then
another prairie two miles, and encamped by the side of a small creek,
having traveled this day twenty-two miles. Distance from Kirtland, five
hundred and thirty-nine miles.

	Thursday, September 13.--In the morning it was ascertained that
George Stringham and Benjamin Baker, with Joseph C. Clark had stopped
behind, or could not come up because of the failure of their teams. Asa
Wright did not come up at night, but came up in the morning by himself
before we started, to settle his accounts. His son being sick was the
reason of his staying behind. Alba Whittle and Joel H. Johnson also
settled their accounts, as they expected to stop at Springfield or sooner
if they could find a place.

	Started at a late hour and traveled fourteen miles though a prairie
country down the Sangamon river, which ran on the right of the road in a
westerly course to the Illinois. We encamped about three p.m. on a piece
of land laid out for a village called Boliva or Bolivar. war.  Here Ira
Thornton's child died.  Distance from Kirtland, five hundred and
fifty-three miles.

	Friday, September 14.--Before the first division left the ground
Elder Stringham and Benjamin Baker came up, but we left them there. We
came this day to Springfield, eighteen miles, crossing several small
creeks and passing through a small place called Rochester. From
Springfield we came four miles, and encamped for the night. We could not
procure anything for our teams to eat and were obliged to fasten them to
our wagons and give them a little corn or turn them onto dry prairie
almost destitute of vegetation. Springfield is destined to be the seat of
government of Illinois and the state house is now in course of building.
It is situated on a beautiful prairie and looks lIke a flourishing place
though it is yet in its infancy. Elder J. H. Johnson and his mother and
their families, together with Alba Whittle, Jonathan and Cyrus B. Fisher,
Edwin P. Merriam and Samuel Hale--who was sick--and wife, also stopped at
Springfield or near there, and Richard Brasher went to Huron, three miles
west from Springfield to stop with his friends for a short season.
Traveled twenty-two miles. Distance from Kirtland, five hundred and
seventy-five miles.

	Saturday, September 15.--William Gribble left the camp in the morning
to stop at Springfield during the winter, and Ira Thornton left and went
on with Allen Wait.

	We started before breakfast and traveled fourteen miles. Passed
through a small village called Berlin and camped on Spring creek in Island
Grove. Here T. P. Pierce's child died, and was buried on Sunday, near
Elder Keeler's house. Elder Keeler was late from New Portage, Ohio. Here
we tarried till Monday morning. Distance from Kirtland, five hundred and
eighty-nine miles.

	Sunday, September 16.--We held a meeting in the afternoon and
attended to communion. We had but few spectators in the camp during the
day. A spirit of union rarely manifested was felt at the meeting, and our
souls rejoiced in the Holy One of Israel.

	Monday, September 17.--This morning Elias Pulsipher, Daniel
Pulsipher, Steven Starks, Hiram H. Byington and Monro Crosier settled
their accounts and stopped behind. Traveled this day through Jacksonville,
a fine village, the county seat of Morgan county, which we entered about
fourteen miles east of Jacksonville. From thence we came to Geneva a
small, dusty place, and encamped near David Orton's on a prairie, having
traveled twenty-five miles. Most of the camp was late in arriving on the
ground, and some did not come up till morning. Distance from Kirtland, six
hundred and fourteen miles.

	Tuesday, September 18.--Warren Smith, Jonas Putnam, Stephen Shumway
and D. C. Demming and Joseph Young stopped at Geneva, Morgan county, and
in the course of the day, Asaph Blanchard, Stephen Headlock and B. K. Hall
also stopped near Exeter, and James C. Snow, whom we found near Geneva,
joined us. We came through Exeter to Philip's ferry on the Illinois river,
four miles below Naples, which is on the same river, on the straight road
from Jacksonville to Quincy on the Mississippi, which we left and traveled
six miles east of the ferry. We arrived at the ferry about four p. m., and
some of the teams went over and encamped on the west side of the river in
Pike county. In the night David Elliot, whom we had left in Putnam county,
Indiana, came up on horseback, having arrived with his family within
fifteen miles of us in the evening and left us again to hasten on his team
that he might overtake us at Louisville, Missouri. Distance from Kirtland,
six hundred and twenty-nine miles.

	Wednesday, September 19.--We all got over the Illinois at half-past
one p. m. and came to Griggsville, then to Pittsfield, the county seat of
Pike county, twelve miles, and encamped on a small hill one mile west of
the village. While we were crossing the river two brethren arrived from
Far West and brought us the first direct information from that place or
from any of the brethren in the West since we started on our journey. The
country between the Illinois river and Pittsfield is more rolling than it
is on the east of that river, especially east of Springfield. Distance
traveled from Kirtland, six hundred and forty-two miles.

	Thursday, September 20.--Started on our journey and care to Atlas, a
small village, the former county seat of Pike county, twelve miles through
a rolling prairie country, then to the Snye, a branch of the Mississippi,
about six miles from the river where we crossed in the afternoon, all but
three wagons, into the town of Louisiana, in the state of Missouri; and
encamped about three-fourths of a mile west of the town. Traveled twenty
miles. Distance from Kirtland, six hundred and sixty-two miles.

	Friday, September 21.--Traveled about seventeen miles through a hot
country and encamped in a wood near a prairie in a heavy rain which fell
all the afternoon, and was the first that had fallen on us since we left
Bath, Ohio, and was the most tedious time we had passed through. In the
evening it thundered and rained powerfully, most of us went to bed without
our supper, and tied our horses to our wagons. We thought it a perilous
time, but few complained, nearly all bore it patiently. Duncan McArthur
broke down his wagon in the forenoon and did not come up at night.

	Saturday, September 22.--Traveled this day eighteen miles, eight
miles of which was the worst road we had on the journey. The other ten
miles prairie. Thomas Carico broke down his wagon and stopped and mended
it, and did not overtake the camp at night. Eleaser King and sons, who
left Kirtland before the camp, came up and encamped with us at night. The
air was cool and chilly and towards nIght uncomfortably cold. We encamped
about one-half mile east of Lick creek, in Monroe county. Distance from
Kirtland, six hundred and ninety-seven miles.

	Sunday, September 23.--A heavy frost in the morning, but after the
sun arose it was pleasant and warm. We thought it our duty to travel and
accordingly started on our way. The road very rough and bad part of the
way, especially in the timbered land. Duncan McArthur and Thomas Carico,
who had been left behind in consequence of breaking down their wagons,
overtook us in the morning before we all started, some having to stay
behind to find their horses, which went back across the prairie about nine
miles in the night. E. B. Gaylord broke down his wagon and got badly hurt,
and did not overtake us till Monday night. We traveled to Paris, the
county seat of Monroe county, twenty miles, and encamped one mile west of
the town late in the evening near a prairie. Crossed south fork of Salt
river, five miles east of Paris, and several other tributary streams of
the same river, most of which were dry by reason of the extreme drought
which had prevailed in this land during the summer. Traveled today
twenty-one miles. Distance from Kirtland, seven hundred and eighteen
miles.

	Monday, September 24.--Reorganized the camp which had become rather
disorganized by reason of so many stopping by the way. The third division
was put into the first and second, as that division had become quite
small. The Council called the camp together and laid before them the
scanty means in their hands, and wanted the brethren to furnish such
things as they had to dispose of to purchase corn, etc., for our cattle
and horses, that we might continue our journey. Traveled twenty miles
before sunset, most of the way prairie, and encamped on the Elk fork of
Salt river. We found the inhabitants in commotion and volunteering, under
the order of Governor Boggs, as we were repeatedly told, to go up and
fight the "Mormons" in Far West and that region of country. We were very
correctly informed that one hundred and ten men had left Huntsville in the
morning on that expedition; and that the governor had called on five
thousand from the upper counties , and if we went any farther we should
meet with difficulty and even death as they would as leave kill us as not.

	We had been saluted with such reports every day after We came through
Jacksonville, Illinois; but we paid little attention to it, trusting in
that God for protection which had called upon us to gather ourselves
together to the land of Zion, and who had thus far delivered us out of the
hands of all our enemies, on every hand, not only in Kirtland, but on all
our journey. Traveled this day twenty miles. Distance from Kirtland, seven
hundred and thirty-eight miles.

	Tuesday, September 25.--Thomas Nickerson lost his horses and could
not find them before the camp started, and did not overtake us at night.

We came through Huntsville, the county seat of Randolph county, eleven
miles, where we were told before we arrived there, that we should be
stopped, but nothing of the kind occurred when we came through the town,
and we even heard no threats whatever, but all appeared friendly. A mile
and a half west of Huntsville we crossed the east branch of Chariton, and
one and a half miles west of the river we found Ira Ames and some other
brethren near the place where the city of Manti is to be built, and
encamped for the night on Dark creek, six miles from Huntsville. Traveled
this day seventeen miles. Distance from Kirtland, seven hundred and
fifty-five miles.

	Wednesday, September 26.--In the morning Elder James Foster at a late
hour proposed to disband and break up the camp in consequence of some
rumors he had heard from the west which he said he believed. Elder
Pulsipher being away only five of the Councilors could be present. The
other four objected to this proposal, but so far yielded as to consent to
have the camp stop till an embassy could be sent to Far West to see the
state of things in that region and ascertain whether it would be wisdom or
not for us to go into that or any of the western states this winter.

	The camp was called together and the subject was partially laid
before them by Elder Foster, which produced a sadness of countenance
seldom seen in the course of our journey. While we were talking over the
subject Elder Pulsipher came up, just as a gentleman by the name of Samuel
Bend, of Pike county, Missouri, came along, and without knowing our
intentions or destination, told us of the state of affairs in Far West,
and Adam-ondi-Ahman, and everything we desired to know concerning some
particular things. On being told that our intentions were to stop for a
while, he advised us to go right along. Be told us about the Daviess
county mob and that the volunteers called for by the governor, which had
rendezvoused at Keatsville, would be discharged at twelve o'clock, noon.

