Rook ■ S & \ 8 5 v THE r\ r\ K^ -{ ALT LAK i n m Uii AND ITS FOUNDERS. BY EDWARD W. TULLIDGE. INCORPORATING A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE PIONEERS OF UTAH WITH STEEL PORTRAITS OF REPRESENTATIVE MEN; TOGETHER WITH A CAREFULLY ARRANGED INDEX AND AN ELABORATE APPENDIX. :^' afi^/iortV/y of tJie City Council and unde?- super risio/i of its Comtnittee o?i lievisio?i. REVISING COMMITTEE: ]OHN R. WINDER, Chairman. R. T. BURTON, GEORGE A. MEEARS S, I. jONASSON. GEORGE REYNOLDS, Secretary. EDWARD W. TULLIDGE, PUBLISHER AND PROPRIETOR. SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH. r\ < A ^ ~\" ^ 9 J {■ ^/^^ 0-tf-Aci^n 7/ 'C-Vi-l INDEX. CHAPTER I. Prefaton- Review of the People who Founded Salt Lake City. Grand Colonization Design of the Mormon Prophet 3 CHAPTER II, Governor Ford urges the Migration of the Mormons to California. Compact of the Removal. Address to the President of the United States. The Exodus. Mormon Life on the Journey. A Sensation from the United States Government 8 CHAPTER III. The Call for the Mormon Battalion. Interviews with President Polk. The Apostles Enhsting Solijers from their People for the Service of the Nation. The Battalion on the March, . . 24 CHAPTER IV. The Mormons Settle on Indian Lands. A Grand Council held between the Elders and Indian Chiefs. A Covenant is nmde between them, and land granted by the Indians to their Mormon Brothers. Characteristic Speeches of famous Indian Chiefs. Winter Quarters Organized. The Journey of the Pioneers to the Rocky Mountains 32 CHAPTER V, The First Sabbath in the Vallev. The Pioneers apply the Prophecies to themselves and their location Zion has gone up into the Mountains. They locate the Temple and lay off the ■' City of the Great Salt Lake." Tlie Leaders return to Winter Quarters to gather the Body of the Church 44 CHAPTER VI. Progress of the Colony. Etestruction of the Crops by Crickets. Description of Great Salt ''Lake City 5^ CHAPTER VII. The Primitive Government of the Colony. Provisional State of I>eseret organized. Passage of the Gold Seekers througli tlie Valley 5^ CHAPTER VIII. Arrival of Captain Stansbury. His Interview with Governor Young. Government Survey of the Lakes. Commencement of Indian Difficulties 03 CHAPTER IX. Incorporation of Great Salt Lake Citv. Its Original Charter. The First City Council and Municipal Officers. Organization of the Territory-. Arrival of the news of Governor Ycnn?i J 'oiing and the Cotnicil of ilie Twelve Apostles: ^'■Brethren: In your letter of appointment to me dated Temple of God, Nauvoo, January 26th, 1846, you suggested, ' If our Government should offer facilities for emigrating to the western coast, embrace those facilities if possible. As a wise and faithful man, take every honorable advantage of the times you can. Be thou a savior and deliverer of the people, and let virtue, integrity and truth be your motto — salvation and glory the prize for which you contend.' In ac- cordance with my instructions, I felt an anxious desire for the deliverance of the Saints, and resolved upon visiting James K. Polk, President of the United States, to lay the situation of my persecuted brethren before him, and ask him, as the representative of our country, to stretch forth the Federal arm in their be- half. Accordingly, I called upon Governor Steele, of New Hampshire, with whom I had been acquainted from my youth, and other philanthropic gentlemen to obtain letters of recommendation to the heads of the departments." Governor Steele gave to Elder Little a letter of introduction to Mr. Ban- croft, Secretary of the Navy, in which the Governor said : ''Mr. Little visits Washington, if I understand it correctly, for the purpose of procuring, or endeavoring to procure, the freight of any provisions or naval stores which the Government may be desirous of sending to Oregon, or to any portion of the Pacific. He is thus desirous of obtaining freight lor the purpose of lessening the expense of chartering vessels to convey him and his followers to California, where they intend going and making a permanent settlement the present summer. Yours truly, John Steele." From Colonel Thomas L. Kane, Elder Little received a letter of introduc- HJSTORY OF SALT LAKE CI7Y. 27 tion to the Hon. George M. Dallas, Vice-President of the United States, in which the writer said : "This gentleman visits Washington, with no other object than the laudable one of desiring aid of Government for his people, who, forced by persecution to found a new commonwealth in the Sacramento Valley, still retain American hearts, and would not willingly sell themselves to the foreigner, or forget the old commonwealth they leave behind." Armed with these and other letters, Mr. Little started to Washington from Philadelphia, where he had enlisted, for his afflicted people, the zealous friend- ship of the patriotic brother of the great Arctic explorer ; and, soon after his arrival at the capital, he obtained an introduction to President Polk, through Ex- Postmaster-General Amos Kendall. The Elder was favorably received by Mr. Polk, which emboldened him to address a formal petition to the President, which he closed as follows : " From twelve to fifteen thousand Mormons have already left Nauvoo for Cali- fornia, and many others are making ready to go ; some have gone around Cape Horn, and I trust, before this time, have landed at the Bay of San Francisco. We have about forty thousand in the British Isles, all determined to gather to this land, and thousands will sail this fall. There are also many thousands scattered through the States, besides the great number in and around Nauvoo, who will go to California as soon as possible, but many of them are destitute of money to pay their passage either by sea or land. "We are true-hearted Americans, true to our native country, true to its laws, true to its glorious institutions; and we have a desire to go under the out- stretched wings of the American Eagle; we would disdain to receive assistance from a foreign power, although it should be proffered, unless our Government should turn us off in this great crisis, and compel us to be foreigners. "If you will assist us in this crisis, I hereby pledge my honor, as the repre- sentative of this people, that the whole body will stand ready at your call, and act as one man in the land to which we are going ; and should our Territory be in- vaded, we will hold ourselves ready to enter the field of battle, and then, like our patriotic fathers, make the battle-field our grave, or gain our liberty." There were present at the first interview between the Mormon Elder and the President of the United States, Gen. Sam. Houston, just from Texas, upon Mex- ican affairs, and other distinguished men, A singular circumstance in American history is here connected ; for at that important juncture in the history of our nation, as well as the Mormons, Washington was thrown into great excitement by the news that General Taylor had fought two battles with the Mexicans. This important event was directly bearing on the affairs of the Mormons, as much as upon those of the nation at large. The news of the actual commencement of the war between the two rival republics came in the very nick of time. Had Elder Little arrived in Washington six months before, or six months later, there would have been a marked variation from that which came to pass. We know not what the exact difference would have been, but it is most certain that President Polk would not then have designed to possess California by the help of these State- 28 HIS20RY OF SALT LAKE CITY. founding Saints, nor would their shovels have turned up the gold at Sutter's Mill, nor would General Stephen F. Kearney have had at his back the Mormon Battalion as his chief force, when he made himself master of the land of precious metals, and put his rival, Fremont, under arrest. The day after his first interview with President Polk, Elder Little called again upon ex- Postmaster-General Kendall, who informed him that the President had determined to take possession of California ; that he designed to use the Mormons for this purpose, and that they would receive orders to push through to fortify the country. This induced the Elder to address the petition already quoted. The President now laid the matter before the Cabinet. The plan offered to his colleagues was for the Elder to go direct to the Mormon camp, to raise from among them "one thousand picked men, to make a dash into California and take possession of it in the name of the United States." The Battalion was to be officered by their own men, excepting the commanding officer, who was to be appointed by President Polk, and to take cannon and everything necessary for the defence of the country. One thousand more of the Mormons from the East- ern States were proposed to be sent by way of Cape Horn, in a U. S. transport, for the same service. This was the original plan which President Polk laid before his Cabinet. After this Elder Little had his second interview with President Polk, who told the Elder that he " had no prejudices against the Saints, but that he believed them to be good citizens ; " that he "was willing to do them all the good in his power consistently ; " that " they should be protected ; '' and that be had "read the petition with interest." He further emphatically observed that he had " confidence in the Mormons as true American citizens, or he would not make such propositions as those he designed." This interview lasted three hours, so filled was the President with his plan of possessing California by the aid of the Mormons. But this generous design was afterwards changed through the influ- ence of Senator Benton. Before his departure west. Elder Little had another special interview with the President, who further said that he had "received the Mormon suffrages," that "they should be remembered; " and that he had "instructed the Secretary of War to make out dispatches to Colonel Kearney, commander of the Army of the West, relative to the Mormon Battalion." On the 1 2th of June, Elder Little, in company with Colonel Thomas L. Kane, started for the West, the Colonel bearing special dispatches from the Gov- ernment to General Kearney, who was at Fort Leavenworth. Judge Kane jour- neyed with his son as far as St. Louis. The following is the order under which the Battalion was mustered into service : " Headquarters, Army of the West, Fort Leavenworth, June 19, 1846. " Ar.- It is understood that there is a large body of Mormons who are de- sirous of emigrating to California, for the purpose of settling in that country, and I have therefore to direct that you will proceed to their camps and endeavor HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 2g to raise from amongst them four or five companies of volunteers, to join me in my expedition to that country, each company to consist of any number between 73 and 109 , the officers of eadk company will be a captain, first lieu- tenant, and second lieutenant, who will be elected by the privates, and subject to your approval, and the captains then to appoint the non-commissioned officers, also subject to your approval. The companies, upon being thus organized, will be mustered by you into the service of the United States, and from that day will commence to receive the pay, rations, and other allowances given to the other infantry volunteers, each according to his rank. You will, upon mustering into service the fourth company, be considered as having the rank, pay, and emolu- ments of a lieutenant-colonel of infantry, and are authorized to appoint an adju- tant, sergeant-major, and quartermaster-sergeant for the battalion. ''The companies, after being organized, will be marched to this post, where they will be armed and prepared for the field, after which they will, under your command, follow on my trail in the direction of Santa Fe, and where you will receive further orders from me. "You will, upon organizing the companies, require provisions, wagons, horses, mules, etc. You must purchase everything that is necessary, and give the necessary drafts upon the quartermaster and commissary departments at this post, which drafts will be paid upon presentation. "You will have the Mormons distinctly to understand that I wish to have them as volunteers for twelve months ; that they will be marched to California, receiving pay and allowances during the above time, and at its expiration they will be discharged, and allowed to retain, as their private property, the guns and accoutrements furnished to them at this post. " Each company will be allowed four women as laundresses, who will travel with the company, receiving rations and other allowances given to the laun- dresses of our army. " With the foregoing conditions, which are hereby pledged to the Mormons, and which will be faithfully kept by me and other officers in behalf of the Gov- ernment of the United States, I cannot doubt but that you will in a few days be able to raise five hundred young and efficient men for this expedition. " Very respectfully your obedient servant, (Signed) S. F. Kearney, Col. of First Dragoons. Per Capt. James Allen, First. Reg. Dragoons, Fort Leavenworth." The following from important documents sentfrom the War Office a quarter of a century later, to aid this author in his investigation of the call of the Mormon Battalion is presented here to perfect the view : "Adjutant General's Office. " Sir : I send herewith such papers as I have been able to find relating to the way the Mormon Battalion was received into service during the Mexican war. Your obedient servant, E. D. TowNSEND, Adjuiant- Genera/.'" " Hon. W. L. Marcy, Secretary of War, in a letter to General Kearney, dated June 3, 1S46, states that it is known that a large body of Mormon emi- of HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. grants are en route to California, for the purpose of settling in that country, de- sires the General to use all proper means to have a good understanding with them, to the end that the United States may :lnave their co-operation in taking posses- sion of and holding the country; authorizes the General to muster into service such as can be induced to volunteer, not, however, to a number exceeding one- third of his entire force. Should they enter the service they were to be paid as other volunteers ; to be allowed to designate, as far as it could be properly done, the persons to act as officers. "This appears to be the authority under which General Kearney mustered the Mormon Battalion into service. " The command was mustered out of service in California, in 1847, and one company was again mustered in immediately after to serve for twelve months. This company was mustered out in 1848 at San Diego." The other document of this Battalion history, furnished by the Adjutant- General, is General Kearney's order under which the Battalion was mustered into service. It will be seen from the above abstract of Secretary Marcy's letter to Gen- eral Kearney, that there exists in the War Office to-day positive proof that the United States did design to colonize California by the aid of the Mormons. Extraordinary was the wording, that the United States Government " desires the General to use all proper means to have a good understanding with them, to the end that the United States may have their co-operation in takitig possession of and holding the country.''' We return to the Pioneer narrative : It will be remembered that Brigham Young, while believing the Battalion call to be a test of loyalty, hastened with Heber C. Kimball and Willard Richards to Mount Pisgah, 130 miles, to execute the "demand," as they deemed it, for a battalion ot their picked men to serve their country. They immediately sent messengers, with official dispatches from their High Council to Nauvoo, Garden Grove, and the regions around, calling to headquarters their old men and able- bodied boys to supply the place of their picked men going for the service of their country. Returning to Council Bluffs, the Twelve gathered the " Camp of Israel" to enrol the companies of volunteers. While Major Hunt, of the volunteers, was calling out the first company, Brigham Young conversed with Colonel Kane in Woodruff's carriage about the affairs of the nation, and told him the time would come when the Mormons would "have to save the Government of the United States, or it would crumble to atoms." Forty minutes after twelve of the same day, July 15, the Elders and the people assembled in the Bowery. President Young then delivered to the congre- gation a simple but earnest speech, in which he told the brethren, with a touch of subdued pathos, "not to mention families to-day;" that they had "not time to reason now." "We want," he said, " to conform to the requisition made upon us, and we will do nothing else until we accomplish this thing. If we want the privilege of going where we can worship God according to the dictates of HISTOR\ OF SALT LAKE CLTY. ji our consciences^ we must raise the Battalion. I say, it is right; and who cares for sacrificing our comfort for a few years? " Nobly did the Mormons respond to this call of their country. The Apostles acted as recruiting sergeants; nor did they wait for their reinforcements, but moved as though they intended to apply their leader's closing sentence literally; he said : "After we get through talking, we will call out the companies ; and if there are not young men enough we will take the old men, and if they are not enough we will take the women. I want to say to every man, the Constitution of the United States, as framed by our fathers, was dictated, was revealed, was put into their hearts by the Almighty, who sits enthroned in the midst of the heavens; although unknown to them it was dictated by the revelations of Jesus Christ, and I tell you, in the name of Jesus Christ, it is as good as ever I could ask for. I say unto you, magnify the laws. There is no law in the United States, or in the Constitution, but I am ready to make honorable." "There was no sentimental affectation at their leave-taking," said Thomas L. Kane, in relating the story to the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. " The af- ternoon before their march was devoted to a farewell ball ; and a more merry rout I have never seen, though the company went witliout refreshments, and their ball was of the most primitive. It was the custom, whenever the larger camps rested for a few days together, to make great arbors, or boweries, as they called them, of poles, and brush, and wattling, as places of shelter for their meetings of devotion or conference. In one of these, where the ground had been trodden firm and hard by the worshippers, of the popular Father Taylor's precinct, was gathered now the mirth and beauty of the Mormon Israel. " If anything told that the Mormons had been bred to other lives, it was the appearance of the women as they assembled here. Before their flight they had sold their watches and trinkets as the most available recourse for raising ready money ; and hence like their partners, who wore waistcoats cut with useless watch pockets, they, although their ears were pierced and bore the marks of re- jected pendants, were without earrings, chains or broaches. Except such orna- ments, however, they lacked nothing most becoming the attire of decorous maidens. The neatly- darned white stockings, and clean white petticoat, the clear-starched collar and chemisette, the something faded, only because too-well washed lawn or gingham gown, that fitted modishly to the waist of its pretty wearer — these, if any of them spoke of poverty, spoke of a poverty that had known better days. '•'With the rest attended the elders of the Church within call, including nearly all the chiefs of the High Council, with their wives and children. They, the bravest and most trouble-worn, seemed the most anxious of any to throw off the burden of heavy thoughts. Their leading off the dance in a double cotillion was the signal which bade the festivity to commence. To the canto of debonnair violins, the cheer of horns, the jingle of sleigh bells, and the jovial snoring of the tambourines, they did dance ! None of your minuets or other mortuary pos- sessions of gentles in etiquette, tight shoes and pinching gloves, but the spirited and scientific displays of our venerated and merry grandparents, who were not above following the fiddle to the lively fox-chase, French fours, Copenhagen jigs. j2 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. Virginia reels, and the like forgotten figures, executed with the spirit of people too happy to be slow, or bashful, or constrained. Light hearts, lithe figures, and light feet had it their own way from an early hour till after the sun had dipped behind the sharp sky-line of the Omaha hills. Silence was then called, and a well-cultivated mezzo-soprano voice, belonging to a young lady with fair face and dark eyes, gave with quartette acccompaniment, a little song, the notes of which I have been unsuccessful in repeated efforts to obtain since — a version of the text touching to all earthly wanderers : " By the rivers of Babylon wc sat down and wept ; We wept when we remembered Zion. "There was danger of some expression of feeling when the song was over, for it had begun to draw tears, but, breaking the quiet with his hard voice, an elder asked the blessing of heaven on all who, with purity of heart and brother- hood of spirit, had mingled in that society, and then all dispersed, hastening to cover from the falling dews." CHAPTER IV. THE MORMONS SETTLE ON INDIAN LANDS. A GRAND COUNCIL HELD BE- TWEEN THE ELDERS AND INDIAN CHIEFS. A COVENANT IS MADE BETWEEN THEM, AND LAND GRAN lED BY THE INDIANS TO THEIR MOR- MON BROTHERS. CHARACTERISTIC SPEECHES OF FAMOUS INDIAN CHIEFS. WINTER QUARTERS ORGANIZED. THE ]OURNEY OF THE PION- EERS TO THE ROCKY MOUNTAINS. With the departure of the Battalion, the flower of their strength, vanished all expectation of going to the Rocky Mountains that year, and the elders immediately set to work to locate and build their winter quarters. Ever exact to the organic genius of their community, their first business was to organize the High Council of a "Traveling Stake of Zion." This was done at Council Bluffs, July 21st, with Father Morley at the head of an incorporated council of twelve high priests. The Indians welcomed their " Mormon brothers" with a touch of dramatic pathos. "They would have been pleased," said Colonel Kane, "with any whites who would not cheat them, nor sell them whiskey, nor whip them (or their poor gipsy habits, nor bear themselves indecently toward their women, many of whom among the Pottowatomies, especially those of nearly unmixed French descent, are singularly comely, and some of them educated. But all Indians have something like a sentiment of reverence for the insane, and admire those who sacrifice, without apparent motive, their worldly welfare to the triumph of an idea. They understand the meaning of what they call a great vow, and think it is the duty of the right-minded to lighten the votary's penance under it. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY, .33 To this feeling they united the sympathy of fellow sufferers for those who could talk to them of their own Illinois, and tell the story how from it they also had been ruthlessly expelled. "Their hospitality was sincere, almost delicate. Fanny Le Clerc, the spoiled child of the great brave, Pied Riche, interpreter of the nation, would have the pale face, Miss Divine, learn duets with her to the guitar; and the daughter of substantial Joseph La Framboise, the interpreter of the United States (she died of the fever that summer) welcomed all the nicest young Mor- mon Kitties and Lizzies and Jennies and Susans, to a coffee feast at her father's house, which was probably the best cabin in the river village. They made the Mormons at home there and elsewhere* Upon all they formally gave them leave to tarry just so long as it suited their own good pleasure. ",The affair, of course, furnished material for a solemn council. Under the auspices of an officer of the United States, their chiefs were summoned, in the form befitting great occasions, to meet in the dirty yard of one Mr. P. A. Sarpy's log trading house, at their village; they came in grand toilet, moving in their fantastic attire with so much aplomb and genteel measure, that the stranger found it difficult not to believe them high-born gentlemen attending a costumed ball. When the red men had indulged to satiety in tobacco smoke from their peace pipes, and in what they love still better, .their peculiar metaphoric rodo- montade, which, beginning with celestial bodies, and coursing downwards over the grandest sublunary objects, always managed to alight at last on their great Father Polk, and the tenderness of him for his affectionate colored children; all the solemn funny fellows present, who played the part of chiefs, signed formal articles of convention with their unpronounceable names. "The renowned chief. Pied Riche (he was surnamed Le Clerc on account of his remarkable scholarship) then rose and said : " ' My Mormon Brethren: The Pottowatomie came sad and tired into this unhealthy Missouri bottom, not many years back, when he was taken from his beautiful country beyond the Mississippi, which had abundant game and timber, and clear water everywhere. Now you are driven away the same from your lodges and your lands there, and the graves of your people. So we have both suffered. We must keep one another and the Great Spirit will keep us both. You are now free to cut and use all the wood you may wish. You can make your improvements and live on any part of our actual land not occupied by us. Be- cause one suffers and does not deserve it, it is no reason he should suffer always. I say, we may live to see all right yet. However, if we do not, our children will. Bon jour ! ' " And thus ended the pageant. But the Mormons had most to do with the Omaha Indians, for they located their camps on both the east and west sides of the Missouri River. Winter Quarters proper was on the west side, five miles above the Omaha of to-day. There, on a pretty plateau, overlooking the river, they built, in a few months, over seven hundred houses, neatly laid out with highways and by-ways, and fortified with breastwork, stockade, and block-houses. It had, too, its place of worship, "tabernacle of the congregation;" for in everythig they 5 34 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. did they kept up the character of the modern Israel. The industrial character of the people also typed itself on their city in the wilderness, which sprang up as by magic, for it could boast of large workshops, and mills and factories provided with water power. They styled it a "Slake of Zion." It was the principal stake, too ; several others, such as Garden Grove and Mount Pisgah having al- ready been established on the route. The settlement of headquarters brought the Mormons into peculiar relation- ship with the Omahas. A grand council was also held between their chiefs and the Elders. Big Elk made a characteristic speech for the occasion, yet not so distinguished in its Indian eloquence as that of Le Clerc. Big Elk said, in re- sponse to President Young : " My son, thou hast spoken well. I have all thou hast said in my heart. I have much I want to say. We are poor. When we go to hunt game in one place, we meet an enemy, and so in another place our enemies kill us. We do not kill them. I hope we will be friends. You may stay on these lands two years or more. Our young men may watch your cattle. We would be glad to have you trade with us. We will warn you of danger from other Indians." The council closed with an excellent feeling ; the pauper Omahas were treated to a feast, very gracious even to the princely appetite of Big Elk ; and then they returned to their wigwams, satisfied for the time with the dispensation of the Great Spirit, who had sent their " Mormon brethren " into their country to care for and protect them from their enemies — the warlike Sioux. The Omahas were ready to solicit as a favor the residence of white protec- tors among them. The Mormons harvested and stored awav for them their crops of maize ; with all their own poverty they spared them food enough be- sides, from time to time, to save them from absolutely starving ; and their en- trenched camp to the north of the Omaha villages, served as a sort of a break- water between them and the destroying rush of the Sioux. But the Mormons were as careful in their settlement on the Indian lands as they had been in the Battalion case, to make their conduct irreproachable in the eyes of the General Government, and to do nothing, even in their direst necessi- ties, that would not force the sanction of the nation. They were, therefore, particular in obtaining covenants from the Indians and forwarding them to the President of the United States. Here is the covenant of the Omahas : " West Side of the Missouri River, Near Council Bluffs, August 31, 1S46. " We, the undersigned chiefs and braves, representatives of the Omaha nation of Indians, do hereby grant to the Mormon people the privilege of tarry- ing upon our lands for two years or more, or as long as may suit their conven- ience for the purpose of making the necessary preparations to prosecute their journey west of the Rocky Mountains, provided that our great father, the Pres- ident of the United States, shall not counsel us to the contrary. And we also do grant unto them the privilege of using all the wood and limber they shall require. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 35 And furthermore agree that we will not molest or take from them their cattle, horses, sheep, or any other property. Big Elk, his x mark. Standing Elk, his x mark, Little Chief, his x mark." On this matter Brigham Young wrote to the President in behalf of his people : Near Council Bluffs, Butler's Park, Omaha Nation, Sept. 7, 1846. ^^ Sir: Since our communication of the 9th ult. to Your Excellency, the Omaha Indians have returned from their Summer hunt, and we have had an in- terview in general council with their chiefs and braves, who expressed a willing- ness that we should tarry on their lands, and use what wood and timber would be necessary for our convenience, while we were preparing to prosecute our journey, as may be seen by a duplicate of theirs to us of the 21st of August, which will be presented by Col. Kane. "In council they were much more specific than in their writings, and Big Elk, in behalf of his nation requested us to lend them teams to draw their corn at harvest, and help keep it after it was deposited, to assist them in building houses, making fields, doing some blacksmithing, etc., and to teach some of their young men to do the same, and also keep some goods, and trade with them while we tarried among them. . . We responded to all their wishes in the same spirit of kindness manifested by them, and told them we would do them all the good we could, with the same proviso they made — if the President is willing; and this is why we write. Hitherto we have 'kept aloof from all intercourse except in councils, as re- ferred to, and giving them a few beeves when hungry, but we have the means of doing them a favor by instructing them in agricultural and mechanical arts, if it is desirable. It might subject us to some inconvenience in our impoverished situation, to procure goods for their accommodation, and yet, if we can do it, we might re- ceive in return as many skins and furs as would prove a valuable tempo- rary substitute for worn-out clothing and tents in our camp, which would be no small blessing. "A small division of our camp is some two or three hundred miles west of this, on the rush bottoms, among the Puncaws, where similar feelings are mani- fested towards our people. "Should Your Excellency consider the requests of the Indians for instruc- tion, etc., reasonable, and signifying the same to us, we will give them all the information in mechanism and farming the nature of the case will admit, which will give us the opportunity of getting the assistance of their men to help us herd and labor, which we have much needed since the organization of the Battalion. "A license, giving us permission to trade with the Indians while we are tar- rying on or passing through their lands, made out in the name of Newel K. Whitney, our agent in camp, would be a favor to our people and our red neigh- j6 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. bors. All of which is submitted to Your Excellency's consideration and the confidence of Colonel Kane. "Done in behalf of the council of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter- day Saints, at the time and place before mentioned, and Camp of Israel. Most respectfully, Brigham Young, President, WiLL\RD Richards, Clerks ^' To James K. Polk, President U. Sr Out of an absolute destitution, and in spite of their expulsion, the Mormons had flourished and increased in the wilderness, so that at the end of the year 1846, Winter Quarters had grown into twenty-two wards, with a bishop over each. As the spring opened, they began to prepare for their journey to the moun- tains, which at that day was almost appalling to the imagination. They had still over a thousand miles to the valley of the Salt Lake, and so little was knovvn of the country any more than its name implied — the Great American Desert — that the Mormons could not look forward to much of a land of promise to repay them for all the past. Yet sang their poet, Eliza R. Snow, who has ever on their great occasions fired them with her Hebraic inspiration : "The time of winter now is o'er, Tiiere's verdure on the plain ; We leave our shelt'ring roofs once more, And to our tents again. Chorus : — O Camp of Israel, onward move, O, Jacob, rise and sing ; Ye Saints the world's salvation prove, All hail to Zion's King ! " The pioneer song (as it was called) was, like their journey, quite lengthy. But the pioneers sang it with a will. It told them of their past; told them in exultation, that they were leaving the " mobbing Gentile race, who thirsted for their blood, to rest in Jacob's hiding place,'' and it told of the future, in pro- phetic strains. The word and will of the Lord concerning the Camp of Israel in its journey- ings to the West, was published from head-quarters, on the 14th of January, 1847. As it is the first ri//-///^^ revelation ever sent out to the Church by President Young, the following passages from it will be read with interest : " Let all the people of the Church of Jesus Christ of Lattter-day Saints and those who journey with them, be organized into companies, with a covenant and promise to keep all the commandments and statutes of the Lord our God. Let the companies be organized with captains of hundreds, and captains of fifties, and captains of tens, with a president and councilor at their head, under the di- rection of the Twelve Apostles; and this shall be our covenant, that we will walk in all the ordinances of the Lord. " Let each company provide itself with all the teams, wagons, provisions and all other necessaries for the journey that they can. When the companies are organized, let them go to with all their might, to prepare for those who are to HfSTORy OF SALT LAKE CLTY. jy tarry. Let each company, with their captains and presidents, decide how many can go next spring; then choose out a sufficient number of able-bodied and ex- pert men to take teams, seed, and farming utensils to go as pioneers to prepare for putting in the spring crops. Let each company bear an equal proportion, according to the dividend of their property, in taking the poor, the widows, and the fatherless, and the families of those who have gone with the army, that the cries of the widow and the fatherless come not up into the ears of the Lord against his people. ''■ Let each company prepare houses, and fields for raising corn for those who are to remain behind this season; and this is the will of the Lord concerning this people." ''Let every man use all his influence and property to remove this people to the place where the Lord shall locate a Stake of Zion; and if ye do this with a pure heart, with all faithfulness, ye shall be blessed in your flocks, and in your herds, and in your fields, and in your houses, and in your families." * * On the 7th of April, 1847, •^'"'^ day after the general conference, the pion- eers started from Winter Quarters, As soon as they got fairly on the journey, they were organized as a military body, into companies of hundreds, fifties and tens. The following order of the offlcers will illustrate : Brigham Young, Lieutenant-General ; Stephen Markham, Colonel; John Pack, ist Major; Shadrach Roundy, 2d Major; Captains of hundreds, Stephen Markham and A. P. Rockwood. Captain of Company i, Wilford Woodruff; Company 2, Ezra T. Benson ; Company 3, Phineas H. Young; Company 4, Luke Johnson; Company 5, Stephen H. Goddard ; Company 6, Charles Shumway; Company 7, James Case: Company 8, Seth Taft ; Company 9, Howard. Egan ; Company 10, Appleton M. Harmon; Company 11, John Higbie; Company 12, Norton Jacobs; Company 13,. John Brown; Company 14, Joseph Mathews. The camp consisted of 73 wagons ; 143 men, 3 women and 2 children — 148 souls. Nothing could better illustrate the perfection of Mormon organization than this example of the pioneers, for they were apostles and picked elders of minute companies, and under strict discipline. Lieutenant-General Young issued general orders to the regiment. The men were ordered to travel in a compact body, being in an Indian country ; every man to carry his gun loaded, the locks to be shut on a piece of buckskin, with caps ready in case of attack; flint locks, with cotton and powder flask handy, and every man to walk by the side of his wagon, under orders not to leave it, unless sent by the officer in command, and the wagons to be formed two abreast, where practicable, on the march. At the call of the bugle in the morning, at five o'clock, the pioneers were to arise, assemble for prayers, get breakfast, and be ready to start at the second call of the bugle at seven. At night, at half-past eight, at the command from the bugle, each was to retire for prayer in his own wagon, and to bed at nine o'clock. Tents were to be pitched on Saturday nights and the Sabbath kept. j8 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. The course of the'pioneers was up the north bank of the Platte, along which they traveled slowly. They crossed Elk Horn on a raft, forded the Loup Fork with considerable danger in consequence of the quicksands, and reached Grand Island about the ist of May. This was the day on which the pioneers had their first buffalo hunt. There was much exciting interest in the scene, for scarcely one of the hunters had chased a buffalo before. They killed four cows, three bulls, and five calves. While on a hunt, several days after, the hunters were called in, a party of four hundred Indian warriors near by having shown signs of an attack. The Indians had previously been threatening, and were setting fire to the prairie on the north side of the Platte. The pioneers fired their cannon twice to warn the Indians that they were on the watch. A council was now held to consider whether or not it were wise to cross the river and strike the old road to Laramie, there being good grass on that side, while the Indians were burning it on the north. In view, however, of the thou- sands who would follow in their track, it was concluded to continue as before, braving the Indians and the burning praines ; for, said the pioneers : " A new road will thus be made, which shall stand as a permaraent route for the Saints." Thus the pioneers broke a new road across the plains, over which tens of thousands of their people have since traveled, and which was famous as the "old Mormon road," till the railway came to blot almost from memory the toils and dangers of a journey of more than a thousand miles, by ox teams, to the valleys of Utah. (It is a curious fact that for several hundred miles the grade of the great trans-continental railway is made exactly upon the old Mormon road). The pioneers were wary. Colonel Markham drilled his men in good mili- tary style, and the cannon was put on wheels. William Clayton, formerly the scribe of the Prophet, and, in the pioneer journey, scribe to President Young, and Willard Richards, the Church historian, invented a machine to measure the distance. General Young himself marked the entire route, going in advance daily with his staff. This service was deemed most important, as their emigrations would follow almost in the very footprints of the pioneers. Those were days for the buffalo hunt, scarcely to be imagined, when cross- ing the plains a quarter of a century later. Some days they saw as many as fifty thousand buffalo. They came to the hunting ground of the Sioux, where, a few days before, five hundred lodges had stood. Nearly a thousand warriors had encamped there. They had been on a hunting expedition. Acres of ground were covered with buffalo wool and other remains of the slaughter. No wonder the Indian of the plains bemoans his hunting grounds, now lost to him forever. Several days later there were again fears of an Indian attack, and the cannon was got ready. The pioneers were within view of Chimney rock on Sunday, the 23d of May. Here they held their usual Sabbath service. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 39 On the first of June they were opposite Laramie. Here they were joined by a small company of Mormons from Mississippi, who had been at Pueblo during the winter. They reported news of a detachment of the battalion at Pueblo that expected to start for Laramie about the first of June, and follow the pioneer track. This addition to the camp consisted of a brother Crow and his family (fourteen souls, with seven wagons). The next day President Young and others visited Fort Laramie, then occu- pied by thirty-eight persons, mostly French, who had married the Sioux. Mr. Burdow, the principal man at the Fort, was a Frenchman. He cor- dially received General Young and his staff, invited them into his sitting-room, gave them information of the route, and furnished them with a flat-bottom boat on reasonable terms, to assist them in ferrying the Platte. Ex-Governor Boggs, who had recently passed with his company, had said much against the Mor- mons, cautioning Mr. Burdow to take care of his horses and cattle. Boggs and his company were quarreling, many having deserted him ; so Burdow told the ex-Governor that, let the Mormons be what they might, they could not be worse than himself and his men. It is not a little singular that this exterminating Governor of Missouri should have been crossing the Plains at the same tune with the Pioneers. They were going to carve out for their people a greater destiny than they could have reached either in Missouri or Illinois — he to pass away, leaving nothing but a transitory name. It was decided to send Amasa Lyman, with several other brethren, to Pueblo, to meet the detachment of the Battalion, and hurry them on to Laramie to fol- low the track. At the old Fort they set up blacksmith shops, and did some necessary work for the camp. Then commenced the ascent of the Black Hills, on the 4th of June. Fifteen .miles from Laramie, at the Springs, a company of Missouri emi- grants came up. The pioneers kept the Sabbath the next day ; the Missourians journeyed. Another company of Missourians appeared and passed on. A party of traders, direct from Santa Fe, overtook the Pioneers, and gave information of the detachment of the battalion, at Santa Fe, under Captain Brown. The two Missouri companies kept up a warfare between themselves on the route. They were a suggestive example to the Mormons. After they had traveled near each other for a week, on the Sunday following, President Young made this the subject of his discourse. He said of the two Missourian companies: "They curse, swear, rip and tear, and are trying to swallow up the earth; but though they do not wish us to have a place on it, the earth might as well open and swallow them up ; for they will go to the land of forgetfulness, while the Saints; though they suffer some privations here, if faithful, will ultimately in- herit the earth, and increase in power, dominion and glory." General Young called together the officers, to consult on a plan for crossing the river. He directed them to go immediately to the mountains with teams, to get poles. They were then to lash from two to four wagons abreast, to keep them 40 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. from turning over, and float them across the river with boats and ropes ; so a company of horsemen started to the mountains with teams. The ''brethren" had previously ferried over the Missourians, who paid them $1.50 for each wagon and load, and paid it in flour at 52.50; yet flour was worth ten dollars per cvvt., at least, at that point. They divided their earnings among the camp equally. It amounted to five and a half pounds of flour each, two pounds of meal, and a small piece of bacon. "It looked," says Wilford Woodruff^ "as much of a miracle to me to see our flour and meal bags replenished in the Black Hills as it did to have the Chil- dren of Israel fed with manna in the wilderness. But the Lord had been truly with us on our journey, and had wonderfully preserved and blessed us." These little stores of flour were supposed to have saved the lives of some of the pioneers, for they were by this time entirely destitute of the " staff of life." The pioneers were seven days crossing the river at this point. While here they established a ferry, and selected nine men to leave in charge of it, with in- structions to divide the means accumulated equally, to be careful of the lives and property of those they ferried, to "forget not their prayers," and "to come on with the next company of Saints." They reached Independence Rock on the 21st of June, and the South Pass on the 26th. Several days later they met Major Harris, who had traveled through Oregon and California for twenty-five years. He spoke unfavorably of the Salt Lake country for a settlement. Next day Col. Bridger came up. He desired to go into council with the Mormon leaders. The apostles held the council with the colonel. He spoke more favorably of the great basin ; but thought it not prudent to continue emi- gration there until they ascertained whether grain would grow there or not. He said he would give a thousand dollars for the first bushel of wheat raised in the valley of the Salt Lake. At Green River they were met by Elder Samuel Brannan from the Bay of San Francisco. He came to give an account of the Mormon company that sailed with him in the ship Brooklyn. They had established themselves two hundred miles up the river, were building up a city, and he had already started a news- paper. They were several days fording Green River. Here the pioneers kept the 4th of July. The Mormon battalion now began to reinforce the pioneers. Thirteen of these soldiers, returning from the service of their country, joined them at Green River, and reported that a whole detachment of 140 were within seven days' drive. As the pioneers approached the valley of the Great Salt Lake, the interest became intense. The gold- finders of California, and the founders of the Pacific States and Territories generally, had but a fever for precious metals, or were im- pelled westward by the migrating spirit of the American people; but these Mor- mon pioneers were seeking the "Pearl of Great Price," and their thoughts and HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 41 emotions, as they drew near the Salt Lake Valley were akin to those of the Pil- grim Fathers as they came in sight of Plymouth Rock. During the last days of the journey, President Young was laid up with the " mountain fever," from which he did not fully recover till oi> the return trip to Winter Quarters. After passing Bear River, a council of the whole was called, and it was re- solved that Apostle Orson Pratt should take a company of about twenty wagons, with forty men, to go forward and make a road. Twenty-three wagons started the next morning. For awhile we will follow the journal of Orson Pratt : ^^ July 2 1 St. — We resumed our journey, traveled two and a half miles, and ascended a mountain for one and a half miles; descended upon the west side one mile ; came upon a swift running creek, where we halted for noon : we called this Last Creek. Brother Erastus Snow (having overtaken our camp from the other camp, which he said was but a few miles in the rear,) and myself proceeded in advance of the camp down Last Creek four and a half miles, to where it passes through a canyon and issues into a broad open valley below. To avoid the can- yon the wagons last season had passed over an exceedingly steep and dangerous hill. Mr. Snow and myself ascended this hill, from the top of which a broad open valley, about twenty miles wide and thirty long, lay stretched out before us. at the north end of which the broad waters of the Great Salt Lake glistened in the sunbeams, containing high mountainous islands from twenty-five to thirty miles in extent. After issuing from the mountains among which we had been shut up for many days, and beholding in a moment such an extensive scenery open before us, we could not refrain from a shout of joy which almost involun- tarily escaped from our lips the moment this grand and lovely scenery was within our view. We immediately descended very gradually into the lower parts of the valley, and although we had but one horse between us, yet we traversed a circuit of about twelve miles before we left the valley to return to our camp, which we found encamped one and a half miles up the ravine from the valley, and three miles in advance of their noon halt. It was about nine o'clock in the even-ing when we got into camp. The main body of the pioneers who were in the rear were encamped only one and a half miles up the creek from us, with the excep- tion of some wagons containing some who were sick, who were still behind. '^ July 22d. — This morning George A. Smith and myself, accompanied by seven others, rode into the valley to explore, leaving the camp to follow on and work the road, which here required considerable labor, for we found that the canyon at the entrance of the valley, by cutting out the thick timber and under- brush, connected with some spading and digging, could be made far more prefer- able than the route over the steep hill mentioned above. We accordingly left a written note to that effect, and passed on. After going down into the valley about five miles, we turned our course to the north, down towards the Salt Lake. For three or four miles north we found the soil of a most excellent quality. Streams from the mountains and springs were very abundant, the water excellent, and generally with gravel bottoms. A great variety of green grass, and very luxuriant, covered the bottoms for miles where the soil was sufficiently damp, but in other places, although the soil was good, yet the grass had nearly dried up for 42 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. want of moisture. We found the drier places swarming with very large crickets, about the size of a man's thumb. This valley is surrounded with mountains, ex- cept on the north, the tops of some of the highest being covered with snow. Every one or two-miles streams were emptying into it trom the mountains on the east, many of which were sufficiently large to carry mills and other machinery. As we proceeded towards the Salt Lake the soil began to assume a more sterile appearance, being probably at some seasons of the year overflowed with water. We found as we proceeded on, great numbers of hot springs issuing from near the base of the mountains. These springs were highly impregnated with salt and sulphur: the temperature of some was nearly raised to the boiling point. We traveled for about fifteen miles down after coming into the valley, the latter parts of the distance the soil being unfit for agricultural purposes. We returned and found our wagons encamped in the valley, about five and one-fourth miles from where they left the canyon. '^July 2j(L — This morning we despatched two persons to President Young, and the wagons which were still behind, informing them of our discoveries and explorations. The camp 'removed its position two miles to the north, where we encamped near the bank of a beautiful creek of pure cold water. This stream is sufficiently large for mill sites and other machinery. Here we called the camp to- gether, and it fell to my lot to offer up prayer and thanksgiving in behalf of our company, all of whom had been preserved from the Missouri river to this point ; and, after dedicating ourselves and the land unto the Lord, and imploring His blessings upon our labors, we appointed various committees to attend to different branches of business, preparatory to putting in crops, and in about two hours after our arrival we began to plow, and the same afternoon built a dam to irri- gate the soil, which at the spot where we were plowing was exceedingly dry. Towards evening we were visited by a thunder shower from the west ; not quite enough rain to lay the dust. Our two messengers returned, bringing us word that the remainder of the wagons belonging to the pioneer company were only a few miles distant, and would arrive the next day. At 3 p. M. the thermometer stood at 96°." Returning to the main body of the Pioneers, a few simple but graphic pas- sages from the diary of Apostle Wilford Woodruff will illustrate their entrance into the valleys of Utah better than an author's imagination. "■' yuly 20th. — We started early this morning, and stopped for breakfast after a five miles' drive. I carried Brother Brigham in my carriage. The fever was still on him, but he stood the journey well. After breakfast we travelled over ten miles of the worst road of the whole journey. ^'yuly 2ist. — We are compelled to lay over in consequence of the sick. ^'jFuly 22d. — Continued our journey. "yuly 2jd. — We left East Canyon; reached the summit of the mountain, and descended six miles through a thick-timbered grove. We nooned at a beau- tiful spring in a small birch grove. Here we were met by Brothers Pack and Mathews from the advance camps. They brought us a dispatch. They had ex- plored the Great Salt Lake Valley as far as possible, and made choice of a spot to put in crops. H J STORY OF SAL T LAKE CITY. 43 "yuly 24th. — This is one of the most important days of my life, and in the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. "After traveling six miles through a deep ravine ending with the canyon, we came in full view of the valley of the Great Salt Lake; the land of promise, held in reserve by God, as a resting place for his Saints. "We gazed in wonder and admiration upon the vast valley before us, with the waters of the Great Salt Lake glistening in the sun, mountains towerin^ to the skies, and streams of pure water running through the beautiful valley. It was the grandest view we had ever seen till this moment. Pleasant thoughts ran through our minds at the prospect that, not many years hence, the house of God would be established in the mountains and exalted above the hills; while the valleys would be converted into orchards, vineyards, and fruitful fields, cities erected to the name of the Lord, and the standard of Zion unfurled for the gath- ering of the nations. " President Young expressed his entire satisfaction at the appearance of the valley as a resting place for the Saints, and felt amply repaid for his journey. While lying upon his bed, in my carriage, gazing upon the scene before us, many things of the future, concerning the valley, were shown to him in vision. "After gazing awhile upon this scenery, we moved four miles across the table land into the valley, to the encampment of our brethren who had arrived two days before us. They had pitched upon the banks of two small streams of pure water and had commenced plowing. On our arrival they had already broken five acres of land, and had begun planting potatoes in the valley of the Great Salt Lake. "As soon as our encampment was formed, before taking my dinner, having half a bushel of potatoes, I went to the plowed field and planted them, hoping, with the blessing of God, to save at least the seed for another year. " The brethren had damned up one of the creeks and dug a trench, and by night nearly the whole ground, which was found very dry, was irrigated. "Towards evening, Brothers Kimball, Smith, Benson and myself rode sev- eral miles up the creek (City Creek) into the mountain, to look for timber and see the country. " There was a thunder shower, and it rained over nearly the whole valley ; it also rained a little in the forepart of the night. We felt thankful for this, as it was the generally conceived opinion that it did not rain in the valley during the summer season." How well this arrival of the Pioneers into their "Land of Promise" illus- trates the character of the Mormon people. Empire founding on the first day ; planting their fields before rest or dinner. Rain on the day of Brigham Young's arrival — to them a miracle of promise ! Already had his vision begun to be fulfilled J 44 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. CHAPTER V. THE FIRST SABBATH IN THE VALLEY. THE PIONEERS APPLY THE PROPH- ECIES TO THEMSELVES AND THEIR LOCATION. ZION HAS GONE UP INTO THE MOUNTAINS. THEY LOCATE THE TEMPLE AND LAY. OFF THE " CITY OF THE GREAT SALT LAKE." THE LEADERS RETURN TO WINTER QUAR- TERS TO GATHER THE BODY OF* THE CHURCH. The arrival of the main body of the Pioneers in the valley of the Great Salt Lake was on a Saturday. The next day to them was a Sabbath indeed. "We shaved and cleaned up," says Apostle Woodruff, in his graphic story of the Pioneers, "and met in the circle of the encampment." In the afternoon the whole " Congregation of Israel " partook of the Sacra- ment of the Lord's Supper. Then the valleys rang with the exultant themes of the Hebrew Prophets, and the "everlasting hills "'reverberated to the hosannas of the Saints. Orson Pratt was the preacher of the great subject, which, to the ardent faith of those Pioneers, never lived in fulfillment till that moment. The sublime flights of the matchless Isaiah gave the principal theme. " O Zion, that bringest good tidings, get thee up into the high mountains ! " But Isaiah is not alone in the culminating inspiration. There is such a grand unity among the Hebrew prophets, when touching this subject of a Latter-day Zion, that undoubtedly, it was the burden of the divine epic to which the He- braic genius soared. Notwithstanding the mental diversity of these poet- prophets, in this crowning theme they gave us, not poetic fragments, but a glori- ous continued composition, as from a manifold genius. " Thy watchmen shall lift up their voice ; with the voice together shall they sing; and they shall see eye to eye when they Lord shall bring again Z'on." This was fulfilled to those Anglo-American Pioneers on that day. They felt they were the watchmen ! With the voice together they sang the theme, and did literally shout their hosannas. They saw eye to eye. " The Lord hath brought again Zion." Nor were these Mormon Apostles figurative in their applications; they ren- dered most literally to themselves every point. Orson Pratt declared, with an Apostle's assurance, that their location, in the valleys of the Rocky Mountains, was in the view of the ancient seers. That which was before seemingly contra- dictory in the extreme, relative to the Latter-day Zion, especially its location and the rapid transformation of its founding, was now made plain and most literal. Apostle Pratt reconciled it all. The Pioneers saw the vision of Zion harmonized on that first Sabbath in the valley, as they might have seen their own faces in a mirror. God would "hide his people in the chambers of the mountains ! " Yet, in these "last days" he would "establish his house on the tops of the mountains, and exalt it above the hills ! " -J " iy ji.B.JiaJl &. L>oua . K ewTor'A. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 45 And here were these Pioneers of Mormon Israel in a valley nearly thirty miles in diameter, encircled by a chain of mountains ; here, in a valley nearly five thousand feet above the level of the sea — '-exalted above the hills" — yet belted by mountains with everlasting caps of snow. It was indeed as the "chambers of the Lord," and the name which it popularly bore — the " Great Basin " — was nearly as striking to the imagination as its prophetic name. Latter-day Zion, too, was to be a place "sought out" — a place "not for- saken." They had sought it out by an exodus, and an unparalleled journey of a people, nearly fifteen hundred miles, over unbroken prairies, sandy deserts, and rocky mountains ; and they were about to found their Zion in a primeval valley, where no city, since the creation, had ever stood— a place "not forsaken" by civilized people of the ages long since dead. The " solitary places " were to be "made glad," the "wilderness" was to "blossom as the rose," and the "des- ert" suddenly to be converted into the " fruitful field." Such was the sermon of the first Sabbath in the Great Salt Lake Valley. The Pioneers had chosen for the location of their Zion and her temples, the "Great American Desert," and they were about to make real the strange and highly colored picture. So much like the change in an enchanted scene has been the transformation which has since come over those desert valleys and canyons of the Rocky Mountains, that for the last quarter of a century the Mormons have been popularly described in nearly every nation of the earth as that peculiar people who have made the "desert to blossom as the rose." Look upon the valley of the Salt Lake to-day as the Spring opens, when the gardens and orchards are in one universal rose- blossom, and there never was a prophetic picture more literally realized. Though feeble with that most languishing of diseases, the mountain fever, and scarcely able to stand upon his feet, Brigham Young was still the law- giver on that first Sabbath, If he had not the strength to preach a great sermon on the Latter-day Zion, like that of the Mormon Paul — Orson Pratt — he was "every inch " the Moses of the Mormon Exodus. " He -told the brethren," says the historian Woodruff, " that they must not work on Sunday ; that they would lose five times as much as they would gain by it. None were to hunt or fish on that day ; and there should not any man dwell among us who would not observe these rules. They might go and dwell where they pleased, but should not dwell with us. He also said, no man should buy any land who came here ; that he had none to sell ; but every man should have his land measured out to him for city and farming purposes. He might till it as he pleased, but he must be industrious, and take care of it. "On Monday ten men were chosen for an exploring expedition. I took President Young into my carriage, and, traveling two miles towards the mountain, made choice of a spot for our garden. " We then returned to camp, and went north about five miles, and we all went on to the top of a high peak, on the edge of the mountain, which we con- sidered a good place to raise an ensign. So we named it ' Ensign Peak.' "I was the first person to ascend this hill, which we had thus named. Brother Young was very weary, in climbing to the peak, from his recent fever. " We descended to the valley, and started north to the Hot Sulpher Springs, 46 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. but we returned two miles to get a drink of cold water, and then went back four miles to the Springs. We returned to the camp quite weary with our day's ex- plorations. Brothers Mathews and Brown had crossed the valley in the narrowest part, opposite the camp, to the west mountain, and found it about fifteen miles. "Next day Amasa Lyman came into camp, and informed us that Captain Brown's detachment of the Mormon Battalion would be with us in about two days. " We again started on our exploring expedition. All the members of the quorum of the Twelve belonging to the pioneers, eight im number, were of the company. Six others of the brethren, including Brannan of San Francisco, were with us. " We started for the purpose of visiting the Great Salt Lake, and mountains on the west of the valley. We traveled two miles west from Temple Block, and came to the outlet of the Utah Lake; thence fourteen miles to the west mountain, and found that the land was not so fertile as on the east siae. " We took our dinner at the fresh water pool, and then rode six miles to a large rock, on the shore of the Salt Laks, which we namad Black Rock, where we all halted and bathed in the salt water. No person could sink in it, but would roll and float on the surface like a dry log. We concluded that the Salt Lake was one of the wonders of the world. •'' After spending an hour here, we went west along the lake shore, and then returned ten miles to our place of nooning, making forty miles that day. "In the morning we arose refreshed by sleep in the open air. Having lost my carriage whip the night before, I started on horseback to go after it. As I approached the spot where it was dropped, I saw about twenty Lidians. At first they looked to me in the distance like a lot of bears coming towards me. As I was unarmed I wheeled my horse and started back on a slow trot. " But they called to me, and one, mounting his horse, came after me with all speed. When he got within twenty rods I stopped and met him. The rest followed. They were Utes, and wanted to trade. I told them by signs that our eamp was near, so he went on with me to the camp. From what we had yet seen of the Utes they appeared friendly, though they had a bad name from the mountaineers. The Indian wanted to smoke the pipe of peace with us, but we soon started on and he waited for his company. "We traveled ten miles south under the mountain. The land laid beauti- fully, but there was no water, and the soil was not so good as on the east. We saw about a hundred goats, sheep and antelope playing about the hills and val- leys. We returned, weary, to the pioneer encampment, making thirty miles for the day. '•' After our return to the camp, President Young called a council of the quorum of the Twelve. There were present: Brigham Young, Hebcr C. Kim- ball, Willard Richards, Orson Pratt, Wilford Woodruff, George A. Smith, Amasa Lyman and Ezra T. Benson. "We walked from the north camp to about the centre between the two creeks, when President Young waved his hand and said : ' Here is the forty acres for the Temple. The city can be laid out perfectly square, north and south, HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 47 east and west,' It was then moved and carried that the Temple lot contain forty acres on the ground where we stood. It was also moved and carried that the city be laid out into lots of ten rods by twenty each, exclusive of the streets, ana into blocks of eight lots, being ten acres in each block, and one and a quarter in each lot. " It was further moved and carried that each street be laid out eight rods wide, and that there be a side-walk on each side, twenty feet wide, and that each house be built in the centre of the lot twenty feet from the front, that there might be uniformity throughout the city. "It was also moved that there be four public squares of ten acres each, to be laid out in various parts of the city for public grounds. "At eight o'clock the whole camp came together on the Temple ground and passed the votes unanimously, and, when the business part of the meeting was closed, President Young arose and addressed the assembly upon a variety of subjects. " In his remarks the President said that he was determined to have all things in order, and righteousness should be practiced in the land. We had come here according to the direction and counsel of Brother Joseph, before his death ; and, said the President, Joseph would still have been alive it the Twelve had been in Nauvoo when he re-crossed the river from Montrose. " During his remarks, President Young observed that he intended to have every hole and corner from the Bay of San Francisco to Hudson Bay known to us. " On the 29th, President Young, with a number of brethren, mounted and started to meet the Battalion detachment, under the command of Captain Brown. " We met some of them about four miles from camp, and soon afterwards met Captains Brown and Higgins, Lieutenant Willis, and the company. There were 140 of the Battalion, and a company of about 100 of the Mississippi Saints, who came with them from Pueblo. They had with them 60 wagons, 100 horses and mules, and 300 head of cattle, which greatly added to our strength. "While we were in the canyon, a water cloud burst, which sent the water into the creeks from the mountains, with a rush and roar like thunder, resembling the opening of a flood gate. The shower spread over a good share of the valley where we settled. " We returned at the head of the companies, and marched into camp with music. The Battalion took up their quarters between our two camps on the bank of the creek. " While we had been exploring, the rest of the pioneers had been farming. "By the ist of August (Sunday) the brethren constructed the Bowery on Temple block, in which Heber C. Kimball was the first to preach. Orson Pratt followed in a discourse upon the prophecies of Isaiah, proving that the location of Zion in the mountains by our people was the fulfillment. " On Monday we commenced laying out the city, beginning with the Tem- ple block. In forming this block, forty acres appeared so large, that a council was held to determine whether or not it would be wisdom to re- 48 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. duce it one-half. Not being decided in our views, we held council again, two days later, when we gave as our matured opinions that we could not do justice to forty acres; that ten acres would be sufficient. "As we were under the necessity of returning soon to Winter Quarters for the Saints, it was thought best to go at once to the mountains for logs to build ourselves cabins, as the adobe houses might not be ready for our use. " On the 6th of August, the Twelve were re-baptized. This we considered a privilege and a duty. As we had come in a glorious valley to locate and build up Zion, we felt like renewing our covenants before the Lord and each other. We soon repaired to the water, and President Young went down into the water and baptized all his brethren of the Twelve present. He then confirmed us, and sealed upon us our apostleship, and all the keys, powers and blessings belonging to that office. Brother Heber C Kimball baptized and confirmed President Brigham Young. The following were the names and order of those present : Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball, Orson Pratt, Willard Richards, Wilford Woodruff, George A. Smith, and Amasa Lyman. Ezra T. Benson had been dis- patched several days before to meet the companies on the road, "In the aftehioon of the next day, the Twelve went to the Temple Block to select their inheritances. " President Young took a block east of the Temple, and running southeast, to settle his friends around him; Heber C. Kimball a block north of the Tem- ple; Orson Pratt, south and running south; Wilford Woodruff, a block corner- ing the Temple Block, the southwest corner joining Orson Pratt's ; Amasa Lyman took a block forty rods below Wilford Woodruff's; George A. Smith one joining the Temple on the west, and running due west. It was supposed that Willard Richards would take his on the east, near President Young's. None others of the Twelve were present in the camp. " During the same evening the Twelve went to City Creek, and Heber C. Kimball baptized fifty-five members of the camp, for the remission of their sins; and they were confirmed under the hands of President Young, Orson Pratt, Wil- ford Woodruff, George A. Smith, and Amasa Lyman ; President Young being mouth. "On the next day (Sunday, August 8th), the whole Camp of Israel renewed their covenants before the Lord by baptism. There were two hundred and twenty-four baptized this morning, making two hundred and eighty-four re-bap- tized in the last three days. "In the afternoon we partook of the Sacrament. At the close of the meet- ing one hundred and ten men were called for, to go into the adobe yard, and seventy-six volunteered. "Brother Crow had a child drowned on the nth. " On the 13th the Twelve held council. Each one v/as to make choice of the blocks that they were to settle their friends upon. President Young took the tiers of blocks south through the city ; Brother Kimball's runs north and northwest ; Orson Pratt, four blocks; Wilford Woodruff eight blocks; George A. Smith, eight; and Amasa Lymaii, twelve blocks, according to the companies organized with each. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. t 49 "Next day four of the messengers returned from Bear River and Caclie Valley. "They brought a cheering report of Cache Valley. The brethren also re- turned who went to Utah Lake for fish. They found a mountain of granite. "The quorum of the Twelve decided in council that the name of the city should be the ' City of the Great Salt Lake.' "Sunday, August 15th, President Young preached on the death of Brother Crow's child; a most interesting discourse;, full of principle. " Sunday, the 2 2d, we held a general conference, when the public assembly resolved to call the city the 'City of the Great Salt Lake.' " It was also voted to fence the city for farming purposes the coming year and to appoint a. President and High Council, and all other officers necessary in this Stake of Zion, and that the Twelve write an epistle to leave with the Saints in the valley. The conference then adjourned until the 6th of October, 1848. "On the morning of the 26th of August, 1847, the Pioneers, with most of the returning members of the Mormon Battalion, harnessed their horses and bade farewell to the brethren who were to tarry. The soldiers were very anxious to meet their wives again, whom they had left by the wayside, without a moment's notice, for their service in the war with Mexico. These being, too, the ' Young Men cf Israel,' had left many newly wedded brides; and not a few of those gal- lant fellows were fathers of first-born babes whom they had not yet seen. " The brethren in the valley were placed under the presidency of the Chief Patriarch of the Church — Father John Smith, uncle of the Prophet. The mem- bers of the quorum of the Twelve Apostles Brigham took with him ; but he left reliable men, among whom was Albert Carrington. "There were a number of companies also on the road, under principal men and chief ' Captains of Israel,' such as Apostles Parley P. Pratt and John Taylor, Bishop Hunter, Daniel Spencer, and Jedediah M. Grant, who was after- wards one of the first presidents of the Church. "On the fourth day of their return journey, the Pioneers were met by their messengers, under Ezra T. Benson, whom President Young had sent forward with instructions to the outcoming companies. These messengers gladdened the hearts of the Pioneers, with letters from their wives and brethren, and re- ported the coming * Camp of Israel ' as divided into nine companies, numbering 600 wagons. On the 3d of September, they met the first division of fifty, under President Daniel Spencer, upon the Big Sandy; and, on the following day, on the Little Sandy, two more fifties, one under the command of Captain Sessions and the other under Apostle Parley P. Pratt. " They continued daily to meet the companies, Apostle Taylor bringing up his hundred 011 the Sweetwater. In this company was Edward Hunter, afterwards presiding Bishop of the whole Church. These brethren prepared a great feast in the wilderness. They made it a sort of a surprise party, the Pioneers being unexpectedly introduced to the richly-laden table. The feast consisted of roast and boiled beef, pies, cakes, biscuit, butter, peach sauce, coffee, tea, sugar, and a 50 HIS TORI OF SALT LAKE CITY. great variety of good things. In the evening the camp had a daxice, but the Twelve met in council to adjust important business. " Next day they met Jedediah M. Grant, with his hundred. He was direct from Philadelphia. He informed them that Senator Thomas Benton, the invet- erate enemy of the Mormons, was doing all he could against them. "At Fort Laramie Presidents Young, Kimball, and others of the Apostles dined with Commodore Stockton, from the Bay of San Francisco, with forty of his men, eastward bound. "On the 19th of October, the Pioneers were met by a troop of mounted police from Winter Quarters, under their captain, Hosea Stout, who had come to meet them, thinking they might need help." As they drew near Winter Quarters, the sisters, mothers and wives came out to meet the brave men who had found for them a second Zion. They also sent teams laden with the richest produce of Winter Quarters and the delicacies of the household table, which loving hands had prepared. When within about a mile of Winter Quarters a halt was called; the com-_ pany was drawn up in order and addressed by President Young, who then dis- missed the Pioneer camp with his blessing. They drove into the city in order. The streets were lined with people to shake hands with them as they passed. Each of the Pioneers drove to his own home. This was October 31st. The Pioneers on their return found the Saints at Winter Quarters well and prosperous. They, like the leaders, had been greatly blessed- The earth, under their thorough habits of cultivation and industry, had brought forth abundantly. During the first three months of the year 1848, the Saints at Winter Quar- ters were busy preparing for the general migration of the Church to the Valley of the Great Salt Lake ; but they also petitioned the Legislature of Iowa for the or- ganization of a county in the Pottowatamie tract of land, and for a post office. On the 3d of February those who were in the "Battle of Nauvoo " com- memorated it with a feast. On the 6th of April the regular general conference was held, celebrating the organization of the Church; and on the nth messengers arrived from Great Salt Lake City. They were of the Battalion. A feast was made by President Young on the 29th for his immediate asso- ciates, some of whom were going on missions, others were designed to stay on the frontiers to conduct and bring up the emigration; while President Young himself was about to lead the vanguard of the people to the mountains. About the middle of May, all was bustle at Winter Quarters. President Young addressed the people Sunday, 14th, blessed those who were going with him to the valley, and those who were to tarry. He also blessed the Pottowat- omie land, and prophesied that the Saints would never be driven from the Rocky Mountains. On the 24th of May, President Young started for Elk Horn to organize his company. There were 600 wagons in the encampment. They formed the largest pioneer force which had yet set out to build up the States and Territories destined to spring up on the Pacific Slope. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 5/ We need not follow the Pioneers on their second journey to the Rocky Mountains. Suffice it to say that Brigham led the body of the Church in safety to these mountain retreats, arriving in the City of the Great Salt Lake in Sep- tember, 1848. CHAPTER VI. PROGRESS OF THE COLONY. DESTRUCTION OF THE CROPS BY CRICKETS. DESCRIPTION OF GREAT SALT LAKE CITY. Of the colony in its first year's growth and doings, Parley P. Pratt says: ''After many toils, vexations and trials, such as breaking wagons, losing cattle, upsetting, etc., we arrived in the Valley of Great Salt Lake late in Sep- tember, 1847. Here we found a fort commenced and partly built by the Pio- neers, consisting of an enclosure of a block of ten acres with a wall, or in part of buildings of adobes or logs. We also found a city laid out and a public square dedicated for a temple of God. We found also much ground planted in late crops, which, however, did not mature, being planted late in July ; although there were obtained for seed a few small potatoes, from the size of a pea upward to that of half an inch in diameter. These being sound and planted another year produced some very fine potatoes, and, finally, contributed mainly in seeding the Territory with that almost indispensable article of food. "After we had arrived on the ground of Great Salt Lake City we pitched our tents by the side of a spring of water; and, after resting a little, I devoted my time chiefly to building temporary houses, putting in crops, and obtaining fuel from the mountains. Having repented of our sins and renewed our covenants, President John Taylor and myself administered the ordinances of baptism, etc., to each other and to our families, according to the example set by the President and Pioneers who had done the same on entering the valley. '■'■ These solemnities took place with us and most of our families, Novem- ber 28, 1847. " Sometime in December, having finished sowing wheat and rye, I started, in company with a Brother Higby and others, for Utah Lake with a boat and fish net. We travelled some thirty miles with our boat, etc.. on an ox wagon, while some of us rode on horseback. This distance brought us to the foot of Utah Lake, a beautiful sheet of fresh water, some thirty-six miles long by fifteen broad. Here we launched our boat and tried our net, being probably the first boat and net ever used on this sheet of water in modern times. 52 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. " We sailed up and down the lake shore on its western side for many nniles, but had only poor success in fishing. We, however, caught a few samples of mountain trout and other fish. " After exploring the lake and valley for a day or two, the company returned home, and a Brother Summers and myself struck westward from the foot of the lake on horseback, on an exploring tour. On this tour we discovered and partly explored Cedar Valley, and there crossed over the west mountain range and dis- covered a valley beyond; passing through which, we crossed a range of hills northward, and entered Tooele Valley. Passing still northward, we camped one night on a bold mountain stream, and the next day we came to the southern ex- treme of Great Salt Lake, and passing round between it and the West Mountain we journeyed in an eastern course, and, crossing the Jordan, arrived in Great Salt Lake City — having devoted nearly one week to our fishing, hunting, and ex- ploring expedition. During all this time we had fine weather and warm days; but the night we arrived home was a cold one, with a severe snow storm. And thus closed the year 1847. '•^Jamiary 1st, 184S. — The opening of the year found us and the community generally in good, comfortable, temporary log or adobe cabins, which were built in a way to enclose the square commenced by the Pioneers, and a portion of two other blocks of the city plot. * * * "We had to struggle against great difficulties in trying to mature a first crop. We had not only the difficulties and inexperience incidental to an unknown and untried climate, but also swarms of insects equal to the locusts of Egypt, and also a terrible drought, while we were entirely inexperienced in the art of irrigation ; still we struggled on, trusting in God." Thus was the f;iir promise of the first harvest in the Valley destroyed by the desolating crickets. Their ravages were frightful. They came down from the mountains in myriads. Countless hosts attacked the fields of grain. The crops were threatened with utter destruction. The valleys appeared as though scorched by fire. Famine stared the settlers in the face. All were in danger of perishing. Every effort was made by the settlers to drive the crickets off by bushes, long rods, and other like means — whole families and neighborhoods turning out en masse until the people were almost exhausted. At this frightful moment, when the utter destruction of their crops stared the little colony in the face, — while also on their journey were the companies under President Young, who would need supplies until the second harvest, the manifestation of a special Provi- dence was sent to save the people — so these reverent colonists believed. Immense, flocks of gulls came up from the islands of the Lake to make war upon the destroy- ing hosts. Like good angels, they came at the dawn ; all day they feasted upon the crickets. The gulls covered every field where the crickets had taken possession, driving them into the streams and even into the'door-yards, devouring them until gorged, then vomiting them and devouring more. Even as it was, there was a season of famine in Utah ; but none perished from starvation. The patriarchal character of the .community saved it. As one great family they shared the substance of the country. An inventory of provis- ions was taken in the Spring of 1849, ^^^ ^^^ people were put upon rations. HIS TORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 33 Still their breadstuff's were insufficient, and many went out with the Indians and dug small native roots, while some, in their destitution, took the hides of ani- mals, which covered the roofs of their houses, and cut them up and cooked them. But the harvest of 1849 ^^'^.s abundant and the people were saved. A passage of Indian history should not be lost here, as given by Parley P. Pratt in a letter to his brother Orson, in England, bearing date. Great Salt Lake City, September 5th, [848. He wrote: "A few weeks since, Mr. Joseph Walker, the celebrated Utah Chief, men- tioned in the journey of Colonel Fremont, paid a visit to this place, accompanied by Soweite, the king of the whole Utah nations, and with them some hundreds of men, women and children; they had several hundred head of horses for sale, " They were good looking, brave, and intelligent beyond any we had seen on this side of the mountains. They were much pleased and excited with every thing they saw, and finally expressed a wish to become one people with us, and to live among us and we among them, and to learn to cultivate the earth and live as we do. They would like for some of us to go and commence farming with them in their valleys, which are situated about three hundred miles south. ''We enjoined it on them to be at peace with one another, and with all peo- ple, and to cease to war." The following from the First General Epistle sent out from the Mormon Presidency, in the spring ol 1S49, i^ valuable as a page of the early history. "On our arrival in this valley, we found the brethren had erected four forts, composed mostly of houses, including an area of about forty-seven acres, and numbering about 5,000 souls, including our camp. The brethren had succeeded in sowing and planting an extensive variety of seeds, at all seasons, from January to July, on a farm about 'twelve miles in length, and from one to six in width, including the city plot. Most of their early crops were destroyed, in the month of May, by crickets and frost, which continued occasionally until June ; while the latter harvest was injured by drought and frost, which commenced its injuries about the loth of October, and by the out-breaking of herds of cattle. The brethren were not sufficiently numerous to fight the crickets, irrigate the crops, and fence the farm of their extensive planting, consequently they suffered heavy losses; though the experiment of last year is sufficient to prove that valuable crops may be raised in this valley by an attentive and judicious management. , "The winter of 1847-8 was very mild, grass abundant, flocks and herds thriving thereon, and the earth tillable most of the time during each month; but the winter of 1848-9 has been very different, more like a severe New England winter. Excessive cold commenced on the ist of December, and continued till the latter part of February. Snow storms were frequent, and though there were several thaws, the earth was not without snow during that period, varying from one to three feet in depth, both in time and places. The coldest day of the past winter was the 5th of February, the mercury falling t^i° below freezing point, and the warmest day was Sunday, the 25th of February, mercury rising to 21° above freezing point, Fahrenheit. Violent and contrary winds have been frequent. The snow on the surrounding mountains has been much deeper, which has made 54 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. the wood very difficult of access ; while the cattle have become so poor^ through fasting and scanty fare, that it has been difficult to draw the necessary fuel, and many have had to suffer more or less from the want thereof. The winter com- menced at an unusual and unexpected moment, and found many of the brethren without houses or fuel, and although there has been considerable suffering, there has been no death by the frost. Three attempts have been made by the brethren with pack animals or snow shoes to visit Fort Bridger, since the snow fell, but have failed ; yet it is expected that Compton will be able to take the mail east soon after April conference. "In the former part of February, the bishops took an inventory of the breadstuff in the valley, when it was reported that there was little more than three-fourths of a pound per day for each soul, until the 5th of July; and con- siderable was known to exist which was not reported. As a natural consequence some were nearly destitute while others had abundance. The common price of corn since harvest has been two dollars; some have sold for three ; at present there is none in the market at any price. Wheat has ranged from four to five dollars, and potatoes from six to twenty dollars per bushel , and though not to be bought at present, it is expected that there will be a good supply for seed by another year. "Our public works are prosperous, consisting of a Council House, 45 feet square, two stories, building by tithing ; also a bridge across the Western Jordan, at an expense of seven hundred dollars, and six or seven bridges across minor streams, to be paid by a one per cent, property tax; also, a bath-house at the warm spring. "A field of about 8000 acres has been surveyed south of and bordering on the city, and plotted in five and ten acre lots, and a church farm of about 800 acres. The five and ten acre lots were distributed to the brethren, by casting lots, and every man is to help build a pole, ditch, or a stone fence as shall be most convenient around the whole field, in proportion to the land he draws ; also, a canal on the east side, for the purpose of irrigation. There are three grist mills, and five or six saw mills in operation, and several more in contemplation. " The location of a tannery and foundry are contemplated as soon as the snows leave the mountains. "The forts are rapidly breaking up, by the removal of the houses on to the city lots; and the city is already assuming the appearance of years, for any or- dinary country; such is the industry and perseverance of the Saints. "A winter's hunt, by rival parties of one hundred men each, has destroyed about 700 wolves and foxes, 2 wolverines, 20 minx and pole cats, 500 hawks, owls, and magpies, and 1,000 ravens, in this valley and vicinity. "On the return of a portion of the Mormon Battalion through the northern part of Western California, they discovered an extensive gold mine, which enabled them by a few days delay to bring a sufficient of the dust to make money plenti- ful in this place for all ordinary purposes of public convenience ; in the exchange the brethren deposited the gold dust with the presidency, who issued bills or a paper currency." HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 55 Captain Stansbury describing Salt Lake City and its environs, as viewed about the year 1850, wrote: "A city has been laid out upon a magnificent scale, being nearly four miles in length and three in breadth ; the streets at right angles with each other, eight rods or one hundred and thirty-two feet wide, with sidewalks of twenty feet; the blocks forty rods square, divided into eight lots, each of which contains an acre and a quarter of ground. By an ordinance of the city, each house is to be placed twenty feet back from the front line of the lot, the intervening space being designed for shrubbery and trees. The site for the city is most beautiful : it lies at the western base of the Wasatch Mountains, in a curve formed by the projection westward from the main range of a lofty spur which forms its southern boundary. On the west it is washed bv the waters of the Jordan, while to the southward for twenty-five miles extends a broad, level plain, watered by several little streams, which flowing down from the eastern hills, form the great element of fertility and wealth to the community. Through the city itself flows an un- failing stream of pure, sweet water, which, by an ingenious mode of irrigation, is made to traverse each side of every street, whence it is led into every garden- spot, spreading life, verdure and beauty over what was heretofore a barren waste. On the east and north the mountain descends to the plain by steps, which form broad and elevated terraces, commanding an extensive view of the whole valley of the Jordan, which is bounded on the west by a range of rugged mountains, stretching far to the southward, and enclosing within their embrace the lovely little Lake of Utah. " On the northern confines of the city, a warm spring issues from the base of the mountain, the water of which has been conducted by pipes into a commo- dious bathing house ; while, at the western point of the same spur, about three miles distant, another spring flows in a bold stream from beneath a perpendicular rock, with a temperature too high to admit the insertion of the hand, (128 Fahrenheit.) At the base of the hill it forms a little lake, which in the autumn and winter is covered with large flocks of waterfowl, attracted by the genial temperature of the water. Beyond the Jordan, on the west, the dry and otherwise barren plains sup- port a hardy grass, (called bunch grass,) which is peculiar to these regions, re- quiring but little moisture, very nutritious and in sufficient quantities to aff"ord excellent pasturage to numerous herds of cattle. To the northward, in the low grounds bordering the river, hay in abundance can be procured, although it is rather coarse and of an inferior quality. "The facilities for beautifying this admirable site are manifold. The irri- gating canals, which flow before every door, furnish abundance of water for the nourishment of shade trees, and the open space between each building, and the pavement [sidewalk] before it, when planted with shrubbery and adorned with flowers, will make this one of the most lovely spots between the Mississippi and the Pacific. '•'The city was estimated to contain about eight thousand inhabitants, and was divided into numerous wards, each, at the time of our visit, enclosed by a substantial fence, for the protection of the young crops : as time and leisure will 56 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. permit, these will be removed, and each lot enclosed by itself, as with us. The houses are built, principally of adobe or sun-dried brick, which, when well cov- ered with a tight projecting roof, make warm, comfortable dwellings, presenting a very neat appearance. Buildings of a better description are being introduced, although slowly, owing to the difficulty of procuring the necessary lumber, which must always be dear in a country so destitute of timber. " Upon a square appropriated to the public buildings, an immense shed had been erected upon posts, which was capable of containing three thousand per- sons. It was called 'The Bowery,' and served as a temporary place of worship until the construction of the great Temple. * * * a. mint was already in operation^ froni which were issued gold coins of the Federal denomi- nations, stamped without assay, from the dust brought from California." CHAPTER VII, THE PRIMITIVE GOVERNMENT OF THE COLONY, PROVISIONAL STATE OF DESERET ORGANIZED. PASSAGE OF THE GOLD-SEEKERS THROUGH THE VALLEY. During the first four years the colony grew up under the peculiar rule of the Mormon community. There was the "City of the Great Salt Lake" in name, but no regular incorporation until after the setting up of the Territory of Utah, under the United States administration. At first the city was simply a "Stake of Zion," with no secular functions in the common sense, nor a secular adminis- tration in any form, until the election for officers of the Provisional Government of the State of Deseret, when the bishops became magistrates of their several wards. Previous to their return to Winter Quarters, the Twelve Apostles organized a Stake of Zion, and appointed John Smith President, Charles C. Rich and John Young his counselors; Tarleton Lewis, Bishop, and a High Council. This or- ganization went into effect on the arrival of the emigrant companies, in the fall of 1847, when about 700 wagons, laden with fiimilies, located on the site of Great Salt Lake City. This, however, may be considered rather as a temporary Stake than the organization proper, for Great Salt Lake City was destined to be the permanent headquarters of the Church. With the Twelve and First Presidency at Winter Quarters, the Church herself was still in that place, and it was there that the First Presidency was re-established, with Brigham Young and his coun- selors, Heber C. Kimball and Willard Richards. This done, the Church evacu- ated Winter Quarters to establish herself in the valley of the Great Salt Lake, designing to send out therefrom her colonies, to found cities in every valley of these Rocky Mountains. , ^//ttti^t/ 22 / HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. j/ Immediately on the arrival of the body of the Church, under the presidency of Brigham Young in September, 1848, the regular social and ecclesiastical organizations of the community were effected, and the chief Stake of Zion organized in Great Salt Lake City. Commencing the re-organization at the general October Conference of that year, Brigham Young was acknowledged President of the Church in all the world, with Heber C. Kimball and Willard Richards as his counselors. On the ist of January, 1849, Johi^ Smith, uncle to the Prophet Joseph Smith, was ordained Patriarch of the Church, and on the 1 2th of February the Presidency and Twelve proceeded to fill up the vacant places in the quorum of the Twelve Apostles. They next, in the words of their General Epistle, "proceeded to organize a Stake of Zion at the Great Salt Lake City, with Daniel Spencer, president, and David Fullmer and Willard Snow, counselors. They also ordained and set apart a High Council of the Stake, con- sisting of Isaac Morley, Phinehas Richards, Shadrach Roundy, Henry G. Sher- wood, Titus Billings, Eleazer Miller, John Vance, Levi Jackman, Ira Eldredge, Elisha H. Groves, William W. Major, and Edwin D. Wooley. The other quo- rums of the Church were also re-organized. The Presidency of the Seventies was composed of Joseph Young, Zera Pulsipher, Levi W. Hancock, Jedediah M. Grant, Henry Herriman, Benjamin L. Clapp, and Albert P. Rockwood. John Young was ordained president of the High Priests' quorum, with counselors Reynolds Cahoon and' George B.Wallace; John Nebekei^ president of the Elders' quorum, with counselers James H. Smith and Aaron Savery. This re-or- ganization took place at the house of George B. Wallace, in the Old Fort. After these branches of the "spiritual" organization were perfected, the city- was divided into nineteen wards, over which bishops were appointed with their counselors. Under the direction of Brigham Young, who, throughout his lifetime, was the "all in all" in the colonization of Utah, the Apostles and Bishops com- menced to lay off the city, from the southe^t corner, running west five wards, then returning, running east five wards, then west again, and so on. Bishop Newel K. Whitney was the presiding Bishop over the whole. The original Bishops of the nineteen wards were as follows: First Ward, Peter McCue; Second Ward, John Lowrey ; Third Ward, Christopher Williams; Fourth Ward, Benjamin Brown; Fifth Ward (which for quite a while was without a Bishop), Thomas Winters; Sixth Ward, William Hickenlooper ; Seventh Ward, William G. Perkins; Eighth Ward, Addison Everett; Ninth Ward, Seth Taft; Tenth Ward, David Pettegrew; Eleventh Ward, John Lytle; Twelfth Ward, Benjamin Covey; Thirteenth Ward, Edward Hunter; Fourteenth Ward, John Murdock, Sen. ; Fifteenth Ward, Nathaniel V. Jones ; Sixteenth Ward, Shad- rach Roundy; Seventeenth Ward, J. L. Haywood; Eighteenth Ward, Presiding Bishop Whitney; Nineteenth Ward, James Hendricks. Under the government of the Bishops, Utah grew up, and, until the regular incorporation of Great Salt Lake City in 1851, they held what is usually consid- ered the secular administration over the people; Brigham Young was their director, for he formulated and constructed everything in those early days. Each of these nineteen wards developed, during the first period, before the reg- 8 j8 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. ular incorporation of the city, like so many municipal corporations, over which the Bishops were as chief magistrates or mayors. Under their temporal admin- istration all over Utah, as well as in Salt Lake, cities were built, lands divided off to the people, roads and bridges made, water-ditches cut, the land irrigated, and society governed. In fact, under them all the revenue was produced and the work done of founding Great Salt Lake City. Perhaps the most unique ecclesiastical order of government belonging to the Christian era is that which has sprung up in the Mormon Church in the organi- zations and government of its Bishops. It is altogether out of the common ecclesiastical order and church regime; and the duties and calling of those be- longing to the Mormon Bishopric have originated a form of government pecu- liarly its own. Indeed, this branch of the Mormon development has not only shaped considerable of the history of this peculiar people, but given to the world something of a nevv social problem. We may not be able to determine how much the influence and life-work of these Bishops will in the future affect the growth of the Pacific States and Territories; but, so far as the past is concerned, we know that under the Bishops the hundreds of cities and settlements of Utah and some of the adjacent Territories have been founded. Almost from the first organization of the Church and long before the organ- ization of the quorfrm of the Twelve Apostles, it was shown in the peculiar his- tory of the people that the Bishops were as the organic basis of the Mormon society, and the proper business managers of the Church; but it was not until the Mormons came to the Rocky Mountains that the society-work of the Bishops grew rapidly into the vast proportions of their present social and church govern- ment. In Utah, they soon became the veritable founders of our settlements and cities; and, having founded them, they have also governed them and directed the people in their social organization and material growth, while the Apostles and Presidents of Stakes have directed spiritual aff"airs. It may be further explained, that a Stake of Zion, the initial of which we have seen organized in that of the Salt Lake Stake, is analogous to a county ; and the High Council is a quorum of judges, in equity for the people, at the head of which is the President of the Stake, with his counselors. The community grew so rapidly that before the close of the second year it was deemed wise to establish a constitutional secular government, and accord- ingly representatives of the people met in convention in the month of March, 1849, and formed the Provisional Government of the State of Deseret. A con- stitution was adopted, and delegates sent to Washington asking admission into the Union. Here is what they said : "We, the people, grateful to the Supreme Being for the blessings hitherto enjoyed, and feeling our dependence on Him for a continuation of those bles- sings, do ordain and establish a free and independent government by the name of the State of Deseret, including all the Territory of the United States within the following boundaries, to-wit : Commencing at the 33d degree of north lat- itude, where it crosses the 108th degree of longitude west from Greenwich ; thence running south and west to the boundary of Mexico ; thence west to and down the main channel of the Gila River (or the northern part of Mexico), and HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 59 on the northern boundary of Lower California to the Pacific Ocean ; thence along the coast northwesterly to the iiSth degree, 30th minute of west longi- tude; thence north to where said line intersects the dividing ridge of the Sierra Nevada Mountains to the dividing range of mountains that separates the waters flowing into the Columbia River from the waters running into the Great Basin on the south, to the summit of the Wind River chain of mountains; thence south- east and south by the dividing range of mountains that separates the waters flow- ing into the Gulf of Mexico from the waters flowing into the Gulf of California, to the place of beginning, as set forth in a map drawn by Charles Preuss, and published by order of the Senate of the United States, in 1848." The Twelve, in their general epistle, under date, "Great Salt Lake City, March 9, 1849, ^'""^^^ explains this organic movement: "We have petitioned the Congress of the United States for the organization of a Territorial government here, embracing a territory of about seven hundred miles square, bounded north by Oregon, latitude 42 degrees, east by the Rio Grande Del Norte, south by the late lines between the United States and Mexico, near the latitude 32 degrees, and west by the sea coast and California Mountains. Until this petition is granted, we are under the necessity of organizing a local government for the time being, to consist of a governor, chief-justice, secretary, marshal, magistrates, etc. elected by the people : the election to take place next Monday." Accordingly, on Monday, March 12th, 1S49, ^^^^ State election was held in Great Salt Lake City, resulting in the unanimous choice of Brigham Young as Governor; Willard Richards, Secretary; N. K. Whitney, Treasurer; Heber C. Kimball, Chief Justice; John Taylor and N. K. Whitney, Associate Justices; Daniel H. Wells, Attorney-General ; Horace S. Eldredge, Marshal ; Albert Car- rington, Assessor and Collector of taxes; Joseph L. Heyvvood, Surveyor of Highways ; and the Bishops of the several wajds as Magistrates. The first celebration in the mountains was held on the 24th of July, 1849 — the second anniversary of the entrance of the Pioneers. The following description of the celebration, by the " Chief Scribe," may be of interest to many: "The inhabitants were awakened by the firing of cannon, accompanied by music. The brass band, playing martial airs, was then carried through the city, returning to the Bowery by seven o'clock. The Bowery is a building 100 feet long by 60 feet wide, built on 104 posts, and covered with boards; but for the services of this day a canopy or awning was extended about 100 feet from each side of the Bowery, to accommodate the vast multitude at dinner. "At half-past seven the large national flag, measuring sixty-five feet in length, was unfurled at the top of the liberty pole, which is 104 feet high, and was saluted hy the firing of six guns, the ringing of the Nauvoo bell, and spirit- stirring airs from the band. "At eight o'clock the multitude were called together by music and the firing of guns, the Bishops of the several wards arranging themselves on the sides of the aisles, with the banners of their wards unfurled, each bearing some appropriate inscription. 6o HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. "At a quarter past eight, the Presidency of the Stake, the Twelve, and the bands, went to prepare the escort in the following order, at the house of Presi- dent Brigham Young, under the direction of Lorenzo Snow, J. M. Grant, and F. D. Richards : ''(i) Horaces. Eldredge, marshal, on horseback, in military uniform; (2) brass band ; (3) twelve bishops bearing the banners of their wards; (4) seventy- four young men dressed in white, with white scarfs on their right shoulders, and coronets on their heads, each carrying in his right hand a copy of the Declara- tion of Independence and the Constitution of the United States, and each carry- ing a sheathed sword in his left hand ; one of them carrying a beautiful banner, inscribed on it, 'The Zion of the Lord ; ' (5) twenty-four young ladies, dressed in white, with white scarfs on their right shoulders, and wreaths of white roses on their heads, each carrying a copy of the Bible and Book of Mormon, and one carrying a very neat banner, ■ inscribed with 'Hail to our Captain;' (6) Brig- ham Young, Heber C. Kimball, Willard Richards, Parley P. Pratt, Charles C. Rich, John Taylor, Daniel Spencer, D. Fullmer, Willard Snow, Erastus Snow; (7) twelve Bishops, carrying flags of their wards; (8) twenty-four Silver Greys, led by Isaac Morley, Patriarch, each having a staff, painted red at the upper part, and a bunch of white ribbon fastened at the top, one of them carrying the Stars and Stripes, bearing the inscription, ' Liberty and Truth.' "The procession started from the house at nine o'clock. The young men and young ladies sang a hymn through the streets, the cannon roared, the musketry rolled, the Nauvoo bell pealed forth its silvery notes, and the air was filled by the sweet strains of the brass band. On arriving at the Bowery the escort was re- ceived with shouts of 'Hosanna! to God and tlie Lamb!' While the Presi- dency, Patriarch, and presiding Bishops were passing down the aisle, the people cheered and shouted, ' Hail to the Governor of Deseret.' These being seated by the committee on the stand, the escort passed round the assembly, singing a hymn of praise, marched down the aisle, and were seated in double rows on either side. The assembly was called to order by Mr. J. M. Grant. On being seated, Mr. Erastus Snow offered up a prayer. "Richard Ballantyne, one of the twenty-four young men, came to the stand, and, in a neat speech, presented the Declaration of Independence and the Consti- tution of the United States to President Young, which was received with three shouts, 'May it live forever,' led by the President. "The Declaration of Independence was then read by Mr. Erastus Snow, the band following with a lively air. "The clerk then read 'The Mountain Staixiard,' composed by Parley P. Pratt: — " Lo, the Gentile chain is broken, Freedom's banner waves on high." "After the above had been sung by the twenty-four young men and young ladies, Mr. Phinehas Richards came forward in behalf of the twenty- four aged sires in Israel, and read their congratulatory address on the an- niversary of the day. At the conclusion of the reading, the assembly rose and shouted three times, 'Hosanna! hosanna! hosanna! to God and the Lamb, for- HISTORY OF SALT LAKE GITY. 6i ever and ever, Amen,' while the banners were waved by the Bishops. The band next played a lively air, and the clerk then rose and read an 'Ode on Liberty.' "The ode was then sung by the twenty-four Silver Greys, to the tune of 'Bruce's Address to liis Army.' "The hour of intermission having arrived, the escort was reformed, the Bishops of each ward collected the inhabitants of their respective wards too-ether, and marched with them to the dinner tables, where several thousand of the Saints dined sumptuously on the fruits of the earth. Several hundred emigrants also partook of the repast, as did also three score Indians.." Orson Hyde, President of the Twelve Apostles, in the Fro?ttter Guardian, published at Kanesville, Iowa, thus explains this first celebration, at which, it will have been noticed, the Declaration of American Independence was read: "Our people celebrated the 24th of July instead of the 4th, for two reasons — one was because that was the day on which Brother Young and the Pioneers first entered the valley ; and the other was, they had little or no bread, or flour to make cakes, etc., that early, and not wishing to celebrate on empty stomachs, they postponed it until their harvest came in." The explanation of Apostle Hyde has historical pertinence, when it is re- membered that in the Spring of this year the community were put on rations; it was this very harvest of 1849, ^^^^ saved the people from a continuance of the famine, caused by the destruction of the crops by the grasshoppers in 1S48. Here a passage of history seems due to the soldiers of the Mormon Bat- talion, relative to their connection with the early times of California, and the finding of gold, which largely tended to the rapid growth of Great Salt Lake City and started its currency. On being discharged from the United States service, four of the Mormon Battalion found employ with Mr. Thomas Marshall, in digging Captain Sutter's mill race, on the Sacramento River, One day these brethren were attracted by the mysterious movements of their foreman, Mr. Marshall, whom they partly surprised in the act of washing something which his shovel had just turned up. That something was gold ! The discovery was at once shared by Mr. Marshall and his men. Of course, at first there was some secresy preserved, but such a discovery could not be long hid, and soon the Mormons of California, both those of the Battalion and those who sailed to the Bay of San Francisco with Mr. Samuel Brannan in the ship Brooklyn, were working in the gold diggings. So that notwithstanding Mr. Marshall's shovel brought the initial glitter of Cali- fornia gold to light, it was the shovels of Mormon Elders that spread the golden tidings to the world. No sooner was the discovery bruited than the whole civilized world seemed flocking to the new El Dorado. Scarcely a nation but sent its adventurous spirits to the paradise of gold. From the American States themselves came colony after colony pouring daily towards the west. Gold was the incentive at first, but as that wondrous emigrational tide swelled, it became more like the migration of a dominant race for the purpose of founding a new empire. This did finally be- come the proper character ot the movement. The best blood of America was in those emigrant companies, and they took 62 HIS 7 ORY OF SALT LAKE Cl TV. with theia enough resources to found a new State; but there was no "royal road" to the land of gold; fifteen hundred miles then intervened between the western frontier of the States and Great Salt Lake City. The Mormon Zion became the "half-way house'' of the nation. But the ambitious and spirited emigrants to California could not endure the tedious journey as the Saints had done. Before they reached the mountains they began to leave fragments of their richly-laden trains by the wayside. All along the route was strewn valuable freight, with the ruins of wagons and the carcasses of oxen and mules. By the time the gold-seekers reached the valley of the Great Salt Lake, they were utterly impatient and demoralized. Many had loaded their trains with clothing, dry goods^ general merchandise, mechanics' tools and machinery, ex- pecting to find a market where gold was dug and a new country to be settled. But the merchant, alike with the adventiirer, was at last subdued by the conta- gion of the gold fever, and provoked into a mania of impatience by the tedious journey. News also reached the overland emigrants that steamers, laden with merchandise had sailed from New York to California. The speculations of the merchants lost their last charm. That which was destined for California was left in Utah. In absolute disgust for their trains of merchandise and splendid emigrant outfits, they gave the bulk to the Mormons at their own price, and for the most ordinary means of barter. A horse or a mule outfit to carry the gold- hunter quickly to his destination, was taken as an equivalent for wagons, cattle, and merchandise. Parley P. Pratt, writing to his brother Orson under date July 8th, 1849, ^^Y^- " The present travel through this place, or near it, will, it is thought, amount to some thirty or forty thousand persons. All will centre here another year, as much of it does this year. This employs blacksmiths, pack-saddlers, washing, board, etc., and opens a large trade in provisions, cattle, mules, horses, etc. Scores or hundreds of people now arrive here daily, and all stop to rest and re-fit." The Frontier Guardian, giving the news of the arrival of the gold-seekers in Great Salt Lake City related the story thus: "The valley has been a place of general deposit for property, goods, etc., by Californians. When they saw a few bags and kegs of gold dust brought in by our boys, it made them completely en- thusiastic. Pack mules and horses that were worth twenty-five dollars in ordinary times, would readily bring two hundred dollars in the most valuable property at the lowest price. Goods and other property were daily offered at auction in all parts of the city. For a light Yankee wagon, sometimes three or four great heavy ones would be offered in exchange, and a yoke of oxen thrown in at that. Common domestic sheeting sold from five to ten cents per yard by the bolt. The best of spades and shovels for fifty cents each. Vests that cost in St. Louis one dollar and fifty cents each, were sold at Salt Lake for thirty-seven and one half cents. Full chests of joiner's tools that would cost one hundred and fifty dollars in the East, were sold in Salt Lake City for twenty-five dollars. Indeed, almost every article, except sugar and coffee, were selling on an average fifty per cent, below wholesale prices in the eastern States." HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 63 In the fall, a company of Mormon Elders started from Salt Lake City, de- signing to work for awhile in the gold mines, after which some were to proceed on missions to the Sandwich Islands. The company consisted of General Charles C. Rich, Major Hunt of the Mormon Battalion, Captain Flake, captain of the company, George Q. Cannon, Joseph Cain, Thomas Whittle, Henry E. Gibson and other prominent Mormons. This was the first company that under- took to go to California by the southern route. The expedition started with only about thirty days' provisions: yet sixty days on the road were passed before the first settlement was reached. The men went with pack animals. In crossing the desert they had often to turn back and re-take up their march in some other direction, which made the journey very long and severe, killing nearly all of their animals, so that the last three hundred and fifty miles were mostly performed on foot. But it was a fine company of men, and they were enabled fo survive one of the hardest journeys ever made to the State of California. CHAPTER VIII. ARRIVAL OF CAPTAIN STANSBURY. HIS INTERVIEW WITH GOVERNOR YOUNG GOVERNMENT SURVEY OF THE LaKES. COMMENCEMENT OF INDIAN DIFFICULTIES. In August of that year (1849) Captain Howard Stansbury, of the United States Army Topographical Engineers, with his assistants, arrived in the valley for the purpose of making a government survey of the lakes. He was accompanied by Lieutenant Gunnison who was, like Captain Stansbury, one of the earliest and most intelligent writers upon the Utah community. Of his arrival, Captain Stansbury thus reports to the chief of his department : " Before reaching Great Salt Lake City, I had heard from various sources that much uneasiness was felt by the Mormon community at my anticipated coming among them. I was told that they would never permit any survey of their country to be made; while it was darkly hinted that if I persevered in attempt- ing to carry it on, my life would scarce be safe. Utterly disregarding, indeed, giving not the least credence to these insinuations, I at once called upon Brigham Young, the President of the Mormon Church and the Governor of the Common- wealth, stated to him what I had heard, explained to him the views of the Gov- ernment in directing an exploration and survey of the lake, assuring him that these were the sole objects of the expedition. Pie replied, that he did not hesi- tate to say that both he and the people whom he presided over had been very much disturbed and surprised that the Goverument should send out a party into their country so soon after they had made their settlement; that he had heard of the expedition from time to time, since its onset from Fort Leavenworth ; and 64 HISTORY OF SAL T LAKE CL2 Y. that the whole community were extremely anxious as to what could be the design of the Government in such a movement. It appeared, too, that their alarm had been increased by the indiscreet and totally unauthorized boasting of an attache of General Wilson, the newly appointed Indian agent for California, whose train on its way thither had reached the city a few days before I myself arrived. This person, as I understood, had declared openly that General Wilson had come clothed with authority from the President of the United States to expel the Mormons from the lands which they occupied, and that he would do so if he thought proper. The Mormons very naturally supposed from such a declaration that there must be some understanding or connection between General Wilson and myself; and that the arrival of the two parties so nearly together was the result of a concerted and combined movement for the ulterior purpose of break- ing up and destroying their colony. The impression was that a survey was to be made of their country in the same manner that other public lands are surveyed, for the purpose of dividing into townships and sections, and of thus establishing and recording the claims of the Government to it, and thereby anticipating any claim the Mormons might set up from their previous occupation. However un- reasonable such a suspicion may be considered, yet it must be remembered that these people are exasperated and rendered almost desperate by the wrongs and persecutions they had previovsly suffered in Illinois and Missouri ; that they had left the confines of civilization and fled to these far distant wilds, that they might enjoy undisturbed the religious liberty which had been practically denied them : and that -now they supposed themselves to be followed up by the General Govern- ment with the view of driving them out from even this solitary spot, where they had hoped they should at length be permitted to set up their habitation in peace. "Upon all these points I undeceived Governor Young to his entire satisfac- tion. I was induced to pursue this conciliatory course, not only in justice to the Government, but also because I knew, from the peculiar organization of this sin- gular community, that, unless the ' President' was fully satisfied that no evil was intended to his people, it would be useless for me to attempt to carry out my in- structions. He was not only civil Governor, but the President of the whole Church of Latter-day Saints upon the earth, their prophet and their priest, re- ceiving, as they all firmly believed, direct revelations of the Divine will, which, according to their creed, form the law of the Church. He is, consequently, profoundly revered by all, and possesses unbounded influence and almost un- limited power. I did not anticipate open resistance ; but I was fully aware that if the President continued to view the expedition with distrust, nothing could be more natural than that every possible obstruction should be thrown in our way by a 'masterly inactivity.' Provisions would not be furnished; information would not be afforded ; labor could not be procured ; and no means would be left untried, short of open opposition, to prevent the success of a measure by them deemed fatal to their interests and safety. So soon, however, as the true object of the expedition was fully understood, the President laid the subject- matter before the council called for that purpose, and I was informed, as the re- sult of their deliberations, that the authorities were much pleased that the explora- HISTORY OF SALl LAKE CITY. 65 tion was to be made; that they had themselves contemplated something of the kind, but did not yet feel able to incur the expense; but that any assistance they could render to facilitate our operations would be most cheerfully furnished to the extent of their ability. This pledge, thus heartily given, was as faithfully redeemed ; and it gives me pleasure here to acknowledge the warm interest mani- fested and efificient aid rendered, as well by the President as by all the leading men of the community, both in our personal welfare and in the successful prose- cution of the work. "Matters being thus satisfactorily adjusted, as the provisions which had been laid in at the beginning of the journey were nearly exhausted, I left the city on the 1 2th of September, with teams and pack-mules, for Fort Hall, to procure the supplies for the party which had been forwarded to that post by the supply train attached to Colonel Loring's command ; and at the same time to carry out that portion of my instructions which directed me to explore a route for a road from the head of Salt Lake to Fort Hall. The main party was left under the command of Lieutenant Gunnison, with instructions to commence the survey upon the basis already laid down." Returning from his exploration of a route from Great Salt Lake City to Fort Hall, and reconnoissance of Cache Valley, Captain Stansbury continues a narra- tive intimately connected with the early history of this city. He says: " Upon my arrival at Salt Lake City, I found that the camp, under Lieuten- ant Gunnison, was then about sixty miles to the southward, upon Utah Lake. I accordingly joined him as soon as possible. The work, during my absence, had been carried forward by that officer with energy, industry and judgment. " I had hoped, from the representations which had been made to me of the mildness of the two previous winters, that we should be able to keep the field the greater part, if not the whole of the season ; but, in the latter part of November, the winter set in with great and unusual severity, accompanied by deep snows, which rendered any farther prosecution of the work impracticable. I was therefore compelled to break up my camp, and to seek for winter quarters in the city. These were not obtained vvithout some difficulty, as the tide of emigration had been so great that houses were very scarce, and not a small portion of the inhabi- tants, among whom was the president himself, were forced to lodge portions of their families in wagons. "Upon terminating the field-work for the season, I despatched three men, one of whom was my guide and interpreter, with a small invoice of goods, to trade for horses among the Uintah Utahs, with directions to await my orders at Fort Bridger. Reports afterward reached us that a bloody fight had taken place between the Sioux and the Yampah Utahs, which latter tribe reside in the vicinity of the Uintahs, and great fears were entertained that the little party had been cut off by one or tlie other of the contending tribes. Such a calamity, aside from the loss of life, would have been of serious consequence to the expedition, as the horses I expected to obtain were almost indispensable to the return of the party to the States, the number of our animals having been much diminished by death and robbery. "It may as well be mentioned here, that the party thus despatched subse- 66 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. quently joined me in the spring, as soon as the melting of the snows rendered communication wiih Fort Bridger practicable, bringing with them a drove of twenty-five horses. They had met with very rough usage from the Indians, hav- ing been robbed of a number of their horses, besides the whole of what remained of their goods and narrowly escaped with their lives. "From the report by Lieutenant Gunnison of his operations during my ab- sence, I make the following synopsis. ''A thorough exploration was made, with the view of ascertaining the points for such a base line as would best develop a system of triangles embracing both the Salt Lake and Utah Valleys. "A line was selected, and carefully measured by rods constructed for the purpose, and tripod stations erected over the termini, which were marked by metal points set in wooden posts sunk flush with the surface of the ground. The length of the base is thirty-one thousand six hundred and eighty feet. " Fourteen principal triangulation stations were erected, consisting of large pyramidal timber tripods, strongly framed, to be covered, when required for use, by cotton cloth of different colors, according to the background. The triangles extended to the south shore of Utah Lake, and embraced an area of about eiglity by twenty-five miles. "A survey and sounding had been made of the Utah Lake, and also of the river connecting it with Salt Lake : this operation requiring a line to be run of one hundred and twenty-six miles, principally by the back angle, with the theodolite. " Although such a result, from less than two months' labor, would be en- tirely satisfactory under ordinary circumstances anywhere, and would reflect credit on the energy and capacity of the officer in charge of the work, yet it may be remarked that it would be very unfair to judge of it by a comparison with similar results obtained in the Eastern States. There, all the accessories to such a work, especially water and timber, are abundant, and generally at a convenient distance: here, on the contrary, botli are very scarce and hard to be obtained. All the water, for instance, used both for cooking and drinking, that was con- sumed on the base line, (requiring seven days of incessant labor in its measure- ment,) had to be transported upon mules from the river, which lay a mile east of its eastern terminus; and the force employed in the erection of most of the tri- angulation stations had to be supplied in a like manner. But the principal diffi- culty was the scarcity of timber. Wood grows nowhere on the plains; all the wood used for cooking in camp, and all the timber, both for posts on the base line and for the construction of the stations, had to be hauled from the moun- tains in many cases fifteen or twenty miles distant, over a rough country without roads. Almost every stick used for this purpose cost from twenty to thirty miles travel of a six-mule team. This, together with the delays of getting into the canyons, where alone the timber can be procured, cutting down the trees, and hauling them down the gorges by hand to the nearest spots accessible to the teams, involved an amount of time and labor which must be experienced before it can be appreciated. All this had to be done, however, or the prosecution of the work would have been impracticable. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 67 ." Before leaving the Salt Like City for Fort Hall, I had engaged the services of Albert Carrington, Esq., a member of the Mormon community, who was to act as an assistant on the survey. He was without experience in the use of in- struments; but, being a gentleman of liberal education, he soon acquired, under instruction, the requisite skill, and, by his zeal, industry, and practical good sense, materially aided us in our subsequent operations. He continued with the party until the termination of the survey, accompanied it to this city, [Washington] and has since returned to his mountain home, carrying with him the respect and kind wishes of all with whom he was associated. " The winter season in the valley was long and severe-. The vicinity of so many high mountains rendered the weather extremely variable; snows fell con- stantly upon them, and frequently to the depth of ten inches in the plains. In many of the canyons it accumulated to the depth of fifty feet, filling up the passes so rapidly that, in more than one instance, emigrants who had been belated in starting from the States, were overtaken by the storms in the mountain gorges, and forced to abandon every thing, and escape on foot, leaving even their ani- mals to perish in the snows. All communication with the world beyond was thus effectually cut off; and, as the winter advanced, the gorges became more and more impassable, owing to the drifting of the snow into them from the project- ing peaks. '' We remained thus shut up until the 3d of- April. Our quarters consisted of a small unfurnished house of unburnt brick or adobe, unplastered, and roofed with boards loosely nailed on, which, every time it stormed, admitted so much water as called into requisition all the pans and buckets in the establishment to receive the numerous little streams which came trickling down from every crack and knot-hole. During this season of comparative inaction, we received from the authorities and citizens of the community every kindness that the most warm- hearted hospitality could dictate : and no effort was spared to render us comfort- able as their own limited means would admit. Indeed, we were much better lodged than many of our neighbors; for, as has been previously observed, very many families were obliged still to lodge wholly or in part in their wagons, which, being covered, served, when taken off from the wheels and set upon the ground, to make bedrooms, of limited dimensions it is true, but yet exceedingly comfor- table. Many of these were comparatively large and commodious, and, when car- peted and furnished with a little stove, formed an additional apartment or back building to the small cabin, with which they frequently communicated by a door. It certainly argued a high tone of morals and an habitual observance of good order and decorum, to find women and children thus securely slumbering in the midst of a large city, with no protection from midnight molestation other than a wagon- cover of linen and the segis of the law. In the very next enclosure to that occu- pied by our party, a whole family of children had no other shelter than one of these wagons, where they slept all the winter, literally out of doors, there being no communication' whatever with the inside of their parents' house." Stansbury's report to the Government also supplies the initial pages of the Indian history of Utah. He says: 6S HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. "The native tribes with whom we came in contact in the valley were the most degraded and lowest in the scale of being of any I had ever seen. They consisted of the ' root-diggers,' a class of Indians which seemed to be composed of outcasts from their respective tribes, subsisting chiefly upon roots dug from the ground, and the seeds of various plants indigenous to the soil, which they grind into a kind of flour between two fiat stones. Lizards and crickets also form a portion of their food. At certain seasons of the year they obtain from the trib- utaries of both the Salt Lake and Lake Utah, a considerable quantity of fish, which they take in weirs or traps, constructed of willow bushes. Those that we saw were branches of the Shoshones or Snakes, and from the large and warlike tribe of Utahs, which latter inhabit a large tract of country to the southward. They are known among the traders by the designation of 'snake-diggers,' and ' Utes ; ' those of the latter tribe, .which inhabit the vicinity of the lakes and streams and live chiefly on fish, being distinguished by the name of 'Pah Utahs/ or 'Pah Utes/— the word Pah, in their language, signifying water. "While engaged in the survey of the Utah Valley, we were no little annoyed by numbers of the latter tribe, who hung around the camp, crowding around the cook-fires, more like hungry dogs than human beings, eagerly watching for the least scrap that might be thrown away, which they devoured with avidity and without the least preparation. The herdsmen also complained that their cattle were fre- quently scattered, and that notwithstanding their utmost vigilance, several of them had unaccountably disappeared and were lost. One morning, a fine fat ox came into camp with an arrow buried in his side, which perfectly accounted for the dis- appearance of the others. "After the party left Lake Utah for winter quarters in Salt Lake City, the Indians became more insolent, boasting of what they had done — driving off the stock of the inhabitants of the southern settlements, resisting all attempts to re- cover them, and finally firing upon the people themselves as they issued from their little stockade to attend to their ordinary occupations. Lender these circumstances, the settlers in the Utah Valley applied to the supreme government, at Salt Lake City, for counsel as to the proper course of action. The President was at first extremely averse to the adoption of harsh measures ; but, after several conciliatory overtures had been resorted to in vain, he very properly determined to put a stop, by force, to further aggressions, which, if not resisted, could only end in tlie total destruction of the colony. Before coming to this decision, the authorities called upon me to consult as to the policy of the measure, and to request the ex- pression of my opinion as to what view the Government of the United States might be expected to take of it. Knowing, as I did, most of the circumstances, and feeling convinced that some action of the kind would ultimately have to be resorted to, as the forbearance already shown had been only attributed to weak- ness and cowardice, and had served but to encorage further and bolder outrages, I did not hesitate to say to them that, in my judgment, the contemplated expe- dition against these savage marauders was a measure not only of good policy, but one of absolute necessity and self-preservation. I knew the leader of the Indians to be a crafty and blood-thirsty savage, who had been already guilty of several murders, and had openly threatened that he would kill every white man that he HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 6g found alone upon the prairies. In addition to this, I was convinced that the completion of the yet unfinished survey of the Utah Valley, the coming season, must otherwise be attended with serious difficulty, if not actual hazard, and would involve the necessity of a largely increased and armed escort for its pro- tection. Such being the circumstances, the course proposed could not but meet my entire approval. "A force of one hundred men was accordingly organized, and, upon the ap- plication of President Young, leave was given to Lieutenant Rowland, of the Mounted Rifles, then on duty with my command, to accompany the expedition as its adjutant: such assistance also was furnished as it was in my power to afford, consisting of arms, tents, camp- equipage, and ammunition. " The expedition was completely successful. The Indians fought very bravely, but were finally routed, some forty of them killed, and as many more taken pris- oners; the latter, consisting principally of women and children, were carried to the city and distributed among the inhabitants, for the purpose of weaning them from their savage pursuits, and bringing them up in the habits of civilized and Christian life. The experiment, however, did not succeed as was anticipated, most of the prisoners escaping upon the very first opportunity. "On the 2 2d of February, about three p. m., a slight shock of an earthquake was felt in the southern part of the city, the vibrations being sufficient to shake plates from the shelves and to disturb milk in the pans." The historical importance of the first Indian expedition of this Territory, which was the beginning of the organization of the Utah militia, calls for the fol- lowing supplementary pages to Captain Stansbury's report. The organization of a militia for the protection of these colonies in an In- dian country was an imperative necessity, and to Daniel H. Wells, who had al- ready distinguihsed himself in military affairs, was given the task of creating it, and the rank of Lieutenant-General was conferred upon him by the Governor. The first company organized was under the command of Captain George D. Grant, who was afterwards Brigadier-General. They were called " Minute Men," a name which soon became famous in the Indian service throughout Utah. The company originated in Great Salt Lake City, and from time to time it was called out to the re- lief of those colonies which were sent from the parent colony to explore and populate the country. The first engagement of any importance was on the spot where the city of Provo now stands ; there had, however, occurred a slight affray at Battle Creek, at which .Colonel John Scott commanded, but none were killed on either side. On the call by Governor Young for one hundred mounted men General Wells immediately dispatched a company of fifty under the command of Captain George D. Grant. Among the subordinate officers were William 11. Kimball, James A. Little, James Ferguson and Henry Johnson, the two latter having been officers in the Mormon Battalion ; and among the privates were such men as Robert T. Bur- ton, Lot Smith, Ephraim Hanks, Jesse Martin, Orson Whitney, and others who afterwards figured prominently in the Utah militia. The second fifty was forwarded under the command of Captain Lytle, who was an officer in the Mormon Battalion. 70 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. The company under the command of Captain George D. Grant started from Great Salt Lake City on the yth day of February. The men marched all night in the snow for the purpose of coming upon the Indians unawares. The weather was intensely cold; from ten to twelve inches of snow covered the entire Utah Valley. They arrived early in the morning of the 8th, having suffered severely on the march from the inclement weather. The Indians had fortified themselves on the Provo River. They were en- camped in a bend of the river bottom, under a low bluff, from which the ground receded to the river. All this bottom, at that time, was covered with willow brush and cottonwod timber, some of the latter having been cut down by them to construct their fortifications. These Indians were of a warlike tribe, under the command of Old Elk, and not of the lower class of which Stansbury speaks. There were about seventy warriors, possessing arms equal to those of the expedition sent out against them, — their arms having been obtained from the mountaineers, traders, and settlers. Their squaws and children were sent into the canyons, while the war- riors thus strongly fortified awaited the attack. They also held possession of a double log house. The settlers had retired to the shelter of their fort, but some of them joined the assailants on their arrival and did effective service in the defence of their city. Thus fortified, the Indian warriors kept the militia at bay till the evening of the second day, before the latter obtained any decided advantage. Meantime the Indians had killed one and wounded five or six. They frequently sallied out from their entrenchments, delivered their fire, then quickly retreated to the brush. At length Lieutenant Rowland, of Stansbury's command, suggested a moveable battery, which was forthwith constructed of plank, laid up edgewise on the top of runners, over which were thrown camp blankets and buffalo robes. This battel y was handled by the assailants effectively, and pushed towards the Indian line of defence. On the afternoon of the second day, a small company of cavalry (sixteen in number) was ordered by Captain Grant to make a charge upon the Indian quarters, and especially to get possession of the log house, pre- viously referred to, from which the Indians had greatly annoyed the men. The little company of cavalry made a dashing charge, but were met with such a vol- ley of fire, wounding two or three of their number, that the impetuosity of the charge was for a moment checked, but Burton and Lot Smith, dashing on, suc- ceeded in riding their horses into the passage that divided the rooms of the double log house, of which they took possession, the Indians having deserted it at the onslaught. The Indians, recovering from the surprise of the charge, fired on the remainder of the detachment with such violence that the men had to take shelter under the end of the house, but seven or eight of their best horses were shot down in a very few minutes. Between the firing the men got into the house, upon which the Indians continued to fire for several hours. In this company of sixteen picked men were Lot Smith, Robert T. Burton, William H. Kimball, Jas. Ferguson, Ephraim Hanks, Henry Johnson, Isham Flyn, (wl^o was wounded,) .Orson Whitney, and eight others whose names we have not been able to obtain. This charge was complimented by Lieutenant Rowland as being as fine as HISTORY OF SAL T LAKE CITY. ji regular cavalry would make. It gave the advantage of the engagement into the hands of the militia; for the Indians retired in the night after the charge, leaving their dead on the ground, carrying their wounded with them; but before their retreat they supplied themselves abundantly with the horse beef. So much bravery was exhibited by the Indians, and such a desperate defence made, that despatches had been sent to Great Salt Lake City, repeatedly request- ing General Wells to come and take personal command, which he did, but arrived after the second day's engagement. There was afterwards quite an engage- ment on the south end of Utah Lake, at which General Wells was present and had personal command. Captain Stansbury omitted to mention that Dr. Blake, of his command, was in this expedition, but his presence and services to the wounded have been re- membered and gratefully acknowleged by the commanding officers of the old Minute Men. And it is worthy of note that it was this very expedition which brought out the men who have since figured as generals of the Utah militia. In it Lot Smith and Robert T. Burton for the first time met, and with that charge together on the log house began the life long friendship of these two men who, next to the Lieutenant-General, Daniel H. Wells, have figured the most conspic- uously in the military history of Utah, Having completed their surveys and explorations, the topographical en- gineers left the City of the Great Salt Lake for home on the 28th of August, 1850, Stansbury, closing the record of his sojourn among the founders of this Territory, with the following tribute to them : "Before taking leave of the Mormon community, whose history has been the subject of no little interest in the country, I cannot but avail myself of the opportunity again to acknowledge the constant kindness and generous hospitality which was ever extended to the party during the sojourn of rather more than a year among them. The most disinterested efforts were made to afford us, both personally and officially, all the aids and facilities within the power of the peo- ple, as well to forward our labors as to contribute to our comfort and enjoyment. Official invitations were sent by the authorities to the officers of the party, while engaged in distant duty on the lake, to participate in the celebration of their . annual jubilee, on the 24th of July, and an honorable position assigned them in the procession on that occasion. Upon our final departure, we were followed with the kindest expressions of regard, and anxious hopes for the safety and wel- fare of the party upon its homeward journey." J 2 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. CHAPTER IX. INCORPORATION OF GREAT SALT LAKE CITY. ITS ORIGINAL CHARTER. THE FIRST CITY COUNCIL AND MUNICIPAL OFFICERS. ORGANIZATION OF THE TERRITORY. ARRIVAL OF THE NEWS OF GOVERNOR YOUNG'S APPOINT- MENT. DISSOLUTION OF THE STATE OF UESERET. GOVERNOR'S PROC- LAMATION. LEGALIZING THE LAWS PASSED BY THE PROVISIONAL GOVERNMENT. CORRESPONDENCE BETWEEN COLONEL KANE AND PRESI- DENT FILLMORE. STANSBURY'S VOUCHER FOR BRIGHAM YOUNG. The cities of Utah needing their due municipal orders, and having waited so long for the action of Congress, the Governor and the General Assembly of the State of Deseret, at the opening of the year 1851, effected the incorporation of the cities of Great Salt Lake, Ogden, Provo, Manti and Parowan. The following is the original charter of Great Salt Lake City, entitled "AN ORDINANCE TO INCORPORATE GREAT SALT LAKE CITY. "Sec. I. Be it ordained by the General Assembly of the State of Deseret: That all that district of country embraced in the following boundaries, to wit: — beginning at the southeast corner of the Church Pasture, about half a mile north of the Hot Spring; thence west to the west bank of the Jordan River; thence south, up the west bank thereof, to a point in said bank directly west from the southw^est corner of the five-acre lots, south of said city; thence east to the aforesaid southwest corner of said five-acre lots, and along the south line thereof; thence east to the base of the mountains ; thence directly north to the point di- rectly east of the southeast corner of the Church Pasture ; thence west to the place of beginning: — including the present survey of said city, shall be known and designated as Great Salt Lake City; and the inhabitants thereof are hereby constituted a body corporate and politic, by the name aforesaid, and shall have perpetual succession, and may have and use a common seal, which they may change and alter at pleasure. "Sec. 2. The inhabitants of said city, by the name and style aforesaid, shall have power to sue and be sued; to plead and be impleaded; defend and be defended in all courts of law and equity, and in all actions whatsoever; to purchase, receive and hold property, real and personal, in said city ; to purchase receive and hold real property beyond the city, for burying grounds, or other public purposes, for the use of the inhabitants of said city; to sell, lease, con- vey, or dispose of property, real and personal, for the benefit of said city ; to improve and protect such property, and to do all other things in relation thereto, as natural persons. Sec. 3. There shall be a City Council, to consist of a Mayor, four Alder- men, and nine Councilors, who shall have the qualifications of electors of said city, and shall be chosen by the qualified voters thereof, and shall hold their offices for two years, and until their successors shall be elected and qualified. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. jj The City Council shall judge of the qualifications, elections, and returns of their own members, and a majority of them shall form a quorum to do business; but a smaller number may adjourn from day to day, and compel the attendance of ab- sent members, under such penalties as may be prescribed by ordinance. Sec. 4. The Mayor, Aldermen, and Councilors, before entering upon the duties of their offices, shall take and subscribe an oath or affirmation, that they will support the Constitution of the United States, and of this State, and that they will well and truly perform the duties of their offices, to the best of their skill and abilities. Sec. 5. On the first Monday of April next, and every two years thereafter, on said day, an election shall be held for the election of one Mayor, four Alder- men, and nine Councilors ; and at the first election under this ordinance, three judges shall be chosen, viva voce, by the electors present. The said judges shall choose two clerks, and the judges and clerks, before entering upon their duties, shall take and subscribe an oath or affirmation, such as is now required by law to be taken by judges and clerks of other elections ; and at all subsequent elections the necessary number of judges and clerks shall be appointed by the City Coun- cil. At the first election so held, the polls shall be opened at nine o'clock a. m., and closed at six o'clock p. m. At the close of the polls, the votes shall be counted, and a statement thereof proclaimed at the front door of the house at which said election shall be held; and the clerks shall leave with each person elected, or at his usual place of residence, within five days after the election, a written notice of his election ; and each person so notified, shall within ten days after the election, take the oath or affirmation herein before mentioned, a certifi- cate of which oath shall be deposited with the Recorder, whose appointment is hereinafter provided for, and be by him preserved. And all subsequent elections shall be held, conducted, and returns thereof made, as may be provided for by ordinance of the City Council. Sec. 6. All free white male inhabitants of the age of eighteen years, who are entitled to vote for State officers, and who shall have been actual residents of said city sixty days next preceeding said election, shall be entitled to vote for city officers. Sec. 7. The City Council shall have authority to levy and collect taxes for city purposes, upon all taxable property, real and personal, within the limits of the city, not exceeding one-half per cent, per annum, upon the assessed value thereof, and may enforce the payment of the same in any manner to be provided by ordinance, not repugnant to the Constitusion of the United States, or of this State. Sec. 8. The City Council shall have power to appoint a Recorder, Treasurer, Assessor and Collector, Marshal and Supervisor of Streets. They shall also have the power to appoint all such other officers, by ordinance, as may be necessary, define the duties of all city officers, and remove them from office at pleasure. Sec. 9. The City Council shall have power to require of all officers ap- pointed in pursuance of this ordinance, bonds with penalty and security, for the faithful performance of their respective duties, such as may be deemed expedient, 10 74 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. and also to require all officers appointed as aforesaid, to take an oath for the faithful performance of the duties of their respective cJifices. Sec. io. The City Council shall have power and authority to make, or- dain, establish, and execute all such ordinances not repugnant to the Constitu- tion of the United States, or of this State, as they may deem necessary for the peace, benefit, good order, regulation, convenience, and cleanliness of said city; for the protection of property therein, from destruction of property by fire or otherwise, and for the health and happiness thereof. They shall have power to fill all vacancies that may happen by death, resignation, or removal, in any of the offices herein made elective; to fix and establish all the fees of the officers of said corporation, not herein established; to impose such fines, not exceeding one hundred dollars for each offense, as they may deem just, for refusing to accept any office in or under the corporation, or for misconduct therein; to divide the city into wards, and specify the boundaries thereof, and create additional wards; 10 add to the number of Aldermen and Councilors, and apportion them among the several wards, as may be just, and most conducive to the interest of the city. Sec. II. To establish, support and regulate comnion schools; to borrow money on the credit of the city, — provided that no sum or sums of money be borrowed on a greater interest than six per cent, per annum, — nor shall the in- terest on the aggregate of all the sums borrowed and outstanding ever exceed one half of the city revenue, arising from taxes assessed on real estate within this cor- poration. Sec. 12. To make regulations to prevent the introduction of contagious diseases into the City, to make quarantine laws for that purpose, and enforce the same. Sec. 13. To appropriate and provide for the payment of the expenses and debts of the city. Sec. 14. To establish hospitals, and make regulations for the government of the same; to make regulations to secure the general health of the inhabitants; to declare what shall be nuisances, and to prevent and remove the same. Sec. 15. To provide the City with water, to dig wells, lay pump logs, and pipes, and erect pumps in the streets for the extinguishment of fires, and convenience of the inhabitants. Sec. 16. To open, alter, widen, extend, establish, grade, pave, or other- wise improve and keep in repair, streets, avenues, lanes, and alleys; and to es- tablish, erect and keep in repair aqueducts and bridges. Sec. 17. To provide for lighting of the streets, and erecting lamp posts; and establish, support and regulate night watches; to erect market houses, estab- lish markets and market places, and j)rovide for the government and regulations thereof. Sec. 18. To provide for erecting all needful buildings for the use of the City; and for enclosing, improving, and regulating all public grounds belonging to the City. Sec. 19. To license, tax and regulate auctioneers, merchants, and re- tailers, grocers and taverns, ordinaries, hawkers, peddlers, brokers, pawnbrokers, and money changers. "V HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 75 Sec. 20. To license, tax and regulate hacking, carriages, wagons, carts and drays, and fix the rates to be charged for the carriage of persons, and for wagon- age, cartage and drayage of property ; as also to license and regulate porters, and fix the rates of porterage. Sec. 21. To license, tax and regulate theatrical and other exhibitions, shows and amusements. Sec. 22. To tax, restrain, prohibit, and suppress tippling houses, dram shops, gaming houses, bawdy, and other disorderly houses. Sec. 23. To provide for the prevention and extinguishment of fires ; to regulate the fixing of chimneys, and the flues thereof, and stove pipes, and to organize and establish fire companies. Sec. 24. To regulate the storage of gunpowder, tar, pitch, rosin, and other combustible materials. Sec, 25. To regulate and order parapet walls, and other partition fences. Sec. 26. To establish standard weights and measures, and regulate the weights and measures Jo be used in the city, in all other cases not provided for by law. Sec. 27. To provide for the inspection and measuring of lumber and and other building materials, and for the measurement of all kinds of mechan- ical work. Sec. 28. To provide for the inspection and weighing of hay, lime and stone coal, and measuring of charcoal, firewood, and other fuel, to be sold or used within the City. Sec. 29. To provide for and regulate the inspection of tobacco, and of beef, pork, flour, meal; also beer and whisky, brandy, and all other spirituous or fermented liquors. Sec. 30. To I'egulate the weight, quality, and price of bread sold and used in the City. Sec. 31. To provide for taking the enumeration of the inhabitants of the City. Sec. 32. To fix the compensation of all city officers, and regulate the fees of jurors, witnesses, and others, for services rendered under this or any city or- dinance. Sec. 33. The City Council shall have exclusive power within the city by or- dinance, to license, regulate, suppress, or restrain billiard tables, and from one to twenty pin alleys, and every other description of gaming or gambling. Sec. 34. The City Council shall have exclusive power within the City, by ordinance, to license, regulate, or restrain the keeping of ferries, and toll bridges; to regulate the police of the city; to impose fines, forfeitures and penalties, for the breach of any ordinance, and provide for the recovery of such fines and for- feitures, and the enforcement of such penalties, and to pass such ordinances as may be necessary and proper for carrying into effect and execution, the powers specified in this ordinance, provided such ordinances are not repugnant to the Constitution of the United States, or of this State. Sec. 35. All ordinances passed by the City Council, shall, within one month after they shall have been passed, be published in some newspaper, printed in said 76 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. City, or certified copies thereof, be posted up in three of the most public places in the City. Sec. -i)^. All ordinances of the City may be proven by the seal af the cor- poration ; and when printed or jniblished in book or pamphlet form, purporting to be printed or published by the authority of the corporation, the same shall be received in evidence in all courts, or places, without further proof. Sec. 37. The Mayor and Aldermen shall be conservators of the peace within the limits of the city, and shall have all the powers of justices of the peace therein, both in civil and criminal cases, arising under the laws of the State. They shall, as justices of the peace within said city, perform the same duties, be governed by the same laws, give the same bonds and securities, as other justices of the peace, and be commissioned as justices of the peace, in and for said city, by the Governor. Sec. 38. The Mayor and Aldermen shall have exclusive jurisdiction in all cases arising under the ordinances of the corporation, and shall issue such pro- .cess as may be necessary to carry said ordinances into execution and effect. Ap- peals may be had from any decision or judgment of said Mayor or Aldermen, arising under the ordinances of said city, to the Municipal Court, under such regulations as may be prescribed by ordinance ; which court shall be composed of the Mayor as chief justice, and the Aldermen as associate justices; and from the final judgment of the Municipal Court to the Probate Court of Great Salt Lake County, in the same manner as appeals are taken from the justices of the peace; provided that the parties litigant shall have a right to a trial by jury of twelve men in all cases before the Municipal Court. The Municipal Court shall have power to grant writs of habeas corpus, and try the same, in all cases arising under the ordinances of the City Council. Sec. 39. The Municipal Court may sit on the first Monday of every month, and the City Council, at such times and places as may be prescribed by city ordinance, special meetings of which may at any time be called by the Mayor or any two Aldermen. Sec. 40. All process issued by the Mayor, Aldermen, or Municipal Court shall be directed to the Marshal, and in the execution thereof, he shall be gov- erned by the same laws as are or may be prescribed for the direction and com- pensation of constables in similar cases. The Marshal shall also perform such other duties as may be required of him under the ordinances of said City, and shall be the principal ministerial officer. Sec. 41. It shall be the duty of the Recorder to make and keep accurate records of all ordinances made by the City Council, and of all their proceedings in their corporate capacity, which record shall at all times be open to the inspec- tion of the electors of said City, and shall perform all other duties as may be required of him by the ordinances of the City Council, and shall serve as clerk of the Municipal Court. Sec. 42. When it shall be necessary to take private property for opening, widening, or altering any public street, lane, avenue, or alley, the corporation shall make a just compensation therefor ; to the person whose property is so taken ; and if the amount of such compensation cannot be agreed upon, the Mayor shall HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. ' 77 cause the same to be ascertained by a jury of six disinterested men, who shall be inhabitants of the City. Sec. 43. All jurors empannelled to enquire into the amount of benefits or damages, that shall happen to the owners of property so proposed to be taken, shall first be sworn to that effect, and shall return to the Mayor their inquest in writing, signed by each juror. Sec. 44. In case the Mayor shall, at any time, be guilty of a palpable omission of duty, or shall wilfully or corruptly be guilty of oppression^ malcon- duct, or partiality, in the discharge of the duties of his office, he shall be liable to indictment in the Probate Court of Great Salt Lake County, and on conviction he shall be liable to fine and imprisonment ; and the court shall have power on the recommend of the jury, to add to the judgment of the court, that he be removed from office. Sec. 45. The City Council shall have power to provide for the punish- ment of offenders and vagrants, by imprisonment in the county or city jail, or by compelling them to labor upon the streets, or other public works, until the same shall be fully paid ; in all cases where such offenders or vagrants shall fail or refuse to pay the fine and forfeitures which may be recovered against them. Sec. 46. The inhabitants of Great Salt Lake City shall, from and after the next ensuing two years, from the first Monday of April next, be exempt from working on any road or roads, bayond the limits of said City. But all taxes de- voted to road purposes, shall, from and after said term of two years, be collected and expended by, and under the direction of, the supervisor of streets, within the limits of said City. Sec. 47. The Mayor, Aldermen, and Councilors of said City shall, in the first instance, be appointed by the Governor and Legislature of said State of Deseret ; and shall hold their office until superseded by the first election. Approved January 9th, 1851. The first municipal Council of Great Salt Lake City was composed of Jede- diah M. Grant, Mayor; Nathaniel H. Felt, William Snow, Jesse P. Harmon and Nathaniel V. Jones, Aldermen; Vincent Shurtliff, Benjamin L. Clapp, Zera Pul- sipher, William G. Perkins, Harrison Burgess, Jeter Clinton, John L. Dunyon and Samuel W. Richards, Councilors. The City Council met pursuant to notice from the clerk of Great Salt Lake County. The members having been severally sworn in by the county clerk "to observe the Constitution of the United States and of this State," organized in due form. The ordinance incorporating Great Salt Lake City was then read by the clerk of the county, when the Mayor informed the Council that it would be necessary to appoint a Recorder, Treasurer and Marshal of the city : whereupon Robert Campbell was appointed Recorder, and Elam Luddington Marshal and Assessor and Collector of Great Salt Lake City. Afterwards Leonard W. Hardy was appointed Captain of the City police. At the afternoon's session committees were appointed to formulate govern- mental methods for the City. Enquiry was made relative to the disposition of 7^ HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. taxes, when it was stated that the State taxes would be applied as formerly for State purposes, and that a city tax of one half of one per cent, should be levied for city purposes. The Mayor brought forward the subject of dividing the City into municipal wards. The county clerk then submitted a city plot to the council, and the following municipal wards were laid out from the map, and their proper boundaries designated : First Ward: bounded on the north by Third South Street; west, by East Temple Street,; south, by southern limits; east, by eastern limits: Alderman, Jesse P. Harmon. Second Ward: east, by East Temple Street; south, by southern limits; west, by Jordan River; north, by South Temple Street: Alder- man, N. V. Jones. Third Ward: east, by East Temple Street; south, by South Teanple Street ; west, by Jordan River ; north, by northern limits: Alderman, Nathaniel H. Felt. Fourth Ward: east, by eastern limits; south, by Third South Street ; west, by East Temple Street ; north, by northern limits: Alder- man, William Snow. The Mayor instructed the Marshal and Collector to proceed to assessing property and levying taxes. The Council then adjourned. In April the first municipal election for Great Salt Lake City was held, as provided for by the charter, and the following members were returned : Mayor; Jedediah M. Grant; Aldermen: Nathaniel Felt, William Snow, J. P. Harmon, N. V. Jojies; Councilors: Lewis Robinson, Robert Pierce, Zera Pul- sipher, Wm. G. Perkins, Jeter Clinton, Enoch Reese, Harrison Burges, Samuel W. Richards, Vincent Shurtliff. In the meantime Congress had passed an act, approved on the 9th of Sep- tember, 1850, organizing the Territory of "Utah within the following limits: " Bounded on the west by the State of California; on the north by the Terri- tory of Oregon; on the east by the summits of the Rocky Mountains; and on the south by the 37th parallel of north latitude: with the proviso that Congress should be at liberty, when it might be deemed "convenient and pro[jer " to cut it up into two or more Territories, or to attach any portion of it to any other State or Territory. On the 28th of the same month, President Fillmore, "with the advice and consent of the Senate," appointed Brigham Young Governor of Utah; B. D.Harris, of Vermont, Secretary; Joseph Buffington, of Pennsylvania, Chief Justice ; Perry E. Brocchus, of Alabama, and Zerubbabel Snow, of Ohio, Associate Justices; Seth M. Blair, of Utah, United States Attorney ; and Joseph L. Heywood, of Utah, United States Marshal; but Mr. Buffington declining the office of Chief Justice, Lemuel G. Brandebury was appointed in his stead. The postal communication between Washinton and Great Salt Lake City at this period being scarcely opened, an interval of six months passed before the news officially reached Utah. It came first unofficially by way of California, brought by a portion of that same company which explored the southern route to California in the fall of 1849. The returning company consisted of Major Hunt, of the Mormon Battalion, Mr. Henry E. Gibson and five others. To bear the im- portant news, they started on Christmas day, and travelled with pack animals from HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. yg Los Angelos to Great Salt Lake City. Major Hunt stopped at his home on the way; but Mr. Gibson posted on to Great Salt Lake City, where he arrived on the 27th of January, and presented to Governor Young published reports, in Eastern papers, of the passage of the Organic Act that created Utah a Territory. The news being certain and so many months having passed since the passage of the act and his own appointment, Governor Young at once took the oath of office, on the 3d of February, 1851 ; and on the 26th of March he issued the following special message to the General Assembly of the State of Deseret : Gentlemen : — Whereas the Congress of the United States passed an Act. Sep- tember 9th, 1850, and received the approval of the President to " establish a Ter- ritorial Government for Utah," and made appropriations for erecting public build- ings for said Territory, etc.; the appointments under said law also having been made, olificial announcement of which has not as yet been received, but is shortly expected; sufficient intelligence, however, has been received to justify us in prepar- ing for the adoption and organization of the new Goverm^jent under said Act. I have therefore thought proper to suggest to you, previous to your final ad- journment, the propriety of making such arrangements, as in wisdom you may consider necessary, in view of the aforesaid Act of Congre.ss, that as little incon- venience as possible may arise in the change of governmental affairs, and in relation to the organization of the Territorial Government for erecting public buildings for said territory, etc. And now, upon the dissolving of this Legislature, permit me to add, the in- dustry and unanimity which have ever characterized your efforts, and contributed so much to the pre-eminent success of this government, will, in all future time, be a source of gratification to all ; and whatever may be the career and destiny of this young, but growing republic, we can ever carry with us the proud satisfaction of having erected, established, and maintained a peaceful, quiet, yet energetic gov- ernment, under the benign auspices of which, unparalleled prosperity has showered her blessings upon every interest. With sentiments of the highest esteem and gratitude to the Giver of all good for His kind blessings, I remain. Respectfully yours, Brigham Young, Governor. Great Salt Lake City, Utah Territory, March 26th, 1851. The Legislature of Deseret, in joint session, March 28th, 1851, unanimously passed the following Preamble and Resolutions, pertaining to the organization of a Territorial Government for Utah : — PREAiNir.LE. IF/iereas, in the winter and spring of the year of our Lord, 1849, ^'"^^ people of this territory did form and establish a Provisional State Government, until the United States Congress should otherwise provide by law for the government of this territory ; and Whereas, it was under this authority and by virtue thereof, that this body have So HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. acted and legislated, for and in behalf of the people of said State, now Utah Terri- tory; and Whereas the United States Congress has finally legislated in behalf of this territory, by passing an act for the organization of the Territory of Utah ; making appropriations for public buildings, and extending the Constitution of the United States over said territory ; and Whereas, previous to the first election under said law, the census has to be taken, and apportionments made, which will necessarily consume much time ; and Whereas the public buildings for said territory are very much needed, and the United States Congress having made an appropriation of twenty thousand dollars towards defraying the expense thereof; — and in order to facilitate the speedy erection of said public buildings for the use of the territory, and further promote the mutual and easy organization of said territorial government ; — Therefore, be it resolved by the General Assembly of the State of Deseret : 1. That we cheeriiilly and cordially accept of the legislation of Congress in the Act to establish a Territorial Government for Utah. 2. That we welcome the Constitution of the United States — the legacy of our fathers — over this territory. 3. That all officers under the Provisional State Government of Deseret, are hereby requested to furnish unto their successors in office every facility in their power, by returning and delivering unto them public documents, laws, ordinances, and dockets, that may or can be of any use or benefit to their said successors in office. 4. That Union Square, in Great Salt Lake City, be devoted for the use of public buildings of said Territory. 5. That Governor B. Young be our agent to make drafts upon the treas- ury of the United States for the amount appropriated for said buildings, and to take such other measures as he shall deem proper for their immediate erection. 6. That we appoint an architect to draft designs, and a committee of one, to superintend the erection of said buildings. 7. That Truman O. Angel, of said city, be said architect, and Daniel H. Wells, of said city, the committee; and that they proceed immediately to the designing and erection of said buildings. 8. That, whereas, the State House in Great Salt Lake City having been originally designed for a "Council House," and erected by and at the expense of the " Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints," for the purpose, as well as to accommodate the Provisional Government; that we now do relinquish unto said Church the aforesaid building, tendering unto them our thanks for the free use thereof during the past session. 9. That we fix upon Saturday, the 5th day of April next, for the adjust- ment and final dissolving of the General Assembly of the State of Deseret. H. C. Kimball, President of the Council. J. M. Grant, Speaker of the House. "T. Bullock, Clerk.'' HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 8i Governor Young issued a proclamation on July ist, 1851, calling the elec- tion for the first Monday in the following August, when it was accordingly held, August 4th, and the Territorial Legislature of Utah duly created by the people. The first session of the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Utah, was convened in pursuance of the proclamation of the Governor, on the 2 2d day of September, A. D. 1851 ; and continued by adjournments to the i8th day of Feb- ruary, A. D. 1852. This was succeeded by a special session, called by proclama- tion of the Governor, and convened the day following, continuing until the 6th day of March, A. D, 1852. Brigham Young, Governor. MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL: Great Salt Lake County. — Willard Richards (President), Heber C. Kimball, Daniel H. Wells, Orson Spencer, Ezra T. Benson (resigned September 24th, 185 1), Orson Pratt (elected November 15th, 1851), Jedediah M. Grant (re- signed September 23d, 185 1), Edward Hunter (elected November 15th, 185 1). Davis County. — John S. Fullmer. Weber County. — Lorin Farr, Charles R. Dana. Utah CiCZ/«/>'. -^Alexander Williams, Aaron Jonhson. San Pete County. — Isaac Morley. Iroti County. — George A. Smith. MEMBERS OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES: Great Salt Lake County. — William W. Phelps (Speaker), Daniel Spencer, Albert P. Rockwood, Nathaniel H. Felt, David Fullmer, Edwin D. WooUey, Phinehas Richards, Joseph Young, Henry G. Sherwood, Wilford Woodruff, Ben- jamin F. Johnson, Hosea Stout, Willard Snow (resigned September 24th, 185 1), John Brown (elected November 15, 1851). Davis County. — Andrew J. Lamereaux, John Stoker, Gideon Brownell. Weber Cou?ity. — David B. Dille, James Brown, James G. Browning. Utah County. — David Evans, William Miller, Levi W. Hancock. San Pete County.- — Charles Shumway. Iron County. — Elisha H. Groves, George Brimhall (elected November Tooele County, — John Rowberry. The first printed volume of laws of Utah Territory, had the following title page : "Acts, Resolutions, and Memorials, passed by the First Annual, and Special Sessions, of the Legislative Assembly, of the Territory of Utah, begun and held at Great Salt Lake City, on the 22d day of September, A. D. 1851. Also the Constitution of the United States, and the Act organizing the Territory of Utah. Published by Authority of the Legislative Assembly. G. S. L. City, U. T. 1852. Brigham H. Young, Printer." To this was appended a certificate of authenticity, signed by "Willard Rich- ards, Secretary pro tern., appointed by the Governor." . 11 82 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. At its opening session the members passed the following '^ Joinl Resolution Legalizing the Laws of the Provisional Government of the State of Deseret : ^^ Resolved, by the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Utah: That the laws heretofore passed by the Provisional Government of the State of Des- eret, and which do not conflict with the Organic Act of said Territory be, and the same are hereby declared to be legal, and in full force and virtue, and shall so remain until superseded by the action of the Legislative Assembly of the Ter- ritory of Utah. "Approved October 4, 1851." This Resolution preserved the original charter of Great Salt Lake City. The second Resolution, passed on the same day, transferred the political capital from Great Salt Lake City to " Pauvan Valley," where the City of Fillmore was afterwards founded, and Mdlard County organized and named in honor of the President of the United States, who had so cordially recognized the right of the people of Utah to local self-government and the choice of their own officers. Severe strictures, however, were passed upon President Fillmore by a por- tion of the American press, for appointing Brigham Young Governor of Utah, which called forth the following correspondence between the President and Col- onel Thomas L. Kane: "Washington, July 4, 1851. " My Dear Sir : — I have just cut the enclosed slip from the Buffalo Courier. It brings serious charges against Brigham Young, Governor of Utah, and falsely charges that I knew them to be true. You will recollect that I relied much upon you for the moral character and standing of Mr. Young. You knew him, and had known him in Utah. You are a democrat, but I doubt not will truly state whether these charges against the moral character of Governor Young are true. " Please return the article with your letter. "Not recollecting your given name, I shall address this letter to you as the son of Judge Kane. "I am, in great haste, truly yours, Millard Fillmore. '' Mr. Kane, Philadelphia.'' "Philadelphia, July nth, 1851. ''My Dear Sir: — I have no wish to evade the responsibility of having vouched for the character of Mr. Brigham Young of Utali, and his fitness for the station he now occupies. I reiterate without reserve, the statement of his excel- lent capacity, energy and integrity, which I made you prior to his appointment. I am willing to say I volunteered to communicate to you the facts by which I was convinced of his patriotism, and devotion to the interests of the Union. I made no qualification when I assured you of his irreproachable moral character, because I was able to speak of this from my own intimate personal knowledge. "If any show or shadow of evidence can be adduced in support of the HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 83 charges of your anonymous assailant, the next mail from Utah shall bring you their complete and circumstantial refutation. Meanwhile I am ready to offer this assurance for publication in any form you care to indicate, and challenge contra- diction from any respectable authority. " I am, Sir, with high respect and esteem, }our most obedient servant, "Thomas L. Kane. ''The President. " Captain Stansbury, in his official report to the government, giving his views and testimony relative to Brigham Young, both as the leader of the Mormon people and the Governor of Utah, said : " Upon the personal character of the leader of this singular people, it may not, perhaps, be proper for me to comment in a communication like the present. I may, nevertheless, be pardoned for saying, that to me, President Young ap- peared to be a man of clear, sound sense, fully alive to the responsibilities of the station he occupies, sincerely devoted to the good name of the people over whom he presides, sensitively jealous of the least attempt to under-value or misrepresent them, and indefatigable in devising ways and means for their moral, mental, and pliysical elevation. He appeared to possess the unlimited personal and official confidence of his people; while both he and his councilors, forming the Presi- dency of the Church, seem to have but one object in view, the prosperity and peace of the society over which they preside. "Upon the action of the Executive in the appointmnt of the officers within the newly-created Territory, it does not become me to offer other than a very diffident opinion, Yet the opportunities of information to which allusion has already been made, may perhaps justify me in presenting the result of my own observations upon this subject. With all due deference, then, I feel constrained to say, that in my opinion the appointment of the President of the Mormon Church, and the head of the Mormon community, in preference to any other person, to the high office of Governor of the Territory, independent of its politi- cal bearings, with which I have nothing to do, was a measure dictated alike by justice and by sound policy. Intimately connected with them from their exodus from Illinois, this man has indeed been their Moses, leading them through the wilderness to a remote and unknown land, where they have since set up their tabernacle, and where they are now building their temple. Resolute in danger, firm and sagacious in council, prompt and energetic in emergency, and enthusi- astically devoted to the honor of his people, he had won their unlimited confi- dence, esteem and veneration, and held an unrivaled place in their hearts. Upon the establishment of the provisional government, he had been unanimously chosen as their highest civil magistrate, and even before his appointment by the President, he combined in his own person the triple character of confidential ad- viser, temporal ruler, and prophet of God. Intimately acquainted with their character, capacities, wants, and weaknesses; identified now with their prosper- ity, as he had formerly shared to the full in their adversities and sorrows; honored, trusted, — the whole wealth of the community placed in his hands, for the advancement both of the spiritual and temporal interest of the infant settle- 84 HIS7 0R\ 02^ SALT LAKE CITY. merit, he was, surely, of all others, the man best fitted to preside, under the aus- pices of the general government, over a colony of which he may justly be said to have been the founder. No other man could have so entirely secured the confi- dence of the people ; and the selection by the Executive of the man of their choice, besides being highly gratifying to them, is recognized as an assurance that they shall hereafter receive at the hands of the general government that justice and consideration to which they are entitled. Their confident hope now is that, no longer fugitives and outlaws, but dwelling beneath the broad shadow of the national segis, they will be subject no more to the violence and outrage which drove them to seek a secure habitation in this far distant wilderness. ''As to the imputations that have been made against the personal character of the Governor, I feel confident they are without foundation. Whatever opinion may be entertained of his pretensions to the character of an inspired prophet, or of his views and practice of polygamy, his personal reputation I believe to be above reproach. Certain it is that the most entire confidence is felt in his in- tegrity, personal, official, and pecuniary, on the part of those to whom a long and intimate association, and in the most trying emergencies, have afforded every possible opportunity of formimg a just and accurate judgment of his true character. ''From all I saw and heard, I am firmly of the opinion that the appointment of any other man to the office of governor would have been regarded by the whole people, not only as a sanction, but as in some sort a renewal, on the part of the General Government, of that series of persecutions to which they have already been subjected, and would have operated to create distrust and suspicion in minds prepared to hail with joy the admission of the new Territory to the protection of the supreme government.'' Very pertinent to the closing paragraph of this testimony of Captain Stans- bury is the following passage of an epistle of the Presidency of the Mormon Church announcing to "the Saints abroad" the event of the organization of the Territory of Utah : "We anticipate no convulsive revolutionary ieeling or movement, by the citizens of Deseret in the anticipated change of governmental aff'airs ; but an easy and quiet transition from State to Territory, like weary travellers descending a hill near by their way side home. "As a people, we know how to appieciate, most sensibly, the hand of friend- ship which has been extended towards our infant State, by the General Govern- ment. Coming to this place as did the citizens of Deseret, without the means of subsistence, except the labor of their hands, in a wilderness country, surrounded by savages, whose inroads have given occasion for many tedious and expensive expeditions; the relief afforded by our mother land, through the medium of the approaching territorial organization, will be duly estimated; and from henceforth, we would fondly hope the most friendly feelings may be warmly cherished between the various States and Territories of this great nation, whose constitutional charter is not to be excelled." HIS! ORY OF SALT LA KE CIT\. 8c, CHAPTER X. ARRIVAL OF THE FEDERAL JUDGES. FIRST APPEARANCE OF THE UNITED STATES OFFICIALS BEFORE THE CITIZENS AT A SPECIAL CONFERENCE. JUDGE BROCCHUS ASSAULTS THE COMMUNITY. PUBLIC INDIGNATION. CORRESPONDENCE BETWEEN JUDGE BROCCHUS AND GOVERNOR YOUNG. THE "RUNAWAY" JUDGES AND SECRETARY. DANIEL WEBSTER, SECRE- TARY OF STATE, SUSTAINS GOVERNOR YOUNG AND REMOVES THE OF- FENDING OFFICIALS. FIRST UNITED STATES COURT. THE NEW FEDEREL OFFICERS. ARRIVAL OF COLONEL STEPTOE. RE-APPOINTMENT OF OF BRIGHAM YOUNG. JUDGE SHAVER FOUND DEAD. JUDGES DRUM- MOND AND STILES. In July, 1 85 1, four of the Federal officers arrived in Great Salt Lake City, and waited upon his Excellency Governor Young. They were Lemuel G. Brande- bury. Chief Justice, and Perry E. Brocchus and Zerubbabel Snow, Associate Jus- tices of the Supreme Court of the Territory, and B. D. Harris, the Secretary. Governor Brigham Young, United States Attorney Seth M. Blair, and United States Marshal Joseph L. Heywood were all residents of Great Salt Lake City. At this time there had not been any session of the Legislative Assembly of the Territory under the Organic Law. The newly arrived Federal officers en- quired the reason why the legislature had not been organized, upon which they were informed that there were no mails from the States during the winter season, and that the official news of the passage of the Act did not reach this city till March, of that year. Soon after their arrival Governor Young issued a proclamation, as provided in Section 16 of the Organic Law, defining the judicial districts of the Territory, and assigning the judges to their respective districts. His other proc- lamation, calling for an election in August, brought the Legislature into existence, and the two branches of the Territorial Government were thus duly established. Early in the following September, a special conference of the Mormon Church was held in Great Salt Lake City, one of the purposes of which was to send a block of Utah marble or granite as the Territorial contribution to the Washington Monument at the Capital. It was the first time that the Federal officers had found the opportunity to appear in a body before the assembled citizens, as the representatives of the United States, since the organization of the Territory. An excellent occasion surely was this, in the design of the leaders of the community, who called that special conference, and there can be no doubt that harmony and good will were sought to be encouraged between the Federal officers and the people. Chief Justice Brandebury, Secretary Harris and Associate Justice Brocchus were honored with an invitation to sit on the platform with the leaders of the commu- nity. This association of Mormon and Gentile on the stand was very fitting on such an occasion, considering that Governor Brigham Young, Associate Justice Zerubbabel Snow, United States Attorney Seth M. Blair, and United States Mar- 86 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CIT\. shall Joseph L. Heyvvood, though Mormons, were also their Federal colleagues. But it seems that one of their numbei — Associate Justice Brocchus — had chosen this as a fitting time to correct and rebuke the community relative to their pecu- liar religious and social institutions. The following correspondence, which subse- quently took place between Governor Young and Judge Brocchus is most impor- tant and relevant to the entire history of this city and territory, as it is the com- mencement of that long controversy which has existed between the people of Utah and the Federal Judges, and in which, in the latter period, Congress and the Governors of the Territory have also taken an active part : B. YOUNG TO P. E. BROCCHUS. " Great Salt Lake City, Sept. 19, 1S51. Dear Sir. — Ever wishing to promote the peace, love and harmony of the people, and to cultivate the spirit cf charity and benevolence to all, and especially towards strangers, I propose, and respectfully invite your honor, to meet our public assembly at the Bowery, on Sund:iy morning next, at 10 a. m., and ad- dress the same people that you addressed on the 8th inst., at our General Con- ference; and if your honor shall then and there explain, satisfy, or apologize to the satisfaction of the ladies who heard your address on the 8th, so that those feelings of kindness that you so dearly prized in your address can be reciprocated by them, I shall esteem it a duty and a pleasure to make every apology and satis- faction for my observations which you as a gentleman can claim or desire at my hands. "Should your honor please to accept of this kind and benevolent invitation, please answer by the bearer, that public notice may be given, and widely ex- tended, that the house may be full. And believe me, sir, most sincerely and respectfully, your friend and servant, Brigham Young. " LLon. P. E. Brocchus, Asste. Jusiicc'' " P. S.— Be assured that no gentleman will be permitted to make any reply to your address on that occasion. B. Y." P. E. BROCCHUS to GOVERNOR YOUNG. "Great Salt Lake City, Sept. 19, 1851. Dear Sir: — Your note of this date is before me. While I fully concur in, and cordially reciprocate, the sentiments expressed in the preface of your letter, I must be excused from the acceptance of your respectful invitation, to address a public assembly at the Bowery to-morrow morning. "If, at the proper time, the privilege of explaining had been allowed me, I should, promptly and gladly, have relieved myself from any erroneous impressions that my auditors might have derived from the substance or tone of my remarks. But, as that privilege was denied me, at the peril of having my hair pulled, or my throat cut, I must be permitted to decline appearing again in public on the subject. "I will take occasion here to say, that my speech, in all its parts, was the result of deliberation and care — not proceeding from a heated imagination, or a HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 87 maddened impulse, as seems to have been a general impression. I intended to say what I did say; but, in so doing, I did not design to offer indignity and in- sult to my audience. " My sole design, in the branch of my remarks which seems to be the source ot offence, was to vindicate the Government of the United States from those feelings of prejudice and that spirit of defection which seemed to pervade t-he public sentiment. That duty I attempted to perform in a manner faithful to the government of which I am a citizen, and to which I owe a patriotic allegiance, without unjustly causing a chord to vibrate painfully in the bosom of my hearers. Such a duty, I trust, I shall ever be ready to discharge with the fidelity that be- longs to a true American citizen — with firmness, with boldness, with dignity — always observing a due respect towards other parties, whether assailants or neutrals. "It was not my intention to insult, or offer disrespect to my audience; and farthest possible was it from my design, to excite a painful or unpleasant emotion in the hearts of the ladies who honored me with their presence and their respect- ful attention on the occasion. "In conclusion, I will remark that, at the time of the delivery of my speech, I did not conceive that it contained anything deserving the censure of a just- minded person. My subsequent reflections have fully confirmed me in that im- pression. "I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, Perry E. Brocchus. ' ' To His Excellency Brighaju Young. ' ' BRIGHAM YOUNG TO P. E. BROCCHUS. "Great Salt Lake City, Sept. 20, 1851. Dear Sir: — The perusal of your note of the 19th inst. has been the source of some sober reflections in my mind, which I beg leave to communicate in the same freedom with which my soul has been inspired in the contemplation. With a war of words on party politics, factions, religious schisms, current controversy of creeds, policy of clans, or State clipper cliques, I have nothing to do; but when the eternal principles of truth are falsified, and light is turned into darkness by mystification of language or a false delineation of facts, so that the just indignation of the true, virtuous, upright citizens of the commonwealth is aroused into vigilance for the dear-bought liberties of themselves and fathers, and that spirit of intolerance and persecution, which has driven this people time and time again from their peaceful homes, manifests itself in the flippancy of rhetoric for female insult and desecration, it is time that I forbear to hold my peace, lest the thundering anathemas of nations born and unborn should rest upon my head when the marrow of my bones shall be illy prepared to sustain the threatened blow. "It has been said that a wise man foreseeth evil, and hideth himself. The evil of your course I foresee, and I shall hide myself — not by attempting to screen my conduct, or the conduct of this people from the gaze of an assembled universe, but by exposing some of your movements, designs, plans, and purposes, 88 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. so that the injury which you have designed for this people may fall upon your own head, unless you shall choose to accept the proffered boon — the friendship which I extended to you yesterday — by inviting you to make satisfaction to the ladies ot this valley, who felt themselves insulted and abused by your address on the 8th inst., and which you have declined to do in your note, to which this is a reply. "In your note, you remark- — 'If, at the proper time, the privilege of ex- plaining had been allowed me, I should promptly and gladly have relieved my- self from any erroneous impressions that my auditors might have derived from the substance and tone of my remarks ; but, as that privilege was denied me, at the peril of having my hair pulled, or my throat cu I must be permitted to de- cline appearing again in public on the subject.' "Sir, when was the 'proper time' to which you refer? Was it when you had exhausted the patience of your audience on the 8th, after having given a personal challenge to any who would accept? Was it a proper time to challenge for single combat, before a general assembly of the people, convened especially for religious worship? " How could you then have 'promptly and gladly relieved yourself-from any erroneous impression your auditors might have derived from the substance and tone of your remarks' when you knew not from what source your auditors derived those impressions? And was it your boasted privilege, your proper time to fire and 'fight your battles o'er again,' as quick as you had given a challenge, with- out waiting to see if any one accepted it? If so, who would you have been likely to hit — ladies or gentlemen ? "It was true, sir, what I said, at the close oi your speech, and I repeat it here, that riiy expressions may not be mistaken — I said in reference to your speech, 'Judge Brocchus is either profoundly ignorant: — or wilfully wicked — one of the two. There are several gentlemen who would be very glad to prove the state- ments that have been made about Judge Brocchus, and which he has attempted to repel; but I will hear nothing more on either side at this Conference.' And why did I say it? To quell the excitement which your remarks had caused in that audience; not to give or accept a challenge, but to prevent any one (of which there were many present wishing the opportunity,) and every one from accepting your challenge, .and thereby bringing down upon your head the indig- nation of an outraged people, in the midst of a Conference convened for relig- ious instruction and business, and which, had your remarks continued, must have continued the excitement, until there would have been danger "of pulling of hair and cutting of throats," perhaps, on both sides, if parties had, proved equal — for there are points in human actions and events, beyond which men and women can- not be controlled. Starvation will revolutionize any people, and lead them to acts of atrocity that human power cannot control; and will not a mother's feelings, in view of her murdered offspring, her bleeding husband, and her dying sire, by hands of mobocratic violence, and especially when tantalized to the highest pitch by those who stand, or ought to stand, or sit, with dignity on the judgment seat, and impart justice alike to all? " Sir, what confidence can this persecuted, murdered, outcast people have in HISTORY OF SAL T LAKE CI7 Y. 8g your decisions from the Bench, after you have tantalized their feelings from the stand, by informing them there is yet hope in their case, if they will apply to Missouri and Illinois. I ask you, sir, if you did not know, when you were thus making your plea, that this people have plead with the authorities of those States, which are doomed to irretrievable ruin by their own acts, from their lowest magis- trate to their highest judge, and from their halls of legislature to their governors, times, and times, and times again, until they, with force of arms, have driven us from their midst, and utterly refused the possibility of the cries of murdered inno- cence from reaching their polluted ears? I ask, sir, did you know this? If not, you were profoundly ignorant ; you were possessed of ignorance not to be toler- ated in children of ten years, in these United States. But, on the other hand, if you were in possession of the facts, you were wilfully wicked in presuming to tan- talize, and rouse in anger dire, those feelings of frail humanity on one hand, and offended justice on the other, which it is our object to bury in forgetfulness, and leave the issue to the decision of a just God. "Your motive, action, or design, you wholly concealed, or you could never have gained a hearing on such an occasion. "As. presiding officer in said Conference, did I permit any man to accept your challenge? No, sir, you know I did not ; and could you, as a gentleman, ask the privilege to defend your challenge before it was accepted? Don Quixote should not be named in such a farce. No, sir, out of mercy to you I prohibited any man from accepting your challenge. And until the challenge was accepted you had nothing to reply to. When, then, was the proper time yoU refer to, when you would have replied, and the privilege was denied you? No such time as you sup- posed, existed. "And now, sir, as it appears from the whole face of the subject, that to- morrow might have been the first 'proper time' that might have given you the 'privilege of explaining,' and as this courtesy you have utterly refused, and thereby manifest a choice to leave an incensed public incensed still, against your (as they now view it) dishonorable course, I shall take the liberty of doing my duty, by adverting still further to your reply of yesterday. Charity would have induced me hope, at least, that your speech, in part, was prompted by the impulse of the moment ; but I am forbid this pleasing reflection by your note, wherein you state that ' my speech, in all its parts, was the result of deliberation and care, proceeding from a heated imagination or a maddened impulse.' ' I intended to say what I did say.' Now, if you did actually ' intend to say what you did say,' it is pretty strong presumptive testimony that you were not ignorant, for if you had been ignorant, from whence arose your intentions? And if you were not ignorant you must have been willfully wicked; and I cannot conceive of a more charitable construction to put upon your conduct on that occasion than to believe you designedly and deliberately planned a speech to excite the indignation of your hearers to an extent that would cause them to break the bonds of propriety by pulling your hair or cutting your throat, willing, no doubt, in the utmost of your benevolence to die a martyr's death, if you could only get occasion to raise the hue and cry, and re-murder a virtuous people, as Missouri and Illinois have so often done before you. Glorious philanthropy this; and corresponds most 12 go HISTORY OF SAL 7 LAKE CITY. fully with the declaration which, it is reported^ on pretty good authority, that Judge Brocchus made while on his journey to the valley, substantially as follows: "If the citizens of Utah do not send me as their delegate to Washington, by God, I'll use all my influence against them, and will crush them. I have the influence and the power to do it, and I will accomplish it if they do not make me their delegate.' " Now, sir, I will not stop to argue the point whether your honor made those observations that rumor says you did ; but I will leave it to an intelligent world, or so much of that world as are acquainted with the facts in the case, to decide whether your conduct has not fully proved that you harbored these ma- licious feelings in your heart, when you deliberately planned a speech calculated in its nature to rouse this community to violence, and that, too, on a day conse- crated to religious duties, your declaration to the contrary notwithstanding, that you 'did not design to offer indignity or insult.' When a man's words are set in direct opposition to his acts, which will men believe? His acts all the time. Where, then, is the force of your denial ? "One item more from your note reads thus: 'My sole design in the branch of my remarks which seems to be the source of offence, was to vindicate the government of the United States from those feelings of prejudice, and that spirit of defection which seemed to pervade the public sentiment, &c." Let me inquire what 'public sentiment' you referred to? Was it the sentiments of the States at large? If so, your honor missed his aim, most widely, when he left the city of Washington to become the author of such remarks. You left home when you left Washington. If such 'prejudice and defection' as you represent, there existed, there you should have thundered your anathemas, and made the people feel your 'patriotic allegiance;' but, if ever you believed for a moment — if ever an idea entered your soul that the citizens of Utah, the people generally whom you addressed on the 8th, were possessed of a spirit of defection towards the gen- eral government, or that they harboured prejudices against it unjustly, so far you proved yourself 'profoundly ignorant' of the subject in which you were engaged, and of the views and feelings of the people whom you addressed; and this ignor- ance alone might have been sufficient to lead you into all the errors and fooleries you were guilty of on that occasion. But had you known your hearers, you would have known, and understood, and felt that you were addressing the most enlight- ened and patriotic assembly, and the one furthest removed from ' prejudice and defection " to the general government that you had ever seen, that you had ever addressed, or that would be possible for you or any other being to find on the face of the whole earth. Then, sir, how would it have been possible for you to have offered your hearers on that occasion a greater insult than vou did? The most re- fined and delicate ladies were justly incensed to wrath against you for intimating that their husbands were ever capable of being guilty of such baseness as you rep- resented, "prejudice and defection" towards a constitution which they firmly believe emanated from the heavens, and was given by a revelation, to lay the foundation of religious and political freedom in this age — a constitution and union which this people love as they do the gospel of salvation. And when you, sir, shall attempt to fasten the false and odious appellation of treason to this commu- HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. gi nity, even ignorantly, as we had supposed you did it, you will find plenty, even among the ladies, to hurl the falsehood back to its dark origin, in tones of thunder; but if, as you say, you know, (or else how could the whole have been ' the result of deliberation and care,') the plea of ignorance ceases again to shield you, and you stand before the people in all the naked deformity of -wilful wickedness,' who can plead your excuse? Who, under such circumstances, can make an apol- ogy? I wonder not that you should excuse yourself from the attempt, ' or de- cline appearing again in public on the subject.' "Permit me sir, to subscribe myself, as ever, Most respectfully, your servant, Brigham Young. "Hon. F. E. Brocchus, Assie. Justice.'' The speech of Judge Brocchus is not extant, nor is there to be found any report of that exciting conference, for it was before the existence of the Deseret News; but the subject and offence appear well defined in the correspondence itself, which is strikingly illustrated in the following paragraph from Governor Young's third letter : "Another important item in the course of your remarks, on the 8th instant, in connection with the expose of your own exalted virtue — you expressed a hope that the ladies you were addressing would 'become virtuous.' Let me ask you, most seriously, my dear sir, how could you hope thus? How could you hope that those dear creatures, some of whose acts of benevolence to the stranger drew tears Irom your eyes while you were yet speaking — how could you hope — what possible chance was there for you to hope — they would become virtuous? Had you ever proved them unvirtuous? If so, you could have but a faint hope of their reform- ation. But, if you had not proved them unvirtuous, what testimony had you of their lack of virtue? And if they were unvirtuous, how could they ' become virtu- ous'? Sir, your hope was of the most damning dye, and your very expression tended to convey the assertion tha those ladies you then and there ad- dressed were prostitutes — unvirtuous — to that extent you could only hope, but the probabilty was they were so far gone in wickedness you dare not believe they ever could become virtuous. And now, sir, let your own good sense, if you have a spark left, answer — could you, had you mustered all the force that hell could lend you — could you have committed a greater indignity and outrage on the feel- ings of the most virtuous and sensible assemblage of ladies that your eyes ever beheld? If you could, tell me how. If you could not, you are at liberty to re- main silent. Shall such insults remain unrequited, unatoned for?" • Judge Brocchus made no written reply to the review of his conduct, but in person acknowledged that it was unanswerable, and authorized the Governor to apologise for him to the community. This very singular and suggestive correspondence, which itself is quite a chapter of the history of Great Salt Lake City, was published in the New York Herald, and was the commencemen t of a great sensation over Utah affairs. Having rendered themselves unpopular, and being neither able to arraign a p2 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. whole community for their religious institutions, nor strong enough to set aside Governor Young and his three Federal colleagues, who stood with the people, Chief Justice Brandebury, Associate Justice Brocchus, and Secretary Harris re- solved to leave the Territory. But previous to their leaving, they called a Supreme Court, which was held in Great Salt Lake City, though no law had been passed fixing the time and place for holding it. At this court, as an original suit, an injunction was granted. Associate Justice Snow dissented. He said, the bill, he thought, was a good case for the injunction, yet he opposed it on two grounds: " ist. — There was not any law fixing the time and place of holding the Supreme Court. "2d. — The Supreme Court had not original jurisdiction, and the District Court had, which was provided for in the Governor's proclamation." Chief Justice Brandebury and Associate Justice Brocchus left Great Salt Lake City together. Soon afterwards Secretary Harris followed their example, carry- ing away with him the ^24,000 which had been appropriated by Congress for the per diem and mileage of the Legislature. It would seem that these three Federal officers expected to be applauded by the public, and sustained by the Government, their assault being against polyg- amy, but they indiscreetly stated, in their communication to the Government, that " polygamy monopolized all the women, which made it very inconvenient for the Federal officers to reside there." " Loose as people might suppose frontier life to be," observes Mr. Stenhouse '\v\\\\% Rocky Mountain Saints, ^' no one anticipated that representatives of the Federal Government would thus express themselves. That one sentence annihil- ated them. Over the signature of Jedediah M. Grant [the Mayor of Great Salt Lake City] a series of letters was addressed to the New York Herald, under the title, 'Truth for the Mormons,' in which the Federal officers were turned into redicule and fiercely handled. The Herald g'^vt the public only one letter; but Grant, nothing daunted, published the whole series in pamphlet form, and scat- tered them broadcast. The Grant letters, from their forcible and pungent style, attracted the attention of literary men as gems of wit and vigorous English. * * * In his moments of calm reflection, Judge Brocchus may have concluded that his zeal against polygamy had outstripped his prudence. The Government took that view of it, and quietly dropped the 'runaway judges and secretary.' " This view presented in the felicious vein ot the New York Herald's special corespondent on Utah affairs, well describes the scandalized sense of the Ameri- can public over the conduct of the " runaway judges and secretary; '' but it does not sufficiently express the offended judgment of the United States Government over their conduct. Congress had only just created the new Territory. In do- ing this both the legislative and executive departments had a very clear pre- knowledge that the United States was extending its rule over a religious com- munity, whose institutions, though peculiar, were founded on the strict examples of the Bible. The President and his advisers, among whom was that gigantic HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. gj statesman, Daniel Webster, had with an intelligent intent appointed Brigham Young Governor, with three other of his co-religionists, to represent the Federal authority to their people; while to the minority of the Federal officers was given the controling power of the judiciary, and the secretaryship, with the custody of the appropriations; all of this had been done to bring the Mormon colony har- moniously into the Union under its supremacy ; yet ere they had held a single United States District Court in the new Territory, or its Legislature had assem- bled, or the Territorial government itself was fully set up, the Chief Justice, his Associate, and the Secretary deserted their posts. The General Government was reasonably incensed over such a case ; Congress was scarcely less offended ; and Daniel Webstej-, who was Secretary of State, peremptorily ordered the judges and secretary back to their deserted positions or to resign. After the departure of these Federal officers from Great Salt Lake City, Governor Young appointed Willard Richards Secretary of the Territory /r^ tern. This appointment, and several other informal acts, which had become necessary in the absence of the regular officials in a newly organized Territory, was duly reported to the Department of State. Daniel Webster sustained them, and the bills of Willard Richards, which were signed "Secretary pro tern, appointed by the Governor," were allowed by the Department, and paid. The Utah Legislature also, finding the United' States Judiciary in the Terri- tory inoperative, passed the following act authorizing Associate Justice Zerub- babel Snow to hold the Courts in all the districts: "an act concerning the judiciary, and for judicial purposes. Sec. I . ' ^ Be it enacted by the Governor and Legislative Assembly of the Ter- ritory of Utah, That the first Judicial District for said Territory, shall consist of, and embrace the following counties and districts of country, to wit: — Great Salt Lake, Davis, Weber, Tooele, and Utah Counties, and all districts of country lying east, north, and west of said counties in said Territory. The Second Judicial District shall consist of Millard and San Pete Counties, and all districts of country lying south of the south line of latitude of Utah County, and north of the south line of latitude of Millard County, within said Territory. And the Third Judicial District shall consist of Iron County, and all districts of country lying south of the south line of latitude of Millard County, in said Territory. " Sec 2. The Honorable Zerubbabel Snow, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States for the Territory of Utah, shall reside within the First Judicial District, and hold Courts in the following order, viz : on the first Monday in January and July at Great Salt Lake City ; on the first Monday of April at Ogden City, in Weber County; and on the first Monday of October at Provo City, in Utah County, in each year: Provided, the said Zerubbabel Snow, Associate Justice, shall hold' his first Court on the first Monday of October in the year eighteen hundred and fifty-one, at Great Salt Lake City, and omit said Court during said year at Provo, in Utah County. "Sec. 3. The Honorable Zerubbabel Snow is hereby authorized and re- quired to hold two Courts in the Second Judicial District in each year, to-wit : 94 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITy. on the first Monday of November at Manti, in San Pete County; and on the first Monday in May at Fillmore, in Millard County. "Sec. 4. The Honorable Zerubbabel Snow is further authorized and re- quired to hold one Court for the Third Judicial District, viz: on the first Mon- day in June of each year, at Parowan Cit\', in Iron County; and each session of said Court in its several districts shall be kept open at least one week, and may adjourn to any other place in each of said districts respectively: Provided, the business of said Court shall so require. "Sec 5. The foregoing acts are, and shall be in force until a full Bench of the Supreme Court of the United States for the Territory of Utah, shall be sup- plied by the President and Senate of the United States, after which the said Zerubbabel Snow shall serve only in the First Judicial District. "Approved October 4, 1851." This officer afterwards, in a letter upon the first United States Courts held in Utah, thus states : " The Legislative Assembly met and, as the other Judges had returned to the States, a law was passed authorizing me to hold the courts in all the districts. At my first court I examined the proceedings of the Governor in calling the Legislative Assembly, and held them legal, though somewhat informal. This was reported to the Department of State, the Honorable Daniel Webster being Secretary, who sustained Governor Young and myself. This was the commence- ment of my judicial services." That first United States District Court was held in Great Salt Lake City. At the first term Judge Snow made use of the United States Attorney and the United States Marshal, for Territorial business, there having been at that time no Territorial fee bill passed, which led to a correspondence between the Judge and the Honorable Elisha Whittlesey, Comptroller of the Treasury, the former asking a number of questions relative to the practice of the United States in defraying the expenses of the Territorial courts, which was answered by the latter that the United States simply defrayed the expenses of its own business in the courts. The answers closed thus : "Lastly,! will observe that if the clerk, marshal, or attorney render any service in suits to which the Territory is a party the officer must obtain his pay from the Territory or from the county in which such suit may be prosecuted. It should appear affirmatively on the face of every account that every item of it is a legal and just claim against the United States; and the details and dates should be stated, as required by my circular of December 5th, otherwise the marshal should not pay it." This led to the passage of a Territorial fee bill. In 1852 the law was passed giving jurisdiction to the Probate courts in civil and criminal cases, and creating the offices of Attorney-General and Marshal for the Territory. An historical note may here be made that the proceedings of the first United States District Court, held in Great Salt Lake City, were published in the Deseret HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 95 News, No. I, Vol. I, November 15th, 185 1, Willard Richards, editor and pro- prietor. Under the censure of the great statesman, Daniel Webster, and with ex- Vice-President Dallis and Colonel Kane using their potent influence against them, and also Stephen A Douglass, (to whom Kane in his letter to Fillmore per- sonally refers as surety for Governor Young), Brandebury, Brocchus and Harris were forced to retire. They were succeeded by Chief Justice Reed, Associate Justice Shaver, and Secretary Ferris on August 31st, 1S52. On their arrival in Great Salt Lake City the new appointees received a cor- dial welcome from the Governor and citizens, which was reciprocated by the Chief Justice and his Associate, but Secretary Ferris approved the course of his predecessor and condemned the Mormons and their institutions. The new judges, however, turned the tide of public feeling for awhile in favor of this community, by the speeches which they delivered, and the very friendly letters which they wrote on Utah -affairs. Shortly after his arrival in Great Salt Lake City, Chief Justice Reed wrote as follows: •'I waited on his Excellency, Governor Young, exhibited to him my com- mission, and by him was duly sworn and installed as Chief Justice of Utah. I was received by Governor Young with marked courtesy and respect. He has taken pains to make my residence here agreeable. The Governor, in manners and conversation, is a polished gentleman, very neat and tasty in dress, easy and pleasant in conversation, and I think, a man of decided talent and strong intel- lectual qualities. * * * j j-,^^^ heard him address the people once on the subject of man's free agency. He is a very excellent speaker. His ges- ture uncommonly graceful, articulation distinct, and speech pleasant. * * * The Governor is a first rate business man. As civil Governor of the Territory and Superintendent of Lidian Affairs, we would naturally suppose he had as much to do as one man could well attend to; but in addition to those employments, he is also President of the Church — a station which is no sinecure by any means. His private business is extensive; he owns several grist and saw mills, is extensively engaged in farming operations, all of which he superintends personally. I have made up my mind that no man has been more grossly mis- represented than Governor Young, and that he is a man who will reciprocate kindness and good intentions as heartily and as freely as any one, but if abused, or crowded hard, I think he may be found exceedingly hard to handle." But Secretary Ferris soon after published a book expressing sentiments and views, concerning Brigham Young and the Mormon community, the very an- tipodes of those uttered by his Federal associates. After a short residence in Great Salt Lake City Secretary Ferris retired and went to California ; Chief Jus- tice Reed returned to New York and died ; he was succeeded by Chief Justice John F. Kinney, August 24th, 1853. Associate Justice Zerubbabel Snow occupied his full term and was succeeded by Associate Justice George P. Stiles, August ist, 1854. Almon W. Babbitt succeeded Ferris as Secretary, and District Attorney Hollman succeeded Seth M. Blair. John M. Bernhisel was Delegate to Congress. In 1854, Lieutenant- Colonel E. J. Steptoe, with his command, arrived in 'p6 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. Great Salt Lake City, and the term of Governor Young's appointment expiring about this time, President Pierce tendered the office to Colonel Steptoe; but he was a gentleman, and a true republican, and he had too much wisdom withal to accept the honor, for he knew that Brigham was the choice of the people. The following document, expressive of the movement which he inspired, will be of interest at this point: "7i? His Excellency, Franklin Pierce, President of the United States: "Your petitioners would respectfully represent that, whereas Governor Brigham Young possesses the entire confidence of the people of this Territory, without distinction of party or sect; and from personal acquaintance and social intercourse we find him to be a firm supporter of the constitution and laws of the United States, and a tried pillar of Republican institutions; and having repeat- edly listened to his remarks, in private as well as in public assemblies, do know he is the warm friend and able supporter of constitutional liberty, the rumors published in the States notwithstanding; and having canvassed to our satisfaction his doings as Governor and Superintendent of Indian affairs, and also the dispo- sition of the appropriation for public buildings for the Territory; we do most cordially and cheerfully represent that the same has been expended to the best interest of the nation; and whereas his re-appointment would subserve the Terri- torial interest better than the appointment of any other man, and would meet with the gratitude of the entire inhabitants of the Territory, and his removal would cause the deepest feeling of sorrow and regret ; and it being our unquali- fied opinion, based upon the personal acquaintance which we have formed with Governor Young, and from our observation of the results of his influence and administration in this Territory, that he possesses in an eminent degree every qualification necessary for the discharge of his official duties, and unquestioned integrity and ability, and he is decidedly the most suitable person that can be selected for that office. 4» "We therefore take pleasure in recommending him to your favorable consider- ation, and do earnestly request his re-appointment as Governor, and Superinten- dent of Indian affairs for this Territory." This document was signed by Colonel Steptoe and every other United States Army officer in the Territory, as well as by all of the Federal civil officials, and by every merchant and prominent citizen of Great Salt Lake City on the Gen- tile side. The petition was headed by Chief Justice Kinney, followed by Colonel Steptoe. Associate Justice Shaver's name was also to the document. Not long after the signing of this document, which obtained from President Pierce the re-appointment of Governor Young, Judge Shaver, on the morning of the 29th of June, 1855, ^^^ found dead in his bed, in Great Salt Lake City. The judge the previous night was apparently in good health, but he had long suffered terribly from a wound, the pain of which he relieved by the constant ad- ministration of opiates, and occasionally by stimulants; so that, though unexpected, the cause of his death required but little explanation. The citizens sincerely mourned the loss of Judge Shaver. He was buried by them with professional honors; HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 97 his funeral sermon was preached by Jedediah M. Grant, the then Mayor of Great Salt Lake City, and his memory is embalmed in the history of the Mormon Church, as an upright judge and a friend of the community. Yet notwithstand- ing the friendly relations which had existed between the deceased judge and the citizens, his sudden death gave an opportunity for the circulation of a malicious story of his being poisoned, on account of some supposed difficulty with Governor Young. W. W. Drummond succeeded the lamented Judge Shaver, September 12th, 1854; and Drummond and Associate Justice George P. Stiles were principally instrumental in working up the Buchanan Expedition, or the "Utah war" as it was popularly termed ; but we must leave the Federal thread for awhile and re- view events connected with the community, the growth and peopling of Great Salt Lake City, and the colonization of Utah in general, from about the time of the setting up of the Territorial government. CHAPTER XL SOCIOLOGICAL EXPOSITION, SOURCES OF OUR POPULATION, EMIGRATION. POLYGAMY. For the completeness of the history a sociological exposition of the peopling of Utah should be here presented, with its ethnological elements and methods out of which society first grew in the isolation of these Rocky Mountains; nor should the causes be ignored which have brought so many tens of thousands of souls from Europe to this country, for the very purpose of organizing a new society and creating a State of the American nation. Li the history of Great Salt Lake City, the Mormon emigrations from Eu- rope may be considered as the most relevant to its population; for, especially at the onset, this city grew out of those emigrations. The American pioneers did no more, in the matter of population, than plant the germs of society in these valleys, nor could they possibly do more with so small a community as that which left Nauvoo in the exodus. A decade must have passed before there could have been any perceptible increase to the population by offspring, had not the emigra- tions from abroad yearly poured into these valleys, vitalizing a community almost exhausted by repeated exterminations. Thus replenished, by a new fusion from the dominant parent races, from which the pioneers had themselves descended, population was increased ten-fold within the first decade. Great Britain and Scandinavia gave the bulk of this population, by their tens of thousands of emi- grants, and next by their prolific increase of offspring; but the American pio- 13 g8 H1S10R\ 02^ SALT LAKE CITY. neers were the originators of that emigrational movement of the Mormon people from Europe to this country. The following general epistle from the Twelve, dated at Winter Quarters, Omaha Nation, December 23d, 1847, ^^il^ be of interest in this connection: "To the Saints in England, Scotland, Ireland, Wales, and adjacent islands and countries, we say, emigrate as speedily as possible to this vicinity, looking to and following the counsel of the Presidency at Liverpool : shipping to New Or- leans, and from thence direct to Council Bluffs, which will save much expense. Those who have but little means, and little or no labor, will soon exhaust that means if they remain where they are, therefore it is wisdom that they remove without delay; for here is land on which, by their labor, they can speedily better their condition for their further journey. And to all Saints in any country bor- dering upon the Atlantic, we would say. pursue the same course, come immedi- ately and prepare to go west, — bringing witli you all kinds of choice seeds, of grain, vegetables, fruit, shrubbery, trees, and vines — everything that will please the eye, gladden the heart, or cheer the soul of man, that grows upon the face of the whole earth ; also the best stock of beast, bird, and fowl of every kind ; also the best tools of every description, and machinery for spinning, or weaving, and dressing cotton, wool, flax, and silk, etc., etc., or models and descriptions of the the same, by which they can construct them ; and the same in relation to all kinds of farming utensils and husbandry, such as corn shellers, grain threshers and cleaners, smut machines, mills, and every implement and article within their knowledge that shall tend to promote the comfort, health, happiness, or prosper- ity of any people. So far as it can be consistently done, bring models and drafts, and let the machinery be built where it is used, which will save great ex- pense in transportation, particulary in heavy machinery, and tools and imple- ments generally." 1 And here must be noticed the covenant of the emigration. Previous to leaving Nauvoo President Young prompted the Mormons to enter into a solemn covenant in the temple, that they would not cease their exertions until every individual of them who desired and was unable to gather to the valley by his own means was brought to that place. No sooner were they located in the Rocky Mountains, than the Church prepared to fulfill this covenant, extending its application to the Saints in all the world. The subject was introduced at the October Conference, in 1849, by President Heber C. Kimball, and a unainmous vote was there and then taken to raise a fund for the fulfillment of the promise. A committee was appointed to raise money, and Bishop Edward Hunter sent to the frontiers to purchase wagons and cattle, to bring the poor Saints from Pottowatomie lands. About $5,000 were raised that season. The fund was designated "The Perpetual Emigration Fund," and the method of its application is well set forth in the following from a letter to Apostle Orson Hyde, who was at the time presiding at Winter Quarters: Great Salt Lake City, October i6th, 1849. President Orson Hyde: — Beloved brother, we write to you more particularly at this time, concerning the gathering, and the mission of our general agent for HIS TOR Y OF SALT LAKE CI 7 Y. 99 the Perpetual Emigration Fund for the coming year, Bishop Hunter, who will soon be with you, bearing the funds already raised in this place. In the first place, this fund has been raised by voluntary donations, and is to be continued by the same process, and by so managing as to preserve the same and cause it to multiply. * * * As early in the Spring as it will possibly do, on account of feed for cattle, Brother Hunter will gather all his company, organize them in the usual order, and preside over the camp, travelling with the same to this place, having previously procured the best teamsters possible, such as are accustomed to driving, and will be kind and attentive to their teams. When the Saints thus helped arrive here, they will give their obligations to the Church to refund to the amount of what they have received, as soon as cir- cumstances will permit ; and labor will be furnished, to such as wish, on the public works, and good pay; and as fast as they can procure the necessaries of life, and a surplus, that surplus will be applied to liquidating their debt, and thereby in- crease the perpetual fund. By this it will readily be discovered that the funds are to be appropriated in the form of a loan rather than a gift; and this will make tha honest in heart re- joice, for they have to labor and not live on the charity of their friends, while the lazy idlers, if any such there be, will find fault and want every Inxury furnished them for the journey, and in the end pay nothing. * * >|; "Brother Hunter will return all the funds to this place next season, when the most judicious course will be pursued to convert all the cattle and means into cash, that the same may be sent abroad as speedily as possible on another mission, together with all that we can raise besides to add to it; and we antici- pate that the Saints at Pottowatomie and in the States will increase the fund by all possible means the coming winter, so that our agent may return with a large company. " The few thousands we send out by our agent at this time is like a grain of mustard seed in the earth; we send it forth into the world, and among the Saints — a good soil — and we expect it will grow and flourish,, and spread abroad in a few weeks: that it will cover England, cast its shadow on Europe, and in process of time compass the whole earth; that is to say, these funds are destined to in- crease until Israel is gathered from all nations, and the poor can sit under their own vine, and inhabit their own house, and worship God in Zion. "We remain your brethren in the gospel, Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball, WiLLARD Richards." A similar epistle was written to Orson Pratt, President of the British Mis- sion, saying at the close: "Your office in Liverpool is the place of deposit for all funds received either for this or the tithing funds for all Europe, and you will not pay out only upon our order, and to such persons as we shall direct." These instructions and general epistles are the more important in the emi- 100 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. grational history, as they are substantially the basis upon which all the emigra- tions and business thereof have been conducted from that time to the present. Donations in England were made straightway. The first received was 2S. 6d. from Mark and Charlotte Shelley, of Woolwich, on the 19th of April, 1850. The next was ^i, from George P. Waugh, of Edinburgh, on the 19th of June; but in time the various emigration funds of the British Mission alone became immense. The mode of conducting the emigrations from Europe was as patriarchal as the Church itself. As the emigration season came round, from every branch and conference the Saints would be gathered and taken to Liverpool by their elders, who saw them on shipboard in vessels chartered for their use. Not a moment were they left to the mercy of "runners" and shipping agents. When on board, the companies, which in some cases have amounted to more than a thou- sand souls per ship, were divided into wards, each ward being under its president or bishop, and his two councilors, and each company under its president and councilors ; and besides these were the doctor, steward, and cook, with their assistants. During the passage, regular service was daily observed, — morning and evening prayers, preaching meetings and councils. Besides these were numerous entertainments, concerts, dances, etc., so that the trips across the Atlantic were like merry makings, enjoyed by the captains and their officers as much as by the Saints. Reaching America a similar system was pursued up the rivers, on the railroads, and across the plains until the Saints arrived in the val- leys, when they were received, in the old time, by Brigham and " the authorities in Zion," and sent by Bishop Hunter to the various settlements where they were most needed to people the fast-growing cities of Utah. It may be here suggestively noted that, at the date of this emigrational cir- cular, there were not in all Utah more than eight thousand souls ; while, at about the same date, in the British mission there were thirty thousand members of the Mormon Church. The resources of population the community possessed abroad; at home the resources were not sufficient to people Great Salt Lake City. The colonizing genius of this "peculiar people" was now greatly m demand; and it soon began to manifest itself in gigantic efforts to populate these valleys, and to found the hundreds of cities and settlements which Utah possesses to-day, and which the Mormon leaders designed to people when they laid off the City of the Great Salt Lake in 1S47. This genius of colonization ihe community had mani- fested from the beginning, as was observed in the opening chapter, but it had hitherto operated chiefly abroad, in creating a population for the "building up of a Zion " on the American continent. True there had sailed a few ship loads of Mormons from the shores of Great Britain for Nauvoo; but only a few thou- sand of the British people were mixed in the actual society problem of the Mor- mons in America, until after the settlement in the valleys of the Rocky Mountains. Indeed, it had not been possible for the Mormon leaders to have emigrated a large European population to any of the eastern States, for the form- ation of a community. As it was, the American Mormon population was too large for both Missouri and Illinois. But in Utah, with a Territory given them HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. loi by the United States, that they might people with their fruitful resources of pop- plation from foreign missions, the Mormons for the first time found full aim and scope for their colonizing genius and religion. From that moment Mormonism meant the peopling of Utah and the building of cities and settlements, and that too, chiefly at the onset, by yearly emigrations of converts from Europe; Great Salt Lake City being the initial society work. Accordingly at the October Conference of 1849, held in this city, after establishing the Provisional Government of the State of Deseret, and the organ- ization of the Perpetual Emigration Fund Company, "for the gathering of Israel from the nations," as set forth in the circular, the Presidency and Twelve Apostles set apart John Taylor, for France, to open a mission in that country ; Lorenzo Snow for a similar purpose to Switzerland and Italy; Franklin D. Rich- ards for England, to start the operations of the Perpetual Emigration Fund Company in Europe; while Apostle Erastus Snow was sent to open the "new dispensation" to the Scandinavian races. In 1849, there was not a branch of the Mormon Church in all Scandinavia; to-day (1883) nearly one-third of the Mormon population of Utah, including their offspring, is Scandinavian. In 1S49, the emigrations from Great Britain, dh-ect for Utah commenced ; from that date to their suspension for awhile, in consequence of the Buchanan expedition, with which we shall presently deal, the Mormon emigrations to America embraced about thirty thousand souls, the majority of whoni became compounded in the population of Utah ; and still on, down to the present time, the British mission, though greatly depleted by her supplies has continued emigrations to this Territory. During this time a large accession to the population also poured in from every State of the Union, sus- taining the native American element. In connection with this subject of population, it is proper that polygamy should be considered, as a social factor of this Territory. Polygamy as a system of family relations was published in 1851. With it as a religious institution the historian has nothing to do, nor is it his province either to question or approve of the special legislation passed against it; but sociologically and ethnologically history has much to do with it in the peopling of Utah. The population of this Territory, in fact, has grown largely out of Mormon polygamy; and instead of deteriorating the race it has, in this case, replenished and im- proved it. Emigrations from Europe pouring in yearly, bringing a surplus of females from the robust snd fruitful races of Scandinavia and Great Britain, their marriage with a dominant pioneer element of the American stock has given stamina to families and population to the country. Indeed, Mormon polygamy has done nearly as much for the population of Utah as emigration itself; and with it, further than the statement of its facts, the writer has nought to do in a sociological exposition. Thus it will be seen that, having planted the germs of society in these valleys, the American portion of the population united in marriage with the emigrants — and the whole became one people in the coloniza- tion of Utah — one people very much in race as they were already in faith. The exposition will further show that though the population a quarter of a century 102 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. ago was largely foreign, to-day it must naturally be chiefly native American, for while the emigrant parents have by thousands passed away by death, their children born in these valleys have grown up to manhood and womanhood, and are themselves parents today. CHAPTER XII. PICTURES OF MORMON SOCIETY IN THE FOUNDING OF UTAH. LIFE AMONG THE SAINTS. THEIR SOCIAL AND RELIGIOUS PECULIARITIES AND CUS- TOMS. ECSTACY OF THE GOLD-HUNTERS WHEN THEY CAME UPON "ZION." VIEWS BY STANSBURY, GUNNISON, AND NOTED ENGLISH TRAV- ELERS, OF THE MORMONS AND THEIR INSTITUTIONS. PETITION FOR A RAILROAD. GENERAL EVENTS. It is thought that a few pictures of the early days of Utah, and of Mormon society in its primeval forms, may have a special interest to visitors of to-day, who go up to the New Jerusalem of the West in luxurious palace cars. They shall be the pictures which struck the fancy, or the judgment, of the intelligent " Gentile" who first came upon the peculiar people, just settled in the valleys of Utah, yet they described them in wonderment, much as they would have done had they come upon the strange habitation and inhabitants of another world. There is a graphic life-touch in some of those sketches — mere letters though they were — that the imagination of the best artist could not equal. They are realistic pictures of what was; romances of social life, so to speak, that were not dreams. Here is a graphic sketch from the artistic pen of a gold digger, a correspon- dent of the Neiu York Tribune, under date of July 8th, 1849: "The company of gold diggers which I have the honor to command, arrived here on the 3d instant, and judge our feelings when, after some twelve hundred miles travel through an uncultivated desert, and the last one hundred miles of the di.stance through and among lofty mountains, and narrow and diffi- cult ravines, we found ourselves suddenly, and almost unexpectedly, in a compar- ative paradi!:e. * * * At first sight of all these signs of cultivation in the wilderness, we were transported with wonder and pleasure. Some wept, some gave three cheers, some laughed, and some ran and fairly danced for joy, while all felt inexpressibly happy to find themselves once more amid scenes which mark the progress of advancing civilization. We passed on amid scenes like these, expecting every moment to come to some commercial centre, some business point in this great metropolis of the mountains, but we were disappointed. No hotel, sign post, cake and beer shop, barber pole, market house, grocery, pro- vision, dry goods, or hardware store distinguished one part of the town from another; not even a bakery or a mechanic's sign was anywhere discernible. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 103 " Here, then, was something new : an entire people reduced to a level, and all living by their labor — all cultivating the earth, or following some branch 01 physical industry. At first I thought it was an experiment, an order of things established purposely to carry out the principles of 'socialism' or ' Mormonism.' In short, I thought it very much like Owenism personified. However, on in- quiry, I found that a combination of seemingly unavoidable circumstances had produced this singular state of affairs. There were no hotels because there had » been no travel; no barber shops, because every one chose to shave himself, and no one had time to shave his neighbor; no stores, because they had no goods to sell, nor time to traffic; no centre of business, because all were too busy to make a centre. "There was abundance of mechanic's shops, of dressmakers, milliners and tailors, etc.; but they needed no sign, nor had they time to paint or erect one, for they were crowded with business. Beside their several trades, all must culti- vate the land or die, for the country was new, and no cultivation but their own within a thousand miles. Every one had his own lot, and built on it; every one cultivated it, and perhaps a small farm in the distance. "And the strangest of all was, that this great city, extending over several square miles, had been erected, and every house and fence made, within nine or ten months of the time of our arrival; while at the same time, good bridges were erected over the principal streams, and the country settlements extended nearly one hundred miles up and down the valley. "This Territory, State, or, as some term it, 'Mormon empire,' may justly be considered one of the greatest prodigies of our time, and, in comparison with its age, the most gigantic of all Republics in existence — being only in its second year since the first seed of cultivation was planted, or the first civilized habita- tion commenced. If these people were such thieves and robbers as their enemies represented them to be in the States, I must think they have greatly reformed in point ot industry since coming to the mountains. "I this day attended worship with them in the open air. Some thousands of well dressed, intelligent-looking people assembled ; a number of them on foot, some in carriages, and some on horses. Many were neatly and even fashionably clad. The beauty and neatness of the ladies reminded me of some of our best congregations of New York. They had a choir of both sexes, who performed exceedingly well, accompanied by a band, playing well -on almost every musica' instrument of modern invention. Peals of the most sweet, sacred and solemn music filled the air; after which, a solemn prayer was offered by Mr. Grant (a Latter-day Saint), of Philadelphia. Then followed various business advertise- ments, read by the clerk. * * * After this, came a lengthy dis- course by Mr. Brigham Young, President of" the Society, partaking somewhat of politics, much of religion and philosophy, and a little on the subject of gold ; showing the wealth, strength and glory of England, growing out of her coal mines, iron and industry, and the weakness, corruption and degradation of Span- ish America, Spain, etc., growing out of their gold and silver, and idle habits. " He further observed that the people here would petition to be organized into a Territory under the American Government, notwithstanding its abuses. I04 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CIT\. and that, if granted, they would stand by the the constitution and laws of the United States; while, at the same time, he denounced their corruption and abuses. " ' But,' said the speaker, 'we ask no odds of them, whether they grant our petition or not ! We will never ask any odds of a nation that has driven us from our homes. If they grant us our rights, well; if not, well; they can do no more ' than they have done. They, and ourselves, and all men, are in the hands of the great God, who will govern all things for good ; and all will be right, and work together for good to them that serve God.' "Such, in part, was the discourse to which we listened in the strongholds of the mountains. The Mormons are not dead, nor is their spirit broken. And, if I mistake not, there is a noble, daring, stern and democratic spirit swelling in their bosoms, which will people these mountains with a race of independent men, and influence the destiny of our country and the world for a hundred generations. In their religion they seem charitable, devoted and sincere; in their politics, bold, daring and determined ; in their domestic circle, quiet, affectionate and happy, while in industry, skill and intelligence they have few equals, and no superiors on earth. "I had many strange feelings while contemplating this new civilization, growing up so suddenly in the wilderness. I almost wished I could awake from my golden dream, and find it but a dream ; while I pursued my domestic duties as quietly, as happily, and contentedly as this strange people." "These Mormons," says Gunnison, "are certainly the most earnest religion- ists I have ever been among. It seems to be a constant self-sacrifice with them, which makes me believe that the masses of the people are honest and sincere. "While professing a complete divorce of Church and State, their political career and administration is made subservient to the theocratical or religious ele- ment. They delight to call their system of government a ' theo-democracy,' and that, in a civil capacity, they stand as the Israelites of old under Moses. For the rule of those not fully imbued with the spirit of obedience, and sojourners not of the faith, as well as for things purely temporal, tribunals of justice and law-making assemblies are at present rendered necessary. "The influence of their nomenclature of 'brethren and sisters' is apparent in their actions, and creates the bond of affection among those who are more fre- quently thrown together. It is impressed on infantile minds by the constant repetition, and induces the feeling of family relationship. A little boy was asked the usual question, ' whose son are you? ' and he very naively replied, ' I am Brother Pack's son;' a small circumstance, truly, but one that stamps the true mark of Mormon society. The welfare of the order becomes, therefore, paramount to individual interest ; and the union of hearts causes the hands to unite in all that pertains to the glory of the State ; and hence we see growing up and prospering the most enterprising people of the age — combining the ad- vantages of communism, placed on the basis of religious du':y and obedience to what they call the law of the gospel — transcending the notion of socialistic HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CIT\. 105 philosophers, that human regulations can improve and perfect society, irrespective of the revealed word of God, "Right or wrong, in the development of the principle, and in its applica- tion, they have seized upon the most permanent element of the human mind in its social relations — not yielding fully to the doctrines of earnestness and univer- sal intention, and making man his own regenerator, as the fountain head of truth, and passing thence into mysticism, pantheism and atheism, neither endeavoring to cure the ills of society by political notions of trade and commerce, nor by educating in the sentiment of honor, and by political inculcation of high thoughts and noble images, independent of being 'born of the water and of the spirit.' "Nor must we look upon all as ignorant and blindfolded, guided along the the ditch of enthusiasm by self-deluded leaders. Indeed, almost every man is a priest, or eligible to the office, and ready armed for the controversial warfare. His creed is his idol. And while among the best proselytes we class many that are least versed in literary attainments, still among them we find liberally edu- cated men, and those who have been ministers in other denominations — in fact there seems to be as fair a sample of intelligence, moral probity, and good citi- zenship, as can be found in any nominal Christian community. "Sincerity and simplicity of purpose mark the masses, which virtues have been amply proved by the sacrifices and suffering endured. And among the peo- ple, so submissive to counsel, are those who watch with eagle eye that first prin- ciples are adhered to, and stand ready to proclaim apostacy in chief or laymen, and scrutinizing all revelations to discover whether they are from the Lord, or given, through his permission, by Satan, to test the fidelity and watchfulness of the disciples of truth. Litigation is much discouraged, and it is specially thought improper for brother to go to law with brother, and that before unbelievers ; so each bishop is a sort of county court judge between man and man, with an appeal to the whole 'bench,' and a final resort to Brigham, who does good practical jus- tice without any embarrassment from statute or common law. " This people are jealous of their rights, and feel themselves entitled to en- force order by their own laws, and severely punish contempt of them. The ad- ministration of justice is of the most simple kind, and based on the equity and the merits of the question, without reference to precedents and technicalities." Another correspondent writing to a New York paper said : "It is now three years since the Mormons arrived in Salt Lake Valley, and their energy in laying out a city, building, fencing farms, raising crops, etc., is truly wonderful to behold, and is but another striking demonstration of the inde- fatigable enterprise, industry, and perseverance of the Anglo-Saxon race. "The Mormons, take them as a body, I truly believe are a most industrious people, and, I confess, as intelligent as any I have met with when in the East or West. It is true they are a little fanatical about their religious views, which is not at all strange when compared with the majority of religious denominations in the East. But let no man be deceived in his estimation of the people who have settled here. Any people who have the courage to travel over plains, rivers io6 HIS TOR Y OF SALT LAKE CITY. and mountains, for twelve hundred miles, such, probably, as cannot be traveled over in any other part of the world, to settle in a region which scarcely ever re- ceived the tread ot any but the wild savages and beasts who roam the wilderness, must be possessed of an indomitable energy that is but rarely met with."' W. Kelly, in his "Excursions in California in the Early Days," says: "The houses are small, principally of adobies, built up only as temporary abodes, until the more urgent and important matter of inciosure is attended to; but I never saw anything to surpass the ingenuity of arrangement with which they are fitted up, and the scrupulous cleanliness with which they are kept. There were tradesmen and artizans of all descriptions, but no regular stores or work- shops, except forges. Still, from the shoeing of an ox to the mending of a watch, there was no difficulty experienced in getting it done as cheap and as well put out of hand as in any other city in America. Notwithstanding the oppress- ing temperature, they were all hard at work at their trades, and abroad in the fields, weeding, moulding, and irrigating; and it certainly speaks volumes for their energy and industry, to see the quantity of land they have fenced in, and the breadth under cultivation, considering the very short time since they founded the settlement in 1847. "After bathing, we dressed in our best attire, and prepared to attend the Mormon service, held for the the present in the large space adjoining the in- tended Temple, which is only just above the foundations, but will be a structure of stupendous proportions, and, if finished according to the plan, of surpassing elegance. I went early, and found a rostrum in front of which there were rows of stools and chairs for the townfolks; those from the country, who arrived in great numbers, in light wagons, sitting on chairs, took up their stations in their vehicles in the background, after unharnessing the horses. There was a very large and most respectable congregation ; the ladies attired in rich and becoming costumes, each with parasol ; and I hope I may say, without any imputation of profanity, a more bewitching assemblage of the sex it has rarely been my lot to look upon." A still more important authority on Mormon society, in the early days of Utah, was Captain Stansbury. He says in his official report; "The founding, within the space of three years, of a large and flourishing community upon. a spot so remote from the abodes of men, so completely shut out by natural barriers from the rest of the world, so entirely unconnected by water-courses with either of the oceans that wash the shores of this continent — a country offering no advantages of inland navigation or of foreign commerce, but, on the contrary, isolated by vast uninhabited deserts, and only to be reached by long, painful, and often hazardous journeys by land — presents an anomaly so very peculiar, that it deserves more than a passing notice. In this young and pros- perous country of ours, where cities grow up in a day, and States spring up in a year, the successful planting of a colony, where the natural advantages have been such as to hold out the promise of adequate reward to the projectors, would have excited no surprise ; but the success of an enterprise under circumstances so much HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 107 at variance with all our preconceived ideas of its probability, may well be con- sidered one of the most remarkable incidents of the present age. Their admirable system of combining labor, while each has his own prop- erty, in lands and tenements, and the proceeds of his industry, the skill in divid- ing off the lands, and conducting the irrigating canals to supply the want of rain, which rarely falls between April and October; the cheerful manner in which every one applies himself industriously, but not laboriously \ the complete reign of good neighborhood and quiet house and fields, form themes for admiration to the stranger coming from the dark and sterile recesses of the mountain gorges into this flourishing valley; and he is struck with wonder at the immense results, produced in so short a time, by. a handful of individuals. "This is the result of the guidance of all those hands by one master mind; and we see a comfortable people residing where, it is not too much to say, the ordinary mode of subduing and settling our wild lands could never have been applied. "Nothing can exceed the appearance of prosperity, peaceful harmony, and cheerful contentment that pervaded the whole community. Ever since the first year of privation, provisions have been abundant, and want of the necessaries and even comforts of life are unknown. A design was at one time entertained (more, I believe, as a prospective measure than anything else) to set apart a fund for the purpose of erecting a poor-house; but, after strict inquiry it was found that there were in the whole population but two persons who could be considered objects of public charity, and the plan was consequently abandoned. This happy external state of universally diffused prosperity, is commented on by themselves as 'an evidence of the smiles of heaven, and of the special favor of the Deity; but I think it may be most clearly accounted for in the admirable discipline and ready obedience of a large body of industrious and intelligent men, and in the wise counsels of prudent and sagacious leaders, producing a oneness and concentration of action, the result of which has astonished even those by whom it has-been effected. The happy consequences of this system of united and well directed action, under one leading and controlling mind, is most prominently apparent in the erection of public buildings, opening of roads, the construction of bridges, and the preparation of the country for the speedy occu- pation of a large and rapidly growing population, shortly to be still further aug- mented by an immigration even now on its way, from almost every country in Europe. " In their dealings with the crowds of immigrants that passed through their city, the Mormons were ever fair and upright, taking no advantage of the neces- sitous condition of many, if not most of them. They sold them such provisions as they could spare, at moderate prices, and such as they themselves paid in their dealings with each other. In the whole of our intercourse with them, which ' lasted rather more than a year, I cannot refer to a single instance of fraud or ex- tortion to which any of the party was subjected ; and I strongly incline to the opinion that the charges that have been preferred against them in this respect, arose from interested misrepresentation or erroneous information, , I certainly never experienced anything like it in my own case, nor did I witness or hear loH HISTORY Op SALT LAKE CITY. of any instance of it in the case of others, while I resided among them. Too many that passed through their settlements were disposed to disregard their claim to the land they occupied, to ridicule the municipal regulations ot their city, and to trespass wantonly upon their rights. Such offenders were promptly arrested by the authorities, made to pay a severe fine, and in some instances were impris- oned or made to labor on the public works \ a punishment richly merited, and which would have been inflicted upon them in any civilized community. In short, these people presented the appearance of a quiet, orderly, industrious, and well-organized society, as much so as one would meet with in any city of the Union, having the rights of personal property as perfectly defined and as relig- iously respected as with ourselves; nothing being farther from their faith or prac- tice than the spirit of communism, which has been most erroneously supposed to prevail among them. The main peculiarity of the people consists in their relig- ious tenets, the form and extent of their church government, (which is a theoc- racy), and in the nature especially of their domestic relations." Another early writer says : "The masses are sincere in their belief: if they are credulous, and have been deceived by their leaders, the sin, if any, rests on them. I firmly believe the people to be honest, and imbued with true religious feelings; and when we take into consideration their general character previously, we cannot but believe in their sincerity. Nme-tenths of this vast population are the peasantry of Scot- land, England and Wales, originally brought up with religious teachings at Protestant parish churches. They place implicit faith in their leaders, who, in a pecuniary point of view have fulfilled their promise ; each and all of them are comfortably provided with land and tenements. At first they, of course, suffer pri- vation, until they build their houses, and reap their crops, yet all their neces- sities in the meantime are provided for by the Church, and in a social point of view they are much happier than they could ever hope to have been at their native homes. From -being tenants at the will of an imperious and exacting landlord, they suddenly became landholders in their own right, free men, living on free soil, under a free and enlightened government. "Considering, again, how all efforts for the improvement of these advantages must necessarily be self-dependent in such a place, one cannot say they have been tardily developed. Indeed, to me, the manufactures, few as they were, and the products and settlements sprung up so extensively in so short a time, spoke not of a sensual but of a thrifty and industrious population, who, whatever may be their delusions in matters of belief, or the corrupting influence of their customs, at least determined to put their hands to the plow, and, looking forward, to work, out of hardship and adversity, a comfortable, if not an enviable, prosperity. Observe Salt Lake City — not a San Francisco, certainly — but remember that eight years ago not a house stood here, nor a stick, nor a stone to build one of. "The cheerful happy faces, the self-sacrificed countenances, the cordial saluta- tion of brother or sister on all occasions of address, the lively strains of music pouring forth from merry hearts in every domicile, as women and children sing their "Songs of Zion," while plying the domestic tasks, give an expression of a happy society in the vales of Deseret. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 109 "The}' have determined to keep themselves distinct from the vices of civiliza- tion. During a residence of ten weeks in Great Salt Lake City, and my observa- tions in all their various settlements, it is worthy of record that I never heard any obscene or improper language, never saw a man drunk, never had my atten- tion called to to the exhibition of vice of any sort. There are no gambling houses, grog shops, or houses of ill-fame in all their settlements. They preach morality in their churches and from their stands, and, what is as strange as it is true, their people practice it, and religiously believe their salvation depends upon fulfilling the behests of the religion which they have adopted. " A liquor law, enforced pretty strictly, compels sobriety, which virtue iS; therefore, no subject for praise. Swearing, at least blasphemous swearing, in the public streets, is prohibited under pain of a five-dollar fine for each offense; the fine is scarcely ever imposed, but violation of the law is uncommon, and very rarely in public or private do you hear an oath. Theft, even in petty things, such as vegetables and fuel, is prevented, not by prosecution, but by the known rule, that 'if a man steals two or three times he is ordered to become honest or leave the country for good. Not that Mormons ever pretend that there are no bad men among them ; nay, agreeable to their principles, they will tell you that a Mormon, if bad, will be worse than other men, because he sins against greater light and knowledge, and after receiving the Spirit of God. Confirmatory of this, I have met at Salt Lake with two or three very proper scoundrels : but, leaking the people all around, I consider them as moral, industrious, fair-dealin ; and hospitable a set as one is apt to fall in with. "Li social parties and lively meetings the Mormons are pre-eminent, and their hospitality would be more readily extended to strangers had they suitable dwellings to invite them into. In their social gatherings and evening parties, patronized by the presence of the prophets and apostles, it is not unusual to open the ball with prayer, asking the blessing of God on their amusements, as well as upon any other engagement ; and then will follow the most sprightly dancing, in which all join with hearty good will, from the highest dignitary to the humblest individual; and this exercise is to become part of the temple-wo;- ship, to 'praise God in song and dances.' " These private balls and soirees are frequently extended beyond the time of cock-crowing by the younger members, and the remains of the evening repast furnish the breakfast for the jovial guests. " Toward the end of April, in 1854, about ten days previous to the depart- uie of Governor Brigham Young, on his annual visit to the southern settlements of Utah, tickets of invitation to a grand ball were. issued in his name. I had the honor to receive one of them. "At the appointed hour I made my appearance, chaperoned by Governor Young, who gave me a general introduction. A larger collection of fairer and more beautiful women I never saw in one room. All of them were dressed in white muslin, some with pink and others with blue sashes. Flowers were the only ornaments in the hair. The utmost order and the strictest decorum pre- vailed. Polkas and waltzes were not danced ; country dances, cotillions, quadrilles, etc., were permitted. At the invitation of Governor Young I opened no HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. the ball with one of his wives. The Governor, with a beautiful partner, stood vis-a-vis. An old-fashioned cotillion was danced with much grace by the ladies, and the Governor acquitted himself wery well on the ' light fantastic toe.' After several rounds of dancing, a march was played by the band, and a procession was formed; I conducted my first partner to the supper room, where I partook of a fine entertainment at the Governor's table. There must have been at least two hundred ladies present, and about one hundred gentlemen. I returned to my quarters at twelve o'clock, most favorably impressed with the exibition of public society among the Mormons." In 1852 the people had a grand celebration of the Fourth of July. This was the first notable celebration of our national birthday by the Mormons since their arrival in the valley, though it was kept by the Pioneers on the way, both at Winter Quarters and as they approached the haven of their' search. They had afterwards, in a manner, blended the idea and spirit of the Fourth with the Twenty-Fourth, which they esteem as the natal day of Utah. On the first cele- bration of the Twenty-Fourth, the Constitution of the United States was, as we have seen, presented to the Governor of the State of Deseret, and the Declara- tion of Independence read, but the honor of the year in 1852, was given to the Fourth of July. At the first session of the Territorial Legislature, held in 185 1-2, in Salt Lake City, memorials to Congress were adopted, praying for the construction of a national central railroad, and also a telegraph line from the Missouri River, via Salt Lake City to the Pacific. The following memorial was signed and approved by Governor Young, March 3d, 1852 : '■^To the Honorable the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States, in Congress assembled : "Your memorialists, the Governor and Legislative Assembly of the Terri- tory of Utah, respectfully pray your honorable body to provide for the establish- ment of a national central railroad from some eligible point on the Mississippi or Missouri River, to San Diego, San Francisco, Sacramento, or Astoria, or such other point on or near the Pacific Coast as the wisdom of your honorable body may dictate. " Your memorialists respectfully state that the immense emigration to and from the Pacific requires the immediate attention, guardian care, and fostering assistance of the greatest and most liberal government on the earth. Your memorialists are of the opinion that not less than five thousand American citizens have perished on the different routes within the last three years, for the want of proper means of transportation. That an eligible route can be obtained, your memorialists have no doubt, being extensively acquainted with the country. We know that no obstruction exists between this point and San Diego, and that iron, coal, timber, stone, and other materials exist in various places on the route ; and that the settlements of this Territory are so situated as to amply supply the builders of said road with material and provisions for a considerable portion of the route, and to carry on an extensive trade after the road is completed. "Your memorialists are of opinion that the mineral resources of California HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. m and these mountains can never be fully developed to the benefit of the United States, without the construction of such a road; and upon its completion, the entire trade to China and the East Indies will pass through the heart of the Union, thereby giving to our citizens the almost entire control of the Asiatic and Pacific trade; pouring into the lap of the American States the millions that are now diverted through other commercial channels; and last, though not least, the road herein proposed would be a perpetual chain or iron band, which would ef- fectually hold together our glorious Union with an imperishable identity of mutual interest; thereby consolidating our relations with foreign powers in times of peace, and our defense from foreign invasion, by the speedy transmission of troops and supplies in times of war. ^'The earnest attention of Congress to this important subject is solicited by your memoralists, who, in duty bound, will ever pray." On the 31st of January, 1854, there was another movement of the people for a Pacific Railroad. The citizens of Salt Lake and surrounding country, men and women, gathered en masse to make a grand demonstration in its favor. As the Salt Lake Temple, when completed, will be one of the finest and most unique architectural piles in America, it will be proper for us to give a synopsis of the laying of the corner stones. We cull the following from the Deseret JVewi: "Wednesday, April 6th, 1853, could not have dawned a more lovely day, or have been more satisfactory to Saints or Angels. The distant valleys sent forth their inhabitants, this valley swarmed forth its thousands, and a more glori- ous sight has not been seen for generations than at Great Salt Lake City this day. "The Deseret national flag was unfurled to the breeze. The Nauvoo Brass Band, Captain Ballo's Band, and the Military Band enlivened the air with their sweetest strains. The Silver Greys made a venerable appearance, and the minute men, true to their duty, were at their posts at an early hour. The police, under the efficient management of Captain Hardy, were at their posts at the time ap- pointed ; and the countenances of the Saints were as glad and cheerful as though each had been favored with the visitation of an angel. * * * 'pj-jg procession then formed at the vestry door in the following order: " ist. Martial music. Colors. 2d, Nauvoo Brass Band. Colors. 3d, Ballo's Band. Colors. 4th, Captain Pettegrew with relief guards. Colors. 5th, Singers. 6th, First President and Counselors, and aged Patriarch. 7th, The Twelve Apostles, first Presidency of the Seventies, and President and Counselors of the Elders' Quorum. 8th, President of the High Priests' Quorum, and Counselors, in connection with the President of the Stake, and the High Council. 9th, Pre- siding Bishop, with his Council, and the Presidents of the lesser Priesthood, and their Council. loth, Archiiects and workmen selected for the day, with banner, representing ' Zion's Workmen.' nth, Captain Merrill, with relief guard, in uniform. "The procession then marched through the line of guards to the southeast corner of the Temple ground, the singers taking their position in the centre, the Nauvoo Brass Band on the east bank, Captain Ballo's Band on the west bank, and 112 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE Ciry. the Marshal Band on the mound southwest. Captains Pettigrew, Hardy, and Merrill, with their commands, occupying the front of the bank (which was six- teen feet deep,) and moving from corner to corner with the laying of the several stones, prevented an undue rush of the people, which might, by an excavation, have endangered the lives of many, -when Presidents Young, Kimball, and Rich- ards, with Patriarch John Smith, proceeded to lay the southeast cornerstone, and ascended the top thereof, when the choir sang; President Young delivered the chief oration, and Heber C. Kimball offered the consecration prayer. "The procession again formed, and proceeded to the southwest corner, when the Presiding Bishop, Edward Hunter, his counsel, and the various Presi- dencies of the lesser Priesthood, with their associates, laid the southwest corner stone, when, from its top, Bishop Hunter delivered the oration, and Bishop Alfred Cordon offered the consecration prayer. The procession again formed, and moved to the northwest corner stone, accompanied with martial music, when John Young, President of the High Priests' Quorum, with his Council, and the President of the Stake, with the High Council, proceeded to lay the stone.. That being done they ascended the stone, and President John Young delivered the oration, and George B. Wallace offered the consecration prayer. The procession again formed, and proceeded to the northeast corner stone, which was laid by the Twelve Apostles, the First Presidency of the Seventies, and the Presidency of the Elders' Quorum. The Apostles then ascended the stone, and Elder P. P. Pratt delivered the oration, and Orson Hyde offered the consecration prayer. On the 31st of October, 1853, Governor Young received an express giving an account of the massacre on the i6th of that month, by Indians, of Captain John W. Gunnison and seven of his party, near the swamps of the Sevier River. Captain Gunnison and twelve of his party had departed from the rest, and while at breakfast, a band of Indians, intending to destroy a Mormon village near at hand, came upon them and fired with rifles, and then used bows and arrows- Shots were returned by the Gunnison party, but they were overpowered, and only four escaped. Gunnison had twenty arrows shot into his body, and, when found, had one of his arms off. The notes of the survey, which had been nearly com- pleted, instruments, and the animals, were taken by the Indians. Governor Young immediately sent aid to Captain Morris, to release him from his critical position in the midst of the Indians, and endeavor to obtain the lost property. In his message to the Legislature that year, the Governor said : "In the military department of the Territory there is but little change from last year's report, except an increase of about seven hundred names to the mus- ter rolls. In the southern settlements a great portion of the troops have been kept in almost constant service in order to preserve the inhabitants and their property from Indian aggressions. * * * " During the late troubles, twelve of our citizens have been killed at differ- ent times, and many wounded ; and seven of the exploring party, including the lamented Captain Gunnison, have been killed on the Sevier." liig" ujahaaAi i. Sons, New iary. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. uj CHAPTER XIV. CARSON COLONY. THE GREAT FAMINE IN UTAH. THE HAND-CART COM- PANIES. CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION. DEATH OF J. M. GRANT. MAYOR OF GREAT SALT LAKE CITY. BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH. In 1854-5, the Mormon colonists pushed forward to the western frontier of the Territory, and settled a large portion of the country now known as Nevada. This mission was given to about seventy families, who were directed to go to Carson Valley under the supervision of Orson Hyde, President of the Apostles. Soon afterwards the Legislature of Utah organized the whole of that district un- der the name of Carson County, appointing at the same time Orson Hyde as probate judge. Hon. Enoch Reese was its representative. Governor Young, in his message to the Legislature, in the winter of 1855-6, said : " In accordance with a law passed by the Assembly in 1854-5, the Hon. Orson Hyde repaired to Carson County, accompanied by the Hon. Judge Stiles and Marshal Ileywood, and, in connection with authorized persons from California, approximately es- tablished the boundary line between this Territory and that State in the region of Carson Valley, and fuUv organized the county." The first house in Genoa was built by Col. John Reese, of Great Salt Lake City, in 1850. It was called Reese's Station. A few persons — namely, Orson Hyde, Chester Loveland, Christopher Merkley, Seth Dustin, George Hancock, Reuben Perkins, Jesse Perkins, and William Hutchings — colonized that country in 1855, but in the spring of 1856, an organized colony of about seventy families went, among were Christopher Layton, William Jennings, William Nixon, Joseph R. Walker (in the employ of Nixon), Peregrine Sessions (the founder of Sessions' settlement), Albert Dewey, farmer Cherry from Bountiful, William Kay (founder of Kaysward), George Nebeker, and a number of others who would rank as first class men in the formation of a new colony. In the winter of 1855-6, the Legislature was removed from Great Salt Lake to Fillmore, which had been designated as the capital in former sessions. There was a famine in Utah in 1856. The crops of the two previous years had failed, and in some of the settlements the winters had been very severe, and the cattle ranging in the valleys died in great numbers. The best provided families throughout the winter of 1855-6 had to ration themselves to the smallest amount of breadstuffs per day in order to subsist until the following harvest. The con- dition of the poor was appalling; and nothing but the semi-patriarchal character of the community preserved thousands from perishing. The following letter from Heber C. Kimball to his son in England, gives a graphic picture of the famine of 1856: "Great Salt Lake City, February 29, 1856. To my dear son William, and to all whom it may concern. — My family, 114 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. with yours, are all in good health and spirits. I have been under the necessity of rationing my family, and also yours, to two-thirds of a pound of bread stuff per day each; as the last week is up to day, we shall commence on half-a-pound each. This I am under the necessity of doing. Brother Brigham told me to-day that he had put his family on half-a-pound eachj for there is scarcely any grain in the country, and there are thousands that have none at all scarcely. We do this for the purpose of feeding hundreds that have none. "My family, at this time, consists of about one hundred souls, and I sup- pose that I feed about as many as one hundred besides. My mill has not brought me in, for the last seven months, over one bushel of toll per day, in consequence of the dry weather, and the water being frozen up — which would not pay my miller. When this drouth came on, I had about seven hundred bushels of wheat, and it is now reduced to about one hundred and twenty-five bushels, and I have only about twenty-five bushels of corn, which will not provide for my own family until harvest. Heber has been to the mill to-day, and has brought down some unbolted flour, and we shall be under the necessity of eating the bran along with the flour, and shall think ourselves doing well with half-a-pound a day at that. Martin Wood stated to him that he had ground thirty bushels yesterday, but last night was a very cold night, which will check the water again, as the weather has not modified a great deal. Although the sun shines pleasantly through the day, the nights are still quite cold. You must remember that I did not raise one spoonful of wheat last year, and I have not received any from any other source than the mill. Brother James planted some late corn from which we obtained about forty bushels, and rather poor at that. We have some meat and, perhaps about seventy bushels of potatoes, also a very few beets and carrots ; so you can judge whether or not we can ^et through until harvest without digging roots ; still we are altogether better ofT than the most of the people in these valleys of the mountains. There are several wards in this city who have not over two weeks' provisions on hand. "I went into the tithmg ofifice with Brother Hill, and examined it from top to bottom, and, taking all the wheat, corn, buckwheat and oats, there were not. to exceed five hundred bushels, which is all the Public Works have or expect to have, and the works are pretty much abandoned, the men having been all turned off, except about fifteen who are at work on Brother Brigham's house, and mak- ing seed drills for grain, as we shall be obliged to put in our grain by drilling, on account of the scarcity, which probably will not take over one-third of the grain it would to sow broadcast. "We shall not probably do anything on the Public Works until another har- vest. The mechanics of every class have all been counseled to abandon their pursuits and go to raising grain. This we are literally compelled to do, out of necessity. Moreover, there is not a settlement in the Territory, but is in the same fix that we are. Some settlements can go two months, some three, some can, probably, at the rate of half-a-pound per day, till harvest. Hon. A. W. Babbitt, even, went to Brother Hyde's provision store the other day, and begged to get twenty or twenty-five pounds of flour, but could not. This I was told by William Price, who is the salesman of the store. Money will not buy flour or HIS TOR Y OF SAL T LAKE CI2 K 775 meal, only at a few places, and but very little at that. I can assure you that I am harassed constantly; I sell none for money, but let it go where people are truly destitute. Dollars and cents do not count now, in these times, for they are the tightest that I have ever seen in the Territory of Utah. You and your brethren can judge a little by this. As one of the old 'prophets said, anciently, ' As with the people, so with the priest,' we all take it together." This second famine was likened to the famine of Egypt. For months some families knew not the taste of bread. Settlements usually noted for good crops were so destitute that they sent teams several hundred miles to other settlements to get bran and shorts, and even that supply was considered a great luxury. The community had also to feed the thousands of emigrants who arrived that year in a starved condition in the handcart companies. The famine was the great sub- ject of the discourses of the Tabernacle; and, much to the credit of Governor Young and other leading men of substance, it is to be observed that they urged all the community to share with each other, and faithfully set the example them- selves. So much were the people appalled with the prospect of famine at some future period, by the experience of this year, that for nearly twenty years there- after they every season stored surplus wheat to be prepared when famine should come again. It took the railroad to dissipate this terror o.f famine from the peo- ple's mind. It was also the year of the handcart emigration, in which several hundred perished in the snows and for lack of food. The story of the terrible sufferings of the poor emigrants and of the victims whose graves daily marked the journey can never be fully told, and it is too harrowing to the feelings of the people, even to-day, to render the effort desirable for the historian's pen. It is a page of history in the peopling of Utah which the people would fain have forgotten; but it is due to Brigham Young and the noble conduct of the entire community to record something of the rescue of those companies. The following passages are culled from Mr. John Chislett's very graphic chapters on the handcart emi- gration : ^ " We traveled on in misery and sorrow day after day. Sometimes we made a pretty good distance, but at other times we were only able to make a {o.'fi miles' progress. Finally we were overtaken by a snow-storm which the shrill wind blew furiously about us. The snow fell several inches deep as we traveled along, but we dared not stop, for we had a sixteen-mile journey to make, and short of it we could not get wood and water. '' As we were resting for a short time at noon a light wagon was driven into our camp from the west. Its occupants were Joseph A. Young and Stephen ■ Taylor. They informed us that a train of supplies was on the way, and we might expect to meet it in a day or two. More welcome messeiTgers never came from the courts of glory than these two young men were to us. They lost no time after encouraging us all they could to press forward, but sped on further east to convey their glad news to Edward Martin and the fifth hand-cart company who left Florence about two weeks after us, and who it was feared were even worse off than we were. As they went from our view, many a hearty ' God bless you' followed them." ii6 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CLTY. "Joseph A.," as the Prophet's eldest son is familiarly termed, was the last of the returning missionaries to leave the emigrant camp on the banks of the Platte River. Though ignorant of the apprehension that he felt for their welfare, and the presentiments he had of the inevitable suffering that awaited them, many of the emigrants clung to him with more than ordinary affection, and detained him till the warning of approaching night urged him to follow his companions. When he bade them good-by, he could scarcely say more than '' You shall see me again soon." All speed was made by him and his companions, and imme- diately on arrival in Salt Lake City he reported to his father how far the emi- grants were yet behind. Brigham comprehended their situation in a moment. Though his son had been absent two years from his home, he ordered him instantly to make ready to return to the assistance of the emigrants and gave him authority to take all the provisions, clothing, and vehicles that he could find on the way and press them forward to the rescue. Brigham Young on that occasion earned the good opinions of foes as well as friends. Mr. Chislett continues : "The storm which we encountered, our brethren from the Valley also met and, not knowing that we were so utterly destitute, they encamped to await fine weather. But when Captain Willie found them and explained our real con- dition, they at once hitched up their teams and made all speed to come to our rescue. On the evening of the third day after Captain Willie's departure, just as the sun was sinking beautifully behind the distant hills, on an eminence immediately west of our camp several covered wagons, each'drawn by four horses, were seen coming towards us. The news ran through the camp like wild-fire, and all who were able to leave their beds turned out en masse to see them. A few minutes brought them sufficiently near to reveal our faithful captain slightly in advance of the train. Shouts of joy rent the air ; strong men wept till tears ran freely down their furrowed and sun-burnt cheeks, and little children partook of the joy which some of them hardly understood, and fairly danced around with gladness. Restraint was set aside in the general rejoicing, and as the brethren en- tered our camp the sisters fell upon them and deluged them with kisses. The brethren were so overcome that they could not for some time utter a word, but in choking silence repressed all demonstration of those emotions that evidently mas- tered them. Soon, however, feeling was somewhat abated, and such a shaking of hands, such words of welcome, and such invocation of God's blessing have seldom been witnessed. " I was installed as regular commissary to the camp. The brethren turned over to me flour, potatoes, onions, and a limited supply of warm clothing for both sexes, besides quilts, blankets, buffalo robes, woollen socks, etc. I first dis- tributed the necessary provisions, and after supper divided the clothing, bedding, etc., where it was most needed. That evening, for the first time in quite a period, the songs of Zion were to be heard in the camp, and peals of laughter issued from the little knots of people as they chatted around the fires. The change seemed almost miraculous, so sudden was it from grave to gay, from sorrow to gladness, from mourning to rejoicing. With the cravings of hunger satisfied, and with ■ HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. iij hearts filled with gratitude to God and our good brethren, we all united in prayer, and then retired to rest. ''Among the brethren who came to our succor were Elders W. H. Kimball and G. D. Grant. They had remained but a few days in the Valley before start- ing back to meet us. May God ever bless them for their generous, unselfish kindness and their manly fortitude ! They felt that they had, in a great measure, contributed to our sad position ; but how nobly, how faithfully, how bravely they worked to bring us safely to the Valley — to the Zion of our hopes ! "After getting over the Pass we soon experienced the influence of a warmer climate, and for a few days we made good progress. We constantly met teams from the Valley, with all necessary provisions. Most of these went on to Martin's company, but enough remained with us for our actual wants. At Fort Bridger we found a great many teams that had come to our help. The noble fel- lows who came to our assistance invariably received us joyfully, and did all in their power to alleviate our sufferings. May they never need similar relief ! "After arriving in the Valley, I found that President Young, on learning from the brethren who passed us on the road of the lateness of our leaving the frontier, set to work at once to send us relief. It was the October Conference when they arrived with the news. Brigham at once suspended all conference business, and declared that nothing further should be done until every available team was started out to meet us. He set the example by sending several of his best mule teams, laden with provisions. Heber Kimball did the same, and hundreds of others followed their noble example. People who had come from distant parts of the Territory to attend conference, volunteered to go out to meet us, and went at once. The people who had no teams gave freely of provisions, bedding, etc. — all doing their best to help us. " We arrived in Salt Lake City on the 9th of November, but Martin's com- pany did not arrive until about the ist of December. They numbered near six hundred on starting, and lost over one-fourth of their fiumber by death. The storm which overtook us while making the sixteen-mile drive on Sweetwater, reached them at North Platte. There they settled down to await help or die, being unable to go any farther. Their camp-ground became indeed a veritable grave-yard before they left it, and their dead lie even now scattered along from that point to Salt Lake. They we.re longer without food than we were, and being more exposed to the severe weather, their morcality was, of course, greater in proportion. " Our tale is their tale partly told ; tfee same causes operated in both cases, and the same effects followed. " Immediately that the condition of the suffering emigrants was known in 8alt Lake City, the most fervent prayers for their deliverance were offered up. There, and throughout the Territory, the same was done as soon as the news reached the people. Prayers in the Tabernacle, in the school-house, in the family circle, and in the private prayer circles of the priesthood, were constantly offered up to the Almighty, begging Him to avert the storm from us. Such intercessions were invariably made on behalf of Martin's company, at all the meetings which I attended after my arrival. " But it was the stout hearts and strong hands of the noble fellows who came ii8 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. tJ our relief, the good teams, the flour, beef, potatoes, the warm clothing and bedding, and 7iot prayers nor prophecies, that saved us from death." In March, 1856, a constitutional convention was held at Great Salt Lake City, and a constitution drafted, the preamble of which stated that the last cen- sus showed a sufficient population to justity the people to petition Congress for a State government. The State was named Deseret. At the close of the year 1856, Great Salt Lake City met a sad bereavement in the death of its first mayor, to whose distinguished memory is dedicated the following brief biographical sketch : Jedediah Morgan Grant , first mayor of Great Salt Lake City, was the son of Joshua and Thalia Grant, and was born in Windsor, Broome County, New York, February 21, 181 6. We have been unable to procure definite intelligence of his childhood and education, but the foundation for mental pursuits and the love of books and study was evidently laid at that early period of life, before he appeared as a candidate for baptism in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He was baptized by Elder John F. Boynton, afterwards one of the Apostles, on the 2rst of March, 1S33. In the spring of the following year, when he was eighteen years of age, he accompanied "Zion's Camp" in the wonderful march to Missouri, '•' and in the fatigues, privations, trying scenes and arduous labors en- dured by that handful of valiant men, exhibited a goodly portion, for one so young, of that integrity, zeal, and unwavering effort and constancy in behalf of the cause of truth, that invariably characterized his life." The experience the young men of this expedition obtained, on this memorable journey, was such as few ever passed through in life. He was among the first who left Nauvoo in the exodus of 1846, crossing the river in February, and with the body of the Saints turning his back upon the tyrannical oppression of mobs and treacherous friends to seek an asylum of peace in the fastnesses of the mountains of the great West. He went east from Winter Quarters in the winter of 1846-/, on a short mis- sion, during which he purchased the materials for making a flag, which tor several years floated over " the land of the free and the homes of the blest " in this city, and was familiarly known as "the mammoth flag." After transacting important business in the interests of the exodus, he returned in June, 1847, to the Missouri River, and was appointed Captain of the Third Hundred of the emigrating Saints, which he successfully led to the Salt Lake Valley, arriving in the follow- ing October. A year after, with characteristic energy and promptness, he went out beyond Fort Bridger with several men and teams to relieve President Willard Richards and accompany and assist them in. May 26, 1849, he was elected Brigadier General of^ the first brigade of the Nauvoo Legion, and October 23d, 1852, was promoted to the Major Generalship of the First Division, which military office he held unto his death. He was an efficient officer, valiant, energetic and just. In the difficulties with the Indians he manifested considerable skill, and always was regarded as eminently jealous of the rights of the red men as well as of the safety of the whites. In the fall of 1849, Elder Grant went to the States on business, together with about forty missionaries, who elected him captain of the company. Among the HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. ng number were President John Taylor, Apostles Erastus Snow, Lorenzo Snow, F. D. Richards, Bishop Hunter, Colonel Reese, Curtis E. Bolton, and several other prominent elders. Great Salt Lake City was incorporated on the 19th of January, 1851, and at the first election held under the charter, on the first Monday of the next April, Jedediah M, Grant was elected mayor, which office he magnified in an eminent degree and held uninterruptedly, by the unanimous vote of the people, until his death. During the period of his administration, the first ordinances for the government, safety and general welfare of the people were enacted^ forming the basis of the municipal regulations under which the city has grown and pros- pered to the present time. The following introduction to his famous series of letters, published in the New York Herald, yx^ow the "runaway judges," will fitly represent Mayor Grant's bold, independent style, and thoroughly honest character: 11 1 Sir: I will thank you to print, as soon as you can, the substance of this letter. Considered only as news, it ought to be worth your while. There is great curiosity everywhere to hear about the Mormons, and eagerness to know all the evil that can be spoken of them. Announce you that I am a Mormon Elder, just arrived from Utah — mayor, in fact, of Salt Lake City, where my wife and family are still living — a preacher, brigadier of horse, and president of the quorum of Seventies, and the like; and not one subscriber that waded overshoe- tops through the slime of details you gave of the play-actor's divorce trial lately, will not be greedy to read all I have to say about the filthier accusations that have been brought against me and my friends and brethren. This is what I have to count upon, thank falsehood. And if you publish my letter entire, 1 will ask for no editorial help from you. I am no writer; but, with the help of the Power of Light, I am not afraid of what you can say against us. So long as I walk by the rule of my Master, you walk by the rude working of your fancies. "I must say I have had my doubts about writing out upon these mat- ters ; my doing so not being approved by our Delegate in Congress, Dr. Bern- hisel. The Doctor is one of our gentlemen at home, a real gentleman, and would not say a rough word or do a rough thing to hurt the feelings or knock off the spectacles of any man for the world. But I am no gentleman, in his sense at least, and have had slights enough put upon me, personally, since I came east- ward, to entitle me to any amount of stand-up self-defence. Dr. Bernhisel's official course in this matter, I suppose I am bound to accept ; for I have under- stood that he had the advice of experienced men, who said to him : 'Take up the report of the three officers criminating your constituents, when it comes from the State Department into the House ; ask for a special committee with power to send for persons and papers, and put the false witnesses on oath; but don't stoop to wrangle upon your religion, morals and political opinions with Mr. Webster or the Congressmen at large, whom the country considers to have enough to do to take care of their own.' "This is all very well, and very high and mighty and dignified, certainly; but while the grass grows, the cow starves ; while Congress is taking its months to J 20 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CIJ^. do the work of a day, the verdict of the public goes against us, as the law-word is, by default, and we stand substantially convicted of anything and everything that any and every kind of blackguard can make up a lie about. And now I hear that the. charges are not to be pushed ; two of the officers want to come back to us as friends — they are to be virtually abandoned after doing us all the harm they can. What Mr. Webster thinks, we care a little; what is the opinion of most members of Congress, you can hardly believe, in your part of the world, how very little, but Public Opinion, that power we respect as well as recognize; and, therefore, I am now determined, on my own responsibility, to write myself, and blurt out all the truth I can. I may not be discreet, but I will be honest." J. M. Grant was chosen Speaker of the House of Representatives in the Leg- islative Assembly of the Territory in 1852, and at three subsequent sessions, filling that office with dignity and honor, to the fullest satisfaction of the mem- bers over whom he presided. As a legislator he was quick and^ talented, and brought to the law-making department a high practical sense of justice and right, which qualified him to propose and render valuable aid in framing wholesome laws for the political and domestic welfare of the community. On December ist, 1856, Mayor Grant breathed his last, and his spirit went joyfully to mingle with those of his friends, family and brethren that had gone before. He was forty years of age when he died, but had spent those years to such advantage in laboring for the welfare of his fellow-men that he was mourned bv thousands, and left in their memories a name that will be forever cherished as a symbol of virtue, integrity and honor. The editor of the Deseret News in closing his obituary, says: " Brother Grant needs no eulogy, and least of all such an one as our language could portray, for his whole life was one of noble and diligent action upon the side of truth, of high-toned and correct example to all who desire to be saved in the Kingdom of our God. As a citizen, as a friend, a son, a husband, a father, and above all as a Saint, and in every station and circumstance of life, whether military, civil, or religious, he everywhere, and at all times, shed forth the steady and brilliant light of lofty and correct example, and died as he lived and coun- seled, with his 'armor on and burnished.' Though all Saints deeply feel his departure, yet they can fully realize that it redounds to his and our ' infinite gain.'" 11 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 72/ CHAPTER XV. EXPOSITION OF THE CAUSES AND CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE UTAH WAR. GEN- ERAL SCOTTS CIRCULAR AND INSTRUCTIONS TO THE ARMY. MAGRAW'S LETTER TO THE PRESIDENT. DRUMMOND'S CHARGES. THE REPUBLI- CAN PARTY ASSOCIATES UTAH WITH THE SOUTH. THE " IRREPRESSIBLE CONFLICT." FREMONT AND DOUGLAS. The subject of the Utah Expedition occupies nearly the entire history of Salt Lake City, and of Utah in general, from the year 1857 to 1861, when Camp Floyd was evacuated. On the part of the U. S. Government the extraordinary record commenced with the issuing of the following CIRCULAR. To the Adjutant General, Quartermaster General, Commissary General, Surgeon General, Paymaster General, and Chief of Ordnance. Headquarters of the Army, May 28, i8s7- Orders having been dispatched in haste for the assemblage of a body of troops at Fort Leavenworth, to march thence to Utah as soon as assembled, the general-in-chief, in concert with the War Department, issues the following in- structions, to be executed by the chiefs of the respective staff departments, in connection with his general orders of this date : 1. The force — 2d dragoons, 5th infantry, loth infantry and Phelps' battery of the 4th artillery — to be provided with transportation and supplies, will be esti- mated at not less than 2,500 men. 2. The Adjutant General will, in concert with the chiefs of the respective departments, issue the necessary orders for assigning to this force a full comple- ment of disbursing and medical officers, an officer of ordnance and an Assistant Adjutant General, if the latter be required. He will relieve Captains Phelps' 4th artillery and Hawes' 2d dragoons from special duty, and order them to join their companies. He will also give the necessary orders for the movement of any available officers, whose services may be desired by the Quartermaster General or Commissary General in making purchases. Lieutenant Col. Taylor and Brevet Major Waggaman will be ordered to exchange stations. All available recruits are to be assigned to the above named regiments up to the time of departure. 3. About 2,000 head of beef cattle must be procured and driven to Utah. Six months' supply of bacon (for two days in a week) must be sent — des- 122 HIS TOR Y OF SALT LA KB CITl . iccated vegetables in sufficient quantity to guard the health of the troops for the coming winter. 4. Arrangements will be made for the concentration and temporary halt of the 5th infantry at Jefferson Barracks. The squadron of dragoons at Fort Randall taking their horse equipments with them will leave their horses at that post, and a remount must be provided for them at Fort Leavenworth. Also, horses must be sent out to the squadron at Fort Kearney, and the whole regiment, as also Phelps' battery, brought to the highest point of efficiency. Besides the necessary trains and supplies, the quartermaster's department will procure for the expedition 250 tents of Sibley's pattern, to provide for the case that the troops shall not be able to hut themselves the ensuing winter. Storage tents are needed for the like reason. Stoves enough to provide, at least, for the sick, must accompany the tents. 5. The Surgeon General willcause the necessary medical supplies to be pro- vided, and requisition made for the means of transporting them with the ex- pedition. 6. The chief of ordnance will take measures immediately to put in position for the use of this force, three travelling forges and a full supply of ammunition, and will make requisition for the necessary transportation of the same. WINFIELD SCOTT. The command of the Expedition was at first given to Brigadier General W. S. Harney, but was afterwards transfered to Col. Albert Sidney Johnston. It is due to the Government to accompany this circular with the letter of instructions to General Harney, explanatory of its views and designs concerning Utah and her people : Headquarters of the Army, New York, June 29, 1857. Sir: The letter which I addressed to you in the name of the general-in- chiet, on the 28th ultimo, his circular to the chiefs of staff departments same date ; his general order No. 8, current series, and another now in press, have indicated your assignment to the command of an expedition to Utah Territory, and the preparatory measures to be taken. The general-in-chief desires me to add in his name the following instruc- tions, prepared in concert with the War Department, and sanctioned by its au- thority, whenever required. The community and, in part, the civil government of Utah Territory are in a state of substantial rebellion against the laws and authority of the United States A new civil governor is about to be designated, and to be charged with the estab- lishment and maintenance of law and order. Your able and energetic aid, with that of the troops to be placed under your command, is relied upon to insure the success of his mission. The principles by which you should be guided have been already indicated in a somewhat similar case, and are here substantially repeated. If the governor of the Territory, finding the ordinary course of judicial pro- HISl OR V OF SAL T LAKE CITY, 123 ceedings of the power vested in the United States' Marshals and other proper officers inadequate for the preservation of the public peace and the due execution of the laws, should make requisition upon you for a military force to aid him as posse comilatus in the performance of that official duty, you are hereby directed to employ for that purpose the whole or such part of your command as may be required; or should the governor, the judges, or marshals of the Territory find it necessary directly to summon a part of your troops, to aid either in the per- formance of his duties, you will take care that the summons be promptly obeyed. And in no case will you, your officers or men, attack any body of citizens what- ever, except on such requisition or summons, or in sheer self-defence. In executing this delicate function of the military power of the United States the civil responsibility will be upon the governor, the judges and mar- shals of the Territory. While you are not to be, and cannot be subjected to the orders, strictly speaking, of the governor, you will be responsible for a jeal- ous; harmonious and thorough co-operation with him, or frequent and full con- sultation^ and will conform your action to his requests and views in all cases where your military judgment and prudence do not forbid, nor compel you to modify, in execution, the movements he may suggest. No doubt is entertained that your conduct will fully meet the moral and professional responsibilities of your trust; and justify the high confidence already repdsed in you by the govern- ment. The lateness of the season, the dispersed condition of the troops and the smallness of the numbers available, have seemed to present elements of difficulty, if not hazard in this expedition. But it is believed that these may be compen- sated by unusual care in its outfit, and great prudence in its conduct. All dis- posable recruits have been reserved for it. So well is the nature of this service appreciated, and so deeply are the honor and the interest of the United States involved in its success, that I am authorized to say that the government will hesitate at no expense requisite to complete the efficiency of your little army, and to insure health and comfort to it, as far as at- tainable. Hence, in addition to liberal orders for its supply heretofore given — and it is known that ample measures, with every confidence of success, have been dictated by chiefs of staff departments here — a large discretion will be made over to you in the general orders for the movement. The employment of spies, guides, interpretors or laborers may be made to any reasonable extent you may think desirable The prudence expected of you requires that you should anticipate resistance, general, organized and formidable, at the threshold, and shape your movements as if they were certain, keeping the troops well massed and in hand when ap- proaching expected resistance. Your army will be equipped, for a time, at least, as a self sustaining machine. Detachments will, therefore, not be lightly hazarded, and you are warned not to be betrayed into premature security or over confidence. A small but sufficient force must however, move separately from the main column, gmrding the beef cattle and such other supplies as you may think would too much encumber the march of the main body. The cattle may require 124 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. to be marched more slowly than the troops, so as to arrive in Salt Lake Valley in good condition, or they may not survive the inclemency and scanty sustenance of the winter. This detachment, though afterwards to become the rear guard, may, it is hoped, be put in route before the main body, to gain as much time as possi- ble before the latter passes it. The general-in-chief suggests that feeble animals, of draught and cavalry, should be left ten or twelve days behind the main column, at Fort Laramie, to recruit and follow. It should be a primary object on arriving in the valley, if the condition of things permit, to procure not only fuel, but materials for hutting the troops. Should it be too late for the latter purpose, or should such employment of the troops be unsafe or impracticable, the tents (of Sibley's pattern) furnished will, it is hoped, afford a sufficient shelter. It is not doubted that a surplus of provisions and forage, beyond the wants of the resident population, will be found in the valley of Utah; and that the inhabitants, if assured by energy and justice, will be ready to sell them to the troops. Hence no instructions are given you for the extreme event of the troops being in absolute need of such supplies and their being withheld by the inhabi- tants. The necessities of such an occasion would furnish the law for your guidance. • Besides the stated reports required by regulations, special reports will be ex- pected from you, at the headquarters of the army, as opportunity may offer. The general-in-chief desires to express his best wishes, official and personal, for your complete success and added reputation. " I have the honor to be, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, GEORGE W. LAY, Lieutenant Colonel Aid- de- Camp. Brevet Brigadier General W. S. Harney, Commanding dr'c., Fort Leavenworth, K. T. P. S. — The general-in-chief (in my letter of the 26th instant) has already conveyed to you a suggestion — not an order, nor even a recommendation — that it might be well to send forward in advance a part of your horse to Fort Laramie, there to halt and be recruited in strength, by rest and grain, before the main body comes up. Respectfully, G. W. L., Lt. Col.-, Aid-de-Camp. Though the foregoing document shows no desire on the part of the Govern- ment to destroy those colonies of Mormons which were fast spreading over this western country, yet upon its face it bears remarkable evidence that the Bu- chanan expedition was projected without a sufficient knowledge of the real con- dition of Utah at that precise period, or of the feelings of her people towards the parent Government, whether loyal or disloyal. Take for instance the passage of instructions from the general-in-chief relative to supplies: "It is not doubted that a surplus of provisions and forage, beyond the wants of the resident popu- lation will be found in the Valley of Utah," etc. HISTOR V OF SAL T LAKE CLT V. 12^ The great military capacity and experience of General Scott, to say noth- ing of- his humane character, would be sufficient evidence in the history that, when these instructions were given, he knew absolutely nothing of the real con- dition of the people of Utah during the year preceding; for that was the very year of the great famine in Utah, described in the foregoing chapter, which was likened to the famine in Egypt. There were thousands of people in Utah who had been hungry an entire year when those instructions were penned, and multi- tudes of little children in her valleys who had so often cried themselves to sleep, and forgotten the gnawings of hunger, till, sleeping or waking, hunger became as second nature to them; nor were there sufficient supplies in all the valleys of Utah to satisfy that hunger till the harvest of 1857, three months later than the date of General Scott's circular. Yet that general was about to quarter an army in or near Salt Lake City, with the full assurance that there were, at the time of the issuance of his orders, abundant supplies in the "Valley of Utah" " be- yond the wants of the resident population " to feed his army. In view of this famine how suggestive of the ignorance of the Government concerning the con- dition of Utah, and the loyalty or disloyalty of her people, is the addendum of the commander-in-chief to General Harney: " Hence no instructions are given you for the extreme event of the troops being in absolute need of such supplies and their being withheld by the inhabitants. The necessities of such an occa- sion would furnish the law for your guidance." Had an army been ordered to Utah before the harvest of 1857, for the very purpose to literally devour the country and destroy the Mormon community root and branch by famine, rather than by the sword, the order, though inhuman, would not have been so incon- sistant as General Scott's instructions with his undoubted humane intentions. The only justification indeed of the Buchanan administration for sending the expedition, which all America soon confessed was the most humiliating blun- der to be found in the whole history of the nation, was just in the fact that the Government knew scarcely anything of Utah affairs; and the simple explanation of this ignorance is that for six months preceding the inception of the expedi. tion there had been no postal communication between Utah and the Eastern States. The mails had failed ; Utah had been shut out from the rest of the world by an early and extraordinaryly severe winter; the handcart companies of Mormon emigrants came nearly perishing on the plains, buried in the snows ■ the entire Territory had risen to the rescue ; the leaders had been absorbed in saving the community from perishing in the valleys in consequence of the famine, and their companies on the plains from a disaster which, but for the res- cue, would have been as frightful to those emigrants as the retreat of Napoleon's army from Moscow, and withal the devoted people, whose homes were even then threatened with invasion, and their social and religions organization with utter dissolution were oblivious of the war cloud gathering over their heads. Mean- time, a few Government officials, principal among whom were Judge Drummond and the very mail contractor who had failed to carry the mails, had betrayed the Government into the commission of a series of blunders, which soon provoked a general public condemnation and the investigation of Congress. The New York Herald, at the time, stated : 126 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. "Some of our cotemporaries have been publishing long letters dated from Utahj and containing heart-rending accounts of the sufferings inflicted on poor helpless women, by the brutality of the Mormon leaders. It is perhaps as well that the public should know that these letters are made up on this side of the Mississippi, and we have no doubt do more credit to the imagination than to the memory of their writers. No journal has a correspondent in Utah at the present time. It reflects some credit on the ingenuity of our cotemporaries to have be- thought themselves of getting up an excitement about Utah just as Kansas died out. *' Of the facts of the case in Utah, it is very difficult to form a reliable judg- ment, simply because our most reliable authorities, such as Judge Drummond, now in Washington, are tainted with a suspicion of interested motives. * * "There is no authority in the Constitution to justify an interference by Congress or the Federal Government with such an institution as polygamy in a Territory. It is as clearly without the pale of Congressional or executive regu- lation as slavery; if Congress may not pass a law to govern the one, it may not pass a law to govern the other; if the President cannot interfere to drive slavery out of Kansas; neither can he assume to drive polygamy out of Utah. Marriage, a civil contract, is essentially subject to the control of local, municipal, or civil laws; the Federal Government has nothing to do with it, and Congress can make no laws defining its nature, altering its effect, or prescribing penalties for breaches of its obligations committed by people residing within a Territory of the United States. "Those, therefore, who assumed that Mr. Buchanan was going to carry fire and sword among the Mormons because they were polygamists, and to put down polygamy by force of arms, gave the President very little credit for judgment or knowledge of the instrument under which he holds his powers." The passage of the general-in-chief's instructions relative to "a surplus of provisions and forage," in a land of famine, is not more remarkable in the history than the information given to General Harney, as the reason and justification for the invading expedition which he was to command : "The community and, in part, the civil government of Utah Territory are in a state of substantial rebellion against the laws and authority of the United States. A new civil governor is about to be designated, and to be charged with the establishment and mainten- ance of law and order. Your able and energetic aid, with that of the troops to be placed under your command, is relied to issue the success of his mission." Read a century hence, issolated from the well connected history of Utah, whose every fact and circumstance now can be verified, the circular and letter of instructions, representing the views of the Administration, would be received as an established record that the people of Utah had made public demonstrations of rebellion ; that Brigham Young was in actual usurpation, and that defiant word had been sent by the citizens that they would not receive any Governor other than of their own choice ; nor would even this view be sufficient coupled with the following passage indicating that Utah was in actual attitude of war at that moment against the United States : "The prudence expected of you requires that you should anticipate resistance, general, organized and formidable, at the HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 127 threshold, and shape your movements as if they were certain, keeping the troops well massed and in hand when approaching expected resistance. * * * You are warned not to be betrayed into premature security or over confidence." Nothing, however, up to this date, had occurred to warrant the conclusion that the people of Utah were "in a state of substantial rebellion." No mass meetings had been held during 1856 to utter any protest, not even of the mildest form permitted by the Constitution, much less had they made any public demon- stration that could reasonably be construed either into an act or intent of rebellion against the United States government. But in the reverse of this, as noted in the preceding chapter, a constitutional convention was held that very year ; a republican constitution adopted, with the declaration of rights already exhibited, and delegates were sent to Congress to ask for the admission of Utah into the Union.. For historical suggestiveness, lay by the side of the documents proceed- ing from General Scott the following extract from the Deseret News : "The delegates of the convention, from the various counties, except Green River, met in the Council House on the 17th inst. (March). The event was an- nounced by the firing of cannon and music from Captain Ballo's band. Throughout the day flags floated from the cupolas of the Governor's mansion and Council House, also from the tall flag poles on the Temple Block and in front of the Deseret, and Livingston, Kinkead & Co.'s stores, from flag staff's on the roof of Gilbert & Gerrish's store, and from those on the roofs of many other public buildings. " At an early hour a large concourse of citizens had assembled, anxiously awaiting the commencement of those deliberations and acts, which have for their object the addition of another star to the brilliant and thickly spangled constel- lation styled, B Pluribus Unum. "The convention organized by unanimously electing the Hon. J. M. Grant, president; Mr. T. Bullock, secretary; Mr. J. Grimshaw, assistant secretary; Mr. R. T. Burton, sergeant-at-arms; Mr. W. C.Staines, messenger; Mr. T- Hall, doorkeeper ; and Messrs. G. D. Watt and J. V. Long, reporters. At 12:30, adjourned until 2 p.m. * * ^ * "In the afternoon the freedom of the convention was unanimously tendered to His Excellency the Governor, the United States officers of the Territory, President H. C Kimball, the members of the Legislative Assembly, Hons. E. Snow, A. Lyman and E. Hunter, Hon. Elias Smith, Probate Judge of G. S. L. County, and the Aldermen of G. S. L. City. "After a remarkably short, efficient, and harmonious session, the conven- tion dissolved on Thursday, March 27. " Hon. George A. Smith, and Hon. John Taylor, editor of the Mormon, were unanimously elected delegates to proceed to Washington, and lay before Congress Utah's request for admission into the Union. "The Constitution of the State of Deseret was signed by every member of the convention, though they were from various climes and of diverse creeds, government officials, merchants, etc., etc., thus indicating, beyond controversy, the represented feelings of all classes of our Territorial population. If our memory correctly serves us, so general and fair a representation of the views and 128 HIS TOR y OF SALT LA KE C/Tl . feelings of the various districts of Territory, and so frank and hearty a blending of party interests, have never been excelled, if even equalled, in the initiatory action required for the admission of a nev^^ state. * * * " Is Utah loyal? Aye, most loyal, beyond successful challenge or contra- diction, as is and always had been proved by all her sayings and doings. But does she love corruption and oppression? Verily no, for her sons and daughters, with few exceptions, have been reared m the cradle of liberty, in common with the citizens of the States, and the pure mountain breezes keep that love fanned to a bright and unquenchable flame. And the few exceptions just named, those who were not born citizens of our Republic, are congenial descendents of that stock from which sprang our ''Revolutionary Sires." They have left their fatherlands, as did our forefathers, to escape the oppressor's rod and find a loved asylum "in the home of the free." Then can Congress refuse to extend the broad folds of equal rights and constitutional liberty over that portion of the public domain, whose inhabitants will stand by the Union while a vestige thereof exists and blood flows in their veins? It is not to be presumed that any Congress could wish so to do, but if it might, by any possibility, be imagined that an op- posite feeling could be indulged, who would like to face the mingled whirlwind of scorn and indignation that would then arise in the breast of every lover of truth and justice throughout the world ? "Utah is isolated, is full of rugged mountains, desert plains, and barren valleys, and peculiarly uncomely in the eyes of lovers of rich, well timbered soil, broad rivers, extended seaboards, and commercial marts. Let her present popu- lation leave her borders, and the few oases, now gladdened with the busy hum of civilized life, would soon revert to the occupancy of the rude savage, and crumb- ling desolation would mark the site of stately edifices. "Utah, with but little aid from the parent, has grown rapidly amid all her disadvantages, and, amid the jealousy and hostility of numerous Indian tribes, to high position in wealth and numbers. And are not the intelligence and energy which have so rapidly produced such laudable results, where none others would thrust in their sickles, sufficient guarantee that Utah is most emphatically deserv- ing of a state organization? "She has wealth, a numerous, intelligent, and highly patriotic population, is accustomed to make her own public buildings, roads, and bridges, has success- fully conducted the Indian wars waged within her boimdaries, has nearly ex- pelled litigation through a wise system of legislation and policy, furnishes few abominable and illegal acts to swell the record of earth's corruptions, not even enough to make her news spicy and interesting to the corrupt taste of a perverse generation; then is there any good, fair, valid reason why Utah should not be speedily admitted into the Union as a free, sovereign, and independent State named Deseret? Not one. Hence it is but fair to infer that Senators and Rep. resentatives in Congress will grant the prayer of Utah for admission as unani- mously as she presents it, independent of sectional prejudices, strife and debate of every name and description, for only two questions are to be asked, viz: is her constitution republican? Is she willing and able to maintain a state govern- HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. I2Q ment ? Every one knows that those questions, and every legitimate question that can be asked, admit of only afifirmative answers." The people of Utah waited hopefully for the favorable action of Congress until December, when Governor Young, in his annual message to the Legislature, thus reported upon the matter : "In accordance with Acts of the Legislative Assembly, a Constitution was formed and adopted, the census taken, and delegates chosen to present our ap- plication to Congress for admission into the Union as a sovereign and indepen- dent State. Recent advices from our delegates show that our application has not been presented, owing to the intolerance evinced by the predominant party in the House of Representatives. " The enumeration of the inhabitants showed a population of near 77,000 in this Territory, and it is presumed that the addition to our numbers, since that was taken, would amount to about twenty thousand. This gives an aggregate equal to or exceeding the ratio of representation for Congressmen, removing every objection, if any were made, to our admission, on the score of insufficient population." Simply a bare notice is here seen of opposition in Congress to the admission of Utah ; but no indignant protest, much less anything to indicate a condition of rebellion ; yet a ievf months later the United States ordered a military expedition to Utah to put down rebellion, restore its rule which had not been broken, while the President appointed a new Governor for the Territory, Hon. Alfred Cum- ming, of Georgia who when he did come was recieved by them with a loyal good will. The Buchanan administration, however, had not acted without some infor- mation and prompting, which were considered by it sufficient at the time, but very insufficient soon afterwards; and it is with that information and prompting, or rather conspiracy, that this historital exposition has now to deal. When in less than a year from the issuing of General Scott's circular, the House of Representatives passed a resolution requesting President Buchanan " to communicate to the House of Representatives the information which gave rise to the military expedition ordered to Utah" Lewis Cass, Secretary of State, re- ported that "the only document on record or on file in this department, touching the subject of the resolution, is the letter of Mr. W. F. Magraw to the President, of the 3rd of October last, a copy of which is hereto annexed : " MR. MAGRAW TO THE PRESIDENT. Independence, Missouri, October 3d, 1856. "Mr. President: I feel it incumbent upon me as a personal and political friend, to lay before you some information relative to the present political and social condition of the Territory of Utah, which may be of importance. "There is no disguising the fact, that there is left no vestage of law and order, no protection for life or property; the civil laws of the Territory are over- shadowed and neutralized by a so-styled ecclesiastical organization, as despotic, dangerous and damnable, as has ever been known to exist in any country, and I JO HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CLTY. which is ruining not only those who do not subscribe to their religious code, but is driving the moderate and more orderly of the Mormon community to despera- tion. Formerly, violence committed upon the rights of persons and property were attempted to be justified by some pretext manufactured lor the occasion, under color of law as it exists in that country. The victims were usually of that class whose obscurity and want of information necessary to insure proper investi- gation and redress of their wrongs were sufficient to guarantee to the perpetrators freedom from punishment. Emboldened by the success which attended their first attempts at lawlessness, no pretext or apology seems now to be deemed re- quisite, nor is any class exempt from outrage; all alike are set upon by the self- constituted theocracy, whose laws, or rather whose conspiracies, are framed in dark corners, promulgated from the stand of tabernacle or church, and executed at midnight, or upon the highways, by an organized band of bravos and assassins, whose masters compel an outraged community to tolerate in their midst. The result is that a considerable and highly respectable portion of the community, known from the Atlantic to the Pacific, whose enterprise is stimulated by a laud- able desire to improve their fortunes by honorable exertions, are left helpless vic- tims to outrage and oppression, liable at any moment to be stripped of their property or deprived of life, without the ability to put themselves under the pro- tection of law, since all the courts that exist there at present are converted into engines and instruments of injustice. "For want of time I am compelled thus to generalize, but particular case?, with all the attendant circumstances, names of parties and localities are not wanting to swell the calendar of crime and outrage to limits that will, when pub- lished, startle the conservative people of the States, and create a clamor which will not be readily quelled; and I have no doubt that the time is near at hand, and the elements rapidly combining to bring about a state of affairs which will result in indiscriminate bloodshed, robbery and rapine, and which in a brief space of time will reduce that country to the condition of a howling wilderness. " There are' hundreds of good men in the country^ who have for years en- dured every privation from the comforts and enjoyments of civilized life, to confront every description of danger for the purpose of improving their fortunes. These men have sufifered repeated wrong and injustice, which they have en- deavored to repair by renewed exertions, patiently awaiting the correction of outrage by that government which it is their pride to claim citizenship under, and whose protection they have a right to expect; but they now see themselves liable, at any moment, to be stripped of their hard earned means, the lives of themselves and their colleagues threatened and taken ; ignominy and abuse, heaped upon them day after day, if resented, is followed by murder. "Many of the inhabitants of the Territory possess passions and elements of character calculated to drive them to extremes, and have the ability to conceive and have the courage to carry out the boldest measures for redress, and I know that they will be at no loss for a leader. When such as these are driven by their wrongs to vindicate, not only their rights as citizens, but their pride of man- hood, the question of disparity in numerical force is not considered among their difficulties, and I am satisfied that a recital of their grievances would form an HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CI'IY. iji apology, if not sufficient justification, for the violation on their part of the usages of civilized communities. "In addressing you, I have endeavored to discard all feelings arising from my personal annoyances in the Mormon country, but have desired to lay before you the actual condition of affairt", and to prevent, if possible, scenes of lawless- ness which, I fear, will be inevitable unless speedy and powerful preventives are applied. I have felt free to thus address you, from the fact that some slight re- quests made of me when I last left Washington, on the subject of the affairs of Kansas, justified me in believing that you had confidence in my integrity, and that what influence I could exert would not be wanting to terminate the unfortu- nate difficulties in that Territory; I have the pleasure of assuring you that my efforts were not spared. "With regard to the affairs and proceedings of the probate court, the only existing tribunal in the Territory of Utah, there being but one of the three federal judges now in the Territory, I will refer you to its records, and to the evidence of gentlemen whose assertions cannot be questioned ; as to the treat- ment of myself, I will leave that to the representation of others ; at all events, the object! have in view, the end I wish to accomplish for the general good, will preclude my wearying you with a recital of them at present. "I have the honor to be very truly yours, etc. W. M. F. MAGRAW." John B. Floyd, Secretary of War, was only able to furnish to the House the correspondence of the expedition itself, commencing with the foregoing circular, and including the proclamation of Governor Young and the correspondence be- tween him and Col. Alexander; the Department of the Interior furnished several letters from David H. Burr, Surveyor General of Utah , the office of Indian affairs made up a budget from the Indian Agents of the Territory, and the Attorney General's office supplied the following: " Attorney General's Office, February 24, 1858. "Sir: In reply to so much of the resolution of the House of Representa- tives, of the 27th ult., referred by you to this offce, calling for 'information which gave rise to the military expeditions to Utah Territory,' etc., I have the honor to transmit herewith : "i. The letter of resignation of W. W. Drummond, Associate Justice of Supreme Court of Utah Territory. "2. The letter of Curtis Bolton, deputy clerk of the Supreme Court of Utah Territory, in reply to allegations contained in W. W. Drummond's letter of resignation; the above being all the correspondence on the files of this office re- lating to the subject. "I am, very respectfully, J. S. BLACK. The President.'" "New Orleans, La, April 2, 1857. "Dear Sir: When I started for my home in Illinois, I designed reaching 132 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. Washington before the executive session adjourned, but could not accomplish the long and tedious journey in time; thence I concluded to come this way, and go up the Mississippi river to Chicago. ''You will see that I have made bold charges against the Mormons, which I think I can prove without doubt. You will see by the contents of the enclosed paper, wherein is inserted my resignation, some of the reasons that induced me to resign. I now refer you to Hon. D. W. Burr, surveyor general ot Utah Ter- ritory, Hon. Garland Hurt, Indian agent; also C. L. Craig, Esq., D. L. Thomp- son, Esq., John M. Hockaday, Esq., John Kerr, Esq., Gentiles of Great Salt Lake City, for proof of the manner in which they have been insulted and abused by the leading Mormons for two years past. I shall see you soon on the subject. In haste, yours truly, W. W. DRUMMOND. Hon. Jeremiah S. Black, Attotney General, etc."" resignation of judge drummond. " March 30, 1857. "My Dear Sir: As I have concluded to resign the office of Justice of the Supreme Court of the Territory of Utah, which position I accepted in A. D., 1S54, under the administration of President Pierce, I deem it due to the public to give some of the reasons why I do so. In the first place, Brigham Young, the Governor of Utah Territory, is the acknowledged head of the 'Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,' commonly called ' Mormons;' and, as such head, the Mormons look to him, and to him alone, for the law by which they are to be governed: therefore no law of Congress is by them considered binding in any manner. "Secondly. I know that there is a secret oath-bound organization among all the male members of the Church to resist the laws of the country, and to ac- knowledge no law save the law of the 'Holy Priesthood,' which comes to the people through Brigham Young direct from God ; he. Young, being the vice- gerent of God and Prophet, viz: successor of Joseph Smith, who was the founder of this blind and treasonable organization. "Thirdly. I am fully aware that there is a set of men, set apart by special order of the Church, to take both the lives and property of persons who may question the authority of the Church; the names of whom I will promptly make known at a future time. "Fourthly. That the records, papers, etc., of the Supreme Court have been destroyed by order of the Church, with the direct knovvledge and approbation of Governor B. Young, and the Federal officers grossly insulted for presuming to raise a single question about the treasonable act. "Fifthly. That the Federal officers of the Territory ^re constantly in- sulted, harrassed, and annoyed by the Mormons, and for these insults there is no redress. " Sixthly. That the Federal officers are daily compelled to hear the form of the American government traduced, the chief executives of the nation, both liv- HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. ijj ing and dead, slandered and abused from the masses, as well as from all the lead- ing members of the Church, in the most vulgar, loathsome, and wicked manner that the evil passions of men can possibly conceive. ''Again: That after Moroni Green had been convicted in the District Court before my colleague, Judge Kinney, of an assault with intent to commit murder, and afterwards, on appeal to the Supreme Court, the judgment being affirmed and the said Green being sentenced to the penitentiary, Brigham Young gave a full pardon to the said Green before he reached the penitentiary ; also, that the said Governor Young pardoned a man by the name of Baker, who had been tried and sentenced to ten years' imprisonment in the penitentiary, for the murder of a dumb boy by the name of White House, the proof showing one of the most aggravated cases of murder that I ever knew being tried ; and to insult the Court and Government ofificers, this man Young took this pardoned criminal with him, in proper person, to church on the next Sabbath after his conviction ; Baker, in the meantime, having received a full pardon from Governor Brigham Young. These two men were Mormons. On the other hand, I charge the Mormons, and Governor Young in particular, with imprisoning five or six young men from Mis- souri and Iowa, who are now in the penitentiary of Utah, without those men having violated any criminal law in America. But they were anti-Mormons — poor, uneducated young men en route for California ; but because they emigrated from Illinois, Iowa, or Missouri, and passed by Great Salt Lake City, they were indicted by a probate court, and most brutally and inhumanly dealt with, in addition to being summarily incarcerated in the saintly prison of the Territory of Utah. I also charge Governor Young with constantly interfering with the federal courts, directing the grand jury whom to indict and whom not ; and after the judges charge the grand juries as to their duties, that this man Young invar- ably has some member of the grand jury advised in advance as to his will in re- lation to their labors, and that his charge thus given is the only charge known, obeyed, or received by all the grand juries of the federal courts of Utah Ter- ritory. "Again, sir, after a careful and mature investigation, I have been compelled to come to the conclusion, heart-rending and sickening as it may be, that Cap- tain John W. Gunnison, and his party of eight others, were murdered by the Indians in 1853, under the orders, advice, and direction of the Mormons; that my illustrious and distinguished predecessor, Hon. Leonidas Shaver, came to his death by drinking poisoned liquors, given to him under the order of the leading men of the Mormon Church in Great Salt Lake City; that the late secretary of the Territory, A. VV. Babbitt, was murdered on the plains by a band of Mormon marauders, under the particular and special order of Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball, and J. M. Grant, and not by the Indians, as reported by the Mormons themselves, and that they were sent from Salt Lake City for that purpose, and that onlv ; and as members of the Danite Band they were bound to do the will of Brigham Young as the head of the church, or forfeit their own lives. These reasons, with many others that I might give, which would be too heart-rending to insert in this communication, have induced me to resign the office of justice of the Territory of Utah, and again return to my adopted Slate of Illinois. 134 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. My reason, sir, for making this communication thus public i?, that the dem- ocratic party, with which I have always strictly acted, is the party now in power, and, therefore, is the party that should now be held responsible for the treason- able and disgraceful state of affairs that now exists in Utah Territory. I could, sir, if necessary, refer to a cloud of witnesses to attest the reasons I have given, and the charges, bold as they are, against tho5e despots, who rule with an iron hand their hundred thousand souls in Utah, and their two hundred thousand souls out of that notable Territory; but I shall not do so, for the reason that the lives of such gentlemen as I should designate in Utah and in California, would not be safe for a single day. In conclusion, sir, I have to say that, in my career as justice of the supreme court of Utah Territory, I have the consolation of knowing that I did my duty, that neither threats nor intimidations drove me from that path. Upon the other hand, I am pained to say that I accomplished little good while there, and that the judiciary is only treated as a farce. The only rule of law by which the in- fatuated followers of this curious people will be governed, is the law of the church, and that emanates from Governor Brigham Young, and him alone. I do believe that, if there was a man put in office as governor of that Ter. ritory, who is not a member of the church, (Mormon), and he supported with a suffi- cient VLi\\\\.z.xy aid, much good would result from such a course ; but as the Territory is now governed, and as it has been since the administration of Mr. Fillmore, at which time Young received his appointment as governor, it is noonday madness and folly to attempt to administer the law in that Territory. The officers are in- sulted, harassed, and murdered for doing their duty, and not recognizing Brig- ham Young as the only law-giver and law-maker on earth. Of this every man can bear incontestable evidence who has been willing to accept an appointment in Utah ; and I assure you sir, that no man would be willing to risk his life and property in that Territory after once trying the sad experiment. With an earnest desire that the present administration will give due and timely aid to the officers that may be so unfortunate as to accept situations in that Territory, and that the withering curse which now rests upon this nation by virtue of the peculiar and heart-rending institutions of the Territory of Utah, may be speedily removed, to the honor and credit of our happy country, I now remain your obedient servant, W. W. DRUMMOND, "yustice Utah Territory. Hon. yeremiah S. Black, Attorney General of the United States, Washington City, D. a "Great Salt Lake City, Utah Territory. "Sir: My attention having been drawn to the letter of Justice W. W. Drum- mond, under the date of March 30, 1857, addressed to yourself, tendering his resignation as associate justice for Utah, wherein my office is called in question, I feel it incumbent upon me to make to you the following report : "Justice W. W. Drummond, in his 'fourth' paragraph, says: 'The re- HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. /jj cords, papers, &c., of the supreme court have been destroyed by order of Gover- nor B. Young, and the federal officers grossly insulted for presuming to raise a single question about the treasonable act.' "I do solemnly declare this assertion is without the slightest foundation in truth. The records, papers, &c., of the supreme court in this Territory, to- getlT£r with all decisions and documents of every kind belonging thereto, from Monday, September 22, 185 1, at which time said court was first organized, up to this present moment, are all safe and complete in my custody, and not one of them missing, nor have they ever been disturbed by any person. "Again, in the decision of the supreme court in the case of Moroni Green, the which decision was written by Judge Drummond himself, I find the following words: 'That as the case, for which Green was convicted, seems to have been an aggravated one, th's court does remit the costs of the prosecution, both in this court and in the court below.' Green was provoked to draw a pistol in self- defence, but did not point it at any one. He was a lad of 18 years old. Much feeling was excited in his favor, and he was finally pardoned by the governor, upon a petition signed by the judges, and officers of the United States, courts, the honorable secretary of state, and many of the iufluential citizens of Great Salt Lake City. "Again: in relation to the ' incarceretion of five or six young men from Missouri and Iowa, who are now (March 30, 1857,) in the penitentiary of Utah, without those men having violated any criminal law in America/ &c. This state- ment is also utterly false. "I presume he alludes to the incarceration, on the 22d January, 1856, of three men, and on the 29th of January, 1856, of one more; if so these are the circumstances : "There were quite a number of persons came here as teamsters in Gilbert and Gerrish's train of goods, arriving here in December, 1855, after winter had set in. They arrived here very destitute; and at that season of the year there is nothing a laboring man can get to do. Some of these men entered the store of S. M. Blair & Co., at various times in the night, and stole provisions, groceries, «S:c. Some six or eight were indicted for burglary, and larceny. Three plead guilty, and a fourth was proven guilty; and the four were sentenced to the pen- itentiary for the shortest time the statute allowed for the crime; and just as soon as the spring of 1856 opened, and a company was preparing to start for Cali- fornia, upon a petition setting forth mitigating circumstances, the governor pardoned them, and they went on their way to California. It was a matter, well understood here at the time, that these men were incarcerated more particularly to keep them from commiting further crime during the winter. " Since that time there have been but four persons sentenced to the peniten- tiary, one for forgery and three for petty larceny, for terms of sixty and thirty days, to wit: One on the 19th November, 1856, for larceny, thirty days; two on the 24th November, 1856, for aggravated larceny, sixty days and one on the 26th January, 1857, for forgery, thirty days. So that on the 30th March, 1857, (the date of W. W. Drummond's letter,) there was not a white prisoner in the Utah ij6 ■ HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. penitentiary; nor had there been tor several days previous, nor is there at this present writing. "I could, were it my province in this affidavit, go on and refute all that Judge W. W. Drummond has stated in his aforesaid letter of resignation, by re- cords, dates, and facts; but believing the foregoing is sufficient to show you what reliance is to be placed upon the assertions or word of W. W. Diumraond, I shall leave this subject. « "In witness of the truth of the foregoing affidavit, I have hereunto sub- scribed my name and affixed the seal of the United States supreme court [l. s.] for Utah Territory, at Great Salt Lake City, this twenty-sixth day of June, A. D. 1857. CURTIS E. BOLTON, Deputy Clerk of said U. S. Supreme Court for Utah, in absence of W. J. Appleby, Clerk. Hon. Jeremiah S. Black, Attorney General of the United States. Washington, D. C.^^ But these documents furnished to the House alone give no sufficient expo- sition of causes, though there is seen much relation between the letters quoted and the action of the Government. For a thorough exposition commensurate with the aims and purposes of a true and impartial history, we must go to a general review of Utah affairs, not only as regards the Mormon community in their own conduct, but also the conduct of the people of the United States towards them, whether friendly or hostile, which exposition will show that the Utah question has long been intensely a national question. Strange as the assertion may appear, the real beginning of the train of causes and circumstances which led to the "Utah War," and its many complications, was the continuation of Brigham Young by President Pierce in the governor- ship, in 1855. That is to say, the United Slates gave the chief cause of offence against itself, and afterwards, by construction, made the potent and thorough administration of Governor Young, and the Submission of the community to Federal rule under him, to signify a condition of actual rebellion. That which in the Governor and people of any other Territory or State would have been esteemed by the nation as legitimate and admirable was, in Brigham Young and the Mormons, a present treason and a direct intent to overturn and supplant the national rule with a Mormon Theocracy. The case had entirely changed since Stansbury had said in his report to the Government, " I feel constrained to say, that in my opinion the appointment of the President of the Mormon Church, and the head of the Mormon community, in preference to any other person to the high office of Governor of the Territory, independent of its politicial bearings, with which I have nothing to do, was a measure dictated alike by justice and ^^ound policy. This man has been their Moses. * * * He had been unanimously chosen as their highest civil magistrate, and even before his appointment by the President, he combined in his own person the triple char- acter of confidential adviser, temporal ruler, and projjhet of God." So far as Governor Young and the Mormons were concerned, this was also HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY, 137 all true when he was re-appointed by President Pierce, and therein was the in- harmony which developed between Utah and the nation, resulting in the expe- dition. That which at first so eminently fitted Brigham Young for Governor of the colony which he led to these valleys, and multiplied substantially into a little State of the Union, now unfitted him in the eyes of the nation. To be the President of the Mormon Church and Governor of Utah Territory was made to signify the existence of a politicial Mormon Theocracy. The Mormon Moses, clothed with the mantle of Federal authority at the head of his people, appeared to the "Gentile" as an Israelitish rebeldom in the heart of the American re- public. Thus the wording of a Stansbury, a Gunnison and a Thomas L. Kane^ was substituted by the wording a Drummond and a Magraw, without any real change of subject, or substitution of some new and reversed cause. In his mas- terly treatise of the Mormons and their institutions Gunnison had said: "For those who desire facts in the history of humanity, on which to indulge in reflec- tion, is this offered. It were far easier to give a romantic sketch in lofty meta- phors, of the genesis and exodus of the empire-founding Saints — the subject is its own epic of heroism, whose embellishment is left to imaginative genius, and its philosophy to be deduced by the candid philanthropist." This treatise of Gunnison is the loftiest exposition of the Israelitish theocracy of the Mormons ever written by Gentile pen. As his wording shows,, he has treated his historical subject as an "Israelitish epic" wrought in modern times. In view of this epic monument of their history which the hand of Gunnison essayed to rear for the Mormons, it is both astonishing and monstrous that Judge Drummond, in his resignation, should charge Brigham Young with the instigation of his murder by the Indians. Such an act is not within our comprehension of human atrocities and ingratitude, especially when applied to a leader of Brigham Young's cast and sagacity, whose every act marked his deliberate anticipation of a sufficient com- pensation to himself or his people. The cruel and cowardly murder of Gun- nison, by the order of Brigham Young, could not possibly have brought to him or his community such compensation ; for, next to Colonel Thomas L. Kane, Captain Stansbury and Lieutenant Gunnison had done Governor Young and the Mormon community more service than any other men in America. And it is scarcely less astonishing and monstrous that Drummond in his resig- nation should charge Governor Young and the Mormons with the poisoning of Associate Justice Shaver, and the tomahawking on the plains of Secretary Babbitt, seeing that Judge Shaver, was mourned by Salt Lake City, and his funeral sermon preached by its Mayor, just as the untimely fate of Gunnison was mourned in the message of Governor Young to the Legislature, and his memory thus honorably preserved on the official tablet of Utah's early history ; while Secretary Babbitt was himself a Mormon, the chief politician of the community, the man whom the citizens chose and sent to Congress as their Delegate, when they set up the Provisional State of Deseret. Monstrous, however, as these charges of the mur- der of Government officials at the order of Governor Young must appear in any iust exposition of the times of 1856-7, they were sent to the House of Repre- sentatives as among the chief causes of the Utah Expedition ; yet it is worthy of note that there is an air of protest to the Drummond document in the presenta- jj8 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. tion of the Attorney General. It is probable that, had the Hon. Jeremiah S. Black been the Executive, as well as the Judicial head of the Administration at this juncture, he would have viewed Utah and her affairs very much as Daniel Webster had done before, when Brocchus, Brandebury, Harris, Day and Ferris deserted three departments of the newly created Territory, and sought the inva- sion which was accomplished in 1857. Indeed, the sequel does actually show that the Attorney General, after the Proclamation of Pardon, by his constitu- tional decision prevented the re-opening of difficulties, and perhaps an actual war, between General Johnson and his troops on the one side, and Governor Gum- ming and the Utah militia on the other, which decision restored the Territory to the exact place where it stood, under Governor Brigham Young. The true historical exposition, then, is that Utah was not in rebellion when the expedition was projected; and that the cause of all the offence on the Mormon side was simply t^at which the community has given from the beginning — in Ohio, in Missouri, in Illinois, in Utah. They were seeking to build up the Kingdom of God upon the earth ; and Brigham Young, their Prophet and Pres- ident of their Church, was also now, for the second time. Governor of Utah, in virtue of his being the great colonizer and founder of the Territory. ''The strange and interesting people " were just as admirable when Drummond and Magraw wrote their communications to the Government, making the community hideous and instigating a war crusade against them, as they were when Stansbury reported them to the nation as the most wonderful colony of modern times, wor- thy of acceptance into the Union as a model state. But, as observed, a change had come over the vision; and the presence of the Mormon community, in 1857, had become as intolerable to the majority of the. people of the United States as they had been to Missouri and Illinois. The spirit and temper which had pos- sessed those States which had driven the Mormons from their borders, now pos- sessed the whole of the United States. That little colony of religious exiles which had planted itself in the Valley of the Great Salt Lake in 1847, ^^''<^) lifting rev- erently the Stars and Stripes on foreign soil, claimed it for the nation in that na- tion's own august name, had grown by their wonderful emigrations into a hun- dred colonies; but for this very reason, of their marvelous growth and organism, the people of the States east and west desired to rid themselves of the Mormons altogether; and, if needs be, to drive them with guns and bayonets from Auieri- ican soil. Senators and Representatives saw clearly that if the Mormons were allowed to remain within the American domains, they must inevitably become a State of the Union, and in the end play, perhaps, a controling part in party pol- itics and the national destiny. This had been illustrated in Illinois, where they had held the balance of power between the Democrats and the Whigs. Their colonies were now fast spreading over this western country ; they would settle territory which would come within the political boundaries of half a dozen States, in which they would cast their potent united vote ; they would, by continued im- igrations and rapid increase of offspring by their polygamy, which had offspring for its aim, multiply into a million of United States citizens within the century, whose united political power would be really formidable. Such were the antici- pations and talk about Mormon Utah in those times in the newspapers of the HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. ijg country, as may be seen by consulting their files of 1855-6-7. The New York Herald in one of its leaders declared seriously, and with some admiration withal, that the Mormons held "the whip handle'" over the United States, Fillmore and Pierce had given it into the hands of Brigham Young. With Brigham, Governor, Utah was always right, and the United States always wrong. Such was the in- ference, and the reason clearly because such men as Brocchus, Ferris and Drum- mond were the representatives of the United States, as versus Brigham Young the Governor of Utah and President of the Mormon Church. And the New York ^(f^-^A/ was verily right. It was just the difference in the officials who represented the United States versus Mormondom, and the governor who repre- sented the United States to the glory and political destiny of the Utah which he had founded. Let alone for another decade, and what would this man, Brigham Young, and his Utah amount to in our national affairs? — he as Governor, exercis- ing almost absolute authority in the name of the United States, in consequence of the potency of his own character, in consequence of the impotency of those sent against him to overbalance him, and in consequence of the constitutional rights of the people of Utah, as citizens of the United States, who earnestly and loyally supported his lawful and potent administration of Federal authority over the Territory; and, furthermore, in consequence of the fact that nearly all the other Federal officials, except the Mormon branch; first measured arms with the great Mormon Governor, and then deserted their posts, leaving the sole govern- ment of the Territory almost entirely in his hands. Invariably it was the anti- Mormon branch of the admmistration that commenced hostilities. They con- stituted themselves as missionaries delegated to put down Mormon rule in Utah, and this they did even when not a score of Gentiles were in the Territory, thus tantalizing the entire community and opposing the legitimate administration of the Governor. The opposing Judges were the most conspicuous, as also very potent, they usually forming a majority of the judicial branch of the Territorial administration antagonistic not only to Mormon rule, but to Mormon citizenship, as subsequent issues have shown. The Indian agents, on their part, though sub- ordinate to Governor Young as Superintendent of Indian Affairs, aimed to frus- trate his Indian policy, sought to stir up the Indians under his superintendency against him and the Mormons, spied upon his actions, and like spies made in- sidious and hostile reports against him as their chief, not only impeaching him, but recommending to the Government not to pay his accounts for expenditure in the Indian wars of the Territory, ^Every time this " irrepressible conflict " between Governor Young and the anti-Mormon branch was manifested to the Government and the nation, result- ing as it always did in the discomfiture and generally in the resignation of the antagonists of the Governor, the administration at Washington was both perplexed and provoked, and the country thrown into a state of excitement, and exasperated anger over Utah, and the Mormons. It was evident to the nation that this conflict and anomalous condition in the affairs of one of the Territories could not be per- mitted to continue another decade, and the demand for the removal of Brigham Young from the Governorship, and the appointment of a Gentile Governor in his place was very generally made by the country as the only solution ta the Utah 140 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CLT^. difficulty. This President Franklin Pierce had sought to accomplish in the ap- pointment of Colonel Steptoe, at the expiration of Governor Young's first term; but the declining and the petition which Steptoe and his officers headed, recom- mending the re appointment of Governor Young forced the action of the Presi- dent and Brigham into a second term of office. The re-appointment was prob- ably quite in accord with President Pierce's own mind, but he soon found that the sentiment of the country was decidedly against it, and that a Gentile Gov" ernor was in popular demand, and that too for the very purpose of putting down Mormondom. Indeed the expressive epithet " Mormondom '' was coined to fit the case, used first in the New York Herald and made to signify, in this connec- tion, that the Mormon Church should be tolerated vvith all other Churches, but that the "Mormon theocracy'' must be invaded and overthrown. This was first proposed to be accomplished by a Gentile Governor, supported by a new corps of Federal officers in accord with him, but later on as the irrepressible conflict grew, and the rage for an anti-Mormon crusade became general, the overthrow of politicial Mormondom was given to a United States army, sent to depose Brig- ham Young as a rebel Governor and to set another in his place. President Pierce was charged with a political mistake in the continuation of Brigham Young, froni the exception taken to his act both by political friends and politicial enemies, but the administration of Pierce was drawing to a close and it did not choose to inaugurate any new measures, which seeming indif- ference on the part of the Government only stirred up the opponents of Brigham Young to greater exertions, and every measure was adopted to secure some decided action. President Pierce, in disgust over this dissatisfaction of political friends and political foes, declared that he would make no more appoint- ments for the Governorship of Utah as long as he held office, and thus Governor Young remained a colossus on his pedestal, on which anti-Mormon rage spent itself in vain, so far as disturbing the condition of affairs in Utah, but an action was worked up in the States against Utah and the Mormons scarcely less virulent in its animus than that which prevailed in the Republican party against slavery and the South. The rise of the Republican party into power lifted Utah into a political sit- uation, which while it gave her no political advantages, such as her admission as a State, exposed her to danger and left her open to the assault of her enemies. In the framing of its first platform the Republican party raised her to a kindred as- sociation with the South and, in every campaign where John C. Fremont was the standard bearer of the party, there could be read " T7ie abolishment of slavery and polygamy; the twm relics of barbarism." Undoubtedly General Fremont had much to do with the sharpening of this politicial directness that associated Utah and the South in the " irrepressible conflict," which the Republican party was inspiring in the country for the over- throw of the Democratic party, and which struck Utah vvith a military expedition before it struck the South. And though it would fall short of Fremont's dignity and national reputation to class him with Drummond, or to charge him with malice towards Utah, yet it should not be forgotten that there had existed a re- HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 141 lation between him and the Mormons for many years, in which there was nascent much of the "irrepressible conflict" which he sought to infuse into the political contest of the nation against Mormon Utah. He was the son-in-law of Senator Thomas H. Benton, whom the Mormons at that time looked upon as the greatest political enemy they ever had, and there had been something of a rivalry between the Mormons and Fremont, relative to the possession of California. This had dated as far back as the lifetime of Joseph Smith, who, at the very moment when Fremont was designing the conquest of California with a volunteer army, had petitioned the President of the United States and Congress to allow him to occupy that Mexican province with a colony of a hundred thousand Mormons. Senator Douglass favored "General" Smith's project versus General Fremont's; and accompanied with Fremont's report on California, which had just been printed by the Senate, but not yet made public, the Senator from Illinois dis- patched his urgent advice to " General " Smith to at once start for the possession of the Pacific coast with his Mormon colony. It was undoubtedly a knowledge of the Mormon Prophet's design to possess California by his colony, as preferred by Douglass to the somewhat filibustering character of his son-in-law's proposed ex- pedition, that so strongly set Benton against this Mormon colonization in the west, the wonderful success of which the simple relation of the historical fact is proving to be the real cause, not only of the Utah Expedition, but also of all the special legislation in Congress to this day against " Mormon Utah." This at the last effort was very strikingly illustrated by General Cullom in his affirmation to the Senate, substantially to the effect that, if the successful Mormon colonization of the west was not stopped by some radical measure of Congress, the Mormons would control half a dozen States in the west, and thus give the balance of power in the national politics against the Republican party, which at its birth made proclamation of war against Mormondom. Now it is just in this political vein that the historian finds the real cause and animus of the Utah Expedition, and of all the action and special legislation against Mormon Utah to this day, and not in the charges of Magraw and Drummond, nor even polygamy, though the former furnished excuse for the Expedition, as the other does protest for special legislation. In Missouri and Illinois, this political vein of the Mormon question was only locally defined. It was Senator Benton who first gave it a national significance, and now, upon the political banners of his son-in-law, it was proclaimed with mottoes classing Utah and polygamy with slavery and the South. This develop- ment of the history, gives interest and significance to a brief review of the case of Fremont and the Mormons, in the occupation of the Pacific Slope. Destiny led the Mormon pioneers to the valleys of Utah. Destiny went with the Mormon battalion to California in the expedition of General S. W. Kearney, whose instructions from the Secretary of War were to "conquer" Cali- fornia, and set up a provisonal military government there in the name of the United States. California, however, was won by Fremont and his volunteers, and the United States flag was hoisted in the Bay of San Francisco by Commo- dore Stockton before the arrival of General Kearney. A battle or two, by the regular troops, under Kearney, completed the conquest. Had not the General 142 HJS TOR Y OF SALT LAKE CL TV. been forestalled by Fremont, the Mormons would have been among his most re- liable soldiers in the conquest of that country. As it was, Kearney found the situation claimed by several rival governors. Fremont was the hero. Fremont was his great rival. The hero was in rebellion. He refused at first to resign to the military chief the government of the conquered Province. He might have even won the position from the rightful Governor on the strength of his claims as conqueror, supported by his popularity; but at this crisis of affairs, Col. Phillip St. George'Cooke arrived in California with his command — the Mormon bat- tallion. Their coming gave to Kearney the victory over his rival. He consulted with Colonel Cooke, who assured him that he could rely on his Mormon soldiers to a man. This decided the General. He resolved to force the issue and arrest his rival. This was consummated, and Fremont was carried to Washington for trial, under a Mormon guard. The famous case of Kearney and Fremont, forms quite a chapter of American history, but it is not so well known how conspicuous a part the Mormon soldiers played in the case. The political banners of Fremont as a candidate for the Presidential chair, with their motto, "The abolishment of slavery and polygamy; the twin relics of barbarism," are scarcely more significant than the foregoing review, touching the personal case of himself and the Mormons. After the rise of the Republican party, this political vein of the Mormon question grew so broad and rapidly in the political mind of the great parties, at this time struggling for the supremacy, that even Senator Douglass was over- whelmed with the necessity of taking up the conflict against the Mormons, whose united vote had sent him to the Senate, and towards whom, up to the present time, he had manifested not merely political gratitude, but even personal friendship. In politics, Senator Douglas and the Mormons were in perfect accord. His '^squatter-sovereignty" was their political creed, and while they sought his in- fluence at the seat of Governrnent, he found in them the living exponents of the sovereigi.ty doctrine to which he devoted his life. Just here, his advice to the Mormon Prophet, as reported by Orson Hyde may be repeated with much his- torical pertinence : " We have this day [April 26] had a long conversation with Judge Douglass. He is ripe for Oregon and California. He said he would resign his seat in Con- gress, if he could command the force that Mr. Smith could, and would be on the march to that country in a month. ' In five years,' he said, ' a noble State might be formed, and then if they would not receive us into the Union, we would have a government of our own.' " The Mormons had not gone to the extent of Senator Douglass' counsel. They had, indeed, built up what they considered a " noble State " of the Union and had repeatedly offered it to Congress for acceptance, which had been re- jected ; but they had not in consequence of this rejection "set up an indepen- dent government of their own," which fidelity to the nation doubtless Douglass approved seeing that the treaty had ceded this then Mexican Territory to the United States. There had been then no political change between Douglass and HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. j^j the Mormons. The case was simply that Douglass was at that time an aspirant for the Presidency of the United States, and this position he could only reach as the candidate of the State which had expelled the Mormons. In the spring of 1856 Senator Douglass delivered a great speech at Spring- field, Illinois. It was the announcement of his platform before the assembling of the conventions that were to nominate the successor of President Pierce. In that speech the senator characterized Mormonism as "the loathsome ulcer of the body politic" and recommended the free use of the scalpel as the only remedy in the hands of the nation. But there were those in the States,' such as Thomas L. Kane, who had given Douglass' name to President Filmore as surety for Gov- ernor Young, and Mr. Fred. Hudson, the great manager at the time of the New York Herald, who viewed the speech of the Senator from Illinois in its true light. Hudson's confidant, an assistant, on Utah affairs, noticing this passage in American politics of himself, wrote : " My first impulse was to notice the speech, but a careful examination of it rendered the expediency of such a course very doubtful. There were so many 'ifs,' and so often 'should it be,' that it was at last concluded to leave it alone, for the senator might, after all, have said what he did from the necessity of sailing with the popular tide against the Mormons, while, at the same time, he might in the Senate demand evidence of the crimi- inality of the Mormons before any action was taken against them." But the Mormon leaders were so incensed at the action of Douglass that it be- came impossible for him to prompt the Senate to an investigation of Utah affairs by a commission. An irreconcilable breach was made. The Deseret News (un- doubtedly speaking with Governor Young's voice) replied to the speech, and the Illinois statesman was reminded of the lime when he was " but a county judge," and when the Prophet Joseph told him that he would some day be an aspirant for the chair of Washington ; that, if he continued the friend of the Mormons, he should live to be President of the United States; but if he ever lifted his finger or his voice against them, his plans should be frustrated and his hopes utterly dis- appointed. All this, the successor of the Mormon Prophet circumstantially re- lated to the senator in reply to his Springfield speech and closed in the name of the Lord, with the prediction that Douglass should fail, and never attain the goal of his ambition. The prediction of the Mormon Prophet in his conversation with Douglass is singularly authentic and was published years before the Illinois Senator recom- mended the Government to "cut the loathsome ulcer out," which recommenda- tion makes the story pertinent here as referring to Utah and the causes "of the Buchanan expedition. The Democratic convention meet in Cincinnati soon after the speech, and Senator Douglas was a candidate for the Presidency of the United States : Bu- chanan was nominated and Douglass defeated. But neither the defeat of Douglass nor the triumph of Buchanan changed the "manifest destiny" that so singularly made Utah the political scapegoat of the times. She was declared to be the sister of the South, with a common fate, but the South had not yet chosen to recognize her. During that campaign, in the fall of 1856, Republicans carried the banner hostile to polygamy, and Democrats 144 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. made speeches against the same institution. The only difference was, that the Republicans saw more clearly, or sensed more instinctively than the Democrats, that the Mormons and the Democrats had a common cause and a common fate. In fine the political action in the country in the fall of 1856 left the Mormons no friends in any of the States and it was this very fact and not their right doings nor their wrong doings, in Utah that determined the Government to send the expedition. On the 4th of March, 1857, Mr. Buchanan was inaugurated President of the United States, and he and his cabinet, like Douglas, was soon overwhelmed with the popular wave that rose at that time, to lash to fury in vain upon the Rocky Mountain Zion ; but which, astonishingly to be told, immediately thereafter swept over the South and baptized the United States in the blood of civil war. CHAPTER XVI. REVIEW OF JUDGE DRUMMONDS COURSE IN UTAH. HE ASSAULTS THE PRO- BATE COURTS AND DENOUNCES THE UTAH LEGISLATURE AT THE CAPI- TOL. JUDGE SNOWS REVIEW OF THE COURTS OF THE TERRITORY! HIS LETTER TO THE COMPrROLLER OF THE TREASURY. JUDGE DRUMMOND LEAVES UTAH AND COMMENCES HIS CRUSADE. THE CONSPIRACY TO WORK UP THE "UTAH WAR." THE CONTRACTORS. CHARGES OF INDIAN .\GENT TWISS. POSTAL SERVICE. CONTRACT AWARDED TO MR. HYRUM KIMBALL. GOVERNOR YOUNG ORGANIZES AN EXPRESS AND CARRYING COMPANY. NEW POSTAL SERVICE. WAR AGAINST UTAH. POS I'OFFICE DEPARTMENT REPUDIATES ITS CONTRACT. "TROOPS ARE ON THE WAY TO INVADE ZION! " Thus it appears in reviewing the political history of 1856, that the compli- cations of the nation herself, tending towards the great war conflict between the North and the South, drew Utah into the vortex, almost without any action of her own, whether good or bad; but no military expedition could be sent against her without circumstantial causes. The charges of Drummond and Magraw were considered to be sufficitni, which fact makes a review of themselves and their action in Utah affairs necessary to the development of the history of a crusade that cost the nation fifty millions of money, and, for awhile, threatened these valleys with desolation. The following passage from a letter of a member of the Utah Legislature, Samuel W. Richards, to his brother in England, dated Fillmore City, December 7th, 1855, gives a very suggestive opening to Judge Drummond's administration in this Territory: HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 145 ''You have, no doubt, heard of the appointment and arrival of Judge Drum- mond in this Territory. He has lately been holding court in this place, which has given him an opportunity to show himself. * * * }j[e h^g i,rass to declare, in open court, that the Utah laws are founded in ignorance, and has attempted to set some of the most important ones aside. This being the highest compliment he has to pay to Utah legislators, we shall all endeavor to appreciate it, and he, no doubt from his great ability to judge the merits of law, will be able to appreciate the merits of a return compliment some day. His course and policy so far seem to be to raise a row if possible, and make himself notorious. " In speaking of Judge Drummond, I might have named the fact that he compliments a Mormon jury by taking his wife on to the judgment-seat with him, which she occupies almost constantly. There was one case, however, of such a character that she did not appear." In a letter of a later date (January 5th, 1856,) the same correspondent wrote. "Some little excitement prevails in town to-day. An affair took place be- tween Judge Drummond and a Jew trader here, which was rather amusing at the time, but may be something more \\id,nfun for the Judge before he gets through with it. A grand jury is meeting this evening, which will bring in an indictment against the Judge and his negro, Cato, for assault and battery with intent to mur- der; and he will be arrested and brought before the probate court on Monday morning next, a 9 o'ctock, just at the time he should answer to his name in the supreme court, which sits at that hour. * * * " He has virtually ruled our probate courts out of power in his decisions, but we will now know whether probate courts can act or not, especially in his case. ^ * * "Judges Kinney and Stiles, Babbitt, Blair, and nearly all the lawyers in the Territory, United States' Marshal, etc., are expected in here to-morrow, as the supreme court opens on Monday. There is only one case that I am aware of to come up before that court, and that of not much account. * * • Evening. "The party alluded to just above have arrived. A. W. Babbitt comes in a prisoner. He has been arrested by order of Judge Drummond, on the suppo- sition that he was concerned in the escape of Carlos Murray, who was brought here a prisoner some time since, but is not here now. There is quite an excite- ment in town about matters and things. I wish this letter was to go one week later, so as to give you the result of the present commotion, which will probably decide the jurisdiction of our probate courts." The case of the "wife" was a greater outrage both to the government and the community than this indignant member of the Legislature knew at the time. Associate Justice Drummond had brought with him to the Territory a " lady companion," while his wife and family were left in Illinois. After the notice of his arrival had been published in the Deseret News, some of the relatives of Mrs. J 46 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. Drummond paid a visit to the judge's "companion," and, nnfortunately for the honor of the bench, the "lady" from St. Louis did not arswer to the descrip- tion of the wife in Oquawkee. The discovery was noised abroad, yet so shame- less was the conduct of this judge and his paramour that she tiaveled with him wherever he held court, and on some occasions sat beside him on the bench. "Plurality of wives," comments Stenhouse, "was to the Mormons a part of their religion openly acknowledged to all the world. Drummond's plurality was the outrage of a respectable wife of excellent reputation for the indulgence of a common prostitute, and the whole of his conduct was a gross insalt to the Gov- ernment which he represented, and the people among whom he was sent to admin- ister law. For any contempt the Mormons exhibited towards such a man, there is no need of apology." Here is exhibited the very onset of the conflict, relative to the jurisdiction of the probate courts in this Territory, and the existence and business of a Terri- torial marshal, a conflict that continued to the days of Chief Justice McXean ; but it is clear from the record that, whether the Utah Legislature made its laws in ignorance or not, it had shown no intent to subvert the federal rule, or to set aside United States Courts to give the jurisdiction to the probate courts; yet this is the very charge made against Governor Young and the Utah Legislature — namely, that they did both with intent and treason so set aside federal rule, substituting, an ecclesiastical rule under the guise of probate courts. " With regard to the affairs and proceeding of the probate court, (wrote Magraw to the President) the only existing tribunal in the Territory of Utah, there being but one of the three federal judges now in the Territory, I will refer you to its records, and to the evidence of gentlemen whose assertions cannot be questioned," while the asso- ciate justice wrote, "The judiciary is only treated as a farce. * * jj is noonday madness and folly to attempt to administer the law in that Territory. The officers are insulted, harrassed and murdered for doing their duty, and not recognizing Brigham Young as the only lawgiver and lawmaker upon earth." In the reverse of this the foregoing notes, from one of the legislators to his brother, show us a judge, who was sent to execute the laws of the Territory, rudely assaulting the lawmaking department and ruling out of power the probate courts, which it h»d endowed with a jurisdiction necessary to the commonwealth under peculiar circumstances. This conflict thus begun by Judge Drummond, in 1855-6, against the Territorial commonwealth, falsely interpreted to Buchanan's administration, is rendered in General Scott's instructions as "state of substan- tial rebellion against the laws and authority of the United States." The burden of the subject resting then, at this point with the jurisdiction of our probate courts, and the Territorial business generally^ it is needful that we enlarge the review of previous chapters relative to the reasons of the superior jurisdiction given to those courts, and the creation of the ofiices of Territorial Marshal, Attorney General and District Attorney. The reason in fine was the desertion of the Chief Justice and one of his associates, accompanied by the Sec- retary of the Territory and Indian Agent, carrying away all the government funds. It is not necessary to again review their conduct, or to reaffirm the jus- tification of Governor Young and the Mormon community, but simply to repeat HIS TORY OF SALT LAKE CI2 K 147 th-e connecting cause of the powers which the legislature conferred upon the pro- bate courts and the creation q{ the Territorial officers. Associate Justice Snow was not set aside by the Legislature, but an enabling act was passed authorizing him to hold United States Courts in all the districts; at the same time Jurisdic- tion was given to the probate courts in civil and criminal affairs in the interest of the commonwealth, lest it should be left altogether unable to administer in the departments of Justice, which would have been the case at that moment had Associate Justice Snow died or le(t the Territory. Mr. Migraw himseif uninten- tionally illustrated this point, when he told the President that the probate court was the only existing tribunal in Utah, "there being but one of the three federal judges now in the Territory." This was the exact case at the onsei when the probate court was created. Already extracts have been made from the correspondence between Judge Snow and the Hon. Elisha Whittlesey, who drew a strong line of demarcation between United States and Territorial business, making it absolutely necessary for the Territory tto assume the responsibility and cost of its own business. This, however, the legislature did against its own judgment, holding that the TerritoriaS District Courts were really United States Courts. Judge Snow, con- tinuing the correspondence, discussing the subject with the comptroller of the treasury in behalf of his court and the legislature, said in his letter of February s, 1853: " To enable you to fully understand the present situation of things, before proceeding further, I will inform you that the Legislative Assembly passed an act, approved October 4th, [851, authorizing and requiring me, for a limited time, to hold all the courts in the Territory, but said nothing about jurisdiction, appellate or original. (See Utah Laws, p. 37.) "February 4, 1852, another act was approved, giving jurisdiction to the dis- trict courts in all cases, civil and criminal, also in chancery. (See ?'3., p. 2i^, sec. 2.) The same law gave jurisdiction to the probate courts, civil and criminal, also in chancery. (See ib.^ p, 43, sec. 36.) An act was approved March 3d, 1852, providing for the appointment of a Territorial Marshal, Attorney General and District Attorneys, to attend to legal business in the district courts when the Ter- ritory should be interested. (See ib., pp. 56, 57.) " I do not intend to be understood as expressing any opinion in relation to the legality of these several enactments, but I only mention them to enable you to understand the present views of the Legislative Assembly, as expressed in a report to which I shall soon refer. This report was called out by reason of the non-pay- ment of these costs. I having referred the claimants to the Legislative Assembly, they procured my certificate of their correctness and petitioned for payment. The petition was referred to a committee on claims, and, to enable that committee to understand the subject, the Council passed a resolution, requesting me to inform them of the amount of costs of holding the courts for the past year, distinguish- ing those which in my opinion should be paid by the general government from those payable by the Territory. "With this request I complied, and gave the reasons of my opinion, acting 1^8 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. on the principle that the reasons of an opinion are often of far more value than the opinion itself. In so doing I laid before them my correspondence with you, and referred to such of the laws of the United States as in my opinion had a bear- ing on the subject, and to the enactments. I also went minutely into the usual officers of the courts and expenses attendant upon them, and showed how these officers and courts are usually paid, in both civil and ctiminal cases, together with the payment of the incidental expenses, making my answer quite lengthy, too much so for insertion in this communication. "This committee reported adversely to payment by the Territory, but upon what principle I have not been informed. The subject was then referred to a ju- diciary committee, composed of some of the best members of the council. This committee reported adversely to payment by the Territory, and gave their reasons. This report was adopted, therefore I proceed to notice the positions taken by them. "They commence with what they call the equity of the principle involved in the question presented, saying that nearly all the costs of courts here have accrued by reason of emigration passing through here to California and Oregon, and that justice requires the United States to pay such expenses. " My experience in the courts thus far justifies the firm belief that the facts here assumed are correctly stated. See my concluding remark in my letter of July ID. But with this equitable consideration, I am unable to see what I have to do, though I can see its bearing when addressed to the political branches of the gov- ernment by whom and to whom that matter was then addressed. "They further take the position that the United States and the Territory of Utah respectively must sustain and bear the expenses, direct and incidental, of the officers and offices of its own creation, that the supreme and district courts were created, not by a law of Utah, but by a law of the United States ; and as such, by the Organic Act, they have jurisdiction, civil and criminal, in all cases not arising out of the constitution and laws of the United States, unless such jur- isdiction should be limited by a law of the Territory; that congress, by extend- ing the constitution and laws of the United States over the Territory, and creating courts and appointing officers to execute these laws, had done what was her right and duty to do, but, as she had seen fit to go further and give jurisdic- tion to her courts and require her officers to execute the laws of the Territory, it had become her duty to sustain these courts and officers, and bear their expenses; that the Territorial Legislature, by giving jurisdiction to these courts and divid- ing the Territory into districts, had done nothing but discharge a duty which Congress had required at their hands, but this did not require them to bear any part of the expenses; that these courts took jurisdiction in all cases, not by virtue of the Territorial laws, but by a law of Congress; that the Territories, by their Organic Acts, are not independent governments within the meaning of the term that all just powers emanate from the government, but are subordinate, de- dependent branches of government ; that Congress did not intend to give any court jurisdiction in civil and criminal cases at common law and in chancery, but the supreme and district courts, and, as she had reserved the right to nullify any act of the Legislative Assembly, she could enforce obedience to her mandates; that, with such a state of things, it is contrary to every principle of justice and HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. j^g sound legislation to require so dependent a branch of government to bear any part of the expenses of enforcing the laws; that the officers, having charge of that branch of public service, ought not to so construe the acts of Congress as to produce such results, so. long as the long as the laws will admit of a construction consistent with justice and sound legislation; that, in their opinion, the acts of Congress did not require such a construction, but on the contrary they strongly indicated, if they did not require, the construction contended for by them ; and that the same principle which would require such dependencies to pay a part (of the expenses) would require them to pay the whole, and with that construction Congress might, at the expense of the Territories, impose upon them any embod- iment of officers she, in her discretion, might see fit to send, which never could have been intended by the framers of the constitution. " This report concludes by recommending that these costs be referred to me, with the opinion of the council that they are payable out or the annual appro- priations made by Congress for defraying the expenses of the circuit and district courts of the United States, and by recommending that the laws of Utah be so amended as to take away the jurisdiction of the probate courts at common law, civil and criminal, and in chancery, and abolish the offices of territorial marshal, attorney-general, and district attorneys, so that the United States, by her judges, attorneys and marshals may execute the> laws of the Territory. But, as this re- port was not made until a late day in the session, the laws were not so amended. Should the next Legislative Assembly in these matters concur with this, the laws above referred to will either be repealed or modified." It will be seen by this report of the committee that the Utah Legislature, as early as 1852-3, desired to do what, after twenty years of conflict, was accom. phshed, — namely, to limit the jurisdiction of the probate court and to abolish those Territorial officers which had been created from necessity, "so that the United States, by her judges, attorneys and marshals may execute the laws of the Territory." It appears, then, from this review made by Associate Justice Snow, long before the date of the Utah Expedition that the conflict which arose in the courts of Judges Drummond and Stiles, furnishing the most direct cause of said expedi- tion, was not in consequence of the Legislature desiring to limit the legitimate rule of the federal officers, much less to put the Territory in the attitude of re- bellion, but rather that Drmmond and others sought the conflict with the very design so soon afterwards expressed in the Utah war. Such, at least, was the opinion of the Mormon people. In the Spring of 1857, Associate Justice Drummond went to Carson Valley ostensibly to hold court, instead of which he immediately left Carson for Cali- fornia to commence his crusade. As soon as he reached the Pacific Coast he made a fierce attack upon the Mormons in the papers of San Francisco. He next from New Orleans April 2, 1857, dispatched his resignation to the Govern- ment that it might reach Washington before the executive session adjourned. His exposure — much of it false and much of it exaggerated — added to the affidavit of Judge Stiles who was then in Washington, arroused Congress to demand im- mediate action. ISO HIST OR Y OF SAL T LAKE CI TV. Meantime; while this war crusade was being worked up against Utah, she was making extraordinary efforts to bring herself into closer relations with the Eastern States, and a broader intercourse with the world generally. As already seen, early in the year 1856, she had made a grand demonstration for admission into the Union, and now the close of the year saw her undertaking a great en- terprise to aid the Government in its postal service, enlarge her own commerce, and establish a line of settlements between Great Salt Lake City and the Eastern frontiers. One of the citizens of Utah, Mr. Hiram Kimball, had obtained the contract from the Post Office Department for the transportation of the United States mails across the plains between Independence, Missouri, and this city. Hitherto the postal service with Utah had been very unsatisfactory, the contracts being exceedingly low, which gave the contractors, who were only commercially interested in Utah, nothing of the citizen's impulse and ambition to perfect the mail service. Feramorz Little, indeed, as a sub-contractor, had on former occa- sions made exceedingly short time, but up to the letting of the contract to Mr. Hiram Kimball, the enterprising men of Salt Lake City, whose commercial facilities would be greatly enhanced by the organization of a grand carrying com- pany, had found no opportunity for such a design. The contract of Mr. Hiram Kimball amounted to only ^23,600 for the mail service, but Governor Young saw in it the foundation of a gigantic express company, such as only he could possibly organize, having at his back an entire community who was so vitally concerned in the enterprise. Locked out by deep snows on the mountains from nearly all intercourse with the Eastern States during the terrible winter of 1856, and almost as destitute of news from the Pacific, the Mormons had little idea of the stir which Utah had created everywhere throughout the Union since the former contractor, Magraw, had written his letter to the President of the United States, dated Independence, Missouri, October 3, 1856, since which time, they had received no mail; much less did they know of the inception of the "contractors' war," as in the sequel the Utah Expedition was very generally considered to be. Taking up the mail contract of the Government in good faith, and with ■that executive promptness and confidence in his recources which were so charac- teristic of the man, Governor Young bent all his energies to organize the "B. Y. Express." He gathered around him the most intrepid men of the mountains, urged the brethren who had stock to join in the enterprise, and suceeded in con- trolling all that was necessary to make such a gigantic company as that which he designed successful. There were many companies organized with outfitting teams, tools, farming utensils, etc., to form settlements over the entire line, though at that date there were only a few mountaineers living between Salt Lake City and the terminal point. The winter snows of 1856-7 had tarried long on the mountains and the plains, and this rendered the stocking of the road and the building of stations over the long distance of 1,200 miles a very severe task. But there was every incentive to more than ordinary diligence. The Government had never exhib- ited much favor to any Mormon citizen. The acting postmaster at that time. Judge Elias Smith, was only a deputy of the gentile postmaster, Mr. William HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. '51 Bell. Any delay now in commencing the new mail contract might be seized as a pretext for repudiating the new contractor, which really turned out to be the case when the expedition made it convenient for the Government to find such a pretext. With this fully impressed upon their minds, the most daring and hardy of the mountaineers were called by Governor Young to assist, and in an incredi- bly short space of time, and in the midst of very severe weather, stations were built and relays of horses and mules were strung all the way along the traveled route, from the mountains to the Missouri river. There was a fair prospect that the "B. Y. Express Carrying Company" would soon grow into the vast enter- prise as designed, conveying all the merchandise and mails from the East and placing Utah, by means of express messengers, in daily intercourse with the rest of the world, a decade before that desired end was accomplished by the railroad. But this very enterprise, undertaken in the service of the Government, having for its aim also the general good and commercial advancement of this western country, and for the safety of the emigrations, which were fast peopling these young States and Territories, was construed against the Mormons as one of the causes which gave rise to the Utah Expedition. This will be exemplified in document. No. 2iZi furnished to the House from the Indian Department. " Indian Agency of the Upper Platte, On Raw Hide Creek, July 15, 1857. "Sir: In a communication addressed to the Indian Office, dated April last, I called the attention of the department to the settlements being made within the boundaries of this agency by the ' Mormon Church,' clearly in viola- tion of law, although the pretext or pretence under which these settlements are made is under the cover of a contract of the Mormon Church to carry the mail from Independence, Missouri, to Great Salt Lake City. "On the 25th May, a large Mormon colony took possession of the valley of Deer Creek, one hundred miles west of Fort Laramie, and drove away a band of Sioux Indians whom I had settled there in April, and had induced them to plant corn. "I left that Indian band on the 23d May, to attend to matters connected' with the Cheyenne band, in the lower part of the agency. "I have information from a reliable source that these Mormons are about three hundred in number, have plowed and planted two hundred acres of prairie, and are building houses sufficient for the accommodation of five hundred persons, and have a large herd of cattle, horses and mules. "I am persuaded that the Mormon Church intend, by this plan thus partially developed, to monopolize all of tlie trade with the Indians and whites within, or passing through, the Indian country, " I respectfully and earnestly call the attention of the department to this in- vasion, and enter my protest against this occupation of the Indian country, in force, and the forcible ejection o( the Indians from the place where I had settled them. "I am powerless to control this matter, for the Mormons obey no laws en- acted by Congress. I would respectfully request that the President will be ' IJ2 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. pleased to issue such order as, in his wisdom and judgment, may seem best in order to correct the evil complained of. " Very respectfully, your obedient servant, THOS. S. TWISS, Indian Agent, Upper Platte. "Hon. J. W. Denver, Commissioner of Indian Affairs. ' ' The date of the communication referred tb, (of April, 1857), is prior to the circular of General Scott, and cotemporary with the letter of Judge Drum- mond to the Attorney General, which was dated April 2d, 1S57, enclosing his resignation^ dated March 30th, 1857. These three letters quoted — from the con- tractor, Magraw, Associate Justice Drummond, and Indian Agent Twiss — are the very documents which, both in subject and date, bore most directly upon the " information which gave rise to the military expedition ordered to Utah Terri- tory, * * * throwing light upon the question as to how far said Brigham Young and his followers are in a state of rebellion or resistance to the government of the United States.". Moreover, in most of the documents fur- nished to the House, excepting those from the War Department, of date subse- quent to the determination of the Expedition, there is seen not only a marked, and almost serial connection with the three documents in example, but the evidence of a decided conspiracy; that is to say, those documents were con- cocted both with malice and intent to bring on the "Utah War," by leading the Government astray with false information that " Brigham Young and his follow- ers" were "in a state of rebellion or resistance to the government of the United States." It will be noticeable, that two of the six " Gentiles of Great Salt Lake City," to whom Judge Drummond refers the Attorney General " for proof of the manner in which they have been insulted and abused by leading Mormons for two years past," are Garland Hurt, Indian Agent, and John M. Hockaday, mer- chant and mail contractor. There was no call for proof from the Chief Justice, John F. Kinney, then in the east, nor from such Gentile merchants as Livingston and Bell, the latter of whom was also the postmaster of Great Salt Lake City, nor from William H. Hooper, who in that period must be considered as a Gen- tile merchant rather than as a Mormon. Now, the pertinency of this mail business in the historical exposition of causes which led to the Utah war will apj^ear at the very naming of the fact that Hockaday and Magraw were the former contractors to carry the mail between Independence, Missouri, and Great Salt Lake City. Notice at this point a remarkable connection of causes suggestive of con- spiracy, when laid side by side with subsequent events, and the acts of the prin- cipal factors who gave to the Government the information that led to the sending of the Expedition to put down a rebellion, which had no existence in fact or intent, so far as the citizens of Utah were concerned. In the fall of 1856, Hockaday and Magraw lost the mail contract, which, as noticed, was awarded to Mr. Hiram Kimball, a citizen of Utah. This award was not as any favor from the department^ Which, there is every reason to believe. 31 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. ijj preferred the former contractors, but in compliance with the rule, requiring the lowest responsible bid. The mail service for Utah was now in the hands of the community so vitally concerned in its success, rather than in the mere emolu- ments of the contract ; and Governor Young, in the interest of the commerce of the Territory, and of their emigrations, as well as for the quick and reliable postal intercourse with the Eastern States, had already designed the gigantic " B. Y. Express Carrying Company." Doubtless the former contractor, one of whom, Mr. Hockaday, was a resident merchant of Salt Lake City, knew of the concep- tion of such a design of Governor Young, some time before the new contract was awarded, seeing the contract was sought for that very purpose. The gieat Mormon colonizer and city founder, had already proclaimed his intention of establishing a line of settlements from Great Salt Lake City to Carson Valley, and a line of intercourse east to the Missouri River; and it was quite certain that, on this eastern line, a chain of settlements would spring up out of the Mor- mon emigrations, as soon as permitted by the Government in its treaties for In- dian lands. This example was given by the Mormons in their exodus, when they established "stakes of Zion " on the route to the Mountains — laid the founda- tions indeed of what have since become our great frontier cities. No sooner did the Indian agent, Thomas S. Twiss, see the establishment of the mail stations, by the " Y. X. Company," than he predicted to the Government, the Mormon con- trol of the trade of the plains, and urged hostilities to prevent this colonization of the eastern line, exaggerating a mail station into a settlement of five hundred, and charging the Mormons with driving off the Indians and unlawfully settling on their lands. The contractor, W. M. F. Magraw, on the side of his personal interest, seems to have been in full understanding and perfect accord with Indian Agent Twiss; and immediately upon the award of the contract to Mr. Hiram Kimball, upon which was to be based the operation of the " B. Y. Express and Carrying Company," he wrote to the President of the United States, addressing him "as a personal and political friend," to lay before him " some information relative to the present political and social condition of the Territory of Utah, ' ' in which "there is left no protection for life or property," but a condition of things, which, (to follow the contractor's words) "will, when published, startle the conservative people of the States, and create a clamor which will not be readily quelled; and I have no doubt that the time is near at hand, and the elements rapidly combin- ing to bring about a state of affairs which will result in indiscriminate bloodshed, robbery and rapine, and which, in a brief space of time will reduce that country to a condition of a howling wilderness." Very suggestive is this prediction of the contractor Magraw, in view of the fact that it was afterwards nearly fulfilled. It was the prospect of the ensuing two years — a prospect, moreover, which was known in the States, and even in Europe, quite six months before it was known to the people of Utah — which reasonably suggests that it was an anticipation not of prescient sagacity, but of a direct conspiracy to accomplish that foreshadowed in Magraw's letter, presented by Secretary Cass as the first link of the imformation which gave rise to the Utah Expedition. And the prediction is the more striking the closer it is viewed, and 6 154 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. the nearer the altar is approached upon which the sacrifice to be offered up was laid. The Mormon community is the sacrifice seen upon the altar, just as it had been in Missouri and Illinois, — a sacrifice which, when it was revealed in the actual offering to the gaze of the good wife of Governor Cummings, caused that lady to weep, and in anguish to implore her noble-hearted husband to use his in- fluence with the Government to save the devoted people. It was the " country" which the Mormons had changed from " the desert to the fruitful field," and made it "blossom as the rose," that in "a brief space of time" was to be re- duced "to a condition of a howling wilderness," which, when General Johnston and his army were brought face to face with the prospect, as they rode through the deserted city of the Great Salt Lake, appalled even those familiar with the desolations of war. The prediction of this mail contractor, then, has a deep significance in the history, especially when coupled with his statement to the President, to the effect that there was about to be " published " charges against the Mormon community which would "startle the conservative people of the States, and create a clamor which will not be readily quelled." This was fulfilled to the letter, when a few months later Judge Drummond fulminated his monstrous charges, both in Cali- fornia and the Eastern States, and aroused a fury in the nation to "wipe " the Mormon community out. But there is another part of the narrative to be yet told, relative to the mail service and the contracts in question, that ramifies itself in every branch of the history, from the date of Mr. Magraw's letter to the President, to the time of the repudiation of the Kimball contract by the General Post Office Department, and the arrival of the news in Utah that an army was on the way. The major thread of this subject shall be left to the hereafter review, in the next message of the Governor Young to the Legislature, so ponderous and important is the matter ; but a few minor threads is here necessary for the completeness of the historic story. The failure of the contractor Magraw to bring the last mails, which kept Utah and "the world" so long without news of each other, made it necessary for the postmaster of Great Salt Lake City, to make a special contract to carry the mail east tO' the terminal point,. Independence, Missouri. Feramorz Little was entrusted with the contract, and he and Ephraim K. Hanks left Great Salt Lake City with the mail^ December ii, 1856. Beyond the Devil's Gate on the way they met the former contractor's outfit — Mr. Magraw and company. They were bringing their last mail through and picking up their stock. Having tarried so long, however, this contractor and his company failed to come through, in con- sequence of the deep snows in the nvountains, and they returned to the Platte River Bridge and wintered. The important item will by and by appear in Gov- ernor Young's message, that the official letter of the award of the new contract to Mr. Hiram Kimball wintered with them, in the pocket of one of the con- tractor's agents, which circumstance had a sequel not greatly to the honor of the post office department, in its repudiation of Mr. Kimball's contract, on the pre- text of the service not being commenced by him in the stipulated time. Mr. Little with the special mail arrived at Independence, Missouri on the HIS TOR V OF SAL T LAKE CIl F. rjj 27th of February, 1857, after a very severe trip. He forthwith proceeded to Washington to collect his money for taking the mail down, which having accom- plished, he went to New York. The charges of Judge Drummond were just at that moment published in the Eastern papers, creating a great excitement. The following letter to the public from Mr, Little was called forth in answer: "Merchant's Hotel, N. Y., April 15, 1857. "Editor Herald. "Sir: As myself and Mr. E. K. Hanks are the last persons who have come to the States from Great Salt Lake City, I deem it my duty to bear testimony against the lying scribblers who seem to be doing their utmost to stir up a bad feeling against the Utonians. We left our homes on the nth of De- cember, brought the last mail to the States, and certainly should know of the state of things there. The charges of Judge Drummond are as false as he is cor- rupt. Before I left for the States, I was five days every week in Great Salt Lake City, and I witness to all the world that I never heard one word of the burning of nine hundred volumes of law, records, etc., nor anything of that character, nor do I know, or ever heard of anything of the dumb boy story he talks of. "There is only one house between my house and the Penitentiary, said to contain "five or six young men from Missouri and Iowa," and I do know that up to the day I left, there were only in that place of confinement three Indians, who were convicted at the time of Colonel Steptoe's sojourn there, for having taken part in the massacre of Captain Gunnison and party, which Drummond now charges upon the Mormons, even though Colonel Steptoe and the United States' officers then in Utah investigated the aff'air thoroughly and secured the conviction of the three Indians alluded to. This is an unblushing falsehood, that none but a man like Drummond could pen. "The treasonable acts alleged against the Mormons in Utah are false from beginning to end. At Fort Kearney we learned all about the murder of Colonel Babbitt, and do know that that charge against the Mormons is but another of Drummond's creations. "I have but a short time at my disposal for writing, but must say, that I am astoni>^hed to find in the States, rumors againt Utah. We left our homes in peace, dreaming of no evil, and we come here and learn that we are the most corrupt of men, and are preparing for war. "Yours, etc., FERAMORZ LITTLE." At New York, Mr. Little learned from Mr. James Monroe Livingston, one of the firm of Livingston and Kinkead, of Great Salt Lake City, that the " Y. X." company for carrying the mails had been started, and that he, Mr. Little, was expected to take charge of the returning mails. He immediately hastened to Independence, Missouri, where he found the agents who had come down from the mountains with the Utah mails. There was at Independence a large accum- ulation of mail matter, amounting to several tons. The men in charge fitted up two or three wagons, and Mr. John R. Murdock, with the latest mail selected, started home on the ist of May, while Mr, Little remained to get up the June 156 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. mail, and on the ist of June, he started himself with three wagon loads of postal matter. While at Independence, gathering up the mails, Mr. Little had much inter- course with the numerous contractors at that point, who were waiting the con- tracts for the Utah Expedition, with which, though not yet announced officially from the War Department, they were well posted in the design. The Mormon mail agent at first could not believe it possible that the Government was about to send an army against Utah for being in a state of rebellion which, he assured them was not the case, while they in turn assured him that such an expedition was projected and certain. What a suggestion of '■'■the Contractor s war"" ! A short distance from Fort Laramie, Mr. Little met Abraham O. Smoot, Esq., the then Mayor of Great Salt Lake City, in charge of the June mail going east. Of his trip Mayor Smoot furnishes us the following: '' On the 2d of June, 1857, I left Salt Lake City in company with a young man from the Thirteenth Ward, by the name of Ensign, (whose father still re- sides in that ward), in charge of the last mail going east by the Y. Express. "We met between Fort Laramie and Kearney, some two or three hundred United States troops, who said they were reconnoitering the country in search of hostile Indians, who at that time were very troublesome on the plains. The offi- cer in command (whose name has gone from me) treated us very kindly, and proposed to furnish us an escort as far east as Fort Kearney, I thanked him for his kind consideration in offering the escort, but told him I feared his escort would not be able to keep up with me, as I proposed to drive about sixty miles a day, until 1 reached Fort Kearney, and at that speed I thought there would be little, if any, danger of the Indians overtaking us. "About one hundred miles west of Independence we began to meet heavy freight teams. The captains and teamsters all seemed to be very reticient in re- lation to giving their destination, and all I was able to learn from them was that they had Government freight, and were bound for some western post, and the trains belonged to William H. Russell. " In less than two days from that time I reached Kansas City, twelve miles west of Independence, where I met Nicholas Groesbeck who had charge of the Y. X. Company at that end of the route. In company with him we immediately proceeded to the office of William H. Russsell, and there learned that the desti- nation of his freight trains was Salt Lake City, with supplies for Government troops who would soon follow^, I also learned from William H. Russell of the appointment of Governor Gumming and other Federal officers that came out with the United States troops that year. "The next morning Mr. Groesbeck sent the mail into Independence and I remained in Kansas City to learn more of the movements of the Government, if possible. "The mail we took down was received by the postmaster and he informed the carrier that he had received instructions from the Government to deliver no more mail for Salt Lake City at present. That denial implied that we had no more use for our stock and mail stations on the route 3 so, in consultation with Bro. N. Groesbeck and others, we con- HISTORY &F SALT LAKE CITY. j^y eluded to move our stock and station outfits homeward. Myself and Judson Stoddard were given the responsibility, and two or three other young men (Bro. •Ensign being one) were detailed to assist us. '•' We moved slowly gathering everything as we went, until we reached Sou^h Platte about 120 miles east of Fort Laramie where we met Porter Rockwell with the July mail from Salt Lake City, he proceeded no further east but returned with us to Fort Laramie, 513 miles east of Salt Lake, arriving there on the 17th of July. " On the i8th Bro. O. P. Rockwell and myself, believing that we had passed all danger of Indian troubles, concluded to leave the stock in the care of Bro. J. Stoddard and others to bring in at their leisure and we would make our way home by the 24th of July, the tenth anniversary of the arrival of the Pioneers in Salt Lake Valley. This arrangement did not meet with the approval of Bro. Stoddard against which he strongly protested but without effect, so he finally accepted the alternative of leaving his stock (some eight or ten which were his personal property) with his trusty hired men and accompany us to the Salt Lake Valley. " We hitched up two span of our best animals to a small spring wagon and left Fort Laramie on the evening of the i8th of July, and reached Salt Lake City on the evening of the 23rd of July, making the 513 miles in five days and three hours. Yours respectfully, A. O. SMOOT. Provo City, Utah, February 14th, 1884.'" CHAPTER XVIL THE PIONEER JUBILEE. CELEBRATION OF THEIR TENTH ANNIVERSARY. ARRIVAL OF MESSENGERS WITH THE NEWS OF THE COMING OF AN INVADING ARMY. THE DAY OF JUBILEE CHANGED TO A DAY OF INDE- PENDENCE. CAPTAIN VAN VLIET AND THE MORMON PEOPLE. The people were celebrating the twenty-fourth of July — the anniversary of the pioneers — in Big Cottonwood Canyon, when the news reached them of the coming of the troops to invade their homes. They had conquered the desert. Cities were fast springing up in the soli- tary places, where cities had never been planted before, and in valleys that had once been the bed of the great sea; civilization was spreading. A plentiful harvest was promised that year, and every circumstance of their situation seemed favorable, except the lack of postal communication with the 1^8 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. East. Their isolation, in this particular, had kept them in ignorance, up to that time, of the movements of the Government concerning them. On the 2 2d of July, 1857, numerous teams were seen wending their way, by different routes, to the mouth of Big Cottonwood Canyon, where they halted for the night. Next morning Governor Young led the van of the long line of car- riages and wagons, and before noon the cavalcade reached the camp ground at the Cottonwood Lake, which nestles in the bosom of the mountain, 8,000 feet above the level of the sea. Early in the afternoon, the company, numbering 2,687 persons, encamped, and soon all were busy with the arrangements for the morrow. It will be seen, at a glance, that this was intended to be a pioneer's jubilee indeed; not in a city, but in primitive surroundings, suggestive of their entrance into these valleys ten years before. There were in attendance: Captain Ballo's band, the Nauvoo brass band, the Ogden City brass band, and the Great Salt Lake City and Ogden martial bands; also, of the military, the ist company of light artillery, under Adjutant- General James Ferguson ; a detachment of four platoons of life guards and one platoon of the lancers, under Colonel Burton ; and one company of light in- fantry cadets, under Captain John W. Young. Colonel J. C. Little was marshal of the day. Early on the following morning the people assembled, and the choir sang : " On the mountain tops appearing." Then, after prayers the Stars and Stripes were unfurled on the two highest peaks, in sight of the camp, on two of the tallest trees. At twenty minutes past nine a. m., three rounds from the artillery saluted the First Presidency, and at a quarter past ten three rounds were given for the ''Hope of Israel," Captain John W. Young, with his company of light infantry, answered to this last salute, and went through their military evolutions to the admiration of the beholders. This company numbered fifty boys, at about the age of twelve, who had been uni- formed by Governor Young. At noon. Mayor A. O. Smoot, Elder Judson Stoddard, Judge Elias Smith, and O. P. Rockwell, rode into camp, the two former from the "States" (Mis- souri River), in twenty days. They brought news of the coming of the troops. It was the first tidings of war. Any other people in the world would have been stricken with a terrible fear; but not so these Mormon Saints. The well-known war cry of Cromwell, when he entered into battle, " The Lord of Hosts is with us!" was the undaunted explanation of every heart, and soon it was the burden of every speech. In a moment the festive song was changed to the theme oT war ; the jubilee of a people swelled into a sublime declaration of independence. Never before did such a spirit of heroism so suddenly and completely possess an entire community. Men and women shared it alike. The purest and most graphic passage of Sten- house's "Rocky Mountain Saints" is the description of this eventful day. It it worthy of quotation. He says : "On the 24th of July, 1857, there were probably gathered at the lake about two thousand persons — men women, and children — in the fullest enjoyment of HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 159 social freedom. Some were fishing in the lake, others strolling among the trees, climbing the high peaks, pitching quoits, playing cricket, engaging in gymnastic exercises, pic-nicking, and gliding through the boweries that were prepared for the mazy dance. It was a day of feasting, joy, and amusement for the silver-haired veteran and the tottering child. The welkin rang with the triumphant songs of Zion, and these, accompanied by the sweet melody of many-toned instruments of music, thrilled every bosom with enthusiastic joy. Their exuberance was the pure outgushing of their souls' emotion, and owned no earthly inspiration, for their only beverage was the sparkling nectar of Eden, while their sympathies were united by a sacred and fraternal bond of affectionate love, which for the time ren- dered them oblivious of the artificial distinctions of social life. The highest and the lowest rejoiced together, rank and authority were set aside; it was a day in which the dreary past C3uld ba favorably contracted with the joyous present, and hearts were mide glad in the simple faith that the God of their fathers was their protector, and that they were his peculiar people. "But before the sun had crimsoned the snowy peaks that surrounded the worshiping, rejoicing Saints, Brigham was in possession of the news, and the people were listening with breathless attention to the most stirring, important ad- dress that ever their leader had uttered, for upon his decision depended peace or war. "Brigham was undaunted. With the inspiration of such surroundings — the grandeur of the Wasatch range of the Rocky Mountains everywhere encircling him, the stately trees whose foliage of a century's growth towered proudly to the heavens, the multitude of people before him who had listened to his counsels as- if hearkening to the voice of the Most High — men and women who had followed him from the abodes of civilization to seek shelter in the wilderness from mobs, prattling innocents and youths who knew nothing of the world but Utah, and who looked to him as a father for protection — what could he not say?" To say that the Mormons were taken with astonishment would be to misstate the case. They had long looked for this issue. They had seen mobs marshaled against them from the beginnimg, but they had also been told by their Prophet Joseph Smith, early in his career, that "Some day they would see the United States come against them in war, and that the Lord should deliver them pnd bring glory to His name." Nothing more unlikely could have been uttered by , lis prophet of a few hundred disciples ; as likely was it that the stars of heaven should make war upon the earth in impotent wrath. They were not even in a location at that time where this was possible. The very prophecy foreshadowed their removal to the mountains, as though to invite the nation to the issue; and its fulfillment bespoke a destiny in them superior to the destiny even of the United States.- The nation was now coming against them, to verify the prophecy in the most literal manner. Hence, doubtless, the extraordinary trust and fortitude of the people, and the self-possession of their leaders. They had no doubt as to the- issue, though how God would work out their deliverance they saw not fully. Everything the Mormons did at that time was done in the most deliberate earnestness. Two messengers were immediately dispatched to England, to call home the American Elders in Europe, and ten thousand British Saints would i6o HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CLTY. have gathered that year, had it been possible, to share the fate of their brethren and sisters in the mountains; but all emigration was, of course now cut off. Never was there so much enthusiasm in the foreign missions as then. One could judge of the sublime enthusiasm at home by that which animated the Saints abroad. Yet they saw a mighty nation moving against the handful in the moun- tains, and moving with a settled resolve to annihilate the Mormon power at once and forever, leaving no seed on American territory from which that power might re-germinate. The papers of America and Europe teemed with these anticipations. It was broadly suggested that volunteers from every State should pour into Utah, make short work of the Saints, possess their cities, fill their Territory with a gentile population, and take their wives and daughters as spoil, thus breaking up the polygamic institution. For a time there was a prospect of this. Tens of thousands were eager for this thorough work of regeneration for Utah ; and, had the Government dared to encourage it, the attempt would have been made. For such a crusade, however, a civilized judgement could have found no excuse, not even on the plea of rebellion. At least, President Buchanan was made to see this much, and to appreciate that he could only use United States regular troops, and these only in the guise oi a. posse comitatus to the new Governor. The sentiments that actuated the Mormon community at that time were of no doubtful tenor, as may be judged by the following extracts from Brigham's dis- courses to his people immediately after the receipt of the news. "Liars have reported that this people have committed treason, and upon their misrepresentations the President has ordered out troops to aid in officering this Territory. If those officers are like many who have previously been sent here — and we have reason to believe that they are, or they would not come where they know they are not wanted — they are poor, broken down political hacks, not fit for the civilized society whence they came, and so they are dragooned upon us for officers. I feel that I won't bear such treatment (and that is enough to say,) for we are just as free as the mountain air. * * * This people are free ; they are not in bondage to any Government on God's footstool. We have trans- gressed no law, neither do we intend so to do; but as for any nation coming to destroy this people, God Almighty being my helper, it shall not be! * * * We have borne enough of their oppression and abuse, and we will not bear any more of it, for there is no just law requiring further forbearance on our part. And I am not going to permit troops here for the protection of the priests and the rabble in their efforts to drive us from the land we possess. The Lord does not want us to be driven, for He has said, * If you will assert your rights, and keep my commandments, you shall never again be brought into bondage by your enemies' * * * They say that the coming of their army is legal; and I say that it is not ; they who say it are morally rotten. Come on with your thousands of illegally-ordered troops, and I promise you in the name of Israel's God, that they shall melt away as the snow before a July sun. * * * You might as well tell me that you can make hell into a powder-house as to tell me that they intend to keep an army here and have peace i * * * I have told you that if this people will live their religion all will be well; and I have told you that if there is any man or woman who is not willing to destroy HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CIIY. i6t everything of their property that would be of use to an enemy if left, I would ad- vise thenfi to leave the Territory. And I again say so to-day ; for when the time comes lo burn and lay waste our improvements, if any man undertakes to shield his he will be treated as a traitor; for 'judgement will be laid to the line, and righteousness to the plummet.' >!« ^ * j^q^v tl^g faint-hearted can go in peace; but should that time come, they must not interfere. Before I will again suffer as I have in times gone by there shall not one building, nor one foot of lumber, nor a fence, nor a tree, nor a particle ot grass or hay, that will burn, be left in reach of our enemies. I am sworn, if driven to extremity, to ut- terly lay waste this land in the name of Israel's God, and our enemies shall find it as barren as when we came here." It was at such a moment, as the picture suggests, that Capt. Van Vliet ar- rived in the city of the Saints. The Governor, the Lieut. General, Daniel H. Wells, Adjt. General Furguson, and the Apostles, received him with marked cor- diality, but with an open programme, They took him into their gardens. The sisters showed him the paradise that their woman hands would destroy if that invad- ing army came. He was awed by the prospect — his ordinary judgment con- founded by such extraordinary examples. To the wife of Albert Carrington, in whose garden he was walking, in conversation with the Governor and his party he exclaimed : "What, madam! would you consent to see this beautiful home in ashes and this fruitful orchard destroyed? " "Yes!" answered Sister Carrington, with heroic resolution, "I would not only consent to it, but 1 would set fire to my home with my own hands, and cut down every tree and root up every plant ! " The following extracts from conversations between Governor Young and Captain Van Vliet, on the 12th and 13th of September, 1857, will be of interest, insomuch as they were had previous to the receipt, in Salt Lake City, of the news of the Mountain Meadow Massacre. Their accuracy may be relied on, as they are transcribed from Apostle Woodruff's private journal, and were originally recorded within a {t\^ hours of their occurrence, and are amply verified by many persons then present : ^^President Yoiinj. We do not want to fight the United States, but if they drive us to it, we shall do the best we can ; and I will tell you, as the Lord lives, we shall come off conquerers, for we trust in Him. * * * Q,odi has set up his kingdom on the earth, and it will never fall. ^ * * -yy^ <^^2\\ do all we can to avert a collision, but if they drive us' to it, God will overthrow them. If they would let us alone and say to the mobs : ' Now you may go and kill the Mormons if you can, but we will have nothing to do with it,' that would be all we would ask of them; but for the Government to array the army against us, is too despicable and damnable a thing for any honorable nation to do , and God will hold them in derision who do it. * * ;ic 'p|^g United States are sending their armies here to simply hold us still until a mob can come and butcher us, as has been done before. * * '^ We are the sup- porters of the constitution of the United States, and we love that constitution i62 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. and respect the laws of the United States ; but it is by the corrupt administra- tion of those laws that we are made to suffer. If the law had been vindicated in Missouri, it would have sent Governor Boggs to the gallows, along with those who murdered Joseph and Hyrum, and those other fiends who accomplised our expulsion from the States. * ^i^ * Most of the Government officers who have been sent here have taken no interest in us, but, on the contrary, have tried many times to destroy us. "Capl. Van Vliet This is the case with most men sent to the Territories. They receive their offices as a political reward, or as a stepping-stone to the Sena- torship; but they have no interest in common with the people. ^ ^ -^ This people has been lied about the worst of any people I ever saw. * * The greatest hold that the Government now has upon you is in the accusation that you have burned the United States records. ^^ President Young. I deny that any books of the United States have been burned! All I ask of any man is, that he tell the truth about us, pay his debts and not steal, and then he will be welcome to come or go as he likes. * * If the Government has arrived at that state that it will try to kill this people be- cause of their religion, 710 honorable man shoald be afraid of it. * * * We would like to ward off this blow if we can ; but the United States seem deter- mined to drive us into a fight. They will kill us if they can. A mob killed Joseph and Hyrum in jail, notwithstanding the faith of the State was pledged to protect them. * ^i; * j have broken no law, and under the present state of affairs I will not suffer myself to be taken by any United States officer, to be killed as they killed Joseph. ^^Capt. Van Vliet: I do not think it is the intention of the Government to arrest you, but to install a new governor in the Territory. ''President Young: I believe you tell the truth — that you believe this — but you do not know their intentions as well as I do. When you get away from here you will think of a great many things that you have seen and heard : for instance, people have accused us of coUeaguing with the Indians against the Government: they were much afraid that Joseph Smith would go among the Indians, and they wanted to keep him away from them ; but now they have driven us into their midst. I want you to note the signs of the times; you will see that God will chastise this nation for trying to destroy both the Indians and the Mormons. * * * If the Government persists in sending an army to destroy us, in the name of the Lord we shall conquer them. If they dare to force the issue, I shall not hold the Indians by the wrist any longer, for white men to shoot at them; they shall go ahead. and do as they please. If the issue comes, you may tell the Government to stop all emigration across this continent, for the Indians will kill all who attempt it. And if an army succeeds in penetrating this valley, tell the Government to see that it has forage and provisions in store, for they will find here onlv a charred and barren waste. " Cafit. Van Vliet: * * * If our Government pushes this matter to the extent of making war upon you, I will withdraw from the army, for I will not have a hand in shedding the blood of American citizens- "President Yotmg: We shall trust in God. * * 4: Congress HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 163 has promptly sent investigating committees to Kansas and other places, as occa- sion has required; but upon the merest rumor it has sent 2,000 armed soldiers to destroy the people of Utah, without investigating the subject at all. " Capt. Van Vliet. The Government may yet send an investigating com- mittee to Utah, and consider it good policy, before they get through. ''President Young. I believe God has sent you here, and fhat goodwill grow out of it. I was glad when I heart you were coming. "Capt. Van Vliet. I am anxious to get back to Washington as soon as I can. I have heard officially that General Harney has been recalled to Kansas to offi- ciate as Governor. I shall stop the train on Ham's Fork on my own respon- sibility. ''President Young. If we can keep the peace for this Winter I do think there will something turn up that may save the shedding of blood. " The reader cannot fail to perceive that the terrible butchery at the Mountain Meadow — was farthest from Brigham Young's policy at that time, to say nothing of humanitarian considerations. But, though Governor Young was aiming for some such consummation as that which came, he neither allowed himself nor his people to retreat a step from their chosen position. Indeed, in their stern fidelity to their cause was their only safety and successful outcome. Captain Van Vliet thus reported to the commanding general of the army : Ham's Fork, September 16, 1857. "Captain: I have the honor to report, for the information of the command- ing general, the result of my trip to the Territory of Utah. "In obedience to special instructions, dated headquarters army for Utah, Fort Leavenworth, July 28, 1857, I left Fort Leavenworth, July 30, and reached Fort Kearny in nine travelling days. Fort Laramie in ten, and Great Salt Lake City in thirty-three and a half. At Fort Kearny I was detained one day by the changes I had to make and by sickness, and at Fort Laramie three days, as all the animals were forty miles from the post, and when brought in all had to be shod before they could take the road. I traveled as rapidly as it is possible to do with six mule wagons. Several of my teams broke down, and at least half of my animals are unserviceable and will remain so until they recruit. During my progress towards Utah I met many people from that Territory, and also several mountain men at Green river, and all informed me that I would not be allowed to enter Utah, and if I did I would run great risk of losing my life. I treated all this, however, as idle talk, but it induced me to leave my wagons and es- cort at Ham's Fork, 143 miles this side of the city, and proceed alone. I reached Great Salt Lake City without molestation, and immediately upon my arrival I informed Governor Brigham Young that I desired an interview, which he appointed for the next day. On the evening of the day of my arrival Gov. ernor Young, with many of the leading men of the city, called upon me at my quarters. The governor received me most cordially and treated me during my stay, which continued some six days, with the greatest hospitality and kindness. i64 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. In this interview the governor made known to me his views with regard to the approach of the United States troops, in plain and unmistakeable language. " He stated that the Mormons had ben persecuted, murdered, and robbed in Missouri and Illinois both by the mob and State authorities, and that now the United States were about to pursue the same course, and that, therefore, he and the people of Utah had determined to resist all persecution at the commencement, and that the troops now on the march for Utah should not enter the Great Salt Lake valley. As he uttered these words all those present concurred most heartily in what he said. " The next d^y, as agreed upon, I called upon the governor and delivered in person the letter with which I had been entrusted. In that interview, and in several subsequent ones, the same determination to resist to the death the en- trance of the troops into the valley was expressed by Governor Young and those about him. ^'The governor informed me that there was abundance of everything I re- quired for the troops, such as lumber, forage, etc., but that none would be sold to us. In the course of my conversations with the governor and the influential men in the Territory, I told them plainly and frankly what I conceived vvould be the result of their present course. I told them that they might prevent the small military force now approaching Utah from getting through the narrow defiles and rugged passes of the mountains this year, but that next season the United States government would send troops sufficient to overcome all opposition. The answer to this was invariably the same: "We are aware that such will be the case ; but when those troops arrive they will find Utah a desert. Every house will be burned to the ground, every tree cut down, and every field laid waste. We have three years' provisions on hand, which we will ' cache,' and then take to the mountains and bid defiance to all the powers of the government." I at- tended their service on Sunday, and, in course of a sermon delivered by Elder Taylor, he referred to the approach of the troops and declared they should not enter the Territory. He then referred to the probability of an overpowering force being sent against them, and desired all present, who would apply the torch to their own buildings, cut down their trees, and liy waste their fields, to hold up their hands. Every hand, in an audience numbering over 4,000 persons, was raised at the same moment. During my stay in the city I visited several families,. and all with whom I was thrown looked upon the present movement of the troops towards their Territory as the commencement of another religious persecution, and expressed a fixed determination to sustain Governor Young in any measures he might adopt. From all these facts I am forced to the conclu- sion that Governor Young and the people of Utah will prevent, if possible, the army for Utah from entering their Territory this season. This, in my opinion, will not be a difficult task, owing to the lateness of the season, the smallness of our force, and the defences that nature has thrown around the valley of the Great Salt Lake. " There is but one road running into the valley on the side which our troops are approaching, and for over fifty miles it passes through narrow canyons and over rugged mountains, which a small force could hold against great odds. I am HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 165 inclined however, to believe that the Mormons will not resort to actual hostilities until the last inonient. Their plan of operations will be, burn the grass, cut up the roads, and stampede the animals, so as to delay the troops until the snow com- mences to fall, which will render the road impassable. Snow falls early in this re- gion, in fact last night it commenced falling at Fort Bridger, and this morning the surrounding mountains are clothed in white. Were it one month earlier in the season I believe the troops could force their way in, and they may be able to do so even now; but the attempt will be fraught with considerable danger, arising from the filling up of the canyons and passes with snow. I do not wish it to be consid- ered that I am advocating either the one course or the other. I simply wish to lay the facts before the general, leaving it to his better judgment to decide upon the proper movements. Notwithstanding my inability to make the purchases I was or- dered to, and all that Governor Young said in regard to opposing the entrance of the troops into the valley I examined the country in the vicinity of the city, with the view of selecting a proper military site. I visited the military reserve. Rush Valley, but found it, in my opinion, entirely unsuitable for a military station. It contains bit little grass, and is very much exposed to the cold winds of win- ter; its only advantage being the close proximity of fine wood. It is too far from the city, being between thirty-five and forly miles, and will require teams four days to go there and return. I examined another point on the road to Rubh Valley, and only about thirty miles from the city, which I consider a much more eligible position. It is in Tuelle Valley three miles to the north of Tuelle city, and possesses wood, water, and grass ; but it is occupied by the Mormons, who have some sixty acres under cultivation, with houses and barns on their land. These persons would have to be dispossessed or bought out. In fact there is no place within forty, fifty or sixty miles of the city suitable for a military position, that is not occupied by the in- habitants and under cultivation. On my return I examined the vicinity of Fort Bridger, and found it a very suitable position for wintering the troops and grazing the animals, should it be necessary to stop at that point. The Mormons occupy the lort at present, and also have a settlement about ten miles further up Black's Fork, called Fort Supply. These two places contain buildings sufficient to cover nearly half the troops now en route for Utah ; but I was informed that they would all be laid in ashes as the army advances. I have thus stated fully the result of ray visit to Utah, and trusting that my' conduct will meet the approval of the commanding general, I am, very respectfully, your obedient servant, STEWART VAN VLIET, Captain A. Q. M. '■'■Captain Pleasanion, A. A. Adft Gen. Army for Utah, Foit Leavenworth. "P. S.— I shall start on my return to-morrow, with an escort often men." 1 66 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. CHAPTER XVIir. GOVERNOR YOUNG PLACES THE TERRITORY UNDER MARTIAL LAW. THE MILITIA ORDERED OUT. THE SEAT OF WAR, CORRESPONDENCE BE- TWEEN GOVERNOR YOUNG AND COLONEL ALEXANDER. BURNING THE GOVERNMENT TRAINS. LOT SMITH'S STORY, CONGRESS DECLARES UTAH IN A STATE OF REBELLION. The next day after the departure of Van Vliet, the Governor issued the fol- lowing proclamation, placing the Territory under martial law: '■'■ Citizens of Utah : — We are invaded by a hostile force, who are evidently assailing us to accomplish our overthrow and destruction. ' 'For the last twenty-five years we have trusted officials of the Government, from constables and justices to judges, governors and presidents, only to be scorned, held in derision, insulted and betrayed. Our houses have been plundered and then burned, our fields laid waste, our principal men butchered w^hile under the pledged faith of the Government for their safety, and our families driven from their homes to find that shelter in the barren wilderness, and that protection among hostile savages which were denied them in the boasted abodes of Christi- anity and civilization. "The constitution of our common country guarantees to us all that we do now, or have ever, claimed. "If the consdtutional rights which pertain to us as American citizens were extended to Utah according to the spirit and meaning thereof, and fairly and im- partially administered, it is all that we could ask — all that we ever asked. " Our opponents have availed themselves of prejudices existing against us because of our religious faith, to send out a formidable host to accomplish our de- struction. We have had no privilege, no opportunity of defending ourselves from the false, foul and unjust aspersions against us, before the nation. "The Government has not condescended to cause an investigating commit- tee or other persons to be sent to enquire into and ascertain the truth, as is cus- tomary in such cases. "We know those aspersions to be false, but that avails us nothing. We are condemned unheard, and forced to an issue with an armed mercenary mob, which has been sent against us at the instigation of anonymous letter-writers, ashamed to father the base, slanderous falsehoods which they have given to the public; of corrupt officials who have brought false accusations against us to screen themselves in their own infamy; and of hireling priests and howling editors, who prostitute the truth for filthy lucre's sake. "The issue which has been thus forced upon us compels us to resort to the great first law of self-preservation, and stand in our own defence, a right guar- anteed to us by the genius and institutions of our country, ar>d upon which the HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 167 government is based. Our duty to ourselves, to our families, requires us not to tamely submit to be driven and slain, without an attempt to preserve ourselves; our duty to our country, our holy religion, our God, to freedom and liberty, re- quires that we should not quietly stand still, and see those fetters forging around us which are calculated to enslave, and bring us in subjection to an unlawful mil- itary despotism, such as can only emanate in a country of constitutional law, from usurpation, tyranny and oppression. "Therefore, I, Brigham Young, governor and superintendent of Indian affairs for the Territory of Utah, in the name of the people of the United States, in the Territory of Utah, forbid : "First. All armed forces of every description from coming into this Terri- tory, under any pretence whatever. " Second. That all the forces in said Territory hold themselves in readiness to march at a moment's notice to repel any and all such invasion. " Third. Martial law is hereby declared to exist in this Territory from and after the publication of this proclamation, and no person shall be allowed to pass or repass into or through or from this Territory without a permit from the proper officer. " Given under my hand and seal, at Great Salt City, Territory of Utah, this fifteenth day of September, A. D. eighteen hundred and fifty-seven, and of the independence of the United States of America the eighty-second. BRIGHAM YOUNG." While Captain Van Vliet was listening to the discourses of the Mormon leaders and witnessing the heroic demonstrations of the people of Great Salt Lake City the militia of the Territory was everywhere preparing for active ser- vice. Six weeks before the proclamation of martial law the following evtraordi- nary despatch was issued to the district commanding officers: Headquarters Nauvoo Legion, Adjt. General's Office, G. S. L. City, Aug. i, 1857. "Sir: Reports, tolerably well authenticated, have reached this office that an army from the Eastern States is now en route to invade this Territory. " The people of this Territory have lived in strict obedience to the laws of the parent and home governments, and are ever zealous for the supremacy of the Constitution and the rights guaranteed thereby. In such time, when anarchy takes the place of orderly government and mobocratic tyranny usurps the power of rulers, they have left the inalienable right to defend themselves against all aggression upon their constitutional privileges. It is enough that for successive years they have witnessed the desolation of their homes ; the barbarous wrath of mobs poured upon their unoffending brethren and sisters; their leaders arrested, incarcerated and slain, and themselves driven to cull life from the hospitality of the desert and the savage. They are not willing to endure longer these unceas- ing outrages; but if an exterminating war be purposed against them and blood alone can cleanse pollution from the Nation's bulwarks, to the God of our fathers let the appeal be made. i68 HISTORY OF SAL7 LAKE CITY. "You are instructed to hold your commend in readiness to march at the shortest possible notice to any ])art of the Territory. See that the law is strictly enforced in regard to arms and amunition, and as far as practicable that each Ten be provided with a good wagon and four horses or mules, as well as the necessary clothing, etc., for a winter campaign. Particularly let your influence be used for the preservation of the grain. Avoid all excitement, but be ready. "DANIEL H. WELLS. Lieutenant General Conunandmg. ^^ By James Ferguson, Adjutant General. " Copies of this letter were sent to the following: Colonel W. H. Dame, Parowan ; Major L. W. McCuUough, Fdlmore; Major C. W. Bradley, Nephi; Major Warren S. Snow, Sanpete; General Aaron Johnson, Peteetneet ; Colonel William B. Pace, Provo; Major Samuel Smith, Box Elder; Colonel C. W. West, Weber; Colonel P. C. Merrill, Davis; Major David Evans, Lehi ; Major Allen Weeks, Cedar; Major John Rowberry, Tooele. Within a few days these instructions reached the various districts and were quietly acted upon. There was a universal cleaning of arms, filling up of car- tridge boxes, and attention given to the equipment of horses, teams and camping outfits. Tne Nauvoo Legion (the territorial militia), consisted at this time of all able bodied men between the ages of eighteen and forty-five, and was organized into military districts. The general officers of the Legion detailed for the campaign were: Daniel H. Wells, Lieut. General, commanding; Generals Geo. D. Grant, Wm. H. Kimball, James Ferguson, H. B. Clawson ; Colonels R. T. Burton, N. V. Jones, James Cummings, C. W. West, Thos. Callister, John Sharp, W. B. Pace, Lot Smith, Warren Snow, Jos. A. Young, A. P. Rockwood ; J. L. Dun- yon, Surgeon ; Majors H. W. Lawrence, J. M. Barlow, Israel Ivins, R. J. Gold- ing, J. R. Winder, J. D. T. McAllister. Besides these officers, scouts and rangers were detailed to perform special duties. Among these were O. P. Rockwell, Ephraim Hanks and many others. The nature of the campaign was such that in- dividuals were selected for certain service without regard to their official station - thus officers of the highest rank were found performing the duties of company captains, or sharing the labors of men of the line. On the thirteenth of August orders was issued for the first movement of the forces. It was directed lo Col. Robert T. Burton, instructing him to take the field with one hundred and sixty men from the first regiment. He, however, started on the fifteenth with but seventy men from the Life Guards. Among the officers accompanying this expedition were Col. James Cummings, of the general staff, Maj. J. M. Barlow, quartermaster and commissary, Maj. H. W. Lawrenc<', Capt. H. P. Kimball, Lieuts. J. Q. Knowlton and C. F. Decker. They were af- terwards joined by a company from Provo, commanded by Capt. Joshua Clark. The instructions given Col. Burton were to march to the east on the main trav- eled road, afforing aid and protection to the incoming trains of immigrants, and to act as a corps of observation to learn the strength and equipments ot forces reported on the way to Utah, and report to headquarters ; but not to interfere HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. i6g with life or property of any one they might encounter on the road. Speaking of this trip, Gen. Burton says: "We arrived at Fort Bridger August atst, and met the first company of im- migrants at Pacific Springs on the 26th. On the following day we met Moody's company from Texas, also several large supply trains, entirely unprotected by any escort. On the 29th I left my wagons and half of the men and animals on the Sweetwater, proceeding with pack animals. On the 30th I arrived at Devil's Gate, with Kimball, Cummings and Decker's command coming up the next day; here on the 31st we met Jones, Stringham, and others, on their way from Deer Creek to Salt Lake City, and on the day after Captain John R. Murdock from the States. The latter brought word of the intense bitterness expressed all over the Union against the Mormons, and of the expectations that many entertained that the people of Utah were about to be annihilated by the strong arm of the military power." These companies proceeded immediately on their way to the city, while Col. Burton and command were engaged cacheing provisions for future use. On Sep- tember 8th, he sent an express to the Platte; which returned on the 12th. From this time the expedition returned slowly towards the city, thoroughly examining the country and posting themselves upon all points likely to be of advantage later in the campaign. They also kept a good lookout on the scouting and other mili- tary movements, forwarding by express all information of interest to General Wells and Governor Young. On the 17th they received an express from Salt Lake, by J. M. Simmons and O. Spencer, and from this date men were kejit in the saddle night and day between the front and headquarters. September 16th, N. V. Jones and Stephen Taylor brought an express from the city, and on the 2ist Colonel Burton took three men, H. W. Lawrence, H. P. Kimball, and John Smith, and again moved east to the vicinity of Devil's Gate, and camped. Sep- tember 22d; within half a mile of Colonel E. B. Alexander's command. Here they first met the advance of the Utah army, and from that time were its imme- diate neighbors until it arrived at Ham's Fork. On September 29th, Lieut. Gen. D. H. Wells left Salt Lake City and pro- ceeded to establish headquarters in the narrows of Echo Canyon. He was ac- companied by Adjt. Gen. James Ferguson, Col. N. V. Jones, Maj. Lot Smith, and other staff officers. Companies of militia from the several military districts, aggregating about 1,250 men were ordered to report at Echo, with provisions for thirty days. At Echo, Gen. Wells divided his staff, leaving Col. N. V. Jones and J. D. T. McAllister in command of the force there. These engaged in digging trenches across the canyon, throwing up breast works, loosening stones on the heights, and in every way preparing to resist the progress of any body of men that might attempt to pass through the canyon. The day after reaching Echo, Gen, Wells, with a small escort, proceeded to Fort Bridger, where he met Col. Burton and Gen, Robison, and was informed of all movements that had been made by the troops, of the location of their sup- ply trains, their strength, probability of reinforcements, etc. From this information it was ascertained that for several days previously the 8 ijo HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. army had been making very rapid forced marches, to overtake and protect their supplies on Ham's Fork, which had been forwarded several weeks before. It was apprehended, as they had been successful in securing these advance supply trains so near the mountain passes, that the troops would shoulder rations for three days an attempt to force their way on to the city. In view of this a Mormon writer on the " Echo Canyon War" thus explains the situation: "The activity of the enemy required the utmost vigilance and some decisive action on the part or our forces to delay any such movement. It was the policy to 'fight this war without bloodshed.' How to do it successfully was the ques- tion. It was a difficult one to solve while the weather remained fair, the advan- cing troops well supplied with food and ammunition, and eager to try their strength with their Mormon foes. Yet it was extremely necessary that the ad- vance should be checked and the power of the people of Utah to defend them- selves felt." Just at this point the extraordinary correspondence commences between Governor Young and the commanding officers of the U. S. Expedition, as pre- sented to Congress by President Buchanan, opening with the following to Col. Alexander : Fort Bridger, September 30, 1857. '•'Sir: I have the honor to forward you the accompaning letter from His Excellency Governor Young, together with two copies of his proclamation and a copy of the laws of Utah, i856-'57, containing the organic act of the Ter- ritory. "It may be proper to add that I am here to aid in carrying out the instruc- tions of Governor Young. "General Robison will deliver these papers to you, and receive such com- munication as you may wish to make. "Trusting that your answer and actions will be dedicated by a proper re- spect for the rights and liberties of American citizens. "I remain, very respectfully, etc., "DANIEL H. WELLS, ^'■Lieutenant General Commanding, Naiivoo Legion.'^ Governor's Office, Utah Territory, Great Salt Lake City, September 29, 1S57. "Sir: By reference to the act of Congress passed September 9, 1850, or- ganizing the Territory of Utah, published in the Laws of Utah, herewith for- warded, pp. 146- 7, you will find the following: " ' Sec. 2. And be it further enacted. That the executive power and authority in and over said Territory of Utah shall be vested in a governor, who shall hold his office for four years, and until his successor shall be appointed and qualified, unless sooner removed by the Pre'iiident of the United States. The governor shal! reside within said Territory, shall be commander-in-chief of the militia thereof,' etc., etc. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. iji " I am still the governor and superintendent of Indian affairs for this Terri- tory, no successor having been appointed and qualified, as provided by law; nor have I been removed by the President of the United States. "By virtue of the authority thus vested in me, I have issued, and forwaided you a copy of, my proclamation forbidding the entrance of armed forces into this Territory. This you have disregarded. I now further direct that you retire forthwith from the Territory, by the same route you entered. Should you deem this impracticable, and prefer to remain until spring in the vicinity of your present encampment, Black's Fork, or Green River, you can do so in peace and unmolested, on condition that you deposit your arms and amunition with Lewis Robison, quartermaster general of the Territory, and leave in the spring, as soon as the condition of the roads will permit you to march ; and should you fall short of provisions, they can be furnished you, upon making the proper applica- toins therefor. General D. H. Wells will forward this, and receive any communica- tion you may have to make. "Very respectfully, BRIGHAM YOUNG " Governor and Superintendent of Indian Affairs, Utah Territory. " The Officer Commanding the forces now invading Utah Territory '' Headquarters ioth Regiment of Infantry, Camp Winfield, on Ham's Fork, October 2, 1857. "Sir: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your communication of September 29, 1857; with two copies of Proclamation and one of "Laws of Utah," and have given it an attentive consideration. " I am at present the senior and commanding ofificer of the troops of the United States at this point, and I will submit your letter to the general com- manding as soon as he arrives here. " In the meantime I have only to say that these troops are hereby the orders of the President of the United States, and their future movements will depend entirely upon the orders issued by competent military authority. I am, sir, very respectfully, etc., "E. B. ALEXANDER, " Col. loth U. S. Infantry, commanding. " Brigha?n Young, Esq., ^' Governor of Utah Territory.^'' Headquarters ioth Infantry, October 2, 1857. "Official. HENRY E. MAYNADIER, Adjutant ioth Infantry.'' General Robison and Major Lot Smith were despatched with these docu- ments, instructed to deliver them personally or send them by a Mexican if it should be dangerous to enter Col. Alexander's cajnp; the latter course was adopted. On the return of Major Lot Smith with the answer of Col. Alexander to Governor Young, General Wells resolved on the immediate execution of his programme of the campaign. 172 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. The plan of the campaign had been thoroughly digested by Brigham Young, as commander-in-chief of the Utah militia, and his Lieutenant General, before the latter left Great Salt Lake City for ''the seat of war;" and with General Wells, Apostles John Taylor and George A. Smith had gone out to Echo Canyon, undoubtedly to give their voice in the councils of war. Therefore, there was no need for General Wells to seek further consultation with his chief previous to the excution of the plan, which was substantially that embodied in the order, found upon the person of major Joseph Taylor when he was captured : Headquarters Eastern Expedition, Camp near Cache Cave, Oct. 4, 1857. "You will proceed, with all possible despatch, without injuring your ani- mals, to the Oregon road, near the bend of Bear river, north by east of this place. Take close and correct observations of the country on your route. When you approach the road, send scouts ahead, to ascertain if the invading troops have passed that way. Should they have passed, take a concealed route, and get ahead of them. Express to Colonel Burton, who is now on that road and in the vicinity of the troops, and effect a junction with him, so as to operate in concert. On ascertaining the locality or route of the troops, proceed at once to annoy them in every posssble way. Use every exertion to stanpede ther ani- mals and set fire to their trains. Burn the whole country before them, and on their flanks. Keep them from sleeping by night surprises; blockade the road by felling trees or destroying the river fords where you can. Watch for oppor- tunities to set fire to the grass on their windward, so as if possible to envelope their trains. Leave no grass before them that can be burned. Keep your men concealed as much as possible, and guard against surprise. Keep scouts out at all times, and communications open with Colonel Burton, Major McAllister and O. P. Rockwell, who are operating in the same way. Keep me advised daily of your movements, and every step the troops take, and in which direction. "God bless you, and give you success. " Your brother in Christ. DANIEL H. WELLS. "P. S. — If the troops have not passed, or have turned in this direction, fol- low in their rear, and continue to annoy them, burning any trains they may leave. Take no life, but destroy their trains, and stampede or drive away their animals, at every opportunity. D. H. WELLS. ' ' Major Joseph Taylor. "Headquarters Army of Utah, Black's Fork, 16 miles from Fort Bridger, En route to Salt Lake City, November 7, 1857. " A true copy of instructions in the possession of Major Joseph Taylor, when captured. "F. J. PORTER, Assistant Adjutant General.''^ % HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 173 After delivering the despatch of Col. Alexander, Major Lot Smith was in- vited to take dinner with his commanding-general and his aides. Among all the warriors of the Mormon Israel there was, perhaps not one so fitted to open this very peculiar campaign as Lot Smith. His lion-like courage and absolute fearlessness of personal danger, when most in its presence, marked him out as the man of men to execute an exploit of such daring as that designed — to astonish the American nation into a realization of the Mormon earnestness, yet at the same time to do it without the shedding of a drop of "the enemy's" blood. " During the meal," says Maj. Lot Smith, in his piquent narrative of one of the most daring guerilla exploits on record, "General Wells, looking at me as straight as possible, asked if I could take a few men and turn back the trains that were on the road or burn them? I replied that I thought that I could do just what he told me to. The answer appeared to please him, and he accepted it, tell- ing me he could furnish only a few men, but they would be sufficient, for they would appear many more to our enemies." At 4 o'clock in the evening of October 3d, Major Lot Smith's troop, num- bering forty-four men rank and file, started on their expedition. They rode all night and early the next morning came in sight of an ox train headed westward. On calling for the captain, Maj. Smith ordered him to turn his train and go the other way till he reached the States. The Captain "swore pretty strongly," faced about and started to go east, but as soon as out of sight he would turn again towards the mountains. The troops met him that day and took out his lading, leaving the wagons and teams standing. Lot Smith camped near these troops on that night on the banks of the Green River. His story con- tinues : "Losing the opportunity to make much impression on Rankin's train, I thought something must be done speedily to carry out the instructions received, so I sent Captain Haight with twenty men to see if he could get the mules of the Tenth Regiment on any terms. With the remaining twenty-three men I started for Sandy Fork to intercept trains that might be approaching in that direction. On the road, seeing a large cloud of dust at a distance up the river, on the old Mormon road, I sent scouts to see what caused it. They returned, overtaking me at Sandy, and reported a train of twenty-six large freight wagons. We took supper and started at dark. After traveling fourteen miles, we came up to the train, but discovered that the teamsters were drunk, and knowing that drunken men were easily excited and always ready to fight, and remembering my positive orders not to hurt anyone except in self-defence, we remained in ambush until after mid-night. I then sent scouts to thoroughly examine the appearance of their camp, to note the number of wagons and men and report all they dis- covered. When they returned and reported twenty-six wagons in two lines a short distance apart, I concluded that counting one teamster to each wagon and throwing in eight or ten extra men would make their force about forty. I thought we would be a match for them, and so ordered an advance to their camp. "On nearing the wagons, I found I had misunderstood the scouts, for in- stead of one train of twenty six wagons there were two, doubling the number of 174 HIS TOR y OF SAL T LAKE CI TY. men, and putting quite another phase on our relative strength and situation. There was a large camp-fire burning, and a number of men were standing around it smoking. It was expected by my men that on finding out the real number of wagons and men, I would not go farther than to make some inquiries and passing our sortie upon the trains as a joke would go on until some more favorable time- But it seemed to me that it was no time for joking. I arranged my men, and we advanced until our horses' heads came into the light of the fire; then I discovered that we had the advantage, for looking back into the darkness, I could not see where my line of troops ended, and could imagine my twenty followers stringing out to a hundred or more as well as not. I inquired for the captain of the train. Mr. Dawson stepped out and said he was the man. I told him that I had a little business with him. He inquired the nature of it, and I replied by requesting him to get all of his men and their private property as quickly as possible out of the wagons for I meant to put a little fire into them. He exclaimed : ' For God's sake, don't burn the trains.' I said it was for His sake that I was going to burn them, and pointed out a place for his men to stack their arms, and another where they were to stand in a group, placing a guard over both. I then sent a scou down towards Little Mountaineer Fork, failing to put one out towards Ham's Fork on the army. While I was busy with the train a messenger from the latter surprised us by coming into camp. I asked him if he had dispatches and to hand them to me. He said he had but they were verbal. I told him if he lied to me his life was not worth a straw. He became terrified, in fact I never saw a man more frightened. He said afterwards that he expected every moment to be killed. His orders to the train men were from the commander at Camp Winfield, and were to the eff'ect that the Mormons were in the field and that they must not go to sleep but keep night guard on their trains, and that four companies of cav- alry and two pieces of artillery would come over in the morning to escort them to camp." After thus dealing with the first train, the other was treated in like manner. The closing of Lot Smith's story gives a striking dramatic denouement. "When all was ready, I made a torch, instructing my Gentile follower, known as Big James, to do the same, as I thought it was proper for the ' Gentiles to spoil the Gentiles.' At this stage of our proceedings an Indian came from the Mountaineer Fork and seeing how the thing was going asked for some presents. He wanted two wagon covers for a lodge, some flour and soap. I filled his order and he went away much elated. Out of respect to the candor poor Dawion had showed, I released him from going with me when we fired the trains, taking Big James instead, he not being afraid of saltpetre or sulphur either. "While riding from wagon to wagon, with torch in hand and the wnid blow- ing, the covers seemed to me to catch very slowly. I so stated it to James. He replied, swinging his long torch over his head : 'By St. Patrick, ain't it beautiful ! I never saw anything go better in all my life.' About this time I had Dawson send in his men to the wagons, not yet fired, to get us some provisions, enough to thoroughly furnish us, telling him to get plenty of sugar and coffee, for though I never used the latter myself, some of my men below, intimating that I had a force down there, were fond of it. On completing this task I told him that we HISTOR V OF SAL T LAKE CI2 V, z/j were going just a little way off, and that if he or his men molested the trains or undertook to put the fire out, they would be instantly killed. We rode away leaving the wagons all ablaze." The burning of the Government trains accomplished the very purpose de- signed. The nation was thrown into a fearful state of excitement over the dar- ing deed, and at the issue of Governor Young's Proclamation. Congress passed a resolution declaring Utah in a state of rebellion, and referred a motion to the committee on Territories to expel the Utah Delegate. Burning the supplies of an army of the United States, sent by the Government to put down an incipient rebellion, was declared to be an extraordinary overt act of actual war, while the proclamation of Governor Young was considered as a veritable declaration of war as from an independent power. A terrible wrath was aroused against Mor- mon Utah. At that moment, had the season been favorable, and the Govern, ment made the call, a hundred thousand volunteers would have quickly mustered into service to annihilate the whole Mormon community. Yet, be it repeated, the very purpose had been accomplished which Brigham Young designed. It was a most dramatic illustration of his words to Captain Van Yliet, " We are aware that such will be the case ; but when those troops arrive they will find Utah a desert. Every house will be burned to the ground, every tree cut down and every field left waste. We have three years' provisions on hand, which we will 'cache,' and then take to the mountains and bid defiance to all the powers of the government.'' The nation could now believe that this was not mere bra- vado or bombast of Brigham Young, nor the insane rage of fanatics, but the ex- traordinary resolve of a Puritanic people, such as those who fought "in the name of the Lord" lor the commonwealth of England and founded the American nation. And though Colonel C. F. Smith of the Expedition wrote to head- quarters : "As the threats of their leaders to Captain Van Vliet, coupled with the burning of our supply trains — in itself an act of war — is evidence of their treason, I shall regard them as enemies, andjire upon the scoundrels if they give me the least opportunity; " yet from that moment President Buchanan saw cause for pause. Brigham Young would keep his word! Strange as it may seem his Proclamation, and the order of Lieutenant General Wells, followed so quickly by the burning of the supply trains, ultimately brought the Peace Commission, and the Proclamation of pardon to the entire Mormon people. 176 HIS TORY OF SALT LA KE CI TV. CHAPTER XIX. CORRESPONDENCE BETWEEN GOVERNOR YOUNG AND COLONEL ALEXANDER. UNFLINCHING ATTITUDE OF BOTH SIDES. EXCHANGE OF COURTESIES. THE GOVERNOR INVITES A PEACEFUL VISIT OF THE OFFICERS TO THE CITY. A REMARKABLE LETTER FROM APOSTLE JOHN TAYLOR TO CAPTAIN MARCY. "Great Salt Lake City, U. T , October 14, 1857. "Colonel: In consideration of our relative positions — you acting in your capacity as commander of the United States forces, and in obedience, as you have stated, to orders from the President of the United States, and I as governor of this Territory, impelled by every sense of justice, honor, integrity and patriotism to resist what I consider to be a direct infringement of the rights of the citizens of Utah, and an act of usurpation and tyranny unprecedented in the history of the United States — permit me to address you frankly as a citizen of the United States, untrammelled by the usages of official dignity or military etiquette. "As citizens of the United States, we both, it is presumable, feel strongly attached to the Constitution and institu tions of our common country ; and, as gentlemen, should probably agree in sustaining the dear bought liberties be- queathed by our fathers — the position in which we are individually placed being the only apparent cause of our present antagonism ; you, as colonel command- ing, feeling that you have a rigid duty to perform in obedience to orders, and I, a still more important duty to the people of this Territory, "I need not here reiterate what I have already mentioned in my official proclamation, and what I and the people of this Territory universally believe firmly to be the object of the administration in the present expedition against Utah, viz: the destruction, if not the entire annihilation of the Mormon com- munity, solely upon religious grounds, and without any pretext whatever ; for the administration do know, from the most reliable sources, that the base reports circulated by Drummond, and others of their mean officials, are barefaced calum- nies. They do, moreover, know that the people of Utah have been more peace- able and law abiding than those of any other Territory of the United States, and have never resisted even the wish of the President of the United States, nor treated with indignity a single individual coming to the Territory under his au. thority although the conduct and deportment of many of them have merited, and in any other State or Territory would have met with summary punishment. But when the President of the United States so far degrades his high position, and prostitutes the highest gift of the people as to make use of the military power (only intended for the protection of the people's rights) to crush the people's liberties, and compel them to receive officials so lost to self respect as to accept HISTORY OF SALT LAKE en Y, lyy appointments against the known and expressed wish of the people, and so craven and degraded as to need an army to protect them in their position, we feel that we should be recreant to every principle of self-respect, honor, integrity, and patriotism, to bow tamely to such high-handed tyranny, a parallel for which is only found in the attempts of the British government, in its most corrupt stages, against the rights, liberties and lives of our forefathers. " Now, Colonel, I do not charge you, nor those serving under you, with the instigation of these enormities. I consider that you are only the agent made use of by the administration, probably unwillingly so, to further their infamous designs. What high-minded gentleman can feel comfortable in being the mere catspaw of political jugglers and hucksters, penny-a-liners, hungry speculators and disgraced officials? Yet it is from the statements of such characters only that the adminstration has acted, attaching the official seal to your movements. Now, I feel that, when such treason is perpetrated, unblushingly, in open daylight, again st the liberties and most sacred rights of the citizens of this Territory, it is my duty, and the duty of every lover of his country and her sacred institutions, to resist it, and maintain inviolate the constitution of our common country. "Perhaps, colonel, you may feel otherwise; education and associations have their influences ; but I have yet to learn that United States officers are implicitly bound to obey the dictum of a despotic President, in violating the most sacred constitutional rights of American citizens. "We have sought diligently for peace. We have sacrificed millions of dol- lars worth of property to obtain it, and wandered a thousand miles from the con- fines of civilization, severing ourselves from home, the society of friends, and everything that makes life worth enjoyment. If we have war, it is not of our seeking; we have never gone nor sought to interfere with the rights of others, but they have come and sent to interfere with us. We had hoped that, in this barren and desolate country, we could have remained unmolested ; but it would seem that our implacable, blood-thirsty foes envy us even these barren deserts. Now, if our real enemies, the mobocrats, priests, editors and politicians, at whose instigation the present storm has been gathered, had come against us, instead of you and your command, I should never have addressed them thus. They never would have been allowed to reach the South Pass. In you we recognize only the agents and instruments of the administration, and with you, personally, have no quarrel. I believe it would have been more consonant with your feelings to have made war upon the enemies of your country than upon American citizens. But to us the end to be accomplished is the same, and while I appreciate the un- pleasantness of your position, you must be aware that circumstances compel the people of Utah to look upon you, in your present belligerent attitude, as their enemies and the enemies of our common country, and notwithstanding my most sincere desires to promote amicable relations with you, I shall feel it my duty, as do the people of the Territory universally, to resist to the utmost every attempt to encroach further upon their rights. "It, therefore, becomes a matter for your serious consideration, whether it would not be more in accordance with the spirit and institutions of our country to return with your present force rather than force an issue so unpleasant to all, iy8 HIS TORY OF SALT LAKE CI TY. and which must result in great misery and, perhaps, bloodshed and, if persisted in, the total destruction of your army. And, furthermore, does it not become a question whether it is more patriotic for officers of the United States army to ward off, by all honorable means, a collision with American citi- zens or to further the precipitate move of an indiscreet and rash administration, in plunging a whole Territory into a horrible, fratricidal and sanguinary war. " Trusting that the foregoing considerations may be duly weighed by you, and that the difficulties now impending may be brought to an amicable adjustment, with sentiments of esteem, I have the honor to remain most respectfully etc, BRIGHAM YOUNG." '* Headquarters Army for Utah. Camp on Ham's Fork, October 12, 1857. "Sir: Yesterday two young men, named Hickman, were arrested by the rear guard of the army, and are now held in confinement. They brought a let- ter from W. A. Hickman to Mr. Perry, a sutler of one of the regiments, but came under none of the privileges of bearers, of despatches, and are, perhaps, liable to be considered and treated as spies. But I am convinced, from conver- sation with them, that their conduct does not merit the serious punishment awarded to persons of that character, and I have accordingly resolved to release the younger one, especially in consideration of his having a wife and three chil- dren, dependent upon him, and to make him the bearer of this letter. The elder I shall keep until I know how this communication is received, and until I receive an answer to it, reserving, even then, the right to hold him a prisoner, if, in my judgment, circumstances require it. I need hardly assure you that his life will be protracted, and that he will receive every comfort and indulgence proper to be afforded him. **I desire now, sir, to set before you the following facts: the forces under my command are ordered by the President of the United States, to establish a mili- tary post at or near Salt Lake City. They set out on their long and arduous march, anticipating a reception similar to that which they would receive in any other State or Territory in the Union. They were met at the boundary of the Territory of which you are the Governor, and in which capacity alone I have any business with you, by a proclamation issued by yourself, forbidding them to come upon soil belongmg to the United States, and calling upon the inhabitants to re- sist them with arms. You have ordered them to return, and have called upon them to give up their arms in default of obeying your mandate. You have resorted to open hostilities, and of a kind, permit me to say, far beneath the usages of civi- lized warfare, and only resorted to by those who are conscious of inability to re- sist by more honorable means, by authorizing persons under your control, some of the very citizens, doubtless, whom you have called to arms, to burn the grass ap- parently with the intention of starving a few beasts, and hoping that men would starve after them. Citizens of Utah, acting, I am bound to believe, under HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. lyg your authority, have destroyed trains containing public stores, with a similar humane purpose of starving the army. I infer also from your communications received day before yesterday, referring to " a dearth of news from the east and from home," that you have caused public and private letteis to be diverted from their proper destination, and this, too, when carried by a public messenger on a public highway. It is unnecessary for me to adduce further instances to show that you have placed yourself, in your capacity of governor, and so many of the citizens of the Territory of Utah as have obeyed your decree, in a position of re- bellion and hostility to the general government of the United States. It becomes you to look to the consequences, for you niust be aware that so unequal a contest can never be successfully sustained by the people you govern. "It is my duty to inform you that I shall use the force under my control, and all honorable means in my power, to obey literally and strictly the orders under which I am acting. If you, or any acting under your orders, oppose me, I will use force, and I warn you that the blood that is shed in this contest will be upon your head. My means I consider ample to overcome any obstacle; and I assure you that any idea you may have formed of forcing these troops back, or of preventing them from carrying out the views of the government, will result in unnecessary violence and utter failure. Should you reply to this in a spirit which our relative positions give me a right to demand, I will be prepared to propose an arrangement with you. I have also the honor to inform you that all persons found lurking around or in any of our camps, will be put under guard and held prisoners as long as circumstances may require. " I remain sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, E. B. ALEXANDER, Colonel loth Infantry, Commanding. ''His Excellency Brigham Young, Governor of Utah Territory.'"' "Governor's Office, Great Salt Lake City, Utah Territory, October i6, 1857. "Sir: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 1 2th instant, at 8:30 this morning, and embrace the earliest opportunity to reply, out of courtesy to your position, at this late season of the year. " As you officially allege it, I acknowledge that you and the forces have been sent to the Territory by the President of the United States, but we shall treat you as though you were open enemies, because I have so many times seen armies in our country, under color of law, drive this people, commonly styled Mormons, from their homes, while mobs have followed and plundered at their pleasure, which is now most obviously the design of the general government, as all candid, thinking men know full well. Were not such the fact, why did not the government send an army here to protect us against the savages when we first settled here, and were poor and few in number? So contrary to this was their course, that they sent an informal requisition for five hundred of our most effi- i8o HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. cient men, (while we were in an Indian country and striving to leave the borders of the United States, from which its civilization (?) had expelled us,) with a pre- concerted view to cripple and destroy us. And do you fancy for a moment that we do not fully understand the tender (?) mercies and designs of our government- against us? Again, if an army was ordered here for peaceful purposes, to pro- tect and preserve the rights and lives of the innocent, why did government send here troops that were withdrawn from Minnesota, where the Indians were slaughtering men, women, and children, and were banding in large numbers, threatening to lay waste the country? " You mention that it is alone in my gubernatorial capacity that you have any business with me, though your commanding officer, Brevet-Brigadier General Harney, addressed his letter by Captain Van Vliet to ' President Brigham Young, of the society of Mormons.' " You acknowledge the receipt of my official proclamation, forbidding your entrance into the Territory of Utah, and upon that point I have only to again inform you that the matter set forth in that document is true, and the orders therein contained will be most strictly carried out. " If you came here for peaceful purposes, you have no use for weapons of war. We wish, and ever have wished for peace, and have ever sued for it all the day long, as our bitterest enemies know full well ; and though the wicked, with the administration now at their head, have determined that we shall have no peace, except it be to lie down in death, in the name of Israel's God we will have peace, even though we be compelled by our enemies to fight for it. " We have as yet studiously avoided the shedding of blood, though we have resorted to measures to resist our enemies, and through the operations of those mild measures, you can easily perceive that you and your troops are now at the mercy of the elements, and that we live in the mountains, and our men are all mountaineers. This the government should know, and also give us our rights and then let us alone. "As to the style of those measures, past, present, or future, persons acting in self-defence have of right a wide scope for choice, and that, too, without being very careful as to what name their enemies may see fit to term that choice ; for both we and the Kingdom of God will be free from all hellish oppressors, the Lord being our helper. Threatenings to waste and exterminate this people have been sounded in our ears for more than a score of years, and we yet live. The Zion of the Lord is here, and wicked men and devils cannot destroy it. "If you persist in your attempt to permanently locate an army in this Ter- ritory, contrary to the wishes and constitutional rights of the people therein, and with a view to aid the administration in their unhallowed efforts to palm their corrupt officials upon us, and to protect them and blacklegs, black-hearted scoun- drels, whore masters, and murderers, as was the sole intention in sending you and your troops here, you will have to meet a mode of vvarfare against which your tactics furnish you no information. "As to your inference concerning ' public and private letters,' it contains an ungentlemanly and false insinuation ; for, so far as I have any knowledge, the only stopping or detaining of the character you mention has alone been done by HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. i8i the Post Office Department in Washington ; they having, as you must have known, stopped our mail from Independence, Missouri, by which it was but fair to presume that you, as well as we, were measurably curtailed in mail facilities. "In regard to myself and certain others, having placed ourselves 'in a posi- tion of rebellion and hostility to the general government oT the United States,' I am perfectly aware that we understand our true and most loyal position far bet- ter than our enemies can inform us. We, of all people, are endeavoring to preserve and perpeiuate the genius of the Constitution and constitutional laws, while the administration and the troops they have ordered to Utah are, in fact, themselves the rebels, and in hostility to the general government. And if George Washington were now living, and at the helm of our government, he would hang the administration as high as he did Andre, and that, too, with a far better grace and to a much greater subserving the best interests of our country, "You write: ' It becomes you to look to the consequences, for you must be aware that so unequal a contest can never be successfully sustained by the people you govern.' We have counted the cost it may be to us; we look for the United States to endeavor to swallow us up, and we are prepared for the contest, if they wish to forego the Constitution in their insane efforts to crush out all hu- man rights. But the cost of so suicidal a course to our enemies we have not wasted our time considering, rightly deeming it more particularly their business to figure out and arrive at the amount of so immense a sum. It is now the king- dom of God and the kingdom of the devil. If God is for us we will prosper, but if He is for you and against us, you will prosper, and we will say amen; let the Lord be God, and Him alone we will serve. "As to your obeying 'orders,' my official counsel to you would be for you to stop and reflect until you know wherein are the just and right, and then, David Crocket like, go ahead. But if you undertake to come in here and build forts, rest assured that you will be opposed, and that you will need all the force now under your command, and much more. And, in regard to your warning, I have to inform yoa that my head has been sought during many years past, not for any crime on my part, or for so much as even the wish to commit a crime, but solely for my religious belief, and that, too, in a land of professed constitu- tional religious liberty. " Inasmuch as you consider your force amply sufficient to enable you to come to this city, why have you so unwisely dallied so long on Ham's Fork at this late season of the year? " Carrying out the views of the government, as those views are now devel- oping themselves, can but result in the utter overthrow of that Union which we, in common with all American patriots, have striven to sustain; and as to our failure in our present efforts to uphold rights justly guaranteed to all citizens of the United States, that can be better told hereafter. "I presume that the 'spirit' and tenor of my reply to your letter will be unsatisfactory to you, for doubtless you are not aware of the nature and object of the service in which you are now engaged. For your better information, permit me to inform you that we have a number of times been compelled to receive and submit to the most fiendish proposals, made to us by armies virtually belonging to i82 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. the United States, our only alternative being to comply therewith. At the last treaty forced upon us by our enemies, in which we were required to leave the United States, and with which we, as hitherto, complied, two United States Sena- tors were present, and pledged themselves, so far as their influence might reach, that we should be no more pursued by her citizens. That pledge has been broken by our enemies, as they have ever done when this people were a party, and we have thus always proven that it is vain for us to seek or expect protection from the officials or administrators of our government. It is obvious that war upon the Saints is all the time determined, and now we, for the first time, possess the power to have a voice in the treatment that we will receive, and we intend to use that power, so far as the Constitution and justice may warrant, which is all we ask. True, in struggling to sustain the Constitution and constitutional rights belonging to every citizen of our republic, we have no arm or power to trust in but that of Jehovah and the strength and ability that He gives us. "By virtue of my office as governor of the Territory of Utah, I command you to marshal your troops and leave this Territory, for it can be of no possible benefit to you to wickedly waste treasures and blood in prosecuting your course upon the side of a rebellion against the general government by its administrators. You have had and still have plenty of time to retire within reach of supplies at the east, or to go to Fort Hall. Should you conclude to comply with so just a command, and need any assistance to go east, such assistance will be promptly and cheerfully extended. We do not wish to destroy the life of any human being, but, on the contrary, we ardently desire to preserve the lives and liberties of all, so far as it may be in our power. Neither do we wish for the property of the United States, notwithstanding they justly owe us millions. *' Colonel, should you, or any of the officers with you, wish to visit this city, unaccompanied by troops, as did Captain Van Vliet, with a view to personally learn the condition and feelings of this people, you are at liberty to do so, under my cheerfully proffered assurance that you will be safely escorted from our out- posts to this city and back, and that during your stay in our midst you will receive all that courtesy and attention your rank demands. Doubtless you have supposed that many of the people here would flee to you for protection upon your arrival, and if there are any such persons they shall be at once conveyed to your camp in perfect safety, so soon as such fact can be known. "Were you and your fellow-officers as well acquainted with your soldiers as I am with mine, and did they understand the work they are now engaged in as well as you may understand it, you must know that many of them would immedi- ately revolt from all connection with so ungodly, illegal, unconstitutional and hellish a crusade against an innocent people, and if their blood is shed it shall rest upon the heads of their commanders. With us it is the kingdom of God or nothing. I have the honor to be, Your obedient servant, BRIGHAM YOUNG, Governor and Superintendent of Indian Affairs, U. 7. " "^. B. Alexander, Colonel loth Infantry, U. S. A.^^ HISTOR V OF SAL T LAKE CL7 Y. jgj " Headquarters Army for Utah, Camp on Ham's Fork, October 19, 1857. ''Sir: I have received by the hands of Lieutenant Colonel Beatie your letter of the i6th instant. It is not necessary for me to argue the points ad- vanced by you, and I have only to repeat my assurance that no harm would have happened to any citizen of Utah through the instrumentality of the army of the United States, in the performance of its legitimate duties without molestation. My disposition of the troops depends upon grave considerations not necessary to enumerate, and considering your order to leave the Territory illegal and beyond your authority to issue, or power to enforce, I shall not obey it. "I am, .sir, with respect, your obedient servant, E. B. ALEXANDER, Colonel Commanding, loth Lnfantry U. S. A. " His Excellency Brigham Young, Governor of Utah Territory. ' ' ''Governor's Office, Great Salt Lake City, October 28, 1857. "Sir: Having learned that Mrs. Mago, with her infant child, wishes to join her husband in your camp, also that Mr, Jesse Jones, who has been in this city a few weeks, was anxious to see Mr. Roup, it has afforded me pleasure to cause the necessary arrangements to be made for their comfortable and safe conveyance to your care, under the conduct and protection of Messrs. John Harvey, Joseph Sharp, Adam Sharp, and Thomas J. Hickman, the bearers of this communica- tion. " Mrs. Mago and her infant are conveyed to your camp in accordance with my previously often expressed readiness to forward to you such as might wish to go, and is the only resident of that description in Utah, as far as I am informed. Her husband made his first appearance here in the capacity of a teamster for Captain W. H. Hooper. He was then in very destitute circumstances; and has since been in the employ of the late United States surveyor general of Utah, and I am not aware that he has any property or tie of any description in this Territory, except the wife and child now conveyed to him in your camp. Should Colonel Conby and lady wish to partake of the hospitalities proffered by Mr. Heywood and family, and should Captain R. B. Marcy desire to favor me with a visit, as I infer from his letter of introduction forwarded and in my possession, or should you or any other officers in your command wish to indulge in a trip to this city, you will be kindly welcomed and hospitably entertained, and the vehicle and escort now sent to your camp are tendered for conveyance of such as may receive your permission to avail themselves of this cordial invitation. " It is also presumed that your humane feelings will prompt you, in case there are any persons who wish to peacefully leave your camp for this city, to permit them to avail themselves of the protection and guidance of the escort now sent. i84 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. " Trusting that this communication will meet your entire approval and hearty co-operation, I have the honor, sir, to be your obedient servant, BRIG HAM YOUNG, Governor and Superintendent of Indian Affairs , U T. " Colonel E. B. Alexander, Tenth Infantry, U. S A., Camp Hani's Eork.'' "Great Salt Lake City, October 21, 1857. " My Dear Sir: 1 embrace this the earliest opportunity of answering your communication to me, embracing a letter from Mr. Fuller, of New York, to you, an introductory letter to me, and also one from VV. I. Appleby to Governor Young ; the latter, immediately on its receipt, I forwarded to His Excellency; and here let me state, sir, that I sincerely regret that circumstances now existing have hitherto prevented a personal interview. " I can readily believe your statement, that it is very far from your feelings, and most of the command that are with you, to interfere with our social habits or religious views. One must naturally suppose that among gentlemen educated for the army alone, who have been occupied by the study of the art of war, whose pulses have throbbed with pleasure at the contemplation of the deeds of our venerated fathers, whose minds have been elated by the recital of the heroic deeds of other nations, and who have listened almost exclusively to the declama- tions of patriots and heroes, that there is not much time, and less inclination, to listen to the low party bickerings of political demagogues, the interested twaddle of sectional Reclaimers, or the throes and contortions of contracted religious bigots. You are supposed to stand on elevated ground, representing the power and securing the interests of the whole of a great and mighty nation. That many of you are thus honorable, I am proud, as an American citizen, to acknowl- edge ; but you must excuse me, my dear sir, if I cannot concede with you that all your officials are so high-toned, disinterested, humane and gentlemanly, as a knowledge of some of their antecedents expressly demonstrates. However, it is not with the personal character, the amiable qualities, high-toned feelings, or gentlemanly deportment of the officers in your expedition, that we at present have to do. The question that concerns us is one that is independent of your personal, generous, friendly and humane feelings or any individual predilection of yours; it is one that involves the dearest rights oi American citizens, strikes at the root of our social and political existence, if it does not threaten our entire annihilation from the earth. Excuse me, sir, when I say that you are merely the servants of a lamentably corrupt administration ; that your primary law is obedi- ence to orders, and that you came here with armed foreigners with cannon, rifles, bayonets, and broadswords, expressly, and for the openly avowed purpose of 'cutting out the loathsome ulcer from the body politic' I am aware what our friend Fuller says in relation to this matter, and I entertain no doubt of his generous and humane feelings, nor do I of yours, sir; but I do know that he is mistaken in relation to the rabid tone and false, lurious attacks of a venal and \ HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CIT\. 