	On reconsidering the subject a motion was made to go on which was
carried unanimously. Accordingly we moved on and came to Chariton river in
Chariton county, sixteen miles and encamped about four p. m. on the west
side of the river. In the afternoon before we started from the place where
we stopped to feed on the seven mile prairie, near Brother Kellog's, the
militia volunteers began to go by on their return home. and we continued
to meet them most of the afternoon. Most of them passed us civilly, but
some of them were rather saucy, few replies, however, were made to them.
We met some brethren from Far West during the day which confirmed what we
had been told in the morning by Mr. Bend. Brother Nickerson overtook us
having found his horses, and eight or ten wagons of brethren from Huron
county, Ohio, and other places, also Ira O. Thompson, who had formerly
been with us as a member of the camp, stayed with us at night. Traveled
sixteen miles this day. Distance from Kirtland, seven hundred and
seventy-one miles.

	Thursday, September 27.--Started in the morning in some confusion,
owing to some misunderstanding, on and came to Keatsville on a branch of
the Chariton, two miles, and about half a mile west of the town, which is
the county seat of Chariton county. We left the state road and took the
road to Chillicothe and went up on the east side of Grand river, crossed a
prairie about eighteen miles, beautifully diversified with valleys and
rolling swells which give it a truly picturesque appearance. It has been
surveyed and allotted for military purposes, and for that reason is still
unoccupied. We encamped at night at the confluence of the forks of Yellow
creek, having traveled twenty-two miles.

	Elder James Foster left us at Keatsville to go by the way of De Witt,
to see his son-in-law, Jonathan Thompson. In the evening the Council met
to settle some difficulties and set in order some things that seemed to
require attention to enable us to move in order and in peace the remainder
of the journey. Traveled twenty-two miles today. Distance from Kirtland,
seven hundred and ninety-three miles.

	Friday, September 28.--Crossed Turkey creek, seven miles; Locus,
four; and pitched our tents on the east side of Parson's creek, in Linn
county, six miles from Locus creek, making seventeen miles. Distance from
Kirtland, eight hundred and ten miles.

	Saturday, September 29.--Came to Mr. Gregory's on Madison creek, six
miles; thence to Chillicothe, a town lately laid out for the county seat
of Livingston county, eight miles; and encamped about a mile west toward
Grand river.

	Thomas Carico's and J. H. Holmes' wagons were turned over in the
course of the day, but no particular injury was done to any person. The
road was new, and in some places rough, especially in the timbered land on
the creeks.  Traveled fifteen miles today.  Distance from Kirtland, eight
hundred and twenty-five miles.

	Sunday, September 30.--Came to Grand river, two and one-half miles,
crossed over and came to a small collection of houses, called Utica; two
and one-half miles, here we found Brother Sliter from Kirtland, and some
other brethren. From Utica we came through a rough and rolling country for
ten miles to Brother Walker's, on Shoal creek, crossed the creek and
camped on the west side near the prairie. Richard Blanchard, who joined
the camp at Bath, left the camp and went to join his friends who lived
near Chillicothe. Traveled fifteen miles today. Distance from Kirtland,
eight hundred and forty miles.

	Monday, October 1.--Came from Elder Walker's across the prairie,
about nineteen miles, and encamped on Brushy creek. Joshua S. Holman, by
permission of one or two of the Council, went on Sunday evening to visit
Elder Jacob Myers, formerly from Richland county, Ohio, and early in the
morning started on his way without waiting for the camp, disregarding the
advice of the Council, and in the evening, at a meeting of the camp, his
proceedings were condemned by a unanimous vote. Traveled twenty miles and
encamped on Brushy fork of Shoal creek, on the prairie. The entire
distance from Kirtland, eight hundred and sixty miles.

	Tuesday, October 2.--Crossed Long, Log, and Goose creeks, and arrived
in Far West about five p. m. Here we were received with joyful salutations
by the brethren in that city. Five miles from the city we were met by the
First Presidency of the Church of Latter-day Saints, Joseph Smith, Jun.,
Sidney Rigdon and Hyrum Smith, together with Isaac Morley, Patriarch of
Far West, and George W. Robinson, and by several other brethren between
there and the city, who received us with open arms, and escorted us into
the city. We encamped on the public square round the foundation of the
Temple. Traveled this day ten miles. Whole distance from Kirtland, eight
hundred and seventy miles.

     	[Here the camp journal's narrative ends. The two following
     entries which complete the history of this remarkable journey are
     taken from the Prophet's account of the proceedings relative to the
     camp on its arrival.]

	Wednesday, October 3.--The camp continued their journey to Ambrosial
creek, where they pitched their tents. I went with them a mile or two, to
a beautiful spring, on the prairie, accompanied by Elder Rigdon, brother
Hyrum and Brigham Young, with whom I returned to the city, where I spent
the remainder of the day.

	Thursday, October 4.--This is a day long to be remembered by that
part of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, called the Camp,
or Kirtland Camp No. 1.

	for they arrived at their destination and began to pitch their tents
about sunset, when one of the brethren living in the place proclaimed with
a loud voice:

	"Brethren, your long and tedious journey is now ended; you are now on
the public square of Adam-ondi-Ahman. This is the place where Adam blessed
his posterity, when they rose up and called him Michael, the Prince, the
Arch-angel, and he being full of the Holy ghost predicted what should
befall his posterity to the latest generation."--Doctrine and Covenants.


                               CHAPTER XI.
     EXPULSION OF THE SAINTS FROM DE WITT, CARROLL COUNTY, MISSOURI.

	Wednesday, October 3.--Sister Alice Hodgin died at Preston on the 2nd
of September, 1838. And it was such a wonderful thing for a Latter-day
Saint to die in England, that Elder Willard Richards was arraigned before
the Mayor's Court at Preston, on the 3rd of October, charged with "killing
and slaying" the said Alice with a "black stick," etc., but was discharged
without being permitted to make his defense, as soon as it was discovered
that the iniquity of his accusers was about to be made manifest.

	The mob continued to fire upon the brethren at De Witt.

	The following is an extract from General Parks' express to General
Atchison:

	DEAR SIR:--I received this morning an affidavit from Carroll county.
The following is a copy' "Henry Root, on his oath, states that on the
night of the first of October, there was collected in the vicinity of De
Witt, an armed force, consisting of from thirty to fifty persons, and on
the morning of the second of October they came into the town of De Witt
and fired on the civil inhabitants of that place. Thirteen of said
individuals were seen by me in that place, and I believe there is actually
an insurrection in that place.
                                                               HENRY ROOT.

	"Subscribed and sworn to this 3rd day of October, 1838.
                                                "WILLIAM B. MORTON, J. P."

	In consequence of which information, and belief of an attack being
made on said place, I have ordered out the two companies raised by your
order, to be held in readiness under the commands of Captains Bogart and
Houston, to march for De Witt, in Carroll county, by eight o'clock
tomorrow morning, armed and equipped as the law directs, with six days'
provisions and fifty rounds of powder and ball. I will proceed with these
troops in person, leaving Colonel Thomas in command of Grand river. As
soon as I reach De Witt, I will advise you of the state of affairs more
fully. I will use all due precaution in the affair, and deeply regret the
necessity of this recourse. H. G. PARKS, Brigadier-General 2nd Brigade,
3rd Division.

	Thursday, October 4.--I spent most of this day with my family.

	The mob again fired upon the Saints at De Witt, who were compelled to
return the fire in self-defense.

	To show how firebrands, arrows and death were scattered through the
State, and that too by men high in authority, and who were sworn to
preserve the public peace, I quote the following from a communication of
General Lucas to the governor dated Boonville, Missouri, October 4, 1838:

                Letter of General Lucas to Governor Boggs.

	DEAR SIR:--As we passed down the Missouri river, on Monday last, we
saw a large force of Mormons at De Witt, in Carroll county, under arms.
Their commander, Colonel Hinkle, formerly of Caldwell county, informed me
that there were two hundred, and that they were hourly expecting an attack
from the citizens of Carroll county, who he said were then encamped only
six miles from there, waiting for a reinforcement from Saline county.
Hinkle said they had determined to fight. News had just been received at
this place, through Dr. Scott of Fayette, that a fight took place on
yesterday, and that several persons were killed. Dr. Scott informed me
that he got his information from a gentleman of respectability, who had
heard the firing of their guns as he passed down. If a fight has actually
taken place, of which I have no doubt, it will create excitement in the
whole of upper Missouri, and those base and degraded beings will be
exterminated from the face of the earth. If one of the citizens of Carroll
should be killed, before five days I believe that there will be from four
to five thousand volunteers in the field against the Mormons, and nothing
but their blood will satisfy them. It is an unpleasant state of affairs.
The remedy I do not pretend to suggest to your Excellency. My troops of
the Fourth Division were only dismissed subject to further orders, and can
be called into the field at an hour's warning. SAMUEL D. LUCAS.

	"Base and degraded beings." Whoever heard before of high-minded and
honorable men condescending to sacrifice their honor, by stooping to wage
war, without cause or provocation against "base and degraded beings." But
General Lucas is ready with his whole Division, at "an hour's warning," to
enter the field of battle on such degraded terms, if his own statement is
true. But General Lucas knew better. He knew the Saints were all innocent,
unoffending people, and would not fight, only in self-defense, and why
write such a letter to the governor to influence his mind? Why not keep to
truth and justice? Poor Lucas! The annals of eternity will unfold to you
who are the "base beings," and what it will take to "satisfy" for the
shedding of "Mormon blood."