185 corrupt press. I do know that they are merely the mouthpiece, the tools, the barking dogs of a corrupt administration. I do know that Mr. Buchanan was well apprised of the nature of the testimony adduced against us by ex- Judge Drummond and others; for he was informed of it, to my knowledge, by a mem- ber of own cabinet, and I further know, from personal intercourse with members of the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States, that there have been various plans concerted at headquarters for some time past, for the over- throw of this people. Captain, Mr, Fuller informs me that you are a politician ; if so, you must know that in the last presidential campaign the republican party had opposition to slavery and polygamy as two of the principal planks in their platform. You may know, sir, that Utah was picked out, and the only Territory excluded from a participation in pre-emption rights to land. You may also be aware that bills were introduced into Congress for the persecution of the Mor- mons ; but other business was too pressing at that time for them to receive atten- tion. You may be aware that measures were also set on foot, and bills prepared to divide up Utah among the Territories of Nebraska, Kansas, Oregon and New Mexico (giving a slice to California), for the purpose of bringing us into collision with the people of those Territories, not to say anything about thousands of our letters detained at the postofifice at Independence. I might enumerate injuries by the score, and if these things are not so, why is it that Utah is so 'knotty a question ?' If people were no more ready to interfere with us and our institutions than we are with them and theirs, these difficulties would vanish into thin air. Why, again I ask, could Drummond and a host of others, mean scribblers, palm their barefaced lies with such impunity, and have their infamous slanders swallowed with so much gusco? Was it not that the administration and their satellites, having planned our destruction, were eager to catch at anything to render specious their contemplated acts of blood ? Or, in plain terms, the democrats advocated strongly popular sovereignty. The republicans tell them that, if they join in maintaining inviolable the domestic institutions of the South, they must also swallow polygamy. The democrats thought this would not do, as it would interfere with the religious scruples of many of their supporters, and they looked about for some means to dispose of the knotty question. Buchanan, with Douglass, Cass, Thompson and others of his advisers, after failing to devise legal measures, hit upon the expedient of an armed force against Utah ; and thus thought, by the sacrifice of the Mormons, to untie the knotty question ; do a thousand times worse than the republicans ever meant; fairly out-Herod Herod, and by religiously extirpating, destroying, or killing a hundred thousand innocent American citizens, satisfy a pious, humane, patriotic feeling of their constituents; take the wind out of the sails of the republicans, and gain to themselves immortal laurels. Captain, I have heard of a pious Presbyterian doctrine that would incul- cate thankfulness to the all-wise Creator for the privilege of being damned. Now, as we are not Presbyterians, nor believe in this kind of self-abnegation, you will, I am sure, excuse us for finding fault at being thus summarily dealt with, no matter how agreeable the excision or expatriation might be to our political, patri- otic or very pious friends. We have lived long enough in the world to know that we are a portion of the body politic, have some rights as well as other people, 10 j86 history of salt lake cit\. and that if others do not respect us, we, at least, have manhood enough to respect ourselves. " Permit me here to refer to a remark made by our friend Mr. Fuller, to you, viz : ' That he had rendered me certain services in the city of New York, and that he had no doubt that when you had seen us and known us as he had, that you would report as favorably as he had unflinchingly done.' Now, those lavors to which Mr. Fuller refers were simply telling a few plain matters of fact that had come under his own observation during a short sojourn at Salt Lake. This, of course, I could duly appreciate, for I always admired a man who dare tell the truth. But, Captain, does it not strike you as humiliating to manhood and to the pride of all honorable American citizens, when among the thousands that have passed through and sojourned among us, and knew as well as Mr. Fuller did our true social and moral position, that perhaps one in ten thousand dare state their honest convictions; and further, that Mr. Fuller, with his knowl- edge of human nature, should look upon you as a rara avis, possessing the moral courage and integrity to declare the truth in opposition to the floods of falsehood that have deluged our nation. Surely, we have fallen on unlucky times, when honesty is avowed to be at so great a premium. "In regard to our religion, it is perhaps unnecessary to say much; yet, what- ever others' feelings may be about it, with us it is honestly a matter of conscience. This is a right guaranteed to us by the Constitution of our country ; yet it is on th's ground, and this alone, that we have suffered a continued series o*" persecu- tions, and that this present crusade is set on foot against us. In regard to this people, I have traveled extensively in the United States, and through Europe^ yet have n^ver found so moral, chaste, and virtuous a people, nor do I expect to find them. And, if let alone, they are the most patriotic, and appreciate more fully the blessings of religious, civil, and political freedom than any other por- tion of the United States. They have, however, discovered the difference be- tween a blind submission to the caprices of political demagogues and obedience to the Constitution, laws, and institutions of the United States; nor can they, in the present instance, be hoodwinked by the cry of 'treason.' If it be treason to stand up for our constitutional rights; if it be treason to resist the unconstitu tional acts of a vitiated and corrupt administration, who, by a mercenary armed force, would seek to rob us of the rights of franchise, cut our throats to subserve their party, and seek to force upon us its corrupt tools, and violently invade the rights of American citizens; if it be treason to maintain inviolate our homes, our firesides, our wives, and our honor from the corrupting and withering blight of a debauched soldiery; if it be treason to keep inviolate the Constitution and institutions of the United States, when nearly all the States are seeking to trample them under their feet, then, indeed, we are guilty of treason. We have care- fully considered all these matters and are prepared to meet the ' terrible ven- geance ' we have been very politely informed will be the result of our acts. It is in vain to hide it from you that this people have suffered so much from every kind of official that they will endure it no longer. It is not with them an idle phantom, but a stern reality. It is not, as some suppose, the voice of Brigham only, but the universal, deep-settled feeling of the whole community. Their cry HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CIIY. jSj is, * Give us our Constitutional rights ; give us liberty or death ! ' A strange cry in our boasted model republic, bat a truth deeply and indelibly graven on the hearts of 100,000 American citizens by a series of twenty-seven years' unmiti- gated and unprovoked, yet unrequited wrongs. Having told you of this, you will not be surprised that when fifty have been called to assist in repelling our ag- gressors, a hundred have volunteered, and, when a hundred have been called, the number has been more than doubled; the only feeling is 'don't let us be over- looked or forgotten.' And here let me inform you that I have seen thousands of hands raised simultaneously, voting to burn our property rather than let it fall into the hands of our enemies. They have been so frequently robbed and de- spoiled without redress, that they have solemnly decreed that, if they cannot enjoy their own property, nobody else shall. You will see by this that it would be literally madness for your small force to attempt to come into the settlements. It would only be courting destruction. But, say you, have you counted the cost? have you considered the wealth and power of the United States and the fearful odds against you ? Yes; and here let me inform you that, if necessitated, we would as soon meet 100,000 as 1,000, and, if driven to the necessity, will burn every house, tree, shrub, rail, every patch of grass and stack of straw* and hay, and flee to the mountains. You will then obtain a barren, desolate wilderness, but will not have conquered the people, and the same principle in regard to other property will be carried out. If this people have to burn their property to save it from the hands of legalized mobs, they will see to it that their enemies shall be without fuel; they will haunt them by day and by night. Such is, in part, our plan. The three hundred thousand dollars' worth of our property destroyed already in Green River County is only a faint sample of what will be done throughout the Territory. We have been twice driven, by tamely submitting to the authority of corrupt officials, and left our houses and homes for others to in- habit, but are now determined that, if we are again robbed of our possessions, our enemies shall also feel how pleasant it is to be houseless at least for once, and be permitted, as they have sought to do to us, ' to dig their own dark graves, creep into them, and die.' "You see we are not backward in showing our hands. Is it not strange to what lengths the human family may be goaded by a continued series of oppres- sions? The administration may yet find leisure to pause over the consequences of their acts, and it may yet become a question for them to solve whether they have blood and treasure enougn to crush out the sacred principles of liberty from the bosoms of 100,000 freemen, and make them bow in craven servility to the mendacious acts of a perjured, degraded tyrant. You may have learned already that it is anything but pleasant for evei a small army to contend with the chilling blasts of this inhospitable climate. How a large army would fare without re- sources you can picture to yourself. We have weighed those macters; it is for the administration to post their own accounts. It may not be amiss, however, here to state that, if they continue to prosecute this inhuman fratricidal war, and our Nero would light the fires and, sitting in his chair of state, laugh at burning Rome, there is a day of reckoning even for Neros. There are generally two sides to a question. As I before said, we wisla for peace, but that we are deter- i88 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. mined on having it if we have to fight for it. We will not have officers forced upon us who are so degraded as to submit to be sustained by the bayonet's point. We cannot be dragooned into servile obedience to any man. "These things settled, Captain, and all the like preliminaries of etiquette are easily arranged ; and permit me here to state, that no man will be more courteous and civil than Governor Young, and nowhere could you find in your capacity of an officer of the United States a more generous and hearty welcome than at the hands of his excellency. But when, instead of battling with the enemies of our country, you come (though probably reluctantly) to make war upon my family and friends, our civilities are naturally cooled, and we instinctively grasp the sword; Minie rifles, Colt's revolvers, sabres, and cannon may display very good workmanship and great artistic skill, but we very much object to having their temper and capabilities tried upon us. We may admire the capabilities, gentle- manly deportment, heroism and patriotism of United States officers; but in an official capacity of enemies, we would rather see their backs than their faces. The guillotine may be a very pretty instrument, and show great artistic skill, but I don't like to try my neck in it. " Now, Captain, notwithstanding all this, I shall be very happy to see you if circumstances should so transpire as to make it convenient for you to come, and to extend to you the courtesies of our city, for I am sure you are not our personal enemy. I shall be happy to render you any information in my power in regard to your contemplated explorations. "I am heartily sorry that things are so unpleasant at the present time, and I cannot but realize the awkwardness of your position, and that of your com- patriots, and let me here say that anything that lays in my power compatible with the conduct of a gentleman you can command. If you have leisure, I should be most happy to hear from you. You will, I am sure, excuse me, if I disclaim the prefix of reverend to my name ; address John Taylor, Great Salt Lake City. "I need not here assure you that personally there can be no feelings oi enmity between us and your officers. We regard you as the agents of the administration in the discharge of a probably unpleasant duty, and very likely ignorant of the ultimate designs of the administration. As I left the East this summer, you will excuse me when I say I am probably better posted in some of these matters than you are, having been one of a delegation from the citizens of this Territory to apply for admission into the Union. I can only regret that it is not our real enemies that are here instead of you. We do not wish to harm you or any of the command to which you belong, and I can assure you that in any other capacity than the one you now occupy, you would be received as civilly and treated as courteously as in any other portion of our Union. "On my departure from the States, the fluctuating tide of popular opinion against us seemed to be on the wave. By this time there may be quite a reaction in the public mind. If so, it may probably affect materially the position of the administration, and tend to more constitutional, pacific and humane measMres. In such an event our relative positions would be materially changed, and instead of meeting as enemies, we could meet, as all Americans should, friends to each other, and united against our legitimate enemies only. Such an issue is devoutly HISTOR Y OF SAL T LAKE CI2 V, i8g to be desired, and I can assure you that no one would more appreciate so happy a result to our present awkward and unpleasant position, than yours truly-, JOHN TAYLOR. Captain Marcy. Headquarters Army of Utah, Black's Fork, l6 miles from Fort Bridger, en route to Salt Lake City, November yth, i8^y. Official: F. J. PORTER, Assistant Adjutant General. CHAPTER XX. ' REVIEW OF THE EXPEDITION, KANSAS TROUBLES. GENERAL HARNEY RELIEVED OF THE COMMAND. GENERAL PERSIFER F. SMITH APPOINTED IN HIS STEAD. HE DIES AND COLONEL ALBERT SIDNEY JOHNSTON IS APPOINTED. DISASTROUS MARCH OF THE SECOND DRAGOONS TO UTAH. SCENE OF THE ARMY IN WINTER QUARTERS. At this point must be given a circumstantial review of the history ot the Expedition from the issuing of General Scott's circular to the close of the winter of 18^7-8, so bitter in its experience to the ill-fated troops who composed the array sent to invade the Rocky Mountain Zion. The force consisted of two regiments of infantry — the Fifth and Tenth; one regiment of cavalry — the old Second Dragoons; and two batteries of artillery — Reno's and Phelps'. Of the equipments, it may be said there was nothing forgotten and nothing grudged, to make the Expedition a splendid and thorough success. "So well is the nature of this service appreciated," wrote the commander- in-chief to General Harney, by the pen of his aid de camp, "and so deeply are the honor and interests of the United States involved in its success, that I am authorized to say that the government will hesitate at no expense requisite to complete the efficiency of your little army, and to insure health and comfort to it, as far as attainable. Hence, in addition to the liberal orders for its supply here- tofore given — and it is known that ample measures, with every confidence of suc- cess, have been dictated by the chiefs of staff departments here — a large discretion will be made over to you in the general orders for the movement. The employment of spies, guides, interpreters or laborers may be made to any reasonable extent you may think desirable." And the officers were as eminent as the amplitude of the supplies and effi- ypo HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. ciency of the equipments. The chief officers were gentlemen of thorough mili- tary education. There were names connected with that army, which rank to day in the national galaxy of America's great generals. There was General Harney, who at that period held the reputation of being the greatest Indian fighter of all the commanding officers of the American army; and for that reason he was probably singled out at the onset for this campaign against the Mormons, which in a mountainous country must necessarily have partaken much of the guerilla warfare, if it came to the action. There was General Persifier F. Smith, a dis- tinguished officer; Captain Van Vliet, afterwards a Major-General; Colonel Philip St. George Cooke, also afterwards a Major General, and of before time the honored commander of the Mormon Battalion ; Captain Marcy a distin- guished officer and father in-law of General McClellen ; Colonel Alexander who himself was able to command an expedition; and greater than all besides Colonel Albert Sidney Johnston, the brilliant soldier who afterwards commanded the Confederate army ot the battle of Shiloh, and fell as one of the laurelled heroes of Southern rebeldom, but in 1857 he was sent as the commander to put down Mormon rebeldom. What a strange fatality ! and what a parallel ! It was the flower of the American army that was sent to Utah, and its his- tory is more remarkable from that very fact. When the order was given for the march of the troops, no one of that command could have divined that such ter- rible disasters were in store as befel them before the close of the year. The prospect appeared auspicious at the commencement of the march. Writing from Fort Kearney, August loth. Colonel Alexander reported all well. ''The men are in good health and condition, and have surprised me by the endurance they exhibited from the commencement. The march from Fort Leavenworth here occupied nineteen days, giving an average of fifteen and a half miles per day." Writing from Fort Laramie, September 3d, he congratulates with the following passage : "On the 5th the march to Utah will be resumed, and although the accounts of the road as regards grass makes it much more difficult than anything we have yet experienced, I hope to give as favorable a report upon my arrival at the Salt Lake City. " I may be excused from expressing the pride I feel in the successful accom- plishment by my regiment of so much of its first arduous duty, and I confidently express the belief that unless some very unforeseen accident occurs, I will reach the Territory of Utah in a condition of perfect efficiency and discipline." Meantime a change had come in the disposition of the Expedition, that the Mormons might well consider as fated, both to themselves and the troops; for had that expedition under General Harney reached the Great Salt Lake Valley that year, it certainly must have been after a desperate battle or two with the " Nauvoo Legion" under General Wells; then if the word of Brigham Young had been kept, as faithfully as the burning of the government trains indicated. General Harney, even though a victor, would have found Great Salt Lake City in ashes ; and, in his spring campaign, every city in Utah would have shared "^HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. IQT the same fate, or that United States army would have been baptized in its own blood. But no sooner had Colonel Alexander started with his advance troops than the Kansas troubles revived. " Bleeding Kansas" had for several years been the national sensation, and "Border Ruffianism " was a real terror to the American mind, while Mormon rebellion was much of a myth, and at its worst was no sub- ject of political terrorism to the nation. The presence of General Harney and the Second Dragoons was now needed in Kansas by this new development of affairs. His supposed fitness, above other generals to command the Utah Expe- dition, made him more abundantly fit now to grapple with Kansas. Captain Van Vliet sensed the strange fatality of this new development when he said to Brig- ham Young : ''I am anxious to get back to Washington as soon as I can. I have heard officially that General Harney has been recalled to Kansas, to officiate as Governor." Thus the General who, from his experience in Indian warfare, was supposed to be sufficient to put down the Indians and Mormons combined — that being one of the suppositions of this war — never took command of this expedition, and the dragoons weie, therefore, absent from the Plains when they were most required. General Persifer F. Smith was assigned to the command in the place of General Harney, but he fell ill and died at Fort Leavenworth. The infantry and artillery, with all the quartermaster and commissary stores, were then on the plains, and the command of the expedition, by seniority of rank, devolved upon Colonel Alexander, of the Tenth Infantry. The expedition was, therefore, with- out any instructions from the Government ; all that its commander, Colonel Alexander, knew was its destination. The next link of the strange history is found in the following military order : "Washington, August 28th, 1857, " Colonel: In anticipation of the orders to be issued placing you in com- mand of the Utah expedition, the general-in-chief directs you to repair, without delay, to Fort Leavenworth, and apply to Brevet Brigadier General Harney for all the orders and instructions he has received as commander of that expedition, which you will consider addressed to yourself, and by which you will be governed accordingly. You will make your arrangements to set out from Fort Leaven- worth at as early a day as practicable. Six companies of the 2d Dragoons will be detached by General Harney to escort you and the civil authorities to Utah, to remain as part of your command instead of the companies of the ist Cavalry, as heretofore ordered. Brevet Major T. J. Porter, assistant adjutant general, will be ordered to report to you for duty before you leave Fort Leavenworth. "I have the honor to be, colonel, very respectfully, your most obedient servant, iRViN McDowell, Assistant Adjutant General. " Colonel Albert S. Johnston, 2d Cavalry, Washington, D C. jg2 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CIT\. As the army passed the boundary line of Utah, Governor Young's Proclama- tion was forwarded, with his order to arrest the advance of " the forces now in- vading Utah Territory." This was the juncture when either General Harney or C ) lonel Johnston should have been on the spot, with the entire force, to have opened the campaign, but at that very moment Colonel Albert Sidney Johnston wasstill at Fort Leavenworth, a thousand miles from the army to which he had been appointed, while Colonel Philip St. George Cooke, commanding 2d Dragoons, and Colonel C. F. Smith commanding Battalion loth Infantry were also far away from the seat of action. Colonel Cooke in command of six com- panies 2d Dragoons commenced his march from Fort Leavenworth, on the 17th of September, and arrived at Fort Bridger November 19. Of his onset he has thus reported : " The regiment has been hastily recalled from service in the field and al- lowed three or four days only, by my then commanding officer, to prepare for a march of eleven hundred miles over an uninhabited and mountain wilderness ; in that time the six companies of the regiment who were to compose the expedi- tion were re-organized; one hundred and ten transfers necessarily made from and to other companies; horses to be condemned and many obtained; the com- panies paid, and about fifty desertions occured ; the commanders of four of them changed. To these principle duties and obstacles, implying a great mass of writ- ing, were to be added every exertion of experience and foresight to provide for a line of operation of almost of unexampled length and mostly beyond communi- cation. On the evening of the i6th, at the commencement of a rain-storm, an inspector general made a hurried inspection by companies, which could not have been very satisfactory to him or others — the company commanders, amid the confusion of Fort Leavenworth, presenting their new men, raw recruits, whom they had yet scarcely found or seen, under the effects usually following the pay- table." Governor Gumming, also, who should have been at the seat of war to have met Governor Young's proclamation with a counter proclamation, giving to Col- onel Alexander the power to act as hh posse commitatus, before the winter set in, was under the escort of Colonel Cooke, and did not issue his proclamation before the 2ist of November. Brigham and the Mormons alone were prepared for the issue, notwithstand- ing the Government had taken every precaution to prevent the news of the projected expedition reaching Utah in advance, by cutting off the postal com" munication. (It is so charged by Governor Young.) In six days after the news reached the Pioneers of the coming of the army, the Utah militia is ordered out ; in twenty-one days the first detachment of the Mormon Life Guards has taken the field, under Colonel Burton; in one month and eleven days Lot Smith has burnt the supply trains of the Expedition. In May, General Scott's circular was issued for the march of the army ; in the latter part of November Colonel Albert Sidney Johnston and Governor Alfred Gumming were at headquarters. Camp Scott, powerless to act, locked out from Salt Lake Valley by the commanding general of the year — inexorable winter. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. igj General Sam Houston had said to the Government at the onset: /'If you make war upon the Mormons you will get awfully whipped ! " which, when it was told to Brigham Young, he said, " General Sam Houston had it right." Hearing nothing from his commander, without instructions and fearing everything. Colonel Alexander concentrated his forces at Ham's Fork, until some course should be resolved upon by a council of the officers. It was then the latter part of September ; winter was approaching, the stock of forage was rapidly decreasing, and the country was altogether unfitted for winter-quarters. Every day's delay was disastrous, and threatened the very existence of the ex- pedition, for the mountains were already covered with snow and the daring Mor- mon cavalry were constantly harassing the supply trains and running off the animals. The troops began to show signs of demorilization ; they were in a bleak and barren desert, with an enemy surrounding them that knew every inch of the ground, and who, to all appearance, could easily destroy them without shed- ding a drop of their own blood. On the loth of October the officers of the Expedition held a council of war and determined that the army should advance from Ham's Fork, but to change the route of travel and make Salt Lake Valley, if they could, via Soda Springs, a distance of nearly three hundred miles, and at least a hundred and fifty miles farther than the route through Echo Canyon. The order was issued, and next day the troops commenced a dreary march. "Early in the morning," says Stenhouse, in his ''Rocky Mountain Saints," "the sky was surcharged with dark, threatening clouds, and as they started the snow fell heavily. A few supply-trains were kept together and guarded by the infantry, but the travel was slow, vexatious and discouraging. The beasts of burden were suffering from want of forage, as, in anticipation of this movement, the grass had been burned all along that route. The animals were completely exhausted, and, before they were a week on the new route, three miles a day was all the distance that could be made. "Another council of war was held, but the only topics of discussion were the suffering, disaster, and heavy losses of the company. The soldiers were mur- muring, and dissatisfaction reigned everywhere. Some gallant officers were desir- ous of forcing an issue with the Mormons, cutting their way through the canyons^ and taking their chances of what might come. This course might have afforded some gratification to individuals, but to the company at large it was impracticable : every effort was necessary to save the Expedition from total ruin." In explanation of the unprecedented slow march, it should be stated that every movement was really a military manouvre. Colonel R. T. Burton, with a force of about 200 Mormon soldiers was, constantly harassing the army, which in return resorted to every strategy to deceive the Mormon soldiers in regard to their real intent. Every day they moved a short distance, but realizing that their movements were constantly watched by the Mormon soldiery. Colonel Alexander was in doubt as to what course to pursue, as while moving north, every means of annoy- ance without actual warfare was employed by this little body of defenders of their Utah homes. Finally, as the result of this continued vigilance, on the 11 ig4 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. part of^the little army of Mormons, Colonel Alexander retraced his steps and counter-marched down stream and went into Winter Quarters. "In this forlorn condition the new commander was heard from, and the troops were instantly inspired with new life. Colonel Johnston comprehended the situation and ordered the Expedition to retrace its steps. The snow was six inches deep, the grass all covered, the animals starving. The advance had been slow, the retreat was simply crawling. On the 3rd of November they reached the point of rendezvous, and next day Colonel Johnston joined them with a small reinforcement and the remainder of the supply-trains. "The morale of the army was restored by the presence of an efficient com- mander with instructions in his pocket, but the difficulties of the Expedition were increasing every hour. The supply-trains were strung out about six miles in length, the animals worrying along till, thoroughly exhausted, they would fall in their tracks and die. " All this long line of wagons and beef cattle had to be guarded to prevent surprise and the stampede of the animals. The snow was deep on the ground and the weather was bitterly cold. Many of the men were fatally rrost-bitten, and the catte and mules perished by the score. In Colonel Philip St. George Cooke's command fifty-seven head of horses and mules froze to death in one night on the Sweetwater, and from there to Fort Bridger, where the Expedition finally wintered, the road was literally strewn with dead animals. The camp on Black's Fork, thirty miles from Fort, Bridger, was named 'The Camp of Death.' Five hundred animals perished around the camp on the night of the 6th of November. Fifteen oxen were found huddled together in one heap, frozen stiff. "In this perilous situation the expeditionary army to Utah made the distance to Bridger — thirty-five miles — in fifteen days! Often the advance had arrived at camp before the end of the train left. On the i6th of November, the army reached their winter-quarters, Camp Scott, two miles from the site of Fort Bridger and one hundred and fifteen from Salt Lake City." The official report of Colonel Philip St. George Cooke is still more desolate. The experience of several days, as noted by the Colonel, will illustrate his report of the march of the Second Dragoons from Fort Leavenworth to Camp Scott : ^^ November 6th, "^Q. found the ground once more white and the snow fall- ing, but then very moderately; I marched as usual. On a four-mile hill the north wind and drifting snow became severe; the air seemed turned to frozen fog; nothing could be seen; we were struggling in a freezing cloud. The lofty wall at 'Three Crossings' was a happy relief; but the guide, who had lately passed there, was relentless in pronouncing that there was no grass. The idea of find- ing and feeding upon grass, in that wintry storm, under the deep snow, was hard to entertain ; but as he promised grass and other shelter two miles further, we marched on, crossing twice more the rocky stream, half choked with snow and ice; finally he led us behind a great granite rock, but all too small for the promised shelter. Only a part of the regiment could huddle there in the deep snow; whilst, the long night through, the storm continued, and in feaful eddies from above, before, behind, drove the falling and drifting snow. Thus exposed HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITl. ypj for the hope of grass, the poor animals were driven, with great devotion, by the men, once more across the stream and three-quarters of a mile beyond, to the base of a granite ridge, but which almost faced the storm ; there the famished mules, crying piteously, did not seek to eat, but desperately gathered in a mass, and some horses, escaping the guard, went back to the ford, where the lofty pre- cipice first gave us so pleasant relief and shelter. " Thus morning light had nothing cheering to reveal; the air still filled with driven snow; the animals soon came driven in, and, mingled in confusion with men, went crunching the snow in. the confined and wretched camp, tramping all things in their way. It was not a time to dwell on the fact that from that moun- tain desert there was no retreat, nor any shelter near; but a time for action. No murmurs, not a complaint was heard, and certainly none saw in their com- mander's face a doubt or clouds ; but with cheerful manner he gave orders as usual for the march. ^^ November 10. The northeast wind continued fiercely, enveloping us in a cloud which froze and fell all day. Few could have faced that wind. The herders left to bring up the rear with extra, bat nearly all broken down mules, could not force them from the dead bushes of the little valley ; and they re- mained there all day and night, bringing on the next day the fourth part that had not frozen. Thirteen mules were marched, and the camp was made four miles from the top of the pass. A wagon that day cut partly through the ice of a branch, and there froze so fast eight mules could not move it empty. Nearly all the tent pins were broken in the last camp; a few of iron were here substi- tuted. Nine trooper horses were left freezing and dying on the road that day, and a number of soldiers and teamsters had been frost-bitten. It was a desper- ately cold night. The thermometers were broken, but, by comparison, must have marked twenty-five degrees below zero. A bottle of sherry wine froze in a trunk. Having lost about fifty mules in thirty-six hours, the morning of the eleventh, on the report of the quartermaster, I felt bound to leave a wagon in the bushes, filled with seventy-four extra saddles and bridles, and some sabres. Two other wagons at the last moment he was obliged to leave, but empty. The Sharp's carbines were then issued to mounted as well as dismounted men. ''November ir. The fast growing company of dismounted men were marched together as a separate command by day ; the morning of the 12th, a number of them were frost-bitten from not being in motion, although standing by fires. ''November t^. The sick report had rapidly run up from four or five to forty-two; thirty-six soldiers and teamsters having been frosted. "Yo^T^^iDG^K, November ig. I have one hundred and forty-four horses, and have lost one hundred and thirty-four. Most of the loss has occurred much this side of South Pass, in comparatively moderate weather. It has been of starvation; the earth has a no more lifeless, treeless, grassless desert; it contains scarcely a wolf to glut itself on the hundreds of dead and frozen animals, which for thirty miles nearly block the road ; with abandoned and shattered property, they mark, perhaps, beyond example in history, the steps of an advancing army with the horrors of a disastrous retreat." ig6 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. The winter experience of the troops after their arrival at Camp Scott was quite in keeping with the march to Utah as described by Colonel Cooke. Rations were short, and many articles of daily necessity were altogether unattainable. Whiskey sold at $12 a gallon; tobacco $3 a pound, and sugar and coffee about the same rate. Flour for a time was a luxury at a very high figure; *'and the possession of a good supply with no other protection than the covering of a tent was as dangerous to its owner as a well-filled purse is to a pedestrian in a first- class city after sunset." The cattle, too, were miserably poor, but their hides furnished mocassins for the soldiers. Every day, all through the winter, bands of fifteen or twenty men might be seen hitched to wagons, trailing for five or six miles to the mountain sides to get loads of fuel for the use of the camp. But the greatest privation of all was caused by the lack of salt. Learning of this distress of the soldiers, and knowing that with poor meat and no vegetables, the craving for salt to season the dish must be almost as intolerable as the burning thirst for water in the desert, Brigham sent a load of salt to Colonel Johnston, accompanied with a letter of gift, which forms one of the Government documents. (See appendix.) But Colonel Johnston ordered the messengers from his camp with every expression of contempt for Brigham Young, the great Mormon "rebel." " How mutable are human affairs!" comments Stenhouse, noting this incident. "Five years later, that same Colonel Johnston was himself designated a ' rebel,' and became one of the most distinguished generals in the Confederate army. The Colonel Johnston of Utah became the General Albert Sidney Johnston of Shiloh!" The salt, however, by indirect means was returned to the camp. Johnston's army, after all, did eat Brigham Young's salt; and the soldiers knew it, but the high-spirited commander shared it not. The Indians, however, soon furnished a supply for the Colonel and his officers, and hurried through the snow with their packs of salt and sold it at ;^5 per pound, but the increase of the supply reduced the price. Probably Colonel Johnston thought that Brigham Young was wantonly tantalizing the high spirit of himself and officers with a realization of their con- dition ; but, if he had read the following entry in Apostle Woodruff' s diary, at a later date, he would probably have revised that opinion. "I spent the evening at President Young's office (at Provo). He said, *I am sorry for the army; and thought of sending word to the brethren in Great Salt Lake City to sell vegetables to them. I have also had it in my heart, when peace is established, to take all the cattle, horses and mules, which we have taken from the army, and return them to the officers.'" Here is another similar entry of a later date : "Colonel Alexander called yesterday and had a short interview; and it was very agreeable. President Young said, ' I was much pleased with him, and am satisfied that, if he had the sole command of the army, and I could have had three hours' conversation with him, all would have been right, and they could have come in last fall as well as now.' " With this couple Colonel Alexander's statement in his letter, " I have only to repeat my assurance that no harm would have happened to any citizen of HISTOR Y OF SAL T LAKE CLl V, ipy Utah, through the instrumentality of the army of the United States in the per- formance of its legitimate duties without molestation. Together, these simple notes combine a volume of historical explanations. The people of Utah regarded it as an unhallowed crusade not a United States army that they were resisting. CHAPTER XXI. THE NAUVOO LEGION ORDERED IN FOR THE WINTER, PICKET GUARD POSTED, MARCH OF THE LEGION TO GREAT SALT LAKE CITY: RE- CEIVED WITH SONGS OF TRIUMPH. A JUBILANT WINTER IN ZION. SUMMARY OF GOVERNMENT MOVEMENTS FOR THE SPRING CAMPAIGN. The army having gone into Winter Quarters at " Old Fort Bridger " and "Henry's Fork," the Nauvoo Legion was called in and concentrated at Camp Weber, situated at the mouth of Echo Canyon. As soon as the Territorial troops had all arrived, provisions were made for a picket-guard, consisting of fifty picked men under the command of Captain John R. Winder, to remain at Camp Weber during the winter, and the following order was issued : " Head Quarters Eastern Expedition, Camp Weber, December 4th, 1857. '' Capt.John R. Winder. "Dear Bro: You are appointed to take charge of the guard detailed to remain and watch the movements of the invaders. You will keep ten men at the lookout station on the heights of Yellow Creek. Keep a constant watch from the highest point during daylight, and a camp guard at night, also a horse guard out with the horses which should be kept out on good grass all day, and grained with two quarts of feed per day. This advance will occasionally trail out towards Fort Bridger, and look at our enemies from the high butte near that place. You will relieve this guard once a week. Keep open and travel the trail down to the head of Echo, instead of the road. Teamsters or deserters must not be permitted to come to your lookout station. Let them pass with merely knowing who and what they are, to your station on the Weber and into the city. I'" officers or others undertake to come in, keep them prisoners until you receive further ad- vices from the city. Especially and in no case let any of the would be civil officers pass. These are, as far as I know, as follows : A. Cumming (governor), Eckels (chief justice), Dotson (marshal), Forney (superintendent of Indian affairs), Hockaday (district attorney). At your station on the Weber you will also keep a lookout, and guard the road at night, also keep a camp and horse guard. Keep the men employed making improvements, when not on other duty. Build a good horse corral, and prepare stables. Remove the houses into a fort jg8 HIS 7 OR Y OF SAL T LAKE CIl V. line and then picket in the remainder. Keep a trail open down the Weber to the citizen's road. Be strict in the issue of rations and feed. Practice economy both in your supplies and time and see that there is no waste of either. Dry a portion of the beef and use the bones in soup with the hard bread, which, as it will not keep equal with the flour, it is desirable to have first used so far as practicable. "Instruct each mess to save their grease and ashes, and make soap, and wash their own clothes. Dig out trouughs to save the soap, and learn to be saving in all things. If your lookout party discover any movement of the enemy in this direction, let them send two men to your camp on the Weber, and the remainder continue to watch their movements, and not all leave their station, unless it should prove a large party, but keep you timely advised so that you can meet them at the defences in Echo, or if necessary render them assistance. Where you can do so at an advantage, take all such parties prisoners, if you can without shooting, but if you cannot, you are at liberty to attack them as no such party must be permitted to come into the city. Should the party be two strong and you ate compelled to retreat, do so after safely cacheing all supplies ; in all cases giving us prompt information by express, that we may be able to meet them be- tween here and the city. Send into the city every week all the information you can obtain, and send whether you have any news from the enemy or not, that we may know of your welfare, kind of weather, depth of snow, etc. "The boys at the lookout station should not make any trail down to the road, nor expose themselves to view, but keep concealed as much as possible, as it is for that purpose that that position has been chosen. No person without a permit must be allowed to pass from this way to the enemy's camp. Be careful about this. Be vigilant, active and energetic and observe good order, discipline and wisdom in all your works, that good may be the result. Remember that to you is entrusted for the time being the duty of standing between Israel and their foes, and as you would like to repose in peace and safety while others are on the watchtower, so now while in the performance of this duty do you observe the same care, vigilance and activity, which you would desire of others when they come to take your place. Do not let any inaction on the part of the enemy lull you into a false security and cause any neglect on your part. "Praying the Lord to bless and preserve you in life, health and strength, and wisdom and power to accomplish every duty incumbent upon you and bring peace to Israel to the utter confusion and overthrow of her enemies. "I remain, your brother in the Gospel of Christ, [Signed,] DAN'L H. WELLS, Lieut. Genrl. Comdngy "P. S. Be careful to prevent fire being kindled in or near the commissary storehouse." The guard having been selected, the Legion marched to Great Salt Lake City and on arriving there was greeted by the enthusiastic citizens with songs of victory. The poetess, Eliza R. Snow, saluted with her war son.', which the fol- lowing lines will illustrate : HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. igg " Strong in the power of Brigham's God, Your name's a terror to our foes ; Ye were a barrier strong and broad As our high mountains crowned with snows. 5i< * * Then welcome ! sons of light and truth. Heroes alike in age and youth." m about two weeks Captain Winder reported to Governor Young that a deep snow had fallen in the mountains and he was instructed to release all but ten men. This guard was continued during the winter. There was no need of scouts or spies to keep the city well posted relative to the army, for all through that winter, so cheerless to the Expedition, deserters and army teamsters were constantly arriving from Bridger, in many instances in a starving and destitute condition. They were kindly treated by the Mormon guard, provided with food and passed on to Great Salt Lake City. Through this channel, Governor Young and General Wells were kept well informed of the condition and contemplated movements of the army. In December the Utah Legislature met in Great Salt Lake City, and Gover- nor Young delivered his annual message, in which he reviewed the conduct of the Administration towards Utah, and at great length expounded the funda- mental principles of the American Confederation. It is a remarkable document, and will be read a century hence with deep interest. [See Appendix.] On the 2oth of December the Legislature unanimously passed resolutions ap- proving of Governor Young's course, and each member, signing his name to the document, pledged himself to maintain the rights and liberties of the people of Utah. Notwithstanding that Governor Young and the chief men of the community had been indicted for high treason, in the self-constituted court of Chief Justice Eckels, held at Camp Scott; notwithstanding that Governor Gumming had also issued his proclamation to nullify that of Governor Young; and notwithstand- ing that the prospects were that before the close of the coming year the cities of Utah would be in ashes, and the Mormon women and children have fled to the "chambers of the mountains," while their husbands, fathers, sons and brothers would be doing battle with a re-inforced army ; yet the winter of 1857-8 is to this day spoken of as the "gayest winter ever known in Utah." One of the literati of Salt Lake City, writing to a brother scribe in New York City, said : " Peace is enjoyed throughout this Territory by the citizens, from north to south, and every heart beats with the love of liberty — relig- ious, political and social. During the winter festivities were very prevalent, and entertainments of various kinds were enjoyed. Dramatic and literary associations were attended to overflowing ; balls and parties were frequent and numerously filled, and every amusement suitable for an enlightened and refined people was a source of profit to the caterer and pleasure and benefit to the patronizers. Indeed, had you seen the manner in which they enjoyed themselves, you would never have surmised for one moment that within a few miles of us there was an army — repug- nant to every feeling of the people — who were only waiting to kill, corrupt and debase an innocent and virtuous community." 200 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. There is the great sagacity and remarkable common-sense leadership of Brigham Young seen in all this jubilee. He was preparing to make his second exodus, if necessary, and did not intend to play his Moses to a dispirited Israel. Early in the Spring a large number of the soldiers of the Nauvoo Legion were again in the field, occupying their old camping grounds, where they con- tinued until peace was proclaimed. Of the state of affairs on the government side Stenhouse thus summarizes : "Notwithstanding the difficulty experienced at that time of traveling across the plains in winter, an express occasionally carried to the Government the un- welcome news of the disaster that had befallen the expedition and the sufferings and privations that ensued. At one time there were grave fears of its ultimate success, but brave men and the unlimited resources of the Government were destined to overcome every obstacle. Captain Marcy with a company of picked men undertook a perilous journey from Fort Bridger to Taos, New Mexico, to obtain provisions, cattle and mules, for the relief of the expedition, and after most terrible suffering and heavy loss of animals, and many disabled men, he reached the point of supply, and was eminently successful. " The misfortunes that had befallen the troops aroused the Government to a realization of the necessity of rendering every aid, both in men and material, to save the expedition and make it successful. Lieut. -Gen. Scott was summoned to Washington to consult with the Secretary of War, and at one time the project of entering Utah from the west was seriously entertained. The intimation that two regiments of volunteers would probably be called for in the spring met with a ready response from all parts of the Union. It was very evident that the nation was thoroughly dissatisfied with the state of affairs in Utah, and wanted to bring the Mormons to a settlement. "Ready to take advantage of anything which promised wealth, there were multitudes of solicitous contractors seeking to supply the army in the West; and with a prodigality beyond all precedent, the War Department was perfectly reck- less. The Sixth and Seventh regiments of infantry, together with the First Cavalry, and two batteries of artillery — about three thousand in all — were ordered to Utah, and every arrangement made for speedy and colossal warfare with the Prophet. Political writers charged to the administration of Mr. Buchanan an utter recklessness of expenditure, intended more for the support of political favorites and for the attainment of political purposes in Kansas than for the over- throw of the dynasty of Brigham. It was estimated in Washington that forty- five hundred wagons would be required to transport munitions of war and pro- visions for the troops for a period of from twelve to eighteen months, besides fifty thousand oxen, four thousand mules, and an army of teamsters, wagon-mas- ters, and employees, at least five thousand strong. It was very evident that the Government was playing with a loose hand, and the consideration of cost to the national treasury was the last thing thought of. The transportation item for 1858, provided for the expenditure of no less than four and a half millions, and that contract was accorded to a firm in western Missouri, without public announce- ment or competition. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 201 While all this was occupying the attention of the public, and the Govern- ment seemed determined that the war against the Mormons should be carried out with vigor, there was another influence at work to bring '' the Utah rebellion " to a peaceful termination. CHAPTER XXII. BUCHANAN COERCED BY PUBLIC SENTIMENT INTO SENDING A COMMISSION OF INVESTIGATION. HE SENDS COLONEL KANE WITH A SPECIAL MIS- SION TO THE MORMONS. ARRIVAL OF THE COLONEL IN SALT LAKE CITY. HIS FIRST INTERVIEW WITH THE MORMON LEADERS. INCI- DENTS OF HIS SOJOURN. HE GOES TO MEET GOVERNOR GUMMING, AND IS PLACED UNDER ARREST BY GENERAL JOHNSTON. HIS CHAL- LENGE TO THAT OFFICER. HE BRINGS IN THE NEW GOVERNOR IN TRIUMPH. RETURN OF COLONEL KANE. The reaction came. The leading papers, both of America and England, declared that President Buchanan had committed a great and palpable blunder. He had sent an army, before a committee of investigation, and had made war upon one of our Territories for rejecting (?) a new Governor before that Gov- ernor had been sent. Brigham Young had clearly a constitutional advantage over the President of the United States — for in those days the rights of the citi- zen, and the rights of a State or Territory, had some meaning in the national mind. The idea of " Buchanan's blunder " once started, it soon became uni- versal in the public mind. The Mormons were not in rebellion, as they them- selves stoutly maintained. They were ready to receive the new Governor with becoming loyalty, but not willing to have him forced upon them by bayonets. There was nothing more to be said in the case, excepting that by the common law of nature, a man may hold off the hand at his throat to say in good old scriptural language,/' Come let us reason together." All America, and all Europe, "perceived the error," and a storm of con- demnation and ridicule fell upon the devoted head of the President. Peace com- missioners alone could help him out of the trouble. At this critical juncture Colonel Kane sought the President and offered his services as mediator. Buchanan wisely recognized his potency and fitness, and without a moment's loss of time the Colonel set out on his self-imposed mission, although in such feeble health that any consideration short of the noble impulse that actuated him at the time would have deterred him from making the attempt. The undertaking was as delicate as it was important. Its 202 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. success alone could make it acceptable, either to the Mormons or to the nation. For prudential reasons he registered himself as " Dr. Osborne'" among the passengers on board the California steamer, which left New York in the first week of January, 1858. On reaching the Pacific coast, he hastened, overland, to Southern California, there overtaking the Mormons who had just broken up their colony at San Bernardino, re-gathering to Utah for the common defense. An escort was immediately furnished him, and he reached Salt Lake City in the fol- lowing February. Governor Young called a council of the Presidency and Twelve, at his house, on the evening of the day of Colonel Kane's arrival, and at 8 o'clock the " mes- senger from Washington" was introduced by Joseph A. Young, as "Dr. Osborne." The introduction was very formal. The Colonel had a peculiar mission to fulfill, and was evidently desirous to maintain the dignity of the Government. Moreover, it was more than eleven years since he had met his friends of Winter Quarters. They had, with their people, become as a little nation, and the United States was making war upon them as an independent power. Notwithstanding that his great love for them had prompted him to undertake the long journey which he had just accomplished, at first he must have felt the uncertainty of his mission, and some misgivings as to the regard in which they would hold his mediation. But perhaps no other man in the nation at that critical moment would have been received by the Mormon leaders with such perfect confidence. The Colonel was very pale, being worn down with travel by day and night. An easy chair was placed for him. A profound silence of some moments reigned. The council waited to hear the mind of the Government, for the coming of Colonel Kane had put a new aspect on affairs, though what it was to be remained to be shaped from that night. With great difficulty in speaking he addressed the council as follows : " Governor Young and Gentlemen : I come as an ambassador from the chief executive of our nation, and am prepared and duly authorized to lay before you, most fully and definitely, the feelings and views of the citizens of our com- mon country, and of the executive towards you, relative to the present position of this Territory, and relative to the army of the United States now upon your borders. "After giving you the most satisfactory evidence in relation to matters con- cernmg you, now pending, I shall then call your attention, and wish to enlist your sympathies, in behalf of the poor soldiers who are now suffering in the cold and snow of the mountains. I shall request you to render them aid and com- fort, and to assist them to come here, and to bid them a hearty welcome into your hospitable valley. "Governor Young, may I be permitted to ask a private interview for a few moments with you? Gentlemen, excuse my formality." They were gone about thirty minutes, when they returned to the room. Colonel Kane then informed the council that Captain Van Vliet had made a good report of them at Washington, and had used his inflnence to have the army stop east of Bridger. He had done a great deal in their behalf. HIS TORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 203 ' "You all look very well," said the Colonel, " you have built up quite an empire here in a short time." He spoke upon the prosperity of the people, instancing some of its phases ; and then the enquiry came from some one present: " Did Dr. Bernhisel take his seat?" No news whatever of the Utah delegate had yet reached them. "Yes," he answered, "Delegate Bernhisel took his seat. He was opposed by the Arkansas member and a few others, but they were treated as fools by more sagacious members; for, if the delegate had been refused his seat it would have been tantamount to a delaration of war." Speaking of the conduct of the Mormons, he said : "You have borne your part manfully in this contest. I was pleased to see how patiently your people took it." " How was the President's message received?" asked Governor Young. " The message was received as usual. In his appointments he had been cruelly impartial. So far he has made an excellent President, He has an able cabinet. They are more united, and work together better than some of our former cabinets have done." "I suppose," observed Governor Young, caustically, "they are united in putting down Utah?" " I think not," replied the Colonel. Then came conversations on the affairs of the nation — of Spain, Kansas, the Black Warrior affair, financial pressure, etc. By this time all restraint between the brethren and their noble friend was gone. "I wish you knew how much I feel at home," he observed. ' "I hope I shall have the privilege of ' breaking bread with these, my friends.' " " I want to take good care of you," returned Governor Young warmly. " I want to tell you one thing, and that is, the men you see here do not look old. The reason is, they are doing right, and are in the service of God. If men would do right they would live to a great age. There are but few in the world who have the amount of labor to do which I have. I have to meet men every hour in the day. It is said of me that I do more business in an hour than any Presi- dent, King or Emperor has to perform in a day ; and that I think for the people constantly. You can endure more now than you could ten years ago. If you had done as some men have done you would have been in your grave before now." The Colonel replied, "I fear that I can endure more than I could ten years ago. The present life doesn't pay, and I feel like going away as soon as it is the will of God to take me." "I know, to take this life as it is, and as men make it," answered President Young, "it does not appear worth living, but I can tell you that, when you see things as they are, you will find life is worth preserving, and blessings will follow our living in this life, if we do right." " Now," continued the President, warming with his subject, "if God should say, I will let you live in this world without any pain or sorrow, we might feel life was worth living for. But this is not in his economy. We have to partake 204 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CLTY. of sorrow, affliction and death ; and if we pass through this affliction patiently, and do right, we shall have a greater reward in the world to come. I have been robbed several times of my all in this life, and my property has gone into the hands of my enemies; but as to property, I care no more about it than about the dirt in the streets, only to use it as God wishes. But I think a good deal ot a friend — a true friend. An honest man is truly the noblest work of God. It is not in the power of the United States to destroy this people, for they are in the hands of God. If we do right, He will preserve us. The Lord does many things which we would count as small things. For instance, a poor man once came into my office; I felt by the spirit that he needed assistance; I took five dollars out of my pocket and gave to him. I soon after found a five-dollar gold piece in my pocket, which I did not put there. Soon I found another. Many think that the Loro has nothing to do with gold ; but he has charge of that as well as every other element. Brother Kimball said in Nauvoo, ' if we have to leave our houses we will go to the mountains, and in a few years we will have a better city than we have here.' This is fulfilled. He also said, ' We shall have gold, and coin twenty- dollar gold pieces.' We came here, founded di c'xiy , and coined the first twenty- dollar gold pieces in the United States. Seeing the brethren poorly clad, soon after we came here, he said, ' It will not be three years before we can buy cloth- ing cheaper in Salt Lake Valley than in the States.' Before the time was out, the gold-diggers brought loads of clothing, and sold them in our city at a wanton price. "Friend Thomas," concluded Governor Young, "the Lord sent you here, and he will not let you die — no, you cannot die till your work is done. I want to have your name live to all eternity. You have done a great work, and you will do a greater work still." The council then broke up, and the brethren went to their homes. The straightforward, noble simplicity of what was thus done and said between Thomas L. Kane and Brigham Young, in the presence of the apostles, cannot but strike the attention of the intelligent investigator. After ihe council had ended, word was sent to Elder Wm. C. Staines that a Dr. Oaborne, traveling with the company from California, was sick, and desired accommodation at his house; and late in the evening "Dr. Osborne" was duly introduced to, and cordially welcomed by. Elder Staines. The elder had no idea that his guest was other than the person represented, for when Colonel Kane was at Winter Quarters, he (Staines) was among the Indians, with Bishop Miller's camp. However, in a few days Elder Staines learned who his guest was, and, as a favorable opportunity presented itself, said to him : "Colonel Kane, why did you wish to be introduced to me as Dr. Osborne?" "My dear friend," replied the Colonel, "I was once treated so kindly at winter quarters that I am sensitive over its memories. I knew you to be a good people then ; but since, I have heard so many hard things about you, that I thought I would like to convince myself whether or not the people possessed the same humane and hospitable spirit which I found in them once. I thought, if I go to the house of any of my great friends of Winter Quarters, they will treat me as Thomas L K^ne, with a remembrance of some services which I may have HISTOR V OF SAL T LAKE CI2 V. 205 rendered them. So I requested to be sent to some stranger's house, as ' Dr. Osborne,' that I might know how the Mormon people would treat a stranger at such a moment as this, without knowing whether I might not turn out to be either an enemy or a spy. And now, Mr. Staines, I want to know if you could have treated Thomas L. Kane better than you have treated Dr. Osborne." ''No, Colonel," replied Elder Staines, "I could not." "And thus, my friend." added 'Dr. Osborne,' "I have proved that the Mormons will treat the stranger in Salt Lake City, as they once did Thomas L. Kane at Winter Quarters." In a few days, under the inspiring spirit and affectionate nursing of his host. Colonel Kane was sufficiently recovered to carry out his design of proceeding to the head quarters of the army (Fort Bridger, then called Camp Scott). Governor Young's policy had changed it nought, excepting in that which was consistent with the improved situation. The Mormons would receive their new Governor loyally, but would not have him accompanied by an army into their capital; neither would they allow an army to be quartered in any of their cities. The agent of the administration could ask no more nor desire more. It was the basis of a fair compromise, which would give to President Buchanan a plausible out-come, and at the same time maintain the Mormon dignity. The visit of Colonel Kane to Camp Scott was attended with a chain of cir- cumstances that give to the narration of it a decidedly dramatic cast. At the worst season of the year, in delicate health, he made his way through the almost impassable snows of the mountains, a distance of 113 miles. Arrived on the loth of March, in the vicinity of the army outposts, he insisted, out of consid- ation for the safety of his friendly escort, on entering the lines unaccompanied. Reaching the nearest picket post, the over-zealous sentry challenged him, and at the same time fired at him. In return, the Colonel broke the stock of his rifle over the sentry's head. The post being now full arroused and greatly excited. Colonel Kane, with characteristic politeness as well as diplomacy, requested to be conducted to the tent of Governor Gumming. The Governor received him cordially. The Colonel's diplomacy in seeking the Governor, instead of General John- ston, is evident. His business was not directly with the commander, but with the civil chief, whose posse commitatus the troops were. The compromise which Buchanan had to effect, with the utmost delicacy, could only be through the new Governor, and that, too, by his heading off the army sent to occupy Utah. The General was chagrined. Here was Buchanan withdrawing from a ser- ious blunder as gracefully as possible ; but where was Albert Sidney Johnston to achieve either glory or honor out of the Utah war? Affecting to treat Colonel Kane as a spy, an orderly was sent to arrest him. It was afterwards converted into a blundering execution of the General's invita- tion to him to dine at head-quarters. The blunder was no doubt an intentional one. Colonel Kane replied by sending a formal challenge to General Johnston. Governor Gumming could do nothing less than espouse the cause of the •'ambassador," who was there in the execution of a mission entrusted to him by the President of the United States. The affair of honor also touched himself. 2o6 HIST OR V OF SAL T LAKE CLl Y. He resented it with great spirit, extended his official protection to his guest, and from that moment there was an impassable breach between the executive and the military chief. The duel, however, was prevented by the interferance of Chief Justice Eckels, who threatened to arrest all concerned in it if it proceeded further. The conduct of General Johnston was looked upon by the Mormon leader as very like a bit of providential diplomacy interposed in behalf of his people. With the Governor and the commander of the army at swords' points, the issues of the ''war" were practically in the hands of Brigham Young. From that moment he knew that he was master of the situation ; and the extraordinary moves that he made thereupon, culminating with the second exodus, shows what a consummate strategist he was, and how complex were his methods of mastering men. He was now not only in command of his own people, who at the lifting of his finger would move with him to the ends of the earth, but substantially dic- tator both to the Governor and the army. Johnston could only move at the call of the Governor, and was hedged about by the new policy of the President, while this shaping of affairs converted the Mormon militia, then under arras, into the Governor's /^j'J"(? commitatus, instead of the regular troops. The mission of Colonel Kane to the seat of war was to induce the Governor to trust himself through the Mormon lines, under a Mormon escort of honor that would be furnished at a proper point, and to enter immediately upon his guberna- torial duties. The officers remonstrated with the Governor against going to the city without the army, predicting that the Mormons would poison him, or put him out of the way by some other wicked ingenuity ; but the camp was now no longer the place for him, and with a high temper and a humane spirit, he trusted himself to the guidance of Colonel Kane. The Governor left Camp Scott on the 5th of April, en route for Salt Lake City, accompanied by Colonel Kane and two servants. As soon as he had passed the Federal lines, he was met by an escort of the Mormon militia, and welcomed as Governor of the Territory with military honors. On the 12 of April they entered Salt Lake City in good health and spirits, escorted by the mayor, marshal and aldermen, and many other distinguished citizens. Arrived at the residende of Elder Staines, Governor Young promptly and frankly called npon his successor at the earliest possible moment ; and they were introduced to each other by Colonel Kane. "Governor Gumming, I am glad to meet you!" observed Brigham, with unostentatious dignity, and that quiet heartiness peculiar to him. "Governor Young, I am happy to meet you, sir! " responded His Excel- lency warmly, at once impressed by the presence and spirit of the remarkable man before him. " Well, Governor," said Elder Staines, after the interview was ended, " what do you think of President Young? Does he appear to you a tyrant, as repre- sented?" " No, sir. No tyrant ever had a head on his shoulders like Mr. Young. He HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 207 is naturally a very good man. I doubt whether many of your people sufficiently appreciate him as a leader." The brethern were apprised of the fact that the officers at Camp Scott had warned the Governor that the Mormons would poison him, so it was contrived that Elder Staines and Howard Egan should eat at the same table with him and partake of the same food. Of course he understood the delicate assurance that "death was not in the pot." Three days after his entrance into the city, Governor Gumming officially notified General Johnston that he had been properly recognized by the people ; that he was in full discharge of his office, and that he did not require the presence of troops. On his part, ex-Governor Young set the public example, and on the Sunday following introduced him to a large assembly as the Governor of Utah. Thus successfully ended the mission of Col. Kane, who shortly thereafter re- turned to Washington, to report in person to the President. Journeying by the overland route, a body-guard of Mormon scouts accompanied him to the Mis- souri River. It is no more than simple justice to here testify of him, that a more gentle and noble man has rarely been found, and for his disinterested kindness toward the Mormon people they will ever hold his name in honorable and affec- tionate remembrance. CHAPTER XXIII. REPORT OF GOVERNOR GUMMING TO THE GOVERNMENT. THE GOVERNMENT RECORDS FOUND NOT BURNED, AS REPORTED BY DRUMMOND. THE MORMON LEADERS JUSTIFIED BY THE FACTS, AND THE PEOPLE LOYAL. GRAPHIC AND THRILLING DESCRIPTION OF THE MORMONS IN THEIR SECOND EXODUS. THE GOVERNOR BRINGS HIS FAMILY TO SALT LAKE CITY. HIS WIFE IS MOVED TO TEARS AT V^ITNESSIN.G THE HEr6iC ATTITUDE OF THE PEOPLE. Governor Gumming immediately reported the condition of affairs in Utah, and the re-action that it caused in the public mind, both in America and Europe, can well be imagined. It was a new revelation, to the age, of Mormon character and Mormon sincerity. The peculiar people were never understood till then, notwithstanding their previous exodus, for only Missouri and Illinois seemed con- cerned in their early history and doings; but now that the United States Gov- ernment was a party in the action, all the world became interested in the extra- traordinary spectacle of a peculiar, little, unconquerable people, braving the wrath of a mighty nation. The current events of those days, including the "second exodus," which 2o8 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. was begun in anticipation of a breach of faith, on the part of the United States authorities, in this instance, as in the previous case of the State authorities at Nauvoo, are well recounted in the following report of Governor Gumming, ad- I dressed to Geneial Gass, then Secretary of State: "Executive Office, Salt Lake Gity, U. T., May 2d, 1858. "Sir: You are aware that my contemplated journey was postponed in con- sequence of the snow upon the mountains, and in the canyons between Fort Bridger and this city. In accordance with the determination communicated in former notes, I left camp on the 5th, and arrived here on the 12th ult. " Some of the incidents of my journey are related in the annexed note, ad- dressed by me to General A. S. Johnston, on the 15th ult:" "Executive Office, Salt Lake Gity, U. T., April 15th, 1858. "Sir: I left camp on the 5th, en route to this city, in accordance with a determination communicated to you on the 3d inst, accompanied by Golonel Kane as my guide, and two servants. Arriving in the vicinity of the spring, which is on this side of the " Quaking Asp " hill, after night, Indian camp fires were discerned on the rocks overhanging the valley. We proceeded to the spring, and after disposing of the animals, retired from the trail beyond the mountain. We had reason to congratulate ourselves upon having taken this precaution, as we subsequently ascertained that the country lying between your outposts and the ' Yellow Greek ' is infested by hostile renegades and outlaws from various tribes. " " I was escorted from Bear River Valley to the western end of Echo Ganyon. The journey through the canyon being performed, for the most part, after night, it was about ii o'clock p. m., when I arrived at Weber Station. I have been everywhere recognized as Governor of Utah; and, so far from having encount- ered insults or indignities, I am gratified in being able to state to you that, in pas- sing through the settlements, I have been universally greeted with such respectful attentions as are due to the representative authority of the United States in the Territory. "Near the Warm Springs, at the line dividing Great Salt Lake and Davis counties, I was honored with a formal and respectful reception by many gentle- men including the mayor and other municipal officers of the city, and by them escorted to lodgings previously provided, the mayor occupying a seat in my car- riage. " Ex-Governor Brigham Young paid me a call of ceremony as soon as I was sufficiently relieved from the fatigue of my mountain journey to receive company. In subsequent interviews with the ex-Governor, he has evinced a willingness to afford me every facility I may require for the efficient performance of my adminis- trative duties. His course in this respect meets, I fancy, with the approval of a majority of this community. The Territorial seal, with other public property, has been tendered me by William H. Hooper, Esq., late Secretary /r^ tern. "i have not yet eximined the subject critically, but apprehend that the records of the United States Gourts, Territorial Library, and other public prop- erty, remain unimpaired. 12 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CJTY. 20g " Having entered upon the performance of my official duties in this city, it is probable that I will be detained for some days in this part of the Territory. " I respectfully call your attention to a matter which demands our serious consideration. Many acts of depredation have been recently committed by the Indians upon the property of the inhabitants — one in the immediate vicinity of this city. Believing that the Indians will endeavor to sell the stolen property at or near your camp, I herewith inclose the Brand Book (incomplete) and memor- anda (in part) of stock lost by citizens of Utah since February 25th, 1858, which may enable you to secure the property and punish the thieves, " With feelings of profound regret I have learned that Agent Hart is charged with having incited to acts of hostility the Indians in Uinta Valley, I hope that Agent Hart will be able to vindicate himself from the charges contained in the inclosed letter from William H. Hooper, late Secretary /ri? ^em., yet they demand a thorough investigation. "I shall probably be compelled to make a requisition upon you for a suffi- cient force to chastise the Indians alluded to, since I desire to avoid being compelled to call out the militia for that purpose, "The gentlemen who are intrusted with this note, Mr. John B. Kimball and Mr, Fay Worthen, are engaged in mercantile pursuits here, and are represented to be gentlemen of the highest respectability, and have no connection with the Church here. Should you deem it advisable or necessary, you will please send any communication intended for me by them. I beg leave to commend them to your confidence and courtesy. They will probably return to the city in a few days. They are well known to Messrs. Gilbert, Perry and Burr, with whom you will please communicate. Very respectfully, your obedient servant, A. GUMMING, Governor Utah Territory. To A. S. Johnston, commanding Army of Utah, Camp Scott, U. T. "The note omits to state that I met parties of armed men at Lost Creek and Yellow Creek, as well as at Echo Canyon. At every point, however, I was recognized as the Governor of Utah, and received with a military salute. When it was arranged with the Mormon officers in command of my escort that I should pass through Echo Canyon at night, I inferred that it was with the object of con- cealing the barricades and other defenses, I was, therefore, agreeably surprised by an illumination in honor of me. The bonfires kindled by the soldiers from the base to the summits of the walls of the canyon, completely illuminated the valley, and disclosed the snow-colored mountains which surrounded us. When I arrived at the next station, I found the 'Emigrant Road' over the 'Big Moun- tain' still impassable. I was able to make my way, however, down ' Weber Can- yon.' Since my arrival, I have been employed in examining the records of the Supreme and District Courts, which I am now prepared to report as being per- fect and unimpaired. This Avill doubtless be acceptable information to those who have entertained an impression to the contrary. "I have also examined the Legislative Records, and other books belonging to the Secretary or State, which are in perfect preservation. The property re- 13 210 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. turn, though not made up in proper form, exhibits the public property for which W. H. Hooper, late Secretary of State //-i< jf j.|-jg conduct of the recent operations has had the effect of strengthening their fanaticism, by the appearance of perse- cution, without convincing them of our good faith and good intentions, and worse still, has been the means of driving away 50,000 of our fellow-citizens from fields which their labor had reclaimed and cultivated, and around which their affections were clustered, we have something serious to answer for. Were we not guilty of a culpable oversight in confounding their persistent devotion with the insubordination of ribald license, and applying to the one the same harsh treat- ment which the law intends for the latter alone? Was it right to send troops composed of the wildest and most rebellious men of the community, commanded by men like Harney and Johnston, to deal out fire and sword upon people whose faults even were the result of honest religious convictions? Was it right to allow 222 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. Johnston to address letters to Brigham Young, and through him to his people, couched in the tone of an implacable conqueror towards ruthless savages? Were the errors which mistaken zeal generates ever cured by such means as these? And have bayonets ever been used against the poorest and weakest sect that ever crouched beyond a wall to pray or weep, without rendering their faith more in- tense, and investing the paltriest discomforts with the dignity of sacrifice? * * * We stand on the vantage ground of higher knowledge, purer faith and acknowledged strength. We can afford to be merciful. At all events, the world looks to us now for an example of political wisdom such as few people, now-a-days, are called on to display. Posterity must not have to ac- knowledge with shame that our indiscretion, or ignorance, or intolerance drove the population of a whole State from house and home, to seek religious liberty and immunity from the presence of mercenary troops, in any part of the conti- nent to which our rule was never likely to extend." Reynolds^ Newspaper, in an editorial written specially to represent the British Republicans, views of the Mormon community in their great struggle for their re- ligious and social liberties, gave the following strong passages: "It may be that Mormonism has originated in imposture, and that many, if not all, of its peculiar rites and customs are the 'abomination of desolation.' Let this point, though not yet proved, be conceded; still, the social and political problem is by no means solved. After we have demonstrated the fabuU.usness of the gold tablets, convicted Joseph Smith of all sorts of possible and impossible scoundrelisms, and proved his followers to be a mixed multitude of the gravest knaves and idiots that ever walked the earth, Mormonism still remains a great human fact — perhaps the greatest — certainly the most wonderful fact of this nineteenth century. As such, it is entitled to our earnest and respectful consid- eration. "There can be no doubt that, in one thing at least, Mormonism has been eminently successful. It has, in the great majority of instances, really improved the earthly condition of those who have embraced it. More than this, it has inspired with hope and with courage thousands of despairing and heart broken wretches, who, prior to their conversion, seemed abandoned of God and man. This new faith has, so to speak, created a soul under the ribs of death. It has given to thousands of once destitute and despised Englishmen something to live for, to fight for, and, if need be, to die for. On this ground, then, were it for nothing else, the Mormons, not as fanatics or sectaries, but as heavily- oppressed, long-suffering, and earnestly struggling men, are entitled to the sympathy of the enslaved classes throughout the world. "But they have a claim to something more than sympathy. Their heroic endurance and marvellous achievements entitle them to the respect and admira- tion of their fellow-creatures. Twice were the Mormons driven from their settle- ments in the United States before they had resolved upon their stupendous pilgrimage to the Valley of the Salt Lake. How that gigantic journey was ac- complished ; how a thousand miles of untrodden desert — untrodden, save by the I HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 223 wild beast or wilder Indian, where death in a hundred forms had to be encoun- tered and defied — had to be traversed; how the poor, hungered, and toil-worn, but still dauntless pilgrims reached their destination; how they built a city, founded a civil and ecclesiastical polity; how law and order were established; how skill and industry converted barren wastes into fruitful fields, howling forests into smiling gardens, until, under the talismanic wand of Labor, the wilderness was made to blossom as the rose , how their missionaries were employed with startling success in every European country; and how many thousands of the down-trodden and penury-stricken victims of European tyranny were leaving the land of their birth, in order to find in the Mormon territory, that hope and en- couragement denied to them in their native countries; — how all this has been accomplished by the reviled followers of Joseph Smith, all Eiirope and America have heard, and, though hating, admired." The famous African explorer. Captain Burton, of the British army, closing his description of the great man who took his people successfully through that crisis, gives us the following suggestive passage in his "City of the Saints: " " Such is His Excellency, President Brigham Young, 'Painter and Glazier' (his earliest craft), prophet, revelator, translator and seer; the man who is revered as king or kaiser, pope or pontiff, never was ; who, like the old man of the moun- tain, by holding up his right hand could cause the death of any man within his reach ; who, governing as well as reigning, long stood up to fight with the sword of the Lord, and with his few hundred guerrillas, against the then mighty power of the United States; who has outwitted all diplomacy opposed to him; and, finally, who made a treaty of peace with the President of the great Republic, as though he had wielded the combined power of France, Russia and England." Substantially, the word of Brigham Young was fulfilled, in that he had said an invading army should not enter the city. General Johnston and his army came not as conquerers into Zion. The entire chain of circumstances, from the start of their expedition, had been most humiliating to the brave men who deserved better service. Their march had been but a series of disasters and failures. They were merely permitted to pass through the streets of Salt Lake City on their way to a location in the Territory well removed from the Mormon people. Zion was a forsaken city that day. The Saints were still south with their great leader. If faith was not kept with them they did not intend to return, and war would have been re-opened in deadly earnest. It was a sad spectacle to see a community of earnest religionists who could not trust in the parent power, even after the proclamation of the President. But the history of the Mormons in their minds to this hour shows a constant justifica- tion of this lack of confidence. On the 13th of June, the army commenced its movement towards the city ; and, on the morning of the 26th, it might have been seen advancing from the mouth of Emigration Canyon to make what once was expected to have been a triumphal entrance into conquered Zion, with all " the pomp and circumstance 224 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. of glorious war." Here is a picture of it as it was, from the pen of an army correspondent : " It was one of the most extraordinary scenes that have occurred in Ameri can history. All day long, from dawn until after sunset, the troops and trains poured through the city, the utter silence of the streets being broken only by the music of the military bands, the monotonous tramp of the regiments, and the rattle of the baggage wagons. Early in the morning, the Mormon guards had forced all their fellow religionists into the houses, and ordered them not to make their appearance during the day. The numerous flags that had been flying from staffs on the public buildings during the previous week were all struck. The only visible groups of spectators were on the corners near Brigham Young's residence, and consisted almost entirely of Gentile civilians. The stillness was so profound that during the intervals between the passage of the columns, the monotonous gurgle of the City Creek struck on every ear. The Commissioners rode with the General's staff. The troops crossed the Jordan and encamped two miles from the city, on a dusty meadow by the river bank." But the army correspondent did not properly construe the death-like stillness and desertion of the city, when he says the Mormon guard had '* forced all their fellow religionists into their houses." They were not in their houses, but in the second exodus. It is estimated that there were no less than 30,000 of the Mormon people from the city and northern settlements in " the move south." They took with them their flocks and herds, their chattels and furniture. When that army marched through the streets of Zion, grass was growing on the side walks, and there were only a few of " the boys" left on the watch in the city, to see that the people were not betrayed. Some of the officers were deeply moved by the scene and the circumstances. Lieutenant Colonel Philip St, George Cooke, who had commanded the Mormon battalion in the Mexican war, rode through the city with uncovered head, leading the troops, but forgetting not his respect for the brave Mormon soldiers who had so nobly served with him in their country's cause. Cedar Valley, forty miles west of the city, was chosen as their permanent camping place, which was named Camp Floyd, in honor of the then Secretary of War. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 223 CHAPTER XXV. GOVERNOR CUMMING PLEADS WITH THE SAINTS. THEY RETURN TO THEIR HOMES. THE JUDGES. CRADLEBAUGH'S COURT, HE CALLS FOR TROOPS. PROVO CITY INVADED BY THE ARMY. CONSPIRACY TO ARREST BRIG- HAM YOUNG. GOVERNOR CUMMING ORDERS OUT THE UTAH MILITIA TO REPEL INVASION. TIMELY ARRIVAL OF A DISPATCH FROM GOVERN- MENT STAYS THE CONFLICT, ATTORNEY-GENERAL BLACK'S REBUKE TO THE JUDGES. GENERAL JOHNSTONS FRIENDS DEMAND THE REMOVAL OF GOVERNOR CUMMING. THE SITUATION RECOVERED BY THE PATRI- OTISM OF THOMAS L. KANE, DIVISION LN THE CABINET. PARALLEL OF THE BLAINE REMINISCENCE OF JERE S. BLACK. Return we now to the Saints in their flight. It had taxed their faith and their means to an absolute consecration of their all, and called forth as much re- ligious heroism as did their first exodus from Nauvoo. Gallant old Governor Gumming was almost distracted over this Mormon episode. He was not used to the self-sacrifices and devotion of the peculiar people whom he had taken under his official guardianship. They were more familiar than he with this part of their eventful drama. Familiarity had bred in them a kind of contempt for their own sufferings and privations. So they witnessed their new Governor's concern for them with a stoical humor. They were, indeed, grateful, but amused. They could not feel to deserve his pity, yet were they thankful for his sympathy. They sang psalms by the wayside. He felt like strewing their path with tears. He followed them fifty miles south, praying them, as would a father his wayward children, to turn back. But the father whom they knew better was leading them on. "There is no longer danger. General Johnston and the army will keep faith with the Mormons. Every one concerned in this happy settlement will hold sacred the amnesty and pardon of the President of the United States ! By G d, sirs. Yes." Such was tlie style of Governor Cumming's pleadings with the " misguided " Mormons. But Brigham replied with a quiet fixedness of purpose : " We know all about it. Governor. We remember the martyrdoms of the past ! We have, on just such occasions, seen our disarmed men hewn down in cold blood, our virgin daughters violated, our wives ravished to death before our eyes. We know all about it, Governor Gumming." It was a terrible logic that thus met the brave meditation of the fine old Georgian successor of Governor Young, who coupled patriotism with humanity, and believed in the primitive faith that American citizens and American homes must be held sacred. 1 226 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY, Brigham Young alone could turn the tidal wave, and lead back the Mormon people to their homes/ Had he continued onward to Sonora, Central America, anywhere — to the ends of the earth — this people would have followed him. The Mormon leaders, with the body of the Church, were at Provo on the evening of the 4th of July ; General Johnston and his army being about to take up their quarters at Camp Floyd. It was on that evening that Governor Gum- ming informed his predecessor that he should publish a proclamation to the Mor- mons for their return to their homes. "Do as you please. Governor Gumming," replied Brigham, w-ith a quiet smile. "To-morrow I shall get upon the tongue of my wagon, and tell the people that /am going home, and they can do as they please." On the morning of the 5th, Brigham announced to the people that he was going to start for Salt Lake City; they were at liberty to follow him to their various settlements, as they pleased. In a few hours nearly all were on their homeward march. But scarcely had the people returned to their homes, ere they had abundant proof how much they could have trusted a united Federal power, in an anti-Mor- mon crusade, with an army at its service to subvert the civil and religious liberties of the people. The machinery of the Federal power was soon set in motion. Chief Justice Eckles took up his quarters at Camp Floyd; Associate Justice Sinclair was as- signed to the district embracing Salt Lake City ; and Associate Justice Cradle- baugh was assigned to the judicial supervision of all the southern settlements ; and Superintendent of Indian Affairs, Jacob Forney, and Alexander Wilson, U. S. District Attorney, entered upon the discharge of their duties. The Governor from the beginning assumed a pacific attitude, in which he was seconded by Superintendent Forney and District- Attorney Wilson. But the three Judges, in concert with the Marshal, united in the prosecution of past offences that had naturally arisen out of the condition of the hostility, just brought to a happy and peaceful issue. Judge Sinclair convened the First, now the Third Judicial District Court in Great Salt Lake City in November, 1858, and in his charge to the Grand Jury he urged the prosecution of the leading men of the Territory for treason, for intimi- dation of the courts, and for polygamy. President Buchanan's pardon, the Judge admitted, was "a public fact in the history of the country," but "like any other deed, it ought to be brought judicially by plea, motion or otherwise." In fine. Judge Sinclair wanted to bring before his court ex-Governor Young, Lieut. -General Daniel H. Wells, and the leading Mormons generally, especially the Apostles, "to make them admit that they had been guilty of treason, and make them humbly accept from him the President's clemency." So explains Mr. Stenhouse. But it was something more radical and serious than a vainglorious effort to humble Utah to the footstool of a Federal Judge. It was an attempt to reopen in the courts the entire conflict which had so nearly come to the issue of war. U. S. District Attorney Wilson, however, would not present to the jury .bills of indictment for treason, pleading that the Commissioners had presented 41 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY, 227 the pardon, and the people had accepted it, and the Governor had proclaimed that peace was restored to the Territory. "But the young Judge," relates Mr. Stenhouse, "was more successful in his efforts to bring forward the charge of intimidating the courts. It could not be expected that the charge to the jury on polygamy would secure much attention. It was regarded little better than a grand farce to ask a Mormon jury to find indictments against their brethren for polygamy. The term of Judge Sinclair's judicial service was a failure, only memorable for one thing — he sentenced the first white man who was ever hanged in Utah, and he was a Gentile, to be executed on a Sunday! Of course, the day had to be changed." But the most extraordinary judicial action, and that which continues the historical thread of those times, was in the important district assigned to Judge Cradlebaugh. The criminal cases which he sought to investigate were those com- monly known as the Potter and Parrish murders at Springville, and the Mountain Meadows Massacre in Southern Utah. On the 8th of March, 1859, at Provo, Judge Cradlebaugh delivered an extraordinary address to the Grand Jury, and commenced extraordinary proceedings, which in their sequel nearly made Salt Lake City the seat of actual war between Johnston's troops and the Utah militia under Governor Gumming, and which was barely prevented by the timely inter- ference of the General Government. The history of Salt Lake City, however, cannot follow in detail the entire history of Utah, only so far as its subject and action find therein its proper centre of unity. Suffice here to mark that Judge Cradlebaugh in his investigations and prosecutions aimed chiefly to implicate the leaders of the Mormon Church in all the criminal offenses and deeds of violence done within the Territory, In summing up the evidence in the case of the murders at Springville, the Judge concluded with the following address: "Until I commenced the examination of the testimony in this case, I always supposed that I lived in a land of civil and religious liberty, in which we were secured by the Constitution of our country the right to remove at pleasure from one portion of our domain to another, and also that we enjoyed the privilege of worshipping God according to the dictates of our own conscience. But I re- gret to say, that the evidence in this case clearly proves that, so far as Utah is concerned, I have been mistaken in such supposition. Men are murdered here : coolly, deliberately, premediatatedly murdered — their murder is deliberated and determined upon by the church council-meetings, and that, too, for no other reason than that they had apostatized from your church, and were striving to leave the Territory. "You are the tools, the dupes, the instruments of a tyrannical church des- potism. The heads of your church order and direct you. You are taught to obey their orders and commit these horrid murders. Deprived of your liberty you have lost your manhood, and become the willing instruments of bad men. "I say to you it will be my earnest effort, while with you, to knock ofT your ecclesiastical shackles and set you free." It is easily to be seen that with such a grand jury, charged in this manner by such a judge, it was impossible to accomplish the ends of justice ; — equally im- 228 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. possible whether they had been " the willing instruments" of a "tyrannical church," or a grand jury of honest, innocent men. In the course of one of these prosecutions, Judge Cradlebaugh made a requi- sition upon General Johnston for troops to act as protection to certain witnesses, and also, in the absence of a jail, to serve as a guard over the prisoners. The mayor of Provo (Kiuiball Bullock) protested that the presence of the military was an infringement upon the liberties of his fellow-citizens; but the judge answered that he had well considered the request before he had made it. A pe- tition was sent to Governor Gumming, and he asked General Johnston to with- draw the troops, asserting that the court had no authority to call for the aid of the military, except through him. The judges interpreted General Johnston's in- structions from the War Department adversely to the statement of the Governor, and the troops were continued at Provo. On the 27th of March (1859), the Governor issued a proclamation protesting against the continuance of the troops at Provo, taking open ground against the action of the military commander. About this time was concocted a conspiracy to arrest Brigham Young. It was proposed that a writ be issued for his apprehension. The officers entrusted with its execution presented themselves at the Governor's office, to request his co-operation. But Governor Gumming stoutly resisted the attempted outrage. He himself afterwards thus related this conspiracy to arrest his predecessor: "They had 'got the dead wood on Brigham Young this time,' so they said, as they unfolded to me their plans. If Brigham resisted, General Johnston's artillery was to make a breach in the wall surrounding his premises, and they would take him by force and carry him to Camp Floyd. "I listened to them, sir, as gravely as I could, and examined their papers. They rubbed their hands and were jubilant ; they ' had got the dead wood on Brigham Young ! ' I was indignant, sir, and told them, 'by G — d, gentlemen, you can't do it ! When you have a right to take Brigham Young, gentlemen, you shall have him without creeping through walls. You shall enter through his door with heads erect as become representatives of your government. But till that time, gentlemen, you can't touch Brigham Young while I live, by G — d! '" "Such was the story," says Stenhouse, "told by the Governor to the author a few years latter, and as he related it all the fire of his nature was depicted on his countenance and told unmistakably that he would have made good every word with his life." The officers returned to Camp Floyd discomfited, and immediately the news was circulated that General Johnston would send two regiments of troops and a battery of artillery to enforce the writ for the apprehension of Brigham. The New York Herald of date May 25, 1S59, gave to the country a graphic picture of affairs in Utah at that moment : OUR SALT LAKE CITY CORRESPONDENCE. "Great Salt Lake City, U. T., April 23, 1859. "In my last letter 1 informed you of the threat of Judge Sinclair that he would hold court in this city during May, with three-fourths of the army now at HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 229 Carnp Floyd, quartered in Union Square, ready to carry out his orders. The apprehension of a collision which that threat inspired measurably died away in the bosoms of the people generally, and the youthful judge was beginning to get credit for idle braggadocia, and his tongue was regarded as having only divulged what was in his heart to do, if he only could get the chance; but, alas! the day after the departure of the last mail from here, rumors of his intentions were in circulation at Camp Floyd, which leaves us no reason to doubt that his threat was no idle boast, but is in reality the fixed determination of his heart, to lead to a collision between the citizens and the troops. Of this Governor Gumming is ap- parently fully convinced, as also the other officials outside of the judicial clique. By the departure of the next mail, plans will be better developed, if not even then carried into execution, or at least attempted; and should you then hear of the eagerly-sought-for collision having taken place, it can be witnessed that we have not sought it, but that it is the deep-laid scheme of sutlers, degraded judges, and disappointed officers of our great republican army, for the sake of perishable gold, gratification of personal revenge, and the empty glory of swords to be crimsoned with the blood of fellow-citizens, who so love the liberty bequeathed to them by illustrious sires that they will fight for its maintenance, though their homes should be made desolate and their wives and children left without protectors in the land of freemen's inheritance. "An express from Camp Floyd arrived here on Sunday night with the intelli- gence that two regiments were coming to the city to make arrests, and it was ex- pected that they would have orders for forced marches, to come in upon us un- awares. Imtnediately on Governor Cuniming being made acquainted with the re. port and circumstances, which leave no room to doubt of the plans of the judges, he notified General D. H. Wells to hold the militia in readiness to act on orders. By two o' clock on Monday motningfive thousand men were under arms. Had the United States' troops attempted to enter the city, the struggle must have com- menced, for the Governor is determined to carry out his instructions. What has deferred their arrival here we know not; but now that this plan is known, a watchful eye is kept on the camp, and the shedding of blood seems inevitable- We have confidence in the overruling care of our heavenly Father; and what" ever does take place, will eventually turn out for good. "Major told me yesterday that General Johnston was resolved to carry out his orders, and he affirms that they are to use the military on the requisition of the judges, and not on the requisition of the Governor only. I have just learned that 500 soldiers were on the march to Sanpete settlement to arrest per- sons there whom the judges are seeking after. The judicial-military-inquisitorial farce played at Provo satisfies everybody that it is not violated justice that seeks redress, but the madness of men drunken with whisky and vengeance, that seek satiety in blood. There is not an official in any settlement outside this city but what expects to be handled as were those at Provo; and the only safety they have from judicial vengeance — not personal, but vengeance against the community — is in flight to the mountains. In the south, where the weather has been excel- lent for early agricultural operations this spring, the fields have been left unculti- vated, and the seed that should be fructifying in the soil is still lying in the barn, i 230 HISTORY OF SAL T LAKE CITY. ^ | the end of which must be famine; for unless the Governor has power to restrain the judges from calling the military to act as a posse comitafus, no man of any ' influence will trust himself at home. We fear no judge of the United States. i The Supreme Judge of all we fear, and in His fear we live, and earthly tribunals \ have no terror for us : but the insolence of men like Cradlebaugh and Sinclair ; and the despotism of their military aids drive the iron to our souls. The very ! latest news now in circulation in the city is that the judges have hired the Indians to scour the mountains in search of the persons that the Marshal and military have been unable to discover at home. What next? Shall a price be offered the red men of the forest for the scalps of our citizens? Oh, my God ! what shall we be driven to? My heart sickens at the outrages to which we have been subjected, and I dread the future. Nothing shall be done on our part to hasten hostilities; but if it is impossible to avoid them, the responsibility is theirs. " Governor Gumming has no disposition, nor has this community any, to screen any man or men from the punishment due for any crime or misdemeanor they may be accused of; but he will not suffer military terrorism to reign in the Territory over which he is Governor, and we are to a man ready to sustain him. We appeal to the American nation, and ask any man whose soul is not absorbed with the acquisition of perishable pelf only, what can we do more than we have done to preserve peace? and what course is open to us but to defend our rights as citizens of the Union?" Happily at this juncture an official letter from Washington decided that the military could only be used as a posse on a call from the Governor. This com- munication from the U. S. Attorney- General is a valuable historical review of Utah affairs at that juncture, by the U. S. Government itself: "Attorney-General's Office, May 17, 1859. "Gentlemen — The President has received your joint letter on the subject of the military force with which the Court for the Second District of Utah was attended during the term recently held at Provo City. He has carefully con- sidered it, as well as all other advices relating to the same affair, and he has directed me to give you his answer. "The condition of things in Utah made it extremely desirable that the Judges appointed for that Territory should confine themselves strictly within their own official sphere. The Government had a district attorney, who was charged with the duties of a public accuser, and a marshal, who was responsible for the arrest and safe-keeping of criminals. For the judges there was nothing left except to hear patiently the causes brought before them, and to determine them impartially according to the evidence adduced on both sides. It did not seem either right or necessary to instruct you that these were to be the limits of your interference with the public affairs of the Territory; for the Executive never dictates to the Judicial department. The President is responsible only for the appointment of proper men. You were selected from a very large number of other persons who were willing to be employed on the same service, and the choice was grounded solely on your high character for learning, sound judgment, and integrity. It HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 231 was natural, therefore, that the President should look upon the proceedings at Provo with a sincere desire to find you in all things blameless. "It seems that on the 6th of March last, Judge Cradlebaugh announced to the commanding officer of the military forces that on the 8th day of the same month he would begin a term of the District Court at Provo, and required a military guard for certain prisoners, to the number of six or eight, who were then in custody, and would be triable at Provo. The requisition mentions it as a probable fact that *a large band of organized thieves' would be arrested; but the troops were asked for without reference to them. Promptly responding to this call the commanding-general sent up a company of infantry, who encamped at the Court House, and soon afterwards ten more companies made their appear- ance in sight, and remained there during the whole term of the court. In the meantime, the Governor of the Territory, hearing of this military demonstration upon a town previously supposed to be altogether peaceful, appeared on the ground, made inquiries, and, seeing no necessity for the troops, but believing, on the contrary, that their presence was calculated to do harm, he requested them to be removed. The request was wholly disregarded. "The Governor is the supreme Executive of the Territory. He is respon- sible for the public peace. From the general law of the land, the nature of his office, and the instructions he received from the State Department, it ought to have been understood that he alone had power to issue a requisition for the move- ment of troops from one part of the Territory to another, — that he alone could put the military forces of the Union and the people of the Territory into rela- tions of general hostility with one another. The instructions given to the Com- manding-General by the War Department are to the same effect. In that paper a ^requisition'' is not spoken of as a thing which anybody except the Governor can make. It is true that in one clause the General is told that if the Governor, the judges, or the marshal shall find it necessary to sunmion directly a part of the troops to aid either in the pertbrmance of his duty, he (the General) is to see the summons promptly obeyed. This was manifestly intended to furnish the means of repelling an opposition which might be too strong for the civil posse, and too sudden to admit of a formal requisition by the governor upon the military com- mander. An officer finds himself resisted in the discharge of his duty, and he calls to his aid first the citizens, and, if they are not sufficient, the soldiers. This would be directly summoning a part of the troops. A direct summons and a requisition are not convertible terms. The former signifies a mere verbal call upon either civilians or military men for force enough to put down a present opposition to a certain officer in the performance of a particular duty; and the call is to be always made by the officer who is himself opposed upon those per- sons who are with their own hands to furnish the aid. A requisition, on the other hand, is a solemn demand in writing made by the supreme civil magistrate upon the commander-in-chief of the military forces for the whole or part of the army to be used in a specified service. In a Territory like Utah, the person who exercises this last-mentioned power can make war and peace when he pleases, and holds in his hands the issues of life and death for thousands. Surely it was not intended to clothe each one of the judges, as well as the marshal and all his 232 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. I deputies, with this tremendous authority. Especially does this construction seem erroneous when we reflect that these different officers might make requisitions conflicting with one another, and all of them crossing the path of the Governor. ''Besides, the matter upon which Judge Cradlebaugh's requisition bases itself was one with which the Judge had no sort of official connection. It was the duty the marshal to see that the prisoners were safely kept and forthcoming at the proper time. For aught that appears, the marshal wanted no troops to aid him, and had no desire to see himself displaced by a regiment of soldiers. He made no complaint of weakness, and uttered no call for assistance. Under such cir- cumstances it was a mistake of the Judge to interfere with the business at all, "But, assuming the legal right of the judge to put the marshal's business into the hands of the army without the marshal's concurrence, and granting also that this might be done by means of a requisition, was there in this case any oc- casion for the exercise of such power? When we consider how essentially peace- able is the whole spirit of our judicial system, and how exclusively it aims to operate by moral force, or at most by the arm of civil power, it can hardly be denied that the employment of military troops about the courts should be avoided as long as possible. Inter anna silent leges, says the maxim ; and the converse of it ought to be equally true, that inter leges silent arma. The President has not found, either on the face of the requisition or in any other paper received by him, a statement of specific facts strong enough to make the presence of the troops seem necessary. Such necessity ought to have been perfectly plain before the measure was resorted to. "It is very probable that the Mormon inhabitants of Utah have been guilty of crimes for which they deserve the severest punishment. It is not intended by the Government to let any one escape against whom the proper proofs can be produced. With that view, the district attorney has been instructed to use all possible diligence in bringing criminals of every class and of all degrees to justice. We have the fullest confidence in the vigilance, fidelity and ability of that officer. If you shall be of opinion that his duty is not performed with sufficient energy, your statement to that effect will receive the prompt attention of the President. " It is very likely that public opinion in the Territory is frequently opposed to the conviction of parties who deserve punishment. It may be that extensive conspiracies are formed there to defeat justice. These are subjects upon which we, at this distance, can affirm or deny nothing. But, supposing your opinion upon them to be correct, every inhabitant of Utah must still be proceeded against in a regular, legal, and constitutional way. At all events, the usual and estab- lished modes of dealing with public off"enders must be exhausted before we adopt any others. "On the whole, the President is very decidedly of opinion — " I. That the Governor of the Territory alcne has power to issue a requisi- tion upon the commanding-general for the whole or part of the army : " 2. That there was no apparent occasion for the presence of the troops at Provo : "3. That if a rescue of the prisoners in custody had been attempted, it *l HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 233 was the duty of the marshal, and not of the judge, to summon the force which might be necessary to prevent it : '' 4. That the troops ought not to have been sent to Provo without the con- currence of the Governor, nor kept there against his remonstrance : " 5. That the disregard of these principles and rules of action has been in many ways extremely unfortunate. "I am, very respectfully, yours, &c., J. S. BLACK. ^^ Ho7i. J. Cradlebaugh, Hon. C. E. Sinclair, Associate Judges, Supreme Court, Utahy A great Constitutional pronouncement like the foregoing from a jurist so distinguished as Attorney-General Jeremiah S. Black, given by the direction of the President of the United States, was too authoritative and potent to be set aside. Governor Gumming had clearly won the victory over his rivals, at least in the Constitutional aspects of his position. The anti- Mormon influence everywhere was now invoked to have Governor Gumming removed, and for a time this was under consideration in the Cabinet. The probabilities were all against the Governor being retained, but a fine stroke of strategy, executed by Col. Thos. L. Kane, recovered his position. Stenhouse, who was present as reporter for the New York Herald, relates the circumstance thus: "Soon after the return of Col. Kane to the Eastern States, that gentleman was invited to deliver a lecture before the Historical Society of New York upon 'The Situation of Utah.' Though in very feeble health, and unprepared for such a lecture, his devotion to what he no doubt sincerely believed to be the welfare of the Mormons and the honor of the Government, overcame all impediments, and the lecture was delivered. In that audience were two Mormon elders listen- ing eagerly for a sentence that might help "the cause" in the West. By previous arrangement the agent of the Associated Press was to be furnished with a notice of the lecture, and thus a dispatch next morning was read everywhere throughout the Union to the effect that there was a division among the Mormons, that some were eager for strife, others for peace, but that Brigham Young was on the side of peace and order, and was laboring to control his fiery brethren. This was a repetition of a part of the diplomacy of the Tabernacle. Governor Gumming was complimented by the gallant Colonel as a clear-headed, resolute, but prudent executive, and the very man for the trying position. "Before such an endorsement, sent broadcast over the Republic, coming from the lips of the gentleman who had warded off the effusion of blood, and saved the nation frooi the expense and horror of a domestic war, the Cabinet of Mr. Buchanan silently bowed, but they were terribly chagrined." Apostle George Q. Cannon, who was one of the "two Mormon elders" present at the lecture, relates this singular and quite dramatic episode of Utah history with several additional points, which have a national significance. The story is told in an obituary sketch of Thomas L. Kane, with an affectionate simplicity that gives it a special value in the History; 234 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. "As I write, another illustration of his forgetfulness of self and his ardent zeal in behalf of Utah comes to my mind. It was during the Buchanan admin- istration. Governor Gumming, who had been sent out by President Buchanan with the army as Governor of the Territory, did not work harmoniously with the army officers. Differences had arisen between them at the time they were in camp during the winter at Ham's Fork and Fort Bridger. " These differences increased after they came into the valley, and the influ- ence of the army people was used with the administration to have Gumming removed. President Buchanan was inclined to yield to the pressure of Albert Sidney Johnston's friends. Johnston at that time was quite an influential per- sonage; in fact influences were being used to prepare the way for him to succeed General Winfield Scott as commander of the army of the United States. Presi- dent Buchanan made inquiries of some of General Kane's friends as to how the re- moval of Governor Gumming would be received by him. He heard of this, and, though at the time confined to his room with an attack of pleurisy, saw that something must be done to prevent the removal of Governor Gumming, which he viewed at the time as a move that would be unfortunate to Utah. The His- torical Society of New York Gity — a very influential society — had solicited him to deliver a lecture upon Utah affairs; but he had postponed accepting the offer. He saw that this was the opportune moment to deliver it, and though suffering from severe pain he resolved to go to New York and deliver the lecture. His friends tried to dissuade him from the step, as they felt that he was endangering his life. But he was determined to go, and wrote to the President of the Society, who was pleased to accept the proffer of the lecture. Accompanied by his physi- cian, he traveled from Philadelphia to New York, delivered the lecture, in which he eulogized Governor Gumming, and gave him the praise that was due to him for his conduct after reaching Utah, and the next morning there appeared in all the newspapers of the country, through the associated press, a brief epitome of the lecture, commending Governor Gumming's administration of affairs. It had the effect to turn the scale in Gumming's favor. President Buchanan relinquished the idea of removing him, and he remained Governor until he had served out his full term. I was in the East at the time and familiar with all the circumstances, and I was deeply impressed with the General's conduct on that occasion." There is to be discerned in these two statements a division growing up in the views and purposes of the members of Buchanan's Gabinet at that critical juncture of our national affairs, which is capitally presented in Mr. Blaine's great book of reminiscences, in which he presents, on the one side, John B. Floyd, Secretary of War with President Buchanan preparing the way for secession; on the other, Gen, Lewis Gass, Secretary of State, and Attorney-General Jeremiah S. Black, taking the alarm both for the Democracy and the Union, and setting their faces against the secession movement, which General Albert Sidney Johnston was fated to represent as one of its chiefest military captains. Mr. Blaine has not intended any reference to Utah, but that which he describes touching a division in the Cabinet, relative to our national affairs, is strangely to be traced at the same moment in the Gabinet over Utah affairs. So far as secession and Secretary Floyd is concerned, the statement of ex-Delegate Gannon suggests a very striking HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 235 parallel to the Blaine reminiscences of the state of Buchanan's Cabinet at that juncture. The historical pertinence of the case is the more striking from the fact that it was subsequent to the decision of the Attorney-General against ihe Judges' and General Johnston's action. After the receipt of that dispatch a mass meeting of Gentiles was held at Camp Floyd, on the 23rd of July, at which the Judges and the Indian Agent — Dr. Garland Hurt — were present, and in which they took a prominent part. An address was penned, rehearsing all the crimes charged to the Mormons, asserting that they were as disloyal after the President's pardon as when they were in arms in Echo Canyon, that the President was deceived and badly advised, and had done a great wrong in withdrawing the protection of the military from the courts. Thus it would seem that there was before the country, emanating from Johnston and his friends, who were seeking to make him commander-in-chief of the armies of the United States, not only a demand for the removal of Governor Gumming, but a virtual impeachment of the Attorney-General as an ill adviser on Utah affairs, for it was undoubtedly Jeremiah S. Black who had given the new impulse to the Buchanan movement, as represented in General Kane and Governor Gumming, and his Constitutional decision had most likely saved Great Salt Lake City from the "baptism of blood," and made valid the President's pardon. But it seems that he would have failed at last, in his revision of the Buchanan policy touching Utah, had not Thomas L. Kane risen from his couch and, in his noble regard for the honor of his country, made valid the proclamation of peace and pardon which had been granted in the august name of the American Republic. A supplementary page from Mr. Blaine's great book may be given here to illustrate the reorganization of the Buchanan Cabinet, by Judge Black, and the radical change in its policies, so strongly marked both in the affairs of Utah and the greater affairs of the nation; and a bankrupt U. S. Treasury will be very sug- gestive of Secretary Floyd's expenditure of from fourteen to twenty millions of dollars on the Utah Expedition : ''Judge Black entered upon his duties as Secretary of Sta'e on the 17th of December — the day on which the disunion convention of South Carolina as- sembled. He found the malign influence of Mr. Buchanan's message fully at work throughout the South. Under its encouragement only three days were re- quired by the convention at Charleston to pass the ordinance of secession, and four days later Governor Pickens issued a proclamation declaring ' South Caro- lina a separate, sovereign, free and independent State, with the right to levy war, conclude peace and negotiate treaties.' From that moment Judge Black's posi- tion towards the Southern leaders was radically changed. They were no longer fellow-Democrats. They were the enemies of the Union to which he was de- voted, they were conspirators against the Government to which he had taken a selemn oath of fidelity and loyalty. "Judge Black's change, however important to his own fame, would prove comparatively fruitless unless he could influence Mr. Buchanan to break with the men who had been artfully using the power of his Administration to destroy the j^O HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. Union. The opportunity and the test came promptly. The new ' sovereign, free and independent ' government of South Carolina sent commissioners to Washington to negotiate for the surrender of the national forts and the transfer of the national property within her limits. Mr. Buchanan prepared an answer to their request which was compromising to the honor of the Executive and peril- ous to the integrity of the Union. Judge Black took a decided and irrevocable stand against the President's position. He advised Mr. Buchanan that upon the basis of that fatal concession to the disunion leaders he could not remain in his Cabinet. It was a sharp issue, but was soon adjusted. Mr. Buchanan gave way and permitted Judge Black and his associates. Holt and Stanton, to frame a reply for the Administration. "Jefferson Davis, Mr. Toombs, Mr. Benjamin, Mr. Slidell, who had been Mr. Buchanan's intimate and confidential advisers, and who had led him to the brink of ruin, found themselves suddenly supplanted, and a new power installed in the White House. Foiled and no longer able to use the National Administra" tion as an instrumentality to destroy the national life, the secession leaders in Con- gress turned upon the President with angry reproaches. In their rage they lost all sense of the respect due to the Chief Magistrate of the nation, and assaulted Mr. Buchanan with coarseness as well as violence. Senator Benjamin spoke of him as 'a senile Executive under the sinister influence of insane counsels.' This exhibition of malignity towards the misguided President afforded to the North the most convincing and satisfactory proof that there had been a change for the better in the plans and purposes of the Administration. They realized that it must be a deep sense of impending danger which could separate Mr. Buchanan from his political associations with the South, and they recognized in his position a significant proof of the desperate determination to which the enemies of the Union had come. " The stand taken by Judge Black and his loyal associates was in the last days of December, iS6o. The reorganization of the Cabinet came as a matter of necessity. Mr. John B. Floyd resigned from the War Department, making loud proclamation that his action was based on the President's refusal to sur- render the national forts in Charleston Harbor to the secession government of South Carolina. This manifesto was not necessary to establish Floyd's treason- able intentions towards the Government ; but, in point of truth, the plea was undoubtedly a pretense, to cover reasons of a more personal character which would at once deprive him of Mr. Buchanan's confidence. There had been irregularities in the War Department tending to compromise Mr, Floyd, for which he was afterwards indicted in the District of Columbia. Mr. Floyd well knew that the first knowledge of these shortcomings would lead to his dismissal from the Cabinet. Whatever Mr. Buchanan's faults as an Executive may have been, his honor in all transactions, both personal and public, was unquestionable, and he was the last man to tolerate the slightest deviation from the path of rigid integrity. "Mr. Thompson, the Secretary of the Interior, followed Mr. Floyd after a short interval. Mr. Cobb had left the Treasury a few days before General Cass resigned from the Cabinet, and had gone to Georgia to stimulate her laggard f I HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 237 movements in the scheme of destroying the Government. His successor was Philip Francis Thomas, of Maryland, wlio entered the Cabinet as a representative of the principles wliose announcement had forced General Cass to resign. The change of policy to which the President was now fully committed forced Mr. Thomas to retire after a hionth's service. He frankly stated that he was unable to agree with the President and his other advisers 'in reference to the condition of things in South Carolina,' and therefore tendered his resignation. Mr. Thomas adhered to the Union and always maintained an upright and honorable char- acter ; but his course at that crisis deprived him subsequently of a seat in the United States Senate, though at a later period he served in the House as Repre- sentative from Maryland. "Mr. Cobb, Mr. Floyd and Mr. Thompson had all remained in the Cabinet after the Presidential election in November, in full sympathy, and so far as pos- sible in co-operation with the men in the South who were organizing resistance to the authority of the Federal Government. Neither those gentlemen, nor any triend in their behalf, ever ventured to explain how, as sworn officers of the United States, they could remain at their posts consistently with the laws of honor — laws obligatory on them not only as public officials who had taken a solemn oath of fidelity to the Constitution, but also as private gentlemen, whose good faith was pledged anew every hour they remained in control of the depart- ments with whose administration they had been intrusted. Their course is un- favorably contrasted with that of many Southern men (of whom General Lee and the two Johnstons were conspicuous examples), who refused to hold official posi- tions under the national Government a single day after they had determined to take part in the scheme of disunion. "By the reorganization of the Cabinet the tone of Mr. Buchanan's admin- istration was radically changed. Judge Black had used his influence with the President to secure trustworthy friends of the Union in every department. Edwin M. Stanton, little known at the time to the public, but of high standing in his profession, was appointed Attorney-General soon after Judge Black took charge of the State Department. Judge Black had been associated with Stanton per- sonally and professionally, and was desirous of his aid in the dangerous period through which he was called to serve, "Joseph Holt, who, since the death of Aaron V. Brown in 1S59, had been Postmaster-General, was now appointed Secretary of War, and Horatio King, of Maine, for many years the upright first assistant, was justly promoted to the head of the Post-office Department. Mr. Holt was the only Southern man left in the Cabinet. He was a native of Kentucky, long a resident of Mississippi, always iden- tified with the Democratic party, and affiliated with its extreme southern wing. Without a moment's hesitation he now broke all the associations of a lifetime, and stood by the Union without qualification or condition. His learning, his firmness and his ability were invaluable to Mr. Buchanan in the closing days of his administration. "General John A. Dix, of New York, was called to the head of the Treasury. He was a man of excellent ability, of wide experience in affairs, of spotless char- acter and a most zealous friend of the Union. He found the Treasury bankrupt. 2sS HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CI7Y. the discipline of its officers in the South gone, its orders disregarded in the States which were preparing for secession. He at once imparted spirit and energy into the service, giving to the administration of this department a policy of pronounced loyalty to the Government. No act of his useful and honorable life has been so widely known or will be so long remembered as his dispatch to the Treasury agent at New Orleans to take possession of a revenue cutter whose commander was suspected of disloyalty and of a design to transfer his vessel to the Confederate service. Lord Nelson's memorable order at Trafalgar was not more inspiring to the British Navy than was the order of General Dix to the American people, when, in the gloom of that depressing winter, he telegraphed South his per- emptory words: * If any man attempts to haul down the American flag, shoot him on the spot.' "Thus reconstructed, the Cabinet as a whole was one of recognized power, marked by high personal character, by intellectual training, by experience in affairs, and by aptitude for the public service. There have been Cabinets perhaps more widely known for the possession of great qualities; but, if the history of suc- cessive administrations from the origin of the Government be closely studied, it will be found that the reorganized Cabinet of President Buchanan must take rank as one of exceptional ability." CHAPTER XXVI. JUDGE CRADLEBAUGH DISCHARGES THE GRAND JURY AND TURNS SOCIETY OVER TO LAWLESS RULE. THE INDIANS ENCOURAGED TO DEPREDA- TIONS ON THE SETTLEMENTS. A DARK PICTURE OF SALT LAKE SOCIETY. WHY GOVERNOR GUMMING DID NOT INVESTIGATE THE MOUNTAIN MEADOWS MASSACRE. Having failed to obtain the indictment of the leaders of the Mormon Church, the judges resolved that they would close their courts and give society into the hands of the numerous desperadoes with which the Territory now abounded. In discharging the grand jury. Judge Cradlebaugh uttered one of the most remark- able passages to be found in the whole history of criminal jurisprudence : "If it is expected," he said, "that this court is to be used by this com- munity as a means of protecting it against the peccadilloes of Gentiles and In- dians, unless this community will punish its own murderers, such expectations will not be realized. It will be used for no such purpose. When the people shall come to their reason and manifest a disposition to punish their own high offenders, it will then be time to enforce the law also for their protection. If this HISTORY OF SAL 2' LAKE CIIY. 239 court cannot bring you to a proper sense of your duty, // can at least turn the savages held in custody loose upon you. ^^ Accordingly Judge Cradlebaugh dismissed the prisoners and adjourned his court ''without day." On his part D. Hurt, the Indian agent, had, both before and after the en- trance of Johnston's troops, spent his official service in inciting hostile Indians to commit depredations upon the Mormon settlements. This, indeed, was the specific charge which Governor Gumming reported to Secretary Gass against Indian Agent Hurt, both as inimical to the peace of the Territory and interrup- tive of his own executive duties representing the Federal Government, Upon this Indian line of the history, George A. Smith, just prior to the entrance of Johnston's troops, writing to T. B. H. Stenhouse, said : " It has been the policy of Governor Young and our people to keep the In- dians neutral, should a contest ensue. I read in the last papers received from the States loud boasts of having secured the Utah and other Indians as allies against the Mormons. Strange as it may seem to civilized persons, all the reckless and unprincipled Indians of the mountains have been hired, with new guns, blankets, clothing, ammunition, paint, etc., to steal, rob, murder, and do anything else that can be done to destroy the Mormons. Indian agents have sent messengers to all the peaceable Indians to incite them to deeds of rapine and bloodshed. A number of scattering settlements have been attacked, and innocent blood stains the skirts of the present administration, whose agents have procured the murders. "I am an American, as you well know. I love my country, and hate to see her rulers trample under foot her glorious institutions, and re-enact barbarism more cruel than that inflicted by the King of Great Britain, through the hands of the red men upon the scattered settlements of the colonies, in the war of inde- pendence. We wish ' life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.' " With 3,500 bayonets, rifles, revolvers, and heavy ordnance pointed at us, and within three days' march of our city, 4,500 more eti route to reinforce them, carte blanche on the United States treasury, would seem enough to satisfy our most bitter persecutors, without hiring as allies the savage hordes of the deserts and mountains to murder, scalp, roast, and eat their fellow-citizens, because they forsooth differed on the subject of religion. ' Who can believe it !^the cause is rather odd — Men hate each other for the love of God ! ' "You are aware that all the outrages in the country, heretofore, have been caused by men who are enemies to the inhabitants of this Territory — who have passed through our borders and recklessly shot at and otherwise abused the Indians. "Experience shows that Indians, like Congressmen and Government. officials, have their price." Mr. William G. Mills, writing to the same person, who at that time was a special attache of the New York Herald on Utah affairs, said : 240 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. " The officials and others among the troops are employing their influence and means to bribe the Indians to steal the cattle, and horses, and mules from the settlers here ; and already some have succeeded in stealing, and have mas sacred several persons in the outer settlements. The cattle w^ill be conveyed to the army. One poor fox skin from an Indian will be paid for with a quantity of powder, lead, caps, blankets, and shirts — more than a hundred times its value — in order to buy over the rude savages to rob from and murder those who have hitherto fed and clothed them. This is done whenever an Indian visits them. It is not, of course, bribing or buying the Indian — it is only paying for the fox or buckskin; and significant nods, winks, and signs accompanying the gift are easily interpreted, and robbery and murder are the result. Dr. Hurt, the Indian agent, who decamped from the Indian farm, to create an excitement in his favor, in pretence for personal safety — 'The wicked fleeth when none pursuer h ' — has collected a band of Indians in Uintah Valley, among whom is the murderer Tintic, and placed himself as their chief at their head, to make an attack on the southern settlements, and promising not only blankets, powder, etc., but a share of the pillage, as the reward of their nefarious acts. Murder in the north is to be responded to by murder of quiet and peaceable citizens in the south. Every mule and horse that the Indians steal is blamed on the Mormons, though the lat- ter may be a hundred miles from the scene of action. A good supply of whisky is furnished to the Indians by the officers and others, and they seem to enjoy themselves well together. Drinking among the troops was carried on to excess during the winter, which was calculated to excite their bitterest feelings and to enter in every scheme to annoy and kill the citizens. White men and murderous Indians are 'hail fellows well met.' "The Indians, by the presence of the troops, are emboldened to annoy the various settlements, because the Mormons would rather not fight. In Tooele County — the most westerly in the Territory — those Indians who were hitherto friendly have become excited by the conversations and bribes of the army, and have stolen about one hundred and fifty head of cattle and sixty horses, and fired upon the men who were guarding. At Salmon River settlement, two hundred and fifty head of cattle were stolen about the 4th of March, and several Mormons killed and scalped, and again attacked subsequently. It is expected that Dr. Hurt and his tribe will make an attack soon upon the southern settlements ; but the people are prepared for every emergency, and will repulse them. "The war chiefs of several tribes of Indians, during the time af the excite- ment last fall and winter, applied personally to Governor Young for his advice and permission to go out with their tribes and 'use up' the soldiers, which they deemed themselves amply capable to do; but he, in every instance, told them to keep away from the army and show no bad feelings whatever, and requested them to avoid killing the white men. I have seen the chiefs exhibit sanguine feelings in relation to killing the soldiers, but entirely softened down by the counsel and expressions of Governor Young. He wrote to Ben Simons, the Delaware Indian, chief of the Weberites, in reply to a letter, to stand in a neutral position, neither take part with the Mormons nor the soldiers, in the event of a collision, and has HISTOR Y OF SAL 7~ LAKE CL I Y. 241 always endeavored to suppress that bloodthirsty spirit of the treacherous red men." The action of the judges, in suspending altogether the administration of justice, and by semi-proclamation turning loose upon society the desperadoes, produced such a condition of things, compared with which the history of Great Salt Lake City was stainless before the onset of the Buchanan Expedition. Mr. Stenhouse in his Rocky Mountain Saints has painted the dark picture of those times thus outlined and colored : ''With such a large body of troops there were, as usual, numerous camp- followers plying their petit industries, gambling, thieving, and drinking. Gen- eral Johnston, with strict surveillance and severe military punishment, had been able to control them on the march and at Camp Scott ; but when they found in the valleys of the Saints a wider and safer field for operations, they gave rein to their vilest passions, and a worse set of vagabonds never afflicted any com- munity with their presence than did the followers of Johnston's army the inhabi- tants of the chief city of Zion, Quite a number of young Mormons — and some not so young — became as reckless and daring as any of the imported Gentiles, and life and property for a time were very insecure in Salt Lake City. " The programme of the police authorities seemed to be to give the desper- adoes the largest liberty, so that they might, in their drunken carousals, ' kill off each other,' and what they left undone invisible hands readily accomplished. During the summer and fall of 1859 there was a murder committed in Salt Lake City almost every week, and very rarely were the criminals brought to justice. ''The Mormon leaders taught the people to attend to their fields and work- shops, keep out of ' Whisky Street,' and let 'civilization' take its course. They had plenty of hard work to engage their attention, and no money, so that the business street was seldom visited by them, and they saw little of what was trans- piring in their midst. The Church weekly paper took pride in reporting, as it occurred, 'another man for breakfast,' and with that 'the people of God' were satisfied that 'the good work was rolling on,' Israel would one day be free from his oppressors. " The rioting and killing that were traceable occupied little more than pass- ing attention, but the midnight work of invisible hands created a sensation of terror in the minds of all who were inimical to the priesthood. The Valley Tan, notwithstanding its true boldness, felt the danger of the hour, and in one of its doleful wails ejaculated: 'How long, oh ! how long are scenes like this to con- tinue ? * * * It would seem as if the insatiable demon and enemy of man must himself be gorged with the flow of human blood in our midst.' * * * ' No man's life is secure as long as the scenes of violence and bloodshed, which have been of such frequent occurrence among us for months past, continue to be repeated, and the perpetrators escape unpunished or not detected.' "The bloody work continued, and finally terminated with the murder of Brewer and Joaquin Johnston, two intimate friends, who were shot at the same instant as they were walking home together. The author well remembers seeing 3 242 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. very early the next morning the marshal of the city and the chief of police who gravely informed him of the 'sad news' — 'Johnston and Brewer had quarreled, and killed each other! ' This story was feeble enough, but no one cared to ques- tion it: the people had got used to the record of scenes of blood. " In the ' swift destruction' that fell upon the desperadoes, there was no miti- gation of punishment on account of faith or family relationship, and very respect- able Mormon families had to mourn the untimely end of boys who, before the entrance of the army, gave promise of lives of usefulness and honor. All the bad and desperate Mormons were not brought to judgment, but the pretext alone was wanting for carrying more extensively into execution the general programme. Resistance to an officer, or the slightest attempt to escape from custody, was eagerly seized, when wanted, as the justification of closing a disreputable career, and in more than one case of this legal shooting, there is much doubt if even the trivial excuse was waited for. The Salt Lake police then earned the reputa- tion of affording every desperate prisoner the opportunity of escape, and, if embraced, the officer's ready revolver brought the fugitive to a 'halt,' and saved the country the expenses of a trial and his subsequent boarding in the peniten- tiary. A coroner's inquest and cemetery expenses were comparatively light. "With the troops themselves there was no collision. The Governor had requested General Johnston to withhold furlough from the soldiers, and few of them ever had the opportunity of visiting the City of the Saints. With some officers there had been, in the city, slight difficulties, which were, however, easily settled. Only one serious aff"air occurred, ending in the death of Sergeant Pike. This person was charged with violently assaulting a young Mormon and cracking his skull with a musket. During the Sergeant's trial in Salt Lake City, while on the public street at noon, passing to his hotel, a young man shot him down, and shortly afterward he died. The young man, with the aid of others, escaped, and was never arrested. There was great excitement at Camp Floyd, but the Ser- geant's comrades were too far away to retaliate. " From the time of the arrival of the troops in the valley, Brigham was per- sonally very cautious, and never exposed himself to attack. For a long time he absented himself from the public assemblies, kept an armed door-keeper at the entrance of his residences, and by night was protected by an armed guard of the faithful. Every ward in the city took its turn in watching over the Prophet, and the floors of his offices were nightly covered with a guard, armed and equipped, and ready at a moment's notice to repulse the imaginary foe. "During the day, when Brigham ventured beyond the outer walls of his premises, half a dozen friends always accompanied him wherever he went. It is pleasing to add that no one ever so much as said to him an unbecoming word." In this condition of society, and the antagonistic complication of aff"airs existing between the Governor and General Johnston and the Judges, is to be found the exact historical exposition why the Mountain Meadow Massacre was not brought to judgment and avenged years before the execution of John D. Lee. Ex-Governor Young has often, yet most senselessly been reproved and held guilty for not causing an investigation of the tragedy in question, and bringing HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 243 its executors to justice immediately after the bloody deed was done. One of the questions and its answer from the deposition of Brigham Young, taken at the trial of Lee, bears directly upon this point: " Q. Why did you not as Governor institute proceedings forthwith to investigate the massacre and bring the guilty authors to justice? "A. Because another Governor had been appointed by the President of the United States, and was then on the way here to take my place, and I did not know how soon he might arrive ; and because the United States Judges were not in the Territory. Soon after Governor Gumming arrived I asked him to take Judge Cradlebaugh, who belonged to the Southern District, with him, and I would accompany them with sufficient aid to investigate the matter and bring the offenders to justice." But the action of the Judges, at the very onset, made it impossible for ex- Governor Young or Governor Gumming to move far in the matter. Though Brigham Young had been Justice personified, had he proceeded he must have walked into the death-trap set for him. The following editorial excerpt from the New York Tribune, July 3rd, 1858, describes the case of Governor Gumming before the entrance of the troops, which was more abundantly illustrated afterwards : "The latest accounts from Utah present the affairs of that Territory in rather a queer light. All the correspondents of the newspapers who write from Camp Scott most zealously contend that Governor Gumming, in representing the Mor- mons as having submitted to his authority, has either been grossly deceived him- self, or else is seeking to deceive the Government and the country. Possibly, as to this matter, the good people of Camp Scott, civil and military, judge the Mormons a little too much by themselves. If the disposition to obey the Gov- ernor and to second and sustain him in the exercise of his office is not greater within the valley than it seems to be at Camp Scott and Fort Bridger, the extent of the Governor's authority is certainly limited enough. Whether or not Brig- ham Young and his people have combined together, while seeming to acknowl- edge Gumming as Governor — in fact to set aside and override his authority, at least it is very certain that such a combination exists in full force at Camp Scott, with Mr. Chief Justice Eckles at its head. Perhaps there is something in the air of Utah that stimulates to treason, rebellion, and resistance to authority. Whether that be so or not, the authority of Gumming as Governor seems just now quite as much in danger from the Chief Justice, the civil officers, and the army sent to Utah at such an expense to place him and sustain him in the Gov- ernor's chair, as from those whose anticipated opposition to his authority led to such costly preparations to uphold it. In fact, it would seem that, on the question of due respect to Cumming's gubernatorial authority, the people inside the valley and those out of it had completely changed ground. The resistance to Governor Gumming is not now on the part of Brigham Young and the Mormons generally, but on the part of Chief Justice Eckels, Marshal Dotson, General Johnston, the camp, and the camp-followers. "In this resistance to the authority of Governor Gumming and combination to reduce him, if possible, to a cipher, the recently arrived Peace Commis- 244 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. sioners, according to all accounts, have joined, actuated possibly by a feeling of jealousy that they should have been anticipated by Governor Gumming and the work of pacification taken out of their hands. Nor, if we are to believe the letters from the camp, do these gentlemen confine themselves merely to thwart- ing the policy of Governor Gumming and nullifying his authority as Governor. They go, indeed, much further than that. The President's proclamation, of which they are the bearers, does not meet their approbation, or appear to them adapted to the exigencies of the case. They harmonize completely, we are told, with Judge Eckles and General Johnston, and not content with upsetting and overriding the Governor, are resolved to upset and override the President too. The proclamation is, therefore, to be construed — by the help, we suppose, of that profound jurist. Judge Eckles — in conformity to their ideas. In other words, it is to be nullified and set aside. " We have heard a great deal heretofore about the danger of personal vio- lence and loss of property to which the Gentiles in the Territory of Utah have been exposed on the part of the Mormons. At present, the danger seems to be entirely the other way. Nothing can exceed the rancorous and even ferocious feelings against the Mormons with which the army at Camp Scott appears to be penetrated. They regard themselves as engaged not so much in a public service as in the prosecution of a private quarrel. They regard the Mormons as having subjected them to all the hard service of this campaign — as having kept them en- camped all winter on short rations amid the mountains — as having derided, ma- ligned, and insulted them; and even the very common soldiers are represented as having put on an air of offended dignity at the idea that the Peace Commis- sioners had arrived to snatch their intended victims from their revengeful grasp. This state of feeling on the part of the soldiers affords an abundant justification for Governor Cumming's objections to their entry into the valley and for the dread and horror with which the Mormons regard their presence there. If it be deemed proper or necessary to station troops in Utah, they ought to be some fresh corps, and not a body of men filled with such hatred and prejadice. Let some of the troops now on their march across the plains be employed in this ser- vice, and the force now collecting under General Johnson be sent in some other direction. That ofificer, however, would seem bent upon entering the valley, in spite of the remonstrances of Governor Gumming, whose authority over the troops he denies, with the very object, it would seem, of driving the Mormons to destroy their houses and to prevent them from gathering their crops, thus subject- ing thousands of wom'en and children to the danger of starvation." The Peace Commissioners, however, in the sequel accomplished their mis- sion, but the breach between Governor Gumming and General Johnston and the Judges, extended, as we have seen, to the impeachment of his course and a demand from Camp Floyd for his removal. But his inability to investigate and bring to justice the authors of the Moun- tain Meadow Massacre, during his term of office, is known to have been a thorn in Governor Cumming's side. After him no Governor could be specially held HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY, 245 responsible; and thus justice tarried long, impeded at the onset by the Judges themselves, which is the unmistakable import of Attorney-General Black's rebuke to them. CHAPTER XXVII. .AFTER THE UTAH WAR. CELEBRATION OF THE FOURTH OF JULY. BENEFITS OF CAMP FLOYD TO THE COMMUNITY. TRADE WITH THE CAMP. THE PONY EXPRESS. THE BULK OF THE TROOPS MARCH FOR NEW MEXICO AND ARIZONA. JOHNSTON LEAVES FOR WASHINGTON. THE DEPARTURE OF GOVERNOR GUMMING. THE REMNANT OF THE ARMY ORDERED TO THE STATES. SALES OF CAMP FLOYD. GOODS WORTH FOUR MILLION DOLLARS SOLD FOR ONE HUNDRED THOUSAND. DESTRUCTION OF ARMS AND AMMUNITION. LINCOLN'S NEW APPOINTMENTS FOR UTAH. COM- PLETION OF THE TELEGRAPH LINE. FIRST MESSAGE FROM EX-GOV- ERNOR YOUNG— "UTAH HAS NOT SECEDED." THE GOVERNOR TO PRESI- '! DENT LINCOLN AND HIS RESPONSE. UTAH'S MANIFESTO ON THE CIVIL , WAR. I Soon after the attempt of the military, instigated by the Judges, to arrest ij Brigham Young, the Lieut. -General of the Utah militia issued the following: "special order no. 2. " "Headquarters Nauvoo Legion, Adjutant-General's Office, G. S. L. City, July ist, 1859. "Monday, the 4th, will be the eighty-third anniversary of the birth of American freedom. It is the duty of every American citizen to commemorate the great event; not in a boisterous revelry, but with hearts full of gratitude to Almighty God the Great Father of our rights. "The Lieutenant-General directs for the celebration in the city as follows : " ist. — At sunrise a salute of thirteen guns will be fired, commencing near the residence of His Excellency the Governor, to be answered from a point on South Temple Street, near the residence of President Brigham Young. " The national flag will be hoisted at the signal from the first gun, simul- taneously at the residences of Governor Gumming and President Young, at the office of the Territorial Secretary, and the residence of the United States At^ torney. Captain Pitt's band will be stationed at sunrise opposite the residence of Governor Gumming, and Captain Ballo's band opposite the residence of President Young. "At the hoisting of the flags the bands will play the 'Star Spangled Banner.' 246 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. I tf 2d. — After the morning salute the guns will be parked at the Court House till noon, when a salute of 33 guns will be fired. " 3d. — At sunset a salute of five guns, in honor of the Territories, will be fired, and the flags lowered. "4th. — For the above service Lieutenant Atwood and two platoons of artillery will be detailed. Two six-pounder iron guns will be used for the salutes. Also a first lieutenant and two platoons of the ist cavalry will be de- tailed as a guard, and continue on guard through the day. The whole detach- ment will be dismissed after the sunset salute. "5th. — Col. J. C. Little, of the General's staff, will perform the duties of marshal of the day, with permission to select such deputies as he may require to assist him. The Declaration of Independence will be read by him from the steps of the Court House at noon. "6th. — The bands and the services to be performed by them will be under the direction of Col. Duzette. " By order of Lieut.-Gen. DANIEL H. WELLS. Adjt.-Gen. JAMES FERGUSON." When the danger of conflict between Camp Floyd and Salt Lake City was passed, the citizens began to realize many material benefits from the camp. The famine of 1855-6 had impoverished the Territory in its agricultural re- sources; the handcart emigration had brought to the country several thousand poor people, destitute, after their terrible journey, of even the barest clothing, whereas in former years the "Independent Companies," and the "Ten-pound ox-team companies," had brought moderate, and in some cases rich and plentiful supplies, which had lasted the emigrants several years before they were entirely exhausted. But now for a long while the common sources of supplies had been stopped ; and commerce with the east had been suspended by the expedition it- self. The Gentile merchants had broken up their houses at the approach of the army, and General Johnston on his joining his army issued orders that no trains of merchandise bound for Great Salt Lake City should be allowed to pass his lines. Thus the community had become utterly destitute of almost everything necessary to their social comfort. The people were poorly clad, and rarely ever saw anything on their tables but what was prepared from flour, corn, beet- molasses, and the vegetables and fruits of their gardens. They were alike desti- tute of implements of industry, and horses, mules, and wagons for their agricuL tural operations. Utah was truly very poor at that period ; indeed, never so poor since the Californian emigrants poured into Great Salt Lake City in 1849. The presence of the army soon changed the condition of the community. It was not to be expected that the leaders of the Church would from the Taber- nacle encourage much intercourse between the camp and the citizens, but quite a number of the self-reliant men, who have since represented the business and com- merce of the Territory, sought directly the intercourse of trade with the camp, while the more cautious furnished these middle men with the native supplies of HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 247 the country, by which the trade was sustained. In this way money was gathered in freely by the Gentiles and the bold Mormon traders, and the people generally were thus indirectly clothed and supplied with the delicacies of tea, coffee and sugar, in return for the produce of the field, the dairy and the chicken-coop. It was at Camp Floyd, indeed, where the principal Utah merchants and business men of the second decade of our history may be said to have laid the foundation of their fortunes, among whom were the Walker Brothers. Nor should it be made to appear that this commerce with Camp Floyd marked the rising of an apostate wave in Utah society. It signified simply the desire of each to better his own condition and that of society at large. And thus commercial intercourse and mutual benefits softened the feelings of hostility between the citizens and the soldiers, and the Utah Expedition became transformed into a great blessing to Utah, and especially to the Mormon community. A passage here, from the New York Hetahf s Utah special correspondent, of the novelties of the Camp Floyd trade, must be quoted for its striking illustration: "Among the rascalities of those times, contracts were awarded to certain political hucksters at Washington for an enormous quantity of flour to be supplied at $28.40 per 100 pounds, which in the course of time was furnished by the Prophet at $6 in the City of the Saints. That contractor also managed to get an order from the Secretary of War for the specie at Camp Floyd, failing which he was to be paid in mules, and of these he had his choice, at figures ranging from ;^ioo to $150 each. Great bands of these animals were driven to California, and sold on the Pacific at nearly six times their Camp Floyd prices. With such and many other flagrant facts, it is not surprising that the Prophet and the Apostles designated Mr. Buchanan's expedition to Utah in 1857, 'The Contractors' War!'" The experiment of the Pony Express from the Missouri - River to the Pacific Ocean was made in the spring of i860. The Deseref News of date April nth, made note: "The first Pony Express from the west left Sacramento City at 12 m., on the night of the 3rd instant, and arrived in this city at 11:45 of the 7th, inside of the prospectus time. The express from the east left St. Joseph, Missouri, at 6:30 on the evening of the 3d, and arrived in this city at 6:25 on the evening of the 9th. This brings us within six days' communication from the frontier and seven from Washington — a result which we Utonians, ac- customed to receive news three months after date, can well appreciate." Among the first news brought was that a bill was before the House to amend the organic act of this Territory, remove the seat of government from Great Salt Lake City to Carson Valley, and change the name from Utah to Nevada. The object stated was to take the controling power out of the hands of the Mormons of Utah, and give it into the hands of the Gentiles of Nevada. In May of this year the mass of the troops from Camp Floyd took up their march for New Mexico and Arizona, Only a few were left to perform the requisite duties of the garrison. Just previous, General Albert Sidney Johnston left Camp Floyd for Washing- ton, via the southern route to California. He never visited Great Salt Lake City 248 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. after he passed through it with his army. General Johnston and Brigham Young therefore never met. After his departure the command devolved upon Colonel \ Philip St, George Cooke, who by a general order February 6th, 1861, changed " the name of Camp Floyd to Fort Crittenden. The intent was understood to dis- connect the fort from the name of Secretary Floyd, whose plot for secession was exposed, and his Utah Expedition, sinking twenty millions of the nation's money, considered to be a part of that secession plot. In May, 1861, just previous to the outbreak of our great civil war. Governor Gumming and his lady departed from Great Salt Lake City with no expectation of returning. He had entered the city amid great display of welcome, and fain had the city shown him and his lady like honors in their retirement, but it was against his wish ; so his departure was not generally known until it was announced in the Deseret News, in which the thanks of a grateful community were sent after him for the faithful performance of his service towards them and to the General Government. The remainder of Johnston's army was ordered to the States to participate in the war; and the order was given to destroy the best equipped military post ever established in the West. But before the evacuation and destruction of arms, public sales were announced of provisions and army stores of every kind. Many went from Great Salt Lake City and the nearer settlements to purchase these valu- able supplies, which were sold by auction, and consisted of flour, bacon, groceries of all kinds, hardware, carpenters' tools, blacksmiths' tools, wagons, harness, tents, medical stores, clothing, and, in fine, everything the settlers most needed. It was estimated that four million dollars' worth of goods were sold for ;^ 100,000. Flour sold for 52 cents per sack of 100 lbs. in double sacks, for which the Gov ernment had paid $28.40. Everything else was in proportion. President Young sent his business manager, Mr. H. B. Clawson, to purchase all kinds of supplies most needed for his numerous family, dependents and work- men. He bought about $40,000 worth, among which was the Government safe, where had been deposited $80,000 in gold, which the Government had freighted to Camp Floyd in an ox team. But the most historical article was the flagstaff, which was transplanted from Camp Floyd to the brow of the hill on the east of Brigham's mansion, where for many years it stood, though now seen no more. During the sale Mr. Clawson, in his character of ex-Governor Young's busi- ness manager, became familiarly acquainted with Quartermaster Col. H. G. Cross- man and other officers, to whom he extended a courteous invitation to visit President Young before their departure from the Territory. They politely accepted, and seized the opportunity to present to the Founder of Utah the flag- staff which had borne aloft the national banner at Camp Floyd. At such a moment of secession, the gift was a magnificent compliment to the ex-Governor, and, indeed, to the Mormon people also ; but Philip St. George Cooke, the com- mander of the Mormon Battalion, was in command after the departure of General Johnston, and perhaps he and others of the officers had revised their views of the "Utah rebellion." After the sales were over^ 'the arms and ammunition weie taken to a distance HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 249 and piled up in pyramids; long trains of powder were then properly arranged, and at a given signal the fusee was touched and the work of destruction accom- plished. Several pieces of ordnance that could not be exploded were consigned to deep wells; but it is said that they were recovered and that they have often since done good service in the celebration of the Fourth of July, in honor ofjhe national birth, and of the Twenty-fourth of July, in honor of the arrival of the Pioneers into these valleys and the founding of Great Salt Lake City. In the early autumn of 1861 the troops marched Eastward, and thus ended the famous Utah expedition. The change of Federal administration incident to the election of Abraham Lincoln, also, in due course of time gave to Utah a new set of Federal officials. Excepting the Governor, these proved to be more acceptable to the people than their predecessors had been. Secretary Wooton, after the departure of Governor Gumming, on the first announcement of secession sent in his resignation to Presi- dent Lincoln. John W.Dawson, of Indiana, was then appointed Governor; Frank Fuller, of New Hampshire, Secretary ; John F. Kinney, who had already been Chief Justice of this Territory, replaced Chief Justice Eckles ; and Asso- ciate Justices Crosby and Flenniken were appointed to succeed Sinclair and Cradlebaugh. Secretary Fuller arrived before Governor Dawson, and, on the re- tirement of Mr. Wooton, Fuller also became acting Governor. James Duane Doty was Superintendent of Indian Affairs. It was said that these appointments were designed by President Lincoln to conciliate ex-Governor Young and the Mormons at the outbreak of our civil war. Whether this was so or not, it is no more than just to here record that, notwithstanding the anti-Mormon attitude of the party that elevated Mr. Lincoln to the Presidency, his course towards Utah I was uniformly considerate. Governor Dawson arrived and entered happily upon his official duties, but he soon fell into temptation, and his gallantries towards a lady of the city be- coming exposed, he hastily departed, and Secretary Fuller a second time became the acting Governor. About the middle of October, 1861, the eastern portion of the Pacific Tele- graph Line was completed to Great Salt Lake City. The following record of the event is from the Deseret News of October 23 : "On Thursday afternoon the 'operator' connected with the eastern portion of the telegraph line informed the visitors who had gathered around his table to witness the first operations in communicating with the Eastern States, that the 'line was built," but for some reason there was no through message either sent or received till the following day. "The first use of the electric messenger being courteously extended to President Young, he forwarded the following congratulations to the President of the Company : "Great Salt Lake City, U. T., Oct. 18, 1861. '^ Hon. J. H. Wade, President of the Pacific Telegraph Company, Cleveland, Ohio. "Sir — Permit aie to congratulate you on the completion of the Overland 4 2SO HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. Telegraph line west to this city, to commend the energy displayed by yourself and associates in the rapid and successful prosecution of a work so beneficial, and to express the wish that its use may ever tend to promote the true interests of the dwellers upon both the Atlantic and Pacific Slopes of our continent. ''Utah has not seceded, but is firm for the Constitution and laws of our once happy country, and is warmly interested in such useful enterprises as the one so far completed. BRIGHAM YOUNCx." On Sunday morning the following very becoming reply was received : "Cleveland, Oct. 19, 1861. ^^ Hon. Brigham Young, Prest., Great Salt Lake City: "Sir — I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your message of last evening, which was in every way gratifying, not only in the announcement of the completion of the Pacific Telegraph to your enterprising and prosperous city, but that yours, the first message to pass over the line, should express so unmis- takeably the patriotism and union-loving sentiments of yourself and people. "I join with you in the hope that this enterprise may tend to promote the welfare and happiness of all concerned, and that the annihilation of time in our means of communication may also tend to annihilate prejudice, cultivate brotherly love, facilitate commerce and strengthen the bonds of our once and again to be happy union. "With just consideration for your high position and due respect for you personally, " I remain your obedient servant, J. H. WADE, Prest. Pac. Tel. Co.'' Acting-Governor Fuller made early use of the wire to extend salutations to President Lincoln, of which the following are copies of the congratulations and the acknowledgment : "G. S. L. City, Oct. 18, 1861. " To the President of the United States : "Utah, whose citizens strenuously resist all imputations of disloyalty^ con- gratulates the President upon the completion of an enterprise which spans a continent, unites two oceans, and connects with nerve of iron the remote ex- tremities of the body politic, with the great governmental heart. May the whole system speedily thrill with the quickened pulsations of that heart, as the paracide hand is palsied, treason is punished, and the entire sisterhood of States joins hands in glad reunion around the National fireside. FRANK FULLER, ^Acting- Governor of Utah Territory. ' ' "Washington, D. C, Oct. 20, 1861. ** Hon. Prank Fuller, Acting- Governor of Utah : " Sir — The completion of the telegraph to Great Salt Lake City, is auspi- HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 231 cious of the stability and union of the Republic. The Government reciprocates your congratulations. \ ABRAHAM LINCOLN." " During the business hours on Friday there was quite an interest in the performances of the electricity, ^d congratulations over the wire to distant friends were extended in every direction. The day throughout was quite an oc- casion for the moving celebrities of Main Street, "The western line, as reported to us, was to have been finished on Monday evening or yesterday morning — a much earlier day than the most sanguine friends of Mr. Street anticipated. The last poles being set to the west of Fort Crittenden, Mr. Street has consequently been detained there, but was expected in this morning, and will doubtless open his battery on the inhabitants of the Pacific during the course of to-day ; and thus the inhabitants of the Pacific and Atlantic States will be united in electric bonds. "Having expressed our sentiments on the building of the telegraph line through the Territory in a recent number of the News, we will now only say that the hope is entertained that at no distant day the 'iron horse' may have a track prepared for it across the continent." As might be expected, the great civil war between the North and the South gave to Utah the opportunity for a unique example in her conduct. She had her- self just been "in rebellion" ; how would she now act ? This was a most natural question, and, strange to say, her answer was almost the reverse of the general pronouncement of what she would do. And here it might be said that it matters not to the integrity of history whether or not the Mormons be understood by others, as long as they act con- sistently with themselves, and their own faith in their religious and national mission. We have just seen that on the very first occasion after the " Utah rebellion," as we will style it to illustrate the example, they made haste to re assert their faith in the Constitution and the Union, by celebrating the day of American independence very much with the same intention as though they had sent a manifesto to the States of their views and conduct. And just in keeping with this was the pronouncement of the Mormon leaders upon secession at its very birth, as the accompanying Fourth of July military order will suggest: Headquarters Nauvoo Legion, G. S. L. City, June 25th, 1861. GENERAL ORDERS, NO. I. 1. Thursday, the Fourth of July, being the eighty-fifth anniversary of American independence; notwithstanding the turmoil and strife which distress the nation established on that foundation, the citizens of Utah esteem it a privi- lege to celebrate the day in a manner becoming American patriots and true lovers of the Constitution of their country. 2. The Lieut. -General directs that district commanders throughout the Territory will conform, as far as practicable, to the requisitions of the various committees of arrangements for details. 2^2 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CLTY. 8. In Great Salt Lake City, at the request of the committee of arrange- ments, the following details will be made, and placed under the direction of Major John Sharp, marshal of the day, viz : One company of the ist, and one of the 3d regiments of infantry. One company of light artillery and two guns. Two brass bands and one martial band. By order of Lieut. -Gen. D. H. Wells, James Ferguson, Adjt.-Gen. This military manifesto, just after the national flag had been fired upon at Fort Sumter, meant simply that Utah was going to stand by the Union. CHAPTER XXVI IL MORMON SERVICK OX THE OVERLAND MAIL LINE. PRESIDENT LINCOLN CALLS ON BRIGHAM YOUNG FOR HELP. THE EX-GOVERNOR'S RESPONSE. BEN HOLLADAV THANKS BRIGHAM. LOT SMITH'S COMMAND. REPORT OF THE SERVICE. GENERAL CRAIG COMPLIMENTS THE MORMO.N TROOPS. In the spring of 1862 the Indians were troublesome on the Overland Mail Route and stopped the mails. They destroyed nearly every mail station between Fort Bridger and North Platte, they burned the coaches and mail bags, ran off the stock, and killed the drivers. Acting-Governor Fuller, Chief Justice Kinney, and six other gentlemen connected with the mail and telegraph lines, joined in recommending to Secretary Stanton to authorize the Superintendent of Indian Affairs, James Duane Doty, to raise and put in service immediately, "a regiment of mounted rangers from the inhabitants of the Territory, with olificers to be appointed by him," etc. But Acting-Governor Fuller and Chief Justice Kinney had over-rated the Federal power in Utah, as embodied in themselves, for such a service, when they overlooked ex-Governor Young, Lieutenant-General Wells and the Utah militia. Three days after the despatch of Governor Fuller and others to Secretary Stanton, Brigham Young telegraphed to the Utah Delegate at Washington a corrected statement in which he said, "the militia of Utah are ready and able, as they ever have been, to take care of all the Indians, and are able and willing to protect the mail line if called upon to do so^ But ex-Governor Young, however, did not wait even to be called upon for help. The need of the service was too imperative to linger for official etiquette, and to Colonel Robert T. Burton the Commanding-General issued the following- HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 253 "INSTRUCTIONS. "G. S. L. City, April 24, 1862. " Col. Robert T. Burton and the detachment to guard the mail stage under you: "You are detailed for this special service, and will proceed from this place; in company with Captain Hooper, General C. W. West, Judge Kinney, and probably other passengers in the mail coach for the Eastern States, as a guard to protect them against the depredations of Indians, who are said to be hostile; and continue in their company on the route as far as it may be deemed necessary by yourself and Captain Hooper for their safety. In traveling, the stage must corres- pond to your time, as it cannot be expected that without change of animals your detachment can keep pace with the stage, especially where the roads are good. You will obtain grain for your animals, and some provisions for your command at the mail stations, for which you will give a receipt to be paid in kind, keeping a copy of each receipt, and advising President Young by telegraph, so that we can forward the amounts by the teams going to the States, which are expected to start in a few days. In traveling be cautious, and vigilant, and keep together and allow no straggling from camp, either night or day. There must not be any drinking of spirituous liquors, neither swearing, or abusive language of any kind, and treat everybody with courtesy, and prove there is no necessity of trouble with the Indians, when white men act Avith propriety. " If you can get to speak with Indians, treat them kindly, showing them you are their friends; and so far as you are able, investigate the cause and origin of the present difficulties. "You had better have one or two friendly Indians to accompany you, through whose agency you may be able to communicate with others, and thus become apprised of their intentions. " When you meet the troops from the East said to be on their way, you can return, but you will remain in the vicinity of the threatened difficulties until relieved, or so long as it may be necessary. "* '* ^ Keep a journal of every day's proceedings, and a strict account of every business transaction, as well of the causes leading to the dis- turbances, if obtainable. "Send by telegraph to President Young from every station giving us in short the current news, and prospects of Indians, state of the roads, weather, and other matters of interest. "When you arrive at or near the scene of disaster, feel your way before you, proceed so that you may not be surprised by a concealed or sudden movement of the Indian?, or other evil-disposed persons. "May God bless, prosper and preserve you all. DANIEL H. WELLS, " Lieut. -General Commanding N. L. Militia of Utah Territory.''^ A day later Acting-Governor Fuller made an official requisition for the escort, and the Lieut. -General issued a supplemental order: 254 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. "special orders, no. 2. " Headquarters Nauvoo Legion, "G. S. L. City, April 25th, 1862. " ist. In compliance with the requisition this day made by His Excellency Frank Fuller, Acting-Governor Utah Territory, Col. R. T. Burton will forthwith detail twenty men, properly armed and equipped, and mounted on good and efficient animals, provided with thirty days' rations and grain for animals, and wagons sufficient to carry grain, rations and bedding, and proceed East on the overland mail route, guarding mails, passengers, and property pertaining thereto. "2d. It is expected that to have the protection of the escort, the mail coaches will travel with it, as it cannot be expected that without change of animals it can keep pace with the mail coaches, especially when the roads are good. " 3d. Colonel Burton will immediately offer his services to said Mail Com- pany, and then proceed upon his journey, and remain on the line until relieved by the troops said to be coming up from the East, or so long as it may be neces- sary to quiet the Indians, who are said to be hostile, and the road considered safe from their depredations. " God bless and prosper you all. DANIEL H. WELLS, Lieut. -General Commanding N. L. Militia Utah Territory.'''' But the historical mark extraordinary of this service is seen in the call of President Lincoln on Brigham Young for help, and his authorizing of him to raise a company, just as though he had been still the Governor of Utah : " ORDER. "Washington, April 28th, 1862. "Mr. Brigham Young, Salt Lake City: "By express direction of the President of the United States, you are authorized to raise, arm and equip one company of cavalry for ninety (90) days' service. " This company will be organized as follows: One captain, one first lieu- tenant, one second lieutenant, one first sergeant, one quartermaster sergeant, four (4) sergeants, and eight (8) corporals, two (2) musicians, two (2) farriers, one saddler, one wagoner, and fifty-six (56) to seventy-two (72) privates. "The company will be employed to protect the property of the Telegraph and Overland Mail Companies, in or about Independence Rock, where depreda- tions have been committed, and will continue in service only until the U. S. troops can reach the point where they are so much needed. It may therefore be disbanded previous to the expiration of ninety (90) days. " It will not be employed for any offensive operations other than may grow out of the duty herein assigned to it. The officers of the company will be mustered into the U. S. service by any civil officer of the U. S. at Salt Lake City competent to administer an oath. The men employed in the service above named will be entitled to receive no other than the allowance authorized by law to soldiers in the service of the U. S. Until the proper staff officers for substituting HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 255 these men arrive, you will please furnish subsistence for them yourself, keeping an accurate account thereof for future settlement with U. S. Government. " By order of the Secretary of War. L. THOMAS, Adjutant- General. ' ' This telegram was received at 9 o'clock at night, April 28; but, within the hour, the following was issued and immediately in the hands of Major Lot Smith : "Headquarters Nauvoo Legion, " Great Salt Lake City, April 28th, 1862. "SPECIAL ORDERS, NO. 3. " I St. Pursuant to instructions received this day from ex-Governor Brigham Young, and in compliance with a requisition from the President of the United States, Major Lot Smith of the Battalion of Life Guards is hereby directed to enlist by voluntary enrollment for the term of ninety days a company of mounted men, to be composed as follows, to-wit : One captain, one first lieutenant, one second lieutenant, one quartermaster sergeant, one first sergeant, four sergeants, eight corporals, two musicians, two farriers, one saddler, one wagoner, and seventy-two privates. Major Smith is hereby assigned to the command of the company with rank of captain, and on mustering the men into service, will administer the proper oath agreeably to instructions herewith accompanying. " 2d. The object of this expedition, to which this company is assigned, as instructed and authorized by the President, is the protection of the property of the Overland Mail and Telegraph Companies, at or about Independence Rock, and the adjoining country. Captain Smith will, therefore, as soon as his com- pany is completed proceed at once to the above named vicinity, and patrol the road so as to render all necessary aid as contemplated by the instructions. It is not anticipated that the company, or any portion of it will camp so near any of the mail stations, as to give trouble or inconvenience; but sufficiently adjacent to render prompt and ready aid when required. Captain Smith is enjoined to pre- serve strict sobriety in his camp and prevent the use of all profane language or disorderly conduct of any kind. No apprehension is entertained by the General commanding, but that the best and most praiseworthy deportment will char- acterize the expedition, the officers and men having been selected with care, and with a view to their ability to render good and efficient service. "3d. Judging from advices received from the President of the United States, troops may soon be expected on the road to relieve the company now or- dered out; the commander of the detachment will receive the necessary instruc- tions in proper time, and will remain on duty with his command until so in- structed. • " 4th. It is desirable to cultivate as far as practicable friendly and peaceful relations with the Indians. "5th. The service to be expected from the horses and mules on the expe- dition will be a sufficient argument in favor of great care in marching and feed- 2s6 MJSTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. ing, as well as vigilant guarding and precaution against surprises. The greatest economy must be used with ammunition ; none should be heedlessly wasted. DANIEL H. WELLS. ^' Lieut.- General CommanMn ^ Nauvoo Legion, Militia of Utah Territory.'" BRIGHAM young's TELEGRAM TO ADJT. -GENERAL L. THOMAS, WASHINGTON, D. C. "Great Salt Lake City, May ist, 1862. " Adjt.-Gen. L. Thomas, U. S. A., Washington City, D. C: " Immediately on the receipt of your telegram of the 28 ult., at 8:30 p. m., I requested General Daniel H. Wells to proceed at once to raise a company of cavalry to be mustered into the service of the United States for ninety days, as per your aforesaid telegram. General Wells forthwith issued the requisite orders, and yesterday the captain and other officers were sworn by Chief Justice J. F. Kinney, the enrolling and swearing in the privates attended to, and the company went into camp adjacent to this city. "To-day the company, seventy-two (72) privates, officered as directed, and ten (10) baggage and supply wagons, with one assistant teamster deemed neces- sary, took up their line of march for the neighborhood of Independence Rock. BRIGHAM YOUNG." It will be noticed that about a day and a half had elapsed before the return telegram of the ex-Governor was sent answering the call of President Lincoln. At first it might seem that there was a missing link — that a previous answer must have been sent to the effect that the call would be responded to at the earliest moment ; but the feature of the case is eminently like the character of Brigham Young. He answered the moment he could say to the President of the United States, Your order is obeyed; the company is on the march ! Abraham Lincoln was just the man to appreciate such a telegram and such executive business ; so was also the great mail contractor Ben Holladay, who became assured the mo- ment he knew that Brigham Young was moving in the service and thus acknowl- edged : "New York, May 2, 1862. ' ' To Gov. Brigham Young : "Many thanks for your prompt response to President Lincoln's request. As soon as the boys can give protection, the mails shall be resumed. I leave for your city Sunday next. BEN HOLLADAY." As a link of the history may be given Chief Justice Kinney's certificate. "I, John F. Kinney, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States for the Territory of Utah, do hereby certify, that in pursuance of the fol- lowing order from the War Department, I mustered into service of the United States for the period of ninety days, unless sooner discharged, the following officers, whose names appear to the certificate by administering the usual oath, and the oath provided by the act of Congress August 6th, 1861." The following extracts from Major Lot Smith's letters to Brigham Young, give a touch of the performance of the service : HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 257 "Pacific Springs, June 15th, 1862. * * Prest. Brigham Yotmg : " Dear Sir — I had an interview with Brig. -Gen. Craig, who arrived by stage at this point. He expressed himself much pleased with the promptness of our at- tention to the call of the General Government, also the exertions we had made to overcome the obstacles on the road, spoke well of our people generally; he also informed me he had telegraphed to President Lincoln to that effect, and intended writing him at a greater length by mail. I received written instructions to the effect that he had placed the whole of Nebraska Territory under martial law ; Utah, he remarked, was perfectly loyal, and as far as he knew always had been. He also remarked, we were the most efficient troops he had for the present ser- vice, and thought as we had broke into our summer's work, of recommending President Lincoln to engage our services for three months longer." "Pacific Springs, June 27th^ '62. * ' President Young : " Dear Sir — I have just received orders from General Craig through Colonel Collins to march my command to Fort Bridger to guard the line from Green River to Salt Lake City, and start from here to-morrow morning. "Lieut. Rawlings and command arrived here yesterday; owing to neglect of the mail, my orders to Lieut. Rawlings did not reach him until eight days after they were due, consequently there has been no detail left at Devil's Gate. "There has been built by the command at the former place a log house 20 feet by 16 feet, with bake houses and detached also a commodious corral. "Lieut. Rawlins has left the above station of Major O'Farral, Ohio volun- teers, but occupied by Messrs. Merchant and Wheeler, traders, who formerly owned the station that was destroyed there ; the property is subject to our order at any time. The command also made a good and substantial bridge on Sweet- water; three of our teams crossed over; the mail bridge would have been ^200 per wagon, this bridge is free, and also in charge of Major O'Farral. Several emigration companies crossed during the time the command was there, free. One company presented us with a good wagon, which Lieut. Rawlins handed over to Captain Harmon. " I have had frequent interviews with Col. Collins and officers; they have behaved very gentlemanly, and expressed themselves much pleased with our ex- ertions, and seemed disposed to render us every assistance to contribute to our comfort. " Col. Collins is decidedly against killing Indians indiscriminately, and will not take any general measures, save on the defensive, until he can ascertain satis- factorily by whom the depredations have been committed, and then not resort to killing until he is satified that peaceable measures have failed. "Col. Collins and officers all allow we are best suited to guard this road, both men and horses ; they are anxious to return, and if they have any influence, I imagine they will try to get recalled and recommend to Utah to furnish the necessary guard. The Colonel has just left our camp, he has sent for Washakie, chief of the Snakes, with a view to make treaty or obtain information. No 4 V 2^8 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. sickness at all in camp at present. We are attached to Col. Collins' regiment. Gen. Craig's division, and furnish our muster, descriptive and other returns to that command. Should General Wells require duplicates, we will forward them. I am sir, yours respectfully, LOT SMITH." " Deer Creek, May i6, 1862. " Governor Fuller— My detachment arrived here yesterday at 3 p.m., en- countering no difficulty, save that caused by the mud, snow, etc. We have seen no Indians on the route; found all the mail stations from Green River to this point deserted, all stock having been stolen or removed, and other property abandoned to the mercy of the Indians or white men. We found at the Ice Spring station, which had been robbed on the night of the 27th, a large lock mail — twenty-six sacks, a great portion of which had been cut open and scattered over the prairie. Letters had been opened and pillaged, showing conclusively that some renegade whites were connected with the Indians in the robbery. The mail matter, after being carefully collected and placed in the sacks, I have con- veyed to this point, also ten other sacks of lock mail, from the Three Crossings: all of which will be turned over to the mail agent at Lapariel. Twenty miles from this, we will meet men from the East for this purpose. The United States troops from the East will be in this vicinity to-morrow; and, unless otherwise directed by yourself or General Wells, I will return immediately, halting on the Sweet Water to investigate still further the causes of the difficulty, as I have not been able to learn who or what Indians positively have been engaged in the mat- ter ; but suppose it to be about thirty renegade Snakes and Bannacks from the north. Some of the party spoke English plainly, and one the German language. Hon. W. H. Hooper and Mr. C. W. West will take passage in the coach that comes for the mail. R. T. BURTON, Commanding:' General Burton supplements this with the following : "This year (1S62) will be remembered as the season of the highest water ever experienced in the mountains; as a consequence travel (over the mountains) was almost impossible. Some idea may be formed of this matter from the fact that it took this command, with all their energy and exertion, nine days to go to Fort Bridger, a distance of only 113 miles from Salt Lake. Most of our wagons had to be dispensed with at Fort Bridger, at which point we proceeded mainly with pack animals. It is proper, also, to state that we received from the Govern- ment officers stationed at the military fort at Fort Bridger, provisions, tents, camp equipage, etc., all that was within their power to grant. From this point (Fort Bridger) all the mail stations were abandoned, many of them burned, some of the coaches still standing upon the road riddled with bullet holes from the attack made by the Indians at the time the drivers and passengers were killed. In some of the mail stations west of the Devil's Gate we found large numbers of mail sacks which had been cut open by Indians and the contents scattered over the ground, which were carefully picked up by my company and carried on to the HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 2S9 North Platte and turned over to the mail contractor at that point. The coaches were enabled to come west as far as Lapariel Station, a distance of some thirty miles east of the Platte. "The expedition was one of the most hazardous and toilsome we were ever called upon to perform, but succeeded admirably without the loss of a man or animal. Returned to Salt Lake City thirty days from the time of starting and were mustered out of service by Governor Fuller." CHAPTER XXIX. UTAH AGAIN ASKS ADMISSION IXTO THE UNION AS A STATE. THE HISTORY AND PASSAGE OF THE ANTI-POLYGAMIC BILL IX THE HOUSE AND SEN- ATE. THE BILL SIGNED BY ABRAHAM LINCOLN. PRESENTATION TO CONGRESS OF THE CONSTITUTION OF THE "STATE OF DESERET," At this juncture, in the spring of 1862, it is worthy of special notice that Utah was again asking admission into the Union. The Legislature of the pro- posed "State of Deseret " was then in session. Hons. Wm. H, Hooper and George Q. Cannon were elected senators; the former with the memorial and con- .stitution, went east under the escort of Colonel Burton and his troop; and a des- patch was sent to Apostle Cannon, who was then in England, requesting him to Join Mr. Hooper in Washington early in June, which he did. The senators-elect labored diligently in Washington during the remainder of that session of Con- gress, and, notwithstanding that Utah was not admitted to statehood, she pro- voked much respect from members of Congress over her conduct at that moment, when it was thought by no inconsiderable portion of the world that the issues of the war would be won by the South. It was universally understood at that time that the sympathies of France and England were with the Southern Confederacy. It is due to the history to here affirm something of the political views of Utah relative to the Union. Delegate Hooper, December i6th, i860, in a letter to Apostle George Q. Cannon, said: " I think three-quarters of the Republicans of the House would vote for our admission; but I may be mistaken. Many say they would gladly 'swap' the Gulf States for Utah. I tell them that we shoAv our loyalty by trying to get in, while others are trying to get out, notwithstanding our grievances, which are far greater than any of the seceding States; but that I consider we can rediess our grievances better in the Union than out of it." Now it was with just this view before them that the people of Utah again .sought admi.ssion into the Union as a State in the spring and summer of 1862. 26o HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. Ex-Governor Young and his compeers who were proud that so many of their sires were among the men who founded this nation, and then, in a later generation, won for it independence, held, as we see in every view, that the South committed a grave error in seceding. They affirmed that the Southern States should have fought out their issue inside the Union, and under the sanction of the Constitu- tion. They did wrong, the people of Utah thought, in setting up a new confed- eracy, and firing upon the old flag, thus tarnishing the bright integrity of their cause. The Mormon view of the great national controversy then, was, that the Southern States should have done precisely what Utah did, and placed themselves on the defensive ground of their rights and institutions, as old as the Union. And it is worthy of special note in the political record of Utah that her Delegate ad- vocated the Union doctrine at the capitol and condemned secession, during the term of the last Congress preceding the dissolution, offering Utah as a political example with words that deserve to be imperishable in history : "We can redress our grievances better in the Union than out of it." In the House of Representatives, April 8, 1862, Mr. Morrill, of Vermont, by unanimous consent, introduced a bill to punish and prevent the practice of polyg- amy in the Territories of the United States, and for other purposes, and to disap- prove and annul certain acts of the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Utah ; which was read a first and second time, and referred to the Committee on Ter- ritories. April 28. — Mr. Ashley, from the Committee on Territories, reported back, with a recommendation that it do pass, a bill (H. R. No. 391) to punish and pre- vent the practice of polygamy in the Territories of the United States and other places, and disapproving and annulling certain acts of the Territorial Legislature of Utah. The bill was read. Mr. Morrill, of Vermont. I desire to say to the House that this is the iden- tical bill passed about two years ago, when there was an elaborate report made by a gentleman from Tennessee, Mr. Nelson, and when it received the almost unani- mous support of the House. The only difference between the two bills is this : that bill excepted from its provisions the District of Columbia, and that excep- tion is stricken out in this bill. I presume there is no member of the House who is desirous to discuss this measure, and I move the previous question. Mr. Maynard. I ask the gentleman from Vermont to allow me to suggest a single verbal amendment, rather a matter of taste than otherwise. Mr. Morrill, of Vermont. I will hear the suggestion. Mr. Maynard. It is to strike out the word "nevertheless" in the proviso to the first section. It has no business there; it is surplusage. Mr. Morrill, of Vermont. Well, if the gentleman from Tennessee says that "nevertheless" has no business there, I presume he is right; and I have no ob- jection to the amendment. Mr. Maynard. I offer the amendment. I have no speech to make about it. The amendment was agreed to. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 261 Mr. Cradlebaugh. I ask the gentleman from Vermont to allow me to offer an amendment. Mr. Morrill, of Vermont. I prefer to have the bill pass as it is. Mr. Cradlebaugh. I think if the gentleman understood the character of the amendment he would not object. It is merely to correct the bill, and not for the purpose of throwing any impediments in the way of its passage. The bill, in its present shape, does not amount to anything. The Speaker. Does the gentleman withdraw the demand for the previous question ? Mr. Morrill, of Vermont. I decline to do so. The previous question was seconded, and the main question ordered. The bill was ordered to be engrossed, and read a third time ; and being en- grossed, it was accordingly read the third time. Mr. Morrill, of Vermont, I move the previous question on the passage of the bill. Mr. Biddle. Is all debate necessarily cut off at this time? The Speaker. It will be if the previous question is sustained. Mr. Biddle. There are some of us who would like to hear debate, if not to participate in it. The Speaker. Does the gentleman withdraw the demand for the previous question ? Mr. Morrill, of Vermont, I decline to do so, and call for tellers. Tellers were ordered; and Messrs. Cox and Chamberlain were appointed. The House divided; and the tellers reported — ayes sixty-five, noes not counted. , So the previous question was seconded. The main question was ordered to be put; and being put, the bill was passed. In the Senate, June 3d — Mr. Bayard. I move to take up House bill No. 391. It was reported back from the Committee on the Judiciary, with amendments, about three weeks ago. It is a bill that ought to be acted upon. The motion was agreed to ; and the bill (H. F. No. 391) to punish the practice of polygamy in the Territories of the United States, and other places, and disap- proving and annulling certain acts of the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Utah, was considered as in committee of the Whole. The amendment of the Committee on Judiciary was to strike out all after the enacting clause, and insert, as a substitute : That every person having a husband or wife living, who shall marry any other person, whether married or single, in a Territory of the United States, or other place over which the United States have exclusive jurisdiction, shall, except in the cases specified in the proviso to this section, be adjudged guilty of bigamy, and upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine not exceeding ^500, and by im. prisonment for a term not exceeding five years: Provided nevertheless, Thai this section shall not extend to any person by reason of any former marriage whose husband or wife by such marriage shall have been absent for five successive years without being 262 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. known to such person within that time to be living ; nor to any person by reason of any former marriage which shall have been dissolved by the decree of a compe- tent court ; nor to any person by reason of any former marriage which shall have been annulled or pronounced void by the sentence or decree of a competent court on the ground of nullity of the marriage contract. Sec. 2. And be it further enacted, That the following ordinance of the pro- visional government of the State of Deseret, so called, namely: "An ordinance incorporating the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints," passed February 8, in the year 185 1, and adopted, re-enacted, and made valid by the Governor and Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Utah, by an act passed January 19, in the year 1855, entitled, "An act in relation to the compilation and revision of the laws and resolutions in force in Utah Territory, their publication and distribu- tion," and all other acts and parts of acts heretofore passed by the said Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Utah, which establish, support, maintain, shield, or countenance polygamy, be, and the same hereby are, disapproved and annulled : Provided, That this act shall be so limited and construed as not to affect or inter- fere with the right of property legally acquired under the ordinance heretofore mentioned, nor with the right "to worship God according to the dictates of con- science," but only to annul all acts and laws which establish, maintain, protect, or countenance the practice of polygamy, evasively called spiritual marriage, however disguised by legal or ecclesiastical solemnities, sacraments, ceremonies, consecra- tions, or other contrivances. Sec. 3. And be it further enacted, That it shall not be lawful for any cor- poration or association for religious or charitable purposes to acquire or hold real estate in any Territory of the United States during the existence of the Terri- torial government of a greater value than ^100,000; and all real estate acquired or held by any such corporation or association contrary to the provisions of this act, shall be forfeited and escheat to the United States : Provided, That existing vested rights in real estate shall not be impaired by the provisions of this section. Mr. Bayard. I will state, very briefly, the difference between the bill as proposed to be amended by the Judiciary Committee, and the bill as passed by the House of Representatives. The bill of the House is intended to punish the crime of polygamy, or bigamy properly speaking, when committed in any Territory of the United States ; but, in point of fact, it goes beyond that — it punishes cohabita- tion without marriage. The committee, in their amendments, have so altered the first section as to provide for the punishment of the crime of bigamy, leaving the punishment for a similar offense, where marriage had been contracted elsewhere, to the State where it was contracted. We thought that clearly preferable, and that it would be of no utility to carry the act beyond the evil intended to be remedied, which was to put down polygamy, as a part of the recognized legal institutions of Utah. There is a mistake in printing as to the second section. The second section of the bill is not altered at all; we leave it precisely the same as it was in the original bill. It repeals the ordinance of Utah, commonly called " An ordinance incorporating the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints." It is precisely in HISTORY OF SAL7' LAKE CITY. 263 words like the second section of the House bill, which is not altered in any respect. The third section is an amendment of the committee, and it is in the nature oi- a mortmain law. The object is to prevent the accumulation of real estate in the hands of ecclesiastical corporations in Utah. Though that Territory is large, the value of real estate is not of large amount ; and the object of the section is to pre- vent the accumulation of the property and wealth of the community in the hands of what may be called theocratic institutions, inconsistent with our form of govern- ment. In my own judgment it would be wiser to limit the amount of real estate that could be held by any corporation of that character in a Territory, to the value of ;^5o,ooo, I think ^100,000 is too much. I am satisfied that-there is great danger in that Territory, under its present government, that the ecclesiastical institutions which prevail there will ultimately become the owners in perpetuity of all the valuable land in that Territory, and so afford a nucleus for the permanence of their general institutions unless a stop be put to it by act of Congress. I have now stated the provisions of the amendment as proposed by the com- mittee. The first section of the bill is altered so as to punish the crime of bigamy, but leaving the question of cohabitation or mere adultery apart from the crime of bigamy, without reference to any action of Congress. The second section is ex- actly the same as the section in the House bill. The third section is a new one, the object of which is to operate in the nature of a mortmain law, to prevent the en- tire property of that Territory being accumulated in perpetuity in the hands of a species of theocratic institutions. The amendment was agreed to. Mr. Hale. I shall probably vote lor the bill ; but I should like to know from the chairman of the committee if its provisions are not inconsistent with — ■ — Mr. Bayard. I move to strike out "^100,000" and insert "$50,000," in the third section. Mr. Hale. I will wait until that is decided. Mr. Bayard. I make that motion. The Vice President. The Senator's motion is not now in order, the amend- ment of the committee having been adopted. It will be in order when the bill shall have been reported to the Senate. Mr. Hale. I was only going to say that I had been looking at a decision of the Supreme Court in which the rights of Congress over the Territories are exam- ined with some care, and it occurred to me that possibly the provisions of this bill might be inconsistent with some of the doctrines and dogmas of that decision. I refer to a case decided in the Supreme Court at the December term of 1856, entitled, " Dred Scott vs. Sandford," and the doctrine was pretty thoroughly gone over in that decision as to how far the powers of Congress extended over the Terri- tories. It strikes me that by analogy this bill infringes upon that decision, for I remember that one of the exponents of the tiue faith on this floor used to illus- trate this dogma at least as often as once a month by saying that the same law prevailed as to the regulation of the relations of husband and wife, parent and child, and master and servant. I think at least once a month for years that was proclaimed to be the law. If the national Legislature have no more power 264 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. over the relations of husband and wife — and that seems to be the one touched here — than over master and slave, it seems to me that if we mean to maintain that respect which is due to so august a tribunal as the Supreme Court of the United States, we ought to read the Dred Scott decision over again, and see if we are not in danger of running counter to it. It strikes me decidedly that we are; and at this time when there is so much necessity for invoking all the reverence there is in the country for the tribunals of the country, it seems to me we ought to tread delicately when we trench upon things that have been so solemnly decided by the Supreme Court as this has. But, as the gentleman who reports the bill is a mem- ber of the Judiciary Committee, if it is clearly his opinion that we can pass this bill without trenching upon the doctrine of tne Dred Scott decision, I shall inter pose no objection. Mr. Bayard. I will not be drawn into any argument. It is sufficient to say that I have read the decision to which the honorable Senator alludes, I think with some care, and in my judgment this bill is entirely within its principles as well as within the decision itself. I cannot see the contrariety. I shall not enter into the argument now. To me it is very palpable that the bill is within the power of Congress and is necessary legislation. The bill was reported to the Senate. Mr. Bayard. I propose now in the fifth line of the third section to strike out "one hundred" and insert "fifty," so as to make the limitation of real estate held by an ecclesiastical corporation, $50,000. The amendment to the amendment was agreed to. The amendment made as in the Committee of the Whole, as amended, was concurred in. Mr. McDoiigalL It may not be considereed a very judicious thing to object to this measure here, but I feel called upon to do it. There is no Senator, I think, who objects more strongly than I do to the vicious practice that obtains in the Territory of Utah ; but I think we have just at this time trouble enough on our hands without invoking further trouble. We have had our communication with California cut off by the Indians on the line of communication. We have already had a Utah war that cost the Government a large amount of money. We are to have a controversy with them as to their admission as a State. They are clamoring for that now. In my judgment, no particular good is to be accomplished by the passage of this bill at present. When the time does come that our communication across the continent is complete, then we can take jurisdiction where we have power, and can employ power for the purpose of correcting these abuses. I sug- gest to gentlemen, in the first place, that they cut off most likely the communica- tion across the continent to our possessions on the Pacific by a measure of legisla- tion of this kind, which will be well calculated to invite, certainly will invite, great hostility, and interfere with the general interests of the country. It will cost the Government a large amount if communication is interfered with, and do no substan- tial good. I do not think the measure at this time is well advised. It is understood its provisions will be a dead letter upon our statute-book. Its provisions will be either ignored or avoided. If Senators will look the question fairly in the face, and consider how important it is that we should have no difficulties now on our II HIST OR Y OF SALT LA KE CITY. 265 western frontier between us and the Pacific, how poorly we can afford to go into the expenditure of a large amount of money to overcome difficulties that will be threatened on the passage of this bill, and then consider the little amount of sub- stantial good which will result from it, I think they will hesitate before they pass it. The impolicy of its present passage will cause my colleague and self, after con- sultation, to vote against the bill. The amendment was ordered to be engrossed, and the bill to be read a third time. Afr. Howard. 1 ask for the yeas and nays on the passage of the bill. Mr. Sumner. I was about to make the same request. The yeas and nays were ordered, and being taken, resulted — yeas 37, nays 2: as follows : Yeas — Messrs. Anthony, Bayard, Browning, Chandler, Collamer, Cowan, Davis, Dixon, Doolittle, Fessenden, Foot, Foster, Grimes, Hale, Harlan, Harris, Howard, Howe, King, Lane of Indiana, Lane of Kansas, Morrill, Rice, Sauls- bury, Sherman, Simmons, Stark, Sumner, Ten Eyck, Thomson, Trumbull, Wade, Wilkinson, Willey, Wilmot, Wilson of Massachusetts, and Wright — 37. Nays — Messrs. Latham and McDougall — 2. So the. bill was passed. The title was amended so as to read, "A bill to punish and prevent the practice of polygamy in the Territories of the United States and other places, and disapproving and annulling certain acts of the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Utah." In the House of Representatives, June 5, 1862 — Mr. Morrill, of Vermont. I ask the unamimous consent of the House to take up and consider at this time the amendments of the Senate to an act (H. R. No. 391) to punish and prevent the practice of polygamy in the Territories of the United States and other places, and annulling certain acts of the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Utah. Objection was made. Mr. Moorhead. I ask the unanimous consent of the House to introduce a resolution of inquiry. Mr. Wickliffe. I object. Mr. Bingham. I call for the regular order of business. In the House of Representatives, June 17, 1868 — The Speaker laid before the House bill of House (No. 391) to punish and prevent the practice of polygomy in the Territories of the United States and other places, disapproving and annulling certain acts of the Legislative -Assembly of the Territory of Utah — reported from the Senate with amendments. The Speaker. The bill and amendments will be referred to the Committee on Territories. Mr. Morrill, of Vermont. I object to these bills being taken up for refer- ence. There is no necessity for the reference of this bill. The Speaker. The order has been made. 266 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. Air. Morrill, of Vermont. I move to reconsider the vote by which the order was made ; and on that motion I demand tellers. Tellers were ordered ; and Messrs. Morrill, of Vermont, and Olin were ap- pointed. The tellers reported — ayes sixty-eight, noes not counted. So the motion to reconsider was agreed to. In the House cf Representatives, June 17 — The next bill taken up was (H. R. No. 391) to punish the practice of po- lygamy m the Territories of the United States and other places, and disapproving and annulling certain acts of the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Utah, with Senate amendments. The amendments were read. Mr. Phelps, of Missouri. I think, Mr. Speaker, that this is rather hasty legislation. I should not be at all surprised if it were ascertained that the Catholic Church in the city of Santa Fe owns real estate to the amount of more than fifty thousand dollars under grants made by the Mexican Government. I was about to submit a motion that the bill be referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. I recollect very well that, in the hurry and haste of legislation, a bill passed the House to prohibit polygamy in the Territories, which indirectly sanctioned it within the District of Columbia, or inflicted no punishment for it here. I desire that this matter shall be critically examined, and therefore I think it should be referred to the Judiciary Committee. Mr. Morrill, of Vermont. I am perfectly willing that the bill shall be passed over informally until the gentleman from Missouri can inform himself on the subject. Mr. Phelps, of Missouri. I have no objection to letting the bill remain on the Speaker's table. Let the amendments be printed, and let us know what we are legislating upon. Mr. Morrill, of Vermont. I have no objection to that. It was so ordered. In the House of Representatives, June 24, 1862 — An act, (H. R. No. 391) to punish the practice of polygamy in the Terri- tories of the United States and other places, and disapproving and annulling certain acts of the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Utah, with Senate amendments thereon. Mr. Morrill, of Vermont. I desire to say, in reference to the objection made by the gentleman from Missouri [Mr. Phelps] last week, to one of the pro- visions of this bill, that I understand the Roman Catholic church at Santa Fe has property exceeding $50,000 in amount, but that is protected under treaty stipu- lations. His objection, therefore, is not valid. I now- move the previous ques- tion on concurring with the Senate amendments. The previous question was seconded, and the main question ordered. | The amendments were read. The amendments of the Senate were concurred in. I HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 267 Mr. Morrill of Vermont moved to reconsider the vote by which the amend- ments were concurred in ; and also moved to lay the motion to reconsider on the table. 'I'he latter motion was agreed to. In the House of Representatives, June 30, 1862 — Mr. Granger, from the Committee on Enrolled Bills, reported as a truly en- rolled bill an act (H. R. No. 391) to punish and prevent the practice of polygamy in the Territories of the United States and other places, and disapproving and an- nulling certain acts of the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Utah. In the House of Representatives, July 2, 1862 — A message was received from the President of the United States, informing the House that he had approved and signed an act (H, R. 391) to punish and prevent the practice of polygamy in the Territories of the United States and other places, and disapproving and annulling certain acts of the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Utah. In the House of Representatives, on the 9th of June, 1862, Hon. J. M. Bern- hisel, Delegate from Utah, presented the Constitution of the State of Deseret and the memorial accompanying it, asking for admission into- the Union on an equal footing with the original States, which were received and referred to the Committee on Territories. On the loth the Vice-President presented the same in the Senate, when Mr. Latham, of California, moved to print the constitution and memorial, and to admit the senators-elect, Messrs. W, H. Hooper and George Q. Cannon to the floor of the Senate, which motion was referred to the committee on Territories, in that branch of the National Legislature. The next day Mr. Latham offered a resolution to admit Messrs. Hooper and Cannon, claiming to be senators from Des- eret, to the floor of the Senate, which w^as laid over. CHAPTER XXX. FOURTH OF JULY PROCLAMATION BY THE CITY COUNCIL. THE CITY'S LOY- ALTY. THE TWO GOVERNORS. GREAT SPEECH OF GOVERNOR HARD- ING. THE CITY HONORS THE CALIFORNIA SENATOR. THANKSGIVING PROCLAMATIO.M. A CHANGE IN GOVERNOR HARDING'S CONDUCT. Great Salt Lake City this year deemed it a duty to make special call for the Fourth of July, whereas, formerly, either the Governor of the Territory, or the Lieutenant-General of the militia, made proclamation and gave the order of the day. It signified that Salt Lake City was, with well-considered for- mality, making a record that it upheld the Union as an everlasting covenant of the 268 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. American States. The following Preamble and Resolutions were passed by the I City Comicil of Salt Lake City, Jmie 28th, 1862 : " Whereas, While we lament the deplorable condition of our once happy country, the independence of which was purchased by the best blood of our sires, we hail with j)leasure the approaching anniversary of the birthday of the Nation, and in view of perpetuating our free and liberal institutions which have for so long a time inspired the patriotism of every true American citizen, and the strangers of other climes, who have sought an asylum under the protecting aegis of our glorious Constitution ; therefore, ^'Resolved, That we will celebrate the eighty-sixth anniversary of our National independence. ''Resolved, That a committee of five be appointed, in behalf of the City Coun- cil, to arrange the programme and order of celebration. " Resolved, That Lieutenant-General Wells and staff be respectfully solicited to co-operate in the celebration of the day, with such of the military of the district, and the several bands, as may be deemed proper. ''Resolved, That the State, Federal, Territorial and County officers be invited to take part in the celebration and join in the procession, and that the invitation be extended to strangers and citizens generally, to participate in the ceremonies at the Bowery. "The following appointments for the occasion were then made, viz : "Committee of Arrangements: Messrs. Wm. Clayton, J. C. Little, Theodore McKean, Enoch Reese, and Nathaniel H. Felt. " Furnishing Committee : Alonzo H. Raleigh, Elijah F. Sheets, and Isaac Groo. "Marshals of the Day: Col. Robert T. Burton and Majors John Sharp and Andrew Cunningham. ROBERT CAMPBELL, City Recorder r On the 7th of July Stephen S. Harding of Indiana, the new Governor of Utah Territory, arrived in the city and received a hearty welcome ; Judges Waite and Drake arrived a few days later. The Pioneer Day of this year was celebrated with a grand pageantry and ex- traordinary enthusiasm. The procession halted in front of ex-Governor Young's mansion, where with his counselors, H. C. Kimball and Daniel H. Wells, he joined it, accompanied by Governor Harding, Secretary Fuller, Judges Waite and Drake, Superintendent Doty, Mr. Fred Cook, assistant treasurer of the Over- land Mail Co., Mr. James Street, of the U. P. Telegraph Co., and H. S. Rum- field, Esq. It may be said that the " forces of the Gentiles " united this year to celebrate the anniversary of the Utah Pioneers. It was computed that there were under the branches of the "Old Bowery" five thousand persons, besides the thousands congregated outside. The most unique feature of the day was the in- troduction and speech of Governor Harding. Governor Young invited Governor Harding to address the people ; and on the two Governors taking the stand, there was a perfect stillness in the vast assembly; but, on Governor Young saying, "I have the pleasure of presenting HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 269 Governor Harding, who will make a speech," the stillness of the multitude was broken and the Governor was greeted with cheering. SPEECH OF GOVERNOR HARDING. "Fellow Citizens — And in that word, I mean all of you, of all ages, sexes and conditions — I am pleased at being with you to-day, and of being introduced in the agreeable manner you have just witnessed. I have desired the opportunity of looking upon such a vast concourse of the people of Utah, at one time; and, as such an occasion now presents itself, it is right and proper that I should say a few things to you. "You have doubtless been informed before now that the President of the United States, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, has appointed me to the office of Governor of this Territory. I have come amongst you to en- ter upon the discharge of the high and important duties that have devolved upon me, and when I greatly distrust my owm ability, yet I cannot but hope that, with your assistance, I shall be able to discharge those duties to your satisfaction, and with strict fidelity to the Government, whose servant I am. " If I know my own heart, I come amongst you a messenger of peace and good will. I have no wrongs — either real or imaginary, to complain of, and no religious prejudices to overcome — [applause]. Believing, as I do, that the Con- stitution of the United States secures to every citizen the right to worship God according to the dictates of his own conscience; and holding, further, that the Constitution itself is dependent for its support and maintenance on the preserva- I' tion of that sacred right, it follows, as a corollory, that, under no pretext what- ever, will I consent to its violation in this particular, by any official act of mine, I whilst Governor of this Territory — [tremendous applause.] "In a Government like ours, based upon the freest exercise of conscience, I religion is a matter between man and his Maker, and not between man ar.d the Government, and for the honest exercise of duties inculcated by his religious faith and conscience, so long as he does not infringe upon the rights of others, equally as sacred as his own, he is not responsible to any human tribunal, other than that which is found in the universal judgment of mankind [hear hear]. If the right of conscience of the minority depended upon the will of the majority, then, in a government like ours, that same minority in a future day might control the conscience of the majority of to-day — when by superior cunning and finease a political canvass had been won in its favor, and thus alternately would it be in the power of either when elevated to the seat of the law-makers to impose a despot ism upon the conscience of its adversary only equalled by the * Index Expurga- toris' against which the Protestant world so justly complained [applause]. " It has long been a maxim and accepted as true by our people, 'That it is safe to tolerate error, so long as truth is left free to combat it.' Who are in error, and in what that error consists in matters of speculative theology, are questions only cognizable at the bar of heaven. It has been the fate of pro- pogandists of new ideas and religious dogmas, without regard to their truth or falsity, to meet with opposition, often ending in the most cruel persecution. Hoary-headed error, claiming for itself the immunity of ages, glares with jaun- 2yo HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. diced eyes upon all new ideas, which refuse to pay to it its accustomed homage. I know of no law of the human mind that makes this age an exception to the rule. Nevertheless, he who founds his ideas and theories on truth, correlative with his physical and spiritual being, and consequently in harmony with the law of nature, must ultimately succeed ; whilst he who builds upon falsehood must share the fate of him who built his house upon the sand. This is not only a declara- tion of divine truth, but is in accordance with all human experience. The great highway of man's civilization and progress is strewn with the wrecks of a thou- sand systems — once the hope of their founders and challenging the confidence of mankind [hear, hear]. But I must limit this dissertation, and will sum up in a few words what I have intended to say on this branch of the subject. "The founders of our Constitution fully comprehended these ideas which I have so briefly glanced at, and they clothed the citizen with absolute immunity in the exercise of his rights of conscience, and thence the protecting shield of the Constitution around him, and over him, in all the diverging paths that lead the enquirer in his researches after truth in the dim unknown of speculative theology. "But I must not detain you, I leave this part of the subject, and address myself to the occasion that has called together this mighty multitude. "On every hand I behold a miracle of labor. Fifteen years ago to-day, and your Pioneers, by their heroism and devotion to a principle, consecrated this valley to a civilization wonderful 'to the stranger within your gates,' and in the developments of which a new era will be stamped not only upon the history of our own country, but on the world. You have indeed 'caused the desert to blossom as the rose.' Waving fields of gold; gardens containing all that is necessary for the comfort of civilized man; 'shrubberies that a Shenstone might have envied;' orchards bending beneath the promise of most luscious fruit, — now beautify the fields which your industry has filled with new life, and where but fifteen years ago the genius of solitude, from yon snow capped peak, stood marking on her rocky tablets the centuries of desolation and death that rested on these same fields, since the upheaval force of nature formed the mighty zone that separates the two oceans that wash the shores of our continent. "Wonderful progress! wonderful people! If you shall be content, as I doubt not you will be, to enjoy the blessings with which you are surrounded, and abide your time, and enjoy your privileges under a benign and just government, '■Imperiiim in Imperio' and not attempt to reverse this order of things absolutely necessary under our form of government; and above all things, if you will act up to the line of your duty contained in that one grand article of your faith, ' We believe in being honest, true, chaste, temperate, benevolent, virtuous and up- right, and in doing ^ood to all men,^ you cannot fail to obtain that ultimate suc- cess [applause] which is the great desideratum of your hopes. Honestly conform to the standard of your creed and faith, and though you may for a time be ' cast down,' you cannot be destroyed [great applause] ; for the power of the Eternal One will be in your midst, though no mortal eye may behold the ' pillar of cloud and of fire' [applause]. As the Great Master of sculpture gathered and com- bined all the perfections of the human face into one divine model, so you, in i HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 2yi that one grand article, have bound into one golden sheaf, all the Christian vir- tues that underlie our civilization. "But this must suffice. I, perhaps, have said more than I ought to have said, and yet I cannot see how I could have said less. If my words shall be as kindly received by you as they have been honestly and frankly uttered by me, and we will act accordingly, my mission among you cannot fail of being alike profitable to you and to the government that I represent [hear, hear]. "This is the hour when your loyalty to our common country is most ac- ceptable and grateful to the heart of every patriot. Be but content and abide your time, and your reward will be as great as it is certain. Duty to ourselves, to our God and our country calls upon us to cast aside every prejudice and to rally around the Constitution and the flag of our fathers, and if need be, to bap- tize them anew with our own blood. The Constitution will not perish, that flag will not trail in the dust, but they will both come out of the present fiery ordeal, redeemed, regenerated, and disenthralled, by the genius of universal liberty and justice [great applause]." In view of Governor Harding's subsequent course the foregoing speech will presently assume the character of a page of Utah history. Senator Milton S. Latham, of California, passed through the city early in November on his way to Washington. The City Council in its session on the evening preceding his arrival, adopted a preamble and resolutions tendering him the hospitality of the city during his sojourn here. The Senator was waited upon by Councilors Little, Felt and Groo, to whom he returned his thanks for the complimentary resolutions of the Council, but his short stay prevented his ac- ceptance. Latham and McDougall, California's two Senators, were the only ones who voted "nay" on the passage of the anti-polygamic bill of 1862. The honor shown to Senator Latham signified that Great Salt Lake City was returning thanks to California for her minority vote in protest of the bill. Towards the close of the year 1862, an entire change of feeling came over Governor Harding towards "his Mormon people," especially those of the leaders; and singularly enough it began with his following THANKSGIVING PROCLAMATION : " Man, in all ages of the world, in the development of his moral nature, has demonstrated that he is not less a religious than a social being. "Whether we study his attributes at the shrine of Isis in her ancient tem- ples ; at the rude altar of the wandering Hebrew amidst his flocks and herds ; in the fierce games of the warlike Greek and Roman, or in that simple and more touching act of the Hindoo husbandman, as he lays a portion of his harvest at the feet of his rude idol, still do all these acts of devotion, rude and unseemly as they may appear to us, demonstrate his character as a devotional being — that his spiritual nature cannot be satisfied 'with bread alone,' but requires 'that manna of consolation that comes down from above.' " That without this, the soul is ever crying out like a wandering outcast, " ' Oh, Father of Life, withhold not thy mercies from me.' "If these manifestations have been in all ages of the world, ere the shep- 41' 272 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. ^ *i herds of Gallilee heard the song of 'Peace and good will to men,' much more should we feel it to be our duty, as a Christian people, to inculcate even a higher * spirit of devotion, and manifest by our acts, our dependence upon God, the God J of our fathers, the Supreme Ruler of the Universe, from whose boiinteous hands U * proceed every good and perfect gift.' "He has kept the people here, guarded by His eternal ramparts, as in the ' hollow of His hand.' He has said Peace, Peace, and the troubled elements be- came still. The angel of his mercy has stretched out her burning scepter, and the elements became purified; disease and mildew and blight vanished to their silent caves, and Plenty poured out upon you from her abundant horn. Your granaries are full to overflowing; no scourge has fallen upon you, but the God of Peace has reigned triumphantly in your midst, while in other and fairer portions of the land, the Demon of Civil War has driven his blood-stained chariot over desolated fields and deserted cities — the plowshare has been beaten into a sword, and the pruning-hook into the murderous knife, and waving harvests, ready fcr the reaper, have not been gathered into barns, but ' plowed under' ■' ■ By gory felloes of the cannon's wheels.' "It is meet that at such a time as this, that the good people of this Terri- tory, following, not only the examples of their fathers, but a precedent set by its first Governor, should dedicate, and set apart at least one day in the year, for thanksgiving and praise to Almighty God for the manifold mercies and blessings that he has vouchsafed unto us, and that He will continue his mercies. That He will put it into the hearts of our rulers to rule in righteousness, and that ' Judg- ment may not be turned aside in the streets.' That peace may again return to our bleeding country, and that the institutions of our fathers may come forth purified from the sins which have weighed down a nation, and brought the keen displeasure and wrath of God upon us. "Therefore, I, Stephen S. Harding, Governor of the Territory of Utah, do hereby set apart Thursday, the first day of January, proximo, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to Almighty God, for all His mercies to us as a people, and recommend and request a general observance of it to that end, that here, on the threshhold of a New Year, we may manifest in a proper spirit our dependence on Him, and supplicate His Omnipotent Power to continue to pro- tect and guard us from future evils, as a nation and people. "In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand, and caused [L.S.] the seal of said Territory to be affiixed. "Done at Great Salt Lake City, in the Territory of Utah, this second day of December, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-two. (Signed) STEPHEN S. HARDING. "By the Governor, Frank Fuller, Secretary.''' This proclamation, which greeted Great Salt Lake City with a classic swell, was passed unheeded, not only by our city, but by the entire Territory. Gov- ernor Harding took the non-response of the citizens, not only as marked per- sonal slight to himself, but also as a scoff at the Federal power embodied in his 7 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CTTY. 27J Excellency, Stephen S. Harding. But the citizens, in not holding high "temple service for Thanksgiving and Praise to Almighty God," on the day appointed by Governor Harding, intended no personal slight towards him or scoff at Federal authority. But the salient point of the history to the secular mind would be that, the non-observance of this Thanksgiving Day, brought Stephen S. Harding to the full realization of the fact that, though he was Governor of Utah, Brigham Young was still Governor of the Mormon people. Therein was the intolerable offence to his Excellency. A few days afterwards the Utah Legislature met. In the State House, Ste- phen S. Harding could teach the people that he, and not Brigham Young, was their Governor. At least such was the intent of the lesson conveyed in his mes- sage. Mr. Stenhouse notes the example thus: "The Governor's message to the Legislature, in December, was the tocsin of war, and was considered a very offensive document. He referred to the passage of the anti-polygamic law of July of that year, and warned the people against the pernicious counsels of the apostles and prophets who had recommended it "to be openly disregarded and defied." The manner of the delivery of the message was worse than the matter, and probably no Legislature ever felt more humiliated and insulted. It was painful to observe the legislators, as they sat quiet and immovable, hearing their faith contemned. It was interpreted as an open and gratuitous insult on the part of the Executive." CHAPTER XXXI. THE CALIFORNIA VOLUNTEERS ORDERED TO UTAH. SKETCH OF GENERAL CONNOR. HIS FIRST MILITARY ORDER. INTERESTING LETTER FROM THE COMMAND. PETITION OF THE VOLUNTEERS TO GO TO THE POTO- MAC. MARCH FROM FORT CRITTENDEN TO SALT LAKE. PREPARA- TIONS FOR BATTLE AT THE JORDAN. ZION AT PEACE. SURPRISE OF THE TROOPS. THE HALT AT THE GOVERNOR'S MANSION HIS ADDRESS TO THE TROOPS. CAMP DOUGLAS. Although the Utah militia had been offered for the protection of the Over- land Mail and Telegraph line. Secretary Stanton deemed it prudent to entrust the permanent service to the California Volunteers rather than to the Utah militia. Utah was placed under a military surveillance during the war, and California was made her sister's keeper. At least, such was the interpretation placed upon the military mission of General Connor and his command, to whom is devoted the following historical sketch, quickly connecting as it does with the main branch of the history of Great Salt Lake City. ■JJ4 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. General Patrick Edward Connor was born in the south of Ireland, March 17, 1820. At an early age he emigrated with his parents to New York City, where he was educated. In 1839 he entered the regular army, at the age of 18, during the Florida war. He left the service in November of 1844, and returned to New York, where he entered into mercantile business ; but in the early part of 1846 emigrated to Texas. The war with Mexico broke out that year, and young Connor, as Cap- tain of the Texas Volunteers, was the second volunteer officer mustered into service, in the regiment of Albert Sidney Johnston, whom they elected Colonel. Connor was with his company at the battles of Palo Alto, Resaca de la Palma, and Buena Vista. In the latter battle he was severely wounded, being the first officer who bore the scars of war, for which honor he now draws a full Captain's pension. Shortly after the close of the Mexican war, Captain Connor emigrated to California, where he engaged in business till the breaking out of our great civil war. Immediately the gallant officer tendered his services to the Governor of California, and was appointed by him Colonel of the Third California Infantry. The California Volunteers entered the service with the full expectation of being called directly to the theatre of war, for both officers and men were fired with a martial spirit becoming California in the nation's crisis. It is doubtful, in- deed, if this military fervor would have been kindled had the Volunteers known that they were about to be ordered to Utah by the Government, to watch the Mor- mons, lest their leaders should take advantage of our national calamity and pro- claim a rebellion. Some of the officers and men, it is understood, gave way to occasional fits of ill-humor, very pardonable in men who, panting for military glory, as well as inspired by patriotism, had offered their lives in defense of the Union, only to find themselves, in the sequel, transported to our then Rocky Mountain isolation. It was in May, 1862, that Colonel Connor was ordered with his regiment to Utah. His command consisted of the Third California Infantry and a part of the Second California Cavalry. He took up his line of march in July, 1862. On assuming command of the Military District of Utah, Colonel Connor issued the following military order: " Headquarters, District of Utah, Fort Churchill, August 6th, 1862. "Order No. i. — The undersigned, pursuant to orders from Department Headquarters, hereby assumes command of the Military District of Utah, com- jjrising the Territories of Nevada and Utah. "In assuming command of the district I especially enjoin upon all disburs- ing officers the necessity of being particularly attentive, careful and economical in their disbursements of the public funds; and that they in no instance purchase from persons who have at any time, by word or act, manifested disloyalty to the Federal Government. "Being credibly informed that there are in this district persons who^ while claiming and receiving protection to life and property, are endeavoring to destroy and defame the principles and institutions of our Government under whose be- nign influence they have been so long protected, it is therefore most rigidly en- HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 27s forced upon all commanders of posts, camps and detachments, to cause to be promptly arrested and closely confined until they have taken the oath of allegiance to the Government of the United States, all persons who from this date shall be guilty of uttering treasonable sentiments against the Government; and upon a repetition of the offense to be again arrested and confined until the fact shall be communicated to these headquarters. Traitors shall not utter treasonable sentiments in this district with impunity, but must seek some more genial soil, or receive the punishment they so richly merit. By order of P. EDWARD CONNOR, Col. jd Infantry, C. V., Com. Dist. of Utah. ^' James W. Stillman, A. A. A. General.'' The Deseret News of September 10, notes : "Col. P. E. Connor, commanding the California Volunteers, arrived in the city yesterday afternoon. The Volunteers remain at Ruby Valley till the Colonel's return, when they will afterwards advance to the place that will be selected as a military post. The Colonel took a stroll about town and looked around with an air of familiarity that indicated that after all Salt Lake City was something of a place, and might not be unpleasant, notwithstanding its desert surroundings." A correspondent writing to the San Francisco Bulletin in behalf of his com- rades, gives a very interesting and suggestive page of history: " Headquarters Utah District, Ruby Valley, N. T., September 24, 1862. "The Third Infantry California Volunteers wants to go home — not for the imrpose of seeing the old folks, but for the purpose of tramping upon the sacred soil of Virginia, and of swelling the ranks of the brave battlers for the brave old flag. The action of the San Francisco Quartette and the glory which awaits the California regiment that first lands on the Atlantic coast, combined to make the 700 hearts camped in Ruby Valley pulse vigorously with the patriotic desire to serve their country in shooting traitors instead of "eating rations and freezing to death around sage-brush fires, which two are the only military duties to be performed hereabouts. Accordingly a meeting of the ofiEicers was called on Tuesday night. A committee was appointed to draft a dispatch to be sent to Gen. Halleck; and each captain was requested to draw up a paper to the purport that the subscriber would authorize the paymaster to withhold from his pay the amount subscribed by him, on the condition, and no other condition, that the regiment be ordered east. Each captain was requested to present this document to his company and report at an adjourned meeting. "To-day, at i p. m., the following sums had been subscribed by the privates and company officers: "Company I, Capt. Lewis, ^3,430; Company K, Capt. Hoyt, $3,475; Company H, Capt. Black, $2,550; Company F, (part absent on detailed duty) Capt. Potts, $600; Company C, Capt. May, $3,260; Company E, Capt. Tupper, $4,674; Company G, Capt. Urmy, $7,431. "That is excellent evidence of the earnest patriotism of our 700 men. In II 276 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. addition to packing a musket, eating salt pork, and tramping over these abominable deserts, they are willing, and actually do, out of their $13 per month, subscribe $25,000 for the privilege of going to the 'Potomac and getting shot. If Cali- fornia is not proud of them, the God of Washington is; and that is quite as sat- isfactory. But California cannot help appreciating such a sacrifice upon the part of men who, after giving their time, labor, and if need be, their lives, to their country, now give the last mite of their small pittance. Private Goldthaite, of Company G, alone, subscribed $5000, while the majority of the men gave every cent of their pay. "The company officers ranged about thus: Second lieutenants, $100 to $200; first lieutenants, $200 to $300; captains, $300 to $500. In some instances that takes more than their pay. The staff officers have not yet pungled, as they are waiting to see what amount will remain to be raised. " The three companies at Stockton would most undoubtedly equal their com- rades, bhould they do so, at the average of $3,000 per company the funds would reach upwards of $36,000. "The following despatch was sent to Gen. Halleck, with the consent of Gen. George Wright: ' ' ' Major- General Halleck, Secretary of War, Washington, D. C. "The Third Infantry, Cal. Vols., has been in service one year, and marched 6co miles; it is well officered and thoroughly drilled; is of no service on the Overland Mail route, as there is cavalry sufficient for its protection in Utah Dis- trict. The regiment will authorize the Paymaster to withhold $30,000 of pay now due if Government will order it East; and it pledges Gen. Halleck never to disgrace the flag, himself or California. The men enlisted to fight traitors, and can do so more effectively than raw recruits; and ask that they may be placed at least on the same footing in regard to transportation East. If the above sum is insufficient, we will pay our own passages from San Francisco to Panama. " ' By request of the regiment. P. EDW. CONNOR, *' ' Col. Cofnmanding. " 'Ruby Valley, N. T., September 24, 1862. '" " So far as anybody can see, there is not a bit more use for infantry out here than there is for topographical engineers. Cavalry is the only efficient arm against Indians, and the companies of the 2d regiment, in the district, are fully compe- tent to chastise all offenders. Brigham Young offers to protect the entire line with 100 men. Why we were sent here is a mystery. It could not be keep Mormon- dom in order, for Brigham can thoroughly annihilate us with the 5,000 to 25,000 frontiersmen always at his command." Towards the middle of October the Volunteers reached the former encamp- ment of U. S. troops at Camp Floyd. Parties who would have been financially benefitted by the Volunteers occupying the vacated quarters at Camp Floyd tried to induce the Colonel to remain there, and, failing that, they sought to intimi- date him with the intelligence that the Mormon intended to dispute the passage of the Californians over the Jordan. At the same time, a story was current HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 277 among the Volunteers that Brigham Young, on hearing of their advance, had out of contempt for them and the nation, cut down the United States flag-staff at Camp Floyd and left it lying on the public road, over which they had to travel. There was no truth in this reported threat of Mormon resistance; and, as already told, the flag-staff was presented to ex-Governor Young by the officers at Camp Floyd. A few days after the establishment of Camp Douglas the San Francisco Bulletin published, from the correspondent already noticed, the following very interesting details of the march of the Volunteers from Fort Crittenden and their passage through Great Salt City : "Jordan Springs, U. T., Saturday, October, 18, 1862. "The Salt Lake Expedition, numbering 750 men, is within twenty-five miles of the City of the Saints, having marched twenty miles north of Fort Crittenden to-day. From the slope on which our camp is pitched we can discern the white specks which constitute the residences of the modern apostles ; but at present we are more interested in the designs and doings of said apostles than in the general appearance of their habitations. I closed yesterday's letter [see Bulletin of 30th October] by mentioning a camp rumor, to the effect that the Mormons would prevent a nearer approach of our troops to the city than Fort Crittenden, and that the banks of the narrow stream called Jordan, which empties the waters of Lake Utah into Great Salt Lake, would form the field of battle. At the time it caused no further thought than as the starting point of rambling conversations respecting Mormondom and the mission which the command has been detailed to execute — both subjects upon which we have but little information. However, at the present writing — sundown — reliable advices received tend to establish the probable truthfulness of the report. When information reached the city, as it did last night, that Col. Connor would not purchase the buildings erected by Johnson's command in 1858 at what was then Camp Floyd, now Fort Crittenden, and that he designed to occupy some locality within striking distance of the heart of Mormondom, the most intense excitement is said to have prevailed. The leaders are represented to be in conclave, meditating upon the question and striving to arrive at a determination, while the people were in a high state of expectancy as to what the leaders would do, what the troops would do, and what they themselves would be called upon to do. The Chief of the Danites — better known perhaps as the Destroying Angels, whose duty it is, if report be true, to place parties odious to the leaders of the Church where they can never tell tales, is represented as riding through the streets offering to bet ^500 that we could and should not cross the river Jordan, the bet being untaken. Furthermore, not a single camp rumor, but reliable parties assert that Brigham Young would, when we near Jordan, have us met by commissioners empowered to inform us that the Mormons objected to our close proximity to their city and would forcibly resist an attempt on our part to cross that stream. "How much truth there may be in these advices, or how much the real state of affairs in Salt Lake is exaggerated I know not. As a faithful correspondent it is only my province to inform you of the exact condition and operations of this 278 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. command, but further than that I cannot go, and, of course, will not be held re- sponsible for the correctness or incorrectness of the rumors which reach this com- mand. Be they, however, true or untrue, and be the opinion entertained by our Colonel what it may, certain it is that he is moving with the utmost prudence, | that thirty rounds of ammunition have just been issued to each man, and that the two 6-pounders are [abundantly furnished with destructive missiles, and the 12- pound mountain howitzer amply supplied with shells, that the camp is so pitched upon an open plain that no force can get to it without a fair fight ; in short, that every preparation for war that can be made is made, and equally certain is it that on to-morrow we will cross the river Jordan if it lies within our power. " Col. Connor sent word to-day to the above-mentioned chief of the Dan- ites that he would 'cross the river Jordan if hell yawned below him; ' and the battle-fields of Mexico testify that the Colonel has a habit of keeping his word. " Thus you see that w'hether we are to have a fight or not rests entirely with the Mormon rulers. And if it be true that United States troops, when ordered by Government to occupy United States territory, are to be forcibly prevented by those living upon United States lands, from executing the order — if this prin- ciple is to constitute the national policy, then the nation has ceased to be a live nation, and the sooner it recognizes the Southern Confederacy the better. But if our troops are to march on United States territory wherever Govern- ment sends them, and those who resist their march, because of polygamy, are as really traitors as those who resist because of slavery, and are to be dealt with as such. This command, from the highest to the lowest, is disposed to treat the Mormons with true courtesy and the strictest justice, so long as they remain friendly to the Government; but the moment they become traitors the river Jor- dan will be as acceptable to us as the river Potomac, for we shall be fighting for the same precise principle — the flag and national existence — as are our eastern brethren ; and even should annihilation be our fate, of which we have no fears, the belief that our countrymen would think of our graves as they do of those in Virginia, and that the Union men of California, our old friends, would swarm forth by the thousand to avenge us — such a hope and belief would nerve us for death. "Nevertheless, unless he fails to exercise his statesmanship, universally ac- corded to him, Brigham Young cannot but foresee the results which would flow from a war of his beginning. Admitting him to have an army of S.ooo well drilled and effective men, or, for that matter, one of 50,000 — and admitting him to be able to capture our force and all the forces which California could send hither, yet, in the course of one, or two, or three years, the Government could flood his valley with regiments, and sweep it with a gulf stream of bayonets. That he is prepared to initiate a movement which cannot fail to bring upon his ])eople the full power of the nation I do not believe ; and yet there may be hot heads over whom he has but partial control. A small spark can ignite the powder of a vast magazine. "Having given you the prevalent opinion of the camp, there should also be given what probably may turn out to be the cause why some, if not most, of the rumors current in Salt Lake were set afloat. When Floyd at'ter expending HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 27Q $5,000,000 in the erection of quarters in Camp Floyd ordered the disgraceful and outrageous sale of the same, the buildings were bought for a mere song by private parties. '' On several occasions, in fact during the whole march, Col. Connor has been solicited by the agents of owners to repurchase them. He did not see fit to do so; but it was expected that the smallness of the command, and the avowal that the Mormons would not permit him to locate near the city, taken in connec- tion with the fact that his arrival so late in the season would prevent him from erecting winter quarters, it was expected, I say, that these and other pruden- tial reasons would induce him to effect the purchase of Fort Crittenden ; and it is more than probable that his refusal of the offers was regarded as a financial maneuver by which to secure the property at low figures. Hence the idea that we really would not winter at that point has never been realized by them, and so thoroughly has the belief that we would winter there pervaded the Mormon I people, that when we marched beyond it they — unable to understand the object J of the expedition, and fearful that the real, and to them a hostile, design, is hidden under the avowed one — have their fears a thousand fold quickened and imagine an attack upon the city possible. In addition it appears that the chief of the Danites is the principal owner of the buildings and decidedly anxious to sell and that the agents have from time to time assured him of the certainty of his prospects. Up to the hour that Col. Connor's decision was unknown at Fort Crittenden, the city is reported to have been perfectly quiet, but in about the time it would take to telegraph his refusal to Salt Lake, the excitement is said to have begun. There can, therefore, be little doubt that the already aroused suspicions of the Mormons have been worked upon by parties interested in the sale of the property, and who, failing to persuade Col. Connor into buying, now seek to frighten him therein by threats of forcible resistance, and mayhap a dis- play of military power. In this they will most signally fail, for I must say that he is a blessed hard man to scare. At the same time, if it is the settled Mormon policy to resist the Federal Government, and if the people have been toned up to the Union pitch, a few leaders actuated by selfish motives, can easily indicate its execution. A courier will arrive late to-night with authentic intelligence, which I will endeavor to obtain. "Salt Lake City, October 20, 1862. " When Sunday's reveille awoke the command, it awoke expectant of battle ere another one should roll out upon the grey day-break. Blankets were never got out from under and compactly strapped in knapsacks more promptly; cooks never prepared steaming breakfast with greater alacrity, and upon the principle that the aggregate stomach of a regiment has a great deal to do with the aggre- gate prowess of a regiment, they never prepared a more bountiful repast. Upon the same principle, no breakfast during the whole march was stowed away in a more cool, nonchalant, jovial manner. The routine of months was dissipated, and, doubtless each man's curiosity to know how he would personally stand fire, and the more general question which side would whip, made everybody happy. The II 28o HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CIT\. first scene which met my eyes was Colonel Connor seated upon a log, calmly en- gaged in loading his pistols, and playing with his toddling child. In some direc- tions were heard the popping of muskets and the thud of ramrods, as the men made sure of their pieces, while in others could be seen individuals seated on the ground, vigorously burnishing up their already glittering muskets and brasses — determined no doubt to die according to regulations, if die they must. No difference what thoughts raged within each breast, the exterior seemed calm and determined. "An incident at the hospital will seive as a criterion of the general animus. Five men were sick in the hospital and thirty-six sick in quarters. At sick-call Surgeon Reid, who had been arranging nia abominable knives, saws and probes, said that this was a day when every man able to carry a musket should do so, and one that would determine who were loafers and who were soldiers. Twenty-eight out of the forty-one, many of whom were really unfit for service, shouldered their pieces, and the remainder did not only because they could not. "A strong force of cavalry preceded the staff, and the command moved for- ward in so cornpact a body, and with such a steady, springing step, that General Wright's heart would have rejoiced at the sight. The fact that the carriages formed behind the staff as usual was an intimation to the men that a fight was im- probable, and word presently passed that a courier had arrived with information that no resistance would be made at the bridge. Before it did so, however, as the Colonel passed the artillery, he put several questions to Lieutenant Hunneyman, commanding, respecting the quantity and kind of ammunition in the caissons, and also the numbers of the ammunition wagons. When through, the Lieutenant, who has seen service, said, 'Colonel, if you expect an attack to-day, I will over- haul those wagons and take more cannister,' with the same air that one calls for fried oysters in a restaurant. The reply was, 'Not to day; but to-morrow do so.' There were other incidents of the same kind, but I did not happen to see them. " After a speedy march of fifteen miles — during which not one of the usual stragglers fell back from his position — we crossed the Jordan at 2 p. m. and found not a solitary individual upon the eastern shore. It was a magnificent place for a fight, too, with a good-sized bluff upon the western side from which splendid execution could have been done ; but all were glad that no necessity existed there- for, as we heartily desire to avoid difficulty with the loyal citizens. " While camped for the night, it was definitely ascertained that, although there had been some excitement in the laity, yet it was far from general, and was insti- gated by parties interested in selling the Fort Crittenden buildings. Further- more, that the mass of the people were glad of our near location, as it would bring many a dollar into the city circulation. Bishop Heber Kimball, who, I am told, ranks next to President Young, is reported to have spoken thus in his sermon at the temple: ' Letters have been written to Colonel Connor's command, to Cali- fornia and the East, that we are opposed to the coming of the troops ; that we are disloyal to the Government and sympathizers with Secessionists. It is all a d — d lie." This certainly was a gratifying assurance, though not mildly expressed. "This morning, Monday, we resumed .the line of march, thoroughly ignor- ant of the spot that would next receive our tents, but decidedly hopeful that it HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CLTY. 28 1 would receive them permanently. That it was to be near the city we knew; that the leading Mormons objected to its proximity because of the danger of difficulties between the soldiers and citizens, we knew; that in 1858 they had resisted the now traitor Johnston's 10,000 men, and after compelling him to winter in the mountains, had, late in the Spring, forced him into a treaty by which he bound himself not to locate within 40 miles of Salt Lake, we knew ; that they were far stronger and bet- ter armed now than they then were, we knew ; and that more than one of their lead- ing men — among them a BishojD — had offered to bet that we would not come within twenty miles of the Temple, we also knew. A large and influental party was avow- edly opposed to any near approach, and, in view of the advice received by our com- mander — which were from reliable sources — the precise animus of the people and the treatment that would meet us, we did not know. That, should they see fit, it was in their power to vastly outnumber and in all probability annihilate us, was more than possible, and that we were 600 miles of sand and draught from reinforce- ments, was certain. All of these certainties and imcertainties conspired to create ihe same excitement that passengers in olden days felt when two Mississippi steamers lapped guards, burned tar, and carried the engineer as a weight on the safety valve. We had generally supposed, and the people had universally supposed, that the command would pass around the city, or at the most but through the outer suburbs, which course, under all the circumstances, was considered deci- dedly bold, and upon the whole, not so conciliatory a policy as had been adopted by General Johnston's thousands. "Accordingly, when some two miles out, a halt was sounded and the cokmin formed as follows : Advance guard of cavalry, Colonel Conner and staff; cavalry brass band; Cos. A and M of 2d Cavalry, C. V., light battery; infantry field band; 3d Infantry Battalion; staff, company quarters and commissary wagons ; rear guard of infantry. "'You may imagine our surprise — strive to imagine the astonishment of the people, and the more than astonishment of the betting bishop — as the column marched slowly and steadily into a street which receives the overland stage, up it between the fine trees, the sideAvalks filled with many women and countless children, the comfortable residences, to Emigration Square, the Theatre and other notable landmarks were passed, when, about the centre of the city, I should think, it filed right through a principal thoroughfare to Governor Harding's Mansion — on which, and on which alone waved the .same blessed stars and stripes that were woven in the loom of '76. Every crossing was occupied by spectators, and windows, doors and roofs had their gazers. Not a cheer, not a jeer greeted us. One little boy, running along close to the staff, said — " You are coming, are you? " to which it was replied that we thought we were. A carriage, containing three ladies, who sang "John Brown" as they drove by, were heartily saluted. But the leading greeting was ex- tended by Governor Harding, Judges Waite and Drake, and Dr. , who met us some distance out. Save these three instances, there were none of those mani- festations of loyalty that any other city in a loyal Territory would have made. "The sidewalk by the mansion was thoroughly packed with Mormons, curious to know what would be the next feature. It was this: The battalion 8 282 ins TORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. l\ was formed into two lines, behind them the cavalry, with the battery resting upon their right, in front of the Governor's residence. " After giving the Governor the salute due his rank he was introduced by Col. Connor to the command, and, standing in his buggy, spoke precisely thus: " Soldiers and Fellow Citizens : " It is with pleasure that I meet you all here to-day. God forbid that ever I shall live to see the day that I will not be rejoiced to see the flag of my country in hands that are able and worthy to defend it. When I say this, I am conscious, soldiers, that your mission here is one of peace and security, not only to the government that gives you employment, but to every individual who is an inhab- tant of this Territory. "The individual, if any such there be, who supposed that the Government had sent you here that mischief might come out of it, knows not the spirit of our Government, and knows not the spirit of the officers who represent it in this Territory. When I say this, I say what is strictly true; and I say.it that it may be impressed upon your minds as true, as well as upon the minds of every indi- vidual who hears me upon this occasion. Never let it be said that an American soldier, employed under the glorious flag of his country, that emblem of beauty and glory, has disgraced it by conduct not in accordance with his duty, and the discipline of the United States array. The duty of a soldier is a plain and stern duty ; and yet it is one that redounds to the glory and happiness of himself, and to the happiness of every true and loyal individual in whose midst he may be placed. If, however, he should break over the bounds of his discipline — if he should run wild in the riot of the camp, then, indeed, his presence will be a curse everywhere, and not a security to the institutions of the Government, which it is his duty to maintain with his life's blood. " I confess that I have been disappointed, somewhat, in your coming to this city. I have known nothing of the disposition that has been made of you; and for the truth of this assertion, I appeal to your commander, and to every individual with whom I have had communication on this subject. But you are here, and I can say to you, God bless you, and God bless the flag you carry; God bless the Government you represent; and may she come out of her present diffi- culties unscathed; and may the fiery ordeal through which she is passing purge her of her sins; may her glorious institutions be preserved to the end of time; may she survive these troubles, and be redeemed, and disenthralled from the causes of the difficulties and calamities through which she is passing, and through which she may be yet called to pass- " I do not know now what disposition is to be made of you, but I suppose you will be encamped somewhere, I know not where, but within a short distance of this city. I believe the people you have now come amongst will not disturb you if you do not disturb them in their public rights and in the honor and peace of their homes ; and to disturb them you must violate the strict discipline of the United States Army which you must observe, and which you have no right to violate. In conforming thus to your duty, you will have my countenance and support, and every drop of blood in my veins if necessary for the maintenance |{ HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 283 of your rights and the Government I represent. But if on the contrary you for any reason whatever should run wild in the riot of the camp — should break over the bounds of propriety, and disregard that discipline that is the only possible safety for yourselves, then shall I not be with you ; but in the line of your duty, God being my helper, I will be with you to the end, and to death. I thank you." " At the conclusion of the speech, Colonel Connor called for three cheers for our Country and Flag, and three more for Governor Harding, all of which would have drawn forth the admiration of your Fire Department. Thereupon the march through the city was resumed, the bands continuing their flood of music, and a tramp of two and a half miles east brought us to the slope between Emigra- tion and Red Butte Canyons, where a permanent post will probably be established. " I have very astutely discovered that we could have reached the spot by a much shorter road, and that we marched over six miles for the purpose of passing through the well-built metropolis of the modern Saints. There is no reason why we should not do it that is recognized by the United States Government, and I for one was curious to see rosy cheeks and sparkling eyes. " And so ended the long tramp from your good State, and the attempts t j frighten Colonel Connor into the purchase of Fort Crittenden. CHAPTER XXXII. BATTLE OF BEAR RIVER. CONNOR'S REPORT TO THE DEPARTMENT HISTORY OF THE BATTLE. CONGRATULATIONS OF THE COLONEL TO HIS TROOPS. BURIAL OF THE DEAD. OUR CITIZENS AT THE FUNERAL, THE BATTLE, AS RECORDED IN THE MILITARY HISTORY OF CACHE VALLEY, Soon after his arrival in Utah, Colonel Connor, on the 29th of January, 1863, fought the celebrated battle of Bear River, against the Snake nnd Bannock Indians under Bear Hunter and other chiefs. There they killed and captured of the Indians nearly 400. The cemetery of Camp Douglas was consecrated to receive the relics of the heroes who fell in that battle; but there was compensa- tion for their loss, as that famous victory forever put a quietus to Indian hos- tilities in Northern Utah and Southern Idaho. The following official report of the battle from Colonel Connor is a valuable page of Utah history : "Headquarters District of Utah, Camp Douglas U. T,, Feb. 6th, 1863. " Colonel: "I have the honor to report that from information received from various sources of the encampment of a large body of Indians on Bear River, in Wash* jS4 history of salt LAKE CIT\. ington Territory, cne hundred and forty miles north of this point, who had murdered several miners, during the winter, passing to and from the settlements in this valley to the Beaver Head mines, east of the Rocky Mountains, and being satisfied that they were part of the same band who had been murdering emigrants on the overland mail route for the past fifteen years and the principal actors and leaders in the horrid massacres of the past summer, I determined although the season was unfavorable to an expedition, in consequence of the cold weather and deep snow, to chastise them if possible. Feeling that secrecy was the surest way to success, I determined to deceive the Indians by sending a small force in ad- vance, judging, and rightly, that they would not fear a small number. "The chiefs, Pocatello and Sanpitch, with their bands of murderers, are still at large. I hope to be able to kill or capture them before spring. "If I succeed, the overland route west of the Rocky Mountains will be rid of the Bedouins who have harassed and murdered emigrants on that route for a series of years. "In consequence of the number of men left on the route with frozen feet and those with the train and howitzers and guarding the cavalry horses, I did not have to exceed two hundred men engaged. "On the 2 2d ultimo, I ordered Co. K. Third California Volunteers, Capt. Hoyt; two howitzers under command of Lieut. Honeyman and twelve men of the Second California Cavalry with a train of fifteen wagons, conveying twelve days' supplies, to proceed in that direction. On the 24th ultmio, I proceeded with detachments from companies A, H, K, and M. Second California Cavalry, numbering two hundred and twenty men, accompanied by Major McGarry, Second California Cavalry; Surgeon Reid, Third California Volunteers; Cap- tains McLean and Price, and Lieutenants Chase, Clark, Quinn and Conrad, Second California Cavalry. Major Gallager, Third California Volunteers and Capt. Berry, Second California Cavalry, who were present at this post attending general court martial as volunteers. "I marched the first night to Brigham City about sixty-eight miles distant ; and the second night's march from Camp Douglas, I overtook the infantry and artillery at the town of Mendon and ordered them to march again that night. I resumed march with the cavalry and overtook the infantry at Franklin, W. T., about twelve miles from the Indian encampment. I ordered Capt. Hoyt, with the infantry, howitzers and train not to move until after 3 o'clock a. m., I moved the cavalry in about an hour afterward, passing the infantry, artillery and wagons about four miles from the Indian encampment. As daylight was approaching I was apprehensive that the Indians would discover the strength of my force and make their escape. I therefore made a rapid march with the cavalry and reached the bank of the ravine shortly after daylight, in full view of the Indian encamp- ment, and about one mile distant, I immediately order Major McGarry to ad- vance with the cavalry and surround, before attacking them, while I remained a few minutes in the rear to give orders to the infantry and artillery. On my arrival on the field I found that Major McGarry had dismounted the cavalry and was engaged with the Indians, who had sallied out of their hiding places on foot and horseback and, with fiendish malignity, waved the scalps of white women. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 285 and challenged the troops to battle, at the same time attacking them. Finding it impossible to surround them, in consequence of the nature of the ground, he accepted their challenge. ''The position of the Indians was one of strong natural defence, and almost inaccessible to the troops, being in a deep dry ravine from six to twelve feet deep, and from thirty to forty feet wide, with very abrupt banks and running across level table land, along which they had constructed steps from which they could deliver their fire without being themselves exposed. Under the embank- ment they had constructed artificial courses of willows, thickly wove together, from behind which they could fire without being observed. "After being engaged about twenty minutes, I found it was impossible to dislodge them without great loss of life. I accordingly ordered Major McGarry, with twenty men, to turn their left flank which was in the ravine where it eh- tered the mountain. Shortly afterward Cai)t. Hoyt reached the ford, three- fourths of amiledistant, but found it impossible to cross footmen, some of whom tried it, however, rushing into the river but finding it deep and rapid, retired. I immediately ordered a detachment of cavalry with led horses, to cross the in- fantry, which was done accordingly and upon their arrival on the field I ordered them to the support of Major McGarry's flanking party who shortly afterward succeeded in turning the enemy's flank. ''Up to this time, in consequence of being exposed on a level and open plain, while the Indians were under cover they had the advantage of us, fighting with the ferocity of demons. My men fell thick and fast around me, but after flanking them we had the advantage and made good use of it. I ordered a flank- ing party to advance down the ravine on either side, which gave us the advantage of an enfilading fire and caused some of the Indians to give way and run towards the mouth of the ravine. At this point I had a company stationed who shot them as they run out. I also ordered a detachment of cavalry across the ravine to cut off the retreat of any fugitives who might escape the company (Capt. Price) at the mouth of the ravine. But few, however, tried to escape, but con- tinued fighting with unyielding obstinacy, frequently engaging hand to hand with the troops until killed in their hiding-places. The most of those who did escape from the ravine were afterward shot in attempting to swim the river or killed while desperately fighting under cover of the dense willow thicket which lined the river banks. To give you an idea of the desperate character of the fight, you are respectfully referred to the list of killed and wounded transmitted herewith. The fight commenced at about six o'clock in the morning and con- tinued until ten. At the commencement of the battle the hands of some of the men were so benumbed with cold that it was with difficulty that they could load their pieces. Their suffering during the march was awful beyond description, but they steadily continued without regard to hunger, cold or thirst, not a mur- mur escaping them to indicate their sensibilities to pain or fatigue. Their un- complaining endurance during their four nights' march from Camp Douglas to the battle field is worthy the highest praise. The weather was intensely cold and not less than seventy-five had their feet frozen and some of them, I fear, will be crippled for life. 286 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CI7Y. "I should mention here that in my march from this post no assistance was rendered by the Mormons, who seemed indisposed to divulge any information regarding the Indians and charged enormous prices for every article furnished my command. I have also to report to the General commanding, that previous to my departure, Chief Justice Kinney, of Salt Lake City, made a requisition for the purpose of arresting the Indian Chiefs, Bear Hunter, Sanpitch and Sagwitch. I informed the Marshal that my arrangements for an expedition against the In- dians were made and that it was not only my intention to take any prisoners, but that he could accompany me. Marshal Gibbs accordingly accompanied me and rendered efficient aid in caring for the wounded. " I have great pleasure in awarding to Major McGarry, Major Gallagher and Surgeon A. K. Reid the highest praise for their skill, gallantry and bravery throughout the engagement. And to the company officers the highest praise is due, without invidious distinction for their courage and determination evinced throughout the engagement; their obedience to orders, attention, kindness and care for the wounded are no less worthy of notice. Of the good conduct and bravery of both officers and men, California has reason to be proud. '' We found 224 bodies in the field, among which were those of the chiefs Bear Hunter, Sagwitch and Lehi. How many more were killed than stated I am unable to say; as the condition of the wounded rendered their immediate removal a necessity, I was unable to examine the field. I captured 175 horses, some arms, destroyed over seventy lodges, and a large quanity of wheat and other provisions which had been furnished them by the Mormons. I left a supply of provisions for the sustenance of 160 captive squaws and children who were released by me on the field. "The enemy had about three hundred warriors, mostly all armed with rifles and having plenty of ammunition, which rumor says they received from the in- habitants of this Territory in exchange for property of massacred emigrants. The position of the Indians was one of great natural strength and had I not suc- ceeded in flanking them the mortality of my command would have been terrible. In consequence of the deep snow the howitzers did not reach the field in time to be used in the action. " I have the honor of remaining, very respectfully, Your obedient servant, (Signed) P. Ed. Connor, Colo7icl jrd Cal. Vol., Co/rid. District. *' To Lt. Col. R. C. Drum, Asst. Aiijt. Gen. U. S. A., Department of the Pacific:' " Headquarters of the Army, Washington, D. C, March 29th, 1863. '^ Brig.- General Geo. Wright, Cotnd'g Dep't of the Pacific, San Francisco, Cal. "General: "I have this day received your letter of February 2oih, inclosing Col. P. Ed. Connor's report of his severe battle and splendid victory on Bear River, Wash- HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 287 ington Territory. After a forced march of one hundred and forty miles in mid- winter and through deep snows, in which seventy-six of his men were disabled by frozen feet; he and his gallant band of only two hundred, attacked three hun- dred warriors in their stronghold and after a hard fought battle of four hours destroyed the entire band, leaving 224 dead upon -the field. Our loss in the battle was fourteen killed and forty-nine wounded. Colonel Connor and the brave Californians deserve the highest praise for their gallant and heroic conduct. Very respectfully. Your obedient servant, (Signed) H. W. Halleck, General- in - chief. The following order, bearing the same date as that of Col. Connor's letter to the Department of the Pacific, was read to the volunteers, while on dress parade, by Adjutant Ustick: " Headquarters District of Utah, Camp Douglas, U. T., Feb. 6, 1863. "The Colonel commanding has the pleasure of congratulating the troops of this Post upon the brilliant victory achieved at the battle of Bear River, Wash- ington Territory. "After a rapid march of four nights in intensely cold weather, through deep snow and drifts, which you endured without murmur or complaint, even when some of your number were frozen with cold, and faint with hunger and fatigue, you met an enemy who have heretofore, on two occasions, defied and defeated regular troops, and who have for the last fifteen years been the terror of the emi- grants, men, women and children and citizens of those valleys, murdering and robbing them without fear of punishment. "At daylight on the 29th of January, 1863, you encountered the enemy, greatly your superior in numbers, and had a desperate battle. Continuing with unflinching courage for over four hours, you completely cut him to pieces, captured his property and arms, destroyed his stronghold and burnt his lodges. "The long list of killed and wounded is the most fitting eulogy on your cour- age and bravery. The Colonel commanding returns you his thanks. The gallant officers and men who were engaged in this battle, without invidious distinction, merit the highest praise. Your uncomplaining endurance and unexampled con- duct on the field, as well as your thoughtful care and kindness for the wounded, is worthy of emulation. While we rejoice at the brilliant victory you have achieved over your savage foe, it is meet that we do honor to the memory of our brave comrades, the heroic men who fell fighting to maintain the supremacy of our arms. "While the people of California will regret their loss, they will do honor to every officer and soldier who has by his heroism added new laurels to the fair escutcheon of the State. "By order of Colonel Connor. (Signed) WM. D. USTICK, " First Lieutenant and Adjutant, Third Infantry, C. V., Acting Assistunt Adjutant General^ The burial of the dead who fell in the battle of Bear River was a solemn 288 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. occasion to the city as well as to the camp. The day was cold and raw, yet a large number of our citizens were present at the burial. Up to this time scarcely any of the citizens had set foot within the encampment, but now there was quite a score of carriages from the city, many equestrians and a large concourse of people on foot, and had it been generally known, thousands from the city would have paid reverent tribute to the slain, for it was duly appreciated that they had fallen in the service of Utah. "Up to I p. m. the sixteen coffins lay side by side in the Quartermaster's store-room, where the dead were visited by their surviving comrades. At that hour the entire command formed in procession and escorted the bodies to the military graveyard, where Parson Anderson officiated in the burial service. Three volleys were fired over the bodies as they were laid in their graves, and the last solemn rites were ended. The band, that before led the measured, solemn step of the procession to the funeral dirge and Dead March, now moved away gaily, re- viving the thoughtful, and recalling to the duties and obligations of life those who had not yet finished their page of history. "The remains of Lieutenant Chase were consigned to their resting-place by the brethren of the Masonic fraternity attached to the command, together with a few from the city. The deceased was a Royal Arch Mason, but the small number of that grade in attendance rendered the adoption of the Master Mason's burial service necessary. At the solicitation of the brethren. Sir Knight Frank Fuller, Secretary of the Territory, officiated as W. M., and Colonel Evans, of the Second Cavalry, as Marshal, Chief Justice Kinney and United States Marshal Gibbs walked in the procession, which consisted altogether of some twenty members. The services at the grave were of a highly impressive character, and were witnessed by nearly the whole of the command, together with numerous citizens. At the close of the solemnities, the fraternity changed their position while a dirge was performed by the band, and gave place to a detail of forty-eight soldiers, who fired three volleys over the grave. The procession then returned to camp in re- versed order." It may be noted that Lieutenant Darwin Chase in his youth was one of the most promising of the Mormon Elders; his name and labors in the ministry was -ofcen associated with Apostle Erastus Snow. It was supposed that the Indians mistook Lieutenant Chase for Colonel Connor and made him a particular mark. The Lieutenant's horse had more attractive trappings, which drew the attention ■of the Indians towards him and away from the real commander, who is said to have " sat almost motionless on his charger, within easy distance of the Indians' rifles, watching the progress of the fight and giving his orders." For the integrity of history, it must be noted that Colonel Connor in his report to the War Department did an injustice to the people of Cache Valley when he said : j " I should mention here that in my march from this post no assistance was rendered by tlie Mormons, who seemed indisposed to divulge any information| regarding the Indians, and charged enormous prices for every article furnished my command.'^ HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 28g Accompany the above with an historical note in the Logan Branch records, from which the author himself copied it : " Jan. 28th, 1863, Colonel Connor passed through Logan with a company of 450 soldiers, and on the 29th he came upon and attacked a band of Indians in a deep ravine through which a small creek runs west of Bear River and twenty miles north of Franklin. The Indians resisted the soldiers and a severe battle ensued which lasted four hours, in which eighteen soldiers were killed and [many] wounded. About 200 Indians were killed and a great many wounded. Colonel Connor captured about 150 Indian ponies, and returned through Logan on Jan. 31. The weather was so intensely cold that scores of his men had their feet and hands frozen. We, the people of Cache Valley, looked upon the movement of Colonel Con- nor as an intervention of the Almighty, as the Indians had been a source of great annoyance to us for a long time, causing us to stand guard over our stock and other property the most of the time since our first settlement." This historical minute was made early in 1863, just after the battle of Bear River. Notice the striking proof of this in the naming of Connor's rank — " Colonel Connor." He was not yet created Brigadier-General, for fighting that battle, when Secretary Farrell made that minute. Records are invaluable ! This one justifies Cache Valley. A misrepresentation of the Mormon people was made to the War Department, though we are quite as confident that " Colonel Connor" was too honorable to so design his report. The above will show General Con- nor's views of the Mormon people at the date of the writing of his official letter, and of the sympathy of the people of Cache Valley with the Indians. The records of Cache speak of the absolute sympathy of the entire people of Cache with the California Volunteers, and their gratitude to them for redeeming them from Indian depredations. Col. Martineau, in his most interesting sketch of the military history of Cache Valley, gives the following account of the battle : "In January, 1863, Col. P. E. Connor, with about 400 United States troops, fought the battle of Bear River, about twelve miles north of Franklin. Thi^ action, though more properly belonging to the annals of the United States army^ we think should be noticed in this connection, as it had an immense influence in settling Indian affairs in Northern Utah, and especially in Cache County. Indian outrages against settlers and travelers had grown more and more frequent and audacious, until they became unbearable, and Colonel Connor determined to put an end to them. Making forced marches from Camp Douglas to Franklin during an intensely cold winter and through deep snow, his command left Franklin some hours before daylight, and after a march of twelve miles, found the Indians, numbering about 400 warriors, very strongly posted in the deep ravine through which Battle Creek enters Bear River. To attack this natural fortress the troops had to cross an open plain about half a mile in width, in plain view of the In- dians, who were hidden behind the steep banks of the stream. The troops reached Bear River early in the morning of an intensely cold day. The river was full of running ice, but was gallantly forded, many of the mengetting wet> and afterwards having their feet and legs frozen. 2go HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. "As the troops advanced they met a deadly fire from the Indian rifles; but without wavering pressed steadily on, and after a bloody contest of some hours> in which the Indians fought with desperation, the survivors, about loo in number, fled. Pocatello and Saguich, two noted chiefs, escaped, but Bear Hunter was killed while making bullets at a camp fire. When struck he fell forward into the fire and perished miserably. For years he had been as a thorn to the settlers, and his death caused regret in none. A simultaneous attack in front and on both flanks finally routed the Indians, whose dead, as counted by an eye-witness from Franklin, amounted to 368, besides many wounded, who afterwards died. About ninety of the slain were women and children. The troops found their camp well supplied for the winter. They burnt the camp and captured a large number of horses. The troops suffered severely in killed and wounded, besides a great number who had their feet and legs frozen by fording Bear River. The morning after the battle and an intensely cold night, a soldier found a dead squaw lying in the snow, with a little infant still alive, which was trying to draw nourishment from her icy breast. The soldiers, in mercy to the babe, killed it. On their return the troops remained all night in Logan, the citizens furnishing them supper and breakfast, some parties, the writer among the number, entertaining ten or fifteen each. The settlers furnished teams and sleighs to assist them in carrying the dead, wounded and frozen to Camp Douglas. In crossing the mountains be- tween Wellsville and Brigham City the troops experienced great hardships. They toiled and floundered all day through the deep snow, the keen, whirling blasts filling the trail as fast aa made, until, worn out, the troops returned to Wellsville. Next day Bishop W. H. Maughan gathered all the men and teams in the place and assisted the troops through the pass to Salt Lake Valley. "The victory was of immense value to the settlers of Cache County and all the surrounding country. It broke the spirit and power of the Indians and enabled the settlers to occupy new and choice localities hitherto unsafe. Peter Maughan, the presiding bishop of the County, pronounced it an interposition of Providence in behalf of the settlers; the soldiers having done what otherwise the colonists would have had to accomplish with pecuniary loss and sacrifice of lives illy spared in the weak state of the settlements. This was the universal sen- timent of the County. It made the flocks and herds and lives of the people comparatively safe ; for though the survivors were enraged against the people of the County, whom they regarded as in a manner aiding and abetting the troops, they felt themselves too weak to forcibly seek revenge." HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 2gr CHAPTER XXXIII. GREAT MASS MEETING OF THE CITIZENS TO PROTEST AGAINST THE CONDUCT OF GOVERNOR HARDING AND JUDGES WAITE AND DRAKE. THE READ- ING OF HIS MESSAGE TO THE LEGISLATURE. DEEP INDIGNATION OF THE PEOPLE. STIRRING DENUNCIATIONS BY THE LEADERS OF THE PEOPLE. RESOLUTIONS. PETITION TO ABRAHAM LINCOLN FOR THE REMOVAL OF THE GOVERNOR AND JUDGES. A COMMITTEE APPOINTED TO WAIT UPON THEM AND ASK THEIR RESIGNATION IN THE NAME OF THE PEOPLE. THE COMMITTEE'S REPORT. In the Spring of 1863 there occurred a demonstration of the people of Great Salt Lake City over the conduct of Governor Harding and Judges Waite and Drake, An immense mass meeting was held in the city on the 3rd of March As a prelude to the proceedings Captain Thomas' brass band played " Hail Col- umbia," after which the meeting organized with the Hon. Daniel Spencer, chair- man. Next came a prayer from the chaplain, Joseph Young, for divine guidance in their important business, followed by the band playing the " Star Spangled Banner," after which the Hon. John Taylor arose and briefly stated the object of the meeting. They had met together, he said, for the purpose of investi- gating certain acts of several of the United States ofificials now in the Territory. It was a mass meeting of the citizens, and he, for one, desired to hear a proper statement of the course of the persons alluded to, so far as that affected the citizens of the Territory, laid before the people, and that such action might be I adopted as they thought proper, and as the circumstances demanded. The time had come for certain documents to be placed before the people and before' the country, and on which they could not avoid taking action. Though the Legislature was under no obligation at the opening of the session to publish the Governor's message — as such action on their part was purely compli- mentary — they did at first contemplate doing so, but on reflection, considered that the character of that message was such that they could not with respect to themselves and to the community do so, and many were of opinion that its pub- lication at that time might have subjected his Excellency to the insult which his intemperate language had provoked. Mr. Taylor then gave place to the Hon. Albert Carrington, who read the message from the printed Journals of the Leg- islature. " Gentlemen of the Council and House of Representatives of the Territory of Utah : "Since the adjournment of the eleventh annual session of this body, the office of Governor of this Territory has been conferred upon me according to law. On the 7th day of July last I arrived in this city and assumed the duties of my office. I had heard much of the industry and enterprise of the people of 2g2 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. Utah, but I must admit that my most sanguine expectations were more than real- ized upon my arrival here. A few years since this Territory was only known as a desert. I found it the home of a large and thriving population, who have ac- complished wonders in the short period that it has been settled ; and under the steady progress of labor, protected in its indefensible rights, the whole area em- braced in the Organic Act establishing this Territory must present a spectacle to the people of the United States as satisfactory to them as it is creditable to your- selves. "The present season has been one of unusual abundance, not only here, but throughout the entire Union; and, notwithstanding civil war has made desolate many of the fairest districts which have ever been the abode of a civilized people; yet He who has promised 'seed time and harvest,' and ' the rain to fall upon the unjust as well as the just,' has still remembered the whole American people with superabundant mercies. If the harmony of the world has been marred, it has not been through the withholding of His kindness from the nation. "It is not necessary for me to dwell upon the causes which have superin- duced the unhappy troubles now existing in the States of the American Union. That African slavery, and the unnatural antagonisms which grow out of tliat re- lation, lie at the foundation, I have no doubt. I am aware that other reasons have been assigned, but such reasons are confined to but very few in comparison to the many who will agree with me in my proposition. That it is the duty of every lover of human liberty and friend of republican institutions on this conti nent to stand by the Government in its present trials is, to my mind, a proposition too clear for argument. Notwithstanding organized treason is still making gigantic efforts to carry out its purpose of the destruction of the Union, yet I am happy in the belief that the rebellion has culminated; that it can never be as strong again as it has been for a few months past. The extremest measures have been resorted to in the rebel States to put the last man in the field for the pur- pose of sustaining the rebel flag ; nevertheless, that flag has been compelled to retreat step by step before the victorious legions of the Union, and still there are millions of men to be called into the field, if it shall hereafter be found that those millions are needed. "CONSERVATISM OF THE ADMINISTRATION. "The most conservative advocate of the Union, no matter what his opinions heretofore may have been on the question of slavery, cannot complain of the policy of the Administration of President Lincoln in dealing with this question. While it was known to all men ihat 4,000,000 of chattel slaves were supplying their rebel masters with means to prosecute their work of ruin to the Govern- ment, and for the overthrow of the Constitution — the joint labors of our common ancestors; yet that same Government, through its civil ministers and military commanders, it must be confessed, hesitated long to strike the rebel interests where its blows could be made to tell with most terrible effect. "OBJECTS OF THE WAR. "The present war has not been prosecuted by the Federal Government be- HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 293 cause of any hostility towards the institutions of the Southern States, but to pre- serve the union of the great family of States. The question of emancipation, or no Union, has been thrust upon the President. In meeting that question he has shown a patriotic wisdom worthy the head of a great nation. If the Union could have been preserved and slavery still suffered to remain intact, that institu- tion would never have been disturbed by the American people, but would have been suffered to expand its malign influences in the impoverishment of the soil where it exists, until finally it must have perished by the inexorable law of retri- bution, which, like an avenging Nemesis, is ever following in the track of wrong. But no matter when or how the present difficulties may be settled, slavery is doomed — it must perish, from the very nature of things. "proclamation of emancipation. "On the first day of January, proximo, the time given by the President to the slave masters of the rebel States will have expired. If madness shall still rule m their councils and no returning sense of duty or patriotism shall have been awakened in their hearts, and they shall still refuse to return to that allegiance which is their plainest duty, then the President, exercising that power which he holds as commander-in-chief, and which, as a war power, no man, whose opinions are entitled to the least respect, has ever denied, will by proclamation declare the freedom of every slave in the States or districts of States, where such rebellion shall then exist. This new order of things may for a time jostle the commercial interests of not only this country, but of the whole civilized world; but order and harmony will soon be restored, and our system of Government will still be preserved, with no disturbing element remaining — a beacon-light to the nations, and a refuge to countless millions who will come after us. "ADMISSION OF THE STATE OF DESERET INTO THE UNION. "After the adjournment of the last session of this body, in accordance with a joint resolution emanating therefrom, the people of this Territory proceeded to elect delegates to form a Constitution for the State of Deseret ; and after such Constitution was formed and adopted, the people proceeded to elect a Governor, Lieutenant-Governor, and other officers, amongst which was a representative to Congress; and also two United States Senators were elected. One of the gen- tlemen elected as a United States Senator proceeded to Washington City and caused to be laid before Congress the object of his mission. He was treated with that courtesy to which a gentleman on so grave a mission should ever be entitled. He was permitted to occupy a seat within the bar of the Senate chamber, and was otherwise received with the kindest consideration. In consequence of the lateness of the session, it could not be expected that more would have been done than was m the premises. The Constitution and other documents were referred to the appropriate committee, where the matter now rests. That the question will be taken up at the approaching session of Congress and acted on in that spirit of fairness that becomes a great and generous nation, I have no doubt. " I am sorry to say that since my sojourn amongst you I have heard no sen- timents, either publicly or privately expressed, that would lead me to believe that 2g^ HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. much sympathy is felt by any considerable number of your people in favor of the Government of the United States, now struggling for its very existence ' in the valley and shadow ' through which it has been called to pass. If I am mistaken in this opinion no one will rejoice more than myself in acknowledging my error. 1 would, in the name of my bleeding country, that you, as the representatives of public sentiment here, would speedily pass such a resolution as will extort from me, if necessary, a public acknowledgment of my error, if error I have committed. "I have said this in no unkind spirit; I would much rather learn that the fault has been on my part and not on yours. " I regret also to say, I have found in conversing with many gentlemen of social and political influence, that because the question of the admission of this Territory into the Union was temporarily postponed, distrust is entertained in re- gard to the friendly disposition of the Federal Government, and expressions have been used amounting to inuendoes at least, as to what the result might be in case the admission should be rejected or postponed. Every such manifestation of spirit on the part of the objectors is, in my opinion, not only unbecoming, but is based on an entire misconception of the rights of the applicant, and the duties of the representatives of the States composing the Union. "The Constitution of the United States provides, in Art. 4, and Sec. 3, ' that new States may be admitted by Congress in this Union,' etc. The question properly arises, when and how are they to be admitted? Not, surely, upon the demand of the people of the Territory seeking to be admitted, but upon the con- sent of Congress. When that consent becomes a right to be demanded, depends on circumstances. It is doubtless the interest and policy of the Federal Govern- ment to admit the Territories belonging to it to the status and condition of States whenever there is a sufficient population to warrant it, and they apply to Con- gress with a Constitution republican in spirit and form. " But still the Congress has not only the right but it is one of their gravest duties, to see that this great boon is not conferred upon a people unprepared to enter into the great political family on a basis that is unjust to other members of the Union. Amongst the first inquiries is that in relation to the population of the Territory knocking for admission. Is it such as to entitle a State to a mem- ber in the House of Representatives? If such is the case, and the Constitution which has been adopted as the organic law is such as the Constitution of the United States contemplates; if the same has been adopted in good faith, and the people are loyal to the Constitution and the laws, and desire the welfare of the Federal Government, then it becomes not only the duty of the Congress to ad- mit such applicant, but the latter has a right morally and politically to demand such admission. But on the other hand, if it is not clearly shown that there is a sufficient population, that the Constitution is republican in form and spirit, that the same has been adopted in good faith, and that the people are loyal to the Federal Government and to the laws, then the right to make such demand does not exist, nor should the application be entertained after these facts appear. ''The admission of a new State into the Union is, or ought to be, attended with gravest consideration. For instance, suppose the population of the Terri- HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. zpj tory is known to fall far short of the number that entitles the present members of the Union to a representation in Congress, should it be thought hard or strange that objections should be made? Is it thought a hardship that the people of the State of New York, comprising 4,000,000, are not willing that their voices should be silenced in the Senate of the United States by 60,000 or 80,000 in one of the Territories? I am aware that precedents may be cited in some few instances, where these reasons have been overlooked and disregarded, but that fact does not atfect the question under consideration. The reasons which controlled Congress at the time referred to were never good and sound ones, but we found in the wishes and ambition of political parties, anxious to control the vote in the electoral col- lege, for chief magistrate. If the precedent was a bad one, the sooner it is changed the better for all parties concerned. "In connection with this subject, I respectfully recommend the propriety of passing an act whereby a correct census may be taken of the population of the Territory. If it shall be found that the population is sufficient to entitle it to one representative in Congress, on the present basis, I shall be most happy in aiding you to the extent of my humble abilities, in forwarding any movements having for their end, the admission of the Territory into the Union as a State. " POLYGAMY. " It would be disingenuous if I were not to advert to a question, though seem- ingly it has nothing to do with the premises, is yet one of vast importance to you as a people, and which cannot be ignored — I mean that institution which is not only commended but encouraged by you, and which, to say the least of it, is an anomaly throughout Christendom — I mean polygamy, or, if you please, plural wives. In approaching this delicate subject, I desire to do so in no offensive manner or unkind spirit; yet the institution, founded upon no written statute of your Territory, but upon custom alone exists. It is a patent fact, and your own public teachers, by speech and pamphlet, on many occasions, have challenged its investigation at the bar of Christendom. I will not on this occasion be drawn into a discussion either of its morality or its Bible authority; I will neither affirm or deny any one of the main proceedings on which it rests. That there is seem- ing authority for its practice in the Old Testament Scripture, cannot be denied. " But still there were many things authorized in the period of the world when they were written which could not be tolerated now without overturning the whole system of our civilization, based, as it is, on the new and better revelation of the common Savior of us all. While it must be confessed that the practice of polygamy prevailed to a limited extent, yet it should be remembered that it was in that age of the world when the twilight of a semi-barbarism had not yielded to the effulgence of the coming day, and when the glory and fame of the kings of Israel consisted more in the beauty and multitude of their concubmes than in the wisdom of their counselors. "An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth," was once the /ex talionis of the great Jewish law-giver. So capital punishment was awarded for Sabbath breaking ; and there were manv other statutes and cus- toms which at this age of the world, if adopted, would carry us backward into the centuries of barbarism. 2g6 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. " I lay it down as a sound proposition that no community can happily exist with an institution as important as that of marriage wanting in all those qualities that make it homogeneal with institutions and laws of neighboring civilized communi- ties having the same object. Anomalies in the moral world cannot long exist in a state of mere abeyance; they must form the very nature of things, become ag- gressive, or they will soon disappear from the force of conflicting ideas. This proposition is supported by the history of our race, and is so plain that it may be set down as an axiom. If we grant this to be true, we may sum up the conclu- sion of the argument as follo-ws: either the laws and opinions of the community by which you are surrounded must become subordinate to your customs and opinions, or, on the other hand, you must yield to theirs. The conflict is irre- pressible, i '» "But no matter whether this anomaly shall disappear or remain amongst you, it is your duty at least, to'guard it against flagrant abuse. That plurality of wives is tolerated and believed to be right, may not appear so strange. But that a mother and her daughter are allowed to fulfill the duties of wives to the same hus- band, or that a man could be found in all Christendom who could be induced to take upon himself such a relationship, is perhaps no less a marvel in morals than in matters of taste. The bare fact that such practices are tolerated amongst you is sufflcient evidence that the human passions, whether excited by religious fa- naticism or otherwise, must be restrained and subject to laws, to which all must yield obedience. No community can long exist without absolute social anarchy unless so important an institution as that of marriage laws is regulated by law. It is the basis of our civilization, and in it the whole question of the descent and distribution of real and personal estate is involved. " Much to my astonishment, I have not been able to find any laws upon the statutes of this Territory regulating marriage. I earnestly recommend to your early consideration the passage of some law that will meet the exigencies of the people. "act of congress against polygamy. "I respectfully call your attention to an Act of Congress passed the first day of July, 1862, entitled "An Act to punish and prevent the practice of polygamy in the Territories of the United States, and in other places, and disapproving and annulling certain Acts of the Legislative Assembly of the Territory ot Utah." (Chap. CXXVII. of the Statutes at Large of the last Session of Congress, jiage 501.) I am aware that there is a prevailing opinion here that said Act is uncon- stitutional, and therefore it is recommended by those in high authority that no regard whatever should be paid to the same — and still more to be regretted, if I am rightly informed, in some instances it has been recommended that it be openly disregarded and defied, meanly to defy the same. " I take this occasion to warn the people of this Territory against such dan- gerous and disloyal counsel. Whether such Act is unconstitutional or not, is not necessary for me either to affirm or deny. The individual citizen, under no cir- cumstances whatever, has the right to defy any law or statute of the United States with impunity. In doing so, he takes upon himself the lisk of the penal- HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 297 ties of that statute, be they what they may, in case his judgment should be in error. The Constitution has amply provided how and where all such questions of doubt are to be submitted and settled, viz : in the courts constituted for that pur- pose. To forcibly resist the execution of that Act would, to say the least, be a high misdemeanor, and if a whole community should become involved in such resistance, would call downu pon it the consequences of insurrection and rebellion. I hope and trust that no such rash counsels will prevail. If, unhappily, I am mistaken in this, I choose to shut my eyes to the consequences. "LIBERTY OF CONSCIENCE. "Amongst the most cherished and sacred rights secured to the citizens of the United States, is the right ' to worship God according to the dictates of con- science.' It would have been strange indeed, if the founders of our Government had not thrown around the citizen this irrevocable guaranty, when it is remem- bered that so many of the framers of the Constitution must have been familiar with the acts of the British Parliament against ' non-conformists,' and had wit- nessed the injustice and hardship resulting therefrom. They had seen men of the most exalted abilities and virtues excluded from places of public trust for no other reason than that they would not subscribe to all of the dogmas of a church established by law. They had witnessed, at the same time, other men of the most questionable integrity and morality clothed in the robes of prelate and bishop, exacting without stint or mercy, enormous revenues from an unwilling people, and spending the same in the pursuit of an unholy ambition, and in a luxury that better befitted some Eastern satrap than the followers of ' the meek and lowly Jesus,' in whom they professed to believe. In the light of their past experience, and inspired' by the great primal truths of the Declaration, the 'in- defeasible rights of man to the enjoyment of life, liberty and the pursuit of hap- piness' still sounding in their ears, they founded a government on the basis of religious tolera;ion, before unknown to mankind. This could not well have been otherwise, from the very nature of things. It was the inevitable corollary that proceeded from the premises, and thus was it that religion was made a matter be- tween man and his Maker, and not between man and the Government. "But here arises a most important question, a question perhaps that has never yet been asked or fully answered in this country — how far does the right of con- science extend? Is there any limit to this right? and, if so, where shall the line of demarcation be drawn, designating that which is not forbidden from that which is? This is indeed a most important inquiry, and from the tendency of the times, must sooner or later be ansAvered. I cannot and will not on this occasion pretend to answer this question, but will venture the suggestion that when it is answered the same rules will be adopted as if the freedom of speech and of the press were in- volved in the argument. "Let us refer to this provision of the Constitution; it is found in the first article of the amendments: ' Congress shall make no laws respecting the establish- ment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, or abridging the free- dom of speech or of the press ' Can we logically infer from the above provision that these rights are not co-relanve, or that they do not rest on the same princi- 10 2gS HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. pies? that one of these rights is of more importance to the citizen than the other, and that his duty in their ' free exercise' is not the same? I think not. "Let us briefly examine this proposition. Because 'the freedom of speech and of the press' is guaranteed, can the citizen thereby be allowed to speak slanderously and falsely of bis neighbor? Can he write and print a libel with impunity? He certainly cannot^ and his folly would almost amount to idiocy if he should appeal to the Constitution to shield him from the consequences of his acts. But the question may be asked — why not? The answer is at hand. Simply because he is not allowed to abuse these rights. If, upon a prosecution for slan- der or libel, the defendant should file his plea setting up that provision of the Constitution as a matter of defense, the plea would not only be bad on demurrer, buc the pleader would be looked upon as a very bad lawyer. Will any one in- form me why the same parity of reasoning should not apply in one case as the other ? "That if an act, in violation of law and repugnant to the civilization in the midst of which that act has been committed, should be followed by a prosecution, could be justified under the guaranty of the Constitution securing the 'free ex- ercise of religion' more than in the case above cited? I shall pause for an answer. There can be no limits beyond which the mind cannot dwell, and our thoughts soar in their aspirations after truth. We may think what we will, believe what we will, and speak what we will, on all subjects of speculative the- ology. We may believe with equal impunity the Talmud of the Jew, the Bible of the Christian, the Book of Morrnon, the Koran, or the Veda of the Brahmin. We cannot elevate, other than by moral forces, the human soul from the low plane of ignorance and barbarism, whether it worships for its God, the Llama of the Tartars, or the Beetle of the Egyptians. But when religious opinions assume new manifestations and pass from mere sentiments into overt acts, no matter whether they be acts of faith or not, they must not outrage the opinions of the civilized world, but, on the other hand, must conform to those usages established by law, and w^hich are believed to underlie our civilization. " But, the question returns — Is there any limit to the 'free exercise of re- ligion?' If there is not, then in the midst of the nineteenth century, human victims may be sacrificed as an atonement for sin, and "widows may be burned alive on the funeral pile." Is there one here who believes that such shocking barbarisms could be practiced in the name of religion, and in the ' free exercise thereof in any State or Territory of the United States? If not, then there must be a limit to this right under consideration, and it only remains for the proper tribunal at the proper time to fix the boundaries, as each case shall arise involving that question. " POWERS VESTED IN THE GOVERNOR BY THE ORGANIC ACT. "The Act of Congress organizing the Territory of Utah, and providing a Government therein, defined with sufficient certainty the duties of each depart- ment in said Government. These several departments were made to consist of the Executive, the Legislative and the Judicial. Amongst the duties imposed upon the Governor, is that of nominating certain officers, by and with the advice and consent of the Council, The first question that arises under this head is, what k n HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 299 officers are to be nominated by the Governor? The seventh section of said Act is in the following words: *And be it further enacted, that all township, dis- trict and county officers, not herein otherwise provided for, shall be appointed, or elected, as the case may be, in such manner as shall be provided for by the Gov.- ernor and Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Utah.' The Governor shall nominate, and by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Council (not Assembly) appoint all officers not herein otherwise provided for, etc. Town- ship, district and county officers are to be appointed or elected, as the case may be, in such manner as the Governor and Legislative Assembly may direct. It is clear to my mind that the Organic Act contemplates two classes^of officers, viz: township, district and county, and another class not included in the former, which embraces all officers strictly Territorial, such as attorney-general for the Territory, marshal, auditor, treasurer, etc. ''I cannot arrive at any other conclusion in the examination of the Act, than that the officers not included in the first class ffiust be appointed by the Governor, by and with consent of the Legislative Council, and cannot be elected, as in the former instance, by joint ballot of the Legislative Assembly, have held such offices contrary to law and have been removed upon the prosecution of a writ of quo warranto. It follows further, that if such officers acted without authority of law their acts were void, and are not binding upon the citizens. This becomes a question of much importance when we consider the hardship and inconvenience that may hereafter grow out of the same. I respectfully submit for your consider- ation, whether it would not be safer either to pass some law legalizing the acts of such persons, while in the supposed discharge of their duties, or it may be that it would require an Act of Congress legalizing such assumed official acts. "Before dismissing this part of my subject, I feel it to be my duty to suggest to you whether a very grave question may not hereafter arise as to the authority of the Legislative Assembly to elect by joint ballot any of the officers denomin- ated as 'township, district or county officers.' I have been unofficially advised that the word ' election ' as used in the Organic Act, might be held to refer to the people, and not to the Legislative Assembly. If such a question should hereafter arise, and such a possible view should be taken in deciding this question, it would involve the most serious consequences. I will express no opinion on the subject. I only raise the question for your consideration. "REVISION AND CODIFICATION OF THE STATUTES. " I respectfully call your attention to the necessity of a thorough revision and codification of the statutes of this Territory. I am aware that something was attempted at your last session in that direction ; but it seems to me that the committee which had that duty under their charge stopped far short of what was required at their hands. It is the duty of the law makers to leave the statutes by which the people are to be governed so plain in their several requirements that the stranger cannot be misled. It is extremely difficult to ascertain what precise statutes are in force on many subjects in this Territory. Besides this, there are many provisions in the statutes manifestly unjust, and whilst they remain must be considered anomalies I will not consume time in any argumentation on this II joo HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. subject, believing that it will be only necessary to call your attention to the facts as they exist. "Amongst the most objectionable of these provisions, may be found the fol- lowing in the revised statutes of 1855, and which are still in force: "Chap. 5, relating to justices of the peace. Sees. 8, 15, 19. "Chap. 3, relating to the procedure in civil cases. Sec. 28. "Chap. 6, relating to attorneys-at-law. This whole chapter should be re- pealed. "Chap. 12, relating to estates of decedents. Sees. 14, 24, 25, 26. The great objection to these sections is, that no limit whatever is fixed to the value of the estate, thereby cutting off claims which ought to be paid, Avhen there is enough to do so, and still the family will be left in comfortable circumstances. "Chap. 18, in relation to divorces. There should be a specified time when such notice of the pendency of the application should be given to the defendant. Sec. 18, in the same chapter, gives the probate judge power too plenary. In ques- tions of so much importance, the party should have the benefit of a trial by jury. "Chap. 32 should be stricken from the statute. No such crime as treason against a Territory is known to the laws. "I call your attention especially to sections 112 and 113, under the title of 'Justifiable Killing, and the Prevention of Public Offences.' These provisions are too palpably unjust to stand a day on your statutes. It would be an easy matter for a man to be murdered, and yet under these provisions his murderer could escape under the plea that the circumstances were such as to excite his fears that certain acts either would be done or had been, for which he claimed the immunity of the statute. If your laws against the offenses therein named are not sufficiently penal, make them so; but to authorize by a public statute the kill- ing of a man on mere suspicion that he has committed or will commit certain acts, which are less than capital upon his conviction after a fair trial, seems to be most cruel and unjust. In China, it is said that a high Mandarin of the ' blue button ' may kill with impunity a person suspected of stealing rice, and cut open his stomach to find the evidence of his guilt. In no other instance have I been able to find any statute or custom analogous to the one under consideration. No com- munity can adopt the principles contained in that statute without soon becoming (dropping the figure) ' as a whitened sepulchre filled with dead men's bones. "VOTING BY BALLOT. "I respectfully call your attention to Chap. 47, Sec. 5, in relation to voting at elections by ballot. Said section is as follows: 'Each elector shall pro- vide himself with a vote containing the names of the persons he wishes elected, and the offices he would have them fill, and present it neatly folded to the judge of the election, who shall number it and deposit it in the ballot-box. The clerk shall then write down the name of the elector opposite the number of his vote.' Why the elector should be required to provide himself a vote and present it neatly folded, perhaps can be satisfactorily explained ; but I confess that the ob- ject of voting by ballot is completely defeated by the above provisions. Why HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 301 not vote viva voce at once. The great object to be obtained in voting at our popular elections is absolute freedom of the elector in depositing his vote. Hence it is that in most, if not all the States, the right of voting by secret liallot is secured to the elector by stringent laws. The reason is obvious. A thousand circumstances might so completely surround the elector'that he would be com- pelled oftentimes to vote against the convictions of his judgment, and yet could not, if interested and powerful parties were permitted to exercise their control over him in the discharge of one of his most sacred duties. "In connection with this subject, I take pleasure in adopting the language of my worthy predecessor, Governor Gumming, as being eminently fit and proper: 'Many of the laws now on the statute book were passed under a con- dition of things which will soon cease to exist. You cannot reasonably anticipate a continuance of the partial isolation which has characterized your early his- tory in this region. It must be borne in mind, that you are situated upon the great highway between the oceans, which is already traversed by expresses and telegraphs, and is soon to witness the establishment of a railroad trans- porting through your valleys the commodities of the world. It would be well that you make timely preparation for changes that are fast approaching you, and are ultimately inevitable. New relations between yourselves and the outer world must occur. I would therefore urge upon ^ou that you appoint a com- mittee to prepare a code of laws suitable for the present and future requirements of this community. The judges are constituted your legal advisers in these matters — to them I refer you.' If this was true in i860, how much more is it true to-day ? The constantly increasing travel over the great Overland Mail route, the thousands of emigrants passing yearly through your Territory, many of whom become permanent citizens, admonish all of us that your days of isolation from the outside world have forever passed. Even if it were desirable, you can- not longer remain i:olated and walled in by these natural ramparts around you. Every canyon susceptible of improvement will be converted into some thorough- fare where the never-ceasing tide of our population will be poured along. Every nook and valley, which for ages have been trodden by wild beasts or savage men, will become the home of some enterprising citizen whose right it will be to claim ihe protection of just and wholesome laws. "FINANCIAL. "I herewith annex the auditor's and treasurer's reports for the year 1862. They have been made out with so much clearness in their details that it is only necessary for me to refer them to you, accompanying the former with a few brief suggestions. By reference to appended statement "A" in the auditor's report, it will be seen that the aggregate amount of taxable property assessed within the said Territory for the year 1862 is ^4,779,518; and the same statement shows a tax due the Territorial treasury for the current year, estimated at one per cent., of ^47) 795- 18, from which will have to be taken, for cost of assessing, collecting and remittances by county courts, at least 12 per cent.; leaving a probable net revenue of $42,059.76. " The whole Territorial liability, including the direct tax assessed by the J02 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. United States, and assumed by the Territorial Legislature, January 17, 1862, amounts to the aggregate sum of ^40,199.31. The assets out of which this sun is to be paid, by reference to the same report, amounts to the sum of $50,612. 10, leaving a balance still in the treasury on the ist day of November, 1862, of $10,412.99. The above result cannot fail in being satisfactory to you. The report of the treasurer is so clear and concise that it is not necessary for me to add one word more than what is contained in the report itself. "Before dismissing the subject I call your attention especially to the auditor's report for the year 1861, in regard to the aggregate value of taxable property within this Territory for that year. By examining the same you will find that such aggregate amount was $5,032,184 — thereby showing the strange fact that since that assessment was made there has been a falling off in the value of taxable property within this Territory in a single year of $252,666, and what is still more remarkable, this apparent loss in Great Salt Lake County alone has been $140,280, whilst, on the other hand, in the County of Davis, there has been an apparent gain of $410,514. I am advised that the cutting off a portion of this Territory, and adding the same to that of Nevada, cannot account for this phe- nomenon. "If there is no mistake in these computations it presents a most remarkable fact indeed. I shall not attempt to account for it here, but call your attention to the same, merely adding that in the absence of great local calamities, which affect in their nature whole communities, I question whether such an instance can be found in the history of any people. But it remains with you to account for this phenomenon. This city is the heart and centre of the county where so remark- able a deficiency has developed itself, and yet there certainly has been no natural causes for this condition of things. Not only have the people stood still in all of their industrial pursuits, absolutely earning nothing over and above their current expenses that goes to swell the aggregate wealth, but there has been a positive loss, if we are to be governed by these data, in Great Salt Lake County alone, in one year, of $140,280. Can this be so, when we take into considera- tion that the present year has been one of unusual prosperity, while the labors of the husbandman have been most bountifully paid, and on every hand of this thriving city unmistakable evidences of prosperity are apparent? This result can only be accounted for on one hypothesis, viz: in former years the valuation of property has been too high, or the present year it has been too low. These fluctu- ations to some extent will always exist from factitious causes alone, in spite of the greatest precaution ; but it is the duty of the Legislature to guard not only the people but the treasury, against abuses of the kind, if any exist. There can be no wrong to the people in the collection of an ad valorem tax, providing the property has been fairly assessed and its value fairly determined. The revenue is the common fund of the people, and there should be no favoritism in the collec- tion of the same. No matter whether the individual property-holder possesses ten, twenty or a hundred thousand dollars' worth, he should submit to the same rules in determining its value, as if he was the owner only of one hundred or ten hundred dollars' worth. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. J03 "miscellaneous. " On the 29th of October last tlie Secretary of the Interior addressed me a letter informing me that he had designated me to receive for the Territorial Li- brary here, two sets of the documents of the 2d session of the 36th Congress; that by the Act approved the 14th March, 1S62, making appropriations for the Legislative, Executive and Judicial expenses for the Government for the )ear ending 30th June, 1862, there is the following provision: 'Provided, that the said journals and documents shall be sent to such libraries and public institutions only as shall signify a willingness to pay the cost of transportation of the same.' Upon inquiry I find that no funds were at my disposal with which to pay for such transportation, and I notified the Department accordingly. ''There will doubtlefs be other important documents to be distributed on the same terms hereafter, and I recommend that you provide the necessary means whereby you can avail the people of this Territory of the benefits of these donations. " I am advised that the penitentiary of this Territory is in a dilapidated condition, and that some repairs are absolutely necessary in order to make the same a safe or proper receptacle for public offenders. I recommend that you me- morialize Congress upon that subject. "I have not been able to find any law upon your statutes inaugurating a common school system, or that any money has been appropriated with a view to that end, although you have appropriated money to other objects of much less importance, for instance, in keeping up a quasi military establishment at a con- siderable expense to the people. As much as this condition of things at one period of your history may have been required, it seems to me that the time has passed when the Territorial fund should be used for that purpose at the expense of so important a measure as that which looks to the education of the rising genera- tion amongst you. I need not dwell here upon the importance of common schools; your intelligence must supply any argumentation on my part. " The condition of the militia of this Territory is unknown to me, Althouo-h the statute organizing the ^ame makes it the duty of the lieutenant-general com- manding to report to the Governor, who is recognized as commander-in-chief, on or before the ist day of December, annually; yet no such report has been made to me, and therefore I am wholly uninformed on the subject. If I shall hereafter deem it my duty, I may require that such report be made. " There are many other topics to which, perhaps, I ought to refer, but I have no data from which to draw conclusions. If reports on any of these subjects shall hereafter be made to me I will communicate them to you, with such suggestions as I shall deem proper. " INDIAN TROUBLES. " Complaints have been frequently made to me during the past summer and up to a recent period by immigrants who have suffered great loss and violence from hostile Indian bands who infest some parts of this and adjoining Territories, whilst peacefully pursuing their travel to such points of destination as was their right to do; and from statements which I believe to be reliable, certain residents of this 304 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. Territory have been known openly to barter and trade with the Indians for cloth- ing and other articles which they at the time must have known were the spoils and plunder from murdered citizens. These practices have, in my opinion, a direct tendency to encourage these outrages against humanity. I respectfully .suggest for your consideration whether any legislation is demanded at your hands to pre- vent these outrages in the future. The presence of a military command here will doubtless have a tendency to prevent many of these horrors. " I am glad that I am enabled to inform you that the Federal Government has made arrangements to hold treaties with some if not all the tribes of Indians that have so long infested this and neighboring Territories, and it is to be hoped that this will be done at an early day, and the Indian title to the lands therein be speedily extinguished, and such disposition will be made of their former occupants as becomes a great, generous and just Government. " HOMESTEAD ACT. "On the I St day of January, 1863, the Homestead Act passed on the 20th May last will go into effect, thereby enabling any person who is of the age of 21 years, or who is the head of a family, or who has performed service in the army or navy of the United States, and who has not been in arms against the United States, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof, and has declared his inten- tion to become a citizen of the same, to enter on and take possession of 160 acres of any of the public lands not otherwise appropriated, and by cultivating the same for the term of five years, and paying $10, will, upon the compliance with these conditions, be entitled to a patent for the same. Thus will it be in the power of every loyal citizen to possess a homestead of 160 acres of land, secured from all liabilities from any debts which he may have contracted prior to his patent for the same. When it is remembered that the beneficent act was intended to secure a home to every loyal citizen, on terms so easy and just, its consequences for good cannot well be estimated to the present and future generations. What patriotic devotion does the recipient of this great boon not owe to the Govern- ment that thus shields himself and his family from the possibility of want, if he will make use of the means that God and nature have given him! What should be the character of that loyalty due from the citizens from such a Government — a Government which enables him at one bound, although ruined in his fortunes, to spring from indigence and poverty to comparative ease and independence? The Indian title to the lands in our vast territories will soon be extinguished, and they will be open to settlement on the terms above presented. What inducements are there which are not held out to those just beginning life, and who may reason- ably hope to witness thriving cities springing up where the wild Indian now lights his camp fires and pitches his rude lodge ! " When it is also remembered that every rood 01 land in this Territory will be open to the citizens, upon no harder terms than that they will occupy and cultivate it, and remain loyal to our common Government, who should doubt for a moment that such a golden opportunity shall be offered in vain, or that one link shall be stricken from the chain of sympathy that should ever bind us alike in interest, in body and soul, to that same benign and just Government? HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 305 * " CONCLUSION. "I have felt it my duty to urge upon your earnest consideration the sugges- tions and measures herein recommended; at the same time I felt that I would be wanting in proper respect to you were I to accompany each of these recommenda- tions with an assignment of all the reasons which might be urged in their favor. I am accountable to the Government of our common country for these recom- mendations. You too are accountable to the same tribunal and to your immediate constituents for the disposition that you make of them. It is your province and duty to consider and discuss them, and either adopt or reject them as your wis- dom shall determine. "I desire to assure you, gentlemen, that nothing in my power shall be want- ing to demonstrate my honest regard for the interest and welfare of the people of this Territory. They deserve much at the hands of the Federal Government for their persevering industry ; and, so far as my humble efforts may contribute to that end they shall never be wanting. No matter what differences of opinion may exist between us on many subjects, I will endeaver to convince you of my sincerity by the uprightness of my conduct, and shall always be satisfied with the discharge of my official duties, when I know that they stand approved by the general voice of the people. "May each one of you be clothed with wisdom from on high, in the dis- charge of the important duties which devolve upon you, and may your delibera- tions be such as not only to secure the lasting peace, happiness and prosperity of the people of this Territory, but also redound to the welfare and glory of our common county. STEPHEN S. HARDING. *' Great Salt Lake City, U. T., Decembers, 1862:' The reading of the message was listened to with great attention, and at its conclusion, the audience unmistakably indicated their uneasiness over the insult offered to their representatives, who had been forced to listen to its delivery by the Governor in person. There was one deep feeling of contempt manifest for its author. Mr. Carrington then alluded to the inconsistences of the Governor's professions and his actions. He said his Excellency reminded him of the man and his cow. He commenced with sweet apples and at every opportunity threw in the onions. The Governor commenced with admitting that the Constitution debarred him from interfering with their religious rights, and at every oppor- tunity throughout the message he attacked them. He said he would neither affirm nor deny with regard to the question of polygamy, yet at the same time, he held it up to ridicule and obloquy, and everywhere affirming that it was not only contrary to civilization, but anomalous, and that it could not be en- dured, was contrary to the law and unconstitutional, while at the same time he conceded that it was a religious rite and a matter of faith with the people. These were, he ?aid, a few of the reasons which induced the Legislative Assembly to waive the complimentary publication of the message, in hopes that his Excel- lency might consider his folly, mend his ways and pursue the course which he promised in the latter part of his message; but how consistently he had acted 11 jo6 HISTORY OF SAL T LAKE CITY. since that time, the audience would be able to judge after the reading of other documents during the meeting. IMPORTANT DOCUMENTS FROM WASHINGTON. Mr. Carrington then read correspondence from Hon. John M. Bernhisel, Delegate to Congress, and from the Hon. Wm. H. Hooper, Senator-elect, in which the unjustifiable proceedings of Governor Harding and the Associate-Jus- tices Waite and Drake were exposed. Mr. Carrington read an extract from a letter, dated Washington, 2 2d January, in which Governor Harding was repre- sented to have communicated to the Hon. Hannibal Hamlin, Vice-President of the United States and President of the Senate, his message, accompanied by a letter stating that the message had been suppressed through the influence of one of our prominent citizens, referring, unquestionably, to Governor Young. The following is the last paragraph of the letter referred to : " I entertain strong hopes that we shall be able to obtain, before the termi- nation of the session, an appropriation to liquidate your Indian amounts, unless prevented by Governor Harding's insinuation of the disloyalty of our peopled The following is an extract from a letter, dated Washington, February, 1863 : "On the nth of December last, Senator Browning introduced a bill in the Senate, which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. This bill was pre- pared at Great Salt Lake City, and its enactment by Congress, recommended by Governor Harding and Judges Waite and Drake. The leading and most exceptional features of this bill are the following: ist: It limits the jurisdiction of the Pro- bate Court to the probate of wills, to the issue of letters of administration and the appointment of guardians. 2 : It authorizes the Marshal to summon any persons within the district in which the court is held that he thinks proper as jurors. 3 : It authorizes the Governor to appoint and commission a// militia officers, including Major-General, and remove them at pleasure. It also confers on the Governor authority to appoint the days for training." On the 27th of January, the Hon. Win. H. Hooper writes from Washington that "Governor Harding is, of course, doing all he can by letters" against the people of Utah. His letter was chiefly occupied with the bill presented by Mr. Browning. The Senator's letter was entirely confirmatory of those from the pen of our Delegate. He says : "The bill has been presented, and referred back. There does not appear to have been any action on it. It has not been printed ; should it be, I will forward a copy. The bill was drawn up at Salt Lake City, and attached with eyelets. Also attached was as follows: "The bill should be passed." Signed : S. S. Harding, Governor; Waite and Drake, Associate Justices." The reading of these extracts created quite a sensation. When the insinuation of the disloyalty of the people was read, there was a loud murmur of dissatisfaction throughout the audience. Mr. Carrington's sarcastic reference to the Governor's promise "to help us" and his allusion to His Excellency's private room being a new place for drafting bills for the action of Congress, had a telling effect upon the meeting. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. joy SPEECH OF HON. JOHN TAYLOR. After the applause had subsided, which greeted his rising, Mr. Taylor said, " It has already been stated that these documents speak for themselves. They come from those who are ostensibly our guardians and the guardians of our rights. They come from men who ought to be actuated by the strictest principles of honor, truth, vrtue, integrity, and honesty, and whose high official position ought to elevate them above suspicion, yet what are the results? '' In relation to the Governor's Message, enough perhaps has already been said. We are not here to enter into any labored political disquisitions, but to make some plain matter-of-fact statements, in which are involved the vital interests of this com- munity. There is one feature, however, in that document which deserves a passing notice. It would seem that we are by direct implication accused of disloyalty. He states that he has not heard any sentiments expressed, either publicly or pri- vately, that would lead him to believe that much sympathy is felt by any consid- erable portion of this people in favor of the Government of the United States. Perhaps we may not be so blatant and loud-spoken as some people are ; but is it not patent to this community that the Legislature, during the session of 1861-2, assumed the Territorial quota of taxation, and at the very time that his Excel- lency was uttering this infamy, a resolution passed by the House, lay on the table, requesting the secretary to place a United States flag on the State House during the session. This was a small affair, yet significant of our feelings. "It is not a matter of very grave importance to us generally what men may think of us, whether they be Government officials or not ; but these allegations assume another form, and their wickedness is now rendered vindictive from the peculiar circumstances in which our nation at the present time is placed. When treason is stalking through the land, when all the energies, the wealth, the power of the United Slates have been brought into requisition to put down rebellion, when anarchy and distrust run riot through the nation; when, under these cir- cumstances, we had a right to look for a friend in our Governor, who would, at least, fairly represent us, we have met a most insidious foe, who, through base in- sinuations, misrepresentations and falsehood, is seeking with all his power, pri- vately and officially, not only to injure us before Government, but to sap the very foundations of our civil and religious liberty ; he is, in fact, in pursuit of his un- hallowed course, seeking to promote anarchy and rebellion, and dabbling in your blood. It is then a matter of no small importance (hear, hear). Such it would seem were Governor Harding's intentions when he read this message, such were his feelings when he concocted it. The document shows upon its face that it was not hastily written; it has been well digested and every word carefully weighed. It most assuredly contains the sentiments of his heart (hear, hear), of which his Washington letters are proof positive in relation to our alleged disloyalty. " We are told about the generous reception of our senators-elect; of this we are most profoundly ignorant. Their reception was not so gracious as he would represent. He labors under error, for which we do not feel to reproach him; but what are we to think of his official letters to Washington ? They are facts. What of his gracious acts of kindness to this people and to their representatives. From the statements of our representatives in Congress, he is the most vindictive jo8 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE C/TY. enemy we have. The only man, it would seem, who is insidiously striving to sap the interests of the people, and to injure their reputation, yet he is our Governor, and professes to represent our interests and to feel intensely interested in our wel- fare. Let us investigate for a short time the results of his acts, should his designs be successful, leaving the allegations of treason out of the question. "We have been in the habit of thinking that we live under the auspices of a republican government; that we had the right of franchise ; that we had the privi- lege of voting for whom we pleased, and of saying who should represent us ; but it may be that we are laboring under a mistake, a political illusion. We have thought too that if a man among us was accused of crimes, that it was his privi- lege to be tried by his peers ; by people whom he lived among, who would be the best judges of his actions. We have farther been of the opinion that, while act- ing in a military capacity, when we were called to muster into service, to stand in defence of our country's rights, we had a right to the selection of our own officers. It is a republican usage — we have always elected our own militia officers ; but if the plotting of Governor Harding and uur honorable Judges should be carried into effect we can do so no more ; we shall be deprived of franchise, of the rights of trial by an impartial jury, and shall be placed in a military capacity, under the creatures of Governor Harding or his successors' direction ; in other words, we shall be deprived of all the rights of freemen, and placed under a mili- tary despotism; such would be the result of the passage of this act. Let us examine it a little. An act already framed by the Governor and Judges, passed in the congress of Governor Harding's sitting room, is forwarded to Washington with a request that it be passed. Now suppose it should, what would be the result? As I have stated, we suppose that we possess the rights of franchise; that is a mistake, we do not, we only think we do. The Governor has already taken that from us. How so? Have we not the privilege of voting for our own legis- lators, our own representatives in the Legislative Assembly? Yes. But the Gov- ernor possesses the power of veto. This old relic of Colonial barbarism ingrafted info our Territorial organization was always in existence among us, but never was so foully abused as in the person of our present Governor; he has done all he could to stop the wheels of government, and to produce dissatisfaction, and has exercised his veto to the fullest extent of his power. As an instance of this, there were twenty laws passed the Legislative Assembly, only six of which are approved ; two of those were resolutions, one changing the place of meeting from the Court House to the State House, and the other the adjournment to next session. The other four are matters of minor importance, while everything con- nected with the welfare of the community, fourteen acts, are just so much waste paper. Now, I ask, where is your franchise? In Governor Harding's pocket, or stove. "Again, in regard to juries, already referred to, you know what the usage has been, in relation to this matter. Governor Harding and the Judges want to place in the hands of the United States Marshal the power of selecting juries whom he pleases, no matter whither they come, or who they are. This is what our honorable Judges and Governor would attempt. Your liberties are aimed at, and your rights as freemen; and then, if you do not like to be disfranchised, and HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. jog your liberties trampled under foot by a stranger — if you do not like to have blacklegs and cutthroats sit upon your juries. Mr. Harding wants to select his own military, and choose his own officers to lead them, and then if you will not submit, 'I will make you' [voices all over the house, 'Can't do it,' with loud applause-] We know he cannot do it, but this is what he aims at, [Clapping and great applause.] When these rights are taken from us, what rights have we left? [Cries of ' None.'] It could scarcely be credited that a man in his posi- tion would so far degrade himself as to introduce such outrageous principles, and it is lamentable to reflect upon, that men holding the position of United States' Judges could descend to such injustice, corruption and depravity [applause]. These things are so palpable that any man with five grains of common sense can comprehend them ; ' he that runneth may read.' It is for you to judge whether you are willing to sustain such men in the capacity they act in or not. [One unanimous cry of * No! ' and loud clapping]. "governor young's speech. "On Governor Young responding to the invitation to address the meeting, and approaching the speaker's desk, he was greeted with prolonged deafening ap- plause. He stated that he had no intention of delivering a lengthy address, but while he spoke he would solicit the quiet of the assembly. He knew well the feelings of his auditory; but would prefer that they should suppress their demon- strations of applause to other times and places, when they might have less busi- ness and more leisure. On the resumption of perfect silence, he said that they had heard the message of the Governor to the last Legislature of Utah. They would readily perceive that the bread was buttered, but there was poison under- neath. It seemed to him that the enemies of the Union, of the Constitution and of the nation, were determined to ruin if they could not rule. A foreseeing person might suppose that they conspired to bring about a revolution in the west, so as to divide the Pacific from the Atlantic States, for their acts tended to that end. He believed that no true Democrat, no true Republican desired to see the nation distracted as it now was, but the labors of fanatics, whether they had plans which they comprehended or not, were in that direction. When Governor Hard- ing came to this Territory last July, he sought to ingratiate himself into the es- teem of our prominent citizens, with whom he had early intercourse, by his pro- fessed friendship and attachment to the people of Utah. He was then full of their praises, and said that he was ready to declare that he would stand in the de- fense of polygamy, or he should have to deny the Bible, and that he had told the President of the United States b2fore he left Washington, that if he was called upon to agitate the question, he would haveto take the side of polygamy, or he should have to renounce the Bible. He said, in the Bowery, on the 24th of July, and at other places and at other times that if he ever learned that he was obnox- ious to the people, and they did not wish his presence, he would leave the Territory. [Voices everywhere, ' He had better go now.'] " He was not aware whether the two Associate Judges were tools operating with him, or whether they knew no better. The success sought in their schemes was the establishment of a military government over the Territory, in the hopes Vi J 10 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. of goading on the people to open rupture with the general government. Then, they would call out that Utah was disloyal ! He was aware that nothing would please such men better than the arrest of all progress Westward ; they would, no doubt of it, be delighted to see the stoppage of travel across the plains and all intercourse by mail or telegraph destroyed. Any amount of money had been employed by parties interested in mail transportation and passenger travel to the Pacific, by way of Panama, to destroy the highway across the plains ; and there were men among them not above operating to the accomplishment of that end, under the pretence of other purposes. " He then alluded to the law that was drafted in this city and sent to Wash- ington for adoption by Congress, to take from the people their rights as free American citizens, and portrayed the despotism that would follow placing the power of selecting jurors in the hands of a United States Marshal. Any such power could in the hands of designing men, destroy and subvert every right of free citizens. For that purpose, any class of disreputable men could at any time be imported into the Territory, and with a residence of a few hours be the ready tools for the accomplishment of any purpose. When their rights and the protec- tion of their liberties were taken from them, what remained ? [Voices, ' Nothing, nothing.'] Yes, service to tyrants, service to despots ! " He concluded his address by expressing that his feelings were that the nation might be happy and free as it had been, and exhorted the people to be true to themselves, to their country, to their God, and to their friends. Gov- ernor Young resumed his seat amidst great applause and cheering. "Wm. Clayton, Esq., then read the following ' 'RESOLUTIONS: ^'Resolved, That we consider the attack made upon us, by his Excellency Governor Harding, wherein our loyalty is impugned, as base, wicked, unjust and false ; and he knew it to be so when uttered. ^^ Resolved, That we consider the attempt to possess himself of all military authority and dictation, by appointing all the militia officers, as a stretch at mili- tary despotism hitherto unknown in the annals of our Republic. ^'■Resolved, That we consider his attempt to control the selection of juries, as so base, unjust and tyrannical, as to deserve the contempt of all freemen. ^^ Resolved, That we consider the action of Judges Waite and Drake, in assisting the Governor to pervert justice and violate the sacred palladium of the people's rights, as subversive of the principles of justice, degrading to their high calling, and repulsive to the feelings of honest men. ^'Resolved, That we consider that a serious attack has been made upon the liberties of this people, and that it not only affects us as a Territory, but is a di- rect assault upon Republican principles, in our own nation, and throughout the world ; and that we cannot either tamely submit to be disfranchised ourselves, nor witness, without protest, the assassin's dagger plunged into the very vitals of our national institutions. ^^ Resolved, That while we at all times honor and magnify all wholesome laws of our country, and desire to be subservient to their dictates and the equitable I HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 311 administration of justice, we will resist, in a proper manner, every attempt upon the liberties guaranteed by our fathers, whether made by insidious foes, or open traitors. ^'Resolved, That a committee be appointed, by the meeting, to wait upon the Governor and Judges Waite and Drake, to request them to resign their offices and leave the Territory. ^^ Resolved, That John Taylor, Jeter Clinton and Orson Pratt, Senior, be that committee. ^'■Resolved, That we petition the President of the United States to remove Governor Harding and Judges Waite and Drake, and to appoint good men in their stead. "The Chairman called upon the meeting for an expression of their wishes and the building rang with a glorious ' Aye' for their adoption. "The following petition was likewise read and committed to the people for their action : THE PETITION TO PRESIDENT LINCOLN. ** To his Excellency, Abraham Lincoln, President of the United States : "Sir — We, your petitioners, citizens of the Territory of Utah, respectfully represent that: " Whereas, From the most reliable information in our possession, we are sat- isfied that his Excellency Stephen S. Harding, Governor, Charles B. Waite and Thomas J. Drake, Associate Justices, are strenuously endeavoring to create mis- chief and stir up strife between the people of the Territory of Utah and the troops now in Camp Douglas (situated within the limits of Great Salt Lake City,) and, of far graver import in our Nation's present difficulties, between the people of the aforesaid Territory and the Government of the United States. " Therefore, We respectfully petition your Excellency to forthwith remove the aforesaid persons from the offices they now hold, and to appoint in their places men who will attend to the duties of their offices, honor their appointments, and re- gard the rights of all, attending to their own affairs and leaving alone the affairs of others ; and in all their conduct demeaning themselves as honorable citizens and officers worthy of commendation by yourself, our Government and all good men ; and for the aforesaid removals and appointments your petitioners will most respectfully continue to pray. " Great Salt Lake City, Territory of Utah, March j, iSdj.'' The same unanimous appr )val followed the reading of the petition. The band then played " The Marsellaise," and the chairman dissolved the meeting. The News says — " By way of conclusion, we must add that we never saw a more earnest, vet calm and deliberate assembly in Utah or elsewhere; the rights of the people were threatened, and they solemnly entered their protest, leaving the results for the future in the hands of an overruling Providence. Before eight o'clock last even- ing, upwards of 2,100 signatures were affixed to the petition, and, no doubt, there will be a large addition to that number in the course of to-day." 312 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. j The following is the report of the committee ; "G. S. L. City, March 5, 1863. " To the citizens of Great Salt Lake City : "Gentlemen: " Your committee, appointed at the mass meeting held in the Tabernacle on the 3d inst., waited upon his Excellency Governor Harding and their Honors Judges Waite and Drake, on the morning of the 4th. "Governor Harding received us cordially, but, upon being informed of the purport of our visit, both himself and Judge Drake, who was in the Governor's office, emphatically refused to comply with the wishes of the people, notwith- standing the Governor had repeatedly stated that he would leave whenever he learned that his acts and course were not agreeable to the people. " Upon being informed that, if he was not satisfied that the action of the mass meeting expressed the feelings of the people, he could have the expression of the whole Territory, he replied, * I am aware of that, but that would make no difference.' "Your committee called at the residence of Judge Waite, who, being absent at the time, has since informed us, by letter, that he also refuses to comply with the wishes of the people. JOHN TAYLOR, JETER CLINTON, ORSON PRATT, Sen." CHAPTER XXXIV. A COUNTER PETITION FROM CAMP DOUGLAS TO PREST. LINCOLN. IMPEND- ING CONFLICT BETWEEN CAMP DOUGLAS AND THE CITY. A SUPPOSED CONSPIRACY TO ARREST BRIGHAM YOUNG AND RUN HIM OFF TO THE STATES. JUDGES WAITE AND DRAKE HOLD UNLAWFUL COURTS IN JUDGE KINNEY'S DISTRICT. THE CHIEF JUSTICE INTERPOSES WITH A WRIT TO ARREST BRIGHAM YOUNG FOR POLYGAMY. IT IS SERVED BY THE U. S. MARSHAL INSTEAD OF A MILITARY POSSE. THE CITY IN ARMS, EX- PECTING A DESCENT FROM CAMP DOUGLAS. THE WARNING VOICE OF CALIFORNIA HEARD. BOOMING OF THE GUNS OF CAMP DOUGLAS AT MIDNIGHT. THE CITY AGAIN IN ARMS. FALSE ALARM. CONNOR CRE- .ATED BRIGADIER-GENERAL. » A counter petition signed by the officers of Camp Douglas and the non-Mor- moms of Salt Lake City was sent to President Lincoln urging the retention of Governor Harding, and Judges Drake and Waite. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CIT\. j/j The issue of affairs had now reached the condition of impending war between the camp and the city, while Chief Justice John F. Kinney occupied a aimiliar position in the case to that of Governor Gumming, when the conflict was threatened between the city and Camp Floyd. It was the prevailing opinion of the citizens that a descent upon the city by Colonel Connor and his troops to arrest Brigham and his counselors might be expected at any moment. It was also further believed that could this be accomplished, by a dashing "surprise," the intention was to run these Mormon leaders off to the States for trial. General Connor and his officers have indignantly denied any such intentions on the part of Camp Douglas; but, it is certain, that the citizens thus viewed the prospect in those days, which to them signified the prospect of a fierce conflict and the shed- ding of much blood ; for the citizens never would have permitted Brigham Young to have been taken to Camp Douglas, and held under military guard, as the Mayor of Great Salt Lake City was a decade later. No mere historical summary could harmonize the views of the camp and the city ; but for an appreciation of the situation and the excited condition of the then public mind, both of California and Utah, we must cull from the chronicles of those times. The first presented is from the Deseret News of March 1 1, 1S63 : " We have been aware for a number of days that the issuance of writs against President Yonng was in contemplation. There has been an unusual stir at Camp Douglas, the most ample preparations made for the purpose of making a descent with an armed force upon the President, whenever those writs should be placed in the hands of the marshal. It was vainly and foolishly supposed that he would resist the service of a writ issued under the act referred to. Persons desiring col- lision were anxious to make the pretext of an armed military force in executing this process, the excuse for gratifying their wicked purposes. But in this they have been disappointed. As a people we believe in, and have ever taught obedi- ence and submission to the laws of the land. No one has more earnestly taught this than the President of this church. It is well known that in his private and public teachings he has taken the position of obedience to any legal writ emanat- ing from proper authority, whether against him or any of the people under this or any otlier law. "On the loth inst., an afifidavit was made before His Honor Chief Justice J. F. Kinney, charging Brigham Young with having violated the act of Congress, by taking another wife. Judge Kinney promptly issued a writ for his arrest and placed it in the hands of Mr. Gibbs, United States marshal. The marshal ^ adopted the very prudent course of serving the writ himself, without calling a 'posse,' and accordingly waited upon the President, only fortified by the process and with such civil authority as the law invested him. "An immediate response was made to the writ, by the prompt appearance of the defendant before Judge Kinney at the State House, accompanied by two or three of his immediate friends. An investigation was made of the facts charged in the affidavit, by the introduction of evidence, resulting in the Judge holding the defendant to bail in the sum of two thousand dollars, for his appearance at the next term of the United States Court for the Third Judicial District. 12 jt4 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. ^m "The sureties were required to justify under oath, when it appeared that they were worth some twenty thousand dollars. | " We have no fault to find with Judge Kinney for issuing the process, or his determination upon the testimony. As the judge of this district, he can make no t distinction, and it is his duty to magnify all constitutional law, as we trust it will ' ever be the pleasure of the people to submit to and obey the authority with which ' such law invests him." > Of simultaneous date the California press on Utah affairs gives the following pungent views: [From the Daily Alta California, March ii.] i, " We have some strange news to-day from Salt Lake, z'/a New York. It is I to the effect that there is danger of a collision between the Mormons and our troops there. The despatch goes so far as to state that Governor Harding and Associate Justices Waite and Drake have called upon Col. Connor to arrest Brig- ham Young and some of the Mormon leaders. It is strange that we have heard nothing on this side of these important events, and that the first intimation we should have of what is going on should reach us via New York. We had, to be sure, a report, recently of some angry meetings which had taken place there, but we had no idea that anything serious was going on. "To get at the facts of the case we telegraphed to Salt Lake last night. The telegram which we received does not clear up matters fully. Our correspondent speaks of an anti-bigamy law as the cause of the trouble. We do not know of any except the one providing for the admission of Utah as a State, provided polygamy was abolished. The whole affair therefore is still enveloped in some confusion. There is one thing, however, that we do know; Colonel P. Edward Connor and his regiment were sent across the mountains to protect the telegraph and the overland mail, and to fight the Indians, and not to kick up trouble with the Mormons or any other class of persons The Government has enough of fighting now on its hands and there is no necessity for increasing it. Perhaps an expenditure of a few more millions of dollars in a Utah war is deemed necessary to promote the happiness of somebody behind the scenes." [From Sacramento Daily Union, March 12.] " It seems that matters at Salt Lake are in an unsettled and uncertain state. Some difficulty has grown up between the Governor, the United States Judges, and the head of the Mormon Church, which may — though we hope not — termin- ate in a collision. We never deemed it particularly an act of wisdom to order a single regiment to Salt Lake. It was not needed there for protection, and in the event of a collision was to weak too be of any particular use. We fear, too, that the Governor has been imprudent. The Mormons should, of course, submit to the laws, but laws ought not be forced upon them which are repugnant to a very large majority of that singular people. A conflict at this time would prove a great misfortune to California. It would also prove fatal to the Mormons, and hence we reason that they will avoid any hostile demonstrations except in self- HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 315 defense. The pretty-much let-alone policy is the one which should be adopted toward the Mormons." [From the Daily Alta California, March 14.] "In our columns to-day will be found an interesting letter from Salt Lake. It gives an account of the commencement of the troubles there. Our next will, in all probability, bring down the narrative to the late proceedings, Mr. Lin- coln, it must be admitted, has been very unfortunate in the selection of office- holders. If his intention in sending Harding to rule over the Mormons was to kick up a row there, he has succeeded. The policy of such a proceeding, just at this juncture, however, may very well be doubted. We have enough of fighting on hand at present." It will be observed, from the above editorial passages, that the two great journals of San Francisco and Sacramento, speaking for California, manifested a decided agreement with the judgment of California's senators, as stated by Sena- tor McDougal in his speech opposing the passage of the anti-polygamic bill and emphasized by the votes of himself and colleague, Senator Latham. Neither of these statesmen favored polygamy, much less did they intend to imply by their solitary "nays" against both Houses of Congress that Utah could continue the practice of polygamy with the consent of California. Senator McDougal's words very sagely but simply expounded the case and the situation. Only a few months had elapsed since the passage of the anti-polygamy bill of '62 and California and Utah were now nearly brought into a conflict over an im- proper attempt at its execution, for it is apparent that had a conflict ensued between the Utah militia and the California Volunteers, these "sister States of the Pacific" must themselves have been brought into the conflict. Th e warning passage from the Sacramento Daily Union was very pointed: "A conflict at this time would prove a great misfortune to California. It would also prove fatal to the Mormons." This with the stinging passage from the Daily Alia doubtless had the desired effect, both upon the Volunteers and the people of Great Salt Lake City. Colonel Con- nor and his officers could not with indifference read California's reminder to them that they were sent across the mountains to protect the overland mail and to fight the Indians "and not to kick up trouble with the Mormons." But in the foregoing excerpts from the Deseret News and the California press there are merely a few points of detail of the stirring events which came nigh to the very pitch of battle. It must be told for a comprehension of the alarm of those times that not only had Governor Harding vetoed nearly every act passed by the Legislature of that year, as he soon afterwards overrode nearly all the judicial decisions of the Chief Justice by wholesale pardons, which whether deserved or not leaves the sequence of events the same, but Judges Waite and Drake were also setting aside the Chief Justice in his own district, where they presumed unlawfully to hold courts, and that, too, while he was holding his regular term with a grand jury at business daily bringing in their indictments. The Deseret News commenting upon "Judge Waite and his judicial presumption " said : " We are not a little astonished at His Honor Judge Waite assuming the pre- 3i6 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. rogative of holding court in the third district, when the Legislature had assigned him to the second. "We confess we were prepared to witness almost anything from the dis- affected Judge, but hardly ready to behold so strange a spectacle as a Judge assuming judicial authority in defiance of law. "The ninth section of the Organic Law provides as follows: '"The Territory shall be divided into three judicial districts, and a district court shall be held in each of said districts by one of the justices of the supreme court, at such time and place as shall be prescribed by law, and the judges shall, after their appointmcjit, respectively reside in the districts which shall be assigned them.'' "This is a plain, unequivocal provision and should be complied with by those whose duty it is to administer the law. Two months have elapsed since the Legislature assigned Judge Waite to the second district, and yet, in place of sub- mitting to and obeying the law, which His Honor has sworn to support, we find him still in this city issuing writs and holding an examining court. "Aside from the illegality of the proceeding, common courtesy, it seems to us, if His Honor had no regard for the law, should have operated to deter the Judge from assuming judicial power in Judge Kinney's district." There had been no alarm in the city over a proper warrant of arrest of Brig- ham Young, to test in his person the constitutionality of the anti-polygamy bill of 1862, or its operative powers, which latter it may be said was at that time as nothing with a polygamic grand jury, who believed that bill to be unconstitutional and that it would be so decided when it came before the Supreme Court of the United States. The alarm was at the prospect of the issuance of a writ for the arrest of President Young through the same associate Justice Waite who, it was be- lieved, for this and similar purposes was with Associate Justice Drake administering in the district of the Chief Justice. It was with this view that the Deseret News noted: " We have been aware for a number of days that the issuance of writs against President Young was in contemplation ; " and further, "there has been an unusual stir at Camp Douglas, the most ample preparations made for the pur- pose of making a descent with an armed force upon the President whenever those writs should be placed in the hands of the marshal." In fine, the writ which was issued by Chief Justice Kinney, upon an affidavit made by one of the citizens, charging Brigham Young with violating the act of Congress prohibiting polyg- amy, was designed to prevent the arrest of Brigham Young by those other im- proper writs in contemplation to be executed by military force. The further note on the execution is like a volume of history of the case: " Judge Kinney promptly issued a writ for his arrest and placed it in the hands of Mr. Gibbs, United States marshal. The marshal adopted the very prudent course of serving the writ himself, without calling for a posse, and accordingly waited upon the President, only fortified by the process and with such civil authority as the law in- vested him." Thus was a very different result obtained from that of the arrest of Brigham Young by the " descent of an armed force," as a " posse " to execute a writ issued by Judge Waite to bring the prisoner before his court, to be held at II HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. jiy Camp Douglas or wherever it might have pleased him and his Associate Judge Drake and Governor Harding. Here may be told a part of the story of those times by Mr. Stenhouse, from his Rocky Mountain Saints, though in some respects it is different from his " interesting letters," published in the San Francisco Alta, the Sacramento Union, and in the New York Herald, which gave the current views of Utah affairs to the American public, east and west : "Colonel Connor had visited Judge Waite, and, on leaving his house, one of the elders, who was loitering about, believed that he overheard the colonel say: 'These three men must be surprised.' That was sufficient. Instantly the eavesdropper flew to Brigham. The Prophet believed the story, hoisted a signal to rally the militia, and in half an hour a thousand armed men surrounded his premises, and within an hour another thousand were armed and on duty. The city was in commotion, and rifles, lead, and powder, were brought out of their hiding places. On the inside of the high walls surrounding Brigham's premises, scaffolding was hastily erected in order to enable the militia to fire down upon passing Volunteer?. The houses on the route which occupied a commanding posi- tion where an attack could be made upon the troops were taken possession of, the small cannon were brought out and the brethren prepared to protect the Prophet. " There was no truth in the rumor of an intended arrest of Brigham and his counsellors. The Mormon leaders, all the same, believed it to be true, and they were cautious and watchful. A powerful telescope was placed on the top of Brigham's 'BeeHive' residence, and every move of the Volunteers in Camp Douglas was watched with great care. Night and day, for several weeks, there was a body of armed men around the Prophet, and signals agreed upon, by which the whole peopjfe could be rallied by night or by day. *^^ *i^ -j^ \X^ *^ o# «^ ^^ ^ 'I^ *!» ^> •!• T* ^^ ^^ " The Volunteers were not numerous enough to 'overawe' the Mormons, and their presence was on that account, all the more irksome. To know that they 'could use them up any morning before breakfast,' and yet be forced to tolerate their presence on the brow of a hill, like a watch-tower, was irritating to the Prophet's mind. The Tabernacle resounded with fierce denunciations every Sunday. Mischief-makers poured into the ears of the Prophet every story that could increase his prejudice against Colonel Connor; and the latter heard quite as much to incense him against Brigham. A collision for a long time seemed inevitable. " Providing for the possibility of a rupture at any moment, it was agreed that, if the struggle came by night, the citizens were to be summoned to arms by firing cannon from the hill-side, at the east of Brigham's residence; and, if the difficulty began during the day, the flag was to be hoisted over his Bee-Hive resi- dence. To the latter signal the citizens had once responded ; and it was believed that their readiness to fight for the Prophet had intimidated the commander of the Volunteers, so that he would be unlikely to make an attack by day. At that time, it was believed that Colonel Connor, having been foiled in this first attempt, entertained the idea of making a dash upon the Prophet's bed-room ' in the dead fl ji8 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. of night,' seizing him, and running him off to the States before the Mormons could learn of his situation, and render him any assistance. "General Connor never had orders to arrest Brigham Young, or he would have done so — or tried. At the time of the conversation with Judge Waite, al- ready referred to, which created the panic and the assembling of the Mormons in arms, the Prophet was not the subject of consideration. One of the brethren had married the three widows of a wealthy merchant within sight of Judge Waite's residence, and as that was an excellent case in which to try the application of the Anti-Polygamic Law, the General replied to the Judge that he would arrest him if the court furnished the order. The anticipation that difficulty would arise, from Judge Waite acting within Judge Kinney's judicial district while the latter was present, was the only thing that prevented the arrest. " On the night of the 29th of March, the citizens were aroused by the boom- ing of cannon. As hastily as garments could be thrown on, and arms could be seized, the brethren were seen hurrying from their homes towards the Prophet's residence. The struggle was apparently at hand. The signal cannon had been distinctly heard, and, as there was a gentle current of air from the east, those who lived west of the Prophet could hear the very music to which the Volunteers were supposed to be marching into the heart of the city ! "For his great victory over Bear Hunter and other Indian chiefs, in a des- perate battle in the depth of winter, two months before, Colonel Connor had now been promoted to the rank of Brigadier-General, and the news had only just reached Camp Douglas 1 The military band had been called out to serenade the promoted commander, and the cannon was roaring over the mountains in honor of the victor ! "Fortunately for those concerned, Elder A. O. Smoot, and. not some mad fanatic, was mayor of the city of the Saints in those troublesome times." CHAPTER XXXV. TRIAL OF THE MORRISITES. SENTENCE OF THE PRISONERS. THEY ARE IMMEDIATELY PARDONED BY GOVERNOR HARDING. COPIES OF THE EXTRAORDINARY PARDONS. THE GRAND JURY DECLARES THE LAW OUTRAGED AND PRESENTS GOVERNOR HARDING IN THE THIRD U. S. DISTRICT COURT FOR JUDICIAL CENSURE. THEIR HISTORY OF THE MORRISITE DISTURBANCE. THE COURT SUSTAINS THE CENSURE. At the March term of the Third U. S. District Court the famous Morrisite trial took place with Chief Justice John F. Kinney presiding. Ten of the pris- oners were indicted for killing two of the U. S. posse sent to enforce the law which the Morrisite community openly defied ; seven of these were convicted, one HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. jrg "nolled," and two were acquitted. Sixty-six others were fined one hundred dol- lars each for resisting the posse. Of the seven convicted of " murder in the second degree" one was sentenced to fifteen years' imprisonment, one to twelve years, and five to ten years each. Immediately after the passing of the sentence the fol- lowing pardons were granted by Governor Harding, embracing the whole of the Morrisite prisoners. " Utah Territory, Executive Department. To all to wl^07n these presents shall come greeting : " Whereas, at the March term of the District Court for the Third Judicial Dis- tiict in said Territory, A. D. 1863. The Honorable John F. Kinney presiding. Peter Klemgard, Christen Nielsen, Gens Christensen, Kadrup Nielsen, Abraham Taylor, Andrew Lee, and Andrew M. Mason were convicted of murder in the second degree, and sentenced each for a term of years, at hard labor in the Peni- tentiary. "Now, know ye, that I, Stephen S. Harding, Governor of the Territory of Utah, divers good causes me thereto moving, by virtue of the power in me vested, have given and granted, and by these presents do give and grant unto the said Peter Klemgard, Christen Nielsen, Gens Christensen, Kadrup Nielsen, Abra- ham Taylor, Andrew Lee, and Andrew M. Mason, and to each of them, full and perfect pardon for the offense aforesaid, of which they stand convicted, and they are, and each of them is, hereby forever exonerated, discharged, and absolved from the punishment imposed upon them or either of them, in pursuance of said conviction. " In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand, and caused the [L.S.] Great Seal of the Territory of Utah to be affixed at Great Salt Lake City this 31st day of March, A. D. 1863. STE. S. HARDING. Gov. of Utah Territory. "By the Governor: Frank Fuller, Secretary.'' " Utah Territory, Executive Department. " To all to whom these presents shall come greeting : "Whereas, at the March term of the District Court for the Third Judicial District in said Territory, A. D. 1863. The Honorable John F. Kinney presiding. Richard Cook, John Parson, Edward Moss, Daniel Smith, John B. Ledgeway, John O. Mather, James Mather, Richard D. Aloey, Alexander Warrender, Wil- liam McGhie, Elijah L. Chappel, John E. Jones, John Cook, David Thomas, Peter John Moss, Joseph Taylor, Mathew Mudd, James Bowman, Robert E. Far- ley, William W. Thomas, Alexander Dow, John Keehorn, John C. Edwards, John Gray, Joseph Dove, Thomas L. Williams, William Davis, Alonzo Brown, Edward Lloyd, Samuel Halse, Elijah Clifford, George Thompson, Goodman Goodmunsen, Charles Higham, John E. Reese, Soren Peter Gould, Jorjen Jensen, Soren Willis- sen, Lars Christen Hanson, Andres Jensen, Swen Hagg, Soren Peter Rasmussen, J20 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. Hans Peterson, Peter Peterson, John Peter Sorensen, Neils Larsen, Neils Ander- sen, Michael Christen Christiansen, Gens Paulsen, Neils Peterson, Lars Christen Larsen, Hans Aggerson, John G. Looselary, Lebrecht Barr, John Neilsen, Nels Rasmussen Beck, Christen Jensen, Peter Swenson, Neils Magnus Jorensen, Ras- mus Rasmussen, James Peterson, Lars Olsen, Gens Christian Senensen, Hans Peter Smith, Andres Anderson, Andres Christopherson, Hans Hanson, Ole Rosen- blade, and Peter Sorenson were convicted of the charge of resisting an officer in the service of process, and sentenced each to pay a fine of one hundred dollars. "Now know ye, that I, Stephen S. Harding, Governor of the Territory of Utah, divers good causes me thereto moving, by virtue of th^ power and authority in me vested have given and granted, and by these presents do give and grant unto the said Richard Cook, etc., etc., (all of the aforementioned,) and to each of them full and perfect pardon for the offence of which they stand con- victed, and they are, and each one of them is, hereby forever exonerated, dis- charged and absolved from the fine, costs and charges imposed upon them, or either of them, in pursuance of said conviction. "In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand, and caused the [L.S.] Great Seal of the Territory of Utah to be affixed at Great Salt Lake City this 31st day of March, A. D. 1863. STE. S. HARDING, Gov. Utah Territory. " By the Governor: Frank Fuller, Secretary^ Of the relative merit or demerit of the action of the United States and Ter- ritorial authorities concerned in the Morrisite affair the historian does not presume to touch, further than to present the record itself and its significance. The Chief Justice and the Grand Jury considered the law outraged, as set forth in the fol- lowing presentment of Governor Harding for judicial censure and the very plain passage of censure by the Chief Justice in court: "We trust the court will pardon the Grand Jury lor briefly referring to the facts connected with the arrest and trial of the men the Governor has seen proper, in such hot haste, to pardon and turn loose upon the community. "They are as follows: On the 22d day of May, A. D. 1862, a petition was filed before Hon. John F. Kinney, the Judge of the Third Judicial District, for a writ of habeas corpus, alleging that three men were unlawfully imprisoned at South Weber, in Davis County, and kept in close confinement, heavily ironed, without any process or authority of law. It may be well to state that, at the place men- tioned in the petition, a body of some two hundred men with their families had congregated in what is known as Kington Fort, and for more than a year had re- mained without cultivating the soil or following any industrial pursuit. What little property they had was owned in common, and this from time to time was disposed of to procure the bare necessaries of life. "At this place and by these men ivere the prisoners confined (mentioned in the petition for the writ of habeas corpus'). The writ was issued and served upon those who had the prisoners in custody, on the 24th day of May. No atten- HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. j2i tion was paid to it by defendants. The authority of the court was openly contemned and placed at defiance. Judge Kinney, after waiting for the de- fendants to produce the prisoners from the 24th day of May till the nth day of June (some eighteen days) issued, upon another affidavit, a writ for false imprisonment, another writ of habeas corpus, and a writ for contempt for disobedience to the first writ. These writs were placed in the hands of the Territorial marshal, who, being well advised that armed resistance would be made to the service of any process in said fort, called upon Acting-Governor Fuller, who furnished the officer with a military posse to enable him to execute the mandates of the court. On the morning of the 13th day of June, the mar- shal with his posse arrived near the fort and sent the following proclamation under a flag, which was received and read by Banks and others, the parties named in said writs, and to whom said proclamation was directed: "'Headquarters Marshal's Posse, Weber River, June 13, 1862. '"To Joseph Morris, John Banks, Richard Cook, John Parsons and Peter Klemgard : " ' Whereas, you have heretofore disregarded and defied the judicial officers and the laws of the Territory of Utah; and whereas, certain writs have been issued for you from the Third Judicial District Court of said Territory, and a sufficient force furnished by the Executive of the same to enforce the law: This is therefore to notify you to peaceably and quietly surrender yourselves and the prisoners in your custody forthwith. " ' An answer is required in thirty minutes after the receipt of this document ; if not, forcible measures will be taken for your arrest. '''^Should you disregard this proposition and place your lives in jeopardy, you are hereby required to remove your women and children; and all persons peiiceably disposed are hereby notified to forthwith leave your encampment, and ar ) informed by this proclamation that they can find protection with this posse. H. W. LAWRENCE, Territorial Marshal. Per R. T. Burton and Theodore McKean, Deputies.'" "This was unheeded and disregarded. Additional time was given after the Diration of the thirty minutes for the delivery of the persons called for by the it ; still no attention was paid to the demands of the officer. At length fire s opened and for three days, almost continuously, did the belligerents within , I fort keep up a fire on the marshal and his posse, killing on the first day a man the name of Jared Smith, and on the third day another man attached to the irshal's posse. On the evening of the 15th the rebellion was subdued by the Jrrender of the men, and one hundred stand of arms. Parties on both sides had en killed in consequence of the defiant position taken against the enforcement the law, and in defending the position thus unlawfully assumed by more than le hundred well armed men. " The disloyal men thus found in arms, fighting against the service of pro- ^ss, were taken prisoners, taken before Judge Kinney, in chambers, who admitted J22 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. all but two to bail for their appearance at the next March term of the court — said two being committed to await their trial for murder. At the recent sitting of i the Territorial Court, Judge Kinney presiding, some ninety or more were indicted l| under the statute for resisting an officer, and ten of the principle men for the , murder of Jared Smith, who was shot dead on the first day of the resistance. ' Sixty-six appeared and were tried for resisting the officer, the others having left the country. After a long, patient and entirely satisfactory trial to the defendants, the jury assessed a fine of one hundred dollars against each of them — the lowest sum allowed by the statute and when the law authorized them to fine not exceeding one thousand dollars and imprisonment not exceeding one year. The least pun- ishment allowed by the statute was meted out to the prisoners, and that, too, when ■ the testimony of their guilt was overwhelming. Of the ten indicted for murder, one was nolled, two acquitted and seven convicted of murder in the second degree. The punishment for murder in the second degree is imprisonment not les-s than ten years and may be during natural life ; still the jury actuated by feelings of humanity and mercy, affixed the punishment of five of the prisoners to imprison- ment for the period of ten years each, one for twelve and one for fifteen years. ;1;*;K ****** "But, the Governor, clothed with \\\^ pardoning power, interposes to prevent the punishment due to rebels against the law. He sanctions and sustains their rebellion and, by pardoning them, proclaims to the world that they have acted rio-htly, wisely and lawfully. No time is allowed for mvestigation, none for re- pentance or reformation ; but in less than three days from the time of the sentence of the court, are all of them pardoned by the Executive, to renew their armed resistance against the power of the Government — a pardon which not only seeks to release them from fine and punishment, but the costs due to the officers and witnesses. ******** " Therefore, we the United States Grand Jury for the Third fudicial Dis- trict for the Territory of Utah, present his ^Excellency' Stephen S, Harding, Goverjior of Utah, as we would an unsafe bridge over a dangerous stream — jeKp- ardizing the lives of all who pass over it, or, as we would a pestiferous cesspoo) ''n our district, breeding disease and death. "Believing him to be an officer dangerous to the peace and prosperity this Territory; refusing, as he has, his assent to wholesome and needed legie tion ; treating nearly all the Legislative acts with contumely; and last of all, the crowning triumph of his inglorious career, turning loose upon the commun a large number of convicted criminals. " We cannot do less than present his Excellency as not only a dangerous mj but also as one unworthy the confidence and respect of a free and enlighten people. "All of which is respectfully submitted. "George A. Smith, Franklin D. Richards, Elias Smith, William S. Mu Samuel F. Atwood, Philip Margetts, John Rowberry, Claudius V. Spencer, Ch J. Thomas, John W. Myers, Alfred Cordon, George W. Ward, Horace Gib Lewis A. West, Leonard G. Rice, Isaac Brockbank, George W. Bryan, Jam] Bond, John B. Kelley, Gustavus Williams, Wells Smith, John D. T. McAllist Andrew Cunningham. u of ila- asii ity in,. ed HISTORY OF SALr LAKE CITY. 323 His Honor directed, that in accordance with the request, they be spread upon the records of the court. The foreman of the Grand Jury then stated that they had concluded their labors, and had no further business before them, whereupon the Judge addressed them as follows : ' ' Gentlemen of the Grand Jury : " The paper just read by the clerk, is one of great responsibilty, presenting the Governor of this Territory as unworthy the confidence and respect of the people. " I trust you have fully considered the importance of the step which you as a Grand Jury have felt called upon, under the oaths of your ufifice, to take. •■' I am well persuaded that in no spirit of malice or undue prejudice have you been induced to call the attention of the Court and people to what you regard as the official misconduct of the Executive, but only as the deliberate result of your investigations for the public good. "I am perfectly familiar with the facts referred to by you in relation to the armed resistance to the law in the service of process. Upon affidavit made be- fore me were the writs issued, the service of which was attempted to be resisted by an armed rebellion. " The trial of men thus found in arms very recently took place in the Court over which I have the honor to preside, and the trial, as you state, was conducted with deliberation, and the verdict of the jury in each of the cases for resisting the officer and for murder were such as met with the approval of the court. "The law and its authority were fully vindicated by the verdicts, but, as you state, the Governor has granted an unconditional pardon. " What effect this may have upon the minds of evil di-.posed persons I know not, but leave the responsibility where it belongs, with the Governor, who, in the exercise of a naked power, has seen proper to grant executive clemency. " You have now, as you state, concluded your labors and before discharging you I desire to tender to you the commendations of the Court for your attention and diligence in the discharge of your duties. "Your labors have resulted in the presentation of a number of indictments for crime — some of the prisoners charged by you having been tried and con- victed, and others are awaiting their trial. " It is only by a grand jury discharging their duty faithfuMy and fearlessly that crime can be suppressed, and offenders punished, for all persons must pass the ordeal of your body, before they can be introduced by the Government into this Court for trial and punishment. "It is possible, and highly probable, that this is the last court over which I shall have the honor to preside in your Territory. Such are the indications. I have been the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Utah, and Judge of this district most of the time since 1854 — having come among you a stranger, but I was treated with kindness, and my authority with consideration and respect. "Appointed by Mr. Pierce in 1853, and reappointed in i860 by Mr. Bu- chanan, and continued in office by Mr. Lincoln, and having held many courts, 324 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. I I I tried many cases, both civil and criminal, of an important character, I am happy | in being able to state that I have found no difficulty in Utah in administering the \ law, except where its administration has been thwarted by Executive interference. ' ' Let honesty, impartiality and ability be the characteristic qualifications of the Judge, and a fearless discharge of duty, and he will be as much respected in this Territory, and his decisions as much honored, as in any State or Territory of the Union. And to use an odious distinction, attempted to be made between * Mor- ! mon ' and 'Gentile,' I am also happy in being able to state, that while these | parties, differing so widely as they do in their religious faith, have been suitors in my court, the so-called Gentile, has obtained justice from the verdict of a so-called ' Mormon' jury, 1 " I repeat gentlemen, that the law is, and can be maintained in this Terri- tory, and that there is more vigilance here in arresting and bringing criminals to trial and punishment than in any country where I have ever resided. " "In the discharge of my judicial duties, I have endeavered to be actuated by a sense of the responsibility of my position ; ever keeping constantly in mind that I was among a civilized and enlightened people, who were entitled to the same consideration from the court, as the people of any other Territory; and that the court here, as well as elsewhere, should be free from bias and prejudice. " Gentlemen, accept ray thanks for your co-operation, in support of my efforts to maintain and enforce the law. " To the Petit Jurors I will say, that I have been well sustained by them in the trial of causes, and can only hope that when I retire from the bench my suc- cessor will be an able, honest judge, and have no more difficulty in discharging his duties than I have had. " With these remarks, gentlemen, I dismiss you from further attendance upon the court." Mr. Ferguson moved that as the Grand Jury were discharged without finding an indictment against Brigham Young, that he be discharged from his recog- \ nizance. I HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. J25 CHAPTER XXXVI. REMOVAL OF GOVERNOR HARDING, SECRETARY FULLER, AND CHIEF JUSTICE KINNEY. LINCOLN'S POLICY TO "LET THE MORMONS ALONE." START ING OF THE UNION VEDETTE. OPENING OF THE UTAH MINES. MILI- TARY DOCUMENTS. CREATION OF A PROVOST MARSHAL OF GREAT SALT LAKE CITY. The counter petitions to the President of the United States from the city and camp, one for the removal and the other for the retention of Governor Hard- ing, were responded to by concessions to both parties. Governor Harding, Secretary Fuller and Chief Justice Kinney were removed; James Duane Doty was appointed Governor; Amos Reed, Secretary; and John Titus of Pennsylvania, Chief Justice. The official decapitation of the Governor was clearly in answer to the petition of the citizens, while the removal of Chief Justice Kinney and Secretary Fuller was in consideration of the charge made against them — that they had been "sub- servient to the will of Brigham Young." The Chief Justice had for months felt that in maintaining the integrity of the judicial department he was placing him- self upon the altar of sacrifice, as shown in his parting words to the grand jury ; but his official relations with Utah were not permitted to end with his removal, for at the next election, in August, 1863, he was sent to Congress as Delegate from Utah. The following noteworthy passage of a letter from President Brigham Young to Elder George Q. Cannon, then in England, expresses the policy of the Gov- ernment towards Utah during the remainder of President Lincoln's life : •'Great Salt Lake City, U. T., June 25, 1863. * ' President Caniion : "Dear Brother — * * * Since Harding's departure on the nth inst. , without the least demonstration from any party, and only one individual to bid him good-bye, the transient persons here continue very quiet, and apparently without hope of being able to create any disturbance during the present Adminis- tration. They certainly will be unable to, if President Lincoln stands by his statement made to Brother Stenhouse on the 6th inst., viz: 'I will let them alone if they will let me alone.' We have ever been anxious to let them alone further than preaching to them the gospel and doing them good when they would permit us, and if they will cease interfering with us unjustly and unlawfully, as the Presi- dent has promised, why of course they will have no pretext nor chance for collision during his rule. * * * " Your brother in the gospel, BRIGHAM YOUNG." On the 20th of November, 1863, the first number appeared of The Union II 72<5 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. Vedette, published, as announced, "by officers and enlisted men of the California and Nevada Territory Volunteers." \ The initial number of the Vedette contains the following circular letter from General Connor, relative to mines and mining interests in this Territory: | "Headquarters, District of Utah, Great Salt Lake City, U. T. November 14, 1863. "Colonel: " The general commanding the district has the strongest evidence that the mountains and canyons in the Territory of Utah abound in rich veins of gold, silver, copper and other minerals, and for the purpose of opening up the country to a new, hardy, and industrious population, deems it important that prospecting for minerals should not only be untrammelled and unrestricted, but fostered by every proper means. In order that such discoveries may be early and reliably made, the general announces that miners and prospecting parties will receive the fullest protection from the military forces in this district, in the pursuit of their avocations; provided, always, that private rights are not infringed upon. The mountains and their now hidden mineral wealth, are the sole property of the nation, whose beneficent policy has ever been to extend the broadest privileges to her citizens, and, with open hand, invite all to seek, prospect and possess the wonderful riches of her wide-spread domain. "To the end that this policy may be be fully carried out in Utah, the Gen- eral commanding assures the industrious and enterprising who may come hither, of efficient protection, accorded as it is by the laws and policy of the nation, and enforced, when necessary, by the military arm of the Government. "The General in thus setting forth the spirit o^ our free institutions for the information of commanders of posts within rhe district, also directs that every proper facility be extended to miners and others in developing the country; and that soldiers of the several posts be allowed to prospect for mines, when such ! course shall not interfere with the due and proper performance of their military 1 duties. "Commanders of posts, companies and detachments within the district are enjoined to execute to the fullest extent the spirit and letter of this circular com- munication, and report, from time to time, to these head-quarters the progress made in the development of the Territory, in the vicinity of their respective posts or stations. "By command of Brig.-Gen. Connor: CHAS. H. HEMPSTEAD, Capt. C. S. and A. A. A. Geti ir In March, 1S64, another circular was issued by General Connor which was t:onsidered to be very pronounced and threatening towards the leaders of the Mormon community: "Headquarters, District of Utah, Camp Douglas, U. T,, March ist, 1864. '• Circular: "The undersigned has received numerous letters of complaint and inquiry HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. J27 from parties within and without the district, the former alleging that certain resi- dents of Utah Territory indulge in threats and menaces against miners and others desirous of prospecting for precious metals, and the latter asking what, if any, protection will be accorded to those coming hither to develop the mineral resources of the country. " Without giving undue importance to the thoughtless or reckless words of misguided, prejudiced, or bad-hearted men who may be guilty of such threats as those referred to, and indulging the hope that they are but individual expressions rather than menaces, issued by any presumed or presumptuous authority whatso- ever, the undersigned takes occasion to repeat what no loyal citizen will gainsay, that this Territory is the public property of the nation, whose wish it is, that it be developed at the earliest possible day, in all its rich resources, mineral as well as agricultural, pastoral and mechanical. To this end, citizens of the United States, and all desirous of becoming such, are freely invited by public law and national policy, to come hither to enrich themselves and advance the general wel- fare from out the public store, which a bountiful Providence has scattered through these richly laden mountains and fertile plains. The mines are thrown open to the hardy and industrious, and it is announced, that they will receive the amplest protection in life, property and rights, againse aggression from whatsoever source, Indian or white. " The undersigned has abundant reason to know that the mountains of Utah north, south, east and west, are prolific of mineral wealth. Gold, silver, iron, copper, lead and coal, are found in almost every direction, in quantities which promise the richest results to the adventurous explorer and the industrious miner. "In giving assurance of entire protection to all who may come hither to prospect for mines, the undersigned wishes at this time most earnestly, and yet firmly, to warn all, whether permanent residents or not of this Territory, that should violence be offered, or attempted to be offered to miners, in the pursuit of their lawful occupation, the offender or offenders, one or many, will be tried as public enemies, and punished to the utmost extent of martial law. "The undersigned does not wish to indulge in useless threats, but desires most fully and explicitly to apprise all of their rights, and warn misguided men of the inevitable result, should they seek to obstruct citizens in their rights, or throw obstacles in the way of the development of the public domain. While miners will be thus protected, they must understand, that no interference with the vested rights of the people of the Territory will be tolerated, and they are ex- pected to conform in all things to the laws of the land which recognize in their fullest extent the claims of the bona fide settler on public lands. " While the troops have been sent to this district to protect from a savage foe the homes and premises of the settlers, and the public interests of the nation, they are also here to preserve the public peace, secure to all the inestimable bless- ings of liberty, and preserve intact, the honor, dignity and rights of the citizen, vested by a free Constitution, and which belong to the humblest equally with the highest in the land. This, their mission, it is the duty of the undersigned to see fulfilled by kindly and warning words, if possible, but if not, still to be enforced J 28 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. i\ at every hazard and at any cost. He cannot permit the public peace and the welfare of all to be jeoparded by the foolish threats or wicked actions of a few. | P. EWD. CONNOR, Brig. Gen., U. S. Vol., Comd'g Dist.'' In June a special order was issued creating a provost marshal of great salt lake city. " Headquarters District of Utah, Camp Douglas, Utah Territory, Near Great Salt Lake City, July 9th, 1864. "special order no. 53. " ist. Capt. Chas. H. Hempstead, Commissary of Subsistence, U. S. Vol's, is hereby appointed Provost Marshal of Great Salt Lake City, U. T. , and will immediately enter upon the duties of his ofifice. He will be obeyed and respected accordingly. "2d. Company L, 2d Cav. C. V., Capt. Albert Brown, is hereby detailed as Provost Guard, and will immediately report to Capt. Chas. H. Hempstead, Provost Marshal, Great Salt Lake City, for duty. " 3d. The Quartermaster's Department will furnish the necessary quarters, offices, etc. *' By command of BRIG.-GEN. CONNOR. " Chas. H. Hempstead, Capt. C. S. U. S. Vol's, and A. A. A. Gen I. \ >» I II This series of circulars was clima.xed by the following letter to the War De- partment (a copy of which has been furnished to the author by the General him- self), setting forth his views and policy concerning LTtah. Headquarters District of Utah, Camp Douglas, Utah Territory, Near Great Salt Lake City, July 21st, 1864. " Colonel: " Having had occasion recently to communicate with you by telegraph on the subject of the difficulties which have considerably excited the Mormon community for the past ten days, it is perhaps proper that I should report more fully by letter relative to the real causes which have rendered collision possible. - |H " As set forth in former communications, my policy in this Territory has been ! to invite hither a large Gentile and loyal population, sufficient by peaceful means and through the ballot-box to overwhelm the Mormons by mere force of numbers, and thus wrest from the Church — disloyal and traitorous to the core — the absolute and tyrannical control of temporal and civil affairs, or at least a population numerous enough to put a check on the Mormon authorities, and give countenance to those who are striving to loosen the bonds with which they have been so long oppressed. With this view, I have bent every energy and means of which I was possessed, both personal and official, towards the discovery and development of HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 3^9 the mining resources of the Territory, using without stint the soldiers of my com- mand, whenever and wherever it could be done without detriment to the public service. These exertions have, in a remarkably short period, been productive of the happiest results and more than commensurate with my anticipations. Mines of undoubted richness have been discovered, their fame is spreading east and west , voyageurs for other mining countries have been induced by the discoveries already made to tarry here, and the number of miners of the Territory steadily and rapidly increasing. With them, and to supply their wants, merchants and traders are flocking into Great Salt Lake City, which by its activity, increased number of Gentile stores and workshops, and the appearance of its thronged and busy streets, presents a most remarkable contrast to the Salt Lake of one year ago. Despite the counsel, threats, and obstacles of the Church, the movement is going on with giant strides. "This policy on my part, if not at first understood, is now fully appreciated in its startling effect, by Brigham Young and his coterie. His every efforts, covert and open, having proved unequal to the task of checking the transformation so rapidly going on in what he regards as his own exclusive domain, he and his Apostles have grown desperate. No stone is left unturned by them to rouse the people to resistance against the policy, even if it should provoke hostility against a government he hates and daily reviles. It is unquestionably his desire to provoke me mto some act savoring of persecution, or by the dextrous use of which he can induce his deluded followers into an outbreak, which would deter miners and others coming to the Territory. Hence he and his chief men make their taber- nacles and places of worship resound each Sabbath with the most outrageous abuse of all that pertains to the Government and the Union — hence do their prayers ascend loudly from the housetops for a continuance of the war till the hated Union shall be sunk — hence the persistent attempt to depreciate the national currency and institute a "gold basis" in preference to " Lincoln skins," as treasury notes are denominated in Sabbath day harangues. " Hence it was that the establishment of a provost guard in the city was made the pretext for rousing the Mormon people to excitement and armed assembling, by the most ridiculous stories of persecution and outrage on their rights, while the fanatical spirit of the people, and the inborn hatred of our institutions and Govern- ment were effectually appealed to, to promote discord and provoke trouble, I am fully satisfied that nothing but the firmness and determination with which their demonstrations were met, at every point, prevented a collision, and the least appear- ance of vacillation on my part would surely have precipitated a conflict. I feel that it is not presumptuous in me to say that in view of what has already been accomplished in Utah, that the work marked out can and will be effectually and thoroughly consummated if the policy indicated be pursued and I am sustained in my measures at department headquarters. I am fully impressed with the opinion that peace is essential to the solving of the problem, but at the same time conscious that peace can only be maintained by the presence of force and a fixed determina- tion to crush out at once any interference with the rights of the Government by persons of high or low degree. While the exercise of prudence in inaugurating measures is essential to success, it should not be forgotten that the display of power 14 3 JO HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. and the exhibition of reliance on oneself have the most salutary restraining effect on men of weak minds and criminal intent. Deeply as Brigham Young hates our Government, malignant and traitorous as are his designs against it, inimical as he is against the policy here progressing of opening the mines to a Gentile populace, and desperate as he is in his fast-waning fortunes, he will pause ere he inaugurates a strife, so long as the military forces in the Territory are sufficiently numerous to hold him and his deluded followers in check. The situation of affairs in Utah is clear to my own mind, and, without presumption, I have no fear for the result, if sustained by the department commander as indicated in this and former communi- cations. Desirous as I am of conforming strictly to the wishes and judgment of the Major-General commanding the department, and having thus fully set forth my views and the facts bearing on the case, I beg leave respectfully to ask from the department commander an expression of opinion as to the policy of the course pursued, and such suggestions or instructions as he may deem proper, as a guide in the future. "Very respectfully, your obedient servant, P. EDW. CONNOR, '■^ Brii^.-Genl. U. S. Vol., Commanding District. ' ' Lieut - Col. R. C Drum, Asst. Adjt.-Genl. U. S. A., San Francisco, Cal.'' The foregoing documents show that General Connor designed with his troops to reconstruct Utah. In pursuance of that design undoubtedly the provost guard was established in Great Salt Lake City and his report to the Department seems a very decided asking of the Government for the mission of a semi-military dic- tatorship over Utah. A few years later the mines of Utah were everywhere opened and thousands of a Gentile population poured into the Territory without provoking even a desire of hindrance from the Monnon people. The. General's report, though a true expression of his then views, does not accord with the actual history as since developed. And it is very suggestive to note that the Provost Marshal of our city of 1864, was Brigham Young's legal counsellor and advocate in 1872, and that General Connor offered to go bail for Brigham Young in the sum of $100,000 when he was on trial in the court of Chief Justice James B- McKean. '^^^^^y^'. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. jji CHAPTER XXXVII. HAPPY CHANGE IN THE RELATIONS BETWEEN THE CITY AND THE CAMP. GRAND INAUGURAL CELEBRATION OF LINCOLN BY THE MILITARY AND CITIZENS. CONNOR GREATLY MOVED BY THE LOYALTY OF THE MASSES OF THE MORMON PEOPLE. THE BANQUET AT NIGHT. THE CITY GIVES A BALL IN HONOR OF GENERAL CONNOR. THE CITY IN MOURNING OVER THE ASSASSINATION OF PRESIDENT LINCOLN. FUNERAL OBSEQUIES AT THE TABERNACLE. The year 1865 saw a most happy change in the relations between the city and the camp. It was brought about by a hearty mutual disposition to celebrate the victories of the Union and the inauguration of Abraham Lincoln on his second term. An enthusiastic meeting of the cfificers of Camp Douglas and prominent citizens was held in the city, at Daft's Hall, on the 28th of February, 1865, and the following committees were appointed. Committee of Arrangements : Wm. Gilbert, D. F. Walker, Samuel Kahn, Lieu. -Col. Milo George, Capt. M. G. Lewis, John Meeks. Committee on Finance: Frank Gilbert, Charles B. Greene. Committee on Exercises: Capt. C. H. Hempstead, Col. O. M. Irish, Richard A. Keyes. The committee on arrangements selected S. S. Walker, Esq., to act as Grand Marshal who chose as his aids: Richard A. Keyes, G. W, Carleton, Charles King, Thos. Stayner, Samuel Serrine and John Paul. On the 2nd of March the grand marshal published by order of the committee of arrangements the PROGRAMME OF THE DAY. The procession will form at 11 a. m., at the eastern end of Market Street (First South Temple Street) where it will be joined by the military from Camp Douglas. Escort— Provost Guard— Co. " D." 3d Inf'y C. V., Capt. W. Kettredge commanding; Grand Marshal — Sharp Walker, Esq., and Aids; band; His Excellency the Governor of Utah and General Commanding the District ; Dis- trict Staff; Chaplain — Rev. N. McLeod ; Orator of the day — Hon. Chief Jus- tice John Titus; Federal Officers; Mayor, City and County Officers; Civic Societies and Citizen Military Organizations; Citizens in vehicles ; Citizens on horseback; Citizens on foot; band; Lieut. Col. Milo George, 1st Cav, N. Vols, and staff; Detachments from Co.'s A, B, and D 3d Inft'y Bat. C V. Artillery; Detachments from Go's. C, and F, ist Cav. Nev. Vols. A Federal salute (13 guns) will be fired by the artilery at meridian. The procession will march under the command of the Grand Marshal through the principal streets of Salt Lake City, and assemble at the State House, corner 332 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. of Main and South Temple Streets. After appropriate exercises, a national salue of 36 guns will be fired by the artillery. All loyal citizens of Great Salt Lake City and vicinity are cordially invited to participate in the procession and exercises, and the merchants, bankers and others are requested to close their places of business and take part in the ceremonies. By order of the committee on arrangement. SHARP WALKER, Grand Alarshal. On the same day the City Council issued the following : "City Council Chamber, Great Salt City, March 2nd, 1S65. " Whereas, Saturday, the 4th instant, being the day of inauguration of the President of the United States, and " Whereas, also, by reason of the many recent victories of the armies of our country ; therefore be it ^'■Resolved, by the City Council of Great Salt Lake City, that we cheerfully join in the public celebration and rejoicings of that day throughout the United States, and that we cordially invite the citizens, and organizations, military and civil, of the Territory, county and city, to unite on that occasion. Be it further ^^ Resolved, that a committee of three be appointed to confer with the Grand Marshal of the day, and make the necessary arrangements to join in the general celebration. A. O. SMOOT, Mayor. "Attest: Robert Campbell, City Recorder,'^ The committee appointed by the City Council consisted of John Sharp, Enoch Reese and Theodore McKean. Colonel Robert T. Burton of the Utah militia was appointed Marshal. On learning of this action the following corres- pondence was had between the chairmen of committees: "Great Salt Lake City, U. T., March 3d, 1S65. " Messrs. John Sharp, Enoch Reese and T. McKean, Esqs., Com. of the Common Cotincil : ■" Gentlemen : "The undersigned, chairman of committee on exercises on the 4th inst., ap- pointed at mass meeting of citizens, having selected the Hon. John Titus, Chief Justice of Utah to deliver an oration on the occasion of the proposed national celebration, begs leave to say that as the exercises will be brief, the committee would be pleased to tender the stand and the occasion to some gentlemen, to be selected by yourselves, to address the concourse at the close of the oration. " I have the honor to remain, gentlemen, very respectfully. Your obedient servant, CHAS. H. HEMPSTEAD, Chairman Committee on Exercises. ^^ HISTOR V OF SAL T LAKE CITY. 333 "Great Salt Lake City, March 3d, 1865. " Hon. Chas. H. Llempstead, Chairman Committee on Exercises : "Sir — Your communication of to-day has been received. The committee tender their thanks, and accept the proposition, and beg leave to name Hon. Wm. H. Hooper to deliver the closing address. Very respectfully, JOHN SHARP, Chairman Com. on Arrangements.''' Of the celebration the Vedette said : "This was decidedly a notable occasion in Utah. The demonstrations were so entirely different from anything which has come within the range of our ex- perience here, that it deserves special notice at our hands as an important event in the history of this Territory. * * * * " The whole procession was about one mile in length, and presented a very imposing appearance. As it moved along the streets, broad and straight, of the Mormon Capital, the sidewalks, wherever it passed, the windows and even the housetops being thronged by eager^ and in some instances, enthusiastic lookers on. The bands awoke the wintry echoes with inspiring strains of music, appropriate to the occasion, and, what with the profusion of flags floating from many build- ings and ornamenting the teams and sleighs in the procession, or borne by the occupants, the rosettes, streamers, and the thousand and one other devices, in all of which red, white and blue were the pervading colors, the city wore a gala ap- pearance, which seemed to be participated in by all parties, and it was evidently the determination, on all hands, to make it a day of general rejoicing. "Having completed its perambulations, the immense concourse assembled at the stand, prepared for the purpose, in front of the market, the provost guards which had acted as escort, formed in front facing the stage, the citizen companies in their rear, stretching along the streets, and the troops from this post drawn up in four ranks on the right and with all arms at rest. Around, and on all sides, completely filling the streets, covering the roofs and hanging out of the windows, was a dense mass of humanity silent and attentive to the proceedings. "The stand was occupied by Governor Doty, General Connor and staff. Chief Justice Titus, orator of the day, the Reverend Norman McLeod, chaplain of the day, and various of the city authorities and prominent citizens among whom were Mayor Smoot, Hon. George A. Smith, and Captain Hooper, who de- livered the closing address. " Capt, Hempstead opened the ceremonies with some brief and patriotic re- marks, and on behalf of the Committee of Arrangements, announced His Excel- lency J. Duane Doty, Governor of Utah, as the presiding officer of the day. The Chaplain of the day then delivered an appropriate and impressive prayer, followed by Chief Justice Titus in a most able and exceedingly eloquent oration. Cap:. W. H. Hooper then delivered a brief and patriotic address, relating some interesting incidents attending the opening scenes of rebellion at Washington in 1 860- 1. The bands discoursed most excellent music in the intervals of the several exercises, and both the oration and address were received by the attentive multitude with rousing cheers and demonstrations of applause. ^j^ HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. "At the conclusion of the interesting ceremonies at the stand, the vast con- course dispersed amid rousing cheers and salvos of artillery. The United States forces from Camp Douglas were placed in line, and the citizen cavalry of Great Salt Lake City, under Colonel Burton, escorted them on the road to camp. Afterwards, about four o'clock, Col. George and staff, of Camp Douglas, were invited to partake of an elegant repast provided by the City Council at the City Hall. The Mayor presided, and after the cloth was removed the era of toasts, speeches, and good things generally, seemed to have arrived. Mayor Smoot opened the ball by proposing the health of President Lincoln, and success to the armies of the Union. ' Capt. Hempstead responded at some length and closed by a toast to 'Our hosts, the Mayor and civic authorities of Great Salt Lake City.' "This was met in most happy style by a toast to General P. E. Connor, District Commander — responded to on behalf of the General by a member of his staff. Then came the health of ' Our guests, Colonel George and staff,' neatly re- plied to by the Colonel in a patriotic speech, followed by a toast to ' the Judiciary, the mainstay of republican institutions.' This called out Judge Smith, who re- torted most admirably and appropriately on ' his friends the military, the right arm of the Government.' " On the whole, the proceedings at the City Hall were an appropriate cul- mination of the day's proceedings. It was free, easy, hospitable and a most kindly interchange of loyal sentiment among gentlemen not wont often to meet over the convivial board. Like the procession, it was a union of the civil and military authorities of Utah, and passed off with eminent satisfaction to all con- cerned. " Among those present we noticed Mayor Smoot, the members of the City Council, Judge Smith, Judge Clinton, John Taylor, John Sharp, Councilor Wood- ruff, George Q. Cannon, Col. Burton, Wm. Jennings, Mr. Lawrence and others, Col. George and staff. Major O'Neil and a host too numerous to mention in de- tail. Nearly everybody present responded to a toast most patriotically and fre- quently most eloquently. " At a late hour the whole party rose and adjourned to meet at the Theatre. It was a source of very general regret that General Connor was not present, but as the whole affair was somewhat impromptu, the General was called to camp before the committee could meet him, and the members of his staff were constrained to respond in his name to the sentiments proposed in his honor. " In the evening, fire-works and general rejoicings testified, to a late hour, the universal feeling, and the day closed after a general and patriotic jubilee rarely, if ever before seen in Utah." Stenhouse says: "General Connor was greatly moved at the sight of the tradesmen and working people who paraded through the streets, and who cheered most heartily — and no doubt honestly — the patriotic, loyal sentiments that were uttered by the speakers. He wanted differences to be forgotten, and, with gen- tlemanly frankness, approached the author with extended hand, and expressed the joy he felt in witnessing the loyalty of the masses of the people." General Connor having been called to take command of the Department of HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY, 335 the Platte, a ball was given by the city authorities at the Social Hall in honor of the General, preceding his departure. Within two months after the celebration of his inaugural day the city and camp were called to unite in deep mourning over the martyrdon of Abraham Lincoln, which struck the soldier and the loyal citizen alike with horror. At the receipt of the dreadful news some of the soldiers of the provost guard established in the city seemed ready to vent their vengeful fury on the citizens, but even the rudest of them soon appreciated that for once they had done injustice to the Mormons, both leaders and people, in imagining that they would sympathize with that crowning infamy. The Mormons too keenly felt the memory of their own martyrs not to be most genuinely affected by the stroke which had given to the nation a martyr so pure in his life and patriotism, as was Abraham Lincoln, The Vedette quickly did the city justice and noted: "The merchants, bankers, saloon keepers, and all business men of Salt Lake City, closed their places of business at 10 a.m. on Saturday. The flags on all the public buildings, Brigham Young's residence, stores, etc., were displayed at half- mast, with crape drooping over them. Many of the principal stores and private residences were dressed in mourning. Brigham Young's carriage was driven through town covered with crape. The theatre was closed for Saturday evening, the usual night of performance, and every respect was shown for the death of our honored President. On Sunday the Tabernacle pulpit. Salt Lake City, was covered with crape, and every one throughout the city, that is, of the right- minded class, manifested the deepest sorrow at the horrible news conveyed by the telegraph." At a meeting of the Federal, civil and military officials of Utah, held at the Executive, in Great Salt Lake City, April i8th, at 2 p. m., Hon. J. Duane Doty, Governor, was called to the chair, Capt. C. H. Hempstead and T.'B. H. Stenhouse, Esq., appointed secretaries. After preliminary consultation and .!E;xpressiDn of feeling over the sad event which called this meeting together, resolutions were presented by the Hon. Chief Justice Titus, which were unanimously adopted. We cull the following: '^Resolved, that a committee of five be appointed on the part of the Federal officers to confer with a committee of like number on the part of the city author- ities, to made arrangements for suitable religious exercises to be held at the Tab" eanacle, April 19, at 12 o'clock m. Col. J. C. Little informed the meeting that Elder Amasa M. Lyman had been selected by the city authorities to deliver an address at the Tabernacle. " On motion, it was unanimously resolved that Rev. Norman McLeod be also invited to deliver an eulogium on the life, character and illustrious services of the late President, on the same occasion and at the same place. "In accordance with the foregoing resolutions the following gentlemen were appointed by the chair as the committee of arrangements, viz: Hon. Chief Justice John Titus, Col. O. H. Irish, Capt. Chas. H. Hempstead, Col. Robt. T. Burton, and Col. J. C. Little. j,j<5 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. "Following is the committee appointed on behalf of the city authorities, viz: Hon. Mayor Smoot, Alderman Sheets, Alderman Raleigh, Theo. McKean and N. H. Felt, Esqs. " On motion, the secretaries were instructed to transmit a copy of the pro- ceedings of this meeting to the City Council, and that public notice be given of the exercises at the Tabernacle. J. DUANE DOTY, President. " T. B. H. Stenhouse, Chas. H. Hempstead, Secretaries. Of the funeral obsequies in the Tabernacle the Vedette says : " On Wednesday, pursuant to notice, all business was suspended in Great Salt Lake City, the stores, public and private buildings were draped in mourning, and long before the hour named — 12 m. — throngs of citizens were wending their way to the Tabernacle to render the last sad, solemn, and heartfelt tribute to the great departed and deeply mourned dead. The Tabernacle was more than crowded, and upwards of tliree thousand people were present. The vast assemblage was called to order by City Marshal Little, in the name of the mayor, immediately after the entrance of the orators, civil and military functionaries, and a large body of prominent citizens, who occupied the platform. The scene was impres- sive and solemn, and all seemed to partake of the deep sorrow so eloquently ex- pressed by the speakers on the occasion. The stand was appropriately draped in mourning, and the exercises were opened by an anthem from the choir. Franklin D. Richards delivered an impressive prayer. The address of Elder Amasa M. Lyman was an earnest and eloquent outburst of feeling, and appropriate to the occasion. He spoke for forty-five minutes, and held the vast audience in un- broken silence and wrapt attention. " The address did credit to Mr. Lyman's head and heart. After another an- them from the choir, Rev. Norman McLeod, Chaplain of Camp Douglas was introduced, and delivered one of the most impressive and burning eulogiums on the life, character, and public services of President Lincoln which it was ever our pleasure to hear." HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. jj^ CHAPTER XXXVllI. Visit of the colfax party to salt lake city, a telegram from the MUNICIPAL council MEETS THEM ON THE WAY WITH TRIBUTE OF THE CITY'S HOSPITALITIES. THEY ACCEPT THE WELCOME. ENTRANCE INTO THE CITY UNDER ESCORT. ENTHUSIASM OF THE PARTY OVER THE BEAUTIES OF THE ROCKY MOUNTAIN ZION. GRAND SERENADE /ND SPEECHES. FORECAST OF THE GREAT FUTURE OF SALT LAKE CITY. The visit of Schuyler Colfax and party to Great Salt Lake City commences a new epoch in the history both of our city and Territory. The party consisted of Hon. Schuyler Colfax, the then speaker of the House of Representatives, Lieutenant-Governor- Bross, of Illinois, Samuel Bowles, editor of the Spring- field (Mass.) Republican, and Albert D. Richardson, ot the New York Tribime. Speaker Colfax undoubtedly came in a semi-official capacity. Indeed, in his address to the people of the West, he told them specifically that Presi- dent Lincoln, just previous to his assassination, charged him specially to thor- oughly investigate the affairs and interests of the Pacific States and Territories, for the Nation's purposes, and that Mr. Lincoln had entertained an extra- (jrdinary faith in the destiny of the great West, believing it would become the treasure-house of the Nation. In this view Utah was particularly an object of in- terest, not only for her prospects as a great silver mining Territory, but extraor-^ dinarily because of her peculiar social and domestic institutions. It was inferred that President Lincoln had designed some adequate legislation on Utah, conso- nant with his aims and spirit in the reconstruction of the South. This was to be gathered from the utterances of his envoy to the West — the character which Mr. Colfax certainly assumed. It is true that early in the war period President Lin- coln had said to a representative of Brigham Young — " that if the Mormons would let him alone he would let them alone j^' but the Republican party which bad elected him to supreme power, and in their initial platform coupled Utah and the South in a common and final settlement, now expected of him to adjust the affairs of Utah simultaneously with those of the '-'conquered South," and in ac- cordance with the " Chicago platform," which had declared "Slavery and Poly- gamy twin relics of barbarism." Such was the significance of the Colfax visit to Utah ; and, though the con- templated " settlement of Utah affairs " by special legislation was interrupted by the assassination of President Lincoln, and further interrupted by the great con- troversy which took place between the leaders of Congress and President Andrew Johnson, the original design of legislation for Utah quickly came up again when Colfax was elected vice-president, when it further assumed quite a war aspect. As tliis first visit of Mr. Colfax and party is the beginning of a chain of events and circumstances which have an unbroken continuance from the rise of General Grant and Mr. Colfax to the control of the nation, and perchance may be con- jj8 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. tinued for the next quarter of a century, the narrative of this Colfax visit, and a digest of the salient points of the speeches and utterances of the party in public to the citizens, and in private conversations with the Mormon leaders, may be preserved as a unique and very suggestive chapter of Utah's history. Along the journey from Atchison to San Francisco, the public was kept posted and alive with the movements and utterances of the Speaker and his com- panions, through the medium of the telegraph and Mr. Bowles' letters ; and, at every stage of the journey, the national importance of this visit to the great West was made the universal topic throughout the land. Mr. Bowles in closing his letters frcn Denver announced : "Our week in Colorado is ended ; we are off this morning for the seven days' stage ride north and west along the base of the Rocky Mountains, and through them at Bridger's Pass, to Salt Lake City, where we expect to worship with Brigham "Voung in his Tabernacle on Sunday week." In this same letter Mr. Bowles gives a description of INIr. Colfax's person, life, and public character, in which he said : "Without being, in the ordinary sense, one of the greatest of our public men, he is certainly one of the most useful, reliable and valuable, and in any capacity, even the highest, he is sure to serve the country faithfully and well. He is one of the men to be tenaciously kept in public life, and I have no doubt he will be. Some people talk of him for president ; Mr. Lincoln used to tell him he would be his successor; but his own ambition is wisely tempered by the purpose to perform present duties well. He certainly makes friends more rapidly and holds them more closely than any public man I ever knew; wherever he goes, the women love him, and the men cordially respect him ; and he is sure to always be a personal favorite, even a pet, with the people." In the very nature of things, the heralded visit of such a personage to the Rocky Mountain Zion created an uncommon interest here ; and the City Fathers hastened to meet him on the way with the following telegram : "Great Salt Lake City, Utah, June 7th, 1S65. "Hon, Schuyler Golf ax and Traveli?ig Companions, at Fort Bridger : "Gentlemen: — The undersigned committee, appointed by the city council of Great Salt Lake, take pleasure in informing you that the city council have unanimously passed a resolution tendering to you the hospitalities of the city during your sojourn in our midst. Being appointed to notify you of this resolution, we beg to add that a com- mittee of gentlemen have been also appointed by that body, to meet you before arrival in the city, and to conduct you to apartments prepared for your use. "Not being fully acquainted with the names of the gentlemen in the party, we ask excuse for the omission, by extending a warm invitation to them all. "We are, gentlemen, yours very respectfully, W. H. Hooper, J. H. Jones, William Jennings, T. B. H. Stenhouse, Committee. ' ' HISTORY OF SAL T LAKE CITY. jjg Fort Bridger, June lo. " IV. H. ILooper, Committee : — Our party accept. We leave here this morn- ing about ten o'clock and expect to reach Salt Lake City, on Sabbath morning about eight o'clock. Schuyler Colfax." The committee appointed by the Mayor and city council, to receive Speaker Colfax and friends, met them as they descended the hill entering the city, about eight o'clock on Sunday morning. As the stage halted. Captain Hooper, the chairman of the committee, exchanged salutations with Mr. Colfax, and simulta- neously both parties descended from their carriages and shook hands. The chair- man of the committee then made a cordial address of welcome to Mr. Colfax and friends in the city's name, in which he said : "In tendering you, and your traveling companions, Mr. Colfax, the hos- pitality of our mountain home, I do so with pride, that I am able to present to you a monumental evidence of what American people can do. "Seventeen years ago, this people, the citizens of Utah, immigrated to these distant parts, and were the first to unfurl the flag of the United States, when they fixed their camp where the city now stands, and to-day we are surrounded with the solid comforts and with many of the luxuries of life. "While I bid you welcome, sir, we think of the many services you have rendered us, and of the great good we have derived therefrom, for we are sensible that no man has done more to establish postal facilities on the great overland route to the Pacific. No people can appreciate those services more sensibly than the citizens of Utah, for we have often passed many months in the year without any communication whatever with our parent government. You, sir, were one of the first to stretch forth your hand to remedy this evil, and now instead of waiting months for news from the East, we receive it almost daily, by means of this ser- vice ; and thousands are blessed in the benefits of that great measure you have so faithfully advocated. "The great enterprise of establishing the telegraph wire across the continent, from which we have derived hourly communication with our sister States and Territories, is truly a great blessing, and to no one I am sure, Mr. Colfax, is the country indebted more than to yourself, for its erection. The active support which you gave the measure, contributed much to the establishment of the line, a medium through which time and space are nearly annihilated. "We take pride in introducing you to our city, in calling your attention to the improvements with which it is surrounded, as well as those of our settlements, reaching five hundred miles north and south and two hundred miles east and west. We take pleasure as well as pride, in alluding to our mills, woollen, cotton and paper factories, orchards, vineyards and fields of cotton and grain, and to every branch of our home industry introduced to multiply among ourselves, from the facilities which our country offers, every means of social and national comfort and independence. We present you these as the result of our industry and of our perseverance, against almost insurmountable obstacles. " To you editorial gentlemen, who not only govern, but in a sense manufac- J y^a HIS TOR Y OF SALT LAKE CITY. tiire, public opinion, we offer a hearty welcome. We had the pleasure, some years ago, of a visit from Mr. Greeley, of the Tribune, who spent some time in our midst, and I .can say wiih truth that in him we have always found a gentle- man ready and willing at all times to lend his influence in the cause of human progress. In conclusion, gentlemen, I again say, welcome." Mr. Colfax made a fitting reply to the " welcome," and the guests and com- mittee were then formally introduced to each other. Mr. R. Campbell, city re- corder, read the resolutions passed by the city council, tendering to Speaker Colfax and party the hospitalities of the city, after which the guests stepped into the carriages provided by the committee and were escorted by them into the city. Letter VIII. in Bowles' Book — "Across the Continent" — gives a graphic touch of the feelings and views of the Colfax party on their entrance into the Mormon Zion, amid the hearty welcomes of our citizens, both Mormon and Gentile. It is his first letter to the Springfield Republican from Great Salt Lake City, and is dated June 14, 1865 : " Leaving Fort Bridger for our last day's ride hither," wrote the pen of the Colfax party, " we leave the first Pacific slopes and table lands of the Rocky Mountains, drained to the south for the Colorado River, and to the north for the Columbia, and go over the rim of the basin of the Great Salt Lake, and enter that continent within a continent, with its own miniature salt sea, and its inde- pendent chain of mountains, and distinct river courses ; marked wonderfully by Nature, and marked now as wonderfully in the history of civilization by its peo- l)le, their social and religious organization, and their material development. This is Utah — these the Mormons. I do not marvel that they think they are a chosen people ; that they have been blessed of God, not only in the selection of their home, which consists of the richest region, in all the elements of a State, between the Mississippi Valley and the Pacific Shore, but in the great success that has at- tended their labors, and developed here the most independent and self-sustaining industry that the western half of our continent witnesses. Surely great worldly wisdom has presided over their settlement and organization; there have been tact and statesmanship in their leaders; there have been industry, frugality and integrity in the people; or one could not witness such varied triumphs of industry and in- genuity and endurance as here present themselves. >}: * si; :^; "Early 'sun-up' brought us to the last station, kept by a Mormon bishop with four wives, who gave us bitters and breakfast — the latter with green peas and strawberries — and then, leaving number one at his home, went on with us to the city for parochial visits to the other three, who are located at convenient distances around the Territory. " Finally we came out upon the plateau — or 'bench,' as they call it here — that overlooks the valley of the Jordan, the valley alike of Utah Lake and the Great Salt Lake, and the valley of the intermediate Great Salt Lake City. It is a scene of rare natural beauty. To the right upon the plateau lay Camp Douglas, the home of the soldiers and a village in itself; holding guard over the town and within easy cannon range of tabernacle and tithing-house; right beneath, in an angle of the plain — which stretched south to Utah Lake and west to the Salt HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. J4, Lake — "and Jordan rolled between" — was the city, regularly and handsomely laid out, with many fine buildings, and filled with thick gardens of trees and flowers, that gave it a fairy-land aspect; beyond and across, the plain spread out five to ten miles in width, with scattered farm-houses and herds of cattle; below, it was lost in the dim distance ; above, it gave way, twenty miles off, to the line of light that marked the beginning of the Salt Lake — the whole flat as a plain, and sparkling with river and irrigating canals, overlooked on both sides by hills that mounted to the snow line, and from which flowed the fatness of water and soil that makes this once desert valley blossom under the hand of industry with every variety of verdure, every product of almost every clime. "No internal city of the Continent lies in such a field of beauty, unites such rich and rare elements of nature's formation, holds such guarantees of greatness, material and social, in the good time coming of our Pacific development. I met all along the plains and over the mountains, the feeling that Salt Lake was to be the central city of this West ; I found the map, with Montana, Idaho, and Ore- gon on the north, Dakota and Colorado on the east, Nevada and California on the west, Arizona on the south, and a near connection with the sea by the Colo- rado Kiver in the latter direction, suggested the same; I recognized it in the Sab- bath picture of its location and possessions ; I am convinced of it as I see more and more of its opportunities, its developed industries and its unimproved pos- sessions. " Mr. Colfax's reception in Utah was excessive if not oppressive. There was an element of rivalry between Mormon and Gentile in it, adding earnestness and energy to enthusiasm and hospitality. First a troop cometh, with band of music, and marched us slowly and dustily through their Camp Douglas. Then, escaping thus, our coach was waylaid, as it went down the hill, by the Mormon authorities of the city. They ordered us to dismount ; we were individually introduced to each of twenty of them ; we received a long speech; we made a long one — standing in the hot sand with a sun of forty thousand lens power concentrated upon us, tired and dirty with a week's coach ride : was it wonder that the mildest tempers rebelled ? Transferred to other carriages, our hosts drove us through the city to the hotel; and then — bless their Mormon hearts — they took us at once to a hot sulphur bath, that nature liberally offers just on the confines of the city, and there we washed out all remembrance of the morning suffering and all the accu- mulated grime and fatigue of the journey, and came out baptized in freshness and self-respect. Clean clothes, dinner, the Mormon Tabernacle in the afternoon, and a Congregational (Gentile) meeting and sermon in the evening, were the proceedings of our first day in Utah. "Since and still continuing, Mr. Colfax and his friends have been the recip- ients of a generous and thougthful hospitality. They are the guests of the city ; but the military authorities and citizens vie together as well to please their visitors and make them pleased with Utah and its people. The Mormons are eager to prove their loyalty to the government, their sympathy with its bereavement, their joy in its final triumph — which their silence or their slants and sneers heretofore had certainly put in some doubt — and they leave nothing unsaid or undone now, towards Mr. Colfax as the representative of that government, or tovvards the pub- j^2 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. lie, to give assurance of their right mindedness. Also they wish us to know that they are not monsters and murderers, but men of intelligence, virtue, good man- ners and line tastes. They put their polygamy on high moral grounds ; and for the rest, anyhow, are not willing to be thought otherwise than our peers. And certainly we do find here a great deal of true and good human nature and social culture; a great deal of business intelligence and activity ; a great deal of gen- erous hospitality — besides most excellent strawberries and green peas, and the most promising orchards of apricots, peaches, plums and apples that these eyes ever beheld anywhere." Passing from Mr. Bowles' gushing description of the entrance of the Colfax party to the Mormon Zion, we come to the grand serenade and welcome given to them, on the Monday evening, by the citizens generally. At an early hour crowds of citizens assembled on Main Street, in front of the Salt Lake House. After dusk the assemblage grew immense, and anxious silence was enlivened by patriotic airs from the city brass band, under Captain Charles J. Thomas. On the appearance of the distinguished visitors on the balcony, es- corted by the city authorities, Mayor A. O. Smoot was unanimously called to the chair. Hon. John F. Kinney, the then delegate of Utah to Congress, made some prefatory remarks, introducing Speaker Colfax, who came forward and favored the gathered thousands with a speech, in the capacity of a social talk at times, and anon exalting into the realms of patriotism and eloquence. The points touching on our city and its people will form links in the chain of history. Speaker Colfax thus addressed the Mormon people : "Fellow citizens of the Territory of Utah : Far removed as I am to-night from my home, I feel that I have a right to call every man that lives under the American flag in this wide-spread republic of ours, by the name of fellow citizen. I come before you this evening — introduced by your delegate in so complimen- tary a manner, fearing that you will be disappointed by the speech to which you have to listen. I rise to speak to you of the future of this great country of ours, rather than of the past, or of what has been done for it in the progress of thi^ great republic. "I was gratified when, on this long journey which my companions and my- self are taking, we were met at the gates of your city, and its hospitality tendered to us ; although I must confess I would far rather have come among you in a quiet way, travelling about, seeing your city and Territory, and making observa- tions, without subjecting your official dignitaries to the trouble and loss of time that our visit seems to have entailed upon them, but which they insist is a pleas- ure. Yet when they voluntarily, and unexpectedly to us, offered us officially this hospitality, we felt that it should be accepted as promptly as it was tendered, I accept it the more cordially because I know that every one of you who knows anything about me and my companions, is sure that, reared as we have been in a different school from what you have been, and worshipping on a different altar, we are regarded as gentiles; yet, despite of all this, you have seen fit to request us to stop, on this journey to the Pacific, to receive the hospitalities which we have had lavished on us so boundlessly during the two days we have been in your midst. I rejuice that I came to you in a time like this, when the rainbow of HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CJTY. j^j p^ace spans our entire horizon from ocean to ocean, giving the assurance that the deluge of secession shall not again overwhelm this fair land of ours. (Cheers). I come to you rejoicing, and I was glad to hear from my old friend, Capt. Hooper, your former delegate to Congress, when he made his welcoming speech on Sab- bath morning in the suburbs of your city, that you too rejoiced in the triumph of this great republic of ours over th^ eneii ies who sought to bayonet the prostrate form of liberty, and to blot this great country from the map of the world. Thank God, who rules in the heavens, who determined that what he joined together on this continent, man should not put asunder ; the republic lives to-day, and will live in all the coming ages of the future. (Cheers). There may be stormy conflict and peril ; there may be a foreign war, but I trust not ; I am for peace instead of war, whenever war can be honorably avoided. I want no war with England or France. I want the development and mighty sweeping forward of our giant re- public, in its march of progress and power, to be, as it will be, the commanding nation of the world, when it shall lift its head like your Ensign Peak, yon tall clift that lifts its mighty form swelling over the valley, laughing at the rolling storm clouds around its base, while the eternal sunshine settles on its nCtifi ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ "I came here to-night, my friends, to speak to you frankly about the object of our visit in your midst. I know it is supposed, it is almost a by-word, that we of the sterner sex have adopted, that the ladies, the other sex, are the most in- quisitive. Having a profound reverence for woman, for I believe that mother, wife, home and heaven are the four noblest words in the English language, I have never believed this to be true; but from long experience and observation, am persuaded that our own sex is quite as inquisitive as the other. I can give you some proof of this : there has not been a single lady in Salt Lake City that has asked, 'what have you come out here for?' While there have been several gentlemen who have inquired, very respectfully, it is true, 'what was the object of your coming to Utah?' (Cheers and laughter.) Now I am going to tell you frankly all about it, so that your curiosity shall be entirely allayed. "I will begin by telling you what we did not come for. In the first place, we did not come here to steal any of your lands and possessions, not a bit of it. In the second place we did not come out here to make any remarkable fortune by the discovery of any gold or silver mines just yet. In the third place, we did not come out here to take the census of either sex among this people, and to this very hour I am in blissful ignorance as to whether the committee that met me in the suburbs of the city, are, like myself, without any wife, or whether they have been once or twice married, except your two delegates to Congress — they told me they only had a wife apiece. (Laughter.) In the fourth place, we did not come out here to stir up strife of any character; we came here to accept the hospitality of everybody here, of all sects, creeds and beliefs who are willing to receive us, and we have received it from all. Well, now, you see we could not have any ulterior design in coming here. >i< * * * >l< "Now, you who are pioneers far out here in the distant West, have many things that you have a right to ask of your government. I can scarcely realize, with this large assembly around me, that there is an almost boundless desert of j.^^ HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 1,200 miles between myself and the valley of the Mississippi. There are many things that you have a right to demand ; you have created, however, many things here for yourselves. No one could traverse your city without recognizing that vou are a people of industry. No one could look at your beautiful gardens, which charmed as well as astonished me, for I did not dream of any such thing in the city of Salt Lake when I came here, without realizing that 30U, or many of you, are a people of taste. If anybody doubt that, I think that one of your officers on the hill, who turned us loose into his strawberries to day, realized that he had vis- itors of taste. (Cheers and laughter.) I regret yet that I left it; but I was full, and the truth is I was too full for utterance, therefore I cannot make much of a speech to night. "In the first place, to speak seriously, coming cut here as } ou had, so far from the old States, you had aright to demand i)ostal communication. I heard something that surprised me, it must be an exaggeration of the truth — that atone time in your early settlement of this place, you were so far removed from postal communication, that you never heard of the nomination of President Pierce un- til he w^as elected and inaugurated as President. (A voice, 'that's so.') That was some six or eight months — that was a slow coach, and I don't see how any one who had been in the habit of reading a newspaper ever could get along at all ; he must have read the old ones over and over again. "It happened to be my fortune in Congress to do a little towards increasing the postal facilities in the West; not as much as I desired, but as much as I could obtain from Congress. And when it was proposed, to the astonishment of my fellow-members, that there should be a daily mail run across these pathless plains and mighty mountains, through the wilderness of the West to the Pacific, with the pathway lined with our enemies, the savages of the forest, and where the lux- uries and even the necessaries of life in some parts of the route are unknown, the project was not considered possible; and then, when in my position as chairman of the post office committee, I proposed that we should vote a million dollars a year to put the mail across the continent, members came to me and said, 'You will ruin yourself.' They thought it was monstrous — an unjust and extravagant expenditure. I said to them, though I knew little of the West then compared to what I have learned in a few weeks of this trip, I said, ' the people on the line of that route have a right to demand it at your hands, and in their behalf I demand it.' (Cheers.) Finally the bill was coaxed through, and you have a daily mail running through here, or it would run with almost the regularity of clockwork, were it not for the incursions of the savages. ^ * * " You had a right to this daily mail, and you have it. You had a right, also, to demand, as the eastern portion of this republic had, telegraphic commu- nication — speeding the messages of life and death, of pleasure and of traffic; that the same way should be opened up by that frail wire, the conductor of Jove's thunderbolts, tamed down and harnessed for the use of man. And it fell to my fortune to ask it for you ; to ask a subsidy from the government in its aid. It was but hardly obtained ; yet now the grand result is achieved, who regrets it, — who would part with this bond of union and civilization ? There was another great interest you had a right to demand. Instead of the slov, toilsome and expensive manner in which you freight your goods and hardware to this distant Territory, HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 345 you should have a speedy transit between the Missouri Valley and this intermoun- tain basin in which you live. Instead of paying iwo or three prices, — sometimes overrunning the cost of the article, — you should have a railroad communication, and California demands this. I said, as did many others in Congress, 'This is a great national enterprise ; we must bind the Atlantic and Pacific States together with bands of iron ; we must send the iron horse through all these valleys and mountains of the interior, and when thus interlaced together, we shall be a more compact and homogenous republic' And the Pacific Railroad bill was passed. This great work of uniting three chousand miles, from shore to shore, is to be consummated ; and we hail the day of peace, because with peace we can do many- things as a nation that we cannot do in war. This railroad is to be built — this company is to build it ; if they do not the government will. It shall be put through soon ; not toilsomely, slowly, as a far distant event, but as an event in the decade in which we live. * * ^ * "And now, what has the government a right to demand of you? It is not that which Napoleon exacts from his officers in France, — which is allegiance to the constitution and fidelity to the emperor. Thank God, we have no emperor nor despot in this country, throned or unthroned. Here every man has the right, himself, to exercise his elective suffrage as he sees fit, none molesting him or mak- ing him afraid. And the duty of every American citizen is condensed in a single sentence, as I said to your committee yesterday, — not in allegiance to an em- peror, but allegiance to the constitutiou, obedience to the laws, and devotion to the Union. (Cheers.) When you live to that standard you have the right to demand protection ; and were you three times three thousand miles from the national capital, wherever the starry banner of the republic waves and a man stands under it, if his rights of life^ liberty and property are assailed, and he has rendered this allegiance to his country, it is the duty of the government to reach out its arm, if it take a score of regiments, to protect and uphold him in his rights. (Cheers.) " I rejoice that I came into your midst. I want to see the development of this great country promoted. I would now touch on a question which I could allude to at greater length — that is about mining — but I find that our views differ somewhat with the views of some whom you hold in great respect here, therefore I will not expand on this subject as in Colorado or Nevada. But I would say this, for the truth compels me to say it, that this great country is the granary of the world everybody acknowledges, at home and abroad. When five of the States in the North- west produce three hundred and fifty million bushels of grain per year — when you can feed all your own land, and all the starving millions of other lands besides, with an ordinary crop, then you are indeed the granary of the world. But this country has a prouder boast than that — it is the treasury of the world. God has put the precious metals through and through these Rocky Mountains, and all these mountains in fact, and I only say to you that if you, yourselves, do not de- velop it, the rush and tide of population will come here and develop it and you cannot help it. (Cheers.) The tide of emigration from the old world, which even war with all its perils did not check, is going to pour over all these valleys and mountains, and they are going to extend the development of nature, and I will tell you if you do not want the gold they will come and take it themselves. 3^6 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. (Cheers.) You are going to have this Territory increase in population, thei> there will not b^ much danger about this State matter. '' Now, with the bright stars looking down upon us here, as they do on our friends in distant States, I thank you for the kind attention with which you have listened to me; and while I hold the stand I ask you to join with me, if you will, in three hearty hurrahs for that Union which is so dear to our hearts, the very ark of our covenant, which may no unhallowed hand ever endanger in the centuries yet to come." The assembled throng joined with the speaker and gave three hearty cheers, which were followed with three cheers "for Colfax." Next came Lieutenant-Governor Bross of Illinois, editor of the Chicago^ Tribune, whose speech (given entire) is one of the most hearty, genuine tributes ever uttered or penned in honor of the early settlers of Utah : "Fellow citizens: I have no doubt at all but that I could make a very good speech, if the Honorable Speaker of the House of Representatives of this great nation had not taken all the wind out of my sails, and left me nothing to say. (Laughter.) But it is just like him, for though he and I are neighbors, close neighbors, as he lives in the State of Indiana and I in the State of Illinois, yet that is the concession I am always obliged to make to the honorable gentleman. But I can only join my testimony to what the honorable Speaker has said, of my amazement at the development which I witness around me. "To see what I have seen to day — your beautiful gardens ; where, less than twenty years ago, sage brush held undisturbed possession of the soil, now side by side, grow in luxuriance and tempting sweetness the peach, the apple and the strawberry, is a matter of astonishment to me beyond anything I ever saw before in my life, (Cheers.) And it shows to me, my fellow citizens, because we are all citizens of this great and glorious republic, what industry and energy, guided by intelligence, can do for this broad land, (cheers.) I can look back over those wastes of sage brush, over which we have passed in our travel, and wherever there is a mountain current to water the soil, I see before me in this great city what can be realized on every acre of the broad plains between the Missouri and this beautiful valley. And I know that American energy and American enterprise will soon redeem large tracts of this land through which we have passed, and soon, instead of being a vast desert, it will bloom and blossom like the rose, as your city does to-day. (Hear, hear.) "I have always been a western man, though living down east. I have always felt that the West was soon to be the centre of wealth and power to this great nation. When but a boy I studied its geography ; when I grew to manhood, I studied its resources; now I am here to witness with my own eyes what American enterprise can do in the centre of the continent. And representing as I do, the great State of Illinois, that State that can mrnish food for the nation, and that city that sits as a queen at the head of Lake Michigan, ready with open arms to grasp the wealth of this North-west, and to pour back her wealth upon it, I feel hereto-night, as if I had an interest in you, and in the progress and development of this Territory and every other Territory between the lakes and the Pacific. And whatever I can do, as editor of what is recognized as one of the chief newspapers in the city of HISTORY OF SAL T LAKE CITY. J47 Chicago, to advance the interests of this North-west, you may calculate I shall do for your benefit. (Cheers.) "Among those things which I shall advocate is the necessity of the further development and the pushing forward of those great lines of communication which are to make us neighbors; and then, instead of rolling along in one of Mr, Holladay's fine coaches, for fine they certainly are, with our good friend Otis, I expect to have him by the hand, and taking our seat in the cars, come to Salt Lake City to eat strawberries with you in the short space of three days. (Cheers.) "I have seen a stage coach and the men who drive these stages across these great plains and mountains, and I wish to add my tribute of respect not only to Ben Holladay, but to the humblest stage driver between here and the Missouri. (Cheers.) They are brave men all, noble men all, everywhere in these stations. Passing along from one to the other, we found intelligence and that which charmed us ; and from my position here before you to-night, you can see I must have fared very well, and in Salt Lake City they have not starved me. (Laughter.) I can say, from my experience here, I have tested the capacity of man's system to contain strawberries and I find it large, but it did not equal rhe capacity of our friend's strawberry bed." " My fellow citizens, kt me here repeat that in this excursion we have found a great many things to interest us. I have made a great many discoveries which I intend to send down home for the benefit of those who shall come here in the stage coach, for that is an institution I have learned to value. I reverence the stage coach; there is no such place to sleep in as the stage coach when running over the rocks and through chuck-holes. A man can sleep in a stage coach, and four hour's sleep there is worth a whole night's sleep in a bed. I have engaged of our good friend Otis one of his stage coaches, and I intend to have it sent right down to Chicago, and have some of Gates' machinery to work it, and I shall sleep in it the rest of my life. (Laughter.) " I say, therefore, go on developing this valley as you have done. Build your canal from L^tah Lake, cut your canal the other side of Jordan ; they say it is a hard road to travel, but I have not found it so. Cut your canals and water this whole land, that it may bud and blossom and bring forth abundantly. I have seen here such an evidence of wealth, cultivation and progress as would surprise any man, let him come from where he will ; even if he be a western man, it will surprise him. "So far as the railroad is concerned, and my friend Colfax has run the en- gine pretty well, I want to say to )Ou, that we here, connected with the newspa- pers back east, I and my associates of the quill, will do all that we can do; we will concentrate our energies for the accomplishment of that great enterprise, to push it through to the Pacific — we will d^ all we can for you, we will do all we can to lessen the expense, the va^t expanse, of drawing your goods all the way from the Missouri to Salt Lake City. You want the railroad — you want it for its intelligence ; you want it from the fact that it mixes up a people and enlightens them, and gives them broader and more liberal views. It will place within your reach here many of the facilities and conveniences of life, now enjoyed by other sections of the nation. I say, my fellow citizens, let us all feel, in the great work of developing this continent, that each one must do his share. 348 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. "I will say here, and ever hereafter, that, so far as you citizens of Utah are concerned, you have done your full share in developing the resources of this Ter- ritory. (Cheers.) If seventeen years, that is the exact time you have been here, has accomplished what it has, what will not the seventeen years to come accom- plish, or a quarter or half a century, for this magnificent valley? You will have these hills swarming with the denizens of New York and Chicago — gentlemen coming to spend the summer angling on the lakes, and to see what wonders you have developed among the mountains, as we are doing in our stay during the week. To-morrow we go down to Salt Lake, to enjoy ourselves the best jxjssible. And when we go home, we will tell the people what we have seen. We are accustomed to tell the truth. The newspaper is not what it once was. "We hold this, that the truth in a newspaper is as essential to its success, as is the truth in social life, (cheers) and that nothing but the truth, plainly told, will tell on the interests of this Territory and of this great Northwest, and so far as I am concerned I will tell nothing but the truth about you. (Cheers.) "Now, passing over the things in which we differ, leaving time and circum- stances to bring us together, let me say that I believe in the great principles that our Creator has established. I believe that the principles of commerce, the prin- ciples of our holy religion, will in the end fuse mankind together and make us all love each other as brothers. (Cheers.) I believe in a higher civilization, in a higher Christianity, being developed in the progress of human events, and such as shall make all men feel that all men are brothers. (Cheers.) Now, my fellow-citizens, wishing you all prosperity and happiness, and thanking you for your kind reception which you have given to us individually, I bid you good evening." Mr. Albert D. Richardson, of the New York Tribune, closed the speeches of the evening in a strain congenial to that of his companions. * * * "I am impressed," he said, ''with gratification and pleas- ure at your kind reception and warm and pleasant hospitalities, with wonder at the natural beauties of your surroundings, and at the artificial beauties which your skill and perseverance have given to your young and flourishing city. To me they are full of material for thought, full of suggestiveness. " The last four years have taught us and the world a great lesson — the lesson that any community, that any section of States under this government which at- tempts to resist the laws, will be ground to dust, under the authority of the Amer- ican people. The next four years will teach a lesson, equally impressive, that peace hath her victories no less renowned than war. * * * " There is to be a tide of migration towards the West, such as the world has never seen before — there is to be a rapid development, such as the world has never seen before. There are boys here to night who are to see the great regions of the West, from the Alleghanies to the Pacific, teeming with the life ot a hundred mil- lions of people. There are old men here to-night who will live to see the accom- plishment of that grandest of material enterprises — such a one as the world has never seen — the Pacific Railroad, to see people from New York and San Fran- cisco, London and China, stopping on the great plains to exchange greetings and newspapers,. while their respective trains are stopping for breakfast. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 34g " It is only in the grand material develop.nent of the country — the building of cities and railroads, the commerce on the river, the establishment everywhere of farms, that the greatest pride of American development is to consist, but that, by and bye, when all these mingling and divers nationalities are blended into one, America is to give the world the best men, the highest average men, the most in- telligent men, of the purest integrity, of the most varied accomplishments, that the world has ever seen. " But what is all this specially to you? In my judgment it is a great deal — it is everything , because your location is in the very heart, the very focal point of the new States which are to spring up here. Here is the line of travel, here are the fields of settlement, here is the path of empire. Here is such a site for a city as no commercial metropolis in the whole world occupies. I am dazzled at the thought of the future which may be before it, and of the future which may be before your people. "The government of the United States, I believe, will do its part to help you. The people of the United States, through their pioneer instinct to move westward, to plant themselves, to build new regions, will help you. Will you do your part of the work? (Yes, yes.) It is with the profoundest interest that, during the few days that I have been in your Territory, I have been studying its features and its developments. I have been in many of your ranches, in your green fields, in many of your gardens, your residences, your business houses, and I have looked with wonder at the almost miracles you have performed in the few years you have been here. And I will tell you, gentlemen, what the development which I have seen means, what it means to me. When I think of the vast labor you had to perform, of this terrible journey from the river here, and when I see what you have done, I am full of wonder and admiration ; they mean to me in- dustry; they mean to me integrity and justice in your dealings with each other. (Cheers.) Because I know enough of pioneer life, I know enough from practical observation and experience of the difficulties that environ and constantly beset new communities, to know this could not have been done by an idle people, by a volatile people, by a people who do not deal fairly and justly among themselves and with each other. "That to me is a grand augury for your future; if you display in the future the same industry you have displayed during these pioneer years, and then adjust yourselves, as you will be compelled to, to the wants, necessities, and associations of the great communities that will flow in here upon you, to become a part of yourselves; if you perform your duties, as I doubt not you will, to our common country, right here in this beautiful valley, in this great basin, is to be one of the richest and most populous portion of our nation. "I Vvish I could paint your coming horizon ; I wish I could cast the horoscope of your future ; but I think it cannot be many ) ears before the new star of Utah will sail up our horizon to take her place among the other members of our Amer- ican constellation, (cheers) which we fondly hope, like the stars that light us to- night, shall 'haste not nor rest not, but shine on forever.' " Note — The foregoing speeches were reported by the able and faithful pen of the late David W. Evans, and revised by Mr. Colfax and his companions. yjo HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. CHAPTER XXXIX. THE CITY FATHERS TAKE THE PARTY TO THE GREAT SALT LAKE, MEETING OF THE SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE AND THE FOUNDER OF UTAH. THE NATION DINES WITH THE CHURCH. THE PRESIDENT PREACHES IN THE TABERNACLE AT THE REQUEST OF THE SPEAKER, WHO IN TURN TREATS THE SAINTS WITH HIS EULOGY ON LINCOLN. ADVICE TO THE FATHERS OF THE CHURCH TO ABOLISH POLYGAMY, BY A NEW REVELA- TION, IN EXCHANGE FOR A ST.A.TE. THE COLFAX CLOSET VIEWS. ADIEU TO THE MORMON ZION. DEATH OF GOVERNOR DOTY. A TALK ON POLYGAMY WITH THE CHAIRMAN ON TERRITORIES. Next day Speaker Colfax, Gov. Bros?, Messis. Bowles and Richardson, accom- panied by the city council and some of the leading merchants, drove over to the Great Salt Lake. "We have" wrote Mr. Bowles, "been taken on an excursion to the Great Salt Lake, bathed in its wonderful waters, on which you float like a cork, sailed on its surface, and picknicked by its shore, — if picnic can be witliout women for sentiment and to spread table cloth, and to be helped up and over rocks. . Can you New Englanders fancy a stag picnic? We have been turned loose in the big strawberry patch of one of the Saints, and we have had a peep into a moderate Mormon harem, but being introduced to two different women of the same name, one after another, was more than I could stand without blushing." But the meeting of President Brigham Young and Speaker Colfax and party was the crowning circumstance of the visit. -' The Speaker of the House stood upon his dignity. Esteeming himself a •chief representative of the nation, he did not think it becoming his national im- portance to first call on Brigham Young. This was expressed, and President Young was fully informed of the mountain of etiquette that burdened the spirit of the honorable Speaker. There could be no doubt that he wished to see the Prophet. To have gone away without seeing him would have taken away half the relish of the visit. So Brigham (who was matchless when he undertook to play the character of simple native greatness) humored him, and went down from his "Lion House," in company with several apostles and leading men of the city, to call upon the nation in the person of Mr. Colfax. The circumstance is told by Mr. Bowles, but with an evident effort to poise the Speaker of the House well as the principal figure in his meeting with the Mormon Moses. "In Mormon etiquette," he wrote, "President Brigham Young is called upon ; by Washington fashion the Speaker is called upon, and does not call ; there was a question whether the distinguished resident and the distinguished visitor would meet; Mr. Colfax, as was meet under the situation of affairs here, made a point upon it, and gave notice he should not call; whereupon President Brigham yielded the question and gracior.sly came to-day with a crowd of high dignitaries of the church, and made, not one of Emerson's prescribed ten minute calls, but a gen- HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 351 erous, pleasant, gossipping sitting of two hours long. He is a very hale and hearty looking man, young for sixty-four, with a light grey eye, cold and un- certain, a mouth and chin betraying a great and determined will — handsome per- haps as to presence and features, but repellent in atmosphere and without magnet- ism. In conversation he is cool and quiet in manner but suggestive in expression; has strong and original ideas, but uses bad grammar. He was rather formal, but courteous, and at the last affected frankness and freedom, if he felt it not. To his followers, I observed he was master of that profound art of eastern politicians, which consists in putting the arm affectionately around them and tenderly en- quiring for health of selves and families; and when his eye did sparkle and his lips soften, it was with most cheering, though not warming effect — it was pleasant but did not melt you." There were present at this interview, Speaker Colfax, Governor Bross, and Messrs Richardson and Bowles — the party of distinguished visitors ; — Presidents Brigham Young and Heber C. Kimball, Apostles John Taylor, Wilford Woodruff, George A. Smith, F. D. Richards, George Q. Cannon, Hons. John F. Kinney, J. M. Bernhisel, VVm H. Hooper, Mayor Smoot, Marshal J. C, Little; Bishops Sharp and Hardy, Wm. Jennings, John W. Young, N. H. Felt, and George D. Watt, Esqrs. The Colfax party made a trip to Rush Valley, and on their return to Salt Lake City, on Friday, June i6th, they were the guests of Hon. W. H. Hooper. Next day they visited President Young, and afterwards were the guests of Wm. Jennings, Esq., dining in company with Presidents Young and Kimball; Apostles George A. Smith and George Q. Cannon; Hons. J. F. Kinney and Wm. H. Hooper; Col. Irish, Mayor Smoot, Marshal J. C. Little, and Charles H. Hapgood, John W. Young, J. F. Tracy, H. S. Rumfield and T. B. H. Stenhouse, Esqrs. Of this dinner Mr. Bowles wrote : "In the early years of the Territory, there was terrible suffering for want of food ; many were reduced to roots of the field for sustenance; but now there ap- pears to be an abundance of the substantial necessaries of life, and as most of the population are cultivators of the soil, all or nearly all have plenty of food. And certainly, I have never seen more generously laden tables than have been spread before us at our hotel or at private houses. A dinner to our party this evening by a leading Mormon merchant, at which President Young and the principal members of his council were present, had as rich a variety of fish, meats and vegetables, pastry and fruit, as I ever saw on any private table in the east ; and the quality and the cooking and the serving were unimpeachable. All the food too was native in Utah. The wives of our host waited on us most amicably, and the entertainment was, in every way, the best illustration of the practical benefits of plurality, that has yet been presented to us. "Later in the evening we were presented to another, and perhaps the most wonderful, illustration of the reach of social and artificial life in this far off city of the Rocky Mountains. This was the Theatre, in which a special performance was improvised in honor of Speaker Colfax. The building is itself a rare triumph of art and enterprise. No eastern city of one hundred thousand inhabitants, — remember Salt Lake (^ity has less than twenty thousand,-— possesses so fine a the- j^2 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CJTY. atrical structure. It ranks, alike in capacity and elegance of structure and finish, along with the opera houses and academies of mubic of Boston, New York, Phil- adelphia, Chicago and Cincinnati. In costumes and scenery it is furnished with equal richness and variety, and the performances themselves, though by amateurs, by merchants and mechanics, by wives and daughters of citizens would have done credit to a first class professional company. There was first a fine and elaborate drama, and then a spectacular farce, in both of which were introduced some ex- quisite dancing, and in one some good singing also. I have rarely seen a theat- rical entertainment more pleasing and satisfactory in all its details and appoint- ments. Yet the two principal characters were by a day laborer and a carpenter ; one of the leading parts was by a married daughter of Brigham Young, herself the mother of several children j and several other of his daughters took part in the ballet, which was most enchantingly rendered, and with great scenic effect. The house was full in all its parts, and the audience embraced all classes of society from the wives and daughters of President Young — a goodly array — and the fam- ilies of the rich merchants, to the families of the mechanics and farmers of the city and valley, and the soldiers from camp." Next day being Sunday, the Colfax party attended the Tabernacle to hear President Young, who had been asked by Mr. Colfax ''to preach upon the dis- tinctive Mormon doctrines.'' " Brigham's preaching to-day," wrote Mr. Bowles, "was a very unsatisfactory performance. There was every incentive in him to do his best ; he had an im- mense audience spread out under the ' bowery ' to the number of five or six thousand; before him was Mr. Colfax, who asked him to preach upon the dis- tinctive Mormon doctrines; around him were all his elders and bishops, in un- usual numbers; and he Avas fresh from the exciting discussion of yesterday on the subject of polygamy." The writer continues and gives with great disgust the subject matter of Brigham's sermon, thus closing his review : "Brigham Young may be a shrewd business man, an able organizer of labor, a bold brave person in dealing with all the practicalities of life, — he must, indeed, be all of these for we see the evidence all around this city and country; but he is in no sense an impressive or effective preacher, judging by any standard that I have been accustomed to. His audience, swollen by one or two thousand more, could not have helped drawing a sharp contrast, — dull in comprehension and fanatically devoted to him as most of them probably are, — between his speech and his style, and those of Mr. Colfax, who at a later hour this evening, delivered in the same place, by invitation of the church and city authorities, his Chicago eulogy on the Life and Principles of President Lincoln, He spoke it without notes, and with much freedom to an audience unused to so effective and eloquent a style, and more unused, we fear, to such sentiments ; and he received rapt at- tention and apparently delighted approval throughout the whole." But, if the Colfax party was greatly disgusted with Brigham's sermon of that Sabbath morning, the "unusual numbers" of "his elders and bishops around him" were as greatly amused by Brigham's signal failure. It was the talk of the following week, among some of his friends, that the President, on the Sunday, had treated Speaker Colfax and party to the worst sermon he had ever preached. HISTORY 01^ SALT LAKE CITY. 353 They were " glad of it,'' they said. '' Thg Lord intended to read his servant Brigham a lesson." " The Lord didn't want him to show off before the Speaker of Congress." There was considerable common sense in this view of the matter which the Saints took, and though at first, perhaps, somewhat disappointed with himself probably the "Prophet Brigham" appreciated the "Lord's lesson" to him in the same spirit — glad that he had not been allowed to show off before the Speaker of the House. Brigham Young and Schuyler Colfax were measured that day by two dif- ferent standards : the one was a great colonizer, and already the founder of a hundred cities; the other the eloquent Speaker of the House of Representatives. This is the only salient point of the "sharp contrast " between Brigham's bungling sermon on Mormonism, and Colfax's magnificent "eulogy on the Life and Prin- ciples of President Lincoln." But the chief subject of interest, of that time as well as of all times, till the peculiar and distinguishing marriage institution of the Mormons shall have been either reformed or more firmly established, was brought up between Mr. Colfax and his party, as representative of the Nation, and President Young and the apostles, as representative of the Mormon Church, in their second interview on the Saturday when Mr. Colfax and his companions called upon President Young at his office. Mr. Bowles is the most proper person to relate the conversation. He wrote : " Mr. Colfax and his friends have also had two long interviews with Brigham Young and other leaders of the Church, in one of which the peculiar institution of the people was freely and frankly but most earnestly discussed by all. * :^ >i< * * * ^ "The conversation I have alluded to with Brigham Young and some of his elders, on this subject of polygamy, was introduced by his enquiry of Mr. Colfax what the Government and the people East proposed to do with it and them, now they had got rid of the slavery question. The Speaker replied that he had no authority to speak for the Government; but for himself, he might be permitted to make the suggestion, he had hoped ihe Prophets of the Church would have a new revelation on the subject, which should put a stop to the practice. He added, further, he hoped that, as the people of Missouri and Maryland, without waiting for the action of the general government against slavery, themselves believing it to be wrong and an impediment to their prosperity, had taken measures to abolish it, so he hoped the people of the Mormon Church would see that polygamy was a hindrance and not a help, and move for its abandonment. Mr. Young responded quickly and frankly that he should readily welcome such a revelation; that polyg- amy was not in the original book of the Mormons ; that it was not an essential practice in the Church, but only a privilege and a duty, under special command of God ; that he knew it had been abused ; that people had entered into polyg- amy who Ought not to have done so, and against his protestation and advice. At the same time, he defended the practice as having biblical authority, and as having, within proper limits, a sound moral and philosophical reason and propriety. 354 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. "The discussion, thus opened, grew general and sharp, though very good natured. * * h< * "In the course of the discussion, Mr. Young asked, suppose polygamy is given up, will not your government then demand more,— will 11 not war upon the Book of the Mormons, and attack our church organization ? The reply was emphatically. No, that it had no right, and could have no justification to do so, and that we had no idea there would be any disposition in that direction. "The talk, which was said to be the freest and irankest ever known on that subject in that presence, ended pleasantly, but with the full expression, on ihe part of Mr. Colfax and his friends, of their hope that the polygamic question might be removed from existence, and thus all objection to the admission of Utah as a State be taken away ; but that until it was, no such admission vvas possible, and that the government could not continue to look indifferently upon the en- largement of so offensive a practice. And not only what Mr. Young said, but his whole manner left us with the impression that, if public opinion and the govern- ment united vigorously, but at the same time discreetly, to press the question, there would be found some way to acquiesce in the demand and change the prac- tice of the present fathers of the church." Still more important than this conversation, as a connecting vein of history, is the exposition of the Colfax closet views and forecast of national policy con- cerning the Mormons and their institutions — views and policy matured while on this very visit to Salt Lake City, next quickly infused into the public mind on his return East, and finally brought into sharp administrative action, when he became Vice-President of the United States. And what is exceedingly significant is that, when this exposition and forecast of Mr. Colfax's views and national policy was sent to the American public, in Mr. Bowie's last letter from Salt Lake City to the Springfield Republican, the expectation was that Schuyler Colfax would be the next President of the United States — the regular "successor of Abraham Lincoln" after Andrew Johnson had filled the unexpired term. In the dedication of his "Across the Continent," to the then prospective President of the United States, Mr. Bowles said. " Besides the book is more yours than mine ;" so the following from the same letter, which relates the conversation with Brigham Young on polygamy, may be read as from Mr. Colfax himself on Utah policy. "The result of the whole experience has been to increase my appreciation of the value of their material progress and development to the nation ; to evoke con- gratulations to them and to the country for the wealth they have created and the order, frugality, morality and industry that have been organized in this remote spot in our Continent ; to excite wonder at the perfection of their Church sys- tem, the extent of its ramifications, the sweep of its influence ; and to enlarge my respect for the personal sincerity and character of many of the leaders in the organization ; also, and on the other hand, to deepen my disgust at their polyg- amy, and strengthen my convictions of its barbaric and degrading influences. They have tried it and practiced it under the most favorable circumstances, per- haps under the mildest forms possible, but now, as before, here as elsewhere, it tends to and means only the degradation of woman. By it and under it, she be- comes simply the servant and serf, not the companion and equal of man ; and the inevitable influence of this upon society need not be depicted. HISTORY OF SAL T LAKE CITY. 355 "Bat I find that Mormonism is not necessarily polygamy ; that the one began and existed many years without the other ; that not all the Mormons accept the doctrine, and not one-fourth, perhaps not one-eighth, practice it ; and that the nation and its government may oppose it and punish it without at all interfering with the existence of he Mormon Church, or justly being held as interfering with the religious liberty that is the basis of all our institutions. This distinction has not been sufficiently understood heretofore, and it has not been consistently acted upon by either the government or the public of the East. Here, by the people, who are coming in to enjoy the opportunities of the country for trade and mining, and there by our rulers at Washington and by the great public, this single issue of polygamy should be pressed home upon the Mormon Church, — discreetly[and with tact, with law and with argument and appeal, but with firmness and power. "Ultimately, of course, before the influences of emigration, civilization and our democratic habits, an organization so aristocratic and autocratic as the Mor- mon Church now is must modify its rule; it must compete with other sects and take its chances with them. And its most aristocratic and uncivilized incident or fea'ure of plurality of wives must fall first and completely before contact with the rest of the world, —marshalled with mails, daily papers, railroads and telegraphs — ciphering out the fact that the men and women of the world are about equally divided, and applying to the Mormon patriarchs the democratic principle of equal and exact Justice. Nothing can save this feature of Mormonism but a new flight and a more complete isolation. A kingdom in the sea, entirely its own, could only perpetuate it; and thither even, commerce and democracy would ultimately follow it. The click of the telegraph and the roll of the overland stages are its death-rattle now; the first whistle of the locomotive will sound its requiem ; and the pickaxe of the miner will dig its grave. Squatter sovereignty will speedily settle the question, even if the Government continues to coquette and humor it, as it has done. "But the Government should no longer hold a doubtful or divided position towards this great crime of the Moraiou Church. Declaring clearly both its want of power and disinclination to interfere at all with the Church organization as such, or with the latter's influence over its followers, assuring and guaranteeing to it all the liberty and freedom that other religious sects hold and enjoy, the Government should still, as clearly, and distinctly, declare, by all its action, and all its representatives here, that this feature of polygamy, not properly or neces- sarily a part of the religion of the Mormons, is a crime by the common law of the Nation, and that any cases of its extension will be prosecuted and punished as such. Now half or two-thirds the Federal officers in the Territory are polyg- amists ; and others bear no testimony against it. These should give way to men who, otherwise equally Mormons it may be, still are neither polygamists nor be- lievers in the practice of polygamy. No employees or contractors of the Gov- ernment should be polygamists in theory or practice. "' Here the Government should take its stand, calmly, quietly, but firmly, giving its moral support and countenance, and its physical support if necessary to the large class of Mormons who are not polygamists, to missionaries and preachers of all other sects, who choose to come here, and erect their standards 356 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. and invite followers ; and to that growing public opinion, here and elsewhere, which is accumulating its inexorable force against an institution which has not inaptly been termed a twin barbarism with slavery. There is no need and no danger of physical conflict growing up; only a hot and unwise zeal and impatience on the part of the Government representatives, and in the com- mand of the troops stationed here, could precipitate that. The probability is, that, upon such a demonstration by the Government, as I have suggested, the leaders of the Church would receive new light on the subject themselves, perhaps have a fresh revelation, and abandon the objectionable feature in their polity. No matter if they did not — it would soon, under the influences now rapidly aggre- gating, and thus reinforced by the Government, abandon them. "In this way, all violent conflict would, I believe, be successfully avoided; and all this valuable population and its industries and wealth may be retained in place and to the Nation, without waste. Let them continue to be Mormons, if they choose, so long as they are not polygamists. They may be ignorant and fanatical, and imposed upon and swindled even by their church leaders ; but they are industrious, thriving, and more comfortable than, on an average, they have ever been before in the homes from which they came hither ; and there is no law against fanaticism and bigotry and religious charlatanry. All these evils of relig- ious benightment are not original in Utah, and they will work out their own cure here as they have elsewhere in our land. We must have patience with the present, and possibly forgiveness for supposed crimes in the past by their leaders, because we have heretofore failed to meet the issues promptly and clearly and have shared, by our consent and protection to their authors, in the alleged wrongs." In closing his letters from Salt Lake City Mr. Bowles gives a very notable adieu to our city : " But adieu to Salt Lake and many-wive-and-much-children-dom ; its straw- berries and roses ; its rare hospitality ; its white crowned peaks ; its wide spread valley; its river of scriptural name; its lake of briniest taste. I have met much to admire, many to respect, worshipped deep before its nature, — found only one thing to condemn. I shall want to come again when the railroad can bring me and that blot is gone." During the visit of the Colfax party to our city, Governor James Duane Doty died, whereupon the following order was issued by the city authorities : " Mayor's Office, Great Salt Lake City, June 14th, 1865. " Whereas, intelligence has reached me of the sudden death of Governor James Duane Doty, who departed this life on the 13th inst., at 9 o'clock, " Therefore, in token of respect for the dead, I do hereby request that all secular business in the city be suspended; that all business houses be closed, and that the flags be draped at half-mast until after the funeral ceremonies. By order of A. O. Smoot, Mayor. J. C. Little, Marshal. HISTORY OF SAL T LAKE CITY. jj7 On Thursday morning, June 15th. at ten o'clock, the citizens assembled in large numbers around the residence of the late governor of Utah, and punctually the ostentatious funeral service was performed by the Rev. Norman McLeod be- fore the corpse left the house. The coffin was carried to the hearse by the Hon. Schuyler Colfax, Governor Bross, Chief Justice Titus, Associate Justice Drake, Superintendent Irish, and U. S. Marshal Gibbs. The carriages of the citizens and families of the military command formed in a long procession, and moved northward, thence east by South Temple Street, preceded by the Provost Guard and the military band to the cemetery at Camp Douglass, " All business was sus- pended in the city, the flags at half-mast were draped in crape, drooping in the air, while the unusual sombre clouds lent a sadness to the scene that faithfully de- picted the heart-felt sadness of the people." About two weeks later the Honorable Jas. M. Ashley, of Ohio, then chair- man of the Committee on Territories, visited Salt Lake City. President Brigham Young met the gentleman frankly, and in the parlor of Delegate Hooper there was a free conversation upon the probable future relations between the Govern- ment and the Mormons. The first question from Brigham was : Well, Mr. Ash- ley, are you, also, going to recommend us to get a new revelation to abolish po- lygamy, or what are you going to do with us? * * * * " Now, Mr. President, I don't know what we can do with you. Your situa- tion reminds me of an experience of Tom Corwin. In the days of Tom's poverty, somewhere in Ohio, he thought he would hang out a lawyer's shingle and catch a share of business. One day a smart fellow solicited his legal services; he wanted Tom to defend him, and proposed to give him a fee of fifty dollars. That was a big sum to Tom then; but when he heard the situation of his client he stated that he was under professional obligations to say he could be of no service to him. The client insisted that Tom should make a speech in court, and that was all he wanted. The case came on: the evidence was clear, witnesses had seen the prisoner steal some hams, carry them to a house, and there the hams were found in the client's possession. It was a clear case of theft, the evidence was incontestible, and the prosecutor thought it needless to address the jury. The defendant, however, insisted that Tom should make his speech. A brilliant effort was made, the jury retired, and in a few minutes returned with a verdict of 'not guilty." The judge, the prosecutor and Tom were perfectly confounded. They glanced at each other a look of in- quiry. Nothing more could be done, and the prisoner was discharged. As they retired from the court the lawyer said to the thief: ' Now old fellow, I want you to tell me how that was done ! ' ' Your speech did it,' was the reply. ' No, it didn' t and I want to know how_>w^ did it?' 'Well^ if you will not speak of it till I get out of the State, I shall tell you.' Tom accorded to this, and in perfect confi- dence his client whispered : 'Well, eleven of the jurors had some of the ham.'' " Brigham roared and laughed. It was Mr. Ashley's pleasant insinuation that with a Mormon jury the institution was perfectly secure. The story is told by T. B. H. Stenhouse who was present at the interview between the Mormon President and the chairman of the Committee on Territories. Sj8 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. CHAPTER XL. BEGINNING OF THE ANTI-MORMON CRUSADE. THE CHANGE IN THE COLFAX VIEWS, INITIAL OF THE ACTION AGAINST THE UTAH MILITIA. URGING THE ADMINISTRATION. CORRECTED VIEWS CONCERNING THE MILITIA. Out of this Colfax visit to Salt Lake City directly grew what the Mormons call the crusades against their religion, or as Chief Justice James B. McKean de- scribed it, the prosecution of "Polygamic Theocracy." It began immediately on the return of the Colfax party from their tour of investigation of the Great West, first in the agitation of the public mind by the speeches and expositions of Speaker Colfax relative to the Pacific States and Territories, in which polygamic Utah came in constantly for a sharp and special treatment. Uaitil this Colfax movement commenced to stir up the Nation upon Utah affairs, there had been no "crusade" of the Government and Congress against Mormon polygamy. In the causes presented to Congress by the Buchanan administration, for the sending out of the Utah Expedition, polygamy was not even named. General Winfield Scott, in issuing his orders to General W. S. Harney, named the specific cause : — "The community and, in part, the civil government of Utah Territory are in a state of substantial rebellion against the laws and authority of the United States." Neither had the action of the Government against polygamy entered into the early differences between the Gentile part of the Federal officers and the Mormon community, though Judge Brocchus did offensively rebuke in their pub- lic assembly, the community relative to their polygamic institutions. It was not until the Grant-Colfax administration that Government took any action at all against Utah, touching polygamy. It is true there had been the passage of the anti-polygamic law by Congress in 1862 ; but it was generally understood to be in- operative and as a dead letter on our statute books. Indeed the Senators from California — Latham and McDougall— voted against the passage of the bill, — Mc- Dougall opposing it in a speech in which he said, "I do not think the measure at this time is well advised. li is understood its provisions will be a dead letter on our statute book. Its provisions will be either ignored or avoided, * * The impolicy of its present passage will cause my colleague and self, after consul- tation, to vote against the bill." And a year after the passage of that bill, though President Lincoln signed it, he sent private word, as already noted, to Ex-Gov- ernor Young concerning the Mormon polygamists with this assurance : " I will let them alone if they will let me alone." But with the return of Speaker Colfax, from his visit of observation of the Pacific States and Territories, the plan and policy over Utah affairs was entirely changed from a dead letter to a live action, and Government itself became the prime mover against polygamic Utah, until finally it grew into an administrative and congressional " crusade " against them as a religion, community. This was inspired by Mr. Colfax and sustained by President Grant with all the determina- HIS TOR Y OF SALT LAKE CITY. jjp tion of the man who had conquered secession in the South, and finished with the sword what President Lincoln had begun in his proclamation abolishing slavery. Brigham Young's inquiry of Mr. Colfax as to " what the Government and people of the East proposed to do with polygamy and the Mormons, now that they had got rid of the slavery question," was a most pertinent question. It was substantially the same enquiry which met Mr. Colfax everywhere on his return to the Eastern States with his expositions and policy relative to the Pacific States and Territories. All his speeches dealt with Utah consonant with the foregoing ex- positions of views and policy contained in Mr. Bowles' closing Salt Lake letter. The warm genuine hospitality which Salt Lake City had extended to Mr. Colfax and his friends ; the admiration expressed by ail touching what the Mor- mons had done in these once desert places, and their value as a community to the Nation ; and, above all, the free and cordial interviews and conversations which took place between the Colfax party and Brigham and his friends, seemed to promise a happy union between the general Government and the Mormon leaders, in the adjustment Df the affairs in question. But, when on his return from the West, to speak with a permitted national voice of its affairs, the enquiry which Brigham Young had put came sharply from the public, ** what does the Nation in- tend to do with the Mormons and polygamy, now it has got rid of the slavery question ?" Mr Colfax was carried away from the possible adjustment, which he might at a later date have effected with the leaders of the Mormon church, when he became as Vice-President the actual dictator of the Government on Utah affairs. In sending out his book, " Across the Continent," dedicated to Mr, Colfax, Mr. Bowles strongly marks this change which had taken place in a ^t\y months, both in the minds of the Mormon leaders and in the policies and intentions of Mr. Colfax. In his supplementary papers he wrote : "Since our visit to Utah in June, the leaders among the Mormons have re- pudiated their professions of loyalty to the Government, denied any disposition to yield the issue of polygamy, and begun to preach anew, and more vigorously than ever, disrespect and defiance to the authority of the National Government. They seem to be disappointed and irate that their personal attentions and assur- ances to Mr. Colfax and his friends did not win for them more tolerance of their peculiar institution, and something like espousal of their desire for admission as a State of the Union. New means are taken to organize and drill the militia of the Territory and to provide them with arms, under the auspices and authority of the Mormon Church ; and an open conflict with the representatives of the Gov- ernment is apparently braved, even threatened. "Much of this demonstration is probably mere bravado ; means to arouse the ignorant people, excite them against the Government, make them still more tlie fanatical followers of the Church leaders, and also to intimidate the public authorities, and induce them to continue the same let-alone and indulgent policy that has been the rule at Washington for so long. The Government always seems to have demonstrated just enough against the Mormons to irritate them and keep them compact and prepared to resist it, but never enough to make them really afraid, or to force them into any submissive steps. The bristling attitude of the Saints has ever had the apparent effect to qualify the Government purpose, and J 60 MTSTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. make it stop short in its proceeding to enforce the laws and National authorit3^ It is no wonder, therefore, that they repeat their frantic and fanatic appeals to their people, and their defiance to the Government, and grow more and more bold in them. They find that it works better than professions of loyalty and half-way offers of submission, one bad effect of which, for their own cause, is of course to demoralize their followers, and weaken their own authority over them. "There is no evidence yet of any change in the policy of the executive au- thorities at Washington. While the new Federal Governor of the Territory, Mr. Durkee from Wisconsin, the Federal judges, and the superintendent of Indian affairs are both anti-Mormons and anti-polygamists, all or nearly all the other Federal officers in the Territory are both leading Mormons and practical polyg- amists — the postmasters, collectors of internal revenue, etc. The postmaster of Salt Lake City is one of Brigham Young's creatures, and editor of the Mormon daily paper there. The returns of internal revenue in the Territory are found to be, proportionately to similar populations and wealth, quite small ; and there are reasons to believe that the taxes are not faithfully assessed and collected. Gen- eral Conner, who has been returned to his old place, as military commander of the district of Utah alone, is assigned a force of only one thousand soldiers; though he asked for and expected to have five thousand. The lesser number remote from all possible reinforcement, is entirely inadequate to support the Governor and judges in any exercise of authority that they may dare to undertake, and that the Mormons may choose to resist. One thousand soldiers could very readily be wiped out — which is a favorite phrase of the Saints towards their enemies — by a sudden uprising of the fanatical followers of Brigham Young and his apostles. "Excuse for such uprising is in much danger of being developed from the growing strength and impatience of the anti-Mormon elements in society at Salt Lake City, and the reckless, desperate character of some of those elements. Miners from Idaho and Montana have come into that city to winter, to spend their profits, if successful, or to pick up a precarious living, if unlucky. Many discharged soldiers also remain there or in the neighboring districts. The grow ing travel and commerce across the continent floats in other persons, good, bad and indifferent as to habits and self-control ; other accessions to the Gentile strength and agitation are constantly being made. The merchants of that class are increasing and becoming prosperous ; those who have been silent and submis- sive under the Mormon hierarchy, dare now to demonstrate their real feelings, under the protection of sympathy and soldiers ; the Daily Union Vedette con- tinues to be published as organ of the soldiers and other ' Gentiles,' and is bold and unsparing and constant in its denunciations of the Mormon church and its influences ; Rev, Norman McLeod, chaplain of the soldiers, and pastor of the Congregational Society in Salt Lake City, has returned from a summer's trip to Nevada and California, with funds for building a meeting-house, and increasing zeal against the Mormons ; a Gentile theatre has been established ; various social or- ganizations, in the same interest, are increasing and growing influential over the young people ; General Connor himself, his fellow officers and soldiers are all bitter in their hatred of the Mormons, and eager for the opportunities to subdue them to the governmental authority; Governor Durkee seems less disposed to be tol- HISTORY OF SAL T LAKE CITY. .