	Friday, October 5.--Report of the committee of Chariton county:

	The undersigned committee were appointed at a public meeting by the
citizens of Chariton county, on the 3rd day of October for the purpose of
repairing to De Witt, in Carroll county, to inquire into the nature of the
difficulties between the citizens of Carroll and the Mormons. We arrived
at the place of difficulties on the 4th of October, and found a large
portion of the citizens of Carroll and the adjoining counties assembled
near De Witt, weil armed. We inquired into the nature of the difficulties.
They said that there was a large portion of the people called Mormons
embodied in De Witt, from different parts of the world. They were
unwilling for them to remain there, which is the cause of their waging war
against them. To use the gentlemen's language, "they were waging a war of
extermination, or to remove them from the said county." We also went into
De Witt, to see the situation of the Mormons. We found them in the act of
defense, begging for peace, and wishing for the civil authorities to
repair there as early as possible, to settle the difficulties between the
parties. Hostilities have commenced and will continue until they are
stopped by the civil authorities. This we believe to be a correct
statement of both parties. This the 5th day of October, 1835.
                                                            JOHN W. PRICE,
                                                             WM. H. LOGAN.

	Subscribed to and sworn before me, the undersigned, one of the
Justices of the Peace within and for Chariton county, and State of
Missouri, the 5th day of October, 1838.
                                                         JOHN MORSE, J. P.

	This day also [October 5] General Atchison wrote the governor from
Boonville, that in Carroll county the citizens were in arms for the
purpose of driving the "Mormons" from that county.

	The third Quarterly Conference of the Church in Caldwell county was
held at Far West, President Brigham Young presiding. As there was not a
sufficient number of members present to form a quorum for business after
singing and prayer, conference adjourned till 2 p. m., when they met and
opened as usual, Presidents Marsh and Young presiding. There was not a
sufficient number of the members of the High Council or any other quorum
to do business as a quarterly Conference. They voted to ordain a few
Elders, appointed a few missions, and adjourned till tomorrow at ten
o'clock a. m.

	About this time I took a journey in company with some others, to the
lower part of the county of Caldwell, for the purpose of selecting a
location for a town. While on my journey, I was met by one of who stated
that our people who had settled in that place were and had been some time,
surrounded by a mob, who had threatened their lives, and had shot at them
several times; and that he was on his way to Far West, to inform the
brethren there of the facts.

	I was surprised on receiving this intelligence, although there had,
previous to this time, been some manifestations of mobs, but I had hoped
that the good sense of the majority of the people and their respect for
the Constitution, would have put down any spirit of persecution which
might have been manifested in that neighborhood.

	Immediately on receiving this intelligence I made preparations to go
to that place, and endeavor, if possible, to allay the feelings of the
citizens, and save the lives of my brethren who were thus exposed to their
wrath.

	Saturday, October 6.--I arrived at De Witt, and found that the
accounts of the situation of that place were correct, for it was with much
difficult and by traveling unfrequented roads, that I was able to get
there, all the principal roads being strongly guarded by the mob, who
refused all ingress as well as egress. I found my brethren, who were only
a handful in comparison to the mob by which they were surrounded, in this
situation, and their provisions nearly exhausted, and no prospect of
obtaining any more. We thought it necessary to send immediately to the
governor, to inform him of the circumstances, hoping to receive from the
executive the protection which we needed; and which was guaranteed to us
in common with other citizens. Several gentlemen of standing and
respectability, who lived in the immediate vicinity who were not in any
way connected with the Church of Latter-day Saints, who had witnessed the
proceedings of our enemies, came forward and made affidavits to the
treatment we had received, and concerning our perilous situation; and
offered their services to go and present the case to the governor
themselves.

	The Quarterly Conference convened at Far West this day [October 6th]
at ten o'clock according to adjournment, Presidents Marsh and Young
presiding Elder Benjamin L. Clapp said he had just returned from
Kentucky, where he had been laboring, and that many doors were open there.
A call was made for volunteers to go into the vineyard and preach, when
Elders James Carroll, James Galliher, Luman A. Shurtliff, James Dana, Ahaz
Cook, Isaac Decker, Cornelius P. Lott and Alpheus Gifford offered
themselves. President Marsh instructed them not to go forth boasting of
their faith, or of the judgments of the Lord, but to go in the spirit of
meekness, and preach repentance.

	Elder John Taylor from Canada, by request, gave a statement of his
feelings respecting his having been appointed as one of the Twelve, saying
that he was willing to do anything that God would require of him;
whereupon it was voted that Brother John Taylor fill one of the vacancies
in the quorum of the Twelve. Stephen Chase was ordained president of the
EIders' quorum in Far West. Isaac Laney, Horace Alexander and Albert Sloan
were ordained Elders under the hands of the presidents. Samuel Bent and
Isaac Higbee were appointed to fill the places of John Murdock and George
M. Hinkle in the High Council, the two last named brethren having removed
to De Witt. Conference adjourned to the first Friday and Saturday in
January next, at ten a. m. EBENEZER ROBINSON, Clerk.

	There were seven cut off from the Church in Preston, England, this
day.

	General Parks wrote General Atchison from Brigade Headquarters, five
miles from De Witt, Carroll county:

        Communication of Clark to Atchison on Affairs at De Witt.

	SIR:--Immediately after my express to you by Mr. Warder was sent, I
proceeded to this place, which I reached yesterday with two companies of
mounted men from Ray county. I ordered Colonel Jones to call out three
companies from this county, to hold themselves in readiness to join me at
Carrolton on the fifth instant, which order has not been carried into
effect. None of Carroll county regiment is with me.

	On arriving in the vicinity of De Witt, I found a body of armed men
under the command of Dr. Austin, encamped near De Witt, besieging that
place, to the number of two or three hundred, with a piece of artillery
ready to attack the town of De Witt. On the other side, Hinkle has in that
place three or four hundred Mormons to defend it, and says he will die
before he will be driven from thence.


	On the 4th instant they had a skirmish--fifteen or thirty guns fired
on both sides, one man from Saline county wounded in the hip.

	The Mormons are at this time too strong, and no attack is expected
before Wednesday or Thursday next, at which time Dr. Austin hopes his
forces will amount to five hundred men, when he will make a second attempt
on the town of De Witt, with small arms and cannon. In this posture of
affairs, I can do nothing but negotiate between the parties until further
aid is sent me.

	I received your friendly letter of the 5th instant, by Mr. Warder,
authorizing me to call on General Doniphan, which call I have made on him
for five companies from Platte, Clay and Clinton counties, with two
companies I ordered from Livingston, of which I doubt whether these last
will come; if they do, I think I will have a force sufficient to manage
these belligerents. Should these troops arrive here in time, I hope to be
able to prevent bloodshed. Nothing seems so much in demand here (to hear
the Carroll county men talk) as Mormon scalps; as yet they are scarce. I
believe Hinkle, with the present force and position, will beat Austin with
five hundred of his troops. The Mormons say they will die before they will
be driven out, etc. As yet they have acted on the defensive, as far as I
can learn. It is my settled opinion, the Mormons will have no rest until
they leave; whether they will or not, time only can tell.
                                                              H. G. PARKS.

	Under the same date, [October 6th] from the mob camp near De Witt,
eleven blood-thirsty fellows, viz., Congrave Jackson, Larkin H. Woods,
Thomas Jackson, Rolla M. Daviess, James Jackson, Jun., Johnson Jackson,
John L. Tomlin, Sidney S.

	Woods, Geo. Crigler. William L. Banks, and Whitfield Dicken, wrote a
most inflammatory, lying and murderous communication to the citizens of
Howard county, calling upon them as friends and fellow citizens, to come
to their immediate rescue, as the "Mormons" were then firing upon them and
they would have to act on the defensive until they could procure more
assistance.

	A. C. Woods, a citizen of Howard county, made a certificate to the
same lies, which he gathered in the mob camp; he did not go into De Witt,
or take any trouble to learn the truth of what he certified. While the
people will lie and the authorities will uphold them, what justice can
honest men expect?

	Tuesday, October 9.--General Clark wrote the governor from Boonville,
that the names subscribed to the paper named above, are worthy, prudent
and patriotic citizens of Howard county, yet these men would leave their
families and everything dear, and go to a neighboring county to seek the
blood of innocent men, women and children! If this constitutes "worth,
prudence and patriotism," let me be worthless, imprudent and unpatriotic.

	The messenger, Mr. Caldwell, who had been dispatched to the governor
for assistance, returned, but instead of receiving any aid or even
sympathy from his Excellency, we were told that "the quarrel was between
the Mormons and the mob," and that "we might fight it out."

	About this time a mob, commanded by Hyrum Standly, took Smith
Humphrey's goods out of his house, and said Standly set fire to Humphrey's
house and burned it before his eyes, and ordered him to leave the place
forthwith, which he did by fleeing from De Witt to Caldwell county. The
mob had sent to Jackson county and got a cannon, powder and balls, and
bodies of armed men had gathered in, to aid them, from Ray, Saline,
Howard, Livingston, Clinton, Clay, Platte counties and other parts of the
state, and a man by the name of Jackson, from Howard county, was appointed
their leader.

	The Saints were forbidden to go out of the town under pain of death,
and were shot at when they attempted to go out to get food, of which they
were destitute. As fast as their cattle or horses got where the mob could
get hold of them, they were taken as spoil, as also other kinds of
property. By these outrages the brethren were obliged, most of them, to
live in wagons or tents.

	Application had been made to the judge of the Circuit Court for
protection, and he ordered out two companies of militia, one commanded by
Captain Samuel Bogart, a Methodist minister, and one of the worst of the
mobocrats. The whole force was placed under the command of General Parks,
another mobber, if his letter speaks his feelings, and his actions do not
belie him, for he never made the first attempt to disperse the mob, and
when asked the reason of his conduct, he always replied that Bogart and
his company were mutinous and mobocratic, that he dare not attempt a
dispersion of the mob. Two other principal men of the mob were Major
Ashly, member of the Legislature, and Sashiel Woods, a Presbyterian
clergyman.

	General Parks informed us that a greater part of his men under
Captain Bogart had mutinied, and that he would be obliged to draw them off
from the place, for fear they would join the mob; consequently he could
offer us no assistance.

	We had now no hopes whatever of successfully resisting the mob, who
kept constantly increasing; our provisions were entirely exhausted, and we
were worn out by continually standing on guard, and watching the movements
of our enemies, who, during the time I was there, fired at us a great many
times. Some of the brethren perished from starvation ; and for once in my
life, I had the pain of beholding some of my fellow creatures fall victims
to the spirit of persecution, which did then, and has since, prevailed to
such an extent in Upper Missouri. They were men, too, who were virtuous
and against whom no legal process could for one moment be sustained, but
who, in consequence of their love of God, attachment to His cause, and
their determination to keep the faith, were thus brought to an untimely
grave.

	In the meantime Henry Root and David Thomas, who had been the soul
cause of the settlement of our people in De Witt, solicited the Saints to
leave the said he had assurances from the mob, that if they would leave
the place they would not be hurt, and that they would be paid for all
losses which they had sustained, and that they had come as mediators to
accomplish this object, and that persons should be appointed to set a
value on the property which they had to leave, and that they should be
paid for it. The Saints finally, through necessity, had to comply, and
leave the place. Accordingly the committee was appointed--Judge Erickson
was one of the committee, and Major Florey, of Rutsville, another, the
names of others are not remembered. They appraised the real estate, that
was all.

	When the people came to start, many of their horses, oxen and cows
were gone, and could not be found. It was known at the time, and the mob
boasted of it, that they had killed the oxen and lived on them. Many
houses belonging to my brethren were burned, their cattle driven away, and
a great quantity of their property was destroyed by the mob. The people of
De Witt utterly failed to fulfill their pledge to pay the Saints for the
losses they sustained. The governor having turned a deaf ear to our
entreaties, the militia having mutinied, the greater part of them being
ready to join the mob, the brethren, seeing no prospect of relief, came to
the conclusion to leave that place, and seek a shelter elsewhere.
Gathering up as many wagons as could be got ready, which was about
seventy, with a remnant of the property they had been able to save from
their ruthless foes, they left De Witt and started for Caldwell county on
the afternoon of Thursday, October 11, 1838. They traveled that day about
twelve miles, and encamped in a grove of timber near the road.

	That evening a woman, of the name of Jensen, who had some short time
before given birth to a child, died in consequence of the exposure
occasioned by the operations of the mob, and having to move before her
strength would properly admit of it. She was buried in the grove, without
a coffin.

	During our journey we were continually harassed and threatened by the
mob, who shot at us several times, whilst several of our brethren died
from the fatigue and privation which they had to endure, and we had to
inter them by the wayside, without a coffin, and under circumstances the
most distressing. We arrived in Caldwell on the twelfth of October.


                               CHAPTER XII.
          MOVEMENTS OF THE MOB UPON DE WITT--BATTLE OF CROOKED 
              RIVER--EXTERMINATING ORDER OF GOVERNOR BOGGS.

	No sooner had the brethren left De Witt than Sashiel Woods called the
mob together, and made a speech to them to the effect that they must
hasten to assist their friends in Daviess county The land sales, he said
were coming on and if they could get the "Mormons" driven out, they could
get all the lands entitled to pre-emptions, and that they must hasten to
Daviess county in order to accomplish their object; that if they would
join and drive out the Saints, the old settlers could get all the lands
back again, as well as all the pay they had received for them. He assured
the mob that they had nothing to fear from the state authorities in so
doing, for they had now full proof that those authorities would not assist
the "Mormons," and that they [the mob] might as well take their property
from them as not. His proposition was agreed to, and accordingly the whole
banditti started for Daviess county, taking with them their cannon.

	In the meantime, Cornelius William was busily engaged in raising a
mob in Platte and Clinton counties, to aid Woods in his effort to drive
peaceable citizens from their homes and take their property.

	On my arrival in Caldwell, I was informed by General Doniphan, of
Clay county, that a company of mobbers, eight hundred strong, were
marching toward a settlement of our people in Daviess county. He ordered
out one of the officers to raise a force and march immediately to what he
called Wight's Town [Adam-ondi-Ahman], and defend our people from the
attacks of the mob, until he should raise the militia in his [Clay] and
the adjoining counties to put them down. A small company of militia, who
were on their way to Daviess county, and who had passed through Far West,
he ordered back again, stating that they were not to be depended upon, as
many of them were disposed to join the mob, and to use his own expression,
were "damned rotten hearted."

	Sunday, October 14.--I preached to the brethren at Far West from the
saying of the Savior: "Greater love hath no man than this, that he lay
down his life for his brethren." At the close I called upon all that would
stand by me to meet me on the public square the next day.

	There were seven cut off from the Church in Preston, England, this
day. It was a general time of pruning in England. The powers of darkness
raged, and it seemed as though Satan was fully determined to make an end
of the work in that kingdom. Elders Joseph Fielding and Willard Richards
had as much as they could do for some time, to see to the branches already
planted, without planting new ones.

	Monday, October 15.--The brethren assembled on the public square of
Far West and formed a company of about one hundred, who took up a line of
march for Adam-ondi-Ahman. Here let it be distinctly understood that this
company were militia of the county of Caldwell, acting under
Lieutenant-Colonel George M. Hinkle, agreeable to the order of General
Doniphan, and the brethren were very careful in all their movements to act
in strict accordance with the constitutional laws of the land.

	The special object of this march was to protect Adam-ondi-Ahman, and
repel the attacks of the mob in Daviess Having some property in that
county and having a house building there, I went up at the same time.
While I was there a number of houses belonging to our people were burned
by the mob, who committed many other depredations, such as driving off
horses, sheep, cattle, hogs, etc. A number of those whose houses were
burned down, as well as those who lived in scattered and lonely
situations, fled into the town for safety, and for shelter from the
inclemency of the weather, as a considerable snowstorm took place on the
17th and 18th. Women and children, some in the most delicate condition,
were thus obliged to leave their homes and travel several miles in order
to effect their escape. My feelings were such as I cannot describe when I
saw them flock into the village, almost entirely destitute of clothes, and
only escaping with their lives.

	During this state of affairs, General Parks arrived in Daviess
county, and was at the house of Colonel Lyman Wight on the 18th, when the
intelligence was brought that the mob were burning houses; and also when
women and children were fleeing for safety, among whom was Agnes M. Smith,
wife of my brother, Don Carlos Smith, who was absent on a mission in
Tennessee. Her house had been plundered and burned by the mob, and she had
traveled nearly three miles, carrying her two helpless babes, and had to
wade Grand river.


	Colonel Wight, who held a commission in the 59th regiment under his
(General Parks') command, asked what was to be done. Parks told him that
he must immediately call out his men and go and put the mob down.
Accordingly a force was immediately raised for the purpose of quelling the
mob, and in a short time was on its march, with a determination to
disperse the mob, or die in the attempt; as the people could bear such
treatment as was being inflicted upon them no longer.

	The mob, having learned the orders of General Parks, and likewise
being aware of the determination of the oppressed, broke up their
encampment and fled. The mob seeing that they could not succeed by force,
now resorted to strategem; and after removing their property out of their
houses, which were nothing but log cabins, they fired them, and then
reported to the authorities of the state that the Mormons" were burning
and destroying all before them.

	Friday, October 19.--Elder William Clayton quitted his temporal
business in England, and gave himself wholly to the ministry, and soon
commenced preaching and baptizing in Manchester.

	As I was driven away from Kirtland without the privilege of settling
my business, I had, previous to this, employed Colonel Oliver Granger as
my agent, to close all my affairs in the east, and as I have been accused
of "running away, cheating my creditors, etc., I will insert one of the
many cards and letters I have received from gentlemen who have had the
best opportunity of knowing my business transactions, and whose testimony
comes unsolicited:

                                 A Card.

                                             PAINSVILLE, October 19, 1838.

	We, the undersigned, being personal acquaintances of Oliver Granger,
firmly believe that the course which he has pursued in settling the
claims, accounts, etc., against the former citizens of Kirtland township,
has done much credit to himself, and all others that committed to him the
care of adjusting their business with this community, which also furnishes
evidence that there was no intention on their part of defrauding their
creditors.

                                 [Signed]
                                                          THOMAS GRIFFITH,
                                                          JOHN S. SEYMOUR.

	About this time William Morgan, sheriff of Daviess county, Samuel
Bogart, Colonel William P. Penniston, Doctor Samuel Venable, Jonathan J.
Dryden, James Stone and Thomas J. Martin, made communications or
affidavits of the most inflammatory kind, charging upon the "Mormons"
those depredations which had been committed by the mob, endeavoring
thereby to raise the anger of those in authority, rallying a sufficient
force around their standard, and produce a total overthrow, massacre, or
banishment of the "Mormons" from the state. These and their associates
were the ones who fired their own houses and then fled the country crying
"fire and murder."

	It was reported in Far West today [October 19th] that Orson Hyde had
left that place, the night previous, leaving a letter for one of the
brethren, which would develop the secret.