^i ^rantof the Mormon control and the Mormon disrespect to federal authority than his predecessors generally have been; and the judges, goaded like all the resl of the Gentiles, by Mormom insults and Mormon defiance, and their own inca- pacity, under goverment neglect, to perform their duties, more than share the common feeling of antagonism to the Church leaders. ''Thus the two parties are growing more and more antagonistic, more and niore into a spirit of conflict. Thus, too, while are rapidly aggregating and op^ eratmg the^eans by which the Mormon problem is to be solved, even without the special help or interference of Government, are also coming into life the elements and the dangers of a more serious and personal collision, in which the Mormons from the.r numerical superiority, would most probably be successful and, quite like y, wreak terrible vengeance on their enemies. Of course such a result would evoke full retribution on their own head ; for then people and Government would arou^se, and enforce speedy and complete subjugation, " But these threatened and dreaded results ought to be and can be avoided The Government has now the opportunity to guide and control the operation of natural causes to the overthrow of polygamy and the submission of the Mormon aristocracy, without the shedding of blood, without the loss of a valuable popula- tion and their industries. The steps, too, are, first, a sufificient military force in the Territory to keep the peace, to protect freedom of speech, of the press, and of reli- lous prosely tism ; to forbid any personal outrages on the rights of the Mormons • an'd to prevent any revenges by them upon the Gentiles. And, next, the supplanting of all polygamists in federal offices by men not connected with that distinctive sin and offence of the church. These steps, wisely taken, firmly administered, would rapidly give the growing anrti-polygamist elements such moral power as would insure a speedy and bloodless revolution. It may not be wise or necessary, at least at the pre- sent, in view of past indulgence, to undertake to enforce the federal law against poly- gamy; that may be held in abeyance until the effect of such proceedingsas have been indicated are fully developed. In short, I would change the government policy from the 'do-nothing' to the 'make-haste-slowly' character; I would have its influence decidedly and continuously felt in the Territory, against the crime of polygamy. "Neglecting to do this, there is danger of anarchy and deadly conflict springing up on that arena ; there is also sure prospect that the people of the country at large will, in their impatience and disgust, force upon Congress such radical measures against the Mormons, as are, in regard to our past neglect and the present opportunity of peaceful revolution, to be almost as deeply deprecated. In either event, the responsibility will rest heavily and sharply upon the President and his Cabinet, who are permitting the affairs of the Territory to drift on in the present loose and dangerous way, either ignorant of, or indifferent to, the rapidly devel- oping social conflict there.'" As regards the Utah militia Mr. Bowles, evidently, was laboring under a very prevalent mistake. It has always been represented by anti-Mormon writers, and rehearsed from time to time by the newspapers of the country, that the Utah mihtia was organized and kept up for the express purpose of rebellion aga'inst the United States, or, at least, to give the Mormon leaders the power to resist the mu 362 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. Federal rule whenever it became obnoxious to the.ii. In other words, ihe militia of tlie Territory was looked upon as the military arm of the Mormon Church, and the nucleus of this army was supposed to be a formidable band of " Danites," known also by another name — the " Avenging Angels " of the Church. Hence the annual muster and drill of the Utah militia, taking place so soon after the Colfax visit, signified to Mr. Bowles the arming and preparing for rebellion against the Federal authority : ''an open conflict with the representatives of the Government is apparently braved, even threatened." It must be confessed that this view of the militia had been established by the action of the Utah war, when Brigham Young, as governor, put the Territory under martial law, ordered a United States army back, and made bold war speeches in the Tabernacle, and that the militia had gone out under its lieutenant-general to repel invasion. But the Utah militia had been organized for no such purpose. It has been shown, in this his- tory, that the people of Utah had not been making any preparation to resist the expedition, nor had they expected any conflict with the Government, until the news burst upon them like a bombshell, while they were celebrating the tenth an- niversary of their pioneer day, that an army was on the way to destroy them as a community. Then everywhere throughout the Territory the citizens arose spon- taneously, not so much as a militia, but rather as a community to defend their church, their homes, their lives and their liberties, and to protect their wives and children; for it will be remembered that they expected nothing less than extermi- nation from their Rocky Mountain refuges, if the Utah military expedition pre- vailed. But the Utah militia was organized with no contemplation of anything of this, much less with an intent of resistance to ths Federal authority. It was organized in 1S49, for the protection of the young colonies against Indian depre- dations, and was kept up for the same purpose. It had, up to 1865, cost the set- tlers many valuable lives, and millions of dollars in time and substance, and there had been occasions when nearly all the'able-bodied men in the settlements, both North and South were, half the year round, either under arms on guard at home, or away on Indian expeditions protecting distant settlements. Indeed, the often and continued Indian wars form no inconsiderable portion of Utah's history, and Salt Lake City, being the headquarters, was always conspicuous in the military action and display, especially during the annual muster and review of the troops " over Jordan," when President D. H. Wells figured as lieutenant-general, and apostles and bishops as major-generals, brigadier-generals and colonels yet this fact by no means constituted the militia the army of the Church. Just such an occasion had come in the year 1865. It was the year of the Black Hawk war. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE Cljy. j6j CHAPTER XLT. HISTORY OF THE UTAH AHLITIA FOR THE YEARS 1865, 1863, AND 1857, THE GOVERNOR CALLS UPON CAMP DOUGLAS FOR AID AGAINST THE INDIANS. BUT IS REFUSED. THE GOVERNMENT ORDERS THE UTAH MILITIA FOR THAT SERVICE. SECRETARY RAWLINS SUBMITS THE REPORT TO CON- GRESS. THE GOVERNMENT'S DEBT TO OUR CITIZENS OF OVER A MILLION DOLLARS FOR MILITARY SERVICES UNPAID. The following State documentj which is, in itself, quite a chapter of the In- dian history of our Territory, gives a very different rendering of the military ac- tivity in the fall of 1865, of which Mr. Bowles wrote to the public: '-'New means are taken to organize and drill the militia of the Territory, and to provide them with arms, under the auspices and authority of the Mormon Church ; and an open conflict with the representatives of the government is apparently braved, even threatened." "War Department, March 25th, 1869. *' The Secretary of War has the honor to submit to the House of Represen- tatives the accompanying communication from the adjutant-general of the Terri- tory of Utah, inclosing a statement of the expenses incurred by the Territory in the suppression of Indian hostilities during the years 1865, 1866 and 1867. "Jno. a, Rawlins, Secretary of War. "Adjutant General's Office, Utah Territory, " Salt Lake City, Feb. 9th, 1869. " I have the honor herewith to forward to you the accounts of expenses in- curred by the Territory of Utah, in the suppression of Indian hostilities in said Territory during the years 1865, 1S66 and 1867. " The seat of this war has been chiefly in Sanpete, Sevier and Piute Counties, and it may be necessary to give a brief description of that part of the Territory to enable you to more readily understand the situation of those inhabitants, and the necessity that existed for a strong military force constantly in the field during the season of hostilities. " San Pete Valley is one hundred and twenty miles south of this city, and extends southward some sixty miles, and is from five to fifteen miles wide, sur- rounded by lofty and rugged mountains, from which streams of water flow down into the valley at intervals of from six to ten miles. On these streams and near the base of the mountains, the settlements and towns are mostly located. There are in this valley, which was first settled in 1849, nine large and, until the war, flour- ishing settlements, viz : Fountain Green, Moroni, Coalville, Fairview, Mount Pleasant, Springtown, P'ort Ephraim, Manti, and Fort Gunnison, each with a pop- ulation of from five hundred to two thousand inhabitants. The San Pete River runs through the valley from north to south, and empties into the Sevier river be^- 3^4. HIS TOR Y OF SAL T LAKE CITY. County and on the following day, Barney Ward and M,- Lambson e\r S , smmmmm mounta„,s on boll, sides they could not be flanVM T ° "^^^"^ ..a..iy killed and two wonnd'ed. and tbe ^o.^; 'y^tas I^iLd tr'klTT- 7' 7, itztt:r:;;rt'i:::,y ^t" t' - --' -" -- ""■- had no.v coZ» cTd a d a^ oT''"'"'"^"' """ "' '' """"'■ ^'" "" T..°p"in:;tn?::-::r.r:,;:y":lro.i,t:^Vc;,?^^ city, 10 send a sufficient force to protect the sett e .f^nd f "^ ! ' '" ""' Indians. This was declined. See annla e' "f O H%"T' *^°'^^"^'""S .e diffic^nS;: rb2n;':rr;: ttrrr ■' -" - — - :::a : ::t;i;r tpr^ 1';: -™ - ^^ti2::i: This was refused. „.d .he se^Uets w re rt^ratfc:::^;', T 'T'"' '"''''''■ the depredations. '°^' ^'''^" ^"^''^ ^"g^S^^^ i" committing "O. H. Irish, Superiniendent. etc., Thistle'vdlef SaTl'T r"'"' '"'"''' J°''" ^'^^"' ^i^ -^ four children, near county, an :; IZ Z^^"^' ''^''""' ""' ^'""' =="<^- '" "^ -- off a large herd o horse; and i! ' ^T' """ "' ^"™ ^'='"™^"'' -" "rove HIS TOR Y OF SALT LAKE CITY. 36 j " Notwithstanding every precaution and effort made by the militia and the set- tlers, in consequence of the rugged nature of the country and the situation of the settlements, it was impossible to prevent the enemy making an occasional raid on the settlements or some herd of stock, as they would come down from the moun- tains in force and return in an hour to an almost impregnable position in the can- yon, or some previously unknown mountain pass. ''For the better protection of the settlements, all of the able-bodied men in those counties were mustered into service as home guards, and performed duty in this capacity, but no returns for this service are included in these accounts. "The war continued, the Indians gaining accessions to their ranks, and having, during the summer, massacred between thirty and forty men, women and children. The last raid in 1865, was on Fort Ephraim, San Pete County, in the month of October, when five men and two women were killed, and two men wounded, and two hundred head of stock taken. Many battles were fought dur- ing the summer and some forty of Black Hawk's warriors killed. " On the approach of winter the Indians withdrew to the Colorado River, living on the plunder of the past summer, their successes having furnished them with horses to mount all who would join their ranks, and plenty of beef to feed them — strong inducements to Indians. " Nothing reliable was heard of the enemy for some time, but it was ru- mored that they were daily increasing in numbers and making preparations for another campaign so soon as the melting snow in the mountains would permit. "Early in the month of February, 1S66, their intentions were defined by making a raid on a small settlement in Kane County, Southern Utah, killing Dr. Whitmore and a young man by the name of Mclntyre, and driving off a large flock of sheep, some horses and cattle ; and in a few days making another raid on Berryville, in the same county, killing two men and one woman, and taking some horses and cattle; and as the snow disappeared from the mountains north, so they continued to advance on the settlements in force, having been joined by a number of the Navajoes and a band of Elk Mountain Utes. The war, which at its commencement, looked small, began to assume alar.iiing proportions, and, as the settlers had to rely on the militia of the Territory, Lieutenant-General Daniel H. Wells ordered all the able-bodied men that could be spared from San Pete, Sevier and Piute Counties to be immediately mustered into service as cav- alry and infantry, and organized for defence. Before the organization was com- pletely effected, another raid was made upon Marysvale, Piute County, April 2d > two men were killed and a band of hor&es captured. Their next raid was on Salina, Sevier County, April 20th. Here two men were killed, and two hundred held of cattle and horses taken. See letters of Colonel F. H. Head, Superinten- dent of Indian Affairs, Utah Territory, to the Commissioners of Indian Affairs, Washington, D. C, published in 'Indian Affairs, 1S66,' on pages 128, 130, of which the following is extracted : "'Utah Superintendency, 1 "'Great Salt Lake Cuy, April 30, 1866 " ' Sir : Black Hawk, a somewhat prominent chief of the Ule Indians, has been engaged for more than a year past in active hostilities against the settlements ^66 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. in the southern portion of this Territory. His band consisted at first of but forty- four men, who were mostly outlaws and desperate characters from his own and other tribes. During the summer and autumn of 1865 he made several successful forays upon the weak and unprotected settlements in San Pete and Sevier Counties, killing in all thirty-two whites, and drove away to the mountains up- ward of two thousand cattle and horses. " 'Forty of his warriors were killed by the settlers in repelling his different attacks. His success in stealing, however, enabled him to feed abundantly and mount all Indians who joined him, and the prestige acquired by his raids was such that his numbers were constantly on the increase, despite his occasional losses of men. He spent the winter near where the Grand and Green Rivers unite to form the Colorado. On the 20th instant he again commenced his dep- redations by making an attack upon Salina, Sevier County. He succeeded in driving to the mountains about two hundred cattle, killing two men who were guarding them, and compelling the abandonment of the settlement. "'His band, from what I consider entirely reliable information, now num- bers about one hundred warriors, one-half of whom are Navajoes from New Mexico. " 'In view of these circumstances, and for the purpose of preventing acces- sions to the ranks of the hostile Indians, I have, after consultation with Governor Durkee, desired Colonel Potter, commanding the United States troops in this dis- trict, to send two or three companies of soldiers to that portion of the Territory to protect the settlements and repel further attacks. Colonel Potter has tele- graphed to General Dodge for instructions in reference to my application. I should be much pleased to have an expression of your views as to the policy to be pursued in this matter. " ' Very respectfully, your most obedient servant, "'F, H. Head, Superititendent. " 'Hon. D. N. Cooky, " ' Comtnissioner of Indian Affairs, Washington, D. C, " And under date of 21st June, in a similar communication, he states (see page 130 of said published report) : " ' I advised you in my communication of the 30th April that I had applied to the military authorities to send two or three companies of troops to protect the settlers in those portions of the Territory most exposed to Indian raids, and that Colonel Potter, commanding at this point, had telegraphed for instructions. A copy of the response to such cammunication is herewith enclosed. " 'The morning of my departure (from Uintah) I was informed by Tabby, the head chief, that when he received notice of my arrival in the valley, himself and all his warriors were on their way to join the hostile Indians in the southern portion of the Territory, in their war upon the settlements. He also informed me that Black Hawk, having secured a number of recruits among the Elk Moun- tain Utes to swell his force to three hundred warriors, was then setting out from the Elk Mountain country to attack the weaker settlements in San Pete County. " ' On reaching this city on my return from Uintah, I communicated the facts HISTORY OF SAL T LAKE CJ7 V. 367 in my possession relative to Black Hawk, to Governor Durkee. General Wells, one of the principal militia officers, after consulting with the Governor, has raised two or three companies of militia, and proceeded to the threatened locality to protect the settlers from the expected attack. " ' F. H. Head, Superintendent.^ "'Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, May 2d, 1866. "'General Pope telegraphs that the superintendent of Indian affairs will have to depend for the present on the militia to compel the Indians to behave at Salina. " ' By command of Major-General Dodge. "'Samuel C. Mackev, " ^Acting Assistant Adjutant- General, " ' Col. Carroll H. Potter, " '■Commanding District of Utah.'' "Accordingly, steps were immediately taken to place all the settlements south and east of Salt Lake City in a better state of defence, and troops were mustered into service from Salt Lake and other counties, and despatched to the scenes of hostili- ties. The weaker settlements in Summit, Wasatch, San Pete, Sevier, Piute, Beaver, Iron, Kane, and Washington, were abandoned and removed to the stronger. Substantial forts were built, and all the stock in the above named counties was gathered up and guarded. Overtures of peace were made by the settlers when- ever opportunity offered, but were defiantly refused by the Indians; and on the nth day of June, Lieutenant-General D. H. Wells started from Salt Lake City, and on the 14th arrived at Fort Gunnison, San Pete County, and took command in person, remaining in San Pete, Sevier and Piute Counties three months. Not- withstanding every precaution, and the energy and faithfulness of the militia troops in service, such was the extent and mountainous character of the country, that the enemy, lying secreted, 'would occasionally succeed in making a dash on some weak point and capturing a herd of stock. Thus it continued through the summer, while all that part of the Territory for three hundred miles in extent was paralyzed, but more particularly was it the case in San Pete, Sevier and Piute Counties. No improvements were made. The saw mills in the canyons were silent; and in many cases were burnt up or otherwise destroyed by the Indians. Very little grain was raised in consequence of the number of men in the service in those counties During the summer about twenty persons were massacred, and a very large amount of stock was taken, and many flourishing set- tlements were broken up and abandoned. Several skirmishes occurred through the summer, in which between thirty and forty of the Indians were killed and wounded. " The Indians again drawing off for winter quarters, on the first day of No- vember the last of the militia troops were mustered out. "Peace again reigned for a short time. The mountains and passes were again blockaded with snow, and the inhabitants had a short interval to prepare for winter. "Nothing of importance was heard from the Indians until early in January, 1867, when they commenced the war for another year by making a raid on Pine Valley, Washington County, the extreme southern part of the Territory, captur- turing a band of horses. Captain Andrews, with a company of cavalry, followed j68 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. them, recovered most of the horses and killed seven Indians. All was quiet again till March, when another raid was made on Richfield, Sevier County. Here they killed one man, one woman, and a girl fourteen years of age. The the killing of the females was accompanied with great atrocity. Reliable infor- mation was received that they were still determined on war, and troops were again mustered into service in San Pete, Sevier and Piute Counties, also one com- pany of cavalry and one of infantry in Salt Lake and Utah Counties. With the aid of these two companies, in addition to the forces raised in these three counties, further depredations were prevented until the 2nd of June, when Major Vance and Sergeant Houtz were waylaid and killed at Twelve Mile Creek, San Pete County; and on the 12th, they made a raid on Beaver, Beaver County cap- turing a large herd of stock. This county is west of Piute County. "August 14th, they made a raid on Springtown, San Pete County, killing two men, wounding another, and capturing a band of horses. Colonel R. N. Allred, with a company of cavalry chased and gave them battle, recovering some of the horses. " September iSth, another raid was made on Beaver, Beaver County, and two hundred head of horses and cattle were taken. "This was the last raid of the season, as, through the activity of the militia troops, the depredations were less frequent and not so extensive as previously. " Great praise is accorded to the superintendent of Indian affairs. Colonel F. H. Head, for his untiring exertions with the Indians to promote peace. He finally succeeded in obtaining an interview with Black Hawk, and obtained his promise that he would refrain from further depredations on the whites, and that he would use his influence to have the war entirely stopped. He expressed a fear, however, that some of the outlaws would continue depredations, which has been the case, as several raids have been made since this interview, but it is generally believed that Black Hawk has kept his promise. • " In the spring of 1868, these renegades attacked a company of whites while camped on the Sevier River, killed two men and wounded one. During the sum- mer they made several raids on stock in San Pete Valley; and in November at- tacked a party of emigrants in southern Utah, and took a large band of horses and mules. Some active service was performed during the summer and autumn of 1 868, but as the returns have not been received at this office, they are not included in the accompanying accounts, which amount in the aggregate, for the three years, 1865, 1866, and 1867, as per recapitulation sheet herewith forwarded, to the sum of one million one hundred and twenty-one thousand and thirty-seven dollars and thirty-eight cents ($1,121,037.38). "In conclusion, I beg leave to respectfully refer you to a memorial of the Legislature of this Territory, approved by his Excellency Charles Durkee, Gover- nor, of which the following is a copy : ■"MEMORIAL TO CONGRE.SS PRAYING FOR AN APPROPRIATION TO DEFRAY THE EXPENSES OF THE LATE INDIAN WAR IN UTAH TERRITORY. '' 'To the Honorable the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States in Congress assembled. '"Gentlemen: — Your memorialists, the Governor and Legislative Assembly HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 369 of the Territory of Utah, would most respectfully represent to your Honorable Body that, for the last three years, we have had a vexatious Indian war on our hands, the seat of which has been in Sevier, Piute, and San Pete Counties, extend- ing more or less to the counties of Wasatch, Utah, Millard, Beaver, Iron, Wash- ington and Kane, rendering a strong military force constantly necessary in the field. Colonel Irish, former Superintendent of Indian affairs, called on General Connor to protect the settlements of this Territory from Indian depredations ; the General replied that if those depredations were committed upon any settle- ments remote from the mail line he could not do it. Colonel Head, present Superintendent of Indian affairs, called on Colonel Potter to protect the settle- ments of this Territory where Indian hostilities existed. Colonel Potter sent east for instructions in the case, and received answer from General Sherman that we must rely on the militia of the Territory. During this war Sevier and Piute Counties were abandoned by six extensive and flourishing settlements, it being considered impracticable to defend them there. Their removal was effected at the loss of nearly all they had, their stock and teams being mostly stolen and driven away by the Indians, and they were removed by the citizens of San Pete County. Likewise four settlements on the borders of San Pete County were broken up and removed at much expense and loss. Also fifteen settlements in Iron, Kane and Washington Counties, besides two or three small settlements in Wasatch County. In this war we have furnished our own soldiers, arms, ammunition, transportation, cavalry horses, and supplies, for the years 1865, 1866, and 1867. We have borne a heavy burden, and we ask for compensation and aid, as most of our citizens at and near the seat of this war have become greatly reduced and impoverished thereby, and likewise the other settlements that have had to remove are more or less so. We therefore ask your Honorable Body to appropriate g 1, 500, 00, to compensate the citizens for their service, transportation and sup- plies in suppressing Indian hostilities in the Territory of Utah during the years before named, or so much thereof as will cover the expenses, as per vouchers and testimonies now in the adjutant-general's office, which will accompany this me- morial, or follow it at an early day, and your memorialists, as in duty bound, will ever pray. ''All of which is respectfully submitted. " Your obedient servant, " H. B. Clawson, ^^ Adjutant- General, Utah Territory. " Hon. John M. Schofield, '■'■Secretary of War, Washington City, D. C" To this State document may be supplemented, from the Adjutant-General's office, instructions and special orders issued by Lieutenant-General Wells to his commanding officers, covering the very time, of which it was charged, that the said General Wells was organizing, mustering and drilling his forces for overt acts against the Federal administration in Utah. "Headquarters Nauvoo Legion, " Adjt.-Gen'l's Office, Great Salt Lake Citv, May 23, 1866. * ' Major- General Robt. T. Burton : "Dear Brother : It is considered best for you to have out a patrol guard to 3J0 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. watch and protect herds, and to observe the movements and indications of the Indians, speaking and treating them kindly, and endeavoring to influence those with whom they shall meet to be peaceable and friendly, and at the same time let them see that we are on the alert, and do not intend to let them have our stock without asking for it. "It is believed that a few men in each settlement in your district can per- form this service, and extend their patrols and observations up into the canyons, where people are working at the mills and getting out wood and timber; and ta all such most likely places for Indians to secrete themselves and steal forth to make depredations upon the people and their property. Men and not boys should be entrusted to take charge of herds, and sliould go armed and prepared to defend themselves. ••■ It may be thought there is no danger of hostile Indians making any dem- onstration in your neighborhood; but the surest way to avoid it is to be pre- pared to meet it, and not give them a chance. " Men should be posted in the night time where they can be concealed and see without being seen, and thus be able to give timely information, or afford timely relief, or assistance in the protection of life and property, and not do like some, make themselves a target for an Indian to shoot at, and stand and be killed when they ought to be shooting. "Be vigilant in carrying the same into effect, and make full returns to this office of all services rendered, &c. "Respectfully yours, "D. H. Wells." SPECIAL ORDERS NO. I. "Adjutant-General's Office, G. S. L. City, April 15th, 1867. " ist. Brigadier General Warren S. Snow is hereby temporarily relieved from the duties of his command over San Pete and Piute Military District and Brigadier-General W. B. Pace, of the Utah Military District, assigned to that duty. "2d. General Pace will be provided with a full company of cavalry from Great Salt Lake and Utah Military Districts, fully armed and equipped, supplied and provisoned from their respective districts, except flour, meat, and forage, which will be furnished from San Pete. " 3d. Gen. Pace will repair to the scene of his duties with the troops aforesaid as soon as practicable, and locating his command at or near Gunnison, will de- tail working parties either to go to the canyons, labor on fords, guard stock, or parties traveling into the canyons, or elsewhere, and to aid and assist the people exposed to the inroads and depredations of the Indians, in defending themselves against hostile demonstrations of the foe. He will also lose no time in organiz- ing the forces herein placed under his command as Avill, in the most efficient man- ner, render such aid and assistance as is or may become necessary and proper to secure and protect those settlements from depredations from the Indians. " 4th. Gen. Pace is hereby directed to see that a strict and correct account is kept, and prompt returns made to this office of all expenses incurred, and ser- vice performed, as also any and all movements or dispositions made of all the forces HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 371 placed under his command, and in all things exercise that just discretion and efificiency which should characterize an energetic and yet prudent and careful "Commander. "D. H. Wells, ' ' Lieut.- General, Commanding Nauvoo Legion. ^^ special orders no. 2. " Adjutant-General's Ofeice, ''G. S. L. City, April 15th, 1S67. " ist. Major-General Robert T. Burton, of the Great Salt Lake Military District will raise three platoons of cavalry from his command for the San Pete expedition, and have them properly officered and organized, and in readiness to march on Monday next, the 22d instant, with arms, ammunition, accoutrements, and supplies for six months, except flour, meat and forage, which will be provided elsewhere. " 2d. Men must be selected, and not boys allowed to go as substitutes, and must be furnished with suitable transporation, and tools for working parties, which will be detailed from the command to assist in the construction of forts, etc., as well as to assist in defending the people against Indian depredations. "3d. The troops thus organized and provided will rendezvous at Provo, Utah Military District, and report to Brigadier-General Wm. B. Pace, who is as- signed to take the command of the San Pete and Piute Military Districts, and they will act under his direction. "4th. The horses must be provided with ropes for tying up and hobbles, and a few pack saddles should also be furnished in case of wanting to make a sud- den excursion after Indians. " 5th. General Burton is at liberty to assign a captain or an adjutant as he and General Pace shall agree upon, as it would be proper for one or the other to go from his command with this detachment. Daniel PI. Wells, Lieutenant- General Commanding Nativoo Legion-. TO GOVENOR DURKEE. Adjutant-General's Office, Great Salt Lake City, Dec. 31st, 1867. ^ ' To His Excellency Charles Durkee, Governor of Utah Territory. Dear Sir : I take pleasure in forwarding to your Excellency the accompa- nying abstract return of the Nauvoo Legion, the militia of our Territory; made out from the latest reports that have been received from each district, and show- i ig the aggregate number of the militia so far enrolled, with their individual arms, ammunition and equipments. They number twelve thousand and twenty- four (12,024), including cavalry, artillery and infantry, would doubtless be largely increased by a full enrollment of all persons liable to military duty, un- usually seen in attendance at our general musters. " The apparent difficulty of obtaining fire arms among the infantry arises chiefly from the annual emigrations of many poor persons, who are destitute of weapons on their arrival. "As your Excellency is aware, our settlers have now had a three years' war JJ2 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. with Utah Indians, during which a very large amount of stock has been driven off from our settlements, and seirenty of our citizens killed and wounded by them. It has also involved a great loss of their property in breaking up the settlements throughout Sevier, Piute, Kane and parts of San Pete and other counties. Dur- ing this time various detachments of troops have been sent from the more densely settled districts to the settlements more immediately in the scene of actual Indian hostilities, to assist in repressing the Indians, defending the settlers, and guard- ing against their sudden attacks. "A small portion of the outlay for these expenditures has been paid out of the Territorial funds, but it is believed that an appropriation should be made by the General Government to reimburse the Territory, and defray all expenses, ac- counts of which are in preparation accordingly against the General Government. "Without reliable information of their intentions, it is hoped and believed that the Indians are now more peaceably inclined, and trust that the ensuing spring and summer may not open up as they have the last three years with an Indian war upon our hands. " With much respect, " H. B. Clawson, '■'Adjutatit- General Naitvao Lesion, the Militia of Utah Territory. ^^ accounts sent to hon. \v. h. hooper, m, c. " Adjutant General's Office, "Salt Lake City, Feb lo, 1869. ''Hon. W. H. Hooper, M. C, Washington City, D. C " Dear Sir: By lo-day's express I forward to your address the accounts of expenses incurred by the Territory of Utah in the suppression of Indian hostil- ities in said Territory during the years 1865-6-7, amounting to the sum of one million, one hundred and twenty-one thousand and thirty-seven dollars and thirty-eight cents ($1,121,037.38); also a communication from myself to the Hon. John M. Schofield, Secretary of War, to accompany said accounts. By reference to that communication you will perceive that a large amount of service was rendered by the male inhabitants of the localities of the war, as home guards, for which no charge is made; nothing but active service b^ing included in those accounts, it having been our constant effort to keep the expenses as light as pos- sible, and it is believed here that an equal amount of service by almost any other people would have been quadrupled in cost. These accounts will now be in your hands, and it is believed that the government, at an early day, through the wis- dom of your efforts, will fully reimburse to the Territory of Utah the amounts of those expenses. " Very truly yours, " H. B. Calwson, "Adjutant- General, Utah Territory. The report of the adjutant-general of the Utah militia, to the Secretary of War, was accompanied by the following voucher : "Executive Office, Utah Territory, Salt Lake City, January 9, 1869. "I, Charles Durkee, Governor of Utah Territory, do hereby certify that the HIS TOR V OF SAL T LAKE CI 2 V. j/j military service rendered by the militia of this Territory, comprised in the fore- going accounts, was absolutely necessary, and was therefore sanctioned and au- thorized by me at the times specified, and that the accounts are just. "Charles Durkee, Gov{:r/wr." This is the same governor — of whom Mr. Bowles wrote, "Governor Durkee seems less disposed to be tolerant of Mormon control and the Mormon disrepect to federal authority than his predecessors generally have been," — who certifies to the General Government that he had "sanctioned and aurhorized" the service of the Utah militia as "absolutely necessary," and that "the accounts are just." 15ut this debt of one million, one hundred and twenty-one thousand and thirty- seven dollars and thirty-eight cents, owed by the Government to the citizens of Utah, to this day remains unpaid. CHAPTER XLII. WADE'S BILL. CONTEMPLATED RECONSTRUCTION OF THE MILITIA. ABSO- LUTE POWER IN CIVIL AND MILITARY AFFAIRS TO BE GIVEN THE GOVER- NOR. THE MORMON CHURCH TO BE DISQUALIFIED FROM OFFICIATING IN MARRIAGE CEREMONIES. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF PLURAL MARRIAGE SUFFICIENT PROOF OF " UNLAWFUL COHABITATION." AIMS ON THE CHURCH PROPERTY AND TREASURY. THE TRUSTEE-IN-TRUST TO BE UN- DER THE GOVERNOR'S THUMB. Notwithstanding the Utah Militia was employed in the service of the Gov- ernment in the years 1S65, 1S66, and 1867, protecting the country against the Indians; notwithstanding, as it turned out, this service was performed at their own cost, the impression had been established in the public mind that it was a standing army of rebellion, and that it ought to be broken up by the strong mili- tary arm of the Government, should Congress find itself inadequate to the task. Indeed, from the year 1866 to the year 1870, there was fast working up in the United States a movement against the Mormon power, very much as it had been before the Utah War, when the two great political parties laid Utah upon the altar to appease a common hate of Mormondom, and then worked up the " war of rebellion" between themselves. The first exposition of the resolution to put down " Mormon Utah" and sup- plant it with a "Gentile Utah," presented to Congress during the work of re-con- structing the South, was the bill of Senator Ben. Wade. In the Senate of the United States, June 30, 1866, Senator Wade asked, and by unanimous consent ob- tained leave to bring in his bill, which was read twice, referred to the Committee on Territories, and ordered printed; and on the 12th of July, 1866, the bill was reported by Mr. Wade with amendments. Although this bill did not pass, 374 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. nearly all its aims have since become operative in subsequent bills; in the Gov- ernment direction of Utah affairs; in the disbanding of the militia; in the juris- diction and decisions of the courts ; in the Utah Commission ; in a half-sup- planted Legislature and the controlling power of the Governor, both in civil and military affairs. Indeed the salient points of the Wade bill may be reviewed as very like the face of the history of Utah from that date to the present. First take, " Sec. id. And be it enacted, that there shall be in the militia of said Territory no officer of higher rank or grade than that of major-general, a7id all officers, civil and military, shall be selected, appointed and commissioned by the Governor ; and every person who shall act or attempt to act as a?i officer, either civil or military, without being first cotnmissioned by the Governor, and qualified by taking the proper oath, shall be guilty of misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof, shall be subject to a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars and imprisotied in the Penitentiary not exceeding one year, or both such fine and imprisonment at the discretion of the court. "Sec. II. And be it further enacted, That the militia of said Territory shall be organized and disciplined in such manner and at such times as the Gov- ernor of said Territory shall direct. And all the officers thereot shall be ap- pointed and commissioned by the Governor. As commander-in-chief the Gov- ernor shall make rules and regulations for the enrolling and mustering of the militia, and he shall yearly, between the first and last days of October, report to the Secretary of War the number of men enrolled and their condition, the state of discipline, and the number and description of arms belonging to each com- pany, division, or organized body. Aliens shall not be enrolled and mustered into the militia." "Sec. 22. And be it farther enacted, That all commissions and appoint- ments, both civil and military, heretofore made or issued, or wliich may be made or issued before the ist day of January, eighteen hundred and sixty-seven, shall cease and determine on that day, and shall have no effect or validity thereafter." In this bill there is no intelligent aim at the purpose and existence of the Utah militia, nor any knowledge shown of its circumstantial history : all that is seen is the design of the bill itself. The first aim regarding it was to take the militia altogether out of the hands of the Territorial Legislature, and to confer powers extraordinary upon the Governor, not only as commander-in-chief, but as the originator, sustainer and dictator: "the militia of said Territory shall be organized din^ disciplined in such manner and at such times as the Governor of said Territory shall direct," etc. The second aim was to abolish the ofifice of lieu- tenant-general. He disposed of — his office having no longer an existence^ all the officers before under him would soon also pass away, their "appointments and com- missions " expiring before January, 1867. Thereafter all the officers were not only to be " commissioned," but also selected and "appointed" by the Governor, and indeed the entire militia re-organized by him as the originating source, under this contemplated act of Congress. Clearly the militia of the Territory would have been practically abolished or set aside, as it afterwards was by the procla- mation of Governor Shaffer, or it would have been transformed to an anti-Mor- mon force, to act as z posse commitalus for the Governor in the execution of the HISTORY OF SAL T LAKE CITY. jjj designs of the bill. Even had such a design been proper for the utter suppres- sion of the Mornnion power in America, still there would have been no relation between it and the purpose of the existence of the Utah militia. The followino-, from the many documents of a similar nature in the adjutant-general's cfitice, will strikingly illustrate this and be a very favorable contrast to the bills and aims in question : REPORT OF THE BOARD OF OFFICERS'. " The militia of the Territory of Utah (under the governor as commander- in-chief) shall be commanded by a lieut. -general, and formed into an indepen- dent military body called the Nauvoo Legion, and shall be organized into platoons, companies, battalions, regiments, brigades, divisiDns and departlrients as hereinafter provided for." The necessity for such a military body will hi seen from the foUowing doc- uments. In general orders No. 2, under date of January 21st, 1S54, we find the following — " Rule 4. They will preserve a good organization of their entire force, and fill up the minute companies for prompt and energetic action in accordance with general orders No. i, of 28th Nov., 1853; and act on the defensive whenever it becomes necessary for the protection of their respective districts. " Rule 5. It is wise in time of peace to prepare for war, although peace can as yet scarcely be said to exist. " No time should be lost in preparing and completing the forts and defences in the various districts; as we think it is well understood that our settlements must be based on a permanent system of defense. " In enlarging the forts or locating new ones for the accommodation of the increasing population, great care and judgment should be exercised in selecting such places as are beyond the reach of covert, (and unless included) beyond the rifle range of ridges, benches and mountains — and so as to command water for the use of the forts, and as much of the surrounding country as possible. " Rule 6. The safety and future success of the settlements depend much upon guarding a gainst surprise, or being deceived by pretended friendship, at the same time exercising friendly relations with all, clothing and feeding them for their labor. It is humane and politic to feed the strangers when they first come, keeping a good look out for them, and if they remain too long giving them work, encouraging them by giving them fair wages for what they do, and making them as comfortable as possible according to the circumstances of the post, when they evince a disposition to comply with reasonable requirements. [Signed] Brigham Young, Daniel H. Wells, Lieut.- General Co7nmanding Nauvoo Legion.''' We further review the bill: "Sec. 2. And be it further enacted. That the marshal or other officer, in selecting grand or petit jurymen, shall select them from the body of the people of the district. A-ud in the trial of any case in which the United States shall be j/d HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. a party, the United States shall have the same right to challenge jurors that the other party has. '' Sec. 3. That it shall be the duty of the United States marshal, in person or by his deputies, to attend all the courts held by the United States justices or judges in said Territory, and to serve and execute all process and orders issued or directed by said courts or by the judges thereof. "Sec. 5. And be it further enacted. That \.\\t probate Judge shall be ap- poi7ited by the Governor,'^ etc. "Sec. 6. And be it further enacted. That the judges of the Supreme Court of said Territory may make rules and regulations as to the niode and manner of taking appeals from one court to another in said Territory, so that the just rights of the parties may be secured and preserved." "Sec. 12. And be it further enacted, That marriages in said Territory may be solemnized only by any justices of the Supreme Court, justices of the peace duly elected and qualified in their proper townships or precinct, or by any priest or minister of the gospel (not Mormon), regularly ordained and settled or estab- lished in said Territory, between parties competent to enter into the marriage contract. And the person solemnizing such marriage shall sign and deliver to the husband and wife a certificate thereof, wherein shall be set forth the names, the ages and the places of the parties, and the place and date of such solemniza- tion, together with the names of witnesses, not less than two, present at such solemnization, which certificate may be recorded in the office of the proper reg- ister of the county. * * * ^j-^j g^^^j^ certificates or a certified copy of the record shall be evidence in any court of the facts therein set forth as above required," " Sec. 13. And be it further enacted. That if any officer herein authorized to solemnize marriage shall, knowingly and wilfully, solemnize a marriage to which either of the parties are disqualified to enter into the marriage contract he shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction before a court having com- petent jurisdiction, he shall be sentenced to pay a fine of not less than one hun- dred dollars, and stand committed until the fine shall be paid. Sec. 14 proposed to annul all the land grants and water privileges to the first settlers made by the Legislature up to that date. About one-sixth of the bill was devoted to that part. Had it passed it would have despoiled and ruined hun- dreds of families who made these Rocky Mountain colonies successful. "Sec. 15. And be it further enacted, That all that part of Section two, of the act or ordinance entitled 'An ordinance incorporating the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which declares that the real and personal property of said church shall be free from taxation; and all that part of Section three of said ordinance, which declares that the said church has the original right to solemnize marriages compatible with the revelations of Jesus Christ ; and also, all that part of said section which declares that said church does and shall possess and enjoy continually the power and authority in and of itself to originate, make, pass and establish rules, regulations, ordinances, laws, customs, and criterions for the good order, safety, government, conveniences, comfort and control of said church, and for the punishment or forgiveness of all offences relative to fellowship, according HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY.. jyy to church covenant — that the pursuit of bliss and the enjoyment of life^ in every capacity of public associations and domestic happiness, temporal expansion or spiritual increase upon earth may not legally be questioned — be, and the same is hereby disapproved and annulled. Sec. 17. " Marriage, so far as its validity in law is concerned in said Terri- tory is hereby declared a civil contract, to which the consent of parties, capable in law of contracting, is essential." " Sec. iS. That it shall not be lawful for said church or i/s officers or 7iiein- bers to grant divorces or solemnize marriages. " Sections 19 and 20 compelled the Trustee-in-Trust of the Mormon Church to make a full report on oath every year, between the first and last days of No- vember, to the Governor of the Territory, of all church properties, moneys in bank, notes, deposits with the church, etc. The Trustee failing to comply, the Governor, within the expiration of three days after the time was authorized to file a complaint before one of the U. S. justices, requiring a warrant for the marshal to arrest said Trustee, who "shall, on a day set by said justice," be tried, and if found guilty, be liable to a fine of not more than ^2,000 and imprisonment in the Penitentiary of not more than two years, or fine not less than five hundred dollars and not less than six months in the Penitentiary. All church property and revenues above $20,000 were to be taxed. "Sec. 25. And be it further enacted. That in prosecutions for the crime of polygamy, proof of cohabitation by the accused as husband or wife, or the acknowledgments of the party accused of the existence of marital relation shall be sufficient to sustain the prosecution." Evidently the design of Senator Wade's bill was to dismantle both "church and state," and to take from the people all their inherent powers, placing them in the hands of Congress and Federal officers appointed specifically for the pur- pose of suppressing the people of Utah as a Mormon community — styled at that time the "Mormon hierarchy," and a year or two later. still more acceptably dubbed by Chief Justice McKean "the Mormon polygamic theocracy." Hence the grand enabling sections of the bill were, either to altogether abolish the Utah militia, or to transform it to an anti-Mormon force, to act as the Governor's /^'j-j-^ commitaius, under the directions of the Secretary of War, to whom he was peri- odically to report. A few months later Senator Cragin's bill superseded Wade's bill. It was, however, substantially the same, with trifling addenda and a few idiosyncracies of its own \ of the latter the following is an extract : " No man, a resident of said Territory, shall marry his mother, his grand- mother, daughter, step-mother, grandfather's w'ife, son's wife, grandson's wife, wife's mother, wife's grandmother, wife's daughter, wife's granddaughter, nor his sister, his half-sister, his brother's daughter, sister's daughter, or mother's sister. No woman shall marry her father, grandfather, son, grandson, step-father, grandmother's husband, daughter's husband, granddaughter's husband, husband's father, husband's son, husband's grandson, nor her brother, half-brother, brother's son, sister's son, father's brother or mother's brother." ^y8. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. If he or she did either of this, the penalty was to be imprisonment, at hard labor, in the penitentiary, for not more than fifteen years nor less than six months. But this special legislation against Mormon Utah was suspended by the greafe controversy which arose between Congress and President Andrew Johnson, Moreover, President Jahnson was opposed to the speciaHegislation contemplated:. Delegate Hooper was consulted in the choice of officers not objectionable to the people; and in 1868 the delegate succeeded in obtaining the passage of several bills oi most vital interest not only to Salt Lake City but the entire Territory. CHAPTER XLiri. O'PENING OF THE FIRST COMMERCIAL PERIOD. REMINISCENCE^S OF THE EAR- LIEST MERCHANTS. CAMP FLOYD, THE SECOND COMMERCL-^L PERIOD., UTAH OBTAINS AN HISTORICAL IMPORTANCE IN THE COMMERCIAL. WORLD-. ORGANIZ.ATION OF Z. C. M. L It is time that we take up the commercial vein of the history of our city and; Territory, having reached a period when the commercial thread became closely woven in the general and political history of our most peculiar commonwealth. The history of Utah commerce is very unique. In some respects there is not a State ar Territory in America whose commercial history will compare with that of our Territory, Its character has been as peculiar as its commonwealth, and that has given to it a typing quite uncommon in its genius ; yet the typing is in accord with the co-operative policies which the age has devised in solving the prob- lem between capital and labor. There is also much stirring romance in its his- tory. Its story and incidents are almost as romantic as the commerce of Arabia, whose mammoth caravans, in their journeys across the deserts, have given subject and narrative to the most gorgeous romances in the whole range of literature. The journeys of the trains of these merchants of the West over the Rocky Moun- tains and the vast arid plains between Salt Lake City and the Eastern States, and their arduous tasks and adventurous experiences will fitly compare with the his- tory of the merchants in the East in olden times when civilization herself was. fostered by commerce ; and, moreover, in the early days of Utah, it took as much commercial courage, perseverance and ability to establish the commerce of this Territory as it did that of any nation known in history. On the very face of the record, we may discern that the men who did this work were no ordinary men. They were capable of making their mark in any land ; and if Utah, in the early days, afforded them great opportunities, it was their boundless energies and commercial ambitions that first created those opportunities and made a peo- ple comparatively affluent who had been buried in isolation and in the depths of poverty. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 3^9 In the year 1849, which was two years after the entrance of the Pioneers, the first regular stock of goods for the Utah market was brought in by Livingston & Ivinkead. Their stock was valued at about ^20,000. They opened in John Pack's adobe house in the Seventeenth Ward. It is novv pulled down. It stood on the northeast corner of the lot now occupied by the new residence of the late John Pack and near where is now built the Seventeenth Ward Schoolhouse. In that •day, it was the most convenient house in the city that these merchants could obtain and also one of the largest. The following year, 1850, Holliday & Warner appeared, who constituted the second firm in the commercial history of our Territory. William H. Hoopet -came to Salt Lake City in charge of their business. They opened in a little adobe building which had been erected for a school house on President Young's block, east of the Eagle Gate. This little school house was esteemed a big store in those days. Holliday & Warner next removed to the building now occupied as the Museum. The merchant's quarter soon began to define itself better than we see it in the primitive examples referred to, and Main Street grew into importance. The unerring scent of commerce tracked the direction which business was about to take, notwithstanding Main Street was dubbed Whiskey Street and often rebuked in the Tabernacle presumably for its many demerits; but such men as Jennings and Hooper, J. R. Walker, Godbe and Lawrence — who have been temperate all their lives,— redeemed it from the odium and made Main Street the quarter of princely merchants. Main Street first began to define itself from the extreme upper quarter. John & Enoch Reese were the third firm in historical date established in Salt Lake City, and they built the second store on Main Street, upon the ground now occu^ pied by Wells, Fargo & Co. J. M. Horner & Co., was the fourth firm, and they did business in the building occupied by the Descret News Co. This firm con- tinued in business but a short time and was succeeded by that of Hooper & Wil- liams. Livingston, Kinkead & Co., changed to Livingston & Bell. Their com- mercial mart was the Old Constitution Buildings, which was the first merchant store erected in Utah. It was undoubtedly in the "Old Constitution" that the commercial focus of Main Street was best defined in the earliest days ; and wheii Mr. Bell became postmaster the street also put on some official dignity. Business, however, gravitated down street. In this quarter, Gilbert & Gerrish, before the Utah war, became noted as one of the principal Gentile firms; and Gilbert occu- pied his stand after the settlement of the difficulty with the United States and the evacuation of the troops. It was also at this quarter of Main Street where William Nixon flourished and where the majority of the young commercial men of Salt Lake City of that epoch, including the Walker Brothers, were educated under him. William Nixon was an Englishman and a Mormon. His commercial career was first marked in Saint Louis. To this day the "boys" educated under him •speak of William Nixon as the "father of Utah merchants;"' it was the name that he delighted in while he lived. He was proud of the distinction. In some respects he seemed to be an uncommon man — like William Jennings, a natural j8o HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. merchant who did business sagaciously by instinct and found the methods and di- rections of trade by commercial intuition. The Walker Brothers were his chief pupils, nnd they speak of William Nixon much in this vein. On the arrival of the Walker family in St. Louis, Father Walker became ac- quainted with William Nixon, to whom he sold goods purchased by him at auction- Nixon, at that time, was a regular merchant doing business on Broadway, in St. Louis. The elder Walker secured his son, David F. Walker — Mr. " Fred." as he is more familiarly known — a clerkship under the St. Louis merchant. At that date young Walker was but thirteen years of age. John Clark,, who was one of the managers of departments in Z. C. M. L from its commencement, was with Nixon before the Walker Brothers; so also was ahother of our prominent citizens and capitalists, Mr. Dan. Clift. These young men emigrated to Utah; Mr. "Fred" Walker went to fill their vacant place. Soon afterward, William Nixon himself emigrated, and Father Walker having then recently died, the four sons with the mother resolved to emigrate to Utah that same season, — the Walker Brothers, it will be remembered, being originally Mormon boys. As soon as they arrived in Salt Lake City, which was in September, 1852, Mr. " Fred " again went to clerk for Nixon and soon afterwards Joseph R. Walker also went into the same employ, Henry W. Lawrence, John Chislett, George Bourne, James Needham, David Candland and John Hyde were also commercially educated under Mr. Nixon ; Thomas Armstrong was his book-keeper. William Nixon soon became rec- ognized in our commercial history as a very successful merchant doing a large busi- ness. It was he who built the second store down street, Gilbert & Gerrish, who had been doing business at the Old Museum followed with a new stock of goods ; and John Kimball, with his brother-in-law Henry W. Lawrence, as his clerk, opened next door to Nixon, This removal threw the main business into that quarter of the street; and it was not until Jennings' Eagle Emporium was reared, with Kimball & Lawrence on the opposite corner, and Godbe's Exchange Build- ings were erected on the east side of the street, that business returned towards the original location, which at length has been crowned with the erection of the mag- nificent buildings of Z, C. M. L Other Mormon merchants also rose, some of whom have since left Utah. There was the firm of Staines & Needham, John M. Brown, Gilbert Clements, Chislett & Clark ; and, after the period of the Utah war, Ransohoff, Kahn, and other Jew merchants began to pour into the city. Here something should be noted of Thomas Williams, Hooper's first part- ner. The merchant Williams was a Mormon young man of much promise in Nauvoo before the exodus. He was with the people in their exodus and was a member of the famous Mormon Battalion. He was one of the company of J. M. Horner & Co., which was afterwards changed to Hooper & Williams, and he built the third store on Main Street, on the site now occupied by the Deseret National Bank. The firm of Hooper & Williams, existed until the spring of 1S57, when Wil- liams sold his interest to W. H. Hooper, and emigrated, with his family, to Weston, Missouri, where he engaged in the hotel business. Subsequently, in 1858, he returned to Utah, and in i860 he, together with his brother-in-law, Pimena Jackman, was killed by Indians while en route to Southern California, to HIS TOR V OF SAL T LAKE CI 2 V. j8i which point they were proceeding for a train of merchandise. Thomas Williams was the man who first took William S. Godbe by the hand and gave him a com- mercial training. It is said that he was a man of excellent business qualities. It was the merchants of Utah who first brought the Mormon community fairly into socialistic importance. And this affirmation is true of them, both in their results at home and the influence which they exercised abroad for the good of the people and the glory of Utah. Moreover, in the general sense of the public weal, this affirmation is as true of the Walker Brothers and Godbe and Lawrence as it is of Jennings and Hooper, or Eldredge and Clawson. The very construction of society and the necessities and aims of commerce convert the enterprises and life work of this class of men into the public good. Over quarter of a century, for instance, the Walker Brothers and Godbe and Lawrence have been identified with the material prosperity and destiny of this Territory. The welfare of the country is their own good as a class ; — the glory of the commonwealth glorifies their houses and augments their own fortunes. Of all men, the life-work and enter- prise of the class who establish commerce, build railroads, develop the native mineral resources of the country, and construct the financial power of the State, must perforce tend to the public prosperity as well as conserving and preserving society. And if this is the case with those influential men of commerce and great enterprises who have gone outside the pale of the Church, yet are still identified with the community in all their essential interests, how much more, specially speaking, is it the case with those men who have remained inside the pale of the Church and built up her commercial and financial power? The Church owes to her apostles of commerce and finance more than many would like to confess ; and yet in this point of their extraordinary service to the Church is at once the significance and potency of Zion's Co-operative Mercantile Institution. This will be strikingly illustrated in the circumstantial history of Z. C. M. I. A cursory view has been given of the destitute condition of the Mormon people during the first period of the settlement of these Valleys. As late as 1856, there was a famine in Utah, and the community was barely preserved by the leaders wisely rationing the whole and dividing among the people their own sub- stance. But it was neither the economy and wisdom of the leaders, nor the plentiful harvests that followed, that redeemed Utah from the depths of her pov- erty, and the anomalous isolation of a people reared in lands of civilization and plenty. She was redeemed from her social destitution by a train of providential circumstances on the one hand, and the extraordinary activities of her merchants on the other. As we have seen, the providence came in a United States army; the temporary existence of Camp Floyd ; the departure of the troops, leaving their substance to the community ; the needs of the Overland Mail line ; the construc- tion of the telegraph lines ; and then again the arrival of another U, S. army under Colonel Connor, and the establishment of Camp Douglass with several thousand soldiers to disburse their money in Salt Lake City alter their pay-days, be- sides the constant supplies which the camp needed from our country, and often labor from our citizens. It was then, under these changed and propitious circumstances, that our Utah merchants put forth their might, and built up a commercial system for our Territory as strange and wonderful in its growth and history as that of any S82 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. Stite that has risen in America, As early as 1864, and right in the time of the great civil war of the nation, when the cities of the bouth were under devastation, Hooper and Eldredge purchased in New York a bill of goods at prime Eastern cost of over one hundred and fifty thousand dollars, the freight of which added to it another eighty thousand. A little later in the same year, William Jennings purchased of Major Barrows a train of goods in Salt Lake City worth a quarter of a million, including the freight. In 1865, this merchant purchased in New York at one time a stock of goods amounting to half a million, Eastern cost, the freight upon which was $250,000. During these same years Godbe and Mitchell went East and purchased for the people on commission goods to the amount of several hundred thousand dollars; and Kimball & Lawrence were at that period also in their most flourishing condition. And all this commercial activity in- stanced above was on the Mormon side, exclusive of the mammoth merchandise business carried on by the Walker Brothers, besides that of ksser merchants not ranked among the Mormon commercial houses. During this period also, William Jennings built his Eagle Emporium; Godbe his Exchange Buildings; Wood- raansee Brothers their stone store now occupied by Osborne & Co.; and Walker Brothers the new store where they still do business, but which, like the Eagle Em- porium, has been since enlarged. Here we pause in the historic record before the era of Z. C. M. L began, not touching as yet the boundaries of the great commercial period in which has risen the Deseret National Bank, and the commercial palace reared by Z. C. M. I., which will compare favorably with almost any mercantile building in America. Consider then the primitive condition of the community in their isolation and destitution, and behold what wonders these apostles of commerce wrought in so short a time. It was their work, be it repeated, that first brought Utah into so- cial importance, carving out a material prosperity for the Mormons. This affirm- ation is not made to underrate the Apostles of the Church, who had done a still more wonderful part in their missionary operations, their emigrations, peopling these Valleys of the Rocky Mountains and founding the cities and settlements of as rare a State as ever sprang up in the history of the world, — and these commer- cial and financial apostles, whom the Church herself has brought forth have built a temporal superstructure ui)on the foundation which their prophets and elders laid. Utah in her early days was utterly destitute of cash; all her internal trade being conducted by barter and the due-bill system. Yet as early as 1864, para- doxical as it may seem, her merchants were dispersing for her millions of gold and greenbacks. Some of them, as we have seen, could purchase in New York from a hundred thousand to half a million dollars' worth of goods at a time. The great wholesale houses of New York, Chicago and St. Louis scarcely ever met any such customers in all America as their Utah patrons, either in commercial integrity or weight. These achievements were only possible by these Utah mer- chants creating the millions before they disbursed them. True, no small amount of money was brought in by the emigrants from the old countries, but this was SDon exhausted by their need of States goods and the purchase of homes ; thus sim- ply exchanging the money into hands eager to send it out of the country for States Sii^^ijy 3^diali.^3aii5.ii Bni ^i:^^^^^-^^^ HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 383 goods. In fine, the bulk of the money was created at home by our merchants in their commerce, turning the produce of the country into cash. For example, one of Wm. Jennings' contracts with the Overland Mail line was to supply it with 75,000 bushels of grain ; another contract to be filled to General Connor for 6,000 sacks of flour at a time when flour brought five dollars in gold per hundred weight. On their part the Walkers and others shipped immense quantities of flour, fruit, etc., to the mining Territories. Thus, it will be seen that these mer- chants did not take money out of the people, but created it for them ; besides supplying the home market with gigantic stocks of States goods. It must be con- fessed that Utah commerce, before the opening of our mines, gave all the money to a few hands. And this was one of the immediate causes that brought forth Zion's Co-operative Mercantile Institution ; as the leaders of the Church con- ceived it to be their duty, at length, to construct for the community a broader and more equitable system of commercial existence; so that all could participate, to the extent of their means, in the profits realized and the reduction in price of the co-operative system. That this was the genuine aim of the Institution its history will show, notwithstanding some blunders may have been made in the execution of the design. As a necessary result of these operations, our merchants not only redeemed the community from social destitution and converted a rural town into a com- mercial city ; but they brought Utah into an importance abroad and greatly re- formed the Eastern mind concerning the "strange people" who inhabit these distant Valleys. As all know, in the earlier days the Mormon community was esteemed by the good folks in the Eastern States as a monstrous society which had grown up in America. The exaggerated stories told of the Mormons by the ex- Federal officers, together with the existence of the institution of polygamy, had given them an unenviable notoriety; while their exoduses, the Utah war, and other unique incidents of their history, attached to them a peculiar distinction as a troublesome little nation of modern Israelites which had hidden itself in the solitudes of the Rocky Mountains. But our Utah merchants made the community more comprehensible. The people abroad could not understand the theology and peculiar institutions of this Mormon Israel ; but they could appreciate the impor- tance of the Utah trade ; and when at length the grand commercial organization of the Z. C. M. I. was formed, the financial potency of the community was greatly enhanced. The business men of New York, ChicagO;, Boston and St. Louis have become deeply concerned in preserving the Mormons, and in the gen- eral prosperity of Utah. The mission of Mormonism has been an enigma in the age, but the purchase in New York of millions of dollars' worth of goods by the Mormon merchants was a record easily read by the commercial men of that city, years ago; and the subsequent history of Z. C. M. I. has financially established the community in all the great business centres of America. Our Utah merchants have now long been esteemed as sound-headed, enterprising, honorable men ; and this is equally true of those who have gone out of the Church, as of those who re- mained inside and became the pillars of Zion's Co-operative Mercantile Institution. 384 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. The foregoing sketches of our commerce and commercial men have prepared us to comprehend the vital importance of the Church preserving within herself this vast monetary and mercantile power. Herein was nascent the wisdom of the co- operative idea, and in it resides the original justification of President Young's energetic efforts to so preserve the financial power by the construction of some order of mercantile communism applicable to the Church. The President was at the onset abundantly reproached for his co-operative movement or — as some worded it — compulsory mercantile combination ; and several of those who had been his staunchest adherents up to that period left his side in consequence. The impartial historian, however, cannot but justify Brigham Young as the head and guide of Mormon society. The truth is that in 1868-9 the Mormon Church was brought face to face with implacable necessities which seemed about to weaken her ; and these necessities were of a commercial and financial character. She had to subdue or be subdued, — a point on which the dominant will of a man like Brigham Young could decide in a moment. The issue of those times was — should she hold her temporal power or loose it? — Should the vast money agencies which had so grown up among her own people, in the country which she had settled, at length overwhelm her; or should she, by combinations of her own, place those agencies at her back and preserve her supreme potency? Brigham Young answered those vital questions in the organization of Z. C. M. I. At the time referred to, these financial and mercantile issues were, after Presi- dent Young, chiefly held in the hands of three men, namely; William Jennings, William H. Hooper and Horace S. Eldredge. The subject, then, at this stage, grows so suggestive of the existence of Z. C. M. I. as the neccessary commer- cial handmaid of the Church that we must dwell awhile on a circumstantial expo- sition. Early in our commercial history, there grew up a conflict between the mer- chants and the Church. To become a merchant was to antagonize the Church and her policies; so that it was almost illegitimate for Mormon men of enterprising character to enter into mercantile pursuits ; and it was not until Jennings, Hooper and Eldredge redeemed Utah from this conflict by resigning to the Church their own basis that Utah commerce developed into proper forms and became inspired with the true genius of mercantile enterprise. To-day there is no such commer- cial war as existed in 1868 and out of which Z. C. M. I. was evolved; and yet when Mr. T. B. H. Stenhouse wrote his RocJzy Mountain Sai?its the salient part of the commercial record of his book was all concerning this " irrepressible conflict " between the merchants and the priesthood. The firm of the Walker Brothers is described as the head and front of this conflict on the merchant side, as Brigham Young was on the side of the Mormon Commonwealth. But the Church was too powerful to be subdued ; and the merchants were desirous at one moment to give up the fight. Says Mr. Stenhouse: "With such a feeling of uneasiness, nearly all the non-Mormon merchants joined in a letter to Brigham Young, offering, if the Church would purchase their goods at twenty-five per cent, less than their valuation, they would leave the Ter- ritory. Brigham answered them cavalierly that he had not asked them tc come HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 385 into the Territory, did not ask them to leave it, and that they might stay as long as they pleased. "It was clear that Brigham felt" himself master of the situation; and the merchants had to 'bide their time ' and await the coming change that was antici- pated from the completion of the Pacific Railroad. As the great iron way ap- proached the mountains, and every day gave evidence of its being finished at a much earlier period than was at first anticipated, the hope of what it would ac- complish nerved the discontented to struggle with the passing day." Here is at once described the Gentile and apostate view of the situation of those times, and confined as it is to the salient point, no lengthy special argument in favor of President Young's policies could more clearly justify his mercantile co- operative movement. It was the moment of life or death to the temporal power of the Church ! When it be also considered that the organization of Z. C. M. I. not only preserved this power in the hands of the community, but that it re- deemed the Territory from this irritating commercial conflict, it is evident that the scheme was both potent and wise. The historian has nothing to do with the argu- ment of the conflict at issue in any of its forms, but simply with the fact of its ex- istence and the necessities of the Mormon community at that time. The point that stands boldly out in the period under review is, that the organization of Z. C. M. I. at that crisis saved the temporal supremacy of the Mormon common- wealth. But the co-operative idea and genius originated not with the merchants. Co- operation, indeed, is the true offspring of the Church. It was not conceived in the spirit of the world but in the spirit of the gospel ; and it was begotten early in the Mormon dispensation, though it was not successfully applied to the community until 1869. Joseph Smith, the founder of the Church of Latter-day Saints, was the Prophet of a co-operative system designed to be applied not only to this Church but ultimately to all society. It was the means by which a universal social re- demption was to be brought about, and in this result was the beginning of a Mil- lennium for the race. Without social redemption, no millennial reign was possible ; so taught the Prophet Joseph and such apostles as Parley P. Pratt, Orson Pratt and John Taylor fifty years ago. These men were the teachers of a co-operative sys- tem, based on gospel principles, to the disciples of the last generation, whose children scarcely dream that their fathers were inspired by such a philosophy and spirit or that they believed that in the success and spread of a true communistic gospel over the whole earth the reign of righteousness was to be brought in as the consummation of the Latter-day mission. But such was original Mormonism ; and it was Joseph Smith who was the Prophet of this communistic gospel in which was to be evolved the best methods of a co-operative commonwealth inspired by the spirit of the broadest social benevolence. This system was styled the '' Order of Enoch," and it signified simply and truly a society based upon a perfect co-op- erative order, practically worked in all its affairs by co-operative principles and in- spired by the spirit of a universal Christ-like benevolence. It was, in fine, the order of the Kingdom of Heaven to be established upon the earth in the last days. Its peculiar style — the " Order of Enoch "—signified to the Mormon understand- S86 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CJTY. ing that such a perfect communistic system existed in the earliest patriarchal age among Enoch and his people. Thus socially considered, we may form a pretty lucid and comprehensive idea of what Enoch's walking with God in the early age of the world signified; and from the revelations given by the Prophet Joseph his- torically of Enoch and his people, it appears that their supreme social boast was that there were " no poor in Zion." Such a Zion was to be established in the last days; and in the consummation of asocial system which would truly and most perfectly realize Zion, according to the conception of the Prophet Joseph, was the grand socialistic aim of the Mormon mission. Co-operation is as much a car- dinal and essential doctrine of the Mormon Church as baptism for the remission of sins ; and every Mormon Elder who understands the philosophy of his own system could affirm that without co-operation society cannot be saved. Further- more, it has been the ambition of the Mormon leaders to evolve their own social system. Hence their wonderful "gatherings'' — the emigration of a hundred and fifty thousand converts from Europe; their founding of hundreds of cities and settlements under a temporal Priesthood of Bishops, and hence also their patri- archal and polygamic institutions. We are not, however, in this chapter, about to treat of the strange religious and social system of the Mormons ; but to speak of the efforts of Brigham Young in 1868-9 ^^d '70 to transform this people into a grand co-operative community and afterwards to perfect them as the " United Order of Enoch." The co-operative exposition, then, shows us that early in his day, Joseph Smith attempted to found a communistic church, — not after the order of the French Communists and sceptics, nor even after that of the more reverent Robert Owen; but such a communistic church or social and religious brotherhood as the great English socialist believed Jesus and his apostles attempted to establish on the earth as the pattern of things in the heavens. Apostasy and persecutions, however, prevented the Mormon Prophet from consummating this grand "design of the Heavens" to found, through him, a socialistic-religious brotherhood on the earth ushering in the earth's Millennium. But the Mormon apostles and the elders generally believe that all this would be ultimately consummated in their mission. At home and abroad this splendid ideal — which Robert Owen, in his latter moments especially, would have reveled in as a vision of New Jerusalem — often formed the subject of the most inspired sermons of the elders. Thus it continued as an ideal in the Mormon faith for nearly a quarter of a century after the death of the Mormon Prophet, before Brigham Young vigorously attempted to carry the plan into execution. The reasons of this delay were— first, the extraordinary and unfavorable cir- cumstances of the Mormon people during that period. There was the exodus from Nauvoo and then the peopling of these numerous valleys with the tens of thousands of destitute emigrants from Europe. They had also to convert the desert into a fruitful field. The law of their condition might have been well ex- pressed in Lincoln's homely injunction — "Root, hog, or die." This period, there- fore, was not the one to establish the order of Zion— for such the "Order of Enoch" is — nor to open effectively a probationary and preparatory period with some prudent co operative plan upon which the moneyed men of the country as well as the people could unite. A HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 387 According to these views of the true genius of the Mormon commonwealth and the proper socialistic aims of the Church, a Zion's Co-operative plan is most legitimate. Upon it, Mormon society must sooner or later be completely and per- fectly constructed or the Church will fail to embody her own social philosophy. This communistic gospel of the Mormons thirty years ago attracted the attention of the great socialistic apostles of Ei^land and won their admiration. It did so with George Jacob Holyoak and his class ; and the famous and learned socialist, Brontier O'Brian, in one of the most powerful and discriminating editorials ever written upon the Mormons and their commonwealth, said in Reynolds'' Newspaper that the Mormons had " created a soul under the rib of death ! " It was a matter of supreme astonishment to these great apostles of socialism to find a Christian Church in this age working abreast of themselves in social reforms; and they boldly and justly proclaimed that the Mormons were the only people in Christen- dom who were building upon the true social base-work as exemplified in the early Christian Church. And what made the Mormon movement, in its socialistic as- pects, so singular and interesting to these men was the fact that the Mormons were working out a new social order harmonious with the co-operative and communistic plans of a Robert Owen, yet with God in their system and a mighty faith in their people inspiring them to a great social reconstruction. They frankly confessed that in this respect the Mormon apostles had the advantage of all other reformers of the social system. The Mormons as a community were about to test the strength of their tem- poral bulwark. They were also, for the first time in their history, to meet an adequate trial of the communistic genius of their Church, at once in its potency in the sense of a community's aggregated force and in the adhesive and the pre- serving qualities of that genius in the sense of a communistic power of resistance. But we must return to the historical narrative of the period, that we may review the salient points of the situation during the years 1868-69-70. Early in 186S5 the merchants were startled by the announcement " that it was advisable that the people of Utah Territory should become their own merchants; " and that an or- ganization should be created for them expressly for importing and distributing merchandise on a comprehensive plan. When it was asked of President Young, " What do you think the merchants will do in this matter; will they fail in with this co-operative idea?" he answered, "I do not know, but if they do not we shall leave them out in the cold, the same as the Gentiles, and their goods shall rot upon their shelves." This surely was implacable ; but, as already observed, Brigham Young and the Mormons as a peculiar community had in 1868 come face to face with impla- cable necessities. They had, in fact, to cease to be a communistic power in the world and from that moment exist as a mere religious sect, or preserve their tem- poral cohesiveness. The Mormons from the first have existed as a society, not as a sect. They have combined the two elements of organization — the social and the religious. They are now a new society-power in the world and an entirety in themselves. They are indeed the only religious community in Christendom of ^88 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. modern birth. They existed as such in Ohio; in Missouri, in Illinois, and finally in Utah ; and to preserve themselves as a community they made an exodus to the isolation of the Rocky Mountains. They intend forever to preserve themselves as a community; that was the plain and simple meaning of Brigham Young's an- swer concerning the merchants in 1868. It was not an exodus which was then needed to so preserve them, but a Zion's X^o-operative Mercantile Institution. The subsequent history abundantly shows as much ; many times since, as we shall find by tracing the lines of the Mormon financial influences abroad, Z. C. M. I. has moved the commercial world everywhere to the preservation of that peculiar community of which it has become the temporal bulwark. There was, therefore, at once the extraordinary sagacity of a great society organizer as well as genuine Mormon fidelity in President Young's answer. If the merchants do not fall in with Zion's Co-operative movement to preserve herself intact " we will leave them out in the cold, the same as the Gentiles." President John Taylor or George Q. Cannon would have answered precisely the same. Indeed, this was the united decision of the Apostles upon the co-operative necessities of the times, and it was a co-operation among the mercantile and financial class of the community that was so essentially required in 186S-69-70. To appreciate the radical necessity of such a combination of the Mormon moneyed classes at that time will be to sociologically understand the birth and subsequent history of Z. C. M. I. and the immense service which three or four of the chief commercial and moneyed men of the Territory did to the community in resigning their own base-work to a Zion's Institution, thus setting the example to the lesser mercantile powers throughout the Territory. The co-operative plan having been sufficiently evolved in the mind of Presi- dent Young and his apostolic compeers, the President called a meeting of the merchants in the City Hall, October, 1868. It was there and then determined to adopt a general co-operative plan throughout the Territory to preserve the com- merce and money resources of the people within themselves, and thus also to preserve the social unity. As yet, however, the methods of co-operation were not perfected nor the idea of a Z, C. M. I. completely evolved. It was necessary for the merchants themselves to work out the idea into practical shape, it being their special movement, though inspired by the Church from the very impulse of her own genius. To be true to the integrity of history, it must be confessed that of themselves the merchants never would have re-constructed themselves upon a co-operative plan. The inspiration of the moment was from the Church, while its success was in such men as Jennings and Hooper and Eldredge and Clawson ; but especially was the commercial basework of Mr. Jennings, with his Eagle Em- porium, required for the foundation of an Institution colossal enough to represent a community. Brigham Young was wise enough to know the necessary parts of the combination. The initial movement of co-operation having been made, meeting followed meeting ; a committee was appointed to frame a constitution and by-laws, and, without seeing the end from the beginning, their part of the programme was car- ried out, and an institution formed on paper; subscriptions were solicited, and cash fell into the cofTers of the Treasurer pro tern. This was during the winter HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY, j devastation, blood and death. We threw up a few logs and fences for protection ; this, I suppose, is what Mr. Colfax calls, ' fortifying their towns and defying the officers of law.' If wagons and fences and a few house logs are fortifications, we were fortified ; and if the mob, whose hands were dripping with the blood of men, women and children, whom they had murdered in cold blood, were ' officers of the law ' then we are guilty of the charge. I cannot defend the acts of Thomas B. Marsh or Orson Hyde, although the latter had been laboring under a severe fever, and was at the time only just recovering, no more than I could defend the acts of Peter when he cursed and swore and denied Jesus ; nor the acts of Judas who betrayed Him ; but, if Peter, after going out and ' vveeping bitterly,' was restored, and was afterwards a chief apostle ; so did Orson Hyde repent sincerely and weep bitterly, and was restored and has since been to Palestine, Germany and other nations. Thomas B. Marsh returned a poor broken down man, and begged to live with us; he got up before assembled thousands and stated : ' If you wish to see the effect of apostacy, look at me.' He was a poor wreck of a man, a helpless drivelling child, and he is since dead. A people are not to be judged by such acts as these. But the Governor of Missouri in his message says : " ' These people had violated the laws of the land by open and armed resistance to them ; they had instituted among themselves a government of their own, inde- pendent of, and in opposition to, the government of this State," (false); " they had, at an inclement season of the year, driven the inhabitants of an entire county from their homes, ravaging their crops and destroying their dwellings.' " Now, if the Governor had reversed this statement it would have been true ; the falsity of it I stand prepared to prove anywhere, Mr. Governor it was your bull that gored our ox. We were robbed, pillaged and exiled, were you? Our men, women and children were murdered without redress; driven from their homes in an inclement season of the year, and died by hundreds, in the State of Illinois, in consequence of hardships and exposure. "The legislature of Missouri, to cover their infamy, appropriated the munifi- HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 41 g cent sum of ^2,000 to help the suffering Mormons. Their agent took a few mis- erable traps, the sweepings of an old store ; for the balance of the patrimony he sent into Davis County and killed our hogs, which we were then prevented from doing, and brought them to feed the poor Mormons as part of the legislative ap- propriation. This I saw. On this subject I could quote volumes. I will only say that when authenticated testimony Avas presented to Martin Van Buren, the President of the United States, he replied, 'Your cause is j'usl ; but I can do nothing for you.' " Mr. Colfax, in summing up, says, 'There is nothing in this as to their re- ligion.' Read the following : "Tuesday, November 6th, 1S38, General Clark made the following remarks to a number of men in Far West, Mo. : " ' Gentlemen, you whose names are not attached to this list of names will now have the privilege of going to your fields and providing corn and wood for your families. Another article yet remains for you to comply with, that is, that you leave the State forthwith, and whatever may be your feelings concerning this, or whatever your innocence is nothing to me. The orders of the Governor to me were that you should be exterminated. I would advise you to scatter abroad and never again organize yourselves with bishops, presidents, etc., lest you excite the jealousies of the people.' " Is not this persecution for religion ? "Mr. Colfax next takes us to Nauvoo and says, 'In Nauvoo they remained until 1846; the disturbances which finally caused them to leave the city were not in consequence of their religious creed. Foster and Law, who had been Mor- mons, renounced the faith and established an anti-Mormon paper at Nauvoo called the Expositor. In May, 1844, the prophet and a party of his followers, on the publication of his first number, attacked the office, tore it down and destroyed the press.' " This is a mistake. The Expositor was an infamous sheet, containing vile and libelous attacks upon individuals, and the citizens generally, and would not have been allowed to exist in any other community a day. ^ The people complained to the authorities about it; after mature delib2ration the city council passed an or- dinance ordering its removal as a nuisance, and it was removed. In a conversa- tion with Governor Ford, on this subject, afterwards, when informed of the cir- cumstances, he said to me, ' I cannot blame you for destroying it, but I wish it had been done by a mob.' I told him that we preferred a legal course, and that Black- stone described a libellous press as a nuisance and liable to be removed ; that our city charter gave us the power to remove nuisances; and that if it was supposed we had contravened the law, we were amenable for our acts and refused not an investigation. Mr. Colfax's history says, 'The authorities thereupon called out the militia to enforce the law, and the Mormons armed themselves to resist it.' The facts were that armed mobs were organized in the neighborhood of Carthao-e •and Warsaw. The Governor came to Carthage and sent a deputation to Joseph Smith, requesting him to send another to him, with authentic documents in rela- tion to the late difficulties. Dr. J. M. Bernhisel, our late delegate to Congress, and myself, were deputed as a committee to wait upon the Governor. His Ex- ^20 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. cellency thought it best (although we had had a hearing before) for us to have a rehearing on the press question. We called his attention to the unsettled state of the country, and the general mob spirit that prevailed ; and asked if we must bring a guard; that we felt fully competent to protect ourselves, but were afraid it would create a collision. He said, 'We had better come entirely unarmed,' and pledged his faith and the faith of the State for our protection. We went un- armed to Carthage, trusting in the Governor's word. Owing to the unsettled state of affairs we entered into recognizances to appear at another time. A warrant was issued for the arrest of Joseph and Hyrum Smith, for treason. They were re- manded to jail, and while there were murdered. Not ' by a party of mob,' as Mr. Colfax's history states, ' from Missouri,' but by men in Illinois, who, with black- ened faces, perpetrated the hellish deed ; they did not overpower the guard, as stated, the guard helped them in the performance of their fiendisli act. I saw them for I was there at the time. I could a tale unfold that would implicate editors, officers, military and civil, ministers of the gospel, and other wolves in sheep's clothing. " The following will show in part what our position was : " 'A proclamation to the citizens of Hancock County : — Whereas, a mob of from one to two hundred men, under arms have gathered themselves together in the southwest part of Hancock County, and are at this time destroying the dwellings, and other buildings, stacks of grain and other property, of a portion of our citizens in the most inhuman manner, compelling the defenceless women ana children to leave their sick beds and exposing them to the rays of the parch- ing sun, there to lie and suffer without aid or assistance of a friendly hand, to^min- ister to their wants, in their suffering condition. The rioters spare not the widow nor orphan, and while I am writing this proclamation, the smoke is arising to the clouds, and the flime is devouring four buildings which have just been set on fire by the rioters Thousands of dollars worth of property has already been con- sumed, an entire settlement of about sixty or seventy families laid waste, the in habitants thereof are fired up^ii, narrowly escaping with their lives, and forced to fl;e before the ravages of the mob. Therefore I command said rioters and other peace breakers to* desist, forthwith, and I hereby call upon the law-abiding citizens, d.%2, posse commitatus of Hancock County, to give their united aid in sup- jjressirg the rioters and maintaining the supremacy of the law. J. B. Backenstos, Shet iff of Hancock County, Ills.'' " Mr. Backenstos was not a Mormon. "We set out in search of an asylum, in some far off wilderness, where we hoped we could enjoy religious liberty. Previous to our departure a committee composed of Stephen A. Douglass, Gen. John J. Harding, both members of Con- gress, the Attorney General of Illinois, Major Warren and others, met in my house, in Nauvoo, in conference with the Twelve, to consult about our departure. They were then presented the picture of devastation that would follow our exodu";, and felt ashamed to have to acknowledge that State and United States authorities had to ask a persecuted and outraged people to leave their property, homes and fire- sides for their oppres<^ors to enjoy ; not because we had not a good Constitution HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 421 and liberal government, but because there was not virtue and power in the State and United States authorities to protect them in their rights. We made a treaty with them to leave ; after this treaty, when the strong men and the majority of the people had left, and there was nothing but old and infirm men, buys, women and children to battle with, like ravenous wolves, impatient for their prey, they vio- lated their treaty by making war upon them, and driving them houseless, home- less, and destitute across the Mississippi river. "The archaeologist, the antiquarian, and the traveller need not then have gone to Herculaneum, to Pompeii, to Egypt or Yucatan, in search of ruins or deserted cities; they could have found a deserted temple, forsaken family altars, desolate hearth stones and homes, a deserted city much easier : the time, the nineteenth century j the place, the United States of America; the State, Illinois, and the city, Nauvoo. " While fleeing, as fugitives, from rthe United States, and in Indian ter- ritory, a requisition was made by the Government for 500 men to assist in con- quering Mexico, the very nation to whose Territory we were fleeing in our exile ; we supplied the demand and though despoiled and expatriated, were the principal agents in planting the United States flag in Upper California. " I again quote : "'In September, 1850, Congress organized Utah Territory, and President Fillmore appointed Brigham Young (who at Smith's death had become President of the Church) as Governor. The next next year the Federal judges were com- pelled by Brigham Young's threats of violence to flee from the Territory, and the laws of the United States were openly defied. Col. Steptoe was commissioned Governor in place of Young, but after wintering with a battalion of soldiers at Salt Lake, he resigned, not deeming it safe or prudent to accept.' " So far from this being the case. Col. Steptoe was on the best of terms with our community, and previous to his appointment as Governor, a number of our prominent Gentile citizens, judges. Col. Steptoe and some of his officers signed a I petition to the President praying for the continuance of President Young in office. He continues: 'In February, 1856, a mob of armed Mormons, instigated by sermons from the heads of the Church, broke into the United States court room and at the point of the bowie knife compelled Judge Drummond to adjourn his court sine die ; " (this is a sheer fabrication, there never was such an occurrence in Utah) ' and very soon all the United States officers, except the Indian Agent, were compelled to flee from the Territory.' Now this same amiable and perse- cuted Judge Drummond brought with him a courtezan from Washington, whom he introduced as his wife, and had her with him on the bench. The following will show the mistake in regard to Col. Steptoe and others : " ' To His Excellency Franklin Pierce, President of the United States : "'Your petitioners would respectfully represent that. Whereas, Governor Brigham Young possesses the entire confidence of the people of this Territory, without distinction of party or sect, and from personal acquaintance and social intercourse, we find him to be a firm supporter of the Constitution and laws of 422 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. the United States, and a tried pillar of Republican institutions; and having re- peatedly listened to his remarks, in private as well as in public assemblies, do know he is a warm friend and able supporter of Constitutional liberty, the rumors published in the States, to the contrary, notwithstanding ; and having canvassed to our satisfaction, his doings as Governor and Superintendent of Indian affairs, and also the distribution of appropriations for public buildings fjr the Territory, we do most cordially and cheerfully represent that the same has been expended to the best interest of the nation; and whereas, his appointment would better sub- serve the Territorial interest than the appointment of any other man, " * We therefore take great pleasure in recommending him to your favorable consideration, and do earnestly request his appointment as Governor, and Super- intendent of Indian affairs for this Territory. "'Salt Lake City, Utah Territory, December 30th, 1S54. J. F. Kinney, Chief Justice Supreme Court; Leonidas Shaver, Assistant Justice; E. J. Steptoe, Lt. Col. U. S. Army; John F. Reynolds, Bvt. Maj.; Rufus Ingales, Capt.; Sylvester Mowry, La Chett, L. Livingston, John C. Chandler, Robert O. Tyler, Benj. Allston, Lieutenants; Chas. A. Perry, Wm. G. Rankin, Horace R. Kirby, Medical Staff; U. S. A. Henry, C. Branch, C. C. Branham, C. J. Bipne, Lucian L. Bedell, Wm. Mac, J. M. Hochaday and other strangers.' ''There was really no more cause for an army then than there is now, and there is no more reason now, in reality, than there was then, and the bills of Messrs. Cragin and Cullom are only a series of the same infamies that we have before experienced, and are designed, as all unbiassed men know, to create a dif- ficulty and collision, aided by the clamor of speculators and contractors, who have of course, a very disinterested desire to relieve their venerated uncle by thrusting their patriotic hands into his pockets. " I am sorry to be under the pamful necessity of repudiating Mr. Colfax's history. It is said that 'corporations have no souls,' and nations are not prover- bially conscientious about their nomenclature or records. Diplomacy generally finds language suited to its objects. When the British nation granted to the East India Company their stupendous monopoly, that company subjugated and brought really into serfdom about one hundred millions of human beings; and compelled many to raise poison (opium) instead of bread. History calls that ^ trade and commerce.'' After the Chinese had made a law making the introduction of opium contraband, in defiance of this law they sent cargoes of the tabooed article and illicitly introduced their poison. The Chinese, unwilling to be poisoned, confis- cated and destroyed these contraband goods. History calls it a casus belli, and when the Chinese, unwilling to be coerced, resisted the British force, that nation slaughtered vast hordes of them, because they had the power ; history calls it war. When they forced them to pay millions of dollars for the trouble they had in killing them, history calls it indemnification for the expenses of the war. When President Polk wanted to possess himself of the then Mexican Territory of Upper California, he sent General Taylor, with an army of occupation, into disputed Mexican territory, well knowing that an honorable nation would resent it as an insult, and that would be considered a casus belli and afford a pretext for mak- ing war upon the weak nation, and possessing ourselves of the coveted Territory; HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 423 history calls it conquest and reprisals. It is true that we acted more honorably than Great Britain in awarding some compensation. President Buchanan, goaded by the Republicans, wished to show them that in regard to the Mormons he dared out-Herod Herod, by fitting up an army to make war upon the Mormons ; but it was necessary to have a pretext. It would not have been popular to destroy a whole community in cold blood, so he sent out a few miserable minions and rene- gadoes for the purpose of provoking a collision. These men not only acted in- famously here, but published false statements throughout the United States, and every kind of infamy — as is now being done by just such characters — was laid at the door of the Mormons. They said, among other things, that we had burned the U. S. records. These statements were afterwards denied by Governor Gum- ming. Mr. Buchanan had another object in view, and Mr. J. B. Floyd, Secretary ot War, had also his axe to grind, and the whole combined was considered a grand coup d' eiai. It is hardly necessary to inform Mr. Colfax that this army, under pretence of subjugating the Mormons, was intended to coerce the people of Kansas to his views, and that they were not detained, as stated by Mr. Colfax's history, which said : " the troops, necessarily moving slowly, were overtaken by the snows in November, and wintered at Bridger.' I need not inform Mr. Col- fax that another part of this grand tableau originated in the desire of Secretary Floyd to scatter the U. S. forces and arms, preparatory to the Confederate rebel- lion. Such is history and such are facts. " We were well informed as to the object of the coming of the army, we had men in all of the camps, and knew what was intended. There was a continual boast among the men and officers, even before they left the Missouri river, of what they would do with the Mormons. The houses were picked out that certain per- sons were to inhabit ; farms, property and women were to be distributed. ' Beauty and booty,' were their watchword. We were to have another grand Nor- man conquest, and our houses, gardens, orchards, vineyards, fields, wives and daughters were to be the spoils. Instead of this Mr. Buchanan kept them too long about Kansas ; the Lord put a hook in their jaws, and instead of reveling in sacked towns and cities and glutting their libidinous and riotous desires in ravish- ing, destroying and laying waste, they knawed dead mules' legs at Bridger, ren- dered palatable by the ice, frost and snow of a mountain winter, seasoned by the pestiferous exhalations of hecatombe of dead animals, the debris of a ruined army, at a cost to the nation of about forty millions. We had reason to say then 'the Lord reigns, let the earth be glad.' Oh, how wicked it was for President Young to resist an army like the above, prostituted by the guardians of a free and enlightened republic to the capacity of buccaneers and brigands ! " In the spring rumors prevailed of an intended advance of the army. Pre- ferring compromise to conflict, we left Salt Lake City and the northern part of the Territory eti masse and prepared ourselves, for what we then considered a coming conflict. After first preparing combustible materials and leaving a suffi- cient number of men in every settlement to destroy everything ; had we been driven to it we should have made such a conflagration as never was witnessed in the U. S. Every house would have been burned and leveled to the ground, every barn, grain and hay stack, every meeting house, court house and store demolished; 424 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. every fruit tree and shrub would have been cut down ; every fence burned and the country would have been left a liovvling wilderness as we found it. We were de- termined that if we could not enjoy our homes in peace, that never again should our enemies revel in our possessions. "I now come to Mr. Colfax's next heading, ' their polygamy: ' "As this is simply a rehash of his former arguments, without answering mine, I beg to be excused inserting his very lengthy quotation, as this article is already long. In regard to our tolerations of all religions, Mr. C. entertains very singular ideas. We do invite men of almost all persuasions to preach to us in our tab- ernacles, but we are not so latiUidinarian in our principles as to furnish meeting houses for all; we never considered this a part of the programme. Meeting houses are generally closed against us everywhere, and men are advised not to go and hear us ; we open ours, and say to our congregation go and hear them, but we do not engage to furnish all. Neither is the following statement correct: 'About the same time he (Mr. Taylor) was writing it, God be and others were being expelled from the Church for disbelieving the infallibility of Brigham Young.' No person, as I before stated, was ever expelled from the Church for doubting the infallibility of President Young ; it is but just to say that President Young, himself disclaims it. Mr. C. again repeats his argument in relation to the suttee, or burning of widows in India, and after giving a very elaborate and correct account of its sup- pression by English authority says : — "' Wherever English power recognized there this so-called religious rite is now sternly forbid denand prevented. England with united voice said stop ! and India obeyed/ "To present Mr. Colfax's argument fairly, it stands thus: The burning of Hindoo widows was considered a religious rite, by the Hindoos. The British were horrified at the practice and suppressed it. The Mormons believe polygamy to be a religious rite. The American nation consider it a scandal and that they ought to put it down. Without entering into all the details, I think the above a fair statement of the question. He says ' the claim that religious faith commanded it was powerless, and it went down, as a relic of barbarism.' He says: ' History tells us what a civilized nation, akin to ours, actually did, where they had the power.' I wish to treat this argument with candor, although I do not look upqn the British nation as a fit example for us ; it was not so thought in the time of the Revolution. I hope we would not follow them in charging their cannon with Sepoys, and shooting them off in this same India. I am glad, also, to find that our Administration views and acts upon the question of neutrality more honorably than our trans-Atlantic cousins. But to the point. The British suppressed the suttee in India, and therefore we must be equally moral and suppress polygamy in the United States. Hold ! not so fast ; let us state facts as they are and remove the dust. The British suppressed the suttee, but tolerated eighty-three millions of polygamists in India. The suppression of the suttee and that of polygamy are two very different things. If the British are indeed to be our examplars, Con- gress had better wait until polygamy is suppressed in India. But it is absurd to compare the suttee to polygamy ; one is murder and the destruction of life, the other is national economy and the increase and perpetuation of life. Suttee ranks HISTORY 01 SALT LAKE CITY. 425 truly with Infanticide, both of which are destructive of human life. Polygamy is salvation compared with cither, and tends even more than monogamy to increase and perpetuate the human race. " I have now waded through Mr. Colfax's charges and have proven the falsity of his assertions and the tergiversation of his historical data. I will not say his but his adopted history; for it is but fair to say that he disclaims vouching for its accuracy. " Permit me here again to assert my right as a public teacher, to address my- self to Congress and the nation, and to call their attention to something that is more demoralizing, debasing, and destructive than polygamy. As an offset to my former remarks on these things, we are referred to our mortality of infants as " ex- ceeding any thing else known." '' Mr, Colfax is certainly in error here. In France, according to late statisti- cal reports on la vwrt d'' enfants, they were rated at from fifty to eighty per cent, of the whole under one year old. The following is from the Salt Lake City sex- ton's report for 1869 : " ' Total interments during the year, 4S4; deducting persons brought from the country places for interment, and transients, 93 ; leaving the mortality of this <^ity, 391- Jos. E. Taylor, Sexton. '" Having been often asked the question: Whether the death-rate was not considerably greater among polygamic families than monogamic, I will answer : Of the 292 children buried from Salt Lake City last year (1869), 64 were children of polygamists; while 228 were children of monogamists; and further, that out of this number, there was not even one case of infanticide. Respectfully, Jos. E. Taylor. " We had a sickly season last year among children ; but when it is considered that we have twice as many children as any other place, in proportion to the number of inhabitants, the death-rate is very low, especially among polygamists- " But supposing it was true, ' the argumetituni ad hominiun,^ which Mr. Col- fax says he ' might use/ would scarcely be an argumentum ad judiciim ; for if all the children in Salt Lake City or Utah died, it would certainly not do away with that horrible crime, infanticide. Would Mr. Colfax say that because a great num- ber of children in Utah, who were children of polygamists, died, that, therefore, infanticide in the United States is justifiable? and that the acts of Madame Res- telle and her pupils were right and proper? I know he would not, his ideas are more pure, generous and exalted. Mr. Colfax says of us, ' I do not charge infant murder, of course." Now I do charge that infant murder prevails to an alarming extent in the United States. The following will show how near right I am. Ex- tract from a book entitled. Serpents in a Dove' s Nest, by Rev. John Todd, D. D.^ Boston. Lee and Shepherd. *"' Under the head of ' Fashionable Murder," we read the following : " 'By the advertisements of almost every paper, city and village in the land, offering medicines to be effectual ' from whatever causes ' it is needed ; by the 11 426 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. shameless and notorious great establishments, fitted up and advertised as places where any woman may resort to effect the end desired, and which now number in the city of New York alone over four hundred, advertised and abundantly patron- ized, houses devoted to the work of abortionating ; by the confession of hundreds of women made to physicians, who have been injured by the process ; and by the almost constant and unblushing applications made to the profession from ' women in all classes of society, married and unmarried, rich and poor and otherwise, good, bad or indifferent,' to aid them in the thing — do we know of the frequency of this crime ? " (p. 4 and 5.) ' I would not advise any one to challenge further disclosures, else we can show that France, with all her atheism, that Paris, with all her license, is not as guilty, in this respect, as is staid New England at the present hour. Facts can be adduced that will make the ears tingle ; but we don't want to divulge them ; but we do want the womanhood of our day to understand that the thing can be no longer concealed ; that commonness of fashion cannot do away with its awful guilt; it is deliberate and cold-blooded murder.' (p. 13, 14.) "These facts are corroborated by Dr. Story in a book, entitled. Why Not. Lee and Shepherd, Boston. By the New York Medical Journal, September, 1866, by the Boston Commonwealth, Springfield, (Mass.) Worcester Palladium, North- ampton Free Press, Salem Observer, and, as stated above, 'by the advertisements of almost every paper, city and village in the land.' I have statistics before me now, from a physician, stating the amount of prostitution, foeticide and infanti- cide m Chicago; but bad as Chicago is represented to be, these statements are so enormous and revolting that I cannot believe them. Neither is the statement made by some of the papers, in regard to Mr. Colfax's association with the Richardson case, reliable. Men in his position have their enemies, and it is not credible that a gentleman holding such strong prejudice about, what he considers, the immor- ality of the Mormons, and whose moral ideas, in relation to virtue and chastity, are so pure, could lend himself as an accomplice to the very worst and most re- volting phase of Free Loveism. And I would here solicit the aid of Mr. Colfax, with his superior intelligence, his brilliant talents and honorable position, to help stop the blighting, withering curse of prostitution, foeticide and infanticide. " I call upon philosophers and philanthropists to stop it ; know ye not that the transgression of every law of nature brings its own punishment, and that as noble a race of men as ever existed on the earth are becoming emasculated and destroyed by it ? I call upon physicians to stop it ; you are the guardians of the people's health, and justice requires that you should use all your endeavors to stop the demoralization and destruction of our race, I call upon ministers of the gos- pel to stop it ; know ye not the wail of murdered infants is ascending into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth and that the whole nation is hastening to destruction whilst you are singing lullaby songs to murderers and murderesses ? I call upon statesmen to slop it ; know ye not that the statisticians inform us that our original stock is running out, and that in consequence of this crime we are being sup- planted by foreigners, and that the enemies of the negro race are already exulting in the hope of their speedy extinction, by copying your vices. I call upon the fair daughters of America and their abettors their husbands and paramours to pause in their career of crime ; you came of an honorable and pure stock, your HISTORY OF SAL T LAKE CITY. 42-] fathers, mothers and grandmothers' hands were not stained with the blood of in- nocence; they could press their pillows in peace, without the fear of a visit from the shades of their wailing offspring, I call upon municipal and State authorities and especially upon Congress to stop this withering, cursing and damning blight. I call upon all honorable men and women to use their influence to stop this grow- ing evil. I conjure you by the love of God, by the ties of consanguinity, by a respect for our race and a love for our nation, by the moans of murdered infants and the fear of an avenging retribution, help stop this cursed evil ! "In the province of Gazaret, Hindostan, parents have been in the habit of destroying infant children as soon as born ; and at the festival held at Gunga Ser- goor, children were sacrificed to the Ganges from time immemorial ; both of these the British nation suppressed. Shall we practice crimes in civilized and Christian America, that England will not allow heathens to perform, but put them down by the strong arm of the law? You indeed tell us that these things are " banned by you, banned by the law, banned by morality and public opinion; " your bans are but a mockery and a fraud, as are your New England temperance laws ; your law reaches one in a thousand who is so unfortunate as to be publicly exposed. These crimes, of which I write, run riot in the land, a withering, cursing blight. The affected purity of the nation is a myth ; like the whited walls and painted sepul- chers, of which Jesus spake, ''within there is nothing but rottenness and dead men's bones." Who, and what is banned by you? What power is there in your interdiction over the thirty thousand prostitutes and mistresses of New York and their amiable pimps and paramours? What of the thousands in the city of broth- erly love, in Boston, in your large eastern, northern and southern cities? What of Washington ? What of your four hundred murder establishments in New York and your New England operations in the same line ? You are virtuous are you ? God deliver us from such virtue. It may be well to talk about your purity and bans to those wlio are ignorant; it is too bare-faced for the informed. I say, as I said before, why don't you stop this damning, cursed evil? I am reminded of the Shakesperian spouter who cried, ' I can call spirits from the vasty deep ! ' 'So can I,' said his hearer, ' but they won't come ! ' Now we do control these horrid vices and crimes, do you want to force them upon us? Such things are '"A blot that will remain a blot in spite Of all that grave apologists may write ; And, though a bishop try to cleanse the stain, He rubs and scours the crimson spot in vain.' "We have now a Territory out of debt; cur cities, counties and towns are out of debt. We have no gambling, no drunkenness, no prostitution, foeticide nor infanticide. We maintain our wives and children, and we have made the ' desert to blossom as the rose.' We are at peace with ourselves and with all the world. Whom have we injured? Why can we not be let alone ? " What are we offered by you in your proposed legislation ? for it is well for us to count the cost. First — confiscation of property, our lands, houses, gardens, fields, vineyards, and orchards, legislated, away by men who have no property, car- petbaggers, pettifoggers, adventurers, robbers, for you offer by your bills a pre- mium for fraud and robbery. The first robs us of our property and leaves us 428 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. the privilege, though despoiled, of retaining our honor, and of worshipping God according to the dictates of our own conscience. We have been robbed before ; this we could stand again. Now for the second — the great privilege which you offer by obedience : Loss of honor and self respect ; a renunciation of God and our religion ; the prostitution of our wives and children to a level with your civ- ilization ; to be cursed with your debauchery ; to be forced to countenance infanticide in our midst, and have your professional artists advertise their dens of murder among us ; to swarm, as you do, with pimps and harlots and their para- mours; to have gambling, drunkenness, whoredom,, and all the pestiferous effects of debauchery ; to be involved in debt and crime, forced upon us ; to despise ourselves, to be despised by our wives, children and friends, and to be despised and cursed of God, in time and in eternity. This you offer us and your religion to boot. It is true you tell us you will ' ban it ' but your bans are a myth ; you would open the flood gates of crime and debauchery, infanticide, drunkenness and gambling, and practically tie them up with a strand of a spider's web. You can- not stop these; if you would you have not the power. We have, and prefer purity, honor, and a clear conscience, and our motto to-day is, as it ever has been, and I hope ever will be '■ the Kingdom of God or nothing.' " Respectfully, "John Taylor." CHAPTER XLYIL BIRTH OF THE UTAH LIBERAL PARTY. POLITICAL COALITION OF GENTILES AND MORMON SCHISMATICS. CONTEST AT THE MUNICIPAL ELECTION OF 1870. REPORT OF THE FIRST CENTR.\L COMMITTEE OF THE LIBERAL PARTY. In the beginning of the year 1870, in January and February, a political plan was devised to unite the Godbeites with the Gentiles. Both were few in number ; even when united they were but an insignificant minority, compared with the party since known as the '' People's" party. The coalition, however, was consid- ered promising and prospectively formidable. On the one side, the schismatic Mormon elders and merchants were likely to have a large following throughout the Territory or, at least, it was expected that the schism would increase greatly and extend to every settlement, even though it should lack cohesion. Nothing seemed more probable than that there were thousands of men and women, who had grown up in the Mormon community, or been long connected with it, apart from any spiritualistic " New Movement " incubated at nightly seajices at New York, who occupied similar positions, and entertained similar views regarding Mormonism, to those of Mr. Godbe and his compeers, and the Walker Brothers, Chislett and their class, who had left the Church years before. There were also Tng " Tru lELBMai &, Sons 13 :Barc' HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 42g many influential men who remained in the Mormon Church who said to Mr. Godbe and his friends, " You should have remained in the Church and fought out your issues. It was a great mistake to set up new a church." And thus the " New Movement," or new " Church of Zion " was soon gen- erally looked upon to be in and of itself a failure, while to the faithful Mormons, whose head of the Church was so prominent and sound, whose will so strong and or- ganism matchless, this church of Zion, without a head, or even the power to organize a quorum of elders, was a thing of scorn. Henry W. Lawrence keenly felt this and forecasted failure in the object of the schism. The only resolution of any social potency was in a quick uniting of the Godbeites with the Gentiles, and the formation of a political party by such a coalition. "The design was projected, and early in February, 1870, a political caucus was called, of the leading men concerned, to give birth to the party now known as the "Liberal" party. The meeting was held in the Masonic Hall. Eli B. Kelsey was chosen ciiairman, whereupon the leaders made their preliminary speeches, formulated methods for the city election close at hand, with Henry W. Lawrence at the head of their ticket for Mayor of Salt Lake City. The Gentiles, with political sagacity, kept in the background, merely playing the parts as ad- visers, helpers and voters Of course the object of this maneuver was to make their coalition party a political entering wedge into the Mormon Church, by call- ing out the Mormon friends of the men on the ticket. The preliminary work having been done, the meeting adjourned to be held next at Walker Brother's old store, where the " New Movement " held its service and public meetings; Eli B. Kelsey was continued as chairman, and a committee was appointed to make a pub- lic call for the ratification of the Liberal ticket. Accordingly the city was duly placarded, informing the public of the meet- ing and its object ; and the invitation given was " Come one, come all I '' It was an unfortunate wording; for it was addressed to the "people " of Salt Lake City to "come one, come all" to nominate their municipal officers for the forthcom- ing election. The Mormons were "the people" — "The People's party" — a name, indeed, which came into political significance from that very election. The People's party resolved to accept the invitation, and give the Liberals a sur- prise. It was a party coup cV etat, perhaps, not quite fair, yet without that fell de- sign which the Liberal party has marked in the first chapter of its own history. It was in fact, merely a political move of party managers to show the people how futile an opposition party was, and how easily overwhelmed. But it is necessary to the completeness of the historical data of our city, as due to the Utah Liberal party, which has since repeatedly contested the elections for Delegate to Congress to give its first chapter as presented by its own central committee at the time. The Deseret News of February 10, 1S70, thus called attention to " the Mass Meeting: " " By a placard which is posted up in several places in the city, signed ' many voters,' we see that it is the intention to hold a public Mass Meeting this, Thursday, Evening, at half past six o'clock, in the building known as Walker Brothers' original store, on East Temple Street. The object of the meeting, as 430 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. set forth by the placard, is ' for the nomination of a People's Free and Indepen- dent Ticket for Mayor, Aldermen, Councilors, etc., to be voted for on Monday, the 14th instant.' "The placard is headed in large letters, ' Come One, Come All.' A full meeting is desired, and as the object is one of general interest to all ^classes of our citizens, we hope there will be a crowded attendance. We want to see a good ticket nominated for city officers and the occasion is one in which every citi- zen should be interested." On Saturday, February 12, 1870, the following appeared in the 7th number of the Mormon Tribune, published by Godbe & Harrison : "A CARD BY THE COMMITTEE. "The Mass Meeting, called by many voters, in Walker Brothers' original store, Thursday evening, February 10, was overwhelmed by a characteristic maneu- vering on the part of the Church authorities. The Deseret Evening News promptly announced the meeting, and gave a significant hint for a grand coup d' etat. And we are well informed that A. Milton Musser went to the different wards of the city, and instructed the bishops and teachers to have the people of their wards turn out en masse, and defeat the object for which the meeting was called. The principal of the Deseret University, also instructed his pupils to be on hand. A large crowd took possession of the street in front of the building long before the hour appointed for the meeting. The pressing demand for admittance, ren- dered it necessary to open the doors a six o'clock, whereupon the crowd rushed in with si^reams and yells, jumping over and breaking the seats in the most reck- less manner. At the head of the crowd marched J. D, T. McAllister, acting bishop of the Eighth Ward and Territorial marshal, and Bishop J. C. Little. Mr. Eli B. Kelsey stated that this was an adjourned meeting of which he was the reg- ular chairman ; but as they took possession by force they were welcome to do so. Without a moment's delay. Bishop J. C. Little was nominated for chairman of the meeting, Mr. E. L. Sloan was elected secretary, and Mr. Grimshaw reporter. Bishop Little called for nominations, when the whole orthodox ticket was nomi- nated one by one by acclamation ; the more sober and thoughtful portion of the audience ignoring the whole proceedings, considering that a gross outrage had been perpetrated by the Church officials. We sincerely regret the unmistakable animus betrayed in the whole affair ; and we feel more than ever the need of a change. "We call upon every free American citizen to rally to the polls on Monday next, and vote the Independent ticket, thereby manifesting their disapproval of proceedings rarely equalled — certainly never outdone in the Kansas elections." "Independent Ticket: Mayor — Henry W.Lawrence; aldermen — First Municipal Ward, Samuel Xahn ; Second Municipal Ward, J. R. Walker; Third Municipal Ward, Orson Pratt, Jr.; Fourth Municipal Ward, E. D. Woolley ; Fifth Municipal Ward, James Gordon. Councilors — Nat Stein, Anthony Godbe, John Cunningtun, John Lowe, Marsena Cannon, Fred T. Perris, Dr. W. F. An- derson, Wm. Sloan, Peter Rensheimer ; city recorder, Wm. P. Appleby; city treasurer, B. G. Raybould; city marshal, Ed. Butterfield. " By order of the " Central Committee M HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 431 The following correspondence passed between the Liberal central committee and the mayor : "Salt Lake City, Feb. 12, 1870. ' ' Daniel H. Wells, mayor Salt Lake City. " Dear Sir : — You are doubtless aware there is an Independent ticket nom- inated by many voters of this city to be submitted to the people for their suffrage, at the municipal election on Monday, the 14th instant. We, therefore, respect- fully ask, on behalf of those wishing to sustain said ticket, that one judge of election and one clerk be appointed from the Independent party, by you or the city council, to act in these positions at said election ; and would respectfully ask that John M. Worley, and William P. Appleby hz appointed for those positions, which is according to the usages of the country. " This committee is desirous that none but legal votes shall be cast at the coming election, and to this end ask of you the assurance that the usual challenges and ballot box shall be protected by you and the police force of this city. "Will you please return an answer by bearer? "By order of the committee, "J. M. Orr, Chairman r "Mayor's Office, Salt Lake City, Feb. 13th, 1S70. "■J. J\I. Orr, Esq., Chair. Cen. Com. " Sir : — Your note dated 12th inst. asking for a change to be made in the board of judges and clerks of election is just received, and I hasten to answer. " Col. Jesse C. Little, Seymour B. Young and John Needham, Esqs., have been chosen judges, and F. A. Mitchell and R. V. Morris, Esqs., clerks of said election. " These gentlemen were selected and appointed to act as said judges and clerks by the city council on Teusday, ist inst., and, I am sanguine, command the confidence of the entire people, and will doubtless act justly and wisely in the performance of the duties thus devolved upon them. "Rest assured that every protection will be afforded for voters to vote their respective tickets without partiality or hindrance. " If, as is sometimes the case, during the day, the polls should be crowded, I would recommend the voters to be patient, for all will have the opportunity af- forded to them to vote during the day. And it is designed to enforce the strictest order. Respecfully, D. H. Wells, Alayor.'' The municipal election on the Monday, Febuary 14th, was quite peaceful, showing on either side but little of the animus which the commencement seemed to promise. The Deseret News merely noted the result of the election, with an item relative to the counting of votes. The Liberal party were the speakers to the public on the occasion, as will be seen from the report of the first central committee of the Liberal party. ' ' To the editors of the Mormon Tribtme : " The undersigned, a committee representing the Independent voters of Salt 43 2 HIS TOR Y OF SALT LAKE CITY. Lake City and County, desire to state to the public the circumstances connected with the organization of the first Independent political party in this Territory, as also the facts of the recent election. " On Wednesday, February 9th, a meeting was held at the Masonic Hall, of those opposed to the existing state of our city government. An organization was effected, a central committee was appointed to serve for one year, and a ticket for city officers, composed of old and respected citizens without regard to creed or religious belief, nominated by acclamauon. A mass meeting was also appointed for the following night to be held at Walkers' original store, for the ratification of the nominations, and an exchange of views on the questions before the people. Long previous to the hour appointed, the street in front of, and the building itself, were taken possession of by a crowd of men, determined to defeat the purposes of the meeting. We have already stated in the Tribune the result of their endeavors, the same number of your journal, however, contained the original, regularly nominated Independent ticket, as submitted to the people on Monday last. During the election many irregularities, to say the least, were re- ported to us (by a sub- committee of challengers appointed by us) which we were and are powerless to remedy. They state that — "Many voted who were not citizens of the United States. " Many who were not citizens of Salt Lake |City. "Many who were not of lawful age ; and the ballot boxes when filled were set aside and not properly sealed or guarded. "It is needless to recapitulate the numerous obstacles thrown in the way of those desirous of voting the Independent ticket, or the annoyances to which our challengers were subjected. Suffice it to say that without these, and the existing law of the Territory compelling the numbering and identifying ot each vote, a system practically robbing every citizen of his freedom of ballot, the result would have been far different. The means used by our opponents to prevent a fair elec- tion and an impartial count prove their fears on this point. " The result of the election, as announced by the judges — no member of our committee being allowed to be present at the counting of the votes — shows an average of about three hundred votes for the Independent ticket, and we regard our commencement in the great work of vindicating the rights of free speech, free thought and a free press in this Territory a promising one. To sum up the reward of five days' work : After twenty years of self-constituted city govern- ment, to which we have paid thousands in taxation, without an exhibit of receipts or expenses, and for that time not daring to express a sentiment in opposition to those held by the dominant party, we have in the election of Monday last demon- strated to the country the existence of American institutions in this Territory, and believe that the seed sown on that day will bear such fruits that before many months the State of Utah, freed from all relics of past tyranny and oppression, will be found marching with the great sisterhood of States, keeping step with the progress of the Union. " In concluding we would return thanks to those of our fellow citizens who have by their confidence placed us in our responsible and prominent positions before the public. The responsibility we realize,— the publicity was unsought. HISTORY 01 SALT LAKE CITY. 433 The duties of our positions we will discharge, as long as honored by their confi- dence, in the fear of God and love of humanity, unshaken loyalty to our country and with 'charity for all' who differ from us and ' malice towards none.' " Respectfully, "J. M. Orr, "J. R. Walker, •'Joseph Salisbury, " T. D. Brown, " James Brooks_, " Samuel Kahn, " R. H. Robertson, " Central Comnditee.^'' The People's ticket of that year was: Mayor— Daniel H. Wells; aldermen — First Municipal Ward, Isaac Groo ; Second, Samuel W. Richards; Third, A. H. Raleigh; Fourth, Jeter Clinton; Fifth, A. C. Pyper. Councilors— Robert T. Burton, Theodore McKean, Thos. Jenkins, Heber P. Kimball, Henry Grow, John Clark, Thos. McLellan, John R. Winder, Lewis S. Hills ; Recorder — Robert Campbell ; treasurer — Paul A. Schet- tler ; marshal — John D. T. McAllister. CHAPTER XLVni. PASSAGE OF THE WOMAN'S SUFFRAGE BILL. GRAND MASS MEETING OF THE "SISTERS" PROTESTING AGAINST THE CULLOM BILL, THEN BEFORE CON- GRESS. EXTRAORDINARY RESOLUTIONS AND HEROIC SPEECHES OF THE WOMEN OF MORMONDOM. The year 1870 was also signalized by the passage of the female suffrage bill, which event was destined to make Mormon Utah politically distinguished among all the advocates of woman's suffrage throughout the world. The Phrenological Journal iox November, 1870, in its biographical article on " William H. Hooper, the Utah Delegate and female suffrage advocate," says: " Utah is a land of marvels. She gives us, first, polygamy, which seems to be an outrage against ' woman's rights,' and then offers the nation a ' female suf- frage bill,' at this time in full force within her own borders. Was there ever a greater anomaly known in the history of society? The women of Utah hold political power to-day. They are the first in the nation to whom the functions of the state have been extended, and it is just as consistent to look for a female member of Congress from Utah as a member of Congress sent to Washington by the women's vote. Let the women be once recognized as powers in the state as well as in society and in the church, and their political rights can be extended to 13 434 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. any length, according to the temper of the public mind, of which the female element forms so large a part. " There is in our innovative age much discussion on the abstract justice, and also on the practical propriety of extending political power to the women of America; and the women ot England have made the same demand in the polit- ical motions of our old Saxon fatherland. This may be caused by one of the great impulses of the times, for we are certainly living in an age of impulses. It is also an age of marvels; not merely in steam and electricity, but in our social states and philosophies of society. Indeed, until modern times, the phrase 'social science ' was not known ; but these new problems and marvels of society have led statesmen and philosophers to recognize a positive 'social science,' and the term sociology to-day is just as legitimate as the term geology. And it is very singular that those advanced minds who are beginning to reduce government and the social development to systems of positive philosophy, bring in the function of political power for woman. Of course your political gamblers and legislative charlatans are against the innovations which female suffrage bills would work out in the age ; but such philosophical lawgivers of society and government as John Stuart Mill, and also statesmen like Cobden and Bright of England, are contemplating the extension of political power to the women as one of the grand methods for the world's future good. " Our present object is not, however, to contend for the benefits to accrue to society through the agencies of woman brought to bear upon the State, as they have been in the Church and in the general spheres of life, but to note the ex- traordinary circumstances of political power having been first granted to and ex- ercised by the women of Utah. We see that female suffrage is both accepted and strongly maintained as one of the great social problems of the future, not only to advance the world, but to assert the dignity and cause of womanhood ; that it is thus accepted and maintained by the boldest female reformers of America and the great masters of social science in England. That is one side of the case, and in that view we find no subject for astonishment, for the men and women whose very names represent mind in the reform movements of the times will be certain to be found in the vanguard of civilization; but that the women of Utah, who have been considered representatives of womanhood in its degradation, should suddenly be found on the same platform with John Stuart Mill and his sister- hood, is truly a matter for astonishment. And moreover, when we look upon the Mormon " kingdom of God." as the Saints denominate it, as the first nation- ality in the, world which has granted to woman political power and created her the chief part of the State as well as the Church, one cannot but confess that the Mormons in this have stolen a march upon their betters. " Three years ago a friend of the Mormons informed us that the Delegate of Utah was in New York, just from Washington, bound for Utah to lay before Brigham Young the extraordinary design of giving to the women of Mormondom political power. And the circumstance was the more marked from the singular facts that the legislative minds, aided by the American press, were proposing just at that time a scheme for Congress to force female suffrage upon Utah, to give to the women of that Territory the power to break up the institution of polygamy II HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. ^j.5 and emancipate themselves from their supposed serfdom and the degradation of womanhood. This done, the conclusion, of course, was that Mormonism and the Mormons would become converted and transformed into respectable mono- gamic problems, easy of solution by our multitude of Christian and other civiliz- ing agencies," The incident referred to in the Phrenoloi^ical Journal relative to William H. Hooper as the female suffrage delegate from Utah, may be supplemented with the narrative itself. Mr. Julian, of Indiana, offered a bill to the House in 1867 in substance, "A Bill to solve the Polygamic Problem." Upon its presentation and announcement. Delegate Hooper immediately called upon Mr. Julian, saying, " That bill has a high sounding title. What are its provisions?" He replied, sim- ply a bill of one section providing for the enfranchisement of the women of Utah. "Mr. Julian," said the Delegate, ''I am in favor of that bill." He in- quired, " Do you speak for your own leading men?" Mr. Hooper replied, "I do not ; but I know of no reason why they should not also approve of it." When Mr. Hooper returned to Utah, he held a conversation with President Brigham Young upon this subject. '' Brother Hooper," inquired the President, "are you in favor of female suffrage?" "I know of no reason why I should not be/' he answered. No more was said j but from that time the subject seemed to develop itself in the mind of the President and soon afterwards it was taken up by the Legislative body and passed by an unanimous vote. The following is a copy of the bill : "An Act, giving women the elective franchise in the Territory of Utah. "Sec. I. — Be it enacted by the Governor and the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Utah : That every woman of the age of twenty-one years, who has resided in this Territory six months next preceding any general or special elec- tion, born or naturalized in the United States, or who is the wife, or widow, or the daughter of a naturalized citizen of the United States, shall be entitled to vote at any election in this Territory. "Sec. 2. — All laws, or parts of laws, conflicting with this act are hereby repealed. " Approved February 12, 1870." It has been charged by the anti-Mormons, that woman suffrage in Utah was only designed to further enslave the Mormon women ; that they took no part in its passage, and have had no soul in its exercise. Nearly the reverse of this is the case as the records will show. Here follow the minutes of a general meeting of the great Female Relief Society, held in Salt Lake City, February 19, 1870 — ^just seven days after the passage of their bill : "Minutes. — Most of the wards of the city were represented. Miss E. R. Snow was elected president, and Mrs. L. D. Alder secretary. " Meeting opened with singing; prayer by Mrs. Harriet Cook Young. " Miss Eliza R. Snow arose and said, to encourage the sisters in good works, she would read an account of our indignation meeting, as it appeared in the Sac- ramento Union) which account she thought a fair one. She also stated that an ex- pression of gratitude was due acting-Governor Mann, for signing the document 436 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. granting woman suffrage in Utah, for we could not have had the right without his sanction, and said that Wyoming had passed a bill of this kind over its governor's head, but we could not have done this. " The following names were unanimously selected to be a committee for said purpose : Eliza R. Snow, Bathsheba W. Smith, Sarah M. Kimball, M. T. Smoot, H. C. Young, Z. D. Young, Phoebe Woodruff, M. I. Home, M. N. H)de, Eliza Cannon, Rachel Grant, Amanda Smith. '' Mrs. Sarah M. Kimball said she had waited patiently a long time, and now that we were granted the right of suffrage, she would openly declare herself a woman's rights woman, and called upon those who would do so to back her up, whereupon many manifested their approval. She said her experience in life had been different from that of many. She had moved in all grades of society ; had been both rich and poor; had always seen much good and intelligence in woman. The interests of man and woman cannot be separated ; for the man is not without the woman nor the woman without the man in the Lord. She spoke of the fool- ish custom which deprived the mother of having control over her sons at a certain age ; said she saw the foreshadowing of a brighter day in this respect in the fu- ture. She said she had entertained ideas that appeared wild, which she thought would yet be considered woman's rights ; spoke of the remarks made by Brother Rockwood, lately, that women would have as much prejudice to overcome, in oc- cupying certain positions as men would in granting them, and concluded by de- claring that woman was the helpmate of man in every department of life. '' Mrs. Phoebe Woodruff said she was pleased with the reform, and was heart and hand with her sisters. She was thankful for the privilege that had been granted to women, but thought we must act in wisdom and not go too fast. She had looked for this day for years. God has opened the way for us. We have borne in patience, but the yoke on woman is partly removed. Now that God has moved upon our brethren to grant us the right of female suffrage, let us lay it by, and wait till the time comes to use it, and not run headlong and abuse the privi- lege. Great and blessed things are ahead. All is right and will come out right, and woman will receive her reward in blessing and honor. May God grant us strength to do right in his sight. " Mrs. Bathsheba W. Smith said she felt pleased to be engaged in the great work before them, and was heart and hand with her sisters. She never felt better in her life, yet never felt more her own weakness, in view of the greater responsi- bilities which now rested upon them, nor ever felt so much the necessity of wis- dom and light ; but she was determined to do her best. She believed that woman was coming up in the world. She encouraged her sisters with the faith that there was nothing required of them in the duties of life that they could not perform. •'Mrs. Prescinda Kimball said: I feel comforted and blessed this day. I am glad to be numbered in moving forward this reform ; feel to exercise double diligence and try to accomplish what is required at our hands. We must all put our shoul- der to the wheel and go ahead. I am glad to see our daughters elevated with man, and the time come when our votes will assist our leaders, and redeem our- selves. Let us be humble, and triumph will be ours. The day is approaching when woman shall be redeemed from the curse placed upon Eve, and I have often HISTORY OF SAL T LAKE CLTY. 431 thought that our daughters who are in polygamy will be the first redeemed. Then let us keep the commandents and attain to a fulness, and always bear in mind that our children born in the priesthood will be saviors on Mount Zion. "Mrs. Zina D. Young said she was glad to look upon such an assemblage of bright and happy faces, and was gratified to be numbered with the spirits who had taken tabernacles in this dispensation, and to know that we are associated with kings and priests of God; thought we do not realize our privileges. Be meek and humble and do not move one step aside, but gain power over ourselves. Angels will visit the earth, but are we, as handmaids of the Lord, prepared to meet them ? We live in the day that has been looked down to with great anxiety since the morn of creation. " Mrs. M. T. Smoot said : ' We are engaged in a great work, and the prin- ciples that we have embraced are life and salvation unto us. Many principles are advanced on which we are slow to act. There are many more to be advanced. Woman's rights have been spoken of. I have never had any desire for more rights than I have. I have considered politics aside from the sphere of woman ; but, as things progress, I feel it is right that we should vote though the path may be fraught with difficulty.' " Mrs. Wilmarth East said she would bear testimony to what had been said. She had found by experience that ' obedience is better than sacrifice.' I desire to be on the safe side and sustain those above us ; but I cannot agree with Sister Smoot in regard to woman's rights. I have never felt that woman had her priv- ileges. I always wanted a voice in the politics of the nation, as well as to rear a family. I was much impressed when I read the poem composed by Mrs. Emily Woodmansee — ' Who Cares to Win a Woman's Thought.' There is a bright day coming ; but we need more wisdom and humility than ever before. My sisters, I am glad to be associated with you — those who have borne the heat and burden of the day, and ask God to pour blessings on your head. " Eliza R. Snow; in closing, observed, that there was a business item she wished to lay before the meeting, and suggested that Sister Bathsheba W. Smith be appointed on a mission to preach retrenchment all through the South, and woman's rights if she wished. " The suggestion was acted upon, and the meeting adjourned with singing 'Redeemer of Israel,' and benediction by Mrs. M. N. Hyde." The municipal election in Salt Lake City, which occured but two days after the approval of the bill in question, presented, as we have seen, the first political issue in our city, from any organized opposition party ; but the new voting ele- ment placed in the hands of the People's party by the passage of this bill was not brought largely into requisition. Only a {^\n of the "sisters " claimed the honor of voting on the occasion. The first of these was Miss Seraph Young, a niece of President Young. But probably the most remarkable woman's rights demonstration of the age, was that of the women of Utah, in their great mass meetings, held throughout the Territory, in all its principal cities and settlements, in January of 1870 relative to the Cullom bill. 438 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. On the 13th of January, 1870, "notwithstanding the inclemency of the weather, the old tabernacle," says the Deseret News, "was densely packed with ladies of all ages, and, as that building will comfortably seat five thousand per- sons, there could not have been fewer than between five and six thousand present on the occasion." It was announced in the programme that there were to be none present but ladies. Several reporters of the press, however, obtained admittance, among whom was Colonel Finley Anderson, special correspondent of the New York Herald. The meeting was opened with a very impressive prayer from Mrs. Zina D. Young ; and then, on motion of Miss Eliza R. Snow, Mrs. Sarah M. Kimball was elected president. Mrs, Lydia Alder was chosen secretary, and Mrs. M. T. Smoot, Mrs. M. N. Hyde, Isabella Horn, Mary Leaver, Priscilla Staines and Rachel Grant, were appointed a committee to draft resolutions. This was done with executive dispatch; for many present had for years been leaders of women's organizations. The president arose and addressed a few pithy remarks to the vast assemblage. She said : " We are to speak in relation to the government and institutions under which we live. She would ask, have we transgressed any law of the United States ? [Loud 'no^ from the audience.] Then why are we here to-day ? We have been driven from place to place, and wherefore ? Simply for believing and practicing the counsels of God, as contained in the gospel of heaven. The object of this meeting is to consider the justice of a bill now before the Congress of the United States. We are not here to advocate woman's rights, but man's rights. The bill in question would not only deprive our fathers, husbands and brothers of enjoy- ing the privileges bequeathed to citizens of the United States, but it would deprive us, as women, of the privilege of selecting our husbands ; and against this we unqualifiedly protest." During the absence of the committee on resolutions speeches were delivered and then the committee on resolutions reported the following : ''Resolved, That we, the ladies of Salt Lake City, in mass-meeting assembled, dD manifest our indignation, and protest against the bill before Congress, knovvn as ' the CuUom bill,' also the one known as ' the Cragin bill,' and all similar bills, expressions and manifestoes. " Resolved, That we consider the above named bills foul blots on our national escutcheon — absurd documents — atrocious insults to the honorable executive of the United States Government, and malicious attempts to subvert the rights of civil and religious liberty. ''Resolved, That we do hold sacred the constitution bequeathed us by our forefathers, and ignore, with laudable womanly jealousy, every act of those men to whom the responsibilities of government have been entrusted, which is calculated to destroy its efficiency. "Resolved, That we unitedly exercise every moral power and every right which we inherit as the daughters of American citizens, to prevent the passage of buch bills, knowing that they would inevitably cast a stigma on our republican HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 4jg government by jeopardizing the liberty and lives of its most loyal and peaceful citizens, "Resolved, That, in our candid opinion, the presentation of the aforesaid bills indicates a manifest degeneracy of the great men of our nation ; and their adoption would presage a speedy downfall and ultimate extinction of the glorious pedestal of freedom, protection, and equal rights, established by our noble ancestors. "Resolved, That we acknowledge the institutions of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as the only reliable safeguard of female virtue and in- nocence ; and the only sure protection against the fearful sin of prostitution, and its attendant evils, now prevalent abroad, and as such, we are and shall be united with our brethren in sustaining them against each and every encroachment. "Resolved, That we consider the originators of the aforesaid bills disloyal to the constitution, and unworthy of any position of trust in any office which in- volves the interests of our nation. "Resolved, That, in case the bills in question should pass both Houses of Congress, and become a law, by which we shall be disfranchised as a Territory, we, the ladies of Salt Lake City, shall exert all our power- and influence to aid in the support of our own State government." These resolutions were greeted with loud cheers from nearly six thousand women, and carried unanimously. CHAPTER XLIX. BRIEF REVIEW OF UTAH IiN CONGRESS, FROM ITS ORGANIZATION TO THE PAS- SAGE OF THE CULLOM BILL. GREAT SPEECH OF DELEGATE HOOPER IN CONGRESS AGAINST THE BILL, IN WHICH HE REVIEW^S THE COLONIZING WORK OF THE MORMONS IN THE WEST, AND JUSTIFIES HIS POLYGA- MOUS CONSTITUENTS. In the exhibition of these wonderful mass meetings of fifty thousand organ- ized Mormon women held throughout the Territory, to preserve their sacred institutions, the reader has a marked example typical of the Mormon people ; but we must now give a more regular review of the Congressional subject relative to Utah. Utah can scarcely be said to have possessed any political or congressional history until the period of the Utah war. Previously her condition and career had been almost entirely primitive and patriarchal. The Hon. John M. Bernhisel, dele- gate from Utah through this period, had served his constituents faithfully; but no feature of that service stands out so prominent as to require special mention. The ^40 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. general history, up to this time, may therefore be considered as including the con- gressional. The ''Mormon war," of course, had somewhat interrupted the relations be- tween Utah and the nation. In the eyes of the American public, Utah had been in rebellion ; although, as we have seen, the controversy had been amicably set- tled, and the Mormons had been pardoned of all their political offences. It was under this aspect of affairs that William H. Hooper was elected dele- gate to Congress, from Utah, in August, 1859. His position was a delicate one, his task arduous, and the case he had to handle certainly a very peculiar and com- plex case, looking at it from whatever point of view. Notwithstanding his constitu- ents held that they were in the right in the late controversy which had nearly come to bloodshed, and notwithstanding their affirmation that they had stood up- on their constitutional ground, and had merely resisted, by a practical but a justi- fiable protest, an unconstitutional invasion of the rights of American citizens, delegate Hooper well knew that the general public took another view of the case- But the great advantage which Hooper possessed, and which enabled him to master the situation, was in his thorough appreciation of the views and shapings of both sides. Therefore, while the delegate was prepared to stand by his people, in the defence of all their constitutional rights, and to ward off any new difficulty, he was equally ready to " see eye to eye " with members of Congress. This was the exact reason why Brigham Young sent him; indeed, one of Brigham's greatest gifts is manifested in his choice of the fittest instruments for the work and the times. Fortunately, also, when Hooper went to Congress as delegate in 1859, the members were disposed to humor the Mormon view of the Utah expedition and troubles, and he in turn humored them most politicly. As we have seen, the public, and especially journalists and Congressmen, were only too willing to treat the Utah war as Buchanan's affair, and wipe the hands of the nation clean of it. With this feeling came the good-natured inclination to let the Mormons have all they asked for, if they only asked in reason. And Con- gress had a Utah delegate of a most sagacious, practical turn of mind, who under- stood his points too well to ask for more than was certain to be granted, content- ing himself, in the rest, in working up a good feeling towards his constituents. Delegate Hooper settled everything he touched. There were two sessions of the Utah Legislature unrecognized and unpaid; Governor Young's accounts against the U. S. Treasury were unsettled ; and the expenses of the Indian war of 1850, were still due to the Territory. All this the energetic and influential dele- gate brought to a settlement. Besides this financial triumph, a bill which passed the House, for the suppression of polygamy, never became a law, and the thirty- sixth Congress ended, leaving Utah affairs comparatively tranquil. Notwithstanding that in the thirty-sixth Congress, Utah had met a very fair adjustment, and that it was indeed the only one in which Utah, up to this date, had risen to anything like political importance in the nation, the Hon. John M. Bernhisel was returned to the thirty-seventh Congress. This may have been intended as a recognition of the past service of that gentleman, before his final retirement from public life, but it is evident that he was not HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 441 so well fitted for the post as Delegate Hooper. Dr. Bernhisel was originally rather a professional than a political character, — something of a Mormon elder in Congress, representing a religious people ; whereas, Hooper was a successful merchant, and full of political sagacities. It is true the latter might not have been able to have prevented the passage of the anti-polygamic bill of 1862, but he certainly would have rallied a host of political friends against it. Without wast- ing his strength to show the "unconstitutionality" of the bill, he would have adopted the more practical line of argument that the bill must, from its very na- ture, remain inoperative for years, thus giving, tacitly, a license for the continua- tion of polygamy. This has been abundantly recognized by members of Congress since. The bill of 1862 has been considered by them to be as great a nuisance as polygamy itself. Surely Hooper would have foreshadowed the difficulties of special legislation, in such a delicate matter as the marriage question of an entire com- munity. Moreover, in 1862, the whole responsibility of the abolition of thousands of plural marriages rested entirely with Congress, there having been no primary agitation of the matter by the people of Utah themselves. But the thirty-seventh Congress, in its innocence, passed that bill, committing almost as great a blunde^ as did Buchanan in the case of the Utah war. The Hon. John M. Burnhisel returned to his constituents, and the Hon. John F. Kinney was elected to succeed him. For a number of years, Judge Kinney had been Chief Justice of Utah, but he had been just removed by Lincoln, it is said, for too faithfully serving the Mormons. Be that as the reader may please to consider, the Mormons were grateful, and resolved that the Chief Justice should not go from them in disgrace. They accordingly elected him to represent them in the thirty-eighth Congress; and so the Chief Justice, instead of returning to his friends in the East, under a cloud, went to Washington in triumph, to take his seat in the Congress of the United States. Judge Kinney was a brilliant man, and he soon won golden opinions from both constituents and strangers, by his eloquent efforts in Congress. But he was not essentially identified with the destiny of Utah, although a constant friend of the people, and it became evident that the congressional career of a Gentile, representing a purely Mormon constituency, must tend more to hig political advancement than to their potency. He might have built a pinnacle on their political destiny; they could build nothing on his political fame. They had the example of Judge Douglas before them — " the Mormon-made Senator " — who in his career nearly reached the Presidency of the United States, yet who recom- mended to Congress the expediency of cutting the " loathsome ulcer out" — the "ulcer" being the people who, in his rise to fame, had done so much to uplift him. In justice, however, it should be said that Judge Kinney served his con- stituents well and faithfully. With the return of Hon. W. H. Hooper to the thirty-ninth Congress, the prestige of home delegates wvas restored. His influence was greater than ever, both at home and in Washington. The very change for a time from Mormon to Gentile had enhanced that influence, and illustrated the eminent consistency of a man who was politically in harmony with Congress, yet in destiny one with the Mormon people, representing them as their delegate. We are ever impressed 14 442 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. with that law which is described as the '^ eternal fitness of things; " so Congress could better understand and respect William H. Hooper maintaining the integrity of the Mormon commonwealth, and reconciling it with the rights of the American citizen, than it could the representation of Utah in those days, by a Gentile dele- gate. Hooper had by far the greatest influence in Congress ; his earnestness in controversy was respected by his congressional colleagues, even when they were resolutely bent on an anti-Mormon policy; and the very fact that he was a well- known monogamist only rendered his defence of the religious rights of his poly- gamic constituents more truly American in spirit. During the thirty-ninth and fortieth Congresses, to the commencement of Grant's administration, 1869, nothing very formidable was proposed or carried out against the founders of Utah. Bills were introduced by Mr. Ashley, then chairman of the Territorial Committee, and others, looking to the disintegration of the Territory ; but only a passive recognition was given those measures by Congress. Gentile delegations also went to Washington from Utah urging legis- lation against the Mormons; but Congress was busy with the great question of "reconstruction," and the impeachment of President Johnson, and thus Utah, a minor question, was overlooked. The pasive action of Congress towards Utah, coupled with the wholesome legislation of the Johnson period, among which was the establishment of the pres- ent land system, the enlargement of the postal service, and a partial recognition of local self-government, warranted the hope that a brighter day was dawning fur the Territory, inasmuch as the delegate was consulted in the choice of Federal officers who were not objectionable to the people. But, with the commencement of Grant's administration, a new warfare was opened, and early in the first session under his Presidency, the Cullom bill was introduced in the House. Its monstrosity was such that scarcely a section did not propose measures in violation of the most sacred provisions of the Constitu- tion. It is understood that this bill was framed in Utah. It was like a resume of the Cragin bill ; and Senator Cragin at once adopted it as his protege. He could well afford this, for it was a more perfected anti-Mormon measure than his own, bristling with formidable points of special legislation against " Polygamic Theocracy," wherever touched. General Cullom fathered the bill in the House; Senator Cragin introduced it in the Senate. The Cullom bill was published and reviewed by nearly all the journals in the country. From the standpoint of news- paper criticism, it was very difficult to tell exactly what was its moral character. There was, however, a pretty general confession that it was an infamous bill; yet, with a strange consistency, it was quite as candidly confessed that it was not nearly bad enough to satisfy the popular desire. Sargent, Axtell and Fitch spoke against the bill. The Hon. Thomas Fitch's speech was one of the most powerful efforts of oratory that Congress has had the privilege of listening to in these latter days. Not, however, from the bill itself did Mr. Fitch conjure the effectiveness of his speech, but over the prospect of the blood and the millions of money which it must cost the nation to enforce its pro- visions. Fitch's speech created so much sensation in the House that General Cullom himself proposed the temporary recommittal of the bill. ^■^-^m^ li HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 443 The Cullom bill not only stirred the entire nation to a desire for special leg- islation against the Mormons, but also Mormondom to its very centre. The crowning moment came. Delegate Hooper was on the floor of the House with his plea for religious liberty, which we quote from the Congressiojial Record. He said : "Mr. Speaker, — I wish to make a few remarks concerning the extraordinary bill now under consideration. While so doing, I crave the attention of the House, for I am here, not alone as one of the people sought to be cruelly oppressed ; not only as the delegate representing Utah ; but as an American citizen, to utter my solemn protest against the passage of a bill that aims to violate our dearest rights and is fraught with evil to the Republic itself. ** I do not propose to occupy the time of the House by dwelling at length upon the vast contributions of the people of Utah to the wealth of the nation. There is no member in the House who does not recollect in his schoolboy days the vast region of the Rocky Mountains characterized in the geographies as the ' Great American Desert.' 'There' said those veracious text books, 'was a vast region wherein no man could live. There were springs and streams, upon the banks of which could be seen the bleaching bones of animals and of men, poisoned from drinking of the deadly waters.' Around the borders of the vast desert, and in its few habitable parts, roamed the painted savages, only less cruel and remorseless than the desert itself. " In the midst of this inhospitable waste to-day dwell an agricultural, pastoral, and self-sustaining people, numbering 120,000 souls. Everywhere can be seen the fruits of energetic and persistent industry. The surrounding mining Terri- tories of Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Arizona and Neveda, in their infancy, were fed and fostered from the surplus stores of the Mormon people. The develop- ment of the resources of these mining Territories was alone rendered possible by the existence at their doors of an agricultural people, who supplied them with the chief necessities of life at a price scarcely above that demanded in the old and populous States. The early immigrants to California paused on their weary jour- ney in the redeemed wastes of Utah, to recruit their strength, and that of their animals, and California is to day richer by thousands of lives and millions of treasure, for the existence of this half-way house to El Dorado. " To the people of Utah, therefore, is to be attributed no inconsiderable part in the production of the vast mineral wealth which has poured into the coffers of the nation from our mining States and Territories. " This, however, is but a tithe of our contributions to the nation's wealth. By actual experiment we have demonstrated the practicability of redeeming these desert wastes. When the Pacific slope and its boundless resources shall have been developed ; when beyond the Rocky Mountains 40,000,000 of people shall do homage to our flag, the millions of dwellers in Arizona, Nevada, Idaho, Colorado and Montana, enriched by the products of their redeemed and fertilized deserts, shall point to the valley of Great Salt Lake as their examplar, and accord to the sturdy toilers of that land due honor, in that they inaugurated the system and demonstrated its possible results. These results are the offering of Utah to the nation. 444 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. " When Robert Fulton's first steamboat moved from New York to Albany, so far as concerned the value of the vessel, he had made scarce a perceptible addition to our merchant marine ; but the principle, the practicability of which he then de- monstrated, was priceless, and enriched the nation more than if she had received the gift of the vessel, built from and loaded with solid gold. ■ " I will not, Mr. Speaker, tresspass upon the time of the House by more than thus briefly adverting to the claims of Utah to the gratitude and fostering care of the American people. " For the first time in the history of the United States, by the introduction of the bill under consideration, a well defined and positive eftort is made to turn the great law-making power of the nation into a moral channel and to legislate for the consciences of the people. " Here, for the first time, is a proposition to punish a citizen for his religious belief and unbelief. We have before us a statute book designating crime. To restrain criminal acts, and to punish the offender, has heretofore been the province of the law, and in it we have the support of the accused himself. No man comes to the bar for trial with the plea that the charge upon which he is arraigned consti- tutes no offence. His plea is 'Not guilty.' He cannot pass beyond and behind the established conclusions of humanity. But this bill reaches beyond that code into the questionable world of morals — the debatable land of religious beliefs; and, first creating the off"ense, seeks with malignant fury of partisan prejudice and sectarian hate to measure out the punishment, " The bill before us declares that that system which Moses taught, that God allowed, and from which Christ, our Savior, sprung, is a crime, and that any man believing in it and practicing it — I begbardon, the bill, as I shall presently show, asserts that belief alone is sufficient — thai any so offending shall not be tried, but shall be convicted, his children declared bastards, his wives turned out to starve, and his property be confiscated, in fact, for the benefit of the moral reformers, who, as I believe, are the real instigators in this matter. " The honorable member from Illinois, the father of this bill, informs us that this is a crime abhorred by men, denounced by God, and prohibited and punished by every State in the Union. I have a profound respect for the motives of the honorable member. I believe he is inspired by a sincere hostility to that which he so earnestly denounces. No earthly inducement could make him practice po- lygamy. Seduction, in the eyes of thousands, is an indiscretion, where all the punishment falls upon the innocent and unoffending. The criminal taint attaches when the seducer attempts to marry his victim. This is horrid. This is not to be endured by man or God, and laws must be promulgated to prevent and punish. " WHiile I have this profound regard for the morals and motives of the hon- orable member, I must say that I do not respect, to the same extent, his legal abilities. Polygamy is not denounced by every State and Territory, and the gen- tleman will search in vain for the statute or criminal code of either defining its existence and punishment. The gentleman confounds a religious belief with a criminal act. He is thinking of bigamy when he denounces polygamy, and in the confusion that follows, blindly strikes out against an unknown enemy. Will he permit me to call his attention to the distinction ? Bigamy means the wrong HISTORY OI SALT LAKE CITY. 44^ done a woman by imposing upon her the forms of matrimony while another wife lives, rendering such second marriage null and void. The reputation and happi- ness of a too confiding woman is thus forever blasted by the fraudulent acts of her supposed husband, and he is deservedly punished for his crime. Polygamy, on the contrary, is the act of marrying more than one woman, under a belief that a man has a right, lawfully and religiously, so to do, and witli the knowledge and consent of both his wives. "I suppose, Mr. Speaker, that in proclaiming the old Jeffersonian doctrine that that Government is best which governs least, I would not have even a minority upon the floor. But when I say that in a system of self-government such as ours, that looks to the purest democracy, and seeks to be a government of the people, for the people, and by the people, we have no room for the guardian, nor, above all, for the master, I can claim the united support of both parties. To have such a government ; to retain such in its purest strength, we must leave all questions of morals and religion that lie outside the recognized code of crime to the conscience of the citizen. In an attempt to do otherwise than this, the world's abiding places have been washed with human blood, and its fields made rich vi'ith human bones. No government has been found strong enough to stand unshaken above the throes of religious fanaticism when driven to the wall by religious persecution. Ours, sir, would disappear like the " baseless fabric of a vision " before the first blast of such a convulsion. Does the gentleman believe, for example, that in aiming this cruel blow at a handful of earnest followers of the Lord in Utah, he is doing a more justifiable act than would be, in the eyes of a majority of our citizens, a bill to abolish Catholicism, because of its alleged immorality; or a law to annihi- late the Jews for that they are Jews, and therefore obnoxious ? Let that evil door once be opened ; set sect against sect ; let the Bible and the school books give place to the sword and the bayonet, and we will find the humanity of to-day the humanity of the dark ages, and our beautiful government a mournful dream of the past. "This is not only philosophically true, but, sir, it is historically a fact. In making the appeal, I stand upon the very foundation-stone of our constitutional Government. That they might worship God in accordance with the dictates of conscience, the fathers fled from their homes in Europe to the wilds in America. For this they bore the fatigues or perished in the wilds of a savage-haunted con- tinent; for this they poured out their blood in wars, until every stone in the huge edifice that shelters us as a nation is cemented by the blood of a martyr. Upon this, however, I need not spend my time or yours; a mere statement of the pro- position is a conclusive argument from which the people, in their honest instincts, will permit no appeal. In our Constitution, still perfect and fresh as ever, we have a clause that cannot be changed and leave a vestige of a free government. In the original instrument we find this language : "No religious tests shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States." But this was not considered sufficiently comprehensive for a free people, and sub- sequently we find it declared, " Congress shall make no law respecting an estab- lishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof." " Upon the very threshold of my argument, however, I am met by the advo- 446 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. cates of this extraordinary bill with the assumption that polygamy is not entitled to be considered as a portion of our religious faith ; that under the Constitution we are to be protected and respected in the enjoyment of our religious faith, but that we are not entitled to consider as a portion thereof the views held by us as a people in reference to the marriage relation. One eminent disputant, as an ar- gument, supposes a case wheie a religious sect might claim to believe in the right- fulness of murder, and to be protected in the enjoyment of that right. This is not in any sense a parallel case. Murder by all liw, human and divine, is a crime; polygamy is not. In a subsequent portion of my remarks, 1 will show, that not only the authority of the Old Testament writers, but by numerous leading writers of the Christian church, the doctrine of polygamy is justified and approved. The only ground upon which any argument can be maintained that our views of the marriage relation are not to be considered as a portion of our religious faith, is that marriage is a purely civil contract, and therefore outside the province of religious doctrine. No sect of Christians can, however, be found who will carry their beliefs to this extent. The Catholic Church, the most ancient of Christian churches, and among the most powerful in numbers of the religious denominations of our country, upon this point is in accord with the Mormon church. Mar- riage, according to the faith of the Catholic church, is one of its sacraments ; is not in any sense a civil contract, but a religious ordinance, and the validity of a divorce granted by a civil court is denied. And not in any Christian church is the marriage contract placed on a par with other civil contracts — with a swap of horses or a partnership in trade. It is a civil contract, in that a court of equity, for certain specified causes, may dissolve it ; but not otherwise. Upon the marriage contract is invoked the most solemn sanctions of our Christians ; the appointed ministers and servants of God, by their presence and aid, give solemnity and ef- ficiency to the ceremonial, and upon the alliance is invoked the Divine guidance and blessing. To most intents and purposes, with every Christian denomination, the marriage ceremony is regarded as a religious ordinance. Upon this point, therefore, and a vital point in the discussion of the question before us, tlie Catholic church in fact, and the other religious denominations in theory and usual practice, are with the Mormons in their position, that the supervision and con- trol of the marital relation is an integral and essential portion of their religious faith and practice, in the enjoyment of which they are protected by the Consti- tution. ''The Mormon people are a Christian denomination. They believe fully in the Old and New Testaments in the divinty of Christ's mission, and the up- building and triumph of his church. They do not believe, however, that light and guidance from above, ceased with the crucifixion on Calvary. On the other hand, they find that in all ages, whenever a necessity therefor existed, God ha-; raised up prophets to speak to the people, and to manifest to them his will and requirements. A.nd they believe that Joseph Smith was such a prophet ; that the time had arrived when there was a necessity for further revelation, and through Joseph Smith it was given to the world. " Upon this point of continuous revelation, which is really one of the turn- ing points of the controversy, we are in accord with many of the most emi- HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 44'j nent divines of the Christian church, and with the most earnest and vigorous thinkers of our own day. " Upon the departure of the Pilgrim Fathers from Holland to America, the Rev. John Robinson, their beloved pastor, preached a farewell sermon, which showed a spirit of mildness and tolerance truly wonderful in that age, and which many who claim to be ministers of God would do well to imitate in this : "'Brethren, we are quickly to part from one another, and whether I may ever live to see your faces on earth any more, the God of heaven only knows; but whether the Lord hath appointed that or not, / charge you before God and his blessed angels, that you follow me no further than you have seen me follow the Lord Jesus Christ. If God reveal anything to you by any other instrument of His, be as ready to receive it as you were to receive any truth from my ministry ; for I am fully persuaded, I am very confident, that the Lord has more truth yet to break forth out of His holy word. "' For my part I cannot sufficiently bewail the condition of the reformed churches, who are come to a period in religion, and will go at present no lurther than the instruments of their information. The Lutherans cannot be drawn be- yond what Luther saw. Whatever part of His will our good God has revealed to Calvin, they will rather die than e?nbrace it; and the Calvinists, you see, stick fast where they were left by thzX great man of God, who yet saw not all things. " ' This is a misery much to be lamented, for though they were burning and shining hghts in their time, yet they penetrated not into the whole counsel of God ; but were they now living, would be as ready to embrace further light as that which they first received. I beseech you to remember that it is an article of your cove- nant, that you shall be ready to receive whatever truths shall be made known to you from the written word of God.' " "And says Ralph Waldo Emerson, in one of his golden utterances 'I look for the hour when that supreme beauty which ravished the souls of those Hebrews and through their lips spoke oracles to all time, shall speak in the West also. The Hebrew and the Greek Scriptures contain immortal sentences that have been the bread of life to millions. But they have no epical entirety ; are fragmentary; are not shown in their order to the intellect. I look for the new Teacher that shall follow so far these shining laws that he shall see some full circle ; shall see their rounding, complete grace ; shall see the world to the mirror of the soul.' " Conceding, therefore, that new revelation may be at all times expected in the future of our race, as they have been at all times vouchsafed in the past, and the whole controversy ends. A man has arisen named Joseph Smith , he claims to be a prophet of God, and a numerous community see fit to admit the justice of such claim. It is a religious sect ; it has to-day vindicated its right to live by works and sacrifices which are the admiration even of its enemies. It brings for- ward certain new doctrines ; of church government ; of baptism even for their dead ; of the marriage relation. Upon what point is it more probable that light from above would be given to our race, than upon the marriage relation ? The social problem is the question of the age. The minds of many of the foremost men and women of our days are given to the study of the proper position and re- lations of the sexes. The wisest dift'er — differ honestly and unavoidably. Endless 448 H J ST DRY OF SALT LAKE CITY. is the dispute and clamor of those honestly striving to do away with the social evil ; to ameliorate the anomalous condition of the wronged and suffering women of to-day. And while this is so; while thousands of the good and pure of all creeds and parlies are invoking the Divine guidance in their efforts for the good of our fallen humanity, is it strange that the Divine guidance thus earnestly be- sought should come — that the prayer of the righteous be answered ? The Mormon people believe that God has thus spoken; that through Joseph Smith he has indi- cated that true solution of the social questions of our day; and while they perse- cute or question no man for differing honestly with them, as to the Divine au- thority of such revelations, they firmly insist that in their following of what they believe to be the will of God, they are entitled to the same immunity from perse- cution at the hands of the Government, and the same liberty of thought and speech, wisely secured to other religious beliefs by the Constitution. " Upon the point whether polygamy can properly be considered as a part of our religious faith and practice, I beg leave humbly further to submit, sir, that the decision rests solely on the conscience and belief of the man and woman who proclaim it to be a religious belief. As I have said, it is not numbered among the crimes of that code recognized by all nations having any form of govern- ment under which criminals are restrained or punished, and to make it such, a new code must be framed. My people proclaim polygamy as a part of their re- ligious belief. If they are honest in this, however much this may be in error, they stand on their rights under the Constitution, and to arrest tiiat error you must appeal to reason, and not to force. I am here, not to argue or demonstrate the truthfulness of their faith; 1 am not called upon to convince this honorable House that it is either true or false ; but if I can convince you that this belief is honorably and sincerely entertained, my object is accomplished. "It is common to teach, and thousands believe that the leaders of the sect of Latter-day Saints, popularly known as Mormons, are hypocrites, while their followers are either ignorant, deluded men and women, or people held to their organization by the vilest impulses of lust. To refute these slanders, I can only do as the earlier Christians did, point to their sufferings and sacrifices, and I may add, the unanimous testimony of all, that aside from what they consider" the ob- jectionable practice of polygamy, my constituents are sober, moral, just, and industrious in the eyes of all impartial witnesses. In this community, removed by long reaches of wastes from the moral influences of civilization, we have a quiet, orderly and Christian community. Our towns are without gambling hells, drinking saloons, or brothels, while from end to end of our Territory the innocent can walk unharmed at all hours. Nor is this due to an organized police, but to the kind natures and Christian impulses of a good people. In support of ray argument of their entire sincerity, I with confidence appeal to their history. ''The Mormon Church was established at Fayette, New York, in the year 1830. In 1 83 1, the headquarters of the people was removed to Kirtland, Ohio, and considerable numbers of missionaries were sent out to preach the new religion in various parts of the Northern States. Many converts were made and removed to Kirtland, but they were subject to various petty annoyances and persecutions by the surrounding people. Land not being abundant or easily acquired for the HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 449 rapidly increasing numbers, the new converts were advised to locate in Jackson County, Missouri, where land was abundant and cheap — where, in fact, but few settlers had preceded our people. The Mormons soon became a prosperous and wealthy community ; the same habits of industry and thrift which they have ever maintained being even then vigorously inculcated by their leaders. Many hun- dred thousand acres of Government land were purchased, fine farms and thriving settlements were established, and the first printing press in western Missouri put in operation. But the wealth acquired by the people was desired by our neigh- bors ; the lawless border-men, who afterwards made the frontiers of Kansas their battlefield, attacked, plundered, and murdered our settlers, and finally drove them from their delightful homes, which they appropriated to themselves. The title to much of the land in Jackson and other counties is to-day in Mormons, who were then driven from their homes. During the trouble incident to the expulsion of the Mormons, hundreds of men, women, and children were murdered, or died from diseases caused by exposure to the inclemencies of the weather. The wretched refugees afterwards located in Clay, Caldwell, and Davis counties, MiF. souri, where there were almost no settlers, and where, within a few years their industries had again built up thriving settlements and accumulated large herds of stock. The outrages of Jackson County were then repeated, the Mormons driven from their homes, which were seized by the marauders and thousands of women and children driven forth homeless, and the prey for the border-ruffians whose cupidity had been excited by the wealth of the industrious exiles. Hundreds per- ished from cold, exposure and starvation. But their leaders, sustained by an undying faith, again called together their scattered and impoverished followers and removing to Illinois, founded the city of Nauvoo, " For several years they were comparatively undisturbed ; they built up one of the most thriving and beautiful cities of the State. Far as the eye could reach from the eminence of their temple, the well-tilled farms and gardens, the comfor- table farm-houses, the mills and factories, and well-filled schools, attested the in- dustry, the thrift, and the wealth of the once persecuted people. But again their wealth created envy in the lawless border-men of the new State. Without what even their enemies claim was justifiable cause, and in a manner which Governor Ford characterized as a permanent disgrace to the people of the State, they were attacked, pillaged, and driven across the river; their houses burned ; their women and children driven forth unsheltered in the inclement season of the year; their leaders brutally murdered. " The annals of religious persecution, so fruitful of cruel abuse, can give noth- ing more pitiable and heart-rending than the scenes which followed this last expul- sion. Aged men and women, the sick and feeble, children of tender years, and the wounded, were driven into the flats of the river, yet in sight of their once happy houses, to perish from exposure and starvation. While over our broad land the church bells of Christian communities were ringing out peace and good-will to men ; while to the churches thronged thousands to hear preached the gospel of charity and forgiveness ; these poor, heart-sick followers of the same Redeemer, were driven in violence from their houses to perish like wild beasts in the swamps and wilderness. The gentlemen charged us with hypocrisy and de- 16 1 4S-0 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. praved lust for motives, with such a record as this to mock their charge ! The world has many hypocrites, and is well filled with wicked men, but they keep about them the recompense of sin, and have other histories than this I give you, and which history no man can deny. " Word went out to the world that Mormonism had finally been annihilated. But again the scattered hosts ivere gathered together, and set out on a pilgrimage, that since that of the children of Israel has been without parallel in the history of the human race. They had no stores, they were beggared in the world's goods yet with earnest religious enthusiasm they toiled on through unknown deserts, over unexplored mountain ranges, and crossed plains haunted by savages, only less cruel than the white Christian who had driven them forth in search of that promised land, where at last they could worship God in accordance with the dic- tates of their own consciences, and find unbroken that covenant of the Constitu- tion which guards this sacred right. Ragged, foot-sore, starving, wretched, they wandered on. Delicately nurtured women and their children dug roots, or sub- sisted on the bark of trees or the hides of animals. From Nauvoo to Salt Lake, the valley of their promised land — 1,500 miles — there is to-day scarce a mile along that dreary and terrible road, where does not repose the body of some weary one, whom famine, or sickness, or the merciless savage, caused to perish by the way. "It was while on this pilgrimage that an order came from the Government for five hundred men to serve as soldiers in the Mexican war. The order was promptly obeyed. These devoted men, who had received only cruel persecution from the people they were called upon to protect on the field of batttle, dedicated their poor, helpless wives to God, and themselves to their country. Leaving their families to struggle on as best they could, these brave, patriotic men followed our flag into New Mexico and California, and were at last disbanded at San Diego, with high praise from their officers, but with scanty means to return to those they loved, and whom they had left to suffer, and perhaps to perish on the way. " Thus, Mr. Speaker, three times did this persecuted people, before their lo- cation in Utah, build up for themselves pleasant and prosperous homes, and by their industry surrounded themselves with all the comforts and appliances of wealth ; and three times were they, by an unprincipled and outrageous mob^ driven from their posessions, and reduced to abjectest poverty. And bear it in mind, that in every instance the leader of these organized mobs offered to all who would abandon and deny their faith, toleration and the possession of their homes and wealth. But they refused the tempting snare. They rejoiced that they were thought worthy to suffer for the Master, and, rather than to deny their faith, they welcomed privation ; they sacrificed all that earth could offer ; they died the saintly martyr's death. "Mr. Speaker, is this shining record that of a community of hypocrites? What other Christian denomination of our country can show higher evidences of earnestness, of devoted self-sacrifice for the preservation of their religious faith ? " In further presentation of my argument, Mr. Speaker, that the doctrine of polygamy is an essential feature in our religious faith, and that in our adherence thereto we are advocating no new or unsupported theory of marriage, I crave the HISTORY 01^ SALT LAKE C12Y. 4^1 indulgence of the House while I cite some few from the numerous writers of weight and authority in the Christian Church, who have illustrated or supported the doctrine. " Now, sir, far be it from me to undertake to teach this learned House, and above all, the Hon. Chairman of the Committee on Territories great theological truths. If there be any subject with which this honorable body is especially con- versant, it is theology. I have heard more Scripture quoted here, and more morality taught, than in any other place it was ever my fortune to serve. With great diffidence then, I venture to suggest to the supporters of this-bill, that while polygamy had its origin in holy writ, taught as I have said before by the greatest of all law-makers, and not only tolerated, but explicitly commanded by the Almighty, as I shall presently show, monogamy, or the system of marriage now recognized by so many Christian nations, originated among the Pagans of ancient Greece and Rome. " I know, sir, that the report accompanying the bill fetches vast stores of theological information to bear; informs us that polygamy is contrary to the Di- vine economy, and refers to the marriage of the first human couple, and cites the further testimony of the Bible, and that of the history of the world. Setting aside the last named as slightly too voluminous for critical examination in the pres- ent discussion, we will take up, as briefly as possible, the Divine authorities, and the commentaries and discussions thereon by eminent Christian writers, and see how far my people have been misled by clinging to them. As for the illustrious example quoted of our first parents, all that can be said of their marriage, is that it was exhaustive. Adam married all the women in the world, and if we find teaching by the example, we must go among his descendants, where examples can be found among the favored people of God, whose laws were of Divine origin, and whose conduct received sanction or punishment at His hands. " At the period of the Reformation in Germany, during the early part of the i6th century, those great reformers, Luther, Melancthon, Zwingle, and Bucer, held a solemn consultation at Wittenburg, on the question, "Whether it is con- trary to the Divine law for a man to have two wives at once ?" and decided unan- imously that it was not ; and upon the authority of the decision, Philip, Land- grave of Hesse, actually married a second wife, his first being still alive. This fact is recorded in D'Aubigne's History of the Reformation, and by other authors of that period. "Dr. Hugo Grotius, a celebrated Dutch jurist and statesman and most emi- nent law-writer of the seventeenth century, states ' the Jew's laws allow a plur- ality of wives to one man.' " Hon. John Selden, a distinguished English author and statesman, a mem- ber of Parliament for 1624, and who represented the University of Oxford in the Long Parliament of 1640, in his work entitled, ' Uxor Hebraica/ the Hebrew Wife, says that ' polygamy was allowed, not only among the Hebrews, but in most other nations throughout the world ; and that monogamy is a modern and a European custom, almost unknown to the ancient world.' " Dr. Samuel Puffendorf, profifessor of law in the University of Hiedelberg, in Germany, and afterwards of Lund, in Sweden, who wrote during the latter 452 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. part of the 17th century, in his great work on the law of nature and nations, says that " the Mosaic law was so far from forbidding this custom (polygamy) that it seems in several places to suppose it ; ' and in another place he says, in reference to the rightfulness thereof, ' the polygamy of i\\Q fathers, under the old covenant, is an argument which ingenious men must confess to be unanswerable.' " Rev. Gilbert Burnet, Bishop of Salisbury, the particular friend of William III., who was eminent among both historians and theologians, wrote a tract upon this subject, near the beginning of the i8th century. The tract was written on the question, ' Is a plurality of wives in any case lawful under the gospel ? ' " The Hon. Delegate cited passages from the tracts and learned arguments from the pens of eminent Christian divines allowing polygamy to disciples whose faith and conscience had been educated by the Hebrew Scriptures to the adoption of plural marriage. And Mr. Hooper's argument was sonorous with a purer consti- tutional tone from the fact that he himself, like these divines, was in his own life a strict monogamist : it was purely the Hon. Delegate's Constitutional plea for the religious liberty of a conscientious people whom he represented before the Assembly of the Nation. The close of his argument on polygamy and the peror- ation of this remarkable speech shall be preserved in their historical entirety ; — " Rev. David A. Allen, D. D., a Congregationalist, and a missionary of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions, after a professional res- idence of twenty-five years in Hindostan, published a work in 1856, entitled ' India, Ancient and Modem,' in which he says, pp. 551-3 : " 'Polygamy is practised in India among the Hindoos, the Mohammedans, the Zoroastricans, and the Jews. It is allovved and recognized by the institutes of Menu, by the Koran, by the Zendavesta, and, the Jews believe, by their scrip- tures, the Old Testament. It is recognized by all the courts in India, native and English. The laws of the British Parliament recognize polygamy among all these classes, when the marriage connection has been formed according to the princi- ples of their religion and to their established forms and usages. The marriage of a Hindoo or a Mohammedan with his second or third wife is just as valid and as legally binding on all parties as his marriage with his first wife; just as valid as the marriage of any Christian in the Church of England. * * * * This man cannot divorce any of his wives if he would, and it would be great in- justice and cruelty to them and their children if he should. * * * * His having become a Christian and embraced a purer faith will not release him from those obligations in view of the English Government and courts, or of the native population. Should he put them away, or all but one, they will still be legally his wives, and cannot be married to another man. And further, they have done nothing to deserve such unkindness, cruelty, and disgrace at his hands. * * * So far from receiving polygamy as morally wrong, they not unfre. quently take a second or third wife with much reluctance, and from a painful sense of duty to perpetuate their name, their family and their inheritance.' " In an appendix to this work. Dr. Allen informs the world that the subject of polygamy had been brought before the Calcutta Missionary Conference, a body composed of the missionaries of the various missionary societies of Great JBritain and America, and including Baptists, Congregationalists, Episcopalians, HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 453 Methodists, Presbyterians, and others, in consequence of the application of Chris- tian converts, who, having several wives each, to whom they had been legally married, now desired admittance into the Christian Churches. After frequent consultation and much consideration, the conference, says Dr. Allen, came unan- imously to the following conclusion : ^^^If a convert, before becotning a Christian, has married more ivives than one, in accordance with the practice of the Jewish and primitive Christian churches, he shall be permitted to keep them all, but such a person is not elii^ible to any office in the church.^ "These facts, as Dr. Allen asserts them, have a direct and important bearing upon this bill arid the accompanying report. They prove that one of its main charges, that polygamy is abhorrent to every Christian nation, is false, for the British Empire is a Christian nation, and Hindostan is an integral part of that empire, as much so as its American provinces are, or as Ireland is. Hindostan is a civilized country, with schools and colleges, and factories and railroads, and telegraphs and newspapers. Yet the great mass of the people, comprising more than eighty millions, are polygamists, and as such they are recognized and pro- tected by the laws of the British Parliament, and the courts of the Queen's Bench ; and the English and American missionaries of the gospel who reside there, and have resided there many years, and who know the practical working of polygamy, have assembled together in solemn conference and unanimously pronounced it to be right, and in accordance with the practice of the primitive Christian churches; and the French, the Spanish, the Dutch, the Portuguese, and other Christian nations are known to pursue a similar policy, and to allow the different peoples under their governments, the free and unmolested enjoyment of their own religions and their own marriage system, whether they are monogamous or polygamous. " I trust, Mr. Speaker, that I have not wearied your patience by this citation of learned authorities upon the antiquity and universality of the polygamic doc- trines. My object in this part of my argument is not to prove that polygamy is right or wrong, but simply to illustrate that a doctrine, the practice of which has repeatedly been commanded by the Almighty; which was the rule of life with the Jews at the time they were the chosen people of God, and were, in all things, governed by His dictation ; which has among its supporters many of the most eminent writers of the Christian church of all ages, and which is now sanctioned by law and usage in many of the Christianized provinces of the British Empire, is not wrong in itself. It is a doctrine, the practice of which, from the preced- ents cited, is clearly not inconsistent with the highest purity of character, and the most exemplary Christian life. My opponents may argue that it is unsuited to the civilization of the age, or is the offspring of a religious delusion ; but if so, its remedy is to be sought through persuasion, and not by the exercise of force; it is the field for the missionary and not for the jurist or soldier. It is a noble and a Christian work to purify and enlighten a benighted soul ; to life up those who are fallen and ready to perish; but from all the pulpits of the land comes up the cry that the fields are white for the harvest, while the laborers are few. So soon, however, as the Luthers, the Melancthons, the Whitfields of to-day, have 454 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. wiped out the immorality, licentiousness and crime of older communities, and have made their average morality equal to that of the city of Salt Lake, let them transfer their field of labor to the wilds of Utah, and may God forever prosper the right. "I trust, Mr. Speaker, that men abler and more learned in law than I, will discuss the legal monstrosities of this bill, fraught with evil, as it is, not only to the citizen of Utah, but to the nation at large ; but must be pardoned for calling special attention to the seventh section, which gives to a single officer, the United States marshal, with the clerk of the court, the absolute right of selecting a jury ; and, further, to the tenth section, which provides that persons entertaining an objectionable religious theory — not those who have been guilty of the practice of polygamy, but who have simply a belief in the abstract theory of plural marriage — shall be disqualified as jurors. "To see what a fearful blow this is at the very foundation of our liberties; what a disastrous precedent for future tyranny, let us recall for a moment the his- tory of the trial by jury ; something with which all are as familiar as with the deca- logue, but which, like the ten commandments, may occasionally be recalled with profit. Jury trial was first [known ds z. \x\dX per pais \ by the country; and the theory was, that when a crime has been committed, the whole community came together and sat in judgment upon the offender. This process becoming cumber- some as the population increased, twelve men were drawn by lot from the country, thus securing, as was supposed, a representation of the average public sentiment of the whole country, and which was further secured by requiring the finding of the jury to be unanimous. ''A fair trial by jury, by our Anglo-Saxon ancestors, was regarded as so pre- cious, that in Magna Charta it is more than once insisted on as the principal bul- wark of English liberty. " Blackstone says of it : ' It is the glory of the English law. It is the most transcendent privilege which any subject can enjoy or wish for, that he cannot be affected either in his property, his liberty, or his person, but by the unanimous consent of twelve of his neighbors and equals ; a provision which has, under Providence, secured the just liberties of this nation for along succession of ages.' '' Our own people have been no whit behind the English in their high appre- ciation of the trial by jury. In the original Federal Constitution, it was provided simply that the ' trial of all crimes, except in cases of impeachment, shall be by jury.' The framers of the Constitution considered that the meaning of ' trial by jury' was sufficiently settled by long established usage and legal precedent, and that by the provision just cited was sufficient. But such was not the view of the people. One of the most serious objections to the adoption of the Constitution by the States was its lack of clearness upon this most vital point, and Alexander Hamilton, in one of the ablest and most carefully considered numbers of The Federalist, endeavored to explain away this objection. The Constitution was adopted, but the nation was not satisfied ; and one of the earliest amendments to that instrument further provided that ' no person shall be held to answer for a capital or otherwise infamous crime unless on presentment or indictment of a grand jury ' and that ' in all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 455 right to a speedy and public trial by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been pre- viously ascertained by law.' " Thus, Mr. Speaker, it will be observed with what scrupulous solicitude our ancestors watched over this great safeguard of the liberties of the people. Noth- ing was left to inference or established precedent, but to every citizen was guaran- teed in this most solemn manner an impartial trial by a jury of his neighbors and his peers, residents of the district where the offence was charged. " Now, sir, is there any member of this House who will claim or pretend that the provisions of this bill are not in violation of this most sacred feature in our bill of rights? The trial by jury by this bill is worse than abolished, for its form — a sickening farce — remains, while its spirit is utterly gone. A packed jury is worse than no jury at all. The merest tyro in law, knows that the essence of a trial by jury consists in the fact that the accused is tried by a jury drawn by lot from among his neighbors; a jury drawn without previous knowledge, choice or selection on the part of the Government ; a jury which will be a fair epitome of the district where the offence is charged, and thus such a tribunal, as will agree to no verdict except such as, substantially, the whole community would agree to, if present and taking part in the trial. Any other system of trial by jury is a mockery and a farce. The standard of public morality varies greatly in a country so vast as ours, and the principle of a jury trial recognizes this fact, and wisely provides, in effect, that no person shall be punished who, when brought to the bar of public opinion in the community where the alleged offence is committed, is not adjudged to have been guilty of a crime. This most unconstitutional and wicked bill before us, defies all these well established principles and strikes at the root of the dearest right of the citizen. I have an earnest and abiding faith in the bright future of my native land ; but if our national career, as we may fondly hope, shall stretch out before us unending glories, it will be because of the prompt and decisive rebuke, by the representatives of the people here, of all such legisla- tion as that sought in the bill before us. "I have touched more fully, Mr. Speaker, upon the feature of the bill vir- tually abolishing jury trial, than upon any other, because of its more conspicuous dis- regard of constitutional right. But the whole bill, from first to last, is most dam- nable in its provisions, and most unworthy of consideration by the representatives of a free people. This is an age of great religious toleration. This bill recalls the fearful days of the Spanish inquisition, or the days when, in New England, Quakers were persecuted or banished, and witches burned at the stake. It is but a short time since the country hailed with satisfaction a treaty negotiated on the part of a Pagan nation through the efforts of a former member of this body, and whose recent death has filled our hearts with sadness, whereby the polygamous Chinese emigrants to our shores are protected in the enjoyment of their idolatrous faith, and may erect their temples, stocked with idols, and perform their, to us, heathenish worship in every part of our land unquestioned. And while the civil- ized nations of Europe have combined to sustain and perpetuate a heathen na- tion practising polygamy in its lowest form, and are hailing with acclamation the approach of its head, the American Congress is actually deliberating over a bill 456 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. which contemplates the destruction of an industrious people, and the expulsion of the great organizer of border civilization. Can it be possible that the national Congress will even for a moment, seriously contemplate the persecution or anni- hilation of an integral portion of our citizens, whose industry and material devel- opment are the nation's pride, because of a slight difference in their religious, faith ? A difference, too, not upon the fundamental truths of our common Chris- tianity but because of their conscientious adherence to what was once no impropriety even, but a virtue? This toleration in matters of religion, which is perhaps the most conspicuous feature of our civilization, arises not from any indifference to the sacred truths of Christianity, but from an abiding faith in their impregnability a national conviction that truth is mighty and will prevail. We have adopted as our motto the sentiment of Paul ; ' Try all things ; prove all things, and hold fast to that which is good.' The ancient Jewish rabbi, in his serene confidence that God would remember his own, was typical of the spirit of our age : ' Refrain from these men and let them alone, for if this counsel or this work be of God, ye cannot overthrow it ; but if it be of men, it will come to nought.' " I have the honor of representing here a constituency probably the most vigorously lied about of any people in the nation. I should insult the good sense of this House and of the American people did I stoop to a refutation of the countless falsehoods which have been circulated for years in reference to the peo- ple of Utah. These falsehoods have a common origin — a desire to plunder the treasury of the nation. They are the children of a horde of bankrupt specula- tors, anxious to grow rich through the sacrifice even of human life. During the administration of Mr. Buchanan, a Mormon war was inaugurated, in great meas- ure through the statements of Judge W. W. Drummond, a man of infamous char- acter and life, and who is cited as authority in the report accompanying this bill. His statement, as there published, that the Mormons had destroyed all the records, papers, etc., of the supreme Federal court of the Territory, and grossly insulted the Federal officers for opposing such destruction, was, as I have been informed by unquestionable authority, one of, if not the principal cause of the so-called Mormon war. An army was sent to Utah; twenty or thirty millions of dollars were expended, before the Government bethought itself to inquire whether such statements were true ; then inquiry was made, and it was learned that the whole statement was entirely false ; that the records were perfect and unimpaired. Whereupon the war ended, but not until colossal fortunes were accumulated by the hangers-on and contractors for the army, who had incited the whole affair. These men, and numerous would-be imitators, long for the return of that golden age. Since the railroad was completed, many of the American people have looked for themselves. They see in Utah the most peaceful and persistently industrious people on the continent. They judge the tree by its fruits. They read that a community given up to lust does not build factories and fill up the land with thrifty farms. That a nation of thieves and murderers do not live without intox- icating liquors, and become famous for the products of their dairies, orchards, and gardens. A corrupt tree bringeth not forth the fruits of temperance, Chris- tianity, industry and order. " Mr. Speaker, those who have been so kind and indulgent as to follow me thus far will have observed that I have aimed, as best I might, to show — HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 457 " I. That under our Constitution we are entitled to be protected in the full and free enjoyment of our religious faith. " 2. That our views of the marriage relation are an essential portion of our religious faith. "3. That in considering the cognizance of the marriage relation as within the province of church regulations, we are practically in accord with all other Chris- tian denominations. "4. That in our views of the marriage relation as a part of our religious belief, we are entitled to immunity from persecution under the Constitution if such views are sincerely held ; that if such views are erroneous, their eradication must be by argument and not by force. "5. That of our sincerity we have both by words, and works, and sufferings, given for nearly 40 years, abundant proof. " 6. That the bill, in practically abolishing trial by jury, as well as in many other respects, is unconstitutional, uncalled for, and in direct opposition to that toleration in religious belief which is characteristic of the nation and the age. "It is not permitted, Mr. Speaker, that any one man should sit as the judge of another as regards his religious belief. This is a matter which rests solely be- tween each individual and his God. The responsibility cannot be shifted or di- vided. It is a matter outside the domain of legislative action. The world is full of religious error and delusion, but its eradication is the work of the moralist and not of the legislator. Our Constitution throws over all sincere worshippers, at whatever shrine, its guarantee of absolute protection. The moment we assume to judge of the truthfulness or error of any creed, the constitutional guarantee is a mockery and a sham. "Three times have my people been dispersed by mob violence, and each time they have arisen stronger from the conflict ; and now the doctrine of vio- lence is proposed in Congress. It may be the will of the Lord that, to unite and purify us, it is necessary for further violence and blood. If so, we humbly and reverently submit to the will of Him in whose hands are all the issues of human life. Heretofore we have suffered from the violence of the mob ; now, the mob are to be clothed in the authority of an unconstitutional and oppressive law. If this course be decided upon, I can only say that the hand that smites us smites the most sacred guarantee of the Constitution, and the blind Samson, breaking the pillars, pulls down upon friend and foe alike the ruins of the State." 16 438 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. CHAPTER L. PASSAGE OF THE CULLOM BILL L\ THE HOUSE. SALT LAKE CITY EXCITED BY THE NEWS. MASS MEETING AT THE TABERNACLE. MEMORIAL TO CONGRESS FROM THE MORMON COMMUNITY, AFFIRMING POLYGAMY AS A DIVINE LAW TO THEM, AND REVIEWING THE UNCONSTITUTIONAL FEA- TURES OF THE BILL. RESOLUTIONS. A RARE PURITANIC SPECTACLE. The Cullom bill was passed in the House the same day that Hooper delivered his speech. He immediately telegraphed the fact home. Mormondom was aroused in a moment. The excitement was intense. A burning indignation against Congress possessed the men and women alike, and there was good reason for this righteous indignation, for not only did the bill contemplate its own exe- cution, in the most summary manner, by the arbitrary will of the courts, but troops were expected to be necessary to intimidate the people. The Mormon leaders alone were cool and self-possessed. Brigham Young was not moved from his wonted serenity by the prospect of the inevitable conflict between himself and the man who had conquered the South, and who had already boasted that he would do as much for Mormondom. The Cullom bill had passed the House, but it had not yet passed the Senate. There was the bare chance that, if the people arose en masse, and manifested to the country that earnest apostolic spirit so becoming of them, the Cullom Bill might die in the Senate. The Gentiles of Utah, however, looked upon this as the Mormon "forlorn hope," and decided, beyound all question, that Senator Cragin would prosecute the action through the Senate to a successful issue, as surely as had General Cullom done in the House. But the Mormon people still trusted in the Lord. At midday of the 31st of March, according to previous notice, the people began to flock en masse towards Temple Block, to protest against the recent action of the House, of Congress, and to petition the Senate not to pass the Cullom Bill. At one o'olock every seat and window of the tabernacle was packed with spectators, the doorways were crowded, and around the building was a vast multitude that could not find en- trance. Mayor D. H. Wells was chosen to preside over the meeting. Apostles Orson Pratt, John Taylor, George Q. Cannon and others addressed the people, after which the following memorial to Congress was unanimously adopted : "ZJ? the Honorable the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States, in Congress Assembled : " Gentlemen: — It is with no ordinary concern that we have learned of the passage by the House of Representatives of the House Bill No. 1,089, entitled "A bill in aid of the execution of the laws in Utah, and for other purposes," commonly known as " The Cullom Bill," against which we desire to enter our HISTORY 01 SALT LAKE CI7Y. 459 most earnest and unqualified protest, and appeal against its passage by the Senate of the United States, or beg its reconsideration by the House of Representatives. We are sure you will bear with us while we present for your consideration some of the reasons why this bill should not become law. "Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives, of the 150,000 estimated population of the Territory of Utah, it is well known that all except from 5,000 to 10,000 are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, usually called Mormons. These are essentially the people of this Terri- tory , they have settled it, reclaimed the desert waste, cultivated it, subdued the Indians, opened means of communication, made roads, built cities, and brought into being a new State to add lustre to the national galaxy of our glorious Union. And we, the people who have done this, are believers in the principle of plural marriage or polygamy, not simply as an elevating social relationship, and a pre- ventive of many terrible evils which afflict our race, but as a principle revealed by God, underlying our every hope of eternal salvation and happiness in heaven. We believe in the pre-existence of the spirits of men; that God is the author of our being ; that marriage is ordained as the legitimate source by which mankind obtain an existence in this probation on the earth; that the marriage relation ex- ists and extends throughout eternity, and that without it no man can obtain an ex- altation in the celestial kingdom of God. The revelation commanding the prin- ciple of plural marriage, given by God through Joseph Smith, to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in its first paragraph has the following language : ' Behold, I reveal unto you a new and everlasting covenant; and if ye abide no that covenant, then are ye damned ; for none can reject this covenant and be per- mitted to enter into my glory.' With this language before us, we cannot view plural marriage in any other light than as a vital principle of our religion. Let the revelation appear in the eyes of others as it may, to us it is a divine command, of equal force with any ever given by the Creator of the world to his children in the flesh. "The Bible confessedly stands in our nation as the foundation on which all law is based. It is the fountain from which our ideas of right and wrong are drawn, and it gives shape and force to our morality ; yet it sustains plural mar- riage, and in no instance does it condemn that institution. Not only having, therefore, a revelation from God making the belief and practice of this principle obligatory upon us, we have the warrant of the Holy Scriptures and the example of prophets and righteous men whom God loved, honored and blessed. And it should be borne in mind that when this principle was promulgated, and the peo- ple of this Territory entered upon its practice, it was not a crime. God revealed it to us. His divine word, as contained in the Bible which we have been taught to venerate and regard as holy, upheld it, and there was no law applicable to us making our belief or practice of it criminal. It is no crime in this Territory to- day, only as the law of 1862, passed long years after our adoption of this princi- ple as part of our religious faith, makes it such. The law of 1862 is now a fact ; one proscription gives strength to another. What yesterday was opinion is liable to-day to be law. It is for this reason that we earnestly and respectfully remon- strate and protest against the passage of the bill now before the Honorable Sen- 46o HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. ate, feeling assured that, while it cannot accomplish any possible good it may re- sult in a great amount of misery. '' It gives us no alternative but the cruel one of rejecting God's command and abjuring our religion, or disobeying the authority of a Government we desire to honor and respect. "It is in direct violation of the first amendment of the Constitution, which declares that ' Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.' " It robs our priesthood of their functions and heaven-bestowed powers, and gives them to justices of the supreme court, justices of the peace, and priests w^hose authority we cannot recognize, by empowering such as the only ones to cel- ebrate marriage. As well might the law prescribe who shall baptize for the re' mission of sins, or lay on hands for the reception of the Holy Ghost. "It encourages fornication and adultery, for all such marriages would be deemed invalid and without any sacred or binding force by our community, and those thus united together would, according to their own belief and religious con- victions, be living in a condition of habitual adultery, which would bring the holy relation of marriage into disrepute, and destroy the safeguards of chastity and virtue. "It is unconstitutional in that it is in direct opposition to Section 9, Article I, of the Constitution, which provides that * no bill of attainder, or ex post facto law shall be passed.' " It destroys the right of trial by jury, providing for the impaneling of juries composed of individuals the recognized enemies of the accused, and of foreigners to the district where a case under it is to be tried; while the Sixth Amendment to the Constitution provides that ' in all criminal prosecutions the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed.' "It is contrary to the Eighth Amendment to the Constitution, which provides that excessive fines shall not be imposed, 'nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.' "It violates Section 8, Article I, of the Constitution, which provides that Congress shall establish a uniform rule of naturalization throughout the United States, in that it provides, in Section 17, a new, unheard of, and special rule, applicable only to the Territory of Utah. "It is anti-republican, in that in Section 10 it places men on unequal ground, by giving one portion of the citizens superior privileges over others, be- cause of their belief. "It strips us, in Sections 17 and 26, of the land we have reclaimed from barrenness, and which we have paid Government for; also of all possessory rights to which we are entitled as settlers. "It authorizes, by Section 14, the sending of criminals into distant military camps and prisons. " It is most unjust, unconstitutional, and proscriptive, in that it disfranchises and proscribes American citizens for no act, but simply believing in plurality of wives, which the bill styles polygamy, bigamy, or concubinage, even if they never have practiced or designed to practice it. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 461 " It offers a premium for prostitution and corruption, in that it requires, in Sections 11 and 12, husbands and wives ito violate the holiest vows they can make, and voluntarily bastardize their own children. " It declares, in Section 21, marriage to be a civil contract, and names the officers who alone shall solemnize the rite, when our faith expressly holds it as a most sacred ordinance, which can only be administered by those holding the authority from heaven ; thus compelling us to discriminate in favor of officers ap- pointed by the Government and against officers authorized by the Almighty. " It thus takes away the right of conscience, and deprives us of an ordinance upon the correct administration of which our happiness and eternal salvation depend. "It not only subverts religious liberty, but, in Sections 16 and 19, violates every principle of civil liberty and true republicanism, in that it bestows upon the Governor the sole authority to govern jails and prisons, and to remove their wardens and keepers ; to appoint and remove probate judges, justices of the peace, judges of all elections, notaries public and all sheriffs ; clothing one man with despotic and, in this Republic, unheard-of power. " It thus deprives the people of all voice in the government of the Territory, reduces them to absolute vassalage, creates a dangerous, irresponsible and cen- tralized despotism, from which there is no appeal, and leaves their lives, liberties and human rights subject to the caprice of one man, and that man selected and sent here from afar. "It proposes, in Sections 11, 12 and 17, to punish American citizens, not for wrongs, but for acts sanctioned by God, and practiced by his most favored servants, requiring them to call those bad men whom God chose for his oracles and delighted to honor, and even to cast reflections on the ancestry of the Savior himself. "It strikes at the foundation of all republican government, in that it dictates opinions and belief, prescribes what shall and shall not be believed by citizens, and assumes to decide on the validity of revelation from Almighty God, the au- thor of existence. "It disorganizes and reduces to a chaotic condition every precinct, city and county in the Territory of Utah, and substitutes no adequate organization. It subverts, by summary process, nearly every law on our statute book. " It violates the faith of the United States, in that it breaks the original com- pact made with the people of this Territory in the Organic Act, who were, at the time that compact was made, received as citizens from Mexican Territory, and known to be believers in the doctrines of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter- day Saints. " We also wish your honorable bodies to understand that the legislature of this Territory has never passed any law affecting the primary disposal of the soil, but only adopted regulations for the controlling of our claims and possessions, upon which improvements to the amount of millions of dollars have been made. " This bill, in Section 36, repeals the law of the Territory containing said regulations, thereby leaving us destitute of legal protection to our hard-earned pos- sessions, the accumulated labor of over twenty years, and exposing us to the mercy of land speculators and vampires. 462 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. '' Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives, this bill would de- prive us of religious liberty and every political right worth having, is not directed against the people of Utah as men and women, but against their holy religion. Eighteen years ago, and ten years before the passage of this Anti-Polygamy Act of 1862, one of our leading men, Elder Orson Pratt, was expressly deputed and sent to the city of Washington, D. C, to publish and lecture on the principle of patriarchal or plural marriage as practiced by us. " He lectured frequently in that and other cities, and published a paper for some length of time, in which he established, by elaborate and convincing argu- ments, the divinity of the revelation commanding plural marriage, given through the Prophet Joseph Smith, and that the doctrine was sanctioned and endorsed by the highest Bibical authority. For ten years before the passage of the Act of 1862, this doctrine was widely preached throughout the Union and the world, and it was universally known and recognized as a principle of our holy faith. We are thus explicit in mentioning this fact to show that patriarchal marriage has long been understood to be a cardinal principle of our religion. We would re- spectfully mention, also in this connection, that while hundreds of our leading elders have been in the Eastern States and in the city of Washington, not one of them has been cited to appear as a witness before the Committee on Territories, to prove that this doctrine is a part of our religion ; gentlemen well knowing that if that were established, the law would be null and void, because of its unconstitu- tionality. " What we have done to enhance the greatness and glory of our country by pioneering, opening up, and making inhabitable the vast western region, is before the nation, and should receive a nation's thanks, not a proscriptive edict to rob us of every right worth possessing, and of the very soil we have reclaimed and then purchased from the Government. Before this soil was United States terri- tory we settled it, and five hundred of our best men responded to the call of the Government in the war with Mexico, and assisted in adding to our national do- main. When we were received into the Union our religion was known ; our early officers, including our first governor, were all Latter-day Saints, or Mormons, for there were few others to elect from ; we were treated as citizens possessing equal rights, and the original bond of agreement between the United States Government and the people inhabiting this Territory, conferred upon us the right of self-gov- ernment in the same degree as is enjoyed by any other Territory in the Umon. "It is declared that the power of the legislature of this Territory, ' shall ex- tend to all rightful subjects of legislation, consistent with the Constitution of the United States and the provisions of the Organic Act; and the right of suffrage, and holding office shall be exercised by citizens of the United States,' including those recognized as citizens by the treaty with the Republic of Mexico, concluded Feb. 2d, 1848. This compact or agreement we have preserved inviolate on our part, and we respectfully submit that it is not in the power of any legislature or congress, legally and constitutionally, to abrogate and annul such an agreement as the or- ganic law, which this bill proposes to do, without the consent of both parties. Our property, lands, and buildings, private and public, are to be confiscated; our rights of citizenship destroyed; our men and women subjected to excessive pains r HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 463 and penalties, because we believe in and practice a principle taught by the Bible, commanded by divine revelation to us, and sustained by the Christian monarchies of Great Britain and France among millions of their subjects in their territories of India and Algeria. "We earnestly, we solemnly appeal to you not to permit this iniquitous, un- justly discriminating, and anti-republican measure to become law, and that, too, in violation of the Constitution, by which one hundred and fifty thousand indus- trious, peaceable, and orderly persons will be driven to the desperate necessity of disobeying Almighty God, the governor of the universe, or of subjecting them- selves to the pains and penalties of this act, which would be worse than death. "We beseech of you, gentlemen, do not, by the passage of harsh and despotic measures, drive an inoffensive. God-fearing, and loyal people to desperation. " We have suffered, God knows how much, in years past, for our religion. We fled to the mountain wilds to escape the ruthless hand of persecution ; and shall it be said now that our Government, which ought to foster and protect us, designs to repeat, in the most aggravated form, the miseries we have been called upon to pass through before. " What evidence can we give you that plural marriage is a part of our relig- ion, other than what we have done by our public teaching and publishing for years past ? If your honorable bodies are not satisfied with what we now present, and what we have previously published to the world, we beseech you, in the name of our common country and those sacred principles bequeathed unto us by our revo- lutionary fathers, in the name of humanity, and in the name of Almighty God, before making this act a law, to send to ihis Territory a commission clothed with the necessary authority to take evidence and make a thorough and exhaustive in- vestigation into the subject, and obtain evidence concerning the belief and work- ings of our religious system, from its friends, instead of its enemies." This memorial, which was duly signed and attested, along with a set of reso- lutions more distinctly emphasizing the sentiment of the people upon some of its cardinal points, was promptly forwarded to Washington. Just previous to this, as already recorded, a series of mass-meetings had been held throughout the Territory, by the Mormon women, at which was affirmed, with great earnestness, their belief in, and determination to maintain, the institu- tions of the Church. The puritan aspect of those meetings would have been a rare treat to any his- torical spectator. They would have reminded him of the times when the God- fearing men of England defended their religious and political rights under such leaders as Cromwell, Hampden, Sir John Elliot and Sir Harry Vane, and were inspired by the republican pen of the divine Milton ; nor would he have for- gotten that one of Milton's most powerful writings is his defence of polygamous marriages, based upon the Hebrew covenants and examples. This united action of the brotherhood and sisterhood created a sentiment which finally culminated in the overthrow of the Cullom Bill. 464 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. CHAPTER LI. CONSERVATIVE GENTILES OF SALT LAKE CITY AND THE SECEDING MORMON ELDERS HOLD MEETINGS TO PETITION FOR A MODIFICATION OF THE CULLOM BILL. THEY MAINTAIN THE INTEGRITY OF MORMON FAMILIES. FEDERAL OFFICERS AND RADICAL GENTILES OPPOSE THE PETITION, AND FAVOR THE BILL WITH MILITARY FORCE, TO EXECUTE IT, MR. GODBE GOES TO WASHINGTON TO INVOKE FORBEARANCE. INTERVIEWS WITH GRANT AND CULLOM. Simultaneous with the great mass meeting of the Mormons in the Tabernacle, to remonstrate with Congress against the bill, the Godbeite leaders, combined with conservative Gentiles, called a meeting of representative non-Mormon citi- zens for a similar purpose. The meeting called at the suggestion of Messrs. Walker Brothers and Col. Kahn of this city, was held in the Masonic Hall, East Temple Street, to take into consideration the propriety of memoralizing Congress for such a modification of the Cullom Bill, as would make its provisions inapplicable to all polygamous mar- riages and associations entered into previous to the passage of said bill. The meeting was attended by a number of gentlemen of varied religious and political opinions, among whom were Gen. Maxwell, Col. Overton, Marshall Orr, Col. Kahn, T. Marshall, J. M. Carter, R. H. Robertson and J. R. Walker Esqs., with many others. Mr. Robertson was called to the chair, and opened the meeting by requesting a general declaration of opinion on the subject to be brought before the meeting, which he desired Mr. Eli. B. Kelsey to present. Mr. Kelsey briefly stated the purpose of the meeting, and reviewed the course which Congress had adopted since the passage of the act of 1862, and the belief among the people that no steps would be taken with reference to the enforcement of the anti-polygamy law. He, therefore, considered Congress responsible, to an extent, for the present feelings of the people on that subject. He bore testimony to his desire to uphold the laws and the influence of the government among the people, but he could not ask people to break up their families and bastardize their children, Mr. E. L. T. Harrison said that he came to that meeting upon invitation. The object of it he understood to be to see if we could unite upon a memorial to be addressed to the Senate, requesting such modification of the Cullom Bill as would except all marriages entered into before the passage of the bill. So far as the ab- stract principle of polygamy went, he did not believe in the interference of the Government on such a subject, as he believed that the people of Utah, and all other Territories, were perfectly capable of adjusting all such relations themselves- HISl OR Y OF SAL T LAKE CI 7 V. 463 Still, inasmuch as the Government is not of his opinion, and he desired to sus- tain law and order, he would join in any resolution to Congress expressive of a desire for a modification. He would do this not only out of justice to the people, but because he believed that it would be in the interest of the Government. He considered such a modification would greatly tend to promote a loyal and grateful feeling among the people, and do much to bring about that harmony between the Government and the people of Utah which was so desirable. Mr. Gordon did not believe in memorializing Congress. If God originated polygamy He could take care of it. If not, he was not anxious to have it stand. He was ready to take his own share of the risk. Mr. Stenhouse sustained Mr. Kelsey's position. If there had been a wrong in the past conduct of the Mormons, with respect to the violation of the act of 1862, he considered Government equally as culpable as the people by theirneglect on the subject. He heard Mr. Lincoln say himself that if the Mormons let him alone he would let them alone. He, Mr. S., would join in soliciting for a modi- fication of the act. There were many points to which the attention of Govern- ment ought to be called. One was that the circumstances of the people would not permit a separate provision for their families, were they ever so disposed to obey that part of the act ; and that the carrying out of its provisions so far as ex- isting polygamous families were concerned, would involve the people in an amount of loss and suffering of which the Government has no conception. Mr. Shearman said it was not the object of the meeting to attempt to " dic- tate " to Congress, as one of the speakers had intimated, but simply to appeal in a respectful and kindly manner to the justice and humanity of its members. He (Mr, S.) would feel just as opposed to the bill were it aimed at any other people than the Mormons, because he considered it unjust, unconstitutional and impolitic, and, as an American citizen, he felt he had a perfect right to discuss or dissent from any measures of the Government. He regretted that the people of Utali had, by their past unwise course, aroused the antagonism of the Nation, but the pro- visions of this bill were unworthy of so great and magnanimous a government as ours. A gentleman had referred to the forcible abolition of slavery as a prece- dent; but it should be remembered that Congress never interfered with that until it became absolutely necessary to do so to preserve the life of the Nation from those who were in arms seeking its destruction, and that if the South had sub- mitted sooner, slavery would not have been abolished in the way it was. But the Mormons were not in arms, and had no disposition to rebel ; he, therefore, felt they were entitled to the kindly consideration of the Government as children to that of a father. One of his most serious objections to this bill was, that while compiled professedly in behalf of woman, it in reality made her the sufferer and the scape-goat, as it gave every unprincipled man the right to kick his wives and children out of doors without provision or redress. In conclusion he said all he desired to ask Congress was to so modify the bill as not to interfere with existing social contracts, and thus save the innocent and defenceless from untold misery. Mr. E. W. Tullidge said, what we ought to do was most clear — namely, to obey the laws of our country. It was not becoming in us to cavil with this Na- tion ; and to talk of resistance to her will was not only extravagant, touching our 17 466 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. own strength, but decidedly wrong in principle. It is a fundamental requirement that individuals and communities must obey the laws of the State. The right of conscience in religious matters cannot be allowed when it sets aside the laws of the land and the expressed will of a nation ; and we, as a people, have only the same rights in this as other religious communities. Nevertheless, Congress, in adjusting this most delicate and complicated matter, should manifest the magna- nimity becoming her humane character, and the same admirable administration of justice as in the past. The South had been pardoned after a rebellion; and, through the generosities of the Nation, even Jeff. Davis was forgiven and at large. Should the Nation, then, be less magnanimous to this God-fearing people, — who, if they have erred, have done so through the force of a religious faith and con- science such as have often led earnest men to the stake? He would emphatically appeal to this Nation on behalf of the women, whom Congress believe to have been martyred by polygamy, and would pray that a new martyrdom might not be inflicted upon them by its special legislation, making them dishonored wives and dishonored mothers. He, therefore, proposed that we petition the Senate for a reconsideration and generous modification of the CuUom Bill. Gen. Maxwell stated his unwillingness to make any such request of Congress, but said he would join in any effort to have the land and disfranchising clauses so modified as not to injure any who were disposed to be loyal to the government. Mr. Marshall, of the firm of Marshall & Carter, said he was glad of the op- portunity of expressing himself in relation to the Cullom Bill. He wished it dis- tinctly understood that he was opposed to polygamy and would favor any measure which confined itself to stopping the spread of the practice. For this reason he decidedly approved the main measures of the bill, provided existing relationships were not interfered with. He testified to his personal knowledge of the virtue, in- tegrity, and loyalty of many gentlemen who were already practicing polygamy in Utah, and although he believed it to be a very great evil he felt it would be a still greater evil to break up family associations already formed. To do the latter he realized would be productive of great suffering and wrong, and, therefore, he should put his name to the proposed petition even if it stood there alone. Messrs. Henry Lawrence and William Jennings expressed their readiness to co-operate with gentlemen in any measures that would be mutually satisfactory and beneficial to the people of Utah and the Government of the Nation, but they had no desire to ask any one to move in this matter except upon the broad ground of humanity and justice. Several other short speeches were made, and a committee of seven was ap- pointed to draft and forward to Congress by mail or telegraph a memorial for such modifications as the prominent non-Mormons would endorse. The follow- ing gentlemen were unanimously elected members of said committee : Messrs. J. R. Walker, J. M. Carter, Samuel Kahn, R. H. Robertson, Warren Hussey, T. Marshall and O. J. Hollister. O. J. HoUister, Esq., subsequently declined to act, and Bishop Tuttle, being informed that some one had suggested his name as one of the committee, in a most kindly and Christian spirit, cheerfully consented to fill Mr. Hollister's place. The meeting then adjourned after a vote of thanks to the chairman. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 467 Nothing, however, came of this effort of conservative non-Mormon citizens to have Congress reconsider and modify the Cullom Bill. The reason was, that while these gentlemen desired simple harmony between the Nation and Utah, the anti-Mormons, including the Federal officers, were anxious for the passage of the bill by the Senate in its most rigid form. The former class represented property, law and order, and Christian benevolence — the latter class represented a desire for the entire overturning of the then existing state of things, and the transfer of all power into anti-Mormon hands, under the direction of Congress and the Gov- ernment, The chairman of the meeting in question — R. H. Robertson — who " had referred to the forcible abolition of slavery as a precedent," and General Maxwell, who " stated his unwillingness to make any such request of Congress" as the reconsideration and and modification of the Cullom Bill, were the men who gave the real utterance of the Liberal party, and of the will and intentions of the administration at that critical moment. The " abolition of slavery " by military force was the precedent which the administration actually designed to apply to Utah during that year, and the new batch of Federal officials had been appointed by President Grant for the carrying out of this design. The passage of the Cullom Bill in the House signified the immediate despatch to Utah of a large reinforcement of troops to execute the bill. The almost uni- versal expectation throughout the country was that we were on the eve of another ''Mormon war," — that the Cullom Bill could not possibly be executed only by military force, and that the Mormons would resist the execution of the bill, against which they had so resolutely protested. Throughout the nation the affair was a great sensation, and at home in Utah was very serious in its war aspect. The Gentiles were most positive in their assurance that the Government would send on troops to '-'wipe out the Mormon theocracy." Indeed, it was reported that troops were already on the way for that purpose. There can be no doubt that the mass meetings of the Mormon women, pro- testing against the Cullom Bill and affirming the sacredness of their marriage had greatly impressed the sympathetic heart and magnanimous mind of the American people. It was frankly confessed in the leading journals, both East and West, that some of the speeches of such women as "Sister Woodruff," were, for their bold tone, worthy their ''revolutionary mothers " whose conduct they offered as their pattern. She said : " I am proud that I am a citizen of Utah, and a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I have been a member of this church for thirty-six years, and had the privilege of living in the days of the Prophet Joseph, and heard his teaching for many years. He ever counseled us to honor, obey and maintain the principles of our noble Constitution, for which our fathers fought, and which many of them sacrificed their lives to establish. President Brigham Young has always taught the same principle. This glorious legacy of our fathers, the Constitution of the United States, guarantees unto all the citizens of this great Republic the right to worship God according to the dictates of their own con^ sciences, as it expressly says, ' Congress shall make no laws respecting an estab- lishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.' Cullom's bill is in direct violation of this declaration of the Constitution, and I think it is our duty 468 HIS TOR Y OF SAL T LAKE^ CITY. to do all in our power, by our voices and influence, to thwart the passage of this bill, which con^mits a violent outrage upon our rights, and the rights of our fathers, husbands and sons ; and whatever may be the final result of the action of Congress in passing or enforcing oppressive laws, for the sake of our religion, upon the noble men who have subdued these deserts, it is our duty to stand by them and support them by our faith, prayers and works, through every dark hour, unto the end, and trust in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob to defend us and all who are called to suffer for keeping the commandments of God, Shall we, as wives and mothers, sit still and see our husbands and sons, whom we know are obeying the highest behest of heaven, suffer for their religion, without exerting ourselves to the extent of our power for their deliverance? No; verily no ! God has revealed unto us the law of the patriarchal order of marriage, and commanded us to obey it. We are sealed to our husbands for time and eternity, that we may dwell with them and our children in the world to come ; which guarantees unto us the greatest blessing for which we are created. If the rulers of the nation will so far depart from the spirit and letter of our glorious Constitution as to deprive our prophets, apostles and elders of citizenship, and imprison them for obeying this law, let them grant this, our last request, to make their prisons large enough to hold their wives, for where they go we will go also." The American public admired, but answered the sisters that ''their cause was not as good as their mother's cause had been in Washington's day." The Mor- mon people, however, believed in the integrity of their cause, and therein was the danger to the parties most concerned. Connected with these mass meetings of women, as we have seen, was that great meeting held by the Mormon people in the Tabernacle, at which ten thousand people voted by acclamation an extraordi- nary " Remonstrance " against the Cullom Bill, besides adopting a very elaborate apostolic statement to Congress, of the polygamic revelation and duties of vhe Mormon Church ; in it was also incorporated the bold declaration that " this Church" would stand by her faith and polygamic institutions- This age has never witnessed another such example of religious defiance of all earthly govern- ments, not even was that of the " Utah war" its equal, for this was made, not in isolation now, but in the very face of the American Nation, with the railroad completed over which, in a few days, troops could have been hurried by the con- queror of the South. This condition of things — this manifestation of the " irrepressible conflict" from both sides — appalled the best men of the Godbeire movement. In most re- spects touching the situation they were fully in accord with the entire Mormon people. Mr. William Shearman fully expressed their mind wiien he said, " He would feel just as opposed to the bill were it aimed at any other people than the Mormons, because he considered it unjust, uncunstitutional and impolitic, and as an American citizen, he felt he had a perfect right to discuss or dissent from any meas- ures of the Government. During the agitation, and before the passage of the Cullom Bill in the House, it was resolved, by the Godbeite leaders, that William S. Godbe should at once proceed to Washington to lay before President Grant the full state of affairs and "to counsel " with him ; for they had reasons to believe that the President desired HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 469 this. There was also an elaborate " budget " written on Utah affairs and policy and despatched to the President through Government officers to prepare him for the interview. That " budget" bore date " March 8th, 1870." Mr. Godbe started for Washington immediately afterwards. He was intro- duced to President Grant by Vice-President Colfax. " Mr. Godbe," observed the President, " I am as solicitous as you can possibly be to preserve the Mormon people; and then he added, with marked significance, that he would himself "save the Mormon people from their dangerous leaders." If more troops were sent to Utah they would be merely designed as a " moral force," he said, to give those leaders " to understand that the Nation intended to enforce her laws in Utah." Mr. Godbe also had an interview with General Cullom. Together, these gen- tlemen went through the " Cullom Bill," section by section, Mr. Godbe suggest- ing revisions and toning it to better suit the peculiar conditions of the Mormon people. At length, half provoked, the Hon. Member from Illinois exclaimed, " My G — d, Mr. Godbe, you would strike out all the points of my bill ! " But the Utah advocate plead the cause of the Mormon people with so much earnest- ness and feeling that all the animus of prosecution was killed. He showed how a devoted Christian people had been moulded by their apostles and their religious faith ; how polygamy had grown up in the Church years after the conversion of a hundred thousand disciples to the original Mormon faith; how they had, as a rule, gone into polygamy sincerely believing it to be the will of God; and how so many dear good women had been already crucified for their religion and their wifelv and motherly loves; and he urged that it would indeed be cruel, now, for civiliza- tion itself to crucify them afresh instead of redeeming them. He also plead that sufficient time should be given the Mormon people {ox 3. netv education, — enforced in the argument the new conditions : that isolation was passing away forever, — that civilization was fast coming up to them. At that moment, Mr. Cullom w^as touched with conviction. He perceived that there were events and changes occurring in Mormon society that would, in a reasonable time, accomplish even more than he could hope to be effected by his bill. "Well, Mr. Godbe," said he, in closing his interview', " I shall have to vote for my bill ; " but his words bore the interpretation that he would be satisfied with its simple passage in the House. It did pass the House but it was never brought up for action in the Senate, though Senator Cragin had undertaken its passage there. 470 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. CHAPTER LII. DR. NEWMAN'S EVANGELICAL CRUSADE AGAINST MORMON POLYGAMY. HE AR- RIVES IN SALT LAKE CITY. CORRESPONDENCE BETWEEN THE CHAPLAIN OF THE SENATE AND THE PRESIDENT OF THE MORMON CHURCH. NEWSMAN ACCEPTS THE CHALLENGE. BRIGHAM DENIES THE CHAL- LENGE, BUT INVITES THE DOCTOR TO PREACH IN THE GREAT TABER- NACLE. NEWMAN'S INDIGxNATION: HE CHALLENGES BRIGHAM, WHO ACCEPTS, AND NAMES ORSON PRATT AS HIS SUBSTITUTE. THE GREAT DISCUSSION BEFORE TEN THOUSAND PEOPLE. In the meantime, since the passage of the'Cullom Bill, Dr. Newman had been creating a sensation throughout the country over the subject of polygamy. Vice- President Colfax, in his discussion with Apostle John Taylor, had confined him- self principally to the State aspects of the question; but Dr. Newman took up the discussion on Bibical grounds. The speech of Delegate Hooper on the CuUom Bill had embodied, for the information of Congress, quite an elaborate Biblical review and defence of the ^'peculiar institution." This, it was said, provoked the evangelical ire of the chaplain of the Senate ; and, in turn, he discoursed eloquently on the subject of Mormon polygamy, to the admiration of his aristocratic con- stituency of the Metropolitan Methodist Church. The Saints in Zion were much amused at the scene in Washington, and de- cidedly pleased that their institutions should at length be theologically glorified in "high places." So, with journalistic tact, Mr. Edward Sloan, acting editor of the Salt Lake Daily Telegraph, suggested that the chaplain of the Senate should discuss the subject in the Mormon Tabernacle, it being out of place in Washing- ton. Dr. Newn.an, affecting to regard this as a challenge from Brigham Young, "accepted the challenge," and publicly announced his purpose of visiting Utah to discuss with Brigham Young the subject of Mormon polygamy. On their side the Apostles humored the self-delusion of the reverend champion ; and, though the " Challenge " was a transparent hoax, they were quite ready to give the Chap- lain of the Senate a taste of their apostolic steel. In the event of the polygamic tournament, Orson Pratt was universally chosen by the Mormons as their cham- pion; and soon the Paul of Mormondom and the Chaplain of the Senate of the United States, were engaged in a preliminary encounter through the columns of the New York Herald. The coming discussion in Zion created a great noise. In some sense, it was a national event. There was just that novelty in it, too, that the public taste so dearly relishes. The American people were prepared for a treat, and the Chaplain of the Senate was duly " billed " and "illustrated" in Harper s Weekly for the oc- casion. Dr. Newman's expectation of a personal discussion with Brigham Young HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 4J1 was as absurd as it was presumptuous in the Mormon eye. As well might he have journeyed to Rome, in the expectation of discussing Catholicism with the Pope. However, to the last moment of his leaving Washington, the Doctor affected to believe that he was going up to the stronghold of Mormondom to discuss the sub- ject of polygamy with Brigham Young, before ten thousand people. Early in August, 1870, Dr. Newman made his advent in Salt Lake City, ac- companied by the Rev. Dr. Sunderland, and immediately opened the following correspondence : DOCTOR NEWMAN TO PRESIDENT YOUNG. "Salt Lake City, Aug. 6, 1870. " 7'o President Brigham Young : "Sir — In acceptance of the challenge given in your journal, the Salt Lake Daily Telegraph of the 3d of May last, to discuss the question, 'Does the Bible sanction Polygamy?' I have hereby to inform you that I am now ready to hold a public debate with you as the head of the Mormon Church upon the above ques- tion, under such regulations as may be agreed upon for said discussion ; and I suggest for our mutual convenience, that either by yourself or by two gentlemen whom you shall designate, you may meet two gentlemen whom I will select for the purpose of making all necessary arrangements for the debate, with as little delav as possible. May I hope for a reply at your earliest convenience, and at least not later than three o'clock to-day. " Respectfully, etc., "J. P. Newman." PRESIDENT YOUNG TO DOCTOR NEWMAN. "Salt Lake City, U. T., Aug., 6, 1870. " Rev. Dr. J. P. Newman : " Sir — Yours of even date has just been received, in ansiver to which I have : to inform you that no challenge was ever given by me to any person through ' the colums of the Salt Lake Daily Telegraph, and this is the first information I have received that any such challenge ever appeared. " You have been misinformed with regard to the Salt Lake Daily Telegraph; it was not my journal, but was owned and edited by Dr. Fuller of Chicago, who I was not a member of our church and I was not acquainted with its columns. [ " Respectfully, j "Brigham Young." ' DOCTOR NEWMAN TO PRESIDENT YOUNG, " Salt Lake City, Aug. 6, 1870. ' ' To President Brigham Young : ' " Sir — I confess my disappointment at the contents of your note in reply to ' mine of this date. In the far East it is impossible to distinguish the local rela- tions between yourself and those papers which advocate the interests of your I church; and when the copy of the Telegraph containing the article of the 3d of j May last reached Washington, the only construction put upon it by my friends j was that it was a challenge to me to come to your city and discuss the Bible doc- trine of polygamy. 472 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. " Had I chosen to put a different construction on that article, and to take no further notice of it, you could then have adopted the Telegraph as your organ and the said article as a challenge, which I either could not or dared not accept. That I am justified in this conclusion is clear from the following facts : " I. The article in the Telegraph, of May 3d, contains these expressions, alluding to my sermon as reported in the N. Y. Herald, it says : ' The discourse was a lengthened argument to prove that the Bible does not sustain polygamy. * * * * The sermon should have been delivered in the New Taber- nacle in this city, with ten thousand Mormons to listen to it and then Elder Orson Pratt, or some prominent Mormon, should have had a hearing on the other side and the people been allowed to decide. * * ^ * j),- Newman, by his very sermon, recognizes the religious element of the question. * * Let us have a fair contest of peaceful argument and let the best side win. * * We will publish their notices in the Telegraph, report their discourses as far as possible, use every influence in our power, if any is needed, to secure them the biggest halls and crowded congregations, and we are satisfied that every opportu- nity will be given them to conduct a campaign. We base this last remark on a statement made last Sunday week in the Tabernacle, by President Geo. A. Smith, that the public halls throughout the Terrritory have been and would be open for clergymen of other denominations coming to Utah to preach. * * * Come on and convert them by the peaceful influences of the Bible instead of using the means now proposed. Convince them by reason and Scriptural argument and no CuUom Bill will be required.' "2. I understand the article containing the above expressions was written by Elder Sloan, of the Mormon church, and at that time associate editor of the Telegraph; and that he was and has since been in constant intercourse with your- self. The expressions of the said article as above cited, were the foundation of the impression throughout the country, that a challenge had thus been given through the columns of the Telegraph and, as such, I myself had no alternative but so to regard and accept it. I may add that I am informed that an impression prevailed here in Utah, that a challenge had been given and accepted. Under this impression I have acted from that day to this, having myself both spoken of and seen allusions to the anticipated discussion in several prominent papers of the country. " 3. It was not till after my arrival in your city last evening, in pursuance of this impression, that I learned the fact that the same Elder Sloan, in the issue of the Salt Lake Herald, of Aug. 3d, attempts for the first time to disabuse the public of the idea so generally prevalent. Still acting in good faith and knowing that you had never denied or recalled the challenge of the 3d of May, I informed you of my presence in your city and of the object of my visit here. " My note this morning with your reply will serve to put the matter before the public in its true light and dispel the impression of very many in all parts of the country, that such a challenge had been given and that such a discussion would beheld. " Feeling that I have now fully discharged my share of the responsibility in the case, it only remains for me to subscribe myself as before, " Respectfully, "J. P. Newman." HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY., 47 j PRESIDENT YOUNG TO DOCTOR NEWMAN. "Salt Lake City, Aug. 6th, 1870. ' ' Rev. Dr. J. P. Newman : " Sir — It will be a pleasure to us if you will address our congregation to- morrow morning, the 7th inst., in the small Tabernacle, at ten a.m., or, should you prefer it, in the New Tabernacle at two p.m., same instant, or both morning and evening. " Respectfully, ''Brigham Young. *' P. S. I hope to hear from you immediately." DOCTOR NEWMAN TO PRESIDENT YOUNG. "Salt Lake City, Aug. 6th, 1870, " 8 o'clock, p.m., " To President Brigham Young : " Sir — In reply to your note just received to preach in the Tabernacle to- morrow, I have to say that after disclaiming and declining, as you have done to- day, the discussion which I came here to hold, other arrangements to speak in the city were accepted by me, which will preclude my compliance with your invi- tation. " Respectfully, ''J. P. Newman." PRESIDENT YOUNG TO DOCTOR NEWMAN. "Salt Lake City, U. T., Aug. 6th, 1870. ' ' Rev. Dr. Newman : "Sir — In accordance with our usual custom of tendering clergymen of every denomination passing through our city, the opportunity of preaching in our taber- nacles of worship, I sent you, this afternoon, an invitation tendering you the use of the small Tabernacle in the morning, or the New Tabernacle in the afternoon, or both, at your pleasure, which you have seen proper to decline. "You charge me with * disclaiming and declining the discussion ' which you came here to hold. I ask you, sir, what right you have to charge me with declin- ing a challenge which I never gave you, or, to assume as a challenge from me, the writing of any unauthorized newspaper editor? Admitting that you could distort the article in question to be a challenge from me, (which I do not believe you con- scientiously could) was it not the duty of a gentleman to ascertain whether I was responsible for the so-called challenge before your assumption of such a thing ? and certainly, much more so before making your false charges. "Your assertion, that if you had not chosen to construe the article in ques- tion as a challenge from me, I ' could then have adopted the Telegraph as your [my] organ and the said article as a challenge,' is an insinuation, in my judgment, very discreditable to yourself and ungentleraanly in the extreme, and forces the conclusion that the author of it would not scruple to make use of such a subter- fuge himself. "You say that Mr. Sloan is the author of the article; if so, he is perfectly 18 474 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. capable of defending it, and I have no doubt you will find him equally willing to do so; or Professor Orson Pratt, whose name, it appears, is the only one suggested in the article. I am coufident he would be willing to meet you, as would hun- dreds of our elders, whose fitness and respectability I would consider beyond question. " In conclusion, I will ask, what must be the opinion of every candid, reflect- ing mind, who views the facts as they appear? Will they not conclude that this distortion of the truth in accusing me of disclaiming and declining a challenge, which I never even contemplated, is unfair and ungentlemanly in the extreme and must have been invented with some sinister motive? Will they not consider it a paltry and insignificant attempt, on your part to gain notoriety, regardless of the truth? This you may succeed in obtaining; but I am free to confess, as my opinion, that you will find such notoriety more unenviable than profitable, and as disgraceful too, as it is unworthy of your profession. " If you think you are capable of proving the doctrine of 'Plurality of Wives' unscriptural, tarry here as a missionary; we will furnish you the suitable place, the congregation, and plenty of our elders, any of whom will discuss with you on that or any other scriptural doctrine. *• Respectfully, " Brigham Young.'* doctor newman to president young. "Salt Lake City, Aug. 8th, 1S70. ' ' To Preside fit Brigham Young : " Sir — Your last note, delivered to me on Sunday morning, and to which, o course, I would not on that day reply does not surprise me. " It will be, however, impossible for you to conceal from the public the truth, that with the full knowledge of my being present in your city for the purpose of debating with you or your representative the question of Polygamy, you declined to enter into any arrangements for such a discussion ; and after this fact was ascer- tained, I felt at liberty to comply with a subsequent request from other parties, which had been fully arranged before the reception of your note of invitation to preach in your Tabernacle. " I must frankly say that I regard your professed courtesy, extended under the circumstances as it was, a mere device to cover, if possible, your unwilling, ness to have a fair discussion of the matter in question in the hearing of your people. " Your comments upon 'disclaiming and declining the discussion ' are simply a reiteration of the disclaimer ; while, in regard to your notice of my construction of the article in the Telegraph of May last, I have only to leave the representa- tions you have seen fit to make to the judgment of a candid public, sure to dis- cover who it is that has resorted to 'subterfuge ' in this affair. Your intimation that Elder Sloan, Prof. Pratt or hundreds of other Mormon elders, would be will- ing to discuss the question of polygamy with me from a Bible standpoint, and your impertinent suggestion that I tarry here as a missionary for that purpose, I am compelled to regard as cheap and safe attempts to avoid the appearance of HISTORY OF SAL T LAKE CITY. 47s shrinking from such discussion by seeming to invite it after it had, by your own action, been rendered impossible. As to to the elders you speak of including your- self, being ready to meet me in public debate, I have to say that I came here with that understanding and expectation, but it was rudely dispelled, on being deti- nitely tested. Were it possible to reduce these vague suggestions of yours to something like a distinct proposition for a debate, there is still nothing in your action, so far, to assure me of your sincerity, but, on the contrary, everything to cause me to distrust it. " I have one more point of remark. You have insinuated that my motive is a thirst for ' notoriety.' I can assure you that if I had been animated by such a motive you give me small credit for good sense by supposing that I would em- ploy such means. Neither you, nor the system of which you are the head, could afford me any ' notoriety ' to be desired. "But, to show how far I have been governed by merely personal aspir- ations, let the simple history of the case be re-called. " You send your Delegate to Congress who, in the House of Representatives and in sight and hearing of the whole Nation, throws down the gauntlet upon the subject of polygamy as treated in the Bible. Being Chaplain of the American Senate, and having been consulted by several public men, I deemed it my duty to preach upon the subject. The discourse was published in the JVew York Herald, and on thus reaching your city one of your elders published an article which is construed as a challenge to me to debate the question with you, or some one whom you should appoint, here in your Tabernacle. Acting upon this presumption, I visit your city, taking the earliest opportunity to inform you, as the head of the Mormon Church, of my purpose and suggesting the steps usual in such cases. You then reply, ignoring the whole subject, but without a hint of your ' pleasure' about my preaching in the Tabernacle. " Subsequently other arrangements were made which precluded my accepting any invitation to speak in your places of worship. The day passed away, and after sunset I received your note of invitation, my reply to which will answer for itself. And this you intimate is an attempt on my part to obtain ' unenviable notoriety.' "Sir, I have done with you — make what representations of the matter you may think proper, you will not succeed in misleading the discriminating people either of this Territory or of the country generally by any amount of verbiage you may choose to employ. *' Respectfully, etc., " J. P. Newman. )i DOCTOR NEWMAN'S CHALLENGE TO PRESIDENT YOUNG. Salt Lake City, Aug. 9, 1870. '•' To Mr. Brighatn Young: "Sir — In view of the enclosed communication, received from several .citi- zens of this place, asking whether I am ready now and liere to debate the ques- tion ' Does the Bible saction Polygamy? ' with you, as the chief of the Church of Latter-day Saints, and in view of the defiant tone of your Church journals of 476 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. last evening and this morning ; and in view of the fact that I have been here now four days waiting to have you inform me of your willingness to meet me in public discussion on the above question, but having received no such intimation up to this time of writing, therefore, I do here and now challenge you to meet me in personal and public debate, on the aforesaid question. I respectfully sug- gest that you appoint two gentlemen to meet Rev. Dr. Sunderland and Dr. J. P. Taggart, who represent me, to make all necessary arrangements for the discussion. " Be kind enough to favor me with an immediate reply. "Respectfully, " J. P. Newman. " Residence of Rev. Mr. Pierce." CITIZENS TO DOCrOR NEWMAN. "Salt Lake City, Aug. 9, 1870. ' • RetK J. P. Newman : " Dear Sir — Pardon the liberty which we the undersigned citizens of this place hereby take in addressing you in reference to the object of your present visit. Having seen in the Netus of last evening and in the Herald of this morning, an attempt to make the impression upon the public that you are, after all, unwilling to debate the question 'Does the Bible sanction Polygamy?" with Brigham Voting, as the chief of the Church of Latter-day Saints, and to debate it vow and here, we desire to know from you directly whether such is the fact and we would respectfully request a reply, that we may be able to set the matter in its true light by publishing the whole correspondence, as we will seek to do, in an extra of the Tribune to be issued at the earliest possible moment. " Very respectfully, " Jno. p. Taggart, "J. H. WiCKIZER, "Geo. R. Maxwell, " G. B. Overton, "J. F. Woodman." 1 doctor NEWMAN TO CITIZENS. " Salt Lake City, Aug. 9, 1870. " To Messrs. J. P. Taggart and others : "Gentlemen — In reply to yours of this date, requesting to know if I am willing to hold a debate here and 7io7v, on the question ' Does the Bible Sanction Polygamy?' with Mr. Brigham Young, as the chief of the Mormon Church, I have to state that this was the express purpose for which I came here, as appears from my first note to him. The correspondence between him and myself has, however, developed, on his part, such a line of conduct that I had fully determined to have nothing more to do with him. But as I came here in full faith to debate the question with him, regarding myself as the challenged party, and as he endeavors to escape by a denial that he has ever challenged me, I will put the matter now beyond dispute by sending him a challenge. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 4'jy " It shall be done immediately, and a copy of the same shall be furnished for the extra of which you speak. "Very Respectfully, etc., "J. P. Newman." PRESIDENT YOUNG ACCEPTS THE CHALLENGE. " Salt Lake City, 9 August, 1870. "Rev. J. P. Ne7vmati : "Sir — Your communication of to-day's date, with accompanying enclosure, was handed to me a few minutes since by Mr. Black. "In reply, I will say that I accept the challenge to debate the question, 'Does the Bible sanction Polygamy? ' Professor Orson Pratt or Hon. John Tay- lor acting for me as my representative, and in my stead in the discussion. I will furnish the place of holding the meetings, and appoint two men to meet Messrs. Sunderland and Taggart, to whom you refer as your representatives, to make the necessary arrangements. " I wish the discussion to be conducted in a mild, peaceable, quiet spirit, that the people may receive light and intelligence and all be benefitted ; and then let the congregation decide for themselves. " Respectfully, " Brigham Young." president young to doctor newman. " City, Aug. 9, 1870. ' ' Rev. J. P. Newman : '' Sir — I have appointed Messrs. A. Carrington and Jos. W. Young to meet with Messrs. Sunderland and Taggart, to arrange preliminaries for the discussion. " Respectfully, " Brigham Young." doctor newman to president young. "Salt Lake City, Aug. 9, 1870. ' ' To Air. Brigham Yotmg : " Sir — I challenged ji'^?^ to a discussion and not Orson Pratt or John Taylor. You have declined to debate personally with me. Let the public distinctly un- derstand this fact, whatever may have been your reasons for so declining. Here I think I might reasonably rest the case. However, if Orson Pratt is prepared to take the affirmative of the question, 'Does the Bible sanction Polygamy?' I am prepared to take the negative, and Messrs. Sunderland and Taggart will meet Messrs. Carrington and Young to-night at eight o'clock at the office of Mr. Tag- gart, to make the necessary arrangements. Respectfully, etc., "J. P. Newman." PRESIDENT YOUNG TO DOCTOR NEWMAN, "Salt Lake City, U. T., Aug., 10, 1870. " Rev. Dr. J. P. Newman : " Sir — I am informed by Messrs. Carrington and Young that at their meet- 478 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. ing last evening with Drs. Sunderland and Taggart they were unable to come to a decision with regard to the wording of the subject of debate. " Bearing in mind the following facts : Firstly — That you are the challenging party. Secondly — That in a sermon delivered by you in the city of Washington, before President Grant and his Cabinet, members of Congress and many other prominent gentlemen, you assumed to prove that God's law condemns the union in marriage of more than two persons, it certainly seems strange that your repre- sentatives should persistently refuse to have any other question discussed than the one * Does the Bible sanction Polygamy?' It appears to the representatives .of Mr. Pratt that if Dr. Newman could undertake to prove in Washington that ' God's law condemns the union in marriage of more than two persons,' he ought not to refuse to make the same affirmation in Salt Lake City. Mr. Pratt, I dis- cover, entertains the same opinion, but rather than permit the discussion to fall, he will not press for your original proposition, but will accept the question as you now state it, * Does the Bible sanction Polygamy.' " I sincerely trust that none of the gentlemen forming the committee will encumber the discussion with unnecessary regulations, which will be irksome to both parties and unproductive of good, and that no obstacles will be thrown in the way of having a free and fair discussion. " Respectfully, "Brigham Young." conditions of the debate. 1. The question to be discussed is, "Does the Bible sanction Polygamy? " Prof. Pratt to take the affirmative and Dr. Newman the negative. 2. The Bible, in the original and English tongues, shall be the only stand- ard of authority in this debate, the disputants, however, being free to quote from any other works or sources of information. 3. The place for holding the discussion shall be the New Tabernacle. 4. There shall be three sessions on three successive days, each session to continue two hours — that is, giving each disputant one full hour at every session, the affirmative to have the first hour and the negative to have the last hour. The first session to be held on Friday, August 12th, 1870, at two o'clock p. m., and the second and third sessions at the same hour successively, on Saturday and Sun- day, the 13th and 14th of the present month. 5. There shall be three umpires, one to be chosen by Prof Pratt, one by Dr. Newman, and a third by these two, and the three shall unitedly preside at the discussion, preserve its dignity and decorum and enforce the usual rules which govern parliamentary debate. 6. No manifestation of dissent or approval shall be permitted during the progress of the discussion, nor shall either disputant be interrupted by the other while speaking, for any cause whatever. Corrections of statements or misunder- standing shall be made in the body of the subsequent reply. 7. Each disputant to have his own reporters and one other assistant in the labors of the debate; but such assistant shall take no part in the speaking. 8. The Tabernacle and necessary attendance to be furnished free of charge, and children under eight years of age not to be admitted. HIS TOR Y OF SAL T LAKE CITY. 4 7 9 9. At the close of the debate no formal decision to be taken. 10. Each session to be opened and closed by prayer under the direction of the speakers. ir. In preparing an account of the discussion for the press, each side shall be at liberty to chose his own organs and publish his own report, but no pub- lished report shall be accepted as correct unless subjected to the inspection of the respective parties and countersigned by the umpires. Prof. Pratt, on his part, chose Judge Z. Snow as umpire, and Dr. Newman selected Judge C. M. Hawley. The grand discussion duly came off in the great tabernacle in the presence of thousands. Each day's apostolic fight was glorified with a verbatim report in the Neiv York Herald, and every leading paper in the country devoted its col-, umns to a daily synopsis of the arguments. Never before, in the whole Christian era, had polygamy been so elaborately and ably discussed between two divines, and certainly never was a religious debate so extensively published and read. Millions of readers followed the arguments of Dr. Newman and Orson Pratt, and it is safe to estimate that quite two-thirds of them yielded the palm to the Mor- mon apostle and were convinced, though against their inclination, that upon strict Biblical grounds Mormon polygamy could not be successfully met. CHAPTER LIII. PRESIDENT GRANT BENT ON THE CONQUEST OF MORMON THEOCRACY. HE APPOINTS SHAFFER GOVERNOR FOR THAT PURPOSE. ARRIVAL OF THE WAR GOVERNOR. COUNCILS. PREPARATIONS FOR CONFLICT WITH THE UTAH MILITIA. GENERAL PHIL. SHERIDAN SENT OUT TO VIEW THE SITUATION. HE IS INTERESTED IN THE MORMONS AND TEMPERS THE WAR POLICY WITH A " MORAL FORCE." SHAFFERS MILITARY COUP DE MAIN. GENERAL WELLS AVOIDS A COLLISION. CORRESPONDENCE BE- TWEEN THE LIEUT.-GENERAL AND THE GOVERNOR. The design of President Grant to overthrow Mormon rule in Utah was de- veloped through various methods of action. But first came his war policy, which at one time meant the absolute conquest of " Mormon Theocracy " by military force, or at least by military rule. This is what was signified by the appointment of a " War Governor," in the person of J. Wilson Shaffer. In 1868, General Rawlins, then Secretary of War, visited Utah. The South was in process of reconstruction, and the Secretary thought that Utah needed re- construction quite as much as the South. Casting his eye over the list of his old war comrades to find the man most fit for the work, he determined to select Gen- 48o HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. eral Shaffer. Rawlings committed to President Grant his " dying charge," to appoint " Wils " Shaffer of IlHnois, Governor of Utah, to conquer Brigham Young. After the death of the Secratary, on the resignation of Governor Durkee, the appointment was duly made. Surprised at the event, and knowing that the choice of himself, at that critical juncture of Utah affairs, was not due to political management, Shaffer hastened to Washington to "inquire" of the President. It was then that the new Governor learned from the lips of President Grant that he owed his appointment to the dead Secretary of War, and was informed of the grand purpose for which he had been chosen. This is Governor Shaffer's own statement. Shaffer knew that he himself was gradually dying — that a few short months must close his mortal career. But he was assigned to a post of honor. He ac- cepted the appointment as a trust extraordinary from the President of the United States, and as a legacy left to him by his dead patron and comrade. He under took the " mission " with the " vow" to execute it before his death. He would make himself Governor of Utah, to all intents and purposes, if he had to do it by the sword. " Never after me," said he, " by ! shall it be said that Brigham Young is Governor of Utah ! " Governor Shaffer arrived in Utah in the latter end of March, 1870. On his arrival in Salt Lake City, Governor Shaffer wa^ under deep chagrin concerning the passage of the Utah Female Suffrage bill. While at Washington he had personally charged Delegate Hooper and Hon. Tom Fitch, the member from Nevada, with betraying both himself and the Government in the signing of that bill by acting-Governor Mann. Shaffer was Governor of Utah at the time. On the receipt of the telegrapic news in Washington, that the Utah Legislature had passed the woman's suffrage bill. Governor Shaffer hastened to the rooms of Delegate Hooper, calling his attention to the news, declared that the bill must be vetoed and that he should immediately telegraph to the acting-Governor to veto it; but Hooper treated the news as a hoax, being too much of a politician to defeat the very bill of which he considered himself the father. The intended telegram of the Governor was not sent ; a few hours afterwards the bill was approved ; and Secretary Mann lost his official head in consequence. From that moment it was resolved that not a Federal officer should remain in Utah who could not be trusted to execute the programme of the Government to its last letter. Secretary Mann was removed and succeeded by Vernon H. Vaughn ; and Chief Justice Wilson was removed, and he was succeeded by James B. McKean. There were now in the Utah administration Governor Shaf- fer, Chief Justice McKean, General Maxwell, O. J. Hollister, brother-in-law of Vice-President Colfax, Judges Hawley and Strickland, U. S. Marshal Orr, U. S. District Attorney Charles H. Hempstead; Chief Justice McKean, however, had not yet arrived in Utah, although he figured in the administrative design. On the arrival of our " war Governor," just after the passage of the Cullom bill, and the mass meetings of protest held by the Mormons in this city, the very air was charged with the elements of war. But, after consulting with his Federal compeers. Governor Shaffer sought counsel also of Mr. Godbe and his friends. Eli B. Kelsey was the first who had contact with him. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 481 It was at war heat that Elder Kelsey found him at their first interview. " By G— d Brigham Young shall no longer be Governor of Utah," was fresh in his mouth ; but he sat down with Elder Kelsey and entered into a warm discussion of the Mormon problem, Kelsey taking the Mormon side even to polygamy. The elder explained to the Governor the painful situation of the people in any view of the case if a crusade were prosecuted against them, and how certainly the Nation was about to crucify the Mormon women afresh unless the Government was con- siderate and just toward them. '' Governor," said Elder Kelsey, 'I will present my own family case. It is that of tens of thousands in their family relations. My wives entered into mar- riage relations with me with the purest motives, and from a conscientious religious conviction. They have children by me. Before I will forsake my wives and bastardize my children, I will fight the United States down to my boots ! Gover- nor Shaffer, put yourself in my place : What would you do ? " Thus brought face to face with the vital family question of an entire people, and boldly challenged for his personal answer, Shaffer was at once put upon his honor and manhood. The very difficulty, and the directness of the challenge, provoked him to strong feeling. He paced his room several times before he an- swered and then it came with an emphasis. '' By G — d, Mr. Kelsey, were I in your place I would do the same !" And this is substantially what the manliest men of the Nation everywhere say to the Mormon people — say it in their silence and forbearance, as much as in their words and actions. After all this fuss over polygamy, America would not like to see the Mormon people dishonor themselves and betray their wives and children. From that time, General Shaffer modified his desire for a war crusade against the polygamic people. His resolve thereafter was simply (to use his own words) to make himself "the Governor of Utah in fact and the commander-in-chief of the militia." Hence he directed all the action of his remaining lifeagainst Lieut- General D. H, Wells, which amounted to nothing more serious than the disband- ing of the Utah militia. Soon after this. President Grant sent General Phil Sheridan to Utah to jud^-e of the situation and to establish another military post. "Thereupon, a council was called at Shaffer's room, at which were assembled the Governor, General Sheridan and staff, certain other Federal officers and W. S. Godbe and several of his compeers ; and then General Sheridan, with his sim- ple directness, observed : " The President has charged me to do nothing without consulting Mr. Godbe and his friends." The Reformers thus honored with the confidence of the Government, then urged the following views: That military force was not necessary to solve the Utah problem; that all which was needed was sufficient troops in the Territory to act as a "moral force" upon the public mind, convincing the Mormons that the Government intended to carry out ics policy ; that as more troops were designed for Utah, Provo would be the best place to station them ; that these military movements should show no de- sign to intimidate the Mormons, but simply assert the National authority by their presence. 20 482 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. General Sheridan said this advice coincided with his own views and those of President Grant; and he gave positive assurance that troops in Utah should onl}' be used as a '' moral force." The post was duly established at Provo, and President Grant so far modified the original policy, projected by Vice-President Colfax, of forcing a rupture with the Mormon leaders. Moreover General Sheridan on his visit was greatly and favorably impressed towards the Mormon people. Speaking of it Stenhouse says: " Lieutenant-General Sheridan visited Utah, and made himself acquainted with the actual situation of affairs. This distinguished soldier expressed the kindliest sentiments for the people, admired ihe work they had accomplished, and hoped that nothing would occur to disturb them in the peaceful possessions of their homes. His visit was at the finest season of the year, and he was truly charmed with the appearance of the city. Troops, whenever wanted, would how- ever, be forthcoming, not as a menace to the community, but that at their camp the oppressed might find beneath the stars and stripes the protection of the Govern- ment. Governor Shaffer is dead; he cannot answer his traducers ; but these were his sentiments, and almost his words to the author as well as the words of the great cavalry-soldier of the Republic." But Governor Shaffer was resolved not to die before he had executed some military cot/p de 7fiain against Mormondom. The annual muster of the Territoii il militia gave him the opportunity. Here is the call for the muster, followed by proclamations and correspondence between the Governor and the Lieut. -General. They tell their own story. the lieut.-general's order. '•'Adjutant-General's Office, U. T., "Salt Lake City, Aug. i6th, 1S70. "General Orders, No. r. "No. 1. — Major-General Robert T. Burton, commanding ist Division Nauvoo Legion, Silt Lake Military Dibtrict, will cause to be held a general mus- ter, for three days, of all the forces within said district, for the purposes of drill, inspection and camp duty. "No. 2. — The commandants of Utah, Juab, Sanpete, Parowan, Richland, Tooele, Summit and Wasatch military districts, will cause to be held a similar mus- ter, not to exceed three days, of the forces in their respective districts, to be held not later than the 1st day of November. Said commandants will cause suitable notice to be given of lime and place of muster, and all persons liable to military duty to be enrolled and notified. "No. 3. — Bands of music may be organized, and musicians required to per- form duty as per General Order No. 2. "No, 4. —It is with deep regret that we announce to the Legion the death of Brigadier-General C. W. West, commandant of Weber military district. " No. 5. — At the muster of the forces of Cache military district, there will be elected a brigadier-general, who will take command of said district. " No. 6. — District commandants will cause all vacancies to be filled in their respective districts ; they will have a rigid inspection of arms and equipments, and make full and complete returns to this office, on or before the fifteenth day of ^ HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 483 November. They are also enjoined to enforce good order and sobriety, and to take every precaution to avert the occurrence of accident from any cause whatever during the muster. By order of "Lieut. -Gen. Daniel H. Wells, " Commanding Nauvoo Legion. "H. B. Clawson. ''Adjutant- General, U. Z." GOVERNOR SHAFFER'S PROCLAMATION— 1. "Executive Department, Salt Lake City, Utah Territory, "September 15th, 1870. "Know ye, that I, J. Wilson Shaffer, Governor of the Territory of Utah, and commander-in-chief of the militia of said Territory, by virtue of the power and authority in me vested by the laws of the United States, have this day, ap- pointed and commissioned P. E. Connor, major-general of the militia of Utah Territory; and W. M. Johns, colonel and assistant adjutant-general of the militia of the Territory. Now, it is ordered that they be obeyed and respected ac- cordingly. "Witness my hand and the great seal of said Territory, at Salt Lake [seal.] City, this the 15th day of September, A. D. 1870. " J. W. Shaffer, " Governor. "Attest": Vernon H. Vaughn, ' ' Secretary of Utah Territory. ' ' GOVERNOR SHAFFER'S PROCLAMATION— 2. "Executive Department, Salt Lake City, Utah Territory, " September 15, 1870. "Know ye, that I, J. Wilson Shaffer, Governor of the Territory of Utah, and commander-in-chief of the military of the Territory of Utah, do hereby forbid and prohibit all musters, drills or gatherings of militia of the Territory of Utah, and all gatherings of any nature, kind or description of armed persons within the Territory of Utah, except by my orders, or by the orders of the United States marshal, should he need 2, posse co?nmitatus to execute any order of the court, and not otherwise. And it is hereby further ordered that all arms or munitions of war belonging to either the United States or the Territory of Utah, within said Territory, now in the possession of the Utah Militia, be immediately delivered by the parties having the same in their possession to Col. Wm. M. Johns, assistant adjutant-general ; and it is further ordered that, should the United States marshal need z. posse commitatus, to enforce any order of the courts, or to preserve order, he is hereby authorized and empowered to make a requisition upon Major-General P. E. Connor for •iwch posse commitatus or axmtd force ; and Major-General P. E. Connor is hereby authorized to order out the militia, or any part thereof, as of my order for said purposes and no other. "Witness my hand and the great seal of said Territory, at Salt Lake [seal.] City, this the 15th day of September, 1870. "J. W. Shaffer, " Governor. "Attest : Vernon H. Vaughn, '' Secretary of Utah Territory.'^ 484 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. THE LIEUT.-GENERAL'S REPLY TO THE GOVERNOR. "Ad JT. -General's Office, U. T., Salt Lake City, "October 20, 1870. " His Excellency J. W. Shaffer, Governor, and Couvnatider in-chief of the militia of Utah lerritory : Sir: — Whereas, a proclamation has been published, emanating from your Ex- cellency, in which the holding of the regular musters in this Territory is prohib- ited, except by your order ; and " Whereas, to stop the musters now, neither the terms of the proclamation, the laws of the Territory, nor the laws of Congress requiring reports of the force and conditon of the militia of the Territory could be complied with \ we, there- fore, the undersigned, for and in behalf of the militia of said Territory, respect- fully ask your Excellency to suspend the operation of said proclamation until the 20th day of November next, in order that we may be enabled to make full and complete returns of the militia as aforesaid. Daniel H. Wells, Lieut.- Gen. Com g Militia, U. T. "H. B. Clawson, "Adjt.-Gen. Militia, U. T" THE GOVERNOR'S FIAT. "Executive Department, Utah Territory, " Salt Lake City, October 27, 1870. ''DafiielH. Wells, Esq. : " I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your communication of yesterday, in which you sign yourself ' Lieutenant-General commanding the militia of Utah Territory.' As the laws of the United States provide for but one Lieutenant-General, and as the incumbent of that office is the distinguished Philip H. Sheridan, I shall certainly be pardoned for recognizing no other. "In your communication you addressed me as * Coaimander-in-chief of the militia of Utah Territory.'' It is now twenty years since the act to organize this Territory was passed by the Congress of the United States, and, so far as I am informed, this is the first instance in which you, or any of your predecessors, in the pretended office which you assume to hold, have recognized the Governor of this Territory to be, as the Organic Act makes him, the Commander-in-chief, etc. My predecessors have been contemptuously ignored, or boldly defied. I congrat- ulate you and the loyal people here, and elsewhere, on the significant change in your conduct. ^^ You do me the honor to ask me to suspend the operation of my proclama- tion of September 15th, 1870, prohibiting all musters, drills, etc., etc. In other words, you ask me to recognize an unlawful military system, which was originally organized in Nauvoo, in the State of Illinois, and which has existed here without authority of the United States, and in defiance of the Federal officials. "You say: 'Whereas, to stop the musters now, neither the terms of the proclamation, the laws of the Territory, nor the laws of Congress, etc., could be complied with.' That is, my proclamation cannot be carried out, unless I let HIS! OR Y OF SAL T LAKE CIl V. 485 you violate it. Laws of the Territory which conflict with the laws of Congress, must fall to the ground, unless I will permit you to uphold them, and the laws of Congress cannot be complied with unless I will let you interpret and nullify them ! To state the proposition is to answer it. "Mr. Wells, you know, as well as I do, that the people of this Territory, most of whom were foreign born, and are ill acquainted with our institutions, have been taught to regard certain private citizens here as superior in authority not only to the Federal officials here, but also at Washington. Ever since my procla- mation was issued, and on a public occasion, and in presence of many thousands of his followers, Brigham Young, who claims to be, and is called, 'President,' denounced the Federal officials of this Territory with bitter vehemence, and on a like occasion, about the same time, and in his (Young's) presence, one of his most conspicuous followers declared that Congress had no right whatever to pass an organic act for this Territory ; that such was a relic of colonial barbarism, and that not one of the Federal officials had any right to come to, or remain in, this Territory. " Mr. Wells, you ask me to take a course which, in effect would aid you and your turbulent associates to further convince your followers that you and your associates are more powerful than the Federal Government. I must decline. "To suspend the operation of my proclamation now, would be a greater dereliction of my duty than not to have issued it. "Without authority from me you issued an order in your assumed capacity of lieutenant-general, etc., calling out the military of the Territory to muster, and now you virtually ask me to ratify your act. " Sir, I will not do anything in satisfaction of your officious and unwarranted assumption. " By the provisions of the Organic act, the Governor is made the commander- in-chief of the militia of the Territory, and, sir, so long as I continue to hold that office, a force so important as that of the militia shall not be wielded or con- trolled in disregard of my authority, which, by law, and by my obligation, it is my plain duty not only to assert, but^ if possible^ to maintain. "I hope the above is sufficiently explicit to be fully understood, and super- sede the necessity of any further communications on the subject. " I have the honor to be, etc. (Signed) J. W. Shaffer, Governor and Covimander-in- Chief of Utah Territory. AN OPEN LETTER TO GOVERNOR SHAFFER. * * Editor Deseret Eveni?ig News : " Sir: — I find myself under the necessity of requesting you to give space in your columns for the enclosed correspondence between myself and His Excellency Governor Shaffer. His reply to my communication reached me yesterday, and it was only a few hours afterwards that I saw the entire correspondence in print. I might have felt some reluctance before this in giving our correspondence pub- licity, but now I have no alternative ; my duty to the public, my regard for truth, 486 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. and my own self-respect will not suffer me to remain silent] and although Gover- nor Shaffer closes his communication by saying that he hopes what he has written will supersede the necessity of any further communication on this subject, I am constrained to write you this letter. "The first point which I will notice in his communication is the statement that; — " ' As the laws of the United States provide for but one lieut. -general, and as the incumbent of that office is the distinguished Pnilip H. Sheridan, I shall cer- tainly be pardoned for recognizing no other.' " What inference does Governor Shaffer wish to draw froai this? The same law of Congress which provides for one lieut. -general provides for five major-gen- erals (see Army Register for 1869 ; also General E. D. Townsend's report to Gen- eral W. T. Sherman, commanding U. S. army for same year) ; must we therefore conclude that there shall be no major-generals of militia in the States or Terri- tories? The same law prescribes that there shall be eight brigadier-generals; are we to understand Governor Shaffer that the distinguished gentlemen who hold these positions in the regular army are the only ones in the States and Territories who are to be recognized as such? This being the inference to be drawn from his language, who shall presume to recognize any officers of militia in any of the States and Territories as major-generals and brigadier-generals, when the law of Congress has already provided for but five of the former and eight of the latter ? ''As His Excellency seems to take pleasure in referring to law, permit me also to direct his attention to the following : "Section 10 of an Act, approved July 28th, i865, limits the number of offi- cers and assistant adjutant-generals in their respective corps, prescribing their rank, pay and emoluments; and section 6 of an Act approved March 3d, 1869, provides that, until otherwise directed by law, there shall be no new appointments in the Adjutant-General's department; also an Act of June 15th, 1844, chapter 69, 'entitled, ' an Act to authorize the Legislatures of the several Territories to regu- late the appointment of representatives and for other purposes,' provides, in sec- tion 2, ' that justices of the peace, and all general officers of militia in the Terri- tories, shall be elected by the people, in such manner as the respective Legislatures thereof shall provide by law.' Also, see Brightly's Digest of the United States Laws, page 619, on organization of the militia, section 3. " These extracts are from laws of Congress — the laws for which His Excellency seems to have so much respect ; and if they are the only laws which obtain in this Territory, how can His Excellency reconcile with them his recent appointment by proclamation of a major general, and an assistant adjutant-general for the militia of Utah ? And what about the five distinguished incumbents of the office of major-general already appointed under the law? Or, does his Excellency imagine that it falls to his province to fill the vacancy created by the death of the lamen- ted George H. Thomas. "The second point in Governor Shaffer's communication which I will notice, is wherein he states that — " ' So far as I have been informed, this is the first instance in which you or any of your predecessors, in the pretended office which you assume to hold, ever re- HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 4S7 cognized the Governor of this Territory to be as the organic act makes him to be, the commander-in-chief, etc., etc. My predecessors have been contemptuously ignored or boldly defied.' • "It is scarcely necessary for me to remark to any resident familiar with the history of this Territory that Governor Shaffer's information on this subject is very defective. That which he styles a *' pretended office " I have held by the unanimous voice of the people of the Territory — the office having been created by Act of the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Utah, approved by the Governor, Feb., 5th, 1852, and not transported from Illinois, as stated by Gover- nor Shaffer in another part of his letter. Even if it were as he states, can no good thing, come out of Illinois ? Or is it such a crime to copy after anything emanat- ing from that distinguished State? I may here add, further, that I have never had any predecessor in the office since the organization of the Territory. As to this being the " first instance" in which I have recognized the Governor of this Terri- tory as the commander-in-chief, Governor Shaffer is either strangely ignorant or wilfully misrepresents, for during the first eight years after the organization of the Territory, His Excellency Brigham Young was the Governor of the Territory, and I presume no one will dispute that he was recognized as the commander-in-chief- During the next four years, while His Excellency Alfred Gumming was Governor of the Territory, and also during the administrations of his successors up to the present time — with the exception of Governor Dawson, who only remained in the Territory about thirty days — I have abundant documentary evidence to show that I recognized them as governors and commanders-in-chief of the militia of the Territory, and have in return been recognized by them as lieut.- general commanding militia of Utah Territory, Besides being recognized as lieut. -general by the predecessors of Governor Shaffer, I have in every in- stance been acknowledged as such in all official correspondence with officers of the regular army, superintendents of the Indian affairs and other 'Federal officials,' both here and out of the Territory. His Excellency Governor Shaffer therefore stands distinguished as the first ' Federal officer ' who, in reply to a respectful communication, has so far forgotten what is due from a man holding his position, as to ignore the common courtesies always extended between gen- tlemen. " Before ending my reference to this point, permit me, if it does not trespass too much on your space, to give you copies of one or two communications which I have received from predecessors of Governor Shaffer : "Executive Department, Great Salt Lake City, "June nth, 1862. " To Gen. D. H. Wells, commanding militia of Utah Territory. " Sir — A requisition has been made upon me this day by Henry W. Law- rence, Esq., Territorial Marshal for the Territory of Utah, through his deputies, R. T. Burton, Esq., and Theodore McKean Esq., for a military force to act as a posse commitatus in the service of certain writs issued from the Third Judicial Dis- trict Court of said Territory, for the arrest of Joseph Morris and others, residing in the northern part of Davis County, in said district. 4^8 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CJTY. " It appears that said Joseph Morris, and his associates, have organized them- selves into an armed force to resist the execution of said writs, and are setting at defiance the law and its ofificers. " I therefore require you to furnish the said Henry W. Lawrence, Esq., or his deputies aforesaid, a sufficient military force for the arrest of the offenders, the vindication of justice, and the enforcement of the law. "Frank Fuller, ^^ Acting Gover7tor and Co7nmander-in-chief. " Executive Department, Great Salt Lake City, November 26th, 1S62. ^' Lietii,-Gen. D. H. Wells, Commanding Nauvoo Legion: " Sir — I herewith enclose a communication directed to the Governor of this Territory, from the War Department at Washington, in relation to arms, etc., furnished by the several States since the 4th of March, 1861. If you have any in- formation on the subject applicable to this Territory, I will be glad if you will re- port the same to me immediately. *'I remain, respectfully yours, etc. H. S. Harding, Governor and Commander-in- Chief of the Territory of Utah. " P. S. — You will please return the communication from the War Deparment with your report. " As to Governor Shaffer's next paragraph I fail to see the point as stated As has been the usage in the Territory for years past, and in accordance with the laws thereof, orders were issued for the holding of the regular Fall muster of the military of the Territory in their respective districts. These orders, were dated August i6th, 1870. Some thirty days after, Governor Shaffer issued his procla- mation prohibiting the holding of musters, drills, etc. In my communication to him, I simply asked him to suspend the operation of that proclamation until the 20th of November, that the Fall musters might be completed — they having already been held in some of the districts— in order that I might comply with the request of the department made through the Adjt.-General's office, for Washington city, asking for the annual return of the militia of Utah Territory, in accordance with the provisions of the Act of Congress (sec. i.), approved March 20th, 1803. How this can be construed into an attempt to ' nullify ' the laws of Congress escapes my penetration, but, on the contrary, it appears to me that the proclama- tion of Governor Shaffer is calculated to produce that result. As to there being any conflict between the laws of the Territory and the laws of Congress, that is mere assertion, incapable of proof. "As to his allusion respecting what has been said at public meetings, I have to say that public officers, ' Federal officials ' included, are supposed to be public property, so far as their official acts are concerned, and subject to the scrutiny of the people. Every man under our Government has the right to free speech, and to express his opinions concerning the acts of public officers — a right, moreover, which is generally indulged in by all parties. I am not aware that President HIS! ORY OF SAL T LAKE CIl V. 489 Brigham Young has ' denounced the Federal officials of this Territory with bitter vehemence,' or that if he has, I am responsible therefor, or that I should be held responsible for the opinion of any other gentleman in regard to the power of Con- gress to organize a Territorial government. " I am of the opinion that the people of the Territory, according to the Con- stitution, have the right to bear arms — that the Legislative Assembly had the right to organize the militia — that Congress had the right to declare that the general officers should be elected by the people in such a manner as the respective legisla-. tures of the States and Territories may provide by law ; that the Governors of thci States and Territories are the commanders-in-chief of the militia, the same as thei. President of the United States is commander-in-chief of the armies and navies of'' the United States, with generals and admirals under him commanding; that the- military organization of our Territory follows that of the Federal Government more closely, perhaps, than that of any other Territory or State in the Union ; and that governors and commanders-in-chief are as much the creatures of law as any other officers, and while they exercise a higher jurisdiction, they are as amen- able to law as the humblest officer or citizen. " I will not take up your valuable space, neither will I condescend to make reference to the concluding paragraphs of his letter. My only object has been to vindicate the Legislative Assembly, myself and the people, as to our rights under the law, so unwarrantably assailed in the communication of Governor Shaffer. Respectfully, " Daniel IL Wells." " Adjutant-General's Office, U. T., Salt Lake City, Nov. 12th, 1870. " General Orders, No. 2. " I. — So far as the general musters in various military districts have not al- ready been held, as contemplated in General Orders, No. i, of August i6th, 1870, they are hereby postponed until further orders. " By order of " D. H. Wells, '' Lieut- Gen. Com' g N. L. Mililia, U. T. H. B Clawson, Adjutant- General, U. T. Thus was suspended that famous Nauvoo Legion which, in 1857-58, stood against the army of the United States. At the time of this occurrence it num- bered about thirteen thousand men, who were well armed and equipped, and well drilled. First organized by "Joseph, the Prophet," to whom it owes its name, it was subsequently brought in this Territory to a condition of great efficiency by General Wells. Brigham Young was the second lieutenant-general of the Legion, but, after he had sufficiently filled the calling of a prophet-general, in leading his "Latter-day Israel "to the Rocky Mountains, he resigned, and Daniel H. Wells succeeded him. Under this thoroughly military type of man the Legion was per- fected, having, at the time of its suspension, two major-generals, nine brigadier- generals, and twenty-five colonels, with their respective staffs. Of Governor Shaffer's part in the disbanding of the militia Stenhouse has a very noteworthy passage of history. He says; 21 4go HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. " That was the last official act of Governor Shaffer, and it was solely his own, and not the emanation of a '-'ring," as charged by the Mormons. He was dictating the last words of the letter as the author entered the Executive office, and there he was lying upon his couch, weak, exhausted, and scarcely able to to speak. ' I have answered their letter, Stenhouse," he said. " 'And I expect. Governor, after the acknowledgment of your authority, you have granted them permission ? ' " 'You think I would ! Stenhouse, if I were not dying, I would get up and whip you. They are traitors, and I only regret that I shall not live to help bring them to justice. Brigham Young has played his game of bluff long enough. I will make him show his hand." * * * The Governor died on the last day of October — six weeks after the difficulty had begun ; the militia trouble did not end with his life. CHAPTER LIV. CONTEST FOR THE DELEGATE'S SEAT IN CONGRESS. CALL OF THE LIBERAL CENTRAL COMMITTEE. CORINNE CHOSEN FOR THEIR CONVENTION. THE CONVENTION IN SESSION. RESOLUTION TO UPHOLD GOVERNOR SHAFFER. NOMINATION OF MAXWELL. NAMING OF THE PARTY. THE LIBERALS SHAMEFULLY BEATEN, BUT RESOLVED TO SEND THEIR " DELE- GATE" TO CONGRESS, HE BEING CHOSEN FOR THE PURPOSE OF CON- TESTING THE SEAT. The August election of 1870, gave the Utah Liberal party the opportunity of contesting for the Delegate's seat in Congress. Hon. Wm. H. Hooper was the nominee of the People's party. It was not for a moment thought that any worthy opposition could be made, as regards the relative voting strength of the parties. In 1870 the People's party could poll 20,000 to 1,000 of the opposition. The specific object of the liiberal party in the contest was to create an oppor- tunity to send their nominee to Washington, to contest the seat, and from time to time to send one there, whether victorious or not. Indeed this party from its birth entertained the belief that Congress would, upon some cause, give the seat to the anti-Mormon Delegate, and that Utah never would be admitted as a State, until the absolute political control was placed in their hands. Nothing, however, in 1870, had been conceived by them of so radical a character as the disfranchise- ment of the whole Mormon people, unless some overt act should occur to give the administration the cause to place the Territory under martial law, for which ob- ject the anti-Mormons constantly aimed. The ground of this contest in Wash- ington for Utah's seat was to be made on an accusation against Mr. Hooper of HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 491 disloyalty, having taken part against the Government during the " Buchanan war; " and also as being unfitted as a delegate to Congress, by reason of having taken the " endowment oath." The aims thus laid down, the Central Committee of the Liberal party issued the following call : " CONVENTION. " The citizens of Utah residing within the several counties of said Territory, who are opposed to despotism and tyranny in Utah, and who are in favor of freedom, liberality, progress, and of advancing the material interests of said Ter- ritory, and of separating church from state, are .requested to send delegates to meet in convention at Corinne, Utah, on Saturday, July i6th, 1870, at 10 p. m., of said day, to put in nomination a candidate to Congress, to be voted for at the Territorial election to be held on the first Monday in August next, *'By order of the committee, "J. M. Orr, Chairman. •' S. Kahn, Secretary, "S. L. City, June 24, 1870." The reason of the transfer of the political action from Salt Lake City, where the Liberal party was born, to Corinne was a political move well considered by the party managers, and designed for the capture of one of the counties. It was evident from the recent contest, in the municipal election of Salt Lake City, that no effective opposition could be made at the capital. On the other hand Corinne was rising as a Gentile city, and though since nearly a deserted place, its founders believed that it would become the nucleus of the Gentile force, and be not only able to carry Box Elder County, but also to greatly influence the elections in Weber County. Hence the managers of the party selected Corinne as its centre of operations in its first Territorial contest with the People's party, rather than Salt Lake, where it had met such an overwhelming defeat. The convention met pursuant to call. On motion from Mayor C. H. Hemp- stead of Salt Lake City, General P. Edward Connor was elected temporary chair- man. A permanent organization was quickly effected. One of the resolutions passed at the convention is very noteworthy : '■''Resolved, That in the selection of J. Wilson Shaffer, as Governor of Utah, we recognize an appointment eminently fit and proper ; that his past services in the cause of his country, and his firm, upright, wise and judicious course in this Territory, since he came among us, commend him to the confidence of this con- vention and the people it represents ; and we pledge ourselves to yield to him a continued, unwearied, and we trust efficient support in the performance of his high duties and the enforcement of the laws." On motion of General Connor, it was adopted with three cheers for Governor Shaffer. That resolution was made with the knowledge of Governor Shaffer's intention to forbid the yearly muster of the Utah militia, a few weeks later, and to reor- ganize it under his special direction with officers of his own choice, P. Edward Connor being his major-general and Col. Wm. M. Johns his adjutant-general. 492 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. Such a design had been contemplated in the Wade Bill, the Cragin Bill and the Cullom Bill ; and at the date of the convention it was known by those in his con- fidence that Governor Shaffer had resolved to reconstruct the Utah militia, setting aside Lieut. -General Wells and the rest of the officers elected by the people. This was the meaning of the carrying of the above resolution "with three cheers for Governor Shaffer." On motion of R. H. Robertson, the convention next proceeded to nominate a candidate for delegate to Congress. General Connor nominated Gen. George R. Maxwell of Salt Lake County ; and on motion of E. P. Johnson the nomina- tion was made unanimous by acclamation, with three cheers. Before the close of the convention, on motion of E. P. Johnson, the organ- ization was called the " Liberal Political Party of Utah." The convention adjourned with three cheers. Having thus perfected their organization, formulated their platform and nom- inated their candidate, the Liberal party opened their campaign in Salt Lake City, on the 19th of July ; for, notwithstanding Corinne had been chosen for pre- liminary business, Salt Lake City alone could afford sufficient sensation for the opening of the campaign. At the election the vote was overwhelming in favor of Hon. Wm. H. Hooper, who received over 20,000 votes as against a few hundred cast for General Max- well,- who, however, contested the seat. CHAPTER LV. THE "WOODEN GUN REBELLION." ARREST OF MILITIA OFFICERS FOR AS- SEMBLING THEIR COMPANY. THEY ARE HELD PRISONERS AT CAMP DOUGLAS; EXAMINED BEFORE JUDGE HAWLEY FOR TREASON; COM- MITTED TO THE GRAND JURY FOR TREASON AND PLACED UNDER BONDS- THE GRAND JURY IGNORES THE CASE. THE SERIOUS FACE BEHIND THE EXTRAVAGANZA OF THE " WOODEN GUN REBELLION." Governor Shaffer was dead, but his proclamation was in force, and that fact speedily led to nearly serious consequences, in the arrest of certain militia officers, their imprisonment at Camp Douglas, and subsequent presentment to the grand jury for treason, as will be seen in the closing passage of Associate Justice Hawley's ruling in the preliminary examination : " How far the defendants may be guilty, I am not called upon to decide, nor to construe the statutes of this Territory, under which they have been arrested, except so far as to decide that the defendants, however, have probably committed a crime. I shall leave the matter, therefore, to be further considered and investi- gated, and to that end shall leave the defendants to answer to the deliberation of r HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 493 a grand jury. I will fix the bail bond in the case of the higher grade of officers at the sum of ^5,000, and the lesser $2,000. This military episode in the history of Salt Lake City is usually treated in the extragavanza style of " The Wooden Gun Rebellion ;" but it cannot be so con- sidered in legitimate history. In fine it was a capital circumstance, most serious and significant in its direct intents, and in its relations to other vital matters then pending, the very issues of which waited a development which was thus precipitated. There was involved in the circumstance, on the one hand, the Constitutional right of the people of this Territory to bear arms, and of their Legislature to organize and regulate a militia for the protection of the country, and the public weal, as prescribed by their legislative enactments. On the other hand, there was an assumption of an extraordinary power, inhering in the Governor, to set aside and supersede the control of the Legislature in the affairs of the militia, and to abolish the organization which that Legislature had created for the protection of the Utah colonies. Indeed, on this hand, it involved all contained in the unpassed bills of Senators Wade and Cragin, relative to our Territorial militia, the sec- tions of which may be pertinently repeated, as they connect here with the actual history : "And be it enacted that there shall be in the militia of said Territory no officer of higher rank or grade than that of major-general, and all officers civil and military shall be selected, appointed and commissioned by the Governor; and every person who shall act or attempt to act as an officer, either civil or military, without being first commissioned by the Governor, and qualified by taking the proper oath, shall be guilty of misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof, shall be sub- ject to a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars, and imprisoned in the peniten- tiary not exceeding one year, or both such fine and imprisonment at the discre- tion of the Court. " And be it further enacted, that the militia of said Territory shall be organ- ized and disciplined in such manner and at such times as the Governor of said Territory shall direct. And all the officers thereof shall be appointed and com- missioned by the Governor. As commander-in-chief the Governor shall make rules and regulations for the enrolling and mustering of the militia, and he shall yearly, between the first and last days of October, report to the Secretary of War the num- ber of men enrolled, and their condition, the state of discipline, and the number and description of arms belonging to each company, division or organized body. Aliens shall not be enrolled and mustered into the militia. " And be it further enacted, that all commissions and appointments civil and military, heretofore made or issued, or which may be made or issued before the ist day of January, 1867, (or in this case at the date of Governor Shaffer's proc- lamation) shall cease and determine on that day, and shall have no effect or va- lidity thereafter." Had these bills passed the two houses of Congress, it would still have been an important constitutional question for the Supreme Court of the United States to decide, whether or not, even with an act of Congress, such extraordinary powers could be properly conferred upon the Governor, setting aside the local legislature and all its enactments in the matter ; or at least whether or not this 494 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. could be done until the Territory had been first declared by the President and Congress to be in an actual state of rebellion. In such a case, either the regular army, or the militia of the Territory, would be properly ordered, as a posse com- ilatus of the Governor, by which to execute the special purposes of the general Government concerning said Territory. But without such acts of Congress, or the existence of such a condition of rebellion, Governor Shaffer had assumed all these extraordinary powers, super- seding the Territorial Legislature by arbitrary will, and further by proclamation attempted to create a military despotism. In the correspondence between Governor Shaffer and Lieut. -General Wells, the Governor had said : "You ask me to recognize an unlawful military system, which was originally organized in Nauvoo, in the State of Illinois, and which has existed here without authority of the United States, and in defiance of the Federal officials." And Lieut. -General Wells had replied through the Deseret News: *'That which he (Governor Shaffer) styles a pretended office, I have held by the unanimous voice of the people of the \ Territory — the office having been created by act of the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Utah, approved by the Governor, February 5th, 1852, and not transported from Illinois as stated by Governor Shaffer. * * * I am of the opinion that the people of the Territory, according to the Constitution, have the right to bear arms — that the Legislative Assembly had the right to organize the militia— that Congress had the right to declare that the general officers should be elected by the people, in such a manner as the respective legislatures of the States and Territories may provide by law; that the governors of the States and Territories are commanders-in-chief of the militia, the same as the President of the United States is commander-in- chief of the armies and navies of the United States, with generals and admirals under him commanding; that the military of our Territory follows that of the Federal Government more closely, perhaps, than that of any other Territory or State in the Union ; and that governors and commanders-in-chief are as much the creatures of the law as any other officers, and while they exercise a higher jurisdiction, they are as amenable to law as the humblest officer or citizen." But notwithstanding that Lieut. -General Wells and the Utah Legislature held the constitutional right of the question, and that Governor Shaffer had assumed powers which did not lawfully belong to his office, he had practically, by a mili- tary coup de main, set aside the Legislature and suspended the militia. Disobedience of the Governor's proclamation, and any attempt to muster in the various military districts, would be construed by the Federal officials as overt acts of rebellion to the United States authority. To reach such a construc- tion of the case was the very object of the proclamations. Governor Shaffer was dead ; but his proclamation remained in force ; while Vernon H. Vaughn, the former Secretary of the Territory, whose name was also to the proclamation, was now Governor of the Territory; and George A. Black, who came to Utah as Shaffer's private secretary, was now Secretary of the Terri- tory. With these Federal officers in the succession, the proclamation of the dead HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 495 Governor was like an inheritance in their hands. Thus stood the case on the side of the Federal officers. On the other hand the members of the Legislature, the old officers of the militia, and the mass of the citizens throughout the Territory regarded the late Governor Shaff'er's acts, and exercised powers, in relation to the militia as unlaw- ful and usurpation, subversive at once of the citizen's constitutional right, and also his duty to the State to bear arms, and subversive of the powers and functions of the Territorial commonwealth. In such a view of the case it was, to say the least, very proper in the citizens to test the matter by some method, in the hope, perhaps, that the obstruction had been removed ; for evidently Governor Vaughn, living, could reverse the action of Governor Shaffer, dead. All the Governors of Utah up to Shaffer's time had recognized the Utah militia, not only as a proper and lawful organization, but one which had from the beginning been necessary to the safeguard of the Terri- tory ; while President Lincoln had, in 1862, directly called upon a portion of that militia to aid the Government in the protection of the Overland Mail route ; and, less than eighteen months previous to the date of Governor Shaffer's procla- mation, the Secretary of War had submitted to'tte House of Representatives the report of the adjutant-general of the Utah militia, relative to the employment of that militia by the Federal officers — Governor and Indian Agent — and that too by the direction of the War Department, for the suppresssion of Indian hostilities during the years 1865, 1866, and 1867. It simply needed now that Governor Vaughn should take the proper and legal view, — that this local military organiza- tion was the natural and properly constituted militia of a Territory, rather than a posse comitatus of the Governor, to restore that militia to its former footing. Hence came the test of the '^Wooden Gun Rebellion," to see in which of these lights the new Governor would view the military organization of the Terri- tory. However like an extravaganza on the outside, the affair possessed a very solid and constitutional inside. The militia serio-comedy came thus : Certain of the officers of companies and regiments, without the action of their commanding officers or an order from the lieutenant-general, decided to have a sort of an unofficial re-union of their companies, in the absence of the yearly muster. Evidently this was to feel the way for the coming year, without a violent shock to the dead Governor's proclama- tion, which would itself also be defunct, unless continued in force by the action of the new Governor, seeing the proclamation was based upon no act of Con- gress, nor upon any constitutional ground. But the popular version of the affair ran thus : The band of the 3rd regi- ment had just received some new instruments from the East; and the jubilant musicians invited the men of their regiment to turn out and hear a musical per- formance, and to glorify the occasion by an accompanying drill. On November 2ist, 1870, the citizen soldiers in question met at the Twentieth Ward School- house, in which ward most of the regiment resided, but without the order or presence of their colonel. It was said, they "had a very pleasant time to- gether, and were all exceedingly pleased with the music of the band and also with their own evolutions." Meantime the news was heard " down town," and Mr. 49(> HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. Secretary Black, with two deputy marshals, hastened up to the scene of the "re- bellion." Immediately after the dismissal of the regiment, a warrant was issued by Judge Hawley for the arrest of eight of the officers of the regiment, who were brought before his honor and examined on the charge of treason. The court ap- pointed a prosecuting attorney, who opened the case by reading Section two of an act passed by Congress, "to suppress insurrection, to punish treason and re- bellion, to seize and confiscate the property of rebels and for other purposes," which reads : ^^ And be it further enacted, That if any person shall hereafter incite, set on foot, assist, or engage in any rebellion or insurrection against the authority of the United States, or the laws thereof, or shall give aid or comfort thereto, or shall engage in, or give aid or comfort to, any such existing rebellion or insurrection, and be convicted thereof, such person shall be punished by an imprisonment for a period not exceeding ten years, or by a fine not exceeding ten thousand dollars, and by a liberation of all his slaves, if any he have; or by both of said punish- ments, at the discretion of the Court." " But the U. S. prosecutor was brought to a pause and his full period reached on the "dollars." He seemed to appreciate that the "liberation of all his slaves" was slightly inapplicable to this case, though both the prosecutor and the Court clearly saw the fittest political and legal application of the rest of the section to the drill in the Twentieth Ward, Salt Lake City. The following report of the examination, however, will be sufficient to unveil to a coming generation the for- midable "insurrection against the authority of the United States," which occurred in said Twentieth Ward, on the 21st of November, 1870: "-^. Keyes examined by Mr. Maxwell. — " Where do you live? In Salt Lake City. Where were you on the morning of the 27th of November? In this city, at the court room. Were you at the Twentieth Ward Schoolhouse during the day? Yes, sir. What did you see there? I saw a company of men drilling there. How were they equipped, had they guns? Yes, sir. Can you identify any of them? Yes, sir; I can identify Mr. Burt, Mr. Ottinger, Mr. Phillips, the two Livingstones, — Charles and Archibald, — Mr. Savage, Mr. Graham and Mr. Fennamore, " Cross-examined by Judge Snow: — " What time were you there? Between eleven and twelve o'clock in the fore- noon. You saw those men there ? Yes, sir. You saw them drilling? Yes, sir. Had they any music? Yes, sir. Any uniform? Yes, sir. I believe all the officers were in uniform. Who were the officers? Mr. Ottinger was giving com- mand when I was there. I don't know whether he was an officer or not. What others were there? Mr. Burt. Was Mr. Burt an officer? I don't know. Any others? Mr. Phillips. Do you know whether he was an officer? Don't know any more than the rest. Mr. Savage, the two Livingstones, Mr. Graham the same. Mr, Fennamore had a gun, and should judge he was a corporal from the number of stripes on his clothes. How long were you there ? About ten minutes. Did you talk with any of those present? With Mr. Savage? Any other? No. Was there any boisterousness there ? Not any in the least. What kind of music had they? Martial. Did you observe whether the uniform was HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 497 new or old ? It was very nice uniform. I could not see whether it was new or old. Was there any drunkenness? No, sir. You did not see any liquor on the ground? No, sir. Do you know ho'v long they kept it up? I was there ten minutes, and rode on a block or two beyond, and as I came back they were just dismissing. You went up after Court adjourned here? Yes, sir. You remained there ten minutes? Yes, sir. How long were you gone before you went back ? It could not exceed ten minutes. You were not there over twenty minutes? No, sir. When they dismissed did they march off in different directions? Yes; one company marched off down Brigham Street, another west of the building. When you went there did you command them to dismiss? No, sir. Did you see any women and children there? Yes, sir, there were a good many looking on, both women and children. Did you see any women and children in the ranks? No, sir. Were there not as many women and children as men there? Could not say. Did you see any flags there? Yes, sir. What kind of flags? My impression was that they were the "stars and stripes." Were they dressed in United States uniform? I don't know that I know the United States uniform. They had hats with plumes, swords, etc. Did you ever attend musters in the States ? Yes, sir. Was this any different to them in any way ? (Objected to by Maxwell). Judge Snow claimed to show its legitimate bearing, and that there was nothing done contrary to the laws of the United States. (Allowed to pass). In the States we are ordered out. I did not see anything different. Did you wear glasses on your face. I always wear them, and I believe I can discern a person with them as well as a person who does not wear them. " Re-examined by Mr. Maxwell — •' Describe the uniform of Mr. Ottinger, as to its marks and insignia? I was not near enough to recognize the shoulder strap. He had a blue coat, brass buttons, a black hat and a black plume. How many men were there in the ranks ? (Question objected to, but allowed by the court) I guess there were a hundred. How many boys and women surrounding? Probably one hundred and fifty. How many women ? I took but very little notice, there were a good many children. What was the conversation you had with Mr. Savage? As I came back I met Mr. Savage coming across. I spoke to him and said, ' You have got through?' He said 'Yes.' I then discovered that the band was composed of boys, and said, ' You have a young band ? ' He said, ' yes, that band, a year ago could not play a note.' There was a lot of boys with wooden guns, and he said they were going to have a drill. That was the substance of it. " George A. Black, examined by Mr. Maxwell: — " You are Secretary of this Territory? I am. You were present at the mus- ter? Yes. What time was it? I judge it was about lo o'clock. Will you state what you saw ? I saw a number of men drilling. I should judge there ^vere 300 They were armed and equipped with various kinds of guns, muskets and carbines. Do you know any of these men, can you recognize them ? I can. Witness iden- tified Mr. Philips, Mr. Charles Livingstone, Mr. Ottinger, Captain Burt and Mr. Graham. What were they doing particularly ? They were going through the regular military drill. Did you notice the uniform these men wore, if so de- scribe the uniform of Mr Ottinger ? On his coat he had shoulder straps, a sword, a hat and black feather in it. 22 4g8 HIS TOR Y OF SALT LAKE CIl Y. ' ' Cross-examined by Judge Snow: — " Where do you reside ? In Salt Lake City. How long have you been here? Seven months the 27th day of this month. You said you were up in the 20th Ward, what time did you go there? About 11 o'clock. Have you any means of knowing the precise time ? I have not, it was after 10 and before 12 o'clock. How came you to go there ? I heard there was a drill up there. Are you ac- quainted with costume in the States? Ves, sir. The uniform was alike, with the exception of the hat. I never saw a Colonel wear a hat like Mr. Ottin- ger wore. What is the difference in head-dress ? They ubually wear a cap. Do they wear a feather? I never saw one with a feather in it. Have you ever been in the army ? Yes, sir. Did you ever see a military officer wear a hat ? I never did . Did you ever see them on dress parade ? Yes, sir. What is the difference of dress parade and fatigue ? When on dress parade they appear in ful] dress and when on fatigue they go around loosely. There were about 300 there? Yes, sir. How long did you remain there? Fifteen minutes at least. What did you do after the fifteen minutes expired? Turned round and came down town. Where were the men then ? Still drilling. Did you see any of the men after ? I did in the afternoon. You don't know what time they left ? I do not. Nor how long they were there? No, sir. Did you see Mr. Keyes there? I did not. I saw him when I was coming back, when about half way between that place and the post office. Were you afoot ? I was in a buggy, and Mr. Keyes was on horseback. Did you come tolerably fast ? Not very, and he was riding on a slow lope. Did you see any women and children there? I did. A goodly number? Probably 15 or 20. There were a good many children I did not notice any women. Did you see anything disorderly there? No, sir. Any drinking? I did not. Did you hear any cursing? No, sir. All was order, quiet and peace? Yes, sir. Did you see any flag there? I did. I think it was the American flag. Don't you know that it was? I did not go up to examine it. I took it to be the American flag. " Cross-examined by Mr. Maxtuell: — " What munitions of war did these men have? I noticed they had old mus- kets principally; some of them had carbines, and a number had cartridge boxes; the officers had swords." The ruling of Judge Hawley is immaterial to the history; further than to note that he applied the section quoted, and passed the prisoners over to the Grand Jury on the charge of rebellion, Governor Shaffer's proclamation forming the groundwork of their "treason," "insurrection," "inciting to insurrec- tion," etc. But no Grand Jury ever found bills against these citizen soldiers of the Twentieth Ward, whose devoted officers remain under bonds to this day. Indeed the case was supremely ridiculous, even farcical, hence all classes styled the affair, the " Wooden Gun Rebellion,'' by which name it will be per- petuated, with its suggestiveness marked. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 499 CHAPTER LVI. THE TWO CELEBRATIONS OF THE FOURTH OF JULY, 187L RESOLUTIONS OF THE GENTILE COMMITTEE ADDRESSED TO THE CITY COUNCIL. ANSWER OF THE MAYOR. THE RUPTURE. GRAND PREPARATIONS ON BOTH SIDES. PROCLAMATION OF ACTING-GOVERNOR BLACK FORBIDDING MILITIA COMPANIES TO MARCH IN THE PROCESSION. GENERAL DE TROBRIAND WITH HIS TROOPS ORDERED OUT. NOTES OF THE GRAND DAY. The celebration of the 4th of July, 1871, gave a fitting culmination to the affairs of the past year, 1870. Early in June the non-Mormons of Salt Lake City, who had heretofore taken prominent parts with the city authorities in the celebrations of the Fourth, and Twenty-fourtli, took active steps for a grand celebration of the National birthday, of 1S71, on their own account. But at the onset a spirit was manifested on both sides if possible to unite, whereupon a committee was appointed by the city coun- cil to confer with the non-Mormon committee relative to the matter. On the loth of June, the committee of the concil met the non-Mormon com- mittee at the office of Col. Buell to consult. After a free exchange of views, it was ascertained that the committee from the city was not empowered to enter into any arrangements of a final nature ; whereupon the subjoined preamble and reso- lutions were passed : " Whereas, At a meeting for conference this day lield by and between a com- mittee appointed by many citizens of Salt Lake City, to make arrangements for the proper celebration of the coming Fourth of July, and a part of the committee appointed by the city council, it has become apparent that seperate programmes were likely to be adopted by the respective committees ; and " Whereas, It is desirable that harmony and unanimity should prevail in the celebration of the Nation's birthday on the broad platform of American citizen- ship and honor to the flag; therefore, be it unanimously '•' Resolvedj That the city council be and is hereby respectfully requested to authorize its committee, or in its wisdom appoint a new committee, to meet a like committee from the citizens already appointed, with full authority to confer, con- cert and adopt proper means to ensure, if possible, a single and harmonious cele- bration of the coming Fourth of July, irrespective of any and all action herero- fore taken by either of the aforesaid committees. " i?if^6'/z'eoJ>/e. "Fitch & Mann, Hempstead & Kirkpatrick, Snow & Hoge, A. Miner, Le Grand Young, and Hosea Stout, /or de/endant. " McKean, C. J. " Although the question of selecting, summoning and empanelling the grand jury which presented this indictment, is not involved in the motion before the court, one of the counsel for the defendant saw fit, in his remarks, to denounce the jury as having been selected and empanelled in a manner unprecedented either in 534 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. Europe or America. Had the counsel first investigated this question, he would have found that when Brigham Young was Governor of the Territory, and his selected friend, Judge Snow, now one of his counsel, sat both upon the district and the su- preme bench of the Territory, grand jurors were for years selected, summoned and empanelled precisely as they now are. And the counsel would also have found that in repeated cases United States judges, even within the States, have sometimes found the State statutes inapplicable, and have ordered juries to be procured sub- stantially as they are procured in this Territory. " But all this has nothing to do with the motion before the court which is to quash the indictment — not the grand jury that found it. Let us return, therefore, to the record. " One of the counsel for the defendant has rightly said, that the court should render such decision upon this motion as shall subserve the interests of the public and the rights of the defendant. What are those interests? What are those rights? It is agreed by counsel on both sides, that at common law the court might either grant or refuse the motion, in the exercise of a sound discretion. Many authorities were cited on the argument, sustaining this proposition. One of the counsel for the defendant sought to account for the fact that there seems to be a preponderance of authority against the granting ot a motion to quash, by conjecturing that when such motions are granted they are not often reported. He also urged that this court is not bound to respect any decisions rendered outside of this Territory, unless they be rendered by the Supreme Court of the United States. "Without pausing now to consider those arguments, let us proceed to enquire — what are the interests of the public and the rights of the defendant, as involved in this motion ? It is unquestionably lo the interests of the public that a man indicted for crime, if guilty should be convicted ; if innocent, acquitted ; and that, too, with as little delay as may be consistent with the rights of the accused, and with those safeguards which experience has approved. But will it promote the interests and rights either of the public or of an accused citizen, to have many indictments and many trials for offenses of the .same class, rather than one in- dictment and one trial covering the whole? The court is bound to presume that the evidence before the grand jury authorized, nay required, the sixteen charges contained in this indictment. If now the court should grant the motion of the defendant, and quash the indictment because it contained these sixteen counts, the grand jury, which is not yet discharged, would be in duty bound to find six- teen new indictments. Or if the court should compel the prosecution to elect to go to trial on some one count only — striking out the others, then the grand jury would be in duty bound to find fifteen new indictments. Thus, in either event, the defendant would be subjected to sixteen indictments and sixteen trials. How this could promote the rights and interests either of the public or of the defend- ant, it is not easy to perceive ; nay, it is difficult to imagine anything more har- assing and vexatious to the defendant. Indeed the learned counsel for the defendant failed to show wherein this would be any favor to their client. Had sixteen indictments been found in the first instance instead of one, could not the defendant's counsel urge with irresistible arguments, that they should be consoli- dated ? 1 HISTORY OF SAL T LAKE CITY. S35 " But is there not some legislation bearing upon the question? By act of Congress, approved February 26, A. D. 1853, it is provided that 'whenever there are or shall be several charges against any person or persons for the same act or transaction, or for two or more acts or transactions connected together, or for two or more acts or transactions of the same class of crimes or offenses which may be properly joined, instead of having several indictments, the whole may be joined in separate counts ; and if two or more indictments shall be found in such cases, the court may order them consolidated. ' ( 10 Statues at Large, page 162 ; I Brightly's Digest, page 223, Sec. 117. ) " What is the just construction of this statute ? Notwithstanding the mgen- ious efforts of one of the counsel to induce the court to disregard the views, reason- ings and opinions of other courts, still it may be prudent, first to listen to those courts and see if their decisions be reasonable. The United States vs. Bickford (4 Blatchford's circuit court rep. 337) the indictment contained one hundred counts, each one being for a distinct felony, but of the same class. On motion to quash, the court refused, holding that the joinder of the distinct felonies was warranted by the statute quoted above. In the United States vs. O' Callahan (6 McLean's circuit court rep., 596), the same doctrine is held. These decisions are entitled to great respect, having been rendered by eminent judges of the Su- preme Court of the United States and their associate district judges. Indeed so obvious, reasonable and just are they that, were the question anew one, I do not see how I could reach a different conclusion. " In considering the second ground of motion tD quash, the meaning of the words 'associate ' and 'cohabit' must be carefully kept in mind. Webster defines ' associate' thus: To join in company, as a friend, companion, partner or confed- erate. * * :}; It conveys the idea of intimate union. He thus defines ' cohabit ' : To dwell and live together as husband and wife ; usually or often applied to persons not legally married. " The offense charged in each count could not be predicated of any one moment or instant of time. To commit such an offense, a continuous and some- what protracted period of time is necessary. There is nothing in this objection. " The learned counsel for the defendant need not be assured that any motion which they may make in behalf of their client, shall be patiently heard and care- iully considered. Nor does the court intend to restrict them in their arguments, except upon questions already adjudicated. But let the counsel on both sides, and the court also, keep constantly in mind the uncommon character of this case. The supreme court of California has well said : ' Courts are bound to take no- tice of the political and social condition of the country which they judicially rule.' It is therefore proper to say, that while the case at bar is called, ' The People ver- sus Brigharn Young,'' its other and real title is, ' Federal Aiiihorify versus Polyg- amic Theocracy.'' The Government of the United States, founded upon a written constitution, finds within its jurisdiction another government claiming to come from God — imperium in imperio — whose policy and practices are, in grave partic- ulars, at variance with its own. The one government arrests the other, in the person of its chief, and arraigns it at this bar. A system is on trial in the person of Brigham Young. Let all concerned keep this fact steadily in view ; and let 536 HIS TOR V OF SAL T LAKE Cll \. that government rule without a rival which shall prove to be in the right. If the learned counsel for the defendant will adduce authorities or principles from the whole range of jurisprudence, or from mental, moral or social science, proving that the polygamous practices charged in the indictment are not crimes, this court will at once quash the indictment and charge the grand jury to find no more of the kind. '' The pending motion to quash is overruled." CHAPTER LXI. MASS MEETING CALLED BY THE MAYOR OF SALT LAKE CITY TO ASSIST THE SUFFERERS OF THE CHICAGO FIRE. RESPONSE OF MORMON AND GEN- TILE. DONATIONS LED BY BRIGHAM AND THE CITY. "ONE TOUCH OF NATURE." THE TELEGRAPH TO PIOCHE COMPLETED. CONGRATULA- TIONS AND THANKS OF CONNOR AND OTHERS TO BRIGHAM YOUNG. At this moment there occurred in America one of those great calamities, which though awful in its consequences to a hundred thousand human beings, sounded to its depths the great heart of mankind, and made every city in the Union re- sponsive to the call of our National brotherhood and sisterhood. It was the Chicago fire. The Mayor of Salt Lake City immediately issued the following : "PROCLAMATION, " The news having been confirmed of the terrible conflagration by which a great portion of the city of Chicago has been reduced to ashes, and one hundred thousand people have been stripped of their homes, clothing, and means of sub- sistence, therefore, "I, Daniel H. Wells, Mayor of Salt Lake City, by the wish of the city coun- cil of said city, call upon all classes of the people to assemble in mass meeting to- morrow, Wednesday, October nth, at one o'clock p. m. in the old tabernacle in this city, for the purpose of making subscriptions and taking such measures as are demanded for the relief of our fellow citizens who are sufferers by this dreadfu 'visitation. "Daniel H. Wells, Mayor. "October loth, 1871." Just at this moment there arrived in Salt Lake City (October loth,) the Hon, O. P. Morton, U. S. senator from Indiana, one of the most prominent men of the nation, accompanied by his wife and child, Maior Beeson, W. P. .Fishback, wife and child, W. Clinton Thompson, Mrs. Lippincott (Grace Greenwood) and Dr. ■ Clark, brother of the last named lady. Their coming at that juncture had there- after considerable influence in Utah affairs. Senator Morton and his companions HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 531 setting their faces sternly against the judicial procedure of those times, while Grace Greenwood joined with our citizens in raisingsubscriptions for the Chicago sufferers. In pursuance of the call of Mayor Wells, a large number of citizens met at the old tabernacle, when Mayor Wells was called to the chair and Hon. George Q. Cannon appointed secretary. The following committee was also appointed by the meeting, to receive subscriptions from the citizens of Salt Lake and the ad- joining mining camps: John T. Caine, David E. Buell, Warren Hussey, S.Sharp Walker, A. S. Mann, Theodore McKean, William Jennings and William Calder, Hon. William H. Hooper and Hon. Thomas Fitch made appealing addresses, and then Hon. Frank Fuller stated that he was authorized to say that a lady of great literary distinction, Mrs. Lippincott — Grace Greenwood — would gladly contribute the proceeds of a lecture to the fund, which announcement was received with ap- plause, and the distinguished lady invited to the stand by Mayor Wells to make a few remarks. She said substantially " that the good book informs us that out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh, but she could not express the feelings of her heart in view of the terrible calamity which has afflicted Chicago, where she had many generous friends. She would like to do something to relieve this sorely stricken people. She rejoiced to see people of all opinions coming together to carry out the common obligations of humanity. This would do much to heal all these unhappy differences ; (referring to our local prosecutions). It seems to be lime for some women to speak of the poor children dying of exposure in the streets of Chicago. But I cannot talk of them. You gentlemen all know what is due to the gravity of such an occasion." Mayor Wells said that the amounts subscribed should be forwarded to him at the City Hall at once, in order that he might place it in bank subject to the order of the Mayor of Chicago. He also said that a benefit would be given at the theatre in aid of the fund. Subscriptions were then announced led off by Brigham Young, ^1,000; Salt Lake City,. $1,500 ; Daniel H. Wells, $500; William Jen- nings, $500; William H. Hooper, $500; Buel & Bateman $500, and a number more of lesser sums, amounting to ^6,286, subscriptions donated at this meeting alone and nearly all from Mormon hands. The Masonic Brotherhood al.>^o inaugurated a subscription; other public meet- ings were held for a similar purpose ; a large benefit was given at the Salt Lake theatre ; Grace Greenwood gave her lecture, realizing for the fund nearly $300. Altogether quite a handsome sum, about $20,000, was gathered in Salt Lake City to relieve the Chicago sufferers. Mrs. Lippincott seems to have been both surprised and considerably affected by the hearty manifestation of a deep human nature during the rage of a "Chris- tian" crusade against them, and she wrote to the New York Herald z.s follows : " In the old tabernacle, yesterday, we attended a mass meeting, called by the Mayor, to raise money for the relief of the Chicago sufferers. Here we saw Brigham Young, and I must confess to a great surprise. " I had heard many descriptions of his personal appearance, but I could not recognize the picture so often and elaborately painted. I did not see a common, gross looking person, with rude manners, and a sinister, sensual countenance, but 27 ^jS HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. a well dressed, dignified old gentleman, with a pale, mild face, a clear grey eye, a pleasant smile, a courteous address, and withal a patriarchal, paternal air, which of •course, he comes rightly by. In short, I could see in his face or manner none ot the profligate propensities, and the dark crimes charged against this mysterious, masterly, many-sided and many-wived man. The majority of the citizens of Salt Lake present on this occasion were Mormons, some of them the very polygamists arraigned for trial, and it was a strange thing to see these men standing at bay, with 'the people of the United States' against them, giving generously to their enemies. It either shows that they have underlying their fanatical faith and Mohammedan practices a better religion of humanity, or that they understand the wisdom of a return of good for evil just at this time. It is either rare Christian charity or mas- terly worldly policy. Or, perhaps, it is about half-and-half Human nature is a good deal mixed out here. But I do not suppose it will matter to the people of dear, desolate Chicago what the motive was that prompted the generous offer- ings from this fair city among the mountains. The hands stretched out in help, whether polygamic or monogamic, are to them the hands of friends and brothers. Certain it is that the Saints seemed to give gladly and promptly according to their means. President Young gave in his thousand and the elders their five hundred each as quietly as the poor brethren and sisters their modest tribute of fractional currency. ■ It is thought that Utah will raise at least $20,000. "There is to me, I must acknowledge, in this prompt and liberal action of the Mormon people, something strange and touching. It is Hagar ministering to Sarah ; it is Ishmael giving a brotherly lift to Isaac." Coupled with this instance of ready and generous help extended to the Chicago sufferers by our citizens, which so warmed the hearts of Senator Morton, Grace Greenwood and their party toward the Mormon community, may be recorded here one of the many services which Salt Lake city has contributed to the settling and growth of the Pacific States and Territories. It will be remembered by the reader, that not only was the virgin city of the Great Salt Lake, in 1S49, the half- way house of the Nation in her peopling of the west, after Mormon shovels under their foreman, Thomas Marshal, had turned up the gold of California, but that Utah for years afterwards aided in settling and feeding the younger Territories around her, which had grown up since the founding of Salt Lake City, and which her own colonizing activities had nursed in their infancy. As noted in the early chapters of this history, in 1854-5, the Mormon colonists pushed forward to the western frontier of this Territory and settled a large portion of the country now known as Nevada. These under Orson Hyde organized the whole of that district under the name of Carson County, which county was represented by Hon. Enoch Reese, a Mormon pioneer merchant. The iirst house in Genoa was built by Col- John Reese of Great Salt Lake City, and was called Reese's station. Some of our principal Salt Lake merchants were also the first merchants of Nevada : William Nixon, Joseph R. Walker (in the employ of Nixon), William Jennings, Christopher Layton and a number of others, first class men in the formation of a new colony, went out from Salt Lake City, to establish Carson County; and now in 1871, our city continued its good service to Nevada in extending to that State its local tele- graph line. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. jj9 The extension of the Deseret Telegraph line to Pioche, Nevada, was opened October 23d, 1871, with the following congratulatory messages: " Pioche, Nev.^ Oct. 23, 2:20 p.m. ^'■President Brigham Young — We thank you for your enterprise in placing us in telegraphic communication with the outer world. "P. Edward Connor, Charles Forman, M. Fuller, B. F. Sidis, Harvey J. Thornton, C. A. Lightner, D. W. Perley." '■' Pioche, 23. ^^ President B. Young — We opened the office here at noon to-day. Josiah Rogerson, from the Ogden office, is operator. The citizens are out in full force, greeting the event most heartily. Firing cannon, speechifying with all the conso- nants, are the order of the day. With much esteem, "A. M. Musser." "■ Pioche, 23. ''Hon. W. Kirkpatrick—l send you greetings by telegraph. The Deseret Telegraph line is completed and we feel that we have stepped into the world. " Harry J. Thornton." " Salt Lake, 23. '' Col. Harry J. Thornton, Pioche, Nev. — Congratulations in return upon your escape from barbarism to civilization. '' W. Kirkpatrick." "Pioche, Nev., 23. " Gov. Woods, Salt Lake — The wires of the Deseret Telegraph Company reached here this morning. The people of Pioche greet their neighbors of Salt Lake. " P. E. Conner and others." " Pioche, 23. "i/. 6". Grant, President United States of America, Washington, D. C. — ^ We are to-day placed in telegraphic communication with the outer world. We greet you and through you our brethren of the great nation of which you are chief. " P. E. Connor and others." " Pioche, 23. " Gov. Badley, Carson, Nev. — The Deseret Telegraph Company has to-day opened communication with this place. We congratulate you on the event. It will greatly benefit our mining camp now so prosperously revived from the fire, and shipping such large quantities of bullion. We do not feel we are any longer the most distant part of your State. " D. W. Perley, M. Fuller, and others." It has b^en often said — more often perhaps by the Gentile than the Mor- mon — that the footmarks and finger marks of Brigham Young are found everywhere in these western States and Territories. The Deseret Telegraph line was Brigham Young's offspring, and General Connor and the principal men of Pioche, very properly said to liim, "We thank you for your enterprise in placing us in tele- graphic communication with the outer world." 540 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. CHAPTER LXII. THE HAWKINS TRIAL. HIS POLYGAMY CONSTRUED INTO THE CRIME OF ADULTERY. FOUND GUILTY AND SENTENCED FOR THREE YEARS TO THE PENITENTIARY. A CHARACTERISTIC SENTENCE. 7 HE AMERICAN PRESS OX THE POLYGAMOUS TRIAI-S. The action of the courts was resumed. The case of Thomas Hawkins came next. He was tried under the same Territorial statute under which Brigham Young and others were indicted. His crime was to be construed adultery by Sec. 32 of the statute quoted in a former chapter. A review of this case will be found in a subsequent chapter in a speech of his counsel, Hon. Thomas Fitch. Suffice here to say that he was found guilty, and on the 28th of October, 187 1, sentence was pronounced by Chief Justice McKean as follows : " Th.omas Hawkins, I am sorry for you, very sorry. You may not think so now, but I shall try to make you think so by the mercy which I shall show you. You came from England to this country with the wife of your youth. For many years you were a kind husband and a kind father. At length the evil spirit of polygamy tempted and possessed you ; then happiness departed from your house- hold, and now, by the complaint of your faithful wife and the verdict of a law- abiding jury, you stand at this bar a convicted criminal. "The law gives me large discretion in passing sentence upon you. I might both fine and imprison you, or I might fine you only, or imprison you only. I mif^ht imprison you twenty years and fine you one thousand dollars. I cannot imprison you less than three years nor fine you less than three hundred dollars. It is right that you should be fined, among other reasons to help to defray the ex- pense of enforcing the laws. But my experience in Utah has been such that were I to fine you only, I am satisfied that the fine would be paid out of other funds than yours, and thus you would go free, ab.solutely free from all punishment ; and then those men who mislead the people would make you and thousands of others believe that God had sent the money to pay the fine, that God had prevented the court from sending you to prison, that by a miracle you had been rescued from the authorities of the United States. I must look to it that judgment give no aid and comfort to such men. I must look to it that my judgment be not so severe as to seem vindictive, and not so light as to seem to. trifle with justice. This community ought to begin to learn that God does not interpose to rescue criminals from the consequences of their crimes, but that on the contrary he so orders the affairs of his universe that, sooner or later crime stands face to face with justice and justice is the master. "I will say here and now, that whenever your good behavior and the public good shall justify me in doing so, I will gladly recommend that you be pardoned. HIS TOR V OF SAL T LAKE CITY. j-.^ t Thomas Hawkins, the judgment uf the court is that you be fined five hundred dol- lars, and that you be imprisoned at hard labor for tlie term of three years." The opinions of the American press relative to these trials, should be pre- served to history ; but only a {^s\ of the mass can be quoted in illustration here. The Sacramento Union said : "The conviction of Hawkins, at Salt Lake, for illicit cohabitation with women other than his first wife, means the conviction of the whole polygamous set of Mormons from Brigham Young down to the lowest in authority who is able to keep more than one woman. No doubt such is the object of the prosecution by the governmental officials. The end of the affair is not, however, with the decision of a court in Utah. The case will go to the Supreme Court of the United States for final settlement. If the reports have been correct, the prosecution of the Mormons for polygamy — for that is what it means — is un- dertaken, not under a statute of the United States, but a law of Utah, signed by Brigham Young himself in 1852, and which was not designed to cover a case like that which the polygamous elders of the Mormon church present. How they can be held amenable under a statute of their own not intended to be applicable in cases of plural marriages has not been explained. The intention of the act must be known to know its meaning. If there is any other law by which these sultans of the American desert can be puni^-hed, it would seem that the United States courts ought to resort to that as sure to bring conviction and punishment. The arraignment under a law that was clearly not intended to strike at polygamy is a virtual admission that there is nothing better in law to which the authorities can go. The proposition is not disputed that the Territorial law was not intended to forbid or punish polygamy, and how it can be used in such cases as that of Brigham Young has not been elucidated, except that the prosecution is only intended as an annoyance, or to provoke hostilities, knowing well that the weaker and the despised will be the sufferers in the end. "As we have said in former articles we have no sympathy with the peculiar institutions of the Mormons, nor much respect for their pretended faith. But laws are laws, and should be executed according to their real intent and meanincr. * * * We very much fear that this raid on the institutions of the Mor- mons is dictated more by popular hate than springing from an honest desire to rid the Territory of Utah of an institution that has not the sanction of the civilized world." The Carson Register '&2\(1 in its review of the case : "To convict Hawkins it was necessary to give a statute a different meaniii"^ from that intended by its authors, and to impute an evil intention where the re- verse was known to exist. The presiding judge in excluding all Mormons from the grand and petit juries, cited California authorities to show that courts are bound to take judicial cognizance of the political and social condition of the countrv which they judicially rule. If this was true in empaneling the jury, it is difficult to perceive by what logic the judge refused to take cognizance of the political and social condition of the country when Hawkins married his second wife. What, ever opinion one may entertain respecting the Mormons, or polygamy, no un- biased observer can read the proceedings of this trial as detailed by the journals 342 HISTOR\ OF SALT LAKE CITY. of Salt Lake, without feeling that the court was organized to convict without much regard to law. -J(- % -^ " If the verdict and the rulings of the court are sustained, this case is likely to mark the beginning of a social revolution in Utah and the breaking up of this extraordinary society ; but even this result will scarcely offset the judicial usurpa- tions by which it is brought about." But the Sacramento Union and the Carson Register were in error relative to the power of the defendants to appeal their cases to the Supreme Court of the United States. At that date there was no such power of appeal. Had there been the cases of President Young and others of the Mormon leaders would have been very different. Mr. Fitch boldly proclaimed to the country that, in the absence of the power of appeal, for Brigham Young and his compeers to go into Judge McKean's court was to go " not to justice, but to doom." The Albany Law Journal published in Judge McKean's own State, and edited by a legal gentleman who claimed long personal acquaintance with Judge McKean said : '• The indictment of Brigham Young and the conviction of Hawkins were brought about under a statute against adultery and lascivious conduct passed by an exclusively Mormon legislature in 1852. That the act was intended to cover cases of the kind no one believes, and it may be fairly questioned whether polyg- amy can be treated as a crime under it. * =^ * That Chief Justice McKean is a pure and honest man we know, having known him for years before his elevation to the bench, but we know him also to be a man of strong convictions and unyielding prejudices. These latter qualities he has displayed in his present position scarcely becoming the ermine. Justice ought to be severe and awful, too, but it ought at the same time to be impartial — to sit calm and unmoved above the storms of prejudice and passion that rage beneath. His decisions we do not ques- tion, but the language accompanying those decisions have been often so intemperate and partial as to remind one of those ruder ages when the bench was but a focus where gathered and reflected the passions of the people. "Of the Mormon people much may be said in praise as well as in blame. -They have, no doubt, trampled upon one of the strongest traditions of civilization, but they have also done some service to the State. Driven from one point to another by mobs as bad as the worst of them, they at length made a hegira quite as remarkable as the 'Flight of the Tartar tribes,' to the wilderness of Deseret and established a commonwealth which has prospered almost beyond example. Aside from polygamy they obeyed the laws quite as well as most new western com- munities, and they have never failed to respond promptly to any calls made upon them to aid in defending the country or in prosecuting its wars. For a quarter of a century their peculiar institutions have been tolerated by the Government ; so long, indeed, as to justify them in assuming tliat they h:id become legilized by prescription. In view of these facts we have no hesitation in saying that the jus- tice that is now meted out to them should be tempered with mercy, and that neither the chief justice nor his followers will gain an imperishable renown by an uncompromising crusade." HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. s-^3 The Methodist Church on its part without reluctance owned the parentage of the crusade against the Mormons. Zions Hetala, their official organ, said : " We find Brigham Young was not so far out of the way in declaring that the present judicial movement of the Government against his system, and even against his own immaculate person, is due to the Methodists; Dr. Newman's argument in the Temple began the war. Our missionaries organized it by fortifying themselves on the field, and the camp meeting brethren gave it the last stroke before the arm of the State was raised to carry out its just decrees. We have seen members from the committee and from Judge McKean, the brave man who is doing this work confirmatory of these facts. One of the ministers writes that during the delivery of the Rev. W. H. Boole's powerful sermon on polygamy in the presence of Brigham Young, Orson Pratt, George Q. Cannon and three thousand Mormons, the entire mass literally shook and quailed under the mighty power of God." Had the Methodist Z/'^J^V ^.fr^A/ designed irony it could have more aptly said, these Mormon elders " literally shook and quailed in the presence of the Rev. W. H. Boole as Brigham Young did in the presence of Dr. Newman, and as did Orson Pratt when he discussed the subject of polygamy with the Chaplain of the Senate, and provoked him by a signal defeat to vent his evangical wrath in this crusade." CHAPTER LXIII. ARREST OF MAYOR DANIEL H. WELLS ON A CAPITAL CHARGE. HE GIVES HIMSELF UP. FOR THE SAFETY OF THE CITY AND IS SENT A PRISONER TO CAMP DOUGLAS. STRUCK BY HIS CONDUCT CHIEF JUSTICE McKEAN, 1;n- EXPECTED BY ALL, GIVES THE MAYOR BAIL. PRESIDENT YOUNG GOES SOUTH FOR HIS HEALTH. THE U. S. ATTORNEY CLAIMS THE FORFEIT OF HIS BONDS. SENATOR MORTON IN COURT. HE CENSURES McKEAN'S PROCEEDINGS AND CRE.\TES A RE-ACTION IN THE PUBLIC MIND. On Saturday afternoon, October 28tb, 1S71, Daniel H. Wells, mayor of Salt Lake City, was arrested for the alleged crime of murder. Hosea Stout and Wni. H. Kimball were arrested on a similar charge. The indictment charged Daniel H. Wells, Hosea Stout and others, with having been accessory in the killing of one Richard Yates at the mouth of Echo Canyon. By his own confession, the notor- ious Bill Hickman was the man who did, in fact, commit the murder; but he sought, or was induced by the prosecution, upon the promise of immunity for all his crimes, to implicate Mayor Wells and others ; and it was upon the indictment found through the testimony of this notorious murderer that Mayor Wells was arrested. The facts were briefly as follows : The said Richard Yates, during the period of the "Buchanan vvar," was taken a prisoner as a spy. He fell into the hands 544 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. of the notorious Hickman to guard; but it is thought that the murderer, knowing or believing that Yates had considerable money in his possession, at night mur- dered his victim to obtain it. During tlie session of the court, on the same afternoon of the arrest, the marshal came in accompanied by Daniel H. Wells and his counsel Mr. Fitch, who asked the judge when he could hear an application for bail. Attorney Maxwell said the indictment was for murder in the first degree, which was not a bailable offense. Mr. Fitch said the court is the judge of the case, and may release the defendant, or not, after examining the evidence as to the probabilities of the crime. The court fixed Monday at lo o'clock a. m., as the time for hearing the case. Subsequently Hosea Stout was brought into court under arrest, on the same charge, and the same order taken as to his case. The gentlemen were conveyed prisoners to Camp Douglas in the evening. On Monday morning, October 30, there was a large attendance in the Third District Court, when the prisoners, Daniel H. Wells and Hosea Stout were brought into court. Mr. Fitch stated that the case would be argued on an application to the court for a writ of habeas corpus to bring the prisoners before the court to be held to bail. Mr. Hempstead argued that the grand jury erred in charging the defendants with murder in the first degree, which was properly the province of the petit jury, and that it was within the discretion of the court by the rules, practices and precedents of common law to admit to bail in capital cases, except where the evidence of guilt is clear and the presumption strong; that the princi- pal witness in the case is one of the parties charged in the indictment, and by his own confession the perpetrator of a most bloodthirsty and diabolical murder. He also called attention to the position of the defendant. Wells, as Mayor of Salt Lake City ; of his knowledge of this indictment for a month past by common rumor, and that there had been abundant time and opportunity for escape if it had been desirable. Mr. Baskin followed, insisting that bail should not be given, and Mr. Fitch was about to close the argument in support of the writ when Judge McKean in- terposed as follows : " Without intending to have it regarded as a precedent in any other case, I will hold that I have power to issue a habeas corpus and bring these prisoners before me, and as they have come in, being brought here by an officer during the progress of the argument, I will regard them as being here on the return of a writ of habeas corpus. I will therefore say, that although I was well aware before this argument, that in Great Britain and the United States a prisoner charged by indictment with a capital offence is almost never admitted to bail, still I was willing to be convinced that in this case it would be right to depart from the almost universal rule. Not only willing but anxious to be so convinced; nay, more, I have tried to convince myself by arguments in addition to those of the counsel that it would be right and expedient to do so in this case. " In the case of the people against Daniel H. Wells, his counsel properly say that the defendant is the mayor of the city, and is at the head of the police force. Camp Douglas, the place where prisoners awaiting trial in this court are usually detained, is some miles distant from the City hall, and from the residence of the HISTORY 01 SALT LAKE CITY. j^j mayor. In that case it would be practically impossible for the mayor to attend to any of the duties of his office, and therefore he could not be held responsible for the quietude and good order of the city. I will therefore admit him to bail. ( Applause in the court. ) " In the case of the people against Stout, I will further consider the application and the arguments, and will reach and announce my conclusion hereafter. " Mr. Maxwell said the prosecution would like to be heard on the question of the amount of bail, and he would fix it at ^500,000. The Judge replied, " No, the defendant will give bail in the sum of ^50,000." Mr. Baskin asked, if it should be found that the court had not power to grant bail in capital offenses, whether the bond taken would be valid and binding. The Judge said that he would not allow his decision in this case to be con- sidered or quoted as a precedent. Mr. Fitch stated that he would not pursue the argument in the case of Hosca Stout, as he had intended, but leave it with the court which had so promptly set- tled the case of Daniel H. Wells. The decision of Judge McKean, to give bail to Mayor Wells, astonished the entire city both Mormon and non-Mormon. There was probably not a single soul ni the city who expected such a decision, excepting the accused himself, who seems at the moment to have risen to that sublime pitch of trust in Providence that he would be delivered, which possess some men in the supreme moments of their life. It was Mayor Wells himself who prompted Mr. Fitch to apply to the court of Judge McKean for a writ oi habeas corpus to be brought before the court to be held to bail. Mr. Fitch said it would be in vain ; Judge McKean would not grant the bail ; but the Mayor persisted in the inward prompting that "the Lord would interpose" and thus spurred by the faith and judgment of the prisoner, counsellor Fitch sat down Saturday night and all day Sunday to his work and prepared one of the most masterly efforts of his life, which, strange to say. Judge McKean pre- vented in its delivery by granting the bail. The applause in the court was as genuine as the surprise was great, from non- Mormon as well as Mormon. There were, perhaps, not half a dozen persons in the court who were dissatisfied with the act of Judge McKean that day, and the chief of these were the U. S. prosecuting attorneys. The decision of the Judge once made, the majority felt that the act was right ; for, however easy it is to lead men away, through their prejudices and passions, by a quick instinct of nature, they realize when their leading man unexpectedly pursues a rigiit course. But Baskin and Maxwell were overwhelmed with astonishment and anger, as their con- duct showed. Maxwell, in his demand for the bail to be fixed at half a million dollars, was at once savage and preposterous, and his manner and abrupt state- ment to the court that the prosecution would like to be heard on the question of bail, was not the conduct or interruption of his will that James B. McKean usu- ally tolerated, as his short, sharp reply evinced — " No, the defendant will give bail in the sum of ^50,000 " — enough, surely, but ten times less than the malice of the prosecution demanded. Indeed, Baskin probably would of himself not have consented to bail at a million. When the decision was rendered his coun- tenance changed to a leaden hue, and his enquiry, hard and biting with sup- as 5^6 HIS TOR Y OF SAL T LAKE CI 7 Y. pressed passion — "If it should be found that the court had not power to grant bail in capital offenses, whether the bond taken would be valid and binding;" was very much in the spirit of a rebuke to the Judge for failing the prosecution in so important a case as the commitment of Daniel II. Wells, one of the Presidents of the Mormon Church, and lieutennat-general of the Nauvoo Legion, to prison for murder for a lengthy period. Judge McXean saw the Mayor of Salt Lake City at the bar, and the peace and safety of the city resting upon him, and wisely made that his own plea for bail, added to the plea of counsel ; but Mr. Biskin saw the Mormon leader, whose courage in going into the lion's den was behind the win of Brigham Young, supporting the whole Mormon community at that moment, just as it had done in 1857, during the Buchanan war. General Wells, 'however, would have been perfectly safe at Camp Douglas, ii> the hands of that gallant, honorable soldier. General Morrow, whose guest he was on the Sabbath, rather than a piisoner, and at whose table he ate with the General and Mrs. Morrow, at whose respectful request the honored prisoner asked a bles- sing over the food. But as before observed, Judge McKean on this occasion took the proper view of the case of bail, for once at least upon such a charge. The peace, good order and safety of Salt Lake City needed the presence of its mayor, as Mr. Baskin would have found in those days, had the acts of Carthage jail been attempted with these Mormon leaders. The prosecution had during the past months given a fair prelimmary to such business, and righteous American statesmen and the soundest American journalists, as we have seen, had not hesitated to say as much. On Monday, November 20th, the case was called up in court of the People vs. Brigham Young, sen. Mr. Biskin said the prosecution were ready to proceed with the case. Counsel for defence asked for the postponement of the case till the March term, according to previous expectation, based upon the promise of the court, im- plying the grant of time to both sides till the March term. Mr. Baskin said it was known only from public rumor that the defendant had gone outside the jurisdiction of this court, and the prosecution should demand a showing and a forfeiture of his bonds in case of non appearance. Mr. Hempstead said President Young will be ready for trial whenever the court shall set down his case ; with the understanding of his counsel that a reason- able time would be granted for trial, the defendant had taken his usual winter journey to the south for protection of his health against the severity of the climate. Mr. Baskin rebuked the counsel for so advising the defendant. The court said it would take the request for further time into consideration. The case was called up again on Monday, the 27th. Baskin said he should insist upon the default of the recognizance. Judge Snow said the counsel for defendant would only ask a reasonable time to bring him here. Baskin — " I insist that I am now entitled to a forfeiture of the bond." Mr. Hempstead said that if the gentleman was really honest in his desire to have the forfeiture of the bail of the defendant, he (Hempstead) could not believe HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. ^47 it was for the purpose of having it heralded to the world that Brigham Young had forfeited his bail and fled from justice. The counsel reviewed the ineffectual at- tempts which the defense had made early in the term to have a day fixed for trial. No bail had ever been forfeited under such circumstances. No defendant is ex- pected to appear in court room from day to day to await trial. The forfeiture would be unjust under such conditions. If the court could not continue the case until the March term, the defense would ask for a day to be. set as far in advance as possible. Baskin contended that the bail had been legally forfeited, and that this case should be treated by the same rules as any other case. The defendant was bound to hold himself within the jurisdiction of the court, but since the indictments for several murders had been found against him he had disappeared. According to his counsel's statement he was three hundred miles away, and he may be out of the jurisdiction of the Territory. He had not only technically but literally vio- lated his bond, and the forfeiture was asked because it was a legal right. The court cannot take the word of the counsel to account for the absence of a defen- dant who has absconded. The counsel has no legal right to advise a prisoner to leave the jurisdiction of the court. The prosecution would be ready to open up when the accused should appear and purge himself of contempt. The judge said he would not grant the motion but fix Monday next, Decem- ber 4th, at ID o'clock A. M. as the day for the trial of the case. The counsel for the defendant said they could not probably be ready at that time and asked for two weeks. The defendant could not be brought to the city in a week. The Judge said the counsel should have considered these things be- fore, and cut off all further objections with the remark: "The day of the trial has been fixed for a week from to-day," On the day set for the trial, the new U. S. district attorney, Bates, was pres- ent, and, having presented his commission, took the oath of office. In the case of the People vs. Brigham Young, on motion of Mr, Bates, de- fendant was called, and, not appearing, a motion was made to forfeit his recogni- zance, against which Mr. Hempstead entered his protest. Finally the Judge adjourned the court to the 9th of January, refusino- to grant the motion to forfeit the recognizance of defendant; and Mr, Bates stated that on the 9th of January he would call up the case of the People vs. Brio-ham Young, and press it for trial. At about this time a change came in the action of the department of justice in these Utah prosecutions, and fair minded men of the nation demanded of the U. S. Government that it should stop the disgraceful and illegal proceedings of McKean's court. The influence of Senator Morton was probably the first and most potent brought to bear in this matter, and immediately thereafter Senator Lyman Trumbull threw the weight of his name and statesmanship in the same direction, which resulted in Baskin and Maxwell being superseded by the appoint- ment of a new U. S. district attorney and earnest efforts by the Attorney General Akerrnan and Solicitor General Bristow to purge the U. S. courts of Utah of the flagrant misrule that had brought the censure of Republican statesmen of the character of Morton and Trumbull, and finally resulted in the setting aside of two j4^ HJS TOR 1 OF SALT LAKE CI 7 V. years of McKean's doings, as illegal, by the august decision of the Supreme Court. The arrival of Senator Morton and party in Salt Lake City has been noted, and the part which Grace Greenwood took with our citizens in the relief of the Chicago sufferers, sufficiently suggest the free and frank exchange of views that passed be- tween Senator Morton and his friends with the Mormon leaders and their course relative to the pending affairs of Utah. During the argument of the motion to quash the indictment against Brigham Young, Senator Morton, being a cripple, was carried up into Faust's Hall, where McKean was holding court, and where Newman had preached to a Methodist congregation on polygamy. On this oc- casion (the writer was present) Senator Morton had an excellent opportunity to appreciate the doings of the court and the methods ot its law officers; for though the judge realized in whose presence he sat and was quite enibarrassed occasion- ally, the prosecuting attorneys were not at all abashed but rather did their very best after their peculiar style, while Hon. Thomas Fitch and Charles H. Hemp- stead, the former U. S. prosecuting attorney, were eloquent and legitimate in their defence of President Young as against his indictment upon the statute in question, fi)r unlawful cohabitation, while they confessed rather than hid the fact that their client's case was that of polygamy. Fitch's argument was a masterly legal effort and a magnificent display of oratory. Something of the results of this afternoon in court, with Chief Justice McKean and his prosecuting attorneys in the presence of Senator Morton and his friends, will be appreciated by the reading of the following letter from the pen of the Morton visiting party . "On the Pacific Road, " October 12, 1871. "At 2 p. M. to-day we bade farewell to the Saints and sinners of the happy valley, and were soon whirled away to Ogden, where our car was attached to the Central Pacific train for San Francisco. The pending and impending troubles in Utah absorb all other considerations concerning this region, and I shall make them the subject of this letter, and try to view the Mormon question, as it is now presented to the public from the standpoint of the various classes immediately interested in its solution. " The Mormons of the Territory number nearly one hundred thousand souls, and in all that pertains to their material well being are a thriving, prosperous people. They came to Utah twenty-five years ago, when it was IMexican terri- tory, and after a toilsome march, during which they suffered great privations, they pitched upon Salt Lake Valley as their home. To-day the whole valley is a gar- den, and the small band that camped here have become a great people. They have lived at peace with the Indians; have maintained good order among themselves; they are sober, industrious, economical ; they have no gambling hells, no houses of prostitution, no alms houses, no beggars, no vagrants; and, barring their pe- culiar institution and its deplorable results, are a model people. Their isolation for many years from the society of other peoples, compelled them to adopt the co-operative plan of industry and manufactures, and the fruit of their labors has accumulated in their own hands, until millions of wealth in lands, flocks, cities, villages, manufactures and merchandise are now owned and controlled by them. r HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. S49 It is quite right for Mormons to feel that they have a right to the peaceful enjoy- ment of these results — achieved as they have been, by their own unaided efforts — in tlie face of continued and bitter persecution, and in spite of obstacles that would have daunted a people less courageous, or if you please, less fanatical than they. Recent events have convinced the Mormons that there is a settled purpose on the part of the Federal authorities in Utah to force a collision that will result in their expulsion from their chosen land, and there is a growing feeling of suspi- cion and distrust throughout the Territory, which, if not soon allayed, will most surely lead to the most dreadful consequences. After a full and free conference with the leading Mormons, Federal officers and business men of Salt Lake City, we predict that a dreadful civil war will soon be raging in this fertile region, re- sulting in the loss of thousands of lives, the expenditure of millions of public treasure, and the complete devastation of one of the most beautiful and thriving regions on the continent, unless the administration interferes with the schemes of the petty lords of misrule, who are doing their utmost to bring it about. " It is unfortunate for the nation that it is in the power of such men as Judge McKean and the deputy district attorneys, Maxwell and Baskin, to precipitate a collision between the Federal authorities and the Mormons, in a contest in which the Government occupies a false and untenable position. If an issue is to be made and settled in the courts between the U. S. authority on the one hand and polyg- amy on the other, concerning the lawfulness of the practice, it is of the utmost importance that it be fairly made and impartially tried, with full preparation for the probable results. We are convinced that the pending prosecutions are con- ceived in folly, conducted in violation of law, and with an utter recklessness as to the grave results that must necessarily ensue. How does the matter stand ? There is a vacancy in the office of United States district attorney for the Terri- tory of Utah. Judge McKean has appointed two lawyers. Maxwell and Baskin, to act as deputies. These deputies boast that they have instigated the prosecution and assume great credit for the disingeneous trickery by which they hope to force a conflict whose consequences they have not the capacity to measure or under- stand. It is much to the credit of President Grant's administration that these deputy prosecutors arrogate to themselves the entire credit of conceiving the dis- reputable trick to which they have resorted to effect their purpose. Let it be un- derstood that the indictments pending are not based on the act of Congress of 1862, defining and providing for the punishment of bigamy, but upon Section 32 of the Territorial laws of Utah. * * * The indictment against Brig- ham Young charges him with violating this statute by living with his sixteen wives. By na recognized rule of interpretation can polygamy be punished under this law. The law itself was passed by Mormons who taught and practiced po- lygamy at the time, and it was clearly intended by its framers to punish prostitu- tion and fornication in cases where there was no claim or pretense of marriage. However illegal, the Mormon marriages are de facto marriages, and were not con- tracted in violation of this statute. That they are contrary to the act of Con- gress is clear, and they should be attacked, if attacked at all, by the United States authority uiider that law. To use the Federal tribunals for the punishment of polygamists, under the Territorial act, is a manifest perversion of the law, if it is Sso HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. anything more than a piece of disreputable trickery, conceived and carried on in the interest of a gang of unscrupulous adventurers. If the United States desires to wage war upon Mormon polygamy, let it be done in an open and dignified man- ner, and not in the pettifogging style which has thus far characterized the prose- cutions in Judge McKean's court in Salt Lake. No good citizen of the United States can have any sympathy with polygamists. It is a doomed institution, and it must disappear from our social system ; but all good people are interested in hav- ing its destruction brought about by methods stern and effective, if need be, but so ordered that the judgment of the civilized world shall approve them. "I shall endeavor in another letter to speak of the probable and appre- hended results of a speedy trial, conviction and imprisonment of Brigham Young in the pending case. — F. Editorial Correspondence Indianapolis Journal. Commenting upon the foregoing letter the Salt Lake Herald %z.\d : " We place before our readers the deliberate utterances of Hon. Mr. Fish- back, the social and political friend of U. S. Senator Morton, the leading repub- lican editor of Indiana, the Boswell of that statesman who more potently than any other public man influences the administration at Washington and the policy of the Government. It is folly to say that the opinions expressed by Mr. Fishback are only the opinions of an intelligent observer ; though even this assertion is a h'eavy blow to those officers whose hatred and zeal outrun justice and discretion. The deliberate utterances of this gentleman are vastly more than this. They sig- nify that however strong may be the determination of the President of the United States and his cabinet to bring real or fancied offenders in Utah to punishment, no partial, unjust, unfair or illegal practices will be encouraged, even to effect that result. We know that President Grant desires to say in his message to Congress five weeks hence, that polygamy is virtually dead, but we know also, that he be- lieves in the good sense of the American people and the power of the Govern- ment, to accomplish legitimate ends without resorting to foul aspersions upon in- dividual character, to false charges unsusceptible of valid proof, or to tricks which are clearly unbecoming in a great government and its officers. We have already seen something of the result of the visit of Senator Morton to this city, in the public sentiment of Sacramento and San Francisco, in each of which places his views were listened to with that attention which the utterances of so able and dis- tinguished a statesman are bound to secure ; and an echo of which has been heard in the columns of the leading papers of the Pacific Coast. We have no serious fears of the result, whenever the facts of the case can be fairly represented and dispassionately weighed ; and we see clearly that the visits of eminent men and women, distinguished in public affairs, in literature and as journalists, are likely to secure from the intelligent reading public such an exercise of judgment as will prove unfavorable to the acts of vicious, intolerant partizans. The leading papers of the country, of all shades of political sentiment, come laden with criticisms and denunciations of the course now being pursued by officers of the Government here. The sober, second thought of the people will be found opposed to all tricks and shams in the sacred name of Justice." HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. jjf CHAPTER LXIV. PRESIDENT YOUNG RETURNS AND CONFOUNDS HIS ENEMIES. HIS PRESENCE IN COURT. JUDGE McKEAN REFUSES $500,000 BAIL. BRIGHAM A PRISONER. IMPORTANT CORRESPONDENCE BETWEEN THE DISTRICT ATTORNFY AND THE ATTORNEY-GENERAL. SUSPENSION OF CRIMINAL TRIALS. At half-past two o'clock, Wednesday, January 2nd, 1872, President Brigham Young, accompanied by Messrs. Fitch, Hempstead and others of his counsel, and a host of prominent citizens, entered the court room where Chief Justice McKean was sitting in chambers to hear an application by President Young's counsel for the admission of their client to bail. When the doors were open the court room was at once filled to overflowing, and a large number of the gentlemen of the bar were in attendance. Mr. Hempstead addressed the court, stating that the defendant, Brigham Young, sen., who had been jointly indicted with other parties for mui-der, was now present in the custody of the U. S. marshal, and his counsel appeared to ask for the exercise of that sound discretion which had been invested in the courts of the United States upon an application for the admission of their client to bail. The question as to this discretion had already been fully argued and decided by this court, and bail granted in the case of Daniel H. Wells, Mayor of Salt Lake City. At the time of issuing the warrant for the arrest of the defendant, he was at a distance of 300 miles from this city ; and in the dead of winter, through the • terrible storms aud almost impassible roads he has returned here in obedience to the warrant of the court. He is seventy-one years of age ; his health is poor, and a protracted imprisonment would seriously jeopardize his health, if not imperil his life. The object of bail is to secure the attendance of a prisoner. It is customary to grant bail where it is regarded as a sufficient security for the at- tendance of the defendant. A certificate from the defendant's medical attendant. Dr. Anderson, dated the 2nd day of January, 1872, was read, to the effect that the defendant is over seventy-one years of age and in very feeble health, and that confinement would certainly be very injurious to his health and might prove fatal. The counsel also called the attention of the court to the pending motion to quash the indictment in the case of Brigham Young, William Kimball and others, which motion was also applicable to the indictment upon which this defendant was now under arrest. A delay in the decision of this motion, or a decision in the affirmative, would subject the defendant to a lengthy imprisonment. U. S. District Attorney Bates said there was no doubt at all that in the JJ2 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. United States courts under the old statutes all parties may be admitted to bail. We have seen this course followed in other cases equally important with this one- Aaron Burr and Jefferson Davis were both admitted to bail. As the sole repre- sentative ot the Federal Government the district attorney said he asked only that this defendant should be treated as all others are treated, and that his presence should be fully guaranteed at the time appointed for his trial. The circumstance that he is here in obedience to the mandate of the court should be considered, a.s well as another grave and humilating fact that the government has not within the Territory a jail or other place to confine its prisoners. It may also be remem- bered that he is an old and feeble man, whose health might be injured by a long confinement. He asked the court only to exercise its discretion in the premises, but if he decided to admit the defendant to bail, he should insist that the amount b3 fixed in the sum of 1^500,000. Mr. Fitch said that while the defense would bow to the decision of the court, and were ready to give whatever bail might be demanded, he regarded the amount suggested by the district attorney as unprecedented in American criminal history. The bail of Jefferson Davis for the high crime of treason was only placed at $100,000 by the Chief Justice of the United States, and the counsel for the defense could not let such a suggestion pass without a challenge and objection. Judge McKean said : •" The Government of the United States has no iail in this city for holding prisoners who are arrested on process issued from the United States courts: the marshal is therefore required to exercise the discretion which the law vests in him. Sometimes such prisoners are kept at Camp Douglas, but the military commander of that post is not obliged to receive them. The defendant now at the bar is re- puted to be the owner of several houses in this city. If he shall choose to put nnder the control of the marshal some suitable building in which to be detained, it will be for the marshal to decide whether or not to accept it. It is at the op- tion of the defendant to say whether or not he will make such offer, and equally at the option of the marshal to say whether or not he will accept it. In any event, where cr however the defendant be detained, the marshal will look to it that his every comfort be provided for, remembering that the defendant is an old man. I decline to admit the defendant to bail." The proceedings ended. A large number of persons pressed forward to shake hands with President Young as he retired in charge of the U. S. marshal. The appearance of President Young in court overwhelmed those gentlemen of the prosecution and the press who had so freely and publicly boasted that Brigham Young was a fugitive from justice, and would never again be visible in Salt Lake City, which he had founded. Here in the chief city of the Mormon Zion Brigham had reached the summit of his glory and power after having successfully accomplished the most wonderful colonizing work of modern times. Here in Salt Lake City he had spent nearly a quarter of a century of the best years of his life directing that matchless band of pioneer State-founders who followed his lead and surrounded by the thousands emigrated by the plans of which he was the chief de- signer, and by whom he was venerated as but few men have been in all the cen- turies down to his day. Yet U. S. Prosecuting Attorney Baskin had positively HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. S53 declared to the court that Brigham Young was a fugitive from justice, that he would never again be seen in Salt Lake City unless brought here by the officers of the law; and upon this presentation of the case the U. S. prosecutor claimed the for- feiture of Brigham's bonds. This view had been repeated with emphasis in the local anti-Mormon papers, sent broadcast through the country in associated press reports and in the correspondence of Oscar G. Sawyer, editor of the Salt Lake Tribune, to the New York Herald, and reproduced in so many newspapers east and west until the public began to settle down to the same views. During the last two months the Mormon citizens had been constantly insulted not only in the court and through the anti-Mormon press by such affirmations, but personally often insulted on the street, and a doggerel song was sung in the city with much anti- Mormon applause, running thus : " Where now's the Prophet Brigham? Where now's the Prophet Brigham? Down in Kanab ; By and bye we'll go and fetch him, Down in Kanab." No wonder then that the appearance of Brigham Young in court humiliated his enemies and gave cause of great pride and rejoicing among his personal friends and religious followers. The Salt Lake Herald, elated with the exultant feelings of the occasion, said : " Yesterday these distinguished persecutors, though false prophets, had the pleasure of gazing upon the countenance of the man about whose movements and motives they had so sagely prophesied. Naturally they took a good look at his countenance. Could this be a sham appearance? Was it not a counterfeit Brigham come into court to cheat them of their prey ? No, they were too familiar with ihe calm, kindly and genial face of this venerable man, who had come here in open day to face his persecutors — had come through tempests and torrents and snow-slides, a distance of nearly four hundred miles, to show the little terriers who had been barking at him, that strong in the conviction of justice and right he had faith in the ultimate verdict of the people, and in the protecting care of that prov- idence in whose trust he had never been deceived through a long and most event- ful career. "Again have the enemies of President Young and of his people been dis- appointed in their fondly cherished expectations, and we believe that they are des- tined to more grievous disappointments in the future. Every fresh discomfiture to them is a triumph to the people whose representative he is. We say this in no captious spirit, and without intention to provoke resentment. We can afford, in view of the reasonable triumphs of tlie past year to the cause of honesty, justice and equal rights, to be lenient and forbearing. There have been dark days; there may be darker days for us in the future; but through all and above all, the sunlight of truth will shine brightly and the persecuting enemies of a free, brave people, and the false prophets who prophesy evil things concerning us will be utterly dis" comfitted : '' 'For ever does truth come uppermost, And ever is justice done.' " In the court, on January 9th, U. S. Attorney Bates, under the advice and di- 29 1 354 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. rection of the Attorney-General of the United States, nominated and appointed James L. High as deputy U. S. attorney. Mr. Bates then stated that he had, on eximination of the circumstances sur- rounding his position and the duties he was expected to perform, discovered that there were no funds provided to pay the tees of jurors or witnesses, nor the contin- gent expenses of court ; a fact of which he had promptly notified the Attorney- General by telegraph. He had also desired the assistance of associate counsel and telegraphed for permission to employ Mr. Baskin in conjunction with General Maxwell, advising the department that it was impossible for him to prepare these rases for trial without such assistance. In answer to a letter of his of December 4th, he had received the following: "Department of Justice, Washington, December 14th, 1871. '''■George C. Bates, Esq., U. S. Attorney, Salt Lake City, Utah. "Sir — I have received your letter of the 4th instant and have called the atten- tion of Senator Cragin to the difficulty in regard to funds ; and I trust Congress will afford some prompt relief. " Very respectfully, "A. T. Akerman, Attorney- General.^ ^ A bill was prepared for the purpose and reported to the Senate by Senator Cragin. In reply to the telegram asking the appointment of Mr. Baskin, Mr. Bates received this letter : " Department of Justice, Washington, December 20th, 1871. '^George C. Bates, Esq., U. S. Attorney, Salt Lake City, Utah. ' Your letter of the loth instant is received. " I have answered by telegraph that you are at liberty to employ Mr. Baskin, and I herewith enclose a commission for him. " Under the circumstance I do not feel at liberty to employ other additional counsel. The Government ought not to show any unseemly zeal to convict Brigham Young ; and the addition of two lawyers to the regular professional force of the Government in Utah might have that appearance. The propriety of the em- ployment of Mr. Baskin is obvious, he having prepared the cases. "In answer to your other letter of the same date, I have to say that it seems to me wrong in principle to covenant with regard to bail, while the accused is ab- sconding. When a man submits himself to the law, it is time enough to consider what amenities he may receive under the law. Should Mr. Young be arrested, the question of bail will be altogether a judicial one to be decided by the court upon the principles which would operate in the case of any other accused party. "Very respectfully, "A. T. Akerman, Attorney- General,'' Mr. Bates continued ])ressing the necessity of means upon the department, showing that Marshal Patrick was not only without means for the purposes re- quired, but had advanced over eight thousand dollars for government use. On this subject the following communication had been received by him : HISTORY 01^ SALT LAKE CITY. 555 "Department of Justice, "Washington, December, 20th, 187 1. ^^ George C. Bates, U. S. Attorney^ Salt Lake City, Utah. "Sir — Your letter of the nth instant is received. " I am troubled on account of want of funds to carry on the Territorial pros- ecutions. The accounting officers of the treasury, adhering to usage, do not feel at liberty to allow the marshal credit for expenditures for prosecutions under Territorial law. This is perhaps inconsistent with the just deduction from the recent decis- ions of the judges in Utah. " As the only thing I can do to help you, I have made the matter the subject of earnest representation to the chairman of the Territorial committees in Con- gress ; and I vvill communicate to them the contents of your last letter. "'Very respectfully, "A. T. Akerman, Attorney General^ And under date of a week later still another, as follows : "Department of Justice, Washington, Dec. 27, 187 1. " George C. Bates, Esq., U. S. Attorney, Salt Lake City, Utah: "Sir — I have received several letters from you on the subject of the ex- penses of the courts of Utah in Territorial prosecutions. "Inconsequence of the construction hitherto followed by the accounting officers of the Treasury, I have no power to provide the necessary funds. I have done the only thing that seemed possible in the matter, which was to bring the subject to the attention of the committee on Territories in the two houses of Con- gress and to urge prompt action. " Very respectfully, "A. T. Akerman." Mr. Bates also addressed a circular letter to senator Trumbull, chaiiman of the senate judiciary committee, which reads thus : "U. S. District Attorney's Office, "Salt Lake City, Utah, Dec. 30th, 1871. " Hon. Lyman Trnmbull, chairman judiciary committee of the Senate: " Sir — It is my duty, as the United States district attorney for this Territory, to ask, through you, and your committee, advice and instruction upon the fol- lowing points : " I. Under the decisions of the supreme court of this Territory, ( from which there is no appeal ) all felonies committed within its limits are offenses against United States laws, to be punished only by United States courts, their processes to be levied by the United States marshal, and prosecutions conducted only by me as the United States district attorney; and, of course, all expenses of the trials must be paid out of the U. S. treasury, if paid at all. " II. Under the Territorial courts, as such, the officers of the several counties are all Mormons, who it is said, will not punish their fellows or leaders for high crimes at all, and do frequently punish Gentiles unjustly and unfairly; and so jS6 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. unless the United States courts prosecute criminals, anarchy must soon exist here, and neither life nor property will be safe. " III. The United States comptroller, disregarding the ruling of our supreme court here, decides that all these offenses are against Territorial laws, to be pun- ished only in Territorial courts by the Territorial officers thereof, and that the United States treasury must not and shall not pay a penny of these costs ; the result of which is that all jurors and witnesses' fees and contingent expenses of these courts for the last year are unpaid, and there is not a cent to pay them for either the past or the future. " IV. January 9th, 1872, is set by the court for the trial of Brigham Young and others for murders and other crimes, and twenty other criminal causes are assigned for that time; and I, as U. S. district attorney, am required to try these great causes, while there is no money to pay either the jurors, witness fees, or any of the contingent expenses of the court, such as rent, fuel, lights, etc. How can I go to trial without witnesses and jurors? And how can their attendance be se- cured without money? "V. A grand jury is required forthwith, in the First District, to investigate several murders, castrations, and other horrid crimes, and a venire is ordered ; but the marshal has no money to serve it, the witnesses and jurors will not come into court unless paid therefor, and we have no money to pay them. What must I do under these circumstances? "VI. The United States have no jail, penitentiary or place to keep safely their criminals, except Camp Douglas, and the cost ot keeping them there and transportation to and from the courts makes a rapidly accumulating ilebt for some one to pay, which already amounts to ^15,000, a large part of which has been ad- vanced by the present marshal, and is due now to him, and to jurors and witnessses. "VII. Under these circumstances, I see no other course for the Govern- ment to pursue than to provide money instantly to pay all jurors, witnesses and the daily expenses of prosecution of these great crimes, or to order them all dis- missed forthwith from the United States courts. Am I right ? Please answer. " Geo. C. Bates, ''U. S. District Attorney:' The district attorney then read the following letter received from Solicitor General Bristow: "Department of Justice, "Washington, Dec, 25, 1871. " My Dear Sir : — Your several letters relative to the business of your office have been turned over to the attorney general, with request that he give you all possible support and assistance, which, I am happy to say he will do most cheer- fully. I do not see how the matter of compensation can be satisfactorily adjusted without further legislation. It seems that while your court holds it to be your duty to prosecute parties charged with violations of Territorial statutes, the comp- troller, who settles the accounts of district attorneys and marshals, holds that the United States cannot pay the expenses of such prosecutions under existing statutes. Thus we have a deadlock which no power but Congress can unlock. HISTORY 01 SALTLAKE CITY. ^jy "If it should ever happen that I can serve you, I trust you will net hesitate to command me. " With my best wishes for your personal and professional success, I am, " Very sincerely, your friend, "B. H. Bristow. " Gen. Geo. C. Bates, Salt Lake City.'''' In continuation, the district attorney said he believed he was justified in stat- ing that no provisions would be made by the Territorial Legislature to carry on these prosecutions ; and in the name of the attorney general and by his order, he applied for a continuance of these cases until the second Monday in iVEarch, by which time it was hoped that Congress will have provided the necessary means to carry on these prosecutions. He also hoped the Territorial Legislature would see the propriety of providing funds in order that their leaders might be vindicated if unjustly accused, and punished, if guilty, of the high crimes charged against them. He further stated that he was ordered forthwith to report to the attorney general, at Washington, that that official might be fully advised of the condition of affairs here. The court then announced that all criminal causes and all civil causes to be tried before a jury would be continued until the next regular term of court, com- mencing the second Monday in March. CHAPTER LXV. GREAT POLITICAL MOVEMENTS IN THE CITY IN THE SPRING OF 1872. GOV- ERNOR WOODS VETOES THE STATE CONVENTION BILL. THE PEOPLE ELECT THEIR DELEGATES NOTWITHSTANDING. SALT LAKE COUNTY ELECTS NINE GENTILES AND TEN MORMONS TO THE CONVENTION. S. SHARP WALKER DECLINES. ARRIVAL OF THE JAPANESE EMBASSY. THE CITY PAYS HOMAGE TO THE ANCIENT EMPIRE. GRAND RECEPTIONS OF THE EMBASSY. In the spring of 1872, political movements were made and a series of political events occurred, the most interesting yet developed in the whole of Utah's politi- cal career. It was in the action of the old leaders of the community, combined with certain influential Gentile politicians and statesmen, to organize a State with such a constitution as might be acceptable to Congress— indeed a State constructed upon such a model plan, and inspired with so true an American genius, as actually to provoke the admiration of members of Congress and induce admission to the Union. Not in the whole history of State founding in America has there been ^j8 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. work better wrought than was that of the Utah State convention in the beginning of the year 1872; and, had it been allowed to stand, it would have legitimately solved the Utah problem. Moreover the movement would have given a fair dis- tribution of the functions and emoluments of the State into the hands of the Gentiles— given to them in fact more than their due share, by the very will and consent of the majority, for not only was it designed to endow them with some of tlie highest and best offices in the State, but to send to congress two Gentiles and one Mormon. Of course the whole family of '-'carpet-baggers" would have been disposed of, and political adventurers and anti-Mormon disturbers would have lost their day of opportunities in the virgin State. The initial action for tlie State was in the passage by the legislature, then in session, of the Convention Bill, but which was disposed of by the veto of Gov- ernor Woods. The veto was expected, and the people fell back upon the primary, which is ihc proper origin of constitutional government and State work. On the 3rd of February, 1872, a mass meeting of citizens was held in the old tabernacle to nominate candidates for the State convention. Mayor Daniel H. Wells on behalf of the committee appointed by the meeting to select names, reported : Orson Pratt, David E. Buell, Wm. Hayden, Albert Carrington, Aurelius Miner, Thomas P. Akers, Thomas Fitch, John Sharp, P. Edward Conner, A. P. Rock wood^ Reuben Miller, E. D. Hoge, Wm. Jennings, Frank Fuller, Geo. Q. Cannon, S. Sharp Walker, John T. Caine, Z. Snow and Hadley D. Johnson. These names being put to the meeting by the chairman were elected by acclamation. Of these nineteen delegates for Salt Lake County, ten were Mormons and nine Gentiles. Hon. Thomas Fitch, being called for, made a stirring speech. He said : " It had once before been his fortune to receive a nomination for delegate to a convention to form a State constitution. That was in Nevada, and the pros- pects of a State goverment there, at that time, looked less promising than they do here now. The people of Nevada but a short time before had voted down a State constitution almost unanimously, and the convention met, with the the press ridi- culing it and the people advising its members to adjourn and go home. And yet in a few short months, a revolution in public sentiment was effected and the people by an immense majority, voted to adopt a State government. They felt unable to endure the expense, but they felt more unable to endure the rotten Territorial courts. They made a sacrifice in order to attain self-government. What conces- sions or surrenders the people of Utah might elect to make in order to have the jjrivilege of choosing all their officers, he would not venture to predict, but this movement for a State government was an earnest movement and not a mere farce as had sometimes been said. "The Potter amendment to the apportionment bill did not disturb him. Congress had been known to repeal its laws, to change its mind, to vote on Mon- day, as an abstract proposition that it would not pass any law of a certain class, and on the succeeding Friday pass such a law. The law prohibiting the admis- sion of new States with less than a representative population did not go into effect until March, 1873- Utah might be admitted before that time, or upon a census being taken it might be demonstrated that she had the population. HISTORY OF SAL-r LAKE CITY. 559 " He said in conclusion^ that he wished no person to vote for him as delegate under a misapprehension. If elected he would give his earnest effort toward framing a constitution of State government that should recognize the toils and sac- rifices and services, and protect the rights and interests of the pioneers, who had built up a prosperous community in the wilderness ; but he would also have that constitution provide for the necessities and interests of young, progressive Utah. He would endeavor, if elected, to help frame a constitution that should assimilate the social and political life of Utah to that of all the other States ; and that would aid to render her institutions homogeneous with theirs." These utterances of the Hon. Thomas Fitch, who had served the State of Ne- vada in Congress, signified, for himself and Gentile compeers, that they were not about to engage in the work of setting up a " Mormon State," nor an anti-Mor- mon or Gentile State, but a proper American State. Mr. S. Sharp Walker, whom the Liberal party at that moment hastened to place on their municipal ticket for mayor of Salt Lake City, published in the Tribune his card "TO THE PUBLIC. "Being entirely opposed to the admission of Utah as a State at the present time, I respectfully decline to take any .part in the convention. "S. Sharp Walker." General Barnum was substituted, but as the precincts in other parts of Salt Lake County could hardly be aware of Mr. Walker's declination, the election being so close after the nomination, it was doubtful, before the returns came in. which of the gentlemen would be elected ; the returns, however, from twelve of the precincts of the county gave to E. M. Barnum 2,035, S. Sharp Walker 1,747. The total for the State in these precincts was 3,803 and one against it. The anti-State, or Liberal party, cast no vote on the question. Orson Pratt received the 3,803 votes, so did Judge Haydon, John T. Caine, and Hadley D. Johnson ; Thomas Fitch 3,798; P. Edward Connor 3,791. The political action of the time was pleasantly relieved by the arrival in our city of princely representatives of the ancient empire of Japan, accompanied by U. S. Minister, De Long. The committee of reception appointed by the city authorities to meet and welcome the Japanese embassy proceeded to Ogden by special train on Sunday morning, February 4th, reaching there before 8 o'clock. About 9 o'clock the embassy arrived, and after breakfast the formal introduction took place. Judge Haydon on the part of the committee announcing that they met the embassy in the name of the chief magistrate and civil authorities of Salt Lake City to tender them welcome. Prince Iwakura briefly responded, saying he had heard of the pro- gress made of the people of Salt Lake, and was pleased at the opportunity of seeing the city. Similar compliments passed between the committee and Hon. Charles E. De Long, U. S. Ambassador of Japan. The embassy and committee entered the cars of the Utah Central and arrived in the city about noon, when they pro- ceeded to the Townsend House. According to published notice the Japanese Embassy held a levee on Tuesday ^6o HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. morning, Feb. 6th, in the City Hall. Shortly before ii o'clock. Mayor Wells and some of the reception committee proceeded from the City Hall in carriages and met the embassy, with whom they returned and conducted to the room occu- pied by the House of Representatives, while the numerous officials and gentle- men to be presented remained in the Council Chamber until the embassy were seated, when they were ushered in by the committee on reception. Mayor Wells then read the following address : " To your excellency SioniiTomomi Iwakura, ambassador extraordinary from the court of Japan, and Jussammi Takayossi Kido, Suseammi Tosbimitis Okuba, Jushie Hirobumi Ito and Jushie Massouka Yamagutsi, vice-ambassadors : " In behalf of the people of Salt Lake City, we extend to you, as the hon- ored representatives of a friendly nation, a cordial welcome to our midst. " You will not find here those palaces of industry and trade which elsewhere on your journey will excite your attention and admiration ; for this is a commu- nity of pioneers, dwelling in the heart of the North American continent, and its life and achievements have been wrested from the desert during the last twenty- five years. " Our warmest greeting is at your disposal. We have heard of your ancient and populous empire with its wonderful history. In welcoming you, we greet not merely the honored ambassadors of a great nation, but the representatives of a policy which, we understand, seeks to surmount former barriers of exclusiveness and to place your country in relations of commercial and diplomatic intimacy with our own. Be pleased to receive again the assurances of our warmest welcome and most distinguished regard. "In behalf of the authorities and citizens of Salt Lake City: Daniel H. Wells, Mayor. "S. W. Richards, Theo. McKean, George Q. CannoN; John T. Caine, "Wm. Haydon, Thomas Fitch, Wm. Jennings, John Sharp, '' Committee.''' Prince Iwakura, the chief ambassador, through indisposition, not being pres- ent, Vice-Ambassador Kido responded through Minister DeLong, and said : " The members of the embassy desire to express their thanks for the kind re- ception which has been extended to them, and they hope to ever retain and main- tain the friendly feeling which now exists between them and yourselves. They re- gret, exceedingly, that the chief ambassador is unable to be here to-day, and he desires to express to you, through me, that his inability to be present has deprived him of a great pleasure. He still hopes, before his departure from the city to be able to meet with you, but if he should be unable to do so he wishes that his views may be understood." The introductions then commenced, Mayor Wells introducing Gov. Woods, who in turn continued the ceremony to the different Federal officials, and General Morrow presented the officers of the garrison at Camp Douglas ; then followed the presentation of the members of the Legislature, city and county ofificers and promi- nent citizens. After leaving the City Hall, the embassy, on invitation, proceeded to the mansion of Hon. Wm. Jennings and partook of refreshments. They next went HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 361 to the new tabernacle inspected the building and was highly pleased with the organ, which the builder, Professor Ridges, played, that ihey might appreciate its magnifi- cent capacity and quality. The embassy then called upon President Brigham Young and had a pleasant interview, which lasted some time. At night the party attended the city theatre. The next day on invitation of General Henry A. Morrow, the embassy, Governor Woods, the Territorial Legislature, the Federal officials, Mayor Wells, and a large number of other officials and prominent citizens paid a visit to Camp Douglas, where they were received by an artillery salute in honor of the embassy and one in honor of Minister DeLong. General Morrow and staff, accompanied by General Yamada, of the Japanese imperial army, then inspected the troops. After the review the distinguished visitors proceeded to General Morrow's quar- ters, where the Chief Ambassador Iwakura, who was able to attend, held a recep- tion. General Morrow, in an eloquent speech, welcomed the embassy, as the rep- resentatives of a great and ancient empire; and congratulated Minister DeLong upon the success which had attended him in his official position. Mayor Wells was the next speaker, and in a few appropriate remarks expressed his gratification on the meeting of so many representatives of one of the youngest and most vigorous, and one of the oldest and most famous of nations. Governor Woods, and Mr. Lorenzo Snow, President of the Council branch of the Legislature, also spoke, and then Minister DeLong responded in behalf of the embassy. He regretted, he said, that the chief ambassador could not speak to them in their own language, for he was a great and a good man, an advocate and exponent of broad and progressive ideas ; one who could appreciate the labors of the pioneers, before which the civilization of Asia had to give way," A complimentary dinner was given by the ambassadors from Japan " on the first day of the fifth year of the reign of his Majesty, the E.nperor of Japan," at the Townsend House, Feb. 9th, 1872. Besides the reception committee of the city, which met the embassy, there were a number of prominent citizens present. Selecting such an occasion as the first day of their year for entertaining their guests was the highest honor which these Japanese dignitaries could confer upon the city. 30 ^62 HIS TORY OF SAL T LAKE CIl V. CHAPTER LXVl. THE STATE CONVENTION AT WORK. THE CONSTITUTION OF NEVADA PRE- FERRED AS A BASIS. GENERAL CONNOR DECLINES HIS EL?:CTION AS DELEGATE. JUDGE HAYDON OPPOSES THE STATE AND MOVES THAT THE CONVENTION ADJOURN S/NE DIE. HON, THOMAS FITCH'S REMARKABLE SPEECH FOR THE STATE, IN WHICH HE REHEARSES THE HISTORY OF THE JUDICIAL PROCEEDINGS IN THE U. S. COURTS OF THE TERRITORY OF THAT PERIOD, AND APPEALS TO HIS MORMON COLLEAGUES TO ABOL- ISH POLYGAMY, On Monday, February 19th, 1872, a large number of the delegates elect as- sembled in the City Hall. Orson Pratt called the convention to order, and nom- inated Hon. Lorenzo Snow as president /r^ ^em, who was unanimously elected. The business of credentials over and the oath administered to the members, General E. M. Barnum was elected permanent president of the convention, and was escorted to the president's desk by Hons. Thomas Fitch and Frank Fuller. Officers were next elected and pending the election of chaplain, Mr. Fitch offered a resolution that a committee be appointed by the president to wait upon clergymen of each religious denomination in the city to attend the convention each day, in turn, and offer prayer at the opening of the proceedings. The reso- lution was adopted. Soon afterwards came a discussion on the basis of the constitution, — Mr. Miner recommended that of Illinois, adopted in 1870; Mr. Fitch that of Nevada. Finally Mr. Fitch's resolution was carried and the constitution of Nevada chosen as a basis. Thirteen standing committees were appoin'^ed and then a communication was received announcing that Gen. P. Edward Connor had declined the election as delegate to the convention on the ground that he had been and is still a resident of the State of California, and consequently is not eligible to serve ; and tendered his thanks for the confidence reposed in him as evinced by his election. Judge Wm. Haydon of Salt Lake County, then moved that the convention adjourn si/?e die. He had been elected a delegate without being consulted and without his consent j and he was opposed to a State government. Col. Akers said, he also had been elected without being consulted, but fur- ther than that he could not say anything in favor of the resolution. He did not propose to make a lengthy speech, but he thought Judge Haydon's position should be met by a show of reasons why Utah should have a State government; for if any Territory required a State government at the present time it was Utah. One thing would be secured by it — a harmonized judiciary. He did not undertake to hold the balance between the Federal and Territorial judiciary, nor to say which was right; but with their wranglings the law was falling into contempt. He proceeded II HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 563 to advocate the necessity of the law being honored, saying where the judiciary itself pursues a course to bring it into contempt it strikes the severest blow against right and justice. A State government would infuse life into every industry of Utah. A man did not feel himself half a man until he enjoyed the right of self- government, which the citizens of the Territories, and especially of a Territory where the law is administered as in Utah, do not enjoy. The unparalleled devel- opment of the United States is due to the fact that its citizens are freemen, and as such put forth all their energies for progress and advancement. Utah has pop- ulation enough ; more than any new State admitted for the last decade has had ; and the new apportionment bill of Congress does not take effect until 1873. The great secret of the opposition to Utah becoming a State was that the Mormon people would have control of it. He held that a constitution might be framed, embodying a provision acceptable to Congress, and Utah be admitted with a Con- gressional compromise, as was the case with Missouri when it was admitted into the Union. Col. Buell was in favor of Utah having a State government because he be- lieved it would give us peace at home and character abroad. Mr. Fitch desired to give, at some length, his reasons why Utah should be- come' a State, but postponed till the next meeting of the convention. On the next day's session, the convention resumed the consideration of the motion of Judge Haydon, of yesterday, that this convention do now adjourn sine die. Mr. Fitch took the floor and delivered his great convention speech, which is by far the most elaborate and weighty review of Utah affairs of that period extant. He said : " If there be those within or without this chamber, who imagine that the mem- bers of this convention will be content to go through the form of constructing an edifice of State government without hope that buch edifice will ever be occupied by a living tenant, they mistake the spirit of an earnest people and the purpose of their representatives. "The object of this convention will not be accomplished until room shall be found upon our national banner for the star of Deseret ; and the question which confronts us at the threshold of our labors is, will the necessities for a State gov- ernment justify some effort and much sacrifice on the part of the people of Utah ? " An influential Mormon citizen said to me, not long since, upon his return from a trip east : ' I am satisfied that there is no safety for us without a State government, and that we can have no State government without concessions.' He stated the case with mathematical precision. There is no safety for the people of Utah without a State government; for under the present condition of public affairs, their property, their liberties, their very lives, are in constant and increasing jeopardy. " Let us review the situation. About August, 1870, James B. McKean ar- rived here as chief justice of the supreme court of Utah Territory, and district judge of the Third Judicial District. From the hour of his arrival he has been the leading, controlling spirit of the existing movement against Mormon institutions. He is not perhaps an immoral man in his private life, and for the purposes of this 564 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. argument it is not necessary to inquire whether or not he is a corrupt man either in private or official transactions, but he certainly is that most dangerous of all public functionaries — a judge with a mission to execute, a judge with a policy to carry out, a judge panoplied with a purpose as in complete steel. Whether or not conscientiously, but with implacable and unswerving determination, he has steadily subordinated his judicial duties and his judicial character to the fulfilment of his mission and the execution of his policy. Motions are held under advise- ment for months, civil business accumulating upon the calendar, great mining cases are referred, or abandoned by disgusted litigants, and still the judge alternates be- tween the business of an examining magistrate and the pleasure of thanking the grand jury for finding indictments. While possessing sufficient knowledge to comply with some of the forms of law, and sufficient personal courage to forward his plans, he is yet destitute of the spirit of impartial jurisprudence. We all know there is a class of minds which after many years of upright and dispassionate con- duct, v/ill, through lust of power, or gain of fame, or other inordinate aim, sud- denly develop some insurgent quality which stops nothing short of morbidness, little short of insanity. It is for the prestige of his past that this man, notwith- standing his remarkable actions here, continues to receive the support of the Fed- eral administration, while with some sincerity in the righteousness of his crusade, he wins for himself the endorsement of thousands of persons who only know that they desire polygamy shall be destroyed, and who do not ask the price or enquire ' how many Athenians are in mourning ?' " Whether or not this theory be correct respecting the cause, and it is the most charitable of any I can conceive, the result is the same. James B. McKean is morally and hopelessly deaf to the most common demands of the opponents of his policy, and in any case where a Mormon, or a Mormon sympathizer or a con- servative Gentile be concerned, there may be found rulings unparalleled in all the jurisprudence of England or America. '' Such a man you have among you ; a central sun ; what of his satellites? " The mineral deposits of Utah have attracted here a large number of active, restless, adventurous men, and with them have come many who are unscrupulous; many who are reckless, the hereditary foes of industry, order and law. This class, finding the courts and Federal officers arrayed against the Mormons have, with pleased alacrity, placed themselves on the side of courts and officers. Elements or- dinarily discordant blend together in the same seething caldron. The officersof jus- tice find allies in those men who differently surrounded, would be their foes; rhe bag- nios and the hells shout hosannas to the courts; the altars of religions are invested with the paraphernalia and the presence of vice; the drunkard espouses the cause of the apostle of temperance; the companion of harlots preaches the beauties of virtue and continence. All believe that license will be granted by the leaders in order to advance their sacred cause, and the result is an immense support from those friends af immorality and architects of disorder, who care nothing for the cause, but everything for the license. Judge McKean, Governor Woods and the Walker Brothers and others are doubtless pursuing a purpose which they believe in the main to be wise and just, but their following is of a different class. There is a nucleus of reformers and a mass of ruffians, a centre of zealots and a circumfer- r HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CI2Y. 565 ence of plunderers. The dram shop interest hopes to escape the Mormon tax of ^300 per month, by sustaining a judge who will enjoin a collection of the tax, and the prostitutes persuade their patrons to support judges who will interfere by habeas corpus with any practical enforcement of municipal ordinances. " Every interest of industry is disastrously affected by this unholy alliance ; every right of the citizen is threatened if not assaulted by the existence of this combination. Your local magistrates are successfully defied, your local laws are disregarded, your municipal ordinances are trampled into the mire, theft and mur- der walk through your streets without detection, drunkards howl their orgies in the shadow of your altars, the glare and tumult of drinking saloons, the glitter of gambling hells, and the painted flaunt of the bawd plying her trade, now vex the repose of streets, which beforetime heard no sound to disturb their quiet except the busy hum of industry, the clatter of trade and the musical tinkle of mountain streams. " The processes by which this condition of affairs has been brought about, as well as the excuse for invoking these processes, may here be briefly stated : " In 1856, a great political party declared itself opposed to polygamy as a relic of barbarism ; in i860, that party achieved power in the nation; in 1862, an act of Congress was passed, the object of which was to suppress polygamy in Utah. This law was permitted to remain a dead letter on the statute books. The war sup- pressed rebellion, the problems of reconstruction growing out of that war, the proposed impeachment of President Johnson, the various exciting public questions of the day, diverted the minds of legislators and constituencies from the Mormon question ; and not until after President Grant's inauguration did the anti-polyg- amic plank oi the national republican platform loom up into national consequence. It was then observed that the anti-polygamic act of Congress of 1862, had never been enforced. The Territorial laws for drawing and empaneling juries provided, as in all other communities, for a selection by lot. Nineteen-twentieths of the persons eligible for jury duty in Utah were Mormons, who naturally declined to indict or convict their neighbors for a practice which was believed by all to be a virtue rather than a crime. The law prescribed one rule, the sentiment of the community where the law existed prescribed another. Similar conditions pre- vented the trial of Jefferson Davis for treason at Richmond; similar conditions made it impossible to convict a violator of the fugitive slave law in New England. "The Forty-first Congress was asked to enact a law to meet the exigency and the Cullom bill was -framed. The measure provided that the selection of jurors should be given to the United States Marshal, that polygamists and those who believed in polygamy should be excluded from the jury box, that the wife might be witness against the husband, that marriage might be proved in criminal cases by reputation, and that the statute of limitation should not be applied to charges of polygamy. The wisdom and justice of this sweeping measure were seriously questioned by the New York Tribune, and other Republican papers, and by such leading statesmen as Henry L. Dawes, of Massachusetts, and Robert C. Schenck, of Ohio ; but the bill passed the House by nearly a party vote, and ifailed to become a law only because the United States Senate did not find time or uclination to consider it during the Forty-first Congress. j66 HIS TOR V OF SAL T LAKE CI7 Y. " After the adjournment of the second session of the Forty-first Congress, James B. McKean was appointed Chief Justice of Utah, and with military promptness he proceeded to establish as rules of law the propositions of the defeated CuUom bill. He decided in the case of Hempstead 7's. Snow that the court over which he presided was a United States Court, that it was not a legis- lative, but a constitutional court, and that the Territorial prosecuting attorney was not, even when prosecuting offenders charged with violation of Territorial laws, the proper prosecuting officer of his court, but that the United States district attorney was such. He decided in the case of Patrick 71s. McAllister that the Territorial marshal was not, in any case, the proper executive officer of his court, but that the United States marshal was such in all cases. He decided in another case that the Territorial legislature of Utah had no power under the organic act to prescribe rules for obtaining juries to try any cases in his court, and in pres- cribing rules himself for that purpose, he declined to consult the assessment roll or' invoke the usual method of selection by lot, but he ordered an open venire to the United States marshal. "Thus the first proposition of the defeated Cullom bill, that the marshal might pick, I will not say pack, the jury was decreed into existence. A tempo- rary delay in starting the engine of prosecution was caused by a lack of fuel, the comptroller of the treasury declining to audit the bills for the expenses of this court thus elevated to a United States tribunal, and the Territorial officers declin- ing to pay over Territorial funds to persons not authorized by Territorial law to receive them ; but fuel was found somewhere, and the machinery began to move. " In September, 1S71, a grand jury was summoned by the United States mar- shal to attend the Third District Court of Utah, from the counties of Salt Lake, Tooele, Summit, Green River, Morgan, Weber, Box Elder, Cache and Rich, con- taining a population of 60,000 Mormons and 10,000 Gentiles, twenty-three grand jurors and seventeen talesmen were selected and summoned. Of these forty per- sons seven were Mormons and thirty-three were Gentiles. Each of the seven Mor- mons were examined on his voir dire, and to the question of U. S. dis-trict attor- ney Baskin, each replied in effect that he was a member of the Church of Latter- day Saints, that he believed that polygamy was a revelation to that church, that in his own case he would obey the revelation rather than the law. When asked the further question whether this belief in the revelation would affect the action of the juror in voting for or against an indictment for polygamy, some jurors replied that it would affect their action, others that it would not. The United States dis- trict attorney stated to the court that he intended to bring a number of accusations of polygamy before the grand jury, and challenged the seven Mormons for bias. Judge McKean sustained the challenge and dismissed [the Latter-day Saints from the box. Thus the second proposition of the Cullom bill was established by the decree of Judge McKean. The seven Mormons whom the LTnited States marshal had made a show of symmoning were ruled off, and 60,000 people in the Third District deprived of the privilege of representation in the jury box. " It is a fact worthy of notice that this grand jury from which Mormons were excluded because ihey believed in polygamy, never found a single indict- I HISTORY OI' SALT LAKE CITY. ^67 raent for the violation of the act of Congress of 1S62, and never, so far as known, sent for a single witness upon, or attempted to consider anj' accusation for polyg- amy. Indictments for ' lewd and lascivious cohabitation ' under a rusty old Ter- ritorial statute were found by the score ; indictments for murder committed fifteen or twenty years ago were found by the dozen, upon the unaided and un- corroborated testimony of a witness who confessed himself the principal in these murders ; but the threat of ' indictment of polygamy' having fulfilled its mission by furnishing excuse to exclude Mormons from the grand jury was heard no more. " I pass for the present from this grand jury to review the processes by which Judge McKean vitalized the abortive Cullom bill. "A man named Thomas Hawkins had been indicted under a Territorial statute for the crime of adultery, and in October, 1871, he was tried before Judge McKean and a jury. Two or three Mormons, who chanced to creep on to the marshal's venire were asked if they believed in polygamy ; to which question they replied, yes. They were further asked if they believed a man could be guilty of adultery who committed the act constituting that offense under a claim of plural or polygamous marriage ; the reply was no \ whereupon the district attorney challenged the jurors for bias, and the judge sustained the challenge and directed the jurors to leave the box ; although there was not a line of pleading or record, nor a word of counsel or client by which the judge could judicially conjecture, much less know, that the defendant would set up any polygamous marriage as a defense to the charge of adultery. "Hawkins was convicted on the sole evidence of his wife, who in despite of the protest of counsel, was permitted by Judge McKean to testify in the case, and thus the third proposition of th»i defeated Cullom bill, that a Avife might testify against her husband was established by decree of the judge. Hawkins was sub- sequently sentenced to pay five hundred dollars fine and be imprisoned for three years — and he is now in the Territorial prison pending an appeal to the supreme court of the Territory. From present appearances he is likely to serve out his term, for his bonds pending appeal have been fixed at the sum of twenty thousand dollars, and his whole property would not suffice to pay his five hundred dollars fine. Judge McKean refused for three months to sign the bill of exceptions for Hawkin's appeal to the Territorial supreme court, on the ground that the bill was too voluminous, that it contained a record of all the proceedings in the case- proceedings reported by an official phonographic reporter appointed by himself. When the supreme court of the Territory met on the fifth of February, Chief Justice McKean presiding, the record of the Hawkins' was not quite ready, be- cause the clerk had not had time to prepare it in ke short period that had passed since Judge McKean had signed the bill of exceptions — whereupon the Chief Jus- tice adjourned the supreme court until the third Monday in June next, I will not say to prevent the Hawkin's case being heard and reversed by his associates, although I understand that such is the view Hawkins takes of it. But there Hawkins is probably prejudiced : his recollection of some of the proceedings in his case not having increased his confidence in the impartiality of the Chief Jus- tice. Let me refer to a few of those proceedings. " The act of Congress governing the mode of procedure in criminal cases in ^63 HIS TOR V OF SAL T LAKE CIl Y. the courts of the United States, gives to the accused ten peremptory challenges to the jury against two accorded by the prosecution, while the Territorial law gov- erning the mode of procedure in criminal cases in the Territorial courts gives the prosecution and the accused six challenges each. The act of Congress referred to bars all prosecutions for non-capital felonies (except forgery) not instituted within two years from the date of the offense, while the Territorial laws contain no statute of limitations. The Territorial laws provide that in non capital cases the jury which finds the man guilty may prescribe the punishment. The act of Congress is silent upon this subject and of course leaves the power of sentence, where in the absence of statutory regulation it would belong, with the judge. " As Judge McKean had ruled that his was a United Slates court, the coun- sel for Hawkins asked the court to give their client the benefit of the ten chal- lenges allowed by act of Congress. Judge McKean refused, and allowed only the six permitted under the laws of Utah. The defendant's counsel requested an in- struction to the jury that the law of Congress protecting the defendant for acts committed two years before the finding of the indictment. Judge McKean refused because the Territorial laws prescribed no limit fiDr prosecutions. The counsel asked the judge to allow the jury to fix the punishment as prescribed by the Ter- ritorial laws. He refused that also. He pursued the practice of a United States court when the jury was being selected ; of a Territorial court when the jury were being peremptorily challenged. He pursued the practice of a Territorial court when the act of Congress would have limited the prosecution ; of a United States court when the jury might, under Territorial law, have been more lenient in pre- scribing punishment than the exigencies of a great, burning 'mission^ would warrant. '■'■ What authorities were cited ? What precedents invoked ? What chain of reasoning offered to sustain these judicial usurpations? — none. The section of the statute of Utah under which Hawkins was indicted, and his wife permitted to testify against him, both before the grand and petit jury, reads as follows : " *No prosecution for adultery can be commenced but on the complaint of the husband or wife.' "The statutes of but few States make adultery a felony, and adjudicated cases upon such statutes are rare. In Minnesota, however, the statute on this sub- ject is precisely the same as in Utah, and the supreme court of Minnesota in a case strikingly analogous to the Hawkins case, in the case of State vs. Armstrong,, reported in the fourth volume of Minnesota supreme court reports, set aside a similar conviction obtained upon the testimony of the wife. [Mr. Fitch quoted and applied the opinion.] " Perhaps I weary the convention with all this, but as the necessity of a State government in Utah arises largely from the character and conditions of the courts of Utah, I have thought best to recite some of the history of judicial proceedings here that all may know the grievances of the people, and that those vvho sustain the course of Judge McKean may understand what it is they endorse. Perhaps the legal profession may criticize my action in reviewing before a public assem- blage, the ruling made at a trial in which I participated as counsel. I can reply that the prosecution in these Mormon cases have constantly appealed to the pub- HIS TOR V OF SAL T LAKE CITY. 569 lie for support. They tried tlieir cases on the streets, in the newspapers, at pub- lic meetings, by petitions and over the telegraph wires by means of their leading adviser, the Salt Lake agent of the associated press, and I do but follow their ex- ample in presenting the matter to this convention. Let those who sustain Judge McKean by petition and mass meeting without knowing whether he is right or wrong, take heed less the hour arrive when they shall feel the need of courts where the voice of passion and public clamor cannot enter, and where those rules of law which the wisdom of ages has prescribed will not for any social or political exi- gency be set aside. "Thus it will be seen that the four important provisions of the discarded CuUom bill, namely, no choice of jurors except by a United States marshal, no Mormon to serve on juries, the abrogation of the common law rule that a wife cannot testify for or against her husband, and the new doctrine that marriage in criminal cases can be proved by admis-iion of the defendant, are all in successful operation. That legislation to meet a local difficulty in the way of enforcing the laws, which the United States did not deem it wise or expedient to enact, has been decreed and established by Jas. B. McKean. The course of procedure which Chief Justice Salmon P. Chase tacitly refused to pursue, even to meet a great popular de- mand for the punishment of Jefferson Davis, the Chief Justice of Utah has pursued to comply with a small popular demand for the punishment of a Mormon poly' gamist. The judge has made those bold innovations upon precedent, the contem- plation of which compelled the pause of the law-making power of a great nation. Who will doubt that whenever the exigencies arise the same judge will overturn another common law rule, and establish another proposition of theCullom bill by allowing marriage to be proved in prosecutions for polygamy by evidence of gen- eral reputation? Who will doubt that any ruling will be made that is necessary to carry out the crusade ? And what unprejudiced citizen but will regard with appre- hension the extension of this practice of judicial legislation? If it should ever reach beyond Utah and be adopted by the judges of our State and National courts of last resort, either a revolution would be induced, or a people who had lost their liberties would have occasion to remember John Randolph's epigram, that ' the book of Judges comes before the book of Kings.' " Let me now recall some incidents in the history of the grand jury selected under the patent process to which I have referred. That grand jury found a num- ber of indictments, not for any alleged violation of the anti-polygamic act of Con- g ress, not for^dultery as in the Hawkins case upon the evidence of the wife; but upon somebody's evidence — let us hope that somebody was not public rumor — they indicted a number of prominent Mormons for the crime of ' lewd and lasciv- ious cohabitation.' The law under which these indictments were found is a statute of Utah Territory and reads as follows : " If any man or woman not being married to each other, lewdly and lasciv- iously associate and cohabit together, etc., every such person so offending shall be punished by imprisonment not exceeding ten years, etc. " But one State in the Union has a statute similar to this — the State of Mas- sachusetts, and the Supreme Judicial Court of that State in the case of the Com- 31 3 JO HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. monvveahh %rs, Catlin, ist Massachusetts Reports, page 8, decided that evidence of secret cohabitation cannot in any degree support an indictment for this offense.' '' Who supposes that the defendant in any of the cases of this character, now pending in the Third District Court, will be proved to have committed any public act of cohabitation? And who does not conjecture that a petit jury, selected as the grand jury was, and instructed as they doubtless will be, will probably find verdicts of guilty upon evidence of secret cohabitation ? " Let me return once more to the record history of the Third Judicial Dis trict Court. "Among the indictments for lascivious cohabitation is one charging the crime against Brigham Young, and charging it as having been committed with sixteen different persons, at sixteen different times and places, ranging over a period of nineteen years. The counsel for the defendant asked the court to quash this in- dictment of multifariousness, or else compel the district attorney to elect upon which count he would proceed. Let it be observed that there was nothing in this motion out of the regular course of criminal cases. It was made upon legal grounds only, and supported by legal authorities. It was nowhere suggested or argued that * lascivious cohabitation' was not a crime, a felony under the laws of Utah. It was nowhere suggested or argued that evidence of a polygamous marriage would be offered, or if offered could be received as a defense of the accusation. The motion to quash or compel an election was made before plea, and the judge in passing upon that motion had no right to do anything except to grant or refuse it, or except, and to give his legal reasons for granting or refusing it. " What did he do? He went outside of the record; he assumed that the defendant was guilty before trial. He first denied the motion, giving his legal reasons therefor, and then he used the following remarkable language : [He quotes McKean's opinion.] " What wonder then that the New York Lmo Journal, one of the leading legal periodicals of the country, thus criticized this remarkable language of Judge James B. McKean : " ' His decisions we do noc question, but the language accompanying those decisions has been so intemperate and partial as to remind one of those ruder ages when the bench was but a focus where were gathered and reflected the passions of the people.' "What wonder then that the counsel for the defendant felt compelled to no- tice the unprecedented action of McKean by filing the next day the following protest : " We the undersigned, of cDunsil fjr the defendant in thi above entitled cause, respectfully except to the following language of your honor in your opinion to quash the indictment herein. [He quotes from the opinion.] " The indictment in this case charges the defendant with 'lascivious cohabita- tion' and not with polygamy or treason. The statement of your honor that a system of polygamic theocracy is on trial in this case in the person of Brigham Young coupled with your invitation to us to prove by authority that the acts charged in the indictments are not crimes, is most prejudicial to a fair trial of the I HIS TOR Y OF SAL T LAKE CIT Y. ^7^ defendant, in that it assumes that the defendant has been guilty of the acts charged in the indictment, and that law and not the alleged fact will be on trial. "No motion has been made to quash the indictment in this case on the ground that acts charged therein are not crimes, nor has such a proposition been advanced on argument by any of defendant's counsel herein. We submit that no political and social condition of the country can relieve the prosecution of the task of proving one or more of the acts alleged in the indictment, and that unless and until such proof is made, the guilt of the defendant ought not to be assumed or even conjectured by the judge before whom he is to be tried. " ' If any presumption is to be indulged in, it is that the defendant is innocent of the charges preferred against him, and that he will accordingly plead 'not guilty' to the indictment, and that presumption remains until the defendant elects to plead 'guilty' or a special plea of justification, which latter have not been sug- gested by either defendant or his counsel. In so pleading 'not guilty,' the defen- dant will not say the acts charged in the indictment are not crimes, but that he is not guilty of the acts charged in the indictment. " ' Then there will be a question of fact for a jury, and we submit that in the determination of that question the language of your honor herein referred to can- not but tend to the prejudice of the defendant, and we therefore except to the same. '''Fitch & Mann, Hempstead & Kirkpatrick, Snow & Hoge, Hosea Stout, A. Miner, Le Grand Young.' " Let not the filing of this protest be criticized an an unusual proceeding. If it be unusual so was the occasion which elicited it. What right had Judge McKean to thus expose his bias to the world and bring the administration of jus- tice into contempt. Suppose that in the case of Sickles, indicted for killing Keys, the seducer of his wife, a motion had been made to quash the indictment for some technical defect, and in refusing the motion to quash, the judge presiding had said : Let all concerned keep steadily in mind that while the case at bar is called ' The People of the District of Cohmibia against Daniel E. Sickles, its other and real title is the peace of society against red-handed murder. The government of Washington City finds in its midst a social code claiming to come from God, a code which asserts the right of a husband to vindicate his honor by bloodshed. The code arrays itself against the laws. A system is on trial in the person of Daniel E. Sickles. The question is not is the defendant guilty or innocent of the crime charged, but it is shall men be permitted to walk down Pennsylvania avenue on Sunday evenings, and murder other men who may have disturbed their do- mestic relations.' " A judge who should pursue such a course elsewhere would be apt to lose his ofificial head, or the opportunity of trying the defendant thus passionately as- sailed from the bench. I do not believe there is a fair-minded judge in the country outside of Utah, who if he had been betrayed in such a case into the delivery of such language, would afterwards consent to sit as judge upon the trial of a defen- dant thus prejudiced. I do not believe there is another community in the country that would not with unanimous voice demand that a judge who had so exhibited his bias should retire during the trial of the defendant in such case. 572 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. "And yet I venture to predict that Judge James B. McKean will refuse a change of venue, refuse a change of judges, and insist upon occupying the bench upon the trial of Brigham Young; and I predict further that his course in that respect, will be sustained by hundreds in Utah, who are only anxious that Brigham Young, whether innocent or guilty, shall be convicted of something or other. It will be sustained also by that portion of the newspaper press of Utah which has constantly since the inauguration of these prosecutions, presented the disgusting spectacle of calling for the conviction and punishment of men accused of crime, prejudging their cases, denouncing all who defended them, and accusing of cor- ruption those who declined to bend the high duties of officers of the Governmeet to the dirty work of malicious injustice. It will be sustained by the editors who have bitterly abused the United States marshal for according to persons in con- finement those comforts which are allowed to all prisoners before trial who are willing to undergo the expense. It will be sustained by those newspapers whose conductors have found words of encouragement and applause for every insult or indignity or oppression that has been leveled against the Mormons. '' But I am not through with the acts of Federal judges in Utah. The pro- bate courts which for twenty years have exercised jurisdiction in a certain class of cases, have been swept into nothingness by the supreme court of the Territory, throwing property rights into litigation, and making invalid and worthless hun- dreds of divorces, upon the faith of which other marriage relations had been con- tracted. A liquor dealer whose stock was destroyed for selling without license, in violation of a city ordinance, sued for damages the Territorial marshal and his deputies who executed the warrant and the justice who issued it, and obtained from a selected jury, a verdict of ^57,000; $19,000 for the value of the liquor destroyed, and ^38,000 as punishment for those who acted at least under the color of authority. The son of one of the justices of the Territorial supreme court — a young man whose zeal outran his discretion as a challenger at the polls on election day — was locked up for a i^i'fi hours for such disorderly conduct, and he has brought an action against the city officers who detained him, to recover $25,000 damages. Several persons committed by local magistrates to answer charges of felony, have sued out writs of habeas corpus before a Federal judge and been discharged from custody, on the ground that the Mormon judge had no jurisdiction — the universal rule of law that the acts of a de facto officer cannot thus be collaterally attacked being coolly ignored. "The baser elements of society gaining courage and support from those de- cisions, now commit depredations on the public peace and on private property with impunity, until within a year Salt Lake, from one of the best, has almost be- come one of the worst governed cities on the continent. " I turn again from the proceedings of the court to the proceedings of the grand jury it impaneled. " In the guard house at Camp Douglas, associated with felons, and within the walls of the city jail, are four men of families, four kind, honest, worthy, harmless men, who are held in close confinement upon the uncorroborated evi- dence of a self-confessed perjurer. Innocent men over whom the shadow of the scaffold impends : while the grand jury which indicted them refused to consider, HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. s73 refused to listen even to evidence of the perjury of the man upon whose uncor- roborated testimony the indictment W3s found. Before Judge McKean, as mag- istrate examining persons charged with the murder of J. King Robinson, one Charles W. Baker swore that he recognized Blythe and Toms as the two men with muffled faces who ran from the scene of homicide in question upon the night of October 22, 1866. After giving this evidence, Baker, struck with remorse, or failing to receive his reward, or for both or other reasons, made the following affidavit : " ' Territory of Utah, Salt Lake County — ss. " 'Be it remembered that on the 3rd day of January, 1872, personally ap- peared Charles W. Baker who was by me sworn in due form of law, and who on his oath, did say that he is the identical Charles W. Baker who was a witness in an examination before tTie honorable James B. McKean, Chief Justice of the Su- preme Court of the Territory of Utah, commencing on the 14th day of Decem- ber and terminating on the 22nd day of December, 1871, at Salt Lake City; wherein John L. Blythe, James Toms, Alexander Burt, Brigham Y. Hampton, were charged with the murder of J. King Robinson, at Salt Lake City, in the County of Salt Lake, and Territory of Utah, on the 22nd day of October, 1866. "' He further says the testimony which he then, on said examination, gave was wholly untrue and false. He further said he was hired to give said testimony by S. Gilson. That it was agreed between him and the said S. Gilson and others. " ' That he was to receive the sum of five-hundred dollars, no matter what might be the event of the proceedings, and one thousand dollars for each person that was or might be convicted. " ' That during the time he was engaged in said testimony and detained, his board was paid by said Gilson and others, at the Revere House, in said city. "'He further says that he had a plat of the grounds and of the street in the city of Salt Lake near to the place where the murder was committed, fur- nished by S. Gilson. " ' Which plat, before he gave evidence, was by him carefully studied, so that he might understand it. " ' He further says that since he so gave his testimony he has carefully reflected on the enormity of the crime he has committed and is aiding in carrying out and he has concluded to make amends, so far as it is now in his power. " ' He therefore voluntarily now makes this statement, upon his oath. " ' He further says that on or about the i6th day of December, 1S71, he had a conversation with Thomas Butterwood, who then informed this affiant that he was hired to give his testimony, in the above named case, and that his testimony was not true. " ' (Signed) C. W. Baker. " ' Subscribed and sworn to before me this third day of January, A. D. 1872. "'John T. Qpa^y., Notary Public' " After making this affidavit, somebody persuaded Baker to go before the grand jury and repeat the false statement he had made before the examining mag- istrate. While Baker was giving his testimony the grand jury had in their pos- session the affidavit I have just read, and yet, will it be believed; they refused to 574 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. consider the affidavit ; they refused, although requested to send for the three wit- nesses by whom the fact of Baker's voluntary signing of and swearing to it could have been proven ; they refused to even question Baker about it, or to ask him to explain it, while upon his testimony alone they indicted Blythe and Toms. There was no evidence so base or worthless but was sufficient to indict a Mormon upon ; there was no evidence sufficiently damning to indict a man who would swear against Mormons. From the closed doors of this grand inquest the counsel for Blythe and Toms turned to Judge McKean. Upon a proper legal affidavit they asked him to have Baker brought before him for examination upon a charge of perjury ; he refused to issue a warrant, or make any examination, on the ground that the grand jury had had the subject under consideration. Baker was then arrested and taken before a Mormon justice. The lawyer who acted as deputy district attorney on the ex- amination of Blythe and Toms appeared as B iker's counsel, and waived an exami- nation, thereby admitting that there was probable cause to believe Baker guilty of perjury, and Baker was committed to jail, where he now is in default of $3,000 bail. The usual practice of habeas corpus to procure his release has not been resorted to, perhaps because unpleasant facts might thereby be made public, and his confinement will not be lengthy, for he will probably be discharged as soon as the grand jury can again get together and officially ignore the charge. " I will not pursue this dreary record further. A volume of details of acts of injustice and tyranny might ba compiled from the official records, but one more instance will suffice. " Brigham Young, an American citizen of character, of wealth, of enterprise; an old man who justly possesses the love and confidence of his people and the re- spect of those who know and comprehend him, is to day a prisoner in his own bouse in charge of an officer. Judge McKean refused to admit him to bail, although the prisoner is ready to give any sum demanded, and the Attorney- General of the United States has requested that bail should be taken. There is nothing but the lenity of the United States marshal and the caprice of his prose- cutors between the prisoner and the cell of a common guard house. If he takes an airing in his carriage accompanied by the officer who has him in custody, a howl goes up from those newspaper organs of th# prosecution, who lustily call for a tin plate, and irons, and prison fare for him ; and all this upon the uncorroborated oath of one of the most remarkable scoundrels that any age has produced ; a man known to infamy as William Hickman, a human butcher, by the side of whom all malefactors of history are angels ; a creature who, according to his own published statements, is a camp follower without enthusiasm, a bravo without passion, a mur- derer without motive, an assassin without hatred. " Who shall say that no man will ever be convicted by an American jury upon the testimony of such a witness? That which a peculiarly constituted grand jury commenced, a peculiarly constituted petit jury may continue, and a peculiarly constituted court complete. The end may be and doubtless will be, the logical sequence of the beginning. One year ago no man would have predicted such a beginning, and who shall say the tide will turn this side the grave? Who shall prophesy the end ? ii r HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. j-^j " I say deliberately, that with the history of the past behind me, with the signs of the present be(ore me, with the pervading feeling in the minds of those from whom alone juries will be taken, with the declared opinions of the judge as recorded ; I say with sorrow and himiiliation that the Mormon charged with crime who now walks into the courts of his country, goes not to his deliverance but to his doom, that the Mormon who in a civil action seeks his rights in the courts of his country goes not to his redress but his spoliation. "And there is no prospect of relief except through a State government. It is true that the lower house of Congress his passed a bill to allow appeals to the Supreme Court of the United States in criminal cases from the Territories, but it is not probable that this bill will pass the Senate. The declared policy of the Sen- ate, and especially of its judiciary committee for some years past, has been adverse to such a law. "The present grand jury has found six indictments formurderand seven indict- ments for 'lascivious cohabitation.' The defendants in these cases include Brigham Young, Joseph A. Young, Daniel H. Wells, Geo. Q. Cannon, Hyrum B. Clawson, Hosea Stout, William H. Kimball and others less generally known." [The speaker next briefly reviewed the history of the drivings of the Mor- mons and the Utah war, which had produced a Hickman and a John D. Lee, and climaxed this line of his argument thus:] "The objection to a State government, an objection urged by a handful of people and an irresponsible guerrilla press, that in case Utah is admitted the Mor- mons will control her politics and elect her officers and representatives, is an ob- jection to which the Congress of the United States will, in my judgment, accord no weight whatever. "That body will, I venture to predict, see no good reason why the Mormons who constitute nine-tenths of the community should not control public affairs here, and once satisfied the social problem is in the way of a peaceful and just solution there will I think be a disposition to give Utah the privilege of self-government. "The question of State government or no State government for the people of Utah, is simply a question of concession on the part of the people of Utah. I say a question of concession. I doubt indeed if it be longer than that. The uni- versal voice of a democratic-republican nation of forty millions of people seems to be consolidated into a demand with respect to Utah, a demand which may per- haps be the offspring of prejudiced opinion, but if so, it is an opinion which will not be enlightened and which cannot be disregarded or overruled. The demand is that the future marriage laws, and marriage relations of Utah be placed in con- sonance with the rest of the Republic. The demand is that polygamous or plural marriages shall cease. Accede to this demand and you may have a State govern- ment, with condonation of the past, and secure exemption from persecution for the future. Deny it and you will have neither a State government nor cessation of persecutions. The war is over, secession is dead, slavery is dead, and in the absenceof subjects of greater importance, Utah and her institutions will be the shuttlecock of Amercan politics to be bruised and beaten by the battledoors of party for the next decade, unless she now grasp her opportunity and gain peace by gaining power. 576 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. "In accordance with a public promise, made when nominated to this con- vention, I stand here to day to advocate the surrender of polygamy. It may be that my utterances in this behalf will take from me the friendship and support of many good men and women ; if so I must even pay the penalty. It is easier to swim with the current than to seek to stem it, and perhaps it is wiser, but whether or no it is policy I have seldom been able to practice. I have not permitted myself to be disturbed by the titles of ' Jack Mormon,' 'Apostate Gentile,' ' Saint Fitch,* and 'Apostle Fitch,' which have been so freely bestowed upon me during the last ten months by men whose small souls were incapable of comprehending that it was possible to pursue a great purpose by a liberal and comprehensive policy. That I am a friend of the Mormon people, wishing their welfare and happiness, and willing to do all in my power to advance that end, I have often publicly avowed by word and deed, and if my course in this respect shall have inclined this assemblage to-day to give more weight to my utterances than would have been otherwise accorded to them — then I am more than compensated for being often traduced and steadily misunderstood by many who in times past honored me with their confidence and support. In another forum than this it was my fortune two years ago to stand up almost alone to ask the representatives of a great nation to be just towards an honest, earnest, calumniated people, and perhaps I may stand alone to-day in asking the representatives of that same people to be just to them- selves. " I am not here to attack polygamy from a theological, a moral, or a physical — but from a political standpoint. Certainly I do not propose to question the pure motives or the honesty of those who believe in and practice it. I am in- clined to agree with Montesquieu and Buckle that it is an affair of latitude, and climate, and race, and on these grounds alone its existence among a Saxon people, living in the North Temperate zone, is a climatic anomaly. It did not grow out of any structural, or race, or social, or climatic necessities, and if it be, as as- serted, the offspring of revelation here, I can only say that it needed a revelation to start it. That it has scriptural patriarchal origin and example is probably true, but that was in another age than ours, and in a different land. If Abraham had lived on the line of the overland road in the at'ternoon of the nineteenth century; if Isaac had been surrounded by forty million monogamous Yankees; if Jacob had associated with miners and been jostled by speculators, there would, I apprehend, have been a different order of social life in Palestine. The Mormon doctrine may be the true theology, and the writings of Joseph Smith the most direct of revelations. The practice of polygamy may be a safeguard against the vice of unlicensed indulgence, and the social life of Utah the most sanitary of social reforms. All the advantages, claimed for this system may be actual, but nevertheless the fact exists that polygamy is an anomally in this Republic, existing hitherto by the sufferance of a people who now declare that it shall exist no longer. "Do you doubt this decision on their part? The evidences are all about you. Here is a people who expended thousands of millions of treasure and myriads of life to establish the freedom of the black race from oppression, and who yet regard with indifference if not with complacency the assault which has HISTORY 01 SALT LAKE CITY. j77 been made upon the rights and libenies of American citizens in Utah, because the object of those assaults upholds a hateful doctrine. Here is a people ordi- narily jealous of the aggressions of rulers and officials, who yet endorse acts of despotism and applaud assaults upon law and constitution because such assaults are made for the destruction of polygamy. " What if judges should be changed, or policies altered? It would bring but tem];orary relief, for behind all, impelling all, contriving all, demanding all, en- forcing all, there dwells the unconquerable, all-pervading idea of the American people that polygamy must be extinguished. On this one thing all parties, all creeds, and all philosophies are combined. The press calls for it, the pulpit thun- ders for it, the politicians rage for it, the people insist upon it. You may delay the issue but you cannot evade it. Your antagonist is hydra-headed and hundred armed. Whether by bigoted judges, by packed juries, by partizan officers, by puritan missionaries, by iron limbed laws, by armies from abroad or by foes and defections at home, the assault is continuous and unrelenting. Your enemies are ubiquitous. Your friends — ah ! it is your friends who advise you constantly to baffle your enemies and resign the practice of this one feature of your faith. The history of all similar movements warns you ; the violatedlaws of latitude confront, you ; your children unconsciously plot against you, for, while polygamy is with you the result of religious conviction, with them it is but the result of religious education, and an inoculated doctrine, like an inoculated disease, is never very violent or very enduring. " Can this people hope to retain polygamy against such influences and such antagonism? Some tell me that they trust in God to uphold them in a struggle to keep polygamy. Others would doubtless say they trust in God to uphold them in the struggle to banish polygamy ; and others that there can in the nature of things be no assurance that the Almighty will interest himself in the matter, or espouse either side. The early Christians trusted in God when the Roman emperors gave thera to the wild beasts. The Huguenots trusted in God when the assassins of St. Bartholomew's Eve made the gutters of Paris reek with their blood. So trusted the Waldenses when their peaceful valleys were given to rapine ; so trusted the victims whose despairing faces were lit by the glare of Spanish auto da fes ; so trusted the martyrs whose fagot fires gleam down the aisles of history, so trusted the Puri- tans when driven out upon the stormy Atlantic ; so trusted the Presbyterians when the Puritans persecuted them ; so trusted the Quakers when the Presbyterians ex pelled them ; so trusted the Arcadians when driven from their homes ; so trusted the myriads who in all ages have been sacrificed to the Moloch of religious intol- erance. Who shall say when or in what cases or in what way the ruler of the Uni. verse will interfere? " Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's and to God the things that are God's." A belief in polygamy is a matter between the citizen and his God ; the practice of polygamy is a matter between the citizen and his country. If you think the laws of God call upon you to believe in it — then obey them unmolested — but the laws of your country call upon you not to practice it, so obey them — and be unmoested. If for his own purposes the Almighty did not see fit to interfere by special and miraculous providences to protect those who re- fused to recant their professions, is it probable that he will so interfere to sustain 32 378 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. those who refuse to surrender the practice of an ordinance and that not a saving, although a sacred ordinance. I do not claim to know, I do not know what the Mormon doctrine may be with respect to the practice of pol3'gamy. I observe, however, that not one-tenth of your adult males actually practice it, and I naturally conclude that you do not consider its practice essential to salvation ; that it is some- thing to be practiced or omitted as opportunity or ability may warrant. If this be so, then may not that lack of ability or opportunity arise from the antagonism of others, from the circumstances of the country, from overpowering laws, as well as from the circumstances of the individual? If one Mormon is permitted by his creed to say, I believe in polygamy as a doctrine, but I do not practice it because my con- dition makes it inconvenient or impossible, why may not another say — why may not all say — we believe in it as a doctrine, but we agree not to practice it because the general conditions make it inconvenient or impossible? Why may not the earnest, conscientious Mormon say, I believe in polygamy as a doctrine, but in order to relieve my friends and associates from persecution, in order to prevent the establishment of intolerable oppression; in order to preserve the thrift, the industry, the wealth, the progress, the temperate life, the virtues of Utah from spoliation and devastation and ruin ; in order to save a hundred noble pioneer citizens from outlawry or the gibbet or incarceration ; in order to achieve self- government, and peace, and liberty, I consent to surrender its practice for the future. And so consenting I am content to embody my consent in the form of an organic law. So consenting I mean in good faith to do as I agree to, and so agree- ing make my agreement public and of record. "To say, on the other, that you will make no compromise, that you will die rather than surrender the practice of this one feature of your faith, is the resolve of neither philosophers nor philanthropists. Such a resolve means another Nauvoo ; it means that you consent to count more of your religious leaders among your list of martyrs ; it means death to some, exile to other, ruin to many. If such be the well considered, deliberate determination of the Mormon people, there is no weapon in the armory of logic that will prevail against it, for you cannot reason with him who is bent on suicide. I hope no such conclusion lias been or will be reached. I hope that the assembling of this convention indicates a different and wiser resolve. I speak to this people as a friend. I speak to them without thought uf personal gain or advantage to myself to result from pursuing the course I sug- gest. Before God and before this convention I do most solemnly assert that did I in- tend to leave Utah forever on the morrow, I would give the same advice. Before. God and before this convention I do most solemnly declare that did I know my little life would go out from earth with to-day's sun I would give the same advice. "To this convention I say, be wise in time. If you do not by this conces- sion successfully organize a State government for yourselves now, the day is not far distant when your foes will organize one over your heads, and organize it upon such terms as will ostracise your most honored citizens from public peace, if it do not disfranchise the body of your voters. The political history of some of the reconstructed States lies to your perusal and for your warning. In politics as in finance the tendency of the age is to centralization. The triumphant career of a great political party demonstrates to you that there is no government so strong as i r HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY.. 579 a government of opinion, that there is no law so powerful as the will of a people. It is a turbulent and resistless torrent ; constitutional barriers are swept down be- fore it, laws are changed to accommodate it ; courts are overwhelmed or carried away upon its crest, and institutions that lift up their voices against it are hushed by its mighty thunders. " Do not trifle with your opportunity. Do not wait the tardy action of Con- gress. Do not entail upon yourself years of oppression. Do not play into the hands of your foes. Do not close the mouths and tie the hands of your friends. Believe rather that this is the hour of triumph, that this is the ' tide in your affairs which taken at the flood leads on to fortune.' Believe rather that out of the wise compromise, the wise concession, which may have a beginning here, a happy future shall grow. That from this house the lovely State of Deseret shall go forth, with her errors forgotten, with her virtues shining like rubies upon her breast, to clasp hands with her sister States and march with them along the high- way of empire which stretches from sun to sun." CHAPTER LXVII. Till': DISCUSSION FOR THE STATE CONTINUED. HAYDON AND BAR.MUM EU- LOGIZE THE CHIEF JUSTICE. FITCH CHALLENGES THE RECORD, AND IS UNANSWERED. MOTION TO ADJOURN LOST. AND BUSINESS RESUMED. DESERET OR UTAH ? THE NAME OF DESERET PREVAILS. THE ALL IM- PORTANT STRUGGLE OVER THE FIFTH SECTION OF THE ORDINANCE, INVITING CONGRESS TO PUT IN ITS PLANK, ORSON PRATT LEADS THE OPPOSITION. GEORGE Q. CANNON THE MEMBERS FOR THE SECTION. THE FIFTH SECTION PREVAILS. GRAND POINTS OF THE MODEL CON- STITUTION. WORK OF THE CONVENTION FINISHED. ELECTION FOR CONGRESSMAN. BALLOTING FOR U. S. SENATORS. EFFORTS TO ORG.\N- IZE THE CITIZENS INTO THE NATIONAL PARTIES. On the third day of the convention Judge Haydon replied to Mr. Fitch. He said the reason why he made the motion to adjourn sine die was to define his pos- ition on the State government of Utah. He had no thought the discussion would take so wide a range, nor that so much bitterness of expression would have been indulged in ; neither did he think that the gentlemen would have taken occasion to speak in such harsh terms of the Government and its officers. This, he thought, of itself would militate against the admission of Utah, for the Government would say that those who abuse the Government and its officers are not fit to join the sisterhood of loyal States. He had noticed that great wisdom usually marked the gentlemen present in worldly matters, but in this instance he thought it was a truant. He had come to Utah to practice his profession quietly, and to keep aloof as far as possible from conflicting parties ; and he desired to act justly towards all. ^8o HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. He a was Gentile and by his actions in that convention represented in part the Gentile sentiment of Salt Lake County; and if his Mormon friends who elected him thought he could be used to give a Gentile color to the convention they had mistaken their man. He ventured the opinion that outside the Gentiles on the floor of the convention there were not more than fifty in Salt Lake County, nor a hundred in the Territory, in favor of a State government. He raised the point of increased taxation, against State sovereignty, urging that it would keep for- eign capital away and retard the development of the resources of the State. He next gave a eulogistical sketch of Judge McKean's career and character, criticising Fitch's argument ; and, closing on the polygamic question, said he did not be- lieve that the Mormons present would be willing to trade off what they believe a divine ordinance for the bauble of State sovereignty. If they were once to lose the respect of the world for their honesty in their faith they would go down like Lucifer — never to rise. What would history write — what vvould the world say, if a convention composed mainly of Latter-day Saints, among whom were six apostles and twenty bishops, should be found ready and willing to sacrifice one of their divine ordinances for a State government ? As a Gentile who was no enemy but who had many reasons to be their friend, he in conclusion said, " Stay where you are, and bide your time." He then moved the previous question, but at the request of numerous gentle- men he afterwards withdrew. Mr Fitch replied to Judge Haydon's strictures on his speech and " challenged thegentleman and the world to point out a false statement therein." He was not unwilling to believe that Judge McKean had always lived an upright life. It was not the acts of his past life which were here in review; it was his course as a judge in Utah which he had criticised. And he submitted thac, in considering a resolution to adjourn without action, all the evils of the existing system were legitimate sub- jects for discussion. In conclusion he desired to say that the position of his col- league differed from his in this, that while Judge Haydon desired the people of Utah to retain McKean and polygamy, he (Fitch) desired them to get rid alike of polygamy and McKean. Col. Akers said his collegue, Judge Haydon, had left all the reasons advanced in support of his original motion untouched, except taxation. The Judge had said if he could not lift up men, he gloried in the fact that he was too feeble to pull down angels ; yet his motion and arguments were directed towards pulling down the fabric which the convention was endeavoring to rear. It was infinitely easier to pull down than to build up. The architect's skill and wisdom of the builder might be employed in erecting a structure which the hand of destruction, however unskillful or unwisely directed, might lay in ruins. The convention had met to aid in building a fabric of State government, and one greatly needed for Utah. The history of this Territory had been one of harshness towards the peo- ple. He did not allude to the past experiences of the Mormons, in the drivings and persecutions which they had endured before they turned their backs on civili- zation and sought a refuge in this then comparatively desert region ; but he re- ferred to a period still more recent, and to the present; and appealed to the gentle- men present if the h\\ which should ever be administered with justice, tempered by r HISTORY OF SAL T LAKE CITY. 5B1 kindness, and not been administered with severity and harshnesi. This should be changed and for it should be substituted a policy of kindness and Christianity, a policy of conciliation. Kindness always softens and melts. The maniac's fury is soothed by it; under its influence the ferocity of the tiger is subdued, and men can enter a den of savage beasts that have been made to feel the power of kind- ness and conciliation. Brute force appeals to the lowest instincts of mankind ; conciliation appeals to the highest and noblest. It is like the gentle summer cloud that sheds its grateful moisture upon the parched earth, making nature rejoice. He desired to see men governed always and in all places in a spirit of conciliatory kindness, that their better nature might be called out in response to it. He be- lieved that with a State government for Utah all the wrangling and contention which unsettled business and kept bitter feelings alive would cease. Mr. H. D. Johnson did not wish to made a speech, but endorsed the senti- ments and views of the previous speaker, reviewing the remarks of Judge Haydon and showing their inconsistency. Col. Buel said Judge Haydon had stated he was a Gentile. He, the speaker, was not a Mormon, and he would leave the people to determine where he stood. There was quite a liberal sentiment among many gentiles with regard to this mat ter of a State government. If Mormons were elected to office, he would sustain them in it. They had administered the government of the Territory in the past, so far as it was in their hands, with prudence and economy. He had to pay less taxes here than he had ever done before ; and as they had done so well in the past he was willing to trust them in the future in a State. General Barnum endorsed the views of his Gentile colleagues as against Judge Haydon's opposition to the State, but spoke highly of Judge McKean and Gov- ernor Woods, while differing from them in the policy and methods of their administration. In the afternoon of the third day's session Hon. George Q. Cannon, in a very able speech, brought the issue on Judge Haydon's motion to adjourn. The vote stood — aye, i ; noes, 95. But the all-important work of the convention was in the discussion and pas- sage of the fifth section of the ordinance to the constitution, thus opening : "We, the people ot the Territory of Utah, do ordain as follows, and this ordinance shall b^ irrevocable without the consent of the United States and the people of the State of Deseret : ''Fifth — That such terms, if any, as may be prescribed by Congress as a condition of the admission of said State into the Union, shall, if ratified by the majority vote of the people thereof, at such time and under such regulations as may be prescribed by the first Legislature of said State — thereupon be embraced within, and constitute a part of this ordinance." This compromise pJank was the one aimed for in Mr. Fitch's earnest and most feeling appeal to his Mormon co-laborers in the State work, and which was anticipated in the prefatory speeches of all the Gentile members of the conven- tion excepting Haydon. Indeed, not only did the State superstructure rest upon the fifth section, but the very convention itself, as it is not probable that any one 582 HIS TOR Y OF SAL T LAKE CI 7 V. of the Gentile members would have accepted their electio:i and work only ii> anticipation of such a concession as the fifth section implied. As for Judge Hay- don's opposition to the Mormons giving up polygamy it was appreciated accord- ing to its motive by both his Mormon and Gentile colleagues alike. In opening the discussion on the constitution the convention resolved itself into a committee ot the whole, Col. Akers in the chair, and resumed consideration of the report of the committee on ordinance. Mr. Pratt understood a motion had been made to strike out the fifth section, and moved to amend by inserting the word "constitutional" after the word "such." He deemed this change very necessary, because with all the wisdom of Congress it sometimes passed enactments conflicting with the Federal constitution, and as decided by the Supreme Court of the United States. He cited the Cullom bill as an instance of an unconstitutional measure which had passed one branch of Congress; and to the enabling act introduced into the House of Representatives by Mr. Sargent of California, which also contained what he held tolbe an uncon- stitutional provision. Judge Haydon moved that the amendment be adopted. Mr. Fitch did not see that the amendment would accomplish the gentleman's object. Should Congress propose terms which he might deem unconstitutional, would he not be willing that they should be submitted to the people ? Whether the terms of Congress, if any should be constitutional or not, they ought never- theless to be submitted. Mr. Miner held that from the construction of the section in question the State had to be admitted de facto before such terms would be submitted to the people, as the legislature of the proposed State was required by it to prescribe regulations for their being so submitted. There could be no State legislature un- less there was first a State, and this left it open for the State to be admitted and then thrown out in the cold if the prospective terms should not be accepted. Mr. Cannon thought the convention would make the necessary arrangements before adjourning, and that this objection would be met by the future action of the convention. Judge Haydon was in fiivor of Mr. Pratt's amendment. General Barnum thought the insertion of the word proposed by Mr. Pratt would accomplish no good purpose, and that it conveyed an insinuation that Con- gress would impose terms which were or might be unconstitutional. Now, Con- gress acts under the constitution, and was it reasonable to suppose that it would seek to impose unconstitutional teims? But suppose it did, who was to decide as to their constitutionality or unconstitutionality? Tlie acts of Congress are the law of the land and held to be constitutional until decided otherwise by the Supreme Court. Mr. Thurber was surprised to hear gentlemen object to the word constitution, and as a supporter of the government he would vote for its insertion. As it then stood it was a bid for Congress to make unconstitutional terms, and see if the people of Utah would accept them. Mr. Joseph W. Young could not see that the convention or the Territory were offering any terms or making any bids. There was a clamor in the country that HIS TOR V OF SAL T LAKE CITY. s^3 the people of the Territory should make SDme concession and he thought the people who only desired their rights, should, in asking a State government, give Congress an opportunity to say if they had any terms to impose, and then the people could decide on the acceptance of those terms. He was as little inclined to sacrifice principle as any member of the convention, but he deemed it neces- sary that it should be left to Congress to say what concessions were required of the people, who would then have the opportunity of accepting or rejecting them. He was opposed to Mr. Pratt's amendment. Mr. Pratt was not sure that he would accept the section even if the word was inserted. He considered Mr. Miner's objection to the section a very serious one ; but if the section be not amended, he was in favor of striking it out altogether, Mr. Cannon said the section was introduced for a purpose. He thought the exigencies of the times demanded a State government. He need not dwell upon the reasons for it. Allusion had been made to the prejudice existing against Utah; and in this section they asked Congress what terms it had to prescribe on which they might be admitted. He did not care, in one way, whether the terms im- posed were constitutional or not ; it was for the people to decide. He closed with a stirring appeal to sustain the section. Mr. Fuller said Congress would not knowingly impose unconstitutional terms. He thought Mr. Fitch's proposition was being lost sight of; that if they inserted the word ' constitutional,' they took from the people the right to say whether they accepted the required terms or not. Besides, if Congress should impose unconsti- tutional terms an appeal to the court of last resort would set them aside. Judge Snow thought the insertion of the word would convey an imputation that Congress would impose unconstitutional terms, and he would vote against the motion. Mr. Pratt's motion was put and lost. Mr. Cannon said the committee which had presented the ordinance wished to amend the section by substituting " this convention " for " the first legislature of said State." Mr. H. D. Johnson wished the convention to be conducted according to par- liamentary rules, and held that a member of the committee on ordinance could not make such an amendment. Mr. Cannon made the motion as a member of the committee of the whole ; and it was then put and carried. The motion to strike out the entire section was then raised, and Mr. Miner spoke in favor of the motion, as the section seemed like asking Congress to im- pose conditions other than have ever been required of any other Territory seeking admission as a State. Utah should ask admission the same as any other Territory in a dignified manner, neither supplicating nor in a spirit of braggadocio, but in a spirit of manhood. If Congress had any terms to propose, it would do it in its sovereign power, and they then could accept or reject them. Mr. Moses Thatcher would sustain the motion to strike out the section. Utah presented as honorable claims for admission as any Territory had ever done, and he believed it shculd be admitted as other States had been. Mr. J. W. Young contended that in view of existing prejudices, unless there ^84 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. should be some section of this nature, something by which Congress would see that ihe people of the Territory were willing to meet in a spirit of concession these prejudices, their constitution would be laid on the table and allowed there to remain. He was opposed to the motion. Mr. Farr said it was understood what objection Congress had to the admission of Utah — it was polygamy. Were they willing to yield polygamy for the sake of obtaining a State government. If they were, say so, and obtain State sovereignty. Mr. Milner did not think Congress ivas asked to prescribe terms by the sec- tion ; the inquiry was only made, had it any terms to prescribe? He did not think Congress would wish to impose conditions which could not be accepted in honor. He was opposed to the motion. Mr. Tyler opposed the motion. He could see nothing in the section that would compromise the honor of any member of the convention, or the people of Utah. Application had been made before for the admission of Uiah, which had been refused, and this section only asked, in fact, what were the reasons why ad- mission had not been granted. Mr. W. Snow, the proposer of the motion, said the section was materially changed sinced his motion had been offered, and in view of that change he would withdraw it. Objection was made and the consideration of the motion was continued. Mr. Rich thought the constitution should be republican in form, and he asked why a section should be introduced which would open a way for something that was not republican. He said he thought they had a right to ask what they wanted, and he was in favor of a strictly republican constitution. He favored the motion. Mr. T. R. Murdock, of Beaver, was in favor of the section being retained. He did not think the members of the convention had assembled to tell what they had done in the past, nor to criticize the parent government, but to frame a con- stitution that would secure the admission of Utah as a State. Mr. Pratt was opposed to the section because it was an anomaly, such as no other State had embraced in its constitution. He held that the Territory had a right to demand admission, for a Territorial government is not a republican one. They had once had a republican government in the State of Deseret, but that right had been taken from them, and he held they were only asking for that right beint^ returned to them. He treated on the constitutional powers of Congress and the Government, and said he had been loyal to the Government, and so had his fathers before him ; and he did not think his rights as an American citizen had been destroyed because he was one of the early pioneers. His great reason for wishing to strike out the section was, because it was something unheard of in the history of States. As this ordinance was irrevocable, unless by the consent of Congress and the people of Utah, he did not desire to see such a section included in it. It was a section lugged in independent of all other ordinances that ever had been framed and should be stricken out. Mr. Fuller did not consider that they were asking Congress to impose con- ditions, though it was well understood that conditions would be prescribed. He opposed the motion. 