	Monday, 22.--On the retreat of the mob from Daviess county, I
returned to Caldwell, with a company of the brethren, and arrived at Far
West about seven in the evening, where I had hoped to enjoy some respite
from our enemies, at least for a short time; but upon my arrival there, I
was informed that a mob had commenced hostilities on the borders of
Caldwell county, adjoining Ray county, and that they had taken some of our
brethren prisoners, burned some houses, and had committed depredations on
the peaceable inhabitants.

	Tuesday, 23.--News came to Far West, this morning, that the brethren
had found the cannon, which the mob brought from Independence, buried in
the earth and had secured it by order of General Parks. The word of the
Lord was given several months since, for the Saints to gather into the
cities but they have been slow to obey until the judgments were upon them,
and now they are gathering by flight and haste, leaving all their effects,
and are glad to get off at that. The city of Far West is literally
crowded, and the brethren are gathering from all quarters.

	Fourteen citizens of Ray county, one of whom was a Mr. Hudgins, a
postmaster, wrote the governor an inflammatory epistle. Thomas C. Burch,
of Richmond wrote a similar communication. Also the citizens of Ray
county, in public meeting, appealed to the governor of the state, to give
the people of Upper Missouri protection from the fearful body of "thieves
and robbers;" while the fact is the Saints were minding their own
business, only as they were driven from it by those who were crying
thieves and robbers.

	The mail came in this evening, but not a single letter to anybody,
from which it is evident there is no deposit sacred to those marauders who
are infesting the country and trying to destroy the Saints.

	Wednesday, 24.--Austin A. King and Adam Black renewed their
inflammatory communications to the governor, as did other citizens of
Richmond, viz., C. R. Morehead, William Thornton, and Jacob Gudgel, who
scrupled at no falsehood or exaggeration, to raise the governor's anger
against us.

	Thomas B. Marsh, formerly president of the Twelve, having
apostatized, repaired to Richmond and made affidavit before Henry Jacobs,
justice of the peace, to all the vilest slanders, aspersions, lies and
calumnies towards myself and the Church, that his wicked heart could
invent. He had been lifted up in pride by his exaltation to office and the
revelations of heaven concerning him, until he was ready to be overthrown
by the first adverse wind that should cross his track, and now he has
fallen, lied and sworn falsely, and is ready to take the lives of his best
friends. Let all men take warning by him, and learn that he who exalteth
himself, God will abase. Orson Hyde was also at Richmond and testified to
most of Marsh's statements.

	The following letter, being a fair specimen of the "truth and
honesty" of many others which I shall notice, I give it in full:

          Communication of Woods and Dickson to Governor Boggs.

                                    CARROLTON, MISSOURI, October 24, 1838.

	Sir.--We were informed, last night, by an express from Ray county,
that Captain Bogart and all his company, amounting to between fifty and
sixty men were massacred by the Mormons at Buncombe, twelve miles north of
Richmond, except three. This statement you may rely on as being true, and
last night they expected Richmond to be laid in ashes this morning. We
could distinctly hear cannon, and we know the Mormons had one in their
possession. Richmond is about twenty-five miles west of this place, on a
straight line. We know not the hour or minute we will be laid in
ashes--our country is ruined--for God's sake give us assistance as quick
as possible.
								Yours, etc.,
                                                            SASHIEL WOODS,
                                                           JOSEPH DICKSON.

	These mobbers must have had very accute ears to hear cannon, (a six
pounder) thirty-seven miles! So much for the lies of a priest of this
world. Now for the truth of the case. This day about noon, Captain Bogart,
with some thirty or forty men called on Brother Thoret Parsons, at the
head of the east branch of Log creek, where he was living, and warned him
to be gone before next day at ten in the morning, declaring also that he
would give Far West thunder and lightning before next day at noon, if he
had good luck in meeting Neil Gillum, (Cornelius Gilliam) who would camp
about six miles west of Far West that night, and that he should camp on
Crooked creek. He then departed towards Crooked creek.

	Brother Parsons dispatched a messenger with this news to Far West,
and followed after Bogart to watch his movements. Brothers Joseph Holbrook
and David Juda, who went out this morning to watch the movements of the
enemy, saw eight armed mobbers call at the house of Brother Pinkham, where
they took three prisoners, Nathan Pinkham, Brothers William Seely and
Addison Green, and four horses, arms, etc. When departing they threatened
Father Pinkham that if he did not leave the state immediately they "would
have his damned old scalp." Having learned of Bogart's movements the
brethren returned to Far West near midnight, and reported their
proceedings and those of the mob.

	On hearing the report, Judge Elias Higbee, the first judge of the
county, ordered Lieutenant Colonel Hinkle, the highest officer in command
in Far West, to send out a company to disperse the mob and retake their
prisoners, whom, it was reported, they intended to murder that night. The
trumpet sounded, and the brethren were assembled on the public square
about midnight, when the facts were stated, and about seventy-five
volunteered to obey the judge's order, under command of Captain David W.
Patten, who immediately commenced their march on horseback, hoping without
the loss of blood to surprise and scatter the camp, retake the prisoners
and prevent the attack threatening Far West.

	Thursday, 25.--Fifteen of the company were detached from the main
body while sixty continued their march till they arrived near the ford of
Crooked river, (or creek) where they dismounted, tied their horses, and
leaving four or five men to guard them, proceeded towards the ford, not
knowing the location of the encampment. It was just at the dawning of
light in the east, when they were marching quietly along the road, and
near the top of the hill which descends to the river that the report of a
gun was heard, and young Patrick O'Banion reeled out of the ranks and fell
mortally wounded. Thus the work of death commenced, when Captain Patten
ordered a charge and rushed down the hill on a fast trot, and when within
about fifty yards of the camp formed a line. The mob formed a line under
the bank of the river, below their tents. It was yet so dark that little
could be seen by looking at the west, while the mob looking towards the
dawning light, could see Patten and his men, when they fired a broadside,
and three or four of the brethren fell. Captain Patten ordered the fire
returned, which was instantly obeyed, to great disadvantage in the
darkness which yet continued. The fire was repeated by the mob, and
returned by Captain Patten's company, who gave the watchword "God and
Liberty." Captain Patten then ordered a charge, which was instantly
obeyed. The parties immediately came in contact, with their swords, and
the mob were soon put to flight, crossing the river at the ford and such
places as they could get a chance. In the pursuit, one of the mob fled
from behind a tree, wheeled, and shot Captain Patten, who instantly fell,
mortally wounded, having received a large ball in his bowels.

	The ground was soon cleared, and the brethren gathered up a wagon or
two, and making beds therein of tents, etc, took their wounded and
retreated towards Far West. Three brethren were wounded in the bowels, one
in the neck, one in the shoulder, one through the hips, one through both
thighs, one in the arms, all by musket shot. One had his arm broken by a
sword. Brother Gideon Carter was shot in the head, and left dead on the
ground so defaced that the brethren did not know him. Bogart reported that
he had lost one man. The three prisoners were released and returned with
the brethren to Far West. Captain Patten was carried some of the way in a
litter, but it caused so much distress that he begged to be left by the
way side. He was carried into Brother Winchester's, three miles from the
city of Far West, where he died that night. Patrick O'Banion died soon
after, and Brother Carter's body was also brought from Crooked river, when
it was discovered who he was.

	I went with my brother Hyrum and Lyman Wight to meet the brethren on
their return, near Log creek, where I saw Captain Patten in a most
distressing condition. His wound was incurable.

	Brother David Patten was a very worthy man, beloved by all good men
who knew him. He was one of the Twelve Apostles, and died as he had lived,
a man of God, and strong in the faith of a glorious resurrection, in a
world where mobs will have no power or place. One of his last expressions
to his wife was--"Whatever you do else, do not deny the faith."

	How different his fate to that of the apostate, Thomas B. Marsh, who
this day vented all the lying spleen and malice of his heart towards the
work of God, in a letter to Brother and Sister Abbot, to which was annexed
an addenda by Orson Hyde.

	The following letter will show the state of public feeling in the
country at this time:

           E. M. Ryland's Letter to Messrs. Rees and Williams.

                                             LEXINGTON, six o'clock p. m.,
                                                         October 25, 1838.

	To Messrs. Amos Rees and Wiley C. Williams:

	GENTLEMEN:--This letter is sent on after you on express by Mr.
Bryant, of Ray county, since you left this morning. Mr. C. R. Morehead
came here on express for men to assist in repelling a threatened attack
upon Richmond tonight. He brought news that the Mormon armed force had
attacked Captain Bogart this morning at daylight, and had cut off his
whole company of fifty men. Since Mr. Morehead left Richmond, one of the
company (Bogart's) has come in and reported that there were ten of his
comrades killed and the remainder were taken prisoners, after many of them
had been severely wounded; he stated further that Richmond would be sacked
and burned by the Mormon banditts tonight. Nothing can exceed the
consternation which this news gave rise to. The women and children are
flying from Richmond in every direction. A number of them have repaired to
Lexington, amongst whom is Mrs. Rees. We will have sent from this county
since one o'clock this evening about one hundred well-armed and daring
men, perhaps the most effective our county can boast of. They will
certainly give them (the Mormons) a warm reception at Richmond tonight.
You will see the necessity of hurrying on to the City of Jefferson, and
also of imparting correct information to the public as you go along. My
impression is, that you had better send one of your number to Howard,
Cooper and Boone counties, in order that volunteers may be getting ready
and flocking to the scene of trouble as fast as possible. They must make
haste and put a stop to the devastation which is menaced by these
infuriated fanatics, and they must go prepared and with the full
determination to exterminate or expel them from the state en masse.
Nothing but this can give tranquility to the public mind, and re-establish
the supremacy of the laws. There must be no further delaying with this
question any where. The Mormons must leave the state, or we will, one and
all, and to this complexion it must come at last. We have great reliance
upon your ability, discretion and fitness for the task you have
undertaken, and we have only time to say, God speed you.
						Yours truly,
								E. M. RYLAND, Judge.