1 HISTORY OF SAL T LAKE CITY. jSs Mr. Cannon said there was one point which ought not to be disguised. Mr. Pratt said the section was anomalous. He admitted it; but they were an anom- alous people, and in an anomalous condition. The section gave Congress the opportunity to say what terms were required for the admission of Utah. There had been a carefully elaborated speech delivered in favor of the prohibition of polygamy, and if anything could convince the speaker that it should be done it would have been that speech. He did not want to insert in the constitution a clause abrogating polygamy ; nor to go into Congress with an ultimatum on the subject; but to go as one of the contracting parties and learn what terms were required for admission. Constitutions and delegates had been sent before ; he had had the honor of being one of the last delegates, and he was satisfied the retention of this section would have a beneficial effect. The motion to strike out the fifth section was then put and lost. The names of the gentlemen on the committee on ordinance who had con- structed this fifth section which thus prevailed were George Q. Cannon, Joseph W. Young, nephew of Brigham, John T. Caine, A. O. Smoot, second mayor of Salt Lake, Thomas Fitch, F. D. Richards, John Rowberry and John Sharp. After the passage of the fifth section of the ordinance the work of the con- vention progressed smoothly from day to day. Mormon and non-Mormon dele- gates vying with each other to make the constitution of the State of Deseret as broad and perfect as possible. It was a noble piece of work when finished and it won the admiration of American statesmen, notwithstanding the State was not admitted. Section 25 was constructed specially to give justice to the minority in the representation, and it is evident that had the State been admitted, quite a large element of non-Mormon representative men must have been admitted to the management and supervision of our public affairs, by the very construction of the instrument which the convention had wrought, and the precedents which it had given. Female suffrage was also granted. Hons Thomas Fitch, George Q. Cannon and Frank Fuller were elected to l)roceed to Washington, to act with Delegate Hooper in presenting the constitu- tion to the President of the United States and the two houses of Congress. The convention adjourned March 2nd, 1872, and immediately thereafter commenced the election by the people of members to the State Legislature. On the 9th of March, a mass meeting of citizens was held in Salt Lake City, and the following State ticket made up : For representative to Congress, Frank Fuller; for State senators from Salt Lake, Tooele, and Summit Counties, Wilford Woodruff, George Q. Cannon, Wm. Jennings and Charles H. Hempstead; for representatives from Salt Lake County, John Taylor, Brigham Young, Jr., John T. Caine, Thomas P. Akers, A. P. Rockwood and S. A. Mann. Several days later the following was issued for the purpose of organizing a Republican party in Utah : "TO THE REPUBLICANS IN UTAH. " The Republicans residing in the several Territories of the United States, have been invited by the National Republican convention, which is to meet at the city of Philidelphia, on the 5th day of June, 1872, for the purpose of nominating 33 j86 HJS TOR Y OF SALT LAKE CITl . candidates for President and Vice-President of the United States, to be supported at the election in November. " The opportunity being thus afforded for ihe organization of the Republican party in Utah, the undersigned have deemed it advisable to unite in a recommen- dation that a convention be held at the City Hall in Salt Lake City, on Friday evening, April 5th, at half-past seven o'clock, to which convention delegates may be sent from all parts of the Territory, on the basis of representation adopted in the selection of delegates to the late constitutional convention ; the object of the proposed convention being the selection of two delegates to the National Repub- lican convention as before mentioned. " In calling this convention we extend the invitation to all Republicans and to all citizens who approve of the principle held by the Republican party, and whose views are in consonance with that great national organization. " The number of delegates to which each county will be entitled, is as follows : Salt Lake County, 19; Tooele, 6; Wasatch, 4; Summit, 3; Morgan, 2; Sanpete, 7; Cache, 9; Sevier and Piute, 2; Rich, i; Box Elder, 6; Millard, 4; Beaver, 3; Iron, 4; Washington, 4 ; Kane, 2; Weber, 8. "Frank Fuller, Daniel H. Wells, Thomas Fitch, Geo. E. Whitney, F. M. Smith, Warner Earll, Jacob Smith, S. A. Mann, Len Wines, Wil- liam Jennings and many others. "Salt Lake City, March 15th, 1872." On the 3d of April, a call for a Democratic convention was made as follows : " We, the undersigned, invite all citizens of Utah, who adhere to the princi- ples of that grand old party of the people — the Democracy — to assemble in mass convention at the City Hall in Salt Lake City, on Monday, the 8th of April, at 7 o'clock p. M., for the purpose of taking initiatory steps for organization, appoint- ing a Territorial Democratic central committee, and transacting such other busi- ness as may be suggested at the meeting." This call, led off by Col. Thos. P. AkersandGen. E. M. Barnum, was signed by nearly one hundred representative names, Mormon and Gentile. On Friday, April 5th, the State Legislature met to elect Senators to Congress, and, after two good day's work and much sharp balloting. Fitch and Hooper were elected. In the Senate on the eighth ballot Fitch stood 4; General Morrow 4 ; George Q. Cannon, 2. On the ninth, Fitch, 5 ; Morrow, 4, Cannon, i. The senate having failed to elect, adjourned till 11:55 next day; and the house adjourned to meet with the senate in joint session, when the before named were elected and a telegram immediately dispatched to them at Washington an- nouncing the result. The great point of the interest in the balloting was that it was, especially in the senate, strictly on party lines, General Morrow, as a demo- crat, tying Fitch as a republican. The Democratic and Republican conventions met pursuant to call, and set earnestly to work with spirit and enthusiasm to organize their several parties on the strict national lines. It is worthy of a special note in our history that this is the only time when a legitimate effort was made in Utah to organize in accord 1 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. jc?/ with the great political parties of the nation ; but it was frustrated by anti-Mor- mon niilice, the majority of Gentiles chosing rather to betray their traditional parties, and coalising as the Liberal party, to keep up their crusade against the Mormon community. CHAPTER LXVIII. CHIKF JUSTICE McKEAN WRITES EDITORIALS FOR THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE, SUSTAINING HIS OWN DECISIONS. THE SENIOR EDITOR IMPEACHED, IN CONSEQUENCE, BEFORE A BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND RESIGNS. THE "GENTILE LEAGUE OF UTAH" ORGANIZED TO BREAK UP THE MORMON POWER, ATTEMPTS TO FORCE THE CITY COUNCIL. REVOLUTIONARY MEETING. CALL FOR TROOPS. During t-his action of the old citizens, combined with conservative Gentiles, to obtain a State government, the Liberal party had, with an uncompromising persistence, which at times almost reached the pitch of civil war, opposed the State movement by every means in their power. Public meetings were held, not only in Salt Lake City, but in the mining camps, and all the anti-Mormon force rallied and loud threats of revolution made to intimidate the leaders of the State move- ment ; and those threats were directed perhaps more against the conservative Gen- tiles, who were dubbed " Jack Mormons," than against the heads of the Mormon Church. A petition was also gotten up against the admission of Utah to State sovereignty and forwarded to President Grant and Congress. It was signed by about five thousand names; the petition was taken from house to house and women as well as men affixed their names to it. For once the entire anti-Mormon force of the Territory was called into action ; the Godbeites and the Walker party, equally with the fiercest anti-Mormon, took action and signed their names against the State movement. Joseph R. Walker, Henry W. Lawrence and R. N. Baskin undertook a mission to Washington at their own expense for the Liberal party, to counteract the favorable impression which the model constitution of the State of Deseret was certain to create in the minds of many congressmen, and to affirm emphatically to President Grant and statesmen that the Gentiles and seceding Mormons were unanimously opposed to a State, excepting a few Gentile politicians — Fitch and others of his class — whom they denounced in the name of the Gen- tile party in the strongest terms. Undoubtedly this representation of delegates from the Liberal party of the weight of J. R. Walker, Henry W. Lawrence and R. N. Baskin, with a petition bearing five thousand signatures (so it was claimed") against the State were sufficient, with the temper of President Grant wrought up by Newman and McKean to a war pitch, to prevent the admission of Utah at that S88 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. lime, no matter how great its claims to and reasons for State sovereignty. Indeed, it was at the time when President Grant declared to the effect that if Congress did not pass a bill potent enough to overthrow Mormon polygamic theocracy, he would put his troops into Salt Lake City and settle the difficulty by military force. There were also petitions gotten up in Salt Lake both for and against McKean; the one for his removal the other for his retention. The one affirmed in substance that McKean's doings were a disgrace to the department of justice, and that his presence was disturbing to the good order and peace of society, inimical to the prospects of this great mining country, and forbidding to the investment of for- eign and eastern capital ; the other petition affirmed the very reverse. The pe- tition for McKean was signed by about the same names and number affixed to the petition against the State. Judge Haydon, in the convention, in his opposition had declared that it v/as " the State versus McKean," and the Liberal party adopted his words very like as they would have done an inscription on their banners during the fierce anti-Mormon campaign of that year. The course of Chief Justice McKean, however, had not passed without a re- buke even from the inside of his own party — a rebuke in fact scarcely less severe than the strictures of Hon. Thomas Fitch ; but the affair was kept silent for party interest, and because, on the whole, McKean was looked upon by the gentlemen concerned as a good man at heart, notwithstanding he was " a judge witli a mis- sion." The case is as follows, and the statement is made as a necessary explana- tion of certain hidden points in the history of those times. During the prosecutions against Brigham Young, Daniel H. Wells and others. Judge McKean was permitted by Mr. Oscar G. Sawyer, the then acting editor, to write editorials for the Salt Lake Tribune sustaining his own decisions. Mr. Saw- yer was also at this time the special telegraphic correspondent of the New York Herald, to the staff of which he had been formerly an attache — indeed one of its special correspondents during the war of the rebellion. Any amount of space was at his command in that potent newspaper, which the king of American journalists had made the greatest newsmonger and sensationalist in the world, and no cost for lengthy telegrams was begrudged by the younger Bennett, when the face of the matter bore strong sensational marks, with a seeming importance and authen- ticity. At that time the aspect and probable solution of Utah affairs were deemed by the American public to be of first class news importance. It will be remem- bered by the reader, that in 1870 the managers of the New York Herald had deemed it sufficiently important to their paper to send out one of its principal special correspondents to Salt Lake City and to keep him here at a high salary, with a broad margin for expenses, to employ assistant pens from the Godbeite writers to furnish him with the best news and authentic subjects of the times. Col. Findlay Anderson was in Salt Lake City more than six months, and during that period he not only furnished the New York Herald with a fruitful series of letters, exquisite in their literature and generally acceptable in their spirit, even to the Mormon community; but he also reported for the New York Herald the dis- cussion between Newman and Pratt. Indeed, during the term of Col. Anderson the New York ZA;7'd!A/ made quite a mark in the line of Utah news, while the other eastern journals, as a rule, gave but the synopsis, and that, too, it appeared gath- ered from the Herald letters. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. jeatedly calling them " geese." Now came business for the " G. L. LT's." They sprang to the front. They were headed by ex-Marshal Orr. " Follow me ' G. L. U's,' " he cried to his armed troop. They dashed after him, revolvers in hand, and formed a half circle in front of the stand. Flourishing their weapons, they awed back the people, each wailing eagerly for the command to fire into the crowd. For the anxious space of five minutes, it was almost certain that Judge Hay- S-NOTE. — The statement of our local editor tells its own story, and is sufficiently suggestive without much comment. It may be added, however, that, learning of this design, I had resolved if the "hun- dred men," or any considerable number, attempted to move towards the city hall in parties, I would, in time to prevent the risk of human life, make a statement of the facts to the mayor. As it was, I asked Mr. Perris — the Tribune manager — to let me go to the Council in behalf of the paper, but the per- mission was refused. The reason was that it was thought the city council, believing in my truthfulness and justice, would allow me to remain, as a member of the press, notwitlistanding the expulsion of our paper. Harmony with the city council, or fairness towards its administration, was just what the "liberals" wished to prevent. War, not justice, was their aim. That they did also project the move- ment against the city authorities, as stated by Mr. Salisbury, the very fact that the Tribune manager, local editor and foreman of the printing establishment were at the city hall to force the presence of the opposition press is very evident, as the newspaper reports and the record of the council will sub- stantiate. The explanation, too, why the ''100 men" were not at their post was, it may be presumed, no f;^ult of the agitators, but simply because certain well known conservative business men did not enthusiastically take the responsibility. Without these influential citizens Maxwell knew that his "100 men" would have been but an armod band of rioters. E. \V. TuUidgc, associate editor Tribune^ rSj2. HISTORY OF SAL T LAKE CITY. 593 don's prophecy would be fulfilled that night, and the streets of Salt Lake run with blood. The writer saw their weapons brandished above the heads of their foremost men, gleaming in the flickering light of the lamps, and heard the excited cries of men eager for the word to fire. The " G. L. U's" went to that meeting anxious for the work of revolution, as the more speedy way of "solving the Mormon problem;" and around the stand, where for a moment there seemed a favorable opportunity, this was strongly manifested. All through the anti-Mormon warfare of that period, the judicial pro- ceedings of McKean (coupled with the idea that Grant would support an anti Mormon issue, no matter how terrible and summary) had encouraged this invading class. They had everything to gain and nothing to lose by a conflict with the primitive settlers. A strange, tiiough deeply rooted idea, was in the radical mind that Camp Douglas was bound, in its duty to the Government, not to support the city authorities nor the great community; but. in the case of riot or civil war, to concentrate its troops against the city authorities ; in other words, it was to be war upon the Mormon people and their leaders, who had founded the Territory and to whom, as a property, it chiefly belonged. This idea, too, was always un- derlined with the certainty that Governor Woods, who, like McKean, had a mis- sion to put down Mormon rule, would call upon the commander of Camp Douglas lor troops to support the anti-Mormon side. Fifty reckless men, therefore, in such a case, was at any time enough for civil war ; and the city and its govern- ment, in the prospect, were looked upon as their spoil. Such were the views of those radical leaders who called that out-of-door meet- ing which had so exasperated the multitude, and in the adjourned gathering that night, at the Liberal institute, it was singular to hear how "pat" the chairman was, in mixing the " G. L. U's" and Camp Douglas in the execution of a com- mon vengeance. That our city did not witness on this night a mournful tragedy is due alone to the fact that no weapons were drawn by any, excepting the Liberals. On the Monday morning the Tribune came out with the following editorial : " LET US HAVE TROOPS TO-DAY." Referring to the disturbance of the Saturday night, the editor said : " In view of such conduct being repeated to-day, and of the intense feeling aroused amongst the supporters of General Maxwell, and to avert any chances of a conflict, as also to secure the rights of voters at the polls, we ask the acting Gov- ernor to make a requisition for troops to be in attendance during the day or near the polls to insure peace and enforce the rights of loyal citizens. The conduct of the police on Saturday evening was such that not the slightest dependence can be placed on either their willingness or ability to preserve the peace. " In addition to having troops in the city it would also be wise for the saloon keepers to close their doors to-day, so as to aid in making the election pass off peaceably. This seems to be demanded in consequence of the strong feeling aroused which may result disastrously unless great discretion be used. "Let every man opposed to church domination make this an election day, 34 594- HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. and set the example of keeping cool in order to be the better prepared to assert his rights and resist such intolerance at all hazards." This war utterance of the Tribune was very like an order on board a pirate ship to clear the deck for action. It was directed, moreover, not against a citizen rabble, but against the city authorities. As for the reference to the indisposition of the police to keep the peace, and their ability to do it, the action shows that the pru- dence of the police in keeping out of the affray was the chief preventative of bloodshed. Our managing editor well knew that armed spies of the " G. L. U's" had their eyes on every policeman near, and that, had any of them engaged at the crisis, they would have been the principal marks for the ready revolvers of the radicals. The citizens undoubtedly would have helped the police, unarmed as they were. A massacre would have ensued; but before troops from Camp Douglas could have been brought into action, a terrible judgment night would have been met by the armed men who had dared war upon the city. The police knew this ; none knew it so well as they; and it was they under the direction of Mayor Wells who did keep the peace and preserve the city from bloodshed. But that call for troops on the election day was not an unauthoiized outburst of our managing editor. ''They shall have another mass meeting," said a chief of the anti-Mormon leaders, " and if they repeat it, there shall be a hundred coffins ivanted next morning ! ' ' The call for troops on the election day, and the significant suggestions to saloon keepers to close their doors, and for the radicals to " keep cool " "in order to be the better prepared " to "assert their rights, and resist such intolerance at all hazards, " show how eagerly the election day would have been seized as the grand opportunity for the " hundred coffins.'' Troops, however, did not come upon the city ; aciing-Governor Black, this time, was not to be seduced into the serious folly of issuing a proclamation and making a requisition upon the commander of Camp Douglas, and the election was one of the most orderly Salt Lake City had ever known. Even the radicals were forced into a sort of good fellowship with the primitive citizens for the day. This signified that in spite of the oracle, the Mayor and police kept the peace by the simple manoeuver of seeing that the radicals found no opportunity to break it. The case is suggestive of many more in the history of Salt Lake City. Let the reader couple the terribly meant purpose of the " hundred coffins," with the following letter headed "ORGANIZATION DEMANDED. ' ' Editor Salt Lake Tribune. " I have visited some of our mining camps in the vicinity of Salt Lake City, and find that there, as well as here, there is a very general feeling of deep burn- ing indignation towards, and condemnation of the barbarous proceedings in the city Saturday last. " Some of those who have hitherto erred on the side of charity towards the Mormons, and have pleaded for tender consideration and forbearance on their be- half, are among the most earnest in their expressions of their determination to manitain for all parties and at tvhatever cost, the rights of citizens of Republican u HISTORY OF SAL T LAKE CITY. 595 America. If these rights can only be maintained — if this thrice accursed assump- tion of the right divine of kings and priests to control and dispose of the property, liberties, consciences and lives of their fellow beings, can only be pat down by a conflict of arms, then let it come and the sooner the better. Far better would it be that the oft repeated threat of the Mormons should be fulfilled — that Utah should be again converted into a desert, and the whole of its citizens be baptized in their own blood than that we should live to witness the triumph of those tyran- nical, cruel, barbarous assumptions of kingly and priestly power which have been the curse of the world for ages. Let our sons and daughters be buried with us in bloody graves, rather than live to be the serfs of an ignorant, cruel, priestly aristocracy. "It is high time for all who are opposed to the establishment in Utah of a theocracy or kingdom of any kind, should unite and organize for mutual defense and for the overthrow of this accursed system. The Liberals should meet in pub- lic in Salt Lake City or anywhere else — as Henry Ward Beecher advised the Orangemen of New York, to march every day in the year if necessary, until they can do so with perfect peace and safety. Let there be an effective organization as complete as the one we have to fight. The Mormon Church organization includes a military organization ; let us have one as effective as theirs — better if possible. Then, if necessary, pass the word and five thousand miners will rally in a few hours to the defence of free speech and republican principles. Such an event would be greatly to be deplored as it would be attended with fearful scenes and lawless violence. But, if nothing else will teach the poor willing tools of priest- craft to respect the rights of American citizens one dose of Napoleon's treatment of the Paris mobs will be a lasting and sufificient lesson. But mark it ; we must have effective organization. We must know who are our leaders, and they must be men of the sterling kind — wise as well as brave should the crisis come — and many think it inevitable — the sneaks and hypocrites on both sides will fare badly. " The majority of the citizens of these United States are unalterably opposed to the establishment of kingly or priestly assumptions and institutions on Ameri- can soil, and with them I am willing to pledge our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor to prevent such a calamity. Honorius." The second meeting came, which was to give to our city the "■ hundred cof- fins." Here is the statement of Mr. Joseph Salisbury: " The meeting was held in front of the Walker House on the evening of the 1 2th of October, 1872. As on the first occasion, I attended as reporter of the Tribune. During the day it was whispered around that an organization had been effected and that prominent men of the city authorities would be watched by armed members of the " G. L. U's." I subsequently learned that these were un- der the control of the chairnlan and that at hjs given signal the body were to move en masse. " I soon discovered that the programme was well arranged, and saw men known to me as " G. L. U's," moving in the crowd in twos, with their hands upon their pistols, threatening those who dared utter the slightest murmer at the wanton denunciations against the Mormon leaders. It was at this meeting that the pre- dictions uttered at the Liberal Institute and by Mr. Baskin in the Tribune office, 59^ HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. were to have found fulfillment, but associate justice Strickland exposed the move- ment prematurely when at the first sound of an opposing voice he arose and pro- claimed : *' ' The first 7nan wJip interrupts this meeting I^vill order shot .' I mean what I say and say what I mean .' ' ''The radicals were extremely dissatisfied at the indiscretion of their chair- man, who should have given the signal at the opportune moment, instead of an untimely warning, in a clumsy paraphrase of General Dix's famous order — ' Shoot him on the spot ! ' "The friends of the associate justice explained that their chairman was ' drunk,' but among themselves they did not deny that there was a sober signifi- cance underlying his indiscretion. " I subsequently learned, from conversation among the radicals that, had there been any counter demonstration, the ' G. L. U's' at a given signal would have fallen back to the side walk, in front of the Walker House, and that a volley from them, and others stationed in the windows above would have fulfilled the prophecy of U. S. Attorney Baskin — 'We'll have a hundred coffins at our next meeting I ' "Signed." Joseph Salisbury," CHAPTEP LXIX. CONGRESSIONAL HISTORY FROM 1870. LOCAL POLITICS CARRIED TO WASH- INGTON. CONTEST FOR THE SEAT. THE ELECTION OF 1872. HOOPER RETIRES WITH HONORS. GEO. Q. CANNON ELECTED, AND POLYGAMIC COLORS NAILED TO THE MAST. MAXWELL AGAIN CONTESTS THE SEAT, THE "ENDOWMENT OATH" CHARGE AGAINST THE DELEGATE. DE- NIALS OF THE OATH AGAINS T THE UNITED STATES BEING ADMINISTERED IN THE ENDOWMENT HOUSE. SCENES IN CONGRESS OVER UTAH AF- FAIRS. NOTES FROM THE DELEG.A.TE'S PRIVATE JOURNAL. HON. GEO, Q. CANNON TAKES HIS SEAT IN THE FORTY-THIRD CONGRESS, BUT A COMMITTEE IS APPOINTED TO INVESTIGATE THE CONTESTANT'S CHARGES. THE CONTEST CARRIED INTO THE SECOND SESSION, CANNON HOLDS HIS SEAT. The election for delegate to Congress in the fall of 1872, requires the con- tinuation of the Congressional line of the history from the passage of the Cullom bill to the date of the contest for the delegate's seat between George R. Maxwell and George Q. Cannon. In 1870, the said George R. Maxwell, Register of the Land Office of the Territory, had been a candidate for the office of delegate to Congress against Delegate Hooper, but had been badly beaten, receiving only a few hundred votes iiii. HISTORY 01 SALT LAKE CITY. jp7 as against over 26,000 votes in favor of Mr. Hooper. On the strength of this meagre vote, he contested the seat, collecting a mass of testimony, and put the delegate to the trouble and expense of rebutting it. He relied altogether for his success on the prejudices which he knew existed against the Mormons; he also accused Mr. Hooper of disloyalty, and of having taken part against the Govern- ment during the Buchanan troubles ; and of being unfitted as a delegate in Con- gress by reason of having taken the "endowment oath." In the fall of 1872, while affairs in Utah were in the condition related in the preceding chapters it was determined by the leaders of the Mormon community that the Mormon case in its entirety should be sent to Washington. Delegate Hooper, who had represented Utah most efficiently and untiringly for ten years on the floor of the House, and who, in addition to this, had spent nearly two years in Washington as senator elect for the inchoate State of Deseret, trying to get the Territory admitted as a State, having served so long and faithfully, it was, by the People's party, deemed best to relieve him from the arduous duties of the position. Moreover he needed rest and, as a principal merchant and financier of our city, the privilege of attending to his affairs at home, and enjoying the society of his family and friends. He also needed the rest for recuperation, as it was certain should Utah be admitted as a State, at any time during the near succeeding years, Wm. H. Hooper would be called from his retirement to serve Utah in the Senate. The ques- tion then arose, in the People's party, " Who will be sent as delegate? Who is the most fitted man, at such a critical moment, to manage Utah's affairs in Congress." Many felt and urged that it would be a great misfortune to lose the service of Mr. Hooper at such a time. No man was better known in Washington than he. His reputation was excellent, and though known as a Mormon, it was generally understood that he was not a practical polygamist. He had served the Territory efficiently and to the satisfaction of his constituents, while at Washington it was confessed that Delegate Hooper had more influence than any man who had ever been sent to Congress from the Territories. This was probably partly due to the importance of Utah herself in Congress, as the peculiar problem of the Nation which was ever and anon coming up in Congress, provoking efforts for extraor- dinary special legislation, in the hope that finally some measure would be devised with capacity sufficient to solve the problem. Others, namely the Gentiles, who had voted for the convention and the State with little faith in the value of the Mormon movement in the age, not only ad' vised the sending of a conservative Gentile at that period to Congress but the renun- ciation of polygamy itself, and the practical abandonment of the Mormon mission in its vast society aims, allowing the church to quietly settle down to a respectable religious sect. Not so, however, will the Mormons ever think. Brigham Young and his apostolic compeers were never less willing than at that moment to resign their mission, nor has the Mormon Church to this day shown the first intention to give up the fraction even of her institutions. The fifth section of the State constitu- tion signified nothing of compromise from the Church, nor any promise made to Congress touching her future conduct ; but simply left the affairs of the State to the State, and of the Church to the Church. Had Congress at that time ad- mitted Utah as a State, defining its own terms as invited in the fifth section, the I j9? HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CIT^k. people of Utah must have accepted the State as constructed by Congress ; but as Congress did not, and as the anti-State party in Utah in this matter prevailed, the Mormon community naturally returned to their old position. The general feeling among the clearest thinkers of Utah was, to send a strictly socialistic representative man. In the person of George Q. Cannon the Mormons believed they had such a man. " But," it was urged by some timid persons, " he is an apostle and a polygamist. If you send him, your enemies will say that you mean to defy public sentiment, and you will be sure to evoke strong opposition." President Young, however, was in favor of his nomination, and the people deternined to elect him. They certainly had the right, they said, under the constitution, to choose whom they pleased to represent them, so long as he ])ossesscd the constitutional qualifications. What had a representative's religion or family relations to do with his qualifications for Congress? Catholics and Jews liad been deemed suitable for legislators in free America, and why should Mormons Le deprived ot this right? A writer on the matter thus commented : " It was a grand manifestation of faith and righteousness, when George Q. Cannon, an apostle and polygamist, was sent to Congress. The Mormon people have never from the first moment shirked their responsibilities, but have courted a righteous trial of their cause. Milton's motto : ' Give truth a fair and an open field ; let her grapple with error ; whoever knew truth worsted ? ' — has been well applied in their case. They have never shunned investigation, but have ever met with resignation even their imprisonments and martyrdoms. At this very period President Young, as we have seen, had just submitted to arrest and imprisonment, from which he was only relieved by the decision of the Supreme Court of the United States. " Upon consideration, the honorable anti-Mormon must confess that next to giving up their ' institution,' the most proper thing for the Mormon people to do, was to boldly send tlieir cause to Congress, in the person of a polygamic represen- tative. It was Congress that gave them an anti-polygamic law, which even a mis- sionary judge could not twist into an effective form ; Congress, that was everlast- ingly in travail with special legislation for Utah ; Congress and the President of the United States, who insisted that ' polygamic theocracy ' must be brought to trial somewhere or somehow. 'Polygamic theocracy' could therefore have chosen no better field of mission for one of its ablest apostles than Congress itself. Halt a dozen earnest Mormon elders in Congress, would be the rarest godsend that the nation has seen for the last quarter of a century. "The institutions of that people are truly embodied in President Young, but he could not go to Congress to stand in their stead. One therefore had to be chosen worthy both to represent Brigham Young and the Mormons, as a people, as well as the general interests of Utah, as a Territory. George Q. .Cannon was the man, and there is no doubt that his election meant as much in the minds of the whole community." The grave importance of the contest of the Liberal party with the People's party in the election for delegate in August, 1872, was not in the number of votes which the Liberals gave their candidate, Maxwell, but in the nature of the case as r HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. S99 thus expounded ; for clearly if a system could be brought to trial in the person of Brigham Young in a U. S. District Court, in Salt Lake City, similar could be done in the person of George Q. Cannon in Congress. The logic of facts would have met the successful delegate at the very threshold of Congress and excluded him, had the Supreme Court of the United States allowed polygamic theocracy to be tried, found guilty and imprisoned in the person of Brigham Young. The de- cision of the Supreme Court, disallowing Judge McKean's doings, had, it is true, somewhat changed the case from the McKean construction, nevertheless the party that sent George R. Maxwell to Washington anticipated some very thorough special legislation before the clCse of the forty-second congress, which would restore the case substantially to the McKean design by an act of Congress, more legal in form but identical in spirit and aim. " Polygamic theocracy " could be disfranchised and made ineligible for office in the persons of its upholders ; and the history of all the special legislation or attempts of members of Congress to construct and pass acts to meet the Utah case determine strongly on this line — namely the politi- cal disabling of the entire Mormon community. Such was the significance of Maxwell's contest with Cannon ; and preposterous as it would seem, the party that sent him to Washington actually expected that the Gentile contestant would take the Mormon delegate's seat. On the loth of September, 1S72, in Salt Lake City, the Secretary of the Ter- ritory, George A. Black, in the presence of Governor Woods, opened and counted the official returns of the election held on the 5th of August last. Hon. Geo. Q. Cannon was absent, having started for California, but he was represented by Hon. S. A. Mann, late Secretary and acting Governor of the Territory, and Hon. John T. Caine ; General Maxwell was present, accompanied by Rev. Norman McLeod. The total vote cast was 22,913, the distribution of which was: for George Q. Cannon, 20,969; George R. Maxwell, 1,942; W. H. Hooper, i; P, E. Connor, i. General Maxwell read a protest against the certificate of election being given — the protest being substantially the same as his memorial to Congress in his con- test with delegate Hooper in the election of 1870. Messrs. Mann and Caine con- tented themselves with quoting the law, and showing simply that the Governor had no option in the matter, his duty being i)lain, to grant the certificate to the candidate having the greatest number of votes; it being the province of the House of Representatives of Congress, alone, to decide on the qualifications of its mem- bers. Failing to obtain the certificate the said contestant, George R. Maxwell, caused a notice to be served on Delegate Cannon that he should contest for the delegate's seat. To aid Maxwell in his contest at Washington, certain apostates from the Mor- mon church, made affidavits that such an oath, disloyal to the United States, as charged against Geo. Q. Cannon, was administered in the endowment house, and the intention was that all such affidavits from apostate Mormons, who had been through the endowment house, were to be furnished by the contestant Maxwell to the committee on Territories, showing sufficient cause on testimony that Geo. Q. Cannon was ineligible to Congress, and unworthy of citizenship, by said dis- loyal oath taken against the United States. Probably had the conspiracy been al- 6oo HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. lowed to consummate, delegate Cannon never could have taken his seat ; but many prominent apostate Mormons were equally as concerned as Geo. Q. Can- non ; and they had given abundant evidence that they never did, and never would have been induced, even at the penalty of their lives, to take an oath disloyal to the United States. The Tribune, in behalf of these gentlemen, came out flatly with a denial in its editorial columns. Eli B. Xelsey also made an affidavit upon the case, directly testifying that he had been through the endowment house, and had passed through all the ceremonies and administrations of the house, and no such oath against the United States had ever been administered to him. His affidavit was forwarded to the committee on Territories. It so happened that just at this time, the Salt Lake Tribune was advocating the policy, and recommending it to the Government, of the appointment of Mr. J. R, Walker as governor of Utah Territory ; at which Oscar G. Sawyer, smarting under his retirement from the editorship of the Tribune, in his little paper, the Salt Lake Mining Journal — not only dubbed Mr. J. R. Walker a "tape seller," without capacity for the governorship, but affirmed that he was as inelligible as Cannon, for similar reasons, he having once belonged to the Mormon Church in in Utah. This brought Elias L. T. Harrison out in a lecture on the endowments, delivered in the Liberal Institute, in which he also declared most solemnly to the public that no such oath of disloyalty to the United States was administered in the endowment house. General Maxwell, however, carried his contest to Washington according to his notice. He did not accuse Mr. Cannon of rebellion during Mr. Buchanan's time, but persisted in his charge of the "endowment oath," as he had against Mr. Hooper, with the additional charge of his having conspired with Brigham Young and others to intimidate voters, under threats of death if they did not vote for him; and also charged him with living in polygamy in " violation of the laws of God and his country," with four wives. At the opening of the Forty- third Congress, Maxwell was present, and with some friends to help him, en- deavored to create an influence among members adverse to the delegate elect. When the members were being sworn in, he succeeded in inducing Mr. Merriam, of New York, to introduce a resolution into the House embodying in brief his charges against Mr. Cannon. According to the rules of the House, one objec- tion offered by a member, can prevent the swearing in of another, until it is dis- posed of by the House. He tlierefore had to step aside until the other delegates were sworn in; then the resolution came up for discussion. The leading men of both political parties spoke against the resolution. The reading of his certificate of election was demanded, and as it stated that his vote was over 20,000 above his opponent's, it created a sensation. It was clear, according to all precedents, and the rules of the House, that he had a strong prima facie case, and was fully entitled to his seat. On motion, the resolution was tabled, only one dissenting voice being heard, and Delegate Cannon was sworn in. Every effort was made by the contestant Maxwell, during that session, to get him unseated, but, the committee on elections, by unanimous vote, decided that Maxwell was not entitled to the seat, and by a like vote declared that Cannon was. Upon all subjects connected with the Mormon question, there is great sen- 1 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 6oi sitiveness and timidity manifested by members of Congress. They are strongly adverse to putting themselves on record in such a manner as to expose them to the charge of being favorable to Mormonism : therefore, when a resolution was introduced by a member by the name of Hazelton, appointing a committee to investigate the Maxwell charges, though many were opposed to it, it received a majority vote. Action, however, was not had upon it during that session, and in the second session of that Congress, although the matter was pushed, in com- mittee, to the extent of recommending a resolution to "exclude" the delegate, it was never considered by the House. To the foregoing general sketch may be appended the following very inter- esting notes of that date, from the diary of a Mormon leader, who was sent to Washington to assist Delegate Hooper in his unexpired term, and to prepare the way for Delegate Cannon's work in the next Congress. ^^ January 28th, iSjj. — The amendment which Brother Hooper made to the Colorado Bill for the admission of Utah, with Sargent's amendment for the pro- hibition of polygamy, etc., came up to-day. He had heard that a bitter discus- sion would be evoked, so he tried to withdraw his amendment, having obtained Mr. Sargent's consent thereto. But Coghlan of California objected. He after- wards consented to withdraw. Then Negley of Pennsylvania renewed the amend- ment. He was induced to withdraw ; and then Merriam of New York renewed again. Claggett of Montana was charged for the occasion, and as it was known he was very bitter against Utah, and would attack her savagely, our enemies wanted to fire him off. Several members had each five or ten minutes granted them by Taffe of Nebraska who had the floor ; he also gave Claggett five minutes. He ful- filled expectations in the fierceness and brutality of his attack. The five minutes ended, the House gave him five minutes more. Still eager to hear more of his brutal and slanderous abuse, they gave him three minutes more — ostensibly thir- teen minutes, but really upwards of twenty minutes. There were numbers of men on the floor who had been to Utah, who, if they knew anything, must have known he told falsehoods and misrepresented the people ; but no voice was raised to cor- rect his statements, to check the torrent of the vile stream of vituperation which flowed from his lips ; not even to refuse to grant him more time to the extent he desired, though one objection was all that was necessary to stop him under the rules. The fact is the modern politician is a moral coward. He has not the courage to defend a weak, unpopular side, especially if the question of ' Mor- monism ' be involved. They are as afraid of being suspected of having any sym- pathy with that, as they would be of the contagion of the smallpox. The truth is there is no sympathy between them and it — between vice and purity — error and truth, fraud and honesty. I am disgusted with them. Col. Sam. Merritt of Idaho, who resides in Utah, was evidently pleased with the performance. I afterwards went to where he and Kendall of Nevada — a man whom our people's vote helped to elect — were sitting talking, and told them a little of my mind. I was indignant. Kendall soon moved off to his seat. I talked plainly to Merritt and made him acknowledge that statements made by Claggett were false. ^^ Jan. 2gih. — By appealing to the House Captain Hooper succeeded in ob- taining half an hour to deliver his speech in. As he finished Claggett jumped up 35 6o2 HIS TOR Y OF SAL T LAKE CI 7 V. and requested ten minutes for reply. Then succeeded a scene which I scarcely ever saw paralleled in Congress. The members gathered around him and listened to him with great interest. When his ten minutes were exhausted, cries of ' go on, go on,' were heard from all sides. Time was granted him to continue, not an objection being made. Oh, it was pleasure to many to hear the ' Mormons ' de- nounced, to hear Brigham Young villified and Utah held up to public odium, and execration ! He had not finished his tirade when his tmie again expired. Again his time was renewed; but on motion of Mr. Cox of New York, on the condition that the Delegate of Utah have five minutes to reply. With these extraordinary evidences of sympathy from his audience Claggett was greatly fired up. They were ready to swallow every thing he might say. He gave his imagination reign ; he reveled in his false descriptions of affairs in Utah and closed with a sensational C-ttack upon the marriage institution of Utah; and when he closed members and galleries joined in hearty applause, unchecked by the Speaker. " Brother Hooper commenced to reply ; but the interest was ended. No one listened to him. Members all scattered to their seats and engaged in conversation, writing, etc. He labored through his time and requested more time ; but this was refused, Bird of New Jersey, a democrat, making objections. He asked as a boon the privilege of printing his remarks. This was not objected to ; so by their silence it was assumed by the Speaker that he could print the lemarks he wished to make. "Fifteen minutes by a self-possessed, good debater, well posted in Utah affairs, would only be required before an audience who would listen and judge fairly to utterly demolish Claggett's fictions and sophistry and lay them bare to the country. " Monday, Feb. jd, iSyj. — President Grant was waited on by Claggett and Merritt of Idaho, and Negley of Pennsylvania, on last Saturday to represent the terrible condition of affairs in Utah, and ask for action. Grant is reported to have said that ' the final issue with Utah cannot be avoided.' "Feb. 4th. — Yesterday, President Grant went to the Capitol. His unusual presence there excited surprise and comment. It was soon noised about that Utah affairs had called him there. He had interviews with the judiciary committees of the Senate and House, and told them that there must be legislative action on Utah. He appeared to be resolved to get some bill passed that would enable his myrmidons to carry out the course o^ tyranny and oppression entered upon by McKean, and in pursuance of which, as the latter said, by the express wish and approbation of President Grant, he had been checked by the Supreme Court. Grant is reported to have said, if the 4th of March came without legislation, he would put his troops into Utah and nail the thing by that means. What he would do with his troops, of course his hearers were left to imagine. Wednesday, jth. — Merritt of Idaho presented a memorial to the House yes- terday from a number of lawyers of the Salt Lake City bar, setting forth the in- adequacy of the laws of Utah, their hurtful tendency, their opposition to the genius of the Government, and the disloyal sentiments and actions of the Leg- islative Assembly of Utah, and asking for Congressional action. He also intro- duced a bill to promote justice in the Territories, etc., which had all the hateful HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 603 features of the Voorhees Bill framed and introduced against us. The "i^assage of such a bill would put the lives, the liberties and the property of the Latter-day Saints at the nicrcy of the ring of United States officials and their satellites, and open wide the doors for every species of corruption to flow in unchecked. We found by comparing the references made in the memorial to the laws with the laws themselves, that they have quoted laws which have been repealed, they have quoted as laws of Utah extracts which have no existence, they have garbled laws, and they have left out the context of laws. The whole is a tissue of misrepresen- tation and falsehood. This is the constant practice of our enemies — to lie and misrepresent. But will Congress be enlightened? Does the President of the United States want us sacrificed? There are those who would hive no sentiment of pity for us, if they knew that we were innocent of the charges made against us. There are those who if the truth were laid before them, would not take the trouble to examine it and satisfy themselves about the matter in a proper manner. We must, however, do the best we can and leave the event with the Lord. He is a friend who never has, nor ever will forsake His people. I have felt tranquil and joyous this week, I have no fears or apprehensions, though humanly speaking, the prospects are threatening. This is a time concerning which the Prophets Joseph and Brigham and others have spoken — the time when we would have the Government arrayed against us as in a national capacity, as towns, counties and States had done in their spheres. If the bills framed against U5 should any of them pass, it would be as gross a violation of the Constitution and the spirit of the Government as the acts of the mobs in Missouri and Illinois. It would be nothing more than the law of might. I feel that the Lord will provide a sacrifice in our stead, as he did the ram in the thicket when Isaac was bound and laid upon the altar. " Friday, "^th. — To-day we got a printed copy of the bill introduced by Mr. Frelinghuysen of New Jersey into the Senate. It is similar to the Merritt Bill. They will have them grinding at both ends so that there may be no delays about the passage. Our enemies are sure of catching us this time. Mr. Sam. Merritt said to-day, so I was told, that on Monday next the Judiciary Committee would meet to take his bill into consideration ; they would report it to the House, as they had the right to do at any time under the vote of the House last Monday, and the House would pass it. Mr. Sam. Merritt does not take the Almighty into account at all. These are transactions with which, in his opinion, he has nothing to do. But we shall see. Oh, Lord, defeat these men in their wicked and bloodthirsty schemes, and save those who put their trust in Thee, for Thou alone can save — Thou alone hast pity for us : I ask this in the name of Jesus. Amen. ''Feb. II. — The agent of the associated press at Salt Lake City is the cham- pion liar in his class. Every day we have a batch of inflammatory and lying dis- patches from there, sent with a view to influence Congress in our case. The House Judiciary Committee meet to-day to discuss the Merritt bill. Efforts have been made to get an opportunity to make an oral argument before them ; but the chairman, Judge Bingham, would not consent. He was, however, induced to say that if Mr. Fitch, who had written a legal argument against the bill, would attend the me:ting this morning, he might have time accorded him. Mr. Fitch was 6o4 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. there and had about ten minutes given him. The other members would have liked to have heard Mr. Fitch longer ; but Bingham was evidently anxious to have him stop, though he complimented him on his written argument which he said he had read. "Butler, of Massachusetts, in speaking of the plan proposed in the bill for the summoning of juries, said that when he was in the army they got up a case against him at Baltimore, and the United States marshals summoned the jury. He found among the jurors three men whom he had had in irons ! ^' Feb. ijth. — At the House to-day I was told in confidence that President Grant had a message in course of preparation on Utah which would probably be sent in to-morrow. It would ask for legislative action so that Utah might be put under the civil power, (Grant assuming, I suppose, that it is not so at present,) or he would be under the necessity of putting it under the military. " Feb. 14th. — Before going to bed last night I asked the Lord to give me a dream, my mind being occupied with what I had been told concerning Grant's message. He heard my prayer. I dreamed that a company of brethren were as- sembled, who were dressed in uniform. I was among them, and was one of the officers. We were expecting an attack from an enemy, who was formidable in numbers and equipments, and whom we were looking for every minute. They were moving upon us, I thought, with rifled-cannon, improved fire-arms and am- munition, and in great force. I thought we were drawn up in line to receive them. In falling into line with the other officers, I thought I got into one of the most exposed positions. I was aware of it, and saw from the direction of the enemy I should be hit before some of those near me could be reached, as my body covered, in military parlance, theirs. We were nerved up. expecting each moment the shock of battle. There was no flinching. I thought my position a very exposed one, and I seemed to take in all its danger and to feel that a volley of grape and canister would be likely to hit me ; I was nerved up and had a feeling of sus- pense that was intense, such as a man might have who expected the next second the attack of a desperate foe. While in this frame of mind all at once we found the enemy had disappeared. How they had gone and where they had gone, I do not now remember; but the reaction when I knew they had gone, was as great and real as it seems to me it could possibly be if it were a scene in real life. We felt we had been brought face to face with death and had escaped, and praise and thanksgiving filled our hearts. I then awoke and thanked the Lord for the com- fort conveyed to me in the dream. The message was brought in, as my informant fold me it would be, but was not read. The New York Herald of this morning gives an account of a conversation that Claggett and Merritt had with Grant ; they urged him to send a message to Congress. The prospects look threatening. But God reigns, and as General Grant seems disposed to emulate the example of Pharaoh of old, we shall see whether he will beany more successful than Pharaoh was. I have no doubt but that the Lord will make Grant's wrath a cause of praise to him. "The message appeared in the morning papers, and whether it was on this account, or some other, when read in the House to-day it fell like a wet blanket upon the members. I never saw a document read which appeared to attract less HISTORY OF SAL T LAKE CITY. 60s attention than did this. I was around all day conversing as I had opportunity with members. A better feeling prevails than I could expect under the circum- stances. Senator Pool of North Carolina, member of the judiciary committee of the Senate, told me some of the features of the amended Frelinghuysen bill which they had agreed to report. "Feb. 22. — General Sherman, whom Captain Hooper met in the Senate chamber, told hmi that he had said to Grant, with whom he had attended a din- ner party, that his action in relation to Utah was all wrong. For this advocacy of our cause they had laughingly called him a Mormon. " We have a perverse and unscrupulous enemy in John P. Newman, the Sen* ate chaplain. " Feb. 2j. — In the evening I went to the Senate, where Captain Hooper had spent the entire day. The subject of discussion there was the Frelinghuysen bill. It passed a little after midnight on a vote of 29 for and 10 against it. The Dem- ocrats, with Carpenter, Trumbull and Schurz voted against it. It was fought inch by inch by Thurman, Bayard, Carpenter, Trumbull, Casserly, Stewart and Nye ; the bitter speeches made by Logan of Illinois and Windom of Minnesota had a telling effect, though composed of illogical, slanderous and untrue statements. The clause giving the deputy marshals the authority to call on the military when they were threatened with resistance was discussed with ability by Bayard and Trumbull. They denounced this ready appeal to the bayonet to enforce civil process. I felt that the day would yet come when those who were determined to have this feature in the bill would be made to groan under the tyranny of soldiers and be humbled in the dust. The Constitution has fallen into disrepute and the will of the majority has taken its place. '^ March ist. — To-day our enemies in the House were anxious to get up the Frelinghuysen bill, which had passed the Senate, and pass it through the House. They had resolved upon getting it up this evening. All the feelings that I had in my dream I began to experience this evening. There was a time that I awaited its advent as I imagined in my dream that I awaited the shock of battle. I was nerved up in the same way. Claggett acted like a hen that wanted to lay. He was fidgetty and anxious ; a delivery would relieve him. He got the floor and was twice recognized by the Chairman of the Committee of the Whole, Mr. Wheeler, and had his speech prepared, written out and in his hand ; but he was choked off both times ; the first by Mr. Farnsworth introducing an amendment, the last time by General Garfield moving the previous question, despite the remonstrances of Claggett, by which further debate was cut oflf. He intended to commence by speaking on some claim, I was informed, and then branch off on to the Utah question, feeling confident from his past success in getting the ear of the House, that he could secure a hearing again. Merritt had also come down to the front to be near Claggett to support him. As soon as Claggett found that he could not interject his speech in then, he went over to Judge Bingham, of Ohio, chairman of the Judiciary Committee, and had a consultation with him. It was then arranged, as I afterwards learned, that further on in the evening Bingham was to try to get it up. Maxwell was back in Claggett's seat waiting for the on- slaught with great anxiety. Claggett went back and had a talk with him, and 6o6 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. then went off to smoke. In the meantime a collation had been prepared in a com- mittee room down stairs, and some excellent punch, so said, had been furnished. Of this many partook freely, and about midnight the effects were very visible in the noise and confusion which prevailed. Beck, of Kentucky, made a motion to take a recess till 9 o'clock, Monday morning ; other motions to adjourn and take a recess were also made, but with no effect ; they were voted down two to one. Every moment I expected the Frelinghuysen bill to come up. The noise and confusion increased, and finally General Garfield made a motion to take a recess until Monday morning, 9 o'clock — the same motion they had voted down just before — and it was carried. We rejoiced exceedingly. We had another day's grace. We had a quiet Sabbath granted unto us, and I praised the Lord. Mer- ritt afterwards said that we owed our escape to that punch. Bingham had 'got tight,' he said, and they could not trust him to present the matter. Claggett, Merritt, Maxwell & Co. were mad ; but we were gratified. " Monday, March 3rd. — The rules being suspended for the purpose of get- ting through the calendar, there appeared no human possibility of escape, for the Frelin'^huysen bill was on the calendar, low down it was true, but at the rapid rate they were crowding through legislation it could not be long until it was reached. Claggett and Merritt were very active and very gleeful. The latter told me they had got us now, and swore by his maker that they were going m for results now and not for talk. Brother Hooper saw Claggett, and to see how he felt, asked him if he thought the bill would pass. He swore and said that it had to pass, that he would force it through. They, every little while, would go up to the Speaker's desk where the bills lay and examine the pile to see how far it was down. Maxwell and they were in great glee. I did not see how we could escape, but yet I had faith that something would interpose to prevent the passage of the bill; but I did not know what it would be, or how it would be prevented. At 5 p. M. took recess till 7.30, and still it was not reached. I paced up and down within hearing of the business, and called upon the Lord in my heart for that deliverance which I knew that no one but He could give. The exultation of our enemies was unconcealed. In imagination they already had their feet upon our necks. " Two o'clock in the morning of Tuesday came and still they were crowding through bills. There were but two bills to pass, and they could be passed in two or three minutes, and then the Frelinghuysen bill would be reached. Confusion and excitement prevailed, and any attempt to reason upon such a subject, with so great a feeling of hurry prevailing, would be useless. We had done all in our jjower, and only the power of God could now prevent the passage of the bill, fust then the Judiciary Committee brought up the impeachment cases of Judge Delahay, of Kansas, and Judge Sherman, of Ohio. This subject consumed an hour. Three o'clock had come, and still no action on the Frelinghuysen bill. Then members began to present resolutions, bills, etc., upon which they wanted action. Speaker Blaine recognized them, and half an hour was thus consumed. Our enemies, active and urgent, tried to press the Frelinghuysen bill on to the notice of the House, but in vain. I felt faint and hungry, and went down to the restaurant and got a little refreshment, was only absent a few minutes, and when HISTORY OI SALT LAKE CITY. 607 I came up, the House had just taken a recess until 9:30. I was surprised and yet exceeding glad. I thought of my dream again. The dispersion of the members reminded me of the dispersion in the dream. Our enemies were swearing mad. Merritt said we had bribed the Speaker and that "damned old Bingham." Claggett and Maxwell were also furious. " March 4th. — This morning they commenced at the calendar. The two hills were soon passed, then came the Frelinghuysen bill ; but Mr. Sargent, of California, objected to the consideration of so important a bill when there was no quorum present. It was laid aside informally; and from that time until 11:30, when upon motion, it was decided to transact no more legislation, it could not be reached. Business of various kinds was attended to, but that could not be got up. Our enemies were raging. Maxwell said he would take out British papers and be an American citizen no longer. Claggett asserted that we had spent $200^000 on the Judiciary Committee, and Merritt swore that there had been treachery, and we had bribed Congress. But I praised and thanked God, who was our friend and mightier than they all. By seemingly small and insignificant means he had brought to pass marvelous results, and to him all the glory was due. CHAPTER LXX. POLITICAL COALITION OF 1874. JENNINGS FOR MAYOR. ELECTION FOR DEL- EGATE TO CONGRESS IN 1874. BASKIN NOMINATED. ELECTION DAY. U. S, MARSHAL MAXWELL AND HIS DEPUTIES TAKE CHARGE OF I HE DAY AND THE POLLS. TUMULT IN THE CITY. THE CITY POLICE AR- RESTED BY THE U. S. MARSHAL AND HIS DEPUTIES. U. S. DEPUTY MAR- SHAL ORR ARRESTED BY THE POLICE AND IS HABEAS CORPUSED BY JUDGE McKEAN. THE MOB ASSAULT MAYOR WELLS AND TEAR HIS COAT TO PIECES. HE IS RESCUED BY THE POLICE FORCE, AND DOORS OF CITY HALL CLOSED. THE MAYOR APPEARS ON THE BALCONY AND GIVES THE ORDER TO HIS FORCE TO BEAT BACK THE MOB, WHICH IS INSTANTLY DONE. THE SEQUEL. CANNON ELECTED BY A 20,000 MAJORITY AGAINST A 3,300 VOTE OF HIS OPPONENT; BUT BASKIN CONTESTS THE SEAT IN CONGRESS. From its organization, it had been the policy of the Liberal party, in the municipal elections of Salt Lake City, and also the Territorial elections for menv bers to the legislature, to construct their tickets with the names of representative citizens, among whom were some of the founders of our city's commerce. This was obviously sound policy ; for such men as Henry W. Lawrence, J. R. Walker, S. Sharpe Walker and William Jennings were very proper men to fill any of the offices in the municipality or the legislature; but when it came to the election of delegate to Congress, a straight Gentile was always chosen, who had never in any 6o8 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. way been associated with the interests of the Mormon commonwealth, or even with the founding of Utah, Indeed, in the first years of the existence of the Liberal party, the Federal officers, politicians and adventurers, who came to the Territory from about the beginning of 1869, sought the entire rule of Utah ; and they seemed to have had nearly as great an antipathy to those influential seceders, who had been connected with primitive Utah, as to the same class of men who remained inside the Mor- mon community and who, as the People's party, stood a barrier against their political and social encroachments. These leaders of the Liberal party only used the names of such men as J. R. Walker, S. Sharpe Walker, Henry W. Lawrence, W. S. Godbe, Samuel Kahn, Fred Auerbach and such others, for their own ends. Of themselves, there was no account of service whatever standing between them and the city or Territory. In 1870, as before noted, Henry W. Lawrence was chosen to lead the Liberal ticket for mayor of Salt Lake City. He had been sev- eral times a member of the city council ; was once the Territorial marshal ; was one of the founders of the city's commerce, and for many years a prominent man in the Mormon community. In changing from Mayor Wells, had Lawrence re- mained with that community, there was no man in Salt Lake City more likely than he to have been elected its mayor by the People's party. So also, S. Sharp Walker, J. R. Walker or Fred Auerbach would have been elegible at any time for the office of chief magistrate of our municipality in the estimation of all classes, providing their names were unencumbered with the dragon's tail of the Liberal party. Indeed, it would be safe to say that, at any time during the last twelve or fifteen years, had Mr. J. R. Walker been nominated to any office in the gift of the people, on a straight citizens' ticket, aside from both parties, with his personal honor pledged to serve in the spirit of his nomination, he would most likely have been elected without opposition, unless it had come from the Liberal party itself. An example of this was given by the nomination of Mr. S. Sharpe Walker by ac- clamation, at a mass meeting as one of the delegates to the constitutional conven- tion, to which he barely escaped being elected, notwithstanding his published card declining the nomination. Mr Walker's nomination was dissimilar from that of the Gentile nominees, who were chosen for their influence, and experience in politics and State-founding. "Sharp" Walker was chosen purely as one of our prominent citizens and principal men in commerce, finance and the mines of Utah. In the municipal election of 1872, the Liberal party nominated S. Sharpe Walker for mayor. But in 1874, at the municipal election, the managers of the Liberal party changed their tactics and constructed their ticket with Wm, Jennings, for mayor, accompanied with other leading citizens of the Mormon community, whose names were most acceptable, including Feramorz Little, Bishop John Sharp, A. C Pyper and the regular city treasurer and city recorder. The policy of this move, on the part of the Liberal managers, was to present the names of men in the contest who not only were not committed to the Liberal party, either in association or sympathy, but who belonged to the Mormon com- munity, and politically to the People's party. It was thought that by this manoeuver party restraint would be taken from a division of the People's party. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 6og who would vote their preference for Jennings and others, while the Liberal party would come in with a solid vote, suspending their own party ticket for the occa- sion, swelling the split vote of the People's party, and aiming to carry the oppo- sition into office. The same scheme has been tried in the Ogden and Weber county elections, and on one occasion the opposition, with Aaron Farr runnino- against Franklin D. Richards, for the probate judgeship, nearly gained the day. The operation of the scheme was somewhat similar, in the contest between Wm. Jennings and Daniel H. Wells, in the municipal election of 1874, in Salt Lake City. There were four tickets put beiore the public on this occasion, two of which entered the contest. Here follow the tickets with their history and results. The People's ticket, nominated at the mass convention held in the Taber- nacle, January 31 : For mayor, D. H. Wells ; for aldermen, Isaac Groo, George Crismon, Jeter Clinton, John Sharp, A. C. Pyper; for councilors, Brigham Young, Theodore McKean, Albert Carrington, J. R. Winder, Henry Grow, N. H. Felt, David McKenzie^ Feramorz Little, Thomas Williams ; treasurer, Paul A. Schettler ; recorder, Robert Campbell ; marshal, J. D. T. McAllister. The "non Mormon ticket": For mayor, Joseph R. Walker; for aldermen. Dr. J. M. Williamson, Fred. T. Perris, Harvey Hardy, H. C. Goodspeed ; for councilors, John W. Kerr, C. C. Clements, John Lowe, Louis Cohn, R. N. Baskin, Joseph Dyer, Don C. Butterfield, T. D. Brown, John S. Atchison; for marshal, D. R. Firman ; tor treasurer, John Chislett ; for auditor and recorder, Wm. P. Appleby. The Working People's ticket: For mayor, Wm. Jennings ; for aldermen, J. M. Benedict, Fred. T. Perris, N. Groesbeck, H. C, Goodspeed, A. C. Pyper ; for councilors, Adam Speirs, John Lowe, T. D. Brown, L. S. Hills, Elliot Hart- well, T. R. Jones, P. Pugsley, F. Auerbach, A. White ; for marshal, D. R. Fir- man ; for treasurer, Paul A. Schettler ; for recorder, W. P. Appleby. This third ticket seems to have suggested new ideas to the managers of the Liberal party; and, for once, to take advantage of the occasion, they laid aside their anti-Mormon malice and let the sounder judgment of the citizens themselves prevail over the "ring" policy which had hitherto dominated, and the result was a strong ticket composed of representative Mormons, five of whom were on the regular People's ticket. This opposition ticket also bore the regualar name — "The People's Ticket." For mayor, William Jennings; for aldermen, J. M. Benedict, A. Miner, N. Groesbeck, John Sharp, A. C. Pyper; for coun- cilors, L. S. Hills, P. Pugsley, H. P. Kimball, Adam Spiers, Geo. Crismon, E. T. Mumford, R. B. Margetts, Feramorz Little, Thomas Jenkins ; for treasurer, P. A. Schettler; for recorder, Robert Campbell; for marshal, Henry Heath. On Saturday evening, previous to the election on Monday, at the meeting of non-Mormons in the Liberal Institute, it was intimated that there would be a change in the ticket ; and early Monday morning that change was announced in posters circulated throughout the city, signed by all the non-Mormon candidates, declining election, and calling upon their friends to vote the ticket headed by William Jennings for mayor. The election day was full of life, bustle and good humor. At the City Hall the m:iin forces of each party were centred. Here, the noise, bustle and confusion were 6 10 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. intense, yet, withal, the best of feelings prevailed; not a fight nor other disturb- ance occurred. The canvassers for the opposition worked well for their party. Carriages and hacks were kept running all day, taking ladies to the polls, who turned out in greater numbers than ever before at an election in the city. During the day the National band was driven through the city in a wagon, with " For n^ayor, William Jennings," on the sides of it, and flags flying therefrom. At 6:30 P.M , the ballot boxes were returned from the several municipal wards to the City Hall. The mayor directed the recorder to send invitations to Messrs. J. R. Walker, Fred. Auerbach, General P. E. Connor and Captain Bates, to be present to witness the opening of the ballot boxes and the counting of the vote?, in the interest of the opposition. Alderman Pyper, and Messrs John T. Caine, B. H. Schettler, John R. Win- der, T. G. Webber and Paul A. Schettler were invited to assist the recorder in counting the votes. There was a larger vote polled on that election day, for our city officers than ever, either before or since. Daniel H. Wells for Mayor received 3948 votes, and the other names on his ticket similar votes; while Wm. Jennings received 1,677 votes and the others equal, excepting the names which were alike on both tickets, which gave the total of votes: For Alexander C. Pyper, 5:482; John Sharp, 5,477; Feramorz Little, 5,461 ; Paul A. Schettler, treasurer and Robert Campbell, city recorder, similar. It will be seen that Alderman A. C. Pyper received the greatest number of votes ever cast for a member of the Salt Lake City council, and that the opposition ticket was not altogether a failure, having given the very fair minor- ity vote of 1,677, ^'^^ swelled the majority of five men on its ticket to a total greater than was likely to be cast on any one side in our city elections for a quarter of a cen- tury then to come. But this fusion scheme, so far as the Baskin-Maxwell managers were con- cerned, was to make preparation for the August election for delegate to Congress, when it was designed that Baskin should go the next term to contest with Cannon for his seat. It seemed certain to these Liberal leaders that, could they by their scheme carry an opposition into power from the People's party itself, it would induce the minority of that party, for permanence of power and office, to recip- rocate and coalesce with the Liberal party when its turn came to carry their man. Nothing, in fact, was more certain to the subtle, directing brain of R. N. Baskin than that, could he but carry to Congress, if no more than a thousand Mormon votes, secured throughout the Territory by such a scheme to divide political Mor- mondom, his claims in Washington would be greatly enhanced. But the Mormon community, in the August election of the same year, re- ceived another very striking lesson what an anti-lNTormon party, under whatever name, signified to Utah, in every case, whether in success or defeat. That most significant question of the ancients was brought home — " Can the leopard change its spots, or the Ethiopian his skin? " They learned what Eli B. Kelsey discov- ered and declared in 1871, namely : that no division of the Mormon community could coalesce or in any way work with this Liberal party without betraying them- selves, at least, and aiming (though unwittingly) at the betrayal of the entire Mormon people. ^ HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 6ii Having well laid their plans, the Liberal convention was called, by the Lib- eral central committee, to meet in Salt Lake City at the Liberal Institute, July 20, 1874, to nominate a delegate to Congress. There were present at the ap- pointed ti;ne quite a fair assemblage of the ablest men of the party throughout the Territory, especially from the mining camps. The name put forward at first was that of H. W. Lawrence, and he, thou>^h stating his declination to his colleagues, was nominated as " our delegate to Con- gress," to allow the managers to gracefully bring Mr. Baskin to the front without seeming ingratitude to one who had served his party well. Henry W. Lawrence and William S. Godbe had done good service in the building of the Institute, giving birth to the party, and in many other ways, furnishing a while out of their own purse two hundred dollars a week to support the Salt Lake Tribune alone. The nomination was fairly due to Mr. Lawrence; and then it kept up the pleasing fiction that our represesentative citizens, who had grown up with the community, and who had long been the architects of Utah's commonwealth, were not merely used by the politicians for their own purposes. In the dilemma, in which the nomination of Mr. Lawrence had left the con- vention, Judge Haydon came to the help, upon a motion from one of the delegates to make the nomination unanimous. It was against his political principles, the judge said, to force a nomination upon any man, no matter how much he might re- spect hun for his services to the party, etc., etc. He, therefore, objected to the making of the nomination of Mr. Lawrence unanimous. Vent being thus given by Haydon, others found breath, and then Mr. Lawrence insisted upon the con- vention's respect to his repeated refusal of the honor. The business was now clear, and R. N. Baskin was quickly nominated unanimously, not only to contest the election at the polls, but to contest for the delegate's seat in Congress ; such, in- deed, was the duty imposed in the discussion of the day. The convention had done precisely what ic met to do, namely, to send Mr. Baskin to Washington on a mission ; the August election was merely the pathway. Never before had there been such an election as that held on Monday, August 3d, 1S74. The occasion of an election of a delegate to Congress that year, gave to General Maxwell, who was at that time U. S. marshal for the Territory, the power to apply the election " bayonet law," enacted for the reconstruction of the South. He engaged a strong posse of resolute deputy marshals, and it would seem from the development of the action of the day that the purpose was not only to take possession of the polls, but to place the city for one day under the rule of the United States marshal and his deputies, setting aside the mayor and the city police ; hence their action was chiefly directed that day against the police. Promptly the polls were opened at their several precincts and the rush began. At each polling place, besides the city police, were U. S. marshals and challengers for both parties. At the outside precincts there was little trouble, but at the polls at the Fifth Precinct — the City Hall — there was almost a continual row from the opening to the closing. The Liberals concentrated their forces at this point, and from the first they seemed bent on causing trouble of a violent character; for, in- deed, to the populace, the presence of so many deputy marshals under the com- mand of their chief, taking such an active and belligerent part could have no 6i2 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE C12Y. other meaning, to thos3 who desired it, than as a spur to conflict with a promise of armed aid from the U. S. authorities, as the glittering revolvers of the deputy marshals were repeatedly displayed during the day, and that too as against the city police. Every man in that crowd which surrounded the City Hall, knew that Marshal Maxwell and his deputies signified an armed force engaged in the action of that election, and being so that conflict was invited between the People's Party and the Liberal Party, other than that which was going on at the polls in the elec- tor casting his citizen's vote. There could have been no other intent than such a conflict, or at least than a desire to make a strongly pronounced demonstration of the authority and power of a U. S. marshal and his force if he so pleased to call it into action. The voting power on the side of the People's Party who elected George Q. Cannon with over a 20,000 majority, as against Baskin's 3,300 votes polled for him throughout the Territory, renders it absurd to imagine that an armed force of U. S. marshals were needed to protect Mr. Baskin's interest and hold the city in awe for a day. Certain is it in any view of the case that many turbulent spirits interpreted the action of that election day, under the direction of the U. S. marshal and his deputies, to signify an intent of personal and vigorous con- flict, not only between the two classes of citizens, but also between the marshals and the police. At times, around the City Hall, a general melee was imminent, and it was only owing to the prompt and sturdy action of the police that a mob fight did not occur. The first arrest made was that of a Mr. Alhum, who was put in jail by police- man Philips for disturbing the peace, using profane language and assaulting an officer. Almost immediately Mr. Philips was taken into custody by a deputy marshal and marched before U. S. Commissioner Toohy. Captain Burt and policeman Andrew Smith soon afterwards were escorted to the same place, when they were held in bonds of $300 to appear before the commissioner on the fol- lowing Wednesday and answer to the charge of interfering with the election. Next Deputy Marshal Orr interfered with officer Philips when in the performance of his duty of keeping the peace of the city, and the latter locked Orr in the city jail, where be remained, however, but a short time as a ready writ of habeas cor- pus from Chief Justice McKean released the deputy. Finally, after numerous trifling brushes in which no one was badly hurt, the mob became almost unman- ageable. At this time Mayor Wells was standing in the door-way of the City Hall, when he was seized by some of the mob, and was struck and kicked in a shameful manner. In his struggle to release himself the Mayor's coat was torn to pieces, and it was only with difficulty that the mob was beaten back and the Mayor rescued. The rush at the polls was now so great that it became necessary ro close the main entrance. In the meantime the Mayor appeared on the balcony, read the riot act and commanded the police to restore order, and drive the crowd back from the doors. The order was instantly obeyed, and in the beating back several men received some severe cuts about the head and face. After that there were no more fights of a serious character, though numerous assaults occurred till the closing of the polls at sunset. Immediately a deputy marshal, on a warrant issued by Commissioner Toohy, senior judge of the election, arrested Justice Clinton on a charge of ordering the arrest of Deputy Marshal Orr ; and Captain HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 613 Burt and policemen Hampton, Philips, Ringwood, Crow and Livingston were also arrested on charges of arresting the said Orr in the performance of his duty. They were all marched before the commissioner at the U. S. marshal's office, and placed under bonds, ranging from $30010 $1,000 to appear on the following Wednesday for examination. Next morning the Mayor of the city was arrested and brought before Commissioner Toohy and bound over to appear on the fol- lowing Thursday, his bonds being $1,000. The police were in the sequel dis- charged from custody, the commissioner holding that the policemen did their duty in taking Album into custody for violence and disturbing the peace. The Mayor was also relieved from his bond, for the cool judgment of the better class of the Liberal party appreciated that the Mayor and his officers had simply performed their duty, while the U. S. marshal and his deputies had exceeded theirs in pre- suming to attempt to take the control of the city out of the hands of its lawful guardians, instead of confining their duties to the maintenance of the citizens' rights at the polls, and the prevention of the casting of unlawful votes. Indeed, the difficulties of that election day grew not out of any interruption of voting the Liberal ticket, but in the action between the U. S. marshal and his deputies in arresting the police in their efforts to keep the peace of the city. It was at this juncture that the mob assaulted the mayor as he stood in thedoorway of the passage of the City Hall, and assaulted him, too, simply because he was the mayor ; and, when the mayor appeared on the balcony, voices from the same class in the mob cried, " Shoot him ! shoot him !" with other like exclamations. But Mayor Wells had read the riot act ; and all concerned were quickly taught that the Mayor and his force were the guardians of the city and its peace, notwithstanding a special act of Congress, made for the South in the reconstruction, gave to U. S. marshals a certain authority on election day at the polls to Sv.'e that no citizen was hindered in freely casting his vote. That neither the candidates, Baskin nor Marshal Maxwell, really expected any hindrance from the ma) or or the police, or indeed from any one of the People's party managers is certain. At the election in February, in the city, three times as many votes were polled for Jennings as those for Baskin, and two- thirds as many as were cast for him in the entire Territory ; yet was there no hindrance to the opposition, which the Liberal party by uniting with it had made quite formidable. The day, though spirited, abounded with humor and good feel- ing. Mormon lads approached Mayor Wells, as he came along the street towards the City Hall, and, with their traditional respect for the leader scarcely over- powered by the. mischief of the time, offered him the opposition ticket, crying, "Vote for Jennings." But on this election day hostile hands fell upon the mayor. In fine, the sharp history of the election day of August, 1874, for dele- gate to Congress is that Salt Lake City for a day was put under U. S. marshals, so that the contestant Baskin might perchance be able to tell Congress the story of the resistance of Mormon authorities to U. S. officers while executing an act of Congress to protect and aid the citizen in the exercise of his suffrage; and all this, too, after blood had been shed and the nation shocked with the news of a " Danite slaughter." Such an opportunity was nearly won for the contest- ant, whether aimed for or not. Had those cries from his supporters been an- 6(4- HISTORY OF SALT L 4KE CIT\. swered with a pistol utterance — "Shoot him ! shoot him ! " when Mayor Wells appeared, and from the balcony of the City Hall read the riot act — answered in the manner of the rioters who fell upon the mayor at the door of the City Hall, beating him and tearing his his coat in shreads, the press dispatches that night would doubtless have told a story of horrors. CHAPTER LXXI. THE FALL- OF JUDGE McKEAN. THE ANN ELIZA SUIT AGAINST BRIGHAM YOUNG. ALIMONY AND LAWYER'S FEES GRANTED PENDING THE DECISION. THE HEAD OF THE MORMON CHURCH SENT TO THE PENITENTIARY FOR CON- TEMPT OF COURT, THE PUBLIC CENSURE COMPELS PRESIDENT GRANT TO REMOVE JUDGE McKEAN FROM OFFICE. The iiih of March, 1875, "^^'^^ ^"^ ^^ ^^^ marked days in the history of Salt Lake City, and a fated day to James B, McKean. The case of Ann Eliza Young vs. Brigham Young was resumed, on an order to show cause why defendant should not be punished for contempt in disobeying the order of February 25th, requiring him to pay ^3,000 to plaintiff's counsel. The defendant, with his counsel, ap- peared in court to answer to a warrant of attachment. His counsel represented that the defendant was in ill-healih ; and asked the court that he might be per- mitted to withdraw from the room — either on his own recognizance or on a suffi- cient bond — during the argument on the order to show cause. The judge refused to grant the request and the hearing proceeded. Mr. Williams, of the defendant's counsel, read the answer to the order to show cause, which answer set forth that the defendant, advised by his counsel " believes that he is by law entitled to an appeal from said order and decree ; " that " an appeal has been taken and perfected from the said order and decree, to the supreme court of said Utah Territory;" that " this respondent disclaims all intention or disposition to disregard or treat contemptuously the said order and decree or any process of the said court; " "and prays to be hence discharged, and that further proceedings for the execution of said order and decree, for the payment of said fees and alimony, be stayed until the determination of said appeal in the said supreme court." Long arguments ensued by Hempstead for the defendant, and Hagan and McBride for plaintiff. At the close the chief justice read the following order: " This court having, on the 25th day of February last, made an order in this cause, ordering and adjudging that defendant herein should pay alimony and sus- tenance, the former within twenty and the latter within ten days thereafter, and the defendant having disobeyed the said order in this, that he has refused to pay the sustenance therein ordered to be paid ; and the defendant liaving been brought HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. dij before the court by warrant of attachment in order to show cause, and having in writing and by counsel, shown such cause as he and they have chosen to present to the court ; and the court holding and adjudging that the execution of the said order of the 25th day of February last, can be stayed only by the order of this or some other court of competent jurisdiction ; "It is, therefore, because of the facts and premises, ordered and adjudged, that the defendant is guilty of disobedience to the process of this court, and ii therein guilty of contempt of court. "And since this court has not one rule of action where conspicuous, and another where obscure, persons are concerned ; and since it is a fundamental prin- ciple of the Republic that all men are equal before the law; and since this court desires to impress this great fact, this great law, upon the minds of all the people of this Territory ; now, therefore, because of the said contempt of court, it is further ordered and adjudged that the said Brigham Young do pay a fine of twenty- five dollars, and that he be imprisoned for the term of one day. " Done in open court, this nth day of March, 1875. " Jas. B. McKean, " Chief Jusiice, etc., and Judge of the Third District Court.'''' McBride asked that the order be made so as to require the defendant to re- main in jail till the counsel fees were paid. The court said he would let the future take care of itself. President Young appeared in court at 10 o'clock am, and notwithstanding his ill health, there he sat till he was escorted out by Deputy U. S. Marshal Smith, at one o'clock. The great founder of Salt Lake City manifested not the slightest un- easiness or excitement during the proceedings, and when he was adjudged guilty of contempt of court, and sentenced to fine and imprisonment in the penitentiary, he was not disconcerted in the least. Probably he anticipated what was coming and was prepared for it. Indeed the native greatness of Brigham Young never appeared more striking than on these several occasions when he sat in the presence of Chief Justice McKean waiting for judgment. He was the " Lion of the Lord" still — but the lion in absolute repose. Sitting a prisoner in the court, he was, in the sight of his people, superior to the court; in the presence of the judge in- comparably greater than the judge. McKean himself, in his way, was painfully conscious of this vast superiority of Brigham Young, and his overwhelming pres- ence in lion-like repose in his court. This was illustrated in McKean's extraordi- nary opinion, in which he declared that a system was on trial in the person of Brigham Young ; and his decision now bore a manifested consciousness that he was sending " the Mormon Moses " to the penitentiary, for contempt of his court. The paltry fine of $25.00 was as nothing to this judge who had refused half a mil- lion for the prisoner's bail; but that one day of Brigham Young in the peniten- tiary, for a cause which rested directly between himself and the prisoner — con- tempt — was to the judge as an epoch in his own life; and so, indeed, it was des- tined to be. The court took a recess soon after the order had been pronounced. Mr. James Jack, President Young's chief clerk, paid to the plaintiff's attorneys the three thousand dollars. Deputy Smith took charge of the prisoner and escorted him to 6i6 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. I he President's own carriage, which was in attendance, and drove him to his resi- dence, where President Young ate his dinner, procured such clothing, bedding, etc., as he required for a night in jail, and in the midst of a severe snow storm was then taken to the penitentiary by Dr. Smith, the deputy marshal. Mayor Daniel H. Wells, Dr. S. B. Young and Mr. Rossiter accompanied them and re- mained at the warden's house. Arrived at the penitentiary, President Young was locked in the only cell at the institution, with a dozen or more convicted criminals, and men awaiting trial for alleged crimes. However, he was held in that place only a short time, when he was furnished a room attached to the warden's quarters, where he spent the night. Many of the President's friends drove out to the penitentiary in the after- noon and a considerable number remained in the vicinity all night. President Young's prison quarters were comparatively comfortable, and he was treated by Dr. Smith with &uch courtesies as were consistent with the gentleman's official duties, and the circumstances of the case would permit. On Friday, March 12th, 1875, ^^ ^^^ expiration of "the day" the doors of the penitentiary were thrown open, and the founder of Salt Lake City walked out a free man. He was escorted to the city by a number of friends who went out to see him. When the news of the incarceration of Brigham Young in the penitentiary spread throughout the city there was considerable excitement, but not the slighest demonstration of violent resistance to the judicial tyranny on the part of any one, none going farther than to express indignation at the course of Judge McKean in imprisoning a nian of seventy-four years of age and in feeble health, for so slight an offense, when none was intended, as the defendant's counsel had shown. Out- side of a certain clique, the act of sending Brigham Young to the penitentiary on an iniquitious suit, which he, the judge, had fostered, was denounced as an un- jjaralleled outrage. The intelligent portion of the community— even those openly opposed to the religious system of which Brigham Young was the head — were unanimous in the verdict that though McKean may have been technically justified by the law, he was guilty of an unchristianlike and unfeeling act. But James B. Mckean had at length provoked his own doom ; and the thun- derbolt came from the hand of the man who had appointed him, and who had upheld him so long. The following telegram called the " Halleujah," from the pent up hearts of a hundred and fifty thousand Utah peofile. " Washington 16. — The President has nominated Isaac C. Parker of Mis- souri, chief justice of Utah, vice McKean ; and Oliver A. Patten, of West Vir- ginia, register of the land office at Salt Lake City. The nomination of ex-Con- gressman Parker, of Missouri, to be chief justice of Utah, involves the removal of Judge McKean, but does not indicate any change in the policy of the admin- tration regarding the question of polygamy. The removal and that of the present register of the land office in Salt Lake, are caused by what the President deems the fanatical and extreme conduct on the part of these officers as evidenced by their violent attacks on Governor Axtell and certain senators who recommended his appointment, and by several acts of McKean which are considered ill-advised, tyrannical and in excess of his powers as judge." HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 617 Here may be supplemented several clippings from the reviews of influential papers of America of the fated cause that brought Judge McKean himself to judg- ment. The New York Post said : " After more than six months' deep study his Honor, Chief Justice McKean has given his decision in the case of ' Ann Eliza against Brigham Young,' for 2i}i\- vAowy pendente lite for divorce. It is embraced in two closely printed columns of a Salt Lake newspaper, which a correspondent, who sends us a copy of it, writes that he confesses his inability to comprehend. But therein the judge evinces his wisdom. If his opinion were written in the language of the Utes or Sioux he could not be so successful in disguising his reasoning, those aboriginal tongues not being adapted to the concealment of thought by verbiage. Only one thing is clear — that is, that the plaintiff is to have her law expenses paid and ^500 monthly ^Sxvaoxiy pendente lite. Thus in order to deplete Brigham's bank account the judge repudiates his own principles and infringe upon the law against polygamy, which he has heretofore so strenuously maintained. By this law a man can have but one wife. Brigham Young fought his case ' on this line,' proving that he was married to Mary Ann Angell, his still living wife, on January 10, 1834. By the law of Congress made especially for Utah, and by the common law of the land, any other woman taken by him to his bed and board after his first legal marriage is not his wife. This is the very point that Judge McKean has heretofore considered it his special mission to establish. " But now comes Mrs. Ann Eliza Webb, and on the 6ih of April, 1868, (Brigham Young having previously taken to himself, unlawfully, seventeen other women) and according to the laws of the Mormon Church becomes his nine- teenth wife, or, according to the laws of the United States, his eighteenth concu- bine. Married according to the rules of that church, she knew what they were. They expressly permit a woman to claim divorce at any time, without alimony. Connecting herself with Brigham in what Judge McKean has always rightly de- clared to be an illicit way, she renders herself, as well as Brigham, liable to crim- inal prosecution. By his decision the judge recedes from his own principles, and may fairly be hailed by the Mormon Church as a convert to the doctrine of polygamy." Here is the way the San Francisco Bulletin goes after his Honor, and the alimony /^////(f/?/,? lite opinion : "The suit of Ann Eliza Young against Brigham Young for divorce, and the rulings in the case made by Judge McKean, will be likely to attract much atten- tion ; not only for the social aspects of the case, but on account of the legal questions raised. " The petitioner set forth that Brigham Young was in receipt of an income of not less than ^40,000 a month, or ^480,000 a year, and asked that ^1,000 a month might be assigned for her support. Subsequently, on a motion made by her counsel, the court ordered that Brigham Young should pay over about ^3,000 to aid Ann Eliza in prosecuting her suit for divorce. Young hesitated to comply with this order, and the court inflicted a fine and ordered that he should be im- prisoned twenty-four hours after Young had paid over the ^3,000 to the clerk of 37 6i8 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. the court. Young disclaimed any intention of committing a con.empt, but desired to raise the question of his liability before a higher court By this ruling Judge McKean assumes that Anna Eleza was actually married to Brigham Young, when all the facts show she was never legally married to him, and could not be, from the very nature of the case. " Brigham Young was legally married to Mary Ann Angell, atKirtland, Ohio, June loth, 1834. This woman has never been divorced, is still alive, living at Salt Lake City, as the acknowledged wife of Brigham Young. There is no con- troversy about these facts. How, then, could Anna Eliza at any time since be the lawful wife of Brigham Young? When Judge McKean assumes that this woman is the wife of Young, makes an interlocutory decree granting her $3,000 to main- tain a suit for divorce, when there never was a legal marriage, and commits Voung for contempt because he hesitates long enough to raise the question of the legality of the order, he burns some strange fire on the altar of justice. "Ann Eliza knew that she could not lawfully marry Brigham Young. She deserted her own husband for the purpose of cohabiting with Young, and at a subsequent date, we believe, procured a divorce from her former husband by the aid of the probate court of Utah. This woman lived with Young a year or more without any ground of complaint. The relation, according to her own admis- sion, was a satisfactory one, and might have been to this day, had Young devoted himself exclusively to her. The former, in the pleadings, sets up the one legal marriage in Ohio, and that the relation between himself and petitioner was only that known to the church as a celestial or plural marriage, and one, of course, not known to the law outside of the peculiar ordinances of the Latter-day Church. If there was no legal marriage it follows that there can be no legal divorce, and there is not a court outside of Utah which would decree the validity of such a marriage. We are not seeking to extricate Brigham Young from his difficulties. If he is caught in his own net he is not entitled to any sympathy. He has lived a long time in defiance of law — in fact has been a law unto himself, and has lived in de- fiance of the highest authority known to the nation. But there is nothing in the case as presented by Ann Eliza calling either for relief or special sympathy. She consented to cohabit with Young unlawfully, and would have sustained that relation until this time if Young had not made more conquests and added others to his conjugal circle. It is a reproach to the coun- try that Young was not long ago dealt with squarely on the ground that every po- lygamous marriage is a crime. But an oblique and cunning interpretation of law which assumes that to be a marriage which was no marriage, only a scandal- ous cohabitation, is not a straightforward way out of the difficulty. Instead of taking the bull by the horns, it is an attempt to grasp him by the tail. There is another phase of the case which cannot escape notice. When Ann Eliza Young takes to the platform and recites her assumed wrongs in the ears of the public, it is competent for the public to inquire whether she makes out any case calling for special sympathy. The evils which she suffered were incident to the social economy which was good enough for her so long as she could supplant the lawful wife of Brigham Young. What were the evils which this wife suffered? HISTORY 01 SALT LAKE CITY. 6ig Ann Eliza, who now seeks to make merchandise out of her illegal relations with Brigham Yonng, entered into that relation in mature years, and after she had been lawfully married to another man. As a social reformer she does not present any striking or salient features. Nor can her contribution to platform literature be very attractive to right minded people. If the three thousand dollars which Judge McKean has awarded as alimony/^;;^if«/^ lite was in the nature of a fine legally inflicted upon Brigham Young instead of a blunder, the first step toward justice might have been taken in the case." The Chicago Times thus treats the c ui tempt judgment : "Judge McKean, of the United States district court of Utah, yesterday had Brigham Young arraigned for contempt in neglecting to pay over the attorney's fees in the divorce suit of one of his concubines, Ann Eliza. Papers for an ap- peal from Judge McKean's decision had been filed by Brigham's lawyers, and bonds had been given for the payment of both the attorney's fees and the alimony allowed by the court, but notwithstanding this the Prophet was found guilty of contempt, fined twenty-five dollars, and sent to the penitentiary for twenty-four hours. The proceeding is a somewhat extraordinary one. I": is customary, when an appeal has been taken and bonds filed for the faithful performance of the verdict of a court; to hold judgments in abeyance until the appeal is at least ar- gued. This summary method of dealing with the Prophet looks very much like persecution, and will awaken sympathy for him instead of aiding the cause of justice." Instead of the Hon. Isaac C. Parker, being appointed chief justice, it turned out to be the Hon. David P. Lowe, of Fort Scott, Kansas The new chief jus- tice was an honest, straightforward man, a good lawyer, and an upright judge, who would not lend himself to any system of fraud or injustice, and, in the case of Ann Eliza, he determined that the order for alimony should be expunged from the record. But this did not occur, however, until its victim had been imprisoned, and had paid over |4,ooo for counsel fees, and two months' alimony. Ex-Prosecuting Attorney Bates, summarizing the McKean period, says ; •' The five years of judicial mal administration of McKean in Utah may be summarized as follows : " ist. — $100,000, of United States public money, belonging to the Depart- ment of Justice, have been squandered there. " 2d. — No Mormon has ever been convicted, during that period, of any of- fense against the laws of the Territory, or of the United States, except : " 3d. — The case of the United States vs. Geo. Reynolds, for polygamy, where the verdict of guilty was found by a jury, nine of whom were Mormon polyg- amists ; and the witnesses who furnished all the evidence, including the plural wife herself, were all polygamists — which case is expected to go to the Supreme Court of the United States, where the validity of the Act of 1862 will be finally settled, as it would have been in 1872, had not the plan then agreed upon been frustrated by the Federal officials in Utah. "4th. — These illegal prosecutions, including the false imprisonment of 620 HJS TOR Y OF SALT LAKE CI 7 ¥' Brigham Young and the leaders of the people, have cost them in counsel fees, loss of time, and injuries to their business, at least $500,000. " 5th. — The panic and alarm created thereby in the States of the Union, and the fear of a collision between the authorities and the Mormon people have driven or kept away millions of dollars of capital." CHAPTEP LXXIII. THE PRESIDENTIAL VISIT TO SALT LAKE CITY. FEDERAL OFFICERS AND GENTILES CLAIM THE HONOR OF RECEIVING THE PRESIDENT; BUT THE CITY FATHERS CHARTER A SPECIAL TRAIN AND "PIONEER" THE PRESI- DENTIAL TRAIN TO OUR CITY. MEETING BETWEEN U. S. GRANT AND BRIGHAM YOUNG. CHARACTER MARKS. LONG FAMILIAR CHAT ON THE WAY BETWEEN MRS. GRANT AND BRIGHAM. PUBLIC RECEPTION GIVEN TO THE CITIZEN. VISIT TO TEMPLE BLOCK. MRS. GRANT WEEPS FOR "THESE GOOD MORMON PEOPLE." THE DEPARTURE. GRANT TOUCHED BY THE TRIBUTE OF THE MORMON SUNDAY SCHOOLS TO HIM AS PRESI- DENT. " I HAVE BEEN DECEIVED." The visit of President Grant to Salt Lake City, in the early part of October, 1875, ^^s ^" auspicious event, as it greatly corrected his views, and created quite a revulsion in his mind favorable to the Mormon people. Indeed, it would seem, from what is rehearsed of the expressions of the President and his wife relative to the Mormon people, that had this visit occurred in 1869, with the same party sur- roundings, in the place of the Colfax visit of that date, our local history of the last five years would have been markedly different from what it was. The presidedtial party consisted of the President and Mrs. Grant, Col. Fred Grant and wife. General O. E. Babcock, ex-Secretary of the Navy Adolph E. Borie, wife and daughter, and Governor Thayer of Wyoming. The Federal officers and non-Mormon citizens claimed the honor of receiving the President of the United States. A meeting was called at the Federal Court House, and a committee of ten, headed by Governor Emery, was appomted to meet the President and his party, and extend to them the hospitality of the Federal officers and Gentile citizens. But the founders of Utah and the municipal council of Salt Lake City, with- out the least manifestation of displeasure at being thus characteristically set aside by the Federal dignities, moved in the matter of the reception of President Grant with the quietest emphasis possible of their sense that precedence belonged to them. They were the pioneers of these western States and Territories. They had led the way across the plains and sandy deserts before the tide of colonization, apart from that of their own, had fairly started towards the Pacific, and they were fl HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 621 actually the first band of colonists proper who planted the American flag in this dominion ; and if distinction or precedence were to be made in receiving the first President of the United States who had visited the Pacific slope, to the fathers of Utah properly belonged the honor of escorting him to Salt Lake City. The committee of ten, headed by the Governor, which had been appointed by the Federal Court House meeting, in pursuance of their programme, started for Ogden on the early train, and taking the Union Pacific east bound passenger train, met the presidential train at Peterson Station in Weber, and returned with it. Thus they had the advantage of the first meeting and it was thought by the Federal committee that their programme would prevail in all its points. The Utah Central special train, chartered by the city council, left the station here at 9:30 Sunday morning, making the trip to Ogden in about an hour and a half, conveying the aldermanic committee and other members of the city coun- cil, city and county officers, and several invited guests, including President Brigham Young, Hon. John Taylor, Hon. B. Young, Jun., Hon. Jos. F. Smith, Judge Elias Smith, Hon. F. M. Lyman, H. B. Clawson, Esq., Col. F. Little, sev- eral ladies and representatives of the press. None of the Federal Territorial officials or military officers availed themselves of the special invitation of the council. The engine of the special train was decorated with flags and bunting. About half an hour after the arrival of the Utah Central train the presidential train approached the station at Ogden. All of the railroad platforms were crowded with people straining their eyes to get a sight of the President. The Ogden brass band struck up " Hail to the Chief." The locomotive of the presidential train was profusely decorated with flags, streamers, etc. O. H. Earll, division superin- tendent of the Union Pacific, and A. H. Earll, the Ogden agent of the company, accompanied the presidential party to Ogden, doing the honors to the distinguished guests. The President was standing on the rear platform, swinging his hat to the people, with ex-Secretary Borie and General Babcock at his side. Now and then a boy would jump up and get hold of the President's hand, an event of which he may boast for years. The presidential train immediately switched upon the Utah Central track, when it appeared to be assumed by some of the party, though not by the President or General Babcock, that the train would proceed by itself to this city in advance of the Utah Central train. This arrangement, however, was not made, and the presidential cars were attached in front of those of the Utah Central, and drawn by the latter's engine; the train started out of Ogden at a good speed, making the trip to this city in about an hour and a quarter. While at Ogden, the President cordially received the representatives of our city council, who were presented to him, and said in reply to Hon. George Q. Cannon, who tendered him the hospitality of the city in behalf of the munici- pality, that he had accepted an invitation of the Governor of the Territory to be his guest ; that he could only remain in Utah until Monday afternoon, and would be happy to avail himself of any courtesies at the hands of the city that he might have time to accept. He expressed his obligations for the attention paid him by the municipal authorities. Other Utah gentlemen were then introduced. As the train was moving out of Ogden, President Young stepped from the 622 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. car of the Utah Central upon the platform where the President was standing, and was presented to President Grant by Mr. Cannon, both gentlemen uncovering. President Young said : President Grant, this is the first time I have ever seen a president of ray country." President Grant nodded, and after a few enquiries and compliments^ President Young was conducted to the interior of the car, and pre- sented to Mrs. U. S. Grant, Mrs. Col. Fred Grant, Mrs. Borie and the other ladies and gentlemen of the party. Mrs. Grant entered into a familiar conversa- tion wath President Young, which was prolonged for about half an hour, when the latter took his leave of the ladies and of President Grant, saying a few words to the Presdent as he passed upon his return to the Utah Central train. During the entire trip from Ogden to this city, President Grant occupied the platform of his car with Governor Emery and Delegate Cannon, the latter being kept engaged in conversation by the President in regard to the various points of interest in the Territory. The President asked a good many questions which showed a keen interest in the material resources of the country and the industries of vari- ous kinds. Indeed he appeared to be far more impressed with these things than he did with the people whom he met. At the station in this city, the President and party were taken in charge by the Federal committee and conveyed in carriages to the Walker House. Many thou- sands of people had assembled at the depot, and from there to East Temple, on both sides of the street, were arranged the city Sabbath school children, with their teachers. The President and Mrs. Grant and Governor Emery rode up in an open barouche, behind four handsome greys. The President, as he passed along, waived his hat to the crowds, who saluted him without boisterous demonstration. During the afternoon the President remained at the hotel, where he received calls from many officials and leading citizens. A large crowd had also gathered in front of the Walker House, and to gratify their desire to see the President, Grant stepped out upon the balcony, and was introduced to the multitude by Gov. Emery, who stated that the President was suffering from a Rocky Mountain cold, was very hoarse, and it would therefore be difficult for him to respond to the calls for a speech. Early Monday morning, the President, in an open buggy with Gov. Emery, was driven to the Temple block, when he went into the tabernacle, and looked at the foundation walls of the temple. He was next driven to the north bench, where he obtained a fine view of the city ; and afterwards went to Camp Douglas. There he examined the new stone barracks and officers' quarters in course of erection? and was waited upon by the officers of the post. The other members of the Presi- dential party also visited the Temple block and Camp Douglas. It was at the special request of the President that no salute was fired at the military post in his honor; also that the band did not come out. He said his visit was strictly a social and sight-seeing one, and was not in the least of an official character. He desired, therefore, that there be as little ostentation and display as possible. After spending a brief time in Camp Douglas, the Governor drove the Presi- dent a short distance up Emigration canyon, and then returned to the city and his hotel, where a public reception was held, when several hundred citizens, ladies and gentlemen were presented to the President. Notably among the others who em- HISTORY OF SALT LAKE Cn\. 623 braced this opportunity of calling upon the President was Judge McKean, who walked up with the crowd and in his turn shook the executive right hand. The reception continued until after 2 o'clock, when the public were excluded and the federal officials, in a body, were presented to the President. The Presidental party partook of an early dinner at the Walker House and then proceeded to the depot, where the special car in which Grant travels was found profusely decorated with flowers and green — the artistic work of a number of ladies of this city. On the way to the depot the President and company called at the residence of Hon. Wm. Jennings, where there were also a few prominent citizens. As the train was moving off, the President, who stood upon the car platform, was heartily cheered by the crowd assembled at the depot, and he acknowledged the salule by waving his hat. He was escorted to Ogden by the city council com- mittee of welcome, the court house committee, and several invited guests, promi- nent ladies and gentlemen of the city. After the train had left the depot, Presi- dent Grant and party entered the car in which were the ladies and gentlemen of Salt Lake, and passed the time until the arrival at Ogden, in conversation. They seemed to have thrown off restraint, and resolved upon the enjoyment of a social visit. They talked freely, and upon taking their farewell, expressed themselves as having been highly pleased with the appearance of Salt Lake City, and delighted with their reception. The President and party stood upon the rear platform of their car when the train moved off eastward, and waved their handkerchiefs to the Salt Lake ladies and gentlemen, who returned to the city by special train. Gov- ernor Emery and his committee, who had all along ignored the municipal commit- tee of welcome, accepted the invitation of the council committee to occupy seats in the special train, and all returned to the city together. There were many incidents in this visit of a President of the United States to our city, that tended to give our citizens favor in the Nation's eyes. Two of these incidents will be sufficient to note. When President Grant, on his entrance to our city, in his carriage, passed the multitude of Sunday School children who, under their teachers, had gathered, ar- rayed in white to welcome him — in their simplicity of manner, emphasising the greeting of Brigham Young, "this is the first time I have had the honor of meet- ing a President of my nation " — he turned to Governor Emery and enquired, "whose children are these?" He was answered by the Governor, "Mormon children." For several moments the President was silent, and then he murmured, in a tone of self-reproach, " L have l?ee?i deceived/ " It was in vain for any anti- Mormon, after that utterance, to tell him that those children had been arrayed to give him welcome, for the purpose of making a favorable impression on his mind in behalf of their Mormon parents. To a man of so strong a religious nature as that of U. S. Grant, which nature to the end of his days, contrary to the better judg- ment of the American people, gave Dr. Newman a controling influence over him, these Sunday School children, brought up in the fear of the Lord, were, on this Sabbath day of his entrance into our city, more powerful sermons than he had ever heard in the Metropolitan Methodist Church, from the charmed tongue of his favorite pastor. And even the depreciatory expounding of the anti-Mormon — that this array of Sunday School children was " all gotten up for effect " — 624 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. would have been entirely lost on a man of simple directness of mind, for Mormon parents, who could with so much natural sagacity conceive the plot of capturing the conqueror of southern rebeldom, by an army of their Sunday Schoolchildren, were surely not wicked parents, nor unworthy of the regard of the representative " father of his country." The other incident is of Mrs. Grant, on her visit to the Mormon Tabernacle in this city, escorted by Hon. VV. H. Hooper and others. As she listened to the chaste yet sonorous music from the grand organ of the tabernacle, which for com- pass and quality has but i^vi equals, and which on this occasion was played by a master organist^ with tears in her eyes she exclaimed with deep feeling, her words addressed to the ex-Delegate of Utah, " Oh, I wish I could do something for these good Mormon people !" CHAPTER LXXIV. DEATH OF BRIGHAM YOUNG. THE CITY DRAPED FOR ITS FOUNDER, GRAND SOLEMN FUNERAL. SERVICES AT THE TABERNACLE. TRIBUTE OF THE CITY COUNCIL TO HIS MEMORY. On Wednesday, August 29th, 1877, Brigham Young, the founder of Utah, and one of the greatest colonizers the world has seen in a thousand years, died at his residence in Salt Lake City. The life and career of this remarkable man, whose record compasses the whole history of the Mormon people, may be gath- ered from the entirety of this book, and the personal sketch of him in the sup- plement of biographies. Suffice in this chapter to give the record of his death and burial. On Thursday evening, August 23rd, President Young was attacked with cholera morbus, which was very severe, and continued throughout the whole of the night and the following day until the afternoon. The pain was intense, and quickly prostrated the patient- On Friday afternoon, however, he was somewhat i-elieved, and was considered by his physician to be convalescing. This favorable condition continued until Saturday afternoon, when his symptoms suddenly be- came worse, and the disease assumed an alarming aspect. The pain in his bowels returned, his bowels began to be distended, and his sufferings were greatly aggra- vated. These symptoms yielded to the use of morphine; but on Sunday morn- ing a condition of semi-stupor came on continuing throughout the day and night. On Monday there was little change, the patient remaining about in the same con- dition as on Sunday, until Tuesday when his coma deepened. Still he could be roused, and occasionally spoke to those about him. Suddenly on Tuesday raorn- ii HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 62 j ing, there was extreme difficulty in breathing, owing to the distension of the bowels. Artificial respiration was resorted to for about nine hours, with the re- sult of enabling him to breathe without assistance. His condition from that time until his death admitted no doubt as to the result of the case. Death ended his work at 4 p. M. on Wednesday. The technical name of the fatal disease of which he died is entero colitis — commonly called inflammation of the bowels ; which, of course, was brought on by cholera morbus. The deceased did not speak for hours previous to his death, although at times he appeared to be conscious, and would make an effort to articulate. He was surrounded by most of the members of his family and a few intimate friends. During the three last days of his mortal life the people of Utah was in the most profound and anxious suspense. Telegrams fled frequently throughout the Territory informing the Saints of the condition of their leader, and prayer circles met in every settlement to invoke Divine power to stay the stroke, which when it fell, though it appalled the heart of the church for a moment, and baptized in tears the State which Brigham Young had founded, yet brought to the people re- lief from the terrible suspense under which they had stood as with suspended breath for three days. In the world beyond the angel of destiny tolled his bell : the spirit of Brigham Young, a son of destiny, winged its homeward way ; and within the hour every city in Utah was draped in mourning. The following account of the funeral is culled from the reports of the Descrct Neius and Salt Lake Herald of that date : It was the original intention not to admit the public to view the body of President Brigham Young until Sunday morning, two hours before the commence- ment of the funeral services. The very general desire to see the deceased, and the certainty of there being present at the tabernacle on Sunday a tremendous crowd, has led to the making of a satisfactory change in the programme. The body will lie in state, in the new tabernacle, from this morning at nine o'clock until eleven o'clock on Sunday. It will be in the coffin, which will be enclosed in a metallic case, a glass being over the face. The public will be admitted to the tabernacle at any time between the hours indicated above. OFFICIAL PROGRAMME AND INSTRUCTIONS: "As soon as the probable number of seventies, high priests, elders, and the lesser priesthood is ascertained, places will be assigned them in the tabernacle, during the funeral ceremonies of President Brigham Young. These different quorums will hold meetings this evening for the purpose of learning in relation to this matter, and will also appoint committees to attend to the seating of their quorums, and to arrange for them to take part in the procession. It is desirable that each c[uorum should attend to its own organization for the procession so as save time, obviate confusion, and lessen the labor of the marshals. "The procession will leave the tabernacle eight abreast, and walk through the south gate and up the north sidewalk of South Temple street to the Eagle Gate, thence up through President Young's grounds to his cemetery. A pro- gramme will be arranged for the procession, assigning to each body its proper place. The intentipn at present is for the general authorities to occupy the stand. For greater convenience, however, it will be well for the presidents of the high 38 626 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. priests, of the elders, and the lesser priesthoood, to sit with their respective quo- rums, so that they can take their places for the procession. The high council of this stake and the visiting presidents and counsellors of stakes from other places, and members of high councils of other stakes will have seats assigned to them on the platform south of the stands. The Tenth Ward brass band, the Glee Club, which will sing at the vault, and the city council will also be seated south of the stands on the platform. "The platform on the north side of the stands will be occupied by the bishops and their counsellors of this stake, and visiting bishops and counsellors from other stakes. Seats will be reserved immediately in front of the stands on both sides of the centre aisle for the family and relatives of the honored deceased. " It is desired that all who reside in the city and its vicinity who desire to view the remains of President Young will do so to-day, and once having seen the body will be satisfied with that view and not try to obtain another to the exclu- sion of persons who have not had an opportunity of seeing it at all. If this be strictly observed, the brethren and sisters vvho come from other settlements on Sunday morning, can have the privilege of getting a view of the body ; and un- less this be observed it would be difificult for them to get into the tabernacle for that purpose. We cannot impress this too much upon the residents of this city and its vicinity. " Thousands will probably come by the morning trains, all of whom will be anxious to get a last look at the face of their beloved president, prophet and leader. Arrangements will be made for as many as possible to have this privilege, but in the short time remaining, only a limited number can possibly, with the best arrangements, pass by the cofifin. Too much cannot be said upon the necessity of observing strict order. There will be a body of men detailed as special police for the occasion; and we hope that every man, woman and child in the community will conform to the arrangements that will be made, and not impose unpleasant duties upon those acting as special policemen. Let us show respect to the memory of our great leader by observing that order of which he himself was so deep an admirer and great example. Let no man, woman or child say or do a thing on the solemn occasion of his funeral, which if he were present in person would grieve or annoy him. Of necessity there will have to be strict arrangements to save con- fusion, as there will be doubtless an immense number of people present." "The remains of the late President Brigham Young were removed from the Lion house Saturday morning shortly after 8 o'clock, and conveyed on a bier to the new tabernacle. Employees of the deceased carried the body, the apostles now in the city acting as pall bearers. A number of President Young's sons fol- lowed, besides bishops, seventies, elders, etc., forming a procession of between six and seven hundred people. The coffin containing the body was placed at the foot of the centre aisle of the tabernacle, directly in front of the stand, the head being to the west. The coffin is enclosed in an air-tight metallic burial case, a sheet of plaie glass covering the face, admitting of a good view of the features. The inside of the coffin is trimmed and dressed plainly, but neatly, with white satin, quilted ; and the drapery overspreading the case is whi>te merino. A hand- some floral cross, encircled by a wreath of flowers, is on the lid. The tabernacle HISTORY 01 SALT LAKE CITY. 627 is profusely draped, the platform, stands, organ and pillars wearing heavy folds of crape. The features of the dead have undergone much change since his sickness and indicate plainly the severity of his sufferings. "It was n o'clock when the gates to the Temple blo;k were opened and the public admitted to take a last look at the deceased. Probably three thousand peo- ple had assembled, and for a couple of hours the crowd was tremendous. How- ever, the arrangements were so complete, that the rush being once over, there was no more crowding, people passing in and out without hurrying. A constant stream of men, women and children went in at one door, looked at the features of the dead, and passed out on the opposite side of the tabernacle, until quite late in the evening when there was a slight cessation, and those in attendance were en- abled to rest. The body was kept in state all night, a guard surrounding it and the building, and it was not until near midnight that people ceased to visit it. An accurate account was kept of the number of those who saw the body, running up to within a few of eleven thousand people. The remains will lie where they are, and the public will be admitted until 11 o'clock to-day, and as all the trains entering the city last night were crowded with passengers— seven carloads arriving from the south and thirteen from the north — and as special trains will run overall the roads this morning to bring people from other places, it can be estimated that ten thousand more people will visit the tabernacle this morning. The greatest order and decorum were observed, and nothing occurred to mar the solemnity of the occasion. * * * * "Sunday, September 2d, i .lars wearing heavy folds of crape, and the stands, platforms, organ and tables were in deep black. 638 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. The floral decorations in the tabernacle were grandly beautiful. Besides those of artificials, festooned from the ceiling and suspended from the gallery, the stands bore many vases of living flowers. The coffin was a plain caskec of redwood, var- nished, but devoid of ornament, save the massive silver handles. It was decked with wreaths and garlands of flowers, a beautiful and artistically arranged flower harp, being attached to the foot. The east portion of the auditorium and the galleries were thrown open to the public, and hours before the services commenced ]jeople began to occupy the seats, which at 1 1 o'clock were all full, and thousands were unable to gain admission. The family and relatives of President Young, numbermg some hundreds, occupied seats directly in front of the platform and next the coffin. In their rear, and on the right and left, grouped together, were the seventies, high priests, elders, and others of the priesthood. The south side of the platform was occupied by the city council, band. Glee club, presidents of diff'erent stakes of the church and high councils. On the north platform were bishops and their counsellors. The upper stand, or that of the first presidency, was occupied by George Q. Cannon, master of ceremonies; Daniel H. Wells and John W. Young, counsellors to the deceased; and Brigham \oung, Jr. The apostles, who were all present except Orson Pratt and Joseph F. Smith, now in I'mgland, the presidency of the Salt Lake stake, and presiding bishop were in their usual seats. A close estimate of the people in the building places the number at thirteen thousand, while probably as many more were in the yard and around the gates. The organist and orchestra had been in attendance since 9:30 a. m., and while the body v/as in state and the tabernacle was being filled, played the '* Dead March in Saul," organ and orchestra ; " Brigham Young's Funeral March," com- posed for the occasion by Jos. J. Daynes, organ ; Wilson's Funeral March, organ; Mendessohn's Funeral March, organ and orchestra. The services commenced at noon, precisely, George Q. Cannon announcing the hymn Hark ! from afar a funeral knell. This was sung by the tabernacle choir, George Careless leader, and J. J. Daynes organist. The tune to which the hymn was sung was one composed by Prof. Careless on the occasion of the funeral of the late Geo. A. Smith, and is called "Rest." Then followed the opening prayer by Aposlle F. D. Richards. The prayer was followed by singing Thou dost not weep to weep alone. After which his counselor and faithful friend, Daniel H. Wells, delivered a brief and feeling address. He said : ' Territory. But withal there remained, strongly marked, through the whole period of the administration of Brigham Young, as Governor of the Territory, the original features of the community, and many of them to this day are stamped indelibly on the face of the Mormon part of society in all the cities which have sprung up in the valleys of the Rocky Mountains. Here maybe repeated for their excellent pertinency and application, several passages from the early pictures of society in Salt Lake City. Captain Stans- bury, in his report to the Government, wrote : " The founding, within the space of three years, of a large and flourishing community upon a spot so remote from the abodes of men, so completely shut out by natural barriers from the rest of the world, so entirely unconnected by water-courses with either of the oceans that wash the shores of this continent — a country offering no advantages of inland navigation or of foreign commerce, but, on the contrary, isolated by vast uninhabited deserts, and only to be reached by long, painful, and often hazardous journeys by land — presents an anomaly so very peculiar, that it deserves more than a passing notice. In this young and pros- perous country of ours, where cities grow up in a day, and States spring up in a year, the successful planting of a colony, where the natural advantages have been such as to hold out the promise of adequate reward to the projectors, would have excited no surprise ; but the success of an enterprise under circumstances so much at variance with all our preconceived ideas of its probability, may well be con- sidered one of the most remarkable incidents of the present age. " Their admirable system of combming labor, while each has his own prop- erty, in lands and tenements, and the proceeds of his industry, the, skill in divid" ing off the lands, and conducting the irrigating canals to supply the want of rain, which rarely falls between April and October ; the cheerful manner in which every one applies himself industriously, but not laboriously ; the complete reign of good neighborhood and quiet houses and fields, form themes for admiration to the stranger coming from the dark and sterile recesses of the mountain gorges into this flourishing valley ; and he is struck with wonder at the immense results, produced in so short a time, by a handful of individuals. " We remained thus shut up until the 3d of April. Our quarters consisted of a small unfurnished house of unburnt brick or adobe, unplastered, and roofed with boards loosely nailed on, which, every time it stormed, admitted so much water as called into requisition all the pans and buckets in the establishment to receive the numerous little streams which came trickling down from every crack and knot-hole. During this season of comparative inaction, we received from the authorities and citizens of the community every kindne^^s that the most warm- hearted hospitality could dictate, and no effort was spaied to render us comfort- able as their own limited means would admit. Indeed, we were much better lodged than many of our neighbors ; for, as has been previously observed, very many families were obliged still to lodge wholly or in part in their wagons, which, being covered, served, when taken off from the wheels and set upon the ground, to make bedrooms, of limited dimensions it is true, but yet exceedingly comfort- 644 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CllY. able. Many of these were comparatively large and commodious, and when car- peted and furnished with a little stove, formed an additional apartment or back building to the small cabin, with which they frequently communicated by a door. It certainly argued a high tone of morals and an habitual observance of good order and decorum, to find w^omen and children thus securely slumbering in the midst of a large city, with no protection from midnight molestation other than a wagon - cover of linen and the aegis of the law. In the very next enclosure to that occu- pied by our party, a whole family of children had no other shelter than one of these wagons, where they slept all the winter, literally out of doors, there being no communication whatever with the inside of their parent's house." Captain Stansbury wrote this simply as of a marvelous society experiment in this age and country; but he did not so well perceive that all these peculiar society features, were the results of the patriarchal organizations of the Mormons, and the spirit of their " order of Enoch," which they were seeking to infuse into their commonwealth. Women and children " slumbered securely" '■ in the midst of a large city" of eight thousand inhabitants, for that city was onejamily; '' with no protection from midnight molestation other than a wagon cover of linen and the aegis of the law." That law ivas the Mormo7i patriarchal law, not the law of the United States. Had any brother in that city, (" stake of Zion ") in 1850, broken that law in "molesting" those " women and children," or in violating the sanctity of the " family," (though the " Danite Band " is mythical) he would have found a Danite in Zion to have prevented him from ever doing the like again. This was illustrated by Major Howard Egan (the " Kit Carson" of the Mormon com- munity) when he killed his Mormon brother for consorting with his wife, and was defended in a U. S. court, by Apostle George A. Smith, in the first criminal trial in that court, in Salt Lake City, U. S. Associate Justice Zerubbabel Snow presiding. One other passage from the letter of a California gold seeker, from the New York Tribune, (date July 8th, 1849) ^^^^^ be repeated to illustrate the patriarchal society of our city in those primitive days : " The company of gold diggers which I have the honor to command, arrived here on the 3d instant, and judge our feelings when, after some twelve hundred miles travel through an uncultivated desert, and the last one hundred miles of the distance through and among lofty mountains, and narrow and diffi- cult ravines, we found ourselves suddenly and almost unexpectedly, in a compara- tive paradise. * * * At first sight of all these signs of cultivation in the wilderness, we were transported with wonder and pleasure. Some wept, some gave three cheers, some laughed, and some ran and fairly danced for joy, while all felt inexpressibly happy to find themselves once more amid scenes which mark the progress of advancing civilization. We passed on amid scenes like these, expecting every moment to come to some commercial centre, some business point in this great metropolis of the mountains, but we were disappointed. No hotel, sign post, cake and beer shop, barber pole, market house, grocery, pro- vision, dry goods, or hardware store distinguished one part of the town from another; not even a bakery or a mechanic's sign was anywhere discernible. " Here, then, was something new : an entire people reduced to a level, and 1 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY.. 64^ all living by their labor — all cultivating the earth, or following some branch ot' physical industry. At first I thought it was an experiment, an order of things established purposely to carry out the principles of ' socialism ' or ' Mormonism.' In short, I thought it very much like Owenism personified. However, on in- quiry, I found that a combination of seemingly unavoidable circumstances had produced this singular state of affairs. There were no hotels because there had been no travel ; no barber shops, because every one chose to shave himself, and no one had time to shave his neighbor; no stores, because ihey had no goods to sell, nor time to traffic ; no centre of business, because Avere all too busy to make a centre. " There was abundance of mechanics' shops, of dressmakers, milliners and tailors, etc.; but they needed no sign, nor had they time to paint or erect one, for they were crowded with business. Beside their several trades, all must culti- vate the land or die, for the country was new, and no cultivation but their own within a thousand miles. Every one had his own lot, and built on it ; every one cultivated it, and perhaps a small farm in the distance. "And the strangest of all was, that this great city, extending over several square miles, had been erected, and every house and fence made, within nine or ten months of the time of our arrival ; while at the same time, good bridges were erected over the principal streams, and the country settlements extended nearly one hundred miles up and down the valley. " This Territory, State, or, as some term it, ' Mormon empire,' may justly be considered one of the greatest prodigies of our time, and, in comparison with its age, the most gigantic of all Republics in existence — being only in its second year since the first seed of cultivation was planted, or the first civilized habita- tion commenced. If these people were such thieves and robbers as their. enemies represent them to be in the Stales, I must think they have greatly reformed in point of industry since coming to the mountains." 646 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. CHAPTER LXXVIII. ORIGIN OF THE BRITISH EMIGRATION TO SALT LAKE CITY. ITS CIRCUMSTAN- TIAL HISTORY, THE P. E. FUND COMPANY. ARRIVAL OF THE FIRST BRITISH EMIGRANTS. GRAND RECEPTION BY THE CITIZENS. MODE OF CONDUCTING THE EMIGR.\TION. DICKENS' GRAPHIC DESCRIPTION OF "MY EMIGRANT SHIP." The history of the Mormon emigrations is one of the most unique and inter esting society subjects of modern times. From these sources have come not only the bulk of the population of this city and Territory, but also a considerable por* tion of the population of the surrounding States and Territories. Even the city of St. Louis, a quarter of a century ago, was largely sprinkled with Mormon ele- ment, as many of the emigrants to Utah tarried on the way, exhausted by the long sea voyage and destitute of means to pursue their journey to the mountains. Moreover, the emigrational methods by which this vast communistic result was ac- complished supplied considerable of the material wealth of the Territory, in the early days, and gave means and opportunities for its commerce. In the year 1837, that splendid missionary movement was " revealed " to the Prophet Joseph Smith, to send the gospel of the latter-day work to Great Britain and gather from the mother country a people to build up Zion. Speaking of his efforts to establish Zion in Ohio and Missouri, the Prophet has left the following notes in his history : 'About this time (1837), the spirit of speculation in lands and property of all kinds, which was so prevalent throughout the whole nation, was taking deep root in the church. As the fruits of this spirit, evil surmisings, fault-finding, dis- union, dissension, and apostacy followed in quick succession, and it seemed as though all the powers of earth and hell were combining their influence in an especial manner to overthrow the church, * * * and many became disaffected towards me as though I were the sole cause of those very evils I was most strenuously striving against, and which were actually brought upon us by the brethren not giving heed to my counsel. "No quorum in the church was entirely free from the influence of those false spirits who were striving against me for the mastery. Even some of the Twelve were so far lost to their high and responsible calling as to begin to take sides, secretly, with the enemy. " In this state of things God revealed to me that something new must be done for the salvation of his church. And on or about the ist of June, 1837, Heber C. Kimball, one of the Twelve, was set apart by the spirit of prophecy and revelation, prayer and the laying on of hands of the first presidency, to pre- HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 647 side over a mission to England, to be the first foreign mission of the church of Christ in the last days." Concerning this very important mission and crisis of tlie church, Heber C. Kimball says : " On or about the ist of June, 1837, the prophet Joseph came to me while I was seated in the front stand, above the sacrament table on the Melchisedek side of the Temple, in Kirtland, and whispering to me, said, ' Brother Heber, the Spirit of the Lord has whispered to me, Let my servant Heber go to England and proclaim my gospel and open the door of salvation to that nation.' " Undoubtedly, had not such a revelation been given, Mormonism would have amounted to but little in the age, nor would the eyes ot nations have been aston- ished with those vast emigrations of Mormon converts to America, which have contributed so much to the peopling of Utah. The Apostles Heber C. Kimball and Orson Hyde were set apart by the Prophet to open Great Britain, and to them were added Elders Willard Richards, Goodson, Russell, Fielding and Snyder. Some of the principal men of the church were greatly opposed to this missionary movement into foreign lands, which has since produced such extraordinary results, and given to the Mormon church a missionary history scarcely paralleled since the days of Paul. In 1840, after the Mormons had been removed from Missouri to Illinois, the majority of the Twelve, under the presidency of Brigham Young, took a second mission to England, and it was during this time that the emigration opened. The, event is thus noted in church history : "Saturday, 6th June, 1840, a company of 41 Saints, to-wit : Elder John Moon, and Hugh Moon, their mother and seven others of her family ; Henry Moon, (uncle of John Moon) Henry Moon, Francis Moon, William Sutton, Wil- liam Stritgreaves, Richard Eaves, Thomas Moss, Henry Moore, Nancy Ashworth , Richard Ainscough, and families sailed in the ship Britannia, from Liverpool for New York, being the first Saints that have sailed from England for Zion." On the 8th of September, 1840, under the agency of Brigham Young, a company of emigrants, numbering 200, sailed from Liverpool for New York, bound for Nauvoo, under the presidency of Elder Theodore Turley, one of the American missionaries, and Elder Wm. Clayton, one of the earliest English con- verts. William Clayton was afterwards a member of the Pioneer band, and a prominent man in the history of Salt Lake City. Owing to the expensiveness of the route via New York, many of this com- pany fell short of means to complete the journey to Nauvoo ; they, therefore, divided at Buffalo, a part going to settle in Kirtland and other settlements in Ohio, and the balance to Nauvoo, to which place Joseph Smith states he had the pleasure of welcoming one hundred of them in the fall of the year. The third ship sent under this agency, February, 1841, was the Sheffield, having on board 235 Mor- mon emigrants; the fourth the Echo, which sailed in the same month with 109 souls; the fifth the Eleste, which sailed in March, with 54 souls; and on the 20th of April, 1 841, Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball, Orson Pratt, Wilford Wood- ruff, John Taylor, George A. Smith and Willard Richards, with a company of 648 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 130 Saints, went on board the ship Rochester, bound for New York, and sailed on the 2ist. About the time of the sailing of the Sheffield a company, gathered from Herefordshire and the neighboring counties, sailed from Bristol. Since that time up to the year 1856, the main emigration was direct from Liverpool to New Or leans, but numerous individuals sailed between the seasons to New York, Phila- delphia, Boston and other American ports. Few particulars have been preserved by the emigration agents respecting the earliest companies, but Parley P. Pratt stated in June, 1841, that about 1,000 persons had then emigrated. The second period in the emigration table, for the years 1841-2, gave the number of ships, 10; and emigrants 1,991. The year 1843, ships, 5 ; emigrants, 769. The years 1844-6, ships, 8; emigrants, 990. According to these tables of the British agency, nearly 5,000 Mormon emi- grants landed in America previous to the settling of Utah. Many of these were in the exodus, and among the pioneer companies which arrived in the Valleys in 1847 ^"//^/^/^ (addressing the mast). Yes, sir, I be stone blind. " Inspector. That's a bad job. Take your ticket, Mrs. Dibble, and don't lose it, and pass on. " Doctor taps Mr. [Dibble on the eyebrow with his forefinger, and away they go. ^^ Inspector (taking ticket again). Anastatia Weedle. " Anastatia (a pretty girl in a bright garibaldi, this morning elected by uni- versal suffrage the beauty of the ship). That is me, sir. " Inspector^ Going alone, Anastatia? "Anastatia (shaking her curls). I am with Mrs. Jobson, sir, but I've got separated for the moment. "Inspector. Oh! you are with the Jobsons? Quite right. That'll do, Miss Weedle. Don't lose your ticket. "Away she goes, and joins the Jobsons who are waiting for her, and stoops and kisses Brigham Jobson — who appears to be considered too young for the pur- pose, by several Mormons rising twenty, who are looking on. Before her exten- HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 663 sive skirts have departed from the casks a decent widow stands there with four children, and so the roll goes. " The faces of some of the Welsh people, among whom there were many old persons, were certainly the least intelligent. Some of these emigrants would have bungled sorely, but for the directing hand that was always ready. The intelligence here was unquestionably of a low order, and the heads were of a poor type. Generally the case was the reverse. There were many worn faces bearing traces of patient poverty and hard work, and there was great steadiness of purpose and much undemonstrative self-respect among this class. A few young men were go- ing singly. Several girls were going two or three together. These latter I found it very difficult to refer back, in my mind, to their relinquished homes and pursuits. Perhaps tliey were more like country milliners, and pupil teachers rather tawdrily dressed, than any other classes of young women, I noticed, among many little orna- ments worn, more than one photograph-broach of the Princess of Wales, and also of the late Prince Consort. Some single women of from thirty to forty, whom one might suppose to be embroiderers, or straw-bonnet-makers, were obviously going out in quest of husbands, as finer ladies go to India. That they had any distinct notions of a plurality of husbands or wives, I do not believe. To suppose the family groups of whom the majority of emigrants were composed, polygamically possessed, would be to suppose an absurdity, manifest to any one who saw the fathers and mothers. " I should say (I had no means of ascertaining the fact) that most familiar kinds of handicraft trades were represented here. Farm-laborers, shepherds, and the like, had their full share of representation, but I doubt if they preponderated. It was interesting to see how the leading spirit in the family circle never failed to show itself, even in the simple process of answering to the names as they were called, and checking off the owners of the names. Sometimes it was the father, much oftener the mother, sometimes a quick little girl second or third in order of seniority. It seemed to occur for the first time to some heavy fathers, what large families they had ; and their eyes rolled about, during the calling of the list, as if they half-misdoubted some other family to have been smuggled into their own. Among all the fine handsome children, I observed but two with marks upon their necks that were probably scrofulous. Out of the whole number of emigrants, but one old woman was temporarily set aside by the doctor, on suspicion of fever ; but even she afterwards obtained a clean bill of health. " When all had " passed," and the afternoon began to wear on, a black box became visible on deck, which box was in charge of certain personages also in black of whom only one had the conventional air of an itinerant preacher. This box contained a supply of hymn books, neatly printed and got up, published at Liverpool, and also in London at the "Latter-day Saints" book depot, 30 Flor- ence street." Some copies were handsomely bound; the plainer were more in request, and many were bought. The title ran : " Sacred hymns and spiritual songs for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.' The preface, dated Manchester, 1840, ran thus: — ' The Saints in this country have been very desirous for a Hymn Book adapted to their faith and worship, that they might sing the truth with an understanding heart, and express their praise, joy and gratitude in 664 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. songs adapted to the New and Everlasting Covenant. In accordance with their wishes, we have selected the following volume, which we hope will prove accep- table until a greater variety can be added. With sentiments of high consideration and esteem, we subscribe ourselves your brethren in the New and Everlasting Cov- enant. Brigliam Young, Parley P. Pratt, Johti Taylor." From this book — by no means explanatory to myself of the New and Everlasting Covenant, and not at all making my heart an understanding one on the subject of that mystery — a hymn was sung, which did not attract any great amount ot attention, and was supported by a rather select circle. But the choir in the boat w?s very popular and pleasant; and there was to have been a band, only the cornet was late in coming on board. In the course of the afternoon, a mother appeared from shore, in search of her daughter, ' who had run away with the Mormons.' She received every assistance from the inspector, but her daughter was not found to be on board. The S lints did not seem to rne, particularly interested in finding her. " Towards five o'clock, the galley became full of tea-kettles, and an agree- able fragrance of tea pervaded the ship. There was no scrambling or jostling for the hot water, no ill humor, no quarrelling. As the Amazon was to sail with the next tide, and as it would not be high water before two o'clock in the morn- ing, I left her with her tea in full action, and her idle steam tug lying by, deput- ing steam and smoke for the time being to the tea-kettles. " I afterwards learned that a despatch was sent home by the captain before he struck out into the wide Atlantic, highly extolling the behavior of these emi- grants, and the perfect order and propriety of all their social arrangements. What is in store for the poor people on the shores of the Great Salt Lake, what happy delusions they are laboring under now, on what miserable blindness their eyes may be opened then, I do not pretend to say. But I went on board their ship to bear testimony against them if they deserved it, as I fully believed they would; to my great astonishment they did not deserve it ; and my predispositions and ten- dencies must not affect me as an honest witness. I went over the Amazon' s side, feeling it impossible to deny that, so far, some remarkable influence had produced a remarkable result, which better known influences have often missed."'" Dickens was right when he exclaimed, '' I should have said they were in their degree the pick and flower of England." The founders of the commerce of Salt Lake City, its business men and clerks, its master mechanics and manufacturers, its authors, editors and publishers, its artists, musicians, and their kindred classes, were nearly all from the European mission, and sailed in these emigrant ships such as Dickens describes. It may be here noted as a valuable item of emigrational history that the largest emigration of the Mormon Church from Europe within a limited period ..: „•*" After this Uncommercial Journey was printed, I happened to mention the experience it describes -to Lord Houghton. That gentleman then showed me an article of his writing, in The Edinburgh Kc- vieiaiox January, 1862, wliich is highly remarkable for its philosophical and literary research concerning .these Latter-day Saints. I find in it the following sentences : — ' The Select Committee of the House of Commons on emigrant ships for 1854, summoned the Mormon agent and passenger broker before it, and eame to the conclusion that no ships under the provisions of the ' passenger act ' could be depended upon for comfort and security in the same degree as those under his administration. The Mormon ship is a family under strong and accepted discipline, with every provision for comfort, decorum, and internal peace." . . 41 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 66j occurred in 1863, when six vessels left in five weeks, with 3,574 souls of the Saints on board, as follows : ApnldO— John J. Boyd, 763 souls. Prest. of Co., W. W. Cluff. May S-B. S. Kimball, 654 " " H. P. Lund. May 9>— Consignment 38 " " A. Christensen, May 21— Antarctic 483 " " J. Needham. May Zl— Cynosure, 754 " " D. M. Stuart. June \— Amazon 882 " " W. Bramall. Total 3574 " A.11 the above sailed from Liverpool except the Amazon (the one visited by Charles Dickens), which went from London. CHAPTER LXXIX. EARLY RESOURCES OF OUR TERRITORY. EMIGRANT TRAINS LADEN WITH BRITISH HOMES. THE CHURCH AGENT MAKING PURCHASES ON THE FRONTIERS. RACE MIXTURE OF THE POPULATION. The destitute condition of the people in the Valley, in the second year of settling, has been mentioned in the opening chapters. They were reduced almost to the condition of the native Indians. Their clothing, their shoes, their hats and everything most needed by a community, in absolute isolation, were worn out. There were manufacturers and mechanics, but no manufactories or means within themselves to replenish their exhausted resources ; nor had an eastern merchant yet arrived with a train of goods. Even had the people possessed gold to invite a merchant train to such a distant point, the supplies would have been swallowed up in a day, scarcely benefitting the community while exhausting their money : but there was not a dollar in the country. All the monetary resources of the Mor- mons, numbered in the exodus, had been spent in purchasing outfits to remove themselves to the Rocky Mountains, (where money was absolutely valueless at the onset) and in providing themselves with the simplest implements of husbandry, and builders', manufacturers' and mechanics' tools. The emigration from Europe and the eastern States were the natural sources of supplies for colonization, to which these Mormon pioneers looked, when they set out from the " borders of civilization," to build their cities in the heart of the " Great American Desert ;" and only these emigrations could have preserved the community in isolation from utter destitution. There were no anticipations of the discovery of gold in the unpeopled West when the Mormons set out from Nauvoo ; and it is not strange that the Gentile world said Brigham Young and his companion apostles had led the Mormons into the wilderness to perish, and that none of them would ever be seen within the borders of civilization again. But 42 666 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. those pioneer apostles knew that they had a British mission to draw population from, and that their emigrations from Europe, and the branches of the Church in the United States, would enable them, in the natural course of their affairs, to ac- complish their work of colonizing these valleys. The community, possessing no gold, could not at the onset have sent their merchants down to the States to pur- chase supplies ; but their emigration agents would have been their merchants; their vast trains of emigrants with outfits and merchandise would in time have sup- plied the people with goods and implements, which could not be produced at home ; considerable money would have been brought into the country by the well- to-do emigrants for the purchase of machinery, while the community would have built themselves up by a system of trade and barter, much of the business of the country being done through the agencies of the Church at home and abroad. This indeed very nearly accords with the actual history of our city and Territory down to the completion of the railroads across the continent, and the opening of the Utah mines; and had not gold been discovered in California, in 1849, ^"d the mining Territories of Nevada, Idaho and Montana sprung up around us, it would have«been the exact history of Utah to this day, with all the original prospects. These valleys would have been peopled with a family of colonies ; and the community would have preserved their original forms and social types. These virgin valleys would have given to the farmers land sufficient for a million hands to cultivate, boundless opportunities for stockraisers, wool growers, and the raisers of fruit, sugar cane, cotton, etc.; while there would have developed equal oppor- tunities for home manufacturers, without being brought into competition with the eastern manufacturer and merchant. This vie\v sustains the early policies of Brigham Young, especially in his efforts to make the community self-dependent and self-supportive; to place home manufactures above " States goods," and the farmer and the home producer above the States' merchant ; hence the conflict which grew up in the early commerce of our city. A passage from an autobiographical sketch of the Salt Lake merchant and banker, Horace S. Eldredge, who, in the early days, was the emigration agent of the Church, will further illustrate what the emigrations did for Salt Lake City, and also did in establishing the credit of the community in the Eastern cities, es- pecially St. Louis and Chicago. He says: "In the fall of 1852, I was called upon and appointed by the General Confer- ence of the Church to take a mission to St. Louis, Mo., to preside over the St. Louis Conference, to act as general Church agent for the emigration and as pur- chasing agent for the Church. " In the spring of 1853, our emigration from Europe amounted to about three thousand souls and required over three hundred wagons and a thousand head of oxen to transport them. These, with what was termed the American emigration swelled the number to over four hundred wagons and nearly two thousand head of cattle. It required an immense labor to deliver these at the overland starting point, besides purchasing the provisions, outfits and all the necessaries for a three or more months' camp life. " On my return to St. Louis, I had to look to some Church matters, and, after visiting several branches and giving them the necessary counsel, I began, by con- i HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 66j trading for wagons, etc , to lay my plans and arrange for the coming season's immigration. Having formed many agreeable acquaintances, I spent the winter much pleasanter than I had the previous one. The following spring brought its cares and responsibilities, as a large emigration from Europe as well as many from St. Louis and vicinity and different parts of the States were preparing to mif^rate to our mountain home, and all were more or less looking to me as agent to pro- vide for them their outfit by the way of teams, provisions, and the various necessities for a trip across the plains. I also received orders from Salt Lake City to purchase a large quantity of merchandise, machinery, agricultural imple- ments, and to provide wagons, teams, teamsters, etc., for their transportation." In this extract from Mr. Eldredge's emigrational notes, we have not only a view of the vast business done on the frontiers by the Church agents, in outfittino- companies bound for the Valleys, but the commencement of the mercantile basis and credit upon which years afterwards Z. C. M. I. was founded, and which will itself be suggestive of the colossal commercial commonwealth which Brigham Young had designed to establish throughout the community when the pioneers first entered these valleys. In 1852-3-4, of which Mr. Eldredge notes, the original plan was fairly work- ing, both on the emigrational and mercantile lines; and Salt Lake Mormon mer- chants began to be favorably known in the Eastern States as well as the emigra- tion agents. The "over four hundred wagons, and nearly two thousand head of cattle," with yokes, etc., which Mr. Eldredge purchased for the emigrants and delivered on the frontiers represented a prime cost of ^120,000. It must be borne in mind also that these four hundred wagons came into the Valley, in the fall of 1853, laden with almost everything to be mentioned that the settlers most needed, excepting a competent supply of merchandise and machinery ; and even of the latter the affluent emigrant brought a goodly share; while, in the year following, as it is seen, the emigration agent received "orders from Salt Lake City to pur- chase a large quantity of merchandise, machinery and agricultural implements." First the emigrants from Great Britain came across the sea to New Orleans, with the best outfits that they could bring to a new country : the choicest tools of the mechanic and manufacturer ; the most useful and endurable clothing, enouf^h to last the family for several years; milliners, dressmakers, etc., came with their stock in trade, and all their household utilities — indeed, excepting furniture and cumbersome articles, it may be said that from the opening of the general emigra- tion to Utah in 1849-50, a thousand English, Scotch and Welsh homes were yearly transposed to Utah from the mother country. It was with these homes and their hordings of years that those 400 wagons, with their 2,000 head of cattle, came laden into the Valley. They were as merchant trains of matchless worth to fur- nish supplies to the young colonies ; in fine it was those trains of the European and American emigrants, which yearly poured across the Plains from 1849; that started and sustamed the commerce and business, not only of Salt Lake City, but of every settlement of Utah, while the agricultural interests of the country were equally as well sustained. The farmers themselves came in those emigrant trains, with their wagonp, oxen, seed, and implements of husbandry ; the mechanic and manufacturer with 668 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. their tools and experienced skill. The agriculturists went into the fresh valleys north and south where they could obtain farms and lots " without money and without price," except for the survey, the labor on canals for irrigation, and the fencing of their lands; while those who chose to settle in Salt Lake City, purchased lots, or portions of lots, with the supplies which they had brought, and which the pri- mal settlers of this valley needed more than gold. A pound of tea, of sugar, of tobacco, a dress, a suit of clothes or a set of mechanic's tools, a paper of needles or pins, a supply of silk, thread or tape, or a thousand other seemingly trifling ar- ticles, which had been brought to the valley in those emigrant outfits, afforded means of purchase and trade; while the emigrant of the "independent com- panies," who arrived with several wagons and yokes of oxen and a small stock of merchandise possessed abundance, not only to purchase a lot and build himself a log or adobe house, retaining one wagon and one yoke of oxen for farm or can- yon work, but enough to give him a fair start in business life. The early merchants of Salt Lake did next to nothing for the country, ex- cepting periodically to bring in a few trains of States goods and to swallow up the money of the country, which the emigrants had brought in, and which they had put into circulation in the purchase of their lots and the building and furnishing of their houses. The Church, the emigrations and the Mormon peo- ple did almost everything for the country during the first decade. It was not until after the " Utah war," (1857) the establishment of Camp Floyd with its final aban- donment, leaving vast supplies in the country, at little money cost, that the Mormon community realized any real benefit outside the operations of their Church tem- poral government, their emigrations and their exchange of property and labor with each other. In the beginning of the second decade, after Camp Floyd had given oppor- tunities to a fresh class of enterprising men, the commercial status was changed and the community began to feel the pulsation of vitalizmg blood of a healthy vigorous home trade and commerce. A new class of Salt Lake merchants had risen. They were not merely resident merchants, but truly our home merchants, whose every interest was identified with Utah in their own life enterprises and in the generations of their children. They were Hooper, Nixon, the Walker Brothers, Jennings, Eldredge, Clawson, Kimball & Lawrence, Staines & Needham, Godbe &: Mitchell, and their compeers, both in and outside the community, in a special sense, but every man of them a part of the community in a general sense. These made our commerce reciprocal. If they imported " States' goods " and drained the city of money for awhile to supply fresh stocks of merchandise from the Eastern States ann California, they also exported the produce of the country to the mining Territories, purchased grain for the Overland Mail Company, sent herds of fat cattle into the neighboring markets, and at a later period, with such men as John Sharp and Feramorz Little, they have built the railroads and opened the mines of Utah. Disposing here of the subject of the emigrations, which have so largely con- tributed to the population of this Territory, it may be observed that in 1856, nearly five thousand Mormon emigrants sailed from Liverpool to America. In consequence of the " Utah war," the emigration was then closed until i860, when HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 66g it was again opened. From that date to the completion of the U. P. railroad, the Perpetual Emigration Company adopted the policy of sending from 500 to 1,000 teams every year to the frontiers, and later to the railroad points to " gather up the poor." These trains also brought large stocks of merchandise, ma- chinery and agricultural implements for their settlements prior to the establish, ment of Z. C. M. I.; and in 1861 they brought the telegraph wires for our local telegraph lines. Thus it will be seen much of the mercantile activities went hand- in-hand with the emigration until the completion of the railroads, since which time the emigrants to Utah have come direct from New York to Ogden by rail. Up to present date it is estimated that about 100,000 Mormon emigrants have landed in America, the majority of whom have come to Utah. The Scandinavians claim one-fifth of the Mormon population ; the remainder are Americans, English, Scotch, Welsh, Irish, Fiench, Italians, Swiss and Germans. It has been often affirmed that there are no Irish among the Mormons. This is not correct. Some of the most talented men of the community have been Irishmen ; for instance, General James Ferguson and Edward L. Sloan ; and the author has discovered, in writing their biographies, that there is a copious infusion of Irish blood in the veins of the American Mormons. In defining the strong veins of our population, however, they would have to be classed, American, English, Scandinavian, Scotch, Welsh, German a few of the other races named, and a mixture of the whole in their offspring, which are American born, giving a vast preponderance to the Amer- ican element in our composite population. CHAPTER LXXX. SOCIAL GRADING OF UTAH. A COMMUNITY OF MANUFACTURERS. THE PUB- LIC WORKS. OUR INDUSTRIES AND INDUSTRIAL MEN. BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. Z. C. M. I. BOOT AND SHOE FACTORY. PROSPECTS OF HOME MANUFACTURES. The growth and social grading of Utah have deviated markedly from the rules and examples of all the rest of the western family of States which have grown up during her period of existence. Her development, in fact, has been according to the old and not the new social methods. The other States and Ter- ritories on the western line have sprung up out of almost superhuman energies in- duced by the vast mineral wealth of the West, which first appeared in the discovery of gold in California; but Utah has passed through the regular stages of social growth which reminds one of the old fashioned style of the founding of New England, notwithstanding that Utah is second to none in her mineral resources. Here, in this Mormon Territory, we have had the agricultural period as well defined as it was in the Eastern Hemisphere four thousand years ago — when the 6-;o HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. race kept sheep and tilled the land, while empire was being rocked in her cradle. True, the settlers of these valleys emigrated from the manufacturing nations. The majority of those who peopled Utah during the first decade were, as we have seen, from Great Britain ; and there were far more gathered from the manufactur- ing centres of England and Scotland and the mining district of Wales than from the agricultural counties. In grading the settlers of Utah, we should, therefore, consider them chiefly as a manufacturing people; but who, after they came to these valleys, were greatly thrown out of the familiar spheres of their lives. Speaking of the emigrants from Great Britain, they were, as a class, skillful artizans, apprenticed mechanics and colonies of manufacturers which the Mormon Church every season poured into the Territory. Arriving here, they soon lost their original character in conse- quence of the necessities of the country and the strict methods through which the Mormons have built up their cities and settlements. Devoting their lives and in- dustries toward general results as a community, the emigrants were directed by the bishops over the whole extent of country mapped out by the authorities to be sub- dued by Mormon industry and enterprise. Thus, a people originally artizans and manufacturers, became agricultural in their pursuits of life; and it was not until the last decade, under the new era and development of the railroads and mines, that they resumed their original activities. The fact is, Utah was necessarily founded upon an agricultural basis. The very life necessities of the Mormons as a community, and their isolated condition — so far removed from the centres of our national industries and commerce— for a time unduly balanced them on the agricultural side. During the early period, it was in vain to urge the people into home manufac- tures — though it was certainly judicious in their leaders to so counsel them, for the ultimate prosperity of the community was in that direction. They had not the facilities for home manufactures, nor even the raw material ; while the idea of competition with States' goods was simply preposterous — and yet there were in Utah all the skilled laborers who could have produced those goods. The case simply was that Utah had not properly reached her manufacturing period; and it was be- yond even the power of wise and vigorous leaders to place the country prematurely on a manufacturing basis, or more strictly stated, beyond their power to build up trade and commerce excepting according to their own laws. A fresh opening of a season's stock of States' goods by our merchants, for instance, was quite suffi- cient to kill a whole year's preaching on home manufactures. In reviewing the industrial history of our city it may be observed as a singu- lar feature, that nearly all labor, building and mechanic's business commenced on the Public Works, under Daniel H. Wells, the superintendent, and the means for the employment of labor, not only directly on those Public Works, but also in- directly in the building up of the homes of the citizens, came through the busi- ness management of the Trusteein-Trust of the Church and his agents, the bishops. The first development of the city was the Old Fort, with its log cabins and adobe huts and its school and meeting house. Next the settlers moved out upon their city lots to build their city proper. Saw and grist mills were erected for President Young, known as the Chase mills, located iu what is now called Liberty HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CnY. 671 Park, the remains of which are still standing. In rapid succession the several canyons were opened and other saw mills erected in City Creek, Neff's Canyon, Mill Creek and the two Cottonwoods. About this time the Public Works, on Temple Block, were started under the direction of the First Presidency, with Dan- iel H. Wells, superintendent. Here nearly all the emigrants were employed dur- ing the first year of their arrival, or at least so long as they needed such employ- ment. Until they were enabled t© mark out a line of business or enterprise for themselves; the Public Works were open to the industrial classes. On Temple Block there were soon established a carpenters' shop, a large blacksmith shop and a machine shop, where they manufactured mill and other machinery, a paint shop, etc. The carpenters and builders were under the fore- manship of Miles Romney, father of the well known and influential master builder, George Romney. Thomas Tanner was the foreman of the blacksmiths' shop; Captain Pitt of the painters, and " old man Derrick " of the machine shop. In 1850, the men in the blacksmith shop were Phil Margetts, of local cele- brity as "our favorite comedian;" Jonathan Pugmire and Henry Margetts. Afterwards came in Hamilton and Thomas Cartwright. In 185 1, Richard B. Margetts worked there for a short time. A Brother Cook was the horseshoer of the shop. The first casting that was done in Utah was done in this shop, under the supervision of John Kay, Phil. Margetts and Hamilton : Kay was the pattern- maker. The casting was a large spur wheel, for President Young's mill, to supply one broken. It was cast out of old hub cast iron boxes. They melted the ore on a blacksmith's forge, in what they called a pocket furnace. Their furnace in- vented for the occasion, they made by hollowing out below the tool iron, filling in with sand, then placing layer after layer of charcoal and cast iron : they used an old Pennsylvania wagon skein as a spout to carry the molton iron into the ladle, which was made of old fashioned wagon hub bands. And so in the other departments of the public works, there were combina- tions of mechanics some of whom had worked in the best shops in Great Britain, and who in the history of our city since that day have become quite historical men. It was on the public works that many of our citizens got their start in life, and while there they have built themselves homes with tithing office pay, or by the turns which the hands have been enabled to make with their fellows or by the managing men of the works. Hundreds of families in this city have obtained homes, without as much as seeing a dollar in their hands in a year, who to-day with a gold circulation in our city never could have obtained a home. Among the representative men of Salt Lake City who in the early days were associated with the Public Works was John Sharp, often spoken of as the Mormon "railroad bishop." He was born in the Devon Ironworks, Scotland, November 8th, 1820, and was sent into a coalpit to work when but eight years of age. In 1847, Mormonism found him in Clackmannanshire, still engaged as a coal miner. The Mormon gospel was brought to this quarter by William Gibson, one of the first Scotch elders sent out, — a man who obtained notoriety in the British mission as an orator and an able disputant. This elder converted the Sharp brothers (there were three of them) to the faith, and in 1848, they left Scotland 672 HIS TOR V OF SAL T LAKE Cll Y. for America. They landed in New Orleans, came up the Mississippi to St. Louis, where they lived until the spring of 1850, and then took up their line of march for Salt Lake City. The date of his arrival, August 28th, 1850, makes John Sharp one of the earlier settlers of Utah, and the sphere that he has filled so many years, properly classes him among the *' founders." He first went to work in the Church quarry, getting out stone for the Old Tabernacle and Tithing Office, and next was made the superintendent of the quarry. Under his direction the stone for the Public Works, the foundation of the Temple, and the massive wall around the Temple block, was gotten out ; and it must be understood that the quarrying and hauling of those huge blocks of granite was no indifferent undertaking. The sandstone quarry was in Red Butte Canyon and the Church quarry is eighteen miles from the city, and the rock, of course, had to be hauled by oxen, and the men employed directly or indirectly on tithing account. The numerous diffi- culties which the superintendents of the Church works have had to grapple with in raising teams upon the tithing offerings, the employment of regular hands and the finding of means generally to carry on the public works, are not easily imagined, unless one can fancy what the national income would mean if paid in flour, mo- lasses, potatoes, squashes, and the like, and distributed afterwards for the national service. In the spring of 1851, Alderman Raleigh was called upon and appointed by President Young to take charge of and carry on the mason department of the Pub- lic Works, which he continued to do until those works were suspended during the Buchanan war and the " move south." It is not possible to deal with the industries and enterprises of our city and Territory, without introducing occasionally a biographical passage of the men who have developed those enterprises and worn out their lives in the industrial activities, which have converted our once desert and isolated valleys into impor- tant commercial cities. Nor need the author apologize for biographically intro- ducing the class of men who form the subjects of this chapter considering that in the settling and growth of a new country, the men who struck the first blows of hard work and enterprise are truly historical personages. The men who founded our cities; the men who built the first houses ; the men who used the first plows and the men who made them ; the men who made the first leather and shoes, built the cloth factories and wove the cloth ; the men who gave birth to Utah commerce, opened her mines and built her railroads ; these and their class gener- ally are Utah's real representative men with whom the historian will mostly deal in the local record of our Territory and its resources. It was they who gave im- pulses to the country. It was they who created society where, before they came, no society existed. It was they who laid the foundations of our western cities, with their own hands, and made the country habitable for the millions. It was they, in fact, who established the West and gave to it its life and its mighty energies, which in the short period of thirty-eight years, has made it the rival of the East. These are the true representative men of the West and they are the most worthy of historical record. But we have in this biographical series to treat of those who have promoted and r HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 673 developed the manufacturing industries of our Territory. Tlieir importance in the history of Utah has never yet been sufficiently emphasized. It is only now, indeed, that we are beginning to appreciate their real value and mission. The farmers were from the beginning like the landed aristocracy of the country. Utah belonged to them; while the merchant on his part held the " money bags," but the manufacturers had no dispensation, nor to this day have capitalists come to their help^ excepting in the shoe manufacturing establishment of Z. C. M. I. Principally the capital that has been invested in manufactures has been by the in- dustrial classes themselves, and which they have earned by hard work and con- stant struggles. Indeed, it is due to these men, of whom we are here treating, that our home manufacturing industries have assumed anything like the impor- tance needful for the employment of an English and an American people. The late Mr. R. B. Margetts, whose steel plate accompanies this chapter, is very suggestive of the subject. There is a record of hard work and enterprise stamped on his countenance. For over a quarter of a century he was identified with this country and some of its first industries were wrought by his hands. The fol- lowing is a brief biographical sketch of the man : Richard Bishop Margetts was born at Woodstock, Oxfordshire, England, on the first of February, 1823. He left Woodstock, when he was six years of age and lived in and around London for seven years. He left school when he was thirteen years old to learn the trade of a blacksmith, so that he had not a very liberal scholastic education ; but was fitted by his early training for the hard work of a new country. He learned his trade under his father on several of the rail- roads in England, the last place where he worked being Watford, on the London and Northwestern Railway. Mr. Margetts, with his brothers, joined the Mormon Church, and they have all made considerable mark in life. Mr. Thomas Margetts, over a quarter of a century ago, was famous as one of the ablest of the British elders. Mr. Philip Margetts is also quite an historical character in Utah. He is as- sociated in the whole of our theatrical history as one of its principal characters, and is an old public favorite of the stage. We shall meet him in due time in our theatrical history. Richard B. Margetts left England to emigrate to Utah in January, 1850, and after a voyage of nine weeks arrived in St. Louis. During the summer of 1850 he suffered severely from sickness; which caused him to bind himself, under oath, that he would not spend another summer in St. Louis, but would go through to Salt Lake Valley or die in the attempt. On the loth of March, 1851, Mr. Richard Margetts left St. Louis, taking his wagon, which he made for the trip across the Plains. We cannot here follow him through all the vicissitudes of his journey, but will note his arrival in Salt Lake City on the 28th of September, 1851, he having been six months aod two weeks on the journey from St. Louis to this place. His narrative continues, and is strikingly illustrative of the development of the industries of our city. He says : " I rested a few days, and October loth I commenced business as blacksmith- ing in a rented shop, and must say the change from a locomotive and machine 43 674 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CIT\. shop to that of a jobbing blacksmitli was both strange and funny; particularly so as the first job that came in was a horse to be shod and I had to go to work alone and make the nails out of an old iron chain and the shoes from the iron off an ox yokcj and then take beef for pay. I did the job, and that satisfactorily, although it took me a long time and I got rather nervous when the man asked me who taught me to shoe a horse. After telling him hastily that it was none of his busi ness, I learned, to my chagrin, that he was going to give me credit for doing the work so well. I soon got acquainted with the requirements of the country, how- ever, and turned my attention to the manufacture of mill irons ; and although there was nothing but the iron off old wagons to use, I made some very heavy mill irons, and enough to start thirteen grist and saw mills in a short time. I turned my attention to anything and everything that came along. During the emigration to California, I was very busy working for the ernigrants ; and when the overland stages were running through the city, I, in connection with my brothers, Henry and Phillip, did the work for that company for several }ears. '•'About the year '55, I saw that something was required for the purpose of ex- pressing the juice of the cane for molasses, as the farmers were raising consider- able cane and there were none but wood rollers in use. I planned and made up the first cane mill. It took the prize at the fair, the whole machine being made of wagon tires. This led to the manufacture of a great many of those machines, which could be set to horse or water power and did good work for several years until foundries were started that could make cast iron rollers much cheaper. The making of those wrought iron machines was followed by the raising of large quantities of cane or sorghum, and proved to be a great benefit to the Territory. About the year '63, a little circumstance occurred which proved to be a turning point in my business. I wanted to get the patronage of a gentleman who was then running a tannery, and at the same time I wanted to get a pair of boots for one of my men. I asked the gentleman of the tannery, as a favor, to let me have a pair of boots and I would give pay in blacksmithing; but he blankly refused. This rather nettled me, and that same day I made up my mind to start a tannery myself; and in less than two months I had vats in place and commenced to work in hides; and in a very short time had the building in good shape and the busi- ness in a very satisfactory condition. I now found it necessary that I should withdraw from blacksmithing and turn my whole means and attention to tiie tan- ning business, and found it also necessary to add to the same the manufacture of leather belting — a great want of that article being experienced throughout the Territory. The whole business was very successful till near the approach of the railroad, when I found out that leather could be imported cheaper than it could be made here on account of the scarcity of tanning material. In '71, I con- cluded to gradually work out of the tanning business, and to establish a brewery on the premises." We may now follosv for awhile the leather and shoe trade. It is put first in the manufacturing series, because the shoe trade is the most primitive branch of the manufacturing industries — employing more laborers than any other branch until we reach the period of cloth and cotton factories. Moreover, the shoe fac- HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 675 tory, attached to Z. C. M. I., is Salt Lake's manufacturing monument, as the Provo Wo -len Factory is to City of Provo. Samuel Mulliner was the father of our Salt Lake tanners. He manufactured the first leather — a calf skin — which was exhibited at a general conference, before he went on a mission to Scotland from Utah in 1850. MuUiner's tannery was where Walker Brothers' business block and banking house now stand. Ira Ames and Alexander Brim were the next to start tan- nerries in the city. Brim's was in the First Ward ; Ames', afterwards known as Pugsley's tannery, was near the Warm Sprmgs. Among the men who have been foremost in developing the industries of Utah is Mr. Philip Pugsley. Claiming simply the rank of one of the hard-workers of the country and promoters of our local enterprises, he has won a legitimate place in the history of our Territory. He was first known among our early leather manufacturers ; at a later date Pugsley & Randall built and successfully ran the Ogden Woolen Factory; still more recently he engaged in the iron and coal in- dustries, and, indeed, there is scarcely a home enterprise with which the name of Philip Pugsley has not been identified. Philip Pugsley was born in Somersetshire, England ; and ranks as a Mormon emigrant. In his youth he was engaged in the raising and shipping of stock and was afterwards in charge of a large brewery at Bristol, at which city he learned the process of the japanning of leather ; this was his start in the leather business in which he did so much after his emigration to Utah. He left England in 1S53, emigrating in the famous -^xo companies sent to this country by the Apostle Franklin D. Richards — His company, under the command of Captain Jacob Gates, arrived in Salt Lake City on the last day of September. Pugsley's family at the time consisted of his wife and eldest son, Joseph, who is now " boss " of the Salt Lake Soap Works. Sister Pugsley was sick and the family possessed not so much as a cent of money. The first thing to be done on their arrival was to get something to eat, so Brother Philip went to seek employment down at Brother Ira Ames', who was just starting in the tanning bu3ine?s. At this juncture Ames' son, Clark, was called to go on a mission in April with Parley P. Pratt to South America ; Pugsley was engaged to take his place in the leather manufactory. Isaac Young and Pugsley ran the tannery for Ames for a year ; and, at the death of Isaac Young, he ran it himself on shares with Ames, continuing up to the time of the move South. He also ran Golding & Raleigh's tannery on shares. The employers furnished the means and he the labor, for one third of the leather. Those were the days that tried men's souls and the courage and self-sacrifice of the women not less. Pugsley and his wife shared with the early settlers of Utah the poverty of those times. The first winter after their arrival was very severe, and work was stopped. Brother Philip now brought his tools into requisition, in making chairs, tables and other things for household use. The family lived in a tent for several months, until very deep snow fell, when they got into an old house, which appeared ready to tumble down about their ears. Money and pro- visions were very scarce ; obtaining a few beets the wife boiled them down in a bake-skillet, pressed the juice out and then boiled it down into molasses. The first "two-bits " that he got in money was for a piece of leather. With 676 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CnV. this he bought a shin of beef, and his wife boiled it every day for two weeks, un- til broth could no longer be extracted from the bones. It is only by the narration of such personal experiences, that the reader of to-day is enabled to realize the privations which the early settlers of this Territory had to endure, for the experience of one is the story of the whole, with merely some variety^ and the example of a case is suggestive of a thousand-and-one needs of the community when a bushel ot wheat was worth its weight in silver. When the spring opened, and the tanners got out a little leather, times grew better with Pugsleyand his family, for leather and shoes, being among the most essential needs of a community, those articles, more readily than any others, commanded the limited supplies of the country in those times. The women could even do without their tea and sugar, the men without their tobacco, but shoes to the workers who plowed the land and went into the canyons to haul wood, for building purposes and for fuel, were nearly as needful as the "staff of life." Philip Pugsley " kept pitching in," to use his own homely but suggestive word- painting of the hard work and constant struggle of those days, when all our self- made men were "pitching in" to get their own start in life, found cities and set- tlements in the Great American Desert, and to establish the many industries of the Territory of which we now can boast. As we have already said, Pugsley was among the foremost of these industrial men, and the branch of business in which he engaged was the earliest of our manufacturing activities. He made some means in the leather trade, which was the basis of the capital which he has since con- trolled and invested in other branches of enterprise, as fast as they developed. In the spring of 1858, his folks were with the community in their " move south," but Captain Pugsley was left with the detail to guard the city, he belong- ing to the police force. Sometimes there was only himself in the city. But he kept the tannery going notwithstanding, working by day and guarding by night. Nathaniel Jones and James W. Cummings at that time owned the Fifteenth Ward tannery, but being ptincipal officers in the militia they were out with their respec- tive commands ; so they sent down their unfinished leather to Pugsley — 700 large kips and calf skins, and 500 sides of harness and sole leather. The exodus of the people South had suspended the planting of crops, but there was a great deal of self-sown grain in the fields near the city, which promised a fair harvest. Much of this was in danger of baing destroyed by the camping of the companies on their way back to the northern settlements, but Captain Pugsley was appointed by Marshal Jesse C. Little to station himself on the State Road from Gordon's to Salt Lake City, to prevent the companies from camping within that boundary; and this guard duty being effectually performed ,the self-sown wheat was saved and good crops were cut at harvest. On the return of the people to their homes, Ira Ames concluded not to start his tannery again. It was just at this time that Cache Valley attracted so much attention, and the community having been disturbed by the exodus, multitudes poured into Cache Valley and founded the cities which now constitute Cache County ; and with these settlers of the north went Ira Ames, who sold his tannery and bark to Philip Pugsley. Nobody had peeled bark that season, and Pugsley had now the only bark in the city ; so he sold bark to re start the other tanneries IF HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 677 — Mr. Wm. Jennings' and also that of Golding & Raleigh — and thus was renewed the home manufactory of leather. He now left the police service, and attended altogether to the manufacturing business, and from that time Philip Pugsley has been one of the foremost in nearly all of our home manufacturing enterprises^ William Jennings and John R. Winder, in partnership, started in the leather business in 1855. Their place of business at that time was adjoining the property where the Walker House now stands, and behind Mr. Jennings' old residence. They associated with their tannery the harness and boot and shoe branches and also a butcher shop. Just before the " move south," they built the Octagon House on the corner where the Eagle Emporium now stands, and continued busi- ness there for awhile in partnership. After the move Brigham Young, Feramorz Little and John R. Winder started a tannery on Canyon Creek, John R. Winder being the practical partner of the firm and manager of the business. Brigham Young also established a shoe shop on his own premises, inside the wall near his family school house. This shoe shop will be well remembered. He employed about a dozen hands in this shop and they made boots and shoes for his family and numerous employees. He also had a butcher's shop, saddle and harness maker's, carpenter's, large blacksmith's shop, which is still alive and busy under an- other management, a lumber yard and a store well supplied with States' goods. Undoubtedly Brigham Young was, in those days, the largest employer of laborers, mechanics, business managers and clerks in the Territory, and all his establish- ments were for his own people and employees, and not for trade with the public. Hiram B. Clawson was his general business manager ; George W. Thatcher, of railroad fame, as superintendent of the Utah Northern, was his commissary, and the present apostle, George Teasdale, commenced his life in Utah as the President's store-keeper. In fine Brigham Young was the great patron and promoter of home manufactures and home industries, and he took a special pride in the employment of numerous hands. In one of his sermons, delivered about a quarter of a cen- tury ago, he made this characteristic utterance ; " I have grown rich by feeding and employing the poor." He scarcely ever turned an applicant for labor away unemployed. In some department he made room for the applicant or else he created a place for him. He also employed female hands, such as shoe binders. His hands \.-ere better paid in kind and with larger wages than any others in Salt Lake City, or indeed in the Territory. Hundreds of our citizens have ob- tained their lots, their houses and their supplies for years in the employment of President Young. He also, through his agents, brought on a vast amount of ma- chinery to engage in and to encourage home manufactures and home enterprises in general. On this head Horace S. Eldredge speaking of his mission to the States in the spring of 1863, says: "Having been called upon to go again to New York to superintend the emi- gration, I left by overland stage in company with F. Little and L. S. Hills — the two latter to remain at Florence on the frontiers to attend to the outfitting, and I proceeded to New York to attend to forwarding the immigrants from that point to Florence. Having some means of my own, I invested between ^8,000 and ^10,000 in machinery for a cotton factory, which was got up under contract by Messrs. Danforth & Co., of Patterson, New Jersey, with the understanding that 678 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. President Brigham Young would hive the sime freighted to Salt Lake City and erect buildings for them. '•While in New York, I was induced to purchasesome small lots of staple goods which I considered would meet a ready sale on their arrival. I therefore invested a few thousand dollars, and on arriving home found that my friend Hooper had been doing the same as a similar adventure. On comparing invoices we found we had a very fair assortment, and including what I had in store of my original stock, would justify us in opening a retail store which would give us employment during the approaching winter. "Having a very fair line of staple goods, we had a successful trade and realized fair returns for our investment. In the meantime, W. H. Hooper had invested between twelve and fifteen thousand dollars in woolen machinery for the sake of encouraging home manufacture, and President Brigham Young proposed purchasing our interests in the cotton and woolen machinery and to pay us in freighting merchandise from the Missouri River the coming season. This arrange- ment was entered into, and in the spring of 1864, we proceeded to New York and other Eastern cities and purchased our goods, amounting to over one hundred and fifty thousand dollars first cost, the freight on the same amounting to over eighty thousand dollars." Nathaniel V. Jones and James W. Cummings in the early days were also en- gaged in the leather trade. Their tannery was in the Fifteenth Ward. It was started by the merchant Hockaday, the partner of the mail contractor Magraw, who figured prominently in bringing on the Utah war. Howard, the dis- tiller, and H. E. Bowring, saddle and harness maker, were very extensively en- gaged in the leather trade under the firm name of Howard & Bowring. Howard's tannery was the original Mulliner tannery. They soon, however, divided partner- ship, but each continued largely in the business. They were located near to- p;ether on the Main Street, occupying the quarter in which the leather business started, but Bowring purchased the tannery of Jones tSc Cummings in the Fifteenth Ward, while Howard continued m the Mulliner establishment, the various branches of his business being conducted by his son-in-law, Isaac Brockbank. They man- ufactured quite a quantity of boots and shoes, and carried on a busy saddler's shop. But undoubtedly William Jennings was the greatest of the Salt Lake home manu- facturers. His large tannery near the Court House was the most conspicuous manufacturing establishment in the city. President Young had a woolen factory in Sugar House Ward. This factory is now owned and run by Jennings & Sons. But the Provo Woolen Mills have, up to present date, made the broadest mark in the cloth line, and the company established a house in Salt Lake City for the sale of its goods. It was at first under the charge of Eliza R. Snow, with her lady as- sistants ; but it was afterwards placed under the management of John C. Cutler, a young man of energy and much business capacity, who, with his brothers, brought the concern to a decided success, to the great help of the Provo Woolen Mills. It being thus closely related to the home manufacturing trade of our city a pas- sage of its history may be properly quoted from the author's "History of Provo." It was a leading policy with the men who founded the colonies of Utah to es- tablish those branches of home manufactures most needed in the settlement of a HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CI7Y. 679 r f new country ; but the progress of our home manufactures in the early period was necessarily very slow. For nearly a quarter of a century supplies had to be hauled a thousand miles or further in wagons; and it was, therefore, almost impossible to transmit the machinery requisite for the construction of the factories requiring heavy metal ap- purtenances. We had to content ourselves with the simplest forms of machines, and consequently the home made goods hardly bore comparison with the imported. Clothing, boots, shoes, and other goods made here were homely indeed. The advent of the transcontinental railroad made it possible to procure engines, ma- chinery, etc., with which to furnish work shops. Yet, when the railroad laid at our doors all manner of clothing and other luxuries of civilization at low prices, the very desire to support home manufacturers was decreased rather than increased. But the Provo woolen factory, which was started soon after the com- pletion of the railroad, restored confidence to our home manufacturing industries. Indeed, it will be marked in the history of this Territory that it was the Provo Woolen Mills that brought Utah manufactures from a primitive condition to a commercial status, placing our home made fabrics on the market side by side with imported goods, competing with them in quality and price, which was necessary to be done before home manufactures could possibly become a decided success. Next to the Provo Woolen Mills came the Salt Lake Shoe Factory of Zion's Co-operative Mercantile Institution, which, like the Woolen Mills, employs num- erous hands, and is conducted upon the modern manufacturing system. The Provo Factory, being the most conspicuous industrial building in our Territory, turning out fine fabrics which were fully equal to the imported, was un- doubtedly an example to the capitalists of Z. C. M. I. of what could be done in a sister branch of manufactures, while the success of the Provo Woolen Factory and the Salt Lake Shoe Factory has induced Z C. M, I. to handle their goods in preference to the imported, and that, too, upon a sound commercial basis, rather than as a mere patron of favored establishments of home industries. Thus con- sidered, the Provo Woolen Mills will stand as the first monument in the manufac- ing history of our Territory. June ist, 1869, a company, known as the Timpanogos Manufacturing Com- pany was organized with a capital of $1,000,000, in 10,000 shares of $100 each. The mill site was bought of the Hon. John Taylor, and, as soon as the company had matured its preliminary business, the ground was broken. The following is a note from the diary of Secretary L. John Nuttall : " Saturday, May 28, 1870. The southeast corner stone of the Provo Co-op- erative Woolen Factory was laid at half-past nine o'clock a. m. by President A. O. Smoot. Upon the stone being laid. President Smoot offered prayer, after which Bishops E. F. Sheets, Myron Tanner, and Andrew H. Scott, and Elder Thomas AUman made appropriate remarks. " President Smoot prophesied that this corner stone shall remain steadfast and sure." The " Provo Woolen Factory " was established very much after the same pattern and with the same spirit as that of Z. C. M. I. itself; the one represent- ing the mercantile institutions of Zion, the other her manufacturing institutions. 68o HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CnV. The erection of the buildings was under the management of Mayor A. O. Smoot, and were finished in the spring of 1872. From the breaking of the ground the work progressed with vigor, and skilled workmen came from all parts of the Territory to assist in building a factory which was designed for the employment of hundreds of hands and to earn for the Territory millions of dollars by home in- dustries. The buildings were erected at a cost of $155,000; and the men, as a rule, who did the work and furnished the material, took stock for their labor. Associated with President Smoot in the construction of these works was Bishop A. H. Scott, who rendered most efficient service. For the purchase of suitable machinery, President Young advanced over $70,000 in cash, and F. X. Loughery of Philadelphia was engaged to put the ma- chinery in place and start it. In 1872 The Timpanogos Manufacturing Company was incorporated, with the following officers : Brigham Young, president; A. O. Smoot, vice-president; Myron Tanner, VVm. Bringhurst, O. Simons, Jos. S. Tanner, A. H. Scott, directors ; H. A. Dixon, secretary, L. J. Nuttall, treasurer. In October, 1872, the cards and mules started, and yarn was spun and mar- keted ; but it was not till June ist, 1873, that cloth was manufactured. Secretary Nuttall notes in his diary : " Oct. 4th, the first wool was carded at the Provo Woolen Factory to-day." Owing to some defect in the constitution, the Timpanogos Company was dis- solved on the 13th of October, 1873, ^""^ o" ^^^ ^S^^ of •^'"'^ same month the Provo Manafacturing Company was incorporated with a capital of 5500,000 in 5,000 shares of ^100 each. Officers remained the same as before, excepting that Myron Tanner was appointed superintendent in the place of A. O. Smoot. The reason of this reorganization is thus explained : When the Timpanogos company was organized, there was no Territorial statute authorizing the organization of co- operative institutions, but in 1870 the Legislature of Utah passed a general incor- poration act, under which this company v/as reorganized, with the name of the Provo Manufacturing Company. The stock was issued and bonds given to the stockholders to the amount of $200,000, insuring them ten per cent, per annum. As the bonds were held by the stockholders, and it being of litile benefit to the institution, it was deemed advisable, in the year 1878, to recall them — nineteen-twentieths being considered sufficient to accomplish the retirement of the bonds. At the present writing the bonds are all retired. This is an evidence of the interest which the stock- holders have taken in this branch of Utah manufacturing industries, when they were willing to sacrifice a certainty — as these bonds drew len per cent, an- nually and take their chances upon dividends that might accrue from the stock. It is something unprecedented in the history of any business corporation. For some time after the cloth was put upon the market the Provo goods did not meet the encouragement deserved. They were excellent in quality so far as durability was concerned, but lacked the finish of the imported article. This, to- gether with the prejudice manifested against home manufacturers generally, for a time retarded the progress of the factory ; but with the improved facilities of to- HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 68i r f day, and its operatives brought to first class proficiency, the Provo fabrics will now compete with the same class of imported goods. Myron Tanner was the first superintendent of the manufacturing department, with efficient foremen. Under his superintendence the first cloth was made and put upon the market. He served to the general satisfaction of the company till the fall of 1874, at which time he was succeeded by Mr. James Dunn, under whose efficient management and under the direction of the board of directors, the Provo Factory has reached a first class working status and achieved a reasonable success generally. The Factory was run under the able management of Mr. Dunn until May, 1884, when he resigned for the purpose of going into business for himself. By the action of the board of directors Mr. Reed Smoot was appointed to succeed Mr. Dunn as superintendent, Mr. Smoot having been more or less familiar with the inside working of the Factory from the time that F. X. Loughery was foreman. In the year 1876 the Factory commenced to buy wool and also to ship it east. The wool business has been reasonably successful. When the company entered into this wool trade it involved the necessity of borrowing from twenty to fifty thousand dollars, for which loan the Deseret Na- tional Bank required President A. O. Smoot, who has been the financial backbone of the institution from the beginning, to give his personal security. In 1877, the company established an agency in Salt Lake City, with John C. Cutler as agent of the commission house. In 1 88 1, a retail store for the sale of merchandise and woolen fabrics was started in Provo, under the management of the superintendent of the Factory. The dimensions of the main building are 145 x 65 feet. It is a four-story rock building, with a half mansard roof, covered with tin roofing. It has a pro- jecting stairway, surmounted by a tower 30 feet above the roof. The upper story is used for the storing and preparing of the wool for the cards. On the floor be- low there are eight sets of cards and one hand mule of 240 spindles, two reels and two spoolers. The next floor below is the spinning room, containing four self-acting mules, of 720 spindles each. The ground floor contains 19 broad looms and 38 narrow looms, 2 wrappers and dressers, i shawl fringer, i quilling frame and i beamer, and a machine for a double and twist stocking yarn of 62 spindles. The finishing house is built of adobe, 70 x 30 feet, two and a half stories high. On the first floor are three washers, three frillers, two large screw presses, two gigs, one cloth measure, and one hard waste picker. The factory is run by water power, with two Leffel turbine wheels, one 36 and the other 44 inches. The factory has a rotary pump, which is in operation. Immediately south of the main building is situated a two-and-a-half story adobe building, 33 x 134 feet. The upper room is used for the receiving and as- sorting of wool, and the lower story for an office, salesroom, carpenter shop and drying room. Attached to this building, on the east side, is a one-story frame house, 30 X 60 feet, which is used for the dye-house and wool-scouring. Connected with the Factory was quite a large flouring mill, but it was burned down in the spring of 1879, involving a loss of $10,000. 44 682 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CIT\. The Factory employs on an average from 125 to 150 operatives, who were mostly trained in the large manufactories of England and Scotland. The company finds a market for their goods in every town and village tf Utah, besides exporting some into Montana, Idaho and Colorado. Among it> complete variety of goods, it manufactures about three thousand pairs of blankets per year, which will compete with the same class of goods manufactured either, efast or west. The amount of goods manufactured per annum is about $150,000 J. C. Cutler, as agent, sold from $100,000 to $120,000 per annum. The wool purchases amount to about one million pounds, out of which the Factory manu- factures between three and four hundred thousand pounds. The company has done a' great deal of wholesale tra,de: We return to the boot and shoe trade as culminating in the factory started by Z. C. M. I., under the management of that practical and able manufacturer, Wm. H. Rowe. These already given of the causes of the slow progress of manufactures in Utah, combined with a lack of capital, are a it'f^ reasons why manufacturing has languished in Utah ; but a new era seems now to have dawned upon us. Political and domestic economy requires the people of the Territory to seriously contem- ])late the fact that it is financially suicidal to continue importing nearly everything required for use or consumption. No argument is needed to sustain this state- ment, "every person of ordinary intelligence being able readily to comprehend it. We are pleased to note, however, indications that ere long there will be many branches of manufacture established throughout the Territory, providing employ- ment to the hundreds of skilled artisans who are gathered here, and to the thou- sands of young people who are rapidly growing up and anxiously seeking for opportunities to acquire a knowledge of useful trades. , Already there are a {tfi branches assuming substantial proportions, one of the most noticeable being the. Shoe Factory of Zion's Cooperative Mercantile Institution. This factory is the outgrowth of many efforts which had been made to establish a permanent business in manufacturing boots and shoes, extending back fifteen years or more. It was apparent to shoemakers and practical men generally, that a business of that char- acter ought to be successful ; people cannot conveniently go barefoot, and as the roads in the west are exceedingly rough, and the avocations of its citizens labor- ious, the number of pairs of boots and shoes required by them exceeds the aver- age of other countries; therefore, they reasoned, if .any branch of manufacture could be made to pay in Utah the boot and shoe trade was the most likely to succeed. But the results of their trials generally terminated unsatisfactorily. Leather was seldom allowed to remain long enough in the vats to get thoroughly tanned, and then it was hurried so quickly through the process of currying, finishing and making into shoes, that when worn it frequently proved to be lacking in many essential qualities. The term "valley-tan" soon became, and is now, rather a derogatory expression, ajjplied indiscriminately to any rough home-made article, Viicluding \yhisky. In addition to the frequently pjor quality of leather they had to contend with, master shoemakers had to pay high prices for the manufacture of boots and shoes, the goods having to be made in the old fashioned rhanner, fl HISTORY OF SAL T LAKE CITY. 68 '^ on the lap, compelling them to charge much higher prices than thos.^ for which imported articles could be purchased. Latterly, after some machinery was intro- duced for the effort of competing with prices of imported goods, there were tlije difficulties to encounter of not having experienced men to, manipulate the ma- chinery, or to organize and operate factories on modern methods.' It was not until Mr. W. H. Rowe, the efficient manager of Z. C. M. I. Shoe Factory, took hold of tiie business that any thoroughly satisfactory head way was made in the yvholesale manufacture of boots and shoes to compete with the imported ; although great credit is due to the employees of the Workingmen's Co-operative Association for having, in 1876, by instigation of Mr. D. M. McAllister, voluntarily initiated a revolution in rates of wages, which demonstrated a possibility of manufacturing for wholesale trade. The association alluded to was organized, in March, 1874, by about twenty-five shoe makers, assisted by a few friends, who made a heroic attempt to create employment for themselves and others; but, unfortunately their capital was too small for the purpose, and, although they were sustained by the public, it became evident, after two years' struggle, that they were fighting against fate. At this juncture of affairs, Mr. D. M. McAllister was appointed superintendent, and he succeeded in keeping the business alive for another year, saving it from bankruptcy. In March, 1877, Mr. Wm. H. Rowe purchased the business of the Working- men's Co-op., and at once proceeded to lay the foundation of what is to-d^ay the largest manufacturing enterprise in Utah. In addition to the fact that Mr. Rowe must hereafter be recognized as a pioneer amongst the successful manufacturers in this Territory, his natural ability, and the substantial character of the work he has done for the benefit of the laboring classes and for' the community, demands that he should receive more than a passing notice, and we therefore insert a short biographical sketch of his life. Mr. Wm. H. Rowe was born at Portsmouth,' England, February 14th, 1841. At the early age of eleven years he commenced to learn the ghOe trad'ej working, under the instruction of his father, at bottoming childs' shoes, ladies' vVelts, and pumps, continuing on those classes of work until he was fifteen years of age. He afterwards spent two years at cutting uppers, in an army custom-work firm at Portsea. From the latter place he went to London and obtained a position as foreman in the cutting department of an exporting shoe factory, that of Messrs. A. & W. Flauto, Leadenhall St.; remaining there three years. He next HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 685 the object in view of ultimately making all the boots and shoes they can sell. There are now one hundred and twenty hands employed in the shoe factory, includ- ing eighty men, twenty boys, and twenty young women and girls. When the boot and shoe factory of Z. C. M. I. started, the business of this branch of that house amounted to $400,000 a year, only $70,000 worth of which was of their own make ; now over $200,000 of the business of that house in the boot and shoe trade are home made. This, of itself, shows the rapid pro- gress made in the home industries of our city in the last few years since Z. C.M.I, became its active patron and helper. The factory first started on stoga work, but it now manufactures every class of goods, except babies' shoes. This progress has been made by the efficient management of the factory and the education of the employees up to a class of work that completes successfully with the imported goods. Not only has the factory built up itself, but it has also built up the tanning department connected with the factory, in using the leather for which other- wise it could not have found a market. It should be here mentioned that all the Utah tanneries suspended work and passed out of existence on the advent of the railroads, and this one established by Z. C, M. I. is a revival of the leather-making business. The factory uses up 13,000 sides of leather a year, made at its tannery, which is about equal to the whole tannage of the city in early times. All those hides are from the Salt Lake butchers, which would have to have be sent out of the Territory for a market but for this factory. Here fol- lows a detailed description of Z. C. M. I. Shoe Factory, as given by the secretary of this manufacturing department : In the cutting room a dozen men and boys are employed. In this room the first part of the manual labor is done. Care, skill and judgment are highly essen- tial qualifications of the workmen in this department, as the materials used in cut- ting are expensive, and a considerable degree of ingenuity is required to cut the stock to advantage and with the least possible waste. The cost of material and labor in the uppers averages about one-half the value of the finislied article. There are nearly one hundred styles of boots and shoes made in the establishment, and the large number of patterns required is surprising. Each shoe upper is made of six or more pieces, and in cutting a set of sizes of ladies' shoes there are fre- quently upwards of fifty patterns used. Manager Rowe is the designer of the multitude of patterns, which constitute an invaluable adjunct of the business. Nearly all the work in this department is done by hand. There are no two sides of leather, or skins, exactly alike; it is, therefore, hardly possible to use machinery in cutting uppers ; a few dies, and some small machines for cutting strips, is all that is used here. We must not omit noticing, however, a remarkable ingenious machine placed in this room for measuring leather. No matter how irregular in form, nor how many holes there may be in the leather, the indicator of the ma- chine will instantly show the precise quantity of surface in the side or skin placed on it. Fully half of the material required for the uppers is imported, but we are pleased to state a large amount is now made at the Z. C. M. I. tannery, and J. W. Summerhays & Co. of this city furnish most of the lining skins and roans that are used. 686 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. ,.'■ : The uppers, after being cbt and stamped with sizes and order numbers, art assorted in what is called "case lots," that js five dozen pairs of shoes or one dozen pairs of boots, and are passed into the fitting room. A work ticket accom- panies each case lot, ob which, is detailed a description of the. goods, order No., Avho for, when wanted, .scale of sizes and number of pairs of each size, with lines on which to write the name of each person who does any of the various desig- nated portions of the work. We will. here mention that in the making of each pair, of boots or shoes,' the labor of over thirty persons is represented. In this room an Otto Silent Gas Engine, of seven horse-power, is located. A peculiarity which every visitor notes in regard to the engine is that it is kept locked up in a glass-enclosed room, and that it has no attendant. It needs no attention except to oil, clean, start or stop it, and can be started or stopped in one minute. There is no boiler, no fire, no smoke; no dust, no noise, no danger connected with it; it feeds itself and consumes no more gas than it needs, is therefore decidedly economical, and is truly one of the wonders of the nineteenth century. This engine runs seventy-five machines belonging to the shoe and clothing factories. The process of making the uppers is commenced by passing the edges of the leather, which have to be sewn, under a revolving knife, which rapidly takes off a shaving and reduces the edge to uniform thickness. The fitters pasce the various parts of the uppers in proper position, and otherwise prepare the work for the sewing machine. The operators receive the uppers thus prepared and govern the lively moving sewing machine while it stiches the curved, scol- loped or straight seams. A light pressure of the foot suffices to start or stop the sewing machine instantly. The exhausting labor of feet and limbs is no longer ■necessary, and the engine thus proves a blessed boon to the young lady employees. -It is exceedingly interesting to observe the astonishing rapidity of movement anti beauty of work done by the machines, intricate designs in stitching being worked with the greatest precision, under the expert guidance of the operators* A but- ton-hole machine that automatically guides itself, making button-holes at the rate of two per minute, with a perfection of stitch unequalled by hand, is one of the most admired of the sewing machines. Several other machines in this room seem, almost, endowed with intelligence, among them being the puncher and eyeleter.. This machine punches holes, regulating the distance between, inserts and fastens eyelets with great rapidity and perfect workmanship. The waxed- thread machines are large and strong, being capable of easily sewing through leather a half inch thick, and several of them carry two needles each, for stitch- ing double seams on shoe fronts, etc. The rooms described, connected with which are the packing department and office, are located in the second story, west ^end of Jennings' Emporium Build- ings. From there we can descend by an elevator to the basement, or sole leather room. A fifteen horse-power steam engine, built at the Salt Lake Iron Works, operates the machines in this and the bottoming departments. Connecting with the south end of the basement is a boiler, room, in which there are two twenty horse-power boilers, ore furnishes steam for the engine, the other to heat the .entire premises. The hands employed in the Sole Leather Room, cut and prepare the material HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 687 required for the bottoms and heels of boots and shoes. The number of pieces thus prepared averages twenty- four to eadh pair of boots or shoes, and as- there is a daily production of about 400 pairs, there are, consequently, nearly io,oco pieces of leather cut and fitted up every day in this room. The sole leather used, is the best quality of California oak tan. The machinery employed includes two sole-cutting presses; a guillotine knife, for cutting strips; a splitter, to reduce the leather to uniform thickness; a heavy roller, through which the rough pieces are passed, under great pressure, making the leather firm and smooth ; a moulder, which moulds the soles into the curved form of a last ; a powerful heel press, and a variety of smaller machines for trimming, skiving, etc. One of these small machines is an ingenious contrivance for making nail holes. It accurately gua:ges the distance from the edge and between the holes, ^.nd punches them with aston- ishing rapidity. An important, and costly item in this dep)artment is the exten- sive assortment of steel dies required for cutting soles, heel lifts, etc.,- used in connection with the two sole- cutting presses. On the floor above this is^the bottom- ing room. \y £1''V ::- '?'rr;y:'; The incessant pounding of .shoemakers' hammers, whirr of machinery, lively movements of the workmen and array of racks filled with boots and shoes in pro- cess of manufacture, combine to make a picture of industry that instinctively calls to mind a hive of busy bees. The method of fastening soles on boots and shoes, adopted in this workshop, is the same as has, for many years, extensively pre- vailed in England, and is now becoming popular in America; it is called the clinching screw process ; unquestionably the best in the world. Solid iron lasts are used; the clinching screws are driven into the soles, with a stout, flat file ,• the points of the nails turn on the last, after passing through the inner sole, and they are then firmly riveted, or clinched, by blows of a heavy hammer. After the soles and heels are securely fastened on, the boots or shoes having passed through the hands of lasters, nailers and heelers, are then given to the heel breaster, who manipulates a machine which, at one slice, cuts through the six, or more, thick- nesses of sole leather comprising the heel and leaves a square breast next to the shank. The heel trimmer next receives the goods. An old fashioned shoemaker, accustomed to spend an hour or more in whittling a pair of boot heels into gQod shape would almost be inclined to think that the magic art had been introduced in the modern method of heel trimming as done in this establishment ; the' rap- idity with which heels are trimmed, by machine, into the most perfect forms,- has the appearance of a slight of hand trick. Although highly interesting to a • per- sonal observer, it would be tedious to a reader to follow a detailed description of the many splendid machines used in this department. Each machine is the most perfect that can be obtained. We will simply name them in the order in which they are used. Next to the heel trimmer is the heel filer and scourer, then the edge trimmer; edge setter or burnisher ; heel burnisher ; sandpapering machine, or buffer, for scouring the soles; following them are the bottom finishing machines," including revolving brushes for applying colors, polishing, etc.; also a machine ^ith heated steel stamps of various designs, for stamping a trade mark on the spies ; and an embossing machine for gilding the tops of boots. -^ »--; From this room the goods are conveyed on the elevator up to the floor where 688 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CI7Y. the packing room is located. The process of cleaning and packing boots and shoes involves more labor than is generally understood. Their attractive appear- ance, or the reverse, depends greatly on the manipulation of cleaners and packers. All boots are subjected to three or four rubbing and dressing opera- tions, on boot "trees," before they are sufficiently smooth and polished to pre- sent to the public, and ordinary leather or calf shoes are similarly treated. There are competent foremen in each department of the factory, who are specially instructed to permit no poor stock to be used, or imperfect work done on the goods, and their duty is to carefully examine all goods as they pass through the various hands in each room. By this means every pair of boots and shoes is subject to frequent inspection. Damaged or poor goods are laid aside, and only the best are packed for market. To properly conclude our observations we will now look into the office. In this quiet corner is generally to be found the principal moving power of the whole concern, W. H. Rowe, Esq. He is one of those human electric ma- chines whose business force is felt by all with whom he is associated. The suc- cessful working of this factory speaks loudly for his acquaintance with details and managing ability. In addition to supervising the Shoe Factory Mr. Rowe is man- ager also of the tannery and clothing factory. The employees of these manufacturing departments of Z. C. M. I. have estab- lished, by Mr. Rowe's advice, a mutual aid society, which has proved highly ben- eficial to them. The members of this society pay a very small sum monthly into a fund from which they receive aid in case of sickness, and they hold meetings frequently for social enjoyment and mental improvement. In all matters con- nected wiih the growth of these manufacturing enterprises Mr. Rowe has had efficient aid in the services of Mr. D. M. McAllister, and other faithful em- ployees, men, boys and girls. That these manufacturing concerns are accomplishing much good is a remark hardly necessary to make ; every person can readily comprehend that the large number of people employed are not the only persons benefitted, but that the whole Territory indirectly participates in the advantages. We heartily commend the laudable example of Z. C. M. I. in establishing and fostering these branches of industry, and recommend others, who can, to go and do likewise. To this may be added something more of detail of the overall and under- wear department, under Mr. Rowe's management. The overall department was first started by Mr. Spencer Clawson, while he was with Z. C. M. I.; but when Clawson left to go into business for himself, the department was turned over to manager Rowe, under whose enterprise it has constantly increased. He im- mediately added to the original overall making, the underwear, which enabled them to cut up 25,000 yards of Provo flannel the first year. This enterprise has entirely cut out the importation of Chinese overalls. The division of labor being adopted in this branch of business, a single overall going through thirteen hands, has made it a decided success. The overalls are cut by folding 72 bolts, about 3,600 yards, placed on a table and cut into sections by hand, then cut by a power knife, which produces twelve pairs of overalls per minute ; the stitching is done by sewing machines running r HISTORY OF SAL T LAKE CITY. 689 1,400 stitches per minute. The buttons are put on by a magnetic machine. The production of the room is 400 pairs per day. It is the nucleus of a clothing factory, on a large scale, towards which the management is amimg. In connection with Z. C. M. I. boot and shoe factory it is highly proper to personally distinguish William Jennings as a home manufacturer. Mr. Jennings is known to day as the successful merchant and a millionaire of trade. This he has made of himself, but nature, made him for a manufac- turer and an employer of the operative classes. The circumstances of the country changed the bent of his life and threw him into the more profitable avenues of a mercantile commerce rather than that of manufactures — more profit- able, however, only for a time, for the commerce of the future will be chiefly con- structed upon our home industries and native resources. At first, Mr. Jennings was the manufacturer. He was in Utah nearly ten years before he became the regular merchant. Dealing in cattle was a family vo- cation, but notice in his history how soon he constructed several branches ot trade nearest to his primitive business. He established a successful tannery and manu- factured leather. He prided himself in this and made the best leather in the Ter- ritory. The time was when Jennings' tannery was a great public good ; next he became a large manufacturer of boots and shoes, and when he opened a mer- chant's store he placed his home-made stock side-by-side with his States goods and raised it to a cash value, competing in his own store with the imported article. None of the other merchants of Utah did as much. This is by no means said to the discredit of other merchants, but to mark out Jennings' proper line of useful- ness to the community. At one time he employed a hundred men, and stopped the importation of leather from the States. The co-operative organization of the '' Big Boot " grew out of his original concern, as did also the Deseret Tannery & Manufacturing Association, which business is still carried on in Jennings' Empor- ium building and at the premises in the 19th Ward, under the auspices of Z. C. M. I. Indeed, he was the original manufacturer of Utah and the only one worthy of that name in the earlier days, though others are now rising, like hives of busy bees, as illustrated by the weavers of cloth in Provo, and the boot and shoe man- facturers of Salt Lake City. Furthermore, it may be noted that Jennings & Sons are ambitious to make their Wasatch Woolen Mills (the pioneer woolen mills of Brigham Young) the rival of the Provo Woolen Factory, in which case Salt Lake City will own a little colony of cloth manufacturers as well as Rowe's colony of boot and shoe makers. In c:.nnection with William Jennings we should give a regular biographical link of his early partner, John R. Winder : John Rex Winder was born at Biddenden, in the County of Kent, England, on the nth of December, 1820. In the year 1847 he first heard of Mormonism, in Liverpool ; in the following year he rendered obedience to the Mormon Gos- pel; and in February, 1853, sailed from Liverpool on board the Elvira Ozven, which made the trip to New Orleans in thirty-five days. He steamed up the river to Keokuk, and camped there until the 19th of July, when the company started across the plains, arriving in Salt Lake City, October 10, 1853. He genedag 45 690 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CIT\. with Samuel Mulliner in the business of manufacturing saddles, harness, boots, shoes, etc., and remained with him until the spring of 1855. He then joined in partnership with Wm. Jennings, under the firm name of Jennings & Winder, butchers, tanners, and manufacturers of boots, shoes, harness, sad- dles, etc., doing a successful business in each department until the move South, in the spring of 1858, when this partnership was dissolved. William Jennings continued the business, and John R. Winder, in connection with Brigham Young and Feramorz Little, started another tannery on Canyon Creek ; this was carried on successfully until the railroads brought leather to the Terri- tory cheaper than it could be manufactured at home. As already noted, the rail- road caused a general suspension of the tanneries throughout the Territory, but more particularly was this the case in and near Salt Take City. The last home enterprise John R. Winder was actively engaged in (associated with Feramorz Little, Wm. Jennings, W. H, Hooper, Geo. Romney, Elias Morris and others) was the building and operating a new tannery in the Nineteenth Ward. After putting it into successful operation, it was disposed of to Z. C: M. L, and is now carried on by that firm, as detailed in the general history of the leather trade. People arriving in the Territory to-day, when we have so many of the nec- essaries and comforts of life — when we have our railroads, street cars, gas works, foundries, mills and manufactories — seldom stop to think of the early days of these settlements, when these things did not exist here, nor of the many trials and difficulties that the early settlers had to encounter in bringing about the present state of affairs, — many of them without a practical knowledge of what they under- took to accomplish, without money or influence abroad that would secure credit, without everything, in fact, except their indomitable will, perseverance, and faith. Li connection with the lumber business, which forms so important a factor in the building of cities, are the factories, containing a number of machines, called wood-working machinery, consisting of planing and grooving machines, mortice and tenanting machines, moulding and shaping machines, circular, fret and band saws and a number of other useful machines, nearly all of which were unknown to our grandfathers, but without which the whole country could not have taken such giant strides the last half century. The first successful effort to introduce this class of manufacture in Utah, was by the firm of Latimer, Taylor & Co., consisting of four partners: Thomas Lati- mer, Geo. H. Taylor, Charles Decker and Zenas Evans. The first two were sash and door makers, the last two owned and ran a saw mill. It was in the winter of 1866-7, when the canyons were closed up, that the owners of the saw mill used to sit around the fire at Latimer & Taylor's little shop (they —Latimer & Taylor — being agents to sell their lumber). There they would talk about machines and machinery, and study over an illustrated catalogue of the same, that had found its way out here, and wish that they could raise the money to purchase the nec- essary machinery to make a start in that business. They determined at length to make an effort to borrow five thousand dollars, each one pledging himself and all he was worth as security. It was also determined that as Latimer and Taylor had the least of this world's goods, they should do the borrowing, and the other two, being worth more, could give the security. HIS TOR V OF SAL T LAKE CITY. 6gt If the national currency had been then what it is to day, the borrowing might have been a very difficult task, but as greenbacks then were worth only fifty cents on the dollar, those who had money were not disposed to hoard it. In a very short time the five thousand dollars were raised. Mayor Smoot furnished three thousand at three per cent, per month, and the other two thousand was pro- cured from various sources at five per cent, per month. When we consider the high prices of everything in consequence of the depre- ciation of currency, and the enormous rate of interest paid on the loan, we can form some idea of the task these men had undertaken. Orders were immediately sent through Fred. Perris for the necessary ma- chinery, and in the fall of 1867, it was brought here by ox team, the freight amounting to twenty cents per pound. A lot was rented opposite the southeast corner of the Eighth Ward Square. A lumber yard was started and a planing machine set up, but as yet they had no power to turn it. The first effort to run was made wich a small two-horse power rig, which they hired for an experiment, to which they had attached eight mules, but after turning the contrivance upside down a few times, they came to the conclusion that they could never succeed in running a four-horse machine with a two-horse power. Learning that Mr. Henry Din- woodey was expecting a four-horse steam engine from the east, they negotiated iox the same, and on its arrival, had their mill up, and the machinery all in place, so that when the engine arrived, it was but a few days before everything was in order, and they blew the first steam whistle that was ever heard in the city. Young people, who had never heard one, came from all parts of the city to witness the novelty. Many predicted that it would be a failure, and the idea that Latimer and Taylor, who were to run it, would make a success of it, seemed preposterous, when it was known that Latimer was a potter by trade, and Taylor a calico en- graver. Though neither of them had any experience with that class of machinery, they started out to succeed, and Mr. Latimer being naturally a machinest, they soon overcome the obstacles that inexperience left in their way. Fortunately for them it was a busy season, mechanics scarce, and they soon had all they could do at remunerative prices. By working early and late, and with the assistance of the lumber from the other partners, they, at the close of the first season, had paid off all their interest and settled the most pressing part of their principal. Through the winter they made a stock of sash, doors and flooring from which during the next season they expected to realize enough to clear off their indebt- edness. But they were doomed to fresh trials. On the forenoon of the 23d of June, 1868, their factory took fire, and though they were on the premises at the time, so strong was the wind and so combustible the building and its contents, that within twelve minutes the whole concern was burned to the ground. Nothing was saved; one of the proprietors went home without his coat and the other without his hat. They were without means, heavily in debt, and out of business. Taylor here relates an incident that he is always fond of telling : One old lady living in one of the outside wards, as soon as she heard of the fire, came down to his house (walking ten blocks) and told him not to be discouraged, as he 6g2 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY, had burned down in the right time of the moon. He says he has often heard of the moon having an influence over planting, reaping, and various other events, but never thought it extended far enough to cover his case at that time. It being the most extensive fire that had occured here up to that time, they had the sympathy of the community, which took practical shape through the efforts of Bishop Thomas Taylor, who collected from the business men of the place, both Mormon and Gentile, about one thousand dollars, in sums of about fifty dollars, which Latimer & Taylor would not take as a gift, but gave their joint notes to pay as soon as they were able, without interest, all of which they paid within two years, as far as they have any knowledge. They then bought the burnt and damaged machinery from their former partners for one thousand dollars, giving to each a note of five hundred dollars. Latimer set to work to repair the damaged machines, while Taylor worked to support the two families. After a whole season spent in repairs, they formed a new partnership in 1869 with W. H. Folsom and George Romney, starting a steam mill on Folsom's lot on South Temple Street. W. H. Folsom was a leading architect, and Romney had been for years foreman at the Public Works. For several years previous to the part- nership they, under the firm of Folsom & Romney, had been the leading con- tractors and builders in the city. The uniting of these four practical hard work- ing men made a strong team and insured them success, otherwise the introduction of capital and lumber from the west about that time from the great Truckee com- panies would have been too much for the old company. After a successful business oi'" five years, during which this company built a number of our principal stores and dwellings, Mr. Folsom sold out his interest to Mr. Francis Armstrong, and has since held the position of Church architect for the Manti Temple. The company then purchased the grounds where they now are, put up a large mill, and continued to run under the name of Latimer, Taylor & Co. until the death of the senior partner, Mr. Latimer, in October, 1881, when the remaining partners purchased the interest of their former partner and changed the firm to Taylor, Romney «S: Armstrong. It has always been the aim of the company to sustain home industries, and for a long time after the introduction of foreign lumber, they were the only ones keeping a yard who dealt_in the home-made article, and to-day, in connection with their outside stock, they take the entire proceeds of three home saw mills, besides a large amount from several others, and also manufacture many things that they could import and make more profit on. Thus the little struggling con- cern of sixteen years ago is to-day standing in the front rank in contracting, building and manufacturing. Their lumber contracts for the present year are about four million feet, and during the building season they have had on their pay roll about sixty names, paying over one thousand dollars a week in wages. These hands, with their families, together with the men employed in the saw mill and their families, must aggregate about five hundred persons who draw their support from this firm. They have also built a number of houses on the instalment plan, taking legal interest on the outlay, for people who would otherwise have been paying rent to-day. The late Thomas Latimer was born at Burslam, Staffordshire, England, in HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 6pj 1828. He served as a potter. When he was about twenty years of age he was baptized into the Mormon Church at about the same time that the " Eardley Brothers" an.d " Croxall and Cartwright " came into the Church. They all worked at the same shop and the latter, as is well known, established the pottery industries of our Territory, while Latimer branched out into the lumber business with Mr. George H. Taylor. Latimer emigrated to St. Louis at about the year 1S50, where he stayed for two years and then journeyed west with Mr. Eardley. After his arrival in Salt Lake City in 1852, Latimer engaged in ditching and adobie making for a season, after which he worked for Mr. Samuel Snyder selling lumber and making sash and doors, which business he had learned since his arrival in America. In that day mechanics were scarce; and he, devoting himself ex- clusively to sash and door making and had all the work he could do the year round, people coming to him from all the neighboring settlements. Thus commenced this branch of business in our City as a specialty, the history of which is briefly sketched in the foregoing. Thomas Latimer died in the latter part of October, 1881, after two years of illness in consumption. He was a genial, social, honest man ; his partners would have trusted him with all they had, and by our citizens generally he was highly respected. George H. Taylor was born at Bloomfield, New Jersey, November 4th, 1829. He was apprenticed to a calico engraver, and served five years. Mr. Taylor and his wife came to this Territory in 1859, by ox team, landing without a dollar on the i6th of September. Three days after his arrival in Salt Lake City he went up to the saw mill in Big Cottonwood to work for Feramorz Little, as a tail sawyer. There he worked six weeks and got his winter's provis ions, when he went down to Sugar House Ward to spend the winter, during which season he hauled lumber for Little from the mill to the city. In the spring of i860, he moved into the city with his family, and sought employ on the Pub- lic Works. He went into the carpenter shop, of which Mr. George Romney, one of his present partners, was the " boss." Here he worked six weeks, learn- ing his new trade, at a wage of $1.50 per day, at the expiration of which time he found somebody to give him ^2.00 When Mr, Taylor commenced to learn the carpentry business he was thirty- one years of age. He served his time with Mr. Charles King, the well known Salt Lake builder. During his engagement with King, covering a period of two years, Taylor had a hand in building some of the first principal stores on Main Street, such as Walker Brothers' old store, the Town Clock store, and others which at one time gave prominence to the merchants' street. In those early days of struggle Mr. Taylor devoted his " overtime " at nights to the engraving business, to which he was apprenticed, engraving on maple wood for the stamping of embroidery. It was Taylor who started this class of work in our city, in which he was afterwards succeeded by .Mr. Druce, who had his pat- terns. After he had left Mr, King he went into business for himself, continuing till 1867, when he joined partnership with Mr. Latimer, from which date the fore- going sketches his industrial career. 