	The brethren had not thought of going to Richmond--it was a lie out
of whole cloth.

             Governor Boggs' Order to General John B. Clark.

                                      FRIDAY, HEADQUARTERS OF THE MILITIA,
                                       CITY OF JEFFERSON October 26, 1838.

	General John B. Clark, 1st Division Missouri Militia:

	SIR:--Application has been made to the commander-in-chief, by the
citizens of Daviess county, in this state, for protection, and to be
restored to their homes and property, with intelligence that the Mormons,
with an armed force, have expelled the inhabitants of that county from
their homes, have pillaged and burnt their dwellings, driven off their
stock, and were destroying their crops; that they (the Mormons) have burnt
to ashes the towns of Gallatin and Millport in said county; the former
being the county seat of said county, and including the clerk's office and
all the public records of the county, and that there is not now a civil
officer within said county. The commander-in-chief therefore orders that
there be raised, from the 1st, 4th, 5th, 6th and 12th Divisions of the
militia of this state, four hundred men each, to be mounted and armed as
Infantry or Riflemen, each man to furnish himself with at least fifty
rounds of ammunition, and at least fifteen days provisions. The troops
from the 1st, 5th, 6th and 12th, will rendezvous at Fayette, in Howard
county, on Saturday, the 3rd day of next month (November) at Which point
they will receive further instructions as to their line of march. You will
therefore cause to be raised the quota of men required of your division
(four hundred men) without delay, either by volunteer or drafts, and
rendezvous at Fayette, in Howard county, on Saturday, the third day of
next month (November) and there join the troops from the 5th, 6th and 12th
divisions. The troops from the 4th division will join you at Richmond in
Ray county. You will cause the troops raised in your division, to be
formed into companies according to law, and placed under officers already
in commission. If volunteer companies are raised, they shall elect their
own officers. The preference should always be given to volunteer companies
already organized and commissioned. You will also detail the necessary
field and staff officers. For the convenience of transporting the camp
equipage, provisions and hospital stores for the troops under your
command, you are authorized to employ two or three baggage wagons. By
order of the Commander-in-Chief,
                                                 B. M LISLE, Adj.-General.

Letters of Horace Kingsbury and John W. Hawden on the Business Integrity
of the Prophet and his Agents in Kirtland.

     	To all persons that are or may be interested. I, Horace
     Kingsbury, of Painsville township, Geauga county, and state of Ohio,
     feeling the importance of recommending to remembrance every worthy
     citizen who has by his conduct commended himself to personal
     acquaintance by his course of strict integrity, and desire for truth
     and common justice, feel it my duty to state that Oliver Granger's
     management in the arrangement of the unfinished business of people
     that have moved to the Far West, in redeeming their pledges and
     thereby sustaining their integrity, has been truly praiseworthy, and
     has entitled him to my highest esteem, and ever grateful
     recollection.
                                                         HORACE KINGSBURY.
                                            Painesville, October 26, 1838.

     	To whom it may concern. This may certify that during the year of
     eighteen hundred and thirty-seven, I had dealings with Messrs. Joseph
     Smith, Junior, and Sidney Rigdon. together with other members of the
     [Mormon] society, to the amount of about three thousand dollars, and
     during the spring of eighteen hundred and thirty-eight, I have
     received my pay in full of Colonel Oliver Granger to my satisfaction.
     And I would here remark that it is due Messrs. Smith and Rigdon, and
     the [Mormon] society generally, to say that they have ever dealt
     honorably and fair with me, and I have received as good treatment
     from them as I have received from any other society in this vicinity;
     and so far as I have been correctly informed and made acquainted with
     their business transactions generally, they have, so far as I can
     judge, been honorable and honest, and have made every exertion to
     arrange and settle their affairs. And I would further state, that the
     closing up of my business with said society has been with their
     agent, Colonel Granger, appointed by them for that purpose; and I
     consider it highly due Colonel Granger from me, here to state that he
     has acted truly and honestly in all his business with me, and has
     accomplished more than I could reasonably have expected. And I have
     also been made acquainted with his business in that section; and
     wherever he has been called upon to act, he has done so and with good
     management he has accomplished and effected the close of a large
     amount of business for said society, and as I believe, to the entire
     satisfaction of all concerned.
                                                           JOHN W. HAWDEN.

	Painesville, Geauga county, Ohio, October 27, 1838.

	Saturday, 27.--Brother Patten was buried this day at Far West, and
before the funeral, I called at Brother Patten's house, and while
meditating on the scene before me in presence of his friends, I could not
help pointing to his lifeless body and testifying, "There lies a man that
has done just as he said he would--he has laid down his life for his
friends."

                   Governor Boggs' Exterminating Order.

                                  HEADQUARTERS MILITIA, CITY OF JEFFERSON,
                                                         October 27, 1838.

	SIR,--Since the order of the morning to you, directing you to cause
four hundred mounted men to be raised within your division, I have
received by Amos Rees, Esq., and Wiley C. Williams, Esq., one of my aids,
information of the most appalling character, which changes the whole face
of things, and places the Mormons in the attitude of open and avowed
defiance of the laws, and of having made open war upon the people of this
state. Your orders are, therefore, to hasten your operations and endeavor
to reach Richmond, in Ray county, with all possible speed. The Mormons
must be treated as enemies and must be exterminated or driven from the
state, if necessary for the public good. Their outrages are beyond all
description. If you can increase your force, you are authorized to do so,
to any extent you may think necessary. I have just issued orders to
Major-General Wallock, of Marion county, to raise five hundred men, and to
march them to the northern part of Daviess and there to unite with General
Doniphan, of Clay, who has been ordered with five hundred men to proceed
to the same point for the purpose of intercepting the retreat of the
Mormons to the north. They have been directed to communicate with you by
express; and you can also communicate with them if you find it necessary.
Instead, therefore, of proceeding as at first directed, to reinstate the
citizens of Daviess in their homes, you will proceed immediately to
Richmond, and there operate against the Mormons. Brigadier-General Parks,
of Ray, has been ordered to have four hundred men of his brigade in
readiness to join You at Richmond. The whole force will be placed under
your command.

                                                              L. W. BOGGS,
                                          Governor and Commander-in-Chief.

	To General Clark.

	Great excitement now prevailed, and mobs were heard of in every
direction, who seemed determined on our destruction. They burned the
houses in the country, and took off all the cattle they could find. They
destroyed corn fields, took many prisoners, and threatened death to all
the Mormons.

The Appeal of Atchison and Lucas to Governor Boggs, Asking his Presence at
the seat of War.

                        HEADQUARTERS OF THE 3RD AND 4TH DIVISION, MISSOURI
                                      MILITIA, RICHMOND, October 28, 1838.

	To the Commander-in-Chief, Missouri Militia:

	SIR:--From late outrages committed by the Mormons, civil war is
inevitable. They have set the laws of the country at defiance, and are in
open rebellion. We have about two thousand men under arms to keep them in
check. The presence of the commander-in-chief is deemed absolutely
necessary, and we most respectfully urge that your excellency be at the
seat of war as soon as possible. Your most obedient servants,
						DAVID R. ATCHISON, M. G. 3rd Div.
						SAMUEL D. LUCAS, M. G. 4th Div.


                              CHAPTER XIII.
MOB MOVEMENTS ON FAR WEST--TREACHERY OF COLONEL HINKLE--SORROWFUL SCENES.

	LILBURN W. BOGGS had become so hardened by mobbing the Saints in
Jackson county, and his conscience so "seared as with a hot iron," that he
was considered a fit subject for the gubernatorial chair; and it was
probably his hatred to truth and the "Mormons," and his blood-thirsty,
murderous disposition, that raised him to the station he occupied. His
exterminating order of the twenty-seventh aroused every spirit in the
state, of the like stamp of his own; and the Missouri mobocrats were
flocking to the standard of General Clark from almost every quarter.

	Clark, although not the ranking officer, was selected by Governor
Boggs as the most fit instrument to carry out his murderous designs; for
bad as they were in Missouri, very few commanding officers were get
sufficiently hardened to go all lengths with Boggs in this contemplated
inhuman butchery, and expulsion from one of the should-be free and
independent states of the Republic of North America, where the
Constitution declares, that "every man shall have the privilege of
worshiping God according to the dictates of his own conscience; " and this
was all the offense the Saints had been guilty of.

	And here I would state, that while the evil spirits were raging up
and down in the state to raise mobs against the "Mormons," Satan himself
was no less busy in striving to stir up mischief in the camp of the
Saints: and among the most conspicuous of his willing devotees was one
Doctor Sampson Avard, who had been in the Church but a short time, and
who, although he had generally behaved with a tolerable degree of external
decorum, was secretly aspiring to be the greatest of the great, and become
the leader of the people. This was his pride and his folly, but as he had
no hopes of accomplishing it by gaining the hearts of the people openly he
watched his opportunity with the brethren--at a time when mobs oppressed,
robbed, whipped, burned, plundered and slew, till forbearance seemed no
longer a virtue, and nothing but the grace of God without measure could
support men under such trials--to form a secret combination by which he
might rise a mighty conqueror, at the expense and the overthrow of the
Church. This he tried to accomplish by his smooth, flattering, and winning
speeches, which he frequently made to his associates, while his room was
well guarded by some of his followers, ready to give him the signal on the
approach of anyone who would not approve of his measures.

	In these proceedings he stated that he had the sanction of the heads
of the Church for what he was about to do; and by his smiles and flattery,
persuaded them to believe it, and proceeded to administer to the few under
his control, an oath, binding them to everlasting secrecy to everything
which should be communicated to them by himself. Thus Avard initiated
members into his band, firmly binding them, by all that was sacred, in the
protecting of each other in all things that were lawful; and was careful
to picture out a great glory that was then hovering over the Church, and
would soon burst upon the Saints as a cloud by day, and a pillar of fire
by night, and would soon unveil the slumbering mysteries of heaven, which
would gladden the hearts and arouse the stupid spirits of the Saints of
the latter-day, and fill their hearts with that love which is unspeakable
and full of glory, and arm them with power, that the gates of hell could
not prevail against them; and would often affirm to his company that the
principal men of the Church had put him forward as a spokesman, and a
leader of this band, which he named Danites.

	Thus he duped many, which gave him the opportunity of figuring as a
person of importance. He held his meetings daily, and carried on his
crafty work in great haste, to prevent mature reflection upon the matter
by his followers, until he had them bound under the penalties of death to
keep the secrets and certain signs of the organization by which they were
to know each other by day or night.

	After those performances, he held meetings to organize his men into
companies of tens and fifties, appointing a captain over each company.
After completing this organization, he went on to teach the members of it
their duty under the orders of their captains; he then called his captains
together and taught them in a secluded place, as follows:

                  Avard's Instructions to His Captains.

     	My brethren, as you have been chosen to be our leading men, our
     captains to rule over this last kingdom of Jesus Christ--and you have
     been organized after the ancient order--I have called upon you here
     today to teach you, and instruct you in the things that pertain to
     your duty, and to show you what your privileges are, and what they
     soon will be. Know ye not, brethren, that it soon will be your
     privilege to take your respective companies and go out on a scout on
     the borders of the settlements, and take to yourselves spoils of the
     goods of the ungodly Gentiles? for it is written, the riches of the
     Gentiles shall be consecrated to my people, the house of Israel; and
     thus you will waste away the Gentiles by robbing and plundering them
     of their property; and in this way we will build up the kingdom of
     God, and roll forth the little stone that Daniel saw cut out of the
     mountain without hands and roll forth until it filled the whole
     earth. For this is the very way that God destines to build up his
     kingdom in the last days. If any us should be recognized, who can
     harm us? for we will stand by each other and defend one another in
     all things. If our enemies swear against us, we can swear also. [The
     captains were confounded at this, but Avard continued]. Why do you
     startle at this, brethren? As the Lord liveth, I would swear to a lie
     to clear any of you; and if this would not do, I would put them or
     him under the sand as Moses did the Egyptian, and in this way we will
     consecrate much unto the Lord, and build up His Kingdom; and who can
     stand against us? And if any of us transgress, we will deal with him
     amongst ourselves. And if any one of this Danite society reveals any
     of these things, I will put him where the dogs cannot bite him.

	At this lecture all of the officers revolted, and said it would not
do, they would not go into any such measures, and it would not do to name
any such thing; "such proceedings would be in open violation of the laws
of our country, would be robbing our fellow citizens of their rights, and
are not according to the language and doctrine of Christ, or of the Church
of Latter-day Saints."

	Avard replied, and said there was no laws that were executed in
justice, and he cared not for them, this being a different dispensation, a
dispensation of the fullness of times; in this dispensation he learned
from the Scriptures that the kingdom of God was to put down all other
kingdoms, and the Lord Himself was to reign, and His laws alone were the
laws that would exist.

	Avard's teachings were still manfully rejected by all. Avard then
said that they had better drop the subject, although he had received his
authority from Sidney Rigdon the evening before. The meeting then broke
up; the eyes of those present were opened, Avard's craft was no longer in
the dark, and but very little confidence was placed in him, even by the
warmest of the members of his Danite scheme.

	When a knowledge of Avard's rascality came to the Presidency of the
Church, he was cutoff from the Church, and every means proper used to
destroy his influence, at which he was highly incensed and went about
whispering his evil insinuations, but finding every effort unavailing, he
again turned conspirator, and sought to make friends with the mob.

	And here let it be distinctly understood, that these companies of
tens and fifties got up by Avard, were altogether separate and distinct
from those companies of tens and fifties organized by the brethren for
self defense, in case of an attack from the mob. This latter organization
was called into existence more particularly that in this time of alarm no
family or person might be neglected; therefore, one company would be
engaged in drawing wood, another in cutting it, another in gathering corn,
another in grinding another in butchering, another in distributing meat,
etc., etc., so that all should be employed in turn, and no one lack the
necessaries of life. Therefore, let no one hereafter, by mistake or
design, confound this organization of the Church for good and righteous
purposes, with the organization of the "Danites," of the apostate Avard,
which died almost before it had existed.

	The mob began to encamp at Richmond on the twenty-sixth, and by this
time amounted to about two thousand ready to fulfill the exterminating
order, and join the standard of the governor. They took up a line of march
for Far West, traveling but part way, where they encamped for the night.

	Tuesday, October 30.--The advance guard of the mob were patrolling
the country and taking many prisoners, among whom were Brother Stephen
Winchester, and Brother Carey, whose skull they laid open by a blow from a
rifle barrel. In this mangled condition, the mob laid him in their wagon
and went on their way, denying him every comfort, and thus he remained
that afternoon and night.

	General Clark was in camp at Chariton under a forced march to
Richmond, with about a thousand men, and the governor's exterminating
order.

	For the history of this day at Haun's Mills, on Shoal creek, I quote
the following affidavit of Elder Joseph Young, First President of the
Seventies:

        Joseph Young's Narrative of the Massacre at Haun's Mills.

     	On the sixth day of July last, I started with my family from
     Kirtland, Ohio, for the state of Missouri, the county of Caldwell, in
     the upper part of the state, being the place of my destination.

     	On the thirteenth day of October I crossed the Mississippi at
     Louisiana, at which place I heard vague reports of the disturbances
     in the upper country, but nothing that could be relied upon. I
     continued my course westward till I crossed Grand river, at a place
     called Compton's Ferry, at which place I heard, for the first time,
     that if I proceeded any farther on my journey, I would be in danger
     of being stopped by a body of armed men. I was not willing, however,
     while treading my native soil, and breathing republican air, to
     abandon my object, which was to locate myself and family in a fine,
     healthy country, where we could enjoy the society of our friends and
     connections. Consequently, I prosecuted my journey till I came to
     Whitney's Mills, situated on Shoal creek, in the eastern part of
     Caldwell county.

     	After crossing the creek and going about three miles, we met a
     party of the mob, about forty in number, armed with rifles, and
     mounted on horses, who informed us that we could go no farther west,
     threatening us with instant death if we proceeded any farther. I
     asked them the reason of this prohibition; to which they replied,
     that we were "Mormons;" that everyone who adhered to our religious
     faith, would have to leave the state in ten days, or renounce their
     religion. Accordingly they drove us back to the mills above
     mentioned.

     	Here we tarried three days; and, on Friday, the twenty-sixth, we
     re-crossed the creek, and following up its banks, we succeeded in
     eluding the mob for the time being, and gained the residence of a
     friend in Myer's settlement.

     	On Sunday, twenty-eighth October, we arrived about twelve
     o'clock, at Haun's Mills, where we found a number of our friends
     collected together, who were holding a council, and deliberating on
     the best course for them to pursue, to defend themselves against the
     mob, who were collecting in the neighborhood under the command of
     Colonel Jennings of Livingston county, and threatening them with
     house burning and killing. The decision of the council was, that our
     friends there should place themselves in an attitude of self defense.
     Accordingly about twenty-eight of our men armed themselves, and were
     in constant readiness for an attack of any small body of men that
     might come down upon them.

     	The same evening, for some reason best known to themselves the
     mob sent one of their number to enter into a treaty with our friends,
     which was accepted, on the condition of mutual forbearance on both
     sides, and that each party, as far as their influence extended,
     should exert themselves to prevent any further hostilities upon
     either party.

     	At this time, however, there was another mob collecting on Grand
     river, at William Mann's, who were threatening us, consequently we
     remained under arms.

     	Monday passed away without molestation from any quarter.

     	On Tuesday, the 30th, that bloody tragedy was acted, the scene
     of which I shall never forget. More than three-fourths of the day had
     passed in tranquility, as smiling as the preceding one. I think there
     was no individual of our company that was apprised of the sudden and
     awful fate that hung over our heads like an overwhelming torrent,
     which was to change the prospects, the feelings and the circumstances
     of about thirty families. The banks of Shoal creek on either side
     teemed with children sporting and playing, while their mothers were
     engaged in domestic employments, and their fathers employed in
     guarding the mills and other property, while others were engaged in
     gathering in their crops for their winter consumption. The weather
     was very pleasant, the sun shone clear, all was tranquil, and no one
     expressed any apprehension of the awful crisis that was near us--even
     at our doors.

     	It was about four o'clock, while sitting in my cabin with my
     babe in my arms, and my wife standing by my side, the door being
     open, I cast my eyes on the opposite bank of Shoal creek and saw a
     large company of armed men, on horses, directing their course towards
     the mills with all possible speed. As they advanced through the
     scattering trees that stood on the edge of the prairie they seemed to
     form themselves into a three square position, forming a vanguard in
     front.

     	At this moment, David Evans, seeing the superiority of their
     numbers, (there being two hundred and forty of them, according to
     their own account), swung his hat, and cried for peace. This not
     being heeded, they continued to advance, and their leader, Mr.
     Nehemiah Comstock, fired a gun, which was followed by a solemn pause
     of ten or twelve seconds, when, all at once, they discharged about
     one hundred rifles, aiming at a blacksmith shop into which our
     friends had fled for safety; and charged up to the shop, the cracks
     of which between the logs were sufficiently large to enable them to
     aim directly at the bodies of those who had there fled for refuge
     from the fire of their murderers. There were several families tented
     in the rear of the shop, whose lives were exposed, and amidst a
     shower of bullets fled to the woods in different directions.