6g4. HIS TOR Y OF SALT LAKE C12Y. In the business and industrial history of Salt Lake City, Henry Dinwoodey, the furniiure maker and upholsterer, stands at the head of his class as a home manufacturer and employer of labor. Commencing business in the city ere scarcely a commercial house was established, Mr. Dinwoodey's branch of home manufactures has grown from small beginnings to his present fine establishment on First South Street, which carries a stock equal to any Eastern house. On his arrival in Salt Lake City in September, 1855, Mr. Dinwoodey en- gaged by himself in the carpentry business^ and soon afterwards in the cabinet business in partnership with James Bird, occupying a stand just south of the pres- ent Continental hotel. They continued thus until the fall of 1857, when trade and commerce were almost entirely suspended by the Buchanan expedition. In the spring of 1858 he and his partner moved south, as did the whole peo- ple of the northern cities and counties. With his partner, Mr. Bird, he went into American Fork Canyon, repaired an old saw and grist mill, and commenced making lumber. In the fall of this year he returned to Salt Lake City and went into business for himself, hiring men and manufacturing furniture out of native lumber. Mr. Dinwoodey rented a piece of ground of Levi Richards, a little above the corner where afterwards was erected Kimball & Lawrence's store. At this time that corner, and the adjacent ground, was distinguished by nothing more imposing than a pole fence, which will sufficiently suggest the primitive character of Main Street when Mr. Dinwoodey pulled down a portion of that fence and built his first furniture shop and store. Previous to this date, on this block, which is now one of the principal business blocks of the City, the Old Constitu- tion buildings was the only monument of trade in that part of Main Street ; for, though commerce commenced at the upper part of Main Street, it very soon took a direction south towards the " Old Elephant Corner, where both Mor- mon and Gentile clustered, especially after the date of the return from the " move south" and the evacuation of Camp Floyd. There were on the two sides of Main Street, limited on the west side by what is now known as "Walker's Corner" and ''Jennings' Corner," and on the east side by " Godbe's Corner" and the '-Old Elephant Corner," nearly all the commercial and business houses of the City. On the east side there were Gilbert & Gerrish, William Nixon, Ransohoiif, Walker Brothers, Staines & Needham, John Kimball, Godbe's Drug Store, the Salt Lake House (which was the first hotel in the City), and T. D. Brown ; on the west side Gilbert Clements (the first manufacturer of brushes in the City), Dan Clift, John M. Brown, Howard (tanner, harness and boot and shoe maker), H. E. Bowring (also carrying on the same business), and on Jennings' corner his butcher stall and store, which in time gave place to the Eagle Emporium. But, Mr. Dinwoodey having pulled down a portion of the fence on the Rich- ards' lot, building his furniture shop and store thereon, business began to return towards the Old Constitution Buildings, at the head of Main Street, where Livingston, Kinkade and Bell opened the commercial activities of the city in 1849, where also Postmaster Bell kept the Post Office; the Council House, in which HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 6gs both the State of Deseret and the Territorial legislature passed their measures and constructed their governmental work, stood as the crowning edifice of the early times. The location which Mr. Dinwoodey chose was at that time very suitable for the furniture business. It possessed the advantage of being in the front street where the merchants dwelt and sold ''States goods" for enormous profits, without his expenses draining the home manufacturer's small percentage of cash needful to carry on his business, in purchasing imported goods or furnishings, and that class of material which could not be bought by exchange of home goods. It was im- possible, at that time, for the home manufacturer to carry on business in a locality where several hundred dollars in cash were required per month for rent, or to compete with the merchants who sold States goods, and drained the city of its cash while the manufacturer had to carry on his business and pay his men by the primitive system of trade and barter. Following close after Henry Dinwoodey came John Kimball and Henry W. Lawrence, who pulled down the fence at the corner and built the Kimball & Law- rence store. " States goods' " commerce and the home manufacturing trade had now joined hands, supporting each other on the same block, while the Post Office, under the management of Postmaster T. B. H. Stenhouse, gave bustle and pas- sage to this portion of Main Street. Good stores soon sprang up along the entire block, including stationers, music dealers, jewelers and millinery stores, and Sav- age's art gallery. Mr. Dinwoodey stayed on Main Street from 1858 to 1869 ; and it was at his original stand that he established himself as a successful businessman who was able to " pull down his old barns and build up greater;" to employ more hands in the home factory and to import periodically large stocks of the finest eastern furniture. Being unable to obtain sufficient room on Main Street for his largely in- creased trade, Mr. Dinwoodey, in 1869, purchased a part of the "Bullock lot," where he erected his fine capacious establishment. . When the U. P. R. R. ap- proached the city, he commenced to import furniture ; he was in the States pur- chasing machinery and furniture when the last spike was driven, since which time he has imported all classes of fine " States furniture," without diminishing his large home manufacturing business. But it is to Dinwoodey and his class as home manufacturers that the reminis- cences of our city attach with particular historical interest ; and here may be noted, as suggestive of this, one of the peculiar features of our home trade and early industries, which will also illustrate how hundreds of our citizens obtained houses and lots, and comfortably furnished homes, without scarcely ever handling a dollar of cash. Upon the shoulders of perhaps not more than a score of master business men and employers, the home trade and the life of the city rested ; and it was they, indeed, who found the ways and means to supply the chief wants of the people, while less than a score of merchants were sufficient to carry on commerce in " States goods." After all the seeming commonality of the home manufacturer and the home 6g6 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CIIY. tradesman, the burden not only of the business of the city, but of the provisions and comforts of the homes of the citizens rested on their enterprise and business capacity. Indeed to keep their various businesses alive, and to make their own homes desirable, they had to do very much the same for their employees, and even for their customers. There were certain classes of home-made goods which ranked on a par, others nearly so, with " States goods." Among such, most fa- miliarly named, were furniture, boots and shoes, leather, harness, home-made cloth and its class, earthenware, and particularly might be named the supplies of the butcher's stall. Undoubtedly the people, through the sharpening pinch of necessity, became smart traders, but much had to be done for them by the home tradesman and employer, or by business compeers helping each other. They is- sued due bills for the home trade, and for their employees, purchased lots, lumber for building, adobies, the winter's firewood, etc., placing their workmen perhaps a year's service in their debt. Indeed, it required no small amount of business capacity, as well as integrity in honoring " due bills," to carry on the home busi- ness ; and upon these requirements their own success rested. It was just in the fulfillment of the requirements of trade in those times, that Dinwoodey and a few others, made themselves'successful tradesmen in their various lines. He opened accounts with every tradesman, or honest customer, who sought him or he them, often opening accounts for his men in his own name, thus also creating his own business; not a few of his employees since 1857, have obtained their homes through his management for them. His home-made furniture is seen from one end of the Territory to the other. Thus home manufactures have struggled up these thirty-eight years, since Salt Lake City was founded, to their present prosperous and promising condition. We are of an opinion that Utah is destined to yet make her mark a? a manu- facturing State as well as a mining State; and there are many signs already given that she has fairly entered into her manufacturing period of growth. All who are familiar with the resources of the Territory know that if Utah is rich in her sil- ver she is more abundantly wealthy in her coal and iron ; and this should mean a promise in due time of at least manufacturing importance, and perhaps, also, of manufacturing greatness. #1 i HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY, dgy CHAPTER LXXXI. OPENING OF THE MINES. EARLY COUNSELS OF BRIGHAM YOUNG TO THE MORMONS AGAINST THEIR GOING INTO MINING. GENERAL CONNER AND HIS TROOPS PROSPECTING IN OUR CANYONS FOR GOLD AND SILVER. GODBE AND HIS PARTY ANTAGONIZE "THE PRESIDENT'S" HOME POLICIES AND ADVOCATE "THE TRUE DEVELOPMENT OF THE TERRITORY." MINING OPERATIONS OF THE WALKER BROTHERS. EPITOME OF MINING OPER- ATIONS. We reach here the mining industries of our Territory, which since 1870 have changed the very face of Utah history, and reconstructed the trade and commerce of Salt Lake City. When Utah was first settled, General Taylor said, "The Mormons have got on the backbone of the continent." President Lincoln made a parallel statement : " Utah will yet become the treasure-house of the nation." The early history of the Territory is familiar to our readers ; it constitutes one of the most wonderful chapters in the religious annals of the world. Three important circumstances have combined to excite an interest in the public mind regarding Utah, not as the abode of an independent religious community, but as a region in which American enterprise and American ideas are destined to prevail. These are : i. The discovery of silver mines everywhere in the Territory; 2. The opening of the Pacific railroad, followed by the building of Utah railroads; 3. The influx of a Gentile population, influential in numbers, abounding with men familiar all their lifetime with grappling with large enterprises and experi- enced in mining operations in the Pacific States and Territories, and these backed both by American and European capital. The mining population that began to pour into Utah about the years 1S69-70, from the onset caught a glimpse of a new era and saw in the future of Salt Lake City one of the principal centres of the continent. They saw a vast Territory — once devoted exclusively to Mormon colonization and Mormon ideas — transformed under their new auspices into an important section of the nation occupied by millions of United States citizens. They have also be- lieved that ultimately the Gentile population would largely predominate, and that the Mormon community would be substantially blotted out, while the Mormon people, as the tillers of the soil, the workers in iron, and as home manufacturers and mechanics, would survive as the bone and sinew of the country. This pros- pect has been very pleasing to the Gentile view, but as distasteful to the Mormon view : hence the social discords of our local history. The first mining record of Utah is that of the Jordan Mine in favor of one Ogilvie and some others. Ogilvie, in logging in the canyon, found apiece of ore which he sent to Colonel Connor, who had it assayed. Finding it to be good ore, 46 6g8 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE Cny. Connor organized a party of officers and ladies of his camp and went over and located the mine — the Jordan. A day or two afterwards, Colonel Connor wrote mining laws and held a miners' meeting at Gardner's mill on the Jordan River, where the laws were adopted and Bishop Gardner elected recorder. The district was called the West Mountain Mining District. It was thereupon that General Connor issued a circular announcing to the world that he had " the strongest evidence that the mountains and canyons in the Territory of Utah abound in rich veins of gold, silver, copper and other min- erals, and for the purpose of opening up the country to a new, hardy and industrious population, deems it important that prospecting for minerals should not only be untrammelled but fostered by every proper means. In order that such discoveries may be early and reliably made, the General announces that miners and prospect- ing parties will receive the fullest protection from the military forces in this dis- trict in pursuit of their avocations, providing, always, that private rights are not infringed upon." In March, 1864, another circular was issued by General Connor, which was considered to be very threatening towards the leaders of the Mormon community in regard to the Utah mines ; and in July of the same year he wrote to the War Department an account of his action and policy, in which he said : "As set forth in former communications, my policy in this Territory has been to invite hither a large Gentile and loyal population, sufficient by peaceful means and through the ballot-box to overwhelm the Mormons by mere force of numbers, and thus wrest from the church — disloyal and traitorous to the core — the absolute and tyrannical control of temporal and civil affairs, or at least a population nu- merous enough to put a check on the Mormon authorities, and give countenance to those who are striving to loosen the bonds with which they liave been so long oppressed. With this view, I have bent every energy and means of which I was possessed, both personal and official, towards the discovery and development of the mining resources of the Territory, using without stint the soldiers of iny command whenever and wherever it could be done without detriment to the public service. These exertions have, in a remarkably short period, been pro- ductive of the happiest results and more than commensurate with my anticipa- tions. Mines of undoubted richness have been discovered, their fame is spreading east and west ; voyageurs for other mining countries have been induced by the discoveries already made to tarry here, and the number of miners of the Terri- tory is steadily and rapidly increasing. With them, and to supply their wants, mer- chants and traders are flocking into Great Salt Lake City, which by its activity, increased number of Gentile stores and workshops, and the appearance of its thronged and busy streets, presents a most remarkable contrast to the Salt Lake of one year ago. Despite the counsel, threats, and obstacles of the church, the movement is going on with giant strides."* Thus the understanding grew prevalent in the public mind throughout America hat Brigham Young and his compeers were implacably opposed to the opening "^'These circulars and the communication to the War Department will be found entire in Chapter XXXVI. of this history. i i HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 6gg of the Utah mines; but it is only common justice to them to give a passing ex- position of the real facts of the case. It has been seen that the Mormons migrated to the valleys of the Rocky Mountains as a religious community and to preserve themselves as such, and that they had not the remotest idea of coming west for the discovery of gold or silver. Their brethren, however, of the Mormon Battalion were strangely fated to discover the gold of California jointly with Mr. Marshall. This actually pro- duced a crisis more seductive and dangerous to the existence of the community than anything which had occurred in their history from the beginning ; and per- haps no people in the world but the Mormons could have withstood the awful temptation of gold. It was most consistent in the case that these Mormon high priests should steady the ark of their own covenant and counsel the community which they had transplanted to these Valleys not to go to the mines. The Cali- fornia gold seekers wrote home and told the public of Brigham's sermons on the subject of gold, "showing the wealth, strength and glory of England, growing out of her coal mines, iron and industry, and the weakness, corruption and degradation of Spanish America, Spain, etc., growing out of their gold, silver, and idle habits." This passage indeed, from his sermon on gold and silver hunting, delivered in the summer of 1849, '^ the very index of his social policy as regarding the Mormon community, to whom, as their leader, it was his duty to speak and counsel upon such a vital question of the hour. The following is his counsel to the first company of emigrants from Europe brought out by the P. E. Fund : " Do not any of you suffer the thought to enter your minds, that you must go to the gold mines in search of riches. That is no place for the Samts. Some have gone there and returned ; they keep coming and going, but their garments are spotted, almost universally. It is scarcely possible for a man to go there and come back to this place with his garments pure. Don't any of you imagine to yourselves that you can go to the gold mines to get anything to help yourselves with : you must live here ; this is the gathering place for the Saints. The man who is trying to gain for himself the perishable things of this world, and suffers his affections to be staid upon them, may despair of ever obtaining a crown of glory. This world is only to be used as an apartment, in which the children of men may be prepared for their eternal redemption and exaltation in the presence of their Savior ; and we have but a short time allotted to us here to accomplish so great a work." And in the light of the full history of our Territory as it reaches down to this day the impartial sociologist would be compelled to admit that the policy and counsel of Brigham Young as a leader of a peculiar people were well grounded. Utah is unquestionably destined to become a great mining State of the Union ^ but it will be found (as the author believes) a century hence that the Mormons will share it as a great manufacturing community, iron workers and farmers ; while the Gentiles will chiefly be the owners and developers of the Utah mines : a blessed prospect for all when the country shall rest from its turmoils. Leaving the social exposition induced by General Connor's communications and circulars, we return to the mines themselves. J 00 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. Mr. Stenhouse, who was the first to give the early mining history of Utah, says: " In the summer of 1864, the Jordan Mining Company was incorpor- ated by General Connor under the Laws of California, and work by a tunnel was commenced on the mine, at a cost of sixty dollars per foot, which could now be done for ten dollars. Blasting-powder was at that time twenty-five dollars a keg ; now it is less than one-sixth of that price, and labor is also more abundant. "The first smelting-furnace in the Territory was erected at Stockton, in 1864, by General Connor. He, at this time, became aware of the importance of hav- ing the mineral interest developed to the fullest possible extent, and induced a large number of his California friends to enter into tiie enterprise. The Rush Valley Smelting Company was organized at the same time, by the military offi- cers at Camp Douglas, and a furnace was built by them at Stockton. ** General Connor followed, with his second iurnace on the reverberatory plan, with an inclined flue, one hundred and fifty feet long. During the summer and fall of 1864, furnaces were built by the following parties, in and around Stock- ton and Rush Valley (mining prospects innumerable having by that time been located in the neighborhood), viz : The St. James, Finherty, J. W. Gibson, Nichols & Brand, Hartnet, Davids & Company, and one cupola blast-furnace by Johnson, Monheim & Company. A cupelling furnace was also built by Stock & Weberling, in the same year. "But the treatment of ores by smelting was a task new to these Californians, and their experience in milling the gold ores of their State was of no service to them in this task. This disadvantage was increased by the fact that charcoal was not abundant, that rates of transportation were excessively high, and both the ma- terials of which the furnaces were built, and those used in the daily operations, were very dear. These are circumstances which would tax the ability of the most experienced ; and the Californians, unused to the work, failed entirely. A good deal of money was spent, with no result, excepting the establishment of the fact that the ores were easy to treat. During this time of trial, the usual history of new mining fields was repeated, and companies which were organized with high hopes spent large sums, and became bankrupt. The Knickerbocker and Argenta Mining and Smelting Company was organ- ized in New York, to operate in Rush Valley, and expended about one hundred thousand dollars in the purchase of mines and the material for working them. But, owing to the impossibility of making medium and low-grade ores pay, at such a distance from the market, the company lost their money, and abandoned tne enterprise. Thus, after two years of steady, earnest, hopeful toil — from the time of the first discovery in 1863, to the same month in 1865 — the business of mining had to be suspended to await the advent of the " iron horse," which was to bring renewed vitality to the occupation of the miner. With the failure to work the mines profitably, came the disbanding of the volunteer troops, in the latter part of 1865-6, Their places could now be filled by the regulars — the rebellion by this time having been suppressed — and, as the owners and locators (who were principally military men) could not subsist on non- paying mines, the question arose as to how their rights could be secured while they were seeking employment elsewhere. Their method of solving the difiiculty HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 'Ot has resulted in the greatest injury to the cause which had its rise in their energy and determination. They called miners' meetings, and amended the by-laws of the district in such a manner as to make claims perpetually valid, which had had a certain but very small amount of work done upon tliem. For the performance of this work, a certificate was given by the district recorder. This certificate pro- hibited all subsequent relocation of the ground. In consequence of this provision, the mines of Stockton long lay under a ban, and it is only since the wonderful discoveries made in neighboring canyons, that mining has been energetically re- sumed there. While the operations, detailed above, drew attention chiefly to the Rush Valley mines, discoveries were gradually becoming numerous in other districts. Here the mining history pauses until the years 1868-9, when it connects with what was familiarly known as the " Godbeite Movement." Mr. Eli B. Kelsey, thorough breaking off from Mormonism, and believing that the hour had fully come to develop the mineral resources of the Territory, started out in the old missionary style to lecture upon Utah in the Atlantic and Pacific States, in the summer of 1870. He wrote to the papers, spoke to 'boards of trade,' published a pamphlet, and created quite an interest among cap- italists, and was the means of sending into the mining district a hundred thousand dollars in the fall of 1870. The first of Eastern capitalists who was converted, was an enterprising merchant of New York, William M. Fliess, Esq., who joined Mr. Kelsey, and advanced the " working capital" required to develop some valu- able mines. From that time capital has flowed into Utah, and wealth has been dug out of the mountains in such abundance — in proportion to the capital and la- bor employed — as to justify the hope that Utah will yet be the first mining country in the world. The first discovery of silver-bearing lead ore had been made in the Wasatch range, in Little Cottonwood Canyon, and in Mountain Lake, in the summer of 1S64, by General Connor, but nothing was done towards development until the district was organized, in the fall of 1868 ; when, for the first time, operations of any extent were begun on the mines by Messrs. Woodhull, Woodman, Chisholm, Reich and others. The first shipments of galena ore from the Territory were made in small quantities by Messrs. Woodman & Co., Walker Brothers, and Woodhull Brothers, of Little Cottonwood ore, in July, 1868, being the first pro- ducts of the Emma mine. Several other shipments were made in the fall of that year, by the same parties. The completion of the Utah Central Railroad to Salt Lake City, in January, 1870, presented the long-looked-for opportunity of em- barking with certainty in the business of mining. During the fall of 1868, and the spring of 1869, mining was taken hold of with a will, and it was soon proved, beyond a question, that the mines of Utah were possessed of real merit. What better proof can be looked for than the fact that from the first discovery they were not only self-sustaining, but highly remun- erative? The first shipment of ore to market having proved a- success, work was pushed on with the utmost vigor on the mines already discovered. This was es- pecially the case in Little Cottonwood district, on such mines as the Flagstaff, Emma, North Star, Savage, Magnet, Monitor, and others. Thus an impetus was ■J02 HISTORY^ OF SALT LAKE CITY. given to the business of prospecting for mines all over the Territory, and this led to innumerable discoveries subsequently made. The export of ores has increased from a few irregular weekly shipments, as in the fall of 1868, and throughout 1869. to that of a regular and constant stream, during the summer months, of from four hundred to six hundred tons weekly. In one month the Walker Brothers shipped 4,000 tons. In the two months — August and September, 1872 — 2,458 tons of ore, and 1,362 tons of silver-bearing lead and iron, were sent out of the Terri- tory. The latter item shows what progress has been made in smelting the ores within the limits of the Territory itself. It was during the excitement produced by the very rich developments made on the Emma and other mines of Little Cottonwood, that "horn," or chloride silver ores, of a very rich character, were discovered in East Canyon — now known as Ophir District. The first location in this district was made on the 23d of Au- gust, 1870, and was named Silveropolis. This location was soon followed by many others of a similar kind of mineral, all proving, at the surface, to be very rich — such as the Tampico, Mountain Lion, Mountain Tiger, Petaluma, Zella, Silver Chief, Defiance, Virginia, Monarch, Blue Wing, and many others, with promising prospects. All were found on what is known as Lion and Tiger Hills, immediately south of Ophir City ; and the ores (unlike those of Cottonwood) are adapted to the mill treatment alone. At the same time, prospecting was going on upon the north side of Ophir, where many very extensive ledges of lead ore, carrying silver, were found ; which ores are adapted to the smelting process only. A remarkable distinction is to be noticed in the character of the ores on either side of the canyon, at the bottom of which appears to be the dividing line. On the north side, at the distance of not more than one-third of a mile, is found a combination of sulphides of iron, lead, arsenic, antimony and zinc — the iron predominating, and carrying silver in appreciable quantities, with fifteen per cent, to forty per cent, of lead. On the south side distant from the canyon about one mile, in a direct line, the silver oc- curs as chloride, with little or no base metal. But, small as the quantity of the other minerals is, they contain lead, molybdanum, antimony, and zinc, and there- fore few of the mines yield ore that can be well treated without roasting. Prob- ably fifty or sixty per cent, may be taken as rhe average yield of those ores in the mill, when they are treated raw. But a proper roasting increases this to eighty- five and even ninety per cent., and upwards. Some mines yield a remarkably pure chloride-ore — a dolomitic limestone containing true chloride of silver in a very pure condition. It was at the time of these discoveries that the district now known as "Ophir" was formed in that part of the Oquirrh range known as East Canyon, and originally included in the Rush Valley District. Some forty locations had been made as early as 1864 and 1865. The conditions under which the ore exists in these mines is somewhat peculiar. It is in concentrations, which are often small and exceedingly rich, or larger and less concentrated, though still very rich. Mines were opened, which, when the overlying earth was removed, disclosed a narrow vein, exhibiting along its length a number of "boulders" highly impreg- nated with chloride of silver. These frequently assayed from $5,000 to $20,000 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. joj a ton; though their value would vary very .nuch in different parts of the same mass. As a rule, the ore of East Canyon may be estimated at ^80 to $150 per ton in value, though considerable quantities run much higher. But the marvelous stories of the ^10,000 and ^20,000 ore, found in boulders, attracted the attention of prospectors in other parts of the West ; and these discoveries in Ophir, to- gether with the wealth of the "Emma," have probably done more than any thing else to bring about that strong tide of immigrating prospectors which have so rapidly raised Utah to the position of a first rate mining-field. At all events, they would probably have been sufficient for the work, had the other discoveries been of less importance than they really are. The working of these mines not only opened new districts, but revived the activity of those which had suffered partial abandonment j and at present there is not one district where important works are not going on. Great encouragement was also received from Eastern and foreign capitalists. Important sales were made, and a great deal of money brought in as working capital. At the same time a number of smelting-works were built. The amount of ore which these were capable of treating is variously estimated at from 200 to 400 tons per day ; but itw of them are now running. In June, 1870, the Woodhull Brothers built a furnace eight miles south of Salt Lake City, at the junction of the State Road with Big Cottonwood Creek. It did some service in testing practically the ores of the Territory, and from these works was shipped the first bullion produced from the mines of Utah, It was smelted from ores of the Monitor and Magnet, and other Cottonwood mines. These works were soon followed by the Badger State Smelting Works, about four miles south of the City of Salt Lake, on the State Road, which were com- menced in August, 1870. They produced their first bullion on the 18th day of March, 1870. The next works were those of Jennings & Pascoe, immediately north of the city, at the Warm Springs. They contained reverberatory furnaces, which are not well adapted to the average ores of Utah, but are useful for the preparation of galena ore for the blast-furnaces. A cupola or blast-furnace has since been added to these works, increasing their value greatly. The next, and best designed works of any built in the Territory until a late period, were those of Colonel E. D. Buel, at the mouth of Little Cottonwood Canyon. The smelting-works of Buel & Bateman, in Bingham Canyon, which followed, were built on the same plan as those in Little Cottonwood, During the winter of 1870-1, Messrs. Jones & Raymond built furnaces in East Canyon for the purpose of treating the lead-ores of that district. A renewal of operations also took place at Stockton, and the works there have suffered greater vicissitudes than any others in the Territory. Tintic, a new district, saw the next establishment built. But, during the year 187 r, furnaces were erected in all quarters: in Little Cottonwood, by Jones & Pardee; in Big Cottonwood, by Weightman & Co.; in Bingham Canyon, by Bristol & Daggett ; in American Fork, by Holcombe, Sevenoaks & Co.; and others. These were nearly all shaft-fur- naces, rather rude in construction, though with some well built furnaces among them. The only works which deserve notice, for the introduction of good metallurgical models, are those of Robbins & Co., who built a large reverberatory 704 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. furnace for reducing the ore by charcoal, after preliminary roasting ; and the works of Colonel Buel, in Little Cottonwood, where the later constructions of German metallurgists were introduced with good judgment and effect. The fur- naces which Colonel Buel placed in his Cottonwood and Bingham Canyon works have been repeatedly copied in later erected establishments, and have proved themselves as serviceable in this country as abroad. Thus sixteen furnaces were built in as many months, and the number has since been increased more than one-half; but it cannot be said that great success has attended them. Few have continued in active operation, and fewer still work with the regularity necessary to success. It is impossible to doubt that a history like this must be the result of inexperience. It is but a repetition of the course of affairs in Nevada, where men accustomed to the amalgamation of gold under- took to treat silver ores, which require a very different process. They at first ascribed their failures to some peculiarity of the ores, which were thought to be different from any others in the world ; but now they confess that the cause of their difficulties was simply ignorance. Undoubtedly that is the real secret of the trouble experienced by smelters in Utah ; and, doubtless, when they have become more experienced, they will not hesitate to acknowledge that ignorance of the work was the cause of their first failures, instead of giving the numerous excuses that are now current. In addition to the foregoing means of reduction there was built in Ophir Dis- trict, East Canyon, a first-class crushing and amalgamating mill, in May and June, 1871, by the Walker Brothers, of Salt Lake City. It is known as the Pioneer Mill. It has fifteen stamps, and was built by the firm to work the ores of the Sil- veropolis, Tiger, Rockwell, Zella, Silver Chief, and other mines — the mill-process alone being adapted to the ores of that section of Ophir known as Lion Hill, where horn chloride silver ores are found. There are also four or five "Mexican arastas" in successful operation in East Canyon. The mill-men have met with better success in Utah than the smelters, for they are engaged in a task familiar to them, the process being the same as that in use in Nevada and some parts of California. Notwithstanding all the discouragement which has been met with hitherto by the smelters, the progress of mining in Utah has been wonderful. Remember- ing that the first really practical work done towards the development of the min- ing interests was commenced only in the fall of 186S, and making due allowance for the inclement season then at hand, which the miners had to pass through in such high altitudes as those where the mines are situated, it will be understood how it was the summer of 1869 had progressed so far before work to any apprecia- ble amount was done. Considering the shortness of the time, the record of what has been done is most extraordinary. From the summer of 1S69 to the 25 th of September, 1871, there were shipped from the Territory 10,000 tons of silver and gold ores, of the gross value of $2,- 500,000 ; of bullion, or pig-lead, containing gold and silver, 4,500 tons, of gross value of $1,237,000 ; copper ores, 231 tons, of the gross value of $6,000. Salt has also been exported to the extent of 1,100 tons, of the value of $4,000; and silver bars, obtained by milling chloride ores, have produced $120,000. The an- HJSTORl OF SALT LAKE CLTY. yoj nual product of gold from Bingham Canyon, by improved appliances for washing and sluicing, has been increased from ^150,000 to ^250,000. The number of districts by exploration and location has grown from two, as in 1868, to thirty- two in 1871. Since June, 1870, there have been erected eighteen smelting-fur- naces, built at an aggregate cost of ^200,000, several of which are producing bullion. The above is a comprehensive history of the growth and development of the mining interests of Utah from the day when General Connor and his men first discovered the Old Jordan in 1863 until the time when mining was no longer an experiment, but had become one of Utah's chief industries. Since then the searching pick of the prospector has been actively bringing to the light of day mineral deposits in all parts of the Territory ; until an account of even the valua- ble mines of each district would require a more extended article than the most industrious reader would desire. There are excellent mineral indications on the Idaho line ; and developments in the extreme south of the Territory have shown rich deposits of a peculiar character that have surprised and perplexed the most practiced mining experts. So, also, the Clifton and Rose Bud districts to the west give promise of future wealth, and from the almost unexplored southeast come frequent tales of rich placers and gold-bearing quartz veins. While research has thus been made as to the extent of the mineral-bearing portions of Utah, there have been many splendid results from individual mines. Since the day, when, as it is said, mining was at its hey-day flush of prosperity, the owners of such mines as the Ontario, Mono, Horn Silver, Flagstaff, Old Tele- graph, Great Basin, Crescent and others innumerable, have all made great fortunes. True, to offset this, some then considered permanent and of great value, have be- come worthless. But who shall lay this to the fault of the mines themselves ? Who shall say that, in many instances, the supposed durability of these played-out mines was not, in the main, the misrepresentations of scheming operators? In other cases, these seeming failures are not real. Mines currently reported of great prospective value in those days were rich only in the conscientious, but hopeful and visionary minds of their owners. Still others retain their value, but the ope- rators are financially unable to carry on the developments necessary to reach a paying condition of the mines. By this fair method of elimination, it will be seen that the real and true failures of the mines of Utah are very itw indeed ; on the contrary, it is considered by miners of extended experience that Utah presents an unusually safe field for mining adventure. The mines of Utah have held and will hold their own. The field is so large, the precious yield so rich and varied, the fortunes in the past so conspicuous, and the domain of the future so hopeful, that it will be a phenomenon in the economy of events if Utah does not become a great mining success. Millions on millions of dollars have been dug from the dark breasts of Utah's mountains. Towns have been built, expensive works have been erected, the busy hum of toil has gone on for years; the mountains have echoed with the miner's blast and the valleys have been made dark with the smoke of furnaces. Piles of dingy ore have been dragged from the secret chambers of the hills, and streams of glittering metal have flowed from the smelters. Men and fortunes have come and 40 7o6 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. gone ; but the buried wealth of the Territory has only been trifled with. The restless activity of the American mind has allowed only a superficial examination of our treasures. The readiest road to a quick fortune has been the only one traveled. Gold, silver and lead — the cream on the surface of the dish — are all that have as yet been sought after. Our real treasure trove, the base and founda- tion of future eminence, our iron and coal, are almost untouched. Within the borders of this promising Territory lie beds of coal of an immense extent and value. Near by, are enormous quantities of purest iron which will, one day, en- able Utah to rival and outvie any State in the Union. At other points have been discovered the useful minerals necessary to make these principal ones of complete utility, such as sulphur, parafhne, graphite, etc. Other metals are also to be pro- cured, including copper, antimony, quicksilver, bismuth and tin. It is not the purpose nor within the capacity of this chapter (which is but as a link in the history) to deal with the voluminous detail of the Utah mines ; but, before closing the subject, it seems proper to review briefly the general mining operations of the Walkers, who, undoubtedly, were the chief instruments in work- ing out success for Utah mines in 1870. At the opening of the year 1870, when the Walker Brothers took hold of mining, there had been but very little legitimate mining done in Utah, though considerable prospecting had be«in carried on as shown in the preliminary history of Utah mines as written by Mr. Stenhouse. Placer mining had been carried on to a limited extent in Bingham canyon, a few men making a living of it ; but sa- gacious men of enterprise, like the Walker Brothers, whose attention had for years been attracted to the mines of Utah, through the prospecting of General Connor and his troops, saw that quartz mining only could benefit the country, and at this time quartz mining was very limited. The Walker Brolhers' financial help having been sought by the discoverers of the Emma prospect, they went to look at it ; and becoming fully assured that the vast mineral resources of Utah could be successfully worked, if sufficient capital was brought to the help of the discoverers of good mines, and being also convinced that the Emma prospect was such a mine, they purchased an interest in it with Messrs. Woodhull, Woodman, Chisholra, Reich and others. The new combination was most fortunate ; and as the Walker Brothers, like the family of the Rothschilds, were known to have at- tached to their lives that magic something called "luck," a settled faith grew in the public mind at home that the Utah mines at length were indeed opened, and soon a kindred faith in the mines of Utah spread throughout America and Europe. The Emma was the first silver-lead mine in Utah that obtained a paying status. At the time of its development there were no silver-lead reduction works in the United States excepting one or two which had just started, the most noted of which is the Balbach, New Jersey, reduction works. After becoming interested in the Emma developments, which soon opened up large bodies of ore, it became apparent to the company that a market should be opened for the product of the mine; and as there were no works in the United States available to reduce or smelt the products of the mine, correspondence was opened with parties in Liverpool and London, and it was soon ascertained that the ores 6f the Emma mine could be shipped to the English market at a profit. This [ w HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. J07 problem of the mining enterprise of Utah once solved gave the company a solid base to work upon, and the Walker Brothers pushed with all their financial might into the undertaking of making the Utah mines a marked success in the mining his- tor)' of the great West which had already so stirred the civilized world since the discovery of gold in California. From time to time large shipments of the Emma ore were made to the English market, which soon gave an impetus to silver min- ing in Utah, and caused a large number of our citizens to scatter throughout the mountains prospecting for mines. The fame of the Emma mine reached the Ter- ritories and simultaneously a large influx of miners and prospectors poured in to join in the work of prospecting with the Utah men, thus adding experience to the local enthusiasm. Capital of course soon followed in the wake, a new era dawned in the history of Utah, and the Gentile, equally with the Mormon, claimed the country as his own. The pertinency of this line of review in connection with the Walker Brothers is that they were at the onset, as capitalists and business men, prin- cipally instrumental in bringing this result about, but for which the Utah mines would not have become so famous in 1870, though ultimately of course they would have been developed by the aid of foreign, if not local, capital. And here it may be noted, as a suggestive fact, that the Emma was the cause of the opening up of this class of mines (silver-lead), and also the immense smelt- ing interests in various parts of the United States, embracing millions of capital. It is no longer necessary to ship the products to Swansea, Wales, as this industry in the United States now competes with the smelting works of the Old World. Of the first Emma company it may be noted that they made a Utah corpora- tion of it and Mr. Joseph R. Walker was elected president of the company. Treynor W. Park and Baxter bought half interest in the Emma and they took the mine to England and placed it upon the ICnglish market, where it was sold. Its subsequent history was not enviable, Utah mines, exemplified in the Emma, un- der the controlling hands of the Walkers, grew in honest fame ; in the hands of foreign capitalists the Emma benefitted neither Utah nor its British purchasers. After their initial undertaking in the Emma mine the Walker Brothers be- came interested in numerous other mining operations in the Territory. They engaged in Ophir District, East Canyon (as noted by Stenhouse), and built the first quartz mill in the Territory, which is known as the Pioneer Mill ; and they afterwards branched out into other Territories, notably into Montana, In the year 1876, Mr. J. R. Walker went to Butte to view the outlook of that district. A sample of ore having been sent to Mr. J, R. Walker, he went to look the country over with a view to make ample investments if he found a mine to warrant it. This led to the purchase of the now famous Alice mine and other ad- jacent properties, and the erection of large reduction works. These embrace the largest dry crushing chloridizing works in the United States for the reduction of silver ores. Subsequently the mine and works were transferred to a Utah cor- poration bearing the name of the " Alice Gold and Silver Mining Company of Utah," It still runs under the management of the Walker Brothers, with J. R, Walker president of the company, they owning a large majority of the stock. Their mining operations since 1870 have extended into many districts, notably 7o8 HIS TOR Y OF SALT LAKE CI 7 V. the Cottonwoods, Ophir, Bingham, the Park, American Fork, Montana, Idaho and Nevada. The foregoing is simply the history of the opening of the Utah Mines; we cannot attempt, in a chapter, to grapple with the voluminous record of the mines of Utah to the present day. CHAPTER LXXXII. OUR RAILROADS. BRIGHAM YOUNG MARKS OUT THE TRACK OF THE "NA- TIONAL CENTRAL RAILROAD " ON THE PIONEER JOURNEY TO THE ROCKY MOUNTAINS. PETITION OF THE FIRST LEGISLATURE OF UTAH TO CON- GRESS TO BUILD THE ROAD TO THE PACIFIC. BUILDING OF THE U. P. R. R. AND C. P. R. R. OPENING OF THE UTAH CENTRAL AND UTAH SOUTHERN. THE RAILROADS OF LATER D.AYS. Whatever may be said of the opposition of the Mormon leaders regarding the opening of the Utah Mines, it cannot be affirmed that they were opposed to the building of the railroads^ uniting the eastern and western halves of the Amer- ican continent. True, such was the general opinion ; and it was created by the often repetition in the American press that the Mormon leaders entertained a sav- age fear of the approach of the railroads towards their domains, and that they desired an eternal isolation from the civilized world. Indeed, they and the In- dians of the West were regarded very much in the same light, touching the pro- jected railroads across the continent ; and that familiar caricature of the terrified but enraged chief, standing on the new laid railroad track, gesticulating menaces against the coming train, whose resistless force a moment hence would crush him into nothingness, was thought to be quite a happy exaggeration of the Mormon of the Rocky Mountains. But the reverse of this is true as applied to the pioneers of Utah. It is a singular fact, yet one well substantiated in the history of the West, that the pioneers of Utah were the first projectors and first proposers to the Amer- ican nation of a trans-continental railroad. It is to be read in Historian Wood- ruff's diary of the journey of the pioneers that Brigham Young, who, bearing the military title of lieutenant-general for the occasion, daily with his staff officers went before the pioneer companies, marking out the way, often pointed out to them the track that the coming railroad would pass over in its course across the continent ; and this idea of a railroad following them was so strange that many of them esteemed it as a prophecy ; but to a Vanderbilt, a Tom Scott, or a Jay Gould, it would be esteemed as Brigham Young's instinct for railroads, so strik- ingly manifested in him twenty-one years later. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 709 At the first session of the Territorial Legislature, held in 185 1-2, in Salt Lake City, memorials to Congress were adopted, praying for the construction of a nat- ional central railroad, and also a telegraph line from the Missouri River via Salt Lake City to the Pacific. In connection with this, we give the following note from George A. Smith's private journal, in which he wrote : '' I was elected a member of the Senate of the Provisional State of Deseret, and reported a bill for the organization of the judiciary, which was the first bill printed for the consideration of members. I also reported a bill in relation to the construction of a national railroad across the continent, which some of the members considered a joke, though I was never more in earnest." It will be perceived, by reference that this bill was dated nearly three years prior to the memorials to Congress upon the same subject ; and it may be further observed that George A. Smith, Heber C. Kimball and Wilford Woodruff were always three of the staff that accompanied " General " Brigham Young in mark- ing out the pioneer path ; so it can be readily seen that George A. Smith was very familiar with this projected national railroad across the continent, that there was " no joke " in his bill, and that he " never was more in earnest.'' The memorial to Congress was given in an early chapter of this history, as among the first doings of our Territorial Legislature ; but its points are so need- ful here before the eye of the reader that the memorial must be repeated. It was approved and signed by Governor Young, March 3d, 1852. ' ' To the Honorable the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States in Congress assembled : " Your memorialists, the Governor and Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Utah, respectfully pray your honorable body to provide for the establishment of a national central railroad from some eligible point on the Mississippi or Mis- souri River, to San Diego, San Francisco, Sacramento or Astoria, or such other point on or near the Pacific coast as the wisdom of your honorable body may dictate. " Your memorialists respectfully state that the immense emigration to and from the Pacific requires the immediate attention, guardian care, and fostering as- sistance of the greatest and most liberal government on the earth. Your memori- alists are of the opinion that not less than five thousand American citizens have perished on the different routes within the last three years, for the want of proper means of transportation. That an eligible route can be obtained, your memori- alists have no doubt, being extensively acquainted with the country. We know that no obstruction exists between this point and San Diego, and that iron, coal, timber, stone, and other materials exist in various places on the route ; and that the settlements of this Territory are so situated as to amply supply the builders of said road with material and provisions for a considerable portion of the route, and to carry on an extensive trade after the road is completed. ''Your memorialists are uf opinion that the mineral resources of California and these mountains can never be fully developed to the benefit of the United States, without the construction of such a road; and upon its completion, the en- tire trade of China and the East Indies will pass through the heart of the Union, 7/0 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. thereby giving to our citizens the almost entire control of the Asiatic and Pacific trade; pouring into the lap of the American States the millions that are now di- verted through other commercial channels ; and last, though not least, the road herein proposed would be a perpetual chain or iron band, which would effectually hold together our glorious Union with an imperishable identity of mutual interest, thereby consolidating our relations with foreign powers in times of peace, and our defense from foreign invasion, by the speedy transmission of troops and sup- plies in times of war. ''The earnest attention of Congress to this important subject is solicited by your memorialists, who, in duty bound, will ever pray." On the 31st cf January, 1854, there was another movement of the people for a Pacific Railroad. The citizens of Salt Lake and surrounding country, men and women, gathered en tnasse to make a grand demonstration in its favor. There are numerous points in the foregoing remarkable document which should attract the notice of American statesmen. ist. A transcontinental railroad was contemplated by these Mormon pio- neers, who had crossed the Plains and had actually, day by day, in the spring and summer of 1847, indicated the very track of the coming railroad; and it is a curious fact that for several hundred miles the grade of the great transcontinental railroad is made upon the old Mormon road. 2d. The pioneers contemplated that their people would be its builders ; and a clear bid was made to Congress to draw on Utah for laborers, material (such as ties, rock, station houses, etc.) and provisions, to build the road midway east and west, should Congress undertake this " natiotial central railroad^ Such an un- dertaking of the Nation, in 1852, would have lifted Utah to a pinnacle and en- riched her citizens more than would the gold of California had they settled that country. The proposition shows a masterly hit of local political ecopomy. 3d. These memorialists not only suggested to the Nation, her duty towards her citizens who were establishing for her empire in the West, " five thousand" of whom had " perished on the different routes within the last three years, for the want of proper means of transportation;" but they exhibited to the Nation her own paramount interests in the construction of this railroad to be owned by the United States. 4th. With great sagacity of pioneers, they tell Congress that the mineral re- sources of California and "■ these mountains can never be fully developed to the benefit of the United States, without the construction of such a road," which point shows that the memorialists did expect Utah to become a mining Territory ; while the counter exposition would show that these leaders desired to make their people builders of railroads, agriculturists, manufacturers, iron workers, etc., not miners of gold or silver. 5th. "Upon its completion the entire trade to China and the East Indies will pass through the heart of the Union/' etc. 6th. " And last, though not least, the road herein proposed would be a per- petual chain or iron band, which would effectually hold together our glorious Union with an imperishable identity of mutual interest." A very palpable warning was this, that unless the East did mind the interests of the great though youthful ^i HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. yu West, the West would surely growl and perchance in time dissolve partnership ; and it may be considered very applicable to the present debated silver question. We do not think there is anything in the national archives, nor in the con- gressional records, as early as 1852, relative to a projected railroad across the continent, so striking and suggestive as this memorial on such a railroad, which proceeded from the Utah Legislature of that date; and its pertinency to the U. P. and C. P. in 1868-9, when Brigham Young and the Mormons became con- tractors and builders of the Utah centre of those lines, is as a close connecting link of the history of the railroads which now unite the two halves of this conti- nent in "a perpetual chain or iron band." On the incorporation of the Union Pacific, Brigham Young was a stockhol- der in the company ; and, as soon as it approached toward our local working distance, Brigham Young became a chief contractor. With himself he associated John Sharp, as his principal sub-contractor on the Union Pacific Railroad, and with them was also associated Joseph A. Young. Under this contract Sharp & Young did the heavy stone work of the bridge abutments, and the cutting of the tunnels of Weber Canyon. In this work they employed from five to six hundred men, and the contract amounted to about a million of dollars. Afterwards, dur- ing the strife between the Union Pacific and the Central Pacific, another contract was taken for Sharp & Young on the Union Pacific, on which they employed four or five hundred men, the contract amounting to $100,000. There were also numerous other sub-contractors engaged under President Young in building this line. During their work on the U. P. R. R., these now fairly trained Utah railroad builders projected the Utah Central, and they urged the policy on capitalists of their own community to secure the routes and built the home railroads, and not leave these enterprises open to either Eastern or Western companies. After the completion of the U. P. and C. P., there arose a difficulty with the U. P. Company in the payment of their indebteduess to the Utah contractors, which in the sequel greatly facilitated the building of the Utah Central. In these difficulties of the settlement between Brigham Young and the U. P. Co., John Sharp, John Taylor and Joseph A. Young were chosen to go to Boston to bring the business to an issue ; and so vigorously, yet prudently, did they press the matter with Durant and others that, in the lack of the Company's funds, Brigham got $600,000 worth of railroad stock, which was used in the construction of the Utah Central. The Utah Central Railroad Company was organized March 8th, 1869, by the following stockholders : Brigham Young, Sen., Joseph A. Young, George Q. Cannon, D. H. Wells, Christopher Layton (Kaysville), Bryant Stringham, D. P. Kimball, Isaac Groo, D. O. Calder, George A. Smith, John Sharp, Sen., Brigham Young, Jr., J. W. Young, "William Jennings, Feramorz Little, James T. Little. Brigham Young was elected president. Ground was broken May 17th, 1869. The next important event in the history of Utah was the laying of the last rail of the Utah Central. The completion of the Union and Central Pacific lines was 3 national event affecting greatly the destiny of Utah as well as that of the 712 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. entire Pacific Coast ; but the completion of the Utah Central was the proper local sign of radical changes, affecting the mining and commercial enterprises of our Territory, as well as the every day life of our citizens. That event put the Ter- ritory en rapport with the age of railroads, and a world of expansion came to Mormondom with the laying of the last rail in Salt Lake City, and a community, originally formed in a state of isolation, appreciated at once that henceforth the hand of the East and the hand of the West were joined with Utah and fifty mil- lions of people were at her door. It was January loth, 1870 : the weather was cold ; a heavy fog hung over the City of the Great Salt Lake; but the multitude assembled, and by two o'clock p. M. there was gathered around the depot block not less than fifteen thousand people. As the train with the invited guests from Ogden, and other Northern settlements, came dashing toward the end of the track, shouts arose from the as- sembled city. A large steel mallet had been prepared for the occasion, made at the blacksmith shop of the public works of the Church, The " last spike" was forged of Utah iron, manufactured ten years previously by the late Nathaniel V. Jones. The mallet was elegantly chased, bearing on the top an engraved bee-hive (the emblem of the State of Deseret) surrounded by the inscription, " Holiness to the Lord,"' and underneath the bee-hive were the letters U. C. R. R.; a similar ornament consecrated the spike. The mallet and spike were made and ornamented by James Lawson. The sun, which had hid himself behind the clouds during the whole day, burst forth as in joy to witness the event of the laying of the last rail almost at the very instant. It was like a glad surprise, and the assembled thousands took it as a happy omen. The honor of driving the last spike in the first railroad built by the Mormon people was assigned to President Young. On the platform car, during the performance of the ceremonies of consecra- tion of the road, were the following gentlemen : Of the Utah Central : Brigham Young, president ; William Jennings, vice- president ; Daniel H. Wells, Christopher Layton and Feramorz Little, directors ; Joseph A. Young, general superintendent ; John W. Young, secretary ; also of the Mormon Presidency and Apostles, Orson Hyde, John Taylor, Orson Pratt, Wilford Woodruff, C. C. Rich, Lorenzo Snow, F. D. Richards, George Q. Can- non, Brigham Young, jun., and Joseph F. Smith. Of the Union and Central Pacific Roads : J. E. McEwin, Esq., master mechanic C. P. R. R.; G. Cornwall, Esq., conductor, Utah Division, C. P. R. R.; James Campbell, Esq., division superintendent, Utah Division, C. P. R. R.; C. C. Quinn, Esq., master mechanic, U. P. R. R.; T. B. Morris, Esq., engineer, Utah Division, U. P. R. R.; Charles Carr, Esq., asst. supt., Utah Division, U. P. R. R.; J. McCormick and S. Edwards, Esqs., agents, U. P. R. R.; G. B. Blackwell, Esq., agent Pullman's palace cars; Walter McKay, Esq., cashier, U. P. R. R. Col. F. Anderson, special correspondent of the New York Herald occupied a seat at the reporters' table. From Camp Douglas : Gen. Gibbons, Col. Hancock, Col. Spencer, Capt. Hollister, Major Benham, Lieut. Benson, Lieut. Brandt, Lieut. Jacobs, Lieut. Graffan, Lieut. Wright. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. yrj The Camp Douglas, Capt. Croxall's and Ward brass bands; also Capt. Beesley's martial band were in attendance. After the performance of the ceremonies, which took place about 9 minutes past 2 o'clock, a salute of thirty-one guns — one for each mile of the road, was fired, when Capt. Croxall's brass band burst forth with enlivening strains, after which the following prayer was offered by Elder Wilford Woodruff: ''O God, our Eternal Father, we have assembled on this occasion to cele- brate one of the greatest and grandest events of the generation in which we live, and we offer up the gratitude of our hearts, with thanksgiving, for Thy merciful and protecting care that has been over us. When we were led into these valleys, by Thy servant Brigham, twenty- two years ago, we found them a perfect desert, inhabited only by wild beasts, and a few red men who roamed over the plains. To-day, we behold teeming thousands of the Anglo-Saxon race, many of whom have assembled here to celebrate the completion of a line of railroad into this city, which has opened up commerce between us and all the world. Thou hast enabled Thy Saints, who have gathered here from the nations of the earth, to fill these valleys of the mountains with 600 miles of cities, towns, villages, gardens, orchards, and fields, and the desert has been made to blossom as the rose. We should be recreant to our duties did we not acknowledge the hand of Thee, O God, in Thy protecting care over us, which has enabled us to assist in leveling these mountains and in laying an iron band which has bound this continent together from ocean to ocean, and has made all the various States and Territories of this mighty nation neighbors to each other. For all these blessings we feel to render the gratitude of our hearts unto Thee ; and we pray that Thy blessings may rest upon us this day. " We dedicate this railroad unto Thee, the Lord our God ; we pray that Thy blessings may rest upon it, and upon those who have erected and labored upon it. We thank Thee for the peace and quietude that we have enjoyed for many years that we have dwelt in these valleys of the mountains. Continue Thy blessings, O God, we beseech Thee, unto the inhabitants here and throughout the nation. " These favors and blessings we ask in the name of Jesus Christ, our Re- deemer: Amen." The following speech was made by Hon. George Q. Cannon, on behalf of President Brigham Young : " Whilst joining in the pleasing ceremonies of this eventfiil and auspicious day, our minds naturally revert to the circumstances which led this people to un- dertake their weary, but hopeful journey across the desert plains and rugged moun- tains to these, then sterile valleys — to our condition at the time of our advent here, poor, and destitute of the common necessities of life ; driven from our homes and posessions and bereft of all that makes life comfortable, in consequence of our faith in God and in his son Jesus Christ, and our obedience to his holy gospel, and without a friend in this wide world to whom we could look for help, except God, our heavenly father, alone, on whom we could rely. " Since the day that we first trod the soil of these valleys, have we received any assistance from our neighbors? No, we have not. We have built our homes, 48 yi4. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. our cities, liave made our farms, have dug our canals and water ditches, have sub- dued this barren country, have fed the stranger, have clothed the naked, have im- migrated the poor from foreign lands, have placed them in a condition to make all comfortable and have made some rich. We have fed the Indians to the amount of thousands of dollars yearly, have clothed them in part, and have sus- tained several Indian wars, and now we have built thirty-seven miles of railroad. "All this having been done, are not our cities, our counties and the Territory in debt? No, not the first dollar, Buc the question may be asked, is not the Utah Central Railroad in debt? Yes, but to none but our own people. "Who has helped us to do all this? I will answer this question. It is the Lord Almighty. What are the causes of our success in all this? Union and one- ness of purpose in the Lord. " Having by our faith and unaided labors accomplished the work and achieved the triumph, which we to-day celebrate, we are now asking the parent Govern- ment to sanction our labors in this commendable work, and the people of this Territory are also asking to be admitted as a sovereign State into the Union, with all the rights and privileges of a State government, and I move we have one. Let all in favor of it say 'Aye.'" A unanimous "Aye" from the assembled thousands was the response. " We have felt somewhat to complain of the Union Pacific Railroad Company for not paying us for the work we did, in grading so many miles of their road. But let me say, if they had paid us according to agreement, this road would not have been graded, and this track would not have been laid to-day. It is all right. " To our friends of the Union and Central Pacific Railroads, we offer our con- gratulations on their success in iheir mighty enterprise. Receive our thanks for your kindness to our company ; for, so far as I have learned, you have refused us no favor. Let us be one in sustaining every laudable undertaking for the benefit of the human family ; and I thank the companies for their kindness to us as com- panies, as superintendents, as engineers, as conductors, etc. " I also thank the brethren who have aided to build this, our first railroad. They have acted as elders of Israel, and what higher praise can I accord to them, for they have worked on the road, they have graded the track, they laid the rails, they have finished the line, and have done it cheerfully ' without purse or scrip.' " Our work is not one for individual benefit, but it is an aid to the develop- ment of the whole country, and tends to the benefit and prosperity of the whole nation of which we form a i)art. "To all present I would say, let us lay aside our narrow feelings and preju- dices, and, as fellow-citizens of this great republic, join in the celebration of this happy day. "May the blessing of Heaven resc upon us all." Telegrams expressing regret at their inability to accept the invitation of President Young to be present at the celebration, were read from Governor Stan- ford, president; A. M. Towne, Esq., general superintendent; and S. S. Mon- tague, chief engineer, of the Central Pacific road. Music from the Camp Douglas Band. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY, 7/j- The vice-president of the Utah Central, being called upon for a speech, the following response was made by William Jennings : ^^ Ladies and gentlemen: I stand before you this day with feelings in my breast which I feel myself inadequate to express. I am proud that I am a citizen of Utah, and that I am participating with yDU in this celebration of laying the last rail and driving the last spike of the Utah Central, — the first line of railroad that has been constructed in this Territory. I am proud to think that the las': spike in the last rail of the Utah Central is constructed of our native iron ; but more because of the wonderful progress in the development of our Territory that has been made since our arrival here, twenty-two years ago. (Cheers.) The con- struction of thirty-seven miles of railroad may, in the eyes of some, seem but a trifling affair : but when the inconveniences attending our isolated position are considered, and it is remembered that we have not had the ready facilities of com- merce enjoyed by those who live on or near the sea-board of the Atlantic or Pacific, and that the Utah Central is the result of home enterprise, and has been con- structed solely by the laboring population of Utah, I think it is justly entitled to be considered a great enterprise. The Union and Central Pacific lines and almost every line of railroad throughout the country, have had to be assistad largely by State or National aid, when in course of construction ; but the Utah Central has had neither, but is the result of the enterprise, unity and labor of the people of Utah. I feel proud of the achievement, and on this occasion, I wish to express my joy and pleasure at being one with you. " To the workmen who have aided in the construction of this road, I tender my thanks. I have been with and travelled amongst them a great deal during the past summer, and I am happy to be able to say that they have labored content- edly and with a spirit becoming Latter-day Saints. " I hope that we shall soon see the day when the ' iron horse ' will not only place us in direct communication, as it does to-day with San Francisco in the west, and Boston and New York and all the principal cities of the east, but that there may soon be a chain of railways extending to every city in Utah and through our neighboring Territories of the Rocky Mountains." A salute of one gun and music by martial band, were followed by a speech from superintendent of Utah Central Railroad, Jos. A. Young: " I can say to you who hear me to-day, that speaking is not my forfe, — the part I have taken in connection with the building of this railroad has been the working part and not the speaking part. But I feel proud to-day that I have lived to witness the consummation of this great event in our history as a people. When we came to these valleys over twenty years ago, barefooted, almost without clothing, without provisions, trusting on the arm ot God for aid and protection, we found the country barren and desolate, and we have need to be thankfnl to our Heavenly Father that we have lived to take part in the laying of the last rail and driving of the last spike of the Utah Central Railroad. I consider it something that we, as a people, may justly proud be of. We have been accused of being ex- clusive. Where is our exclusiveness now ? We invite the East and the West, the North and the South to come up to Zion and learn of her ways. The more our 7i6 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. / actions and works, as a people, are investigated, the higher we stand in the esti- mation of those whose good opinion is worth having. (Cheers.) I hope that the last spike of this road will be but the first of the next, which shall extend from this place to the Cotton Country (Dixie) and I trust to live to see the day when every nook and place in this Territory, that is capable of sustaining human beings, will be settled with good, honest, hard working people, and that the same will be ac- cessible by railroad, that we may travel from one settlement to another and carry our passengers in comfortable cars ; and thus show those who want to know, what we are doing." Salute of one gun and music by the Tenth Ward Brass Band. Col. B. O. Carr, of the Union Pacific line was then introduced to make a speech. After presenting the regrets of Superintendent Meade, at his inability to be present, the following remarks were made by Mr. Carr : " This is an occasion of congratulation to all of you, but to us who are stran- gers, it is more of an occasion of wonderment than anything else. We, who have come recently from the East, never expected to find anything like this in this country. It is something like forty years since the first railroad was laid in the United States, and twenty years ago there were only six thousand miles laid in this vast country ; but when the Union and Central Pacific lines were completed there were over forty thousand miles. The Utah Central Railroad, although only thirty- seven or thirty-eight miles long, is perhaps the only railroad west of the Mis- souri River that has been built entirely without Government subsidies ; it has been built solely with money wrung from soil which, a ^o.-^ years ago, we used to con- sider a desert, by the strong arms of the men and women who stand before me. And almost everything used in its construction, but especially the last spike, is the product of the country. "Your superintendent, Mr. Young, said that you are not an exclusive people ; but I think, ladies and gentlemen, that you are very much so, so far as the w^estern country is concerned, in accomplishing so much as you have with so little means and so few advantages to do it, (Great cheering). All that I have to say further in regard to exclusiveness, is that I cannot imagine how any man, whether ' Mor- mon,' ' Gentile,' saint or sinner, can do other than feel happy at the com- pletion of this road. I wish it the utmost success on its journey to the far South." Salute of one gun, and music by Capt. Croxall's Brass Band. Chief Engineer of the Western Division of the U. P. R. R., T, B. Morris, Esq., was introduced, and addressed the assembly : 'T have but one word to say to the working men of Utah, and that I will say briefly: I have been fifteen years engaged in railroad business; but I have never seen a single road made to which capitalists did not contribute their money, or the responsibility of which did not fall upon the Government or the Slate in which said road was made. But here, nearly forty miles of railroad have been built, every shovel full of dirt of which has been removed by the working men of Utah, and every bar of the iron of the road has been placed in position by their labor. (Loud cheers.) You can publish to the world that the working men of Utah built and own this road. " I have said one thing, and I want to say one thing more. Do not stop i HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 717 where you are. When you laid the last two rails to-day, they stuck out a little. That means— "Go on ! " Salute of one gun, and music by Camp Douglas Band, succeeded by the fol- lowing remarks from John Taylor. " I am glad to meet with such a large assemblage of people as are present to witness and take part in so important an event as that which has brought us here to-day. Like you all, I have been very much interested in the completion of this railroad. I hope to see the time when this city will be connected with the re- motest parts of our Territory by railroads, that we may meet the cars in every settlement. We have but one railroad among us for the time being ; but there is a long one east and another west, and we can go east and west; and by and bye we shall be able to go north and south and stretch out in every direction. Our course has been onward and will continue to be so from this time forth and for- ever. I will conclude by saying, success to the Utah Central Railroad." Music by the martial band. Mr. Campbell, superintendent of the Utah Division of the Central Pacific was next introdused, and made a short, and we are informed a very good speech, but we regret to say that his remarks were inaudible and we were unable to report them. Speeches were expected from Hons. G. A. Smith, D. H. Wells, and Geo. Q. Cannon ; the former requested to be excused on account of indisposition , the two latter were excused because of the length of exercises and the very cold weather. Benediction was pronounced by Elder H. W. Naisbitt, and the immense con- course of spectators quickly dispersed. The following toasts and sentiments were handed in : "Utah Central Railroad extends her iron hand of welcome to the East and West." "Our Railroad — The first fruits of the marriage of the oceans." "Prest, B. Young — Our Pioneer in Peace, Art and Science, and all that is the true wealth of Utah." " The U. C. R. R. — May her last tie soon be bedded on the soil of the State of Deseret.-*' The Utah Central road was opened for traffic on January loth, 1870. It continued under the presidency of Brigham Young, Sen., for a short time and then his son, Superintendent Joseph A. Young, succeeded his father as president of the company; but in February (17th), 1871, he resigned the presidency and his original office of general superintendent, when his father resumed the presi- dency and Feramorz Little was appointed superintendent. John Sharp succeeded Little in 1871, and in 1873 he was elected president of the company, as well as continued in the superintendency of the road. The Utah Southern was the second local railroad enterprise in which our cit- izens engaged ; for it is worthy of particular remark that the community co-op- erated with all their faith and means to build these home railroads, under the counsel and management of their leading men. jiH HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. The Utah Southern Company was organized January 17th, 1871, by the fol- lowing named stockholders: Joseph A. Young, William Jennings, John Sharp, John Sharp, Jr., Feramorz Little, James T. Little, LeGrande Young, L. S. Hills, S. J. Jonassen, Thomas W. Jennings, James Sharp, Geo. Swan, Jesse W. Fox, D. H. Wells, C. Layton. William Jennings was elected president of the company, John Sharp, vice-presi- dent and Feramorz Little, superintendent. Jennings afterwards resigned the pres- idency and was succeeded by Brigham Young, who, however, soon gave place to William Jennings again, and under this management the road was run until the re-incorporation of the Utah Southern under the control of the Union Pacific. On the first of May, 1S71, the Utah Southern ground was broken. The road was opened for traffic to Sandy, 13 miles from Salt Lake, in September, 1871 ; to Lehi, 31 miles from Salt Lake, September, 23d, 1872 ; to Provo City, 48 miles, in December, 1873 ; to York, 75 miles, April ist, 1S75 ; to Juab, 105 miles from Salt Lake, June i5lh, 1S79. The Utah Southern, running through a rich agricultural country, passing a line of the most flourishing settlements of the Territory, greatly developed the South, created a reciprocal commerce between it and Salt Lake City, and from the onset was a profitable and well managed road. The Utah Southern Railroad Extension was organized January nth, 1879, ^y the following named stockholders: Sidney Dillon, Jay Gould (New York); S. H. H. Clark (Omaha); A. G. Campbell, Matthew Cullen (Frisco, Utah); John Sharp, W. H. Hooper, William Jennings, L. S. Hills, Feramorz Little, J. T. Little, H. S. Eldredge; with Sidney Dillon president. The Utah Southern Extension was commenced at Juab and rapidly pushed througth to its terminus. The road was opened for traffic to Deseiet, 52 miles from Juab, November ist, 1879; to Milford, 121 miles. May 15th, 1880; to Frisco, 137 miles, June 23d, 18S0. The Horn Silver Mine was the cause of the Utah Southern extension which was built to this mine. Campbell, Cullen, Ryan and Byram built one-quarter of the road and they were also its chief promoters. The Utah Central Railroad, the Utah Southern Railroad, and the Utah Southern Railroad Extension were consolidated under the name of Utah Central Railway Company, July ist, 18S1, with the following named directors: Sidney Dillon, Jay Gould, Frank G. Brown (New York); Fred L. Ames (Boston); John Sharp, Feramorz Little, William Jennings (Salt Lake City); S. H. H. Clark (Omaha); William B Doddridge (Evanston, Wyoming). Sidney Dillon was elected president ; John Sharp, vice-president and general superintendent ; James Sharp, assistant general superintendent ; Geo. Swan, secretary ; L. S. Hills, treasurer ; Francis (.ope was a])pointed freight and passenger agent, and Jesse W. Fox, chief engineer. This consolidation of the two parent lines with the Southern Extension gave an aggregate extent of 280 miles, running from Ogden to Frisco under one man- agement. The LTnion Pacific Company holds the control, but Utah has the distinction II HJSTORl OF SALT LAKE CITY. yig of a voice among the directors of the U. P. Co. In the preparation for the building of the Utah Southern, in 1871, John Sharp went east as the purchasing agent for this company; and becoming extensively associated w^ith the Union Pacific directors, he was finally elected one of them. In March (25th), 1885, ^""^ was again elected one of the directors of the U. P. R. R., the board of which stands at the present thus : C. F. Adams, F. L. Ames, Jr., Elisha Atkins, Ezra S. Baker, F. G. Dexter, Mahlon D. Spaulding, S. R. Callaway, Gen. G. M. Dodge, Henry H. Cook, Sid- ney Dillon, David Dows, Andrew H. Green, John Sharp, Hugh Riddle, James A. Rumrill. THE UTAH NORTHERN. The Utah Northern, now known at the Utah & Northern Railroad, like the Utah Central and Utah Southern, was eminently a home enterprise. Its builders were the Mormons, and the people certainly expected, when they constructed these roads, becoming stockholders for their labor, etc., that they would per- manently own and control them ; and so undoubtedly" did the organizers and contractors. But subsequent experience proved to all concerned that in Utah, as elsewhere, these local roads were sure, from their very necessities of extension, to pass out of the hands of the original owners and incorporators, into the con- trol of the great railroad companies of the country that are spreading their gigantic hands over these Western States and Territories, as their fellows had before done over the railroads of the Eastern States. John W. Young, in the spring of 1868, had boldly launched out in taking contracts in the building of the Union Pacific and Union Central Railroads, which netted him from forty-five to fifty thousand dollars. This result, coupled with his natural genius for railroad building, encouraged him to engage in the more com- prehensive railroad enterprises which grew out of his projects ; and though his projects and operations for a while fell into disrepute, when his roads passed into the hands of the Union Pacific com[)any, they became numbered with the perma- nent railroads of the West. After taking a prominent part with his brother, Joseph A. Young, under their father, in organizing and building the Utah Central, serving for some time as secretary and treasurer of the same, and next taking part in the organization of the Utah Southern, he started for the Eastern States to induce capitalists to take hold of a particular project of his own conception, as applied to the railroad system of Utah. Despite the adoption of the popular gauge by the other roads in Utah, Mr. Young, with genuine sagacity as to the future requirements of the railroad system of the Rocky Mountain region, had the nerve to adopt the narrow-gauge on the Utah Northern and Utah Western. He succeeded in obtaining the potent financial help of Mr. Joseph Richardson, an eastern capitalist, who undertook lo purchase the iron and equip the road. Mr. Richardson forthwith came to Salt Lake City to consult with President Young, who heartily endorsed the enterprise and undertook to enlist the co-operation of the people of the North to build the narrow-guage road projected by his son. This much ensured, Mr. Richardson, with John W. Young and George W. Thatcher, proceeded to Logan, where the project met great popular enthusiasm. The following telegraphic messages (fur- Y20 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY- nished to the author) between Bishop Preston and President Young, relative to the probable ultimate control of the road, will to-day be very suggestive of the Bishop's sagacity : Copy of telegraphic message from Bishop Preston to President Youn^ and answer in regard to the building of the U. N. R. R. "Logan, August 15th, 1871. " Prest. B. Young, Salt Lake City: " Will it be wisdom for us in Cache County to grade and tie a railroad from Ogden to Soda Springs, with a view to I'-astern capitalists ironing and stocking it, thereby giving them control of the road? The people feel considerably spir- ited in taking stock to grade and tie, expecting to have a prominent voice in the control of it ; but to let foreign capitalists iron and stock it will, if my judgment is correct, give them control. " W. B. Preston." THE ANSWER- "Salt Lake City, August 15th, 1871. ' ' Bishop Preston, Logan : " The foreign capitalists in this enterprise do not seek the control; this is all understood. What they want, and what we want, is to push this road with all possible speed, if you decide to have one, so that it shall run through and benefit your settlements and reach Soda Springs as soon as possible. " Brigham Young." In a few days after the receipt of this telegram, Bishop Preston called to- gether the leading citizens and laid before them the railroad project ; whereupon they voted that they would go to work and build the railroad, and take stock for grading and tieing the road. The organization of the company to build this road was effected August 23d, 1871, with John W. Young, president and superintendent, and Bishop Preston, vice-president and assistant superintendent. In less than a month later, ground was broken at Brigham City, Box Elder County. The first rail was laid at Brigham Junction, March 29th, 1872 ; and the road was completed to Logan January 31st, 1873, ^^'^^ completed to Franklin, Idaho, in May, 1874, which for a number of years thereafter was its northern ter- minus. A branch line of four miles, extending the Utah Northern to Corinne was completed on June 9th, 1873, and the road was extended south to Ogden, and opened for traffic February 8th, 1874. John W. Young was soon succeeded in the superintendence of the road by Moses Thatcher, who conducted its affairs with marked satisfaction to the com- pany and the public until he was succeeded by M. W. Merrill. January, 1877, George W. Thatcher was appointed superintendent. In February, 1879, ^he Utah Northern went out of the hands of the old company into the hands of the Union Pacific, and the Utah & Northern R. R. (its present name) had then grown into gigantic proportions. Up to the date of its passage into the hands of the Union Pacific Company, Bishop Wm. B. Preston was vice-president of the Utah Northern, and the people HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. ^21 of Cache Valley principally owned the road. It was sold at a great sacrifice ; but the new company for awhile paid due respect to the former ownership by retain- ing George W. Thatcher in the superintendency. And here it seems due to the local management to make note of its efficiency. The Salt Lake Inbune said : " Under the superintendency of George W. Thatcher, Esq., the Utah & Northern R. R. is the best conducted road in the country." A correspondent of the Iribime, of date July, 1881, says, "Superintendent Thatcher is congratulated for his rare executive ability. With a division nearly four hundred miles in length — the longest on the Union Pacific line — he has worked thirty-eight locomotives, pushed the construction, running timber, iron and supplies, avoided all delays in shipment of the enormous freight going to the front, gathered hundreds of car loads of rock from alongside the road by the section hands for the foundations of Eagle Rock, — and all this while experiencing difficulties in changing hands, the constant changing of the nomads experienced in railroading, etc. * * >k Mr. Thatcher — probably the youngest division superintendent of the Union Pa- cific Company — has more than average chance of becoming one of the leading railway men of the West." The special correspondent of the Dubuque Herald, in reporting " A trip to the Great West," in company with Assistant Attorney-General Joseph K. McCammon, of the United States, Thomas L. Kimball, assistant manager of the Union Pacific, and other distinguished personages, wrote thus of Superintendent Thatcher, who accompanied them : " But I feel personally under special obliga- tions to Mr. Thatcher, of Logan, Utah, superintendent of the Utah Northern Railway. His courtesy and kindness was not the veneering of ordinary polite- ness; it was the though tfulness and consideration that come from the heart of a man, who, of whatever creed or position in life, is ' a man for a' that,' and who regards every other human being, of whatever color or condition, to be ' a man for a' that.' " " The party in question was sent out by the government to make a treaty with the Indians. McCammon, in behalf of the government, went out with these railroad chiefs to attend a council of the Indians occupying the Ross Fork Reservation, to learn their feelings in regard to the grant of right of way to the Oregon Short Line Railway. " One other testimonial from the journalistic mouthpieceof our local papers : The Salt Lake Heraldsa.ys : ' It is paying a deserved compliment to the superin- tendent, George W. Thatcher, Esq., to say that the road is well managed. It is seldom that a man in his position can do his duty to the company and retain the genuine esteem of the employees ; but Mr. Thatcher possesses the faculty which enables him to do this. The road is carefully managed and most efficiently con- ducted ; accidents rarely, if ever, occur, and every possible emergency is provided for. Mr. Thatcher's knowledge of the community through which the road runs, enables him better than any other to fill his position ; while his long connection with the road and his natural aptitude for the business, have given him an experi- ence which is indispensable in a man in his position and renders his service of great value. ' " 49 722 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. Under the management of the Union Pacific Company ihe road was rapidly extended to Butte, Montana, a distance of 416 miles from Ogden. It was next extended to Anaconda and Garrison where it connects with the Northern Pacific. The general travel on this line is through Cache Valley, Idaho, to the Soda Springs, the mines, and to all parts of Montana, and also to the Yellowstone National Park. It crosses the Oregon Short Line at Pocatello, by which route the passenger is brought within forty hours of Portland, Oregon. This road has done much for the development of northern Utah, and everythnig for the development of Idaho and Montana. It is accounted the best paying road of the Union Pacific, and is a narrow gauge, which gives plausibility to the " pet idea'' of Mr. John W.Young, the projector of the Utah Northern, that the narrow gauge is the railroad system best adapted to these mountain regions. At present W. B. Dod- dridge is the superintendent of the road, with W. P. P. St. Clair division super- intendent. THE DENVER & RIO GRANDE WESTERN RAILWAY. AUtah corporation wasorganized July 21st, 1881, by the consolidation of three companies — namely : the Sevier Valley Railway Company, Salt Lake and Park City Railway Company, and the Denver & Rio Grande Western Railway. William Palmer was and is to date, January, 1886, the president of the amalgamated lines ; M. T. Burgess was the first engineer, but he was succeeded by George Goss, under whose direction most of the construction was accomplished. Henry Wood was the first superintendent; he was succeeded by W. H. Bancroft. This railway was leased, August ist, 1882, to the Denver & Rio Grande Railway Company of Col- orado, which company in July, 1884, repudiated the lease, since which time the property has been in the hands of the court with W, H. Bancroft as receiver. The Salt Lake Tribune in its issue of January ist, 1886, gives the following epitome of the road and its management : " The Denver & Rio Grande system of railways is very intimately connected with the business of Salt Lake. Starting at Ogden, where it has a connection with the Central Pacific, and thus forms a link in a transcontinental line, it passes southward along the borders of the Great Lake, past Salt Lake City, skirts that pretty Lake Utah, goes past pretty towns and villages in this great valley, then passes up Spanish Fork Canyon, and climbing Soldier Summit, the rim of this Basin, descends into the valley of Green River. All along it is one panorama after another, of beautiful scenery until the Wasatch Range is passed, and the pas- senger comes into desert lands. Even there, one finds much of interest, while whirling through the country. The Denver & Rio Grande Western stretches from Ogden to Grand Junction, Colorado, a distance of 346 miles, while its Bingham. Alta and Pleasant Valley branches bring the road up to about 400 miles in length, This road is well equipped in every particular. Built in haste four years ago, it has since been improved from time to time, until brought up to first class stand- ard. It early history was marked with troubles from which it has emerged with wonderful alacrity, proving that the present management is equal to the situation. When the road passed into the hands of W. H. Bancroft, receiver, he found plenty to do. During the past year he has had erected thirty new Howe iruss HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 723 bridges, and spanned Green River with an iron bridge 1,100 feet long. This four span bridge alone cost over ^40,000, while the entire cost of new bridges the past year aggregates ^125,000. To the rolling stock two first class passenger en- gines were added. "When the road was j)laced in the hands of Receiver Bancroft he was author- ized by the court to make these improvements, and if the earnings of the road were not ample to pay for them, issue certificates for their payment. All the im- provements and purchases made so far have been paid for out of the earnings and not a single certificate has been issued by the receiver. Besides the improvements named, there has been much spent in placing the road-bed in good condition. Curves have been lengthened, grades improved, and the track in many places re- moved to better ground, so that the entire system is of a high standard of excel- lence. The eating houses have also been greatly improved. The fact that all has been paid for out of the earnmgs, and that there remains a large bank account to the credit of Receiver Bancroft, speaks volumes for his management of the affairs of the company. While the D. & R. G. W. is our local road, its close connection with the Denver & Rio Grande, or Colorado system, seemingly unite the two systems in one, although operated under different managements. The latter system is also in the hands of a receiver, who has been doing equally good work for his com- pany. Besides making improvements in bridges, track, rolling stock, etc., all paid out of the earnings. Receiver W. S. Jackson has also paid the interest on the first mortgage bonds. The earnings were the past year, between 25 and 35 per cent, in excess of the preceding year. Take the two systems together, and theirs is the grandest scenic route of the world. While the Utah system has in its lakes, valleys, cities, and mountains enough to interest any lover of the beautiful and grand, the Colorado system, with its Black and Grand Canyons, Marshall Pass, and scores of other wonderful ob- jects, offers to the tourist more that is grand and beautiful than is found any where else in the world. And yet this may all be seen while riding through the country at thirty or forty miles per hour in palace coaches, and with such ease and luxury as to not weary. Nearly all the wonderful and noted pleasure resorts of Colorado may be reached by the Denver & Rio Grande, either on the main line, or by some of its numerous branches, which climb mountains or run into canyons a few years ago thought to be inaccessible to steam railways. Besides being a great scenic route the road offers good and safe passage between the east and west, with close connections at Pueblo with the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe, and at Den- ver with the Union Pacific and Chicago, Burlington & Quincy. The officers of the D. & R. G. W., with headquarters in this city, are W. H. Bancroft, receiver; A. L. Horner, assistant superintendent, and S. W. Eccles, genera! freight and passenger agent. THE UTAH & NEVADA RAILWAY. The road was commenced in 1872; work was suspended in 1873, when some 20 miles had been completed, but was resumed and the road extended to Stockton, its present terminus. Though but a short line, it is a very important one to the in- terests and prospects of our city. Indeed in some respects it may be considered more 724 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. than any other line the Salt Lake local railroad ; for though there is prospect of its extension, it has become most famous as the summer excursion line to the chief bathing places of the Salt Lake. Running due west it strikes the Great Salt Lake at a point twenty miles distant, where is located the bathing resorts of Black Rock, Garfield and Lake Point, then swinging round southwest the road continues on to near Stockton, tapping that prominent ore producing district. We may here note in connection with this line some reminiscences of the Lake. On the third day after their arrival in the Valley, a company of the pioneers, namely — Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball, VVillard Richards, Orson Pratt, Erastus Snow, Wilford Woodruff, George A. Smith, and six others, including Samuel Brannan of San Francisco, visited the Great Salt Lake at the identical bathing point of to-day. The Historian Woodruff, noting the incidents of their journey to the lake, wrote : " We took our dinner at the fresh water pool, and then rode six miles to a large rock on the shore of the Salt Lake, which we named Black Rock, where we all halted and bathed in the salt water. No person could sink in it, but would roll and float on the surface like a dry log. We concluded that the Salt Lake was one of the wonders of the world." Years later, when the Colfax party visited the same point, with the Salt Lake City Council, and with Mr. J. R. Walker and other prominent citizens, Mr. Bowles noted the visit very nearly in Woodruff's words : " We have been taken on an excursion to the Great Salt Lake, bathed in its wonderful waters, on which you float like a cork, sailed on its surface, and picnicked by its shores.'' The bathing places of the Salt Lake undoubtedly are destined to become the most famous bathing places in the world, in which event our city in the summer season will be crowded with visitors from the States and Europe, and this Salt Lake excursion train to the lake will become as one of the great " institutions " of our city. It has for years carried from forty to fifty thousand people to bathe in the lake, during the summer season. Tourists universally pronounce a bath in the lake as being finer than that of any other waters they have ever bathed in, and year by year the lake has become more popular with our citizens. In the bathing sea- son, our city is ever and anon awakened to an excursion enthusiasm by the joyous bands marching through the city to the train, calling the excursionists to hurry to the pleasures of the day at Black Rock, Garfield and Lake Point. During the past year the company spent over $10,000 in improving grounds at Garfield and Lake Point, with the intention of making these places great bath- ing resorts ; and the company proposes extensive improvements the coming season, such as better hotels, and they have in contemplation the introduction of warm baths in the winter, that the afflicted may have the benefit of those healing and in- vigorating waters. W. W. Riter is the superintendent of the now famous excursion line, and S. F. Fenton is general passenger agent. II HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. '^25 CHAPTER LXXXIII. CIRCUMSTANCES THAT GAVE BIRTH TO Z. C. M. I. ITS INCORPORATION AND CONSTITUTION. Rp:VIEW OF ITS HISTORY AND FINANCIAL STATUS UP TO JULY, 1885, BY THE CHURCH AUTHORITIES. THE DIRECTORS AND OFFI- CERS OF THE BOARD IN 1880, SUMMARY. The development of the Utah mines in 1868-69-70, and the prospective changes both in our social and commercial relations which would surely follow the completion of the railroads to the Pacific coast, coupled with the antagonistic move- ments inaugurated against the policies of President Young, rendered it necessary that he should fortify the position of the Mormon community by a commercial combination of the entire people. Such were his views and the views of his apostolic compeers, and the community which they directed, in temporal as well as spiritual affairs, sustained them in the proposed commercial unity of the Church to hold her position in the rapidly changing circumstances of these times. Hence the organization of Z. C. M. I. This commercial institution of the people was organized, as already noted, in the Winter of 1868; it commenced business in March, 1S69, and was incor- porated December ist, 1870, upon an act passed by the Utah Legislature, which was approved by the Governor, February 18th, 1870. The first circular sent out to the people was in 1868, immediately after the meetings held at the City Hall and elsewhere to inaugurate a co-operative movement throughout the Territory, This circular is already a rare historical document, there being perhaps only one in existence to-day and that one preserved by the secretary of the Institution, Mr. Thomas G. Webber, and given now to the guardianship of history. The circular is opened with a title page bearing the Israelitish inscription ot "Holi- ness to the Lord. Zion's Co-operative Mercantile Institution," and then follows : "Preamble. — The inhabitants of Utah, convinced of the impolicy of leaving the trade and commerce of their Territory to be conducted by strangers, have re- solved, in public meeting assembled^ to unite in a system of co-operation for the transaction of their own business, and for better accomplishment of this purpose have adopted the following : " Constitution — Holiness to the Lord. Zion's Cooperative Mercantile In- stitution. '•' Sec. I, — This Association shall be known by the name and style of 'Zion's Co-operative Mercantile Institution,' and shall have perpetual succession. " Sec. 2. — The objects of this Institution are to establish and carry on in Salt Lake City and such other places as may be determined by the board, the busi ness of general merchandising. ^1 J26 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 1 1 Sec. J. — The capital stock of this Institution shall be three millions of dol- lars ($3,000,000) and may be increased to five millions, (55,000,000) and be di- vided into shares of one hundred dollars ($100) each. " Sec. 4. — The officers of this Institution shall consist of a president, vice- president, board of directors, secretary and treasurer, each and every one of whom shall be stockholders in this Institution. " Sec. 5. — The board of directors shall consist of not less than five (5), nor more than nine (9) persons, including the president and vice-president, who shall be ex-officio members of the board. " Sec. 6. — It shall be the duty of the president to preside at all meetings of the Institution and of the board, and to sign all documents, as are, or may be, prescribed by the constitution and by-laws, except certificates of dividends to stockholders. In case of absence or disability of the president, the vice-president shall perform the duties of the president, and in all meetings of the stockholders the president shall have the power to adjourn the meetings from time to time to accomplish the transaction of the business. " Sec. 7. — It shall be the duty of the board to enact by-laws for the general management and direction of the business of this Institution and to procure suit- able places for the transaction of the business by lease, purchase or construction ; also so far as may be necessary, to employ and appoint committees, delegates, agents, attorneys and clerks to assist in carrying on the business and promoting the welfare of the Institution, and to discharge the same at pleasure. ''Sec. 8. — They shall also have full power to bargain, sell, convey and deliver under the seal or otherwise any and all species of property belonging to this Insti- tution, which may not be needed for the business thereof, on such terms and conditions as they may deem for the best interest of the same; provided, that the sale of shares and merchandise shall be for cash only. ''Sec. g. — It shall be the future duty of the directors to furnish quarterly statements of the business and balance sheets of the books for the inspection of the shareholders, the first to be furnished on the fifth of July, 1869, and quarterly thereafter; said statements and balance sheets shall remain open in the office of the secretary for not less than thirty days. "Sec. 10. — There shall also be furnished by the directors, a semi-annual statement in detail of the business of the Institution, to be read before the gen- eral meeting of the stockholders to be holden at 2 p. m., on the fifth day of October and April in each year, at such places as the Directors may designate, also declaration of dividend, the first semi-annual meeting to be held on the fifth day of October, 1869. Provided, that if any of said fifth days shall fall on .Sun- day, said reports shall be furnished and meeting held on the day preceding. "Sec. J I. — The directors shall have further power to call special general meetings, at such other times and places as in their judgment may be required, reasonable notice being given thereof. "Sec. 12- — The board of directors shall have power by a two-thirds vote of their number, to remove any director or other officer from his office for conduct prejudicial to the interest of the Institution ; if the officer sought to be removed be a director he shall not vote on any matter connected with such removal. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 727 ''Sec. yj.— All business brought before the board for consideration shall be determined by a majority of the whole number, each member being entitled to one vote and one only, irrespective of shares held by said directors. ''Sec. 14. — The directors shall convene for the transaction of the business of the institution at the call of the president, and as they shall adjourn from time to time. "Sec. 13. — All officers of the Institution shall be elected by a majority of votes given at the general meeting, holden on the fifth day of October in each year, provided, that whenever a vacancy shall occur from any cause, the board may fill such vacancy by appointment, till the next general meeting \ all officerb shall hold their office until their successors are elected and qualified. " Sec. 16. — In all matters transacted in general meetings each stockholder shall have one vote, and one only for each and every share owned by him. "Sec. ij. — The secretary shall record the minutes of all meetings, and con- duct all correspondence under the direction of the board, he shall hold the com- mon seal and attend to all other duties whether prescribed by this constitution or the by-laws required by the president. "Sec. 18. — The treasurer shall have charge of all funds belonging to the In- stitution, and shall employ or disburse the same, as required by the provisions of the constitution, and shall furnish statements of account when required by the board. " Sec. ig. — The funds of the Institution shall be subject to appropriation by the board only, and disbursed by the treasurer on order signed by the president or vice-president, and countersigned by the secretary. "Sec. 20. — No person or persons shall be eligible for membership, except they be of good moral character and have paid their tithing according to the rules of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. "Sec. 21. — The directors of this Institution shall tithe its net profits prior to any declaration of dividend, according to the rules of the Church mentioned in the preceding section. "Sec. 22. — The president, vice-president, board of directors, secretary and treasurer, before entering upon the duties of their several offices, shall take oath or affirmation for the faithful performance of all duties required by this constitution. "Sec. 2j. — The treasurer shall give bonds with approved securities to the Institution, in such sums as may be deemed necessary by the board, subject to in- crease, as circumstances may render advisable. "Sec. 24 — The secretary and treasurer shall be the only paid officers of the Institution, and their remuneration shall be as determined by the board of directors. "Sec. 2j. — All certificates of stock issued by the Institution shall be for one share, or multiple thereof; they shall be signed by the president or vice-president and secretary, under the common seal, they shall be registered in the office of the secretary, and shall be deemed personal property, and as such, subject to sale and transfer. The form of certificate, registration and mode of transfer shall be prescribed by the board. "Sec. 26. — All dividends shall be paid if required, within thirty days after the same shall have been declared. J2S HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. '^ Sec. 2J. — The private property of shareholders shall not be held subject to the liabilities of the Institution. ''Sec. 28. — The seal of the Institution shall bear the inscription ' Holiness to the Lord,' 'Zion's Cooperative Mercantile Institution, 1869,' with bee-hive and bees in centre. "Sec.2g. — This constitution may be amended or altered at any general meeting or the stockholders, by a two-thirds vote of the shares represented, pro- vided that thirty days' notice shall have been given in some public newspaper published in this Territory, of such contemplated amendment or alteration." The foregoing constitution was the original of the organization of Z. C. M. I.; but the Utah Legislature having passed an act under which the Institution could incorporate by law, we next, in the historical links, come to the "Agreement," entered into between Brigham Young, George A. Smith, George Q. Cannon. William Jennings, William H. Hooper and others. The constitution upon which they organized is substantially the original, but there are several points of differ- ence, as for example : " ist. — This association shall be known by the name and style of ' Zion's Co-operative Mercantile Institution,' the continuance, duration or succession of which shall be for a period of twenty-five years, from and after the fifth day of October, A. D. 1870." The original makes the covenant '' perpetual, ^^ while the term of incorpora- tion of the said Institution is for the duration of twenty-five years. Interesting as the historical narrative of Z. C. M. I. may be, it must give place as chief in importance to the great manifestos of the Church upon her social and co-operative svstems. The following apostolic circular reviewing the finan- cial affairs of the Institution to date, July 1875, ^^ itself a chapter of history: ' ' To the Latter-day Satnts : " The experience of mankind has shown that the people of communities and nations, among whom wealth is the most equally distributed, enjoy the largest def^ree of liberty, are the least exposed to tyrrany and oppression and suffer the least from luxurious habits which beget vice. Among the chosen people of the Lord, to prevent the too rapid growth of wealth and its accumulation in a few hands, he ordained that in every seventh year the debtors were to be re- leased from their debts, and, where a man had sold himself to his brother, he was in that year to be released from slavery and to go free ; even the land itself which might pass out of the possession of its owner by his sale of it, whether through his improvidence, mismanagement, or misfortune, could only be alienated until the year of jubilee. At the expiration of every forty-nine years the land reverted, without cost to the man or family whose inheritance originally it was, except in the case of a dwelling house in a walled city, for the redemption of which, one year only was allowed, after which, if not redeemed, it became the property, without change at the year of jubilee, of the purchaser. Under such a system, carefully maintained, there could be no great aggregations of either real or personal property in the hands of a few ; especially so while the laws, forbid- HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 72^ ding the taking of usury or interest for money or property loaned, continued in force. " One of the great evils with which our own nation is menaced at the present time is the wonderful growth of wealth in the hands of a comparatively few indi- viduals. The very liberties for which our fathers contended so steadfastly and courageously, and which they bequeathed to us as a priceless legacy, are endan- gered by the monstrous power which this accumulation of wealth gives to a few individuals and a few powerful corporations. By its seductive influence results are accomplished which, were it more equally distributed, would be impossible under our form of government. It threatens to give shape to the legislation, both state and national, of the entire country. If this evil should not be checked, and measures not be taken to prevent the continued enormous growth of riches among the class already rich, and the painful increase of destitution and want among the poor, the nation is liable to be overtaken by disaster ; for according to history, such a tendency among nations once powerful was the sure precursor of ruin. The evidence of restiveness of the people under this condition of affairs in our times is witnessed in the formation of societies, of granges, of patrons of hus- bandry, trades' unions, etc., etc., combinations of the productive and working classes against capital. " Years ago it was perceived that we Latter-day Saints were open to the same dangers as those which beset the rest of the world. A condition of affairs ex- isted among us which was favorable to the growth of riches in the hands of a few at the expense of the many. A wealthy class was being rapidly formed in our midst whose interests, in the course of time, were likely to be diverse from those of the rest of the community. The growth of such a class was dangerous to our union and of all people, we stand most in need of union, and to have our inter- ests identical. Then it was that the Saints were counseled to enter into co-opera- tion. In the absence of the necessary faith to enter upon a more perfect order revealed by the Lord unto the church, this was felt to be the best means of drawing us together and making us one. " Zion's Co-operative Mercantile Institution was organized, and, throughout the Territory, the mercantile business of the various Wards and settlements was organized after that pattern. Not only was the mercantile business thus organized, but at various places branches of mechanical, manufacturing and other productive industries were established upon this basis. To-day, therefore, co-operation among us is no untried experiment. It has been tested, and whenever fairly tested, and under proper management, its results have been most gratifying and fully equal to all that was expected of it, though many attempts have been made to disparage and decry it, to destroy the confidence of the people in it and have it prove a failure. From the day that Zion's Co-operative Mercantile Institution was organ- ized until this day it has had a formidable and combined opposition to contend with, and the most base and unscrupulous methods have been adopted, by those who have no interest for the welfare of the people, to destroy its credit. Without alluding to the private assaults upon its credit which have been made by those who felt that it was in their way and who wished to ruin it, the perusal alone of the telegraphic dispatches and correfpondence to newspapers which became public, 50 7 JO HIS TOR y OF SALT LAKE CI I Y. would exhibit how unparalleled, in the history of mercantile enterprises, has been the hostility it has had to encounter. That it has lived, notwithstanding these bitter and malignant attacks upon it and its credit, is one of the most valua- ble proofs of the practical worth of co-operation to us as a people. " Up to this day Zion's Co-operative Mercantile Institution has had no note go to protest ; no firm, by dealmg with it, has ever lost a dollar ; its business transactions have been satisfactary to its creditors and yet its purchases have amounted to fifteen millions of dollars. What firm in all this broad land can point to a brighter or more honorable record than this? During the first four years and a half of its existence it paid to its stockholders a dividend in cash of seventy -eight per cent., d,xi^ fifty-two per cent, as a reserve to be added to the capital stock, making in all a dividend of one hundred and thirty per cent. The Institution declared as dividends and reserves added to the capital stock, and tithing, during those four and a half years, upwards of half a million of dollars. So that the stockholder who invested one thousand dollars in the Institution in March, 1869, had by October ist, 1873, that stock increased to $1,617, ^"d this without counting his cash dividends, which in the same space of time would have amounted to $1,378.50. In other words, a stockholder who had de- posited $1,000 in the Institution when it started, could have sold, in four years and a half afterward, stock to the amount of $617, collected dividends to the amount of $1,378.50, thus making the actual profits $1,995.50, or or within a fraction ($4.50) ^ /?£/(? hundred ^tv ctni. upon the original invest- ment, and still have had his $1,000 left intact. This is a statement from the books of the Institution, and realized by hundreds of its stockholders. And }et there are those who decry co-operation and say it will not succeed. If successs consists in paying large dividends, then it cannot be said that Z. C. M. I. has not succeeded. In fact, the chief cause of the trouble has been, it has paid too freely and too well. Its reserves should not have been added, as they were, to the capi- tal stock ; for, by so doing, at the next semi-annual declaration of dividends, a dividend was declared upon them, which, as will be perceived, swelled the divi- dends enormously and kept the Institution stripped too bare of resources to meet whatever contingencies that might arise. "It was not for the purpose alone, however, of making money, of declaring large dividends, that Zion's Co-operative Mercantile Institution was established. A higher object than this prompted its organization. A union of interests was sought to be attained. At the time co-operation was entered upon, the Latter- day Saints were acting in utter disregard of the principles of self-preservation. They were encouraging the growth of evils in their own midst which they con- demned as the worst features of the systems from which they had been gathered. Large profits were being concentrated in comparatively few hands, instead of be- ing generally distributed among the people. As a conseqnence, the community was being rapidly divided into classes, and the hateful and unhappy distinctions which the possession and lack of wealth gave rise to, were becoming painfully ap- parent. When the proposition to organize Zion's Co-operative Mercantile Insti- tution was broached, it was hoped that the community at large would become its stockholders; for if a few individuals only were to own its stock, the advantages 4 r HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY, yji to the community would be limited. The people, therefore, were urged to take shares, and large numbers responded to the appeal. As we have shown, the busi- ness proved to be as successful as its most sanguine friends anticipated. But the distribution of profits among the community was not the only benefit conterred by the organization of co-operation among us. The public at large who did not buy at its stores derived profits, in that the old practice of dealing which prompted traders to increase the price of an article because of its scarcity, was abandoned. Zion's Co-operative Mercantile Institution declined to be a party to making a cor- ner upon any article of merchandise because of the limited supply in the market. From its organization until the present, it has never advanced the price of any ar- ticle because of its scarcity. Goods therefore in this Territory, have been sold at something liked fixed rates and reasonable profits since the Institution has had an existence, and practices which are deemed legitimate in some parts of the trading world, and by which, in this Territory, the necessities of consumers were taken ad- vantage of — as, for instance, the selling of sugar at a dollar a pound, and domes- tics, coffee, tobacco and other articles, at an enormous advance over original cost because of their scarcity here — have not been indulged in. In this result the pur- chasers of goods who have been opposed to co-operation, have shared equally with its patrons. "We appeal to the experience of every old settler in this Territory for the truth of what is here stated. They must vividly remember that goods were sold here at prices which the necessities of the people compelled them to pay, and not at cost and transportation, with the addition of a reasonable profit. The railroad, it is true, has made great changes in our method of doing business. But let a blockade occur, and the supply of some necessary article be very limited in our market, can we suppose that traders have so changed in the lapse of a few years that, if there were no check upon them, they would not put up the price of that article in proportion as the necessities of the people made it desirable ? They would be untrue to all the training and traditions of their craft if they did not- And it is because this craft is in danger that such an outcry is made against co-op- eration. Can any one wonder that it should be so, when he remembers that, from the days of Demetrius who made silver shrines for the goddess Diana at Ephesus down to our own times, members of crafts have made constant war upon innova- tions that were likely to injure their business. "Co-operation has submitted in silence to a great many attacks. Its friends have been content to let it endure the ordeal. But it is now time to speak. The Latter-day Saints should understand that it is our duty to sustain co-operation and to do all in our power to make it a success. At a meeting of the stockholders of the Institution at the time of the general conference a committee of seventeen was chosen to select and arrange for the purchase of a suitable piece of ground for a store and to proceed to erect upon it such a fireproof building as would answer the purposes of the Institution. The objects in view in this proceeding were to concentrate the busmess and thereby lessen the cost of handling and disposing of the goods and to decrease rent and insurance. The saving in these directions alone, not to mention other advantages which must result from having such a store, will make a not inconsiderable dividend upon the stock. A suitable piece of 732 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. ground has been secured, and upon terms which are deemed advantageous, and steps have been taken towards the erection of a prop&r building. But the Institu- tion, to erect this building and carry on its business properly, needs more capital. The determination is still to sell goods as low as possible. By turning over the capital three or four times during the year they can be sold at very low figures, and but at a slight advance over cost and carriage, and yet the stockholders have a handsome dividend. To purchase goods to the greatest advantage the Institution should have the money with which to purchase of first hands. To effect this important result, as well as to unite in our mercantile affairs, the Institution should receive the cor- dial support of every Latter-day Saint. Every one who can should take stock in it. By sustaining the Co-operative Institution, and taking stock in it, profits that would otherwise go to a few individuals will be distributed among many hundreds. Stockholders should interest themselves in the business of the Institution. It is their own, and if suggestions are needed, or any corrections ought to be made, it is to their interest to make them. "The Institution has opened a retail store within a few weeks, one of the old- fashioned kind, in which everything required by the public is sold. This should receive the patronage of all the well-wishers of co-operation. In the settlements, also the local co-operative stores should have the cordial support of the Latter- day Saints. Does not all our history impress upon us the great truth that in union is strength? Without it, what power would the Latter-day Saints have? But it is not in the doctrines alone that we should be united, but in practice and espec- ially in our business affairs, "Your Brethren, ^'Btigham youns;, George A. Smith, DanielH. Wells, John Taylor, Wil- ford Woodruff, Orson Hyde, Orson Pratt, Charles C. Rich, Lorenzo Snow, Erastus Snow, Franklin D. Richards, George Q. Cannon, Brigham Noting Jr., Albert Carrington. " Salt Lake City, Utah Territory, July loth, 1875." The group of persons given as frontispiece of this chapter of the directors and officers of the Institution, as they stood in 1881, presents to the eye of the reader this extraordinary combination of spiritual and temporal men in accord upon their great social work. On the side of the Church we have first in this co- partnership of Zion, John Taylor, Trustee-in-Trust. He is one of the directors of Z. C. M. I, But he is by a superior office more than a director in the combi- nation. As president of the Church, he is the spiritual guardian of the Church and the temporal guardian of the commonwealth of Zion. George Q. Cannon, the apostle, is not only the second man in the Church as the spritual organizations stand to-day, but he is one of the original partners in the co-operative covenant, or the "Agreement," upon which Z. C. M. I. was incorporated. * It was George Q. Cannon who wrote the encyclical letter published by the Church upon co-operation which is given in this chapter. Historically, it was a state- ment made by the Church relative to Z. C. M. I. as an established success of the Mormon people in co-operation, and to stimulate the community to perpetuate its existence. Il HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 7jj, Joseph F. Smith is one ot the directors of the Z C. M. I. and from many points of view he is a very important member of the combination. Since the death of George A. Smith, he has stood to the Mormons of Utah as chief lineal representative of the founders of the Church. In a sense, he may b ;aid to in- herit the system, and he is, by his office as one of the First Presidency of the Church and his election as one of the directors of Z. C. M. I., a legitimate spirit- ual and temporal guardian of the community. Moses Thatcher is the last and youngest of the apostolic combination of the directorate of Z. C, M. I. The family of the Thatchers, with William B. Preston — a son of the family by marriage — are among the principal founders of Cache Valley. They are temporal managers as well as spiritual men — founders of cities, merchants and presidents of the Stake. No young man in Utah has made a better defined and fairer mark than Moses Thatcher. Though young, he has risen altogether on his own merits to the apostleship. He has been a Legislator for years ; was superintendent of the Utah Northern Railroad ; afterwards the superintendent of the branch Z. C. M. I. at Logan, and president of the Cache Valley Stake. Bishop John Sharp, who, for thirty-five years, has been one of the principal directors of the spiritual and temporal affairs of the community, is one of the board of Z. C. M, I, The chief vein of his history in Utah is embodied in the record of our local railroads, and his position as one of the fifteen directors of the U. P. R. R. gives him an influence among the raUroad magnates of the country. David O. Calder was elected a director of Z. C. M. L, October 5th, 1875. 0"^ the suggestion of President Brigham Young, he was elected sec- retary and treasurer of that institution, October 5th, 1876, and he occu- pied that responsible position for two years, contributing not a little to the increased prosperity of that colossal establishment, and sustaining his character as a first class business officer. October 5th, 1878, he resigned as secretary and treasurer of Z. C. M. L, because his large music business demanded his personal attention; but he retained his position as a director until his death, July 3d, 1884. William H. Hooper was one of the chief founders of the commerce of Utah, and successively a director, vice-president, superintendent of, and finally president of Z. C. M. L For a number of years he was Utah's Delegate to Congress. He died in Salt Lake City, December 30th, 1882, lamented by the business and repre- sentative men of the city, both Mormon and Gentile. He was succeeded in the presidency of Z. C. M. L by President John Taylor. William Jennings is known in the history of Salt Lake City as a principal man in many lines — in stock raising, in commerce, in railroads, in Z. C. M. I., in the board of the Deseret National Bank, and in the Salt Lake City Council, over which he last presided as Mayor. He has been director, superintendent and vice-president of Z. C. M. I.; and was succeeded in tlie superintendency of tlie Institution by Horace S. Eldredge in 1883. In any city Horace S. Eldredge would have been a pillar of society. He is indeed one of those structural embodiments of social weight and character that satisfies the eye at once and establishes confidence without a question. No busi- ness man of even ordinary discernment, meeting Eldredge abroad in a business 1 734- HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. transaction, though an entire stranger, would refuse to take his check at its face value, nor would any foreign banker require to have him identified as the Horace S. Eldredge of Utah, except from the merest form. Some men going abroad re- quire a full budget of letters of recommendation and credit, yet they may be men of honesty and honor, besides of most substantial connections; but Eldredge carries his budget of recommendation and credit in his personal appearance. In the history of Z. C. M. I. there is one very representative incident that ought to be noticed. At the time of the panic in 1873, it was Horace S. I'Udredge who was sent down to the States to ask for an extension of time; H. B. Clawson went with him. Again was Eldredge's personal and financial weight tested in the great business cities of America. The time asked for was granted with absolute confidence, and repeatedly the creditors of Z. C. M. I. added, "Why, Mr. Eldredge, you are solider than we are ! " And this remark is very typical of the personal character and financial stability of Horace S. Eldredge himself. He is not one of the wealthiest men in America, but he is certainly one of the solidest, and when we find recorded in his diary, penned simply at the time as a private note — *' I never contracted the debt of a dollar in my life that I have not paid," we conclude that it is the man's commercial life epitomised in a conscientious memorandum. Undoubtedly to Thomas G. Webber, secretary and treasurer of the Institution much of its success is to be credited. For upwards of sixteen years he has con- trolled the finances of this mammoth establishment with integrity, wisdom, and a far-seeing judgment that has placed its credit second to no other business house in America. The Hon. William H. Hooper, an excellent judge, once said in public that Thomas G. Webber was the best accountant and business manager that he had ever met ; and both Jennings and Eldredge have greatly leaned upon his judgment during the respective periods of their superintendency. His position as secretary makes him the active instrument of the executive mind and purposes of the Board. Familiar with every detail of the Institution's business ; an indefati- gable worker; courteous, but at the same time a thorough disciplinarian, he has won the respect and esteem of all who come in contact with him, and no officer of the Institution enjoys a greater popularity among its hundreds of employees than does Thomas G. Webber. Of the Institution itself, since the review, in 1875, ^7 "^^^ heads of the Church, of its history up to that date, a brief summary may be made : Z. C. M. I., at this date, January, 1886, is recognized as one of the solidest and most reliable commercial houses in America. Its credit stands A. i. Its an- nual sales, to-day, are not so heavy as they were before the panic of 1873, when they exceeded $5,000,000. They are now upwards of $4,000,000 per annum. But the foundation of the Institution is solider, its wholesale operations throughout the Territory perfected, and its financial security is, to-day, in its own hands. It keeps a business agent in the East and it is well known to its business relations that Z. C. M. I. is always ready to pay money down and take discount on its purchases. But Z. C. M. I. has not only a commercial significance in the history of our city, but also apolitical one. It has long been the temporal bulwark around the HISTORY OF SAL T LAKE CITY. 735 Mormon community. Results which have been sten in Utah affairs preservative of the Mormon power and people, unaccountable to " the outsider," except on the now stale supposition that "the Mormon Church has purchased Congress," may be better traced to the silent but potent influence of Z. C. M. I. among the ruling business men of America, just as John Sharp's position as one of the direc- tors of the U. P. R. R. — a compeer of such men as Charles Francis Adams, Jay Gould and Sidney Dillon — gives him a voice on Utah affairs among the railroad- rulers of America. The first place of business occupied by the Institution was the Eagle Em- porium building, which was rented of Wm. Jennings, Some additions were made to the building, as more room was demanded. At length it was determined to buy a piece of ground and put up suitable buildings for the Insttiution. In 1876 a lot 100 X 365 feet was secured for $30,000, and a brick building erected, having a frontage of 100 feet, and a depth from east to west of 318 feet — three stories and basement. The front of the building is of iron, and the other portions are of rock and brick, with a metallic roof. Without the land the building cost, in round numbers, $200,000, This new building was occupied by the Institution in March, 1876. It has branch houses at Ogden and Logan, and a warehouse at Provo for the Southern trade. CHAPTER LXXXIV. THEATRICALS IN THE EARLY DAYS IN SALT LAKE CITY, ORGANIZATION OF THE FIRST THEATRICAL COMPANY. THE SOCIAL HALL. BOWRING'S THEATRE. ORGANIZATION OF THE DESERET DRAMATIC ASSOCIATION. We will now take up the civilizing agencies of the city : It is well 'known to those who have studied, even casually, the character of that wonderful Mormon society-founder, Brigham Young, that he supplied his people with the agencies of both social and physical revivification. Not to say it flippantly bat with a simple appreciation of his unique character, had Brigham Young been the leader of ancient Israel, as he was of modern Israel, and typed with his Ver- mont sagacity, there would have been no rebellion of the congregation in the wil- derness, and no ''repining for the flesh-pots of Egypt." This was strikingly ex- emplified in the great Mormon exodus to these mountains. He constantly vivified the people whom he led, by enlivening instrumental music, by the singing of familiar songs of home in the spirit of home present and not far away, in the merry dance and social ball. Like the ark of a new covenant, the people under his leadership carried with them on their long and tedious journey to the Rocky Mountains at least a primitive civilization. It was while on this journey that the " Nauvoo Brass Band," under Captain 1:^6 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. William Pitt, made itself historical. This band and the " Nauvoo Legion *' were the only remembrancers that the Mormons brought to these valleys bear- ing the name of their forsaken city. Captain Pitt and his band left Nauvoo on the same day with Brigham Young, crossing the Mississippi on the ice, and with him journeyed that day to the "Camp of Israel," which waited for the leader on "Sugar Creek;" and at night, though the weather was bitterly cold, the trumpet, by the order of Brigham, called the camp out to a concert in the open air, and the Nauvoo Brass Band performed its best selections, after which the pilgrims joined in the dance, and the music was as joyous as at a merry-making. Arriving in the valley of the Great Salt Lake, the dance to the Mormons became almost like an institution and the ball as a social sacrament. Out of this Nauvoo Brass Band indirectly grew our first theatrical company. An amalgamation was effected between the members of the band and certain gen- tlemen and ladies possessing dramatic instincts and predilections, several of whom had also been connected with theatricals before they came into the isolation of these mountains, Phil. Margetts was a member of the band, and Hiram B. Claw- son had already graduated in a traveling theatrical company. The project of organizing a theatrical company, with a combination of the musical and dramatic elements, received the hearty sanction of Brigham Young, and he at once became the patron of the Salt Lake stage. The first dramatic company organized consisted of H. B. Clawson, James Ferguson, Phil. Margetts, John Kay, Horace K. Whitney, Robert Campbell, R. T. Burton, George D. Grant, Edmund Ellsworth, Henry Margetts, Edward Mar- tin, William Glover and William Clayton ; the ladies were Miss Orum, Miss Judd, (Mrs. Margaret G. Clawson) and Miss Mary Badlam. The company's cast stood, James Ferguson, leading man ; Miss Orum, leading lady ; Miss Judd. soubrette ; Miss Mary Badlam played general parts and filled in with her clever dancing business ; Hiram B. Clawson was the company's character actor ; Phil. Margetts commenced his theatrical career as a character actor and comedian; John Kay, who was endowed with a fine baritone voice, and an imposing stage figure, sang star songs and did a corresponding business as an actor ; Horace K. Whitney was a useful and very efficient actor in those parts which sustain the play, and which, when not well filled, put out the lights of the stars of the company; Robert Campbell played old-man character parts ; William Clayton was a princi- pal instrument in organizing the company, and he also took his parts in the or- chestra; Generals Burton and George D. Grant, and Elder Edmund Ellsworth, gave amateur importance to the stock, and Wm. Glover and Henry Margetts, it is presumed, were useful in their line of business ; however, James Ferguson, Phil. Margetts and H. B. Clawson were the only professional types in the male cast of this first Salt Lake theatrical company. It bore the name of the " Musical and Dramatic Company." The orchestra deserves naming, for its members were of the Nauvoo Brass Band, from which the company originated : William Pitt, captain of the band, was the leader of the orchestra, and William Clayton, James Smithies, Jacob Hutchinson, David Smith, and George Wardle were liis supports. There was a company now, but no theatre, nor even a hall of capacity suffi- II » HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. yjj cient to give a public performance^ while the community were socially starving for public amusements and recreation to enliven the isolation of a " thousand miles from everywhere," as their locality was then described. The majority of the citizens in 1851 and 1852 were fresh from a land of theatres. England, thir- ty-five years ago, wjls still the England of Shakespeare, and not of Boucicault. There were those in Salt Lake City who had seen Macready ; some who had seen John and Charles Kemble, their sister Sarah Siddons and Edmund Kean on the stage in their native land. The majority of the British people in the valley at that period were from London, Birmingham, Manchester, Leeds, Yorkshire and Edinburgh, where the common people for generations have been accustomed to go to the theatre and to the philharmonic concerts, to see the best of acting and hear the divinest singing, at a few pence, to the galleries. Such a community could not possibly have got along without their theatre, nor been content with their isolation without something to awaken pleasurable reminiscences of the in- tellectual culture and dramatic art of their native land. Their sagacious head sensed all this, and he at once gave to the newly formed " Musical and Dramatic Company" the "Old Bowery," where the congregation of Saints met Sabbath days, and it was there — in the only temple or tabernacle Zion had in those days — that home theatricals took their rise. If the Church stooped in this, she but gave her helping hand to civilization, without losing aught of her own caste, for those actors and musicians were her own ordained elders and high priests. Historical interest is always associated with the first programme of every notable institution, therefore is here presented ;.he first cast of the first dramatic company of Utah. The play produced on the occasion was Robert Macaire. The cast was as follows : Robert Macaire John Kay Jaques Strop, H. B. Clawson Pierre Philip Margetts Marie Miss Orum Clementina Miss M. Judd (Mrs. M. G. Clawson) Several other plays were produced during the season, and it is said they were creditably performed by the company. " Hector Timid " was the opening of the farcical role. There were more than a thousand persons who witnessed each of these per- formances, showing that the theatrical audiences in the " Old Bowery/' in the winter of 185 1-2, were larger than the average audiences in 1885, with a Madame Ristori playing her magnificent role oi historical plays in the "Big Theatre" with the modern audiences of Salt Lake City to support her performances. The company played in the " Old Bowery " for two years, during which time a number of high class plays were performed, one of which was the cele- brated play of "The Stranger; " the brilliant James Ferguson took the title role. In 1 85 1 the Musical and Dramatic Company was reorganized and named the " Deseret Dramatic Association," with Bishop Raleigh as its president. Pieces were cast, written out and rehearsed to prepare for the opening of the Social Hall. In 1852, this historical hall was built. It is the identical assembly rooms so often mentioned in those days in the books of travelers, who have 51 738 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. sojourned awhile in the Mormon Zion, where they i^rofessed to have had the hon cr of dancing with the wives of Brighana Young and others of the Mormon chiefs, and admiringly saw " the Prophet " "trip the light fantastic toe." It was opened and dedicated for the performances of the Deseret Dramatic Association, and Bulwer's classical play of the " Lady of Lyons" was produced on the first night. The company had now greatly strengthened and was enabled to cast first class plays. To the original members were added John T. Caine, David McKenzie, David O. Calder, Bernard Snow, William C Dunbar, Henry Maiben, Joseph M. Simmons, David Candland, (stage manager), William Broomhead and J. M. Bar- low ; to the ladies Mrs. Wheelock, Mrs. Tucker, Mrs. Bull, Mrs. John Hyde and Mrs. Cook. In the opening play of the ' 'Lady of Lyons," the gifted Ferguson played Claude Melnotte and Mrs. Wheelock, Pauline. In the great plays, the men parts were strongly filled. Bernard Snow, who was in that day styled the *' Rocius " of the Rocky Mountains, played Othello ; Ferguson, lago ; Snow, Damon, and Ferguson, Pythias. Virginius was also played, with Bernard Snow in that character. Phil. Margetts, in his line of comedy, farce and comic song, by this time, had estab- lished himself as a public favorite, in whose estimation he grew every season ; Dun- bar had created a type and style peculiarly his own, both in character parts and character singing ; while Henry Maiben was fast mounting the ladder of local fame in another line of comedy character parts and comic singing, to which was occasionally supplemented the role of professional dancer. David McKenzie had not as yet found his day of opportunities. Neither had John T. Caine'sday come asa mere member of the Social Hall company; nor indeed had that of Hiram B. Claw- son. Mrs. Wheelock rose to a local star magnitude, but she passed out of our sky and went to California, leaving scarcely a name in the remembrance of the living. At the Social Hall, the company had a splendid orchestra, with Professor Ballo, director, and John M. Jones, the leading violin. But the Utah war broke up the chain of dramatic performances in our city, and it may be said also the Deseret Dramatic Association itself for several years. Our dramatic history was continued by Mr. Phil. Margetts organizing a com- pany, of which he was president, under the name of the Mechanic's Dramatic Association. The members of the company were Phil. Margetts, Harry Bowring, Henry McEwan, James A. Thompson, Joe Barker, John B. Kelly, John Cham- bers, Joseph Bull, Pat Lynch, William Wright, William Poulter and William Price ; the ladies were Mrs. Marion Bowring, Mrs. Bull, Mrs. McEwan, Elizabeth Tullidge and Ellen Bowring, with Father John Lyon, critic. A large room Avas fitted up in the house of H. E. Bowring, with a stage and good scenery, painted by that excellent artist, William V. Morris, and the place of performance was called Bowring's Theatre. It is worthy of note that this was the first place in Utah that bore the name of theatre. In the performances of this little theatre, Mrs. Marion Bowring was leading lady, Mrs. Bull, walking lady, Mrs. McEwan, soubrette. Phil, played Othello, Beverly in the "Gamester," and Duke Aranza in the " Honeymoon ;" and he sus- tained those parts admirably, to the surprise of all his theatrical friends, who had HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 739 cast him as the comedian par excellence. Henry McEwan played lago to Phil's Othello, Stukely to his Gamester, and did it excellently well. In that line of characters, had McEwan remained on the stage, he would have made quite a pro- fessional mark. He had but one defect — that of voice. Thompson was the walk- ing gentleman, but it was in the farce of " Betsy Baker," that he made his chief mark, as Crummy, by which name he is known to this day among his intimate friends. Bowring played the Mock Duke to Phil's Duke ; Peter White in " Mr. and Mrs. Peter Whiie " (played for tl.e first time in Salt Lake City at Bowring's Theatre), and was a rare Bobby Trot to Phil's great Luke the Laborer; and he was also the first Mouser (in this city) in " Betsy Baker." Mr. Joe Barker made quite a hit in old man parrs. In the " Gamester" he played the old man part with great feeling ; so he did also Farmer Wakefield; and, as Lampedo, in the "Honey- moon," his part was a decided hit. Mr. Joseph Bull and Mrs. Bull sustained their appropriate parts; the public will remember them as the lago and Desdemona of the early period of our theatricals. Mrs. Marion Bowring was Juliana in the " Honeymoon ;" Mrs. Beverley in the •* Gamester;" Emelia in " Othello ;" and, afterwards, in the Salt Lake theatre, of which for years she was the leading lady of our stock company, she gave to Lyne's PIzzaro the best Elvira ever played by any lady of our stock company. Mrs. McEwan in her line of parts, shined as Jenny in " Luke the Laborer," and as Zamora, in the "Honeymoon." It was these performances which led indirectly to the building of the Salt Lake Theatre and the re-organization of the Deseret Dramatic Association. Phil, waited on President Young and invited him to the performances, with all his family, naming the evening. Brigham said, " Why can't Heber and I come to- night ? What are you playing ? " The reply was, " Luke, the Laborer." " I'll come to-night, said the President, evidently designing to catch them as they were, without special preparation for his coming. He attended, was greatly pleased, and the next day Phil, presented him with ninety tickets for his and Heber's fam- ilies for that evening. The families of the two presidents of the Church came, including H. B. Clawson ; the play that night was " The Honeymoon," with Phil, as Duke Aranza, Bowring as the Mock Duke, and McEwan as Orlando. Speaking with theatrical swell becoming the occasion, the performance was a tre- mendous success. At the close Phil., from the stage, made a speech to the President, and Brigham, with his usual gallantry when pleased, in return, from the audience, made a speech to Phil, and his dramatic company. Immediately after this the President told Hiram B. Clawson to organize the Deseret Dramatic Association, unite with it Phil's company, and said that he would build a great theatre, for, as he sagaciously observed, "the people must have amusements." Such is the historic significance of Bowring's Theatre, and soon thereafter the Salt Lake Theatre rose as the grander symbol of the times. 740 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. CHAPTER LXXXV^. BUILDING AND OPENING OF THE SALT LAKE THEATRE. THE FIRST PLAY. REMINISCENCES OF THE COMPANY. THEATRICAL CRITICISMS. THE EARLY STARS. T, A. LYNE. THE IRWINS. PAUNCEFORT. "YOU CANT PLAY ALEXANDER." JULIA DEAN HAYNE. JOHN T. CAINE'S BENEFIT. THE FIRST LOCAL PLAY PUT UPON THE SALT LAKE STAGE—" ELEANOR DE VERE." THE CROWNING DAYS OF THE THEATRE. THE WORLDS STARS THAT HAVE VISITED ZION. It was just at the outbreak of the civil war that the theatrical history proper of our city commenced. The " Utah War " was as a bustling memory of the past ; Camp Floyd was evacuated ; all in Zion was peace, though the nation was in civil war, in which neither Utah nor California had the honor of taking part. It was in the year 1861, our citizens saw a colossal building in the process of erection, and it was known that Brigham Young designed to give to the Mormons a great theatre, which, after its erection, was popularly styled Brigham's theatre. There were those among the heads of the community who would have rather seen the Temple rushing up; but our citizens, (who at that date were mixed, of Gentile and Mormon) needed the theatre more than the Temple : so thought Brigham Young, and his practical mind gave to our city one of the best theatres in America; and soon it was stocked with a company and furnished with appoint- ments that bore favorable comparison with the theatres of the East. And Brigham Young was tight. With the drama, the English civilization was born ; and though Brigham Young comprehended it not in a learned sense, his strong Saxon common sense perceived as by instinct the methods of his race ; and it is remarkable how an uneducated man (uneducated in the sense of the schools) could have so methodically worked, as to give his people a theatre and choral classes here simultaneously as he dvd in 1861. The English common people were educated and their minds drawn out into art and philosophy not by the pulpit but the stage; not by the Church, the cath- edral, or the temple, but the theatre and the concert hall ; and as in England so also has it been in America. We enter the Holy of Holies to worship ; we go to the theatre to learn the everyday lessons of practical life and to study character for a knowledge of human nature; nor is it a little singular in this man. Brig- ham's life, that though he put on capstone of the Nauvoo Temple, he also at Nauvoo played the High Priest to our T. A. Lyne's Pizzaro, while Apostle Eras- tus Snow, then a brilliant young elder, played Alonzo. In that day Thomas A. Lyne, then in the prime of his dramatic power, was at Nauvoo giving perform- ances. Joseph Smith himself was highly endowed with a dramatic nature. His whole life was a drama — not a pulpit oration ; and his culmination was a solemn tragedy. And even in his Temple, the Prophet was a sacred dramatist, and not HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 741 like unto a modern minister or a lecturer from college, and all his mysteries were sacred dramas — revealings in the Temple of the characters and action of the im- mortal life, as Shakespeare, the prophet of the Theatre, revealed at the Old Globe in London, the characters and actions of mortal life. The Mormon theatre was conceived in Nauvoo in Joseph's day. It is as ortho- dox as the Temple. Thomas A. Lyne was Joseph's actor : an incident in his pro- fessional life of which this veteran personator of the characters of Shakespeare and other dramatic masters has often spoken with unction to the author. It was such a unique episode in his life to play Pizzaro in the city of the Saints at the request of the Prophet with Brigham performing the high priest of his play, that T. A. Lyne has cherished the circumstance as a sacred page in the book of reminis- cences of his professsonal career. Pizzaro was just such a play as Joseph would de- light in as a study for his people, the subject being the invasion, by the haughty iron-heeled Spaniard, of the ancient nation of Peru, closely akin to a Book of Mormon subject ; and Erastus Snow as the young Alonzo, a type of Spanish chiv- alry at its best temper, was a character to admire, while Brigham as the high priest holding the ancient temple and calling down fire from the sun-god, per- formed a part that the Mormons could sympathetically appreciate. The dramatic episode is pertinent as the play of Pizzaro was performed afterwards by T. A. Lyne in " Brigham's theatre" in Salt Lake City, with a very similar cast, as it was played by him in the Masonic Hall at Nauvoo before Joseph and his people. It was at Nauvoo that Hiram B. Clawson became a regular member of the Lyne company. Hiram possessed the natural abilities of a good character actor, which thus early attracted him to the stage. He traveled professionally in Lyne's company, up the river and around, and was considered by both the management and the public as a decided hit in his character parts. Herein we find the pro- logue of Brigham's theatre in Salt Lake City, with Hiram B. Clawson, manager, and Lyne playing star parts, supported by a local company of Mormon elders and the daughters of the High Priest of bygone days. Historically illustrated we may say that the Salt Lake Theatre rose as the monument of our Rocky Mountain civilization. In this respect it is worthy of reference to the Old Globe of London, which, when the English nation was emer- ging from the gorgeous barbarism of the feudal times, was, by the genius of a gal- axy of supreme minds, endowed with the dramatic voice of a new civilization. The founders of this Territory had performed their wonderful exodus ; they had laid the first strata of society in the Rocky Mountains ; they had peopled these valleys by immense emigrations ; our Territory had survived what was called the Utah war; Camp Floyd was evacuated, and General Albert Sidney Johnson had resigned his character role as the conqueror of the Utah rebellion, and gone to play a principal part in the rebellion of the South. There were certainly the swell of heroism and the sonorous tones of a gorgeous barbarism in all this, but Ironti the higher views of civilization, both the history and social conditions were only semi-barbaric. Though Utah society was made up of the elements of the superior races, and the people who constituted this new commonwealth had mi- grated from lands of high culture, yet society itself in these valbys was in its primi- tive state of formation. The element from the old countries needed a re-culture. 7^2 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CI'IY. The exterminations, emigrations, and the first settlings in the " Great American Desert" hnd returned it as clay to the hand of the potter, for a remoulding into forms suitable to its own civilization, while the native born of these valleys had merely the primitive fashioning of an Anglo-Sixon offspring, without any personal cultured remembrances brought from other lands. In short, in the early periods of the history of our Territory, all society here needed toning up with the impulses of a re-culture. President Brigham Young, as a colonist and society-founder, as we have said, realized this in his own way. But there were other men around him who realized it in what may be termed the professional sense of civilized society — the senses which have given birth to the poet, the musician, the painter, the actor, the architect, the inventor and the journalist, — which at the birth of our present English civilization, made the Old Globe of Shak^peare's management as fame resounding as the court of Elizabeth, and Shakspeare's name more splendid than that of the great queen herself, and which in modern times have made the press the mightiest power of the age. About the year i860, those professional instinctj around Brighan You.ig may have been named as embodied in Hiram B. Clawson, JohnT. Cainea'id David O. Calder. On his part David O. Calder had been prompting President Young to the organization of large philharmonic societies throughout the Territory; and un- der the patronage and by the financial support of the President of the Church. David O. Calder taught hrge classes of pupils in Brigham's choral free schools, while under Iliram B. Clawson and John T. Caine, the Deseret Dramatic Associ- ation, in 1861-2-3, grew into a first class theatrical stock company. The years 1861-2 saw the building and opening of the great Salt Lake Theatre, of which Julia Dean Hayne afterwards became queen. Its fame spread even to Europe ; and on his visit to our Zion, Hepworth Dixon was charmed to write upon Brigham Young's theatre several interesting pages of his book — New America. From the opening of that theatre, speaking in a professional sense, civilization in the Rocky Mountains received a fresh impulse. Brigham Young was the jiresident of the as- sociation ; his daughters played upon the stage ; Mormon elders were the actors ; Mormon elders painted the scenes and constituted the orchestra ; the managers were Clawson and Caine ; and apostles, patriarchs, high priests and elders filled the parquette and the private boxes with their families. It is thus we must view the management of the Salt Lake Theatre under Clawson and Caine, to under- stand its import in the history of our Utah civilization. The Salt Lake Theatre was opened to the public on Saturday evening, March 8th, 1862. The pieces were, " Pride of the Market," and "State Secrets." But the ceremony of the dedication of the Theatre was the remarkable event of the opening. Indeed it is not only worthy to constitute a chapter of our local dramatic history, but of the general history of Salt Lake City itself, for there i.s nothing in the history of the English and American stage so unique in its object and sentiment. Reserved seats were placed before the curtain for the First Presidency of the Church and a few others. At the appointed hour, these were occupied and Brig- ham Young, president of the Deseret Dramatic Association, called " the house " HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. y4j to order and delivered a brief introduction. The choristers of the occasion sang an opening hymn : " Lo ! on the mountain tops appearing," After which President Daniel H. Wells offered up the dedication prayer from which we cull the following characteristic passages : * -^ * "In the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, and in the authority of the holy and eternal priesthood of Almighty God, we consecrate and dedicate this building, with its surroundings above and below and upon each side thereof, unto Thee, our Father and God. We dedicate the ground upon which it stands, and the foundation of the building, and the superstructure thereon, the side and the end walls, and the chimneys upon the tops thereof, and the flues within the walls, and the openings for ingress and egress ; and ask for thy blessing to rest upon thein, that the materials used in the construction of the walls may cement together and grow stronger and stronger as time shall pass away. To this end we dedicate unto Thee, our Father, the stone, the adobes, the brick, the hewn stone and mortar of which they are composed, and all the mason-work thereof ; and all the timbers within and above and upon the walls, and the frame- work thereof for the support of the floors, the galleries, the stage, the side rooms, stairs and passages and entrances thereof and therefrom, for the support of the roof of the building and the towering dome, * * * ^^^ ^^e dedicate the parquette, circles, galleries and rooms adjoining for the people, the orchestra, and the actors and performers ; the stage upon which we stand, and the green-room, and rooms adjoining above and round about for dressing rooms, for painting and other conveniences. * * * All and every part of this building we consecrate and dedicate unto Thee, our Father, that it may be pure and holy unto the Lord our God, for a safe and righteous habitation for the assemblages of Thy people, for pastime, amusement and recreation ; for plays, theatrical performances, for lec- tures, conventions, or celebrations, or for whatever purpose it may be used for the benefit of Thy Saints. * * ;i« Upon this edifice be pleased to let Thy bless- ing rest, that it may be preserved against accident or calamity by fire or flood, or hurricane, or the lurid lightning's flash, or earthquakes. May it forever stand as a monument of the skill, industry and improvement of those who have labored thereon, or in anywise contributed thereto, and of the enterprise and ability of Thy servant Brigham, who is the projector and builder thereof, and also as a mon- ument of the blessing and prosperity which Thou hast so eminently conferred upon Thy people since Thou didst bring them forth unto this land. And we pray Thee to bless this Dramatic Association, the actors and actresses, and all who shall perform upon this stage, O Lord, may they feel the quickening influence of Thy Holy Spirit, vivifying and strengthening their whole being, and enabling them to bring into requisition and activity all those energies and powers, mental and physi- cal, quick perceptions and memories necessary to the development and showing forth the parts, acts and performances assigned unto them to their highest sense of gratification or desire, and the satisfaction of the attending audience. ^ * And, O Lord, preserve forever this house pure and holy for the habitation of thy people. Suffer no evil or wicked influences to predominate or prevail within these walls, neither disorder, drunkenness, debauchery or licentiousness of any sort J 44- HISTORY OF SALT LAKE C1T\. or kind ; but rather than this, sooner than it should pass into the hands or con- trol of the wicked or ungodly, let it utterly perish and crumble to atoms ; let it be as though it had not been, an utter waste, each and every part returning to its natural element ; but may order, virtue, cleanliness, sobriety and excellence ob- tain and hold fast possession herein, the righteous possess it, and ' Holiness to the Lord' be forever inscribed therein." ■' * * -J'- After the dedicatory prayer Mr. William C. Dunbar, assisted by the choir and accompanied by the orchestra, sang the "Star Spangled Banner." President Young next addressed the audience and the Deseret Dramatic As- sociation relative to his object in building the theatre, and the mission ot the drama, in which address he aptly said : " The Lord looked upon the children of men as they were, saw their deeds and understood them ; and so should the Saints understand who was in the world and learn to choose the good and eschew the evil. It was not to learn evil ; but to know the duplicity and falsehood of false men, guard against the inroads of vice, and to pursue the undeviating course of rectitude and virtue, that invariably lead to happiness and honor, * * Brother Wells has prayed that this building might crumble to the dust and pass away as if it had never been, sooner than it should pass into the hands of the wicked or be corrupted and polluted, and to that I say. Amen." * * * In closing, the President made an impressive invocation in behalf of the dra- matic company and the audiences which should assemble to witness their perform- ances. Heber C. Kimball and John Taylor followed in brief addresses in conso- nance with the dedication. The Deseret Dramatic Association then gave their opening performance to the public. Thus it will be seen that this theatre was dedicated very much after the manner that the high priests of the Mormon Church would have dedicated one of their temples; and though probably Brigham Young had, at that time, never heard the text of the play of **" Hamlet " in all his life, he described the object of the drama, as it was designed by him for the Salt Lake Theatre, very much like the spirit and exposition of Hamlet to the players : * * * " The purpose of playing, whose end, both at the first, and now, was, and is, to hold, as 'twere the mirror up to Nature; to show virtue her own feature, scorn her own image, and the very age and body of the time his form and pressure." The Salt Lake Theatre, in fact, at the onset was elevated to the caste of a dramatic temple, and made a high school to the public for the study of human nature, which was the very object of all the plays of our Solomon of the Anglo- Saxon stage. Not in the whole history of the stage, ancient or modern, was ever a theatre before thus endowed as a sacred dramatic temple for the people. I'rue Shakspeare and the rest of the great dramatic composers, with Garrick, the Kem- bles, the Keans, Macready, Booth, Forrest, and others of their illustrious class, in their imperial dignity of character, and in the matchless splendor of their genius, before whose bright constellation the galaxy of the pulpit have bowed in humility — have affirmed that the Theatre of their designing is a Temple for the people. Hereafter perchance it may be regarded as one of the *' strange things" HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. y^^ of dramatic history that Brigham Young, a man of no art culture beyond that which was self-evolved, but the high priest of a despised church, should have so lifted the theatre to the conception of the great high priests of the stage; and, if ''Brigham' s Theatre" has fallen from its pinnacle, we shall not debit the fall to him, nor his counsellor, whose dedicatory prayer is before our eyes. During the first season there were performed of the minor and domestic dramas, "Pride of the Market," " Serious'family," " Porter's Knot," " Lavator the Physiognomist," "The Charcoal Burner" (a melo-drama), and Charles Mathews' comedy — " Used Up," with farces : " Sarah's Young Man," " An Ob- ject of Interest," " Paddy Miles' Boy." "To Oblige Benson," " Pleasant Neigh- bor," " Love in Livery,*' " Betsy Baker," and, on the last night of the season, a high class play — " Love's Sacrifice," and the farce " The Widow's Victim." Before the opening of the second season, the veteran actor Mr. T. A. Lyne, had been sent for by his former pupil, Manager Clawson ; and he came to Salt Lake City to take the position as tutor of the company. The following is a brief sketch of his life up to that period : Thomas Ackley Lyne (who is still living in Salt Lake City) was born at Phila- delphia, in August of the year iSo6. His youth and early manhood were spent on the "ocean wave." At the age of twenty-three, he appeared at the Walnut Street Theatre, which was then under the management of Blake & Ingsley. He made his appearance in the popular play of " William Tell," which, in those days, was presented to the public in five acts. His second appearance was at the Park Theatre in the same character under the management of Simpson. He at once took rank as a leading actor ; so it may be seen from the dramatic record that T. A. Lyne was one of America's great actors over fifty years ago. He was a "star" before Charlotte Cushman had made any mark in the theatrical world, and he sup- ported that lady in her early days. He also played leading parts to the elder Booth, and the principal characters to Miss Ellen Tree before she became Mrs. Charles Kean. He has had a large share of crossings and disappointments in the precarious profession which claims " to hold the mirror up to nature." On look- ing over the old files as far back as the " Old Warren Theatre," under the man- agement of Wm. Pelby, at Boston, (on the site of the Warren was built the Nat- ional) we find on the third night of its first season Lyne as the Stranger in Kot- zebue's play of that name, and Harry Smith as the Francis. So, more than forty years ago, he v/as a leading serious actor in the Athens of America. We find him also identified with western theatricals as far back as when Chicago's population was about three thousand and Milwaukee's about half that number. He was man- ager and actor and gave to Chicago in Mr. Ogden's theatre, a wooden building, its first "stars" — Dan Marble and Mrs. Silsby — then imported by steamer from Detroit. We find T. A. Lyne playing among the Saints at Nauvoo. At the open- ing of the Salt Lake Theatre he was brought from Denver at the instance of Brigham Young and installed as dramatic teacher and reader. Thus commenced his professional history in our city. The second season opened with a grand ball at the theatre, which was now receiving the finishing touches in the interior of the house ; and T. A. Lyne was 52 746 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE C1T\. introduced to the public in a poem composed by him — "Our Country's Flag," which was read by John R. Clawson. On Christmas night, 1862, the fine play "The Honeymoon " was performed by the stock company, with John T. Caine as Duke Aranza, and Phil. Mar- getts in his inimitable Mock Duke. W. C. Dunbar's "Paddy Miles' Boy," of which he made a rare Irish comic type, followed. "Old Phil's Birthday," one of II. B. Clawson's marked character hits, was repeated on two nights ; as was John T. Caine's "Charcoal Burner. " The "Two Polls" (Margetts and Bow- ring) carried off the palm of the farces. Then came " Virginius" on the night of the 17th of January, 1863, a crown- ing part, and in the hands of our local company. It is Sheridan Knowles' greatest character part, in which Vandernoff found scope to take the laurels of the play even from Macready; yet our Bernard Snow played Virginius up to a high mark. On the nights of the nth, 14th and i8th of February, 1863, "Damon and Pythias" was played with Lyne as Damon. Mrs. L. Gibson played Calanlhe, Mrs. M. G. Clawson Hermion, James Ferguson played Pythias. This occasion was his final appearance on the stage. " Pizarro " was perlormed, for the first time on the Salt Lake stage, on the night of March 4th: John T. Caine, Pizarro; Lyne, Rolla ; Joseph F. Sim- mons, Alonzo; George Teasdale took the part of the High Priest, and Mrs. M. Bowring, Elvira; and for the first time Salt Lake City saw stage business which perhaps was not surpassed that season in any theatre in America. " William Tell," Lyne's favorite, followed, and afterwards the "Stranger," in which latter play Mrs. Fanny Stenhouse sustained the difficult character of Mrs. Haller. April ist, Lyne played Virginius; and again came his great Damon, in which he has been acknowledged to have had no equal in America, excepting Forrest himself. "Pizarro" was repeated, with cast as before, and then the " Merchant of Venice, " (for the first time played here) in which Lyne gave a fine exposition of "the Jew that Shakspeare drew," in which Edmund Kean won the sceptre of the London Stage, after Hazlett, the greatest English critic, had fought the adverse London critics in his cause. In the third season (the fall and winter of 1863-4) the Irwins reigned. They played the " Lady of Lyons," "Ingomar," " Evadne," "Faint Heart never Won Fair Lady," " Warlock of the Glen," " Ireland as it was," "Chimney Corner," "'Katharine and Petruchio," "Marble Heart," "Octoroon," "The Hunchback," "Green Bushes," "Othello," " Corsican Brothers," "Jessie Brown," " Still Waters Run Deep," "Idiot Witness," "Angel of Midnight," and *' Colleen Bawn." Excepting Othello these were a fresh class of plays here of the second order, giving great scope and variety, and keeping up the dignity of the Salt Lake stage. It will be gratifying to the lovers of the legitimate drama tO have recalled this spendid exhibit of the early days. And during these per- formances our home company did excellent work not only in the support, but also in their own comedies and farces. In the "Colleen Bawn" David McKenzie scored a triumph as Danny Mann, and at once raised himself to an equality with Irwin- As Danny Mann he has never met his match on the Salt Lake stage to this day. HIS TOR V OF SAL T LAKE CITY. j^j In the fourth season, (June and July, 1864,) Lyne came on again in Damon, Pizzaro, and William Tell- Mr. George Pauncefort, an accomplished English actor, with Mrs. Florence Bell, appeared in the city at this period, and during the remainder of the season, alternated his light classics against T. A. Lyne's grander, stately parts of the old school. They made to each other a fine variation, illustrating for their audiences the old legitimate and the new legitimate class of plays. Two better types are rarely to be found heading a stock company, during the same season, in any of the principal cities either of America or England, than those which were presented by Lyne and Pauncefort during the unbroken theatrical period from July, 1864, to January 7th, 1865. Lyne, in the imperial hauteur of the Forrest school, scarcely deigned to notice the introduction of the modern school of classical drama, which clothes its character- casts in the naturalness of society of our own times, as against the grand but stagey portraiture of men and women as they were a century or two ago. There was ever something about Lyne's stately acting that kept the audience in remembrance of the dedication of this Mormon Temple of the drama. It seemed to say to Pauncefort and alike to the audience " take off thy shoes for the place whereon thou standeth is holy ground." In Pizzaro and Damon, this was eminently so. He was a martinet over the dignity, virtue and proprieties of the stage, which told you proudly of the days when he played with the chaste and irreproachable Ellen Tree. So strict was he that in his character of the " Stran- ger," he " cut out " the hintings of reconciliation between him and his erring but repentant wife (Mrs. Haller), for which the emotional meeting of the parents and their children is introduced to extort forgiveness from society in its passion of tears, usually produced by the affecting closing scene. T. A. Lyne indeed, above all the actors that have played on the stage (Couldock alone excepted) has come up to the mark given by President Wells in his solemn dedication of the house on the opening night. George Pauncefort breathed upon the Salt Lake stage a lighter ataiosphere. The somewhat Puritanic spirit which had hitherto prevailed in our theatre was dis- pelled, without a shock to the families of apostles, bishops and elders who filled the parquette, for the plays now introduced were still chaste, though of a lighter order. The English actor opened with " The Romance of a Poor Young Man," in which he wrought out one of the most accomplished and natural works of dram- atic art. Lyne followed on the next night of the theatre in the " Merchant of Venice." Pauncefort came again with his " Romance ;" then in his rare person- ation of William in " Black-eyed Susan." His " Hamlet," (played here for the first time), was not unworthy of Barry Sullivan himself; and his "Don Csesar De Bazan," we think, surpassed even the Don Caesar of that most classical Irish actor whom Liverpool challenged against all England. Charles Matthew's favorite high comedy character, " Used up" was a congenial part, and the " Corsican Broth- ers," sustained by David McKenzie, was rendered by Pauncefort in a style excel- lent in the eyes of those who had seen Charles Kean in the part. " The Duke's Motto" came next and this actor's first engagement closed with "Don Caesar De Bazan." 74^ HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. The stock company then held the stage alone for a while, and here may be introduced a review of the first critic of the Salt Lake Theatre — Alpha,* to mark the status of our stock company as they appeared to him in the freshness of daily memory. " The development of the dramatic art in our midst forms a page of social and popular progress. It could be predicted, a priori, that by its side would spring up musical and literary movements, and in their wake popular movements of every kind would follow. "When that national theatre of the Mormons first lifted its stately form, as a fact in the social and intellectual unfolding of this people, we said, ' There is a gigantic prophecy materialized to the senses.' The house was large in its external, and magnificent in its internal. So much the better ; for it prophesied the louder, and the people understood its vernacular tongue better than they could its meta- physical speech. It prophesied of popular progress, the birth of the arts and the establishment of the professions. Figuratively speaking, that magnificent theatre of ours was an organ of the people, published for them by President Young. There they select their own favorites ; there they express their own taste ; there they applaud that which they think deserving. The theatre was not a religious house, but a secular public institution — a temple of art ; and art is universalian. Be an audience as varied in their religions and politics as Joseph's coat of many colors; and, if they possess a cultivated taste, they will express a common ad- miration and pleasure. You shall see a gentile house make a Mormon artist the favorite, and a Mormon public flock to witness good professional performances. The meaning of appearing before the public in the arena of art the management soon appreciated. Much attention and cost were lavished in putting the plays upon the stage, graced with exquisite pictorial illustrations and scenic splendor, for this, with an immense command of means and facilities, was much easier to the management than to fill parts with first class artists. Indeed theatricals, even in our professional-looking house, started with a purely amateur corps, with Mr. John T. Came as its leading member. This gentleman has since given up first parts to Mr. McKenzieand professional actors, and has made himself very efficient in the more dignified character of manager, playing in the company less to star in a part than for the general effectiveness of the whole. This is a mark of good judgment and correct self-appreciation, for in the long run he would be certain to find many to eclipse his glory, especially after our theatrical heavens shall have been be- spangled with professional stars; he always could hold a first position in the man- agement and not lose caste in the body of a play. Great heaven, how often do even leading men with abilities to rule a nation, and capacity to legislate for an empire put themselves in parts in life where a common laborer could overmatch them, and your veriest vagabond that travels with a show eclipse their glory. All the crowned heads of Europe could not have furnished in their own persons, a company of actors to tread the boards by the side of the dramatic corps of old Richardson's Booth ; nor have shone as stars in the same firmament with those luminaries who perchance first shot out to public gaze in a ' penny gaff' or a coun- try barn. They have been your Edmund Keans ! «E. W. Tullidge. i HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 74^ " While it would be too partial to say the management has committed no <=rrors, it may without reserve be affirmed that it has displayed on the whole ex- cellent judgment, and not only has the mo^t effectual caste been designed, but the most fitting and laborious members of the association have won the best parts and leading characters. The members of the association stand to-day classified and ranked pretty much in the places where their own talents, study and industry have marked out for them. Once fairly won upon the public stage of art, in any of its branches, and all will most certainly find their leveL It is when they cannot reach the public in the fitting place to appeal to the public judgment, that the possessors of excellent gifts and fine artistic finish do not take their proper place. There is nothing in the world more severely just and omnipotent than the public judgment pronouncing itself upon the artist upon the stage, either in opera or the plain drama. The public everywhere choose their own favorites, and managers everywhere accept them. The reasons are too clear to need a pointing out. ** The members of our Deseret Dramatic Association have had the chance of taking their own places and finding their level. Let those who think differently take for an example David McKenzie. Now, among regular professionals of the East where the numerous dramatic corps are found organized with much complete- ness and classified with the nicety of managers studying profoundly the condition of their exchequers, we own that it requires much perseverance, artistic training and slow progress, besides natural talent for actors and actresses to find their level. Why, not even by their equals may your Garricks, your Kembles, your Siddonses, your Keans, your Macreadys and your Forrests be displaced. Could their doubles come they would have to wait until their originals were dead before they could find their level and take their places. But, it is very different with our Deseret Dramatic Association, when all were as on probationary examinations before the public, to have pointed out their proper places and receive their diplomas and their due degrees. For instance, it is most evident that had any of the lady can- didates proved equal to fill principal places, not even yet filled, ample opportun- ities have been offered. Indeed the management have necessarily somewhat tres- passed upon the consideration of the public in their good natured trials of lady amateurs. These facts should at once be significant hints aud encouragement to aspiring members of our dramatic association, and they should remember that in every profession much labor and training, as well as talent, are necessary for ex- cellence and eminence. " Since their rtV(^?// in our theatre the association has made much improve- ment, and some of its members have written their marks and stamped their indi- vidualities. Our comicalities of the company were the first to classify themselves, and Margetts, Dunbar and others, became decided portraits and distinctive cari- catures. The professional element has also been introduced, and moreover, even the association itself has put on somewhat of a professional character and show features of the professional face. Doubtless this mixing of our home talent with trained and legitimate artists has tended much to the training and accomplishments of our amateur corps, and created both for the theatre and the company, a pro- fessional character. In time both will assume a professional caste, and its amateur 750 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. type be only remembered as forming the first pages in the history of theatricals in Utah. " The professional element having been once introduced in the persons of Mr. Lyne and the Irwins it was not enough that the plays should be put upon the stage in that solid magnificence and pictorial illustration which has so delighted everybody, but the public looked to see the dramatic corps show the features and style of the profession. It was a mixed house in the first place, and in the second, theatricals here are commercially the same as everywhere else, and the public had paid for admission to a first class looking theatre ; what wonder then that it should almost ignore the fact that an amateur company were on the boards. The management has had to nicely calculate this and make bath the theatre and the company as professional in their character as possible. This has been partly ef- fected by the mixing of foreign artistes with home talent, and partly by the style and completeness with which the plays have been put upon the boards. " Even the most good-natured in a ward meeting become most unmerci- fully critical and sourly inconsiderate in a theatre — aye, even to our very bishops; for the public are in a secular house for artistic exhibition and not in a tabernacle or religious temple. Not even is justice done an amateur corps, and we never ex- pect to be so generally censured for critical severity as we were by the public for too much praise and considerate wording of our criticisms last year. We have a painful sympathy for the writers of the theatrical notices and descriptions found in the Deseret News and Daily Telegraph. The public ranks them, as of course it will ours, frightfully below the mark ; and doubtless the dramatic association puts them twenty degrees lower still. There is nothing that concerns any one except- ing praise; and that soon gets stale and meaningless, and it would be quite a re- lief to the members to have the public view. It would preserve them from ennui. There are only one or two occasionally for whom ttiey possess interest. Sister Marion when her 'cadence' is touched of course is interested, and Brother Hardie who was rather stiltish upon the stage in his first appearafice, is also doubtless a good natured subject to offer upon the altar. But great Jupiter, and all the other heathen gods, why select Sister Marion when this same defect of cadence and modulation is one of the most noticeable defects of the association generally. " The most marked individuality yet offered by the association from its own corps \sM.x. David McKenzie. This gentleman is by natural instincts an artist. In the public judgment he took the laurels from Mr. Irwin, a professional actor, and obtained first parts for himself. Mr. Lyne is an actor of the old school, of great experience and no mean standing. In fact in his role he is a power upon the stage in Salt Lake City, yet Mr. McKenzie held his ground with him in ' Damon and Pythias.' The most striking personality, however, and the most refined and finished artist that has yet appeared before the theatrical world in Utah, is Geo. Pauncefort." Lyne opened another engagement in the famous old English play of Massin- ger — "A New Way to Pay Old Debts." Nothwithstanding Lyne's preference for his Damon and William Tell, his Sir Giles Overreach was a superior character ex- ecution to that of either. It was one of those characters to which he was organ- ically fitted. It is of a higher class than either Damon or William Tell. Edmund 11 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. ;?5/ Kean laid Sir Giles Overreach along side of his Richard III. and Shylock, but it is doubtful if he would have condescended to Damon or William Tell. Lyne's Richelieu and Richard III. followed, and scored his greatest dramatic marks. Pauncefort alternated with him in " Don Caesar de Bazan ; " "Black-Eyed Susan;" " The Duke's Motto ; " "Hamlet;" " Belphegor, the Mountebank ; " and, on January 5th, 1865, he played Macbeth. Locke's music to " Macbeth '' was rendered in character by the Tabernacle choir. Phil. Margetts, H. E. Bowring and Wm. C. Dunbar took the parts of the three weird sisters, who lead the witches in their demoniac music, and George Teasdale, as Hecate, led the theme, "We fly by night." The stock company again held the stage. They were now capable of execut- ing star plays of the second class. Their casts for the season were: "Colleen Bawn," "Rob Roy," "The Octoroon." " Uncle Tom's Cabin," "The Rag-Picker of Paris," and other plays of a similar class, with some good comedies and "roar- ing farces." David McKenzie also played Macbeth ; which was the second time of the performance of Shakspeare's greatest play on the Salt Lake Stage. Mrs. Gibson was Lady Macbeth, the character which she had sustained to Pauncefort's Macbeth. Lyne came in one night of the season as Sir Edward Mortimer in the " Iron Chest;" and McKenzie, having scored a triumph in the character, repeated Macbeth, The stock company held the stage from January 14th to to August nth, excepting one night with Lyne and three nights with Mr. and Mrs. George Chapman. This was a splendid achievement of the stock in contin- uing the season, playing to full houses, with Lyne and Pauncefort fresh in the public mind. , But it was the coming of Julia Dean Hayne, in the Potter troupe, that gave professional caste to the Salt Lake company, for, though she ran her first engage- ment in the Potter troupe, she was so charmed with the feeling of restfulness which came over the painful tumult of her life, that she sought, as it were, sanctuary in the dramatic temple of the Mormon people. Her professional opportunities in Salt Lake City were rare; her salary $300 a week ; her frequent benefits golden harvests ; but it was her pleasant associations on the Salt Lake stage, and in the private circles with the actors and their families, that induced Julia Dean to tarry in Salt Lake City nearly two years, and to condescend to take the sceptre of a local company of Mormon amateur actors and actresses. Julia Dean Hayne had gone to California in the flower of her youth, but ere she left the east she was famous as Julia Dean, and when, two years after her arrival in Salt Lake City, she returned to New York, it was as Julia Dean that she figured on the play bills in her initial engagement at Winter Gardens Theatre, once famous as Edwin Booth's Theatre. In her maiden days she made her debut in the Old Bowery, New York, in Julia, in the ""Hunchback, " and before she came West she had won national fame. But for the matchless dramatic power of Charlotte Cushman, the Siddons of America, Julia Dean would unhesitatingly have been pronounced by the American public the queen of the American stage. As it was, Mr. S. R. Wells in his famous book — New Physiology — which embodies the types of characters of every class, engraved the likeness of Julia Dean in his group of the greatest actors and actresses that had sprung from the Anglo-Saxon 7J-2 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY, race, up to the time of his writing, ranking her in the group with Garrick, John Kemble, Edmund Kean, Junius Brutus Booth, Edwin Forrest, Sarah Siddons, Charlotte Cushman and Mrs. Mowatt Ritchie. After an absence of a number of years in the west, she was returning to the east in the maturity of her woman- hood, to take the sceptre of the American stage left by Charlotte Cushman, who had entered another life, and which at the time she started from Calitornia, the theatrical profession east and west deemed would be fitly swayed in the hand of Julia Dean. There could still be seen, and seen perhaps to this day, in the club houses where actors' resort, the likeness of Julia Dean in costume in her charac- ters played in New York in her maiden days. Perhaps she lost her opportunity in the east, before the advent of Ristori and Mrs. Landor as Queen Elizabeth, by tarrying in Salt Lake City in the autumn of 1865, instead of proceeding at once to New York. But the Salt Lake company paid quick and heartfelt homage to her as their queen, the Salt Lake public worshipped her in their dramatic temple ; and, being a woman of deep feeling, her heart was touched, and in love she took the throne of the Salt Lake stage, where she reigned with peace and comfort. Julia Dean Hayne made her debut in Salt Lake City in the Potter troupe, on the night of the nth of August, 1S65, in the play of " Camille. " On the 12th she played Mrs, Haller and the Jealous Wife; these were immediately followed with her Griseldis, Julia, in the "Hunchback," "Leah the Forsaken," "Fazio," " Katherine and Petruchio, " "Love," "Romeo and Juliet," "Women in White," "EastLynne" and "Camille," at which we pause for review. Mrs. Hayne's personation of the character of Camille most affected the theatre-going public of our city. The extraordinary emotion which she put into the part, her perfect imitation of the consumptive cough and the actual consump- tive condition which she threw herself into, it is said so affected by sympathy the constitution of Mrs. Gibson, who had reigned on the stage before Julia Dean Hayne came, that it hastened her decline to the grave ; thus exquisitely do the children of genius feel the crossings of human life and enter by sympathy into all the emotions of the human heart. Julia Dean dared not play often the class of parts to which Camille belongs, as they always made her sick, and in six months, repeated every night, the intensities of the part would have taken her also to the grave. Upon her performance of this play, "Alpha, " who was still the critic of the Salt Lake Theatre, wrote : "September i, 1865. ^^ Editor Telegraph : "I said, in a former communication, that an engagement robbed me of the privilege of seeing Mrs. Julia Dean Hayne in her great character of "Camille. " "Last night I saw "Camille." It was indeed a painful illusion of individu- ality. No person sensible to the subtle sympathies of nature, which communicate feeling from soul to soul, and no one acquainted with the realities of society, but what must have felt that in her very self Camille had come to live, to agonize and die before us. It is true our knowledge, in disregarded undertone, said, it is Mrs. Julia Dean Hayne playing a part on the mimic stage, but the logic of feelings, in its strong emphasis, drowned that undertone of our knowledge and said it is Camille. HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. yjj " Fictions ! What are they ? All that we read in books or see upon the stage which the superficial call so much made up lie? No, no; these are not fictions. Often times in books and upon the stage, we are made to see and feel realities, more than in real life we see and feel them. We meet them in life, but in the buz- zing of the busy world around us, and in the crowd of our own concerns, we are not struck by them in their marked individualisms, nor affected with their experi- ence and their lives. In the practical world, we almost exclusively feel ourselves and our own concerns. Enough, most times are these, to fill our daily page; but in the books and at the theatre, we lay aside ourselves awhile, to see the personal- ities that move around us daily. We live with them in communion there, feel their joys and sorrows, and sympathize in their experience. " The stage is a great humanizer and a powerful preacher, when properly ful- filling its mission. We are in communion with humanity through it, and callous must be the nature that feels not the brotherhood and sisterhood of mankind, and depraved indeed when it answers not to a noble sentiment, justifies the good and condemns the wrong. Very few are wicked or unjust in their sympathies with a play. The seducer likes not his own character there, the iron-hearted are sensible to more of nature's tenderness, society asks forgiveness of its victims, and weeps for them. It may be somewhat heterodox in expression, but true in fact, that the world is more human, — sometimes more divine in the theatre, than at the church. " Camille is no fiction ; and because she is not, she is so affecting. How much sympathy and tears society will give her at the theatre, when it will outcast her in life, and denounce her from the pulpit. She is, on the stage, society's victim, and there we are just enough to own it, and tender enough to weep for her. What a painful lesson does she teach? It is that the best of human beings often are fallen, and the divinest of God's creatures are sometimes clothed in sin's scarlet robe, when the white one belongs to them. The history, beautiful nature and sad fate of Camille, is too painfully that of thousands of her class. Some of the best of womankind by nature, in some respects, are among them, fallen, " Camille comes upon the stage to show us the two phases of her character and history, one of which she shows not in every-day life. She has there to conceal it and coquette with a tortured soul and commit her daily suicide, with a hopeful recklessness to reach the end. She comes that society may see its victims, and in her history and sufferings drink deep of reproaches against itself. " Not only is Camille herself no fiction, but Mrs. Dean Hayne's personation of her, was also no fiction . Of all that she has represented before us, I think this her most perfect character. She made it so replete with consummate touches of na- ture and art, that it would be difficult to conceive anything more perfect. "The whole company played Camille well. Mrs. Leslie and Miss Douglass are always satisfactory. They have much public favor and several of the gentle- men nightly win upon us. Mr. Mortimer was very good last night. He always is efficient in the company and plays naturally. Mr. Potter is an experienced actor and well suits the parts he takes ; Mr. Leslie and the rest, though not aspiring to be stars, make up, as far as their number, an efficient stock company of profes- sionals. As for Mr. George B. Waldron, I like him better than at first. He is a very promising young man, a careful artist, and what is so necessary to success, 53 J J 4- HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. shows much ambition and enthusiasm in his profession. A softening of a few features and a copy of a few of the examples that he always has in the lady he sus- tains, and Mr. Waldron may hope from his natural abilities to win a high esteem in public favor." After her second performance of Camille, Mrs. Hayne played "Medea;" " The Love Chase ; " " Lucretia Borgia ; ' Lady Macbeth; "School for Scan- dal;" Parthenia, in " Ingomar ; " " Our American Cousin ; " "The AVife ; " " Lady of Lyons ; " " Masks and Faces ; " " The Wife's Secret ; " Evadne ; " " The Fatal Mask; " Portia; Gamea, and other plays of a similar class; and, strange to say, "Aladdin," during the new year holidays of 1866. She next ap- peared in " Eleanor De Vere," written for her by Edward W. TuUidge, who had won her friendship by his theatrical reviews of her many superb parts, every one of which in her hands were works of the highest dramatic art. In this respect of art work Julia Dean Hayne had, perhaps, no equal, either in America or England — certainly no superior. Ristori and several others may have surpassed her in genius, but everywhere her exquisite art execution was accounted near perfection ; grace was in all her motions ; she wrote poems in her pictures on the stage, and her imperial presence commanded universal homage. Manager Caine visited the Eastern States, to recuperate his health and take professional points 10 place the Salt Lake Theatre on the highest grade of manage- ment. Learning of this intention, our influential citizens, both Gentiles and Mor- mon, united to give Manager Caine a grand testimonial benefit. During the sea- son a similar testimonial had been given Julia Dean Hayne, but this was the first benefit ever given to a member of the Deseret Dramatic Association. It was known that President Young was not favorable to the introduction of the benefit system among the home company, he looking upon " liis " theatre very much as a dra- matic Tabernacle, and the giving of a testimonial benefit to the manager was, in his sense, very much like the public extending to himself a testimonial benefit, as the builder of the theatre and the president of the Deseret Dramatic Society. We believe he would very much have preferred to have given Manager Caine a hand- somer benefit out of his private purse, but the public generally had resolved to ex- press its own sincere appreciation of the manager's work, and the President, with his fine diplomatic tact in dealing with a strongly expressed will or pleasure of the public, graciously yielded the point. This is the history of the beginning of benefits in the Salt Lake Theatre. Immediately thereupon the Salt Lake Daily Telegraph announced "The original historical play of ' Eleanor De Vere,' written for Julia Dean Hayne, by Mr. E. W. Tullidge, of this city, has been chosen by the management for the complimentary benefit of Mr. John T. Caine." The night of the performance was on February 5th, 1S66. It was said that Julia Dean Hayne made her greatest triumph in Salt Lake City on that night. The applause vvas great and very prolonged ; the audience clamoring for the ac- tress, the author and the manager, who with his sensitive judgment pressed the first honors of the call on the former; and, on a renewed insistence for his appearance closed with the following speech, which in itself is quite a suggestive passage of our dramatic history: HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 7jj '■^ Ladies and gentlemen. — I am highly gratified with the compliment which your presence here this evening confers upon me, and feel more the deep sense of my obligation than I am able to express ; there is no human nature insen- sible so a compliment of this kind ; there is no human nature that is insensible to expressions of personal regard. If I am permitted to judge from the very flat- tering terms in which my humble abilities and labors in connection with this theatre have been spoken of, since the subject of this testimonial was first sug- gested, I fear they have been over estimated ; but — be this as it may — it is none the less gratifying to realize that my efforts have given some degree of satisfaction to the patrons of the house. " Isolated as we are in this country — as we used to say ' a thousand miles from everywhere,' it is pardonable to be proud of so noble a structure as this — conceived, designed and executed by a master mind, it stands to-day, a noble tribute to the refining and elevating influence of the drama. Carrying out the de- signs of its founder, it has been the aim of my worthy colleague — Mr. H. B. Claw- son — and myself, never to present anything on this stage that was debasing or de- moralizing in its tendency, or that would cause the blush of shame to crimson the cheek of purity and innocence- If at any time anything has been presented that would have such tendency, it has been the result of accident, not design. For while striving to ' hold the mirror up to nature,' we have sought to draw a pall over that which was not calculated to benefit and elevate fallen humanity — so may it ever be -and may the drama, occupying its legitimate sphere, go hand in hand with the sister arts, music, sculpture and painting, on its mission of exaltation to man, "I contemplate leaving you for a short time, with the purpose of visiting the great eastern cities, to recuperate my somewhat exhausted energies, and to collect, from experience, information and material which may tend to render cur theatre still more attractive, interesting and worthy of patronage. " A feeling of regret steals over me when I think of leaving those with whom I have so long held such pleasant relations, but hoping to meet you on my return, thanking you for your kind patronage to-night, and still more for the kind feeling you have manifested toward me, and thanking those who have contributed to this entertainment I beg to say farewell to one and all, and wish you, ladies and gen- tlemen, a very good night, and all the prosperity your hearts can desire." During his professional visit to the States, Mr. Caine assisted in the immigra- tion of that year. After his return he resumed his place in the management of the theatre, and in 1867-8-9, Clawson & Caine were its lessees. After the close of the season, in the latter part of April, 1866, Julia Dean Hayne left for the East; and at the next season, opening in November, the Irwins played two nights, and then the stock company ran alone until March, when Lyne resumed his great characters for a month, and the stock continued with Miss Adams and Miss Alexander starring. George Pauncefort was next en- gaged and his role repeated with some fresh plays of his line. The fine old actor, Couldock, (with his talented daughter) was the next star that held its course for awhile in our firmament. "The Willow Copse,'' *'Louis XT.," "Dot," "Jew of Frankfort," "Richelieu," " Waiting for a Verdict," marked his class of plays J ^6 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. in some of which he had no equal, Mr. and Mrs. Langrish interspersed the season, and Amy Stone ran the lighter drama for nearly three months, and then Coiildock came on again with the " Stranger," " Merchant of Venice," "The Hunchback," "King Henry IV.," "Old Phil's Birthday," "Porter's Knot," "Chimney Cor- ner," and repetitions of his parts. Mr. James Stork from California ran in the opening of the year 1868, with "Brutus," "Money," "Merry Wives of Wind- sor," and " Jack Cade; " and the stock resumed with Margettsand Lindsay star- ring, the latter in "Hamlet." Mr. and Mrs. Waldron were engaged awhile, and "King Lear" was played for the first time in Salt Lake Theatre. Madame Scheller and Charlotte Compton appeared about this time, Scheller starring for several months in a fine line of parts ; her Ophelia, which she had played to I'ldwin Booth's Hamlet, was pronounced by him the best on the American stage. Miss Annette Ince (a great actress) followed in a number of plays of Julia Dean Hayne's cast, to which was added Ristori's "Mary Stuart," and "Elizabeth Queen of England." Edward L. Davenport, in his Julian St. Pierre, in "The Wife," gave the most finished piece of acting ever witnessed here; T. A. Lyne repeated his " Pizzaro, and the stock followed alone, playing during their course " Louis XL," and " Jack Cade." Parepa Rosa interspersed with a grand concert, and John McCullough came on with his role, with Geo. B. Waldron and Madame Scheller starring with him ; " Romeo and Juliet " being in the role. McCullough ran a month and Waldron and Scheller continued. In February, 1859, Miss Annie Lockhart came, and remained the leading lady of the stock till her death, in the fall of 1869. Mr. J. A, Heme and Lucille Western were engaged, and for the first time " Rip Van Winkle" was performed here. Fanny Morgan Phelps was the next star, Annie Lockheart holding the stage with her. Mr, Charles Wheatleigh starred awhile, and the Howsons varied the season with opera. G. G. Chapman, Lotta with her exquisite Little Nell, Mr. and Mrs, Kennedy, Miss Ger- aldine Wardon, and Murphy & Mack's Minstrels filled up the season, Neil War- ner was engaged the next season, and his "Richard III.," among his Shaks- pearian role, was pronounced the best Plantagenet performed on this stage. After the death of Annie Lockhart, whose remains the Deseret Dramatic Association followed to the grave, Madame Scheller again reigned awhile, but Kate Denin superceded her, and held the stage with John Wilson. Charlotte Thompson played an interval, and Denin and Wilson resumed, bringing up the seasons to May, 1870, when the stock company resumed. Couldock and daughter returned with their parts in December, and Miss Sallie Hinckley and G.'W. Thompson ran the opening month of the year 1871, when Milton Nobles relieved them, and the stock resumed their business, followed by a number of minor stars, alternating with the stock company. During this time up to 1871, Waldron played a long engagement, Joseph K. Emmet appeared and W. T. Harris, afterwards manager of the Salt Lake Theatre, made his debut. Couldock and his daughter held an- other engagement, two months, and the Lingard company and others followed, the stock company having been now nearly displaced. The famous and most classical actor, Edwin Adams, reigned awhile, and John McCullough exchanged characters with him, giving to the Salt Lake public the rarest classical treat. With the retirement of David McKenzie from the stage, in December, 1869, HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. j^-j the old Deseret Dramatic Company may be said to have ended its career. There was left now of the founders of the Salt Lake stage Phil. Margetts only, though some of the later members were occasionally mixed in with the new stock. For awhile longer John Lindsay and James M. Hardie remained. Their lines will be sufficiently marked by naming that Lindsay played lago to Neil Warner's Othello, and Hardie, Cassio. During the years 1S71-2-3-4, the names of the stock casts, changing from time to time, were J. M. Carter, J. M. Dunne, E. B. Harden, H. Haines, Mark Wilton, W. T. Harris, W. J. Coggswell, the leading man, and in 1874, James Vinson, Wm. C. Crosbie and Mr. Frank Rae, a veteran of the eastern stage, as Vinson was of the California stage. These were all actors " from abroad," though now combined as the Salt Lake stock company. The professional ladies Avere Carrie Coggswell (once the wife of T. A. Lyne), Kate Denin (principal lady), Mrs. Frank Rae and Mrs. Crosbie, and later, Jean Clara Walters. The local names were A. L. Thorne, M. Forster, D. J. Mackintosh, Harry Taylor, Logan Paul, H. Horsley, with the favorites Margetts and Graham returning occasionally; and, on the engagement of Mrs. Landor, McKenzie returned to support her Mary Stuart and Marie Antoinette, in the parts of Leicester and Louis XVI. The lo- cal ladies were Miss Adams, Mrs. M. Bowring, Mrs. Grist, Miss Susie Spencer and Miss Napper, the three former ladies, however, only playing in the early date of the new combination. John Lindsay, having joined the Godbeites, had retired from the company, and James M. Hardie had gone to the States seeking national fame. In 1874, James Vinson was stage manager and practical director of the company, while John T. Caine was still the generalissimo of the institution. While this stock combination, in a professional sense, may, in some features, be said to resemble more the ever changing stock companies of the large cities of America, it came not up to the old Deseret Dramatic Association in enthusiasm and the endowment of a dramatic mission to our city, for our local members, who played at the onset without " wages," really showed themselves the kin of the poets who " lived and died in garrets," but who created the literature of nations- while at times the old stock company, when running their seasons under a Julia Dean and G. B. Waldron, a Lyne and a Pauncefort together, a Couldock, a Dav- enport, and an Edwin Adams and John McCullough, the Irwins and an Annie Lockhart, surpassed the new combination many degrees. Indeed the "■ stars " have confessed, admiringly, that there was no stock company in America that could equal the Salt Lake company at such times, nor would those great actors of na- tional fame have owned themselves the heads of a local company, for the time being, as they did here where the charms of a unique association made them almost for- get for awhile that they were of the national dramatic stars. Perhaps only in the great theatres of London, where the stock companies are the constant "stars of the town," has there been so exact an example of the theatrical origins of the Anglo-Saxon stage as illustrated in the times when Garrick, the Kembles, Macready, the Keans, the Brooks and the Phelps reigned as the kings of the stock, as that shown in the first ten years of the history of the Salt Lake Theatre. True, Wallack^s Theatre, Booth's Theatre, and the great theatres of Boston and other eastern cities have, taken together in the round, each sustained almost perfect 758 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. companies, in their several special Shakspearian plays and classical comedies ; but here, in Salt Lake City, with the very stars of these companies fast succeed- ing each other, and sometimes in combinations, supported by the local stock, the plays performed in those theatres from the highest range of the heavy legitimate drama, to the limits of the range of the light legitimate, as seen in the foregoing casts, running through a period of ten years, with the seasons scarcely broken by short intermissions, all have been performed on the Salt Lake stage. It is indeed a most worthy theatrical history, which will be noted in coming generations with admiration. Here we may pause for personal sketches of leading members of the old home stock, whose achievements will remain in the attached remembrance of the present generation of the Salt Lake public, who traced them in their respective lines, with a personal kinship of fellow citizens, from their first appearance to the close of their professional career. First in rank of that "dear old stock" (for as such they live in the hearts of our people) is David McKenzie, who fairly by his own talents as an artist, and his perseverance as a student, won his way from the bottom to the top of the ladder of local fame. David McKenzie was born at Edinburgh, Scotland, December 27th, 1833. He was bound apprentice to engraving, June, 1845, ^"d served seven years as an apprentice and two years as journeyman. He joined the Mormon Church in Glasgow, February nth, 1853, ^"d emigrated to Utah, March 6th, 1854, where he arrived October nth, of the same year. Two days after his arrival in Salt Lake City, he was voted in a member of the Deseret Dramatic Association ; he made his first appearance on a theatrical stage (in the Social Hall) the same week in a supernumerary part in " All is not Gold that Glitters." At the opening of the Salt Lake Theatre he appeared in a second class part as a gendarine in the "Pride of the Market,'" itself but a second-class piece of the minor drama; but it was soon noticed that the tuition of T. A. Lyne was not lost upon upon him. He gradually won his way up, in the ascent playing Pythias to Lyne's Damon; but it was as Colonna in "Evadne," to Irwin's Ludov- ico, that called marked attention of the public to his ability. Alpha, the critic, as seen in his foregoing review, at once pronounced McKenzie a dramatic artist, and ranked him at the head of the stock. He had seen the great Vandernoff as Colonna to Davenport's Ludovico, in Liverpool a year or two before, and with the character of one of that proud Italian house, that had often made a Pope for Rome, fresh in his memory, he was struck with McKenzie's conception of the character, which, while it lacked, of course, the mighty weight of Vandernoff, was rendered in its proper type. His Danny Mann in the "Colleen Bawn," was a rare piece of character acting, which has never been excelled to this day on the Salt Lake Stage. Father Jean, in the " Rag-Picker of Paris, was also a rare part. His Jacob McClosky to Irwin's Salem Scudder, in the " Octoroon,'* fairly held the stage in rivalry with the star, and this was the more marked from the fact that JjLcob McClosky is the repellant part, though in the hands of a principal actor it is the character of the play. Irwin seemed not to have measured the steel he was crossing, for he was really playing seconds to the local actor. In the " Hunch- back " Mrs. Irwin was Julia ; her husband Sir Thomas Clifford, and McKenzie HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. y^g Master Walter. McKenzie had now Macready's part (played first to Fanny Kem- ble's Julia) but Master Walter was pre-eminently in McKenzie's line. Had he failed (speaking exaggeratingly) he would have earned a coffin ; he succeeded and won a laural. He was now head and shoulders above Irwin. Quickly after George Pauncefort's Macbeth, McKenzie played Macbeth, and it is sufficient praise for a critic to say he did not fall in his leap. His Macduff was pronounced a great part, and his Col. Dumas was a rare piece of character acting. But his Polonius, to a Shakspearian judgment, would place him the highest as a dramatic artist. When he played the part to John McCuUough, that prince of the Ameri- can stage remarked " Mr. McKenzie's Polonius is the best I ever saw." Polonius is not a small part, but a great Shakspearian part ; Horatio is a third class Shaks- pearian part compared with it. It is not a mile of text that constitutes a great character, but some distinctive type. Polonius is not only a type, but a Shaks- pearian creation. His profound self-wisdom, in which he is utterly lost, is inimi- table; and, like Sir John Falstaff, he utters sentences of common philosophy that will live through all time : " Though this be madness, yet there's method in it." There is not half a dozen actors in a nation that can play Polonius. A quar- ter of a century ago, when the Liverpool critics were wont to challenge Barry Sullivan's Hamlet against London, they always added, "Old Baker (Liverpool's favorite) is the best Polonius in England." So when John McCullough made his remark it signified, " Mr. McKenzie is the best Polonius in America." Having sustained the leading business for years, David McKenzie retired from the company in December, 1869, and became President Brigham Young's cor- responding secretary. In June, 1874, he was appointed to the British Mission, where he presided over the Scottish conference, until he was called to the Liver- pool Office to assist in editing the Millennial Star, and in the general business of the office. Returning home in 1876, he resumed his position in President Young's office ; and, at the incorporation of the Salt Lake Dramatic Association, he was appointed its secretary ; and from that time until the present he has also been acting manager of the Salt Lake Theatre. His first appearance for several years was in October, 1880, as Jacob M'CIoskey, in "The Octoroon," the occa- sion being a benefit tendered him by the " Home Club," for services as instruc- tor to the Club. The house was "crowded to suffocation." Bernard Snow, whose name in the order of date ranked before that of David McKenzie, but who retiring early can only be placed at the head of the amateur dramatic corps of the Social Hall, possessed considerable native talent for the stage, and had he passed a regular training under such masters as Macready, Van- dernoff, or Forrest, may have reached a star magnitude. He played Virginus, Othello, Damon, Rolla, Sir Edward Mortimer, Matthew Elmore, and Ingomar,. his proper line of characters ; but when he came to the task of interchanging in his chosen parts with the veteran T. A. Lyne, the public which named him the " Rocius of the Rocky Mountains " realized that he was eclipsed many degrees. It was perhaps this realization of the public judgment which caused him to retire. He could not, as McKenzie did, hold his own with the stars without constant j6o HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. sense of eclipse, yet still in our theatrical history he is worthy to be remembered IS a local star of the amateur days. General James Ferguson, a man of brilliant intellect, an officer in the Mor- mon Battalion, adjutant general of the Nauvoo Legion, and editor of the Moun- taineer, was as a brother of Bernard Snow, to whom he played Pythias, and in his own sphere shined as Claude Melnotte, and played a fitting Don Caesar De Bazan and lago to Snow's Othello in the Social Hall. He died early in the history of our theatre, and his memory lives apart from the sphere of the stage. Hiram B. Clawson, as before noticed, was a member of Lyne's company at Nauvoo, and it was he and John T. Caine who were instrumental in moving President Young to build the theatre, which was run so many years under the management of Clawson and Caine. He possessed considerable native talent for such a line of character parts indicated by his " Old Phil's Birthday," " Porter's Knot," and in the ''Chimney Corner," which were three of the favorite char- acters in which Couldock starred. Hiram B. Clawson retired at an early period from the stage, and occupied the position of the first superintendent of Z. C. M. I., but still retained his position in the management. John T. Caine at the onset headed the stock company. He played Duke Aranza in the "Honeymoon," "The Charcoal Burner," Sir Charles Coldstream in "Used Up," Pizarro to Lyne's RoUa, Eustache Baudine, Stephen Plumb, in "All is not Gold that Glitters," and other leading parts, but he had also retired to the fitter sphere of the management, and also became one of the founders and editorial managers of the Salt Lake Herald, city recorder, and later was elected the delegate from Utah to Congress. His general biography will be found elsewhere. John S. Lindsay first appeared in " Thompson's Theatre," but attracting the attention of the management was soon called into the stock company of the Salt Lake Theatre. Of him the local critic wrote in 1869 : " Mr. John S. Lindsay has treated us to some very fine playing of late. His Michael Feeney, in " Arrah-na- Pogue " was a masterpiece of its kind. He ever plays well. There is vim in his action and force in his character. He is constant in his efficiency, always ready in his scenes, never lacking in his parts. He has played among numerous charac- ters on our stage, Ludovico, lago, Hamlet, Richelieu, Romeo, and Macbeth. For years now he has been traveling in his profession both in the Western States and Territories and also in the East. James M. Hardie, a favorite pupil of T. A. Lyne, with considerable of his master's style, early became a favorite of the public. He played the principal male character, Raphael, in "The Marble Heart," to Annie Lockhart's Marco, " Jack Cade," and other star parts of a similar line. The critic wrote of him in 1869: "James M. Hardie is decidedly a rising actor. We expect to see him ■ make a name in the world. There is in him metaphysical force and physical weight, combining a fine appearance. In heroic parts he can reach the top of the tree. He must aim for professional perfection. That is a work of art. Nature has given him all the force." For years now he has been starring in the Eastern States. Mr. Philip Margetts has been treated in the dramatic history as one of the il HIS TOR V OF SAL T LAKE CITY. ^53 " Fictions ! What are they ? All that we read in books or see upon the stage which the superficial call so much made up lie? No, no ; these are not fictions. Often times in books and upon the stage, we are made to see and feel realities, more than in real life we see and feel them. We meet them in life, but in the buz- zing of the busy world around us, and in the crowd of our own concerns, we are not struck by them in their marked individualisms, nor affected with their experi- ence and their lives. In the practical world, we almost exclusively feel ourselves and our own concerns. Enough, most times are these, to fill our daily page; but in the books and at the theatre, we lay aside ourselves awhile, to see the personal- ities that move around us daily. We live with them in communion there, feel their joys and sorrows, and sympathize in their experience. " The stage is a great humanizer and a powerful preacher, when properly ful- filling its mission. We are in communion with humanity through it, and callous must be the nature that feels not the brotherhood and sisterhood of mankind, and depraved indeed when it answers not to a noble sentiment, justifies the good and condemns the wrong. Very few are wicked or unjust in their sympathies with a play. The seducer likes not his own character there, the iron-hearted are sensible to more of nature's tenderness, society asks forgiveness of its victims, and weeps for them. It may be somewhat heterodox in expression, but true in fact, that the world is more human, — sometimes more divine in the theatre, than at the church. " Camille is no fiction ; and because she is not, she is so affecting. How much sympathy and tears society will give her at the theatre, when it will outcast her in life, and denounce her from the pulpit. She is, on the stage, society's victim, and there we are just enough to own it, and tender enough to weep for her. What a painful lesson does she teach? It is that the best of human beings often are fallen, and the divinest of God's creatures are sometimes clothed in sin's scarlet robe, when the white one belongs to them. The history, beautiful nature and sad fate of Camille, is too painfully that of thousands of her class. Some of the best of womankind by nature, in some respects, are among them, fallen. " Camille comes upon the stage to show us the two phases of her character and history, one of which she shows not in every-day life. She has there to conceal it and coquette with a tortured soul and commit her daily suicide, with a hopeful recklessness to reach the end. She comes that society may see its victims, and in her history and sufferings drink deep of reproaches against itself. " Not only is Camille herself no fiction, but Mrs. Dean Hayne's personation of her, was also no fiction. Of all that she has represented before us, I think this her most perfect character. She made it so replete with consummate touches of na- ture and art, that it would be difficult to conceive anything more perfect. "The whole company played Camille well. Mrs. Leslie and Miss Douglass are ahvays satisfactory. They have much public favor and several of the gentle- men nightly win upon us. Mr. Mortimer was very good last night. He always is efificient in the company and plays naturally. Mr. Potter is an experienced actor and well suits the parts he takes; Mr. Leslie and the rest, though not aspiring to be stars, make up, as far as their number, an efificient stock company of profes- sionals. As for Mr. George B. Waldron, I like him better than at first. He is a very promising young man, a careful artist, and what is so necessary to success, 53 75/ HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. shows much ambition and enthubiasm in his profession. A softening of a few features and a copy of a few of the examples that he always has in the lady he sus- tains, and Mr, Waldron may hope from his natural abilities to win a high esteem in public favor." After her second performance of Camille, Mrs. Hayne played "Medea;" " The Love Chase ; " " Lucretia Borgia ; ' Lady Macbeth; "School for Scan- dal;" Parthenia, in " Ingomar ; " " Our American Cousm ; " "The Wife;" " Lady of Lyons ; " " Masks and Faces ; " " The Wife's Secret ; " Evadne ; " " The Fatal Mask; " Portia; Gamea, and other plays of a similar class; and, strange to say, "Aladdin," during the new year holidays of iS66. She next ap- peared in " Eleanor De Vere," written for her by Edward W. Tullidge, who had won her friendship by his theatrical reviews of her many superb parts, every one of which in her hands were works of the highest dramatic art. In this respect of art work Julia Dean Hayne had, perhaps, no equal, either in America or England — certainly no superior. Ristori and several others may have surpassed her in genius, but everywhere her exquisite art execution was accounted near perfection ; grace was in all her motions ; she wrote poems in her pictures on the stage, and her imperial presence commanded universal homage. Manager Caine visited the Eastern States, to recuperate his health and take professional points to place the Salt Lake Theatre on the highest grade of manage- ment. Learning of this intention, our influential citizens, both Gentiles and Mor- mon, united to give Manager Caine a grand testimonial benefit. During the sea- son a similar testimonial had been given Julia Dean Hayne, but this was the first benefit ever given to a member of the Deseret Dramatic Association. It was known that President Young was not favorable to the introduction of the benefit system among the home company, he looking upon " his " theatre very much as a dra- matic Tabernacle, and the giving of a testimonial benefit to the manager was, in his sense, very much like the public extending to himself a testimonial benefit, as the builder of the theatre and the president of the Deseret Dramatic Society. We believe he would very much have preferred to have given Manager Caine a hand- somer benefit out of his private purse, but the public generally had resolved to ex- press its own sincere appreciation of the manager's work, and the President, with his fine diplomatic tact in dealing with a strongly expressed will or pleasure of the public, graciously yielded the point. This is the history of the beginning of benefits in the Salt Lake Theatre. Immediately thereupon the Salt Lake Daily Telegraph announced "The original historical play of ' Eleanor De Vere,' written for Julia Dean Hayne, by Mr. E. W. Tullidge, of this city, has been chosen by the management for the complimentary benefit of Mr. John T. Caine." The night of the performance was on February 5th, 1S66. It was said that Julia Dean Hayne made her greatest triumph in Salt Lake City on that night. The applause was great and very prolonged ; the audience clamoring for the ac- tress, the author and the manager, who with his sensitive judgment pressed the first honors of the call on the former; and, on a renewed insistence for his appearance closed with the following speech, which in itself is quite a suggestive pa^^sage of our dramatic history : HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 735 '■^ Ladies and gentlemen. — I am highly gratified with the compliment which your presence here this evening confers upon me, and feel more the deep sense of my obligation than I am able to express; there is no human nature insen- sible so a compliment of this kind ; there is no human nature that is insensible to expressions of personal regard. If I am permitted to judge from the very flat- tering terms in which my humble abilities and labors in connection with this theatre have been spoken of, since the subject of this testimonial was first sug- gested, I fear they have been over estimated ; but — be this as it may — it is none the less gratifying to realize that my efforts have given some degree of satisfaction to the patrons of the house. " Isolated as we are in this country — as we used to say ' a thousand miles from everywhere,' it is pardonable to be proud of so noble a structure as this — conceived, designed and executed by a master mind, it stands to-day, a noble tribute to the refining and elevating influence of the drama. Carrying out the de- signs of its founder, it has been the aim of my worthy colleague — Mr. H. B. Claw- son — and myself, never to present anything on this stage that was debasing or de- moralizing in its tendency, or that would cause the blush of shame to crimson the cheek of purity and innocence- If at any time anything has been presented that would have such tendency, it has been the result of accident, not design. For while striving to ' hold the mirror up to nature,' we have sought to draw a pall over that which was not calculated to benefit and elevate fallen humanity — so may it ever be —and may the drama, occupying its legitimate sphere, go hand in hand with the sister arts, music, sculpture and painting, on its mission of exaltation to man. "I contemplate leaving you for a short time, with the purpose of visiting the great eastern cities, to recuperate my somewhat exhausted energies, and to collect, from experience, information and material which may tend to render our theatre still more attractive, interesting and worthy of patronage. " A feeling of regret steals over me when I think of leaving those with whom I have so long held such pleasant relations, but hoping to meet you on my return, thanking you for your kind patronage to-night, and still more for the kind feeling you have manifested toward me, and thanking those who have contributed to this entertainment I beg to say farewell to one and all, and wish you, ladies and gen- tlemen, a very good night, and all the prosperity your hearts can desire." During his professional visit to the States, Mr. Caine assisted in the immigra- tion of that year. After his return he resumed his place in the management of the theatre, and in 1867-8-9, Clawson & Caine were its lessees. After the close of the season, in the latter part of April, 1866, Julia Dean Hayne left for the East ; and at the next season, opening in November, the Irwins played two nights, and then the stock company ran alone until March, when Lyne resumed his great characters for a month, and the stock continued with Miss Adams and Miss Alexander starring. George Pauncefort was next en- gaged and his role repeated with some fresh plays of his line. The fine old actor, Couldock, (with his talented daughter) was the next star that held its course for awhile in our firmament. "The Willow Copse,'' "Louis XL," "Dot," "Jew of Frankfort," "Richelieu," " Waiting for a Verdict," marked his class of plays 75d HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. in some of which he had no equal. Mr. and Mrs. Langrish interspersed the season, and Amy Stone ran the lighter drama for nearly three months, and then Couldock came on again with the " Stranger," " Merchant of Venice," "The Hunchback," "King Henry IV.," "Old Phil's Birthday," "Porter's Knot," "Chimney Cor- ner," and repetitions of his parts. Mr. James Stork from California ran in the opening of the year 1868, with "Brutus," "Money," "Merry Wives of Wind- sor," and "Jack Cade; " and the stock resumed with Margetts and Lindsay star- ring, the latter in " Hamlet." Mr. and Mrs. Waldron were engaged awhile, and "King Lear" was played for the first time in Salt Lake Theatre. Madame Scheller and Charlotte Compton appeared about this time, Scheller starring for several months in a fine line of parts ; her Ophelia, which she had played to l''-dwin Booth's Hamlet, was pronounced by him the best on the American stage. Miss Annette Ince (a great actress) followed in a number of plays of Julia Dean Hayne's cast, to which was added Ristori's "Mary Stuart," and "Elizabeth Queen of England." Edward L. Davenport, in his Julian St. Pierre, in "The Wife," gave the most finished piece of acting ever witnessed here; T. A. Lyne repeated his " Pizzaro, and the stock followed alone, playing during their course " Louis XL," and " Jack Cade." Parepa Rosa interspersed with a grand concert, and John McCullough came on with his role, with Geo. B. Waldron and Madame Scheller starring with him ; " Romeo and Juliet " being in the role. McCullough ran a month and Waldron and Scheller continued. In February, 1859, Miss Annie Lockhart came, and remained the leading lady of the stock till her death, in the fall of 1869. Mr. J. A. Heme and Lucille Western were engaged, and for the first time " Rip Van Winkle" was performed here. Fanny Morgan Phelps was the next star, Annie Lockheart holding the stage with her. Mr. Charles Wheatleigh starred awhile, and the Howsons varied the season with opera. G. G. Chapman, Lotta with her exquisite Little Nell, Mr. and Mrs. Kennedy, Miss Gei- aldine Wardon, and Murphy & Mack's Minstrels filled up the season. Neil War- ner was engaged the next season, and his "Richard III.," among his Shaks- pearian role, was pronounced the best Plantagenet performed on this stage. After the death of Annie Lockhart, whose remains the Deseret Dramatic Association followed to the grave, Madame Scheller again reigned awhile, but Kate Denin superceded her, and held the stage with John Wilson. Charlotte Thompson played an interval, and Denin and Wilson resumed, bringing up the seasons to May, 1870, when the stock company resumed. Couldock and daughter returned with their parts in December, and Miss Sallie Hinckley and G. W. Thompson ran the opening month of the year 1871, when Milton Nobles relieved them, and the stock resumed their business, followed by a number of minor stars, alternating with the stock company. During this time up to 1871, Waldron played a long engagement, Joseph K. Emmet appeared and W. T. Harris, afterwards manager of the Salt Lake Theatre, made his debut. Couldock and his daughter held an- other engagement, two months, and the Lingard company and others followed, the stock company having been now nearly displaced. The famous and most classical actor, Edwin Adams, reigned awhile, and John McCullough exchanged characters with him, giving to the Salt Lake public the rarest classical treat. With the retirement of David McKenzie from the stage, in December, 1869, HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY, y^y tlie old Deseret Dramatic Company may be said to have ended its career. There was left now of the founders of the Salt Lake stage Phil. Margetts only, though some of the later members were occasionally mixed in with the new stock. For awhile longer John Lindsay and James M. Hardie remained. Their lines will be sufficiently marked by naming that Lindsay played lago to Neil Warner's Othello, and Hardie, Cassio. During the years 1871-2-3-4, the names of the stock casts, changing from time to time, were J. M. Carter, J. M. Dunne, E. B. Harden, H. Haines, Mark Wilton, W. T. Harris, W. J. Cuggswell, the leading man, and in 1874, James Vinson, Wm. C. Crosbie and Mr. Frank Rae, a veteran of the eastern stage, as Vinson was of the California stage. These were all actors " from abroad," though now combined as the Salt Lake stock company. The professional ladies were Carrie Coggswell (once the wife of T. A. Lyne), Kate Denin (principal lady), Mrs. Frank Rae and Mrs. Crosbie, and later, Jean Clara Walters. The local names were A. L. Thorne, M. Forster, D. J. Mackintosh, Harry Taylor, Logan Paul, H. Horsley, with the favorites Margetts and Graham returning occasionally; and, on the engagement of Mrs. Landor, McKenzie returned to support her Mary Stuart and Marie Antoinette, in the parts of Leicester and Louis XVI. The lo- cal ladies were Miss Adams, Mrs. M. Bowring, Mrs. Grist, Miss Susie Spencer and Miss Napper, the three former ladies, however, only playing in the early date of the new combination. John Lindsay, having joined the Godbeites, had retired from the company, and James M. Hardie had gone to the States seeking national fame. In 1874; James Vinson was stage manager and practical director of the company, while John T. Caine was still the generalissimo of the institution. While this stock combination, in a professional sense, may, in some features, be said to resemble more the ever changing stock companies of the large cities of America, it came not up to the old Deseret Dramatic Association in enthusiasm and the endowment of a dramatic mission to our city, for our local members, who played at the onset without " wages/' really showed themselves the kin of the l)oets who " lived and died in garrets," but who created the literature of nations; while at times the old stock company, when running their seasons under a Julia Dean and G. B. Waldron, a Lyne and a Pauncefort together, a Couldock, a Dav- enport, and an Edwin Adams and John McCullough, the Irwins and an Annie Lockhart, surpassed the new combination many degrees. Indeed the " stars " have confessed, admiringly, that there was no stock company in America that could equal the Salt Lake company at such times, nor would those great actors of na- tional fame have owned themselves the heads of a local company, for the time being, as they did here where the charms of a unique association made them almost for- get for awhile that they were of the national dramatic stars. Perhaps only in the great theatres of London, where the stock companies are the constant "stars of the town/' has there been so exact an example of the theatrical origins of the Anglo-Saxon stage as illustrated in the times when Garrick, the Kembles, Macready, the Keans, the Brooks and the Phelps reigned as the kings of the stock, as that shown in the first ten years of the history of the Salt Lake Theatre. True, Wallack's Theatre, Booth's Theatre, and the great theatres of Boston and other eastern cities have, taken together in the round, each sustained almost perfect 75piscopal cemetery ; but her remains have since been removed to Mount Olivet. ■j64 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CIT\. Under the management of James H. Vinson, after the retirement of the old Deseret Dramatic Association, the theatre for awhile kept up its former prestige, and with the combination of stars with the imported stock, it was not quickly realized, even by the management, that theatricals were really on the decline, much of the local interest having retired with the home company and the home stars. During this management a few notable names appeared on the bills : Miss Fanny Cathcart, (from a famous English family of actors), James A. Heme, John McCullough, J. T. Raymond, Dion Boucicault, T. A. Lyne, William Hoskirs (one of London's best comedians), Agnes Booth, W. J. Florence, Katharine Rogers. These were the only names of special note during a period of neai ly two years. Jean Clara Walters was the leading stock lady; and she was a bef er actress than the majority of the " stars " passing across the continent. After Vinson, the active management fell into the hands of Mr. W. T. Harris. Returning from the Eastern States, Vinson tarried in Salt Lake City for a short engagement, opening in TuUidge's play of "David Ben Israel," he sustaining the title role. Then came the prince of actors, Edwin Adams. After their de- parture the stock company lingered, languished and died in the spring of 1879, when Manager Harris found it impossible to cast an ordinary piece, with all the auxiliaries of the city to fill the minor parts. Indeed there had really been no standing stock company for several years, but periodically there had appeared theatrical people, interspersed with minstrel companies, which in a way supplied a link between the fine theatrical history of our city as seen in the past with that of the future, when it is to be hoped the enthusiastic soul of that past will be transmigrated into a higher cast of home professionals. The lesson to be gathered from the review seems to be, that this revival and the inspiring of the public with a sustained local interest, can only be brought about by similar methods and means as those which gave the 'former triumphs — a home company of talented artists. This review brings us at once to the history of the young Home Dramatic Club, as sketched by one of its members : A new era in the theatrical history of the city may be said to have begun in 18S0, when a number of young people belonging to well-known families, organized the Home Dramatic Club, and inaugurated a series of performances that has not yet ended, and which we hope will continue to entertain the citizens for years to come. The venture was probably an outcome of the many private entertainments of the Wasatch Literary Association, which from 1876 to 1879, "^^^ weekly at the homes of the members and naturally developed, among the other exercises, a good de- gree of dramatic ability. The original members of the Home Dramatic Club were Heber M. Wells, Orson F. Whitney, Laron A. Cummings, John D. Spencer, Miss Lottie Claridge and Mrs. Cummings (nee Dellie Clawson), with H. L. A. Culmer and H. G. Whitney as managers. For their opening piece they chose Les- ter Wallack's adaptation, of " The Romance of a Poor Young Man," which was presented on the evening of April ist, 1S80, to a well filled house. The wide ac- quaintance and well known ability of the players, together with the energy of their young managers, had predisposed the public to look at least for a respectable rep- resentation; but a general surprise was expressed at the singular excellence of their 1 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 763 first performance. Only a few days before it came off, an old-time player on the Salt Lake stage, taking one of the managers aside; said, with well meaning con- cern, " Don't you know you young folks have made a great mistake in choosing the ' Romance ' for your opening piece ? It is one of the most difficult plays out- side of Shakspeare. You ought to have taken some easy little piece to begin on." The listener took great care not to repeat what he had heard, but urged the others on to further rehearsals and greater care. The performance was a complete suc- cess, was presented again and again to still larger audiences, and the members shared a nice dividend in addition to the glory they had won. The readiness of the citizens to support any respectable company of local players was again shown, proving that the decadence of home drama, to whatever else it might be attrib- uted, was not due to weariness of appreciation on the part of a people who had ever loved the Salt Lake stage from the night when the footlights first blazed there. From the time this Club first produced the " Romance " until the present, it has continued to be the only dramatic organization of importance to which the city could lay claim. It is true that, its members being engaged iii other pursuits, it is a company of amateurs, after all, but the character of its productions have been such as to once more establish the dignity of the stage and prove the dra- matic talents that exist among us. It is fitting that the young Whitneys and the young Clawsons took part in this revival, and there is no doubt that their connec- tion with the new Club did much to predispose the public in its favor. It was a wise feature of their policy that they drew to their assistance whatever other young people of the city gave promise of dramatic ability, thus giving opportun- ities to prove the marked talents of Misses Edith Clawson, Birdie Clawson, Mr. B. S. Young, and not a few others. So long a time had elapsed between the old time vigor of the Deseret Associa- tion and the advent of the Home Dramatic Club, that the methods of the latter, when they once got fairly to work, seemed quite revolutionary. Instead of the heavy dramas and tragedies which afforded the triumphs of early days, they aimed at modern methods. For the fire and passion of the romantic and classical plays, they substituted the polish and finesse of emotional dramas and eccentric com- edies of the present school. Compared with their own stupendous tragedies of by-gone days, the old-time actors, what few of them remained, failed to see much in these performances, but they were "up to date," and when their drift was learned they became popular. The first attempt of this kind on the part of the Club was the performance of " Ours," a few weeks after their initial appearance, and it is safe to say that the public Were more indulgent than amused by it ; but the young actors were on the track which has since led them into great public favor and unfailing support. The comparative failure of this comedy frightened them for a time, however, and they returned to more demonstrative pieces, such as "Extremes," "Rosedale," and further repetitions of the " Romance." The following Christmas they presented "Pique" to crowded houses, and on New Year's put on the most successful piece they ever played, " The Banker's Daugh- ter." By this time a new play by the Home Dramatic Club meant an overflow- ing audience of our best citizens, and, of course, large earnings. The four ren- ii 766 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. ditions of "The Banker's Daughter" drew over $3,500, of which $2,221.72 was profit, and the Club felt that they could well afford to put pieces on in the hand- somest manner possible. About this time, the owners of the building ,nade an arrangement with Henry C. Tryon, Esq., a noted scenic artist of Chicago, to en- tirely refit the Salt Lake Theatre with scenery, and the splendid work he did con- tributed in no small degree to the brilliancy of their efforts. The Club itself was by no means niggardly, often venturing an outlay approaching a thousand dollars in its preparation for some special entertainment ; and when fitting occasion offered itself was free in giving its talents for the relief of charity. Thus, in January, 1881, when an awful snowslide buried the town of Alta, with many of its occupants and drove the homeless survivors to this city, the Club hastily impro- vised an entertainment and gave the entire profits, over $750.00, to the sufferers. Perhaps it is due to such a policy that in the six years career of the Club it has yet to give a performance on which it has not made a profit. At any rate, its uniform prosperity is an undying testimony to the liberal appreciation of our citi- zens towards earnest attempts to furnish them with dramatic amusement. The records of the Club show the average nightly receipts to have been $475.17 of which $204.35 ^'^s been profit. It is doubtful whether a dramatic organization in any other city of America has had such support extending over so long a period. Their last, and perhaps in most respects their greatest, success was in ''Confusion," in which Mr. John D. White shone out as director and manager and played a leading role. In this dramatic revival the building of the Walker Opera House has played a very influential prompting part. The Walker Opera House was opened on the night of the 5th of June, 1882, with a concert given by the Careless Orchestra. Of the occasion and the house the Salt Lake Herald, on the next morning, said : " This pretty theatre was opened to the public last evening, and attracted an audience of several hundred ladies and gentlemen, the orchestra chairs and par- quette circle being fairly filled, and there were many people in the two galleries. Much has been said in the newspapers lately descriptive of the house, its arrange- ment and finish, hence the company were in a measure acquainted with the place ; but the quite general suprise manifested and the pleasure expressed, plainly showed that the people had but a faint conception of the beauty, even elegance, of the handsome interior. The artistically frescoed ceiling, the richly papered walls, the luxurious upholstery, the charmmg scence on the curtain, the profusion of gold, the richness and completeness everywhere apparent attracted attention and delighted the senses. All is new and bright) and the appropriateness of every- thing struck everybody as remarkable. Taste and skill have made this a most de- lightful place for amusement, and the audience appreciated the fact, for they were profuse with praise of the work of the artizan and the artist, and loud in expres- sions of admiration for the beautiful to be seen on all sides. Some finishing touches are yet lacking, and the furnishings are not yet complete, but their ab- sence detracts little from the appearnce of the charming auditorium. " Very appropriately the Opera House was inaugurated by a concert given by local talent, and if the entertainment is an indication of what will follow, the r HISTORY OF SALT LAKE CITY. 767 public may expect a series of gQod things at this new hooie of the song and the drama. The programme comprised selections by the Careless Orchestra, instru- mental solos, songs, etc., under the musical conductorship of Mr. George Care- less, and there was nothing done that did not excite enthuiastic applause. We believe everything was encored. The company seemed unable to get enough of the sweet voice of Mrs. Careless, who could only quiet the audience by re-appear- ing twice and singing a third song. The lady was also the recipient of magnifi- cent bouquets. Mr. R. Gorlinski, who is a well known local favorite, delighted ihe audience with an aria from * E Puritani,' and was especially happy in an encore. Mrs. J. Leviberg, as a debutante, we believe, so far as relates to Salt Lake, made a highly favorable inipression as a vocalist, Those who heard her will hope to often be charmed by her sweet singing. One of the most enjoyable parts of the programme was ' The Night before the Battle,' by the quartette, Misses Olsen and Richards and Messrs. Whitney and Spencer. Altogether the entertainment was artistic and extremely pleasurable, and such as can be often repeated without wearying the public. A concert by the Careless Orchestra will be given at the Opera House this evening. ''The proprietors of the Opera House, and the public are to be congratu- lated upon the successful opening of this new temple of amusement which is a . "edit to the owners, the builders and the city." The concert was repeated on the following evening. On the 8th of June, the first dramatic performance was given, by one of liaverly's companies, in the play of " My Partner. " Louis Aldrich, as Joe binders, starred in the play, and George D. Chaplin, who had on several occa- -ons starred at the Salt Lake Theatre, performed the comedy. The Home Dramatic Club, at a later period, also gave several dramatic per- i rmances at the Opera House. Since its opening, a number of the stars of the '•'' orld, dramatic and operatic, including the great Janauschek have performed at :.l.is house. 1 768 HISTORY OF SALT LAKE C1T\. 'CHAPTER LXXXVI. MUSICAL HISTORY OF OUR CITY. GRAND PERFORMANCE'OF THE -MESSIAH." PERSONAL SKETCHES OF THE MUSICAL PROFESSORS. Musical development is very much the index of civilization, and its variations of quality the signs of national character. Nations highly advanced and refined have fine musical taste, such as the Germans, the Italians and the English, Their educated classes cannot endure crude compositions. Nothing less than exquisite strains of melody, and the grandest harmonies will satisfy the soul attuned to the beautiful and the sublime. On the other hand the Chinese, the American In- dians, and the races generally who are crude in their natures, and unprogressive in their national characters have very poor perceptions of sweet melodic strains or harmonic grandeur. Kettle drums, and noisy discordant instruments would afford them more delight than the matchless oratories of Handel and Haydn, or the solemn majesty of the Masses of Mozart. In the growth of the arts, music springs up among their first outshoots, tak- ing the precedence, in the unfolding of civilization, of every genius but that of poetry — as the second born of the Muses, she starts out with her divine mission. In her first stage she takes the form of simple song. Like as poetry, when far ad- vanced, brings to its aid writing and printing, with their magician-like powers and agencies, so music, in her advancement, arranges her alphabet, notation, and her art becomes elaborated in science. Like also as poetry from the crude body of verse receives a massive and infinitely capacitated transformation into universal literature, so music rises from her primitive form of simple song and clothes her- self in grand gigantic harmonies. No longer a hymn or a ballad from untutored voices and inartistic votaries, but a volume of Creation from the creator Haydn; from the harmonic Handel, a Messiah, bearing the almighty majesty of his Halle- lujah chorus to the Lord God Omnipotent, and from Mozart a consecrated mass to Deity. The genius of music develops capacities and forms for all the exposi- tions of the harmonies of nature and the human soul, and for her interpretation she is no longer dependent on unlearned composers, nor upon uncouth utterance from untutored voices. The history and schools of music agree with the stages of civilization. In cathedral times we have cathedral music. Their solemn, massive forms and eccle- siastical sublimity resemble the religious service of the age to which they belong . Masses, anthems, and Luther's hymns show their quality. The Oratorio resembk - the epic poem translated into another tongue of art, with the same principles, tht. same style, the same majestic elaboration. It is, however, Hebraic and not Gre- cian in its spirit, prophetic and not heroic in its themes. As yet the Oratorio ii the best form and style that has been given in modern times of music suitable f