     	After standing and gazing on this bloody scene for a few
     minutes, and finding myself in the uttermost danger, the bullets
     having reached the house where I was living, I committed my family to
     the protection of heaven, and leaving the house on the opposite side,
     I took a path which led up the hill, following in the trail of three
     of my brethren that had fled from the shop. While ascending the hill
     we were discovered by the mob, who immediately fired at us, and
     continued so to do till we reached the summit. In descending the
     hill, I secreted myself in a thicket of bushes, where I lay till
     eight o'clock in the evening, at which time I heard a female voice
     calling my name in an under tone, telling me that the mob had gone
     and there was no danger. I immediately left the thicket, and went to
     the house of Benjamin Lewis, where I found my family (who had fled
     there) in safety, and two of my friends mortally wounded, one of whom
     died before morning. Here we passed the painful night in deep and
     awful reflections on the scenes of the preceding evening.

     	After daylight appeared, some four or five men, who with myself,
     had escaped with our lives from the horrid massacre, and who repaired
     as soon as possible to the mills, to learn the condition of our
     friends, whose fate we had but too truly anticipated. When we arrived
     at the house of Mr. Haun, we found Mr. Merrick's body lying in the
     rear of the house, Mr. McBride's in front, literally mangled from
     head to foot. We were informed by Miss Rebecca Judd, who was an eye
     witness, that he was shot with his own gun, after he had given it up,
     and then cut to pieces with a corn cutter by a Mr. Rogers of Daviess
     county, who keeps a ferry on Grand river, and who has since
     repeatedly boasted of this act of savage barbarity. Mr. York's body
     we found in the house, and after viewing these corpses, we
     immediately went to the blacksmith's shop, where we found nine of our
     friends, eight of whom were already dead; the other, Mr. Cox, of
     Indiana, struggling in the agonies of death and soon expired. We
     immediately prepared and carried them to the place of interment. The
     last office of kindness due to the remains of departed friends, was
     not attended with the customary ceremonies or decency, for we were in
     jeopardy, every moment expecting to be fired upon by the mob, who, we
     supposed, were lying in ambush, waiting for the first opportunity to
     despatch the remaining few who were providentially preserved from the
     slaughter of the preceding day. However, we accomplished without
     molestation this painful task. The place of burying was a vault in
     the ground, formerly intended for a well, into which we threw the
     bodies of our friends promiscuously. Among those slain I will mention
     Sardius Smith, son of Warren Smith, about nine years old, who,
     through fear, had crawled under the bellows in the shop, where he
     remained till the massacre was over, when he was discovered by a Mr.
     Glaze, of Carroll county, who presented his rifle near the boy's
     head, and literally blowed off the upper part of it. Mr. Stanley, of
     Carroll, told me afterwards that Glaze boasted of this fiend-like
     murder and heroic deed all over the country.

     	The number killed and mortally wounded in this wanton slaughter
     was eighteen or nineteen, whose names as far as I recollect were as
     follows: Thomas McBride, Levi N. Merrick, Elias Benner, Josiah
     Fuller, Benjamin Lewis, Alexander Campbell, Warren Smith Sardius
     Smith, George S. Richards, Mr. William Napier, Augustine Harmer,
     Simon Cox, Mr. [Hiram] Abbott, John York, Charles Merrick, (a boy
     eight or nine nears old), [John Lee, John Byers], and three or four
     others, whose names I do not recollect, as they were strangers, to
     me. Among the wounded who recovered were Isaac Laney, Nathan K.
     Knight, Mr. [William] Yokum, two brothers by the name of [Jacob and
     George] Myers, Tarlton Lewis, Mr. [Jacob] Haun, and several others,
     [Jacob Foutz, Jacob Potts, Charles Jimison, John Walker, Alma Smith,
     aged about nine years]. Miss Mary Stedwell, while fleeing, was shot
     through the hand, and, fainting, fell over a log, into which they
     shot upwards of twenty balls.

     	To finish their work of destruction, this band of murderers,
     composed of men from Daviess, Livingston, Ray, Carroll, and Chariton
     counties, led by some of the principal men of that section of the
     upper country, (among whom I am informed were Mr. Ashby, of Chariton,
     member of the state legislature; Colonel Jennings, of Livingston
     county, Thomas O. Bryon, clerk of Livingston county; Mr. Whitney, Dr.
     Randall, and many others), proceeded to rob the houses, wagons, and
     tents, of bedding and clothing; drove off horses and wagons, leaving
     widows and orphans destitute of the necessaries of life; and even
     stripped the clothing from the bodies of the slain. According to
     their own account, they fired seven rounds in this awful butchery,
     making upwards of sixteen hundred shots at a little company of men,
     about thirty in number. I hereby certify the above to be a true
     statement of facts, according to the best of my knowledge.
                                                             JOSEPH YOUNG.

	STATE OF ILLINOIS, )
	COUNTY OF ADAMS.   ) ss.

     	I hereby certify that Joseph Young this day came before me, and
     made oath in due form of law, that the statements contained in the
     foregoing sheet are true, according to the best of his knowledge and
     belief. In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and affixed
     the seal of the Circuit Court at Quincy, this fourth day of June, in
     the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and thirty-nine.
						C. M. WOODS,
								Clerk Circuit Court, Adams Co.,
Ill.

	A younger brother of the boy here killed, aged eight, was shot
through the hip. The little fellow himself states that seeing his father
and brother both killed, he thought they would shoot him again if he
stirred, and so feigned himself dead, and lay perfectly still, till he
heard his mother call him after dark.

	Nathan K. Knight saw a Missourian cut down Father McBride with a
corn-cutter, and also saw them stripping the dying, and heard the boys
crying for mercy. Brother Knight made his escape across the mill-dam,
after receiving wounds through his lungs and finger. After the massacre
was over, he was led to a house by a woman, and whilst lying there wounded
he heard Mr. Jesse Maupin say that he blew one of the boys' brains out.
Some time later whilst walking the streets of Far West Brother Knight was
met by three Missourians who threatened to butcher him, and one of them by
the name of Rogers drew a butcher knife, and said that he had not got his
corn-cutter with him, that he cut down McBride with, "but by ------ I have
got something that will do as well:" but by a great chance Brother Knight
made his escape from the ruffian.

	General Atchison withdrew from the army at Richmond as soon as the
governor's extermination order was received. Up to this time we were
ignorant at Far West of the movements of the mob at Richmond, and the
governor's order of extermination.

	On the 30th of October a large company of armed soldiers were seen
approaching Far West. They came up near to the town, and then drew back
about a mile, and encamped for the night. We were informed that they were
militia, ordered out by the governor for the purpose of stopping our
proceedings, it having been represented to his excellency, by wicked and
designing men from Daviess that we were the aggressors, and had committed
outrages in Daviess county. They had not yet got the governor's order of
extermination, which I believe did not arrive till the next day.

	Wednesday, October 31.--The militia of Far West guarded the city the
past night, and arranged a temporary fortification of wagons, timber,
etc., on the south. The sisters, many of them, were engaged in gathering
up their most valuable effects, fearing a terrible battle in the morning,
and that the houses might be fired and they obliged to flee. The enemy was
five to one against us.

	About eight o'clock a flag of truce was sent from the enemy, which
was met by several of our people, and it was hoped that matters would be
satisfactorily arranged after the officers had heard a true statement of
all the circumstances. Colonel Hinkle went to meet the flag, and secretly
made the following engagement: First, to give up their [the Church's]
leaders to be tried and punished; second, to make an appropriation of the
property of all who had taken up arms, for the payment of their debts, and
indemnify for the damage done by them; third, that the remainder of the
Saints should leave the state, and be protected while doing so by the
militia; but they were to be permitted to remain under protection until
further orders were received from the commander-in-chief; fourth, to give
up their arms of every description, which would be receipted for.

	The enemy was reinforced by about one thousand five hundred men
today, and news of the destruction of property by the mob reached us from
every quarter.

	Towards evening I was waited upon by Colonel Hinkle, who stated that
the officers of the militia desired to have an interview with me and some
others, hoping that the difficulties might be settled without having
occasion to carry into effect the exterminating orders which they had
received from the governor. I immediately complied with the request, and
in company with Elders Sidney Rigdon and Parley P. Pratt, Colonel Wight
and George W. Robinson, went into the camp of the militia.  But judge of
my surprise, when, instead of being treated with that respect which is due
from one citizen to another, we were taken as prisoners of war, and
treated with the utmost contempt. The officers would not converse with
us, and the soldiers, almost to a man, insulted us as much as they felt
disposed, breathing out threats against me and my companions. I cannot
begin to tell the scene which I there witnessed. The loud cries and yells
of more than one thousand voices, which rent the air and could be heard
for miles, and the horrid and blasphemous threats and curses which were
poured upon us in torrents, were enough to appall the stoutest heart. In
the evening we had to lie down on the cold ground, surrounded by a strong
guard, who were only kept back by the power of God from depriving us of
life. We petitioned the officers to know why we were thus treated, but
they utterly refused to give us any answer, or to converse with us. After
we arrived in the camp, Brother Stephen Winchester and eleven other
brethren who were prisoners, volunteered, with permission of the officers,
to carry Brother Carey into the city to his family, he having lain exposed
to the weather for a show to the inhuman wretches, without having his
wound dressed or being nourished in any manner. He died soon after he
reached home.

	Thursday, November 1.--Brothers Hyrum Smith and Amasa Lyman were
brought prisoners into camp. The officers of the militia held a court
martial, and sentenced us to be shot,